A wet, dull November evening greets me as I land at the bottom of a steep hill. I quickly steady myself, waiting for the predictable feeling of dizziness to leave. Once my stomach calms I tighten my cloak around myself and wait patiently for the others to arrive. The sky above is overcast and rain is steadily drizzling down. The students gradually appear in pairs. Most of them are accustomed to travelling by Portkey, but for the few that get Portkey-sick I promptly administer an anti-sickness potion. All present and accounted for we begin to trudge our way through the mud soaked ground, up the hill towards our destination.
There is nothing sinister about the manor as we approach it, nothing to warn inquisitive visitors to stay away. The manor is deathly quiet as we cross over the threshold and enter the impressive hallway. The only sound comes from the rain pounding against the exterior windows and our wet footsteps echoing throughout the rooms. "Lumos," I flash the light from my wand into the gloom. For all the good it does, the corridor ahead remains stubbornly dark. I look back at the rest of the group as they trail in behind me. These students are the newest members of the Order of the Phoenix. They have all recently come of age and this is their first mission for the Order. Their eager faces scan the rooms as we make our way through the maze of hallways, to the ballroom at the heart of the mansion.
This place hasn't been lived in since the owners were killed during a Death Eater attack over five months ago. When I close my eyes I can still see the Dark Mark, hanging over us as we carried out their lifeless bodies. Since then the house has lain empty, undisturbed. Just in case twelve Grimmauld Place is ever compromised, Dumbledore has made this manor one of our new safe houses. Remus Lupin, Alastor Moody, Arthur Weasley and myself, have volunteered to show the twelve young Order members our new safe house.
We enter the ballroom, which is a truly magnificent room with its marble floor and plush furnishings. A long dining table that has been pushed to the far side of the room could easily fit twenty wizards around it. Just like my own parents' ballroom, I can imagine the lavish parties this room has held. "Right everyone, listen up," Moody's voice pulls my attention back to the group. Moody moves to the front of the room, his wooden leg scraping loudly against the marble floor "This is not a field trip; Order business is not to be taken lightly… constant vigilance!" I watch the old Auror as he captivates the children's attention with his barking voice and distinct appearance. Shamefully my own attention drifts easily once again from Moody's growling voice. I look up at the elaborate crystal chandelier suspended above us, apart from our wands, the only source of light in the room. I start to walk around the group. Passing Remus I roll my eyes and nod my head towards Moody, Remus smiles at me in silent agreement to Moody's tedious speech. I wander over to the other side of the room, a grand piano covered in a thin layer of dust stands abandoned. I ghost my fingers over the ivory keys; it's been a long time since I played. The hand-carved mahogany is decorated with flowers in mother of pearl and semi-precious stones. The grandiosity of what I'm looking at stirs childhood memories of practicing diligently with my instructor. Music would spread throughout my veins the same way magic does.
I jump at the sound of apparitions popping multiple times around the room. My wand is at my side but I don't move fast enough. "Expelliarmus," it leaps from my grasp. I don't have time to react as I'm grabbed from behind and pulled tight against a body behind me. I instantly freeze, too shocked to attempt to break free. I watch as over thirty hooded figures in skeletal masks appear from the shadows, surrounding everyone from all angles, wands drawn. The large, obviously male, body holding me captive is pressed firmly against my back. His left arm is wrapped around my chest, pinning my arms to my side. I feel him lean forward, his mouth close to my ear. The heat from his lips tickles my skin. His voice is low and deep. "Struggle" he whispers. I gasp as I recognise the voice of Severus Snape, my colleague and friend. Even in the confusion, as shouts of alarm fill the room, I feel safer in his presence. Immediately Snape yanks my arm painfully behind me and sneers quietly, "you need to do exactly what I say. Start struggling now!" The pain reverberating up my arm snaps me out of my stupor. I start to struggle against him. It doesn't take much acting on my part; friend or not Snape is a formidable man.
My eyes snap over to the children as I hear screams and shouts of fear. Standing in the middle of his followers is the terrible figure of the Dark Lord. The sight of him is as repulsive as it could be. He appears proudly amongst us, his mere presence filling me with more fear and disgust than I would have ever imagined possible. I have never laid eyes on him before. Even with all the stories I've heard, his appearance is still shocking. He is tall and thin, with the whitest skin I have ever seen and a large smile on his reptilian face. I try not to stare as he stalks around us; his joyless voice is triumphant at how easy members of Dumbledore's Order have been to capture. I make eye contact with Remus across the room; his shocked expression mirrors my own. Our guards were down and in disbelief we have allowed ourselves to be overpowered so easily. Voldemort's manic laughter rings in my ears and echo's around the room. His gaze, when it falls on me, is long, steady and intense. My heart stops at his mere presence. What feels like minutes is only seconds and then he's gone.
When I've got my breathing back under control I can hear him intimidating the children, presuming he can bully them into submission. I keep my face purposely blank as I scan the room quickly but there's no obvious way to get everyone out safely. Each Order member has had their wand confiscated and is being forcibly restrained by one or two Death Eaters. The only Order member with a slight advantage here is me. Unlike some of my colleagues I have no doubt of Snape's loyalty to the Order. However scary the situation, I trust Snape will do whatever he can to aide me in getting everyone out. The question is how much can he do without showing his hand. I continue scanning the room, praying for inspiration. Voldemort's ranting is getting louder and louder, I hear screams as Harry Potter is thrown to the ground. I wonder if Snape can feel my heart pounding in fear. Suddenly Snape's long fingers grasp around my neck. Not enough to choke me but the pressure still makes my eyes water. He turns my head to the side, his dark eyes through the holes in his Death Eater mask fix upon my mine. My breath catches as he slips easily into my mind. I have experienced Legilimency many times but never like this. Snape's intrusion feels like ice water flowing its way to every part of my brain. No wonder he is the perfect Dumbledore spy, he is without a doubt the most skilled Legillimens I have ever encountered. It only takes seconds for my mind to be fully invaded. Images start to fly and flip behind my eyes. The pictures Snape plants in my head, fly and shift like a kaleidoscope. I try my best to grasp onto them but in panic they disappear before I can make sense of them. Suddenly the images began to slowly focus. An image of a chandelier sways precariously above me. As it fades shards of glass fly through the air, cutting into my skin as I desperately try to shield myself against the pain that never comes. Then I'm plunged into darkness. Just as quickly as he entered my mind he's gone. My vision clears and my thoughts are my own again. The chandelier is still above us. Nothing has changed but thanks to Snape, I know what I have to do.
"I'm ready," I whisper. I feel Snape pull me closer, he covers me quickly with his long Death Eater cloak as his other hand moves to the middle of my back. My face flushes as I become aware of the heat of him against me. Then his hand is slipping something into my back pocket, my wand! "Now!" he whispers in my ear. I break myself from his hold and brandish my wand in his direction, throwing a curse which knocks him to the ground. The whole room's attention is on me. I aim my wand at the chandelier, praying to Merlin that Snape's plan works, "Diffindo." The noise is deafening as glass and metal crash down around us. I brace myself on the floor, as glass shatters in all directions. Seconds pass and an eerie silence settles over the room. I take a deep breath and then I'm up and running, glass crunching under my feet. I dodge the curses Snape throws my way; he can't make this easy on me. I send stunners in all directions, trying to hit as many Death Eaters as I can to free their captives. The dark room lights up with every curse and counter curse. I fire spell after spell at the Death Eaters closing in. In the confusion Remus has wrestled himself away from his Death Eater and is running alongside me, shooting hexes at the Death Eaters surrounding us. "Lead everyone out of the east entrance and get them straight to the portkey" Remus yells at me. "I'll hold them off." I nod, as he turns back. I quickly duck behind the now upturned dining table. The large table is the perfect shield as I try my best to catch my breath. Carefully I peer around to see the room is in chaos. I search quickly for Voldemort but he is no longer here. I assume he's quickly retreated, his corporal body too weak to risk harm. I can't make out Snape amongst the Death Eaters. I hope he's ok. I wonder if Voldemort has summoned him to assist in his retreat. Remus is efficiently helping the students, pointing them in my direction. Counting to three I take a deep breath and re-join the fray. After several minutes of fighting I have seven students running with me. "Stay close!" I yell as we run through the corridors and out of the front door.
I can hear the thud of footsteps behind me; I turn to see two Death Eaters are following close behind us. "Faster!" I yell at the others. My legs protest as we pick up the pace and start running down the hill. The ground is so wet I can feel myself losing my footing but I can't risk slowing down. The Death Eaters are gaining on us, moving closer and closer. Then a jet of light hits me in the back, knocking the breath from my lungs. I stumble and skid before falling onto the wet ground. I try to get back up but I can barely get enough air into my lungs. It feels like fire in my chest where my lungs should be. One of the children I think its Longbottom, starts to run over to help. I shake my head frantically at him. "No keep going." The pain in my back is becoming too intense. Scared I'll pass out at any minute, I desperately try to move. Grabbing tufts of grass between my fingers I try to drag myself up to my feet but my body has lost all strength. Afraid I'll cause myself further injury but quickly running out of options I curl my body up and push myself to roll the rest of the way down the hill. As I pick up speed I fling out my arms to try and grab on to anything to slow myself. Suddenly my head hits a rock. I lay on the ground my head smarting from the pain. I can hear footsteps approaching me. I still myself against further assault but instead I am carefully picked up off the ground. My vision blurs as darkness takes me.