CHAPTER 52
It was six thirty when Harry's watch chimed him awake. He stood and stretched and an evil grin split his face as he thought about how to wake the woman in the room across from him. Slipping into her room he let his eyes adjust, then slowly leaned over her bed, placing his lips on hers he began a soft kiss. Slowly making it more demanding, he felt her arms coil around his neck as she deepened the kiss, as he broke away her eyes fluttered open.
"Morning Alex," he said in a hushed tone. "I always collect my rain checks. He leaned closer again, and she could feel her heart begin to pound, he whispered "Too bad you slept in."
He slipped away from her and quickly stood, flipping on the light making her groan. "Come on, we have a run to take." He turned on his heel and left a very flustered woman in his wake.
Harry smiled as he stepped from the stairway. Two quick turns and they were across the lobby and into the morning air. He set a brisk pace, and took them out on a course across the park and toward the Tokyo tower.
His eyes scanned for danger as he ran. Two had been in the lobby, another one had fallen in behind them as they ran, that one seemed to be content to follow at a distance but Harry had seen him three times in the park as he used other trails that ran parallel or were short cuts, then a couple more times in shop windows as they headed toward the tower.
When the pair stepped in front of them he was ready, two quick strikes and the male no longer held his silenced pistol, it clattered and slid out into traffic, the second strike connected hard under the man's chin and lifted him off his feet to land hard.
Tonks was only a little slower to react, her eyes focused on the blade in the woman's hand and she twisted her body as she continued her approach, to let the gleaming piece of silver pass her left side and bring her elbow up for a hard strike to her attacker's temple. Then she grabbed the arm and gave a hard twist relieving the other of her blade, only to feel a knee connect with her unprotected side and a hand grab her from behind.
Harry spun to see the man that had been following them grab Tonks and lift his knee hard into her ribs. He lashed out, barreling into the man tackling him into the wall of the building and pulling him close he slammed his fist into him repeatedly.
The woman that attacked ran, she took off toward the tower. Harry glanced over his shoulder, "Go get her! We need to question them I'll handle these two! Meet me as soon as you can!" Tonks nodded once then ran after her fleeing prey.
'This girl is quick" Tonks thought as they ran down the street. At the next corner her prey took a right and ran down the entrance to the subway. Descending the stairs they dodged the morning commuters, an increasingly difficult task, and by the time they reached the gates Tonks had lost sight of her.
She moved through the now pressing crowd, twisting her head looking for her adversary, passing over each person in turn and moving toward the platforms. She caught a glimpse of her as she walked onto the next platform and onto a train. Redoubling her efforts she pushed her way through and onto the same train just as it pulled away.
She made her way into the next car, the one she had seen her quarry enter, and to a place next to the first set of doors watching her closely for signs she was leaving the train.
Two exits later the woman stepped off cradling her right wrist, Tonks grinned at least she had hurt the little bint! She followed down the quiet tiled hall-ways till she realized the woman had stopped at the far end and was turning to look at her.
The girl's right hand dropped to her side and she shook it vigorously, then smiled a childlike smile at Tonks. It was a trap! She had been led here! Tonks glanced around and realized that she had sprung it in the perfect location, the middle of an empty hallway! No cover and no place to run!
The girl waved and the ground shifted under Tonks, she began to fall.
The fall was disorienting, flashing lights then total darkness as she slid forward on the smooth metal. She had no idea how far she had gone, then suddenly, it was over. She was spit out of an opening to land in an overstuffed chair, that she immediately scrambled out of only to be confronted with two different notes of laughter, One was a chuckle, it belonged to an older man sitting on the far side of a large desk with a bank of television monitors behind him, each showing her progress in the pursuit of her adversary, right up to her sliding into this room and landing in a very un-lady like way.
The other voice she knew well, looking at him her lips tightened into a thin line and her brow furrowed. She couldn't kill him but it wouldn't go against her oath if she beat the crap out of him…would it? She stomped her way over to him, her eyes ablaze teeth clenched.
"Harry!" she yelled. "I'm gonna.." She started to reach for him.
Harry lifted his arms in surrender, and pointed to the man behind the desk. "It was Tiger! He set this up!"
The name made her stop in her tracks, she had been briefed on the man before they left. Tiger Tanaka Head of the Japanese Secret Service, roughly analogous to M in their country. "Think of it as a rite of passage," Harry said with a smile, "he did the same thing to my father, then to me the first time we met him." His smile grew, as he looked at Tiger. "You're right, it is funny."
Tonks scowled at him then turned to face Tiger. "So… how do you feel about me?" she asked.
"Why, I love you! Of course!" he said with a smile, and Harry laughed again. She looked at him oddly, the challenge phrase was answered correctly.
"It's an old family joke." Harry said. "Alex Harper, Tiger Tanaka."
"It is a pleasure to meet you Harper-san," said the man behind the desk extending his hand.
"It is nice to meet you too Mr. Tanaka," she said taking his hand.
"Call me Tiger please."
"Then you must call me Alex."
"Very well. Harry I have arranged for you to meet with someone this afternoon. Mi Lei will be at the Peninsula at three. I wish that we had had more information before now but as you know we have had some difficulties dealing with the IWC."
"I more than understand, after dealing with the Wizengamot, Dumbledore, and some of the other things. We have not made this a general announcement, but we have found that the society in England and perhaps other places under IWC have been deliberately isolated and factions within are doing their best to not only keep the populous small but tightly controlled. It seemed to gain a serious foothold in the early 1700s, with the slow subjugation and destruction of the most politically powerful families."
"It seems to be closely tied with the rise of the IWC, and the decision of the Crown to form the government that is in place in the United Kingdom." Harry continued, "We know that Dumbledore, he was the head of the Wizengamot, the IWC, and Headmaster of Hogwarts, is one of the ones pushing that agenda. He was also enacting a selective breeding program, one that puts political power in the hands of a very few families, families that were being groomed to play their parts."
Tonks continued, "We have even found damning evidence that first generation, those who would have a vested interest in seeing things change, were being removed from society, some by use of slave trade as soon as their 'quote' education was complete." She could see the disgust in Tiger's eyes. "Her Majesty's government is keeping a close eye on those that complete their education starting this year, the ways that it was being achieved are now known to us and steps are being taken to see it will not happen again."
Harry nodded then spoke, "As disgusting as the idea of it all is, we must proceed slowly. We can not afford to lose the headway we have made." Tiger nodded his understanding. "We also know that the terrorist group led by the so called Lord Voldemort, aka Tom Marvolo Riddle, is trying to make a return. One of his lieutenants, Bellatrix LeStrange escaped from Azkaban Prison, and has had at least some contact with her Death Eater friends. The attack at Kings Cross Station was them."
"It sounds like you have a large mess there my young friend." said Tanaka.
"At the very least, we are working on this from several angles and have allies in several key places. It will be a long battle."
Narcissa Black walked down the road toward a well kept home, she sighed to herself. Sirius had asked her to help out before telling her that it would be the day after Draco came home, but then again what would she be doing this morning if not this? Sitting at the table in the new house waiting for the boy to wake up?
He hadn't gotten up on his first day till noon! But, she understood. He would only be home and off from school for two weeks, she smiled to herself as she thought about how he had grown. Sirius had been correct in enrolling Draco… or Drake as he preferred now, into Salem as a working student.
The deal they had reached with Salem had been that any money earned would be placed in a trust for him to be payable after graduation, though he did not know that and thought the work was part of his schooling. It was sad to her that she got to see him as rarely as she did but he seemed to be growing into a fine young man.
He had taken the news of his father's death hard at first, but when he was told of the things that were found below the manor his disgust was evident, he was glad to be rid of the name Malfoy. He had seen, with his own eyes, the depths that the man was capable of.
It had taken a while but he had come out of his shell, and had good friends. His calls home were always upbeat and usually filled with discussions of the new things he had seen and done. Pictures showed him smiling, and his grades were improving.
She pulled herself out of her thoughts as she approached the door of a tidy home with two floors, fresh flowers in the window boxes, the name Granger written in bronze on the mail box.
Knocking she waited patiently, and as the door opened she was greeted by a tall muscular man. His hair was dark brown as were his eyes, his smile was wide and pleasant. "Mr. Granger? I am Narcissa Black, I was asked by Sirius to come by in his stead, he has been held up with some family business. I hope you do not mind if I take his place?"
"No, not at all," he said taking the hand offered by the stunning lady. "Please come inside. The warders will be arriving shortly."
"Are your wife and daughter here Mr. Granger?"
"Wi-? Oh," he stuttered then chuckled, "You mean Emma and Hermione?" Narcissa nodded, her hand inching toward her wand. "Um, you have the wrong Mr. Granger, Emma is married to my twin brother Dan, I'm David. I'm taking care of the place while they are away and Dan is recovering."
Relaxing somewhat after looking over his shoulder at the photos on the wall, she asked "Recovering? Was he in an accident? I hope it was not serious."
"It was, he had a lacerated liver, and muscle damage in his back and stomach. You heard about the attack at King's Cross?" he asked.
Her eyes filled with tears, her hand came up to cover her mouth with a sudden realization. "The attack on Harry! They were there? Sirius never said who else was with them, just…"
"Yes, Harry got them out, them and the Lovegood girl."
Narcissa moved to the side and sat heavily on the couch in the sitting room. "Love- Xeno and Selene's girl…" Her face became hard as tears fell, "If he wasn't dead I'd kill him myself! Damn them! Damn all of them!"
She pulled a handkerchief from her bag and dabbed her eyes, "The one killed in the attack, Lucius Malfoy, he was my husband till Lord Black rescinded the marriage for breach. He was a dreadful man. My sister Bellatrix was also involved. I shed no tears for his death, please do not misunderstand. You said the Lovegood girl, Luna, was there as well? And she too got away?" David nodded, and she noticeably relaxed. "Good, I am glad Luna is safe, with him gone I can finally take my place as her Godmother."
"He was stopping you?" he asked.
"Yes, Lucius despised the family, and derived pleasure from keeping me away, but enough of that. How is it that you know of the magical world and have not had the knowledge removed by the Ministry?" she asked drying her eyes.
"Oddly enough, it is part of my job. I am with the part of the government that coordinates with the Minister," he said, sitting across from her.
"Oh, I didn't know there was any one like that."
"Several of us, don't fret though we are bound by our own version of your secrecy laws." he chuckled.
"I see. So, you are helping your brother by arranging protection?" she asked.
"Yes, more or less, the people coming to ward the place were chosen by Harry and a family member needs to be here, so here I am."
"He also asked for us, Sirius and I to look everything over and make any suggestions we thought necessary." A knock on the door, interrupted them, and David stood.
"That must be them," he said, answering the door.
After reviewing the contracts David and Narcissa enjoyed a quiet morning as the house was warded. After it was completed he began to escort her to the front door. He started to move but stopped and looked back at Narcissa. "Ms. Black? If it is not too forward may I ask you a question?"
"Of course."
"Would you like to have dinner with me some time?" he asked with a gentle smile.
