We hit one hundred! You guys rock! Thank you to everyone who's been reviewing every chapter and everyone who has started reviewing! They all mean a lot and inspire me to keep writing! I was a little surprised that all of you got excited because Lily said yes to a date with James. They're not girlfriend and boyfriend yet. They still have a few chapters to go before that happens. It did happen several chapters sooner, but that's because last time they just became a couple out of nowhere. I'm prolonging it a bit more this time around. Lily is starting to have different feelings for James and she doesn't know what they mean that's why she (finally) agreed to go out on a date with him. Like I said before there will be a couple more chapters before they're actually a couple.
I see you all picked up on my little surprise in last chapter. Rachel's 'appointment' is new to Challenge and did not appear in the first edition. But that's all I'm going to tell you. I think I pretty much replied to most comments and the questions you asked, I couldn't answer, sorry. If I messed any just let me know. This chapter is a bit short and was difficult to write because the second task is rather boring in my opinion. So, I tried spicing it up with a couple other scenes. But this chapter is more a filler than anything else. Next chapter will be loads better and back to normal length, I promise. Enjoy!
Challenge
Chapter 7: The Labyrinth
He turned when he heard footsteps on the stairs that he himself had come up minutes before. The door creaked open and a girl stepped inside. Her golden locks seemed to illuminate the darkness of the Astronomy Tower. She closed the door and rushed into his arms.
"I didn't think you'd make it," he whispered against her hair, holding her close.
The girl smiled up at him and brushed his sandy fringe from his eyes, "To be honest, I wasn't sure either. But I had to see you."
He smiled and leaned down and kissed her lips softly. She sighed against his lips and he cupped her face in his hands deepening the kiss. They pulled away several seconds later breathless.
He ran his fingers over her cheek, "I love this," he whispered, "But at the same time I hate it."
She reached up and placed her hand over his, "I know. I hate not being able to kiss you in the halls or just be with you whenever we want."
He leaned down and kissed her gently, "We should tell them."
"They're going to find out anyway sooner or later," she agreed with a laugh.
He grinned, "I kind of like having you all to myself though." She giggled, "We tell them soon then?"
She nodded, "Soon. When we're both ready."
"Okay," he whispered and she raised herself up on her toes and kissed him again.
He felt the world disappear as he kissed her back. It had been this way since the beginning, only a few weeks ago, when he'd finally just done what he'd wanted to for so long. He'd kissed her. He'd realized his feelings for her the previous year, but never acted on them. He was scared of what she would say, what she would do. The high he'd gotten when she returned his kiss lasted for days.
He reluctantly pulled away from her lips. An Astronomy class would be on its way up soon and they didn't want to be caught. He leaned his forehead against hers and she whispered, "I know."
"I wish we had a longer time," he said brushing his lips across her forehead.
"One day we will," she whispered back looking up at him with a smile.
He smiled back and tucked a stray curl behind her ear, "Go. I'll give you a five minute head start," he told her.
She kissed him one last time and slipped from his embrace. She hurried to the door and pulled it open. She turned back one last time and whispered, "Tomorrow night then?"
"I'll be here, love," he whispered back, his eyes twinkling. She winked and slipped outside.
Lily knocked loudly on the door to James' bedroom. "James," she called tentatively. No sound from the room reached her ears and Lily groaned. She knocked again, "James! The task starts in half an hour!" She yelled.
Inside, James slept on. Not a care in the world. Not a clue as to what time it was.
"James! If you aren't up in the next five minutes I'm going for Sirius!" Lily yelled through the door.
"Why are you coming for me?" Sirius' called up to her as he entered the Heads common room, making her jump in surprise.
Lily turned to him, "He forgot to set his alarm clock," she looked back at the door and muttered, "Stupid git."
Sirius took the steps up to James' dorm two at a time. "Nah, he probably just slept through it," Sirius told her, "He's exhausted. He worked the team pretty hard yesterday. Izzy and Rachel had to drag Alyssa out of bed and practically throw her in the shower to wake her up, she was so tired," he said grimacing at the memory of the scream that awoke most of Gryffindor tower that morning.
"So, what do we do?" Lily asked looking up at him.
Sirius looked at her, "Well, you could have just gone in and shaken him awake." Lily frowned at him and Sirius laughed, "Or you could let me have some fun and wake him up my way."
Lily smirked, "Be my guest."
Sirius pushed the door open and grinned, "Lily Evans has a dark side." She grinned up at him and followed him inside. Sirius pulled his wand from his jeans and conjured a bucket filled with ice water and levitated it above James' head. He flicked his wand lazily and Lily winced as the ice water poured down over the sleeping James.
It took all of two seconds for James' eyes to snap open and for him to sit bolt upright in bed. "SIRIUS! I'M GONNA KILL YOU!" he bellowed reaching blindly for his glasses.
"Morning Prongs!" Sirius said jovially, tucking his wand back into his jeans.
Lily put a hand over her mouth to hide her smile. James glared icily at Sirius' back as he dug through James' closet. "I'll meet you both downstairs," she said fighting back a giggle as she left the room.
"Here," Sirius said throwing jeans and a t-shirt at James. James continued to glare at him and Sirius laughed, "What? You slept through your alarm. What'd you expect a good morning snog?" James flipped him the finger. "Although by the goofy grin plastered on your face when we walked in here you were having much more than a snog in your dreams," Sirius grinned wickedly.
James hurled his pillow at Sirius' head and Sirius caught it and tossed it back on the bed. "Get dressed. We have to be down at the pitch in twenty minutes. I saved you at least ten that you would have spent in the shower."
"You suck," James replied grumpily to Sirius as he left the room.
"Nice of you to join me," Rachel smirked when Lily, James, and Sirius joined her, "Ooh, nice hair," she added to James.
"I hate you," James muttered to Sirius.
"Welcome!" Luke McBride's voice boomed over the pitch. "Today's task: The Labyrinth!"
A maze of gold bars appeared on the Quidditch field. The sun glinted off the bars making it almost impossible to see the narrow pathways hidden in the maze. A glittering blue mist marked the entrance to the labyrinth and a glittering pink mist hung at the exit.
"Doesn't look too bad, does it?" Sirius asked his group.
McGonagall's magically magnified voice drifted over the groups, "The Labyrinth will be testing your agility mostly. The maze is charmed to look completely different once past the entrance. We can only see your shadows moving down the paths between the bars and nothing more. To us it looks fairly simple, we see a beginning and an end and no obstacles. You will see differently.
All fifth year groups will enter the Labyrinth first. Sixth years, you'll follow once they're through, and seventh years you'll be last. If you should get stuck at any point during the task simply send up red sparks and a teacher will come and get you. You will forfeit the task, lose a chance, and be dropped to the bottom of the ranks. The group to get through the maze with the fastest time will receive top marks and gain the highest place in the rankings. The amount of time you spend in the labyrinth will determine your placement, so be mindful.
Lastly, no group, I repeat no group shall hinder another group from finishing the task and exiting the labyrinth safely. Should we find that cheating has occurred the group having done so will be taken from the competition altogether. Are there any questions?"
A fifth year Hufflepuff raised her hand, "You said obstacles, Professor. What kinds of obstacles?"
"That you will learn on your own," Professor McGonagall replied, "Fifth year groups form a line!"
The seventh years waited an hour and a half before McGonagall asked them to line up. A loud foghorn sounding noise signaled them to enter. The nine groups tore through the blue glittering mist and entered the labyrinth. Nine pathways greeted them and each group took a separate pathway and ran down it.
-
Lily, Sirius, James, and Rachel ran for several minutes until they came to a stop in front of a fork of paths. "Which one do we take?" Sirius asked looking between the two.
James knew that the labyrinth had a south entrance, which meant that the exit must be facing north. "Point me," James whispered holding his wand flat in his palm. His wand didn't move, "They disenabled The-Four-Point-Spell," he said exasperatedly.
"Now what?" Rachel asked.
Lily shrugged, "Process of elimination." She turned to her three teammates, "Pick a path."
They sprinted down the left path and ran for several minutes with James in the lead and Sirius picking up the rear. The path curved sharply and they hurdled around it before continuing on. It wasn't long before all four teammates were dizzy from the gold bars glittering on all sides.
Lily blinked as a wall of bars loomed in front of them, "James," she warned quietly.
But James continued running and Lily figured he must have thought it was another sharp turn. She looked up at the wall again and realized it was a dead end. She opened her mouth to warn him again but it was too late. James had run headlong into the wall of bars and fell back onto the grass.
James stared up at the blue sky dotted with fluffy white clouds. He groaned as Sirius helped him to his feet.
"That is what we call one hell of a dead end," Rachel said examining the wall for a moment.
James rubbed his forehead where a red mark was forming, "Come on," he said and the four hurried back up the path to the fork and took the left one.
They ran for several minutes before a loud, whiny, jabbering noise met their ears. They stopped at another sharp curve in the path and stopped to listen. "Slowly," Lily cautioned as they continued on at a light jog.
They turned another corner and came face to face with a large and rather exuberant group of pixies. "Duck!" Sirius yelled. As one the four dropped to the ground as the pixies dove for them.
"OW!" Rachel yelled when one grabbed onto a handful of her hair and yanked. She tried swatting at it, but this only made the pixie pull harder.
"Stop! Hold still!" Sirius yelled and she stopped moving. Sirius aimed a swift kick at the little blue creature and it squealed as it was pelted to the opposite side of the pathway.
"Immobulus!" Lily shouted pointing her wand at the swarming pixies, which stopped immediately and seemed to float about.
"Nice," James said impressively.
"Come on," Lily yelled, grabbing his arm as Sirius and Rachel took the lead.
James looked down at his watch, "Eight minutes and counting guys," he shouted to the others.
They ran for another minute and turned another corner and Rachel yelped stopping dead so that Sirius, Lily, and James crashed into her.
At least two-dozen snakes slithered toward them hissing and snapping their jaws, showing off white fangs. Behind them was a wall of golden bars, a dead end. "Back!" Rachel yelped as they all started backing away from the snakes. "Go!" she yelled and they all sprinted in the opposite direction.
They ran down another path tripping and stumbling over the uneven ground. They pushed on, running full out and stumbling across two more dead ends before they finally sprinted down a path that looked pretty safe.
"Do you see that?" Sirius asked pointing ahead of them.
Rachel narrowed her eyes, "Slow down," she cautioned.
The four teammates slowed to a stop in front of a large pool of water. The pool took up the entire pathway width wise and extended seven feet in front of them. "What do we do? Do we go back?" Rachel wheezed pulling her hair out of her eyes.
"Everything else is a dead end," James panted. "This is the only way."
"Are we supposed to swim across it?" Lily asked kneeling down beside the pool of water.
"Wait," Sirius said and conjured a small rock with a flick of his wand. Lily straightened up and backed away from the pool. Sirius threw the small rock into the water where it landed with a slight splash, but to their amazement did not sink.
"It's bewitched," said Lily, and Sirius nodded taking the lead and walking across the pool of water.
The sound of tumultuous applause reached their ears. "The first group's out," James said, stating the obvious.
"Let's go," Sirius said motioning the others to follow him.
They ran on for several minutes, no longer running into obstacles. "We must be close," Rachel whispered.
"Why are you whispering?" James asked in a normal voice.
Rachel shrugged and replied matter-of-factly, "I didn't want to jinx it."
They took a left turn, a right; another left and ran straight for another minute when the pink glittering mist came into view. "Finally," Lily gasped happily as they reached the exit of the maze.
The four teammates stood in front of the mist and as one stepped through it. The second they each had a leg through the wall of mist they were lifted off their feet and hurled out of the labyrinth, as though it had spit them out.
"Oof!" Sirius grunted as they landed on the grass several feet from the exit of the labyrinth.
"And the Black, Evans, Rabb, Potter group emerges from the labyrinth with a very good time. Fifteen minutes and eighteen seconds is their final time. That will get them into the top half of the ranks, a far leap from where they wound up last time."
Rachel rolled onto her back and groaned, "I would take blue goo any day instead of this."
"That was one hell of a task today, huh, guys?" Rachel asked breezing into their room late that afternoon.
Alyssa titled her head off the end of her bed and laid her book across her stomach, "Where have you been?"
"I went for a run," Rachel muttered peeling her sweaty t-shirt off.
Izzy gasped and jumped off the bed, "Where did you get that?"
"What?" Rachel asked.
Alyssa joined the two girls, "Is that from the task?" she asked.
Rachel turned so her back faced the floor length mirror and turned to look at her back. Her eyes widened as she saw what had gotten her friends so anxious. A large and very ugly bruise blackened her right shoulder blade. "Uh—no. I tripped. You know me, I'm such a klutz," she said with a little laugh.
She grabbed her robe and a change of clothes and slipped out of the room, her friends' gazes on her until the door closed. She hurried to the bathroom and shut the door behind her sharply. She leaned against the cool wood and winced as the bruise hit it. She walked over to a mirror and grimaced as she looked at the full bruise. She pulled out her wand and whispered a couple healing charms that only dulled the color slightly and did nothing for the pain.
-
Rachel walked slowly down to dinner that evening favoring her right arm, which was now throbbing dully because of the bruise. "Rachel!" Rachel stopped when she heard her name and turned gingerly as Sirius jogged up to her.
"Hey," she said forcing a smile onto her face.
"Hey, you going down to dinner?" he asked.
She nodded, "Yeah," she replied as he fell into step beside her.
"We made it into the top twelve," he told her.
"The what?" she asked distractedly.
He raised his eyebrows, "The rankings. For our time in the task today, we made it into the top twelve."
"Oh, that's great," she said not sounding enthusiastic at all.
Sirius furrowed his brow in concern, "Are you okay?" he asked, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. Rachel hissed and turned away from him as though his touch had burned her. Sirius looked at her with wide concerned eyes, "What—?"
"It's nothing," Rachel said through gritted teeth. He didn't look convinced in the slightest, "I just fell on it wrong when we were spit out of the labyrinth," she said reassuringly.
"You sure?" he asked, his brow still furrowed in concern. "Maybe you should go have Madame Pomfrey take a look at it."
"No!" Rachel said quickly and then added, "I'm fine. Honest." She smiled.
"Okay," he said slowly and followed her into the Great Hall.
-
Rachel barely touched her dinner that night. She was in too much pain to eat. Her shoulder felt like it was on fire and moving it shot pain to the tips of her fingers.
She got up from the table, forgetting about her dinner, and walked over to her brother. "Can I talk to you alone for a minute?" she asked him quietly.
"Yeah," he said and got up following his sister out of the hall.
They found an empty classroom on the second floor and Andy closed the door behind them. "What's up?" he asked.
Rachel didn't say a word. She grabbed the neck of her t-shirt and pulled it down so that the bruise was clearly visible to his gaze.
He inhaled sharply, "Jesus, Rach!" He walked up behind her and brushed his thumb over the bruise. She flinched. "When did that happen?"
"Earlier," she said through gritted teeth.
"What were you doing wrestling a hippogriff?" he asked as she carefully peeled her shirt up and let it hover on her shoulders so he could heal the bruise.
He placed his hands over the bruise and a brilliant gold glow surrounded his hands and transferred to the wound. He saw the tension and pain ease and eventually dissipate from his sister's face as the bruises faded away, leaving no trace that they had ever been there.
She pulled her shirt back down and faced him slowly. "Thank you," she whispered.
"Your welcome." He knew she wasn't going to come out and tell him directly where she'd gotten the bruise so he asked instead. "What happened?"
"I fell into a wall," she replied quietly. It was the truth; she had, after she'd been thrown across the room. She looked up at him and somehow she knew he understood that she couldn't answer any of his questions. The look in his eyes told her that he trusted her, but if she needed him, he was there.
"Come on," he said holding his arm out for her. "You can help me with my Charms homework."
Okay, I know, I know! Not the best chapter at all! I promise next chapter will be way better, longer, and worth the wait. As one of my beta's said 'it's a filler' chapter. So, as always let me know what you think! Next update will be Saturday with a much better chapter! Thanks guys!