Harry's POV
I ran forward at once and grabbed George's legs. Together, Lupin and I carried him into the house and onto the sofa. As the light fell across George's head, Jenny gasped and my stomach lurched; one of his ears was missing. The side of his head and neck was drenched in wet, shockingly scarlet blood.
Jenny's face looked as if it were turning a light shade of green when, all of the sudden, Lupin grabbed me by the arm and dragged me into the kitchen.
"Hey! What are you doing? Let go of him!" Jenny shouted indignantly as I was dragged away.
"What creature sat in the corner the first time Harry Potter visited my office at Hogwarts?" he said, giving me a small shake, "Answer me!"
"A- grindylow!" Lupin released me and fell against the kitchen cupboard.
"Sorry Harry, but I had to check. Voldemort knew you were being moved tonight and the only people who could have told him were directly involved in the plan. You might have been an imposter"
"No one in the order would have told Voldemort," I said, the thought dreadful to me- utterly unbelievable that any of them would betray me. "Voldemort didn't know which one I was in the beginning, and only caught up with me at the end. If he'd been in on the plan, he would've known from the start that I was with Hagrid"
"Voldemort caught up with you?" he asked sharply, "What happened? How did you escape?"
I explained briefly how the Death Eaters pursued us and seemed to recognize me as the true Harry, how they dropped back and called Voldemort, who caught up with them just before they reached the sanctuary of Meghan's house.
"How did they know it was you?"
"I…" I tried to remember. It was all a blur and panic and confusion right now. "I saw Stan Shunpike, you know, the conductor on the Knight Bus? I tried to disarm him instead of… well, he was imperiused! I couldn't-"
Lupin looked aghast.
"Harry, the time for disarming is in the past! These people are trying to kill you!"
"Expelliarmus saved me from him two years ago!" I added defiantly.
"Yes, Harry," he said with painful restraint, "and a great number of death eaters saw it! Under immediate threat of death, it was a very unusual move then, but repeating it tonight in front of those same death eaters was close to suicidal!"
"So you think I should have killed Stan Shunpike?" I argued.
"Of course not! But the death eaters- frankly- most people would expect you to attack back! Expelliarmus is a useful spell, but the death eaters seem to think it's your signature move! I urge you not to let it become so!"
/
Jenny's POV
I kneeled next to Mrs. Weasley, who didn't seem to be in the right condition to cast any healing charms, and examined George's ear. It was horrible- his ear was cut straight off. Even worse, I think I recognized the spell that was used on him. I swallowed hard, slowly pulling my wand from my pocket and lowering it to his ear.
"Vulnera Sanentur… Vulnera Sanentur… Vulnera Sanentur…"
"What kind of spell is that?" Ginny asked in awe as his blood returned to his body and his ear began to heal. I would later realize that I hadn't responded, but at the moment I was grieved over the fact that his ear wasn't growing back. The spell didn't completely fix him.
I looked up when I realized Harry had come back and was now staring at me. In one look, I realized that he understood everything. If Snape had cast it even an inch to the side, George would be dead.
"Will George be okay?" Lupin asked gently.
I nodded, "but there's no chance of replacing his ear- not when it's been cursed off-"
There was suddenly noise coming from outside and Lupin dove for the back door with Harry hot on his tail. I jumped to my feet and followed them outside to see who had returned.
Hermione and Kingsley appeared in the yard, and she flung herself in Harry's arms. I pulled up next to him and as soon as I stopped she hooked her arm around me in an embrace.
"Hermione!" I exclaimed gratefully- she had made it back alive-
"The last words Albus Dumbledore said to the pair of us!" Kingsley shouted, his wand directed at Lupin.
"Harry is the best hope we have. Trust him."
Just then, Kingsley turned his wand at Harry. I felt my eyes widen as Hermione, Harry, and I all stepped back as one in alarm.
"It's him! I've checked!" Lupin exclaimed.
"Well someone betrayed us!" Kingsley stowed away his wand, "who else is back?"
"Only us and Hagrid… and George"
Hermione covered her mouth with her hand when she saw my expression.
"What's happened to George?"
"He lost an ear," Lupin said.
"Lost an-" Hermione failed to finish.
"Snape," I said, my eyes lifting from my feet to meet thunderstruck faces. "He must have been there- I know it was his Sectumsempra that did it"
The words sunk in like a stone in the black lake. I felt horrible saying it, but keeping it to myself wouldn't make it any less true.
"I wish I could say I'd paid him back in kind," Lupin broke the silence, "but it was all I could do to keep George on the broom after he was hit"
We fell silent again. I looked up, hoping to spot everyone flying in on broomsticks, but all that stared back were the stars. Where were they? Where were Fred and Mr. Weasley? Bill and Fleur? Mad-eye and Mundungus?
I ran my hands up my arms and turned to go back inside. George seemed to be coming to, so I hurried to be by his side.
"I'll prove who I am, Kingsley, after I've seen my son, now back off if you know what's good for you!" Mr. Weasley shouted from outside. It was a rare thing, to hear Mr. Weasley shout in such a threatening way- shout in any sense, really. I turned and saw Fred and him walk in, pale but uninjured.
"Arthur! Thank goodness!" Mrs. Weasley leapt to hug him.
"How is he?" Mr. Weasley asked me, dropping to his knees. Fred stood there, his mouth agape, staring at his twin as if he could not believe what he was seeing.
"Why don't you ask him?" I replied as he started to open his eyes.
"Georgie, how are you?" Mrs. Weasley whispered.
"Saintlike," he murmured.
"What's wrong with him?" Fred croaked, horrified.
"Saintlike," George turned his head to look at his twin, "you see… I'm holey. Holey. Get it, Fred?"
Fred's face seemed to be restored to its natural color at this, "Of all ear-related humor, you choose holey? That's pathetic."
"Ah, well, you'll be able to tell us apart now, Mum," he said before looking around, "Harry- you alright?"
"Yeah," Harry said, moving closer to the sofa.
"Well at least we got you back. This'd all be for nothing if you weren't safe… Why aren't Bill and Ron huddled around my sickbed?"
"They aren't back yet," Mrs. Weasley said. George's grin faded. Harry motioned for me to follow him outside, so I slowly stood and left the scene. I needed a bit of fresh air, anyway.
I followed him outside, finding the fresh night air inviting. If only we could run away from everything. We'd take off down the dirt path and never come back.
But we'd never be happy. Not while knowing we'd left everyone in this mess.
I sighed, knowing he was probably thinking the same thing. Only, it was different for him. To him, he was the catalyst of disaster for his friends. Wherever he went, disaster followed.
I looked over him, a look of pure fear cast upon his moonlit face. I reached for his hand and ran my thumb comfortingly along the back of it as we stared up at the sky in silent vigil.
The minutes stretched into what might have been years. The slightest breath of wind made me jump and turn toward a shivering bush in the hope one of the missing Order members might leap from behind it.
"There! There!" I screamed, a broom materializing above us and streaking for the ground. Just before it collided, its nose turned upward and they landed with a skid, sending earth and pebbles everywhere. I bolted forward, jumping to hug Ron as he staggered off the broom.
"Ron!" Hermione's worried voice called out from behind me. I quickly stepped aside as to avoid being squished in-between them. Instead, I went to help Tonks up, who seemed to be a bit wobbly in the legs.
"Brilliant- just brilliant he was. Stunned one of the death eaters straight in the head- I'd be dead without him," she said warmly.
"Really?" Hermione looked up at Ron, her arms still around his neck. I went to stand beside them, smiling at their reunion.
"Always the tone of surprise," he said a little grumpily, but he smiled all the same. Just them, Harry swept forward and wrapped his arms around all three of us, or, he tried to. It brought tears to my eyes, knowing that all of us were here and safe.
"Are we the last back?" Ron asked, suddenly.
"No," my smile faded, "we're still waiting for Bill and fleur and Mad-eye and Mundungus." I stepped back before continuing, "I'll go let them know you're back."
As I walked, Tonks joined me.
"So what kept you? You were delayed quite a bit," I asked.
"Bellatrix. She wants me quite as much as she wants Harry. I just wish I got her- I owe her. But then we missed our Portkey-"
Once we were inside, everyone greeted Tonks and she told her story as Ron, Hermione, and Harry came back in the house.
"Kingsley had to go back," Hermione noted aloud, so no one would worry. An even greater welcome came when Ron strode in, as Mrs. Weasley seemed to explode with joy at his safe arrival.
"What's wrong with George?" Ron asked.
"He's lost an ear, but Jenny made sure he'd be alright. It won't come back; but-" she stopped short at the cry of a theastral from outside. Bill and Fleur slid off its back, unharmed, as we rushed out to greet them. "Bill! Oh, thank-"
He hardly lifted his arms when she hugged him, an instant sign that something was wrong.
He looked his father dead in the eye and said, "Mad-eye's dead."
No one spoke- no one took a single breath. I felt as if something inside of me had fallen, fallen into a dark abyss, never to return or give a concluding thump as it hit the bottom.
"We saw it," said Bill, "Voldemort- he can fly- followed them. Mundungus panicked. Mad-eye tried to stop him, but he disapparated-. Voldemort's curse hit Mad-eye dead in the face- he fell backward off his broom- there was nothing we could do- we had nearly a dozen of them on our tail-" his voice broke.
Then it hit me- it was my fault.