Hermione
Gringotts
May 1998
"I'd like to see my vault please."
The words felt like tar coming out of her mouth. Hermione didn't like the feeling of being Bellatrix one bit, and it unnerved her to sound even a fraction like the psychotic witch.
Out of the corner of her eye, she saw an older, sandy blonde wizard with a beard step into her view. The wizard's head shook ever so slightly.
That wizard was Malfoy, and he was letting Hermione know that she wasn't believable enough.
"Now!" Hermione-Bellatrix shouted, slamming a hand down to the counter top for good measure.
The goblin sitting before her trembled at the sudden sound, but looked more assured that he was in fact talking to the real Bellatrix Lestrange.
"Yes, of course," the Gringotts employee said as he bowed his head. "Miss, would you mind providing me with your wand to verify your identification?"
Malfoy had warned them about this. Likely, the first thing Bellatraix did when she realized her wand was missing, especially given that she was worried about them accessing her vault, was alert Gringotts.
"You know good and well that my wand was stolen," Hermione-Bellatrix snapped back at the goblin, doing her best to not let the regret she felt at being so rude to this person seep into her speech.
"Of course," the goblin nodded with a flinch. He turned to a cabinet and fished out a small note card, then handed it over to Hermione-Bellatrix. "If you would, please provide an answer to your security question."
Again, Malfoy told them this would happen. That was why both Malfoy and Ron, disguised as Bellatrix's guards, were uncomfortably close to her. It was to give Malfoy a line of sight to read the question.
Discreetly, Malfoy cast a wordless charm that materialized the answer on the notecard for a half a second before fading.
"2245 North Svlablard," Hermione-Bellatrix offered to the Gringotts' goblin as she handed back the note card which no longer carried the trace of their deception.
"Very good. If you would follow me," she was instructed as the employee descended the stairs from his elevated pedestal. Once down at floor level with the group, he led them towards the entrance to the high security vaults. The sandy blonde wizard she knew to be Malfoy gave her a reassuring smile as he gestured for Hermione-Bellatrix to take the lead.
The bond that continued to form between her and Malfoy was undeniable. After the evening where they agreed to be friends, Hermione hardly let him get a minute alone from her. He didn't seem to mind, she didn't think.
On more than a few occasions, Hermione saw Harry give Malfoy a look of warning. It was a bit odd, Hermione thought, seeing as how Harry had been nearly cordial to Malfoy since arriving at the cottage. But Hermione brushed it off. It was better than the outright disdain Ron showed the Slytherin.
As the Gringotts goblin led them into a narrow passage, Hermione felt Malfoy's hand guide her lower back.
When they entered the carts that would serve as their transport down to the Lestrange vault, they left space for Harry and Griphook to enter undetected under the invisibility cloak. With everyone loaded in, the cart began its descent into the dark, dank cavernous cave, quickly picking up speed.
For a few blissful moments, the group thought they had done it: That they outwitted Gringotts and would be able to enter the Lestrange vault without hardly working up a sweat. But what they didn't know, and what Malfoy was not aware of, was the Thief's Downfall.
Out of nowhere, cold, stagnant water splashed over the group while they pummeled ahead in the rickety cart. In a matter of seconds, their disguises vanished.
"Intruders!" the goblin who had accompanied them shrieked, his hand pointing at Hermione, then Ron and finally Malfoy. His eyes bulged at the sight of Draco.
Under his invisibility cloak, Harry acted quickly and cast an Imperio charm which quieted the goblin from yelling "intruders", but did little to solve their clear and present problem.
"How are we going to get out?" Ron asked over the roar of wind that swept past them, the cart still moving full speed on course to the vault.
"I have more Polyjuice potion, we can re-do the disguises once we need to leave," Hermione suggested, her voice nearing a scream to be heard over the air whipping by them.
The cart lurched to a halt and threw them unceremoniously out of their transport vehicle. Luckily, the abrupt dismissal of its passengers also came with a magically cushioned landing spot.
They dusted themselves off in a hurry to regroup.
Griphook turned to Hermione. "Re-applying the disguises won't work. When the Thief's Downfall is triggered, an alarm sounds through all of Gringotts."
"Would have been nice to know about that earlier," Ron grumbled towards Griphook.
"We need to move fast then" Harry urged them, giving a cursory look around their surroundings.
"This way," Draco called out, seeing the pathway to the Lestrange vault. The rest of the group followed, with Griphook trailing in the back with a slight hobble.
As they rounded a corner, Harry, Hermione, and Ron all stopped in their tracks. Standing before them, hundreds of meters below ground, was a staggeringly large albino Dragon, measuring at least a story tall.
"What is a dragon doing down here?" Ron asked to no one in particular.
"It's security," Griphook explained, moving to get a large metal device positioned off to the side. "We need to sound the clackers so it knows to let us through"
"Why will it let us through when it hears that?" Hermione asked, gesturing with her eyes to the device Griphook now held.
"They know to expect punishment," the goblin answered callously. Without any further pretense, Griphook shook the metal device as hard as he could with one arm, which belted a metallic peel of clangs throughout the open cavern.
The fearsome giant winced and shuffled back, bumping itself into the wall behind it in its rush to escape pain. Hermione noticed then that the dragon's eyes had been clawed out. Even without eyes, it was clear from the dragon's expression that it was terrified.
"That's horrible," Hermione whispered as they hugged the wall, moving towards the vault and avoiding the dragon.
A steady hand met the small of her back. She looked over her shoulder to see Malfoy, without his transfigurations, giving her a measured look.
Once around the bend, the cave gave way to an expansive room that swept out in front of them. There were more riches in that room than any of them, aside from Malfoy, would have ever seen in a lifetime.
Their eyes glittered from the treasure, but quickly refocused on the task at hand.
Hermione, Ron and Harry knew to be looking for a small golden cup. They hadn't divulged the specifics of the mission to Malfoy, and he did not argue. Another set of eyes could be of use though. Given the layout, with everything being gold, searching for a meager gold cup was like hunting for a needle in a haystack.
After several moments searching with bated breath, Ron called out, his arm outstretched pointing up to a ledge.
"Up there! There's a cup!" he called over to the group. His feet moved closer to the spot but Malfoy abruptly stopped him.
"Weasley!" Malfoy yelled, just urgent enough for Ron to pause and look at him. "I'm nearly certain this room is warded with a duplication charm."
"What's…" Harry began to ask but Hermione answered.
"Anything we touch will grow exceedingly hot and duplicate many times over."
The group looked over to the cup which was well beyond their reach. There was also a blockade; it was positioned high up above a literal pile of gold coins and jewels.
"Accio cup," Harry tried, pointing his wand directly at the desired item. It didn't even twitch.
"Could we Levicorpus someone over so they can grab it?" Ron suggested, and it was Malfoy who seconded the notion.
"That may be our best bet, honestly," Malfoy affirmed. Ron's expression contorted with surprise.
"I'm the lightest, I'll do it," Hermione volunteered, stepping into the clearing to get closer to the cup.
"No," both Malfoy and Ron objected.
The two wizards shared an uncomfortable look before bringing their attention back to Hermione, who was over it with them. She was perfectly capable of doing this, and frankly thought better of Malfoy at that point to have argued it.
"We don't have time for this nonsense," she spat back, stomping a foot. "I'm the best bet, now who is going to do it?"
Draco stepped out, and Hermione was relieved beyond measure that he was the one to volunteer. He was exceptionally gifted with spellwork.
"OK, you're right," Malfoy acquiesced, his eyes reaching her's while simultaneously deserting the appearance of mutiny on Ron's face.
Hermione and Malfoy stepped into the clearing, and with one substantial look passing between the two, they readied to lift Hermione in the air.
"Levicorpus," Draco cast, and not a second later, Hermione felt her stomach drop out from under her when her body swiftly flipped upside down.
Taking a few quick breaths from her new perspective, she organized her barings and nodded for Draco to move her in closer to the cup.
Slowly, she hovered closer and closer to the ledge where the cup sat. When she was just within reach, she stretched her arm out to take hold of the horocrux'd cup.
But as soon as her fingers were secured around one of the handles, burning agony overtook everything.
Cups multiplied out from the original, tumbling over the ledge and down the pile of coins, causing a chain reaction of the treasure below to duplicate. One of the cups hit Harry's toe, and also sprouted up matching sets.
Hermione had expected as much, but the pain still threatened to send her off course. But she fought it. She steadied a breath and clenched down onto the cup, her skin blistering, knowing that if they did not get out of there soon, the whole room would bury them.
She couldn't hold it in any longer and a guttural scream of pain ripped through her lips as she gripped the cup. Her body dropped in mid air ever so slightly.
Her eyes found her caster. His eyes were twisted in concentration watching her form, sweat dripping down his forehead as his wand moved Hermione over the cursed treasure.
"Everything is multiplying!" Ron called out from a few meters away, bumping into more treasure, making matters worse.
Below Hermione, Malfoy's focus could not be disturbed as he moved her body over the danger. She watched in horror as the seering metal piled up against his leg, searing through his pant leg. It built and built until his legs were pinned.
"Malfoy!" Hermione screamed, locking eyes with him. "Drop me and get out of there"
She was probably a little higher than she should be for a free fall, but she would survive. His expression was unhinged, and he would not break his spell. He continued to guide her further from the dangers of the room.
"Harry!" Hermione turned to find Harry. He had just managed to get Ron out to the edge of the room. Harry found her in midair. "Get Malfoy out, he won't move!"
Hermione thrashed her body, hoping to get loose from the spell as she watched Harry push away from Ron towards the edge of the clearing and make his way for Malfoy.
"Malfoy, let's go!" Harry screamed. Malfoy looked over at Harry, then back to Hermione, refusing to drop her at the height she was at. Treasure was duplicating and burning him just above the knee by then.
Finally, Hermione wiggled her way out of the spell and broke free, which sent her slamming down to the uneven, wet rocks of the dungeon floor.
Scrambling up to her feet, she launched herself back into the clearing, which was already thick with searing metal treasure. She made a direct line for Malfoy.
"Draco please!" she yelled as she neared him, dragging her feet through hot coins. It was almost as if he was in a trance.
As soon as she was close enough, she grabbed his wrist and yanked him away from the clearing, and in doing so, cast white hot metal out in every direction. Their clothes were in taters and their skin was now welted where the metal had connected.
With Malfoy safely out of the cursed vault, and also confirming Harry and Ron were safe just a few steps away, Hermione took a long ragged breath. It was then that she realized she had been crying.
Malfoy steadied himself. Other than looking worse for the wear with his pant legs nearly disintegrated and angry red welts covering every scrap of skin, he appeared otherwise unharmed.
Hermione marched up to him and shoved him.
"Don't ever do that again!" tears poured down her cheeks. Malfoy gave her a bewildered look.
"I'm sorry" was all he said, clearly not sure what he was apologizing for. His eyes still looked a bit distant and foggy from when he was holding her above the treasure.
"You could have been seriously hurt," Hermione rasped out, choking back a sob, wanting to shove him again for being so stupid.
"I'm OK Granger, really," he said, trying to calm her, but she marched up to him again and began to inspect his arms and neck. She then reached up to his face, cupping each side gently.
"You could have been so hurt!" Hermione said again through confused sobs, her hands still on his face like she was looking for damage.
Draco took her hand from his face and held it.
"Hermione," he said, and hearing her name on his lips stopped her tears at once. "I'm OK. We're all OK."
She cast a frantic look around the room, then back up to him, and nodded her head jerkily in acceptance as she withdrew her hand from his.
Her two best friends were standing just feet from her, yet all of her energy was pouring out for Malfoy. It was in that exact moment that she knew something was not right.
"We need to get out of here," Malfoy told her, then moved his attention over to Ron and Harry.
She nodded, inhaled a deep breath of stagnant cave air through her nose, and retreated from Malfoy over to Ron and Harry.
Now, with the chaos having died down and the item they had come for secured (Hermione had put it in her pouch), the alarms were once again dreadfully apparent.
"Have those been going off the whole time?" Harry asked. Griphook nodded.
"There's no way out," Griphook declared without much sympathy, clutching the Sword of Gryffindor to his chest as he did.
The blaring alarms were momentarily trumped by the roar of the albino dragon, which surprisingly was low on their list of concerns.
Hermione saw Harry look at the Dragon, and then up to the ceiling, and then back at the Dragon.
"We need to fly out," Harry suggested.
Malfoy pinched the brow of his nose and sucked in an exhausted breath.
Hermione assessed the situation. They couldn't go back the way they came, and when looking in that direction, saw new carts barreling towards them. The only hope was the glimmer of light above them. Ron looked to Hermione for a verdict, and she sighed knowing Harry was right.
"It's the only way," Hermione said to the group. With Hermione anointing it the only plausible solution, Ron and Maflloy reluctantly got on board.
Harry launched into instructions on how they'd need to free the dragon from its shackles, and then somehow get the dragon into motion towards the sliver of daylight.
Hermione and Draco felt the most comfortable performing alohomora on the shackles, and if that were to fail, knew how to cast a severing charm to cut away the metal if needed.
Harry took his place at the front of the Dragon, aiming to draw its attention forward. Ron stayed off to the side, ready to mount it when given the signal. Hermione and Draco both took their positions at the back, ready to move in and release the animal.
"Now!" Harry screamed.
The dragon startled at Harry's voice, then began sauntering in the direction towards it. That was Hermione and Draco's cue to move to the shackles and begin the process of removing them.
Frustratingly, Hermione found herself hitting a wall with the unlocking charm. She was casting it correctly, but the shackles wouldn't budge. Variation after variation failed.
Over to her right, Malfoy was in the process of removing the unlocked shackle.
The only option was the severing charm. Hermione braced herself before beginning.
Up ahead, Harry had already rounded the dragon and made his way onto its body. On the other side, Ron was inches away from also securing a spot on the back of the scaled beast.
Her cut across the metal shackle was moving along perfectly, but at the last second, her hand waivered, and even though in that motion the shackle fell to the ground, the wand continued and slashed into the side of the Dragon's skin.
The dragon reared back, causing Harry and Ron to hold on for dear life from their positions on the dragon's hide.
Malfoy had clutched her hand and yanked her to the edge of the dragon who was now moving raucously within its tiny space. The beast had not yet figured out it had freedom.
Hermione and Draco barreled to the side of the dragon, using the course, enormous scales as stepping stones to hoist themself onto its back. Finally, and thankfully, the final two of their party secured themselves onto the dragon.
Tepidly, the dragon expanded its footprint. After a few steps in one particular direction, it seemed to know that it was no longer shackled.
Without hesitation, its wings stretched out, sending Hermione skidding towards the edge. But Malfoy grabbed her hand at the last second and held on tight, pulling her as hard as he could back up the side of the dragon.
The beast now circled its spot in the dungeon, signaling that something was about to happen.
Malfoy gave one last tug on Hermione's wrist, securing her at his side. For good measure, he draped one arm around her waist, holding her flush against the scales of the dragon, and used his free hand to latch onto the hide.
Hermione's eyes drifted up and saw that Harry and Ron were several arm lengths away from them, closer to the dragon's neck.
Then the moment of truth came. The dragon reared back to a near vertical position, and its wings began to flap.
Hermione's fingers clawed into the Dragon's scales, as was Malfoy's one free hand. His other hand remained securely wrapped around her waist.
The dragon then lept lightly off of its hind legs, sending them airborne. Thankfully, the dragon leveled out to a more horizontal position rather quickly as it became comfortable with its wings again.
Pressed up against the dragon, firmly in Malfoy arms, Hermione chanced meeting his eyes and he returned an imperious look.
"Gryffindors…" he said drolly into her ear as they continued their assent.
Hermione laughed and held his stare, "you're stuck with us now." Malfoy returned a queasy smirk.
It was beginning to look that beyond all odds, they were about to escape Gringotts, on the back of a dragon no less.
Malfoy squeezed her tighter as the daylight neared, bracing for an impact from whatever enclosed the cavern from above.
But instead of impact, Hermione felt the dragon soar through the opening, passing the barriers of the cave that had held it for so long deep within the bellows of the Gringotts.
Freedom radiated off the blind animal. It likely did not know where it was going, and it likely did not care.
"You OK?" Hermione heard Harry call out from the front of the dragon. It was hard to hear him through the wind, but she could see his face and what he was trying to communicate. Hermione gave him a thumbs.
"Where is it going?" Ron yelled to the group.
Malfoy looked around trying to figure that out himself.
"I guess we'll find out," Harry shouted back, a blissful grin plastered across his face. He looked at Hermione. "You have it?"
Hermione patted her bag and nodded, not bothering to use her voice which was lodged somewhere in the back of her throat. She never did like flying.
Once the dragon had been on a smooth path for about ten minutes, the group found what level of comfort they could on the back of the flying animal. They didn't dare move towards one another, but they let their fingers relax from their death grips on the dragon's scales.
But, Hermoine noted, Malfoy never let go of her waist. Her body was firmly, and very pleasantly flush against his.
"Where do we go next Harry?" Hermione finally asked. She had to yell for her voice to carry enough to reach Harry and Ron.
"Hogwarts!" Harry yelled back. Hermione felt Malfoy groan at her side. She gave him a bemused look.
"You don't have to go," she teased
"You're going?" he questioned back, his hand moving alongside her waist. She nodded with a sense of warmth building in her. "well then, I'm going"
Her stomach felt like it was doing gymnastics, and it had nothing to do with the dragon she was currently flying on.
Without warning, the dragon turned directions, banking its body violently left.
Hermione's grip was not solid, and despite Malfoy having her by the waist, she slipped quickly down the side of the dragon.
They were likely suspended hundreds of meters in the air. If she fell, there would be no surviving it.
"Hermione!" Harry and Ron called out.
Malfoy's fingers dug into her side, trying to get a grip on her, but she kept slipping down.
Her eyes locked onto his and she could see the panic in them. Each second the dragon remained on its side, Hermione slipped further and further towards the edge.
With one hand she tried clawing her way back onto the dragon, her other hand remaining attached to Malfoy's arm.
She put everything she had into staying on that dragon, but she wasn't making any progress. Malfoy was doing everything he could, but his efforts weren't making a dent. She kept sliding.
Over to her side, she saw Harry and Ron trying to work out how they could get over to her and help save her, but they couldn't.
Inch by inch she crept down the side of the dragon until all but her upper body was dangling in midair.
She felt her hand slip in Malfoy's hand, but he recovered it, but only barely. And only for a second.
The warmth and strength of his hand fell away, and Hermione's stomach dropped as she began falling through the sky down to the ground.
She heard the screams of both Harry and Ron, but not Malfoy.
A second later, she was being pressed through a tiny hole, all the air collapsing out of her chest. Then she was tumbling onto dead pine needles and dirt.
Out of instinct, she scrambled up to her feet and began casting protection charms around where they landed. She had completed one pass to disillusion their presences when Malfoy slammed into her.
"Are you OK?" he asked in a panic, shaking her shoulders gently. Her eyes went out of focus on where her wand was aimed, and then narrowed in on his.
She had been so used to apparating and reappearing at the drop of the hat, in some unknown area, that the muscle memory took over and she just started casting protection spells.
But then it hit her that they were just on a dragon, and she was falling through the air to her death. And now they were in a forest.
Her legs gave out and she collapsed onto the pine needles under her. Malfoy followed her down, now crouching in front of her. His hands had reached out for hers.
"We were falling off the dragon," Hermione recalled numbly, "and now we're here?"
"It's a forest near one of the Malfoy estates, it's far in the country," Malfoy explained, his eyes still monitoring her.
"You apperated us while we were falling in midair?" Hermione asked breathlessly.
"Yes."
"Apparition in midair is impossible," she said back to him in disbelief.
"I had seen the Dark Lord do it once. I figured it was possible," he told her, his voice not giving way to the astounding bit of magic he just did.
Hermoine paused. "You could have died if it didn't work"
His eyes darted away from hers.
"Let's ward the area," he said, standing abruptly as he took out his wand. Without another word, he began to cast protection charms around the space.
Hermione watched while he walked the camp site, performing spells that she would often perform for herself, Ron and Harry, and then some she had not recognized.
Her body was in shock though, and she couldn't move.
They had broken into Gringotts, somehow found the horocrux which she now had, were detected as intruders, then escaped on the back of a blind dragon that had been trapped within the bowels of Gringotts and finally, Draco Malfoy, nearly risked his life apparating them from a midair dive.
Tentatively she moved from the forest floor to a lopsided rock and took in the space they were in. It would have been a serene escape in a perfectly charming forest if it weren't for the circumstances.
Then abruptly, like a stunner to the chest, it hit her that they were separated from Ron and Harry, and she was now alone in the forest, with Malfoy.
Her body and brain became a battleground; a battle of anxiety for her missing friends, and misplaced excitement that she was alone with Malfoy. Hermione remained on her uncomfortable rock and contemplated what the next 24 hours could have in store.