I poured the boiling tea from the plain little teapot the Dursleys had left behind into several cups, and thanks to the neat little charm I placed upon it, the tea never ran out until all of the mugs were full. I watched in satisfaction as sugar sprinkled itself into the cups of those who took it within their tea, and droplets of milk poured from the glass bottle that the milkman must have left upon the doorstep earlier in the day.
Behind me, Harry was being introduced to everyone, shaking hands and kissing the females upon the cheek as if we were at a dinner party, not about to rush off and risk our lives. Mad-Eye sat grumpily in the corner, every few seconds checking the enchanted watch upon his wrist.
"Here, let me help you." Suddenly Harry was beside me, reaching for two of the cups. "It's ok" I mumbled, flashing him a weak smile. I flicked my wand, and the cups began to levitate, floating slowly across the room towards their respective owners. There were various noises of thanks and gratitude as the cups reached the drinkers, and Harry shook his head with a smirk. "You only have a couple more days" I told him with a sympathetic smile, "then you'll be able to use magic to your hearts content."
Suddenly, Harry grabbed me and hugged me tight, wrapping his arms around me. It took me a couple of moments to respond, but slowly I wrapped my arms around him and squeezed him back. We hadn't properly seen each other since that night last June, when Dumbledore had been murdered and Draco had gone with them. Although the others knew, Harry was the only one besides Snape who'd seen me perform the Cruciatus curse on Bellatrix Lestrange. He'd seen the power and terror within my eyes, the comfort and sheer relief it had brought my soul to finally be able to commit the act I'd been longing to since I was imprinted with the dark mark. It had been Harry who'd helped me back to the castle - we'd helped each other really - and who'd told me that it wasn't me who wanted to hurt people, it was the dark mark. He'd been the one to actually see it happen, and yet he was the only one who didn't seemed appalled that I'd used one of the three Unforgivable Curses. His silent acceptance meant more than I could explain, and so I hugged him tightly back.
"I hear you've been being reckless" he muttered in my ear, so that only I could hear.
I shrugged my shoulders. "It helps me to forget."
I didn't need to explain to Harry what it was that needed forgetting, for he'd been there too. He'd watched Snape murder Dumbledore, a man betraying somebody who'd trusted him, somebody we loved. We'd both seen Dumbledore's body falling from the Astronomy Tower, we'd both chased after the Death Eaters, and we'd both crouched over Dumbledore's body and wept. And Harry had seen Draco betray me.
"What if he turns up?" Harry whispered.
I pretended to be surprised, although the thought had shot through my head a million times on the flight here. What if we were attacked by Death Eaters, and Draco was among them? They'd be hooded so I would have no way of knowing if I'd struck him down or not. Could I live with myself if I knew that despite everything he'd done to me, I'd killed Draco?
No, I couldn't.
"He's the enemy Harry," I replied, extracting myself from Harry's grasp and reaching for my own cup of tea. "Nothing more."
If Harry knew I was lying, he didn't say anything more, merely grabbed his own cup and followed me back into the living room where the others had congregated.
"Potter, you're still underage, which means you've still got the Trace on you" Mad-Eye snarled at Harry, who stopped in the middle of the room and frowned at him. "What's the Trace?" Harry replied. Mad-Eye rolled his real eye whilst keeping his magical one firmly fixated on Harry. "It means if you sneeze the Ministry will know who wiped your nose. We have to use means of transport the Trace can't detect. Brooms, thestrals and the like - we go in pairs. That way if anyone's out there waiting for us and I reckon there will be, they won't know which Harry Potter is the real one."
Harry frowned in confusion. "The real one?"
Mad-Eye smirked as he reached inside his ancient leather trench coat and produced a flask, popping the lid open. "I believe you're familiar with this particular brew."
Harry's eyes grew wide behind his glasses as he realised what was in the flask, and he shook his head firmly. "No, absolutely not!" he declared.
"Told you he'd take it well" I muttered from my seat on top of the worktop, earning a reproachful glare from Mad-Eye. I snorted into my tea as I tried to suppress my laughter.
"No, if you think I'm gonna let everyone risk their lives for me" Harry argued, looking around the room to an audience of disagreeing faces. "Never done that before have we?" Ron commented, shrugging his shoulders as he shoved his hands into the pockets of his jeans. Harry shook his head at him, "no, this is different! Taking that, becoming me... no!"
"Well, none of us really fancy it mate," George said with a grin, Fred nodded his head and added "yeah, imagine if something went wrong and we ended up a scrawny, specky git forever!"
I shot them a glare, and surprisingly it worked in getting them to shut up. Smirking to myself, I sipped at my tea and turned my attention back to Harry and Mad-Eye.
"Everyone here is of age, Potter. They've all agreed to take the risks."
Suddenly, Dung cleared his throat and stepped forward from the back of the room. "Technically," he announced, "I have been coerced." He turned his attention to Harry, grinning in a way he probably thought was charming at him. "Mundungus Fletcher, Mr Potter. Always been a huge admirer!"
"Dung" I snarled venemously, glaring at the little imp with all the hatred I could muster. He looked at me fearfully, jumping as I lunged suddenly and bared my teeth at him. Dung turned silent and quickly hurried to the back of the room, where Hagrid glowered down at him.
"Alright Granger, as discussed." Mad-Eye nodded at Hermione. She didn't hesitate, raising her hand to the back of Harry's head and pulling out a handful of hair. Harry winced and made a noise of pain as she passed him and walked over to Mad-Eye. "Blimey Hermione" Harry cursed, rubbing the back of his head and frowning. Hermione didn't look up as she carefully dropped the strands of Harry's hair into the flask, we all watched as it began to bubble and froth.
We all watched as Mad-Eye grinned in what looked like excitement. Everybody that was to become a Potter lined up behind me, meaning that I was the one who had to go first. "For those of you who haven't tasted Polyjuice Potion before, fair warning - it tastes like goblin piss."
Mad-Eye passed the potion to me, staring as I quirked my eyebrow sarcastically at him and then took a great gulp. Immediately I regretted it - he'd been right, it was by far the most vile thing I'd ever tasted. I barely had time to pass it to Fred before I started to retch, sliding off the counter and coughing wildly. I heard my brother start to cough too, then George joined in also, and then all of a sudden the taste disappeared.
My skin began to move strangely, and I could have sworn I suddenly shot upwards half a foot. My eye-sight blurred and my hair shortened. My nose elongated itself and I was overcome with a sudden rush of courage. Was this how Harry felt all the time?
Through my now terrible vision, I could see eight other Potter's staring back at me. Fred, George, Dung, Fleur, Ron and Hermione had also undergone the transformation, and complete with the real Harry staring in disbelief as his eight identical twins, there were now nine Harry Potters.
"Wow, we're identical!" the Harry's wearing Fred and George's clothes said in unison.
Mad-Eye threw a large duffle bag of clothes onto the floor. "Not yet you're not, everybody grab a shirt, jeans, jumper, glasses and pair of trainers."
Along with the others, I rushed forward to the pile of clothes on the floor and reached first for a pair of glasses, so I could at least see what I was doing. Hermione had the same idea, pushing the round spectacles onto her/Harry's nose and sighing with relief. "Harry, your eyesight really is awful" she said, although now that there was an abundance of shirtless Harry Potter's, it was impossible to know who was the real one.
I grabbed the rest of the clothes and waited anxiously for a moment before peeling off my leather jacket. I stared down at my left forearm and gasped in amazement as I saw that it was completely blemish-free - the dark mark was gone. Charlie saw what I was doing and grinned, before whispering "Still, I think I prefer you as you."
I pulled off my shoes and hurried to continue getting change - now was not a time for hiding myself, and besides, it wasn't my body really. I pulled the jeans on and stuffed my now large feet into the same pair of trainers every other Harry was wearing, before dragging on the red t-shirt and pushing my arms through a grey jacket.
"Right, we're pairing off, each Potter will have a protector," Mad-Eye announced although most of us already knew the plan - more so for Harry's benefit. "Mundungus, you stick with me, I want to keep an eye on you. As for Harry..." We all erupted without thinking into a chorus of "yes?" Mad-Eye glared, "the real Harry" he snarled.
The Harry to my right raised his hand and said "here." Mad-Eye nodded towards Hagrid and said, "you ride with Hagrid. You'll be heading for Tonks' parents house, where you'll take a portkey back to the Burrow. It's imperative that you don't miss your portkey, Potter, because it will leave without you."
Harry nodded before turning his attention to Hagrid. I slurped down the rest of my tea and flicked my wand at the pile of empty cups - they floated over to the sink and washed themselves up. I grinned, and felt Harry watching me longingly. "A few more days" I repeated what I had said earlier to him. Harry grimaced "that's if we get through tonight."
Tonks stuffed everyone's discarded clothes back into the duffle bag and threw it at Mad-Eye, who grumbled as he threw it over his back. Charlie patted me on the shoulder and said "ready to go Li?"
I grinned at him - "how'd you know which one was me?" I asked him. Charlie grinned and tapped his nose jokingly. I was about to ask him again when Mad-Eye roared "Black, will you please get a move on?!" Without a choice, I followed everybody else back outside.
"Where exactly is our safe-house?" I asked Charlie as I headed towards my Firebolt.
"Your mother's house," he muttered in reply as he adjusted the seat of his broom. I frowned, "in Newcastle?"
Charlie shook his head. "No, the hut on the beach where she gave birth to you, in Kent."
I climbed onto the broom and looked at him floating beside me. "Any idea where exactly that is?" I asked nervously. Charlie shrugged his shoulders, "I was hoping you would."
We didn't have time to object, because suddenly Mad-Eye was stood at the front of the procession. "On the count of three" he bellowed, so that Kingsley and Hermione at the back could hear him. Charlie floated beside me, his wand already out, and I tightened my grip around my own. "Come on baby" I muttered to my broom, feeling it bob slightly as the adrenaline pumped through us both. How glad I was that I'd overcome my fear of flying after the fall. Otherwise, this could be disastrous. I could look like Hermione!
"ONE" Mad-Eye shouted. I looked around the muggle street and wondered how nobody had looked out of their windows.
"TWO!"
I looked to Charlie beside me, who winked boyishly and stuck his tongue out. I flexed my fingers and took a deep breathe, tensing and looking to the Harry I knew was Ron behind me. I gave him a weak smile before looking forwards again, just as Mad-Eye roared "THREE!"
My Firebolt shot forwards on its own accord, following the Potter's in front of me and climbing into the sky. Within seconds, we were hundreds of feet in the air and had left Privet Drive and the whole of Little Whinging behind. The tension built the higher we climbed, and I soon realised that we hadn't passed through Lily's force field. Harry had left 4 Privet Drive and the protection of his aunt and uncle - we were vulnerable to attack now.
My broom shifted direction on it's own accord, and Charlie made sure to fly close to me. "Where are you going?" he shouted over the wind. I shrugged my shoulders "it's the broom, trust it!"
At least one of us knew where we were heading.
My short hair flew backwards in the wind, which was surprisingly cold considering as it was the height of summer. In the clouds ahead, there was flashing like lightening, and I cursed the fact that we were flying straight into the eye of a storm.
It was only a moment later I realised the light was green, and it wasn't lightening at all.
"HARRY, GO!" I screamed to the real Harry and Hagrid, who were flying close by. Harry looked to me and I pointed in the direction of the flashes. His eyes grew wide and I heard Charlie swear beside me as Hagrid flew obliviously into it.
I immediately pulled my broom to follow them. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" Charlie shouted to me over the wind and the cracks of flying curses. "WE HAVE TO HELP HARRY!" I shouted back, pushing my broom onward and after the flying motorcycle.
We passed through a whole in the cloud, and suddenly were engulfed in pandemonium. A hundred Death Eaters flew about in black smoke, shooting curses in every direction. I saw 10 on the tale of Bill and the Harry I knew was Fleur - both of them shooting back spells at their attackers. The real Harry and Hagrid were nowhere to be seen, but within seconds there were a group of Death Eaters behind us.
Charlie shot a Stunning Spell at one and successfully struck him in the chest, sending the Death Eater falling towards the ground. With Harry's eyes which thankfully worked at a Seeker's speed like my own, I scanned the skyline for any sign of Harry and Hagrid, and breathed a sigh of relief when I saw them speeding away into the distance, with great flames pouring from the back of the motorcycle. Evidently one of my father's inventions.
"Avada Kedavra!" came a shout from behind me. I immediately blocked the curse and sent it rocketing back at the caster, the green light striking him in the head and killing him instantly. I had just killed a man, but now was not the time to dwell on it. There were 6 more on our trail.
I shot Stunning Curse after Stunning Curse behind me, sometimes hitting the target but more often missing - my usual accuracy lost in the frenzy of the battle. Thankfully my broom continued to head in the correct direction, so I concentrated on smashing as many of the enemy from the sky as possible. I didn't have time to wonder whether any of the ones I hit were Draco or not, but I found myself not using the Killing Curse just in case. All of the Death Eater's were masked and so there was no way of knowing who exactly it was I had just used the Petrifying charm upon.
Ahead of me, I saw Harry and Hagrid once more, although it was clear something was wrong. Hagrid was slumped over as if he were unconscious, and I saw Harry screamed in pain.
His scar, I realised.
"Charlie, come on!" I shouted to my brother, who was sporting a deep cut on his shoulder, but nonetheless followed me. With new-found determination, I quickly shook off the rest of our followers and headed to Harry, who was leaning against the headlight of the motorbike, which was ominously sinking lower and lower in the sky without a conscious pilot.
Then, I heard the whisper.
"Harry..." the wind seemed to say, hissing and long like a snake. "No" I breathed, terror suddenly overcoming me. He couldn't be here, I couldn't face him.
I began to shake in panic and my broom slowed down. Charlie looked at me in shock, frowning as he shouted "LI, COME ON! WE HAVE TO HELP HARRY!"
Face him, the one who'd caused me so much heartache? Who'd murdered my father, and almost single-handedly ruined my life? Without him, I'd never have the dark mark. Without him, I never would have had to leave my parents, and my father would still be alive. Without him, I would be free to be with Draco.
Draco.
I snapped my head to look at the Death Eater that had appeared beside me. The black suit was ripped from the battle, blood pouring down the forehead of his pale face, but it was indubitably him. The blond hair was the same, the grey eyes, the handsome features.
Draco, my Draco.
He flew in black smoke like the others, his wand pointed directly at me. But there was a reluctance in his eyes, a hesitation.
"Draco..." I breathed, not trying to use Harry's voice but surprised to find my own. His eyes immediately recognised me, and I saw his lips formulate my name, before a cry came from ahead.
We both looked to see Harry locked in duel with the Dark Lord, their spells crashing into each other. A great light was forming from the colliding spells, which duelled with each other for dominance and victory. The Dark Lord's Killing Curse, and Harry's Stunning Charm. Draco and I remained transfixed on the scene - I noticed Draco's face pale in horror as he watched it happen. Then, Harry's spell triumphed and the Dark Lord had disappeared into his black smoke. Draco looked back to me and shook his head in disbelief, and then he too was gone.
I was alone in the night sky.
My broom turned and I let it lead - all of the Death Eaters had gone now - and kept my eyes open for Charlie, who had disappeared. I called his name into the darkness, shouting for him to come back to me, screaming with all my heart.
But then I realised it was Draco's name I was screaming, not my brothers.
I flew alone for what seemed like hours, until the potion had worn off and I was myself again. I spotted the coast eventually, and my broom shot onward with new determination. But Charlie was nowhere to be seen still.
How would he find the hut without a guide? I clung to the morsel of hope that he was flying in the distance, or that his broom had simply crashed and he was unharmed. But as I passed through the protective enchantments and landed on the sand with a crash, I found that hope ever dimming.
The portkey was a simple piece of driftwood lying on the beach. I sat beside it for as long as possible, the sea creeping towards me as I waited for Charlie. I prayed for him to be ok, to have survived the horror. But as the time passed, that seemed to be ever more unlikely.
I daren't enter the ruined little shack behind me - even though I knew I should look within it for the real horcrux, seeing as the one Harry and Dumbledore had found in the cave had been my father's fake after all. But somehow I knew in the pit of my stomach that it wasn't there, that Kreacher would have taken it somewhere a lot safer than an abandoned cottage. Besides, I couldn't bring myself to move anyway.
Eventually the portkey began to glow, and I knew that it was ready to depart. If I didn't take it now, I'd be trapped here. Maybe Charlie had gone straight to the Burrow instead, unable to find his way alone. Maybe he was just as worried as I was, waiting at home for me to arrive with the others.
There was only one way to find out.
Clutching my Firebolt tightly, I touched the driftwood just as the glowing reached the height of its power, and was suddenly lifted into the air. I held onto it with all the strength I had left in me as we shot across the country at the speed of light, too fast for me to see the countryside beneath me. Within moments, I had passed through the defensive spells surrounding the Burrow and dropped with a thud onto the grass outside.
I coughed and retched violently - portkeys always made me feel sick - and threw my broom and the now useless plank of wood down.
"Charlie?" I called, hauling myself to my feet and hobbling towards the door. I'd twisted my ankle at some point, and it screamed in pain as I pushed myself onward.
Suddenly somebody had grabbed me. "Charlie?" I muttered, only seeing the red hair and presuming it was my favourite brother that was hugging me now.
"We thought you were dead!" Ron panted, squeezing me tighter than I'd ever been hugged before. I frowned and pulled him off me, continuing inside. "Where's Charlie?" I asked him, barely acknowledging the gathered people in the living room. It seemed as if everybody had made it back, except for Mundungus and Mad-Eye, and to my horror Charlie.
I saw Mum weeping in the corner, her face buried in her hands, and Ginny's own cheeks tracked with tears. Why were they crying? Where was my brother?
Then the group parted to show me what they were all crowded around.
There, lying on the floor, was my brother. Charlie's eyes were shut and his lips were twisted upwards holding the ghost of a smile. His hand was still clasped around his wand; he looked so calm that he could merely be sleeping.
But I knew better.
Charlie was dead.
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Please don't hate me for killing Charlie!
I know he's supposed to be the best man at Bill and Fleur's upcoming wedding, but I thought that somebody needed to die, and as all of Li's other brothers have important roles to play in the rest of the story, it had to be Charlie.
Please let me know what you thought of this chapter in the comments, and I'd love for you to vote! Thank you!