The Dark Lord's Daughter Book 4: Flight

Relief

The next morning, well really just a few hours later, we met up with the Diggory's to catch the Portkey back to the Village.
"See you later Cedric- I'll be rooting against you, no hard feelings right?" I called over my shoulder after we parted ways, we had all had a passionate argument about Quidditch- and of course I was on Harry's side. Harry gave me a worried look.
"Its okay Harry- I think I'm better now, just needed a bit of a lie-in." I told him quietly, we were a bit from the others. He raised a brow at me.
"I promise- I'm still pissed I let him get away- I froze, Harry!" I said the others glanced back at me and I sent them a small wave.
"They're worried- about you, after you..." Harry trailed off, we didn't need reminding of what happened.
"I know. I would be too- you know..." I trailed off now, not really wanting to say it.
"What's wrong Hotcakes?" Harry was stony-faced- I snorted.
"You really shouldn't like me Potter." I said after a best. He looked over at me like I was the craziest person in the world- and I probably am, mind you.
"This again- look if I had any choice-" Harry tripped over a root and groaned. The others were leaving us behind by now.
"If you had a choice?" I asked crouched by his face, which had smears of dirt all over it now.
"I'd still choose falling for you, -"  he grinned up at me.
"Did you plan that-? Cause, like- that was smooth Potter-" I said with a smirk, my worries fading from my mind.
"I wish- but I think fast on my feet." He started to get up.
"No wonder you suck in class- we should ask Snape to let you stand and maybe-!" I kicked off from the ground just in time to dodge Harry's playful swat- and sprinted down the hill.
I skidded and rolled, with Harry not far behind- the others looked behind as I screeched bloody murder and passed them.
"Come get me- scar face!" I screamed over my shoulder. My dad and brothers watched with mild concern as Harry sped past them- tripped again- I paused to check that he was alright-
and shot right back up and ran faster than before. I screamed again and sprinted most of the way to the Burrow. Until I gave up and let Harry catch me-
"You're- so slow..." I said before collapsing on the ground next to him. He doubled over panting like crazy.
"You're..." He took a deep breath and pointed at me.
"Amazing...!" Harry said before collapsing beside me. I got up still out of breath and Harry propped himself up to see what I could possibly still have the energy to do.
"Harry-..." I paced for a bit, my heart beating too quickly- he watched me bemused.
"Do you...-" I paced more a lot of things to ask going through my head. He sat up.
"Oh!" I threw my hands up in the air before stalking back towards the others. Harry let himself fall back undoubtedly as confused as I was.

"Oh thank goodness! Thank goodness!" Mum greeted us in her bedclothes, with bloodshot eyes and a copy of the Daily Prophet tightly rolled in one hand. Mum first ran at Dad- dropping the newspaper.
"Arthur-- I've been so worried- so worried-"
I could feel Harry's eyes on me- wondering what I wanted to ask him.
"You're all right, " Mum then latched onto the twins to everyone's surprise.
"Ouch! Mum- you're strangling us!" The twins said their heads pressed firmly together.
"I shouted at you before you left! It's all I've been thinking about! What if You-know-Who had got you, and the last thing I ever said to you was that you didn't get enough OWLs? Oh Fred...George..."
"Molly, we're all perfectly all right-" Dad said trying to soothe Mum- and gave the twins the means to escape. Dad led mum towards the house, her sobs fading with her- Bill followed closely behind with the forgotten newspaper.
We all crammed into the tiny kitchen where I made mum a strong cup of tea with honey and a 'shot' of Firewhiskey. Mum went to take a sip and looked up surprised before taking a tentative sip. She sank into the warming smell and taste of spiced honey then with a sigh.
"I knew it... Ministry blunders...culprits not apprehended..." The cup of tea I was just about to pass to Hermione shattered in my hands-
"Er- sorry." I muttered, and waved my hand to clean away the mess. Harry started helping me pass out the teacups then-
"Er...lax security...Dark wizards running unchecked...national disgrace...who wrote this? Ah...of course...Rita Skeeter." Dad prodded his finger at the paper angrily.
"That woman's got it in for the Ministry of Magic! Just last week she was saying we're wasting our time quibbling about cauldron thickness, when we should be stamping out vampires! As if it weren't specifically stated in paragraph twelve of the Guidelines for the treatment of Non-Wizard Part-Humans-"
Bill interrupted Percy's rant,
"Do us a favor Perce, and shut up." Bill yawned and I passed him one of my special teas- which he drank approvingly.
"Notte's mentioned-" Dad said and I rushed to look over his shoulder.
"Where? If I'd have seen that I'd have known you were alive!" Mum said and leaned over to read the article paragraph that dad had pointed out.
"A member of the Auror Department has revealed that after a group of innocent teenagers were surrounded by nearly twenty fully-trained Aurors- a ministry officials own child disarmed them all at once, rendering nearly half incapacitated. Who is this mystery witch and why is she more capable than the wizards charged with protecting us from Dark wizards...." I read aloud with a slight grin.
Mum had gone stark white- and I patted her arm reassuringly.
"What-!" Mum went from white to a firey purple in less than a second, and grabbed me by the ear and sat me in her chair.
"Mum-! I was only-"
"No ma'-am I don't want to hear it!" Mum said and the others spoke up on my behalf.
"Mrs. Weasley - they had us surrounded-" Hermione said.
"Mum- Ginny was with us!" Ron said.
"It was really cool- they all sent stunning spells at us-" Ginny said.
"It was self-defense Mrs. Weasley they attacked us!" Harry said.
"Molly- she had to do something!" Dad said tiredly.
Mum waved her hands at us to shut us up-
"Did you really have to 'incapacitate them'?!" Mum asked seriously and I shrugged.
"I just shielded us- they got hit by their own spells- init my fault is it?" I said.
"Well then Skeeter finally made a decent point then didn't she?" Mum's anger dissapated and she grabbed her tea.
"Last night was scary- but it has nothin' on mum sometimes." I said before slumping over onto the table.
"Er- Mrs. Weasley has Hedwig been with a letter for me?" Harry asked, once the tension lifted.
"Oh- no dear, no post at all today." Mum said absentmindedly, hear mind put to rest by my calming concoction.
"All right if I go dump my stuff in your room Ron?" Harry asked with a meaningful glance to me.
"Mione?" I asked, Hermione jumped up with a quick yes, and we filed up to my room- which was considerably less cramped than the boys room.
"We need to tell you guys something-" Harry started and Hermione clapped a hand over her mouth.
"You two are finally dating!" Hermione said excitedly.
"Er- well..." I looked at Harry who looked lost.
"That wasn't what we wanted to..." Harry started again.
"But yes." I said decisively. Harry jumped and looked at me confused-
"So yes?" He asked- and I waved him off.
"Is that it because yesterday-" Ron started.
"No!" I said frustrated.
"We had the same dream, yesterday-" Harry looked at me, Ron and Hermione snorted.
"Guys- would you just listen!" I said before falling back onto my bed.
"So- we had the same dream...about Voldemort." Harry said. Ron hissed at the name.
Hermione listed off a load of reference books- and suggested we go to Dumbledore. Ron just looked horrfied. I explained the first part of the dream where I followed the old man up the stairs, but woke before it finished.
"Is that why you ran into our room stark naked?" Ron asked suddenly and I glared at him-
"I was putting the bracelet on Harry- you never know what it could've been y'know-" I said haughtily. Harry finished the rest of the dream- omitting the part that they were planning on killing him, which he admitted to me.
After a moment of awkward silence, Hermione piped up.
"Why were you asking if Hedwig had come Harry? Are you expecting a letter?"
"I told Sirius about my scar, I'm waiting for his response-" Harry said.
"You wrote to him- when?" I asked turning to glance at Morrigan who was sulking.
"Er yesterday..." Harry said sheepishly.
"I wish you were this eager to write this summer- Sirius nearly had a heart attack!" I said and got up to release Morrigan from her iron prison. She cawed happily and nipped my fingers- mum had coloured her feathers once again and she was a glorious rainbow of feathers once again.