Chapter 9

Not strong enough to stay away (Not Strong Enough by Apocalyptica)

They were up and gone before breakfast as none of them wanted to miss out on one moment of freedom. They Flooed directly to the clothing shop that they preferred and which Marguerite (who had insisted on accompanying them along with Narcissa) had secured them an appointment with the night before. Pansy grinned at the sight of a clearly thrilled Jean-Pierre when she stepped into the receiving room. The tall, skinny designer was clearly overjoyed to not only have his favourite 'ladies' in attendance, but Gin as well. Gin looked wary, but was a good sport when he bussed her cheeks and shooed her off, chattering about how Narcissa and Marguerite had explained her preferred clothing and how he was simply overjoyed to be of assistance. Marguerite was smirking as she followed them out.

She handed her cloak to the waiting elf and got comfortable on one of the divans scattered about the room, grinning widely. "I don't know that I've had this much fun in a long while. Gin is not going to know what hit her."

Daphne and Aradia sat with her, both snickering. Aradia just shook her head. "It never ceases to amaze me how quickly you lot can manage little excursions like this."

Pansy glanced over to see the men on the far side of the room talking with Narcissa and Barnaby, Jean-Pierre's assistant. Charlie and the twins seemed content to sit back and observe. But, Bill and Aiden were, from the looks of it, attempting to explain what they would need in Egypt. She truly adored Narcissa for suggesting not only the holiday, but a holiday that would require a new wardrobe.

"I do believe, this time, we have those four to thank for it. Without Gin getting the idea into her head and utilizing those cajoling skills they allowed to develop…well we'd still be stuck at Hogwarts. At least we can get the holiday wardrobe issue out of the way today."

Theo joined them, sitting on the arm of the divan, slinging his arm over her shoulders. "Listening to those five tell it, we most definitely won't want to return to Hogwarts."

She crinkled her nose. "It is too bad that we have to. I have a feeling that the Gin," she slid her gaze to Aradia, "and Aradia we see here pale in comparison to the ones we will see there."

Aradia snickered. "Oh, you have no idea. It is one of those cases of needing to see it to believe it."

Pansy wondered just why she was almost certain that there had been a warning somewhere in Aradia's seemingly teasing tone. It wasn't something she would be asking about either, she knew better. Laying her head on Theo's shoulder, she did wonder just what surprises were awaiting them in Egypt. More importantly, would they be good or bad surprises?

-GDB-

Gin looked at the long list of clothing that she was to be approving and just shook her head wryly. With Bill's pay grade and her own income, she hadn't worn second-hand rags for years. Nevertheless, this was still above and beyond what she had expected. Marguerite and Narcissa had sat her down last night and informed her that they would be spoiling her and that she wasn't to protest. Not that she would have been dim enough to do so, but they had clearly worried that she would.

With a wry smile, she handed the list back to Jean-Pierre. "It's perfect."

Marguerite smiled softly. "You always exceed our expectations, Jean-Pierre."

Much to Gin's amusement that seemed to please the excitable man even more. She slipped out of the room at a little nod from Marguerite. Re-joining her friends, she wasn't too terribly surprised when Blaise reached out and took her hand, gently pulling down her to sit between him and Draco. They had been doing little things like this more and more over the past few weeks. Not knowing what to do about it, she allowed it. It wasn't as if she wasn't fighting her own attraction to them or anything. They didn't push her though, which was why she didn't object.

"All set?" Draco asked, flipping his hair out of his face not bothering to move from his lazy sprawl. Damn if it wasn't more difficult every day to stop herself from tossing aside her caution and taking what they all wanted.

She chuckled. "Oh most definitely. Are you certain this won't take all day?"

Pansy laughed, taking Gin's attention off of the very sexy blonde. "Your brothers have been measured so we're nearly done."

Bill joined them, looking troubled though he was trying to hide it. "My alert just went off. I think that stopping by Gringotts may be necessary. Aiden and I can go and meet you at Annwn when we see what the goblins need."

Gin sat up, her eyes narrowing. Clearly something was wrong and Bill was attempting to hide it from them. It was something she would usually kick his arse for, but her concern just now was going with him and Aiden. Slowly, she got to her feet, not missing Aradia doing the same. "I do believe Dia and I will be going with you, William. If everyone else wants to go to Theo's they can, no sense in all of us tagging along."

He winced, but nodded. Both of them knew that she only used his full given name when she was irritated and all too willing to hex him to get her way. For her to use it two days in a row simply told him just how close she was to snapping completely. It was also left unsaid that her real reason for insisting on going was not to be mentioned, not here.

"We can all go," Draco drawled warningly. Clearly he too saw that something more was going on and wasn't about to be left out. Within seconds, everyone had insisted that they go together.

"I presume we should go now. It won't take us five minutes to get there." Blaise said as he and Draco joined her and Aradia.

Bill and Aiden nodded shortly. You couldn't Apparate, Floo, or Portkey directly into Gringotts unless you were an employee. Aiden's tone was implacable. "If there is anything wrong, you all will go straight to Annwn and we'll join you as soon as we can. Am I clear?"

Gin was starting to panic. Just what the seven hells did they think was wrong? They waited while Narcissa and Marguerite spoke quietly to Jean-Pierre before stepping out into the high end area of Diagon Alley. She glanced down the Alley towards Gringotts and saw what looked like smoke rising over the buildings. Not even thinking twice about it, she ran, snaking through the crowd and all but racing up the stairs a minute or two later. The roof had a huge hole torn in it and patrons were still pouring out, most with minor injuries. She did wait until Bill, Aiden, Aradia, and Charlie had joined her before going inside. Bill's voice could barely be heard over the crowd as he said, "Theo, take them to your home. We will Floo as soon as we can tell you anything."

She rushed over to the group of goblins who were standing around the enormous hole in the floor, angry and horrified. She spotted a goblin she knew well. "Ragnok," she said softly but firmly, crouching down in front of him.

He turned and inclined his head. "Miss Gin, Miss Aradia, we are in need of your assistance."

Gin stripped off her coat and nodded as she stood. This right here was why she and Aradia had learnt to climb. The goblins didn't like wizarding folk to interfere in their business and only hired those who had skills that were needed. She had been called in more than once to get into areas which needed their unique skills and during the summers she and Aradia had gone together. In fact, they were technically employees and were always paid very, very well for their work. That tidbit had been kept secret since none of them liked their personal business known. "Our spare equipment is in Bill and Aiden's office. Do we know how many are unaccounted for?"

Ragnok called over another goblin and after a whispered conversation, he turned back to them. "It will be here momentarily. We are generating a list right now, but there were at least a dozen patrons and the guards, not to mention all but one of the dragons and the sphinxes are trapped."

"How did this happen?" Aradia asked, pulling off her robes and re-braiding her hair.

Gin was curious about that as well. She was thankful that she'd worn her hattah because this was going to get messy very quickly and having her hair in her face would not help matters. The main shaft, usually inaccessible, was what had been blown open. It was at least a mile deep. Damn this was going to be fun, was all she could think.

"Dragons?"

Charlie joined them, flanked by Draco and Blaise. Gin rolled her eyes. "You lot were supposed to go with Theo."

"Three broke into a high security vault and escaped on a dragon with Griphook," Ragnok said angrily. "Most of the passages have collapsed. If you two can find survivors we will work from this end to get new wards set and get the passages open."

Pulling off her jumper to reveal the snug vest top beneath it, Gin handed it and her coat to Charlie. "We'll let you know if the dragons are injured, Charlie. It is actually a blessing that you didn't listen when you were told to go, they may need you."

"You're going down there?" Draco asked his eyes narrowing which was a sure sign he was very close to a tantrum. Blaise simply stared at her, seemingly unable to actually form words.

She rolled her eyes. They were concerned for her, she got that loud and clear. "Look, this is what we do. If Ragnok will allow you to stay, please don't go worrying over us. This is exactly why you were supposed to go with Theo."

Three goblins hurried over, carrying their bags of equipment. She focused on that, putting Draco and Blaise out of her mind which was actually more difficult than she was comfortable with. Aradia secured the ropes to one of the pillars and they took the cuff bracelets that Ragnok handed them which would protect them and identify them to all of the employees and creatures below as fellow employees. She was very thankful for his foresight since hers and Aradia's were currently secreted away in their room at Hogwarts, though most knew the two of them if not on sight by reputation alone. Their names would have gone a long way, but the bracelets would expedite the process. She kissed Charlie's cheek, waving to Bill and Aiden who were already setting new charms and wards on the damaged roof. They shot her encouraging smiles.

"Gin?"

She turned to see that Draco was already crouching down and trying to convince one of the goblins to allow him and Blaise to help. Blaise had moved closer, concern in his every move. Sighing, she laid a hand on his arm. "We will be okay, Blaise. I don't make promises that I don't fully intend on keeping. I've every intention of making it back out of this alive."

He sighed, his shoulders dropping. Left unsaid but understood was that she had said alive not unharmed. She kissed his cheek, for once going with what she wanted to do and not worrying over it in regards to the two men. "Pass on a kiss for Draco, alright? We'll be back as soon as we can."

He nodded, surprising her by gripping her hips, pulling her flush against him and kissing her soundly. When he finally pulled back, he whispered, "That is from both of us. A bit of good luck. Go on, we'll see if we can convince them to let us assist."

Shaking her head to clear the fuzziness, she hurried over and took the rope that an amused Aradia was holding for her. She simply couldn't afford to think about the feelings he'd stirred in her, not when their lives were on the line once they went down the ropes. "Not a word, Dia, not one word."

Wisely, Aradia silently moved with her as they lowered themselves slowly over the edge. One wrong move could get them killed, they both knew it. That was honestly a big part of why they enjoyed it so much as twisted as that likely was. They slowly lowered themselves until they hit the first walkway. Waiting for them was a guard that looked unhurt, but very anxious. "Is this level clear?"

He nodded, standing at attention as he began his report. "We've collected everyone and are waiting for the passages to be cleared out. Just minor injuries. The passage down is all but filled with debris. Even you two won't fit through. You'll have to go deep to get to the ones in most need of your assistance, Miss Gin, Miss Aradia. It is ever so good to see you two here."

Gin grinned cheekily. Damn, she did love it when people lauded them. Aradia had busied herself with the ropes, waving her over once they were secure. She didn't miss his nametag that said 'Erikson' and made a mental note to jot it down later as well as the mental count she had done of the other survivors standing off to the side. "Excellent, Bill and Aiden are up there as well. If you could get working on clearing at least one path up, I think we're going to need it."

He all but saluted her, rushing off to do as asked. She took the rope Aradia tossed her and they went over the edge again. It was at least two hours before they reached the lower levels. Thankfully there had been a stretch of passages undamaged which saved them at least another hour of climbing. She shook her head at the amount of destruction. "Someone is going to pay dearly for this."

"If the goblins allow them to survive," Aradia muttered angrily. "Why the seven hells would anyone do this?"

Gin just shrugged. They unhooked themselves from the ropes and moved slowly towards where the highest security vaults were located, checking each side corridor just in case the guard up on the first level had been wrong. It was more difficult than it would be normally with all the rubble and frequent falling debris. Not to mention the dead dragon they had to climb over. They finally reached the most open area, shaking their heads at the devastation. She spotted a guard; his leg pinned by a large piece of debris and rushed to him. Together, she and Aradia were able to get the rock lifted and Aradia knelt next to the injured man, quickly assessing the damage.

"It's shattered, Gin. We can't move him. This is far beyond anything we can fix."

Gin crouched down, surprised to see that the man was still conscious. Pulling out a notepad and self-inking quill that she had been making notes in as they cleared each area, she tried to at least sound reassuring. "I need your name. We can stabilize your leg, but you will have to stay here."

"Matthews, Robin," the man whispered. "Can you risk a pain numbing spell?"

Gin nodded, noting down his name, location, and injury. "If you can tell me, what other employees and creatures are on this level?"

He sighed as the pain-numbing spell that Aradia hit him with began to work. "Two more guards, three dragons, and ten sphinxes."

"Any patrons?" Aradia asked from where she was stabilizing his leg as well as she could manage. Gin knew the spell that Aradia would have to use, bewitched sleep, would prevent him from bleeding out or sustaining anymore damage. It had been the first one they had been taught when they had begun training.

Matthews nodded. "Augusta Longbottom. Her vault is to the left; Thompson was attending her as well as Bogrod."

Gin sighed heavily. "I hate to, but we must leave you now. They are working to clear the passages."

"Go, check on them please."

They nodded and Aradia hit him with the spell, knocking him out cold. It was for the best.

Aradia waited until they were well away from the injured guard to whisper, "He may not keep that leg, magic or no magic. I just didn't have it in me to tell him."

Gin winced, thinking of the four guards they had found dead already. "Let's just pray that we find Mrs Longbottom, Thompson, and Bogrod alive."

They stopped, cussing creatively in three languages when they saw that the Welsh Green was surrounded by the sphinxes. All were injured and damn Charlie was going to be right angry when he saw the condition of the dragon. Neither of them missed the dead guard under a large piece of debris either. "We need to get Charlie and a healer down here."

"Find the others first and worry over the logistics of that later," Aradia muttered, hurrying over to the creatures, her bracelet shining in the torchlight. She bent down and picked up a clapper, just in case she needed it to control the dragon.

Satisfied that Aradia would handle the creatures, she busied herself with climbing over large chunks of what looked to be the roof. Damn, she really hoped that the three she was looking for weren't under the debris. Sliding down the other side, she landed neatly on her feet and scanned the semi-dark area.

"Mrs Longbottom?" she called, her voice as soothing as possible since setting off the dragon or sphinxes was really not on her agenda.

"Who is that?" a male voice called from further off to the left.

"Gin Weasley. Aradia O'Carolan and I were sent down by Ragnok," she replied easily, already pulling out the notebook and quill. "To whom am I speaking?"

"Thompson, Miss Gin," was the weary reply. "We've no major injuries but we are penned in the vault."

"Bogrod?" After noting down their names, she studied the large pieces of stone as she decided the best way to begin removing them. At least, enough of them to get the three survivors out, the goblins could deal with the rest once the injured were evacuated. The whole damn building was unstable at this point. She really didn't want to die today.

"Yes, Miss Gin?"

"Matthews indicated that you five were the only ones down here. Was he correct?" She lifted her wand, carefully moving the smaller pieces out of the way. She didn't want to say that the third guard was dead; it wasn't something Thompson needed to know just now.

"Yes, Miss Gin."

She cussed, loudly and creatively, as a low rumble began far above them. "Dia, take cover!"

Running, she ducked into an alcove, careful not to touch the door as more debris fell, shattering the silence and setting the dragon off. When the noise stopped, she called out. "Fuck! Dia, you good?"

She nearly panicked when there was no reply. "Dia? Aradia!"

"I am, but the dragon really needs Charlie now."

Breathing a sigh of relief, she cautiously stepped out. "Mrs Longbottom, Thompson, Bogrod… are you three okay?"

"Yes."

Her brows shot up at the short, almost nasty tone from Mrs Longbottom. Really, was that necessary? They were, after all, the cow's rescuers. All but snarling, Gin stormed over to Aradia, glaring at the sphinxes that seemed wise enough to simply stay where they were rather than anger her. "One of us needs to go back up. Those three are far safer where they are at this point."

Aradia hugged her tightly. "You go, just please be careful."

Gin hugged her back just as tightly. "You know me."

Aradia's laugh was short, harsh, and just this side of hysterical. "This is not the time to tease me, Gin. Be safe."

"I will."

"Just go."

"I will be back for you, Dia. I promise." Gin decided that not telling Aradia her plans for getting back up as quickly as possible was the best course of action since Aradia would kick her arse soundly no matter the circumstances. With that in mind, she ran to where their ropes were hanging and started the long climb back up. Good gods, she was going to sleep for a week or two after this.

-BGD-

Draco was with Blaise, assisting in clearing the passages. Apparently, the goblins knew not to fuck with either of them. That or the goblins were just as worried as they were. They simply had not been able to leave when it was clear that Gin would be staying, that she would be in danger no matter how capable they knew she was. Gin and Aradia had been gone for hours now and no one seemed to have news other than one of the guards that they had freed two hours or more ago saying that he had spoken to them and pointed them in the correct direction of other possible survivors. He hadn't once thought of why the girls had such a unique hobby, but from what the goblins had been muttering both girls were highly respected for it.

Shaking his head, they moved together down the next stretch of passageway with five goblins. Of course, they had signed an agreement not to give away Gringotts secrets before they had been allowed to help. They had, for the first time ever, not had to think long and hard about it before they had signed. Not if it meant they could see Gin and check her for injuries hours before she would have made it back up to the main building. That was how they knew that the passages seemed to be independent to the normal patrons but, to the goblins they were all connected.

They reached an open walkway about halfway down, lined with medium security vaults off to the left, that overlooked the large cavern and he nearly fell over at the sight before him. Gin was clambering up a stretch of tracks that had been damaged. He watched, with Blaise at his side, as she tossed a rope with a wicked looking three pronged hook of some sort at the closest, to her, pillar that lined the walkway. She tugged it once it had wrapped itself around the pillar twice and nodded before hooking the rope to what he thought she had called a carabineer and wrapped the rope under her bum before winding the free end into the carabineer and another piece of her gear that he couldn't identify. What she did next nearly sent him into a panic attack and Blaise's grip on his hand told him that Blaise was in no better shape. She swung out through the open air and caught herself with her feet before she could slam into the wall.

Much to his shock, one of the goblins actually chuckled. "It is a rare treat for someone other than us to see Miss Gin in action like this. It is a pity that you weren't treated to the sight of both Miss Gin and Miss Aradia, it truly is awe inspiring."

Gin's head appeared further down the walkway and her eyes went wide. "You two did not see that!" She hauled herself up and sat on the walkway. "If Bill or Aiden takes me to task for being a heathen monkey, I will come after you two."

He nodded, too relieved to see her safe to dare her wrath. They moved together to crouch down next to her. Gods, she was covered in dirt and not once inch of her seemed to be unmarked. Was that her blood? He reached out tentatively to brush the dirt off of a nasty scratch on her cheek.

"Are you okay?" he managed, not bothering to ask just what the hells a heathen monkey was.

She grinned, her eyes lit with happiness bordering on euphoria. It was in that moment that Draco realised that they were seeing the real Gin Weasley. If he had been falling for her before, that wasn't the case any longer. He'd landed with a splat. This was the Gin that Aradia had spoken about for years. Blaise moved to help her take the small pack off of her back and for once she didn't complain. His brows rose as she handed over a small notepad to one of the goblins.

"Dia is fine. Your Welsh Green needs Charlie's attention as soon as possible and one of the guards, Matthews, is in a bewitched sleep on the bottom level. He needs a healer though he is likely to lose his leg. Augusta Longbottom, Thompson, and Bogrod are trapped in Mrs Longbottom's vault but they said they were not suffering any major injuries. Your sphinxes are protecting Dia and the Welsh Green."

"The others, Miss Gin?" one of the goblins asked in a flat, clipped tone.

"Five dead guards, the names of four are listed in there and we set lights near them so they could be easily found. The last guard we were unable to identify and he is located near the Welsh Green. Your Romanian Longhorn will have to be replaced. There was nothing we could do for it. We didn't find the third dragon, it may be further in."

Draco shared a look with Blaise that not only told him that Blaise was as in love with her as he was, but that the destruction was overwhelming both of them. Not Gin though. Amazed, they both focused their attention on her, automatically reaching out to help her up. She glared half-heartedly, but didn't protest.

"Can someone get Charlie and a healer? I think we can rig something to get them down there."

One of the goblins hurried back up the passageway, clutching the notepad to his chest.

"You're going back down?" Blaise asked seconds before Draco could say the same.

She glared hard now, and they shifted a couple of steps back. "Dia is down there! Of course I'm going back for her! I promised."

Draco shook his head and tried a spot of humour. "Okay, okay, we won't ask again. Any chance you know how many of those high security vaults are damaged? I'd hate to have my gold spilling out on the ground."

She snorted. "Cute, really, cute. They all looked to be secure; at least all but the one that I assumed was the source of all this mess."

"Which vault was it, Miss Gin?" one of the goblins asked. "Our monitoring charms went down momentarily and all we knew was that it was a high security vault that was the source."

She shook her head. "I couldn't tell. I am sorry, but we were more concerned with survivors and not having a piece of the roof falling on us like it did the Longhorn and that guard."

Draco's iron control was all that kept him from going with his instincts which were to haul Gin back up to where Aiden and Bill were no matter how much she protested. Instead, he silently took her hand and waited for Charlie and a healer to arrive. Blaise stood behind them, his hands resting at their waists.

Charlie and the goblin finally appeared but they were alone. "The healer refused to sign the secrecy agreement. Luckily, I think I can help with the guard as well."

The goblin next to Charlie angled his head up, a crafty look on his face. "We may have to offer you a job."

Charlie snickered. "And I may have to take you up on it. Now, how do we get down, baby girl?"

Gin squeezed his hand and stepped away, all business again. She took the pack that he'd not noticed Charlie carrying and began hooking the burly redhead up as she was. "We have a stretcher in Dia's pack that we should be able to use for the injured guard. If you lot can continue clearing the way, the less we have to climb the better."

She stood looking serious and more than a bit wary. "You must listen to my every word, Charlie. I will not watch you fall to your death. Understood?"

Draco nearly laughed as Charlie rushed to assure her. "You're the boss, Gin. I get that."

Blaise leaned in to whisper as the two redheads disappeared over the edge, "Damn, we have to have her."

Snickering outright, Draco pushed him towards the far end of the walkway. "Yes, yes. Think about that later. I, for one, am not risking her wrath if she thinks we didn't move fast enough to clear the passages."

Even the goblins picked up their pace clearly having heard him. Lucky for them after clearing out the next passage, the next three levels were fairly clear. From the level they stopped on, they were able to see Gin below, working with Aradia to clear debris while Charlie, surrounded by sphinxes, worked to heal the dragon.

"There is a lift," one of the goblins said softly. "It will take us down- if the shaft isn't blocked."

"All the way down?" Blaise inquired.

"No, but it will get us much closer."

Draco didn't rightly care how they got down there, just that they did. There had been three more incidents of falling rocks since Gin and Charlie had started down. He really didn't want to risk their luck by dawdling.

-DBG-

Aradia sighed with relief when they finally freed the guard, goblin, and Mrs Longbottom though if the utter and complete cow didn't stop whinging she would find herself hexed. "Do stop, Mrs Longbottom, it does no good to complain."

"Young lady, I will have you know that I refuse to allow you do disrespect me!"

Aradia rolled her eyes. "No disrespect if it is the honest truth."

As luck would have it, the others joined them at that very moment and she left Mrs Longbottom to the goblins. Amused, she saw Draco and Blaise tugging Gin between them and holding her close, all three of them whispering to one another. She was grateful that they seemed to have it sorted. But, she was tired and sore which meant Gin was even worse off. Their job was done and she wanted nothing more than a hot bath and clean clothes before she slept for days and days.

"Miss Aradia, we are taking them up now, if you would like to join us."

She nodded tiredly. "Gin, we need to go."

Gin looked over and slid from between the men. "Charlie, how much longer do you need with the dragon?"

Charlie stood and shook his head sadly. She knew that he'd found the third dragon not ten minutes ago and hadn't been able to help it. "I've done all I can for now. If it would be acceptable, I need to check on the poor thing at least once a day."

Aradia nearly fell over when the goblins nodded and one of them said, "That job offer just went from a maybe to a certainty."

Charlie laughed. "As did my acceptance. Shall I return tomorrow to discuss the particulars?"

Gin laughed lightly as they hurried to finish collecting their gear. "Have I said how much I love our job, Dia?"

Aradia chuckled. "Not for an hour or so. We should go; Narcissa and Marguerite are likely going spare about now."

If she wasn't so tired, she would have laughed until she cried at the wide-eyed looks of horror on Draco and Blaise's faces as they shooed her and Gin back into the passage. It never failed to amuse her how much they loathed worrying their mothers. It also gave her a reason to hope, seeing that all parents weren't worthless.