𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐒𝐥𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐧 𝐏𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 | √

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I stumbled out of the fireplace, running into the person in front of me.

"Oof!" I yelped as I fell over. I opened one eye to see who I landed on. I noticed the hair right away. Draco.

"Sorry, Draco," I said. I could feel a blush creep on my cheeks. Draco chuckled lightly and held out a hand so I could pull myself up.

"We should run to Gringotts and get money out of our vaults," Draco said.

I nodded, and we walked to the snow-white multistoried marble building called Gringotts Wizarding Bank. I gazed at large silver doors that lead into the building and ran my fingers over the engraved words in the center that read:

Enter, stranger, but take heed

Of what awaits the sin of greed

For those who take, but do not earn,

Must pay most dearly in their turn.

So if you seek beneath our floors

A treasure that was never yours,

Thief, you have been warned, beware

Of finding more than treasure there.

We passed through the second set of doors which revealed a vast marble hall with counters stretching along its length. Draco and I walked down the long hall to the counter at the very top. I watched fascinated as the goblins went to work, counting money, writing and stamping parchment, and many other things. When reached the end of the hall, I said,

"Mr. Malfoy and I wish to withdrawal from our vaults" I lifted my chin a little higher. The short goblin stood up and peered over the desk at us.

"Ah. And do Mr. Malfoy and Ms. Rosewood have their keys?" he asked in return. We showed our keys to the goblin.

"Very well, walk this way" He pointed a finger towards another goblin in a minecart. Draco and I walked clambered to the small box of metal and sat down.

"Which vaults are we headed to?" the goblin asked us in his high pitched voice.

"The Malfoy and Rosewood vaults" Draco responded. The goblin nodded and started the minecart.

In contrast to the grand marble of the entryway and the main hall, the passageways to the vaults were stone and dimly lit with flaming torches. The cart twisted and turned down a maze of passages, but flew down so quickly that it prevented us from getting a good look at our surroundings. My hair whipped behind me as I held on the sides of the cart leaning forwards. I could see Draco smirking at me in the corner of my eye. My stomach did a small flip, and I could tell it wasn't from the way the minecart was racing.