Taz shifted awkwardly in her cot, nervously twiddling her fingers. She glanced around the empty tent, taking in the pure silence that she had been left with. After her and Up's talk outside the tent, he had called the other guys in for a meeting. It had all been going well, with Taz listening in from across the room, until Junior spotted her and pushed for a private meeting outside. The only snippets of the conversation that she had heard were that Up wanted Monroe to work on his communication charms, similar to the fashion they had used on the radio to find Taz.
When the conversation had moved outside, Taz stood from her spot, hobbling over to the walls of the tent. She doubted Junior had bothered to put up a silencing charm on the tent itself. Taz pressed her ear to the fabric walls, straining her hearing as she tried to follow what the boys were saying.
She moved around the tent, trying to find a spot that was closest to the talking. Finally, Taz stopped, figuring it was as good as it was going to get. Again, she could only hear bits and pieces of the conversation, but nonetheless tried to make out what they were saying.
"What then?" came what Taz recognized as Junior's voice.
A couple inaudible words muffled through the tent, and Taz pressed farther into the wall.
"—can't bring her with us."
"Why not?"
Taz furrowed her eyebrows. Were they talking about her? She quickly glanced around the tent, honestly wishing that she had her wand right now.
"No reason to. We don't owe her anything."
Taz looked down to the sling her arm was in, then down to her messed up knee. Monroe had only been able to do so much for her, none of them exactly trained in the medical magic area. He had mentioned to her that it would take a bit of rest for her to fully heal, especially since Taz had Apparated in the condition she had been in.
"We can't just throw her out, Junior!" Taz froze as she heard yelling from outside. She felt as though someone had just punched her in the stomach. Her legs began to shake as she gasped for a breath. They… They wouldn't kick her out, would they?
"You all know that we don't have the supplies to feed the four of us, much less another mouth who can't even help out because she has the Trace on her!" Junior screamed back.
Taz's heart dropped to her stomach, taking in Junior's words. Her good leg gave out, leaving her tumbling to the ground. She rolled herself over, sitting against the wall of the tent. Everything Junior said was true, there was no denying it. Taz ran her hand through her long hair, pulling it out of her face. Her mind spun around the fact that she might just be out in the forest again, running from Snatchers all by herself.
"You guys aren't just going to throw her out into the cold. What was the point of saving her then?" Up said, still yelling.
"No, Up. I, um, have a better plan," came Junior's voice. It suddenly became quiet and Taz could no longer hear the conversation. She strained her ears, but got nothing out of it. Whatever they were talking about, she didn't like where it had headed.
Taz breathed deeply, closing her eyes and curling her hands into fists. A moment later, she found herself loosening her makeshift sling and standing. With help from the tables and bunks to stable herself, she made her way over to the cots that the guys had been sleeping in. She peered at them, quickly finding Junior's bunk. Taz limped over to it, lifting the mattress. Nothing. She knelt down, pushing aside things from underneath the bed in search of her wand. Nothing there either. The only thing that was under there was Junior's backpack, which had been sealed with a charm. Taz prayed that her wand wasn't in there as she shimmied painfully out from under the bed, finding her feet.
She searched the rest of the beds, peeking into every nook and cranny where her wand could possibly be hidden. Taz had no idea where Junior could've put the wand in the tent, unless…
Taz made her way to the front of the tent, curling her hands into fists to keep them from shaking. She pushed aside the tent flaps, peering outside. Looking directly to her left, she could just make out the figures of the guys a couple meters away from the tent. Junior's back was to her and there, in his back pocket, were two wands.
The girl swore to herself, ducking back into the tent. Of course he had taken it with him. Taz knew there was nothing she could do now to get her wand back. She bit her lip as she realized she'd have to leave it behind.
"WHAT THE HELL! NO FUCKING WAY, JUNIOR."
"Up, just listen to me. I—"
"WE'RE NOT USING HER AS BLOODY BAIT WITH SNATCHERS."
"It's our best chance at getting Connor back—"
A cry escaped Taz's lips as she heard this. She bee lined for the opposite side of the tent, as far as away from the group of guys as she could get in the tent. On her way, she stopped by the kitchen area, if you could call it that. Taz began throwing open the drawers, desperately looking for anything sharp enough to cut through tent material.
There was about nothing in the drawers, much to Taz's dismay. She bent down to the last cupboard, trying to keep her hopes up. Taz looked through the cupboard, feeling the emptiness, until she glanced in the back corner. Something shimmered, catching her eye. Taz grabbed at it, pulling out a Muggle pocket knife. Her father had had one just like it.
Taz lifted her head as she heard more yelling from outside. There wouldn't be much more time until someone came back inside. She hobbled to the back of the tent, flicking open the pocketknife. Taz pressed it into the material, cringing as it made a tearing sound as it ripped through the fabric. She dragged it down, hoping that none of the guys could hear the sound from outside.
The rip was just big enough for Taz to fit through, unnoticed by anyone. She stuffed the pocket knife into her trousers, glancing once more back into the tent. The yelling had died down, too silent to make Taz comfortable.
Taz adjusted her sling, leaning on her good foot as she built up her strength. When she left, she'd be running through unfamiliar territory in the middle of winter with only a thin jumper and jeans. She contemplated the pros and cons of staying. On one hand, she wouldn't freeze to death and she had a group of people with her. On the other, though, she had just heard them planning on handing her over to the Snatchers. Taz knew she could still run into Snatchers while running, but it was better than being handed over to them.
In the blink of an eye, Taz was out of the tent, sprinting as fast as she could with her weak knee, away from the guys. Her overly-large boots sunk into the snow, slowing her running more than she was pleased with. Taz pulled up the hood of her jumper and crossed her arms, clenching her teeth together as she passed through the protective shields around the camp.
The cold hit her harder than she expected, the wind incredibly strong. Those protective charms had really done a spell on the campsite. Taz wouldn't have predicted the harsh conditions, and now wished she had thought through her plan a bit more. But she pushed on. The wind nipped at her, constantly throwing her hood off of her and pushing her into trees.
Taz grabbed onto a particularly thin tree, wrapping her good arm around it as she peered around. She looked back at the campsite, only realizing that the protection charms must make it invisible to the wandering soul. Her tracks had already been blown away by the whipping winds and, for once, Taz realized she was lost. She fixed her hood, pulling the strings to make it tighter and keep it on her head.
The weight of what she had just happened dawned on Taz as he looked around the forest. She was injured, alone, and wandless. There was nothing in her view, and Taz didn't know how long that would last.
She gulped, letting go of the tree and marching through the snow. The only way she could go now was foreword. There was no use to standing attached to a tree. It was either this or being handed over to Snatchers and Taz knew the only way that would happen was if she was dead. There was no chance in Hell that she'd ever give herself up until she had finished what she started.
Up couldn't believe what he was hearing from his friend. How did Junior get such an idea in his head? Putting a fifth year out as bait to try and catch a Snatcher didn't settle well with him.
"Taz hasn't done anything. She's injured. Why would you even think of such a plan?"
"Connor—"
"No," Up cut him off. "We're done with this Connor shit. Snatchers aren't going to bargain for the release of Connor because we capture one of them!"
"But, if we have a Snatcher we could get all their information. Places they're searching, what's happening on their side, and where they're keeping the wizards they've Snatched. Think about it, Up!" Junior said.
Up clenched his jaw, glaring at Junior. "Did you not see her last night? Who do you think did that to her? We can't just throw her into the crossfire off of some crazy plan you had."
"It does sound a bit rushed," Monroe piped up. "Even if we worked this plan out, Taz won't be healed fully for a while."
"Then why are we wasting our time on her? She's not doing anything to help. She's just a waste of space. Might as well kick her out."
"Junior, she can't even do magic without someone finding her. We can't send her off defenseless," Monroe argued.
"Well, she Apparated here and I don't see anyone looking for her. Maybe they turned the Trace off," Junior said, huffing. The three boys in front of him froze at those words, running over what he had just said. It all seemed to hit them at the same time. Taz was, what, fifteen? That meant she still had the Trace tracking her anytime she did magic. If she had Apparated into the forest the night before, it was only a matter of time before scouts were sent out to look for her.
"We need to move camp," Asher said, finally offering something to the conversation. Even Junior raked over his words and came to realize what had happened. Up guessed that Snatchers would already be in the forest, probably around the spot that Taz had been before the guys had found her. Wizards and witches that weren't an active part of the resistance probably weren't as high a priority as others, seeing as they hadn't come the night before. But there was no doubt that they couldn't be here right now.
All the of the guys fell silent, each of them casting paranoid glances into the forest around them. No doubt, they needed to get out of there. If Taz had been found out at Hogwarts before she escaped, her name would definitely be on the list.
"I'll go get Taz," Up said. "You guys figure out our next move." Monroe nodded as Up back away from the conversation. He turned, jogging over to the tent and ducking under the flaps. They all needed to get out of there as fast as possible. Once the Snatchers came, it'd be hard to get out unscathed—especially with the condition Taz was in.
"Taz!" Up called, glancing around the tent. There was no response as his eyes landed on the bunk area of the tent. Taz wasn't in her cot. Instead, the blankets were thrown messily around on not just her bed, but the rest of them, too.
"What the…" Up breathed, running over to the cots. They were all upturned. The pillows were on the ground, halfway sticking out of the cases. Some of the backpacks were open, their contents spilling out.
"Taz!" Up called again. Another look around the tent and he could see that all the cabinets had been opened, exposing their emptiness. He made his way over to them, inspecting all the drawers. None of the guys had ever gotten in the habit of putting stuff into the cupboards, liking to keep their possessions in their own trunks and bags.
Except, Up had hidden something in the bottom cupboard, just once. It was for emergencies only seeing that sometimes it was difficult to quickly grab from his backpack.
Up knelt down to the cabinet, grabbing the door and pulling it farther open. His eyes immediately went to the corner he had left it in, but there was nothing there.
He stood, looking around the tent one last time. "Taz!"
Asher, Monroe, and Junior stumbled into the tent, eyes wide. "What's wrong?"
"Taz is gone," Up said, taking a deep breath. They gazed over to the sleeping area, gawking at the mess of everything. Junior opened his mouth, ready to snap something about being right the entire time, but Asher hushed him. He ran over to his bag, one of the ones that had been spilled out on the floor.
"There's nothing missing," Asher reported. He took out his wand, waving it over the mess. The objects picked themselves up, going back into the bag.
"What was she looking for?"
"I don't know, but my pocket knife is missing," Up said.
"I… I think she was looking for her wand," Junior said, pulling the two wands out of his back pocket. He gazed at Taz's before stuffing it back in his pocket.
"Makes sense," Monroe commented. "But why did she run? Especially without a wand. She's going to get herself killed out there."
Junior and Up paled as they caught each other's eye. If Taz had somehow heard the commotion outside, would she run? Of course she would.
"Wait a second," Asher said, making his way to the back of the tent. He peered at a space on the wall, sticking his hand out. Asher felt the rip, pushing through the hole and found himself outside the tent. Looking down, he noticed the boot prints leading away from the camp. They cut off at the edge of the barrier, into what looked to be a growing snowstorm.
"Oh shit," Asher muttered, crawling back into the tent. The guys had formed a semicircle around Asher, anxiously waiting to find out what happened.
"She left," he breathed. "Cut right through here, with Up's pocket knife I'm guessing, and ran straight into the forest.
"But, she's injured, and there could be Snatchers out there looking for her," Up said, eyes wide. "We need to go after her."
"No!" Junior shouted. "She left on her own. We don't have to go after her."
"She wouldn't have left if you hadn't wanted to use her as bait!"
Junior fell silent, knowing Up was right. Up looked at each of his friends, all of them nodding in agreement. It was too much for the small girl to handle. She was already injured, wandless, in the midst of an impending snowstorm, and may or may not have Snatchers on her tail.
"The longer we wait, the worse the situation is going to get, you guys," Asher said.
Up nodded. "I'm going to go find her."
There was silence as Up prepped himself, casting a couple simple charms to keep himself warmer under his jumper, also giving himself better vision.
"Up," Junior said. "You can't go out there by yourself."
"Then bloody come with me," Up snapped, turning and poking his head outside the entrance of the tent. He stepped outside, gripping his wand tight in his hand as he looked into the forest. The request had been completely sarcastic, so Up was surprised to see Junior step out beside him. He gave Up a weak smile, one that was meant to comfort himself rather than Up.
Up faced the tent once more, speaking directly to Asher and Monroe. "Pack up everything and meet us back at the lake. If we're not there in thirty minutes, you know what to do."
"Yeah, yeah. Nearest town. We know, Up," Asher said, sarcastically saluting to the boy. "Now go out and find her." Up cracked a smile, nodding to Monroe before turning back to face the vast forest. Without another word, he pulled his hood up, marching through the barrier as Junior followed behind him.
The snow and wind had let up slightly, making it easier for Taz to drag her legs through the snow, but not easy enough. The cold had numbed most of her nerves, so the pain in her knee didn't bother her as badly, but nothing saved her slinged arm whenever gusts of wind threw the small girl into trees. She cradled the arm close to her torso, cursing every time pain stung through it.
Taz had lost track of how long she had been trudging through the forest, just praying to an unknown god that she wasn't walking in circles. After a while, the trees had all begun to look the same; Large, ominous monsters that towered over the girl. Their bare branches were claws reaching down to her.
Taz shook the thoughts from her head. She had more pressing matters than how scary the trees were looking. The girl shivered once more, feeling the metal pocket knife pressing into her abdomen. The thing was ridiculously cold due to Taz's lack of body heat. She wished that she had grabbed one of the guys' cloaks before leaving.
"Stupid, stupid," Taz muttered to herself, sticking her hands into her armpits for any kind of warmth. Maybe if the girl had thought through her plan a bit more, she wouldn't be stuck in the situation at hand.
But, no. Taz knew she needed to keep pushing on. There had to be a town around here somewhere, because why would she have Apparated here in the first place? That was the one bit of information that bugged her. She had no idea what had prompted her to Apparate into the middle of a forest rather than, say, one of her friend's safe houses.
Looking around, Taz knew that she didn't recognize the place whatsoever. There was something nagging her in the back of her head, but she just couldn't figure it out. Maybe there was a town somewhere nearby that she had been aiming for? Taz couldn't figure it out. When she had Apparated, she had been in a lot of pain already, plus the fact that she was running for her life. The village she had been in had had protective charms around it to keep anyone from Apparating in or out while within the boundaries. The only thought in her mind had been to get away to somewhere safe, not exactly specifying where to land. No wonder she had splinched herself so badly.
The girl clenched her teeth as she thought about trying to Apparate again, but dismissed the thought. Right now, she was in worse shape than she had been before, with her leg and all, and the thought of risking even more Splinching pained her. Even if it didn't happen as badly as it had done the night before, she probably wouldn't be found as quickly as Monroe and Up had found her.
She frowned as her mind wandered to saviors the night before. It had almost been perfect for her, until that idiota Junior had opened his mouth, ruining everything. She had almost started to warm up to being around Up. Of course, Taz had seen him loads of times before in the Gryffindor common room, but he had always been surrounded by his friends. Never in a million years had she thought that he'd be the kind risk his neck for a fifth year like he had the night before.
Had it not been for Junior, Taz would've thought about staying with the guys, but he unnerved her too much. In the short amount of time that Taz had stayed in their tent she had noticed that the boy would not stop glaring at her. And then he had brought up throwing her to her certain doom. Taz just didn't feel safe being in the same area as him, and the girl now knew to listen to her gut.
It didn't take long for Taz's bravado began to shed away, leaving her with a bothersome weariness. Each agonizing step made the girl want to close her eyes and rest a while. Her legs shook, feeling as though they were going to snap at any second as she pushed through the wind and snow. Taz actually wouldn't mind getting some sleep if there wasn't a mild snowstorm whipping at her from every side. If she could just find a snow bank or a ditch of some kind, she might be able to rest a while.
Taz stepped behind a larger tree, leaning up against it. She was glad for momentary relief from the strong winds and walking on her bad knee, but it only left her to feel all the pain from before. Aches had begun to form on her shoulder as it supported the piece of cloth that Monroe had used as a sling. Needles poked into her knee, sending pain spiking up her leg. She sunk farther to the ground as the pain began to pick up. Without the constant nipping of the cold, her nerves began to wake, and that wasn't doing her any favors.
Taz tried to stand, but only fell to the base of the tree as she tried to straighten out her knee. The girl gasped, staring at her leg.
No, no, no, no, she thought, raising a tender hand to her mouth. Her lip quivered as she realized the severity of her injury.
Suddenly, a voice carried in the wind, finding Taz.
"Taz! Taz, where are you?" shouted the voice. It took the girl a moment until she recognized who it belonged to. Taz propped herself against the tree, peering around. There, to her right, she could just barely see faint lights accompanied by two figures.
She fell back into her spot, squeezing her eyes shut and letting her head fall against the tree. Nothing seemed to be working in her favor. Taz grabbed the tree with her free hand, straining to pull herself to her feet. When the guys found her she didn't want to look like a weak little girl. She wanted to keep some of her dignity.
Using the tree to keep herself propped up, Taz waiting for Up and whoever he was with to find her. She had no idea what she was going to do after this, though. Going back to the guys would just be embarrassing.
Taz winced as she accidentally put pressure on her bad leg, leaning into the tree to keep herself from falling over.
"Mierda," Taz muttered, a string of Spanish escaping her mouth. "Rodilla estúpido—"
"UP, DIVE!" shouted a voice, Taz immediately recognizing Junior. What was he doing—?
"Stupefy!"
"Protego!"
A blast exploded behind Taz as the spells bounced off the protective shield. She covered her head with her arm, getting knocked off balance and falling to the ground painfully. Taz rolled to the side, just able to see past the tree to all the commotion. There, right behind her, was Up and Junior, wands up and aimed at three disgruntled looking men who mirrored them. They stood about five meters from each other, daring the other to take a closer step.
Taz bit her tongue to keep herself from calling out when she noticed more Snatchers hiding in the woods.
"Drop the wands boys," said one of the larger, darker skinned men with a heavy accent, stepping forward. To say the least, the man looked like a rat. His clothes were torn and dirty and his hair was unkempt. From head to toe, it looked like these men hadn't seen the sunlight for a while.
"Right after you," Junior spat back, only raising his wand higher. As he spoke, Taz watched as the hiding Snatchers slowly stepped out of the woods, standing in the open. There had to be at least five or six of them, not counting the three that already faced Up and Junior.
The boys realized they were outnumbered, but didn't lower their wands. Taz watched Up count heads, his eyes wandering around the area. He glanced in Taz's direction, looking for any other Snatchers before glancing down and locking eyes with the girl. Up blinked, looking away to continue counting.
"Is this supposed to intimidate us?" he asked the Snatcher, raising an eyebrow. "Eight Snatchers to take in two wizards? Hardly seems necessary."
"Yet here we are. I'm going to enjoy this."
"Wanna put your talk to the test?" Up snapped, standing taller after having seen Taz. Junior wildly looked at Up, his hand slightly trembling. The taller boy just nodded. Junior made his way around Up, standing nearly back to back with his friend.
The Snatcher, a smug grin growing on his face, glanced back to his group.
"Honestly, boys," he said, returning to them. "You should've listened when you had the chance."
Without hesitation, the Snatcher flicked his wand, jets of light flying at Up and Junior. The rest of the Snatchers followed, sending one spell after another at the duo. They dodged the attacks almost rhythmically, moving as one, keeping their backs to each other. The both of them cast a shielding charm as spells and curses flew at them, spinning the next second and sending attacks at the disgruntled men.
Taz's jaw dropped as she watched them duel. Soon, Snatchers began to go down, and there wasn't even a scratch on either of the boys yet. The girl wondered how many times they had fought together. It had been five months since the Ministry had fallen, and here were these two sixth years, taking out a team of Snatchers.
She ducked, covering her head as spells rebounded in her direction, hitting the ground beside her. Peeking back up, Taz counted the remaining Snatchers. It seemed that the two boys had taken out four of their opponents, leaving half the group left. They weren't surrounded anymore, so Junior swiveled around to face the Snatchers with Up.
The dueling came to a halt, the men just glaring each other down as they breathed, chests rising and falling rapidly. Junior cracked a smile, looking separately at the standing Snatchers. The leader was still up, clenching his jaw as his anger showed from head to toe.
Junior huffed, his hands no longer shaking as he said, "You done, bo—"
"Crucio!" the Snatcher screamed. Red smoke curled out of the tip of his wand, encompassing a growing ball of electricity. It shot out towards the boys, lightning in their direction.
"Protego duo!" Up and Junior shouted at the same time. A bright shield surrounded them, closing off just as the red beam hit the barrier. It crackled a moment, exploding and traveling along the barrier as it couldn't find a way to its intended targets. The Snatcher kept pushing, though, raising his wand high in the air and taking a step towards Up and Junior. The boys had clamped both their hands onto their wands, their arms shaking as they tried to keep the shield strong.
Suddenly, the red lightning stopped exploding against the barrier. In what seemed like slow motion, the curse rebounded off the round of the shield. It turned, finding itself a new target in the snow. Up's head turned as he watched the curse bounce right off the shield, heading straight for Taz on the ground. Her torso stuck out while the bottom half of her body was hidden behind a large tree.
It struck Taz square in the chest.
Her screams sounded as though a thousand banshees were shrieking the death of a madman. It pierced the air, topping the whistling of the wind. Up had never heard someone sound so agonizingly in pain as much as he did now, watching as his protection spell wounded the small girl.
Taz convulsed, kicking and punching the air wildly as small, stinging stones pelted against every inch of her skin. It felt as if someone was dragging her by the hair through a burning rock bed. All sense of her surroundings disappeared as the curse consumed her entire, already frail body. Taz couldn't take it, every part of her feeling like it was going to explode. She couldn't even hear herself screaming anymore.
And then, just like that, the pain stopped. The girl coughed, feeling like her stomach was going to come out her mouth. She didn't even have the strength to lift herself off the ground. Taz just rested there, taking in every second that she was free of the pain.
The lead Snatcher who had cast the spell looked dumbstruck at the heap of girl in the snow, furrowing his eyebrows as he studied her. He looked from her back to the two boys. Junior was just as surprised as the Snatchers to see the girl sprawled on the ground.
Up made a move towards Taz, hoping the Snatchers stayed distracted long enough for him to get Taz out of their line of fire.
"Ah, ah, ah," tutted the Snatcher, menacingly pointing his wand from Up and Junior to Taz. The girl had managed to somewhat pull herself together, still recovering from the curse. She propped herself up on her elbow on her good arm, shaking.
The Snatchers next to the leader still had their wands trained on the two boys. The leader waved at his last goon, pointing to Taz.
"Looks like we found our little underage witch," the leader sneered. The fourth Snatcher, a particularly gangly man with dark hair, wove through the trees and towards Taz.
"What'cha want me to do to 'er, Angulo?" the Snatcher asked.
"Don't you touch her you—" Up started, but the leader, Angulo, cut him off with a silencing charm.
"I would keep your trap shut, kid," Angulo said. "Unless, of course, you want something worse to happen to your friend over there."
Up stayed still, silent already due to the charm on him. Angulo smirked. With the flick of his wand, he disarmed both of the boys. Junior gasped as his wand flew from his hand, flying to the Snatchers landing in Angulo's hand.
"That's better," he said, pocketing the wands. "Now, where were we? Oh, yes. Quinn, you were about to teach our little wench here the consequences of underage magic outside of school." The Quinn man nodded, turning to Taz. She was still recovering from the first hit and sure as Hell wasn't ready for the second one.
This one wasn't as strong, but left her in a coughing fit after only a couple seconds of exposure to the curse. Her arm gave out from under her and Taz fell into the snow, crying out in pain as she arched her back.
Up watched, silent and rooted to the spot. His mind was racing, trying to think of any way to stop the torture, but came up blank. The two Snatchers still had their wands on himself and Junior, and it didn't look like Angulo was going to call them off anytime soon. He winced as Taz was hit a third time with the curse, her screaming shooting daggers in his chest.
"Wait, Quinn," Angulo said, holding up his hand as the man prepared a fourth hit. "We don't want to completely fry her brain. She still needs to fetch us some Galleons."
Up grimaced at the words, but glad that the torture had come to a stop. He cast a glance in Taz's direction. She wasn't moving except for a twitch in her hand. The girl laid on her back, staring blankly at the sky.
Quinn turned to Angulo, clearly annoyed that he had been interrupted. The two got into some sort of argument, completely pulling their attention away from the situation at hand. In the moment, Quinn's back was to Taz. She rolled her head towards the two boys, mouthing something in their direction. Up barely made it out, but read her lips. "My wand."
Up furrowed his eyebrows, looking questioningly at the girl. Her eyes flicked to Junior, whose face lit up. Slowly, without catching anyone's attention, his right hand traveled down his waist. He pulled up the hem of the back of his shirt, revealing to Up the wand in his back pocket.
Taz faked a smile, remnants of the curse still in her system. She turned back to her own pants, feeling for the cold spot near her abdomen. Silently, she stuck her hand into her pants, grabbing the silver pocket knife that was slightly sticking out. Up immediately recognized the object, watching as Taz swiftly flicked the knife open. In a flash, she pulled all her energy together and leapt towards Quinn. She stabbed the two inch blade into his calf, twisting it.
Quinn cried out, falling to the ground. A split second later, Up had leaned over to Junior, grabbing the wand from his pocket and removed the silencing charm with a wave.
"Stupefy!" The boys watched as the last of the Snatchers went down, frozen figures in the snow.
With a quick wave of the wand, Up placed the silencing charm on the screaming and swearing Quinn on the ground, disarming him in the process. The two boys hurried over to Taz, who had once again fallen to the ground in pain. Though the curse was not on her anymore, she could still feel the burns it had left. She hadn't even noticed that her arm had come out of the sling.
Up fell beside her, tossing the wand to the ground as he looked down at the girl. Junior took a look at the girl, shaking his head and making his way to the stunned Snatchers. He pulled their wands out of the snow, gathering them up. He tossed Up's wand over to the boy, nodding.
"We need to get going before they wake up," Junior said, casting a glance at Taz.
"Can you walk?" Up asked Taz, watching as she awkwardly sat up. He reached his arm down, offering it to the girl. She took it, wobbling as she pulled herself to a standing position. Taz slowly put pressure onto the leg, feeling a small pinch of pain. It wasn't too bad. She took a hesitant step forward, subconsciously grabbing a hold of Up's arm to keep herself on her feet.
"What are we going to do with him?" Junior asked, wand pointed at Quinn. The man was cradling his leg, mouth opening and closing with empty air.
"I don't care," Up said. He cast a nervous glance at the stirring Snatchers. "We just need to get out of here."