The Secret War | Dramione

Chapter 12

"Whatever you saw, whatever you heard, I need you to focus on the present now."

Hermione was lying facedown on the floor of her cabin inside the Dragomir, gasping for air. Draco hovered above her.

"I need you to stand."

Hermione nodded, startled to find herself back aboard the ship and not at Hogwarts.

She noticed the floor was tilting, the furniture was sliding forward, and Draco was struggling to maintain his balance.

She tried to remember what had happened just before she'd touched the book...

Valko had knocked on the cabin door, and Draco had gone to find Ginny...

It felt like a lifetime ago.

"Have we resurfaced?" Hermione asked, remembering the storm.

"No," Draco said. "We have to go, come on."

He helped her to her feet, and she grabbed a pair of shoes.

"Where's Ginny?" she asked thickly, as he pushed her into the corridor.

"In the dining hall, Granger, exactly where you should be."

Draco stopped dead. He looked down. The corridor was flooding.

Hermione felt water seep into her shoes.

"Hurry," Draco urged, leading her forward.

There were fairy lights illuminating their path and they followed them all the way to the dining hall.

The double doors were pushed open. The chairs and tables had been nailed to the floor. The students had conjured ropes and tied themselves to anything they could find.

The chandelier above them trembled menacingly as the ship tilted upwards, fighting its way to the surface.

"Ginny!" Hermione cried, catching sight of her at the far end of the hall. She had taken cover under a table, and Crookshanks was squirming in her arms, looking terrified.

Hermione and Draco ran towards her.

"Where were you?!" Ginny shouted.

"I'm sorry," said Hermione. "I was—it doesn't matter now..."

She took cover under the table too, and Draco conjured a rope with his wand.

He tied the rope around their wrists and secured it to the leg of the table.

Hermione and Ginny huddled against each other, staring out of the large, arched windows.

Cracks were beginning to form on the glass.

The ship continued to tilt upwards, and suddenly there was a flash of violet light, so bright it was blinding. The light lingered for a few seconds, then extinguished, cloaking them in darkness once more.

"What was that?" Hermione asked.

"The magical barrier," Draco replied. "It's collapsed."

The ship trembled violently and everyone screamed.

"What's happening?" Ginny cried.

They heard three short blasts, and then the windows fractured completely.

Jets of water burst into the dining hall.

Hermione and Ginny cover their heads as the ice cold water hit them.

There were shrieks and cries from the other students.

The ship bobbed for a moment before steadying itself as it rose out of the ocean. Water spilled down its sides, falling back into the angry sea.