THE NEW HEAVEN AND EARTH | RON WEASLEY [BOOK FIVE]

18. BLACK AND POTTER

The dragon roared as it reared its head, sending the goblins scattering throughout the bank, scraping the ceiling and causing dust and debris to rain down on them. Its head twisted eagerly, as though it could smell fresh air, evidently unfamiliar to it, before taking off, launching them into the blue skies.

They had gotten lucky, for what felt like the millionth time in their lives, and Gene was worried that it was going to catch up to them. Worst of all, while they were hanging from a partially blind dragon, soaring across a vast ocean with no end in sight.

Her scar hadn't begun to burn yet, but she wondered how long it would be until it did. Until Voldemort realised that they were one step closer to destroying him, that it was no longer a pattern and that they had discovered his secret Horcruxes.

The sun had fallen, casting the dragons great shadow over the azure waters and the grasslands, appearing as a large cloud, and they were soon falling lower and lower. The dragon must have been growing weary, Gene realised. It had been trapped for so long and she doubted that the goblins of Gringotts fed it either.

With Harry's signal, when the dragon dropped low enough for them to catch a glimpse of its yellowed scales in the reflection of the water, they dropped into the sea like rocks, one by one and plummeted into the ice-cold water.

She felt as though she had been electrocuted as her eyes flickered shut, a flash of green filling her sight, blood splatter and bodies falling. Voldemort gave a chilling roar of rage, crazed and for the first time, it felt as though he was worried.

Voldemort's emotions became Gene's, as his bout of anger had been calmed with the realisation that they couldn't have possibly known about the rest of the Horcruxes. He was certain they couldn't have known of the ring, or the locket in the cave, nor the Horcrux hidden in Hogwarts.

Gene found that he was under the impression that Nagini was his final Horcrux, failing to realise that it was Gene all along. She felt more at peace now, almost succumbing to the cold until she felt a hand tugging at her wrist. She allowed it to have its way before she emerged from the water, choking on air as Ron gripped her very tightly to his side.

Her body still trembled from the flashes of Voldemort's inner mind, the image of bodies and blood surrounding him as she staggered across the jagged rocks, hiking her soaked dress up at the knees, following Harry onto the grass where she fell in a heap.

The damp grass soothed her burning palms, which she hadn't even properly noticed until they were somewhat out of danger, for now. Hermione began to pull clothes from her bag, shoving them toward Harry and Ron, as well as retrieving bottles of pumpkin juice and essence of dittany.

Gene held her palms out last, waiting as Harry and Ron had finished changing before lifting her head, to find Harry looking at her darkly.

"He knows," she said heavily, "He knows we know about the Horcruxes." Gene stood to her feet, her chest rising and falling as she doubled over, still trying to catch her breath.

Ron and Hermione's faces shifted into ones of horror, no longer as pleased to have escaped the beast that sat fifty metres across from them at the lake. There was yet another to face.

"The last ones at Hogwarts," Harry said, scrambling to his feet. "He was concentrating on warning Snape, because he thinks its the safest one, but we don't know where it is–"

He began to pull the Invisibility Cloak from Hermione's bag, gesturing Gene closer and she pressed herself up to his side as he drew it over their shoulders.

"We can't just leave!" Hermione cried, "We haven't got a plan, we don't know what we're doing–"

"We'll have to figure it out, 'Mione." Gene exhaled, "We can't let him move the one in Hogwarts. We have to go."