A/N: Ok, fair warning. There's a paragraph or two at the end of this chapter that is THE reason I decided to rate this story T. I've never written anything remotely like it on fanfiction before, so to my regular readers who aren't expecting such... blatancy; you have been warned.

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter.

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Skeeter was not a pretty sight under the best conditions, so it goes without saying that she currently looked horrid. Her robes were ripped, her hair falling, and her glasses askew after the cat assault. Bill could've laughed, except there was a Dark Wizard breaking into a tomb.

"You're the... McJay or whatever it is..." he directed at Asima, wracking his brains for the shield charm. Prodigy? Progeny? Protgany? Whatever. "What do we do?"

"First, make a barrier," the Medjay said.

There were loud voices and the sounds of running footfalls from the entrance. Then, screams of agony and a loud thud as if a statue was toppling. Which was what happened, as the opposing wizards hadn't successfully made it past the curse that turned tomb-raiders into alabaster.

"Done," said Bill. "What else?"

Bill noticed Asima was holding her mouth in a way that suggested she was trying not to laugh. "Gouging charms," she said, pointing at the ceiling.

"Good call," Bill agreed, and he pointed his wand at the ceiling. Quirinius joined them, but Skeeter seemed to be in such a fuss that she wouldn't help. They worked fast, as they could hear the wizards attempting to break past their fallen alabaster companions. At last, the Gouging charms won out and the ceiling was exposed to them. Bill reached down and picked up a stone just before Quirinius flicked his wand thrice and Bill, Asima, and Skeeter all shot through the gap in the roof and out into the open. Bill then shot a levitating charm at Quirinius who quickly joined them.

"Here," said Bill, casting a Portus charm on the stone he'd picked up and they all laid a finger on it. In an instant, they were whipped away by the newly made Portkey.

They reappeared in a dark, damp tunnel full of muddy, still water. Skeeter immediately let out a cry of disgust and tried in vain to get out of the mud.

"Where are we?" asked Quirinius.

"Dahshur," said Bill. He cast a non-verbal Patronus, a bird of some sort, which soared away. "Ok, Gringotts is gonna set up a Fidelius Charm on a safe house near here. We just need to stay clear of those wizards until it's set up." He turned to Asima. "Keep them safe. I'll be back." He trudged through the sludgy water, which the rest now understood to be a sewer, and climbed a frail ladder into the open air.

"Where are you going?" Asima called after him.

"Portkeys can be tracked," Bill called back. "I'm making sure they don't find us."

Asima watched as he vanished into the light. Then, making her decision quickly, she said to Quirinius, "Watch her," (pointing at the reporter). She leapt after Bill.

On the street, Bill tried to stay inconspicuous, which is difficult for a red-haired Englishman covered in sewer water in an Egyptian market place.

"William!" whispered Asima, right behind Bill, causing him to jump.

"Jeez," said Bill, grabbing his heart. "You trying to kill me?"

"Quite the opposite, actually," Asima said. She pointed to several individuals in the market. "Those are our guys."

Bill looked at her questioningly. "How d'you know?"

"That man," she pointed at a man sitting in the dirt playing with a small dog, "has a wand concealed at his hip." She motioned at a man standing near a stall across the road. "That man is attempting to blend in with the Muggles around him, but he's got a scarf wrapped around his leg, and that one," she pointed at a man arguing with a shop-owner, "is attempting to buy Muggle feminine products."

Bill looked at the three wizards with a sense of wonder. "Good eye," he said. "What should we do? We can't start a duel with all these Muggles around."

"Just Confund them so they won't follow us," Asima said. Bill nodded and surreptitiously pointed his wand at each man, Confunding them per Asima's instrucions.

At that point, a tiny elf owl landed on Bill's shoulder with a piece of parchment clamped in its beak. "A Gringotts safe house has been set up for Bill Weasley, Quirinius Quirrell, Asima al'Misri, and Rita Skeeter behind the apartment building on the main road."

"The Fidelius Charm is in place," said Bill, showing her the note. "Q and the reporter would've gotten one too." He led the way through the market (avoiding the still-Confunded wizards) and made for the location indicated in the note.

A small, comfortable looking house had been constructed by magic on the spot, invisible to anyone not welcome to the secret. The house was built of white brick, with green eaves and red doors.

"Looks like Christmas," Bill said, suppressing a chuckle. He didn't expect Asima to catch the reference, but she didn't ask.

They entered the house, which was much larger than it appeared on the outside when the sounds of a loud and hysterical voice met their ears. Rita Skeeter was apparently still shaken from the events in the tomb.

"Never in my life!" she screeched. "Never! Not in all my years, no!"

"Skeet!" Bill shouted, causing Quirinius to jump and Skeeter to look at him, her nostrils flaring. "Shut the hell up!"

The witch just stood there, breathing heavily and angrily. "Now," Bill said calmly. "What is your problem?"

"MY problem?" asked Skeeter. "Nothing except disrespect from you since we met, creeping past stalagmites that will turn you into effing stone, statues of cats attempting to tear me limb from limb, a Dark Wizard trying to murder me, and YOU subjecting me to disgusting diseased Arab sewer water."

Bill listened to her list without interruption. "You done?" he asked.

"Not hardly!" said Skeeter. "You may not know anything about how you treat respectable witches and wizards, I wouldn't expect you to know anything about manners being raised by that family of yours, with your fat little mother and your fool of a father. And of course like you could get any proper parenting with there being so many of you. My Lord, I cannot believe what you have put me through today! You have no idea who you are speaking to, and you've got me trumping through bloody sewer water!"

Bill hadn't reacted to anything she said. "NOW are you done?" he asked.

"In fact, I-" she started to say, but Bill interrupted.

"Yes, you are. Silencio!" The spell was cast so quickly and without warning that Rita didn't have time to counter it. She suddenly started moving her mouth up and down rapidly and furiously. Finally, fuming, she marched to the door and slammed it.

"That's the last we'll see of her," said Bill, striding to the kitchen and pulling out a jar of peanuts.

"My word," said Quirinius, clearly shocked. "I had no idea she was so rude."

"Q," said Bill, "she's a reporter! She thinks she's smarter than everyone and expects everyone to treat her so. That's why I was so rude to her and less to you two, because she's the one that needs her pride taken down a level or two." He offered Quirinius a handful of peanuts, and the wizard took them.

Quirinius shifted uncomfortably as he chewed them. "You weren't that rude," he said, finally.

"Thanks," said Bill. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the cloth with a map drawn on it. "Now, this map should lead to the location of the sphynx that guards the river. The river where Zazamankh hid the lotus," he explained when Asima and Quirinius gave him odd looks. He sat at the kitchen table, Quirinius joining him on his right and Asima sitting across from him.

"Sphynx's use riddles," said Quirinius. "Are you ready for that?"

"I'll worry about that when I hear it," said Bill. "Right now I want to find out where the bloody cat is." He was studying the map carefully.

"This doesn't look like anywhere in Egypt," he muttered as he stared at it. Asima peered over her shoulder. "It's not," she said. "This is most definitely Libya."

"He hid it in a different country?" Bill asked.

"Take a guess, oh great cursebreaker," Asima said, annoyed. "What ancient Egyptian painted maps on cloth?"

It took Bill a second to realize. "None. This isn't the map."

"Someone already has it," Quirinius realized.

"They might have the lotus as well," Bill said, thoughtfully. He started looking the map over.

"What are you doing?" Asima asked.

"Looking for a clue as to what the cloth is." He laid it flat on the table and pointed out something to Asima. "What is this?" he pointed to a word painted in on a corner, written in a language he thought might be a northern African dialect.

"The Purple Tribe," said Asima. "It is a Nomadic wizarding tribe that travels across the Sahara. They've been in trouble with the law enough, organized crime, smuggling, and gambling, but mostly feuds with other tribes."

"Everything's about tribes in Africa," said Bill. "You think this Purple Tribe may know the location to the Golden Lotus?"

"It is possible," said Asima, "but I haven't heard any news about them making new friends and alliances, so it may not be so."

"We'll have to arrange a meeting," said Bill.

Quirinius shook his head. "There's a problem with that. They're nomads. They could be anywhere in the Sahara desert."

Asima stood quickly. "Don't leave this building. I'll be back later with their location." With that, she turned to the fireplace. She grabbed a handful of floo powder and threw it into the flames. "Medjay Office!" she said, and she disappeared.

Quirinius and Bill were subjected to several hours of Asima's absence. Afternoon came and went, and she still hadn't returned.

Just as the pair were finishing up their dinner that Quirinius had fixed, Bill heard the door open and shut. Asima had returned with a map of northern Africa.

"Some of the Medjays I work with have been watching their movements," she explained as she spread the map across the kitchen table where they were all seated. "I had to pull some strings to get this information, but I did get it." She pointed to a spot south of Gadamis, Libya. "The tribe was last seen here less than a month ago. Given the trade routes they've been known to follow, they may be somewhere around Awbari." She pointed out the city aways south from Gadamis.

"Brilliant!" said Bill. "We'll stay the night here and leave here tomorrow, shall we?" Asima nodded in agreement but Quirinius hesitated. "Q?"

Quirinius spoke slowly, not quite sure of himself. "The Purple Tribe is a crime tribe," he said. "Are we sure they won't have any relation with this Dark Wizard who's chasing us?"

"Not likely," said Asima. "African wizarding tribes may not be friendly but almost none of them seriously use dark magic."

Quirinius found Asima's explanation acceptable and after some initial planning with the other two, he went to bed.

It was very late in the evening when Bill finally decided to turn in.

"Bill," Asima called as he was leaving the room. "Don't you wonder about me?"

Bill was confused, and Asima saw it on his face. "I mean, why have you not asked about our past?"

Bill's face went red, which it didn't always do. "I just... um. I've never shown a girl the proper respect I know I should give her, I guess... and I can't honestly remember our night together... you aren't the only witch I've picked up from the market, you know."

Asima nodded, standing up and stepping closer to him. "I understand. I even knew it at the time. As charming and care free as you were about girls you took to your flat with you, the ease with which you picked me up... I knew I wasn't the first."

Bill stood rooted to the ground. He was trying to make a quick getaway without appearing rude, but something was odd about the way she was speaking to him now... it was almost... suggestive.

She was standing very close now and leaned in even closer. "But even though I knew I wasn't the first... I could not keep my mind clear enough at the time." She broke eye contact and looked at the floor, biting her lip. Bill had the slightest idea what she was getting at. "Earlier you asked me if it was good for me," she said, her voice barely a whisper. "And now I will tell you... it was the best I've ever had."

She was seducing him.

Bill realized it, and yet he didn't try to stop it. Alarm bells were ringing in the back of his mind as she kissed him, he was trying to knock some sense into himself as she worked her way down the hallway and into his bedroom. He told himself over and over "this is a bad idea" as they collapsed on his bed; as she tore at his clothes and he at hers.

Through the entire experience, he knew exactly what she was doing, but did nothing but act on his desire.

He enjoyed himself and didn't even regret it until the middle of the night when he heard an intruder down the hall.