Chaos Rising |BOOK 2| Harry Potter x PJO |Alexandra Marine|

ANNABETH CHASE

"Death Eaters?" said Aunt Muriel sharply. "What d'you mean, Death Eaters? I thought they didn't know he was being moved tonight, I thought-"

"They knew," I said, taking the towel that the old woman offered. "They knew somehow- and we almost fell right into their trap."

"Well, we know our protective charms hold, then, don't we? They shouldn't be able to get within a hundred yards of the place in any direction."

Fleur had crashed onto the sofa in a sort of 'I'm done with this nonsense' way. She muttered something in French about how this was the worst day of her life and somehow the luckiest one too.

"What happened to my nephews?" she asked. "Where is that little squeaky Weasley- Ronald?"

"I don't know," I said. "We don't know what happened to anyone else."

Muriel's eyes drooped.

"They'll be fine, I'm sure," I said.

"The Portkey," Muriel said, remembering all of a sudden. "We've got to get back to the Burrow and find out - then we'll be able to send you word, or- the Portkey's through here. It's supposed to leave in three minutes, if you want to take it."

"Yes, we do," said Fleur, still Harry. She seized the rucksack, swung it onto her shoulders.

I stood up, brushing all the dust off my pants. "Well... I'll tell Arthur to send word when they... yeah."

Muriel nodded. She pointed to a small, silver-backed hairbrush lying on the dressing table. "I'll send the diadem later."

"Thanks," said Fleur, kissing the old woman on the cheek and reaching out to place a finger on it, ready to leave.

With a jerk behind the navel as though an invisible hook and line had dragged me forward, we were pulled into nothingness, spinning uncontrollably, finger glued to the Portkey as we hurtled away from Muriel. Seconds later, my feet slammed onto hard ground and I fell onto my hands and knees in the yard of the Burrow.

Someone screamed.

Shadows crossed across the dark backyard as Will slammed into me a minute later, his arms binding my into a tight hug I thought I almost broke my ribs.

Molly and Ginny running down the steps by the back door as Fleur got to her feet so gracefully that I didn't even realize she had even been on the floor to begin with. Through the lit up windows of the quaint but homely house, I could see the large shadow of Hagrid, a large bottle in his hand. Clearly, they had only arrived too.

"Oh, thank Zeus!" Will exclaimed so loud that I had to shoot him a glare. "You're alive!"

"Ron and Tonks should have been back first, but they missed their Portkey, it came back without them," she said, pointing at a rusty oil can lying on the ground nearby. "And that one," she pointed at an ancient sneaker, "should have been Dad and Fred's, they were supposed to be second. Harry and Hagrid were third- you and Fleur then," she checked her watch, "if they made it, George and Lupin ought to be back in about a minute."

Will helped Fleur up and we walked towards the landing, finally catching back onto out breaths.

Harry pulled his hands away from his forehead and crushed us both into a hug the moment we were visible. "Thank god." Hagrid gave a loud burp, drinking from a large brandy bottle.

"Mum!" shouted Ginny, pointing to a spot several feet away.

A blue light had appeared in the darkness: It grew larger and brighter, and Lupin and George appeared, spinning and then falling. There was something wrong, and Will knew it almost immediately: Lupin was supporting George, who was unconscious and whose face was covered in blood.