Surviving Malfoy _ Part II : Anger and Depression
Brockhampton 'Heat' – I'll break your neck so you can watch your back.
Chapter 30:
Theo gives me the verbal beating of a lifetime when I get back to the Room of Requirements. As does Neville, but to a slightly lesser degree. Seamus praises me on my Gryffindor courage, and Luna is the only one actually interested in my motives.
"I know where the Diadem might be," I say, when she finally shuts the boys up. All three of them perk up, but I shoot them a look that keeps them quiet. "But we need to wait for Harry to get here before we can go looking for it."
"Harry's coming here?" Neville asks.
"So, we're fighting?" Seamus' face brightens worryingly.
"No," I say firmly, then add, "I don't know."
"Well, when is he getting here?"
My jaw tightens. "Soon," I say. "Could be a few days, could be a week. We don't exactly have a set schedule."
"We should be prepared to fight though," Neville says.
"And we should fight," Seamus retorts. "If we can get the Carrows and Snape out, we could use Hogwarts as a safe house for the Order."
Theo laughs, loudly.
"What's so funny, Nott?!" Seamus asks, irritated. "We can keep the students here too, make sure they're safe. I don't see how that's so fucking funny."
"Do you know how many Death Eaters the Dark Lord has by now?" Theo says. "Do you really think a couple of geriatric professors and a bunch of disorganized resistance members can keep this entire castle out of his hands? He won't just let go of Hogwarts, Finnigan. It's a key strategic point for him. If we keep the students here, he'll start going after every single one of their family members, he'll bring his entire army to fight, and I guarantee you he'd rather burn this whole place down before leaving it to the Order." Theo grows darker as he speaks. "He has an army of werewolves and giants. We can't beat him in direct confrontation."
"Disorganized?!"
"That's the point you're hung up on?"
"Guys," Neville butts in. "How about we wait for Harry to get here, keep training in the meantime, and we'll see from there."
Seamus rolls his eyes. "Do we even need Harry?"
I glare at him, but before I can say anything Luna uncharacteristically growls, "Seamus."
"What? Why is it all dependent on him?" He asks, "Why do we need to wait for him to move his arse-"
"Because it isn't that simple, Seamus," I cut him off.
"If we got the Order all together, actually worked out a viable strategy-"
"Seamus-" Neville starts.
"THIS would already be over."
"No," I almost shout. "It wouldn't be. You-Know-Who can't just be killed-"
"He's human!"
"SEAMUS."
The entire room has gone quiet. Every eye is on us, every ear listening to the conversation, and I debate whether or not to tell them. For just one second I imagine throwing everything in Seamus' face and being done with it. But I can't do that to Harry.
"Harry's the best chance we have," I say. "Every single Order member says so. None of them will move a finger until he says its safe, and I sure as hell won't just blindly go into a fight without knowing we have a fighting chance. You think he's human? He isn't. Hasn't been for a long time. And he has more than one Plan B to ensure his death does not end his rule. We need to fight his army, and we need to fight him. And to fight him, we need Harry."
Seamus glares at me and I unwaveringly glare back. "What is that Plan B then?"
"I can't tell you."
Seamus huffs out an unamused laugh. "And you all believe this?" He asks the other three.
Theo and Luna both respond "Yes," without skipping a beat.
Seamus sucks his teeth, pauses as if debating whether or not to speak. "Well, I don't exactly trust someone so open to canoodling with Death Eaters."
"Dude," Neville balks.
I've had enough. I pick my wand up off the table and make my way over to the bathroom, slamming the door behind me and leaving Theo and Neville to chew Seamus out. I shut myself in the furthest shower cubicle from the door, turn the water on, undress and cry.
I don't know what else to do.
I need Harry to get here. Fast, before Seamus starts a revolution.
I turn the water as hot as I can stand and lean against the cold stone wall. I hope Neville can keep Seamus in check. I know Theo won't hold back, but that might just throw more fuel on the fire.
And what if Harry doesn't make it out of Gringotts alive?
I crack my neck, trying to relieve the tension in my muscles somehow. The bunkbeds the Room has provided are comfortable, but the constant anxiety makes my muscles ache. I feel queasy and on edge, somewhere between exhausted and agitated, continuously jumping from one to the other.
I miss Alf, always readily available to bring me whatever kind of potion or herb I might need. Proper food too. The second that thought pops into my head, there's a faint popping sound behind me, and when I turn around, I squeal, covering my mouth and jumping as far against the wall as I can.
"Sh, Miss. Master Draco said no one can know Alf is here."
I dart past him and pull my wand out from under my pile of clothes. "That's because you're not supposed to be here," I hiss, casting a silencing charm over the cubicle.
Alf's ears hang low, "but Miss wants Alf to be here, or Alf wouldn't be here."
"I didn't call you," I say, a little too harshly.
"Master Draco sent me." He's wringing his hands, looking up at me with his huge, yellow green eyes.
"I don't give a flying fuck about what he wants." I feel anger rising in my chest. I'm aware Alf shouldn't be the one to take the brunt of it, but he's the only one here, Draco's proxy.
Alf rights himself. "Master Draco has asked Alf to look after Miss."
"Look Alf," I say, crouching down to meet him at eye-level and covering myself up in the process. "I don't need looking after, least of all by a Malfoy elf. Please leave."
"Alf can't leave Miss."
I stare at him. "Alf," I say as calmly as I can. "You can't be here."
He looks around the cubicle as if to say 'but I am'. "Master Draco said-"
"I don't care," I hiss. "Tell him to leave me alone."
"Alf is supposed to make sure Miss is okay."
I press my lips together, exhaling a deep breath. "I am. I'm well fed, I am safe, and I have people looking after me. Is that good enough?"
Alf stands his ground and shakes his head. "Alf is supposed to help Miss with her mission."
I feel the blood drain from my face. "What do you know about that?"
"Nothing Miss. Only that Miss has a mission and that Alf must help Miss."
"What has Malfoy told you?"
Alf shakes his head, "Nothing Miss. Only that Miss has an important mission."
"Alf, listen to me. You cannot tell anyone about this. Do you hear me?" I take his arm for good measure.
"Master Draco has sworn Alf to secrecy," he says. "Whatever Miss tells Alf, Alf isn't to tell anyone, not even Master Draco."
"Good," I say. "Then go."
Alf looks up at me, confused. "Alf can't go."
"Alf, I'm ordering you to go," I say.
He shakes his head again. "Alf can't go until Miss tells Alf how to help Miss."
"You can help me by leaving," I say firmly. "No, hold on," I say quickly, seeing the way his shoulders slump as he's about to disapparate. "There's one thing you can do."
"Anything for Miss." His eyes brighten.
"You know You-Know-Who's snake?"
His eyes widen in fear, but he nods.
"I need you to kill her, first chance you get," I say.
"The snake is heavily protected, Miss." Alf says, ears steadily lowering until their tips touch the top of his shoulders.
"I know that. This isn't an absolute, if it's not perfectly – and I mean perfectly - safe for you, I don't want you to do it. Do not put yourself in danger over this," I say. "But if you get the chance, kill her."
He visibly gulps, but again, nods.
"She can only be killed with basilisk venom, or fiend fyre," I say. "Don't try anything else, it won't work."
Alf nods again, "Master Lucius has flasks of basilisk venom in his collection, Miss. Alf can use basilisk venom."
"He does?"
"Master Lucius won't notice one missing," Alf says.
"Good," I say. "Make sure you're not caught. If you are, let Draco know and then bring yourself to safety. Do not come back here under any circumstance. Is that clear?"
Alf nods.
"Good," I say.
He nods again.
"Don't tell Draco a word of this," I repeat.
"Alf won't Miss, Master Draco forbade Alf to tell Master Draco anything. But Master Draco has asked Alf to tell Miss to stay safe."
"I am," I say, irritated. "Tell him to go fuck himself. Now go."
He vanishes with a pop, a look of shock etched on his face. I exhale loudly and turn off the shower, grab the towel that pops up on the cubicle wall and wave my wand over my soaked heap of clothes.
He next few days are tense. On Neville and Theo's instructions, I've been forbidden from leaving the Room of Requirements. Seamus gloats over this a bit too much for my liking. Most of the older students now spend their nights smearing pro-Harry-, Order- or Dumbledore-paroles all over the school walls, booby-trapping the stairs up to the headmaster's office or the remaining Carrow's bedroom. They use the marauder's map for help – which I don't mind, it keeps me from using it to check on Draco – but Seamus regularly comes back delighting in his work and reminding me of how useless I'm being, to the point where even Dean tells him to shut up.
So, it's not too soon when I feel the familiar hot glow of the galleon in my pocket and the message from Hermione letting me know they're about to head to Gringotts. I haven't heard a word from Alf since he ambushed me in the shower, and I choose to assume he hasn't made any progress, not that anything has happened to him. I message Hermione back, wishing them good luck and informing her about the trigger-happy Seamus, just so they know what's waiting for them, should they choose to move to Hogwarts next.
I tell Theo and Neville, but no one else, making sure the information doesn't reach the wrong ears. Neville tenses at the news, nods without a word. Theo just drags me back to the training dummies, where we spend the rest of the day throwing our respective weapons around. I have no idea how long Hermione's plan is supposed to take, and it's just now that I realize I should've probably asked. The anxiety of it is almost too much, causing me to miss most of my targets, and Theo to berate me more than the usual amount. He's as tense as I am, even though he pretends he isn't.
"Will you stop yelling at me?!" I snap when he groans loudly for the fifth time in a row after I miss the dummy's head by a foot.
"Once you stop being a public menace, I will," he shoots back.
"You're not helping," I retort.
"Awh Pollux, look at you. You're doing such a good job" You were almost within two feet of th-"
I turn away from him to go retrieve the knife stuck in the protective wall, but it's not what makes him stop his mockery. I hear the faint pop behind me and immediately know what has happened.
"Mister Theodore," a squeal delights behind me.
"Alf." It's a greeting, Theo doesn't sound one bit surprised at the sight of the elf between us.
"Alf?" I echo, turning around.
Alf bends in half before me, nose to the floor. "It is done, Miss," he says unnecessarily, I know his being here can only mean one thing. At the exact moment he says it, I feel the glow of the coin in my back pocket.
Coming to Hogwarts.
My blood runs cold. It's now. It's done, there's no going back.
"Alf," I say when I see him readying himself to leave. "Stay here." I glance up at Theo's face, hard set in understanding. His eyes dart to my left, and I know from his expression, it's Seamus approaching.
"Who's this?" I hear him ask.
"Someone much more helpful than you," I can't help but quip.
Seamus ignores me. "Whose elf is this?" suspicion in his voice.
"Alf can't say, sir." Thank God.
"He's a Hogwarts elf," I say.
"So, under Snape's control?"
"One of the free ones," I continue, much to Alf's dismay, that is thankfully obscured by Theo stepping in front of him.
"Is it yours?" Seamus asks him, sneering.
I roll my eyes. "I don't have time for this. Stay here," I reiterate to Alf, who doesn't budge, staring up at Seamus with open curiosity. "Neville!" I call when I spot him, but there's no need. The door on the other side of the fireplace roars to life, transforming into a life-sized portrait of a girl and the entire room stills. Neville jumps to his feet first, as does Seamus. While Neville runs to the door, Seamus goes for the wireless, and I don't know which one of the two to run after. "Seamus don't!" I yell, but he ignores me.
"Finnigan," Theo says warningly, just as Luna asks, "What's going on?" and "Oh, hello," when she spots Alf.
I stand in the middle of the room, dumbstruck. But Theo is already making his approach on Seamus, so I go for Neville, who's already disappeared through the door leading to the Hog's Head. His legs are much longer than mine, and he's way ahead of me, but I do reach him before he exits the tunnel.
"I'm sorry," I huff, resting one hand on the damp stone wall to catch my breath. "Seamus, he-"
Neville turns to me, he's been beaming down at Harry, Ron and Hermione, a bit bruised up, but thankfully alive. All three up at me with similar frowns etched on their faces. "He's calling the Order," I finish my sentence.
Much to my surprise, Harry says "good."
My face falls. "Okay."
"You're really thinking of fighting, Potter?" The five of us turn to the innkeeper.
"Yes," Harry said. "This is as good a time as any."
"Harry, we should-"
"Don't say plan, Hermione," Ron says. "Nothing we do ever goes according to plan. You've seen how today went."
"Did you..?" I ask and watch as Hermione pulls a small, golden cup out of her beaded bag. Innocent enough, as if it couldn't hurt a soul, but the ornate letter H engraved on its body, confirms its origin. My shoulders slump at the sight. Only one more, and we know where it is. "The snake is dead," I say.
"How do you know?" Harry asks, turning to me.
"I-" I stop, "How do you?"
"No," Hermione says. "It doesn't matter. We don't have time for lengthy explanations, we need to find a way to destroy this thing and get to the last one. You-know-who knows we're on the way."
The hand I'm using to lean against the wall slips and I tumble half a step forwards, Neville's outstretched arm keeping me from falling headfirst out of the portrait hole above the innkeeper's fireplace.
"I know where the last one is," I say, knowing Hermione would argue if I asked why You-Know-Who was on the way. If he is, we truly have no time. If he is, we should have started boarding up the school two weeks ago.
"Good," Hermione says, holding out her hand for Neville to help her up into the tunnel.
Ron follows, "there'll be a couple more people coming then?" He asks me and I nod.
"Keep the tunnel open, Aberforth," Neville says.
"This is a suicide mission, kids," the innkeeper tells us.
"Oh, we know," Neville says, with the widest grin I've seen to date, and his light-heartedness almost sooths my fear a little.
"We have to try," Harry tells him, Neville and Ron both taking one of his arms to hoist him up.
We make our way back through the tunnel quickly, but even before we reach the room of requirements, we already hear voices behind us, people arriving from the Hog's Head. Hermione and I exchange a furtive look, the three boys just look stoically ahead in silence. I have trouble keeping my nerves from getting the better of me, it feels like I've just been thrown in the deep end, and I'm being pulled further and further away from the edge.
Harry looks over his shoulder, sending a glance down the tunnel, at the stoic voices reaching us from behind. It's a look somewhere between concern and annoyance. He looks at me. "Do you think the diadem is in the room of requirements?" He asks.
Ron almost runs into me when I slow, surprised. "I think so," I say. "Why."
"I saw it," Harry says. "You-Know-Who is worried about it, and I think I've actually seen it at some point last year. When I hid Snape's book," he adds to Hermione and Ron.
"If it is in the room of requirements-" Hermione starts.
"I spoke to the Grey Lady," I interrupt her. "The ghost of Ravenclaw tower? She said 'if you have to ask, you will never know. If you know, you may only ask' and-"
"We need to get everyone out of the room for it to show us the diadem," Harry cuts me off, shooting another look behind us, worried with the swelling noise of people walking down the tunnel. "Neville, how many people did you call?"
Neville turns around to him, lips pressed together apologetically. "I didn't," he says.
"Seamus alerted people over the wireless," I say.
"Fuck," I hear Ron mutter behind me.
"We need to let McGonagall know," Hermione says. "We need to get the students out first, Harry. If You-Know-Who is on the way-"
"No, we need to close the school off," Harry says. "And as quickly as possible, we can't leave any way in open Hermione, if he gets in-"
"They're kids Harry!"
"800 of them," he continues. "We'll lose so much time-"
"Harry!"
"700," Neville interrupts. "The Muggleborns are gone. And we can send them back through the Hog's Head, those who can apparate can take the younger kids side-along right out of the pub. The Death Eaters won't bother with it, if he knows you're in Hogwarts, they'll have bigger fish to fry."
"And if they try to get in through the tunnel?"
"They won't even get into the Hog's Head," Neville says with a wicked smile.
"That will lose us so much time," Harry argues again.
"We need to fortify the school anyway," I say. "If we organize it right, we can get them all out in under an hour. How far away is he?"
I can see the back of Harry's neck growing slightly pink. "I'm not sure," he says.
We reach the room of requirements to cries of jubilation. People immediately pull Harry, Hermione and Ron out of the tunnel and into their arms, patting them on their backs, ruffling their hair, clapping and cheering. Theo hugs Hermione shily and I hear her tell him "glad you're hear, Theo" over Seamus' whooping. Everyone is kitted out, knives, darts and stars safely stowed in holsters, ready to fight and Hermione asking me what this is about almost makes me miss Harry, trying to slip away.
"Where are you going?" I ask, pushing through the crowd to get to him. People have started coming in from the pub, slowly but surely filling the room.
"I need to speak to McGonagall," Harry says.
"Alone?" I ask.
"Yes," he says. "Stay here. Try and coordinate this lot. I'll be back in ten, I just need to find a way to get the students out without Snape noticing." He sounds irritated and I put it down to nerves.
"There are patrols in the corridors, Harry," I say.
"I know, I'll be safe," he says, putting a hand on my shoulder for reassurance. "I can handle Crabbe and Goyle alright, don't worry."
He runs off before I can get another word in. When I turn back to the crowd, Hermione is pushing through it, her eyes following Harry out of the door, watching him throw his invisibility cloak over himself.
"Where is he going?" She asks.
"To alert McGonagall," I tell her.
"Right," she says, looking back and forth between the ever-growing mass of people and the door to the castle, almost making a move towards the latter, but I stop her.
"He's anxious to get to the diadem," I say. "Let him go, we need to…" I wave my hand at the steady flow of fighters coming out of the tunnel. "Handle this somehow. Get things in order, so we can move quickly."
"Hey!" Hermione yells without hesitation, but no one reacts, not even Ron, enthralled in a teary reunion with his family.
"HEY!" I try. Still nothing.
Hermione raises her wand to her throat. "Sonorus. LISTEN EVERYONE." The volume of her voice forces me to take a step away from her. "EVERYONE WHOS UNDERAGE GO OVER THERE," she points to the wall with the cots, then to the dining table, "EVERYBODY ELSE OVER HERE. WE NEED TO EVACUATE THE CASTLE. WHEN HARRY GETS BACK-"
"Where'd he go?!"
"Shut it, Finnigan."
"WHEN HARRY GETS BACK HERE, WE'LL WORK ON GETTING THE YOUNGER STUDENTS OUT AS FAST AS POSSIBLE. ANYONE WILLING TO APPARATE THEM OUT OF THE HOG'S HEAD, STAND HERE," she points at the training center, lifting her wand from her throat.
We watch the crowd split into three, a divide of generations, kids on the left, young adults, still patting themselves on the back, way too excited for a fight for my liking, on the right, and older adults in the middle.
"Where do you think they should bring the kids?" Hermione asks me as Ron peels himself out of his mother's arms to walk over to us.
I shrug, "I don't know, but I don't think it matters necessarily. You-Know-Who won't go hunting them down tonight anyway, not with Harry here."
"Mom offered the Burrow," Ron says, having overheard that last part. "It's under a Fidelius, but dad's the secret keeper, he can give the location. It stretches all the way to the orchard; it should easily hide everyone."
"That would be brilliant," Hermione says. "It will still take ages though."
"That's ok," Ron says. "We still need to find a way to destroy the diadem when we manage to find it. Do you know how the snake died?"
"Alf killed it," I say. "He's an elf."
"Alf the elf?" Ron asks.
"Whose elf?" Hermione concentrates on the essential part.
I bite my lip, looking between the two of them, before speaking, "Malfoy's."
"Excuse me?" Ron asks.
"I know," I say. "Actually…" I look around the room, between the legs of the crowd, "Alf?"
He pops into existence between the three of us, making both Hermione and I flinch. "Miss has called Alf," he says, immediately bending in two.
"Yes, hi," I say. "Where did you go?"
"Alf was making tea, Miss," he says, pointing at the edge of the room. "Alf thought Miss Jolene and Mister Theo's friends might like some tea."
"That's nice of you," Hermione says, beaming at him. "Thank you, Alf."
"'Mione," Ron hisses at her.
"It is nice, Ron," she glowers at him.
"Alf," I cut in. "That's very thoughtful, but we won't be needing any tea for the minute. Can you tell us how you killed the snake."
Alf looks up at the three of us, grabbing the hem of his pillowcase. "Alf mixed basilisk venom into the snake's food like Miss instructed, Miss."
"Basilisk venom?" Ron asks.
"Yes, Sir," Alf says. "From Master Lucius' collection, Sir."
Ron's lip quirks and Hermione's eyes widen. "Can you get us some more?" She asks.
"No," I say immediately. "You're not doing that, Alf. You're not going back to the Manor; it'll only get you killed." I sigh, rubbing the bridge of my nose. "I'm sorry, I didn't think of that…"
"There's basilisk venom in the castle though," Ron says, turning to Hermione and grabbing her by the shoulders. She looks up at him quizzically, and he stares down at her, glee in his eyes. "Chamber of Secrets."
Hermione gasps, "Ron, that's brilliant!" She takes hold of his lower arms, "We should go now. Jay, will you be fine here until we get back?"
I look over at the chattering crowd, all still waiting for instruction. "Uh," I start. "Yeah, I'll just wait for Harry," I say.
"Excellent," Ron grabs Hermione's hand, pulling her towards the door. "Keep an eye on that elf."
I roll my eyes at him. "He's fine. But wait! Snape and Carrow are still in the castle, you can't just go." I sprint over to the dining table, squeezing through between Neville and Theo to grab the marauder's map off it. I hand it to Hermione, "be safe. And let me know if you see anything." I hold up her coin.
She nods and off they go, leaving me to fend for myself. "Alf," I turn to the elf. "We'll be bringing kids out of the castle. They will all need to be apparated out to a safe place. Can you go talk to this man," I point at Ron's dad. "And ask him where to take them? You can already start taking this lot," I point at the younger hideaway students sitting on the cots, looking slightly lost.
Alf beams at me, happy for a task. "Alf would be honored, Miss."
He moves over to the throng of Weasleys, and I sit down next to Theo, careful not to get between him and Neville again. He looks at me, eyes unreadable, lips pursed. "What now?" he asks.
I shrug, "wait for Harry to get back, give us the go ahead to start evacuating."
It doesn't take long. Harry still isn't back by then, but within a few minutes I feel Hermione's coin glow in my back pocket, telling me Snape is gone and the heads of house' are gathering their students in the Great Hall. I use her charm to amplify my voice and instruct those sitting at the dining table to follow me out, leaving only Dean behind who's helping Mr. Weasley create a banner:
The Burrow,
Ottery St. Catchpole,
Devon, West Country,
Is a safe place.
The corridors of Hogwarts are quiet, which is surprising considering the number of students being ushered through them from four corners of the castle. All of them make space for the mob of resistance fighters passing by them, Theo, Neville and I at its front. We line up along the wall behind the Gryffindor table, watching the hall fill with students still in their nightclothes, frightened looks on their faces, McGonagall at the front of the hall signaling for them to come in and take a seat.
She doesn't beat around the bush, announcing You Know Who's imminent arrival to shocked cries. I keep my eyes on the doors to the entrance hall, intent on keeping them away from the Slytherin table. I do notice a shock of white-blonde hair, but categorically refuse to look its way. McGonagall instructs the prefects to follow Madam Pomfrey and Mr. Filch's guide, who'll be overseeing the evacuation, along with Theo, Neville and I, and just as I nod her way to signal my agreement, Theo nudges my in the ribs and points at the door.
Harry walks in, causing less of a commotion than I expected, with quite a few students looking relieved rather than surprised. I wave at him, and he sprint past the tables to us.
"Where are Ron and Hermione?" He asks.
"Gone to get some basilisk fangs," I say.
"Genius," he whispers.
"What happened with Snape?" I whisper back.
"Did a runner," he glances over the tables. "He's not far," he says. "I don't know if we can get everyone out in time-"
Slughorn leans over to him, "we've already taken precautions, my boy," he says. "We'll have enough time to-"
He's cut off by a high-pitched voice ringing through the hall, drowning out McGonagall and causing several younger students to scream in fear. I freeze as Harry grabs my arm, turning towards the hall, wand raised and pulling me behind his back.
"I know that you are preparing to fight. Your efforts are futile. You cannot fight me. I do not want to kill you. I have great respect for the teachers of Hogwarts. I do not want to spill magical blood.
"Give me Harry Potter. And none shall be harmed. Give me Harry Potter, and I shall leave the school untouched. Give me Harry Potter, and you will be rewarded. You have until midnight."
Voldemort.
I see her even before she yells across the hall, pointing her finger at Harry, and I push past him to point my own wand at Parkinson, slipping Bellatrix' knife out of its holster, daring her to try and get to Harry. I'm not the only one, Theo moves with me and within seconds the entire Gryffindor tables rises to its feet, shielding us from her. Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw follow, only Slytherin stays seated.
"Thank you, Miss Parkinson," McGonagall says drily, and I lower my wand, grabbing Theo's wrist to look at his watch: 11.03pm.
"We have an hour," I whisper to Harry, half registering McGonagall telling Theo and I to personally escort Parkinson out of the hall. "I'll wait for you outside the Room of Requirements when all the kids are gone."
He nods at me, and Theo takes my hand, pulling me towards the Slytherin table. Parkinson has blanched considerably, almost matching the off-white cardigan she has thrown over her tartan pajamas. Theo nods at her towards the door and she slings her arms around her torso, meeting us at the head of the hall. I glare at her, but she won't meet my eye. The rest of Slytherin house follow us up to the seventh floor. I don't look over my shoulder, keeping my eyes and wand trained on Parkinson's back as she follows Theo.
When we reach the room, Alf has already apparated the students present here out and I immediately leave Parkinson to him, making sure the rest of the students file out of the room in pairs. Theo leads them through the tunnel, to the Hog's Head, towards the older resistance members, ready to bring them to safety.
I watch as one house after the other, with increasingly less students, march through the Room of Requirements, eyes big and whispering in hushed voices at the sight of the cots, dining table and training dummies. But the one person I don't see, is Draco.