Chapter 20 That's Not a Death Eater

Harry knew he didn't have a right to complain. He was in France illegally. He had kidnapped French citizens and illegally extradited them to a foreign country. He had falsified identifications and documents to provide himself with a fake identity in order to infiltrate the French Ministry of Magic. He had copied classified personnel files for his own usage. He had broken into pureblood nobles households and drugged their house elves. He had even killed multiple people; all in self-defense but it was still a very serious crime.

That didn't mean he wasn't upset with the fact that he was not allowed to participate in the operation on the Dragon Mafia/Death Eater meeting. He had done all the leg work in discovering when and where the meeting was to take place. But no, he wasn't a member of the French Magical Law Enforcement, only sixteen years old and was lucky he wasn't in jail. At least that's what Monsieur Delacour had said after Harry had asked for the third time to be able to participate in the operation.

Instead, he had to console himself with sitting at the mission control room in the French Ministry, surrounded by half a dozen higher ups in the French Ministry, and two teams of reserve Enforcers. Communication with the five Enforcer teams, four inside and one watching the entrances, at the warehouse the meeting was to be held in was open for all to hear.

The Enforcer teams had arrived hours ago, and the group in the control room had to arrive even earlier than that. The first group of Dragon Mafia to arrive had showed up three hours after the Enforcers did, in order to sweep and secure the warehouse. Harry had fallen asleep forty minutes after he arrived, and had jerked awake to the control room being informed of the arrival of the first Dragon Mafia teams. First thing he had seen was the frowns on several people's faces. Not many were thrilled with his inclusion in the mission. Him deciding to take a pre-mission nap probably didn't help his case.

"Control, Horntail has arrived, escort of six Dragons. Teams should have eyes on in thirty seconds."

Harry glanced at the large, poster size moving photo of the Don that hung on the wall. Coarse black hair, dark eyes and olive colored skin, the Don was probably around six feet. From what Harry could tell, underneath the black silk robe he wore in the photo, the Don was broad shouldered with a bit of paunch Harry assumed came from too much pasta.

"Remember Strike Teams, Horntail and the Death Eater are to be captured alive and unharmed."

Harry was new to this whole law enforcement thing, but that seemed easier said than done. There was no telling which of the Inner Circle Death Eaters would be arriving for the meeting. What if it was Augustus Rookwood? That man was a brutal and powerful fighter, and Harry knew it would take a combined effort.

"Control, the Death Eater has arrived. Eyes on in forty seconds."

As the seconds ticked by, Harry's breath hitched as he felt a tingling in his scar. There was no possible way.

"Abort the mission," he stated, abruptly standing from his chair.

All eyes in the mission control turned toward him. No one would be able to tell. They were French, they had no idea.

"Potter, what is the meaning of this?" the Captain of the Enforcer's demanded.

"Ask them to describe the Death Eater." Everyone continued to stare at him. "Do it!"

Monsieur Delacour keyed his mic. "Bravo One, can you describe the Death Eater to us."

"Can't really see much. Tall and slender. Their face is hidden by the shadows of the hood of the robe, not a mask but from the bit I can see, they look extremely pale."

Harry gulped down the lump in his throat. He knew it.

"Abort the mission! That isn't a Death Eater. It's Voldemort!"

Everyone in mission control flinched at the name, their faces paling.

"Is something the matter?" the Don asked, his voice filtering into the room from the various listening devices they had hidden.

"Control," Bravo One started, his voice sounding nervous, "the Death Eater has stopped his approach."

"Something is not right," the high pitched voice Harry knew so well seemed to echo about mission control.

"Strike Teams, pull back now. I repeat, pull back now. That is Alpha Priority One. You don't have the firepower to engage. Pull out!"

They heard some quiet shifting before a loud explosion. Suddenly everyone in the warehouse seemed to start yelling at once.

"Get me more Enforcer teams," Monsieur Delacour shouted. "Reserve teams, go!"

The two groups of reserve Enforcers scrambled toward each other, where their team leaders held portkeys that would bring them to the warehouse. Without thinking, Harry sprinted to the team that was closest to him.

"Potter! Don't!"

Harry grabbed the robe of one of the Enforcers just as the portkey was activated. He felt the familiar hook behind his navel as he was abruptly pulled from his feet and spun through the air.

He landed on his ass but was quick to jump to his feet.

"What are you doing here?"

Harry turned toward the team leader who had addressed him. "Don't worry about me. You do what you're supposed to do. I'll take care of myself."

The man shot him a glare but seemed to realize arguing with Harry wasn't going to help anyone. Instead he gave a curt nod before turning and directing his team. Harry sprinted toward the warehouse, the sound of spellfire getting louder and louder as he got closer.

When he entered the building he was greeted with a large room full of various crates. All around Enforcers and Dragon Mafia members ducked between crates as they dueled. He took a few cautious steps into the room but stopped as Voldemort's gazed turned toward him.

"Potter," Voldemort snarled, his wand rising and snapping off a spell almost as fast as Harry could blink.

Harry threw himself backwards and cast the strongest defensive shield he knew. Voldemort's spell slammed into the ground he had just occupied, turning the concrete floor black and making it bubble and warp. The energy of the spell burst outward in a wave, burning everything in it's path. It pressed against Harry's shield, causing the dome of defensive energy to hiss angrily.

As Harry scrambled to his feet, Voldemort spun and flung a curse in another direction. The sounds of a powerful explosion and screams filled the warehouse.

"Expello! Flamen!"

Harry wasn't aiming either of the spells, he was just casting them in the general direction of Voldemort. He moved to his left, ducking behind the various crates around him as he went.

He rounded a crate to find himself face to face with a Dragon Mafia henchman. As Harry threw himself backwards, they both cast spells at the same time. Both spells were offensive, and while Harry was able to avoid the spell aimed at him, the henchman wasn't so fortunate, dropping to the ground.

Climbing to his feet, Harry saw that two Enforcer Sergeants were dueling ferociously with Voldemort. All around other fights were taking place, and Harry could see some of the henchmen trying to get the Don to safety. A team of Enforcers were trying their best to stop that from happening.

As Voldemort focused on the pair of Enforcer Sergeants, Harry sprinted at the Dark Lord from behind. Magically he wasn't a match for Voldemort, but physically he had a much better chance. Voldemort turned as Harry neared, a jet of light so green it could only be the killing curse, flying from his wand. Harry let himself become dead weight, wincing as he slammed into the ground, his momentum causing him to bounce slightly upon initial impact. He threw up a wall of defensive energy and quickly rolled away as Voldemort's launched a barrage of spells at him.

Fortunately, the Dark Lord's wand couldn't remain on him long, as the two Enforcer's once again called his attention. Quickly evaluating his injuries, Harry deemed them inconsequential and scrambled to his feet again. He had hoped the distraction of battle would allow him to come at Voldemort undetected. That was obviously false. He doubted he'd ever be able to sneak up on Riddle.

So instead launched every spell he could possible think of, casting spells faster than he had ever done previously. He kept moving as he did so, not allowing himself to become a stationary target for the others in the room. Spells flew all around him, some too close for comfort, and he found himself having to shield against many of them.

Screams of all kind echoed throughout the room but the most dominant one was the screams of pain as spells connected with flesh. Harry was too busy to see how the rest of the fight was going. Voldemort was the main threat, and seemed to be able to take on the three of them easily. Soon one of the Enforcer sergeants fell, quickly followed by the other. And with no one else to draw his attention, Voldemort turned his gaze fully on Harry.

"So the rumors of you leaving Britain are true."

Harry didn't respond, instead squeezing his wand tighter in his grip. He was going to die today.. Of that he was positive of. There was no mother's love to keep him safe this time around. But if he was going to die, he would die like his dad had done; back straight, wand in hand and a curse on his lips.

"Tell me Potter, what did you hope to achieve coming here today?"

"You talk too much Riddle. Fulgzeus!"

Harry watched as one of the strongest spells he knew was batted away with a mere flick of Voldemort's wand. The return fire was numerous and fast. Riddle was brutal in his assault, not taking any chances in underestimating Harry, like he had done in the past.

It was all Harry could do not to get hit. He shielded against some and found himself diving out of the way of most, using the crates littered around the area to hide behind for a few seconds before Voldemort destroyed the crate in an explosion of splinters.

He took the second of reprieve to try to catch his breath before diving away as a another crate he had hidden behind shattered. The banisher that caught him in the stomach was timed perfectly, catching him as soon as he was in sight. It sent him flipping through the air for what felt like an eternity before he crashed into a crate, the box, along with many of his bones, breaking under the impact.

Harry tried scrambling to his feet, he knew he didn't have much time. Get up! Except he couldn't. His body wouldn't respond to his mind's commands; nothing below his neck worked.

A shadow fell over his face and he moved his eyes to meet Voldemort's.

"Get it over with you self-righteous fuck."

"Why would I rush this Potter? No, I've been waiting for this moment for fifteen years. I'm going to enjoy this."

The smile on Voldemort's face stretched from ear to ear and looked more terrifying than any monster's smile Harry had seen in muggle horror movies. Nothing the human mind thought of could scare him as much as this man did.

Harry gathered as much saliva as he could and spit at Voldemort's face. All Voldemort did was twitch and the saliva was deflected to the side.

"Just like the animal you are," Voldemort tutted, raising his wand.

Harry closed his eyes and took a deep breath. At last he would finally be free. The thought gave him a sense of relief.

Except that relief never came. He counted the seconds, felt his unsteady breathing. He opened his eyes. He was surrounded by a glowing gold dome of magic.

"Dumbledore!" Voldemort raged.

Voldemort jabbed his wand at Harry, and Harry could see the pulsing green light of the Killing Curse. Except a cheetah leaped into the path of the spell mere feet before it was to hit him.

"I heard rumors you had left the front lines Tom. It is fortunate I was traveling back to London looking for you. I was able to respond quickly to the French Ministry's request for aid."

Harry could see out of the corner of his eye Dumbledore, in all his senile glory, was making his way toward them. And the old goat wasn't alone. Sirius was there, looking at him with worry, as well as a handful of witches and wizards Harry didn't know. No doubt they were members of the coalition that had been battling the Death Eaters on the continent.

"You won't rob me of this Dumbledore! I've waited fifteen years!"

Voldemort took a giant step forward, his wand again glowing green as he aimed it at Harry. Except this time, rather than a cheetah, the floor itself rose up to protect him, the cement twisting this way and that as it formed a barrier between him and the Dark Lord.

"You'll have to wait some more time I'm afraid Tom."

"I told you to get it over with," Harry wheezed, struggling to laugh.

Harry could feel Voldemort's gaze burning through the cement barrier and at where he lay. He could feel the sheer anger and hatred Voldemort felt right now. Harry reveled in it.

Dumbledore went on the offensive, forcing Voldemort to back away from Harry's broken body.

"No! Damn you Dumbledore! This was my moment! This was my moment and you took it from me!"

As Dumbledore and Voldemort dueled, a new face loomed over Harry's.

"Hey Sirius."

"Bloody hell pup. What did you do?"

"Honestly it's not as bad as it looks." Harry paused for a moment. "Alright, I'm taking the piss out of you. It's fucking terrible Sirius. I can't move anything."

The last part was said in a panic now that he had the realization that his death had been delayed yet again. He was going to live and he couldn't move his damn body.

"It's alright pup. They've got healers and medi-wizards inbound."

"I'll try not to go anywhere."

The grounds where Harry had spent months time-traveling and training had been made into the official headquarters of the Knights. The complex had been expanded upon, new buildings rising from the ground for use and vetted Ministry employees brought in to help run everything. With the previous training class have graduated into official field operatives, talks of a new recruitment class were already in the work. It wouldn't be as large as the previous one, but there was half a dozen soon to be seventh years that Diggory had his eye on, including Neville, Ron and Susan.

All of this had been relayed to Harry by Minister Diggory, who had stopped by the medical ward after Harry had been transported back to U.K. soil by Sirius and a team of healers. A lot of information had been given to Harry, as a lot has happened since he had left United Kingdom soil to begin his mission in France, all those months ago.

Another visitor Harry had was Rick, who was not at all happy with Harry.

"I don't understand why you're so upset! I was supposed to stop an alliance forming between Voldemort and the Dragon Mafia, and I did just that. Heck, with the capture of the Don and some of his top men, we even managed to cripple the Dragon Mafia. All in all, I think I did a bang up job"

"You were caught."

"Well yeah."

"If you are a spy and you get caught, you are a terrible spy. Not to mention the death of a United Kingdom Hit Wizard, and seven French Enforcers; on top of how ever many more wounded. Plus, you got yourself temporarily paralyzed from the neck down."

"Those Enforcers aren't my fault. I told them to abort the mission and the whole being paralyzed thing is only for another few weeks, or at least that's what the healers said."

Rick shook his head and sighed. "When you get healed up, we've got another assignment for you."

Harry perked up at that. He attempted to sit up but it was a failed effort. While he was slowly regaining the feeling in the rest of his body, the ability to move it wasn't fully there.

"I'm listening."

"Fenrir Greyback. Have you heard of him?"

"Werewolf. Likes to bite kids, especially to get back at people he thinks wronged him. Does his best to turn anyone bitten against the Ministry. Has a very large pack of followers if I'm not mistaken."

"Correct. He's been spotted in Poland; specifically, the Białowieża Forest. Polish authorities are wary of looking into this. Greybacks penchant for going after people's kids has proceeded him and they don't want to bring Greyback's attention to their own families. He's a You-Know-Who supporter, so we need to know what Greyback is up to."

"And given that I don't have any kids who can be bitten..."

"We need to send someone to investigate and given that you're an animagus, you're our best bet. Despite the questionable success of your first assignment."

"How do you want me to do this? I doubt there are many people living in a forest that I can blend in with."

"How you do it is up to you. You're a smart kid, I'm sure you'll find a way."

Harry opened his mouth to comment but closed it again as Rick held up his hand.

"We'll go over the full details when you're healthy."

Outside of Rick and the Minister, the others to visit him were the various Knights. They stopped by in their downtime between missions. The visits were a relief because without them to distract him, he had nothing to do. He couldn't move much, and something as simple as reading a book was beyond his limitations.

Between visits, to keep himself from going insane, he worked on his occlumency and experimented with his wandless magic. Both of which were some of the few things he could do with just his mind and no other part of his body. Movement would come back to him eventually, it just wasn't happening fast enough for his liking.

Maybe Madam Pomfrey was right. He spent too much of his time getting into trouble, and that trouble usually ended up with him in a hospital.