Chapter 18

The Battle of Seven Potters


July 27th, 1997

"Is everyone ready?" I asked.

I saw nine people nod their heads. Everyone was leaving to hide in the woods surrounding the designated houses.

"You sure you want to go?" I looked at my girls one last time before leaving.

"Yes, mom. You will be in more danger than us. We are just guarding the houses." Savi gave me a reassuring smile.

"You will fly to the Burrow as soon as you see people leaving the houses." I reminded.

"You know our memory is as perfect as yours." Nessie laughed; Emmett gave her a high five.

With that being said, I looked over my family once again. All of them had pure determination in their eyes, each one was holding onto their brooms. I hugged and kissed Edward before leaving, trying to hold him as tight as I could. Nessie and Savi tried to escape the house before I crashed them in bear hugs, but I was a lot faster than them.

We all left the house at the same time, and I apparated as close to Alastor Moody's house as I could. I was standing in a back alley a few blocks away from his property, surrounded by long fir trees, protecting me from any bystander's eyes. I tried putting my worries about my girls and Edward out of my head and looked around. Mundungus should be apparating here very soon.

With a loud pop, I saw a short man with long, straggly ginger hair and blood-shot eyes. I took my wand out of its holster and whispered: "Stupefy!" A jet of red light came out of my wand tip and shot Mundungus straight in his back. I pressed my hands to him and apparated back to the mansion. I carried his body to a room that Esme has turned into a dungeon specifically for this moment. The charms that I put on it would make it impossible to apparate from there and there were no locks on the inside. Absolutely inescapable. I felt a little sorry for doing that, but I knew it would be better if I go.

I put his body on the floor and took his wand holster away. There was a bottle of water, a sandwich, and a book in the room in case Mundungus woke up before we could return back home.

I locked the door from the outside and apparated back to the alley. I took a potion phial out of my bag and put Mundungus's hair in there. As soon as it touched the surface of the drink, the color changed to muddy brown, and I looked at it with disgust. I stopped breathing, afraid that if I smell the potion, my determination to drink it would disappear. I chugged the drink and tried my hardest not to vomit.

I felt my body change instantly. I had to go now. The venom in my body would burn the potion in half the time it would with human bodies. I only had about an hour before I would be myself again.

I walked to the house and knocked once. Trying to remember everything that I've learned about Mundugus's behavior and his traits. I put a grumpy look on my face when the door opened.

"For Merlin's sake, you should have been here ten minutes ago!" Moody screamed.

"Be grateful I even came," I spoke with a smirk. My whole body felt like I was about to start shivering. It was so inappropriate to talk to The Alastor Moody that way.

"We have to go now!" Moody let me in, checking to see if anyone was watching the house. Without any further talking, he grabbed my hand and we apparated to the Privet Drive backyard.

I wasn't ready for this. The darkness seemed to be rippling, the air itself quivering. The memories flooded my mind. I would see Harry in a second or two. I felt thankful that even in Mundungus's body, I was still a vampire with no heartbeat. I was sure that if my heart was beating, even humans would be able to hear it.

I heard a noise upstairs like someone just smacked the top of their head on something. A few swear words followed the noise and I felt myself stop breathing. Not because I wasn't sure of my self-control, but because I have thought about hearing this voice for the longest time. Harry.

Then, one by one, figures began to pop into the backyard. Dominating the scene was Hagrid, wearing a helmet and goggles and sitting astride an enormous motorbike with a black sidecar attached. My dad's bike. All around him other people were dismounting from brooms and, in two cases, skeletal, black-winged horses. Everyone was here.

I stopped myself from running to Fred and George. Tonks, the only cousin of mine, which I actually considered to be family, was standing right next to us. She was talking to Moody, but I couldn't concentrate on anything she was saying. I just looked over the friendly faces that I've missed so much. Uncle Remus…It was even harder to not hug him and just tell everyone already that I was alive.

"No. You will ruin everything." I told myself and put the grumpy face back on before someone realizes I'm not Mundungus.

Wrenching open the back door, Harry hurtled into our midst. There was a general cry of greeting as Hermione flung her arms around him, Ron clapped him on the back, and Hagrid said, "All righ', Harry? Ready fer the off?"

Harry. I felt my eyes water and scolded myself again for nearly losing my cover. I was happy I chose to impersonate Mundungus. No one was looking at me, no one really cared about me at that moment.

"Definitely," said Harry, beaming around at them all. "But I wasn't expecting this many of you!"

"Change of plan," growled Moody, who was holding two enormous bulging sacks, that I haven't seen until just now, and whose magical eye was spinning from darkening sky to house to garden with dizzying rapidity. "Let's get undercover before we talk you through it."

Harry led us all back into the kitchen, where laughing and chattering, everyone settled on chairs or leaned up against the spotless appliances; Ron, long and lanky; Hermione, her bushy hair tied back in a long plait; Fred and George, grinning identically; Bill, badly scarred and longhaired; Mr. Weasley, kind-faced, balding, his spectacles a little awry; Mad-Eye, battle-worn, one-legged, his bright blue magical eye whizzing in its socket; Tonks, whose short hair was her favorite shade of bright pink; Uncle Remus, grayer, more lined; Fleur, slender and beautiful, with her long silvery blonde hair; Kingsley, bald and broad-shouldered; Hagrid, with his wild hair and beard, standing hunchbacked to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling and Harry, with so much grieve in his eyes that he was trying to hide. I felt a jolt of pain in my chest, where my heart was still not beating.

"Kingsley, I thought you were looking after the Muggle Prime Minister?" he called across the room.

"He can get along without me for one night," said Kingsley, "You're more important."

"Harry, guess what?" said Tonks from her perch on top of the washing machine, and she wiggled her left hand at him; a ring glistened there.

"You got married?" Harry yelped, looking at her and then at Remus. "I'm sorry you couldn't be there, Harry, it was very quiet."

Married? To Uncle Remus? I looked around to see if anyone else were surprised to hear that. god, I was only gone for a year...

"That's brilliant, congrat…" Harry started.

"All right, all right, we'll have time for a cozy catch-up later," roared Moody, and silence fell in the kitchen. He dropped his sacks at his feet and turned to Harry. "As Dedalus probably told you, we had to abandon Plan A. Pius Thicknesse has gone over, which gives us a big problem. He's made it an imprisonable offense to connect this house to the Floo Network, place a Portkey here, or Apparate in or out. All done in the name of your protection, to prevent You-Know-Who from getting in at you. Absolutely pointless, seeing as your mother's charm does that already. What he's really done is stop you from getting out of here safely."

Moody took a breath before speaking again.

"Second problem: You're underage, which means you've still got the Trace on you."

"I don't…" Harry tried to interrupt.

"The Trace, the Trace!" said Mad-Eye impatiently. "The charm that detects magical activity around under-seventeens, the way the Ministry finds out about underage magic! If you, or anyone around you, casts a spell to get you out of here, Thicknesse is going to know about it, and so will the Death Eaters."

"We can't wait for the Trace to break, because the moment you turn seventeen, you'll lose all the protection your mother gave you. In short, Pius Thicknesse thinks he's got you cornered good and proper."

"So what are we going to do?" Harry asked.

"We're going to use the only means of transport left to us, the only ones the Trace can't detect, because we don't need to cast spells to use them: brooms, thestrals, and Hagrid's motorbike."

"Dad's motorbike." I corrected him in my head.

Moody continued after taking another breath.

"Now, your mother's charm will only break under two conditions: when you come of age, or…" Moody gestured around the pristine kitchen. "…you no longer call this place home. You and your aunt and uncle are going your separate ways tonight, in the full understanding that you're never going to live together again, correct?"

Harry nodded.

"So, this time, when you leave, there'll be no going back, and the charm will break the moment you get outside its range. We're choosing to break it early because the alternative is waiting for You-Know-Who to come and seize you the moment you turn seventeen.

"The one thing we've got on our side is that You-Know-Who doesn't know we're moving you tonight. We've leaked a fake trail to the Ministry: They think you're not leaving until the thirtieth. However, this is You-Know-Who we're dealing with, so we can't rely on him getting the date wrong; he's bound to have a couple of Death Eaters patrolling the skies in this general area, just in case. So, we've given a dozen different houses every protection we can throw at them. They all look like they could be the place we're going to hide you, they've all got some connection with the Order: my house, Kingsley's place, Molly's Auntie Muriel's...you get the idea."

"Yeah," said Harry, not entirely truthfully in my view.

"You'll be going to Tonks's parents. Once you're within the boundaries of the protective enchantments we've put on their house you'll be able to use a Portkey to the Burrow. Any questions?"

"Um…yes," said Harry. "Maybe they won't know which of the twelve secure houses I'm heading for at first, but won't it be sort of obvious once..." He performed a quick headcount. "…fourteen of us fly off toward Tonks's parents?"

"Ah," said Moody, "I forgot to mention the key point. Fourteen of us won't be flying to Tonks's parents. There will be seven Harry Potters moving through the skies tonight, each of them with a companion, each pair heading for a different safe house." From inside his cloak, Moody now withdrew a flask of what looked like mud. Polyjuice Potion once again. Yuck!

There was no need for him to say another word; Harry understood the rest of the plan immediately.

"No!" he said loudly, his voice ringing through the kitchen. "No way!"

"I told them you'd take it like this," said Hermione with a hint of complacency.

"If you think I'm going to let six people risk their lives…."

"…because it's the first time for all of us," Ron finished the sentence.

"This is different, pretending to be me…"

"Well, none of us really fancy it, Harry," said Fred earnestly. I missed his jokes."Imagine if something went wrong and we were stuck as specky, scrawny gits forever." Harry did not smile at this joke either.

"You can't do it if I don't cooperate, you need me to give you some hair."

"Well, that's the plan scuppered," said George. "Obviously there's no chance at all of us getting a bit of your hair unless you cooperate."

"Yeah, thirteen of us against one bloke who's not allowed to use magic; we've got no chance," said Fred.

"Funny," said Harry, "really amusing."

"If it has to come to force, then it will," growled Moody, his magical eye now quivering a little in its socket as he glared at Harry. "Everyone here's overage, Potter, and they're all prepared to take the risk. Let's have no more arguments. Time's wearing on. I want a few of your hairs, boy, now."

"But this is mad, there's no need…"

"No need!" snarled Moody. "With You-Know-Who out there and half the Ministry on his side? Potter, if we're lucky he'll have swallowed the fake bait and he'll be planning to ambush you on the thirtieth, but he'd be mad not to have a Death Eater or two keeping an eye out, it's what I'd do. They might not be able to get at you or this house while your mother's charm holds, but it's about to break and they know the rough position of the place. Our only chance is to use decoys. Even You-Know-Who can't split himself into seven."

Harry caught Hermione's eye and looked away at once. "What was that about?" I asked myself. Again, I wondered how much did I miss in the last year.

"So, Potter – some of your hair, if you please."

Harry glanced at Ron, who grimaced at him in a 'just-do-it' sort of way.

"Now!" barked Moody.

With all of our eyes upon him, Harry reached up to the top of his head, grabbed a hank of hair, and pulled.

"Good," said Moody, limping forward as he pulled the stopper out of the flask of potion.

"Straight in here, if you please."

Harry dropped the hair into the mudlike liquid. The moment it contacted its surface, the potion began to froth and smoke, then, all at once, it turned a clear, bright gold.

"Ooh, you look much tastier than Crabbe and Goyle, Harry," said Hermione, before catching sight of Ron's raised eyebrows, blushing slightly, and saying, "Oh, you know what I mean – Goyle's potion tasted like bogies."

"Right then, fake Potters line up over here, please," said Moody. Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, and Fleur lined up in front of the sink.

"We're one short," said Lupin.

"Here," said Hagrid gruffly, and he tried lifting me by the scruff of the neck. I ripped away before he reached me. There was no way I could explain why Hagrid can't lift a little Mundungus Fletcher who now had a weight of a humongous boulder.

"Get your hands off me," I spoke to Hagrid and came to stand next to the sink. "I'm a soldier, I'd sooner be a protector," I spoke.

"Shut it," growled Moody. "As I've already told you, you spineless worm, any Death Eaters we run into will be aiming to capture Potter, not kill him. Dumbledore always said You-Know-Who would want to finish Potter in person. It'll be the protectors who have got the most to worry about, the Death Eaters will want to kill them." I opened my mouth to say something, but Moody was already pulling half a dozen eggcup-sized glasses from inside his cloak, which he handed out, before pouring a little Polyjuice Potion into each one. I guessed Moody would have to know about my real identity before I planned.

"Altogether, then ... "

Ron, Hermione, Fred, George, Fleur, and I drank. I noticed I wasn't the only one to gasp and grimace as the potion hit our throats. At once, everyone's features began to bubble and distort like hot wax. Hermione and I were shooting upward; Ron, Fred, and George were shrinking; their hair was darkening, Hermione's, mine, and Fleur's appearing to shoot backward into their skulls.

Moody, quite unconcerned, was now loosening the ties of the large sacks he had brought with him. When he straightened up again, there were six Harry Potters gasping and panting in front of him, and I was one of them.

Fred and George turned to each other and said together, "Wow – we're identical!"

"I dunno, though, I think I'm still better-looking," said Fred, examining his reflection in the kettle.

"Bah," said Fleur, checking herself in the microwave door, "Bill, don't look at me – I'm 'ideous."

"Those whose clothes are a bit roomy; I've got smaller here," said Moody, indicating the first sack, "and vice versa. Don't forget the glasses, there are six pairs in the side pocket. And when you're dressed, there's luggage in the other sack."

My vision stayed perfect, but I took out a pair of glasses, as well as a sweater and a pair of pants.

"You're a little too white, Dungus." Bill laughed.

"Shut it, Weasley!" I spoke, hoping that the vampire paleness could be taken as severe anxiety before we start the mission.

"I knew Ginny was lying about that tattoo," said Ron, looking down at his bare chest.

"Harry, your eyesight really is awful," said Hermione, as she put on glasses. Once dressed, the fake Harrys and I took rucksacks and owl cages, each containing a stuffed snowy owl, from the second sack.

"Good," said Moody, as at last seven dressed, bespectacled, and luggage-laden Harrys faced him.

"The pairs will be as follows: Mundungus will be traveling with me, by broom –"

"Why am I with you?" I grunted, still playing my part.

"Because you're the one that needs watching," growled Moody, and sure enough, his magical eye did not waver from me as he continued, "Arthur and Fred…"

"I'm George," said the twin at whom Moody was pointing. "Can't you even tell us apart when we're Harry?"

"Sorry, George… "

"I'm only yanking your wand, I'm Fred really... "

"Enough messing around!" snarled Moody. "The other one...George or Fred or whoever you are...you're with Remus. Miss Delacour… "

"I'm taking Fleur on a thestral," said Bill. "She's not that fond of brooms." Fleur walked over to stand beside him, giving him a soppy, slavish look.

"Miss Granger with Kingsley, again by thestral… "

Hermione looked reassured as she answered Kingsley's smile; I knew that Hermione too lacked confidence on a broomstick. Just like me when I was still just a wizard.

"Which leaves you and me, Ron!" said Tonks brightly, knocking over a mug tree as she waved at him.

Ron did not look quite as pleased as Hermione.

"An' you're with me, Harry. That all righ'?" said Hagrid, looking a little anxious. "We'll be on the bike. Not a lot o' room on the seat with me on it, though, so you'll be in the sidecar."

"That's great," said Harry, not altogether truthfully, as I thought once again.

"We think the Death Eaters will expect you to be on a broom," said Moody. "Snape's had plenty of time to tell them everything about you he's never mentioned before, so if we do run into any Death Eaters, we're betting they'll choose one of the Potters who looks at home on a broomstick. All right then," he went on, tying up the sack with the fake Potters' clothes in it and leading the way back to the door, "I make it three minutes until we're supposed to leave. No point locking the back door, it won't keep the Death Eaters out when they come looking. Come on."

Harry hurried to gather his rucksack, Firebolt, and Hedwig's cage and followed the group to the dark back garden.

On all sides broomsticks were leaping into hands; Hermione had already been helped up onto a great black thestral by Kingsley, Fleur onto the other by Bill. Hagrid was standing ready beside the motorbike, goggles on. I felt my eyes start to water again. I really hoped the bike will be left undamaged.

"Is this it? Is this Sirius's bike?" Harry asked.

"The very same," said Hagrid, beaming down at Harry. "An' the last time yeh was on it, Harry, I could fit yeh in one hand!" Harry looked a little humiliated as he got into the sidecar. Harry stuffed his rucksack and broomstick down by his feet and rammed Hedwig's cage between his knees. He looked extremely uncomfortable. "Arthur's done a bit o' tinkerin'," said Hagrid.

He settled himself astride the motorcycle, which creaked slightly and sank inches into the ground.

"It's got a few tricks up its sleeves now. Tha' one was my idea." He pointed a thick finger at a purple button near the speedometer.

"Please be careful, Hagrid," said Mr. Weasley, who was standing beside them, holding his broomstick. "I'm still not sure that was advisable and it's certainly only to be used in emergencies."

"All right, then," said Moody. "Everyone ready, please. I want us all to leave at exactly the same time or the whole point of the diversion's lost." Everybody motioned their heads.

"Hold tight now, Ron," said Tonks, and I saw Ron throw a forcing, guilty look at Lupin before placing his hands on each side of her waist. I needed to know how they got together! Hagrid kicked the motorbike into life: It roared like a dragon, and the sidecar began to vibrate.

"Good luck, everyone," shouted Moody. "See you all in about an hour at the Burrow. On the count of three. One...two...Three!."

There was a great roar from the motorbike. Hagrid and Harry were rising through the air fast. Moody flew our broom upward too; the long black tail of a thestral flicked past.

And then, out of nowhere, out of nothing, we were surrounded. At least thirty hooded figures, suspended in midair, formed a vast circle in the middle of which we had risen.

Screams, a blaze of green light on every side: Hagrid gave a yell and the motorbike rolled over.

I lost sight of them and immediately started to panic. I lowered the glasses to perfect my vision and saw hooded figures surrounding the broom Moody and I had. I took my wand out and started shooting spells at all the black hoods I could see.

"Stupefy!" I spoke over and over again, my wand shooting out red lights left and right.

"I saw a killing curse coming our way and ducked the broom with all the force that I had.

"Do it again and I'll kill you myself!" Moody screamed.

"You're welcome," I screamed back.

We were followed for a while and then the figures started disappearing.

"That's not him!" I heard someone yell and looked behind me. How did they know?

"What's going on there?" Moody asked turning his head around. "And what's wrong with your hair?"

I touched my head and realized my hair was a little longer than it was supposed to already. The potion was wearing off.

"They are leaving, they figured I wasn't the right Harry," I screamed.

We started descending a few minutes after. I was once again in Moody's front yard. I saw his fake eye circling around its orbit, checking for the surroundings.

"Clear, let's get inside." He ordered and went into the house, leaving the door open for me.

I contemplated. It was time. I was turning back to my normal self. I started going into the house after taking a long breath, hoping it would calm down my nerves.

"You okay, Bells?" I heard Emmett's voice coming from the forested area behind Moody's house.

"Yes." I hoped I was loud enough for him to hear. "Go to the Burrow."

"What are you still doing outside, you little…" Moody's voice became louder as he looked at me through an open door. "You…?"

I looked at myself and noticed my chest area wasn't flat anymore. I rushed inside the house and closed the door.

"No one saw us, right?" I asked a little panicky.

"Isabella?"

"It's a very long story, I'll tell everyone when we get to the Burrow." I looked up at the man's normal eye and saw shock and…hope?

"Er…Right. The portkey is in the living room."

I have never heard Mad-Eye speak with so much calmness in his voice. He was just so surprised to see me. We haven't really talked before, even though he knew me since I was little. If I get that kind of reaction from a man I barely know...What will my friends' reactions be? What will happen when they see Edward?

I followed Moody into the living room and saw him point at an old-looking mirror. We reached to grab it at the same time and the whole room went spinning. We landed on the ground, and I saw Moody look surprised at how gracefully I did that, no tripping involved. Everyone knew I was a clumsy disaster...a lot has changed.

I looked up and saw the Burrow. The building itself might once have been an old stone pigpen, which had several crooked stories attached to it. Four or five chimneys dotted the roof of the house, and the entire building was most likely held up by magic due to its crazy construction. I've visited it on so many occasions, but this time it was different, for so many reasons.

"Yes, and zat eez all very good," I heard Fleur's raised voice coming from the house, "but still eet does not explain 'ow zey know we were moving 'Arry tonight, does eet? Somebody must 'ave been careless. Somebody let slip ze date to an outsider. It is ze only explanation for zem knowing ze date but not ze 'ole plan."

"We better go in; it sounds like there's a conflict," I spoke and Moody raised his eyebrows again. Of course, he wondered how I could know that. "Long story, just trust me."

"No," Harry said aloud, and I hurried to the house."I mean . . . if somebody made a mistake," Harry went on, "and let something slip, I know they didn't mean to do it. It's not their fault. We've got to trust each other. I trust all of you, I don't think anyone in this room would ever sell me to Voldemort."

More silence followed his words. Do they think someone sold them to Voldemort?

"They think there's a rat," I told Moody and saw him nod. He thought so too.

"Well said, Harry," I heard Fred saying.

"Year, 'ear, 'ear," said George.

"You think I'm a fool?" suddenly Harry exclaimed.

"No, I think you're like James," Uncle Remus spoke now, "who would have regarded it as the height of dishonor to mistrust his friends."

I was right at the door now. My hand reached for the knob and stopped mid-air. What was I going to do? I never thought about what would happen after we were all safe at the Burrow. How was I going to explain everything? How would one in my position even do such a thing?"

Moody put his hand on mine, and I saw him squint a little from the temperature difference. He looked in my eyes, most likely seeing how terrified I was.

"It's goin' to be alright." He spoke calmly and reached for the doorknob himself. The door swung open, and I saw over a dozen pairs of eyes first look at Moody and then at me. Everyone's heartbeats started beating faster, I could no longer identify anyone's voice in the chaos that started.


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