Chapter Thirty-Five: The Lost Boy

            It had rained that morning; early at dawn even before the first of the morning cuckoos were awake.  It was a fickle rain, one that had lasted only long enough to moisten the sidewalks.  And now, the sun shone through again from behind mounds of clean spotless white clouds, all lining up in the bright blue sky like little children.  The dark cobblestones in the courtyard of Hogwarts had turned into a big rocky black mirror, reflecting the entire world on top of it, making the sky's ego swell twice as big as it saw itself, so vast and unfathomable, limitless upon the little spots of wet stone.  Natalia smiled when she looked out the window of Madame Pomfrey's office, seeing the capricious sky change once again, lingering between a state of cloudiness and extreme sunshine.  She had come in to get some Stomach-ache Solution for Dobby.  The broccoli he had eaten with her the night before had made him quite sick.  Although he failed to say so, he had turned rather green, a deeper shade than he usually was.  Natalia frowned when she reached Madame Pomfrey's medicine cabinet, finding that it was neither alphabetically nor categorically ordered.  No, it was neither of these things.  Instead, it was very precisely and scrupulously sorted – in color code.  Potions and remedies sat side by side, all ranging in height and size going from shades of dark to light.  She was trying to depict the Toe-Wart Ointment from the Boil Cure Potion when she heard a small crash behind her.  Wheeling around, she saw Vincent Crabbe stooping over, frantically trying to pick up a stool he had knocked over.  He looked up, a sheepish look plastered on his pudgy face.  "Oh…good morning, Vincent," Natalia greeted, unsure of what he was doing here. 

            "Sorry about that," he said nervously, fidgeting with his hands, "I…ah…I just came here for some stuff."

            She watched curiously as he looked with great anxiety at the medicine cabinet, frowning deeply as he realized that the potions were arranged in no sane order.  "Dammit…" he muttered under his breath.

            Natalia raised an eyebrow and turned to him, saying, "Excuse me?"

            "Oh – ah – sorry, ha, ha…" he said, laughing nervously, "Um…do you know where the…um…what was it…oh, yes, the Swelling Solution is?"

            She furrowed her brow curiously and looked at the cabinet, seeing the purplish-green liquid right away.  "Did you shrink something?" she asked inquiringly.

            "Who, me?" Crabbe replied stupidly, "Oh.  No, not me.  Draco, he…I mean"  He fumbled around, searching in his thick skull for an excuse.  He sure did wish that Draco had told him what the potion was for.  "No, Draco needs it.  He wants an enlargement."

            Natalia nearly choked on herself, exclaiming, "What?"

            "For his height – his height!" the boy sputtered, smacking himself inwardly for such idiocy.  "You know, for…the game!  The game today!  He wants to grow taller so he can…watch the game better."

            She eyed him strangely, sensing a great deal of mischief.  Shaking her head, she got the two bottles of Swelling Solution from the cabinet, telling herself that she could care less what the boys were up to.  "Just make sure you have some Shrinking Solution at hand," she warned, "You don't want to go tromping about the size of Norwegian ogres."  Though you sure look like one already, popped up in her head.  Unable to keep from chuckling at the thought, she gave the bottles to him, hoping that they wouldn't end up killing themselves or innocent bystanders.  Crabbe left the office in a hurry, relieved that she hadn't questioned his motives.  He headed for the Slytherin dormitories, wondering if Draco and Goyle had gotten the other solutions from Snape's storage successfully.

            The sun had had enough with the clouds for the day.  By afternoon, it shone brightly, nearly lighting the sky like a spring day if it hadn't been for the biting cold that had settled in.  Natalia knew it would snow within the next week as she walked to the Slytherin dormitories, hoping to get a heavier robe before going to the Great Hall for the game.  She passed her hand over the wall at the end of the dungeon's hallway, the trapdoor quickly sliding away to let her into the Common Room.  She heard the argument before she saw anything.  A high-pitched, shrill voice was whining, "But Dracie!  I want to be the queen!  Who's ever heard of a boy being the queen?!?"  It was Pansy.  Natalia rolled her eyes, entering the room quietly.  She could see from the looks of it that Draco was greatly peeved, his fists clenched to keep himself from tearing his ears off at the sound of Pansy's screeching voice.

            "Please don't call me that," he hissed, "And the queen is a very powerful piece.  I hardly think that you are capable of –"  He cut himself off when he saw Natalia trying to slip quietly into the hallway leading to the girl's dormitory.  "Natalia!" he cried out, relieved beyond reason at seeing her, "Are you going to play?"

            The girl stood stunned for a second, disappointed that she had been seen.  Turning around slowly, she replied, "No…I won't be, sorry."  She smiled apologetically at Draco, making him forget the Pansy Problem for a moment.  He smiled back, realizing that this was the first time that he had seen her since Tuesday.  When he finally became conscious of what her answer was, he frowned, seeing that the Pansy Problem was still at hand.  "I'm sure Pansy will be very effective as queen though," she said, smirking at Draco.  He feigned irritation, narrowing his eyes mockingly at Natalia for ruining his plans. 

            "Yeah, see?  Even she knows that I'm 'capable' of doing that," Pansy spat out, waving a haughty hand in Natalia's direction.

            He looked back at the dark-haired girl, who was grinning at him quite openly now, and threw up a hand in defeat.  "Fine.  Soon, I expect you'll be wanting my spot as Seeker on the Quidditch team as well," he muttered under his breath, turning an evil eye on Pansy. 

            Natalia chuckled as she headed back to her chambers, leaving the Slytherins to discuss their game.  "Natalia," Draco called behind her as he caught up, "Wait."

            She turned around before saying her password, drawling out, "Yes?"

            "Don't take that Snape tone with me," he said teasingly, "You've already gotten me in enough trouble."

            "Oh, I doubt Pansy will be any trouble at all," she replied with a smirk, "She's very good at casting Love Charms you know.  I believe it should be most beneficial when she's called to duel."

            "Brazen wench!" he muttered, grinning at her.  "Are you at least going to watch?" he asked, this time seriously. 

            "Yes," she replied, "I have finally been released."

            Draco chuckled, saying, "Ah, the trivial whims of our resident obsessive compulsive nurse.  I shall see you in a bit, then?"

            She nodded, grinning as he walked back to the Common Room.  "Oh, Draco," she called after him. 

            Turning, he drawled out in perfect Snape-fashion, "Yes?"

            "What did you really need the Swelling Solutions for?"

            His face spreading into a mysterious grin, he replied, "We're playing, aren't we?"

            Shaking her head, she turned back to her door, not believing that he was just fifteen and already speaking in riddles.  However, she was glad to see that he was recovering and had returned to his usual prankster self. 

            "…No, no, Scholar's Mate isn't going to work now that we're playing the Slytherins," Ron discussed with Harry as they went down to the Great Hall. 

            "What do you mean?" the dark-haired boy asked, "It's a quick win!"

            "Don't you see?" Ron insisted, "It's too easy.  They'd see right through it.  With the Ravenclaws, we stood a chance because we might have been more powerful, but the Slytherins are sure going to get nasty with us."

            Harry frowned, realizing that what his friend said was true.  "Then what are we going to do?" he asked, quite at lost for a sure-win strategy. 

            The redhead scratched behind his ear, screwing up his face in thought.  "Well…let's see…we could…no, that won't work."  Rubbing his chin, he shook his head in frustration, thinking hard.  "Let me get back to you on that."

            "Ron," Harry said, "The game's in a couple minutes."

            "Yeah, yeah, I know," replied the taller boy, waving his hands.

            Every fourth year and under girl giggled wildly as Devon Ashwater, a seventh year Ravenclaw, stepped to the front of the Hall to announce the rules of the game.  He had a head full of satiny chocolate brown hair, cut so each curl crowned him like a Roman Caesar.  The boy was painfully handsome with a nose straight as Artemis' arrow, cheekbones that gazed down elegantly like twin peaks on Mount Olympus, and a mouth so delicate it looked like the first of the buds on a spring morning.  However, none of these features caused quite an effect as his eyes did to the female student body of Hogwarts.  He possessed exquisitely expressive gray eyes, the color of mist on a cold Eastern morning, and every time he looked upon something with those eyes, it seemed as if he were seeing it for the first time in his life and marveling at the miracle of its presence.  Consequently, the girls of Hogwarts mistook this as adoration for the female race on his part, and took to loving his impossibly good looks immediately.  Of course, it did help that he was continuously courteous and kept mostly to himself, creating a sense of mystery around him.  Ginny rolled her eyes as Devon waited for the giggles to die down.  "You'd think that Dumbledore had walked in with a frock on, the way everyone's giggling," she said under her breath to Hermione.

            Smiling with quiet confidence, Devon began to address the chess players.  "The rules of this game will be the same as before, but I will repeat them so there will not be any misunderstandings.  Firstly," he stated, "All the players will have to check with Professor Snape to ensure that they have not taken any Wit Sharpening Potions or substances of other kind to enhance their performance."

            "Secondly," he continued, "The players will be assigned armlets according to their position.  The Slytherin House will receive black armlets, and the Gryffindor House, clear.  Once these cuffs are administered, the players will immediately be transported onto the chessboard."

            Ron turned to Harry, whispering curiously, "What d'you think he means "transported" to the board?  I thought we were playing here."

            "These bands," the Ravenclaw continued, "Allow the players to move only as their pieces would allow.  When dueling, the players will move to the destined position and attack accordingly.  Speed is greatly recommended here."  A couple of chuckles rippled through the crowd. 

            "Lastly," he concluded, "When a player loses a duel, their armlet will immediately break, transporting them off the board and out of the arena.  The cuffs may also be broken physically, thus having the same effect of winning a duel."

            Now it was Harry who turned to Ron.  "Did you hear that?  He mentioned something about an arena."

            The students began whispering excitedly amongst themselves at the prospect of playing in an arena as Dumbledore strode to the front of the Hall.  "Thank you, Devon," he said, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder.  Silencing the din with a raise of his hand, the Headmaster addressed the students.  "Many of you may be wondering why the Hall has not been set up for the chess game like the last ones."

            The children's buzz of anticipation confirmed Dumbledore's assumption.  "If you will follow me," he said, "I believe that your curiosity will be most satisfied."

            Walking to the back of the Hall, the old wizard lead the horde of children past all four House tables, all the way back, right into – the broom closet.

            "Blimey!" Ron exclaimed under his breath, "I suppose Dumbledore's really gone mad this time."

            The Headmaster removed a couple of brooms and buckets, and muttered something under his breath to the back of the closet.

            "No, Ron," Harry whispered, "I've seen this before on the Marauder's Map.  It's some kind of secret passageway down to someplace under the dungeons."

            The students watched in awe as the closet gave out a stench-filled groan and let its back panel fall out, showing complete and utter darkness.  Turning back with an amused grin on his face, Dumbledore called out, "All right, come along!"  The students piled in behind the old wizard with Devon at the end, pulling the panel back up to shut the passageway. 

            A line of lit wands slowly filed down the secret passage.  It was a low tunnel – steep, damp, and cold, each step making a resonating echo on the hard stone.  "I remember what this is!" Hermione whispered suddenly to her friends.  Her eyes widened with awe and fear as she recalled where they were going.  "This," she breathed out, "Is most curious."

            Ron and Harry both frowned inquisitively and whispered loudly, "What're you talking 'bout, 'Mione?"

            "The chess game," she said in a hush, "Don't tell me you two don't know."

            They both frowned and shook their heads.  Hermione huffed in disbelief and muttered, "Really, don't you two know anything?"  She rolled her eyes, continuing, "You know that this isn't the first chess tournament that Hogwarts has had, right?"      

            The boys shook their heads yet again.

            "Well," Hermione breathed out, "Up until sixty years ago, Hogwarts had chess tournaments every year."

            "What happened sixty years ago?" Ron demanded, curiosity mounting by the moment. 

            Looking around her, she scooted closer to the other two, whispering in a low voice, "You remember what Devon said about being teleported out of the arena and back outside after losing a duel?  Well, apparently, sixty years ago, when a student lost a duel, he was teleported out of the arena, but not back to Hogwarts –"  She dropped her voice even lower, "He was transported somewhere else.  They didn't even notice his absence until after the game, and by then, they weren't able to find him.  The Ministry was on it for years, but they couldn't figure out where he had gone.  I reckon that –"

            "You won't have to worry about any of that," a voice said behind them.  Turning around, they saw Devon standing behind them.  "The Headmaster and the professors have gone to great lengths to ensure the safety of the students in this game."

            "What do you mean?" Harry asked, quite unnerved at the thought of being teleported to an unknown place.

            "Dumbledore and the rest of the staff has replaced all of the old armlets and," he looked closely at the other two, "When you are inside the arena, you will notice something quite peculiar about the structure that the spectators on the outside will not."

            "What's so peculiar about it?" Hermione inquired, furrowing her brow.

            "The arena," he explained, "Is built inside a dodecahedron, the Sphenera.  However, the people outside in the observation room will not be able to perceive its shape.  This structure makes sure that the players are teleported only into Hogwarts and the arena."

            "How d'you know about all of this?" Ron asked, excitement blazing in his eyes. 

            Devon smiled, showing two perfect rows of brilliantly white teeth.  "I plan to study Astrostructure after I graduate, therefore Dumbledore allowed me to analyze the Sphenera in my spare time during the summer.  I believe you will find it most interesting."

            The students arrived at a stairway, not unlike those in an old bell tower.  They descended these stairs for what seemed nearly fifteen minutes, and finally, another narrow passageway appeared.  Dumbledore lead them down and at the end of the hallway, put his hands up and touched the wall.  He turned back around and beamed at the children, saying, "All right, in you go!"

            The students stared at the Headmaster as if he had sprouted horns and whispered to each other, completely puzzled.  "Come, come," he said, putting a hand on the nearest child's shoulder, ushering her straight through the stone wall.  "Now, come along."

            The children swept excitedly through the barrier, and as Hermione, Ron, and Harry passed through, they stood for a moment in awe at the sight they beheld.  They were on a loft holding rows of plush sofas, all overlooking a large glass wall facing the seats.  Hermione quickly noticed that this was no glass wall, but an extensive window that revealed another room that was even larger than the Great Hall and made completely of frosted glass.  In the middle of this separated hall was a cube floating quietly in midair.  Each square on the cube was either black or white, varying between obsidian surfaces and ones made of frosted glass.

            All of the professors were already in the Observation Chamber sitting in the highest row of seats talking amongst themselves.  As soon as the children were situated on the couches, Dumbledore cleared his throat and began addressing the spectators.  "As all of you know, this is the first of two final games in this year's tournament.  Now, before we begin, I must ask the Gryffindor and Slytherin players to be tested for substance use by Professor Snape."

            Turning toward the Chess Hall, Dumbledore called out, "Explico" clearly and waved his hand over the room.  The cube that was suspended in the middle of the glass arena suddenly spun wildly and then stopped abruptly once again.  The square faces on the cube suddenly collapsed out and revealed another similar cube underneath.  The fallen panels quickly removed themselves from the cube and the whole process repeated itself until the cube had run out of surfaces, producing a perfect, life-sized chessboard suspended midair in the arena. 

Fred and George walked past the murmuring students to Professor Snape, who was standing in the far corner of the Observation Chamber with a cauldron full of bubbling liquid beside him. 

            "Weasley," Snape drawled out, "Pity if you haven't taken any of your ludicrous little potions.  I would very much enjoy seeing you turn green to match that ridiculous color you Weasleys choose to wear your hair in."  Gesturing to the cauldron, he snapped out, "Head in," expecting George to dunk his head into the vat full of boiling liquid.

            "What?!" the redhead exclaimed, "No way am I putting my face in that."

            Scowling deeply, the Potions Master snarled out, "Ah, don't worry, Weasley, the girls will like you better without your face.  I suggest you do as I say lest you want to be disqualified before the game."

            Shaking his head, the boy protested.  "There must be some kind of rule from the Ministry against burning students' faces off!" he cried desperately.  George looked back unsurely at his twin, who shrugged and gave him a helpless look.  Taking a deep breath, he clenched his eyes and dunked his head into the steaming cauldron.  Instead of feeling his ears scorched off, George nearly gasped in a mouthful of potion as he felt the extreme iciness of the liquid seep under his skin.  His body stiffened as one's organs do when one expects a singe and gets frostbite.  Grabbing the boy by his locks, Snape yanked his head back out, looking disdainfully at him.  "Surprising, not green.  I suspect you did not have enough wits in the first place to make a Wit Sharpening Potion after all." he hissed at the twin.  George was thrown aside by the professor, dazed that he was not the least bit wet.  Devon Ashwater approached him, leading the redhead to a table in the front of the room.  "What position will you be playing today, George?"

            "Uh…the queen's knight?  Yeah, queen's knight." he replied, still a bit shaken.  "You're not playing next week, are you?" twin asked.

            "No," the other boy replied, "I only enjoy the concept of the game, but I don't like to take part in it."

            "Humph," George muttered. 

            Looking down at the table, Devon picked up a pure silver box, ornately decorated with Grecian carvings.  Opening the box, he revealed a delicately beautiful armlet made of frosted crystal lying atop a bed of crimson velvet.  He unclasped it and gestured for George's right arm.  As soon as the cuff was clasped around the redhead's upper arm, George felt it tighten snugly, and in a second, he disappeared from the room, only to reappear in the Chess Hall on a transparent square of the chessboard.  The audience murmured their awe as they saw George teleported into the hall, the emblem of the knight appearing immediately a foot above his head.  He now possessed a long thin sword in his hands, also made of frosted crystal. 

            Harry and Hermione were waiting in line as Ron was getting dunked.  Looking at the rows of students, Hermione suddenly spotted Natalia in a seat beneath another empty seat in the professor's stand, which she assumed to be Snape's.  Waving, she caught the Slytherin's attention, who in turn, beamed and waved back to her.  "Harry," Hermione said, tapping him on the shoulder, "Natalia's here."  The boy looked up and saw the girl waving at him.  He smiled, rather glad that she was not playing.  If given a choice, he would have preferred not to duel against her.  Hermione approached Snape after Ron was done, hoping to pass her test without any snide remarks from the professor.  "Well, Granger," he sneered out, "I see that the Shrinking Solution has had no effect whatsoever on your teeth."

            The girl furrowed her brow and cried out, "You think I took your potions?"

            Snape narrowed his eyes and snarled out, "Head in, Granger."

            Harry watched as Hermione stumbled away to the armlet table, shock chilling her to the spine.  "Potter!"

            Harry snapped his head back to the professor.  "Pay attention!  We don't have all day for you to dawdle!"

            Dipping his head in, Harry gasped, taking a hearty mouthful of potion into his lungs.  He felt Snape's hand clench his hair and yank his head back up unnecessarily hard, causing his forehead to hit against the cauldron.  Sputtering, Harry shakily put his glasses back on, stumbling away.  "Can't do anything correctly," Snape hissed under his breath. 

Natalia felt something climb up next to her, and turning, she found that it was Dobby.  She smiled congenially, greeting him in a generous way.  "Hello, Dobby.  How are you this afternoon?"

            The little house-elf smiled shyly and replied, "Dobby is well, Miss, Dobby is very well.  Dobby is brings Miss lunch."

            "Oh, thank you!" she exclaimed, forgetting that she had not eaten lunch yet. 

            Dobby snapped his fingers and a tray of scrumptious food appeared in front of her, hovering at a comfortable level. 

            "Thank you, Dobby," she said with a smile, adding, "Won't you stay to watch the game?"

            "Does Miss requests Dobby to?" he asked, looking inquisitively at her. 

            Knowing that he would not stay unless she "demanded" so, she replied, "Yes, I would very much like your company."

            He sat very quietly next to her, folding his hands neatly on his lap.  "Oh, before I forget," Natalia said, "I have something for you."

            She took the small vial of Stomach-ache Solution out of her pocket and handed it to him.  "This is for your stomach.  I noticed that you weren't feeling so well last night after eating the spinach."

            Tears welled up in Dobby's eyes as he took the potion from her tentatively.  "Miss – Miss gets medicine for…for Dobby?"

            She laughed lightly, pushing the vial gently into his hand.  "Yes, Dobby.  I don't want you to feel sick.  Make sure you take it with something to eat though," she advised, handing him a roll.

            "Oh, no!" Dobby cried, "Dobby not takes the food!  Food is for Miss!"

            "No, no," she persisted, "I insist."

            He eyed her carefully and timidly put the roll in his mouth, nearly swallowing the bread whole, then pouring the potion quickly down his throat.  The color (rather a lighter shade of green) came back to his face and he smiled, the ache in his stomach fading away. 

            "Any better?" she inquired with a smile.

            The house-elf nodded, replying, "Yes, Dobby feels much better.  Dobby thanks Miss."

            After a moment, he frowned with thought, turning to the girl to ask, "Miss wants to learns house-elf magics today?  Dobby thinks over how to teaches Miss and knows now.  Miss wants to learn today?"

            Natalia smiled and nodded, replying, "Yes, that would be nice, thank you."

            She felt someone brush past her, smelling of herbs and musk.  Turning, she saw Snape sit silently behind her.  "Good afternoon, professor."

            His eyes darted down to her and the scowl that was outlined on his face softened slightly.  "Good afternoon, Natalia." he murmured.  He scowled as he suddenly noticed Dobby next to her.  "House-elves are not allowed in this chamber," he growled pointedly to Dobby.

            The house-elf shrank back in his seat, hiding behind Natalia's robes.  She frowned at the Potions Master, putting a hand on Dobby's shoulder to steady him.  "Professor," she said disapprovingly, "He is here as my guest.  I hope you will give him the same courtesy as you would give me."

            Snape's frown deepened as he leaned very close to her, whispering in a low growl, "Miss Slytherin, it is not recommended for a person of your status to associate yourself with such lowly creatures."

            She looked at him disdainfully, retorting in a quiet voice, "I care nothing for status, professor, though I thank you for you cautionary advice."

            She began to lean away, but he gripped her arm, pulling her back and saying in a deadly whisper, "Natalia!  This will get you in a disastrous dilemma with your mother.  She would be livid were she to find out that you are associating yourself with servants."

            Turning quickly around, she said angrily into his face, "And what would you know about what my mother thinks?"

            "Don't tell me you never wondered why your mother has an enchanted house in place of house-elves," he hissed at her. 

            Natalia's face fell in surprise as she breathed out, "How do you know our house is enchanted?"  Her brow furrowed in suspicion as she uttered, "You have never been to our house before.  How do you know that my mother does not have house-elves?"

            Snape drew back suddenly, resolutely silent.  A dark shadow passed over his face as he turned his attention back to the Chess Hall.  "Enjoy you meal, Miss Slytherin," he said in a low voice.

            She frowned, not understanding his sudden change of mood.  Feeling a slight tug at her sleeve, she turned back around to the house-elf.

            "Miss wants Dobby to leaves?" he asked timidly. 

            Smiling reassuringly, she replied, "No, you can stay here with me.  You still have to teach me, remember?"

            Dobby smiled shyly, replying, "Oh, yes, Dobby does not forgets."

Harry turned to Ron once he was transported onto the chessboard.  Ron had the emblem of the king floating majestically above his head.  "What're we going to do?" the dark-haired boy asked in an anxious tone.

            Ron scratched his ear nervously, saying, "We're going to stick with the Scholar's Mate plan and hope that they don't see right through it."

            Harry nodded, hoping that it would be a sure win.  Ron turned away, seeing that Dumbledore had signaled the start of the game.  Looking amongst his players, the redhead called out in a clear voice, "King's pawn to E4!"  Dennis Creevey leapt forward two squares, the armlet dragging him into the air and placing him roughly on the spot.  He stood proudly, grinning at the fact that he was the first person to move. 

            Adrian Pucey, the Slytherin's king, sneered as he watched Dennis land clumsily on his square.  Sniffing haughtily, he snarled out, "King's pawn to E5.  And do it with some grace."  The Slytherins snickered as Malcolm Baddock dived with poise to his square, hissing at Dennis as he came face to face with the Gryffindor. 

            "OK," Ron said to Harry, "I'm going to send you out.  Queen to F3!"

            Harry jumped up and landed two squares diagonally up.  He put a hand on Dennis' shoulder, saying, "Don't mind Malcolm, his face is stuck like that."

            Natalia was listening to Dobby while the game commenced, half watching, half listening.  "Miss must clears her mind before Miss not uses wand."

            "Why?" she asked, not understanding why such a thing would be relevant.

            "Miss knows why wizards must uses wands?"

            "Yes," she replied, "To direct their power."

            "Yes, Miss is correct," Dobby said, nodding in agreement, "But why, does Miss knows, house-elves not have to uses wands?"

            She shook her head.

            "House-elves," he continued, "does not needs wands.  We clearly directs our powers because we clears our minds easily.  Wizards' minds are much too complicated, too fulls.  Wizards must uses wands because wizards do not clearly directs powers.  Wizards minds are too muddled.  Wizards must clears minds before directs magics without wands."

            She nodded, understanding what he meant.  "How do I go about clearing my mind?"

            He scratched his flimsy ears, replying back in a nasal voice, "Natalia Slytherin musts concentrates on one thing.  Miss wants to levitates something first?"

            She nodded, suggesting, "I could try to levitate the teacup without a wand."          

            Dobby nodded in agreement, saying, "First, Miss needs to concentrates on not thinking about other things.  Miss must only thinks about cup."

            Natalia nodded, closing her eyes, slowly driving away the thoughts from her mind.  First, she had to lay aside her curiosity about Snape's repugnance towards house-elves, and then his knowledge of her enchanted house.  It was a slow process, tedious and tiring. 

            Ron frowned, noticing that Adrian was quickly seeing through the Gryffindors' plan as the Slytherins' queen's pawn moved out.  Turning to Hermione, he said, "I'm going to move you out, 'Mione.  King's bishop to C4!"  Hermione leapt over three spaces, rolling her eyes as the Slytherins hissed at her. 

            Adrian quickly moved the bishop's pawn to F6, thinking to lure Harry closer to the Slytherins.  Harry turned to Ron, asking, "Should I take the pawn?"

            Thinking that Harry was far more powerful than Blaise Zabini, the Slytherins' bishop's pawn, he nodded, consenting, "Queen takes F6!"

            Blaise drew her wand and quickly conjured an Anti-gravity Mist, creating a thick confusing fog around her as Harry lunged toward her square.  The moment he touched the mist, he found that he was hanging upside down from the chessboard, which had become the ceiling.  He remembered encountering this same mist in the Tri-Wizard Tournament, and was quite surprised when he saw that Blaise had the power to conjure it.  Maybe they had underestimated her after all.

             As blood rushed to his head, he quickly pried his leg off of the board and instantly, the world became right side up once again.  Hurriedly, he cast a Shield Charm around him, repelling the Conjunctivitis Curse that Blaise hurled at him in an attempt to affect his vision.  He immediately thrust his arm forward, yelling, "Relashio!", sending a jet of fiery sparks towards Blaise.  She yelped as the fire singed her hair and fell to the floor, landing on her armlet, which cracked, and instantly, she disappeared from the board, reappearing again in the Observation Chamber.  The Anti-gravity mist that she had conjured sucked itself up and imploded, leaving the space normal again.  The Gryffindors applauded and cheered loudly in the Observation Chamber, excited that they had gotten their first piece, even though it was just a pawn. 

            Natalia was concentrating very hard on clearing her mind, so hard that she noticed nothing around her and barely remembered to breath.  Her eyes were starting to burn as she forgot to blink, staring intently at the teacup that sat stubbornly in front of her.  She leant forward, straining to direct her power to the cup.  Slowly, she felt the magical currents from her body wrap around the cup, breaking through the layer of air and covering the porcelain like a second skin.  The teacup shook slightly and tilted, reluctant to rise.  Her concentration broke slightly as the Gryffindors erupted in applause, the cup dropping down once again on the saucer.  Irritated, Natalia closed her eyes and counted backwards from twenty until her mind calmed again.  Then, she slowly opened her eyes, this time, removing her senses from everything and guiding all of her power to the cup calmly, without the strain of the first time.  Surprisingly, she felt the magic wrap around the teacup effortlessly when she tried to concentrate with ease.  In the back of her mind, she made a mental note to never try and tense up while concentrating again.  Very painstakingly, the cup inched up a little, hovering slightly above the saucer, allowing a sliver of space between the two pieces of porcelain.  Dobby beamed next to her, afraid to make any noise of congratulations in fear that it would break her concentration.  The cup wobbled a bit and then crept up another inch, slowly reaching her eye level. 

            Dumbledore smiled at the game, pleased to see that his favorite childhood pastime was once again effective.  He took personal pleasure in displaying the newly rebuilt Chess Hall and was most impressed with Devon Ashwater's interest in the structure.  The Slytherins were deciding their next move when suddenly, Dumbledore's vision got slightly dimmed, as if someone had put a tinted screen on top of the observation window.  Frowning deeply, he knew that this was going to be another one of the visions he had been receiving lately.  The vision came abruptly, a girl screaming silently in his sight.  He squinted in an attempt to make out who the girl was and sat back in surprise as he saw that it was Natalia.  It seemed that she was laying on the ground in the dark of night, reaching out for help.  But there was something strange…something that he could not quite…  Looking closer, he peered carefully at the vision and drew a breath in horror as he saw what was wrong.  Her tongue had been removed.  As soon as the vision had come, it suddenly went away and he found himself staring intently at the chess game again.  "Albus?" Professor McGonagall whispered, shaking him slightly, "Albus, are you all right?"

            He blinked and turned to the witch, smiling quietly.  He would warn Snape of this tonight.  "Yes, everything's all right."

            "Adrian!" Draco hissed out at the Slytherins' king, "Send me out!  I can take Harry!"

            Adrian grinned evilly and nodded.  "King's knight takes F6!" he yelled out.  Harry narrowed his eyes, gripping his wand in preparation for Draco's attack.  Suddenly, he clutched his head as he felt his scar burn with immense intensity.  It felt as if someone was trying to pry his skin off from underneath.  He nearly dropped to his knees from the extent of pain that came from his scar.  His wand dropped from his hand as he cried out, the burning sensation overwhelming him.  Turning, he looked up just in time to see Draco flying at him, crying, "Levis Infissum!".  A powerfully brilliant stream of light shot out from his wand, blasting toward his opponent and cutting straight through Harry's armlet.  If the Gryffindor had not been teleported out of the Chess Hall the moment his cuff had been broken, his upper arm would have been severed in half by the piercing light that had expelled out from Draco's wand.

            At this exact moment, Natalia had successfully levitated the cup when suddenly, she felt something burning her side.  The scorching sensation alarmed her, at which a rush of power escaped from her into the cup, shattering the porcelain.  She looked down in pain and saw that her wand was glowing in a blinding white, hotter than liquid metal.  Prying the wand from her side, she dropped it on the seat, watching as it slowly singed the velvet cushion.  From behind her, she heard a groan, and turning around, she saw the Potions Master clutching his arm in agony, his face twisted in severe pain.  "Professor!" she cried out, quite alarmed.  He looked up at her, uttering in a strained whisper, "Don't bring attention to me!"  Lifting his sleeve a bit, he saw that his Dark Mark was glowing blacker than ever, so much that it pulsated slightly.  The veins and nerves in his arm were taut, every muscle in his lower arm rigid as stone.  Sucking in a painful breath, he hissed out, "He calls."  Looking up, he added, "I must go.  Tell Dumbledore."  Grasping his arm in agony, he slowly dragged himself through the back of the chamber, slipping out to the tunnel unnoticed.