The Storm | The Sister book #3 | A Harry Potter Fanfiction

chapter thirty-nine

Vote if you enjoy!

The wind whips around us ferociously and I grab onto Harry's arm as my eyes focus on where we have apparated to; An outcrop of stone offshore, surrounded by choppy and wild ocean. Harry's hand finds mine as we squint in the spray, our eyes finding what seems to be a large crevasse in the ocean cliff ahead. 

"We swim to the cave," Dumbledore yells at us, and I gape at him, staring into the violent ocean as my heart begins to beat harshly against my chest. 

We descend the stone to the water's edge, and I glance fearfully at Harry, who squeezes my hand and we slip down into the water. Immediately, I find myself unable to fight the waves, desperately scrambling against the water to push myself towards the dark cave ahead. I begin to choke on water, unable to see anything, to feel anyone, until all I know is the cold and the cave up ahead. I push on as I'm thrown from left to right, and I try to keep my eyes on the cliff. On the stony outcrops that I will pull myself onto. After what feels like an eternity I am slammed up against rough stone. Harry is at my side and helps me up onto the shore, pulling me away from the spray. 

I cough and splutter, looking up at him with wide eyes. He looks just as bad as I no doubt do, his skin white as a sheet, his clothing drenched and sticking to his body. Dumbledore appears next to us, his robes somehow dry, and he raises his wand, muttering a spell I don't recognise. In an instant, my clothes become dry and warm, and I shudder at the sudden change in temperature. Dumbledore rubs my arm gently, smiling apologetically at me. He does the spell on Harry, and I finally find myself capable of speaking. 

"What is this place?" I murmur, but Dumbledore does not answer. 

He walks into the darkness, mutter Lumos under his breath to lighten the way. Harry and I follow, and soon the sound of the thrashing waves is merely a quiet hum in the background. We stop, reaching what seems to be the end of the cave. Dumbledore begins to examine the wall, 

"This is the place, yes, this place has known magic..." He mutters, and then I hear the sound of metal against stone. Dumbledore pulls out a knife and I watch as he begins to cut open the palm of his hand. 

"Albus-" I argue, but he cuts me off, 

"In order to gain passage payment must be made. Payment that is intended to weaken any intruder." He says, digging the knife further into his skin. 

Harry frowns, shaking his head slightly, "You should have let me, sir." 

"Oh no Harry, your blood's much more precious than mine," Dumbledore states, and then he raises his wounded hand, scraping it against the cave wall. 

The stones then seem to crumble, and the wall disintegrates, collapsing in on itself as it reveals another cave. This chamber's walls are made up of crystal, as opposed to stone. Dumbledore once again raises his wand, illuminating the path ahead as we hobble through the darkness over the slippery stone. Then the cave opens up, though it is impossible to see how much due to the inky darkness that hangs in the air. Dumbledore holds out an arm and Harry and I stop, 

"Careful." Dumbledore murmurs, motioning at the water. 

Dumbledore then raises his wand, throwing the light through the air. I falter at the staggering size of the chamber, and the small ball of light flies to the other side where it stopes atop what seems to be an island in the middle of this underground lake. Light floods across the water, and the air suddenly feels earily silent. All I can hear is my heartbeat. 

"There it is. The only question is how do we get to it," Dumbledore says slowly. 

He then steps down, closer to the water, and raises his hand. He urges something to come to him, though I cannot fathom what he is waiting for. The water below his hand starts bubbling and Harry and I glance at each other. Suddenly a chain flies from the water below his hand and he grabs it. He turns to Harry, and hands him the chain,