The Potter Twins and the Goblet of Fire

Chapter 3: The Dark Mark

Harry and Michael could tell that something was wrong. The noises in the campsite had changed. The singing had stopped. They could hear screams, and the sound of people running. They slipped down from their bunks and reached for their clothes, but Mr. Weasley, who had pulled on his jeans over his own pajamas, said, "no time, boy's, just grab some jackets and get outside, quickly!"

Michael and Harry did as they were told and hurried out of the tent, Ron at their heels.

By the light of the few fires that were still burning, they could see people running off into the woods, fleeing something that was moving across the field 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, moving together with wands pointing straight upward, all marching tightly together. Harry and Michael squinted at them…. They didn't seem to have faces. Then they realized that their heads were hooded and their faces were masked. High above them, floating along in midair, four struggling figures 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 from the wands. Two of the figures were very small.

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 laughed with glee.

Ron, "that's sick. That is really sick."

They watched the smallest Muggle child, who had begun to spin like a top, sixty feet above the ground, his head flopping limply from side to side.

Hermione and Ginny came hurrying toward them, pulling coats over their nightdresses, with Mr. Weasley 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.

Mr. Weasley, "we're going to help the Ministry! You lot; get into the woods, and stick together. I'll come and fetch you when we've sorted this out!"

Bill, Charlie, and Percy were already sprinting away toward the chaos; Mr. Weasley tore after them. Ministry wizards were dashing from every direction toward the source of the trouble.

Fred and George began leading the others into the woods as the colored 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 and Michael felt themselves being pushed by people whose faces they could not see. Then they heard Ron yell with pain.

Hermione, "what happened? 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.

Ron got to his feet, "tripped over a tree root."

"Well, with feet that size, hard not to..."

Michael, Harry, Ron, and Hermione turned sharply. Draco was standing alone nearby, leaning against a tree, looking utterly relaxed. His arms folded, he seemed to have been watching the scene at the campsite through a gap in the trees.

Ron began muttering curse words at Malfoy to do something that Harry and Michael knew he would never have dared say in front of Mrs. Weasley

Weasley, "language, Weasley. Hadn't you better hurry along, now? You wouldn't like her spotted, would you?"

Hermione, "what's that supposed to mean?"

Malfoy, "Granger, they're after Muggles. D'you want to be showing off your knickers in midair? Because if you do, hang around…. They're moving this way, and it would give us all a laugh."

Harry, "Hermione's a witch."

Michael, "you should know this, Draco."

Malfoy, "have it your own way, Potter's. If you think they can't spot a Mudblood, stay where you are."

Ron, "you watch your mouth!"

Hermione, "never mind, Ron."

Hermione quickly seized Ron's arm to restrain him as he took a step toward Malfoy.

There came a bang from the other side of the trees that was louder than anything they had heard. Several people nearby screamed.

Malfoy, "ha! Scare easily, don't they? I suppose your daddy told you all to hide? What's he up to trying to rescue the Muggles?"

Michael, "where are your parents? Out there wearing masks, are they? Not that I wouldn't mind taking your mother's mask off, among other things."

Malfoy grew an angry look and said, "w-well…. If they were, I wouldn't be likely to tell you, would I, Potters? And I doubt my mother would consort with the likes of you!"

Hermione, "oh come on. Let's go and find the others."

Malfoy, "keep that big bushy head down, Granger."

Hermione, "come on!"

Ron, "I'll bet you anything his dad is one of that masked lot!"

Hermione, "well, with any luck, the Ministry will catch him. Oh I can't believe this. Where have the others got to?"

Fred, George, and Ginny were nowhere to be seen, though the path was packed with plenty of other people, all looking nervously over their shoulders toward the commotion back at the campsite. A huddle of teenagers in pajamas was arguing vociferously a little way along the path.

When they saw Harry, Ron, and Hermione, a girl with thick curly hair turned and said quickly, "Où est Madame Maxime? Nous l'avons perdue?"

Ron, "er…. What?"

The girl turned and muttered, "oh…. 'Ogwarts."

Hermione, "Beauxbatons."

Harry, "sorry?"

Hermione, "they must go to Beauxbatons. You know…. Beauxbatons Academy of Magic…. I read about it in; An Appraisal of Magical Education in Europe."

Harry, "oh…. Yeah…. Right."

Michael, "another magical school. Hmm."

Ron, "Fred, Ginny and George can't have gone that far."

Ron pulled out his wand, lighting it like Hermione's, and squinting up the path.

Harry dug in the pockets of his jacket for his own wand, but it wasn't there. The only thing he could find was his Omnioculars.

Harry, "oh, no, I don't believe it…. I've lost my wand!"

Michael quickly searched his own person, and thankfully, he still had his wand.

Ron and Hermione raised their wands high enough to spread the narrow beams of light farther on the ground; Harry looked all around him, but his wand was nowhere to be seen.

Ron, "maybe it's back in the tent."

Hermione, "maybe it fell out of your pocket when we were running?"

Harry, "yeah, maybe."

Michael, "I'm sure we can find it if we look together."

Haery usually kept his wand with him at all times, and finding himself without it in the midst of a scene like this made him feel very vulnerable. A rustling noise nearby made all four of them jump. Winky the house-elf was fighting her way out of a clump of bushes. She was moving in a most peculiar fashion, apparently with great difficulty; it was as though someone invisible were trying to hold her back.

Winky, "there is bad wizards about! People high…. High in the air! Winky is getting out of the way!"

Winky disappeared into the trees on the other side of the path, panting and squeaking as she fought the invisible force.

Ron, "what's up with her? Why can't she run properly?"

Harry, "bet she didn't ask permission to hide."

Michael, "just like Dobby: every time he tried to do something the Malfoys wouldn't like, he was forced to start beating himself up!"

Hermione, "you know, house-elves get a very raw deal! It's slavery, that's what it is! That Mr. Crouch made her go up to the top of the stadium, and she was terrified, and he's got her bewitched so she can't even run when they start trampling tents! Why doesn't anyone do something about it?"

Ron, "well, the elves are happy, aren't they? You heard old Winky back at the match; 'House-elves is not supposed to have fun', that's what she likes, being bossed around…."

Hermione, "it's people like you, Ron. Who prop up rotten and unjust systems, just because they're too lazy to-"

Another loud bang echoed from the edge of the wood.

Michael, "we can discuss the ethics of house elves later!"

Ron, "yeah, let's just keep moving, shall we?"

Michael and Harry saw Ron glance edgily at Hermione. Perhaps there was truth in what Malfoy had said; perhaps Hermione was in more danger than they were.

They set off again, Harry still searching his pockets, even though he knew his wand wasn't there.

They followed the path deeper into the woods, still keeping an eye out for Ron's siblings. They passed a group of goblins cackling over a sack of gold that they had probably won betting on the match. Farther along the path, 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.

Harry and Michael even recognized Stan from the Night Bus among them!

Michael and Hermione eventually had to drag Ron away as he began yelling to the Veela.

Soom, the group made it into the middle of the woods.

Harry, "I reckon we can just wait here, you know. We'll hear anyone coming a mile off."

Michael, "good idea."

The words were hardly out of their mouths, when Ludo Bagman emerged from behind a tree!

Even by the feeble light of the two wands, they all could see that a great change had come over him. He no longer looked joyful; there was no more spring in his step. He looked very disturbed and terrified.

Bagman, "who's that? What are you doing here, all alone?"

They looked at one another, surprised.

Ron, "well, there's a sort of riot going on."

Bagman, "what?"

Ron, "at the campsite…. Some people have got hold of a family of Muggles."

Bagman, "damn them!"

Bagman ran off!

Hermione, "not exactly on top of things, Mr. Bagman, is he?"

Ron said as he began leading the group through a clearing, "he was a great Beater, though. The Wimbourne Wasps won the league three times in a row while he was with them."

As Ron looked over his figure of Krum, Harry and Michael were listening for noise from the campsite. Everything seemed much quieter; perhaps the riot was over.

Hermione, "I hope the others are okay."

Ron, "they'll be fine."

Harry, "imagine if your dad catches Lucius Malfoy. He's always said he'd like to get something on him."

Ron, "that'd wipe the smirk off old Draco's face, all right."

Michael, "anything to see that smug little git get a taste of his own medicine."

Hermione, "those poor Muggles, though. What if they can't get them down?"

Ron, "they will. They'll find a way."

Hermione, "mad, though, to do something like that when the whole Ministry of Magic's out here tonight! I mean, how do they expect to get away with it? Do you think they've been drinking, or are they just-"

But she broke off abruptly and looked over her shoulder. Harry, Michael and Ron looked too. It sounded as though someone was staggering toward their clearing. They waited, listening to the sounds of the steps behind the trees. But the footsteps came to a sudden halt.

Harry, "hello?"

There was silence. Michael and Harry got to their feet and peered around the tree. It was too dark to see very far, but they could sense somebody standing just beyond the range of their vision.

Michael, "who's there? Show yourself!"

And then, without warning, the silence was broken by a voice unlike any they had heard; and it uttered, not a panicked shout, but what sounded like a spell.

"MORSMORDRE!"

And something vast, green, and glittering erupted from the patch of darkness, the twins' eyes struggling to see it as it flew up over the treetops and into the sky.

Ron, "what the?"

For a split second, Harry and Michael thought it was another leprechaun formation. Then they realized that it was a colossal skull, 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 constellation!

Suddenly, the area all around them erupted with screams.

The twins didn't understand why, but the only possible cause was the sudden appearance of the skull, which had now risen high enough to illuminate the entire place like a neon sign. They looked through the darkness for the person who had conjured the skull, but they couldn't see anyone.

Harry, "who's there?"

Michael, "what's going on?!"

Hermione, "Harry, Michael, come on, move!"

Hermione had seized the collars of their jackets and were tugging them backwards.

Harry, "what's the matter?"

Hermione, "it's the Dark Mark! You-Know-Who's sign!"

Michael, "Voldemorts?"

Ron, "just come on!"

But before they had taken a few hurried steps, a series of popping noises announced the arrival of twenty wizards, appearing from thin air, surrounding them.

The brothers whirled around, and in an instant, they registered one fact: each of these wizards had his wand out, and every wand was pointing right at them, Ron, and Hermione.

Without pausing to think, Michael yelled, "DUCK!"

They seized the other two and pulled them down onto the ground.

"STUPEFY!"

Twenty voices yelled this. There was a blinding series of flashes. Harry raised his head slightly and he saw jets of fiery red light flying over them from the wizards' wands, crossing one another, bouncing off tree trunks, rebounding into the darkness.

The kids then heard a familiar voice yell, "stop! STOP! That's my son!"

The kids' hair stopped blowing about. They raised their heads a little higher. The wizard in front of them had lowered his wand. They rolled over and saw Mr. Weasley striding toward them.

Mr. Weasley, "Ron, Harry, Michael, Hermione, are you all right?"

"Out of the way, Arthur."

It was Mr. Crouch. He and the other Ministry wizards were closing in on them. The kids got to their feet to face them. Mr. Crouch's face was taut with rage.

Mr. Crouch, "which of you did it? Which of you conjured the Dark Mark?"

Harry, "we didn't do that!"

Michael, "yeah! We've been busy running for our lives!"

Ron, "we didn't do anything! What did you want to attack us for?"

Mr. Crouch, "do not lie. You have been discovered at the scene of the crime."

Michael muttered, "ever heard of a coincidence?"

A witch in a long woolen dressing gown whispered, "Barty. They're kids, Barty, they'd never have been able to-"

Mr. Weasley, "where did the Mark come from, you four?"

Hermione shakily pointed and said, "over there. There was someone behind the trees…. They shouted words, an incantation!"

Mr. Crouch, "oh, stood over there, did they? Said an incantation, did they? You seem very well informed about how that Mark is summoned, missy..."

Michael, "hey, dumbass! Why would a girl who's half Muggle conjure a symbol of Voldemort, who hates Muggles?!"

That made Mr. Crouch shut up for a second. None of the Ministry wizards apart from Mr. Crouch seemed to think it likely that Harry, Michael, Ron, or Hermione had conjured the skull; on the contrary, at Michael and Hermione's words, they had all raised their wands again and were pointing in the direction she had indicated, squinting through the trees.

The witch from before, "we're too late. They'll have Disapparated."

Amos Diggory walked forward and said, "I don't think so. Our Stunners went right through those trees…. There's a good chance we got them…."

One wizard warned, "Amos, be careful."

Mr. Diggory squared his shoulders, raised his wand, marched across the clearing, and disappeared into the darkness.

A few seconds later, they heard Amos shout, "yes! We got them! There's someone here! Unconscious! It's, but…. Blimey…."

Mr. Crouch, "you've got someone? Who? Who is it?"

They heard snapping, rustling, and crunching as Mr. Diggory re emerged from behind the trees. He was carrying a tiny, limp figure in his arms. Harry and Michael recognized them instantly! It was Winky!

Mr. Crouch, "this cannot be... no!"

He quickly moved around Amos and strode off toward the place where he had found Winky.

Amos, "no point, Mr. Crouch. 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 as he pushed the bushes aside, searching.

Mr. Diggory, "bit embarrassing. Barty Crouch's house-elf…. I mean to say…."

Mr. Weasley, "come off it, Amos. You don't seriously think it was the elf? The Dark Mark's a wizard's sign. It requires a wand."

Amos, "yeah, and she had a wand."

Mr. Weasley, "what?"

Mr. Diggory held up a wand and showed it to Mr. Weasley, "here, look. She 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. Looking breathless and disorientated.

Bagman, "the Dark Mark! Who did it? Did you get them? Barty! What's going on?"

Mr. Crouch had returned empty-handed. His face was still ghostly white, and his hands and mustache were both twitching.

Bagman, "where have you been, Barty? Why weren't you at the match? Your elf was saving you a seat too, gulping gargoyles! What happened to her?"

Mr. Crouch, "I have been busy, Ludo. And my elf has been stunned."

Bagman, "stunned? By you lot, you mean? But why…. No! Winky? Conjure the Dark Mark? She wouldn't know how! She'd need a wand, for a start!"

Amos, "and she had one. I found her holding one, Ludo. If it's alright with you, Mr. Crouch, I think we should hear what she's got to say for herself."

Crouch gave no sign that he had heard Mr. Diggory, but Amos seemed to take his silence for yes. He raised his own wand, pointed it at Winky, and said, "Rennervate!"

Winky stirred feebly. Her great brown eyes opened and she blinked in a bemused sort of way. Watched by the silent wizards, she raised herself shakily into a sitting position.

She gave a gasp, looked wildly around the crowded clearing, and burst into terrified sobs.

Amos, "Elf. Do you know who I am? I'm a member of the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures!"

Winky began to rock back and forth on the ground, her breath coming in sharp bursts. The twins were reminded forcibly of Dobby in his moments of terrified disobedience.

Amos, "as you see, Elf, the Dark Mark was conjured here a short while ago. And you were discovered moments later, right beneath it! An explanation, if you please!"

Winky, "I- I- I is not doing it, sir! I is not knowing how, sir!"

Amos, "you were found with a wand in your hand!"

And as the wand caught the green light that was filling the clearing from the skull above, Harry recognized it.

Harry, "hey! That's mine!"

Everyone in the clearing looked at him.

Amos, "excuse me?"

Harry, "that's my wand! I dropped it!"

Amos, "you dropped it? Is this a confession? You threw it aside after you conjured the Mark?"

Mr. Weasley, "Amos, think who you're talking to! Is Harry Potter or Michael Potter likely to conjure the Dark Mark?"

Amos, "er…. Of course not. Sorry…. Carried away…."

Michael growled, "do you just accuse any young wizard of doing something like this!? Especially the children of those killed by Voldemort!?"

Everyone tensed at the name. Harry and Michael seemed to be the only people who didn't fear his name.

Harry, "I didn't drop it there, anyway. I missed it right after we got into the woods."

Amos turned to Winky, "so. You found this wand, eh, Elf? And you picked it up and thought you'd have some fun with it, did you?"

Winky, "I is not doing magic with it, sir! I is…. I is…. I is just picking it up, sir! I is not making the Dark Mark, sir, I is not knowing how!"

Hermione, "it wasn't her! Winky's got a squeaky little voice, and the voice we heard doing the incantation was much deeper! It didn't sound anything like Winky, did it?"

Harry, "no. It definitely didn't sound like an Elf."

Michael, "sounded like a man. A human man."

Ron, "yeah, it was a human voice."

Amos, "well, we'll soon see. There's a simple way of discovering the last spell a wand performed, Elf, did you know that?"

Winky trembled and shook her head frantically as Mr. Diggory raised his own wand again and placed it tip to tip with Harry's.

Amos, "Prior Incantato!"

Hermione gasped as a shadow of the green skull and snake formed between the wands.

Amos, "Deletrius!"

Michael seemed to tune out the rest of the conversation, as Amos kept pointing fingers at Winky, and arguing with Mr. Weasley and Mr. Crouch as he stared up at the green skull.

He caught Mr. Weasley chastising Amos for accusing him and Harry, since they were the least likely to perform the spell.

As well as Amos constantly pointing the finger of blame at Winky.

Hermione even began arguing with Crouch after he told Winky he was going to give her clothes, thus freeing her, and angering Hermione over his treatment of the elf.

Eventually, the whole matter was ended, and Mr. Weasley led the kids back to the tent, with Hermione still angered over how Winky was treated. Eventually, they ran into the rest of the Wealey's I'm their way back.

Ron, "look, can someone just explain what that skull thing was? It wasn't hurting anyone….. Why's it such a big deal?"

Michael, "yeah, I'd like to know that as well!"

Hermione, "I told you, it's You-Know-Who's symbol. I read about it in The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts."

Mr. Weasley, "and it hasn't been seen for thirteen years. Of course people panicked, it was almost like seeing You-Know-Who back again."

Ron, "I don't get it. I mean…. It's still only a shape in the sky…."

Mr. Weasley, "Ron, You-Know-Who and his followers sent the Dark Mark into the air whenever they killed. 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…. Everyone's worst fear…. The very worst…."

There was silence for a moment.

Then Bill, removing the sheet from his arm to check on his cut, said, "well, it didn't help us tonight, whoever conjured it. 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 Robertses before they hit the ground, though. They're having their memories modified right now."

Harry, "Death Eaters?"

Michael, "what are Death Eaters?"

Bill, "it's what You-Know-Who's supporters called themselves. I think we saw what's left of them tonight. The ones who managed to keep themselves out of Azkaban, anyway."

Mr. Weasley, "we can't prove it was them, Bill. Though it probably was."

Ron, "yeah, I bet it was! Dad, we met Draco Malfoy in the woods, and he as good as told us his dad was one of those nutters in masks! And we all know the Malfoys were right in with You-Know-Who!"

Harry, "but what were Voldemort's supporters-"

Everyone flinched.

Harry, "sorry."

Michael, "what were You-Know-Who's supporters up to, levitating Muggles? I mean, what was the point?"

Mr. Weasley, "the point? That's their idea of fun. Half the Muggle killings back when You-Know-Who was in power were done for fun. I suppose 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."

Ron, "but if they were the Death Eaters, why did they Disapparate when they saw the Dark Mark? They'd have been pleased to see it, wouldn't they?"

Bill, "use your brains, Ron. 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 they'd ever been involved with him when he lost his powers, and went back to their daily lives…. I don't reckon he'd be over-pleased with them, do you?"

Hermione, "so…. Whoever conjured the Dark Mark…. Were they doing it to show support for the Death Eaters, or to scare them away?"

Mr. Weasley, "your guess is as good as ours, Hermione. 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 she'll be worried sick. We'll get a few more hours of sleep and then try and get an early Portkey out of here…."

The others nodded, their minds all abuzz.

Michael and Harry especially.

All of this was oh so very confusing.

The Dark Mark. The Death Eaters. The dreams they'd been having.

What did these things mean?

They thought of the letter's they had written to Sirius before leaving Privet Drive. Would Sirius have gotten them yet? When would he reply?

Eventually, the two dozed off to these thoughts….

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Reviews:

Canadude2029: yep. Glad you liked the chapter.

Guest: sorry. Probably not gonna happen.

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