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The reason for the door suddenly made sense. The thing would have been more diminutive if it were for ordinary people, slightly larger creatures or even Muggle vehicles. But, as they'd just found out before them were not just regular corpses of people that'd once lived, but corpses of trolls — or creatures that looked very much like them. The sounds the creatures made, their stature, there was something so spine-chilling despite the amount of control that both he and Elaine exuded over the current fight.
Speaking of Elaine, when he looked for all of a split-second in her direction, he noticed a distinct lack of anything that could so much as resemble nervousness on her face. It was like those beasts before them were nothing more than slightly larger inferi, and like the rest, they'd join the ashes now littering the ground.
He supposed under their current stream of fire that billowed into the depths whence the inferi had come was pretty indicative of doom for the creatures. Unless there were countermeasures set up by Grindelwald, or unless other Magicals were present, he and Elaine could keep up their overpowered casting. And they did. On and on the river of fire went with the darkness washed away and in its place, an eerie orange glow with figures therein alight by the very same fire. Harry looked at Elaine again, and as before, he saw the same eagerness and lack of nerves as she pushed forward with nary a glance elsewhere.
It was admirable, and as he pushed forward beside her, he felt a sort of peace despite the destruction before them. Inferi, they'd been people once, and Grindelwald had probably killed many for the sole purpose of guarding his labyrinth. In a way, the creatures were being put to rest. All save for the Trolls that lumbered, on fire, in their direction, those creatures were put to rest swiftly; the Trolls required more force be used for them to be knocked over. Once they were off their feet, their mass was their worst enemy, as well as the worst enemy of a dozen or more inferi of smaller sizes that'd been around them.
Every Troll that fell would mean the destruction of many more inferi below them. Thus, after their appearance, Elaine and Harry targeted the behemoths almost exclusively. They were practically begging to be destroyed based on what they meant alone; the Aurors who'd previously stepped back, moved forward once again.
They stayed behind Harry and Elaine as they'd previously done, but they slowly began to move forward, reclaiming their former positions. Harry's attention turned back to the — finally — waning wave of inferi. No longer were the creatures an endless tide of corpses, now, they'd become a steady stream. The Trolls had clogged the gap more so than aid the offensive, and now, with many destroyed, the group of Magicals could get bolder.
Elaine, as one would imagine, was the first to be truly bold; Harry was by her side in an instant. She moved forward quickly, her legs carrying her through the doorway she'd forced open, and into the area in which the inferi had been laying in wait. There was a good number that continued their dash toward her and Harry, but like the swaths of inferi before them, they too met their end by way of fire.
Never would beings that lacked magic be able to overcome those that possessed it. Harry had seen time and time again how creatures faired against witches and wizards alike; all too often, so long as the latter group was proficient, the results would be quite poor for any creature.
"Careful," Harry called over the sound of fighting that still echoed through the hall. "Be careful," he repeated for Elaine's benefit.
She regarded him with a swift glance wherein she winked at him. That look that lasted a scant second, if even that, was all he got as she continued her rapid progression further into the depths of the void before them. Harry shook his head but continued after her nonetheless. They were strongest together, and by tenfold, if they were right — at least the Aurors had heard him too, he supposed; they'd stopped trying to stay a foot or so behind the Minister and Deputy Minister, favouring a few feet instead.
Should anything else come barreling out of the darkness toward them, Harry reckoned they'd be thankful for the extra distance. He snickered for a moment when another troll fell. In such a tight space, and one that was full-up with people beyond proficient with magic, inferi couldn't be considered a threat. That rating they'd gotten was horribly overestimated when it came to dangerous magical creatures or creations.
"At last, we've reached the end of the ocean," Elaine said in tandem with her wand dropping, the tip now aimed at the ground before them. "I'd wondered how many would be present for such a vast amount of mist — nearly a thousand would be my guess."
Harry looked beyond her and into the darkness that soon turned bright by the raising of one of the Aurors' wands. It continued deeper than any other portion thus far, and littered around them in various manners of decay or burning, were the corpses which Elaine had just spoken about. At the far end, he could just about make out a passage that seemed to match — identically — the one they'd just gotten through previously.
It was strange.
"We're certain that's all of them, then?" Harry asked as he looked around, the Aurors behind him creating a path to walk whilst Nick and Thomas still remained looking in the direction he'd bid them to. It truly did seem as if that was everything. He didn't trust that for a moment.
"The mist is dissipating rapidly. If any remain, they're few in number and unlikely to pose so much as an ounce of threat," Elaine said with disregard as she daintily stepped through the meadow of corpses. "Aren't you all coming? We're soon to reach the end of the labyrinth."
Harry looked at the Aurors, nodded for them to follow after Elaine, and then he started after her himself. It went without saying that they needed to take it slow, the corpses of the inferi could still have some who clung to life, not to mention the diseases or bacteria that might be present by those that hadn't been burnt to a crisp.
With that caution in place, Harry, Elaine and the Aurors eventually made their way to the archway they'd previously seen. It was only a few metres before doing so that they spied a pair of angled tunnels partially blocked from sight by way of clever architecture; each was littered with bones and remains.
Frank, the seniormost Auror they'd brought along, huffed and spoke. "This is likely where the inferi had been waiting. When they heard us, they moved."
"Prematurely, fortunately," Harry said, adding to the man's words as he gestured to the two tunnels. "That'd have been pretty surprising, but we handled everything. Isn't that right?"
"Damn right, sir," said Nick, earning a round of chuckles from the group. All save for Elaine, who was focused on looking at what Harry could only hope was the final passage of the labyrinth.
If it wasn't, he reckoned he was just about ready to go completely and utterly mad. All this time underground was messing with his mind, and he definitely wouldn't be developing a love for it anytime soon. If not for Elaine's eagerness and the fact that this meant Grindelwald's complete destruction, if it wasn't for those two pretty important factors, he probably wouldn't have come along.
Merlin, it's crazy how that works out, isn't it?
"Elaine?" Harry asked after he stepped away from one of the two concealed tunnels and over to the aforementioned woman. "What're you thinking?" he asked with a nod at the entryway before them.
There were much the same inscriptions on and around this one as there'd been on the previous one, and like that previous one, Harry hadn't a clue as to what they meant. If anything, he'd assumed it might be saying something along the lines of 'Don't enter, you'll die' or maybe something like 'This isn't the loo', either of those could be what the runic carvings meant.
"There aren't any signs of magic ahead," Elaine said suddenly, her eyes still peering at the passage. "One would believe that wheresoever magic was practised in large quantities, there would be residue… hints, if you will, as to what went on. Beyond this point, whilst I can say with absolute certainty there aren't any traps, I can't determine why there'd be no hint of magic left behind."
"Could Grindelwald have hidden it? Are there any wards that aren't traps?" Harry asked, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the passage in much the same way as Elaine had previously been doing.
"I've detected nothing. Mayhaps beyond this point it'll be back under your control. I'd not enjoy coming all this way only for some Muggle trap we wouldn't expect so far down to catch us unaware," Elaine huffed and waved a hand down her person, the soot, dirt and sweat were gone in an instant before she tossed her hair back over her shoulder whence it belonged and affixed him with a smile. "If you would, lover. I find myself in need of your talents."
Harry looked around, and then he cocked his head at her. "Here?"
Elaine rose a brow as her lips went upward and a pretty blush made its way to the surface of her cheeks; it was unlike her to be so shy and demure. "Your trap-finding talents, my love. Whilst you do so, I'll see if I might be able to find a way around whatever lays ahead — if I know of a spell, it'll soon make its way to the forefront of my mind."
After those words were spoken, Elaine turned on her heels and took a dozen steps back whence they'd come. With one wave of her wand, a gust carried away the vast majority of bodies and ash that had remained behind in the hall, and with another, those that had lingered were quickly banished away as their former comrades had been. Thenceforth, Elaine's wand returned to its spot by her side as she made to sit upon the cold — scorched — stone of the ground. Her hands sought out her satchel shortly thereafter.
"Nick, Thomas, each of you, go and keep watch on one of those side tunnels, will you? Stay near the entrance, but keep a watchful eye out. I'd not like there to be any hidden passages filled with more inferi," Harry turned to the others after speaking. "Marie, Valerie, go and keep watch over the Minister whilst she sorts through her satchel. Frank, I'll take you with me. We're going to take a little look in the room. We'll be quick."
Frank, ever the grizzled veteran, dipped his head once and made his way over to Harry without delay. The other four went about doing so in much the same manner, and from that point on, Harry minded only himself and Frank; the task ahead would require his complete and utter focus, after all.
"Have you ever witnessed Muggle machinery or the like?" Harry asked Frank as the two men took the few steps necessary to be right before the entrance that delved deeper into the earth. As Harry did so, he couldn't help but feel a sensation… it felt like something was pulling at him, but not physically.
It was indescribable, but he'd felt something similar, only with darker thoughts and desires, when he'd last been near a Horcruxe. Mayhaps that was a sign that Grindelwald's second treasure lay within.
Harry looked over his shoulder at Elaine. She was still sitting, sorting through her items. One tome after the next, vials and scroll tubes, a potions knife, and just about anything one could think of came free of Elaine's satchel the longer he watched. Thus, Harry returned his attention to the path ahead lest he grew to be too distracted.
"I've heard a few stories about the destructive capabilities that Muggles possess, but I've never witnessed it. Are we to assume as we previously had that there might be Muggle weapons ahead?" Frank looked beyond Harry then, his eyes staring accusingly into the darkness.
"We're going to stay at the entryway, and those stories you've heard are probably true. We won't be finding out today — I just need you to be ready to attack anything that charges me," Harry gestured vaguely in the direction from which he suspected to be attacked. "I'm going to be pretty focused on looking for wires, pressure plates… those sorts of things."
"I'll keep a watchful eye out," Frank said resolutely, and thus, the two men began their task whilst the others nearby continued theirs.
Harry couldn't help but be pleased with himself as he set about his task. It was far less stressful with more wands at their disposal.
So far as Harry could tell, and after nearly ten minutes of staring into the passage before him that was filled with the most unnatural type of darkness, he came to the conclusion that there weren't any traps beyond them. At least, none so far as his eyes could detect. If there were any present, they'd be of the magical variety, and thus, Elaine's expertise would trump his own.
Still, whilst he'd been looking for traps and utilising the light that Frank had cast for him, he couldn't help but wonder just what felt off in the area ahead. As he'd thought earlier, there was the sensation that Horcruxes had given off, but beyond that, there was something else. It was dark, wickedly dark, and the Lumos that would all too often banish darkness far away, failed to do so.
Harry had wondered if Frank was too weak, too tired maybe, but he'd thought back to earlier. Frank's Lumos hadn't failed to brighten an entire hallway, and so Harry reckoned it was undercast, so he'd told the man to do more; he did, and the result remained the same. Now, with Harry done his check, he cast a Lumos of his own.
The darkness, whatever had caused it, remained firmly in place. As strong as his magic was, it managed only to push back whatever caused the void to remain. His light certainly shone brighter than Frank's had, but much like Frank, it failed to shed light wheresoever it went. Instead, it almost seemed as if it were absorbed.
There's definitely something strange ahead, Harry decided. There's no other explanation for it. None that isn't magical.
Harry turned to look at Frank. "Stay here, keep an eye out. I'll go and see what the Minister thinks before we progress any further."
"As you say, Deputy Minister," was Frank's response as the man took up position blocking the entirety of the passage. It was comforting to know that the passage was meant for nought but normal-sized creatures.
In a dozen or so steps, Harry found himself standing over the seated figure of Elaine as she read through a tome that was written in her own handwriting; it was very organised and beautifully written. He expected nothing less from her.
"Elaine?" he asked as he got into a sitting position by her side.
With great fluidity, she slowly turned and made eye contact with him. "Harry?" she asked, her hands closing shut the tome she'd been reading.
"I couldn't find any traps ahead, but there's something… off. I'm not sure how to describe it, but my Lumos, as well as Frank's Lumos, were both affected by it, whatever it was — it almost seemed like the darkness was eating the light we gave it," Harry stood up when Elaine motioned upwards, and after doing so, he held out a hand to her.
She took it daintily, rising from her feet as a coiled snake might rise to strike. The comparison was an apt one too, he thought, for both were beautiful beyond belief and similar to that beauty, dangerous.
"You're certain there aren't any traps?"
Harry nodded. "So far as I could tell, there was nothing. Not one wire or pressure plate. I'll take another look once you've dealt with the darkness, but it's nothing I've ever seen before."
"When next we study on the morrow, we'll go over utility-type magic rather than all of the offensive and defensive spells we've been going over," Elaine said, nodding seemingly to herself more than for Harry's benefit. "We've neglected such spells entirely too long. Ah, that reminds me, we'll need to review Ancient Runes and Advanced Arithmancy. You didn't think we'd jump past our final year without touching those subjects, did you?"
Yes, Harry wanted to say. Instead, he looked at her in silence as she brought up Hogwarts and the subjects therein whilst they were in a labyrinth crafted by Grindelwald to hold a Horcruxe. Sometimes, he couldn't believe how her mind worked.
"That's intriguing," Elaine said suddenly, and as the pair reached Frank, who was still standing at his post with his arms folded. "I see what you mean. That's quite clearly magical in nature, and yet, the results from the three spells I've used all indicated that there wasn't any sign of magic beyond this point. I wonder if one must step into the room first, or if there's a ward inlaid in the ground around us."
"Is it going to be a problem?" Harry asked as he looked down at the — potentially — treasonous ground below their feet.
"I don't believe it'll prove impossible to solve, we might just need to spend a bit of time here," Elaine twirled and started back whence she'd come. "I'd not like to wager our safety, thus, I'll return to my tomes and see what I might piece together. The information was useful, and lover, feed the darkness no longer — we're not sure what doing so might lead to."
Harry wasn't quite sure what she meant by that, but he knew one thing for certain. He didn't like how that sounded. What did she mean when she'd said 'feed the darkness no longer'? Seemingly of their own volition, his eyes returned to the darkness, complete and absolute as it'd previously been now that Frank had dropped his Lumos at Elaine's behest.
"Frank," Harry said after he shook his head, the stale air and lack of light disorienting for a few seconds. "Transfigure most of the passage shut, just keep enough visible for you to keep an eye out. Well, as much of an eye out as you can keep — maybe listen instead, yeah?"
Much to Harry's relief, Frank chuckled at his words. "Will do, sir," the man said following his chuckle, and then, his wand began to wave about as he did as instructed; the stone of the walls, left and right, closed shut, by and large. That was well and good for Harry. It meant less of a chance of being caught by surprise by whatsoever might be in the depths.
That was assuming that there was something, he supposed. One could say that there wouldn't be anything further down save for the item they were looking for. Harry reckoned that wasn't the case. It'd be too easy. It had already seemed relatively easy enough thus far even with the two waves of inferi and the potential Muggle hazards they'd passed over.
Harry blew air out of the corner of his mouth and shook his head shortly thereafter. Elaine would soon solve the problem of the darkness and lack of magical aura, and afterwards, they'd be moving at much the same pace they'd been keeping. They'd come this far without issue, after all, right? Why mess it up now?
And so he sat on the ground, his head against the cool stone that he'd later transfigure so as to recline. Inadvertently, his doing so caused what would happen only a few minutes later.
He fell asleep.
Harry rose to a hand shaking his shoulder, and as he blinked himself awake to see the person, Frank, he couldn't help but wonder just how long he'd been out. One moment, that was all it'd taken and he'd fallen into the realm of sleep. It was hard to resist such a siren's song even if his bed was made from stone and his posture wasn't all that great.
He'd been zonked. As he looked around again, he took note of the others, for they too seemed to be in various states of rest. Valerie was asleep, as were the two brothers, Nick and Thomas, Marie was watching whence they'd come and Elaine was peering through the still-transfigured gap that led into the probable final area of importance they had left to traverse.
"Did we call a rest?" Harry asked as he rubbed his eyes, the lack of glasses long since comfortable and usual for him. "I hadn't meant to sleep, me. My back was stiff when I had a misstep during that second inferi wave, thought I'd stretch it out a bit and now, here we are," he raised both hands and gestured around.
Frank seemed amused as he extended a hand to Harry. "The Minister decided it'd be wise if we all rested, and the others were all too ready to agree with her. Now that you're awake, I'll catch a kip of my own, I think — you're not the only one with back problems, Deputy Minister."
At that, Harry openly chuckled before he bid the man goodbye and headed off in the direction of Elaine. Frank was especially light-hearted and relaxed for a veteran of the Auror force. By and large, those men would be strict or not very talkative, but Frank seemed like he never took anything to heart and like he was ready to roll with whatever happened.
I'll think about promoting him when we return, Harry thought. I know we've got a nifty little team, but as we expand the private Aurors for the Minister, we'll need more people like him and Aster. People we trust and people that we know are competent… I'd have loved to have Reinhard too.
Harry took a breath as the memory of his fallen friend flashed through his mind. Grindelwald had taken Reinhard far too soon, and for that crime, he'd been felled again; once, twice, thrice, no amount of deaths for Grindelwald would ever make up for the crimes he'd committed.
"You've risen, lover," Elaine said by way of greeting. "I'd half thought you'd be out for much of the morning into the afternoon."
Ah, that's right. He'd not gotten from Frank just how long he'd been out and since he'd risen, he'd not checked the time as he should. Oops.
Harry grinned at Elaine and made his way to her, hastily crossing the remaining distance until he was able to plant a kiss on her cheek. One that earned him a smile and a peck on the lips in return.
"Sorry, I hadn't thought I was that tired. What about you? You need rest just as much as the rest of us do, I can take watch for awhile," Harry's hands found their way to Elaine's shoulders, whereupon reaching them, he began to knead the muscles thereupon.
He'd done something similar to his calve muscles and lower body back when he'd get stiff from riding a broom. Eventually, he'd found some sort of salve that worked the muscles instead, one that caused a pleasant burning feeling — as he massaged Elaine's shoulders and neck, he made a note in his mind to try and find that salve.
If it wasn't invented thus far, he imagined he had a task he'd soon set out on. Somebody had to do it, and he wouldn't be patient enough to wait a few decades.
"I've decided I'll wait to rest until after I've found the solution to the current problem at hand. I'd be completely and utterly annoyed with myself if I'm unable to do so, thus, I've been putting to work my many theories whilst you recovered," Elaine's eyes went up and down his person, and then she continued speaking. "Speaking of recovery, are you well-rested? I believe we'll set off in thirty minutes."
"Confident?"
"Always."
Harry figured if any answer was one that could summarise Elaine, it was that. He smiled fondly at her. "I'll grab something for us to eat from my satchel. You can take a break for that, and while we do so, we can talk about what's ahead of us."
"You've felt its pull?" Elaine queried, immediately catching onto the hidden meaning in his words. "I half thought there seemed something strange, a feeling, as it were. I'm glad I'm not the only one that's felt it — I don't believe our companions have."
"Frank seemed to think there was something strange," Harry looked at the aforementioned man, and then back over at Elaine. "Should we keep them here, do you think? It'd probably keep them safer, and unless there's another path ahead that we've not discovered, they'd be unable to get snuck upon."
Elaine raised a brow. "I thought you meant for them to gain practical experience in the field? How can they do so if you're worried about their safety?"
It was a fair point, he'd begrudgingly admit. One that he wasn't overly fond of, but a fair point nonetheless.
"I suppose we'll have three of them watch the rear and one on either side, then. We don't need any of them to be upfront with us," Harry withdrew two packed containers of magically preserved foodstuffs; it was food that'd been prepared for such journeys by their house elves back home. "Here."
"Momsey had words with Cadry and Goopy, so it would seem," Elaine remarked as soon as she took notice of the food he'd taken out.
"How do you mean?" Harry asked with a corked brow as he looked at the food. It was a touch extravagant, he'd admit, but the simple bowl of pasta with some sort of bread and pastry didn't seem like it was too much.
Elaine grabbed hold of the food he offered and responded as she made to step away, a small upwards angle noticeable in the corners of her mouth. "Momsey once asked what types of food I do so enjoy. These items are ones I made mention of."
He looked back down at the food, and then over at Elaine; the look on her face was of fond remembrance. Harry looked back at his own serving when he smiled. Years ago, he'd find it hard to think that she'd remember the name of a house elf. Now, she could name the house elf with a pleasant look about her.
Merlin, they'd both come such a long way. It was barmy to think about.
After nearly twenty minutes in which Harry and Elaine ate their meal, the pair found themselves packing away the remnants thereof before rising to a standing position. There was precious little to pack up besides the leftovers and packaging, and now, as they looked at their mostly-sleeping companions, they began to think of the final leg of their journey that'd soon be upon them.
Harry reckoned everybody would be safe so long as they stuck to the plan, and Elaine was confident enough to think that nothing could go wrong. Grindelwald had failed to beat them when they were together, and as such, why should today be any different? It wasn't even as if the man himself was present, no, only traps remained; traps, and a piece of his soul.
That piece of soul would soon join the other pieces they'd found as well as the bulk of Grindelwald in the place where all souls went. Harry's thoughts raced toward his own memories of the after-life as he'd experienced — in a fashion — what it was like. He could still remember very little about what had happened or the details of why he'd been brought back.
"I'll wake them in a few minutes," Harry said when Elaine looked over at him. "No point in waking them up when we can't go anywhere, right?"
"A problem that'll soon be remedied, rest assured, lover," Elaine pressed a kiss on either side of his mouth, and then, one directly against it. "I imagine we'll be back home within the hour."
We'll see, Harry thought. We can hope, he then added.
"Already looking forward to a bath and—" he paused to check the time by way of a Tempus charm, and then he continued once he saw it, "—breakfast, are you?"
Elaine covered her mouth before a yawn made its escape. "I believe I'd settle for rest, and then a bath, and then food. I'd not imagined this labyrinth would prove so tedious to traverse, much less reach the end of. Were he not genocidal and insane, one might be forgiven for saying Grindelwald would have made a wonderful game master for the Tri-Wizard Tournament — I suppose it, too, would require resurrection."
Harry blinked at Elaine.
When he failed to respond, she allowed herself a small, victorious-sounding laugh before she summoned a tome. It flew through the air until it was firmly in her hand, and from there, she started back to the path they'd previously transfigured mostly shut.
Whilst she worked on that, Harry turned to look at the rear of the group, checking on it. It seemed as uneventful as everything else had become, and now that he was farther away from the entrance by which Elaine stood, he took notice of something; the feeling, that creeping darkness he'd had in the back of his mind, was gone.
It's definitely in there, Harry thought as he thought of the void and the spell that seemed to consume the very essence of light.
Merlin, that still bugged him; what was that spell?
Maybe the knowledge thereof would be around the Horcruxe, as it'd similarly been in the tombs back in Belarus. If that were to be the case, Harry'd be quite pleased. Grindelwald, while he'd been one of the most terrible people to live, had a wealth of knowledge that anybody would be smart to pick from whensoever given the chance.
Elaine's idea of doing so forcefully and when they next captured a Horcruxe was one such example. It was extreme, that much could be said, but were it safe, maybe then Harry would have gone along with it.
"I do believe that about finishes my work," Elaine said suddenly, his thoughts ceasing as he turned toward her. More words came thereafter. "The spell he used was a modified version of an older magic. It was meant to pacify areas or drive out the occupants as life gradually ceased to be — were it not for the modifications made to it, the solution would have come much sooner."
"And the lack of magic?" Harry asked.
"Wards inlaid just inside the doorway. I needed only to levitate my mirror for a vantage point, and then, they were handled. We're still unable to enter until you check on it as well," Elaine gestured for him to come up right then, and she continued speaking in the meantime. "There's some form of Muggle weapon that I'd not like to touch sans your company. You'll know better than I if it's dangerous, or something that we needn't feel worried about."
Harry was intrigued after that and made quick work of the few steps between him and Elaine. Sure enough, and as she'd said, there was a small mirror from her satchel levitating in such a way that he could see in and above the door. Equally as true was the small little trap that she'd spotted above the doorway, and on the other side. It seemed like there was a… grenade, maybe a mine? Something small and metallic for sure, and he imagined it'd not treat anybody all that kindly.
Maybe it was some sort of last test for anybody or anything that'd gotten that far. One that handles those who'd become complacent or reckless on account of the depth and previous trials.
"I think it'd not be very good at all if we set it off… we should see where the wire or pressure plate is. Good spot, by the way. Maybe I'll start carrying a mirror with me too," Harry meant it too. He wouldn't bring it with him for checking his eyebrows or adjusting cosmetic charms as she typically did, but to use it in circumstances like those currently at-hand.
As it was already, he felt like a bit of a fool for not doing so. Maybe he'd standardize some sort of formal kit for the Aurors. Items that he'd require they bring across the force so that people couldn't fail when it came to being prepared. That'd be nice, it would.
"You'd be wise to, lest you'd like to share mine. I needn't say the saying oft thought of when marriage is mentioned, but it's true," Elaine took one last lingering look at the mirror before shrugging, her eyes showing disinterest. "I'll leave the handling of Muggle items to you, lover. Should you need assistance, I'll be returning my books to their proper order — if you'd like a pepper-up potion as well, now would be the time to make such a request."
He shook his head with a smile on his face. "I'm good, but thank you. I think after getting that good nap I'd be shaking if I downed a pepper-up potion. I'll take a second look now that the light's been fixed and we'll be off before you know it."
Elaine seemed pleased with the latter words he spoke, her initial look of protest melting away when he made mention of progress. "Wonderful," she said, and then, a kiss was placed on his cheek before she moved a few feet away to reorganize her belongings.
If the little area ahead — a large open hall at the end of the passage that meaning — proved problematic, he reckoned everybody present would be thankful for her foresight in regards to potions. Speaking of the area ahead, now that he could see it in great detail, he searched as he'd previously done.
It was deep. That was the very first thought that went through his mind. With the darkness gone, he was free to see everything; the passage continued for fifty feet, and at the end of it with pillars visible, was a great stone-made hall. One could see that it was created Magically, for the walls were far smoother than technology back in time would have allowed.
All in all, the pillars, the hall and the passage that led to it seemed ornate. Undoubtedly some ancient Lord or a person of equivalent position had ruled or been put to rest in the location, it could be where they'd done rituals or ceremonies at one point too, for all he knew. Whatsoever the reason for its creation was, the final point and the one in which they'd reached, was most certainly the grandest.
That pull's back, Harry thought when he squinted his eyes and made to rub his forehead at the onset of a headache. The Horcruxe is definitely ahead.
Harry's eyes scanned what little of the end portion of the cave they could see. In the centre back there seemed to be some sort of table carved from stone, with pillars on either side of it. That seemed to be the only detail that seemed all that important when compared to the others; pillars, cracks in the stone, more cave art… his interest in history didn't have quite that amount of depth for those things to be of any interest.
After looking and coming up short of anything truly groundbreaking, he returned to what he'd previously been doing, that being to look for areas wherein traps might be. Toward the very end of the hall whereupon it opened up into the cavernous centre, he noticed one that was now blatantly obvious; one that he'd failed to spot in the ravenous darkness.
From there, his eyes moved downward, closing in on where he stood. Roughly two dozen steps from that location was another wire, only that one was strewn between two pillars that were carved into the wall and at head level rather than foot. On and on his eyes searched the area before them, and it was as they grew ever nearer — nought but feet — that he spied something strange.
There, in the ground and placed in such a way that it was only just noticeable even with the vast amount of light he now had to work with, was a bit of stone that seemed a shade darker. It was chipped, or rather, there was an outline that went the entire way around it; that alone made the hairs on the back of Harry's neck prick up at what it likely meant.
Three traps, he thought to himself. It could be worse.
Harry looked over at Elaine. "You're confident you disabled every ward, spell and just about anything else that was ahead of us, right?"
"Completely and utterly confident," Elaine responded. In her tone and visible on her face seemed a touch of insult, as if the question itself tickled her as insulting.
At her response, Harry nodded and set to work. His first two answers to the nearest problems were the easiest. He simply transfigured the ground around what he assumed was the pressure plate so as to make it impossible to trigger, and then, he did much the same to the explosive that lay above the door. In his mind, that would work wonders in containing the explosion on account of the thickness of the stone — it'd draw attention too, hopefully ensuring the others wouldn't forget what he'd hidden.
Next up, he had to handle the two wires. It'd be dangerous on account of what they were, and Harry, personally, wished to get closer before he started to work on them. Mayhaps he could find out where the connected explosives or other Muggle weapons were, and from there, he could think of a better resolution than the current one in his mind; one that'd be less dangerous than the explosions they'd forced in Belarus.
Merlin, in hindsight, they'd been reckless… but the idea of using a transfigured and animated knight made from stone wasn't horrible for a secondary task. Harry grinned as he brought to 'life' over the span of half a minute a knight not unlike the type one could find in Hogwarts. He'd not send it in to activate the traps, but instead, to see if he'd missed any before he made it halt at the wire between two pillars.
In his mind, it was better that something made from stone eats whatever traps he missed — if any — for he'd be able to think of a resolution to any problem that came as a result of his creations doing so.
And here we are, Harry said internally as he looked up and down his animated ally. It was crude and mayhaps rushed, but it would prove functional enough for the task he'd give it.
"You do so love your toys," Elaine remarked, amused as her hands worked deftly to continue her organisation duties, self-given as they were.
"They're helpful," Harry said with a shrug and grin. He patted the animated knight then, admiring his craftsmanship before he shook his head wistfully, thoughts of Hogwarts in his mind, and sent the construct onward.
Harry, for the sake of caution, moved mostly behind the doorway so as to avoid any debris that might come as a result of any explosions. He could still see and order the construct about, it just meant most of him wouldn't get hurt. Well, that was his hope, at the very least. He'd be quite annoyed if he'd made it to the end of the labyrinth only to get done in by debris from some pesky little Muggle-made explosive.
It wasn't the fact that it was Muggle either, only that he'd survived Grindelwald multiple times.
He shook his head as he cast a quick glance up and into the sky with narrowed eyes, ones he hoped his benefactor might see before the knight took one step after the next.
Harry, all the while, worked overtime in looking for any traps he might have missed from his previous two scans of the area. As before, he came up empty save for the last two that he'd not deactivated. When the knight grew ever nearer, the tension in Harry's shoulders began to lighten.
"It's there," Harry remarked aloud when the knight reached the head-height wire; he took the first step into the passage, and…
It was safe.
He followed the path his construct had taken, and soon enough, he was there too. Harry's gaze fell to the wire, and he looked at it with suspicion. From there, his eyes tracked the left and right, in that order, whereupon doing so he identified on each side what looked to be a grenade; one of a different make than the one above the doorway.
Harry looked beyond it then, and when he did, he felt his heart nearly burst through his chest. There, at the far end of the tunnel and made of mist, stood Grindelwald. He looked younger, angrier, and stronger than when last Harry had seen him.
When the man began to raise an arm, Harry instinctively reached for his wand — it was then a hand grabbed his arm at the same time he felt himself pulled backwards.