*Anne's Pov*
It's getting dark outside. The fields around the burrow lay silent upon me and the wind blows a gentle wave of comfort towards me. I take in a deep breath, till my lunges reach a point where they dare to burst. I hold it as long as possible, until I release a wobbly breath. Shiver goes through me.
Tonight is the night. Tonight they will get Potter and the house is currently busy with different people. Molly is running around as if she was full on power potion, Moody is screaming directions and Hagrid tries to fit into the living room without breaking anything. All of them are shouting and discussing, bringing the Burrow to live. A huge contrast to the calm surrounding it.
I don't want to go inside and be bombarded by the noise and anxiety coming with it. I want to help and rescue Harry and prove useful. But George asked me to stay with his mother and sister, rather than having me out there and I won't argue with him. They seem to have a solid plan without me, so there is no need to interfere.
"Hey", Ginny sits down beside me on the porch, pushing her hair out of her face.
"Hey", I say.
"It sucks that I can't be part of it, just because I'm too young. Age shouldn't matter. I was in so much worse already and I can't just sit around here and twiddling thumps, while they all put their lives at risk."
"I agree that you already were in worse positions, but that doesn't mean you should get into another one. Currently you will not understand your mothers point, but she just looks out for you with all of her motherly protection she can gather. And age matters, at least in the legal matter. If your brothers wouldn't have been off age yet, she wouldn't allow them to go anywhere."
Ginny groans beside me. "I do get that she is worried, we all are. But I can't sit still knowing there is still so much to do and that there is something I could actually help with."
"You are the best of help for your mother here, to calm her down and help her prepare the arrival of everyone. Even if it is hard to do so. We can only provide strength for these who go out there. Operations like this need people who are the backbone."
"You are only saying that to make you feel better that George doesn't allow you to come with them."
"Maybe, but it certainly helps, doesn't it?"
She laughs: "It's cold, you should come inside. We don't need you to catch a cold." She stands up and makes her way inside again. The voices get louder again and I decide it is also time for me to get back in.
I am instantly greeted with warmth and noise. I push myself towards the twins and give them a questioning look. Both nod back and I give George a hug.
"Please come back safely, otherwise I kill you", I whisper into his ear.
He closes the embrace on me tightly, puts his head on my shoulder and tightens his grip on me. I close my eyes, not ready to let him go yet. At one point Fred clears his throat and in the next second Moody barks at us. We let go of each other. He reaches for my hand and I press it firmly.
"I'll be back soon. I promise." With those words he and the rest is gone, ready to get Harry and risk their lives.
---
Knitting.
Strangely enough that is the thing I am doing to keep my mind busy. It should make me feel more calm if I was able to do it correctly. Now it's just pure surviving with the knitting needles and the yarn.
Furthermore, I couldn't just let Molly be on her own. Her hands move without her looking, her eyes darted at the window, ready to catch any glimpse of any member that might arrive soon. Ginny paces through the room, randomly stopping by the clock to check if the pictures already moved.
The silence of the room is killing me slowly. Shouldn't they be here by now? What if something bad happened? What if none of them is making it out alive? I fidget with the needles. Ron and Tonks are supposed to be here in the kitchen, however, they are not. Also there is no sign of neither Fred or Arthur and if we check the plan, they should have been here second also a while ago. So what the fuck has happened?
Suddenly we hear a bang outside and all of us stand up immediately. I have no recalling on how we managed it out of the door so fast. I hold my wand tight and ready. Then we see a huge silhouette in the shadows. I block Molly behind me and shield her off from any danger.
"Hagrid?", Molly asks.
Then she runs and I can't hold her back. It is indeed Hagrid with Harry.
"Harry!" Ginny rushes past me.
Good, the one they wanted here is here now. Great. Awesome. But where are the first four?
"Where are the others?", Harry asks, looking around confused.
"They haven't arrived yet."
"What do you mean they haven't arrived yet?"
Molly ushers both of them inside, talking and arguing with them. I keep staying at the door. If Harry already arrived, then the next ones according to plan have to be Lupin and George. Or maybe the other ones show up again. Just what exactly has happened?
I shiver in the cold and cross my arms in front of my chest starring out into the dark, startled by every noise I hear. Where the hell are they? Please Merlin, please let them be safe. Let them-
A plop. Two figures fight their way through the grass. One leans on the other. My breath quickens. My hands get sweaty and I drop my wand. As I bend down to get it, someone rushes past me again.
It is George. George is the one leaning. He is bleeding. I tremble.
I can't move a single muscle as they bring him inside. Then I hear shouting. Lupin is questioning Harry intently. I swallow. There is a tumult, loud noises, George's slipping in and out of mind, Molly's hectic being. Then I am finally able to move inside. There he is laying on the couch, half of his face bloody, where his ear should have been, is a hole. It is deep and doesn't look good at all. I slowly move over to him.
"Snape that bastard, he threw a curse at him. Cut off his ear", I hear Lupin answer a question. "No. There is no chance we can heal it."
It is all muffled. I feel many things at the same time. One is, there is blood and a pained George. The second, he is alive, he hasn't died. The third, I want to vomit and cry and fight and tear something down. Just anything at this point. It's overwhelming.
In all that mess Hermione and Kingsley arrived. Hermione is still holding a clothes hanger in her hands. If they are here, then there is only Fleur and Bill left in our plan to arrive at last. What happened to Moody, Arthur, Ron, Tonks and Fred? Where are they? I can see the angst in Mrs. Weasley's eyes too. The door flies open and an angry Arthur storms in. He rages about a snitch, tries to question some, until he sees George and his blood drains out of his face. Fred as well.
He slumps down in front of his brother, scared to hurt him. Harry holds himself in the background, his eyes darted at the scene. He looks lost in thought.
"How are you feeling Georgie?"
"Saint-like."
"Come again?"
"I'm holey Fred? Holey get it?"
"The whole wide world of ear related humour and you go for I'm holey. That's pathetic."
"I reckon I'm still better looking than you."
"Oh boys," Molly cries out.
She is standing behind the couch, gently patting a piece of cloth at George's side to stop the bleeding. I swallow.
"Tonks," Lupin breaths out as Ron and her come in. He brings his wife into a hug and Hermione is already on her way to greet Ron. "What happened?"
"Someone snitched. We got attacked right at the beginning and couldn't get to the old oilcan on time. We passed it, but this lad here," Tonks points at Ron: "Really saved me out there."
Ron turns a shade of red as they look at him. Arthur confirms that they as well couldn't get their portkey. Someone told our plan and ruined the whole operation. As of now, no one seems to be hurt aside from George. Kingsley excuses himself, he has to go back to Downing Street. Soon after Bill and Fleur arrive and they don't look harmed but traumatized.
"Mad Eye is dead," says Bill emotionless: "Mugundus dissaparated and the Death Eaters got him right there."
"It 'as horrible," Fleur agrees.
The twins stop joking and everything turns quite serious in that moment. At one point I get a glass of liquor in my hands and we raise it for Moody. Great idea, the burning helps me calm my nerves. I need to come back to my senses. I take a deep breath.
All of a sudden, I feel someone taking my hand in hers.
"Are you alright?" Molly looks at me and I try to nod. "Oh dear, come here."
She pulls me into a hug. I tense. She strokes my back slowly and whispers consoling words into my ear. All is good. We are fine. And it is for the first time I realize what everyone means when they talk about motherly love. Now I realize why the twins still think big of her even if she has done many things wrongly with them. It's because no matter what, she loves them still strongly as a real mother figure would do. And I can feel myself breaking. Never did I ever have such a thing as a parental figure who would look out for me.
And it does feel nice I have to admit.
(A/N: Hello ma dears, as you might have realized I didn't quite took the dialog word by word as it is standing in the book. I hope you can forgive me. I kind of wrote it from memory and I do not have the English version of the Deathly Hollows yet, therefore I can just asume what is written there. Otherwise, I hope ya'll are doing good and if not, feel free to reach out to me!
Good day, good afternoon and good evening! :D)