(1) Lux Brumalis (R. Weasley)

Chapter Fifty-Seven

As the door slams shut behind them, Pixie and Hermione both look back at the last room. Both worried for their friend. Both want to know for sure if their friend is alright. With everything else happening, being down a friend when they need all of them isn't great. They should have told someone that they were coming down here. They should have informed a professor. Left a note for McGonagall or something. Just so that if anything does happen to them, then there is someone on the outside that knows where they are.

"What if he's...?" Hermione starts to ask, but can't bring herself to finish that thought.

"He'll be all right," Harry is quick to argue, trying to convince her, Pixie, and himself that Ron is going to be absolutely fine. "What do you reckon's next?" He asks them, trying to take their minds off of Ron.

"We've had Sprout's, that was the Devils Snare" Pixie offers. "Flitwick must've put charms on the keys; McGonagall transfigured the chessmen to make them alive; that leaves Quirrell's spell, and Snape's..." She draws off when they reach yet another door.

"All right?" Harry asks them, Hermione nods as Pixie shakes her head.

"Go on." Hermione states. Harry takes a breath and then pushes open the door. It hits them immediately. A rank smell that causes them all to pull their robes up to cover their sensitive noses. Laying there, flat on the floor in front of them, is a troll, even larger than the one they tackled at Halloween, out cold.

"I'm glad we didn't have to fight that one," Harry whispers as they stepped carefully over one of its massive legs. "Come on, I can't breathe." Pixie clutches at her nose. The smell really is disgusting. Something that tingles the deep pits of her stomach. Pixie steps over the leg next, carefully lifting her robes so she doesn't trip. Behind her, Hermione follows, but she stumbles, straight over the troll's leg and falls to her knees with a soft cry. Pixie moves back to her, helping her to her feet. It could have happened to any of them. That troll's leg is massive and they are tiny children.

"Ouch" Hermione complains, struggling to step on her foot. "I think I twisted my ankle" She complains and seems rather disappointed. "After all of that...." She continues and shakes her head. Pixie and Harry share a look. Because considering everything they went through to get here, Hermione tripping stops her from going on. That's it. No fight. No spell. No magical chess game. She tripped. Hermione looks at Pixie and then Harry who moves closer. "No" Hermione stops him. "You have to keep going....it's fine, I'm fine...."

"I can stay with you" Pixie offers, Hermione shakes her head.

"No, no, I'll try and get back to Ron...you need to help Harry....one of us has to help him..." They share a small amused look, both knowing that Harry is going to need one of them to get through this alive. Harry takes Pixie's hand to help her up and lead her on. Hermione waves at them as they head towards the door ahead of them. Pixie waves back and then takes a deep breath when Harry pulls open the door and then walks through with his friend at his side. But there is nothing entirely frightening inside. Just a table with seven differently shaped bottles sitting in a line on it.

"Snape's" Pixie realises, Harry nods in agreement.

"What do we have to do?" He asks her as they step inside, closing the door behind them before moving closer. Immediately a fire springs up behind them in the doorway. Not an ordinary flame either, but purple. At the same time, across the other side of the room, black fire erupts in the doorway. Trapping the two of them inside. Pixie rushes forward to the table and picks up a roll of paper lying next to the bottles. As she unrolls it, Harry joins her. "What is it?" He asks.

"Danger lies before you, while safety lies behind" She reads from the paper. "Two of us will help you, whichever 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 hidden 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 a 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" Pixie lets out a great sigh and then smiles. Harry gives her a look. "Amazing" She voices and looks over the bottles. "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."

"But so will we, won't we?" Harry asks her, Pixie turns a look at him and smirks. He smiles back, seeing the confidence and joy in her eyes. He was about to underestimate her.

"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."

"But how do we know which to drink?"

"Give me a minute." She waves him off as she goes over the clues again, her eyes flicking to the bottles and then back as she tries to work it out. She finally lifts her eyes. Determined. "Okay..." She whispers and nods. "The smallest bottle will get us through the black fire...toward the Stone." Harry looks at the tiny bottle.

"There's only enough there for one of us," he argues. "That's hardly one swallow." Pixie and Harry share a look. "Which one will get you back through the purple flames?" He asks her. Pixie points at a rounded bottle at the right end of the line. "You drink that," Pixie goes to argue with him but he shakes his head. "No, listen, get back and get Ron and Hermione. Grab brooms from the flying-key room, they'll get you out of the trapdoor and past Fluffy—go straight to the owlery and send Hedwig to Dumbledore, we need him. I might be able to hold...." They share a look. She still doesn't think it's Snape, but she knows he does. She guesses they are about to get their answer either way. "Them" Harry settles on. "Off for a while, but I'm no match for him, really."

"But Harry....what if You-Know-Who's with him? You'll be on your own...."

"Well, I was lucky once, wasn't I?" He tells her, pointing at his scar. "I might get lucky again." Pixie stares at him a moment before she hugs him tightly. "Pixie" He states surprised.

"Harry, I would say you're a great wizard, but I exist...so standards are very high" He laughs a little and nods.

"No one is as good as you," He agrees and then pulls back. The two of them share a look.

"I'm glad we both see that" She states with a smile. "But you are a good wizard...." She gives him that. He isn't as stupid as he thinks he is, like Ron. They both assume that they're not that bright. But they are smarter than that. He can see that she's deflecting her worry. She's scared for him. Worried about him doing this alone. She softens a little. "Be careful" She begs of him.

"You drink first," He pushes, wanting to get her back to their friends, wanting that owl to go to Dumbledore, wanting to push on to stop Snape, or whoever it might be, from stealing the stone. "You are sure which is which, aren't you?"

"Yes, yes, of course, I am" Pixie argues and takes a long drink from the round bottle at the end, and then shudders. A full-blown body shiver rushes through her entire being.

"It's not poison?" Harry double checks, and Pixie shakes her head.

"No, but it's like ice." She admits as she sets the bottle down again.

"Quick, go, before it wears off." He touches her arm and turns her towards the door. She turns back to him.

"Harry" She starts. He nods. He knows. She's going to tell him to be careful, but considering the circumstances, it is very unlikely that he can be.

"Go" He whispers, she nods and then rushes across the room, walking straight through the purple fire and back through the door. It slams shut behind her and she lets out a nervous breath. But Harry gave her a task to do. To get Ron and Hermione out of here. To get word to Dumbledore. So that is what she is going to do.