Courage - Harry Potter

-106-

Book: Courage
Chapter 106
Word Count: 2642

Layla opened her eyes and was dazzled by gold and green: she had no idea what had happened, she only knew that she was lying on what seemed to be leaves and twigs. Struggling to draw breath into lungs that felt flattened, she blinked and realized that the gaudy glare was sunlight streaming through a canopy of leaves far above her. Looking around, Layla saw that she, Harry, Ron, and Hermione were lying on a forest floor, apparently alone.

Layla's first thought was of the Forbidden Forrest, and for a moment, even though she knew how foolish and dangerous it would be for them to appear in the grounds of Hogwarts, her heart leaped at the thought of sneaking through the trees to Hagrid's hut. However, in the few moments it took for Ron to give a low groan, Layla realized that this was not the Forbidden Forest: The trees looked younger, they were more widely spaced, the ground clearer.

She met Harry and Hermione at Ron's head. The moment Layla's eyes fell upon Ron, all other concerns fled her mind, for blood drenched the whole of Ron's left side and his face stood out, grayish-white, against the leaf-strewn earth. The Polyjuice Potion was wearing off now: Ron was halfway between Cattermole and himself in appearance, his hair turning redder and redder as his face drained of the little color it had left.

"What's happened to him?" asked Layla.

"Splinched," said Hermione, her fingers already busy at Ron's sleeve, where the blood was wettest and darkest.

Layla watched, horrified, as Hermione tore open Ron's shirt. Hermione laid bare Ron's upper arm, where a great chunk of flesh was missing, scooped cleanly away as though by a knife.

"Harry, quickly, in my bag, there's a small bottle labeled 'Essence of Dittany'—"

"Bag — right—"

A few moments later, Harry was still rummaging through the bag.

"Quickly!" snapped Hermione.

Eventually, Harry returned with the Essence of Dittany.

"He's fainted," said Hermione; she no longer looked like Mafalda, though her hair was still gray in places. "Unstopper it for me, Harry, my hands are shaking."

Harry wrenched the stopper off the little bottle, Hermione took it and poured three drops of the potion onto the bleeding wound. Greenish smoke billowed upward and when it had cleared, Layla saw that the bleeding had stopped. The wound now looked several days old; new skin stretched over what had just been open flesh.

"Wow," said Harry.

"It's all I feel safe doing," said Hermione shakily. "There are spells that would put him completely right, but I daren't try in case I do them wrong and cause more damage. He's lost too much blood already..."

"How did he get hurt? I mean" — Layla shook his head, trying to clear it, to make sense of whatever had just taken place — "why are we here? I thought we were going back to Grimmauld Place?"

Hermione took a deep breath. She looked close to tears.

"Guys, I don't think we're going to be able to go back there. As we Disapparated, Yaxley caught hold of me and I couldn't get rid of him, he was too strong, and he was still holding on when we arrived at Grimmauld Place, and then — well, I think he must have seen the door, and thought we were stopping there, so he slackened his grip and I managed to shake him off and I brought us here instead!"

"But then, where's he?" asked Harry. "Hang on... you don't mean he's at Grimmauld Place? He can't get in there?"

Hermione's eyes sparkled with unshed tears as she nodded.