Lilly's POV....
James, Albus and I were all upstairs listening to the Quidditch World Cup. The World Cup this year was being held in Bulgaria; Albus and I had really wanted to go to see our favorite team, the Chudley Cannons, but Mum had refused, because school was starting in a few days and we still needed to go to Diagon Alley to get our supplies, which meant we had to listen to the match on the radio. Tutshill Tornados had just scored, and Albus and I cursed.
“Quiet up there!” shouted Mum from downstairs. “Don’t do that in front of your sisters!”
“MUM, it’s alright, for heaven’s sake! I am twelve!” I shouted back.
The Tutshill Tornados were winning seventy to zero. The Cannons’ only hope was to catch the snitch.
Then suddenly something weird happened. The radio had somehow switched itself to the WNN (Wizards’ News Nightly, the wizarding news) Channel, and it appeared the Minister of Magic was talking.
“ATTENTION ALL WIZARDS,” Kingsley Shacklebolt’s voice boomed out of the television. “We have reason to believe that Gellert Grindelwald has returned. You are advised to find a safe place to hide while the Ministry deals with the situation. The Quidditch World Cup and all other large-scale public events have been postponed indefinitely.”
“We’d better go to your Uncle Bill’s house,” said Mum. I hadn’t realized she’d come into the room. She looked worried. “It’s the safest place to go at the moment.”
“Why is it the safest?” I asked.
“They still have the Fidelius charm on the house from the last Wizarding War, not to mention it’s completely isolated.” Mum replied.
I nodded silently.
All of us scurried out of the house. We only had time to collect a few of our belongings; Albus got his iPod, James got his Quidditch book, and I grabbed my teddy bear.
****
When we arrived to Shell Cottage, Bill was waiting for us outside. “Albus, James, Lily. How are you?”
“We’re fine,” Mum said, cutting off James, Albus, and me.
“So,” Bill asked, “Where’s Harry?”
“He’s still at work. Should be coming back soon, I sent him a patronus before we left. He said the ministry is a wreck.”
Bill let out a heavy sigh. “Oh, well. Come on in.”
As the kids and I walked inside, we noticed some obvious differences in the little cottage. The chandelier was gone, and the house had gone from being immaculately tidy to just downright messy.
“Uncle Bill, why does it look so different?” My Brother, James, asked.
“No reason, I guess I’ve just been a little stressed out lately," ,
Mum frown. “Bill,” She put in, “Where is Fleur?”
“I’m not sure, but she must be out at work in Bulgaria.” Bill said, not sounding very reassuring
Before anyone could say anything else, there was a sudden knock at the door.
“Oh! It must be Harry!” Mum said, beaming. Just to be sure, she got my wand out.
Mum opened the door cautiously, and came face to face with none other than my fahter. Just to make sure, she asked, "On your seventeenth birthday. what was on your birthday cake?"
"That would be... It was quidditch themed!" Dad said with a smile
“Alright, come in, come in.” Mum whispered.
Dad looked horrible, not that it was his fault, but his hair looked as if he had just woken up from bed, His jacket was torn, along with his pants. Work must have been a complete mad-house, with everyone running to their families. He looked dreadfully tired, as if he hadn’t slept in days, and he was starting to grow a shabby mustache, which also looked terrible since he hadn’t shaved it in days.
“Hello, honey. Hi, kids what have you been up to?” Dad said.
“We were just listening to the World Cup, before we got that announcement, about Grindelwald.” James moaned.
“Oh yeah, the World Cup! Who was winning when they stopped it?” Dad asked, seaming too forget about the earlier events that occurred .
“The Tutshill Tornados were winning seventy to nothing.” said James, a tad dejectedly.
“Maybe it was better for the Chudley Cannons, now they can regroup a bit.” I put in.
“And how have you been Harry?”Uncle Bill asked.
“I’ve been better… in the ministry all we’ve been working on this case; it’s been rather difficult. I’m not really supposed to be telling you this… but oh well, it won’t matter anyway. There’s this woman that we found dead about two weeks ago, and we can’t indentify her. She doesn’t have her wand, and somebody must have put a curse on her. Everything about her is mixed up, her eyes, they’re red and always crossed, and the strangest thing’s her body. It doesn’t look human. It looks like a cross between a horse and an elf.”
“Wow, Dad, do you think somebody might have put a hex on her?” I asked.
“Yeah, that’s what we are leaning towards, but we still don’t know. It could be a potion as well.”
“Do they think it could somehow be related to Grindelwald?” asked Albus.
“Impossible. This first started weeks before he came back.” Mum said.
“Bill, is Dad still secret keeper of the house?” Mum asked.
“No, don’t you remember? We changed it to Fleur months ago.”
“Oh. Remind me why you changed it again?” Mum said with a smug grin on her face.
“No reason, it’s just, now that Dad’s Head of Muggle Artifacts at the ministry, he has even less time; Fleur’s normally at home, unless she is off at work, which doesn’t happen since she doesn’t get called in often.”
“Where is Fleur anyway?” Dad articulated.
“I honestly don’t know. I haven’t seen her in weeks. My guess is she’s still at work. A bit weird that she hasn’t contacted me at all though.” Bill said, sounding more worried than ever.
AUTHORS NOTE: Please Fan, Vote, and leave feedback, it would mean a lot. Thanks! Also, I wrote this MONTHS back, and then my computer broke, so I am not entirely sure if this is the edited version... Expect a few errors.
