Diagon Alley
The Doctor shifted from foot to foot in excitement while in line at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor. It had been quite a while since he had indulged in this type of decadence and was astounded at the variety of flavors the quaint little shop offered. He made up his mind when it was finally his turn at the counter. "Orange custard, please," he told the young woman scooping the frozen delicacies. There was a slightly awkward moment when the clerk asked him for money. The Doctor had completely forgotten about how humans exchanged goods, and so was caught off guard when she demanded six Silver-Sickles and 12 Knuts. Embarrassed, he dug around in his pocket until he found a fist-sized lump of gold. A slight frown of worry crossed his face when the clerk just stared at the nugget he offered her. He did think the nugget was rather small once he looked at it. It was meager five and a half centimeters in diameter. When the clerk saw that he was not kidding, she quickly snatched the gold out of the Doctor's hand and offered him a free chocolate fizzy soda to along with ice cream. He thanked her, thinking happily about his luck in finding such generous people.
The Doctor was chasing around the last bit of frozen custard with his spoon when the ice cream parlor became unnaturally quiet as all conversations stopped like they had been cut off with a knife. When he looked around the shop, he saw most eyes were fixed on the entry way. A few patrons let their gaze flick back and forth between the doors and him. The Doctor wiped a bit of frozen custard off of his face with a napkin and casually turned so he could see the doors. Two men in black robes had come into the ice cream parlor while he had been eating.
The taller of the two black robed gents shot a withering look at an old woman who had come out from the back of the store. From her apparent age and the fact that she held herself like a woman in charge, the Doctor assumed she was the proprietor of the shop. She wore a gingham apron tied over her robe. "I would have thought you had better sense, Florean," the taller Death Eater said sourly. When Florean met his gaze with a question in her eyes, he glanced at the Doctor. She followed his gaze and ground her teeth in anger.
"All are welcome in my shop," Florean said challengingly, putting her hands on her hips. She made a point to slowly look the pair of Death Eaters up and down. "Well, everyone but Death Eaters," she said acidly.
The shorter, plumper Death Eater pulled his wand and pointed it at Florean. "We will deal with your impudence later, Florean, but first we have to rid your shop of a Muggle infestation," he said and turned to point his wand at the Doctor.
The Doctor quickly picked up both feet off of the floor and leaned far to the side so he could look under table. He no idea what a "Muggle" was, but he was sure didn't want to have one crawl over his feet or up a trouser leg. Sensing all eyes were on him, the Doctor sat up straight again. He pointed to his chest with his left hand while surreptitiously slipping his right into his jacket pocket. "What…me? I'mthe Muggle?" he asked the patrons. An elderly couple sitting at the table next to him nodded silently in response. The Doctor frowned and turned his whole body to face the two men in black. He put his feet back on the ground and kept his right hand in his jacket. "I'm not really sure what a 'Muggle' is, but I take it that it isn't a term of endearment?" he asked the Death eaters.
The Death Eaters rolled their eyes at the stupidity of the non-magical buffoon who had somehow wandered into their territory. With a predatory grin, the shorter Death Eater leveled his wand at the Doctor and yelled, "CONFRINGO."
The Doctor had been expecting some sort of violence and dove away from the table right before a green blast of energy shattered it into a thousand pieces. He wasn't sure what kind of technology the man was using, but he assumed it was alien in origin. As soon as he stopped rolling, the Doctor whipped out his sonic screwdriver and sent a blast of compressed sonic waves in the direction of the Death Eaters. A high pitch whine was followed almost instantly by a large bowl of ice cream exploding in front of the man who had taken a shot at him. His assailant now had a face covered in double strawberry delight.
Nymphadora Tonks had been sitting at a table that faced the door and had been in the act of drawing her own wand when the shorter Death Eater had fired a blasting curse at the Muggle in the center of the shop. She watched as the "Muggle" dodged the curse and drew his own wand. The wand was unlike any Tonks had ever seen before. She couldn't see the base of it, but the end was made of silver and gold instead of wood. A glowing, green crystal was set in the tip of the unusual wand. When the ice cream exploded, the taller Death Eater started to draw his own wand. The pink haired Auror beat him to the draw and shouted, "EXPELLIARMUS!" The Death Eater's wand flew out of his hand to land in the self activated ice cream mixer behind the counter. A series of snaps and crunching noises came from the mixing bowl as the beaters demolished the wand.
The Doctor bolted for the door and saw a young woman with bright pink hair rush at the taller man in black robes. She was wearing a pair of black jeans and a pair of black combat boots with different colored lacing under her robe. Her left boot's lace was neon green and the right's was bright purple. He took a split second to admire her choice in footwear before he hit the door. As the young woman passed the Death Eater, she punched him squarely in his jaw with her left hand. She followed the Doctor out the door before the Death Eaters could recover. Once they were outside, the Doctor slammed the doors shut and pointed his screwdriver at the lock. Again, he said no words and a high pitched whine came from his trusty tool.
"There, that should keep them busy for a time," the Doctor said as he deadlocked the doors. He waved at the two men while they tried to open the doors.
The shorter man smiled contemptuously and pointed his wand at the lock. "ALOHOMORA," he shouted. Tonks leveled her wand at the door ready for a fight, but was shocked when it refused to open. The Death Eater shook the doors and tried the unlocking spell several more times, each as fruitless as the one before it.
Tonks giggled at the predicament the Death Eaters had put themselves in but stopped suddenly when she saw a pack of Death Eaters running their way. The Doctor turned to look at what she was staring at and then looked back at Tonks. "Run?" he asked her.
"Yes," Tonks replied. She grabbed him by the hand and led him into the maze of back alleys that surrounded Diagon Alley. Once she was sure that they had lost the Death eaters, Tonks took a long look at the strange man. He looked to be somewhere in his mid to late twenties. His light brown hair was cut so that the front would often fall in his eyes. Tonks looked squarely at the Doctor. "I'm Auror Tonks, who the bloody hell are you?" she demanded.
The Doctor recognized the authority she put into her voice and assumed she was a member of law enforcement. He put away his screwdriver and pulled out his psychic paper. Holding it in front of Tonks, he replied with a question of his own. "Who do youthink I am?" he asked.
Tonks looked at the identification the man presented. It confirmed a hunch she had about him as soon as she saw how effortlessly he cast non-verbal combined with how he was dressed. "You're a CAT? Sorry to take the lead like that, sir," she said respectfully.
The Doctor looked at Tonks like she was insane and then held his psychic paper so he could read it. The Doctor focused his will and forced the paper to show him what she had seen. The white paper shimmered and he saw a blue identification badge. His picture was rotating in 3D in the upper left corner. Next to the picture were the words "Covert Auror Team". The identification listed him as only "The Doctor".
"Oh, C–A-T, I get it now," the Doctor muttered under his breath.
"Sir, Diagon Alley is crawling with Death Eaters. I have to report into the Ministry and tell them what is going on," Tonks told him. "Wait here, I'll be back with a robe for you in a few minutes so you won't look like such a Muggle," she said. Tonks shook her head in admiration for how deeply the CATs embedded themselves in Muggle society. Tonks dashed away to find a secured floo. She had to let her boss, Rufus Scrimgeour, know that not only had the Death Eaters stepped up their attacks on Muggles in broad daylight, but the Prime Minister had recalled one of his special team of Aurors back to London.
**********Dr Who**********
London – 10 Downing Street
Rufus Scrimgeour, the newly appointed head of the Ministry of Magics, walked down the hall to the Prime Minister's office. He fidgeted in his Muggle clothes and hated how they fit. Stopping in front of a mirror, Rufus straightened his tie and took a deep breath. A long look in his reflection made him accept the real reason he was uncomfortable. The tone of the weekly meetings he had with the head of the British government had changed over the last couple of months. It wasn't that the Sir John ever got cross or blamed Rufus; it was the fact that Rufus' reports became increasingly bleak every week. To add to his depressing report, Rufus had to discover why one of the Prime Minister's special team of Aurors was back in the magical community. The CATs were chosen as soon as they left their Wizarding school and went to work directly for the Prime Minister, bypassing the Ministry of Magic. Sighing, Rufus finished walking down the hall and knocked on the office door.
"Come in…come in," Sir John Major, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Brittan, said absently while he rifled through his desk. "Damn, where did I put that number?" he asked himself.
Rufus politely coughed to let Sir John know he was in the room. "Prime Minister Major, I…" he started to say.
Sir John looked up briefly from his search to stare at his Minister of Magic. "Rufus, how many times must I tell you, when we are alone, you may call John. Considering everything we have been through, I think we have earned a first name basis," he scolded. He went back to searching his desk.
"As you wish…John," Rufus said dryly. He let out a weary chuckle and sat down heavily in one of the Prime Minister's overstuffed chair. "Might I ask what you are looking for?" he inquired politely.
Sir John gave up with a huff and sat down. "I was looking for a phone number for one of our retired Brigadiers,' he said. "Blast! The one time I need to contact old Lethbridge-Stewart, I can't find his unlisted number," he sighed.
"Lethbridge-Stewart? Wasn't he the commander of UNIT for quite some time?" Rufus asked, surprised that Sir John would speak openly of one of the other secret organizations within their government.
Sir John looked closely at Rufus, a hint of a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. "I'm surprised you've even heard of UNIT. Your circles of influence very rarely overlap," he said.
"When I was the Auror, I had some contact with them. Their liaison sent us some cases they said didn't fall within their bailiwick," Rufus said. "Once I knew of their existence, I made it a point to learn everything I could about them," he explained. Rufus gave Sir John a condescending look. "Seriously Prime Minister…aliens?" he asked in total disbelief.
Sir john laughed out loud at that kind of statement coming from a man charged with keeping the magical community separate from the rest of Great Brittan. "You have no idea," he said once he brought himself back under control. The way he said it sent chills down Rufus' spine. "Actually, Rufus, I was looking for the Brigadier's phone number to see if he would put me in contact with a man who might be willing to help us out in this magical civil war we have found ourselves in," he said. "No matter, I'll find it after this week's meeting," he promised himself.
When Sir John didn't go on, Rufus took it as his cue to begin his weekly briefing. "Like you suspected, the destruction of the Brockdale Bridge was indeed a work of the opposition. Some of our reports seem to indicate it was Voldemort himself who sent the curse into the bridge, killing all of those people," he said sadly.
"Bugger. For once I would like to hear some good news in these meetings," Sir John complained. He noticed the slight wince Rufus had in response to his words. "You're doing everything you can, I know that, Rufus. It just gets bloody depressing hearing bad news every week," he tried to assure his friend.
Rufus gave Sir John a weak smile of thanks. "Well, on a brighter note, the boy the prophecy spoke about made it back to Hogwarts in one piece again," he offered.
"I would definitely like to meet this Potter boy someday. He sounds like quite the exceptional individual. If everything you have told me about him is true, then he also surrounds himself with exemplary people," Sir John said. "I wish I had that capability when seating my cabinet," he joked. "Was there anything else I need to know about the war?" he asked.
Rufus shifted uncomfortably in his seat. "Sir, there is onething that I need to ask you about," he said hesitantly. Sir John motioned with his hand for Rufus to go on. "Were you aware that one of your CATs was spotted in Diagon Alley? I thought they were forbidden from interacting with the magical community once they took their posts," he said.
Sir John furrowed his brow in thought. He hadn't been aware of any of his agents coming back from the field recently. "Did you get a name by any chance?" he inquired.
"Only his codename. His identification badge listed him as 'The Doctor'," he replied. The Prime Minister's face looked like it might split in two from how large his grin became while he rocked back in his seat. Rufus decided to press on. "Considering he only has a codename, I take it that it is safe to assume he is one of the Black CATs?" he asked. The group within the Covert Auror Team that took on special ops missions outside of Great Brittan were referred to as the "Black Cats". They took on the cases no one else could handle or even wanted to know about. Their identities were so secret, all records of the existence were magically erased including having everyone they knew obliviated in regards to them.
"Bugger me," Sir John chortled. "Bastard's done it again. Always one step ahead of us," he said to himself. Rufus gave him a questioning look. Sir John thought about what to say. He remembered all of the briefings he had gone to in regards to the Doctor. He reflected on what had happened to all of the aliens that crossed the Doctor's path. He smiled and said, "Trust me when I tell you that the Doctor is indeed the blackest of cats."
"Is he back in Diagon Alley on a mission?" Rufus asked.
The Prime Minister shrugged his shoulders. "Who knows? Let's just say the Doctor is an…independent sort," he replied. Sir John became serious. "Rufus, it is of the utmost importance that you get the Doctor to Hogwarts. Once he sees what is going on, I'm sure he will decide to stay and help out. He never was one who could turn his back on children in danger," he said. Sir John motioned quickly with his hand towards the door. "Hurry, before he decides to go somewhere else. The Doctor never stays in one place for very long," he instructed.
Rufus stood up and gave a slight bow to his boss. "At once, Sir John," he said and hurried out of the room. Sir John leaned back in his chair, a smile on his face. It was the first time in months that he let himself hope the war with Voldemort could be won.