that didn’t work…’ He glanced over his shoulder again.
‘I think they’ve got some sort of plan for this, I just can’t see what it is.’ Parthir pressed on without turning to face the dragon. ‘Once we find Cedric, you’ll be able to ask him.’
Draco refrained from saying that the whole exercise would be over before Retfield told him anything. However, he sensed Noah’s reluctance to continue the conversation and decided to respect that.
Wading through the water wasn’t exactly pleasant, but at least it was safe. At least with parthir as their guide. They made their way along the bank for a while before Noah finally decided it was time to get out and try to rejoin the rest of their group. As soon as the reeds parted, they saw multicoloured flashes coming from deep within the forest.
‘It seems everyone’s realised we’ve got company on our heels,’ Draco managed a sarcastic remark.
‘Now that it’s come to a full-blown battle, we’d better give it our all,’ Noah smiled slightly. ‘Let’s try and do to them what they’ve done to us.’
The dragon nodded and followed the parthir. They quickly reached dry land and set off roughly in the direction of the skirmish. Judging by the range of the spells being cast, the attacking group must have found itself caught between two raiding parties of defenders. The fighting seemed truly fierce. Seeing that the combatants had begun to move deeper into the forest, they both picked up the pace.
Draco hadn’t spotted anyone until, leaping out from behind a thick tree, he collided with one of the defenders. He crashed into the boy and they both flew to the ground. The cadet, just as shocked as the dragon, reacted instinctively and fired a golden projectile barely a few centimetres from the attacker’s face. The dragon leaned back and, taking advantage of his position on top, struck his opponent with a fist near the nose. The barrier cushioned the blow, but it wasn’t strong enough to knock the defender out. He swung again, but before he could strike the
