Yellow (George Weasley)

16 - Dark Mark

We rushed out of the tent to see absolute chaos. Tents were now just crumpled canvas on the ground and everyone was running as fast as they could from where fires were slowly spreading. Smoke billowed ominously through the air as a group of people in black hooded cloaks were quickly approaching with torches in hand. Floating in the air above them were four people that I could easily recognize as Muggles.

"Get back to the portkey everybody. And stick together!" Mr. Weasley yelled over the surrounding panic. "Fred, George. You're in charge of your sister!"

I followed as close as I could to the group, struggling to keep on my feet as I was bumped and knocked into. I can practically feel the heat from the fires on my back. They were approaching quicker and quicker.

I was able to catch myself after slipping a few times on the muddied ground but the many obstacles made it a bit of a challenge. My foot caught a tent peg and I went crashing to the ground as people rushed past me.

"Fuck." I cried, clutching my now injured ankle. When I stood to start running again, I didn't make it far before falling once more. Panic struck me as people continued to rush around over top of me. I looked up to make sure I wasn't missing the group and saw that Cedric had stopped for me. But he was now frozen, staring at something behind me.

When I turned my head my gaze was met by a menacing looking skull mask. Had it not been for the cold eyes I could barely seen through his mask, I wouldn't have known it was human. He had no reaction or remorse to the cries of pain surrounding us. A wave of fear shot through my body at our close proximity, and the submissive position I found myself in. "Are you lost? Mudblood filth." He spat as he towered over me. His eyes examined me with disgust and I didn't even have to see his lips to know he was snarling. The tip of his wand raised towards me and my heart raced faster than it ever had in my life. "Crucio!"

An excruciating pain coursed through my body, worse than anything I had ever felt. It was like electricity shot through every nerve. White hot knives pricked at every inch of my skin. If it wasn't for the burning in my throat, I may have thought my cries were coming from someone else. I screamed until it felt like my lungs might give out. There was nothing for me to do but helplessly lie there in a heap. I had tried to reach for my wand but my limbs were spasming uncontrollably. Until finally the air jumped back into my lungs and my vision came back to me in patches. The man had grown tired of his little game, undoubtedly moving on to torture yet another innocent person.

"Leah!" I heard George's voice call from a distance. Though he must have seemed much farther away than he really was because he was by my side in an instant. "Are you alright? Can you hear me?"

I nodded as I gasped for air. It felt like the wind was knocked out of me from the force of the curse. George hoisted me up from my under arms and wrapped an arm around my waist to support me, his voice sounded near tears as he reassured me—but I couldn't process a word he was saying.

I wobbled when I tried to move forward, my muscles still failing me as they twitched and my ankle throbbing. Without hesitation, George picked me up and began to quickly carry me through the now less dense crowd. The once bright festival was dismal, smoke hung in the air and the vendor's stands were left abandoned.

Never in my life had I expected to encounter anything quite like that. A loud boom resounded through the stagnant air and I watched as George quickly looked back, only to pale and run forward. I looked over his shoulder as we crested over the hill to see what had frightened him. Green smoke billowed through the air, the form of a skull very visible as a snake slithered from it's mouth. The Dark Mark. I couldn't help the tears that came down from a mixture of pure fear and pain. I hadn't been taught much about You-Know-Who but I knew enough to recognize his mark. And I knew the hatred in the voice of that Death Eater. I had always had the off comment about my Muggle decent, but this new era would be different. These people would be willing to kill me over that fact.