CH-75

Then Shacklebolt's rumbling voice drowns out the others. "Quiet down!"

When order is restored to the room, Shacklebolt speaks. "Twelve people died last night," he says. "Eight of those twelve were students. All of their lives are on your hands, Ronald. Why did you leave the room?"

"I… I thought I heard a knock on the front door," Ron says in a voice barely louder than a whisper.

"If someone really had knocked, one of us would have gone to get it," Angelina says furiously. "You were on guard duty, Ron!"

"I'm really, really sorry," Ron says.

"Being sorry, unfortunately, will not bring them back," McGonagall says sternly.

"How could he have been armed?" Neville asks.

His voice is a little shaky, and he's trembling slightly. This night must have taken a toll on him.

"He was bound, and I don't think any of us left our wands lying around," he finishes.

"I don't know," Ron says miserably.

There's an uncomfortable silence as the occupants of the room ponder what that could mean. Is there another traitor in our midst, then? One that helped Mundungus to escape?

Shacklebolt extends the table and adds four chairs. "Sit down," he says to us.

"What are we doing in retaliation, then?" Harry asks. "There's got to be something we can do."

"The only precise location we have for the Death Eaters is the Malfoy Manor, in Wiltshire. And I doubt that it will burn to the ground easily," Shacklebolt says.

"Definitely not," Tonks says. "It's all marble and stone, with ancient spells protecting it."

"Ask Malfoy for information," Bill says. "He said that he's on our side, didn't he? If he's really switched sides, he'll give us what we need to know."

"Hermione, has he told you anything recently?" Shacklebolt asks.

I shake my head.

"He told me that Voldemort has at least one more Horcrux out there," Harry says.

I frown—why didn't Draco tell me that?

"Then it really is possible to split his soul more than he has already," Shacklebolt says resignedly.

"How can you trust that he's telling the truth?" Mrs. Weasley asks.

"He said that he'd get it for me. I figure there's no harm in checking out whatever it is that he brings," Harry reasons.

"When he does give it to you, be careful not to touch it—it may be a Dark object," McGonagall warns.

"Yes," Shacklebolt agrees. "Bring it to me. I'll want to examine it myself before we proceed."

"Before any sort of retaliation, we need to wait both for more information, and for our fighters to recover," McGonagall says.

"We'll reconvene a week from today," Shacklebolt says.

I'm surprised that he's ending the meeting so quickly. But then, I suppose the main reason for it was to find out how exactly Mundungus made his escape. And if there really is a traitor in our midst, it will not do to discuss everything openly. God, how are we going to pick out who it is?

"Most of us should have recovered by then," he finishes.

As the people at the table start getting to their feet and leaving the room, a large, dark man speaks up.

"I think the young one should be punished," he says in a heavy accent that I can't quite identify.

"Oh, he'll be punished all right," Mrs. Weasley says through gritted teeth.

Ron looks intimidated by the murderous look on his mother's face. I think I would be too, if I were on the receiving end of those enraged eyes. The dark man takes a look at Mrs. Weasley and seems to decide that her wrath will probably be punishment enough.

The room empties quickly, and I see Shacklebolt conversing with a few of the strangers as they exit the room. Then Blaise is ushering me out.

"Ronald, I am very disappointed in you," McGonagall says before following us out. She heads in the direction opposite the stairs, following Shacklebolt's group.

"Shouldn't we wait for Ron?" I ask as Harry joins Blaise and me in the hallway.

"No," Harry says. "I don't think Mrs. Weasley will be done with him for a while. Let's go."

"Do you believe what he said?" I ask them as we move toward the stairs.

"Yeah. I've always known he was a blundering idiot. It was just a matter of time before he showed it fully," Blaise says.

I sigh. "I just don't think that Ron would really be that thick."

A little nagging voice in my head tells me that Ron might have been lying—what if he is the traitor? But I've known him for such a long time, and something tells me that no matter how impulsive he is, he wouldn't turn against the Order. And if the Order isn't enough to stop his hand, surely his family is.

"It's hard to believe," Neville says from behind me. "But there isn't really any other explanation, is there? And we all know he's a little careless sometimes."

"This is more than a little careless," Blaise says.

Neville sighs, and I glance back to see that his eyes are extremely sad.

"Are you all right, Neville?" I ask.

He looks up and smiles, but I can see that it's forced. "I just… I hate seeing all these people dying around us," he says. "I can't help but feel like we're all going to end up in those cots, covered with white cloth."

"Oh Neville, we're going to be fine," Blaise says. "Stop whining."

I smack Blaise's shoulder, and he laughs.

"Can't you be a little more sensitive?" I say. I turn my head back toward Neville and tell him, "It'll be all right. We all look after each other, and that's enough."

He smiles and nods. "Yeah…"

I feel bad for Neville. Maybe the war has finally gotten through that hard shell he's been hiding in for the past few years. He was hardened by battles, but seeing deaths like this still affects him—it's proof that the clumsy, adorable Neville is still hidden away somewhere in this tough guy.

Then I see Tonks standing a few feet away from the bottom of the steps, holding little Teddy in her arms.

"Tonks," I say as I reach her. "How's Teddy?"

"He's all right. He was a bit frightened by the fight—we had no warning," she replies.

"Hey, Teddy," Blaise says from right behind me.

The toddler's hair color quickly transitions to lime green, and Tonks laughs lightly. "He's trying for Slytherin green," she explains. "That's what he comes up with every time a Slytherin comes to see him. Say hi, Teddy."

"Hi," Teddy says, waving shyly—he recognizes us, but he's a timid boy.

"Teddy!" Harry says, excusing himself from two wizards unfamiliar to me.

He smiles warmly and holds his arms out, and Tonks passes Teddy to him.

"How's my favorite godson?"

"Your only godson," I correct him, smiling.

"Harry Potter," Teddy says.

Tonks laughs. "Who is Harry Potter, Teddy?"

"My godfather," he answers after a short pause.

His young, adorable voice makes us all smile. It's amazing to think that Tonks is raising a child, despite everything that's going on. It's moments like this that remind me of one of the goals we're fighting for—a safe world for children like Teddy to grow up in.

"Here, give him to me," Tonks says.

"You should probably let him walk around a bit," Harry suggests as he passes Teddy back to Tonks.

"Oh, he ran around all night," Tonks replies with a small smile. "All night after we came here, that is. Madam Pomfrey is veryannoyed with him."

.

.

.

🎉Subscribe to me Ko-fi for more advanced content...🎉

🎉Read the complete novel in PDF, available at my Ko-fi Store!🎉

🎉https://ko-fi.com/jesus_coffee🎉