AIANES (Theodore Nott) H.P AU

Chapter Six

Screaming people run towards the woods and away from the burning tents. The crowds flee from something Olympia can't see but can tell it's coming her way. She discerns the drunken laughter mixed with roars of approval. The once blurry sight clears up with a burst of green, revealing a hoard of tightly packed and masked wizards, their wands pointed up to the sky. Above them, floating along in midair, four struggling figures are being contorted into grotesque shapes. It is as though the masked wizards on the ground are puppeteers, and the people above them mere marionettes. More wizards begin joining the marching group, laughing and pointing up at the floating bodies. Tents crumple and fall as the marching crowd swells, and the screaming grows louder and unbearable.

Olympia stares in trance at the floating figures, trying to make sense of who they are, especially after two of them seem so small. She gets her answer soon, as the four people are illuminated by the light coming from a burning tent.

Muggles.

She breathes in relief. The attackers were targeting those with no magical blood. She was safe, and Draco and the others would be too. She breathes again but this time it's in horror of the sight. One of the marchers below flips one of the Muggles upside down with his wand, making the lady's nightdress fall down to reveal her undergarments as she struggles to cover herself up. The crowd below screeches and hootes with glee and Olympia turns to look somewhere else.

She forces herself to move, this wasn't her fight nor her people. She had to find Draco, everything else could wait.

As she nears the woods, Olympia watches as several wizards dash from every direction and towards the source of the trouble. She keeps walking. Only when she reaches the edge does she turn to stare at the struggling Ministry wizards, trying and failing to get near the hooded figures.

She shakes her head, but just as before, she keeps going. Olympia looks at her watch, fifteen more minutes have passed since she left the tent and she's still yet to find any of her friends. She huffs anxiously, annoyance increasing when she can feel the small pebbles beneath her shoes. The more she walks, the more the woods darken, trees standing closer together with no moonlight filtering through their leaves. She begins to curse her cousin and his inability to stay put.

Still, Olympia stops abruptly, straining her eyes. She sighs in relief at the sight of a platinum mane of hair standing a couple feet away from her.

"Draco!"

He doesn't turn.

She calls for him again but he doesn't turn at her calls. An annoyed huff breaches her lips the closer she gets to him, she goes to call for him again but stops upon realizing his eyes are set on a particular trio of Gryffindors.

Harry, Hermione, and Ron walk up a small hill, hurrying their stride despite the darkness around. People behind them appear to be in much distress, running and pushing them to the side.

"What happened?" Hermione asks anxiously upon Ron's painful scream.

Olympia finally reaches Draco, who is now aware of his cousin's company. The blonde looks at her, hidden worry behind misty gray eyes. She scowls at him, daring him to say a word, or worse, forcing her to leave. Draco remains silent, instead he scoots closer to her, pinkies in a tight embrace. They stay quiet, watching the small pack of lions figure out their surroundings.

"Ron, where are you? Oh this is stupid — lumos!"

The ginger lays on the ground, face first. "Tripped over a tree root," he replies angrily.

"With feet that size, hard not to." Draco's voice catches everyone's attention and Olympia rolls her eyes. Foolish of her to think her cousin would ever choose to stay quiet when the chance to taunt others was so easily offered to him.