When Hermione rode up to Harry, his face looked worried. He pointed towards a thin line of smoke that stuck out against the blue sky. It hadn't been there only moments before. "We may have trouble, but we may not. Hopefully it's just someone passing through, but we cant be too careful." Her horse suddenly snorted and pointed it's ears forwards, each other horse following it's example. Hermione quickly looked around.
"What's got these animals acting up?" Draco grumbled as he pulled at his horses reins, trying to keep the horse from bucking.
"Listen to them!" Hermione exclaimed. "Horses can sense things we cant! Quickly, now, we need to find some other path! Someone's here that shouldn't be!" Hermione turned her frightened horse. "Is there any other path we can take to get there?" Harry nodded and nudged his horse forward a bit. They were coming up to a forest and he walked towards it.
"We're almost to the forest. Hurry!" He said as he led them into the thick trees. Hermione turned as they entered, looking back at the path they had just been traveling on. Somehow, they'd managed to get the cart onto the thin path, but now, as she looked back, she saw a pair of eyes peeking at her from the brush by the path. She turned around and rode quickly until she was beside Ron. Then, she got their attention.
"They know we're in here. I saw something watching us from the bushes near the edges of the path."
"Something?" She nodded.
"That... That thing that was watching us was no human. If it was, we have more problems." She swatted away a branch, then turned to look at the cart. It was making too much noise. "We have to get rid of the cart." Harry glanced over.
"How will we carry everything?" They had stopped, pondering their current situation.
"We could just leave it here." Draco suggested. Hermione shook her head.
"My maids would kill me, not to mention that I need some things in that trunk." Draco rolled his eyes, irritated.
"Well, we either leave it it and live, or keep it and be found. You suggested it." She rolled her eyes right back.
"How about we stuff everything we can into bags? I have two in the trunk that were supposed to be used for carrying dirty clothes." Ron slid off his horse.
"So do I. Come on, we need to work fast if we want to get out of here." Harry and Draco seemed to accept what he was saying, because they slid from their horses also. Hermione couldn't get down alone with her skirts, and, despite his earlier comments, Draco had walked over and helped her to the ground. She nodded in thanks and went quickly to the trunk she had packed. She was relieved that she'd been able to bring only one. Any more, and she'd be leaving most of it behind. The servant, a boy that looked younger than her, helped take the trunk from the cart so she wouldn't have to climb up. At once, she opened the trunk and found the two bags. She sifted through the clothes as quickly as she could, shoving things into the bags. When the two bags were full, she went back to her horse and took the almost empty bag on the back of her saddle and filled it with as much as she possibly could. When she was done, only a few things were left in the trunk, some things she knew she wouldn't need. She looked up at the guys to see them strapped their bags to the horses. Luckily, since they were men, they only had half the amount that she did, so she pretty much had a whole horse to her own. Harry and Draco helped her strap the two large bags to one of the horses and the small bag back to her horse. Draco then lifted her into her saddle, ever the gentleman, and she watched as they hid the cart and their luggage. They would come back for them later. Well, hopefully. Ron came over to check on her and make sure everything was tightly secured and safe.
"How're you doing, 'Mione?" She shrugged.
""I'm fine. Did you cover everything completely?" He nodded as he tightened her horses bridle.
"Unless someone's really looking, I don't think they'll be able to find them." He reassured her, smiling. She thought he looked tired, but maybe it was just her. Harry and Draco came back then, and Draco began to outline the situation at hand while they were all in one spot.
"Somebody's following us, they've found us out. If what she," he gestured then at Hermione as he spoke, "said she saw was really an animal, then we have bigger problems. As much as I hate to say it, we're going to have to run. She might have seen a dragon, and although her imagination also might have gotten out of hand, dragons mean neither side is after us, so none of us have a hope of surviving if they attack." Harry glanced at him.
"What's so bad about running? Sometimes it must be done." Draco rolled his eyes like the very idea disgusted him.
"It's rather cowardly, Potter." He drawled. "Are you sure you're a gryffindor? Aren't they supposed to be all 'brave'?" Harry scoffed.
"I am rather sure, Malfoy, that I am indeed a gryffindor. But if we are sorely outnumbered, as we are now, and completely defenseless except for swords and arrows, which, I might add, will not do very much damage to a large dragon, we need to run to save ourselves. We aren't in our Hogwarts anymore, if you haven't noticed, and we aren't very much good without our wands.: Draco looked ready to retort, but Hermione quickly intervened.
"Really, you two! Stop behaving like children! We have a serious problem here! We're talking about someone, or should I say something, following us, and I don't think it's friendly. Not after the way our horses were acting. Now, I propose we start riding now, so we have a bit of time ahead of them. I also believe we should map out where we're going and where this path takes us." She sat above them in her side-saddle, and as they looked up at her just a bit, she couldn't help but enjoy the sense of power it brought. Draco looked a tad impressed with her, and Harry was going to his bag to find the map, but it was Ron who spoke up first.
"This path should lead beside the main path. At least, that's what I saw when I looked at Harry's map." Harry found the map and nodded to verify that Ron had been right.
"There's also a path we can take that will lead us in a round-about way, but we would be able to shake off, or at least gain some time on whoever is following us. It branches off this path right up ahead." Draco leaned over to study the map and Hermione though about it for a moment before speaking.
"That sounds like the best bet for us right now." She said. "Now, if you three can get on your horses and get us moving, we might not find ourselves overtaken by our pursuers." They did just that, mounting up quickly. Their servant rode one of the large horses that had pulled the cart, the one not very heavily loaded. The other he guided with a rope. Hermione had felt sorry for the horses, but they had seemed not to notice the weight, and to like it better that way, so she'd let it go. As they started out, quickly and silently, she found herself beside the blond-haired slytherin once again. He sent a smile her way, one of his real ones, and gave her his jacket once again. She forgotten that she'd put it on his saddle when she'd dismounted the last time.
"Here, it's even colder in this bloody forest." She pulled it closer as he spoke. "And, no matter what happens, that promise I made earlier is still in effect."
