Lily Potter and the Shadows' Misfortune

Chapter Nineteen

    "No way," Lily said, exhaling herself.

    Eli nodded, "I stepped on a twig...and the thing...looked at me and held up...its wand...I ran out of there...so fast...I don't even know...if Hagrid knows I left. Getting another detention...was the least of my worries."

    "The twins are definitely up to something like you said, Lil," Rudy said. "Normal eleven year olds don't spend their time hanging out with creepy figures in the Forbidden Forest."

    Lily put her chin in her hands, "I knew something was off about them since I saw them in Diagon Alley during the summer, but this just confirms everything. I think I saw that same figure in the woods as you did when we went down to cheer up Cassie about not getting a Quidditch tryout last month."

    "I remember that," Rudy said while Eli took the opportunity to catch his breath again. "Hugo asked you what was wrong."

    "Speaking of Hugo," Lily began, realizing the fourth Gryffindor of their group wasn't present, "where is he? I thought he'd be down here with you two."

    Both of the boys shrugged.

    "I don't know; I've been too busy in the Forbidden Forest, fearing for my life," Eli said.

    "I haven't seen him since dinner," Rudy said. "When we got back upstairs, you went to go work on your Charms essay, and by the time I turned around to see what he wanted to do tonight, he was gone. Vanished, practically."

    "I don't think he said he had anything going on tonight," Lily said, thinking back to her day's conversations with her cousin. "If he did, he didn't mention it to me."

    "Me either," Eli said.

    "Maybe he's getting tutoring in Charms," Rudy said, half-smirking, half-serious.

    "Please," Eli said through a low laugh, "Hugo's pride is too big to ask for extra help."

    Lily nodded her agreement, "Then, where is he?"

    "Hey, guys."

    Lily, Eli, and Rudy all looked up from their conversation to see Hugo looming above their spot on the floor.

    "Hugo Weasley, where have you been?" Lily asked.

    "I was out," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Just going for a walk."

    Lily raised an eyebrow; it wasn't like her cousin to roam around the castle alone after dinner, "Alright then."

    "What's going on with you three?" Hugo asked, sitting down between Lily and Rudy.

    Eli, having regained his breath, was able to explain the situation in the forest to Hugo at a rapid speed.

    "I didn't think those two could be so sketchy," Hugo said. "I mean, Addie, sure, but I don't really mind Romy all too much."

    "Something about them is off, but I don't think they're bad necessarily," Lily said. "Something strange is happening."

    Hugo sighed, "And we're going to have to get to the bottom of it, aren't we?"

    "Absolutely," Lily, Rudy, and Eli responded without missing a beat.

    "We'll have to tell Nora and Cassie over breakfast tomorrow morning," Hugo said. "Those two won't appreciate being kept out of the loop."

    "That's for certain," Rudy said.

    "What do we do now?" Eli asked. "Do we confront them when they come back?"