Disclaimer: If I owned Ginny, Fred, George, or any other characters mentioned in this short fic, I wouldn't be on this website! I would have a life…a boyfriend…a manicurist…an island…shall I go on or do you want to read this?
Author's Notes: What really happened when Fred, George and Ginny got separated from the other three when the chaos of the campsite overcame the campers at the Quidditch World Cup? This is how I picture it to be. Oh, and I'm sorry for all of you Draco lovers out there, I swear I'm one too! But I envision him to be arrogant, annoying, and frankly evil in this. So that's what he'll be like here. I also know that I don't have the same writing style as JK. Deal. And last but not least, the italicized text at the beginning and end is from JK Rowling's 'Goblet of Fire', not my own words. Should that have been in a disclaimer?
~Raven Black~
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…The crowd beneath the Roberts family was coming ever closer.
'C'mon,' said Fred, grabbing Ginny's hand and starting to pull her towards the wood. Harry, Ron, Hermione and George followed. They all looked back as they reached the trees. The crowd beneath the Roberts family was larger than ever; they could see the Ministry wizards trying to get through it to the hooded wizards in the centre, but they were having great difficulty. It looked as though they were scared to perform any spell that might make the Roberts family fall.
The coloured lanterns that had lit the path to the stadium had been extinguished. Dark figures were blundering through the trees; children were crying; anxious shouts and panicked voices were reverberating around them in the cold night air.
"Fred let me go!" Ginny squealed indignantly as he dragged her through the wood, George panting behind them.
"Not until I'm sure we're safe Gin, all right? Shut up for a moment," he yelled over his shoulder as they ran.
"Right he is Ginny; we have to make absolutely positive!" George bellowed to her. Ginny looked over her shoulder at the illuminated and horrific campsite, and blanched as the youngest child in the Roberts family started spinning fifty feet up. Wrenching herself from her brother's tight grip she ran to a tree and retched violently, shaking. Fred winced and looked away. George finally caught up and grinned boyishly at his achievement before seeing what Ginny was doing and paling.
"Gods Gin, do you really have to do that?" he muttered, wiping his forehead with his jumper sleeve. She nodded, getting up, very pale.
"It's sick what they're doing out there," she said quietly, rummaging in her robes for a tissue. Fred handed her one silently and leaned against the tree, arms crossed, his usually grinning face somber.
"Yeah it is, they all have some twisted sense of humour. At least our jokes are funny, right George?" George winked and nodded, but he too looked angry and pale. All of a sudden, Ginny gasped. The twins jumped.
"Where're the others?" she said frantically, looking around. George bit his lip and Fred frowned.
"Dunno…I reckon we must have lost them somewhere back there." He waved his arm behind him, and looked at George as if asking a question. George understood immediately and nodded.
"Right, we have to go back there and find them…if they get hurt-" George gulped and Ginny nodded as well.
"Okay, let's go." She turned to go but Fred caught her by the shoulder and shook his head.
"Not you little missy, this is for us big boys." Ginny scowled; she was thirteen for crying out loud! Knowing that she wouldn't win this battle by arguing, she sighed and sat on the ground hugging her knees.
"Oh all right then. I suppose I'll just sit here by myself and wait for you shall I?" She chanced a peek at their faces, and inwardly congratulated herself.
"You really know how to get us to agree with you don't you?" Fred asked groaning and helping her up with her hand. "Got that from us, you won't find Percy or Ron being able to do that, no siree." Ginny grinned slightly and they started jogging to the spot that Fred had pointed out.
Ginny's hair kept getting in her way and she tucked it behind her ear impatiently. If they got Ron, or Hermione, or Harry…her eyes narrowed as she ran and she soon got ahead of her twin brothers. Weasleys are built one of two ways: short and stocky (Fred, George, Charlie) or tall and lanky (Ron, Percy, Bill). She was the latter; fortunately for her, it meant that she could run faster. Dodging all of the branches and roots, she arrived breathless in a small clearing. Ginny looked around wildly, but with one sickening jolt of reality she knew that they weren't there. She stamped her foot in frustration and bit her lip, waiting for her brothers to show up.
"More Weasleys? Damn, I thought I was done for the night," came the cold, unpleasant voice. Ginny froze and then slowly pivoted on the spot. None other than Draco Malfoy stood behind her, leaning against a tree like Fred had done before, but all the tension that Fred had worn was absent from Malfoy's smirking face.
"What do you want?" Ginny asked coldly, wishing hard that Fred and George would turn up soon.
Draco shrugged. "Nothing. I was just commenting on my horrendous luck of having to encounter more than one Weasley tonight, that's all." Ginny's heart leapt.
"So my brother was here!" she said triumphantly.
"Well…which brother are you after?" he asked, laughing slightly, nastily. Ginny scowled.
"Ron."
"Oh yes, him," Draco remarked with all the excitement and liking with that of something the dog left for him to step in. "Yeah he was here, but not anymore…thank God." Ginny smiled with pure delight.
"Which direction did he go in then?"
"Don't know why I should tell you, Weasley. Why don't you just go off like a good little girl and have a tea party or whatever it is you little girls do?" he sneered. Ginny's small hands balled up into fists.
"I'm not going anywhere for the moment," she said, and at that instant came a shrill scream from Mrs. Roberts at the campsite. Ginny closed her eyes trying to ignore it.
"Trying to pretend it's not happening?" Malfoy said softly. "I can assure you it is; how about I show you?" He suddenly got off of his tree and came towards Ginny. She squealed with fright and started backing away but he caught her by the shoulders and brought her to the gap he had been watching through. Thrusting her face into it, he whispered, "See Weasley? We're coming back. Too bad there's nothing you can do about it." Ginny watched in mortified fascination as a masked figure raised its wand and a wizard that was running away started floating up and down like a merry-go-round horse. She blanched and closed her eyes.
"Get the HELL off of my sister Malfoy!" Fred and George came crashing through the brush panting, and Fred was looking murderous. "Wow Gin can you run though!" Malfoy abruptly let her go and she fell on the forest floor trembling with terror.
"Just showing her the truth," he said, eyes glinting with spite.
"Don't let me catch you near her again or I will personally make sure you can no longer be near anyone," George said menacingly and Malfoy gave a short laugh.
"Was that a threat Weasley?"
"I'd say so. Get out of my face," Fred replied angrily, wand out. Malfoy shrugged.
"Might as well. It's getting boring here anyway…see you all at school then." Smirking, Malfoy left the clearing. All three Weasleys looked after him with hatred before George knelt down next to Ginny and wrapped a brotherly arm around her.
"You all right Gin?" She nodded and wiped the back of her hand over her eyes to get rid of the tears. "'Cause if he did anything to you…anything at all…" George narrowed his eyes and Ginny shook her head.
"It's fine. I'm fine. Let's get back to the tent, please, maybe the others have already made their way back by now," she said pleadingly. The twins hesitated, but nodded simultaneously and each took one of her arms hoisting her up. "Hey watch it!"
"Let's go," Fred whispered commandingly and Ginny and George obeyed instantly. They walked silently around the campsite which was now starting to slightly calm down. Before they had gone 10 paces however, a brilliant green light filled the sky and they all fell in astonishment.
"What is that?" Ginny asked chokingly. Fred and George shook their heads wide eyed and all three rolled over and propped themselves up on their elbows looking into the forest. Ginny let out a bloodcurdling shriek at the sight; a monstrous green skull with a snake as its tongue. Fred and George blanched considerably and Fred gripped Ginny's arm very tightly.
"It's okay Gin, shh; let's get back to the tent all right?" Ginny gasped for air through her sobs and buried her head in Fred's robes crying hard. Utterly bewildered, George got up shakily and dusted himself up offering a hand for Ginny to grab. She looked up and took a deep breath, grasping George's hand firmly. He pulled her up and Fred did the same. Taking one last petrified look at the apparition above the trees they sprinted off towards where their tent was.
The campsite was in utter pandemonium. The cloaked figures were Disapparating everywhere, the 'pop's of disappearance littering the night as Ministry officials ran after them in a complete frenzy. The three didn't stop to watch, they just kept on running, up the hill to reach the incredibly welcome sight of two shabby tents and a very old wooden sign. Putting their hands on their knees to catch their breath, they doubled over and panted.
"Ginny! Fred! George!" Their heads snapped up and a huge smile broke out on Ginny's face as she ran forward into her older brother's arms. The twins grinned in relief.
"Charlie old boy! Lively night we've had here eh?" Fred remarked casually, and Charlie rolled his eyes at them over Ginny's red hair.
"Get inside, both of you! We've been worried sick," he said firmly, planting a kiss on Ginny's forehead before guiding her into the boy's tent. Percy and Bill sat at the table looking worried and drawn out. Bill had a bed sheet on his arm and the blood could be seen seeping through it; Percy's nose was bleeding as well. They jumped up at the sight of their siblings and a faint smile appeared on their lips.
"Thank God!" Bill said happily, drawing all three of them into a giant bear hug. Ginny giggled and the twins groaned as he set them down. "Are you three all right?"
Fred nodded. "As good as we can be I guess. Gin got a little sick though, maybe some coffee would help?" Bill nodded and Percy ran over to the coffee mill and took out his wand. There was a tense pause as the coffee brewed away and Charlie drummed his fingers on the tabletop. Everyone sat down again, and Percy came around with the coffeepot, pouring some into mugs for those who wanted them. Ginny took hers in her hands gratefully and sipped it up gingerly. George looked anxiously over their heads outside for a sign of the others but sighed when he saw nothing.
"Do you think they're all right?" Ginny whispered, breaking the quiet. Bill looked up and tried to grin.
"Of course they're all right!" he said, sounding remarkably as fake as Lockhart had two years before. Ginny frowned.
"Tell me the truth please." Bill sighed, along with the rest of them, and pressed the bed sheet on his arm more firmly.
"I don't know." He ran his fingers through his long red hair and leaned back in his chair. "I hope to God they are, but I can't make any promises." Ginny nodded, although a little more pale and gulped down some coffee making a face at the sharp bitterness of it. Charlie got up not able to bear it any longer and went back outside.
"So what happened to all of you?" Percy asked pushing his glasses up his nose and wincing as it was bleeding. The twins took it upon themselves to explain, getting particularly angry when the subject of Malfoy came up. Percy's usually superior expression (as did Bill's jolly one) darkened at the story, but he didn't comment. When they finally got to the part about the green skull Percy nodded. "The Dark Mark. Me, Charlie and Bill Apparated up here about two minutes after it was conjured. We wanted to get up here as quickly as possible, just in case you were already here." As soon as he said this, they all jumped when Charlie's relieved voice traveled into the tent.
"Dad, what's going on?' he called through the dark. "Fred, George and Ginny got back OK, but the others-"
"I've got them here," said Mr. Weasley, bending down and entering the tent. Harry, Ron and Hermione entered after him…
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