Author's Note:
For those wondering, NO SPOILERS — I thought Avengers Endgame was fantastic and I cried like a baby. However, I do not want to spoil it for anyone who has not seen it so all I will say is: Tacos, the Big Lebowski, stairs, and America's Ass. A perfect ending to an amazing franchise. There were some things I wasn't happy with, but overall, I thought it was fantastic and to the middle aged man sitting in the row in front of me, uncontrollably and very loudly sobbing — I feel your pain!
As for the Battle of Winterfell, the final season of Game of Thrones is coming to an end and each episode is more incredible than the last. So much happened! However, I do find myself disappointed — I mean, maybe I misunderstood, but did we wait eight seasons for that? Is it over? As excited as I am for what's next, I expected more there. Again, for those who haven't watched — I don't want to spoil anything.
I also miss when I posted ten chapters a week, LOL. But if I do that, you will have a long wait until I write more so this is a much better system, I think. I finished writing chapter 171 on the weekend and I have about eight chapters that are waiting for my beta to get through. And yes, Ginny did distract Harry from the Veela and yes, he is too oblivious to realize it, but Zee certainly did ;)
The next few chapters, up to the beginning of the tournament, there will be some similarities to the book, but I've said it before — please be patient, I am setting it up which I do hope you know by now — doesn't mean it will be the same!
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the parts from chapter nine of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, that belongs to the lovely JKR.
Reviews and Comments: To Guest: Harry definitely was distracted by Ginny, but he was oblivious to it, yes. Thank you! To WarMunger98: I do like to tease and yes, I did say it was going to be a slow burn! Harry is starting to make connections and some he is not. Thank you! To xXMizz Alec VolturiXx: Thank you! Endgame was awesome! To Darkbluewriter: Thanks. I need luck to watch Endgame. Glad you enjoyed the chapter! To Guest: Thank you! I have some tricks up my sleeve! To Moony The Sheep: Thanks for thinking the dream was better than the books/movies! You're too kind! To hills: I knew you'd love the Hinny moment! Thank you! To trekkifulron: He was bluffing to screw with Fudge. He told Zee as much, but she spoke to him in Russian and didn't mind at all. Thank you! To scrappy8: Thank you! To alix33: I'm glad you liked James singing and talking to him in his dream, me too! Oliver Wood is definitely always yummy. Thank you!
To Guest: Thank you for saying that you could "literally feel Sirius fighting with himself, tying to figure out what to do and say." That's what I was going for. This isn't easy for Sirius to keep from Harry. I wanted Sirius and Harry to see the dream together, to try to make sense of it. Yes, how will Crouch Jr play into fourth year? You shall see. And yes, the Veela distracted Harry from Ginny and Remus definitely didn't even look at them. Thank you! To Steelcode: Thank you! Sirius is definitely getting protective over Zee and Harry. To geekymom: Thank you! To Lals: Thank you for catching up! I'm glad you're enjoying how each relationship grows at a steady pace. I think you'll enjoy my twist for the Yule Ball. I hope. Thank you! To Wolf's scream: I'm glad you liked Bagman's reaction to the fake wand. Yes, a kiss from Fudge is not desirable LOL. Thank you! To speedsONEandONLY: Zee did notice Harry noticing Ginny, but Harry didn't LOL. Sirius did have the opportunity to tell him, but he doesn't want to nor is he ready and I wanted to show that struggle. Thank you!
To Leaf Ranger: Yes, they've arrived. Ginny did snap Harry out of the Veela's allure. Thank you! To HGRHfan35: Harry will figure it out eventually, but no, he has no idea that Ginny broke him out of the enchantment. Thank you! To Guest: Thank you! No, Harry will not take it well when he learns that Sirius lied. To Saz J: I'm glad you liked my use of the word 'splurge' LOL. Seamus is thinking about coming out to his friends and family, yes. Yes, Ginny's dancing red hair and dreams of freckles… he is just oblivious. Thank you! To coloredwords: Harry definitely won't mind if Sirius and Zee move in together, but it's not Harry who needs convincing lol. It's nice to know you miss when I posted almost 10 chapters week. That was a LONG time ago LOL. And no, it will not be happening again any time soon! Thank you! To HinnyMe; Thanks for liking my use of the Pensieve. Harry is going to be pissed when he finds out Sirius lied, but poor Sirius is trying his best to hold everything together. Does Dean know Seamus is gay? He suspects. We'll see more of them later. Thank you for liking Sirius being uncomfortable around Crouch, it is nice to see him less than perfect sometimes. Yes, Harry noticed Ginny and Zee noticed. Thank you!
To Richard: Thank you for reading for months. Sirius is trying to be responsible and thanks for living my Remus and Tonks! To kateplay: Thank you! You'll have to see how things play out! To musemesmer: Thank you! To Itsaka: You think Crouch Jr will impersonate Remus or Karkaroff? Interesting. To RedheadLover: The first real hint of him noticing her, yes. His jealousy in the treehouse was a subtle hint of that. Thank you! To Jmcglynn522: Thanks for loving the chapter! Yes, Hinny was hinted at, but still a slow burn to go! Harry might possibly be noticing something, maybe LOL. You will have to wait and see and as to the Crouch scene… I have a little twist up my sleeve. I think you will enjoy. And yes, I thought viewing his dream in the Pensieve was definitely very helpful. Now they know a hell of a lot more. Thank you!
Thank you to my Beta — SilverStarwolfe!
My posting schedule: Weekly and sometimes on weekends!
As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!
Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!
CHAPTER ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY-SIX:
The One With Winky
Harry couldn't believe how incredible that match had been. Ireland had won, but Krum had caught the Snitch at the last second just like Fred and George had predicted. They had happily hurried over to Bagman to extract their winnings. Bagman hadn't looked particularly happy with this, but he had handed over the gold anyway, congratulating them on that incredible bet.
The best part of the match ending in Harry's opinion was seeing Fudge's face when the Bulgarian Minister spoke in accented English. It turned out that he had understood everything all afternoon and had just pretended not to because he found it so amusing to watch Fudge struggle.
Zee had also let it slip that Oblansk thought Fudge was a bit of an idiot. Apparently she had only translated half of what he said because the rest was for her amusement only. She had charmed the man completely and she told Harry and Sirius that he seemed like a good minister.
They went back to the tent to celebrate. Fireworks lit up the whole sky and singing and dancing could be heard by the Irish fans all over the camp. Sirius poured glasses of Firewhiskey for everyone to have one shot to help celebrate. Mr Weasley made his lot swear not to tell their mother. Charlie had smirked, claiming that none of his younger brothers or Ginny were dumb enough to do that.
It was after eleven when Sirius and Mr Weasley urged them all to go to bed. They had a portkey arranged to leave early the next morning.
Harry crawled into his bunk, watching the fireworks illuminate through the fabric, grinning hugely. It had been the best match that he had ever seen. He couldn't wait to get back on his own broomstick and try out some of those moves.
It was the last thing that he thought of before sleep overtook him and he slept with a smile on his face, dreaming of flying in a large stadium such as this one as people chanted his name.
~ ASC ~
"What do you want me to do, Cissa?" Lucius' voice hissed angrily as Draco opened his eyes in the semi-darkness.
He was lying in his bed in their tent. Blaise and Theo were in the beds next to him and when he looked over he saw that both of them were awake too. The last thing that he remembered was Ireland's spectacular win as Krum snagged the Snitch right under Lynch's nose. They had been up late celebrating, he remembered.
"I want you to do what you promised me! You told me that Draco and I are what's important to you!"
"You are!" Lucius insisted. "But this… you know why I have to do this!"
Draco could see the outline of his parents through the curtain that was blocking them from view. Narcissa crossed her arms in front of her chest, her blonde hair tumbling over her shoulders.
"Knowing you might and watching you head off to do it is something else entirely, Lu!"
Lucius gripped her arms in his, tugging her up against him as Draco moved closer to get a better look and to listen. "Cissa, this is…" he glanced back behind him when someone called his name. "I have to go. Get the boys out of here." He pressed a kiss to her forehead and then he was gone, sneaking out of the tent.
Narcissa let out a slow breath. "Be careful," she whispered.
She turned and saw Draco, Blaise, and Theo all watching her.
"Good, you boys are up! Quick, grab your wands and a jumper. We need to get out of here."
"Where's Father going?" Draco asked.
Narcissa only stared at him. "Don't worry about your father. Get your things, Draco, quickly!"
Blaise grabbed his arm and gestured with his head. The three of them pulled on jumpers and grabbed their wands, moving into the front of the tent where Narcissa was waiting for them. She was wearing her husband's cloak as she opened the flap in the tent and urged them out.
"We need to get just beyond the woods to the moor. Stay close together and whatever happens, do not lose each other."
Draco nodded as the four of them began to move through the campground. They had just passed the second row of tents when they heard the first scream. Someone was laughing and the screams got louder as something exploded behind them. Theo turned to look back and Narcissa grabbed his arm.
"Keep walking, Theodore, straight ahead. Do not look back."
He swallowed, but did as he was told.
More screams erupted; shouts and cries as people began to emerge from their tents. Tents were set on fire and more explosions were heard around them. Someone came running out of a tent and crashed straight into Narcissa, she stumbled, falling onto the ground, and wincing as her ankle twisted at a sharp angle.
"Mother!"
Narcissa shook her head. "I'll be fine, keep going! I'll find you."
Draco made to protest as something else exploded nearby and Blaise grabbed his arm.
"Draco, let's go!"
"Listen to Blaise, go! I'll find you!"
Draco let Blaise tug him away just as they made it into the woods. They could see the campground now; almost completely lit up in flames. The screams seemed to come from all over and Draco's eyes widened when he saw the group of individuals in black robes marching through the campground. Their faces were covered in gold and silver death masks that looked skull like in appearance, each with a distinct design, their hooded robes pointed high over their heads. The masks hid each individual from view, but Draco knew that the man at the front, the one in the gold mask with the arabesque pattern, belonged to his grandfather and the sight of him sent chills down his spine.
His eyes were on him until Theo grabbed his arm and tugged and the three of them ran through the woods, trying to get to the moor on the other side. The screams sounded further away, but the flames still lit up the sky above them giving them a light to help make it through the woods. The green and red lanterns were extinguished and they lit their wands as the woods darkened around them.
"Theo!" A voice hissed in the dark and the three of them all turned at once, wands lit.
The figure in the black robe stepped forward, pulling off the silver death mask that he was wearing.
"Are you running away?"
Theo stared at the man defiantly. "We're going to safety. Everything is on fire over there."
Thaddeus Nott sneered at his son, grabbing his arm tightly. "No! You will learn to have a bit of a fun, live a little. You're as bad as your uncle was!" He pulled him over the roots and around a set of trees to where two Muggle women were tied up on the ground. "I found us some presents."
Theo paled as he fell to his knees and Draco and Blaise came up behind him.
"Uncle Thad, what are you doing?" Draco demanded, his hand on Theo's arm.
Nott only glared at Draco. "Teaching my son how to have a good time. You boys can each have a turn, don't you worry." He picked up the blonde Muggle, ripping her nightgown open down the front as she whimpered in fear. His hand slid over her breast, rubbing it. "You can each take turns riding her, I'll share."
Another figure in black robes stepped out of the woods.
"For fuck's safe, Thad, stop thinking with your cock! The Aurors are starting to arrive and we need to get out of here!"
Nott held the woman closer, his hand sliding down between her legs. "Can't I take her with me?"
The figure swore, wand pointed out and a flash of green left both Muggle women dead on the ground.
"Problem solved; now let's go!"
Nott turned to look over at his son who was still kneeling on the ground, his eyes on the dead women in horror. He sneered at him in disgust before he took off into the woods after the other cloaked figure leaving his son and his friends behind with the two dead women.
Draco grabbed Theo's arm and he and Blaise urged him to run in the opposite direction as a loud explosion blew them back. Draco's ears were ringing as he coughed, rolling over to check on his friends. Blaise was covered in dirt and Theo coughed from next to him; his head was bleeding.
"I'm fine," he said, coughing. "Let's go."
The three of them climbed to their feet, attempting to run again just as a house elf came running past them. She looked like every step she took was a struggle, like something was holding her back. She tripped over a root and another explosion went off, sending the tiny thing flying. Draco reached up without thinking, catching the tiny elf in his hands as he stumbled and landed on his back, skidding across the ground, his head bouncing off something hard enough to make him see stars. The elf stared at him in horror as something moved in the forest and Potter and Weasley stumbled out of the woods in front of them. A man moved out from behind the tree, his death mask hiding him from view. He took one look at Draco holding the elf and his wand flashed green and purple.
Draco opened his mouth, whether to scream or to protect himself, he didn't know, but a shield jumped in front of him so fast that his eyes could only widen. Potter had his wand pointed in front of Draco, his own eyes narrowed.
The figure looked at Potter and then bellowed out, "MORSMORDRE!" and a large green glittering skull erupted overhead with a serpent moving from the mouth.
And the entire area around the woods seemed to erupt into screams.
~ ASC ~
Harry woke up to someone shaking him and he opened his eyes just as Sirius shoved his glasses onto his face.
"Get up! All of you, let's go!"
"What's wrong?"
Dimly, he could tell that something was wrong. The noises in the campsite had changed. The singing and celebrations had stopped. He could hear screams, and the sound of people running. He slipped down from the bunk and reached for his clothes, but Mr Weasley, who had pulled on his jeans over his own pyjamas, said, "No time, Harry — just grab a jacket and get outside, quickly!"
Harry did as he was told and hurried out of the tent, Ron at his heels.
By the light of the few fires that were still burning, he could see people running away into the woods, fleeing something that was moving across the field toward them, something that was emitting odd flashes of light and noises like gunfire. Loud jeering, roars of laughter, and drunken yells were drifting toward them; then came a burst of strong green light, which illuminated the scene.
A crowd of wizards, tightly packed and moving together with wands pointing straight upward, were marching slowly across the field. Harry squinted at them. They didn't seem to have faces. Then he realized that their heads were hooded and their faces masked with something skull like and metallic, each one with their own unique pattern. High above them, floating along in midair, were four struggling figures that were being contorted into grotesque shapes. It was as though the masked wizards on the ground were puppeteers, and the people above them were marionettes operated by invisible strings that rose from their wands into the air. Two of the figures looked to be children.
More wizards were joining the marching group, laughing and pointing up at the floating bodies. Tents crumpled and fell as the marching crowd swelled. Once or twice Harry saw one of the marchers blast a tent out of his way with his wand. Several caught fire. The screaming grew louder.
The floating people were suddenly illuminated as they passed over a burning tent and Harry recognized one of them: Mr Roberts, the campsite manager. The other three looked as though they might be his wife and children. One of the marchers below flipped Mrs Roberts upside down with his wand; her nightdress fell down to reveal voluminous drawers and she struggled to cover herself up as the crowd below her screeched and hooted with glee.
"That's sick," Ron muttered, watching the smallest Muggle child, who had begun to spin like a top, eighteen metres above the ground, his head flopping limply from side to side. "That is really sick…"
Hermione, Ginny, and Luna came hurrying toward them, pulling coats over their pyjamas, with Zee and Tonks right behind them. At the same moment, Bill, Charlie, and Percy emerged from the boys' tent, fully dressed, with their sleeves rolled up and their wands out.
"We're going to help the Ministry!" Mr Weasley shouted over all the noise, rolling up his own sleeves. "You lot — get into the woods, and stick together. We'll come and fetch you when we've sorted this out!"
Harry made to protest, but Zee grabbed his arm. "Go, stay safe! We've got this!"
"Go, Harry!" Remus insisted, his eyes on the flames in the distance.
He nodded as he watched them hurry off.
Bill, Charlie, and Percy were already sprinting away toward the oncoming marchers; Mr Weasley tore after them with Sirius, Remus, Tonks, and Zee at his heels. Ministry wizards were dashing from every direction toward the source of the trouble. The crowd beneath the Roberts family was coming ever closer.
"C'mon," said Fred, grabbing Ginny's hand and starting to pull her toward the wood.
Harry, Ron, Hermione, Luna, Neville, and George all 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. Harry felt himself being pushed in every direction by people whose faces he could not see. Then he heard Ron yell with pain.
"What happened?" Hermione said anxiously, stopping so abruptly that Harry walked into her. "Ron, where are you? Oh, this is stupid — lumos!"
She illuminated her wand and directed its narrow beam across the path. Ron was lying sprawled on the ground.
"Tripped over a tree root," he said angrily, getting to his feet again. Someone bumped into them and they were shuffled into the crowd just as Neville groaned.
"What is it, Nev?"
"My wand! It's missing!"
Harry swore under his breath. "When did you see it last?"
"I don't know," he admitted.
Luna grabbed his arm. "We'll backtrack to the tent; come on Neville."
"Be careful!" Harry warned.
Luna smiled at him. "We'll be all right, Harry. We'll meet you in the woods."
Hermione shook her head. "I'm going with them!"
Ron made to protest and grabbed her arm. "Hermione! You can't go back there!"
"Why?"
"Because you're —" the tips of his ears reddened. "They're attacking Muggles and Muggleborns. Stay with us! We'll keep you safe!"
She smiled at him. "I'll be all right, Ron."
She squeezed his arm and transformed into her fox before taking off after the badger and hare that were Neville and Luna trotting off into the distance. The three baby animals soon disappeared from their line of sight as Ron let out a sigh of relief.
"She'll be safer as an animal. They all will."
"Do you really think that she's in danger?"
Ron gave him a hard look. "You don't?"
Harry nodded, turning to see where the others headed off too, but Fred, George, and Ginny had all disappeared. "Where have the others got to?"
"They can't have gone that far," Ron said, pulling out his wand and lighting it before squinting up the path. "Do you think that we should change into our animals as well?"
Harry dug in the pockets of his jacket for his own wand and lit it. "Not yet. At the moment I feel safer with my wand than my puppy teeth."
A rustling noise nearby made all three of them jump. Winky the house elf was fighting her way out of a clump of bushes nearby. She was moving in a most peculiar fashion, apparently with great difficulty; it was as though someone invisible were trying to hold her back.
"There is bad wizards about!" she squeaked distractedly as she leaned forward and laboured to keep running. "People high — high in the air! Winky is getting out of the way!"
And she disappeared into the trees on the other side of the path, panting and squeaking, as she fought the invisible force that seemed to be restraining her.
"What's up with her?" Ron said, looking curiously after Winky. "Why can't she run properly?"
Another loud bang echoed from the edge of the wood.
"Let's just keep moving, shall we?" Ron said, carefully, as they followed the dark path deeper into the wood, still keeping an eye out for Fred, George, and Ginny.
They passed a group of goblins who were cackling over a sack of gold that they had undoubtedly won betting on the match, and who seemed quite unperturbed by the trouble at the campsite. Farther still along the path, they walked into a patch of silvery light, and when they looked through the trees, they saw three tall and beautiful Veela standing in a clearing, surrounded by a gaggle of young wizards, all of whom were talking very loudly.
"I pull down about a hundred sacks of Galleons a year!" One of them shouted. "I'm a dragon killer for the Committee for the Disposal of Dangerous Creatures."
"No, you're not!" His friend yelled. "You're a dishwasher at The Leaky Cauldron, but I'm a vampire hunter, I've killed about ninety so far —"
Harry turned to Ron to laugh at the ridiculousness of the men before them, but Ron's face had gone oddly slack, and the next second Ron was yelling, "Did I tell you that I've invented a broomstick that'll reach Jupiter?"
Harry grabbed Ron firmly by the arms and rolled his eyes in exasperation as he wheeled him around, and marched him away. By the time the sounds of the Veela and their admirers had faded completely, they were in the very heart of the wood. They seemed to be alone now; everything was much quieter.
"Why don't the Veela affect you?" Ron asked him, bitterly, having come back to himself. "You don't even react?"
Harry shrugged. "I don't know. I guess I just… I know it's not… real."
Ron nodded. "I know that, too, but I still can't seem to stop something stupid from coming out of my mouth when I see one. They're just so beautiful."
Harry nodded as he looked around. "I reckon that we can just wait here, you know. We'll hear anyone coming a ways off."
The words were hardly out of his mouth, when Ludo Bagman emerged from behind a tree right ahead of them.
Even by the feeble light of the two wands, Harry could see that a great change had come over Bagman. He no longer looked buoyant and rosy-faced; there was no more spring in his step. He looked ghostly pale and strained.
"Who's there?" he demanded, blinking down at them, trying to make out their faces. "What are you doing out here, all alone?"
They looked at one another, surprised.
"Well — there's a sort of riot going on," Ron told him.
Bagman stared at him. "What?"
"At the campsite… some people have got hold of a family of Muggles and —"
Bagman swore loudly. "Damn them!" he said looking quite distracted, and without another word, he Disapparated with a small pop.
"Not exactly on top of things, Mr Bagman, is he?" Harry pointedly asked Ron.
"He was a great Beater, though," Ron said, leading the way off the path into a small clearing, and sitting down on a patch of dry grass at the foot of a tree. "The Wimbourne Wasps won the league three times in a row while he was with them."
"Yeah, that's true," Harry said nervously, looking behind them in the woods. "Those were Death Eaters tonight, Ron."
Ron nodded, his face pale. "Yeah, I think so."
"What do you think that means?" Harry asked him. "I mean, Voldemort's not back, right?"
Ron shrugged. "You know more than I do, mate."
"I had a dream the other night about him," Harry admitted, looking over his shoulder. "I saw him… he was like a toddler with black and red scaly skin, like he had been burned so badly. It was… he could hold a wand though."
Ron's eyes widened. "You dreamed this?"
Harry nodded. "Uncle Siri says that maybe because of my scar I'm connected to him somehow. We don't really know because no one else in the world has a cursed scar like mine."
"Well, if he's a toddler, he's definitely not leading the riot tonight. But maybe he's, I don't know, still calling the shots somehow."
He broke off abruptly and looked over his shoulder and Harry stood up to do the same. It sounded as though someone was staggering toward the clearing they were in. They waited, both jumping to their feet and holding their wands ready as they listened to the sounds of the uneven steps behind the dark trees. But the footsteps came to a sudden halt.
"Hello?" Harry called out nervously, his heart pounding in his chest.
He felt a bit relieved when he recognized Blaise and Theo by the trees. Theo's head was bleeding through his hands and he saw Draco take a step into the clearing towards them just as a tiny figure stepped out of the woods and a small ball of light hit the ground between them with a loud boom.
Grass and mud flew everywhere as Harry and Ron were thrown backwards. Harry's ears were ringing as he clutched his wand, wiping his dirty glasses with his hand in an attempt to see. He saw Blaise and Theo ducking behind a tree and Draco was on the ground. He looked mostly all right, Harry noted, eyeing Ron who had stumbled to his feet.
A masked man in dark robes moved out from behind the tree on his left. He took one look at Draco who seemed to be holding an elf and he lifted his wand. Harry sent the double shield charm that Misha had taught him straight at Draco without thinking and watched in amazement as whatever spell the man had aimed in his direction rebounded off.
The figure looked at Harry in surprise and then held his wand up to the sky and yelled "MORSMORDRE!" and a large green glittering skull erupted overhead with a serpent protruding from its mouth like a tongue.
As they watched, it rose higher and higher, blazing in a haze of greenish smoke, etched against the black sky like a new constellation.
Suddenly, the wood all around them erupted with screams as the sight of the skull rose higher into the air and above the wood. He scanned the darkness for the person who had conjured the skull, but he couldn't see anyone.
"Malfoy, you all right?" he called out, his wand still held high.
Draco nodded, climbing to his feet and moving towards Harry and Ron as the house elf squeaked and ran off just as a series of popping noises announced the arrival of twenty witches and wizards, appearing in the woods and surrounding them.
Harry whirled around, and in an instant, he registered one fact: Each of these witches and wizards had their wand out, and every wand was pointing right at himself, Ron, and Draco.
Without pausing to think, he yelled, "DUCK!"
He seized Ron and Draco by the backs of their jumpers and pulled them both back down to the ground.
"STUPEFY!" roared twenty voices.
There was a blinding series of flashes and Harry felt the hair on his head ripple as though a powerful wind had swept the clearing. Raising his head a fraction of an inch he saw jets of fiery red light flying over them from the wands, crossing one another, bouncing off of tree trunks and rebounding into the darkness.
"Stop!" Mr Weasley exclaimed. "STOP! That's my son!"
Harry's hair stopped blowing about. He raised his head a little higher. The wizard in front of him had lowered his wand. He rolled over and saw Mr Weasley striding toward them, looking terrified.
"Ron, Harry," he said, his voice a little shaky. "Are you all right?"
"Out of the way, Arthur," a cold, curt voice demanded as Mr Crouch barrelled towards them. He and the other Ministry wizards were closing in on them. Harry got to his feet to face them. Mr Crouch's face was taut with rage. "Which of you did it?" he snapped, his sharp eyes darting between them. "Which of you conjured the Dark Mark?"
"We didn't do that!" Harry said gesturing up at the skull.
"We didn't do anything!" Ron insisted, who was rubbing his elbow and looking indignantly at his father. "What did you want to attack us for?"
"Do not lie, Sir!" Mr Crouch shouted. His wand was still pointing directly at Ron, and his eyes were popping. He looked slightly mad. "You have been discovered at the scene of the crime!"
"Barty," whispered a witch in a long woollen dressing gown. "They're kids, Barty, they'd never have been able to."
"Where did the Mark come from, you three?" Mr Weasley said, quickly.
"Over there," Harry said, pointing at the place where they had heard the voice. "There was someone behind the trees, a tall figure wearing a mask. He attacked Malfoy first and then he pointed his wand at the sky and said an incantation before he disappeared."
"Oh, stood over there, did they?" Mr Crouch said, turning his popping eyes on Harry now, disbelief etched all over his face. "Said an incantation, did they? You seem very well informed about how that Mark is summoned!"
But none of the Ministry wizards apart from Mr Crouch seemed to think that it was remotely likely that Harry, Ron, or Draco had conjured the skull; on the contrary, at Harry's words, they had all raised their wands again and were pointing in the direction that he had indicated, squinting through the dark trees.
"We're too late," the witch in the woollen dressing gown said, shaking her head. "They'll have Disapparated."
"I don't think so," Mr Diggory said. "Our Stunners went right through those trees. There's a good chance that we got them."
"Amos, be careful!" A few of the wizards exclaimed in warning as Mr Diggory squared his shoulders, raised his wand, marched across the clearing, and disappeared into the darkness.
A few seconds later, they heard Mr Diggory shout. "Yes! We got them! There's someone here! Unconscious! It's — but — blimey!"
"You've got someone?" Mr Crouch shouted, sounding highly disbelieving. "Who? Who is it?"
They heard snapping twigs, the rustling of leaves, and then crunching footsteps as Mr Diggory reemerged from behind the trees. He was carrying a tiny, limp figure in his arms. Harry recognized the tea towel at once.
It was Winky.
Mr Crouch did not move or speak as Mr Diggory deposited the elf on the ground at Crouch's feet. The other Ministry wizards were all staring at Mr Crouch. For a few seconds Crouch remained transfixed, his eyes blazing in pale face as he stared down at Winky. Then he appeared to come to life again.
"This — cannot — be," he said jerkily. "No!"
He moved quickly around Mr Diggory and strode off toward the place where he had found Winky.
"No point, Crouch," Mr Diggory called after him. "There's no one else there."
But Mr Crouch did not seem prepared to take his word for it. They could hear him moving around and the rustling of leaves as he pushed the bushes aside, searching.
"Bit embarrassing," Mr Diggory said grimly, looking down at Winky's unconscious form. "Barty Crouch's house elf… I mean to say…"
"Come off it, Amos," Mr Weasley said, quietly. "You don't seriously think that it was the elf? The Dark Mark's a wizard's sign. And Harry said that it was a tall figure in a mask. The elf hardly fits that description. And it requires a wand."
"Yeah," Mr Diggory said, quietly. "But she had a wand."
"What?" Mr Weasley exclaimed.
"Here, look." Mr Diggory said as he held up a wand and showed it to Mr Weasley. "Had it in her hand. So that's clause three of the Code of Wand Use broken, for a start. No non-human creature is permitted to carry or use a wand."
Just then there was another pop, and Ludo Bagman Apparated right next to Mr Weasley. He looked breathless and disorientated as he spun on the spot, goggling upward at the emerald-green skull.
"The Dark Mark!" he panted, almost trampling Winky as he turned inquiringly to his colleagues. "Who did it? Did you get them? Barty! What's going on?"
Mr Crouch had returned, levitating two tall boys in front of him.
"Not just an elf, Amos."
Harry shook his head. "No, they didn't do it! They were with us!"
Ron nodded from next to him. "It's true. We were caught in an explosion before you came. They were on the other side of those trees!"
Mr Crouch looked like he wanted to protest this, but since he had pulled the boys out from behind Draco instead of the in the direction where they had found Winky, he couldn't. His face was still ghostly white, and his hands and his toothbrush moustache were both twitching.
"They're kids, Barty. Listen to the Potter boy," the witch in the woollen dressing gown stated.
Crouch dropped Blaise and Theo's stunned bodies to the ground.
Bagman, who had finally stopped gaping about like a fish out of water, stared at Crouch. "Where have you been, Barty? Why weren't you at the match? Your elf was saving you a seat — gulping gargoyles!" Bagman had just noticed Winky lying at the feet of Diggory. "What happened to her?"
"I have been busy, Ludo," Mr Crouch said, still talking in the same jerky fashion, barely moving his lips. "And my elf has clearly been stunned."
"Stunned? By you lot, you mean? But why — ?" Comprehension dawned suddenly on Bagman's round, shiny face; he looked up at the skull, down at Winky, and then at Mr Crouch. "No! Winky? Conjure the Dark Mark? She wouldn't know how! She'd need a wand, for a start!"
"And she had one," Mr Diggory said. "I found her holding one, Ludo. If it's all right with you, Mr Crouch, I think that we should hear what she's got to say for herself."
Crouch gave no sign that he had heard Mr Diggory, but Mr Diggory seemed to take his silence for assent. He raised his own wand, pointed it at Winky, and said, "Rennervate!"
Winky stirred feebly. Her great brown eyes opened and she blinked several times in a bemused sort of way. Watched by the silent witches and wizards, she raised herself shakily into a sitting position. She caught sight of Mr Diggory's feet, and slowly, tremulously, raised her eyes to stare up into his face; then, more slowly still, she looked up into the sky. Harry could see the floating skull reflected twice in her enormous, glassy eyes. She gave a gasp, looked wildly around the crowded clearing, and burst into terrified sobs.
"Elf!" Mr Diggory said sternly. "Do you know who I am? I am an Agent of the Department for the Regulation and the Control of Magical Creatures!"
Winky began to rock backward and forward on the ground, her breath coming out in sharp bursts.
"As you see, Elf, the Dark Mark was conjured here a short while ago," Mr Diggory said sternly. "And you were discovered moments later, right beneath it! An explanation, if you please!"
"I — I — I is not doing it, Sir!" Winky gasped. "I is not knowing how, Sir!"
"You were found with a wand in your hand!" Mr Diggory barked, brandishing it in front of her. And as the wand caught the green light that was filling the clearing from the skull above, Harry recognized it.
"Hey! I know that wand," Harry said, holding his hand out for it. "And the person who owns it did not cast that spell!"
Crouch performed a quick regurgitation spell on the wand and an eerie smoke filled dark mark erupted from the end. "Who does this wand belong to?"
"Neville Longbottom," Harry said, quickly.
Crouch snorted at this in disbelief just as Sirius came into the woods closely followed by Zee and Tonks.
"What is the meaning of this? Why is my son at wandpoint? Harry, are you all right?" Sirius demanded, rushing forward, eyes relieved at the sight of his son.
Harry nodded, relieved when Sirius grabbed his shoulder. "We found Neville's wand, Uncle Siri. Someone used it to cast that Mark into the sky."
Sirius held his hand out for the wand. "I'll take that, Crouch."
Crouch sneered at him. "This wand is evidence, Lord Black! I am not going to simply hand it over to you!"
"It belongs to a fourteen-year-old-wizard who did not cast that spell," Sirius said, darkly. "You have no right to keep it from him!"
"Crouch, it looks like these kids were just in the wrong place at the wrong time," Mr Diggory said, carefully.
Crouch looked livid. He threw the wand at Sirius' feet and grabbed Winky roughly by the arm. "Did you steal that boy's wand?"
"No, Master!"
Sirius raised an eyebrow at Kingsley. "What's with the elf? What's going on?"
"She belongs to Crouch," Bagman supplied, his eyes moving around the wood, nervously. "She was found with the boy's wand."
"So," Mr Diggory said, his eyes hardening as he turned to look at Winky again, who was cowering at his feet as Crouch still held her arm roughly. "You found this wand, eh, elf? And you picked it up and thought that you'd have some fun with it, did you?"
"I is not doing magic with it, Sir!" Winky squeaked, tears streaming down the sides of her squashed and bulbous nose. "I is… I is… I is just picking it up, Sir! I is not making the Dark Mark, Sir, I is not knowing how!"
"It wasn't her!" Draco exclaimed, speaking for the first time. "There was an explosion and she came flying out of those trees! I caught her and then like Potter said, that wizard in the cloak showed up and he must have tossed the wand on the ground when he left. Winky tried to make a run for it, you showed up and sent stunners and she must have been stunned right near the wand! It wasn't her. And if my father hears that you've treated his only son and heir, the future Earl of Wiltshire, like a common criminal, along with accusing the Baron of Sardinia and the future Marquess of Norfolk of this nonsense, you won't even be allowed to step foot into the Ministry! He'll ruin you!"
Sirius was staring at Draco now, his expression carefully blank.
Zee crouched down, glaring at Crouch, her eyes on the elf. "Winky, is it? It's okay. There's no reason to be scared. We know that it was an accident. That you were just caught up in the wrong place at the wrong time. It's okay, we're not cross with you."
Winky stared at her, her eyes wide and full of tears. "I is not doing it!" she squealed again, her eyes rolling in terror. "I is not, I is not, I is not knowing how! I is a good elf, I isn't using wands, I isn't knowing how!"
"You've been caught red-handed, elf!" Mr Diggory roared. "Caught with the guilty wand in your hand!"
"Amos," Zee said loudly. "Think about it… precious few wizards know how to do that spell. The boys say that it wasn't her and where would she ever have even learned it?"
"Zacarias, she is an elf found with a wand! That's a violation of her creature-status right there!"
Zee glared at him. "Innocent until proven guilty, Agent Diggory."
"She knew the spell," Mr Diggory said, thickly, his eyes wide. "And she cast that mark into the sky!"
"How would she know it?" Zee demanded, glaring up at Mr Diggory menacingly.
"Perhaps Amos is suggesting," Mr Crouch said, cold anger in every syllable. "That I routinely teach my servants to conjure the Dark Mark?"
There was a deeply unpleasant silence.
Mr Diggory looked horrified. "Mr Crouch… not… not at all!"
"You have now come very close to accusing the two people in this clearing who are least likely to conjure that Mark!" Mr Crouch barked. "Harry Potter and myself. And I trust you remember the many proofs that I have given, over a long career, that I despise and detest the Dark Arts and those who practice them?" Mr Crouch shouted, his eyes bulging again.
"Mr Crouch, I — I never suggested that you had anything to do with it!" Mr Diggory muttered again, now reddening behind his scrubby brown beard.
"If you accuse my elf, you accuse me, Diggory!" Mr Crouch shouted. "Where else would she have learned to conjure it?"
"She… she might've picked it up anywhere —"
"Precisely, Amos. She might have picked it up anywhere."
"Elf! Where did you learn that spell?" Mr Diggory demanded, turning to glower down at the elf once more.
"She has a name, Amos!" Zee said angrily, turning back to the elf with a kind smile. "Winky, where exactly did you find Neville's wand?"
Winky was twisting the hem of her tea towel so violently that it was fraying beneath her fingers. "I — I is finding it… finding it there, Miss," she whispered. "In the trees."
"You see, Amos?" Zee said carefully. "Whoever conjured the Mark could have Disapparated right after they'd done it, leaving Neville's wand behind just as Mr Malfoy informed you. A clever thing to do, not using their own wand, which could have betrayed them. And Winky here had the misfortune to come across the wand moments later and pick it up before she was stunned."
"Amos," Mr Crouch curtly said, "I am fully aware that, in the ordinary course of events, you would want to take Winky into your department for further questioning. I ask you, however, to allow me to deal with her."
Mr Diggory looked as though he didn't think much of this suggestion at all, but it was clear to Harry that Mr Crouch was such an important member of the Ministry that he did not dare refuse him.
"You may rest assured that she will be punished accordingly," Mr Crouch added, coldly.
"M-m-master…" Winky stammered, looking up at Mr Crouch, her eyes brimming with tears. "M-m-master, p-p-please…"
Mr Crouch stared back, his face somehow sharpened, each line upon it more deeply etched. There was no pity in his gaze. "Winky has behaved tonight in a manner I would not have believed possible," he said slowly. "I told her to remain in the tent. I told her to stay there while I went to sort out the trouble. And I find that she disobeyed me. This means clothes."
"No!" Winky shrieked, prostrating herself at Mr Crouch's feet. "No, Master! Not clothes, not clothes!"
Mr Crouch took a step backward, freeing himself from contact with the elf, whom he was surveying as though she were something filthy and rotten that was contaminating his over-shined shoes. "I have no use for a house elf who disobeys me," he said, coldly. "I have no use for a servant who forgets what is due to her master, and to her master's reputation." He pulled his jumper over his head and dropped it onto the elf in disgust. "You are no longer a servant to the House of Crouch. Be gone from me like the filth you are."
Winky was crying so hard that her sobs echoed around the clearing. There was a very nasty silence, which was ended by Sirius, who said quietly, "Well, I think I'll take my lot back to the tent, if nobody's got any objections."
Zee moved to touch Winky's arm. "Winky, come on; come with us."
"I is an unworthy elf! I is disgraced!"
"No," Zee insisted, her eyes on the crying elf. "You are not disgraced. You were in the wrong place at the wrong time. Come on; we'll take care of you now."
Crouch merely glared at her. "What could you possibly want with a disgraced elf?"
Zee's eyes met his. "I would want her to not be left abandoned in the woods by the man who just tossed her away like she was rubbish!"
Crouch's eyes flared in anger. "After what she just did, I have every right to dismiss that creature!"
"And I have every right to take care of her now that you have," Zee said simply. She turned back to Winky, taking her hand and helping the still sobbing elf up from the ground.
Tonks was bending over Blaise and Theo now as Zee tried to console the sobbing elf, "Rennervate," she said and the two of them blinked as they sat up. "You boys, all right?"
Blaise nodded, rubbing his eyes. "Er, yeah. What happened?"
Theo's head was still bleeding slowly and he blearily wiped blood from his eyes. "Fine, I think."
Sirius turned to Harry, Ron, and Draco and he quirked his finger at Blaise and Theo. "The five of you with me, now."
Draco nodded, his eyes wide as he scrambled after Sirius in the forest. Sirius pulled the five of them into a clearing just beyond the wood as Zee and Mr Weasley came up behind them. Zee was pulling Winky with her as the elf sobbed loudly. She let go of the elf's hand when she saw that Theo's head was bleeding and Winky burst into noisy tears, once more throwing herself to the ground.
Zee left the sobbing elf to her sorrow for a moment and immediately grabbed Theo, checking over the cut on his head. "It looks mostly superficial. Are you all right, sweetie?"
He nodded. "I tripped and I hit it on a tree."
She used her wand to clean the cut. "Head wounds bleed a lot, but I think that you'll be okay. We'll get this taken care of in a bit."
Sirius stared at the Draco, Blaise and Theo. "Where is Narcissa?"
"I don't know," Draco told him. "We got separated. She told us to meet her on the moor beyond the wood, but we never made it there."
Sirius nodded, his eyes moving over Blaise and Theo curiously. "You three will come home with me until I get a hold of Cissa. Harry, Ron, why did you separate from everyone else?"
"We didn't," Ron told him quickly. "Neville realized that his wand was missing so, he, Luna, and Hermione headed back to the tent to find it. Then we lost Fred, George, and Ginny in the crowd."
Mr Weasley was staring at them intently as if he was slowly trying to process their words on top of everything that had happened.
"Dad, why was everyone so uptight about that skull thing?" Ron asked.
"I'll explain everything back at the tent," Mr Weasley said, tensely.
Sirius led the way back to the campground, but their progress was impeded at the sight of them. A large crowd of frightened looking witches and wizards was congregated there, and when they saw Mr Weasley and Sirius coming toward them, many of them surged forward.
"What's going on in there?"
"Who conjured it?"
"Arthur — it's not — Him?"
"Of course it's not Him," Mr Weasley said impatiently. "We don't know who it was; it looks like they Disapparated. Now excuse me, please, I want to get to bed."
Sirius helped them move through the crowd as Zee led the way and ushered everyone towards the tents, her hand still holding Winky's as she hiccuped loud tears.
All was quiet now; there was no sign of the mysterious masked wizards, though several ruined tents were still smoking nearby.
Charlie's head was poking out of the boys' tent. "Dad, what's going on?" he called through the dark. "Fred, George, and Ginny got back okay, but Ron and Harry —"
"I've got them here," Mr Weasley said, bending down and entering the tent. Harry, Ron, Draco, Blaise, and Theo entered after him.
Bill was sitting at the small kitchen table, holding a sheet to his arm, which was bleeding profusely. Charlie had a large rip in his shirt, and Percy was sporting a bloody nose. Remus' cheek was bleeding and Tonks moved into the tent, seeing him and immediately sitting on his lap to examine his cheek, a bruise forming on her own. Fred, George, Neville, Luna, Hermione, and Ginny looked unhurt, though shaken.
Ginny jumped to her feet when she saw Theo's blood and rushed over to throw her arms around him. He hugged her back, trembling slightly, but didn't speak as she held onto him.
"Did you get them, Dad?" Bill said sharply, his eyes on his sister. "The person who conjured the Mark?"
"No," Mr Weasley said. "We found Barty Crouch's house elf holding Neville's wand, but we're none the wiser about who actually conjured the Mark."
"What?" Bill, Charlie, and Percy all said together.
"Neville's wand?" Fred questioned.
"Mr Crouch's elf?" Percy questioned, sounding thunderstruck.
Winky began to sob loudly again.
With some assistance from Harry and Ron, Mr Weasley explained what had happened in the woods as Winky continued to sob uncontrollably and loudly from her new spot on the floor of the tent as Zee knelt next to her trying to comfort the poor thing. When they had finished their story, Percy swelled indignantly.
"Well, Mr Crouch is quite right to get rid of an elf like that!" he said. "Running away when he'd expressly told her not to… embarrassing him in front of the whole Ministry… how would that have looked, if she'd been brought up in front of the DRCMC —"
Hermione, who hadn't taken her eyes off of the sobbing elf, turned and glared at Percy. "I'm sorry that her pain is too much for you!"
"Well, I —"
" — I'm sorry that she almost died out there in the woods and no one even once bothered to find out if she was all right! It's too embarrassing to be associated with a slave!" Hermione exclaimed angrily.
"I'm just saying, Hermione, that house elves are supposed to listen to the wizards who employ them and she explicitly defied his orders!" Percy interrupted. "He was right to get rid of her! A house elf that doesn't do one's bidding is not worth keeping around."
"One's bidding?" Hermione exclaimed, her eyes widening in shock. "She is a living, breathing creature and she is not meant to work herself to the bone for your precious bidding! She has rights! Basic rights! And I think that it's absolutely appalling that anyone should treat her differently simply because she's not —"
" — Human," Charlie supplied, smiling at her. "Hermione, no one here is discounting that. But Crouch doesn't take well to embarrassment and she embarrassed him rather publicly, therefore she has to go. It's as simple as that. But Zee brought her here for some reason."
"She had nowhere else to go," Zee said simply. "And the last thing that she needed was for Diggory to drag her up to the DRCMC on some bogus charges of wand-carrying and disturbing the peace. She is an innocent elf who was found in the wrong place at the wrong time. If left alone in the woods she might have gotten hurt or trampled."
Sirius smiled at her, sighing. "What are we going to do with her, Zee?"
"Don't you think that it was odd at how fast Crouch dismissed her or how he stomped off into the forest determined to find something?" Zee asked him, her eyes on Sirius. "Don't you think it was strange?"
He nodded, his eyes on his girlfriend. "No, you're right. It did seem strange — even for him."
Winky was crying quietly, small hiccups emerging as Zee gently pat her on the back.
"We'll take her with us and introduce her to Kreacher," Sirius said simply. "I'm sure that he'd like the company and he can take care of her for now."
Zee smiled. "Winky? Would you like that?"
Winky wiped the tears from her big doe eyes, sniffling. "I — I is going with you?"
Zee smiled kindly. "Sirius has a large house with an old house elf that looks after it. His name is Kreacher and I'm sure that he would love to have some help. Would you like to come and see it, maybe help out if Kreacher asked you to?"
Winky swallowed slowly. "I is… I is… I is a bad elf!"
"No, I don't believe that. You were trying not to get caught up in the crossfire. Your life is more important," Zee said quietly.
Winky looked up at Sirius. "I is… I is wishing to help, Sir."
Sirius smiled at her. "Well, you are welcome to help. Come home with us and we'll take care of you."
She still had big tears rolling down her cheeks, but she nodded.
Hermione glared at Sirius. "You're just going to put her to work for you?"
"Hermione," Sirius said gently. "House elves love to work. I'm going to introduce her to Kreacher and we'll go from there. She might not want to work for me, but at the moment she needs somewhere to go and I'm going to provide that."
"But she's not a slave!"
"No, she's not," Zee told her. "She is a house elf and she is free now and needs to make her own choices about where she wants to go. We are giving her a place to stay for the time being until she makes those choices for herself."
"Look, can someone just explain what that skull thing was?" Ron asked, impatiently before Hermione could continue her rant about the treatment of Winky. "It wasn't hurting anyone… why is it such a big deal?"
"It's the symbol of Voldemort, Ron," Sirius said quietly, moving to take a seat at the table. "And it hasn't been seen in thirteen years. The Death Eaters would send the Dark Mark up into the air whenever they killed someone."
"The terror it inspired… you have no idea, you're too young. Just picture coming home and finding the Dark Mark hovering over your house, and knowing what you're about to find inside…" Mr Weasley winced, his eyes on Sirius. "I'm sorry, Sirius."
"No, you're right — it's the worst feeling that you can imagine. The last time I saw it…"
Zee reached out to touch his arm as Remus spoke.
"It was floating above Harry's nursery."
Harry swallowed and Zee moved around to tug him into her arms. "You're all right? You're not hurt?" she asked, brushing the hair off of his forehead.
He shook his head, his eyes on Draco. "I used that double shield charm that Papa taught me and…"
"That spell just bounced right off of it," Draco said. "Thanks, Potter."
Theo was breathing heavily, his hands still shaking and his arms still wrapped around Ginny tightly as if he was afraid to let go. "My father was in the woods… he… "
Blaise reached out to squeeze his friend's arm. "Theo, it's okay. Breathe."
There was silence for a moment.
Bill, removing the sheet from his arm to check on his cut, said, "Well, it didn't help us tonight, whoever conjured that mark. It scared the Death Eaters away the moment they saw it. They all Disapparated before we'd got near enough to unmask any of them. We caught the Roberts' before they hit the ground, though. They're having their memories modified right now. The other families, I don't know how they faired."
"We can't prove it was them, Bill," Mr Weasley said. "Though it probably was," he added hopelessly. "That's their idea of fun. Half the Muggle killings back when You Know Who was in power were done for fun. I suppose that they had a few drinks tonight and couldn't resist reminding us all that lots of them are still at large. A nice little reunion for them," he finished, disgustedly.
"But if they were the Death Eaters, why did they Disapparate when they saw the Dark Mark?" Ron asked. "They'd have been pleased to see it, wouldn't they?"
"Use your brains, Ron," Bill said bitterly. "If they really were Death Eaters, they worked very hard to keep out of Azkaban when You Know Who lost power, and told all sorts of lies about him forcing them to kill and torture people. I bet they'd be even more frightened than the rest of us to see him come back. They denied that they'd ever even been involved with him when he lost his powers, and went back to their daily lives as if nothing had happened … I don't reckon that he'd be overly pleased with them, do you?"
"So… whoever conjured the Dark Mark…" Hermione said slowly, "Were they doing it to show support for the Death Eaters, or to scare them away?"
"Your guess is as good as ours, Hermione," Mr Weasley said. "But I'll tell you this… it was only the Death Eaters who ever knew how to conjure it. I'd be very surprised if the person who did it hadn't been a Death Eater once, even if they're not now. Listen, it's very late, and if your mother hears what's happened tonight she'll be worried sick. We'll try to get a few more hours of sleep and then try and get an early Portkey out of here."
Sirius shook his head. "Let's not make Molly worry, Arthur. We should all get going home. I don't want to sit around here and wait for a portkey. There's enough of us to all Apparate out safely with a teenager."
Mr Weasley looked like he wanted to protest, but then he nodded. "No, you're right, Sirius. We'll all feel better when we get home."
"I don't know you two," Sirius said simply, eyes on Blaise and Theo.
"That's Theo and Blaise, Uncle Siri. They're friends of Draco's."
Sirius nodded. "All right, Draco, Blaise, Theo, Harry, and Neville can all come back to Black Cottage with me and Zee then, the rest of you to The Burrow?" Mr Weasley nodded. "Bill, you take Ginny, Charlie you've got George, Percy — Fred, Tonks — Luna, Remus — Hermione, Zee — Draco and Harry, Ron, you're with your father, Blaise, Theo, and Neville — you're with me. Rem, can you take Winky to Kreacher before you bring Hermione to the Burrow?"
Remus nodded. "Of course."
Ginny kissed Theo's cheek. "If you need anything… "
He nodded gratefully at her. "Thanks, Ginny." He hugged her tightly once more before she moved over towards Bill to Apparate home.
Everyone took hold of their assigned partners and small popping sounds erupted from the tent as they all Disapparated. Sirius and Mr Weasley led Neville, Theo, Blaise, and Ron out of the tent, using their wands to quickly close everything up and grab the two tents before Sirius held out his arm.
"Neville, Blaise, Theo?" Each boy took one of his arms, Blaise holding onto Theo tightly as they Disapparated and Mr Weasley did the same with Ron.
Sirius led the way down the driveway and into the house where Zee was already moving around the kitchen to make tea. Draco and Harry were sitting on the sofa in the living room. Zee had pulled out a first aid kit and moved to examine Theo's head more closely.
Sirius handed Neville back his wand. "Try not to lose this."
Neville nodded, smiling sheepishly. "Yes, Sirius."
He pulled him close for a hug. "You all right?"
Neville nodded. "I'm okay."
Sirius dropped a kiss to the top of his head. "Good man." He summoned a holster from his bedroom and passed it to Neville. "I was going to give this to you for Christmas, but I think that you could use it more now. It's a thigh holster, like Harry and I both have."
Neville beamed at him. "Really?"
Sirius smiled. "Yes, really. Keep it on you and keep a better hold of that wand, understood?"
"Yes. Thank you!"
Sirius hugged him again. "You're welcome. Go on and use the Floo. Your grandmother is going to be worried sick when she finds out what happened."
Neville nodded, hugging Sirius tight and smiling when he dropped a kiss to the top of his head. "Thanks, Sirius." He said goodbye and stepped into the fireplace, disappearing in a flash.
Zee finished applying a healing salve to Theo's head after cleaning the wound as Sirius took a seat in the armchair. Marauder came down the stairs, hopping up onto the couch and greeting Harry, Blaise, Draco, and Theo with enthusiasm.
"So, who are you boys?" Sirius asked, crossing his legs at the ankles as he stared at the four young men sitting on the sofa.
"Theodore Nott and Blaise Zabini," Draco supplied. "They've been staying with me all summer."
Sirius let out a slow breath. "Nott and Zabini… you two are not in any trouble, but I need to know. Were any of your fathers out there tonight?"
Theo paled and Zee touched his arm in reassurance.
"Mine was," Theo said carefully. "I… he had two Muggle women…"
Sirius nodded. "You're not in any trouble here, Theo. If Harry says that you did nothing wrong, I believe him. Draco?"
Draco stared at him for a long moment. "I don't know for sure. But he left and he told my mother to get us to safety. But my grandfather was leading the charge."
Sirius let out a slow breath. "They were just Muggle baiting tonight, Arthur was right about that. Just to cause terror and mayhem; a little spot of fun, I suppose they'd call it."
Harry was staring at him. "Now what?"
Sirius pulled out his wand and conjured a Patronus, sending a quick message to Narcissa. "Now, we be thankful that no one was seriously hurt tonight."
"That's not true," Theo said quietly, his face pale.
Blaise nodded. "One of the Death Eaters killed two Muggle women in the forest… we… we saw it, right before one of the explosions hit."
Zee closed her eyes. "Those poor women."
"Well, let's hope that they were the only casualties," Sirius said.
"Sir?"
Sirius looked over at Draco in surprise. "Sirius is fine, Draco, we are cousins after all."
Draco nodded. "Sirius, my father he… the other day he said something to me that he might have to do things that… my grandfather is the one to worry about."
"I'm well aware of the trouble that Abraxas Malfoy can cause, Draco."
Zee finished tending to Theo and moved onto Blaise. He insisted that he was fine, just dirty, but he did have a nice slice across the back of his arm. Something must have hit him during the explosion. Draco's back was scratched up in a similar fashion. Zee ordered the two of them to remove their shirts, ignoring their protests, and was applying salve to the cuts when the alarms went off. Sirius moved outside in time to see Narcissa limping up the driveway.
"You have them? They're safe?"
Sirius nodded, grabbing her arm. "A little beat up, but they're fine. What happened to you?"
"My ankle," she told him, wincing as she attempted to climb the stairs.
Sirius scooped her up into his arms and carried her into the house. "Zee, can you look at her ankle, she can barely walk on it?"
"Sirius, I'm fine, put me down," she said, sternly, as he sat her in the armchair.
Zee moved to check her ankle, but her eyes were on the boys on the sofa. "Darlings, are you all right?"
Draco nodded. "We're fine, Mother."
Zee used a spell to set the ankle and nodded. "Try to keep off of it for the next few days, but I think that you'll be fine."
She nodded and gestured for Draco to come to her. Theo did the same and they both wrapped their arms around her. "You sure you're all right? Blaise?"
Blaise nodded from by the sofa. "We're all fine, Mrs Malfoy."
Sirius was watching her. "Two dead Muggle women that we know of. The rest have been obliviated. A few injuries, nothing serious. The panic caused more injury than the Death Eaters leading the riot."
Narcissa nodded, still holding Draco close, ignoring his attempts to get free. She kissed his cheek before she let him stand up and then did the same to Theo who hugged her a little longer so, she kissed his cheek again. "Thank you for keeping my boys safe."
"Someone tried to curse him," Harry spoke from the sofa as Narcissa's eyes moved to Harry. "A figure in a cloak; the one who made the Dark Mark."
"What? Who?"
Draco shrugged. "I don't know. But if Potter wouldn't have got that shield up in time… I don't know what he sent at me."
"Thank you," Narcissa said, gratefully.
Sirius nodded. "Do you want me to make up the guest room for you? You can stick around a bit if you're not feeling up to heading home to see your father-in-law after tonight's activities?"
She shook her head. "No, thank you. I appreciate the sentiment, but no… we need to be getting back." She reached for Draco's arm to hold as she shakily climbed to her feet. "Blaise, Theo; come on, we're going back to the manor."
Theo and Draco each took one of her arms to help her walk as Blaise opened the front door.
"Cissa?" Sirius said, as she turned to look at him. "Remember what we talked about."
She stared at him for a long moment and then she nodded and the four of them headed out and down the drive to Disapparate.
End Author's Note:
As I said, a bit the same, but I do have plans and am going in a bit of a different direction. Be patient with me. As always, thank you and please review :D