The Trouble with Family

by BigIve

It is after the Battle and the search for Hermione's parents uncovers some unexpected branches on a previously well known family tree. New discoveries about the nature of 'magic' are also made, Curses cut both ways and the most dangerous enemies are within. Canon Relationships (where known). Some Mature/Adult Themes and Language. Warning: OC's play a major role in the story.

70. A 'quiet' afternoon

Authors Note: 16th May 2021.

The much delayed next chapter. I hope you enjoy it, many apologies for the delays in posting. However, this chapter gave me more trouble than I bargained for in the writing.

Hope you (and your families) are all safe in these challenging times.

---

I just stood there for several moments with Dave's words ringing in my ears. The heat and the passion of what he had said had made a real impression on me, and many others. I honestly didn't know what to say.

It wasn't until Fleur shook my shoulder to get my attention that I came back to things. She told me that we were all leaving via a portkey back to the Burrow. After acknowledging what she said, she asked me to grab Harry, Ron and Hermione and bring them to the back of the stage. She was going to get Bill and Charlie.

In short order we were all at the back of the stage and holding onto a length of rope that Chief Roberts had turned into a Port Key for us. Aunty Sandra was coming with us, but Uncle Ivan and the rest of Dave's team were not. They were going to help calm things down and get the diplomatic personnel out before they would join us.

I honestly don't recall the Port Key activating, but I do remember arriving just outside of the wards for the Burrow, as mum and dad quickly hustled us inside of them. Harry also landed on his rather cute butt, so all in all a normal landing for him.

None of us said anything as we walked towards the Burrow. The silence wasn't broken until Bill rushed ahead of us heading for what appeared to be a small mound of something on the grass, not far from Dave's tent. It looked almost like a small pile of charred clothing. Fragments of which were in a line heading towards Dave's tent.

Aunty Sandra took one look at the pile and quickly moved off for the tent. A negligent gesture with her hand had the protective charms on the tent were undone and the door opened. Without breaking stride, she entered the tent, and immediately went to Dave's bedroom and opened the door.

As she did so there was an indigent cry of "MUM!" from the other side of the door and the brief sight of a partially clad Dave diving back out of sight. Much to Gabrielle's obvious disappointment, which both her mum and sister saw and took note of.

The rest of us waited in the loungeroom of the tent while Aunty Sandra pulled her son into an enthusiastic embrace. The sole exception to this was Gabrielle who followed Aunty Sandra into Dave's room. With an eager light in her eyes, she entered Dave's room and had soon secured Dave in her own embrace as Aunty Sandra joined us in the loungeroom of the tent.

"Is it safe to leave those two in there alone?" Bill asked Aunty Sandra with an evil twinkle in his eyes, as Fleur delivered a gentle elbow to his ribs.

"As long as zee door stays open, eet is fine." Apolline snickered, which caused an indigent reply from Gabrielle in rapid-fire French. Along with some laughter from the rest of us.

Mum and Aunty Sandra quickly had a cuppa made for all of us, as we made ourselves comfortable either at the table or on one of the couches. We were shortly joined by a much more relaxed (and clothed) Dave and a very satisfied Gabrielle, who couldn't seem to keep a smug smile from her face. Not even the questioning looks from her mother and sister were enough to stop her from smiling.

"So, I guess I need to ask, what was the deal with the blue flames?" Aunty Sandra asked her son, who was at that moment contentedly snuggled into Gabrielle on one of the couches, with a cuppa and a chocolate biscuit.

The biscuits were new, I didn't see them moments before (and I had looked). It goes without saying, I quickly secured one for myself, followed by Fleur, then Hermione. Hermione just HAD to share them around though. It was then that we discovered that the packet was able to refill itself, and that Gabrielle had progressed in either her wandless magic, or sorcery to the point that she could easily summon the packet back to her.

Although at the disapproving look from her mum (who hadn't yet secured a biscuit), she 'graciously' returned the packet. Not before securing two more biscuits for herself and Dave though. Not a trace of shame was exhibited by her or my cousin either.

Aunty Sandra cleared her throat, to get her sons attention and then raised one eyebrow to let him know that she was still waiting on his answer.

"Honestly, I don't know what they were." Dave answered with a thoughtful expression, "All I recall was a powerful desire to get the hell out of that hall."

"I see." Aunty Sandra answered, "You 'landed' not far from your tent?" She asked him.

"Yes." Dave answered, "I was going to go back and clean up the mess I left behind, but I needed to take care of something first." He added with an embarrassed look out into the yard.

"You mean you had to find some clothes?" Aunty Sandra chuckled, along with the rest of us.

"Yes." Dave answered as Gabrielle gave out a wicked little snicker, that caused her mum to call out "Gabrielle, behave yourself." But the cheeky grin on her own face took most of the sting out of the reprimand.

"I also had to 'put myself out'." Dave explained, as Aunty Sandra launched herself to her feet and pulled Dave up off the couch (much to Gabrielle's displeasure) and began to mutter under her breath something that I couldn't understand. As she moved her hands over her son. It quickly became apparent that she was running some type of scan on him.

Dave quickly caught his mum hands and held them to his chest as he looked her in the eyes. "I'm fine mum." He told her, "The flames just wrecked my clothes and burnt my hair off." He told her, as she raised her eyes to his unruly mop of raven locks.

"I'm fine." He told her, as he gave her another hug. Gabrielle also quickly joined in (she never passes up an opportunity to put her hands-on Dave, even now).

While they were hugging, Dad walked up to Dave and grabbed him by his shoulders.

"Thank-you, for what you said back there about my family." He said, his voice thick with emotion, as he pulled Dave into a hug with mum also joining them.

"You are most welcome, Uncle Arthur." Dave said as he returned the hug and caused a slightly alarmed expression on dad's face for a few moments, before he released him.

Each of my brothers, Fleur, Hermione and finally myself also gave him a hug as well. Harry looked at Dave for a moment, before he asked, "Did you really mean what you said back there?"

"Yes." Dave answered, as Harry blushed and the two embraced as Dave whispered something in Harry's ear. Harry nodded and they separated, just as Uncle Ivan and the rest of Dave's family and team arrived.

"What did we miss?" He asked as Aunty Sandra went to meet him, and there were some chuckles from us. They were quickly filled in on what had been discovered and discussed. Uncle Ivan clearly wanted to chat with his son, but he decided to put it off for now.

"So, we didn't miss out on lunch then?" Fireball asked as Jono's eyes also lit up at the thought of food. Ron quickly signed on to that idea as well. Mum had a brilliant smile on her face, as she agreed to get some lunch underway.

She also had no shortage of volunteers to get things organised as well. It didn't take long at all before we were once again sitting around a large table enjoying a family meal with not only my recently discovered extended family, but their fellow Aurors who were like an extension to their family and had also in a way become honouree members of my own.

We were nearing the end of our meal when Dave's mirror phone started buzzing. Instantly everyone was quiet as he pulled it out and read it. His smile was enough to let us know it wasn't anything serious, in fact he seemed very eager about something.

"I need you all to wait here, while I go and collect something." He said before asking his dad, Bill, and Charlie to follow him to his tent. Several curious looks were exchanged between his team members, but they appeared to be willing to wait to see what he was up to.

It didn't take long before the four of them came back levitating a set of boxes each. Setting them down they were quickly opened. They then proceeded to place a selection of smaller, but oddly shaped boxes in front of the different members of Dave's team. Dave himself also had a set of boxes placed in front of his seat.

By the time, all the boxes had been handed out, Mick looked like he was about to explode with curiosity. Taking pity on him Dave indicated that he should be the first to open the collection of boxes placed in front of him. Starting with the largest one.

With an almost imperceptible movement of his wrist Mick had a knife in his hand and slit open the box. Opening it up he removed from it an odd looking, but also vaguely familiar garment. Running his hands and eyes over it for a few moments, he appeared to be speechless. The rest of his team seemed to be in a similar state.

The garment in Micks hands was a vest that appeared to be made of animal scales carefully arranged to ensure that they overlapped. The manner of their placement looked to me that it would allow for freedom of movement for the wearer. In the center of the upper chest there was an animal motif that I couldn't quite make out, other than it was a type of bird. Above the bird was a disc that I couldn't decide if it was metal or stone, but it was covered in runes, that were arranged in a circular pattern.

The runes were ones that I had never seen before, judging by the look on Bill's face I'd say that he hadn't seen them before either.

Turning the garment around Mick opened it up along a hidden seem that ran along the side of it. When he did that, we could see that there was an inner vest that looked very familiar. When he saw this Mick's eyes grew to the size of saucers and he looked at Dave with a sense of wonder, and what could only be described as deep gratitude.

After staring at the inner vest for a moment he vaulted the table and grabbed Dave into a very fierce embrace. He was joined shortly thereafter by the entirety of Dave's team. Aunty Sandra had her hands to her face and tears in her eyes, while Uncle Ivan looked like he might burst with pride.

When they all eventually released Dave from their embrace, I could tell that my cousin was rather embarrassed, but also immensely pleased by their reactions. The girls in his team all quickly placed kisses on Dave's now flaming cheeks before running back to their seats to open their own boxes. They all pulled out similar looking vests to what Mick had done. Although there were differences in the designs and layout of the scales, as well as the animal motifs on them.

"Can I ask what they are?" Hermione asked Dave as she indicated the vest that Izzy had just extracted from her its box and was now gleefully examining.

"Yes, you can." Dave answered her, before grinning mischievously at her. "They are modelled on our standard battle armour. However, they are also heavily modified and tailored to each individual." He began as he pulled the vest from his own box.

"The scales that you can see making up the outer portion of the vest are all Triple A grade dragon scales. They have been Runicly re-enforced, both individually as well as part of the overall matrix of the armour. The runes that you can see on the outside are part of that matrix."

"On the underside of each scale are another set of runes, these are tailored to the individual magical signature of the wearer, along with their family magics as well. For this reason, they are hidden from view." Dave explained as Hermione's eyes began to light up at the mention of family magics. She quickly calmed down though once she caught Dave's message.

"The inner vest, here" he said as he removed the inner vest from his own garment, "Is a new and improved version of my Bunyip scale vest that I have been wearing here." He explained as he pealed back the outer coverings to show the brilliant Bunyip scales that were underneath.

"The inner vest can be removed so that it can be worn concealed like I have been doing." He advised us and his team who were all now removing the inner vests from their own outer ones.

"All the other pieces of the suits are also lined with Bunyip scales; however, they are not removeable. As that would have added unnecessary weight and bulk to them."

"The braces," He said as he pulled out his own from one of the boxes, "Are also Runicly re-enforced, however they also have some active properties in them." He added with a grin.

"When worn and with the runes charged, they will generate a shield against physical projectiles. However, for those of you who can wield sorcery there is a hidden extra," he chuckled as he removed two crystals from the back of the bracer. "Charge these in the usual manner and they will power a 'Mage Shield' that will extend forward from the main surface of the bracer and be tall enough to cover your entire body. However, the 'usual rule' still applies when the shield is powered up, so keep that in mind." He advised.

"Usual rule?" Hermione asked again.

"Your movement is hampered, when using a Mage Shield," Izzy advised her as she checked out the crystals that came out from her own bracers. Seeing the look on Hermione's face she explained further, "The Mage Shield is an almost impenetrable shield; however, it takes a significant amount of effort to power. Unless you have an alternate power source." She said as she held up one of her crystals. Hers seemed to be different to the ones that were in Dave's bracers. I was about to ask about this difference before she continued.

"Also, because of its power it is far more difficult to move when a mage shield is operating."

"Why?" Hermione asked as I let lose a chuckle that earned me a glare from her.

Izzy smiled back at Hermione as she thought for a moment. "You are familiar with a gyroscope?" She asked.

I could see Hermione's eyes come alive after a moment's thought, "Ah, I see." She stated enthusiastically as she sat down happy with her discovery.

Surprisingly, it was Ron that spoke up next, "What's a gyroscope?" he asked.

This simple question led to an entertaining session, as several 'gyros' of various sizes were conjured and demonstrated for us. We even got to experience the gyroscopic effect while sitting on a rotating stool. It was great fun and it made it very easy to understand how a Mage Shield affected the movement of the caster. Apparently the stronger the shield that was cast, or the longer it was held in place the stronger its impact on the movement of the caster was. For this reason, a Mage Shield is typically only held for a short time.

Eventually we returned to the tables to polish off the rest of our interrupted lunch and the cups of tea that mum had just served up. Bill quickly secured permission from Dave to examine further the runes on the outside of the scales of his armour. I could see the perplexed look on his face as he tried to puzzle them out. From the look on Dave's face, I could safely take a guess that Dave was enjoying Bill's puzzlement.

Bill wasn't the first one to speak up however, Izzy beat him too it.

"How did you get these made up so quickly?" She asked Dave, with a look of wonder in her eyes as she continued to examine her own suit of armour.

"Quickly?" Dave asked her with an amused look in his eyes. "Jimmy and I started working on the idea for these suits about 3 years ago." He answered.

"It wasn't until Emma and Jackie had the breakthrough with the Bunyip scales that we were able to move them into the final phase of design and manufacture though."

"Since then, Jackie teamed up with the Ng's and the Khan's for some of the 'tricker' parts. The Khan's also reached out through their family contacts to the Dwarves of the Windforged clan. They agreed to assist, by preparing the Dragon Scales and laid down the first layer of Runic enhancement on them." He told a stunned group.

"The Dwarves helped to make these?" Izzy asked with wonder in her voice as her eyes looked like they were about to fall out of her head. The others in Dave's team carried similar looks of wonderment while his parents were stunned into silence.

For my part I was just confused. I looked to Bill to try to make sense of what I'd just heard but he was smiling like he'd just solved the meaning of life.

"These are Dwarven runes?" He asked Dave.

"Yes, some of them are." Was the answer.

"That explains it." Bill remarked before he returned his attention back to Dave's armour.

"How did you get the Dwarves to agree to help with the armour?" Charlie asked as he looked a new at one of Dave's bracers. "It must have cost a fortune to get them to work on so many full sets of armour." He said to himself.

This statement brought Dave's parents out of their stunned state.

"Just how much did it cost you to engage the Dwarves of the Windforged clan?" Uncle Ivan asked his son, with a very intense look on his face.

At this question everyone stopped and looked to Dave. I got the impression that his parents were concerned with what his answer might entail.

"In terms of gold?" Dave asked his father, who simply nodded in reply. "It didn't cost me a thing." Dave answered smugly.

"What?" His father exclaimed, "How in the Mothers name did you get the Dwarves to work for free?" He demanded his son.

"I didn't say they did it for free." Dave answered, this only seemed to confuse his parents and everyone else even more.

"Then how did you pay them?" He asked.

"I made a trade with them." Dave answered. Seeing the questioning look his father's face (and on the rest of ours I must admit), he explained further. "I traded them a song for their labour."

This only seemed to add to the confusion.

"A song?" Aunty Sandra asked him, "What sort of song?" She added with a note of worry in her voice.

"It wasn't one of 'those' songs." Dave answered, "So don't worry." He added with a grin. Us Weasley's, the Delacour's along with Hermione and Harry were all looking rather confused.

"So what song was it?" Aunty Sandra asked him.

"It was a 'Song of salvage' that I learnt from Nysanophe." He said as though it explained everything.

"I see," Was the reply from Aunty Sandra, "That only leaves the question as to who Nysanophe is." She asked with a raised eyebrow.

"She's a Siren…" Dave began to explain as Hermione called out. "A Siren! How can you consort with them…" She started to rant before she was silenced by Abby.

It took her a moment to realised that no one could hear her. Once she did, she soon noticed the dark looks that were being directed her way by Dave and his team and curiously the Delacour ladies.

"I'm going to remove the silencing spell from you in a moment," Abby coolly advised her, "However, before I do, I'm going to ask you to calm yourself before you deliver a deadly insult to the Delacour ladies, as well as to us." She stated as she indicated her teammates and Dave's parents.

Abby held Hermione's gaze until she nodded in agreement. Once she did, Abby removed the silencing spell. Once it was removed, she quickly glanced at a still visibly unhappy Apolline before turning back to Hermione.

"I silenced you before you delivered a 'blood insult' to the Delacour ladies." Abby explained as Hermione looked both horrified, confused and angry all at once. I must admit that Hermione is just about the only one who can carry those three emotions on her face at the same time.

"It may not have been explained to you in your schooling, so I'll explain it to you now. Veela and Sirens are very closely related. They are also both subjected to many horrible stories about them." She explained to Hermione.

"I'm very sure you were going to label Siren's as 'dark' because you had heard (or been told) stories of them luring ships onto the rocks to drown the crews and then feast upon them." She asked Hermione. For her part Hermione could only give a slight nod in agreement.

"I see." Abby replied, "Were you ever told WHY, they did so?" She asked in a voice that reminded me of Professor McGonagall. I'm sure Hermione noticed this similarity herself as she shook herself out of her slightly stunned state to answer.

"No, I wasn't" She said quietly with a quick glance at Apolline and Fleur.

"Ok, well lets correct that right now." Abby stated, "Siren's and in general any being that has a major affinity to the air, such as Veela, Fey, Harpies and Fairies absolutely abhor enslavement in any form." She explained, to Hermione, although the rest of us were all listening attentively as well.

"Most of the stories about Siren's were started by the various slaver guilds that operated in areas where the Sirens traditionally lived. I'm sure you might be starting to put 2 and 2 together here?" She asked Hermione, who nodded.

"Sirens did indeed routinely 'attack' the slavers ships and caused them to become wrecked on the rocks. However, what the stories always seem to leave out is that they only caused the slavers and their lackies to perish. The actual slaves that were on those ships were freed and allowed to escape."

"The same end was often met by galleys and triremes that were crewed by slaves that manned the oars." She advised. "This behaviour didn't endear them to the slaver guilds and those that funded them. Nor to those who had purchased the large numbers of slaves required to man those galleys. In the end it lead to the Siren's being actively hunted and almost being wiped out in their native territories."

"Thankfully, they managed to survive. Even if most of them ended up migrating away from their home ranges and took up new ranges in other parts of the world."

"Interestingly, it should be noted that when a colony of Siren's moved into a new region (that didn't contain an active slave trade) they were more often than not welcomed. Shipping losses also dramatically decreased. It gives you something to think about doesn't it." She asked Hermione.

"It does." Hermione answered, "Thank you for explaining it to me." She said giving a small smile, before turning to Dave.

"Is that why you were working with them? Their hatred of slavery?" She asked him.

"No." Dave answered, "well, not initially any way." Seeing a few confused looks he continued on.

"I needed their help to salvage a ship that had sunk." He told us, "Before you ask, yes it was a slavers ship, and no, the Siren's hadn't sunk it. It had gone down in a storm off the coast of Rhodes. On it were several sets of documents and a few ledgers on that ship that we were after."

"Zat's 'ow you learned ze song of salvage?" Fleur asked him.

"Correct." Dave answered, "Because of the size of the ship the Siren's alone couldn't raise it, they needed the assistance of a 'few male voices'." He explained. While Shelly and the other girls in Dave's team gave some very naughty giggles. This of course drew our attention and Fleur was the first to respond with a naughty smile before fixing Dave with her eyes.

"You sang wiz zem?" She asked him as the smile on her face transformed into an evil smirk, as Dave along with Mick, Jono, Guz and Olly tried hard to hide the red in their cheeks. "As I 'ave 'eard zat ze Siren's song needs to be performed in a, 'ow you say, all-natural state for it to be most effective. No?"

Dave suddenly found himself fixed by several sets of eyes, that he was doing his best to avoid. Gabrielle wasn't going to let him off the hook that easily and she grabbed him by the chin and forced him to look at her as she raised a questioning eyebrow at him and waited for his answer.

"I did." Was all that Dave would say before Gabrielle gave a VERY naughty smile of her own that actually caused Dave's ears to go red.

"He wasn't the only one." Shelly said on the verge of hysterics, as the aforementioned male members of Dave's team all wished they were somewhere else.

"I should have known that you wouldn't have stayed behind that hill like we asked you to." Dave grumbled at his sister as she gave him an innocent look that fooled no one.

"Don't worry Syd, she was too busy perving on Jean-Luc to be looking at you." Rowdy chuckled.

This caused Shelly to turn red and direct a murderous gaze at Rowdy who only smiled back at her.

"I see." Fleur said with a cheeky grin at Shelly. "Did you successfully manage to raise ze ship?" She asked.

"We did." Dave answered.

"You all must have impressed ze Siren's then." She remarked as the girls in Dave's team all collapsed in helpless laughter.

"Oh, they impressed them alright." Abby laughed, "I do believe that they 'impressed' them enough that they all have open invitations to visit their colony 'any time'." She added as the Delacour ladies shared a laugh of their own.

"Impressive." Was all that Fleur said before all the ladies broke out into laughter once more.

"Can we let that topic of conversation be forgotten, for all time?" Dave asked.

"I don't think it will ever be forgotten." Abby chuckled, "Last I heard the Sirens were still singing about your efforts." This of course set the girls laughing once more, while the blokes all were trying to think up ways to change the topic of conversation.

Eventually Aunty Sandra took pity on them and asked, "Is that the song you traded to the Dwarves?"

"No." He answered, "I was able to change it to enable its use in salvaging ore and minerals from rocks." Dave explained as his parents and his team all looked at him stunned.

"I had been trying to make it work to extract opal from those Rock's that Uncle Jason gave me, but it isn't working as well as I'd hoped. But it does work extremely well in extracting Iron Ore, along with Tin, Zinc and Silver." He told us.

"That's the song that I traded to the Dwarves." He said before taking in the stunned looks from his parents.

"You modified a song of salvage?" Uncle Ivan asked him with a note of disbelief in his voice. "Successfully?"

"Yes." Dave answered, with a bewildered look on his face.

"And you gave it away to the Dwarves in exchange for them to prepare the Dragon scales on those sets of Armour?"

"Not entirely." Was the answer, before his father indicated for him to explain, "They also showed me how to prepare the scales and setup the runic matrix required to re-enforce them."

"What? How?" He mumbled in disbelief as he looked at his son before turning to look at his equally stunned wife. "Has that EVER happened before?" He asked her.

Aunty Sandra could only shake her head in disbelief as she looked at her son. "They must have greatly valued that song for them to offer that in exchange." She told him.

"I can only hope you didn't make them strip down to their birthday suits to sing it." She added with an evil chuckle of her own.

"Ah... No, I didn't" He answered, "I sung it with Dwarven magics." He explained.

"It's never a dull moment with you around is it." Aunty Sandra muttered as she shook her head at her son. "We might have to see about getting you moved to the Diplomatic Core if you can pull of a feat like that." She chuckled.

"Who knows with communication skills like yours you might even be able to negotiate a successful peace treaty between the Goblins and Gnomes." She chuckled. As she did so I noticed Shelly and Fireball exchange a worried look between them. Aunty Sandra caught the look as well and turned a questioning gaze upon them. Fireball mouthed 'later' to her and she seemed to accept this for the time being.

"Well, now that we know how you got the co-operation of the Dwarves, can you tell us how you managed to secure the Bunyip scales for the different sets of Armour?" Uncle Ivan asked Dave.

"I recruited their families or significant others." Dave explained, "When I explained to them what I was trying to do they were more than willing to assist." He told us.

"What about for Shelly and Jasper?" Aunty Sandra asked, "We didn't know anything about a collection for them?"

"Jean-Luc was more than willing to assist." Dave explained before Shelly engulfed him in a hug and delivered a brilliant smile at him, "As for Fireball I ah… 'kidnapped' a certain Quidditch player named…"

He never got to finish before a brilliant fireball race passed right at him which he was forced to deflect away. The caster of the fireball gave him a rather pointed look for a moment, before changing to one of deep gratitude for his efforts. Dave simply smiled back at his sister.

The rest of his team were quick to give their thanks as well. Although I did notice that Jono was blushing and looking rather embarrassed when he asked Dave who was involved in the collection of the Bunyip scales for him, I could see several inquiring looks directed his way and I could almost hear the gears turning in the minds of the girls on the team. Aunty Sandra also had a curious look in her eyes as she watched Jono head back to his seat with a goofy smile on his face.

Seeing a break in the conversation I took the opportunity to ask Dave a question about something that I saw him do at the Ministry.

"Dave, can I ask you something?"

"Certainly." He replied happily. Personally, I think he was happy for what he hoped to be a change in the subject.

"At the Ministry when you took away Thorfinn Rowle's ability to cast magic. That blue shape that you set on fire, was that really his magical core?" I asked as everyone quietened down to hear his response.

"Ah… You mean this?" He asked me as he reached out and touched my arm before pulling away a pale blue figure that looked exactly like me.

My heart stopped for a moment, before I instinctively reached for my magic, which to my relief was still there. Several of the others at the table also looked like their hearts had stopped for a moment as well.

"Y y yes…" I stammered out.

"Relax Ginny, it's only an illusion." He explained as he waived his hand and the blue shape dissipated into nothingness.

"Then why?" I asked him.

"Misdirection." He answered with that annoying lopsided grin on his face. "If Mr Rowle and those like him think that I was able to 'rip' his magic from him like that, it will cause them to overlook the method that I did use."

"As I don't think we would want them to work out how it was actually done do we?" He asked.

"No, we don't". Dad answered with uncharacteristic seriousness.

"Agreed". Bill stated as Charlie and the rest of the group indicated their agreement as well. I added my agreement as well.

Sensing the morbid direction, the conversation was taking, mum spoke up and started to ask about our trip to Australia. This proved to be the perfect way to raise everyone's spirits.

When it was mentioned that we would be travelling via a doorway, Hermione asked about something called 'jetlag' (I hadn't heard of before) and how its affects would be countered. Once it was explained just what this jetlag was, I was keen to avoid if at all possible.

"It's nothing to worry about Hermione", Uncle Ivan told her, "All that's required is to have a restful afternoon here, with a few afternoon naps before we travel."

"Or if that isn't possible then you can take a 'time zone adjustment potion' or a TZA potion for short. The only downside with them is that kind of cut short your first day in your new location." He explained.

"What do you mean by 'cut short'?" Hermione asked.

"Let's say that if you took the first part of the potion here and then stepped through to your destination and arrived at 8am in the morning. You would find yourself basically asleep and dead to the world by 9pm because of the effects of the potion. However, the next day you will be right as rain."

"That doesn't sound too bad." She said thoughtfully.

"It isn't unless you need to work in your new destination." Olly grumbled to several sets of giggles and laughter from his 'loving' teammates.

Before I could ask for further details, Dads mirror phone began to ring.

After a quick glance at the display he answered, "Kingsley, to what do I owe the pleasure…" before going silent and looking grim.

Looking around I could see Dave and his team watching dad very closely. The looks on their faces showing that they expected to be called into action shortly.

"They are here with me now, I'll put you on speaker." Dad said as he showed his mirror phone to Uncle Ivan who showed him how to put Kingsley on speaker.

"You are now on speaker Kingsley." Dad told him, "Can you please repeat what you just told me."

"Hogwarts is under attack." Kingsley stated in a voice filled with disbelief and rage.

"What can you tell us about this attack?" Uncle Ivan asked him.

"Not much, I got a messenger Patronus from Minerva saying that they were under attack and she was pleading for assistance." He explained, "I tried to enter the school with Ben and Walt however we were unable to do so. We can't even get near the school gates. Most of Hogsmeade is also inaccessible as well." He stated.

"Can you get to Honeydukes?" George asked him.

"No, I can't." Kingsley Answered, "Why?"

"There's a tunnel running from their basement to the school." George told him, "The same with the shrieking shack" he quickly added.

"Give us a moment and we will check." Kingsley stated before we heard the sound of a series of apparition pops, before his voice came back. "That's a no, on the Shrieking Shack." Kingsley reported.

"We can't get anywhere near it."

"Damn it." George snarled.

"How about the Hogs Head?" Harry asked, just as I remembered everyone travelling through it before the Battle.

"We've already tried that one." Kingsley told us with a note of exasperation in his voice.

Uncle Ivan and Dave shared a look, "We could try a doorway?" Dave suggested.

"It's worth a try." He replied, "Kingsley, give us a moment to take this conversation into Dave's tent and we are going to try and make a doorway into the school."

"Understood." Kingsley answered as we all quickly made our way to Dave's tent. Once we got there Dave asked Harry to help guide him to the school gates.

They both touched the door and closed their eyes for a moment before Dave opened his with a look of worry and screamed out "Harry let go of the door NOW."

Harry jumped back with a look of fright on his face as Dave seemed to almost begin to wrestle with the door itself. I could see a series of runes begin to light up around the frame of the door.

"Hit the overrides." Dave snarled out as he continued his struggle with the door.

Mick and Shelly stepped forward and slammed their hands into panels that were either side of Dave's door. These panels opened to reveal a set of stone tablets intricately carved with Runes that I'd never seen before. They then began to power up several of them. Too me it looked like they were doing so at Random, but I noticed that they were both following the same pattern.

Once they had completed their sequence a large rune appeared above each of the stone panels. They then both threw their magic into those runes.

The whole tent started to shake violently for a moment before it all went still. Once it had all three of them sat down on the floor breathing heavily.

"What happened?" Dad asked.

"Hogwarts is protected by several fortified doorways." Dave answered between trying to catch his breath. "They almost took control of my own door." He told us.

"What would have happened then?" I asked.

"Whoever controls the fortified doors at Hogwarts would have had full control of Dave's door." Percy told us.

"Spot on mate." Dave said with a note of pride in his voice, "Those doorways are also VERY old, but despite their age they are still fully active."

"How old?" Kingsley asked.

"If I had to guess, I'd say they were created when the school was built. As they fit too seamlessly into the school's essence for them to be recent additions."

"There is also the fact that to create a fortified doorway requires the use of Sorcery." He told us.

"I see," Kingsley answered, "What do we do now?" He asked.

"I've got an idea." Dave said as he got back to his feet and turned to Harry. "During the recent Battle at Hogwarts you mentioned that the forces of Tom Riddle approached the castle on foot, correct?" He asked my Harry.

"Yeah, they did." Harry answered.

"What direction did they come from?" Dave asked.

"The lake." Harry, George, and Kingsley all answered together.

"Ok, here's what we are going to try." Dave stated, "Harry will direct me to the middle of the Black Lake and then we will slowly move towards the location that the ground assault came from. This should place us well outside the reach of any of those fortified doors as well as the usual wards that would be around the school."

"While we are doing this, Mick and Jono will monitor the sensors on my door for any hostile wards. Now that I know what to look for, I'll be doing the same. We will see how close we can get."

"What will that achieve?" Kingsley asked.

"If the ground assault was as large as Harry was telling me about, I'm willing to bet that the wards in that section of the school will not have regenerated fully. Not unless someone has pumped a large amount of magic back into them anyway." He advised.

"If I'm correct we should be able to make a hole in the school wards and get inside."

"Do it." Kingsley ordered, "We will be there shortly."

"Will do, Minister." Dave answered as he again gestured to Harry and they approached the door again.

We all held our breath as the two of them concentrated on the door. Eventually Harry spoke, "That large tree off to the left there is where I first recall seeing Tom's army approaching the castle."

"Ok, let's take a closer look then." Dave answered him, just as Charlie came back into the tent with Kingsley and Aurors Ben Williams and Walt Proudfoot. It took only a moment to explain to the two of them what was going on.

"Merlin's saggy Y fronts." I heard Dave mutter, "They have been completely torn apart." He said in awe.

"What's been torn apart?" Kingsley ask him.

"The schools wards." He replied, "In this section they are in tatters."

"That works for us, doesn't it?" Harry asked.

"Not really. I can see fragments of the wards basically flapping around like washing on a clothesline." Dave explained. "Given the usual power of these wards even those fragments are going to be dangerous, if you got 'tagged' by one, I'd be willing to bet it would be 'game over' for you."

"So, what do we do?" Kingsley asked.

"We need some Ward Weavers and maybe someone from D.O.T. to secure access for us." Dave suggested.

"That can be arranged." Uncle Ivan answered, "With your permission Minister?" He asked Kingsley who quickly nodded.

With that he pulled out his mirror phone and made a call and began issuing orders. It didn't take him long before he was done and then touched his phone to the screen in Dave's room and Drunkmouse appeared on it.

"Your orders are being carried out now Minister." He reported, "They will be ready to travel inside of 5 mins."

"Excellent." Uncle Ivan reported before he turned to Dave's team. "You are all ordered to prepare for Magical combat." He instructed them as they all snapped to attention.

"Gear up in full armour with all your weapons and usual bags of tricks. Also bring your old sets of amour here as we might need to kit out our hosts as well."

"Mick, can you collect the additional members that I requested before you return?" He asked, "If Arthur has no objections to more visitors that is."

"Not at all." Dad answered, to which Uncle Ivan and Kingsley nodded gratefully.

Dave's team all saluted before they headed out of the tent. The exception was Dave himself who immediately started to strip off his clothes and kick them to one side. I was a little shocked, but Gabrielle seemed to be enjoying herself at the impromptu show.

Once he was down to his undies, he walked over to what looked like a wardrobe and opened it. It seemed to be open out into a small cubical with an arch in it. When Dave stepped behind it and stripped off his undies (they were thrown across to the pile of his other clothes) Gabrielle had to be held back by Fleur from going over to 'investigate' the situation.

Dave then activated a rune on the arch and stepped through it. As he came out on the other side, he was wearing a black form fitting (very form fitting I must admit) jumpsuit that was covered in Runes that almost seemed to be alive.

"Is that painted on?" I asked him out of pure mischievousness as I watched Gabrielle rake her eyes over his form.

"Just about." Was his answer as he pulled out a set of black coveralls from the same wardrobe.

"Really?" I asked in surprise, "What is it for?"

"It forms a conduit that connects with my armour to allow me more leeway in how I use my magic in combat." He answered as he zipped up the coveralls (they were also VERY snug on him, something that Gabrielle appreciated).

"He means that it allows him to 'cut loose' with just about all of his magic without losing his clothes." Aunty Sandra giggled as Dave turned to give her an evil glare.

"I see." Was my reply as I tried to hide my laughter. Gabrielle wasn't even trying to hide hers as she was giving Dave a naughty smile.

After looking over at Gabrielle and returning her smile (with a small blush on his cheeks), we moved to the boxes containing his new armour. I was surprised at how quickly he was able to put it on, and how much of him it covered.

About the only part not covered was his face and I could see a hood and a mask that would be used to cover that.

Even though the armour was quite well fitted to him, it did have the effect of adding to his bulk and he looked even more formidable in it than even the muggle armour that we had seen him in previously. It didn't appear to hinder his movements in anyway however, which I could only guess was a good thing.

He disappeared into his room for a moment and returned with several sets of armour which he placed on the kitchen table.

"These are some extra sets of armour, that I have. They should be suitable for Kingsley, Walt and Ben." He stated as he indicated the two of them. "Mum and dad should be able to resize them for you as it will require sorcery to do so."

Kingsley, Walt, and Ben indicated their thanks and with the assistance of Uncle Ivan and Aunty Sandra quickly began to dress themselves in the offered armour.

Dave returned to his room as he did, Mick returned also dressed in his new armour. With him were some new faces that I'd not seen before. One of them looked to be almost the size of Dave, if it weren't for the look of mischief on his face (he also smiled and winked at us as he entered Dave's tent), I'd have been worried.

All of them were carrying some boxes that I assumed were Mick's old amour.

Before we could be introduced Dave returned from his room as he was finishing securing something to the outside of his forearm.

"The new armour looks good on you squirt." Rumbled the voice of the rather large new arrival.

Dave smiled and looked up and chuckled before going back to finishing adjusting whatever it was that he was strapping to his forearm.

"Thanks Max." Was all he said as he headed to the kitchen only to stop dead with a stunned look on his face.

"Max?" He exclaimed as he spun back to face the new arrival with a look of joy on his face.

"The one and only." The newly named Max answered with a grin as he held his arms out to Dave.

Very quickly his arms were occupied as Dave pulled him into a crushing embrace. When they separated, we could all see that they were both genuinely surprised and pleased to see each other.

"Not that I'm not glad to see you here mate, but what are you doing here?" Dave asked, "Have you been cleared for field operations?"

"Yep. I'm all healed up and good to go." He answered with an enthusiastic grin, "The Minister put out the call for some ward weavers, so I'm here as requested."

"Excellent." Dave grinned back, "You here by yourself or…" He began to ask before someone else stepped out from behind Max's back.

She wasn't as tall as Max, who was easily over 7 feet tall, she looked to be 'only' 6 foot 5 in height. But like Max she had an extremely muscular build and carried herself in a way that spoke louder than words that she was more than capable (and willing) to deal with just about anything.

"Hey Squirt." She chuckled as she winked and gave him a cheeky wave. Dave groaned and rolled his eyes as he was pulled into a friendly embrace, which was closely watched by Gabrielle.

"There goes the neighbourhood." He muttered as he regarded her with a friendly but wary look, before turning to his father. "Did you really request her?" He asked indicating the still grinning mystery woman who still had her arm around his waist.

"Unfortunately." Uncle Ivan replied with a chuckle as the mystery woman gave a look of mock despair and Max gave a laugh. "She is one of the best ward weavers that we have, also she was in the Ministry at the time I placed my call." He added with a grin,

"And here I thought we were trying to make a good impression over here." Dave muttered, as Max laughed, and the mystery woman shot them both the evil eye. "Well, I suppose some introductions are in order then." He suggested to his father.

"I was about to before you interrupted things." Was the reply before Uncle Ivan turned to us.

"Minister Shacklebolt, Director Weasley I'd like to introduce you to Master Warders Maximillian 'Max' Veers and Amanda 'Mandy' Campbell." He said as they were formally introduced. The introductions were a little rushed as another new face had appeared in the tent doorway.

"I'd also like to introduce Flynn Quin of our Department of Transport as well." He said as handshakes and hand kisses were once again quickly exchanged. Flynn seemed to be a little lost in the group as he was only just over 5 foot tall and had dark brown coloured hair. But it was his voice that I heard call out a common question that we were to face many times over the next few weeks.

"THE Weasleys?" He asked as he meet dad.

"Yes indeed." Was the answer he was given before he quickly moved over to Dave's door and was briefed on the situation. After a quick chat with Dave and Harry he took over control of Dave's door and began to navigate his way through the fragments of the Hogwarts wards to a location where he could set the door down. Apparently, Flynn was a master of the various magics involved with enchanted doorways. This easily explained why Dave allowed him to operate his doorway in such a tricky situation.

As he did this, I noticed him make use of many of the Runes that were engraved into the doorframe. The look of concentration on his face gave testament to the difficulty of his task.

As he was engaged in that Task, I was drawn back to Uncle Ivan as he began to layout the plan.

"Once Flynn can secure a safe doorway for us, I want you Mick and you Syd to accompany Max and Mandy as they tie off the fragments of the wards that are nearby. Your sole responsibility is their safety while they work. Clear?" He asked them.

"Crystal." They both replied.

"Once we have a secure and safe entry point the rest of us will step through and we can begin to scout the area and assess the situation."

"Then we can begin to take whatever steps are necessary to provide whatever relief is required to the school. Agreed?" He asked looking around at the faces before him.

"Agreed." Kingsley replied as he finished adjusting Dave's armour and indicated his thanks to Dave for the loan.

"Excellent. Then let us get the rest of our group kitted out then." He advised as the rest of Dave's team turned up with their old armour and we set out to find a set that could be fitted to us. Dave brought out a few more boxes of Armor that he gave to Bill, Ron and Harry. Charlie seemed to be trying on a set of armour from the boxes that Mick brought in.

I sought out Abby as she was the closest to my size and thus would be my best bet. It turned out that Abby had the same idea, and she was coming over to us girls along with Mandy and Max.

We were all being fitted with sets of armour that best suited us when Mandy spoke up. "I know where I've seen you before." She said with a cheeky smile at a curious Fleur.

"Oh?" Fleur asked her.

"Yeah." Mandy answered raising her voice and looking over at Dave, "You were on the cover of the newspaper, in a silver bathing suit at the second task of the Tri Wiz tournament." She explained with a rather feral grin on her face. She seemed to have caught Fleur's attention as she was listening carefully while also keeping an eye on Dave's reactions.

"What was that comment that we heard about her?" Mandy asked Max, who was now also sporting an evil grin of his own. He winked at Fleur and then looked over at Dave (without a shred of shame) before stating quite clearly, "I think it was something along the lines of 'That silly bloody Galah would have been better off wearing a wetsuit', if I recall correctly."

The whole room had gone silent and after a glance at Max they were all now looking at a very embarrassed Dave who was looking about for a way to change the topic of conversation (and failing I might add).

"Did you really?" asked an amused Fleur, as she grinned at a now madly grinning Mandy before turning her gaze over to a rather worried looking Dave. "I wonder who would have said such a thing?" She asked him before flashing a quick smirk at an equally amused Gabrielle.

"Well…" Dave tried to explain before he faltered a little under Fleur's intense gaze. "When you think about it logically, a standard swimsuit isn't exactly a great choice for a Veela to wear into a lake in Scotland."

"Wait! What? That's, the first thing that came to your mind when seeing a photo of a Veela in a swimsuit?" Ben asked Dave with a note of disbelief in his voice. This caused Kingsley, Walt, and several of the guys in Dave's team to burst out laughing.

Fleur tried to feign shock and insult, but it didn't work to well, mostly because she was also laughing. Along with Gabrielle and Apolline.

"Wait, she's a Veela?" Max asked looking at Fleur, "Are you sure? That could be a problem."

Fleur had a surprised look on her face as she regarded Max. "Looks like you might not have all of your senses back as yet Max" Mandy chuckled.

"Give him a break Mandy." Dave suggested, "I mean, after all he's too used to dealing with the Veela back home, and none of the Delacour ladies have horns, cloven feet, serpentine tails, forked tongues and claws." He explained.

"In short they are ladies not, devils." He said with a grin at Max. "So, it would be very easy for him to make that mistake." He suggested.

"Awwww… He says the sweetest things doesn't he girls." Came a new voice from behind us.

Turning around we saw a group of seven women who were all regarding us with looks of intense curiosity. They were all clearly of Veela heritage, as after spending the amount of time around Fleur and her family I'd learnt to recognise the feel of Veela magic.

Fleur like all the other Veela I had seen (up until then) had Silvery Blond hair that basically glowed (especially when she was happy). This had formed the image in my mind that all Veela had this same type of hair (with only minor differences). Her mother, sister and cousins had only served to reinforce this view.

However, the group of women at the tent door had similar hair in the respect that it looked like it was flawless and basically glowing. However, their hair was a range of colours. There was of course Silvery Blond, but there was also Sandy Blond, Brunette, Fiery Red, and an Ebony so deep it almost seemed to suck in all the surrounding light.

The next thing that I noticed was they were all visibly armoured. They were also heavily armed with a frightening array of weapons, both magical and non-magical. However, it wasn't their amour or weapons that held my attention, it was the way that they moved. These were not like the 'delicate' Veela cheerleaders we saw at the world cup. These Veela were warriors and predators, their armour and weaponry weren't for show. It was clear for all to see that they knew how to handle both themselves and the weapons that they carried (and we were witness this firsthand before the day was out).

I then noticed all their predatory grins, which were directed at Dave. He noticed them as well, and I could already see him contemplating possible escape routes.

"Because he was being so nice to us, I think he deserves a reward. Don't you think so girls?" Remarked the Veela with the ebony hair as she looked at what I'm guessing were her fellow teammates. Seeing nods from all of them she turned back to a now very worried Dave and said, "Well we better not keep him waiting then." Before all seven of them moved on Dave as one cohesive unit.

Now, I've seen Dave move with 'enhanced speed' before so I was sure that he would be able to escape. However, when faced with multiple opponents who can also move in the same manner and are trained to work as a unit, your odds of escaping are greatly reduced. Especially when the members of his own team seemed very content to sit bck and watch, while smiling at Dave's efforts.

He did manage to put up an impressive effort and almost made it to the questionable safety of his room before he was caught. Once caught they swarmed over him delivering hugs, kisses to his cheeks, pinching his cheeks, ruffling his hair and even smacking him on the bum.

They then moved away laughing, to take up positions on one of the couches. Once comfortable they amused themselves watching Dave's antics.

He seemed to be rapidly searching himself for something. After a few moments he began to remove some small stones from his various places and throw them onto the coffee table. Once he extracted seven of these stones, he turned an amused but annoyed gaze onto the new arrivals.

"Who the hell invited you lot here?" He asked them, but without any real heat in his voice.

"Awww, don't you love us anymore?" Asked the red haired one as she battered her eyelids at him.

"I've never loved you lot." Dave replied, "You're all a menace to polite society." He snapped back, but there was a slight upturn to his lips (that he couldn't quite hide) that gave lie to his statement.

"He still loves us." The ebony haired one stated confidently as the others nodded in agreement.

It was clear this was another reunion of old friends. Especially when Aunty Sandra along with Dave's sisters all burst out laughing.

"What are these?" Ron asked as he bent to pick up one of the stones. Dave's call of "Don't touch them". Came a little too late as Ron's face morphed into one of extreme discomfort.

Dave summoned the stone to him, being careful not to touch it and carefully looked at the Runes that were inscribed on it. "Ouch, that's going to be uncomfortable." He said to himself as he read it.

"Which one of you devils is responsible for the hessian underwear rune stone?" He asked them. The red haired Veela smiled and called the rune stone to herself and then broke it. As she did so Ron's face showed his relief.

"Sorry about that." She said with a small chuckle (not really sounding sorry by any stretch of the imagination), "It was intended as a 'gift' for our 'Mighty Champion' over there." She said with a naughty sounding giggle as she indicated Dave who now had a worried look on his face.

His parents stared to laugh, and they were soon joined by the rest of his 'loving' family and his teammates.

"I'd forgotten about that." Uncle Ivan remarked as he wiped the tears from his eyes.

"Forgot?" Dave scoffed, "More like a selective amnesia so you could foist the job off on to me." He grumbled at his grinning father.

"Pardon?" Gabrielle asked, "What do you mean by Champion?"

"Can I explain it?" The red haired Veela asked, only to be met by a resounding chorus of "No!", from Dave's family and Team. She sat back on the couch grumbling good naturedly.

"What she means Gabrielle, is that our magical citizens of Veela heritage in Australia all belong to their own 'Nation'." He explained, "This 'Australian Veela Nation' is allied with the Australian Ministry of Magic, just like the many other 'magical nations' that are in our homeland."

"However, this alliance predates the actual formation of the nation of Australia, either magical or mundane. The result of that is the initial alliance was to the Magical Colony of New South Wales."

"As the original colony was directly established by the British Crown, each of the nations that swore an alliance with it could reserve the right to select their very own Champion or protector."

"Now, the ladies…" He said continuing on only to be interrupted by a cough that sounded very much like 'devils', which caused everyone to look over at Dave, who was trying to look innocent while manoeuvring himself closer to a very amused Gabrielle.

"Ladies, of Veela Heritage back home." Uncle Ivan stated for clarity to the assembled group, "Don't really require any protection, as they are extremely capable of protecting themselves and their fellows. However, they also realised that it wouldn't do to become directly involved in any disputes that may end up in a formal duel and cause any further hostilities to be directed at their fellow citizens."

"The end result of that was they selected the first Magical Duke of Sydney as their Champion, and he enlisted his personal champion the Marquess of Port Jackson into that role." He explained as we understood the reference.

"It has been a very beneficial system as it acts as a sort of 'buffer' between the different nations and diffuses any tensions that have resulted from those who have lost in the few duels that ended up resulting from situations that couldn't be otherwise resolved."

"I see." Gabrielle answered as she turned to look at Dave, "So you are zee Champion of zee Veela zen?" She asked him as she battered her eyelashes at him and delivered a devastating smile that I think even he understood the meaning of.

After it became obvious that he wasn't going to be able to form a coherent reply anytime soon she delivered a passionate kiss and then hugged him. This action got the full and immediate attention of the seven Veela who were sitting on the couch. They were all intently watching Gabrielle with what I could only call a very protective (and slightly possessive) look. It immediately gave me the impression that they would be just as quick to spring to the defence of Dave (and his family) as he would be for them.

After a moment I noticed their eyes all turn golden briefly, as they watched the two of them. When their eyes returned to normal, they all had very amused expressions on their faces. However, they did seem to approve of their new discovery. They soon sought out Dave's sisters with their eyes and I could almost physically feel their demand for more information on this situation.

His sisters only smiled back and with a simple nod indicated that they would be filling them in as soon as they could.

"Now before we get too distracted, I feel that there are some more introductions that are in order." Uncle Ivan suggested.

"Why bother." Dave remarked, "Just introduce them as She Devil 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7." He said as he pointed to each one in turn, before being elbowed in the ribs by Gabrielle. The 'she devils' appeared to have approved of her action going by the smiles of approval that they all gave her.

Dave tried to garner some sympathy from Gabrielle, but she wasn't having any of it. He did eventually get a small smile and a kiss on his nose for his efforts though.

"Now before there are any more interruptions." Uncle Ivan started before looking over at Dave to check that he wasn't about to interrupt (he wasn't, as he was too busy trying to position Gabrielle in between him and the new arrivals). "I'll begin with the introductions; however, we will hold off on individual greetings for now due to time constraints."

"And safety concerns." Dave chuckled as he smirked at the ebony haired Veela who happily returned it.

"This young lady here," He said as he called the red headed Veela to him, "Is Auror Sara Donohoe."

"Aka 'oh-no'." Dave mumbled under his breath just loud enough for us to hear him. Sara also heard his comment, by the smirk she sent back. She also politely waved to us all.

"She is the Warding specialist in her team and is particularly skilled in uncovering hidden areas." We were informed.

"This next young lady…" Uncle Ivan said as he called the Silvery Blond Veela up, "Is Auror Gunnhild 'Gunny' Frostad. She is the scout/sniper specialist for her team."

Gunny (as she preferred to be called), smiled at us all as Uncle Ivan introduced her before moving aside so the rest of her teammates could be introduced.

Auror Nikita Mijalkovski was the next one we were introduced to. She was a stunning brunette with pale sea green eyes. Her speciality was as the potions / poison's specialist.

'Nikki' as she like to be called gave us all a smile and winked at Goose (apparently the two of them had a friendly professional rivalry going on), before she moved aside and allowed the next introduction.

Auror Myra Reynolds the interrogation / investigation specialist was introduced next. She had wonderful light brown hair and pale grey eyes. She was also apparently the 'shy one' in her team. Which was rather odd as her role primarily involved talking to people.

Auror Catherine Jean Pierre was the linguist for her team. She was of Haitian decent, with dark skin and very long black hair (although it wasn't as black as the final member of her team) and spoke with what I was told was a French-Creole accent. Later on, when she was told of Dave's 'adventure' trying to get a suit in Paris she ended up laughing so hard she dislocated a rib. She also NEVER let him live it down.

The demolition specialist was Auror Marthina Kruger. She and Fireball got along like a house on fire (and I mean that in the literal sense, as they were both known for burning things down and/or blowing them up, more than was called for in their professional roles).

The final member of the team was Auror Aimi Tanaka. She was of Japanese decent and had the blackest hair I've ever seen. She also had a wicked sense of humour and because she regards Dave as a 'honouree' younger brother, she LOVES to play practical jokes on him, and by extension his (male) cousins and a few 'select' others.

She was also the leader for her Team.

"Together these ladies make up the Auror team informally known as 'Lucifer's Ladies' of the Australian Auror Service", Uncle Ivan told us with a laugh as all of the aforementioned ladies gave a quick bow.

"Australian? Or Australasian?" Hermione asked.

"Australian." Auror Aimi Tanaka answered, "We prefer to stay close to home if we have a choice in the matter." She advised.

"Thankfully." Dave muttered under his breath. Although I don't think he really intended to keep his reply quiet. As Jono, Guz, Olly and Rowdy all had a chuckle at his comment. The ladies of 'Lucifer's Ladies' gave him an amused look before turning to Uncle Ivan with an expression that indicated they were hoping for an introduction to all of us.

He didn't disappoint them.

"Now, I'd like to introduce you to our hosts." He began, "Standing to my right is the British Minister of Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt, and on his right are Aurors Ben Williams and Walt Proudfoot." He advised as all of those indicated gave a bow to our new arrivals.

"Next up is a very special individual, Mr Arthur Weasley…" He said before having to wave down a group of excited Veela, "YES. Those Weasley's." He clarified for them with a laugh, before giving a brief run down on dad's parentage. After which they all gave dad a respectful salute.

"Arthur's wife Molly Weasley neé Prewett." He said as mum gave them a little wave and a smile. "We also learned that she is my wife's sister." That statement generated some excitement amongst not only the newly arrived Veela, but also with Max and Mandy. They were looking at us all in a new light.

An offhand comment about Bill being the almost mythical 'bombshell' also caused some excitement and caused the entirety of 'Lucifer's Ladies' to try and check out Bill's rear. He did the Weasley's proud with his blush as he tried to hide behind Fleur. Fleur had decided to find the whole thing amusing and had a laugh at her husband's situation.

After we were all introduced Uncle Ivan next introduced the Delacour family. This caused some more entertainment, as apparently Julian Delacour was already known to the Auror service in Australia.

"I know you." Auror Aimi Tanaka told us after Julian Delacour was introduced.

"Moi?" He asked looking rather confused, as Apolline gave him a questioning look.

"Yes, you." Auror Aimi Tanaka confirmed, "We picked you and your mates up in Broome after a tip off about a group of drunk and disorderly individuals." She happily informed us. Apolline was now trying to give her husband a look of disappointment, but the corners of her mouth kept on twitching showing her amusement. Julian on the other hand began to look a little pale.

"Do tell." Apolline requested.

"I believe that your husband and his business partner one John Thompson had successfully closed a major business deal about 2-3 years ago. As a result, they were celebrating." She informed us with a smile as Julian began to look more worried, "At some point in their celebrations they decided to begin singing." She laughed.

Apolline positively beamed at this news. "I didn't realise that you could sing dear." She told her now very embarrassed husband.

"He can't." Auror Aimi Tanaka advised us with a laugh, "The general consensus was that while John was a wonderful singer, your husband couldn't carry a tune in a bucket."

This caused everyone to have a laugh.

"He is very enthusiastic about singing however." She added with a small laugh, "The spirit is willing, but the skill just isn't there." She smirked.

"I'm beginning to understand why you call zem she devils." Julian grumbled to Dave.

"I try my best to warn people, but no one listens until it's too late." Was the response from a grinning Dave.

"We will 'ave to catch up later so zat you can tell me ze full story." Apolline suggested to Auror Aimi Tanaka. Needless to say, she quickly agreed.

Apolline was then introduced as Julian's wife and surprisingly also as a senior member of the Veela Nation in France. This caused a moment of surprise not only from the Veela, but also the rest of us. Apolline was given a deep bow by the members of Lucifer's Ladies.

Fleur's introduction also caused a few laughs as several of the newly arrived Veela recognised her and advised that they had heard of her before. When she asked if it was as a 'silly galah' who should have worn a wetsuit there was more laughter, as they hadn't heard that one before.

Apparently Auror Catherine Jean Pierre was in Dave's Auror class and was an avid supporter of Fleur in the Tri Wiz tournament. She also advised us that Dave was very adamant in his stance of not supporting Fleur as he apparently stated, 'there were too many bloody Veela devils here already'.

"No what I actually said was, 'there were too many bloody Veela Devils in this class already and that we didn't need to go and invite any extra ones in'." He clarified for us, as Fleur and the members of Lucifer's Ladies had a laugh.

"So how many Veela is too many?" Gabrielle asked him with an amused smirk.

"One's enough." Dave replied giving her a tender look that caused a blush to appear on her cheeks, and approving smiles from her family along with all the other females in the room. Gabrielle gave him a kiss as a reward before she was introduced as Dave's girlfriend. If the smiles were anything to go by her involvement with Dave was approved by the arrivals.

Hermione was introduced next and then it was Harry's turn. I could also sense the nervousness from Uncle Ivan before he introduced my Harry.

"This young man here is Harry Potter." Uncle Ivan said as he stood next to my Harry. The effect of Harry's name on the Veela was instant. They were on their feet and had their wands drawn faster than I though was possible. Poor Harry's eyes looked like they were about to pop out of his head.

As fast as they were though, Dave was faster. He placed himself in front of Harry and held his hand out to the Veela palm out in the universal sign to halt. Thankfully, they did.

"Stand down." He stated calmly and firmly, "It is a long story, but the key points are this." He told them as they lowered their wands.

"Yes, Harry here is from 'those' Potters. However, he knows almost nothing of his family history." Dave advised them, "He has also promised to do what he can to help us uncover what (if any) relevant information there is in his family records."

This news placated the Veela and they quickly apologised to Harry. He was happy to forgive them (if only to escape from the searching looks that they were giving him).

With all the introductions out of the way, Aunty Sandra turned to Max and asked him, "What was it that you were trying to say before the ladies turned up?"

"I don't think any of the spare armour that we have here will be suitable for the Delacour ladies." He advised.

"How so?" Aunty Sandra asked.

"None of it is tuned for Veela magic." He stated simply, as he thought for a moment. "With the exception of Syd's that is." He added, as my family and the Delacour's all turned to regard a thoughtful Dave.

"I don't think my armour will be of much use to them." He answered.

"Why?" Gabrielle asked him.

"I'm a bloke." Was Dave's distracted answer.

"Not all the time…" Auror Aimi Tanaka sing-songed with an evil grin on her face. Dave didn't dignify her comment with an answer. Disappointed with his lack of response Auror Myra Reynolds spoke up.

"Maybe we should check?" She suggested, "Just to make sure he isn't confused."

That comment got a response from Dave as he quickly backed away from her towards Gabrielle.

"Or maybe we could ask Gabrielle to do the honours." Auror Catherine Jean Pierre suggested with an innocent tone of voice that fooled no one.

"Cathy..." Aunty Sandra gently chided her, as poor Dave now seemed hesitant to approach a wickedly grinning Gabrielle and Fleur.

Carefully stepping around them he approached Bill and borrowed the vest that was part of the set of Armour that Bill was putting on. He then approached Apolline with it (most likely because he missed seeing the wicked grin on her face at his earlier predicament).

"Can you try this on quickly and then try to reach for all of your magics?" He asked her.

"Oui." She answered him and quickly put it on over her top. Once she had it on, we all watched her intently for a few moments as she concentrated on her magics.

"I can still feel eet, but eet isn't as easy to reach as eet usually eez." She answered him sadly as she handed the vest back to him. Dave then passed it back to Bill, his face showing that he was deep in thought.

"Well, that answers that then." He stated, before his face lit up as an idea came to him. He quickly crossed to a cabinet that was next to the one where he had previously retrieved his muggle weapons.

"These suits are not fully finished at the moment." She said as he began touching a set of runes that appeared on the cabinet doors. "However, with the exception of one of them I don't think that will be an issue."

Opening the cabinet, we could see two full suits of armour, and one that appeared to be missing its chest piece. However, these suits were very different to the ones worn by Dave and his team. They were indeed made up of animal scales that were covered in runes, however, the scales on these suits were smaller than the dragon scales and they seemed to almost be glossy.

The runes that covered the scales were also very different as they almost looked like they had been made with molten gold. In short, they looked more like works of art than functional suits of armour. The gasps that I could hear from the others confirmed to me that I wasn't the only one who thought so.

As Dave retrieved the vest from one of the suits, Harry stepped forward and took a close look at it before remarking. "Is that Basilisk scale and hide?"

"Yes it is." Dave answered as he held the vest out to Apolline to try on.

"Where on earth did you get Basilisk parts from?" Uncle Ivan asked as he examined the suits with wonder in his eyes, before turning to his son.

"I ran into someone at 'The Library' who mentioned that he had some for sale." Dave answered as he helped Apolline do up the vest.

His distracted answered proved to be too much for his parents. They reached out and spun him around before grabbing an arm each.

"You bought Basilisk hide from someone you'd only just met?" His dad asked.

"No. He was Newt's mate Griff Preddy, who helped us track down those manticore parts last year." Dave answered.

"Ah. I see." His dad answered, "How much did you buy?"

"Just about all of it." Dave answered, just as Apolline finished getting the vest on.

Once it was on, she attempted to reach for her magics. As she did so the runes that covered the scales and hide of the vest briefly lit up. The expression on her face clearly told the story, before she spoke.

"Magnifique." Was all she said as she smiled at Dave.

"It doesn't inhibit any of your magics?" He asked with an excited look on his face, as he tried to escape from his parents.

"Not at all." Apolline answered happily.

"Excellent, that means I got the runic arrays correct." Dave stated as he grinned back at her.

"Who are you making those suits for?" Aunty Sandra asked him.

"My godsisters." Dave answered, as his mum, sisters and the Veela Aurors all give him adorable looks (that he completely missed).

"Why is one of them missing a vest?" I asked him.

"Well, it depends on if you believe the story about how the Basilisk was killed or not."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, the bloke that supplied the Basilisk to Griff tried to sell him on the idea that the hole in its head was caused by the sword that killed it." Dave explained, "However, for that to be true whoever used the sword would have to have been basically standing inside the mouth of the damn thing." He scoffed.

As he said this I looked over to Harry, along with Ron and Hermione to see a rather embarrassed look on his face. Dave however was still speaking.

"I mean, it would take a special kind of Muppet to try and kill a Basilisk like that. Especially when there are much safer ways of doing it." He explained to us, as he eventually caught on that we were all looking over at Harry.

"Huh?" He asked looking at Harry.

"Well, the thing is." Harry tried to explain as all of the Aurors in the room focused on him, "I killed a Basilisk a few years ago with a sword." He said as Dave and the others looked at him in disbelief.

"How big was the one you bought the parts of?" He asked Dave.

"Just over 62 feet long." Dave answered as he continued to look at Harry.

"Yeah, that sounds like it, could be it." Harry answered with that adorable, embarrassed smile that he has.

Dave just stared at Harry for a few moments, before he looked over to an equally stunned Mick and Jono.

"You killed a 62-foot-long Basilisk, by standing in its mouth and stabbing it with a sword?" Dave asked him with a look on his face that I couldn't decide if it was impressed, concerned or outright disbelief at what he had just heard.

"Yes" Harry answered.

"Are you nucking futs!" Dave exclaimed, "Why on earth didn't you conjure a rooster or two?"

"Or place a bubble head charm on it filled with Carbon monoxide?" Mick asked him.

"Or banish the sword at it from a safe distance?" Jono asked.

Before anyone else could offer any 'helpful' suggestions Harry held his hands up to call for some calm, "I wasn't thinking very clearly at the time." Was his answer.

"That's for sure." Olly muttered under his breath with a small chuckle.

"How did you avoid getting bitten?" Dave asked.

"I didn't." Harry answered, just as everyone yelled out "WHAT!".

It took a while before Kingsley, Dad and Uncle Ivan were able to restore calm to the group. But once a semblance of calm was restored Harry rolled up his sleeve and showed off the scar that he had from the Basilisk.

Upon seeing it Dave looked at it very closely and then asked Harry about how he was standing when he was bitten. Once Harry gave him the details that he was after Dave asked the next logical question.

"Why aren't you dead?"

"Fawkes cried into the wound once I pulled the fang out." Harry stated.

"Fawkes?" Dave asked.

"He was Professor Dumbledore's Phoenix." I told Dave.

"You meet a Phoenix?" Dave asked excitedly.

"Yes." Harry answered rather amused at Dave reaction.

"This Fawkes, he cried into the wound caused by the Basilisk, to stop the effects of the venom and allowed it to heal to what it is now?" Dave asked rather intently. Harry could only nod his head in answer.

"Don't move." Dave ordered as he crossed the room to a set of drawers. Opening one of them he pulled out two objects. He brought these over to Harry and then measured them against the wound in his arm.

Stepping around Dave I was able to see that the two objects were knives, or more accurately daggers, with a curved blade.

"That would be the fang that bit you." Dave advised handing Harry the larger of the two daggers and a sheath.

"What?" Harry asked as his eyes went wide examining the dagger that Dave had just given him.

"I had the Basilisk fangs that were of suitable size made into daggers." Dave told him, "When crafted correctly, a dagger made from a Basilisk fang is neigh on indestructible."

"That's amazing." Harry said as he went to hand the dagger back.

"Keep it." Dave told him, "You will find that it will be very much in tune with your magic as it will have some of your blood in it. You may even be able to cast magic through it, much like a wand." He explained as Harry's eye went wide with wonder.

While Harry was more closely examining his new dagger, Dave came over to me and handed me the other dagger. "This Dagger is the mate of the one that Harry has." He told me as I examined the beautiful but frightening object, "It has been designed to be wielded by the mate of its mate." Dave told me in a solemn voice.

Fighting back a small blush as I comprehended his statement, I gratefully accepted his gift and withdrew it from its sheath. As I did so I could feel it acknowledging me and my magic.

"Cross your blades and touch a finger to the flat of each other's blade." Dave instructed Harry and me. As we did so I could feel a pulse of magic from Harry's dagger through my arm. Harry later told me that he could feel the same from mine. The pulse of magic that I felt could only be described as protective and slightly possessive.

"The daggers have accepted you both as their masters." Dave told us, "You are both now immune to the venom that is contained within the blades of these two daggers." He explained. "This will hold true for as long as your bond does." He added with a look at each of us. Acknowledging his message, I gave him a hug and Harry gratefully shook hands with him.

"Now zat we 'ave solve ze mystery of where ze Basilisk parts came from." Fleur stated with an impish grin at Harry, "Can we continue with zis armour?" She asked Dave as she regarded the other full set of armour with an approving eye.

"Of course." He answered as he removed the chest piece of the other set and handed it to her to try on.

As she did so we witnessed a repeat of what occurred with Apolline. Fleur also had a brilliant smile on her face she examined the armour that she was wearing. After a few moments she turned to regard Gabrielle who was looking at the remaining set with a sad expression.

"Do not worry Gabrielle." Dave stated as he put his hand on her shoulder, "I have an idea of what we can do to resolve this. If you trust me that is." He suggested.

"Oui. I do." She replied with a brilliant smile.

"Thank you." He answered as he gave her a grateful look, before directing Gabrielle to the kitchen table. He then brought out his original Bunyip scale vest and removed its covering exposing the glittering scales that were underneath.

With his vest laid out on the kitchen table Dave placed his hand on the center of the front of it and closed his eyes. As he did so I could see a faint glow ripple through the vest. After a few moments he opened his eyes and beckoned to Gabrielle to come and stand next to him. As she did so he took her right hand and brought it to his lips, where he kissed her knuckles. This caused Gabrielle to smile and display a small blush to her cheeks.

Both Fleur and Apolline caught this, and they shared an amused look with Julien and Aunty Sandra.

Dave then placed Gabrielle's right hand in the center of his vest where his own hand had been earlier. With her hand in place, he covered it with his own, before they both closed their eyes.

Once more I could see a small glow pulse through his vest. When their eyes opened once more, I could see a look of undisguised wonder on Gabrielle's face as she turned to Dave.

"Zey have agreed to protect me?" She asked Dave.

"Yes, they have." He answered with a brilliant smile. "For now, it is for a single 'turning of the sun' however." He cautioned.

"24hrs?" She asked him.

"Correct." Was the answer. "You now need to place your hands on the back of the vest where your wings would emerge if you called on them." He advised her, as her eyes betrayed her surprise. Before she looked away in embarrassment.

Placing his fingers under her chin, he brought her head up to look her in her eyes. "They have accepted you and agreed to protect you. ALL of you." He advised her, in what I've come to learn is his teaching voice. "You have nothing to be embarrassed about." He stated as he kissed her forehead.

Smiling gratefully Gabrielle placed her hands on the back panel of the vest and closed her eyes for a moment. When she opened them again, she nodded to Dave who then replaced the cover on the vest. He then held the vest out to Gabrielle for her to try on. After it was secured in place, Gabrielle was instructed to reach for her magics.

As she did so the vest moulded itself to her body. This caused a small gasp of surprise from her before she smiled in satisfaction.

"No issues?" Dave asked her.

"Non." She answered, "I can feel all of my magics just fine." She told him happily.

"That's excellent." He told her as he crossed to the cabinet and removed another garment that looked similar to the Bunyip fur armour that he had given us previously. "Much like with my armour that I currently have on, these sets of armour have been crafted to allow for the use of VERY intense flames. With that in mind I'd strongly advise you to wear this against your skin, then the matching jump suit, then the outer armour." He suggested holding the garment out to Apolline who looked at it closely before looking at Dave with surprise.

"Zese runes, zey appear to channel…" She started to exclaim before Dave answered.

"Yes, they do." He answered with a serious tone to his voice. "As I mentioned before, these suits have been crafted to allow those who share your heritage to use ALL your available magics safely."

"Merci." Apolline answered as she embraced Dave and kissed his cheeks, causing some laughs from the assembled group.

"Aimi, can you organise some assistance for these ladies to put this armour on correctly?" Dave asked Auror Tanaka.

"No problem." She answered as she quickly crossed to the Delacour ladies and directed them to Dave's room. "We can get you changed in here." She stated confidently before being stopped just short of the door to Dave's room. Curiously the Delacour ladies were not stopped by the invisible barrier.

"What?" Auror Tanaka exclaimed as she began to carefully examine the barrier that kept her from Dave's bedroom. There were some amused laughs from Dave's team along with Max.

"You got it to work I see." Rumbled Max with an amused note to his voice.

"Yup." Was Dave's smug reply, "I told you they weren't she devils." He stated confidently.

"What is the meaning of this?" Demanded Auror Tanaka as she turned her frustrated gaze on to an amused Dave.

"What does it look like?" Was his smug answer, "It's a protective ward to keep me safe."

"Safe? Safe, from what?" Ron asked, as Hermione just shook her head.

"She devils." Dave answered with a grin at Auror Tanaka and the rest of her team.

"You really think this will stop us for long?" She asked with a note of challenge in her voice.

"She seems very determined." Bill chuckled to Charlie as they both watched on with their amusement clearly showing.

"That she does." Charlie answered, "I wonder what it is she's after?" He asked as he turned his 'innocent' gaze across to Dave.

"What all of her lot are always after." Dave grumbled, as he kept a suspicious eye on the members of Lucifers Ladies.

"Zat would be?" Fleur asked Dave with a look on her face that said louder than words that she was very sure that the answer she was about to get wasn't going to be the one that she would normally expect.

Gabrielle also looked like she was about to be offended by Dave's statement until her mind caught up with her instinctual responses. Apolline just looked very amused by the whole situation, and Dave's answer certainly didn't disappoint her.

"My socks." Dave stated in a rather affronted manner. As his teammates and family laughed at his answer.

"Ah… Wait! What!" Charlie exclaimed, "Socks?" He almost demanded as he turned his disbelieving (and slightly disappointed) expression on to Dave. "You mean to say that you have a special ward on your bedroom to keep out Veela as you're worried that they might sneak in and swipe your socks?" He asked Dave with a disbelieving expression.

"There's no 'might' about it mate." Dave told him, "Every time one of those she devils gets into my room my sock draw is thoroughly cleaned out." Dave grumbled as Fleur and Apolline began to struggle to contain their laughter at the situation.

Gabrielle turned and regarded Dave with an amused look for a brief moment before calmly walking into his bedroom and returning carrying a single pair of socks, which she held up for all to see.

"You mean zee's socks?" She asked Auror Tanaka, who quickly focused on the socks in Gabrielle's hand as though they were a gift from Merlin himself. She then made a grab for them, only to realise that Gabrielle was still inside the ward line that she couldn't cross.

"How the hell…" She grumbled as Dave's team burst into laughter. It didn't take Auror Tanaka long before she turned a calculating gaze on Gabrielle and asked, "What do you want to trade for them?"

This offer caught Gabrielle completely off guard for a moment until Aunty Sandra stepped in. She walked up to Gabrielle and whispered something in her ear, which made her smile before taking the socks off her and putting them in her pocket.

"We can take this conversation up at another time." Aunty Sandra told everyone, as she eyed Auror Tanaka meaningfully. "Right now, we have more pressing matters to attend to."

This statement brought all of us back to the task in front of us. The mood in the room changed as several members of Lucifer's Ladies went with Fleur, Apolline and Gabrielle to help them get changed into the armour that Dave had provided.

The rest of the members of Lucifers Ladies helped myself, Audrey, Hermione and mum into our own armour. The remainder of Dave's team helped the others.

Once I was outfitted in my armour (which turned out to be an older set of Fireballs), I made my way over to a cupboard where the others that had their armour on were standing. He we were given an extendable baton as before, along with some magical handcuffs. We were also shown how to store our wands (as we were checked to make sure that we did indeed have both of our wands) in the inbuilt wand holders.

We were also given a few sets of rune stones each. These simple looking items sent shivers down my spine once it was explained to me what they would do when activated. I prayed to Merlin that I wouldn't need to set them off, but it seemed that he had other things on his mind this day and never heard my prayers. More on that later.

Once we were all kitted up Dave finished gathering his own supplies. The amount of weaponry and other items that he loaded into his suit of armour was very impressive and a little worrying.

It was while he was sheathing one of the evillest looking daggers that I've even seen that Auror Tanaka returned with Fleur, Apolline, Gabrielle and the other members of her team. She took one look at Dave and the knives he was holding and remarked, "That reminds me." Before pulling out a box and tossing it to him.

Catching the box, he looked at the label on it before smiling and opening it up. He pulled out two cloth bundles and then after a quick peek inside the smaller one, he beckoned to Auror Catherine Jean Pierre.

"Happy belated Birthday." He said as he tossed the bundle to her as she approached. She quickly caught it and regarded him with a suspicious look for a moment before smiling her thanks and placing the bundle on the coffee table and opening it.

When she opened the bundle, it revealed a set of exquisite knives. They were of several different shapes and sizes. However, they were all beautifully made. As she looked them over, I could see tears in her eyes as she handled them almost reverently. From her reaction and the reactions of the others in the room I guessed that these were no simple knives. When she looked up at Dave, I could see the tears running down her cheeks.

When Dave saw this, he thought that there must have been something wrong with the gift, as he began to look worried and more than a little upset. However, Auror Pierre very effectively removed that worry from him as she raced to him and embraced him fiercely murmuring 'thank you' over and over.

After a few moments she pulled back and kissed both his cheeks and then dried her own eyes, before asking "How?"

"Your brother and uncle found the raw materials." Dave explained, "They then gave them to me, along with their request. Once I had the materials in a workable form, I teamed up with Q and Oscar, then between the three of us we came up with a workable rune scheme based on your ideas. After that it was a relatively simple process of carving the runes into the different layers and then finishing them off." He explained.

"When we were done, we gave them to Aimi's uncle to check over our work. From what he wrote he's judged them as 'fit for purpose' so I that meant that I could present them to you."

"Thank you." She said simply with a blinding smile.

"You're very welcome." He chuckled, "Just don't forget to thank the others. Including your brother." He admonished her with a smirk, as she pulled a face at him. After one more quick hug she returned to her knives and gathered them up.

She then proceeded to secure them in various hiding places in her own armour. As she was putting the last of them away, I could see that Hermione was bursting to ask about the knives.

However, before she could, Flynn spoke up.

"I've managed to locate a safe spot to anchor the door to." He advised Uncle Ivan in an exhausted voice, but with a worried expression.

"That's excellent news." Uncle Ivan replied, "What's got you concerned?" He asked as Flynn's expression registered with him.

"There's a lot of other activity going on, on the other side of that door Minister. Even taking into account that there is likely a battle going on." He advised.

"I see." Uncle Ivan answered. "Your assessment?" He asked.

"I'd say that this is most definitely a trap to draw in and then eliminate the local Auror forces." He stated simply as the expressions on those of us in the room turned grim.