Chapter 22

They found themselves on the cliff they had seen in the memory. The weather was a bit cool this time of year, but they were able to shed some of the layers they'd had on in the high mountains. A bit of spring touched this place. Some green showed among the melting snow.

Hermione could feel the magic that emanated from the place. Raven just felt itchy...like static electricity was pricking at the Dark Mark on his arm. An ordinary human would have felt freaked out by the repel spell and tried to vacate the area as soon as possible. They both had their wands out as they crept toward the edge of the cliff.

Hermione lay on her stomach at the edge, trying to fend off the horror she felt leaning over the cliff. She knew she would have to use a broom to reach the entrance of the cave. Her heart was pounding as she looked over the edge.

"Raven," she whispered, "hold my legs, and don't let me go."

He held them firmly. "I've got you," he reassured her. He also wasn't too crazy about getting on a broom.

"Couldn't we just Apparate in?" Raven asked.

"No, there are wards, and we need to get out a ways to reconnoiter and to see what sort of entrance we're talking about and what we might need to fire at the entrance to get close enough to enter. This is one time I wish I had been a Quidditch player. You're going to have to hang on as tightly as possible. I may have to dodge some nasty spells."

Raven took a deep breath and helped her to her feet. "Hermione, can we say a prayer? I know it's not standard wizard practice, but I did find some comfort in the churches I visited before you found me."

Surprised, Hermione nodded. "I think that's a good idea." She reached out her hands, and he took them and bowed his head.

Raven said, "God protect us. Lives depend on us to be successful. Amen." He didn't speak again but nodded he was done.

Hermione reached up and gave him a light kiss, and they held each other for a moment before she took the tiny broom out of her bag and expanded it. She made it longer and proportionally heavier than normal so they could both ride it. They mounted, and she added a stabilization spell to help hold them on. With one hand holding on and another with wands at the ready, they took a few laps around the top of the cliff to get the feel of the broom. Raven found it exciting and was exhilarated. But he could feel Hermione trembling against him.

"You can do it. You're the strongest woman I know," he encouraged her. He felt her take a deep breath and center herself, and the broom evened out. They flew a wide loop out in front of the cliff and hovered at least a half a mile from the face of the cliff. Hermione gripped the broom, white knuckled, and tried to ignore the fact that they were a good 1,000 feet or more above the ground. She could feel the edge of the wards.

The cave opened into the face of the cliff about half a mile from the top and appeared to be only a shallow indention. Hermione brandished her wand and shouted, "Specialis Revelio!"

The broom wavered, and she held on for dear life as the front of the cave wavered and a huge, spider-webbed door came into view. What must have been one of Aragog's distant relatives moved along the huge web. The spider's legs spanned a good 25 feet wide and 30 feet long. Its eight furry legs had razor sharp blades of armor on them.

"Good thing Ron's not here. He'd faint dead away and fall off," she said almost to herself with a sad laugh.

"Keep an eye out for that tail. It's like a scorpion, and there's no telling what form of poison it will have," she warned Raven.

"Antonitum," Raven cried. A huge bolt of lightning flew from his wand and bounced harmlessly off the ward, electrifying the air around them. It crackled against their skin, and their hair stood on end.

Hermione swooped further away from the ward. She cried out with fear as the broom took an alarming dip. She righted them again.

Raven tried again: "Illicitus Portus." A bolt of energy emerged from his wand and shimmered along the edge of the ward. He and Hermione fired subsequent shots at the ward. At the same time, they dodged fireballs that seemed to come like a volley from the spider's stinger. One came so close that the sleeve of Raven's shirt caught fire, and he batted at it to put it out. They trailed a stream of smoke. But their constant barrage ripped big holes in the shield. Hermione flew through one into the inner area.

"Aculeatus Fluminious!" she fired off. The broom dipped alarmingly, and she grabbed it again with both hands, trying so hard not to lose her wand that she barely held onto it by a finger. The bolt of energy hit the monstrous creature's midsection, and it reared and flung a web as thick as an arm at them. They dodged the web and several more. Hermione held on for dear life, and Raven fired the same spell over and over. The spider fired several rounds of energy. They dodged them and the heat of one ball as it singed the tail of the broom. The change in balance made the broom fly erratically, and they both clung to it.

Hermione screamed.

Raven shouted at her, "You can do it, hang on!" He screamed, "Ignitus Teregum!"

The creature's outer shell seemed to shimmer. Then, as if from inside, fire broke through like rays of the sun, and the creature let out a deafening shriek and fell away from its web. Its legs waved, looking for a hold, but it found none. It fell hundreds of feet and crashed upon the jagged rocks below.

"Wow, Snape knew his stuff, didn't he?" Raven commented over her shoulder. Raven said, "Persisto Penetro," and they sailed into the cave through the opening in the web.

Hermione landed with a crash, and they rolled away from the broom.

Raven scrambled to her side. "Are you okay?" He turned her face to his.

She was covered in sweat and was white and pasty. Her eyes were round with fear. "Oh god, Raven, I hate flying." She gagged with the fear. Her stomach was rolling.

He mirrored her fear but held her close to help calm her fears and stop her trembling. He didn't want to admit that half the trembling was his. He'd never seen anything to beat that spider. It was a thing of nightmares.

No sooner had they gotten up from the sandy cave floor and turned from each other to face the darkness than a cry of anger rent the air, and they looked up into the red eyes of a Hungarian Horntail dragon. Its huge neck was reared back, and its massive fangs were dripping with saliva. The talons on its front feet were at least eight inches long, and Hermione knew the poison in them might very well be deadly.

Hermione pushed Raven to the side, and he dodged the fire the dragon breathed at them. "Aquamenti," she cried. A stream of water pushed the surprised dragon back, and it lashed out with huge taloned feet. It hit Raven in the chest, ripping open his shirt and leaving a deep scratch that blood welled up from.

Raven screamed when the fiery pain exploded across his chest. He fell sideways barely missed by the barbed tail. He grabbed at the bezoar that Hermione had made him keep in his pocket and stuffed it into his mouth. He choked as he tried to swallow it and still keep his wand up and firing spells at the dragon.

Raven stumbled back and nearly fell into the web. His sleeve got stuck, and he had to abandon his outer cloak. Somehow he managed to retain his grip on his wand and fired off "Conjunctivitis!" The dragon's eyes swelled, and puss ran from the animal's eyes, sealing them shut.

Hermione added, "Vinculum!" Huge chains appeared and bound the blinded dragon's front right leg. Hermione cried out the same spell again, and its left leg was bound. She could see Raven struggling, grabbing at his neck, and she knew the poison could very well incapacitate him before the bezoar made it to his stomach. The tail was thrashing around and tearing at the web. If a spike hit Raven, he could be killed or knocked from the cave into the gorge.

She fired off her spell again and again, chaining his other legs to the cave floor. Another one drove the stakes deeper.

Raven, having finally gotten the bezoar down, felt better and fired off the same spell Hermione had. It anchored the tail of the dragon to the cave floor. The animal was bellowing in rage, and he was still able to send flames at least four feet out before him.

Hermione tried the water curse again: "Aguamenti!" Then she fired off another spell, and a rope of energy lassoed the dragon's muzzle. When the glow of the spell wore off, his muzzle was encased in an iron band.

Suddenly the Horntail broke a leg free, and she could see the floor cracking under the strain of his struggle.

Hermione feared for them both. "Sectumsempra," she shouted, moving her wand in a slashing motion. Huge, jagged cuts appeared at the base of its throat. Its roars were cut off, and a gurgling, strangling sound erupted from it. Blood, as black as night, poured from the grievous wounds. The Horntail collapsed.

"Petrificus Totalus," she cried, faint with exhaustion.

Raven looked in horror at its bleeding wounds. He bent down and lost the contents of his stomach.

Hermione raised her wand and whispered, "Avada Kedavra." The bolt hit the tortured animal in the chest, and it died. Hermione fell to the floor of the cavern, sobbing.

"Hermione, Hermione!" he called. "Are you okay? You didn't get hurt?"

She clung to him, horrified at having to kill something so magnificent.

"You had no choice," he said, rubbing her back. "Come and sit down."

He pulled her a ways from the dead dragon and had her sit in the sand against the cave wall. He took water and some Pepperup Potion from her bag. He watched as she drank both items and was relieved when she calmed down.

"You were awesome."

She managed a weak smile. "You weren't so bad yourself." She could feel some of her strength returning.

"We have to keep moving. There will be more."

He stared at her and then headed past the dead dragon. His face was set and emotionless.

She followed at a run, not willing to let him get too far ahead.

In the darkness, hands reached out and pulled her back as her foot encountered only emptiness.

Her scream was muffled as Raven clamped a hand over her mouth and hissed in her ear, "It's me."

He pulled her further back and to the side until they found the solid wall of the cave.

"Lumos," he whispered, and a small light showed them a deep pit. Only a ledge about 16 inches wide could be seen near the cave wall where they stood.

She stopped and picked up a rock and tossed it out into the dark pit. It fell about 20 feet and ignited, seeming to turn red and glow the further it fell. At about 30 feet, it burst into flames like an asteroid, which grew brighter and developed a tail of flames as the rock burned up, eventually falling apart into tiny, burning pieces.

Raven picked another rock up and flung it up into the air over the pit, and the same thing happened.

"We can't use the broom," he stated flatly.

Using the wand, they examined the ledge. It seemed to be strong and seemed worn by many feet having passed over it. They saw markings on the walls. Ancient Indian symbols. This must have been an Indian habitat long before Voldemort discovered it. There was a groove cut into the wall about five feet above the ledge. By slipping their fingers into the slot, they would be able to hold on as they moved over the ledge.

Hermione stood looking at the ledge with horror. The broom ride had just enforced her hatred of heights tenfold. She stood and stared into the darkness.

"I can't do this, Raven," she cried, tears streaking her cheeks.

He took her face in his hands. "Yes, you can. I know you can. You can do anything. You go first, and I will be right beside you. This is really quite wide. Come on, it will be easy."

They tied their lit wands to their palms, so they could keep them close but still use their fingers to grip the ledge, and started out into the inky darkness. The cave was colder, and they wished they had stopped to replace some of their winter clothing. The darkness was oppressive, and they prayed that no one was ahead to see their beacon of light.

Their stomachs were pressed against the cave wall, giving them some sort of comfort. They traveled a good 15 feet before Hermione realized the ledge was getting narrower. "Raven, the ledge is running out. My heels are hanging off." She clung so hard to the groove in the rock that she felt the rock rubbing her fingers raw.

"Keep moving. Don't stop. This is easy compared to the dragon."

"Easy for you to say," she accused. Suddenly the ridge under her foot caved away, and she screamed through her clenched teeth.

Raven grabbed her and held on tightly as he struggled to move back a few feet so she could put both her feet on the ledge again. She was trembling against him. "We can't go back. You have to test the ledge, Hermione. I can't climb around you. It would endanger both of us. My beautiful wench, I know you can do it."

She couldn't speak but only nodded, giving him a frightened smile, and moved forward still holding his hand. As her foot hit the edge of the broken ledge, she let it slide out over the open space and was happy to feel stone about nine inches further on. Carefully, they moved until she straddled the gap. Then carefully, inch by inch, she tested the strength of the ledge with her weight. Finally, Raven stepped across, and they moved on carefully, testing each step. Their hands cramped against the coldness of the stone.

Raven watched Hermione with his heart pounding in his chest. He could only pray she could continue. Her strength and stamina were fading even with the Pepperup Potion. He had never seen her so fearful. That made his panic even more forceful.

Then evidence of a rope bridge appeared ahead of them. They stepped off the ledge onto the solid cave floor and went to look at the bridge. It was some sort of extendable bridge that was probably Voldemort's way across the gulf. They moved away from the bridge and the ledge.

Their limbs were trembling with fatigue when they finally saw sandy ground ahead, and they dropped to the sand to rest. Raven dug into his bag and brought out several more Pepperup Potion bottles, and they took the potion and felt much better.

They sat in silence a good 15 minutes, getting their strength back. Hermione pushed a bottle of water into Raven's hands and drank one down herself. Then she portioned out some Pemmican: dried meat mixed with berries. It was an old Indian food, but it was still used by travelers in the Wizarding world. It provided the protein for strength and sugar for energy. Feeling much better, they slipped into jackets and went forward.

The darkness and silence were nearly deafening. They stayed close, not wanting to lose each other. A sound of rustling stopped them dead, and they stood back to back, trying to peer into the darkness all around them. Suddenly, the cave erupted with shrieking, and they felt soft, winged bodies battering against them.

"Bats!" Hermione screamed as they grabbed at her hair, their claws ripping at their skin.

"Evanesco!" Raven yelled. The bats seemed to vanish, but when he looked around so had Hermione.

"Hermione!" he called. "Hermione!" But there was only silence. Horrified, he stared into the darkness. Had he made her vanish with the bats? If that was true, how could he reverse the spell?

He was about to send a message to Minerva when he heard a muffled cry up ahead. "Hermione," he whispered. He moved forward in the darkness.

Hermione had a cold, clammy hand gripping her like iron and another clamped over her mouth. The air around her was putrid and thick. There was a hissing in her ears. "Silence or you die."

"Who are you?" she whispered. She cringed as she felt a long nail slide down the side of her neck.

"A line of defense for the Dark Lord! I love my visitors; they become my captives." He sneered and emitted a nasty, evil laugh. He lit a lamp, and Hermione stifled a scream. Piles of human bones lay around...some had rotting flesh on them.

She struggled to look around at her captor. "The Dark Lord is dead. You hold a post that no longer matters. You can be free; you can leave here. Please, there's been enough hatred. The war was over months ago," she pleaded to the uncaring silver eyes.

"Why did you come here?" the thing asked. It jerked her head to the side and pulled her hair away from her throat. It ran a wet tongue along her neck. She cringed and tried to draw back to no avail; it kept her in a viselike grip. Its long fingers were as strong as steel. Hermione knew then that it was a vampire.

"The Dark Lord enslaved a couple of my friends in spells that have changed their lives. I want only to free them of their bonds. You can have anything here that he has left. You can have it all. All we want are the spells to undo the damage."

She found it hard to concentrate. She felt a desire for the vampire's touch and wondered how it would feel if he bit her. She desired this with part of her mind. Another part of her feared for Raven, and she tried hard to concentrate on retrieving her wand. She sensed its energy signature about 12 feet away. Where was Raven? He had no clue how to fight the vampire, or did he? Vampires carried their own magic. They were powerful foes. With her inner strength fueled by her love for Raven, Hermione braced herself. When she felt his fangs touch her neck, she pushed with superhuman strength laced with horror and caught him by surprise. His sharp nails tore streaks in her arms. At the same time, she yelled, "Accio wand," and then she stumbled a few feet away.

The moment the wand was in her hand, she whirled and shouted, "Impervius," blocking the spells he fired at her.

She heard Raven's voice call out, "Antonitum!" The bolt of lightning hit the vampire square in the chest and knocked it back. Hermione scrambled further away as the energy crackled and burned at her arms.

The vampire, barely slowed by the energy bolt, came forward.

"Lumos Maxima!" Hermione cried, and the cave lit up like the sun had suddenly appeared. The vampire drew back and shrieked from the brightness of the light. Its head was bald, its eyes red, its face pasty white, and its fangs protruded past its blood-red lips. It was much like the vampire in the old Nosferatu movie Hermione had seen as a kid. It was a real monster...not like the handsome vampires in modern movies who wooed the girls.

He fell back away from the light, covering his eyes and face with a filthy sleeve of his raggedy clothes.

"No one has to die here. Believe me, Voldemort is gone. You do not have to stay here anymore!" Raven tried to reason with it.

"You lie." He sneered and came forward. "First, I will feast on your blood and then your man's."

Raven had seen what it was, and he cried out, "Ligneus Asser!" A wooden stake appeared in his hands. He lunged past Hermione and plunged the stake with both hands into the chest of the vampire and stumbled back. Yet the monster came forward. Raven kicked out with his foot, driving the stake deeper, and the ancient monster crumbled into dust.

"Hermione! Are you okay?" he called anxiously. She had collapsed on the ground.

"My arms burn. It cut me," she gasped.

He could see the damage. The skin on her arms was flayed. He tore open his bag and took out a pain reliever and dittany.

He held the flesh together, ignoring the blood that fell onto his clothes.

Hermione lay back with her eyes firmly closed against the pain. "Epithelializatisis Finallis," he called out and watched some of the flesh seal together. The burns from the fire bolt healed, but the long, ragged tears from the vampire's talons stayed raw and bleeding.

Raven drew out more potions and finally put a salve on her arms and wrapped them when the bleeding stopped.

Tears squeezed out from her tightly shut eyes.

"We need to go back. You can't go on like this," he told her.

"No, I'll be fine. We've come so far already. The vampire may have been his last line of defense. Give me a bezoar. It should help."

"It's not much of a defense, seeing as you and I have gotten past them all." He laughed, trying to make her smile.

"It's been months since his death. His wards and powers are weakening. The vampire hardly had enough strength to maintain its alluring and lust enchantments. That thing was probably starving. There were no new recruits to keep it fed. Its powers were weak; it was probably living off the bats."

The pain potion was taking effect, and she got to her feet with his help. They started forward. The cavern narrowed further and further until there was only a tunnel wide enough for them to walk single file. Raven took Point, and Hermione followed. She tried to maintain a shield around them to ward off the oppression that had set in. She finally conjured her Patronus, and they followed the playful otter as it slid into the holes in the wards.

As they drew further and further into the tunnel, Raven gasped, pressing his hand to his arm. His Dark Mark was burning. His eyes were wide, his face pale, and his voice quivered as if he was terrified. "Why would it burn?" They stopped and leaned against the walls of the tunnel...Hermione for support and Raven so he could pull back the sleeve of the shirt he wore. The mark was brighter, and the snake was moving.

Hermione fought back a feeling of lightheadedness from blood loss and her injuries and the queasy feeling in her gut as she tried to reassure him.

"Voldemort is dead. He's dead Raven," she said. "I saw him fall. It has to be the dark magic in the place. We are getting closer to the source of the spell he left here to guard the entrance. But he never expected to die, and so it's only strong enough to repel now. This wall must be similar to Snape's. Somehow we have to get through."

Raven went to the wall and reached out to touch it. He drew his hand back quickly.

"It's warm. There shouldn't be heat here. Do you have any idea what we can try to enter? It's not going to accept my touch."

With one arm folded across her chest, Hermione used her wand to try to pierce the rock. She tried spell after spell, but nothing worked. Raven got closer to the rock and said, "Lumos." He searched the face of the rock.

"Hey, look at this." There was a light etching.

Hermione squeezed in next to him. She examined the scratching and then took her wand and said, "Scripton." The etching turned dark. It was the Dark Mark.

"Raven, try to press your arm against the wall. Try to line up your tattoo with the etching. I think they are the same size."

He drew his sleeve up to expose the Dark Mark and then raised his arm. The moment the mark touched the etching, the wall started to shimmer. It undulated but did not vanish like the door to Snape's Lair had.

Raven pressed his hand into the rock, and it slipped in. The rock felt thick, like heavy sand...granulated but penetrable.

"Hey, I think we can pass through it. Come on." He headed into the wall, holding onto Hermione's hand.

Hermione tried to follow, but it felt like solid rock to her.

"Raven!" she screamed.

Raven heard her as if from a long ways away and backed out of the wall. He stood thinking for a minute. "Maybe if I put my arm around you...kind of like a shield...my magical signature will encompass you."

She took a deep breath and slipped next to Raven, and he drew her close to his side. They started through. Hermione clung to his waist, fighting panic as the thick wall surrounded her. She could breathe, but the granules of sand seemed to pull at her and grip her organs. She started to turn, and she pulled away from Raven. Suddenly, she was surrounded with hardening rock and couldn't move. As if from a distance, she heard him calling. As she started to panic, she felt him envelop her and draw her back to his side, and they passed through to the other side.

They found themselves in a large, dimly lit cavern.

"Oh my god, oh my god," she cried, gasping for breath. "Raven!" She clung to him, not caring that the pressure on her arm made it hurt fiercely. "I thought I was going to be stuck for good." Her body shook, and her teeth chattered.

"It's okay. I'm here," he whispered quietly as he kissed her temple gently and rubbed her back. "Apparently, you needed to stay in contact with the mark bearer in order to get through." He gave her a quick squeeze as he looked around. He turned and called out, "Lumos Maxima!"

A bright light shot out from the wand, and the cavern from Snape's memories spanned out before them.

A figure took form in front of them. It was visible only as a dark, rippling, faceless figure, shimmering and indistinct. A swirling, black-blue light emanated as the form became distinct and solidified.

Hermione gasped as the slender figure in black robes glared down at her, his red eyes glowed in a snake-like face, and his slit-shaped nostrils flared in indignation. "It's...it's...him. It's Voldemort," she gasped, shock numbing her mind beyond all reason, even her pain.

The figure sneered at them. "Severus, you traitor, you dare face me?" Hermione's world spun and she fainted in Raven's arms.

---

The above cliff ledge and the wall of rock they passed through was suggested and/or lent to me by beaweasley2. She has been very valuable in helping me come up with some ideas to help Raven and Hermione get through this cave with very picturesque imagery. I appreciate her letting me bounce ideas off her and for coming up with some interesting sentences I could use. Many, many thanks.

Also thanks so much to my beta, Lisa. You have no idea how I depend on you.

Thanks to Becky as third eye in the beta process.

Specialis Revelio: reveal hidden secrets (HP canon)

Illicitus Portus: illegal port (breaking into an opening)

Antonitum: lightning bolt

Aculeatus Fluminious: fire lightning

Ignitus Teregum: set fire to outer covering

Persisto Penetro: persistent entrance

Exoclatus: blind

Petrificus Totalus Vinculum: body bind with chains

Ligneus Asser: wooden stake

Scriptom: mark

Epithelializatisis Finallis: skin repair