17

Completed the Challenges

No one's POV

Hermione looked up. "Keys?" she saw little holes and ragged edges. "You're right!"

"Look, there are brooms in the corner." Harry pointed, turning around. There were three brooms in the far corner, very old brooms, might I add.

"Okay, so three of us have to go and get the key." Ron said.

"We're looking for an old key, probably silver like the handle." Hermione replied, inspecting the handle.

"Alright." Harry walked over to the three brooms and brought them back over. He handed one to Ron and made to hand the other to Hermione.

"You three go." Hermione stopped him. "I don't… like flying much." Harry nodded and handed the broom to Draco instead.

All three of them hopped on and flew up. Hermione couldn't hear them from down on the ground.

Draco flew higher than both the others. Sure, Harry was the first first year seeker in over a hundred years, but Draco was a good flyer. He and Harry both circled around the keys, in search of a silver, kind of old looking one. Ron flew from side to side lower down.

"Look!" Draco yelled, pointing, as he spotted a silver key. Harry and Ron both started to race towards it but ended up nearly crashing into the wall, as the key moved down.

"We'll need to corner it. Ron, you go from the bottom. Malfoy, you go from the top, and I'll get it from the side." Harry announced, taking on the part as leader. Draco and Ron both nodded. Ron skyrocketed upwards as Draco shot down like a bullet. They narrowly missed each other as Harry zoomed towards them, his arm outstretched. A few seconds later, Harry let out a triumphant yell. "I got it!" The three boys flew back down to the ground, the key in Harry's hand.

"Yay!" Hermione clapped her hands as the boys landed. Harry shoved the key in the lock and turned. The lock clicked open and Harry let the key go. It flew back up with the rest of the keys. Harry opened the door and they all walked in.

An awful smell met them.

"Oh, what is that?" Hermione asked, waving her hand in front of her face.

"I think it's that." Draco held his nose while pointing at a huge mountain troll knocked over on the cold floor with his other hand. Mountain trolls were definitely not well-known for their smell. The troll was wearing a brown leather vest and barely anything over it's legs.

"At least we didn't have to fight it." Harry commented as he made his way to the other door. "But it means that there was definitely someone here."

The rest of them nodded slowly, making their way around the mountain troll, being careful not to touch it. Harry opened the door and they stumbled through, taking in the nice smell.

A great sight met their eyes. The most gigantic chess set they had ever seen. There was another door on the other side. To the others' surprise, Ron smiled.

"What are you smiling for?" Harry inquired.

"Well, we have to play our way across, don't we?" Ron asked.

"Oh yeah, and you're great at wizard chess. Thank goodness."

Ron walked up to the pieces on the side closest to them. "Excuse me." The bishop turned around as Ron asked "Do we have to play our way across?" The bishop nodded.

"Alright then, Harry you can play a bishop, Hermione a rook and Malfoy… the other bishop." All the pieces he just announced moved off the board and Harry walked to one end and took the place of the bishop as Hermione and Draco went to the other side and took their places.

"And what are you going to be?" Hermione asked.

"I'm going to be a knight." Ron replied. The knight on Harry's side jumped off the horse he was sitting on and walked off the board. Ron climbed onto the horse's back and looked around. "In chess, the white goes first—yes, look, there she goes." One of the white pawns on the other side moved forward two spaces.

"Now it's our turn." Ron looked down at the pawns in front of him. "Pawn F2 to F3." the pawn obeyed and moved forward one square.

It went on like that for a while, Ron giving orders to the pieces—and to Draco, Hermione and Harry—moving them across the board. He did have to sacrifice a few pieces, but he made sure to keep Hermione and Harry out of trouble. He almost let Draco get taken by one of the white knights but Hermione and shrieked and told him not to. The pieces were broken when they were taken, unlike in regular chess.

"Alright, now…" Ron looked around and found nothing else to do. "I have to sacrifice myself."

"No!" Hermione and Harry yelled simultaneously.

Draco just rolled his eyes at the two of them. "It's how chess works."

"For once, Malfoy's right." Ron replied. Draco scowled at him but remained quiet. "I'll need to sacrifice myself."

"But Ron—"

"No, Hermione, then Harry has a clear path to checkmate their king." Ron took a deep breath, his face pale. "Knight G3 to F5." The horse moved until he was right in front of the white queen. It was the white's turn. The queen swung her staff back and then swung it forward, like batting in a baseball game. The staff made contact with the horse and very narrowly missed Ron, but he did fall on the ground from high up and fell unconscious. Harry moved in front of the king and the king took his crown off and threw it on the ground. They had won.

"Is he—" Harry started, turning to Ron.

"He's okay." Hermione replied, trying to convince herself of it. "One of us should stay here and make sure nothing happens to him."

"Right." Harry said. He looked between Hermione and Draco. "Um… I think I should go to the next room, after all, you didn't really need to come."

"You didn't either."

"Hermione, stay here." Draco said. "I'm not a fan of Potter, but…"

"No, I'm going. You two won't survive without me." Hermione argued. "Harry and I will go, you stay here with Ron."

"But—"

"No buts. I've made up my mind." Hermione replied. "Remember, I never chicken out."

"Riiiiight." Draco smiled a little remembering that conversation. "Whatever. You two go, I'll wait here."

Harry and Hermione nodded and walked to the next door.

Hermione's POV

"Hold up." Harry said before he turned the handle. "Who's is this?"

"Well, the Devil's Snare was Sprout's." Hermione started. "Then Flitwick must have charmed the keys, Quirrill's would have been the troll and McGonagall must have transfigured the chess pieces. Then that means…"

"Snape." Harry slowly opened it and they both stepped through. Hermione noticed a table with little bottles of what must have been potions. Seven different shades and shapes and sizes. The instant they walked in, a purple fire appeared, blocking the doorway behind them. The other doorway was covered in black fire.

"Look." Hermione pointed at a little scroll on the table. She walked over and picked it up and read it out loud:

"Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,

Two of us will help you, whichever you would find,

One among us seven will let you move ahead,

Another will transport the drinker back instead,

Two among our number hold only nettle wine,

Three of us are killers, waiting hidden in line.

Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,

To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:

First, however slyly the poison tries to hide

You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;

Second, different are those who stand on either end,

But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;

Third, as you see clearly, are all different size

Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;

Forth, the second left and the second on the right

Are twins once you taste them, but different at first sight."

Hermione sighed in relief and smiled. Harry was looking at her in amazement.

"Good," Hermione said. "This is logic, a lot of the greatest of wizards don't have even a little logic. They would have been stuck here forever."

"But… that means so are we, right?" Harry questioned.

"Wrong. Everything we need is here on this paper. Seven bottles: three are poison; two are wine; one will get as safely through the black fire, and one will get us back through the purple, back to Ron and Draco." Hermione explained.

"But how do we know which to drink?"

"Give me a minute."

Hermione read the paper several times. Then she walked up and down the line of bottles, muttering to herself and pointing at them. She suddenly figured it out.

"I've got it!" Hermione exclaimed. "The smallest of the bottles will get us to the Stone, through the black fire."

Harry looked at the bottle then back at Hermione. "There's only enough for one of us. Which one will get you back through the purple?"

Hermione pointed and a round bottle.

"You drink that," said Harry. "No, listen, get back and get to Ron..."

"And Draco."

"Yeah, him too. Grab brooms from the flying-key room, they'll get you out of the trapdoor and past Fluffy — go straight to the owlery and send Hedwig to Dumbledore, we need him. I might be able to hold off Snape for a while, but I'm no match for him really"

"But Harry — what if You-Know-Who's with him?"

"Well — I was lucky once, wasn't I?" said Harry, pointing at his scar. "I might get lucky again."

Hermione was worried, she really was, but the confidence in Harry's voice made her realize that they had made it that far. They could do it. She nodded. "Do be careful, Harry."

"I will. Now, take the potion that will get you through the purple flames. You are sure which is which, right?"

"Completely." Hermione picked up the round bottle and took a sip. It was like ice was running through her veins. She shuddered.

"It's not poison, is it?" Harry asked anxiously.

"No. It's just like ice is flowing through me."

"Now go then."

Hermione slowly walked over to the flame and looked back at Harry one more time. "Good luck."

A/N: Aaaaah! I can't believe we're so close to the end! I actually think there will be two more chapters, but then it's done! I can't wait to find out what happens next, haha.

Remember that everything in bold is from the original.

Please review! Stay tuned and stay safe!