Ron sleeps beside the crackling radio. Hermione holding tightly on to his arm.Harry lies a few feet away, awake.

Y/n huddles outside in the frigid darkness, trembling. Her eyes rake the trees. Deep within, there is, for the briefest of instances... movement. Or so it seems. She squints. Sees nothing. Returns her chin to her chest. As she does, something carries on the air...laughter. The cackle of... boys? Or so it seems. Her chin rises. She looks again into the trees...

Harry reaches out, starts to turn the radio off when:

"... Severus Snape, newly appointed Headmaster of Hogwarts..."

As the signal fades, Harry rolls onto his side and twists the dial. Behind him, we see Y/n's shadow rise,

move away from the tent...

Y/n moves toward the trees...

As the radio resists him, fading in and out, Harry grabs his rucksack, pulls out the wrinkled Marauder's Map.

"... bears little resemblance to

the school under Dumbledore's

leadership. Snape's curriculum is

severe, reflecting the wishes of

the Dark Lord and infractions are

dealt with harshly by the two

Death Eaters on the staff..."

Harry peers at the map before him and -- sure enough -- discovers Snape's name drifting about Dumbledore's office.

--

Y/N moves deeper into the trees, then stops.Shadows splinter amid the towering trunks and voices come clearer. Standing utterly still, Y/n watches as a gang of snatchers make their way in her direction. They look unwashed and feral, as if they've been in the wild for some time. As they pass, within feet of her, but unable to see her, only Hermione's eyes track their passage. As before Scabior leads the way, Fenrir

Greyback at his side. Abruptly, Scabior stops, eyes narrowing.

"What's that? That... smell?" Scabior asked.

The others glance about dumbly. Scabior retraces his steps until he stands directly in front of Hermione, his eyes looking right through her. He leans forward ever-so slightly,

only inches from her neck, nostrils flaring. The locket ticks, trembling upon Y/n's breastbone. Then, slowly, Scabior pulls back, eyes probing the darkness, before withdrawing, leading the others away. The last pair drag what appear to be bodies.

As they vanish within the trees, Y/n finally swallows.

"Snatchers." Hermione whispers. She spins, finds Harry and Hermione standing a few feet off.

"Good to know your enchantments work." He said turning to face Hermione.

"He could smell it. My perfume." Y/n said.

"Ron pushes past the tent flap, peers into the darkness in the distance, he sees Harry, Yn and Hermione..

Y/n hugs herself as she shivers, Harry doesn't waste a second he quickly wraps his arms around the shivering girl..

"We have to leave. We're not safe here." He said looking at Y/n's condition

"I told you. Ron's not strong enough to Apparate." Hermione stands for Ron

"Then we'll go by foot" you declare.

~~~~

Y/n, Harry, Hermione and Ron. Then, faintly, so faint it can barely be heard at first, a SOFT WHISTLING SOUND rises on the breeze. Slowly, one by one, DOTS perforate the blue. The WHISTLING SOUND BUILDS. Harry stops, listening, then turns. Hermione trailing a few feet behind, stops, eyeing him questioningly. Over her shoulder the dots attenuate. They take the shape of plumes

The whistling is ear-splitting now, more of a roar, as the quartet scarper into a listing barn and throw shut the doors. As they peer upward through the skeletal remains of the hayloft, their faces lashed with light, they see a succession of death eaters strafe the blue above. The rotting timber buzzes and bats dance crazily in the loft above. Gradually, the sound recedes. The bats settle.

An epic flyover. Three small figures move slowly below. One figure -- Ron -- trails the other three: Harry Y/n and Hermione. Ron glances about sullenly, staring at the forsaken landscape.

"I'm hungry." Ron declares

Y/n, Harry and Hermione stop, turn. Study him for a moment.

"What?" Harry asked

"I'm hungry.|" Ron repeats

Hermione and Y/n glance at Harry, who continues to stare at Ron, as if taking the measure of him.

"We're all hungry." Harry declares

Ron returns Harry's glance, then looks off again.

Hermione crosses to Ron, examines his ragged bandage.

"Leave it." He said.

Hermione glances at Ron's profile, then -- briefly – at the Horcrux dangling from his neck. Ignoring his words, she begins to rummage in her beaded bag.

"Mum can make food appear out of thin air."

"No one can conjure food out of thin air. Food is the first of the five Principal Exceptions to Gamp's Law. The other four are –" Hermione starts to explain

"Oh, speak English, can't you?" Ron said sharply

As Ron jerks his injured arm away, Hermione looks up, meets Ron's hard gaze.

"I said leave it."

Hermione glances at the bandage in her hand, puts it away.

"It'll be dark soon. We need to find a place to sleep." You declare

"Good plan." Hermione said

"Yeah. Brilliant. Only, correct me if I'm wrong... wasn't that yesterday's plan? And the day before that? And the day before that? Walk. Sleep. Walk. Sleep." Ron said grimly

Harry stares at Ron, then begins to walk toward him. Hermione watches silently. Ron stands utterly still. When Harry stops, he simply nods to Ron's neck.

"My turn.|" Harry said. As he reaches out, Ron blocks his hand. For a moment, they simply stand silently. Then Ron strips the chain from his neck, hands it to Harry and brushes past him. Harry glances at Y/n, drapes the Horcrux over his head and follows. Hermione watches them go, then does the same.

--

A light rain falls. Harry, wearing the locket now, walks the perimeter of the camp. Y/n walking with him, in case something happens He glowers toward the tent in the distance.

In the tent, safe, warm and out of earshot, Hermione tends to Ron's arm as he stares at Harry.

"He doesn't know what he's doing, does he?" Ron says

A frown creases Hermione's forehead as she studies Ron, then she glances at Harry, a trace of doubt in her eyes.

"None of us do." She said.

---

Four figures move through a blood-red autumnal landscape.

The charred husks of several RVs -- hulking black masses -- lay about the ash-ridden park. Ron, trailed by Harry,Y/n and Hermione, pauses. His eyes scan the scorched earth, fix on a blackened swing, swaying back and forth in a tiny playground. His eyes shift to the ground and he crouches. His fingers shift the dry dirt, reveal a shiny

toy not of muggle making.

"Wizards were here." Ron declares

"I don't like this place." Hermione said

Y/n, Harry and Ron turn, look at her.

"I want to go." She says uneasily

A rabbit hops into view, nose probing some brush. Slowly, Ron raises his wand, poised to fire when...

BAM! Dirt explodes near the rabbit's rump and it is off and running. Seconds later, Harry appears, giving chase. Ron curses and pelts after. The rabbit zig-zags through the trees, eluding one blast after another as Harry and Ron trip through the forest.

They begin laughing, their aim becoming more and more erratic. A tree limb explodes over Harry's head and he wheels, fires playfully back at Ron. They exchange a few more blasts when one narrowly misses Harry. Instinctively, eyes flaring, he wheels, fires back at Ron, narrowly missing him. They both stop, stare at one another, chests heaving, Their breath drifting in plumes, smiles gone. Ron rubs his injured arm, almost healed now, and turns away.