2.| ✮𝓛𝓸𝓿𝓮, 𝓑𝓲𝓵𝓵. ✮ {𝓑. 𝓦𝓮𝓪𝓼𝓵𝓮𝔂}

\𝒻𝒾𝒻𝓉ℯℯ𝓃\

~

"Harry, what's happening?" said Lupin, meeting him at the foot of the stairs.

"Voldemort's on his way, they're barricading the school—Snape's run for it—What are you doing here? How did you know?"

"Messages from Dumbledore's Army spread around by El," 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 foot of the stairs as mingled members of the Order of the Phoenix and Dumbledore's Army, all with their wands drawn, headed up into the main castle. "Come on, Luna," Dean called as he passed, holding out his free hand; she took 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.

Mrs. Weasley was struggling with Ginny. Around them stood Lupin, Fred, George, Bill, and Eleanora. Eleanora's eyes had flitted to Bill's the second Harry mentioned the younger children. She was on-edge; anxious to get to Daisy.  "You're underage!" Mrs. Weasley shouted at her daughter. "I won't permit it! They boys, yes, but you, you've got to get 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 to do!" said Fred.

"She's sixteen!" shouted Mrs. Weasley. "She's not old enough! What you two were thinking, bringing her with you— " Fred and George looked slightly ashamed of themselves. They'd insisted on getting Ginny before heading to Hogwarts, leaving Bill and Eleanora to travel there by themselves.

"Mum'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— " Just then, her eyes met Harry's and something in her expression changed. "Fine," she said, staring at the entrance to the tunnel back to the Hog's Head. "I'll say good-bye now, then, and— "

There was a scuffling and a great thump: Someone else had clambered out of the tunnel, overbalanced slightly, and fallen. He pulled himself up on the nearest chair, looked around through lopsided horn-rimmed glasses, and said, "Am I too late? Has it started? I only just found out, so I–I— " Percy spluttered into silence. Evidently he had not expected to run into most of his family.

There was a long moment of astonishment, broken by Eleanora turning to Lupin and saying, in a wildly transparent attempt to break the tension, "So— how's Teddy?" Lupin blinked at her, startled. The silence between the Weasleys seemed to be solidifying, like ice. Eleanora widened her eyes pointedly at Lupin. She didn't want the reappearance of Percy to shake up the family too badly just before the battle started.