The first thing Sloane became aware of was the cold.
Not ordinary cold. Not the chill of a winter morning or a drafty castle corridor.
This was a deep, miserable cold that seemed to seep into her bones. The kind that settled beneath skin and muscle and refused to leave.
The second thing she noticed was the dampness.
Everything felt wet.
Her clothes. Her hair.
The stone beneath her.
The air itself.
Every breath tasted stale and rotten. Mould. Decay. Standing water.
The smell hit her almost immediately. And unfortunately, it was a smell she recognised. A smell she would never forget.
Her stomach dropped.
No.
No, no, no.
Slowly Sloane opened her eyes. Darkness greeted her. Complete darkness.
For several moments she couldn't see anything at all. Only shadows. Only blackness. Only the faint sound of dripping water somewhere nearby.
Plink.
Plink.
Plink.
The sound echoed through the silence.
Sloane swallowed. Her throat felt raw. Like she'd swallowed sand.
Slowly she pushed herself upright. Every muscle in her body protested. Her head throbbed. Her stomach churned.
The world tilted slightly.
For a horrible moment she thought she might be sick. "What..."
Her voice came out as a croak. Barely audible.
She pressed a hand against the floor. Cold stone. Wet stone.
The realisation settled heavily in her chest. She knew this place. Or at least places like it.
She knew that smell. That horrible combination of mould, dampness and decay.
She'd smelt it before.
Down below. Far below Hogwarts. Where the sunlight rarely reached. Where monsters lived.
Panic began creeping into her chest.
Sloane immediately tried to move. That's when she heard the metallic clink.
Her heart stopped.
Slowly she lifted her hands. Metal chains rattled. Shackles. Bolted into the wall behind her.
"No..."
The word escaped before she could stop it. She pulled harder. The chains groaned.
But held.
The restraints weren't tight. There was enough slack for her to stand. Enough slack for her to move around the room. But not enough to reach the door.
Not enough to reach freedom. Not enough.
Sloane closed her eyes.
Fighting the panic. Fighting the fear. Fighting the overwhelming urge to scream.
Then—
'Sloane?'
The voice was faint. Almost inaudible. Like hearing somebody from the opposite end of a long tunnel.
Yet she recognised it instantly.
Draco. Relief hit her so hard she nearly cried.
'Draco?'
YOU ARE READING
The Hollow Beneath Hogwarts
FantasyThe Hollow Beneath Hogwarts When the war ended, Hogwarts was supposed to be a place of healing. Instead, it became a place haunted by grief. Sloane Sage arrives at Hogwarts carrying scars no one can see. After losing her family in the war, she dedic...
