It was reaching the end of November and the upcoming battle was nearing more with each day. The students were instructed to remain located either in their common rooms or the Main Hall in between classes.
Teddy, Victoire, Jack and Grayson sit together at the one of the tables in the Main Hall after eating their evening feast. Each of them were exhausted from training in Defensive Charms as they had been for the last few weeks. They had the class every four out of five days, and they practiced dueling along with new magical measures for hours at a time.
Defensive Charms was the focus for all students and Harry and Draco had been putting in overtime to fulfill the student's needs in preparations for battle.
Jack sits with his back against the table and his broom stick in between his legs. Tossing it from hand to hand, he stares at the floor in contemplation. "I can't believe the amount of homework Malfoy is having us do. It's intervening with my quidditch practice."
Teddy leans his forehead against his palms. He interweaves his fingers through his hair which is a similar shade of grey as the stormy ceiling above them. "We've seen the bloke so much lately; I nearly have his face etched in my nightmares," he groans.
"It's not just the homework," Grayson complains. "This lockdown is really getting on my nerves. I'm stuck here with you oafs constantly."
"No one's stopping you," Jack offers. He takes a big bite out of a cupcake before adding, "Why don't you go bugger off with your mates from Slytherin?"
Grayson shrugs his shoulders. "I haven't got any," he replies flatly.
"Oh would the lot of you hush up already?" Victoire groans. "No one's forcing us to stick together.."
"Eh, she's right." Jack puts Grayson in an uncomfortable head lock. Goyle tries to shimmy his way from out of his grasp which only causes Wood's grip to tighten. "We balance each other out well."
"Get off of me," Grayson threatens, breaking free and flattening the disheveled hair on top of his head.
An echoing thud suddenly hits the side of the castle. Repeated blasts launch from what sounded like miles away.
Everyone in the Main Hall remains perfectly still as the music and chatter falls silent. Another crashing sound causes a visible wave of panic between the students and staff.
The stone walls shake and dust rattles from off the ceilings causing little dirt piles on the floor.
Teddy places both hands flat across the table while leaning towards them. "Follow me!" he whispers. Single filing out of the room, the four of them scatter around the corner toward a broad window.
They see a volley of charms being catapulted from the direction of the Forbidden Forest. It was clear that the terrorist army had set up camp in the same destination that Voldemort stood just 10 years prior. They continuously set off a stream of threatening charms, like a machine gun, toward the castle.
Teddy holds Victoire tightly in his grasp as they peer out the open window. The arctic breeze blasts their faces as they stare at one of the northern towers engulfed in flames.
"I don't get it!" Victoire cries. "Mr. Malfoy said the Purists would be striking on the first of December!"
"War holds no time constraints," Teddy replies in a stable voice. He rubs the sides of her arms as she shivers against him like a leaf.
Jack does a double take before directing an arm outside the cobblestone window. "Look over there!"
The four of them cram themselves in the body length sized window eager to get a look at Draco; flying on a broomstick at top speed toward the Forbidden Forrest.
Teddy turns to them with the look of blatant severity. "He needs our help."
"Are you mad?" Grayson scoffs. "Not trying to get myself killed."
Victoire confidently takes Teddy's side. "What do you think Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Potter have been teaching us Defensive Charms all year for, Grayson? They've been training us for a reason."
Jack cradles his broom in one arm while looking out the window apprehensively. He gives a self-assuring head nod, as though he were trying to convince himself. "The blue lad is right. Malfoy needs us."
Grayson looks between them; his mouth opening a few times without saying a thing. His face scrunches up in frustration as his arms tightly wrap around himself. He slowly rolls his eyes while letting out a huff. "Oh, alright.."
They make it toward the west side of the castle, closely following Draco's tail.
Cracks of lightning brighten up the night sky as they emerge from the castle. Harsh rain pelts their skin while sprinting against the wind.
Draco flew further and further away, becoming a mere speck in the soggy sky. He was noticeably alone and seemed to know exactly where his destination was.
Screeching their heels against the thick mud, they find themselves at the entrance to a bridge. The flimsy bridge connecting the castle to the Forbidden Forrest was rebuilt following the Battle of Hogwarts.
Jack steps onto the bridge and leads the way as the others follow closely behind. The rickety bridge sways dangerously in the wind, being hurtled to and fro in hurricane level gusts.
Jack throws himself before the other three extending his arms. "There!" he shouts directing a pointed finger toward the other side to the bridge. "Someone's standing there!"
Teddy bears his wand and points it toward the sky. "Lumos Maxima." He directs the lit wand it in front of them, illuminating their direct surroundings. The charm isn't big enough to extend across the lengthy bridge, but there's enough lighting from the sporadic lightning to make out the fact that there was a shadowy figure lingering from the other side.
"It's only one of them," Teddy ensures in a shaky voice. "We can take them; there's four of us."
Grayson holds onto both sides of the bridge for dear life. "Yeah, four bloody kids!"
They stop in place with their wand hands trembling. As the figure grows nearer, they can tell that the person is approaching them at a sprinting pace.
Jack backs them up a few steps with his arms.
"They're getting closer!" Grayson hollers. "Run!"
Eagerly cramming past one another, they backtrack toward solid ground. Teddy clasps Victoire's hand as they sprint to the other side.
Once they return to safe ground they make their way toward a broken piece of cobblestone lodged in the mud that's just tall enough to cover their bodies.
Grayson immediately trips behind them and loses his footing. The other three scatter behind the barrier as he tumbles through the sludge.
Victoire peers from behind the blockade and extends her right hand with her fingers held spread. She gradually raises her hand while shouting, "Get down, Grayson!"
Grayson cowers to the floor in the fetal position as Teddy and Jack tensely watch on from behind the hunk of cobblestone.
The tips of Victoire's fingers set fire, growing weak against the pellets of rain. She uses pristine focus as her hand powerfully surges another burst of flames. "It's working!" she shouts in elation.
Using her other hand, she rotates her palms together creating a fireball the size of a basketball. She cocks her arm backward and launches her hand forward. The surge of fire bombards their side to the bridge. The ropes catch fire and weaken the grip of the chains to the ground.
The person running toward them is flung to one side as the overpass weakly tilts to one side. The bridge gradually begins to collapse prompting the students to break into cheer.
"Great job, Vic!" Teddy hollers as he and Jack emerge from behind the cobblestone. "That'll slow 'em down!"
The figure stops in place and whips out their wand. "Aguamenti!" With one swift movement, the Purist instantly extinguishes the fire and puts a halt to the destruction of the bridge.
"Shit!" Victoire screams. "I hadn't thought that far!"
The three of them watch on as the Purist calmly approaches Grayson with his wand drawn. He had made it halfway across the bridge and no longer appeared to be in any sort of hurry. With another flash of lightning, the Purists' true appearance is revealed. "Good evening, son."
Grayson weakly brings himself to his feet before tumbling and collapsing to the ground once more.
Teddy grips Victoire closer to his body. "That's.. that's his father!"
Thunder rattles their chests as another crack of lightning erupts above them.
Grayson's wobbly knees bring him to his feet once more as he slowly trudges toward Gregory Goyle on the bridge. With a wave of confidence, he keeps a rigid arm fearlessly directed toward his father. His feet slowly follow one after the other as he continues his journey across the fragile bridge.
"What's he doing?" Jack shakes his head in disbelief while peeking his head from behind the barricade. "Trying to get himself killed?!"
"We can't sit by and do nothing," Teddy says through pressed teeth.
They helplessly watch on as the Purist stands before his son with his wand held behind his back. "What're you going to do Grayson, kill me?" Goyle snickers. "You couldn't cast a proper charm if your life depended on it.. how unfortunate."
Grayson glances back to his friends while licking his lips. They frantically shake their heads at him while motioning him to come back to their side. His wand remains pointed at his father; his arm rotating in sloppy uneven circles.
"Come, now." Goyle tempts his son with a come-hither motion of his fingers. "I'll allow you your best shot."
Grayson wiggles his wand arm while weakly shouting, "Stupefy!" The tip of his wand sputters one weak shot after the other. His father proceeds to block each charm without his wand or an ounce of effort.
"I have to help him," Teddy insists, confidently striding from behind the barricade.
Victoire keeps a tight grip on his shirt from behind. "How?!" she pleads.
"Trust me." He grips both of her hands and places a quick kiss on her cheek. "I'm a Metamorphmagus."
Victoire loses grip as Teddy slips beneath her fingers and transforms into an eagle right before their eyes. With another crack of lightning he dives off the cliff and soars to the other side of the bridge.
"The Patronus, Grayson!" Jack shouts at the top of his lungs. "Use your Patronus!"
Victoire stands by with both hands clasped over her mouth. She watches on as Teddy circles over the Purist. The eagle flutters to the other side to the bridge and lands safely before turning back into Teddy. The boy with royal blue hair closes one eye shut while aiming at Goyle. "EXPELLIARMUS!"
The wand held behind the Purists' back simultaneously shoots into the sky before falling off the bridge onto the razor-sharp rocks beneath them.
Teddy cups both hands over his mouth while shouting, "NOW, GRAYSON!"
Grayson takes another few steps toward his father while feverishly nodding his head. He arches his wand hand high over his head before swishing toward the Purist before him. "ENGORGIO PATRONUM!"
A blinding light emits from the tip of his wand and brightens the night sky. The silvery smoke that had projected from his wand slithers into the formation of a boar. The boar charges against Goyle and knocks him off his feet.
The powerful Patronus causes the bridge to shake and shimmy. It charges past Goyle and rocks the barricade like a powerful earthquake.
A vigorous cracking sound litters the air as the bridge shifts unforgivingly to its side. The area that Victoire had hit with her fire was slowly disintegrating.
Teddy instantly transforms back into an eagle and viciously flaps his wings in the air.
On the other side to the bridge, Jack grips his broomstick and darts off from behind the cobblestone. Kicking off from the ground, he freefalls off the cliff before positioning himself safely against his broom. He soars through the sky beneath the overpass while keeping a close eye on the Slytherins from above.
Grayson's head fiercely turns on a swivel as he grips the sides to the overpass. He peers over the side to the bridge and a look of alleviation washes over his face as he locates Jack; drifting in the damp air beneath him. With another final snapping noise, the ropes fly into the air before lifelessly flopping to the ground miles beneath them. Grayson shrieks as he free falls from the sky.
The Purist across from him holds onto the railing as the bridge collapses. He loses grip and falls out of sight into the darkness beneath them.
Jack circles beneath Grayson and leans on the front of his broomstick while escalating velocity. He reaches top speed and intertwines arms with the Slytherin mid-air. With one swift movement Grayson wraps his body around Jack and holds onto him from behind on the broom.
Victoire cheers, hopping on her feet, as Jack directs them upward. Teddy reaches her side and transfigures back into human form. They run to the side of the cliff as Jack and Grayson safely return their feet to solid ground.
"My dad," Grayson whispers. Their audible cheering comes to an immediate close. "He's gone."
Teddy throws an arm around his shoulders and lightly shakes him. "I'm really sorry, Grayson."
Victoire comes in for a hug and holds Grayson in an embrace. Jack tosses his broom to the side and throws his arms around all three of them. They all take a deep breath as the Gryffindor holds them in a big bear hug; all four of them drenched in rain.
"Let's get back to the castle," Jack suggests. "I think Malfoy can handle himself."
Teddy looks over his shoulder to the Forbidden Forrest where flashes of continuous charms can be seen. "I hope so."
