Harry rushed up the stairs, his mind racing as he made his way to his bedroom. He had apparently been expelled and Ministry officials were on their way to destroy his wand.
I just have to escape, Harry thought. I don't have the time to be feeling down or thinking about Dudley.
Harry still felt sad about what happened to his cousin, and at first he had felt just as bad for his relatives. But the sympathy he had for Aunt Petunia and Uncle Vernon hadn't lasted long. His aunt and uncle were truly wretched people. He remembered the ways that they would treat and speak about others, as well as the ways that they would treat him. Because of this, watching them fuss over Dudley had been sickening. He wondered if they would have felt even the slightest bit of sympathy if it had been someone else's son that had their soul removed and quickly came to an obvious conclusion. They wouldn't have felt a thing, in fact they may have even mocked the victim and their grieving family. If it had been me that had suffered the Dementor's kiss they definitely would have celebrated, Harry thought. He simply couldn't understand how such hateful people could display such affection. To Harry, the fact that they could love each other so much only made the way they treated others seem worse. They were clearly capable of love. It just felt as though they considered nobody else worthy of it.
Not that any of it matters. It's not like I'll ever see them again, Harry thought. After what happened to Dudley there's no way they'll let me stay, even if I wanted to. I just hope that I'll never have to see this damn house ever again.
He and Erica had come up with something resembling a plan. They would have to be ready to leave once the Ministry officials arrived, and they didn't have very much time. Harry needed to pack up whatever was useful to take with them, and Erica needed to call someone from her organization. He could faintly hear her in the living room, talking on the phone, although he couldn't understand a word of what she was saying since she was speaking Italian.
Upon reaching his room he threw the door open and barged in, startling Hedwig. The snowy white owl gave him a reproachful look as a dead mouse hung in her beak. "Good, you're back. Put that down, I've got work for you," he told her as he sat down at his desk and pulled out a couple pieces of parchment, hastily wrote out two notes and folded them. He marked one 'Hermione and Ron' and the other 'Sirius'. He then turned to Hedwig who seemed to be glaring at him with wide amber eyes, clearly not pleased with how he had interrupted her meal. "Don't give me that look," he said. "This is important. I need you to take these to Ron, Hermione and Sirius. They need to know what's happening. If you're hungry when you get there then feel free to pester them all you like for some food."
This seemed to pacify her somewhat as she dropped her mouse, snapped up the letters in her beak and silently flew out the window to find his friends and godfather.
Now Harry just needed to get ready. He hauled his trunk out from under his bed and started stuffing clothes inside. He'd never really cared about style before, not that he had any choice about that since all his clothes were Dudley's old hand-me-downs, so he just threw in whatever he could get his hands on. At most he was only paying enough attention to make sure that he had enough pairs of each piece of clothing. He also threw a few of his 'Defence Against the Dark Arts' books into the trunk. He couldn't help but chuckle as he did so. If Hermione had been in his shoes she probably would have grabbed every book in the room before even thinking of packing clothes.
Well Hermione, seems like you're starting to wear off on me. But I'll need all the help I can get if I'm going to survive whatever Voldemort throws at me. It can't hurt to brush up on what I've learned.
It was at that moment when Erica walked into the room, looked around and then started going through his things. Occasionally, she would find something and add it to his trunk. "I got in contact with my uncle in Milan. He's been briefed on the situation and he agreed that it would be best if we smuggled you out of the country. But, we will need to get to Dover first. There is a safe-house for us to use there. Once we arrive we can wait for the Copper-Black Cross' agents to pick us up and take us to Italy. It would have been easier if we could use one of the ones in London, but my uncle wants us to avoid the city as much as possible. He doesn't want the British Ministry to find out that we are aiding you."
"You've got your own safe-houses and the ability to smuggle people out of the country? Sounds like you guys are pretty well equipped," Harry said, trying to make smalltalk while they continued to sort through his things. Really he just wanted to have something to talk about to calm his nerves.
"Of course," she replied, puffing her chest out with pride. "We are one of the premiere Mage Associations in Europe after all."
This is a topic I can work with, Harry thought. "So I've been wondering, what are Mage Associations?"
"It's very strange that you know so little about the world. Why is that?" Erica asked. "I had assumed that someone as famous as you would be much more worldly. Are you ignorant or just stupid?"
Harry scowled at Erica and saw that she was looking at him with a mischievous expression. Harry sighed to himself, she's just playing with you. He could tell that there was no malice behind her words. It just seemed as though teasing him amused her. But, she probably isn't wrong.
He couldn't count the number of times he had felt like a fool for not knowing something that was common knowledge to everyone else.
"I lived here with my aunt and uncle after my parents died. As you can probably tell, they're muggles," Harry told Erica as she nodded in understanding. "To say they don't like magic or magical folk is an understatement. They refuse to even speak any word that has to do with magic."
"Like asking if you pointed your 'thing' at their son and did 'you-know-what'?"
"You're never going to let that go, are you?" Erica just gave him an impish smile. "Whatever. But yeah, because of that I didn't even learn that magic existed until Hagrid delivered my Hogwarts letter. I've just been learning about things as they come up."
"So you're ignorant and stupid."
It's not like it was my fault, Harry lamented. I would give anything to have someone to teach me these things. But, at the end of the day, that was just an excuse. Hermione had been muggleborn and knew about as much as he had going into Hogwarts, but she had taken the initiative to learn everything she needed to know while he hadn't.
"I suppose I am. Just a little bit," he admitted. "So do you mind explaining what a Mage Association is?"
Erica looked at him for a second before shrugging her shoulders. "Very well. A Mage Association is, in essence, a coalition of like-minded mages. I suppose you could think of the Associations as being similar to political parties or companies. It really depends on the Association. Take the Copper-Black Cross for example. We were founded by members of the Knights Templar and are primarily a knightly order, so most of our members are knights. We are involved in other activities, but we are primarily involved in knightly matters."
"So there are other Mage Associations?"
"There are. Every year new ones rise and others fall. There are probably thousands of Mage Associations, but most of them don't really matter in the grand scheme of things. At the end of the day, the older and larger the Association is, the more prestigious and well regarded it will be. Those are the ones that hold all of the real power."
"And the Copper-Black Cross is one of these old Associations?" Harry asked. "I was joking earlier but just how powerful are you guys?"
"Oh, we are rather powerful. The Copper-Black Cross is one of the 'Seven Sisters'. Seven powerful Mage Associations that essentially run the Italian magical community. Not officially of course. Italy has a Ministry, but it's nothing more than a figurehead for the 'Seven Sisters', and then there's Lord Salvatore. He may technically be in charge but that man couldn't care less about ruling, so he just leaves what he calls 'boring matters' to the 'Seven Sisters'," Erica explained. "We also have a fair deal of influence within other Southern European countries."
Harry had no idea who this 'Lord Salvatore' was but he just assumed that he's their Minister of Magic. Whoever he was, he sounded pretty irresponsible so Harry quickly disregarded the man. He doesn't sound like someone that I need to worry about. But the Copper-Black Cross sure sounds amazing.
"Are all Mage Associations as involved with ruling as you guys?"
"Most of the big names are. But there are some who prefer to keep their political involvement to a minimum. Like the Greenwich Assembly, they-"
*Ding Dong*
The doorbell chimed, cutting Erica off. The two of them looked at eachother and remained completely silent as they listened. "Mr. Potter. We've come on behalf of the Ministry," a man's voice called out. "You have been notified about our arrival, as such you are required by law, under article six, section four of the Criminal Code, to open the door and allow us to enter."
There wasn't any more time to pack so he shut his trunk. Harry then grabbed his father's Invisibility Cloak and threw it on, surprising Erica if the look on her face was anything to go by. Peeking out the window he got a pretty good look at the Ministry officials. There were three of them, all men, and they were scanning their surroundings, fully alert and focused. That did not bode well for their plan. They had been counting on the Ministry sending some pencil pushers, but the ones at the door put Harry on edge. They felt dangerous.
Removing his cloak he whispered to Erica, "There are three of them, and they look like trouble."
"It doesn't matter," she responded quietly. "This is still the best way to buy ourselves enough time to escape."
"I know. I just hope this works," he said before making the last minute decision to toss Erica the Invisibility Cloak. It would hopefully make her job easier.
As he started to leave Erica grabbed his arm and said, "Remember, you cannot let them capture you or break your wand." He simply nodded in response before she put on the cloak and disappeared from sight.
He took a deep breath before heading down. As he descended the stairs, he made sure that he had his wand stored in his waistband in such a way so that it could be drawn quickly if needed. His heart was pounding like a drum and his hands were clammy. He tried his best to make his expression as neutral as possible, but he had no idea how he was doing.
God, I probably look guilty. They'll know that I'm planning something the moment they see me! Harry thought as he started to panic. No, stay focused. You have to do this. You can't let them get you. You can't let them destroy your wand.
Once he reached the landing he went to the door and opened it. "Hello," Harry said, as he tried to contain his nerves.
"Mr. Potter?" one of the men asked.
The man who had spoken was rather tall and broad, with a close cropped beard and his long flaxen hair done in a low ponytail. His face seemed warm and friendly, but Harry was still weary of how watchful his eyes were. The second man had short, wiry grey hair and a confident, self-assured air about him. He looked like a rather tough-looking mage. The final man was lanky, with a rat's nest of messy brown hair framing a gaunt face. He was clearly trying to keep his expression neutral, but Harry could see the barely contained disgust he was attempting to hide.
"That's me," he replied.
Get them talking and look for an opening, he told himself. If we knock them out and keep them tied up here they can't report back and send more people after us. Hopefully that will buy us enough time to get to that safe-house. He felt bad about what he was about to do. These people were just trying to do their job. But, he couldn't roll over and let them carry out the sentence.
"I assume that you know why we're here?" the tall man with the ponytail asked, his tone businesslike. Harry assumed that he must be the leader here.
"That depends on who you are," Harry said as he gave them a suspicious look.
"Apologies, Mr. Potter, we should have introduced ourselves. I'm Milton Lambkins, and these are my colleagues, John Dawlish," he said as he gestured to the self-assured looking man before introducing the gaunt man, "and Chester Wolpers. We're Aurors, sent by the Ministry to retrieve and destroy your wand."
Harry was completely shocked by what he had been told. Aurors! Why the hell did they send three Aurors for something like this?
"I see," Harry said, his voice calm, betraying none of the fear he was feeling. "Then come in." The three men stepped inside and followed Harry into the living room.
Their plan was dependent on them overpowering the Ministry officials. Now that he knew they were all Aurors he didn't think they could do it. But there was no backing out now. If he managed to overpower them then he could get away, if he couldn't then they would break his wand. But if he did nothing they would just break his wand anyways. Running wasn't an option either. These were professional dark mage hunters and they would easily catch him. As far as Harry could see he didn't really have any options. He could only go along with the plan. So he did his best to remain composed and stayed focused on what he needed to do.
"Does the Ministry really have so much manpower that they can be sending three Aurors to deal with a little bit of underage magic?" he asked. His question caused a look of annoyance to flash across Lambkin's eyes. Dawlish cast a confused look towards his colleague, blinking in a way that made him look rather foolish. Wolpers jaw clenched so tight that Harry thought his teeth would soon shatter. "You'd think that you guys would have more important things to do with Voldemort on the loose."
All three men flinched at the name. Wolpers was the first one to respond, and it looked like Harry's comment had really gotten to him. "Don't you go saying that name!" he snarled. "Everyone knows that You-Know-Who isn't back, so don't go spewing any of your lies in front of us. Now hand over your wand."
What is he talking about? Harry thought. He suddenly remembered the confrontation between Professor Dumbledore and Minister Fudge. He was serious about denying that Voldemort is back! Bloody hell, what's been going on while I've been stuck here?
Instead of dwelling on what Fudge and the Ministry were doing Harry decided that it would have to be an issue for another day. He needed to focus on his current predicament. "And why should I do that?" he asked. "I didn't do anything wrong."
"Didn't do anything wrong?" Wolpers sputtered. "Why you, you're just as arrogant as they say. A bloody attention seeker!"
Wolpers words enraged Harry as he remembered the things that Rita Skeeter had written about him during the Triwizard Tournament. He was so mad about being called an 'attention seeker' that he almost ruined the whole plan by trying to hex the lanky bastard right then and there.
Thankfully, Lambkins spoke up before Harry could do anything foolish. "Silence, Wolpers!" he boomed. "Apologies for my colleagues unprofessional conduct, Mr. Potter," his words seemed to shock Wolpers as he tried to sputter something out, only to be silenced by a look from Lambkins. "However, as the letter said, we received intelligence at nine-twenty-three, this evening, that you performed a Patronus Charm in a muggle inhabited area. As such you are charged with breaking the 'Decree for the Reasonable Restr-'"
"I know what I've been charged with. I also know that there are clauses which permit underage mages to use magic in times of an emergency," Harry said, cutting Lambkins off while quoting Erica. He was glad to know that there was no legal basis for his punishment, but it did nothing to make him any less angry about the situation he was in. "I only used the spell to fight off the Dementors."
"Bah, more lies. There are no Dementors in Surrey." Wolpers sneered, causing Lambkins' expression to tighten.
Dudley's condition would say otherwise, Harry thought. "There were Dementors nearby and they even attacked a local muggle. My cousin. They gave him the Dementor's kiss."
Lambkin cleared his throat loudly to get everyone's attention and silence Wolpers before he could say anything else, "As I was saying, you have been charged with breaking the 'Decree for the Reasonable Restriction of Underage Magic'. However, if there is reasonable need for an underage mage to perform magic then they are permitted, under Clause Seven, to do so. You say that your cousin was kissed by one of these Dementors?" Harry nodded in response. "Then we will need to investigate the matter. However, we will still be required to take your wand, but the order to destroy it will be put on hold pending a formal investigation of the situation."
"Lambkins, we were ordered to destroy his wand," Dawlish stated, looking rather unsure about the situation.
"The law comes before our orders." Dawlish looked a little stunned by the comment, but soon composed himself and nodded in agreement.
"But the Minister himself ordered us-!" Wolpers shouted, only to be cut off by Dawlish.
"Not another word out of you or I'll personally report you to Madam Bones for improper conduct on the job. Lambkins is right, the law is absolute and always comes first."
"Thank you Dawlish. Now, Mr. Potter, if you would be so kind as to hand over your wand. Once the matter has been resolved it will be returned to you. But, if you are found to be lying then additional charges will be levied against you."
"I would rather not," Harry said, causing Lambkins to narrow his eyes. "If you take my wand and the Dementors come back, I won't be able to defend myself."
"Of course. In that case we can-"
"Enough of this! The boy is clearly mad and isn't complying, so we're taking him in," Wolpers snapped, cutting off Lambkins. His wand fell from his sleeve and landed in his palm. He flicked the length of wood and shot a spell at Harry.
Harry was left shocked by the Auror's sudden attack, but thankfully he had managed to react in time and drew his wand. Raising the holly shaft into the path of the oncoming spell, he felt his magical power flow and shift as he cast a Shield Charm. Wolpers spell crashed harmlessly into the translucent barrier that had appeared in front of him. Harry wasn't going to waste even a moment, as once the spell had been blocked he launched his own Stunning Spell at Wolpers. The Auror clearly hadn't been expecting Harry to block his spell, much less counter attack, and that had left him vulnerable. The stunner hit him square in the chest and knocked him unconscious.
Lambkins and Dawlish were as surprised by what Wolpers did as Harry had been, and that surprise had also left them open. Harry fired another stunner at Dawlish. It looks like he's more open than the other one, Harry thought. But Dawlish was able to get over his shock fast enough to draw his wand and create a shield, blocking Harry's stunning spell.
Lambkins had also drawn his wand, "Mr. Potter, put down your wand!"
Harry didn't respond, he couldn't afford to focus on anything other than defeating these two. He fired two more stunners in quick succession, one aimed at each man. Unsurprisingly, they both blocked the spells. They were now completely focused on Harry, their expressions deadly serious. He would need to duel them head on.
Harry had only ever been in two duels before. The first had been against Draco in his second year and the second had been against Voldemort. His duel with Draco had just been two kids hurling spells at each other and his duel with Voldemort had been so one sided he hesitated to even call it a duel.
I need to win. I can't let them take me. I need to escape. His heart was pounding, and he felt a twinge of fear. He was afraid that he couldn't win. That he would lose, have his wand destroyed and be sent to Azkaban.
Professor Dumbledore probably could have handled these two with ease, but he wasn't here to save him. Voldemort could have defeated them, but Harry wasn't Voldemort. He wasn't nearly as powerful. I couldn't even protect Cedric or Dudley. A burning rage welled up inside Harry, demanding that he fight and win. Every time he fought, he only fought to survive. This time he would settle for nothing less than absolute victory.
How would Voldemort fight? he asked himself. He thought back to the graveyard in Little Hangleton. Images of the Dark Lord came to mind. The way he moved, the way he cast spells, and the way he duelled. Harry didn't know how to duel so he would just copy someone who did.
The Aurors both fired a spell at Harry. He raised his wand once more and cast the Shield Charm, blocking their attacks. The moment their spells hit his shield, he dropped it and countered with a stunner aimed at Lambkins. That was the key, the timing. The Shield Charm goes both ways. Your opponent's spell can't get through it, but neither can yours. You need to lower the spell to attack, and the quicker you lower the spell the sooner you can counter.
Cast the Shield Charm only at the moment that you need to defend yourself, Harry told himself as he blocked another spell from Dawlish. Lambkins also started attacking, forcing Harry to spend most of his time on the defensive, but he still found opportunities to get stunning spells in.
For at least a dozen seconds he fended off the two Aurors, reducing the situation to a stalemate. But it wouldn't last that way for long. He needed to do something to regain control but he couldn't do that while being forced onto the defensive. He needed to attack but the Aurors didn't give him many opportunities to lower his shield. They were staggering their spells, shortening the windows he had to counter. Suddenly, a flash of light from behind Dawlish caused him to go limp and lose consciousness. This sudden turn of events distracted Lambkin just long enough for Harry to hit him with a stunning spell.
Harry was left standing in the Dursley's living room, panting, with his wand raised and three unconscious Aurors laying on the carpet. Did I win? Harry asked himself before focusing his attention on Dawlish. But what stunned him? I know it wasn't me.
The space behind where the Aurors had been standing ruffled as someone appeared. Harry raised his wand and aimed at the person before stopping himself, realizing who it was. Erica stood there, looking at him with a rather amused expression as she began folding up his father's Invisibility Cloak.
"Did you forget that I was here?" she asked playfully. "It's probably for the best. If you had been distracted by my beauty then you likely wouldn't have been able to handle them." Harry couldn't help but wonder if she knew just how close he had been to stunning her. If she did she probably wouldn't have been making jokes.
"Hold on," Harry said as he suddenly remembered that she had been there the entire time. "Why didn't you jump in sooner?"
"You seemed to have the situation under control, so no harm done," she replied mischievously. "Despite the setbacks we still managed. Now go get your things while I tie them up."
Harry said nothing as he took back his father's Invisibility Cloak, stepped over the unconscious Aurors, made his way out of the living room and headed for his bedroom. He was surprised by how quickly things had escalated and it left his head spinning. But most of all he was surprised with himself. He had never imagined he would be able to fight like that. Fight like him. In that moment a wave of nausea overtook Harry as he realized what he had been doing. He needed to catch himself on a wall to keep from falling over.
I was copying Voldemort! The very thought sickened him. But most of all it terrified him. No! I'm nothing like him. There's nothing wrong with learning from your enemies. I was just doing what needed to be done!
He continued on to his room to retrieve his trunk and Firebolt. He opted to leave Hedwig's cage behind, it would just get in the way and he could get her a new one when she found him. After tucking the Invisibility Cloak into the trunk he headed downstairs, where he saw Erica standing by the door. She held up a pair of keys and jingled them lightly.
"Do you know how to drive?" she asked.
"Vaguely," he replied. In truth he had only ever driven Mr. Weasley's enchanted car, and that ended with him crashing it into the Whomping Willow.
"Good, then you can drive. They will be watching Floo Network, so that isn't an option and they will probably expect us to use brooms. We must remain as inconspicuous as possible. So we'll drive to the safe-house," she said before tossing him the keys.
Right, and having someone who barely knows how to drive behind the wheel will definitely be inconspicuous, he thought ruefully as he stuffed the keys in his pocket. "What did you do with the Aurors?"
"I left them in the living room. They won't be getting out of those ropes on their own anytime soon."
Looking into said room he saw that Erica had taken three lengths of rope and hog-tied the Aurors. What surprised him most wasn't the fact that they were tied up, but rather how well Erica seemed to have done.
"Now, you still have the trace on you," Erica stated. "So it would be best if you refrained from using magic, unless absolutely necessary. At least until we are out of the country."
"What trace?" Harry asked.
"The spell that is placed on underage mages which allows the Ministry to know when you use magic. That was how they knew about you using the Patronus Charm."
The two of them left the house, walking down the garden path towards the driveway and the car that remained parked there. The one that was left was the old car that his relatives had before Uncle Vernon had gotten a new company car. Harry couldn't even count the number of times that he had been forced to wash the damn thing. He went around to the back, popped the trunk and stuffed his things inside before closing the hatch.
For a moment he looked back at Number 4 Privet Drive. He doubted that he would ever be welcome back here again. Not that it mattered, he didn't plan on ever coming back. The thought that he was finally free of this place was just now setting in. Despite the circumstances, a part of him was actually happy.
*Crack*
A loud sound broke the silence of Privet Drive. A short man with bandy legs, long, straggly ginger hair and grubby hands appeared at the end of the drive. He looked up at them and was about to say something. But he wasn't given the chance. The loud crack had startled both Harry and Erica who were still a little on edge after their encounter with the Aurors. They drew their wand and sword respectively, spun on their heels to face the man and hit him with two Stunning Charms.
The force of being hit by two Stunning Charms at once knocked him off his feet. Harry and Erica both approach the man, Harry going to examine him and Erica keeping watch to make sure that no one else manages to sneak up on them. Harry looked at his face and was at a loss. He hadn't the faintest idea who he was or why he would have been here. He was at least able to confirm that the man was a mage by searching through his pockets and finding a wand.
"Do you recognize this man?" Erica asked, to which Harry shook his head. "Very well, move him out of the way, we must leave immediately. You cast another spell. The Ministry will be able to look at the record of all the spells you have cast tonight and deduce that something must have gone wrong."
Harry quickly and haphazardly dragged the man's body, which smelled heavily of alcohol and tobacco, onto the lawn to clear the driveway.
The two then loaded into the car, Harry in the driver's seat and Erica in the back. Once he had gotten them out onto the road, and was about to get going, he noticed something in the rearview mirror.
"Why aren't you driving?" his passenger asked. "We must leave quickly."
"Mrs. Figg?" Harry whispered. He was surprised to see her running down the street in a pink dressing gown and fluffy slippers. The old woman was always a little battle but this was a whole new level of bizarre.
"Harry, wait!" she shouted. But Harry really didn't have the time to deal with the neighbourhood's crazy cat lady.
"I'm sorry Mrs. Figg, but I'm in a bit of a rush," He called out.
Harry got the car going and left the old lady behind, still shouting at them, but he couldn't hear her as he drove off, leaving Number 4 Privet Drive behind.
"How the hell did you expect us to get to this safe-house without a map?" Harry grumbled, as he and Erica entered a Tourist Information Center.
"How can you not know how to get to Dover?" Erica shot back.
"What made you think that I knew how to get to Dover?"
"You're English, therefore you should know how to get around England."
"Well I don't. Do you know how to get to everywhere in Italy?" He retorted, attempting to throw her argument back at her.
"Of course not. That is what drivers are for," she declared, utterly without shame.
"Do I look like I'm your personal driver?" Harry asked sarcastically.
"Yes."
"Let's just get the damn map," Harry sighed as he slowly walked into a dark building.
After about a half hour of driving, Harry had managed to get them onto the London Oriental Motorway, only to realize that neither of them knew how to get to Dover. After more driving, a bit of luck, and the directions of some helpful cafe employees, they had managed to locate this Tourist Information Center. It was obviously closed this late at night, but a simple Unlocking Charm from Erica allowed them to sneak in without any fuss.
It feels like we're a pair of burglars, Harry lamented as he and Erica began combing through the rack of maps. Eventually they found one that showed them how to get to where they wanted to be.
As they walked out and were about to return to the car, Erica stopped, looking towards the street. "Get back inside," she whispered urgently as she dragged him back into the Tourist Information Center by the arm.
"Woah, what's going on," He stammered out before she shushed him.
"Someone's coming," she said before walking further into the building, using the Unlocking charm to open the way into the back. "Follow me."
The two of them made their way through the building before exiting out the back door. They then found themselves a good place to hide, crouched behind a dumpster, just as a new group of people arrived. Harry counted nine in total, but he couldn't see anything else to identify them. What street lamps there were in the parking lot didn't provide enough light for him to see them clearly. But Harry could tell that they must have been looking for them.
Some of them searched their car, rummaging around in the cab and looking in the trunk. Three of them split off from the rest of the group and looked inside the Tourist Information Center. The rest of them went and started casting spells around the area.
"They're putting up wards to keep muggles away," Erica informed him. "Standard Auror procedure."
It didn't take long for one of them to come running out of the building. "He's not inside, but he probably didn't get far!" she called out in a loud voice. The two others came out behind her and one of them seized her by the arm, whispering something in her ear. They clearly didn't want people to know that they were there and that made Harry think they were probably enemies.
Harry drew his wand as Erica made her sword appear in her hand and they looked at each other.
"What should we do?" Harry whispered so as to prevent these newcomers from hearing them.
"I had hoped that we would have more time before the Ministry sent more people after us," Erica replied in a hushed voice. "But it looks like Minister Fudge is serious about silencing you."
"Why is the Minister of Magic trying to silence me anyway?"
"Haven't you been reading the Daily Prophet?" she asked. "They've been slandering you and Dumbledore since June."
"W-w-what," Harry sputtered out. "But why?"
"For some reason the Minister doesn't want people to know that Voldemort has returned. So he's been using every bit of influence he has to silence or discredit anyone that claims otherwise. So it looks like he decided to send some more Aurors to make sure that they got you," Erica said as she gave him a sly smirk. "Aren't you popular! To send nine this time, all for a single teenage mage. You must have really gotten under the Minister's skin."
A rather unpleasant thought crossed Harry's mind. "They might not be Aurors," he whispered, his voice grave. "They might be Death Eaters. If Voldemort sent those Dementors then they probably know that I'm vulnerable right now. What if they're trying to capitalize on the situation?"
Erica scowled at his theory, before nodding slowly. "Possibly. I would rather them be Aurors. Aurors will at least try to take us alive, Death Eaters will not."
"Yeah," Harry agreed. "But what do we do about them? Can we run for it?"
"For a little while, but they would find us long before we made it to the safe-house."
"So we either fight now or fight later." Harry knew immediately where Erica's thoughts were headed.
"We fight them now," she declared as she stood up. She then used the blade of her sword to slice her skirts creating a slit that would allow her to move more efficiently.
"Definitely," Harry said as he also stood. Whether these people were Aurors or Death Eaters he refused to run. "Do we have a plan? I counted at least nine of them."
"As did I," Erica said. "We need to hit them quickly and hard. Throw them off balance and take them all down as efficiently as we can. They have the numbers advantage. We must change that before they can utilize it." Harry nodded in agreement. It had been the element of surprise, and Harry's ability to capitalize on the openings it created, which allowed them to defeat the last three Aurors. Hopefully it will work again. "I shall attack first and draw their attention, you use that opening to take out as many as you can. After that watch my back and strike whenever the opportunity presents itself."
Harry nodded in response as he called to mind the way he had fought earlier. The way Voldemort fights. He cleared his mind and purged himself of those unnecessary thoughts. Don't fight to survive, he told himself. Fight only to win.
Harry waited patiently for Erica to make her move. She soon began to mutter something under her breath in a language that he didn't know. For several seconds she continued her muttering, until a faint blue light enveloped her. She had clearly cast a spell on herself, but Harry didn't have the foggiest idea what it was. He had never seen magic be performed like that before.
"Are you ready?" she asked.
"Yes."
"Then let us attack."
She darted out of their hiding spot, moving far more quickly than anybody should be capable of. Harry estimated that she was running at least three times faster than a human was supposed to be capable of. Whatever spell she had used seemed to improve her physical abilities. But Harry kept his attention on their enemies. He didn't have time to be surprised and impressed by Erica's magic.
She went wide, placing herself right underneath the street lamps, illuminating her so as to draw their enemies' attention. Harry began making his way to them as well, keeping to the shadows.
Almost immediately one of them noticed Erica. "Behind us!" a man growled in a voice that was oddly familiar to Harry. But he immediately squashed the thought and focused all of his attention on the coming fight.
All of the mages spun to face her. But she was undeterred, swinging her sword in a wide horizontal slash. A wave of pale light flew from the blade, cutting two of the parking lot's street lamps. The heavy metal poles fell towards the group of mages and forced them all to scatter. Some of them recovered immediately. But some of them did not. Harry saw that a pair of them were vulnerable and hit them with two quick stunning spells, knocking them unconscious. He had startled a few of them so Harry managed to stun one more, while Erica stunned another.
Five more.
"There's another one!" the woman from earlier called out, before sending a stunner hurtling towards him. He cast a Shield Charm to block the spell just as another mage came to join her. After blocking he immediately dropped the spell to fire a volley of stunners. He exchanged spells with the two for a few seconds before he had a flash of inspiration.
"Reducto!" He said. His Reductor Curse flew from his wand and struck the ground between the two mages, causing it to explode and shower them with dust and chunks of asphalt. He had created an opening and with two more stunners rendered both mages unconscious.
Three more.
Harry turned his attention towards Erica and saw her duelling two other mages. It looked like she had managed to take down one other one while he wasn't looking.
Two more.
Erica was darting around, dodging every spell with the grace of a dancer. She would occasionally cast a stunner at the two mages, but they would always block them. It also seemed like they were doing a good job keeping her from closing the distance and using her blade.
We need to regain momentum, Harry thought. I need to take the pressure off Erica and give her a chance to get in close.
He began firing stunning spells at the two, getting their attention, but they were very good. They reacted and adjusted to his presence immediately. Harry blocked all of their return spells and countered where he could. Thankfully he had managed to do what he wanted and lightened the pressure being put on Erica, but it wasn't enough to end the fight.
Suddenly, one of them faltered. "Potter?" he growled in shock. But it didn't last long, recovering before Erica could capitalize and get in close.
That could work! he thought as he remembered how he had defeated a troll in his first remembered the feel of the Levitation Charm, the way his magic flowed, the way it felt when he formed the spell. Harry waited for an opening where he wouldn't be hit by a spell and once he found one he pointed his wand at a fallen street lamp. "Erica!" he called out, warning her that he was going to do something. Using the Levitation Charm he grabbed the heavy metal pole and flung it towards their opponents.
The pole spun through the air, on course to crash into both Erica and their opponents. But Harry didn't worry about her, he didn't need to. She crouched down low as the spinning pole passed harmlessly over her. The other two also noticed the pole and disappeared with a loud crack. Erica and Harry remained completely focused, watching their surroundings carefully. So when they reappeared they were able to spot them and spring into action.
Harry let loose a volley of stunners to put them on the defensive just as Erica charged at them as fast as she could. She attacked one of them with a flurry of thrusts and slashes. He was dodging and blocking her sword with a shielding spell, barely able to hold her off. It would only be a matter of time before she took him down. But only if his partner didn't interfere. So Harry focused on the other one, keeping him from helping his comrade. Soon, Erica cracked her opponent over the head with the pommel of her sword, knocking him to the ground. A quick flourish from her rapier and she stunned the groaning man.
One more.
But this one would be tricky. He was clearly the most dangerous out of all of them, but for some reason he wasn't attacking Harry as fiercely as he would have expected. That didn't mean he allowed Harry to stun him though. Erica moved to get in close, while Harry backed her up from a distance. Between the two of them, their opponent had very little room to counter attack.
But he seemed to growl something and then disappeared with a loud crack. Erica spun on her heels and blocked a spell that came from her right. The man had teleported and gotten the distance and opening he needed to go on the offensive. Harry cast more stunners at the man, giving Erica a chance to get in close once more. But each time it seemed as though they would get the upper hand he would teleport away. They couldn't keep at this forever, but neither could he. He was clearly trying to take down Erica, while only defending against Harry. Is he ignoring me? he wondered. No. If he attacks me like that then Erica will be able to get in and overwhelm him. He's taking out the biggest threat first, then he'll deal with me. That's what you're thinking isn't it?
Harry knew that if Erica went down, then he probably wouldn't be able to win on his own. So they would need to work together. The man made defending against Harry's spells look easy, and he was doing a pretty good job at dodging and blocking Erica's sword whenever she got too close. But Harry noticed that he only teleported when he was desperate. If he could defend and dodge, he would do so.
Harry began running, attacking while on the move and using the opportunity to reposition himself. He met Erica's eye and they seemed to come to an understanding.
I need to give Erica an opportunity to put the pressure on him. He's most weary of her, so I have the best chance of hitting him.
"Reducto," he said, using the same trick he used before. The spell struck the ground between the man and Erica, blasting up a cloud of dirt and asphalt. Erica attacked from behind the cloud of debris, but the man somehow saw her attack coming and dodged. But it didn't matter, Harry had kept on moving and managed to position himself behind him while Erica attacked with even greater ferocity.
I bet this looks like a final push. Like I was just giving Erica an opening, but you're wrong.
The man was so focused on Erica's flurry of slashes and thrusts that he seemed to have forgotten about Harry. Harry, who was behind him in his blind spot. Harry, who gave a quick flick of his wand and hit him in the back with a Stunning Charm.
The man stumbled before falling to the ground, unconscious.
The faint blue glow around Erica's body dissipated, leaving her panting, but she started running back to the car regardless. "Hurry, Harry! We must leave before more of them arrive!"
Harry followed after her and the two of them got back into the car. He started the engine and floored it, speeding off through the parking lot towards the road. He could see Erica fumbling with the map in the rearview mirror. She managed to get it open just before they left the parking lot.
"Go right!" she cried.
Harry wrenched the steering wheel to the right at the last moment, the force of the turn pushing him to the side. The tires squealed against the asphalt as they almost careened into a ditch, but Harry managed to straighten the car out. He didn't slow down, he couldn't afford to. Thanks to the Trace on him, the Ministry probably knew that he had used magic again. They needed to get as far away as possible before more Aurors or Death Eaters showed up.
"No more stops," Harry declared.
"Yes," Erica agreed, still panting from exhaustion. "Do not stop until we reach the safe-house. We have already drawn too much attention to ourselves, we cannot afford to fight any more battles."
"Where do I turn next?"
"There is a fork in the road ahead of us, you need to turn left there."