March To The Sea - George Weasley ✔️

- 9 9 - THE ADVANCE GUARD

"YOU'LL BE CAREFUL, WON'T YOU?" George asked quietly. He had wished he spent more time with her because maybe then she wouldn't feel like she had to do something like this to help the Order. George knew she was bored and lonely, and being apart of the Order filled the hole he had left vacant when he should have been around her more. He felt like a bloody prat.

Lorelei rolled her eyes as she threw on George's sweater from two Christmas' ago. The large G in blue made George smile for a moment. Lorelei said, "Of course, I'll be careful, you bloody muppet. You forget I was one of the best flyers at Hogwarts?"

She tied her long, ebony hair into a ponytail as she stared at George in the mirror in his shared room. He was sitting on his bed while Fred left the pair alone for a bit before Lorelei went to get Harry. George gave her a deadpanned look at her words. "You don't have to do this. Harry has plenty of people offering to retrieve him. Why do you have to be one of them?"

"Because, George, I'm going mad with nothing to do and feeling awful about myself. I want to help this cause because old Voldywart is back. I won't sit around and do nothing--"

"You'll help Fred and me in the shop. We've had this planned--"

"Yes, I will help you, love. But you and I both know I can't just sit back all day and watch you and Fred work when I'm not needed. I have to do something," she expressed while turning around to face the pouting twin. She quickly put her shoes on and stuffed her wand in her pocket. He stood up and walked over to her with a large sigh leaving his lips.

Once he reached her, he pulled her into a hug. "I can't wait till we're out of school, Fred and I, so I can join too. It'll ease my mind knowing I can be there for you," George stated.

"Aha! You're just jealous," she teased while pulling back to look him in his brilliant dark eyes.

George scowled before squeezing her side a bit. "Shut up and kiss me before you go." Lorelei grinned and pulled him down to kiss her. It was short and sweet, but Lorelei felt all the love George held for her in that kiss.

Tonks rode by Lorelei's side in the formation toward Privet Drive. The animated woman would talk about how Charlie spoke very fondly of her when Lorelei was only eleven. Tonks said she was rather angry that they hadn't met that year, but Lorelei was just glad to have met her now. Tonks was someone of importance in Lorelei's life already, and she couldn't picture her life without the Metamorphmagus.

Harry looked awful when they arrived, as if he had lost all hope in his bright eyes. Mad-Eye opened the door with ease, and Harry had heard the noise from upstairs. Coming down the hall to investigate, he grinned slightly at the sight of Lorelei before he remembered he was supposed to be angry and throttle her. Lorelei stayed away from the boy once he gave her that look, shielding herself behind Remus and Tonks.

They were in the kitchen now. While Tonks spoke to Harry about how she got the Dursleys out of the house, Remus gave the mermaid a funny look. "Why are you making that face?" he whispered.

"Harry's imagining how many ways he can kill me without getting caught," Lorelei whispered back a little too loud because the boy who lived looked over with a withering glare, but she saw his lips twitch slightly.

Harry glanced back at Mad-Eye as introductions were made ("Don't call me Nymphadora, Remus!"). Lorelei watched in amusement as Harry took in all of the people who came to get him. Remus voiced his thoughts aloud when he said, "A surprising number of people volunteered to come and get you."

"Yeah, well, the more the better," said Moody darkly. "We're your guard, Potter."

"We're just waiting for the signal to show us it's safe to set off," Remus said while glancing out of the kitchen windows. "We've got about fifteen minutes."

"Very clean, aren't they, these Muggles?" Tonks said to Lorelei who nodded. "My dad's a Muggleborn and he's a right old slob. I suppose it varies, just like wizards?"

"I suppose," Lorelei muttered glancing at Harry who was staring at her intently. She took in his frame again even though she had seen him all of a month or so ago. He had gotten taller, she noticed, and a bit skinnier. His hair was cut short, thank Neptune, and his eyes seemed to get lighter as he tried to soak in any information as he could get.

"Look...what's going on? I haven't heard anything from anyone! Where's Vol--"

"Shut up!" Moody growled.

"What?" Harry asked making Lorelei roll her eyes at him.

"We're not discussing anything here, it's too risky," Moody said, adding a frustrating curse when his eye got stuck looking upward. "Keeps getting stuck--ever since that scum wore it..." And with a nasty squelching sound, he popped out his eye.

"Mad-Eye, you do know that's disgusting, don't you?" said Tonks conversationally. Lorelei put her hand over her mouth to stifle a laugh.

Harry grabbed Moody a glass of water to which his eye was plopped right in it. Lorelei flinched in disgust at it. Remus suggested Harry get packed, and Tonks eagerly pulled Lorelei up the stairs with her to go help. Lorelei mouthed, help me to Remus who only shrugged with a laugh.

Lorelei flinched again when Harry slammed open his door. Harry noticed her flinch with a frown. Lorelei had flinched almost three or four times since she arrived. She had been jumpy at the end of last year, he thought, after everything with Crouch and Cedric. He wondered if she still hadn't gotten over it, much like he hasn't. He wondered if she had nightmares like he did.

Tonks decided to change her hair to bubble-gum pink to which Harry watched in amazement. This led to the explanation of what Metamorphmagus were, and Harry was awed by the idea of it. Lorelei had been putting Harry's books away while the two spoke. His room was a mess, she noted, as if he had gone on a rampage in his anger. She wouldn't be surprised.

Lorelei cleaned Hedwig's cage with a flick of her wand once Tonks decided to be of help and use her packing charm, one that Lorelei had never even attempted (okay, yes she did...she had knocked Fred out with one of her giant books). Lorelei sighed happily once the room was cleaned, but she flinched when Tonks knocked Harry's trunk into the door.

"All right, Lor?" Harry asked finally speaking to the mermaid. He was miffed, that was obvious, but it was also obvious that serious things were going on. He had to get over the petty anger he held for not being informed.

"F-Fine," she squeaked back with a timid smile. "Y-You're not going to really throttle me, are you?"

"Not at this moment."

"Oh."

Harry smirked and motioned her to leave the room. Once downstairs, Remus smiled brightly at the boy. "Excellent to see Lorelei still alive," Remus mused making Harry smirk further at Lorelei who grinned sheepishly. "We've got about a minute I think. Harry, I've left a letter telling your aunt and uncle not to worry--"

"They won't," said Harry.

"That you'll be safe--"

"That'll just depress them."

"--and you'll see them next summer."

"Do I have to?"

Remus smiled at the boy in amusement. They walked outside to get in position. Lorelei held her broomstick in hand and gave Harry another hesitant smile. She was closest to him, Moody's orders. Lorelei watched Tonks put Harry's trunk and Hedwig's cage into a compartment attacked to her broom.

Once the first signal was shot, they mounted their brooms. Once the second, they began to fly far away from the depressing home of Four Privet Drive.