Chapter 22

It took another day to get to york by bus. When I got there I rented a hotel room. My magical core was still weak from the fiendfyre. I decided to have a long rest before I did anything else.

I spent the next four days relaxing and planning. It only took another day for my magical core to recover but I wanted to practice some more magic. I hadn't been thinking about it at the time, which was very stupid of me, but if the trace was on me I would have definitely been expelled for casting Fiendfyre in a muggle area. Because I did not receive a single letter, I realized that since I am not from this time period I can use magic outside of school and the ministry wouldn't know a thing.

I was still working on becoming an animagus. It was going well but I still had a long way to go. I was also learning as many offensive and defensive spells as I could. I didn't know what I was going to encounter in the 'cave'. The letter mentioned danger. Also, finding the cave was going to be a challenge. The cross on the map covers a large area. I knew that there was a small river near by and I intended to follow that. For now though, I was just preparing. I had the whole holiday and I did not feel the need to rush.

...

I decided today was the day I was going to try and find the cave. I had rested for five days and I was ready for some action. I took a taxi to the area under the cross on the map before finding the river. It runs through the entire area. I started walking along it. I didn't really know what I was supposed to be looking for. I knew it was a cave. Then there was the clue in the letter:

'Fire, water, earth and air,

Come from four sides to meet you there.'

That's why I was following the river. I figured that must be the water. Obviously earth is all around but it could also be something like a mountain or even a forest. Air could be a chasm. Fire is a little more complicated. I know not many people come here but I think a fire would be noticeable.

Then I felt myself pass through something. An enchantment. It felt like something to deter people or a notice-me-not charm of some kind. I wonder why it didn't work on me. It felt powerful. Maybe it was designed to not work on a descendant of the one who cast it. That would make plenty of sense considering where I found the note.

As soon as I set foot past the charm's barrier, I immediately knew I had found the right spot. The river ran past it on my left. On my right was a mountain and behind it was a huge forest. It looked as if it stretched for miles. I could see the mouth of a cave on the side of the mountain. Directly in front of me was a large chasm. It's a good thing the charm barrier made me stop walking, otherwise I would have fallen in. It didn't look like the bottom would be seen before you fell for a mile. It could even be charmed to be bottomless.

But what really shocked me was the fire that was far in front of me, past the chasm. Or maybe not the fire itself, but the reason that the fire was there. I figured it would be something big if they were sure that the fire would not ever go out but this was...something. It appeared to be a nest. A dragon's nest. It was surrounded by fire. I saw dragon eggs. Six of them, but luckily there was no dragon there at the moment.

The first thing I needed to do was get over the chasm. I was seriously happy I had brought my broom right now. I took my trunk out of my pocket and enlarged it. I quickly went into my apartment and found the shelf where I had put it. I took it back outside and shrunk my trunk before putting it back in my pocket.

I mounted my broom and quickly ascended a few meters. It didn't take long for me to fly over the chasm and into the cave. I decided I would stay on my broom but it soon became clear that would not be possible. As soon as I got inside the cave my broom stopped. It just stopped. Suddenly it dropped and I found myself in a pile on the ground. Why would my broom not work? I took out my wand and tried to cast an examination spell. Nothing happened. I tried a simple lumos. Again, nothing happened. Magic wasn't working. I stepped out of the cave and tried to cast lumos again. It worked fine. The cave must stop my magic from working.

I enlarged my trunk and went inside. I put my broom away before transfiguring a kitchen knife into a pocket knife. Who knows what I'll need in there. Honestly, I was a bit nervous about the prospect of not being able to use magic. It's funny when I think about it, I used to not believe in magic. This was supposed to be a challenge. I hoped it would be just like an obstacle course. I used to do those when I went on school camps. It wouldn't be that bad then.

First, I needed to decide what I was going to need. I already have a knife. I went and got a small bag out of my bedroom. I put in some matches (They always come in handy). What else will I need? I put in some snack food and a water bottle. I didn't know how long I was going to be in the cave. I figured rope was one of those things that is always good to have so I transfigured some out of toilet paper. Once that was in my bag, I put in a notebook and a pen. I think I'm ready. I stepped out of my trunk and closed it tight. After it was safely shrunk and in my pocket, I stepped back into the cave with the bag slung over my shoulder.

...

It was dark. That was the first thing I noticed. I hadn't been walking for long. Only about five minutes. I was feeling my way along the stone walls. I was currently hitting myself for not thinking of bringing a flash light or casting the spell I invented. As stupid as it sounds, it just didn't occur to me that the cave would be dark. I'm an idiot. As I was thinking this, my hand bumped into some thing on the wall.

It was a torch. Not one of those ones that runs on batteries but a piece of wood with some cloth rapped around it. It wasn't lit but I was really happy I had the sense to bring matches right now. I quickly took it off its perch. There was a sudden bang. That didn't sound good. I found my matches and lit the torch so I could see what I had done. I was silently praying that I hadn't set off some kind of deadly booby-trap. I looked around.

Everything looked normal. It was just what you would expect an ordinary cave to look like. Then I turned around and saw that where I had come from was now only a wall. Well that's just great. No turning back now. At least I have light. I wasn't going to be touching anything else anytime soon though. I continued walking.

...

I didn't have to walk for much longer before I came to what was probably my first obstacle. It was another chasm. However, with no magic or broomstick, I didn't know what I was to do. I looked at the walls, hoping to see some kind of tiny ledge. But there was nothing. No ledge. No stepping stones. No thin pathway. Nothing.

That couldn't be it though. There had to be a way. I looked at the ceiling. Nothing there either. Or was there. Protruding from the ceiling were what appeared to be handles. they reminded me of monkey bars, one in front of the other. Now all I had to do was reach them. I stretched but there was no way I was tall enough. I could jump but the first one was a meter in front of me. I would have to jump to it and if I missed I would fall. Simple as that.

I took a deep breath. There was simply no way around this. I moved back a little so I could have a bit of a run up. I took three quick steps before launching myself at the small handle. For a minute I thought I would miss. Luckily I just managed to grab it with my right hand. I swung and grabbed the second one with my left hand. I paused to breath before starting to swing my legs and continuing across.

Finally I made it to the end. I was panting. Not so much because it was hard, but more because it was terrifying. I kept walking. I seemed to be moving down hill. I suspect I was moving underneath the forest I had seen behind the mountain.

...

I soon came to the next challenge. It made the first thing I did look like a piece of cake. I suspected they were going to keep getting harder. What ever is at the end of the tunnel better be worth it! The cave had widened into a circular room. Not to big, only about ten meters in diameter. There was writing on the ceiling. What made it so hard was the fact that as soon as I had stepped into the room, the only two exits closed themselves on either side of me with a sudden thump. The room had immediately started filling with water.

It was pretty cliché really. The room was filling up quickly. I put my torch in a holder near the ceiling before I read the writing beside it. I was hoping it was some kind of clue on how not to drown down here. It was taking a lot of effort to keep my head above the cool, salty, water.

Take a breath and don't hesitate to see,

The thing that is the only key.

I read. 'Take a breath', got it. I took a deep breath and closed my eyes, before diving into the water. The writing said I needed to see but surely salt water would sting my eyes. I decided to take a chance. I opened my eyes. It didn't sting and to my great surprise I could see very clearly. I looked around.

That was when I spotted the rock in the corner that looked slightly out of place. I had to go back to the surface and take another breath before diving back down and grabbing it off the floor. I brought it back up to the surface. I only had about thirty seconds before I would have no more air.

I looked closely at the rock. There was a thin groove right down the middle. I stuck my thumb nails in it and tried to separate what I assumed were pieces. The 'rock' cracked open easily. Inside was the key. It was nothing special. Just an ordinary looking key. I went back under the water and swam to the door. I was looking for some kind of key hole. There wasn't one. I was going to die. No one would find my body if I drowned down here. I went back to the surface before I passed out. This was my last breath before the room filled up.

Then I saw the key hole. It was on the ceiling, not the door. The full stop at the end of the writing was a key hole. I hurriedly jammed the key in the hole and turned it. Strait away, the water started to drain. I picked up my torch again. Soon all the water was gone and the doors automatically opened.

...

I stepped out of the room and continued walking. It didn't take long before I found myself in another room. It was a lot bigger this time but I was less concerned with the room itself and more worried about what was in the room. It took all my self control not to scream. Lets just say that I found out why the dragon wasn't outside with it's eggs.

The dragon looked as though it were sleeping. It was huge. I would say it was the size of a school bus, maybe bigger. It had deep, dark blue, scales that covered it head to toe. I tried to breath as quietly as possible as I made my way round the slumbering dragon. Hopefully I could get round it without- "ROAAAAR" I gazed down and found that I had stepped on it's tail. Stupid! I didn't want to look up but I had too. I jerked my head upwards and found myself face to face with a very angry looking dragon.

...