Chapter 2 - Have You Ever Seen the Auror Borealis?
Sunnydale, California, 2015

"Subject 93313."

Algae Huxenbus looked down at the file pushed towards him. He took it, opening it delicately with textured dragonhide gloves. A ream of neatly jotted crimes and misdeeds flicked past his fingers as his eyes flickered from sordid detail to sordid detail. A grimy mugshot leered at him, shifting only slightly, unnaturally still, brooding.
He shook his head and closed the file, pausing to brush a half-bitten Cockroach Cluster from a page. His partner sniffed, irritably.

The subject was a danger. Before he had been a threat only to Muggles, of little worry to the Ministry. A sick, freakish pervert with a penchant for mutilation, but of little relevance to them.
That had changed the week before. Mrs Andromeda Speighley, a with of high standard and a gift to the world of Herbology, had been found splattered against her living room wall. The Muggle police said the attack had been interrupted. It hadn't been finished.
It would have gotten much worse.

Algae shivered. The man had to be removed. He had ceased to be a mere threat to Muggles. Now he was really dangerous.
Algae leant to nudge the man sat beside him in the car.
"The International Confederation wants us to take him down?"
His partner grunted, folding up his newspaper. "That's why we're in America, Algae."
Algae nodded, hesitantly. He looked at the paper.
"Not quite the Daily Prophet, eh?" he grinned.
His partner ignored him. He grinned for a moment more, and then looked away. He coughed.
Dogma Ramhorn. They'd been through Hufflepuff together, trained to be Aurors together. Algae had seen him laugh only once, when he and Morgana Nightely, a Ravenclaw girl Algae had liked, had put a tongue-twisting curse on Algae the night before his Charms exam...he'd laughed then.
Algae shrugged and exhaled, slowly. He didn't remember laughing himself at the time.
He threw the file onto the dashboard. Silly Muggle whimsy. A metal box on wheels. He snorted. Half-turned to Dogma.

"Hey, Dogma, this 'car'..." he stopped.
Dogma was splayed back on his seat. His face gawping, strangely humoured in death. Thick red fluid trickled down his face. Algae's eyes popped as they travelled upwards.
Dogma's head had been sawn open.
The gory purple mess of his brain splurged from the bleach white of fractured skull. Algae retched, silently, pushing himself back.
He looked up, suddenly, at the shattered car window.

Sylar looked back and smiled. The car shuddered, and lurched. A screech as the chassis bent, folding in on itself, leather upholstery, glass and plastic furnishings warping and cracking as the car mangled itself, introverting itself.
Algae slammed himself forwards against the windscreen as it shattered. Pushed himself out as the frame crunched down on his chest. A grisly snap as ribs caved inwards, and his lungs burst. He gaped.
Sylar stood, head tilted, curious.
He stepped forward. Reached a hand out and ran his finger across Algae's forehead. He smiled, distantly. Algae moaned, wordlessly, body half forced from the wrangled metal cage the car had been warped into, twisted inwards and inwards by invisible forces, by the freakish joke of evolution that stood before him. Sylar laughed, mirthlessly, as Agae's torso twitched, flailing slowly, jerkily, as though played by some unseen puppeteer.

"You wizards," Sylar drawled, resting his finger above Algae's eye, "So full of mystery and intrigue. Secrets."
He leant down, breathing into Algae's ear.
"I'm going to find out how you work. What makes you tick."
He straightened and stepped back. Algae spluttered, crimson specks staining Sylar's shirt.
"Here. Let me show you."
Algae screamed. Blinding red pain burnt itself over his eyes. Fire branding itself, running loops around his skull. He screamed.

The top of Algae's head flopped to the tarmac road. Sylar grimaced, enveloping the power. Fitting it into his head, squeezing it in. Felt the pain. The thrill. This one wasn't as gifted as his partner. Made more noise, though.

He looked up, startled. A crash, and he was thrown back. Brilliant blue light washed over him, stunning him, freezing his body. He groaned, forcing his head up.
The man strode as he floated down, walking on the air. Confident, practised, angry. Rugged black hair waved behind him, an unruly mop that framed an angular face. A scar, old, split, widened by years of battle. Of hunting down the vermin of the wizarding world. The cruel monsters, by-products of a magical gift. Abusers of talent.
He landed on the road lightly, as though stepping from the pavement. Glasses, worn and beaten, flashed in the afternoon sun. The sleepy town of Sunnydale watched, roused by the screech of the mangled car, the sound of magic and of law.
Harry Potter brandished the wand like a sword. Sylar felt cold ice driving itself like pins into his chest, picking him up and throwing him down. He choked.

Without a word Harry lashed out. Bonds flowed from his wand, binding Sylar. Invisible cords twisting themselves around his wrists, tightening, cutting into the flesh. He groaned. Like an animal. Shot and bagged.
Harry whistled. Four more figures crashed into being, wands brandished, alert. The small crowd of onlookers that had gathered would have to be dealt with. Aurors leave no witnesses. Their phonelines had been jinxed when Harry arrived. Harry nodded to the Aurors, who dispersed, disappearing into the crowd.
A few memory charms and the work would be done.

Harry looked down at the bloody remnants of Algae Huxenbus. He grimaced. Not an exceptional loss to the Aurors. His partner had been more valuable. Algae had only been on the stakeout because he knew how to open a car door and didn't insist on wearing robes undercover.
Harry had to remind himself that they'd hadn't been set up. This hadn't been a trap. He hadn't known Sylar would get to them. Not like this. Not his fault.
His eyes drifted to the petrified figure lying in the road, body twisted, caught in mid-turn. Angry eyes glared back up at him from a frozen face. A muscle twitched on his cheek. Harry stuffed his wand back into his robes. Grabbed Sylar's arm.

"I'm Apparating back to the Ministry."
He didn't wait for the other Aurors' acknowledgement. Didn't need to. He was in charge. Closing his eyes, he focused. Get back to the Ministry, have someone else deal with the captive. Being the boss was all too easy. He was getting lazy...his eyes flashed open.

Explosion. Scream. It was Katie Bell. He spun. Dead? Harry didn't think as he drew his wand. Auror priority should be the mark - Sylar.
Terry Boot vanished. Either under his cloak or Apparated out. Harry forgot Sylar. Had to deal with this. Had to protect his team.
He spun. A deafening silence hit him. A house exploded. The shockwave threw Harry back. He rolled as he landed, breathing hard.
What was happening? A wizard under an invisibility cloak? One of the few Dark supporters still out there? Was it Sylar?
He looked down. Sylar's eyes met his. He was sweating. Blood pumping through him, a vein throbbing on his forehead.
Harry pointed his wand. Knocked him out. Looked up again.

Nothing. He saw Katie Bell stagger out, her face half-burnt, blackened, charred. He opened his mouth to shout.
Explosion. Deafening. Blinding. Katie Bell was gone, hurled aside like a rag-doll. Harry stared at the comatose body on the road. It wasn't Sylar.

He shouted. Orders to Apparate. They could clean this up later. Get a team in. Harry would look for Time-Turner authorization if he had to.
He closed his eyes. Vanished. Sunnydale disappeared around him.

He spun around. This wasn't the Ministry. Something had trapped him. He spun and screamed.

The rabbit in the corner tilted its head. Something had trapped him.