Author note: This story is part of the Magical Flashpoint Side Story series. Chronologically, this story occurs between Chapter Fourteen: Lion of Judah and the Epilogue of "Secrets and Families". I strongly recommend reading "Secrets and Families" before this story, otherwise, it will not make any sense whatsoever.

Although all original characters belong to me, I do not own Flashpoint, Harry Potter, Narnia, or Merlin.

Ghost or not, Greg was quite curious about the world his nipotes had left behind; he took in as much as he could during their trek between Gringotts and the Leaky Cauldron, just as wide-eyed as his team at the differences between Toronto's magical mall and Diagon Alley. The first hiccup came as they reached the Leaky Cauldron…and the floo within. Greg's team was giving the fireplace a dirty look, which left him wondering what was so bad about this…floo.

A quick huddle and an equally quick conference was needed to decide on a course of action and bring Greg up to speed on how to use the floo. Lance would go first, clearing the way for the Knights, Greg, his team insisted, would go second, and Alanna would bring up the rear, with Wordy second to last. Parker bowed to his team's greater experience with magical travel, though he gave Wordy a Look, conveying his trust that the broad-shouldered constable would protect Alanna with his life.

Lance threw his Floo powder into the fire after paying the bartender for their use of the fireplace; as it turned green, Lance stepped in, declaring, "Ministry of Magic!" before he vanished in emerald flames.

Greg swallowed nervously, but backing out now wasn't an option. Part of him would have liked the silent encouragement of his now lost 'team sense'; he shut that line of thought down as he grabbed his own handful of Floo powder and tossed it into the fireplace. Red-orange flames turned green and the SRU Sergeant stepped in, startled by the lack of heat. "Ministry of Magic!"

Fire surrounded him, yanking him along; he could see other grates and fireplaces, but he was spinning too fast to really identify any of the other possible destinations. A fireplace loomed ahead and Greg tried to spin in the opposite direction…he was only halfway successful and tumbled out of the fireplace; he hit his nephew, both going down with an, "Oomph," from the teen. Adding to the confusion, Ed landed on top of both of them; fortunately, Sam had persuaded Spike to let him go next – the Squib-born managed to get both men and the teen out of the way before Spike arrived, the tech actually sticking the landing this time. Greg flushed as the rest of his team arrived, all but Eddie managing to at least keep their feet…until Wordy sprawled out of the fireplace and almost skidded across the tiled floor. Then Greg didn't feel quite so bad as Alanna appeared with a tiny giggle at Wordy's impression of a beached whale.

Bags were checked over, clothing resettled after the Floo ride, and weapons untangled…especially Wordy's shield and sword, which had somehow ended up twisted together in his 'ride'. Lance and Alanna took the lead, their uncle right behind them, one hand on his own sword hilt as they walked. Unconsciously, the Knights shifted so their snipers were behind the sword-wielders and thus better protected. They didn't break formation until they reached the International Portkey Department.

Their formation had an unexpected benefit; wizards and witches scrambled out of the way, unwilling to tangle with the team or their weapons. Sam smirked; though he no longer had the issues with wizards he'd had at first, he still remembered how he'd been treated and thus enjoyed the rather harmless 'retribution'. No harm in enjoying the scrambling and wary looks from the smug and mostly pureblood wizards.

Lance walked right up to the clerks, who looked like the same clerks Team One had met before. "Nine for your next Portkey to Ireland, with another Portkey to Newfoundland, and a third to Toronto."

The clerks didn't sneer as they had before; instead they quickly wrote out two letters authorizing the Ireland and Newfoundland Portkeys and totaled up the charge for all three. Greg's brows shot up at the cost the clerk quoted, but Lance didn't even blink at he leaned in. "Two years ago, it was 150 Galleons for a one-way trip; less than a week ago, the Toronto Auror Division paid the same 150 Galleons for a one-way trip here; no way a one-way trip now costs 350 Galleons."

It took less than a minute of glaring from the Knights before the clerks folded and accepted the 150 Galleons Lance pushed at them. Sam, remembering that Greg hadn't experienced the Portkey rides before, quietly hissed warnings and instructions in his boss's ear as they grouped around the first Portkey.

Every last member of Team One was jealous of their boss; he didn't experience a single ill-effect on any of the Portkeys as they made the three leg trip back to Toronto. Even the kids looked a touch jealous as the group landed in the Arrival area of Toronto's Portkey Division. The busy area fell silent around the new arrivals as the wizards took in the Knights' armor and weapons. Busy recovering from the Portkey, the Knights took little notice, but one alert Auror recognized them and sent a Patronus off to inform Madame Locksley that her Muggle Aurors were back…and they'd found Parker.

"Welcome back, Team One," Madame Locksley remarked as soon as she arrived and verified that, yes, indeed, Parker was back. He was fuzzy around the edges and his entire form was rimmed in a red glow, but he was back.

And he was the first to speak. "Thank you, Madame Locksley," he replied, giving her a gentle smile. "Good to be back."

"I imagine so, Auror Sergeant Parker," was the woman's droll response. "Goblin Healer Thorncrusher contacted my office roughly two days after your departure and requested that I send you straight to them once you'd returned, Team One."

"Copy that," Ed acknowledged, taking the lead for the moment.

Healer Thorncrusher looked just as delighted as Silnok had as they arrived in his office; it was a rather fearsome look on the goblin. "Well done," he praised as he inspected Greg from head to toe, a victorious gleam in his eyes. Reluctantly, he turned to Lance. "Heir Calvin, we have also completed our end of this matter; we can proceed with the last step once we are finished here."

Greg, getting antsy and antsier the longer he had to wait, broke in, "Can't we just get this over with?"

He received a sympathetic look from the Healer. "I beg pardon, Sergeant Parker, but this must be done first." The goblin swept his eyes over all of the humans present. "As I said before, some effects of this entire affair will be permanent…"

"They will?" Greg interrupted without thinking, a sinking look on his face.

Instead of getting angry, the goblin's face grew gentler. "I'm afraid so, Sergeant Parker." With a sigh, the goblin elaborated. "Just as an extensive physical injury never heals entirely, though this tends to be less so in the magical world, so, too, is it with injuries of this nature. In a way, the demon's actions were a blessing, since they allowed us to repair the damage done without concern for affecting your soul ourselves. Without that, the effects would be more extensive than they will be." Team One traded startled looks, but kept quiet. "As it is, I anticipate that the effects will be worse than you have previously experienced at first, but will, in time, become more manageable. They may even, in time, become quite controllable and normal, for lack of a better word."

Greg sighed, his antsiness still pushing and growing, but a dread also growing within him. "The, um…sense…I've been getting?" he questioned, unable to frame the question quite right.

Healer Thorncrusher's eyes softened even further. "I cannot be sure, but it will likely remain," he confirmed, watching as the Sergeant's shoulders slumped at his statement. The rest of the adults looked equally unhappy, but none of them said a thing. The Healer let the silence hang for a few moments, his gaze sharpening on his patient. Abruptly, he said, "I believe it is time to rejoin soul and body, Sergeant Parker."

Greg's gaze swung up to the goblin, anticipation sending a thrill up his back at the words. But now part of him was dreading it; dreading the flood of emotions from his team and the sensitive hearing. Dreading the constant invasion of his team's privacy and their reactions to that reality. As if the inner conflict was the tipping point, he felt something inside him give way and he went down, blackness filling his vision.

Lance moved faster than any of Team One, catching his uncle's soul as he collapsed. Golden light skittered over both of them and did not fade, the teen's magic suddenly the only thing keeping his uncle tethered to life. "We got to do this now," the boy insisted, his eyes wide and frightened.

Healer Thorncrusher did not argue; he rose and led the way to another chamber close to his office. Team One and Alanna followed Lance; Ed bit his lip as he realized his boss's red glow was almost gone, the few flickers of it left were being bolstered by Lance's golden magic, the two colors twisting together as the teen bore his uncle with no sign of physical strain.

Inside the room, Ed's alarm ramped up higher at the sight of his boss's body…far from looking better, it was almost gray and so lifeless that it took two looks for Ed to confirm his boss was still breathing. Lance turned just enough for Ed to see him clearly as he hefted his uncle higher; the teen's hair was slick and greasy with moisture, sweat dripped down his face, and the golden light was beginning to fade. Ed's stomach dropped; Lance was draining his own magic – his own life – to keep Greg alive.

Lance strained to get his uncle high enough to reach the bed, but draining his magic had also sapped his strength. Wordy stepped forward, helping the boy to lift Parker's soul onto the bed, but nothing happened. Even the goblin looked taken aback as soul and body continued to deteriorate, dying right in front of them. Desperation shone in Lance's eyes as he continued to tether his uncle's soul to life, but his magic could only hold for so long – and he was rapidly approaching the end of his endurance.

At the back of the group, Lou frowned to himself, eyeing the crisis. Then he plunged forward, resting one hand on his boss's arm. "Sarge, it's okay; no matter what, we want you back," he said aloud.

The fading red glow paused, not dying further, but not strengthening either. Jules joined her teammate. "Sarge, we saw what it would be like without you; I don't want that…not now, not when you have so much left to do, so much life left to live."

The red glow strengthened, just a touch as Spike stepped forward. "Lou's my best friend, Boss, but you're the one who gave me the chance to be more than just a geek, to be the geekest SRU cop ever."

Wordy crowded in as well. "You didn't give up, Sarge; you held on for days until we could get there. Don't give up now, not when you're so close. Lou's right; we want you back, no matter what."

Alanna joined her brother, adding her own violet magic to his golden light; bracing her older, taller brother as best she could. When he tried to shake her off, she just glared at him, silently daring him to argue.

Ed was about to move, but Sam slid past him, resting a hand on their boss's shin. "Yeah, we freaked when we found out," the sniper admitted to the unconscious man, "But that doesn't matter, Boss; you're our boss, our Sergeant. You don't get to walk away, you don't get to give up on us, not like this."

All eyes shifted to Ed Lane as he took his own place. "Not sure what I can add to all of that, Greg," he remarked, as casual as if he and his boss were just talking in the briefing room before shift. "I think they pretty much covered everything." Silence hung, but the red glow, though bright again, didn't strengthen further. Ed sighed as loudly and dramatically as he could. "Greg, stop being an idiot and get it together," he ordered. "No more lying down on the job, no more scaring us half to death." He leaned in, lowering his voice. "And if you ever pull a stunt like this again, I'll kill you myself."

The team leader ignored his teammates' expressions, keeping his focus on his boss. Red light grew, strengthened, flared. Team One was forced back as it pulsed, running over soul and body, twining around them both; red threads of light started paper thin and thickened until they were more like ropes than threads. Gray skin gained tone, pigment, looking healthier by the second. With one final flare, Greg's soul vanished and his body gave a brief convulsion; brown eyes shot open as he heaved in air. Magic shimmered in the air and everyone present could see the threads of red light wrap themselves around Team One, stretching back to Greg; the anchors reestablishing themselves with a magical thrum.

Parker hacked and coughed as he struggled to get used to having a body again; his chest heaved and he nearly fell off the bed before Wordy and Ed managed to brace him. Wordy sat the Sergeant up, helping him to lean forward as he sucked in air and coughed harder. Jules slipped around to the kids, quietly bracing Lance as he leaned against his uncle's bed, almost completely spent. It took several minutes before Greg could get his breathing under control; the Sergeant ended up limp, supported by the husky constable behind him, and still coughing a bit.

"All right there, Sarge?" Wordy asked; Greg cringed, both hands coming up partway to his ears before his strength failed and they dropped back to the bed. It only took a second's worth of traded looks before Wordy asked again, dropping his voice as low as he could.

The tense form against Wordy relaxed a bit. "Getting there, Wordy," Sarge rasped out. "But…but I think I need a minute here."

Ed scooted closer, crouching down so he could look his boss in the eyes. The team leader kept his own voice as low as possible. "Take as long as you need, Boss; we aren't going anywhere." He stood, switching to hand signals to inform his teammates of his immediate plans; they nodded to him, agreeing with his intentions.

As Ed shifted to leave the room and make a few phone calls, Greg called, "Hey, Eddie?" As Ed swung around to his boss, he got that gentle smile he'd been afraid he'd never see again, coupled with a rather sheepish look in his boss's eyes. "Thanks."

~ Fin

Author note: Hope ya'll enjoyed this little snippet. As I said in "Secrets and Families", the first chapter of the next story in the main storyline will be up on Saturday, September 2nd, 2017, right here in the main Flashpoint archive.