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XXXIX. THE BATTLE OF SEVEN POTTERS
Stepping into Harry's childhood home felt a little odd. Knowing his aunt and uncle had treated him so badly — it must have been hell for him. Winnifred was, however, fascinated by all the muggle inventions. She stood in between Fred and George as Moody explained polyjuice potion. Seven of them would be turning into Harry, so that if they were attacked, the death eaters wouldn't know which one was the real Harry Potter.
Winnifred, of course, would be flying above them in phoenix form. She'd zoned out of the conversation, worrying for everyone's safety. Remus and Tonks were expecting a baby, now. Remus had told her to expect a little brother or sister. Bill and Fleur had planned their wedding — it was taking place about a month after Fred and Winnifred's.
"Just trying to defuse the tension..." Fred muttered, and Winnifred snapped back into reality. She watched seven different Harry's stand around the living room.
"Wow! We're identical!" Fred and George exclaimed, and Winnifred chuckled.
"Not yet, you're not." Moody told them, throwing a sack of Harry's clothing towards them.
While everyone else changed, Winnifred walked over to the real Harry, who looked uncomfortable.
"It's going to be okay, Harry. We only have to get to Prim's house. It's not too far away." They'd be seeking shelter at the Tonks' residence, where Andromeda, Ted, Primrose, Sabrina, Ginny, and Molly already were.
Harry nodded, though not convinced.
***
Winnifred flew over Moody and Mundungus disguised as Harry — the death eaters would think Harry would be with the most powerful wizard of the group, and the phoenix.
Winnifred couldn't help but to worry that Mundungus wasn't the man for this job. He was unreliable and could be a coward. He hadn't been there when Harry was attacked by dementors before his fifth year started, where Dumbledore had told him to stay.
Almost immediately, the sky was filled with death eaters, searching for the real Harry.
Voldemort himself appeared, and Mundungus took one look at him before disapparating. Voldemort sent two curses, one hitting Moody, and the other hitting Winnifred.
Winnifred began to fall towards the ground, loosing consciousness, which caused her to transform back into herself again.
Her eyes were closed as she fell to the ground, landing in some bushes.
***
"She should be back by now. Why isn't she back?" Fred asked his father. He'd just seen George lose an ear, and now his fiancé was nowhere to be seen. When Bill walked through the door, he had a somber expression on his face.
"Mad Eye's dead." Fred started to panic further. Winnifred had been flying above him. What had happened to her.
"What about Winnie? Is she okay?" Fred asked his brother. He knew he was being a little insensitive to Moody's death, but his focus was on Winnifred.
"We don't know where she is. Kingsley saw her fall from the sky when Mad Eye was killed." Bill told Fred.
"I'm going out to find her." Remus announced, and Fred nodded. "Me, too."
"Fred, please stay here. George almost died. What will I do if I lose you?" Molly pleaded.
"I'm fine, mum. Go on, Freddie. Go save your girl." Molly glared at the earless George.
"I'll come, as well." Sabrina said, worried about one of her best friends. Prim wanted to go, but her birthday wasn't for a couple of months, and Andromeda refused. Prim's hair turned red in anger, as she stormed over and sat by Ginny.
Kingsley and Arthur joined the search for Winnifred, and they set back off, putting themselves in danger once again.
***
Winnifred opened her eyes, instantly feeling pain all over her body. She'd landed in a bush, which had softened her fall, but she was still pretty sure she had some broken bones. She sat up, though her body disagreed with the movement, and raised her hand, feeling the back of her head. Warm, red blood coated her nearly white blonde hair. It hurt to breathe, so she could only assume she'd broken a rib or two.
Against everything her body was telling her, she stood up, holding onto a tree branch to keep herself steady. She couldn't stand on her right foot — it surely had to be broken as well.
How was she supposed to get to Andromeda and Ted's house if she couldn't walk? She worried for everyone's life. Had Harry made it there safely? After all, he was the whole reason behind it. Was Fred okay? George? Remus? Mad Eye was definitely dead — she'd seen him fall. And Mundungus...he was a coward. No better than the dirt on her shoes.
To Winnifred's great amazement, she looked above her, seeing a very familiar blonde on a broom.
"Sabrina!" She called as loud as she could. This caught Sabrina's attention, and she immediately flew towards the ground.
"Oh Merlin, Winnie are you okay?" She asked, looking at the girl who was slumped against a tree.
"Peachy." She groaned, as Sabrina helped her sit up.
"We've been searching for you for hours! We were so worried. Okay, I'm going to send a patronus to the others; tell them where we are."
A white whispy labrador came from the tip of her wand. Sabrina turned attention back to Winnifred, putting her hand on the bleeding wound.
Within a few minutes, everyone had gotten the message, and had flown to the coordinates Sabrina had sent. Fred was the first to land, and rushed over to her side.
"Winnie, oh, thank Merlin! I thought I'd lost you!" Fred cried. "I'm here, Fred. I'm here."
When Remus landed, he raised his wand, pointing towards Winnifred.
"Wait!" Fred thought he was absolutely mad, but Remus had to make sure it was actually Winnifred.
"What item did you break at my house when you were six, then proceeded to cover it in Spellotape?" Remus asked. Winnifred would have chuckled, but the pain in her ribs was far too bad.
"A lamp that belonged to your grandfather. I told you the cat broke it. We didn't have a cat." She told her godfather. He smiled at her.
