My beta-readers, fredfred and InquisitorCOC, deserve a huge thank you. They helped a lot.

Chapter 20: The Swiss Vacation

Black Lake, Scotland, Britain, August 12th, 2005

He studied the treeline through the scope of his rifle, slowly moving the barrel back and forth, but couldn't spot anything or anyone in the woods across the small field.

"This side's clear," Ron said into his radio. "Yours?"

"Clear," Harry answered. "They're taking their time."

"Think they're trying to wait until we're bored and start to get sloppy?" Ron asked.

"Sirius would grow bored before we did. Long before we did," Harry replied.

"But he's just advising them," Ron said. The older man's wound was still preventing him from taking part in this exercise. Or should - Ron wouldn't put it past Sirius to throw caution and medical advice to the wind and grab a sniper rifle to help the girls out.

He quickly scanned the treetops and other likely sniper nests, then adjusted his helmet. Although it was made of Kevlar instead of steel, the bloody thing was still heavy and cumbersome. And the laser sensors strapped to it didn't help matters any. "If he's got a sniper rifle, then we're in trouble," he added. "We won't be able to spot it even when he's firing." Normally, the laser tag gear - Ausbildungsgerät Duellsimulator, as the Bundeswehr called it - would be used with blank cartridges, but their sets had been modified so they, and the girls, would only need to pull the trigger to fire.

Which meant Harry and Ron wouldn't be able to use the noise from shooting, or the flash and smoke, to spot their positions. Neither would the girls, but then they were the attackers, so they had a rough idea where Harry and Ron were hiding already. If he and Harry were allowed to cross the clearing and hide in the woods from where the girls would approach them… but they weren't.

"Birds!" Harry hissed.

Ron saw them as well. Something had disturbed the birds in the woods on Harry's side. Someone, to be precise. "There they are," he whispered.

"Keep covering your side," Harry whispered back. "This might be a distraction."

A distraction? Sirius had been a tank commander. Would he think of such a trick? It was possible, but not too likely. Ginny or Luna? Ron doubted it. His sister was sneaky, but her home was the tennis court, not the outdoors, and Luna was even worse in nature. Hermione, though… well, she might think of it - she knew how Ron had spotted Berisha's men, after all. He frowned and focused on the tree line across the clearing. As Moody had taught them - always assume the worst. Of course, Moody also had taught them not to be predictable...

"It's a distraction," Harry said as more birds rose into the air, including a few crows who made their displeasure loudly known. "They're overdoing it."

"Probably Luna, then." That would fit her, in Ron's opinion. Ginny was too competitive to be a mere distraction - and had been too enthusiastic about their G36s when they had done some 'familiarisation exercises' yesterday. More enthusiastic, in fact, than she had been at her birthday party, though that was understandable, given the circumstances. He shook his head and forced himself to focus on the exercise, not yesterday. It wouldn't be Hermione; she had too much experience to be wasted on such a task.

"Or Sirius."

That would be a way for Sirius to take part without risking his recovery - and being left out of the next mission. Ron nodded. "He's certainly annoying enough when he tries," he joked.

Harry chuckled, then cursed and ducked. "Someone just missed me!"

Ron hadn't heard the sound from the system but quickly rolled behind the tree trunk next to his spot. "They know where we are."

"Yes. Let's move," Harry replied.

They quickly changed position, using a fallen tree as cover. They couldn't move the flag they were to guard - the objective of the exercise - but no one had said that they had to stay near it and so they had prepared a nice position further down Harry's side.

But how had the girls spotted them? Magic? Ron didn't think so. Hermione wouldn't be using magic with Dumbledore undoubtedly watching the exercise - and wanting to debrief them afterwards. So… He blinked. Luna had received a new toy at the same time they had received the laser tag gear, hadn't she? "Harry, I think Luna's watching us with a drone," he whispered.

"What?"

"The new RC helicopter she got, it uses an electric engine," Ron explained.

"Damn. And it's small enough so it can hide in the treetops. That must have disturbed the birds!"

"Yes. And I bet it's not rigged with a laser receptor." Which meant they couldn't shoot it down even if they spotted it. Ron shook his head. It wasn't quite cheating, but it was certainly bending the rules. They were supposed to train the girls, not actually compete, after all. "That was probably Ginny's idea," he muttered. His sister really hated to lose.

"Yes," Harry agreed. "But all we have to do is be more careful, and keep the drone's field of view in mind."

"Bushes should be enough to keep us hidden," Ron said. The small helicopter couldn't have a thermographic camera installed. And it wouldn't be able to stay aloft for long, either. All they had to do was wait a little longer.

Though the girls and Sirius would know that as well. On the other hand, he didn't think Sirius and Ginny would be patient enough to outwait them. Hermione might, and Luna would be, but they wouldn't be able to hold back the others. At least Ron didn't think so.

He crawled - slowly, so he wouldn't disturb the foliage and branches of the bush under which he was hiding - a little further. "I've got eyes on the flag," he whispered.

"I've got eyes on the approaches," Harry replied. "They'll try the distraction again, I think."

This time, Ron could hear the squawking of birds. He tensed, aiming for the flag on the ground.

Then something fell down next to it, and, a second later, the entire area was covered in thick smoke.

"Bloody hell!" he muttered. That was even worse cheating than the drone. Smoke wouldn't stop bullets, but it affected lasers. Not completely, so he started shooting at the flag's spot, but he'd need to be lucky to score a hit that would register on the sensors.

He wasn't. "Yes! We got the flag!" he heard Ginny yell.

Harry shot her as soon as the smoke started to settle.

"We won!" Ginny said for what felt like the tenth time.

"By exploiting the rules and mechanics," Ron retorted. "This would have been useless as a tactic with live weapons." He grabbed a can from the cooler in their 'break room', as they called the small clearing.

"So? It was within the rules."

"This wasn't about winning or losing," he told her. "This was about training."

"We trained to think outside the box." She huffed and grabbed a can of her own.

That was a line straight from Sirius, Ron could tell. "And if you try that in a real fight, you'll end up shot."

She froze for a fraction of a second, then glared at him before taking a big swallow from her drink. "We still beat you."

"And Harry shot you," Ron pointed out.

"The exercise was over by that point."

"You can slack off once you're... home," Ron retorted. Moody's original quote went 'once you're dead', but that wouldn't have been appropriate.

"This isn't home," she replied, nodding towards the laboratory.

"Exactly."

His sister rolled her eyes at that. "You're worse than Harry. Shouldn't you be kissing Hermione instead of lecturing me?"

"Shouldn't you be kissing Harry?" he shot back, glancing over his shoulder to check that the others were still working on Luna's new helicopter at the other end of the clearing.

"He shot me! I'm not going to snog him until he apologises."

"He'll do that - after talking to you about taking this exercise seriously, I think," Ron said.

"He's such a sore loser!"

Ron had to cough at that, which earned him another glare before Ginny huffed and went back to the others. He finished his can, grabbed another for Hermione and followed his sister.

"It can't stay aloft very long," he heard Luna explain. "but it's much quieter than our old helicopter."

"It can't carry us, either," Harry said.

"That's what the old helicopter is for!" Luna replied. "This one's for scouting!" She was smiling. "Like a drone."

"Technically, it is a drone," Hermione pointed out. "A remote-controlled unmanned craft."

Ron smiled - that was such a typical comment for her - and handed her the drink. "Here."

"Thank you." She flashed him a smile and opened the can.

Harry frowned. "Where's mine?"

"That was Ginny's task," Ron told him.

"No, it wasn't!" His sister glared at him, then looked at Harry, who didn't say anything in response.

Ron sighed. They'd work it out soon enough, but until then, it was a little annoying. "So… anything else to add about our exercise?"

"Other than that we beat you?" Ginny said quickly.

"We out-thought you," Luna added with a grin.

"You abused the rules," Harry said. "So apart from learning what won't work in a real fight, there's nothing to add. So… let's go back to actual training. You've got five minutes to set up in that part of the woods, and then we'll come for you. No drones, no smoke grenades, nothing but the rifles."

"You've had your fun," Ron added, "now it's time to train again."

"And time for me to return to work," Hermione said.

Ron nodded. He didn't like leaving her alone in the lab - even with Sirius around - but he could do more good here.

"I would love to join, but doctor's orders forbid it," Sirius told them.

That left Luna and Ginny. Ron couldn't help grinning at their expressions. They'd had their fun. Now Harry and he would have theirs.

"How did the training go?" Hermione asked a few hours later, when Ron, freshly showered, checked up on her before dinner. She was wearing slacks and a T-shirt, but her hair was still up in that messy ponytail she favoured.

"We made up for the time lost before," he said. He didn't glare at her, but he didn't bother to hide his opinion of what they had done.

She picked up on that, of course. "They needed it," she said, narrowing her eyes slightly. After a moment's hesitation, she added: "They're still not over the fighting." Her expression told him that he better not tell anyone.

He wouldn't, of course. But he liked her trusting him with this. "I don't expect them to be fine," he said. Getting over such an experience would take longer. He knew that himself.

"It's not just the trauma," she replied. "They don't want to feel helpless and useless."

"They aren't," he said with a frown. "Ginny drove the Land Rover, and Luna piloted the helicopter. Without either, we would have been in a lot of trouble."

"I know. I've told them that myself, but that doesn't alter the fact that they really did feel helpless out there." She shrugged as she sat down at her desk, then pulled on a sweater over her thin T-shirt.

"Beating us by abusing loopholes in the rules isn't going to help them," he pointed out, leaning against the wall next to the door. He didn't cross his arms - that would have made him look like he was more annoyed about this than he actually was.

"Thinking outside of the box is a very useful skill to learn," she countered. "Creative plans saved my and my friends' lives a few times."

"Unless you learn the wrong lessons," he replied.

"That's what the rest of the training is supposed to prevent, isn't it?" She shrugged again. "It's not as if you're going to turn them into soldiers with a few lessons, anyway."

"Every little bit helps." Not that he wanted Ginny and Luna to kill people anyway. They shouldn't have to go through that. And Mum and Dad would kill him.

"Unless it results in overconfidence." She didn't copy his stance and tone, but he got the hint.

"It's also giving them something to do." Mostly Ginny - Luna had her contacts on the net.

"Yes, and that's helping. At least in my non-professional opinion."

"Don't sell yourself short;" he told her as she walked over to him - and the door.

"I'm a physicist, not a psychologist."

"But you're also their friend. And a woman. You can help them where we can't," Ron said. Which hurt a little to admit - he was Ginny's brother and Luna's ex-boyfriend, he had known both of them practically since birth.

"I'm doing my best," she said. "And it seems to be helping."

"That's all we can ask."

She snorted at that. "Let's go. We don't want to hold up dinner, do we?"

"No, we don't." He shook his head, then sneaked a quick - or not so quick - kiss before she opened the door.

Black Lake, Scotland, Britain, August 15th, 2005

As they returned from another training session in the woods, they saw Dumbledore sitting on a folding chair in front of the laboratory and watching the lake. Waiting for them.

"Ah, there you are! Good evening, gentlemen, ladies." The old man slowly stood and nodded at them. His suit was both expensive and immaculate - quite the contrast to their own baggy and muddy fatigues.

"Good evening, Mr Dumbledore," Harry replied. Ron nodded in greeting, as did Sirius.

"I hope you had a productive day," Dumbledore went on.

Ron shrugged in response. "We have to keep in shape." He was certain that their progress was being tracked, though they hadn't seen any overt surveillance.

"An admirable attitude." Dumbledore smiled like a teacher praising a favourite student.

"Did you find Sokolov?" Luna asked before the old man could continue.

Dumbledore looked taken aback and, for a moment, lost his patronising smile - but it returned at once. "Indeed, I did. Or, more precisely, some of my affiliates managed to discover where he is currently staying." He inclined his head. "Although I think we should discuss this in a more private setting."

Ron wondered if that was a subtle hint that Dumbledore's men had, by now, bugged the entire forest.

"By all means," Sirius agreed. "My shoulder's still not fully healed, and I'd rather sit down on a proper chair to talk about this. It'll be dinner time soon, as well."

"And we wouldn't want to exclude Hermione, would we?" Ron added. This was about her, after all.

"Oh, sorry!" Luna said, nodding several times. "I didn't think - I wanted to find out if I was right."

"Quite understandably, my dear," Dumbledore told her. "Curiosity gets the better of me at times as well."

Another hint? A warning? Ron couldn't tell.

"Shall I join you for dinner, then?"

"We'd love to have you," Sirius said - without any trace of sarcasm. It was an impressive lie - but then, Ron'd heard how Sirius had been raised. With those sorts of parents, you'd have had to learn how to hide your true feelings.

Dinner was, as usual, excellent. Perhaps even better than usual - delicious entre-côtes Café de Paris with pommes frites. Dumbledore certainly had a taste for French dishes, though it took until the crème brûlée was served for dessert for him to finally stop chatting about the economy, travelling, politics and the weather, and start talking about Sokolov.

"He has made himself very scarce indeed and avoided his usual stomping grounds - far more than even when Interpol was looking for him," the old man explained. "I think this means that he isn't just laying low and hiding from the authorities but also hiding from at least one of his former partners or employers."

"Do you know who those people are?" Harry asked.

"I know a number of them. Alas, Sokolov worked for and with a wide range of people, and even if we narrow the number down to those he would be afraid of, it's still over a dozen people," Dumbledore replied as he handed a list to Hermione.

"Influential people with many contacts, I presume," Sirius said.

"Very much so, yes." Dumbledore looked at Hermione. "Do any of the names seem familiar to you?"

She shook her head. "I don't recognise any of them."

"That means we have to talk to Sokolov. Or, at least, get access to his files," Ron said.

"How would we do that?" Luna leaned forward, her elbows pushing her plate and her glass to the side. "Do you know where his files are stored?"

"Unfortunately, I don't," the old man admitted. "He might have set up a dead man's switch so his data will be revealed to the public, should he become incapacitated, but the information would spread to everyone, and we don't know whether it would implicate the people after Dr Ganger."

"Not to mention that we don't murder people for their information," Harry pointed out.

"Yes," Luna agreed.

"Certainly not when crucial information might die with them," Hermione not-quite-agreed.

"Quite." Dumbledore acknowledged the rebuke with a nod of his head, but Ron was certain that the former spy only cared about the danger of others hearing about Hermione's secret.

"So, we need Sokolov. Where is he hiding?" Harry asked.

Ron leaned forward as well.

"Mr Sokolov has had an impressive career and has many contacts in Eastern Europe, the former USSR and the Middle East. However, not all of his contacts are as loyal as he thinks they are," Dumbledore said. "Or as security conscious as they should be, given their profession."

Ron kept a rein on his temper. He wanted to know where the bastard was hiding, not listen to some clever reveal, but it was Dumbledore's show.

"Of course, he counted on that - he let slip to selected people that he had a private island in the Aegean Sea while he actually went into hiding somewhere quite different." Dumbledore's smile grew a little more patronising. "However, he must not have been aware of the fact that, while the reputation of the Swiss banks for discretion and loyal service is well-earned, the Swiss authorities, in response to recent international pressure, do not protect their banks quite as fervently as they used to. Which means several proud and distinguished bankers might find themselves imprisoned, should their past business practices be revealed."

"Ah." So the old man's people were blackmailing Swiss bankers.

"So where is he?" Harry asked again.

"Twenty years ago, he bought a small cottage - a so-called 'chalet' - in La Punt Chamues-ch."

"Lapoont jamooash?" Luna asked.

Dumbledore corrected her pronunciation. "La Punt Chamues-ch. A small village in the Swiss Alps."

"Oh." Luna nodded. "And you think he's hiding there."

"I believe so," he replied. "My contact in Switzerland verified that the house is currently occupied - the water and electricity consumption is up compared to last month."

"And you want us to handle him?" Ron asked.

"You handled Mr Berisha admirably, despite the unexpected complications."

'Unexpected complications'... Ron had a mind to ask the old man if he had said the same thing whenever he lost a spy to a trap. Or still did.

"However," Dumbledore went on, "I don't have a backup team in place there, and moving one into the country would incur the risk of further leaks. So, although I doubt that Mr Sokolov's security is in the same league as Mr Berisha's, you would be operating with less support."

"But better secrecy," Harry pointed out. "Unless you've found any moles in your organisation."

"The efforts to tighten security are ongoing," Dumbledore said. Had his smile slipped a little? Ron couldn't tell. "Although, at this point, I don't believe that there was a highly-placed informant. I think it's more likely that someone managed to combine intelligence received through various channels - including sources outside the Phoenix Gruppe."

"Such as Yaxley," Ron said, frowning.

"If he wasn't silenced as a loose end, he might be working as an analyst now." Dumbledore shrugged. "At least as long as he proves his worth."

Harry shook his head. "He isn't that good."

"But he knows you - better than anyone else our still unknown enemies have access to, I'd wager."

Ron nodded in agreement. "Well, that means that once we find out who is behind this, we might find Yaxley as well."

"Indeed." Dumbledore smiled widely. "Although, first, we need to find out what - and who - Mr Sokolov knows."

"I don't think Sokolov will talk to us," Ron said. The man would be paranoid.

"And if he did, I doubt we could trust him to tell the truth," Harry added. "We'll have to kidnap him."

Hermione nodded in agreement, Ron noticed, but Luna was frowning, and Ginny… she was likely putting on a brave front.

"That will require a little more extensive planning, I believe," Sirius said. "The Swiss aren't as lax as NATO are in Kosovo."

"But they also don't have their military ready to intervene at a moment's notice," Dumbledore pointed out.

"The village is close to St Moritz," Luna said. "Surely they have competent police forces to protect all the billionaires?"

"Their numbers are limited," Dumbledore replied, "and, since it's summer, the jet-set aren't present in the area. That will affect the priorities of the local police."

Ron couldn't help noticing that both Luna and Dumbledore seemed to assume that there would be another firefight like in Kosovo. "Their numbers and state of readiness won't matter if no one notices us," he said.

"Or if we divert them to another location," Hermione suggested. "We could fake an attack on someone else."

"We'd have to split up for that," Sirius pointed out with a frown.

That wasn't a bad thing, either, Ron thought. Ginny and Luna could do the diversion - they would be safe.

Hermione, though, dashed his hopes. "We can set up the diversion in advance and start it remotely. A few recordings of gunfire, a few planted charges… if done at night, it'll be enough to occupy the police. We could even start two or three diversions."

"A fine idea, although such preparations will require a significant effort and increase the risk of discovery," Dumbledore replied. "Sokolov might have people in place checking for suspicious activity. Which is why flying directly to Samedan Airport near St Moritz is inadvisable in my opinion - it is an obvious location to put under surveillance."

"Then we'll take a detour," Sirius said, shrugging. "We'll need to plan our escape in advance, though - if it's in the Alps, the mountains will hem us in and there'll be natural choke points, which the police will know." Sirius frowned. "We'll need maps of the area."

With a smug smile, Dumbledore pulled out a bundle from his jacket. "Here."

"Perfect!" Sirius took them and unfolded one, and Harry had to react quickly to keep a wine bottle from toppling over when Sirius pushed his plate away, before joining his godfather in studying the map, followed by Luna and Hermione. Ginny, too, after a moment - probably so she wouldn't feel left out.

Everyone seemed to assume that they'd all go together, again. Ron pressed his lips together. Ginny and Luna weren't ready for a fight - that would take far longer than the few days they had spent training.

"I think all of you will be pulling your weight," Dumbledore said as if the old man had read Ron's mind. "Many crucial tasks on such a mission do not require shooting a gun."

Which, Ron knew, didn't mean someone wouldn't be taking a shot at you. But there was no way Ginny and Luna would agree to stay behind - and if they did, Ron and the others might end up short a set of hands at a critical moment.

If only Dumbledore could trust his men; they wouldn't have to take Ginny and Luna along if they could get a few trained men instead.

At least Ron would ensure that Luna and Ginny wouldn't be in danger. Not this time.

Flughafen Kloten, Zürich, Switzerland, August 17th, 2005

The armoured SUV was waiting at the airport, as ordered. At least that had worked out as planned - their flight from Frankfurt had been delayed by an hour, and it had taken another thirty minutes before they had been able to recover their luggage. At least the fake identities they had been using courtesy of Dumbledore had held up to the customs officers' scrutiny - Ron had been worried about that, but, obviously, counterfeit passports provided by Dumbledore were far ahead of the usual fake IDs he knew from his work.

In any case, they were in Switzerland. And all their gear, and then some, was safely stored in Hermione's beaded bag.

"You know, Hermione, you could make a fortune smuggling," Sirius said after Luna had checked for bugs in the car and they had left the airport. Ginny was at the wheel, with Sirius navigating, or so he claimed.

"What?" Hermione gasped. "Smuggling? Are you mad?"

"Really? You're currently smuggling weapons, aren't you?"

"Very funny," Hermione said, in a tone that made it clear she thought it was anything but.

Sirius chuckled. "Seriously, though, we'll have to look into using the opportunity to stock up on contraband here. Duty-free takes on a whole new meaning if you've got a bag of holding that, thanks to magic, will fool the customs officers."

"It's not a bag of holding," Hermione replied through clenched teeth.

Ron carefully didn't laugh. But he grinned.

St. Moritz, Switzerland, August 17th, 2005

Three hours later, they were pulling up in front of the Grand Hotel Carlton in St Moritz, one of the oldest luxury hotels in the area. And, as Ron noticed when he got out, perhaps in need of some makeover.

"Remember, you're a group of rich students with more money than sense, and I'm your driver and bodyguard, paid by Ginny and Ron's parents," Sirius said.

"I think, by now, we all know our cover story by heart," Hermione replied.

"We should," Ginny said. "You quizzed us during the drive."

It wasn't the most elaborate cover story, and probably not the best, either, but it would do, Ron thought. They certainly didn't look like a group about to kidnap a wealthy but shady businessman. Provided, of course, their disguises held, and Harry stopped acting like a bodyguard himself. Rich young men didn't take note of the area around them like that.

But Ginny was on the job. If anyone knew how to act like a member of the jeunesse dorée, it was Ron's sister. She might not have grown up rich, but after a few years on the WTA tour, you wouldn't be able to tell the difference compared to any other rich girl. Especially if Harry played his part. He had been raised by Sirius, after all.

Although if they were mistaken for part of the nouveau-riche, it would only help with their cover. And it would irk Sirius.

He got out, then waited for Hermione to get out. Like Ginny and Luna, she was wearing a summer dress that, to anyone who knew their fashion, looked as expensive as it actually had been. Not to mention sexy, he added to himself with a smile as he offered her his arm.

"Shouldn't you have held the door for me?" she asked as she joined him.

"We don't want to be too perfect," he told her with a grin.

She snorted. "Good excuse."

"As I was taught, what you do and say matters far less than whether or not you have an excuse ready."

"Your parents never taught you that!" she exclaimed as they walked towards the entrance while Sirius parked the car.

"No, they didn't. But I never said that, did I?" He grinned. "However, I learned quite a lot from my older brothers. And Sirius, of course."

She sighed. "I can imagine."

Once more, Ron was reminded of the fact that the wizard Weasleys were very similar to his own family. Just with the ability to bend reality to their whims.

He managed not to sigh as they entered the hotel.

Their room was spacious, but a little old-fashioned for a luxury hotel. Ron would have expected slightly more modern amenities. It still was more modern than Grimmauld Place, though. And far more expensive than Ron would have been able to afford.

He kicked his shoes off and sat down on the bed. "You can have the first shower," he told Hermione as she put down her beaded bag of holding on the other side of the bed. "Unless you want to share," he added with a wink.

She blushed a little, and he could see that she was tempted. But, after a moment, she shook her head. "We should focus on the reason we're here."

"It would look weird if, right after we arrived, we went out to explore the countryside. We've spent hours in a plane and more hours in a car," he pointed out, grinning. "And we're currently rich students on vacation - we've got leisure time aplenty."

"This sounds like another excuse," she said, frowning at him. But she was still flushed.

"I've thoroughly learned this particular lesson," he replied, propping up his head with his hand as he laid down on his side.

"You say that as if that's something of which you should be proud," she retorted with another frown.

"As long as it gets results…" He smiled a little wider at her. She was tempted, very tempted - he could tell. "Besides," he added, "if we share the shower, we won't take much longer than if we go one after another."

She laughed at that, then shook her head. "Is that false modesty or sudden honesty talking?"

Hey now! It was his turn to frown, which made her laugh again. "I think you should find out for yourself," he said, standing up and moving towards her.

She licked her lips as he came closer and tilted her head to meet his eyes. "It wouldn't be fair to the others."

"You think Ginny and Harry aren't doing the same thing right now?"

"Luna and Sirius aren't," she retorted.

Well, Ron certainly hoped they didn't become a couple. That would be very weird. Out loud, he said: "How's that different from back at the lab?"

She scrunched her nose, frowning, as she tried to think of an answer to that. After a few seconds, she huffed, turned around and walked towards the bathroom without answering.

But she started pulling off her clothes halfway there and glanced at him over her shoulder.

La Punt Chamues-ch, Switzerland, August 18th, 2005

Sokolov's house didn't look like the vacation home of a rich Russian businessman. It was roughly the same size as its neighbours, and Ron couldn't spot any ostentatious show of wealth, either. In fact, it wasn't even unique - he had seen an identical building on the way into the village.

"Did he buy the house off the shelf?" he asked as he stopped walking and pulled out a drinking bottle from his backpack.

"Standard design," Hermione said. "It certainly helps with staying under the radar."

"Clever!" Luna commented. "But boring as well."

"If you go into hiding, you want to appear boring and unremarkable," Harry said.

"But wouldn't that be expected?" Luna replied. "If everyone expects your hideout to be boring, you might want to be flamboyant instead. Your enemies won't expect that. Or hide in plain sight."

Ron hoped Luna didn't decide to take her own advice. "That doesn't work very well," he pointed out. "If you stand out, you're more likely to be noticed."

"Yes," Ginny agreed. "It's the same with the press. And it means that even if they spot you, the pictures they take won't be published because they're boring." She stretched.

"Unless that's their angle," Sirius added.

"That only affects celebrities who actually depend on being glamorous," Ginny replied. "Besides, you can dress boringly and still look good." She ran a hand over her front for emphasis.

Like all of them, she was dressed for hiking, though in Ginny's place Ron wouldn't want to leave the trails - her short-shorts and T-shirt left a lot of skin bare, which wouldn't exactly be ideal if you had to move through a dense forest or field. On the other hand, these hiking trails were quite extensive and well cared for, so it wasn't exactly an unsuitable outfit. Even though he felt it was a little too close to the outfits that she wore on the tennis court. Though with her hair dyed, and some makeup, she shouldn't be recognised.

"We should focus on our objective," Hermione said. "Not on the vagaries of the press."

"There's not much on which we can focus," Ron pointed out. Sokolov had an average fence, an average yard and an average house. Even the Dursleys would consider this a little too ordinary, he thought.

"I bet the security system isn't average, though," Luna said. "Though I can't tell from here. We need to get closer to the house. Much closer."

They'd have to leave the trail for that, which would draw attention from any competent bodyguard. "We can do that at night," Ron said. "And place cameras at the same time." This trip was mostly to get familiar with the area during the day, after all.

"The garage is a standard size as well," Harry remarked. "That means they'll have a smaller car, or it'll take them longer to get into a bigger car without having to drive it out first."

"We'll have to sabotage the garage, anyway," Ron pointed out. "To prevent Sokolov from escaping."

"That will require more information," Hermione said.

"We've got the time," Ron replied. He really didn't want to go in blind, like with Berisha.

"We'll have to scout out the locations for the distractions as well," Ginny said.

"Yes," Harry agreed. "And we need a good cover. So we'll hike a lot so we won't only be seen near the areas of interest."

Sirius groaned. "If I wanted to walk around like a bloody farm animal, I'd have joined the infantry!"

Harry patted his godfather's back. "Consider it your daily training regime."

Sirius expression made everyone chuckle. Even Hermione and Luna, who weren't much fitter than he was.

St. Moritz, Switzerland, August 19th, 2005

"They definitely have an advanced security system," Luna said between taking bites out of a croissant, tapping on a picture they had taken yesterday. "That's an infrared sensor in the backyard, above the door to the terrace. Calibrated not to react to small animals, I bet, or it'd wake everyone up every time a fox passed through."

"Detecting an intrusion so close to the house wouldn't be enough to stop a dedicated attack. Not the sort they launched at us," Sirius said. "And the house isn't big enough for a dozen bodyguards." He took a sip from his tea, then carefully put his cup down on one of the scarce free spots on the table in Ron and Hermione's room. "They'll need active and passive defences."

"The glass door looks armoured," Harry said. "The windows are probably bulletproof as well. And the curtains keep anyone from tracking people inside the house."

Ron nodded. Even the thermographic cameras they had installed last night had trouble detecting anything inside - the house had really good insulation.

"I think Sokolov counts on not being found," Hermione said. "I don't think he expects to be able to fend off an attack."

"He'll still have an escape plan," Luna replied. "Probably an underground tunnel."

That sounded a little far-fetched. Ron doubted that Sokolov would have been able to dig a tunnel in secret through half a Swiss village. On the other hand, Berisha had had an escape tunnel.

"We'd need special equipment to detect a tunnel," Hermione said. "And that would be hard to hide."

"We won't need to detect a tunnel if we surprise Sokolov and catch him before he can flee." Ron pointed at the small balcony on the first floor. "What about dropping us - Harry and me - off there with the silent chopper? Shrunk, we could sneak inside and wait until the potion's effect ends."

"I don't think you'd be able to sneak into the house like that," Luna said. "They don't keep the windows open, according to our surveillance."

"They open them during the day," Ron retorted. His plan would keep everyone but Harry and himself safe, and, if they could get inside, they'd achieve complete surprise.

"We wouldn't be able to use the RC helicopter during the day," Luna said. "Too obvious."

And sneaking through the yard while shrunk would be dangerous - and take quite some time. And they would have to wait until someone opened the door or a window, then sneak in. That could take hours. They would have to drink quite a lot of Shrinking Solution to have enough time for the worst case. Which meant they would have to hide for hours inside - if things went well.

Possible but not ideal.

"Oh, I have an idea!" Luna piped up with a wide smile.

That was either a very good, or a very bad thing, Ron knew.

Seeing the throngs of people filling the streets, it was hard to imagine that they were fighting a civil war in the same country. The same city, even - the Ministry was in London, after all. Not that any of the muggles around them, going clubbing or drinking, would be aware of that.

She shook her head. She wouldn't think of the war. Not now.

"Is something wrong?" Ron asked. He was tense and looking around.

"No." She smiled at him. "I was just considering how peaceful all this is."

"Ah." He nodded, obviously relaxing.

"I'm not having second thoughts," she told him.

"Ah." He smiled, almost shyly. "Just… it's OK if you do."

That was out of the question. She had planned this thoroughly. Picked the movie, the club and the hotel. "We might be dead tomorrow. Today, I want to live," she said, facing him. Before he could answer, she reached out and wrapped her arms around him, hands digging into his hair.

She felt his arms around her as she pulled him closer, and they kissed.

A group of drunk young men whistled as they passed her and Ron, but she didn't pay them any mind.

Today, nothing and no one else but them mattered.