The Family Name
By Elbereth in April
Chapter 28
Artemis had just climbed into bed on Friday night when his curtain opened and Draco sat down on the foot of the bed. Artemis raised an eyebrow.
Draco bit his lip. "I'm nervous."
Artemis sighed, closed the curtain, and cast a Silencing Charm. "It's just a matter of breaking through the wards, Malfoy. What are you worried about specifically?"
"I don't know! There's all kinds of things that could go wrong," Draco pointed out defensively, crossing his arms. "We use serious wards in the dungeon. Ones that will harm you if you don't remove them properly. Or. . ." he looked away, "or my father could come home."
"We can deal with it," Artemis replied softly. "He may be faster than both of us with his wand, but Holly and Butler can get the drop on him. Just to stun him--she promised," he clarified when Draco looked as if he was going to speak. "Then we can cast an Obliviate on him so he doesn't remember we were the ones to free the LEP Recon. So you see? It'll all be fine."
"I don't know how to cast an Obliviate."
"Holly does." Well, it was a mind wipe, but he didn't want to confuse the issue.
"I don't trust her."
"Neither do I exactly, but she's mostly noble. Think of her as a Gryffindor."
"Great," Draco said with an expression of disdainful sarcasm. "Just what we need."
"It'll be over soon and then things will be back to normal."
"School's almost over for the year."
"Yes."
Draco started to say something, stopped, then sighed. He didn't want school to end.
"Look, don't worry. Remember, I'm going to be there. Nothing gets the better of Artemis Fowl. I'll take care of everything." It was said with calm confidence, not as a boast, and strangely enough, it made Draco feel better.
Not that he could admit it. He rolled his eyes. "Sure, Fowl. You just keep telling yourself how great you are. I'm going back to my own bed and to sleep."
Artemis smirked.
Accordingly on Saturday at 5:00 PM, Holly, Artemis, and Draco met Butler at the Hogwarts gates and walked into Hogsmeade. They used the fireplace in Butler's apartment to floo to the town that lay in the shadow of Malfoy Manor. They couldn't floo to the manor itself; there were wards. Holly did not like this method of travel, but she didn't say so out-loud.
The Manor was unplottable, but Draco, of course, knew where it was. "Look up at the very top of the cliff," he pointed.
Artemis saw the unmistakable shimmer once he knew exactly what to look for. "Let's go."
It took awhile to walk to the top of the cliff, but they didn't want to try to fly Butler. Eventually they reached the gate set in the curtain wall.
"It's a castle," Holly said. The curtain wall was thirty feet high and square, with round towers at each corner. Inside was the keep, on another low hill.
"Sometimes a fortress comes in handy," Draco replied.
"Very defensible," Butler approved, assessing the layout.
"We'll go in the back door. Come on." He led them on around the wall to where it met the keep in the back. There was a small brown door with no handle.
"Do you have a key?"
"It doesn't take a key. It takes a spell, a password, and Malfoy blood. Only a Malfoy can get past the outer wall onto the grounds. Or one he specifically invites. And even then he needs to be there to take down the wards first. Anyway, you three are invited."
Holly exchanged glances with Butler as Draco drew his wand. He muttered the spell and the password, and then placed his palm flat against the door in a certain spot. This seemed to trigger its opening.
"How does it know you have Malfoy blood?" Artemis asked curiously.
Draco shrugged. "It's complicated. I don't exactly know. Hold on, I still have to drop the wards." He said another spell, then they finally all passed through the door.
The part of the keep facing the courtyard was lighter, with bigger windows, but still gave off a cold, unfeeling air. Holly decided she wouldn't have wanted to grow up here.
Another spell and a side door and they were inside, standing in a narrow, stone passageway. "The kitchen is just beyond that arch. This hall keeps going to the manor proper, where we live."
They followed the hall along, up a flight of stairs and through a door. Now that they had left the servants' quarters behind, they had entered the luxurious part of the manor. It was decorated very elegantly in a way only the truly rich could manage. It maintained that subtle unfriendly feeling.
Several hallways over, Draco opened a hidden door to reveal a long flight of stone stairs. The stairs ended at another door. Draco took down another ward and verified his Malfoy blood again. The door was locked, but they took care of that with an Alohamora.
"Where are you going, young Malfoy?"
They all turned at the voice and found themselves staring at a huge painting of a blonde, aristocratic man with a pointed face and clothes of a long-ago era.
"To the dungeons, obviously. Malfoy business."
"You must be careful, young Malfoy. We must not risk the only Heir of our long and magnificent line."
Artemis raised an eyebrow. "Ancestor of yours?"
Draco sighed. "Yes. One of our most prestigious, in fact--Septimus Maximus Malfoy."
The other eyebrow rose to join its fellow. "I've heard of Septimus. He's your link to the Ravenclaw and Slytherin lines."
Septimus smiled smugly. "I indeed have the honor of being that vital link, holding that enviable position of the Heir to three great and noble families."
"Noble?" Holly burst out indignantly. "They're all Dark. . . mm hmph mhm. . ."
Butler had covered her mouth with his large hand. "You don't want him to raise an alarm, do you?" he whispered in her ear. "I don't think insulting his family heritage is the best option."
"Yes, very enviable," Artemis put in hurriedly, stepping in front of Holly and the scene ensuing behind him. "An august personage like you, coming from such a highly esteemed family background. . ."
Draco smirked. "This whole visit was worth it, just to hear you say that."
". . . and did you give the latest Heir lessons on how to project arrogance because. . ."
Butler cleared his throat. "Perhaps we could be moving on now."
"Right. Important business, can't wait, I'll be fine. Adieu for now, Septimus. . ." Draco saluted.
"Au revoir," Septimus called after them, waving, "Good luck."
The door shut behind them.
They went down a long, narrow staircase of stone. When they reached the bottom, Draco lit a few torches in brackets.
"Now, we don't want to get separated, so try staying close," he advised. "The passages down here are quite extensive. You have to go through a maze before you get to the cells. If you go down the wrong corridor, you may just find a dead end--or a booby trap. Oh, and don't touch the walls, or you'll have a nasty experience."
They all drew a little closer together and followed Draco.
"You know my father never held anyone prisoner," Artemis said, unable to help himself.
Draco gave him a dirty look. "No, but you have. And I haven't. What does that say?"
"Perhaps you two were switched at birth," Holly suggested with a wicked glint in her eyes. She only grinned wider when both boys turned to glare at her.
They came to the first intersection of tunnels. "Lumos." Draco's wand lit up. Artemis proceeded to do the same as Draco nudged him. "The floor, Fowl," he whispered. "Is that what you wanted?"
Before them was the wall, dead-ending. Three passages split off from this one, one going left, one going right and twisting around west, the other going right and turning east. And on the floor directly in front of the blank wall, carved into the stone, were words written in Gnommish.
Artemis nudged Butler, who immediately distracted Holly by starting a discussion on emergency tactics.
Artemis prevented a triumphant smile and carefully read the message. "Yes," he said calmly, "that is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you."
"You going to tell me what you discovered?"
"No."
"Didn't think so." Draco scowled. His nerves were on edge, his stomach seemed to be rolling itself up into a ball and doing laps. His hands were sweating. "You are so annoying. You frustrate me to no end."
"I got the spies off you."
"That's the only reason I'm letting you get by with this."
"Oh, well, OK." Artemis hid another smile, this one of amusement.
"Come on then." Draco moved forward abruptly, headed down the right easterly passage. Butler and Holly broke off speaking to catch up.
"How did you gain such intimate knowledge of the dungeons?" Holly asked suspiciously after a number of branchings and turnings that left her and Artemis thoroughly confused. "Are you sure you've never held anyone prisoner yourself?"
"I'm sure," Draco answered dryly. "I know because one should always know his home territory."
Eventually, Draco announced, "The cells are coming up now." They began to pass closed doors that obviously hadn't been opened in centuries. Then they came on a section of corridor that was well-lit and kept up. "These are Father's preferred cells. Your officer will be in one of these."
The doors had no windows to look through. Calling Kelp's name at each of the six doors produced no answer except a series of growls from the far left cell.
"We'll have to open each one," Holly concluded.
"Let's avoid the one with some growling monster in it."
"Agreed."
They started with the nearest one to the right. It was empty. The cell across from it had a skeleton chained to the wall, but it had clearly been there for many years. The cell next to it was empty, and smelled really nasty. The boys both gagged and Holly quickly reclosed the door.
She opened the cell beside it. After that, time seemed to slow down and yet happen very fast.
Something large and purple charged out of the cell as soon as the door was opened. It seemed like a cross between a yeti and a gorilla: it walked on four-thumbed feet, was shaggy, huge, and hump-backed, and had two very long, sharp horns. It was clearly violent and enraged.
Butler and Holly both instinctively fired. It roared and stumbled, but kept on coming. The group scattered, the boys jumping behind it, Holly crouching by the door with her gun up, and Butler leaping back. It went for him as the most threatening looking.
"It's a Graphorn!" Draco exclaimed. "Even trolls are afraid of them!"
"Not to worry," Artemis responded, even though he was. "Trolls are also afraid of Butler."
Holly and Butler kept firing at it, which slowed it somewhat. Artemis tried casting a Body Bind hex, but it had no effect. "It has a very tough hide," Draco explained. "It repels most spells."
It had reached Butler now and tried to grab him. Butler neatly side- stepped. It tried to swipe him with its sharp horns. Butler hit it, then shot it point-blank in the face. It fell back a little and howled with pain. Holly maneuvered around and shot it a few more times. It staggered some more and turned to look at her. Butler reached out and grabbed it by the neck. He gave a quick pull, there was a sickening crack, and its neck was broken.
Not even a minute had passed.
They all breathed a sigh of relief. "You're certainly useful," Draco told Butler with a look of awe. "Want to come and work for me instead?"
Artemis's eyes went wide in honest shock. "Malfoy!"
Butler smiled. "I'm loyal to Artemis and the Fowl family alone. But maybe I can owl you names of a few good, available people."
"I'd appreciate that."
For some reason, Artemis's heart was beating hard. "I can't believe you, Malfoy."
Draco shrugged. "It never hurts to ask."
"Get back to it, come on," Holly ordered, and moved to the next cell. Everyone braced themselves, and she opened the door.
"Officer Kelp!" she cried, springing forward. She knelt next to him and checked him over for injuries. Finally, she breathed a sigh of relief. "He'll be OK. He just seems exhausted. Can you carry him, Butler?"
"No need," Artemis interrupted. He pointed his wand at Trouble Kelp. "Mobilus Corpus." The officer rose in the air. Artemis gestured with his wand and Kelp floated toward him.
"Good," said Holly. "Don't drop him."
She closed the cell door. Draco flinched.
"What's wrong with you, Mud Boy? A little jumpy?"
"He knows," Draco whispered, eyes dilating. "When you freed Kelp, something in the wards changed. I felt it. He will have, too."
"Your father?"
"He'll be on his way. He can't Apparate directly into the dungeon. . ."
"Let's go then. Come on," Butler ordered, giving Draco a gentle push.
Draco began to head back to the exit. Abruptly, he stopped.
Holly nearly ran into him. "What?"
"The maze has changed." He swallowed, looking around. They all stared at him, a bit horrified, but then he smiled. "It's all right. I recognize the pattern. We have four basic ones. The walls must have rearranged when the wards went off. But I know the way."
"I hope you do." Holly followed him looking wary. Artemis came behind her, with Kelp floating beside him. Butler brought up the rear.
A few intersections later, though, Draco stopped again. "Do you hear something?"
Footsteps--not human feet. Something was coming.
"The wall's been opened. The Guardian's loose." Draco's voice shook just a little.
"Move," Artemis commanded. He did.
"Guardian? What Guardian?" Holly hissed at him as they hurried along. "What have you not told us?"
"She's penned normally--in the maze. Her wall must have been one that moved. She'll be tracking us."
"What will?"
"The chimaera."
". . . that's not good."
Holly scowled at Artemis. "Maybe the brains of the operation could come up with a plan."
"Shh," said Butler. "Let him think."
"Yes, well, obviously if we can outrun it, we won't have any problems. We can relock the dungeon door behind us and proceed off through the manor. If we're lucky, we'll be gone before Lucius arrives."
"I thought you made your own luck, Fowl."
"I do. If we don't reach the door in time, we'll have to fight the chimaera. If this happens, Lucius will probably catch us as soon as we enter the manor proper."
"He'll kill us."
"He'll try. Just like the chimaera will try. Just like Tom Riddle tried. But I don't die just for someone's wishing."
"They'll be doing more than wishing, Fowl," Draco retorted.
Artemis ignored this. "Let's deal with these problems one at a time. First, the chimaera. Fighting it will be difficult. Fortunately, we have Butler."
"And me," Holly cut in a bit indignantly. "I don't just die on command, either."
The sound of hooves and slithering grew louder as the beast came closer. Then it had rounded a bend in the corridor and they saw it behind them. Lion's head, goat's body, dragon's tail, breath of fire.
"Oh, D'arvit," Holly swore.
"Door's too far." Draco bit his lip, brow creased with tension.
"We stop and make a stand," Butler instructed. "Artemis, get behind us."
"You, too, Malfoy," Holly ordered. "You'll both just get in the way."
"I resent that," Draco said, but he hastened to hide himself more fully behind Butler. He looked over at Artemis, who looked over at him. Both boys had their wands at the ready. "You better have a strategy."
Fowl smirked. "Always." Draco tried to decide, if they survived this, if he would strangle Fowl when they got back to Hogwarts.
The chimaera picked up speed and bounded toward them.
A/N: I'd like to put in a bit more Holly-Draco interaction, but I'm drawing a blank. I'm trying not to rush the story, but I'm ready to get them off the island, so to speak. Be that as it may, much more is still yet to come, so stay tuned. I'm glad you're all still enjoying this and are liking Holly so far!
By Elbereth in April
Chapter 28
Artemis had just climbed into bed on Friday night when his curtain opened and Draco sat down on the foot of the bed. Artemis raised an eyebrow.
Draco bit his lip. "I'm nervous."
Artemis sighed, closed the curtain, and cast a Silencing Charm. "It's just a matter of breaking through the wards, Malfoy. What are you worried about specifically?"
"I don't know! There's all kinds of things that could go wrong," Draco pointed out defensively, crossing his arms. "We use serious wards in the dungeon. Ones that will harm you if you don't remove them properly. Or. . ." he looked away, "or my father could come home."
"We can deal with it," Artemis replied softly. "He may be faster than both of us with his wand, but Holly and Butler can get the drop on him. Just to stun him--she promised," he clarified when Draco looked as if he was going to speak. "Then we can cast an Obliviate on him so he doesn't remember we were the ones to free the LEP Recon. So you see? It'll all be fine."
"I don't know how to cast an Obliviate."
"Holly does." Well, it was a mind wipe, but he didn't want to confuse the issue.
"I don't trust her."
"Neither do I exactly, but she's mostly noble. Think of her as a Gryffindor."
"Great," Draco said with an expression of disdainful sarcasm. "Just what we need."
"It'll be over soon and then things will be back to normal."
"School's almost over for the year."
"Yes."
Draco started to say something, stopped, then sighed. He didn't want school to end.
"Look, don't worry. Remember, I'm going to be there. Nothing gets the better of Artemis Fowl. I'll take care of everything." It was said with calm confidence, not as a boast, and strangely enough, it made Draco feel better.
Not that he could admit it. He rolled his eyes. "Sure, Fowl. You just keep telling yourself how great you are. I'm going back to my own bed and to sleep."
Artemis smirked.
Accordingly on Saturday at 5:00 PM, Holly, Artemis, and Draco met Butler at the Hogwarts gates and walked into Hogsmeade. They used the fireplace in Butler's apartment to floo to the town that lay in the shadow of Malfoy Manor. They couldn't floo to the manor itself; there were wards. Holly did not like this method of travel, but she didn't say so out-loud.
The Manor was unplottable, but Draco, of course, knew where it was. "Look up at the very top of the cliff," he pointed.
Artemis saw the unmistakable shimmer once he knew exactly what to look for. "Let's go."
It took awhile to walk to the top of the cliff, but they didn't want to try to fly Butler. Eventually they reached the gate set in the curtain wall.
"It's a castle," Holly said. The curtain wall was thirty feet high and square, with round towers at each corner. Inside was the keep, on another low hill.
"Sometimes a fortress comes in handy," Draco replied.
"Very defensible," Butler approved, assessing the layout.
"We'll go in the back door. Come on." He led them on around the wall to where it met the keep in the back. There was a small brown door with no handle.
"Do you have a key?"
"It doesn't take a key. It takes a spell, a password, and Malfoy blood. Only a Malfoy can get past the outer wall onto the grounds. Or one he specifically invites. And even then he needs to be there to take down the wards first. Anyway, you three are invited."
Holly exchanged glances with Butler as Draco drew his wand. He muttered the spell and the password, and then placed his palm flat against the door in a certain spot. This seemed to trigger its opening.
"How does it know you have Malfoy blood?" Artemis asked curiously.
Draco shrugged. "It's complicated. I don't exactly know. Hold on, I still have to drop the wards." He said another spell, then they finally all passed through the door.
The part of the keep facing the courtyard was lighter, with bigger windows, but still gave off a cold, unfeeling air. Holly decided she wouldn't have wanted to grow up here.
Another spell and a side door and they were inside, standing in a narrow, stone passageway. "The kitchen is just beyond that arch. This hall keeps going to the manor proper, where we live."
They followed the hall along, up a flight of stairs and through a door. Now that they had left the servants' quarters behind, they had entered the luxurious part of the manor. It was decorated very elegantly in a way only the truly rich could manage. It maintained that subtle unfriendly feeling.
Several hallways over, Draco opened a hidden door to reveal a long flight of stone stairs. The stairs ended at another door. Draco took down another ward and verified his Malfoy blood again. The door was locked, but they took care of that with an Alohamora.
"Where are you going, young Malfoy?"
They all turned at the voice and found themselves staring at a huge painting of a blonde, aristocratic man with a pointed face and clothes of a long-ago era.
"To the dungeons, obviously. Malfoy business."
"You must be careful, young Malfoy. We must not risk the only Heir of our long and magnificent line."
Artemis raised an eyebrow. "Ancestor of yours?"
Draco sighed. "Yes. One of our most prestigious, in fact--Septimus Maximus Malfoy."
The other eyebrow rose to join its fellow. "I've heard of Septimus. He's your link to the Ravenclaw and Slytherin lines."
Septimus smiled smugly. "I indeed have the honor of being that vital link, holding that enviable position of the Heir to three great and noble families."
"Noble?" Holly burst out indignantly. "They're all Dark. . . mm hmph mhm. . ."
Butler had covered her mouth with his large hand. "You don't want him to raise an alarm, do you?" he whispered in her ear. "I don't think insulting his family heritage is the best option."
"Yes, very enviable," Artemis put in hurriedly, stepping in front of Holly and the scene ensuing behind him. "An august personage like you, coming from such a highly esteemed family background. . ."
Draco smirked. "This whole visit was worth it, just to hear you say that."
". . . and did you give the latest Heir lessons on how to project arrogance because. . ."
Butler cleared his throat. "Perhaps we could be moving on now."
"Right. Important business, can't wait, I'll be fine. Adieu for now, Septimus. . ." Draco saluted.
"Au revoir," Septimus called after them, waving, "Good luck."
The door shut behind them.
They went down a long, narrow staircase of stone. When they reached the bottom, Draco lit a few torches in brackets.
"Now, we don't want to get separated, so try staying close," he advised. "The passages down here are quite extensive. You have to go through a maze before you get to the cells. If you go down the wrong corridor, you may just find a dead end--or a booby trap. Oh, and don't touch the walls, or you'll have a nasty experience."
They all drew a little closer together and followed Draco.
"You know my father never held anyone prisoner," Artemis said, unable to help himself.
Draco gave him a dirty look. "No, but you have. And I haven't. What does that say?"
"Perhaps you two were switched at birth," Holly suggested with a wicked glint in her eyes. She only grinned wider when both boys turned to glare at her.
They came to the first intersection of tunnels. "Lumos." Draco's wand lit up. Artemis proceeded to do the same as Draco nudged him. "The floor, Fowl," he whispered. "Is that what you wanted?"
Before them was the wall, dead-ending. Three passages split off from this one, one going left, one going right and twisting around west, the other going right and turning east. And on the floor directly in front of the blank wall, carved into the stone, were words written in Gnommish.
Artemis nudged Butler, who immediately distracted Holly by starting a discussion on emergency tactics.
Artemis prevented a triumphant smile and carefully read the message. "Yes," he said calmly, "that is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you."
"You going to tell me what you discovered?"
"No."
"Didn't think so." Draco scowled. His nerves were on edge, his stomach seemed to be rolling itself up into a ball and doing laps. His hands were sweating. "You are so annoying. You frustrate me to no end."
"I got the spies off you."
"That's the only reason I'm letting you get by with this."
"Oh, well, OK." Artemis hid another smile, this one of amusement.
"Come on then." Draco moved forward abruptly, headed down the right easterly passage. Butler and Holly broke off speaking to catch up.
"How did you gain such intimate knowledge of the dungeons?" Holly asked suspiciously after a number of branchings and turnings that left her and Artemis thoroughly confused. "Are you sure you've never held anyone prisoner yourself?"
"I'm sure," Draco answered dryly. "I know because one should always know his home territory."
Eventually, Draco announced, "The cells are coming up now." They began to pass closed doors that obviously hadn't been opened in centuries. Then they came on a section of corridor that was well-lit and kept up. "These are Father's preferred cells. Your officer will be in one of these."
The doors had no windows to look through. Calling Kelp's name at each of the six doors produced no answer except a series of growls from the far left cell.
"We'll have to open each one," Holly concluded.
"Let's avoid the one with some growling monster in it."
"Agreed."
They started with the nearest one to the right. It was empty. The cell across from it had a skeleton chained to the wall, but it had clearly been there for many years. The cell next to it was empty, and smelled really nasty. The boys both gagged and Holly quickly reclosed the door.
She opened the cell beside it. After that, time seemed to slow down and yet happen very fast.
Something large and purple charged out of the cell as soon as the door was opened. It seemed like a cross between a yeti and a gorilla: it walked on four-thumbed feet, was shaggy, huge, and hump-backed, and had two very long, sharp horns. It was clearly violent and enraged.
Butler and Holly both instinctively fired. It roared and stumbled, but kept on coming. The group scattered, the boys jumping behind it, Holly crouching by the door with her gun up, and Butler leaping back. It went for him as the most threatening looking.
"It's a Graphorn!" Draco exclaimed. "Even trolls are afraid of them!"
"Not to worry," Artemis responded, even though he was. "Trolls are also afraid of Butler."
Holly and Butler kept firing at it, which slowed it somewhat. Artemis tried casting a Body Bind hex, but it had no effect. "It has a very tough hide," Draco explained. "It repels most spells."
It had reached Butler now and tried to grab him. Butler neatly side- stepped. It tried to swipe him with its sharp horns. Butler hit it, then shot it point-blank in the face. It fell back a little and howled with pain. Holly maneuvered around and shot it a few more times. It staggered some more and turned to look at her. Butler reached out and grabbed it by the neck. He gave a quick pull, there was a sickening crack, and its neck was broken.
Not even a minute had passed.
They all breathed a sigh of relief. "You're certainly useful," Draco told Butler with a look of awe. "Want to come and work for me instead?"
Artemis's eyes went wide in honest shock. "Malfoy!"
Butler smiled. "I'm loyal to Artemis and the Fowl family alone. But maybe I can owl you names of a few good, available people."
"I'd appreciate that."
For some reason, Artemis's heart was beating hard. "I can't believe you, Malfoy."
Draco shrugged. "It never hurts to ask."
"Get back to it, come on," Holly ordered, and moved to the next cell. Everyone braced themselves, and she opened the door.
"Officer Kelp!" she cried, springing forward. She knelt next to him and checked him over for injuries. Finally, she breathed a sigh of relief. "He'll be OK. He just seems exhausted. Can you carry him, Butler?"
"No need," Artemis interrupted. He pointed his wand at Trouble Kelp. "Mobilus Corpus." The officer rose in the air. Artemis gestured with his wand and Kelp floated toward him.
"Good," said Holly. "Don't drop him."
She closed the cell door. Draco flinched.
"What's wrong with you, Mud Boy? A little jumpy?"
"He knows," Draco whispered, eyes dilating. "When you freed Kelp, something in the wards changed. I felt it. He will have, too."
"Your father?"
"He'll be on his way. He can't Apparate directly into the dungeon. . ."
"Let's go then. Come on," Butler ordered, giving Draco a gentle push.
Draco began to head back to the exit. Abruptly, he stopped.
Holly nearly ran into him. "What?"
"The maze has changed." He swallowed, looking around. They all stared at him, a bit horrified, but then he smiled. "It's all right. I recognize the pattern. We have four basic ones. The walls must have rearranged when the wards went off. But I know the way."
"I hope you do." Holly followed him looking wary. Artemis came behind her, with Kelp floating beside him. Butler brought up the rear.
A few intersections later, though, Draco stopped again. "Do you hear something?"
Footsteps--not human feet. Something was coming.
"The wall's been opened. The Guardian's loose." Draco's voice shook just a little.
"Move," Artemis commanded. He did.
"Guardian? What Guardian?" Holly hissed at him as they hurried along. "What have you not told us?"
"She's penned normally--in the maze. Her wall must have been one that moved. She'll be tracking us."
"What will?"
"The chimaera."
". . . that's not good."
Holly scowled at Artemis. "Maybe the brains of the operation could come up with a plan."
"Shh," said Butler. "Let him think."
"Yes, well, obviously if we can outrun it, we won't have any problems. We can relock the dungeon door behind us and proceed off through the manor. If we're lucky, we'll be gone before Lucius arrives."
"I thought you made your own luck, Fowl."
"I do. If we don't reach the door in time, we'll have to fight the chimaera. If this happens, Lucius will probably catch us as soon as we enter the manor proper."
"He'll kill us."
"He'll try. Just like the chimaera will try. Just like Tom Riddle tried. But I don't die just for someone's wishing."
"They'll be doing more than wishing, Fowl," Draco retorted.
Artemis ignored this. "Let's deal with these problems one at a time. First, the chimaera. Fighting it will be difficult. Fortunately, we have Butler."
"And me," Holly cut in a bit indignantly. "I don't just die on command, either."
The sound of hooves and slithering grew louder as the beast came closer. Then it had rounded a bend in the corridor and they saw it behind them. Lion's head, goat's body, dragon's tail, breath of fire.
"Oh, D'arvit," Holly swore.
"Door's too far." Draco bit his lip, brow creased with tension.
"We stop and make a stand," Butler instructed. "Artemis, get behind us."
"You, too, Malfoy," Holly ordered. "You'll both just get in the way."
"I resent that," Draco said, but he hastened to hide himself more fully behind Butler. He looked over at Artemis, who looked over at him. Both boys had their wands at the ready. "You better have a strategy."
Fowl smirked. "Always." Draco tried to decide, if they survived this, if he would strangle Fowl when they got back to Hogwarts.
The chimaera picked up speed and bounded toward them.
A/N: I'd like to put in a bit more Holly-Draco interaction, but I'm drawing a blank. I'm trying not to rush the story, but I'm ready to get them off the island, so to speak. Be that as it may, much more is still yet to come, so stay tuned. I'm glad you're all still enjoying this and are liking Holly so far!