Chapter 23: Faded

Saturated by Five Mile Town

Elara stumbled as her feet hit the ground of the field just east of the town of Ottery St. Catchpole. She lost her foot, her head still spinning from the sensation of portkey travel and landed on her knees. She hadn't eaten anything but a few wild mushrooms and some berries in days and she was certain that if she had, it would have come up. She took a few slow, deep breaths and pulled herself to her feet, situating her sling back in the crook of her neck and wincing at the pain it caused her shoulder.

Her arm still wasn't healed. She had tried to do healing spells on it, which helped, but the gashes that had been left for a few days before she sewed it back together, were still raw and throbbing. Her arm felt hot most of the time, and she was certain the infection was going to become severe if she didn't get it properly cleaned out and healed.

She was weak. The effort she expended to change the portkey and use it for travel had drained her and she needed to rest. She needed food and sleep and she knew she wouldn't make it over the hill to the Burrow before she got it. She tried to cast a disillusionment charm over herself, and failed miserably. Instead, she settled on transfiguring her hair a different color and hoped that would be enough to not draw any attention to herself as she made her way through the muggle village.

On unsteady feet, she moved as quickly as she could. She finally reached the main village about a half hour later and felt her stomach clench and growl at the smell of warm bread coming from the back of the bakery. She snuck to the back and stared at the building, trying to figure out a way to get some food without paying for it and without stealing it. Although, if she had to steal it, she would.

As if to answer a silent plea for help, the back door opened and a small, old man tossed a bag in the rubbish bin. Elara grimaced at the thought, but then quickly schooled her features and changed her attitude. She would be of no help to anyone if she starved to death before she could get to the Burrow. The trip would be a waste, all the effort she put into making the portkey a total waste of time. She pulled open the bag and nearly cried when she saw three small loaves of bread on top. She swiftly dropped all three loaves into her knapsack and scurried off, trying to find a small alley or abandoned business to hide in.

A few hours later, Elara sat on the hilltop just past where the wards would be for the Burrow. She could tell they had been broken, she couldn't feel the buzz of magic that usually surrounded the property. She munched on bread, nearly finishing an entire loaf, and drank water from the jar she had been using that had held her almonds.

Just as she looked down to brush the crumbs from her jumper and to pull a blanket from her knapsack, she heard two distinct pops of apparition. She froze for a moment, before quickly crawling behind a boulder and peeking over the top of it. As her vision focused, the clearest it had been in days now that she had eaten something, it was her emotions that surged.

Amusement. Curiosity. Chicanery. Delight.

Her heart nearly stopped in her chest as she gasped, narrowing her eyes at the gates just past the apparition point to the Burrow. There, walking in quick, bouncing, unified steps were two tall, lanky, identical red heads. She watched as they walked through the gates and into the house.

She scrambled to her feet and sprinted down the hill, trying to be sure to keep her footing so she didn't tumble. She knew her arm couldn't possibly take any more damage without it becoming permanent and she also knew it would not look good for her to break an ankle, having no real way to mend it.

She slowed her pace and dropped back to all fours, crawling under the fence surrounding the property and scurrying to crouch beside the shed by the small pond. She stared at the house, willing them to come out so she could get a look at them. Were they living here? Were the Weasley's all still here? If they were, why weren't the wards up? Had she just been too weak to feel them? Why hadn't-

"You think mum will care that we're coming back to take supplies?" George's voice came from the back step, just outside the door, effectively cutting off her thoughts.

Fred appeared at the door, clapping his twin on the back. "They won't miss it! Not like anyone's been here in months. Besides, we have a business to run!"

"Shop hasn't been open, Freddie."

"No, it hasn't! But that doesn't mean it won't be! Besides, how are we supposed to go into hiding at great Auntie Muriel's when half the family is there? There's no room!"

"I think that Ghoul in Ron's room must have ran off anyone who wanted to turn the place over." George laughed, "How stupid do you have to be to think a Ghoul is a wizard with Spattergroit?!"

"How stupid do you have to be to follow that maniac in the first place?" Fred answered.

They walked quickly back to the apparition point just beyond the gates and just as quickly as they had come, they were gone and Elara was staring at the empty spot in disbelief.

Supplies.

Fred and George were coming in and out of the Burrow every evening the last three nights for supplies. They carried a large bag with them, so she wasn't sure exactly what the supplies were, but knowing they were used to three meals a day and plenty of sweets in between those… She was able to guess that it probably meant food.

Last night, she had come close to revealing herself and begging for help. She didn't know what to say or do, but she was so happy to see them, she didn't know if she really cared how it would look. Before she could make up her mind, they had disappeared again. Over the last three days, she watched the Burrow from the shed. She was able to get into it easily, and there was a small window in the front of it. A simple notice-me-not made sure they wouldn't see her staring through the window every time they came.

She wondered why they didn't just apparate into the house, but guessed it must just be habit. From snippets of conversation, she'd been able to deduce that they were still in their flat in Diagon Alley. From what she could tell, they only left to gather more provisions and they were in and out in fifteen minutes flat each time.

Elara decided to talk to them tonight. She needed help finding Harry, Ron, and Hermione and her arm was still badly injured. She would need to be healed and she craved a place to stay and someone to talk to. She had become used to being alone, but that was in the comfort of a Manor with a full belly and a comfortable bed and plenty of things to do. Now? She was struggling to stay above water and every night that she went to sleep, she prayed she would wake up the next day. Elara needed to talk to Fred and George, needed to know if everyone was safe.

Tonight, instead of waiting in the shed, Elara ventured out and stepped through the back door of the Burrow. She was shocked by how it looked. The tables and chairs were broken and turned over, the furniture in the cramped sitting room had been shredded and every picture that had been on the mantle was shattered. She was afraid to go up the stairs and look in the rest of the house, so she stayed on the main floor.

She hoisted herself onto the countertop in the kitchen and pulled her wand from her sling. She heard the two pops, signalling the apparition of the twins, and her heart began to thunder in her chest. She held her wand tight, knowing that there was a good chance they would draw theirs on her.

She smiled at the sound of Fred's laugh as he pushed the door open.

"I haven't heard laughter in months, I didn't realize how much I've missed it," She said.

Just as she suspected, she was met with the business end of two wands. Elara couldn't help but smile at the men standing before her, wands brandished, confused expressions on their faces. She slowly set her wand down on the counter next to her, and raised her one hand up in surrender.

"El-Ellie?" Fred whispered, a look of shock taking over his face.

"Hi. Sorry to just pop in on you, but you did say if I ever needed a place…" Elara trailed off and before she could finish the thought, Fred pulled her from the counter and wrapped her in a hug, George crushing her into Fred from behind.

"We've been so worried about you! Is Harry, Ron and Hermione with you? Are they okay?" Fred asked.

"No, I'm alone. I don't… I think they're okay. But I don't know."

"How did you find us?" George asked. "When did you get here?"

"I've been watching you for a few days now. I made a portkey." She explained. "I am really happy to see the both of you, but you're crushing me."

They both laughed and let her go. Finally, Fred stared at her, looking her over. "We can skip the supplies today. Let's go back to the flat."

"I don't know if I can apparate," Elara said, looking down at her shoulder.

It was then that Fred noticed the sling and his eyes clouded with confusion. "What happened?"

"I splinched myself," She said. "It's not healed, and I think it's infected. I haven't apparated anywhere since it happened, so I don't know if it will split back open or not."

"That's why you made a portkey?" George asked.

She nodded, "Yeah. I had one that Emiliana Zabini gave to me last Christmas. It was unregistered and set to her Tuscany property. I changed it to bring me here."

"Well, let's see it then," Fred said, motioning to her arm.

"I.. I can't just lift my sleeve and show you," Elara explained. "It's rather… well.. I have to take my jumper off and-

"We aren't interested in looking at your… Bits and berries." Fred said.

"Bits and berries?" Elara laughed, "What?"

"Well, you're basically our sister, aren't you? Saying breasts sounds wrong!" George said, "Besides, we can just cut the sleeve off, can't we?"

"I suppose that would be easier, yes." She chuckled. "Do you mind? I'm not confident I won't hurt myself further…"

Fred stepped forward and gripped her waist, hoisting her up to the countertop again, making her eye level with him. Using his wand, he carefully cut through the fabric of the sling. George held her elbow as the fabric released, to offer her shoulder support. Once the sling was out of the way, Fred slowly cut through her jumper, from the collar to the wrist of her left arm and pulled the material from it.

"Oh my…" Fred whispered, his face frantic as he stared at her arm. A pulse of fear shot through him and she felt the same from George. "Ellie, what in the hell happened?"

"I told you, I splinched myself."

"Right, love, we've seen a spinching before. This is… This is bad, Ellie. What is this thread? Why is there thread in your arm?" George said, sounding horrified.

"I got separated from them," Elara whispered, trying to keep her emotions under control. She hadn't talked to anyone for over a month. She hadn't said out loud what happened. "I realized I was splinched, but I didn't… Hermione had most of the medical supplies in her bag. Our healing potions and dittany… She had most of it. I had a few pain potions and two blood replenishers. I took them, but I was still losing a lot of blood. I couldn't stay awake more than a few minutes at a time the first few days…"

She swallowed the lump in her throat and took a slow, shaking breath. She could feel the tears gathering behind her lashes as she tried to fight through the fear of what happened. The realization that she had been separated was tumbling over her like an avalanche and she could feel it starting to crush her again. She didn't have the time to process it while she was alone. She was trying to survive. But now, saying it aloud to Fred and George, the looks of concern and fear on their faces… The usual feelings of mirth and joy replaced with consternation and alarm… It was too much.

"It's okay," Fred whispered, pressing his lips to her forehead. "We can talk about it later. Let's try and get this healed up, yeah?"

She nodded, feeling George place a kiss to her cheek. "I think I still may have some dittany in my room from when my ear got blown off. I'll go check." He said.

"Be quick, Georgie." Fred said, a seriousness in his voice Elara hadn't heard before.

George nodded and sprinted into the sitting room, she could hear him climbing the stairs.

"So the thread?" Fred asked, his fingers ghosting over the poorly stitched wound. "You tried to sew it back together? Like muggles do?"

"I had a muggle book about dentistry in my bag. They have healers just for your teeth, it's what Hermione's parents do. It's actually fascinating, they have these little tools that are made to drill holes into your teeth and they fill them with silver to-

"Ellie, as interesting as muggle teeth healers sound, I need to know what you did to your arm." He interrupted. "You can tell me all about debiss tree later."

"Dentistry," She corrected, a sheepish smile on her face. "Right. Yeah. Well, in the book there's a section about stitching the wounds closed. I read over it and used a clasp off my bag for the needle and thread from a set of robes I had on. I did what I could to sterilize and keep it clean but I haven't been able to take a proper shower in over a month. I've been sleeping on the ground and I haven't eaten much…"

"So your magic is weakened," Fred said, understanding. "That's why these healing spells you attempted look so botched."

She nodded, biting into her bottom lip to hold back the tears again. George bounded back into the room, several small bottles in his hands. He lined them all on the counter and handed a phial to Ellie.

"Pain relief," George said. "I assume you could use it."

Elara smiled gratefully, and pulled the stopper from the phial. She emptied it into her mouth and within moments, the dull throbbing in her arm had subsided. She sighed audibly in relief and nodded to them. "Thank you," She said.

"This is probably going to hurt quite a lot," George said. "I apologize in advance."

Elara shifted on the counter and gave a nervous look to Fred. He attempted a smile that looked more like a grimace and he grabbed her hand. Together, Fred and George began to work on her arm, using their wands to remove the thread that was half healed into her flesh. She gasped, biting into her lip as she tried to stifle the sob that was working its way through her chest. They tugged and sliced at her arm, with every second passing, she could feel the sliding of the thread in her skin.

Her stomach rolled in on itself and she felt the bile rising up her throat, burning her mouth as she shook with sobs, her face buried into Fred's shoulder. His shirt muffled her screams as both Fred and George apologized and cooed at her relentlessly. Her chest heaving in deep breaths as she tried to steady the swimming of her head. She vaguely wondered how terrible this would have been had she not taken the pain relief potion beforehand.

After what felt like an eternity, Fred began soothing small circles into her back. "Georgie's healing you now with a spell, okay? Almost there, love."

She nodded against his chest, wetting the fabric of his shirt with her tears. "I-I-I think I c-can f-feel it getting… unnghhh… b-better," She sobbed.

"You're doing so good, darling. I'm almost done, yeah? Lucky my ear got blown off! I learned all kinds of new healing spells after that, just in case. Okay, steady breaths, love. I'm gonna drop some dittany on it now. It's going to burn, but you know that already, don't you?"

She nodded, "Y-yes."

"Tell me about your muggle teeth healing book," Fred said. "Tell me why they need teeth healers!"

"We use m-magic to deep clean our t-teeth. We brush, like muggles do, but the t-toothpaste we… unnnghh th-that burns!"

"What about their toothpaste?"

"Our toothpaste is m-magically made, so the pro-properties are d-different. Muggles use a combination of...oww… Chemical com-compounds. Our teeth are stronger...ahhh… Shit.."

Fred and George both laughed, "It must hurt if it's got you swearing!" Fred said.

"Shut up!" She said, petulantly.

"All done!" George said.

She cried out loudly, relief washing over her at the absence of burning in her arm. She took a few deep breaths, trying to steady herself before speaking again. "Thank you," She whispered. "It feels a lot better now."

"It was pretty nasty, El. Infected and the thread was embedded in your arm. It's going to leave a very nasty scar," George said, his tone apologetic.

"I don't care," She said. "As long as it's healed and I can use my arm again, I don't much care what it looks like."

Fred smiled, helping her off the counter and tucking her hand into the crook of his elbow. "While we're at it, let's change your hair back, yeah? This mousy brown is okay, but it's not quite the same, is it?" He joked, tapping his wand to her head and muttering finite to turn her hair back to the platinum white blonde.

"I forgot I even transfigured it," She admitted. "It's been a long few weeks."

"Let's get back to the flat, you can get some food-

"And a shower!"

"And tell us about what happened," They said in unison.

It took some serious thought for Elara to figure out what she wanted to do first. Shower or Eat? Finally, she decided a shower while George warmed up their dinner would be best. The moment the hot water hit her back she nearly moaned from the feel of it, her entire body shivering under the loss of tension in her muscles.

She scrubbed her skin until it was nearly red and washed her hair three times in a row. She hadn't even realized how filthy she felt until the second wash, when she discovered she still had dirt built up on her scalp. Afterall, constant scourgifies can only go so far. Sure, the cleaning spell was enough to keep her from smelling like she hadn't showered in over a month, but it didn't help her from feeling like it.

With her hair still damp and hanging down her back, she slipped on the clean pyjama bottoms and tee shirt Fred left for her. She frowned in the mirror, poking at her ribs that were jutting out from her frame. Her hip bones stuck out at sharp angles and her face was sunken in. Her lips were chapped and her skin dry from lack of nutrition and dehydration. Not that she had much weight to lose to begin with, but now she looked sickly.

She chuckled as she transfigured the bottoms to fit her a little better. The twins were at least a foot taller than she was, and the red bottoms that were adorned with little snitches that zoomed around the fabric were enormous on her. She hoped they wouldn't mind that she altered the clothes.

She exited the bathroom and immediately felt her mouth water at the smell of hot food. She followed the scent to the small table in the kitchen and nearly shouted with joy when she saw a platter of roast chicken with potatoes, carrots, and onions. There was gravy and warm bread and even a salad filled with vegetables.

"Mum sent us with leftovers last night," Fred explained. "We met her at the safehouse to have dinner. We only do it about once a month now, so she always sends us back with loads of extras."

"Oh I miss her cooking!" Elara sighed, taking a seat at the table. "This looks amazing."

"Well tuck in!" George said.

She loaded up her plate and audibly moaned when she took her first bite. Within minutes she cleared her first plate and started on a second, working much slower to not make herself completely sick from eating.

Once they had gotten their fills, and the dishes had been cleared and put away, Elara began to explain what happened at the Ministry, leaving out the locket being the main reason they went. She explained there was an item they needed to get that was being held there, and did not divulge more. Thankfully, Fred and George didn't pry. She told them about what happened once she woke up from being splinched, gave them more details about where she landed and what she did over the last month.

In return, they explained to her everything that has happened since she, Ron, Harry, and Hermione left the Burrow on the first of August. She learned that all of the Order was set up in safe houses throughout England and Scotland. That both Bill and Mr. Weasley were no longer working, but staying in hiding and trying to help the Order where they could. The twins were helping Kingsley and Remus pass information to Lee Jordan who was running a program called Potterwatch.

"Wait… Could you… Could you pass a message along for me?" Elara asked, "On Potterwatch? Could you put it out there that I'm alive?"

Fred frowned, his brows knit together in thought. "I don't think it would be safe to just say 'Oi, Ellie Malfoy is still alive!' But, if you… You could come on the broadcast. Say a few words under a code name, if they're listening, they'll know your voice."

"You'd let me come along?" She asked.

"Yeah, of course," He said. "We broadcast from Andromeda's. She'd love to have you there, I'm sure. It's probably a lot safer for you there, anyway. I'll come up with a nickname for you, we'll head over tomorrow! It's been awhile since we've sent a new broadcast out."

The rest of the evening was spent with Fred and George sharing a few new product ideas with Elara and showing her how to brew a decent pain relief potion and the dampening potions. She was thankful to have the dampening potion again. Being isolated for over a month had made the pick up of emotions around her extremely sensitive and by the time she settled onto the bed they transfigured from the sofa, her head was pounding.

After a spot of breakfast and loading her up on potions to keep in her bag, Fred and George took Elara sidealong to Andromeda's home. It was a small cottage that sat nestled in a thicket of trees and shrubs, well off the beaten path where anyone would find it. The wards held strong, extended out at least fifty meters from the edge of the property and only when they slinked through the magic surrounding the gates did a shocked Remus Lupin meet them at the end of the path leading to the cottage.

"Elara?" He asked, the confusion and uncertainty he was feeling evident on his face. "How… You shouldn't have been able to get through the wards."

"I sent a patronus to Andy last night and told her we'd be bringing her!" Fred said.

"No," Remus said, putting both palms up in defense. "No, it's not that.. She's marked. That's why I was coming out to meet you, she shouldn't have been able to get through the wards with the dark mark."

"Better adjust your wards, mate." George said, "You know she's not going to hurt anyone, but if someone else-

"Wait!" Elara said, a surge of something hopefully tearing through her chest. "You know… I haven't felt the Mark since I was splinched."

"You were splinched?" Remus asked.

"A right awful splinching, at that," Fred said. "Sewed her arm back on the muggle way."

"You what?!" Remus nearly shouted.

"It doesn't matter!" Elara said, smiling as she looked down at her arm. "I… I have a theory… Fred, do you remember what I told you about blood-letting?"

"Blood-letting?" Remus asked, his eyebrows pulling together as concern trickled into his voice. "The muggle concept? Bleeding out infection?"

"Yeah," She said. "I found an old text that showed that blood-letting could hypothetically remove dark magic as well. In theory, dark magic that is unwillingly accepted is nothing more than an infection of the magical core. So, by seeping out the magic…"

"That day I saw you at Grimmauld Place, your arm was bleeding. Is that what you were doing?"

She nodded, "Yes. Yes, it was."

"That's dangerous, Elara. You could cut too deep, you could bleed out."

"I didn't. But when I splinched myself, I almost did. I only had two blood replishers. I bled a lot, but up until that point, I've felt the Mark burning in my skin every day. I thought… I thought maybe I couldn't feel it because my arm was so badly injured, that I was only feeling the splinch. But…" Elara trailed off, pulling up the stained sleeve of her jumper and unclasping the emerald bracelet that was wrapped around her wrist.

When she looked down at her left forearm, she gasped in shock.

The Mark was still there, but instead of a writhing, inky black twist against her skin… It faded into her arm like a scar. Charcoal grey with small gashes running through it from where she had experimented with her own ideas of bleeding it out.

"It worked!" She gasped, looking up between the three men. "It worked."

Remus grabbed her wrist, pulling it closer to him to get a better look. He ran a hand gently over it, feeling the bumpy scars of the diffindos she had cast into her own flesh. He looked at her, his mouth slightly ajar and his eyes wide. "It worked," He laughed, a loud booming laugh. "It worked. Elara, I have never seen a Death Eater that had been able to rid themselves of their mark! It would quite literally take cutting your own arm off to seep the magic out!"

"Well apparently splinching your arm nearly off and sewing it back together the muggle way works just as good. Although I'm not sure I'd recommend that pain to anyone," She laughed.

"You brilliant girl!" Remus said, pulling her into a hug. "You brilliant girl! Blood-letting is such an ancient ideal, for you to even try… I'd reckon doing it in controlled settings, weeping the dark magic directly from the Mark before you ever even got splinched, had a lot to do with it!"

"I could always see a strange… I don't know exactly. Smokiness? Glimmer? The blood was different when it wept from the Mark. The splinching must have just been enough to bleed the rest of it out in one go."

"I know I said it was barmy, Ellie, and I stand by that. But, I am glad it worked. It's one less control they have over you. One less tie to him." Fred said, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and ushering her forward.

Entering the cottage, her shoulders felt lighter than they had in months. The fear that eventually she would no longer be able to resist the pull from the Mark had eaten at her while she was with Harry at Grimmauld Place. The last month, she had thought of it only fleetingly as she struggled to survive. But now, to know it was one less thing to worry about. She felt a relief that she had been longing for.

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a/n: Thanks for reading! Wanna connect? Add my FB group! Mimifreed Writing

I apologize for the delay with this chapter! My sister is enlisted in the Marines and her send off party was yesterday, so I was busy with that all day. By the time I got home I was 1. Very drunk, 2. Very emotional, and 3. Very tired. So editing and posting was just not in my ability lol But, I hope you enjoyed the chapter! Please review!

xo

Mimi