Life with Fred Weasley

Life With Fred Weasley Chapter 4

No one said anything as Molly picked up the book and continued to read.

Harry had no idea what Hermione was planning, or even whether she had a plan.

"Oh, I know you have a plan...but I'm not going to stop worrying until I know the plan." Harry admitted.

He walked half a pace behind her as they headed down the corridor outside Umbridge's office, knowing it would look very suspicious if he appeared not to know where they were going. He did not dare attempt to talk to her; Umbridge was walking so closely behind them that he could hear her ragged breathing.

Hermione led the way down the stairs into the Entrance Hall. The din of loud voices and the clatter of cutlery on plates echoed from out of the double doors to the Great Hall - it seemed incredible to Harry that twenty feet away were people who were enjoying dinner, celebrating the end of exams, not a care in the world...

Harry sighed and leaned his head against Fred's shoulder...his life would never be that way.

Hermione walked straight out of the oak front doors and down the stone steps into the balmy evening air. The sun was falling towards the tops of the trees in the Forbidden Forest now, and as Hermione marched purposefully across the grass - Umbridge jogging to keep up - their long dark shadows rippled over the grass behind them like cloaks.

"It's hidden in Hagrid's hut, is it?" said Umbridge eagerly in Harry's ear.

"Of course not," said Hermione scathingly. "Hagrid might have set it off accidentally"

"Yes," said Umbridge, whose excitement seemed to be mounting. "Yes, he would have done, of course, the great half-breed oaf."

She laughed. Harry felt a strong urge to swing round and seize her by the throat, but resisted. His scar was throbbing in the soft evening air but it had not yet burned white-hot, as he knew it would if Voldemort had moved in for the kill.

No one knew what to say, there was so much going on at the moment that they all just wished everything would be alright.

"Then... where is it?" asked Umbridge, with a hint of uncertainty in her voice as Hermione continued to stride towards the Forest.

"In there, of course," said Hermione, pointing into the dark trees. "It had to be somewhere that students weren't going to find it accidentally, didn't it?"

"Of course," said Umbridge, though she sounded a little apprehensive now. "Of course... very well, then... you two stay ahead of me."

"The toad's afraid." Sirius snickered much to the amusement of everyone else.

"Can we have your wand, then, if we're going first?" Harry asked her.

"Nice try, love. But that's not going to work." Fred said kissing the teens hair lovingly. Harry just shrugged he had to try.

"No, I don't think so, Mr. Potter," said Umbridge sweetly, poking him in the back with it. "The Ministry places a rather higher value on my life than yours, I'm afraid."

Remus scoffed, the people would be outraged if they heard what Umbridge had done to him.

As they reached the cool shade of the first trees, Harry tried to catch Hermiones eye; walking into the Forest without wands seemed to him to be more foolhardy than anything they had done so far this evening.