Ravenclaw

Chapter 83- Killings in the Country

Song for the chapter: Cruel by Snakehips and Zayn

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     The sun rose slowly, shining soft hues of orange, pink and yellow over the grassy hills of the nearby Muggle farms and wizard farms, which were now covered in an undisturbed blanket of snow. Footprints made in thick snow had been covered overnight, but despite the snowfall yesterday, the skies were clear, allowing the sun to make its grand entrance into the windows of the old couple living at the end of the town.
     At the mouth of the entrance where the dirt road had started to be paved into the cobblestone of the city, a tall house with at least for flours stood proudly, the yellowed-brick walls standing out against the bland white of the snow. Frost could be seen on the dark glass windows, and gave them a sort of cracked look. The front lawn was perfectly blanketed with snow, with no imprints whatsoever, but the back lawn had the trails of hooves in one corner. The roof of the old wooden shed had developed holes over the years, so heaps of snow had fallen through in some corners, melting away and covering most of the floor in water. The old mannequin sat unused in the corner, and the desk had broken; its leg had snapped off due to the cold since the shed had no insulation whatsoever ever since they had no use for it anymore.
     The inside of the house was surprisingly quiet-- it usually was a racket with many family gatherings, but after the children grew up and became too busy to visit often, the house became fairly quiet, apart from the occasional chirping of the birds and owls that visited, the flipping of pages, the noises that arose from spectacular cooking. The stairs creaked as the wind blew, and as the sun reached its morning position, its rays poked through the soft satin curtains, and the couple awoke slowly.
     "Good morning, m'dear," Frederick groaned as he planted a kiss on his drowsy wife's cheek. She smiled sleepily.
     "Good morning," Frenn responded, before sitting up and propping herself up on the pillows. She took her glasses from the bedside table before taking the book her daughter had written and reading it for a while.
     Frederick sighed; he got up from the bed, took his wand and glasses, before changing out of his pyjamas and putting on his hat. He walked down the four flights stairs and after eating a bowl of oatmeal, he heaved a sack over his shoulder filled with some carrots and supplies he would need for the journey to the heart of the village to buy and sell goods.
     But just as he turns to exit the house via the back door to get to his horse, a fairly large 'pop' had sounded in the distance, on the top of one of the snowy hills.
     Frederick narrowed his eyes-- they usually didn't get visitors in this small village in Scotland, and even if they did, it would be in the heart of the village did wizards and witches Apparate to. Out there where Frederick and Frenn Ravenclaw lived, there was only one other house-- but the Parkers were on holiday, they couldn't possibly have visitors at this time...
     Frederick widened his eyes-- this was what his sister had told him had happened. A seemingly normal, peaceful day, then two or more people-- strangers-- show up, then--
     He immediately dropped the sack and ran up the stairs as fast as he could with his old body, before grabbing the two bags they had prepared before hand. He ran into the room, and Frenn frowned at him, alarmed.
     "Fred?" She asked, concerned. "What's wrong?"
     "The attackers," he said quickly, thrusting a fresh set of clothes into her hands. "They're here. They've found us."
     Frenn's eyes widened-- she rushed to the bathroom and changed while Frederick gathered the rest of the essentials and threw them into a bag. Thanks to their daughter, Rowena, they had packed some items beforehand in case the attackers-- which had already killed a member of the Ravenclaw family-- had come to target them in exchange for Rowena or Flaura Mae themselves. Fred peeked out of the small gap in the curtains-- the attackers had started to walk in the direction of the house. Their time was running out.
     "Frenn! We must go," he said, throwing open the bathroom door. His wife stared at him anxiously.
     "I can't find my wand, Frederick," she said worriedly, raising her hands to her face as she darted into the room to search for the wand. "I can't find my wand."
    "Accio wand!" He said, but Frenn whimpered as the wand flew to his hand. She peered throught the gap; the attackers were on the front lawn, ready to blast the door apart.
     "Quickly!" Frederick passed his wife her wand and took her by the hand, taking her to the third landing where the emergency bags were located.
     "Open up!" A terrifying voice bellowed as their first pounded on the door. "We have business to settle!"
     They hoisted the bags onto their shoulders before looking at each other fearfully. "Where are we to go?" Frenn whispered meekly, clutching her husband's hand. He cocked his head to the side, frowning, thinking deeply, adding more wrinkles to his already wrinkly face.
     "I think we should go to Hogsmeade," He replied. "Rowena would be at the castle, her off week is about to end-- we could go to the castle and--"
     "OPEN UP!" The loud voice became even louder, and without hesitation, they heard their front door being blasted off its hinges, making an absolute racket as it landed on top of the furniture. Frenn gripped her husband's hand tighter-- if they wanted to leave, they had to leave now.
     "To Hogsmeade then," Frederick smiled weakly, as footsteps started up the stairs. They had only just turned on the spot when the first person had reached them, pointed their wand and shouted something the bang the Apparition had made inaudible. A jet of light shot out of the wizard's wand, and as the old couple disappeared, the light had also gone with it.
     The wizard grinned evilly-- his companion caught up and kicked him in the shin.
     "What're you smiling for?" He said, his British accent thick. His friend smiled.
     "I shot a spell I did," he replied. "I remember the boss injuring someone badly with it, should give them a nice load of trouble in the forest they'll turn up in."
     His friend grinned, showcasing gaps in his decayed, broken teeth. "Then let's watch this house burn, shall we?"