Diamond In The Rough

"How in Merlin’s name do we get out of here?"

Everyone was awake. Everyone was full. And everyone was looking for a way out of the room. Unlike every other place they’d stayed for any amount of time, there was no obvious exit.

Harry looked from his wall to where Draco stood, hands on hips in frustration. He raised an eyebrow "Well, you aren’t going to find out by yelling at it. Look for any hidden triggers in the stone, there might some lever we can’t see or something."

Draco scowled, before turning round. They all continued searching. They’d been going for nigh on two hours when Lyca suddenly spoke up, uncertainty in her voice.

"I think I might have had an idea.... how about summoning the exit to us?"

Draco looked at her, "Oh, yeah, that’s really going to work-"

"Its more than you’ve come up with Malfoy," snapped Harry. He’d had enough of Draco’s sarcastic criticism, "Its worth a try Lyca. Go ahead."

Taking out her wand, Lyca flicked it in the air in front of her, "Accio exit."

A cloud of dust rose up from the floor, billowing into the room and making them all cough as they inhaled it. Slowly, as it settled, they saw what had opened to provoke so much shifting of ancient powder.

A trapdoor...a way out.

Immediately, all of them crowded round the hole as Draco’s face contorted into a scowl. He still looked haunted, though he refused to talk about why. Hannah looked down the black depths, trying to make something out. But even with Lumos, she couldn’t see anything. Everyone looked at Harry. Lyca spoke up. "Should we go down."

Harry frowned. Well, what else was there to do? With a nod, he positioned himself at its edge. "I’m going first. No where else to go. We’ve come this far, I’m not stopping."

Draco muttered something under his breath. Harry looked at him, only to be greeted by a cold scowl. Shrugging, he pushed himself gently off the edge and down the hole.

* * * * *

As soon as he fell, he cursed under his breath for not setting a cushioning charm on his feet. If he fell more than a few metres, then he’d at least sprain his ankle when he landed, if not break something. He was about to whip out his wand in a last attempt, when he felt himself slip into a shoot. Eyes opening wide in astonishment, he brought light to his wand with a quick Lumos.

He appeared to be in some sort of slide. It was made of wood, from what he could tell from the feel of it as it sped underneath his fingers, the joints bumping roughly under the callus of his fingers. He felt three rough vibrations run through the grains, which told him that the others too had landed on the slide now. All he could do was wait for the end.

The wait was not a long one. Moments later, he felt the angle of the slide lessen, and even off. Seconds after that he was shooting gently off the end, and landing in a sandy bottom, as happened on the slides in Muggle playgrounds. Standing up, he dusted off his robes, and looked round the dimly lit room he found himself in.

He was soon joined by the others, who were grouped behind him within a minute. They all looked around the stone room. Again, there was no door. Harry frowned, though he did not look round. "What do you all suggest this time?"

No one replied. Puzzled, he turned round to face them all. They were all gaping at him in awe. He blinked back at them.

"What?"

Hannah spoke first. "Y-you.... hissed...."

Harry frowned further. "What do you mean I hi-"

"She means, Potter, that you were speaking Parseltongue," snapped Draco, "Turn back round and start speaking again."

Shaking his head in confusion, Harry turned round. "Well, what about now?"

This time, he heard the hissing bounce back off the walls. He shuddered. This could only mean one thing, and he wasn’t all that sure he liked it. Draco, it seemed, had figured it out as well.

"Do Parselmouths such as yourself come with ready equipped snake locators, or only the hissing as part of the service."

Harry whirled on him. "This isn’t the time Dr-" he started, but a chilling voice from behind him stopped him in his tracks, making the hairs on the back of his neck prick up.

"Never issssss Potter. Time isssss but a meaninglesssss luxxxxury that mere mortalssss hold dear. But, I ssssuppossssse you would all know about that.... I wouldn’t. I have never been anything but invinsssssable..."

Harry turned slowly, looking for the owner of the voice. But still, he saw nothing. Looking wildly around, he couldn’t see anything but the hard stone wall, which the light from the lone torch played over, casting eerie shadows that almost looked like life. But no serpent hid in that cold surface. Before he could think he had imagined it all, a scream came from behind him, making him jump with fright. It curdled his blood, as the same person’s scream had 3 years previous. Whirling round to where Lyca stood, he gasped.

The snake, which had spoken to him before, was wrapped around her head. It wasn’t a big snake, a dull green with scales that glittered a little in the light. Lyca could see, obvious from her wild, darting looks. The snake had been poised to bite at her neck, but whipped to look at Harry with its fathomless black eyes as he yelled at it.

"Ssssscared Potter?"

Harry’s face contorted angrily as he pulled out his wand in one flowing movement. "One move," he spat in Parseltongue, "And I swear you’ll regret it. You’re only a snake-"

The reptile hissed in amusement, as near as it could get to a laugh, its tongue flickering in the air in front of him. "Only a ssssnake. How wrong you be, you sssstupid fool. I would have thought that you would realisssse that if a ssstupid thing like Devrai can ssshapessshift, then your final foe would be able to asssss well. I obviousssly overesssstimated you."

At that, the snake slipped to the floor lifelessly. Under Harry’s awed gaze the body contracted in mid air, convulsing into a new form. As it hit the ground, it became a large tarantula, about the size of a football. As Hannah shrieked and backed away, it scuttled through the gap towards the wall, exiting out of a small tunnel at the bottom that he’d not seen before.

Harry hugged Lyca tight as the spider disappeared. "Are you ok?"

"I-I’m fine. What did it say though?"

"Its not important. What is important is the fact he is what we’re after, the guardian of this spell. Come on, we’ve got to follow it." Letting go, he turned back round to find the hole was still there. That was one thing at least. He looked to Draco, seemed to be staring blankly into space. "Malfoy, help me break through this wall will you, the brooding can wait."

Draco glared at him and pulled out his wand. Not waiting for Harry, he pointed it at the wall, and muttered a spell under his breath. A loud bang was emitted, followed by the crumbling of the stones in the wall. In a few moments, the dust thrown up died down to the ground, revealing a large archway and a tunnel very much like the one they’d started off in. With a hasty look at the others, Harry started through it, beckoning them to follow.

Lyca waited for Hannah to go through before pulling Draco back. He scowled at her. "What now Lupin?"

She looked at him firmly. "When are you going to let that weight of your soul? I saw what you were like when you saw that snake on me."

He looked away. "I dont know what you mean..."

"You know damn well what I mean Draco. You went rigid when I screamed, and when you turned to look at me, you looked like you were reliving the most terrible moment of your life. For you to look that bad, it’d have to be something fairly recent bothering you. So are you going to tell me or not?"

He didn’t look at her, but instead pulled his arm roughly out of her grasp. "You dont know anything Lupin. You have no idea." With that, he stormed down the tunnel. Shaking her head, Lyca followed.

* * * * *

Harry emerged into a very dark room. So dark, in fact, that he couldn’t see anything in it. No wall, no ceiling, no floor.... nothing but himself. He found it more than unnerving.

"Lumos." he muttered quietly, looking around as a light flickered into existence at the end of his wand.

It was a kind of huge chamber. It reminded him greatly of the Chamber Of Secrets in the way it was built; tall stone walls with twisting columns supporting an intricate ceiling like the one in the cathedral type room they’d been in earlier. In the centre of the huge room was a large stone desk and cosy red armchair, as unlikely a pair as chalk and cheese. However, it wasn’t this that caught Harry’s attention.

On the top of the desk sat the tarantula. Only, now, it was starting to transform again...

Mist swirled round the creature as its form changed, its size increasing. Harry gulped as even the shapeshifter’s shadow disappeared behind the thickening silver. Eventually, after they had all stood there watching it for what seemed like centuries, it started to thin again. They looked on in awe as a figure appeared, perched precariously on the edge of the desk, sitting looking at them in curiosity.

He was quite small, with a pointed face. He had the appearance of a man in his thirties, his eyes flashing all colours of the spectrum in no recognisable order. His thin silver lips were curved into a sneer. Around his neck hung a chain, upon which were about 7 gemstones, all different. His whole appearance seemed kind of ghostly, making Harry guess he was in fact a spirit, all be it a solid one.

The man slipped off the desk quietly, though the sound of his feet hitting the floor echoed around the room. He approached them silently with no apprehension. He surveyed them all silently before his eyes fell on Harry again. His sneer widened, and finally he spoke.

"So, you four finally came. I wondered how long I’d have to wait. I’ve been hungry for so long."

Harry didn’t speak, only stared back grimly. The man said nothing for a second, then shook his head and laughed.

"I suppose Devrai told you what I am. A devourer of souls. Before, of course, I take you for my collection," he touched his necklace as he spoke this, "A pretty collection you will make. I can tell what stone you are before I even taste your screams. You, Potter, are jasper. Red, like a ruby, but secretive, opaque. You can’t see through you, can’t tell what you’re thinking. Dangerous."

" As for you young Hufflepuff, you’d be a quartz, just like dear Helga was after I had feasted on her soul. So transparent, so predictable. Though your sort always were and always will be. And you," he came to Draco, "A black diamond. You know your value Slytherin. But despite that, you’re dark to the core. At least, you were. But you’re tainted now. More so after that damn chamber than before. You are no use to me."

He halted now in front of Lyca, who glared at him defiantly, though Harry could see the fear in her eyes. The spirit, obviously, did not. "Now you, my dear, are the real pick of the bunch. I haven’t seen your kind before. Strong yet fearful. And knowledge of the greatest fear of all beings, whether they realise it or not. You’ll do. Yes....."

As he clamped an icy hand round her jaw, Lyca kicked out viciously. He let go in surprise, before his face contorted in fury. However, before he could try again, Harry had his wand pointed at his temple.

"Where’s the spell."

The creature looked at him with disdain before speaking. "You aren’t going to get the Forgotten Curse from me. You have to kill me first. And you aren’t likely to do that with some stick of wood." Reaching out to the wand Harry held, he took the end of it between his fingers, and rubbing effortlessly, made what he held crumple to nothing more than dust, baring the core.

Harry could only gape. In the pause, the spirit lunged again. This time, he caught Lyca unawares. Turning the young woman away from the wall, he went to throttle her, his fingers slipping down her neck as Harry and Hannah watched helplessly.

Suddenly, he gasped, his fingers snapping back from Lyca’s throat in surprise. He went a deathly grey. His eyes fell on Harry, the fury in them the only lasting taint of anger on his face, which was overcome by shock. Those eyes promised death and vengeance, making Harry shudder involuntarily. After a few moments, he fell to the floor lifeless, and disappeared, revealing his killer.

Draco held Lyca’s dagger in his hand, silver blood on its blade. He bent down to where the body had been, and scooped up the piece of parchment that lay in its stead. His eyes ran across it, before he handed it to Harry, who was still frozen in shock. "This is the curse, I’m sure of it. The spirit was built on it, which is why we had to kill it."

Lyca spoke from where Hannah was helping her up. "But how? It’s only a dagger...."

Draco looked at her. "You can’t remember the properties of a weapon you’ve had in your possession without break before almost a week? Yet I can? Maybe its a good thing you gave this to me last night Lupin, at least I know how to use it wisely. If you were to recall the Sorting Hat’s song, you would remember that it can slay evil spirits. And if that wasn’t an evil spirit, I dont know what was."

Lyca flushed, her embarrassment showing through the terror provoked whiteness of her cheeks. Draco sneered, and handed her it back, hilt first. She glared at him as she took it, offering no thanks for him saving her life. Harry didn’t blame her. Malfoy wasn’t exactly the most approachable of people. Looking at the curse himself, he muttered the words under his breath. After a few moments, he stuffed the piece of parchment into a pocket, the spell memorised. He looked at the others again. They all looked drained; tired and in pain from the numerous strains, with small cuts adorning their hands and faces. He gave them a weak smile.

"Time to go home."

Turning on his heel, he walked past the table and chair, and down a stone corridor at the back of the room, the rest of the group following him closely.

* * * * *

The tunnel had a very familiar feel to it Harry thought as he trudged down it, his footsteps echoing around him. There again, a lot of tunnels had seemed familiar. They were all the same in Harry’s eyes. All leading into darkness, into uncertainty. Bit like life really, he thought, never knowing what might be around the next corner. Not exactly a happy thought, but a seemingly accurate one.

However, he wasn’t mistaken in this tunnel. For it was not the first time he’d walked it, which he realised as he came out of the other end. He gasped to realise that they had found their way to the same room they had been in upon entering the chamber, with its little pool leading to the outside world. The others crowding behind him were not surprised. They were only relieved. Lyca loped past Harry to collapse by a wall opposite, whilst Draco and Hannah found places on the wall nearest the tunnel to save the walk. Harry himself sat down quickly. However, he knew they couldn’t stay long. After a few minutes of unbroken silence, he spoke again.

"We can’t wait another night in here. We’ve been here too long already. Every moment, and Voldemort’s getting stronger," looking round, he noticed they’d been too tired to even flinch at the name, "His power grows every moment we dawdle. We have to go now."

Lyca looked up at him wearily. "Cant we wait just ten minutes longer Harry? We’re all shattered."

Harry shook his head, forcing himself to stand as he spoke. "Ten will become twenty which will become thirty which and so on until we end up staying all night. We can’t afford to stay that long."

"One moment Harry." Called Hannah. With a flick of her wand, four small cups appeared with a steaming dark brown liquid in them. Harry stared in wonder as the woman downed one in a single gulp and handed out the rest. Draco spoke the question upon his mind.

"What is it?" he asked, his eyes narrowed suspiciously.

Hannah grinned. "Nice to know you trust my potions so much that you think I’m about to poison you. Well, as far as I know, expresso isn’t toxic. Drink up."

* * * * *

It wasn’t long ‘til they were back in the water, complete with Bubble Head charms. They pressed their hands in unison against the handprints, and waited patiently as the stone rumbled beneath their fingers. As it opened slowly, they were all quite taken aback at the sight awaiting them.

Outside stood about 100 merpeople. Possibly more. In front of them all stood Ledare. He grinned at them all and came to greet them. At their look of confusion he smiled.

"My friends, you are the greatest four to have come under the lake since the Hogwarts Four themself. We felt that spirit, which has held a dark presence over this lake since time many years behind us, die and flicker from existence. We are all in your debt for freeing out lives from his stranglehold. So, it is the least we can do to carry you to the surface. We realise how tired you must all be."

Harry didn’t argue. Far from it. His muscles were heavier than lead his head heavier still. Nodding gratefully, he let 5 mermen take him carefully by the arms, as others did the same to his friends, and let himself be dragged up effortlessly by their bearers. Smiling peacefully, Harry felt himself, slowly but surely, fall into the first untroubled sleep he’d had in days.

* * * * *

The rest was a short-lived one however. In what seemed like moments, but was probably more like half an hour, he was being shaken gently awake. Looking up blearily, he saw the surface shimmering above. When they saw he was aware of where they were, the mermen let go of him. Ledare swam with them ‘til the last as the others turned back. Moments before they broke through the water’s top he bowed.

"This is where I leave you. My deepest gratitude to you all."

At that final word, their heads burst through and they all gasped at the clean, sweet air filling their lungs. Harry, suddenly felt safer than he had felt in ages. Gripping hold of Lyca, who looked more troubled than before they’d started back, he strode ashore.

There to greet them was no huge party. Instead, only four people stood. Professor McGonagall stared out tensely, though she almost certainly didn’t mean to show it. At the sight of her, Harry felt his hand reach for his sword, which hung unused at his belt still. Only the girl’s had found their items useful. Not that he hadn’t felt securer for having it. And there was still Voldemort to think of...

Before he could shudder at the thought, one of the other people who had been standing at the side was hugging him tightly. Harry smiled. "Its OK Herm. We got what we needed. Without injury as well."

The woman beamed at him as she let him got, her robes soaked from knee down. "I’m so glad to see you. All of you. I got so worried!"

Draco muttered something, at which Lyca shot him a worried frown. He ignored it however. By now, they’d got all the way back to the bank. Lyca got swept into a hug from her father, Remus not letting go of her for a long while. Ron took on the task of looking to Hannah as Harry talked Hermione.

"So, what happened down there?" she asked as she put warming charms into all his clothes.

"We got the curse, that’s the main thing. Everything else can wait ‘til we get back to castle. Let’s go now. There’s a lot to tell, and we’re all starving."

With a nod, Hermione led off, the others all following. Draco too, followed, just ahead of the two Lupins, who brought up the rear. Remus talked avidly at Lyca, telling her about all that had been going on. Lyca, however, was only half listening. She was watching the Slytherin walking with his head bowed in front of her. The same troubled frown lay upon her face. She wasn’t quite sure she understood what she now knew. But she knew that she could hardly believe it.

Shaking her head, she turned back to her father, listening to what he was saying properly, leaving Draco’s worries to the wizard himself.