A/N : What ? The disclaimer ? I already wrote it six times, is it really necessary ? Oh, fine... The characters don't belong to me. Libya doesn't belong to me either (and I don't think I would want to have it. Too damn hot.) Besides, if it did belong to me, I certainly wouldn't have allowed my favourite Feldmarschal to go along with that crazy plan of his, I'd prefer to keep it in one piece.

For those who wonder, Rommel was known not only for his chivalry towards his opponents, but also for his recklessness in certain occasions, if what I read about him was correct. He also went often to the front, which his soldiers appreciated and his generals found infuriating.

December 1943 - Near Ras Lanouf

"That's better guarded than I expected", Rommel admitted as he observed through his field glasses the dump they were supposed to raid.

They had walked restlessly after their leave, and they had been able to make it to Ras Lanouf quicker than the Feldmarschal could have hoped ; yet, it did not seem fate was taking it easy on them. His gaze followed one of the two german sentries that walked in front of the front gate. He hoped they would not have to resort to kill them ; for one, he didn't like the idea of killing his soldiers when their only mistake had been to do their job too well ; and secondly, they wanted to be as discreet as possible, and killing two sentries definitely did not fit the word "discretion".

"So what do we do ?" Riddle asked behind him.

They had left Dumbledore's men five kilometers from Ras Lanouf and had walked the rest of the way, with only a half dozen of British soldiers to back them up. Dumbledore himself had remained with his men, though he had needed convincing. But he had strict briefs to leave if Rommel and the others were not back by dawn. Now, knowing whether he would follow these instructions, that was another thing - even if, technically, Rommel outranked him, the annoying captain did not know it. On the way, the Feldmarschal had hinted he belonged to the British Secret Service, but somehow he did not believe the elderly wizard had taken the bait. Yet, it was worth trying.

"We fall back for now. We will need a diversion."

The eight men retreated a few meters away to where they were sure they could not be spotted, and circled around Rommel. He took a branch and started to draw a map on the ground, with simple accurateness that revealed he was accustomed to doing that kind of things.

"The dump is there, we are here. There are several buildings, the nearest is the one we are interested in. The farthest is where we will set the diversion."

"You really think the sentries will leave their duty ? Even if the diversion is on another building ?" asked one of the soliders, Richards or something like that.

"Oh, knowing what's inside the building, yes, I definitely think so..." the Feldmarschal muttered.

Ignoring the curious look of the other soldiers, he dropped his branch and took the bag they had taken with them - just in case. Inside, there were a few medical supplies, some ammo, a lighter and a flask of whiskey. Now, with that, what kind of diversion could he set...

He thought about it for a moment, discarding several ideas as they came to his mind. Finally, he snapped his fingers as he used to when he found a solution long sought, and he turned toward Riddle, a ghostly smile hovering on his lips.

"Now, my dear nephew, here's what you are going to do..."

-------------

Five minutes later, Rommel was back at his observation point, only this time the six British soldiers were with him and Riddle was not. Richards went lying on the ground near him, his eyes shifting nervously around as if he expected to be caught any time.

"Maybe I should have come with him", he said.

"No", Rommel replied. "As I told you, discretion is what matters most, and one is more likely to sneak in unnoticed than two."

Which was not, of course, the real reason why he had wanted Riddle to go alone. But that, the British did not need to know. After all, what they did not know would not hurt them. Besides, they would not have believed him, had he told them.

Suddenly, an explosion was heard, and the light of high flames lit up the night. The blond german smiled ; Riddle obviously had completed his mission.

Let's hope he does not get caught...

The two sentries in front of their dump had jumped at the sound, and seeing what was going on, they left their station at once, running toward the fire and shouting.

"Good", Rommel said. "I am going first ; when I am inside, I will call for you, and then you will come and pick up the cases."

"Understood", Richards nodded, used to obeying to orders.

The Feldmarschal picked himself up, and started running silently towards the building. It was only a hundred meters away, so he barely needed a few seconds to get there. He tried the door ; as he expected, it was locked. But those who had closed that door had clearly not expected a wizard to come around. But now, who would expect anyone to come there for the sole reason he wanted to steal uniforms ?

"Alohomora", Rommel murmured, and he heard the lock opening.

He pushed the door, which was now open, and peered inside. It was dark, and nothing moved. The only sounds were those of men shouting outside, trying to get the fire under control. That should do it, then.

He went back outside, and gestured for the British soldiers to come. They arrived a few seconds later. In their dark clothes, they were not too visible, though the moon was full and the sky clear.

"The door was not closed ?" Richards asked in surprise.

"Of course it was. Did I forget to mention I happen to have a picklock degree ?" the german lied smoothly.

"You did, but that's a nice discovery of your talent", the British replied with a grin.

He and his fellow soldiers followed Rommel inside, and he showed them the stacked up cases, in which he knew were the uniforms - it was written on them in german.

"There must be about twenty-five uniforms in each, so we need four of them", he said. "Two of you take one each, the others pair up and take two more. I'll stay behind and close the door."

They obeyed and picked up the cases full of clothes. Fortunately, they were not too heavy, and they proceeded quickly. As soon as they were out, Rommel left the building and he locked the door as it was before, with the help of magic, making sure no one could see him do so. Five minutes later, they were all back away from the dump. The mission was a success.

Except Riddle was nowhere in sight.

Richards cast the Feldmarschal a concerned look. He had put his load down, and was currently sitting on it.

"What do we do, sir ? Wait for him ?" he asked cautiously.

Rommel hesitated for no more than a mere second.

"No. You go back to camp."

Slightly ill-at-ease, the men shared an unsteady look. Then, Richards, who seemed to be their spokesman, cleared his throat.

"Em - what about you, sir ?"

"I'll wait for him. Go. That is an order."

They seemed about to protest, but they knew he outranked them, since he was obviously an officer, and they really had little choice. Besides, none of them wanted to get caught any more than Rommel did, so they did not really need a lot of persuading.

They were good men, the Feldmarschal thought as he watched them leave. Brave, daring, yet obedient. But now, his german soldiers too were good men. It was so silly, watching men that could have been friends fight to death. All these death, just because Grindelwald had thought that having a bit of Poland would be nice.

He sighed. Away, the fire was receding, and it would soon be extinguished. They would think it had been an accident, and no one would notice the disappearance of the hundred uniform before a very long time. If they ever noticed it, because at the rate Montgomery had been gaining ground, during that last year...

"Waiting for me ?"

The german almost jumped at the voice. Spinning round, he scowled at Riddle, who had been coming behind his back so sneakily he had not heard his footsteps.

"Never. Do. That. Again", he said caustically.

"Oh, my, did I surprise you", Riddle scoffed.

"You are late", the Feldmarschal retorted icily.

"Yes, well, I lit the fire, but I had not expected so many people to come so quickly. So, I was hidden by my invisibility charm, but that would not have prevented them from stumbling over me, and you said to be discreet. I merely waited for them to calm down a little. What was stored in that building anyway ? I didn't think they would react so badly."

"Explosives", Rommel replied off-handedly.

"Oh, right, I understand bet... WHAT ?!"

The german shrugged carelessely. It was his turn to have a laugh.

"Enough of it to blow up Paris and send it on the moon."

"And you sent me there to set fire to the building WITHOUT EVEN WARNING ME ?!"

"Hush", Rommel hissed. "Unless you want them to know we are here."

Riddle glared at him wordlessly, and the german raised an eyebrow.

"What is the matter, anyway ?"

"The matter is, if they had not got the fire under control, I'd be damn dead !"

"So would I, and half Ras Lanouf with us", the Feldmarschal replied. "It was the only way. Besides, it did work."

"Oh, yes", Riddle said sarcastically. "I see no reason at all why you should have told me about these explosives. Next time, send Dumbledore. No, actually, next time, I get to give the orders. And believe me, you won't like it one bit."

"You expect there will be a next time ?" Rommel queried innocently.

Riddle looked daggers at him, but did not respond, and by mutual consent they started walking back to camp.

When they arrived there, one hour later, Dumbledore was waiting for them, and he seemed relieved to see them. The elderly wizard welcomed them with a friendly smile, though the german uniform he was wearing made him look a bit off place. The other British soldiers had also traded theirs for german uniforms, and they seemed slightly uneasy in these clothes. Richards waved with his cap, obviously relieved to see them safely back.

The sky was starting to become clearer ; morning was not far. Dumbledore, Riddle and Rommel went aside to discuss their next move out of any ear's reach.

"Now, we have the uniforms, and a rendezvous point", the elderly wizard said.

"So you did manage to get to a radio without being noticed."

"It wasn't difficult to slip into Ras Lanouf. The dump you raided was probably better guarded than the radio. I had to Obliviate the operator, but apart from that, everything went as smoothly as one could expect. We are due, two a.m. each day for a week, so we have all the time to get ready to pass through the ennemy lines", Dumbledore replied contentedly. "I am not sure whether they are sending a submarine of a ship, but it hardly matters."

"That's a good thing", Rommel nodded. "So, we are ready to leave."

"Yes, I believe so."

"But we do not have to leave right now", the german concluded. "We have all the time we need to get some rest. I could use a nap, I think, and that would not hurt you both or the men either."

"I'm not... whaaa... tired", Riddle protested, stiffling a yawn.

"Of course not", Rommel scoffed.

"I believe you are right", Dumbledore nodded. "That place is far enough from Ras Lanouf or any road, so we probably have nothing to fear, and I can add a spell or two so if any muggle approaches, he won't see us."

"Then it is settled. We will spend the night here", the Feldmarschal said, stretching a little.

He certainly felt tired enough to drop on the ground and remain there for the whole day... And whatever Riddle might say, he looked tired too. They had not slept of the night, and they had left quite early the day before, so it was only natural.

The three men quickly discovered that thrown over British uniforms made very nice mattresses.