With a great roar Rose shot into the sky. We were rising through the air fast, my eyes water slightly, hair whipped back off my face. Leaving my hair down was a bad idea, I felt bad as my dark red locks flew into George's face.
Around me brooms were soaring upward too, the long black tail of a thestral flicked past. Higher and higher we climbed into the sky—
And then, out of nowhere, out of nothing, they were surrounded. At least thirty hooded figures, suspended in midair, formed a vast circle in the midst of which the Order members had risen, oblivious—
Screams, a blaze of green light on every side: George gave a yell and the Rose rolled over in mid air dodging the spells. His arms around me tightened as we soared through the air. Not exactly the first experience you want riding a dragon.
"It's an ambush!" George shouted as I steered Rose through the hooded cloaks.
"I can tell!" Jet green lights shot past us, as we narrowly avoided getting hit.
Someone had sold us out. And it wasn't me. Did that mean there was another Death Eater among the ranks?
Wriggling around I cried, "Stupefy!" and a red bolt of light shot from my own wand, cleaving a gap between the four pursuing Death Eaters as they scattered to avoid it.
"Rose now!" I shouted. She gave a mighty roar and shot a blast of fire at the four Death Eaters. I didn't feel sorry when two of them fell off their brooms in a heap of fire. The more Death Eaters that died the better. But then fear shot through me as a realization hit. What if Draco was here?
"I haven't seen him." George said as if reading my thoughts.
"Yeah, he would be stupid to send him here." I said. But would he? Draco was a good flyer after all. But George was right. As I scanned the Death Eaters no platinum blonde boy caught my eye.
More Killing Curses flew past my head from the two remaining Death Eaters' wands; they were aiming for George. I responded with further Stunning Spells: Red and green collided in midair in a shower of multicolored sparks, and I thought wildly of fireworks, and the Muggles below who would have no idea what was happening—
"Hold on." I said. George's arms tightened around me. Rose shot off toward the Death Eaters flying in between them splitting them for a few seconds buying us time to get away. But it barely bought us seconds. With a bellowing roar, dragon fire burst from Rose, white-hot and blue, I saw the Death Eaters swerve out of sight to avoid the deadly trail of flame.
"Has Hagrid gotten away?" I asked. This would all be for nothing if the real Harry didn't get away. George looked around.
"Impedimenta!" George shouted. The jinx hit the Death Eater in the chest; For a moment the man was absurdly spread-eagled in midair as though he had hit an invisible barrier: One of his fellows almost collided with him. "I can't tell!"
Green jets of light shot past us again.
"Jeez, there's no end to them!" I said casting more stunning spells at the Death Eaters. "At this rate we'll miss the Portkey."
"I think we already have." George said. I turned my head around.
"What do you-" I stopped when I saw his hair. It was turning back into bright ginger. The potion was wearing off.
"Damn it!" I cursed. "Rose take us straight to the burrow instead!" She roared and made a sharp left.
That's when I saw the spell. There was a Death Eater I hadn't noticed before.
"Sectumsempra!" George cried out as the spell made contact.
"GEORGE!" I shouted alarmed. He cried out and his body slumped forward onto my back. I turned my body around and caught him before he fell off the dragon. Blood coated his face and dripped down his clothes. The potion had worn off and he had returned to his regular looks.
