Scorpios was sitting in a darkened room waiting for his "appointment" with "Mr. Big". So far he wasn't impressed. The shack he had been brought to was covered in filth. A couple of unbroken chairs and a rickety table was all that furnished the shuttered room he sat in.

He had to find out what this group had planned and this was the only way. His father explained Scorpios' obsession with routing out evil as some deep seated attempt to make up for all the pain his ancestors had inflicted.

Scorpios just knew that he loved the life he had and wanted everyone to have a chance at happiness.

Suddenly a scruffy looking wizard appeared in front of him. "Mr. Big" wasn't so big after all. After a hard hour of answering questions and blocking the mind probes with false memories, he had been accepted as a new convert.

He was to be sent to the middle east.

JSPJSPJSP

Louis and Rose sat having a uncomfortable dinner. They were at Rose and Scorpios' flat. Rose knew what she had signed on for when she had married an auror. She also would never ask her husband to give up his passion. But her cousin Louis knew something and he could not tell her anything more than Scorpios was all right the last time he had checked in and now was deep under cover. Louis knew they would not hear from Scorpios until it was time to bring down the terror ring.

The only other person more uncomfortable with the situation was Rose's father Ron. He had never hesitated to go in to dangerous situations, but he always found directing others in to danger made him nervous and grumpy.

JSPJSPJSP

Harry was with his eldest in the sitting room of the Potter's suite at Hogwarts. Ginny was walking the girls back to their dorms in Gryffindor tower. Mary had a match the next day and James was there to watch her and review the play of a couple of 7th years that had potential.

"Dad can I ask you a question about the auror department?"

Looking a bit uncomfortable Harry said; "You know there are some things I can't tell you even now, right?"

"I think you can answer this one. First let me tell you why I ask. You know Scorpios has been away for a while right?"

Harry nodded.

"Rose has been having horrible nightmares about him being in danger. You know how close those two are, two halves of a soul. I'm afraid she might be picking up on something real. Is there a way for us to find out if he is all right?"

"Son I'm afraid that if he is deep undercover we won't know until he is safe and the mission is over. Or until something bad is confirmed. All I can say is continue to be the good friend you are to Rose. Let her know that the family will help her through anything."

JSPJSPJSP

In a dusty drought plagued village a mother ran holding her 2 year old tight. Her secret had been found out. Her daughter was a witch. She had known for some time but she had hid it from the village. She knew if their neighbors found out that a wizard family lived among them they all would be killed. But today when the strangers had tortured her husband to death her little girl had killed the biggest one by pointing at him.

Her husband had led the resistance to the strangers. They had shown up a few months ago with food and water for the village. At first they had seemed a god send. Then they had started talking hate and poisoning the minds of the villagers against the government. They had encouraged the men to take up arms and the women to become bombers. Even the children had been indoctrinated.

Asima and her husband had watched their normally peaceful neighbors change overnight. It was as though they were being possessed. As much as it hurt, they had stopped taking the food and water and quietly began recruiting others to resist the evil.

Scorpios was running too. He appeared to be a part of the pack running to hunt down the witch, but he was trying to save the girl and her mother. He had what he needed. If only he had it before the girl's father had been killed! The potion the terrorists had been using on the villagers was in his pouch and he had sent the message for the international association to descend on all the locations and pick up the terrorists. All he had left to do was save two people and get out of this alive.

Pops told him help had arrived, yet he continued to run toward the woman and her daughter. She was cornered and was curled around her daughter, shielding her with her own emaciated body. The villagers had been stopped by a few well aimed spells, the aurors were doing their job. But "Mr. Big" was pointing his wand at the mother and child. Scorpios jumped toward the wizard as he shot a shield spell toward the females.

Ron was right sometimes physical action was more effective than magical. He had "Mr. Big" pinned and disarmed, a restraining bracelet slapped around his wrist and was considering knocking him out when Louis appeared at his side.

With out saying a word Louis knew to take the wizard and let Scorpios attend to the mother and daughter.

He held out his hand to the witch as he knelt beside them. In perfect Arabic he said, "My name is Scorpios and I am here to help. I am so sorry I could not save your husband. I want to get you both somewhere safe."

Asima looked deep in to his eyes and knew she could trust him. "I feel my life slipping away. I can see my husband waiting for me."

Scorpios called for a med wizard. The wizard quickly did diagnostic spells and shook his head. "Her heart is too weakened from starvation. The physical activity was just too much."

Scorpios and the healer sat beside the mother and tried to make her as comfortable as possible.

Asima handed him her daughter. "This is Warda, she is two years old. As you saw she is a witch also. Do you have children?"

Scorpios shook his head. "Not yet, my wife and I decided to wait. My job has been a bit dangerous lately."

The toddler laid her head against Scorpios' chest and went to sleep, a grubby thumb in her mouth.

Asima stroked her daughter's head. "What will become of her? Here she will be hunted because of her magic. If she does not die of starvation first."

Scorpios used his free hand to clasp hers. "Would you allow me and my wife to raise her? She would grow up in a magical family in a country where she will be safe and well fed. I would never let her forget you or her father and how brave you were. We would raise her as ours."

Hope filled Asmia's eyes. "What will your wife say to you bringing her a daughter?"

Scorpios smiled down at the sleeping child. "Somehow I just know she will love this child as much as I am beginning to."

Asima looked deeply in to his soul and asked; "What is the name of the woman that will raise my little one?"

"Rose, the English word for Warda."

Asima closed her eyes with a smile on her face. Her child would be safe and loved. She could go to her husband.