Harry Potter: The Invincible Stag
Chapter 149: The Treasure Chamber

Disclaimer:

Harry Potter and all of its characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

I own nothing but the original characters I make.

"Dialogue"

'Thoughts'

-Author notes-

Chapter 149: The Treasure Chamber

The potion that James had thrown continued to work after dissolving the white door. It corroded the stone wall and floor, with no sign of stopping any time soon.

James, in his silver stag form, had to jump over a large gap to avoid touching the stuff. If just a tiny bit of it were to touch any part of his body, he would die in seconds.

Just as he was landing on the other side of the door, the platform they had been standing on moments before let out a loud, cracking sound as it began to fall apart.

"Did you see that?! The platform went down," Andromeda exclaimed.

"We barely made th—ahhh!" Whatever Bella was about to say was interrupted when she fell to the floor.

James had ended his transformation all of a sudden, and the two girls lost the large stag back where they had been sitting.

"Ouch!" Andromeda complained. "A warning, maybe?…" she huffed to him.

Bella rubbed her butt. This was like the third time she fell on top of it and it was starting to get sore. She wanted to complain to James as well, but then she saw something concerning behind them.

The corrosive liquid was not stopping. After eating the door, wall, and making the platform collapse, it continued to eat away anything that came into contact with it.

"James… why is it still corroding everything? Is it not going to stop?"

They were now in a large chamber, much better than where they were before, but if that didn't stop… they were going to run out of room very soon.

James looked behind them. "It will stop… eventually. But just in case, we should hurry to get the treasure and leave this place. I'm more worried about the entire tomb crumbling down, rather than the solvent itself."

"Oh, that's right! Where is the treasure? Please don't tell me there are more traps…" Andromeda said.

James pointed at a large arch at the end of the room. "Let's go check it out. Stay behind me."

"By the way… are we not going to talk about you turning into a white deer?" Bella commented.

"A silver stag…" James corrected her.

"So, James is an Animagus, huh? I bet you're not registered," Andromeda added.

"I would appreciate it if you don't mention this to anyone. And no, I'm not registered," James said.

"We won't say anything, I promise." Bella knew how much trouble an unregistered Animagus could have if the Ministry found out. Worst-case scenario, James could end up in Azkaban.

"You can rest at ease," Andromeda told him. "If there is something we've learned in our family, it's how to keep secrets."

James nodded. "Thanks." Not that he had much choice but to trust them.

"It was very beautiful, though…" Bella muttered.

"Mmm?" Andromeda threw a glance her way.

Bella suddenly realized that she had said that out loud. "I-I mean the stag… it didn't look like a normal one. I didn't think there were silver ones."

James shrugged. "It's a magical creature. I still don't know which one, though." He made a gesture before turning around. "Now, come on. It's getting late, so let's find this treasure."

"I can agree with that," Andromeda said. "I'm in dire need of a bath and something to eat."

James moved ahead, wand in hand, checking for anything that looked suspicious.

"Luminas."

The room beyond the arch was completely dark, just like the rest of the tomb, so he sent several orbs of light to illuminate the area.

They crossed the entrance and were shocked when they saw what lay before them.

"Whoa!" Andromeda exclaimed.

"I think we found the treasure…" Bella muttered.

Before them was another chamber, even larger than the previous one, this one had a pyramidal shape, with the top becoming a narrow tip.

At the very center of the chamber was a coffin made of a smooth white stone, similar to the one used for the door that led them here.

All sorts of markings had been engraved on the tomb, and it was also filled with complex decorations made of pure gold.

"How ostentatious…" Andromeda commented. "And kinda tacky."

"This is the resting place of the wizard that was known as Kilgharrah the Cruel. A nasty piece of work that lived during the times of Merlin the Great and King Arthur the Brave." James looked around. "He must also have been very fond of gold…"

There were coffers filled with gold coins all over the chamber, as well as many other pieces of jewelry and precious stones, resting on top of shelves or even on the ground.

Kilgharrah the Cruel had accumulated immense wealth over his lifetime. And before his death, he had commanded his followers to build this place and bring it all here, so it would remain with him after he passed away.

"You can look around, but don't touch anything before checking for curses." James looked at Andromeda. "Can you do that?"

"Of course!" she said with confidence before taking off to find something for herself.

"You still haven't told us what you are looking for in here?" She knew that James was only here for one thing in particular and had little interest in the rest of the treasure.

"What I'm looking for…" James' eyes were scanning everything in the chamber as he spoke.

There were great riches in the room, but what he wanted was not made of gold, nor silver, or any precious metal. It was not a treasure in the conventional way.

His eyes then moved to the tomb itself. "What I want is probably in there." He did not find anything resembling what he wanted on the shelves or laying on the ground.

And if Kilgharrah had any idea about its real value, he would not have wanted to leave it with the rest of the treasure—he would have wanted it to be at his side… inside his tomb, along with him.

"Wait… you are going to open the coffin?" Bella wasn't sure if that was something she wanted to see.

That body must have been there for over a millennium. The smell alone might kill her.

But James was not deterred by something like this. He approached the coffin with an expression of determination.

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