"you will stay young and I will grow old, forever."
↠ In which Marigold Knight has to face her 7th year at Hogwarts while trying to cope with the death of her best friend, keep up with her classes, manage joining a resistance a...
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George and Marigold took off running again across the grounds, the moon offering little to nothing in the way of illumination to guide them - the thin veil of light they did have dimming the closer they came to the edge of the forest and Marigold had to work hard to ignore the screaming voice in her head warning her to turn back.
As soon as they crossed the first row of trees, quietness fell almost immediately around them. As if the borders of the forest bound it in silence, the chaos of the quidditch pitch falling to a dull hum in the distance.
Thorns and loose twigs caught at Marigold's ankles but she didn't have a second to register the stinging or the wet feel of blood seeping into her socks. George was pulling her further and further until they could only just see the castle beyond the thicket, he stopped abruptly - pulling them behind the trunk of a wide-set oak tree.
Neither of them said anything, instead, their panting filled the space between them. George leaned against the tree, doubled over with his open hand nursing his chest.
Marigold's throat was tight and her heart was beating like a wild animal in a cage. She refused to look around, fixating her gaze on a spot on the ground. Darkness creeped in around them and every small twitch from beyond the trees made her breath catch in her throat. Her mind spun with exhaustion, fear and anger. The effect of the liquor on her mind was still strong and she still couldn't stand without swaying.
Something snapped in the distance and Marigold nearly jumped out of her skin, images of werewolves and trolls swam amongst the other intruding thoughts of an imminent attack.
"George, we shouldn't be here ..." Marigold's whisper pierced the silence between them.
"What else did you have in mind, then, Marigold?" There was still a sharp edge to his voice, but Marigold ignored it. Her fear was draining her of any energy to start another argument with him.
"They say giant spiders live in the forest ..." She allowed her eyes to follow the line of trees, "...In here."
George still hadn't met her eyes, instead he leaned back against the trunk of the tree and slid down the side of it, a loud crunch emanating around them as his bum met the floor of the forest. "Bullshit. Old wive's tales."
Irritation was starting to rise up in Marigold again, almost replacing the cloud of fear clogging her chest. "Well, what are we gonna do? You dragged us out here!" She whispered so her trembling voice didn't carry beyond the bounds of the trees.
Letting his head fall back against the trunk of the tree, George's eyes slipped shut and he brought his fingertips to his temple, rubbing there slowly. "Marigold, I am so fucking drunk. Just give me a bloody second."
Tears were beginning to pool in her eyes again, "How are we gonna get back to the castle?" She whispered to herself - giving up any hope that George could save them - a hot tear racing down her cheek, the only flicker of warmth she'd felt since leaving the party. "I'm going to lose my captainship."
