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"You've brought your girlfriend, wonderful! We can finally have a repeat performance, and this time, Albus won't be around to weaken me," Grindelwald called over the sudden chilling silence that had fallen over the fighting trio. "Get up, Peverell. Stand and fight with your witch at your side. I'll claim your name, your history, and your future as my own. Finally."
Harry found his way to his feet as quickly as he could and checked only briefly to ensure that Elaine was safe and sound. When he noticed that she was seething in silence, her chest heaving and her wand shaking only slightly on account of her silent rage, he smiled. Grindelwald's words would work against him even if they had been said playfully. Elaine didn't respond well to threats, least of all when they were directed at Harry himself. When he nodded at her, a sadistic look fell on her face and the stone wall he had put up to protect her had a hole blasted through it by her own making. Through that hole — with which the stones were sent banished towards Grindelwald — she fired a chain of spells so quickly that the room looked as if it were a Muggle Christmas firework show. Greens and blues, purples and reds, oranges and violets… every colour that one could think of was sent at Grindelwald and Harry joined in not more than two or three seconds after watching Elaine start her opening barrage.
He wished that he could apparate behind the man as he just began to fire his spells; the effect of his wand joining with hers was immediate, however, so he didn't even try to see if the earlier wards against so were no longer working. They were stronger together, and as a result of his spells joining with hers, the thin hallway before them was nearly nought but huge, boulder size spells sent crackling through the air with hisses towards Grindelwald. The man made a noise of pain or surprise that was so loud that it made its way over the battle, and whilst Harry wished to let up so that he could see the damage they had inflicted, Elaine continued without care or compassion. Spell after spell continued to leave her wand, and it was then whilst he joined her cause that he noticed nothing she was firing off at the man was truly murderous.
The spells that he recognised, and there were many and more since they had trained together for years by this point, were all seriously wounding, but not outright threatening to one's life so long as the caster knew what they were doing, and make no mistake, Elaine knew exactly what she was doing. Perhaps that was the reason that the few that disliked her were as smart and cunning as Slughorn's father, a man that had not yet spoken with Harry the further he 'sank' into Elaine's pockets. Harry watched as one spell that left her wand was one that he had only just fired; it would sever the tendons of the area that it hit should it connect, and with their spells joining together to a power that was tenfold, that would encompass the entirety of Grindelwald's body if it wasn't absorbed into a transfigured barrier or blocked by an incredibly powerful shield charm.
Eventually, the time came that she stopped letting loose spells and Harry followed suit. There was so much debris, destruction and dust in the air that they could no longer see more than a foot, if that, before them. That wasn't remotely good in the event that Grindelwald somehow managed to get right up in their faces without them noticing, and so whilst Elaine began to cast a spell that he wasn't familiar with, Harry did something that would see the man's temporary cover removed; he used a charm that sent forth a gust of wind, and like that, the smoke and much of the lighter, lingering debris were banished to the far side of the hall.
Grindelwald had made a form of cover just as maze-like and twisting as the one Harry had made earlier in the day, and like that very same cover, it was thick and had held…. to some degree, against the onslaught of overpowered spells.
Elaine's spell went off then, and he saw a faint nod given by her, for it seemed as if she had expected Harry to banish the fog away without even having an exchange of words. He returned the nod and cast a shield that joined with one of her own, and in doing so, it formed an entire bubble around their two persons, one that was pulsing with energy from their wands as they drew closer together. It was as if their wands were as linked as their minds, and the closer they got, the stronger it became. In the meantime and whilst they provided the greatest defence that the world had likely seen — as far as he knew — he watched Elaine's spell move slowly and seemingly with a certain level of intelligence or finesse. It would send forth small tendrils of black that gave off smoke until every crack, corner or door that it passed was filled with the spell. Perhaps it was based on fiendfyre or the like, for it only grew in size since her casting, and its speed did much the same the further it progressed.
Harry heard Elaine giggle from her spot only a few feet from him, and when he risked a glance at her, she answered verbally whilst her eyes remained looking down the hall. "He said that he looked so very forward to this fight, but without the Elder Wand, his power doesn't match our own. Fleeing would be wise, but I don't believe he's done that," a series of spells struck their shield as they beamed through Elaine's cloud-like killer, and with a grin, she finished her sentence even as one spell burst through the shield, nearly striking her before it closed itself. "... quite yet. This is very enjoyable, isn't it? It's almost as if we're two cats playing with a field mouse."
He wasn't sure how to respond to that, but Harry did raise his wand once more and after doing so, he let loose another barrage of spells, this time slowly and as he moved around — cautiously — so that Grindelwald wouldn't be able to find out exactly where he was through the concealing cloud of smoke. Elaine did much the same as Harry, and with more effort as she raised a second floor from the rubble at her feet. Soon, the man would have spells coming down at him from an interesting and unexpected angle, and even whilst he fired spells that seemed faster and faster, they were weaker and more scattered. Elaine seemed right when she said that, without his Elder Wand, he wasn't the force to be reckoned with in comparison to their tenfold power when conjoined. It made the fight, whilst they were together, heavily in their favour and that was something they sorely needed on account of the man's strength when they attempted to fight him one on one. Merlin, Harry had tried just that earlier and if it hadn't been for Grindelwald attempting to play with him or speak whilst they fought, he imagined he would have lost.
"Give it your all," Elaine said quietly and in a near hiss-like tone of voice. He wasn't sure if she was speaking to him in parseltongue or not, perhaps she was and the language was but second nature to him by now, but he understood the message it conveyed well enough as she upped her own volume of fire in the direction of Grindelwald; her wand was but a blur, and all the while, she remained silent as a near stream came forth from her wand.
Initially, Harry made to fire his own volley of spells… that was, until he saw the thin whisps of that earlier silverish energy that came forth from her wand to join to the shield, and even then, whilst seeing that, he managed to keep up the shield that was protecting the pair of them all on his own. Well, almost all on his own. It seemed that little wisp that continued to join his shield was just enough for the shield charm to remain as powerful and overcharged as it had been, and whensoever one of Grindelwald's spells struck if it wasn't of a specific, horrific type, it would do nought but taper out upon contact. That was what he had to do if he wished to keep them protected, and whilst he poured his all into that shield — his focus and willpower most of all, he noticed another energy emanating from his own wand. It was a slow, nearly invisible energy, but it connected itself to Elaine's wand as she kept up a seemingly insane amount of spells sent towards Grindelwald.
Truly, if he wasn't seeing it with his own two eyes, he wouldn't believe it. Grindelwald's spells were powerful, sure, but they were no longer the match they had previously been even if this fight was lasting longer than when they'd had Dumbledore by their side. It didn't matter that it was nought but the two of them; they were more experienced, Grindelwald lacked any sort of advantage and their wands when combined, could not be overcome.
Elaine banished her cloud of black smoke, finally, and when she did Harry saw Grindelwald at the farthest edge of the hallway, which was a good thirty or so meters from whence they stood, and he was heaving. He looked just as exhausted as Harry had earlier, when he had braced himself against the wall, only the man's clothing was caked in blood, debris and smoke… or what remained of it. His 'clothes' were scraps, loose-hanging and ripped across many a spot.
There was another sound from Elaine, halfway between a giggle and a hissing laughter. She brought her hands in close to her chest, took in a deep breath, and then she screamed; it was a horrible, banshee-like noise that nearly made Harry lose his concentration on their protective barrier, but it mattered not. Grindelwald immediately doubled over as a visible clap streaked towards him, his hands seeking out his ears and as a result, he failed to see the spell that followed very shortly thereafter until his arms and legs went inverted with sickening crunches.
Harry started towards him in a dead sprint as soon as he saw that, and Elaine was hot on his heels, skipping and laughing with a sick sort of glee as they moved in on the man, but that wasn't the end. No sooner than when they reached the halfway point, nine wizards and witches appeared before Grindelwald; two of them went to the man's side while the other seven launched all the spells they could muster at the advancing couple.
Elaine and Harry stopped as a result of the new arrivals, and together, their shield charms held. The fight that followed lasted all of thirty seconds, if that, before the majority of those that had fallen upon them were dead or dying, but they had accomplished what they had likely meant to.
Grindelwald, and the two that had helped him, were gone. There was a pool of blood where he had once been, and that was all.
"We'll find him," Elaine said with a shrug as she flicked her wand in the direction of one of Grindelwald's dying followers, summoning the wounded witch's limp body towards them as the woman cried out in agony. "Our little captured bird will sing songs for us. Songs that tell us where her master went, what he's done to restore himself and how we'll stop him. Isn't that right, injured little eagle?"
The woman fired something off in rapidly-spoken German, and in response, Elaine tutted at her. She likely didn't understand a word that had been spoken, but the aggressive tone of it wasn't kind, and as a result, the tip of Elaine's wand pressed into a hole in the woman's arm; the noise she made was so blood-curdling Harry wished he had something over his ears.
Still, he knew that interrogation had to happen if they were to find out anything and everything there was to know about Grindelwald and the true number of supporters he still had left, for clearly the intelligence that the Ministry had, was poor.
"We can question her in the Auror department," Harry remarked after one last look around, ensuring that the other followers were truly dead and wouldn't be coming back to bother them. "He'll be staying in our country, and so long as he does that, he's finished — he probably thinks this one's dead too. They all looked it."
Elaine took his arm as she stunned, bound and 'accidentally' levitated the woman into the ceiling. "Lead the way, my love. We'll have a song to listen to before too long."
Harry couldn't help himself. He leaned forward, gently used one hand to turn Elaine's head towards his own, and kissed her on the lips. It was a soft kiss that spoke of his affection and hope that all would soon, finally, be over. But most of all, it was a gesture of thanks that she had arrived when she had.
"Thank you. I don't know where you were, or where the Minister was, but thank you," Harry sighed as he let his shoulders sag, finally feeling at peace to some degree with the sound of spellfire completely gone from the Ministry; he didn't doubt that many had fallen, he simply hoped that they had dealt as much damage as they'd taken.
If that were true, he would consider himself lucky and the war, finally, nearly over.
"You don't want to watch?" Elaine asked, her bottom lip sticking out as she pouted at him.
Harry shook his head with a lopsided smile on his face. "I can't," he answered. "If I watch you or help you when it comes to interrogating her, I'll be leaving the Auror Corps and the people we're responsible for solely up to McMacson and Urban. They wouldn't be too happy about that, and I'm sure you can get her to speak well enough without me — all I ask is that you keep her alive. I want the public to see how she comes to justice, it'll be the kiss for her, I don't have a doubt about that."
"I've already taken a glance inside of her mind, she deserves it more so than most that have ever gotten it," Elaine said, her tone almost with a pondering quality in it as she leaned forward to kiss him, one arm wrapping around his back whilst the other trailed down his chest, down his stomach and right to the top of his belt, where it stopped. She kissed him hard and with a covetous nature, but he returned it with nearly as much fervour as she gave. When she finally pulled back at the sound of the door behind them opening, she licked her bottom lip and winked at him. "I'll see you at home, Deputy Director. I'll answer all of your questions, like a good witch."
With those parting words, Elaine left, entering the room that led to the holding cells of the Auror Corps so that she could finally begin the task that she had all but forced him to allow; interrogation. Soon, he had no doubt that the witch follower of Grindelwald would be pleading and begging for whatever it was that Elaine did to her, to stop. He nearly felt bad, nearly, if not for the words that Elaine had said to him. As often as she told half-truths, he truly believed that this follower was ruthless and brutal in her past deeds. All that seemed to remain loyal to Grindelwald seemed to be the worst, most treacherous and evil of them.
"Quite the catch you've got, isn't that right?" McMacson's voice asked with amusement evident in his tone as a hand fell on Harry's shoulder and the walking of the person that had entered the room — and caused Elaine to end her snogging session begrudgingly — ended.
"I'd say so. It's not often you end up with a witch that's able to stand toe to toe with Grindelwald, least of all one that scares him off when you're fighting him together… Merlin, I don't understand how he's back, Mac. We saw his body, all of us, and yet here is he again. I had half thought even after that last encounter that it was his top Lieutenant imitating him, but that's not possible. He's stronger than anybody else even without his old wand," Harry stopped rambling and simply resigned himself to a shake of the head. "I let everybody down. If I would have killed him, this attack wouldn't have happened. We lost dozens today, I know it already. I saw the bodies, and the civilians, the staff from across the Ministry, they were dragged into the middle of this fight by that monster for no good reason."
"See that it's paid back in kind, Pev. You and Elaine Gaunt are about the only chance we've got to stop him, and after today, it's practically only him. It comes down to the two of you, and I've got your back, always. You're a good man, and when you kill him again, you'll be greater than ever before," McMacson smiled politely, patted Harry on the shoulder once more and then, after getting the younger man's attention, he gestured towards the door with his head. "Come on. We've got some work to do and while we're walking, I'll give you the good news. How's that sound?"
"Good news?" Harry questioned with furrowed brows as they pushed through the door and into the wider Auror office at large; there were dozens of people moving around with haste, and others that hobbled from desk to desk as they tried to continue their work whilst injured. All in all, more Aurors survived than he had thought, but there were still fewer and fewer faces every time they returned from any conflict, and that alone was disheartening beyond belief.
McMacson nodded. "It may not seem like it, but this was it for him. This gamble cost him more than it cost us, it cost him more than coming here in the first place had. The whole thing came off as unhinged. He had to know that if he lost or retreated for whatever reason, he was finished, and he ran anyways," the man held up his hands when Harry made to urge him on. "Alright, alright. We killed twenty-three of his followers, and in addition to the one that you captured, a few volunteers managed to stun one from behind. From what we know thus far, the two that escaped with him are joined by one other person that escaped. The total number they had left when coming here, as retrieved by veritaserum, was twenty-eight. Like I said, he gambled his all on this, and it didn't turn out the way he wanted it to."
"Grindelwald and three others…" Harry repeated, his mind working over the math and coming out on top every time.
"Yeah. He won't be able to attack us again, and with only three followers at this point in time, if we press the advantage, he won't be able to get any other fools to follow him from throughout the world," McMacson finished as they entered his office and the man gestured to the chair before his desk as he went behind the aforementioned piece of furniture.
Harry sat down whilst still thinking something over, and as soon as his arse hit the cushion, he was speaking. "We have to attack him while we still can, you know that, right? I don't mean in a week or two, or a month, or even a few days. This has to end as quickly as we can get the information from the two prisoners as to their location — as soon as we know where they're resting, you, me, Urban, Elaine and the top five Aurors we still have left have to hunt them down."
McMacson looked pensive and brought a hand up to his chin in thought. "If we do that, there's the chance that we walk into a trap or the greater chance that we lose that fight. That would be catastrophic for the entire country should that happen, Pev. We'd practically be handing it over to him and his lot."
"If we let him rest and recover and build back his forces, we're doing the same thing. Elaine and I can finish the job this time around. We'll put up wards to prevent apparation, and then we'll find him, and kill him. You and the others will have to contend with his followers, keep them off our backs while we fight their master, and if you can do that, that'll be the end of them all, the end of this insurgency, and the end of the war that's gone one for half a decade," Harry nodded a few times and looked resolutely at McMacson, the same fire behind his eyes that had been present when he'd single-handedly sent Grindelwald fleeing on account of the man's arrogance. "Do this, and we'll finally manage to bring about the end of everything. We'll finally have peace."
McMacson stayed quiet. He didn't immediately respond to what Harry said. The man let the seconds tick by until they became minutes, and after that, until the minutes became nearly two or three minutes all the while he twiddled his thumbs and looked from one object to the next in silent thought.
"Tomorrow," McMacson finally said, with a sour expression on his face, the likes of which were typically only accompanied by the smell of lemon in the air. "You and me, Urban and Gaunt, our best five Aurors fit for duty. We'll hunt him and the handful of survivors down, we'll kill them, and we'll finally be able to put an end to this. Don't let me down, Pev. Like I said, I've got your back and you've got the fate of the world on those scrawny shoulders of yours."
Harry snorted, he nearly laughed, and then he stood up from his chair with his hand extended in the direction of McMacson. When the man shook it, Harry nodded at him and McMacson returned the action. They knew by this time tomorrow, the end, for better or for worse, would finally come to be.
It was Harry and Elaine's job to see to it that the better ending was the one the world at large received.
February 18, 1945
Wednesday Morning
There was nothing quite like a cup of hot, perfectly made and sweet tea in the morning after an exceptionally long, difficult day. Harry was experiencing that exact feeling of joy and happiness as he sipped from a wonderfully made cup of tea thanks to Laddey. The little house elf had seen to it that Harry and Elaine each were well taken care of, and after doing so, the couple had decided to spend the morning resting in bed.
"You seem to be doing better, lover, isn't that right?" Elaine asked as one of her hands snaked its way to his chest and began to trace patterns idly on him. "I was worried you wouldn't rest well after such a trying day. If I had to enter your mind in the midst of your dreams, just know, I would've gladly done so."
Harry chuckled at the thought. He wasn't sure if it was possible for her to project herself in his mind in the midst of a dream, and if it was, he was certain that he wouldn't be able to believe it was truly her. Perhaps she'd even done so in the past and, like most dreams, he simply hadn't remembered it… that was a uniquely disturbing thought that nearly made him choke on the tea he had only just taken a sip of.
Thankfully, he was spared when Laddey appeared at the foot of their bed, the typical noise and appearance of the elf not bothering Harry nearly as much as Elaine's comment.
"Master Harry, sir, and the Master's Elaine!" the little elf said respectfully as he bowed and floated over two letters to Harry. "There was mail for the two of you, the Mac called for Laddey so that the letters could be passed along — one is from him and the other is from some person named Advisor."
One of the Minister's advisors, I'm guessing, Harry thought as he snagged the two letters from the air and smiled openly and widely at Laddey; the house elf was one of his greatest friends and allies by this point. "Thank you, Laddey. You're free to enjoy the morning however you'd like. Elaine and I will probably be taking a bit of a nap after breakfast."
If anybody would have told me I'd be taking a nap in the early afternoon with Elaine, in my own home and after fighting Grindelwald the day before, I'd have called them a tosser.
"Go on, open the letters. I'll read over your shoulders and then we'll take our 'nap'. It'll be interesting what you offer me to do just that — many a kiss, I think," Elaine teased as she finally sat up before scooching closer to Harry's already seated figure, their legs intertwining as his hand found the first letter so that he could get to the contents therein.
'Harry,' it started, meaning the letter was meant for him; he didn't mind if Elaine saw it, for he figured the very next letter would be meant for her, and he would be opening that one as well. There would be no further secrets between them. That was something they had to hold true to if they wanted everything to work.
' I figured I would write to the man that sent Grindelwald running twice over to let him know that the Ministry is firmly under our control once more. When last you left, there were no full sweeps of the building, and yet, after going through it myself, I was able to confirm that it was empty save for the bodies of Grindeltwat's followers and the unfortunate souls that lost their lives on account of his recklessness, carelessness and monstrous mind. Save for the fallen, the Ministry was cleared and by the time you return this evening, it will be completely restored. There are over three hundred wands working on that alone, and there'll be another thousand come this afternoon.
In addition to that, I'll have a packet written up for your eyes and that of Elaine Gaunt's by the time you've made it back. We've learned much and more on account of those two friends we made, and thanks to them, we'll be going in far better than we had thought. If even half of what we've learned is true, I dare say we'll be able to accomplish all that you had hoped, if not more.
I'll see you in the evening, rest well, eat heartily and be in your best form. The others are ready, we'll have a meal together and a meeting during that very meal, and then, we'll send ourselves off in the quiet aftermath.
With hope,
McMacson'
"So the little Eagles sang songs for us," Elaine said with a victorious-sounding giggle as she kissed along the left of Harry's jawline. "I told you they would. Half of that information is likely what I gathered, and the other half would have been too if you hadn't come to take me home. You were very kind to do so — I do so love the bond we've come to build."
Harry surprised her as much as he did himself when he tossed the letter aside and pulled Elaine into his lap, one hand settling around her waist to hold her in place as he pressed kisses to the back of her neck. "You've finally got me, but now, I've got you too. I'm your equal, but when I choose to be, I'll be more than that. If we win, I'll show you."
He felt her shiver, and she made to turn around to face him, but he denied her as he sought out the second letter. She made a whining sound, clearly as frustrated as she was randy by his taking charge, and were he stupid, he would have laughed; he contained himself, however, and he pressed one last calming kiss to the back of that long, pale neck of hers.
"Patience. You'll finally get what you've wanted, Elaine, and I won't be holding myself back anymore. I'll give you my all, whenever you want it and so long as you want it — you'll be whole, in your own words," he said before he finally turned her around to face him, the letter separating their faces as he began to read the contents of it.
'To the Honourable Advisor Elaine Gaunt, of the Noble House of Gaunt,
It is with great remorse that I write to inform you that the acting Minister of Magic, is dead, as is the majority of the Advisory staff save for yourself and one another wizard, the Honourable Advisor Alexander Cressenwell Rowle of the Noble House of Rowle. I, the Director of the Department of Mysteries, have assumed the responsibility to inform you of the passing of your fellow Advisors and the Minister. In addition, as the seniormost Advisor left, the acting post of Minister of Magic is yours, until such time that an election can be held. When that time comes, however, is a mystery.
I thank you for your understanding and wish to congratulate you, however sorrowful the circumstances are, on your posting as the Minister of Magic.
The Director of the Department of Mysteries'
Harry snorted when he saw that the witch or wizard that wrote the letter failed — or refused — to sign their name at the end of it. It was incredibly amusing and were he nosier than he was, he would ask Elaine if she knew the person's identity, but he didn't truly care all that much. He was far more concerned and hopeful, with Elaine's newest position as well as the circumstances that had to happen for her to reach that very spot. The one she had yearned for years, if not a decade by this point.
He nearly wanted to look into the deaths of the other Advisors and the Minister himself, but he very quickly banished the thought out of respect for her and their relationship. If she had killed them, he wished not to know, for the news would have effects the likes of which just might ruin their relationship, and truthfully, the majority of them had been far from perfect citizens. If these were the dozen or so people that had to die for her to come into power, he would accept that in stride and during a war where their deaths might truly not be her doing.
That was a very easy pill to swallow, as the Muggles would say.
"Acting Minister," Elaine said aloud, and in a tone of voice that Harry couldn't quite make out the meaning of.
"Congratulations," he said nonetheless, his arms wrapping tightly around her centre to prevent her from moving. "We've talked about it before, but here it is and we didn't have to do anything for it to happen — those other advisors and the Minister, you've worked with them a lot these past few months… were any of them actually good people? Will you miss any of them?"
"There were two that weren't corrupt, and of them, both wished to see vast amounts of progress made," Elaine said, her tone partially disdainful and partially commending, an odd mix that he nearly commented on until she continued not giving him the chance to do so. "None were perfect or remotely close, and now, as the acting Minister, I can see the many changes we wished to make come into fruition. Grindelwald will be felled this very evening, and in doing so with you at my side, we'll establish ourselves as legends and any hopes that McMacson or any other person has in replacing me will be all but impossible. This is perfect, my love. We'll be a dynasty."
Oh. Right. McMacson's ultimate goal was Minister, but that won't happen now, will it?
"There's no limit for years you can serve, is there? I've never thought to ask," Harry asked Elaine, pondering just what that could mean if there wasn't.
"An election must take place every seven years, but that can be changed to ten in a year or two after I've won my first election," Elaine said off-handedly with not a care in the world as she leaned down to capture his lips with her own with an aggressive, biting nature.
Harry answered her affection, aggressive as it was, in kind. His hands found purchase in her hips, his teeth caught her bottom lip and pulled ever so softly, pulling Elaine with him until he fell to his back with her firmly astride him. Soon, their clothes were banished to the side save for their underclothing, and through their snogging, wandering hands found places they had seldom touched before.
Elaine's touch was cold despite the feverish nature of their making out and constant groping. She seemed put out whensoever he or she needed to part for air, and after nought but a few seconds at the most, she pressed the attack again, but Harry wasn't to be left on the defensive. He flipped them, pinning her under him with his superior weight despite their closeness in strength thanks to one of the many rituals she had undergone.
He looked down when he pulled back for air, seeing her chest bared for the first time. His eyes sought out the pink pebble-like peaks of her breasts. She was beautiful, her dark hair splayed out on the pillow as she stared up at him with darker, near midnight-black eyes. There was a small blush on her cheeks that spread down her neck and stopped at the valley of her breasts. It was tempting, so very tempting, and when he descended upon that aforementioned valley, he found himself with twin mountain tops to claim.
Harry did so fervently, and Merlin, it was perhaps the single greatest thing he had done thus far since being in this time. She was a goddess given flesh at that moment, and all of their snogging, all of her comments and tempting, none of it had felt half as right as it did at this moment; perhaps it was the cascading effect of emotions, maybe his love was finally greater than he had thought possible, there were so many possibilities as to why he felt how he did, but none mattered more than the girl below him as the last vestiges of clothing were banished away, and finally, they became one.
The rapture on her face, the clinging of her body to his and the low, guttural moan she made would stay with him until his dying day.
"Master Harry, sir? Mistress Elaine?" Harry heard at the same time he felt a light, nearly imperceivable prodding at his side.
Slowly, Harry blinked open his eyes and brought one hand up to rub at them, removing the sleep crust that had accumulated… in… them. Merlin. If there were bits of sleep in his eyes, that 'nap' that he had so thought they would take was far, far from qualifying as a nap.
"Laddey, what time is it?" he asked quickly as he sat up in the bed, the covers falling from his body to reveal his naked chest.
"It's evening time, Master Harry, sir. The sun's starting to set and Laddey was wondering if you and the Mistress Elaine wanted dinner to be started soon," Laddey said quietly as he looked at Harry with those large, innocent and blinking eyes.
"No, no thank you, Laddey. We have to get going soon, but we'll be back late — have something made around three in the morning or so and keep it warm if we come back later," Harry said as he cast a quick tempus charm, revealing that it was nearly five in the evening… that wasn't horrible, but they would be expected over to the Ministry in an hour, possibly sooner.
They really had overslept, but as he stretched and a sensation of bliss ran through him, he couldn't help the grin that came to his face. The reason for their long rest was apparent, and when he looked over at Elaine's peaceful, satisfied face and her wild hair, he felt, in a weird, ironic sort of way, complete, for the first time in his life. Perhaps he understood how she felt more than he had thought, and again, perhaps not. He wasn't really certain the how or why, but he had never felt better than he currently did.
"Good morning," Elaine said quietly… alluringly, as Harry had just started to reach to shake her awake. "My love… my other half," she cooed, sitting up slowly and gazing at him with pure adoration even as the covers fell away to reveal her love-bite-ridden chest; she knew what she was doing.
"Elaine…" Harry said in warning, swallowing as his eyes couldn't help but flicker down to his second and third new favourite bits of her.
She licked her bottom lip and leaned in to kiss him, her breasts rubbing against his chest in the process. "We'll have one another again when we return home — I'll take a week away from the Ministry and I'll order your department to let you do the same. I'm whole. With you, I'm finally complete. The feeling is indescribable, and yet, I'm certain that you felt the same… perhaps when next we lay with one another, we'll leave our minds open. The thought of feeling your pleasure through my own is beyond tantalising."
Harry fell back into the bed, his head hitting the pillow and as a result, Elaine climbed into his lap. Perhaps they would spend another thirty minutes or so in their bed, and then they would spend another twenty-five in the shower… he knew one thing for certain. They would cut their arrival at the Ministry very close, and now most of all was a time with which they couldn't afford to play around.
February 18, 1945
Wednesday Late Evening
"Elaine, Harry, I'm glad you've finally joined us. Did the pair of you rest well?" McMacson asked, his question innocent enough but the thought of their earlier deeds made Harry nearly trip as he walked into the man's office turned dining-room.
"We're better than we've ever been, Director McMacson," Elaine responded politely and formally. "I trust the news of my new post has reached those within this room?"
McMacson shook his head. "Nope," he said with a shrug as he gestured to the spots at his right; Urban was at the man's left.
Harry blinked a few times at that considering McMacson was usually pretty far ahead when it came time for news or gossip. "Elaine's the new acting Minister," he said with a nod towards her, their hands still holding on to one another as the group took in a breath or looked at her in awe, likely on account of her young — very young — age. "The other Advisors were killed, the acting Minister was killed, and as one of the only two survivors, she's been put into position until an emergency election can take place. That'll only happen once we kill Grindelwald and the three followers of his that remain."
"Congratulations," McMacson said when Harry finished, his words ringing true enough and the sentiment echoed by those within the room. Elaine thanked them, words were exchanged that didn't matter all that much, and finally, Harry pulled Elaine's chair out for her, allowing her to be seated before he pushed her chair in and took his place beside McMacson.
Finally, they could get to the real business of this dinner.
"What do we have?" Harry asked without any preamble as he looked McMacson dead in the eyes.
"Everything. Trap placement, the layout of the building, the location of the seven prisoners they have, and weirdly enough, the mention of some object in Godric's Hallow — it's at the grave of Dumbledore's sister… I didn't even realise he had a sister, but there's something about it that matters, apparently. Neither could say what or why, but who cares, yeah? We've got to take a look there after we've taken care of Grindelwald and the leftovers," McMacson said, much to the amusement of a few of the other Aurors in the room.
Notably, Urban didn't laugh.
Elaine commented then when the laughter quieted down. "We weren't able to figure out just what it is that's in Godric's Hallow? Was there anything at all to go off of?"
McMacson shrugged. "It was your captive that spoke about it and how she as well as a few others in that group you killed were personally assigned by their master to deliver an item into some coffin. She didn't know anything about it, she didn't ask, it was simply very important to Grindelwald," the man paused and furrowed his brows as he looked between Harry and Elaine. "What? Do you think that's important? It didn't sound it if he didn't even tell them to do anything special with it."
Harry was just about ready to pipe up about rituals or the like, but Elaine tapped his foot with her own as she took the lead, all the while he felt an influx of emotions from her, but most notably; eagerness, nervousness and a deeply rooted anger.
"My Harry and I can take a look after we've killed him," she said in a sweet tone of voice, the words and that look making for a chilling combination. "Now, Director, when are we leaving?"