chapter 25

Betty flies through the chess piece and nothing happened, she flies around the chess pieces, but they don't attack.

"Odd, I guess these tests are supposed to be wizards, so they can't sense our presence", said Keni.

"So, we can pass", said Qin.

"We will be waiting at the end", said Key, then kisses Harry on the cheek, and flies away.

"Well, Harry, you take the place of that bishop, and Hermione, you next to him instead of that castle", said Ron. "And as for me, I'll be a knight".

The chessmen seemed to have been listening, because at these words a knight, a bishop, and a castle turned their backs on the white pieces and walked off the board, leaving three empty squares that Harry, Ron, and Hermione took.

"White always plays first in chess," said Ron, peering across the board. "Yes... look..."

A white pawn had moved forward two squares.

Ron started to direct the black pieces. They moved silently wherever he sent them. Harry's knees were trembling. What if they lost?

"Harry -- move diagonally four squares to the right", said Ron.

Their first real shock came when their other knight was taken. The white queen smashed him to the floor and dragged him off the board, where he lay quite still, facedown.

"Had to let that happen," said Ron, looking shaken. "Leaves you free to take that bishop, Hermione, go on."

Every time one of their men was lost, the white pieces showed no mercy. Soon there was a huddle of limp black players slumped along the wall. Twice, Ron only just noticed in time that Harry and Hermione were in danger. He himself darted around the board, taking almost as many white pieces as they had lost black ones.

"We're nearly there," Ron muttered suddenly. "Let me think -- let me think..."

The white queen turned her blank face toward him.

"Yes... " said Ron softly, "It's the only way... I've got to be taken."

"NO!" Everybody else shouted.

"That's chess!" snapped Ron. "You've got to make some sacrifices! I take one step forward and she'll take me -- that leaves you free to checkmate the king, Harry!"

"But--" said Harry

"Do you want to stop Snape or not?" asked Ron

"Ron--" said Key

"Look, if you don't hurry up, he'll already have the Stone!" Ron argued.

There was no alternative.

"Ready?" Ron called, his face pale but determined. "Here I go -- now, don't hang around once you've won."

He stepped forward, and the white queen pounced. She struck Ron hard across the head with her stone arm, and he crashed to the floor -- Hermione screamed but stayed on her square -- the white queen dragged Ron to one side. He looked as if he'd been knocked out.

Shaking, Harry moved three spaces to the left.

The white king took off his crown and threw it at Harry's feet. They had won. The chessmen parted and bowed, leaving the door ahead clear. With one last desperate look back at Ron, Harry and Hermione charged through the door and up the next passageway.

"What if he's -- ?" asked Hermione

"He'll be alright," said Harry, trying to convince himself.

"I'll take Ron to the hospital wing", said Keni, then flies away.

"See ya", said Key. "Be safe".

 "What do you reckon is next?" asked Harry.

"We've had Sprout's, that was the Devil's Snare; Flitwick must've put charms on the keys; McGonagall transfigured the chessmen to make them alive; that leaves Quirrell's spell, and Snape's." Hermione recalled.

"Okay, let's go", said Key, besides Harry.

They had reached another door.

Harry pushed it open.

A disgusting smell filled their nostrils, making both of them pull their robes up over their noses. Eyes watering, they saw, flat on the floor in front of them, a troll even larger than the one they had tackled, out cold with a bloody lump on its head.

"I'm glad we didn't have to fight that one," Harry whispered as they stepped carefully over one of its massive legs. "Come on, I can't breathe."

Harry pulled open the next door, both of them hardly daring to look at what came next -- but there was nothing very frightening in here, just a table with seven differently shaped bottles standing on it in a line.

"Snape's," said Harry. "What do we have to do?"

They stepped over the threshold, and immediately a fire sprang up behind them in the doorway. It wasn't ordinary fire either; it was purple. At the same instant, black flames shot up in the doorway leading onward. They were trapped.

"Purple fire! Cool!" replied Key.

"This is not the time to be impressed", Makai pointed out.

"Right, sorry", said Key.

"So, what happens now?" asked Betty.

"I can handle this", said Hermione.

"I can help you", Li offered.

"Thank you", said Hermione.

Hermione seized a roll of paper lying next to the bottles. Lu looked over her shoulder to read it:

Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind,

Two of us will help you, which ever you would find,

One among us seven will let you move ahead,

Another will transport the drinker back instead,

Two among our number hold only nettle wine,

Three of us are killers, waiting bidden in line.

Choose, unless you wish to stay here forevermore,

To help you in your choice, we give you these clues four:

First, however slyly the poison tries to hide

You will always find some on nettle wine's left side;

Second, different are those who stand at either end,

But if you would move onward, neither is your friend;

Third, as you see clearly, all are different size,

Neither dwarf nor giant holds death in their insides;

Fourth, the second left and the second on the right

Are twins once you taste them, though different at first sight.

Hermione let out a great sigh and everybody  else is amazed to see she is smiling, the very last thing he felt like doing.

"Brilliant," said Hermione. "This isn't magic -- it's logic -- a puzzle. A lot of the greatest wizards haven't got an ounce of logic, they'd be stuck in here forever."

"Of course, only you would be excited by a puzzle", said Qin.

"I hate puzzles or riddles, anything like that", said Key.

"Everything we need is here on this paper. Seven bottles: three are poison; two are wine; one will get us safely through the black fire, and one will get us back through the purple", Hermione tells everybody. 

"Give us a minute", said Li.

Hermione and Li read the paper several times. 

Then Hermione walked up and down the line of bottles, muttering to herself and pointing at them. At last, she clapped her hands.

Li and Hermione said at the same time, "The smallest bottle will get us through the black fire -- toward the Stone."

Harry looked at the tiny bottle with Key beside him

"There's only enough there for one of us," said Key. "That's hardly one swallow".

"Which one will get you back through the purple flames?" asked Harry.

Hermione pointed at a rounded bottle at the right end of the line.

"You drink that," said Key.

"Us faes can get passed by on our own", said Betty.

"If that's true, one of you should stick with Harry, so Harry doesn't have to face Snape alone", said Hermione.

"I'm going", said Key.

"But, Key", said Harry.

"I'm not letting you go alone", said Key. "No matter, what you say".

Before Hermione and the others leave, Hermione says "Harry, Key, you both will be fine. Key, you are a great fae, and Harry, you are a great wizard".

"Be careful, promise", said Makai.

"I promise", said Key.

Harry took a deep breath and picked up the smallest bottle. He turned to face the black flames.

"Here I come," he said, and he drained the little bottle in one gulp

It was indeed as though ice was flooding his body. Harry put the bottle down and walked forward; he braced himself, saw the black flames licking his body, but couldn't feel them -- for a moment he could see nothing but dark fire -- then he was on the other side, in the last chamber. 

Key goes straight through, and she didn't feel anything.

Hermione, Betty, Li, Qin, and Makai left.

There was already someone there -- but it wasn't Snape. It wasn't even Voldemort.