Chapter 19 - The Riddle is Revealed
"Sorry Headmaster," Filtch said as they climbed the winding stairs of one of the thin towers that offered the most comprehensive view of the geography around Hogwarts. "I never figured you'd want to be coming up here at a time like this so I locked the place up. I figured you'd want to be in the main hall when the time came."
"And so I shall," Dumbledore replied serenely. "That time may yet be a good while in coming though. Even Voldemort will have difficulty penetrating Hogwarts' defenses."
"This is something that would be more suitable for Hermione," Luna said idly.
"Yeah, it would," Ron agreed. He was distracted by the strange silver colored blade attached to Filtch's wrist. The ill tempered caretaker of the castle had armed himself with a wide variety of strange looking gadgets, some of which he had apparently made himself or had custom made for him. Ron supposed that, as a squib, he had gone to greater efforts than most members of the magical community to prepare a means of self defense.
"It is still useful for you to observe today what you may be able to do tomorrow," Dumbledore said cryptically. "It will also be good for our tactical team to know what we're up against."
"You expect the Death Eater army to just walk up to the castle and knock?" Ron asked skeptically.
"Something like that," Dumbledore replied. "If Voldemort is coming then he is very confident. We must be prepared for any surprise he may have after all this time."
"Over confidence can be self defeating," Ron said hopefully.
"Confidence can also be the result of true ability," Luna commented.
"Quite true," Dumbledore said gravely. "I suspect that Miss Lovegood will prove to be prophetic in this instance."
"If you won't be needing me anymore Headmaster, I'll be goin' now," Filtch said, bowing slightly as he turned to go back down the stairs.
The sky around Hogwarts had rapidly darkened and filled with electricity as if to herald the advance of Voldemort's army. Ron and Luna put on their red colored eyepieces so they could see through the magical or natural obstructions that still hid the exact location of their impending attackers.
"Voldemort and his Death Eaters have reached the edge of the expanded anti-apparation field," Dumbledore said, pointing at an area not far removed from the main entrance. Hasty wards had provided an additional buffer around the ancient protections that Hogwarts itself afforded.
"Werewolves and dementors are approaching from the other three sides," Ron said. "Can we really expect the dementors to turn on them?"
"No, we can't, but Harry does so we will," Dumbledore said simply. He waved his wand out toward the grounds next to the walls that the werewolves were approaching. Dozens of black obsidian soldiers standing nearly two meters tall, which were armed with swords and shields, grew out of the ground.
"I'd nearly forgotten about those," Ron said. Hermione had created disposable, pre-conjured warriors who could fight on their own with limited intelligence similar to the chess pieces McGonagall created to guard the Sorcerer's Stone nearly seven years previously. They wouldn't stop a real wizard, but they might slow them down. Against mere werewolves they might even hold their own.
Luna's hand grasped Ron's tightly, "We should go back below," she said suddenly.
Ron looked to Dumbledore, but the old wizard didn't say anything. Ron nodded and followed Luna back down the stairs. He decided that they could trust the conjured guardians and the good will of the dementors enough to re-deploy their forces away from those walls to the parts of the castle defending the main entrance. They had just stepped out of the thin tower when a huge ball of fire went racing away over their heads to impact somewhere out of sight beyond the castle walls. The air screamed with repeated castings of deadly elemental spells that lit up the darkness with their ferocity.
"Hurry," Luna said urgently, like she was under some kind of time constraint that only she was aware of. She broke into a run without letting go of Ron's hand and very nearly caused him to fall over. He stumbled twice before matching her gait, but he still managed to smile.
Ron was beginning to become winded when they finally reached the point they had selected to observe the first part of the battle. Voldemort would have to stop in front of the main gates and bludgeon his way through the castle's defenses before being able to attack the people waiting for him inside. During that time his army would be completely exposed to the defenders and Ron planned to take full advantage of that situation.
The atmosphere in front of the main gates distorted slightly and within the blink of an eye people started to appear. In a roughly rectangular perimeter several avatars arrived, behind them came dozens of regular Death Eaters, and then several more individuals arrived including one figure that could only be Voldemort.
"Luna," Ron said seriously. He gulped uncomfortably, but he realized that he might never get another chance to tell her what she already knew. "Whatever happens…I love you."
"I love you too Ron," Luna replied, wide-eyed and solemnly. "Remember what I told you earlier, don't leave my sight, okay?"
"I promise," Ron said, not knowing whether Luna's premonition, if true, could be kept from happening merely by her close proximity to him, but if it made her feel better then that was all that mattered. If Harry didn't show up any of them surviving might be pointless anyway.
Ron pointed his wand into the air and fired off a red spark to signal for everyone to attack. The avatars dutifully raised a whirlwind of conjured debris to absorb the incoming hail of killing curses. Hogwarts shuddered and its stone turned black as the building prepared to lash out against the attackers arrayed before it. Voldemort raised his hand and the gathering magical energies being gathered by the structure suddenly vanished.
"What's that?" Luna asked, her characteristically soft voice laced with concern. Voldemort's hand was sparking brightly, like one of the green stars in his Dark Mark was sitting on his finger.
Luna squeaked and Ron felt faint when he realized what was happening. The great gate that Dumbledore had sealed was opening of its own accord. Ron stood there stunned, Luna's hands cutting off the blood to his arm, as Voldemort's wizards poured into the wide open entrance without having suffered a single casualty.
"Ronald!" Luna's yelled. He finally snapped out of it and realized she was shaking his arm. He flicked his wand and sent off a stream of messenger charms to warn the various choke points around the castle. Their internal defenses were going to be tested much quicker than they had ever imagined.
"He's coming," Ron said. The air felt thick with magical energy like an oppressive humidity multiplied over.
"It's so cold and rough," Luna said softly.
"I've never felt anything like that before," Ron said hollowly. Voldemort was dressed with simple robes, though he could tell there was more to the evil wizard than met the eye. His hand was no longer sparkling with green light and other than that he seemed to be wearing only plain black loose fitting robes.
A messenger charm arrived from the first floor indicating that they were already under attack. "Come on Luna, we're already needed," Ron said grimly. The blonde nodded and gestured with her wand that she was ready to go.
Voldemort strode into Hogwarts like a king returning from glorious battles. He was an emperor with nothing left to do but sit on his throne and declare his empire in word since as far as he was concerned it already existed in deed. Hovering behind him like jackals were his most loyal servants, the Lestranges, the only other family besides the Malfoys who were worthy of such status in his new order.
There was a disturbance from inside the castle and then Dumbledore, the last of some forgotten race of wizards, stepped into view. His faithful phoenix, Fawkes, was riding placidly on his shoulder.
"Welcome back to Hogwarts Tom," Dumbledore said conversationally. "It's been a long time since you stood inside these grounds on your own two feet."
"Master, let us handle the muggle lover," Bellatrix Lestrange said eagerly.
"Yes, he isn't worth your effort anymore," Rodolphus Lestrange added, echoing his wife. The third Lestrange, Rabastan, said nothing, but stepped forward along with his brother and sister-in-law as they volunteered.
"No, that won't be necessary," Voldemort said smugly. "My old teacher owes me one last duel, don't you Albus?"
As the three Lestranges backed away to watch Dumbledore began to radiate magical power. His eyes glimmered with a cold blue flame as he pointed his wand purposefully at his former student. Voldemort's eyes widened slightly, but his mouth curled upward in a sinister grin.
"Is that the true extent of your talents Albus?" Voldemort said sarcastically. "How you must agonize over the knowledge that you could have stopped me all those years ago had you realized what I was…"
"No more than you must agonize over how you threw away your victory by failing to kill a child," Dumbledore replied. Voldemort's eyes narrowed slightly, but he continued on anyway.
"Aren't you going to use Hogwarts' defenses?" Voldemort asked abruptly. "Or at least ask how I overcame them?"
"I'm sure your need for self-congratulation will have you tell me whether I care or not," Dumbledore replied.
"You never did care about anyone's accomplishments except for your own," Voldemort said.
Dumbledore waved his wand and the walls of Hogwarts seemed to loom large for a moment, but then the ring on Voldemort's finger glowed brightly again. This time Dumbledore looked around slightly, as if he couldn't figure out what was wrong. First Voldemort had entered Hogwarts unopposed and now the ancient castle didn't seem to be behaving properly at all.
"Surprised?" Voldemort asked lightly. "Surely you have heard of the Ring of Erus?"
"It was destroyed over a thousand years ago after Slytherin left Hogwarts," Dumbledore replied. "That you posses it…is not possible."
"Quite right Albus, this is not Salazar's Ring of Erus, but mine," Voldemort crowed triumphantly. "I created it with my own two hands."
"Only one of the Founders would have that kind of knowledge," Dumbledore said, still disbelieving. If myth and rumor were to be believed the creation of the Ring of Erus was one of the reasons for the split between the Founders.
"Of course," Voldemort said. "How fortunate it was then that I gained access to the Chamber of Secrets while I was still a student here. Slytherin's many books and journals revealed all such lost knowledge to me. Did you know that the ring doesn't even need to be a ring? Originally it was a simple badge like one that any school child might conjure up. A ring is so much handier though, don't you think?"
Dumbledore's eyes narrowed, but he didn't rise to the Dark Lord's baiting. He was tempted to feed the man's ego, but he realized that such a feeble technique would never goad Voldemort into revealing a useful secret.
"Cat got your tongue?" Voldemort asked sarcastically. He pretended to ponder for a moment. "That can't be it, I don't see McGonagall around anywhere. Come now, you didn't think that a place called `The Chamber of Secrets' was nothing more than a cage for a pet snake, did you?"
"No matter what you learned, it would have taken years to fashion such a device," Dumbledore replied finally.
"Fifteen years to be exact," Voldemort admitted. "I knew I'd have to face the Headmaster of Hogwarts one day. The Ministry may run the day to day affairs of the magical world, but a formidable power has always resided within this castle."
"You may be able to hold back Hogwarts' body, but not its spirit. This place will be your grave Tom," Dumbledore said.
"You will soon know what futility is like old man," Voldemort replied. He raised his wand, a powerful aura of evil wafting off of him. Dumbledore raised his wand as well, his robes stirring violently from the force of his magical energy and his eyes glinted with a deadly blue hue. Voldemort waved his wand in broad slashing strokes that sent waves of destruction ripping through the air toward Dumbledore. The Headmaster took two steps and then disappeared.
Now it was Voldemort's turn to be surprised. "Impossible," he said roughly, "No one can apparate on these grounds."
"I did not apparate," Dumbledore said in clipped tones from directly behind Voldemort. There was a bright blue flash and then a flicker of movement as Voldemort used the acceleration charm to yank himself out of the path of Dumbledore's spell. Voldemort whirled around in mid-dodge to counterattack.
"Avada Kedavra," he yelled, but before the blast could connect Dumbledore vanished again. He appeared behind Voldemort again and again the evil wizard only barely dodged the powerful attack that Dumbledore unleashed.
"You should not have come here," Dumbledore said solemnly as he continued to flicker around the entrance area where Voldemort was still managing to narrowly evade his attacks.
Voldemort suddenly blurred in movement at a rate beyond that which he had displayed thus far. Dumbledore's eyes widened perceptibly in shock as the momentum of the battle shifted drastically. Now he was the one barely dodging attacks, even with his ability to move from point to point within the anti-apparation wards.
"Are you still making empty threats?" Voldemort asked as the fighting lulled for a moment. "Your age is beginning to show."
"I haven't even begun to show my age yet," Dumbledore retorted. "For all your power you still lack wisdom Tom. The prophecy may spare your life from my hand, but I will rip your spirit from your physical form."
Voldemort scowled but held his tongue as Dumbledore prepared for his next assault. He wanted the old wizard to use every trick, every tactic, and every shred of his power. Voldemort wanted Dumbledore to know without a doubt how inferior he was when he finally lost. The phoenix, which hitherto had been sitting calmly on its master's shoulder, suddenly took action. It leaned over Dumbledore and cried great teardrops into the Headmaster's mouth. Instantly Voldemort felt an exponential increase in the old man's power, but more importantly he realized something else.
"Very clever," Voldemort said slowly, "Very clever indeed. You're using the phoenix's vanishing ability to jump from one point to the next. You must have a very strong bond with your familiar."
"Fawkes is my family," Dumbledore said in a solemn tone. Voldemort fired another killing curse, but his target was no longer there. A dozen ghostly images of Dumbledore appeared all around Voldemort.
"Is this the best you have?" Voldemort asked angrily. He fired killing curses rapidly at each of the images, but the spells passed through them harmlessly. "Parlor tricks; smoke and mirrors?"
"The objective is victory, did you come here to complain about fairness like a first year?" Dumbledore asked, his voice echoing from no direction in particular.
Voldemort seethed and cast another series of spells toward the ghostly visions of Dumbledore. All of the mirages lifted their wands in synchronization and fired off a burst of dark blue flashes in response. Voldemort snarled as he fended off the blows with a hastily conjured shield.
Before Dumbledore could begin another round of attacks Voldemort's wand sprouted with dozens of thin long icy rods. Each rod had penetrated through the center of the phoenix sitting on the shoulder of every mirage of Dumbledore. The images snapped out of existence abruptly and Fawkes let out a pitiful croaking noise.
Dumbledore tried to cast a counter spell, but the icy spear wrapped itself around Fawkes, whisking him away and depositing him at Voldemort's feet. There was a flash of green light and the bird erupted into fiery ash.
"Fawkes," Dumbledore called out. He took a halting step forward and paused as Voldemort raised his wand again.
"I wonder," Voldemort said sinisterly, "Are these creatures truly immortal?"
Voldemort chanted the killing curse and baby Fawkes exploded in another burst of flaming ash. Dumbledore looked on in horror as the deadly spell struck his faithful familiar over and over again. His robes boiled up as Dumbledore called forth even more magical energy and Voldemort looked up from his assault on Fawkes with an excited gleam in his eye.
"There it is," Voldemort said with a sick, almost gleeful expression. "The power that defeated Grindelwald. Now I will be content when I defeat you that you will know which of us is the better!"
Dumbledore casually pointed with his wand and Voldemort was immolated with a bright liquid fire. Baby Fawkes squawked as the evil wizard extinguished himself in a flash and then cast another killing curse at him. Dumbledore pointed his wand again and now phoenix egg Fawkes was whisked safely into his hand.
"An egg…" Voldemort said dully as he watched Dumbledore's angry expression. "Well, that's hardly useful. Weren't you ever curious about where the first phoenix came from?"
"I have nothing more to say to you," Dumbledore replied sharply. Voldemort's thin lips twisted into a demented grin as Dumbledore extended his wand.
Ron let out a gurgle of frustration as panicked shouts echoed from the hallway nearby where he had set up a temporary command post. Temporary in the sense that it was just him, Luna, and McGonagall receiving messages and dispatching fresh orders in a desperate attempt to maintain some kind of over arching strategy. The Marauder's Map had proven to be an invaluable tool and Ron was pleased that he had managed to think of keeping it in the Light Bearers' Hogwarts Headquarters before Hermione.
Some kind of spell exploded against the stone directly behind them and a half dozen wizards came tumbling through the entrance to the besieged hall.
"We can't hold them off," the wizard, some sixth year Ron didn't recognize, said breathlessly.
Luna offered him a handful of vials. "Throw these down the hall to block it off. It's a potion of enchanted mist."
"Like that disorientation stuff Harry complained about after the Triwizard Tournament?" Ron asked as he skimmed the latest messenger charm.
"Yeah," Luna said softly. The thick foggy cloud had already expanded sufficiently to choke off the endangered hall. She reached one of the wounded and pressed the portkey on his wrist, but nothing happened. "They've blocked off our easiest method of escape."
"They're coming around through the main passageway now," Lavender said tensely as she led her small group into the section of intersecting hallway that Ron had set up in.
"We need to get to a better location," McGonagall said with a touch of alarm. "We've only got two ways out of here now should they come down the main hall and neither of those would be safe."
"Okay," Ron said, mainly because Luna's huge liquid eyes seemed to be pleading with him silently to remember his own safety. He stood up just in time to hear a gruff voice calling out from somewhere behind the ongoing firefight in the main hall.
"Four stripes! Four stripes!"
"Bloody hell," Ron swore as two avatars seemingly appeared from no where and started blowing through the mainly student defenders who had been holding off regular Death Eaters.
"They're targeting you," McGonagall exclaimed unnecessarily.
Ron started to prepare a spell when four adult Light Bearers, two of them rather elderly, burst through one of the side halls. Two of them took up flanking positions on either side of the main hall so they could attack the oncoming avatars with relative impunity. The other two grabbed Ron and Luna.
"We've got to get you to safety Commander," the gray haired lady said sternly.
"We've got to stop those avatars," Ron countermanded. "We're going to need all the wands we've got concentrated on that hallway."
"Sir, we just came from a place overlooking the castle's grand entrance. Headmaster Dumbledore is losing." the lady replied.
"The Lestranges?" McGonagall asked anxiously.
"They aren't doing anything for now, but if we intend to save the Headmaster we need to go now," she said emphatically.
"We can't lose Dumbledore," McGonagall said. She swallowed suddenly and looked to Ron.
"Of course not," Ron agreed. "Everyone, fall back from this position."
"They'll pursue if we do," one of the newly arrived wizards said.
"We'll hold them off," Lavender said determinedly as more wizards poured in to reinforce them against the avatars, "Go get the Headmaster."
Ron gritted his teeth and nodded his head before syncing up with their rescuers, McGonagall, and Luna for a quick acceleration charm trip back to the main entrance. The scene before them was one of devastation with the entrance grounds all ripped up, huge gouges carved out of the castle walls from stray spells, and Dumbledore himself appearing to be very ragged. Like some sort of harbinger of death the Headmaster made his way around the makeshift battlefield attacking and dodging attacks with a vacant singleness of mind.
"Wait," McGonagall said sharply. She held Ron back before he could reveal their arrival and pointed to the three Lestranges who were off to the side watching the fight. "We can't match all three of them. Bellatrix is an avatar and the other two may be as well."
"We've got to do something," Ron exclaimed as Dumbledore took a fearsome blow to his left arm. His beard was already laced with blood and his robes were beginning to soak through with it. In any other circumstance Ron would probably have been amazed that the seemingly frail old man had so much in him to bleed in the first place.
"Maybe we should concentrate our forces again," Luna suggested. Originally, they had assumed that Voldemort would have a difficult time getting into the castle. Their forces had been dispersed so that no matter where he tried to make his entry they would have a response available immediately. Instead, the Dark Lord had walked through the front gate and sent his forces out through the school to hunt down its defenders.
"We'd still have the problem of making them vulnerable to direct attack by You-Know-Who over there," Ron said grimly. More messenger charms fluttered in and Ron went back to scanning them while Luna discussed options with McGonagall. "Right now we're using the castle to help hold off way more people than we could manage in a single position."
"We have to continue guarding the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets," McGonagall added. "That's where we should make our final stand."
"If Harry doesn't come we're going to lose no matter what," Luna said in her soft voice. "We should destroy the entrance to the Chamber and try to abandon the castle. Maybe they'll be tricked into thinking we've already moved the children."
A series of bright green flashes brought their attention back to the nearby battle. Dumbledore was now surrounded by a thick mist that would randomly harden into icy projectiles or shields as the situation warranted without any overt direction from him. However, despite he Headmaster's exceptional skill his water-based attacks were still being perfectly countered by earth based assaults from Voldemort.
"We can't concentrate our people because then the Death Eaters would be able to concentrate their forces too," Ron said. "As things stand we still have the defensive advantage."
"We need help though," McGonagall said.
Ron pointed his wand into the air and released a stream of messenger charms. "I've instructed all available forces to converge on our position. I don't know how many we can spare from the choke points though."
"We were already outnumbered to begin with," Luna said softly. Hogwarts' internal defense was based around the holding of various strategic points, hallway intersections, and other places where a few wizards could hold off many.
"Albus," McGonagall cried out suddenly. Ron and Luna whirled to where she was staring to see a series of silver spikes pinning the Headmaster's left leg down to the ground.
Before they could stop her, the enraged transfiguration teacher bolted out of their hiding place and unleashed a torrent of what appeared to be tiny black droplets of water. The spell took Voldemort by surprise, he staggered backward as several of the droplets touched his skin before some kind of invisible barrier began dissipating them.
"Minerva, get back," Dumbledore wheezed as McGonagall used her wand to extract the bloody spikes from his leg.
"Don't be ridiculous Albus," McGonagall scolded. "What were you thinking, fighting him like that."
"Minerva," Dumbledore repeated sharply as he conjured several silver ropes that then curled uneasily around his left leg.
There was a scream of pain from McGonagall and Dumbledore saw that her arm had suddenly twisted awkwardly. She moved her wand into her other hand and tried to fix the multiple breaks in her arm, but the wound was apparently cursed because it resisted her charms. Voldemort moved to cast another spell, but before he finished the incantation for the killing curse the ground between him and the two stricken teachers erupted in a brilliant flash.
Ron and Luna stepped out of hiding along with a half dozen other resisters who had responded to their summons for reinforcements. They didn't try to attack the opposing wizards directly since, even with Dumbledore, it was obvious that they were vastly overpowered. Instead they started ripping apart the ground and surrounding structure to create as much chaos and dust to cover them as possible.
With McGonagall's help Dumbledore limped back a little ways. He performed a spell on his own leg and the silver ropes that had bound it were absorbed into his robes. McGonagall likewise managed to break the curse on her arm and heal the bones that Voldemort had shattered. Three green flashes flickered through the dust and three students fell over dead. Giving Dumbledore a second wind had come at an exceptionally high price.
"Get back behind the walls," Dumbledore shouted, gesturing violently at where they had just come from. Even McGonagall, torn though she was, obeyed him, and it was fortunate that they did. Rabastan and Rodolphus Lestrange swept around the Headmaster and headed directly for the location where Dumbledore's helpers had just retreated.
"Keep running," McGonagall said sternly to Ron and Luna as the Lestrange brothers approached.
"It's no safer in there than it is out here," Luna said.
Ron pointed at the three other students who were left. "I want you guys to focus solely on blocking their incoming attacks."
He didn't want for their nod before he signaled to Luna. Together they both chanted their opening incantation. "Glomero Fulmineus!"
McGonagall gasped with surprise as they began throwing bluish tinted balls of crackling electricity. Everywhere the balls touched a surface they exploded and sent forth a hail of charred shrapnel. The Lestranges conjured up a thick earthen barrier to protect themselves from the young couple. McGonagall joined in, but she still had little hope that this conflict, which had just now escaped any kind of organized control on their part, would end favorably.
Ron glanced around desperately as some kind of spell he has never before encountered ate away at the thick stone wall between him and where Dumbledore was battling. The wall on the other side vanished as well in a similar chain reaction and suddenly the defenders were completely exposed on all sides. They begin falling back toward the demolished main entrance where Dumbledore and Voldemort are exchanging blows once again.
"Albus!" McGonagall screamed as another student fell from a flash of green light.
"You've failed old man," Voldemort taunted. He struck down another student with ease. "This is the end of all your accomplishments."
Dumbledore pointed his wand at himself and used an acceleration charm to appear in the midst of the remaining defenders. Green light dripped from his wand as he drew a strange looking seal into the air. Ron, Luna, and McGonagall lifted debris from the ground to counter the killing curses while Dumbledore's odd looking seal acted as a shield of incredible strength.
Voldemort lashed out against it with great slashes of purple flame. Each blow that landed against Dumbledore's invisible barrier caused a bright flash like lightening and kicked up a whirlwind of dust. Ron barely had time to be amazed at the unparalleled depth of the Headmaster's knowledge when Voldemort appeared behind the barrier. He had used an acceleration charm and since the spell Dumbledore was using only blocked magical energy it had been an easy trip. Dumbledore acted as if he expected the move because he immediately shifted his wand and released a bright blue flash into Voldemort's face. Then Voldemort did something no one expected. His left hand shot out and long thin almost reptilian fingers grasped at Dumbledore's throat.
"Albus," McGonagall cried out again in an anguished voice. The Lestranges stopped their assault and everyone just stared at the bizarre sight before them. Tendrils of magical energy crackled between the two men and Dumbledore dropped down to his knees. The Headmaster began to claw at Voldemort's arm, but his actions quickly became enfeebled.
"Have you figured it out yet Albus?" Voldemort asked as he chuckled darkly. "Do you know what I am now?"
"M-m-monster," Dumbledore wheezed, too exhausted to say anything else. He went limp a moment later, but Voldemort's iron grasp continued to hold him up.
"What else can we do?" Harry asked between gasps as his lungs tried to suck in enough air to feed his body. They had finished unleashing all the power they could into the strange silvery walls of the time chamber, but to no effect.
"I don't know," Hermione said as she stumbled over to the wall and began reading the runic inscriptions again. "Most of this is just history or some kind of equations that I don't understand."
"How much time do you think we have left before we've slowed down too much?" Harry asked anxiously.
"It depends on when that door closed," Hermione said worriedly. "Probably not more than fifteen minutes though."
Fifteen minutes! Harry felt his stomach knot itself in a dozen different ways as he contemplated all the people that would be left to Voldemort's mercy if they couldn't escape. Suddenly another thought struck him.
"Voldemort can't die as long as I'm in here," Harry said woodenly.
Hermione gasped and looked at him with wide fearful eyes. "He planned this all along," she speculated. "He let us rescue Snape because he wanted you to find this place and get trapped in it. If he couldn't absorb you or whatever he would just make you immortal too and conveniently trapped in an indestructible room."
"Is there anything I can do to help?" Harry asked again.
"I wish you had taken runes," Hermione said absently as she scrutinized a portion of the wall again. "Just keep trying spells, maybe you'll find something that can penetrate these walls."
Harry wished he had taken runes too. Even though he had shaped up all he could after Sirius' death he was still paying the price for his carefree years before that dreadful event. Now it appeared that everyone else might have to suffer for his lack of foresight too.
Harry slashed his wand dramatically and began throwing out every spell he could think of. Even spells that would seem irrelevant in such a situation, like stunning spells, were attempted. Each time the wall managed to absorb the damage and come out looking like a flawlessly shiny metal mirror.
Harry grimaced as he noticed that the stream of messenger charms had continued to thicken. They were rotating in a lazy figure eight as they attempted to circle over his head and Hermione's at the same time. In frustration Harry cast a hail of obsidian stone projectiles at the wall only to have them disappear into it as if they were being thrown into a lake. He approached the wall curiously and reached out to touch the rippling surface.
"Don't Harry," Hermione cautioned. "Who knows what reaction it might have to your hand when it's doing that."
"What about the armor?" Harry asked, indicating his armored left hand.
"Well, I don't see the point, but it can't hurt," Hermione said finally.
Harry reached out and touched the rippling surface. He was surprised to discover that the ripples were an optical illusion only. The wall was actually solid and unmoving to the touch even as the waves skittered around beneath his metallic fingers. Harry stood back for a moment and looked at the room, specifically the gleaming silver walls. There was something oddly and disturbingly familiar about the whole thing. He stared at his own silver armor and compared it to the surface of the wall.
"Hermione, hold your armor up against the wall," Harry said casually.
"Harry, what are you talking about?" Hermione asked before she suddenly fell silent as she looked at the contrast, or rather the lack of contrast.
"Is this what I think it is?" Harry asked. He didn't want to prejudice Hermione's response by revealing his own opinion.
"Its alchemy," Hermione whispered. Her mind flashed back to the silver door that had hidden Voldemort's research facility in Malfoy's mansion. "This whole place is constructed alchemically."
"But the door and our armor can't withstand the killing curse like this," Harry pointed out. "If Voldemort had this kind of material at his disposal then why hasn't he used it against us?"
"He can't make it work yet," Hermione reasoned. "The door at Malfoy's place must have been an experiment. Voldemort must have been trying to discover the process to create the Sorcerer's Stone too."
"But if Voldemort didn't create this place then who did?" Harry asked.
"Isn't it obvious?" Hermione said reprovingly. "This time chamber functions exactly like the one Dumbledore described. His ancient race of wizards must have built this place for some reason."
"If this is the same people that Dumbledore described then their grasp of magic seems to be much greater than ours," Harry said in agreement. He approached the wall and ran his armored hand across the surface again. "Its like a perfect mirror."
"Harry, get back a minute," Hermione said as she approached the spot where he had been examining the wall. She squinted for a few seconds and furrowed her brow in concentration. Harry was about to ask her what she was thinking when Hermione slammed her armored hand into the wall.
"What are you doing?" Harry asked worriedly. "I thought you said that it could undergo any sort of potentially dangerous reaction?"
"Harry, this armor is the product of alchemy too," Hermione said. "What's more, it's indirectly based on this wall. Look at what happened where I hit it."
There was a faint scruff on the otherwise flawless surface that didn't seem to be vanishing like all the other damage they had previously inflicted. Hermione have it a few more whacks until the surface looked dingy.
"Stand back," Hermione instructed. As soon as they were clear she targeted the damaged section. "Avada Kedavra!"
The wall cracked and the curse dug out a tiny crater in the surface. "You did it!" Harry exclaimed. Hermione didn't look so happy though.
"It'll take us way more than the few minutes we have left to finish blasting through the rest of the wall at that rate though," Hermione said. "I was hoping we wouldn't have to do this…"
Harry picked up her meaning as she dug one of the magic enhancing potions Snape had helped them create from out of her hat. Harry pulled one out, fully aware that if they did this they would each only have one more dose left. Of course, if they didn't get out of the room quickly it wouldn't matter how much of the potion they possessed.
"Maybe just one of us could do it alone," Harry said hopefully.
"Maybe," Hermione replied hesitantly, "But if it didn't work then we would both have to use the potion again and then we'd only have one dose left for the two of us. It just isn't worth the risk."
Harry nodded and uncorked the tiny vial. He glanced over at Hermione and on the count of three they both downed the potion in a single movement. For a second Harry didn't feel anything different, but then the room distorted violently and he realized Hermione was already on the floor. A wave of intense pain shot through every fiber of his body and he dropped down to his knees.
"S-Snaaaaape," Harry choked out in rage, though his mind was barely coherent anymore.
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