Maya's eyes began to water immediately as she duly flew in the wake of Mundungus and Moody, the latter sitting upright on his specialised broomstick.
As they took to the skies she could only hope that things were looking up, since even though they were flying pretty high, she was feeling rather low.
The Order was rising into the air at great velocity and multiple pairs on brooms and Thestrals swept past as they too soared valiantly and determinedly upwards towards the starry sky.
Maya tried to catch a possibly very last glimpse of her house, but she could not look too far over her shoulder without feeling scarily out of control; she was not exactly a Quidditch player who always exercised supreme control over their broomsticks. Between Maya and flying it had not exactly been love at first flight.
And then all of a sudden, without any form of prior warning, the Order found itself surrounded.
At least thirty hooded figures formed a vast circle in the sky and, like an unfortunate insect, the Order had flown right into their tightly spun web.
Before Maya could even begin to comprehend what was happening there were screams and a blaze of blinding green light on every side.
She could barely make out her allies in this perilous pandemonium, while their atrocious adversaries knew exactly where they were.
Adrenaline began to pump through her veins in overdrive, her heart was pounding painfully in her chest and everything seemed to happen at once. Maya had never dealt with anything even remotely like this and pure panic crept up her spine like first rising vibes of an acid frenzy as the horrible reality began to dawn on her. All she could think of was to get away from this scare in the air, the myriad of blinding blasts, ear-deafening explosions and sheer madness...
"Show your courage!" Moody yelled from below or above, Maya could not tell, but his strong voice abruptly snapped her out of it.
They were counting on her, she was not going to lose herself that easily.
If she were to literally go down, it would not be without a fight. With her wand out and with renewed confidence after Moody's encouragement she too joined this sunless Surrey sky skirmish.
"Murusvitrum!" she yelled savagely.
A wall of solid glass promptly appeared between herself and a group of approaching Death Eaters, who instantly followed them when they had broken out of the circle seconds before.
Two collided head-on with Maya's magical creation; they limply dropped from the sky amidst a shower of glass shards.
They lost their window of opportunity, Maya thought inadvertently, but her small moment of victory was extinguished immediately when her eyes met the most terrifying sight yet.
Voldemort was flying like smoke on the wind, his snake-like face glistening ominously in the blackness around them. He did not need a broomstick or Thestral to hold him; wands and brooms were merely tools that channelled magic and the Dark Lord demonstrated that the most powerful wizards could dispense with them.
It was an extremely intimidating sight indeed, but before Maya could even think about reacting a loud bang just behind her made Moody scream.
"Mundungus, no!"
Maya did not need to look to know; Mundungus had just Disapparated, leaving Moody and herself to fend for themselves.
Voldemort effortlessly kept up with them and raised his wand with long, white, bony fingers.
Maya could do nothing but watch with renewed horror as the Dark Lord savagely took full advantage of Moody's shock at Mundungus' betrayal and shot a glaring green beam at Maya's last protector, hitting him square in the face.
Almost in slow motion Moody limply slid off his broomstick and fell down, until he was swallowed whole by the darkness below.
Within a minute after her first mission had begun, Maya was completely alone. Utterly devoid of any form of support it was definitely all over now, there was no way she would survive Voldemort and a handful of Death Eaters all on her own. The only thing she could do now was to fight flyer with fire and try to take as many with her as possible...
"Avada Kedavra!"
This time the blazing green light she saw was her own doing, and as she shot it over her shoulder she was quite satisfied to register that her aim had been true. She had done her part, she could die a hero now, in peace and with a clear conscience…
At the exact same time a jet of red light flew past her right ear and when Maya heard another curse being thrown at her, she promptly lay flat on her Firebolt, clamped her feet and hands tightly around it and swung her body underneath the broomstick. A blue beam passed just overhead.
Thanks, Draco, Maya thought for a split second, for it had been him who had taught her that trick in her third year at Hogwarts.
She climbed back on her broom and made to cast another Killing Curse, when she heard a cold voice scream.
"It's not the real Potter! Chase Shacklebolt!"
What made Voldemort say that, Maya did not know, but next second she experienced a silence that was such an extreme contrast with the chaos moments before that it was extremely surreal.
She could hardly take it all in, and her terror for the others was paramount. Would Voldemort already be on Shacklebolt's tail? Would Harry be okay, crammed uncomfortably in that sidecar?
The Firebolt was flying by itself now thanks to Moody's charm, and it was almost a very strange kind of peaceful as she zoomed gently through the night to wherever it was she was going.
That is, until a mixture of fear and guilt gripped Maya like a vice around her guts. Moody was dead, and she had not been able to prevent it... It did not seem right that she was flying here, still bursting with adrenaline but virtually unscathed... Tears stung her eyes as the realisation dawned on her that she had completely botched her first mission for the Order...
Just for how long Maya flew she did not know, but it was for more than an hour because by the time the Firebolt slowly began its descent, she had transformed back into her own, Slytherin self.
Safely nestled in an area of marshland among rolling hills and fertile meadows, she could vaguely make out some kind of building through the darkness.
As the Firebolt drew nearer and Maya could get a better look at the building towards which she was heading, she saw it looked rather like an old stone pigpen, with several crooked stories attached to it. None of it matched. Four or five chimneys dotted the roof of the building and with its crazy construction and ramshackle look it was simply inconceivable to Maya that it was not held up with magical means.
She gently landed in the front yard, where a lopsided sign stuck in the ground near the entrance read 'The Burrow'.
On the one hand Maya was very relieved that she had managed to arrive at the designated destination, but on the other hand she did not at all feel like explaining what happened to Moody.
She slowly walked past a small garage and a chicken coop until she arrived at the door. Only vaguely registering the pile of old cauldrons scattered around the door, she took a breath and made to knock, but then she heard screams and the door was already opened.
"Dursley! Are you okay? Are you alone?" Mrs Weasley said tensely.
Mentally she was very much in another place; one moment she was outside The Burrow, next moment she had been ushered into the living room and pushed onto a sofa.
Harry and Hagrid stared down at her, but it was clear from the look on their faces that nobody else was back yet.
Ginny was there too, plainly not at all pleased to see Maya.
"Maya, what happened? Where are Mad-Eye and Mundungus?" Harry asked.
"I, er..." Maya blurted out. She could not quite bring herself to tell them about Moody. As soon as the words would leave her mouth there was no turning back, while for the time being she could pretend it had not actually happened.
Next thing she knew Harry had grabbed her by the shoulders. "Out with it, Maya! Where are they? Why were you the only one to come back?"
Maya was saved the trouble of answering by the sudden appearance of a bright blue light in the darkness outside.
Larger and brighter it grew until Lupin and George appeared.
Lupin was supporting George, who appeared to be unconscious and his face was covered in blood.
Harry immediately ran forwards to help and together Lupin and he carried George to the sofa, which Maya quickly vacated.
She and Ginny gasped at the gruesome sight that met their eyes; one of George's ears was missing and the side of his head and neck were drenched in blood.
Suddenly Lupin viciously grabbed Harry by the arm. "What creature did I have in my office, the first time Harry Potter visited my office at Hogwarts?" he spat.
"Er, a Grindylow," Harry said uncomfortably, and Lupin promptly let go of him.
"Wha' was tha' about?" Hagrid roared, and Maya too would have liked to know.
"We've been betrayed," Lupin said, looking around at them all. "Voldemort knew that we would move you tonight and the only people who could possibly have informed him were those directly involved. There might be an impostor among us."
Maybe it was Maya's imagination, but she strongly felt that some people cast her furtive glances.
To distract herself she cast her own glance around.
The Burrow could best be described as whimsical, quirky and filled with magical things like self-cleaning frying pans. It seemed like a warm family home, even in these dire circumstances. The floors, the ceilings, the staircase; everything was a little slanted and nothing was really perfect. The windows were a patchwork of bits of glass from other buildings, the flagstone floors were worn and every few steps on the staircase had different pieces of carpeting. Nothing in this house seemed of particularly high quality and Maya knew that her mother, wherever she was now, would not have liked it one bit.
"Nobody betrayed us. Voldemort didn't catch up with me until the end, he didn't know which one I was," Harry said, and Maya was inadvertently grateful, even though he had not said it with that intention.
"Voldemort caught up with you? Tell me exactly what happened," Lupin said sharply.
They all listened intently to Harry's story.
"But... how did they recognise you?" Lupin asked.
"Well, I tried to Disarm Stan Shunpike..." Harry started, but Lupin cut him short.
"Disarming? Harry, you can't be serious! At least Stun if you aren't ready to kill!" Lupin said, sounding shocked.
Maya inadvertently felt even more glad that she actually casted Killing Curses. She now strongly felt that she actually served a purpose in this whole mission as a fierce fighter. Not only that, but Maya also suddenly realised that this was how Voldemort had known that she was not the real Harry; Harry would never cast a Killing Curse.
"Expelliarmus saved me before!" Harry said defiantly.
"Yes, but don't let it become your signature move, Harry! You need to use more powerful spells!"
There was another flash of blue light and two more figures had appeared in the yard.
Kingsley and Hermione seemed perfectly unscathed, even though the former seemed furious.
"We've been betrayed!" he said as soon as he had made his way inside the house.
"So it seems," Lupin said, sounding reasonably calm considering the circumstances.
"Who else is back?" Kingsley asked, thoroughly agitated.
"Harry, Hagrid, George, myself and Dursley," Lupin said.
"Dursley?" Kingsley said, looking around until his gaze rested on Maya. "Just you? Where are Mad-Eye and Mundungus?"
Everyone was looking at her now.
She took a deep breath and said: "Mundungus Disapparated almost immediately. Moody was..."
"Go on!"
Maya forced herself to look Kingsley straight in the eye, but her voice began to tremble. "Moody was killed. By Voldemort, he went straight for us," she said, biting her lip to stop herself from crying again.
The shock that went through the house was almost palpable. Even Mrs Weasley and Ginny, who were tending to George, looked up.
"No, it can't be..." Kingsley said weakly.
There was a sound coming from the yard and next second Mr Weasley, Fred, Ron, Tonks, Bill and Fleur all came dashing into the house at once, probably owing to the fact they had all taken their respective Portkeys at the same time.
Mr Weasley dropped to his knees beside George immediately.
Bill looked at them all and swallowed. "Mad-Eye's dead. We saw it. Dung Disapparated and Voldemort's curse hit Mad-Eye full in the face. There was nothing we could do... and Dursley is probably dead too..."
"She's not," Kingsley said brusquely, jerking his head towards Maya, who was standing there most awkwardly, feeling all sorts of negative emotions.
"Good gracious, I was certain you were a goner too. How did you survive?" Bill asked. His relief sounded genuine.
Maya recounted the story, with everyone looking at her. "I... I'm so sorry," she choked as she finished, staring down at the floor as she finally could not stand the shocked stares anymore.
Nobody really replied. Nobody even moved as they all stood there, looking at each other in horror.
Maya very much wanted to tell them just how guilty she felt, but the only words she could think of seemed so hollow and insincere. Tears streamed down her cheeks.
"It wasn't your fault, Dursley," Bill said at long last. "We saw it. There was nothing we could have done. Not us, not you."
Maya felt incredibly grateful to him, but she could not fully shake off the feeling that the Order blamed her for the tragedy. The facts that she was completely unscathed and had been among the first to return did not exactly help her sentiments. At least she had killed at least one Death Eater and quite possibly two more, which was a strangely comforting thought.
"So Mundungus just disappeared?" Lupin said.
It was like the others had not fully accepted Maya's earlier version of events and only after Bill's matching version were they willing to actually discuss it.
"Yes," Maya said quickly, spotting an opportunity to shift some of the blame and hopefully make herself feel less guilty.
"Now, I know what you're thinking. But Mundungus can't have betrayed us. The Death Eaters didn't know there would be seven Harrys and it was Mundungus who suggested that part. It wouldn't make a lick of sense," Bill said.
"Somebody must 'ave been careless," Fleur suddenly spoke up, wiping tears from her cheeks. "Zat is ze only explanation!" She glared around at them all, reserving her most intense gaze for Maya.
"No. If somebody made a mistake, I'm sure it was genuine," Harry spoke up. "We've got to trust each other, and I trust all of you. I don't believe for a second that anyone in this room would ever betray me to Voldemort."
"Well said, mate," Fred said after a few moments of eloquent silence.
"Now, Mad-Eye's body. We need to recover it," Lupin said.
"I'll do it. No, Molly, this can't wait," Bill said.
They said their goodbyes and left.
"I've got to go too," Harry said suddenly.
His words were met with startled looks all around.
"I can't stay here. You're all in danger while I'm here," he continued.
"Don't be silly, Harry! The whole point of tonight was to make sure you got here safely!" Mrs Weasley said.
"But if Voldemort finds out I'm here..." Harry went on.
"Why should he?" Mr Weasley asked. "Our efforts would have been rather pointless if you left now. Moody..."
"Harry," Maya said softly before she could stop herself, and everyone was now looking at her again.
"Whether you like it or not, you have become a guiding light that helps unite and sustain hope to all those brave souls fighting Voldemort. It's high time you realise that your presence does not actually significantly increase the danger to those around you, those you care about. The truth is that Voldemort will kill any and all opposing him, and the Order would be battling Voldemort even without your presence. Please stay, so we can all be together and look out for one another, which is really our, yes, our only chance."
Maya did not even know where those words had come from, but she had spoken them calm and firmly as if they had been on her mind for a long time.
The silence that greeted her words was rather impressive indeed, and she did not break it so as to allow her words the very biggest impact.
"Well said, Dursley," Hagrid growled eventually, and much to Maya's satisfaction Harry did not move a muscle.