Chapter 47

Annabeth

For the most part the students were of two minds; those that just wanted to get the week of exams over with so they could head to America, and those who didn't care about exams and just wanted to get to America so they didn't have to be on guard every second outside the Leodis. The second group all happened to be demi gods from the states. And Rachel of course.

There was a third group though that was excited when Hazel drew the cave Harry described. To most it looked like a dark line on the side of a cliff beside the ocean, but Dumbledore knew exactly where it was and was anxious to explore it before Team Voldemort got around to going there. It was decided we would go the next night, with Dumbledore leading the team, Harry and Ginny going for the Hogwart's kids, the latter at her own insistence. For the Americans, Percy since it was on the ocean, myself because it was Percy. Finally the Order would send both Sirius and Lupin as both were getting cabin fever from just sitting around helping to teach students who were already performing at above their level. The "Order" was generally just eating and getting fat. Dumbledore of course asked Jennifer, and it was becoming apparent to all of us, us Americans at least, that Dumbledore was quite aware there was something different and powerful about Jennifer. It didn't help that Jennifer spent her time worrying about her relationship and often ignored the charade of using a wand for magic.

We gathered at Bob's, loaded for bear. If LeStrange wanted to attack the Headmaster while we were out she better bring her whole army. That way we could kill them in one sitting and not waste anymore time. We apparated to a rock about two hundred yards off the coast where we could clearly see the cave. At the bottom of it was a pile of rocks that looked more jagged and less worn than the stones around it. The sea was rough with ten to twenty foot waves cresting and splashing us on the rock. From there we relied on Percy to calm the seas and provide us with a firm platform to walk across. It was kind of thrilling to see him do this, and see the looks on everyone's face as he exhibited a power beyond the imaginations of either the Hogwarts kids or the order. Even Jennifer was impressed.

We climbed over the rock pile and entered a cave that only went about thirty feet or so. Wands illuminated it while Dumbledore felt along the wall, apparently looking for a hidden passage. Jennifer pointed at a spot just past where he was feeling and suggested "Here Professor."

Dumbledore felt where she had pointed and agreed. "Yes. Excellent eye Miss Jennifer. It appears this passage requires a sacrifice."

"Oh, we should have brought Hazel, she rocks at finding passages." I suggested to no one in particular.

"We'll be fine" Percy smiled, just as Dumbledore drew a knife, sliced his hand and pressed the blood into the stone.

I heard a gasp, probably from either Harry or Ginny, or both. I guess the rest of us had seen worse and been shocked more. Either way, the wall's stones began rolling just as Jennifer healed the cut on the Headmaster's palm by passing her wand over it. This time she remembered the wand so maybe she was making progress I thought to myself.

Past the wall was a larger cavern, this one nearly filled with water. Only a small beach where we entered appeared to be dry at first. On further inspection though there was a chain extending from one wall into the water, and it appeared to go towards an island which once our eyes adjusted glowed with an eerie blue light.

"Uh, just curious, but do any of our American friends feel particularly angry or irritable at this point?" Ginny asked, looking at me.

"No" Percy answered.

"Not me either." I answered, then looked to Jennifer.

"There was evil here, but what is here now is different than the ring. What ever it is, the island is the center of it." She said, stating the obvious about the island.

"Shall we walk?" I asked.

"We can, but the merpeople might not let us." Percy said.

"There are mermaids here?" I asked.

"Yes, and there shouldn't be. This is stagnant water, not connected to a stream. large lake or the ocean."

"Son of Poseidon, so good of you to join us" a voice in the darkness said. As our eyes adjusted we saw several men, all lime green and apparently standing in the water. Their mouths were wide and filled with fangs, and kelp appeared to be growing where their hair should be.

"How is it you came to be in this place? Does it connect to the ocean somehow?" Percy asked.

"It did, but for decades we have been trapped in this lake. The one who hid the object cursed us here to protect it. We cannot leave, we cannot rejoin our people."

"I see. Well, we are here to undo his work. We come for the object at the center, and when we leave will will reopen this cave to the sea so that you might return to your families."

"Alas, we are cursed to protect it, and cannot let you leave with it. It is human magic, from Hecate, an imperious curse upon us and our children. It cannot be broken, we must obey it or we die. You cannot have the treasure here, I am sorry."

The thing is, he did seem genuinely remorseful, but we didn't have time for this.

"Jennifer, can you break it?"

"Not all at once. Each is cursed individually. I can only free one at a time, but they should stay free of it."

"How many of you are there?" Percy asked.

"More than one hundred." Sure enough they began popping up all over the water.

"Our friend can free you one at a time. While she does this, may we proceed to the island?"

"We are not bound to interfere with you until you try to depart with it."

"Excellent. Come forth and be freed. When we leave, we will open this cave to the ocean again. Your people await your rejoining them. They have been instrumental in assisting the gods in two wars while you were away and are heros of my father's realm.

"There is a boat at the end of the chain. It is large enough for most of you, but beware, there is danger on the island. Once you begin to return we will not let you pass if you carry the treasure we guard."

"Understood" Percy said, and with that Jennifer began aiming her wand and counter-cursing the merpeople that arose.

This left us without our most powerful curse breaker should she be needed at the island and I admit that concerned me after the ring. I had loaded a couple of spells to detect curses into my wand from the library since then but doubted I had Jennifer's talent. Of course she would only be a hundred yards away or so. We could always call for her if needed, but we had always survived before Calypso somehow and I figured we would again.

The quest for the Ring had been brief and frightening. By comparison, this was rather dull and a comedy of errors. Dumbledore and Harry began pulling on the chain until Percy held up his hand and summoned the boat by having the water itself deliver it. Once we got to the island Jennifer was about half done with the merpeople and we could clearly see a broach in a basin of water with a large scallop shell beside it.

"That was in his head! That's one of them, isn't it?" Harry asked.

"Yes. I believe it is. Does anyone feel particularly emotional?" Dumbledore asked.

"No" all the Americans replied. If anything I felt completely calm.

Harry reached to take it, but the Headmaster stopped him. "You are too important to risk thusly Harry."

With that Dumbledore reached in and found that he could not touch it.

"I believe it must be drank" he said as he picked up the scallop shell "Now listen carefully, I suspect this potion is one that reacts with water to become a poison. No matter what, do not give me water. Ignore my pleas for help and keep feeding it to me until you can remove the broach."

"Is that what it is? A broach?" I asked.

"Yes, it appears to be the Broach of Salazar Slytherin. This confirms that Riddle used items associated with Hogwart's founders. Now step aside."

"Why don't we just add water to it until it dilutes?" Ginny suggested.

"I suspect the basin is cursed to produce more." Lupin suggested. "Thats what I would do if I were laying such a trap."

"Hang on" I said as I reached into my bag and produced a basilisk fang, which I stabbed into the broach.

Nothing happened.

I stabbed it again, and still it just lay there. Finally I stabbed it so hard as to crack the amber it was made of, and still nothing happened.

"Shouldn't that have set it off?" I asked.

"Indeed. Perhaps the potion is interfering with the basilisk venom?" Sirius suggested.

"Or its a fake. I don't think its real." Harry said. "With the others, well, I could feel there was something about the diary, and had that feeling again with the ring. I don't have it here. Not at all."

"Does this thing look familiar to anyone?" Sirius asked, with all the students replying that they thought they had seen it somewhere before, but couldn't place where.

"Perhaps on a painting at the school?" Lupin suggested but no one thought that was right.

"I should drink it, it is the only way." Dumbledore said as he again reached for the scallop.

"No it isn't and if you'll pardon me for saying so, its a particularly stupid way." Ginny said, surprising us all.

We stared at her, some of us wondering what she meant, the others just mildly shocked that she had basically called the headmaster stupid.

"Well, really, Annabeth, do you think your stunning curse could blast the base off this thing?"

"Sure, but then you have the problem of the basin dissolving and killing everything in here" Lupin said.

"So what is going to be in here? Jennifer must be just about done. Once she is we move the rocks and free the mermaids, men, people, whatever! Then we blow this thing off its base, grab the broach and get out, we can seal the place behind us so nothing out there gets effected."

"Ya know, that might works just fine. Is there any reason we couldn't dilute it then Headmaster? I hose it it with one of the agua spells, you grab it?" Percy asked.

"What if it is cursed like the ring?" Harry asked.

"Good point, why don't we accio it into a bag once its out until Jennifer and the Professor can examine it?"

And so that is exactly what we did. The Merpeople waited for us just outside, we blasted the basin, accioed the broach, and by now most of you know it was fake.

Fortunately we had Sirius along and he quickly recognized the handwriting and initials as being that of his brother, Regulus. He even thought he had seen the broach in Regulus's room at one time many years ago. With that, we were off to Grimmould Place to locate the real broach, which as it turned out was no longer there.

The house elf of the Black manor, a horrible little creature named Kreacher, knew who had been there to steal it though and was sent to retrive them. He came back a short time later with a short little weasel of a man named "Mugungus" who's only remorse was that he didn't think he had gotten enough for it when he sold it to none other than Delores Umbridge, current resident of St Mungos. With this we returned to Hogwarts and sent Jennifer, Reyna, Neville and Mr Longbottom to get the damn thing.

Other than it pissing Reyna off severely they had no problems and Ron of all people stabbed it with a basilisk fang at Bob's residence.

All in all it was never either a dangerous, or even interesting quest.

Our luck was bound to change.