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The guards saw them running at full steam towards the Ops Center. Both stood up and one held out his had, "Slow down there, before you trip and break the concrete."

Mike and Amy stopped in front of the Ops Center, panting. Amy caught her breath first, "Associate Director Mike Kelley and Special Assistant Amy Fosterman, we were ordered here this morning."

The other guard remained quite calm, "IDs please," he asked blankly. Mike and Amy obliged, he handed them back, "Secretary McHadden is waiting for you inside."

People were scurrying around, large boards showed maps of the US and other countries, each with different colored dots blinking. Stacks of reports were floating back and forth between different parts of the Center. In the middle of it all was Secretary McHadden, and she looked just a tad bit, furious Mike noticed.

"Good Morning, boss lady," Mike said softly. "Fun morning?"

"FUCK NO!" she almost screamed. Mike reeled from her outburst. "The world has gone to hell in a hand basket, and I still have not had my StarbucksPRIVATE "TYPEPICT;ALT" Espresso Macchiato yet!"

He had never seen her scream like that before, her anger was written plainly on her face. "So, where is everyone?"

"The Secretary and various others are meeting with the Council of Magic. (The Council made the laws, the Department and the State Magical governments enforced them. Just like the Senate, there were two members per state. ) I'm here holding the fort." McHadden grabbed a parchment that was handed to her, and a look of pure venom came across her face. "Look at this! I am going to my office!" He thrusted the note into his hands, and stormed off.

Mike, looked at the note:

From: The United States Council of Magic

To: Department of Magic and all State Magical Governments

Date: June 23, 1996

Subject: Emergency Measures

By unanimous vote of the Council, the following emergency measures are hereby authorized:

Only household members may use floo network connections to their residencies

Portkeys may only be created by the Department's Magical Transportation Office or State Magical Transportation Offices, all State created portkeys are to be registered with the Magical Transportation Office before use

International Apparition is hereby prohibited, except by authorized government employees. Citizens needing to travel international must use the Floo Network or authorized portkeys.

Domestic Apparition is restricted to apparition sites only, except for authorized government employees

All large assemblies, including Quidditch games, are hereby suspended, until proper security measures may be taken

Additional measures, including marshal law, may be enacted at a later date

The Department of Magic and State Magical Authorities are ordered to enforce these new measures immediately.

"Well, there goes the neighborhood," Mike said dryly.

"How can they do this!" Amy asked harshly.

Mike smiled, "We're the government, and we can do anything we want."

"Ha fucking ha ha, anyway, I am going to my office. How about you?" she queried.

Mike thought for a moment, 'I better talk to everyone before I get to my office,' "I'm off to the Comm Center and then to my office. I'll mirror you in forty-five minutes or so."

Mike did not wait for a reply, he turned and headed out.

Flashback 16 July 1981

It was early morning; Mike had not slept well at all. Voldemort and his merry band's thoughts were so strong now; Mike did not even have to try to get them. "Morn'in Abe," he groaned as stretched his arms out.

Abe looked up from the table he was setting and placing food on, "Good morning, Mike, did you sleep any better last night?"

Mike did a slow morning shuffle to the table, "No," he said with a long face. "Their dark thoughts are so powerful, it is hard to stop them, or even make since of them all. Is the Daily Prophet around?"

"Here, drink your vitamin potion, and I'll get you a copy."

"Thanks Mom," Mike said with a grin.

Abe walked away muttering "ungrateful brat." Mike drank the potion and started serving himself scrambled eggs and bacon. Abe came back looking angry, his hands shaking so much, they threatened to rip the paper apart.

"What is it Abe? Here give that to me," Mike asked kindly as possible. He had never seen Abe so worked up.

Abe trusted the Prophet into Mike's hands and stormed off in disgust. Mike read the headline:

Ministry authorizes the use of Unforgivables against Death Eaters!

"Abe!' Mike called out. "You knew this was going to happen," Mike said, as Abe walked back into the room. He looked a little calmer.

"Knowing that this would come to pass, and making it right are two different things Mr. Kelley," Abe replied.

"Well, I think they deserve it! They are all monsters!"

"Mike, while they may be monsters, we should not stoop down to their level."

"We have to Abe, we have to be monsters to destroy monsters," Mike said with a small huff.

Abe let out a sigh, "Maybe you're right Mike, but I still don't like this one bit."

End Flashback

Mike sat in the small communications room again. He was owling messages, talking to people through the floo network, mirrors, and even using email, the fax machine, and the phone. The world had gone to hell in a hand basket. Mike sat back in his seat an took a sip of his Mountain Dew. 'So, now what?' 'Will the world feel that this is just part of a British magical civil war, or a worldwide problem? How much will it affect the America? Will the Secretary really intervene in the UK's affairs? Would the world intervene? If the US went at it alone, would there be a backlash? Oh, what a tangled web we weave.'

His stomach grumbled, and looked at his watch. It was already three in the afternoon. Getting up with a huff, he walked absentmindedly out of the Comm Center and towards his office. Luke Hendersen found him first. "Mike, get a status report from all your teams, then go home. The Secretary wants to meet with us tomorrow at 9 AM sharp."

"What about staying here and working?" Mike questioned.

"No use, what's done is done. Now, it is just cleanup and after-action. Tomorrow we can plan out our general strategy and start on the details to implement it," Luke said without much enthusiasm. "I think the Secretary is working on something with Kalakos. Well will just have to see," he added.

"Fine, how about my SO?"

"Come over to my office," Luke raised his left arm in front of his face to look at his watch, "Say fifteen minutes? I will release her then," he said with a grin.

"HA fucking HA HA, anyway," Mike continued, "I'm going for a bite to eat, I will be back shortly."

Mike walked down to the first floor cafeteria. They sold food by the pound, and included all the Departmental favorites, tacos, Chinese, different salads, sushi, warps, and the more traditional fair. After having inhaled about two pounds of a little bit of everything, he trekked back to Hendersen's office, feeling two pounds heavier of course. He was about to knock on the office door, "The door is open, come in."

Mike swung the door open with his left hand and arm, and marched in with a confused face. "How do you people always know when someone is at the door?"

Hendersen looked up with a stupid grin, "Mike, it's called a door observance charm, maybe one day you could actually read the auror textbooks."

"Textbooks, we don't need no stinking textbooks!" Mike shot back. "So, what's up doc?"

Luke looked haggard, "All the ministries are freaking out. Our wonderful Secretary is trying to assemble a 'Council of Ministers' meeting early month."

Running that phase through his head and coming up blank, Mike asked, "What the hell is the 'Council of Ministers'?"

"It is the Magical world's highest legal body, even higher then the Confederation. Its members are all the Ministers of Magic" Amy read from an old legal book, she continued. "The Council also has a right to declare a Ministry, or in our case, the Department, unfit to govern, and place it under trusteeship. I think LaPomeret will try to have the British Ministry put under trusteeship until they get their act together."

"I never ever heard of this Council. Has anyone else? Where did LaPomeret get this from?" Mike asked.

Luke started answering before Amy could, "A Council meeting has not been called since the Goblin Rebellion of 1889."

Mike took the book from his beloved, "mmmmmmmmm Interesting, we reviewed the Rebellion in class, at North American, but not this Council stuff. Are the other Ministers really going to go along with this Council thingy?"

"Considering the attackes, and this," Luke handed Mike a piece of parchment, "Most of the ministries and us received this an hour ago."

"What the hell! Full surrender to Voldie, is he on crack!" Mike said dropping the parchment on Luke's desk.

Luke sighed, "No, but he has everyone so spooked, they will grasp at anything they think might help."

"Well, Mr. Acting Assistant Secretary, you have a meeting to go to right now," Amy interjected.

"Fine, Fine, You two,", Luke waved his hand at Mike and Amy, "Go home and get some rest, I'll call you with the gory details later."

One the way home, Mike and Amy barely spoke. "So, what's eating you, love," Amy asked gently.

"I cannot get it out of my head that rat bastard is back."

"Unfortunately love, he is. I mean, you dealt with it pretty well, last time, and you were just a cute little boy." Amy giggled the last part.

Mike gave her a hurt look. "Hey, hey, who are you calling cute and little?"

"Oh stop, under that rough exterior, you are just a big softy," Amy giggled again.

"I'll show you!" Mike reached over and started tickling her.

"Stop! Stop! I'll crash the car!" Amy yelped while laughing.

"Serves you right, Miss I'm a softy," Mike felt his stomach rumble, "How about some food?"

"Is that all you men think about?" Amy smirked.

Mike, pretended to ponder for a moment, "Actually, we think about sex too!" Then he stuck out his tongue.

"Cute, very cute, off to home and food then," she told him.