Chapter 29 The man with the mole on his nose

Harry and Ron found it hard to carry out their mission with people constantly pulling on their arms asking for drink refills. Complaints about the cuisine were even worse.

"If that fat guy asks for another bloomin' replacement pie," Ron muttered. "I'm gonna deflate his arse."

"Where is this Yee character?" Harry complained as he pushed along a cart loaded with pies. "I've only seen minor Chinese servants since we've started."

"Let's split up," Ron suggested. "We'll cover more ground."

Finding the going tough in his heels, Goyle stumbled with Draco and Buster as they sought out a bathroom.

"I hate these shoes," he moaned.

"Why?" Draco joked. "They don't match your purse?"

"Well that and…" Goyle began. "Oh, bite me!"

Looking at his fingernails, Buster added, "I should've gone with the metallic blue."

Grabbing both of them by an ear, Draco dragged them into a janitor's closet.

"That's it," Draco ordered. "Get out of those stupid dresses before you hurt yourselves."

Up above, decorative netting held hundreds of balloons of different colors in place. Lavender and Cho separately patrolled the surrounding upper level tables. They too found the going tough as male dignitaries ogled them often.

"Mmmmmmm…Hola, señorita," breathed a drunken Spaniard as he grabbed Cho's arm. "Quiero comer su penocha, puta!"

Yanking her arm free, Cho answered, "Aye, La Cucaracha to you too, señor."

Below, Ron squinted hard to see the man sitting at a long table with some Arab dignitaries. The man was definitely a high-ranking Chinese dignitaryHe quickened his pace hoping the pies won't fall off the cart and scanned the faces in the areaGoyle was approaching from the other direction, eating pies as well as passing them out. Spotting Harry 30 yards away, Ron tried to wave him over.

"Chinaman at 3 o'clock," he muttered to Goyle as he passed him. "And stop eating you dolt!"

Draco spotted the Chinaman as well and frantically scanned the faces near him to no avail. Harry finally caught sight of Ron waving at him from across the room. But it was Cho, from above, who finally spotted the moleman.

"The man with the mole on his…" Cho said to herself as she waved her arms to get their attention.

Luckily Michael and Zacharias saw her and excused themselves from Sondra McKinney's table.

"Do come back ye juicy boy, eh?" Sondra asked Zacharias. "Keep your arse warm and toasty for me?"

"Aye, blossom," Zacharias answered. "Anythin' for a fine Scottish lass."

Ron caught up with Harry and pointed to the Chinaman. Just then, flashes of white lights were seen and loud popping noises were heard as from all around Don Bartolo's minions appeared. Their burgundy hooded robes cast a subdued crimson hue all around and their faces were hidden behind black masks. A loud final boom announced the appearance of Don Bartolo himself. Clad in a black robe with burgundy and gold accents flowing down the front and back, he was an imposing 6 foot figure with long wavey brown hair and a goatee. Harry froze at the sight of the man's strange eyes. Bartolo's irises were a dull shade of olive green surrounded by red. But instead of the customary pupil, Bartolo's eyes had vertical slits down the center.

Outside the scene was chaotic. The magical barrier had either been breached or intentionally removed from the Citadel. Flashes of red, blue and green light could be seen as Bartolo's minions did battle with the guards. George, Bill and Charlie abandoned their lookout to see if they could help. Hermione and Dean took cover behind a limousine and drew their wands.

"Oh well," Dean quipped. "Best laid schemes o' mice and men and all…"

Inside the scene was even more chaotic as throngs of people were now scurrying about. Harry and Ron finally reached Lee Tin Yee.

"Run!" Harry yelled. "They're here for you!"

Yee quickly ducked under the table with his bodyguards and crawled towards an exit. Just then someone bumped into Goyle's pie cart. It was the man himself. The man with the mole on his nose! Quick to see that Bartolo's men were also scanning faces, Goyle was forced to improvise. He picked up a pie and hit the man square in the face with it.

"FIND THE CHINAMAN!" Bartolo bellowed.

Seeing what Goyle had done, Draco, Buster and Ron sprang into action and began hitting every Chinaman they could find with a pie. Just for good measure…they began throwing them at Bartolo's men as well. Goyle was now wrestling with the moleman. His great weight was an asset as he waved Harry over.

"Is it him?" Harry asked as he crawled to him.

"Aye, mate," Goyle answered as the man screamed at him in Chinese.

Harry fished the Invisibility Cloak from the pie cart and threw it over him.

"Load 'em on the cart," Harry ordered. "Get him outta here!"

Suddenly the Chinaman reached out of the cloak and grabbed Goyle by the throat, desperately trying to get a message across in broken English.

"Mutrum! Mutrum!" the man screamed. "Getta da mutrum!"

"Harry?" Goyle asked. "I didn't catch that."

"Bloody hell," Harry muttered. "They brought the MUSHROOM with 'em! Where!?"

"Inna dee antikitty dispray!" the moleman answered.

"Get 'im outta here, Goyle!" Harry ordered. "We'll catch up!"

Goyle took off with the moleman hidden under the cloak as Harry sought out his comrades.

From all around, Bartolo's men were rounding people up and weeding out the Chinamen. From above came blue flashes of light as Ministry agents came to their aid. But they were vastly outnumbered. One by one they fell as flashes of red from Bartolo's men picked them off. A burly Spaniard near Draco was about to take another out but a howling Irishman knocked him off his feet. It was Ernie McMillan. Finnegan's Irish Brigade was eager to exact revenge for their fallen comrades in Belfast.

"It's about time, McMillan!" Draco yelled as Seamus and Cormac burst through the crowds with reinforcements. Flashes of red and green were all around them as Bartolo's men battled Finnegan's.

Draco turned around as Harry tapped him on the shoulder, "The mushroom's here in the antiquities display! Let's go!"

"MALFOY!" Bartolo bellowed. "JOO ARE A TRAITOR TO PUREBLOODS EVERYWHERE!"

Harry and Draco desperately dodged Bartolo's spells as they made their way to the antiquities display. Seamus and Cormac tried their best to distract Bartolo but their spells merely bounced off him and flew skywards.

"Blimey," Seamus groaned. "The bastard can block and fire at once."

Aiming for a group of Spaniards in hot pursuit of Harry, Seamus fired away with Avada Kedavra spells forcing the others to trip over their fallen comrades.

Harry and Draco reached the antiquities display and searched frantically for the mushroom. Draco was finding it hard to concentrate once he caught sight of a beautiful emerald surrounded by diamonds.

"Draco!" Harry screamed and brought him back to his sense.

Spotting the mushroom, Harry smashed the glass display and retrieved it as Draco freed the emerald from its display as well.

"Crikey, it's a lot smaller than the other ones," Harry remarked. "It looks like an average adult sized…winky."

"Right," Draco added as he stole a few more treasures. "But it's carved from a ruby. It's worth a ton, Potter. Let's get the bloody hell out of here."

From three sides, Bartolo's men were approaching. So Harry and Draco ran up a nearby staircase to the upper level instead. The battle below raged on. Lavender took cover behind an overturned table with Cho. She was tying a napkin around a gash on her forearm.

"We've got what we came for!" Harry yelled at them. "Make a run for it!"

They made their way down the main staircase but found themselves fighting through the crowd like everyone else. A large bolt of red lightning hit the stairs in front of Harry, flinging him forward to the main floor. The ruby fell out of his pocket. Draco dove for it but a fleeing woman kicked it away. Buster tried to dive for it but was tackled by one of Bartolo's men. Cormac dove and missed it by inches as yet another fleeing individual kicked it away.

"THE RUBY!" Bartolo bellowed as Ron finally grabbed it.

Six of Bartolo's goons were suddenly upon him as Michael and Cormac climbed a nearby table and jumped to his aid. Spotting Zacharias standing near the balloons release lever, Ernie shouted, "Zach! Pull the lever!" Zacharias gave it a good yank and hundreds of balloons rained down from above.

"HIJO DE PUTA!" Bartolo screamed as his view of everything was now blocked.

The deafening sound of hundreds of balloons popping at once rang out. Everyone doubled over and covered their ears as Bartolo's spell worked in his favor. When it was over, Bartolo and his men had Harry and his cohorts surrounded. With a wave of his wand, a large sphere of translucent red light surrounded the group and they disappeared just as reinforcements arrived with Hermione and Dean.

"Bloody hell, Seamus," Ernie remarked. "What kind o' spell was that, mate?"

Chapter 30 Captured!

The swaying motion of their surroundings made it clear to the boys that they were on a ship as their captors led them blindfolded to the brig. Upon reaching their destination their captors removed the blindfolds, ushered them into their cell and unceremoniously shoved them into the wall.

A short, reed-thin Spaniard with a moustache and a mousey-look about him began to speak.

"Joo mide lib if joo cooperate weet Don Bartolo," he announced. "I am dee famoose Capitan Jorge Castillo."

Looking at Michael, Zacharias muttered, "Are we supposed to know this guy?"

"Joo will wish joo hod not, Englishman!" Castillo bellowed.

"I already wish I hadn't," Cormac shot back.

Castillo answered with a weak, limp-wristed slap in Cormac's face. Cormac tried not to laugh but couldn't help letting out a little giggle. It only angered Castillo more.

"Irish puto!" Castillo responded in the most laughable attempt at sounding manly.

Turning to Draco, Castillo shook his head and wagged his finger in his face.

"Joo hod da chance to join Don Bartolo's Campeones," Castillo chided. "Instead joo will see dee most powerful wizarding army ever...march ober dee face of dee world...weedout joo!"

"I was going to join," Draco smirked. "But they found out my parents were married to each other."

Castillo hesitated but a giggle from Zacharias infuriated him beyond his limits. He pulled out a slapjack and slapped Draco in the face with it. At first the pain was intense. But Castillo's laughable response eased the pain.

"What dee HELL do joo meen by dat!?" he screamed, which only caused the rest of the boys to burst out laughing. "Turn dee HELL around joo FAHGITS!"

Even Castillo's own men had a hard time keeping straight faces as the boys tried desperately to stop laughing.

"I NO LIKE JOR FACES!" Castillo yelled and then left the cell embarrassed.

"I suppose joo tink WE like dem?" Ron shouted back.

Back at the Citadel, Goyle was distraught.

"Where are they?!" he demanded as he approached one of Bartolo's men who were left behind. Two aurors had their wands pointed at the man's face as another cuffed his hands behind his back. Goyle grabbed the man by the neck and the two aurors were forced to wrestle him away.

Seamus approached Hermione who was giving a statement to a Ministry official.

"Is there naught we can do, lass?" he asked.

"We're doing everything we can, Seamus," she assured him. "MI-7 is hard at work here."

"Hermione," Seamus pleaded. "He must be stopped. I've got family..muggle friends...and they-"

"I'm on top of the situation," Hermione reassured him.

Scanning her body up and down in her sleek black evening gown, Seamus muttered, "I wish I was that situation."

"What?" Hermione asked.

"I was just sayin'...nevermind," Seamus said as he looked away.

Dean was busy trying to help pull Goyle away from yet another of Bartolo's Campeones.

"Easy!" Dean urged as Goyle desperately swung away at the man who was now being hustled away by aurors. "Come on, big guy. It's going to be alright."

"Y-you don't understand," Goyle answered trying not to sob. "He's my best friend in the whole world. I-I'm lost without 'im around, mate."

Hugging the big lummox as he gave in to the urge to cry, Dean rocked him like a great big baby.

"We've all got close mates in his cluthes, big guy," Seamus added. "We'll get the bastard."

Dean was still hugging Goyle when he caught sight of a familiar svelte female form emerging from a nearby jeep. She was clad in tight black leather pants and a short-sleeved purple blouse. But what struck him like a brick was that she had a...MINISTRY badge clipped to her belt.

"Romilda?" Dean muttered.

After which all three of them stared at her wide-eyed.

Chapter 31 Vane...Agent Romilda Vane

Strolling to Hermione with her dark locks billowing in the wind, Romilda winked at Dean and spoke to Hermione. Dean groaned. Romilda went heavy with the eyeliner and mascara and her purple-hued eyeshadow went well with her blouse.

"We've got a fix on their position, Agent Granger," she announced.

"Good," Hermione responded in relief.

Dean, Goyle and Seamus approached. The dumb look on their faces was a testament to their severe confusion.

"What the hell, Hermione?" asked Dean.

"Yeah...you can't...uh...we're in the...the dark and...," added Goyle, fumbling with his words and thoughts.

"Why you devious little Ministry lass," Seamus said as he eyed Romilda's tight blouse. And with smile added, "Where ye been hiding those?"

After giving Seamus a dirty look and teasingly squeezing her right breast at him, Romilda continued, "Bartolo's flagship is bearing down on Malta. The American Central Wizarding Intelligence Agency confirms there's been a lot of wizarding activity near Dingli but their clandestine raids in and around the area have yielded nothing in regards to these 'death' orchids."

"Wait," Seamus interrupted. "It won't be by ship."

"How do you know?" Hermione asked.

"The raid in Belfast...right before one of me lads, Angus Ryan died...he said Don Bartolo boasted he would rain death from above upon the muggle world," Seamus continued.

"Well, whatever he's planning on doing, we're going to stop him before he can carry it out," said Hermione.

"H-how do you know where..." Dean started to ask.

"Zacharias," Romilda answered with a sly smile. "It was too easy."

Dean thought for a second and then hit himself on the forehead laughing, "The panties."

Cornelius Fudge approached.

"Well done, girls," he said. "For once the Imperius curse worked in our favor."

"I take it our mole is doing okay?" Romilda asked.

"Yes he is," Fudge continued. "Fletchley's a good lad but in the future he's going to have to learn not to trust every pretty face he runs into. At least he had the protection charm over the Citadel cancelled at the right moment."

"Well, you know men," Romilda giggled as she looked over her shoulder at the Dean, Goyle and Seamus. The three were leaning forward and obviously staring at Romilda's luscious backside. All guys love a firm bottom in tight leather, eh?

"Uh huh," Hermione teased as she raised an eyebrow at them.

Teasing them further, Hermione slapped Romilda firmly on her right buttock and the three men fell forward groaning.

Back on the ship, Harry and Buster were stuck in a cargo hold. Bartolo's multiple apparation spell wasn't all that accurate, apparently. Buster's legs reformed halfway into a box of rations. Harry found a crowbar and was desperately trying to free him before they were discovered.

"Well, this is a hell of a fix to be in," Buster groaned.

"Well, just count yourself lucky your head didn't apparate into an occupied toilet," Harry joked.

Freeing him from the temporary prison, Harry and Buster scanned their surroundings.

"Where the bloody hell are we?" Harry muttered.

"We must be directly under the brig," Buster answered. "I'd recognize Cormac's annoying laugh anywhere."

They made their way to a metal staircase and listened carefully for noises before opening the metal door. Looking left and right, they proceeded down the hall. The sound of multiple footfalls approaching made them duck behind a pallet stacked high with wooden boxes. Don Bartolo was walking towards the brig with a company of his Campeones.

When they were finally rounded the corner out of sight, Buster tapped Harry on the shoulder and pointed to one of the wooden boxes. The emblem of a skull over two orchids crossed over a globe was stamped on all of them.

"And I thought Voldermort was crazy," Harry muttered. "This guy doesn't know what he's doing. Which makes him a million times worse."

"What do you mean, mate?" Buster asked.

"Don't you understand?" Harry explained. "There are no purebloods anymore. Get it? This fool could kill us ALL."

"We'll stop him," Buster tried to reassure himself. "Right? We're...we're united this time. And...and we have Harry Potter."

Harry looked away.

There was so much more at stake this time around.

His shoulders suddenly felt very heavy...

Chapter 32 Out to Sea

All eyes were on Don Bartolo as he entered. His presence cast a pall over the brig as all the laughter from earlier disappeared. On his signal, two Campeones brought Draco to him.

"I woulda tink joo of all people would apprecheate what I'm ees trying to do, no?" Bartolo asked him.

"The mass murder of innocents?" Draco replied.

"A world free of dee Muggle scum dat poisons our world, miho," Bartolo continued. "Jor fodder canna apprecheate dis. Why is can't joo?"

"I'm not my father," Draco answered and then spit in his face. "And neither are joo."

Wiping his face with the sleeve of his robe, Bartolo went on, "Do joo know why is my power so mucha more pure and uh powerful than any wizard alive today, miho?"

"Generations of inbreeding?" Draco joked.

This time Bartolo punched him square on the chin and sent him backwards into the two Campeones.

"Thought so," Draco said with a giggle.

After picking him back up by the throat, Bartolo warned, "I uh promise jor fodder I let joo live…butta accidents do happen, miho."

Bartolo shoved him back into the cell with the rest of the boys and left.

Ron helped Draco to his feet.

"That was brave but this guy could have us killed at any time, Draco," Ron warned.

"If he wanted us dead we'd be dead already, Weasley," Draco pointed out.

"Well that's it then," Cormac added. "We've got to find a way out 'o here, lads."

"Already working on it," Draco went on as he produced a wand. "Swiped it from one of those Campeones he shoved me into."

"Brilliant," Ron beamed. "What's the plan?"

"Well, we get the bloody hell out of this cell for starters," said Draco. "Zach! Call that idiot guard over."

Zacharias walked to the cell bars and called to the guard standing by the exit door.

"Oi! Cucaracha!" he yelled.

"Shuddup, Gringo," the guard answered back.

Changing tactics Zacharias turned around and lifted his kilt to show the guard Romilda's G-string panties. He then proceeded to shake his arse and slap each buttock alternately while singing "La Cucaracha! La Cucaracha!"

"Come and get it, big boy," Zacharias teased.

"Ohhhhh joo….joo stupid little ma..ri..cón!" the guard warned as he approached.

Finally, the guard was within wandshot as Draco sprang into action.

"Stupefy!" Draco yelled.

The guard crumpled and fell face first to the floor five feet from them.

"Alohomora!" Draco continued as he tried to open the lock. Unfortunately, nothing happened.

"Wonderful," Ron complained. "The locks are charmed so we actually do need the keys."

"Gee, you couldn't wait 'til he was a little closer, Draco?" Michael chided.

"I panicked, okay!" Draco shot back.

Pointing the wand at the guard's belt, Draco tried to get them, "Accio key!"

The key floated but could not free itself from the guard's belt.

"Shyte!" Cormac cursed. "That son of a bitch thought of everything."

"Accio...big, fat GUARD!" Draco tried.

The guard's body started to slide across the floor towards Ron's eager hand when a familiar pair of boots appeared.

"And I was actually worried about you guys?" Harry joked.

Harry unlatched the keys and opened the cell door for them.

"Does anyone know where we are?" Michael asked.

"Somewhere in the Med, I think," Buster answered.

"How do you figure?" Michael asked.

"I heard some sailors on a passing trawler speaking Italian," Buster replied.

"Well, wherever we are," Harry continued. "We should lay low 'til we get to their destination."

"The cargo hold's loaded with barrels," Buster suggested. "Let's just make like barrel of pickels and stew for a while."

"Well, that's better than hiding in a trash bin," Zacharias said as he eyed Ron with a dirty look.

They tied up the guard and locked him in a supply closet and headed for the cargo hold together.

Chapter 33 Arrival at Malta

Deep in the cargo hold, Harry and the boys found it hard to pass the time in their respective barrels.

"Hey, Zach," Michael whispered. "Can you hand me another cracker, mate?"

Zacharias reached his hand out of a side hole in his barrel and handed Michael another cracker.

"Now hand over some American cheese this time," Zacharias demanded.

"What did I hand you last time?" Michael asked.

"Swiss," Zacharias answered.

"Argh! This Spanish caviar's nasty," Draco groaned. "Why couldn't this guy be Russian? At least I'd be snacking on beluga."

"Oh Shyte," Cormac cursed. "I've gone and spilt some Vienna sausages on me pants."

"Why don't you guys talk a little louder?" Ron added. "Make it easier for them to find us? Now shut up and hand me another cracker."

Suddenly the ship rocked and the sound of the engines reversing filled the air. A few seconds later, the alarm sounded.

"Sit tight, lads," Harry warned. "I think they finally found out you've gone missing."

The lights came on and groups of Campeones were frantically running to and fro. Capitan Jorge Castillo and his detachment were now searching the hold. Castillo stood with his back to the barrels scanning the area. As he did, Michael reached out with his lighter and tried to light his ass on fire. Ron wisely reached out and slapped his arm back inside.

"Paco!" Castillo screamed. "Getta jor lazy ass ober here, cabrón!"

"Si, Jefe?" Paco asked.

"Joo hob José and his maricónes searcha dee first compartamente!" Castillo ordered. "And joo checka dis place for dee prisoners."

"Si, Jefe," Paco answered as he turned to walk away.

As he did, Ron popped up his head and in his best Castillo impression added, "Nevermind deeze barrels, cabrón!"

Stopping quickly to turn around and salute Castillo, Paco added, "Si, Capitan!"

"Que?" Castillo asked.

"I said, 'Si, Capitan'!" Paco answered.

"Oh, cut dee $heet, pendejo!" Castillo yelled. "Getta jor lazy ass to work!"

Paco went about his business as confused as ever. The boys held tight in their barrels as some sailors hooked their pallet to a crane and hoisted them out of the cargo hold.

"Ohhhh, that ocean breeze feels good under my kilt," Zacharias moaned. "I'm starting to like this thong."

Michael did the same thing in his barrel, "OOOooo…you're right. Maybe I'll make like a Scot from now on and wear a kilt."

"Please shut up," Draco groaned as the pallet was loaded onto a truck.

Wherever they were going, the road was bumpy. Harry peered out of the hole in his barrel every now and then but could only see the blur of the landscape.

"Can anyone see a roadsign or something?" Harry asked them.

Ron peered out of his barrel hole, "Last sign I saw said 'Dingli' but that was in the opposite direction of where we're headed."

"Then we're definitely in Malta," Draco announced. "I saw a sign that pointed to Ta' Cassia. So I'm guessing that's where we're headed."

Suddenly the truck pulled off the road and took a turn into a mountain pass.

"Or not," Harry added.

After another half hour of driving, the truck drove through a magical barrier and onto smooth pavement.

"Oi, things got dark," Cormac commented.

The truck finally made a stop and the pallet was hoisted off the truck and planted in a warehouse.

Quietly peering out of his barrel, Harry scanned their surroundings.

"Let's go, lads," Harry whispered. "The coast is clear."

Wherever they were, the seven of them were alone and miles from help.