'hope is never so lost that it can't be found'

[ernest hemingway]

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A lot can happen in twenty-four hours. Addie knew that now, knew it to her core as she clung to the dragon's scales and Harry beside her, whose arm pressed her against the creature, holding her there. The wind gushed through her hair, and as the dragon flew above a large lake, Hermione yelled, "DROP!"

"WHEN?"

"NOW!"

The four let go. For a moment, it was just the cold wind and falling, falling, falling, until—splash. Addie's chest squeezed with fear as she fully submerged in the murky lake water, her world muffling, reduced to bubbles and blurry darkness, weighed down by her clothes. Images of the black lake flashed in her mind—the terror of drowning, the flooding mansion—but she forced the thoughts away, pushing herself up to the surface.

A hand grabbed her arm and pulled her up the rest of the way. Finally breaking the surface, Addie gasped for breath, her hair slicked down on her face as Harry kept hold of her, keeping her head above the water. Hermione and Ron's heads popped up close by, and the four swam toward the shore. Only once she could stand in the water did Harry let go of Addie, despite her knowing how to swim now.

They waded through the knee-length water to the rocky shore, clothes hanging heavy and drenched on their shivering figures. Once free of the murky water, Hermione pulled towels out of her bag, still wearing the fake-Bellatrix outfit she'd put together.

Initially, after Hermione took the Polyjuice potion, the image of Bellatrix Lestrange standing right there in the flesh made Addie's insides squirm. At the time, Hermione had been speaking, going over the plan one last time, but Addie didn't hear a thing and kept her distance. Even seeing Harry so close to Bellatrix made Adeline want to cry; she wouldn't let go of his hand. When Hermione pulled out her wand, Addie flinched instinctively; realising why, Hermione put it away and made stupid expressions with Bellatrix's face, eventually making Addie laugh.

For days, the four had been planning an attempt to break into Bellatrix Lestrange's vault at Gringotts to retrieve Helga Hufflepuff's cup; yet another one of Voldemort's horcruxes. And now, they'd done it; snuck into Gringotts, stole the sword, and broke out on the back of a dragon. And to think, less than twelve hours ago, Harry had been softly braiding Addie's hair. She almost laughed at the contrast.

Now, as the others scrambled for towels and dry clothes, Addie watched the dragon disappear further into the clouds, her stomach flipping at just the thought of how high up they'd been with nothing but their hands to keep them on its scaled back. She swallowed thickly. Harry wrapped a towel around her shivering shoulders and rubbed her back, pulling her in close to him. She savoured his warmth, feeling the fast thump of his heart against her cheek.

The dragon was terrifying, yes. But now, really thinking about it, it wasn't so different from herself. She knew that cathartic feeling of escape. Although short-lived, that surge of freedom as she ran through the shadowy Malfoy Manor gardens wasn't so different from the untethered dragon. Something about the way the broken chains had dangled from its scaley limbs and neck as it flew higher, further away, warmed something deep in her chest as she touched the healing skin around her wrists from Malfoy Manor's shackles.

And now, as Harry told them about a vision he'd just had—that Voldemort knows they broke into Gringotts; that he'd seen Rowena Ravenclaw, and they had to get to Hogwarts now—she wondered how long her adrenaline could carry her through these plans. The number of times she and the trio had flirted with death in just the last few weeks was more than enough for ten lifetimes. But whether their survival was from talent or sheer miracle, Addie couldn't help but feel that it could not go on like this. Their luck had to run out at some point.

One day she would rest. It wouldn't be today, or for a while. Longing for peace in the middle of war was nothing new, but a part of her soul ached to not need to worry every night before bed; to be able to have Harry braid her hair each night, listening to ocean, without almost dying in battle the next day.

But a peaceful life seemed as enticing right now as it was impossible.

She was falling apart and gearing up for a fight at the same time, it seemed. She was scraping by each day just to see the next. They all were. And although her mind and body quietly begged for rest, begged for a chance to breathe, her spirit burned brighter than ever. Fuelling her, pushing her. An undying spark. She'd fought so hard to get back to her friends, out of Voldemort's clutches, and she'd done it. She'd do it a thousand times over just to be here, standing in Harry's arms—somewhere she thought she'd never be again. Anything for her friends. Anything for love.

Voldemort would never win. Whatever it took.

She'd make sure of it.

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a/n:

HELLO

sorry for the short/filler chapter but i just HAD to get something out omg

the next few chapters are gonna be WILD so use this as a breather...

i'll try my best to get the next chapter out ASAP because i'm feeling more inspired rn???

i think it's because i've been listening to the hp audiobooks lately and it's sort of re-igniting my love for everything harry potter. i can safely say that ootp is my FAVOURITE book ever!!!!!

it also makes me want to base one of my future fics off the books, when usually i've either gone off the movies or made everything up...

i love u all so much, thank you so much for reading after so long

see you soon

–g <3

PS: i have archived some of my other fics (poison, buttercup, etc) for now while i'm not working on them bc i feel bad having them up with only two-ish chapters each. i think i might rework my idea for poison, too, and base it off the books instead—but i don't want to get ahead of myself. my goal is to finish this book and then move on to heather. <3