Unrequited: I'm a Veteran. Seen it all. There's only one thing worth remembering: Auror has to make sacrifices. Sometimes that means dying…sometimes it means letting others. Neither's easy. HBP, Moody and Tonks. Every Auror has a weakness…what's yours?

Muggle World

EAGLE, this is PEREGRINE. Do you have visual of obstruction?

Affirmative, PEREGRINE. Obstruction confirmed. Traffic fatality. Emergency Services Responding.

"Damn." Hector Juarez related the information to the rest of the protective detail.

MERMAID's eyes got huge-and for a split second all eight Agents exchanged nervous glances. How to console a small child-?

"You mean we're going to have to WAIT?" The principal cried in horror.

…Silence.

"WELL?"

Tyler's response was meek. "It would…it would appear so, Miss."

In the passenger's seat, AIC Eleanor Palfry placed another magazine clip onto the dash, just in case. It was a big OCEAN, and you never knew when the SHARKS might strike. Not that at the moment it wouldn't seem a welcome relief...

They didn't do this for the money. No pay was worth the hours away from family and friends, the rigorous training, constant security checks, invasion of privacy….they did it for their country. But goddamnit if taking a bullet for this prissy want-to-be princess didn't seem like a waste. A better service, AIC mused darkly as the child's wailings grew louder, would be a three round burst to the head. Heaven forbid that swotty, fame-crazed little glamazon ever became involved in politics.

Ministry of Magic SNORKACK Briefing

Kingsley was growing restless, although his calm demeanor showed none of it. Outwardly he was a stoic and even-tempered as he always was. Fudge jokingly called him 'The Rock,' both for his physical athleticism and his silent, enduring patience. Given Dumbledore's presence of mind to subdue both Dawlish and himself in his office last year, Fudge had no reasons to suspect his unquestioning loyalty to the current administration. But, if the old man was right-and he was seldom wrong-Fudge wouldn't be Minister much longer now. Cornelius' initial response had been denial and paranoia…then panic when the evidences had become overwhelming of You-Know-Who's return.

Murder in the heart of the Ministry itself…it still gave him chills. That Potter boy and his five friends had been lucky to survive. Foolish. Childish. To risk themselves against Death Eaters-

He sighed, waiting for the last of the Council members to enter the small hall. He was a distinguished Auror, but many of these witches and wizards were veterans. They had grown up under You-Know-Who's…Voldemort's-as the old man insisted-first reign of terror. Ironically, they would be the hardest to convince. If Barty Crouch's near religious zeal had been any measure, most had forgotten the terror, the horror, the reckless anger and hopeless guilt associated with death. Too calloused by mass killings, wanton destruction…they had forgotten what one life was worth. Why should they protect the Muggle Prime Minister when the entire wizarding world was a risk?

But there was one young man who hadn't forgotten. A brave soul who'd risked everything for the sake of Sirius Black. He should speak to Potter the next time they crossed paths, Kingsley realized. Black had been his godfather. A replacement for the parents the boy had never had…

He'd heard the boy wanted to be an Auror, and with Dolores Umbridge still on leave for 'her health', he would do what he could to help Potter fulfill that desire. He would speak with Potter, he decided, stepping forward to the center of the court as the last witch took her seat. Must tell him as an Auror, you must be prepared to lose everything-

Muggle World, Brockdale Bridge

Horns were blaring, people getting out, shouting at one another, some stretching, some simply taking a casual stroll. Strolls, the SS agents noticed with heightened adrenaline, that brought them dangerously near their vehicle and young charge. It was a logistical nightmare. Trapped. On a bridge. Any one of these neighboring vehicles could contain IRA or other extremists, and the accident could be staged or merely a disguise to render them helpless. All it would take was knowledge of the day's itinerary-

"I don't want to wait!" Ariel Wahling cried yet again, "We're going to be late!"

"Miss, please-" Agent Tyler soothed, the shrill pitch of Ariel's voice making all eight Agents cringe. "Just try to be patient-"

But at these words their charge began to swell like a toad, her fair skin turning mottled and pink. "I want to go NOW!"

AIC Eleanor Palfrey turned to face the child, patience finally snapping. "Miss Wahling, there is an obstruction in traffic. We can go no further and no faster. I don't care that you're going to be late. I don't care that you're having tea with the duchess' daughter. We are not a cab service. Our job is to transport you from destination A to destination B. Safely. I suggest you get used to the idea." The child sniffed, quite affronted, and obviously unaccustomed to being reprimanded.

"But I-"

"And I don't give a damn, Miss Wahling." The only other female in the van retorted. "Now shut it."

In the intervening silence, the other seven SS Agents shifted uncomfortably. "Please, Agent Palfrey," Tyler finally leaned forward and whispered lowly. "There's a reason I was tasked with handling the child."

"I'm not a child!" Ariel sniffled, landing a swift kick to Tyler's right shin. The young Agent grimaced, and Palfrey gritted her teeth.

"Then I suggest you handle her." But Ariel Wahling, reckless, belligerent, and prone to tantrums though she was, was about to become the least of anyone's concerns. There were SHARKS in this OCEAN of a nature Her Majesty's Secret Service couldn't even begin to comprehend, and they sat mired in miserable fog as their enemies circled closer and closer.

AN: So that's the end of the (mostly) pre-written chapters, and from here on out I've got to fill in the outline! Thanks everyone for the renewed interest, and I'll try to keep this fic updated on a regular basis.