An Ace in the Hole

Chapter Sixteen: The Madness in Me (Days of Heir)

"What are you doing here?"

Bruce turned in his seat. "I own the place last time I checked."

"You're supposed to be in London, tracking down the Joker and Harley. Did you already apprehend them?"

Bruce turned back to face his computer. "No. Things went south. I was compromised."

"What do you mean?" Dick circled Bruce's chair. "Who compromised you?"

"Harry Quinn."

Bruce and Dick turned to see the Question leaning against the rail with his arms folded.

"Barriers, Vic. Learn some."

"If you want barriers, Bruce, then either tighten your security or learn to communicate."

Bruce huffed, "Surprised that John didn't come with you to rag on me."

"We need to finish this before it gets worse."

"Worse?" Bruce shouted as he leaped to his feet. "That teen wizard and his gang compromised my identity, then gave the Joker his! My presence there has jeopardized everything that I started here in Gotham." He ran a hand through his hair. "Batman should have stayed gone. It's over."

Without waiting for a response, Bruce stormed out of the cave.

"Wow. Quinn did a number on him."

"Yes, he did," the Question agreed. "That's because he wasn't ready for the fight. He thought that he could do things over there the way he's always done it."

"He hasn't been the same since the whole Justice League debacle."

"Agreed. Which is why you've refused to move on."

Dick turned to face the faceless man. "Move on?"

"Step out on your own. Leave the nest." The Question turned to leave. "It's what happens to all young men when they grow up. Even heroes."

"Where are you headed then? Back to Britain to help Constantine corral the Joker?"

"Why ask the question, Dick Grayson, when you already know the answer."

Dick watched as the Question disappeared into the shadows.

~~~Ace~~~

"Do you believe that he's behind what's going on?"

"Yep, my dear," Harry cooed. "Not a doubt in my mind."

"What about Ginny? Do you think he's pretending to be this Tom Riddle as well?"

"Nope," Harry retorted, popping the 'P'. "Tommy boy is a completely different player. We have multiple games of chess going on. Good thing that we have so many players!"

"Who's playing games?"

Harry, Hermione, and Luna looked up to see Joseph strolling across the Room of Requirement.

"Why, Dumbledore and Tommy boy. They're both being deliciously entertaining!"

"You're twisted, Kid."

"No need to toss stones, Jericho." Harry flung himself up to his feet from the sofa. "I can't help it that 'normal' people bore me. Fortunately, this world is full of all manner of beasties for me to play with."

Harry pretended to smoke an invisible pipe as he leaned against the mantle.

"Now, tell me, Dr. Wilson, what do you make of the young Ginny Weasley's actions of late?"

Joseph swallowed. "Okay, Kid. I'll play along. The young Weasley is definitely acting odd. Her movements suggest someone who's up to something, but I can't validate a reason. Peeves' revelation that she's a parselmouth is concerning, though."

"Precisely! It's concerning because as big a freaks as the Chaos Twins are, they're not dragons. Have you tried prying, Mr. Wilson?"

"I've tried, but someone has taught her how to put up walls." Joseph paused, then continued, "I could breakthrough if I needed, but it would be more than noticeable."

"Someone has taught her, or Tommy boy is doing it for her."

Harry sniffed, then pretended to blow smoke. "An excellent deduction, Ms. Lovegood. In this case, the latter. A new source has confirmed my suspicions that we're dealing with the original Riddle. He possessed the talent of snake whispering and controlled Slytherin's beast."

"If you're done playing bloody Sherlock Holmes, would you mind telling us your source?"

Harry wiggled a finger. "Temper, temper, Joseph. My source will be revealed in time. But for now, we must find a way to lure the apparent Heir out into the open, then…."

Harry swiped his face then whirled a knife across the room, where it pierced the back of a chair.

"Careful there, Ace. You're starting to sound like an H."

"Quite the contrary, Joseph." Ace waved his wand, and the knife flew back into its sheath on his forearm. "See, knights weren't heroes. They slew dragons, not because the beasts were evil, but because they posed a threat."

Ace swiped his face, then strolled across the Room to flop back onto the sofa.

"Tommy boy poses a threat to everything that I'm trying to do here."

Joseph folded his arms. "Okay. Say this, Tommy is the Heir, and you slay him. Then, you keep slaying their beasts until you either survive or die. What happens when they see you as a dragon?"

"Harry's counting on it," Hermione interjected. "However, by the time they try to slay him, we'll be too powerful to be stopped."

"Look at you two." Joseph pointed to Hermione and Luna. "So loyal, so quick."

"Nope," Hermione retorted, popping the 'P'. "Everyone says that I'm the brightest witch of my generation. The part they don't get is that I recognize how they treat me behind my back. What Harry says makes sense on a level they can't understand. As for Luna, she sees the world in ways that I can't even imagine."

"It's not loyalty, Joseph," Luna chimed. "It's a vision."

Harry visibly shivered as his smile widened. "Well said, my lovely ladies. They get it, Joseph. You could if you wanted to but—"

Harry paused as the Chaos Twins burst through the door.

"Sorry to interrupt…."

"...What looks to be a serious discussion."

"But Ginny's on the move."

~~~Ace~~~

Ginny eased around the second-floor corridor corner, checking to make sure that she was alone.

'Time to feast', she hissed.

"Really? What's for dinner?"

Ginny spun around to see Harry standing behind her. "What?"

"What?" Harry retorted.

Ginny furrowed her brow. "What did you say?"

"Who's on first?"

Ginny shook her head as though trying to shake something off. "Who's on what?"

"I don't know. What were we talking about again?" A smirk curved Harry's face.

Her hands balled into fists. "You shouldn't be here, Harry."

"Should any of us?" Harry sighed, "And yet here we are."

"Just stop. No more games."

"No more games?" Harry's voice dropped to a feral growl. "But we've only begun to play."

Ginny retreated as Harry advanced until her back slammed into the wall. One of the paintings cursed as their frame rattled.

"You're mad."

"I may embody the madness," he whispered, "but I'm fully aware of what I'm doing. Now, what were you up to, Ginny Weasley?"

An unnatural shadow covered her face. "You really want to know, Ace?"

'There's the madness,' Harry hissed in parseltongue. 'Now, I'm willing to bet that the monster in the chamber is some sort of snake. Am I right?'

Before Ginny could retort, a bright light illuminated them. "What are you two doing up and roaming around so late?"

"Prefect Clearwater."

The Ravenclaw squinted at him. "You know who I am?"

"I'm in the habit of knowing the names of those who carry the sticks." Harry winked at her. "Names are quite powerful agents."

"None of your cheek, Quinn. Now, up to your common room. The both of you. The castle—"

"Behind you!"

'Time to feast!'

Harry spun around to see Red sprinting toward him with her wand raised and eyes shut tight.

"Confringo!"

A jet of light from her wand illuminated the corridor. As Harry rolled for cover, he could see the shadow of something massive on the floor. Remembering what Myrtle had said, he covered his face, then pointed his wand in the direction of the hissing voice and shouted, "Bombarda!"

A spitting sound filled the air before retreating into the distance. As it did, something hit the ground next to Harry. He opened his eyes to see a petrified Hermione next to him clutching a mirror. He peered cautiously down the corridor, but both Ginny and the monster were gone. The Ravenclaw Prefect that had dived to the floor with him looked about wildly before her eyes found Hermione.

"Is she … petrified? And what happened to the Weasley girl?"

Harry couldn't answer. His chest rose and fell as he stared at her frozen face.

"Get back to Gryffindor tower at once, Quinn. I'll summon the teachers."

Harry's hands balled into fists as he pushed himself to his feet. Then, wasting no time, he sprinted for the Room of Requirement. He reached the seventh floor to find the door open. He rolled inside and into a crouching position.

"Harry," Luna gasped as she shut the door behind him. "Thank goodness you escaped! Is Hermione—"

Harry shook his head as he pocketed his wand then straightened up to survey Luna and the Weasley twins. "Where's Joseph?"

"He went to see if he could track Ginny and the monster," Luna answered. "We watched the moment unfold on the map and assumed that … that Hermione had been attacked."

"Did the map reveal any clues?"

Luna nodded. "Yes. It identified the monster as a Basilisk—king of serpents. Hermione summoned a mirror from the room then darted out before we could stop her. We watched as the three of you fell, then Ginny fled with the beast."

"This basilisk has been using Myrtle's bathroom as an entrance to the castle. It killed her years ago and has returned to do Tommy boy's bidding. He's using Ginny like some kind of medium."

"How do we stop him…."

… without hurting Ginny?"

Harry stared into the eyes of his Chaos Twins. "We head back to Gryffindor tower, wait for Ginny to return, then request an audience with the Heir of Slytherin."

"What about me?"

"All of us, Luna dear," Harry growled. "The rules be damned."

~~~Ace~~~

They entered the common room to find several students huddled in front of the sofas around Percy and Ron.

"What's going on?"

"Hermione's been attacked, and the Heir has left another message." Neville closed the gap between them, then whispered, "I'm sure you already knew that. What you might not know is that Ginny's been taken into the Chamber, and Professor McGonagall has informed us that the Hogwarts Express will arrive in the morning to take us home. Hogwarts is closing."

Harry growled, "Tommy, Tommy, Tommy. Now you've gone too far."

"What's the plan?"

"It's time for me to find this Chamber and pay Tommy boy and his pet a visit."

"Harry," Luna hissed, "if it's a basilisk, then we're going to have to be really careful. Its stare is as deadly as its venom. That's why Hermione took a mirror with her."

"We?" Harry repeated. "Luna, my dear, I appreciate your loyalty and friendship, but this is gonna require some stealth. A group of any size will draw too many eyes. Besides, somebody's gonna have to keep an eye on things while Nev and I take care of business."

Neville's eyebrows lifted, then he nodded as he gripped his wand under his robes.

"What about us?"

"After all …"

"… It's our sister that's been taken."

Harry shook his head. "Sorry, gents, but you're too emotionally attached, and this'll require clear heads. Watch over your brothers while we reclaim your sis."

"What about you? Hermione's …"

"… Become a victim."

"She's been petrified, yes. However, she'll recover. That doesn't make me emotional." Harry's voice dropped to a feral growl. "It makes me pissed."

~~~Ace~~~

Harry and Neville slipped around corners and down corridor after corridor, under the invisibility cloak to avoid people patrolling, until they reached the seventh-floor corridor. Harry stiff-armed Neville into the wall as voices approached their location.

"We're just going to have to hope that the Heir has overplayed his hand this time and has left a clue."

"Dumbledore, I cannot understand how you're so calm," Snape hissed.

"I'm not, Severus. I'm hopeful. There's a difference. I often wandered these corridors as a student when I was troubled, as I still do today. Hogwarts always finds a way to produce a solution to an issue. I've even heard a tale of a hidden bathroom around here somewhere that appears when one needs it most."

"Bathrooms!" Snape spit, rounding on Dumbledore. "A student is missing, the school may be closing, and you're discussing hidden bathrooms?"

Dumbledore held up a hand. "The school might close for a while, but it will reopen once they have replaced all of us. My concern is for the Weasley girl and what the Heir might have planned for the world. What we need right now, Severus," Harry watched as his eyes flickered in their direction, "is one last ace in the hole before the hand is played."

Snape closed his eyes as he tugged at his long greasy hair.

"Come, Severus. We must meet with the other teachers to plan for the morning."

Dumbledore swept from the corridor, followed by a sneering Snape.

"What the bloody hell was that about?"

"He just cleared the board for us to play, Nev. Come on. Let's get to the room. I have a feeling that it might have the answer we need."

Harry pulled off the cloak as they reached the wall, then paced three times. Finally, he wrenched open the door the moment it appeared, and they ran inside. The room looked exactly like the last time they were there.

"What did you ask for?"

"Butterscotch, and there it is." Harry walked over to the table and picked up one of two bottles, then took a swig. "Always helps me think. Have a bottle."

Neville shrugged then grabbed the other bottle.

"Now, we know where the entrance is and what's down there. What we need is a way to beat the beast without dying."

At Harry's words, something brown appeared on the table. He picked it up and examined it.

"It's the Sorting hat," Neville choked out over a swallow of butterscotch. "How's that supposed to help?"

They both waited for a moment, but nothing else appeared.

"No clue," Harry retorted, "but this room has yet to fail me. Maybe the hat will talk the beast to death. Right now, we've got to get to Myrtle's bathroom."

A door appeared at the end of the room.

"Shortcut?" Neville suggested.

"There's only one way to find out. But first." Harry cupped his hands. "Peeves!"

The mad poltergeist appeared with a pop. "You called, oh master of mayhem?"

"That I did. I need you to hold onto this for me and be at the ready when I call." Harry tossed him the Sorting hat.

"Aye, aye, sir!" Peeves cackled while saluting Harry. "Anything else?"

"Oh yeah. We need a diversion. Keep the castle busy until I call."

The poltergeist gave him another salute, then zoomed out of the room.

"Why give Peeves the Sorting hat?"

"The last thing that we need, Nev, is a magical chatterbox that likes to sing. The thing could break into song and give away our position. But, if I need it, Peeves will deliver."

Harry winked at Neville, then walked over and flung open the new door to find himself directly across from the Heir's messages. He checked the corridor then hissed, "Come on."

They darted into the abandoned lavatory to find Moaning Myrtle hovering near the taps.

"Thought you'd never come," Myrtle whimpered. "Been waiting nearly an hour."

"Sorry to keep you waiting, my dear Myrtle. Is this where they went?"

"Oh yes. I watched them from my stall, careful not to look at the beast's face. Ginny Weasley hissed something, and this sink sunk into the ground. Then, they disappeared."

"Excellent work, Myrtle. Now, we're going to have some fun."

"Anything that you need from me?"

Harry growled, "Absolutely! Once we're gone, go scare the bloody hell out of Draco Malfoy and his gang."

"Ooh. Sounds like fun!" Myrtle cackled as she hovered above them.

"What now?"

"Now, Nev, I speak a little snake spit, and we go find us a beast for me and a beauty for you."

Neville shook his head as Harry tilted his and strangled out, 'Open says me.'

Immediately, the sink sunk into the floor to reveal a large pipe. They swiped their faces as Ace cooed, "Let's get dangerous!"

~~~Ace~~~

Mistah J folded the Daily Prophet over then tossed it onto the table in front of him. "This rag hasn't had a good headline since we toppled Azkaban into the sea. It's time we help them out."

"What are you planning?"

"Excellent question, Harley, my dear. Thousands of anxious readers have been left wondering what unknown forces led to the destruction of the pinnacle Magical Ministry might that sent fear through all who dared to oppose their laws. They're practically dying to know!" Mistah J sprung to his feet. "I say we help them out! Let them wonder no more!"

"You're in a chipper mood, Chuckles."

"Indeed I am, Lord Black. I've got my memories back, and I've already begun mending branches on my family tree." He tilted his head to the side. "Cup of tea or coffee? You look a little sluggish."

Sirius yawned as he stretched out on the sofa. "Coffee. Thanks."

"Morry!"

A small house-elf appeared with a crack.

"Coffee for Lord Black and myself. Harley dear, would you like some as well?"

"Nope." Harley popped the 'P'.

Mistah J swallowed, then nodded to the tiny elf.

"Right away, Mr. Joker." The elf disappeared with a crack.

"So, you consider throwing your uncle in the cellar then assigning a house-elf to beat him and kick him while he's down there as mending branches ..."

"My uncle? Heavens no. He's merely the ointment to start the healing. It's Sarah and Argus that matter to me. They need to see that we don't need to cower before wizards." A broad grin spread across his face. "The wizards need to learn to cower before us. By the way, where did you find that house-elf, Narcissa dear?"

The rest of the room turned to see Ivy and Narcissa standing in the doorway.

"He's been in my family for years. I was concerned at first as to whether he would adhere to my orders." Narcissa bit her finger. "However, now I find his vigor disturbing."

"Disturbing?" Mistah J repeated. "On the contrary. I find it refreshing! Call him up, please."

"Dobby!"

Crack!

"Mistress Sissy calls for Dobby?"

"How's our guest?"

"Ooh, thoroughly miserable, my Mistress. Cries and sobs every time Dobby kicks and slaps him."

Mistah J let out a roar of delight. "Oh, how I love this elf!"

Dobby bowed to Mistah J. "Dobby thanks you, Mr. Joker, sir."

Harley huffed.

"Something bothering you, my dear?"

"You sure that this Sarah and Argus are your cousins? I mean, one name and all your memories come flooding back?"

"That's magic, my dear. And let me make myself plain. They're most definitely my cousins, and I've got more that are wizards to deal with."

"Oh yes," Filch growled, walking into the room. "He's definitely my cousin. The biggest disgrace of my family tree."

"Stop it, ole bean. You're making me blush!"

"You're right," Filch continued. "I've tried to fit in for too long. Been pushed around by wizards and their little brats while hoping to gain their acceptance. Well, I say enough. Time to make them suffer. They need to rule the day that they made light of us."

The two men began to laugh, a laugh that would make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up. Hidden in the shadows, the young girl shivered while she listened.

A/N: Welcome back Watchers! It's time for another installment of Ace! Just in case you're wondering, JB and I have been busy working on chapters and plotting. We've got four chapters of Ace completed and several chapters of other stories ready to be posted as well.

The next chapter will be a Watcher's Choice! JB and I are divided about the outcome, and we need your help! We'll be posting two different versions of the same chapter. Then it'll be up to you as to which one stays and which one goes. Fun times!

Special thanks to Critters At Play for being beta. As always, we hope that you enjoyed the chapter! Please review and let us know what you thought.