✓ | PLAY WITH FIRE ⎯⎯ harry potter

twenty-nine

The seven wizards went to check seven different doors. Marina entered a small, empty room, with blue walls and at least ten lamps. In the corner of it stood an enormous tank with green water and gigantic maggots in it. She felt her arms getting covered in goosebumps, and quickly took a step back, entering the circular room again.

Cedric had entered the room beside her, and she could hear him talk quietly to someone. Marina strode directly toward his door, and watched Luna run behind her.

This room was huge, dimly lit and rectangular, and in the center of it stood a stone archway that looked incredible ancient and cracked. Unsupported by any surrounding wall, the archway was hung with a tattered black curtain, fluttering slightly as though it had been just touched. Cedric was standing some feet away from it, watching it.

''What did you say, Cedric?" Marina stepped inside, still hearing him mumble.

"Me?" Cedric turned around, pale-faced. "I didn't say anything."

Marina walked closer to the veil. There were voices coming from it, small, distant whispers...

''Can't you hear it?" she pointed her wand toward the veil. Cedric furrowed his brows.

''I can hear them, too," said Luna. "There are people in there!"

The blonde walked to stand next to her, and looked into the veil, almost mesmerized. However, Ginny came running into the room a second later, telling them that Harry had found the room he had seen in his dreams.

It was the third room on their left, a cold room with high ceilings, like the Drawing Room at the Manor, full of nothing but towering shelves covered in small, dusty, glass orbs.

Marina's heart was beating faster and faster by the minute. She lit her wand again, taking a closer view of the shelf they were standing by, which clearly said 'fifty-three'.

''It was row ninety-seven," whispered Harry to the others, as if he was scared somebody was listening to him. "We need to find row ninety-seven..."

All seven wizards marched forward, putting on brave faces, trying to avoid the fact that the room turned darker and darker for each step they took.

Sixty-one...

Seventy-three...

Eighty-four...

Sirius might have been badly injured by now, or worse...

Ninety-five...

Ninety-six...

Ninety-seven...

Harry went on to pace around the rows, worry in his eyes. There was no one there.

"Harry?" Ron suddenly called, making the others flinch and turn to him. He pointed at a small glass sphere that glowed with a inner light on one of the shelves. Harry walked to stand beside him, and being much shorter than Ron, he had to stand on his tip-toes to see the ball. ''It's got your name on it!"

Without doubting it, Harry reached to grab the glass ball, closing his fingers around it. The others leaned in closer to get a better look, none daring to speak.