Georg grunted again, shrugging off Algernon's gesture of aid. "I'm alright," he said, smiling slightly, trying to get his clothing in order. "It hurts, but nothing vital - thank you, Shepherd."

He stumbled off with them - moving his shoulders didn't help the pain much at all, trying to figure out how best to round up the students. Of they didn't know exactly where they were, how they were doing, what would be the easiest way to find them without attracting the werewolf-

Oh. Obviously.

"Chancelier, you know the patronus charm, correct?" If she didn't, he knew what he'd be kicking Ignan in the shins to teach next. "Patroni might be the est way to get the others rounded up."

"Chancelier, you know the patronus charm, correct?"

"Right," said Evie, raising her wand. "Expecto Patronum!"

Her Patronus fluttered out of her wand, right on cue. It was a butterfly. Quite a bit larger than a normal butterfly...

But now that she had it, what was she supposed to do with it? 

"Erm..." she said uncertainly, hoping she didn't look as stupid as she felt, "go get Friday. And ...whoever's with her. And...erm...bring them back to us. "

Thank Merlin for small miracles, the butterfly obediently flew off in the right direction.

Evie noticed that neither of the two professors picked up the branch of mountain ash. It was the size to make a good solid club...so since they obviously didn't want it she stuck her wand back in her sleeve and grabbed it for herself.

If that werewolf showed up again, she would clobber it!

"A branch?" Figaro asked, "I'm a wizard, dumbass - don't you trust my charmwork.  Hold still.  Ey! Quit that-"  she was kicking things.  "Just calm down and hold still."

A werewolf's howl suddenly sounded in the darkening evening, and Figaro instinctively ducked down.  "I don't like this - we've gotta hurry, Freya."

He straightened up, took aim at Freya and cast, "Revelo!"[1]  For a moment, she seemed to go all pastel, but her normal color returned.  Now that he didn't have to worry so much about how heavy she was, he quickly found a stick long enough to reach down, nearly as tall as he was. 

Before he could lower it down to Freya, a sparkling silver wispy thing was fluttering around his head.   Thinking it was a will-o-wisp, since Freya'd just mentioned one, he batted at it.  It backed off and Figaro could see more clearly what it was.

"Freya!" he hissed, keeping his voice low now.  "It's a Patronus I think.  Who's is a butterfly?"  Keeping one eye on the silvery butterfly, he lowered the stick down to the (hopefully) now feather-light Freya Jansdotter.  Thank Merlin he was passing in Charms.

1.	A Levitation Charm

Freya's nostrils flared.  "Dumbass???"  She crossed her arms on her chest defiantly but she did as he told her... sullenly.  Considering how her Transfiguration went awry (and Gryffindors were supposed to be aces at Transfiguration) she had exactly zero confidence in his Charms.  At the same time, she knew if she didn't stand still she was likely to get the short end, even if he did it rightly.

When a werewolf's howl sounded in the not-so-distant distance, every one of the short hairs on the back of her neck stood on end and suddenly she wasn't as sullen anymore.  Instead, her heart beat faster and her breath came so quickly that it puffed silver-grey in the descending, early-spring gloom.  She wished she'd brought a cloak and she told herself resolutely that that was why she was shivering.

He ducked down so she couldn't see him for a minute.  His voice came from beyond a struggling bush.  'I don't like this - we've gotta hurry, Freya.'

"No shit, Sherlock," she answered wryly, her voice dripping with sarcasm.  "Glad you straightened me out on that one.  Well, come one, then!  Have at it!"

He straightened up so she could see him again and pointed his wand.  She tried very hard to stand still and not flinch.  'Revelo!'

For a second, her normally translucent complexioned lightened even more, though that seemed unimaginable.  Then slowly she flashed to lilac and on through the spectrum into mint green before settling into her usual pallor again.  Which was a good thing because only the Dark sisters looked good with pink (or whatever) hair.  She really would have had to have a word with Fig if she'd been stuck like that.  Then she realized that she felt slightly giddy and unbelievably light.  Rather, more so than usual.  The werewolf howled again, closer, and she jumped... and nearly launched into the air.

She was so light she almost thought she could jump out of the ravine, now, even though the rim was a good 10 feet above her head.  He disappeared again but reappeared fairly quickly with a stout branch.  There for a moment she wondered if he though she could jump out on her own, too.  But he reappeared with the branch and she thanked Vishnu that he hadn't just lost interest and wandered off.  Maybe the rumors about him weren't entirely true...

He batted at something fluttery and silver, then the beastly thing dove at her head.  "Oy, gerroffme!" she yelped,  batting at her own ear and shaking her head desperately, hard enough that her hair flung in her face and blinded her for a moment.  "Ugh!  Pitht.  Fuff."  So... along with giant spiders, apparently the Forbidden Forest was home to humongous mosquitos as well.  It figures...

'Freya!  It's a Patronus I think.  Who's is a butterfly?'

"Butterfly?"  She tried not to sound too sheepish.  "Won't be Storm's then, or would it?"  Her laugh was a little hysterical.    But he was lowering the branch to her.

It fell about a foot shy of her upstretched fingers but she was light enough that on her second leap she caught it with her fingertips and it was enough to hold on.  With a little wriggle and a hunch, she caught hold of it properly and inched a bit higher.  She climbed hand-over-hand.  When she reached the top, she flung her arms around his neck and used him as a lever to scramble the rest of the way over the rim, then laid there on her belly, cheek resting on a scratchy patch of grass, panting.

The butterfly was still hovering.  After a pause, she opened her eyes and saw it.  "Are you sure it's a patronus and not a... I dunno.  A forest beasty that wants to suck out blood?"

"Gude efening," said the butterfly, in a passable imitation of  Dragulia's Transylvania accent. "But I think your blahd is not my...type, muhahaha..."

 "But..." the accent reverted to Eveline's..."seriously now, Storm says everyone should come back to the corral. He doesn't want everyone wandering back to the castle alone, with that...thing out there." As if to punctuate her words, an unearthly howl reverberated through the woods.

"I couldn't find Bella or Dimbleby.  If they ran all the way back and didn't get help I'll...I'll jinx Bella's hair till it turns vomit green, and...ooh! I'll hex Dimbleby's badge so it says 'Dimbulb!"

Fluttering just ahead of them, she said, "I'll lead, and let you know if I see anything. After all...I can't get eaten..."

With Freya alighting ever so gracefully at his side, rescued from the gaping ravine, and with the werewolf continuing to howl in the Forbidden Forrest's heart, the silvery butterfly spoke.  It was indeed a Patronus, and from the sound of it ... Eveline's. 

Figaro felt a wash of relief.  "I take it things are sorted at the barn then.  Well good, then."  He was glad of it.  It felt wrong following Professor Storm's orders to make a run for it when not everyone was accounted for, with Eveline stuck up in the loft. 

With Freya at his side, Figaro followed the Patronus quickly through the woods in a much more direct route than he'd taken to find Freya in the gully.  As the Patronus flies...  There were brambles and ankle-twisting roots, and it wasn't a quiet pursuit, but the two made it safely back to the group.

"Oi..."  Figaro greeted a little breathless.  Eveline was there - thank Merlin, and he smiled at her - as was Mr. Shepherd and the two professors.  Professor Kirchlehnor - he looked like he'd been hurt...

"Are we going back now?" he asked, hoping the answer was a loud yes.