Harry and the others froze, then almost spoke in unison. "Leave here?"
Although they spoke at the same time, each of them sounded different, their voices tinged with shock, bewilderment, and confusion.
"Of course!" Wizet nodded as if it were obvious. "We came here to travel in the first place. We just can't stay in the Paris Region right now—there are still plenty of other places we can go."
"Didn't Mr. Kowalski say so himself? He wished us a happy summer holiday... We can't exactly let that kindness go to waste by staying here to welcome people who want to study us, can we?"
Harry's eyes immediately lit up. "That makes perfect sense!"
Wood nearly sprang out of his armchair, the dejection on his face vanishing completely. "Yeah! We can just run away! Great tactic!"
As the atmosphere around them began to liven up, Percy alone seemed somewhat out of place.
He opened his mouth and hesitantly said, "Wait, Wizet. According to Ms. Skeeter's analysis, anything we do now could be blown out of proportion..."
"If we just..." He gestured helplessly with both hands. "Um... leave like that, wouldn't it seem a little irresponsible? Or... inappropriate?"
Fred draped an arm over Percy's shoulder. "Dear Percy, you want to stay behind, don't you?"
"Then just stay behind!" George put an arm around Percy's other shoulder. "What's there to be embarrassed about?"
Fred continued, "Percy, don't worry about it! You put in a lot of effort too, and you know Wizet..."
George nodded in perfect understanding. "They can't study us, so doesn't that mean they can focus all their efforts on studying you?"
Fred blinked. "Didn't you want to expand your connections?"
George grinned and picked up the thread. "Wouldn't this be the perfect opportunity?"
"I... wouldn't that be a bit improper?"