Chapter XIII: Tainted
Harry stood rooted to the spot as he stared at the dozens of Death Eaters all filled into the passageway outside Bellatrix Lestrange's Gringotts vault. Of course, retrieving the Horcrux had been too easy. They had been stupid enough to believe they could just waltz in there, take it and then leave again. And now they were ambushed, trapped and outnumbered.
"Well well well, look who we have here." One of the Death Eaters mocked as he removed his mask. Draco flinched at the sight of his Uncle, Rodolphus Lestrange.
Hermione stared at him in fear and subconsciously edged closer to Draco, to slip her hand into his. He squeezed her fingers hard and brushed his thumb across her wrist.
"It's my nephew." Rodolphus cracked a grin, his messy dirty face turned to Draco, who visibly blanched under his gaze. "Come to have a poke around in your dead aunt's vault, eh Drakie? The riches of Malfoy Manor just not enough?"
The other Death Eaters laughed, and Hermione could see Draco's jaw hardening into a line. She squeezed his hand reassuringly.
"You know, when they told me that my own nephew killed his own aunt, my wife, I didn't believe it." Rodolphus started to pace in front of them, rolling his wand around in his hands thoughtfully and carelessly. "Tell me, why didn't I believe it?"
"Because he never had the guts to kill anyone!" One of the Death Eaters from the back shouted, and once again laughter rang around the passageway in shrill syllables. Draco clenched his teeth together.
"I can never understand why the Dark Lord favoured you above all else." Rodolphus stopped pacing and stared at his nephew. "He favoured you over me, over your aunt, over your own father. By the way, how is your father Drakie?"
"My father is stone cold dead, right where he belongs." Draco snarled. Rodolphus suddenly pointed his wand at Draco with a murderous glint in his eye.
"You killed my wife, your father and your mother. You dear mother is dead, right next to your father. They're still lying on the floor of the Manor." Rodolphus spat on the ground in front of Draco, and if it wasn't for Hermione's fingers pressing against his own desperately he would have cursed his uncle on the spot.
"Your wife is dead, right where she belongs. And you should be next to her, Uncle." Draco smirked at the sight of his Uncle's angry face. When he didn't reply Draco continued; "You seem rather interested in me today, Uncle. Makes a change."
"Yes well, you're the Dark Lord's number one priority right now." Rodolphus removed his wand from in front of Draco's face. Draco smirked.
"If I'm such major priority, why is the Dark Lord not coming to collect me himself?"
"The matters of the Dark Lord do not concern you right now."
"Oh, but as the Dark Lord's right hand man and main priority, I think I should really know if the Dark Lord is currently grieving the loss of myself." Draco grinned and whipped out his wand. "Pray tell Uncle, is the Dark Lord in pieces right now?"
"Why you little-" Rodolphus was cut off by a sudden flash of purple light streaking in his direction from Ron Weasley's wand.
All hell broke loose as the dozens of Death Eaters all began firing curses in every direction at the foursome. Harry dived back into Bellatrix's vault to avoid a particularly nasty stinging jinx and fell painfully on a pile of goblets. Ron had started firing Stupefy after Stupefy, only managing to hit five out of his ten targets, as they managed to deflect them with simple shields.
Hermione could barely breathe as she fired as many hexes and curses as she could think of, her mind becoming hazy with panic. She wasn't holding onto Draco's hand anymore – he had shoved her violently out of the way of a cutting jinx that unknown to the both of them follows it's target. It had sliced Hermione's thigh five times before she managed to shield it off. Her thigh was flowing with blood and Hermione was struggling to stay conscious from the mass amount of blood loss and was struggling to fire spells and shields too.
Draco had lost sight of Hermione. One minute she was deflecting a yellow jinx, the next she had disappeared in the mass of dark hoods and masks. He could faintly hear Harry bellowing a Sectumsempra that successfully hit it's target as blood sprayed everywhere. Ron was now no where to be seen either.
Bodies began to litter the dirty floor and Hermione found herself crawling over them to avoid dark curses she had no hope of deflecting with a shield charm. Hermione stopped crawling to staunch the blood flow of her leg, only to be suddenly hauled up again violently by her hair.
"Well well, if it isn't Potter's little slut. Or are you Draco's now?" The Death Eater breathed down her ear, the stench of his breath curdling the hairs on the back of her neck. Hermione realised with horror that it was Rodolphus. Hermione lifted her hand up to curse his sorry ass only to stop half way through the action, realising her wand was now on the floor.
Rodolphus pushed her forwards, forcing her to walk through the crowd of Death Eaters, still holding onto her hair. He cast a shielding charm around them as they moved to the front of the Death Eaters, revealing themselves to Draco and Harry, whom upon seeing Hermione instantly froze.
"I strongly suggest you stop your attack." Rodolphus snarled, his wand pointed at Hermione's neck.
"Let go of her." Harry ordered loudly, his wand twitching desperately in his hand.
"Or what, Potter?" Rodolphus spat. "What are you going to do? Your slut is my hostage so I suggest you shut your mouth Potter."
Rodolphus flung Hermione to the floor, where she landed harshly on her ribs. She gasped loudly as the wind was knocked out of her. She struggled to breathe as she rolled over. Immediately Draco stumbled towards her but was halted harshly by an invisible barrier between the Death Eaters and the three boys.
Draco shouted loudly and hammered his fists on the invisible barrier, as did Harry, almost as if they believed banging on the powerful shield would break it.
"Let's see how much she means to you, Draco." Rodolphus grinned as he aimed his wand at Hermione. Silently, he cast the Cruciatus curse.
Hermione's scream sliced through Draco sharper than Harry's Sectumsempra curse in sixth year. She was thrashing about on the floor, screaming to the point where her lungs nearly collapsed on her. Hermione's body twisted into impossible angles, as it felt like it was being stabbed, ripped, broken with anything that could ever inflict such pain. Then the pain stopped as quickly as it had started.
"I'm only going to say this only once so listen up." Rodolphus kept his wand trained on a convulsing Hermione. "You come with us quietly Draco and Potter, or else I'll kill her."
Draco blanched. He stared at Hermione lying on the floor whom had her eyes squeezed shut, then back at his Uncle. Draco's perfect face creased into worry lines.
"There is no negotiating Hermione's life!" Harry roared angrily, his wand shaking in his hand.
"I have something else you might like instead of us." Draco said as he pointed his wand at Hermione's beaded bag and whispered; "Accio cup."
Hufflepuff's cup came zooming out of Hermione's enchanted bag and landed in Draco's outstretched hand. Instantly Draco felt a heavy weight placed on his brain and winced at the Dark Lord's sudden voice in his head.
Draco, Draco. My right hand man.
Draco tried in vain to put up Occulmency shields, but the Dark Lord was far stronger than he was. Draco swallowed the lump in his throat and shakily held the cup in front of him, as if he wanted it to be as far away from himself as possible.
"Do you recognise this, Uncle?" Draco asked, raising his eyebrows slightly at the sight of his Uncle's eyes widening in shock at the cup in Draco's hand. "I'm pretty sure you and your wife were meant to protect this?"
"D-d-draco..." Rodolphus stuttered, panicking, the alarm crystal clear in his eyes.
For one of my Knights he is rather pathetic.
"Let Hermione go or else I'll destroy it."
Tom Riddle screamed angrily and Draco dropped to his knees at the sound, clutching his head, the cup still in his hand.
You destroy my Horcrux and I will destroy you, Draco Malfoy.
Draco shakily pointed his wand at the Horcrux, as he stared at his Uncle.
"Take the ward down, give me Hermione and I'll give the cup to you and Harry and I will come with you quietly.."
Harry raised his eyebrows at the proposition of giving the Horcrux to them and opened his mouth to negotiate. However, he halted his movements when he spotted Hermione shaking her head at him slightly. Harry furrowed his eyebrows as he glanced at Hermione, then at Rodolphus, then finally at Draco and the Horcrux. He didn't understand how this was all going to work out, but he kept silent for the time being.
"Y-you will give the cup to me?" Rodolphus whispered and Draco nodded.
Draco glanced at the cup in his hands and his eyes widened with astonishment. The cup had filled itself to the brim with a golden liquid that seemed to shine even in the dim light of the passageway. It glittered invitingly and Draco couldn't move his eyes away from the liquid, the sudden desire to feel it on his taste buds was overwhelming.
Taste it Draco. It will help you save Hermione. I promise.
Draco suddenly felt parched to the point of almost dehydration, and he hungrily raised the cup to his pale lips.
"Draco no!" Hermione managed to scream desperately as she watched Draco drain the goblet in one. Draco looked puzzled for a moment as he stared at Hermione then suddenly he was on the floor, convulsing and retching up blood.
"Malfoy!" Harry yelled as he fell to his knees besides Draco who was splattering blood all over the concrete floor. "Lestrange what the hell happened?"
"Voldemort sensed that his Horcrux was in danger. This was the cup's defence mechanism." Hermione managed to explain weakly, and her know it all attitude earned her a sharp kick in the ribs. She gasped and rolled over, clutching her side.
"You dare to speak so freely of your Lord like that?" Rodolphus hissed disgustingly. "You're nothing but a petty little Mudblood whore."
"Lestrange!" Harry snarled as he awkwardly patted Draco on the back as he turned over on all fours and continued throwing up his blood.
"Potter?" Rodolphus raised a sarcastic eyebrow.
"Give us Hermione, and tell us how to stop this!" Harry gestured to Draco. "Or else I really will destroy the cup."
Rodolphus desperately glanced between Hermione, Harry, Draco and the Horcrux that was lying innocently on the floor beside Draco.
"No." Rodolhpus snarled as he straddled Hermione's waist. He roughly grabbed her right arm and pointed his wand at it. He whispered an incantation that Hermione had never heard of then all of a sudden she felt a sharp pain in her arm, that moved similarly in the same way Bellatrix's knife did.
Hermione screamed.
Draco moaned as he watched helplessly his Uncle torture Hermione in a fashion just like his late Aunt's. Draco's fingers inched towards the cup on the floor. His long pale fingers wrapped around the handle of the cup and he pulled it towards him.
Your pure blood is tainted, Draco. It has been tainted by the light. It disgusts me.
Draco, upon instinct at the Dark Lord's words, raised Hufflepuff's cup towards his mouth and spat his blood into it. Instantly Draco's blood in the cup began to boil, as the part of Voldemort's soul trapped inside it began to scream.
You dare to betray me! Voldemort screamed as the Horcrux suddenly exploded. A blinding emerald light illuminated the passageway, causing everyone to shield their eyes. When the explosion was over, everyone in the entire passageway froze.. They all stared at one another before a Death Eater suddenly flung a curse in their direction. Out of reflex, Harry cast a Shield Charm. Harry thanked his Seeker reflexes that he had, for the explosion had eliminated the invisible barrier between the Death Eaters and himself.
"Hermione!" Draco yelled as he dived underneath a scarlet red jinx that for a split second made him shudder as they reminded him of Voldemort's eyes.
Hermione rolled over and opened her eyes at the sound of Draco's voice so close to her. Everything was hazy as her head spun at the sudden alertness. She held her hands up blindly and felt relieved when she felt Draco pick her up in his arms. She mumbled something incoherently before everything around her went black.
Draco gritted his teeth as he noticed Hermione pass out on him. He desperately tried to get her to safety by Harry, who had a large secure powerful shield up all the while trying to deflect oncoming curses.
"Malfoy!" Harry yelled as he silently cast a curse over Draco's shoulder, successfully hitting a Death Eater in the face with a Severing Charm.
"Thanks Potter." Draco grinned as he suddenly spun around and fired a Killing Curse. He watched with satisfaction as it hit his target. He heard the screams of his Uncle before they froze in the air and disappeared into the passageway. He watched as Rodolphus fell to the floor, his eyes wide open and glassy, resembling his late wife. Draco felt his lips curl into a smirk and he couldn't hide the satisfaction from his face.
The atmosphere in the air changed. The Death Eaters were looking frantically from the dead Rodolphus to his nephew and the unconscious girl then to the boy-who-lived. They were at a loss for what to do, if one was honest.
"What are you going to do now?" Ron sneered suddenly from behind Draco and Harry, and everyone had to turn around and stare at him for he had been absent from most of the battle.
"Is that the dragon?" One of the Death Eaters asked, momentarily forgetting he was a Death Eater and was supposed to curse the teenage wizards on the spot, but the sight of that gigantic albino dragon had almost knocked his knees out from under him.
"Is it the dragon, and on my command, he will burn you all to a crisp if you don't disapparate right now." Ron gave the dragon a fondly pat on his flaky white scales and the dragon cooed.
Harry and Draco couldn't help but stare at Ron like he'd just transfigured into a dragon.
Ron gave the dragon a slap on the side of it's neck and it suddenly roared. The noise was horrendous; Harry fell to the floor holding his head and Draco just had to face it – both his hands were still holding Hermione closely against himself. The dragon let out a breath of fire just as the remaining Death Eaters attempted to apparate. The Death Eaters were instantly splinched, as you cannot disapparate outside Gringott's walls, something which, Ron was proud to admit, he knew. They, along with Rodolphus' body and the already dead Death Eaters were incinerated to a crisp.
"Good boy." Ron murmured to the dragon as he fondly caressed the scales underneath his giant chin, which was now lowered onto the floor to expose his back and neck to them. Ron turned to his friends – minus Draco, whom he still refused to acknowledge as any where near a friend, and said calmly; "Well are you going to get on his back?"
Harry blanched. "I'm not getting on that dragon!"
"Hermione would have a fit." Draco pointed out as he eyed the dragon.
"Harry, you're not scared of the little dragon are you?" Ron grinned.
"Says you who was convinced he'd eat us." Harry snapped.
"He won't. He likes me." Ron grinned at the dragon, who was getting impatient as he started huffing stinky breath through his overly large nostrils. "Don't you Bino?"
"Bino?" Harry blinked blankly as Draco suddenly roared with laughter.
"Yeah, because he's an Albino dragon." Ron rolled his eyes and clambered on the back of the dragon. Harry reluctantly clambered on behind Ron. "Charlie taught me a bit about charming dragons, but I wasn't sure it would even work."
"Are you sure this is safe?" Harry asked as he eyed the dragon nervously.
"Scared, Potter?" Draco grinned as he hoisted an unconscious Hermione over his shoulder and levitated himself up onto the dragon. Then he swung Hermione's limp legs over the dragon and wrapped his arms around her waist as her head lolled on his chest.
Harry turned around and quirked an eyebrow at Draco whom pointedly looked away. Ron was whispering something to the dragon and suddenly, with a roar, the dragon stretched out it's large wings and kicked off the ground at an almighty speed. It soared up and up until it crashed through the roof of Gringott's, leaving debris to rain down on the wizards on it's back.
Hermione's stomach gave a strange lurch through her unconsciousness and her eyes snapped open. All she could see was the sky, and her vision half clouded by a sweep of ash blonde hair. She blinked rapidly and struggled to sit up.
"I wouldn't move much if I were you." Draco whispered in her ear, his arms wrapped tightly around her waist. Hermione's heart gave a sudden pang at the realisation that Draco was in such close proximity to her, and the sound of his ragged voice down her ear. Hermione then panicked as she tried in vain to look around, her head caught under his chin. "We're on a dragon."
"WE ARE WHAT?" Hermione screamed as the dragon suddenly dove downwards. Hermione squeezed her eyes shut, mumbling something about how it was just like that damn hippogriff in third year. Draco smirked.
"Don't panic Hermione! We're headed for land!" Harry roared over the sound of rushing wind, as he held on tightly to the dragon's flaky white scales. Hermione could only nod, her throat closing up from the fear.
"What on Earth is that Potter?" Draco yelled suddenly, using one hand to point at something in front of them. Harry's stomach leapt at the sight of a hooded figure whooshing towards them. His scar, however, made no prickling sensation. He felt dread creep up over him when he felt that familiar coldness rush over him and he knew that the Dementors had found them again.
Before Harry could lift his wand to perform his Patronus, the Dementor had swept down and sucked the life out of the old Albino dragon, causing it to freeze mid flight and go tumbling towards the lake that was beneath them.
All four of them screamed as they crashed into the inky black depths of the Great Lake, engulfed by the icy cold water that was pushing them deeper towards the bottom, and they sunk, instantly unconscious from impact, like heavy stones dropped from a great height.
I greatly apologise this is so late! I was supposed to finish this chapter and put it up on my birthday, which was Wednesday, but that failed. I then wanted to upload it on the Friday that DH2 came out, but again, failed. Can't wait to watch DH2, going to watch it Monday :D
Anyway, I hope you like this chapter, I'm not sure what to think of it. Ugh. I know that Draco is a pureblood, and therefore his blood logically shouldn't affect the Horcrux, but because Draco has effectively joined the 'light' his blood is tainted in the eyes of Voldemort. Make sense?
Thank you for the reviews lovelies :)