Coup de Foudre [Fred Weasley] [5]

⚡️ Chapter 72 ⚡️

"Yeah, we were just wondering that,"

Vega, Harry and Hermione all moved instinctively together, and they peered through the dark trees to see what was going on just as – to all three of their great surprise – Ron came into sight, with Ginny, Neville, and Luna hurrying along behind him.

All of them looked a little the worse for wear – there were several long scratches running the length of Ginny's cheek, a large purple lump was swelling above Neville's right eye, Ron's lip was bleeding worse than ever – but all were looking rather pleased with themselves.

"So," Ron continued, pushing aside a low-hanging branch and holding out Vega's and Harry's wands to their owners. "Had any ideas?"

"How did you get away?" Harry asked in amazement, taking his wand from Ron and passing Vega's over to here, which she took gratefully.

"Couple of Stunners, a Disarming Charm, Neville brought off a really nice little Impediment Jinx," Ron replied airily, now handing back Hermione's wand too. "But Ginny was best, she got Malfoy – Bat-Bogey Hex – it was superb, his whole face was covered in the great flapping things. Anyway, we saw you heading into the forest out of the window and followed. What've you done with Umbridge?"

"She got herself carried away – by a herd of centaurs," Vega informed them, running a hand through her hair and glancing over her shoulder to look in the direction where they had vanished off to. "I tried to warn her but she didn't listen to me,"

"And they left you behind?" Ginny asked, looking astonished.

"No, they got chased off by Grawp..." Vega trailed off, sighing in concern and frustration over what would become of Grawp after fighting so many centaurs.

"Who's Grawp?" Luna asked interestedly.

"Hagrid's little brother," Ron said promptly. "Anyway, never mind that now. Harry, what did you find out in the fire? Has You-Know-Who got Sirius or –?"

"Yes," Harry said, and Vega glanced at hm from the corner of her eyes. "And I'm sure Sirius is still alive, but I can't see how we're going to get there to help him,"

"Are we seriously living Hogwarts?" Vega asked, bewildered.

"Yes, Vega," Harry responded. "We are – I'm not going to change my mind,"

They all fell silent, looking rather scared. The problem facing them seemed insurmountable.

"Well, we'll have to fly, won't we?" Luna spoke up in the closest thing to a matter-of-fact voice Vega had ever heard the younger girl use.

"Okay," Harry said irritably, rounding on her. "First of all, 'we' aren't doing anything if you're including yourself in that, and second of all, Ron's and Vega's the only ones with a broomstick that isn't being guarded by a security troll, so –"

"I've got a broom!" Ginny exclaimed.

"Yeah, but you're not coming," Ron told her angrily.

"Excuse me, but I care what happens to Sirius as much as you do!" Ginny said, her jaw set so that her resemblance to Fred and George was suddenly striking.

"You're too –" Harry started.

"I'm three years older than you were when you fought You-Know-Who over the Sorcerer's Stone," Ginny told him fiercely. "And it's because of me Malfoy's stuck back in Umbridge's office with giant flying bogeys attacking him –"

"Yeah," Harry said. "But –"

"We were all in the D.A. together," Neville said quietly. "It was all supposed to be about fighting You-Know-Who, wasn't it? And this is the first chance we've had to do something real – or was that all just a game or something?"