Tightly Knit ⟶ Fred Weasley

CHAPTER FORTY-THREE

"You could always come back to our tent," Cedric offered as he stood outside of the tent with Eleanor, Fred, and George. "I don't think we're going to bed anytime soon. I mean, everyone else is still celebrating. I highly doubt anyone is going to get a good night's rest unless they charm their tents."

"I hope some of them do," Eleanor laughed, "you should have heard Grandpa Lyall singing some song when we were leaving the stands. I thought Dad was going to tell him to stop but then he joined in. I love them, really, but singing, it's not for everyone."

It didn't seem like a bad idea to join Eleanor and Cedric back at their tent, Fred didn't think he was going to be able to sleep anyways, between the match, the win, and the lingering jitters of Eleanor hugging him multiple times, he was wide awake. They were just about to head back inside to ask their father if they could go when there was a high-pitched scream in the distance.

For a moment, the group turned their heads, thinking it was just someone getting out of hand with their celebrations, but a minute later, there was something of a small explosion. Flames erupted into the air and there were more sounds of screaming. It was easy to think that some partying was just carried away and that Ministry officials would probably make their way over at any moment to handle it, but then there was another explosion and then more screaming.

Instinctively, Fred reached out and grabbed Eleanor's hand, pulling her closer to him. Their eyes remained glued in the direction, only to see several witches and wizards running past, yelling as they told others to run. George hurried back into the tent to alert Arthur, while the other three were left to observe in worry.

"What's going on?" Eleanor whispered under her breath. Tents were collapsing and more and more people were running in the opposite direction of the fires. A few seconds later, Arthur appeared out of the tent and took a good look around before his eyes widened and he shook his head.

"All of you wait here while I wake the others!" Arthur told them firmly before he hurried back inside. He disappeared into the tent and they could hear him call for Harry and Ron to wake up before he went to get Hermione and Ginny.

Eleanor didn't know what to make of the scenario that was unfolding before them, thinking nothing of the sort was going to take place when she told her father that they were going to go offer their congratulations to the twins on their win. She could feel her heart racing in her chest, especially as the panicked screams grew louder and the crowds running grew bigger. She squeezed Fred's hand tightly, taking another look in the direction of the chaos, only to see something that nearly took her breath away as Harry and Ron emerged from the tent.

There was a crowd of wizards, their faces appeared hidden under masks and hooded cloaks, concealing their identities. They seemed to be marching in a tight formation, their wands pointed upwards and as Eleanor looked up, she let out a gasp of horror. High above the hooded crowd, were four people, hoisted in the air, their bodies being treated like puppets as their arms and legs were forced into manipulated positions. As they grew closer, Eleanor could see a man, a woman, and two young children.

"Oh no," she heard Fred say before he looked over at George, "isn't that the muggle that checked us into our campsite this morning? Mr Roberts? That must be him and his family."

Suddenly, Mr Roberts' wife was spun so that she was positioned upside down, exposing her voluminous knickers to the crowd. At first, Eleanor had felt the sudden onset of nausea, only for it to turn into anger as she heard people hooting and hollering, as if it were the greatest thing to witness a defenceless woman become exposed. Her anger surged, enough that she reached for her wand, ready to fight whoever the hell she needed to.