Chapter Summary: Harry, Lavender, Blaise and Draco escape Hogwarts.
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Chapter 3: Escape
With his arms crossed leaning back against the doorway, Blaise watched his friend neatly pack his clothes into a trunk. Blaise Zabini, who was rarely surprised and hard to please most of the time, was in shock. He didn't think that Draco would even take his words from earlier today at lunch so literally, so seriously, and so rashly. The blond boy should see a Mental Healer at St. Mungo's. Yes, Blaise thought, I should write a letter to his mother and have him drag to St. Mungo's before he harms himself or get into real danger.
"You're mad! Bonkers! I can't believe you're seriously going! And with those Gryffindors!" Blaise uncrossed his arms and walked towards his friend. "If you go I will write to your mother about this."
He froze when Draco suddenly whipped his wand out and pointed it between his eyes so fast Blaise didn't have time to blink.
"Don't you even dare," Draco's voice was low and dangerous. For a long moment they stared down at one another, hoping that one would step back and accept defeat. It was Blaise who took the cautious step back though Draco still held anger in his expression.
"Fine," Blaise huffed. "I won't tell your mother on you or to anyone else because I'm going with you, too."
"What?" Draco dropped his hand holding the wand as he watched Blaise pulling clothes from the drawers. "Why do you want to come?"
"You're not leaving me here alone! You may like Crabbe and Goyle's company, but I can't imagine being stuck with those fucktards for the rest of the year."
The two boys packed in silence until Blaise stopped midway in folding a shirt and asked, "By the way, where are we going exactly?"
"Las Vegas."
The name rang a familiar tune to Blaise. He had heard it before, and after pondering on it for a moment it hit him.
"Oh, I know of that place," he told Draco.
"You do?"
"Muggles call it Sin City. It's where anything goes; everything impossible becomes possible. People go wild there."
"Really? How do you know about it?"
"My mother. She met Franklin there last summer and sent me an owl to let me know I had to make room for another stepfather."
"Really? What's the place like?"
"I don't know. When she got back and I asked her about it she told me, 'whatever happens in Vegas stays in Vegas'."
"What does that mean?"
"Well, whatever happened there stayed. I don't think I'd want to know what she did with that man anyway." Blaise's face scrunched in disgust at the mere thought of his mother conducting certain adult activities.
Draco eyed his watch. It was twenty-minutes before midnight.
"We need to hurry," he said. "We can't be late or they'll leave without us."
Once they've finished packing clothes and some money they shrunk their trunks and tucked them into the pockets of their robes. The two left the Slytherin tower without making any eye contact with their fellow Slytherins. Last thing they needed now was to be sucked into a conversation. They made their way through the castle, and entered the classroom on the third floor where they found Harry and Lavender arguing in low harsh tones not noticing the two Slytherins.
Lavender, visibly upset at Harry, was speaking in harsh whispers. "But why him? He has made everyone's—who wasn't a Slytherin—lives miserable. Teasing us, calling us names…so why?" She threw her hands exasperatedly in the air.
Harry shrugged. "I don't really know, but I agreed to let him come. So, we'll just have to go with it." He slouched on the chair but jumped up when he spotted two figures near the door. Pointing his wand at the figure he demanded for them to show their identities.
"Calm down, Potter." Draco stepped out from the shadows into the soft glow of the moonlight beaming from the window. "It's just me."
"Then who's that behind you?" Harry demanded without lowering his wand down. The second figure stepped forward revealing himself to Harry and Lavender, who gasped then, with all the force she could muster, smacked Harry on the shoulder.
"I thought you said only Malfoy. Now we have two Slytherins," she hissed at him.
Harry glared at her as he nursed his now aching shoulder. "I didn't know!" He turned to Blaise and asked, "What are you doing here?"
Blaise opened his mouth to speak, but the blond Slytherin stepped forward and pointed a finger at Harry. "Listen here, Potter," he said, though surprisingly not in his typical arrogant tone, but calm and sound. "If you get to bring a Gryffindor companion wouldn't it be reasonable to allow me to bring a fellow Slytherin?"
Lowering his wand Harry let out a sigh and nodded. "Fine. It sounds reasonable to me." He felt a sharp pain on his injured shoulder. "OW! Lavender!"
"You've gone too soft, Harry Potter." She huffed narrowing her eyes and firmly planting her hands on her hips.
"Okay, well then let's get down to business," said Harry as he rubbed his shoulder and returned to his seat at the desk. "We have to organize a few things: Money, a place to stay, an—"
Draco rolled his eyes. "You didn't think this thoroughly did you?"
"How are we getting there exactly?" Blaise asked
"Umm…"
"I agree," Lavender chipped in. "This is all to hurried."
"I guess I should've known better than to come along without any plans, much less with Gryffindors."
"Oh, please. Don't blame me. Blame Harry!"
"We fly," said Harry, quite annoyed at the two.
"On what? On brooms?"
"That'll take days!" exclaimed Draco. "And we'd have to fly over an ocean!"
"No, not on brooms, Malfoy," said Harry.
"Then how?"
"Airplane."
"Airplane?" Lavender and Draco said simultaneously, throwing him a quizzical look, while Blaise failed to hide his disdain.
"Yes, an airplane. It's how Muggles fly in the air," Harry answered seeing that Draco and Lavender didn't know what he spoke of.
"Really, Potter?" Blaise was disgusted. "How about we use a Portkey?"
"Do you know how to set up a Portkey?"
"No, but we could try."
"Oh, no, we're not!" Lavender shook her head. "I'm not all for experimental magic right now. I want to arrive in Vegas safe and sound without the risk of being transported to god knows where."
Harry cracked his knuckles, placed his hands behind his head and leaned back on the chair with a smile. "So, airplane it is."
"Okay. Well, now about money," said Lavender. "I only have some Galleons with me at the moment."
"I have some too," Draco and Blaise replied at the same time.
"I carry Muggle and Wizarding currency," Harry added. "I'm sure I have enough to buy us all one way plane tickets."
"Well, if you pay for the tickets, Harry," said Lavender thoughtfully, "then the rest of us will cover for the hotel or whatever place we're staying at."
"Actually I don't have any money on me," said Blaise, sheepishly. "But my mother's been to Las Vegas before and I've heard her mention about Neronian Alley, so I'm sure there'll be a ban—"
"Neronian Alley?" Harry interrupted.
"Yes, it's the wizarding side of Las Vegas—."
"Really! Great! We could find a place there."
"So," Draco started. "How do we get to these Muggle flying things?"
"Airplane."
"Thank you, Potter," the blond Slytherin sneered. "Airplane."
Harry grinned and replied, "Oh, I'll show you."
Soon Draco, Blaise and Lavender found themselves somewhere deep into the Forbidden Forest as Harry opened his arms wide and presented to them...
Nothing.
The three were puzzled at his oddness. What was he pointing at?
"We're going to ride on these to get to the Glasgow airport." Harry raised a hand and started to pet the air.
Draco scoffed. "What the fuck are you talking about, Potter?"
"What am I talking about? I'm talking about our way to get to the airport!"
"On what exactly?" Lavender asked, staring at Harry as if he had grown another head.
Blaise rolled his eyes and mumbled, "He's fucking nuts. He got Crucio'd too many times, I bet."
"On what? On what?" Harry chuckled. "On Thestrals that's what!"
Seeing the puzzled looks on his companions' faces, he suddenly remembered an important fact that the Ravenclaw Luna Lovegood mentioned. What was it? Oh yes, that's right. "Oh, sorry, I just completely forgot something—"
"Your mind?" Blaise said.
"I forgot that the only reason," Harry continued, "you can't see them is because you haven't seen death."
"Grim Reaper?"
"No, that's not what I was referring to. I mean, you had to be a witness to someone's death."
Lavender threw her hands up in the air. "Oh, yes, that explains everything! Well, I've witnessed my fish's death and I still don't see this Thrustalls."
"Threstrals," corrected Harry. "And I'm not lying! Come here and see for your—oh, just come here!" Harry grabbed her hand and let it touch dark creature.
Draco found it all too suspicious and strange. What looked like Lavender patting a magical creature in Potter's vision, he only saw her awkwardly caressing the air.
"Do you feel it?" asked Harry.
"What am I exactly groping at?" asked Lavender, amazed at feeling something smooth and soft.
"If I tell you, promise me you won't get mad?"
"HARRY!" She snatched her hand away.
"Shh! I think I hear someone," whispered Blaise, gesturing all to keep their volume low.
"No time!" said Harry, effortlessly hoisting a surprise Lavender up on the Thestral. The girl's body trembled, as she was shocked to find herself levitated off the ground. Though she couldn't see the creature she could feel it under her. Harry seated himself behind her.
"Hey, what about us?" said Draco.
"There's one to your right. You and Blaise will need to share."
The blond boy reached out a hand and slowly shuffled to his right.
"Keep going, you're not even close to it," said Harry.
Draco shuffled another few feet.
"Not even close."
He shuffled another foot.
"Getting a bit warmer."
And then another foot.
"Almost. You're pretty warm, but not. I'd say lukewarm. Oh, it backed away a bit further. I think you're scaring it."
"Oh for fuck's sake!" Draco rushed forward, but fell backwards when his face was smacked by the invisible being. He reached out his hand again and felt the creature's legs. He felt his way up until his hands reached its back. He clambered up the Threstral and sat down feeling relieved.
"Okay, Blaise, come on up," he said, offering a hand to his fellow Slytherin.
"Well, Malf—" Harry started to say, watching Blaise struggle to get up.
"Fuck off, Potter," snapped Draco. "Let's get moving."
Harry shrugged. "Suit yourself." He no longer wanted to tell the two Slytherins that they were actually sitting on the creature facing the wrong direction.
They flew up into the night barely escaping sight from a large bearded man holding a lantern, and a dog by his side.
"Hey, who's there?" Hagrid asked, raising the light.
He looked up at the sky and saw two shadowy figures gliding through the air, each carrying two passengers. One of them shouted at the top of his lungs, "Wooo! Vegas, baby! Here we come!"
The others shouted and cheered along.
