Chapter 16: - Through the Trapdoor
"Then we go after him," Harry said, "We'll go now." Harry raced up to his dorm and grabbed his invisibility cloak and ran back down, Yami and Ombre were the first out the Common Room, with Joey, Harry and Ron not far behind. Hermione was last, unsure if this was a good idea. Neville tried to stop them as they exited the Common Room. "You can't…you'll get Gryffindor into trouble."
"Neville," Yami growled, "Get out of my way."
"No… I won't let you do it. I'll… I'll fight you!"
"Neville…" Yami's voice was dangerously low, Joey recognised this Yami as the one from four years ago, before he and Yugi had really been a team. Yugi had once said that the spirits of the Millennium Items needed their hikaris to keep them from returning to the darkness from which they'd been liberated and it seemed if the link went dead... Joey went to get Neville out of the way before Yami did, by less pleasant methods, but was beaten to the punch by Hermione.
"Neville, this is for your good, Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione cried, pointing her wand at Neville, who's arms snapped to his sides, his legs sprang together and his whole body went rigid, he swayed where he stood and fell flat on his face, stiff as a board.
Hermione flipped him over, Neville's teeth were jammed together so he couldn't speak, but his eyes followed them, there was horror in them. "The full body bind. I'm sorry Neville."
"It's better then what would have happened had you not got out of his way." Joey said, waving towards Yami, who'd joined Harry and they grouped together,
"Can we cover six people with the invisibility cloak?" Hermione asked, they tried it and it was a stretch but it just about covered all of them. As they reached the third floor, Yami and Ombre spotted something on the floor and Yami growled, picking up the fallen piece of the Millennium Puzzle, The rest was no where to be seen, this was the final piece so Yugi probably had the rest with him, but even with just one piece missing…, the Puzzle had to be complete for their link to be there.
He turned to Ombre, who was holding the golden Orb, which gave her, the link to her hikari with fear and dread and one other emotion, one that Yami too was feeling, pure rage. "If he's hurt them in any way…" Yami let that threat hang; Joey recognised the start of a Pharaonic explosion and prayed the next person to cross him wasn't one of their friends.
"You two can go back if you want." Harry said to Ron and Hermione, "And take the invisibility cloak, I won't need it any more."
"Don't be stupid." Said Ron.
"We're coming." Hermione said too.
"Yami." Called a voice from behind them, not one Joey was happy to hear right now, especially with Yami's current frame of mind.
"Kaiba." Yami growled, turning around slowly. Kaiba realised instantly this wasn't a good time to challenge him to a duel, in fact this would be a very good time to turn and run very, very far away. Something bad had obviously happened to put Yami in as bad a mood as to scare the mutt. Something, Kaiba thought, that has something to do with Yugi, I'd bet. "I don't have time to deal with you now." Kaiba couldn't help but notice that Kari Ironhide was missing too, which probably accounted for Ombre's bad mood.
"I'm guessing something has happened to your 'hikaris'," Kaiba continued, well aware Yami was itching to hurt someone right now and one false move would make it him. "And that you think that it has something to do with the Philosopher's Stone hidden in that corridor."
"That's right, but I really suggest you don't get in our way. Not if you like your soul where it is." Ombre growled, her voice dark and her eyes flashing.
"I wouldn't dare with you two in this sort of mood." Kaiba gulped, backing away slowly, "I was about to offer my help actually."
"How did you even know we were here? And why would you help us?" Yami growled, moving towards the door.
"I don't wish Yugi dead, I did once, and I was a different person then, now I want to beat him and if Ironhide dies I lose valuable and respected member of staff, the likes of which I'm liable never to get again. Oh if you're going to go around the school, invisible, at least tell the mutt to make less noise." Kaiba smirked and Joey launched himself at Kaiba who ducked under Joey's punch and moved back."
"Joey!" Yami snapped and Joey stopped immediately. "This isn't the time or place fro fighting, or aggravating, that means you too Kaiba." Harry went to unlock the door but found someone had done it already.
"Ready guys?" Harry asked, wondering if he should let Joey finish punching Kaiba.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kari groaned and opened her eyes, last thing she remembered, she and Yugi had been duelling and then… It wasn't Snape! It was Quirrell, Quirrell was the one who was after the Philosopher's Stone. She looked around, she must have been leant up against a wall, one behind the Mirror of Erised, which Quirrell was stood in front of, because she could see the door. Yugi was next to her, still out cold, his wrists and ankles bound the same as hers with their hands trapped behind their backs. She growled softly when she saw her's and Yugi's wands and their amulets in a small pile by the door, there were no signs of… no wait, there was a piece missing but the Millennium Puzzle was by Quirrell's feet, however the Orb was nowhere to be seen.
Yugi groaned and Kari's attention snapped back to him, he'd bashed his head on the way down when Quirrell had stunned them after getting annoyed with them for taking so long to duel, so Yugi's head probably hurt. She was right, Yugi's vision swam as he opened his eyes. "Where are we?" He asked as he looked around, having spotted Kari first.
"I think we're down the trapdoor in the third floor corridor." Kari answered quietly, trying not to attract Quirrell's attention. It didn't work.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yami was staring down a giant three headed dog when the weakened form of his link with Yugi came back, "Yugi's down there, so we have to get past the dog." Kaiba looked at him stunned, mere seconds ago Yami would have sent the dog, hell the entire castle to the Shadow Realm to get Yugi back. No, Kaiba thought, maybe not the entire castle, but defiantly this corridor and the Slytherin Common Rooms. There was a harp by Fluffy's feet. If the missing duellists weren't enough to go by then that was proof that someone had gotten past Fluffy. However the dog was awake now, Harry pulled something out of his pocket, a roughly carved wooden flute.
"And that's going to help us how?"
"Ah ha, so Rich-boy doesn't know everyth…" Joey trailed off after getting glared at by Yami and Kaiba at the same time. Note to self, don't even try to joke at the moment. Harry put Hagrid's flute to his lips and blew. It wasn't really a tune but it was enough to put the dog to sleep. "Keep playing." Joey murmured as they slipped out of the cloak and crept towards the trap door. They opened it, "I can't see anything." Joey continued to murmur. "I'm gunna go first." Joey dropped down, closely followed by Harry, Yami, Ombre, Kaiba, Ron and Hermione.
With a muffled thump, they landed on something soft. "What is this stuff?" Ron asked.
"Dunno, a sort of plant thing. I suppose it's here to break the fall." Hermione landed next to Ron.
"We must be miles under the school." She said, looking around.
"Lucky this plant things here."
"Lucky?" Shrieked Hermione, "Look at all of us!" She leapt up and struggled towards a damp wall. She had to struggle because the moment she'd landed, the plant had started to wind snake like tendrils around her ankles. As for they others, their legs had been bound tightly in long creepers without them noticing. Hermione had managed to free herself before the plant got a firm hold on her. Now she had to watch as the others tried to free themselves, but the plant came back with a vengeance, winding round the struggling figures faster and tighter.
"Stop moving!" Hermione ordered them, even Kaiba stopped to listen. "I know what this is, the Devil's Snare."
"Oh, I'm so glad we know what it's called, that's a great help." Ron snarled, but Kaiba was thinking.
"Shut up, I'm trying to remember how to kill it!" Hermione said.
"Well hurry up, I can't breathe." Harry gasped, wrestling with it as it wound around his chest.
"Devil's Snare thrives in the dark and damp…" Kaiba started, thinking back to his lessons with Professor Sprout.
"So I need a fire!" Hermione smiled, then frowned.
"HERMIONE!" Joey growled, Yami and Ombre weren't saying much, deciding to pay more attention to the plant then yelling at Hermione.
"But there's no wood!" She cried. At this point Yami's temper flared again.
"HAVE YOU GONE MAD?" He roared, scaring everyone into silence, "ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?"
Hermione didn't have any response other then to pull out her wand, muttered something and sent a jet of bluebell flames she had used on Snape at the plant. In a matter of seconds the plant had unwound from around the others and they were free. "Lucky rich-boy pays attention in Herbology." Joey admitted, the first one to speak after Yami's outburst, as they walked down a stone passage way.
"Humph," Kaiba said, unused to complements from the mutt, "Yami got Hermione moving."
"Considering I heard you didn't believe in magic, I've heard you're doing pretty well." Hermione said, avoiding Yami, who seemed to have calmed down slightly. She knew this was hard on him but his temper scared her. "I've heard you're top of your house." Kaiba preened and Joey saw this and couldn't resist.
"Trust rich-boy to have to prove himself better then everyone else." Joey said loudly, smirking as he did so. Kaiba growled but ignored him, something that surprised Ombre who was walking silently. "Don't worry guys, we'll find them, and if Snape's hurt them you can do whatever you like to him." Joey said and then was slightly worried about the malicious look that dawned on Yami and Ombre's faces, Kaiba saw them and decided he was glad he was on their side for once.
"Can you hear something?" Ron whispered. They listened, a soft rustling and clinking noise seemed to be coming from up ahead. "Do you think it's a ghost?"
"I don't know." Yami said, speaking for the first time since he'd yelled at Hermione. "Sounds like wings to me… Hermione," He continued, "I'm sorry for yelling at you." Hermione flashed him a hurt smile and Yami sighed, he had to make it up to Hermione somehow. "There's a light up ahead, I can see something moving."
They reached the end of the passageway and saw before them a brilliantly lit chamber, it's ceiling reaching at least as far as they'd fallen and arching high above them. It was full of small jewel bright birds, fluttering and tumbling all around the room. On the opposite side of the chamber was a heavy wooden door. "Do you think they'll attack us if we cross?"
"Probably," said Harry, "They don't look very vicious, but I suppose if they all swooped at once…"
"Well then…" Joey said, pulling out his wand, "I'll run for it." Joey took a deep breath and raced across the room. He expected the birds to attack him but nothing happened. He reached the door untouched and was joined in short order by Harry. Joey pulled the handle, but it wouldn't budge, it was locked. The others joined them by the door and Hermione pulled out her wand, "Alohomora!" She said, trying the charm on the door, to no effect.
"Now what?" Joey asked, turning around and scowling. He reached up to his neck and yanked his amulet off. Once he was a teenager again he turned to the door and tried to tackle it, bouncing off the solid wooden door. Yami and Kaiba did the same, causing Harry to go flash blind for a couple of minutes because he'd forgotten to close his eyes. The three tackled the door but it wouldn't budge. Yami growled at it, as Ombre pulled her's off and joined them, but they had to give up when Joey hurt his shoulder from bashing into the door wrong. The teens pocketed their amulets, they didn't need them down here and Harry, Ron and Hermione already knew about them. And if Snape didn't it would be a good shock for him.
Hermione meanwhile had been watching the birds and once the teenagers had stopped acting like human battering rams she spoke, "These birds… they can't just be here for decoration."
Harry looked up, "They're not birds." He said suddenly, "They're keys, winged keys. Look carefully. So that must mean…" He looked around the chamber, "Yes, look, three broomsticks, we've got to catch the key to the door… oh." He said as he realised that there was more of them then there were broomsticks. Ron examined the lock on the door.
"Whoever goes up is looking for a big, old fashioned one, probably silver like the handle."
"Harry should go up, he's the best flyer." Joey said, looking slightly green, "and Ron, he has the most experience, and…"
"I'm not taking my feet off the ground." Yami said, Joey looked at him in shock, he actually was greener then Joey was at this point. Obviously the Pharaoh didn't like to fly, but he'd seemed so calm during Battle City, when they'd been going up the inside of the Battle Tower, Joey had to wonder how Yami had kept his cool then.
"Fine I'll do it," Kaiba said, storing the fact that Yami didn't like to fly away for further use at a later date when winding the man up wasn't an invitation to send him to the Shadow Realm, there was annoyance in his voice, but his eyes spoke differently, he loved to fly. "I can fly better then any of you amateurs anyway." Kaiba looked ever so smug as he grabbed the third broom and was in the air seconds behind Harry. Hermione rolled her eyes at the rest of the group as Ron joined Harry and Kaiba in the air.
Harry was the first one to spot the key they wanted, "There, that big one… there… no… there… with bright blue wings… the feathers are all crumpled on one side!" He shouted to the other two. Ron went speeding in the direction that Harry was pointing, crashed into the ceiling and nearly fell off his broom. "We've got to close in on it." Harry called, not taking his eyes off the needed key, "Ron, come at it from above, Kaiba make sure it doesn't escape downwards, I'll try to catch it." Kaiba didn't like being ordered around by someone 9 years younger then him, but Harry had come up with the most logical plan, even if Kaiba didn't like it. "Right? NOW!"
Ron shot downwards, Kaiba rocketed up and Harry managed to pin the key against a stone wall and bring it down to the door, with Joey, Ron and Hermione cheering, where Joey grabbed it as they landed and unlocked the door to the next room.
The torches lit up and they realised they'd walked onto a giant chess board, just behind the first row of black chess pieces. "Now what?" Harry asked.
"It's obvious, isn't it? We have to play our way across the room." Said Ron.
"How?" Ombre asked, angrily, this was taking too much time.
"That'll be easy. I beat my foster-father and he was the best in Japan."
"At Muggle Chess, maybe, but this will probably be like Wizards Chess." Ron said, he'd never had the chance to play Kaiba since he was in another house to them. Kaiba snorted.
"Like there's much difference." Ron ignored Kaiba and placed his hand on one of the pieces and it came to life, Ron asked it a couple of questions then turned to the others, "Ok, this needs thinking about, we've got to take the place of seven black pieces." Kaiba was sorely tempted to have Yami as a pawn.
"Alright," Ron said finally, thinking it through, "Joey, King's side castle, Harry, Queen's hand bishop, Hermione, you take the castle's place on that side…" Ron stopped to think about it some more. "Yami, take the place of the King, Ombre, King's hand bishop, Kaiba…"
"I decide where I'm going; I'll be the Queen's hand knight."
"That's where I was going to put you," Ron hissed to Kaiba, then spoke loudly, "And I'll be the other knight." As if him finishing was a que, the listening chess pieces left the board.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quirrell frowned, he couldn't work out how to get the Stone out of the mirror, he growled and had an idea, stomping over to Yugi and Kari he grabbed Yugi by the hair and waved his wand, causing the rope binding Yugi's feet to fall away. Kari growled as the Professor pulled Yugi to his feet, and tried to squirm against her bonds but Quirrell pointed his wand at her chest and she stopped.
He pulled Yugi over to the mirror and asked "What can you see?" Yugi wouldn't tell him.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ron frowned as he looked around the board, only 4 moves in and already something was wrong, Ron was sure Kaiba was leading them into a trap, but couldn't see where it was properly, he just knew. Kaiba got Joey to move and Ron saw it, too late to say anything. "Joey! Look out!"
Joey turned in time to see the white knight approaching, "Oh…!" Joey swore in Japanese but didn't duck in time to avoid the knight's mace, which slammed into him, hard. Joey flew backwards and slammed into the wall and fell to the ground, unconscious. Ombre went to check if he was alright but was yelled at to stay where she was by Ron. Yami growled and though he didn't move off his square, he wheeled around, "You did that on purpose Kaiba!" He shouted, the noise reverberating off the walls.
"No! I didn't…" Kaiba said, glad that he was half a board away from Yami. He hadn't seen it coming… how had he not seen that coming? He hadn't done that on purpose, though no one would believe him now. If he was any good he would have realised he was sending the mutt into a trap.
Ron meanwhile was looking around at the playing field. With Joey's defeat the Knight was free to attack Ombre next move. Ron looked around, Kaiba looked as though he'd been hit by a ton of bricks, Ron had the feeling that while he might dislike Joey that hadn't been part of Kaiba's plan. Ron took over, "Queen to E7" he called allowing their Queen to capture the offending white knight.
Ron continued to lead them, "We're nearly there," He muttered suddenly, "Let me think… let me think…" Kaiba came out of the stupor he'd been in, in time to see the white queen turn towards Ron.
"Ron…" Kaiba spoke, earning a glare from Yami, "You shouldn't…"
"Yes… it's the only way… I've got to be taken."
"No!" Harry and Hermione shouted.
"That's chess, you've got to make sacrifices, I take one step forward and she takes me, I'm sure you see the next move Kaiba." Kaiba looked around. He did, clearly.
"That leaves Harry free to checkmate the King."
"But…"
"Do you want to save Yugi and Kari and stop Snape or what?"
"Ron…" Harry said, knowing Ron was right but not liking it.
"Look, if we don't hurry put, he'll have the Stone and he could have…" Kaiba trailed off, he wasn't going to finish that sentence.
"Ready?" Ron was pale but determined, "Here I go, don't hang around once you've won."
He stepped forward and the white Queen pounced, hit Ron hard with her stone arm. Ron crumpled to the floor. Hermione screamed but remembered what Ron had said to Ombre and stayed on her square. The White Queen dragged Ron to one side of the board, he'd been knocked out. Shaking Harry moved to checkmate the king. The king threw his crown at Harry's feet. With a last desperate look at their friends, the remaining five dashed through the door.
A disgusting smell assaulted their nostrils and a troll rushed at them. "Oh not again." Harry groaned and dodged the troll's rush. The five scattered, and everyone drew their wands, the troll swiped at the nearest target, Ombre, who hit the wall hard. The troll raised it's club and went to smush Ombre. Kaiba got in it's way, casting a spell that sent the troll stumbling backwards, but getting hit in the process. Yami and Harry looked at each other, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The troll's club flew out of it's hand and fell on it's head, knocking it out.
Kaiba staggered to his feet. He felt like someone had hit him with a bus. Yami was looking at him funny. "Why did you..?"
"I made one mistake, I wasn't about to make another." Kaiba said, but he wondered which of the four Yamis stood in front of him, asked the question. Yami and Harry lifted Ombre into the next room, where there were differently shaped bottles. "Snape's." Said Harry, as fire sprung up in the doorway behind them, purple fire, in front of them, black fire sprung up in the doorway, blocking their way forward.
"Isn't it obvious, we've got to drink one of the potions." Kaiba said picking up one of the bottles and drinking it. Hermione looked up from the scroll she'd found as he did so.
"Kaiba! No!" Too late, as Kaiba slumped to the floor. She checked him over, "Sleeping potion, he's fine."
"At least there's one less wrong choice." Yami joked, Hermione rolled her eyes, and reread the scroll.
"Ok," She said after walking up and down the line a few times, muttering to herself, "The smallest bottle will take us through the fire."
"There's only enough for two of us, a sip each at best." Yami said, picking it up.
"Which one will get you back?" Harry asked Hermione, she picked it up. "You drink that, no, listen; you know the spells to get the rest back safely, go straight to the owlery and send a message to Professor Dumbledore, we need him. Yami and I'll go forward." Hermione ran forward and hugged Harry.
"Be careful." She said then drank the potion and tipped some into Kaiba and Ombre's mouths. "Mobilus Corpus." She said, and Kaiba and Ombre lifted off of the ground. They vanished through the purple fire. Yami and Harry looked at each other, and took a sip of the potion to go forward. They dashed through the black fire, hoping the others would be alright. For a moment all they could see was black flames then they emerged on the other side, in the last chamber.
There were people already there, Yugi and Kari and…
"That's not Snape." Yami growled.
"Neville," Yami growled, "Get out of my way."
"No… I won't let you do it. I'll… I'll fight you!"
"Neville…" Yami's voice was dangerously low, Joey recognised this Yami as the one from four years ago, before he and Yugi had really been a team. Yugi had once said that the spirits of the Millennium Items needed their hikaris to keep them from returning to the darkness from which they'd been liberated and it seemed if the link went dead... Joey went to get Neville out of the way before Yami did, by less pleasant methods, but was beaten to the punch by Hermione.
"Neville, this is for your good, Petrificus Totalus!" Hermione cried, pointing her wand at Neville, who's arms snapped to his sides, his legs sprang together and his whole body went rigid, he swayed where he stood and fell flat on his face, stiff as a board.
Hermione flipped him over, Neville's teeth were jammed together so he couldn't speak, but his eyes followed them, there was horror in them. "The full body bind. I'm sorry Neville."
"It's better then what would have happened had you not got out of his way." Joey said, waving towards Yami, who'd joined Harry and they grouped together,
"Can we cover six people with the invisibility cloak?" Hermione asked, they tried it and it was a stretch but it just about covered all of them. As they reached the third floor, Yami and Ombre spotted something on the floor and Yami growled, picking up the fallen piece of the Millennium Puzzle, The rest was no where to be seen, this was the final piece so Yugi probably had the rest with him, but even with just one piece missing…, the Puzzle had to be complete for their link to be there.
He turned to Ombre, who was holding the golden Orb, which gave her, the link to her hikari with fear and dread and one other emotion, one that Yami too was feeling, pure rage. "If he's hurt them in any way…" Yami let that threat hang; Joey recognised the start of a Pharaonic explosion and prayed the next person to cross him wasn't one of their friends.
"You two can go back if you want." Harry said to Ron and Hermione, "And take the invisibility cloak, I won't need it any more."
"Don't be stupid." Said Ron.
"We're coming." Hermione said too.
"Yami." Called a voice from behind them, not one Joey was happy to hear right now, especially with Yami's current frame of mind.
"Kaiba." Yami growled, turning around slowly. Kaiba realised instantly this wasn't a good time to challenge him to a duel, in fact this would be a very good time to turn and run very, very far away. Something bad had obviously happened to put Yami in as bad a mood as to scare the mutt. Something, Kaiba thought, that has something to do with Yugi, I'd bet. "I don't have time to deal with you now." Kaiba couldn't help but notice that Kari Ironhide was missing too, which probably accounted for Ombre's bad mood.
"I'm guessing something has happened to your 'hikaris'," Kaiba continued, well aware Yami was itching to hurt someone right now and one false move would make it him. "And that you think that it has something to do with the Philosopher's Stone hidden in that corridor."
"That's right, but I really suggest you don't get in our way. Not if you like your soul where it is." Ombre growled, her voice dark and her eyes flashing.
"I wouldn't dare with you two in this sort of mood." Kaiba gulped, backing away slowly, "I was about to offer my help actually."
"How did you even know we were here? And why would you help us?" Yami growled, moving towards the door.
"I don't wish Yugi dead, I did once, and I was a different person then, now I want to beat him and if Ironhide dies I lose valuable and respected member of staff, the likes of which I'm liable never to get again. Oh if you're going to go around the school, invisible, at least tell the mutt to make less noise." Kaiba smirked and Joey launched himself at Kaiba who ducked under Joey's punch and moved back."
"Joey!" Yami snapped and Joey stopped immediately. "This isn't the time or place fro fighting, or aggravating, that means you too Kaiba." Harry went to unlock the door but found someone had done it already.
"Ready guys?" Harry asked, wondering if he should let Joey finish punching Kaiba.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Kari groaned and opened her eyes, last thing she remembered, she and Yugi had been duelling and then… It wasn't Snape! It was Quirrell, Quirrell was the one who was after the Philosopher's Stone. She looked around, she must have been leant up against a wall, one behind the Mirror of Erised, which Quirrell was stood in front of, because she could see the door. Yugi was next to her, still out cold, his wrists and ankles bound the same as hers with their hands trapped behind their backs. She growled softly when she saw her's and Yugi's wands and their amulets in a small pile by the door, there were no signs of… no wait, there was a piece missing but the Millennium Puzzle was by Quirrell's feet, however the Orb was nowhere to be seen.
Yugi groaned and Kari's attention snapped back to him, he'd bashed his head on the way down when Quirrell had stunned them after getting annoyed with them for taking so long to duel, so Yugi's head probably hurt. She was right, Yugi's vision swam as he opened his eyes. "Where are we?" He asked as he looked around, having spotted Kari first.
"I think we're down the trapdoor in the third floor corridor." Kari answered quietly, trying not to attract Quirrell's attention. It didn't work.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Yami was staring down a giant three headed dog when the weakened form of his link with Yugi came back, "Yugi's down there, so we have to get past the dog." Kaiba looked at him stunned, mere seconds ago Yami would have sent the dog, hell the entire castle to the Shadow Realm to get Yugi back. No, Kaiba thought, maybe not the entire castle, but defiantly this corridor and the Slytherin Common Rooms. There was a harp by Fluffy's feet. If the missing duellists weren't enough to go by then that was proof that someone had gotten past Fluffy. However the dog was awake now, Harry pulled something out of his pocket, a roughly carved wooden flute.
"And that's going to help us how?"
"Ah ha, so Rich-boy doesn't know everyth…" Joey trailed off after getting glared at by Yami and Kaiba at the same time. Note to self, don't even try to joke at the moment. Harry put Hagrid's flute to his lips and blew. It wasn't really a tune but it was enough to put the dog to sleep. "Keep playing." Joey murmured as they slipped out of the cloak and crept towards the trap door. They opened it, "I can't see anything." Joey continued to murmur. "I'm gunna go first." Joey dropped down, closely followed by Harry, Yami, Ombre, Kaiba, Ron and Hermione.
With a muffled thump, they landed on something soft. "What is this stuff?" Ron asked.
"Dunno, a sort of plant thing. I suppose it's here to break the fall." Hermione landed next to Ron.
"We must be miles under the school." She said, looking around.
"Lucky this plant things here."
"Lucky?" Shrieked Hermione, "Look at all of us!" She leapt up and struggled towards a damp wall. She had to struggle because the moment she'd landed, the plant had started to wind snake like tendrils around her ankles. As for they others, their legs had been bound tightly in long creepers without them noticing. Hermione had managed to free herself before the plant got a firm hold on her. Now she had to watch as the others tried to free themselves, but the plant came back with a vengeance, winding round the struggling figures faster and tighter.
"Stop moving!" Hermione ordered them, even Kaiba stopped to listen. "I know what this is, the Devil's Snare."
"Oh, I'm so glad we know what it's called, that's a great help." Ron snarled, but Kaiba was thinking.
"Shut up, I'm trying to remember how to kill it!" Hermione said.
"Well hurry up, I can't breathe." Harry gasped, wrestling with it as it wound around his chest.
"Devil's Snare thrives in the dark and damp…" Kaiba started, thinking back to his lessons with Professor Sprout.
"So I need a fire!" Hermione smiled, then frowned.
"HERMIONE!" Joey growled, Yami and Ombre weren't saying much, deciding to pay more attention to the plant then yelling at Hermione.
"But there's no wood!" She cried. At this point Yami's temper flared again.
"HAVE YOU GONE MAD?" He roared, scaring everyone into silence, "ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?"
Hermione didn't have any response other then to pull out her wand, muttered something and sent a jet of bluebell flames she had used on Snape at the plant. In a matter of seconds the plant had unwound from around the others and they were free. "Lucky rich-boy pays attention in Herbology." Joey admitted, the first one to speak after Yami's outburst, as they walked down a stone passage way.
"Humph," Kaiba said, unused to complements from the mutt, "Yami got Hermione moving."
"Considering I heard you didn't believe in magic, I've heard you're doing pretty well." Hermione said, avoiding Yami, who seemed to have calmed down slightly. She knew this was hard on him but his temper scared her. "I've heard you're top of your house." Kaiba preened and Joey saw this and couldn't resist.
"Trust rich-boy to have to prove himself better then everyone else." Joey said loudly, smirking as he did so. Kaiba growled but ignored him, something that surprised Ombre who was walking silently. "Don't worry guys, we'll find them, and if Snape's hurt them you can do whatever you like to him." Joey said and then was slightly worried about the malicious look that dawned on Yami and Ombre's faces, Kaiba saw them and decided he was glad he was on their side for once.
"Can you hear something?" Ron whispered. They listened, a soft rustling and clinking noise seemed to be coming from up ahead. "Do you think it's a ghost?"
"I don't know." Yami said, speaking for the first time since he'd yelled at Hermione. "Sounds like wings to me… Hermione," He continued, "I'm sorry for yelling at you." Hermione flashed him a hurt smile and Yami sighed, he had to make it up to Hermione somehow. "There's a light up ahead, I can see something moving."
They reached the end of the passageway and saw before them a brilliantly lit chamber, it's ceiling reaching at least as far as they'd fallen and arching high above them. It was full of small jewel bright birds, fluttering and tumbling all around the room. On the opposite side of the chamber was a heavy wooden door. "Do you think they'll attack us if we cross?"
"Probably," said Harry, "They don't look very vicious, but I suppose if they all swooped at once…"
"Well then…" Joey said, pulling out his wand, "I'll run for it." Joey took a deep breath and raced across the room. He expected the birds to attack him but nothing happened. He reached the door untouched and was joined in short order by Harry. Joey pulled the handle, but it wouldn't budge, it was locked. The others joined them by the door and Hermione pulled out her wand, "Alohomora!" She said, trying the charm on the door, to no effect.
"Now what?" Joey asked, turning around and scowling. He reached up to his neck and yanked his amulet off. Once he was a teenager again he turned to the door and tried to tackle it, bouncing off the solid wooden door. Yami and Kaiba did the same, causing Harry to go flash blind for a couple of minutes because he'd forgotten to close his eyes. The three tackled the door but it wouldn't budge. Yami growled at it, as Ombre pulled her's off and joined them, but they had to give up when Joey hurt his shoulder from bashing into the door wrong. The teens pocketed their amulets, they didn't need them down here and Harry, Ron and Hermione already knew about them. And if Snape didn't it would be a good shock for him.
Hermione meanwhile had been watching the birds and once the teenagers had stopped acting like human battering rams she spoke, "These birds… they can't just be here for decoration."
Harry looked up, "They're not birds." He said suddenly, "They're keys, winged keys. Look carefully. So that must mean…" He looked around the chamber, "Yes, look, three broomsticks, we've got to catch the key to the door… oh." He said as he realised that there was more of them then there were broomsticks. Ron examined the lock on the door.
"Whoever goes up is looking for a big, old fashioned one, probably silver like the handle."
"Harry should go up, he's the best flyer." Joey said, looking slightly green, "and Ron, he has the most experience, and…"
"I'm not taking my feet off the ground." Yami said, Joey looked at him in shock, he actually was greener then Joey was at this point. Obviously the Pharaoh didn't like to fly, but he'd seemed so calm during Battle City, when they'd been going up the inside of the Battle Tower, Joey had to wonder how Yami had kept his cool then.
"Fine I'll do it," Kaiba said, storing the fact that Yami didn't like to fly away for further use at a later date when winding the man up wasn't an invitation to send him to the Shadow Realm, there was annoyance in his voice, but his eyes spoke differently, he loved to fly. "I can fly better then any of you amateurs anyway." Kaiba looked ever so smug as he grabbed the third broom and was in the air seconds behind Harry. Hermione rolled her eyes at the rest of the group as Ron joined Harry and Kaiba in the air.
Harry was the first one to spot the key they wanted, "There, that big one… there… no… there… with bright blue wings… the feathers are all crumpled on one side!" He shouted to the other two. Ron went speeding in the direction that Harry was pointing, crashed into the ceiling and nearly fell off his broom. "We've got to close in on it." Harry called, not taking his eyes off the needed key, "Ron, come at it from above, Kaiba make sure it doesn't escape downwards, I'll try to catch it." Kaiba didn't like being ordered around by someone 9 years younger then him, but Harry had come up with the most logical plan, even if Kaiba didn't like it. "Right? NOW!"
Ron shot downwards, Kaiba rocketed up and Harry managed to pin the key against a stone wall and bring it down to the door, with Joey, Ron and Hermione cheering, where Joey grabbed it as they landed and unlocked the door to the next room.
The torches lit up and they realised they'd walked onto a giant chess board, just behind the first row of black chess pieces. "Now what?" Harry asked.
"It's obvious, isn't it? We have to play our way across the room." Said Ron.
"How?" Ombre asked, angrily, this was taking too much time.
"That'll be easy. I beat my foster-father and he was the best in Japan."
"At Muggle Chess, maybe, but this will probably be like Wizards Chess." Ron said, he'd never had the chance to play Kaiba since he was in another house to them. Kaiba snorted.
"Like there's much difference." Ron ignored Kaiba and placed his hand on one of the pieces and it came to life, Ron asked it a couple of questions then turned to the others, "Ok, this needs thinking about, we've got to take the place of seven black pieces." Kaiba was sorely tempted to have Yami as a pawn.
"Alright," Ron said finally, thinking it through, "Joey, King's side castle, Harry, Queen's hand bishop, Hermione, you take the castle's place on that side…" Ron stopped to think about it some more. "Yami, take the place of the King, Ombre, King's hand bishop, Kaiba…"
"I decide where I'm going; I'll be the Queen's hand knight."
"That's where I was going to put you," Ron hissed to Kaiba, then spoke loudly, "And I'll be the other knight." As if him finishing was a que, the listening chess pieces left the board.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Quirrell frowned, he couldn't work out how to get the Stone out of the mirror, he growled and had an idea, stomping over to Yugi and Kari he grabbed Yugi by the hair and waved his wand, causing the rope binding Yugi's feet to fall away. Kari growled as the Professor pulled Yugi to his feet, and tried to squirm against her bonds but Quirrell pointed his wand at her chest and she stopped.
He pulled Yugi over to the mirror and asked "What can you see?" Yugi wouldn't tell him.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ron frowned as he looked around the board, only 4 moves in and already something was wrong, Ron was sure Kaiba was leading them into a trap, but couldn't see where it was properly, he just knew. Kaiba got Joey to move and Ron saw it, too late to say anything. "Joey! Look out!"
Joey turned in time to see the white knight approaching, "Oh…!" Joey swore in Japanese but didn't duck in time to avoid the knight's mace, which slammed into him, hard. Joey flew backwards and slammed into the wall and fell to the ground, unconscious. Ombre went to check if he was alright but was yelled at to stay where she was by Ron. Yami growled and though he didn't move off his square, he wheeled around, "You did that on purpose Kaiba!" He shouted, the noise reverberating off the walls.
"No! I didn't…" Kaiba said, glad that he was half a board away from Yami. He hadn't seen it coming… how had he not seen that coming? He hadn't done that on purpose, though no one would believe him now. If he was any good he would have realised he was sending the mutt into a trap.
Ron meanwhile was looking around at the playing field. With Joey's defeat the Knight was free to attack Ombre next move. Ron looked around, Kaiba looked as though he'd been hit by a ton of bricks, Ron had the feeling that while he might dislike Joey that hadn't been part of Kaiba's plan. Ron took over, "Queen to E7" he called allowing their Queen to capture the offending white knight.
Ron continued to lead them, "We're nearly there," He muttered suddenly, "Let me think… let me think…" Kaiba came out of the stupor he'd been in, in time to see the white queen turn towards Ron.
"Ron…" Kaiba spoke, earning a glare from Yami, "You shouldn't…"
"Yes… it's the only way… I've got to be taken."
"No!" Harry and Hermione shouted.
"That's chess, you've got to make sacrifices, I take one step forward and she takes me, I'm sure you see the next move Kaiba." Kaiba looked around. He did, clearly.
"That leaves Harry free to checkmate the King."
"But…"
"Do you want to save Yugi and Kari and stop Snape or what?"
"Ron…" Harry said, knowing Ron was right but not liking it.
"Look, if we don't hurry put, he'll have the Stone and he could have…" Kaiba trailed off, he wasn't going to finish that sentence.
"Ready?" Ron was pale but determined, "Here I go, don't hang around once you've won."
He stepped forward and the white Queen pounced, hit Ron hard with her stone arm. Ron crumpled to the floor. Hermione screamed but remembered what Ron had said to Ombre and stayed on her square. The White Queen dragged Ron to one side of the board, he'd been knocked out. Shaking Harry moved to checkmate the king. The king threw his crown at Harry's feet. With a last desperate look at their friends, the remaining five dashed through the door.
A disgusting smell assaulted their nostrils and a troll rushed at them. "Oh not again." Harry groaned and dodged the troll's rush. The five scattered, and everyone drew their wands, the troll swiped at the nearest target, Ombre, who hit the wall hard. The troll raised it's club and went to smush Ombre. Kaiba got in it's way, casting a spell that sent the troll stumbling backwards, but getting hit in the process. Yami and Harry looked at each other, "Wingardium Leviosa!" The troll's club flew out of it's hand and fell on it's head, knocking it out.
Kaiba staggered to his feet. He felt like someone had hit him with a bus. Yami was looking at him funny. "Why did you..?"
"I made one mistake, I wasn't about to make another." Kaiba said, but he wondered which of the four Yamis stood in front of him, asked the question. Yami and Harry lifted Ombre into the next room, where there were differently shaped bottles. "Snape's." Said Harry, as fire sprung up in the doorway behind them, purple fire, in front of them, black fire sprung up in the doorway, blocking their way forward.
"Isn't it obvious, we've got to drink one of the potions." Kaiba said picking up one of the bottles and drinking it. Hermione looked up from the scroll she'd found as he did so.
"Kaiba! No!" Too late, as Kaiba slumped to the floor. She checked him over, "Sleeping potion, he's fine."
"At least there's one less wrong choice." Yami joked, Hermione rolled her eyes, and reread the scroll.
"Ok," She said after walking up and down the line a few times, muttering to herself, "The smallest bottle will take us through the fire."
"There's only enough for two of us, a sip each at best." Yami said, picking it up.
"Which one will get you back?" Harry asked Hermione, she picked it up. "You drink that, no, listen; you know the spells to get the rest back safely, go straight to the owlery and send a message to Professor Dumbledore, we need him. Yami and I'll go forward." Hermione ran forward and hugged Harry.
"Be careful." She said then drank the potion and tipped some into Kaiba and Ombre's mouths. "Mobilus Corpus." She said, and Kaiba and Ombre lifted off of the ground. They vanished through the purple fire. Yami and Harry looked at each other, and took a sip of the potion to go forward. They dashed through the black fire, hoping the others would be alright. For a moment all they could see was black flames then they emerged on the other side, in the last chamber.
There were people already there, Yugi and Kari and…
"That's not Snape." Yami growled.