Chapter 1
Faster, Ginny urged Cygnus, gripping his reins tighter. Her foot tapped lightly at his side, and obediently he turned, galloping deeper into the forest. At the thunderous sound of their arrival, the birds scattered in all directions, their wings flapping desperately to get away.
Ginny smiled at the colourful sight as her hair whipped around in the wind, the cold wind drying her tears in place. The feeling of freedom and being invincible was addictive. This was it.
Riding was her release ever since she was a young girl. Away from stuffy etiquette lessons and her teacher's sharp glares and even sharper barbs. Since it was an acceptable hobby for a lady, she had received Cygnus as a present for her tenth birthday. Her brothers quickly pointed out that the white stallion and Ginny were a match made in heaven. Both of them short but feisty and a tendency to bite your fingers off, Ron had said, rubbing his hand gingerly, after a failed attempt at feeding the unruly horse.
It had been a while since their last little adventure. Ginny had been cooped up in Aunt Muriels's estate, sulking alone in her room. And having had enough of her “tantrum” the disgruntled woman, with surprising strength hauled her out of the house (she had finally realized where her mother got her strength from) and slammed the door shut, ordering the butler to not let her in before eight o’ clock.
Grumbling, she kicked around little stones until she chanced upon the stables where Cygnus neighed at her sadly and a shard of guilt stabbed her chest when he looked at her with his big brown eyes. And before she knew it, she had clambered onto his back and set off in the direction of the forest.
Ginny pet his mane as she looked up and saw the fading light. Clearly, their little ride had taken longer than she expected. “Time to go back home, boy,” Ginny said, tugging on his reins to stop. Though he stomped his legs as if in protest, he followed her directions.
She chuckled lightly as Cygnus let out a huff. “I know, I know,” she patted his name again. “It's boring in the stables but it's getting late and we don't want to be stuck here, fumbling around in the dark.”
With a snort, Cygnus turned around and was about to take off in a gallop when he stopped and froze. Puzzled, Ginny questioned, “Cygnus?” And then she heard it, a sound that made the blood in her veins run cold.
Crunch.
A low growl echoed, making her hair stand on its end. She quickly pulled out her wand and cast a silencing and cloaking spell, urging Cygnus to start moving. It took her a few more attempts to calm Cygnus down enough that he could start running. All the while her heart thundered in her chest, praying that whatever that was would move away from them.
Soon the entire forest plunged into darkness, every little snap and crackle now had her on edge. She recast the spells and just as she was let out a sigh of relief that they were out of danger-
Click. Click. Click.
Like thousands of little pincers scuttling across the forest floor came from all directions.
Bloody hell.
They were surrounded by Acromantulas. Ginny stifled the curse that threatened to spill and ran a soothing hand across Cygnus’ neck as he grew restless. She would get them out of here no matter what.
Just as the first spider came into view, she fired. And her reductor hex burst a tree into pieces as Cygnus took off, jumping over the stump with ease. Ginny summoned a circle of flames behind them, managing to deter most of them. Unfortunately for her, the more persistent ones still continued to pursue them.
Ginny grit her teeth as she steered Cygnus, shooting every jinx and hex she could think of. Smirking victoriously when she managed to catch one right in the eye. But the feeling quickly faded as she took note of the sluggishness in Cygnus's steps. Of course he was tired, they'd been riding for hours. But just as Ginny cursed her past self, something caught her eye.
It can't be-
But there it was, illuminated by the shining moon behind it, a tower. Thank Merlin.
Relief bubbled through Ginny as they reached the tall metal gates and slipped off of Cygnus's back. “Excuse me-” She began only to let out a shout of pain as she touched the gates. Her hands had been burned. Wards. Right.
She could almost smack herself in the light of her stupidity. Desperate, she yelled, “Help! I'm being chased by acromantulas and in need of shelter! Please let me in!”
Her answer was a light breeze that caused the gates to creak slightly.
“Open up!” She shouted, not caring if her volume alerted the damn spiders to where they were. “Please…” her voice cracked on the last syllable. Damn it.
The silence that followed had her swallowing the lump in her throat and she walked to Cygnus. Placing her hand on his face, “Go, Cygnus,” she said softly. “I'll..distract the acromantulas so go home.”
As if understanding, Cygnus snorted and nuzzled into her hand. As touched as Ginny was, she shook her head. “You need to run.” She commanded firmly.
Cygnus stomped his feet and neighed. “It's okay, buddy. I won't go down without a fight, so stay safe, alright?” And she pressed her forehead against his, closing her eyes. “Bye, Cygnus.” And she stepped back, before whistling at him. He stalled for a moment, her loyal companion, before she nodded and he took off.
Ginny bit her lip as she watched him go, before she took a deep breath and readied her wand.
If she was going down, those spiders would go down with her.
The first spider came into view, its eight beady eyes blinking at her. “Bombarda,” Ginny said, flicking her wand at it. The spider screeched as a small explosion hurt its legs. The sounds alerted the rest of its herd and they scurried towards her, pincers raised.
A few webs were thrown at her, which Ginny dodged and burned. She fused a spider's legs together and it rolled into another, knocking it off balance. Ginny quickly levitated a few and slammed them into each other.
Just as Ginny was about to deliver a finishing blow, she heard it. A hiss from behind her and a large pincer slammed into head, knocking her to the ground. Her vision swam, and she could feel the warm blood flow down her temples.
Acromantulas have a fast acting venom that renders their victims unconscious, she could almost picture Hermione’s stern face as she said it.
Maybe Ron did have a valid reason for his fear of the nasty things, she thought wryly. If she ever saw him again she would gladly help her dear brother cast charms to ward them off. Silent tears flowed down her cheeks. Ron. Her family. Who constantly treated her like a child. Who were loud and dramatic and messy. But also loving and kind and warm.
I'm sorry. I miss you.
But her eyes were already drooping shut, as pain wracked her body. The clicking of the spiders as they moved closer was the last thing she could hear before she lost consciousness.
Hiss.
Silver scales shimmered under the moon's rays as a large snake slithered forward, making all the spiders stand on edge. As the snake raised its head, the spiders snapped their jaws.
Before a flick of the snake's tongue and a snarl, however, the spiders hesitated before reluctantly scattering.
The figure of a young woman with fiery hair was revealed and the large serpent approached curiously. Carefully, it examined her and her injuries, tongue darting out as it tasted her blood in the air.
“Are you quite finished?” A smooth masculine voice questioned, making the snake turn and hiss.
With slow, languid steps, the man crossed the small distance between them. “Is this what you nagged me for?” He nodded his head at her. “This girl?”
The snake hissed harshly and the man rolled his eyes. “No need to be rude,” he flicked his wrist, levitating the girl and floating her towards the estate. The snake shook its head slowly as if tired and picked up the girl's wand with its mouth, slithering towards the castle as the man called out.
“Picked up her wand, did you?” He said, raising a brow. “You must've taken a liking to her.”
The snake rolled its eyes as the man chuckled. “We'll see how long she lasts.”
When he felt the jab in his side, he continued, “I won't hurt her,” and smirked when he caught the dirty look he was thrown. “Too badly, at least.”
A snarl.
“What? Can't take a joke anymore?”
Another jab.
“Alright, alright. I hear you, let's treat our guest now, shall we?”
And the gates closed with a resounding clank.