Chapter 65 - Second birdly challenge

"Stop moving!" Hermione ordered them. "I know what this is, it's Devil's Snare!"

"Oh, I'm so glad we know what it's called, that's a great help," snarled Ron, leaning back, trying to stop the plant curling around his neck.

"Shut up, I'm trying to remember how to kill it!" said Hermione.

"Well, hurry up, I can't breathe!" Harry gasped, wrestling with it as it curled around his chest.

Meanwhile, Thomas stood calmly a few steps away from his struggling friends, observing the scene with mild amusement. As someone who had read a lot of books and love potions, Thomas learned quite a bit of Herbology in the last couple of months, and seeing everything that happened in the last minute or so, it was clear to him that the Devil's Snare was merely playing with them, rather than intending to harm them. If it had wanted to, none of them would have stood a chance to react, let alone escape its grasp.

Thomas couldn't help but wonder why the plant seemed to have no interest in him whatsoever. Perhaps it was the presence of Bahamut within him. Or maybe his body was simply too strong for the plant to ensnare. Whatever the reason, he knew that if he didn't want to get an earful from his friends, he had to help them get free.

As Adam, Michael, and James looked around for a way out, their eyes met Thomas's gaze. James swore quietly under his breath, vowing to get back at Thomas once they escaped this predicament. On the other hand, Adam and Michael pleaded with their eyes, silently urging Thomas to come to their aid.

Unable to resist their silent plea, Thomas smirked and began walking towards them. With each step, he could see the Devil's Snare retracting its roots from around their bodies, loosening its grip on them.

As Thomas reached his friends, he extended his hand, gesturing for them to take it. "Hold on to me, guys," he said while looking around to see if the Devil's snare was waiting for an opportunity or if it retracted completely. "I've got you."

Adam and Michael wasted no time in grabbing onto Thomas's outstretched hand, and as soon as the roots left their legs, both boys let out a sigh, happy that they no longer are being slowly "hugged". James, on the other hand, was still a bit resentful, but after a few seconds, he reluctantly reached out as well, accepting Thomas's help.

"Thanks, Tom," Adam said sincerely.

Michael nodded in agreement. "Yeah, you saved us there, mate."

Meanwhile, James only glanced at Thomas wondering how in Merlin's saggy balls his friend managed to do this. "Be honest with us Tommy-boy, how in Merlin's Saggy balls did you manage to get this bloody plant away from us?"

Thomas shrugged his shoulder in response. "Beat me if I know, though I guess is thanks to my sacred gear.

James, still slightly skeptical but also intrigued, crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "Well, I suppose I'll have to take your word for it. Just don't go using your mystical powers to prank us too often, alright?"

Thomas grinned mischievously. "No promises, James. But hey, it's all part of the adventure, isn't it?"

Meanwhile, things were no better for the Gryffindor trio as they tried desperately to break free. As the four boys look at them, they couldn't help but wonder when will those three realize that the answer to their freedom was standing a few meters away from them.

James crossed his arms, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as he encouraged Hermione. "Come on, Hermione, you're the smartest witch of our generation. Think, think!"

Hermione's frustration turn into determination as she wracked her brain for a solution, any kind of solution at this point.

"Devil's Snare, Devil's Snare..." Hermione muttered to herself, searching her memory for Professor Sprout's lessons. "What did Professor Sprout say? It likes the dark and the damp..."

"So light a fire!" Harry choked out, gasping for breath as the plant tightened its grip around him.

Hermione's face fell. "Yes, of course, that would work, but there's no wood!" she cried, wringing her hands in despair.

Ron's frustration reached its peak as he bellowed at Hermione, "HAVE YOU GONE MAD? ARE YOU A WITCH OR NOT?"

However, as the words left Ron's mouth, Hermione's eyes went wide as she just realize something, and before she did something, she looked at Thomas, Michael, James, and Adam who were standing nearby. She noticed their calm demeanor and the absence of the Devil's Snare wrapped around them.

"Wait a minute! We don't need wood or fire. We have Thomas!"

Thomas raised an eyebrow, unsure of how Hermione came to this realization. "What do you mean, Hermione?"

"The Devil's Snare likes the dark and damp, right? But it seems to be avoiding all of you and judging by your stories, I reckon that has something to do with you."

James let out a low whistle, impressed by Hermione's deduction. "Well done, Hermione! he said, unable to resist teasing Thomas. "Looks like your girlfriend is smarter than you, mate. Better up your game before someone steals her away."

Thomas rolled his eyes, not bothered by James's teasing. "Oh, please mate, don't you start now."

Though as soon as he said that, Thomas went toward Hermione, Harry, and Ron while Adam, Michael, and James burst into laughter when they saw Thomas going for the rescue like a knight on a white horse. While his friends were laughing at his reaction, Thomas approached Hermione, Harry, and Ron who were still fighting the roots. When he reached their side, he extended his hand towards the Devil's Snare, and almost instantly, his presence caused the plant to recoil. The roots slowly released their grip, freeing Harry, Ron, and Hermione one by one.

Harry gasped for breath as the vines withdrew, while Ron let out a sigh of relief, massaging his side where the plant had constricted tightly, while Hermione smiled gratefully at Thomas.

"Thanks, Thomas," Harry sincerely thanked his friend. "You really saved us back there."

Ron nodded in agreement, "Yeah, mate, you're a lifesaver."

Thomas shrugged modestly, knowing very well that if he didn't stop to help, Hermione would have found a way out by herself. So after shrugging his shoulder, he turn towards Adam, Michael, and James, who were still wiping tears of laughter from their eyes.

Returning to the trio of onlookers, Thomas couldn't help but crack a grin. "Enjoying the show?"

Adam chuckled, as his laughter subsided. "You really know how to make an entrance, mate. The way you handled that Devil's Snare, it was like something out of a heroic tale."

Michael nodded, still chuckling. "Yeah, we were just witnessing the brave knight comes to the rescue. Well done, Thomas."

James, wiping away the last remnants of his laughter, chimed in. "I guess we'll have to rethink who's the hero of this group. Looks like Tommy is taking the spotlight once again."

Before Thomas could respond, they heard Harry's voice calling everyone.

"Guys! This way," said Harry, pointing down a stone passageway, which was the only way onwards.

All they could hear apart from their footsteps was the gentle drip of water trickling down the walls. The passageway sloped downwards and Harry was reminded of Gringotts. With an unpleasant jolt of the heart, he remembered the dragons said to be guarding vaults in the wizards' bank. If they met a dragon, a fully grown dragon – Norbert had been bad enough …

At the same time , Thomas was feeling restless as something foul was slowly but surely following them, but thanks to Bahamut spreading his aura around his host, the foul presence choose to keep its distance for now. While he could have told his friends about this presence, Thomas thought that rather than making everyone scared or distracted by this presence, it would be better to keep his senses on this presence alone since he could count on Bahamut to help in case his attention would be needed somewhere.

Suddenly, Thomas felt a gentle tug on his robe, and he turned his head to see Hermione looking at him in worry. Her voice was barely a whisper as she spoke, taking Thomas by surprise.

"What's wrong, Tom? You seem... different. Your face, no, your entire body, it's on high alert. What are you expecting? Is there something else we should be worried about?"

Thomas blinked, taken aback by Hermione's extremely accurate observation. He hadn't realized that his heightened state of alertness was noticeable to others or at least to those who cared enough to know his usual body language.

"Well, Hermione, you're not wrong," Thomas replied in a hushed manner. "I can't shake off the feeling that something foul is following us. I can't pinpoint exactly what it is, but my instincts are on edge. I don't want to alarm everyone without concrete evidence, so I've been keeping an eye out."

Hermione nodded, understanding why Thomas would not tell them about this, especially with how grim the whole place looked. "Thanks for being direct with me, Tom."

Just as Hermione was about to speak up, they all heard Ron whispering while trembling. The poor boy was scared, even more so than all of them combined.

"Can any of you hear something?" Ron whispered.

Everyone stopped and listened. A soft rustling and clinking seemed to be coming from up ahead. "Do you guys think it's a ghost?"

"I don't know … sounds like wings to me."

James couldn't resist the opportunity to lighten the tense atmosphere that had settled upon the group. So before anyone could stop him, he glanced at Ron and whispered, "Psst, Ron, I think it's a ghost. A very hungry ghost, in fact."

Ron's eyes widened, and he took a step back, startled by James's remark. His voice trembled as he whispered back, "You're joking, right? Please tell me you're joking."

Before James could respond, a loud clatter echoed through the passageway, followed by a gust of wind that ruffled their hair. Startled, Ron jumped up in fright, his face contorted with fear.

"James! Don't do that!" Hermione scolded, shaking her head disapprovingly. "We're already on edge as it is."

James held up his hands defensively, wearing a sheepish grin on his face. "Sorry, sorry. I couldn't resist. Just trying to lighten the mood."

Ron took a deep breath, trying to steady his racing heart. "Well, next time, choose a better time to 'lighten the mood', will you?"

After that, they reached the end of the passageway and saw before them a brilliantly lit chamber, its ceiling arching high above them. It was full of small, jewel-bright birds, fluttering and tumbling all around the room. On the opposite side of the chamber was a heavy-looking, wooden door.

Once they were sure that the birds will not attack them, Adam, Michael, and Ron walked towards the heavy wooden door on the opposite side of the chamber. They placed their hands on the door, attempting to pry it open, but despite their combined strength, it remained firmly shut.

Meanwhile, Thomas scanned the chamber, looking at the fluttering and tumbling jewel-bright birds with some curiosity since they don't exactly look to be here randomly. Then, a thought crossed his mind, and he turned to Hermione. "Hermione, do you think these birds are here just for decoration?"

Hermione blinked in response before she too looked at the birds' movements, noting how they seemed to dance in a coordinated pattern. "You might be onto something, Tom. They do seem to be behaving in a deliberate manner like they are trying to catch you..."

"Attention," Thomas finished her sentence, his gaze locked on the glittering plumage of the birds. The realization hit them simultaneously, and their eyes widened with understanding.

"The door," Hermione exclaimed, pointing towards the heavy wooden door. "It needs a key!"

"And that key... it's one of those birds."

The group watched as the jewel-bright birds continued their flight, swirling and twirling in the air.

Harry said suddenly, "You are right guys. Winged keys, look carefully. So that must mean …" he looked around the chamber while the other two squinted up at the flock of keys. "… Yes, look! Broomsticks! We've got to catch the key to the door!"

"But there are hundreds of them!"

James kneeled near the door, his mischievous expression turning focused as he examined the keyhole. And after a few seconds, he glanced back at his friends. "I think I might be able to help with this."

The others turned their attention to James, their curiosity piqued. "What do you mean, James?"

"Well, you see, thanks to me loving pranks and mischief, I may have picked up a few useful skills," he confessed. "And one of those skills happens to be lock picking."

Thomas raised an eyebrow, not knowing that his friend had this particular skill. "James, I didn't know you were skilled in that area."

James chuckled. "Oh, there's a lot you don't know about me, mate. But let's focus on the task at hand. We're looking for a relatively old key, judging by the color of the handle of the door. One that is silver or silvery."

Ron piped up, looking somewhat disappointed. "I said the same thing earlier, but no one seemed to care," he grumbled, crossing his arms.

Hermione smiled reassuringly at Ron. "Well, now we do care, Ron."

The group turned their attention back to the flock of winged keys, looking for a silver handle among the glimmering wings.

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