The Unknown of the Order (Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery

Back to England

She could try harder to press Barnaby's brain, and she was sorely tempted, but she told herself to respect his privacy, at least for now. 

Merula's scoff turned into a yawn. Sarah realized she was exhausted as well. They'd spent the last twenty hours on buses.

"What do you say we find a place to stay? We'll rest up and come up with a better plan once we can think clearly."

She could tell Merula wanted to argue for the sake for arguing, but sitting in the dark pub had helped her sleepiness catch up with her. 

"Fine," she yawned. "But I get to pick the place."

******************

"Yeh alrigh', Barnaby?" Hagrid called. 

Barnaby shook his head, then stared around Grawp's tree-trunk sized legs to look at Hagrid.

"Yeah, sorry. I'm fine."

He waved his wand to pick up the giant shin brace he'd dropped. Hagrid must have used the leather hides of three fully grown cows to make it. Hagrid cooed and chatted with his giant half-brother as the brace hovered up to cover his legs and the straps tightened to fit. 

"There yeh go, see? Not so bad."

Grawp stumbled back a few steps--Barnaby leapt backwards so as not to be crushed--then raised his leg and shook it. 

"You'll have teh get used teh it, Grawpy. It'll keep yeh safe when it's time teh fight."

Barnaby knew giant hide to be five times thicker than cows', but he said nothing, just glad to be helpful. 

Hagrid convinced Grawp to remain still so he could shoulder the other brace and slap it on. As he tied the strings on the back, he said to Barnaby, "Yeh've been getting those funny looks ever since yeh got here. Sometimes yeh look happy and sometimes yeh look scared, but either way I can barely talk teh yeh 'till yeh've snapped out o' it. Yeh sure Grawp didn't hit yeh on the 'ead a while back?"

Grawp stamped his foot, causing Hagrid to be lifted into the air and flung to the ground. 

"Didn't!" he yelled. 

"Shhhh!" said Hagrid. "Alrigh, I believe yeh."

"No, nothing like that," said Barnaby. For a moment, he considered telling Hagrid about legilimency and his conversations with Sarah, but then, he might have to explain about Elena, too. He'd been hearing from her even more than Sarah of late. "I just get lost in thought sometimes."

"Righ'" said Hagrid skeptically. "I 'member at Hogwarts yeh were always a deep thinker."

Barnaby felt his face burn. Hagrid gave a loud bird's call and Barnaby watched Grawp pick moodily at his braces until three thestrals swooped down into the clearing. 

"Get away!" said Grawp, backing up and shielding his eyes. He didn't like the thestrals, but at least, he hadn't tried to swat them like flies. That was an improvement. 

"I told yeh Grawpy, these creatures are good. They're teh help keep yeh safe when the fight comes. Yer too little to take on You-Know-Who's giants on yer own."

"You really think there's going to be a battle at Hogwarts, Hagrid?" Barnaby asked. 

As he spoke, his favorite Thestral, Pluto, trotted over to him and nuzzled his shoulder affectionately. Barnaby smiled and stroked its gaunt neck. 

"I don' know where, but at some point, You-Know-Who's gonna have to show his ugly face, an' by that time, yeh and me'll have half the forest trained teh fight. Grawp 'ere can cover a lot of ground when he wants, and the thestrals are even quicker than that. Wherever that dark bastard appears, we'll be ready teh fight in Dumbledore's name."