A/N: Once again, I love each and every one of you and your lovely reviews. You really do manage to make my day you guys. Thanks for the support! I hope you enjoy this chapter.

Disclaimer: I own nothing but my character and my plotline. Everything you recognize belongs to JK Rowling.

--- CHAPTER SEVEN ---

The Dark Mark

I had a dream that night filled with terror. I'm not exactly sure what was going on in it, but there were horrific screams and deafening bangs and blasts all around me. Noises of people running and crying filled the air…and it wasn't until I sat up in my bed with a start that I realized I hadn't been dreaming the sounds at all.

I stared into the darkness surrounding me. It sounded as though complete chaos was going on right outside of our tent. My heartbeat started to race as soon as I realized that the terrified screams I had been hearing were a reality.

I jumped out of my bed and felt around for my clothes. I found my jeans and started to pull them on in a desperate hurry.

"Ginny! Hermione! Get up!" I yelled as I pulled on a sweater and pushed my feet into my shoes.

I heard them grumbling from the other side of the tent as I scrambled to find my wand in the darkness.

"Seriously guys, get up!" I called to them.

Just then Mr. Weasley entered the tent sounding frantic and urgent.

"Girls get up now! This is an emergency!"

He held his own wand out, illuminated at the tip and shook Ginny and Hermione awake.

"There's no time to get dressed, follow me!" he yelled, pulling Ginny up and out of her sleeping bag.

My hand met my wand and I picked it up quickly, hurrying to Mr. Weasley's side.

"What's going on?" I asked, gazing at him in the dim light.

He turned to look at me and said very quietly, probably so Ginny and Hermione wouldn't overhear: "Death Eaters."

A shiver ran up my spine and I gripped my wand tightly.

Ginny and Hermione were ready within seconds. The screams had obviously shaken them out of their sleepy state. I know it had worked with me.

Mr. Weasley directed us out of the tent and the three of us took off at a sprint, him following immediately behind us.

Once outside I could see flashes of red and green filling the air to go along with the terrified screams I had been hearing.

The boys were all standing outside of their tent, having already been wakened. They were obviously waiting for instruction.

We quickly joined the group of them just as Bill, Charlie and Percy stepped out of the tent, fully dressed with their sleeves rolled up and their wands ready. They hurried past us, Bill squeezing my shoulder as he went by.

"We're going to help the Ministry," Mr. Weasley said to us, "You lot—get into the woods, and stick together. I'll come and fetch you when we've got this sorted out!"

The four of them sprinted off into the distance without another word.

I watched them go, noticing for the first time a group of masked wizards—Death Eaters—moving together. Their wands were pointed straight up, and when I looked upwards I could see four bodies floating above them in the air. I recognized one of them as Mr. Roberts, the campsite manager. The other three I assumed were his family.

I stood there, awe-struck by the disturbing sight as the dark wizards slowly neared.

I was so terrified that I stood, rooted to the spot as Fred grabbed Ginny's hand and pulled her towards the woods, instructing the rest of us to follow.

I didn't even notice as everyone else sprinted off to the cover of the forest, leaving me standing alone and very vulnerable.

My breathing sped up rapidly and my palms began to sweat. It wasn't until I was nearly hit by a spell from one of the Death Eaters that I was able to snap back to reality—and by that time I could see no one from our group. I started to panic, realizing I was now alone amongst all of the madness going on.

Another spell narrowly missed me as I ducked to keep from getting hit by the blast. I stumbled to get up and run to the forest, but I tripped in my state of terror.

As I was struggling to get back to my feet someone grabbed me from behind, causing me to yell out.

"Get off me! Let me go!" I screamed, terrified.

"Juliet! It's ok, it's me."

I turned around abruptly and was met by the worried features of Cedric Diggory.

"Cedric," I said, my voice shaking.

"Are you ok?" he asked, sounding concerned.

I nodded in return, trying desperately not to panic.

"Let's get out of here," he said hurriedly, glancing back at the Death Eaters who were still making their way in our direction.

He took my hand and pulled me towards the wood quickly. We were pushed and shoved by many others who were fleeing the path of the crazed wizards, but we managed to reach the edge of the forest unharmed. Once we had Cedric turned to me.

"What were you doing out there all alone?" he asked, holding onto my arms.

"I lost the Weasleys," I replied, my breath heavy.

"They left without you?" he said sounding appalled.

"They didn't mean to, it just happened," I answered, "Everything's chaotic, it was hard to keep track of us all."

Cedric nodded in agreement and studied me in the dim lighting. He pushed the hair out of my face and let his hand linger on my cheek.

"Are you sure you're ok?" he asked.

"I'm fine," I replied, feeling anything but fine. I suddenly realized that Cedric too was alone, "Where's your Dad?"

"Helping the Ministry," he told me. He let his hand fall back down to his pocket where he gripped his wand.

"Right."

"So I guess it's a good thing I found you—for both of our sakes," he said, "It wouldn't be very safe to be alone at a time like this."

"Yeah," I replied.

"Wow," Cedric said.

"What?" I asked.

"It's weird seeing you so shaken up," he answered.

I scoffed at him.

"It's weird that you aren't shaken up, look around Ced!"

He smiled weakly at me and pulled me into a hug. I clung to his shoulders and looked out through the gaps in the trees. From there I could see the glowing light emitting from the Death Eaters' wands and the screams could still be heard. Inside the wood things were quieter, but very tense. There were groups of people nearby huddled together and clinging to their families.

"So is this the real deal?" I asked, still being held by Cedric, "Are they actually Death Eaters?"

"Looks like it," Cedric answered, pulling away from me. "Let's go find the trail, maybe we'll be able to track down the rest of your group."

I didn't respond to Cedric, but allowed him to pull me in the direction I assumed would bring us to the trail. It was likely that the others had stuck to it so they would be able to be found by Mr. Weasley later on.

Cedric was leading me by the hand, but I was barely taking into account where we were going. I was sort of entranced. This whole thing seemed somewhat surreal, like I was still dreaming. How could something so fun-filled go so terribly wrong, especially with so many Ministry wizards around? Why would Death Eaters dare make a scene at the biggest wizarding event in the world?

"Why aren't you panicking?" I asked as we trudged through the lantern-lit forest.

We had reached the path when Cedric answered me.

"What good would panicking do?" he asked, still gripping my hand firmly.

I smiled weakly despite myself. Of all the people in the world, I would not have expected to be rescued by Cedric Diggory in my time of need. It's kind of bizarre how much we've been seeing each other lately—even if it is accidental.

The path was littered with cowering wizards. There were so many people waiting for the chaos to die down that I nearly got separated from Cedric several times. Everyone was chattering, some were crying, but no one was screaming any more. There was an eerie vibe running through the wood as everyone stayed quiet, listening for the sounds of the Death Eaters on the other side of the tree line.

We had been walking for at least fifteen minutes—possibly more—when I spotted Fred and George. I tugged on Cedric's arm to get him to stop and pointed my illuminated wand in the direction of the twins.

They were standing just off the path with Ginny between them. Harry, Ron, and Hermione were not there.

I dropped Cedric's hand and the two of us hurried in their direction. My heart was pounding—I hadn't realized how terrified I had been for them.

Fred, George, and Ginny didn't spot the two of us until we were close enough to grab them, and when they did see us they gave a start.

"Julie!" Ginny yelled, running towards me. I hugged her and asked if she was ok. She nodded in return.

Next George enveloped me in a hug.

"Where did you go?" he asked, staring at me with wide-eyes. I could tell he had been worried.

"No where, you're the ones who left," I told him.

"You were right behind us," he said confused.

"I fell behind—Cedric found me," I said, gesturing towards Cedric who was standing behind me awkwardly.

George saw him and nodded, moving away from me. He moved towards Cedric and gave him a slapped him on the back.

"Alright Diggory?" he asked, clearly trying to be friendly. Cedric had just saved his best friend, after all.

"Not bad, and yourself?" Cedric replied.

What George's reply was I don't know, reason being Fred had enveloped me in a hug almost as soon as his brother had stepped away. I was a little shocked by the embrace, mainly because of the fact that we hadn't resolved our feud from the day before.

I didn't say anything, but hugged him back, feeling his body shaking against mine.

"Fred," I started, feeling a little overwhelmed.

"Shh, Julie," he interrupted me, holding me tightly, "I'm sorry."

"What?" I asked. I realized what he was sorry for, but it was the first thing I thought to say in reply.

"I'm sorry about earlier, I was being a git," he replied quietly.

I let out a breathless laugh, "Yeah, you were."

He laughed into my shoulder and straightened up, cupping my face in his hands.

"Don't scare me like that again, ok?" he said, staring at me intently, "Even if I do deserve it. I don't know what I would have done if something had've happened to you…just promise you won't get lost again."

I looked into his worried eyes and felt a surge of emotion. I hate when Fred and I fight. Even if he does confuse the bloody hell out of me he is still my best friend, and it's clear that he does care about me.

"I promise," I replied.

He pulled me close to him again and kissed the top of my head.

"So you're ok?" he asked, ending the hug and holding me at arm's length, surveying me.

"No injuries," I replied.

Fred smiled weakly at me.

"Where's your brother? And Hermione and Harry?" I asked suddenly remembering that they weren't amongst us.

"They got separated too," George replied.

I turned around to face him, Fred dropping his hold on me.

"Did they make it to the forest?" I asked, worried about their well-being.

"They did," Ginny answered, "But where they went from there we don't know."

"So what are we supposed to do?" I questioned, "Just stand here until someone comes to fetch us?"

"Well we're not splitting up if that's what you mean," George answered.

"I'll go look for them," Cedric suggested, speaking up.

"No," I said almost immediately, "No one's leaving alone."

"I can get back easy enough," he told me, "I'll be fine."

"Cedric we should stick together," I told him firmly.

"Julie—"

"No, you shouldn't go."

I turned in surprise to look at Fred when I heard him cut Cedric off. Of all people, Fred would be the last person to encourage Cedric to stay close to our group. I would have expected him to be shoving him back out of the wood by now.

Cedric seemed to notice Fred's odd behaviour toward him, and he agreed to stay because of it.

It was clear to me why Fred told Cedric to stay—it was because of me. If I had needed any more proof that Fred was truly sorry about his behaviour towards me, this was it.

I smiled at him and mouthed: "thank you".

Fred smiled weakly back at me.

Very suddenly the wood all around us erupted in screams. Fred, George, Cedric, Ginny, and I looked around frantically to see what was wrong. Everyone nearby was emitting high-pitched yells of pure terror, and I couldn't figure out why.

It was Cedric who realized what was going on and pointed up at the sky.

The rest of us followed his pointing hand with our eyes. My gaze fell upon a greenish, smoky figure lingering in the sky. It was a skull, and a rather nasty looking one at that and from its hanging mouth a serpent began to flow out. It glittered in the night sky, looking like it was made up of shining green stars. The five of us gaped up at it in horror, but none of us screamed.

Ginny was the first to speak.

"What is that?" she asked, terror dripping from her voice.

Fred, George, Cedric, and I exchanged glances. The boys seemed unsure whether or not to tell her—she might grow even more frightened.

I was the one who spoke up. Ginny's thirteen after all, she's not daft.

"It's the Dark Mark, Ginny," I replied, still staring up at the huge lingering skull situated high above us.

"You mean…" she said softly, clinging onto Fred's arm.

"Yeah," George replied, "Him."

---

The five of us had waited what seemed like hours before we crept back out of the wood. The screams had finally died down and we thought perhaps the coast was clear to head back to the campsite. We hadn't seen or heard from Mr. Weasley or any of the other Ministry members yet, but we assumed they would still be busy sorting through all of the mess. So, when the other lingerers began moving back towards their campsites, we opted to go as well.

We had told Cedric to stay with us while he waited for his father to return. There was no sense in us sending him out alone. For all we knew there could still be dark wizards about. If we were going anywhere we had to go as a group.

Thus, when we managed to find our way back to our tents, we pushed Cedric in with the rest of us.

We were immediately met by Charlie, who looked as though he was about to exit the tent to come and fetch us.

"Oh thank Merlin you're alright," he said after running into Ginny on his way out. He stooped down and hugged his sister tightly, surveying her for any injuries.

The rest of us pushed our way into the space, looking around for the others.

Bill and Percy were seated at the table. Bill was holding a sheet to his arm as it was bleeding profusely. Percy was having a similar problem with his nose.

I hurried over to them, wanting to help in any way I could.

"Jules! Fred, George!" Bill exclaimed, looking up from his injured arm, "Where are the others?"

"We lost track of each other," George explained, "Where's Dad?"

"He left when the Dark Mark was conjured," Charlie replied, "He hasn't come back yet."

It was at this point that Charlie noticed Cedric standing awkwardly amongst us.

"Who's this?" he asked, directing his question to the rest of us rather than asking him directly.

"Cedric Diggory," Percy answered awkwardly. His voice was strained as he was having a difficult time stopping the blood rushing from his nose.

"Oh," was all Charlie said.

"Bill, let me help," I said, assisting in dressing Bill's wound.

"Oww," he said as I pulled tightly on the ends of the bed sheet.

"Well you have to put pressure on it otherwise it will never stop bleeding," I said, fussing over his arm.

"I'm going out to look for the others," Charlie told us.

"I'll come with you," Cedric piped up, "I've got to find my dad anyway."

The two of them prepared to leave the tent, but were spared going any farther as Mr. Weasley, Hermione, Harry, and Ron entered the tent only moments later.

"Cedric, your father's not far, he's just headed back to your camp to fetch you," Mr. Weasley said upon entrance, "I suggest you go to him."

Cedric nodded his thanks and met my eyes. I gave him a weak smile and mouthed a thank you to him before he hurried out of the tent and into the night.

"Did you get them, Dad?" Bill asked as I continued to press down on his injured arm, "The person who conjured the Mark?"

"No," Mr. Weasley replied, "We found Barty Crouch's elf holding Harry's wand, but we're none the wiser about who actually conjured the Mark."

"What?" Bill, Charlie, and Percy asked together.

"Harry's wand?" said Fred incredulously.

"Mr. Crouch's elf?" Percy added in shock.

I looked towards a dishevelled Harry, Hermione, and Ron as they began to retell the story about what had happened. Apparently they had been very near the person who conjured the Mark, but were unable to make out exactly who it was. It had been a male's voice, but when the Ministry arrived to investigate they found no one around but Crouch's house-elf holding Harry's wand (he had managed to drop it in all of the chaos).

Apparently Mr. Diggory, amongst others, was convinced that the house elf was to blame, but it was clear that there had been someone else out there in the woods who had conjured the Dark Mark. Consequently, Mr. Crouch had let his house-elf go due to her apparent disobedience—an unjust punishment if I do say so myself.

"Well, Mr. Crouch is quite right to get rid of an elf like that!" Percy said, having successfully stopped the bleeding from his nose, "Running away when he expressly told her not to…embarrassing him in front of the whole Ministry…how would that have looked, if she'd been had up in front of the Department for the Regulation and Control—"

"She didn't do anything—she was just in the wrong place at the wrong time!" Hermione snapped suddenly, taking us all by surprise. Percy was quite taken aback. Of every one of us Hermione had always been the one who got on best with Percy. They were quite alike after all.

"Hermione, a wizard in Mr. Crouch's position can't afford a house-elf who's going to run amok with a wand!" Percy said pompously.

Hermione looked furious. "She didn't run amok! She just picked it up off the ground!"

The rest of us were silent. Hermione was definitely taking this whole house-elf issue very seriously. I exchanged glances with Fred and George. They sent me identical puzzled looks. Apparently they were just as confused as I was about what any of this had to do with the appearance of the Dark Mark.

"Look, can someone just explain what that skull thing was?" Ron asked impatiently. "It wasn't hurting anyone…why's it such a big deal?"

Fred and George both slapped their foreheads at their brother's idiocy.

"I told you, it's You-Know-Who's symbol, Ron," Hermione explained before the twins managed to point out what a great bloody moron their brother is, "I read about it in The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts."

I heard Bill chuckle slightly at Hermione, and I rolled my eyes, catching his gaze. We shared a small laugh at Hermione's expense. Why is it she must always announce where she acquires her knowledge?

"It hasn't been seen for thirteen years," Mr. Weasley added quietly, "Of course people panicked…it was almost like seeing You-Know-Who back again."

Bill and I stopped chuckling, and Fred and George fell silent as well, no longer mocking their brother's ignorance. The seriousness in Mr. Weasley's tone was enough to sober all of our attitudes.

"I don't get it," Ron continued, "I mean…it's still only a shape in the sky."

"Ron, You-Know-Who and his followers sent the Dark Mark into the air whenever they killed," Mr. Weasley told him. "The terror it inspired…you have no idea, you're too young. Just picture coming home, and finding the Dark Mark hovering over your house, and knowing what you're about to find inside…" Mr. Weasley paused, wincing at the thought. "Everyone's worst fear…the very worst…"

Everyone fell eerily silent—not even noises from outside of the tent could be heard. The realization of the terror that had just occurred sank in.

Bill stirred, removing my hand and the bed sheet from his arm to check on his wound. "Well, it didn't help us tonight, whoever conjured it. It scared the Death Eaters away the moment they saw it. They all Disapparated before we'd got near enough to unmask any of them. We caught the Robertses before they hit the ground, though. They're having their memories modified right now."

"Death Eaters?" Harry asked, "What are Death Eaters?"

I scoffed. I had forgotten how very little Harry actually knew about the Dark Arts and the wizard he had managed to vanquish so many years ago.

"It's what You-Know-Who's supporters called themselves," Bill told him, "I think we saw what's left of them tonight—the ones who managed to keep themselves out of Azkaban anyway."

"We can't prove it was them, Bill," Mr. Weasley said, "But it probably was."

"Yeah, I bet it was!" Ron spoke suddenly. "Dad, we met Draco Malfoy in the woods, and he as good as told us his dad was one of those nutters in the masks! And we all know the Malfoys were right in with You-Know-Who!"

Harry looked confused. "But what were Voldemort's supporters—"

Everybody flinched, including me. I hated to admit that I, like everyone else, had a fear of that name. I had always avoided saying it, even though I was ashamed of my fear.

"Sorry," Harry said quickly, continuing, "What were You-Know-Who's supporters up to, levitating Muggles? I mean, what was the point?"

Mr. Weasley let out a hollow, eerie laugh.

"The point?" he asked, "Harry, that's their idea of fun. Half the Muggle killings back when You-Know-Who was in power were done for fun. I suppose they had a few drinks tonight and couldn't resist reminding us all that lots of them are still at large. A nice little reunion for them."

A shiver ran up my spine at the thought of such horrific acts actually being considered fun. The idea of it was disgusting and disturbing.

Seeing that Bill no longer needed my help with his arm as it had stopped bleeding, I moved over to where the twins were seated on a sofa. I pulled my feet up under me and listened intently as the conversation continued. Fred placed his hand over mine and I held onto it tightly.

"But if they were Death Eaters, why did they Disapparate when they saw the Dark Mark?" Ron asked curiously, "They'd have been pleased to see it, wouldn't they?"

"Use your brains, Ron," Bill said, "If they really were Death Eaters, they worked really hard to keep out of Azkaban when You-Know-Who lost power, and told all sorts of lies about him forcing them to kill and torture people. I bet they'd be even more frightened than the rest of us to see him come back. They denied they'd ever been involved with him when he lost his powers, and went back to their daily lives…I don't reckon he'd be over-pleased with them, do you?"

Ron considered Bill's argument—he had a point. At least the rest of us, although against You-Know-Who, have never done anything to betray him. I certainly wouldn't want to be one of the followers facing his wrath if he were to return to power. Certainly he would have no mercy.

"So…whoever conjured the Dark Mark…" Hermione started slowly, "were they doing it to show support for the Death Eaters, or to scare them away?"

"Your guess is as good as ours, Hermione," Mr. Weasley said, "But I'll tell you this…it was only the Death Eaters who ever knew how to conjure it. I'd be very surprised if the person who did it hadn't been a Death Eater once, even if they're not now."

There was a long pause in the conversation where my grip on Fred's hand tightened even more. In such a short period of time all of the carefree joy that had been coursing through the group of us had been wiped away and replaced with blood-curdling terror.

"Listen, it's very late, and if your mother hears what's happened she'll be worried sick. We'll get a few more hours' sleep and then try and get an early Portkey out of here," Mr. Weasley told us.

We all agreed and reluctantly began to ready ourselves for bed once again. Hermione, Ginny, and I did not return to the girl's tent, but opted for sleeping on the floor. None of us were willing to separate ourselves from the others after such a horrific night.

Thus, the three of us girls began setting up our makeshift beds on the floor. We were stopped, however, by Fred and George.

"Take our beds," George told us, "We'll sleep on the floor."

I began to protest, but Fred silenced me, placing a hand over my mouth.

"Julie," he said sternly, "Just do it."

I nodded and let out a sigh, giving Fred a tight hug before he and George arranged two sleeping bags neatly on the floor.

So, with Fred and George's two beds pushed together and Hermione and Ginny sleeping next to me, the lights were put out and I settled in to what was sure to be a sleepless night.