"No, Harry. We're not. We are not going to risk… well… everything to find a rat!" Hermione said tremulously, over Ron's howling protest.
"It's not just any rat, it is Scabbers. And he could already be dead!" Ron cried out, his voice breaking in distress.
"Oh, Ron. I'm sorry," Hermione hiccuped. "I just don't know."
Gemma was gesturing next to him and Harry waited for someone to tell him what she said, but George was already speaking.
"Listen, if we're going to do this, we've got to go now. Mum and the Aurors are already on high alert. I say we go out there, lure the rat with the flute… and hide it. I think under Harry's cloak is the best bet. Maybe in your staff? I mean, no one has been able to track you under that thing… not the Ministry, not Hogwarts, not even that Death Eater."
Gemma was signing emphatically again and the others were making agreeing noises.
"Can someone tell me what Gemma's saying, please?" Harry asked.
"Yeah… I'm going to play a tune that I whistled a lot to Scabbers… before I had the flute. He seemed to like it," Ron said.
"Harry, don't you have Hedwig's cage in your staff? Wouldn't that work for keeping Scabbers safe from the dog?" Ginny asked.
"Yes, but…" Harry said and was cut off.
"And then, once Harry has the rat, he apparates back to the cave where he's been hiding," Hermione added grudgingly. "I still don't like it. Won't it mean that the dog will be after Scabbers and Harry?"
"But what is Gemma saying?" Harry asked again, his throat tight with frustration. Gemma pat his back reassuringly… letting him know her part of the conversation with simple gestures and he relaxed. She would tell him directly if she had something to say that he had to know… even if his friends couldn't be bothered to keep him in the loop. He blew out a frustrated breath. At least Gemma understood.
"But they'll both be hidden. Everyone's been searching for Harry for months, but they can't track him at all… and he's been doing all sorts of magic… that's supposed to alert the Ministry… underage magic traces and all that!" Neville said. "My Grandmother said that it is unheard of."
"I wish we could all go with you…" Ginny said glumly. "But we can't all fit under the cloak all the time and they might find you by looking for us."
Ron moaned.
"It's just for a day, right?" Harry said, putting on a brave face. "Then I'll meet you all at King's Cross station and I can give you Scabbers, Ron… he'll be safe at Hogwarts."
"It's a solid plan," Fred said.
"I don't know what could go wrong," piped in George.
"Come on. Let's go," Ron said breaking out of the circle.
Gemma slipped under the cloak with Harry as he pulled the hood back over his face.
"Can you read the slips of paper in here?" Harry asked her.
She grabbed at the fluttering slip and nodded, her head under his arm. She had slipped her arm around his waist and had started guiding him, following the sound of the others as they made their way onto the pavement.
Ginny had a hold of his elbow through the cloak on his other side. Behind him, he could hear Neville and Hermione talking quietly. They were keeping really close behind him and Gemma and he realized that they were creating a bit of a buffer, so no one walked into them.
Ahead, Ron, Fred, and George were quickly outpacing them, hurrying on to the egress that led to Charing Cross Road.
"Let's head to the alley… the apparition point… by the Center," Harry suggested. Gemma grabbed the paper by his lips.
"All right," Ginny said. "Though I don't know where the others are headed."
Gemma signed to hurry up on Harry's arm and he tried to quicken his pace, realizing that they must be losing sight of the boys.
Hermione huffed behind them, "this isn't going to work if we lose them! They're not even checking to see if we're keeping up."
They were now almost running and Harry was tripping along the uneven paving stones, relying on both Ginny and Gemma to keep him from falling down altogether.
There was the tingle of passing through the Egress and then the cacophony of London exploded around them. Harry flinched and Gemma asked him why… but then signed her understanding. He guessed she could feel the rumble of the city, even if she couldn't hear it. It made him wonder where Diagon Alley really was… if it wasn't just tucked away inside of London.
"Can you see them?" Harry asked.
"Yeah, they remembered us finally and are waiting," Ginny said, a bit out of breath.
The noises of London as well as the odors were engulfing Harry… he had just started adjusting to the press of people and all their accompanying chaos in Diagon Alley and now he had crossed over into an environment that was exponentially louder, odoriferous, and full of moving people and vehicles. A sputtering motorbike that seemed to be running them down had him pulling his companions away from the street despite their confused protests.
Gemma was trying to reassure him… she at least could probably see the panic etched on his face. The others were just trying to keep up with Fred, George, and Ron, and had no idea why they were being buffeted and dragged by the invisible bundle in their midst.
"What is going on!" Hermione interjected. Harry's foot had just landed on someone's toes rather sharply (Hermione's by the annoyance in her voice).
"Sorry, just that motorbike. It was coming right at us!" Harry said.
"It was in the street, Harry!" Neville exclaimed.
"Just trust us, we're not going to let you get run over," Ginny said, tugging him, and consequently, Gemma back in the direction they had been headed.
Hermione was grousing about the twins and Ron just taking off again and Neville was encouraging them all to keep up when Harry finally got his breath under control and allowed himself to be guided closer to the sound of rumbling engines and squealing brakes. Gemma's grip on his arm was firm and reassuring.
They were moving quickly now. Harry was doing his best to not trod on Ginny or Gemma, though it was tough as they kept swerving and changing direction quickly. Muttered exclamations from passersby or the gagging putrescence of overflowing rubbish bins were the only clues Harry had as to why they were on such an obstacle course.
"In here!" A hoarsely whispered shout made them stop suddenly and Harry's momentum nearly carried him out of Ginny's grasp. Luckily, Gemma also had a hold of him and helped right himself. Then Neville ran into them from the back and they ended up in a heap anyway. It took a moment to get sorted out and by then there were so many hands grabbing at him, pulling him this way and that, that Harry had to tell them to knock it off and let him get up on his own.
"Shouldn't you kids be in school?" An older woman asked disdainfully.
"Term starts tomorrow," Hermione answered breathlessly. "We're just shopping for some last-minute items. Oh, there's mum now!"
Harry was impressed with Hermione's poise as the woman's heeled shoes clattered away from them and melted into the hubbub of the street. He was glad the invisibility cloak was still mostly tied to him. Gemma helped him adjust it as they stood back up. Neville and Ginny had stepped in close when the woman approached them, and were both gently guiding them into a cool space that cut off the clangorous street noises. Harry gathered that it was a very narrow alleyway by the way everyone was crowded together.
"What's taking you so long?" Ron hissed. "Make tracks! Fred and George think they saw something up ahead."
Hermione huffed in response and they hurried through the dark narrow passage until they spilled out into a sun-filled area that was eerily quiet, even as the city rumbled beneath their feet.
"You lot! Crouch down over here," one of the twins whispered. Ginny hunched down, pulling Harry with her.
"What's going on?" Harry asked. He was surrounded on all sides by his friends. Knees and elbows were jabbing into him as everyone tried to squeeze into the small space; their discomfort expressed in small groans and stifled yelps. Harry's forehead bumped against something wooden and leaves and sticks crunched under his feet. Gemma struggled under the cloak, pulling the fabric this way and that as they managed their crouched position, panting with exertion. He could hear small branches being broken as the others moved around, trying to hide in what had to be a small hedgerow, maybe behind a bench. He reached out a tentative hand to feel the wood his head had struck and found the parallel slats that confirmed his hypothesis.
"Ron, you got your flute?" George asked quietly.
"Won't that give us away? Why are we hiding then?" Hermione asked.
"Might be more of them," Ron said, breathily.
"Oh, right," Neville said in a small voice.
"More of who?" Harry asked.
Gemma caught the slip of paper fluttering in front of Harry's lips and drew running fingers across his forearm, then pulled two fingers across his wrist.
"Police?" he asked her.
"Yes. Aurors. They just ran through here," Ginny supplied. "Chasing the dog."
"But we didn't see Scabbers," Ron said. "It might be he's still here."
"I doubt it. I imagine he's hightailed it to the sewers," Fred said.
"Go on, Ron. Try the flute," George urged.
"Then when nothing happens, we'll head back before anyone notices we're all gone!" Hermione muttered.
"Have faith, Hermione," Fred chided.
"Here goes nothing," Ron sighed and then a plaintive melody stuttered and swelled to fill the space.
The hair rose on Harry's arms and the back of his neck. He could feel the longing and sorrow in the tune that Ron felt for his lost pet. For as much as he complained about the rat, he needed him and missed him. A sharp ache for Nio and Hedwig suffused him and the niggling doubt that he'd been harbouring about this mission evaporated. He gritted his teeth, listening as hard as he could for any hint of movement through the courtyard where they were huddled.
Everyone seemed to be holding their breath, listening to the ethereal whistling reverberate off the surrounding walls. There were slight shuffles in the leaves beneath their feet as they adjusted their positions, trying to relieve aching limbs without making noise.
It seemed like an eternity of waiting, the notes of Ron's silvery tune rising and falling, folding back on itself as the music hit the walls and doubled back until Harry felt a tremor under his feet and Gemma squeezed his arm, acknowledging that she also felt it.
"What the…?" George muttered while Ginny drew in a sharp gasp.
The tremor was accompanied by a slight scritching noise that grew louder. Piercing squeaks punctuated the rumble.
Ron's sibilant tune faltered for a moment and then redoubled after he inhaled shakily.
Tinging metal, scrabbling, shrill squeaks all underscored by the trembling earth steadily grew nearer, louder and then erupted nearby as the bodies pressed against Harry shuddered and scrambled to rise, to move out of the way of the onslaught.
"They are coming right at us!" Hermione shouted, too near Harry's ear.
"What is it?" Harry yelled in response.
Not waiting for a reply—he had his suspicions—Harry flicked out his wand and threw up a bubble shield, imagining the protection extending over all of his friends huddled there. Someone else must have done the same thing as he felt a magical surge collide into his wand and through his arm.
Gemma withdrew her hand suddenly as if she's been shocked.
"Sorry," he muttered.
He had to hold his wand with both hands to regain control of the shield that wavered under the impact with the other shield.
They were now all huddled together, standing close. The shields had pushed the bench and the bushes away from them. Ron had stopped playing the flute as the wave of rats surged around them.
Harry didn't need to see it to understand what was happening. The flute had worked… but it didn't just call one rat from the sewers… it called all of London's rats.
"Wait, wait!" Ron called in a half-sob. "Scabbers! I'm here! Does anyone see him?"
Beyond the walls of the courtyard, there was a sudden squall of honking autos, squealing brakes, and people shouting as the rats flooded out of the alleyway and onto Charing Cross Road.
"There's so many and they are so fast," Neville said, shaken.
"Did you see any yellow? He's been a bit yellow… ever since first year," Ron exclaimed, turning as he spoke.
"There's no way to pick out one rat from that hoard," was Ginny's stunned reply.
The squeaking, scratching, and rumbling had slowed, but Harry wasn't ready to dismiss his shield just yet. It sounded like still more were emerging from the sewer opening.
"Well, Ron, I think it's time you dressed the part!" Fred said, heartily slapping Ron's back… so much so that Ron cried out in pain.
"Oh, Fred. Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" George said, conspiratorially.
"Don't you know it!" Fred crowed.
"Oi! Give it a rest, you two. Leave me be!" Ron hollered. "Come on, he had to be in that hoard!"
"It'll just take a sec," George cajoled.
"Hang on, little brother," Fred said and there was a pop of magic and a scuffle.
Harry ended the shield charm, not wanting to get trampled and the group moved apart. Ron was running after the stampede of rats with his brothers close on his heels. Gemma slipped her arm around Harry's waist and turned him away from the departing footsteps, while also signing on his arm the direction she wanted to go. He brushed away branches from his face and his leg brushed against the bench.
Gemma was guiding him to the hole where the rats had emerged. He guessed that she saw something there that was worth investigating.
"Where are you headed?" Ginny asked as Harry moved out of her grasp.
"What? Where's Harry?" Hermione asked.
"He and Gemma are going this way," Ginny said.
"But we're going to lose sight of Ron!" Neville protested.
"Gemma sees something," Harry said and listened as the others fell in step behind them.
"Oh, I see it, too," Ginny said. "Scabbers! Come here!"
Gemma pulled Harry down on the damp earth and she had let go of him and was leaning forward, peering into something. He reached out a hand and found her back. She sat back up and signed Ron's name on his hand and then touched the side of his nose with a twisting finger.
"Ron's rat?" he confirmed.
"Yes," she said and turned back to the hole.
"Scabbers, we'll keep you safe!" Hermione whispered from the other side of Gemma.
"We won't let Black get you," Ginny assured.
"Mates, it's not like he can understand you. He's a rat!" Harry reminded them. "And how do you know it is Scabbers?"
"He's a bit yellow… like Ron said," Neville said. "And it seems like he understands… the way he's looking at us."
"How on earth did he get to London from the Bur–?" Hermione's question was interrupted by a yelp and she toppled over into Harry, Gemma, and Ginny. Harry's shield went up as he went down.
"Wha–!" he exclaimed as tried to extricate himself.
There was a low growl that made him freeze as the hair on his arms and neck rose. Then there was a mad scrabbling, squeaking, and heart-stopping snarl and snapping of jaws. Clods of dirt hit the shield, making it shudder.
Harry struggled to get up. He felt the cloak being tugged off his head unwittingly in the tumult of limbs and bodies. His wand was already in his hand, but to use it, he'd have to take down his shield… the shield that he was desperate to know had covered all of them.
"Stupid, stupid!" he shouted at himself as he realized the danger his friends were in… because of him. He was still prone on the wet earth.
Something forceful hit the shield and the giant dog yelped piteously as everyone within the shield (except Gemma whose clutching hand on his arm spasmed) screamed. Approaching voices and footsteps almost obscured the sound of the limping dog running away. From the sewer, the sounds of squeaks and scritching nails were growing fainter.
"I'm pretty sure that Scabbers got away!" Neville said in a hoarse whisper and Harry felt a rush of relief.
"Ginny? Hermione?" Harry recognized Arthur Weasley's voice, even though he sounded more alarmed than Harry had ever heard before. "What are you doing out here? I thought you were with your mum, getting your school supplies!"
Harry felt around for the hood and tried to pull it back over his head. He suspected his legs were sticking out from under it as well as he'd untied the laces that fastened the cloak to his legs so that he could use his staff earlier.
Gemma was tugging on his arm, helping him stand up and turning him in the direction of the voices. Some had run after the fleeing dog, while others were shouting orders or asking forceful questions.
Harry pulled the cloak around them tighter and felt better when he could feel Ginny, Neville, and Hermione pressing in around them.
"Er, we were…" Ginny trailed off.
"I needed some things from a muggle shop," Hermione said over her. "Ginny and Neville wanted to come with me."
"An.. and then there were all these rats! Well, we… we… we… ran," Neville added in a stutter.
"I thought I saw more of you," a woman's voice asked.
"Er, no. It's just us," Hermione said with conviction as they crowded closer around Harry and Gemma.
"We can question them later… right now we need to catch that Death Eater!"
"You shouldn't be out here! You need to get back to Diagon Alley… to Molly… and get home!" Mr. Weasley insisted as a deep-voiced Auror reiterated harshly that they needed to continue their pursuit of Black.
"This instant!" Mr. Weasley demanded over his shoulder as he and the others ran down another alleyway.
The five of them stood stock still until Neville drew a deep breath and the rest of them stepped apart.
"Is everyone okay?" Ginny asked. "Harry? Gemma?"
Harry asked Gemma and she caught the slip, then her tremulous hand was tapping reassuringly on his arm.
"We're both okay. But what happened?" Harry asked.
"That beast came out of nowhere!" Hermione said. "Knocked me over lunging for Scabbers… but he didn't get him!"
"Shouldn't we try to get Scabbers?" Neville asked, tentatively.
"Frankly, I think he's better off without our help," Ginny muttered as she brushed grass off her robes. "I've never seen that rat move so fast!"
"Come on. Let's see if we can find Ron and the twins… then head back to the Alley. Everyone's looking at us… I think it our school robes. We look like we're escaped from a children's choir," Hermione said.
Gemma was asking Harry to tell him what they were saying. He stopped and repeated the conversation for her and she grabbed the slip of paper to read it.
"What are we going to tell Ron?" Harry wondered aloud as they walked through the garden and back to the cobbled stones of the alley.
"That Scabbers got away from Black?" Ginny answered doubtfully.
"Yeah. I guess there's that," Harry said and stopped for a moment so he could fill Gemma in again.
"Stop stopping!" Hermione urged.
"I'm just trying to keep Gemma in the loop," Harry explained, a bit exasperated.
"What if he comes back?" Hermione said. "I've never seen such a big dog."
"Yeah," Neville agreed.
Harry repeated their words in a whisper and caught the slip himself to give to Gemma, just stumbling a little as it was hard to concentrate on everything at once. They had emerged from the alley where the usual mayhem of Charing Cross Road seemed intensified.
Probably due to the avalanche of rats that just overrun it, Harry thought, shivering at the remembrance of their squeaking, scratching, sepulchral chorus.
Ginny hooted in laughter and soon, Hermione and Neville had joined in. Gemma's giggles shook through Harry where her arm was thrown around his waist.
"What's so funny?" he asked.
"It's… Ron!" Hermione gasped.
"Fred. George," was all Neville managed.
"They dressed him… they dressed him as the pied piper!" Ginny snorted.
"Oh, and he's not happy!" Hermione said, with a suppressed giggle.