Fred Weasley x Reader (slow and Steady)

Ch 78: And So We Go to War

"We're close." She agreed.

"So how exactly do you intend on smuggling us into the school if I might ask?" I interjected, I felt bad for asking so soon after the happy moment the two of them had been sharing at the moment, but we were pressed for time.

"Through the painting." He answered shortly, his hand gesturing to the painting, that now had turned her head to look towards us giving us a pleasant smile.

A moving portrait.

Aberforth waited, almost as if anticipating something to appear from the painting. When nothing happened, he frowned deeply. "Is the boy not coming?" He asked the woman in the painting. Turning her head back to him, she shook her head solemnly, a worried look on her face.

"It seems something has stirred with the school, typically you would have an escort to take you through the tunnels, but it'll have to be just your group for now. Follow straight forwards, do not take any rights or lefts and follow the curve, yah hear?" He explained to the group of us.

"Something happened?" Ginny whispered.

"You don't think?-" George started.

"Enough dawdling, you don't exactly have the time to do that now do you?" He raised an eyebrow expectantly. Taking our silence as an answer, he gestured to the painting as we watched it swing to the left much like a door, behind it revealed a carved out tunnel that stretched far into the darkness.

Giving their thanks, Molly and Arthur walked first one after the other disappearing into the tunnel.

As the others squeezed into the tunnel, remaining last in the line. As Fred crouched into the tunnel, I looked back to the painting and then back at the man.

"She's pretty," I noted.

"She was," He nodded.

"Family?" I asked.

"Don't you have somewhere to go?" He asked in a grumpy tone, his eyes turning to the tunnel as the group slowly walked farther ahead. His eyes narrowed waiting.

"Oh- yes I'm sorry." I quickly apologized and hurried myself into the tunnel, with a soft click the painting closed behind me leaving us alone in the tunnel.

Looking back to the front, I quickly stepped forwards to keep up with the group. The tunnel hadn't been entirely too tall, leaving the majority of the group having to crouch down slightly in order to fit; the twins suffered the majority of it.

We followed the tunnel in silence for what felt like forever, there had been no light in the tunnel so the only guide to our tunnels had been through lumos light; the white light cascaded our shadows stretching them far down the tunnel.

"You know, when that old guy said it was a long tunnel I didn't expect it to be this long." Fred joked.

"Well, we are walking fromHogsmeade to the school, do you remember how long it took back then to walk here?" I retorted back.

"Yes, but at least it was easier to tell how far we were." He sighed heavily.

"We're almost there, you should know these tunnels well enough Fred, we took a lot of these tunnels out of the school." George grinned looking over his shoulder.

"You what?" Molly demanded, her head quickly looking over her shoulder before looking forwards.

"Nothing but harmless fun." Fred grinned.

"We were good, honest." George added.

"I'll be requiring an explanation when this is over, you understand?" She called behind her.