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31

𝙳𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚋𝚎 𝚊𝚏𝚛𝚊𝚒𝚍 𝚝𝚘 𝚜𝚙𝚊𝚖 𝚖𝚎 𝚠𝚒𝚝𝚑 𝚌𝚘𝚖𝚖𝚎𝚗𝚝𝚜, 𝙸 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚖 <𝟹

Mr. Weasley woke them after only a few hours of sleep. He used magic to pack up the tents, and they left the campsite as quickly as possible.

They took a port key and started walking back to the burrow. As they rounded the corner and the Burrow came into view.

"Oh thank goodness, thank goodness!"Mrs. Weasley, who had been waiting for them in the front yard, came running toward them, still wearing her bedroom slippers, her face pale and strained, a rolled-up copy of the Daily Prophet clutched in her hand.

"Arthur — I've been so worried — so worried —" She flung her arms around Mr. Weasley's neck, and the Daily Prophet fell out of her limp hand onto the ground. 

Looking down, Y/N saw the headline: 

SCENES OF TERROR AT THE QUIDDITCH WORLD CUP

There was a black and white photograph of the Dark Mark over the treetops.

"You're all right," Mrs. Weasley muttered distractedly, releasing Mr. Weasley and staring around at them all with red swollen eyes, "you're alive. . . . Oh boys . . ."

She seized Fred and George and pulled them both into a tight hug that banged their heads together.

"Ouch! Mum — you're strangling us —"

"I- was so hard on you two!" Mrs. Weasley said, starting to sob. "It's all I've been thinking about! What if You-Know-Who had got you, and the last thing I ever said to you was that you didn't get enough O.W.L.s? Oh, Fred . . . George . . ."

"Come on, now, Molly, we're all perfectly okay," said Mr. Weasley soothingly, prying her off the twins and leading her back toward the house. 

"Bill," he added, "pick up that paper, I want to see what it says. . . ." 

When they were all in the kitchen, Bill handed him the newspaper. Mr. Weasley scanned the front page.

"I knew it," said Mr. Weasley heavily. "Ministry blunders . . . culprits not apprehended . . . lax security . . . Dark wizards running unchecked . . . national disgrace . . . Who wrote this? Ah . . . of course . . . Rita Skeeter."

"That woman's got it in for the Ministry of Magic!" said Percy furiously. "Last week she was saying we're wasting our time quibbling about cauldron thickness, when we should be stamping out vampires! As if it wasn't specifically stated in paragraph twelve of the Guidelines for the Treatment of Non-Wizard Part-Humans —"

"Do us a favor, Perce," said Bill, yawning "and shut the fuck up."

Percy's ears turned pink as he turned away angrily.

"Bill!" Mrs. Weasley scolded, Bill only grinned and leaned back into his seat. 

Ginny and Y/N grinned at each other, clearly amused.

"I'm mentioned," said Mr. Weasley, his eyes widening. 

"Where?" spluttered Mrs. Weasley. "If I'd seen that, I'd have known you were alive!"

"Not by name," said Mr. Weasley. 

"Listen to this: 'If the terrified wizards and witches who waited breathlessly for news at the edge of the wood expected reassurance from the Ministry of Magic, they were sadly disappointed. A Ministry official emerged some time after the appearance of the Dark Mark alleging that nobody had been hurt, but refusing to give any more information. Whether this statement will be enough to quash the rumors that several bodies were removed from the woods an hour later, remains to be seen.' Oh really," said Mr. Weasley, clearly annoyed.