Disclaimer – I do not own any places, characters, or ideas from the Harry Potter Universe.
Everything was completely still that night, as Ginny Weasley lay awake, eyes wide open, staring through the stained window at her bedside, up at the pale but radiant full moon. There were no disturbances – no sound to penetrate the thin, beige, peeling walls that were the limits of her bedroom, no unwanted lights flashing down the hallway. There was a strange absence of stars in the night sky; though the moon seemed closer than usual, and much, much brighter. It was eerie but beautiful. Breathing in, Ginny slowly shut her eyelids, drifting away to sleep.
Five minutes later, a piercing scream rang through her ears, as well as every other member of the Weasley household. Immediately, the Burrow was filled with panic – the scream that had echoed through the area only moments ago was utterly frightening – it could have only come from someone extremely terrified. Ginny shivered wildly until her brother Percy came in and grabbed her arm, and in doing so hurried her out of her room and down the stairs to the kitchen.
'Are you okay, Ginny? Come on, down you go,' Percy comforted her as he helped her down the last few stairs.
The kitchen was cramped – there was no doubt the family had outgrown the Burrow years ago. Ginny glanced around to make sure everyone was there – that the scream hadn't come from one of her own family. She was relieved to find that everyone was present, standing in the kitchen. Ginny jumped as her mother appeared beside her and comforted her with an arm around Ginny's shoulder.
There was one member of the Weasley family that wasn't standing with the rest. Arthur Weasley, Ginny's father, was standing over by the kitchen window, looking out at the horizon with a wary look on his grey, aging face. 'Molly,' he whispered very quickly, in a panicked voice.
Mrs Weasley rushed over to the window, and peering out, she was horrified. The sun was coming up, and she could see the shadows of around ten figures up on the nearest hill. But the figures weren't just standing there...It was an attack.
'Oh my God,' Molly Weasley spoke, just loudly enough for Ginny and the others to hear. Five of the Weasley boys started to head for their parents, fighting for a spot at the window, while Ron and Ginny were frozen near the foot of the staircase. Molly started to take them both into her arms and pulled them into a rushed but tight embrace.
Ginny had no idea what was going on and was very confused by the situation, but managed to catch snippets of the conversation of the room. Phrases like 'What's going on?' and 'What will we do?' appeared often. The whole family was panicking.
'Quiet!' Arthur Weasley silenced the room sternly. 'Now everyone, I need you to get your warmest coats and put on your boots, and I need you to do this very quietly, and meet in the laundry afterwards. Quickly!'
The family moved as fast as they could, and before Ginny knew it they were all assembled in the laundry, where her father was giving out more instructions.
'It is vital that you follow my every move, is that clear?' Arthur whispered loudly. 'You all understand?' Ginny nodded like the rest, but she was so frightened it was painful to do so. Arthur finished by saying 'Do not make a sound, or you will put all of us in grave danger,' before carefully opening the back door.
It was freezing outside, there was a frost and the slick green grass was covered in ice. Ginny's father led the way, stepping carefully along the slate garden path, while Mrs Weasley took the rear to lock the laundry door. Noone made a sound. The family continued on from their backyard through the hills, into a deep valley that the youngest of the Weasley children had once played hide and seek in.
Twenty minutes had passed when the very youngest of the Weasley boys decided to ask a question.
'Is it alright to talk now?' Ronald whispered loudly.
Arthur stopped in his tracks, and turned around, causing everyone else to stop aswell. Ron was lucky that he didn't see the expression on his father's face at that point of time – Arthur Weasley was furious. Not only that, he was scared.
There was silence; only silence. The Weasleys were frozen, each wondering what was next, their bones aching with anticipation that something terrible was about to happen. The ones that had been at the window, the ones that had seen the attack upon the nearby hill, they were terrified. Ready, but terrified. Ginny and Ronald, however, were completely oblivious to what was waiting for them if they didn't escape successfully. This made it even more frightening.
Possibly five minutes passed before Arthur Weasley decided that it was safe to get back on the move after his son Ronald's life threatening mistake. The first few steps he made were quiet, careful, but the fourth fell on a brittle twig, which snapped loudly.
All of a sudden, growling erupted from atop the dark cliff face to the right of the Weasley family. This was it. Ginny jumped, but the silence returned.
Moments later, the growling appeared much closer. There were three of the creatures now, and the distance between Ginny's family and the growling creatures was closing fast. Ginny let out a loud gasp from her throat, and instantly the growls turned to barking, getting closer and closer every second.
This was when all hell broke loose. The creatures were upon them, and several ear shattering screams were made by Ginny and her family. They ran, all in different directions, ran for their lives.
Ginny, sprinting through the valley, running from the commotion behind her, managed a final glance over her shoulder. What she saw was horrifying. The beasts, whatever they may be, had eyes that stood out from the dark of night, glow in the dark, almost. They were snarling and howling and barking, and she could tell that most of her family were fighting for their lives. Shouts of 'Reducto' and 'Stupefy' echoed through the cool, shattered night air.
It was too much for Ginny – she tripped and fell, knocking her head hard on a rock on the ground. In her last few moments of consciousness, she wept.
Hey, this is my first FanFiction ever, so please review and tell me what you really liked and what I didn't do so well! It would be really helpful and would hopefully make the story alot better, which would make it more exciting for you amazing people reading!