Snake & Spider - 5

Concentrating intently to control the panicked snake, he led the spider as far away from them as it could possibly go when a thought suddenly occurred to him. He'd used the Basilisk to destroy the diary, the dragon to destroy the cup, and the Inferi to destroy the locket. Perhaps this spider could be used to destroy the tiara.

He stopped moving the snake away from the angry spider, leaving it dangling in the air, furiously writhing.

The spider reached out with its tentacles, snatching the snake and bringing it toward its mouth. The snake hissed and fought to get away, but it was powerless. The spider bit down on the snake's middle and a blinding light filled the ice castle.

An ominous rumble echoed around the chamber as a web of cracks began to appear in the ice, spreading and moving around the entire structure. The rumble built into a crescendo and the entire place shook under the tremendous roar. Large chunks of ice began falling from the ceiling, shattering as they hit the floor.

The snake transformed back into a tiara, and the spider carelessly tossed it aside, no longer interested. It tried to scurry away from the cracking ice, but in its haste struck a crumbling wall. The wall buckled and crashed around it, raining heavy chunks of ice onto the creature, crushing it.

Harry ran toward his friends, using his own body to cover them. He strengthened the shield around them, completely blocking them from the falling debris until the structure had entirely collapsed.

"Is it dead?" Ron asked, breathing heavily as he grimaced at the legs of the spider, poking out from the pile of ice.

"I think so," Harry said, pulling himself up and hurrying toward Ginny. He gently put his hand on her head, brushing her hair back. Angry purple bruises showed starkly on her pale skin where the snake had tightly gripped. The red streaks marring her skin had reached her neck, and were moving toward her shoulders and back.

Harry scooped Ginny into his arms, cradling her body tightly against his chest. His sore shoulder screamed in protest, and he could barely breathe through the pain in his ribs, but he only dimly registered it.

"We have to get her back to the castle. This place is utterly destroyed; I don't think it can return us," he said in a voice that didn't sound like his own.

"That was some powerful shield, Harry," Hermione said, stunned. She still hadn't risen from her seated position on the floor.

Something in her voice made him glance sharply at her face, but he couldn't read her indecipherable expression. Could it be fear that he saw in her eyes? He didn't know, and he didn't have time to think about it just then.

Nothing mattered at the moment but Ginny.

"Ron, get the tiara," Hermione said, pulling herself together. She pointed at the discarded piece of jewelry sitting harmlessly in the ice.

"How are we going to get back?" Ron asked, trotting over to the tiara and scooping it into his hands.

Still cradling Ginny, Harry lifted a jagged piece of ice from the ground. His ribs throbbed from the movement, causing him to gasp.

"This worked when we got the cup, I don't see why it won't work again," he muttered, transfiguring the shard of ice into a broomstick and handing it to Ron.

"Good idea," Ron said grimly, his eyes glued on Ginny's still body.

Harry lifted another piece of ice and repeated the spell. He lifted his sore leg over the broom, holding Ginny tightly in front of him.