3. A Talent Of Few.
Harry was frightened to think what he would find below.
Avoiding the rocky 70-foot drop, he went off to one side and stumbled and slid from one bush to another down the slope. It was taking too long to get there!
As the sunny glare of the leaf-dust cloud finally settled, he looked down. The little one had crashed through trees, breaking more than a few branches as she fell, and landed on a brush-covered rocky mound. She was outwardly all in one piece, but scratched, bruised and muddied -- and moving slowly, obviously in pain.
When she saw Harry descending, the little one began crawling toward the downed broom.
Harry came to the bottom, went to her, caught her shoulder and sat her down.
"You!" shouted Harry. "Who are you?"
"My name is Charlotte, and..."
"You took my broom!"
"I'm sorry!" She started crying. "I only wanted to help my friends!" She turned very red and bawled loudly, looking about helplessly, like a lost baby pining for its mum.
As she wailed, Harry realized how terrifying he must seem. He opened his handkerchief and handed it to the little one. "Look, I'm sorry, too. I'm really sorry for yelling at you. Please, don't cry. Are you hurt?"
She pulled away from him, still sniffling and crying. "No!" she said, but she was holding her sides.
"Why do your friends need help?"
"Because," she sobbed, "they went into the tall trees, and they hain't come out yet."
"They went in the DARK FOREST? ALONE?"
"I'm sorry!" she said again, and resumed her crying.
Harry, you git, stop yelling, he told himself, be nice! "No, no, it's okay, it's not your fault, Charlotte, I'm sorry; it's okay. Why did they leave you out here?"
"They ha' bicycles, and I dun't. That's why I borrowed yer broom. I was gonna bring it back."
Bicycles? Now it all made sense to Harry.
Ron showed up, half out of breath, with Hermione not far behind, running on a path around the cliff. "We heard a scream, and someone crying," he said.
"It's the thing to do when you've just been born," answered a distracted Harry.
A panting Hermione arrived, thoughtfully carrying Harry's jumper. "Harry! Did you figure them out?"
"Yes. You too?" replied Harry, wiping Charlotte's face and draping the jumper over her shoulders.
"Well, would someone tip me, then?" asked Ron. "Is it a midget, a leprechaun, a space alien, what?"
"Oh, much scarier, Ron!" said Hermione. "Couldn't you tell from the cry? Hogwarts has been invaded by.... rug-rats."
"Wha'..... plain ordinary kids, y'mean? I thought the Muggles can't even see this place!"
"Earth calling Ron," said Hermione. "Muggles can have magical children... like me, for instance?? They probably come from farms near Bumpus."
"Oh!" exclaimed Ron. "So that's how they ......and they just wandered in to play, and nobody knows?"
Harry interrupted. "Listen, we have a problem. The four other kids went into the Dark Forest on bicycles, and haven't come out. Charlotte, here, is worried for them. We've got to get them out, and we can't ask the Muggles for help."
"Wonderful," said Ron. "We'll need lots more searchers, and for sure we'll have to do it on brooms. They could have wandered for miles in there!"
"Too right," said Harry. "No telling what they've met by now, and it's already 2 PM.... we're going to lose the sun. Listen, I'll shuttle you all to Hogwarts, Charlotte first. But you two start out now, and let Hogsmeade know. Fetch anyone on anything that flies!"
