All right here's the chapter I previewed. I hope you all like it! Thanks so much for the follows and I apologize ahead of time for any mistakes you may find. No Fleur/Hermione in this chapter but I had to build to it so please be patient.
The Rules Of Engagement
Chapter Seven: Rituals
The deafening sound of hard redwood doors shutting behind them jolted Hermione, her fingers gripping the expensive leather arm rest of her chair as her eyes followed Lamont's form moving to and fro around his office; wand flourishing as he set a silencing spell around them. She briefly registered Ron and Seamus' forms next to her, again obviously familiar with this setting as the head of Judges finally sat in front of them, his hands nervously busying themselves with adjusting the tiny Knick knacks adorning his expensive oak desk.
Hermione was shocked to say the least when they were summoned directly to Lamont's office after pulling him away from the gala to show him evidence of a possible intrusion. The judges eyes showed unrelenting alarm before he hurriedly rushed them away, snapping his fingers at two local servicemen to stay guard at the tear.
"Desperate times call for desperate measures…" He muttered bringing Hermione out of her reverie.
"Pardon Magistrate?" She kept her tone respectful though she still had no idea why they were being so quiet about the situation, the first steps of evacuating and screenings should have happened minutes ago.
"I know what you must be thinking Granger but please forgo normal procedures for this, I cannot allow anyone else but a select few to know what has transpired." He responded, his hands shakily grasping a decanter of dark liquid as he pulled an ornate crystal tumbler from under his desk.
Ron sighed as he levitated one of the trinkets from Lamont's desk in his hand; something either dangerous or priceless, possibly both given the Magistrate's sudden posture change and panicked expression. The red headed wizard had gotten rather good at wandless magic unbeknownst to anyone else but her, Seamus and Harry so she could understand Lamont's apprehension.
"What does that even mean? Desperate times? I just don't understand why we're here when we all know you're still puffed up over Morocco."
The Judge merely downed the contents of his glass, a slight grimace marring his features before using his wand to take the trinket out of Ron's grasp, gently setting it down on the shelf behind him.
"You are absolutely correct in that assumption Mr. Weasley; but I've come to the conclusion that our operations cannot just stop over a little tear. I will not be a destroyer of hope and comfort; people are just starting to get back to normal. The past few years have been good and I will not have it ruined over something that can be contained in house. Seeing as you lot have been neglecting your post in the lower levels anyway I can only infer that you are free to put all of your efforts into investigating this matter."
Hermione's posture straightened then, they were being put on assignment; an undisclosed assignment at that. "You are briefing us for field work?" She queried, trying not to sound surprised.
Lamont sighed pouring another glass of dark liquor and downing it before nodding slowly. "I am…I must be bloody mad but I am…" he sighed, running his fingers through his well kempt hair.
Suddenly the doors to the office sprung open to reveal a calm, albeit forcefully, Harry Potter and the two servicemen that Lamont had left behind.
"Potter, I left strict instructions for you to leave them posted until I could figure out what to do with the guests-" Lamont seethed as he abruptly stood from his desk.
"I know Magistrate, but the tear…it's…well its gone sir." Harry breathed as he briefly averted his gaze to the trio and then back to the judge.
Lamont quickly pushed himself away from the desk and snapped his fingers at the Trio, signaling them to shadow as he followed Harry out and into the hall. Hermione was the first to respond, trying to keep pace in her heels as Ronald and Seamus followed lackadaisically behind. Their pace slowed as they passed the ballroom and then rapidly quickened when the broom closet Seamus was found came into view.
"I don't understand…it was just here…" Lamont muttered to himself as he circled the area, moving his wand back and forth.
One of the servicemen nodded in agreement before moving forward, his hands tucked dutifully behind him.
"Yes, Sir Magistrate…I can assure you we were standing by upon your request but…it just…vanished."
"It sealed itself."
The men turned to Hermione their gaze shocked as she cleared her throat, uncomfortable with the sudden attention.
"What did you say Miss Granger? It sealed itself?" Lamont moved into her space his hands desperately gripping her shoulders.
"Why? How can you come to this deduction? Explain."
Hermione grimaced slightly, looking at the hands on her shoulders then back to Lamont who seemed to have caught himself and had quickly let go of her person.
"I know it seems farfetched but how long have the wards been in place at the ministry and they've never been broken? I don't think this tear showing up on this particular night was any sort of accident or fluke. It was purposely done, not to break in or break out but to just simply make a point. Whomever did this wanted us to find it, how else can Seamus' random disappearance be explained, to find him unconscious in a closet that only locks from the outside?"
Lamont merely scoffed. "Mr. Finnegan has had quite the reputation at these sort of gatherings, finding him in the state that you did was not the most surprising event of the night."
The Irish Auror seethed as he stepped forward only be stopped by Harry's hand on his chest, a pleading glance from his former school mate being the only thing to dampen his famous temper.
"I can guarantee yeh I hadn't even begun my 'state' when I was knocked out and put in there, someone must have thought I was in the way. I was out here trying to look for a place to smoke when the next thing I know I was in that closet."
He spat, ignoring Lamont's scandalized glare.
"He speaks the truth, he has a very high tolerance for spirits I can attest to that." Ron responded with a slight tone of nostalgia.
The head judge's posture became poised as he straightened his tuxedo jacket and smoothed his hair.
"Then we must treat this with the upmost care, someone was obviously trying to make a point and it has been received. Thankfully now I will not have to come up with an excuse for the guests so the gala will continue as scheduled. The night however is just beginning for you lot, I'm appointing you to this case and I cannot stress enough how highly under wraps this must remain. I want no one else, unless they are approved by me, knowing of what transpired here. I have given Potter a full list of contacts and clearance for whatever provisions you may need, please keep me informed daily of the proceedings."
With that he was off to the ballroom, a showman's smile plastered on his lips before entering.
"Are we really going to need to be here the whole night?" Ron questioned with exasperation.
"Whatever it takes Ron, I assume you can handle this?" Harry questioned, his gaze falling to the young witch as he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.
"Consider it already halfway taken care of." She assured as he squeezed her shoulder and made his way back to the gala.
She gestured the two servicemen off before turning to her partners, a devilish smile already spreading across their lips.
"You already know where to look don't you." Seamus said, his tone full of knowing accusation.
"Yes, so no Ron we will not be here the whole night. Obviously this was done by someone with skill but careful enough to not leave a trace. While Lamont was blathering on I took the time to gather some possibilities." Hermione replied diligently as she transfigured her gown into her civilian clothes.
The boys did the same as they made their way to the main entrance hall of the ministry.
"So you're thinking a burner wand as well?" The red headed Auror commented.
"That's exactly right, and I know exactly where the market for that is. Come on boy's… nights just begun." She extended her arm out and adjusted her jacket with the other as Seamus grabbed hold of her hand and Ronald followed suit.
"Oh I love when she goes all Sherlock on us." Seamus said as the Trio disappeared with a faint pop.
Pupils swimming in pools of deep chocolate dilated as streams of brightly colored neon lights swayed back and forth across Hermione's features, highlights of blue and gold shimmering down creamy skin as her eyes fell closed and she took in the muffled noise from the city streets below; even now over a hundred stories up Shanghai's populace could still be heard.
She let out a long deep breath as she slowly brought her sight back, the slow strobe of dark and then bright light almost relaxing her as she tried to prepare herself mentally for the mission at hand. They all had their own way of getting themselves ready; Ron was pacing a little ways away, his fingers rubbing a small token coin from his brothers joke shop, gaze occasionally glancing out of one of the many windows that surrounded them. Seamus was hunched over their port key, his eyes closed as he moved his wand back and forth in practiced motions, his mouth muttering protection spells around them with expert ease.
They've done this so many times that now it just seemed be almost out of habit. She had to remind herself they were only here to visit a black market wand shop that they had traced the burner wand to. Most likely a simple query would be made, they'd grab dinner and then make their way back to this building to port key home. The port key was Seamus' idea; in case they ran into trouble they could have a quick exit. Apparition required a clear mind and calm body and there was always risk of splinching if it was rushed but there really was no reason for their Stoyan ritual on a mission like this, guess old habits die hard.
Her eyes fell back to the red headed wizard who was still pacing back and forth, no longer was the gangly boy from their school days; Ron had filled out into a grown man. She took note how his fitted slacks and dress shirt clung to him nicely, his decision to forgo a tie as to appear casual only lending to the overall appeal of his slightly disheveled cropped hair; the Hermione from two years ago would have swooned. They had tried dating after the war but found there was a spark missing, it was Ron who had actually brought the relationship to an end first; something that she had been fearing to do herself after a few months into it. It was awkward of course, any relationship that had to revert back to friendship was but he was gentle, kind and understanding all the way through. Now they were better friends than ever, he was her person and always would be even if it wasn't romantically.
Her reverie was broken when Seamus sprung to his feet from the corner of her eye. He straightened his hoodie as he made his way towards her, a mischievous smile playing across his lips.
"You ready or have we lost you to your thoughts again?" His tone held no accusations or doubts of her ability, just a simple question.
She smiled and nodded, letting him adjust the buckles on her leather jacket before she helped him brush the concrete dust from his jeans.
"I'm ready just…feels weird to not be analyzing all the angles and making lists of defensive spells in my head before a mission. It's almost unsettling…" She trailed off as he moved her wand from the pocket of her skinny jeans to the inside of pocket of her jacket.
"You're just on your toes that's all, I don't think I want to get used to not having to prepare…makes me feel lazy." The Irishman chuckled as he gave her a roguish wink before turning and snapping his fingers at the pacing wizard in front of her.
"Oi! Ronny, I'm due back at Susan's for tea in few hours and I promised I wouldn't be late this time, so let's get a move on."
The elevator ride down was a long one. The trio stood in silence as they descended, the skyline of Shanghai slowly being over shadowed floor by floor. When they finally reached the ground floor Seamus pulled a rumpled cocktail napkin from his pocket; it was covered in tiny scribbling's and crude drawings but as map it would suffice.
The Irish Auror waved his wand over the napkin, muttering softly as Hermione waited for the spells intent to take place. The make-shift map illuminated briefly as tiny dots and lines started moving to and fro; Hermione always loved when Seamus did this, sure it may have been crude version of the Marauders map but the skill and technique it took was always appreciated by the bright witch. Little x's popped in and out of place before the spell finally seemed to settle, a red circle moving its way to the center of the napkin.
"Aye! There it is, there's plenty of black market wand dealers in this city but the wand that was used at the ministry was a special type, the trace I ran has about I'd say an… 85 percent probability rate." Seamus stated as he pulled a quill from his pocket and gestured at Hermione to turn around. Sighing, she relented with slumped shoulders as Seamus held the napkin against her back and started scribbling onto it.
"We've had worse odds, I'd reckon we can take 85." Ron murmured as he watched Seamus write down each of their names on the bottom of the napkin before softly blowing over the ink. One by one each of their names took on a glow as tiny pictures materialized over their titles, Ron squinted and leaned in closer to make out that the symbols above their names were in fact their Patronuses. The red headed Auror made a low whistle and looked towards his counter-part with rapt interest.
"What's this then mate? A new trick you've learned and not shared obviously."
The Irishman merely snorted crudely before wrapping the napkin in his palm whilst giving Hermione an appreciative squeeze on her shoulder before answering .
"Just a way to keep track of you lot, don't want a repeat of Morocco. Our names fade away but our Patronuses will remain. Can't afford to lose anyone in a city like this can we Ronny? Now on to business, we've got limited time and I'm already pushing it as it is."
The city changes quickly from bustling urban landscape to dark and dingy the closer they get to the magical underbelly of Shanghai. They came to a dead end, Hermione and Ron taking point as Seamus gazed at the map studiously, tapping a pattern out on back alleys brick wall.
"There we go, show me what you're hiding beautiful…" The Irishman whispered as dust fell from the brick laden wall and the sound of hard stone scrapping reverberated around the alley. Hermione returned the roguish smirk he shot back at her as he folded the map into his hoodie pocket and led the way in.
She was instantly met with the smell of smoke and rain water, her nostrils flaring at the stench as she took in their surroundings. If you've seen one magical black market you've seen them all surely; the differences between this and Knockturn Alley we're minuscule which gave her an odd sense of relief, the setting being familiar.
As soon as the Trio started making their way through the populace buzzed. They of course were not common folk among the wizarding community so naturally they were instantly recognized, if not for their celebrity gained from Harry or the war; then their obvious post as Aurors made some of the ne'er do wells scatter into dark corners behind many of the shops and stands that littered the narrow street way. Others simply snarled or glared daringly at the Trio as they walked in formation, Hermione leading with Ron and Seamus a little bit behind her; hands gripping their concealed wands as they glared or snarled right back.
It was the red-headed wizard that spoke first.
"Fifty galleons to the first wizard or witch who can point us in the direction of Alabasters Procurements." Ron bellowed as he flashed a coin purse, instantly drawing out one of the patrons. He was grimy, covered in soot and smelled of the day before's garbage. The street urchin immediately reached for the coin purse only to be slowly moved back by Ron's wand pushing into his forehead.
"I…I may know the whereabouts of that particular establishment, Mr… Auror… Sir… Weasley." The man sniveled, sashaying his hands outward as if to bow. Ron merely sneered; the tip of his wand digging deeper into the man's forehead making him kneel down on the mud covered street way.
The beggar slowly rose his hands in the air to show he was unarmed as he eyed the coin purse held in the red-headed wizards other hand.
"Coin first then location." He bargained slyly.
"You think me daft? Location first or I stun you and drag you down to Azkaban for interfering with Auror business." Ron threatened pressing his wand into the man's chest this time, he shook the coin bag for affect as his gaze turned expectant.
"Yes…yes…fair bargain that is I'd say… All right. Down the alley way, behind the potion works. A red horned dragon on the sign... can't miss it." The street urchin chuckled lowly before he was kicked back on his elbows, the coin purse landing on his stomach.
"If I even smell fowl play when I get there, I'm coming for you…and I'll do more than just stun ya, got it street rat?" Ron threatened before moving down the narrow side street, Hermione and Seamus following behind.
They soon came upon a shack like structure, a wooden sign hanging half off its hinges with an ornate red dragon drawn over it with intricate detail. It seemed oddly out of place from the rest of the stalls that littered the back alley, almost like it had been haphazardly dropped there. Inside the scent of sweat and sandalwood invaded Hermione's senses and she instantly regretted not choosing to take point with Seamus instead of insisting Ron do it.
She made her way through the dimly lit aisles, passing by shelves filled with various oddities, potions and ingredients. The checkout seemed to be unmanned at the moment and she started to think maybe the owner was out until a figure crashed through a beaded partition behind the counter; an oddly dressed and obviously drunk man springing to his feet.
"Hello, Madam! Welcome to Alabasters, what can I get a lovely lady like yourself? Love potion? Or perhaps you've been scorned already and need a little bit of the spiders venom to procure a small token of revenge? No? No, no, no of course not you look a reader, we just happened have gotten a full stock of tomes… some may or may not be bound by human skin but who can tell? Certainly not I."
He was rather tall Hermione noted, almost too tall for his own shop. The American accent did not go unnoticed by her has he rambled on, pulling small trinkets from underneath the counter to show her. She couldn't help but think he was almost as odd as the shop, his lanky form covered in what looked to be an oversized poncho, hints of a barely washed dress suit showing underneath while on top of his head, placed ever so casually…a fez.
"I'm not here to buy anything." She said; slightly jarring him out of his rant as he stopped to stare at her blankly, a set of rabbits feet dangling from one hand and a shrunken head held in the other.
"Wha-…you… You're not here to buy anything?" He queried, instantly dropping the items from his hands and leaning over the counter. His posture became ridged and his tone annoyed as she simply shook her head.
"Well sweetness if you're not here to buy anything and you don't have an appointment; which I doubt you do because A) I don't believe in phones and B) I don't really make appointments in the first place, you need to leave. You're a pretty thing but I don't cater to lookie loos, so get out."
The bright witch merely cocked her head to the side and pursed her lips before speaking. "You're a muggle, aren't you?"
This seemed to slightly put him at ease, his shoulders relaxing as a lazy smile spread across his lips.
"And you're not with the Shanghai government are you?" He chuckled heartily as he pulled a shot gun from under the counter and unloaded it expertly.
The young Witch merely side glanced the weapon then met his gaze offering a simple head shake.
"Well here I thought I was going to have to shoot you…You and your two guard dogs taking point outside my shop." He said smiling and giving her a wink before pocketing the two shells into his pants pocket.
"Do you know who I am?" She asked, ignoring his quip as she ran her finger over the counter and rubbed the dust collected between her fingertips.
"Am I supposed to? Your people don't tell me much to begin with."
The man straightened his posture as his gaze turned to the door then back to her calculatingly.
"No… That's good that you don't. I'm also like you but that's as much as you need to know, these sort of things are a lot harder when there are preconceived notions." She spoke softly, her tone and posture open to set him at ease.
"Well I can only assume you're someone that matters, people who do what you do normally contact me by other means. It's nice to see someone still believes in the old fashioned ways."
He made his way from around the counter and stood in front of her, his hands placed casually in his pockets before eyeing her up and down; he seemed to be mulling something over, teeth worrying his bottom lip before seemingly making up his mind and shrugging dramatically.
"Well I've decided to cooperate, someone like you wouldn't be here if I didn't do something I wasn't supposed to; so come out with it."
She chuckled lightly before whistling at the door, Ron and Seamus filing in and making their way down opposite aisles with their wands out scanning the various objects.
"I'm from the Aurors department from the Ministry of Magic. Do you know of our line of work?"
He nodded silently, his fingers tapping against his chin as he watched her counter parts poke and prod through his stores inventory.
"I am… The Interpol of the wizarding community. I must have done something real bad then huh?" He asked, his eyes shining mischievously.
"We've come for an inquiry on some of the services you offer, one of the wands you sold has come up in a case and we'd just like to know more about it."
He laughed boisterously then, looking at her as if she were kidding before running his fingers through his wavy hair and turning away from her.
"You're acting as if I've sold some hot piece, someone hold up a liquor store or something? Look the customers I get from your world have a completely different way about things. I don't take names, locations or whereabouts sweetheart I just sell the product to whoever orders it. Be it by package or courier pick up; I never actually get any names on these kinds of transactions."
"Shoddy way to run a business don't ya think?" Seamus chimed in, a condescending smirk adorning his features as he walked up with a small wooden box.
"Excuse me Lucky Charms, I didn't get your name. In fact I didn't get any of your names; so if you're as important as you're letting on; how about we start there before you start touching things you have no idea about?"
Seamus merely smirked wider before sliding the box to Hermione.
"Well I highly doubt your names Alabaster mate so our names shouldn't be your first worry. Now an American muggle selling burner wands with extremely volatile components without a license? That is something to worry about." The Irishman retorted.
The shop owner simply laughed as he raised his hands out from his side and feigned surrender.
"I got no idea what you're talking about Gestapo, I don't even know what half the stuff in here does let alone what it's used for."
"That may be, but the moment my partner set down that aisle you were nervous. When he brought the box up here your heart raced a mile a minute, you knew exactly what he might find and I have a hunch that you know exactly what's in this box and what it's used for." Hermione stated sternly as the shop owner backed up against the counter, his hands covers his face as he groaned in frustration.
"All right, yes it's a wand, one time use only okay? I don't hunt no magical creatures or nothing like that; I use non kill methods and other substitutes. It's completely green okay? No harm. I don't sell it to normal folk and most of the people who order them seem, at least from their letters, to know exactly what to do with it and how to use it."
"You dabble in wand crafting in your spare time?" Hermione quipped.
"Yeah… I don't know I guess. I just know the basics okay, my works always stable… I won't sell nothing that's gonna blow up in someone's face." He pleaded desperately.
"What do you mean by substitutes? Wands take a high amount of skill and knowledge to create, not to mention the correct marriage of components. How can someone like you with no magical training create something like this?" The young witch accused, her finger sliding the cover of the box open to reveal a crudely shaped wand.
"Anything can be made on the cheap, just gotta find the way right? That's my talent; part of my business model, I make these things for a quarter of what I charge. Now I don't know what they do when their shipped outta here and it's none of my business; so whatever's happened I'm going to be upfront with ya… I got no hand in it." The man said shakily as he wiped his brow with back of his jacket sleeve.
The Trio stood silent, the boys eyeing her with side glances and she looked the shop owner up and down. He jolted when she clapped the box shut with her index finger and side tossed it to Ron who caught it expertly.
"Here's what's going to happen: I'm taking that with me and that will be the last wand you ever make. You know who we work for and you are probably somewhat aware of what we can do. If I get any word that you're selling these things again; I will have your shop shut down, your identity wiped, and you will spend the rest of your life in a magically sealed prison without anyone so much as having the forethought of where to come look for you. Am I understood?"
The shop owner simply nodded as he met her hard gaze.
"Good… Thank you Anthony, you've been of great help." Said the young witch before turning on her heel and making her way towards the exit with the boys in tow.
"Wait… how you know my name?!" The man shouted after them only to receive a loud bang and the store bell jingling harshly from the force of it being slammed as a response.