The Girl Who Hid | ✓

|142| A. Dumbledore

I almost kissed the shore when we got out of the lake. Next to Hermione, I collapsed on the ground as I heard Harry recite all of our usual protective spells. Hermione hissed as Ron touched her. Looking to the side I realized the damage of escaping the vault. Both of them had angry red burns all over their faces and arms, I could see our clothes were singed away in some places. Looking down at myself, I saw the large seared pieces of clothes and skin.

Reaching over to Hermione, she handed me the bottle of dittany they used on themselves and I put some on, wincing at the feeling. Harry came over and plopped down next to me, I passed him the potion. Hermione pulled out four bottles of pumpkin juice she had brought from Shell Cottage and clean, dry robes for all of us. We changed and then gulped down the juice.

"Well, on the upside," said Ron finally, who was sitting watching the skin on his hands regrow, "we got the Horcrux. On the downside —"

"— no sword," said Harry through gritted teeth, as he dripped dittany through the singed hole in his jeans onto the angry burn beneath.

"No sword," I echoed. "Stupid fucking—"

"At least we can't wear it this time, that'd look a bit weird hanging round our necks," said Ron as Harry pulled the Horcrux out of his pocket.

Hermione looked across the lake to the far bank, where the dragon was still drinking.

"What'll happen to it, do you think?" she asked. "Will it be all right?"

"You sound like Hagrid," said Ron. "It's a dragon, Hermione, it can look after itself. It's us we need to worry about."

"What do you mean?" I said.

"Well, I don't know how to break this to you," said Ron, "but I think they might have noticed we broke into Gringotts."

All four of us started to laugh, and once started, it was difficult to stop. My ribs ached, I felt lightheaded with hunger, but I lay back on the grass beneath the reddening sky and laughed until my throat was raw.

"What are we going to do, though?" said Hermione finally, hiccuping herself back to seriousness. "He'll know, won't he? YouKnow-Who will know we know about his Horcruxes!"

"Maybe they'll be too scared to tell him?" said Ron hopefully.

"Maybe they'll cover up —"

But my own voice was lost in my throat as my chest tightened from lack of air. I was drowning, drowning in pain as a hot knife stabbed me in the chest. My eyes watered at the pain and I fell back without looking over at Harry, who, I know for a fact, is in more pain than I am. Anger and fear filled my body and I felt myself curl in pain.

A thousand thoughts swirled in my mind, my own and someone else's... Elder wand... Hogwarts... Gaunt... Snake... Potter... Dumbledore... My chest heaved trying to find a way to breathe. Only two other times have I ever felt this bad: The Christmas Mr. Weasley got hurt and the time after we went to Godric Hallow.

No visions came to me, just pain. A larger pain that required to be known, nothing I could do could stop it. My shoulders shook and my name was called, but I couldn't bring myself out of it. Remembering my Occlumency lesson's with Snape, I felt myself trying to close my mind, to push aside the pain, but the only thing that helped was thoughts of Harry, Ron, and Hermione and our blessed times together. Slowly the pain started to calm down and my breaths were more regulated.

Unscrewing my eyes, I looked to my right to see Ron shaking Harry and looked up to see Hermione looking at me with fear and concern. Slowly propping myself up, I looked around seeing the waves of the water in front of us and the green grass under me. The cup lay innocently between Harry and me, reflecting the failing sun.