Hey guys! I'm sorry! I lied! I said the next update was going to be Wednesday and other things got in the way! But once again this chapter is nice and long with several Lily/James scenes for you all, with a bit of Rachel/Sirius as well! Those who read the original version will know that part of this chapter is very important later on. Thank you to everyone who reviewed! I am a little disappointed in the people who have been reading and not reviewing. I can see that you are, in my stats. And I can see whose favorite list I'm on, as well as who has me for an author alert. Quite a few of you have not yet reviewed. It really only takes a second to tell me what you think. To those who have started reviewing or have been all along I thank you. I'm hoping this week will be another double update! Thanks guys and enjoy!
Liadan Sevenwaters – I knew a LOTR fan would find that line! There are a couple lines from HPSS and The Italian Job in this chapter! I sometimes hear a line in a movie or television show and slip it in because it fits!
Snazzysnez – Gah! Thank you! You know you can read and read and think you've found all your mistakes and yet there's still one or two that slip past you! Lol, thanks for me letting me know.
Wizemunkee006 – They are rather confused aren't they? Lol, but things will work out very, very soon. I promise. The Syd and Michael Varner thing if you can believe it or not was a complete accident! Sydney's name was chosen way back in chapter two and when I got to this chapter I needed a date for her. I thought of Michael Varner and it briefly crossed my mind that it was the actor's name who plays Michael Vaughn on Alias, but it didn't click (till you mentioned it) that his date was Sydney. Nothing to do with the plot, but funny how it happened.
Challenge
Chapter 10: The Third Task
James and Lily avoided each other like the plague the next few days after Lily surprised James by kissing him. James was deeply confused, not to mention hurt by her actions. He tried to act as normally around her as possible, but he found this task harder than he'd originally thought.
Every time he looked at her he remembered the look in her eyes before and after the kiss. How her eyes had gone from blazing anger to distress in the amount of time their lips met. Every time he passed her in the halls he remembered the way she'd felt in his arms and how she had fit against him perfectly. He saw her smile once or twice and remembered the taste and feel of her lips against his. He'd bumped into her once, apologized courteously, and continued on his way. He didn't know if there was anything else to say, so he went for the less is better method.
-
Lily was deeply confused by her mixed-up emotions, as well as pained by the recent events. She tried to act normal. She wanted to act normal, but she couldn't. There was no denying her enjoyment of the kiss she'd shared with James. There was no denying her feeling of never wanting to leave his embrace. There was no denying the fireworks Lily saw (and felt) the second their lips met, and the way her skin tingled from his touch. There was no denying that everything about their brief passionate encounter had felt totally and completely right.
She knew James was hurting as much, if not more than she was. She was the one who'd initiated the kiss; something she never thought she'd do in a million years, but she had. She still didn't know if she'd kissed him because she liked him or if she kissed him because she was jealous. Hell, she was still confused about her feelings for him as a whole.
One thing was simple, however. One thing she was sure of. She was scared. She was scared of falling for him and getting her heart broken by James Potter. She was scared that now that the chase was over, James would get bored with her and dump her in a week or two. She was worried that all she was to him was another notch in his bedpost. But what if he really wanted her, all of her? What if he really wanted a serious relationship with her? What if?
Lily entered the Heads common room and collided promptly with the object of her thoughts. She felt his hands on her waist, steadying her. "Ah," she gasped startled, "Oh, sorry," she quickly apologized.
James shook his head slowly, "It's fine. We were both at fault." He knew Lily caught the second meaning to his statement. He was telling her without coming right out and saying it, that although he was hurt and confused, he wasn't blaming her. That he understood she needed time too.
He turned to go, to avoid any further awkwardness, when Lily reached out and touched his arm. He looked at her, and he could see the unspoken questions in her eyes. All of the answers she was looking for, she found. He gave her one his famous lopsided grins and she smiled weakly in return. She knew he wasn't going anywhere.
The day of the third task arrived on the Saturday after Halloween. All competitors met with McGonagall in the Great Hall directly after breakfast the morning of the task for instructions.
"Today's task marks the beginning of the more difficult tasks as well as the most crucial. The third task will be the first to bump teams from the competition. Those who fail to complete today's task or fall to the bottom five slots in the ranks will lose a chance. If this is any teams third chance you will be eliminated from the ranks and the competition, and will no longer be able to participate in future tasks.
"The name of today's task is The Haunted House. This task will test your ability to think quickly on your feet, your ability with a wand, agility, and group communication, as well as trust.
"The order of teams to enter The Haunted House, as you know, have been chosen at random, and will be posted on the doors. As each team completes the task their names will be erased from the list. This is the next groups cue to begin making their way to the third floor corridor on the right hand side.
"Commentary and spectators will not be following you through the Haunted House. They will be waiting at the exit for the teams to emerge. Once you emerge from the task you will be asked to return to the castle to wait in a classroom for the rest of the competitors. Do you have any questions?" No one spoke or even really moved. No one was quite awake yet. "Alright then. Group one follow me." A Hufflepuff fifth year group got up and followed McGonagall out of the hall.
"Well," Rachel said, pulling her sweatshirt off and sliding onto one of the benches at the Gryffindor table, "Might as well get comfortable. We're going to be here for a while," she said bunching the sweatshirt on the table in front of her and laying her head on it.
-
"Being last officially sucks!" Sirius exclaimed looking at the clock. It had been forty minutes since the second to last group, Malfoy, Bellatrix, Snape, and Sophia, had left the Great Hall for the task.
"Would you rather be first?" James asked looking up from his seat at the Gryffindor table.
Sirius thought about this for a moment, "Well, no, but somewhere in the middle what have suited me just fine."
James shook his head laughing quietly. "You could have slept like this one here," Lily said pointing at the still slumbering Rachel.
"I don't know how she slept through all the noise in here," James said amazed.
Lily laughed, "She's couldn't. She's wearing earplugs."
Sirius grinned broadly, "Brilliant."
Before either of them could say anything further James spoke up quietly, "We're up."
"There is no time limit on today's task," Professor McGonagall informed them when they arrived at the entrance to the Haunted House, "However getting through it as quickly as possible will help you greatly," she paused, "There are many obstacles that await you. Are you prepared to meet this Challenge?" Lily, James, Sirius, and Rachel all nodded. "Alright, when you're ready," McGonagall said stepping back from them.
James, Lily, Rachel, and Sirius approached the trapdoor in the center of the room and peered down into the dark depths. "I'll go first," James said, "Lily why don't you follow me, then Sirius, and then Rachel." They each nodded gripping their wands firmly. James looked at Lily, "Wait until I call up to you."
James turned back to the trapdoor, inhaled quickly, and jumped. The other three waited with bated breath peering down what seemed to be endless darkness. Finally, they heard James' voice calling up to them, "Alright!" he yelled.
Lily winked at the other two, "See you down there," she said and jumped in after James.
-
She felt like she'd been falling forever until she felt herself wrapped in James' arms. "Nice catch," she said breathlessly.
"Thanks," he said setting her on her feet.
Lily walked a little ways away from him to look around trying to figure out which direction they should head first. James made to follow her but found that his feet were stuck to the ground. He tried leaning all his weight on one foot and wrenching the other from the stone floor, but he remained immobile. He leaned forward and noticed green slime oozing from the cracks in the stone beneath his feet.
"Uh—Lily?" he said hesitantly as the green slime began to coil around his legs tightly.
Lily turned her head and immediately tried walking over to him sensing his struggle, but found she couldn't. She too was already stuck to the stone floor by the same green slime. "What is this?" she asked as the slime began to wind up around her legs like it had done to James.
A second later Sirius landed beside James and unsteadily crashed to his hands and knees on the floor. Lily and James looked at him with wide eyes. James' look quickly turned into a grimace as an arm of slime shot out and wound around his wrists, binding his hands together. "Pick your hands up," said James through gritted teeth struggling to get his hands free.
"What?" Sirius said looking at him strangely. "Why?" he asked pulling one hand from the floor easily. He tried moving his other hand but the green slime had already pinned it to the floor. "What the hell?" Sirius mumbled pulling harder to free his hand.
"Don't struggle," Lily said loudly, "I think it makes this stuff—whatever it is—move faster.
"What is it?" Sirius asked, looking over his shoulder as the slime wrapped itself around his ankles effectively pinning him to the ground.
A whoosh, a thump, and a loud swear immediately followed. All three heads turned to look at Rachel sprawled on her back. "Ow," Rachel moaned.
"NO!" the other three yelled as Rachel lifted her head up and noticed with wide eyes that the green slime had already wrapped itself around her wrists and ankles.
She raised her eyebrows, "Someone want to share why we're all stuck to the ground?"
"It's called Crudus," James said, finally giving the green slime a name. "Raise your arm above your head," he instructed Sirius as the slime crept over his thighs and waist.
Sirius raised the arm he'd managed to get off the floor before it got stuck. "Why?"
"The highest body parts will be the last to be reached," James told him. "Crudus was used back in the Ancient Roman times for torture. Wizards thought it funny to punish anyone who broke the law by throwing them into a pit with this stuff," James continued. Lily stared at James clearly amazed and impressed and a tad put out that he knew something she didn't. "Crudus can be extremely deadly. You have to relax. If you don't it will only kill you faster."
"Kill us faster?" Rachel yelped, "Great! Now I can relax!" There wasn't a part of her body that was higher off the ground than any other part.
"So, what is it doing now?" Sirius asked feeling a sharp pain in his knees from kneeling on the stone floor for so long. "Killing us slowly?"
A loud raspy, gasp cut off any replies. Three heads turned to see Rachel arching her back off the floor as a line of slime wound itself tightly around her neck. Her eyes were beginning to water and she was struggling worse than ever with the slime pressing down hard on her windpipe.
"Oh my God," Lily said helplessly watching her best friend struggle. She tried moving her hands to try something, anything to get the slime to retract. Much to her dismay her hands were now bound behind her back and there was no way she could maneuver herself to aim her wand correctly.
"Crudus only works in dark, damp places," James said quickly, "That's why the torturing always went on in underground pits."
A thin sheen of sweat glistened on Rachel's face as she continued to fight the slime. "That's all well and good, Prongs, but we need some magic happening not information," Sirius said impatiently, watching in horror as Rachel's eyes rolled up into her head. Every time she gasped for breath Sirius felt like he was getting punched in the stomach.
James looked at Rachel, his face pale and his eyes wide. He shook his head trying to clear it. "If we can shed light or warmth on the slime it should retract from all of us," he said. He looked over at Sirius who still had his arm raised high into the air, "Sirius!" he said suddenly, a light bulb going off in his head.
Sirius craned his neck to look over at him, "What?"
"Get my wand out of my front pocket with your free hand and say Insidado," he said pronouncing the spell clearly.
Sirius nodded mutely and reached over to James. His fingers came just short of James' front pocket where his wand was poking out. "Shit!" Sirius swore.
James pushed his hip closer to Sirius, hissing when the slime tightened around his torso. Sirius reached for James' wand and this time he grasped the handle and pulled it out. He pointed the wand at a particularly large crack where most of the slime was oozing from and bellowed, "Insidado!"
A jet of bright orange light shot from the tip of the wand. The second the light hit the slime it immediately began to recoil quickly into the large crack where it came from.
Rachel inhaled sharply as the slime unwrapped itself from her neck. She coughed violently, rolling onto her stomach, and resting her sweaty forehead on the cool stone floor. In the next second James, Lily, and Sirius were free and they bolted over to Rachel who was shaking slightly.
"Are you okay?" Lily asked concernedly looking at the vicious red line around Rachel's throat.
Rachel nodded, "I'll be fine," she croaked as James and Sirius carefully helped her to her feet. "I officially don't like this one bit," she said as they moved forward alert to whatever obstacle came there way next.
They hadn't been walking more than five minutes when a sharp click from beneath James' foot reached their ears. "What was that?" Lily whispered hoarsely.
They waited a minute for something to happen. When nothing did James shrugged, "Just a loose stone or…" the rest of his sentence was drowned out by the grating sound of stone scraping against stone. The walls were closing in on them.
"Shit," Sirius said as he and James tried pushing the walls back, but to no avail.
Lily's eyes narrowed as she inspected one of the walls more closely. Small holes covered each wall from ceiling to floor in neat rows, except for one where the holes stopped a foot or so from the ground. The holes were too deep for her to see what lay inside them, but she knew it probably wasn't good. She began backing away toward the center of the room. "Move away from the walls!" she shouted to her companions over the loud scraping noise.
No sooner had the boys and Rachel moved away from the walls and joined Lily in the middle, a sharp slicing sound cut the air. Six-inch long, silver spikes glinted menacingly at them from all sides.
James swallowed looking at the spikes apprehensively, "We were almost skewered!"
"We're still going to be skewered if we don't stop them!" Sirius yelled as the four backed into each other.
James raised his wand arm pointing his wand at the wall of spikes in front of him. "Wait!" Lily yelled stopping him. He looked at her. "There could be a charm on the spikes or the wall and whatever spell you send at it could rebound onto us."
"Good point," James agreed lowering his arm.
The seconds ticked by and the walls studded with the six-inch long spikes continued to get closer. "Any more clues from Ancient Rome—or Greece—or Spain?" Rachel asked.
"Your turn," James called back to her.
Rachel rolled her eyes and then yelped, her hands flying up in front of her on instinct as the wall in front of her lurched forward very quickly. Everything went deadly silent as though everything, including her companions, had stopped moving. Rachel pried her eyes open and looked around. "Oh, shit," she said when she realized she'd frozen everything. "Andy's going to kill me."
She scanned the walls looking for a way out and noticed that on one wall the spikes stopped about a foot from the ground. She followed the wall to a crack low in the same wall that was wide enough for them to fit through. She brought her hands up in fists and flashed them quickly to open palms. The second everything was mobile again she yelled, "Get down!"
James looked over at her, "What are we doing? Are you crazy?" he asked. "Is the loss of oxygen affecting your brain cells?" Rachel slapped her hand down on top of his head and turned it so he could see the pathway. He raised his eyebrows. "I stand corrected," he smiled sheepishly at her, "Sorry."
Rachel rolled her eyes glancing at Lily over the top of James' head. Lily winked. She knew exactly what Rachel had done—by accident—once again. Rachel started under the low pathway toward their escape.
"You're bloody brilliant you know that?" Sirius said a few minutes later pulling himself up and out of the crack after Rachel.
"Thanks," Rachel said wiping sweat from her forehead with her sleeve.
Sirius shook his hair out of his eyes as James and Lily got to their feet beside the other two. "Normally I'm all for surprises and spontaneity, but this is too much," he said, "No more."
"I don't think that's going to be an option," James replied.
"Why not?"
"We're in a haunted fun house," Lily replied simply, "It's going to be one surprise after another in here whether we're ready for them or not."
"Fun house!" Sirius said frowning, "No! Nut house, maybe."
-
"Dead end? Sirius exclaimed when they came to the end of the hallway they'd been following for several minutes. "How can we have reached a dead end when there were no other routes to take?"
"It is strange," Lily said looking around.
James stared at the wall in front of him. There was an area of wall, four stones wide and six stones high, that looked oddly transparent compared to the rest of the wall. "What is it?" Lily asked.
James pointed, "Do you see that?"
"See what?"
James approached the transparent part of the wall and lightly pressed his hand against one stone. His fingers slipped right through it like it wasn't part of the wall at all but more like, "A doorway," James said aloud making everyone look around at him.
Lily stared at the hidden doorway impressively. "Are their stairs?" she asked James as he knelt down and felt passed the doorway for steps.
"Negative," he said straightening up.
"So, we jump?" Sirius questioned.
"Oh no!" Rachel exclaimed. "If you think you're going to get me to jump into God knows what again, you got another thing coming!"
"Well, we can't just sit here," Sirius retorted, leaning one hand on a stone. The stone moved back into the wall with Sirius' weight and Sirius jumped back.
A loud grinding noise that continued for several seconds followed by an echoing thump startled them. James peered down the dark expanse and turned to look at Rachel, "Stairs," he grinned and continued teasingly, "After you milady."
-
With Rachel in the lead they started down the steep, narrow set of stairs. A loud groan came up from beneath their feet and the next second the stairs turned into a steep side. James briefly caught a glimpse of a weary look that crossed Sirius' face before they were all knocked off their feet and went skidding down the slide.
They landed in a very tangled heap at the bottom. "Ow! Watch it!" Rachel yelled pushing a leg off her torso.
"Oof!" James said catching a foot in the stomach.
"OW! HAIR! OW!" Sirius yelled painfully.
James rolled his eyes, unseen by the others in the dark. "You're such a girl, Padfoot." Two hands shot out of nowhere and smacked whatever part of him they could reach. "Ow!"
"Ouch," Lily gasped getting an elbow in the mouth.
"Sorry," the other three said simultaneously unsure of who had hit whom.
James felt around with his free hand—his other was caught beneath someone's back—and came in contact with jean material. "Who is this?" he asked.
"Me!" Lily replied.
"What part of you?" James asked.
"My thigh," she replied again with a giggle, "And I'm ticklish," she said smacking his hand away.
James laughed. "I'm so glad this is so entertaining for you, but for some of us it isn't the time of our lives," said Sirius, who voice sounded muffled, as though his face were squashed against the floor.
"I agree—who just kneed me in the arse?" Rachel asked lifting her head and trying unsuccessfully to see where everyone else was.
"That was you?" James said sounding shocked. "Sorry, didn't know you were that close."
"Apparently. Are you to my right or left?" Rachel asked him.
James thought about this for a moment, "That depends which way you're facing. Top or bottom?"
"This isn't getting us anywhere!" Lily exclaimed. "Trying to figure out which way everyone is facing is completely fruitless. Getting out of this tangled mess however, is not."
"Where are you?" Rachel asked trying to lift her head again.
"I don't know," Lily said getting one of her arms free and lifting it into the air colliding with someone's face. Sirius groaned prying his streaming eye open. Lily had poked him in the eye. "Sorry," she apologized.
Sirius felt around behind him blindly. "Any higher and you'll be sleeping with the Giant Squid by the time I'm done with you," Rachel said sweetly.
Sirius retracted his hand and moved it to the left. "Padfoot, I had no idea."
Sirius smacked James in what he assumed was his chest, "Shut up!"
"Be quiet both of you!" Lily exclaimed sounding extremely frustrated. "Let's all try moving at the same time away from each other. Okay?"
"It's worth a try," Sirius sighed.
"On three then," Lily said, "One...two…three!" As one they tried pulling away from each other.
They collapsed on top of each other out of breath several seconds later. "Okay," Lily said slowly, "We have to do this the old fashion way." Minutes passed and finally body parts followed by bodies were freed from the tangled mess.
-
"Look at it this way," James said as they continued on down the hallway with their wands lit and held high. "It can't get any worse."
Lily groaned, "Haven't you ever heard that any time someone says that it always gets worse?"
"No?" Lily gave him a sidelong glance, "Oh, come on, that's a load of superstitious rubbish."
Lily shrugged, "Fine. But I told you so."
James stuck his tongue out at her. "Okay children," Sirius cut in, "What is that ahead?"
They got closer and found another dead end, but this time pieces of jaggedly cut mirrors leaned against each wall. Each piece was cut differently and positioned a certain way. "What are they?" James asked the others.
"Fun house mirrors," Lily replied quietly. She received three very clueless looks. "Muggles use them in fun houses. They can make you look short and fat or tall and skinny or completely bent out of shape and disfigured," she explained.
Rachel glanced into one mirror and giggled at her foot tall reflection, "I'll never complain about my height again, that's for sure!"
Sirius scrunched his nose up making a very disgruntled face at his very obtuse reflection in another mirror.
James laughed out loud at his own reflection, "I look like one of Picasso's creations!"
"And I look," Lily frowned, "Old." She stepped closer to the mirror, "Is this really how I'm going to look when I'm eighty?" she asked looking at her graying hair and wrinkles. It was then that she noticed that there seemed to be something behind the mirror.
She moved closer and knocked her head against the glass. The next second she was being forced through the mirror as though an invisible hand was pushing her. She screamed, but it was too late, she'd already fallen through.
James, Sirius, and Rachel ran to the mirror Lily had just disappeared through. "Lily!" James bellowed banging his hand against the glass hoping it would push him through too. It didn't.
They banged for a few more fruitless seconds before finally giving up. "Great, it just got worse. Now what do we do?" Rachel asked.
"The mirrors have been charmed so that way out jumps from mirror to mirror," Sirius said looking around at all the mirrors, "It's the only logical explanation. We just have to find which one is the door now."
"How do we know which one is the one we want?" Rachel asked inspecting a few mirrors.
"Testing them I suppose," Sirius replied.
James walked three mirrors to the left of the one Lily had fallen through. This mirror made his body parts appear in very strange places. He had an ear on his neck, an arm coming out of one thigh, and a foot on his shoulder. He noticed that as he looked closer he could see something beyond the mirror. "Guys," James called out to Sirius and Rachel.
They turned just in time to see James forced headfirst through the mirror. Rachel swore loudly. "It's a shell game," Sirius said quietly, "Shell game now."
"So, what mirror does the door jump to now?" Rachel asked inspecting the fourth mirror to the right of James'. The words had barely finished leaving her mouth when she was forced through the mirror as well.
"That one," Sirius replied smartly to the now empty hall. He scanned the row of mirrors counting silently in his head. "So, that means," he said aloud walking five mirrors to the left of the mirror Rachel had fallen through. He pointed at it, "You should be next." Sure enough, a minute later Sirius was forced headfirst through the mirror.
James rolled down a steep incline and landed flat on his back in a long cavernous room. Lit torches lined the walls and the light at the tip of his wand did nothing to increase his visibility. "Nox," he whispered looking around. Water dripped from cracks in the ceilings and onto the floor. It was eerily quiet and James could feel the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end.
A sound he couldn't quite place reached his ears and he faced the wall behind him his wand raised. A door he hadn't known was there opened and Lily stumbled out of it. He exhaled in relief and lowered his wand hurrying over to her. "Are you alright?"
She nodded, "I'm fine. Are you okay?" He nodded. "Any idea where we are?"
"Not a clue," he said looking about, "Come on. The only way we're going to find out where we are and find the others is if we keep going."
They walked silently for two minutes at the most when they rounded a corner and ran directly into Sirius. "AAAHHHH!" They yelled simultaneously.
"Jesus," Sirius exclaimed, "You scared the shit out of me."
"That makes two of us," James replied.
"Any sign of Rachel?" Lily asked Sirius.
Sirius shook his head slowly. "No, I thought you guys would have bumped into her by now."
A loud yell disrupted Lily's reply. A hidden stone paneling door opened behind them and Rachel was flung out of it. "Ow," she said painfully, "That's going to bruise," she said getting to her feet stiffly. She looked around the cavernous room and then at her teammates, "Where are we?"
"We're going to find out," James said.
They walked in silence, the sounds of their feet hitting the damp stone floor echoing around the room. They continued on in this way for several minutes. "We must be getting close to the end," Sirius said quietly.
Lily shrugged, "Could be."
Another couple minutes of absolute silence passed. Finally, a sharp whistling noise sliced through the air like a gunshot. As one four heads looked up at the ceiling and jumped backward out of the way of a long, very sharp, and jaggedly cut piece of metal. The sharpest point slammed into the stone floor breaking it apart sending pieces of stone flying in every direction.
"Holy—fuck," James gasped looking at the jaggedly cut piece of metal sticking out of the floor. With a loud groan the piece of metal leaned to one side and clattered loudly to the floor sending a cloud of dust into the air. It was as though the piece of metal had fallen on a string that was attached to a rather obtuse crack in the ceiling because a corner of the ceiling fell and smashed to pieces on the floor. This crash shook not only the walls, but the ceiling, and the floor too.
Cracks split across the rest of the ceiling and spread down the walls. Rachel and Lily backed into Sirius and James, their eyes wide and fearful. James looked up at the ceiling, "It's going to collapse!" he yelled.
The cracks continued to spread across the ceiling and three large glass chandeliers swung dangerously from their hinges. "RUN!" James yelled grabbing Lily by the arm and running around the piece of metal, Sirius and Rachel hot on their heels.
-
Sirius and Rachel skidded to a halt as a small boulder of plaster and stone dropped down in front of them. Sirius pulled her around the other side and ran five steps to the left. Rachel looked back over her shoulder and noticed that the piece of metal had disappeared. Another chunk of the ceiling crashed down inches from their feet and Rachel forgot about the missing piece of metal that had nearly sliced them all in half.
She turned back to look at what was in front of her, at the same time a jagged piece of wood from the rafters cut across her cheek leaving behind a deep gash. Part of the wall to their left crumbled down upon them, pieces of debris flying up and in every direction. One piece slammed directly into Sirius' shoulder before careening off course and smashing on the floor.
Sirius yelled in pain stopping dead in his tracks and swaying slightly. He dropped Rachel's hand and gripped his injured arm. Rachel stopped, one hand on his uninjured elbow and looked around. She spotted a corner that was devoid of debris, but protected by a wall of ceiling that had already come down. She pushed Sirius down behind it and crouched beside him. She and Sirius jumped and cringed as another huge chunk of the ceiling crashed to the floor on the other side of the room.
"I think it's dislocated," Sirius said through gritted teeth.
Rachel pushed his hair off his sweaty forehead gazing at him helplessly. She pointed her wand at his shoulder hoping to dull the pain somewhat, but his hand on her wrist stopped her. She looked at him. "There's no time. I'll be fine," he told her.
She opened her mouth to object, but closed it again at the look on his face. She looked out over the room, watching as it continued to crumble and fall down around them. "I don't think this was part of the task," she said looking back at Sirius.
"It is a bit strange, not to mention dangerous," Sirius grunted as Rachel helped him to his feet. A load groan came from above them and they moved out of the way just in time. A huge chunk of wall now took up the space they'd occupied moments before.
Sirius grabbed her hand again, holding his injured arm close to his chest and together they took off across the room. They raced around chunks of the ceiling and walls and avoided places where the floor had been smashed. Pieces of wood, plaster, and stone slashed their arms, legs, and faces, ripping their clothes, and leaving behind deep gashes and cuts that bled freely. "MOVE!" Sirius bellowed pulling them both out of the way of a large section of the rafters falling.
Rachel cried out in pain as a piece of wood sank deeply into her thigh. She fell forward but didn't hit the ground as Sirius wheeled them about and pushed them behind a pile of rubble. Rachel leaned back against the wall wrapping her hands around the stake in her thigh. She yanked hard and pulled the stake from her flesh. Blood began to flow and she quickly pointed her wand at it whispering a Clotting Charm. The blood flow stopped and she sealed the wound for the time being.
She looked up at Sirius and together they looked out over the room.. "Can you walk?" Sirius asked her. She nodded already hefting herself to her feet ignoring the intense pain in her thigh. "Then let's do it," he said grabbing her hand and holding to it tightly. They ran.
"It's on fire!" Rachel shouted smelling the smoke before actually seeing fire. Flames stretched from one side of the room to the other. A pile of various chunks from the ceiling, walls, and rafters stood burning directly in front of them. What was left of a wall blocked them on the left and flames blocked them on the right. There was no way around and they couldn't turn back. Their only way out was to push ahead.
Sirius looked over at Rachel. His handsome face was shining with sweat and covered with the same cuts and bruises that were all over his neck, arms, torso, and legs. His navy blue shirt was ripped and several gashes were dripping blood. His storm gray eyes were alight with fear and adrenaline as he looked into Rachel's sapphire ones. Without a word they came to an unspoken agreement.
She gripped his hand as they turned to face the now raging flames. Just as they were getting ready to brave the flames another piece of ceiling crashed down in front of them. They looked away, shielding their eyes from debris, dust, and sparks. Once all was clear they looked at the scene before them again. The flames hadn't jumped over the stone yet and without a second thought Sirius and Rachel ran straight for it.
The flames licked at their skin, but they didn't stay long enough for the flames to do any real damage. They kept running until they were clear of the heat and flames and emerged on the other side covered in soot and coughing violently from the smoke.
-
James and Lily scrambled over pieces of the wall and ceiling, tripping and stumbling over the uneven ground, desperately looking for a way out. They stopped for a moment to see if they could spot Rachel or Sirius through the mess. James looked above them after a hearing a sharp crack and yanked Lily around, pressing them tightly against the wall as a gigantic piece of the ceiling fell inches from where they now stood.
James knew they couldn't waste any time and immediately reached for Lily's hand again and together they took off at a run. A long piece of wood from the rafters flew up behind Lily and struck her hard on the back of the knees. Lily yelped in pain and crashed painfully to the floor on her already injured knees. James immediately stopped, but before he knelt beside her, he thought better of their position.
He pulled her behind a pile of wreckage and knelt in front of her, knowing they were safe for a moment. Her eyes were watering with unshed tears and he tenderly brushed her sweaty bangs out of her eyes. A thick two by four from one of the rafters fell from the ceiling and broke in two once it hit the ground. One half flew up and collided with James' back with a sickening crack.
"James!" Lily screamed as James was forced forward from the weight of the plank and from the pain it caused.
He sat up swallowing a yell of pain. "I'm alright," he gasped shaking the spots from his eyes.
"You're not…" Lily whispered.
"I'm fine," he said stubbornly. He was sure some of his ribs were now broken, but he'd be damned if he didn't get her out of this. The look on his face left no room for argument and Lily stopped any further protests. "Can you run?" She nodded. "Okay, then let's get out of here."
They got to their feet and waited for more chunks of ceiling to fall before dashing around them again. They ducked behind a growing pile of debris and peered around one side. "Shit! It's on fire!" James yelled back to Lily over the noise.
Lily looked over the top of the pile they were crouched behind and saw the scene before her. The room was falling apart piece by piece and flames had now sprung up everywhere and were spreading rapidly.
"Come on," James said tugging gently on Lily's hand. He pulled her up and they started to run again.
Three times their paths turned up blocked and they had to back track and find another way around. As they ran they were constantly on the look out for Rachel or Sirius and an exit. They continued to run, narrowly missing a burning tapestry falling from the wall. They skirted piles of debris and broken up flooring as they dodged more pieces of the ceiling and wall crashing down around them.
James highly doubted that this cave in was part of the task. It was far too dangerous. Granted, most of the obstacles before hand had been rather high on the danger scale, but this was over the top.
They stopped again scanning the room for a sign of their friends. "Is that them?" Lily pointed.
James squinted to see where she was pointing and saw two figures running through a wall of flame. "Yes," James replied heavily.
He looked up at the ceiling and noticed that the biggest chandelier was dangling precariously by one bolt. He noticed that the other two chandeliers were already smashed on the floor and he didn't remember seeing or even hearing them fall. He looked up again and felt his stomach jump into his throat as the chandelier lurched lower and dangled again. The bolt was coming loose.
"LOOK OUT!" He bellowed hoping Sirius and Rachel would be able to hear his yell. They did. He saw them stop and turn. "THE CHANDELIER!" He yelled over the noise again. He saw Sirius and Rachel look up at the ceiling and the horrified, pale looks that crossed their faces. James turned to Lily, "Come on! We need to get as far away from that as we can!"
Lily nodded and they took off again only to find their way blocked by another wall of flames spreading quickly across the room. Lily looked up at James, her eyes wide, fearful, and full of determination. James looked at her breathing heavily. He was exhausted; his body was running on pure adrenaline. They came to an unspoken agreement and without wasting any time to think they backed several feet away from a pile of burning debris.
"NOW!" James yelled glancing up at the ceiling again and seeing the chandelier lurch lower. They ran full out. Not caring about their injuries or the burning stitches in their sides. They knew they had to get passed the flames. A foot from the wall of fire they jumped and sailed through the flames.
They landed hard on their feet, but didn't stay standing long. The force of their jump plus their weight knocked them clean off their feet and they rolled away from each other extinguishing any flames that had caught their clothing.
-
Sirius glanced up at the ceiling after seeing James and Lily make it safely through the wall of fire. Everything began to move in slow motion. He heard himself yell something—what it was exactly he did not know—as the bolt broke free from the ceiling and the chandelier began to fall. Most of what was left of the ceiling began to fall with it.
He and Rachel dived for a wall and Sirius covered her body as best as he could with his. The last thing he remembered was lowering his head to her shoulder as a huge piece of ceiling crashed down on top of them.
-
Lily lifted her head painfully and glanced up at the ceiling. Her vision swam but she could see that the chandelier was about to break free from the last bolt. She began to crawl as quickly as she could over to James who was moving towards her.
His vision was extremely blurry. His glasses had flown off his face after the fall and had no doubt broken. He felt Lily move in beside him and covered her body with his. He remembered wrapping his arm around her protectively and lowering his head before the deafening crash of the chandelier echoed in the once extravagant room.
-
The chandelier collided with the stone floor with a sickening crash. Everything else went deadly silent so that only the sound of the crash and its echo were heard. Glass shards flew in every direction sliding across the floor, pinging off what was left of the walls, and embedding deeply into or slicing across warm flesh.
Rachel fought back a wave of nausea as she resisted the urge to succumb to the blackness beckoning to her. She coughed, "Oh God, please it work," she prayed. 'Andy, help!' she thought to herself. She briefly registered that her eyes glazed over before her eyes closed and she dropped her head to the floor unconscious.
In a classroom on the first floor Andy's head came up off his arms. He stared straight ahead at nothing in particular as his eyes glazed over. His name echoed in his head in a voice he knew. It was Rachel pleading for help and then nothing except darkness.
"Andy!" Remus shouted shaking him.
Andy blinked and shook his head trying to clear it. The glazed look left his eyes and he focused on the three scared faces in front of him.
"Andy?" Alyssa said gently looking at him concernedly.
"She's in trouble. They all are," Andy said standing up quickly.
"What?" Alyssa said sounding alarmed. "What do you mean? Who's in trouble?"
Andy shook his head impatiently, "They're in trouble…and hurt," he got up hurrying to the door.
Alyssa, Izzy, and Remus looked at each other before following Andy out of the room. Andy sprinted down the hall, passing several paintings that shouted, "Where's the fire" after him. He took the stairs two at a time, turned sharply, and hurried down the third floor corridor to the door he'd entered hours ago to begin the task.
He threw the door open and clutched at his side. "Professor," he wheezed.
"Mr. Rabb!" McGonagall exclaimed sounding scandalized. "What is the meaning of this? You heard the rules! You and your teammates are to return to the classroom immediately!"
Andy ignored her, looking past her at Dumbledore. Dumbledore's kind blue eyes were fiery and alert. "What is it Mr. Rabb?"
Andy breathed a little easier thankful that Dumbledore was going to hear him out. "They're in trouble, sir, my sister, Sirius, James, and Lily," he paused unsure of how to continue, "I—I feel like something may have gone wrong."
Dumbledore gazed at Andy for a long moment making Andy wonder if he believed him. He stared back at the Headmaster pleading to him with his eyes, determined to make him see. Finally Dumbledore turned to McGonagall, "Minerva," he spoke very calmly, "I would like you to please head down to the task's exit and clear a path. Mr. Rabb and I will join you shortly."
Professor McGonagall nodded once and left the room without another word. "Mr. Lupin?" Dumbledore continued turning to Remus.
"Yes, sir?"
"I want you to fetch Madame Pomfrey. I fear her services may be needed," Dumbledore told him. Remus nodded and he too left without a word for the hospital wing. "Miss Matthews please inform Hagrid of the situation and tell him his assistance is needed. And Miss Anderson I want you to round up Professors Frobisher, Kettleburn, Slughorn, and Flitwick and tell them to meet Professor McGonagall and I at the task's exit."
The two girls nodded and left separating at the stairs. Dumbledore motioned for Andy to follow him and together they left for the grounds quickly.
Sirius lifted his head groggily and looked around blearily. The room was a complete wreck, looking nothing like it had when they first entered it. The noise had stooped, the smoke was now minimal, the dust had settled, and the flames were no longer raging and were finally going out on their own. He groaned as he shifted beneath the chunk of ceiling that had fallen down on him and Rachel.
He was covered from head to foot in sweat, dirt, dried and fresh blood, bruises, and cuts. He shifted again and a sharp pain shot up his side. His sides felt like they were on fire and he knew that a few of his ribs were broken. His right side felt slightly numb and he touched it gingerly with his hand. When he pulled it away he saw that his fingers were coated in blood. About a foot away a piece of glass from the chandelier lay coated with blood, his blood. He guessed that it had sliced his side when the chandelier fell, but he didn't remember it happening. He didn't remember much after the ceiling had fallen on them in fact.
He heard a small groan beside him and saw Rachel's eyes flutter. He looked over at her. Her pretty face was shiny with sweat, smeared with dirt and dried blood, and covered in bruises and cuts. He saw that the arm she'd flung out in front of her had been sliced down the palm by a piece of glass.
"Rach," he said hoarsely. He pushed her hair back. "Rach, wake up," he said shaking her.
Her eyes fluttered and this time they stayed open. She lifted her head painfully and looked at him. She shifted and buried her face in her arm as a small scream escaped her lips. Sirius looked down and his breath caught in his throat when he saw that her pant leg was coated in blood, and that a piece of glass was sticking out of her flesh taking up the entire length of her calf. "Oh God…"
-
James lifted his head and immediately shut his eyes tightly as the room spun violently. He put a hand to his head and felt a lump the size of a Snitch forming and he groaned. He tried to move his right arm and immediately regretted the move as he felt his bones shift. His arm was crushed beneath a two by four.
He looked beside him where Lily lay unmoving. "Lily," he whispered reaching out to touch her with his other hang. His vision was blurry so he couldn't see her all that well, but when he pulled his hand back and saw that his hand was coated in blood he knew something was horribly wrong.
He pushed her hair away frantically and to his horror saw that most of her white tee shirt was coated in her blood. "Oh my God." He lifted his head and looked across the room frantically. "Sirius, mate, are you okay?"
"Rachel and are pinned beneath part of the ceiling!" Sirius yelled back sounding pained. "We're hurt pretty bad," he took a few breaths, "What about you and Lily?"
"She's unconscious and I can't see a damn thing. My right arm is crushed beneath a two by four! I can't move!" James yelled back sounding slightly panicked. "Lily's lost a lot of blood," he said his voice catching slightly.
A loud grinding noise made the three conscious teammates look up. Hagrid, Madame Pomfrey, and Professors Dumbledore, McGonagall, Frobisher, Flitwick, Slughorn, and Kettleburn hurried inside. "Oh dear," Horace Slughorn said looking around at the wreckage.
The rescue crew split and went to tend to the two couples. Dumbledore, Madame Pomfrey, Flitwick, and Slughorn hurried over to Lily and James. Flitwick flicked his wand at the two by four lying across James' arm and it sailed away. James yelled in pain and nearly passed out from it. "No," he said fighting the blackness, "Help Lily. She's bleeding badly and unconscious."
"Madame Pomfrey and Dumbledore have her James," Professor Flitwick squeaked soothingly.
"No," James said shaking his head as he felt his tired and worn out body lift off the ground and placed onto a stretcher. "No," he mumbled again as he blearily saw Lily levitated onto another stretcher. That was the last image he saw as he blacked out again.
"Mr. Malfoy I don't think you're fully comprehending the seriousness of this situation!" McGonagall said shrilly. "Four students are lying in that hospital wing severely injured!"
"Now, now Minerva," Slughorn said placidly, "You can't possibly be suggesting that just because they went through the task before them that they had something to do with the cave-in?" He said chuckling lightly. "There may be a rivalry between Slytherin and Gryffindor houses, but the hatred doesn't mount so high that they'd want to kill one another. Further more, cave-ins are common for older buildings. It wasn't like it was some kind of evil act of revenge. It would be far too complex for anyone their age to figure out. And besides they would have had to get their hands on the blueprints for the Haunted House, which are still hidden and locked away in my office."
McGonagall looked at Slughorn her nostrils flaring in irritation. Both teachers missed the icy glare Bellatrix sent Slughorn at the insult. "I am not accusing them Horace. I am asking if they noticed anything fishy or out of the ordinary and Mr. Malfoy is being belligerent."
Slughorn sighed and looked at Sophia, "Sophia, dear, did you notice anything out of the ordinary when you came to the end of the task?"
Sophia shook her head her eyes looking oddly blank. "No, sir."
Slughorn smiled and looked over at McGonagall again, "There you see? Now I think it's best we get these four back to their common room. It has been a traumatic day for all."
The four Slytherins turned and followed their head of house. Once they were sure that McGonagall's eagle eyes were no longer following them; Lucius, Snape, and Bellatrix fell back and walked behind Slughorn and Sophia.
"Good work," Lucius praised quietly.
"Good work!" Bellatrix almost yelled.
Lucius cast a wary look at Slughorn who seemed to be in his own little world talking to Sophia about his famous Slug Club. "Keep your voice down," he hissed. "Everything went according to plan, Bella. Our aim was not to kill them; we can't risk that directly under Dumbledore's nose. Our task was to injure them. Give them a taste for what they're in for once we leave Hogwarts. A warning of sorts."
Bellatrix growled under her breath, "I still say we could have done more," she said sounding very irritated.
"Didn't you hear a word Lucius just said?" Snape snapped. "We were not trying to kill them—"
"I know that!" Bellatrix snapped cutting Snape off.
Lucius rolled his eyes, "Oh, knock it off! You two sound like a fucking married couple." Snape gave Lucius a very dark look as Bellatrix gagged.
"What a day, huh?" Lily said quietly when she saw James stir. James turned to look at her, quickly regretting this as a dizzy spell passed over him. "Take it easy. I'm not going anywhere."
"You—you're okay?" he whispered trying to focus in on her blurry form.
She smiled, "So are you. You're glasses are on the nightstand by your bed. Someone fixed them for you."
James immediately reached for them and put them on. "How are Sirius and Rachel?"
"Both are fine. I think Rachel woke up for a little while some time ago and Sirius is still out. He lost quite a blood," she told him. "But we're all going to make full recoveries."
James nodded and they looked at each other for a long moment. "I was so scared today," James admitted softly.
Lily extended her arm and held her hand out to him. He hesitated for a fraction of a second before grasping her hand and linking their fingers immediately. "So was I," she whispered. James squeezed her hand and closed his eyes. "James?" she said softly.
"Hmm?"
"Will you go to Hogsmeade with me?"
James' eyes opened and he looked over at her with a smile. "I thought we already were going together," he paused, "Remember? It's our first date."
That was a long explosive chapter I think! I hope to have the next chapter up by Wednesday! Cross your fingers! A Quidditch match with some very funny commentary and the moment you've all been waiting for! Okay, so not the best preview, but it's only to wet your appetite not to spoil the surprise! See you guys Wednesday!