Ask and Receive PV Finished

There was absolutely nothing to stop the flow of excitement when Max saw Eris pull out her wand and grin. Even as messed up with his obsession as he was, he still felt like he was a good judge of character - and with how angry Eris had looked earlier, she seemed to need to blow off some steam. There probably wasn't a much better way to blow off steam than to stab something with a wand. Or really, just to stab something. Forgoing the thought of how many points they'd lose if they were caught, Max drew back his arm.

And paused as a sigh came out of the shadows. It took every ounce of self control he had not to jump, and even then the way he spun around was jerky enough to show that he'd been startled. Paranoia - that was another part of obsession. That someone would figure stuff out before you did, though when Max saw who it was who'd stepped out of the shadows the tension within him eased a bit. The Latin words were unfamiliar, but he knew Dorian had a love for languages so they were most likely the right ones. Eris spoke next, and Max was about to give her the low-down on how Dorian had a penchant for getting himself into trouble (particularly at night) when several things seemed to happen all at once.

First, Dorian's words made the man in the painting shift and Max actually jumped - leaped in the air like a cat more like, eyes going round as saucers. Second, while his attention was being taken by something else, Dorian somehow ended up drenched in water. If it were anyone else in the entire world, Max would be surprised, but he couldn't manage to bring that particular emotion up in this instance. The third and final thing...

It opened. The ugly headmaster looked annoyed and underwhelmed at the students who'd found him and figured out the password, but the passageway bloody opened.

Max's jaw dropped and he stared dazedly for a second, head whipping between Eris, Dorian, and the passage to see if this was real or if the other two were seeing this as well. Then, in a rare show of completely unbridled emotion, Max whooped in triumph. "We bloody did it! We - guys, we opened the - Ha!" Before peering into the passage, he grabbed the edge of the painting and leaned into the man's face. "What do you think of that, Scrimgeour? Huh? Gonna look at us all sneery again, you daft smear of colours? Who's laughing now, motherf - "

He paused, suddenly becoming aware of the fact that they were a bunch of students out past curfew and that yelling could get them in trouble. He coughed discreetly into his fist, sinking back down from where he'd been on his toes and arranging his features into an expression of calm neutrality. "I. Uh. I mean. Good job, all." He should really probably introduce Eris and Dorian, though he had a feeling his friend already knew who Eris was so it was really only getting the Prefect caught up. He should also ask why Dorian was there and how he'd ended up completely soaked. Should, but he was too impatient.

"We'd better get in the passage and hide before a professor comes and finds us. Do either of you know Lumos?"

Dorian snorted a little at Eris' comment, thinking it to be a silly notion. He wasn't stalking them per se, and if asked he would assert that he'd been there the entire time, just unnoticed by the others. That made complete sense in his head. With how satisfied he was with himself at the sight of the man in the painting scowling at him before the portrait swung open, his shock at suddenly finding himself soaked from head to toe became more distinct. It was so unexpected that even moments after it happened he stood there absolutely stunned, wondering why all of a sudden. "What the actual..." He stared incredulously at the offending bucket that was now rolling away slowly as if creeping away from his retaliation.

The boy whipped his head around the room, looking for...something, or someone. These things kept happening to him as of late, and for the life of him, he was hardpressed to figure out what or who was behind it. The dirty soapy water dripped through his hair, down his face, and soaked his clothes. No doubt the water in the bucket had been used to clean the many trophies in the room. It was safe to say at this point that Dorian's earlier mood had taken a one-eighty, turning from arrogance to indignation with little to no show of visible transition. The entire time Dorian was having his mini episode Max had been busy vaunting at the man in the painting. A glare was leveled at Max. "This is all your fault for making me interested in this whole adventure thing." Irrationality at its finest.

He wasn't really upset with the other boy, just angry at the situation. One of these days he would have to put aside some time and effort into finding whoever was out to get him. Someone was clearly not his biggest fan, and he promised to rain down unholy vengeance, unlike anything they had ever witnessed. The soapy water was now trying to get into his eyes, and Dorian did the first thing that came to mind. He removed his partly soaked shirt and used it to dry his wet hair and wipe his face. He then bundled the thing into a ball and hugged it under an arm, where it would remain until he got back to the boy's dorm to take a shower and get a change of clothes.

At Max's question about whether any of them knew Lumos, Dorian drew his wand and strode forward into the dark tunnel, daring anything that might be a resident of the place to come at him. A trail of water was being left behind as he went forward, which, when paired with the toppled bucket, would give away the fact that they had been here. Even after they went through the tunnel, anyone who came to the trophy room would be able to see the signs. This was of little consequence, however, as they would be long gone by then. Dorian returned from the darkness after about a minute, his frown no longer evident. "Well we may not know how to cast Lumos, but the tunnel seems to be clear enough for us to walk through if we're really careful." He waved his arm in a gesture telling them to 'come on'. They were wasting precious time.

His earlier embarrassment all but forgotten, the prospect of this adventure returned and he couldn't help but feel a kind of childish glee at what they might find at the end of their journey. As it was, they were stumbling around slowly in the dark, Dorian in front with his wand in his right hand, his left hand feeling ahead and his removed shirt resting on his shoulder. As if by an afterthought, he snapped his finger in the otherwise still silence, a sharp sound that might startle the unwary. "Oh! I almost forgot. One or two big spiders may or may not have crawled up my arm when I first came in here to check. Just a heads up in case they aren't the only things that live in here." He laughed softly, aiming to spook them if any of the two had any fears that resided in the dark. The list of things that scared Dorian was small, but the list existed. Not that he would ever tell anyone.

A sharp gasp escaped Eris's lips, as she turned away from the boy to glimpse the painting finally begin to move. The man in the painting still looked unimpressed, like somebody's rather angry grandfather. There was a splashing noise from behind Eris, and she chanced a look away from the painting to see the new boy covered in soapy water. Her startled demeanor faded away, as she stared at the boy with a look of utmost amusement and concern on her face.

The water covered the taller boy's hair, clothing, and his face. He looked angry, but yet the same intrigue that Max had plastered on his face was mirrored on the newcomer's shadowy face. The boy stated that his being covered in water was Max's fault, and Eris lifted an eyebrow, and couldn't help but grin. His logic made no sense, but of course, it was funny to hear out loud. It wouldn't be a gryffindor adventure without senseless bickering. Eris was past worrying about the drama of her house. Another thing to add to the list of reasons she wasn't a good prefect, not that she really cared about her prefect position. She was going to lose it anyways, after punching Eri in the face in front of Professor Matilda Barrows. Although, even though she tried to pretend not to care about being a prefect, she still felt butterflies in her stomach thinking about the day she would lose the prefect position.

Shoving aside her anxieties and willing herself to drag her attention away from the brown haired boy, Eris caught the painting swing open, to reveal a passage shrouded in darkness. Eris felt a rush of excitement course through her body, along with white hot fear. The passage was real, but it was pitch black. Who knew what could of been crawling around in the darkness? Maybe Voldemort himself was in there, having survived or something crazy. The possibilities were endless. Eris had feeling it wouldn't be very easy to get to whatever was hidden in the passage, considering the lengths they had already gone to just to open the passage up.

Max cheered out loud, and Eris let him, forgetting about the need to be quiet, as it was the middle of the night. He deserved to celebrate. The boy had been here long before Eris had arrived, glowering at the painting, and the gleam in his eyes spoke of obsession, as did the way he explained the story of how he had found the poem and the passage. He clearly cared a lot for the passage, and whatever was hidden in it. There still seemed to be something he was hiding about the painting and the secret enclosed inside of the passage. More that he knew and wasn't telling Eris, although the little girl didn't really mind. She would find out in due time. Especially if they were going on an adventure together.

Blinking twice in rapid succession to make sure that she wasn't having a joint hallucination with Max, Eris stared at the open passage. So this was it. The passage was real, and they had found it. Max had found it, and let Eris and the boy help him on his quest to open up the passage. And now, it was time to find what the passage led too.

Allowing Max to mock the painting and jeer at it with the audacious behavior that only a 12 year old boy could posses , Eris took a step closer to the passage. Running a hand over the painting, which now hung limply to the side, Eris was keenly aware of the man scowling at her, as she retreated her hand and peered into the black abyss in front of her.

Grateful for the company of the two boys, however pig-headed they might turn out to be in the future, Eris's earlier worry slowly faded away to childlike excitement over solving a mystery and possibly making friends out of it. She needed more people to talk too in her own house. The only friends Eris had made so far were Ravenclaws, and Ravenclaws sucked at keeping friendships. Adam and Eri were living proof of that simple fact. Ravenclaws were horrid at upholding friendships, or even making them.

Eris had to agree with Max. The sooner they got into the passage, and away from the prying eyes of the professors, the sooner they could really start the adventure. Eris didn't know lumos, although she had seen some of the hufflepuffs in the school use it. Before Eris could say she knew how to cast a weak light from her wand, the brown haired boy had vanished into the darkness of the passage.

Curiosity and worry warring inside of her, Eris took a step into the inky blackness. The boy came back out, telling them it was safe to go into the blackness of the tunnel. Eris, feeling excitement coursing through her whole body, took another step into the passage. Wand still in her hand, the red head found herself in the darkness. It wasn't that bad, but when Dorian mentioned spiders, Eris recoiled audibility, falling into the side of the small passage with a thud.

She quickly pulled away from the side of the wall, wrapping her arms around her chest. Not exactly afraid of spiders, Eris still wasn't a big fan of them. Seeing the boy wasn't scared, Eris quickly lowered one of her hands, the one carrying the wand, to her side. She was a Gryffindor after all, and would have to act like one, in front of her fellow house mates. As a prefect, she would have to act brave.

Waiting for Max to come into the passage, Eris cleared her throat. "Don't you think it will get dark again once we close the passage, again? I mean, I assume we're closing the passage. Wouldn't want a professor or an actually smart prefect to find us." Eris giggled at her own words, looking away from Dorian to see if Max would follow them.

Naturally, Dorian would blame him for a situation that was far beyond his control despite the fact that he was allowing the boy on this adventure. Allowing, because that was what he was doing for Dorian and Eris. He'd done ninety-nine percent of the leg work to get them here; one day later and he could've done some research to find the answer by himself.

He rolled his eyes at Eris only to find her checking out the passage with the same kind of interest in her eyes that had made him think she'd be a good adventurer in the first place. That mixed with how willing she'd been to destroy the painting - and that mixed with everything he knew about Dorian - suddenly made him realize that they were the last people on earth who should have immortality. He didn't know about the other two, but if he was immortal he was pretty sure a ton of people would decide to launch themselves into space to get off an earth he couldn't die on. The thought was wickedly amusing.

The only thing that wasn't so amusing was the fact that no one knew the spell to light up the inky black void. Dorian went marching in with a confidence that was probably warranted since there couldn't be anything that dangerous in the castle, but Max narrowed his eyes cautiously. He alone knew who had made the poem and where it had come from. Though it would be exceptionally odd for one of his ancestors to write a riddle that lead a future family member into a trap, he wouldn't put it past an Avery. The irony of getting killed from a man beyond the grave while searching for a way to stop death would be tantalizing to someone with a sick sense of humour.

"Never careful, are you?" he muttered under his breath, flipping his wand across his knuckles as Dorian popped back out of the tunnel and made a judgement that made no sense if he'd never walked the full length of the passage. Unfortunately, it seemed like he was the only one who was careful - even Eris was going to go in and risk breaking her neck. Holding up his finger in the universal 'one minute' sign, he marched over to the wall and reached up to take hold of one of the ancient candle holders. Setting one foot against the wall, he gave it a good yank and nearly set himself on fire when it came out of the wall in a shower of dust that made him cough for a good moment or two.

Spitting grit from his mouth and muttering obscenities as he patted the dust from his robes, he awkwardly held the candelabra by the metal plate attached to the back and made his way back over to the tunnel, faintly hearing a comment about spiders. That was actually a good sign; living things meant the tunnel wasn't poisoned and there would be oxygen if they shut the painting behind them. Besides, spiders were the least of things one should be concerned with in the dark. Max's mind could certainly conjure up enough that he might've gone back to bed and hid under his covers if they didn't have light from the candles.

"This should take care of that particular problem," he told Eris, casually flipping off the painting one last time before stepping into the passage. Tucking his wand into his robe for the moment, he pulled Brutus Scrimgeour shut behind them with a finality that said they'd probably all die. Or one of them would survive subsiding on spiders and the bodies of the other two. With a sigh, he held up the candles until they lit his face in an eerie orange glow, shrugging. "The fact that you're here in this mystery proves that you're a smart prefect. Either that or you're the dumbest prefect to ever exist. Depends on whether this ends in death or immortality."

With a snicker, he ran ahead to grab Dorian before the other kid walked over a cliff and broke his neck, holding the light high above to cast weird shadows on the passage. The passage was damp and full of cobwebs like no one had cleaned it out in years. Forgoing all decor for functionality, it appeared like the passage was made for quick trips to wherever it ended instead of loitering.

"Stairs," he said helpfully when they suddenly came into view just ahead of his light. Maybe not enough warning for Dorian not to bang his shins all to hell if he kept up that 'follow the leader' crap, but at least enough time so that he himself could stop to avoid that embarrassment. They were narrow, stone things that led upwards into yet more black and would probably kill everyone if there was no light.

"By the way," he called conversationally, blanking his face so it showed none of his excitement and fear. "Have you two met? Eris, this is Dorian. Dorian, Eris. "

Blissfully oblivious to everything that was happening behind him, he strutted ahead with as much speed and confidence as the dark would allow. That was to say, he stumbled over his own feet every so often and he was moving little faster than a snail on drugs. In essence, this was going better than he expected. He hadn't yet fallen on his face and broken something on his person, nor had he encountered...say the grim reaper or his cousin in the gloom. He couldn't see a thing. But as was his wont, Dorian was unwilling to admit to his own failings, especially in front of the others. What would they think if his bravado suddenly waned into a fearful modesty? Not a chance.

A few more tentative steps ahead saw the toe of his right shoe colliding into something elevated ahead, and his unhindered forward momentum carrying his body down in an awkward slant that might have seen him fall and smash his nose against hard pavement had it not been for Max and his quick reflexes. Dorian managed to right himself and come out of the trivial ordeal relatively unscathed, only suffering a slight scuff to the toe of his shoe. "Oh...! I had that completely handled just now," he boasted bombastically with his nose in the air. Then a less haughty alter-ego claimed his tongue, causing him to mouth a soft, genuine "thanks" to Max for catching him before he had fallen.

Realizing the error of his ways, he mentally berated himself for making a fool in front of the boy again, the other becoming more and more of a figure in Dorian's life that he wanted to please for some odd reason. Was this what they called hero worship? Or was it sycophancy? There was no clear reason that he could decide as to why he felt this way, but he admired the boy and his steadfast character, his sureness in both words and actions, and his razor-sharp wit. He spoke none of this and tried his best to keep it hidden, uncertain of just how deep this idée fixe ran.

At Max's introduction of him to Eris and vice versa, Dorian rolled his eyes in the dark before turning an amused look toward the girl. "We've met." Of course he meant their encounter in the common room where they had all enjoyed a game of wizard's chess, talked about things that would have otherwise been better off remaining secrets, and the sort. "Head over heels in love with me; this one. Can't tear her eyes away for a proper minute. She even has this awesome nickname for me. Hulk Smash" he inflected tauntingly as he shot her a look as if to say 'yes I went there!' At the risk of getting pummeled by the girl that might have an even shorter fuse than he did, Dorian took a few preemptive strides away from her and ascended the first two steps then paused.

Looking back at Max who had an unwieldy grip on the candelabra, Dorian took a few silent seconds to consider his position. Either he could take the thing from Max and lead the quest ahead as had been his initial intent, wanting to prove something that no one had asked him to prove, or he could allow Max who was essentially the architect behind this entire adventure to take the reigns and lead them forward. He had a better grasp of the concept behind secret tunnels and the secrets they may hold; a protean thinker through and through. Dorian, on the other hand, was too erratic and would sooner lead them to their demise than to the coveted immortality that they sought. Naturally, he elected Max to take the lead, all while making it sound as if it was some brilliant plan he had devised.

"I say Max should take the lead. He uhh... has the only source of light and seems to know more about dark, scary places than we do. Not to mention this was his idea, to begin with." What he neglected to mention, a thought that had gotten as far as the tip of his tongue, was that it would be better for Max to be the first one to exit the tunnel in case one of the less tolerant professors they had in the school; and those were many, was to be waiting for them at the end of this hunt rather than what they wanted to find. Max was his friend, but better him than Dorian who already had more than enough detentions to serve as it was. He descended the stairs again and made his way over to stand next to Eris, giving Max a light but effective push towards the stairs. "Lead the way bossman."

Max finally stepped into the passage, and Eris breathed a sigh of relief as he carried a torch into the darkness with him. The light was not strong, but it cast an eerie glow off the grimy walls of the passage. Still terrified of the spiders, Eris affixed herself to the middle of the passage and smiled gratefully at the taller boy, basking in the light from the candelabra. Already small, she hunched her shoulders, trying to make herself even smaller. It was a vain attempt, but one all the same. It was better than nothing. Any protection against the vile creatures known as spiders was a worthy endeavor, no matter how stupid it looked.

Eris had already had the pleasure of endearing one bad experience with spiders, living on the streets of London. She had woken up to a big one sitting on her face, and since then, had made an effort to stay away from the 8 legged freaks that had no regard for personal space, whatsoever. The sheer, undiluted terror of seeing something black crawling on your face and tickling your cheeks was something that Eris was not keen on forgetting about, nor was she keen on repeating that experience.

Snapping out of her thoughts, Eris smirked at Max, the image of an uncaring Gryffindor, unworried at the prospect of death. It was a rouse, of course. Eris's heart was beating, and she was vainly resisting the urge to cling onto Dorian's robes like a small child. "I doubt we're going to die. There would be no point in that. This dude would have to be pretty insane if he decided to make a death trap in a school for children." Her words made Eris feel a bit better, as she tried to find the truth in them. Who would want to kill children? The man in the painting, however terrifying, didn't look like the child killing type. Before Max could say anything in reply, he took off into the darkness of the passage. Eris stood there, puzzled for a moment, before remembering the other boy. Dorian. Of course he had gone ahead. Typical Dorian.

Eris watched Max rush forwards towards Dorian, amusement and terror warring in her head. It was so typical of Dorian to attempt to be the hero, to find things first. But unlike his charades at school, this was actually dangerous. Any of the three of them could get hurt or even expelled for their midnight adventure. Suddenly alone at the back of the passage with menacing thoughts to keep her company, Eris took one last look back at where the entrance of the passage was, and hurried off after the dim light of Max's ghostly candelabra.

Dorian seemed to have run into a stairway of sorts, and was now denying that he had even needed help seeing in the murky darkness that he had been immersed in before Max had showed up with his candle. The claim was absurd enough that Eris rolled her eyes. Unless he could see in the dark, it was highly unlikely that Dorian knew what he was doing. Oh lord have mercy on her soul. This whole adventure was going to be a fanciful show of wits and courage between the two boys in front of her. Eris could already sense the truth of that claim. The question was which one of the two boys would manage to be more pig headed during the course of the night.

So far, her money was on Dorian. Eris let out an indignant gasp at Dorian's words, rolling her eyes again. It was possible her eyes were going to be stuck half-roll when the night was over, if Max and Dorian acted so obnoxiously for the rest of the night. Although, Eris had to admit, she was enjoying herself more than she had in ages. For the first time in a long while, she was exempt from worrisome thoughts about ravenclaw pricks.

Faint blush marring her cheeks, Eris had to think of something to say in response to Dorian, that wouldn't come off as insane. Talking to other kids her age was new to her, as was teasing between friends. "Oh please, you were the one in love with me. In fact, you still owe me for saving from Aubren's pillow attacks." Eris laughed, content in her words, watching Dorian tread up the first two steps of the shadowy staircase.

Looking back at Max, cocking an eyebrow in silent question of what to do next, Eris frowned, contemplating to herself. She figured that Max would be the leader of the expedition, considering it was him who had found the book that had started all of this, and he who had cracked the riddle in the first place. What they did next was up to him, then Dorian stated what she was thinking, and stepped down from the stairs to stand next to Eris. Perhaps the two boys wouldn't spend the night being too pigheaded, or at least, maybe they wouldn't be too pigheaded.

Momentarily looking away from Max to grin at Dorian, Eris felt her heart beat rapidly. Oh well. If Max went first, he would have to deal with all the possible traps. Better him dying then Eris. Although, hopefully, nobody died. "Lead on, good sir," Eris said, then a second later added,, "but please don't lead us into something stupid. I value my life very much, I'll have you know."

If anyone were to read the minds of the three students, they'd probably crack up in laughter at the fact that all three were varying degrees of nervous and yet all three grinned it off with inane bravado. If no one else was going to admit that whatever was in the dark made them wary, Max supposed he may as well act just as apathetic about it. Though he'd certainly keep an eye out for any traps that could be set - if there was going to be any past the first few steps, they'd be later on to catch whoever came in unsuspecting. Lifting the candelabra higher, he arched a brow first at Dorian, then at Eris.

"Hm," he said, drawing it out skeptically as he glanced between the two of them. The only head-over-heels he was seeing was Dorian nearly tripping that way after charging off in the dark - he doubted either of them had a clue what being in love was really like. Mostly because, at eleven, he wasn't sure himself and it seemed like a much more adult thing than their age group could get. What was interesting, however, was that Eris already knew both Dorian and Aubren. If she knew the both of them and they all got along relatively well, he felt like he and Eris might be able to come out of this as friends. "Well, even if you don't love each other, I'm sure you're both liked by someone; you're both lovable. On the inside. Probably."

Stifling a laugh so it wouldn't echo in the corridor, Max felt a little better with them teasing each other. The energy in the air could be played off as mischief and adrenaline this way, instead of fear of whatever was out there or whoever might catch them. When he was pushed to take the lead by the other two, he even stepped forward with a sigh like this was the way it should've been all along. Though if he took some time to think it through, he'd realize that they'd most certainly given him the short end of the stick. You couldn't scramble back into the shadows when the person ahead of you got caught when you were the person ahead.

Internally sighing, he stared at the black the stairs led up to. Truly, he had no more idea about dark, scary places than either of them but the person with the light should lead. Holding the light up to his face so the shadows momentarily made him look like a skull, he widened his eyes and said in a comically foreboding voice: "Stay in the light. I can't protect you if you step outside of it." In other words, stick close because if something jumped out then he wanted them to have his back. It'd been a while since he'd trusted anyone enough to have his back... it was an odd feeling. Not altogether unpleasant, though.

Hefting the light as high as it could go, he took his wand out of his robes and held it in front of him as well. With the amount of spells he knew it was probably more useful as a stick to remove cobwebs than a defense mechanism, but it made him feel slightly better. He could always try to Periculum someone to death - just because it hadn't been done before, didn't mean it couldn't be done now.

Giving Eris and Dorian a small nod that he hoped looked self-assured, he started up the stairs. One at a time, the dull stone muting the sounds so that it had that nearly reverent silence of a tomb. He realized now that he might not have been able to do this alone after all. What waited at the end of this was something that had once belonged to a Death Eater... Goosebumps prickled along his arms under his robes and he pulled his arms slightly closer to his body in a more defensive position. He should tell his companions. They were all in this together for better or worse now, so they deserved to know what they were getting into.

"You should know," he began, trying to think of the proper way to phrase it in his mind. 'My relative who might've known Voldemort and almost certainly was a Death Eater wrote this' didn't sound proper, "the author of this book was - " He was so entrenched in his own thoughts that he almost didn't realize he'd reached the last step until it was too late. His breath caught in his throat as his foot sailed through the air, his heart rate shooting through the roof until it landed quite a bit lower than he'd anticipated.

Blinking rapidly and smoothing the shock of his face to hide how much it had shaken him, he stared at where the stairs had ended. A small platform made of the same stone as everything else, nothing remarkable about it save for a portion of the wall that looked wooden instead of gray. Holding his hand up to it, he could feel the faintest change in the air around it; it led somewhere out of this dank place. But if it led out, then that meant that they'd passed whatever they were supposed to be looking for. He turned with a frown, deciding that in these types of cases, democracy would have the best outcome.

"What do you guys think?" he asked, previous half-finished statement forgotten. "I think this'll come out somewhere in the school, but what we want is in here somewhere. There's no traps that we've found so it should be safe to explore in more depth. We could look for the fourth and third brick or see what's on the other side. I vote to stay and look, but I think we should all decide."

Dorian had visibly shuddered at the conjured memory of Aubren and her use of deadly force with a pillow. When he considered the reason why she had done it, he couldn't help the nervous smile that he wore as he looked at Eris through the corners of his eyes. Maybe he did owe her, but the question remained. What would an eleven-year-old girl ask of him that would make up for her 'saving' him from near death by a pillow? He didn't ask, nor did he care to find out, certain that if Eris got her way he would be carrying her around like a personal servant for the better part of the year. That is was girls like, isn't it? To be treated like royalty? Max's little comment didn't do much by way of calming Dorian's nerves.

So it was that without further ado he had gone through the motions of making the attempt at leading before deciding against it, instead choosing Max to lead. Not needing to be told twice to stay close to the light, Dorian inched forward until he was sure he was within a radius that was better fringed by the glow. He followed Max's lead and procured his own wand and held it at the ready, more than willing to defend himself with the decent amount of spells that he knew. He highly doubted there would be anything to act as an aggressor as they made their way ahead, but one could never be too careful in this school. Strange had become the new normal for all of them.

The journey was met with relative silence, the only sounds coming from the steps they took and the ragged heaving of exhaled breaths. Dorian took the time to cast uncertain glances all around the solid tunnel, assessing the structure with the bare minimum amount of interest while keeping pace. All he could see along the walls were more of the same. Stone the color of pitch, congealed green ooze, and eventual darkness. There was nothing out of the ordinary to be found, not that he expected to see any such thing. His thoughts were beginning to wander inwards when his eyes caught something a bit off about several of the stones to the left. There had been hardly any time to assess what was so strange given that their only source of light was so faint and in motion.

Lost in thought for the few short moments it took them to reach the zenith, he almost bumped into Max from behind, barely catching himself before the accident. He hadn't even heard a thing Max had said before. "Why are we stopping?" Having yet to notice, Dorian found himself being enlightened as to their current situation when Max spoke. When he mentioned the fourth and fifth brick, the fleeting image of what he had seen earlier came to mind. Uncertain of whether he would be leading them to a dead end, Dorian prayed for an encounter with serendipity as he animatedly made his suggestion. "I think I saw something earlier!" His voice echoed in the hollow tunnel, much louder than any of them would have liked. He snatched the candelabra from Max's hand, almost causing the thing to fall to the ground in the process, and ran back in the direction they had come from.

The others would either have to follow quickly down the short flight of stairs or be drenched in darkness. Whatever they decided Dorian would come to a halt some distance away, holding the light from the flames higher as he scanned the wall for...something. "Here it is. This is what I saw before." He was referring to a section of the brick wall that looked as if it had been scratched at by persistent claws. The mark was faint but distinct in the otherwise unkempt structure, and if one truly considered the state of affairs, they would take note of the evident lack of green slime surrounding a great portion of this wall. Whatever the case may be, the faint light from the fire was nowhere near enough to allow any real perusal. "We need a better source of light." Could it be that they would need to exit and reenter when they are better equipped? Dorian did not want to leave when he felt they might be so close.

FACILIS DESCENSUS AVERNI.

The causal bickering and teasing of youth was far from unusual, the teasing comments of Dorian and Eris were normal, as were the reactions of Max. They were familiar and welcome in the unfamiliar corridor. The comfort of familiarity eased the fear of the unknown weighing down on all four sides of the corridor, crushing in with the walls, and the fearful imagery of the stairway shrouded in darkness that loomed in front of the three, relatively, small figures of the first years. A forced smile plastered on her face, Eris focused on the familiar sensation of talking to her friends. Sure, Max wasn't a friend yet, but there were things you could do that simply had to lead to becoming friends. Going on a late night adventure through a hidden passage was, unavoidably and most certainly, one of those things that resulted in instantaneous friendship between a group of children. The more she focused on the words passed between the three children, the calmer Eris managed to feel, even though she was left in the darkness, only able to see through the faint light of the candle that was gripped in Max's hands.

It was questionable if Max had understood that Dorian and Eris were joking. From his expression, Eris gathered he didn't understand the joke, yet a strange sense of cockiness overwhelmed the girl. Maybe it was all the testosterone in the small corridor, yet she felt bolder by the moment. At least in her words, and actions. On the inside, the girl was a mess of anxiety, carefully avoiding the sides of the hallway, where the boys claimed that spiders dwelled, ready to sink their pincers into the bodies of small girls and, slightly, taller Gryffindor boys.

"Are you flirting with me, Max Avery? I'll have you know I'm lovable on the inside and out." Eris blurted out, letting the words ring through the hallway, echoing off the walls in . What exactly was flirting? Why had she said that? Oh well, people in books said things like that in response to whatever Max had just said. Not thinking much of her words, Eris stepped closer to the light as Max advised the other two children to do. She wanted to insist that she didn't need protection, not even from Max, but the retort fell short, as Eris looked around in the shadows. This was Max's journey, he knew best, thus he was best to protect Eris and Dorian, as much as she hated to admit the simple fact--she did need protection and Max was going to be the best at providing it. Not that she couldn't punch or kick her way out of any situation, but Max was more equipped to punch and kick out of this particular situation.

The flame flickered from the top of the candle, as Eris and Dorian both stepped closer to it's bright light. The girl relished the flicker of light, closing her eyes for a fraction of a second, as the flames flickered through her closed lids. After a second, the momentary bliss that the light brought forth was gone, and Eris opened her eyes again, eyes barely requiring a moment to readjust to the semi-darkness around her. It was hardly different than the darkness behind closed eyes, and with that in mind, the girl followed the two boys up the steps.

Her smaller feet made the climb harder, causing Eris to lag behind Max and Dorian, trailing further and further away from the light of the candle. Grumbling, the girl stopped walking to pull her wand out of it's spot where it resided in her robe pocket. Pulling it out, Eris remembered the spell that Serena had used in the Trophy Room, that she had been able to replicate. Lumos. She thought the word first, remembering it from recent classes, before casting it out loud. "Lumos"

The tip of her wand lit up with a faint light, not bright enough to show anything, but a light nonetheless. Fragments of conversation from up above floated through her ears, but just bits and pieces, nothing discernible to Eris until the two boys stopped at the end of the stairway. Eris climbed up, catching up them. In between pants, Eris moved the faint light from her wand around in a circle, illuminating the wall in front of them.

Able to hear the other boy's words for once, Eris nodded. "We need a whole sun in here. It's so dark."Pointing at her wand with her free hand, the girl stared at Dorian and Max curiously. "Can you guys try the spell?" She asked, eyes returning to stare at the wall in front of her. The fourth and fifth brick, where could they be? Would they ave to look at every brick on the wall, in an attempt to find the fourth and fifth? That would take all day.

Flirting? Max's rudimentary knowledge of the word consisted of what his mother did to get someone to do something she wanted. He could vaguely remember hearing his father say that she had been flirting, and it had involved touching someone's arm and laughing a very fake voice. He hadn't done that, had he? And anyways, he was pretty sure only girls could flirt because the image of a man slapping a woman's arm in the way his mother slapped a man's was a strange mental image indeed. He made a face, not able to think of any good answer - she was clearly making fun of him. Instead he shook his head to clear that very odd mental image and raised both brows at Dorian's exclamation. So much for anyone wanting to leave. He was really starting to love this little group.

Prepared to carefully descend back into the hall, Max let out an indignant sound when his candelabra was snatched and he was left in a rapidly blackening area. This wasn't the way he'd usually do things but he had no choice now; the bold side of him always seemed to be brought out when his friends rushed forwards with bullheaded determination, if only because he'd feel like crap if they got hurt and he sat it out on the sidelines. Plunging after Dorian (and nearly tripping over his own feet in the process), he managed to make it back into their pathetic puddle of light just in time to see Eris's wand light up.

"You did it!" he laughed, and for some reason, in that very moment, he felt like they might be friends. It hadn't been long but she was just as invested as him and Dorian, and she'd even done a spell that would make their adventure that much easier. They were the dream team immortal trio.

Leaning over both of his friend's shoulders, he squinted at the markings that didn't offer much in any of the pale light coming from either wand or candelabra. They needed more. He held his own wand out in front of him, glancing at Dorian and Eris with an expression that said 'can't hurt to try.' He'd read about this spell in a book before and he was fairly certain Professor Blackburn expected them to know it well before showing up to class for it. "Lumos," he muttered, careful not to concentrate too much because it could apparently blow up your wand. A small, wavery light bloomed at the tip of his wand, looking like a stray, dim moonbeam that he'd caught with a stick. It wasn't much, but if you combined it with Eris's and the candelabra then you got a much better picture of the situation.

This part of the hallway was definitely different from the others in terms of the stuff living on the walls - obviously something had once disturbed it and left a space where it wasn't as uniform as the rest of the place. Max reached out and rested his fingers against the dampness of the stone, tracing the outlines of the scratches lightly with the very tips of them. This had been made for a purpose; it wasn't something that been caused by an off-the-cuff scuffle. He ran his fingers all the way down the length of the wall, keeping to the side so that the light could bathe it. Fourth and third brick. The scratches ran down the whole thing, which was approximately ten of those heavy stone bricks.

Ten... so they needed to destroy the fourth and third. It had said fourth and third, not third and fourth, so he'd be willing to bet any money that it meant from the top down instead of the bottom up. Stepping back, he lifted his wand so that it cast an unearthly glow to his face, lending him a pallor that made his eyes look sunken deep into his skull. "Destruction," he confirmed, nodding at the crack between the uneven fourth and third bricks from the top. This building was old and well built, but even it couldn't withstand the test of time. It looked like a few good hits with something hard could break the stone in that spot - it looked weak. "I think we have to break it, but not so much that we destroy whatever could be behind it. Any ideas?"