Sorry, I've been away for so long, but I had finals and my computer caught a virus and wouldn't work properly. Anywho, I'm back now and so is Fly Away so enjoy!
Disclaimer: Gee, could it be that I don't own Harry Potter, but that a fabulous woman named JK Rowling does…
When the World Comes Crashing Down
Katie stared blankly at the latest reports on Germany and Stovald. She knew it was important that she be prepared for negotiations with Germany, but she found it hard to focus. Oliver had been gone nearly two weeks, and she was very close to believing she really would never see him again. She forced herself to look at the large stack of parchments.
Germany is one of ten questionable countries. Some believe that the German Minister of Magic, Gunter Stovald, has already joined forces with Dumbledore. There is no direct evidence supporting this theory.
"Great," she muttered under her breath, "send me in to negotiate with someone who possibly wants to kill me."
"Who wants to kill you?"
Katie quickly closed the reports to prevent George from seeing them. Just as the Order's missions were top secret, so were her negotiations. He could not tell her what Fred, Angelina, and Oliver were doing, and she could not reveal her assignments.
"No one," she answered, "It's Blue Flame business."
He nodded understandingly. He knew better than to press the matter further. It would only irritate Katie and put him in danger of being hexed, and Katie, as a member of the Blue Flame, knew quite a few powerful hexes.
She tossed the reports aside so he could have a seat on the couch.
"I haven't seen you in awhile," she teased, "I've been told it has something to do with you being out with a girl."
He gave the trademark Weasley blush and smiled broadly.
"Kathy, and we've been dating two months."
"Where'd you meet her?"
His grin widened.
"She works for the division of Magical Safety. She was assigned to modify Percy's work on cauldron bottoms."
Katie burst into gales of laughter.
"Poor girl! If I remember correctly, those reports would put Umbridge to sleep."
He joined her laughter.
"I know. I was thinking of getting one of Percy's old cauldrons for her as an anniversary gift."
"George, that's brilliant."
He took a deep bow.
"I know."
Oliver could feel his legs beginning to cramp from being crouched down behind the bushes for so long. Darkness had fallen over the area almost an hour earlier, and he could barely make out the images of Fred and Angelina crouched behind a cluster of bushes a few feet away.
The sounds of "Ave Maria" began to flow from a piano inside the house they were preparing to ambush. It gave Oliver an eerie feeling.
Fred shifted his weight from one foot to the other, careful not to make a sound. He could hear Angelina's ragged, nervous breathing. They had been waiting for the signal to move in for what had felt like an eternity. It was a signal he wished would never come. It pained him to know that most of them probably would not make it out alive. The thought of Angelina being killed by one of those bastards, chilled him to the bone.
He squeezed her hand, using the signal they had worked out long ago.
I love you.
Oliver tried to focus on the task ahead. He needed to focus on surviving. He had promised. They had made love, and he had sworn he would do everything in his power to come back to her.
Katie tuned her radio to a local classical station. George had already left for his date with Kathy, and loneliness was beginning to creep over her. She grabbed a blanket off her bed and curled up on her couch, the sound of a Deejay lulling her to sleep.
Angelina gave Fred a quick peck on the cheek. All she could do was hope that they both made it out alive.
Oliver strained his eyes to see a blue light flash at the top of a distant hill. That was their signal.
He and his partner, Derek Warhol, burst in through the window above while Fred and Angelina rushed in through a door.
No one was there. There was only a tiny radio in the corner, not a piano, playing the song.
"I don't like this," Angelina whispered, "They were supposed to be here. Fudge said they would be here."
The volume of the music suddenly increased, reaching an almost deafening pitch, and a chill settled over the room. Oliver felt his stomach sink.
They turned around. All Oliver saw was a blinding flash of green light rushing towards him. As he fell to the ground, he could hear Fred's scream.
"Angelina!"
Katie was vaguely aware of the presence of another person in her flat, standing over her.
"Oliver," she mumbled.
"No, it's George."
She opened her eyes, and could tell immediately that he had been crying. Her stomach suddenly felt ill.
"What happened, George? Why aren't you still out with Kathy?" she was becoming frantic, "Oh please don't tell me…"
"I don't know what happened," he choked out, "All we've been told is that something went wrong, something went really wrong. A lot of people were hurt. Katie, someone didn't make it back."
Tears began streaming down her face.
"No!" she cried out, "He's not dead! He can't be! He promised!"
George grabbed her by the shoulders and gave her a shake.
"Katie! They don't know who's dead and who's injured! It could be Oliver, Fred, Angelina, or someone else!"
She buried her face into his shoulder, shaking with sobs. "I can't take it! If any of them were…" She couldn't bring herself to say the word.
"When will we know," she finally managed to ask.
"It could be a few days," he told her, "or it could be tomorrow. It depends on how fast we get reinforcements out there."
She simply nodded. She would be the last to find out. Dumbledore did not know the status of her and Oliver's relationship nor would he send any news to her that would be distracting from her upcoming negotiations with Germany. Her only hope was that George would find something out and fast.