G. Lippert - James Potter and the Curse of the Gatekeeper

There was a dry chuffing sound and James glanced over at the skeleton. It appeared to be laughing.

"Off to get his treasures, is he?" it said. "Left you in the lurch, methinks. Favor me with your name, oh demon."

"I'm not a demon," James said. "My name is James."

"Ah, a great name, that is. Tell me, Master James, if you are not a servant demon, why do you hold the son of the devil's cord?"

James shook his head. He knew he shouldn't talk to the pathetic Farrigan. It chuffed laughter again, wearily, and dropped its sword. The rusted blade broke off the hilt and the skeleton drew a great sigh, crackling its ribs.

"I have divined my state now," Farrigan said. "Austramaddux was right about the trap. I have been here an age, have not I? I am long dead, bound to this earth only by the curse of that abomination. And for what? I came not to thieve, but to destroy. Can you understand that, oh James, who holds the cord of the very man? I came to end it once and for all. But I have failed, and now it is begun. It is a good thing I am dead after all, and shall not see of it, yes?" The skeleton chuckled.

James' curiosity got the better of him. "What is it? What is begun?"

"Say not that you be such a fool as to be blind to Merlinus' skullduggery," the skeleton replied, turning its head toward the sound of James' voice. "You, who even now assist him in his aims. Tell me not that you have not heard of the Curse, my young friend."

"I don't know what you're talking about," James answered. "Merlin's not who you think he is. I don't know what he was like in your time, but he's different now. He's good."

The skeleton threw itself forward, cackling and beating its bony thighs with its hands. Finger joints broke away and pattered amongst the animal bones. "If you believe that, then perhaps your world deserves what is to be dealt it."

"What is it?" James asked, feeling simultaneously fearful and annoyed.

The skeleton of Farrigan stopped cackling. It twisted its head toward James again, its blank eyes penetrating. "How can you not know that the Gate is rent open? Merlinus has torn the curtain. His return to the world of men is a rift, connecting the realms. Things have come through, and are even now loose among men."

"The Borleys," James said to himself, considering.

The skeleton nodded. "But that is not all. It is coming. The Gatekeeper. The Sentinel of Worlds! Merlinus is its Ambassador. Fool! Even now, you hold the cord in your hands! Release it! Perhaps the Gate may still be shut! Release the cord and rid the world of the Curse, for it is nearly complete! Believe not the lies! Release it and send him to his deserved doom!"

"No," James said, gripping the cord tightly, as if his fingers might betray him. He looked out along the length of the cord, but he could no longer see Merlinus. He could feel no weight on the cord. He knew he shouldn't pay any attention to the deranged skeleton. Obviously, Farrigan was an ancient enemy of Merlinus. Probably, he had broken into the cavern to steal the cache, as Merlin alleged, and become trapped by the one-way stone. The skeleton was lying. There was no Curse. And yet…

What if the skeleton was telling the truth? James had been responsible for bringing Merlin back into the world, duped by the horrible Madame Delacroix and her accomplices. He, James, had been consulted about whether or not Merlin should become the new Headmaster of Hogwarts. If there was any truth to what the skeleton said, it would be entirely on James' head. Perhaps it was destiny, then, that had placed the cord in his hands, the cord that could cut Merlin off again, undoing all that James had unwittingly done. Perhaps now was his only chance to set things right again.

"I sense your struggle, boy," the skeleton said quietly. "You know what your purpose is, do you not? Do it. How hard can it be? It is no effort at all. Simply let go. Your friends await you outside, ready to release you from this place. They need not know what became of the wizard. Tell them he simply fell and is no more. Only you will know what you have saved your world from. Do it now. Do it while you still can."

James looked again. He could see Merlin now. He was returning along the length of the cord, a small box in one hand, his staff held aloft in the other. The cord was perfectly motionless as the big man placed his footsteps on it. James could still feel not the slightest tension on the cord. He squeezed it in his hands, thinking hard. Could he do it? Should he? Would he ever have such a chance again?

"Do it, boy!" the skeleton of Farrigan whispered harshly, leaning forward. "Close your eyes, do not watch, and let go!"

The cord was slick with sweat in James' hand. He almost did it. His fingers twitched. And then he remembered something Merlin had said the year before, shortly after he'd come back into the world. You have rather a talent for looking beyond the flat of the mirror, James Potter, he'd told him. That had been a compliment, James assumed, and it meant that he was not easily fooled. Of course, Madame Delacroix had fooled him, but that had required the use of a very carefully hexed voodoo doll. Merlin had implied that words alone were not enough to dupe James.

Thinking that, James turned to the skeleton one last time. "How do I know you are telling me the truth?"

The skeleton seemed to sputter. "You know by the evidence of your own soul! You sense the rightness of my allegations! Now drop the cord! End it!"

James narrowed his eyes. "You know, I don't think I will. I don't know what things were like in your time, but in my world, we don't kill people just because somebody says they're troublesome."

"Then your world deserves its own doom," the skeleton replied, rattling back against the cavern wall. "I wash my hands of you. The Doombringer is come."

James decided it was best not to argue with the skeleton. Now that he'd made up his mind, he knew there was no point in it. He looked out along the cord and saw that Merlin was nearly back. His face was still grim, but there was a twinkle in his dark eyes.

"Our task is complete, Mr. Potter," he said as he stepped onto the stone of the cave floor. "You may release the cord. We will require it no longer."

James let the cord drop to the floor. It slithered away and dropped silently into the dark abyss. Sighing, James glanced over at the skeleton, but it didn't move.

"I'd expect to hear no more from him," Merlin said quietly. "He has done what he remained to do."

"What's that mean?" James said, turning to the wizard. "Why did I have to hold that cord?"

"Trust, Mr. Potter," Merlin replied, smiling a little sorrowfully. "It is a scarce commodity among those whose hearts are bent on evil. This is why trust was the final test before my cache."

"You knew he would be here?" James nodded toward the skeleton.

"Him, or someone like him. His duty was to challenge your trust. After all, it isn't really trust at all if there isn't a struggle."

James looked up at Merlin's face. "I almost let go," he said quietly. "All I had to do was hold the cord, and I almost didn't do it."

Merlin nodded gravely. "Doing what is right is nearly always simple, Mr. Potter. But it is never easy."

There didn't seem to be anything more to say. James and Merlin walked back to the rough stone wall that bore the hidden door.

"Mr. Deedle," Merlin called, "by your leave, we shall come out now."

James heard Ralph's voice clearly through the apparently impenetrable stone as if he was only a few feet away. "Er, all right then. What do I do?"

"Point your wand at the doorway and say 'Braut Tir'."

There was a pause. James heard Ralph whisper, "What's that? I missed the accent!"

"Just do it, Ralph," Rose rasped impatiently, "they're standing right there. What's the worst that can happen?"