Yellow (George Weasley)

57 - Snatchers

A tear dripped down my cheek, landing on the parchment I had gripped in my hands. Another Muggle family has been killed. Reading about more death on each page of the paper was absolute torture. I feared for my dad, alone on Watford Road. Maybe I should have taken precautions and moved him far, far away. Made him forget about me, forget about the Wizard World in general...forget about the only family he's had.

The Ministry has done nothing to help the death toll. Voldemort's followers are only getting stronger. Months had gone by without any sign of improvement. I'm thankful the shop has been able to maintain some business but I think it's partially due to the twins' determination to keep the place going, despite many pleas from their mother. I'm not sure why I even bother to purchase a copy of the newspaper each morning. The only news is who's been murdered this week, but the newsstand is one of the few places that's getting any business in Diagon Alley. I hardly ever see anyone walking the cobblestone streets anymore. Most of the shop windows were boarded up.

Might as well stop by and pick up some more tea while I'm out. I looked up at the once bright store front of Rosa Lee Teabag. The store was practically dark. The previously vivacious green paint was already chipping and seemed to have faded to a dingy olive color. I pushed open the door, a bell chiming to announce my presence.

"Good morning, Leah." The plump woman from behind the counter offered me a half-hearted smile. Even the rosiness of the shop owner's cheeks had gone away.

"Hello, Ms. Treva." I smiled back at the woman. It only took a moment to grab three boxes of tea. Two boxes of regular black tea and one box of chamomile. I had taken to drinking some before bed, in a futile attempt to keep away the nightmares. Now that I had come face to face with Death Eaters on two separate occasions, they were all I could think about. I awoke in a sweat most nights, a constant fear for my loved ones.

I brought the boxes back to the till and fished through my pockets for the proper amount, but a kind hand reached out to my wrist. When I looked up to meet her eyes she just shook her head, a half-hearted smile gracing her lips. "Take it—as a goodbye present."

"What do you mean?" I furrowed my brows, reluctantly taking the bag she had placed the boxes in.

"I'm afraid I'm leaving. Diagon Alley is not the safe place it used to be. I've appreciated you and the boys coming to check on me every day, b-but after Florean—" We both looked across the street to the now dark ice cream parlor. It's owner had disappeared months ago and still hasn't returned. We can only assume at the hand of Death Eaters. She cleared her throat, lightly dabbing at her eyes with a handkerchief. "Anyways...you best be hurrying back home. George will be worried." She offered one last smile before waving me away.

I stepped back onto the street, looking to the empty shops once again as if they would tell some sort of clue to where their owners had gone. Even Ollivander's was empty, the most popular place to buy a wand. He had sold me mine when I was a young girl preparing for my first year at Hogwarts.

I tore my eyes from the boarded up shop and began to walk back towards the giant red headed statue that decorated the colorful store front. Through the large windows I could see Fred and George setting up the store to open. I hoped for more customers today. The business was only scraping by because of the still plentiful Mail Orders. The shop itself might see a few customers...on a good day. Fred shot off a firework that George barely ducked under before the two began wrestling, the bright blue explosion that filled the shop windows briefly obstructed my view of the brothers. I bit back a smile as I began to walk towards the still bright store. We may not have a whole lot of business, but we sure are having the time of our lives messing around the shop all day. I hope there's never a morning where I'm not trying to break up one of their fights.