Dumbledore's Army was mounted on the backs of Thestreals in a mere matter of a few minutes. Everyone had mounted their own creature despite some not being visible to the eye—yet, they trusted Luna nonetheless.
As they soared through the now-darkening skies, Ellie looked over her shoulder at Hermione. The Gryffindor was surprisingly calm and appeared to be rather joyful in such a time of darkness, which Ellie admired. As if seeming to feel the Hufflepuff's gaze, Hermione looked over to meet her eyes, which resulted in a deep, pink blush on her cheeks. Ellie gave gentle smile before mouthing an "I love you", which evoked a shy smile from Hermione.
After soaring through London, the group eventually got off at the Ministry of Magic, rushing in by the direction of Ron. Together, they sprinted through the massive building until they reached a heavy door with a handle at its center.
"This is it," Harry panted as the group slowed to a stop behind him.
Fear began to creep its way into the group's minds as they stared in silence at the door. A chill seemed to pass over in anticipation as they waited for Harry's next instruction. Meanwhile, Hermione took Ellie's hand and interlaced it with her own, feeling the cool metal of the Hufflepuff's ring press between her fingers. Though the couple stared forward without looking at each other, Ellie acknowledged her girlfriend by squeezing her hand gently.
Harry finally pushed the door open, revealing nothing but a dark room. Ron took Harry's left side while Hermione took his right, and Ellie to Hermione's right. The four of them raised their wands in unison, muttering a silent spell until the tip of their wands glowed with light.
A low rumble came from their left, causing the group to snap their heads in that direction. Ellie and Hermione only tightened their grip on each other's hands, both fearful as much as the rest.
"I have to find him," Harry whispered before breaking off from the group to the 95th aisle.
"Be careful," Ellie whispered as Hermione halted the group to wait for him.
They watched as Harry paused at the empty space, his confusion growing evident.
"He should be here," Harry announced to his friends, his voice echoing in an eerie ring.
Ellie leaned toward her girlfriend's ear. "I'm scared," she admitted in a low whisper, just loud enough for Hermione to hear.
"I know," Hermione whispered back in a reassuring, yet grave manner. "But as long as we're together, we're safe."
Neville's voice broke the silence with a profound observation. "Harry. It's got your name on it."
Harry proceeded to pick up the glowing crystal ball atop the shelf. It contained a floating mist that appeared to be alive.
Without warning, a voice erupted from the crystal ball, and the group instantly recognized it as Professor Trelawney's.
"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches. And the Dark Lord shall mark him as his equal, but he shall have power the Dark Lord knows not."
This sudden declaration intensified the heartbeats of Dumbledore's Army, as any mention of He Who Must Not Be Named invoked a fear common to even the bravest of Hogwarts's students. Hermione squeezed Ellie's hand out of impulsive fear, so the latter took the hint to step closer so that their arms touched.
"For neither can live while the other survives."
While everyone was fixated on the prophecy before them, Hermione was the first to notice the danger that lurked in the shadows.
"Harry!" Hermione warned.
The group spun around quickly to face a tall figure wearing black robes and a chilling mask.
"Where's Sirius?" Harry demanded as he moved the crystal ball behind his back.
"You know, you really should learn to tell the difference between dreams..." the figure answered. With a flick of their wand, the figure revealed himself to be a man with striking similarities to Draco, one that Ellie knew to be Lucius Malfoy. "... and reality. You saw only what the Dark Lord wanted you to see. Now hand me the prophecy."
"You do anything to us, I'll break it," Harry countered bravely.
A cackle came from behind Lucius—it was a woman's voice. "He knows how to play. Itty-bitty... baby... Potter."
"Bellatrix Lestrange," Neville whimpered in recognition, his voice trembling fearfully.
The woman stepped into the light, revealing an unruly mess of hair accompanied by a crazed look in her eyes.
She took a good look at Neville, her maniacal smirk only growing wide with amusement. "Neville Longbottom, is it? How's Mum and Dad?"
"Better now they're about to be avenged," Neville replied angrily as he raised his wand at her.
Bellatrix did the same in defense, though she caught a glimpse of Ellie in the dark shadows. She narrowed her eyes in disgust—or perhaps, confusion—though that look was quickly interrupted by Lucius's step backward.
"Now, let's everybody just calm down. Shall we?" Lucius proposed calmly. "All we want is that prophecy."
"Why did Voldemort need me to come and get this?" Harry demanded, his anger rising rapidly.
"You dare speak his name?" Bellatrix whispered harshly, though her eyes flickered to Ellie once more. "You filthy half-blood!"
"It's all right. He's just a curious lad, aren't you?" Lucius answered in his disturbingly calm tone. "Prophecies can only be retrieved by those about whom they are made. Which is lucky for you, really."
The sound of a dozen footsteps suddenly surrounded the group, forming a circle of no escape around them. The students raised their wands defensively, and Hermione still clung on tightly to her girlfriend's slightly trembling hand.
Lucius continued to drone on in an attempt to win Harry's decision in handing over the prophecy. He took another step forward with an outstretched hand as he expectantly waited for Harry to give it up.
"I've waited fourteen years," Harry started.
"I know," Lucius whispered in a mocking acknowledgment.
"Guess I can wait a little longer," Harry finished as he paused for a split second. "Now! Stupefy!"
At that moment, the rest of the group collectively performed the stunning spell, but their fear caused them to miss the Death Eaters in near success.
They took off into a sprint back toward the door, though Luna and Neville fell behind. Ellie's eyes became more alert than ever before, and she noticed Luna's absence. Without saying a word, the Hufflepuff broke free from Hermione's hold and rushed back to Luna.
"Keep going!" Ellie yelled out to her girlfriend.
Ellie sprinted back toward the Ravenclaw only to watch her get knocked down by a Death Eater's harsh blow. As she approached the Ravenclaw in preparation to help, Luna had already spoken a "Levicorpus", which sent the enemy flying backward.
"Nice one! Let's go!" Ellie complimented as she offered a hand to help Luna back to her feet.
They ran a few meters before reaching Neville, who petrified a Death Eater with ease.
"Well done, Neville," Luna complimented calmly, taking his arm to run away.
After taking a few last-minute turns in the maze-like environment, the two broken groups bumped into each other. Hermione squealed in surprise as she bumped directly into her girlfriend, but Ellie was quick to reassure her with two hands cupped to her face. Panic rose at intensifying levels as the group pondered on how to escape. Meanwhile, a Death Eater started to approach the group in a terrifying manner but was powerfully blasted away by Ginny.
That blow resulted in a haunting still so that even their gasps could be heard. Then, slowly, the prophecies began to tumble down one by one, crashing and breaking onto the floor.
"Get back to the door!" Harry instructed as he took off into run to lead the group.
Ellie took Hermione's hand in fear of separation as they sprinted through the dangers of falling prophecies.
"Right side!" Ellie warned her girlfriend, who took the alert and leaned to the left, toward her lover.
The distant door was now approaching, yet they were still dodging more prophecies by the meter.
Hermione took notice of Ellie's hiccuping breaths, which she recognized to be an early sign of an untimely panic attack. The Gryffindor squeezed her Hufflepuff's hand tightly, and though muffled by the sound of prophecies breaking, she still attempted to give her comfort.
"Nothing... will happen... Ellie..." Hermione panted, trying to show reassurance.