Chapter 14: A Downward Spiral

Just mere hours after he had fallen asleep, Dudley shot out of bed, awakened by what sounded like a gigantic clap of thunder. His heart had skipped a beat in shock. The enormous noise was followed by a large crackling, hissing sound, like someone had turned a telly onto a static station and cranked the volume up as high as it could go. It was an awful noise that seemed to be surrounding the cabin.

"What the fu-" Dudley gasped, losing his voice as he saw what was transpiring outside his bedroom window.

The once invisible barrier that stood many several yards from his window had turned an opaque red. Near the top of its dome like structure, large chunks of the wall were cracking off and fizzling into nothingness. Just outside of the red shield, Dudley swore he saw something black and smoke-like dart across the snowy field. He knew something had to be terribly wrong; a feeling of dread swelled up inside his gut.

"Dudley!" his mother cried, bursting into the room. "Thank goodness you're alright!" she cried, clutching onto him.

"Mum, what's going on?!" Dudley stammered, actually allowing his mother to hug him this time. His mother said nothing, but went pasty white as an especially large chunk of wall sizzled out.

That particular piece must have been like an invisible pillar, because seconds later the entire wall sort of imploded on itself. The rush of magic shattered his window inward, causing his mother to scream and pull him away. Bits of glass littered the floor, the now open hole in the wall let in the bitter cold.

"What the hell is happening?" Dudley's father yelled as he entered his son's room. Dedalus and Hestia were right on his heels.

"Everyone, try and stay calm!" Hestia ordered, "We need to get you out of here as soon as possible, we are under attack."

"Under attack?! You said you people would protect us! I knew we shouldn't have trusted any of your lot!" His father roared, clenching his fists as though he was about to punch the woman's nose in.

Hestia didn't even flinch at the gesture,"Well, you'll have to trust us anyways right now, because your other option is dying at the hands of Death Eaters," her voice cracked as she spoke.

Suddenly, just down the hall, they heard the splintering of wood as the front door was savagely being busted down.

"Quickly, you three get down to the cellar and head for the cellar doors that lead into the back garden, Miss Peters will lead you to safety," Dedalus urged, motioning them down the hall.

"What about you guys?" Dudley asked as they hurried out."We'll keep them busy as long as possible...Miss. Peters, there you are! Take them out through the cellar. Get past the Apparition wards and get them out of here!"

Dudley had to do a double take at the woman had appeared in front of the group. At first glance, he didn't recognize the mop of curly, golden hair, but he could see his friend's dark eyes underneath the blonde bangs she now donned. He wanted to question the disguise, but now was really not the right time.

"I'm not just leaving you both here!" Eve protested from the top of the stairs as the Dursleys ran past her. "I want to fight with you!"

"This isn't up for debate, you have to keep them safe!"

Eve gritted her teeth in frustration, it was obvious that she was not going to convince the small wizard."Where are we supposed to go?!" she asked.

"Anywhere they won't go looking for you! Go!" he cried, pushing her out of the doorway, and down the stairs. Dudley had to catch her a few steps down. Dedalus slammed the cellar door in their faces.

The cellar was incredibly dark. Eve quickly regained her balance and lit her wand up. The light emanated duly throughout the room. She took a few deep breaths before speaking.

"Alright, everyone, quickly and quietly follow me," she whispered. Mr. Dursley was about to protest before Eve slapped a hand over his mouth.

"Shhhhh!" She hissed. There was another loud banging noise coming from upstairs accompanied by shouting. Though he gave her an affronted look, Dudley's father didn't try to say anything. He watched as she gave an involuntary shiver.

Eve waved her wand again, this time a black purse flew out from one of the cabinets and into her hands, she slung it over her arm and motioned for them to follow her.

The group quickly scurried over to the other side of the cellar, Eve made her way to the cellar doors and tapped her wand against its wooden surface. She closed her eyes in concentration.

"Nobody is waiting for us on the other side, good," She was speaking in a voice Dudley was barely able to hear. She waved her wand and the door quietly swung open, exposing them to the harsh winter wind.

"Okay, on my count, we are going to make a dash towards the woods, once there, we'll be outside the Apparition wards and be able to Apparate out of here."

"Are you mad?" his father said in a harsh whisper "That has to be half a kilometer away!"*

"Well, if you have a better idea, I'm all for it," Eve snapped. His father was once again reduced to silence.

"Ready?" she asked them, gripping her wand tightly. "Three...t-"

With a sudden "Bang!" the outside wall of the kitchen crumbled as flames spider-webbed their way out of the gap.

Dudley couldn't remember if Eve had shouted for them the run, but next thing he knew they were hurrying through the snow in their socks and slippers towards the woods. Dudley had never ran so fast in his life. Dudley and his mother raced ahead of the other two, Eve stayed behind his father despite his slow pace.

When he reached the woods, he finally looked at the scene behind him. His mother cried frantically at his side as the flames consumed Marigold Cabin. Eve and his father were still several meters behind them. Dudley's eyes darted back towards the cabin where a cloaked figure stood at the open, fiery gap in the wall. The figure raised its wand at the runners.

"Dad! Eve! Look out!" Dudley shouted as loud as he could before an orange light shout out at the runners.

Quick to respond, Eve transfigured the snow into a shield of ice. The spell hit it, returning it to its previously powdered state. She sent a retaliation of yellow light which the figure easily 's father slipped and fell from fear and struggled to get back up.

Several more flashes of light were exchanged back and forth between the two of them. With each strike, the Death Eater advanced forward. Eve had managed to help his father up as she continued casting spells, trying to keep them at bay. The Death Eater shouted something loudly, sending a shock of emerald light at the two. Eve twisted around to defend the both of them, but succumbed to the slippery snow. The light went shooting over her, hitting Vernon Dursley right in the back. He fell face forward into the snow, unmoving. Dudley didn't want to believe it, but he knew deep inside that his father wouldn't be getting back up.

"Vernon!" Dudley's mother screamed as she attempted to run towards her husband. Dudley found himself instinctively pulling her back. He felt himself go into autopilot; everything sound seemed to deafen, every sight became blurred. He felt as if he was watching somebody else's life, rather than his own. That fallen man wasn't his father, it was somebody else's. Dudley felt his mother struggling and sobbing against him, but he only found himself holding onto her even tighter.

When Eve saw what happened, she let out a horrific cry like a wounded animal. With an impressive amount of agility, she leapt up and threw a ball of dark red light at the enemy. The man screamed and fell to the ground, writhing in pure agony. Whatever spell she had used was powerful, and painful. With another wand motion, the enemy's wand flew into her outstretched hands. She quickly stowed it away in her bag.

After several seconds of waiting to see if the Death Eater would get back up, Eve ran to where his father lay and let out another mournful cry. She stared at him for several moments, bowing her head.

Suddenly, another smoky black cloud zoomed into the sky, sending out a dark flash of magic. Above the cabin a emerald figure of a skull and snake appeared, Dudley recoiled in fear as his mother let out another sob.

The smoky figure was joined by several other ones as they circled the remains of the cabin. Terrified, Eve fled from the clearing and headed straight for the woods, leaving the body of his father behind.

"Wait!" a voice feebly cried out. A small person stumbled from the wreckage. Eve stopped just in front of Dudley and his mother before turning to look back. The small figure struggled through the snow towards them. The flying mists seemed to have heard them cry out.

"Shit! Hold on to me," Eve demanded him. Robotically, he latched both his and his mother's hands onto the witch's free arm.

"Accio, Mr. Diggle!" she cried out. The small figure many meters away came zipping towards them. The injured Dedalus flew into her outstretched arm. The black mists circling the cabin all had directed their attention to the group and changed course, heading straight for them!

Eve closed her eyes in panic. Dudley could hear her mutter to herself.

"Somewhere where they can't find us, somewhere safe...Somewhere where they would never, ever, look..."She said several times as the mists approached the edge of the woods. Eve then turned on the spot.

Dudley once remembered asking the magical residents of Marigold Cabin they felt while apparating after having experienced it only once before. Dedalus claimed it felt like being squeezed through a rubber tube. Hestia insisted it was like being squashed by giant hands, yet Eve swore the sensation was akin to being sucked into a vacuum.

To Dudley, Apparition was none of those things. To him, his body felt frozen between one heartbeat and the next, like going down the stairs and missing a step, causing the body to panic like feeling it was about to fall. Though it was his second time apparating, he was still unprepared for the amount of discomfort that he felt.

Next thing he knew, he landed forcefully onto a carpeted floor. He heard others groan around him. Dudley weakly sat up to observe his surroundings. He had to clutch his stomach as a wave a nausea hit him. He regretted eating that Christmas chili.

They appeared to be in a very small living room. The space was only able to hold a love seat and an armchair. The walls were lined with a few bookshelves and it was lined with a deep red wallpaper that clashed with the multi colored carpeting.

"Who are you people?!" An unfamiliar voice exclaimed from behind them. Dudley turned to find a wand in his face. He stared up at the man in front of him, who appeared to be only a few years his senior. The striped pajamas he wore didn't quite mix with the serious expression on his face and his glasses sat askew on the end of his nose. His curly, vibrant hair almost matched the wall behind him.

Whether, Dudley's nausea was from the Apparition or the traumatic events that had just taken place, he didn't know. What he did know was that his response was him emptying the contents of his stomach onto the feet of the stranger in front of him.

A/N: The plot thickens! There is no going back. Who is the mysterious man that Dudley upchucked on?! Stay tuned for next weeks update!