Mr. and Mrs. Weasley's home was more than spectacular, in my honest opinion. It looked like there were multiple houses stacked on top of one another, and the entire place teetered a little. The garden surrounding it was covered with gnomes who sneered at us anytime we passed them.
Inside, the living room in which we sat was quaint and cozy. Voices filled the room when everyone was home, making it hard to hear people's individual conversations. I sat, marveling around the room in silence next to Ginny.
"A bit small, but it's home." Ginny said, shrugging.
"It's amazing Ginny. Absolutely incredible." I said, continuing to notice everything.
It was Christmas morning, and packages were being passed around the room like popcorn. People's names were being called out by Mrs. Weasley, who served as present bearer to all of the children. I smiled, not expecting anything to be passed my way. All around me, paper was being torn and thrown onto the floor in haste as people opened up their gifts.
"Lizzie, dear!" Molly called, and I looked up in shock. She was holding a present out to me, shaking it a bit to get my attention. I took it from her, smiling in thanks.
"Oh, that's from Mum and Dad. I think I know what it is. Go on!" Ginny said, nudging me with her elbow. I ripped the paper off quickly and opened the box.
There, nestled inside of it, was a deep forest green sweater. It felt knitted from the softest fabric I think I had ever felt. On the front of it, a gleaming silver E was knitted with the fabric.
"Mrs. Weasley, I love it. Thank you. Mr. Weasley," I called, holding up the sweater. Mr. Weasley gave me a small wave as Mrs. Weasley beamed with pride.
"It's Slytherin colours. I hope I got them right!" She said, and I shot her a thumbs up.
Next gift I received was from Remus. It was a small grey bag, no more than the size of a wallet. When I opened it, I looked inside to find that it stretched on past what I could see.
"Oh, I have one of those! It's really useful. You can fit as much as you want in there, though I do seem to have trouble finding things." Hermione said, examining the bag. As a test, I dropped my quill inside of it and realized it was now a foot below the clasp of the bag.
The last present I received was from Tonks. It was a small book titled Noble Slytherins Through the Ages. When I flipped through the book, I noticed that each page had a biography on a witch or wizard who was in Slytherin, and a list of all of their accomplishments. I held the book close to me and smiled. Tonks always seemed to get it.
As the morning fell into afternoon, there was a knock at the door. Harry exchanged a look with Mrs. Weasley, who nodded enthusiastically.
"Er- Lizzie. I think that's for you." Harry announced, and everyone fell silent.
I hadn't the faintest clue who would be calling for me at the Burrow. Hardly anyone knew I was here. It couldn't possibly be Bonnie or Astoria. It was Christmas day, no doubt they would be spending it with their families. I was completely sure I wouldn't be seeing Draco Malfoy. I think he would rather drown himself than show up on Ron Weasley's doorstep on Christmas. Who else could it be?
The door opened, and my godfather stepped in from the cold.
The scream that left me was so shrill and piercing, both Fred and George clapped their hands over their ears. I raced forward, jumping quickly over Ron who was sitting on the floor, and landed in Remus' embrace.
I took a deep breath, smelling his smokey smell and smiled. It felt as if all of the stress and confusion of the past term had just melted away from me. Remus was squeezing me, rocking me back and forth. My feet were off of the ground by a few inches until he finally put me down. I didn't let go of him, just turned my face upward and beamed at him.
"Happy Christmas, my Lizzie." He said quietly, and it was all I could do not to cry.
"Oi, am I just invisible or something?" A voice came from behind him.
"TONKS!" I bellowed, only letting go of Remus to wrap her in my arms. She squeezed me back for a moment, then let go of me.
"Oh, Remus, look at her! Hogwarts suits you." She said, noticing my green sweater I had hastily pulled on over my turtleneck.
Remus smiled at me broadly, taking in every inch of me.
"Perhaps. Come, darling. Tell me all about Hogwarts." Remus said, leading me over to the dining room table. I immediately jumped into stories, explaining Hogsmeade and Bonnie and Astoria. I even told him about Blaise, but quickly told him that it ended. Tonks winked at me and Remus looked tired.
"Boys, Lizzie? Boys? Not yet. You're not at that age, tell me you're not at that age." He almost begged, taking my hands in his and shaking them. I just giggled in response. I refused to tell him about Draco, though. I knew that this was not the time, or the place.
Just as I was thinking about Draco, Harry strolled over to the table.
"Remus, d'you mind having a word with me?" Harry asked, his eyes darting to me. Remus looked taken aback, but composed himself and smiled.
"Of course, Harry. I'll be right back, Lizzie." He said when my face fell. I didn't want to be separated from Remus at all. I felt like I had just got him back, and there was a sort of resentment I had toward Harry for taking him away from me.
Tonks engaged me in a conversation about quidditch, and I couldn't help but smile. Today was the best day I had in so long.
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"Are you sure you can't stay?" I begged, grabbing my godfather's arm like a child. He laid his hand on my hair and kissed my forehead.
"I wish, my darling, but I can't. Tonight is the beginning of the cycle, and you know I get a bit...ill." Remus said, and I understood. As much as I hated to admit it, being around a large group of people was probably not the most wise move.
"When will I see you again?" I asked, hugging him for a millionth time.
"I'm not sure, my Lizzie. I can only hope that it will be very soon. In the meantime, do try not to get into any trouble." Remus said, squeezing me back. I walked with him and Tonks out onto the porch to bid our farewells. Mr. and Mrs. Weasley stood in the doorway, beaming.
Suddenly, Remus looked around. The garden was dark and quiet, but Remus was alert and on edge. I knew this side to him. He always had a sense for when danger was near. He says it's the werewolf senses, and I completely trusted them. The look on his face made me automatically draw my wand out.
"What is it?" I hissed, my voice very grave. Tonks looked around too, her face set. I barely heard Tonks whisper "Sweetheart?" as she touched Remus' arm.
With a loud crack, a bomb of fire came spitting down from the sky, lighting the dead ground on fire. The fire wrapped in a ring completely around the Burrow, surrounding it. I looked around in horror, wondering what water spells I could conjure to put the flames out.
My mind went blank when I heard the next crack.
Bellatrix Lestrange was standing 20 paces in front of me. She looked directly at me, her eyes flashing evilly. She smiled in a sick, twisted way, taunting me.
I felt my blood run hot. The image of my parents, so young and happy, popped into my mind. The evil smile that was staring at me was the last face my parents had ever seen. She probably smiled at them too, the way she was smiling at me.
She turned and ran through a gap in the fire. Without knowing what I was doing, I leaned forward and took off.
"Lizzie, NO!" I heard Remus scream behind me, and I felt his hand desperately try to grab my arm. I had too much of a head start though, and his hand fell uselessly off of me. I heard my name being screamed by many others. I couldn't hear them, though. I couldn't hear anything over Bellatrix's psychotic laughter. As I neared the fire, I leapt through the gap just in time, before the fire swallowed it whole.
Suddenly, I was in plants that reached well over my head. I could hear Bellatrix laughing and running ahead of me and I poured on the speed.
"I killed them! I murdered them! I killed Edmund and Eleanor! I killed the Clarke's! They screamed when they died!" She yelled, causing me to see white. I was so angry, I wanted to kill her. I wanted her to hurt. I wanted her to be tortured, like I had been growing up without a Mum. I wanted to set her on fire, and watch her skin melt from her body.
I caught a glimpse of her ahead of me. A black flash, but it was all I needed.
"Flipendo!" I screamed, and Bellatrix was thrown off of her feet. I ran full speed, trying desperately to catch her before she got up.
I was too late. By the time I reached her, she was on her feet and waiting for me. The same smile that haunted my nightmares for years was standing no more than 3 meters in front of me.
"You want to play, Clarke? Let's play. Crucio!"
There are no words that can explain the pain that I felt. White hot knives pierced every inch of my skin. I felt as if my blood had been turned to glass, and it was ripping its way through my veins and straight into my heart. The pain was mind blowing, all encompassing. I screamed, falling to the ground and writhing. Vaguely, I heard Bellatrix scream the curse again, and a new wave of pain came.
I wanted to beg her. I wanted to beg for the pain to stop. I wanted her to kill me so that the pain would go away. I would do anything, anything, for the pain to end.
And then it did. Like a light, the pain was gone. For a split second, the absence of pain was the only thing on my mind.
Get up. You don't stand a chance on the ground. Get the fuck up, you stupid-
I dragged myself upright, my eyes finding hers again. She wasn't smiling anymore. She was staring at someone over my shoulder. Harry burst through the plants, stopping right next to me. A wordless battle ensued between them, and I felt Harry grab me and pull me behind him. Ginny came running too, protecting me from the other side. Another sorcerer that I couldn't see was shooting spells at her, and I raised my wand. Together, Ginny and I protected Harry's back. I could hear Mr. Weasley bellowing Ginny's name. Every piece of me wanted to turn around and take my shot at Bellatrix. I wanted her to die, right there in front of me. I would've almost rather throw my wand aside and strangle her with my bare hands. Ginny needed me, though. I had to protect her and Harry.
Remus flew through the plants, taking his position on my right. He held up his wand, and suddenly all fire stopped. The Death Eaters, realizing that they were now completely outnumbered, held their spells. Tonks was now in the clearing, standing to my left and looking around quickly. Before I could turn around and do my best to kill Bellatrix, she disapparated with a loud crack. The other Death Eater, who had been hiding in the plants, did the same.
A large crashing sound came from the direction of the Burrow. Everyone's head swiveled in time to see the house erupt into flames. My heart shattered at the small squeak that escaped Ginny's mouth.
Everyone took off running toward the Burrow. I tried to, and my knees buckled. I fell hard, my hands splaying out to catch me.
"What happened?" Remus asked breathlessly, grabbing me and heaving me back onto my feet. I leaned against him for support, feeling every nerve ending of my body screaming in agony. I couldn't speak. I couldn't move. It hurt so badly.
"What was it, Lizzie? Cruciatus Curse?" Tonks asked in a softer voice. She was stroking my hair.
My mind was blank. The only thought I had was that it was nice. Tonks stroking my hair. It made the pain in my hair go away. I know, logically, you can't have pain in your hair. But Tonks stroking my hair made the pain disappear. It leached out of my hair.
"She's in shock. Let's get her..." Remus said, trailing off. Part of me knew that he was going to say the Burrow, but it was burning.
I didn't want Tonks to stop stroking my hair. I wish I could open my mouth and tell her that, but everything felt sluggish.
"The clearing. Let's just get her to the clearing." Tonks said, and Remus gathered me into his arms. I felt vaguely impressed at his strength, because I was not as small as I used to be. He walked with me quickly to the clearing, placing me on the grass as soon as we reached it. He smoothed my hair, grabbing both sides of my head and looking at me.
"Lizzie. Lizzie, listen to me. I know it hurt, sweetheart. I know. You're going to be okay, though. I promise. The pain will stop. Lizzie, you can hear me, right? Can you say something?" Remus asked, desperately.
I focused on him. His worried eyes pulled me back to reality.
"She got away, didn't she? She got away. She got away with my parents. She got away from me. I'm going to kill her, Remus. I'm going to make it hurt." I said, my voice sounding like it was kilometers away. Remus looked at me worriedly, but nodded his head slowly and helped me to my feet.
The Burrow was burning. Tonks wasn't stroking my hair anymore. Bellatrix was alive.
A tear leaked its way out of my eye and down my cheek.