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In the Chamber of Bone

Neville crawled frantically. His fingers slipping and grasping at the tiles in the floor and trying desperately to pull himself along. She hadn't come up. The whine of panic within him was growing and Neville moved as fast as his rebelling legs and arms could propel him. Pain flared with every muscle moved, blood dripped from broken skin, and the wet floor did nothing to help him.

The water was hotter than he thought, searing across his flesh forcing him to let out a yelp of pain. He splashed toward the cloud of pink that surrounded Cho and plunged downward grabbing limbs and robes. Muscles strained and pain crawled though him as Neville pulled Cho's limp body out of the water.

Cho let out a gasping breath, coughing up water and shuddering with pain. Relief flushed though Neville as he pulled himself out of the pool. Her eyes fluttered open and she looked at Neville, her head raising weakly. Neville gripped her hand and pulled himself toward her.

"What?" She asked weakly.

"We got to stop getting hurt." Neville said, grinning weakly. He grabbed the bandages that had been used to bind Damon and tore the front of Cho's robe open. "Oh, sweet Merlin." Neville muttered, wrapping the bandages around her stomach. Blood was flowing in small trickles down her skin, bright crimson upon her pale skin. Oh Merlin, there was so much blood.

"Get the wand." Cho said, her hand grabbing Neville's shoulder.

"You're bleeding." Neville said. 'We have to stop the bleeding."

"Get the wand back. Then you can heal me." Cho whispered.

"No." Neville said firmly. "I'm not leaving you hear. Not like this. Not with those monsters out there."

"Do it, Neville. You have to." There was a firmness in Cho's voice. Neville clenched his eyes shut. She was right. They needed the wand. It was the only thing that could heal her. Neville tied off the bandages and looked down at his hands. They were smeared pink. He hastily wiped them upon his shirt, feeling a sudden chill.

Neville glanced around. The door was open and Damon was no where to be seen. Who knows what lay beyond the door? Neville got up and picked the candlestick Damon had tossed away off the floor. He let out a desolate chuckle. A candlestick wasn't a weapon. Yet it hadn't failed him yet. Neville gripped the smooth metal, it felt hot under his hands.

"I won't be gone long." Neville whispered, grabbing the blanket and covering Cho with it. 'I'll be back. I'll get the wand." The last part was more for himself than to comfort Cho.

Cho nodded weakly and her eyes closed, her breathing becoming regular. Neville held her hand for a moment and then let out a breath of anger. Monsters of all sorts, shapes, forms, and demeanors.

Neville splashed into the pool and waded to the door.

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"Incendio!" Damon cried and was rewarded with a scream of pain and the wafting stench of burning flesh. He moved out fo the way of the barreling monster and his wand flicked out to the second one coming at him. "Sever." The monster let out a gargle and tumbled to the floor, it's body going to separate ways.

Damon nodded to himself in satisfaction. Two dead monsters in two seconds. He took the moment to glance back down the long narrow corridor he had just exited from. It was dark, just as most of the corridors, halls, and chambers he had entered. He didn't really know where he was going, but there was really no way to get lost. All the halls, corridors, and chambers had one entrance and once exit. They were leading somewhere and Damon was positive that it would be the exit.

No one may have exited the Dark, but Damon was determined that he'd be the first one. He'd get back to the world and he'd watch Hogwarts burn. Nodding to himself Damon began heading down a wide corridor.

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Neville gasped for breath, leaning against the wall of the corridor. He squinted to the ground a head of him. The light was dim, but he was beginning to make things out. Two dead monsters, one charred with the smell still heavy in the air and the other…

Neville shook his head. Damon did this?

Neville felt a shiver of fear. Was he foolish to try and take him on? He had a wand, while he had a what? Candlestick? He was a Death Eater, he probably knew all sorts of spells, curses, and hexes that dwarfed anything he knew. For a moment Neville was plagued by doubt, but the image of Cho flashed in his mind and he clenched his fists. There was no choice. He had to do this. For Cho.

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Damon limped into the chamber, the last monster had been a hassle. A creature of tentacles and snapping jaws and waving feelers. More ugly than dangerous. Though the floor had been covered n small pieces of rocks that just had to be sharp and pointy, definitely not the best ground to be walking upon when one didn't wear any shoes.

Damon looked around and sighed. The chamber was huge, it's corners covered in darkness and as always with a ceiling that stretched upward forever. There were piles of white sticks laying scattered about in heaps and piles. Damon walked to one and frowned.

An empty eyed grinning skull stared up at him sitting atop a shattered ribcage. Damon nudged it with his feet. The skull was old and brittle and it toppled off its perch and clattered to the stone floor. Damon jerked back in surprise, glancing around to make sure his momentary fear hadn't been seen. He crouched and picked up the skull to peer at it closer, he noticed it had deep gouges upon it. Gouges that looked suspiciously like teeth marks of something that had a taste for human flesh.

Damon cursed, dropping the skull and pulling out Cho's wand, and then scanning the dark corners. He was really getting sick of monsters. They were easy to deal with in their own way, they died like any other creature. There was nothing special about them. He glanced around and noticed more and more piles of bones and skulls. Whatever this monster was, it seemed to be doing brisk business in human lives.

A twinge of worry and fear bothered Damon, but he pushed it away. Fear only got in the way. What ever this damn thing was, he'd deal with it. He'd kill it and he'd get the hell out of this place.

"Come on you bastard." Damon shouted to the dark corners. "Let's get this show over so I can get out of here."

There was a clatter of bones and the sounds of booted feet upon rough stone. Damon looked to where he had entered the room and sighed as a figure emerged.

Neville stumbled into the room, the candlestick held firmly in his hands and his face streaked with sweat and the look of pain etched upon his features. " I was hoping for the element of surprise." He gasped, standing up straight.

Damon laughed shaking his head. "Damn kid, you just don't give up do you?" he pointed the wand at Neville. 'I guess this time I'll just have to kill you."

Neville stared at him, his features expressionless and his grip tightening upon the candlestick. "I'd worry about the monster behind you first." He responded.

"You little bloody-" Damon stopped, the sound of scraping claws and growling filling the air. Damon turned. "Oh, bloody hell."

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Until Next Chapter!!!