HARRY
The four snuck back to the castle in silence. The light from their wands was the only thing that allowed them to see, especially in the dense forest, and the tiny sliver of the crescent moon provided little light. But despite this, Harry didn't miss the flash of red out of the corner of his eye.
He froze, throwing out an arm to catch the others' attention. His hand connected with Ron's chest, who stopped, bewildered.
"What?" he asked.
Harry didn't answer. He was busy squinting through the darkness, ears straining for any sound. The red had vanished. Leaning forward, he tried to peer into the dark shadows caused by the trees, but they offered no answers. Vaguely, he noticed the others had stopped around him.
A wand raised in his peripheral vision; he glanced to his right to see Draco, his brow furrowed and his muscles tensed.
"What is it, Harry?" Hermione breathed.
He had no good answer. "I thought I saw something... " he murmured. "A flash of red."
Straining their senses, the four looked around in deathly silence. Finally, Ron let out a sigh.
"There's nothing there, mate." He lowered his wand. "C'mon."
The others nodded in agreement and walked away, until it was only Harry who's eyes darted around suspiciously. At last, he realized that they were right; there was nothing there. He lowered his wand and hurried to catch up with the others.
"—Blaise was telling the truth?" Ron was asking.
"I think so," Hermione replied. "Everything he said adds up with what we already knew."
"But I don't understand why he wanted so little," said Ron with a frown. "I mean, he's Slytherin. The whole lot of them are selfish, greedy, power-hungry morons— "
Draco cleared his throat meaningfully.
"It's true!" Ron protested. "You're all prats!"
Draco glared daggers at the redhead. "Well, Weasley, I'll have you know the you Gryffindors are stuffy, pretentious, good-for-nothing— l
"Alright, that's enough of that," Hermione barked, cutting Draco off mid-insult. "What about the new leader, Gedeon, er—Albrecktsson, was it? Have any of you heard anything about him?"
They all shook their heads. Then Ron frowned.
"Actually... " he said slowly, "I think I might've. Wasn't he a Ministry Worker for the Department of International Magical Cooperation?"
Harry blinked. "How on earth do you know that?"
"Because our father was ranting about him for hours over the summer," came a new voice.
Harry started. Reaching for his wand, he whipped around to see red—red hair, brown eyes, and a stern look. It was Ginny.
He breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of her, relieved by the thought that the flash of red that he'd seen earlier must've been her. He pocketed his wand. Ginny was accompanied by Luna, who seemed unusually focused on her surroundings. But his emotions quickly turned from relief to fear as he saw Ginny's expression.
"Harry Potter," she said, her voice dangerously low. "Could you possibly tell me why you're going to Blaise Zabini for information?"
He gulped. "Erm... "
"We didn't have anyone else to go to," Hermione jumped in. "We thought we'd give it a try."
This, far from appeasing Ginny's mind, made her eyes flash dangerously. "And if it had been a trap?"
"Then we would have been prepared for it," said Draco.
She groaned. "I can't believe— "
But she was cut off by a brilliant light descending from the sky in the shape of a great bear. Harry's eyes widened.
"What in hell— "
A silvery bear fell before them, hovering just above the ground, and when it spoke, it spoke in the voice of Narcissa Malfoy.
It said only two words: They're here.
Then it sank into the earth, fading into nothing.
There was a short silence in which Harry's heart beat wildly in his chest. Suddenly, Draco sprang into action, looking panicked.
"We have to go," he yelped. "We have to go now!"
"What?" said Hermione.
"Wait, Draco," —Harry reached out and grasped him by the shoulder— "where do we have to go? Why?"
Draco rounded on him, a wild look in his eyes. "The Manor. I told my mother to tell me if the Death Eaters came for the Patils, and— "
"Wait," Ginny interrupted. "The Patils? Like Parvati Patil?"
"Yes, they're being kept in our cellar— "
"WHAT?!"
"That doesn't matter right now!" Draco cried, wringing his hands. "What matters is that there are Death Eaters in my house doing Merlin-knows-what to my mother, and we have to save her!"
"But, Draco," Hermione said, collecting her thoughts, "what're we going to do when we get there?"
"I don't know!" he grit out, pacing before them impatiently.
"So that's it?" said Ginny. "We're just gonna go?"
Ron held out his arms, his palms facing out. "Woah, slow down— "
"Nobody said anything about we," Harry said to Ginny sternly, ignoring Ron.
"Mate, hold up— "
Ginny glared at him. "Harry, I'm just as capable as you are— "
"I know, Gin, but this isn't your fight!"
"So? I can handle myself— "
"I'm going if Ginny's going," Luna cut in.
Harry cast a sharp glance at her. "Well, you'll be staying."
Ginny glared at him, but before she could say anything else, Draco stopped pacing long enough to cry, "Enough!"
Silence fell at his outburst, and the entire clearing turned their eyes to him.
"If you want to come, then come," Draco commanded, leaving no room for argument in his tone. "But whether you do or you don't, I'm going. Alone, if I have to."
A silence followed this statement. Harry was overcome with a sudden sense of déjà vu: him telling his friends that exact thing to save Sirius. He knew Draco was telling the truth; he'd been, after all.
"Alright," he told him. "We're going."
"We are?" Ron marveled.
"Yeah, we are." He bit his lip. "Ginny too. But how are we getting there?"
"Thestrals?" Ginny suggested.
Hermione shook her head. "They won't come without food."
"Brooms?" said Ron.
"Too long," Draco replied, pacing again.
"Apparition, then," said Luna.
"Great!" cried Draco, clapping his hands together. "Let's go."
He strode quickly from the forest, and they followed without hesitation. Before long, they'd crossed the courtyard and reached the castle gates.
"Anyone underage?" Hermione asked as they stepped outside the borders.
Ginny raised her hand.
"Alright," said Hermione, taking charge. "Ginny, attach yourself to Harry. Luna, do you know where the Malfoy Manor is?"
Luna shivered. "Ooh, I don't like that place much. No."
"Then attach yourself to someone who does. Everyone else, we'll meet just outside the main gates."
They nodded, satisfied with her plan.
"See you in a moment," said Ron, and with a twist, he was gone.
Ginny grabbed Harry's hand. Hermione raised her wand and muttered a few quick words; a silver stream of her otter Patronus came out and disappeared towards the castle. Without a word of explanation, she followed Ron. Meanwhile, Luna attached herself to Draco.
"Hold tight," Harry warned Ginny, and he turned on the spot.
The uncomfortable darkness that followed seemed longer than usual, and he emerged gasping for air. Beside him, Ginny did the same.
There was a crack, and Draco and Luna appeared. Immediately, Draco rushed forward, pushing them backwards until Harry's back collided with the hedge behind him.
"Where's Ron and Hermione?" Draco whispered, glancing around.
To Harry's left they emerged, already hidden amongst the leaves.
"Here," said Hermione, inching along the hedge towards them. Ron followed behind.
"Good." Draco cast an anxious look around, and Harry took in the grand manor to their left, looming out from the gloom. It seemed just as threatening to Harry as it did when he'd first seen it, back when Voldemort was still in power. Shivers slid down his spine.
"We can't enter from the front," Draco told them in a low voice. "It'd be too obvious. Follow me."
He inched away from the Manor, quickly darting around Ginny and Luna—who were to his left—and then moved as quickly as he could while keeping his back pressed against the hedge. The other five followed him, and Harry struggled to control his breathing to better hear the sounds around him. So far, he was failing miserably, and his breaths and the pounding of his heartbeat were still effectively drowning out all other noises.
Draco turned a corner, and along they marched, increasing their speed now that they were hidden from the house's view. They ran for a long few minutes, finally stopping at a concealed side door. They drew their wands.
"Ready?" Draco asked, resting his hand on the handle.
They nodded, and Draco turned the knob.
Immediately, they burst through the door, wands raised, but found the corridor behind it empty.
"That's... odd," said Ginny.
"More like suspicious," said Ron, glancing around wildly.
Harry tightened his grip on his wand. "Stay alert."
Cautiously, they stepped forward, Draco leading the way. Only a little time passed until they emerged into a large room of marble statues lining the walls, each with prideful looks carved onto their faces.
"Is that Lucius?" Luna asked curiously, examining one closely.
Draco looked slightly green. "Yeah. C'mon, before I vomit."
None of them argued. They hurried away from the statues. Harry did his best not to look back.
After walking through another few corridors, they came to a stop before a pair of grand oak doors. Harry tightened his grip on his wand. Would the Death Eaters be waiting to ambush them on the other side? Steeling himself, he held his breath as Draco pushed them open.
Harry instinctively flinched, but no Death Eaters attacked them. They were in a study. A large desk piled high with papers lay on one side of the room, and on another there was a small table with a vase full of white roses on its middle. The walls were decorated with ornate portraits of various men, all wearing expensive suits and prideful expressions.
"Not to be judgmental here, Malfoy," said Ginny, "but your family's extremely vain."
Ron snorted in agreement. Draco just ignored them and pressed on.
The corridors he next took them through were worn, uneven, and narrow. They had an older feel to them, and had likely been built with the first parts of the house.
It was like a tunnel that led to a dungeon, Harry thought, stumbling over a stone in the process. Luckily, Draco caught him by the arm, barely pausing his gait. Harry hesitated before continuing on, his thoughts now focused on Draco as he watched him, a worried crease forming on his brow. He reminded himself not to forget to watch his step.
They walked for a few moments in silence, the only sounds their breathing and the steady beat of their soft footsteps. Harry's thoughts were just turning to how he wished to be in his soft, warm, cushy four-poster bed when suddenly a hand behind him took tight hold of his shoulder. He turned to see Luna, her eyes wide. She gestured for him to come close.
"I hear voices!" she whispered in his ear.
Harry glanced around at the others, who'd stopped and were looking at him and Luna with confusion etched in their expressions. Quiet, he mouthed to them, and they seemed to understand.
Silently, straining his senses, he crept forward, holding his breath as he went. Slowly, the voices became clearer.
"They're on the other side of this wall," he murmured to Hermione, who was next to him.
Together, they listened intently, but Harry couldn't make out a word.
They stayed that way for a good minute, trying everything they could to make the voices clearer, but they could discern nothing.
"C'mon," Draco muttered after a long while, gesturing them onward.
They followed him, keeping close. Soon they emerged into wide corridor lined with doors.
Draco looked up and down the hall before turning to them.
"Alright, split up," he told them. "Ginny, Luna: you'll go left and then right. Harry and I will go right twice. Ron, Hermione: you go right, then wait for us at the doors. Got it?"
They all nodded and, without another word, went their separate ways.
Before long, Harry and Draco were alone. Alone, Harry realized, for the first time since their fight.
"Er... Draco?" he muttered, his voice raspy. "I—I just thought I'd say sorry for— "
"Shut up, Potter," Draco interrupted. "Now is not the time."
He bit his lip. "But— "
"No." Draco rounded on him, glaring. "Stop trying to be noble, Potter. You're not really sorry. I know that. But I'll be damned if I have to have this conversation with you here."
Draco paused, staring at Harry as if waiting for his reply, but Harry found that he couldn't. Something seemed to have lodged in his throat. Draco, sensing this, started walking again.
"Let's go, Potter," he said, and they continued on.
The route they chose seemed to bring them in a circle. Harry and Draco kept their wands out, ready for any danger as, together, they checked behind each door that led off from the hall. But the Manor was mysteriously quiet, which, instead of calming Harry down, made him very uneasy. Where were the Death Eaters? And where was Narcissa?
Draco, meanwhile, was biting his lip. His brows were creased, and he kept licking his lips nervously. "What is it?" Harry asked in a voice slightly above a murmur.
Draco shook his head. "It's just—we should've met with Ginny and Luna by now."
Harry's stomach dropped. If anything happened to either of them— "Can we a go a bit faster?"
Draco didn't argue. They sped up, taking one door each, and only glancing once inside before shutting it quickly behind them.
Harry felt panic rising quickly from his gut. With each door he checked, his fear increased. Ginny and Luna were nowhere to be seen. Had they been caught by the Death Eaters? Were they being tortured? Were they—hurt? Dead? Harry couldn't bear the thought of it.
Maybe they were in the manor's cellar. Maybe they were with Narcissa. Maybe they—
"Merlin help me!"
Harry whipped around, raising his wand with a curse on his lips. Draco was leaning against a closed door, his cheeks bright red. Harry rushed forward.
"Draco! What— "
He froze as the door's handle turned. Draco scrambled away as it opened to reveal—Luna, looking—if possible—even more dazed than usual. Her pale-blonde hair had been messed up, and she was moving slowly, as if in a trance.
"Luna—?"
Before he could say much more, out came Ginny. She looked as if all her dreams had come true. And, like Luna, her hair had accumulated a few tangles. But what made Harry falter was the fact that he recognized the looks on their faces, almost as if he'd seen it before—
Then he realized. It was the look he'd seen shared between Ron and Hermione after they'd kissed for the first time, their eyes holding a glint of thrill and excitement, cheeks tinged slightly pink with embarrassment and giddiness. It was how Nymphadora Tonks had looked at Remus Lupin, a sparkle in her eyes. It was what had been celebrated at Bill and Fleur's wedding, and what Mr. and Mrs. Weasley shared that kept them together for so many years. It was the expression he saw in the mirror after he'd spent time with Cho, then Ginny, later Draco.
Luna and Ginny were lovestruck.
"Hullo, Harry," Ginny said brightly, her eyes dazed and unfocused. Luna echoed her.
Then, hooking their elbows together, they started off in the direction they came, wide smiles donning their faces.
Harry stared at them as they went, then slowly turned to a wide-eyed Draco.
"Did they—?"
Draco gave him a slow nod.