He’d struck a nerve. The darkness was just dim enough that Agrimony was sure his smile would go undetected. Besides, his grin could be attributed to the bats, in any case. The silence settling over the forest was a familiar one. It lay like a blanket until all that was left was their own breath, billowing out in soft clouds in front of them. And then Agrimony heard it: the slight rustling of wings - then the chittering of the creatures.

But before he could enact his plan to catch one of them, they suddenly dispersed and he saw an object flying straight for Foxwood’s head. “Foxwood, move dammit!” He snapped, and for a split second he was content to let the bat hit the Ravenclaw. Then something got the better of him and he lunged for the other boy, knocking him down. Something - likely something he’d given Foxwood — Merlin was he still holding onto that book?! — made contact with his ribs and he winced, unsure if the crack he just heard was a branch snapping or something much worse.

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