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November Scorpius’ third year at Hogwarts in cabin near Oxford Maine

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The dense cloud of acrid smoke from the short, violent battle filled both the large room and Draco Malfoy’s lungs, but he could do nothing to clear it from his throat. If he didn’t stay hidden, Harry Potter’s heroic sacrifice would be in vain. Draco watched as the American security team took Harry Potter, Hoyle Grindus, and the other two surviving members of the rescue team into custody. Potter didn’t stare into the corner where he knew Draco was, but he looked across the room towards the others in the cabin.

On the far side of the room, a burly, yank wizard, wearing a black leather jacket with the letters N. A. M. E. D. on the back, was being pummeled about his head and shoulders by the fists of a distraught Ginny Potter. She was trying to get past him to reach her husband before he could be lead away in chains to jail. Ginny looked quite mentally unbalanced as she shouted and spat into the face of ‘her protector’. Draco wondered if the poor American knew what half of the names she was calling him were. He doubted that the man did know. He wouldn’t have been so calm if he had.

A pair of other members of the North American Magical Enforcement Division wizards was restraining other members of the team: Geoffrey Grindus, Albus Potter and his brother James. The three boys were also struggling to either reach their grandfather or their father. A fifth wizard blocked the Jones cousins, thirteen-year-old Rose Weasley and her cousin, Lily Potter, from the melee. Lily had her head buried into her Cousin Rose’s arms so she could not see what was happening to her daddy.

What the children would do if they got to the family members without any wands, they did not know. Draco knew that if Scorpius was here, he would be doing the same to reach him.

However, Scorpius’ location was the real issue. No one alive in the cabin could, or would, tell where Scorpius was or if he was still alive. After a quick, thorough, and frantic search was completed, the rescue team realized that Scorpius and the ring leader of the kidnapping plot, Ares Pyter, were both missing.

Draco turned toward the only surviving adult amongst the kidnapping victims. â€�“Scorpius, where is he?”

Ginny Potter seemed to be in shock or drugged. Staring down at the floor, just past him at where the bodies were laying, he could see her slowly gather her thoughts. â€�“Pyter…he took him into that room.” She pointed behind and to the left toward a room they had already searched. â€�“He told Scorpius that he had some special questioning for him.” She turned toward a lightly sobbing Rose Weasley. â€�“That was around sunset, right?”

Still clutching her cousin and attempting to control her sobbing, Rose nodded in agreement at her aunt’s recollection.

Draco ran through the four room building, blasting doors and walls looking for hidden passages or rooms. When he returned empty-handed back to the team, he felt his knees grow weak and leaned against the door frame of the room Ginny had pointed to for support. Suddenly, he felt two arms take him into a hug. The person hugging him was Rose.

The girl’s sobs were enough to mask the sounds of his own. As he absent-mindedly caressed Rose’s head, he searched out Potter. Harry Potter, who had just finished a passionate kiss and hug with his wife, returned his look with one of pity and empathy.

Potter’s look cut into him like a knife. Draco Malfoy was not a man who needed to be pitied. He had been raised to be in control, to be respected and, at times to be feared. Turning to look at the two captured kidnappers, who were kneeling on the floor under the watchful wands of the pair of hired security wizards, Draco was just considering which one of them he would first take into the back room and ‘Cruciatus’ his son’s location out of when he heard a banging noise from outside of the cabin. He gently moved Rose aside and stepped between the girl and the noise so his wand arm could be ready for anything.

A voice filled the cabin and it rattled the windows with its volume. The voice was a deep, male one which spoke in the accent of a southern American.

â€�“We have the building surrounded and we have placed charms that will stop y’all from escaping us. You will surrender to stand trial or face your fate at our hands.”

â€�“No!” shouted Draco, as he felt the world collapsing in on him. They couldn’t stop him from rescuing his son. He readied his wand to fight them all off, no matter how many there were. However, Potter had taken the time to walk over to him and step in front of his wand. Potter reached into a small bag he had hidden under his cloak and pulled out a long, spangled cloak.

â€�“Take this. I want you to put it on and sit in the corner until you can escape. I need someone to get messages back to England for me and you need to hunt for Scorpius.”

Draco looked down at the cloak in Potter’s arms. As Potter draped the garment across his wand arm the heaviness of it surprised him.

â€�“

Potter, I can’t take this, it’s your cloak. If they take me captive, I’m just a man who took the law into his own hands to save his child. You’re a member of the Ministry. If they take you, it’s an international incident.”

â€�“I know. I’m counting on that.” After he gave the invisibility cloak to Draco, Harry Potter turned back to his wife and took her into his arms.

Draco turned away from the couple to give the Potters a moment of privacy. He focused on his son’s young teammates; they were now just beginning to get over the shock of the battle and were beginning to give comfort to each other.

The Americans announced their presence again and demanded the instant surrender of the kidnappers. Harry helped Draco on with the cloak. As Harry finished making sure he was totally covered, he whispered a set of specific instructions that Draco needed deliver to friends, family and co-workers. Draco repeated the names and instructions.

Potter waved his wand over Draco and his hiding spot. â€�“It’s a charm to mask your presence, if they do a revealing spell.” Potter’s calmness and certainty seemed to have an affect on all of them in the cabin.

â€�“Ready,” Harry said to the room at large. Hoyle Grindus walked over to Harry, extended the big palm of his hand and the two men shook hands. Potter nodded back to Hoyle and put his wand to his throat. He spoke softly, but his voice seemed to boom into the American forest night.

â€�“We have already rescued the kidnap victims. Come in, but there is no need for any more violence.”

Draco squatted in the corner with a view of the three bodies lying on the floor in front of him. The body closest to him, his arms frozen in death agony, was one of the rescue team, Gwayne somebody. He was a hired wand that Hoyle had contracted.

The middle corpse was one of the three remaining kidnappers; the man had been used like a cast pawn by Lucius who, so coldly and calculatingly, had sent him to his death.

The last body lying face down lifeless on the floor was Bobby Devon; he had been the Head Coach of the U.K. national under fifteen Quidditch team. Devon, a short stocky man with overlong arms perfect for a Keeper, had a smile and an enthusiasm that could have animated a rock into playing winning Quidditch. He had died because he had launched himself to block the Killing Curse cast at his team by the now dead kidnapper.

As Draco crouched in the corner, the minutes the Americans took to get a handle on the complex situation seemed to pass like hours. Draco wanted to shout for them to hurry it up, but he remained as quiet as the three corpses in front of him.

He saw one of the black coated Americans roughly push a surviving kidnapper’s head up against a wall before they led the two suspects out of the cabin. Two of the Yanks, both wearing gold emblems of multiple crossed wands on their shoulders, kept talking as they pointed to the rescue party. The security men were not ready to deal with two distinct sets of foreigners that they were taking into custody.

Draco couldn’t let the fear and grief get to him. He had to slip past the N.A.M.E.D. officers, get out of the cabin, and back to the camp. Once back at the camp, he must get the Portkey and return to England. Draco had to get to Ronald Weasley, his ‘Aunt’ Grindus and Astoria to let them know the fate of their loved ones.

The majority of the instructions Harry had given him were to be delivered to Ronald and Hermione Weasley. Draco silently repeated the two separate and very cryptic messages over and over again to keep them straight in his mind. Draco considered just delivering the messages to Hermione, who he considered naïve, but trustworthy in her judgment and actions. While, he wouldn’t trust the ‘dolt’ Ronald with anything important, Potter did trust him. In this case, he would bow to Potter’s wishes.

Lastly, he had to go to Wimborne and visit Victoria Devon and tell her how her father had died protecting the young players in his keep. He owed that to the man.

By the time he had finished all of that, he would spend the next day making love with Astoria. If in the second morning, he was still free, he would present himself to the authorities at the Ministry and trust them to find his son. He could not go out on his own. If he did go it alone, he would be on the run with both Lucius and the Ministry hunting for him. He had to trust that Astoria, the Weasleys and their ‘friends’ would do what he couldn’t to get his son back.

As he waited for an opportunity to slip past the agents and leave the cabin, he couldn’t see how Harry, Hoyle and he would not end up going to an American jail. And if they didn’t end up in American jail, Azkaban was still a possibility for all five surviving members of the rescue party.

A wizard with two gold pair of crossed wands on his lapel walked over and began to address Assistant Coach Ginny Potter.

â€�“Please get your team ready for transport. Any clothes or luggage in this cabin will have to stay here until our investigation is done. However, we do have the luggage that was teleported to the clearing when you were abducted. You will be able to change when we’re done with you. I’ve arranged for a special Portkey to take you and your team to safety. A wizard from the Magical State Department will meet you at the offices of the school in Salem, Massachusetts. You will each have to give statements to our team so we can piece together what happened and when. Your Ministry will have at least one representative there to observe our treatment of you, to help you get the families notified and help sort the entire thing out.”

â€�“What about the World Championship? Is it too late for us to play?” asked Kaitlin.

Ginny Potter, at the end of her patience, turned on the girl, venting a steaming cauldron full of bottled up frustrations. â€�“How can you be worried about playing a game after-â€�“Ginny’s arm flung in the general direction of the corpses.

The girl focused on the bodies and pulled her head in. â€�“Sorry, I didn’t think.”

â€�“No, you didn’t!”

Kaitlin Jones for the first time in anyone’s knowledge broke into tears. She began to sob uncontrollably at her coach’s rebuke.

â€�“Mum!” James said in response to his mother’s broadside of bitterness. Ginny turned her back on the team and tried to get control of her emotions. Draco saw the odd pair of James Potter and Rhys Jones move over to comfort the distraught Kaitlin.

When the officers organized the rescue team into a queue to lead them away, Draco dropped in behind the last of the officers. Walking softly, he was able to slip out of the door. The line turned to the right toward a large black, brightly-lit armored Muggle lorry. Draco stepped carefully to the left and paused to see if his movement was noticed. It had not been.

Creeping around the edge of the cabin, he was walking carefully to not step on a pinecone or break a twig, which might alert the others to his presence. He also kept ducking at the windows (even though he was invisible) until he got to the north east corner of the cabin. It had been here that only an hour or two earlier, the confident six rescuers had gone over their last minute assignments before their attack.

Draco shook his head to release the unnecessary thoughts. He had to keep a clear mind. So many lives were at stake, and Scorpius’ life was the one at most risk.

He began to walk back up the way he had come earlier. Once he was fully hidden in the pine forest, Draco pulled off the robe and shoved it under his own robe. Without having to worry about snagging the borrowed garment on a branch, he was able to increase his pace until he made it to the clearing near a small, bubbling spring where they had arrived and set up camp the day before. He paused just inside the first line of trees where he could see the tents, but he would be out of sight from the camp. Pulling his wand up, he was ready to do the spell to reveal the existence on any humans and paused. What if the Americans (or worse his father’s agents) had already discovered their camp? If they had found the camp, they would have probably left behind alarm spells that would be triggered if he cast any spell!

No, he would have to reach the box in the largest tent where the deflated Quaffle was stored. The ball was his ticket home.

As he reached the grassy clearing, he paused. Draco walked just inside the tree line completely around the edge of the clearing looking for signs of any foot prints in the tall grass which would have signaled someone had searched the campsite. He did not see any signs of intruders. When he reached the starting point of his circuit, he looked up at the sky and waited as the half moon approached a large cloud. As the moon went behind the cloud dimming the area, he sprinted toward the tents. He slipped into the main tent and pulled out Potter’s rucksack. He performed a summoning charm, all of the items in the campsite disappeared as they entered the bag.

All that was left in the meadow was Draco with the bag in hand and the tub containing the Quaffle. Just as he reached for the Quaffle, he saw both the faces of his son and Bobby Devon; they were both smiling at him.

Why had he not told Scorpius, before he left, that he loved him? You can’t think that way. We will get Scorpius back! They had to get him back, or else his father would have to add his and his wife’s names to the growing list of those Lucius killed in his latest bid for power.

â€�“No, you can’t think on that. It will work out. It must work out,” he thought, whispered, or maybe, prayed. Fatigue was now fighting the adrenalin for control of his mind and body. He had to focus on the tasks.

He saw the old man again in his mind. Devon had a lively smile once…

Draco reached down and lifted the rucksack on his shoulder. He picked up the Quaffle, his stomach seemed to pull back to his spine, and the Maine forest disappeared.

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Third day of July Isle of Man

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Astoria did not dare accompany Draco and Scorpius to the Puddlemere United practice facility. She was worried about not being able to control her emotions and embarrassing Scorpius before the coaches and his team mates, so she remained in London, claiming that someone needed to stay behind to run the Potion shop.

Draco tried to change her mind, but he couldn’t get her to come along. Since she would be alone in the shop, he couldn’t help but worry about what his father might do to Astoria; so he arranged with Hoyle Grindus for a pair of private security wizards to watch her and the shop while he was gone. At least he and Astoria had been able to keep up the ruse on nonchalance about the family security. The boy had enough on his mind without worrying about his parents and his own safety.

Draco, Scorpius and multiple rucksacks, containing everything Astoria deemed necessary for the ten days her son would be away, bounced off the inside of multiple fireplaces across Britain until they reached their destination. Holding three sacks each, the pair arrived via Floo powder into the entrance hall of the Puddlemere United training facility.

As they entered the lobby of the offices, Draco and his son were both stunned by its beauty. The lobby walls were painted a deep Navy blue, the thick carpet was golden coloured and in between the large couch and chairs across from a wall mural of seven flying players were giant terracotta vases full of bulrushes representing both the colours and logo of their host team. The realism of the players flying off of the mural caused even a seasoned Wizard to be momentarily surprised.

It was Scorpius who first saw a sign affixed to the wall which gave the office number for checking in, the Malfoys walked until they found the corresponding office. When they entered through the doorway, they found Ginny Potter seated at a wooden desk in front a long scroll and looking over her shoulder, there was a bald man with grey fringes of hair that barely touched the top of his ears. The pair looked up from the desk simultaneously as the Malfoys entered the room. Potter placed a mark with her quill pen on the scroll before she stood and walked over to greet the visitors.

â€�“Bobby Devon, may I introduce you to Scorpius Malfoy and his father, Draco.”

Devon seemed to bounce over to meet them with his hand extended. â€�“Scorpius Malfoy, Gryffindor Seeker, right?”

â€�“Yes. I made the team, but didn’t get to play.”

â€�“I know all about the intruder business. The stories were all in the Prophet.” Devon’s sunburned, bald head seemed to bob with every word he spoke, as if it were on a spring. The coach released Scorpius’ hand and took Draco’s right hand. The man’s grip was strong, showing what the last half-decade of gripping and swinging a Beater’s bat could do for you. Draco smiled. trying not to wince at the power of the distracted man’s grasp.

A female voice spoke from behind Draco near the doorway, â€�“When I’m made the Gryffindor Captain, Scorpius will play Beater. I don’t know what Freddy Weasley was thinking about when he let him try out as a Chaser.”

Devon, whose view of the doorway was blocked by Draco, let a snarl came to his lips. Speaking blindly towards the door, Devon said, â€�“You have to be Kaitlin Jones. Only a Jones knows everything about Quidditch and can’t wait to point out to everyone all of your numerous faults.” Devon leaned around Draco so he could see who had just arrived. Draco saw the snarl on the man’s lips disappear and a large crooked toothy smile appeared in its place.

â€�“Gwenog, I was expecting to have ‘the genius’ bring his own daughter to the tryouts, not his big sister.”

â€�“The genius is up in Tutshill hosting the under-eighteen tryouts for their tournament at Mount Olympus.” Gwenog walked over to shake the hand of her old adversary and Quidditch World Cup teammate. Gwen next looked to Devon’s left, â€�“How’re you doing, Red? You’re finally going to be a coach. Of course, it’s a decade or two later than you could have been if you re-signed with the Harpies.”

Draco noticed Potter’s mouth make a slightly sour look. â€�“I’m ready to teach, lead, and yell. Just like you taught me,” Ginny replied to her old captain. The two women shared a half a hug.

As they pulled apart, Gwenog nodded toward Scorpius. â€�“How are the two of you going to manage to coach these teenagers? I thought leading fourteen grown Quidditch divas with the Harpies was a tough job. I can’t imagine coaching all of these kids with their unformed skills, fragile egos, and raging hormones.”

â€�“As I recall, we had a few cases of raging hormones also. You must remember the time that you were showing the Clifford sisters the improvements they had paid for in the locker rooms and you caught me and Harry in the laundry room-â€�“ Ginny stopped, and her faced turned a bright red.

â€�“Go on! It sounds like a good story,” said Devon in a teasing tone. The older man looked over at Scorpius and Kaitlin and sighed. â€�“Oh right, young ears have loose lips.”

â€�“As I recall, Red also had a pair of those.”

Draco noticed that Gwenog Jones seemed to have a twinkle in her eye and enjoyed publicly embarrassing Ginny Potter. He wondered if there had been any truth in the old rumours that Rita Skeeter had printed in her book about Gwenog Jones.

Scorpius twisted the side of his face and asked, â€�“Hey, Kitty-Kat have you seen James yet? He probably has a couple of new insults ready for you.”

â€�“Tell him that the only insult he has that can hurt me is how badly he plays Seeker.”

â€�“Okay, enough, enough,” said Devon his hands waving surrender in the air. â€�“You may have a point, Gwen. I may be a bit too old for all of this.”

Gwen shook her head. â€�“No, Bobby you’re perfect for this lot. When you led the Wasps, you always managed to get top notch results in spite of the mediocre talent. You’ll find a way to get them straightened out.”

Ginny pulled the scroll around and with her quill checked Kaitlin in as present. â€�“Scorpius, you will be in room six with Albus Potter and Nicholas Austin.”

Scorpius perked up; he and Albus would be rooming together. With Jimber and his family leaving England from their exile from ‘The Island’, Albus was his only true friend in the world, outside of Rose anyway.

â€�“Is Rose Weasley here yet?” He tried to ask the question as if the answer was unimportant to him.

â€�“Hermione and Rose came down with me and the boys. Kaitlin, you will be sharing room twelve on the second floor. Your roommates will be Rose Weasley and Gretchen Smythe.”

â€�“Smythe! The ‘Ravencrawl’ Seeker? She can barely stay on her broom in a strong wind! What idiot invited her?” Kaitlin spoke in a near shout with her hands on hips.

All of the adults gave Kaitlin a quick hard look. Even Kaitlin realized she must have stepped out of bounds. The icy silence lasted about a minute.

â€�“I did,” replied Bobby Devon. â€�“She’s a good, solid Seeker. She has shown great improvement during her last two matches. Even if she is a work in progress, we will need numbers to practice properly.”

Scorpius turned toward Kaitlin. â€�“She’s not that bad a player, Kitty-Kat. I remember that James helped her after you beat them so they could defeat Slytherin. He said she was a quick learner. And I recall he told Jimber that he thought she was kind of cute.” Scorpius added the last just to see if Rose’s guess about Kaitlin was true. He could feel the wave of heat coming from her in response to his statement.

â€�“Kaitlin, settle down! Remember, team chemistry is often more important to victory than raw talent,” admonished her aunt, Gwenog. â€�“I remember when Beth Grim threatened to quit when I promoted Red over her to starting Chaser during Ginny’s first year. It took half a season for the other veterans to accept her. It was only after they accepted her did we start to win.”

â€�“Sorry, Auntie Gwen, you’re right.” Everyone in the room knew that she had said she was sorry, but no one really believed she meant it.

Ginny Potter cleared her throat and looked at her old mentor. â€�“By the way, your brother, Ioan, left the facility about ten minutes ago, so it’s safe to take your time and look around,” she advised. Gwen nodded in appreciation.

Following a map that Coach Potter had given them, Draco and Scorpius walked down an outside corridor until they found the proper room. Draco knocked on the door, but no one answered. Scorpius gave his father a dismissive shake of the head and just opened the door. Albus and Nicholas were lying in the top two bunk beds; they were talking about James and Kaitlin when the Malfoys entered the room. There was no clear pathway to the bunk beds, because even though the room had three dressers large enough to neatly store their clothes, the two boys had just dropped their bags in piles at the foot of their beds. The two Malfoys wormed their way around and over the collection of rucksacks and clothes to the empty bed under Albus. Draco stayed long enough with his son to make sure, Scorpius that put all of his things away proper and even folded the empty rucksacks and placed them into the top drawer.

Albus introduced Scorpius to Nicholas and the Scorpius added to the talk about James and Kaitlin from her reaction to his little dig in the office. Draco was amazed. Since when do boys gossip? The only gossip he had been part of was starting rumors designed to embarrass Potter or Weasley and maybe blackmail Pansy Parkinson into doing certain things for him.

Draco bid the little gang goodbye. He turned to go back to the team office, to insure that he had signed all of the paperwork and to get a schedule of the upcoming events. As he approached the stairs from the second floor, he was almost run over by Rose Weasley who gave a quick wave to him as she apologized for bumping him. Draco watched as she, without knocking, walked into Scorpius’ room.

---

On the first day of tryouts the whole team met for breakfast in the cafeteria. A grand total of fourteen had been invited. Five Gryffindors, Kaitlin Jones, Scorpius Malfoy, Albus and James Potter, and Rose Weasley; three Hufflepuffs, Rhys Jones, Christopher Welk, and Marian White; four Ravenclaws, Nicholas Austin, Bryn McGlothen, Gretchen Smythe, and Bailey Williams; two Slytherins: Geoffrey Grindus and Nate Nott.

The players, by habit, sat at different tables by the school houses. They stayed that way for about two minutes after the coaches arrived with their trays of food.

Looking down on a little board with a golden clip on the top, Coach Devon announced, â€�“Here are your permanent sitting assignments. You will sit this way until the final roster is set. At table number one, I want both of the Keepers: Rose Weasley and Christopher Welk. At table two will be the Seekers: Rhys Jones and James Potter. Table three will be the Beaters: Geoffrey Grindus, Bailey Williams, Bryn McGlothen, and Scorpius Malfoy. And fourth table will be the Chasers: Nicholas Austin, Kaitlin Jones, Nate Nott, Albus Potter, Gretchen Smythe, and Marian White. You will do everything in these groups. You will eat together by positions. You will study together by position. And if one of you needs to use the loo, you better go together.”

James snorted in response to that. Devon seemed confused for a second and then brightened. â€�“Well, you best not do the loo together. It might get embarrassing.”

Amidst the scrapping of chairs and the bumping of tables, the players mumbled about their new assignments. Scorpius, who was already sitting at table three, glared at Kaitlin as she stood up. She returned his glare with an I-told-you-you-were-a-Beater smile as she moved to her new table.

Scorpius looked around at the other three Beaters. Grindus was a distant relative whom he had not talked to since the explosion during the last D.A.D.A. class before Christmas during their first year. The other two sitting at the table were both fourth year Ravenclaw Beaters. All three of the others had played at least one full season as a Beater. The only time that he had used a Beater’s bat was during their first year, when he used to warm up Jimber.

â€�“He couldn’t believe that they brought him here to be embarrassed by playing him out of position and then cut him.” Had Rose convinced her Aunt to invite him as a favor? He hoped not. He didn’t want to have to tell his ‘proud’ parents about it if it turned out to be true.

Just before the food was delivered to the tables, Coach Potter waved her wand and a stack of books appeared in front of her. She levitated the books and they floated in front of each of the players. Scorpius looked down at the binder. The cover showed a large cup sitting below the Union Jack. The task awaiting them suddenly became very clear to him. He wasn’t here to make a team. He was here to prepare to win a tourney. As he looked around at the other beaters, he heard pages being turning and knew that Rose was already leafing through the pages. He couldn’t help but smile at her wonderful predictability.

After a big breakfast, the team walked into the locker rooms. The girls went down the hallway on the left and the boys walked to the right.

Donning their new practice tunics, the players walked out of the locker rooms to a large classroom. In the front of the room a stocky man with grey hair stood in front with crates. Geoffrey Grindus waved towards the man who waved back.

Mrs. Potter walked to the front of the room and shook the hand of the stranger by the crates. â€�“Everyone, I’d like to introduce you to Hoyle Grindus. Mr. Grindus is the founder and owner of Comet Broomworks. You will be flying his brooms in the tournament.”

â€�“Hello, I want all of you, except Geoffrey, to call me Hoyle. Geoffrey has to call me Grandfather.” The old man smiled and a slight groan came from Grindus who sat in the chair to Scropius’ right.

Hoyle Grindus called each player by name and they went into the room he pointed to. The list began with Seekers, followed by Chasers, and the Beaters. Malfoy and Grindus were called up together and they walked through the door on the left.

A woman pointed Geoffrey to the left and him to the right. Out of nowhere, a thin yellow piece of material with little numbers on it wrapped around his forehead. The measuring tape yelled a number and an old wizard who sat on a bar stood holding a scroll and quill pen wrote down the measurement.

The old wizard said, â€�“Next!”

The talking tape measured Scorpius around the shoulders, stomach, hips and his in-seam. When the tape was done, it flew on its own back into the pocket of the old man. The old wizard walked over to an open crate. Consulting his notes, the old man waved his wand over the contents of the box and he beckoned for Scorpius to come over. In the box, a white uniform with the Union Jack on the chest and ‘MALFOY’ was across the back in bright blue letters. Under the uniform was a shiny new broom. The old man motioned for him to pick up the broom.

Scorpius picked up the broom. He put his feet into the footholds. The fit was perfect. He kicked off and rose into the air. The old man waved for him to land. Reluctantly, he touched down.

Holding his new broom, Scorpius walked out of the door at the other end of the room and onto the pitch. The grass was greenest that he had ever seen and, looking up, he saw Devon flying with the Chasers and Seekers. He mounted his new broom and joined the formation.

---

The first two day’s practices were tough on Scorpius. The rainy, windy weather made for conditions where Scorpius’ flying ability could not be featured and his lack of expertise with the bat was. Everyone brightened when the weather forecast for overcast in morning and warming in the afternoon was posted on the board in the lunch room.

Everyone knew, include himself, that he was the number four Beater; the real issue was who the second Beater was. Grindus was easily the best of the four. Williams and McGlothen were almost a matched set. They had learned to be Beaters at home as younger brothers getting revenge on their older siblings for all of the times they had been beat up or tricked. When they got to Hogwarts, they met during the Ravenclaw tryouts. They practiced before the tryouts and even after, when the returning seventh years beat them out. Over the last two years, they had been the backbone of a brutal Ravenclaw defensive attack. The two boys flew the same, struck the ball the same and sometimes even finished the sentences the other had started.

James said that they reminded him of his Weasley grandparents and Kaitlin dubbed them ’The Twins’. The more he watched them in practice, the more Scorpius began to feel his making the team was hopeless. At the end of Tuesday afternoon’s practice, he confided this to Albus, but he refused to listen.

â€�“Meet me on the pitch after supper and bring your bat,” said Albus.

â€�“Why are we going to beat up the twins?” he asked.

Albus laughed. â€�“If this doesn’t work, we’ll try that on Friday.”

After supper, Scorpius and Albus arrived on the pitch. The sun broke through the overcast and was just beginning to drop below the stands to the west. Waiting for them on pitch stood Rose, James and Kaitlin.

â€�“What are all of you doing here?” Scorpius asked.

Kaitlin shook her head as if the question was really stupid. â€�“We’ve got to get you up to speed for the season. Also, I told everyone you were the best Beater material in the school. If the twins beat you, it makes me look bad.”

Albus leaned in to whisper, â€�“Forget, Kitty-Kat. Scorp, if you don’t make the team there’ll be no living with Rose. She’ll mope around and we’ll get beat by pygmies or something in the first round. And my mum will never let me forget how I was part of the team that let her down.”

He looked past Albus to see Rose. He recognized the little ticks on her face that she got when an unannounced test occurred. Rose was at the top of the year on her results of the standard subject tests. However, she almost always scored low during ‘surprise’ tests. She tended to needlessly spend time fretting about not being ready enough and she would struggle to finish the questions. If she was acting this way now, she might not win the Keeper position and that would be a disaster for the team. Rose was twice the keeper that Welk was.

Scorpius smiled over to Albus and slapped his shoulder. They boys took about five paces away from Scorpius. James went to his left and Albus walked off to his right. Kaitlin and Rose stayed where they were. The two girls dug into little brown leather bag slung around their necks. When their hands came out of the bag, each of them, were holding a black ball about the size of a Bludger.

Kaitlin had an evil grin on her face as she and Rose turned toward him. Rose’s left hand and Kaitlin’s right held the ball and their arms were cocked as if they were frozen in mid-toss. Kaitlin said, â€�“Three. Two. One. Defend yourself.”

The two girls began throw the faux-Bludgers at him. As they threw their balls each girl yelled the name of the boy Scorpius was suppose to target with his strike.

â€�“James,” shouted Kaitlin.

â€�“Albus,” shouted Rose.

Kaitlin’s throw struck Scorpius in the middle of the chest. He did get his bat on Rose’s toss, but the ball just bounced back at the thrower.

By the time he was trying to return his bat to a neutral position, the two girls had reloaded and thrown two more balls. Kaitlin repeated James’ name and Rose shouted, â€�“Kaitlin!”

Ready this time, Scorpius struck Kaitlin’s toss knocking it in the general direction of James. The other ball he struck and it actually touched Kaitlin on the ankle, but only after the ball had bounced on the ground.

It took another frustrating twenty minutes before Scorpius hit both announced targets. He was just getting to feel good about his progress, when Albus and James began to slowly walk in a circle around him. It took the rest of the early evening until he was beginning to be able to hit the ball within an arm’s length of the correct teammate.

Scorpius’ elation turned into the most pain that he had ever known. The muscle in his right arm began to seize up. The bat dropped from his hand and onto the pitch. Kaitlin, not Rose, walked over and began to massage his bicep and rotate his shoulder loosing it up. While the brothers went to find what food was left in the dining hall, the two girls helped Scorpius work the knots out of his muscles.

In the morning, Scorpius woke up and had trouble even lifting his arm off of the bunk bed. He looked down at it, willing it to move. The messages from his brain did not seem to reach his fatigued arm. Slowly, motion and feeling returned to the limb.

Scorpius almost forgot to sit with the other Beaters. He really wanted to talk to Rose.

After the breakfast was served, coaches Devon and Potter walked into the room. Devon had a strange smile on his face. Thirty minutes were allowed for the team to eat. Devon used his napkin to wipe his mouth, slid his chair back and stood up. â€�“When I call out your name, I want you to sit at table one. If I do not call your name please move to table four.”

Scorpius looked across the room to see Rose’s nervous face. She turned toward him. He smiled back at her and she seemed to settle down.

Devon shouted, â€�“Weasley, Malfoy, Williams, Albus Potter, Smythe, White, and James Potter.” The two teams moved to their assigned tables. Scorpius looked over at the other team; Kaitlin was the lone Gryffindor on the other team. Her cousin, Rhys, was holding court at the table. Kaitlin looked very uncomfortable not being her usual center of attention.

â€�“Follow me,” said Ginny Potter to her brood at table number four and they followed her through the right hand door.

Devon stood and his team followed him to the left hand door. Once in the hallway, the seven young people walked into a classroom. On the board were little squiggly lines drawn upon a pitch shaped board.

â€�“Who recognizes this formation?” asked Devon.

Rose’s hand shot up. Devon nodded toward the girl with the only raised hand. â€�“The Whirlwind, a smothering defense created by Owain Jones for the Tutshill Tornados-â€�“. Rose stopped talking when she saw her coach’s hands waving in surrender.

â€�“What is the most important part for a successful whirlwind?” Rose, Scorpius and Smythe all raised their hands. Devon looked over the waving arms. â€�“Malfoy.”

Scorpius took a deep breath. Rose had gone over the whole playbook from a Beater’s perspective with him two nights before. She had sneaked down to the boys’ room to help him get up to speed. She was certain, based on Kaitlin’s opinion, that the Whirlwind was going to be the team’s base defense. Rose told him that she thought he was way smarter than the other three Beaters. If he learned the book, it might give him a chance to impress Devon and Weasley. While he drank in every word, he moved his hand to his side and allowed his pinky to caress her little finger. What really stuck with him as he was sitting on the thinly carpeted floor with his back on his bunk bed next to her was that she did not think he was a lost cause. Rose did not think he was a loser.

â€�“The Beater must attack the off Chasers to insure the Quaffle carrying Chaser has no escape pass. With the other Chaser dodging Bludgers or actually getting struck by the aimed shots, the Chaser with the ball can be surrounded. When that occurs, it leaves the ball carrier only contested passes or retreat.” Scorpius seemed confident in his answer.

Coach Devon gave a series of quick nods during the explanation. The answer seemed to give the Coach a burst of energy. â€�“Correct! You, Beaters, must be merciless in your strikes and as soon as the ball leaves your bat. You must be already flying to the position to set up the next Bludger strike. Our Beaters must always be on the move. If you want to watch a Quidditch match, I’ll get you a ticket and you can sit in the stands.” Devon looked at his two Beaters.

Williams looked from the coach up at the diagrams on the board. His face was confused. Had the boy not studied his playbook?

When the clock reached nine forty, a bell sounded. Everyone in the classroom, except the Coach, jumped at the high pitched ringing noise that so jangled their nerves.

â€�“Leave you books at your seats.” Devon lifted his wand from his desk and two boxes and some navy blue partitions appeared in the corners of the room. Devon reached in and threw the golden uniform tunic with a number one on it to Rose along with an empty sack with the same number on it. He pointed to the corner for her to change there. Scorpius received the golden number five and walked to the opposite side. He stuffed his regular clothes in the little bag and walked out from behind the blue wall.

Rose, who had finished adjusting Albus’ number two uniform, walked over to give him a review. â€�“At least, you’ve learned to dress yourself.”

Scorpius smiled at her. Albus was famous for having his shirts crookedly buttoned and his belt skipping loops so his trousers often hung funny. By the time he had passed the inspection, Devon opened the door and led them down the hallway out toward the pitch. As they walked onto the pitch, they passed the crates holding their brooms. Each player picked up their mounts and headed to the center of the field.

The other team was wearing Navy blue practice tunics. He looked across the pitch to see his opposite numbers, Grindus and McGlothen, talking to each other. Scorpius looked over at Williams. Williams seemed off-put. Maybe it was his detailed answer in the class. Maybe it was that he was not used to not being with McGlothen. Scorpius reached his bat over to his teammate, expecting a tap in return. Williams ignored the offer.

Gwenog Jones, who was refereeing the practice, whistled as she released the balls. The players pushed off and Scorpius rose to a point about a third of the way up from Rose and Blue’s hoops. Williams sat at the mid-pitch.

Albus took the Quaffle and rushed up the pitch. He drew the defense toward him. From his perch in the back, Scorpius saw that the blue was not playing the Whirlwind. They were playing the Harris double zone. Thinking back to Rose’s description of the zone, he knew the blue Beaters would be attacking the ball carrier. Scorpius ducked low on his broom and flew toward McGlothen. If he was to protect Albus, he had to keep the Bludgers away from him. Just as the Bludger came within the other team’s batting zone, Scorpius intercepted the ball driving it toward the other end of the pitch. He marked McGlothen and blocked another Bludger as Smythe shot the Quaffle past Welk into the left hoop.

Scorpius flew back to the center of the pitch readying for the Whirlwind. Williams’s miss-hit his first chance to hit Kaitlin, but Scorpius almost unseated Nott as a pass from Kaitlin flew over his head. Smythe captured the errand pass. She blindly threw the ball to Albus. White caught Albus’ pass and who scored the second goal.

For the next hour, Scorpius rushed from place to place. He lost track of the score and even the time. All he knew was he had to attack. He was only certain that one out of four went toward his target. Finally, the air was filled with whistles from the stands where the coaches were and from Ms. Jones.

As they walked into the locker room, Scorpius noticed that he was really hungry and thirsty. When he saw Rose through a dry throat he croaked at her. â€�“Who won? What score?”

â€�“Blue. One Hundred Sixty to Ninety. Rhys caught the snitch.” Rose looked somewhat disappointed.

â€�“One sixty? Only one got past you, good playing,” he replied.

â€�“Only had four blocks, the defense kept them bottled up. And the one that got through was Kaitlin’s only shot on goal.”

The coaches stood in the locker room directing the blue and the gold teams back to their original classroom. Scorpius was rubbing his right arm as he moved into the class. Coach Devon had a snarl on his lips. â€�“You lost. I don’t like losing. Weasley get to classroom one, meet with Gillette Pierce.”

Rose perked up, â€�“Jill Pierce? Sure.” She grabbed her playbook and bounced out the door.

â€�“Chasers, classroom two. Meet with Glinnis Quimby.” The three left the room.

â€�“Potter, classroom three, meet with your mother.”

â€�“You two stay put.” Devon went to over to the table. He waved his wand. A large glass pitcher of ice water and two plates of cheese and sliced fruit appeared on the table.

The hungry boys didn’t need any prompting. Scorpius filled his cup with water and filled a plate with apple, banana, pear, and kiwi slices. As they were returning to their chairs, McGlothen and Grindus joined them in the room and stocking up on the food. Grindus looked at the coach.

â€�“Is this all?” asked the chunky boy.

â€�“That is enough for now. I need you to fill your brain and not you belly, boy” Devon dropped the smile and a grim look appeared. He looked down on a wooden board and read off what was written there. â€�“Beaters are judged by how many Bludgers they could have possibly hit, number struck, number of hits that caused effect on the other side and number of opponents hit. Grindus: forty possible chances, thirty-two were struck, ten strikes with effect and seven hits. Malfoy: seventy-eight possible, fifty-nine struck, thirteen with effect and five hits. McGlothen: twenty-two possible, twenty struck, fifteen with effect and seven hits. Williams: twenty-nine possible, twenty-five struck, fifteen with effect and seven hits.”

Scorpius felt the air come out of him. He had been last in effect and hits, and he had the most possible chances. With all of the work his friends had put him through, he felt like he had let them down.

â€�“Williams, you and Malfoy were part of the same defense. Why did he have almost three times the number of possibles than you did?”

Williams, with an apple slice in his hand, placed the fruit down on a plate. He chewed what was in his mouth. â€�“Malfoy was out of position. He just batted balls away not toward the others.” The coach waited a couple of more seconds like he was waiting for more information.

â€�“Malfoy, why did you have so many possible but so few strikes?” Devon said turning toward him.

â€�“They were playing the Harris double defense. It needs the Beaters to blast the ball carrier. I kept McGlothen from getting to the Bludgers. It gave our Chasers a chance to score.”

â€�“McGlothen, what is your opinion of Mr. Malfoy’s comment.”

McGlothen looked up. â€�“I couldn’t get past him. He kept bumping me. I waited for the call, but none came.”

Scorpius felt blood rush to his face. â€�“What call? I didn’t foul you!”

â€�“That’s your opinion,” answered McGlothen.

Scorpius found he was standing in front of McGlothen. He had no memory of standing or walking in front of McGlothen. â€�“My opinion doesn’t matter. The referee’s does and she didn’t call anything.”

McGlothen stood up and Grindus stepped in between them. Williams walked over next to McGlothen, â€�“If Bryn said you fouled him, you fouled him.”

â€�“Hey, you’re my teammate not his!” Scorpius replied.

An ear piercing shriek came from the front of the room. Scorpius turned to see Devon with a brass whistle in his mouth. He reached up with his right hand to remove it. â€�“Malfoy and Williams get back in your seats. McGlothen, sit, now!”

The boys all sat. Devon talked for about ten minutes, but Scorpius did not hear a word. All he heard was the thumping of his heart in his ears. Scorpius emptied his water glass in a sloppy gulp.

Finally, the door opened and the Beaters escaped to the lunch room. Once they got there, they realized that they were expected to sit by position. The Twins sat together opposite from Scorpius. They shared whispers and killer stares at Scorpius. For his part, Scorpius just concentrated on the roast beef sandwich and chips that were on his plate.

---

Day Eight, Ten O’clock at night

---

Bobby Devon and Ginny Potter looked up at the board. On the board was a representation of the pitch and to the right of the board were fourteen pieces of paper each with a name on it. Devon flicked his wand and two of the pieces flew by the hoops.

â€�“Our first choice is our easiest one: Rose Weasley. Gillette was right about her. She’s the first Keeper her age I’ve seen out-think the offense. Her catching skills need to improve, but she’s worlds better than Welk is.” Rose’s paper adhered to the board in front of the hoops. Welks flew to the far left column marked Reserves.

Devon’s wand flicked again, the paper with Rhys Jones and James Potter flew to the middle of the pitch. â€�“Choosing Rhys is easy. I think he might make the National team, if he was old enough. Yet, James is such a natural.”

Ginny Potter sighed; she knew her son was outclassed by Jones. She loved James for his never say die attitude and flying ability, but he was the number two Seeker. â€�“However, he was second best.”

Devon paused and flicked, Rhys Jones’ slip flew to top of pitch. However, James flew just to the right of the Reserves column. Ginny looked over at Devon. She saw a twinkle in his eye.

â€�“Beaters.” The four slips with the names of the Beaters moved to the bottom of the board. The slip for Grindus moved to the center and the other three moved next to the Reserves column next to James.

Ginny spoke up. â€�“If we give an award for most improved player or hardest trying player, it would be a tossup between Malfoy and Smythe.” She saw the other nod in agreement. â€�“He gets to so many Bludgers, it’s just he can’t consistently bat them home.”

â€�“True, but McGlothen and Williams are so passive. Technically, they are two of the best ball strikers we got here. However, they have to get to the ball. They don’t bust a gut to get to a Bludger. I’m afraid that if we need them to do something different, they couldn’t. Do you know what I mean?”

Ginny nodded. Grendel Amick, Kaitlin’s mother, had been that way on the Harpies. You couldn’t point to any one thing that she did wrong, but the things she did right were not enough for her to remain on the team.

McGlothen and Williams slips moved to the Reserve column, but Malfoy’s did not move across the board to sit next to Grindus. It moved left, resting under James Potter.

Finally, the Chasers moved to the center of the board. Without comment, the slips of paper for Nicholas Austin, Nate Nott and Marian White moved to the Reserves column. Devon looked at Ginny. She nodded her approval. The Chasers were going to be Jones, Smythe, and Albus. Ginny blinked in surprise as she watched the Gretchen Smythe slip move under James and Scorpius.

â€�“Kaitlin Jones, damn, I hate making ‘the genius’ happy, but we can’t punish the girl for having picked an arse, like Owain, for a father. Also, I can’t punish poor Albus for having a mother who beat me in my last appearance in the League finals.” He looked over his shoulder toward Ginny Potter. Ginny was doing a bad job at hiding her smile.

â€�“Bobby, you’ve left two open positions and we’ve got three players.” Ginny returned his look. She was not going to lobby for James. He had to make it on merit.

â€�“As I see it, it’s either Malfoy as Beater and James at Chaser. Or it’s going to be James as Beater and Smythe at Chaser.”

â€�“James has never held a bat as far as I know,” advised Ginny.

â€�“The son of Ginny Weasley and Harry Potter, he’d learn fast just to shut Kaitlin Jones up. However, I don’t think we can afford two projects with him as Beater and Smythe as a Chaser.” James’s paper moved next to his brother’s and Scorpius moved next to Grindus.

â€�“I’ll tell Smythe, if it’s all right with you, Bobby. According to James, she had an old team photo of our last Harpies championship in her room. Maybe, I can get it autographed by Gwen and myself. I’ll also let her know she was the last cut,” said Ginny.

â€�“Aren’t you afraid that she’ll blame you for both your sons making it?” Ginny Potter shook her head. Even if Gretchen did blame her, she would tell the truth and take the heat. Taking the heat was why she had signed up to coach Quidditch and not just write about it. With her Lily going to Hogwarts’ in the fall and Harry buried in his Auror work, she had to do something which brought passion back to her life.

â€�“We’ll start the day tomorrow like it’s just another scrimmage. We’ll call this lot in and give them the bad news. I don’t look forward to this,” said Bobby Devon, as he checked his pocket watch.

The windows of the caravan flashed blue, the chairs under the passengers shook to the left and back to the right, and the bright Sunday noontime Isle of Man sun was replaced by the dawn light of the new world. The team, strapped in chairs in the back, began to burst into nervous laughter as the rocking of the vehicle died down. They were in America.

Ginny Potter’s voice silenced the lot. â€�“Hold on. Everyone must stay in their seats. And be quiet! We have to wait until the organizers unseal the door.â€�“

Kaitlin rolled her eyes. Kitty-Kat could be loud, happy, arrogant, proud or angry, but no one alive had ever seen her being patient. The girl began to undo her belts. Rose reached out a hand to stop her from unbuckling the strap.

â€�“We have to wait.”

Kaitlin gave Rose a look that would have melted a cauldron. â€�“Fine!”

The caravan lurched again and began to roll over what seemed to be uneven ground.

â€�“Bumpy road,” said Albus looking at Scorpius. Scorpius could barely control the excitement he felt inside.

When the rolling stopped, the door opened. The head of a grey haired, plump witch looked in. â€�“United Kingdom?” Scorpius and the rest of the team nodded. â€�“I’m your liaison, Kim Davis.” The woman entered the caravan and walked over to Bobby Devon, who was undoing his straps. She handed him a map and a binder full of papers. The woman looked at the team and said, â€�“Welcome to United States and to Maine.”

â€�“Maine?” Rose Weasley was really confused. â€�“I thought Salem was in Massachusetts?”

Kaitlin pushed her way past the American witch to the outside. She ignored the girl’s lack of courtesy. From outside, the team heard the sound of someone choking as if they were sick.

â€�“It is. However, only the offices of the Salem Institute are located in its founding town. The school is located in Maine and the Quidditch tourney will be held at the school. You see, at the time of the establishing of the campus, Maine was still part of the Massachusetts Bay Colony. So the school didn’t leave the Bay Colony, the state actually left us.” Davis seemed to chuckle at her own joke. No one else did.

â€�“I want all of you out, while Bobby and I get this set up properly. Mrs. Davis, will you give our team a quick tour of the facilities? Rose and Scorpius, you’re in charge.” Mrs. Potter pointed toward the open door.

â€�“James, I want you to take Lily with you.”

â€�“Mum, why can’t she stay here with you?” whined James.

Scorpius saw the blood rise in Mrs. Potter’s face. He had never seen her mad. He had seen the Potter brothers mad and he wondered how big their mother’s explosion might be.

James, realizing how angry his mother was, gave her a shrug of surrender and held his arm out toward his little, red-headed sister. Lily looked at her mother for a second and flounced her way to Rose’s side totally ignoring the existence of her big brothers.

When the rest of the team exited the caravan, they found Kaitlin doubled over clutching her stomach. Scorpius was surprised that James did not make some sort of joke about Kaitlin’s condition. Before they left, Mrs. Davis and Rose checked with Kaitlin. She was waved them off and the tour began.

The team stepped away from the caravan and looked around. A large area of different Muggle style campers filled a large clear cut area in a pine forest. In the middle of the circle of campers were two large buildings. In between their caravan and a camper with onion topped domed corners, stood a large wooden pole with the sign bearing a large letter D on it.

â€�“What’s the D for?” asked Rhys.

â€�“Group D, all of the teams you will be playing will be in the same area.”

Rose raised her hand. Their guide seemed amused by the girl’s deference. â€�“I read that all of the groups had teams from each of the six different zones: Europe, Asia, Africa, North America, South American and Oceania. We were put into the European zone. How can we then be in the same group with Russia?”

â€�“Well, Russia is so big that they were given a choice to be the second seeded team from Asia or the fourth seeded from Europe. They chose Asia.”

The guide led the group over a log plank walkway. As they approached the two large green colored wood shingled sided buildings, she pointed to the larger of the buildings and said, â€�“Here is where you will be eating your regular meals. The time for each meal is listed on the schedule. The second building is the commissary. You can buy food there at anytime, and souvenirs and mail services to your home country will be provided. Any letter sent from here will be delivered by the evening of the next day.”

Rose seemed impressed. Scorpius was not paying attention to the guide. He was looking the commissary and the steady flow of kids of all races and dress walking went in and out of the building. Davis looked at her wristwatch and motioned for the team to return to area D.

As they entered the zone, Scorpius noticed that two additional groups had arrived. Walking out of a large canvas tent, a group of tall black skinned players followed a lighter skinned black woman along a parallel walkway.

â€�“Who’s that?” Scorpius asked trying not to point too noticeably.

Without consulting her map, the guide replied, â€�“They are the Nigerian team and the team just coming out of their camper should be the either the Honduran or the Peruvian contingent.”

â€�“Russia, Hondurus, Peru, Nigeria, and us; who is the sixth team?” Rose asked.

â€�“New Zealand. They will be arriving in a couple of hours. They will park in the spot next to yours.”

â€�“What position are we seeded in?” Kaitlin asked.

For this information Davis had to consult the paperwork on her clipboard. â€�“New Zealand is top seed, followed by Russia, the UK, Peru, Honduras, and Nigeria.”

Kaitlin made a face, â€�“Third?” Davis nodded. By this time, they had reached the caravan. Above the camper towered a pole proudly flying the Union Jack.

â€�“Well, the seeding doesn’t matter really. You will play all of the teams in the group in a round robin,” replied a bemused Davis.

Kaitlin ignored the comment, waved her arms above her head, and shouted toward Rose, â€�“Third! We’re not third to anyone!”

Lily silently mouthed Kaitlin’s word with over-exaggerated motions of her head and arms behind the girl’s back and all of the boys exploded into laughter. Kaitlin turned toward James, certain he was the source of the laughter. James returned a well practiced look of innocence. When she turned back toward the front, Lily stuck her tongue at Kaitlin and continued her mimicry behind her back again. This time the boys were better able to hide their laughter. Scorpius thought that having a little sister along may not be as bad as her brothers had feared.

When they re-entered the caravan, it had grown in size by at least of factor of ten. The area just inside the front door was a seating area with a white board. A sign to the left pointed to the girls sleeping room and another arrow pointed to the right towards the boys sleeping rooms.

Behind the relaxation and class section was a kitchen area near the door to the girl’s rooms and next to the wall next to the boys was a room with a door. The door had a brass sign that said ‘Coach’s Office’.

On the whiteboard in the center of the entry way of the caravan was a message written in Devon’s rising handwriting:

Practice pitch 3: Monday 9 A.M. local

Game number D3: Peru vs. the United Kingdom pitch 2 Tuesday Noon local.

---

As the team sat down to eat their first evening meal in the cafeteria, Rose, bringing up the rear, was telling Lily that the ‘hot dogs’ on her plate were not made from real dogs and that they were sort of a bland type of a banger.

From behind them, they all heard, â€�“Hogwarts. Hogwarts. Hoggy warty Hogwarts. Teach us something, please!”

Scorpius shot up out of his chair. Only one person could sing that song so off key and he turned to find him standing behind him. â€�“Jimber!”

Jimber Dokes, bedecked in a green, tan and gold boubou grabbed his best friend. Scorpius felt the air being squeezed out of him by the bear hug. By the time Jimber released him, Albus had lined up for the similar treatment. As Jimber greeted all of the Gryffindors, including Kaitlin who he had to practically hunt down, Scorpius could not take his eyes off of his friend.

As he hugged Kaitlin, Rose asked, â€�“Jimber, how did you get here? Does ‘The Island’ have a team in the tournament? I didn’t see you listed on the schedule.”

Jimber shook his head. â€�“No, we got defeated by Cuba before I got home. However, my grandfather Quarrel was able to get us an invitation as members of the National Quidditch Committee.”

Rhys Jones seemed impressed. â€�“Your grandfather is on your National committee?”

Jimber grinning even larger just shook his head and leaned forward to confide a secret to them. â€�“Actually, the man who was our country’s entire committee for our Quidditch program was Ka-Sich Korhogo and he’s on the run. So my grandfather was able to get the invitation off of his office desk and returned it to the International Committee with our names as officers. So I am the ‘Shaman for Youth Development for the Island’.” As Jimber finished, he struck a pose with his thumbs pulling out the boubou from his chest.

Everyone burst into laughter which died when Devon and Mrs. Potter joined them. Jimber sat down with the others and waited for the adults to notice. Ginny Potter froze as she asked for someone to pass the mustard to her. Jimber gave her a very energetic wave.

â€�“Jimber,” shouted a high pitch voice. Lily Potter handed her tray of food to Albus and walked over to the newcomer.

â€�“Hey, Lily,” he replied leaning back. Scorpius, gauging by his friend’s reaction, thought that he must be recalling how his own little sister, Bethany, kissed Albus on Platform Nine and Three Quarters back in London.

Lily placed her hands cupped in front of her waist. â€�“Don’t worry, Jimber; I’m not going to kiss you like Bethany did Albus. I don’t consider myself engaged to you like she does to him. I’m not going to have just one boyfriend until I check out all of the available boys at Hogwarts.”

â€�“Lily!” Mrs. Potter said a bit loudly. â€�“Get your tray and sit next to me, now.”

Lily smiled at Jimber, took her tray back and sashayed around the table to sit next to her mum. She was somehow able to do all of that without once breaking eye contact with Jimber.

Mrs. Weasley seemed flustered to Scorpius as she asked, â€�“So Jimber, what are you doing here?”

Jimber struck his pose again and recited to the crowd, â€�“Observing the training methods of the participants so we can help the youth of ‘The Island’ develop into better players and citizens.”

James laughed. â€�“Who thought that crock of dragon dung up?”

â€�“I did,” Jimber replied. He seemed hurt by James comment. â€�“I thought it was clever.”

Scorpius slapped Jimber on the back and smiled.

Jimber’s mood lightened as he said, â€�“So tell me about everything that happened in tryouts. I mean, how can Rhys and James be on the same team? Who’s the second Beater?”

---

Harry Potter’s Auror Office, London

---

Harry stood in the doorway of his office looking at Aurors Sterling and Broomwright fumble the paperwork they had held in their hands. He wondered how after working with Sterling for six years he could still cause an experienced officer to act like a his daughter did at the mention of Jimber Dokes’ name. He wished they would get over this.

He sighed. With his family in the States, the only person he could really talk to was Ron. And when he and Ron got together, they always ended up talking shop. For a second, he wondered where Luna was. He’d even drink Gurdyroot extract to have one of those old fashioned heart-to-heart talks with someone who cared.

Sterling readied the paperwork and walked toward his boss. Harry walked to the front of the desk not the back. Sitting on the edge of the desk, he waited for the partners to begin. The news was mixed. While they had captured the three foot men of a protection racket in Hogsmeade, they had not been able to get the names of the leaders of the organization out of the underlings.

â€�“Has Honeydukes reported more threats to their shop since you got that lot?” Harry looked into his officer’s eyes. Their eyes would tell him more than the words they would speak. He knew they tended to be too optimistic in their estimates.

â€�“No and neither has the ‘The Three Broomsticks’. However, they are still on edge after your brother-in-law’s joke shop got torched.” Broomwright chimed in. Harry looked at her. She was a young, solid Auror, but she was trying a little too hard to please.

â€�“The foot men you caught, what is their blood status?”

â€�“Sir?” Broomwright was confused by his question. Sterling flipped through his notes.

â€�“They were a Muggleborn and two quarter-bloods, to use the old terminology.”

Harry nodded and thought, â€�“Lucius would never trust such non-purebloods with anything important and they are a dead end to get to him.” He stood up from the desk and walked toward his window. He looked out of the window at the magically simulated bright late July morning and missed tossing the Quaffle with the boys. As the thought left him, he noticed the other people in the office watching him. He became the detective again.

â€�“Pull the crew out of Hogsmeade for now; I want you to split them up. I want one of them sent to check in with Hannah Longbottom about if anything similar is happening in Diagon Alley. Also, send others to Mold-on-the-Wall and Godric’s Hollow to see if protection payment schemes are occurring there.”

â€�“Right,” said Sterling, who was sitting on the edge of his chair ready to spring at a word’s notice.

â€�“And, Rodger,” Sterling looked up at the mention of his first name. â€�“You did a fine job leading this investigation. Tell all of the members of your team that they did a good job and their work is appreciated by the ministry.”

Sterling snorted and quickly looked around to see if the door to the office was shut. It was. â€�“I’ll tell them, sir, but with the way the Minister is talking out of his hat about the incompetence of the office, they won’t believe me.” Broomwright gave a small, almost involuntary, nod in agreement to the sentiment.

â€�“Well, if we wanted to be adored, we’d all be Quidditch stars or on the Wizarding Wireless, not working as Aurors.” He smiled at them.

They smiled back, gathered their reports and left the office and Harry alone.

Harry looked out the window again. The mention of Quidditch made him miss his family even more. Ron had pulled the night shift and would be at home sleeping. He grabbed a quill and wrote down a note for Hermione. Would she meet him for lunch away from the office, perhaps at Hannah’s Bistro? He tapped the note and it flew off his desk, slid under the door and headed toward the Hermione’s office.

Harry looked at the photos on his desk. He focused not on the picture of his large family, but upon a picture taken by a Daily Prophet cameraman after the Battle of Hogwarts. Harry marveled at the three grinning faces who were so sure that all of their troubles we gone with the fall of the Voldemort. He envied their naiveté.

It took about twenty minutes into their first practice for the team to get use to the new pitch (or field, as the Yanks called it). Having played at Hogwarts and Puddlemere, they were used to full stadiums which sat hundreds of spectators and created a bowl separating the players from the rest of the world. However, while the game pitches had the stands equal to Hogwarts, the practice pitches had only bleachers which allowed a view of the surrounding forest and the twin marble buildings that were the Salem Witches Academy.

As Scorpius flew down the pitch, he looked over into the stands to see Jimber and his Grandfather Quarrel Dokes watching the practice closely. Jimber had already checked out the Peruvian practice earlier that morning and gave his friends a scouting report.

â€�“Now, Scorp, their best Chaser is this really cute girl named Isabella Rojas. You’re going to have to Bludger her. Knock her pony-tail into the sand. Are you sure you’re up to it?” Jimber teased him with the ease of long time friend. Turning to face Rhys Jones he added, â€�“Pinto, their Seeker, is garbage, man. You will have the Golden Snitch before Pinto can get his broom up to cruising altitude.” The team seemed to feed off of Jimber’s confidence.

After a night of fitful sleep, Scorpius joined his teammate for their mid-morning pregame breakfast. The team nervously nibbled at the food on their plates. Also sitting quietly at the tables behind them was the Costa Ricans, a group E team, who would be playing their number one seed Egypt at the same time on Pitch number 1. At a nearby table the New Zealanders were talking loudly about their defeat of Nigeria. The Kiwi’s had won three hundred to sixty. The Russian team was also celebrating a victory over Honduras the day before. The louder they got, the more nervous Scorpius felt.

As all conversation died away from the team, Jimber walked in. Walking up behind the Seeker he leaned forward and said, â€�“Rhys, I expect a quick capture. I have a date with a Chaser on the Nigerian team at five.”

â€�“Really, what’s his name?” asked Grindus. A murmur of laughter came from the Potter boys and Kaitlin.

Jimber faked a laugh. â€�“Her name is Toyin and she wants to find out all about you lot.”

Kaitlin seemed incensed. â€�“You’re willing to betray your friends just to get a date with a girl!”

â€�“It all depends on how cute the girl is. I think I might be able to hold out for at least two kisses with this one before I tell her all of your secrets.”

The team laughed and relaxed a bit.

At a quarter till eleven, Lily showed up at the table. â€�“Mum wants all of you in the changing room. Now!” The team stood up as one and quietly walked out of the door following the young girl.

Scorpius listened to the coaches. They were saying the same thing they had said in the caravan and on the practice field. He let his mind wander back home. He wondered what his parents were doing. It was only when Geoffrey Grindus nudged him on the shoulder did he notice that the entire team was standing but him. The coaches were giving him the evil eye. He swallowed and returned their gaze evenly.

â€�“Okay, your first international match. You may be nervous now, but the moment the whistle blows, that feeling will leave. You are too good to be worried. You’ve put in too much practice to be in trouble. Go at them, don’t let them think, let their nerves grow with each breath. You are as talented a group that I’ve ever coached. Now, go take the pitch and the match. Hands in.”

The team pulled a circle with their right hands extended and touching in the center. Coach Potter spoke, â€�“On three, ‘Rule Britannia’. Ready, One, two, three…”

â€�“Rule Britannia!” they all shouted and James Potter laughed for a heartbeat until he saw his mother pursing her lips and staring him down.

As they lined up at mid-pitch, the players shook hands with all of the other team’s players. Scorpius noticed the Chaser that Jimber had teased him about. She was really cute, but not as cute as Rose.

Grindus nudged his distant cousin and fellow Beater. â€�“Your mate, Dokes, can sure pick them.” Scorpius smiled in response. It was the first time since he had made the team that Geoffrey had talked to him about something other than strategy.

The players took their positions, the referee blew her whistle and the balls were released. She whistled again and the teams kicked off. Scorpius saw that Marino, a Peruvian Chaser, intercepted James’ long pass toward a streaking Kaitlin. The gamble on the quick score meant that the team was out of position to play the Whirlwind. Desperately swinging around to find the closest Bludger, Scorpius angled his flight and was able to hit Isabella Rojas at the same time that Marino’s pass did. She dropped the Quaffle and Albus picked the grabbed the ball at waist height. He drove across the pitch, flying towards the out of bounds on the left. Just as he crossed mid-pitch, he blindly tossed the ball over his left shoulder to Kaitlin. She dodged two Bludgers and drove to the right. As the Keeper began to move that way, she fired the ball back to her left to where James awaited. The shot was almost too easy.

As Scorpius relaxed at the ease of their first score, Rojas shot past him heading for Rose. Marino had just received a pass and was rushing to catch up with his teammate. Scorpius cursed himself. In his joy at the score, he had lost the feel for the position of the Bludgers. Throwing his weight back and bringing the nose of his broom perpendicular to the ground, he pulled his broom in a quick circle searching for the balls. About two-thirds around, he spotted one coming at him from the bat of Zambrano. Realizing his bat was out of position to knock it at a real target, he flicked it up to deflect the ball up over his shoulder. Now with a ball ready to be struck, he charged up angling to bring his bat into the perfect striking position. He accelerated to the where the ball would be and drove it toward the Peruvian Chaser, but Grindus had broken up the play with a strike into Marino’s back.

James was attacking the goal. Scorpius drove his strike towards the off Beater Ramirez who was watching the play. Ramirez did not hear the Bludger until it was too late. He was struck on the shoulder of his bat hand. The bat flew from his hand and crashed onto the pitch. James scored, throwing the Quaffle through the hands of the Keeper.

The match lasted only a half hour more, when Rhys Jones leisurely skimmed the grass and collected the Golden Snitch. The United Kingdom had won two-hundred-and-twenty to thirty.

As the team headed for the changing rooms and showers, Jimber met them at the door. He clapped Scorpius on the back and said, â€�“Way to go team. I even have a couple of hours to get ready for my date tonight. By the way, Honduras makes the Peruvians look like the Tutshill Tornados.”

Although they had won by almost two hundred points, Coaches Devon and Potter still seemed to have a lot to unhappy about the play of their charges.

â€�“Malfoy, where was your head after the first goal?” Devon yelled. â€�“A monkey on a broom wouldn’t let himself get that close to being hit.”

Scorpius swallowed and nodded in silent agreement.

â€�“Rose, Isabella Rojas scored her first two goals by charging the right hoop with the ball in her right hand and throwing back. How could you’ve not known that she was going to do that the third time she attacked the goal?”

Rose’s head sank. Scorpius could sense Rose being deflated.

â€�“She had five saves,” Scorpius offered in defense.

Mrs. Potter, who was standing behind them, yelled into the back of his head, â€�“Is your name Rose, Malfoy? We know the statistics, we need explanations.”

Rose looked over at him with a sort-of-annoyed or sort-of-angry look that he had never seen from her and answered Devon. ”I thought she would feint to the backside hoop and attack the right hoop. I was wrong. I guess I gave her too much credit.”

â€�“I see, at least you had a reason.” Devon replied and Scorpius saw Devon give Rose a little wink and Rose’s head popped up.

â€�“Congratulations. You’ve just played your easiest game of the whole tournament. Peru didn’t know you from Hagrid. Well, I saw every coach from Group D plus the United States and most of the others in the stands. They now know every little quirk and strength of each of you. If you thought playing at school were everybody knows everybody’s tactics was tough, wait to see what professional coaches will have designed for you in your next game. And that game will be noon Thursday, Pitch One against Honduras. The Russians crushed them by three hundred. They will be happy to get a chance to ruin your tournament.”

---

Sothebys Auction House in Muggle London

---

Ron Weasley was wearing his Muggle outfit number three. When he had graduated from his Auror training, Hermione had taken him to multiple Muggle stores and bought him outfits to fit in with Muggles. Each outfit was in a little bag in his closet, with a label explaining what the outfit represented on the outside. Outfit three was designed to look like an Inspector from Scotland Yard. Inside the garment bag was also a small satchel which held fake identification papers and a small Muggle box called a mobile phone which contained a device for talking, taking photographs, and notes. She had even given him a tutorial on how to look like he knew how to use it.

Ron showed his papers to the Muggle security guard and was given access to the back room. As he entered the room, he saw a dark, burly man wearing a waist coat, top hat and cut off dungarees sitting magically tied to the chair. Behind him stood a man with his wand tucked into his armpit. The guard was wearing a uniform of a Sotheby employee; the face was unfamiliar to Ron. However the face didn’t matter, the guard was Teddy Lupin using his ability to change his looks to appear like the man who had won an all expenses paid cruise to the Greek Islands.

Ron turned to the guard and he left the room and stood in front of the smoked glass door blocking any shadows. He turned to the prisoner. â€�“Dirk Yaxley, what would your father think of you skulking around a Muggle business? And what makes it even more embarrassing is that you got caught by a Muggle.”

â€�“He’s as much a Muggle as you are, Weasley”

Ron pretended to be shocked by the comment. He used his wand to magically lift up a tiara, concentrated and silently cast a revealing spell. Ron smiled and reached over to the desk near the chair to pick up the portfolio of the items to be auctioned. A matching tiara was pictured in the book.

â€�“Let me guess Lucius Malfoy gave you the assignment to steal this item and these jewels of this Duchess and replace them with these cursed items. You’d get the diamonds and the jewelry and some poor Muggle would be have bought a cursed headpiece. The plot was nice and neat, Lucius Malfoy at his sickest. Too bad he chose an idiot to carry out the plan.”

â€�“Bugger you, Weasley. And your monkey over there must be that blood-traitor, Lupin. Yeah, we’ve got a book on spiky hair and all the rest of your Aurors. Someday soon, your bosses will find what’s left of him floating down the Thames.”

Ron saw Lupin swallow. If Yaxley knew, then Lucius’ whole organization knew. Teddy had been one of the most successful weapons against Malfoy. He and Harry would have to have a meeting about how to use Lupin without risking him on something minor like this plot.

Ron attempted to deflect the effect of Yaxley’s comment. â€�“I don’t know what you’re talking about. Now let me get you to the Ministry and arrange a cell assignment in Azkaban. A really tiny cell.”

---

U.K. team caravan at the Salem Witches Institute

---

Scorpius had never seen his friend with a bigger smile and for Jimber Dokes, who always seemed to be smiling, that was saying a lot. The U.K. team had no trouble in defeating Honduras and Nigeria. Now the only teams on the schedule were the top two seeds in their group. The next game was against the undefeated Russians and Jimber had a scouting report on them. The news was not great.

In their last match, Russia had defeated the previously undefeated New Zealand team by almost two hundred points. Jimber took a deep breath and said, â€�“The Keeper, Sofia Petrovia, she has almost the same range as Rose. She catches everything. We will not get any garbage goals from deflected shots. Chasers Panov, Malovia, and Federov, when they are on attack, are like Flukegutters.” Jimber saw the confusion on his audience’s faces. â€�“Flukegutters, they are like the fish in the Amazon River that eats in packs, what do you call them?”

â€�“Piranhas?” replied Rose.

â€�“Yes, piranhas. They attack using a variation of what you call the hawks head formation, but they bring both of the Beaters in as lead blockers. They open a hole for the offense and turn to cover the back side of the Chasers from Bludgers.”

â€�“With that formation, they are out of balance. If we steal the Quaffle, or when Rose stops them, no one will be back for defense,” Kaitlin observed.

â€�“They don’t care about defense, Kitty-Kat,” James said. â€�“Look at the scores of their matches; they beat Nigeria and Peru by four hundred and Honduras by three fifty.”

Scorpius saw Coaches Devon and Potter whispering to each other. Devon seemed, to Scorpius, pleased and a bit proud of the insight into the tactics of the other team. He stepped forward next to Jimber.

Devon looked each player in the eye, before he spoke. â€�“The Russians will rely upon Petrovia to keep us from matching them and count on Popov, their Seeker, to keep Rhys away from the Snitch until they are over one hundred and sixty ahead. Remember, New Zealand caught the Snitch to close the score to Four-hundred-and-seventy to Two-hundred-and-eighty. Rhys, Popov drew four penalty shots from the Kiwi Seeker, Warren, because he frustrated him. You will have to ignore him and get the Snitch.”

â€�“What do you want Geoffrey and me to do? Do we try and help the defenders? Will we be playing the Whirlwind or what?” asked Scorpius. For the first time in the tournament, he was worried about losing.

â€�“The Whirlwind will not be effective against this attack; the Chasers are so close that they are practically inside each other’s tunics.” Devon turned to look at Mrs. Potter.

She shrugged and turned to look at Scorpius. â€�“Malfoy, Grindus will remain back to help break up any attack and support a breakout. I want you, as often as possible, at the point of our counter-attack to even out the numbers. And Scorpius, remember to tuck you bat under you arm. If you accidently hit one of them with your bat, it’s a foul.”

Scorpius nodded.

â€�“Well, let’s all gather in the field on the other side of the Commissary. I want to walk through our defense on the ground before we take to the air at the practice pitch later. Thank you, Mr. Dokes. Your observations were spot on.” Devon reached over and offered his hand to Jimber.

â€�“Wait. What about him? What if there’s a pretty Russian girl who kisses well? How do we know he won’t give them our plans?” Kaitlin asked. Scorpius saw an exaggerated fearful look on her face. Was Kitty-Kat trying to make a joke?

â€�“Oh, you don’t have to worry about the Russians. Their girls are not my style. However, there is a Chaser from New Zealand, a tall Maori girl, named Aaireen Keet. She will be my guest for your game against the Russians. So the better you lot play, the better my date might go.” Jimber gave a wink towards Albus and left the caravan.

â€�“Is he for real?” asked Geoffrey.

â€�“Believe it,” Scorpius replied.

---

Pitch 1, First day of August

---

When the players met at the mid-pitch for the normal pre-match handshake, Scorpius noticed something weird. The Federov twins, Chaser Denis and Beater Yuri, were both carrying small bouquets of mixed color carnations. When the first Federov, Denis, got to Rose he handed her the flowers and kissed her hand. The second gave his flowers to Kaitlin Jones, but his attempt at kissing her hand got a shove, not from her, but from James Potter. Quickly both teams were grouped around the two boys; James and Yuri were face to face and chest to chest pushing with their arms on each other’s faces like some sort of wild animals that Hagrid would keep in the Forbidden Forest.

The whistle blew and the coaches separated the two boys. The Indian referee extended her wand and yellow sparks flew out.

â€�“Warning Penalty: James Potter and Yuri Federov. This is the only yellow you two get. The next incident will be red sparks, penalty shot, control of the Quaffle, and removal from game.”

Rhys was finally able to pull James out of the melee. â€�“Way to go Potter, you’re half way out of the game. And if he goes after you again, they lose their number two Beater and we lose one third of our offense.”

James wasn’t listening. He tried to pull away from Rhys and he kept his eyes locked on Federov, whom he was pointing at. Albus came to further aid in the removal his brother out of harm’s way.

Scorpius did not partake in the separating of the combatants. He watch as Rose blushed and thanked Denis for the flowers. He felt his heart drop.

When the whistle blew, the Russian Chaser, Talia Panov, snatched the Quaffle out from in front of James and she flew up in a rising spiral as all of her teammates gathering into formation. Scorpius watched in fascination at the formation, forgetting where he was supposed to be until it was too late. Instead of being at the point of defense to intercept the Beaters, Federov and Makiyev, he somehow got in between Kaitlin and James. The ‘Flukegutter’ offense blew through the white clad Brits and Rose was out numbered two on one. She took Denis’ feint to the right and Malovic caught the pass and threw the ball through the left hoop in one motion.

Kaitlin took the Quaffle and charged down the pitch. She found Albus on the wing and they tied the match up. On the second attack, Scorpius was in position and he was able to break up the attack. However, he did it by paying the price of taking a brush of an elbow to his head and a broom foothold to his thigh as they flew past. By the end of the second hour, he was battered, bruised and exhausted. During the third hour, Makiyev swerved to change the direction of the formation to the left and as Scorpius turned to adjust, his bat slipped from under his arm, he grabbed the bat in his left and just as it struck Denis Federov in the side of his head. A whistle blew.

â€�“A penalty called on Malfoy for striking player with the bat.”

Exasperated with what had happened, he turned toward the woman and yelled, â€�“Oh, come on, it slipped. It was an accident!”

â€�“I know, but it is still a penalty. If I thought it was on purpose, you’d have been yellow sparked. Penalty shot to Federov.”

Scorpius looked down and tried to catch his breath. He took a deep breath and dared to look over at the scoreboard. Russia was leading two hundred sixty to one hundred twenty.

As Denis flew into position for his try against Rose, Scorpius heard shouting from behind. The voice was James’ and he was yelling at Yuri Federov. Albus flew in between the two boys, attempting to block his brother from the laughing Russian. Federov started to fly toward mid-pitch when he swung past James and said something almost too softly to be heard. All Scorpius caught from his position was Kaitlin’s name, but it caused James to push Albus aside and charged Federov. Federov remained stationary like he wanted to be attacked.

â€�“James! No!” shouted Kaitlin, Scorpius and Albus all at the same time.

James did not heed them and he rammed his smiling opponent. He took a swing with his fist, but the Russian ducked it and he was about to punch again when Rhys and Albus caught his cocked right arm. Whistles blew.

â€�“Take it back” shouted James. â€�“Take it back, now!”

The referee pointed at James and out of her wand red sparks. â€�“James Potter, you are dismissed from the match for fighting.” James turned to argue with her. She held up one finger, â€�“One word and it’s a two game dismissal.”

Geoffrey grabbed James by wrapping his arm around James’ head and flew him down to the sideline. He only released the struggling Potter when he reached the coaches.

â€�“Get off me,” shouted James as he pushed Grindus away.

â€�“

JAMES SIRUIS POTTER, bench now!”

James looked at his mother, and for the first time realized how much trouble he was in. He dismounted from his broom and slammed it to the ground. He turned toward the sky looking for Federov. When he located him, he made a very rude hand gesture which the Russian returned.

Denis Federov made his penalty and his brother made the second one. However more than twenty points had been lost, the loss of James meant that the heart of the UK team had been ripped out.

Coach Devon signaled for a time out. The old man looked at his charges, snarled, and took a deep breath like he was going to shout. He seemed to vibrate as he swallowed his words. Scratching his toe in the sod, he looked in turn at each of his remaining players. â€�“A Galleon’s worth of Posies! They conjure up some half dead flowers and they buy the game because I’ve got two jealous little boys and a Keeper, who goes all doe-eyed over them and forgets how to protect her hoops!” Scorpius, who was already staring down at his trainers, saw in the corner of his eye Rose’s head drop also. â€�“Kaitlin, you better be glad your Aunt Gwenog wasn’t here. Do you know what she would have done if an opposing player offered her flowers!”

Rhys snorted and fire flew from Devon’s gaze towards the boy. Rhys noticed and stumbling for verbal cover said, â€�“She would have first punched the bloke and then took the flowers to their girl Keeper and gave her a kiss.”

Scorpius couldn’t help but chortle. Luckily, Albus’ laugh was louder. Scorpius looked up to see Coach Potter hiding a laugh and the fire gone from Devon’s eyes.

â€�“Two minutes to restart of play, coach,” shouted the referee as she flew toward the pack of Russians across the pitch.

”Rhys, I need you to catch the Snitch. They got to us today. We’ve got to get out of here and leave a message. So Rhys, do what it takes to catch the Snitch and end this.”

Rhys nodded his head. â€�“Scorpius and Geoffrey, I want you to blast Popov. I want every Bludger you reach aimed at him. I want to see him picking himself off of the pitch and onto his broom repeatedly. I want old Andropov worried about what we will do to the boy next time. Understand?”

Scorpius looked at Geoffrey, who looked as confused as he was. â€�“Next time?”

Kaitlin was now sporting an ear-to-ear grin, â€�“Next time in the round of twelve, when we will get our revenge.” Devon nodded.

It took just under a half of an hour, but Rhys caught the Snitch to limit the damage to a loss of Russia three hundred and fifty to the United Kingdom two hundred and ninety. It had been Russia’s closest match.

As the two teams lined up for the post game handshake, Scorpius noticed that Coach Potter sent Lily onto the pitch with the wrappers of flowers. The three girls talked back and forth before joining the line. The older two girls moved in front of the boys in the line and began to shake the Russian’s hands. When they got to the Federov brothers, the girls broke the buds off and handed the stems back to the boys. Denis and Yuri both spoke to Scorpius about Rose during the handshakes. He ignored them. When obviously sore Popov reached Grindus, who was just in front of him, Scorpius saw Geoffrey lean into the Russian and say something to him. Popov’s face turned red and he shouted something in indignant Russian. Geoffrey flashed a large grin at the angry player. Popov eyed Scorpius ready to strike. Scorpius did not take the bait. He grasped Popov’s hand and the two boys began a hand squeezing contest. After a minute, the two boys released the hands.

â€�“Do yourself a favor, lose to New Zealand,” said Popov breathily as if he could not dare fill his lungs.

â€�“You wish,” Scorpius replied. â€�“See you in the next round and bring some padding.”

The caravan was still rocking from side to side after appearing in the hill yard behind the Puddlemere United Training Facility on the Isle of Man. Just as a member of the Ministry’s International Sports Department finished the un-locking spell, Kaitlin popped the door open. Brushing by the startled heavy set man with the walrus mustache, she leapt from the vehicle to the ground and bent over as she struggled not to retch on the grass.

Inside, still taking off their straps, James and Rhys looked at each other, smiling at Kaitlin’s undignified exit.

â€�“Do want the first joke or should I? She is your cousin.”

Rhys shook his head and said, â€�“No, you’re so much better at getting under her skin than I am.” The two boys laughed.

As the rest of the team gathered their gear and lined up to leave the caravan, Scorpius waited at his seat for Rose and Lily. The two girls had retrieved their luggage and each carried a bag full of Kaitlin’s gear. Scorpius, who had stored his bag under his seat, offered to help Rose, who was carrying a double load. She brushed right past him without acknowledging his offer to help. However, before he could lower his arms, he had his whole body practically drug to the floor by the weight of a two bags slung over his forearm by Lily.

â€�“Thanks,” Lily said, as if he had offered to help her and not her cousin.

He watched Rose walk out the door, leaving him alone in the caravan and her cousin. Lily sighed at Rose’s back. â€�“She’s really embarrassed over that Russian flower business. I’d let her be until you return on Thursday.”

He gave the younger girl a look of disbelief. She shook her head and added insult to injury by saying to him, â€�“I mean, Malfoy, you need all of the help you can get, because you are pretty pathetic at this boy friend stuff.”

Ignoring Lily, he adjusted his load and turned to follow Rose out of the door. â€�“Rose, wait...”.

â€�“Lame,” was all he heard as he exited their home for the last two weeks and into the twilight.

Outside on the lawn, Scorpius saw his father and a group of other well wishers. A female reporter and a male Photographer from the Daily Prophet were asking questions of Rhys and about his lightening fast Snitch capture in their one hundred seventy to nil victory over New Zealand. The capture insured that the U.K. was going to the next round.

Rhys was pleased, but not too pleased. Rhys’ father, Ioan Jones, kept heaping praise upon his son as if he had taken the pitch alone. Scorpius noticed Rhys increasingly squirm as his father went on and on.

Rose was standing with Albus and James, next to her Uncle Harry and her mother. Scorpius’ father stood a step or two the left of the Mr. Potter. Standing away from the crowd, Kaitlin was being assisted by her Aunt Gwenog and Giselle’ LeClaire. Giselle was helping Kaitlin wipe her mouth on a handkerchief.

Scorpius walked over to where Mr. Potter was waiting and placed Lily’s bag at his feet. Mr. Potter looked down at the bag and over to Rose who was lowering her double burden.

â€�“I offered to help,” Scorpius offered in explanation.

â€�“And Lily let you, I see. â€�“ Turning toward his daughter, who had followed Scorpius over to her family he added. â€�“Lily, you must learn to carry your own burdens.” The stern words did not quite fit in with an odd looking smile on his face.

Lily seemed taken aback by her father’s comment. â€�“Why should I? Isn’t that what boys are for?” Lily seemed pleased with her observation. Mrs. Weasley laughed and turned her head away from the crowd.

The photographer came over to Kaitlin, who was just beginning to return to her normal color, and motioned for the three females to join Rhys and his father. While Kaitlin began to move to where she had been pointed to, her Aunt did not. Scorpius saw Giselle’ sigh and she leaned down to whisper something into Gwenog’s ear. Gwenog nodded, appeared to steel herself for battle and the two women walked hand in hand toward the rest of the Joneses.

The photographer was trying to orchestrate a kind of Jones family portrait. He placed Rhys and Kaitlin in the front row with Ioan behind his son and Gwenog behind her niece. As the he fussed with Rhys’ collar, Kaitlin’s hair and evening’s affect on the lighting, Giselle’ drifted to her right and out of the frame. Kaitlin noticed and turned to motion for Giselle’ to return to the picture. Ioan said something under his breath and Gwenog answered him by walking away. As the exasperated photographer tried to realign his subject for the picture, Kaitlin walked over to be with her Aunt. Eventually, the Prophet had to settle for a picture containing only the Jones cousins.

Still angry about the drama dealing with the photo, Ioan levitated his son’s bag and tried to escort his son away from the crowd. Rhys did not follow suit. Instead, he walked over to each of his teammates to say his goodbyes. He saved Kaitlin for last. After he said goodbye to Kaitlin, he turned to offer his Aunt his hand and followed up doing the same to Giselle’. Rhys rejoined his obviously angry father and they left.

â€�“See, Gwen, there’s still hope for you and your family yet. If not your brothers, the next generation,” assured Giselle’ adopting the slight French accent she saved only when she was trying influence or tease Gwenog.

Geoffrey Grindus came over to say goodbye and shake Scorpius’ hand. â€�“It’s too bad your mate, Jimber, won’t be back for the next round.” Scorpius nodded. Geoffrey looked over at the Potters and Weasleys. â€�“Give her some time, Scorp.” He and his mother walked toward the lobby.

---

Draco helped Scorpius shift the gear and they walked over to say their farewells. When he shook Harry’s hand, he saw a face full of new lines and maybe a touch of grey in his sideburns. Harry locked onto him with those green eyes of his. Draco wanted to ask about the status of the two members of the Wizengamot who had been attacked in Mold-in-the-Wall two days ago. He also wanted to ask about the female Auror got injured trying to protect them. He wanted to ask, but he didn’t know how to broach the subject. If Astoria was here, she’d know how.

â€�“Take care, Potter.”

â€�“You too, Malfoy.”

The Weasleys were next. Rose said a soft goodbye, not quite looking his son in the eye. Draco noted the strange behavior, but did not comment. He saw Hermione also looking somewhat confused by her daughter’s reaction.

Draco gave Hermione his usual half bow and nod as he said, â€�“Take care, Mrs. Weasley.”

Hermione raised her left eyebrow in a questioning look.

â€�“It’s no fun calling you Granger if your husband isn’t around to be annoyed by it.” Hermione nodded. â€�“Is he still at work?”

â€�“He was supposed to be here by now.” The strain in her voice was more noticeable than any other time they had spoken in the last two years. She forced a smile and took hold of her son Hugo’s shoulders. The boy looked up in annoyance at his mother. She ignored his rebuke.

Draco gave her a reassuring smile and reached down to pick up part of his son’s gear. As they turned towards the training center and the lobby’s fireplace for a quick journey back to the house, Draco looked down at his son and asked, â€�“So tell all me all about America, being a Beater and what has happened to you and the Weasley girl.”

---

Heathfield Road, London

---

Ron Weasley and his team apparated into the alley near their target and immediately began to set up an observation perimeter. He had only a half-an-hour to put together his little force. Ron spoke to Rory Smythe, his second in command. â€�“Take Edwin Adams to that alley on the other side of prison. One of you must keep an eye on Willie Bones and the other on the prison. If you see something, send a Patronis, and then act. I must know what’s happening first, understand? I want no heroes. Sarah Broomwright doesn’t need any company in St. Mungo’s.”

Rory looked up at the small black dot that was stationed above the large building. â€�“Red sparks, right?” he asked for confirmation. Ron nodded.

Rory smiled and pointed to Adams. He looked at Adams as he crocked a finger for them. After a whispered conversation, the pair disappeared. The redeployment left Ron alone with the most junior member of the group: Teddy Lupin. Teddy looked so out of place here; it was the first time he would go into action as himself and not wearing someone else’s face.

Ron gave him a reassuring smile and pointed his index finger towards the sky. Teddy nodded. He was responsible for watching for the signal.

Ron felt the rise of his ‘normal’ battle nerves. He wished he had had more time. He wished he could have let Harry know. Shaking his head, he knew that was a lie. Harry needed this day off to be with his family and relax. He had watched his friend age a year in a few weeks.

He had been ready to leave his office to join Hermione in meeting Rose, when an urgent message had arrived from the Muggle Liaison to Scotland Yard. The Liaison had just read the transcripts of Yaxley’s interrogation after his capture at the auction house. Something that Yaxley said to them had set off alarms in the reader.

Yaxley had told Harry seemingly in jest, â€�“You should wait to go to Puddlemere because Malfoy will soon be going to be getting his wands worth and he’d want you to be there to see it.” The comment had sounded just like another in long line of Yaxley’s taunts and it meant nothing to Harry and Ron.

However, to the Liaison, the phrase wands worth did mean something. Wandsworth meant the ancient Muggle prison in London. Why it would be a target was uncertain. After all, no wizards were or had ever been locked up there, but when crossing plots with Lucius Malfoy you accepted that things from your perspective didn’t always make sense.

Ron’s thoughts were interrupted by a nudge in the side. He looked up to see red sparks flying across the sky. The sparks were fired toward Smythe. Looking down the road, he saw three black hooded wizards mounted on brooms. The trio swooped over Muggle motor vehicles and turned toward the center of the wall. As Ron and Teddy moved out of their hiding place, the ground under Ron’s feet seemed to shake. A roaring filled his ears and he lost sight of the trio as a cloud of dust flooded onto the street. As the dust settled, he saw a large section of the granite wall had been pulled down into the right lane of the road. Two of the flyers had disappeared, probably by flying through the breech in the wall. The third one began to fire stunning spells which took out the guards visible on the walls.

â€�“Damn it,” shouted Ron.

Ron looked up and saw Bones on his broom diving to intercept the attackers. An eagle Patronis appeared. The bird said, â€�“Joining Bones at the breach.” The bird disappeared.

The mounted criminal took a stunner from Bones before he even knew the Aurors were present. He crashed hard on his back into the traffic lanes of Heathfield Road and was almost struck by a lorry that was attempting to stop before it struck the collapsed wall.

Alarms sounded and shouts came, two brooms flew through the breach and on the back of brooms, seated behind the black robed fliers, sat two Muggles holding on for dear life. Ron felt an explosion from inside the building rock the street. The force of the blast made Lupin and him bump together. He looked down the street at the partially destroyed wall. He pointed frantically for Auror Bones to follow the two broom riding wizards that had blown the down a hundred meter section of the outer wall of the prison. Four large men wearing prisoner uniforms had just jumped through the gap and were running down the street toward him and Lupin.

â€�“I don’t see any witnesses,” advised Teddy.

Ron quickly pulled out his wand and Teddy joined him. â€�“Stupefy.” The four large men collapsed onto the sidewalk. Ron rechecked up and down the street. He reached into his suit jacket pocket and pulled out a picture of the shackles Muggle’s called handcuffs. He closed his eyes and copies of the devices appeared around the wrists of the unconscious prisoner. Rory’s team had joined him, but before he could began to give orders to help Bones in his pursuit of the brooms, three Muggle prison guards came charging out the wall in pursuit of the escapees. The men ran up to the team of incognito Aurors.

Ron pulled the little leather cover which held his fake credentials that identified him as an inspector from Scotland Yard out of the jacket’s pocket. Smythe and Adams aided the two guards into getting the prisoners back into the prison. Unfortunately, the lead guard stuck by Ron and Teddy asking about how they were there at this time.

Teddy answered in a voice flavored with just a touch of a Cockney accent, â€�“Well, I was driving the inspector up to the prison to follow-up with a prisoner about a former partner of his. You know, strike a deal.” Lupin pulled a face showing his displeasure about such things.

The guard nodded. He seemed to share Teddy’s resentment to cutting deals with such scum. Ron was really impressed with the depth of perception of the Muggle world the younger generation seemed to have. However, no matter how Lupin tried, they could not rid them of the Muggle without drawing attention to themselves, so they followed the group as they lead the prisoners back into the prison.

Ron and Smythe separated from the guards and began to look at what remained of the Muggle prison’s outside wall. Burned into the part of the still standing stone wall was the phrase, â€�“Wizard’s rule and Muggle’s serve.” Ron pretended to capture the phrase with the camera on his fake Muggle device. As put the box back into his pocket, he pulled out his wand and put an obscuring spell onto writing on the wall.

Smythe, also dressed like a policeman, walked over to report. â€�“An even dozen escapees, nine of them are really hard cases. I think we came help the Muggles round up most of them without them knowing we used magic to help.”

Ron looked at the chaos of the real inspectors, building maintenance people and guards trying to piece together how the escape occurred. How men in locked cells had disappeared and what made the wall fall? Pitching in and settling this mess quickly was very tempting, but he needed to meet with Harry and maybe the Minister.

A man, who blended in perfectly with the crowd, walked over to Ron and Smythe. Smythe immediately began to pretend to take notes and peer down at the fallen stones. The stranger walked straight over to Ron.

Ron smiled and said to Smythe, â€�“Rory Smythe, I’d like you to meet the Muggle Liaison with Scotland Yard. Rory meet a former member of Dumbledore’s Army, Anthony Goldstein”.

Smythe stopped his pretence of note taking and extended his hand. The two men shook.

Anthony began to talk out loud about the pattern of the stones. Ron looked at the stones, while a group of Muggles began to examine the remains of the wall. After they had passed out of ear shot, Anthony began to speak.

â€�“I’ve already modified the memory of two of the guards to erase the image of wizards on brooms flying through the hole in the wall to aid in the escape.” Goldstein looked around at the gap in the wall. â€�“I know this is all part of Lucius Malfoy’s plan, but the reason why they did it escapes me.”

â€�“He’s trying to bring down the Ministry and our office by making the existence of our world known to the Muggles and to start panic in both worlds.”

â€�“Well, he just might have pulled it off with this. A high ranking member of the Muggle Home Office is already on his way.”

â€�“And if the Muggle Prime Minister gets involved, the Minister of Magic would be breathing down our necks. Thanks. Anthony, I’ll get you a copy of our findings and we will coordinate through you with our help on getting this lot back behind bars. Anthony, good work on letting us know about-” Ron waved his arms

Goldstein smiled, nodded, turned on his heel and walked back to the small clutch of uniformed men.

Ron turned toward Smythe and said, â€�“Get Lupin and Adams out to track down Bones and assist him if necessary. I’ve got to get back to the office and get our reports ready. I need to find out what Bones found before I can get a proper report to Harry. I’ll need to run this past Harry before the Minister calls him on the carpet. Man, I was sure hoping for a quiet day. Harry needs all the time with his family that he can get.”

â€�“And you don’t?”

Ron couldn’t answer. Bones was out there in Muggle London on a broom in a chase with two bad guys. And if Lucius planned the prison break then he would have plotted a trap for any pursuing officers. He began to second guess his order to Bones. A small stone lay about a foot away. Ron kicked it out of frustration. Had he just been a pawn in Malfoy’s little game and was Willy Bones going to pay with his life for his over aggressiveness here.

---

Ten O’clock at night, Godric’s Hollow

---

The moon was in its last quarter hiding behind a high cloud. Ron stood at the door of the Potter’s cottage looking up at the night sky. The sky always looked so peaceful. As he stargazed, he heard through the closed door the sounds of a family at home. Ron closed his eyes, made a fist and with a knock interrupted his best friend’s day off.

A small, female voice spoke through the closed door. â€�“Who’s there?”

â€�“It’s your Uncle Ron, Lily”

â€�“Mum said if it was you I should say go away. Sorry.”

â€�“Lily, I really need to talk with your father, now!” Ron heard footsteps from within the house and from the corner of his eye he saw the curtain move in the front bay window. He turned to see Lily eyeing him. She cocked her head and seemed to contemplate what to do about him. The curtain closed and Lily disappeared.

â€�“What is my younger brother’s middle name?”

â€�“Lily!”

â€�“Sorry, wrong answer”

â€�“Severus, the answer is Severus. Now open up the damn door.”

Ron heard Lily shout for her father. After a couple of minutes, he heard Harry coming toward the door. â€�“And why didn’t you let him in?”

Lily responded. â€�“Mum said not to let anyone in if they come to the door after dark.”

The door opened and Harry looked Ron in the face. â€�“Anyone dead?” Ron caught a light whiff of ale on Harry’s breathe.

â€�“Bones is missing. I’ve had a full search of London.”

â€�“Come in and tell me everything.”

Ron entered the cottage and the pair walked toward Harry’s backroom study. Perched half way up the stairs leading to the master bedroom, Ron saw his sister wearing something black and sheer under a half closed flannel house coat. He realized that tonight would have been the first time they would have been ‘together’ in a month and a half. He felt lucky, if Ginny had her wand he might not have made it out of the cottage.

The Minster’s late Sunday message had ensured that Harry would be in his office for an eight o’clock Monday morning appointment. So, Harry arrived ten minutes early and was informed that the Minister did not usually arrive till half past nine and that he had left instructions for him to wait in his office until his arrival. So Harry sat in an uncomfortable thinly padded leather chair in the Minister’s waiting room feeling very much like he had as a student called to Professor McGonagall’s office for speaking out of turn in Umbridge’s class.

The Minister’s Assistant was very kind to him. She offered him choice of cakes, tea and coffee. After originally rejecting her offer, he eventually accepted a cup of tea. And every day this week, he had arrived on time and waited for his ‘superior’ to show up. Ron had had offered to come in his stead, but he had been in such pissing matches in the past with other jackasses. He couldn’t give in. He hadn’t given in to Snape, Umbridge and he would not give in to March Lee.

However, today was Thursday and also the day that the rest of his family was heading back to Puddlemere and eventually to America. So, Harry sat there reviewing reports, sipping his lukewarm tea, and trying not to seethe about this giant waste of time in some ‘immature’ power display. He pulled off his glasses, looked up to the ceiling, and closed his eyes. I miss Kingsley Shacklebolt. Kingsley was a man of action and the solver of tasks. The current Minister is a bureaucrat, the type that would rather do nothing than risk doing something wrong.

What could Harry tell the Minister today that he hadn’t already told him? Nothing. Since the break-in at the prison, no criminal or terror attacks had occurred in either the Magical or Muggle world that could be linked to Malfoy and his organization. With the help of his Aurors, all of the escaped prisoners, except the two who were on the brooms, had been re-captured. He had supervised the modifying of memories of guards, prisoners and drivers on the street near the prison.

Where was Bones? There had been no sign of him. He was not in St. Mungo’s or in any Muggle Hospital, nor had been been found dead. Monday after work, Harry and Ginny had gone to St. Angus’ Watch to comfort his young wife, Maisey. Ginny comforted the young mother and Harry spent time playing with their little two-year-old son, Reggie.

What about the two escapees? All he knew about them was from the reports that Anthony had forwarded from the police. Lee Laird was, in the parlance known as a puller, or a canon. To the rest of the world, he was called a pickpocket. He had been preying upon a group of Australian tourists when he was noticed lifting a wallet by a former Melbourne law officer. During his attempt to escape, Laird had fought through a crowd, slamming an elderly school teacher into the wall at the Tower of London. The teacher had died and he was convicted for the death of the man.

The second escapee, Robert Day, was former military man, who had been part of the Yeoman of the Guard before spending a year in the Muggle war in Iraq. While on patrol, a bomb exploded near his lorry, Day had been gravely wounded and was relieved from his duty in the military. After his service, Day had drifted into alcoholism and into petty theft. He had been a model inmate who seemed to have turned his life around and had only two weeks remaining on his sentence when the door to his cell was blasted open and he was ‘rescued’. Why these two men out of the prisoners in Wandsworth had been chosen, neither Harry nor the Muggles knew.

Why had the crime way so abruptly ended after the break-in, the Minister would ask him? The only answer he had was it was because Malfoy wanted it so. The Minister would not be happy with that answer. The truth was that he wasn’t happy with the answer either.

---

Salem Witches Institute

---

All of the boys on the squad waved their hands in the air above their heads as the caravan began its rocking back and forth as it left the Isle of Man for its transcontinental flight. Rose and Lily sat behind the boys leaving Kaitlin in the back by herself. Lily, in spite of Rose’s protestation, had somehow loosed her straps and was seated on her knees looking backwards holding onto the seat back for support as she closely watched Kaitlin Jones like she was some sort of strange animal in the London Zoo.

Kaitlin noticed the unwanted attention and glared back at the younger girl. â€�“What!”

â€�“Just watching to see what colors you turn before you hurl. I’ve got a bet with Hugo. So, go ahead and feel free to get sick. You could think of something greasy and disgusting, you know like James. Don’t hold back.” Lily gave Kaitlin her best innocent little sister smile.

â€�“If I get sick, I’ll make sure you’re in front of me when I do. And then I will get Malfoy because I took an anti-nausea potion his mother cooked up for me.

Lily was not deterred by the Kaitlin’s news that she would be targeted. She just rocked back and forth with the caravan until it landed. As the window stopped flashing blue, changing to a noon-time sky, Kaitlin did not change color. Lily’s face dropped and she turned to her cousin Rose in the adjoining seat. â€�“Hugo won,” she said.

The door opened and a familiar face appeared in the entryway. Mrs. Davis looked around inside and asked, â€�“No one needs to exit quickly? Anyone?”

A few chuckles were her only reply. The players undid their seat straps and began to queue up to exit the caravan. From the front of the trailer came Coach Potter’s voice, â€�“James-â€�“

â€�“I know, Mum, watch Lily. And don’t sell her to any Gypsies, unless we get a really good price for her.”

Lily stuck her tongue out at her brother. As Geoffrey Grindus stepped out of the camper, he leaned back toward Scorpius and Albus to ask them, â€�“What is a good price for a little sister?” Albus shrugged.

Kim Davis pointed to the pole in the circle with the sign ACE on it. â€�“You are the ACE side.” Sitting behind the caravan, were two campers: one with the Egyptian flag and a second one with the red flag of China.

â€�“What is ACE?” asked Rose.

â€�“The winners of groups A, C, and E along with the second place teams of group B, D, and F make up the ACE group.” Davis responded.

â€�“That means we can’t play Russia!” Kaitlin was furious. â€�“When can we next play them?” She said attempting to take the packet of paper from the older woman to hunt for her answer directly.

Davis reflexively pulled the sheets back. â€�“Let me check! Hum, let me see…the top two teams from each side will meet in the semi-finals. You could meet them then.”

â€�“Brazil won Group A, China Group C, and Egypt won Group E.” Rose paused crinkling her nose in thought the way that Scorpius had seen at least a thousand times. â€�“The last three teams will be Cuba, Argentina, and us?” she asked.

Davis nodded in reply. â€�“And where are our Russian friends?” asked Kaitlin. Scorpius heard a note of menace in her voice, which Davis seemed to miss.

She turned toward the commissary and pointed toward a flag pole in the distance. Kitty-Kat followed the older woman’s finger into the distance. A weird smile spread across her face. Scorpius wondered what she had planned for them.

---

Night before first game U.K. vs. China

---

After the pre-game walk-through and evening meal, Kaitlin and Rose did not return with the team to the caravan. Ever since they had arrived at the Institute, Rose and Kaitlin had been talking incisively to each other. Whenever Scorpius tried to get Rose alone to talk to her, Kitty-Kat would show up and escort Rose away. Had Rose asked Kaitlin to keep him from talking to her? Did she no longer want to be his ‘friend’ anymore, but couldn’t tell him? He was confused and for the first time in his life feeling depressed.

When they arrived back at the base, he realized that the two girls had disappeared around the commissary. The commissary was halfway between their campground and the Russians. Was Rose meeting Denis Federov? A half hour later, the two errant girls returned to the caravan. When James asked where they had been, the girls did not respond verbally, but both of them shared a smile and nod.

Feeling totally drained, Scorpius walked past James Potter and Rhys Jones, who were playing Exploding Snap, and Geoffrey, who was crushing Albus in Wizard’s Chess, and slipped into the sleeping quarters. He crawled into his upper bunk and stared at the ceiling. The sounds of the explosions were not enough to rouse him and he fell asleep three hours before curfew.

It was dark when a noise from the common area awoke him. Scorpius sat up and almost slid off of his bunk before his dangling legs reminded him of the fall facing him. Trying not to rock the bed enough to wake Grindus, he jumped blindly onto the floor. He landed slightly off balance, but nearly silently. He pulled his clothes off of the bed rail and put on his pants. Turning the knob as quietly as he could, he cracked open the door.

â€�“It’s lights out, Malfoy.” The voice was James.

He shut the door quietly and turned toward the voice. â€�“I heard something.”

â€�“So did I”

â€�“And you weren’t going to check?”

â€�“Only after you did. My mum still hasn’t forgiven me for the red sparks, if she finds me out there by myself-” James made a motion across his throat and a slicing noise with his mouth coinciding with the moving of his finger.

Scorpius shushed James, turned the knob and opened it. Two familiar cloaked forms were undoing the front door locking spells and then exited in the night. Rose and Kaitlin were outside. He turned back to James and whispered, â€�“Rose and Kitty-Kat have gone outside.”

â€�“Rose break the rules? No way! She’d rather die than get into trouble. Unless, she is going with Kitty to keep her out of trouble.” James responded in a knowing voice.

He had a different idea. She and Kaitlin might be going to see the Federov brothers. He had to know what was going on. If he stayed in, he would have just stared at the ceiling and worried, so following the girls was a logical thing to do. If he saw Rose with Denis Federov, he might break that stupid nose of Federov’s.

â€�“Wait, I’m coming,” whispered James. After James exited, the two boys shut the door on their room and finished dressing. Scorpius, who was dressed first, opened the door and, through the moon and starlight, followed the girls toward the other campground.

Just as they left the caravan, both boys pulled out their wands and almost shut the door. He and James did not speak as they tried to get close, but not too close to the girls. With each step, he was more and more certain that they were headed to the BDF site and a romantic rendezvous with the Russians.

However, when they got to the other campgrounds no lights were visible in any of the dwellings. The girls had stopped just outside of the onion domed camper of the enemy, but they did not walk toward the camper. Rose lit her wand and by its dim light, the boys could see Kaitlin with a stick digging in the dirt and dropping something onto the ground. Rose’s wand went out and a trickle of water on the ground was heard.

Scorpius cupped his hand around his own wand and moved his body in between it and the girls. He lit it. In the dim light, he saw James was equally confused by the girl’s actions. James mouthed silently, â€�“Now what?”

He shrugged in reply and realized his action was not visible in the half-light. â€�“We can either go back, watch them, or confront them as silently as we can.”

James nodded and said, â€�“I’m not going back to the base without know what the hell they are doing? I mean, could you sleep after seeing this?”

â€�“No,” Scorpius whispered back.

â€�“So, step aside and shine your wand at them. Let them decide. We can always run back to the caravan and lock them out and let the coaches sort it out.”

â€�“We can’t. We play China tomorrow. If they get caught, your mother will probably bench them just to prove a point about who’s in charge.”

â€�“She would,” replied James.

Scorpius stepped aside and pointed his lit wand at the two girls who were poking the ground a few yards away from their first spot. When the girls saw the light, they froze. Kaitlin leaned forward looking through the darkness.

In a whispered voice, she spoke â€�“James is that you?”

James nodded, lit by the wand light. He replied, â€�“I brought Scorp with me.” Scorpius looked at James; he had brought Potter, not vice versa.

â€�“Go back!”

â€�“No.”

Kaitlin’s voice rose in volume, â€�“I said, go back.” Rose reached over to silence her. Kaitlin swung around ready to explode when she realized she had to be quiet.

James pointed his head toward the girls and they walked over to join them. Kitty-Kat had her hands on her hips, face screwed up in anger, and stomped her heal into the ground when the boys got to her.

â€�“I’ve seen that before Kitty-Kat. The second time, it’s not scary at all,” said James.

Scorpius sighed loud enough to be shushed by his three teammates. â€�“What are you doing? We saw you digging in the soil.” He reached over to the pouch hanging around Rose’s neck. She slapped his hand. Now, he was as ticked off as Kaitlin.

The four Gryffindors glared at each other for at least a minute. Rose finally broke the silence. â€�“If you must know, we are planting a little surprise for our Russian friends. I got a group of Dianthus mephitidae seedlings to plant around their camper.”

Scorpius snorted and realized that James was in the both literally and figurately in the dark. â€�“Dianthus mephitidae is skunk flowers, a member of the carnation family. They have a pungent flower odor and, when touched stains anything or anyone it touches with a smelly oily fluid.”

James snorted in appreciation. â€�“Let us help.”

â€�“No, it has to be us!” Kaitlin’s voice was getting loud enough for Rose and Scorpius to shush her.

Scorpius dug the toe of his shoe into the dirt; he heard the crunch of gravel. He bent down and put his finger into the second hole Kaitlin had dug with her makeshift spade. He placed the finger in his mouth just like Crystalline Dragonherd had taught him in Herbology club. He pulled the finger of his mouth and let his mouth analyze the soil. â€�“The ground is too stony. You will need a good source of carbon.”

â€�“Great and does our resident plant geek have any in his pocket?”

James responded to Kitty-Kat. â€�“The commissary, they had a bonfire last night.”

â€�“So,” started Kaitlin before Rose interrupted.

â€�“Brilliant,” said Rose as Scorpius patted his teammate on the back. Kaitlin was as lost as ever.

â€�“Charred wood, charcoal, is almost pure carbon. I’ll levitate some over here.” James disappeared, leaving the trio.

Scorpius looked at the girls thinking they would be happy and appreciative for the boys help. He was wrong.

â€�“How much should we add?” Rose spoke in a matter-of-fact whisper.

He looked back at her wishing he had stayed in bed. â€�“Impossible to tell without doing a revealing spell on the soil. I’d guess by the taste to fill bottom in charcoal and go fifty-fifty on the rest.”

â€�“Good. Now, both of you leave us alone.” She had finished her benediction as James showed up with the ashes and charred wood fragments.

â€�“Come on, let’s go. They want to be alone with their seeds. Oh, yeah! Don’t forget to add a little water.”

The two boys turned and headed back to the caravan. James seemed upbeat about the encounter. Scorpius just wanted to die.

Kaitlin stifled a yawn as they waited for the coaches’ usual pre-breakfast game day meeting. Rose, seeing the yawn, kicked her in the side of the ankle. The kick drew an angry look and the beginning of a retort, which died away as Coaches Devon and Potter walked out of their office and into the study.

â€�“All right, today we start our journey to win the Cup. Seven is our lucky number. Seven victories and we are world champions.” Devon’s comments drew a round of excited murmurs from his team. Rhys’ face broke out into a grin that threatened to touch his eyes. â€�“You may ask me how we will beat Brazil. Well, I’ll tell you.”

Before he could expound on the plan, the door seemed to vibrate as if it was going to explode inward from the force of the person pounding from outside. Scorpius looked at the two girls. Kaitlin was weary. Rose’s face turned into the color of ashes.

Lily, who was seated in the back of the group, reading a Marvin the Muggle comic, gave a very loud put-upon sigh, made a little show of her walk of four steps to the door and opened it. Three men filled the doorway and a strong smell entered the room before the strangers could.

â€�“Eeww!” shouted Lily, as she fled from the door and strong odor.

â€�“What the devil?” asked Devon.

The old, broad-shouldered man in dress robes, didn’t look at the team, but honed in on the two adults. â€�“Coaches Devon and Weasley, we need you and your entire entourage in the tournament headquarters building. A grave violation of the rules of sportsmanship has occurred and accusations against your team have been made”

â€�“I want them out! I want them disqualified from the tournament!” The man dressed in old Quidditch togs spoke in a thick Russian accent. He repeated pointed toward Devon with his index finger like it was a dagger.

Devon put on a smile that Scorpius recognized as a fake one. â€�“Vladimir Nickovetch Andropov, it’s been a whole week without being blessed with your presence.” Devon threw his arms wide like he was going in for a hug and even took two steps toward the Russian coach before coming to a stop. The smell grew worse the closer you got to the man.

â€�“Coach Devon, you have ten minutes to assemble your entire team in our offices or you will be disqualified from the tournament.”

Devon nodded in acceptance, but he was not ready to totally surrender. â€�“Mr. Baum, we are scheduled to play Brazil at noon. We have our pre-game meeting, breakfast, warm-ups. Surely, this can wait until tomorrow.”

Baum just shook his head.

â€�“Very well, we shall be there in ten minutes.” The door closed and Devon turned with anger flooding from his eyes toward his charges. â€�“Who did what? I need to know. Now!”

Kaitlin and James hid their guilt well, having had plenty of practice. Rose’s face, however, became flush and her cheeks grew to the color of ripened tomatoes.

Rose’s Aunt Ginny locked in on the color change. â€�“Rose, what aren’t you telling us?”

She swallowed; her head jerked to the right as she caught herself starting to look at Kaitlin but stopped the motion before it betrayed her co-conspirator. â€�“It was my idea. A harmless prank to get even with them for the bouquets they gave us in the first round. You see, I planted Dianthus mephitidae around their compound. The plants have only a two day life cycle. Once planted it releases the odor and dies within twenty-four hours. So no real harm was going to be done to them.”

â€�“And you planted these flowers all by yourself in the dark of the night, did you?” Ginny Potter moved closer to her niece with every word looking for anything to get to the real truth.

â€�“No! I mean, yes! I mean, no….” She was so busted. Kaitlin and James sat quietly nearby letting her take the fall.

â€�“I helped her,” interjected Scorpius. â€�“I used my Herbology club expertise to help with the prepping of the soil and the watering.”

â€�“Why?” asked Devon. Scorpius, who had been concentrating on Mrs. Potter, was caught off-guard by the other’s question.

Rose spun on him. â€�“Quit this! I’m sick of you always trying to protect me. I’m not some silly little girl in a stupid story that needs a boy to always come to rescue her.”

Scorpius stood and took an angry step toward her. â€�“Well, you and Kaitlin needed my help last night. If it wasn’t for James and I your stupid, little plants would have never bloomed. Would’ve they?”

â€�“Damn, Malfoy,” shouted James. And then it struck Scorpius that he had just identified the other guilty parties and they were all but ejected from the tourney. Scorpius dropped back into his seat.

â€�“All right, now that you’ve all come clean. While we are in his office, only Coach Potter and I speak understand. Now, if they ask you a question, you will use only yes/no/I’m sorry for your answers. Understand?” The quartet nodded. As they queued up to walk to the cabin Kaitlin walked out of her way so she could elbow Scorpius in the side as she walked by and Rose kept her silence.

Coaches Devon and Weasley, the seven players and Lily Potter all entered the offices of the Tournament. The stench was there too. Obviously, the Russians had filed their complaint in these offices.

The head of the tournament, Baum, sat behind a large mahogany desk eyeing each of them. â€�“We play these tournaments to build bridges between the magical people from around the world. So instead of peaceful competition, the United Kingdom goes out of its way to start a string of international incidents!” The man’s right hand thumped the table reflecting the anger in his face.

Devon sighed. â€�“Sir, during our match with the Russians, they gave the girls flowers and, well, they became a distraction for our team.”

â€�“Yes, I have the report. The Russians made a generous gesture of friendship and it started a bout of fisticuffs.”

â€�“Sir, you have to see it from our perspective. The Russians attempted to use the flowers to make some of our player’s jealous. They taunted the boys about the flowers and the girls. While on parchment, the flowers look like a friendly gift, it was used to gain a competitive advantage.”

It was obvious Baum was having trouble buying the coach’s argument. Scorpius felt someone slip past him to the front of the group. Lily had carried a small chair from wall and was seating herself in front of the group at the desk. The young girl sat upon her knees and placed her elbows on the table cupping her chin on the extended palms of her hands. She gave the man her best innocent smile. Baum lost his train of thought.

A burly, crop haired, leather jacket wearing male, who was standing behind and to the right of Baum, cleared his throat. The sound refocused the other man’s thoughts. â€�“According to the revealing spells cast by the NAMED agents, six different wand carriers were in the vicinity of the Russian compound last night.

Scorpius felt his head jerk back because that wasn’t right.

Devon eyed his team. â€�“Mr. Baum, only four members of our team left our area.”

â€�“We found evidence of six: Four teenagers and two adults. From the size of the footprints and depth of the prints, the adults were probably males.” The man in black answered checking a sheet of paper on Baum’s desk for accuracy.

â€�“And the two adults came from our residence?” asked Ginny. She had learned from listening to Harry and Ron talk about work that it was often what you withheld from your interrogation subject that was the really important information.

The law enforcement officer twitched. â€�“Actually, we have two separate trails that lead into the forest near the ACE campground.”

â€�“So, you don’t know if we planted the plants or the strangers?” Devon asked hoping for a way to stay in the tournament.

Baum turned to his security man. They whispered and they both faced Devon. â€�“The footprints found at the places of the plantings were the juvenile footprints.” Devon’s face dropped.

â€�“Did you find the adult foot prints everywhere your spell says they went?” Ginny Potter chimed in. All they needed was reasonable doubt. She had a lot of practice with interrogations. After all, she had James as a son.

â€�“No, but the soil at the plantings was soft and wet.”

â€�“And you’ve proof that the adults used no spells to float over or wipe their shoe prints off of the soft soil?”

The color in the security man’s face redden, he was getting agitated. Lily turned her large smile on the man. He rolled his eyes to the ceiling in response to her action.

Baum must have realized he was in a deteriorating position. He quickly changed the subject. â€�“The Russians want you removed from the tournament and have filed an official protest.”

â€�“Of course, we gave Andropov his toughest match to date. He knows if we play again-” Baum raised his right hand palm out to silence Devon.

â€�“You have two choices. You play today’s game and the next game against China without two of the offending players in each or you forfeit today’s match against Brazil.”

The entire U.K. team erupted in anger. Devon turned on them, â€�“Quiet, or I’ll disqualify the whole lot of you myself.” The room became quickly silent.

â€�“We accept your penalty of forfeiting our game against Brazil. Is there an apology to the Russians that I have to sign?”

Baum nodded and slid five pieces of paper in front of him. Three of the papers were identical letters of sincere apology to the Russian team and people and the other two were a written acceptance of the penalty of the one game forfeiture. Devon looking like he was sucking on a lemon signed the papers with a quill and Mr. Baum read them.

After he reviewed the documents, he extended a hand to Devon. â€�“Bobby, one more incident and you might not even get another hearing. You’re gonna have to keep them in line or else.”

Devon nodded and the two men shook hands.

With the game forfeited, no one felt like eating breakfast. The team walked in silence back to their home. Devon walked to the coach’s office and opened the door and the four late night gardeners went inside.

---

Wizard’s Cemetery at St. Angus’ Watch

---

Harry Potter, wearing his Auror dress robes, stood with his wand stuck in his armpit as he, Ron, Sterling, Smythe, Adams, and Glouster lifted by their white gloved hands the box containing the remains of their comrade: Willie Bones. They honored their fallen by using their own exertions and not some impersonal spell to bring their friend to his final resting place.

As the pall bearers turned the corner around the Thestral driven hearse, Harry saw Maisey Bones and child, Willie’s mother, mother-in-law and guests. Harry almost lost his solemn demeanor when he saw that two of the mourners standing behind the seated family were Mr. Olivander and Luna. He didn’t know that they knew Willie.

The detail, in perfect step, brought the casket to the pall above the grave and placed it down. Harry called his men to attention and they stood in silent formation to the left of the family. A small man wearing a white collar across this shirt with stepped forward with a large book and began to deliver the eulogy. As the man went on, Harry’s mind began to wonder to how they got here.

On Monday, a note had appeared on the front desk of the Inn at the Leaky Cauldron. When the clerk first found it, she had assumed it had been left behind by a boarder. She opened the note to see who had left it so she could return it to its owner. After reading the first sentence, she ran into the kitchen of the Bistro.

Hannah Longbottom took the note from the trembling hand her employee. She read the first sentence and her left hand involuntary leapt to cover her mouth. Hannah glanced down to her daughter as she banged an old sauce pan on the tile kitchen floor. She looked up at Halley, the clerk, and said, â€�“Watch Alice, while I go upstairs for a moment.”

Halley nodded and went over to talk to the fourteen month old. Alice, who was used to her, offered the pan to her friend. Halley took the pan and returned it to the girl. As Hannah walked up the back stairs to the private rooms the last thing she heard was her daughter’s laugh. As she entered the grand dining room, she strode over to the fireplace and opened the closed little door on the empty portrait containing an orange background. Although she had seen Neville do this a thousand times, she felt like she was out of place now.

â€�“Professor, I need to deliver a message.” She waited not knowing if the portrait would come at her request. Into the frame, Minerva McGonagall walked. She looked past Hannah probably looking for the current head of Gryffindor House.

Her clipped Scottish accent held a touch of annoyance, â€�“I don’t understand why you summoned me? I am…not…a messenger service!”

â€�“I’m sorry. I need to get a message to the Auror office and I know that you used your portrait in the Headmaster’s office to deliver a message to someone with a portrait in the Aurors’ office for Rose Weasley.” Even in her late thirties, Hannah found the dead woman’s image intimidating. â€�“A message was left here telling where the body of a missing Auror can be found.”

Even though she was a magical painting, the shock was evident on her face. â€�“It’s not Harry Potter, is it?”

â€�“No, Willie Bones-â€�“

The painted head of the woman nodded in comprehension. â€�“Alas, another brave Gryffindor has met an early death. Neville will have to learn to live with that, just as I did. So many of our best do not get to enjoy a long life. I will deliver the message to the Auror office for you. I’d return to your place of business, it may take awhile.”

And that’s how Harry had found out about Willie’s fate, third-hand from a friend via the portraits of two dead wizards. When he and Ron had arrived at the bank of the Avon, they had found not only Bones, but also the two Muggle escapees. From the state of the bodies, all three of the bodies had been tortured prior to their murders.

The man giving the eulogy mentioned Harry’s name and it brought him back to the graveyard. Harry fought to keep focused on what the man said, but he just kept droning on and on. After about five more minutes, the man closed the book and stepped aside from the casket.

â€�“Detail, present wands!” Harry commanded. He could hear his men moving in obedience to his command. â€�“Honors, salute!” Golden sparks shot from the wands in an arc over the casket. Harry silently counted to eleven. â€�“End, salute!” The sparks ceased.

The group of Aurors stood at attention while people consoled the widow and the mothers. Stiff backed, he walked over to the family. He bowed to Maisey.

â€�“As a representative of the Ministry, I wish to convey the deepest sympathy over your loss from the Minister, myself, and Willie’s fellow Aurors.”

Maisey tried to hold it together as she reached for Harry’s hand. However, when their hands touched, she lost control and almost fainted. Willie’s mother took Maisey in her arms. Another woman, probably Maisey’s mother, stepped forward.

â€�“Harry Potter, you got the bastard that killed my Reg. I want you to promise to me you’ll do the same for poor Willie.”

He was confused by the woman’s reference to some past action. He would not let that deflect from the solemn proceedings. â€�“Count on it,” Harry said and stepped back to make a slow reverent bow to the family. He returned to his Aurors and called them to attention. They snapped to. â€�“Detail, dismissed!”

The younger Aurors went over to give their condolences to their friend’s widow. Ron stepped next to his friend. â€�“The woman who talked with you, she seems familiar.”

Harry nodded and said, â€�“She knows me from somewhere. She said we caught the person who killed her husband.”

â€�“When-”

â€�“She didn’t say.”

Luna hugged the widow and the mothers. She bent down to hug little Reg and mussed his hair. After she was done, she walked around the casket over to where Harry and Ron were standing.

â€�“Hello, Harry. Hello, Ron. It’s really sad that we only seem to see each other at weddings, funerals, and ministry crises.”

Harry hid a smile. â€�“Bless Luna,” he thought. What he asked was, â€�“How do you know the Bones family?”

â€�“Well, I met Mary after the Battle of Hogwarts. I came to deliver the news about how Voldemort had kill her husband Reg while we were prisoners in Malfoy Manor. Reg had always talked about you, Harry Potter. After all, it was because of you and Ron, probably, that Mary got released from the dungeons in the Ministry. The whole Cattermole family considers you to be a special hero to them.”

It clicked for both Ron and Harry at the same time. Willie Bones had married Maisey Cattermole. Bones had named his son Reg. â€�“And now they all expect me to avenge Willie by killing Lucius like I did when I killed Tom Riddle.”

â€�“Yes, but Harry I’m worried.”

â€�“Why?” it was Ron who asked.

â€�“As I walked over here, I took a long look at you. I’ve seen that look only twice. The first time was in the forest just before our trip to the Department of Mysteries, and the last time was at Shell Cottage just before you went to Gringotts. I’ve always considered that look to be your desperate face not your thinking face. You will need to put on your thinking face to beat Lucius Malfoy.”

In an almost whisper, Harry confided to her, â€�“What if I can’t, Luna? What if he’s too slippery?”

Luna turned to appraise her friend. â€�“Well, you do have the office of Aurors on your side and Draco must have some insight about his father. I mean, he and Astoria must want this to end just as much as you do.”

Harry nodded. He hadn’t seen, let alone talked to, Draco since the kids came home from Hogwarts. Maybe, Luna had a point.

Luna went on talking. â€�“And remember Harry, if all else fails, you will always have your secret weapons.” Harry felt as confused by Luna’s comment as Ron’s face showed he was also. Luna smiled and in supreme confidence said, â€�“You know, Neville and me.”

Harry nodded not seeing how anything could get that drastic. He looked around at knee level.

â€�“Where are the twins?” he asked.

â€�“They are with Rolf visiting with my father. We are getting up an expedition to go to The Island and document all of the flora and fauna that westerners have not been allowed to see.”

â€�“The Island. Well, if you see the Dokes, tell them hello for us.” Luna smiled and kissed Harry and then Ron on the cheeks. She turned and walked back to Mr. Olivander who had remained at a respectful distance as he leaned heavily upon a walking cane.

I want you to promise to me you’ll do the same for poor Willie. The words hung as heavy as a millstone around his neck.

After the forced forfeit to Brazil, the United Kingdom team had no room for any more losses. During the first round of the round-robin, the winners of the previous groupings were victorious against the second place countries. After round one: Brazil, China, and Egypt all had one victory with no defeats.

Four days after they lost to Brazil, the UK team would be facing the winner of Group C: China. On the same day, Russia would be playing Mexico on Pitch Number Two, about a mile away.

The players sat in the study area waiting for the coaches. Devon and Mrs. Potter left their office and walked in front of the white board. Devon turned toward Rose and Kaitlin. â€�“I assume that you two did not do any late night gardening.”

Kaitlin returned the coach’s question with a flat stare. Rose dropped her head onto her chest shaking her head. Devon next turned to James and Scorpius and both boys shook their heads in the negative.

â€�“Well now, we have a match with China. Now China is considered, by some, to be the weakest of the Group winners. You see, Group C ended up in a three-way tie with all of them losing two matches. China was declared the winner because they beat the other two teams that they were tied with, which means they lost their two matches to teams that lost four games. I’ve seen them fly; you can blow them out of the sky. The Keeper, Zeng Jian, is a blocker not a catcher. Chasers, if your teammate is attacking the goal, I want all of you to be in position to catch the deflections and score quickly.” Scorpius saw Kaitlin smile and rub her hands together like she was preparing for a feast.

â€�“Rhys, Zhu Peng, their Seeker is a good flier, but he does seem to follow the other’s Seeker and hopes jump in to steal the Snitch after the other has done all of the work. Don’t give him a chance, understand.” Rhys nodded.

â€�“Now their Chasers are a close knit, cautious side. They remind me a lot of the old Chudney Cannons. Rose, they will feint attacks and pull back. Feint and pull back. You must be patient. Let Geoffrey and Scorpius come to your rescue.” Rose shifted in her seat from the image of being rescued by the boys. â€�“Beaters, you must blast the off Chasers with the Bludgers. Chasers, when the Beaters are taking affect you must attack. We will start out in the Double Harris zone. However, if we get a lead, I want the world’s most intense Whirlwind ever played.”

Mrs. Potter turned toward the girls, â€�“Kaitlin, your parents will be in the stands this afternoon to see you play. By the way, they know about the forfeit and the flowers.”

For the first time since last year’s championship game against her cousin, Kaitlin looked unsure of herself. She just nodded and swallowed. Devon moved into the middle and extended his hand. The teams surrounded their coach and placed their hands on his. They all turned toward Mrs. Potter.

She smiled and waited like she relished the power she now had over them. â€�“On three, ‘Rule Britannia’.”

â€�“One…Two…Three. Rule Britannia!”

The team broke up and walked out toward the cafeteria. Scorpius walked out with Geoffrey and James not waiting for the Rose, as was his usual. Scorpius was half way through the serving line before he noticed that he had no food on his tray. He apologized to the other guys and went to the beginning of line. As he was about to restart the food line, he saw not five feet away at the stack of trays, Denis Federov and Rose chatting. He watched as Rose laughed at something the jerk said and she flipped her hair off of her left ear. The boy reached over and touched her on the hand. A week ago, he would have punched the jerk. Now, he just turned crestfallen towards the food line.

As he sat down, the coaches arrived with Lily. Mrs. Potter scanned those seated in front of her. â€�“Scorpius, where’s Rose?”

Bile rose into his throat and he said â€�“Probably sitting at the Russian table with her BOYFRIEND Denis!”

Everyone including Kaitlin turned to face him. The attention was too much for him. â€�“I’m not hungry.” He stood and he walked out of the cafeteria.”

---

Scorpius left the cafeteria and went to the changing room and donned his tunic. He sat there looking across at the tunic with the name Weasley on it. He closed his eyes and twice slammed the back of his head against his pine wood locker door. For the first time since he found Rose’s body in the Forbidden Forest and feared she was dead, he began to cry. The cry was not a weepy thing, tears just seem to swell until his eyes could not hold them and they rolled down his cheeks. He closed his eyes and thought about sending a message home to have his parents come and get him. He also saw the looks from his parents that would greet him. He knew he could not call them.

After a bit, he opened his eyes and found Albus sitting in front of his locker eating half a sausage sandwich. Reflexively, he wiped at his eyes with the sleeve of his uniform. â€�“What are you doing here?”

â€�“I came to find you. I was afraid you might do something. You might walk off into the woods or trash the Russian camp and if you did that we’d be disqualified and you’d never survive what Kitty Kit would do to you.”

It was an attempt at a joke. A lame attempt, but he appreciated it. It was what Jimber would have done. â€�“Probably not.” He attempted to smile; it probably didn’t look a smile.

The door opened and the boys turned toward the nearing footfalls. Striding into the changing room stepped Mrs. Potter carrying a tray with three plates of food, a tea mug and two cups of milk. She handed Albus the largest plate, kissed him on the forehead and whispered something into his ear. Albus took the plate and milk. He turned and left the changing room to his mother and Scorpius. Mrs. Potter walked the tray over to the long bench on which Scorpius sat at the far end of. She placed the food on the bench in the middle, took the tea cup in her hands and sat at the far end so she was not looking at him but Rose’s locker. She took a sip.

â€�“It’ll mend. You probably don’t believe me, but it will…mend.”

Confused by her comment, Scorpius replied, â€�“What will mend?”

â€�“Your heart. You won’t believe the times I cried in the dark because I couldn’t seem to get him to see how much I really loved him.” Mrs. Weasley reached over and took a slice of buttered toast from a stack and began to nibble.

â€�“Who?”

â€�“My husband, of course. When I was young, I practically threw myself at him every time I saw him. I did everything short of tripping on the stairway to get him to notice his best friend’s ugly little sister.”

â€�“You’re not ugly,” he offered feeling weird about talking to Rose’s Aunt about feelings and stuff. The wafting fragrance of the cooked sausage caused his mouth to water.

â€�“Where were you when I was twelve?” she laughed quietly. â€�“Scorpius, Rose is thirteen and she is physically and emotionally changing from a girl towards becoming a woman. She is feeling things so new and intense that she has never felt before. Worlds are opening up to her and she isn’t certain what is what.”

â€�“That makes no sense.”

â€�“Right, that’s why people, like my parents, called them growing pains. It will happen to you, I mean look at Kaitlin and James. They can’t be with each other and they can’t be without each other. See how they each go out of the way to pick a fight. It was the same with Rose’s parents at their age.” Mrs. Potter took another sip of tea and turned astride the bench facing him. â€�“Scorpius, I’ll give you the same good advice Rose’s mother gave me at your age. Be the best yourself you can be, and if you two are meant to be, it will be.”

â€�“So, I should just wait and hope? I don’t wait well.”

â€�“The parent in me says be patient and maybe even talk to another girl or two. You might meet someone better for you, or at least make Rose jealous. The coach in me says take your anger and whack every Bludger you see at an opponent like it had Denis Federov’s face on it.” She smiled

Scorpius looked up at the woman, what she said about waiting was dung but the sausages were inviting. He reached out and took a slice of toast and a sausage. He made a sandwich and began to ponder her advice as he chewed. He saw a bat cracking Federov in the chin and smiled. Not all of what she had said was dung.

---

The whistles blew and Yu Lin captured the Quaffle and set up the triangle attack the coaches had told them about. Lin held the ball at the ready as Chen took up a position even with his. Suddendly from behind and between, Li Tao rushed at the goal. Lin started to pass to Li, but Albus moved in front. With no opening, he faked a toss to the charging player. Li quickly turned and flew back to his original position. As Li was flying Lin and Chen would fly towards each other and Lin faked handing the Quaffle to Chen. After assuming a new position, Li flew at the hoops and the whole play would start again. The Chinese offense seemed to be designed to lull the defense into a stupor, while their Seeker searched the skies.

That was the Chinese plan, but they’d never played a pissed off team with nothing to lose, like the Brits. On the second crossing of the Chasers, Scorpius hit both Lin and Chen with the same Bludger strike. The Quaffle fell and Kaitlin grabbed the ball. The Potter brothers rode a second behind and one on both sides of Kaitlin. She attacked the middle hoop. Kitty Kat fired the ball toward the left side of the center hoop. The ball bounced off Zeng’s hands toward James. He caught the Quaffle in his left hand and in one motion whipped it through the right hoop.

The match lasted an hour and ten minutes. Rhys, using his no-hands head on broomstick flying position, left Zhu in the dust leading to an early capture giving the United Kingdom a two hundred fifty to thirty beat down of the Chinese.

Meanwhile, across the institute, Russia beat Bulgaria by forty. After two games, Brazil and Egypt were both still undefeated and the UK and China were tied with one loss.

After the game, Kaitlin’s parents threw a banquet for the whole team. Scorpius declined claiming he had pulled a chest muscle on a Bludger strike. He ate alone at a long table by the wall until two girls wearing blue spangled outfits sat down at the other end of his table. They talked and giggled. He looked up and noticed the brunette girl was smiling at him. He smiled back. She and her friend took their trays to join some guys dressed in the same outfits. As they went by him, the brunette stopped and said, â€�“Hello, I’m Grace Jackson from Salem, Oregon. I saw you play today. I hope you don’t hit me like that if we were to play in the finals.”

â€�“No promises.” He paused at a total loss for anything else to say, she looked over at her friend. Disappointed? He had to say something to her. He blurted the first thing that came to him, â€�“I’m Scorpius Malfoy from London, England.”

â€�“Oh, I know who you are.” Giggles burst forth from both girls. â€�“I’ve got to get to a meeting. You know, Scorpius, we play against Italy tomorrow. It would be nice to have a friendly face in the crowd rooting for me.” She reached over and touched his shoulder. He watched her walk all the way to her table. Scorpius, somewhat in a daze, placed his tray back for cleaning and on his way out of the cafeteria he stopped at the map of the United States and searched for Salem, Oregon on it.

---

The third game on the schedule was against the undefeated Egyptians. As the team was ready to leave for breakfast, a knock on the door occurred and Lily partially opened the door and immediately shut it.

â€�“It’s the guy in the leather jacket. You know the ugly, mean man.”

â€�“Lily, he can hear you through the door! Let him in,” shouted her mother.

Lily re-opened the door and the man with the black jacket entered. Through the door Scorpius, could see that a Chinese man waited outside. Scorpius’ eyes followed the tall man as he entered the study area, he was not angry. However there was an all-business air about him.

â€�“I need the coaches to accompany me to the Headquarters. I hope to have you back in a half an hour.”

Coach Devon was not happy. â€�“What’s this about? We are going through pre-game preparations for our match against the Egyptians.”

â€�“We will be collecting all of the coaches for this meeting.”

Mrs. Potter, looking at her sons, asked, â€�“Can we dismiss our team to the cafeteria?”

â€�“No,” the man’s answer came out a bit strong. â€�“All players must stay inside until the meeting is over.”

Devon and Mrs. Potter met eyes. Scorpius instinctively found Rose, who was looking back at him. For a whole two seconds, he forgot how mad he was at her. When he remembered he turned his gaze toward Albus. Albus had been looking at the two of them watching each other.

After the coaches left with the security man, the gossiping began in their wake.

Geoffrey announced to the group. â€�“I sleep by the wall and I had the window open for some fresh air. I woke up thinking that a lightning storm was happening. I saw flashes and heard whooshing sounds.”

Lily interrupted Geoffrey, â€�“Something woke me up for a second, but I just rolled over.”

Albus looked at Scorpius and silently mouthed, â€�“Wand battle?”

Scorpius shrugged and the two boys looked at Rose. She caught Scorpius’ eye for a second and turned toward her cousin. She nodded in agreement. If they were right, the only question was who had been part of the fight and where it had occurred.

James had the last word, â€�“At least my mum and Kitty-Kat can’t blame this on me.”

Kaitlin had a smile that said â€�“Just give me time…”

---

The coaches hadn’t been together as a group since the opening bonfire. Baum looked at the group around, took a deep breath, and nodded toward his assistant. The man in the back leather coat returned his nod.

â€�“Last night at approximately two twenty in the morning, local time, one of our security detail found a trail of fresh footprints coming from the surrounding woods toward the ACE camp. He notified the supervising agent and followed the trail. My assistant ordered a second agent to help the first agent. The first agent saw the person he was tracking was trailing a third party. Just outside of the Egyptian compound, the two intruders began a battle. When my agent arrived, they both turned on him and he was wounded. Sometime after my second agent arrived, the two both attacked and wounded him and then disappeared. It looks like they both Disapparatted.

We have strengthened the spells to not allow any such exiting of the facility. I did procure from my man the following memories. The NAMED agent waved his wand a giant Pensieve appeared on the desk. The memories were poured into the wispy waters and after a wand was waived a dark image appeared. Two men, one was a Caucasian wearing brown/green Muggle military style jacket and the second a darker skinned man in a green robe, fired their wands, jumped and dove in the throes of major combat. Ginny, from personal experience, saw that these two were mid-level Auror training or better. She noticed something odd on the collar of the green robed man and focused in closer.

The agent noticed her movement, â€�“A problem, ma’am.”

Ginny raised her hand out and concentrated on the green collar. In the red flash of a spell she got a good look. She summoned a sheet of paper and pencil from the desk. As she continued to follow the green robed man, she drew what the jewelry on the collar looked like. The man in the military style camouflage took a hit from a NAMED agent. He tore his fatigues and made a bandage out of it. The man’s undershirt revealed another symbol. However, she choose to ignore this good symbol.

When the memory was complete, the other coaches talked amongst themselves. Ginny heard phrases about cancellation and departing home. However, the leather coated man just silently waited for her. Ginny looked him in the eye and said, â€�“The man in all green had this symbol on his right lapel.”

She lifted the paper toward the agent, but angled so all could see. The scribbled image on the paper showed a circle with a knife blade in it. The knife handle turned into a stick or a wand like object.

â€�“We noticed, thanks.”

â€�“Yes, but have you ever seen it? I did once on a criminal that my husband’s men brought in.”

â€�“Is your husband a private security wizard or something?” The man’s voice had just enough condescension to sting Ginny’s pride.

â€�“No, my husband is the Head of the Auror Office of the United Kingdom’s Ministry of Magic. I expect your boss or his boss has had contact with him.”

â€�“Aurors, huh?! I’ve heard they’re pretty good at what they do.”

Devon hooked Ginny’s arm in middle of a step towards the man she didn’t remember starting to take. Devon continued, â€�“I think what Mrs. Potter is saying that perhaps if you contact her husband’s office, they could aid in your investigation.”

Ginny heard Andropov stage a too loud to miss whisper to his assistant. â€�“Of course, England is the cause. If they had only listened-”

The Egyptian assistant coach turned to Baum, â€�“I think that Coach Andropov may have a point. If these interlopers had not been intercepted by your security, who knows what damage they might have done to our players. I must protest this upcoming game.”

Now, it was Ginny holding back an angry Devon.

The soft voice of a familiar willowy dusky skinned woman spoke up. â€�“Mr. Baum, as the head of the Egyptian team, I withdraw the protest. I’ve know Coaches Devon and Potter since their World Cup days. While the intruder may or may not be English, I know he was not acting on the coaches’ behest. And if there is no other news, I’ve got a team to get ready for a tough match.”

Baum seemed relieved by the graciousness of the Egyptian woman, â€�“Thank you, Coach Mounir. I am calling a delay in the start of all of today’s games to one o’clock local. Mrs. Potter, we will notify your International Sports Department to get the information from your husband.” Baum reached over to snatch the paper.

The Brits and Andropov were the last three left in Baum’s office. He glared at the pair and threw his hand up in frustration. When the Russian was out of earshot, she grabbed Bobby.

â€�“We need to get a message to Britain now. It’ll take at least a week for the Ministry’s bureaucracy to get back to us and I also need to contact Hoyle Grindus.”

---

One O’clock Pitch Two

---

Kaitlin was yelling as usual at James. However, it was not the usual just yelling at him for no reason, she had seen her Aunt Gwenog seated in the VIP area of the stands and was pointing her out to him. Scorpius didn’t care about retired players; he was searching to where he had been promised someone would be. He smiled as he saw a certain brunette sitting exactly where she said she’d be. She waved.

â€�“Who put a spring in your trainers?” asked Geoffrey following his gaze into the stands.

Scorpius made no attempt to answer him, nor did he try to hide his pleasure. He saw Rose was looking toward the far end of the pitch in the stands. As Rose stood on tippy-toes the lines of players passed each other. As the players shook hands, Scorpius eyed each one remembering Devon’s scouting report. The thin, brown haired girl shook his hand with a firm yet feminine grip. He was surprised by the length of her fingers. He could hear Coach Potter’s voice saying, â€�“Georgette-Salma Mounir is the adopted daughter of their coach. She’s the second best Keeper left in the tournament. Great hands, but has trouble making a strong release pass to her Chasers. We can intercept that or bottle them up because of that.”

Two square shouldered boys and a stocky girl shook his hands, â€�“Salah, Nazieb, and Said. Shayma Said tends to let the boys do the scoring. You could almost leave her alone in front of the hoop and she wouldn’t shoot. Essam Salah seems to rush his shots in the zone. Even if you can’t get to him, charge at him. Mustafa Nazieb is always on the attack. When the pressure is on he tends to play free lance. And he is dangerous when he free lances. He and Mounir have enough talent to go professional when they’ve grown.”

The Egyptian Beaters, Omar El-Adb and Ahmed Awad, were said to be nothing special. They got to all of the Bludgers an average player would get to and their shots were below average in power. After the comments, Devon had turned toward him and said, â€�“I want you to do for them what you did to the twins in the tryouts. They are undisciplined and you might get a couple of penalty shots for yourself.” The thought of scoring in front of the crowd or at least part of the crowd would be a dream come true.

The Seeker was a thin short young man. Scorpius doubted he was ten years old. â€�“Sherif Hassan, his father is a Muggle jockey, grew up racing horses, brooms, and rugs. He’s the first Seeker that will cause Rhys to break out into a sweat.” Hassan was so small, Scorpius wondered if he could ever hit him with a Bludger unless he was on top of him.

In the changing room, Coach Devon reminded his team, â€�“Egypt wins marathons. They’ve no great strengths, but no big weaknesses. They play like Gwenog Jones’ Holyhead Harpies, the offense uses Hawk’s head and defense the Harris Double Zone. The coach, Maryam Mounir, is as smart as the sphinx and twice as calm. We must play our game and let them frustrated us.” As he said that Scorpius noticed the Devon looking at him and Rose. â€�“Remember, it took them over se.en hours to defeat Argentina. They don’t care about fatigue. I mean, they practice in the Sahara desert, so what’s a summer day in a Maine forest to them.”

As they took their positions, Scorpius saw Rose waving to someone sitting at the far end. Federov must be here.

---

It took twenty minutes for the first goal to be made, Nazieb had dodged a Bludger from Geoffrey, faked Albus almost off of his broom, and while being sideswiped by a desperate Kaitlin, snuck a shot past Rose’s stretching fingers off the inside of the hoop and through. Scorpius had spent the opening minutes of the match intercepting Bludgers before they could get to Awad and driving them home at Salah (three times) and twice missing the incredibly nimble Hassan. Mounir, on the other end of the pitch, was catching everything. In the first hour the only goal that the U.K. scored was when Kaitlin suddenly found that she and James were alone behind the defense. The reason for the freedom was that Scorpius had hit Nazieb in the solarplexes, with a strike causing an opening for the duo. James shot deflected off of the side of the left hoop and bounced through. Meanwhile, Rhys and Hassan were doing aerobatics that made the crowd ooh-and-ahh with its speed and gymnastic turns.

At the two hour mark, Coach Mounir called a time out with the score Egypt forty and the United Kingdom twenty. Devon and Potter tried to keep up the energy of their team by taking turns talking loudly while clapping their hands together. They took turns praising the effort of each member of their team.

Rhys interrupted Coach Potter, â€�“Can’t someone get Hassan off of my back? No matter where I fly, he’s there too, I can’t get rid of him. If I can’t look, I can’t grab the Snitch.”

Coach Potter, ignoring the interruption, looked at Rhys and said, â€�“Don’t get rid of him. Take a position at the third of the pitch, stand on your foot holds and pirouette like Scorpius did that one time. You’ve got a half a foot of height on him, use it. If you don’t find it, sprint up to mid-pitch and try again. It’s what Viktor Krum did against me in the World Cup final. Use it!”

Rhys nodded accepting the advice.

Kaitlin, who had been quiet for five minutes (a near game time record for her), asked, â€�“If Egypt has the lead and is trying to wear us down, why call the time-out? We should be calling for time not them?”

Devon looked at Mrs. Potter. She both nodded her head and shrugged her shoulders in response. Kaitlin had asked the perfect question. The coaches knew Maryam Mounir and her requesting time out had caught them off guard also.

â€�“Five minutes, coach” said the American referee as she flew past. The two adults nodded.

Devon shrugged and answered the question as best he could, â€�“There’s either an injury that is not apparent or she’s changing tactics.”

Geoffrey looked confused, â€�“Why change? They’re ahead.”

Rose, for some reason, turned away and looked up into the stands. Scorpius was livid. They were losing and she wants to flirt with her Russian boyfriend. A light went off inside of his head, he began to speak about a half second before Rose. When he started, she demurred.

â€�“She’s worried. We are way better than she expected. She knows Rose will keep it close until Rhys captures the Snitch. She needs a big lead quickly. So, she’s shifting into the one tactic that she’s seen that we couldn’t defend. They’re gonna Flukegutter us.”

Rose chimed in, â€�“Aunt Ginny, I think Scorp is right.”

Devon half growled in response, â€�“Damn, it does makes sense. Now, we practiced our new defense at Puddlemere. I don’t want you to use it until they prove they can outplay our old defense. They can’t be as good playing it as the Russians. James and Albus, I want you to block for Kaitlin on any breakaways. Hit him hard and as close to a foul as you can. We can’t take a penalty; ten points might mean the game.”

The whistle blew and the young Brits flew into formation awaiting the new strategy of the Egyptians.

â€�“Rhys!” shouted Coach Potter. The team turned to see her pantomime pulling back a broom stick and turning a circle as an example of the movement she had recommended to him.

Scorpius shuddered. When the Russians ‘Flukeguttered’ them, he had cuts and bruises on his arms, legs and head. He was the point man; it was his job to give up his body to break up the formation for the Chasers. He looked over to the stands, but he could not pick Grace out of the crowd.

When the whistle blew, Nezieb tossed the Quaffle in bounds to Said. From the movement of the Beaters, it was obvious that they were getting ready to try the Flukegutter. Scorpius and Geoffrey were at the ready. As the play was being organized, they both spotted the Bludgers and raced to get into position. As Awad got in front, he was struck on the shoulder blade by a strike from Grindus. Awad, who was not ready for the blow, lost his balance striking his fellow Beater, knocking them off course. Scorpius had to adjust his angle when the Bludger moved up-pitch from him. As he started to turn to attack the Egyptian formation, he saw Hassan standing on his footholds stationary trying to block Rhys. Scorpius couldn’t believe his luck. Instead of swinging left as originally attended, he swung right and drove the ball into the small of the Egyptian’s back, knocking the boy off one hold and left him desperately gripping the footholds with his hands.

The strike was all that Rhys needed. Jones flew to mid-pitch looking wildly around and Scorpius saw him drive his broom into the middle of the slowly organizing Flukegutter attack. It was at that point, Scorpius realized he was supposed to at the point to defend the Chasers. Scorpius trailed Rhys keeping close behind him. As Scorpius approached Kaitlin and his position in line he saw the Snitch buzz past the girl heading toward the sideline. Rhys had almost collided with Said in his attempt to get to the Snitch. Rhys unexpected flight again disrupted the Flukegutter. However, Rhys came out of the crowd with no idea where the prize was. He looked frantically around until he saw Malfoy flying low toward the sideline pointing to his left. Rhys followed Malfoy with his eyes and regained the location of the target. As Rhys got up to speed, he heard Scorpius shouting at him and pointing above. It had to mean Hassan was gaining. Rhys put his forehead on the broomstick, his hands behind his back and his tiptoes in the holds. While this position gave him an almost perfect aerodynamic position, it left him easy prey to being jostled by a Bludger or an Egyptian. However, Hassan was too far away and the Egyptian Beaters were too busy leading the Flukegutter. Egypt scored just seconds before Rhys Jones grabbed the Golden Snitch with his left hand. The United Kingdom won one-hundred seventy to fifty.

When the third round was over the standings were: Brazil with three wins, United Kingdom and Egypt with two wins each and China and Argentina both with one win. In theory, they were tied for second however the way the schedule stood the U.K. would have to play the winless Cubans followed by Argentina, who had used the U.K. strategy to take down the Chinese. It would come down to Brazil vs. Egypt. If the Brits won out, they would need Egypt to lose to Brazil.

---

Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, London U.K.

---

Kreacher opened the door, allowing Harry Potter and Ron Weasley into the entryway. The old elf offered to take the umbrellas and rain jackets from the two men. Harry handed over their umbrella and his slicker. Ron did not.

â€�“Stay here, until I can summon my Master or Mistress.” As Kreacher began to walk away, they heard in a low raspy grumble, â€�“The blood-traitor Weasley is too good to give Kreacher his coat. He’s afraid old Kreacher would soil it. Kreacher wouldn’t take his dirty coat, if he offered it. No, sir, Kreacher would dump in the bin and good riddance.”

By the time Kreacher got near the portrait of Mrs. Black, Astoria came around the corner and looked down the hallway. She seemed to glide her way toward her two guests. While Harry had never really considered Draco’s wife much, he had always noticed how easily she could put on and drop whole personalities. Such ability was probably a highly desirable Slytherin trait.

â€�“Misters Potter and Weasley, how nice for you to drop in. I hope, you are not here on some ‘official’ business. I mean, nothing has happened to our children, has it?”

Harry shook his head in the negative and relief, for an instant, filled Astoria’s face. It was replaced almost instantly with the Hostess’ simpering mask she wore.

â€�“We are here on business. Didn’t Draco tell you we’d be dropping by?” Harry asked.

The mask slipped again for a second. â€�“No, he is so busy running the store that it must have slipped his mind.”

A knock came to the door behind the two visitors, Astoria now seemed really concerned. Harry knew that if Ginny had that look, she would be telling him off about five minutes after company left. He wondered if it was a universal expression that all wives get after a certain number of years of marriage.

â€�“Excuse, me.” Astoria stepped in between Harry and Ron to open the door. On the stoop stood Hoyle Grindus wearing black silk dress robes, white gloves, waist coat, diamond stick pin, diamond cuff links, and top hat. Astoria called into the ether, â€�“Krowker.”

The younger Malfoy house-elf showed up and began to collect Grindus’ coat, gloves and hat. Harry and Hoyle eyed each other. They both knew each other by reputation having only met briefly after Lucius rise to power at an out-of-the-way Muggle pub suggested by Grindus. It was meeting that both parties agreed for mutual protection to pretend had never occurred.

â€�“Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley, I assume.”

They both nodded. Ron spoke as he extended his hand toward Grindus â€�“We met while I worked with my brother George. George and my sister Ginny had developed the prototype of the Weasley Comet. You refused to negotiate with me.”

Hoyle Grindus sucked in his cheeks like he was mentally trying to place the incident. He shrugged. â€�“Don’t remember. I don’t deal with underlings. I only meet with people who can sign the final papers. No hard feelings, Weasley?”

Ron shook his head that there were none, but Harry had noticed a flicker of annoyance with Grindus at calling Ron an ‘underling.’ As the three began to follow Astoria down the long hallway, Draco stepped out of kitchen. Harry saw Draco trying to put away a pair of reading glasses into his vest pocket before anyone noticed them.

â€�“Ah, Hoyle, Potter, Weasley do come into the kitchen. Astoria, we will be plotting for about an hour. Could you have an elf bring us coffee, tea and those Weasley Ginger Snaps?” Draco gave his wife the biggest smile Harry had ever seen Draco give. Astoria seemed unfazed by his charm offensive. â€�“I promise that if we find a way to overthrow the Ministry, we will run it by you first.” He tried smiling again. She pursed her lips and turned her cheek toward him. Draco looked out of the corner of his eye at his guests and gave his wife a quick kiss. However after receiving her husband’s kiss, she turned into the kitchen as if to join the council.

Draco turned to the other men looking sheepish. Ron snorted at Draco’s embarrassment, showing Draco he was enjoying the predicament.

Hoyle spoke up, â€�“Astoria, we are going to being discussing tactics and strategies. Surely, you have something more interesting to do.”

Astoria sat at the end of the table in which she normally sat at meal time. Smiling, she pointed to the available chairs as if she was inviting the men to join her.

Harry and Ron sat. Draco hovered at the end of the table trying to get his wife’s attention. Hoyle would not give up, â€�“Perhaps, instead of staying, Draco could just take you to LeClaire’s in Paris and let you pick out a bobble or two. My wife loves shopping there.” Hoyle gave her a hopeful smile. He must have thought she was negotiating with them. Draco knew better.

The three younger men looked incredulously at each other. A bobble from LeClaire’s would probably cost an Auror’s annual salary.

Draco sat leaving only Hoyle standing. â€�“Draco?”

Astoria did not give her husband a chance to answer. â€�“I see a filled room with fathers and a grandfather, but not one mother. Now, if you can tell me that you could have this meeting at the Weasley or Potter’s home without including Hermione or Ginny attending please do. I will then contact them to see which side they would be on.” Ron and Harry were happy to sit this one out.

Astoria pulled out her wand and began playing the smiling hostess. She took requests and filled the cups of the men with tea or coffee. Everyone loaded up on the biscuits. Harry was surprised that they tasted exactly like Molly’s recipe.

â€�“I’m giving you forty minutes. I’m a busy man,” stated Grindus, as he put a silver pocket watch on the table in front of him to remind them all he and his time was much more important than their time was.

Harry hid a smile; it was a trick that almost every Slytherin barrister pulled when interrogation of their clients was going on. The meeting could take a half an hour or four it depended on the honesty of the participants. He thought an hour was optimistic.

Harry reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a folded envelope. â€�“I just received a letter from my wife in the United States.” Draco perked up, perhaps he was looking for news about Scorpius. Harry had said his opening while he was concentrating on Grindus. From the little reflexive swallow, he knew Ginny’s hunch had been correct.

â€�“On the night before the team’s victory over Egypt, a battle occurred in the very campground in which our family is staying.” Draco leaned forward looking at Harry like he was trying to take in every nugget of spoken or unspoken information. Hoyle Grindus sat like a stump.

â€�“Was anyone hurt? Why would someone attack our children?” asked Draco.

Harry let Ron reply. Ron liked to correct Draco and Harry let him, â€�“Oh, our caravan wasn’t the target of the attack. Egypt, the team they were to play, was.”

Draco looked properly confused. Grindus remained unmoving.

Astoria lifted her cup to her lips, but did not take a sip of her Earl Grey. She began talking over her tea cup asked, â€�“Could it be gambling? Maybe someone wagered a large sum on the match and is trying to ‘grease the skids’ for a U.K. victory?”

Harry and Ron caught each other’s eye. They knew she was sharp, but this was very intuitive. Ron spoke again, â€�“We actually thought of that and checked all known parlors (legal and not). No large sums have been bet either way on this tourney. The real gamblers don’t trust teenagers to be consistent enough to risk their gold.”

She nodded in response, but Harry could see her mind racing for a solution. Draco was still locked onto Potter. Grindus just looked down at the ticking watch.

â€�“An eyewitness’ memories were examined after the battle, and my wife noticed two interesting things during the replay. The first thing was that one of the attackers wore a pin shaped like this.” Harry held up a re-creation of Ginny’s original drawing which she had included in her letter.

Draco pulled the paper towards him. â€�“I’ve seen this, but I’m uncertain what it stands for.” He looked at Hoyle, who was ignoring the drawing, and slid it towards Astoria.

She reached over, took the drawing and scanned it. She pushed the paper back to Harry. â€�“I know this symbol well. I use to have one myself. During the year that Snape was the Headmaster, Pansy Parkinson designed and Blaise Zabini sold these as a sign of solidarity with the new Regime at the Ministry. The only buyers were Slytherins and very scared non-Gryffindors.”

â€�“Zabini?” asked Ron. â€�“Do you know where he is?”

Astoria responded, â€�“He and his family went to the Continent after the fall of the Dark Lord. I heard he had applied for a teaching post at Durmstrang and was turned down. He lives in some old Manor in Lincolnshire, I believe. I know his daughter is a Slytherin in Scorpius’ year. Why?”

Harry responded this time. â€�“Ginny described the man with the pin was a tall angler light brown skinned man. Sounds like your old friend Blaise to me.” Harry turned toward Grindus. The Malfoys had come through better than he had thought they would. Harry wondered about Hoyle.

Hoyle reached for his pocket watch as if to pick it up, as he asked, â€�“Is that why you called us here? So you could question us about an article of jewelry on someone’s collar?”

â€�“Yes and no. You see my wife noticed that the man fighting the man with the pin was wounded and when he made a bandage of an undergarment, the undergarment had the symbol of Comet Broomworks on it.”

All eyes turned toward Grindus, his eyes dropped to his left hand which held the open watch. Hoyle Grindus slowly lifted his eyes to look at Potter and Weasley and over to Draco. He ignored Astoria totally. He answered Harry’s charge to Draco not to Harry. â€�“Remember, what I said about Goyle and his threats to abduct my grandchildren last year.”

Draco nodded, â€�“You said something about as long as you have an ounce of gold, you would protect your own. Is that what you did? Was the wounded man someone you sent to protect the team?”

Grindus nodded silently. â€�“The wounded man is currently being treated at a company healer’s place just south of Holyhead. He’s been replaced by a new man, Gwayne Pierce. I can confirm to you from my man’s reports that the wizard he fought was Zabini. He found Zabini’s campground and he learned from a scroll that the man is working directly for Lucius. As to why the attack on the Egyptians, you got me? I can sense Lucius’ fingerprints on this, but I just can’t figure out what he wants.”

Harry looked over at Grindus. â€�“Of course, Ron or I will be given total access to the man as soon as the Healer was cleared him. So we can question him and maybe help find clues your man missed.”

Grindus looked perturbed for an instant and his look was replaced with that of a parent giving a present to a favorite child at Christmas. â€�“Of course, it would be against the law not to let you have access to him and I never would do that.”

Harry smiled at the mock sincerity of the man and took a long slow pull on his now lukewarm coffee. The Auror office and the two people he could trust that knew Lucius Malfoy best knew it was a plot but none could see what the plot was and how to thwart it.

Ron spoke up. â€�“We could add an Auror to the Grindus’ surveillance. Teddy maybe.”

Harry shook his head. â€�“The Americans would never allow our outside ‘interference’. And with the way things are with the Minister, we can’t just pull any Aurors off of the line to chase shadows in America. Besides, what happens if our man and Hoyle’s men disagree on what our orders mean. We could have our two men fighting each other and Zabini.”

â€�“Does the minister need to know?” asked Draco.

Harry nodded affirmative. As much as he disliked Lee, Lee was still the Head of State and Harry’s boss.

Draco leaned forward and sporting a sneer familiar from his childhood days curling on his lips, Draco’s long missing drawl re-appeared in his voice as he said to Harry. â€�“Even, if the visiting Auror was the father of two of the players and his Godson came along also to cheer for Britain in an International Quidditch match. What politician could deny a father’s permission to go and for that story to be featured in the Prophet.”

â€�“If it’s in the Prophet, won’t that tip of you father?” asked the Dolt Weasley.

â€�“My father knows the instant Harry leaves his office to go to the loo. Of course, the story features Harry, but Lupin is conveniently absent from the story. Zabini will follow your every move and the boy can coordinate with Hoyle’s man.”

Everyone around the table smiled and Ron Weasley said out loud, â€�“Good thinking, Draco.”

Harry was not sure which of the two men, Ron or Draco, were more shocked by the comment. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Astoria give her husband a very appreciative look.

The stands were crowded around pitch number one for the match between Brazil and Egypt; it was the pivotal game for the ACE group. The United Kingdom team had already won its final match. Now if Brazil won, the United Kingdom would make it to the semi-finals also known as the round of four. If Egypt beat Brazil, Egypt would take the tie breaker because they had been a previous group winner.

Upon his arrival at the campus, Harry and the omnipresent Daily Prophet people walked to the cabin that served as the Headquarters of the tourney. He had made a show of signing in and getting guest credentials while the photographer’s camera filled much of the office with purple smoke. After the photos were taken, Harry and his opposite number, Hayes, the head of the NAMED agents, went into the office of Tournament head, Baum.

Harry found the American was not treating his assignment as a police officer walking his beat (canvassing the area getting to know the neighborhood and the lay of the land), but more like a soldier protecting a base in enemy territory by strengthening and holding its perimeters. Harry stood up with a cup of brutal-almost-undrinkable coffee in hand and reviewed the map of the sentry search patterns used for campus security. He noticed they had not located Hoyle’s campground near a spring just west of the ACE group, his two treetop ‘safe house’ observation platforms just inside the woods, nor the clearing Zabini had been using as a base before the battle.

He gave the American a verbal summary of the four page report about the jewelry worn by one of the attackers. He even gave the man the name and history of the suspected attacker. He conveniently gave no information about the other man. Hayes was unimpressed.

â€�“So this man, Zamboni, is part of some British magical criminal organization, huh?”

â€�“Yes, Zabini is. He seems to be a low level operative. He could be here just to scout for further activities or to test your security for holes.”

Hayes snorted and shook his head slightly as he gave a blank stare back at Harry. Hayes did not or would not release anything from his investigation in return. Harry wondered if Hayes might be a distant relative of Minister Lee. The two men had much in common.

Trying to keep his frustration in check, he asked about the names and types of spells being used to divine the location of the source of the intruders and was told that information on a need-to-know basis and he didn’t need to know. Hayes continued use of that combative attitude and gave a quick ending to a meeting that could have otherwise been productive.

At the end of the meeting, Harry and Hayes released a carefully crafted statement to the Salem Inquisitor and Daily Prophet. The release praised Hayes’ security and thanked the United Kingdom’s Ministry for its rapid and full cooperation. The drafting of the statement had taken much longer than the actual meeting had. As the post-meeting photo opportunity drug on through a very uncomfortable ten minute frozen handshake, Harry hoped that Teddy was having better luck with Grindus’ man in the woods.

---

He actually bumped into his family on his way from the Headquarters to ACE camping area. Harry was walking, taking in the strange feeling of being enclosed by this pine woods and not Hogwart’s Forbidden Forest. He was almost to the flagpole sporting the Union Jack, when he was practically tackled from behind by Lily.

â€�“Daddy!” she shouted.

Almost wrenching his back to keep from falling face first onto the hewn lumber walkway, he hugged his daughter as he noticed his wife and sons in a full run towards him. As he gave Ginny a hug and a kiss a bit too romantic for the young company, he whispered in her ear. â€�“I need to meet with you and Devon alone.”

Ginny put on a pouty face. â€�“I was hoping to get you all alone. You know, somewhere where my brother or the ministry can’t find you.”

Ginny jumped as the unnoticed Prophet Photographer captured their second kiss for the front page of the gossip and celebrates columns with an explosion and purple smoke.

Undeterred, Harry finished the kiss. â€�“Sorry, this is a day trip and only publically unofficial.” He saw his wife’s disappointment.

Devon stepped in between the couple and the members of the press. â€�“Please, this is the first time in weeks that they’ve been together. Give them a chance to breathe.”

The man snorted as if Devon was joking by making his request. Devon reached over to Geoffrey Grindus and pulled the Beater’s bat out of the boy’s hand and ‘accidently’ struck the camera, knocking it to the ground.

â€�“Sorry, my fault.” The bat was deftly returned to Geoffrey and the team rushed into the caravan and Lily shut and locked the press outside.

Harry looked over at Devon and mouthed the word thanks. Devon smiled. â€�“I know how it feels, I was famous for about a week a few decades ago.” Devon jerked his head towards a door marked Office. Ginny practically pulled him through the door.

â€�“Gross,” said James.

Devon stood a few steps in front of the door to give privacy, but also to block access. Ten minutes later, the door opened and Devon was called into the office.

Inside the caravan’s office, Harry told Bobby Devon and Ginny most of what they had learned. The attack was by a wizard chosen by Lucius Malfoy, but the reason for it was unclear. Harry chose not to disclose the identity of the second wizard to Bobby.

With the security briefing done, the adults turned to yesterday’s victory. As Bobby began to describe the goals that Albus and James had scored in their last match, a knock came at the front door. A minute later, Scorpius knocked on the office door.

â€�“There is an old woman outside who wants to see Mr. Potter. Should I let her in?”

Harry cracked the door and told Scorpius to escort the old lady to the office. Scorpius was holding onto the old woman who was wearing a plaid shawl, walking hunchbacked and leaning heavily upon a walking cane. Scorpius stopped just inside of the door looking the room over. Harry recognized a recon mission from the dozens he had performed by the boy’s age.

â€�“Thank you, Scorpius. I’ll let you know when she needs to leave.” The boy turned on his heel and walked to just beyond the door. Harry pulled out his wand and cast a spell to ensure that all anyone on the other side of the door would hear was static.

â€�“Bobby Devon, I’d like you to meet my godson, Teddy Lupin.”

Devon was confused and began to express it when Teddy changed into his normal state. â€�“Blimey, I’ve never been around a Metamorphmagi before. It must be useful in your line of work.”

Harry cut across Devon’s comment and looked at Lupin.

â€�“Report.”

Teddy looked from Bobby and back to Harry.

â€�“Just the necessaries, Ted.”

Lupin nodded. â€�“I found the camp that the Americans couldn’t locate; it was just inside the woods and it has been abandoned for about half a week. I also found four or five places where the forest seems dead.”

â€�“Dead?” asked Devon.

â€�“No animal noises or places where revealing spells seemed to not reflect from.”

Devon seemed concerned and Harry wanted to belay the fears. â€�“Could be nothing. Perhaps the NAMED agents have a camp of their own or maybe the attacker sent up couple of hiding places where he could quickly disappear into later. Did you let the proper people know about these dead spots?”

Teddy nodded. The term ‘proper people’ meant Grindus’ new man, not Hayes.

â€�“How was the news accepted?” Devon asked, his tone was still worried.

â€�“Great, they will get right on it.” Harry nodded.

â€�“Now that doesn’t sound like him to me. He seems to very sure of himself and of no one else.” Harry returned a non-committal nod.

A gong sounded, Ginny and Bobby began to laugh at what they saw. At the strange sound both of the Aurors had pulled out their wands and were standing back-to-back preparing to repel an attack. Ginny reached out to touch her husband’s wand hand.

â€�“The Gong means one hour until the Brazil vs. Egypt match. We are all going to cheer for Brazil. Rose has even taught the teams some cheers in Portuguese.” Harry looked into his smiling face and fought the urge to ask her to stay behind with him.

â€�“Well, let’s go. Teddy?”

Lupin was already changed back into his guise of the old woman when the Malfoy boy showed up. As the pair walked across, Harry bit his tongue to not laugh and give Teddy away. However, when Lily walked out of the girl’s room and saw the pair she ran to them and throwing her arms around the old women’s neck shouted, â€�“Teddy! What are you doing looking like that?”

Totally busted, Lupin pulled off his shawl and morphed back to his real shape. As the gasping died away, Ginny rushed forward.

Mrs. Potter waved her hand to hush her team. â€�“You must keep this silent. Teddy came here to try and find the wizards that almost got us kicked out after the Egyptian fiasco. No one can know, promise?”

The team, still murmuring about the old woman who became a man, all nodded in acceptance. Teddy stripped off his dress and old lady shoes and joined the team as they headed for the pitch.

When the team got to the stands, Harry noticed something odd about the seating arrangements. A boy, he did not know, speaking with a Balkan or maybe Russian accent, came over to talk with Rose. After they talked, the pair moved down a row and to Harry’s left. At the same time Scorpius Malfoy began waving toward two girls. The young females, both dressed in yellow sun dresses, and constantly talking to each other, left a large group and moved towards Scorpius. The girls stopped half way between the United Kingdom team and a group wearing red, white and blue. The pair was quickly joined by Geoffrey Grindus and Scorpius Malfoy to his right.

Harry turned to ask his wife about all of this; when she, having watched his head swivel back and forth, interrupted his question. â€�“Don’t ask. Let’s just say there has been more than just Quaffles in the air around here.”

Harry looked from Rose coyly holding hands with her ‘date’ to his left and Scorpius feeding popcorn to the girl on his right. He thought, â€�“I’ll have good news for Ron when I get back.” Ron, unfairly to Harry because he was a good kid, disliked Scorpius on principle of his lineage. Harry’s next thought was if Ron would send an Auror-in-training to hunt down the identity the boy who had stolen his only daughter’s heart. Harry’s third thought was finding Lily and making sure no boys had moved in on her. He was glad to find his ‘princess’ sitting between James and Kaitlin. Lily had a glint in her eyes that meant she was up to no good, but as a little sister, the look was common enough to not make him worry too much. A thought came to him. In two weeks, his little ‘princess’ would have a wand of her own and be boarding the Hogwarts Express to go off to school. He wondered where all of the years gone to. He also couldn’t believe how fast they had flown by.

Without looking, he reached to his right to find Ginny’s hand and squeezed it. When she turned to look at him, he leaned in and gave her a passionate enough kiss to get both of his sons to complain about it and Lily to snicker. When the kiss was over, neither he nor Ginny pulled back. It was only the whistle signaling start of play that stopped them from looking into each other’s eyes.

The Weasleys and Potters stood in a large group down Platform Nine and Three quarters from the Malfoy family. Draco looked over at them. Through the normal mayhem of full trolleys with owls hooting and parents hugging their children, he realized that both parties were almost exactly in the same places that they were two years ago before Scorpius’ first trip to Hogwarts.

Some things had changed in the intervening two years, Owain Jones and his family were now across the way and Geoffrey Grindus and his parents were waiting with his family. Standing just in front of him, Draco couldn’t help but overhear Scorpius and Geoffrey’s still excitingly talking about the twelve-and-a-half hour match between Egypt and Brazil. The final score had been the highest scoring match, so far, in the tourney. Brazil had defeated the Egyptians four hundred ninety to four hundred sixty. When the Brazilians won, so did the United Kingdom. Brazil had won the ACE side and Australia had won the BDF side. The second place teams advancing to the semi-finals were the United Kingdom and Russia.

As Draco eavesdropped on the boy’s conversation, he was amazed that the boys seemed to be talking about getting revenge against the Russians and not about the undefeated Australians who would be their first match.

Just as the boys were talking about which one of them would hit the Federov brothers with the most Bludgers, a family of four, lead by a tall girl, walked up to the two boys. Draco did not recognize the quartet, although he did think that he had previously seen the tall girl.

---

Scorpius looked up, grinned, and said, â€�“Crystal,” The girl gave him a scathing look and he quickly added, â€�“line.” She nodded and smiled at him. He returned her smile and realized introductions were needed. â€�“Crystalline Dragonherd, I’d like to introduce you to my U.K. Quidditch teammate, Geoffrey Grindus. He’s a Slytherin in my year. Geoffrey, Crystalline is a fifth-year Ravenclaw, my greenhouse partner, and the treasurer of the Herbology club.” Grindus smiled at the tall girl, but neither party moved to shake hands or speak to each other.

A short(about Lily Potter’s height), green-haired girl walked up to the group. Looking to her left at the other girl, Crystalline rolled her eyes as she shook her head. Sighing, Crystalline spoke, â€�“Scorpius and Geoffrey, my sister, Beatrice.”

The girl looked the pair of boys over, starting at their heads and finishing at their feet. Her mouth made an expression like she was disappointed. â€�“So you’re Scorpius Malfoy, huh? I expected you to be a lot taller, based upon what Crissy said about you.”

Scorpius looked at his friend and back to the rude girl at her side. He straightened up, hoping to add an inch or two to his advantage over the green haired girl. â€�“And I would expect a sister of Crystalline to be more polite than you are.” Scorpius found himself making a face at the girl until he caught himself. He waited for a parental protest about the face, but was happy that none came. As his parents crossed his mind, he knew what his mother expected him to do next.

Turning away from the sisters and toward his parents, he cleared his voice to get his distracted father’s attention and said, â€�“Mother. Father. I’d like you to meet Crystalline Dragonherd, my friend from Herbology club, and her short sister, Beatrice.”

Scorpius was pleased that his comment had caused his friend to smile and her sister to turn red in the face. Scorpius saw his father look at the girls and give them one of his patented silent, half-bows. For some reason, his mother felt the need to come over to greet the girls personally. She extended her hand toward them, starting with Crystalline.

â€�“Hello, Crystalline and Beatrice, it is so good to meet you.” Astoria shook Crystalline’s hand and continued, â€�“I’m glad to see my son has some friends that use their minds outside of the Quidditch pitch.” The tall girl smiled at the compliment.

Scorpius saw his mother eye the younger girl, â€�“That’s an interesting color, dear. Did you dye it or use a spell on it?”

Beatrice perked up at the attention, â€�“I dyed it.”

Astoria smiled and, with an almost wistful tone in her voice, added. â€�“When I was young I wanted purple hair, but my mum threatened to shave it all off if I ever colored it. It does make your green eyes pop. It was an excellent choice.”

Beatrice gave her sister a dirty look, but kept her silence. Next, the Dragonherd wizard father and Muggle mother were introduced to the Grindus and Malfoy parents. The adults passed the time in pleasantries. However, Scorpius noticed that his mother continued to be focused on young foursome.

â€�“All aboard!” shouted the Porter and suddenly Scorpius felt a vast pain of loss. For the first time, he was going up to Hogwarts without Jimber Dokes. He quickly sized up his options. He could walk over with Geoffrey and see if they could get Albus to ride, without Rose, up to Hogwarts, but he knew Albus would probably not ride with them without her.

He looked up into Crystalline’s eyes and asked. â€�“Crystalline, would you mind riding up to Hogwarts with us?” Scorpius jerked his head towards Beatrice. â€�“We’d even be willing to ride with her if you have to bring her along.” Beatrice’s smile disappeared.

Crystalline smiled at the dig at her sister and answered, â€�“Well, I’ve already agreed to ride up with Mariel Trout and Athena Lay. It will be up to them. We were going to discuss some changes to the rotation of the greenhouse partners, and how upper-class Herbology students can tutor the first-years in their greenhouse projects.”

Geoffrey perked up, a smile came to his lips, and he turned toward Crystalline, â€�“Athena Lay, the ginger Ravenclaw?” She nodded positively. â€�“She’s in our year, Scorp. I think it’s time that I learn more about Herbology, if you don’t mind if Scorp and I slip in a little talking about the Quidditch tournament.”

The two friends of Crystalline were waiting at the door of the third carriage. Scorpius noted the ginger haired girl and how Geoffrey went out of his way to compliment her on a really stupid looking butterfly shaped pin she was wearing in her hair. The three girls moved to the side, leaving the boys and Beatrice watching for clues about their fate.

After the conversation ended, Crystalline walked back to Scorpius, she said that the boys were on probation and if they talked too much about Quidditch they would have to leave when the trolley showed up. The boys eagerly agreed to the terms and Geoffrey maneuvered his way to be at the steps to help Athena up into the carriage. So with Crystalline leading and Beatrice trailing the way, the six had to search half of the way down the corridor to find an empty compartment for their ride together.

---

Great Hall of Hogwarts

---

Scorpius was talking with Albus about what they had been talking about in the Potter and Weasley compartment during their ride north. Just as he was about to ask if Rose had mentioned him, the name of the next person to be sorted pricked his ears.

â€�“Beatrice Dragonherd,” announced Professor Longbottom.

He turned in time to see the shoulder-length mop of green hair bounce as the eleven year old girl walked up to the stool. After a couple of seconds under the old pointy hat, it shouted, â€�“Gryffindor.” Everyone around Scorpius cheered, but he didn’t feel happy about it for some reason. He did cheer fifteen minutes later when Lily Potter added her name to the pack of Potters and Weasleys already in their house.

As he watched Lily sit down next to her cousin Rose, he realized he had not spoken at all to Rose. She must have felt his stare and she turned giving him an expectant look. He smiled at her, but could not think of anything to say. She continued looking at him until Lily whispered in her ear and she turned back toward her cousin.

Suddenly, he felt really alone. He had lost Jimber, who had to return back to his home on the Island, and he’d lost Rose to Denis Federov. No, that wasn’t true. Federov was somewhere a thousand or so miles east of here. Something had broken between he and Rose in America and he didn’t know how to fix it or what it would feel like if it wasn’t broke. Lost in thought, he watched Kitty-Kat and James argue about if James who would be selected as Prefect next year. Scorpius didn’t care.

In the corner of his eye, he saw Albus looking at him from the side. Albus cleared this throat, â€�“Scorpius Malfoy, I’d like to introduce you to my cousin, Rose Weasley. I think the two of you could become friends, if you’d want to.”

The weirdness of the comment caught him off guard and he turned to see Rose crack a smile. Scorpius had spent his whole first year at school without he and Rose being an ‘item’ and he had had fun being with her. She had been the first person to speak to him and Jimber on the Hogsmeade platform. He’d never been at Hogwarts without her being his friend. He couldn’t imagine that. He swallowed his pride and extended his hand, â€�“Hello, Rose, I’d like to try and be your friend.”

He saw a wave of relief sweep across her face. He had not noticed, until then, how tense she had been. She offered her hand palm down, the way his mother did when she expected someone to kiss it, and replied, â€�“Charmed.” It was the same expression, hand motion and response that she had said when they had first been introduced to each other two years earlier. He couldn’t help but laugh, and she smiled back at him.

The room seemed to lighten and Scorpius noticed Lily making faces at him. Down the table, a green haired girl laughed. He saw Lily turn towards Beatrice and the girls began to talk.

He and Rose might be friends again and that was enough, for now anyway.

Headmaster Flitwick rode a silver platter from the staff table up to the lectern which was emblazoned with the coat of arms of the school. â€�“Welcome to another year at Hogwarts. A year full of learning and growth are awaiting both you and our staff. Some students in the hall have a chance to become champions in both the classroom and the Quidditch pitch.” Scorpius looked at Albus and quickly toward Rose, his smile was matched by their own.

â€�“As many of you know, members of this school are among teams from four countries that will be playing for the World championship for their age group. The United Kingdom team includes members of three of our four houses, which shows that it is our differences are what make us strong. The finals will be held on Halloween week at the Salem Witches Institute in America. So the annual Hogwarts Quidditch tournament, will not be held in the usual fashion. The United Kingdom team will continue to practice as a unit under the control of their Captains Robert Devon and Ginevra Potter.” Murmurs could be heard through out of the hall.

â€�“That doesn’t mean that players who are not on the team will not get to play Quidditch. Coach Potter will take those who tried out for the team, but were left as reserves and other volunteers to play the role of the other three teams in scrimmages to be played on our pitch.”

The murmurs turned into excited conversations and some cheering as students imagined that they could possibly so impress the coaches that they might replace the members of the team and go on to win the World Cup.

â€�“This means that our school shall be hosting both Coaches in our school visitor quarters on weekends along with many other Quidditch personalities and Ministry Members.”

A moan came up from the Gryffindor table as all the idea of their mother or Aunt being constantly on campus, probably spying on them, sunk in.

â€�“After Halloween, the house Quidditch cup matches will begin on the last Saturday in November. Now, let me proceed with the normal warnings about trespassing in the Forbidden Forest-”

After the large and delicious meal, the male and the female Prefects lead Lily, Beatrice and other first years toward the common room. Scorpius followed Rose. Whenever they made eye contact they shared reassuring smiles, but they did not speak once until they said goodbye at the stairway.

---

Scorpius noticed that at breakfast things were still a little weird between him and Rose, but they were too busy to dwell on it. Albus, Rose, and he had walked down with their classmates Jenelle Gliech, Margaret Quince, and Harry Baird to the Great Hall. Abby Baird, as always, tagged along with her older brother’s friends, much to Harry’s annoyance. Harry was full of questions all about America and the people they had met there. On that latter subject, he and Rose failed to mention anything about Denis Federov or Grace Jackson.

After breakfast, Professor Longbottom handed out the class schedules. As the schedules were being distributed, Scorpius remembered that he had chosen to take a class that he didn’t really want to take. He had agreed to attend it just so he and Rose could be away from Albus and their fellow teammates. He had signed up for Arithmancy.

Scorpius looked down at his schedule. Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, he would start with Professor Longbottom in the Greenhouses, followed by Transfiguration with a new Professor named Hugh Benton, and Charms with Professor Rachael Garrett. After lunch, Care of Magical Creatures with Hagrid, and finally Arithmancy with Professor Vector. On Tuesday and Thursday, he would start with Defense Against the Dark Arts taught by Professor Dawlish, Divination with Professor Twelaney, History of Magic with the ghost teacher Binns, Potions under Professor Kettlebaum and Astonomy taught by Professor Sinistra. Every Thursday, he would also have double classes in Defense and Potions.

He looked at Albus’ schedule. They had the same classes, except Albus was taking Muggle Studies after Care of Magical Creatures and did not have Arithmancy. He next checked out Rose’s schedule, it was five full days of classes with only two open periods. She had all of his classes plus Ancient Runes in between Charms and Hagrid’s class. Rose’s two open periods occurred while the rest took Divination on Tuesday and Thursdays.

Rose looked over at Scorpius and asked, â€�“Could you sit with Kaitlin during the Divination classes? If someone doesn’t, she’ll get into trouble and that might affect her status on the Quidditch team.”

Scorpius nodded his consent. As they began their walk toward the first class, Albus whispered to Scorpius, â€�“Why do we have to babysit Kitty Kat? Can’t Jen or Maggie do it?”

Scorpius considered the question and answered, â€�“Maybe she doesn’t think that Jen or Maggie can force Kaitlin to do her studies.” He hoped that was the answer.

---

Azkaban

---

Ron Weasley stood guard next to the Portkey as Rory Smythe escorted Ares Pyter from the next- to-last security checkpoint to the last one. Ron noticed that Pyter had that same smug look that all criminals seem to sport when they figure they’ve got the upper hand against the system. A younger Ron Weasley would have taken a swipe at the smug S.O.B. to slap that look off of his face. One reason Ron did not do that was that, he was older and wiser about letting the perps have their moment of victory. Also, it was never a good idea to bounce a prisoner off a wall when you were escorting them to testify before the Wizengamot officers. Rory ordered Pyter to stop behind the yellow line and the prisoner did. If anything, Pyter’s smile was more annoying than ever.

Ron silently cast the spell that would detect any magical spells that would change the identities of either Pyter or Smythe. As he expected, they were who they looked like. Keeping his wand pointed between Pyter’s eyes, he took the man’s left hand and Smythe took the right. Ron touched the empty Scotch Whisky bottle (which was the Portkey) and Azkaban was replaced with the holding cell deep in the bowels of the Ministry. Ron tucked the bottle into his cloak pocket and he and Rory stepped back towards the door concentrating on their prisoner.

A female voice came from the other side of the door with a single word. â€�“Tonks.”

Rory answered with his part of the answer to the challenge statement, â€�“Nymphadora.”

The same voice restated the challenge, â€�“Tonks.”

Ron answered with the second half of the challenge, â€�“Lupin.”

A wand appeared through a slot in the wall near the door and it was pointing at Pyter. He sneered at all of their security precautions. The door slipped open and the two Aurors left their prisoner behind in the room. When the door clicked, Sarah Broomwright pulled her wand back through the slot and locked it and the door.

Ron gave Sarah, who was in her first week back from St. Mungo’s and a week’s rest at a Spanish beach, a nod and a smile. Rory looked past Ron to his usual partner.

â€�“Tell me, that you are cleared for patrol duty. Teddy Lupin is driving me crazy. The boy never shuts up.”

Ron smiled. Teddy did seem to talk a lot when he was being himself.

Sarah looked at Rory and said, â€�“I have to pass another battery of medical tests, before they let me out. Believe me, I hate this job much more than I do you and your stupid cigars.”

Both Aurors laughed at the inside joke. Ron missed that, from the moment he left working for his brother George and joined the Aurors, he had been partnered with Harry, who was already on the ‘Star track’ within the Ministry, being quickly and publically promoted up the ladder. Harry’s fast rise up the law enforcement bureaucracy had caused some mistrust from many of the senior Aurors towards their inexperienced boss. However, they couldn’t tell Harry to go f’ off, so Ron took the brunt of the discontent and jealousy from his co-workers who thought of him only as ‘Potter’s pet.’

As the two partners went upstairs to catch up on what had happened since her injury at Mold-In-The-Wall, Ron pulled his dead uncle’s pocket watch out of his waistcoat. They had a half an hour before they would have to transport the prisoner to a joint meeting of the Head of the Magical Law Enforcement and the senior members of the Wizengamot. Ares Pyter was a publicity prize as he was the highest ranking member of Lucius Malfoy’s inner circle that had yet to be captured. Pyter, who had been a low ranking Death Eater at the fall of Voldemort, had gone to Azkaban and been in the cell next to Lucius Malfoy for his whole sentence. After his release, Pyter had taken jobs hocking potions and charms from Kiosks in Knockturn and Diagon Alleys. He had become a reliable footman for the Fletcher crime family. He had been trusted by Lucius Malfoy to ‘get rid’ of Gregory Goyle. Unfortunately for him, the man Lucius had chosen to help kill Goyle turned out to be Teddy Lupin in disguise.

So for over a year, Pyter sat in an Azkaban cell under very flimsy charges. He could not be charged with attempted murder, because he had been arrested, by Teddy, before any actual attempt harm to Goyle occurred. Also many of the conspiracy laws passed after the fall of Voldemort didn’t seem to fit his case. After months of rotting on the prison island, Pyter was getting a day in court.

The fact that the hearing was going to be held in a closed courtroom at the end of the day on a Friday worried Ron. The only reasons for the closed court and the hearing on Friday was that Pyter was going to be released and they wanted the news to break after the Saturday Daily Prophet went to press. The Ministry hoped the news would be forgotten by Monday.

However, the Ministry did not want to give up their ‘prize’ prisoner and the Wizengamot felt they had no real case that would hold up under press and legal scrutiny. Ron shook his head knowing the compromise they would reach before the meeting occurred. The Wizengamot would get the case dropped, but it would be done on a ‘technicality’, something that Harry, Teddy or both could be conveniently blamed for in the Prophet. Minister Lee would then have a perfect chance to publically bemoan the sorry state of the Aurors and their leadership. Ron turned and opened the slot so he could stare at Pyter. Pyter would be home, a free man, long before Ron would get to be home to be with Hermione.

No, Pyter wouldn’t run home. He’d lead any Aurors that Harry put on him ragged for the rest of the day and in the wee hours of the night he would go to some predetermined safe place and pass along to Lucius Malfoy everything he had seen at Azkaban and in the security dungeons. Ron really missed the days when Hermione could just erase memories from lumps like this without bothering with ‘due process’.

---

Hogwarts

---

Scorpius looked at the last problem of his first Arithmancy homework assignment like it was written in ancient runes. Ida is a witch with a birth number of six and a Chaldean name number of seven. She is currently dating two different boys, Edward was born on August 28th and Gregory was born on November 20th. Use the Rowling compatibility table on page nine of your text book to answer which boy would make the better husband for Ida. Show all of your work.

Scorpius must have made a noise of some kind, because it brought both Rose and Albus’s noses out of the large text books that they had been studying. Rose looked over a Scorpius and said, â€�“Are you still doing the Arithmancy homework?”

He grimaced, knowing she had finished nearly twenty minutes earlier. He would figure it out. He wasn’t stupid.

Albus, sounding exasperated with him, spoke up, â€�“We’ve fifteen minutes before evening meal and after we have a meeting with Devon to run through our practice schedule. Can’t you ask?” Albus jerked his head toward Rose. The time constraints and the idea that Rose might be smarter than him made him even angrier. A sort of growl escaped from somewhere deep in his throat and he saw Rose half-hide a smile.

Rose lowered her Potions book, put a book mark where she had stopped reading, placed her elbows on the cover, hands cupping her head as she looked at him. He restarted the calculation. What threw him off was the last names of the suitors were missing.

Scorpius wadded up his scratched upon piece of parchment. He saw Lily and Beatrice playing, some sort of chanting, hand clapping game, in front of the large fireplace and tossed the parchment between their heads and into the fire. The two girls turned to find the identity of the thrower. Scorpius left his right arm extended in the air until they noticed. Feeling somehow vindicated by the very macho toss, he looked back to notice that Rose calmly still watching him. He accepted his defeat and the forthcoming humiliation.

He would not ask, he would explain. Less embarrassment that way. â€�“The problem as stated doesn’t work for Rowling’s table. I need the last names and years of birth for both of the boys. If there was only one item missing, I could express the answer in a formula with a variable for the missing item, but with this many missing items.” Scorpius hands flipped up above his head as a sign of exasperation.

Rose perked up. She seemed impressed by his observation. â€�“You’re right and that’s the answer.”

â€�“The answer is that there is no answer?”

â€�“No, the answer is that you can’t force a formula or theory to work when the available data does not match the required variables.”

Scorpius felt a smile of relief spread across his face. It was a non-answer answer. The deep buried Slytherin in him liked Rose’s solution; it was almost like he was cheating. He smiled and said, â€�“My mother would love that reply. She said too many of life’s questions have no real answers, only opinions pretending they are answers.”

Rose turned her head considering Mrs. Malfoy’s wisdom. She slowly began to nod in agreement to the comment.

A shout came from the table in the corner by the fireplace and Kaitlin’s Muggle Studies book glanced off James’ shoulder as he sprinted away from her. â€�“Rubber ducks aren’t real ducks dipped in ‘Indian Rubber’ to change them! They were never alive!”

James walked past his cousins and through an ear-to-ear grin said to Albus, â€�“I can’t believe she fell for that.” Continuing his laughing, James Potter left the Common Room, bouncing with each step that he took. The rest of the team began the task of storing away their quills, parchment and books into book bags, stood up, and followed James out of the door. Kaitlin was mumbling something about turning James’ whole head into a giant rubber duck.

Scorpius, Albus and Rose followed Kitty Kat, trying desperately to keep their laughter out of her earshot.

Returning to the Common Room after the two hour post meal meeting with Coach Devon, Scorpius pulled his quill, ink bottle, and Arithmancy homework parchment out to add the answer to the final question. He looked down in the space designated for the answer and found something already written in a very large, black ink letters. Scorpius Malfoy is a big, stupid troll .

Scorpius heard a peel of high pitched giggles from behind. He turned to see three mops of hair, one brown, one red and one green, disappearing up the stairs to the girl’s dorm. Pulling out his wand to remove the ink, he carefully considered what his next move would be. Maybe, James would have an idea about how to get back at them.

---

It was Thursday of the week before they were to leave for America. Scorpius was more exhausted than he had ever been during his three years at Hogwarts. Except for Arithmancy and Transfiguration, none of his other classes were challenging him. Although for about two hours on the first day of Divination class, he was really concerned when Professor Trelawney saw a Grim in his tea cup. When he was asked during meal why he wasn’t eating, he told Rose what had occurred earlier. Rose broke into laughter and she told him she had been warned by her mother that Trelawney’s penchant to see death omens during the first class. Rose’s news seemed to make the whole class seem like a joke, and he dismissed the class from his mind.

He found the long readings for Transfiguration and Potions were tiring, but interesting. He found that he was holding his own with Rose during the classroom discussions. However to help the others, Rose organized a required study group for the Gryffindor’s of Quidditch team just before evening meal to make sure Albus, who tended to procrastinate to the end of grading periods, and Kaitlin, who needed help in figuring little things out, stay up with the lessons. However, the daily reading group meant studying for another class had to be delayed until after Quidditch practices.

Arithmancy was giving him more problems than all of the other classes put together him. Rose had one more class than he had, plus the two hour nightly Quidditch practices – so she was also feeling the strain. So, as the only two Quidditch team members taking the class, they paired up to get through the homework in the few hours between Quidditch training and sleep. When he had signed up for the class, Scorpius had imagined the pair might be sharing late nights by the fireplace trading answers and kisses. Instead, they now spent hours discussing the properties of numbers and sympathetic magic in an uneasy partnership. Rose was still funny, very pretty and smart, but she was no longer ‘his’ Rose. At times when they would spend a half hour solving an extra credit assignment problem, he would forget and begin to lean in to kiss her before catching himself. Luckily, he had not accidentally embarrassed himself, yet.

Tomorrow, the Arithmancy assignment would be turned in and the third year players would also have to get the extra readings for their classes so they could keep up with the others during their ten day absence from school.

What made Scorpius feel the most depressed was that Denis Federov would be there on campus waiting for Rose somewhere, and he would have neither Grace nor Jimber to fill the void. The biggest issue caused by the tourney was not the extra readings or the practices, it was Lily Potter. Lily had told Beatrice and anyone else that would listen that she was going to America with the team. As for that, Rose was the only player to be on her side, James and Albus, tired of babysitting their little sister, wanted her to stay at Hogwarts. During a trip planning meeting, Lily somehow got in and threw a fit demanding that she go, because she was the team mascot. Without her, they would lose in the first round. Geoffrey Grindus pointed out to her that they had lost twice with her there so she was not a lucky charm.

The next day at breakfast, Grindus and a few Slytherins unfortunate enough to be eating near him were bombarded with scrambled eggs and syrup dropped on him by Peeves. Harry Baird later claimed that he had spotted Abby, Beatrice, and Lily talking to Peeves just a quarter an hour prior to the attack.

To end the turmoil on the issue, Mrs. Potter at the end of Friday’s meeting announced that, Lily was allowed to accompany the team. The hard look on her face brought a quick end to any further debating about her presence. When they arrived back in the Common Room, Lily, Abby and Beatrice ran up to the dormitory to help her pack for the trip.

---

Ministry of Magic London, U.K.

---

An owl arrived in the special owlery for priority messages to the Auror office. The receiving clerk, Travis Adams, untied the message and scanned a note from Scotland Yard. After reading the first few lines of the note, he tossed Floo powder into the small fireplace in the wall. Checking the work schedule of the senior Auror staff, he shouted into the fireplace, â€�“Harry Potter’s office.”

Out of the fireplace, Travis saw the woman sitting behind a desk. She jumped as the roaring of the fire echoed through the office. â€�“I’ve got an emergency notice from the Scotland Yard Liaison for the Auror office. It’s coded as a level one emergency.”

Travis saw the smoked glass office door to his right open and out walked Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley. Potter, moving quickly, went to the fire and said, â€�“You have a level one from Anthony Goldstein?”

Travis, his head still in the fire, bobbed in the affirmative. Harry reached into the flames and the man jumped back. Travis thrust the note into Potter’s hand and the arm retreated back through the flames and into the Head Auror’s office.

Travis stuck his head back watching Potter read the note. Without comment, he handed the paper over his shoulder up to Weasley. He saw Potter swallow and looking into the fireplace said, â€�“You did the right thing. Thank you, Travis.” And with that the fire went out in the fireplace.

---

Harry turned to his secretary and said, â€�“I need every Auror, including those on a level one assignment to meet me near the Tower of London. Alert all of those on holiday, they are expected to be on duty as soon as possible. And as soon as possible means, today!”

Ron Weasley walked over to the woman’s desk and added, â€�“Include Sarah Broomwright in your list of Auror’s to contact. We need everybody.” Ron looked over toward Harry and said only one word to sum up what he had just read, â€�“Wow!”

---

Salem Witches Institute Maine, U.S.A.

---

The caravan had just landed and the cheering stopped with the rocking of the camper. After the door was opened, the plump witch Kim Davis appeared in the door. Unusually, she did not speak as she entered. She actually shut and locked the door behind her. Bobby Devon stood up and started to address the woman when she pulled out her wand and blasted him into the wall. Davis next pointed her wand at Lily Potter’s head in a silent threat as she took a device covered with ancient runes out from under her robes and stuck in onto the wall. When she pushed a button in the device’s center, the windows were full of blue light and the caravan rocked.

Scorpius looked next to him at Albus and he felt sick. They were being kidnapped and the only person stupid or desperate enough to kidnap a caravan full of the families of Harry Potter and Ron Weasley, Quidditch heroes, and the only grandson of the richest wizard in all of Britain was his grandfather. Whatever the reason for the crime, he was certain he was the reason it had occurred.

---

Tower of London

---

Ron Weasley looked up having just finished calling the roll. A total of twenty Aurors had answered the emergency call to come to the Tower of London. The Aurors looked up to him waiting to be given a reason for the gathering or orders for them to follow. Ron had no orders to give. Harry had not arrived yet. The mumbling about the normal Ministry hurry-up-and-wait was just beginning, when Harry arrived to join his men. When they saw the look on his face, the murmuring began to die down. All eyes were fixed upon him, if Potter was here; it wasn’t some kind of a half-arsed drill. Harry looked out at the twenty and gave them a little wave of acknowledgement. Harry took a deep breath as he looked down to gather his thoughts before briefing his team.

After the call went out, Harry went directly to Minister Lee’s office to give him the particulars. Lee, as was his practice, made him wait for fifteen minutes before allowing him to enter. Harry pulled out the letter and began to give an update from the note he had received and the additional bits of information he had confirmed on his own. Lee, looking frustrated, quickly turned toward a small portrait in the corner of his office and told the wizard inside the portrait to contact the Muggle Prime Minister and that he would be there within the hour. Marsh Lee and Harry locked eyes and Harry saw an almost mad glint in the career politician’s eyes. He figured that if he hadn’t been ‘The Great Harry Potter’ he probably would have been sacked on the spot.

Ron handed the scroll with the roster on it to Harry. He pocketed the list and turned to face his charges. When Ron saw Harry’s face he leaned in and whispered, â€�“How bad did Lee take it?” Harry didn’t say anything, but the look on his face told Ron everything he needed to know.

â€�“No doubt, many of you have already heard the news or gossip about what occurred here late this morning.” The mumbling began amongst the Aurors. He let them have their little say and he slowly raised his hands palms out. â€�“I can confirm the worse and-â€�“. Harry stopped talking because from the back of the group, Anthony Goldstein wearing his perfect Muggle attire quickly strode through the group. Goldstein pulled Harry and Ron aside so he could brief the two.

â€�“I had to use a spell to convince the Yeoman of the Guard and MI-6 blokes that I was bringing in a special top secret SAS group that deals in international terrorist crimes. I have photos of what their uniforms would look like. I think your men should create outfits that will pass casual review.”

Ron looked at him. â€�“Do you think they will buy it? I mean the Muggle Press surely will be all over this.”

Anthony twisted his face and answered, â€�“I convinced the authorities that you need to keep your SAS unit identities secret, so you will be allowed to enter away from the press. I think that will mollify them for a couple of hours. After the spell wears off, I don’t know how much access you will have. I’m so sorry, Harry.”

Harry and Ron looked at Anthony who was looking crestfallen. â€�“The two prisoners that Malfoy’s men grabbed from Wandsworth Prison. One was a pickpocket that was chased through the bowels of the tower before his capture and the second prisoner had been a member of the military unit that guards the treasure tower. It was so obvious, how could I have missed it?”

Harry patted Goldstein on the shoulder. â€�“It’s not your fault, we missed it too.”

â€�“Yes, but I’m the Muggle expert. I should have put two and two together and anticipated the crime.”

Ron looked over at Anthony. â€�“Did they really get all of them? All of the Crown Jewels.”

â€�“Not quite. A scepter and sword were being cleaned and restored by the Crown Jewelers for an upcoming Knighting of a cinema actor and a few smaller items are on loan to an Egyptian museum as sort of a payback for all of the Egyptian artifacts we have in the British Museum.”

Harry asked the question he already knew the answer of, â€�“Are we really sure, it was Malfoy and not some Muggle mastermind?”

Goldstein reached into his shirt’s breast pocket and pulled his little Muggle electronic device out. After pushing a button and rubbing a finger across the glass a couple of times until an image appeared on the small screen. Harry squinted down and saw burned into the wall next to the empty display area was the phrase ‘Magic is Might.’ Anthony looked at his old school associates and answered the obvious, â€�“The military guards were all found dead in the Jewel House with not a mark on any of the bodies. The guards didn’t even have a chance to fire a single weapon in defense. Who else would have the audacity and ability to commit this crime and leave behind that message as a clue?”

â€�“No one,” replied Harry.

Behind Harry, he heard a wave of voices growing louder and angrier. He turned to see Aurors Adams and Sterling pushing a familiar light brown skinned man with high cheeks bones to the front of the group.

Zabini pulled his right arm away from Sterling’s grip. With a face full of distain, Blaise looked at the men in front of him. â€�“Potter. Weasel-King. Goldstein? My, it has been quite a long time.”

Harry ignored Zabini and looked for answers from Adams and Sterling. Sterling, the senior of the two, answered his chief. â€�“He walked right up to us and said he had a message for you from Lord Malfoy.”

Ron snorted as Harry responded, â€�“Lord Malfoy. Only the Queen can make someone a Lord, and I doubt she will after what he’s done today.”

Zabini’s smile was too quick and too large. Harry felt a tingle in his spine as the hair on his neck seemed to rise. â€�“What are Lucius’ terms?” Damn, this Lord Malfoy crap.

â€�“Come to the Gaunt shack and surrender. If you do it quickly and peaceably, he will ensure that you will get them all back alive.”

â€�“What? Get the crown jewels back alive-â€�“ Harry froze. He accidentally elbowed Ron as he thrust his right hand into his waistcoat’s fob pocket and pulled the pocket watch out. The lid opened and the face appeared showing Greenwich Mean Time was revealed. The Quidditch team would have been back in America an hour ago. Zabini’s look of extreme pleasure made something snap, he leapt on Zabini clutching the man’s throat in his left hand and shoving his wand into his temple. A voice, reflecting all of the fear, anger and frustration he was feeling, rasped out into one shout. â€�“What has he done with my family?”

Ron and Anthony pulled Harry’s hand off of Zabini’s throat. Zabini gasped for air for a minute. When he had recovered from the shock of the attack, he reached into his robe pocket and pulled out an item and opened. The small item included a mirror. After examining his neck for damage, he turned toward Potter and shrugged. â€�“That was all he told me. You have until midnight on all-Hallows eve to surrender.” Zabini looked at the men who had brought him to Potter.

â€�“I am expected back.” The man walked through the crowd of Aurors and disappeared.

Ron looked at Harry. â€�“You can’t surrender. He plans on killing you on the day to commemorate Voldemort’s first attempt on you. If he kills you, he’s proven he’s the new Dark Lord.”

Harry looked up at Ron. â€�“They have our families!”

Rory Smythe intervened. â€�“Aren’t they in America? How could anything happen to your children surrounded by all of that highly ballyhooed American security?”

Harry froze Rory with a stare and spat out, â€�“The same way Lucius Malfoy could steal the crown jewels out of the Tower of London full of Muggle military and protected by the best charms the Ministry could devise to protect them over the last three centuries and have no one notice.”

---

Harry and Ron gave the Minister of Magic a tour of the Jewel House. The glassed off area where the jewels had been acted like a vacuum that continuously seemed to draw their gazes back.

â€�“Well, Potter, what is your next step?”

â€�“Some of the gems are magical and one of the swords was definitely goblin made. We are having the Department of Mysteries and other Ministry experts try and divine the location of the magical objects.”

â€�“Minister, I must go to America and check on the safety of our youth in the Quidditch team.”

Lee looked shocked. â€�“No, you must stay and lead this investigation, yourself. If what this Zambini said was the truth, it’s up to the American’s to straighten it out. If you go it’ll be an international incident.” Marsh Lee squinted at Harry. Harry could almost feel the Occulmency occurring. â€�“If I even hear of an owl sent to America by anyone even remotely attached your office, you can send a second owl to me with your resignation.” Lee looked Harry up and down in disgust before leaving the room to report to his Muggle counterpart.

Harry and Ron looked at each other. Ron smiled at Harry. â€�“It’s obvious isn’t it.”

â€�“What!”

â€�“Lee told you to stay and run the investigation. He said nothing about me. Did he?”

Harry shook his head. â€�“No, it’s got to be me.”

Leaning in and whispering, â€�“Harry, it’s what Lucius wants. The timing of all this wasn’t an accident. You’ve been forbidden to go, I haven’t. Before you forget, they’ve got my Rose too!”

Harry felt so much blood rush into his face he half expected to see it leak out somewhere. â€�“I’m going. I’ve got to organize this somehow. Meet with Grindus, Draco, and maybe Bill, George or some of the D.A. You have to stay here and run the office or Lee will put someone like him in charge.”

At that moment pushing his way past the Aurors stepped Hoyle Grindus and the hired wand who Harry had interviewed about his battle in Maine. Grindus’ face was greyer than his hair.

â€�“Potter, they have my grandson! Lucius sent a barn owl saying wants half-a-million Galleons for his life! I tell you, Potter, I’m going to America and kill my old friend, Lucius Malfoy.”

Ron answered the angry, old man. â€�“Malfoy’s not there, he’s probably somewhere safe in England drinking stolen Brandy and smoking a pipe.”

â€�“Well, if he’s not there when I rescue the kids, I’ll Crucitatus every minion of his, that I let live, until I get to Malfoy and I will personally squeeze the last breath out of his worthless blonde corpse. Draco is joining me. Potter, I’ll let you know where to safely pick up the kids and also where the kidnapper’s corpses can be found.”

Without missing a beat, Harry added, â€�“I’m joining you.”

â€�“No! I’m not going to be following Wizengamot rules of niceties or proper evidence. I’m busting down doors and letting all forms of magic flow. You’re a Gryffindor, Potter! You best leave this to Slytherins, because this is a job for Slytherin-style justice.”

Speaking in a hard, flat voice, Harry looked Hoyle in the eyes and said, â€�“I’m going, because you might need me to run interference with the Americans and he’s got my family. I’ll be damned if I sit behind a desk and let someone threaten my family.” Turning toward his best friend he added loud enough for all of his men in the Jewel House to hear, â€�“I place you in charge of the investigation, Auror Weasley.”

Harry walked up to Grindus. The two men looked into each other’s eyes measuring. Grindus shrugged and said to Harry, â€�“I’m paying the bills and I’m in charge. If I have to fight you and the kidnappers I will, Potter. Do you accept my conditions?”

Harry silently nodded not looking away or quibbling with the man about tactics. Hoyle grimly patted him on the shoulder and they joined the hired wand to leave the Tower of London and the lawmen behind. As the trio walked out of the tower, Sarah Broomwright arrived putting on the fake Muggle uniform. She stopped when she saw Harry.

â€�“Auror Broomwright, ready for duty.”

Harry smiled, jerked his head over his shoulder towards inside the tower and said to her, â€�“Report to Auror Weasley, he’s in charge for now.”

â€�“Sir?”

â€�“Do as you were told, Sarah.”

The young woman straightened up and entered into the Tower. Harry looked to Grindus.

â€�“Where to?” Grindus clasped Potter’s arm and they disappeared from London and reappeared in an office. Draco and another man (that Harry did not know) were placing items into a small bag that was resting on a large work table. When Draco saw Harry, he was not confused by Potter’s presence.

Draco walked over to Harry and they shook hands. â€�“I told Hoyle, that you’d resign before you’d let someone else go on this mission. Did you resign, Harry?”

Harry gave a slight shrug and responded to Draco. â€�“Not yet. However, when news gets out about this I assume the Minister will save me the trouble.” Draco nodded and went back to his packing.

A map of the area of the campgrounds sat on the desk. Harry reviewed it.

The decision of family and duty versus a job had been so easy. What good is a job, if you have no one to go home and share it with those you love? He saw the smug face of Zabini. He hoped Zabini was in Maine. In his mind’s eye, he saw Lucius wearing Blaise’s cocksure smile. He reached into his pocket and clasped his wand.

If they’ve hurt even one of them, Hoyle Grindus will have to run to beat me to the throat of Lucius Malfoy.

---

Outside of a cabin near Oxford, Maine, U.S.A.

---

Harry was the last of the prisoners to be led out of the cabin towards the gigantic, black, motorized vehicle. As he approached the vehicle, he saw that, from the outside, the vehicle looked like a cross between a Muggle military lorry and one of those toy cars which can also turn into a robot, like the ones that Dudley use to attack him with while he lived at the Dursleys. A N.A.M.E.D. agent used his wand to direct him up towards the entry ramp in the back of the vehicle.

Harry turned his head to the side and squinted as he walked up through the tsunami of light that flowed down the ramp of the lorry and into the dark pine forest. As he reached the top of the ramp his eyes finally became adjusted to the overload of light, he saw that the inside of it had been magically enlarged to an area larger than the Auror’s office largest conference room. As he walked in front of the guard, he could hear their footsteps clank on the metal floor plates. The other N.A.M.E.D. agents sat on a row of seats that faced the ramp and beside each man was a Muggle automatic weapon. Responding to a nudge by one of the trailing guards, he proceeded to his left towards a spot next to Hoyle Grindus. Grindus’ gaze met his and they silently nodded at each other.

As Harry sat on the cold, hard metal seat, the trailing guard snapped Harry into his seat using the shoulder and lap restraints. He looked across the area to where the three kidnappers were seated. They wore grey metal shackles on their wrists and ankles which had a chain connecting their arms and legs together. A chain also ran between the trio’s ankles connecting them together as one unit.

He repeatedly tried to catch the eyes of his capturers to gauge their reaction to the rescue team, but the Americans wore plastic bubble helmets with a dark glaze on the face shield to block any eye contact. The style of the uniforms and vehicle confirmed Harry’s first impression of his American counterparts. They were wearing the trappings of soldiers not of peace officers. They were ready for straight forward threat repression and that meant that they were even less prepared to take on a patient schemer like Lucius Malfoy than he and his office was.

Grindus nudged Harry, in the side with his elbow, and in a soft voice said, â€�“We got them out alive; all of them, except Devon. The first time I met him was when Comet was chosen to supply the brooms for the team. He told me if I thought I was buying a place on the team for my grandson; I was mistaken. He was a good, honorable man. He deserved a damn lot better than he got.”

Harry nodded in agreement as he watched the kidnappers. Looking past a week’s worth of beard stubble, the middle kidnapper looked vaguely familiar. Harry wondered why it had only registered now. He locked on to the other man’s face, not varying his stare. As he held his gaze, he noticed the other man flinch before looking up from the floor to face him. Smiling at him, Harry said, â€�“I don’t remember your brother Marcus being as nervous as you are. Perhaps he didn’t have such a guilty conscience, Tiberius. Of course, Marcus was twice the Quidditch player you were.”

Tiberius Flint tried to rise up until his shackles held him in place. The dark skinned American guard, sitting with a Muggle gun on his lap and a wand in his left hand, looked over at Harry and his shout was muffled by the bubble helmet, â€�“No talking between the prisoners.”

Harry nodded and smiled, knowing it would infuriate Flint. He nudged Grindus, who looked at him. â€�“Hoyle, with your powerful team of barristers and hundreds of millions of Galleons for bribes, we’ll be home in what, three days maximum.”

Grindus was, at first, confused the Harry’s statement, until he looked over to the obviously nervous Flint. He understood. â€�“If I spend two more nights in this foul country, I’ll fire my whole legal staff. Tomorrow, we’ll be free by supper time tomorrow at the latest.”

The American guard snorted. Harry didn’t care; the Yank wasn’t the target of this little charade. As he kept his eyes on the kidnappers, Harry talked to Hoyle, but loud enough to be overheard.

â€�“Too bad for them, if they ever do get back home I give them two or three hours before old Lucius leaves them floating face down in the Thames.”

Flint grunted, showing Harry a very combative face. Harry hid the smile. He had him hooked. If the trip was long enough, Flint would be delivered to the Americans singing like a lonely spring robin.

Harry leaned forward towards Flint and lowered his voice. â€�“Ares Pyter, takes the Malfoy boy, and leaves you lot alone with the other prisoners. And within minutes, we and the Americans all arrive at the same remote cabin with wands drawn.” Harry shook his head knowing that a silent derision would hurt Flint’s pride more. Also, the silence would let the truth of all he said sink into the skulls of the other men.

One of Flint’s men whispered something to him. Flint nodded and shouted, â€�“Go bugger yourself, Potter.”

The hired wands of Grindus laughed at the weak retort. Flint’s face went from a light grey to a bright red.

Harry, not knowing how long they would have before the trip ended or the guard silenced him, went for the kill, â€�“Pyter left behind a path for us that a blind man could follow. He led us straight to you. And just after he left, these American blighters showed. I’ll bet you brass Knuts to Galleons they got an owl or something from an unknown source fingering your exact location. Lucius chose you for this mission so you could come to America and die. So, if you do return to England he will assume you turned coat on him and kill you. And if you didn’t turn coat, nothing lost for him.”

The trio of men in shackles twitched in unison.

A blast of red sparks shot over Harry’s head slamming into the wall of the vehicle, causing a mild metallic ring. â€�“I told you no talking to each other. The next time it will strike home.”

Harry gave a slight bow of his head to the guard. He had planted the seed, let the American’s take the credit for breaking the prisoners. The kidnapping had been a trap within a trap within a third trap. He marveled at the way Lucius’ mind worked. If the kidnapper henchmen didn’t kill him, maybe the Americans would and even if he survived he would be the source of an international incident that would probably cost him his job and undermine Lee’s popularity when the reason Harry had gone to America were made public. And if Lee tried to muzzle the Prophet, Harry didn’t doubt Lucius had a scheme, already in place, to spread the story via owl post or the Wizarding Wireless.

Lucius got to disrupt the Auror Office, weaken the Minister of Magic and he got the Muggle crown jewels as a bonus. For the first time since the battle in the Department of Mysteries all those years ago, he felt outclassed by an adversary and in over his head.

A countdown from the front of the vehicle began. The deep southern accented voice echoed through the large vehicle and after one, the vehicle rocked as a Portkey like device was triggered. Harry wondered where in America they would arrive.

---

Oxford, Oxfordshire, England, United Kingdom

---

Draco had arrived at the Ron and Hermione Weasley house just a few miles north of the university to find it empty. Draco had approached the door after waiting for almost ten minutes to see if he had somehow been traced by his father’s men to here. Harry had trusted him with the secret counter spell passwords to get to the Weasley door. He marveled at the easy trust of Potter and, because of his sacrifice didn’t want to let him down.

He knocked at the door. No one answered and no lights appeared in the windows. Draco slipped back through the security spells and returned to his observation point. With Harry in the States and the crown jewels stolen, the dolt Ronald would probably be on duty. Where would Hermione go, during a family emergency like this one? Her Muggle family? No, Lucius probably had them watched. She wouldn’t endanger them. She would go to The Burrow with rest of the Weasley clan to await news.

Draco thought about the abandoned mill on the edge of Ottery St. Catchpole and spun on the Oxford street. He stepped onto the country lane less than half a mile from Weasley home. He had been to the Burrow only once and during that visit he had to disarm the whole family to get them to listen. As he approached the line of trees which hid the oddly shaped building from the view of the drivers on the motorway, he wondered how he should approach the building. With the kidnapping, he was certain that he had already triggered some protective warning spells. He hoped Hermione was in charge. If Ronald or George was in charge he might be in big trouble.

After a ten minute walk, he stood outside the gate. He pondered tossing pebbles at the house, like some besotted lovesick teenager, to get someone’s attention without him getting blasted. As he thought about it, in his mind’s eye he pictured Ron or George Weasley laughing at him from behind a window inside of the house. Anything would be better than that.

He decided the direct way was the easiest way to be noticed and would cause the least number of chances for his motives to be misunderstood by the inhabitants. As he touched the top of the gate, he heard a sound at the corner of the house.

He began speaking in a voice only slightly louder than a whisper, but hopefully not loud enough for spying ears to hear. â€�“It’s Draco Malfoy. I’ve come from America with instructions from Harry Potter.” A twig snapped to his left and he twitched, starting to go for his wand which was in a sleeve holster. He did not follow through. He had to enter unarmed, just in case Granger was not here.

The voice of a young female came from the bushes by the house and Draco was suddenly blinded by the light from a wand. He threw up both hands to block the beams and to show whoever it was that he was not carrying a wand. â€�“Step forward through the gate, take two paces, and drop onto your knees with your hands up over your hands.”

â€�“Really, girl! This isn’t some fool drama on the Wizarding Wireless; I have messages and if Hermione or Ron is not here, tell me where they are. Potter’s messages are already an hour old and getting older, so let me in, kill me, or send me wherever the hell Granger is!”

â€�“It’s okay, Victoire. Only the real Draco Malfoy is dense enough to think calling me by my maiden name is clever.”

â€�“Granger…” he saw her in the pale moonlight standing, wand drawn, behind the girl. Hermione’s face looked quite drawn and from there, flashed a pair of angry eyes and pursed lips; he changed his tack in mid-sentence. â€�“Mrs. Weasley, Hermione, I’ve news about the children and instructions for you and Ron from Potter, who is a prisoner of the Americans.”

â€�“Harry is captive and you are free? Did you sell him out, Draco?”

â€�“No! Let me in, every second we waste Harry’s position grows weaker, my father grows stronger and Scorpius is farther away from rescue and home.” As he said that, the fear and adrenalin that had been fueling him since the beginning of the rescue attempt seemed all spent and he almost tipped over his own feet as he walked toward the building.

The quickly downed shot of Fire-whisky brought Draco back to his full senses. He looked across the table to see Bill and Fleur Weasley, their daughter, Percy Weasley and Molly and Arthur Weasley who were in discussion with Hermione standing next to Arthur, George Weasley, Luna Scamander, and, in the fireplace, the apparition of the head of the dolt Ronald. Draco exhaled. He could now give his messages to the pair and tell them the story.

Looking at the elder Weasleys, Draco said, â€�“I have special instructions for your youngest son and his wife from Harry. Let me relay them, and I’ll tell you all I know. However, this is my first stop of the night. I must go to Wimbourne to notify someone of what has occurred and then to my wife. Auror Weasley, could you meet me at the Visitor’s entrance to the Ministry tomorrow at nine in the morning?”

â€�“Why?” asked Ron.

â€�“So you can arrest me as an accomplice to murder and expedite my deportation so I can stand trial with Potter in America.” The room went totally silent except for the soft flicker of the flames which supported the visage of Ron. Draco was surprised by the extent of the shock on Ron’s face. The silence went on for almost two minutes and he felt the weight of his head causing it to droop toward the checkered table cloth.

Draco extended the shot glass into the air in front of his bowed head and Arthur’s wand flick re-filled it for him. Draco sipped this glass and said to answer the important unasked question. â€�“In our rescue attempt, three died. â€�“ Molly abruptly inhaled and began to tremble; half of the members of the team were her family. Draco realized his mistake and physically and verbally reached out to her, â€�“Dear lady, none of your kin, was physically injured. However, I fear there was great emotional trauma done.”

Molly let out a whispered thanks to God or something. Hermione focused on Draco and asked, â€�“Who died then?”

Draco paused trying to figure out how to get this over with as quickly as possible. He’d tell them the story and ignore questions until later.

â€�“When we first got to the cabin that they were being held in, we put a spell on the door so we could hear what was happening inside as we were getting organized to strike. We heard one of the kidnappers asking a weeping Lily Potter, to choose which of the other children they should torture instead of her. When Harry heard that, he impulsively blasted the door open. The kidnapper shouted something and pointed his wand at the children grouped around Ginny. Coach Devon charged the man’s wand and took the whole ‘Killing curse’ in the chest. Gwayne Pierce, one of Grindus’ the hired wands, did the same to the man who killed Devon. A second kidnapper set a fireball into the face and body of Pierce. It all happened in front of the children.”

â€�“So how did Harry get arrested?” asked Ron from the fire.

â€�“When Pyter removed Scorpius from the cabin, he must have contacted the Americans. We were just getting ready to bring the team safely back home, when the Americans announced they had the place surrounded. Harry ordered the rest of the rescue team to surrender. He gave me this and told me to give you his messages” Draco reached into the magicked rucksack grasping some tent poles before finding the heavy cloak. He pulled it out. â€�“He told me to give this to you.” He offered the Invisibility cloak to Hermione.

She quickly examined the looking for whatever, she found nothing and turned back toward him. â€�“Why me?” Draco shrugged in answer to her question.

Ron had the next question, â€�“What did you mean, when Pyter removed Scorpius?”

Draco took another sip of the whisky. â€�“According to Ginny and Rose, Ares Pyter put his wand to Rose’s head and told Scorpius that he would kill her unless Scorpius went into the back room with him. The two went through the door into the back room and were never seen again. I assume, he had an illegal Portkey or a form of Side-Along-Appartion occurred. They still have my son. No! HE has my son.” Draco searched through the faces full of pity and empathy, it made him sick. He looked at Hermione and said, â€�“Don’t you see, my father did all of this to kidnap my boy. And who knows what number of Unbreakable Vows he has made my son take or what type of brain washing has been done to him.â€�“ Draco downed the last dram of the whisky and lowered his gaze to the tabletop. When he looked up, Arthur had slid the whole bottle next to him. Draco looked at the bottle, and wet his lips. The drink seemed to be calling for him to take it and drown his problems, but he saw his father holding a wand on his son and reached over to the table picked up the stopper and placed it back in the bottle.

â€�“Please, let me pass on my messages. I have two more stops. Ron, you might want to get word to the Joneses and the Grindus boy’s parents about the safe rescue. Also Ron, Harry was worried that news of his arrest might beat me to you. He suggested you pass along his orders immediately, because he thinks Lee will use this as an excuse to clean house of the both of you from the Auror office.”

Weasley’s face in the flames just nodded. Draco thought that Ron, as slow witted as he was, had already figured that much out.

After delivery of the pair of Harry’s cryptic messages, Draco stood up to go. He found that he was unsteady on his feet. It was probably a combination of the drink and tension. He found a set of arms taking him into one giant hug. He looked to see that Luna had taken him in their arms for comfort and support. He nodded his thanks to the woman, but there was only one set of arms he wished to be in tonight and she would be his last stop.

---

Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, London, England, United Kingdom

---

Astoria was already waiting in a chair at the front door when he arrived. He barely had the door moving towards being closed when he found her taking hold of him. As he kissed her forehead, Draco heard the old wind up clock in the parlor clang six times.

â€�“Hermione sent a Patronius to tell me that you had survived and you had bad news. She tried to not reveal your news, but I got it out of her. Are you really going to turn yourself in tomorrow?”

Draco nodded. Astoria took him in her arms and began repeatedly kissing him. He felt his knees weaken at her caresses. She took him by the hand and lead to the stairs and the bedroom. They undressed and remained in each other’s arms for the two hours until it was just past eight in the morning.

Draco and Astoria walked into the water closet. She took his straight razor and shaved him. As he tended to his teeth, she brought to him the outfit that Krowker had laid out. He recognized them as the same clothes that he had worn to the Dokes’ deportation hearings almost two years earlier. Astoria helped get him dressed and fussed with the properly aligning of the tie, and the black opal stick pin.

Draco looked into the mirror, with his wife’s arms around his chest. Attempting a bit of gallows humour, he asked, â€�“Do I look good enough to arrest?”

â€�“You look good enough to run for Minister of Magic.”

â€�“Really, I thought you thought better of me than that. I need everyone to see that Hoyle, Potter and I are not thugs, but responsible pillars of society who were driven to our desperate acts by a loathsome madman. If the press or anyone at the store asks, that’s your answer.”

Astoria nodded. She didn’t know if this was part of the ‘plan’, but it was close enough to the truth to be told with confidence. It would start the process to sway the public, just in case. Draco reached over and kissed his wife, took his gold topped walking cane out of the troll leg umbrella stand, and stepped out into the morning.

Astoria trailed her husband hoping the small brushing of his shoulders and other small movements would keep her from begging him to stay with her. Just before he disappeared, she caressed him once again and told him of how much she loved and trusted him. He seemed to straighten up. He took his top hat off of his head held it in his left hand, smiled at her and turned on the spot. The smile was the last clear image she had of her husband.

After Draco had gone, Astoria called for Krowker to fetch the home owl and the business owl to the kitchen. She wrote a short note and attached it to her business owl and sent the owl to the address requested by Hermione Weasley during their conversation early this morning.

The second owl bearing a simple message written with dragon’s blood, from a dusty, old bottle that Kreacher had found in the pantry, was sent to Malfoy Manor. The note gave the reader a very simple option.

Return my son or die!

Astoria Malfoy

Standing with her arm extended, Astoria aimed her wand at the Manor’s double wrought iron gates and, with an accompanying cry, she let loose her eighth Reducto spell against them. The curse deflected off of the Manor’s protective wall of spells, but the force of the blast (once again) made the old gates clang like a cracked bell.

She looked up at the Manor house, but no response came from the place where the man who had taken her son lived. She had to hold her emotions under close reins, knowing that if she lost control and began to weep or visibly despair, Lucius would use that instant to attack her. There would be no tears, not here, not where he could see.

When she could not control her anger any longer, she placed her wand to her throat and shouted so the whole world could hear her. â€�“Lucius, give me back my son!”

It was going on noon and she had been standing there venting her frustration to the heavens with no avail for almost three hours, but she would not leave. She could not. She did not know what to do with herself if she did go. How could she make small talk to one of the nervous first time mothers who frequented their shop for the reassurance of an experienced mother as often as they came in to purchase a potion to cure some ill? Astoria would usually comfort or gently correct the neophyte mothers and they would repay her kindness by buying potions at her shop that any Hogwart’s fifth year could make. Today, she would more likely bite the head off some poor young woman, or some granny, just to vent her frustration.

What frustrated her most was she was all alone. Hermione had notified her, by owl, that Draco had been taken into custody at a Ministry that was in full damage control mode, trying to keep the news of the rescue attempt and arrests in America out of the Prophet while they drew up enough paper work to justify sacking both Harry and Ron.

She made the gates ring again with her ninth blast. As she glared at the Manor, the front door opened and a woman with long, grey, hair streaked with black pulled up into a fishtail braid, gingerly walked up drive to the gate. Astoria stared at her mother-in-law, the woman who had treated her like a servant girl since the day that Draco disobeyed his parents and married her.

Narcissa gave her daughter-in-law a head to foot look of total distain,before she said, â€�“Stop all of this shouting and useless spell casting! Can’t you see that you have scared the peacocks? They are molting their feathers all over the grounds.”

Astoria blinked and shook her head. She was crying for the return of her son and all this bitch was worried about was the damn white peacocks!? â€�“I’ll stop, when you give me back my son!”

Narcissa pulled her head back in reaction to the force of the words and Astoria saw the woman derisively shake her head back and forth. â€�“Do you really think that if my husband was visiting with his grandson without parental permission, that he would do it here?”

Visiting? Visiting!

For a second she thought she had mis-understood the older woman. â€�“My son was kidnapped. Three men died because of your husband. And he will be next, unless he releases Scorpius.”

Narcissa gave a choked laugh in reply. â€�“If there was any connection, at all, between the acts of these American kidnappers and my husband, wouldn’t Harry Potter and his Aurors be here to question him and not you?”

Astoria looked at the face full of all of the smugness and self-assuredness in the world. Narcissa’s smile made her want to wipe that look off of her face anyway that was possible. She looked at the side of the road and saw a stone. She picked it up and hurled it at the fence knowing it would do no good. The hand size rock bounced off of the spell wall and fell to the road, landing at Astoria’s feet. She watched Narcissa laugh at her attempt. She wanted to hurt the old woman so.

â€�“In case you don’t know, three of the kidnappers were taken into custody and are probably telling all they know. Also, the kidnappers killed one of the team’s coaches.”

A flash of worry spread across Narcissa’s face and quickly disappeared as she too calmly asked, â€�“Potter’s wife?”

She locked eyes with Narcissa and thought, â€�“So, she is afraid of Potter.” She filed the knowledge away and answered, â€�“No.”

â€�“Good, Harry Potter is not the most balanced personality-â€�“

â€�“Quiet! Shut your lying mouth! Your husband has my son. He has angered Hoyle Grindus, who is rich enough to buy every wand for sale in Europe. Harry Potter’s wife and children were threatened and, thanks to your husband, he will soon be unemployed free to join Grindus and the Weasleys to hunt you and that blonde sack of dung you married down! Do you remember the last time you went up against Harry, Ron and Hermione? And what happened to your sister when she faced an angry Molly Weasley? Maybe Molly will use the same spell on you that she did on dear, old Bellatrix.”

Narcissa, who a minute before had appeared so haughty, pulled her cloaks tight about her waist, as if for her own protection. Her misgivings were expressed all through her face. However after a heartbeat or two, a strangely contented smile spread across her face. The larger the smile grew, the more apprehensive Astoria felt.

â€�“When Draco first told us about your engagement, we were, of course, against it. Lucius was against you on account of your seven eights pureblood status and he thought you were not good looking enough to be allowed to mate with a Malfoy.” Astoria squared her feet under her shoulders awaiting her mother-in-laws forthcoming insults which were sure to be cutting. â€�“I disagreed with Lucius. Draco has always had an eye for a certain common beauty. However, I was worried that you weren’t Slytherin enough for him.” Astoria felt her face squint involuntarily at the incomprehensible statement. Narcissa, almost in answer to her daughter-in-law’s confusion, added. â€�“I feared you relied too much on your natural intelligence and your easy manipulating style. Malfoys have lived, and flourished, by setting snares and letting their foes trap themselves. I thought you were too naïve to ever be a true Malfoy wife; I may have been wrong. You’ve played this well.”

Too hell with Narcissa’s backhanded compliment. â€�“I want my son, now!”

Narcissa shook her head. â€�“Not now, he’s not here. However, Lucius was not going to keep him long. He knew that the boy’s release must come just after the axe fell on Potter and Weasley. The release would allow the new head of the Aurors a chance to claim victory and undermine the revenge motives for his opponents. The boy’s release would cause a split between the opposing alliance and the Auror office. It would place Potter at risk of stepping over the line and ending up in prison.”

Astoria looked down committing every part of the conversation to memory. She looked into her mother-in-law’s face and said, with fake resignation, the only word that mattered to her, â€�“When?”

â€�“My grandson will be able to sleep, by tomorrow, in his own bed at your home, or at Hogwarts if he wishes. I guarantee it.”

Astoria snorted at the last comment.

Narcissa opened her cloaks, looked at Astoria and said, â€�“I’ve been Lucius’ mistress since I was fifteen, almost half a century. My husband’s real wife is power. However, like any good mistress, I know how to manipulate my man to ignore his wife, when I want. I will convince him to release the boy or I will bring him to you. Trust me.”

The two women stood there, locked in a staring match until the bell in the clock tower of the Anglican Church in the nearby village struck noon. Astoria looked down and then raised her gaze at the old woman. She leaned forward, purposefully aiming her wand in between Narcissa’s eyes, â€�“If he is not back by bed time tomorrow, I WILL find a way into the manor and your naked peacocks will be the only things left alive when I leave.”

Narcissa returned to her a warm smile and nod of what looked like approval. Her last actions were the most unsettling thing the old woman could have done, Astoria wondered if she had mis-stepped. Whatever. She would contact Hannah Longbottom to get the information to Ron, if Ron was still in charge at the Auror office.

---

Riddle Mansion

---

Scorpius swung his broom around and spied the Bludger rising to meet him. In the distance, he saw the Russian breakaway blasting past Kaitlin and James and being lead by Denis Federov. In front of the middle hoop, Rose twitched upon her broom, attempting to read the attack. Scorpius turned his broom, going into a shallow dive to increase the power in his strike. Striking the Bludger with all of his might, the ball flew true toward where the speeding Federov would be. As Federov cocked his right arm to fire home the Quaffle, the Bludger struck the Russian in between the shoulder blades. The Quaffle and Federov both fell hard onto the pitch.

As he celebrated the strike, Rose Weasley flew up to him. She shouted at him. â€�“Why did you hit him? I had the shot blocked. You could have killed him! I hate you.”

---

Scorpius awoke in a strange room. As he sat up on the bed, he looked out the window and saw the sun rising over a hill. Sitting on the bed, he tried to remember where he was and how he got there. The last clear memories he had were of Pyter, holding a wand to Rose’s temple and threatening to melt her face. He had agreed to go into the backroom with Pyter in order to save her and, before the door had completely closed, Pyter had wrapped his left arm around him in a choke hold and grabbed a knife that was on the lone table. His very last memory was a fuzzy one of his grandfather’s smirking face and a very bright light in his eyes.

He walked to the window and found he was in a corner room on an upper floor of a big building. He looked at the lay of the land. He was fairly certain that he was not at Malfoy Manor, or if he was he was in a corner of the building he had never been allowed to enter.

After about ten minutes of making his observations, Scorpius began searching the dusty cupboards and dressers for anything that could be used as a tool of escape or a weapon. The search was as fruitless as it was short. He walked over to the bed he had awoken up on and looked on the wall. A coat of arms with crossed swords and an image of a large building were carved into the wall. Scorpius climbed up and bounced on the bed until he could grasp the top of the carving. He reached and pulled until the miniature sword came off of the wall. The little sword was the size of cheese knife, but it was pointy and might be useful to him, somehow.

As he examined his prize, he heard a rattling noise outside of the door. Scorpius jumped onto the bed and bounced to his feet just as Pyter entered holding a tray full of cold breakfast items and a bowl. As Pyter placed the tray on a table across the room from the bed, Scorpius hid the sword in his pants pockets.

As he ate his breakfast, he looked up to see his grandfather Malfoy, waltzing into the room. Scorpius, who had not seen his grandfather in over a year, looked at the old man. He seemed years younger. The shuffling walk of a defeated old man was replaced by a confident stride. The change surprised and, in a strange way, scared him. He had always thought of Lucius as someone living in the past and a person to be pitied. Now, for the first time, he saw the man that had completely controlled most of his father’s life.

â€�“You have two options: One, stay here as my guest for a few weeks or come with me and let me show you why I brought you here from America.”

Scorpius wondered if the offer held a trap. He couldn’t see any, but that didn’t mean there wasn’t one. Lucius pulled a wand out of his sleeve, waved it, and a set of Muggle style clothes appeared on the bed. Scorpius went over to examine the outfit and found everything was his size down to the trainers.

Lucius Malfoy walked towards the door and opened it. He turned back to his grandson and told him in a flat, matter-of-a-fact, drawling voice, â€�“Boy, if you ever hide a potential weapon from me again, I will make you suffer just so the lesson is well learned. Do you understand me?” Scorpius found his head nodding up and down like it had a will of its own. He reached into his pocket and dropped the little sword on the bed.

---

Scorpius’ head and stomach were both swimming when he landed with his grandfather. He had expected to arrive in some dungeon or another abandoned building. He was shocked to see they had landed in the middle of a group of older teenagers. The young people bustling past him were sporting book bags over their shoulders and almost everyone had a small box in their hand or up to their ear.

He swung around to see a sign, University of Lincoln, and behind it was a big building with large letters LPAC on the side. He was confused. Why would his proudly pureblood grandfather bring him to a Muggle university? He wondered what would happen if he just ran into a crowd and tried to escape. His tentative thought of escape was trumped by a mental image of Lucius aiming a wand at him while he stepped over the corpses of everyone in the area that he had killed.

His grandfather sat on a bench outside an area called the Alstrom Atrium and called out to Scorpius. â€�“Find a rock, a decent size one, and place it across the walk from us.” Not seeing how this could be a trap, he did as he was told. â€�“You do know how to levitate items, don’t you?” Lucius asked in a tone that was somehow both languid and insulting at the same time.

â€�“You taught me that the first week after I got my wand from Ollivander’s. I guess old people forget easily.” Scorpius used a snotty tone of voice that his mother would never have allowed him to use to an elder.

Lucius seemed to like his grandson’s tone of voice. He slowly reached into his sleeve and pulled out a stick. Scorpius quickly grabbed it. He almost caressed his wand. He was not totally helpless. A laugh came from the bench next to him. Lucius, his own fingers in his sleeve, eyed him. The look was almost daring him to try something to escape. He remembered the warning from earlier and dropped the wand into his lap.

â€�“Good. You are not as dense as I feared,” Lucius drawled.

Two separate pairs of pretty college girls came down the walkway towards the Malfoys. The first pair was talking with each other and the second pair was talking into their little boxes up to their ears. As they got within a couple of yards on the benches, Lucius looked at Scorpius and said, â€�“Levitate the stone and hold it in position until I tell you to stop.”

When the first pair of girls walked by, the rock stayed at the height Scorpius had first held it. However, when the girls talking into the boxes walked in between him and the rock, two things suddenly happened. Both of the girls who were talking into the boxes were now looking in frustration at the devices. The girl closest to him was shouting, â€�“Jules, are you still there? Damn, my call dropped.”

The other girl nodded and said something too quiet for him to hear. The second thing that happened was that, for a second, the rock dropped to side of the walk for a second and then rose about a foot higher before it returned to the original height.

â€�“See! We will do this a couple of more times.”

Scorpius looked at his Grandfather and asked, â€�“Where’s your wand?”

Lucius grew wary at the question. â€�“Somewhere convenient, I assure you. I would not try to pull a runner, if I was you?”

Scorpius was frustrated with the old man. â€�“No. How do I know you didn’t affect the rock?”

â€�“I give you my word of honour.” Scorpius snorted his opinion of what his Grandfather’s word of honour was worth.

â€�“I will turn my back on you and you can duplicate the experiment. I must warn you that if you do try to escape, the fate of all these students you see will be on your head, not mine.”

Scorpius, who had never understood why his parents loathed the old man so much, was amazed at the casual way he talked about massacring dozens of innocent people. He now had a better understanding of his parents.

With Lucius’ back turned Scorpius duplicated the experiment using a flower pedal instead of a rock. The results were the same. Magic caused the failure of the Muggle devices and the Muggle devices interfered with the magic. Scorpius wondered if this was known by everyone or if it was something only his grandfather had discovered.

Lucius turned around. â€�“These Muggle creations are becoming more and more commonly used. In London, Muggle experts have located a large zone where their signals do not pass through. They do not know it yet, but the area they have pinpointed is Diagon Alley. We cannot allow these creatures to discover our whereabouts! All they would have to do is flood an area with these little boxes and the mightiest wizard would be nearly helpless. Although they don’t know it yet, the Muggles have already invented the perfect Wizard killing machines. We must stop them and I need you to help me save all of wizard kind.”

A chill went up his spine, Scorpius did not know how much of what he said was truth and how much were lies. He wished he had Rose and his parents here. â€�“What do you really want from me, Grandfather?”

â€�“Just like I said, I want your help.”

â€�“Why not got to the Ministry? Let them help.”

Lucius smiled a wolfish grin as he shook his head. â€�“The Ministry is bound to their rules and treaties. You can’t do what is needed using the rules and laws those fools have created. Boy, what do you know about how Potter and his friends defeated the Dark Lord?”

Scorpius looked around to see if anyone was listening. All of the young Muggles were only paying attention to their boxes, so he talked in a soft voice.

â€�“The Dark Lord left behind treasures or something, and Albus’ father and Rose’s parents found and destroyed them. After that, Mr. Potter reversed the ‘Killing Curse’ and it killed him.”

As Lucius leaned forward, his long white blonde hair fell from his shoulders and he edged closer to his grandson. â€�“Yes, nice and neat. Wizarding history sanitized and homogenized to build up the reputation of their great young trio of heroes. Let me tell you the truth, because I was there. Your little Rosie’s mother used Polyjuice to impersonate a witch so she could break into Gringotts. And when that didn’t work, either she or Potter used the Imperius Curse on a wizard. Polyjuice is against the law and the Imperius is supposed to be a one way ticket to Azkaban. However, their little crimes were all covered up by the Ministry. Hermione Granger Weasley is now a noble counselor and advocate in front of the Wizengamot. And boy, you can’t block the Killing Curse, I know, I’ve killed enough with it. The Dark Lord was killed by the curse, but it was Potter who cast it. Potter used the most unforgivable curse in the books and look. He’s the ‘hero’ of the Ministry. They put him in charge of putting others in prisons for less than what he did. They rot on that accursed island, but not him! Scorpius, look carefully at what Potter did the moment his family was in danger. He told those do-nothings in the Ministry to go to hell and he went to America to help rescue you. If they were what they pretended to be, the Aurors would have gone and rescued you. Not Gringus, nor your father and not Ex-Auror Potter. The Ministry is just a group of old, fat, comfortable wizards trying hard not to do anything that will lose their pensions. Pensions paid for by people like your parents.”

Scorpius shivered. He didn’t know what was truth, lies or exaggeration. Were Rose’s parents and Albus’ father guilty of the same crimes that they now sent others to prison for?

He felt the need to counter the old man. â€�“Others, outside of the Weasleys or Potter, work in the Ministry. If not the Ministry, what about the ‘Daily Prophet’. You could tell them about the threat to wizards these boxes make.”

â€�“You are a trusting naive fool aren’t you? Your mother has coddled you too much.” Lucius drawled dipping his words in condescension to add to the insult. â€�“The world doesn’t work that way and I don’t have time to correct your little childhood fantasies. Now, if you want the world to return to the way it was, with modern day versions of the witch hunts you can ignore all of this, but when the Muggles surround your precious Miss Weasley with these boxes and light up her bonfire, remember this day and how you could have prevented it all.”

Scorpius felt a cold chill down his spine at the image, but he could not accept the premise. â€�“It’s the twenty-first century. Witch hunts and bonfires won’t happen.”

He watched his grandfather shake his head at his answer. â€�“Okay. Maybe not bonfires, but how about those robed heathens they call doctors. Imagine what they’d do to her, to try to figure out why she can perform magic and not them. They would bleed her dry so they could check her blood and maybe cut into her brain with to see how she works. She’ll be no different to them than a talking dolphin or something.” Lucius remained quiet letting the image soak through.

When visiting Albus after their first year, Scorpius had been allowed to watch something called the telly and he had seen Muggle doctors in cloaks cutting into people’s bodies. Could that really happen to wizards?

â€�“And speaking of your dear Rosie, I can help you with your other problem.”

As a black haired girl about six or seven years older than Scorpius walked alone past the Malfoys, he saw his grandfather pull his wand from his sleeve and give it a flick. At the end of the motion, the girl stopped and slowly turned towards them.

â€�“I understand that the Weasley girl has rejected you for some Russian Mudblood.”

Scorpius shifted uncomfortably on the bench. He looked up at the girl who was standing there with her face frozen and her eyes unblinking. Lucius flicked his wand and the girl sat on the bench next to Scorpius. She reached over, her face struggled into a smile and she gently took his hand. She began to stroke his hand as she leaned in as if to kiss him. He pulled back from her touch; she wasn’t doing this his grandfather was making her.

â€�“Stop this,” he shouted as he stood up. â€�“Release her!” Scorpius immediately looked around to see if his action had caught the attention of one of the Muggles. If it had, Scorpius may have cost them their life. He was so happy that no one had noticed.

Lucius considered the girl and used his wand to lift her long hair exposing her neck. â€�“She does have possibilities. The way she wears her hair reminds me a little of your Grandmother when she was this age. Narcissa was such an amazing beauty.” The old man looked down and then back to the girl. â€�“I know Nott preferred liaisons with Muggle females kept in this state.” Scorpius saw his grandfather turn toward him. â€�“Boy, do you know what the worst thing about being old is?”

Scorpius looked at his grandfather wondering what he really wanted from him. â€�“No.”

Lucius turned towards the Muggle. â€�“You no longer have the self-delusion of immortality. Every day is one day less and soon-â€�“ Lucius leaned over and brushed the girl’s long black hair with the fingers of his hand.

The repulsion spread through Scorpius as he watched his grandfather actually touching the enchanted girl. Lucius must have sensed it.

â€�“You know, it doesn’t have to be a spell. I know more than one brewer of long term Love Potions. A few drops and Miss Weasley will be back in love with you. She will be unable to control her passions whenever you are near to her. Isn’t that every boy’s dream?”

Scorpius looked at the girl still sitting on the bench with her hand extended reaching for his. How could anyone think of doing this to anyone, especially someone they said they cared for?

Lucius pulled a small vial from his cloak and offered it toward his grandson. â€�“Take it. Keep it for the rest of the year. If you don’t use it by then, you can flush it down the loo. If you take it, I will drop you off at the door of the Leaky Cauldron. If you don’t, I send you go back to your turret bedroom.”

He looked at the old man and wondered where the trick was. If he took the potion, he could go home? â€�“What about her?” he asked pointing at the girl.

â€�“We will walk over there and I shall release her, no harm has been done to her. I will leave her alone, if you first take the love potion.” Lucius extended the bottle again and this time he waggled the bottle and the pink fluid moved inside the glass container. Scorpius, biting his lower lip, reached out with his right hand to grasp the offered container and he slipped it into the front pocket of his dungarees.

The pair of Malfoys walked across the area and stood in a corner away from the tables full of coffee drinking young people. Lucius watched and, at a moment of his choosing, his wand moved and the girl seemed to awaken. She quickly looked to where Scorpius had been sitting. As he watched the girl, he felt his grandfather grab his arm.

When he got his eyes focused, he looked and found he was at the bottom of a hill. In the distance beyond the hill, a range of mountains loomed. Scorpius tilted his head to the right, because the mountains looked vaguely familiar. From the peaks beyond, he turned his gaze back to the top of the nearby hill. Standing like a large fork, a thin metal tower rose up a hundred meters where it ended with a group of flashing lights on the top. Lucius looked to his left and nodded. Scorpius turned the same way and saw a robed man standing in front of a downed pole. The pole had long tubes on the top that seemed to be shooting out sparks.

He looked over to his grandfather. Lucius smiled and said, â€�“What you see is the closest Muggle tower to Hogwarts. The Muggle I interrogated told me about its radius of influence. The fool didn’t know that it reached all the way to Hogmeade. I will now make the village and the school safe. You can thank me later.” Lucius turned toward the robed man and nodded.

The man standing in front of the downed metal pole was dressed in a silver and black hooded robe. The robed man raised his wand and Scorpius heard a crack at the top of the hill. As the tower began to shake and twist, Lucius grabbed his arm and as they disappeared the falling tower was the last thing he saw.

Before he could look around, Scorpius was standing alone on the Muggle side of the Leaky Cauldron’s front door. In his right hand, his wand still remained. He had no money for the Knight Bus. He thought about going to the London Underground via the special magical entrance that he had used with Jimber and run to his mother. However, he had to make contact with the Aurors. He had to make sure that Rose, Albus and the rest of the team had truly been rescued. He couldn’t trust his friends lives to what Lucius said. So he put away his need for his mother and walked into the Cauldron.

---

Old Navy Hospital, 921 Pennsylvania Ave., Washington D.C., USA

---

Harry and Hoyle Grindus sat in the corner on an uncomfortable metal bench, in an almost unbearably brightly lit holding cell. Harry was amazed that the Americans had allowed all of the members of the rescue team to remain together. If his Aurors had arrested a large group like this one, he would have ordered the suspects to be kept in separate rooms. The rooms would not be in a dungeon, but in comfortable holding areas where the prisoners could be carefully observed. By letting them stay together, the possibilities of coordinating alibis existed. He figured that the room was probably charmed, so every word and movement could be monitored. However, alibis could be constructed through the passing of notes, subtle nods, and even winks if the conversations were being overheard.

Grindus leaned in to talk to him. The old man’s voice was hoarse and full of fatigue which made it slightly tremble as he spoke, â€�“Potter.” Harry looked over into the other’s eyes. He saw concern and something else he couldn’t identify in Hoyle’s face. â€�“I have formal agreements with my security men and also with Draco. The agreement stipulates that if they would come with me, I would ensure that all expenses and/or any loss of income incurred from their participation in the rescue would be fully reimbursed by Comet. I will stand by those contracts.”

Harry nodded, seeing where this was probably going.

â€�“As you know, I have no such contractual agreement with you. As you may further recall, I told you not to take part in our rescue attempt.” Harry nodded his head again. Grindus shifted uncomfortably as he leaned toward Harry as he talked. He sensed that somewhere, deep inside, the old man didn’t like what he was about to say.

â€�“You know, I have many profitable business dealings with the ministry and numerous side deals with the senior members of most of its departments. I have a contract, awaiting only the Minister’s signature, which will continue the exclusive use, by the Auror Office, of Comet Brooms.” Harry found himself shifting uncomfortably in his seat by that piece of news.

â€�“If the Americans or the Ministry are going to be difficult about you, I will have to quickly and publically distance myself from you and your case. Remember I said, publically distance myself, if you understand.” Harry nodded. â€�“I will also attempt to make separate legal arrangements with both governments to expedite my personal freedom. I do have an international business empire to run. And poor Draco’s potions shop will be bankrupt in a matter of weeks, if he is publically dragged through the mud of a publicized trial.”

Harry found his head nodding in agreement to what Hoyle was saying.

Hoyle continued. â€�“The thing is, Potter, if you knew that I would make a separate peace with the Ministry, Lucius knew it too. I would dare to say that my old school chum worked this into whatever game his is going to play with you.”

Harry had known this on some elemental level in his mind, but hearing it said out loud upped the odds on his next steps.

Hoyle silently rocked his head back and forth and his tongue was visibly, through his closed mouth, moving over his teeth. He seemed to be almost spitting out the words against his will. â€�“I admire you and your simplistic view of right and wrong. It is very refreshing to someone, who is used to the more Machiavellian tactics used in normal business dealings.” Hoyle gave a small chuckle. Harry did not find it at all funny.

The old man looked down at his feet on the tiled floor and, with his right hand, scratched at the grey beard stubble on his chin. â€�“I know you contacted your friend, Granger-Weasley. I will set up a special Comet Broomworks account through LeClaire’s Bank in Paris on which she can make certain withdrawals to cover your legal expenses and any bribes required to win your case. When the unpleasantries are over, a full accounting of the funds will be made. Potter, I’d hate to have to take you and her to French court over anything untold. Especially, since the French Minister is a relative of my wife.” Hoyle chuckled again and finished by patting Harry’s right hand with his leathery left hand.

Harry nodded.

â€�“You are playing your own game, Potter. You could have avoided it all by using your Invisibility Cloak and hiding your part in the rescue. However, you gave it to Draco to use. I first thought you were just being naïve, gallant as you Gryffindors like to say, in doing what you did.” Leaning into Harry’s face to get a good look, he added, â€�“I now think I was wrong in that judgment. Harry, what are you playing at?”

â€�“Do you really want to know?” Harry prompted. Hoyle leaned back against the tile wall for a few seconds, his hand returning to his stubble while he sucked on the inside of his cheek. Harry could see a battle raging in the man.

â€�“No! If you tell me anything, it could complicate any future denials that I’ll have to make in front of Lee and his cronies.” Hoyle again offered his hand to him and Harry shook it. Grunting as he stood up, Grindus walked, slightly bent over, to sit next to his two hired wands. The four Brits became silent and waited.

After about a hour, Hoyle and his three men were lead out of the cell. They never returned back to where he was being held. Harry leaned into the corner closing his eyes, hoping to catch a minute or two of sleep, but the brightness of the room made escape into slumber impossible. So he closed his eyes and replayed the memory of the last time he and Ginny were truly alone. He opened his eyes in shock. Between trying to track down Lucius and Ginny’s obsession with the Quidditch team, the last time had been over two months ago.

---

Harry was lead by an emotionless guard from the underground holding area to a guarded room. When they arrived at the door, he paused and looked up to the guard to see if the guard was in control of opening the door. The guard looked at the door knob, over at him and snorted. In response to the guard, he opened the door and entered beyond. Harry assumed that Grindus and his men were being held elsewhere so they could not coordinate their stories.

He pushed open the door and as he stepped through, he saw what he had fretted about for the two days since his surrender. As he walked through the door, he was greeted by a hug from Hermione.

She stepped back and looked him over from head to toe. â€�“My, you are quite a mess!” Hermione teased him.

As Harry looked past Hermione, he saw a dusky-skinned man in Muggle business attire sitting behind a low, grey metal desk. Hermione turned to make introductions, â€�“Art Cabral, this is Harry Potter, ex-head of the British Auror office, my brother-in-law, and my best friend.”

Art Cabral, a thin balding man approximately Harry’s height and a decade or so older, reached across the desk to shake his hand. As Harry pulled back and took a seat opposite from Cabral, he looked back to Hermione. â€�“Ex-Auror, huh. Marsh kept his promise. Is Ron still in charge?”

â€�“Oh, yes! It seems that my husband is quite a hero, if you believe what you read in the Prophet.” Harry’s confusion must have been quite evident. â€�“It seems that the Department of Mysteries traced the Goblin-made sword (Ogier the Danes), and found it behind a false wall in the Jewel House along with most of the missing Crown Jewels. Even though it was your idea to use the Unspeakables, the Minister was forced to give Ron all of the credit.”

Harry leaned forward staring at her. â€�“Lucius stole the biggest treasure in the country, maybe the world, and then just left most of it behind?” He paused, letting the knowledge seep in. â€�“You said almost all, what is missing?”

â€�“An altar paten from the time of the founders, a silver gem encrusted rod, a diamond affixed hair comb, and an emerald from St. Edward’s Crown that tradition says was originally a gift to the Royal Family from Rowena Ravenclaw. A few other rings and a tiara are missing. He took nothing too large or easily traceable by magic.”

Harry pondered. What was Lucius planning now? He was about to voice his concern so he could get Hermione’s opinion, when the American cleared his throat and the two turned to him.

â€�“Mr. Potter,” began Cabral. â€�“You are what we, in America, call a political football. You violated our laws by entering into our country illegally; you embarrassed the country’s top law enforcement agency by rescuing the team before they could, interfered with the investigation of a kidnapping by the withholding of vital evidence from that agency, and were part of actions that directly caused the death of three people, making you an accessorary to at least manslaughter, if not second-degree murder. However, after the unfortunate death of the three kidnappers and-”

â€�“What!” shouted Harry, interrupting his lawyer! He turned toward Hermione.

â€�“When it came time for the kidnappers to give their statements to the NAMED agents, all three of them, as one, collapsed and died. The authorities aren’t saying, but I’d bet that any one of them being interrogated, by the law, triggered some kind of Unbreakable Vow or taboo, like Voldemort’s name.”

Harry nodded. He had been correct when he told Flint that they had been chosen to die. â€�“Lucius doesn’t leave loose ends, just a trail of victims.” Harry saw her nod in agreement.

After a small pause, Cabral continued talking. â€�“So my government has a case where the only people left for them to try are the heroic family members of children who were kidnapped from right under the noses of the country’s elite security force. If they do try you, we will immediately fill the press with information about your status as a national hero in your homeland. You probably know that we Americans like our heroes to be lone wolves acting to protect the innocent from evil. And with what happened to the poor Davis woman, her family, and the captured kidnappers, I can paint this Lucius Malfoy as the very embodiment of evil. Normally, I wouldn’t see them pressing any charges against you. I’d expect them to attempt to cut a deal with us to quietly drop all the charges and let you return to the United Kingdom. However, the problem is that your country is pressuring for prosecution here and they are hinting at disallowing any repatriation.”

Harry looked at Hermione. She gave him her familiar shrug and a half-smile. â€�“The Minister claims you have invalidated your citizenship by abandoning your oaths to protect crown and country in a time of emergency. I think it’s just a threat to get you tried here. I can’t see him following through with it.”

Harry looked back at her. â€�“Well, it’s all up to them. I had a talk with Hoyle and he’s has something set up for you at the Paris Gringotts.” Harry chose the words carefully, knowing they were being monitored. Hermione’s face went from confusion to acknowledgment as she eventually nodded.

â€�“Good, Art here is one of the best and the best isn’t cheap.”

Over Hermione’s shoulder, Harry saw his barrister nodding in agreement.

Resigned that the next part of his future was out of his hands, Harry relaxed.

Hermione reached into her case and pulled out a roll of parchment. â€�“Here’s what you wanted from Ron. He wants me to ask you what you want with this information.”

Harry smiled at her. He knew that she was probably more curious about the scroll than her husband, but she would never admit to it. â€�“I just need some light, bedtime reading.”

She shook her head and turned to her American associate. Harry listened to the two discuss differences between the rules of evidence and trial motions between the two countries.

Tuning out the legal mumble-jumble, Harry scanned the two foot long list compiled by Ron. Looking over at the two barristers, he asked, â€�“Do either of you have a pen?”

Cabral reached into his vest and pulled out a Muggle ball point. The American said, â€�“You use your finger to click the top-â€�“ Harry threw up his hand to silence him, deftly clicked the silver nub on top and began to make a couple of notes.

â€�“Harry was raised by Muggles and I’m Muggle-born, so we know about pens and such.”

He read every item on the list. He tried to link them to what Lucius might be up to and what he already had done. Next, he tried to see if more than one of these might create a trail or a path for future plots. After about twenty minutes, Harry returned the pen to Art and the rolled up scroll to Hermione. As she took back the scroll, she gave Harry a look that he was familiar with.

He smiled and said, â€�“You might as well read it now; I know you will wheedle all of the information out of Ron anyway.”

A smile broke out on her face as she rolled the parchment flat. Cabral also stood up and looked over her shoulder at the report. Harry had circled three separate incidents on the scroll. The first circled item mentioned that a Ministry security guard, Willie Little, showed up to work four hours late on the day of Crown Jewel heist. Beside that item a note was written, â€�“Adams and Lupin”. The second circled item mentioned that an Unspeakable, Horace Fulton, had missed the day of the robbery without a pre-arranged absence. Next to the second circle three words were written, â€�“Smythe and Broomwright”, and a third thing written in some sort of code. The third incident was about an incident dealing with attempted access to the basement of the ministry. Harry had penned Sterling and Glouster upon that line.

Hermione seemed puzzled by the second note. However before she could ask, he said, â€�“A secret message for Ron. Call it a hunch; Lucius is always masking his next step with his last step. It’s also a repeat of Tom Riddle, he sees himself as the next Dark Lord.”

Hermione gave him a look like she was waiting for him to expound on the hidden message. Harry looked at the third person in the room and back to her. He slowly shook his head. As he closed his eyes, he saw her roll her eyes and turn to her American counterpart.

Harry had a thought so powerful that it almost jolted him out of his seat. How could he have not asked this first? â€�“Ginny and the children, where are they?”

â€�“They are all safely back in London, in St. Mungo’s. They are being evaluated for the trauma of what they went through and witnessed. Lily supposedly hasn’t sleep more than a few hours a night and she wakes up crying. They have her in a dreamless sleep and Hugo has not left her side since we gave him permission to miss school. James had his arm broken while trying to fight off a kidnapper, who was threatening Kaitlin Jones, just after Pyter left. And I’m really worried about Rose; she tends to bottle things up and having her life used as a pawn to get to Scorpius has hit her quite hard. So after my missions are over, I’m returning to London.”

He truly relaxed for the first time since reading the note about the heist. As Harry considered what Lucius might be planning next, the plight of Draco entered his mind. â€�“Scorpius! What about the boy? Do they have any clues?”

Hermione looked at Harry and smiled. â€�“Lucius kept him for only two days and then released him. I’ve not heard any of the details.”

Now Harry was really confused. â€�“Lucius robs the Tower of London to steal the Crown Jewels, but leaves most of them behind. He kidnaps and kills people to get his hands on his grandson and lets him go after a couple of days. What is the man up to? Why would he do all of that for little or no gain? I thought he was being clever. Could he just have lost it?”

No, his mind answered its own question. It all means something; Lucius is playing another one of his game within a game as part of a larger game, but what?

Hermione chimed in. â€�“Harry, Lee sacked you and when Rory Smythe was ordered to take Ron’s place, Smythe refused to do so and he resigned. Now that Ron is the finder of the treasure, he is working to get Rory reinstated. However, the Minister’s actions have sown seeds of distrust between the Aurors and the Minister. The Prophet is currently parroting the minister’s version of you as an incompetent who abandoned his country for personal reasons. However, I think it is safe to assume that the Comet’s public relations staff will be working overtime to influence the opinions of the wizard on the street.”

He silently shook his head, as he thought back to Hoyle’s cryptic comments about his relationship with the Ministry. Oddly, if anyone was going to counter the Ministry’s version of the story it would probably be Lucius. He shivered at the thought of his future being aided by the old monster.

I’m unemployed. And if I can get free, I’ll be free to go after Lucius. Is that what he wants? Me versus his entire organization? Grindus and Draco will start out helping me in my search full time, but Hoyle has already hinted at the conditions of his support. Draco is in a shakier position than I am. He can’t take time away from his business and his wife. Eventually, it will just be me. Is that what you want old man? Well, you’ve got it.

The lawyer talked with Hermione about expedition. Harry just let them talk. Suddenly, he looked up at Hermione. She had stood up and walked in front of him.

â€�“I’ve got to return to London. Rose is taking all of this very hard. She somehow thinks that this was all some cosmic retribution for her snogging the Russian boy. Of course, I will make the other stop you requested.”

Harry nodded and said, â€�“The sun will do you good.”

Ginny and Hermione’s place was with the children he knew, but he’d give almost everything he owned to just be able to see his family for just a minute. Harry looked down at his wand hand, he noticed a slight tremor. He felt a slight emptiness as he licked his lips, a tankard or two would taste good right about now.

---

Ministry of Magic, London, United Kingdom

---

Scorpius was already tired of the stooped old man in the white robes waving a wand in his face and his female assistant pricking his fingers and dropping blood into vials of smelly, brightly colored liquid. To keep from shouting at them to leave him alone, he closed his eyes and tried to think of calming images. He saw Rose, her arms resting on her potions book smiling at him. He saw Albus, Jimber and himself attacking James with pillows at the Christmas overnight during his first year. He saw his parents smiling at him as they read the invitation to try out for the U.K. Quidditch team.

He saw Rose, eyes full of terror, looking at him as Pyter said, â€�“What’s it going to be, boy? You go with me into the back alone or you can watch her suffer until she begs for me to kill her, which I will. You choose.”

He jerked his head in reaction and felt the Medi-wizard’s wand poke him above the eye. â€�“Have a care. I almost poked your eye out. Just a couple of more tests and you’ll be free to rest.”

How could he rest? He was somewhere in the Ministry, under guard by Rose’s father and the Aurors. And no one would tell him how the others were or if they’d been rescued. He had tried to tell Auror Sterling, who had picked him up at the Leaky Cauldron, all he could remember about the cabin they had been held in, but he didn’t seem to listen. Did that mean that they had been released, rescued, or were dead? Did they think he had something to do with it? Did they not trust him because he was a Malfoy?

When they were finally done, the two stepped to the back of the room and knocked on the door. Scorpius heard the locks on the door being released and the female Auror, Broomwright, stepped through. She did not talk to the visitors. She had her eyes locked on him.

As the pair left, she looked toward the wall to Scorpius’ left. A clock there showed it was twelve: noon or midnight; he did not know which it was. She looked back to him. â€�“I’ve got roast beef, chips and a drink of your choice. Do you want pumpkin juice, milk, water or Muggle soda?”

A moment before she had spoken, he would have rightfully claimed to have had no appetite at all. However, at the mention of food, his stomach rumbled and his mouth filled with saliva. He pondered the choice. He had been introduced to Muggle soda, by Grace Jackson, during the first round of the tournament in America, but he was worried about what it might do on an empty stomach. â€�“Cold water, I guess. I don’t know how long it has been since I ate.” He smiled at the woman. She looked at him and nodded at his reasoning.

As he sat up in the bed, preparing for the meal, he saw the Auror put her wand up to her throat and mouth the words, â€�“Cold water.”

The door opened and through it came Rose carrying a tray of food; she was followed by Albus carrying a large mug. The rest of the team followed the food.

Scorpius jumped out of bed to greet them and his robe flew open exposing a bare back. Realizing his dilemma, he quickly backed up to the wall and began frantically grabbing the strings so he could cinch his robe tight. James began laughing and one by one all of his teammates joined in the hardy laughter. All of them laughed, except for Rose who just beamed a smile at him, bright enough to light the whole room. When he saw Rose’s reaction, he was so relieved that he had to join the laughing. Only after he had joined in, did Rose allow her slight laugh to join the others.

The last person to enter the door was Mrs. Potter. She shut the door. Rose offered the tray to him and he almost bumped into it before he noticed. He had only been looking at her face. Taking the tray from her, he sat back down on the bed. He had a hundred questions for them and he could tell that Rose had the same for him.

â€�“Are you all right?” his question beat Rose’s same query coming back at him by less than a heartbeat. They both smiled, like they used to smile at each other.

â€�“Malfoy, if you’re not going to eat that, can I have it?” asked James. Scorpius looked down at the sandwich, grabbed it in both hands and made a show out of taking a large bite. Unfortunately, the beef was really juicy and a rivulet of juice ran down his chin. Rose reached over and gave him a napkin. As he chewed, she dabbed at his chin.

After finishing his bite, he returned his gaze to Rose. â€�“So what happened after Pyter took me?”

Rose looked back to where Mrs. Potter stood. Scorpius saw his coach nod her head up and down. Rose turned towards him. She seemed to be gathering breath or strength. The delay caused him to quickly scan the other members of the team. The team was all there. Everyone was in this room, except Coach Devon and Lily Potter.

â€�“After you were taken, the kidnappers started pushing us around and they threatened us. One of them kept trying to grab at us girls. When he grabbed Kaitlin, James and Rhys tried to fight them off and they broke James arm.” Scorpius turned to the older Potter boy. He raised his left arm, but it had been repaired. He turned back toward Rose. â€�“They were going to torture one of the boys to teach us a lesson when bursting through the door was Uncle Harry, your father, Rhys’ grandfather and three other men.”

â€�“My father went to America to rescue-â€�“ started Scorpius. The next word he was about to say was me, but it sounded less heroic than us. However, he knew the truth; his father was only there for him. He felt conflicted about his father’s selective and yet unexpected bravery.

Rose nodded at his comment. â€�“The kidnapper that hurt James turned toward us standing with Aunt Ginny, he started to shout out the killing curse, when Coach Devon charged and…” Rose stopped, her lips trembled and her moist eyes fell towards the floor.

Scorpius sat there for a second numb. He saw James put his arm around Kaitlin’s shoulder and she leaned into his for a second. Putting aside his plate, he lifted Rose’s chin. She fought for control.

He looked at Albus and spoke his fear. â€�“Did they get Lily also? She’s not here.”

Mrs. Potter spoke from the back, â€�“No, Lily is unhurt, but she is having a hard time. We pulled her cousin Hugo out of Hogwarts to keep her company. They are currently at their grandparent’s house, tending to the chickens and such, trying to keep her busy. She blames herself for Bobby’s death. We keep trying to tell her it wasn’t her fault, but-â€�“ Coach Potter shrugged.

â€�“It’s not her fault. There’s only one person to blame for all of this and his name is Malfoy and I hate him.” He had shouted the last bit. He had not meant to say anything. It just blurted out. Coach Devon had been so kind to him. He had taken him aside to help him get his bat into better position and was a source of constant encouragement. Devon had given him a glimpse of what having a ‘real’ grandfather must be like.

He slid off the bed and took Rose in his arms. He knew how Lily must feel, because he now felt guilty about it all. If he had just stayed home Mr. Devon would be alive. He brain knew it wasn’t really true, but his heart couldn’t help but feel it.

When he released Rose, he noticed that Broomwright had returned. She turned towards Mrs. Potter. â€�“Ginny, I’m going to have to ask you all to leave. His mother is here and your brother has finally gotten permission to bring the boy’s father up from the holding cell. The four of them need to talk about everything and then it will be time for him to rest.”

Ginny nodded and called out to her brood, â€�“You heard, Sara. Let’s get a move on. You have only two more days off and then back to school.” Rose stood by his side as each member of the team either shook his hand or gave him a hug. Coach Potter came over and gave him a motherly hug and said, â€�“It’s not your fault. You and your parents have showed the evil stopped with Lucius. Now finish your sandwich and hug Rose again.”

Rose gave her Aunt a wide-eyed, open mouth stare at the last comment. She turned to catch his shrug.

â€�“You don’t have to, Rose, its all-â€�“ was all he got out before he found her wrapped around his chest. The right hand rose up on its own to caress her head and finger her hair. She pulled back and gave her head a little side-to-side shake which reminded him of how Olympe’ did after Hagrid gave the giant Mastiff its bath.

â€�“Try not to get into any trouble without me being there, okay?” Her words brought a smile to both of them.

â€�“Agreed, only if you remember to bring Albus along. He’d be lost without us.” He watched as she backed away from him her eyes locked on his, like she was afraid to turn her back on him.

As Rose stepped through the door, he saw her pause to speak to someone to her left. Rose half disappeared through the door and he saw adult female arms surrounding the girl. Rose was released from the embrace and disappeared from sight as his mother finished a wave to his friends as they left. She turned and entered followed by Mr. Weasley and his father. What he saw first was that his father was wearing manacles on his wrist. When the door was shut, without prompting, Rose’s father flicked his wand the chains disappeared.

Mr. Weasley pulled out his wand and waved it. A folder full of papers appeared in his hand. He sat in the chair under the clock and leafed through the documents. To his right, he noticed that his mother was seated to his father’s left. They were holding hands. Scorpius could not believe what happened next. His father leaned over and kissed his mother on the lips in front of a stranger. He had never seen his parents kiss ‘in public’.

Rose’s father was oblivious to the kiss, looked up from the file and said, â€�“Scorpius, I’ve read the reports you gave the Aurors. We were able to confirm your presence at Lincoln from both electronic and personal means.”

â€�“The black haired girl, did you find her? Did he hurt her?”

â€�“Yes, we found her. She was confused, but not hurt. We modified her memory so she thought she sat down and nodded off.” Scorpius noticed his father shift uncomfortably in the chair next to her mother. Mr. Weasley continued, â€�“We also found the tower that you saw them destroy. They’ve destroyed three of them, so far. We’ve planted the story in the Muggle press that the damage to the three towers was caused by a group of Eco-Terrorists. However, we need to know everything that happened during your time of captivity. Your parents have given me permission to copy certain memories of yours to be studied by the Aurors and others in the Ministry. I will not copy any memory of yours without their permission. However, I would like to explain the process to you and get your approval also. One last thing, I’ve been in your position. Harry, Hermione and I almost died a couple of times by not telling adults about our dreams and plans. Your grandfather was the right hand man of the master of manipulating the thoughts of others and leaving behind impulses. As Rose’s father, I beg you to please let an adult, teacher, anyone know before you jump into the Chamber of Secrets or break into the Ministry after hours. Deal?”

Scorpius looked down to find a hand extended toward him. He leaned forward to shake it. As for his memories to be studied, If it helped keep his parents, Rose and his friends safe they could empty his whole head.

---

Hallway outside of Gryffindor Common Room

---

Professor Longbottom led his returning students from the Headmaster’s Office. As they walked up the corridors leading to the portrait of the Fat Lady, he repeated turned around to ensure his quiet seven charges were actually following him. The silence of the children worried the Head of House, he had never been away from the greenhouses with these students, without usually Kaitlin or James, arguing over something trivial or one of them teasing the other.

As the portrait came into his sight, he stopped and turned to face his students. He said, â€�“Listen, everyone in the whole house has been told to not bother you, tonight. They were told that they should let you sit and talk together or go up to your beds. However, I can’t promise what will happen in the morning.”

He saw Scorpius, Rose and the Potter brothers all give a nod of comprehension. Lily just stood there next to her cousin Hugo Weasley, who had been by her side, since she arrived at St. Mungo’s earlier in the week. Hugo nodded vigorously, as if it made up for his cousin’s nearly catatonic state. Longbottom looked each of his pupils in the eyes, smiled at them and nodded.

Neville tried not to stare at Scorpius. All of the returning team mates had been in the spotlight of gossip since the beginning of the school year, Scorpius was now firmly in the center of the storm. Not only had he been kidnapped, but it was a member of his family that had ordered the kidnapping and the boy had been the reason for all of it. When the news of the kidnapping had broken in the school, old mistrusts had blossomed between the Gryffindors and Slytherins. Many Lions conveniently ignored the fact that one of the kidnapped was a member of Slytherin; a fight broke out in the D.A.D.A. class between a group of fourth year boys of the two houses.

Now, Neville had to get the students settled in the Common Room and bustle back to the Headmaster’s office for a briefing from the Aurors about what they had learned about the kidnapping and what the images from the Scorpius’ memory hinted at. Neville heard a woman clear her throat and he realized that during his recollection, they had finished their journey.

He quickly swallowed and looked up at the portrait that was in front of him. She challenged him by saying. â€�“Password?”

Without missing a beat, Neville replied with, â€�“Waddiwasi”.

The woman in the portrait nodded and said in answer, â€�“Welcome back. I’m so sorry for your loss.”

---

They all nodded and a small sniffle came from Lily. The Fat Lady swung the door open and they entered in. Scorpius felt Rose’s hand take his hand. Led by Professor Longbottom, they walked in with James and Kaitlin leading the group, followed by Albus, Lily and Hugo and at the back he and Rose stepped through the portal as it closed.

It looked like the whole Gryffindor House had turned out to greet them. The crowd milled around looking very uncomfortable as they whispered to each other while staring at them. Scorpius knew how they felt. If not for Rose’s hand within his, he might have turned around and walked out of the Common Room.

Professor Longbottom stood there for a moment gauging the reaction of both groups of students. He seemed unsure of what to do next.

The tension was broken when Abby Baird and Beatrice Dragonherd came over to Lily and surrounded her in a group hug. After hugging Lily, the two girls, who had ignored Hugo all year, gave have him a hug and the four walked into the corner next to the fireplace which had been the claimed by the Little Sisters Squad as their headquarters.

James and Kaitlin walked away from the others to where the stairs led up to the boy’s and girl’s towers. He leaned in a whispered something in her ear and she smiled and started to walk toward her dormitory. Out of sight of Scorpius, he heard her voice coming down the stairwell.

â€�“Potter, I’m still the best Seeker in this school.”

James smirked and answered, â€�“Outside of Rhys and me, maybe.” He waved toward her and walked up the stairway that led to his dormitory.

The Professor turned to all of the students and said to the room at large. â€�“I know that all of you have your assignments already done for all your Monday classes, so I will leave you to relax.” He turned from the room and looked at the three just standing in the middle of the room and nodded toward them. He turned on his heel and walked out of the Portrait hole back into the corridor.

Scorpius looked at his two remaining teammates. It had been only three weeks since they had last been here talking confidently about winning the World Cup. It felt like a year ago.

Eric Woolingsbee separated from the thinning crowd and walked over to the remaining three Quidditch players. Scorpius saw the Quidditch Captain badge displayed prominently on the older boy’s robe. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Rose scanning the older boy with her top teeth lightly biting down on her bottom lip, which had been slightly trembling.

Scorpius felt her hand slid out of his. She totally ignored the approaching Woolingsbee, and said to the other two, â€�“I’m almost week behind my readings for Potions.” She checked to see if the book was still in her bag, slung it over her right shoulder almost striking the Quidditch Captain in the face and headed toward the stairs that led up to the girl’s dormitory. Scorpius watched her go, his right hand frozen in a half wave which she never turned to see.

Albus intercepted the larger boy. â€�“Not today, Eric, I don’t think anyone’s ready to talk Quidditch or practice schedules.” The older boy pulled a disappointed face and returned to Mary Reilly, their reserve Keeper from the previous season.

Hearing a noise coming from Albus, Scorpius turned to see Albus looking towards the stairs that Rose had disappeared up. He twitched his lips to the right, sighed and then said, â€�“She told me that she was all caught up with her readings. In fact, she scolded me for not being a week ahead in my lessons like she was. I guess all of this was too much for her.” Albus make a motion toward the room with his right hand.

Scorpius shrugged in response to the observation. Albus looked at him and asked, â€�“Exploding Snap? It might be the last one you get before Bea and Abby-bell start bossing the whole house around about boys and their loud noises.” Scorpius smiled at the attempt of humour from his friend, but he still felt the weight of the stares from everyone on him and just shook his head and headed for his dormitory. He was asleep before anyone else entered the room.

---

A bright green light shown into his eyes and it blinded him to his surroundings. At times, he thought he saw the fuzzy shapes and the voice of his grandfather Malfoy talking to Pyter. The words were muffled. He saw Pyter clearly after he removed the green stone from his eyes. As he eyes regained their focus, he dreamed that he saw Pyter and Lucius both smiling toward each other.

Scorpius woke up. The room was totally dark. He was sweating and he had to fight the urge to jump out of bed and escape down to the Common Room. He sat up and sat cross legged in bed trying to get control of his emotions.

â€�“You okay?” whispered the familiar voice of Albus.

â€�“Dream.”

â€�“Yeah, me too.”

The two boys sat in their beds listening to the snoring of Harold Baird and staring up into the room that was only lit by the pale moonlight from outside. After a while, Scorpius heard Albus’ slight snore. He did not know how much longer he stayed awake, but the early November sunshine came way too early for him.

Neville paused just inside of the door to the Headmaster’s office, straining to hear if, perhaps, the Headmaster was leading a discussion with the rest of the group. All he heard was the sound of adults pleasantly engaging in small talk. He entered as quietly as possible, gently shut the door behind, and headed towards the Headmaster’s desk, where Headmaster Flitwick was seated on his custom built throne-like chair. As he walked into the room, Neville eyed the large group seated in plush Club chairs, arranged in an arc in front the large, ornate oak desk. As the people in the room noticed his entry, the conversation quickly became hushed. Neville caught Flitwick’s eye, and the Headmaster motioned his head towards the one empty chair amongst the four behind his desk.

As he walked around the chairs which held the parents, it was obvious that they had questions ready to ask him about how the children reacted and were received upon their return to their Common Room and their fellow students. However, Flitwick extended his arms with his hands out to maintain control over the crowd. Before Astoria Malfoy could question Neville, Flitwick cleared his throat and called on Ron Weasley to come to the front of the room. Neville, moving toward his seat with the other staff, and Ron, moving toward the lecture beside the desk, bumped into each other, both apologized for the contact, and Neville sheepishly slid into a chair between Professors Aurora Sinista (Head of Slytherin) and John Dawlish (Head of Hufflepuff).

---

Ron waited to make sure that Neville had truly settled in his chair. He turned around making eye contact with each member of his audience, starting at far right of the half circle was the Jones brothers (Owain and Ioan); to their left, the Jones’ wives; the Draco Malfoys; Justin Grindus and his ex-wife, Bella; his sister Ginny; and, of course, Hermione. As he was about to begin speaking, he looked down to refresh his memory from the notes he had fashioned for his presentation to the staff and parents. The hand was empty. He had inexplicably left the notes under his teacup on the spindle legged, cherry wood table next to his chair.

Hermione saw her husband’s eyes flick from his empty right hand to the table. She was not quite able to smother the sigh before it escaped and saw her husband wince at the disappointed sound. Trying hard not to roll her eyes, she leaned across his chair, moved the cup causing an audible clinking sound, and picked the three pages off of the little table. After placing the pages in order, she passed him the notes. However, Draco was in the audience and Ron was not going to appear wanting in front of him.

He cleared his throat to buy time for his recollection of the major points. Hermione again rustled the notes, and when he doubled his effort to ignore her, she sighed again and turned toward Ginny. She showed his sister the papers and shook her head. Ginny added a small snort compounding his embarrassment.

â€�“Well, the point is that the Medi-Wizards found no curses with any of the rescued kidnapped.” The Jones women whispered to each other and Astoria squeezed Draco’s hand. â€�“They also said that the physical trauma is healed and that the mental - aah...well - psychological damage will be minor and will fade, but some of it remain for the short term.” He paused, but no reaction came to this announcement. He gave Draco a quick glance and pushed on. â€�“However, after the Auror’s Office and Department of Mysteries experts examined the memories obtained from Scorpius Malfoy, they were able to conclude-”

A small cough, followed by a louder and more staged cough, came from the portrait of former Headmistress Minerva McGonagall, â€�“Pardon me, Mr. Weasley.” Ron paused, looking up at the picture of his former Head of House. The painted woman turned her head toward the chair where Neville sat and made a sour face that made it apparent to all who had known her in life that she meant to say something quite distasteful. After a small pause, she said in her clipped Scottish accent, â€�“Professor Longbottom, a physical altercation and its aftermath are currently occurring in the Gryffindor Common Room.” Ron turned to see Neville’s face turn a bright red in reaction to the news.

â€�“What caused it?”

â€�“Master Woolingsbee made a couple of very loud and unkind comments about how Miss Rose Weasley and Master Malfoy were overrated Quidditch players, and the Gryffindor team didn’t need them to win the House Cup. Upon hearing his comments, Miss Potter - followed closely by her friends Miss Baird and Dragonherd - confronted the boy. When he continued to add to his comments, well, Miss Baird kicked him in the shin, and when he bent over in pain, Miss Potter squarely struck the boy’s face with her fist. I believe I saw blood coming from his nose.”

â€�“Lily,” said Ginny in a sad disappointed tone of voice. As Neville walked towards the door, he found Ginny Potter marching toward the Gryffindor Common Room with him.

Ron watched as the door closed and turned back to the parents at a total loss of what he had and was about to say to them. Hermione re-raised the notes, with her right index finger pointing to the place on page two that was the next topic.

Ron stepped over and snatched the notes from her hand before realizing he couldn’t read the writing in the dim candlelit, so he reached into his waistcoat pocket to pull out a pair of gold-framed half-moon reading glasses. As he placed the spectacles on his nose, the first thing that came into focus was the smugly smiling face of Draco Malfoy.

---

Old Navy Hospital – Washington, D.C

---

Harry watched as his barrister, Art Cabral, argue with the triad of judges behind the tall black wooden dais. The second hearing was going exactly as Cabral had predicted. The head prosecutor had read a prepared statement into the record saying that Harry’s fellow rescuers had reached a series of separate agreements with the Magical People of the United States of America, and no further prosecution would be proceeding from the incidents at the Salem Academy and the unfortunate rescue attempt.

After the reading of the statement, Cabral had turned in his chair and addressed the asked the Prosecutor, â€�“Is it safe to assume that the same offers will be given to my client?”

The woman prosecutor stood, but she answered the query toward the judges and not her opponent. â€�“The Magical People of the United States have no desire nor any inclination to offer the defendant any similar plea deal.”

In a blink of an eye, Art had not only sprung to his feet, but he had approached the dais, unbidden. â€�“What we have here is selective prosecution by the state! What we have here are political shenanigans masquerading as justice! What we have here is-â€�“

The presiding judge’s gavel cut Cabral off with its second slamming.

Harry watched as the Judges motioned the Prosecutor to join them. The meeting of the judges and the two lawyers was being carried out in whispers almost loud enough to be audible. As they whispered, he remained calm. Although he would have not been frightened by all of this, the reason for the icy demeanor was not for the court, but the audience. The entire audience was three people: Rita Skeeter, a male reporter for the national magical paper, and a young woman from the American version of the Wizarding Wireless Network. Behind him was a row of chairs normally reserved for the family members of the accused. The four chairs had been remained empty for all of the hearings. He, without any conscious thought, found himself focused on the seats. He caught himself and immediately homed in on Skeeter. She just sat there with her green quill dancing over parchment on a writing desk she had conjured. A large, wolfish grin spread across her face, and he noticed that she had added two more gold teeth to her collection that passed for her smile.

â€�“Well, let her spend her time reporting on something as unimportant as his family life.” The thought struck home and for a second he felt a pang of loss. For the first time since she had rejected his first proposal of marriage, he doubted Ginny. Harry turned towards Skeeter and locked eyes with the woman seeing if it would unnerve her. It had no effect. So he turned to smile at the other two in the audience before turning back to the front of the court.

The two Americans had asked for permission for an interview, but the court had a gag order on the trial. However, Art had arranged for documents about Harry’s status of British hero read into the record before the prosecution objected and the reading was stopped. The next day, a grinning Cabral dropped the American’s national Magical newspaper on the desk. On page three, a full length review of the story and featured prominently was the history of the Boy-Who-Lived and the man you destroyed He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. The quotes in the article from the British Ministry of Magic and Rita Skeeter seemed to be talking about a different man than the noble warrior the rest of the article described. Harry was pleasantly surprised to see supportive comments in the story from Luna Lovegood-Scamander (the internationally famous naturalist) and Rebekka Dokes (Priestess of Justice of the Island). Harry smiled as he read the last quote. Did her comments mean that either she and/or her government were no longer going to abide by their strict international neutrality to issues beyond their Caribbean homeland? It was a sign that, just maybe, Hermione’s side trip on her way back home had been well-received.

The gavel crashed again and announced a ten minute recess in the chambers with the lawyers. Harry and the Bailiff were to remain in the courtroom. Harry pulled a two day old Daily Prophet that Skeeter had presented him out of Art’s briefcase. Ron had captured a wizard in the midst of crashing a Muggle communications tower near where Harry knew Malfoy Manor was. Ron’s effort to save the tower was for naught, with it being condemned and flattened by the Muggles after the attack. However, a member of Lucius’ crew was captured. Harry wondered if the man would die, like the kidnappers, at the first sign of interrogation. Also in the Sports section, a photograph of Ginny, who had not made an appearance at the trial, speaking at the naming ceremony of the Wasps' practice facility after Bobby Devon. He watched the repeating little image of his wife speaking and dabbing her eyes. Each time the cycle began, he felt a new wave of loneliness and abandonment crash in upon him. He reached his left hand over his wand hand to hide the shaking.

When the officers of the court returned, they had an announcement. The Federal charges, Illegal Entry into the Country and interference with a Federal Investigation, were being dropped, but the local charges were not. He would be transferred back to Salem for trial for manslaughter and conspiracy to hinder a police investigation. He looked at Art, who smiled at him. He wasn’t sure he wanted the dropping of the larger charges. He found himself standing facing the jurists. He gripped harder on his right hand.

â€�“No! I want to be heard on the charges of entering the country and interfering with a N.A.M.E.D.-led investigation.”

The right eyelid of the lead jurist peaked as he heard Harry out. â€�“We are in a court of laws, Mr. Potter. We are not some restaurant where our customers get to customize what he is offered to fit what he wants.” The gavel fell, leaving Harry objecting to the backs of the judges as they left.

He turned to find a confused Cabral staring at him.

He should have done it before. However, he had been afraid of being overheard and having his plan thwarted by the Americans. He said in a whisper, â€�“Art, we need to talk.”

---

Hogwarts – Great Hall

---

Albus had a disgusted look on his face as Scorpius joined him at the house table for Sunday breakfast. Albus looked over towards the head of the table where James, the center of attention, was standing on his bench, retelling an exaggerated version of how he had grabbed the Golden Snitch out from under Kaitlin’s grasp and won the position of Gryffindor Seeker. As a couple of girls in his year applauded much too enthusiastically for both Albus' and Scorpius' taste, the two boys shifted their gaze to the other end of the table.

Seated in between Jenelle and Maggie was the vanquished Kaitlin, and across the table from them, also vainly trying to help raise her spirits, was Rose. He and Rose had not been at the try-outs. After all that had happened to them in America, neither of them had the stomach for suiting up and playing Quidditch. So, Professor Longbottom had arranged a special meeting of the Herbology Club to assemble in Greenhouse Number Two for an organizational planning meeting.

Scorpius felt at home with the group of mostly girls, who were the vast majority, and all of the officers of the group. The club meetings reminded him of the few happy days of his childhood at Malfoy Manor, when he and his Mum tended to the plants in their greenhouses his parents used in the potions that they sold via Owl Post. When it was time for tours, it had been his idea to have Crystalline Dragonherd give Rose a special tour of the greenhouses and explain to her how the Herbology Club not only helped its members Exceed in the Herbology O.W.L.s, but was also useful for Potions, Charms, and Magical Creatures O.W.L.s. When she and Rose returned, Rose had a bounce in her step that he had not seen since after the victory over Egypt.

Unfortunately, Rose’s prolonged absence meant he had to spend time with Mariel Trout, who asked him about the ‘real’ Geoffrey Grindus, and Beatrice Dragonherd who didn’t want to be at the meeting or anyplace this near to him.

To escape Mariel’s questions and Bea’s disapproval, he volunteered to get them a plate of cakes and glasses of foaming pink punch. Scorpius looked at the wall just above the punch bowl and saw the list of pairings for the Greenhouse weekend duties was posted. He casually looked at the list, expecting to see him with Crystalline like last year. Instead, he saw that Rose was paired with Crystalline and he was paired with Beatrice. He didn’t realize that he had dropped the cup of punch until he heard the crash and felt the liquid splash on his pants. He turned to find Crystal; this pairing could not stand.

Just as his mind returned to the Great Hall, Beatrice, Abby, Hugo and the still very silent Lily all approached the table to where Kaitlin was sitting. When Kitty-Kat saw the contingent of younger students coming over to console her, she stood and took a step towards the doors. However, before she could take another stride in her attempt to escape the Hall, Bea reached out and grabbed her wrist. Kaitlin turned to vent her frustrations at the smaller girl when Abby, standing on her tip toes, began to whisper into her ear.

Like all of the upper-class students, he leaned toward the conversation, but Abby was whispering too softly to be overheard. However, he did see the anger on Kaitlin’s face morph into confusion and eventually into anticipated delight. â€�“Where? When?”

Abby replied with an ear-to-ear grin on her face. â€�“Here and very soon.” The three girls of the Little Sisters Squad and a snickering Hugo turned as one to look at a spot just about six feet above and ten feet behind James.

Scorpius quickly spotted Peeves slowly gliding towards James from behind. It looked to him that the Poltergeist had something hidden behind his back as he flew towards the Potter boy, who was miming flying his broom in a barrow-row.

Peeves interrupted the pantomime with a loud cackling voice, â€�“Congratulations on becoming the new Gryffindor Seeker. Here’s a token of appreciation from all of your female admirers.”

James looked up and too late spotted the prize. Before he could dodge out of the path, a large strawberry pie splattered squarely onto James’ face. The whole end of the table near Kaitlin exploded into cheers and jeering laughter as James scrapped the residue of the berries and reddish goop out of his eye sockets. The last person in the Great Hall to stop laughing at James was his little sister, Lily. Lily, who had hardly made a sound in a week, looked around at her stunned housemates and said to them, â€�“What!”

A gasping intake of air came from the nearby Gryffindors in response to Lily’s single word. The collective gasp was followed by Abby and Bea squealing and bouncing in place for joy and Hugo launching into a hug of his cousin. Without detaching Hugo from their friend, Bea, and Abby lead Lily down to the end of the table and began whispered conversations away from the older kids.

At first, Scorpius was ecstatic about what the little sisters had done to take James down a notch or two; then he remembered that he was going to be Beatrice’s greenhouse partner. He was going to have to assign her tasks in the Greenhouses and correct the opinionated girl when she made mistakes. He made two quick promises to himself: One to be as nice as possible to the little, green haired minx, and to always keep an eye out for Peeves after when he and Bea had argued.

---

Salem Massachusetts

---

The first thing that Harry noted was that the courtroom in Salem was older and smaller than the one in Washington. The courtroom looked like it was akin to the basement courtroom he had his hearing in when he was a teenager. Another difference was that the tribunal had been replaced by a single judge. Harry sized up the woman in the black robe from his chair a dozen paces away. She was about a decade older than he was. Her hair was grey, not the powdered wig of British judges, a natural grey. She spoke with an accent that he assumed must be a regional one, because it certainly was different from the drawling accent of two of the N.A.M.E.D. agents.

Another difference was that the Prosecutor was not the young woman, whose habits reminded him so much of Hermione, but a gentleman approximately a decade older than Art.

Skeeter was still in the crowd, but the Wizarding Wireless reporter had been replaced by a writer for the local paper.

Art Cabral nudged his shoulder. Harry stood and in a clear voice spoke, â€�“Not guilty, your honour.”

The judge mentioned the trial would begin in ten days after a jury had been selected. Harry grimaced. Saturday, he would miss his second Gryffindor vs. Slytherin game since he came to Hogwarts. The last time he missed the game was the year they were hunting Horcruxes. For the first time since he was arrested, he wondered if what he was trying to do was worth the things he was missing.

---

Hogwarts Quidditch Pitch

---

â€�“Albus!” Scorpius shouted with his hands cupped to amplify his voice. He knew the warning was useless, because the person he was warning was on the far side of the pitch at least twenty five yards away, and his lone shout was inaudible in the roaring of the crowd. The reason for his shout was quite evident to anyone who knew Geoffrey Grindus and was a top notch Beater. That meant that only Scorpius knew what was coming. The Bludger was rising about fifteen feet below and to the right of Grindus. Scorpius was already flinching at the blow that was about to rattle his best friend. Geoffrey dipped his bat shoulder down and did a corkscrew rotation that brought him diving through the place the Bludger would be. The corkscrew dive would almost double the power of the shot and the speed of the ball at its target. The maneuver was one that Coach Devon had drilled into him and Geoff, who executed the strike perfectly. As the ball sped toward the unsuspecting Albus, Scorpius closed his eyes not wanting to see the contact.

The whacking of the ball on bone and the moaning of the Gryffindors around him told Scorpius all he needed to know about the blast. Rose reached out to grab his forearm, which brought his eyes open to see Albus tucking his wrist into his chest and the other hand held on to a broom in a death spiral, quickly twirling down towards the grass.

Out of nowhere, Gryffindor Captain Eric Woolingsbee broke formation to practically catch Albus, and he used his strength and broom to ease the injured boy safely down to the turf. The Lion fans cheered for the leadership and teamwork he showed Albus. However, his actions left poor Mary Reilly to face a three on one charge. Natt Nott dodged a feeble blocking attempt by the off side Chaser Kaitlin Jones and fired the Quaffle through the top of the middle hoop. Slytherins lead 180 to 60.

Scorpius stopped watching the Quaffle and began to follow James Potter. Potter was feinting and diving in an attempt to lose John Summit, the Slytherin Seeker.

Rose found it first. â€�“There, by the sand pit near Mary - the Snitch. She’s not looking for it. You’re down by over a hundred; you have to help the Seeker find the Golden Snitch.” Rose was livid with her replacement, who was obliviously not thinking clearly on her broom. She was just reacting to the other team’s attacks. Rose, who still had a hold of Scorpius’ arm, growled and violently jerked on his left arm.

â€�“Oww”

â€�“Sorry, it’s just so frustrating. She’s looking right at it, but her brain isn’t engaged.” The grip on his arm grew tighter. The blood flow to his left hand was beginning to be affected. He jerked it away from her. â€�“Sorry,” she repeated.

James suddenly pulled his broom into an outside loop heading towards Mary’s hoop. He and Rose gasped at the same time. â€�“Goooo James,” he yelled.

Geoffrey must have seen the maneuver and quickly headed to mid-pitch where one of the Bludgers was moving to the side of James’ attack. Grindus almost unseated himself with the recoil from the two-handed back-hand swat of the Bludger, and Scorpius knew that the ball would arrive seconds before James would get to the Snitch. As he watched the inevitable, he saw a Maroon and Gold streak diving in between James and the ball. The Bludger struck home, knocking the Gryffindor off the broom, but it wasn’t James who fell hard onto the floor of the pitch. Kaitlin Jones had seen the attack and sacrificed herself to protect James and give him a chance at winning the match. As Rose and Scorpius watched her splat face first onto the turf, the rest of the house exploded in triumph. James had the Golden Snitch, and the Lions had won 210 to 180.

Rose pulled Scorpius by the arm, and they rushed down to the field. As James accepted the congratulations of his teammates and his housemates, they reached Kaitlin. She was gasping for air while writhing in pain.

â€�“Lay still,” he shouted to Kaitlin.

â€�“It hurts!”

â€�“Yes, but you might do more damage,” added Rose as she laid face first on the grass and took Kaitlin’s hand into hers. â€�“That was unbelievably brave of you.”

â€�“Unbelievably stupid, you mean.” She grimaced, the talking was making her hurt.

â€�“No,” reassured Scorpius. â€�“You won the game, not James, and I’ll testify to that in court.”

Scorpius was pushed aside by Madame Pomfrey and her young assistant, Madame Penn. The pair began to quickly examine Kaitlin.

As they two women began finished their examination, James rushed over to the prone body of the girl. â€�“Who did this? Tell me and I’ll deck him.”

Scorpius shook his head, and he started to speak a beat before Rose, who relented when she heard him speak. â€�“She did it herself. She was trailing you and she saw Geoffrey rip a backside blaster at you. So, she flew directly into the path of the shot and took the full shot for you.”

At that moment, nurses conjured a litter and moved Kaitlin onto it with her still face-down. James dropped to one knee, looking at Kaitlin, who was fighting to hold back any reaction to the pain. â€�“Here, it’s yours.” He placed the Snitch in her hand. As she attempted to grasp it, she yelped in pain. James turned to the head nurse. â€�“What’s wrong? How bad?”

â€�“Well, your brother has a broken wrist…the same arm you had. As for Miss Jones, I’d say a broken collarbone, two chipped teeth and maybe some deep bruising of the kidneys. I’d say they will both be back for school on Monday.”

Kaitlin moaned again and said, â€�“Can’t you make it Tuesday? I’ve got a Divination exam on reading of tea leaves on Monday.” She tried to laugh, and the effort caused her whole body to shake in agony.

â€�“I’ll go up with them. Kitty-Kat, when you leave, the Snitch is still yours.”

Scorpius saw a smile replace the pain in the girl’s face as he walked beside her up towards the Hospital wing of the school.

Harry Potter was sitting on the uncomfortable chair as he had been instructed by his attorney. He had his feet planted flatly on the ground, in his right hand he held a Muggle ink pen poised over a notepad, and his eyes focused on the occupant sitting behind the dark wood, railed witness box. The man occupying the witness box was his opposite number, Major W. Hayes (the head of the N.A.M.E.D. security detail), and he was describing great detail the elaborate security procedures that he and his team had used to protect the World Junior Quidditch Cup. The Prosecutor deftly bypassed all mention of the intruder fight that demonstrated just how flawed the scheme and its implementation had been. Also, they failed to mention the numerous security suggestions that he had offered to the Americans and were not taken were also absent from the testimony.

The witness, lead by the government’s lawyer, laid out the timeline that showed a wizard, who later was found out to be under the Imperius Curse, showed up at their security headquarters claiming that he had seen bound children being led into a cabin near Oxford, Maine.

â€�“So, you would have rescued the young people without any ‘outside’ interference,” said the Prosecutor making little quote marks with his fingers in the air as he said the word outside facing the jury and not the witness.

â€�“Yes.”

â€�“And you are certain that if you had been the rescuers, no one would have been killed or injured. I remind you that you are under an oath.”

â€�“Yes.”

Harry let slip an abbreviated snort of derision which he immediately regretted. If the tables had been turned, he probably would have answered the same question with the same affirmative response. The Prosecutor turned toward Harry and made a show of making a sour face and raising an eyebrow in response. Harry didn’t have to look to his right to know Cabral was not happy with him.

After lunch, it was the defense’s turn at the witness. Cabral waited until the prosecutor sat down in his chair before he looked up at Hayes. Art started to speak and then didn’t. He looked down at his notes, made a show out of striking something on the paper, and looked back up to Hayes. By this time, the confident smirk had disappeared from the witnesses’ face and he seemed less impressive. Cabral leaned back onto the back two legs of his chair as he asked. â€�“Can you give me the details of what occurred in the campgrounds the night before the scheduled match between Egypt and the United Kingdom?”

Hayes did not wait a beat. â€�“On the night in question, two intruders infiltrated the campgrounds and began a wand battle outside of the Egyptian Dormitory. Two of my men engaged the intruders and they escaped. In defending the campgrounds, both of my men were injured with one of them requiring a brief hospitalization. I believe one of those two intruders turned out to one of those rescuers taken into custody at the Oxford cabins.”

Art nodded his head showing the jury that he already knew all of this. The lawyer sat up, glanced down at his notes again and looked up with a face full of puzzlement. â€�“Excuse me, Mr. Hayes, I seemed to have missed something important in your testimony. How did the intruders make their escape from the campgrounds? Did they use brooms or flying carpets? Did they mount magical creatures? Or did U.F.O.s swoop down and scoop them up?” Art ended his query with a smirk and a small laugh.

Color flushed Hayes’ face and he answered, â€�“No, they Disapperated as their way of escape.”

Art stood up and walked to the jury box. The juror closest to Harry tried to hide a smile. The source of the man’s humor was revealed when the lawyer turned to face the witness. Art’s eyes were as large as Luna’s eyes usually were and he had a look of total disbelieve on his face.

â€�“Mr. Hayes, I took two whole pages of notes on your exhaustive plan that your agency came up to protect this large International assembly and no one thought to block Disapperation? I mean how many of us didn’t, at least once, use disapperation to escape his girlfriend’s angry father.”

Harry heard one of the reporters from behind laugh as did two of the jurors. If the truth was known, Harry had only tried that once, when he had snuck into the Harpies Training Facility to surprise Ginny after his two month long Auror survival training class in Greenland. He still remembered Gwenog Jones’ shocked face when she and the old-maid owners of the Harpies had interrupted them in the laundry room, and he found, much to his embarrassment, that the Harpy’s Facility blocked use of that spell.

â€�“We blocked apperation directly into the facility. However, with all of the comings and goings between Salem, Washington and the campgrounds, we chose not to block the spell.”

Art nodded his head as if in agreement. He then turned his head to the left and sucked in his right cheek. â€�“I see….I understand not blocking the spell during normal business hours, but in the middle of the night? One would think, maybe?” Hayes slightly squirmed in his seat. Cabral did not give Hayes time to recompose himself. â€�“Mr. Hayes, did you meet with the defendant and talk about security for the tournament?”

â€�“Yes.”

â€�“Did Mr. Potter offer any suggestions as to the aforementioned intrusion and to the security details?”

â€�“Yes, he offered his opinions. However, he did not know the strategic background or the reinforcements we had in waiting.”

â€�“Strategy and reinforcements, it sounds you were in a military operation not a simple security operation.”

â€�“I don’t understand.”

â€�“Didn’t my client, the accused, explain to you about Mr. Lucius Malfoy and his nature as a subtle, devious, criminal mastermind and not as a general of an invading army?”

â€�“Lucius Malfoy wasn’t the only threat to those that we were protecting at the tournament. We had to make sure that all threats were covered.”

Cabral paused and sighed. He stood in front of the rail of the jury box, leaned back and, for a long minute, examined the top of his shoes. Next, he turned to look each juror in the eyes before readdressing the witness. â€�“Did any other of these other possible threats send agents to infiltrate the campgrounds?” Hayes shook his head only. â€�“Sorry, I didn’t hear your reply.”

Hayes, in a too loud voice, said, â€�“No!”

â€�“So, Harry Potter from a thousand miles away identifies the mastermind, the name of one of the intruders, and hands all of that information to you on a silver platter and you…..ignored him? Now, who couldn’t understand why the families of the kidnapped would not put their full trust into the N.A.M.E.D. agency to find and choose to mount their own rescue of their loved ones?”

After Cabral’s cross-examination, the prosecutor attempted to restore confidence in Hayes testimony and seemed to fail, Hayes left the witness box and strode out of the courtroom without looking at Harry. The male prosecutor realizing his case was sinking arose and addressed the court. â€�“Your honor, it is late in the afternoon and the next witnesses, as you know, will not be ready until tomorrow morning. The People would like to ask l for an adjournment.”

The judge swung toward Cabral, â€�“Counselor?”

Cabral, still seated, looked up to judge for a beat turned toward the Prosecutor and said, â€�“The defense has no objection.”

The judge banged the gavel, but before Harry could stand so he could be returned to his cell a hand grasped his arm. Harry felt long talons dig into his wrist holding him fast.

An unwelcomed, but familiar female voice began to speak, â€�“My dear, poor Harry.” Rita Skeeter smiled flashing all eight of her gold teeth at one time. The smile did not match the solemn tone of her voice. â€�“Can I get your reaction to the latest news? A comment or two to appear in the second paragraph of the follow-up piece to the story, I mean you must be soooo proud.”

Art attempted to step in between his client and the reporter. â€�“My client is under court order to not discuss the trial. I believe you were informed about the restrictions when you got your press credentials.”

â€�“I’m not asking about this silly trumped up trial. We all know that he will be found innocent.”

With her free hand Rita pulled a section of a newspaper out of a satchel she had placed on the empty chairs reserved for the family of the accused. Harry recognized the masthead to be that of the Daily Prophet. The part of the paper was the Sports section and the headlines screamed for all to see: â€�“Ginny Potter signs as Head Coach of Harpies”.

Harry saw the words, but they didn’t make any sense. Ginny had not mentioned this in either of her two letters he had received. The number of letters struck home, he had been in custody for a month and a half and she had only writ twice. Hermione and Luna had written him more times than Ginny, the mother of his children, had.

Harry wrenched his arm free from Skeeter and attempted to sit down on his chair. He missed and would have landed on the floor without the help of his lawyer and the bailiff.

Skeeter’s face shown with pure delight like what had just happened was her birthday, Halloween, and Christmas had all been rolled into one.

---

Hogwarts

---

Scorpius followed Rose and the rest of the Junior Quidditch team into the staff lounge. He did not look forward to this. First, they would be missing lunch and secondly, he didn’t see what good it would do. Lily had tried in vain to get permission to allow Hugo to sit with her, but the instructions from the Ministry and Wizengamot were insistent that the only ‘witnesses’ of their testimony was to be the members of the people at the other side of the Magic Mirror, the observers from the Law Enforcement Department and a member of the Daily Prophet.

The teammates sat alphabetically forming an arc in front of a large magical mirror. Geof Grindus was at the far left, followed by Kaitlin, Rhys, and Scorpius who was almost in the middle of the mirror. Seated on his right was Albus, Lily, James Potter, and at the far right was Rose who seemed to be leaning in hoping to see something. What the team saw through the mirror was two desks and a box with a railing that house a dozen mixed aged people. However, Scorpius really only took in one face. Mr. Potter looking very tired and he seemed to be searching in the mirror for something or someone on their side of the mirror….for what Scorpius didn’t know. His children were seated quite visibly in the middle.

When Lily saw her father, she shouted in a desperate near crying voice, â€�“Daddy!”

â€�“I’m here, Lily” was all Harry Potter got out before a gavel slammed off screen. At the loud sound all of them in the little arc reflexively jumped at the noise coming through the mirror from across the ocean. A male voice shouted the word â€�“Objection.”

â€�“Sustained, the jury will ignore any attempts at emotional theatre.” Mr. Potter’s barrister grabbed him by the wrist as he started to stand. The two men whispered and the barrister cleared his throat as he stood.

â€�“Your honor, this was not theatre. It is that my client and his children have not seen each other in weeks. It is natural for his young daughter to want to speak to her daddy.”

â€�“The jury will ignore Mister Cabral’s latest comment. It is immaterial that Mr. Potter’s children have not chosen to visit him.”

Cabral sat down and faced this mirror, but he kept hold of Mr. Potter’s arm.

One by one, the group relayed the kidnapping of the team by a woman they thought to be Mrs. Davis, but turned out to be a man who had taken Polyjuice. How they were disarmed. How the Coaches attempted to fight back, but were overwhelmed. How after the arrival of Ares Pyter, who threatened to torture Rose unless Scorpius agreed to go with him into the back room.

Scorpius explained about his removal from the cabin. Next, Rose doing most of the talking she described how after Pyter left, the remaining kidnappers began to threaten them followed by the unexpected rush and terror of the rescue attempt. When Lily broke into tears as Rose described how Lily was being told to choose a victim. In the mirror a loud crashing and a shout occurred as Mr. Potter shot out of his chair bowling it over as he shouted, â€�“Stop this! What good is this doing? You’ve already got their statements? You’re torturing them again!” The man by Mr. Potter grabbed him by the arm and pulled him down while standing.

â€�“Your Honor, while I apologize for my clients outburst. I concur with the sentiment.”

â€�“Objections overruled,” a voice from off of the screen spoke. â€�“One more outburst, Mr. Cabral and you and your client will be facing contempt charges.” Scorpius saw the standing barrister nod his head as he sat down.

However, Scorpius did notice the Prosecutor surveying the jurors and who seemed very much in sympathy with the witnesses. He demurred and the defense had no questions.

As they stood to leave, the Potter children, with Lily in the middle, stood in front of the mirror touching it. The rest of the teams slipped out giving them a few seconds alone with their daddy. The wait outside was about a minute, the three Potters all wiping their eyes exited the room hand in hand in hand. They walked by the others and headed back to the Gryffindor Common Room. The others disbursed towards the Great Hall. Scorpius and Rose stood watching the backs of the Potters as they left the room.

â€�“Should we follow?” asked Scorpius.

Rose was staring at her cousins and as he watched her, Scorpius saw Rose pull her lips into her mouth in concentration. â€�“Let’s give them a minute or two. Maybe make a plate or two from the lunch and take it up to let them eat in private and talk if they want.”

â€�“If we do that won’t we miss Astronomy class?”

Rose silently nodded as she replied, â€�“Family and friends are more important than getting top grades.” The pair turned to head into the Great Hall. As they passed the staff table, Scorpius stopped in front of Professor Longbottom. Professor Longbottom agreed with Rose and told him that they would all get excused absences from his office. Scorpius turned to join Rose in heaping plates full of food.

---

Hogwarts Quidditch Pitch

---

As he and Rose walked out of the changing room onto the pitch, Scorpius noticed two distinct reactions to their unannounced presence. Kaitlin, James and Albus all gave them little waves, but they did not rush over to meet their friends. Mary Reilly and Todd Grey both turned red in the face spun to find and began screaming at their Captain Eric Woolingsbee.

Woolingsbee stood there like a rock in the ocean letting their wraith crash upon him like the pounding surf. When their angry had been spent, Eric announced to the team.

â€�“We are having a try-out for Weasley and Malfoy. They will have to win the position on the team. If they tie with the incumbent player, they will go back into the stands.” Eric eyed Grey and Reilly and added in a quiet, calm voice, â€�“Anyone who doesn’t do everything they can do to make this team the best in the school, they should resign now.” Scorpius saw Grey turn towards him giving him a dirty look. For a Hogwarts student, Grey’s look was impressive, but during the tournament Scorpius had seen a lot harder looks from a lot more talented people. He lifted his bat to offer a touch for luck. Grey ignored the offer and just stared at him.

After he had won his stare down with Grey, he saw Reilly already looking down at her trainers and he spotted moisture welling up in Mary’s eyes. Rose was as good as on the team, because it was obvious that Reilly had surrendered any chance at remaining Goal Keeper before the tryout had even begun.

---

Salem

---

â€�“The defense would like to call, Mr. Harry James Potter to the stands.”

He stood up, turned behind to look one more to re-assure himself that he had not been dreaming when last night Art had escorted a visitor into the holding cell. Ginny dressed in her shabbies had walked in and he had almost knocked Art down to get to her. However as he tried to hug his wife, he was blasted back by some kind of spell wall. The Americans would let him look at her but he could not touch her. After the failed attempt, a guard appeared in the door to observe. Art keep checking his location to insure that he stayed just out of earshot.

Art spent the next twenty minutes explaining what Harry was going to testify about and possible cross examination lines to expect. Harry didn’t register a thing. Every sense that he had was focused on the freckled faced woman with the pulled back red hair. If they had offered a deal to trade of admitting to any crime just to let him hold her, he would have confessed to every unsolved case in America for the touch.

The one thing that Art said that did sink in was, â€�“When you’re on the stands, if you hit this one out of the park and the government will have multiple options for us to decide on, because they don’t want the embarrassment of trying a hero of another nation and losing the case. They will do anything to save face.” Harry smiled, but he didn’t know what Art wanted him to hit or in which park he was supposed to accomplish the feat in.

He turned to Ginny and he shrugged. She just sat there smiling at him. After Art was done, She had told him that she had been on the witness list for the prosecution and was afraid to show up because it might have encouraged them calling her up to apply pressure to him. She’d wanted to be here for him, but Hermione had convinced her to stay in Britain. So now she sat in the chair behind her husbands wearing a modest, knee length Kelly green dress and matching green flat shoes, Ginny smiled over at him and blew a kiss so the entire jury would see. Beyond Ginny, Harry could see Rita Skeeter’s green quill dancing its way across a scroll.

As he walked toward the witness stand he felt that everything that he had set in motion in that cabin was going to work. It was Ginny’s mere presence and that thought buoyed him so much that he felt like he could take down Lucius and his entire organization single handedly without a wand.

---

First Saturday in December at Hogwarts

---

Scorpius looked over at Beatrice. He shook his head, as he watched her for the third time this morning, stop planting her tubs full of Merlin Grass seedlings, and walk over to the sink to wash her hands. He had already finished his six tubs and she was still on number two.

He walked over the sink where she was drying her hands in a very, very deliberate style. As she reached for a second towel, he pulled it out of her grasp. She glared at him.

He leaned forward trying hard to keep his temper in check. He said, â€�“I’ve got two hours to complete the tasks on the list before I have to go to the pitch and play.”

Beatrice with her hair was almost totally green again after another dying job, which also sported an inch or so hair that was black from the roots gave him a look of total indifference. â€�“Well, you better hurry up and do them by yourself,” she replied in that smug look that so infuriated him.

He took the ends of the cloth towel, formed a loop and used it to snare the girl’s hands. He tighted the loop of the towel around her wrists as he used it to lead her back to the remaining tubs. â€�“You’re gonna finish, your part of the job.”

â€�“Or? What are you going to do? Run to my big sister and tattle?”

The snide comment dug deeply into him. If she was a boy, he’d show her. Scorpius caught his breath to calm himself down and think. She’d like him to tell Crystalline just to show up her sister’s authority. He thought of the Little Sisters Squad, Lily might have some sympathy, but if push-came-to-shove she’d take Bea’s side. He suddenly felt a thrill as the solution became obvious and he let it show itself in a grin of joy.

â€�“If I’m late, I’ll let both Kaitlin and James know that you are the reason I was late and missed the match. Tell me, Beatrice, what punishment do you think Kaitlin and Rose might spring on you in the girls’ dormitory at around midnight? Did you hear what they did to get revenge against the Russians?”

Beatrice had a look of concern on her face that she quickly tried to hide. â€�“No.”

â€�“Well, let’s just say that it was so bad that we had to forfeit our next match. And they did it with just a few seedings the Rose could buy at a store. Just think what a peeved off Kaitlin could do with all of the plants in the greenhouses to choose from.” He leaned forward to further make her feel put upon. She made a growling noise in her throat and began to add the dragon dung to the seedlings.

â€�“Listen, I’ll do these two,” he said pointing to the left most tubs of the four. You finish these two and we’ll come back after breakfast tomorrow to prune the Venomous Tentacula. You need two for that job. So we get an early start and we can be done so we have Sunday afternoon free. Deal?” he reached out his muddy hand. She looked at her equally dirty ones and turned to start working on the two tubs in front of her.

â€�“Deal.”

As he was finishing up his first tub and she was still dawdling over the half on one she had, she starting talking to him. At first, he thought it was a way to suck him in to do the third tub for her. However, her questions seemed genuinely interested.

â€�“Crystal says your Father and Grandfather were both ‘Death Eaters’, is that true? If so, how come you’re a Gryffindor?”

He didn’t feel like talking about his family. He looked over at her and said, â€�“Crystalline is a Ravenclaw and you’re a Gryffindor. Blood isn’t the answer to everything. My Grandfather Malfoy never learned that lesson, but my father did almost too late.” He looked over waiting for some smart aleck answer or a judgmental comment in reply. She just grew pensive and she silently finished her third tub and pulled the last one toward her.

As she mixed the dung into the soil, he caught her looking over at him. He had to know what she was thinking. â€�“This is the longest time that I’ve ever heard you be silent. So let it out, okay?”

She did not speak in reply. It was only after she watered the seedlings she had planted in her final tub, she finally spoke to him. â€�“So, if your Grandfather had met my Muggle mother, he would have killed her?”

â€�“Probably not, he sees Muggles as inferiors and creatures to be ruled over. Now you, Crystalline, and your father, he’d definitely go after you. Your dad is a blood traitor for marrying a Muggle and you would also need to be killed for the good of wizard kind.” He finished and was shocked by the way the comments had just flowed off of his tongue. He had never ever thought once about blood that way, the ease of hearing himself talking about it sort of sickened him. â€�“Sorry,” he lamely added.

Now she was confused. â€�“Why? What you said was the truth, right?” He nodded. â€�“Why the sorry?”

â€�“When, I was explaining what my Grandfather believes to you, it almost seemed to make sense. Hatred shouldn’t make sense, it’s illogical.”

He peeked over and caught Bea just staring at him. He tucked his chin down, grabbed the tubs, walked across the greenhouse, and he sat them on the rough wood hewn table where they would get the proper light. Feeling trapped, he turned toward the door and, without washing up, walked out into the late morning sunlight. Bea followed watching him through the glass wall. He looked up and saw her through the window and froze. At first, she was annoyed that he was staring at her, but when she moved to the sink to wash and return he was still in the same pose in the same position.

Beatrice walked out of the greenhouse, turned the corner and stood next to the unblinking Malfoy. â€�“Hey, blonde!” He did not react. She clapped her hands in his face (he didn’t even blink an eye) and finally she snapped her fingers. At the second snap, his head jerked causing his yellow hair to flounce. â€�“You okay?”

He nodded automatically. He stared at her, but couldn’t seem to focus. He had to do something, but he didn’t know what.

She said to him, â€�“You best go up to the changing room and beat Ravenclaw. I’ve got a three Knuts and a weekend’s duty in the greenhouse bet with Crystal on the match. So you better win or pay the consequences.”

Scorpius nodded. Of course, he had to change into his tunic and beat Ravenclaw because Bea had a bet with her sister. Without washing his hands, he headed up towards the pitch.

Harry looked up at the six people who were seated behind the arc-shaped table which focused all seated behind it at those who were giving testimony before them. They were as much strangers to him as he was to them.

When the list of those who would be at the hearing was published, Art had been very impressed by the names of the witches and wizards who would hear their testimony. He said that it was a who’s who of the American government from both the Legislative and Executive branches.

Harry entered the electrically lit hearing room on the first sub-level of the Old Navy Hospital Building. The wall paneling behind the dais was a deep oak, while the rest of the room’s walls were a light polished limestone.. The contrast in the colors made the people sitting at the high dais seemingly to be darker and harder to focus on their individual facial features as they tended to blend into the dark wood. The shiny white stone in combination with the electric lights seemed to light up the people being questioned. Harry bet that every bead of sweat that come to his face would be easily visible to the Americans.

As he entered, Harry was met by Art, Hermione, and Rebekka Dokes. Art and Hermione were dressed in their trademark perfect Muggle business attire. Harry was wearing a black silken dress robe, with a golden in-lay pattern of a sword (possibly Excalibur or the Sword of Gryffindor). The dress robe was one he had been presented with on his first triumphant appearance in front of the Wizengamot after his defeat of Voldemort. The only reason he was wearing such a gaudy item was that it was the only formal wear that Ginny and Hermione had brought for him to wear after he had been set free.

While he tugged self-consciously with the robe’s collar, Rebekka, sitting next to him, was serenely dressed in a form fitting green, gold and tan boubou with a maroon head wrap holding her hair. She had an easy smile on her face and looked like she did this every day. He had to remind himself that the impressive woman sitting next to him, with the regal bearing, was the same tentative, immigrant woman who Draco had hired three years ago as an assistant in his potion shop. Rebekka looked every bit the Island’s Priestess of Justice.

He took a breath to settle his nerves and said very softly to himself, â€�“Now, it begins.”

Rebekka, without taking her gaze from the milling dignitaries, said, â€�“Relax. You’ll do fine. They are no better than you or I. Although, I think they all might be better than March Lee.”

Harry smiled at her getting the Mickey on his former boss in London. Imagining all of them, as the pompous Minister of Magic re-focused him on his task. They were just politicians, same as all the people in the Ministry who had tried to stop his reforms of the Auror Office. He had bested that lot and this lot was the same.

The sound of a mallet hitting wood reverberated around the room and it caused the murmuring of small talk to come to an end. He sat straight up already beginning to feel the rising heat from the blasted dress robe and his own nerves. He hoped that his glasses would not fog up during what was to come.

Harry sat next to Rebekka with Hermione and Art seated behind. He wished that he could swap places with the two behind him. He didn’t like talking in public. He was trying hard to remember the opening introduction that he had practiced in his cell since they first proposed to cut him deal that got him to submit a never to be publically acknowledged written apology to the Americans in exchange for the dropping of charges.

A tall, thin man with a chin beard began to speak to the room at large. Harry counted as more ‘dignitaries’ entered on the other side of the dais making the total well over a dozen. He was one of four seated in front of them and just under a dozen sat behind Hermione and Art in the audience. Harry had noticed, with some pleasure, Rita Skeeter had skulked out of his Salem trial with no big juicy story to print in the Prophet. Funny, if she had only waited a couple of days she would have had possibly had an article with some ‘real’ news not the gossip she like to peddle.

The tall man finished his opening comments and looked down his chin beard at Harry. He missed the significance of the man’s action until Hermione, through clenched teeth, forced out one barely audible word. â€�“Harry!”

He tried to hide his faux-pas with a nod and be began his speech. â€�“My name is Harry James Potter and I’m a citizen of Great Britain. I currently hold no position in Britain’s Ministry of Magic. I speak to you as a citizen of my country and a wizard in the modern world."

Harry paused to swallow, he had to get this right lives depended on this. "As a citizen of Britain, I have twice lived through the overthrow of my Ministry by criminals. In a short span of two decades, my witch and wizard, sisters and brothers, have been hunted down and slaughtered because of an accident of their birth or heritage. During our last trouble, our underground sent out wireless requests for help, anybody’s help. And who came to our aid: Nobody. Not the United States, nor Canada, nor did any of our European neighbors came to our aid. I can only imagine what just a dozen or so of your elite N.A.M.E.D. agents could have done in concert with Order of the Phoenix at the battle of Hogwarts. I wonder how many lives could have been saved. We must not let this happen again. I don’t care how it is organized or whom is to lead it. We must, as freedom loving magic users, not allow such to happen to our children.”

Harry looked down at the table and started to well up with emotion as he caught a mental image of his children making a last stand with their friends fighting Lucius Malfoy and his minions. He looked up at the panel and said, â€�“Sorry. The faces of those who perished and those who may have to pay the same price in the near future came to me and-. I do not blame the countries or people that I named earlier, but I know that if the United Magical States of America had sent out requests, we would not have come to your aid. I apologize to you for our short-sidedness. Magic is so powerful and it so easily bends the weak and the greedy. We, as the world’s magical people, learned the wrong lesson after we all teamed up to defeat Grindelwald. We all turned inward to protect our own and to not get involved in external affairs. How many will die, if we don’t change our ways?”

Harry lowered his head. He had gone off track in the middle of his speech and spoken off-of-the-cuff. He could also feel Hermione silently coaxing him to return to the practiced speech. He couldn’t. Hermione was the one who drew her power for public speaking from the intellect. He had learned to trust his heart. It was his heart that Tom Riddle couldn’t cope with, the heart that won Ginny’s hand in marriage, and that made his Auror’s follow him. He knew what he said was what he had to say, what he knew would happen from the moment that he had heard about the Tower of London heist. If they were going to truly defeat Lucius; Britain needed the help of the world to do so.

He looked up and realized that the man with the chin whiskers was introducing the other scheduled speaker. He listened to the credentials of Rebekka Dokes. He felt lessened when he compared himself to her credentials; he, Art, and Hermione were relative amateurs in this arena.

Rebekka Dokes looked up at the people on the other side of the barrier. She made a point of fixing their stares with one of her own. Unlike Harry, whose tone bordered on pleading, she was commanding her audience’s attention. She took one big breath that seemed to not only expand her chest, but by sitting as straight as possible made her seem to grow inches right in front of your eyes.

â€�“Almost a decade ago, the area surrounding my homeland was rocked with a major earthquake and a tsunami that struck our island instead of our neighbors. When the disaster occurred, Muggles rushed in aid from all around the world to help their own in Haiti. We, who are just off their shore, were left by our Magical brethren to fend for ourselves. I wonder why the Muggles can help their brothers and sisters, but we prideful, more powerful witches and wizards cannot be bothered to help.” She paused and again made eye contact with those behind the desk.

Rebekka turned toward Harry and placed her hand on top of his. â€�“I must apologize to my friend, Harry Potter, about the war that he and his friends fought alone. I wish we could have helped you.” Harry found himself smiling at nodding at the woman.

â€�“In preparing for my testimony, I came across something said by one of this nation’s founders. I believe it was the Muggle Benjamin Franklin that said ‘that we must hang together or else we will hang separately.’ We, who have the joint cursing and blessing of the gift of magic, must join together for our own protection and our way of life. However, it is most important for us to act now for the protection of our children, so they do not have to fight for their lives like my British friends did.” Rebekka turned toward Harry, gave him a bow, and once again patted his hand.

Harry watched as the people behind the table fidgeted as Rebekka spoke. When she had apologized, he saw a couple of them turn to people who had been standing behind them. He was uncertain if his testimony had swayed the listeners, but he knew Rebekka Dokes had touched either their hearts or their pride.

---

Hogwarts

---

Scorpius was surprised when Beatrice Dragonherd sat down on the Great Hall’s bench in between him and Rose. Bea’s sudden appearance confused the two older Gryffindors. â€�“Remember, what happened to Maggie and Jen after your Friday D.A.D.A. class?”

â€�“Yeah,” he said.

On Friday, Jen and Maggie were the last two students to walk out of Professor Dawlish’s classroom, they suddenly found themselves upside down dangling by their ankles. As they spun upside down, Vestara Vesper gave a critic of their undergarments to a group of mostly girl Slytherins, who laughed and taunted their victims.

When she hear the cries for help, Rose led a charge of the rest of the third year Gryffindors back up the hallway to rescue the girls. When they got there, Rose quickly used a silently cast spell to return her housemates back to the ground. During the rescue, the Slytherins had scattered, but Maggie had been devastated by the public humiliation.

â€�“Don’t look at her. I want it to be a surprise.” As Bea finished, Abby, Lily, and Hugo brought Jen and Maggie to sit next to Rose facing Vestara. â€�“Enjoy it, compliments of the ‘Little Sisters Squad’.” Bea smiled and jerked her head to the head of the Slytherin table where Vestara sat near to Geoffrey Grindus.

The Great Hall was nearly full of students eating a leisurely Sunday morning breakfast prior to Chapel; so every house and class would have witnesses to what was to come as payback for messing with Gryffindor House.

Above the Slytherin table, Peeves floated towards Vesper. The Slytherin girl, who was unsuccessfully flirting with Geoffrey, never knew what was happening until the bucket of soupy, muddy water splashed down upon her head. The force of the mud hitting the top of her head slammed her forehead into the table and Geoffrey, using his Quidditch skills, jumped up missing most of the mess.

â€�“Now, that is definitely an improvement! You should leave others alone Vespy, unless you want Peeves-y to let everyone see what color your knickers are.” Having passed his judgment, the poltergeist disappeared through the floor of the Great Hall and escaping any consequences for his actions.

The Gryffindors around Bea and Lily tried their best to keep their composure. They failed. Suddenly the magically amplified voice of Professor Longbottom boomed from the Staff table. â€�“I want to see Lily Potter, Beatrice Dragonherd, Cristabel Abigail Baird, and Hugo Weasley in my Greenhouse office, now!”

Beatrice and Lily looked resigned to any punishment they were going about to receive. Abby was only angry that her Head-of-house had used her real first name in front of the whole school.

Only Hugo looked anguished, â€�“Rose, I didn’t do anything; it was all their idea.”

Lily turned on her cousin, â€�“Remember, you are all in with us or there is a price you’ll pay.” Hugo looked up where Peeves had been. He swallowed, nodded, and began to trudge along the side of the three girls toward the Great Hall doors. As they got near the end of the Gryffindor table, Roxanne Weasley and a group of other fifth year students stood and began to applaud the little sisters plus one as they went to meet their fate.

Scorpius turned to see Vestara and her friends using spells to remove the mess from her hair as they glared at backs of the exiting younger girls. The entire house would have to be on the lookout to protect the first years. He knew Vestara and her friends had a couple of cement headed boys thinking they were next in line to be their boyfriends and they would do anything Vestara wanted just to impress her. However, with the whole Gryffindor house alerted to the danger, the four were pretty safe. He honestly didn’t know if in a straight-on fight which side would need the most defending. If he had to, he’d put money on the Bea and her friends over the Vesper and her friends.

---

The Burrow

---

Ginny and Molly floated the cake out of the kitchen into the Weasley family living room and landed in on the low table directly in front of Harry. The cake was huge and featured his image dressed in striped prisoners garb behind a row of bars. The dessert had to be large because beside his wife, his mother-and-father-in-law, all of Harry’s brother-and-sisters-in-law (except Charlie), senior members of the Auror’s Office and godson Teddy Lupin with his new wife Victorie’ were all applauding the cake’s arrival.

The children were still in Hogwarts, but the table was full of notes and cards of congratulations which had arrived via owl post this afternoon. And a special owl had arrived carrying a visitor’s pass for two from Neville so he and Ginny could go up to visit the school next week and see Gryffindor play Hufflepuff for the Quidditch Cup. He couldn’t wait to hug each of his kids. He knew that they would squirm and complain about the attention in front of their school mates. He didn’t care, because each one would get a hug and a kiss in front of anyone who happened to be present.

Harry basked in the love of his family. While they were dating, during Ginny first year playing for the Harpies, they had all been to the Burrow for someone’s birthday party. Ginny had playfully asked if he loved her or her family. He had feigned a long consideration, which got him a punch in the arm and a reminder from Ginny about what was better her mother’s cooking or her in his bed. He smiled, kissed Ginny (which got a roar from George and Ron) and turned to thank all of them for their love.

With the kids at Hogwarts, no job to go to and Ginny being two weeks away from her first training camp as Coach, he and Ginny would spend a long night and maybe a morning trying to recapture all that they had taken for granted too recently. As she tried to help her mom serve, he grasped her hand and pulled her back over the arm of the cushy ‘chair of honor’ and onto his lap. Within an instant, he was kissing her again.

---

Hogsmeade

---

Albus and Rose sat at the table of the Three Broomsticks, he was reading the most recent issue of ‘Marvin the Muggle’. They had not ordered lunch yet, because they were waiting for Scorpius to return from the loo. The trio had spent the whole morning of their day in the village buying candies and such at Honeydukes. And not once had Scorp looked over at Rose with those silly lovesick eyes and neither had he attempted to hold her hand. It was almost like they were really just going to be ‘friends’. The thought relaxed him as he had worried about what to do if his best two friends could not get past this stupid ‘love’ business that had made the last two years very uncomfortable for him. So, they had decided to eat at the Three Broomsticks and return in time for another Quidditch practice to prepare them for their match, next Saturday, up against Hufflepuff and Rhys Jones.

However, Malfoy had been gone at almost fifteen minutes. Rose made a coughing noise, which he ignored and next she kicked his shin from across the table.

â€�“Oww!”

â€�“Don’t you think you should go see to him?”

Albus returned a face full of utter incomprehension. â€�“Boys don’t go to the loo in groups. It’s only you girls who do that. I mean it would be just too weird for boys to go in bunches.”

Rose answered with her angry I-know-better-than-you-do face. Albus sighed, placed his comic face down, slowly stood, and with slow deliberate steps walked toward the taverns loo. Albus knocked on the door and said something to Scorpius. No one answered, so he opened the door and entered in.

The smell was a bit fresher than normal, because the window in the lavatory stood wide open. Albus looked under the stall doors and shouted, â€�“Scorpius!” The only thing he saw was a green shiny rock on the floor in front of the first stall and the only reply was the sound of noise coming into the loo from the alleyway. He was alone in room.

As he turned to leave and he spied something that made his stomach drop. He opened the door and shouted Rose’s name. She must have sensed the panic in his voice as she ran across the tavern and drew her wand out of her purse on the way to the lavatory. Albus pushed open the door so she could enter inside, but she took one step in and made a gasping sound caused by the strong smells of the unfamiliar place. She started to speak to admonish him, but then she saw what had so frightened her cousin. On the bathroom mirror something was written in a bright red, shinny substance. The message read:

I have the boy

Rose ran out of the loo and ran to the bartender. He at first ignored her as he was chatting up a seventh year girl who was trying to cash a free drink. As Rose tried to get his attention, Albus jumped using a bar stool as a ladder stepped onto the bar.

The startled barkeep began to complain when Albus shouted. â€�“There’s been a kidnapping right here in your boys’ lavatory. You best get the Aurors here fast, because the boy who was kidnapped is Lucius Malfoy’s grandson.”

The barkeep’s face went ashen and he nodded vigorously. He reached over to the wall where business cards were affixed. He grabbed one, read the instruction, pulled out his wand from a hiding place under the bar, making a back and forth movement by his ear and said aloud. â€�“Sarah Broomwright, we need to talk with you, immediately.”

Within seconds, Auror Broomwright with her partner Rory Smythe stepped out of the fireplace walked into the bar and marched straight up to the bartender, Rose, and Albus, who was still standing on the bar.

Without any prompting, she took in the group and asked Rose, â€�“Where’s the Malfoy boy? What’s happened?”

---

Ministry of Magic in London, England, United Kingdom

---

Sarah was loitering in the entrance as the call box descended from the alley down into the Ministry of Magic. Although Harry knew she would be waiting for his arrival, he made a show out of greeting her and made sure to formally bow and shake her hand for all to note their accidental meeting. He avoided making any small talk with her, because any congeniality could cause damage to her budding career. They both knew that in the milling crowd of the Ministry Atrium, someone was watching and would report all they saw back to the Minister. The pair walked by fits and starts against the flow of the arriving employees to get to his next stop. Having arrived at the Security Desk, Harry pulled his wand out of his vest pocket so it could be registered.

When Harry started to hand his wand over to the grey-haired security officer; he found a hand was already reaching for his. â€�“Welcome back, Mister Potter. It has been too long, are you just visiting?’

Harry felt almost embarrassed by the warmth of the greeting, but he replied. â€�“I’m just here to visit my sister-in-law, Hermione Weasley, and maybe take her and her husband, Ron, to Hannah’s Bistro. You look fit, Willie. How’s your wife, Natalie?”

â€�“She’s been a bit under the weather, the damp you know. It’ll do her good though to know you remembered us, sir?”

Harry smiled at the man as he wrote down the magical components and size of his wand. When he returned the wand back to Harry, Willie added, â€�“Looking forward to the day you can just pop in, as always.”

Harry nodded and turned to join Sarah.

She added, in a whispered tone, â€�“He’s not the only one who feels that way, but they won’t say anything.”

Harry shook his head. March Lee’s threats of dismissal had almost the same affect of controlling the lower level Ministry workers as Voldemort’s reign of terror had. Funny, he thought there are different layers of oppression and each has its way to crush the spirit out of a person.

Sarah led him over to the closest bank of lifts. As they stepped in, Harry noticed Elwyn Hogg, a Deputy Assistant to Lee, slip into the lift just as the gate was closing and he bullied his way through the crowded car until he stood next to Sarah.

Harry called out the floor of Hermione’s office, Sarah spoke Auror Office’s floor and Elwyn stood silently next to her. Sarah’s floor came up first and she stepped out at the Auror’s floor. He saw Elwyn start to follow Sarah out of the gate, until he noticed Harry had not joined Broomwright.

Hogg made a bad show of being befuddled and said, â€�“Oh dear, almost got off on the wrong floor. I must pay closer attention.”

Harry didn’t buy it for an instant. Hogg was tracking him and would report every move and conversation to his boss. As the lift jerked and started its journey to the next floor, Harry decided to act like he was unaware of the spy’s mission. He turned to the man as if just seeing him for the first time and said, â€�“Elwyn, how are you? Is you grandson still at Hogwarts?”

Hogg didn’t need to act flustered this time, he sputtered in reply, â€�“No, he just finished last year. He got a job working for Gringotts as a curse breaker.”

As Hogg stammered out his replay, the gate opened on to Hermione’s floor and Harry walked out. Elwyn did not realize what Harry was doing until the gate closed with him still in the lift. As he turned away, Harry couldn’t help but smile at the frustrated look on the Hogg’s redden face as the elevator pulled away.

Harry walked down the hall to the small office that Hermione shared with another advocate: Emma Crisp. Crisp was not in today. She was interviewing a client at Azkaban and would be out all day.

Harry knocked on the smoked glass door and opened it when he heard Hermione bid him enter. Harry stepped into the unusually crowded office. Sitting behind the desk was Hermione and next to her was Ron. Across the desk from Hermione sat Rory Smythe and Draco Malfoy. Harry sized up Draco, it had been the first time since the cabin he had seen Malfoy. Harry noticed a couple of new worry lines and a new gauntness showed in his face and hands. Draco, always thin, looked like he had dropped almost two stones in the intervening months.

Draco looked up and said, â€�“Potter.”

â€�“Malfoy.” It was all that needed to be said between them. The bond that had driven both to America to rescue the children was still in place.

Rory stood up and offered his seat to Harry. Harry, at first, declined, but Ron intervened as he said, â€�“Rory has to hurry back to the office. We can’t have him be seen too long on this floor, especially after his little run-in with Lee.”

Harry nodded and took the seat next to Draco.

Smythe rushed through the preliminaries about how the children had spent the morning and how Scorpius had gone to the loo. Harry drank in every word, his mind painting a picture of the whole scene. Rory opened a satchel stenciled with the word ‘Evidence’. He pulled out a clear bag that contained the green stone found on the lavatory floor.

Harry took the bag and held it up to the light. He stuck his index finger next to the emerald and did a rough estimate of the size. After he was done he offered the bag to Draco, Malfoy waived his hand as if the stone was unimportant.

Harry thought back to the Tower of London heist and the missing items and asked, â€�“So, this is Rowena Ravenclaw’s gem that was stolen from St. Edward’s crown?” Rory nodded. â€�“Why?”

Ron spoke up, â€�“According to Luna, and confirmed by Professor Binns, Ravenclaw owned certain gems of mental prowess. Luna said the majority of them were in that bloody Diadem of hers, but two of the other stones existed. The stones of influence and defense were given to the royal family and placed into the crown.”

â€�“Luna said?” asked Draco.

Hermione nodded as she picked up the narrative. â€�“The stones were in the crown so that the heads of Hogwarts could influence the crown to ignore or forget the existence of magical folk. The second stone was there to keep an evil wizard from possessing the ruler. Lucius left that stone in the crown.”

Draco leaned forward now engaged in the conversation. â€�“So my father or one of his minions took that stone and what? He used it to hypnotized Scorpius. To what end?”

Hermione and Ron looked at each other. Smythe just shrugged.

Harry caught Ron’s eye, glanced at Rory and jerked his head towards the door. Ron caught the meaning. â€�“Thanks, Rory. You best slip that bag back into the safe before someone on the Wizengamut wants to look it over.”

Rory nodded, took the bag with the stone and slipped it inside. He next took his wand waved it over the bag and the satchel was sealed. The Auror placed the bag under his arm, nodded toward Ron and secondly toward Harry. He crisply turned on his heal and exited the room.

Draco waited for the door to latch before he spoke. â€�“If you are going to wait to discuss this case until after I leave, you’ll have to wait till Hell has a hockey team.”

Ron snickered and even Hermione smiled at the image.

Harry looked at Draco and smiled before turning to face his successor. He asked, â€�“What did the investigations that I suggested turn up?”

Ron looked up at the ceiling for a second before he said, â€�“Willie was late because he had to take his wife, Natalie, to St. Mungo’s. We’ve confirmed the story. The third investigation is still underway. We have placed spells around the area. It was the conduit that was used during the time the ministry was under the rule of Thickness and the Death Eaters.”

â€�“Conduit?” asked Harry.

â€�“The area, under investigation, leads to certain public lavatories that you might be familiar with.”

Harry nodded in understanding. Draco was confused. Ron turned toward Malfoy and said, â€�“During Thickness rule Ministry workers had to flush themselves into the floo network to come to work at the Ministry.”

Draco gave the others a disgusted look of disbelieve. He looked to Hermione for the truth. She sighed and nodded in confirmation.

â€�“And Fulton?”

â€�“We’ve been keeping tabs on him. He had no memory of where he had been or what he had been doing that morning.”

Both Harry and Draco shifted forward in their seats; Ron reached into the filing drawer in Hermione’s office and pulled out a folder. Harry looked at Ron and back to Hermione.

She raised an eyebrow and replied, â€�“Since you got the sack and Ron was gone, if March Lee found any excuse, it made sense for the files of the investigation to be stored and the activities to be planned in my office. After all, even if he was fired, he could still visit his wife and talk to old friends.”

â€�“Good thinking, Hermione,” said Draco.

Harry noticed that Ron looked tiffed. Hermione chimed in, â€�“Actually, It was Ron’s idea. I found the plan to be very intuitive.” Draco nodded in agreement with her, but did not seem to be able to bring himself to compliment his old adversary.

While Draco and Ron acted like they always did when they get together, Harry read about ‘The Unspeakable’ Horace Fulton. Fulton had worked in the Ministry of Magic for almost three decades. He had begun his work in the Department of Time, until they had destroyed the section on their attempt to flee the Department with the prophecy and escape from Lucius and company. After the mayhem, Fulton was transferred to a position in the Arch of Eternity room.

Harry tried to match the name with a face. He had no recollection of ever meeting Fulton. â€�“Why would Lucius want a man who works in the Arch Room? Do you think something he stole in the Crown Jewels that might unlock the Arch? Could he be trying to bring back Voldemort or Bellatrix?”

The weight of Harry’s comment took all of the air out of the room and its four inhabitants all fell silent.

After a moment or two, Draco broke the silence. â€�“I don’t think he would bring back the Dark Lord. At the end, we were more afraid of him that you can guess. He took my father’s wand, taunted us, and allowed his minions to trash the Manor. Father is in charge now and he has learned to like the taste of being in total control. If the Dark Lord comes back, he will try to assert power again and my parents will be back under his thumb. Now, if he could bring back Bellatrix or Crabbe…maybe.”

â€�“Your parents were that afraid of him? Why didn’t the help us?”

Hermione answered her husband. â€�“Remember, Draco did not turn Harry over to Bellatrix when he could and his delay bought enough time for all of us to escape, but Dobby.”

â€�“Well, he didn’t try and help you when his Aunt started to hurt you. Did he?”

From the corner of his eye, Harry saw Draco’s head drop. Ron’s habitual and unnecessary bringing up the past annoyed him. â€�“Bellatrix was in a room full of Snatchers, and a werewolf. That’s enough to make anyone pause. And as for his parents, Narcissa did come to my aid, if you recall. She loved her son more than Tom Riddle’s new order. ”

Hermione, as always, returned the men back to the issue at hand. â€�“So, we must assume that Lucius has his grandson. Now, what do we do?”

â€�“Well, we’ve already sent a detail of senior Aurors to the Manor and it’s totally empty. All of the furniture, clothes and valuables are missing. They even removed all of the family portraits off of the walls and judging from the dust it’s been that way for weeks.”

Draco nodded. â€�“Bugger my father’s ultimate plan; I want my son back!’ He paused and saw only three nodding heads in reply. The other three seemed to have no ideas of their own. Draco search back through all he knew from the little his son had told them about the abduction. He was mentally grasping at straws, when an idea came. â€�“What about the place he held Scorpius the first time?”

Ron replied, â€�“We never found where that was. All we know from Scorpius’ testimony is that he was held in an old tall manor-like house on a small knoll with the cemetery and stone groundkeeper’s cabin inside rock walled grounds and a farming village was barely visible in the distance.”

Harry found himself standing as if a lightning bolt had shot through him. He shook his head and said to the room at large, â€�“Ron, what you just described could be the Riddle Mansion. If he used that building, it would fit Lucius’ compulsion of proving himself to be worthy of being the new Dark Lord.”

â€�“I’ll send a pair of Aurors. Maybe Teddy and Sterling…”

â€�“No,” said Draco. â€�“Potter and I will go. Our rescue mission is still on. Do you think Hoyle can help us out with a couple of sell-wands?”

Harry shook his head. â€�“No, that would take time. I’ve a feeling that with my trials being over and the things I’ve set in motion, he will move up his time table and move now.”

The two men stood as one and walked out of Hermione’s office without saying anything more.

---

The Riddle Place

---

Harry and Draco appeared just beyond the wall of the Riddle Mansion. He looked over at Harry and said, â€�“This is either a trap or a wild goose chase.”

Harry shrugged, â€�“Knowing your father it could be both.”

Draco just nodded as he turned his wand towards the wrought iron gates with the fancy ‘R’ on top. Draco blasted the gates and they flew into the courtyard having been blown off their hinges. He looked at Potter and got a shrug in return. â€�“No time for subtlety, he either knows that we are here or he’s already gone.”

As he and Draco strode up the path from the gates to the Manor, he kept sneaking peaks at the graveyard to his right. He could see the chipped and shattered headstone that he had hidden behind waiting to die. He swore he could still see an indentation in the grass where Cedric had fallen all those decades ago.

â€�“Potter,” hissed Draco and Harry realized he had stopped on his way to the manor. He nodded back at Malfoy and returned walking up the drive.

An hour later, Harry and Draco met back in the great hall of the Riddle Mansion. Draco was holding something on the extended on his fingers. Harry looked at the thin, gold triangle that was formed by a chain and a ball that hung in between the fingers.

â€�“Scorpius’?” asked Harry.

â€�“Yes, it was a birthday gift from Rose. He would have never let it go. He even bathed and played Quidditch with it on; even after, the Weasley girl’s fling with the Russian boy.”

â€�“So, he could have taken it off as a clue? Or-â€�“

â€�“Or my father removed it to lead us on a false trail.”

â€�“I found a lot of ashes in the fireplaces. The burning was too well done; I couldn’t phrase a spell to restore the parchment or the writing.”

Draco palmed his son’s keepsake and placed it in his pocket. He walked over to the wall, beside the large grandfather clock wracking his brain for the clue that they had missed. Lucius would never have left this place without some clue to misdirect him and Harry. For he knew that his father didn’t give a brass Knut about the Aurors or the Wizengamot, he was playing with his ‘turncoat’ son and, Harry Potter, the boy who had destroyed his world.

He thought back to a year ago as his father sat in his kitchen, at Number Twelve Grimmauld Place, plotting dozens of scenarios to humiliate and later destroy Potter. Had his father mentioned this scenario and he had missed it? He had a mental image of his father, hair freshly re-colored blonde smiling a larger and more self-satisfied smile growing by the second. He tried to remember each layer of intrigue, but the hour had been packed full of his plotting. He saw Lucius’s sour look, when Kreacher interrupted on the hour as he had been ordered. Nothing!

He thought about his hour long conversation with his son in the room flanked by Ron Weasley asking his insipid questions. He ran through all that his son had communicated to them. He thought about Lucius taking Scorpius on a trip to the Lincoln University, the experiments, and the charming of the Muggle girl.

â€�“Oh my, Gawd!” he swung around to locate Potter.

At Draco’s exclamation, Harry had also stood and peered into his face hoping to get some clue before he could speak. Draco realized that they had been wrong and Lucius had made it so easy to take that mis-step. He knew what his father planned, he did not know why or the real end-game.

---

Basement of the Ministry of Magic

---

Scorpius felt water drip into his eyes as he and his Grandfather’s chosen three stood in a room full of pipes. The warm room smelled of mold, and he had to fight a strong urge to sneeze. Standing in front of him, he saw an old man dressed in a security uniform holding a wand extended towards them. The old man stood stoned faced and did not move as Ares Pyter approached him.

Pyter pulled out his wand from a Muggle black leather jacket and shouted, â€�“Avada Kedavra!” A bolt of green light flowed from the stick and the gray haired old man crumpled to the floor. The assistant's drug the body to the side and the minion called Bowes, waved his wand over the corpse, and it changed to look like just another piece of rusty pipe.

Scorpius wanted to shout. He wanted to attack Pyter, but he could not find the will to move. The lack of will had started when he entered the loo back in Hogsmeade to find Pyter and his three men waiting. They held his arms while Pyter used an emerald to activate a spell of his Grandfather.

â€�“Follow me,” Pyter said, and Scorpius found his legs moving forward following the man that he so wanted to hurt for the thoughtless and needless death of the old man.

Pyter waved his wand, and his looks change to that of the man he had just killed. The other two men with them looked different. He wondered what he looked like, but he did not have permission to look at himself or talk. Pyter took his hand, and they began to walk up the ramp towards the lifts.

The empty lift opened, and they all entered. Pyter, his voice high and shaky, spoke to the ceiling of the lift car. â€�“Department of Mysteries.”

At the command, the car jerked back and began quickly rising. The next stop was a stone passageway that led to a door with a round doorknob in its middle. Bowes walked up to the door and touched the knob. He said to the center of the door, â€�“Horace Fulton and three co-workers.” He turned the knob and the door opened revealing to Scorpius a large dark room that was jet, black tile due to the tiles that were on the floor, walls and ceiling.

As they walked in the room, the one member of the party that Scorpius didn’t know slipped something into Scorpius’ cloak pocket. Scorpius let his hand drop and found a silken bag with a stick in it. Excitement filled him; he had a wand (maybe his wand), and he was not defenseless.

The doors on the walls surrounding them began to spin, and when they stopped, Pyter shouted to the ceiling, â€�“The Arch of Eternity Room.”

A door to the group’s right opened, Bowes and Pyter put their wands at the ready and entered the door first. Scorpius expected the other man to push him through the door, but he walked past Scorpius and closed the door. As the doors around him spun, Scorpius plunged his hand into his coat and found his wand and a piece of parchment. He lit his wand and looked at the parchment. All thoughts of escape left him as he read the note from his Grandfather.

He looked up to the ceiling and shouted â€�“The Department of Time.” The door slightly to his left opened and he walked over the threshold and into the room. As he shut the door behind him, he heard Ares Pyter shouting a curse from the room behind him. Scorpius was alone, and he had a mission to fulfill.

Scorpius walked through the hallway and walked into the office on his right. He knew what to do like he was reliving a dream, and he had taken every one of these steps before. He walked around the first desk to a blank white wall.

Raising his wand, he spoke in a flat, lifeless voice, â€�“Specialis Revelio”.

The wall glowed brightly, and a safe appeared in the wall. Scorpius smiled the information that his grandfather got from the Unmentionable was correct. Since the old head of the department had died, Fulton had become one of only two secret keepers of the safe and its contents. Once Lucius captured Fulton, Pyter had killed another woman who also knew of the existence of this safe.

Like he was reading a textbook; Scorpius spoke spell names and moved his wand in ways he didn’t understand. After the seventh spell, the safe cracked open, and he reached into the safe and pulled out a small case and a small bag which clinked when he lifted it out.

Suddenly alarms sounded, and a magical voice sounded from the ceiling, â€�“Intruders in the Arch of Eternity Room! Intruders in the Arch of Eternity Room!”

Scorpius ran to the door and with purpose walked into the door at an angle so that he banged his forehead above his right eye. He next walked back up the hall towards the door which would lead him back to the entry room. As he walked into the room and its doors spun someone else open the door. Entering the room with their wands drawn Aurors Sterling and Smythe enter and saw Scorpius.

Sterling looked at Scorpius’ forehead that was now throbbing and shouted over the din, â€�“What happened? How many?”

Scorpius grabbed his head and told the concerned Auror. â€�“They kidnaped me. They wanted me to do say some spells and use a special rope to reach through an Arch to bring the Dark Lord back. I refused, and Pyter struck me. The alarms went off, and I ran. There are only three of them, Pyter, Bowes and some other guy.” Scorpius grabbed his head.

Sterling shouted again. â€�“Get to the lift and go up to the Auror’s office. You’ll be safe, and we will get you back to your family. Okay?”

Scorpius nodded his worthless nod. He was leaving, but the Auror’s office was the last place he was going to go. Scorpius entered the lift and without emotion said, â€�“Atrium.” The gates clanged shut; the lift jerked, and he began to rise.

Draco, Harry, and Ron Weasley burst out of the gates of the lift and with Ron leading the way entered through the door to the Department of Mysteries.

Ron shouted, â€�“Arch of Eternity Room.”

Draco shouted, â€�“No! The Department of Time!”

Ron turned on Draco and said, â€�“I’ve got people in the Arch Room fighting for their lives. You let me go where I need to, and you go with Harry. Harry, I deputize you to an apprentice Auror, and you have total responsibility for him.” Ron jerked his head toward Draco.

Harry replied, â€�“I accept the appointment.”

Draco glared at Weasley wishing him dead or gone or both. A door slightly behind them on the right and Ron ran through.

As the door closed, and the room spun, Harry spoke to the ceiling, â€�“The Department of Time.”

The door straight ahead of the two men opened, and they ran through with Draco in the lead. Draco stopped just inside the door and looked towards Potter. Harry placed his index finger to his lips and began to stealthily walk down the hallway. Harry was consulting a quickly drawn map of the office layouts of the section where Fulton had worked.

The pair walked through the door and froze just inside the room. A safe door was open. Harry reached inside and pulled out some ancient documents and a list of magical processes and spells for the creation of time turners. They looked at each other.

â€�“We’ve got to find him,” implored Draco knowing that neither of them knew where he was.

Potter nodded and said, â€�“If he’s been here then he’s going to see Lucius and the only three who know there are Lucius might be are in the Arch Room.”

Draco shook his head. â€�“They’re nothing but cast pawns. He sent them here to die or to rot in Azkaban. They’ll know nothing about his real plan or where my son is.”

---

The Knight Bus

---

Scorpius looked out of the window as Downtown Glasgow flashed by outside of the bus window. He had bought a ticket to Holyhead. However, the conductor, Caleb, had told him five passengers were ahead of him. The Glasgow stop was stop number three. Scorpius sat quietly as Scotland disappeared outside of the window, and the familiar village of Hogsmeade appeard. As he recognized the Three Broomsticks, he tried to stand up and exit the bus. However, he could not move. He wanted to shout out for help, but he was mute. The frustration grew inside of him as a chubby old witch waddled off the bus and toward the pub. The bus rocked, shooked and rattled, and Hogsmeade disappeared and the bus was now letting a family of five out into a small village located on a river.

The world outside of the window flashed, and Caleb called out, â€�“Holyhead, Wales.”

Scorpius stood and walked towards the exit. As Scorpius walked past Caleb, he shouted, â€�“Oy! The wind’s nasty from off of the sea. Ain’t you got a cloak, boy?”

Scorpius silently turned and went down the steps to the sidewalk. He waited for a few moments until the big purple bus disappeared. He turned towards the sea breakwater, when a man appeared in front of him and enveloped him with a warm cloak and the pair disappeared.

When the cloak opened, he found that he faced a white panel siding two story building. A black sign with white painted lettering read, ‘The White Eagle’.

The raspy voice of Lucius cut into the howl of the wind. â€�“Get inside the Pub, Scorpius. You can give us what you have; I do what I must, and we’ll get you back home.”

As he walked through the front door, past the hostess and into the back of the Tavern, he could feel his mind clearing from the effects of the spells they had used on him. He continued to walk to towards a table and found already sitting there was Narcissa Malfoy. Scorpius, who had not seen his Grandmother since they moved out almost two years ago, was surprised by how much she had aged. She looked unwell.

â€�“Grandmother, are you all right?”

Narcissa smiled and patted his left hand in reply. The patting of the hand was a weak thing, and it concerned him. He may not like his father’s parents, but they were family and she had always been kinder to him than his Grandfather.

In a weak voice; Narcissa nodded towards Scorpius’ head, â€�“Lucius, take care of that.”

At first, Grandfather looked annoyed at what she had asked of him, but he quickly hid it. He pulled out his wand and hid it in his napkin. He made a flourish with the cloth waving at Scorpius, and the ache in his forehead suddenly left. Lucius placed the wand back, and he reached over to pat her hand and kiss her on the cheek.

Scorpius had never seen such affection from his Grandfather to another other than himself. Lucius noticed him watching, and his sneer returned.

Lucius having been caught acting ‘human’ and he did not seem to like it. With no warmth and an air of command in his voice, he said, â€�“Give me the pouches, boy.”

Scorpius, watching his Grandmother, reached into his pocket and pulled out the two pouches. Lucius greedily opened the first one and pulled a small, delicate pieces out of the pouch one at a time. The old man raised each to the light inspecting them before he put them on the plate. A heavy set waitress came over to the table to take down Scorpius’ order, but his Grandfather spoke first.

â€�“He’ll have the sea bass, the rocket salad and…” Lucius trailed off at the drink order.

â€�“Tea?” asked the boy of the waitress.

She nodded and so did he. Scorpius noticed that the middle age woman was fascinated by the small pieces of silver and gold lying of Lucius’ plate. He feared for the woman’s safety if she got too curious at what Lucius was doing. He quickly added, â€�“Grandfather is trying to fix an old pocket watch to give to my father for a Christmas present. It’s a family heirloom.”

The lie seemed to satisfy the server, who read back his order, and she went to a nearby table to refill the coffee cups.

Lucius ignoring the waitress and his grandson turned towards his wife and said, â€�“It’s all here. I’d say two day's tops-â€�“ He stopped and looked across the table and fixed the boy with an icy stare.

Scorpius involuntarily gulped. The reflex seemed to make Lucius happy. However, his Grandmother coughed, the cough had a rattling sort of sound to it. Lucius turned concerned and touched his wife. â€�“I’ll work overnight, just hold on my love.” The old man stared at him and said to him, â€�“And you will help me, boy.”

The house that they occupied in Holyhead was boarded up to protect the windows from the storms blowing in from the Irish Sea. When they first got to the house, his Grandparents disappeared leaving his in a room with a roaring fire and four very cushy chairs surrounding a low table. He tried sitting in the chair that looked into the fire, but he could not be still. He popped out of the chair and wandered over to the mantle. He looked above to fireplace to a painting that hung on the wall. The portrait was of two women who must have been his parent’s age at the time of the sitting. Scorpius looked at the bottom of the frame where a little bronze plaque was inlaid into the wood. The plaque read, â€�“Ada and Vonda Clifford.”

As Scorpius looked up at the portrait, Lucius appeared behind him. He wore a small glass in his left eye and was carrying a serving tray which held all of the small items from the stolen pouches. Lucius picked up two small pieces and waved his wand over them. They magically moved together and sealed as if they were one item.

Lucius ordered Scorpius to levitate the pieces of the device to into place. He was angry with his grandfather for making him do this. He could have moved the pieces by himself. Why does he need me? About half past ten, Lucius told him that he didn’t need him for now and told him to sit in the overstuffed cushioned chair across the room.

At midnight, Scorpius awoke in the chair. His Grandfather was, with his left hand, holding two small devices on their long chains up to the light. Sitting next to him also eyeing the little hour glass shaped piece of jewelry, his Grandmother also sat. He noticed that her left hand rested upon his right hand. He had never seen them touching before. The sight almost made him see Lucius as human. He had never seen a man in that light. Lucius had always been a monster. Scorpius shook his head and saw the image of the old Security Guard being murdered. The man sitting across the room had ordered his murder just like a pawn that Scorpius moved a piece upon a chess board. The old man was a monster.

Lucius placed the devices into separate pouches. He leaned over to kiss his Narcissa on the cheek, poured wine into three glasses, and floated a glass toward him.

â€�“Are you going to tell him or am I?” asked the old woman as she spoke to her husband. The tone of voice was not the soft voice she had used to them earlier. The voice was the commanding tone that Scorpius had heard her use with his mother hundreds of time. The voice left no room for argument.

He saw his Grandfather raise an eyebrow to the old woman. Finally, he sighed and turned toward him.

â€�“A week ago, I and my chief Lieutenants were discussing what occurred earlier in the Ministry. While we were having Brandy to toast our future success, my dear, Narcissa entered the room. She was, as always, the perfect hostess. I was laying out, for the first time, how my plans had come together and how we were going to rob the Ministry. The fools, of course, we quite impressed with the plot and greedy for the payoff. We finished and were about to toast our success, when Narcissa notified me that a message had arrived from my contact in America. The message was about Potter’s deal with the Americans. When I came back into the room, Narcissa was refilling my glass. I kissed her on the cheek and dismissed her from the room. I relayed the news and moved up the time table. When I finished, I saw that Pyter was sweating quite noticeably. I assumed he was afraid of Potter. I was wrong.”

Scorpius saw his Grandfather look to the woman seated next to him. Narcissa continued the story.

â€�“It was a slow poison. As I prepared for bed, I became sick. Lucius sent for a healer who has worked with him for years. He was able to detect the source. I am dead; it is just the time and date of the actual event that is in question.”

Scorpius saw Lucius darken in anger like a cloud ready to release its storm, but when his wife turned towards him, he brightened and nodded his head.

â€�“And that is the reason; I changed the plan and used your contingency.”

â€�“My what?” asked Scorpius. He knew the word, but not how it concerned him.

For once his Grandfather did not respond to one of his questions with one of his sneers or rolling of his eyes. Lucius leaned forth as if to pass a secret to the boy. â€�“I know you play chess. A player who thinks about what he wants of each piece is a good player. A player who has a plan for each piece no matter what the other player does is called a Master. If you want to thrive in life and business do not settle on just being a player. The world only rewards those who become masters.”

He found his head nodding in agreement with the old man’s statement. He had crushed Jimber in chess because Jimber reacted to the moves of his opponents. Of his friends, Rose was the only one who seemed to have backup plans.

â€�“So, I sent Pyter to his death in a battle in the ministry that served as a diversion for your mission. You have recovered the parts needed to create a ‘time turner’. And thanks to Horace Fulton, I have the only two working devices in the world.”

Scorpius was confused, â€�“Time turner?”

â€�“Yes. Thanks to you, I will be able to save your Grandmother with this. Lucius held up a vial of bright blue liquid. A little known consequence of changing the time stream is that the time turner used to go back in time shatters and is useless.”

â€�“Why?”

â€�“If I were to go from today where Harry Potter is alive into the past and kill him. I will have changed the past of that future. The future I want to return to doesn’t exist. Luckily, I have two-time turners. Normally, they did not recommend moving into the past for than a hand full of hours, but I am not a normal man. And my mission is not a normal mission.”

Scorpius looked over at his Grandmother.

â€�“We will also go an isolated spot to activate the time-turner, so if the ripples of the change becomes too much, you will not be affected.”

â€�“So what happens to me?” asked Scorpius.

â€�“You will be awake inside the bar of the Three Broomsticks to be questions by the fools who work for the ministry.” Lucius talked with the air of superiority that he disliked so. â€�“You can tell them whatever you want. It will be too late for them.”

â€�“To success,” Lucius said and he raised a glass in the air.

He saw his grandmother’s shaky hand clink her crystal fluted glass with her husband’s cup. They all drank to the toast and suddenly the around Scorpius room began to spin and grow dark. He slid back into the chair.

The splashing drops of cool water striking his left cheek snapped Scorpius back to reality. He had been reliving his hours of post-kidnapping interrogation with the Ministry’s Aurors. He heard the questions from Mr. Weasley about his grandfather:

What exactly had Lucius said to you and when? Who else did he talk to and what did he say to them? Did you know that it appears that a third group was in the Department of Mysteries? Did you know hundreds of special potions were were missing? Did he mention anything other than an antidote for the poison to you? Where exactly had they had been during his missing two weeks?.

He had told them the truth over and over, but they would wait and ask the same question worded with a slight difference in the phrasing. He knew that, before the kidnapping, they would have believed him, but something had changed. When he would finish his responses to the series of questions, Rose’s Dad would glance over at the female Auror, Broomwright. The concerned glance told him everything. They didn’t know if they could trust him, it was like he had been tainted by contact with his grandfather. He didn’t know who to be mad at the most. He had been the victim of a kidnapping, yet they looked at him like he was somehow guilty. He hated Lucius for what he had done to him.

More water struck his forehead; he reached up to touch where the fluid had struck him. Looking around, he found the source of the offending moisture. Beatrice Dragonherd stood across the greenhouse work bench glaring at him. Her face was all puckered like she had just bitten into a sour pickle, and her hands were dripping water droplets from the ends of her extended green painted nailed fingers.

â€�“Blondie, are you going to help me? Or would you rather explain to Professor Longbottom why all of the plants in the greenhouses died during our weekend?”

â€�“Huh?”

She dipped her right hand into the hole on top of the gray metal watering can, pulled it out of the can and flicked her fingers again, and two drops found him. The first drop hit his left cheek, while the second drop found the bridge of his nose, splattered, and landed in both of his eyes.

â€�“Stop that,” he shouted back at her as his left hand reached for the girl two meters in front of him and his right wiped at the moisture.

â€�“Make me, Blondie.” The fingers flicked, but this time he ducked the droplets. As she launched the droplets, Bea began to giggle.

The giggling infuriated him. He chased her once around the large rough-hewn oak work table before deciding to give it up. As he stopped his pursuit, the girl’s laughter became even louder and shriller in its tone. If he knew the silencing spell, he would have pulled his wand out of his work apron and used it on her.

â€�“That’s the most energy anyone’s seen out of you since you got back. I told Abby and Lily that I could get you mad. Malfoy, you’re such an easy target.”

The look of total triumph on her face almost made him restart the chase, but why? What would he do if he caught her?

The chase did seem to re-awake his senses. As he finished wiping off the moisture from his nose, he looked down at the plants in the tan, clay pots on the workbench in front of him. The table top contained the only six existing hybrid Alices’ Trueheart plants in the world. As he looked down at the closest pot, he noticed a small patch of brown on the pointy tip of the large red heart-shaped leaf. Scorpius reached out with his right hand and lightly brushed the end of the leaf with his index finger. The brown was not dirt! Using his left hand to steady the leaf, he carefully lifted the leaf and used the fingernail of this right index finger to scratch at the brown patch. As his finger scrapped across the brown, small scales seem to come off of the leaf like a scab from a scrapped knee. He brought the finger up to his eye-level and between his thumb and index he rolled the brown material. It did not go to dust but remained a solid brown ball.

â€�“This isn’t good! Bea, I need you to hurry up to the school and find Crystalline. Tell her, I think this Trueheart may have Le Fey’s rot, and I’m moving it away from the other five.”

For once, Beatrice did not argue with him, and she trotted out the door and towards the castle. After moving the plant to an empty table near the back, he washed his hands and performed a cleansing spell on both of them. He examined his fingers and nails to assure that he had removed all residue of the rot before going anywhere near the other pots. Not daring to touch the plants, he turned each pot slowly while looking closely at every leaf on both the tops and the undersides. The pot closest to the infected plant had a smaller touch of brown, almost like a freckle, so it joined the first pot on the quarantine table. He had determined that the other four were not showing brown by the time Bea returned with her big sister and trailing behind Crystal was her greenhouse partner: Mariel Trout. The two heads of the Herbology Club quickly donned their work aprons and began a thorough examination all six of the pots.

When they finished looking at the first four plants, Crystalline conjured a pair of magnifying glasses. She and Mariel examined the two separated Truehearts. As they looked, Bea sidled over to him and joined his silent watching. Crystalline and her friend whispered for a few moments. Crystalline turned towards him and her little sister.

â€�“Good catch, Malfoy. I’m pretty certain that brown stuff is Le Fey’s Rot.”

The two girls re-huddled near the table. He and Bea both leaned in hoping to overhear the conversation. Finally, Mariel stepped away from Crystalline and headed out of the greenhouse door.

Crystal turned back to face the pair. â€�“She is going up to the Owlery to send an owl to Professor Longbottom. Le Fey’s is a bit beyond me, and since it is his special plant, he should have the last word on the treatment.”

Scorpius found himself nodding to what she said. Crystalline was looking at him like he was a prize pupil or a dear pet. For some reason, he didn’t like how it made him feel.

He felt compelled to set the record straight, â€�“The truth is, I only saw the leaf because I was chasing Bea around the bench. She deserves some of the credit, not much, but some of the credit.”

â€�“Hey,” Bea responded, and she bumped into his side with her shoulder.

Crystalline’s face broke into a big grin.

â€�“What!” shouted Bea, a heartbeat before he would have.

â€�“Nothing!” The grin continued to grow.

To escape whatever strange emotion possessing the older girl, he turned to Bea. â€�“I’ll give you a choice, you water the Merlin Grass and I’ll re-pot the Mandrakes, or you do the Mandrakes and I’ll handle the Merlin Grass.”

Bea turned her head bird-like at him and while shaking her mop of green hair said, â€�“I’ll do the Merlin Grass. Did you really think I’d pick the Mandrakes?”

â€�“No, I didn’t,” he replied and he had the satisfaction of seeing a confused look upon the younger girl’s face. He felt strangely satisfied by her confusion as he reached over to a hook on the wall for a pair of bright blue fuzzy earmuffs and headed into Greenhouse Number Three.

---

Scorpius placed the warning sign on the doorknob: Mandrake Replanting! Stay Out! He walked into the greenhouse, and he waved his wand, and the bolt slid over to lock the door and the shade extended to block the window. He did a quick checking of the noisy plants, but only found two that needed re-potting. He was done with the re-potting in about twenty minutes.

After he had finished, he checked the door to make sure the door was locked, and the blind was pulled down. They were. He turned and walked to the far work bench. Reaching down to the shelf below the table top, he pulled out an empty cracked clay pot. The pot was half full of soil. Looking over his shoulder to insure the door was still shut, Scorpius took the spade he had used for the Mandrakes and turned the topsoil over. Under two inches of dirt, he saw the item for which he had dug.

He pulled out of the dirt a small leather pouch. He brushed the dirt off and untied the red velvet rope that cinched the pouch. Inside the pouch, he saw that his treasure was still in its place.

Scorpius had maneuvered Bea into not doing the Mandrakes just for this. He knew that had only these last two weeks of the term to retrieve the pouch or risk it getting stolen or thrown away.

He reached inside and pulled out the necklace and the little hourglass attached to it. He held it up to the light and saw how the glass refracted the sunlight onto his face. He placed the time-turner in his left hand pulled the note from his grandmother.

I stole the spare one from Lucius. I give it to you for safe keeping and for a chance to protect yourself and those you love. Use it only in emergencies, if the Ministry finds out about you might go to Azkaban.

Love,

Narcissa

He thought back to the Hogsmeade Valentine Day weekend when a tiny Screech Owl alighted on his shoulder. He had been sitting alone outside of Honeydukes waiting for Albus and Rose for Albus to return with some trick candies for James and Kaitlin. From the bird’s talons, he plucked the small leather pouch. As he took the pouch, the bird took wing and disappeared into the February afternoon sky. He had opened the pouch and read the note. He quickly stuffed it into a pocket of his cloak. When he returned to his room, he had just stored it away in his trunk. The next Greenhouse weekend, he hid it away in the Mandrakes area just in case the dormitories were searched by the Aurors or Albus went through his stuff hunting for cakes or biscuits.

Scorpius put the letter and necklace back into the pouch and slid it into his work apron’s interior pocket. He brushed the apron to make sure no large bulge was caused by pouch and magically unlatched the door. As he left, he levitated the sign back into its spot on the workbench and shut the door behind him.

When he re-entered Greenhouse Number One, he saw Professor Longbottom, the Potions Professor, Kettlebaum, Crystalline, Mariel, and Bea surrounding the table with the infected plants. He heard Longbottom and Kettlebaum discussing solutions to the rot. The only sure cure was a certain potion. When Longbottom spoke the name of the potion, it sounded, to Scorpius, vaguely familiar.

Kettlebaum replied, â€�“It usually takes a whole moon cycle to brew that particular potion. It also requires more attention than I might be able to give it. I have exams all through the week. Besides, the rot will probably have spread to all of the plants by then. You need something now, I fear.”

Longbottom nodded, and it seemed to Scorpius that the air had gone out of his teacher. Scorpius knew that the Professor had created the red heart shaped flower to honour his mother, Alice. And last year, that he, the Professor, and Crystal had spent six months the hybrids, which had added a small white heart shape area within the red leaf for his daughter, Alice. Now the plants were threatened by the rot.

Scorpius cleared his throat and noticed all of them turn their heads to face him.

â€�“I think my mum keeps that potion in our greenhouse atop of Grimmauld Place. You might send an owl there or the potions shop to see if she has some to spare.”

Scorpius saw the Professor perk up. He thanked Kettlebaum, the girls and him for their quick action. Longbottom gave Scorpius a long handshake in appreciation for his spotting the disease and offering to help him.

---

Hogwarts Last Day of Final Examinations

---

Scorpius felt like a great weight had been lifted off of his chest. He had fretted all week about his Friday afternoon Arithmancy Final Exam. He had been right to worry. Professor Vector’s test had been extremely hard covering every section from the entire year. And even though he didn’t quite finish the last word problem on page twelve, he felt very confident that he had passed. He also knew that only Rose had finished the entire test, and she had finished only seconds before the gong rang signaling the end of the period. He felt certain that his answers, all except the last question, were detailed and correct. He was half way through his answer on the last problem when the Professor gave the ‘quills down’ to the class.

He may not have gotten an Outstanding, but he was reasonably certain of getting at least an Exceeds on both the examination and the final grade.

Athena Lay, Geoffrey Grindus’ girlfriend, broke into tears a few minutes prior to the period’s finish. When it came time to turn in their papers, Athena threw herself across the desk and refused to turn her papers in, and Professor Vector had to summon the papers magically from her grasp. When her papers flew across the room towards the teacher, Athena lowered her head back onto her desktop and began to sob. As they were about to leave the classroom, Rose tapped him on the shoulder and nodded her head back towards Athena. He trailed Rose over to Athena’s desk.

Rose bent down to the crying girl, â€�“Athena, it’s okay. It’s only one test.”

In between her sobbing, Athena gasped out, â€�“I’ve failed! Everyone will think, I’m a fraud. They might as well send me to Hufflepuff or something.”

Rose looked over the girl’s sobbing head toward him. They both shook their heads.

Athena looked up at Rose and said, â€�“I didn’t study as hard as I usually do. It was because Geoffrey was struggling with potions, and I helped him get ready for yesterday afternoon’s examination and I didn’t start my reviewing of Arithmancy, until last night.” Her talking about what happened had allowed the tears to slow.

Rose patted Athena’s left hand as she said, â€�“Athena, you’re usually one of the class’ top students. Professor Vector will take that into consideration. So you get an Exceeds instead of an Outstanding this term.â€�“

He watched as it took Rose a couple of more minutes to get Athena composed enough for her to agree to leave the classroom. As Lay wiped her eyes, Rose loaded up the girl’s book bag with the quill, inkwell, and scratch parchments that remained on the desk. When she was finished packing, she, without asking, handed the bag to him.

After he had adjusted the additional load, he had to walk quickly to catch up with the two girls. As they moved through the corridors, Rose continued to console and to encourage her. They continued with Athena until they arrived at the base of the staircases that lead up to the Ravenclaw dormitory. As Athena took her bag back from Scorpius, she hugged Rose and thanked her for being a friend. Scorpius stood there waiting for thanks for his carrying of the bag, but the Ravenclaw ignored his 'help'.

When they got up to the dormitory, Rose walked over to the table in the opposite corner from the ‘Little Sisters’ and plopped down into a chair.

She looked up at him and said, â€�“We got about enough time before the evening meal to play a game of chess. As I recall, we’ve played nine times this year, and I’ve won five. Dare to try and break even?”

He looked at the table where they usually played. Once, he would have been keen to take up such a blatant challenge from Rose and show her that he was the better player, but he couldn’t find the energy to show Rose up. He just shook his head. He immediately saw the look of disappointment and concern in her eyes. It was the same looked that she has been giving him since he was released by his Grandfather and returned to school. He couldn’t take another second of it; he took his book bag up to his dorm and began to pack his school things into his trunk for the Saturday trip home.

At six o’clock, he joined Rose and Albus for the trip down to the Great Hall. In front of them walked the three ‘Little Sisters’ and the group’s unofficial member: Hugo. As they entered through the Great Hall doors, they noticed Lily separate herself from her friends and began to run towards the Staff Table.

â€�“Mummy!”

Albus looked up, he following his sister with his eyes. Sure enough, Ginny Potter was standing next to Professor Longbottom and coming out of the staff room talking with Professor Dawlish, a former Auror, was Harry Potter. Albus, Rose, and Hugo all followed Lily to the front. Scorpius stopped next to Abby and Beatrice and watched as their friends abandoned them for an impromptu family reunion.

The Great Hall quickly filled as relieved students, done with all of their exams, let out a week’s worth of tension in excited, giddy talk. Scorpius noticed that Albus was not taking part in the merriment. Albus kept sneaking peeks up at the Staff Table where his father pulled a chair out for his mother to sit on. As he watched his parents from across the room, a smile broke out on his face.

The conversations continued until Headmaster Flitwick spoke from the Staff Table. As usual the diminutive man’s voice was magically amplified to silence those still talking in the room and to get their attention.

â€�“It is so good to hear all of the happy voices in the Great Hall tonight. It must mean that all of your studying has paid off, and your teachers can expect nothing but Outstandings on all of your examinations.” After the comment, a few chuckles escaped from the audience, but some of the students looked a little self-conscience about their expected grades.

The Headmaster continued, â€�“No doubt many of you have noticed that we have two guests seated at the Staff Table. I’d like all of you to welcome two of our most distinguished graduates: Mr. Harry Potter and his wife, Ginny Potter. Mrs. Potter, the Captain of the undefeated Holyhead Harpies and formerly the Assistant Captain of the United Kingdom’s Under-Fifteen World Cup Quidditch team, has an announcement that concerns some of our students.”

Flitwick gestured to Albus’ parents. Mr. Potter gave a polite little wave to the applause. Mrs. Potter stood and walked around the end of the Staff Table and in the middle of the raised platform. She lowered her head for a second, exactly like Albus did before he spoke to a class, and began to speak unaided loud enough to be heard by all in the large room.

â€�“As you know, due to circumstances beyond our control, the United Kingdom’s Under-15 team was unable to compete in the round of four at the tournament. Last week, the Ministry got notified by the Junior World Champion Australian team that during their winter holiday, they are going to be touring Europe playing ‘friendlies’ against national and school teams. The ministry has asked if I would lead our team that would have played Australia last Halloween in the World Cup.”

With her words excited murmurs raced through the Great Hall, Scorpius saw James and Kaitlin stand on the table’s benches like they were ready to begin the game now. In his chest, Scorpius felt his heart begin to pound like it hadn’t since his kidnapping.

Mrs. Potter raised her hands to silence her audience. â€�“However, I’m currently the coach of Harpies and do not have the time to coach the team.” Scorpius began to deflate. â€�“I have found someone who will run the practices and be my assistant during the game. I would like to introduce my replacement as coach, Harry Potter.”

The Gryffindor table exploded in applause, James and Kaitlin began to bounce and ended up in a hug. By the time the applause died down, Mr. Potter had joined his wife.

He spoke, â€�“Our game with Australia will be on the sixth of August in the Forest of Dean at the Tutshill Tornado pitch. Team practices will begin in Holyhead in ten days.”

Scorpius caught Albus and Rose’s eyes. They would get their chance to prove they were the best. He saw the face of Bobby Devon; Coach Devon was smiling at him. Six months of guilt about what his Grandfather had done seemed to dissolve away.

---

Hogsmeade Platform

---

As usual, they arrived in a large group at the platform. Scorpius was in a quandary. He felt like he had to ride back with the team to London, but he also wanted to ride back with his Herbology friends. His mother did have a small supply of the anti-rot potion on hand, but it was only enough to ensure that the rot would not spread to the other four plants. She and Kettlebaum were both brewing new batches of potion.

According to a meeting with Professor Longbottom on the final day of school, it seems that the Truehearts that he and Crystalline had crossbred under Professor Longbottom’s guidance may have a weakness to disease. They would be working to correct the problem. Scorpius wanted to be in on the next round of planning to make the flower heartier. Weirdly, he felt like the plant’s daddy or something.

As Crystal, Athena, Mariel, and Bea waited in the queue at the door of carriage two, he broke away from the team and walked over to them.

â€�“Listen, I’d like to go back with you and plan what we can to next for the Truehearts, but-â€�“

Crystalline looked up the platform at the loud Quidditch players entering carriage four and said to him. â€�“I understand. We’ll let you know what we and the Professor come up with.”

â€�“Thanks,” he gratefully answered. He was just about to turn away when he heard a familiar voice.

â€�“Hey, Blondie!”

He turned to face Bea.

â€�“Try not to get your stupid head knocked off by a Bludger, okay!” Bea said and immediately her face turned a deep red and the older girls giggled.

He nodded in reply and trotted up the platform to where Rose and Albus were waiting just inside of the door to show him to their compartment. As Scorpius started to step through the door, he noticed Bea and Crystal both waving at him from just in front of their door. He waved back and entered the train for the trip to London and the eventual victory over the Aussies.

---

A week later

---

He had awoken in the dark. It hadn’t been until he had tried to scratch his nose that he realized that he was not in a darkened room. He was inside a hood of some kind. Whomever that was watching him must have noted the movement, because as soon as he had finished the move towards his nose. He was pulled up out of his seated position and onto his feet. He was shoved by a strong hand in the back and while blindly running smacked into numerous walls. After the second collision, he lost track of the number of steps and directions he was lead.

Finally, he was shoved through a doorway and down into a chair. When his backside struck the chair, he lost his balance and was falling when he was stopped in his fall. He floated up to land softly upon the chair.

I heard no chanting! So, my capturers are not Vardoo, but they are Magical. Am I the prisoner of Harry Potter and his damnable Aurors?

He waited to see if those on the other side of the hood were friend or foe. He didn’t have to wait long. The mask dissolved and the light of the room’s gaslights blinded him. After a few more seconds, he saw coming into focus a smiling fur lined robed man with long bright blonde hair, he looked to be in his early thirties and he had vicious leer upon his face.

â€�“Ka-Sich Korogo, my name is Lucius Malfoy. I can be your ally or your executioner. The choice is yours.”