─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
The two had fallen asleep on the carpet in the dining room, cuddling with one of the biggest and warmest blankets Fleur could provide them.
She had also not asked them why they were still awake, but catching them watch the sunset from a distance was a really beautiful sight; it gave her some hope that many moments like those would occur in the future.
Weeks passed by and April came to an end quickly and after time spent together catching up like she and Nico hadn't seen each other in a lifetime, Harry made plans without her yet again.
"They left?" Sara asked, her jaw hanging open. She glared at Bill, daring him to lie.
The eldest Weasley brother cleared his throat, looking over the ginger's shoulder at Nico; he looked tired but otherwise amusement was written all over his face. "They did. Probably first thing in the morning since none of us seemed to notice."
"What are we supposed to do now? We don't know if they're coming back, what if we're going to war, like tomorrow?"
Nico caught Sara's face in his palms, shaking his head slowly. "No one is going to war, certainly not tomorrow."
.
"You're saying that was Professor Dumbledore's brother? I've seen rocks far livelier than him," Sara muttered as Nico dragged her along the cold tunnel. Bill and Fleur were leading the way, the dim light of their wands barely helping them, luckily, the tunnel went straight ahead, with no weird patterns.
"He's not exactly a ray of sunshine and his cooking truly sucks, but he's gotten us through some horrible months at Hogwarts, ever since The Room of Requirement became a refuge for us, he didn't show signs of abandoning us," Nico whispered, almost bumping into Bill as he came to a stop.
Fleur was already in the room, it was enormous, and looked rather like the interior of a particularly sumptuous tree house, or perhaps a gigantic ship's cabin. Multicolored hammocks were strung from the ceiling and from the balcony that ran around the dark wood-paneled and windowless walls, which were covered in bright tapestry hangings. Sara saw the gold Gryffindor lion, emblazoned on scarlet; the black badger of Hufflepuff, set against yellow; and the bronze eagle of Ravenclaw, on blue. The silver and green of Slytherin alone were absent. There were bulging bookcases, a few broomsticks propped against the walls, and in the corner, a large wood-cased wireless.
As soon as Nico helped her through the door of the tunnel, Sara was engulfed in a suffocating hug by Mrs. Weasley, who looked like she was going to explode in tears at any given moment.
"Oh, Sara darling, imagine the relief we've all felt when Remus told us you're alright, I was driving myself insane with the thought that you died or something," Mrs. Weasley's words were muffled by Sara's shoulder, but they were loud enough that the redheaded Potter teared up a little.
"It's okay, Mrs. W-," Sara stopped herself, holding onto the woman dearly. "Mum. I'm alright and I hope that you have been doing well these months despite everything."
"Mum, you're crushing her," Nico muttered, running a hand through his dark locks.
"Indeed, mummy, leave the poor girl alone, it's our turn to crush her!" Fred and George sang as they appeared at Sara's side.
As soon as greetings, hugs and tears were shed, the atmosphere became grave and serious again. Sara looked at all of them, her family, wishing that the day they would have to fight against Voldemort wouldn't have ever come.
She tightened her ponytail and cracked her knuckles; her scar sent a dull pain to her shoulder, which worried her. "Where's Harry and co? Shouldn't we go out and see what's happening?"
At that moment, Harry slipped into the room, followed by an amused Luna. Nico grabbed Sara's arm before she could run and tackle him; she was far angrier than she showed it, but Harry leaving his plans in the dark and not including her hurt.
"You! You absolute bloody idiot Harry James Potter! Just you wait until the war is over, then we're gonna have some words about disappearing and robbing a freaking bank!" she yelled, stunning everyone in the room into silence.
"A bank? You robbed a bank?" Angelina Johnson said, as she, Alicia Spinnet and Katie Bell burst into laughter.
"Without us?" Fred looked disappointed.
"Harry, really?" George joined, shaking his head in disapproval.
"We don't time for that now, boys. Harry, what's happening?" said Lupin, meeting him at the foot of thestairs.
"Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading he school—Snape's run for it—What are you doing here? How did you know?" Harry spoke quickly, slightly out of breath. He watched his sister, her hazel eyes laced with worry, anger and a hunger, a desire to protect.
"We sent messages to the rest of Dumbledore's Army," Fred explained. "You couldn't expect everyone to miss the fun, Harry, and the D.A. let the Order of the Phoenix know, and it all kind of snowballed."
"What first, Harry?" called George. "What's going on?"
"They're evacuating the younger kids and everyone's meeting in the Great Hall to get organized," Harry said. "We're fighting."
There was a great roar and a surge toward the stairs, Harry was pressed backagainst the wall as they ran past him, the mingled members of the Order of the Phoenix, Dumbledore's Army, and Harry's old Quidditch team, all with theirwands drawn, heading up into the main castle.
"Come on, Luna," Dean called as he passed, holding out his free hand, shetook it and followed him back up the stairs.
The crowd was thinning. Only a little knot of people remained below in the Room of Requirement, and Harry joined them. Mrs. Weasley was strugglingwith Ginny. Around them stood Sara, Nico, Lupin, Fred, George, Bill and Fleur.
"You're underage!" Mrs. Weasley shouted at her daughter as Harry approached. "I won't permit it! The boys, yes, but you, you've got to go home!"
"I won't!" Ginny's hair flew as she pulled her arm out of her mother's grip."I'm in Dumbledore's Army—"
"A teenagers' gang!"
"A teenagers' gang that's about to take him on, which no one else has dared todo!" said Fred.
"She's sixteen!" shouted Mrs. Weasley. "She's not old enough! What youtwo were thinking bringing her with you—"
Fred and George looked slightly ashamed of themselves.
"Mom's right, Ginny," said Bill gently. "You can't do this. Everyone underage will have to leave, it's only right."
"I can't go home!" Ginny shouted, angry tears sparkling in her eyes. "My whole family's here, I can't stand waiting there alone and not knowing and —" Her eyes met Harry's for the first time. She looked at him beseechingly,but he shook his head and she turned away bitterly."Fine," she said, staring at the entrance to the tunnel back to the Hog's Head. "I'll say goodbye now, then, and—"
There was a scuffling and a great thump. Someone else had clamberedout of the tunnel, overbalanced slightly, and fallen. He pulled himself up no thenearest chair, looked around through lopsided horn-rimmed glasses, and said,"Am I too late? Has it started. I only just found out, so I—"Percy spluttered into silence.
Evidently he had not expected to run intomost of his family. There was a long moment of astonishment, broken by Fleur turning to Lupin and saying, in a wildly transparent attempt to break the tension."So— 'ow eez leetle Teddy?"
Lupin blinked at her, startled. The silence between the Weasleys seemed to be solidifying, like ice. Nico's grip on Sara's hand seemed to tighten, asking for an escape from the whole situation.
"I—oh yes—he's fine!" Lupin said loudly. "Yes, Tonks is with him—at her mother's—" Percy and the other Weasleys were still staring at one another, frozen.
"Here, I've got a picture?" Lupin shouted, pulling a photograph from inside his jacket and showing it to Sara, Fleur and Harry, who saw a tiny baby with a tuft of bright turquoise hair, waving fat fists at the camera.
"I was a fool!" Percy roared, so loudly that Lupin nearly dropped hisphotograph. "I was an idiot, I was a pompous prat, I was a –a—"
"Ministry-loving, family-disowning, power-hungry moron," said Fred.
Percy swallowed."Yes, I was!"
"Well, you can't say fairer than that," said Fred, holding his hand out toPercy.
Mrs. Weasley burst into tears. She ran forward, pushed Fred aside, and pulled Percy into a strangling hug, while he patted her on the back, his eyeson his father.
"I'm sorry, Dad," Percy said.
Mr. Weasley blinked rather rapidly, then he too hurried to hug his son.
"What made you see sense, Perce?" inquired George.
"It's been coming on for a while," said Percy, mopping his eyes under his glasses with a corner of his traveling cloak. "But I had to find a way out and it's not so easy at the Ministry, they're imprisoning traitors all the time. I managed tomake contact with Aberforth and he tipped me off ten minutes ago that Hogwarts was going to make a fight of it, so here I am."
"Well, we do look to our prefects to take a lead at times such as these," said George in a good imitation of Percy's most pompous manner. "Now let's get upstairs and fight, or all the good Death Eaters'll be taken."
"So, you're my sister in-law now?" Said Percy, shaking hands with Fleur as they hurried off toward the staircase with Bill, Fred, and George.
"Ginny!" barked Mrs. Weasley. Ginny had been attempting, under cover of the reconciliations to sneak upstairs too.
"Molly, how about this," said Lupin. "Why doesn't Ginny stay here , then at least she'll be on the scene and know what's going on, but she won't be in the middle of the fighting?"
"That's a good idea," said Mr. Weasley firmly," Ginny, you stay in this room, you hear me?"
Ginny did not seem to like the idea much, but under her father's unusually stern gaze, she nodded. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley and Lupin headed off to the stairs as well.
Nico went after them, followed closely by Sara who turned to take a look at her brother. He gave her a smile, one that would warm her entire heart, that would make her her desire to protect even bigger. She smiled back and the Room of Requirement disappeared behind them.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: *.☽ .* :☆ﾟ. ───
this chapter might not be as exciting, but it marks the beginning of the end, doesn't it?
it's been some time since ive thought about this story, so i'll do my best to make sure the last chapters are epic nonetheless
i've had a rough time recently, i have no idea when the next chapter is coming, i thank you for your patience, for putting up with my sudden and long breaks, i hope you enjoyed this chapters, the rest are coming!
until then, mischief managed /* <3