Chapter Twenty Seven – First Strike
"The opening moves are tonight," Lady Aydin said.
"Your plan seems sound," Elder Sinclair responded. "I wish to be present when you begin questioning Black. I remember him and his friends from when I occasionally lectured at Hogwarts," back when Albus and I still spoke to each other as friends. "I wish to see what changed the boy from loyal friend to betrayer."
"That can be arranged," Lady Aydin replied. "One other thing. Here is the information you requested regarding Lily Evans. Do you mind telling me what you are looking for?"
The Elder took the small binder from Lady Aydin. "I find it interesting that Voldemort chose Potter as his enemy in the revival spell. He has many enemies. Targeting such a high profile one was risky. It's not like Voldemort to take risks without good reason. I wish to determine if there is anything unique about Potter that would compel Voldemort into making such a bold move."
Besides, the Elder thought, I must learn why Albus is so interested in him. His studies into the nature of the Avada Kedavra gave him a starting point. But it still didn't explain everything. And why was Albus having the Order guard the Department of Mysteries? Both Albus and Tom knew the truth about the Department. Too many questions.
Lady Aydin nodded her head at the explanation. She knew it wasn't the full truth. She spotted a few interesting names in the Evan's family tree. As much as Special Projects may depend on him for a link to the Wizarding world, Lady Aydin knew Elder Sinclair had his own agenda. Her uncle had discerned some of it from reading the currents and she could make her own guesses regarding the rest. For now their goals coincided.
"Very well," she said. "I will contact you when we have Black and the others."
"My thanks Lady Aydin," Sinclair nodded his head and left.
Lucius Malfoy, Peter Pettigrew and three others appeared outside a small house. They were all dressed in their full Death Eater Regalia. Mafloy spent a few moments studying the grounds. The house was located in village a few miles outside London. It was on a relatively large lot with a large amount of greenery. There was little chance anyone outside the property seeing anything out of the ordinary. Excellent.
He looked through the window to see a young women sitting at the dining room table leafing through some papers. He raised the special glasses he carried and looked through them. He saw four other women in the house. Two upstairs in one of the bedrooms talking and two others in the sitting room on the first floor. He smiled. They were all young and attractive. Not only would he fulfill his master's desire but this evening also promised to provide some true entertainment. The one in the kitchen, a brunette, quite lovely.
"Pucey, Goyle you take the ones in the upstairs bedroom," Malfoy said. "Pettigrew, Flint, take the two in the living room. I shall deal personally with the one the one in the kitchen. Remember we need to know where the scepter is, so take your time with them," three of men smiled with him, Pettigrew just looked nervous.
"The Dark Lord wants the scepter," Pettigrew said. "W-we do not have time to indulge."
"Silence Wormtail," Malfoy spat. "They are only muggles. They only thing they are good for is indulgence. We will retrieve the scepter for the Dark Lord. But I intend to enjoy the experience. Get ready. We go now."
The five disappeared with a loud popping sound.
Inside the house Willow smiled as she sensed the five wizards appear. They were earlier than she had expected. It was still only eight. An impatient bunch. She clicked the button on her cell phone to alert Eric and Faye that first strike had begun. She then mentally alerted the Slayers in the house. Kennedy nodded back to her from her chair on the other side of the room.
Willow had spent a great deal of time with Jennifer Sinclair watching her cast spells. She was confident in her ability to deal with these wand wielders. They all radiated power at about Jennifer's level. All five apparated into the house.
Two men appeared in the bedroom accompanied by a loud cracking noise. They raised their wands to strike.
"Burn," Willow said in barely a whisper. Both men shouted in surprise as their wands suddenly burst into flames and disintegrated. Willow didn't have the Wizarding world's scruples about destroying wands.
Kennedy was already on her feet and reached both men just as their wands burst into flames. They never had a chance to react. It was a muggle house. No one was supposed to fight back. They were both down and unconscious within seconds.
Willow waived her hand and spoke again, "Come." Various items started flying out of the men's robes and came to a rest in a pile next to them. Willow stripped them of everything that radiated magic.
Malfoy had planned it so he would apparate behind the young woman. He was preparing to say the imperious curse as he appeared. He just had time to register that the woman was no longer sitting at the chair.
Debra had been reviewing some notes for her political science class the next day. A couple of more credits and she would graduate. She felt Willow's mental warning and braced herself. She heard and felt the air shifting behind her. She knew what it was from Jennifer Sinclair's demonstrations of apparition. She was out of her chair and moving just as the loud crack could be heard.
Malfoy caught a glimpse of movement out of the corner of his eye. Then he felt pain. He heard a crack, from the pain he figured it was from his arm. His hand opened and he dropped his wand. He recognized the brunette as she spun in front of him. She moved too fast. More pain exploded through his chest and then his back as he slammed into the wall.
He blinked back the tears in his eyes. His right arm hung uselessly at his side, his chest was on fire and he could just make out through the blur his wand lying on the ground out of his reach. He started fumbling with his left hand. Every movement hurt. He had to reach his portkey. He didn't get the chance. He saw the women coming at him. Then he saw blackness.
Pettigrew and Flint didn't fair much better. Both Slayers sensed them before they could get their bearings after apparating into the sitting room. It was just too fast. If they had been expecting resistance, had known what they were confronting, they might have been prepared. Had time to cast defensive spells. Do something.
But this was muggle house. Flint was thinking about the fun he would have with the attractive young muggles before killing them. He wasn't expecting a foot slam into face, followed by unconsciousness.
Pettigrew did a little better. He was nervous by nature and therefore cautious. He jumped back the moment he noticed that the women were not sitting on the couch. But that was all he had time to do before the Slayer was on him. She knocked his wand away first. Then slammed him to the ground. He felt pain. He had to get away. He concentrated for a moment and changed.
"What the hell?!?" he heard a women's voice. "Willow!! Seal the house! One of these guys just turned into a rat!"
Pettigrew wasn't paying attention he was dashing towards the open door. He thought he was free until his head hit some kind of barrier. A magical barrier? In a muggle house? Pettigrew didn't have time to think through the implications before his world turned black.
"Got him," Ronni said. She was holding a wastebasket upside down over the rat/wizard. "Ok, who forgot to warn us they could do that?"
"Ugly little rat," Kennedy said staring at the creature through the glass. Ronni had managed to find an old fish bowl in the closet. They had converted it into a cage for the rat. "You don't see that many three footed rats running around."
"We can deal with that later," Willow said. "The vans are here. We need to clear the house and have a concerned 'neighbor' phone the police. I want it to look like these guys got what they wanted and then disappeared."
"And Riddle will think some of his guys turned traitors," Kennedy said. "I know the plan," she studied the rat. "You know, he gives off a vide that's kind of like the one I get off werewolves. None of the other four feel the same. I wonder how many of these wizards can change like this."
"Later, honey," Willow said. "I want to check in with Faye and Eric. They should have started the raid on Black's house a few minutes after I signaled them. That means they should be hitting the place any second now."
"Right," Kennedy replied as Willow motioned her out the door. She looked over to where the Slayers were loading the other four unconscious and tied up wizards into on the vans. "I wonder how upset these guys will be when they learn the scepter was never even in the house."
"Probably pretty mad," Willow replied. She closed and locked the door to the house. The house was still in disarray. Overturned furniture, broken cabinets, ransacked rooms.
When the police arrived a few minutes later they would see all the evidence of a robbery and possible kidnapping or murder. There was blood on the floor in the kitchen. A check would find that it was match for the owner of the house. A young woman who had just inherited the place from her grandfather.
That was what the papers would report the next morning after a few leaks from the police. The detective in charge of the case was an old friend of Jerry Cromwell's from back during Cromwell's days as a detective. He was the only one who knew the investigation would lead nowhere.
He didn't know what MI5 was up to. Truth be told, he didn't want to. But he trusted Jerry. He was impressed by the paper trail MI5 had set up. He'd never seen such detailed records on a fictitious person just pop up seemingly over night. Five had obviously hired some really skilled hackers recently.