Ron sat in the CEO's office, his brow creased in a frown at the call that had just ended. He had called Gringotts just to crosscheck that the message on his talker machine about a transaction in his locker was a futile advertisement. But much to his shock, the woman on the other end had said that his locker had been opened. What more intrigued him was that the woman had cut off the call saying that it was a nice try for a prank call but "Ron and George are already here."
Was she serious? Was this some kind of a poor joke? He tried calling the bank again but his call line had been blocked, which was what corporate places usually did to hold prank callers at bay. Being the CEO of a multinational company, Ron hardly had time for such crap. Normally, he would've sent his secretary to do a quick run-up at the Gringotts, but something about this sounded sinister.
"Fine. I'll go check it out myself" Ron said to himself, getting up from his cushioned chair and heading to the fireplace in his office.
Wind screamed in Mal'akh's and Dastan's faces, as they tightly held one hand on the edge of the coach of the bullet train. With the other hand, they held their wands, positioning themselves in a bracing posture as they neared the bridge. The Aurors on the bridge were waiting for them. But not so fast.
Just before they came into the range of the Aurors' wands, Mal'akh and Dastan fired sparks from their wands onto the tracks ahead. A slab of tracks ahead melted, leaving nothing but air in between.
"My God" the lead Auror said as the bullet train hurtled towards the broken tracks at two hundred miles an hour. A shocked gasp escaped Ginny's throat as she saw what was happening.
The train rushed ahead. The tracks cringed and foundation bolts flew as the train passed over the broken tracks. The entire bullet train plummeted down into the unknown void below. Finally, the tracks buckled under the momentum of the train. People inside the train were thrown out of their seats, banging onto the seats ahead of them as the train free fell into a wide arc.
"Magneto inducto!" Dastan and Mal'akh shouted in unison and their wands shot out golden-coloured rays. The rays hit the rocky sidewalls and formed a cobweb of a strong electromagnetic field. The train sliced through the field, but since it was metallic, it slowed down. The train's body cringed under the effect of the strong magnetic field and finally stood still vertically, caught in a cobweb of golden magnetic rays, a hundred feet from above.
People inside the train screamed in terror at the sudden impact. The dark dungeons below looked frighteningly unknown now. Mal'akh and Dastan swung dangerously from the edge of the coach, balancing their legs on a window sill of the vertically hanging train.
Suddenly, Mal'akh lost his footing.
"Damn" he cursed and his legs cut the air but Dastan caught hold of his wand.
Mal'akh swung precariously in the air, tightly holding his wand, hanging on for dear life. The dark dungeons seemed to be inviting him. His hands were sweaty.
"No… No...!" Mal'akh cried as his grip started slipping due to his sweaty hand.
Finally, his sweaty hands gave way and he fell down into the unknown void. Dastan looked at the falling form of Mal'akh, and without a second's hesitation, dived in after him.
It was a blurring vision of light and dark as they plummeted down through the passageways of various platforms. Dastan finally caught hold of Mal'akh's waist.
"Arresto momentum" Dastan managed to speak and their free-fall jerked to a stop. Their breaths fanned their faces, signifying that they were inches away from the ground.
Both got up, sweeping the dust off their robes. They had reached the pit of Gringotts...the infamous Gringotts dungeons. Any way of escape now was impossible. The dungeon was cold and dark. Suddenly, Dastan felt a current of warm air.
"Lumos" he said and his wand's tip lit up.
"Shit..." words escaped Dastan's mouth as he saw the enormous body of a dragon.
It was a Norwegian Ridgeback, one of the most lethal species of dragon. It looked like the dragon was in a deep slumber.
Mal'akh started backing up, signalling Dastan to do the same.
"What are we going to do now?" Dastan asked with a hint of panic in his voice.
Mal'akh signalled Dastan to stay quiet and kept backing away. During his rigorous training days, the sport at which Mal'akh had excelled better than any person of his holy order was dragon taming. If he had learnt anything from his training days, it was to keep a safe distance from a dragon in order to stay alive. But as they backed up, keeping the lightened wand ahead of them, Dastan stumbled onto a stone and fell down heavily.
"Shit" Dastan muttered.
Now, the dragon's breathing got ragged and its massive eyelids fluttered open. The flooding light from the wand bathed its eyes as it saw the two figures. An immediate growl of anger escaped its nostrils. It suddenly got up and gave a huge "ROOOOAAARR".
"Run for cover!" Mal'akh shouted and they ran backwards, evading all cautiousness now.
They spotted a huge boulder and made a leap for it just when the dragon spat a huge ball of fire.
The dragon's nostrils relentlessly spewed fire. Mal'akh and Dastan could feel the searing heat as they kept their backs to the boulder. Fortunately, the dragon was bound by thick chains, so it couldn't come ahead. But it would be moments before the boulder would melt, revealing Mal'akh and Dastan's bare backs to the dragon's merciless fire. They had to do something.
Before they had any time to react, another growl came from their right. Mal'akh and Dastan looked in that direction. In the light of the erupting flames, they could see the enormous body of a Hungarian Horntail waking up. This was the largest and the most deadly dragon species known to man. It snaked up, and when it rose to its full height, it stood almost five storeys tall.
Mal'akh and Dastan looked at the second dragon, gaping in shock. In spite of laughing in the face of death quite many times, they had never faced anything like this. If the Hungarian Horntail spat fire, they would immediately be burnt sausages. Their backs were now starting to burn as the boulder was giving way to the blazing fire of the Norwegian Ridgeback.
Then Dastan came up with an idea.
Just when the Hungarian Horntail was about to flare up, Dastan shouted "Conjunctivitis!"
Sparks hit the dragon's eyes and it fell back, howling in pain, delaying its flaring.
"Quick" Dastan said getting up from behind the boulder and heading to take cover behind the Hungarian Horntail's rear. Mal'akh instinctively followed. Dastan raised his hand once again, this time towards the Norwegian Ridgeback.
"What're you doing?" Mal'akh said. "No! Wait!" he shouted but it was too late.
"Conjunctivitis" Dastan shouted and a jet of sparks hit the Norwegian Ridgeback's eyes and the second dragon sunk back, howling in pain.
But not for long. The dragons roared in pain and started spitting fire in random directions, sealing all possible ways to escape. Mal'akh sighed. Any remnant chances of escape had just been cut off.
"Horus will save us. Horus will save us" Mal'akh tried to reassure himself.
They could not afford to die now. Not after going through all this ordeal.
Suddenly, Mal'akh had the craziest idea ever. During his dragon training days, he'd heard that dragons were emotionally vulnerable when in pain. That they would respond to the right kind of music. Dragon masters often trained dragons for weeks after finally teaching them to expect pain when they heard a fiddle. It was a myth however to expect such response from wild dragons like the Hungarian Horntail or the Norwegian Ridgeback. He was about to check whether that myth was true or not!
Mal'akh looked around. He saw two almost rectangular slabs of stones. Perfect. He was going to perform a weird transfiguration charm and he hoped it would work. He focused his mind and said "Transfiguro".
Sparks hit the stone slabs. Mal'akh and Dastan looked at the slabs. Nothing happened at first. But then, the slabs transfigured into two sleek Sony SRS X-5 portable music speakers.
"Yeah!" Mal'akh said in a victorious tone as he picked up the speakers.
"What?!" Dastan gasped in shock.
What was Mal'akh doing? Mal'akh carefully levitated the speakers in the air and settled one beneath each of the dragon's bodies, well out of the reach of fire. The dragons' anger had not yet subsided and they spewed fire everywhere like two flamethrowers gone berserk.
Mal'akh took out his cell phone and connected it with the two speakers.
"Alright, here goes..." Mal'akh said choosing the first song and touching the play button. It was "Clair De Lune" by Debussy.
It was a peaceful piano piece. The sound of soft piano keys echoed through the dungeon and reached the dragons' ears. Mal'akh could see the intensity of the fire gradually subsiding.
Both the dragons cocked their heads towards the beautiful sound. What was it? They had never heard anything like this before. It sounded so peaceful... so serene.
The song ended and Mal'akh started Taylor Swift's "Breathe" (much strange of a choice, yet one which sufficed all the dragon's emotions). The dragons heard the sweet voice and stopped their fire-spitting spree. They settled down on their hinds, listening to the sound.
It gave them a strange emotion. It reminded them of the freedom they once had. The freedom of breathing fresh air, the freedom of spreading their wings and flying above the clouds. They still were blind by the conjunctivitis curse but they didn't mind it. They just wanted to listen to the music.
Mal'akh saw his chance and got up.
"Hey! What are you doing?" Dastan whispered frantically.
"Stay here" Mal'akh said as he stealthily made his way between the two dragons. He would be a burnt sheesh kebab if any of the dragons woke up from their trance, but it was a "make it or break it" situation and Mal'akh was willing to risk it.
Mal'akh switched the song to Enigma's "Sadness" and the sad beats reverberated through the dungeon. Mal'akh took out his wand and let out a violet sphere of light from its tip. He suspended the ball of light between the dragons. Hopefully, it had to be the first thing which the dragons would see when their conjunctivitis curse cleared.
The dragons wondered what these sounds were. They felt their hearts resonating with the sad opera. The sound was a personification of their emotions. The dragons' eyes started clearing, but wait! There was a light. It looked so calm, so peaceful, yet so sad. Was it this light that the beautiful sound was emanating from?
Mal'akh started levitating the ball gently along with the rhythm. The choir voices sounded creepily saddening in the cold dungeon. The dragons moved their head slightly from side to side along with the passive sphere of light. They did not want to lose it. It was as if their very life depended upon the music coming from it.
Finally, the dragons could take it no more and emotions flushed out of their hearts. The Norwegian Ridgeback let out a cry. It was a cry of despair, woven out of emotions. Mal'akh could make out the golden tears trickling out of its eyes.
Then the Hungarian Horntail couldn't take it anymore and it broke in too, like a sack of iron, sank down. It let out a howl and cried golden tears of despair.
It was the rarest of the rarest moments to see a dragon cry. For generations, dragon masters would wait to see one cry and Mal'akh had just made two of the most dangerous species cry. Horus was with them.
Finally, the dragons sat down, their faces on the ground, their paws on their nostrils. It was a sign of submission. If anyone rode them now, they were theirs for the taking. Mal'akh signalled Dastan to come out and head for the Norwegian Ridgeback. Mal'akh himself climbed on the Hungarian Horntail while Dastan climbed, a little clumsily, on the Norwegian Ridgeback. With one shot from their wands, they cut off the chains that bound the dragons from freedom. The same chains would now serve as reins. They swung the chains around the dragons' necks.
Mal'akh and Dastan smiled at nodded at each other. They were finally leaving...
Ron hurried to the entrance of Gringotts bank. There were four Aurors standing at the entrance.
"Four Aurors at the entrance? Sure enough, Gringotts had buffed up their security" Ron wondered.
The Aurors' expression changed completely when they saw Ron. All of them rushed at him at once and pinned him down.
"Hey! Whaa..." Ron tried to say, but his voice was muffled.
He was dragged inside, his priceless suit all dusty. As they entered inside, the people started murmuring loudly.
Mr Plumheart rushed out of a corner and squealed "You!"
"What do you mean? I am Ronald Weasley, CEO of Weasley Magical Products" Ron said, his temper rising badly.
A couple of other goblins came racing behind Mr Plumheart and they all studied Ron closely.
"You're the real Ron Weasley" said one of them, concluding.
"Real? Of course, I am real. What do you mean 'real'?" Ron said, his hand gripping around his wand, an unknown knot of tension gathering in his stomach.
"Come with me" Mr Plumheart said, taking Ron by the hand to the train station.
There was quite a commotion at the station now. The Aurors were rescuing people from the perilously hanging train below. Almost all the people had been taken out to safety.
"Ginny?" Ron said to a woman silently watching all the commotion from the platform.
Ginny turned around. She studied Ron with a weird expression. That red hair...those worried eyes...that silly look, okay this was her brother.
"Ron" she said and ran towards him, hugging him tightly, and started sobbing.
"What happened, dear?" Ron asked, patting her back.
"Some... Someone disguised as you and George. Very evil...very brutal men" she said in between sobs.
"Who? Where?" Ron asked shocked.
"Here, in Gringotts" Mr Plumheart said.
"But they must be dead by now" he added.
Suddenly the ground started rumbling.
"What's happening?" Ron asked, his brows creasing in panic.
"This isn't good. Everybody back off!" Mr Plumheart shouted.
All the Aurors and civilians screamed and ran towards the platform. From the dark void, two dragons flew upwards, smashing tracks as they flew.
The Hungarian Horntail came first before the hanging train. With one smack of its head and a whack of its thorny tail, the bullet train was crushed into pieces. Everyone screamed and ran for the exit. The dragons rose up, sending huge currents of winds as their massive wings flapped. There were reins of iron chains around their neck and a hooded rider sat behind each of them.
"My God" Ron said as the dragons flew up to the huge dome and smashed through the priceless white glass with their heads.
Shrapnel of glasses showered down and people screamed. Aurors put shielding spells to protect everyone from the showering glass. The dragons wiggled their way out of the dome into freedom, leaving Gringotts behind.
Ron stood rooted to his spot, watching the dragons fly into the distance, his mouth agape. He recalled how he, Hermione and Harry had escaped Gringotts some years ago on a dragon. But this was different.
"Those two were disguised as you and George" Ginny said, her voice barely above a whisper.
"I want to see my locker" Ron suddenly said, a sick feeling rising in his stomach.
"What?" Mr Plumheart said.
"I want to see my locker. NOW" Ron said.
"Well okay..." Mr Plumheart said, knowing well that if a customer asked to see his locker, they couldn't deny him in the worst of circumstances.
"I'll come too" Ginny said.
Mr Plumheart nodded, linking hands with Ron and Ginny and apparated to Ron's personal locker. The locker was locked, which was a good sign. Mr Plumheart fixed in the master key and opened the locker. The trio went inside. The money seemed to be intact, but a source of light caught their eye. The light was coming from the muggle safe. It was open. Ron's worst fear came true.
"What happened?" Ginny asked seeing Ron's white face.
Ron bent down and checked the safe thoroughly. "The Deluminator. Its go...gone" Ron stammered.
His prized collection, the one piece that he truly felt proud of, was gone. Ron checked the safe once again, not missing a single corner. His hand touched something in the safe. He brought the thing out, his hopes high. Sadly, it was not the Deluminator.
"What's this?" Ron asked perplexed.
Mr Plumheart took it from Ron's hand and studied it.
"It is a sign left by the thieves" he concluded.
The sign was completely made up of gold. It was like a line within a circle within a triangle. More like a triangular eye.
"The sign of the Deathly Hallows..." words escaped Ginny's mouth...