The Fortress of Nair'icaix

"Done!" Mockridge declared as he signed his name with a minor flourish.

Harry waved his wand which was still in his hand and had the parchment sealed. The Ministry of Magic seal was even perfectly imitated. "Good. I'll personally take this to Lord Gold. I'm sure that he'll cooperate and willingly meet with you immediately. I want you to go back to the Ministry and wait for Lord Gold to send you a response. If possible, make sure that other people are around to see you receive that letter. Be sure to let them know what it is and make a big show of getting whatever papers you'll need. Got that?"

"Yes." Mockridge answered, with a faintly excited gleam in his eyes. "Go back to the office and wait for the letter. Make sure everyone knows that I'm going to the bank to negotiate with the goblins."

"Right. I'll meet you at Gringotts."

A painful groan escaped from Hermione's lips as she woke up and tasted something gritty in her mouth. When she opened her eyes, she found herself face down in some sand. Apparently the tide had washed her up on some beach recently. She deduced the 'recently' part from that fact that she was still sopping wet.

She rolled over and sat up with a grimace. The water had not been gentle at all. Every part of her ached and her clothes were an absolute mess. After a few moments, Hermione managed to gather enough strength to sit up and look around. Hopefully, she had been washed across the channel that separated Azkaban from the mainland.

As Hermione look around, she deduced that this was not the case. She was standing on a sandy island connected to a more rocky island by a… black bridge. Her eyes widened as she followed the bridge and spotted a large and imposing black castle that was just as, if not bigger than Hogwarts.

Before she could do any more, several pops surrounded and she found herself surrounded by several men in silver robes, each with their wands trained on her. Deciding that irritating them would be a bad idea, Hermione weakly raised her hands in the air.

One of them stepped forward. "You're under arrest for trespassing." he declared.

Hermione decided to be brave. "I didn't intentionally trespass, I was washed up on your beach and what gives you the authority to arrest me? You don't look like you're from the Ministry and I'm a British subject."

"If you're the person who disturbed the wards, then you're a trespasser." the man declared stiffly. He smiled triumphantly when he saw a flicker of guilt in Hermione's eyes. "I am Captain Nailoff of the Earl of the North's bodyguard. You're in Lord Polairix's domain, therefore, you are subject to him no matter who you are."

This declaration caused Hermione some excitement, nervousness, and fear. Apparently she had found where Harry lived but was now under arrest. If he was mad at her, which he probably was, then she was most certainly at his mercy. "Conceded." she sighed.

"Follow me." Nailoff instructed. He began to walk towards the black bridge and with the other guards' wands trained on her, Hermione followed.

As they approached the black fortress, Hermione couldn't help but ask questions. "What's the name of this castle?"

Nailoff didn't seem to be in a good mood for answering questions, but he humored her nevertheless. "This is the Fortress of Nair'icaix, the Seat of House Polairix which has held the Earldom of the North for millennia."

Hermione was silenced as they approached the castle. It was extremely intimidating and if it was any reflection of Harry's power, then she and the Order were in deep trouble. She suspected that is was only Harry's mercy that had spared them from destruction.

They entered through a pair of large doors and into a most impressive entrance hall. Hermione would have liked to stand around and look at everything, but the silver-clad guards had other ideas. They led her into what appeared to be a study, probably Harry's and had her stand before a very imposing desk. "Wait here." Nailoff instructed her with a nod to the other guards signaling that they should see to it that she followed his directions.

It seemed an eternity before Nailoff returned to the study. "Lord Polairix is currently unavailable." the captain announced. "Count Trazkaban is here and will see to you."

A moment later, a very familiar man entered the room and Hermione instantly felt a wave of nausea. It was the man who had beheaded Lucius Malfoy right in front of her. When his eyes fell on her, Hermione spotted a spark of recognition in the emotionless eyes.

Count Trazkaban approached her and went around the desk. Instead of sitting in the chair behind the desk, he sat in a chair that had automatically appeared to the side of it. "I recognize you." he said, wasting no time. "You're a member of that pesky Order and one of the ones who declared to the whole world that Harry Potter was an absolute creep."

"I don't deny that." Hermione said bravely. "I came here to see Harry and I refuse to leave until I at least have a chance to speak to him."

"If I wanted to have you thrown off the island, I doubt that you could stop me." the count declared stiffly. "In any case, you will be staying. For all I know, you were sent to spy by the Order. The Order has already done enough damage and I will allow no more damage when preventing it is within my ability and reach."

"Does that mean I'm in trouble?" Hermione inquired faintly.

"That depends on how Lord Polairix feels." Trazkaban declared. "Until he decides though, you'll have the pleasure of testing out the dungeons for us."

Hermione winced but responded somewhat wittily. "Glad to help. Just so long as Harry knows that I'm here and that I wish to speak with him."

The count shrugged. "I was just leaving when Nailoff stopped me and will probably not see Lord Polairix for a while. However, I'll have the guards inform Lady Bellatrix of your presence. She might even tell Lord Polairix."

"Thanks a lot." Hermione retorted.

The count ignored her and addressed Captain Nailoff. "Lock her up in the dungeon and tell Lady Polairix that a trespasser has been apprehended. Get her name and any information pertaining to her and record it as well."

Captain Nailoff nodded respectfully. "I shall."

And that was how Hermione found herself in an ancient dungeon. Filch would have been proud.

...

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