A/N: Tada! Another chapter finished. I orginally hadn't planned on spending so much time in England but now I think I'll have to resolve this little Ministry problem before he goes. Doesn't seem like Harry would run off and just leave his friends with this mess to clean up.
Chapter 9: We're Off to See the Wizards
The Ministry
Potter led them, to of all places, a Bus Shelter. It had suitable graffiti markings in white spray paint on the side and old weather-worn newspapers cluttering up the floor. A hand-lettered sign was posted on the outside that said, NO LONGER IN SERVICE.
"If this is some sort of joke, Potter…" Jack growled.
"This is the entrance Colonel," the kid replied. Then he smiled, "Not all hidden places are guarded by tanks and artillery." Potter pointed at a list of nine former bus routes that apparently used to frequent this stop. "I just have to hit the right numbers on this list and the lift will take us down. Before I do that, do we have everything?"
"Yes."
"Indeed."
"Yeah, although I still don't see why I need this stupid peashooter," complained Jack.
"It's just for show," said Potter. "If worse comes to worse, you can always throw it at somebody. They wouldn't expect that."
"Right."
Potter smirked, "Just don't wave it anybody…"
"Why not?"
"Well, you never know, it could turn into a rubber chicken or something."
"BOYS!" said Major Carter. "Can we get on with this?"
"Of course. Here we go, then." Potter reached over to the Bus Schedule and tapped out 6-4-2-2-4.
There was an odd pinging sound; then a disembodied voice said, "Welcome to the Ministry, Auror's Entrance. Please state your names and business."
"Um… Aurors Shacklebolt and O'Malley with two civilians for questioning. Level 2, please," said Potter.
"One moment," answered the voice.
A whirling sound came from under their feet and then the floor of the shelter began to sink.
"Hang on," Potter said as they sank below street level and into total darkness. Lights soon appeared near their feet and traveled up to their faces and the voice called off the various floors.
When the elevator stopped on Level 2, the voice added, "Please make sure to check in at the Administrative Desk to your left. Have a nice day."
Jack had his own smirk as he prodded Potter off the elevator with his peashooter.
To their left was a large counter with a work area behind it. Seated there was a very formidable-looking woman. The name-plate read Vara Komodo in gold letters.
It was the oddest Administrative Center Jack had ever seen. For one thing there was no computer or telephone, at least as far as he could see.
Along the far wall, at about chest height were four small fireplaces with fires merrily burning away. Every once in a while the flames would flare a green color before fading back to orange.
They came close enough to see what the woman was doing. Large tubes, they looked like giant vacuum cleaner hoses, came down from the ceiling on either side of her. The one on her right had small paper airplanes zooming out of it into a large bin. She picked one out, unfolded and read it, then stamped and threw it into a basket. The note almost refolded itself and was then sucked up one of the left hand tubes.
The next one she stamped red and then nearly took Potter's head off as she suddenly turned and threw it towards the hall behind them.
Jack also ducked out of the way and watched as it sailed off. Oddly, it kept going and was soon out of sight.
The woman stood and glared at them. "What do you mean by standing there? Can't you read?"
Sure enough, there was a sign at the other end of the counter saying, PLEASE SIGN IN HERE.
"We are sorry, Madam Komodo," said Teal'c. "We are new here and were not… warned."
"New, eh?" she stared at them, but softened a bit when Teal'c inclined his head. "Well, it's simple enough. Just sign in over there." She pointed at a large red book which lay open on the counter near the other end. "The date. Your Names and Assignment. Prisoners or detainees brought back…" She eyed Potter in particular. "That sort of thing."
Jack walked over and signed them in as O'Malley and Shacklebolt with two prisoners.
"Thank you Madam," said Teal'c. "You've been most helpful."
"Hmph, nice to have someone polite through here for a change, Auror… Shacklebolt? Any relation to Kingsley Shacklebolt?"
"Ah… distant," Teal'c replied. "We'd best get these two along now."
"Quite right. Maybe another time."
"Perhaps."
They moved down the hallway with the two 'prisoners' in front. Jack was grinning.
"Aren't you just a smooth talker, T?"
"I have no idea to what you are referring, O'Neill."
"Sure ya don't," said Jack.
"I was merely being polite. Perhaps you should try it sometime."
Carter and Potter both snickered.
Jack poked them with his stick. "Hey! Quiet down, you two."
Auror Headquarters
Neville followed Colin as he practically skipped down the aisle to the Noticeboard near the entrance. While he still thought Colin's camera was unnecessary weight to carry into dangerous situations, never again would he say it didn't have its uses.
Colin used a sticking charm to put up a sign announcing THE CANINE AURORS and the six pictures. He was grinning from ear to ear. Neville had to admit; sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.
The story had quickly made the rounds through the department amidst a lot of laughter. Greene and his goons weren't very popular. Neville only hoped he was around when someone finally said something in front of them. It should be good for another laugh.
The pictures weren't going to slow the story down anytime soon. Greene would probably incinerate them on sight. Good thing Colin made a lot of copies. One in particular was quite priceless. It had been taken by Miss Kent at the animal shelter. It showed Neville and Colin with their new 'babies'. The Poodle was on Colin's lap enjoying a good ear scratch and the Sheepdog leaned up against Neville's legs. What made the shot was the Pomeranian sitting two chairs down. It had its back to them and was clearly sulking. Every once in a while, it would glance over at the others and then sniff and turn away again.
Holding back a snicker himself, Neville glanced around Auror Headquarters. The rows of cubicals that everyone complained were too small, lined the large room. He'd often wondered why the Aurors hadn't changed things around if they hated it so much. Five years ago after the Massacre would have been the perfect opportunity. The place had been virtually destroyed after the Death Eaters had marched through. However, wizards didn't like change. They seemed to think that the way things were done in the past was the way it should be done in the forever. Even if that method was inconvenient or just plain wrong. He sighed.
The place was clearing out for the evening as the day people left and the night shift trickled in. A lone memo came streaking down the hall from Administration, followed by a couple of Aurors and two civilians. They must be brought in for questioning, he thought, since they weren't bound.
Neville turned back toward Colin and the Noticeboard as the Aurors headed for the Detainment Area. Just as they passed, something made him turn and take a second look at the male prisoner. Something about him looked… familiar. Certainly wasn't the hair, he thought.
They reached the double doors and the Aurors held them open for the two civilians. The man glanced back towards Neville and the familiar green eyes hit him just as the doors closed.
He stood there in shock.
"Bloody Hell!" Neville whispered. "Come on, Colin. We have a problem."
Detainment Area
Harry decided it definitely was a good thing that he was usually in the lead as a prisoner. It gave him the chance to cast freezing charms on the moving pictures and a few Muggle repelling charms on the more blatant magical areas, such as Vara Komodo's desk. That had been hard to hold.
The floos had kept up a rapid string of calls the whole time. He'd never realized how many trivial things Aurors were called out to fix. One lady had been going on and on about a boggart in her sewing chest. She claimed she'd never get her friend's birthday gift done if an Auror wasn't sent out immediately to take care of the problem.
Harry snorted. No wonder he'd had to take care of Voldemort by himself. All the Aurors had probably off been dealing with more important things, like rescuing pet kneazles from trees.
'Plan A' seemed to be moving along all right. They'd made it past Administration and through the Auror HQ office area. He'd thought the jig was up when they'd walked right past Colin and Neville. If anybody would recognize him, it'd be those two. He just kept his eyes on the floor and hoped for the best.
It seemed to work and he gave a sigh of relief when the door closed behind them.
It really wouldn't do to get them involved with this. It was bad enough that the Americans were. Neville and Colin could lose their jobs. Knowing Scrimgeour's attitude they could lose a lot more than that.
The team turned the corner and entered the Detainment Area. There was a sleepy-looking clerk at the check-in desk with what looked like a ton of paperwork piled around him. He perked up a bit at the sight of them.
"Someone fer the lock-up sirs?" he asked.
"Indeed," said Teal'c. "We will be- " he broke off as a voice called down the corridor.
"Is that him? That rotten, backstabbing, no-good excuse for an Englishman named Harold James? 'Bout time he was brought in!" When Harry turned around, an angry-looking Neville Longbottom was standing behind them with along with Colin Creevey who looked very confused.
"Sorry to interrupt but I need to question this bloke before you lock him up. I'm so glad someone finally caught that miscreant. Congratulations Auror… Sorry but I don't know your name sir."
Everyone stared at Neville. Harry himself had never heard him say so much at one time, let alone so much utter garbage.
Teal'c exchanged glances with O'Neill and said, "I am Shacklebolt and this is O'Malley. Have you met this man before?"
"Oh, I've been after him for some time now. He needs a good telling off. There's a private conference room this way, if you'll follow me?"
Seeing little choice, Harry and SG1 followed Neville to one of the rooms back along the corridor. Harry noticed O'Neill had his hand inside his cloak, probably on a weapon. He hoped that wouldn't be necessary. Clearly Neville knew who he was, but Harry never expected this sort of response.
They all entered the room after Neville who paced up and down a few times. Colin came in behind them and shut the door. Then he leaned against it. Neville stopped and seemed to gather himself.
"You Lunatic! Harry, what are you doing here? After I specifically told Remus to- " he burst out.
"Neville- Nev, calm down," said Harry. "I haven't spoken to Remus since yesterday, why?"
"Because the rumors have Scrimgeour getting more and more paranoid about you. You Blasted Maniac! And after that stunt you pulled yesterday on Greene, he'll be out for your blood too!"
"Nev, we're here about something more serious than the bad press and petty harassment. Stop being so melodramatic," said Harry.
"Melodramatic- " sputtered Neville.
"He's just concerned, Harry," said Colin from the doorway. "Scrimgeour likely wouldn't mind an excuse to lock you up and throw away the key."
"But that's crazy!" protested Harry. "I've been gone for six years. Half of the time I'm not even in the country!"
"I never said he wasn't cracked as well as paranoid," Neville said. "However, it is a damn good reason for you to stay out of his way. Now, why are you waltzing around the Ministry?"
"Oh… yeah," Harry said absently, still thinking about what they'd said.
"Harry Potter is helping us to retrieve our friend, Daniel Jackson," said Teal'c.
"Yeah- It seems this Minister of your ordered his flunkies to grab us at our hotel tonight," put in O'Neill.
"What? Why?" asked Neville.
"They've been asking questions about me, Nev," Harry said quietly.
"Oh boy! That'd do it for Scrimgeour, "Colin moaned, coming over to the others.
"Yeah, it would," sighed Neville. He looked up, "And so you're here to break him out." Neville shook his head. "Never mind the legalities, why did you bring Mugg- them into the Ministry? What if they see… something or you get into a fight?"
"I think they might surprise you Nev. As for a fight, I believe they can hold their ground," said Harry.
"Only you, Harry…" said Neville. "Okay, first we need to know if he's in the Detainment Cells. Colin! Run back down there. Tell Greggory you need to talk to Arnold Snitchmoore in Cell 5. While you're there, look for this Daniel Jackson. What's he look like?"
"Brown hair, blue eyes, glasses," listed Harry.
"He was wearing a white shirt, jeans and a tan sportscoat," said O'Neill.
"Alright," said Neville. "Colin, get going and keep an eye out for Greene. They may be questioning him."
"Righto!" piped Colin. "Be back in a Mo'."
"He's as cheerful as ever, Nev," Harry said. He sat down at the table. The others followed suite, except for Teal'c who went to stand by the door.
Yeah, although there are times I want to hex him for it." He turned to SG1. "I believe some introductions are in order. I'm Neville Longbottom and my partner's name is Colin Creevey. We went to school with Harry."
"Hello Neville, pleased to meet you. I'm Samantha Carter and this is Jack O'Neill and Teal'c Murray over there by the door."
Neville nodded at each of them. "Pleasure. Sorry it isn't under better circumstances."
"Neville, if Dr. Jackson isn't in the Main Detainment Area, where else could he be? I had a tracker on him and my map says he is here at the Ministry somewhere."
"Good question," said Neville. He considered for a bit and frowned. "I believe there are two cells behind the Minister's office. He's probably there. Especially since grabbing your American friends wouldn't be something Scrimgeour'd want getting out. What hotel was this?"
The Mariott, near Regent's Park." Harry broke off as Colin came back.
"Nope, there's no one that matches that description down there. Just a couple of drunks, Snitchmoore and what's left of that nut that tried to rob Gringott's."
"Sooo… how do we get into this Scrimgeour's office?" asked O'Neill.
"That's not going to be easy. And just how do you plan on getting out again?" Colin asked back.
"Plan A just crashed," said Harry. "Plan B was portpins." He showed the pin attached to his shirt.
"Portkeys won't work inside the cell blocks," said Neville. "You'd have to take Dr. Jackson down the hall into the offices, then go."
"Oh- I just love a challenge," Harry said sarcastically. "What's the layout of his office and could you draw us a map? And how many people would be in the outer office?"
"That's one thing you'll have going for you. There's not too many people around this time of day. Let's see… His secretary, an aide or two, a couple of guards in the hall, Greene and his merry morons, Scrimgeour and possibly an assistant."
"Hmm… we're not going to get by all those people quietly. What we need is a distraction. Then if they call for backup, the Aurors will be busy with their own problems." Harry smiled.
"Harry…" warned Neville. "The last time I saw you smile like that, you'd helped the twins get all the suits of armor in the school to insult Umbridge whenever she walked by. What are you planning?"
Harry pulled out a brown bag with WWW printed on the side. He enlarged it to full size and began setting out colorful packages. They had names like Sun Bangers, Camouflage Clouds, Quacker Attacks, Pig Problems, Flea Fests, and Portable Swamps.
"The Smothering Smoke and Acid Pops might be fatal. We probably don't want to use them." Harry extracted two bags from the pile and put them back into the brown bag. "Oh- And this one should be used on friends." He showed them a purple bag with a man snoring a long string of Zzzzzz's. Sound Sleepers- To Make Sure They Don't Wake Up (guaranteed for 20 minutes).
"The Ministry will still be standing after this, right?" moaned Neville.
"Of course," said Harry. "Look, give us 15 minutes to get in there and then start. Maybe a couple of the old DA members will help you. Start in Auror HQ and then move toward Level 1. If you get caught just tell them Fred and George are interested in selling these products to the Aurors and they thought they could use a practical demonstration of how effective they can be." Harry picked out several of each kind of bomb for himself. "Alright?"
"Alright. 15 minutes." Said Neville.
The Cell
The shock of cold water being dumped over his head had Daniel jerking upright and gasping for breath.
Drat! It hadn't been a really horrible dream, had it? Nope. Same stone room. Same goons.
His hair was grabbed in a painful grip and someone jerked his head up.
Standing in front of him, looking dreadfully out of place in the plain stone cell, was a tall, elegantly-dressed man with a gold topped cane and a lion's mane of graying hair. His bushy eyebrows were narrowed as he gazed down at a silver pocket-watch, before he closed it with a snap. A pair of shrewd brown eyes lifted to assess Daniel.
This must be 'the Boss' they keep going on about, Daniel thought groggily.
"Mr… Jackson, is it? Tut, tut, tut aren't you a mess. Auror Greene tells me you've been most uncooperative. That you refuse to say a word… Is this true?"
Daniel felt a trickle of despair. There was nothing he could say- even he wanted to.
"Answer me!" commanded Scrimgeour. A vicious blow nearly knocked Daniel out of the chair again, after the Minister casually backhanded him across the mouth.
Oww.
A puzzled frown crossed Scrimgeour's face. He tapped his lion headed cane idly on the floor, considering.
"Not a word?" he asked, "Or not a sound, Greene?"
"Not anything sir. I've not seen anything like it. Usually they cry and beg or at least moan and groan a bit."
"This one hasn't?"
"Not a peep sir."
"Are you sure he wasn't hit with any spells before you brought him here?" asked the Minister.
"No sir," said Greene positively. "Grevins just knocked him out with a stunner. And I… Oh Bloody Hell."
"Yes?"
There was a mumble from Greene.
"What was that?" the Minister said in a silky voice, "I didn't quite catch that."
"He- he wouldn't shut up earlier and I… I hit him with Silencio.
There was a deadly pause.
"Do you mean to tell me that you've questioned this man for over an hour and you never thought about why he might not be answering! You've beaten him unconscious and possibly far past any usefulness he may have had. And you did that without considering the consequences? It's not like we have the rest of his companions in the cell next door if you break him, you idiot! I need that information."
"It was only a few hexes…" stuttered Greene.
"Those bruises aren't from hexes!" shouted Scrimgeour. "Now, enough wasting time! Go get me the Veritaserum."
Greene rushed out.
"And you two morons can go wait out in the hall. You'll probably have to dispose of him when we're through. Now, get out!"
The Minister sighed and rubbed his temples. It was so hard to get competent help these days.
"Oh- yes, Mr. Jackson. So sorry. Where were we? Hmm… Finite Incantatum!"
Daniel never thought he'd be so grateful to hear the sound of his own breathing, even if it was rather labored.
"There. That's much better, isn't it Mr. Jackson. Don't worry, soon it'll all be over."
A chill crept over Daniel at the way this man spoke in front of him. It was a creepy combination. A stern, commanding voice talking about the 'disposal' of his body as though he couldn't even hear him. And a gentle, almost fatherly voice that spoke like he would make it all better. Daniel got the distinct feeling the first was far closer to the truth.
Greene came back with a tiny bottle of clear liquid.
"Now that we've all arrived, let's get started. Greene, please get Mr. Jackson a drink to refresh himself and then we'll have a nice chat," the Minister said.
Minister Scrimgeour's Office
Showtime! Thought Jack as they approached the two guards on either side of the office doorway.
He and Teal'c prodded Carter and Potter forward. Longbottom had given them a couple of 'binders' for their wrists. They weren't locked and would pull apart as soon as the action started.
One guard stopped them, "What's this then? The Minister doesn't want to be disturbed any further tonight."
"However, we were told to bring these prisoners here for questioning as soon as they were caught," said Teal'c. "Perhaps you would care to explain to Minister Scrimgeour why they aren't here."
The guard stared at him for a moment. "Well alright," he finally said. "Go on in." He and the other guard opened the double oak doors and they entered a large luxurious room.
One half was divided into six cubicals with desks, although only two men were seated there. The other half was clearly a waiting room. The secretary's desk was placed between two doors. According to Longbottom's map the elaborately carved doors led into Scrimgeour's office. The smaller left-hand door led to a hallway, which went behind Scrimgeour's office and down to the cell area.
"How can I help you gentlemen? The Minister isn't available any more today… but I could schedule you in for tomorrow," the secretary gushed.
"I am afraid we were told to bring these two in as soon as possible. The Minister wished to question them personally." said Teal'c calmly.
Her smile became a little strained. "Well, I'm afraid I wasn't notified about it. You'll have to bring them back tomorrow. He's very busy right now."
"We were told to bring them here immediately," Teal'c said in an implacable voice. "So we will not be leaving unless he himself changes that."
"B-But you can't stay here in the Waiting Room with prisoners!" she stuttered.
"Is there a problem here?" asked the freckle-faced young man as he emerged from the cubicals.
"They say the Minister ordered them here and refuse to leave!" the secretary said.
"That may be, but the Office is closed for the day. The Minister had only one more thing to take care of and then he was leaving. You'll have to bring them back tomorrow morning… " he broke off as what sounded like an explosion rumbled through the building. "What was that- ?"
Taking their chance, Teal'c grabbed the young man's arm while Jack made for the guy still sitting at his desk. Teal'c's man let out a squawk just as one and then two solid blows laid him out cold on the floor. The secretary screamed. The man at his desk looked up in surprise to see Jack closing in fast. He fumbled with his wand but only got off a single blast before Jack's right hand forced it up and his left hook connected with his chin. The man fell backwards over his chair and landed in a heap in the corner. Jack shook his stinging hand and snapped the wand over his knee.
Meanwhile, the secretary was still screaming at the top of her lungs. Harry got his binders off before Carter. He threw a stunner at the woman and sighed with relief as it cut off the irritating high-pitched sound.
The screaming brought the two guards crashing into the room with their wands out. They fired at Teal'c and Potter who dodged behind the secretary's desk.
Teal'c merely stepped out of the way. He and Carter drew their Zat'nik'tels and nailed the two guards. They stiffened in shock and fell to the floor unconscious.
"Wicked!" said Harry.
"Teal'c! Check the hall. Carter, left-hand door. Potter, you check the BigMan's office. See if we've got company coming," Jack barked.
They all sprang to obey. Teal'c cautiously peered out into the main hall. There was a lot of shouting in the distance but nobody seemed to be headed this way. He shook his head at O'Neill and moved the guard's bodies to close the outer doors.
Carter held her Zat' ready and opened the left-hand door. There was a long hallway with offices to the left. No one was in sight or came out of the rooms. "All clear, for the moment sir."
Potter peeked around one oak door and then opened both of them wide. Inside was a lavishly, ornate office. It was filled with carved antique furnishings, a large Turkish rug and works of art on every surface.
"Whoa!"
"Yeah, nice digs," said Jack coming up beside him.
"Wonder where he's getting the money for all this. The last Minister was an incompetent idiot, but at least he was an honest one. I know their salary doesn't come close to covering stuff like this! I should see what the goblins know about him," Potter mused.
"Goblins? What are you talking about?" asked Carter.
"Oh- Sorry. I mean bankers," Potter flushed and changed the subject. "How do we do this, Colonel? Everyone through the office or the hall or two through each?"
Jack gave him a penetrating stare but let it go. "Two and two, I think. Teal'c you're with Potter, through the office. Carter you're with me, down the hall."
Teal'c nodded. He and Potter went inside and shut the door.
Jack and Carter headed cautiously down the hall. Voices came from somewhere down the hall. They assumed covering positions at the doors to each office but they were all empty.
After the 4th office, the hallway turned and went behind Scrimgeour's office. The sound of voices grew louder and more distinct as they approached the turn.
Jack took a quick peek around the corner. About 25ft. down the corridor were two men. Grevins and Jacobson, the two flunkies from the hotel by the look of them. There wasn't any cover in the hallway, so they'd have to shoot from here. He signaled to Carter about the guards and she edged into a crouch at the corner while he took the standing position.
He could hear what was going on in the room now. He snorted quietly. A voice demanded to know who Daniel was and why he was here. Jack smiled to himself as Daniel's voice began to drone on and on in full lecture mode. Something about archeology and the path to true enlightenment. Frustration filled the other voice as it told him to shut up. Jack smirked. It was nice to know that Daniel could annoy bad guys almost as much as he could his friends with that crap.
Then he frowned, Daniel's voice sounded odd, sort of monotoned and expressionless. It was not like Daniel at all. His breathing sounded labored as well. Not good.
He chanced another quick look. Down past the guards, about 60ft. from their position, a door inched open and Teal'c's familiar brown eye peeked through the opening. Then Potter's green eye appeared lower down. He signaled about attacking together on the count of three but their luck had run out.
Jacobson happened to look up at that moment and spotted him. With a shout to Grevins, he drew his wand. He fired at Jack who took a quick shot with his Zat' before ducking back around the corner. The yelling brought a third man, Greene, out of the room. They all started shooting bursts of light at the corner. He and Carter traded shots but their cover was disintegrating as the wand blasts tore chunks out of the plaster.
Then Teal'c and Potter joined in. Potter threw something small and gray down the hall. It bounced to stop right under Greene and exploded. Bursts of an odd speckled powder shot out, covering the three men.
They stopped firing their wands and started hopping around. Greene actually threw down his peashooter and started itching himself wherever he could reach.
They all stared at the hopping, itching men in disbelief before Jack and Teal'c got sick of the yelling and Zat'd them.
SG1 stepped over the men and reached the doorway just as more wand blasts came flying out. They made a real mess of the opposite wall but didn't hit anyone.
The guy inside was yelling about incompetent idiots. But then he said something else that made Jack freeze.
"If you come one step closer, I'll kill this man. The Aurors will be coming soon and you'll be trapped. The only way out is to make a deal with me. I just want information."
Jack stole a quick look around the door-jam but it was enough to tell him that Daniel was in bad shape. "Riight… Out of the goodness of your heart, you'll just let us go. Besides, I think you're the one who's trapped."
"I'll have you know, I am the Minister of Magic and NO ONE dictates to me," Scrimgeour announced.
"Yeah well, I'm Ronald McDonald. If you drop by my place, I'll get you a happy meal with a squeaky toy," Jack drawled. "Now, drop your weapon or we will open fire."
"Why you- " the Minister started to snarl, when Potter whipped around the corner and shouted what sounded like X-SPELL-US! There was the sound of an impact and a moan.
Everyone peered around into the room. Daniel's chair had tipped over and he was lying on his side next to it. He had a vacant expression on his face and was still muttering something to himself. The 'Minister' was crumpled in a heap against the wall. A thin trickle of blood was coming from his mouth. His wand was all the way across the room near Daniel. Potter walked over and picked it up. He stared at it and then at its owner before snapping it in half and then tossing it to the floor.
Carter and Jack rolled Daniel over. He moaned and stopped muttering. Jack chanced a question. "Daniel, can you hear me?"
"Yes."
"How are you feeling?" This proved to be a mistake as it launched Daniel into a long list of what sounded like every ache, pain and bone in his body.
Potter reached down and gently tapped the binders on Daniel's wrists, which loosened. He pulled them off.
Daniel was still droning on, "…And my ribs on the left side, there's this sharp, stabbing pain when I breathe, though it's not so bad if I don't breathe…"
"Daniel-" said Jack.
"…And then there's my head, which aches something awful, pounding little hammers and it's somehow been stuffed with cotton-batting…"
"Daniel, please be quiet."
"Okay." He said agreeably.
Jack sighed and stood. "Well, Scrimgeour was right about one thing… We need to get out of here. Who knows how long we have before somebody shows up. T, help me with Daniel. Carter you go ahead. Potter, you're rear-guard."
"Alright, we have to go down into the office before the pins will work," said Harry.
Jack and Teal'c lifted Daniel, who was now singing quietly. "Twinkle, twinkle little star… How I wonder where you are…" Carter started down the hall, then the other three, with Potter coming last. They didn't notice Scrimgeour's hand twitch and slowly reach for his boot.
The team had just reached the office doorway when a loud alarm went off and shouting was heard in the outer office. Carter raced across the room and locked the door. She grabbed a chair and set it under the doorknobs. Loud banging and Alohas could be heard through the door.
Potter looked back as he entered the office in time to see Scrimgeour stagger out of the cell with a wand. A blast of light flew by and he ducked, slamming the backdoor and locking it.
"Go!" he yelled. "Touch your pins and go!"
Still having a hard time believing this would work, Jack touched his pin and said, "Activate." A giant hook seemed to grab him by the middle. It yanked him down a swirling tunnel of color and light. It reminded him of StarGate travel actually.
Harry locked the door to the hallway and turned to find Sam Carter doing the same with the outer office. From the banging and the shouting, it wouldn't take them long to start blasting their way through.
"GO!" he yelled at the Americans. "Use the pins!"
They shot him disbelieving looks but did as he asked. It seemed to take forever. In that peculiar fashion when your heart is racing and time seems to slow down.
They went whirling away just as the backdoor was blasted to pieces and Scrimgeour and two Aurors rushed in.
Harry threw down another Fred and George special and activated his own portkey pin.
The last thing he saw as he was yanked away was the two Aurors splashing about in the grand office. Scrimgeour was standing there hip-deep in swamp-water with a lily-pad and frog on his head. He was shaking his fist angrily. Harry waved back and was gone.