a/n: A thousand thanks to poka for reading and reviewing. This story is a bit faster pace than my others. A few more twists to come. Thanks to everyone for the favorites and follows.
Chapter 3: The way out is through
"Where are all the other dementors?" Harry asked as they walked cautiously back down the hallway, the dark wizard trailing behind them with a levitation charm.
"In the future and maybe the past," Hermione told him. "They're being created here and crossing over through the veil."
"So there is a way back," Harry observed. "We need to find the veil they're using."
"That's why we still need this useless bloke," Sirius agreed, welding Ekrizdis' wand.
"The dementors here aren't the same," Harry continued, walking into the small torture room. Paused as he took it in.
Hermione wasn't ready to share her theory on why the dementors in their time were different. She didn't know for sure, she just had a educated guess based on what Ekrizdis told her and what she experienced when the dementor was permitted to feed on her. All thoughts slipped away when she got another look inside the room she'd escaped from. The amount of blood pooled near the chair surprised her. Harry led her away from it, redirected her toward a bench, and sat her down, while Sirius used the prisoners own wand to secured him to the chair that had held her. Harry searched cabinets, she wasn't sure what he was looking for and was too tired to work it out. He came up with a bottle, sniffed it and winced. Next, he found a bowl, cleaned it the best he could, tossed some strips of cloth in, and soaked them with the alcohol.
"Don't waste it all," Sirius said, took a swig from the bottle. "That's a good burn," he hissed through gritted teeth. "Ought to clean up that wound right enough."
Hermione sat straighter. She knew there was a danger of infection if she didn't get healer care soon. She tried to look away from the bloody mess of her sleeve, only to see the bloody mess of the floor. Resigned to the process, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes. They really should teach some basic first aid spells at Hogwarts, she thought absently. Harry ripped her sleeve open to have complete access.
"What did you do to him," Sirius asked, kicking the foot of the evil man.
Hermione assumed the question was directed to her. "Sleeping charm and– Ugh! Merlin," she shouted when the alcohol washed over the open wound. She bit her lip, waited for the stinging to subside. "And blinding charm. He can cast spells without his wand. We have to be careful when we bring him around," she continued after she caught her breath.
Harry bent her arm to get access to the exit wound, they both repeated the process, Harry pouring alcohol on her arm, Hermione failing to swallow the cry of pain. When Harry was satisfied, he rewrapped her arm with the alcohol soaked strips of cloth. Sweat had broken out on her brow by the time his efforts were over. She finally opened her eyes. Harry was watching her with concern. She didn't know what to say to him to ease the worry.
"I thought Sirius was hit with the killing curse?" he asked.
"I thought so too. I'm not sure anymore," she said, her eyes flicking from Harry to Sirius. The wizards was standing there, alive. It was impossible. Harry survived because he was shielded from the curse. This was different. Sirius had been killed. She was sure. She bit her lip. Wondering if either wizard was ready the truth. Sirius owed his life to the man who created dementors. "I think… Ekrizdis reanimated his body, sent a dementor back to find and collect his soul in the veil. There's something about that place that protected it. That's the best explanation I have."
Harry looked at his godfather, waiting for some confirmation.
"Last thing I remember clearly was fighting with you in the department of mysteries and the next was waking up in my Animagus form over there," he said, pointing to the table. "Also…" he trailed off as he remembered something else. "Maybe I remember the dementor with my body. After it brought me back through the veil. I think the entrance is on the upper floors. I can't be sure."
"He's coming around," Harry said, noting the movements coming from the man in the chair.
Hermione stood, wand in hand with a look of determination.
"One of us should keep our distance. In case he gets lucky with a wandless spell," Harry said, looked at Hermione.
"I'm not sitting this out," she said defiantly. "He stabbed me. I intend to get answers from him."
Harry looked at his godfather exasperated. Sirius held out his hands and walked toward the hallway. "A smart man doesn't argue with a determined woman," he said as he passed Harry.
Hermione pointed her wand at the wizard. "Ekrizdis."
"Hmm, what," he answered, groggy. "Wherefore can't I see?" he asked and grew agitated. A blast of air flew out around him, pushing Harry and Hermione back.
Harry helped balance Hermione, held his tongue.
"Where's the entrance to the veil?" Hermione asked, undeterred.
The blindfold was still in place incase he was able to overcome the blinding charm. A smirk twitched at the corner of his mouth. "Wh're I put it."
"Is it in this fort?" she pressed on.
"Forsooth. Did guard well by mine own creations," he explained.
Harry cast her an apprehensive look. "Dementors?" he asked.
Ekrizdis jumped at the new voice, twisted to try to face the direction of the sound. "Trouble, yond one," he said toward Harry. "M're than dement'rs. Thee can tryeth to pass. I wonneth't stand ho thee."
"Wonneth't stand ho thee?" Sirius asked with a look of pure confusion from the doorway.
"He won't stand in our way," Hermione explained, glad her diligence in reading ancient texts was finally coming in handy.
"Ah! Animagus. I did fix thee. Ekrizdis not all lacking valor."
"He's got a point," Sirius said, smoothing out his cloak. "I'm good as new."
"What you do here is unnatural and horrific. You're advancing magic through torture and unethical experimentation," Hermione snapped back. "You're creating creatures that shouldn't exist."
"Yet those gents doth exist," he said with a shrug. Clearly unbothered by his methods.
"Why?" Hermione asked, genuinely wanting to know.
Ekrizdis straightened, as if in fear. "The being in the flo'r. Charm residue. Needeth protection"
The being in the floor, what did that mean? Charm residue. Was he just crazy? "Where's the veil?" Hermione pressed, she didn't want to stick around and find out.
"Top flo'r, southwest c'rn'r," he answered.
"Do we trust him?" Harry asked.
"It matches what Sirius remembers," Hermione answered.
"What do we do with him?" Sirius asked.
"Nothing. We put him back to sleep. We can't change time, even if he deserves to be punished for this place," she concluded, and reapplied the sleeping charm.
Harry stepped back. "What happens to him?"
"He dies some time this century. Leaves behind dementors to evolve and breed. The fort was discovered in the eighteenth century."
Sirius whistled. "Three hundred years is a long time for dementors to be left on their own."
"Let's find the stairs," Harry said, taking Hermione's hand, pulling her away from the sleeping wizard. "Lock and shield the door. If he wakes up and gets loose, we need to slow him down."
Hermione set up the magical barricades and turned toward the two men. Focused on Sirius. She didn't want to bring up bad memories of Azkaban, he was the best thing they had to an expert on the layout. "Which way?"
"Pick any direction. There are three staircases, one at each corner. Can't say if one is closer than another," he said. "Might as well go back the way we came."
Without a better reason to pick a particular direction, the trio walked forward. Each step felt like work. Hermione's adrenaline was wearing off, she was feeling weak and tired. There wasn't time to rest, she reminded herself. They needed to press on, but the reality that they might not find safety in the near future had her worried. She might become a liability in a fight. Coming across the fallen dementor, Hermione looked down as Harry helped her walk over it. The strange dark substance she had seen on Sirius appeared to be whatever a dementor considered blood. It was coming from a violent wound to its neck.
Once they were clear, Hermione caught Sirius looking at her. He seemed ashamed over the evidence of his actions. "I wouldn't recommend putting dementor on a menu," he joked, trying to brush it off.
"You saved our lives," she reassured him. "It likely won't be the last dementor to die today. It's not human. Not anymore. It couldn't be saved."
Sirius seemed to accept her explanation gratefully. "Here, up here," he turned his attention back to the path in front of them. A metal door stood open, revealing the stairs.
Hermione audibly sighed when she looked up. "That's more than 20 stories. I don't know if I can do this." She had to be honest with them. They were depending on her as much as she was depending on them.
"I'll carry you if I have to," Harry said with determination. "We're getting up there and out of here."
Sirius nodded his agreement. He put in place similar barricades at the door. Satisfied they'd have some protections behind them, he took the lead, started climbing. Harry took the rear.
Hermione heard Harry and Sirius talking as they climbed. She wasn't listening. She was just trying to focus on her breathing and keeping her legs moving. Each step had her doubting that she'd be able to fight through whatever was waiting for them at the top of the stairs. She was experiencing waves of tunnel vision and dizziness.
"Hey," Harry's voice finally caught her attention. "We're more than half way. Let's rest here a minute."
"I can keep going," she protested.
"I know you can, but you don't have to. We can take a break," Harry countered.
Sirius was already taking a seat on a step. "I died today. I could use the time for a breather."
Relenting, Hermione finally found a spot on a step. "He might be awake already. We can't waste too much time."
"We're not wasting time," Harry corrected. He didn't sit. His wand was out as he stood on the landing, ready to defend their position if it was needed.
Hermione cradled her arm against her midsection. It was throbbing so much, she was certain she was feeling her heartbeat through the inflammation. At least the bleeding seemed to have slowed. She swallowed and realized her throat was sore and her lips were dry. She was dehydrated. "We need to find a way to get water." They should have thought about it before they started climbing.
Sheepishly, Sirius pulled the bottle of alcohol out from his pocket. "I snagged this. For medicinal purposes."
Despite the stress, Hermione laughed. "We shouldn't waste that either. We might need it too."
"Simple enough," Sirius said, putting the bottle down he doubled it with a gemino charm. He combined the contents of one into the other, and then filled the empty one with a water making charm. "Here. Drink first," he said, handing it to Hermione.
"Thanks," she said, making herself take small sips. It hurt at first as she swallowed, after a few more sips, the burning was soothed. Feeling better, she handed the bottle to Harry. Let her eyes close, gave them both time to drink and tried not to think what contaminants might be in the air that were now in the water. Hopefully whatever alcohol that had been left in the bottle had done its job. Feeling sleep pull at her, she knew they needed to move again. She needed to stand. Putting her wand in her injured hand, she reached up for the railing with her good hand to pull herself up. She felt Harry offering additional support from behind. Making sure she was steady on her feet, she took a small breath in, "We need to keep moving." After the water she was feeling more alert. More confident. They climbed on in silence, the closer they got to the top, the more they anticipated the danger that awaited them. Ekrizdis' creations, not just dementors, could mean any number of horrors. One didn't make a dementor on their first try. She worried they were about to see the early attempts.
"We're almost there," Sirius announced.
Harry walked up passed Hermione, getting ahead of her for the first time since they started their ascent. She wasn't in a hurry to see what was at the top, but they needed to be in a hurry in case Ekrizdis came after them. As she climbed the final steps, Hermione heard a loud screeching of metal as the door at the top was opened. Wind whipped through the stairway, bathing them with sea air. Some part of the top floor was open to the elements.
"Merlin," Sirius said, getting the first look.
Hermione peered through the crack in the door where the hinges created a gap in the doorframe. It was haunting. There appeared to be inferi wandering aimlessly, dementors floating above the floor, other forms that had too many limbs in all the wrong places, and lumbering trolls with skin hanging off bones. That was just what she could see. They had no idea how far past the sentinels they needed to go, how aggressive they would be, or if any would be susceptible to stunning spells. Anxiety caused tears to fill her eyes, she felt her breathing speed up.
"We can send a patronus down the middle of them. See if it distracts them enough to clear a path," Harry strategized.
"Deal with the stragglers," Sirius agreed. "We might be able to lock some away in the open cells."
"Hermione?" Harry turned his attention to her and saw her struggle. He moved to her line of sight. He cupped her face, tried to get her focus back on him. "We're going to get through this. Just breathe normally."
She was embarrassed by her outburst. She tried to wipe her tears away, her hand was shaking too much, so Harry did it for her.
Gently he swiped his hand over her cheeks and down. He kissed her forehead, did his best to comfort her. "It's okay, let it out."
There wasn't time for this, she thought, but had little control over her body at that moment. She let his touch ground her, took a deep breath and pulled away. "I'm okay. I'm sorry."
"We'll go when you're ready," Harry whispered.
"I'm ready," she said, held his gaze to confirm she was in control again. "Really. It was just a moment of panic."
"Nothing wrong with that," Sirius said from his position, jerking his head toward the swarm. "This is batshit crazy."
She smiled and got another look. "Any idea where the veil could be? We can't just wander around out there."
"I'm not sure we have much choice," Harry answered. "We can't split up, so we pick a direction and go as fast as we can. We send a patronus in both directions, then deal with what's left that doesn't take the bait."
"Agreed," Sirius said, then grimaced. "Mine's non-corporeal."
"I can do it," Hermione stepped up, her wand ready. "On three?"
Harry gave the countdown, on three his stag burst from his wand and Hermione's otter flew in the opposite direction. They watched nearly all the dementors repelled by the silvery animals. Several of the inferi trailed behind, either in response to the movement or to stick with the herd. The mindless husks, experiments gone wrong, didn't seem to notice.
"Let's go," Sirius said, took the lead. He shot a jet of fire out at an inferi that caught his attention. Harry kept his focus on the hallway down the opposite direction. A troll skeleton lumbered toward him.
Hermione erected a shield charm in its path creating an invisible barrier that appeared to stump the creatures blocked by it. It was clear that they could be easily confused. This took some of the edge off Hermione's fears. She could keep a shield up behind them, let Sirius and Harry clear the path ahead. "I can keep us safe here, help Sirius."
Harry nodded and joined his godfather at the front. Hermione walked steadily backward. If this situation wasn't so serious, she might laugh at the comical reactions from the creatures to the invisible force blocking their way. As they cleared a cell block, she'd moved the shield up. "The dementors are back," she called out over her shoulder, assuming that the dementors from the other direction would be reacting similarly. Before she could say more, something lunged at her from an open cell. Hermione couldn't stop her scream of surprise, her shield faltered as her attention was redirected. Her brain tried to come to terms with what she was seeing. It was human. But not. It wasn't a creation or an inferi. It was some poor muggle who had survived the torture. Had survived somehow on the same level with the army of darkness Ekrizdis had created. She wanted to help him.
Harry hit the muggle with a knockback jinx, sent it back into the cell, and he closed the door.
Something grabbed her leg, Hermione shot out a stunning spell in reaction and noticed the wall of things was closing on her now that her shield was down. Stupid, Hermione admonished herself. Forcing the throng back with a blast of hot air, she reestablished the shield and worked to compose herself. She looked back at the cell. "We have to help him. That's a person, Harry," she said.
"Need help up here!" Sirius yelled.
Harry and Hermione shared a quick look. They both knew there was nothing they could do. They had to get out. Harry left her and rejoined Sirius, sending a patronus down the hallway. The light illuminated the walls as it barreled down the center. It looked like there were hundreds of creatures, beings, things closing in on them. The two men were making headway, but progress seemed to be slowing down considerably. What would happen when they were overwhelmed, she wondered. It wasn't an if, it was a when.
"What's that?" Sirius asked.
Hermione didn't dare look. She didn't want to know there was something worse ahead. How could there be something worse?
"I think it's a room," Harry answered.
A room could either give them a reprieve or back them into a literal corner. Nevertheless, the potential surged them forward.
"It's the veil!" Harry called out, the first to see inside. Relief was short-lived as an inferi slipped past Sirius, pulling him down near Hermione.
It was an impossible situation. She had to keep her shield up. If she lowered her wand to deal with the undead, they'd be overrun from behind. Then she had a moment of clarity. She pulled the dagger from her belt loop. Sirius cried out. There was no time to hesitate. She brought the blade down into the back of its neck. Black ooze spurt up, covered the wall. The inferi collapsed to the side. Hermione locked eyes with Sirius. There was a flash of fear that was replaced with relief. Harry helped him up. Sirius squeezed her uninjured arm, offered his thanks. The trio back up into the room. It was blissfully empty for some curious reason. Hermione secured a shield in the door, giving her a moment to drop her wand. She was breathing heavily as she looked at the nightmare pushing against it.
"We're doing this again?" Sirius asked, standing at the base of the dais.
"I'm not staying here," Harry answered.
Hermione tore her eyes away from the spectacle in front of her to the ominous archway behind her. "We need to make sure our wands are safe. I dropped mine the first time."
"We need to stick together, if we get separated in there again, we might not find each other," Harry added, putting his wand in his front pocket, and hooked his belt over it to keep it tightly secured.
Sirius appeared to have a customized wand pocket in his cloak. Hermione struggled with her one hand to secure hers. Harry helped her, took her hand in his, and Sirius' hand in his other. The three walked up the rocks to the platform. Voices echoed from the void. It could take them anywhere. Any time. There were no other options. They jumped through the archway together.
The pressure and the sense of falling hit Hermione immediately. Her grip on Harry tightened as she was pulled closer to him. Just when she thought they might be left falling forever, her feet crashed into a solid surface. She pitched forward, tried to catch herself with her free hand and regretted it immediately. The pain in her injured arm was intense. Stars exploded in her vision, she fought to stay conscious. Turning her head, it looked like they stayed together successfully, but were all equally surprised by the abrupt halt. Hermione rolled over onto her back. They were in the fog again. Weird that was an improvement.
"Everyone good?" Sirius asked from his position on the ground next to Harry.
"Yeah," Harry answered. "Hermione?"
"I'm fine," she said through gritted teeth.
The contradiction in her tone had Harry moving fast. He was kneeling next to her, checking her for new injuries.
She brushed him off. "Really, I just landed on my arm."
Reluctantly accepting the answer, Harry stayed next to her, sat back on his heels as he looked around. The silence was eerie. Like a complete absence of sound. It was disorienting. Harry helped her sit up, eventually stand. Once again they were in a position not knowing what direction to head or what danger might be laying in wait. Hermione wanted it all to end.
"Anyone have bread crumbs?" Sirius asked, also realizing they had a new daunting task.
"I can leave a trail of bluebell flames," Hermione offered, placing a small ball of cold flame at her feet.
Satisfied they started walking forward. Harry and Sirius positioned themselves directly in front. Hermione would place a blue flame when her previous flame was just out of sight. The ground was a mix of rock and gravel. There was nothing that appeared to be living. There were times they would need to redirect in one direction to avoid boulders or drop offs. Staying on guard, Hermione knew there were at the very least dementors transitioning between veils and inferi guarding the large archway. Each step she took without running into something only heightened the anticipation. She wasn't sure how long they walked before reaching a steep cliff that spanned to the left and right of them. The void expanded in front of them as far as they could see into the fog.
"Do we backtrack or follow this ledge?" Hermione asked, looking behind them. They could be wandering for days at the rate they were moving.
"I think we follow the edge," Harry answered. "Maybe we can get a sense for how big this place is."
Hermione put down a bluebell flame in response and turned toward the two men. They both studied her, she could tell they wanted to ask if she was okay to keep going. Hermione wondered what they saw that elicited such a reaction. "I can keep going," she reassured them. Neither man looked willing to contradict her, but they also weren't completely satisfied.
Camping out wasn't an option. They walked on. Hermione felt herself move forward in autopilot, letting the men in front of her lead as she left the trail of flames. Until Harry abruptly stopped, put a hand on Sirius' arm. Hermione looked around them, trying to see what had concerned him. A trail of skulls rose up from the rock. It wasn't same trail leading to the large archway. It might lead to a different veil, it was impossible to see through the fog. "We should try to get closer to see if there's archway," Hermione suggested. "Ekrizdis may have created these landmarks around the different portals."
"Stay close, and be ready for inferi," Harry warned.
They walked along the skull path. Hermione tried to notice any detail that would determine if they were being led somewhere different. Finally, the ground opened up to a pit. At the center was a small archway. They had another decision to make. "Do we mark the location and see if there are more or go through it and if it doesn't bring us home, hope there's another way back here?" Hermione asked.
No one jumped at the chance to make the decision.
"I think we can assume that the veil at Azkaban and the department of mysteries exists wherever… whenever we end up. If we need to get back here, it won't be impossible," Hermione continued. She was in a hurry to be somewhere else. Hopefully back in their time.
"We should make a landmark," Harry said, leaning toward going through the archway.
Hermione turned to a boulder nearby and burned a rune on the surface. She then stepped forward and down into the pit, waited for inferi to attack. Nothing happened. She turned back to see Harry and Sirius followed her. They repeated their earlier ritual of securing their wands, Harry took hold of Sirius and Hermione and they stepped through one more time, each one hoping it was the last time. They arrived inside a cave. A familiar cave to Harry and Hermione.
Hermione wanted to cry. "No," she said. They were back inside the cave they first arrived in on the island. Sirius looked confused.
Harry explained to his godfather what had happened, what he missed. Understanding, the older man offered an encouraging look. He handed her the water bottle. "Why don't you take a rest here. I'll go see what's out there."
She didn't think it was smart to split up, but her body was desperate to sit. Exhaustion felt like a fourth presence attached to her back. Her head was nodding her agreement before her mind had made a decision.
Sirius transfigured a rock into a couch and led Hermione to it. She was slightly afraid to lay down, thinking it would take significant effort to get back up. The decision seemed to be her body's to make not her mind and she sunk into the cushions. Harry looked torn. "Go with Sirius," she told him. "I'm safe here." Even as she spoke, she knew she couldn't guarantee something or someone wouldn't appear in the cave the same way they had arrived. The exit to the cave wasn't far.
Watching the pair head down the tunnel, Hermione rested her head back. She wanted to lie down. That movement seemed like it would take too much energy. Her eyes were heavy, they drifted close against her will.