"It's a dragon," Charlie Weasley breathed, eyes lit up. He brushed a strand of thick, red hair from his face, ignoring that most of it had escaped the pony tail he'd sloppily constructed earlier that day.
"IT'S A DRAGON!" Ariadne Young screamed back, her own green eyes wide with fear. Charlie was half in front of her in a protective stance but his posture was shifting. She grabbed his arm in an attempt to pull him back but he didn't budge. Couldn't he see the danger they were in? How many times had her best friend Rowan warned her that her obsession with the cursed vaults was going to get her killed? How right Rowan was, Ari realized, as the huge, green scaled dragon unfurled it's wings.
She tugged Charlie's arm again as every cell in her body screamed at her to run. She couldn't leave him here. She dropped her brother's journal to grab him with both hands, her quest officially abandoned. All that mattered was that they both survived.
"We have to go, Charlie come on, we need to run," she urged, pulling with all the strength in her body. Charlie was muscular and broad for a fifteen year old boy and Ari was no match for him. Still, somehow, she managed to force him back a step. He stumbled, falling backward, right as the dragon roared and sent a blast of flame right towards them. It only just missed them.
Blue eyes met green, their limbs twisted. "What about the vault?" He asked as they scrambled to their feet.
"We'll die if we don't run," Ari said confidently, her own auburn hair swinging into her face.
"Your brother-"
"Was an idiot, just like we'll be if we stay, Charlie COME ON!" She grabbed his hand and tugged hard, forcing him to run with her through the forbidden forest. They'd spent the last two years navigating these woods, hiding from centaurs (and occasionally negotiating with them), spiders, and other monsters in an attempt to find one of the vaults her brother Jacob had previously opened before vanishing forever. She always took Charlie with her when they ventured into the forbidden forest because no one had a better working knowledge of the creatures inside it (except maybe their friend Barnaby) and enough common sense to run when needed to.
Except, she realized, when confronted with an actual dragon. He had been speculating for the last two years a common Welsh lived in the forest and everyone brushed him off. Charlie's obsessions with dragons knew no bounds. Ari herself had never given the idea any thought and she realized now how foolish that was. Hadn't she chosen Charlie in part because he had been venturing into the forest alone for years? Why wouldn't he be right?
They reached his broom and mounted, her arms tight around his chest. She turned to look behind her and saw it lifting it's own wings to take flight. Charlie was the best quidditch player at Hogwarts, but even she didn't think he could outrun a dragon.
"It's right behind us!" She shouted into his ear. He kicked off and they were airborne, zooming through the air.
"Why is she so mad?" He shouted against the wind as they both turned their heads to look back. He dove, back into the cover of the trees, dodging left and right with a precision that made her a little sick. She tightened her grip on his chest.
"Because we bothered it?" She screamed back as another blast of fire just missed them again. She could feel the heat on the back of her neck.
He pulled up and they were heading straight up, towards the sun. There was a reason, she remembered, why she never did well in flying class. It made her sick. He straightened out and began racing towards the castle, putting distance between them and the dragon. Another look back and she realized the dragon was done chasing them. She was heading back to her guarding place, the entrance of the cursed vault.
They landed on soft grass. Ari let go of Charlie and rolled onto her back, eyes closed, hair splayed around her, breathing hard. She felt Charlie thud next to her. He was laughing. "An actual dragon," he said, nudging her with his arm. "Can you believe it?"
"I don't want to," she replied, squeezing her eyes shut tighter.
"Ms. Young…Mr. Weasley," a soft, familiar voice hovered above them, forcing her eyes open. Professor Dumbledore was there, with their heads of house, Professor McGonagall and Professor Sprout.
"In all my years-!" McGonagall spluttered, apparently too furious to speak.
"I expected better!" Sprout snapped, glaring at Ari.
"Let's go. To my office, if you please," Dumbledore sighed.
Ari and Charlie exchanged a glance as the clambered to their feet. Dumbledore had promised her last year he could not shield her from serious consequences if she broke the rules again. The look on her face promised a severe punishment.