Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter, just thought I'd state the obvious.

Chapter 4

The sunlight that filtered down through the trees cast dancing diamonds on the grass where Fleur was sitting cross legged. The sound of the birds singing harmoniously in the branches above her head was interrupted by the sound of someone singing horribly off key. The deep voice was unmistakable and Fleur made her way through the fronds of a willow till she reached a small clearing surrounded by azaleas in beautiful red and pink hues. Fleur contemplated the scene with a small smile on her face. He was standing in the center of the clearing humming the melody to the sweetest song she had ever heard, the light dancing off his red hair. Bill turned slowly, as if sensing her presence and his face lit up.

"Ca fais des années que je t'attends! (I've been waiting for you for years.)" He whispered in the most enchanting voice Fleur had ever heard. She had never heard him speak French before yet his pronunciation was elegant and it seemed very natural to the two of them. Simultaneously they both took a step nearer to each other, never tearing their eyes away from one another. Fleur drank in the beauty of his face and his sculpted chest that was visible as his shirt was only buttoned half way. She longed to reach out and touch him but he was the first to move. His large callused hand reached up and cradled her cheek in the gentlest manner. He stroked her high cheekbones with the very tips of his fingers, a look of awe respect and love filling his ocean blue eyes. Very slowly, giving her plenty of time to turn and walk away had she not been caught in his spell, he leaned his head down till his eyes were level hers.

"Je t'adore Fleur de mon Coeur. (I love you, flower of my heart.)" And then his soft lips very gently kissed the tip of her nose. Fleur felt herself shiver and melt into his chest and his strong arms reached out and encircled her. His kisses left a trail down the side of her face, each time coming closer to her rosy lips. Their kiss was passionate and Fleur no longer remembered where she was, the only thing that mattered was Bill and the way his mouth moved with hers. They fit together like two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle, finally reunited. She felt that she could stay here and kiss him forever. It was like Fleur had found the home she never really realized she was seeking, the world seemed safe and perfect when Bill's embrace shielded her. Everything around them had stopped; the rustling tree held its breath and the birds were mute. When they broke apart to breath he whispered her name so quietly it could have been the wind that formed the sound.

"Fleur."

A huge crash brought Fleur out of her dream and into reality with a harsh brutality. She groaned and turned her head into the soft pillow willing herself to fall asleep again. She ran her fingers over her lips which still seemed to tingle with the passion of his kisses. After several minutes though, she gave up and went in search of the source of the noise that woke her. A small brown owl sat on the windowsill; it swayed unsteadily, probably as a result of the collision with the solid glass window. As Fleur opened the catch on the window to allow the poor bird to enter, the whispered echo of Bill's last word followed her incessantly. Every rustle of the parchment on the table, every breath of wind and every footstep seemed to be chorusing her name in his deep, sensual voice. The letter she took from owl was addressed to her in a very formal slanting script. Fleur was immediately curious, who would be writing her a letter this early in the morning, after all the sun was only just beginning to rise over the rooftops of the muggle street below her window. Carefully, she broke the simple seal on the letter and pulled it out of the envelope.

Dear Miss Delacour,

You are requested to meet with a Gringotts goblin at 12.00 today to discuss the matter of your finances. It is vital that you attend this meeting.

Griphook, Chief of Gringotts Bank, UK,Ireland, Europe, North Africa, West Asia and The Americas.

Fleur looked at the letter affronted, who did they think they were ordering her to attend their meeting? They hadn't even had the decency to ask whether the time suited her or whether she even wanted to meet them. Unfortunately for Fleur her curiosity got the best of her and she was forced to admit that she was actually going to attend the meeting. Her original plan had been to ignore the letter and drop by and see this Griphook at a time that best suited her. This would not, she decided, give the best impression, considering that she was starting her first day today. She also remembered her father warning her that trying to argue with a goblin really wasn't a good idea.

Her first few hours at work had passed rather uneventfully. Izzie had been very happy to see her and had suggested they go house hunting the next weekend. She had met two other people who worked in her office. Joe was in his late thirties and had covered his desk with photos of his wife and twin daughters. He had seemed friendly when Izzie introduced him but Fleur had not had much time to assess his character because she had turned away as soon as her own greeting was out of her mouth. She was wary when it came to meeting new people so she preferred to maintain her composure even if it meant she appeared cold. She immediately regretted doing so when the woman sitting beside him gave her a look that suggested she certainly didn't approve of Fleur's actions, but there was nothing to do about it.

"And who are you?" Fleur asked in a heavily accented voice. The woman introduced herself simply as Clara and said she hoped Fleur would enjoy working at Gringotts. Her entire introduction, though friendly in itself was accompanied by several glares. Fleur turned away, not wanting to waste her time speaking to someone who had so obviously already made her mind up about Fleur's character. Sensing the obvious tension in the small office Izzie lead Fleur over to her desk and smiled apologetically at her colleagues. She knew that this wasn't the Fleur she had met yesterday and hoped she hadn't made a mistake by becoming her friend.

Most importantly, Fleur had managed not to dwell on her dream or on Bill. Fleur was not particularly absorbed by her work, which was to read through several account statements and check that they were adding up at the end of each month. She didn't understand why she had been asked to do this kind of work. It was the sort of work she expected a house elf to be doing or at the very least a secretary. This had nothing to do with foreign liaisons and she certainly was not using her French, which was annoying her no end. Fleur knew that she was being paid enough to live independently therefore should be grateful. She was starting to wonder whether she should simply have stayed and worked in for the national wizarding newspaper in France, after all that was what her father had wanted and what everyone expected of her. At half past eleven she began on another set of calculations when she remembered that she was to attend a meeting with a goblin in a half hour, so she rolled up the scroll.

"Where do you think you're going?" said a horribly high pitched voice from behind Fleur. She turned round and found herself face to face with a girl who must have been several years older than she was. Her hair was obviously bleached blonde and she wore a dress so short and low cut that Fleur began to wonder if she was even wearing one at all.

"And why would that concern you?" Fleur replied in her haughtiest voice, raising a delicate eyebrow. She stood just under a head taller than the girl in front of her, who looked at her with shock written across her face.

"Well you must be new; you obviously don't know the rules of this office. I'm Mandy and I suppose you could say that my word goes." She finished her speech with a fluff of her hair and a bright red fingernail placed threateningly on Fleur's chest. The occupants of the office had stopped working and had looked up to see what the new girl's response would be. Fleur looked down at Mandy with evident disgust.

"I don't think that's going to be the case, I shan't answer to you and your falsely claimed airs. Now if you'd please remove your talon, I have places to be." With one last withering look Fleur swept from the office. The shocked silence she left in her wake didn't last very long when it was interrupted by muffled sniggers coming from the corner in which Izzie and Clara were sitting.

"Wow," Breathed Joe seeming to take several seconds to clear his head. "That sure did brighten up my day."

"What do you… think… you're laughing… at?" Mandy's face was beetroot red and she was struggling to string together a coherent sentence.

Outside Fleur was fuming. She strode angrily down the corridor. No one spoke to Fleur Delacour in that manner. Everywhere she went she commandeered respect, yes a lot of women were jealous of her but no one ever confronted her like that. She was so angry that she was not looking where she was going so it was of little surprise that she suddenly found herself wandering down a corridor that she had never seen before. Gringotts was filled with a labyrinth of corridors that twisted and turned in every direction. Looking around she saw that the corridor was no longer lit by glowing orbs, that floated by the ceiling, instead the walls were lined with flickering torches. Fleur sighed heavily and turned around, heading back the way she had come, she would need to be careful when walking these corridors and have more control over her emotions. Her heart began to pound though when she reached a crossing, five corridors converged and she had no idea which she had come from. Her palms were sweaty as she glanced down each of the corridors, desperately trying to find some indication that she had passed down one of the corridors. There were none. Fleur began muttering in French, cursing her own stupidity. She would be stuck down here for ever. She doubted that many people came this far underground so her chances of being found were very slim. A stray tear wound its way down here cheek. She brushed it away angrily and tried pointlessly to think of the best solution to her problem.

Fleur suddenly raised her head, she was sure she had just heard a very faint sound coming from the corridor on her left. When she stood still she recognized the sound of heavy footfall. Not caring, what or who might be the source of the noise, she ran blindly towards the sound of footsteps. She was desperate to find someone or anyone who could help her. She didn't even care if it was one of the bad tempered goblins or even Mandy. She would have been overjoyed to see anyone, any sign of life in the cold and winding, stone corridors. The tears streaming down her face had obscured her vision and with a sickening crunching sound she collided with something solid. The something solid gasped as though winded but put an arm around Fleur to steady her.

"Goodness, what's going on," said a concerned voice. Fleur heart stopped beating and her face drained of any colour.

A/N. YIPPEE, I made it to 2000 words for one chapter. Please, please review. I try and reply to all my reviews.