STRANGE DAYS
Chapter 4
For information and disclaimers, see chapter 1.
Pinky and the Brain & Stargate: SG1
And now…
Harry Potter and ?
IT'S MAGIC, ISN'T IT?
Minerva McGonogall was scared more for her young student than for herself. She glanced at Hermione Granger and cursed the luck that had landed them both in their current mess. It was supposed to have been a simple assignment. Retrieve a magical tome that had somehow wound up in a muggle bookshop. Hermione was along because she knew the area and the shop owner. It should have been quick and easy, not a dangerous job at all. It didn't involve Voldemort or his followers in any way.
Nevertheless, she thought, here we are, hiding from Death Eaters in an alley. They had managed to retrieve the book, though. What a fine thing to have on one's tombstone, a fatalistic little voice in the back of her head commented. Minerva ignored it.
For the moment, the search had passed them by, her own magic confusing the Death Eaters' locator spells. Professor McGonogall took Hermione by the arm and pulled her deeper into the shadows, hoping they could reach the next street and get beyond the anti-apparition wards that had been raised to trap them.
Granger pulled them down behind a large trash bin and pointed at a door. "The alley is a dead end, but that door leads into a warehouse with several exits," she whispered. McGonogall nodded and glanced toward the mouth of the alley. A Death Eater came into view, evidently having doubled back, but he was looking the other way. Glancing back at the door, she received a shock when it began to open inward.
Raising her wand, she prepared to hex whoever came through. The spell died on her lips, though, when a small blonde boy stuck his head out, glanced around, and then motioned them inside. She and Granger traded worried glances. They couldn't put the boy in danger, but there was no other way out of the alley.
The boy was getting frantic, and the transfigurations professor feared he might actually call out to them, drawing the attention of the Death Eaters. A glance toward the street showed the robed figure turning toward them.
Minerva pulled back, and glanced down as she felt Granger's hand on her arm. "Meow" the girl whispered and McGonogall nodded in understanding before transforming.
The Death Eater had taken a step into the alley to investigate when a small cat darted from the shadows behind the trash bin and as quickly vanished deeper into the alley. Dismissing the animal, he turned back to the street, and missed seeing a teenage girl move from behind the same bin and into the warehouse's recessed door. The cat followed a few seconds later and the door closed silently.
"What a great spell!" the small blonde boy enthused in a loud whisper as they moved through the warehouse. "It must be fun to turn into animals!"
"It… has its advantages," McGonogall allowed, a bit taken aback by the boy's reaction. She hadn't realized he was a wizard child. It meant there was no need to waste time altering his memory, at least.
"What else can you turn into?" he asked as he led them along, but he didn't wait for an answer. "I know five spells, but they're really good! How many do you know?"
"Ah…" McGonogall wasn't given the chance to answer.
"Zatch," a voice hissed from the shadows. "Focus, pal. The people after them are deadly serious."
"Oh! Right."
"You shouldn't involve yourselves in this," McGonogall shook off her surprise as an older boy stepped out of the shadows between two stacks of crates. "You two need to get far away from here. I will-"
"Accept our help," the older boy cut her off. "I don't know anything about you, it's true, but I've seen what the four chasing you are up to. No way am I letting them win if I have anything to say about it."
"You don't need to-" Hermione began.
"We're all caught up in the same battle," the boy interrupted, again. "Zatch and I would have to fight them sooner or later. Better it be on our terms." The door through which they'd come, the door McGonogall had reinforced with a quick flick of her wand and a muttered spell, shook under a heavy impact. "And those guys definitely need to be sent back."
"Sent back?" Hermione glanced up at her, but the transfigurations professor shook her head. She didn't know what the boy was talking about either.
"Later," McGonogall stated succinctly, taking charge of the situation. "You three will hide. I will-"
"Good idea!" the younger boy enthused, slipping into an empty crate. "Ambush!"
"Good idea, Zatch," the other stepped back into the shadows at the end of the aisle.
"No." McGonogall's voice was sharper than she intended. "You don't understand what you're up against. Stay hidden. Do nothing." She gave Hermione a push toward one of the aisles. "Find a way out. I'll stall them while I can." There was no time to argue. They all heard the door give way.
With a quick glance around to be sure everyone was hidden, Minerva McGonogall turned to face the Death Eaters. "Professor McGonogall," a familiar voice greeted her cordially. "A pleasure as always. Where is the book?"
"Why do you want it Mr. Malfoy?"
"Not your concern. If you part with it willingly you and the little mudblood I hear scurrying around in the shadows can leave. You have my word."
"Since when has your word been any good?" she answered disdainfully.
Tired of the pretense, Malfoy raised his wand to attack. The spell died on his lips, though, as a powerful bolt of lightning seemed to come out of nowhere, overwhelming the three Death Eaters who had accompanied him. His instincts had kept him alive for years in the Dark Lord's court and he had learned to trust them implicitly. With barely a thought, he moved, seeking the nearest cover, and once out of sight, slipping further into the shadows. He wasn't sure what had just happened, having never before seen such a spell, but he wouldn't be so easily beaten.
McGonogall's mouth had dropped open when the spell struck the Death Eaters. Whatever is had been had come from the small blonde boy's hiding place. She had seen no wand and had heard no spell. While silent spells were common among adult wizards, she had never before seen a child capable of silent casting. The lack of a wand was even more baffling. It was possible that the boy had some kind of charmed object, but who would trust a small child with something capable of doing that?
Pulling herself together, she shoved her questions to the back of her mind and went in pursuit of Malfoy. He had to be neutralized before it would be safe to find Granger and leave.
She saw the boy, Zatch, emerge from his hiding place and head off after Malfoy without a word. Making a note to keep an eye out for him so she didn't accidentally hex him, McGonogall made her way quietly through the maze of pallets piled high with crates and boxes. I'm getting too old for this, she thought as she slipped around the side of one stack and darted toward another.
A noise and the slight motion of the stack caused her to look up and raise her wand. Zatch was standing on top of the stack looking around. He cupped his hands to his mouth and called out, "Marco!" Then jumped to another stack. "Marco!" Whoever Marco was, didn't answer. "Come on! You never played this game? You're supposed to say 'Polo!'" He continued to jump from crate to crate, only once upsetting a stack and nearly falling. At each stop, he would look around with no apparent concern for his own safety. "Marco!"
The blast of green light came from behind a row of boxes containing something called microwaves. Zatch jumped clear and shouted, "Gotcha!" When his mouth opened again it was to disgorge lightning the way a dragon breathed fire. She could only stare in amazement, as the attack toppled the stack and washed over the boxes and the person behind them. Malfoy's cry of alarm and pain became one of outrage as he lashed out at Zatch again.
Whatever else Zatch might be, the transfigurations professor noted, he was nimble. Malfoy's curse never came close to connecting. Zatch shouted while he was still in the air. "Third spell!"
Nothing happened. No blast of lightning, no indications of magic at all as McGonogall rounded the end of a row of crates intending to come at Malfoy from behind. The dark wizard forced himself upright, winded, with his cloak smoldering in places. He had barely gained his feet, though, when a flying chunk of debris knocked him down again. Taking advantage of the distraction, McGonogall summoned his wand. Malfoy stood again brandishing his cane when another object struck and staggered him. They began to come more quickly then, all of the debris metallic and all of it adhering to him. It wasn't long before he was unable to stand for all of the metal clinging to him.
"That'll teach you to be a bully!" The boy glared down at the fuming dark wizard who was trying to struggle out of his bizarre bindings.
"How on Earth…" McGonogall asked staring at the scene before her.
"Pretty good, huh?" Zatch asked. "That's my third spell. Turns him into a big ol' magnet! Now we just need to find his partner and his book so we can burn it."
"Partner?" She shook her head in confusion. "What do you-?"
"I will explain later, Minerva," answered a familiar and highly amused voice from behind her.
"Albus," she sighed with relief on seeing the headmaster with Miss Granger in tow. "I hope you can explain all of this. The strange magic, this remarkable boy."
"Once we have seen to Mr. Malfoy and his cohorts," he assured her. "In the meantime, I believe it would be best for Zatch and his friend to move on. You've made quite a mess here and I'm sure you don't want to explain your part in this to the authorities." The last was addressed to the young man who had come out of the stacks to join Zatch.
"You're right. We need to get going. Come on buddy, let's get out of here." He glanced back at McGonogall. "You're strong. I hope we never have to fight."
"I don't see why that should be necessary," the professor answered, still confused over what had happened. The boy tilted his head to one side, regarding her strangely for a moment before shrugging and turning to leave.
THE END
