"Right... We know his central targets, recently, have been Ministry officials, and several Muggles just outside of Liverpool. We can only conclude he's somewhere between here and Liverpool, which will narrow the search radius."

Elodie watched Edward hand out booklets of the individual assignments to their team, and she smiled at each as they passed her on their way out. The meeting had been somewhat successful, but there was no real progress since the last time they had come together.

"Night, Elodie," one called, "Get some sleep, love."
"Will do, Frank," she replied, waving him off as he left the room. When it was finally her and Edward, she watched his commanding persona fall as he slumped down into a chair, rubbing his face, "This is going nowhere."
"He's a difficult man to track," Elodie grumbled, slamming her binder shut and pushing it away, "Our team isn't big enough to keep tabs on all of his Death Eaters... We need to push for more people."
"We're already using the entire department," Edward sighed, "And when we can't show any new results, people are going to be taken off."
"This is madness, and you know it," Elodie said softly, moving a few chairs down to be closer to him, "Edward... We're going to lose this assignment!"
"We're the only one's capable of doing it," he argued, placing a gentle hand on her leg, "I promise... We won't lose it."
"Don't you all look doom and gloom."

Elodie glanced up and spotted Hirman Weasley leaning in to the room, his usual messy red hair trailing over his face. Edward smiled at his friend and rose, "You're here late, old friend... Muggle affairs keeping you busy."
"Oh, but it's no problem to me!" Hirman exclaimed, sliding into the room and taking a seat at the chair across from the couple, "We're working on something today, a Muggle device! It's called a Pistol, formally, but the slang for it is a gun."
Elodie frowned, "A ... gun? How odd sounding."
"I disagree," Hirman interjected, "I think they are fascinating... Would you like to see one?"
"Why not," Edward droned, shooting Elodie a smile, "We aren't getting any further on our case."
"Pity," Hirman condoned briefly, pulling our a metal weapon from his pocket, then placing it on the table, "That is why I personally prefer working with Muggles."
Edward reached forward and dragged the weapon toward him, his eyes traveling over it quickly. Elodie raised an eyebrow, "What does it do, Hirman?"
"Oh, well you see," Hirman began, his chest swelling with pride, "It shoots little lead bullets... Dead useful. ... You get it? Dead useful? Dead? Aha ha ha ha!"

Elodie snorted, but unfortunately could not share the same sense of humour. However, as always, she was amused around Hirman.

"So do these lead things hurt when you get hit with them?" Edward inquired, cocking the small hand gun and holding it up, aiming it at the wall. Before Hirman could answer, he had fired it, causing a loud bang to erupt from the end of the gun, a scream to be ripped from Elodie's lips, and a small, round hole to suddenly appear in the wall.

"It can be fatal," Hirman replied weakly, pulling the gun from Edward's limp fingers. Edward stared at the wall for a moment, then grinned, "That's brilliant."
"It's barbaric!" Elodie exploded, "You better be leaving that here if you intend on ever coming over to our place for dinner again, Hirman Weasley!"
"Oh, Elodie," Edward chuckled, "It's not like we'd show James or anything."
"Somehow I don't trust you... Either of you."

Hirman chuckled and the pair exchanged mischievous looks.

"What in Salazar's name is going on down here?!" Gill Griss, the department head of Magical Transportation, boomed, glaring at the trio, "Why is there a hole in the wall?"
"Oh, hello Gill," Elodie greeted, smiling at him, "You're here late."
"You aren't the only one that has important work to do," he replied, "Now, why is there a hole in the wall?"

Elodie had always liked Gill. There was just this quirky sense about him that she found interesting. He had a very odd fascination with insects, and was a walking encyclopedia of knowledge.

"Ed fired off a Muggle gun," Hirman chuckled, rolling his eyes, "Gave us all a bit of a fright. But, not to worry... We've got everything under control."
"The Minister will want to know why you've got that outside of your zone, you know," Gill stated, taking a seat beside Hirman and taking the gun into his hands, "Muggles are so intelligent... It's a mere wonder why we don't work well with them."
"Some people just think they aren't good enough," Edward answered, rolling his eyes, "It's pathetic."

A silence settled over the group as each man went off into thought. Elodie glanced at the clock, realizing it was nearly nine-thirty, and she had told the babysitter she would be back by nine.

"How about we all head off for a round of drinks at our place?" she suggested, standing up and throwing her brown cloak on over her shoulders, "We need to get back to James."
"I'll take you up on that," Hirman chuckled, rising and taking the gun back, slipping it into his pocket, "Griss? You up for a round?"
"Well-"
"Come on, you workaholic," Edward laughed, tucking in his and Elodie's chair, "Just a round."

Elodie grinned when he finally accepted, and the four apparated home without further delay.
When Elodie was finally standing in front of her house, her heart nearly failed her. There, in a shimmering green, stood the Dark Mark swirling above her house, the large snake slithering through the skull.

"Oh my God..." Elodie whimpered, "They're here... James!"
She took off toward the front door, but before she could get too far, Edward had grabbed her arm and yanked her back, "Don't be stupid, Elodie! We're aurors... Use your head! You can't just rush in to a house with the Mark above it! They could either be in there, or gone... We can only hope for the second."
"James had a Muggle babysitter!" she shrieked, "There is no hope for her, no matter what happened! My baby is in there-"
"Shh," Gill hushed, pushing the group into a small clump of trees and bush, "They could have been watching! Honestly... It's great to see what you two do in the face of danger! We need to think this through."
"My boy is inside," Elodie whispered, gripping Edward's hand tightly, "If something happened..."
"Elodie, breathe," Hirman ordered, his voice sounding strong and authoritative, "Edward... How many ways into the house are there? We have the front and back doors. We have the side door to the garden. We have the windows in the kitchen... Did you lock them?"
"No," Elodie replied quickly, "We kept them open... We needed a draft in the house. Warm afternoon."

"Good... There's four ways for us to get in," Gill murmured, "We need to move with stealth, and we need to move along at different times. If someone was watching, they knew we're here."
"Should we alert anyone?" Edward muttered. Elodie shook her head, "Four is better then three."
"Now you're thinking clearly," Gill praised, "I need something where I don't have to climb."
"I'll go in through the windows," Edward volunteered, "I know where the flower pots are."
"I'll take the back door then," Hirman muttered, "Gill, take the front."
"I'll take the front," Elodie argued, "My child is in there... I'll go in first. They look kinder upon women."
"Since when?!" Edward hissed, refusing to let loose her hand, "Elodie, don't be daft."
"I'm doing my job, and then some," she growled, "Gill, you follow me, then Edward, then Hirman... Understood?"
"Elodie, love-"

Elodie ignored Edward and pushed free from his grasp, retrieving her wand strolling forcefully toward the house. If anyone was watching, she didn't care. They would have already known she was there, and there was no point in hiding it anymore. She found no surprise when she noted the door was unlocked, and she squared her shoulders, ready to kill anyone who threatened her, or her James.

"James?" she called out, hoping her voice would not shake. She had not had many huge confrontations with Death Eaters, since Edward usually delegated for her to remain behind, and out of trouble. She knew he was being protective, but enough! She was old enough, by now, to look after herself.
"James... Sweetie?" she called once more, spinning around a corner, her wand drawn. To her shock, the babysitter lay on the couch, her hands bound and her mouth gagged. She let out a scream and began to wiggle. Elodie bit her lip, hoping she had time to get the young girl out, then hurried in, flicking her wand at the ropes. In an instant, they vanished.

"What the Hell are they?!" she screeched, "What's going on?! They've got James!"
"Get out of here," Elodie whispered, keeping her voice as steady as she could, "Get out of here, and never tell anyone, understood?"

She needn't be told twice, and quick as a flash, she was out the door.

Someone chuckled behind her, and Elodie whipped around, glaring at the robed figure in the doorway. She raised her wand, "Can I help you?"
"You can lower the wand," the male laughed, "There are more of us."
"That really doesn't bother me," she hissed, "Where's my son?"
"The boy? Oh... He's fine..."
"That didn't answer my question," Elodie snarled. Her eyes widened as he stepped aside, allowing more Death Eaters to file into the room, their faces hidden by skull-like masks. Their lips could be seen, yet all were curved into cruel sneers.
There was no point in starting a fight. She was quickly outnumbered, and all she could do was hope the other three would burst in to come to her aid.

"My son?" she repeated, "Where is he?"
"Here's the whelp," another voice, oddly familiar, snickered, shoving James onto the floor as the robed man entered the room.
"Mummy!"
"Come here, James," she urged, swiftly scooping him up in her arms when he ran to her. Elodie was tempted to check for any injuries, but all she could do was hold him tightly.
"How sweet," the Death Eater, the same who had brought James in, snorted, folding his arms and twirling his wand between two fingers.
"Did they hurt you?" Elodie whispered, setting James down and kneeling in front of him, checking him over. He shook his head, "N-No... I broke that one's nose though."
Elodie glanced at a Death Eater near the back of the crowd, his hand clutched over his face. She grinned, "Good boy."

She scrambled to her feet, ushering the small boy behind her and raising her wand to chest level, "What do you want?!"

One grinned cruelly.