Hermione is much stronger than Alina is, she links their arms together and forces her to move forward, through the thick smoke that makes their eyes water, through the smell of burning flesh. The British witch is stubborn, a stubbornness Alina has perhaps lost in her fight for and against Mal, in the whiplash created by hiding her powers so much she has almost lost them, only to then be filled by it, by power, responsibilities, as Nikolai hailed her as a hero throwing her in the middle of his political machinations.