Set up in the room this time is something writhing and moving underneath a rather thick-looking tarp. Elsewhere were a few potted plants, including those vines seen last term... not that Seymour would know that. However, blank was the ceiling. No convenient bars or branches, just smooth stone. There were, however, odd circles of runes which seemed to surround the tarp. There were a few potted trees, admittedly, but there was no way that they could hold up a person. In fact, they looked rather like they'd come out of one of the greenhouses.

Drago Carracio strode in fairly swiftly and took careful position in the room. He indicated that as soon as the students entered the room, they should stay perfectly still. He moved them aside, positioning them carefully, then shut and magically sealed the door. Once that was done, he made the room go dark and dissolved the tarp... over a small field of devil's snare, with a venomous tentacula at the very heart of it. Also there was a plant that neither of them had seen before... The Bocca de Salazar.

Will walked in and came to a sudden stop as Caraccio indicated he should. He surveyed the room as Caraccio positioned him. Um... What in Merlin's sock drawer was this?

"Professor?" Will squeaked nervously, then cleared his throat. "Um... Professor Caraccio... What do we..." He trailed off, the question unasked, as he noticed Caraccio's expression. He'd never really noticed how... tall, dark and evil Professor Caraccio was before. School counselor and plant-nurturer, indeed. School executor was more like it in this lighting. Will gulped.

Seymour bounded into the Torture Chamber, beaming even brighter than before and coming to a sudden halt when the professor said to. It took all of his self-control not to start bouncing again; keep still? Seymour Addams? That was like asking a dragon to brush its' teeth three times a day. It just wasn't going to happen.

As the light went out in the room, he just couldn't contain himself any longer-- surely a little bit of bouncing wouldn't hurt? "Sire!" Seymour's disembodied voice squeaked, echoing around the room. "Sire, isn't this going to be great? Can you see anything yet, sire? I bet it's some sort of shadow creature lurking just behind us!" The excitement in his voice was quite obvious. 'Cos this was gonna be FUN.

"These are about the right conditions for your daring... rescue, Will. Let's start with the educational, as soon as your eyes adjust." He looked to Will. "Why don't you tell Seymour about the plants that you can see?"

Will sighed. Why had he gotten himself into this? At the very least, he should've made a deal to polyjuice and switch places with another student... Camira or something. Damnit.... Great idea, only a few minutes too late. He wondered if Caraccio would let him... Hey... An idea formed in Will's brain.

"Yes, sir, sir... I see devil's snare, venomous tentacula... I have NO idea what that plant in the middle is but it looks-- grouchy... the rest just look like benign shrubbery to me." He admitted.

"Sir? May I ever so briefly be excused to run to the loo before we start?" It was a brilliant plan... if he was allowed, he'd get Seymour to come with him. They'd JUST have time to slip down to potions and strike a deal with Camira or someone. It'd be worth stealing some polyjuice from the potions stores... it could still be done.

"Now, you should have considered that before you came in here, shouldn't you?" he drawled. "Running away, 'brave knight'? Continue your descriptions. After all, if he is as you say he is, how does he know what a devil's snare or venomous tentacula is?"

As Seymour's eyes adjusted to the darkness, he pushed his glasses back up the bridge of his nose; they had slipped when he had started bouncing. "A shrubbery, sire?" he asked, trying to stifle his laughs-- no, giggles. The names of the plants-- devil's snare, venomous tentacula, et cetera, didn't mean much to poor little ignorant Seymour, who hadn't a clue about the magical world of herbology.

And there went the professor again, trashing Will's reputation as the noble knight in shining armor he was. Wasn't that what got them here in the first place? "Just because he might have to go to the loo doesn't mean he's running away," he said acidly, shaking his head. Honestly. Hadn't the man seen him in the shining armor, returning from defeating the giant fanged flying puffskein?

Flobberworms. It had been worth a try.

"The devil's snare is a constrictor vine, thought to have originated in the magical wetlands of Borneo. You can tell it by the creepers -- it looks like a creeping vine, but it's tactile, which means it senses movement. If it gets half a chance to get near you, it'll wrap you up tighter 'n' a anaconda and kill you dead-- your best defense against it is going to be fire, or even light but fire is better. It's a marsh-based vine that relies on moisture, both in soil and ambient, to survive, so it shrinks away from heat and light.

The venomous tentacula, you can see over there," Will pointed. "It's a vine, too, but it's dark red and fanged. It's a constrictor, too, but because it's fanged and venomous it's like fighting a black mamba-- and the venom is twice as toxic and its primary mode of attack is to strike, not just constrict its victims. Here-- " he pressed a small vial into Seymour's hand. "That's the antivenin for venomous tentacula. Just in case... if it strikes you, drink that FAST." That much, he could do in preparation.

"That third plant... I dunno what that is. It looks like some sort of hybrid plant, a trap-style pod but it's different... In any case I'd presume that it's definitely dangerous. Maybe fatal to touch, even-- some plants secrete oils in their leaves that can kill on contact. So let's just stay away from that thing, shall we?" he said to Seymour. "I wouldn't discount the other plants either- they look like benign shrubbery but... well..." He looked to Caraccio. "I'm fairly willing to bet they aren't daisies, right sir?"

"That would be correct. Though, a few of those would be beneficial, if you remembered my vines lesson correctly." Ah, good on Will for deciding to bring antivenom. Well, that's one thing he shouldn't have to worry about, so long as Seymour hung onto the vial. "Two points to Slytherin, however, for an accurate description of the plants." Then, with a swift movement, he nudged Will under one of the circles in the ceiling... A Devil's Trap. A flick of his wrist brought his wand into hand and he turned, stepping around the other Devil's Traps and making sure he was a decent distance from both the first year child and the Devil's Snare. With that, he cast a levitating charm at the young student.

Seymour's eyes widened as Will explained what the plants were. "Neat." he whispered in awe, a huge grin spreading across his face. Constricting vines and venomous plants. What more could a first year ask for? Perhaps when you wished upon a star, your dreams did come true... unless it was a meteorite hurling towards the Earth that was going to destroy all life. But that was besides the point.

He looked at the vial he was given and back up at Will, beaming. You have just received a +15 health potion from the Knight in Shining Armor. Level up! "Thank you, sire!" he squeaked, slipping the potion into the pocket of his robes. His eyes drifted over to the third plant.

"I think it must be an Audrey II, sire," he said seriously, nodding. "Not to be trusted, even when it bursts out into song. It's out for world domination." Although... that would be sorta neat. Singing plants. Heh. While he was stuck in this fantasy, however, the professor sent a jet of light towards him. It was a trap, he knew it. He had lured them into the dungeons, where he was distracting them with these plants, but in reality he was actually going to release his army of the undead on them and tear them limb from limb.

But not on Seymour's watch.

He dodged the jet of light swiftly, in a movement that he considered to be quite smooth... until he fell, head-first, into the pit of Devil's Snare. Whups. The vines immediately began to move, wrapping around him in very, very tight ...hug. Awww. They meant no harm, right?

...Right?

"Audrey II! OF COURSE!" Will shouted, smacking his forehead. His paw-paw showed him that flick when they visited America... how could he have forgotten? Crap... they'd have to be on watch for any signs of dancing now... Their very lives may depend on their sense of rhythm and blues.

Just as he was contemplating that, Carracio pushed him under a circle of runes and cast against Seymour, who fell.. into the devil's snare? "Holy Hippogriffs! Will cursed. He clumsily pulled out his wand and cast. "Incendio!" The spell shot out of his wand and bounced back up against some unseen barrier, scorching his hand.

"Soup!" he cried out in frustration, nearly dropping his wand. Obviously he was in some sort of chamber that wouldn't allow him to cast out. He shouted to Seymour.

"Cast incendio!" Crap, there was no way this kid would know how to do that-- that was third year. "Get your wand, Seymour! And then DON'T MOVE, you'll just make it attack worse!"

"Oh good. I was just going to drop you in there anyhow." Though he didn't put his wand away. After all, if the students were to survive, he would need it. And always quickly. "Do you know where you're at, Billium? It's called a Devil's Trap. While in there, you are completely useless. Particularly in the dungeons, where you cannot blast through the floor or through the ceiling without killing yourself. I do hope you're cozy in there." He looked over at Seymour. Yes, he still had a bit of time to talk. After all, he was going to drop the boy in deeper. Once he reached the right spot, he would release Will.

"Did you know? I was trapped in there twice. Once when I watched Kellein die, pleading for Goya to release her, to leave her and her unborn children alone. The second time I was pleading for my wife and my own unborn child." Then he leaned in, so that only Will could hear him. No need to further expose the first year. Then he pulled away. "Goya left after Natasha, heading upstairs to our bedroom. And I heard my child scream. When I managed to escape through the ceiling of our cottage, I saw him holding my son, using him as a shield. Attack Goya, and I would be attacking my son. And nothing that Slade or I could do saved him."

Seymour tried reaching for his wand, but his arm was being tied too tightly to his side by one large tentacle in particular. "Sire!" he called back, shaking his head. "I don't know how! Do you have some sort of acid on hand, sire? We need to dissolve it!" He held back a grin. This. Was. EPIC.

Still struggling for his wand, despite the warning Will gave him, he bit one of the tentacles as hard as he could, cutting through it partially. The tentacle recoiled for a moment, as if taken aback-- Seymour used this opportunity to grab his wand and the vial of antidote -- and then re-wrapped itself around his middle, even tighter than before. Wow. Was the room really spinning that fast? Maybe it was sort of... of illusion charm or something. Idly, he heard something crack.

He had a bad feeling it had been his wrist.

Will's eyes grew wider and wider as he heard Carracio explain what happened while he was in the devil's trap. He watched helplessly as Seymour struggled, getting more and more entwined. "STOP STRUGGLING! RELAX! THINK OF... HAPPY THOUGHTS!" he shouted to poor Seymour. "Sir, he's just a firstie- a kid-- please, sir, give him a break!" This was torture-- the poor kid! "It should be ME in there instead... please... a professor of your stature wouldn't let a child be hurt, would he? " He struggled to get out of the trap, wondering if Carracio had been lying about being unable to blast out of it. He didn't feel like dying to find out, though.


Will did the only thing he could think of. "Lumos!" he cast toward Seymour. Sure, fire couldn't get through, but it was a transparent barrier-- LIGHT could get through. The room filled with light from his wand, as though floodlights were coming from Will's wand. "SEYMOUR! SAY LUMOS!" he yelled. Perhaps his wand would light even if it wasn't in his hand, if he was desperate enough.*

ooc: canon, established in Order of the Phoenix.

Seymour grinned over the huge masses of vines that were slowly slithering his way. "Happy thoughts, sire?" he squeaked faintly, the room still spinning. "That I am managing. 'For life is quite absurd... and death's the final word... you must always face the curtain with a bow...'" he sang cheerfully, bouncing despite his situation-- which, of course, made the vines wrap even tighter. A particularly large, heavy vine recoiled for a moment, as if because of his lack of any real singing talent, and slapped him across the face, which shut him up immediately. He scowled.

Lumos? He didn't know how to cast a lumos charm... was it that difficult? "Lumos!" he said confidently, fighting to keep his wand in hand; a vine was coiling around it. A very faint light shone through, barely as strong as a dying flashlight, but thankfully, the impact of Will's lumos charm helped a bit while it lasted; a few tentacles retreated slowly, letting Seymour breathe just a bit more. "Sire! I think it's working, sire--" Of course, he had spoken too soon; another tentacle wrapped around his middle, squeezing tightly, and the wind was promptly knocked out of him. Which was really great, considering he was just approaching the Tentacula. That was just excellent. Time to boost HP levels!

Drago closed his eyes upon hearing the casting of the spell so that he would retain his dark vision then slammed his hand against a wall and wards absorbed the light. "Good job in chancing blinding yourself before I release you. Now you may need to regain your eyesight, and hope to do so before he reaches the tentacula. And hopefully he will never reach the Bocca di Salazar." He looked over to check on the young boy and make sure he wasn't in position yet. "And if you had blinded me and delayed my action, you could have gotten him killed. Well done. And lumos won't work here soon... Ah, perfect."

Drago quickly blasted the runes outside of the Devil's Trap which held Will. "You have one opportunity to rescue him. If you stall too long, I will be forced to do it myself. You may ask for advice. If you manage this, you may tell this story for as long and often as you like. You will finally have a true tale to tell your friends. If not... Well, then you're really letting him down, aren't you?"

The devil's snare had just brought Seymour to within the reach of the tentacula, which seemed to suddenly turn it's attention to it. The two would probably fight over the boy for a short time.

Will had to agree with the plant's assessment of Seymour's singing, but still flinched as the poor child was slapped. He was heartened to see the faint light relax the vines, only to be disappointed to see it drag him closer to the tentacula. He prayed the kid had his antivenin.


Well, then you're really letting him down, aren't you?" The words echoed in Will's head. Granted, he was no Gryffindork brave and true, and for a moment he even contemplated taking no action -- surely a profesor wouldn't let a student be killed? -- but still the idea of his big mouth getting the kid hurt- or worse - made him feel terrible, and would ruin his reputation forever. Plus-- he was just such a little chipmunk, and a Slytherin, and if nothing else, Will had a responsibility to members of his house.

Will would have to do something. But what? He already had his wand out and was casting. "Incendio!" he cast, making sure to aim far away from Seymour. At the very least, he hoped to slow Seymour's progress toward the tentacula.

"You said I could take advice, sir." He spoke rapidly as he walked toward the plants and Seymour. "Surely if I use a blasting curse against the root balls of the plants, that would destroy them, wouldn't it? And then only the vines that currently have Seymour would be a threat-- if that?"

"I would appreciate if you didn't completely destroy the plants. I do still rather like them. However, the incendio has him momentarily released by the devil's snare," he said as he pointed. "There is a temporary growing charm, it takes a short while but if you incendio the tentacula as well, it will stop it from dragging him closer. If he stays still, the bocca should not catch him. Then use vita accello tempus, which will grow the trees well over the vines." He smirked then. "And then there is a vine you can use to swing on, and pull him from the middle of the vines, isn't there? Just avoid swinging into the Devil's Trap."

Well, I rather like Seymour. So I won't completely destroy your plants if you don't completely destroy him. Will thought wryly. "STAY STILL, SEYMOUR!" Will shouted to the boy. "Help is coming!" He pointed his wand at the vines of the tentacula, very narrowly missing Seymour's head- he cringed, hoping he hadn't singed the boy -- driving them back. For the moment. Now, what was the other thing Professor Carracio said? "Vita accio tentacles?" He tried.

Well, accio tentacles sure wasn't it. Now the tentacula's vines were heading straight for Professor Carracio and Will. Will cursed and ducked, but a little late-- a tentacle wrapped itself firmly around his arm. As long as he didn't get bit, he still had a shot...Carracio could take care of himself, Will was sure.

Seymour jumped slightly as the vines a few yards away from him caught fire; oh, excellent. Flaming constricty venomous things. Woot! He watched as some of the vines flailed, the flames spreading quickly. "Sire?" he called, watching the approaching flames. "Sire, I think there might be a minor glitch in the plan." Trying to think fast while he still was out of the Devil's Snare's grip, he grabbed one large, rather limp tentacle-like vine and began trying to beat out the fire with it.

Bad move, Seymour. Bad move.

While it helped extinguish the flames, it also agitated the vines much more than the fire ever did. They were wrapped back around him in a blink of an eye, tighter than before. But that didn't matter to Seymour at the moment; Will was in danger! His squire couldn't let him down at the crucial moment, even if that meant putting himself in peril! Reaching into his pocket for the vial of antidote, he threw it towards Will, the vial clinking on the floor a few feet away from him. "Sire! The antidote! You'll need it! QUICKLY!"

Wheee! The first day of Hogwarts was fun.

Drago swore slightly in Italian and was glad he'd set up something so simple. He pulled a rather odd-looking blood-stained dagger from his robes as he dodged the tentacles. Why oh why did he think Will could cast something? Oh right, a fairly decent lumos spell. He cut the vine from Will's arm and turned, casting at the trees. "Vita accello tempus!" The trees lit up a bit as they grew into something sturdier, somehow managing to take root in the dungeon floor. Because of the setback, he rushed over to the Snapper Vine and grabbed some strands at the bases, slicing through them with the dagger. He quickly assembled a longer vine and attached it to the trees. "Merlin help you, don't fall this time, Will."

Will could not. believe. his eyes. Did that little pipsqueak just throw his antivenin to Will? "What are you, a Gryffindor?!?!" he squeaked, panicked. He struggled, trying to get away from the vine around his arm. "Gerroffa me!" he groaned. He was losing all sensation in his wand hand as the vine constricted around it. He pointed his wand toward the vine-- and himself.

"Incendio!" he cast. Too bad he hadn't noticed that Carracio had just cut the vine. Too little, too late. A woosh of flames rushed up his robes and onto the vine, which released him. The bad part was, Will's sleeve and arm were now on fire. Eh-- gain something, lose something.

Oh, sure, HE gets a dagger. Will thought bitterly.He ripped off his robes and left them in a crumpled heap on the floor, trying to ignore the excruciating pain of his burned flesh. He ran toward the vine Carracio set up. Will no longer cared about anything but keeping that kid away from the Boca di Salazar... if these were bad, that was going to be a bazillion times worse. For Seymour AND Will.

Approaching at a run, his wand still in hand, Will jumped up onto the vine, gripping as though his life depended on in. Which it probably did, of course. Okay, this was nothing like last term, swinging from table to table and pretending to be 'Zohan, Jungle man'... Being heroic kind of sucked, and was scary. But no matter. Here came Seymour... aaaaaaand, there he went. Will overswung past the young boy struggling amidst the vines... right toward the Boca di Salazar.

Watch out for that tree! Will thought madly as he very nearly crashed into the Boca di Salazar. Luckily, gravity was on his side (nothing else was), and he began to swing back toward Seymour. A vine grabbed at his ankle as he swung over the plants, bringing him to an ungainly stop near the kid.

"Seymour! Hang on!" he cried, letting go of the vine with his wand hand. "Wingardium Leviosa!" He cast, pointing at the boy. Hopefully, he could cut off any vines around him before they constricted him too tightly. Hopefully, he could direct Seymour to safety. Hopefully...

"Diffendio!" Drago cast towards the vines, using it to carefully cut away from Seymour. Goodness, Will was an accident waiting to happen, wasn't he? But if both of them could get on the vine then... wait, did the bocca have Will? Another diffendio cut it away, but it would still leave the two hanging there. Come on, Will, get the boy out of there! He would give Will this one last chance, then he would have to fully take matters into his own hands.

"I have to protect you, sire!" Seymour squeaked in return, casually trying to fight against the vines. "It is written in the code; as a squire, I must do anything to protect you, including putting my own life in danger! You were in need of it more than I!" He struggled to keep his head above the masses of vines, practically swimming in them.

He watched Will, entirely in awe, ignoring the Devil's Snare momentarily. Wow. Not only graceful on foot and horseback, but on vine, as well? Where had he learned all these skills? Becoming his official understudy was most definitely in order. As he approached on vine, his grin widened... and then faltered as he completely missed him. "Sire! Look out! The Audrey II will think it's suppertime!" That was a distressing idea. Thankfully, he had swung out of reach of the plant before it could attack and was coming back towards Seymour.

His eyes grew wider as he levitated up into the air, away from the vines, with no support at all. Neat. "Why, hello, sire," he grinned. "Fancy meeting you here."