Light

It is still light as Bill Apparates to Hogsmeade and walks up to the school, but he has no attention to spare for the glorious summer sky or for the sun sending long shadows in front of him as he walks. He is preoccupied, worried about Fleur's unexpected reaction to the message requiring his presence at Hogwarts. It as not as if the request is unprecedented; there have been several times this year when Dumbledore has had to leave the school and has called for Order members to provide extra security in his absence. Without exception, every previous occasion has proved uneventful, even boring. There is no reason at all to expect that this time will be any different.

But Fleur's response to McGonagall's Patronus asking him to come to Hogwarts was almost hysterical. She cried and pleaded with him not to go, pouring forth a torrent of French that he found practically impossible to understand. She thought something was going to happen to him, that much he understood, but he did not understand why. There was no reason to think such a thing, and her reaction was unlike her. He is not worried for himself as he walks up to the school in the glorious evening light, because he does not think that Fleur's fears have any foundation, but he is worried for her, on her own and fretting about nothing.

Professor McGonagall meets him in the Entrance Hall; Lupin and Tonks are already there. They split up to patrol the corridors, and to cover the entrances to the secret passageways into the school. Even on this brightest of summer evenings, the corridors are dim, lit only by the flickering of torches. It is very quiet, the students all in their common rooms or dormitories. It looks as if it will be another uneventful evening.

But after an hour of patrolling, the band on Bill's wrist glows blue, calling him to meet the others in an upper corridor. Ron and Ginny are there, with another boy Bill thinks he should recognise but whose name he cannot remember, talking to Lupin and McGonagall, who both look serious. It seems there are Death Eaters in the school, although it is unclear how they have gained entry. Lupin is telling Ron and the others to go to their common room, to leave this to them, and Ron is – predictably – arguing the point. Bill is about to back Lupin up – there is no way he wants his kid brother and sister involved in fighting Death Eaters – but it is too late. Hooded figures emerge from the dark corridor behind them and they are suddenly fighting for their lives, Order members and students alike.

It is dark, and curses are flying all around them. Bill hears Ron swearing loudly somewhere to his left, but he has no idea where Ginny is. Ridiculously, while he should be concentrating fully on battling the brawny Death Eater who seems immune to every curse and jinx Bill throws at him, a small part of his brain is thinking that if anything happens to either his brother or his sister, his mother will never forgive him.

He dodges to avoid the killing curse his opponent has fired at him, trips and falls. As he rolls back onto his feet, he sees Ginny near the foot of the stairs leading to the Astronomy tower, fighting a dumpy female Death Eater. But he sees someone else too. He has come across Fenrir Greyback on a previous Order mission, and knows his reputation only too well. And there is no mistaking the hungry longing look that Greyback is shooting at Ginny. Bill fears that the Death Eater she is fighting will give way to the werewolf and let him have his way with her. Bill shoots an immobilising jinx at his previous adversary, which this time does not miss. Then he turns to intercept Greyback, who is heading for Ginny, his long loping run covering the ground unnaturally fast.

Greyback snarls as the route to his prey is cut off, and he leaps at Bill, who is taken by surprise, having expected Greyback to use his wand. He fires a curse at the werewolf, which misses, and stumbles backwards, half-falling and putting out a hand to save himself. Greyback's weight crashes into him, pinning him to the ground. Bill smells his foul breath, and matted grey hair falls into his face, obscuring his vision. He struggles to free his wand hand, but Greyback has his wrist in a grip he cannot break. Rolling over and kicking at any part of his opponent he can reach, Bill feels sharp teeth tearing at his arm and shoulder, then at his neck and cheek. His cry of pain is stifled by Greyback's hand over his mouth and he feels the werewolf's teeth ripping at his face again. He is weakening, and he fights desperately to remain conscious, but the flames from the torches are blurring and he can no longer see Greyback's face clearly. Dimly, he sees blood on the werewolf's chin and ragged robes and realises that it must be his own. He is aware of Tonks to his right, trying to get past the Death Eater she is fighting to come to his aid. Her voice yelling his name is the last thing he hears as the darkness overwhelms him.