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𝐒𝐓𝐔𝐁𝐁𝐎𝐑𝐍 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄

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in a society that has destroyed

all adventure, the only

adventure left is to destroy

that society

·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .

up. His head was pounding violently in his skull, and his back felt like it was shattered into a million pieces. Groaning, he massaged his temple and gazed around, trying to get a sense of familiarity. He saw a girl lying on her back only a foot away from him, eyes closed and her face scrunched up.

Fear struck his heart like lightning as his eyes focused.

He remembered falling through the sky before he faded out of consciousness. Surely Elara didn't take the fall. . . .? His senses finally came flooding back to him as he snapped out of his reverie.

Stumbling, he reached over to Elara, groping around for her wrist, praying to the Stars she had a pulse. His hand shook as he placed to fingers on the veins on her wrist. Maybe it was because of the pure desperation, or the looming anger he would feel if he had actually let her sacrifice herself, but he felt like his heart had stopped.

She was alive.

Sighing in relief, Harry sat back. He pulled Elara out of the shallow water and placed her head face up in his lap. He was angry she was so reckless, so willing to sacrifice herself on a whim to spare him injury.

A rustling in the tall grass moved Harry to draw out his wand and point it in the direction of the noise. A figure emerged, but it was too dark to see if it was friend or foe.

"Woah, Harry," came the scottish accent of Oliver Wood.

"Sorry," said Harry sheepishly, stuffing his wand back in his pocket.

"I'm assuming that's Lara?" asked Oliver, nodding to her limp form on Harry's lap.

Harry nodded.

"Her house isn't too far from here, we'll have to carry her and Hagrid."

"How will we carry Hagrid. . . .?"

"I'll cast a spell," said Oliver, drawing out his wand. "Lara doesn't seem to be in any shape to float through the air. Think you could carry her?"

Again, Harry nodded. He pulled Elara up from the muddy water, one arm under her legs and another around her back. The bank was quite slippery, and Harry had a few close calls, but he was ultimately able to follow Oliver and Hagrid out of the tall grass and towards Elara's house.

Harry did not want to imagine Andromeda's and Ted's reactions to seeing their daughter bloodied and bruised after only a couple of hours since they saw her last.

Oliver knocked on the door. It was whipped open within half a millisecond. Andromeda and Ted stood there, alarmed.

"Oliver Wood? You're supposed to be going — Where's Elara?"

Andromeda's eyes fell on the limp form of her daughter lying in Harry's arms. She made no noise, but her face turned a deathly white as she moved slowly towards Elara.

"What happened?"

"We were attacked by Death Eaters," said Harry quietly, staring down at Elara.

"Death Eaters?" said Ted sharply, turning to the door. "You must come in, then. It's not safe out here."

Andromeda walked beside Harry, never taking her eyes of Elara. They entered through the door. Harry glanced around. This place looked exactly like he assumed it would be. Potted plants were sat on every surface, the dishes that were sat out were every different color imaginable. It was a nice change of pace from the Dursley's.

Harry placed Elara gently on the couch. Andromeda immediately began attending to her.

"What exactly happened?"

"I don't know how, but they knew. We were surrounded within minutes," began Oliver, helping Ted with Hagrid, "Lara really held her own. She must've taken down at least a dozen Death Eaters before. . . . Well — "

"Before what?" asked Ted, looking over at Elara.

"Before she saved me," responded Harry, sinking down into an armchair.

There was a pause as all conscious eyes turned to him.

"I think one of the Death Eaters Stupified me, but I fell out of Hagrid's bike, and the next thing I knew, I was in pond."

"One second, Lara was on the broom behind me and the next, she had jumped off and turned her back to the ground, taking most the impact for Harry," picked up Oliver, looking sheepish, "I should have caught her, but I had no idea she'd jumped."

Ted ran a tired hand down his face.

"She's a reckless one, our daughter," said Ted, forcing a smile upon his face.

"We knew she'd go to the ends of the Earth for you, Harry," said Andromeda sadly, "I suppose we shouldn't be surprised."

"I should've taken the fall," said Harry, "I promise I'll protect her. It was my fault — "

"She would have never let you do that," said Andromeda fondly, tucking some of Elara's hair behind her ear, "Just promise you'll take care of her after she puts herself in danger again."

"I promise."

'The Portkey,' said Ted, remembering all of a sudden. 'We've got to get you back to The Burrow and find out – if you could send word – if Dora's okay, once she's –'

'Dora'll be OK, Ted,' said Andromeda. 'She knows her stuff, she's been in plenty of tight spots with theA urors. The Portkey's through here,' she added to Harry. 'It's supposed to leave in three minutes, if you want to take it.'

'Yeah, we do,' said Harry.

He seized his rucksack, swung it on to his shoulders. He scooped Elara up from the couch as Hagrid sat up, in a daze.

'I –'

He looked at Mrs Tonks, wanting to apologise for the state of fear in which he left her and for which he felt so terribly responsible, but no words occurred to him that did not seem hollow and insincere.

'I'll tell Tonks – Dora – to send word, when she ... thanks for patching us up, thanks for everything. I –'

He was glad to leave the room and follow Ted and Oliver along a short hallway and into a bedroom. Hagrid came after them, bending low to avoid hitting his head on the door lintel.

'There you go, son. That's the Portkey.'

Mr Tonks was pointing to a small, silver-backed hairbrush lying on the dressing table.

'Thanks,' said Harry, adjusting Elara so he could reach out to place a finger on it, ready to leave.

'Wait a moment,' said Hagrid, looking around. 'Harry, where's Hedwig?'

'She ... she got hit,' said Harry.

The realisation crashed over him: he felt ashamed of himself as the tears stung his eyes. The owl had been his companion, his one great link with the magical world whenever he had been forced to return to the Dursleys. Hagrid reached out a great hand and patted him painfully on the shoulder.

'Never mind,' he said gruffly. 'Never mind. She had a great old life –'

'Hagrid!' said Ted Tonks warningly, as the hairbrush glowed bright blue, and Hagrid only just got his forefinger to it in time.

With a jerk behind the navel as though an invisible hook and line had dragged him forwards, Harry was pulled into nothingness, spinning uncontrollably, his finger glued to the Portkey as he Oliver, and Hagrid hurtled away from Mr Tonks: seconds later Harry's feet slammed on to hard ground and he twisted himself around so his back would hit the yard of The Burrow.

He heard screams. Throwing aside the no longer glowing hairbrush, Harry picked Elara up again, swaying slightly, and saw Mrs Weasley and Ginny running down the steps by the back door as Hagrid, who had also collapsed on landing, clambered laboriously to his feet.

'Harry? You are the real Harry? What happened? Where are the others? What happened to Elara?' cried Mrs Weasley.

'What d'you mean? Isn't anyone else back?' Harry panted.

The answer was clearly etched in Mrs Weasley's pale face.

'The Death Eaters were waiting for us,' Harry told her. 'We were surrounded the moment we took off– they knew it was tonight – I don't know what happened to anyone else. Four of them chased us, it was all we could do to get away, and then Voldemort caught up with us. . . . Lara nearly sacrificed herself to save me.'

He could hear the self-justifying note in his voice, the plea for her to understand why he did not know what had happened to her sons, but –

'Thank goodness you're all right,' she said, pulling him into a hug he did not feel he deserved.

'Haven't go' any brandy, have yeh, Molly?' asked Hagrid a little shakily. 'Fer medicinal purposes?'

She could have summoned it by magic, but as she hurried back towards the crooked house Harry knew that she wanted to hide her face. He turned to Ginny and she answered his unspoken plea for information at once.

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

Mrs Weasley reappeared carrying a bottle of brandy, which she handed to Hagrid. He uncorked it and drank it straight down in one.

'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. Harry knew immediately that there was something wrong: Lupin was supporting George, who was unconscious and whose face was covered in blood.

Oliver ran forwards and seized George's legs. Together, Oliver and Lupin carried George into the house and through the kitchen to the sitting room, where they laid him on the sofa. Harry followed suit with Elara, propping her up against a couple of pillows.

·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .

Words could not describe the pain Elara was in. Her back felt as if it were on fire. Her head was swimming as she slowly opened her eyes. A blinding light met her vision. Her head pounded, causing Elara to groan and turn her head.

"Is she awake?" came a frantic voice.

"Let me check."

A warm hand was placed on Elara's cheek, and she leaned into the touch. She sensed the lights had dimmed in wherever she was, so she opened her eyes.

The worried face of Mrs. Weasley hovered over her.

"How are you feeling, dear?"

Elara coughed.

"Like I could murder Snape — " Elara pushed herself up as fast as she could, a surge of people, who's faces were still blurred, caught her arms in hopes to steady her.

"Is that Lara?" said a voice that could only be George's, "Why isn't she huddled around my deathbed?"

As the lamplight fell across George's head, Elara saw one of George's ears was missing. The side of his head and neck were drenched in wet, shockingly scarlet blood.

"You weren't the only one injured," said Elara, wincing from shooting pain in her spine. 'How are you feeling?'

'Saint-like,' he murmured.

'What's wrong with him?' croaked Fred, looking terrified. 'Is his mind affected?'

'Saint-like,' repeated George, opening his eyes and looking up at his brother. 'You see ... I'm holy. Holey, Rory, geddit?'

Mrs Weasley and Aurora sobbed harder than ever. Colour flooded Fred's pale face.

'Pathetic,' he told George. 'Pathetic! With the whole wide world of ear-related humour before you, you go for holey?'

'Ah well,' said George, grinning at his tear-soaked mother. 'You'll be able to tell us apart now, anyway, Mum.'

The slightest breath of wind made them all jump and turn towards the whispering bush or tree in the hope that one of the missing Order members might leap unscathed from its leaves –And then a broom materialised directly above them and streaked towards the ground –

'It's them!' screamed Hermione.

Nymphie landed in a long skid that sent earth and pebbles everywhere.

'Lara! Remus!' Nymphie cried as she staggered off the broom into a group hug of the three of them.

Ron tripped dazedly towards Harry and Hermione. Elara peeled herself away and let Nymphie have a moment with Remus.

'You're OK,' Ron mumbled when he saw Harry and Elara, before Hermione flew at him and hugged him tightly.

'I thought – I thought –'

' 'M all right,' said Ron, patting her on the back. ''M fine.'

'Ron was great,' said Nymphie warmly, relinquishing her hold on Remus. 'Wonderful. Stunned one of the Death Eaters, straight to the head, and when you're aiming at a moving target from a flying broom –'

'You did?' said Hermione, gazing up at Ron with her arms still around his neck.

'Always the tone of surprise,' he said a little grumpily, breaking free. 'Are we the last back?'

'No,' said Elara, holding onto Harry as she was still weak, 'we're still waiting for Bill and Fleur and Mad-Eye and Mundungus.'

'So what kept you? What happened?' Lupin sounded almost angry at Nymphie.

'Aunt Bella,' said Tonks. 'She wants me quite as much as she wants Harry and Lara, Remus, she tried very hard to kill me. I just wish I'd got her, I owe Bellatrix. But we definitely injured Rodolphus ... then we got to Ron's Auntie Muriel's and we'd missed our Portkey and she was fussing over us –'

"I swear to the Stars — "

Elara's angry rant was cut short as pain flared up in her back again. She stumbled, and Harry held her against him, making sure she would not fall again

A muscle was jumping in Remus' jaw. He nodded, but seemed unable to say anything else.

'So what happened to Lara?' Nymphie asked, turning to Harry. "Damn, what happened to you lot?" She added, when she saw the deep worry lines etched across their faces.

Everyone recounted the stories of their own journeys, but all the time the continued absence of Bill, Fleur, Mad-Eye and Mundungus seemed to lie upon them like a frost, its icy bite harder and harder to ignore.

'I'm going to have to get back to Downing Street. I should have been there an hour ago,' said Kingsley finally, after a last sweeping gaze at the sky. 'Let me know when they're back.'

Remus nodded. With a wave to the others, Kingsley walked away into the darkness towards the gate. Elara thought she heard the faintest pop as Kingsley Disapparated just beyond The Burrow's boundaries.

Mr and Mrs Weasley came racing down the back steps, Ginny behind them. Both parents hugged Ron before turning to Remus and Nymphie.

'Thank you,' said Mrs Weasley, 'for our sons.'

'Don't be silly, Molly,' said Nymphie at once.

'How's George?' asked Lupin.

'What's wrong with him?' piped up Ron.

'He's lost –'

But the end of Mrs Weasley's sentence was drowned in a general outcry: a Thestral had just soared into sight and landed a few feet from them. Bill and Fleur slid from its back, windswept but unhurt.

'Bill! Thank God, thank God –'

Mrs Weasley ran forwards, but the hug Bill bestowed upon her was perfunctory.

Looking directly at his father, he said, 'Mad-Eye's dead.'

Nobody spoke, nobody moved. Elara felt as though something inside her was falling, falling through the earth, leaving her forever. The shadows once again claimed a soul.

'We saw it,' said Bill; Fleur nodded, tear tracks glittering on her cheeks in the light from the kitchen window. 'It happened just after we broke out of the circle: Mad-Eye and Dung were close by us, they were heading north too. Voldemort – he can fly – went straight for them. Dung panicked, I heard him cry out, Mad-Eye tried to stop him, but he Disapparated. Voldemort's curse hit Mad-Eye full in the face, he fell backwards off his broom and – there was nothing we could do, nothing, we had half a dozen of them on our own tail –'

Bill's voice broke.

'Of course you couldn't have done anything,' said Remus.

They all stood looking at each other. Elara could not quite comprehend it. Mad-Eye dead; it could not be ... Mad-Eye, so tough, so brave, the consummate survivor ... At last it seemed to dawn on everyone, though nobody said it, that there was no point waiting in the yard any more, and in silence they followed Mr and Mrs Weasley back into The Burrow, and into the living room, where Fred, George, and Aurora were laughing together.

'What's wrong?' said Fred, scanning their faces, as they entered. 'What's happened? Who's –?'

'Mad-Eye,' said Mr Weasley. 'Dead.'

Their grins turned to grimaces of shock. Nobody seemed to know what to do. Nymphie was crying silently into a handkerchief: she had been close to Mad-Eye, Elara knew, his favourite and his protégée at the Ministry of Magic.

Hagrid, who had sat down on the floor in the corner where he had most space, was dabbing at his eyes with his tablecloth-sized handkerchief. Bill walked over to the sideboard and pulled out a bottle of Firewhisky and some glasses.

'Here,' he said, and with a wave of his wand he sent thirteen full glasses soaring through the room to each of them, holding the fourteenth aloft.

'Mad-Eye.'

'Mad-Eye,' they all said, and drank.

'Mad-Eye,' echoed Hagrid, a little late, with a hiccough.