I May have helped an Evil Wizard. (rewrite)

The adventure begins

Cold, damp air rushed past Harriet as she fell down. With a funny, muffled sort of thump she landed on something kind of soft. Either way, it was much softer than she had expected. She sat up and felt around, her eyes not used to the gloom. It felt as though she was sitting on some sort of plant.

"Sorry," she muttered, patting it. She liked plants. They didn't say or do mean things.

"It's okay!" She called up to her friends, "it's a soft landing, you can jump!"

Pansy followed right away, bag hugged to her chest with a squeak of fear. She landed, sprawled next to Harriet.

"What's this stuff?" were her first words.

"Dunno, some sort of plant thing. I suppose it's here to break the fall. Come on, Draco!"

He landed awkwardly next to her. Hurriedly, he pulled himself into a sitting position and looked around.

"We must be miles under the school,"he said.

"That's unrealistic. I only counted three seconds." Harriet said, rolling her eyes.

"Lucky this plant thing's here either way," said Pansy.

"Lucky!" Exclaimed Draco. "Look at you both!"

He leapt up and struggled toward a damp wall. He had to struggle because the moment he had landed, the plant had started to twist snakelike tendrils around his ankles. As for Harriet  and Pansy, their legs had already been bound tightly in long vines without their noticing.

Harriet cursed violently, some of Vernons favourite expletives crossing her lips. "Devils snare!"

"Stop moving!" Draco cried. "I know what this is - it's Devil's Snare!"

"Oh, I'm so glad we know all know what it's called, that's a great help," snarled Pansy, leaning back, trying to stop the plant from curling around her neck. She was still hugging her bag to her chest.

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

"Light!" Harriet gasped, wrestling with it as it curled around her chest, behaving like a python with prey.

"Oh, right!" said Draco, and whipped out his wand,"teine ​​ghairm!"

A jet of blue fire leapt at the plant. In a matter of seconds, the two girls felt it loosening its grip as it cringed away from the light and warmth.

Struggling, they managed to pull themselves and the bag free from the snares and waddle over to the wall where Draco stood, looking pale. Well, paler than usual.

"Thanks," they managed.

"This way," said Harriet, pointing down a stone passageway, which was the only way forward.

All they could hear apart from their footsteps was the gentle drip of water trickling down the walls. The passageway sloped downward.

"I hope we're not under the loo." Draco wrinkled his nose.

"Doesn't smell like it." Harriet shrugged.

"Can you hear something?" Pansy asked suddenly.

Harriet and Draco listened. A soft rustling and clinking seemed to be coming from up ahead.

"Do you think it's a ghost?" Draco asked, looking worried.

"You know we live in a castle full of those right?" Pansy huffed.

"I don't know... sounds like wings to me." Harriet threw her opinion in.

"There's light ahead - I can see something moving." Draco whispered and went to crouch behind the others slightly more.

"Scared?" Pansy teased.

"No!" he protested.

She giggled. "Are too!"

"Not the time, guys!" Harriet cut in, pulling out her wand and marching towards the end of the tunnel. Whatever it was had probably heard them coming.

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, multi-coloured birds, fluttering and tumbling all around the room. On the opposite side of the chamber was a heavy wooden door.

Draco ran across the room and tried the door, giving it a haughty sneer of disgust when it wouldn't budge. He gave it a, rather weak, kick out of contempt.

"Ugh." He turned to face them. "It won't open!"

The other two went to join him. They tugged and heaved at the door, but it wouldn't budge, not even when Harriet tried an Alohomora charm. Pansy stopped her from using a blasting curse. Barely.

"Now what?" said Pansy.

Harriet rolled her eyes. "You could let me - "

"No blasting curses."

"Fine." She sighed and looked around."These birds... they can't be here just for decoration."

They watched the birds soaring overhead, glittering. Wait, glittering?

"They're not birds!" Draco said suddenly. "They're keys! 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! A broomstick ! Someone's  got to catch the key to the door!"

"I'm not doing it." Pansy said. "Me? On a broomstick? Wearing this?" She gestured to her clothing that probably cost more than Harriet's entire life. "No way."

"I don't think I can do it." Harriet admitted, pulling at her worn out shirt. Despite a lot of praise from Madam Hooch during flying class, she felt like this was biting more off than she could chew. "Besides, there are hundreds of them!"

Pansy examined the lock on the door.

"We're looking for a big, old-fashioned one - probably silver, like the handle."

Before anyone could say anything,  Draco had siezed the broom and was up in the air and after the key.

After a minute's weaving about through the whirl of rainbow feathers, he noticed a large silver key that had a bent wing, as if it had already been caught and stuffed roughly into the keyhole. He raced after it, whirling though the air.

After about 2 minutes, he had caught it and was unlocking the door.

"I'm so glad that wasn't one of those shooting star twigs we use in class!" he said.
　
"Ready?" Harriet asked the other two, placing her hand on the door handle. They nodded.

The door swung open.

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Whoop whoop! Nearing the end. Hope you're all enjoying this so far and thank you for being such wonderful readers!
I love the comments you leave me.
Thank you all!
XOXO, Drachma