Awe
Ron, Hermione, Sirius, and Professor Vector appeared outside of Gryffindor Tower. At least, that's where Rose said she was putting them. There was a mountain of rocks and rubble in front of them, blocking the entrance to the tower. Professor McGonagall stood in front of the rubble, assessing the damage along with Taltria and Alavel. She turned to them when they arrived.
"What's happening?" Professor Vector asked her.
Professor McGonagall silently motioned to Hermione and Ron for their input. Hermione didn't understand why McGonagall would defer to her and Ron. She froze up, terrified uncertain of what was being asked of her.
"Quake damaged the castle," Ron explained in her stead. "Everything's sealed off, but we've got a way out. We're getting everyone to Hogsmeade as fast as possible." He looked past Professor McGonagall at the wreckage. "Can't you banish it?"
"If I try, Mr. Weasley, I risk the entire thing collapsing. I know neither what's on the other side, nor what this is supporting. Banishing one part could disrupt another. We cleared out as much as possible, but any more and we risk the entire thing collapsing."
Hermione put her mind to the problem. She knew at least two spells that might solve the problem, but her fear of speaking out of turn stopped her from making any suggestions.
"What about the Earth Eyes Charm?" Ron asked, picking Hermione's second idea.
"I hadn't thought of that," Professor McGonagall said. She waved her wand, then stooped down to touch her fingers to the ground. "The earthquake damaged the wall, but I'm not seeing anyone near it. The arch overhead seems stable enough for the moment. It should be safe to banish. Five points to Gryffindor, Mr. Weasley. Well done. Everyone stand clear."
After the five of them got clear, Professor McGonagall waved her wand again, and the pile of rubble vanished. Professor McGonagall turned to face them again when she was finished.
"Now, here's– Children get back!"
Professor McGonagall lept between Padfoot and the students.
"It's alright!" Hermione shouted as Professor Vector joined Professor McGonagall. Both women trained their wands on Sirius, who stood ready for a fight.
"That's Sirius Black!" Professor Vector said.
"We know!" Ron shouted. "He's with us!"
"Explain yourselves this instant!" Professor McGonagall demanded.
"He was framed by my rat!" Ron said. "Except he's not a rat, he's Peter Pettigrew in disguise!"
Both professors glared at Ron, then at Sirius.
"Hermione, is this true?" Professor Vector asked.
"It is. I'm sure of it, and besides, Sirius knows the castle better than any of us. That's how he always escaped before Rose could catch him. He knows every secret passageway in the castle. He can help us get the students to Hogsmeade."
Both professors glared at Sirius. Hermione looked at her two favorite professors and feared the worst. What if they didn't believe her? She had just assumed they would, but right now, she doubted if they'd believe anything she said. What else could she say to convince them that Sirius wasn't going to hurt anyone?
"If he tries anything," a baritone voice said, "we'll kill him on the spot."
Hermione and Ron looked to see the source of the voice. There was no one else there besides the Nimblewrights.
"Who was that?" Professor Vector asked.
"I am Alavel, Professor," one of the Nimblewrights said. "My Lady Rose sent word ahead about him. He is still in a state of distrust, so if he tries anything suspicious, Taltria and I will kill him on sight."
"And if Our Lady Rose sent Sirius Black with Lady Brain and Lord Cohort," Taltria said, her voice higher and a little rough, "then she must have a reason."
Hermione pressed her lips together to stop from smiling. She didn't know which sounded better, "Lady Brain" or "Lord Cohort".
Professor McGonagall lowered her wand and turned around.
"How long have you two been able to talk?"
"Let's see…" Taltria said, "it's Sunday, so… always."
"They've got a point," Professor Vector said, lowering her wand. "Peta-Lorrum would've had Sirius Black imprisoned if she believed he was a threat to her friends, and we don't have time to waste."
Professor McGonagall looked from Taltria to Alavel.
"Like you said," Professor McGonagall said as if she were the queen of the world, "if Sirius Black gets out of line, kill him."
"Yes, Your Majesty," the Nimblewrights replied.
Professor McGonagall strode past them and banished another barricade into the common room. The others followed the Transfiguration Professor into Gryffindor Tower.
Inside the tower they found students frantically talking and running. Percy shouted at them to stay calm, but it was clear that no one was listening to him. It looked like most of Gryffindor was packed in the common room, which had already begun falling apart.
"Attention!" Professor McGonagall shouted.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and turned to their Head of House.
"This is how things are going to go!" Professor McGonagall shouted as Professor Vector began working to contain the damage. "We will evacuate the younger students first, who will be escorted by their prefects. In addition, I want another member of each prefect's year to accompany them. In the event of an argument, I will hold the final say. Start doing this now while I continue the instructions."
Parvati raised her hand as a few of the upper year students began talking quietly.
"Ms. Patil, you'd like to add something?"
"Alex isn't here, Ma'am," she said shakily.
"She's in Hogsmeade," Ron whispered to McGonagall.
"Ms. Patil, Ms. Brown, Mr. Finnigan, and Mr. Thomas, as the only remaining third-years, you will go with Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger, who will be leading the way to safety. They have a black dog with them. This is not a problem. I will remain here with Professor Vector to contain the damage. All students are to listen to instructions from Mr. Weasley and Ms. Granger as if they were given directly by me. Is that understood?"
There were some confused nods from the other students.
"Finally, the following students have already been accounted for," Professor McGonagall said. "Fred, George, and Ginny Weasley, Sally-Anne Perks, Rose Peta-Lorrum, Harry Potter, Neville Longbottom."
With that, Professor McGonagall began helping Professor Vector on damage control. Hermione glanced behind her and saw Ron, Taltria, and Alavel ready to go. In front of her stood over 50 students awaiting further instruction.
"Erm…" she stammered.
"Third-years, with us!" Ron shouted. "Once we've got a path cleared, we'll come for everyone else. Rose's knights are with us, so no one needs to worry. Stay close, and don't wander off! Let's move out!"
Without waiting for his charges, Ron made his way out of the common room.
Hermione took a moment to process what she'd just witnessed, then followed him.
Luna, Sally-Anne, Professor Babbling, and Tutela appeared in the Dungeons. Sally-Anne saw Professor Snape not far from them, and a large wall of rock in front him. There were small gaps in the stone where water was squirting out.
"What's the damage?" Professor Babbling asked.
"The common room's behind this, but I don't know how much water is with it," Professor Snape said. "Obviously enough that it's leaking."
Sally-Anne looked down and saw that the floor was growing damp.
"Simple enough," Professor Babbling said. "Sally-Anne and I can create a shield to hold the water after you banish the rock. Luna, stay back so you don't get swept away."
"Why are they even here?" Professor Snape asked.
"We can help," Sally-Anne said.
"Fine, but don't blame me if you die," Professor Snape said. "Bathsheda, you were saying?"
"I'll hold the bottom half, Sally-Anne can take the top half. Sally-Anne, do you remember the incantation for the wall?"
"Erm…" Sally-Anne wracked her brain. How had she forgotten it? Why did she have to forget it when she needed it more than ever?
"Miru," Luna said. "I looked it up in Mum's notes over the winter holiday."
Sally-Anne had never been happier to hear Luna talk.
"Thanks Luna," Sally-Anne said. "Miru. I remember now."
Sally-Anne and Professor Babbling stood in front of the blockade and each raised their left hand.
"Miru!"
Identical, translucent walls formed in front of the blockade, and water stopped spraying onto them.
"Severus!" Professor Babbling shouted.
With a quick wave of his wand, the rubble disappeared. With the floodgates literally open, water poured out onto them through every crack it could find, whether around, between, and under the shields. After nearly a minute, the water drained into the corridor.
When the shields dropped, Sally-Anne took a moment to catch her breath.
"Rest when you're dead, Perks," Professor Snape said. "We've got work to do."
Sally-Anne looked up and saw what looked like an empty section of the Dungeons. Water poured in from several cracks in the wall to her right, and another wall of rocks blocked the rest of the Dungeons not 20 feet from where she stood.
"Is that the common room?" Professor Babbling asked, indicating the empty wall.
"Yes," Professor Snape replied. "We've got to stop the flooding, and be ready to block the water that has no doubt built up behind those rocks."
"I'll hold the water back," Professor Babbling said. "Sally-Anne, be ready to stop more water from flowing in. Luna… you can…"
"Tutela and I will lead the students to Hogsmeade," Luna said. "We can get directions from the Twins."
"Are you sure you'll be alright?" Sally-Anne asked.
Truth be told, she didn't know much about Luna. It was interesting listening to some of her theories, and they'd even make some brilliant stories, but it was like listening to Rose. The moment she started stating anything as fact, Sally-Anne lost her. On top of that, it was as if Luna held entirely different conversations in her head, and asked questions about or responded to those conversations.
Still, Luna was her friend. More importantly, she had a sense of innocence that Sally-Anne admired. Sally-Anne saw Luna like the baby sister of their group, and felt she should protect her.
"We'll be fine," Luna said simply.
Professor Babbling nodded and threw a shield in front of the rushing water. Professor Snape opened the common room door, and Sally-Anne took her place beside him.
"What's going on?!" Draco demanded from the front of the room. He glared at Sally-Anne. "What's she doing here?!"
"Anyone that doesn't want to die will do exactly as I say," Professor Snape said. "Follow Lovegood in an orderly fashion."
"What?!" several students cried.
"Loony?!" a few others snapped.
"Do not get it into your head that you know the Dungeons better than her," Professor Snape said. "Both Lovegood and Perks are receiving their orders from either myself or Professor Dumbledore. In my absence, you will do as they say. Is that clear?"
Most of the students nodded, although it was obvious that none of them trusted Luna to get them out alive.
"When my father hears about this–" Draco began.
"Your father can't hear anything about it from you if you're dead, Draco!" Sally-Anne shouted. "Everyone, consider this! Right now, the Ravenclaws are listening to Rose Peta-Lorrum's orders! Even the Gryffindors know there's a time for complaining, and a time for listening! Is the proud house of Slytherin really gonna let the other houses show them up?"
Sally-Anne looked directly at Draco. "Instead of getting in her way, Draco, why don't you prove how well you know the Dungeons? Show her the fastest way out of here. Unless you don't know your own territory better than one of us."
Sally-Anne knew her strategy worked the second she saw Draco smirk.
"Just watch me, Perks."
Sally-Anne moved aside to allow the Slytherins to leave. If some of them realized she'd played them, they weren't saying anything. Sally-Anne turned her attention to the wall blocking a torrent.
I hope that holds, she thought.
In Hufflepuff Den, Neville had the easiest time of everyone. When he arrived with Fred, George, and Professor Burbage they found that most of the students were ready to go. They all sat together, many of the students holding onto a toy, book, or another student. Professor Sprout stood at the front of the group, and all eyes turned to the outsiders as they appeared.
"Dripty gave me the basics," Professor Sprout said. "The castle's in shambles. What's Albus's plan for evacuation?"
"Rose and Professor Dumbledore said move everyone to Hogsmeade," Neville said. "Fred and George have this… rather, they know secret passages to Hogsmeade."
"Very well," Professor Sprout said, nodding. "Charity, good to see you."
"Always a pleasure, Pomona."
After they'd finished exchanging pleasantries, because a crisis was no time for bad manners, Professor Sprout turned and addressed the crowd.
"Alright, everyone, let's start moving. Just as I said, prefects stay with your students. These boys up here are Neville, Fred, and George. Follow their instructions, and they'll lead you to safety. First, we're going to clear the way, so everyone stand back."
Professor Sprout nodded, and a few students Neville didn't recognize took places around the room. Looking up, he noticed that there were some cracks in the ceiling, and each student had been placed near one.
"Is there anything I can do?" Neville asked.
"Just stay back for now, and be ready to go," Professor Sprout said. "Neville, I'm counting on you to lead everyone. Can you do that?"
"Yes, professor," Neville said.
Professor Sprout was his favorite teacher. He couldn't get the hang of anything magic intensive, so most of his professors got angry at him. Professor Sprout was different, and he wished that she could teach every subject. She was patient with him, and he understood Herbology better than the other subjects. It wasn't that he was a bad student, but he wasn't good at anything else. Every other professor treated him like he was just a bad student, but Professor Sprout treated him like he was worth something.
Professor Sprout banished the rock blocking the exit, and the rock above them shifted. After a moment, each student around the room gave the all-clear.
"Alright, everyone, follow the Gryffindors!" Professor Sprout shouted. "Younger students in the middle of the group!"
Neville and the Twins led the students out of the common room. Professor Burbage kept watch over the middle of the group, and Professor Sprout brought up the rear. The Twins led them along a series of corridors, straight into a dead end caused by a collapsed roof.
"Alright, let's turn back," Fred said. "I think there's another passage not far from here."
"Move," Neville said, drawing the Sword of Gryffindor.
"What are–"
"Move," Neville repeated.
Neville took a deep breath. During his training, Rose had taken to testing the durability of the Sword of Gryffindor. As it turned out, the thing was nearly indestructible. After heating it up, the sword could slice clean through steel. Even if it wasn't hot, the Sword of Gryffindor could still break through stone.
Neville looked at the stone wall in front of him, hoping to spot the weakest point. He found what he was searching for near the base of the cave-in.
Neville swung his sword and took a chunk out of the rock. The entire thing began to shake, and the students behind him ran back. Neville took a few steps back as everything collapsed.
"Everyone, be careful climbing over it," Neville shouted as his sword vanished.
Neville looked ahead of them and saw another cave-in not far down the corridor. For a moment, he wanted to give up. He could just let someone else handle it.
Don't give up, Toad, he heard Rose say. I'm counting on you.
Neville ran ahead and got to work clearing out more of the wreckage.
Harry saw Fred, George, Alex, and Sally-Anne vanish. They were quickly replaced by Professor Lupin and Rose's ferret, Intelligencer.
"What's the plan?" Ginny asked.
"Find out what's got the animals scared and fix it," Professor Lupin said.
"Remus, I don' mean… er, don' ya need…" Hagrid muttered.
"It's fine, Hagrid, but thanks for asking," Professor Lupin said. "Ms. Peta-Lorrum took care of it."
"What do yer mean 'took care of it'?" Hagrid asked.
"I guess there's no need to dance around it." Professor Lupin turned to Harry and Ginny. "Children, I'm a werewolf, but thanks to your friend Rose, I won't change tonight."
"Is that why you're always absent?" Harry asked.
"Yes, but like Rose keeps saying, we've all got to stay focused. Let's worry about the animals right now. Rose said there was some sort of potion disturbing them."
"I'll show ya," Hagrid said.
He led the way from his hut to the Forbidden Forest. Harry smelled it before he even saw it. It was foul, like the sour milk the Dursleys used to make him drink. When the source of the stench came into view, Harry saw a collection of barrels dumped on their side, the glowing, green-yellow potion of each one covering the ground.
"What is that?" Ginny asked, plugging her nose to dull the foul stench.
"Trancharee Potion, I reckon," Hagrid said. "Foul stuff. Supposed ter be illegal fer the effects it 'as on animals, 'specially human ones like Centaurs."
"Safe to banish?"
"Should be."
With a quick wave of his wand, he banished the barrels and potion. Harry uncovered his nose, but the smell was still there.
"Is there anything we can do about that smell?" he asked.
"'Fraid not," Hagrid said. "Suppose we could mask it, but that won't stop the animals from going mad."
Harry listened, and sure enough, he could hear a sound coming from deeper in the forest.
"I can still hear them," Harry said.
"I can't hear–" Ginny said, but Harry clapped his hand over her mouth and pressed his finger to his lips.
Ginny began to fume and complain from under his hand, but Harry concentrated on the sound in the distance. It was like thunder rolling through the forest.
"They're getting closer," Harry said. "I can't tell what it is, but I can definitely hear it."
"What's it sound like?" Professor Lupin asked.
"Thunder, but it's faint. I think it's getting louder."
He took his hand off Ginny's mouth.
"Next time you do that, I'll–" Ginny started.
"Not now," Professor Lupin said. "Hagrid, what's out there?"
"I dunno," Hagrid replied. "You've got acromantulas in the forest, centaurs, unicorns… lots of wildlife."
"Do you think we can get the centaurs to help?" Professor Lupin asked.
"They'll be jus as spooked as everythin' else," Hagrid said. "Maybe not as bad, but nearly."
Ginny tilted her head in a way that reminded Harry of Rose.
"Before you say anything, we're not setting them on fire," Harry said.
"What if–"
"Forest fires are bad, Ginny," Harry said.
"I know!" Ginny snapped. "That's not what I was thinking. Well… okay, it was what I was thinking, but then I got another idea. See, I thought if we couldn't actually set a fire, what if we did the next best thing?"
The professors and Harry looked at her expectantly.
"Which is…?" Professor Lupin prompted.
"Make them think there's a forest fire," Ginny said triumphantly.
She grinned at them, but the others all looked confused. Harry understood what she was suggesting just fine, but he couldn't think how they could fake a forest fire without actually setting the forest on fire.
"How do you propose we do that?" Professor Lupin asked.
"Well… I'm not that far yet," Ginny said, her grin fading.
Harry thought about her suggestion. How could you fake a fire? The best he could think of was when Aunt Petunia would leave the stove on, or Dudley would turn the stove on and blame Harry for it. That didn't work, since that was a real fire. What about lightning? That looked like a fire, sort of. Could Harry conjure lightning? A stunner looked like red lightning, but it wasn't nearly bright enough. What about fire and lightning? Like… fireworks! That was it!
"Wait!" Harry exclaimed. "I might have an idea. What if we make a bunch of flashes of light? Like fireworks!"
It occurred to Harry that he might be the only one that knew what fireworks were. Did any of them know?
"Brilliant!" Professor Lupin exclaimed. "Fireworks will create a bright flash and loud explosion. That should deter any wild animals long enough for them to calm down."
"Think you can do that, Ginny?" Harry asked.
"Of course I can!"
"Then let's get to work," Harry said.
Ron and Hermione led the pack of third-years the way they'd gone hundreds of times to get to class. Unfortunately, this couldn't be one of those times.
"The staircases are out," Parvati said. "How are we supposed to get down?"
"We just need to get to the third floor," Ron said. "Padfoot, is there another way down?"
The dog barked and trotted off down the corridor. The third-years fell into step behind him. He led them straight down the corridor, dodging chunks of the ceiling as it fell apart, then sat down when they were halfway to the end.
"Now what?" Lavender asked.
"Can anyone whistle?" Hermione asked.
"Sure," Seamus said. "Why?"
"Do it," Hermione said. "Like you're calling a dog or getting someone's attention."
"Okay," Seamus said hesitantly. He gave a quick whistle, and sure enough, a section of the wall slid open. It was a confined space, but plenty of room for them to descend the stairwell before them.
"Brilliant!" Ron said.
Sirius took off down the new corridor, with the others right behind him.
"How'd you know that was there?" Ron asked.
"Your brothers told me," Hermione said. "They're still on Rose's telepathic network."
"She should've done that to all of us," Ron said. "That might've–"
"Ah!" Lavender screamed as some rocks fell from the ceiling.
"Depulso!" Ron shouted, wand already in hand.
The rocks flew up the corridor, crashing harmlessly into the stairs.
"Thanks," Lavender said. "You just saved my life."
"Doubtful," Hermione said. "You would've had some broken bones, but nothing life-threatening."
Lavender glared at Hermione, who took none of it. Hermione didn't have time for Lavender to be dramatic. There were actual lives at stake, and Hermione had second-guessed herself enough for one day.
"If you don't keep moving, it will become life-threatening," Ron said. "Come on! There are 60 more students that need us to find a way out of here fast!"
They ran to the end of the secret corridor, and emerged to find themselves on the fourth floor.
"How do we get down to the third floor from here?" Dean asked.
"Only the moving staircases are out," Hermione said. "We find one that's not moving and take it,"
Padfoot ran down the corridor, and turned a corner out of sight.
Hermione and Ron ran to catch up to him, and found that he had disappeared down another staircase. It wasn't long before Padfoot led them straight to a statue of a humpbacked witch.
Hermione did as she was instructed, and the statue moved aside, revealing another secret passageway.
"Follow that tunnel," Hermione instructed the others. "It leads straight to Honeydukes. Alex or one of the house-elves will meet you there."
"What about you two?" Parvati asked.
"We'll be fine," Ron said.
"Go," Hermione said.
The pair watched the four students pass through the tunnel, then ran back to Gryffindor Tower.
"How many more students are there?" Sally-Anne asked.
"We've got half of them out," Professor Snape replied. "Plenty more to go."
"That's going to be a problem," Sally-Anne said, looking at the pile of rocks. More leaks appeared in the cracks. "This isn't going to hold much longer."
The rock shifted in place, and Sally-Anne jumped.
"Miru!"
A wall sprung into existence as the rocks gave out.
"Move!" Professor Babbling shouted at Professor Snape.
"Everyone, forget about collecting anything!" Professor Snape shouted. "It'll be here when you get back! Run!"
Students took what they had and started off down the corridor.
"I don't see why we didn't do that in the first place," Professor Babbling said, still working to contain the leaks in the opposite wall.
"Fine," Professor Snape said. "Next time, you can negotiate with nearly 100 frightened teenagers, and I'll stand in front of a wall." He turned to the students. "Anyone caught walking will be deducted 100 house points and held back a year! Run!"
It struck Sally-Anne as odd that it wasn't the impending flood that frightened them, it was the possibility of losing house points.
Everyone's got their priorities, I suppose, she thought.
"I hope Lovegood knows where she's going," Professor Snape muttered.
"Me too," Sally-Anne whispered.
Farther down the corridor, Luna and Tutela ran with the Slytherins. Unlike the other groups, Luna wasn't leading the way. It was far more productive to allow the Slytherins themselves to show her the way out. Once outside, she already knew where she was going.
Luna had asked them to get her to the east wing; after that, Fred and George had informed her of a statue of Gregory the Smarmy, which hid a passageway to Hogsmeade.
"What?!" Butterhead exclaimed as they ran into a cave-in.
Luna had an idea to remove the rubble, but before she could do anything, the other students fired rounds of spells at the blockade. Luna had just enough time to get back as they lit up the corridor with magic.
When the dust settled, the wreckage was gone, along with a few chunks of the corridor.
They hadn't got much farther down the corridor before Luna noticed the ceiling above them was cracking. She whirled around to face Butterhead.
"Do you know where the statue of Gregory the Smarmy is?" she asked.
"The what?" he asked.
"It's in the East Wing," Luna said, grabbing her chalk. "Find it, then tap your wand against its nose three times. The secret passageway behind it will lead to Gladrags Wizardwear." She turned to Tutela. "Tutela, go with them so Rose knows they've made it out alright."
Luna began drawing small circles on the wall beside them. As students began to run past her, she placed her chalk back behind her ear and climbed up the footholds she'd created. When she reached the top, she drew handles on the ceiling. She used the handles to balance herself, then drew rock over the cracks in the ceiling.
Luna looked down the corridor and saw more cracks forming.
"That's going to take too long," she muttered. She climbed down, then drew a picture on her hand. To anyone else, it closely resembled a spiderweb, but Luna knew better. It was a series of characters from the runic alphabet, just like in her mum's rune puzzles.
She drew an identical picture on her other hand, then on her shoes, then tucked the chalk back behind her ear. Luna began climbing up the wall, her hands sticking as they came into contact with it. Held aloft by the runes, Luna drew more stone to replace the cracked ceiling before it could cave in.
Luna landed on the ground with a splash. She looked around, then down. Water was flowing from deeper in the Dungeons.
"Princess."
Luna broke into a run.
"Where are we going?" Neville asked.
"The Library," George replied. "There's a passageway we've never been able to use."
"Filch has it under close watch, you see," Fred said. "It leads straight to Zonko's Joke Shop."
The entirety of Hufflepuff house ran into the Library, following close behind Fred and George.
"What is going on?!" hissed Madame Pince. Being the sensible woman that she was, she had secured an area around her desk and was hiding under it.
"The quake damaged the castle," Neville said. "There's a secret passageway in here that leads to Hogsmeade. We're getting the students out."
"Quickly!" she said. "Just don't touch any of the books other than Boring Bureaucracy."
Madame Pince walked quickly and pulled the book from the shelf. The wall slid open to reveal a large corridor.
"That's brilliant," Neville said. "I never would've thought this was here."
"No one would think to touch that book," George said.
"Rose might," Neville said. "She'd probably say 'A book with a title like that must have something interesting in it!'"
"Come on!" Madame Pince hissed. "And stop talking so loud. This is a library!"
While Madame Pince and the Twins led the students down the corridor, Neville stayed behind to make sure everyone was there.
"Looks like that's everyone," Professor Sprout said as the last of the students went through. "Go on."
"You first," Neville said. "I–"
"I'm the teacher, Neville," Professor Sprout said. "You're the student. Also, we're going to have a word about that sword of yours."
"I… I'm sorry, Ma'am," Neville said as they started down the corridor.
"Neville, you've exhibited bravery the likes of which I've never seen in a normal third-year. The best test of a person is how they react when things go wrong, and things have indeed gone wrong. You've done marvelously."
"What about Rose?"
"I said normal third-year. Rose doesn't–"
Large chunks of rock came loose from the ceiling and fell on them, cutting of the professor. Neville had just enough time to shove Sprout out of the way before the rocks collided with him. His world went black as he was buried alive.
Harry saw animals of all sorts running towards them. Like Hagrid had said, the Forbidden Forest had tons of creatures in it, and it looked like they were all heading his way.
"You sure you can handle this?" Professor Lupin asked.
"I can do this!" Ginny said, her wand at the ready. "Me and Rose drilled this hundreds of times."
"Really?" Professor Lupin asked. "She prepared you for this exact situation?"
"Maybe not exactly like this, but almost," Ginny said. "I can cast the spell."
"Harry, what about you?" Professor Lupin called.
Harry was off to the side, not far from Hagrid. Harry was safe and sound underneath his invisibility cloak. At least, that's how he felt compared to Ginny. In order for the explosion to be effective, Professor Lupin and Ginny had to be right in front of the stampede, and one explosion might not be enough to startle them out of the trance into which the potion had put them.
"I'm fine," he replied.
It took a bit of work, but Harry had convinced Professor Lupin that he could stun animals with precise aim. Anything that wasn't startled by their explosions would need to be dealt with as painlessly and quickly as possible.
"Just say when," Professor Lupin said.
"Almost," Harry said. They had marked a line of trees where Hagrid said the spell would be most effective. Once Harry saw the animals hit that line, Professor Lupin and Ginny would fire off explosions from their wands.
"Almost," Harry repeated, his wand at the ready. "Get ready."
The earth began to shake beneath his feet from the stampede, but he kept his eyes trained on the line of trees in the forest.
"Now!"
"Confringo!"
Harry shut his eyes and covered his ears as twin explosions lit up the night sky. Even muffled, the bang left a ringing in his ears. He rubbed the spots out of his eyes and focused on the animals. Most of them were turning back, frightened more by the explosions than riled up by the potion.
Professor Lupin immediately smothered the flames that started as a result of the explosions while Harry scanned for any stragglers.
His vision was still fuzzy, so he almost didn't catch it. It was dark, and the dog's fur nearly blended into the night sky. Harry had every degree of confidence in his ability to stun a human from 50 feet, but the beast charging straight at a rather dazed red-head was considerably bigger than a human.
It had been about two years since Harry had last seen Fluffy, but he'd never seen another animal like him, so Harry had no doubt that the Philosopher's Stone's former guardian was about to crush his best friend's little sister.
Harry and Hagrid had thought to cover their eyes and ears from the explosion, but Ginny and Professor Lupin couldn't. Professor Lupin was concerned with the flames, and his hearing was no doubt muffled by the explosion, so he didn't see Fluffy charging until it was too late.
"Stupefy!"
A red bolt lanced out of Harry's wand and struck the Cerberus in the side.
And did nothing.
"What is it?" Ron asked.
"Hufflepuff and Slytherin are safe," Hermione said.
"We're the only ones left, and we've just got the seventh-years."
"Brilliant," Ron said. "Once we get back to the tower, then–"
Hermione jumped when she heard rock cracking, but didn't discover it was under Ron until it was too late. The floor beneath him gave out and he fell through.
"Ron!"
Hermione dove and grabbed his hand before he vanished to the sixth floor.
"I've got you!" Hermione shouted. "Hold on!"
"Thanks!" Ron shouted. "Until you said that, I wasn't sure what I should do!"
"Lady Brain!"
As the Nimblewrights approached her, she heard more rocks cracking under her.
"Stay back!" she called to the Nimblewrights before they got any closer. "The rock beneath us is cracking! Any more weight and we'll all go down! Stay back!"
Hermione looked down at Ron. For the second time that day, she was going to watch helplessly as he got hurt. Her dominant hand was holding Ron, and she couldn't risk switching hands without dropping him, which meant no magic. Looking past him, she saw the chunks of the seventh floor had taken out the sixth, leaving a two floor drop for Ron, and possibly Hermione, if Hermione couldn't think of something.
"Let go!"
"Don't you dare try to pull that macho dürah again, Ronald Weasley!" Hermione screamed. "I'm not letting go of your arm, even if it means falling with you!"
Professor Babbling and Sally-Anne held the water back as Professor Snape ran with the rest of the students. Water sprayed on them from the cracks, and bursts of water from their right threatened to knock them both off their feet.
"Now you, Sally-Anne," Professor Babbling said.
"I'm not leaving you, Professor," Sally-Anne said.
"Ms. Perks, I–"
"Right now, Bathsheda, we're equals," Sally-Anne said. "There's no professor and student, there's just two women trying to survive. If we can't both make it out, you'll be missed more than I will. Besides, I can breathe underwater."
"Since when?"
"Since Christmas when Rose gave me my dress!"
"You trust her?"
"With my life. Harry and Hermione are my best friends, and I trust her with their lives too. If Rose says my dress lets me breathe underwater, then it lets me breathe underwater."
"Then let's walk backwards as long as we can. I'll help you keep the barrier in place, but you've got to run the moment you drop it."
"Understood."
Professor Babbling and Sally-Anne began stepping back, holding the wall in place. Water poured into the corridor, and Sally-Anne nearly lost her balance.
"Go!" she shouted.
Professor Babbling glanced at Sally-Anne, then began running. Sally-Anne braced herself as the pressure increased. When she was certain that Professor Babbling was clear, she stopped the Shield Rune.
A wall of water slammed into her like a bus, knocking her clean off her feet. The rush of water swept her away, throwing her into a wall. She slammed into the hard stone, and her vision went out of focus for a moment.
"What's–" she started, but couldn't finish a sentence. Wave after wave swept over her, dragging her to the bottom of the corridor. She tried to struggle against it, but she couldn't see clearly, nor force herself to move. Torches went out around her and everything went dark.
After securing Ravenclaw Tower, Rose sent Professor Flitwick to Hogsmeade, then brought herself and Professor Dumbledore to his office.
"I must ask that you wait outside," Professor Dumbledore instructed.
Rose nodded, then walked down the stairs and relayed her news to each of her friends.
Rose activated Serendipity for what felt like the millionth time that night.
"I wish I knew where Peter Pettigrew was."
Six seconds later, she pinpointed his location.
He was in Professor Dumbledore's office.
"No!" She activated Serendipity again and appeared back in Professor Dumbledore's office. Professor Dumbledore himself was nowhere to be seen, but Peter was there in human form.
In his hands he held an hourglass, which was attached to a gold chain around his neck. He froze when Rose appeared.
"You can't escape me, Peter," she said.
"Yes, I can," he replied, traces of a smirk forming on his face. "I can always escape."
"Rose, be careful."
Rose glanced to her right and saw Professor Dumbledore stepping out of a hidden room.
"Peter, you don't know what that is," Professor Dumbledore said.
"Yes, I do," he said. "It's a time turner, and I'm going to use it to escape through time!"
Peter turned over the hourglass, but Rose's readied action went off. She appeared in front of him and grabbed the device, breaking it in half.
"Rose, no!" Professor Dumbledore exclaimed.
A blinding flash of light lit up the room. Rose felt a sensation of falling, then everything went white.