Recap: The Auror Office is trying to prevent the Requiters from using an ancient curse to steal magic away from people. Harry and Neville stopped the curse at St. Mungo's, but Robarbs tells them to allow the curse to happen so they can get more information about it. Ron found out that a dark wizard named Tomas Eazeem may be working with the Requiters. When Ron went to arrest him though, he witnessed his murder.
9:00:00... 9:00:01... 9:00:02... 9:00:03...
Eazeem's murderer was still paralyzed on the floor, watching Ron work. Ron conjured a body bag and put the body of Eazeem in it. A simple spell sealed the bag and Ron laid it on the couch.
Ron turned to face the paralyzed man on the floor now. The man could only watch as Ron lifted him up and placed him in a seated position on an armchair. Ron waved his wand, the door shut and locked, the curtains covered the windows, and the lights went out. Ron waited as his eyes adjusted to the darkness.
He picked up the man's wand and placed his own wand on it's tip. "Prior incantato," he uttered.
The murderer's wand let out a flash of green, the ghost of the killing curse.
Ron looked up and locked eyes with the paralyzed man. "That's more than enough evidence to land you a cell in Azkaban," Ron said. "On the other hand, I can throw in a good word with the Head of the Department if you help me out now." He pointed both wands at the man and uttered the counter-curse releasing him. "Let's start with your name," said Ron, keeping both wands pointed at the man's heart.
The man hesitated briefly, then said, "Morris Gregor."
"Are you working with the Requiters, Morris?" Ron asked.
Gregor nodded.
"Do you know where Vejovis is?"
Gregor shook his head.
Ron wasn't sure if he was lying. "Why don't you know?"
"He's been changing locations all night. He never stays one place longer than a few minutes," said Gregor. "I haven't seen him since he gave me instructions to come kill Eazeem. That was just after your lot stopped the curse at St. Mungos."
Ron had no idea what Gregor meant. From what it sounded like, the Requiters were going to curse the hospital, but Robarbs and Harry had stopped it.
"What did he tell you?" Ron asked.
"He told me that this bloke, Eazeem, was a loose end, and needed to be killed. So then we both left and I'm guessing he left shortly after. Like I said, he doesn't stay in one place but a few minutes. Says it's the only way he can stay one step ahead of the Aurors."
Gregor was silent for a moment. Ron gave him a hard look, hoping to intimidate him more. The clown was giving him everything. "I'm sorry," Ron began, his heart racing. "You said you both left?"
Gregor only then caught his slip up. "Who left with you, Morris?" Ron asked.
The man was silent.
"Come on, now," said Ron. "You were doing so well only a minute ago. Don't tell me I've got to get a cell in Azkaban ready."
"No, no," said Gregor. "I'll talk."
"Good," said Ron. "Who else did Vejovis send out?"
"After the curse at the hospital failed, Vejovis sent someone to place a curse on the Ministry."
Ron's eyes widened. Thinking fast, he cast the full body-bind curse on Gregor again. Then he cast a nonverbal Patronus and the familiar terrier soared away.
9:10:46... 9:10:47... 9:10:48... 9:10:49...
The Patronus flew over Muggle London in an instant and sailed right through the underground to the Ministry. It landed in the Auror Office, grabbing everyone's attention, including Harry, Neville, and Robarbs.
The terrier opened its mouth and Ron's voice came out. "Tomas Eazeem is dead. His killer just told me the Requiters are going to curse the Ministry. He's likely there now!"
"Neville, with me!" said Harry, and they raced to the lift. The lift ambled along at its usual pace, entirely too slow for Harry's purposes.
"Come on!" he urged, but the lift was unresponsive. They made it to the Atrium and Harry shoved the door out of his way and raced to the security desk, Neville hot on his heels.
"Charlie!" Harry said, "I want a list of everyone who's come through in the past hour." Charlie stared at him blankly. Confunded, Harry thought. He pointed his wand at the security wizard, ignored a shout from Neville and uttered the counter-curse.
"I was Confunded!" Charlie said.
"I know," said Harry.
"It was him!" Charlie pointed.
Harry turned. A man had just exited the lift. He locked eyes with Harry. Then he ran.
"Don't lose him in the crowd!" Harry yelled to Neville, and he peeled away, trying to intercept him. The culprit was trying to make it to the Floo exits. Harry raised his wand and fired a loud bang in the air, splitting the crowd. He locked eyes on the culprit and lowered his wand in a sweeping motion. "Stupefy" he shouted, and the stunning spell caught the man on the side, catching him and throwing him against the wall. Neville caught up to him and pointed his wand at him. Harry raced forward and flipped the Requiter over and aimed the wand directly into his face. "Where's the device?" Harry demanded. The Requiter spat in his face.
"Talk or this curse'll take you down, too!" Harry shouted.
"Let it," said the Requiter. "It's too late now, anyway."
Before Harry could speak, there was a powerful gust of wind, like a hurricane blowing over. The lights dimmed, then went ou. Harry's wand suddenly felt very cold in his hands. The lights went out completely and the wind died down. The air was more still than Harry had ever felt it. Harry looked around. All eyes in the Atrium were on him. His wand was still pointed at the Requiter. Dreading what was about to happen, Harry whispered "Lumos."
His wand did nothing.
A few people around him also had their wands out and were attempting to light them. A dull roar began to build up in the Atrium, and Harry detected panic in some of their voices. "Neville, stay on him," he said.
Neville hoisted the Requiter up, and held his arms behind his back, but the man was making no effort to escape.
Harry jogged the short distance to the fountain of magical brethren, though the water had stopped flowing, and stood on the ledge, elevated above the crowd.
"Ladies and gentlemen!" he shouted out. "I'm an Auror! I'm Harry Potter!" The sound of his name seemed to relieve some of the Ministry employees. "I'm going to ask you not to panic! Yes, your wands are not working. The Ministry of Magic is under a spell. We are working on reversing it."
"Harry!" came a voice, and Harry turned to see Hermione coming toward him.
"Hermione!" Harry shouted, and he jumped off the ledge and rushed to her. The rest of the crowd was now talking amongst themselves.
"What's going on?" Hermione demanded, once they were close.
"The Requiters," said Harry. "Do you remember Ron and me telling you about them?"
"Yes, I remember," said Hermione. "That was so long ago... have they done it, then? They found a way to..." she stopped herself when she realized a few people close to them were listening in. Harry grabbed her arm and led her away. "To suck magic out of a place?"
"And everyone and everything in it," said Harry.
"What are you going to do?" asked Hermione.
"First we need to find the device," said Harry.
Hermione nodded. "It'd have to be in the very center of the structure, to maintain a consistent magical radius."
"That's what I figured as well," said Harry. He was distracted when he saw a couple of wizards arguing with Neville. "Hang on," he said, and he started walking in that direction.
"Oy!" he shouted. The two wizards saw him coming and backed off.
"These two gentlemen figure our friend had something to do with this," said Neville, gesturing at the Requiter, who now had his hands tied behind his back with Neville's belt.
Harry and Hermione eyed the two wizards. "What are you going to do, kill him?" Harry asked. "We need him to answer for his crimes. This is Auror business. Stay out of it."
The two wizards left, muttering under their breath. Harry turned back to Neville. "Keep him away from the crowd. Out of sight."
"Right," Neville agreed. "What are you going to do?"
"The device should be on the floor of the fifth floor," said Hermione. "The mid-point of the entire Ministry. Five levels above, including the fifth, and five levels below, including the Atrium."
"Excellent," said Harry, and he turned to walk back to the lifts.
"Harry, the lifts operate with magic!" Hermione reminded him. Harry stopped and looked around the walls.
"Aren't there any stairs?"
"No," said Hermione.
"Lifts it is," said Harry. Hermione followed him. "Harry," she said. "You realize this entire building is underground with no way in or out without magic, right?"
"Yes, I realize that, Hermione," Harry said through his annoyance.
"That means there's only so much oxygen," said Hermione. "If we don't get our magic back soon, everyone in this building could suffocate."
Harry nodded. "I know. I'm working on it."
They came to the lifts and Harry forced the grate open and peered up the shaft. The lift appeared to be a dozen or so feet above him. "Right now, we need to avoid a panic," Harry said. "Keep everyone in the atrium calm."
Harry grabbed hold of the cable supporting the lift and stepped out, swinging above the emptiness. Reaching hand over hand, he pulled himself up. Then he heard something below him. Hermione was on the cable too. "What are you doing?" Harry asked.
"Neville can keep the people in the atrium calm," said Hermione. "You need my help."
"Hermione, I-"
"No time to argue!" Hermione interrupted. "Climb now!"
Wishing she was above him, Harry continued to pull himself up. "Once we have the device," he said. "We keep climbing to the second level."
"The Department of Magical Law Enforcement?" asked Hermione.
"Yes," said Harry. The climbing came easier now, and he thanked his years playing Quidditch for his athleticism, but he worried about Hermione. They climbed past the grate to the seventh level and Harry thought to himself, Only five to go.
"What - can the Auror Office - do?" asked Hermione, her heavy breathing impeding her speech.
"Ron's outside the building," said Harry "He can - ouch!"
Not paying attention, Harry had banged his head on the lift.
"What is it?" asked Hermione.
"We reached the lift," said Harry. Squeezing the cable tightly with his legs, Harry grabbed at the emergency exit on the bottom of the lift. He forced it upwards, opening into darkness. Apparently, everything in the Ministry with lit with magic.
"Who's there? Are you Magical Maintenance?" came a voice.
"No," said Harry. "But help me up!"
Someone grabbed his arms and helped pull him through the hole in the lift. Through the darkness, Harry could see the lift was occupied only by two individuals, a young wizard with combed blond hair and glasses and an older wizard who had a crate full of broomsticks.
Harry turned back around and pulled Hermione through the exit too, then kicked the door shut.
"Magical Maintenance is working on it," Harry assured the two men. "The important thing now is to remain calm. He reached up and unlocked the emergency exit above them, and pulled himself through it. Once again, he turned and helped Hermione through it as well.
As the door shut, Harry thought he heard one of the men say, "Was that Harry Potter?"
"Hermione, you go first," Harry said. "I'd rather be below you so I can catch you if you fall."
"Okay," said Hermione. She grabbed onto the cable and began pulling herself up. Harry followed directly behind her. Hermione was actually climbing surprisingly well. She always was more resourceful than Harry gave her credit.
They climbed past the next level and Harry thought Sixth level.
"Don't lose count," Harry said. "Next up'll be the floor the device is on."
"I can see - the landing, - I think," called Hermione. She was breathing heavily now, exerting herself.
After another moment, Harry felt his head hit something again. This time, it was Hermione's shoe. "How do I get to the landing without falling?" Hermione asked.
Harry looked up. He could see the landing now. The grate was shut. "Climb higher. Let me get to it," Harry said.
"Harry, my arms are too tired," said Hermione.
"Don't stop now!" said Harry. "Look, we've already climbed nearly thirty feet. Just a few more!"
Hermione heaved and heaved. Her body inched upwards. Harry was just behind her, and he waited until his eyes were level with the grate. "Okay, that's enough!" he said.
He took a deep breath, and then, he jumped for it. He grabbed at the grate and caught it. He reached and pulled himself up. Standing on the ledge, he forced it open. Hermione swung her legs out and Harry helped pull her over. "Regain your strength," said Harry. "We're not done." Hermione rubbed her arms at the shoulders.
Harry turned to see a crowd watching him. The entire staff of the Department of International Magical Cooperation was watching them.
"Hello," said Harry, semi-awkwardly. "I need everyone to remain calm."
"You're Harry Potter!" said one wizard, excitedly. "You can save us, right?"
"Er, I'm working on it," said Harry.
"That thing!" the wizard said, pointing behind him. Harry walked over to him and looked where he was pointing. A canister, just like the one he'd recovered at St. Mungo's was there, humming evilly. Apparently, everyone in the office realized it had something to do with their situation and hadn't wanted to go anywhere near it.
All the magic in the building was stored in that container. And it was Harry's job to get it back.
Harry took the canister, surprisingly cold, in his hands. "I need to take this up to the Department of Magical Law Enforcement."
"Are you climbing the lift cables?" asked one man, with a Swedish accent.
"Er... yes."
"Here, take these," he said. He dug around in his desk, and withdrew something that appeared to be made of rope. "Mountain climbing harnesses," he said. "I use them back home."
"Excellent!" said Harry. "Really, thanks. This is... perfect." He rushed back to the lift. "Hermione, strap these on," he told her.
Hermione, still breathless from the climb, obeyed. Harry pulled his on, too. "Clip it on to the cable," he told her, and she did. She grabbed hold of the cable and began climbing again. As soon as she was out of the way, Harry clipped his on too and followed her. They were both considerably faster with the harness.
"Just like solving our mysteries at Hogwarts, right Hermione?" Harry asked.
"Don't - talk to me - right now," said Hermione.
Within moments, they'd passed the fourth and third floors. They reached the second floor and again, Harry pulled the grate open.
"Wait," said Harry, as Hermione started to walk towards the Auror Office. "Not there. We're going to the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office."
9:20:43... 9:20:44... 9:20:45... 9:20:46...
Ron paced the floor. It had been ten minutes since he sent his warning, and he hadn't heard back from anyone.
Morris Gregor was watching him fearfully. Ron had told him if the curse went off, then he could kiss any chance of avoiding Azkaban goodbye. As time passed, Gregor was getting more and more anxious.
The more Ron thought about it, the more he began to realize they hadn't stopped it in time. Harry and the Auror Office weren't contacting him because they couldn't. And he couldn't apparate there if there wasn't any magic in the building to support his apparition. He was left stranded in Eazeem's apartment with a dead body and a suspect. Ron felt very lost. He just wished there was some way for Harry to contact him.
RING RING
Ron froze.
RING RING
The telephone? Ron stepped toward it as it rang again. The caller ID read out "Unknown Caller". Ron picked up the receiver and reminded himself not to yell. "Hello?"
"Ron, thank God you're still there!"
"Harry!" said Ron. "What's happened!"
"We didn't stop the curse in time," said Harry. "The entire Ministry's without magic. Including me."
Ron gulped. "What's that mean?"
"We're using the resources in the Misuse of Muggle Artifacts Office," said Harry. "It's the only place with a phone for one thing. The apartment's phone number was on the same file you pulled the address from."
"What else?" asked Ron.
"The Minister's here, too" said Harry.
Kingsley Shacklebolt's voice came out of the phone now. "Mr. Weasley. Can you hear me?"
"Yes, sir," said Ron.
"There is a concealed exit in my office," he said. "I'm sending Hermione Granger out with the Requiters' device. I want you and her to work out of the suspect in your custody how to release the magic. She has a plan. She'll tell you."
"What about Harry? Or Neville?" asked Ron.
"I need Harry to remain here to keep the Ministry staff calm. By Miss Granger's estimate, we have roughly two hours from the time the curse went off before it gets difficult to breathe."
"With respect, sir," said Ron, "couldn't we use the escape in your office to evacuate the entire Ministry?"
"I wish I could," said Shacklebolt. "But even if every staffer could climb the cables of the lifts with enough proficiency to reach the first level, the exit is designed to seal itself magically after ten seconds."
"But if it's magical-"
"It was out of range of the device, thank God," said Shacklebolt. "But once it seals itself, it really will be only a short while before we are in danger."
Ron gulped. "Okay. We'll work fast."
"We're counting on you, Officer Weasley," said Shacklebolt. "Good luck."
9:25:06... 9:25:07... 9:25:08... 9:25:09...
Harry and Hermione walked back toward the lifts. Hermione clipped her harness back onto the cable. "You remember Shacklebolt's instructions?" Harry asked.
"Yes," said Hermione.
"And you've got the address for the apartment?"
"Yes."
"Miss Granger, wait," said Shacklebolt, and they both turned to face him. "There's no way to get the entire staff of the Ministry up these shafts and out that exit in time," Shacklebolt said. "Take my support staff, though. Tell them they have my approval to escape."
Hermione nodded. "Yes, sir." Harry and Shacklebolt watched as Hermione quickly climbed the last level to the Support Staff offices.
"Shall we, Minister?" asked Harry, clipping the harness onto the cable. Shacklebolt stepped off the ledge and held on tight to Harry's midriff.
"Just go slowly," the Minister said. Harry loosened his grip and slid down faster than he meant to. Shacklebolt let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding.
"Sorry, Minister," said Harry.
"That's alright," said Shacklebolt. Harry slid as slowly as he could down to the third level. Shacklebolt reached out, shoved the grate open, and stepped onto the ledge.
Harry followed, but Shacklebolt was already heading toward the Department of Magical Accidents and Catastrophes Offices. As Harry raced to catch up, he saw a large crowd gathered around the center offices.
"Ladies and gentlemen," Shacklebolt called out. "There has been an attack on the Ministry. I need everyone to remain calm and be assured that we are working on a solution. If there is any cause for alarm, we will notify you."
Harry watched the Minister finish his lie and followed him as he left. "Sir, that was a lie," he said.
"Yes," said Shacklebolt. "I'm a politician. To keep the peace in this building, we have to lie."
Harry disagreed, but kept it to himself. He wasn't Minister for Magic. Shacklebolt was.
They travelled down to the fourth level and repeated the process. Again, Harry stood by in silence as the Minister led his employees to believe that everything would be okay. Harry understood his reasons. The last thing they needed was a panic. But the Minister was making promises Harry didn't believe could be kept. As they returned to the lift shafts to go down to the lower levels, Harry wondered if the effect by the canister was even reversible. And if it wasn't, what did that mean for them? Would there be any way for the people in the lower levels to climb up the lift shafts to the top level and get out through the Minister's secret exit, assuming it was reusable, or would most of them suffocate to death?
I could escape, Harry thought. He'd climbed from the eighth level to the second and he could do it again. But if he did, what then? Would he be forced to live as a Muggle for the rest of his life, without any kind of identity in the Muggle world? And who would put a stop to the Requiters from stealing magic from the rest of Magical Britain?
As Harry watched the Minister assure the people again and again that everything would be okay, Harry began to doubt it very much.
9:39:38... 9:39:39... 9:39:40... 9:39:41...
The emergency exit out of the Minister's office was a tunnel that led to the London underground. Hermione and the senior staff, some of whom Hermione recognized from the Wizengamot presentation, opened a door that led into the tunnel, disguised as a store closet.
The other ministry officials followed Hermione to the underground platform, standing out from the Muggles in their robes of purple and green.
Hermione ignored them all and made for the up escalator- taking the steps two at a time. Her bag thudded against her side, and she felt the strange heat emanating from the device.
Hermione emerged into the morning light of downtown London. Ron couldn't be far. She hailed a taxi and gave him the address.
Once the cab was moving, Hermione opened her bag and inspected the canister. It was cylindrical and metallic, an imposing looking device. Somehow, the canister contained all the magic powering the Ministry of Magic, and she and Ron had to figure out how to return it.
9:43:08... 9:43:09... 9:43:10... 9:43:11...
The Auror, Ron, peeked through the blinds again. Morris couldn't see, but guessing by Ron's impatience, there was no sign of anyone from the Ministry yet. Not that it'd do them any good. The curse would've gone off long ago- everyone in the Ministry would be without power.
Althought he was restrained to the chair, Morris Gregor felt empowered. He was a part of something that was responsible for bringing the Ministry of Magic to its knees. Wizards and witches relied too heavily upon magic. Morris doubted they could even leave the building without magic.
The Auror once again trained his wand on Morris.
"When the device gets here, I'm going to reverse it, so the magic returns to the people. While we wait, why don't you tell me how?"
Now was the moment Morris had been waiting for. He would lie, and then they would be in trouble. Morris supposed he could simply release the magic, but he didn't know how to ensure it wouldn't return to the Ministry. No, he needed to use the canister to escape.
"A simple jinx will work," he said. "Nullis Expelcis," he said. "That will release the magic and it will return to its point of origin.
Ron nodded. "Thanks, Morris. With all the help you've given me, I'm pretty sure you've dodged a cell in Azkaban." There was the sound of a car pulling up, and Ron once again peered through the window.
"It's her," he said, and he left.
Morris waited a couple of moments- the Auror would be letting his companion in now. He thought through his strategy again. It would work.
The Auror returned with a woman with a bulging bag. The canister was in Ron's hands. "Alright," Ron said. "Here we go. Nullis Expelcis!" He tapped the canister with his wand.
Then, several things happened at once. The spell rebounded, just as Morris anticipated. Ron was blown off his feet and he dropped his wand. Free from his magical bind, Morris leapt forward and seized it. He pointed it at Ron, lying on the floor. "The other wand, please."
Scowling, Ron reached into his back pocket and pulled out Morris's wand. Morris shot ropes and bound Ron and Hermione together. Then he approached the fireplace. He cast floo powder into it, and the bright green flames burst forward.
"Number 7, Main Street. Westchester."
In a flash of green flame, Morris and his prisoners were gone.
9:59:57... 9:59:58... 9:59:59... 10:00:00
A/N: I'm hoping both Harry and Hermione, in all their crime fighting, are fit enough to climb the cable. It's supposed to be easy to grasp since it's not lubed, as it runs by magic. In other aspects, I admit I may be stretching the confines of "magical reality" with everything happening with the curse.
Reviews are appreciated, whether they're kind or otherwise!