"Colloportus!" shouted Harry, and Isabella heard three bodies slam into the door on the other side.
"It doesn't matter!" said a man's voice. "There are other ways in - WE'VE GOT THEM, THEY'RE HERE!" Isabella, who had tripped over a desk and fallen to the floor in her haste, righted herself and saw that they were in the Brain Room: the room with doors all around the walls.
"Luna - Neville - Bella - help me!" Harry yelled as the sound of footsteps running came through the walls. The four of them tore around the room, sealing doors as they went:
"Colloportus!" Isabella shouted, using the charm Harry had said. There were footsteps running all along behind the doors, every now and then another heavy body would launch itself against one, so that is creaked and shuddered. Isabella had almost reached the top of the room - there were only a few doors left...
"Collo-" The door slammed open and Luna screamed as she was hurled backwards through the air. She flew across the room, hit a desk, slid over its surface and on to the floor on the other side where she law sprawled.
"Get Potter!" shrieked Bellatrix, and she ran at him; he dodged her and sprinted back up the room.
"Hey!" said Ron, who had staggered to his feet and was now tottering drunkenly towards Harry, giggling. "Hey, Harry there are brains in here, ha ha ha, isn't that weird, Harry?"
"Ron, get out of the way!" Isabella screamed from her hiding place behind a desk. "Get down-!" But Ron had already pointed his wand at the tank.
"Honest, Harry, they're brains - look - Accio brain!" Isabella craned her neck out from under the desk and watched the top of the tank as a brain burst from the green liquid like a leaping fish: for a moment it seemed suspended in midair, then it soared towards Ron, spinning as it came, and what looked like ribbons of moving images flew from it, unravelling.
"Ha ha ha, Harry, look at it -" said Ron, watching it fly towards it. "Harry, come and touch it; bet it's weird -"
"RON, NO!" Harry and Isabella shouted together. Harry darted forward but Ron had already caught the brain in his outstretched hands. The moment they made contact with his skin, the tentacles began wrapping themselves around Ron's arms like ropes.
"Harry, look what's happening - No -no - I don't like it - no, stop - stop -" But the thin ribbons were spinning around Ron's chest now; he tugged and tore at them as the brain was pulled tight against him like an octopus's body.
"Diffindo!" yelled Harry, trying to sever the feelers wrapping themselves tightly around Ron, but they would not break. Isabella darted out to try and help as Ron fell over, still thrashing against his bonds.
"Harry, it'll suffocate him!" screamed Ginny, immobilized by her broken ankle on the floor. Then a jet of red light flew from one of the Death Eater's wands and hit her squarely in the face. She keeled over sideways and lay there unconscious.
"STUBEFY!" shouted Neville, wheeling around and waving his borrowed wand at the oncoming Death Eaters. "STUBEFY, STUBEFY!" Isabella was not sure if it was his wand, his nerves, or his stuffed-up voice that was keeping anything from happening.
One of the Death Eaters shot their own Stunning spell at Neville; it missed him by inches. Isabella, Harry, and Neville were the only two left fighting the five Death Eaters. Isabella had toppled over a desk and was using it as a barricade, but one of the Death Eaters shot a stream of silver light at it.
"BELLA!" Harry bellowed. She rolled out into the open just in time; the jet of light hit the desk and burned a crater into it. Harry held the prophecy over his head and sprinted back up the room. The Death Eaters followed him, leaving Isabella and Neville alone. They knocked desks and chairs flying but did not dare to bewitch Harry in case they hurt the prophecy. Harry vanished through the open door and Isabella winced to hear a series of thumps. It sounded like Harry had fallen down a staircase.
"Are you all ride?" Neville asked her thickly. Isabella nodded and stood, watching the last Death Eaters follow Harry through the door.
"We should go with him," she said determinedly.
"Wad aboud Ron?" Neville asked, nodding toward where Ron lay on the floor. Isabella looked at him, then pointed her wand carefully at the brain.
"Obliviate," she said. The constricting ribbons let go of Ron and zipped back into the brain, their ends snapping.
"Dat wad really cleber," Neville said admiringly.
"Well, it is a brain," Isabella said nudging it away from Ron with her foot. She ran with Neville, dodging fallen desks and leaping over upset chairs, following Harry.
The door led to the amphitheater-like room, where the archway still commanded the dais. Harry was standing on the raised platform, all of the Death Eaters situated below, looking up at him hungrily. Harry still clutched the prophecy to his chest.
"You are not in a position to bargain, Potter," Lucius Malfoy was drawling. He had taken off the skull mask the Death Eaters wore and had his hand extended toward Harry. "You see, there are ten of us and only one of you... or hasn't Dumbledore ever taught you how to count?:
"He's not alone!" Isabella shouted from the top of the stairs. "He's got us!" The two of them jumped down the steps on at a time as half a dozen wands turned on them.
"Neville - Bella - no - go back to Ron -" Harry tried to tell them.
"STUBEFY!" Neville shouted again, pointing his wand at a Death Eater. Nothing happened. Isabella's heart sank, but she aimed her own wand at a Lucius Malfoy.
"Stupe-" she began, but Malfoy interrupted her with a wave of his own wand.
"Expeliarmus," he said, and Isabella's wand slipped from her grasp and clattered across the room. One of the largest Death Eaters seized Neville from behind, pinioning his arm to his sides. He struggled and kicked; several of the Death Eaters laughed.
"It's Longbottom, isn't it?" sneered Lucius Malfoy. "And Miss Petrroci... whatever will your grandfather say?" Isabella could feel someone sneaking up on her, trying to capture her as they had Neville. She slipped from his grasp and darted around Malfoy, as quick as a fish. Several Stunners hit the ground at her heels, but she felt that if she could just make it through the arch...
She tripped and fell, her hand just brushing the interior curve of the stone arch. As her fingers brushed against it, she sprawled on the ground and moved no more.