Name: Air Elemental
House: Gryffindor
Challenge: Quarterly Challenge, History and Mythology.
Chapter Three: In which Fred and George make a deal
Upon the mirror-like surface of the lake, a single rowing boat bobbed up and down. Its reflection shimmered in the waters below. Surrounding the lake were forest-gloved mountains with snow blanched upon their peaks. Clouds rolled lazily across the sky as a gentle breeze swished around the fir trees. The delicious smell of pine curled in the air.
Clutching the right oar nervously, George scanned the mountains for a cave in the hillside. He breathed in the cold, fresh air and turned to his twin.
“Are you sure he’s living in a cave?” he asked.
Fred nodded, “Of coarse, it’s where Norse gods live. A cave!”
George nodded as they started rowing again. Fred and George had been searching around Norway for Loki for over a week. After a tip off in Bergen, the twins arrived at Aurlandsfjorden, a picturesque fjord in central Norway.
“Hey look!” cried Fred, pointing at a nearby mountain ledge. Through the thick forest was what looked like a cave mouth.
“Great!” George began rowing harder. His boots squeaked as he lent back.
“Uh, George,” Fred laughed. “Do you fancy a bath?”
“Why?” asked George.
“The boat’s leaking,” pointed out Fred.
George looked down. Water was filling into the boat’s hull thanks to a small coin-shaped hole. He whisked out his wand.
“Reparo!” he cried, but it didn’t make any difference. The chilling water still surged in. It was now up to George’s ankles.
“Looks like we’re having a bath after all,” he grabbed the side of the boat and jumped into the lake. George felt a horrible freezing sensation as it surrounded him. The water submerged him only for a few seconds, before George resurfaced. Behind him, he heard Fred leap in as well.
“I’ll race you to the mountain!” yelled George, as Fred’s head broke the surface.
“You’re on!” cried Fred, gasping.
*****
An exhausting hour-and-a-half later, Fred and George regretted their swim. Dusk was on its way and the temperature was dropping. All their clothes were wet and their remaining food soggy. For some strange reason, their wands refuse to work.
“Loki’s doing,” panted George as he trekked up the mountainside. Fred just nodded in agreement.
After another half hour, the twins finally reached the cave mouth. They sat down to rest and looked at the view. On the horizon, the sun was setting in majestic colours. The clouds had turned a strange pink colour and the air smelt of the incoming night.
“Scandinavia’s a really nice place,” said George, smiling.
“Pity we couldn’t be in a less deadly and adventurous situation,” said Fred, “I’ve always wanted to try out Dragon Skiing.”
“And geyser-surfing, like Lee did last year,” added George.
“But he came back with a pair of wings attached to his head too, remember?” pointed out Fred. “He had a nasty scuffle with a bloke at the post office.”
They burst out laughing. Behind them, someone else laughed too.
“Very funny, Mr Weasley, but perhaps if you’d like a real joke I might be able to arrange it…”
The voice was echoed through the cave. The twins stopped laughing.
“Loki?” asked George.
“Indeed I am Loki, speaking English especially for you two. Now, I believe you wish to talk to me?”
The voice giggled creepily. Fred shivered.
“Well, there is something…” started Fred.
“Then come inside my cave and I shall grant you a wish.”
The laugher echoed away. Fred and George looked at each other and nodded. They walked into the cave.
******
Standing on a hill, above the streets of Bergen, a woman reread her letter carefully.
Dear Sir,
I have tipped of the two subjects. All is going to plan and our two friends are watching Loki’s cave. We will give the signal once we have the answer.
She rolled up the letter and attached it to her owl’s leg. It soared into the sky, quickly becoming a mere speck in the evening sky.
*****
Loki’s cave was damp and full of mould. Light only just managed to squeeze through a nearby crack, lighting up the cave gently. The twin’s boots slurped through the mud. The whole cave smelt of gunpowder. George smiled, the smell reminded him of his bedroom.
“Hey look!” Fred spotted something. George trudged over.
It was a large pillar-like stone that was covered in an acidic liquid. At its foot was a coil of rope half-dissolved. A snakeskin lay nearby.
“Aha!” cried Loki’s voice through the cave. “You’ve spotted my hell-hole for the past one thousand years. Now, why don’t you hurry along to the back of my cave and come and meet me?”
“C’mon,” George beckoned. They had to complete their quest, or Ginny would never be free.
The cave quickly turned into a low tunnel. The twins had to crouch down low as they walked. The tunnel kept getting lower. Eventually, Fred and George had to crawl under the sinking roof. George hated the feeling of the two rock faces pressing against him. His arms and legs were cut by sharp points of rock. He especially hated the fact that it was so dark. Loki’s creepy laugh could be heard up ahead. It scared the twins.
Eventually, they slithered out of the dark tunnel and reached a tiny, lit cavern. The twins could only just fit inside it. On the left was a large oak door, and on the right was a small beech door.
Fred looked at his dirty, wet clothes and laughed weakly.
“Mum’s going to kill us when we get home!” he chuckled. “She’s forever complaining about how long the washing takes!”
George smiled, and looked around the room, “I don’t think Loki’s in here.”
“Yeah, I kind of guessed that,” Fred rolled his eyes.
“I think we have to go through these doors,” said George.
Fred nodded. Loki’s amused voice bounced off the walls again from his unseen location.
“Ah, I see you’ve reached my doors. Now, both passageways have to be used to reach me, so each of you gets your own separate tunnel! How nice. One of my lovely tunnels goes straight through to my inner sanctum, while the other one contains a nasty surprise! But don’t worry, that also leads to my inner sanctum but in a more humorous way.”
Loki burst into laughter. Fred and George looked at each other uneasily.
“Erm…I’ll let you pick,” offered George.
“OK, I’ll have… the one on the left,” announced Fred.
“Right, right it is then!” said George, giggling at the pun.
Fred opened the oak door. “See you on the other side,” he winked, and slipped into the passageway. George was alone.
Nervously, he opened the beech door. It was pitch black and very cramped. George tried to use the Lumos spell, but his wand still didn’t work. Glad that he didn’t have claustrophobia, George walked into the passageway.
The door slammed behind him. George was now in total darkness. Timidly, he felt along the rock face, trying to distinguish which direction he was going in. Up ahead, some water dripped slowly and rhythmically, causing his insides to turn violently. George wished Fred were with him.
His footsteps were slow, but as he took another step forward the ground gave way. George screamed! He scrambled around the edge of the pit trying to find a hand hole, but the edge was sliding too! With another piercing scream, George began falling among the cascade of rocks. He curled up in a tight ball, feeling the air around him rush upwards.
“Help!” he managed to cry out. Then he hit the ground and blacked out.
*****
George didn’t know how long he was out for, but when he woke up, it was still pitch black.
Where am I? he thought, trying to guess his location. Then he remembered. He was in Norway, looking for Loki…
“Loki!” he yelled. “What are you playing at?”
His cry was answered by a distant giggle. Loki was enjoying himself.
Angry, George tried to get up, but he couldn’t. He tried moving his arms and legs, but they were weighed down by something. It only took a few seconds to realise that he was sinking.
“Help!” George gurgled, as the slimy muck slid over his head. He felt a strange oozing sensation, then he fell.
George’s back shuddered against the frosty stone floor. Beside him, he heard Fred laugh.
“The look on your face! It was hilarious!”
Warmth flooded into him like a hot bath. George sat up. They were in a lavishly furnished grotto not unlike Fudge’s hotel. George had sadly missed the rug by a metre, but Fred was sitting on a carved chair. He was covered in feathers.
The twins looked at each other, and bust out laughing.
“Did you get into a fight with a giant chicken?” snorted George.
“Yeah actually, I did!” chuckled Fred.
They kept laughing until someone else started laughing. Loki.
Fred and George turned around and, for the first time, they saw him.
Loki looked like a thirteen-year-old boy trying to look older. He had sharp eyes and a handsome round face. His hair was a golden colour mixed with red and he had a little pointed beard at the end of his chin. He was dressed in Viking peasant clothing and leather shoes.
Fred and George stared at him for a while, before once again bursting into fits of giggles.
“What’s so funny?” asked Loki, smiling. “I like a good joke.”
“You look like a Billy goat!” Fred was shaking with laughter.
“Oh do I?” Loki sneered and snapped his fingers. A sudden bright light engulfed Fred. George had to squint to see what was happening. The light faded and…
“Fred, you’re a goat!” George gasped in awe.
“Baa!” said Fred, who was now a handsome ginger goat with small horns. A bundle of clothes lay at his feet.
Loki chuckled, “Now you know what you’re dealing with. Now, how can I help you?”
George pulled out Dumbledore’s note. He had forgotten about it all this time, and hoped Loki was in a bargaining mood.
“Well, it’s your amulet.”
“Aha, what about it?” Loki asked casually.
“It kind of…well, trapped my sister in a coma and we can’t get it off her.” blurted out George.
“Hmm, I see,” Loki sat down, “and why should I let your sister go?”
“I have a note, but…”
“What note?”
George looked down. The note was no longer in his hand. Looking up, he saw the piece of parchment disappear into Fred’s mouth.
“Fred no!” yelled George.
“Baa!” protested Fred.
“Oh dear,” Loki giggled, “well, that’s that plan of yours gone.”
George groaned, wondering what he should do now.
“I could let your sister go,” mused Loki, “but only if you make a bet with me.”
“Baa?” asked Fred.
“Let’s here it, then,” said George. Bets were always fun.
“I want four people… four saviours… that will take part in five challenges,” Loki explained. “At the end of each challenge there will be a piece of paper that tells the saviours where the next challenge is. When, or if, they get to the end of challenge five, they must say a certain key word. If the word is correct, then I’ll free your sister. If they don’t, she’ll stay asleep for all eternity. Does that sound fair?”
George smiled, “Let’s make this more interesting.”
“Baa,” agreed Fred.
“If these four saviours lose, then Fred and I’ll be your minions for ever,” put forward George. “If they win, you destroy the amulet.”
“Baa!” prompted Fred.
“Oh, and change Fred back too,” added George.
Loki nodded, “Fine, I’ll add that.”
“Good,” said George, smiling.
Loki snapped his fingers again. A long piece of parchment appeared before them. Fred sniffed at it but didn’t try to eat it.
The terms and conditions, it said.
-One: All four saviours must be virgins.
-Two: The saviours must consist of at least one pure blood, one half blood and one -muggle-born.
-Three: They will be a time period of three weeks.
-Four: At least one member of the saviours must read the location paper.
-Five: No magical aids (with the exception of wands) may be used.
-Six: If the four saviours fail any of the tasks, Fred and George Weasley will be minions of Loki for eternity and Ginevra Weasley will remain asleep.
-Seven: If the four saviours complete all the tasks, Ginevra Weasley will awake, Loki’s amulet will be destroyed and Fred Weasley will be returned to human form.
“Understand them?” asked Loki, snapping his fingers. Two dotted lines appeared underneath the list. Loki’s loopy signature was already there. A quill hovered over George’s head.
“Sign here,” said Loki, pointing on the parchment. George scratched on his signature, while Fred printed a mucky paw. The deal was sealed.