The Thief of Hogwarts

By: Bluminous

A/N: I don't own Harry Potter

Chapter 21: International Travel

Monday, first week of classes

"Isn't he beautiful!"

The third-year class of care of magical creatures all collectively stepped back as the large magical creature stared at their group, its eyes never blinking.

"Say hello to Buckbeak!" Hagrid, the new care of magical creatures continued. He glanced at his students and eagerly beckoned them to move closer, but as expected, no one listened. Magical creatures were misunderstood by most witches and wizards, even with how cute Buckbeak is.

"Is that a hippogriff?"

"Correct Hermione!" Hagrid replied cheerfully. "Five points to Ravenclaw!"

The bushy-haired witch gave a smile in return. She was the most excited about Hagrid's new role out of all the students in their year.

There was apprehension as the hippogriff jumped into the air and viciously snatched a dead ferret thrown by Hagrid. It quickly swallowed the snack, showing off its menacing-looking claws and powerful beak. After it finished its meal, it suddenly pranced in front of the third years, clearly showing off its agility and speed.

"Now who would like to get closer?" Hagrid asked the class. "Remember though, hippogriffs are very proud creatures. They can be easily offended."

No one volunteered, and without missing a beat everyone took one step back, including Hermione. Hagrid frowned in disappointment and looked at the group of Gryffindors, hoping someone would show courage. He was about to offer an incentive to whoever volunteered when a cold chill suddenly settled around them and silence descended in the paddock. The half-giant suddenly looked up in alarm and saw a few figures in black gliding towards their position from the direction of the forbidden forest.

Panic automatically ensued as some of the students ran, pushing and pulling against each other to be the first ones to get inside the castle and to safety.

"Run!" Hagrid shouted as he stood between himself and the fast-moving dementors. He pulled out the special wand Dumbledore gave him and fired off a banishing charm. The spell washed over the dementors, but they never stopped, clearly unaffected by the charm. Soon Hagrid was on his knees, as he struggled to move. His students were in danger and he was helpless. Amidst the screams of terror caused by the dementors, some were paralyzed by fear, unable to even escape, lost in their most terrible memories.

Draco Malfoy was one of the first to move run, but he was trampled by his fellow third-years. House alliances were ignored and it was every man for himself. An elbow hit him in the ribs and he stumbled towards a nearby boulder, his head hitting the hard surface. Dizzy and in pain, the Slytherin, on his arm and knees struggled to stand while he clutched his head with his right hand, feeling his blood trickle down his forehead.

He shouted for help when he suddenly felt the chill in the air get stronger. The Slytherin looked up and saw a dark figure in front of him, a skeletal hand reaching out to him. Draco shivered in fear and disgust as a decayed, rotting mouth opened its black, cracked, and oozing lips in anticipation of a deadly kiss. His worst memories flashed before his eyes unbidden, and he felt weaker every second.

Suddenly a loud screech snapped the Slytherin from his paralyzed state as a huge hippogriff attacked the dementor from behind. Its giant wings unfurled while its sharp claws tore off pieces of black cloth and rotting flesh, exposing a nearly skeletal and hideous carcass underneath the robes.

The dementor screeched in pain and retreated, chased off by the angry hippogriff. Buckbeak gave a menacing challenge to the remaining dementor who quickly retreated from Hagrid's side and vanished into the forest.

As warmth came back to Draco, he stared at his savior for a moment as the hippogriff trotted back to where he was struggling to stand and used the boulder to help get back to his feet. Draco looked back to their new professor and frowned at the half-giant's incompetence, as a Hogwarts professor he should be able to protect them from dangers like these. His father will surely hear of this.

He suddenly felt something nudging the side of his head and saw an enormous beak beside him. Instead of being scared like he had been earlier, Draco slowly raised an arm and stroked the hippogriff's beak. Buckbeak closed its eyes in pleasure and let out a rumble from its throat, obviously enjoying the sensation.

"You magnificent bastard," Draco whispered, smiling at the hippogriff. "You sure showed them who really should be feared."

Buckbeak opened an eye and watched as the human that had been bowing to him earlier, though in reality it was due to the effects of the dementor, continued to praise him. The feathers around his head and neck spread out, making him appear bigger and more intimidating. It only made a smile appear on Draco's face.

"Yes, yes you are the best." Draco moved to stroke the hippogriff's neck and watched as Hagrid slowly moved closer to him. From the direction of the castle, he spotted several figures running down the steps.

"Malfoy…" Hagrid began as the two stared at one another. "Ten points to Slytherin."

"Thank you… professor." Draco replied and turned back to his savior. His father will definitely hear of this.

********o0o*********

Headmaster's office

There was a lot of fallout from the incident with the third-year students and their encounter with the dementors. Several students had written letters to their parents and guardians, some influential members of wizarding society. The hunt was on, on who to blame for the nearly deadly events that terrorized nearly the entire third-year class.

He had reviewed the entire incident and decided to join the hunt. It wasn't his fault since the outer wards were breached by the dementors on purpose despite the ministry assuring him that they were in control of the vile creatures. His strategy now was to direct all the anger and outrage to the ministry after speaking with his staff.

As expected, he received the floo call from Cornelius Fudge.

"Dumbledore! What's happening in that school? I have parents and even Lucius Malfoy demanding that I remove the dementors!" The minister of magic complained. He had spent the entire morning assuring and apologizing to outraged parents. Some of these parents included his political ally, Lucius Malfoy, the formidable Augusta Longbottom, and his director of the auror corps.

It was the first time he was truly terrified for his life since the wizarding war ended when Amelia Bones walked inside his office. He endured her wrath and threats of hexes and jinxes as he struggled to placate the enraged witch. Thankfully Amelia Bones had left after an emergency in her department and Fudge quickly flooed Dumbledore, desperate for aid.

"The students have made a full recovery after receiving care from Madam Pomfrey," Dumbledore reported. "A round of hot chocolate drinks certainly helped improve their condition."

"Good, that's good." Cornelius sighed in relief. "I keep telling the parents that everyone is fine and none got seriously injured."

"It was a very near thing, Cornelius," Albus replied. "If it weren't for the heroic stand of Hagrid despite his inability to cast the patronous charm, someone might have gotten kissed."

"It was that close?" Fudge whispered.

"Draco Malfoy claims he was rescued by a hippogriff." The headmaster explained. "He was about to be kissed when Buckbeak intervened and saved his and Hagrid's life."

"Good for the hippogriff then." Cornelius shook his head. "What should I do Albus?"

"As I have always suggested, there should not be any reason for Dementors to be around children, escaped convict or not."

"But… they're important to catch that murderer." Fudge began.

"They can't be fully controlled."

"No!" Cornelius shook his head in denial. "She assured me the ministry has full control of the dementors. Something must have happened!"

"She?"

"Oh, my senior undersecretary." Cornelius Fudge blushed. "She says there aren't any problems controlling dementors at all."

"Cornelius…" Albus gave the minister of magic a piercing look. "You and I both know the true nature of the dementors. They can't be controlled at all, much less be placed near a school full of children. You have to recall them to Azkaban, or risk being summoned by the wizengamot."

"Well, it was Dolores' fault!" Cornelius Fudge finally threw his mistress under the bus. "I'll have her demoted for this!"

Albus Dumbledore shook his head in disappointment. "Remember, we elected you as our minister for magic, not your senior undersecretary. You can listen to their suggestions, but it will ultimately be your decision."

********o0o*********

Friday, first week of classes

The reaction from the incident of the dementor attack slowly died down. There was news that the effort to relocate the dementors back to Azkaban was slow going, as they proved stubborn and sometimes refused orders from the ministry.

There were some changes as a result of the attack, as more aurors, including junior trainees, joined the task force to protect Hogwarts from the infamous Sirus Black. His wanted posters were still plastered everywhere, as the ministry shifted strategies. So far, no word of the escaped convict reached the aurors of any sighting.

One auror that was supposed to leave tomorrow stumbled upon a certain wizard, fully focused on removing one of the wanted posters from the wall of the carriage house with his wand.

"I'm afraid I have to take you in," Tonks said. "That's destruction of ministry property."

"And what are you going to do about it?" Harry Potter asked, his gaze never leaving the point of his wand as his magic slowly countered the sticking spell to prevent it from ripping.

"Lots of things." Tonks replied. "Try me."

"Oh no." Harry replied in a dry voice. He finally finished his task and quickly rolled the wanted poster and stuffed it in the inside pocket of his robes to prevent it from creasing. The poster was still in good condition despite being exposed to the weather. His eyes shifted to the other wanted posters and, calmly assessing which was still in good condition to collect.

"What are you going to do with that anyway?" Tonks quickly hugged her familiar which Harry accepted easily and returned one of his own.

"I just like it." Harry explained. "It's got a nice design, and figured Padfoot would find it funny when I gift one to him."

"You know you could have asked for a freshly printed one." Tonks suggested as she followed the young wizard to another section of the wall. "We have tons there. I think the ministry's new plan is to drown Sirius in these things with the amount they produce daily."

Harry grinned at the image of his godfather crushed under tons of wanted posters. "They lack character, unlike these. Check out the weathering on this one."

Harry waved his wand to his next target. The poster was a bit faded, and the edges of the paper were creased and torn in some places as its sticking charm slowly faded.

"Weathering?"

"It's the result of the poster being exposed to the elements over time." Harry explained. "Collectors of artifacts like coins or even furniture like pieces like these since it gives it character."

"Why though?" Tonks observed as the second poster was slowly removed from the wall. "It looks like old weathered junk to me."

"That's your taste. Mine's different." Harry shrugged. He rolled the second poster much tighter than the previous one and quickly hid it again inside his robes. "I'm done here. What about you? Shouldn't you be packing?"

"I'm already finished, and mom helped." Tonks replied. "You should have seen Mom, Harry. She keeps saying her babies are leaving her."

"Babies?"

"You're her baby too." Tonks said with a grin. "She knows I'll bring you with me."

"Why don't you invite her to visit then?" Harry suggested. He had grown fond of the Tonks's home and its members and considered the place one of his important hideouts.

"Harry, we're going to Vegas." Tonks replied. "It's my chance to have some real fun besides training, you know? I'm so excited, I know where I'll use my stipend since food and accommodations are free."

"I still say invite her at least once." Harry suggested. "It will be three months, she will miss you."

"You mean miss us." Tonks corrected. "Watch out for her alright?"

"I'll visit her from time to time." Harry promised. It would be a good test of his skills in stealth when he visited Andromeda in his animagus form. He wondered what he could do for the older witch while her daughter was gone for three months.

********o0o********

Ravenclaw common room

Padma Patil looked around the common room and noticed something different today. There was a noticeable tension that hung in the air, and the younger members of their house felt it as well since they refrained from creating too much noise. Normally whenever the end of the week was near, even the studious members needed to unwind by playing noisy wizard games. This Friday as classes just ended for the week, hushed whispers filled the common room instead of the generally festive atmosphere.

There was a clear divide between the males and the females in the upper years. The older girls mostly huddled together near the fireplace while the boys all sat on the couches nearest to the windows. She saw Terry and waved the boy over to seek answers.

"What's happening here?"

"Hey, Padma." Terry sat down beside the witch and glanced back at the two older groups. "Some of the blokes are having second thoughts about going to Hogsmeade, and the girls are not happy about it."

"Is it because of the dementors?" Padma asked. "I know it's taking a while to round them all up, but last I heard only a few are left and they are nowhere near Hogsmeade."

"It's partly that," Terry admitted. "It's also because of… Harry."

Padma looked around, hoping to see her other male classmate. Like in most cases, she couldn't find the boy. "What's Harry got to do with this?"

"Michael asked him yesterday if he's going this weekend. Harry said no, and said it doesn't interest him." Terry explained. "And since it is Harry, some of the older Claws decided not to go as well."

"Why though? Hogsmeade can't be boring." Padma looked confused and Terry Boot wondered how he could explain the reason to the girl. He looked around and sighed in relief when he saw Harry's closest friend in the house enter the common room. She was carrying a few books in her arms and more in her stuffed bag. He couldn't believe the amount of classes the girl was taking this year.

"Hermione! Over here!" Terry called out.

"Yes, Terry?" Hermione asked. She deposited her bag and books on the table and sat beside her fellow witch. "Hi, Padma."

"Hermione, thank Merlin you're here." Terry scooted closer to the two and lowered his voice. "I'm having trouble properly explaining to Padma Harry's influence in our house."

"Terry said some of the boys are not going to Hogsmeade because Harry isn't." Padma shook her head. "I don't understand, what's that got to do with going to Hogsmeade?"

Hermione paused for a moment while she regarded her fellow muggleborn. "I understand why you called me Terry. It's because we're both familiar with public schools isn't it?"

"That's the reason." Terry nodded. "And since you're Harry's closest friend, you can also give your insight."

The boy turned to Padma and continued to try and explain the situation. "I think the reason some of the upper-year blokes aren't going is because they're trying to follow Harry's lead."

"Are you saying they admire him so much that they will copy his every decision?"

"You read the papers about Harry, didn't you?" Hermione asked her friend. At Padma's nod, she continued. "He's living in France, and has a rich, older French veela as a girlfriend."

"There's also the fact that many veela cousins of Fleur Delacour were in the background on the pictures, wearing skimpy bikinis." Terry explained. "That's like the fantasy of most of the guys here."

The three were already familiar with the wild rumors surrounding Harry ever since first year. Their classmate, Michael Corner, only helped spread it around to the rest of the houses. He believed Harry was some sex maniac who enjoyed playing kinky games with his girlfriend whenever he was back in France.

"And with rumors of Harry having already extensive experience with Fleur…" Terry paused for a moment and noticed Hermione's frown at his comment. "Well, many guys here look up to him, despite him being younger."

"You could say Harry has become a trendsetter." Hermione explained. "In muggle public schools, there are certain students that are labeled as… cool."

"Cool?" Padma was puzzled. Was it different from the pure blood hierarchy that was prevalent in Slytherin house?

"Guys that accomplish a lot without even trying." Terry explained. "Hermione and I are familiar with this. And I think Harry is the same one here. Because of his accomplishments, the guys had taken to following his lead."

"That's ridiculous." Padma scoffed.

"It is." Hermione agreed. "But as Terry said, Harry's reputation among the boys of Ravenclaw can certainly affect their judgment."

"It's not really the reputation, Hermione." Terry replied. "It's the… image he projects. I don't think he's even aware of it, and that makes him even cooler to us blokes since he's not strutting around like Malfoy. It's different from the popular students like Davies or that Hufflepuff seeker that you girls fancy."

"I don't fancy Diggory!" Padma hit Terry on the shoulder. "I just said he looked good on his broom when he beat us last year."

"Uhuh."

Eager to change the topic, Padma focused on her friend. "Besides, it's not Diggory that Hermione has a crush on."

"Padma! You promised to keep that quiet!" Hermione hissed as she stared daggers at her friend, a noticeable blush dusting her cheeks.

After a few more back-and-forth teasing, Hermione looked around for a moment and sighed. "Any of you seen Harry?"

"I think he was busy with Michael." Terry replied. "I heard them talking about decorating their dorm room."

"Do you think we can visit him now?" Hermione asked. She needed to talk to Harry regarding what she suspected about his life at home before he moved to France.

"Sure, follow me." Terry stood up and led the girls to the boy's section of the tower. After a flight of stairs, they quickly reached Harry and Michael's shared room. Terry knocked on the door twice. "Hey, Potter!"

"Door's open, Boot!" The trio heard the muffled reply and Terry opened the door.

Hermione looked around and immediately noticed a familiar-looking poster on Harry's side that she had seen many times since Sirius Black's escape from Azkaban. Her eyes narrowed and a reluctant smile escaped her face. Harry certainly had a unique style.

The 24 x 36-inch poster had a similar large text to the original – Have you seen this Wizard? but Harry's name replaced the escaped convict's at the very bottom of the poster. The black and white picture of Harry also replaced Black's, holding a similar prison card containing his birthdate – 0731. His picture was just smiling, moving like a regular magical photo. He sometimes scratched the back of his hair or looked from the left to the right, in a perpetual loop. Underneath Harry's mug was a warning – Approach with extreme caution. Do not attempt to wake up when napping.

Padma glanced at Hermione while Terry burst out in laughter as he quickly moved closer to the poster.

"Yeah, he's cool." She whispered to Hermione. She wondered how Harry did it, and she wanted one for herself.

********o0o*********

Saturday, the first Hogwarts weekend

Draco Malfoy looked on with confusion as Aurors chased several of his classmates around the grounds. He was on his way to Hagrid's hut with Crabbe and Goyle when he noticed a few of his yearmates and even some older Ravenclaws clutching large torn bits of parchment.

His unasked question was answered when he saw a few younger students valiantly trying to remove the wanted posters of Sirius Black by hand, and failing. Along the way, he already noticed many posters were damaged, as if someone tried to pry them off by force.

He ignored the commotion and continued past Hagrid's hut and finally reached the paddock where Buckbeak rested. As he reached the fence, the large hippogriff immediately trotted in his direction.

Maintaining eye contact, Draco gave the creature a nod of his head and prepared his presents. He had visited the hippogriff that saved his life every morning since the incident and read from the books on how to approach the creature.

Buckbeak nodded back and resumed his approach, eager for the snacks that the wizard brought every morning.

"How are you, Buckbeak?" Draco asked. His escorts stood a dozen feet back, still wary of the powerful beast. With practiced ease, the Slytherin easily slipped through the wooden fence and stroked the hippogriff's beak. After a few moments, he waved a hand to Goyle, who carried the dead ferrets and the boy complied and placed the snacks on top of the fence.

Draco quickly grabbed one and tossed it in the air and watched in admiration as Buckbeak easily caught his snack. "Good boy!"

The Slytherin wondered if he could persuade his father to house his savior in his home, but was conflicted about it since he knew he wouldn't be able to see him while he was still in Hogwarts.

Hippogriffs were awesome in Draco's opinion. They were prideful, demanded respect, and powerful, a good symbol for the purebloods. He imagined riding Buckbeak as he soared through the air and made a mental note to purchase a proper saddle. He couldn't wait to fly on his noble steed.

********o0o*********

MACUSA Portkey Arrivals, Las Vegas, Nevada

Nymphadora Tonks suddenly found herself and Kit standing in front of an older witch seated inside a booth.

"Papers. Wand." Tonks quickly passed the waiting MACUSA customs officer her Magical Passport and her wand.

The customs agent nodded and began to examine the documents and placed the wand on a magical scale. Tonks took the time to examine her surroundings and noticed they were inside a large, rectangular room without any windows. The walls were painted white, and she spotted her colleagues standing in front of one of the numerous booths that lined the wall. There were plenty of arrivals as every second, witches and wizards appeared in front of an empty booth with a custom agent waiting.

"Ten inches, made of willow with a core of dragon heartstring." The agent said aloud and handed back her wand. She shifted her gaze to the cat in the auror's arms. "Is that a normal cat?"

"Right, forgot about that." Tonks sheepishly pulled out another set of documents and handed them over. She placed Kit on the desk in front of the agent and the cat merely glanced at the witch before he focused his attention back to his surroundings. His ear twitched every now and then at the sound of portkey arrivals while his tail continued wagging.

"Familiar bond huh?" The impassive customs agent suddenly broke character and gently played with one of Kit's ears with a finger. "He's pretty cute."

"He is." Tonks grinned. "Found Kit on a train when he was still a little kitten."

"He seems to be well-behaved." The MACUSA customs agent cooed and ran a hand down the cat's back. "Who is a well-behaved, smart little guy?"

Kit shivered at the contact but remained sitting. He glanced at the agent and tilted his head. "Meow."

"Uhmm, is there anything else?" Tonks asked.

"Oh right. Do you have anything to declare in your luggage?"

"Just clothes and exercise gear." Tonks replied. The agent merely glanced at the trunk and continued petting her familiar. Kit finally stood up and moved to the edge of the narrow desk attached to the booth and suddenly jumped into the metamorphmagus' arms. His head turned back to the customs agent who was now pouting at being abandoned.

"Well then, welcome to the state of Nevada." The agent swiftly stamped several pages of her magical passport as well as on Kit's document and handed them back. "Enjoy your stay, and bye Kit!"

"Meow!"

"Thank you, we'll be off now." Tonks tried to hide her smile and moved past the booth and the yellow line to the other side of the large room. There were large doors on the other side and when he quickly spotted an empty bench to sit on while he waited for the rest of her group. She realized she was the first one to clear magical customs and ran a hand on her familiar's head. The witch didn't even ask her to open her luggage for inspection, unlike the others.

"I think I'll be taking you along for every international portkey." Tonks told her cat. Kit gave her an amused stare and looked away.

Undeterred Tonks continued to pet Kit. "You have to admit, that went pretty smoothly. You make for a great icebreaker."

"Meow"

"Now don't show me that attitude!" Tonks giggled. "I don't have to worry about portkey travel, it's like you're my express totem."

"HSSSSs"

It took nearly fifteen minutes of waiting until she was approached by her colleagues, Em Vance, Jon Hill, and Kingsley Shacklebolt.

"Took you guys long enough." Tonks mused. She noticed the disgruntled faces and decided to tease them later, and not in front of a senior auror who looked annoyed at the moment.

"Customs is a pain." Vance complained as the group headed to the exit. "How long have you waited?"

"Ten, fifteen minutes?" Tonks guessed. "I think I got lucky, the witch behind the booth took a liking to Kit."

Emmeline Vance glanced at the black cat comfortably perched around Tonk''s shoulder, and in turn, the cat turned its head and pinned her with a sharp, unblinking stare. It was obvious that the cat remembered the time she and Hestia picked him up from the floor without asking for permission. It continued to give threatening hisses whenever they were near it without Tonks, but it behaved better with the other aurors in the department. It had even allowed itself to be carried by the director, after Amelia Bones asked permission from Tonks.

That day of supervised training was memorable, as they continued their exercises while their top boss merely watched them with a cat on her lap.

"Lucky you." Em Vance replied. "Maybe I should get a cat of my own."

"They make for good pets." Kingsley's deep voice joined their conversation. He gave the cat a nod of greeting. "Kit."

"Meow."

"So where to?" Hill asked once they reached the exit. Witches and wizards waited at the exit, a few holding up signs with written names by their wands.

"Over there." Tonks spotted a sign with their names written on it. They pushed through the crowd and met a wizard dressed in a colorful polo shirt. He wore a hat and shades and looked to be in his forties.

"British ministry." The man asked once he noticed them standing a few feet away.

"We are." Kingsley held out a hand. "Kingsley Shacklebolt."

"Heard of you. I'm Chester Harrison, Las Vegas MACUSA." Harrison looked at the rest of the group. "These the participants of the program?"

"They are."

"Welcome to the city of Las Vegas." The portly man welcomed the trio. "I have a van waiting at the front. I'll give you the briefing once we get inside. It's too hot at this time of day."

It was nearing noon, and even under the shaded canopy of the portkey arrivals building, Tonks felt the heat of the desert that surrounded them. Even Em Vance removed her jacket while Hill took a long drink from his water bottle. She did the same and enjoyed the cool liquid on her parched throat.

The blast of cold air was a relief once the group moved inside the van. Chester Harrison obviously kept the vehicle running and moved to the driver's side of the vehicle while Kingsley moved to sit beside him in the passenger seat. The large auror shifted a few air vents and directed them to his face.

"Right, welcome to Vegas." Harrison repeated as they moved from the parking lot. "The three of you will be first assigned to my unit. It says here you all excelled in concealment and disguise, and you will need to use those skills most of all. We deal with criminals using magic to cheat in the casinos."

The three new aurors leaned forward, fully focused on the briefing. They rarely deal with cases like that back in the British Isles.

"It's big business here, with mostly organized crime groups financing the whole operation." Harrison continued. "The nomaj Casinos' security is good enough to stop any normal crime, what our primary role is to spot the subtle, magical ones. You will be learning, training, and cooperating with the unit. That's the primary purpose of the program, to learn more about other law enforcement agencies' methods and help each other. While in my unit, you can call me chief."

"Where will we be staying?" Tonks asked.

"I figured you would get some amusement from seeing this." Chester Harisson looked in the rearview mirror and gave the program participants a wink. "We're nearly there."

The van soon arrived and Tonks stared at the castle in the middle of the desert. It had numerous towers, and blue spires on white walls. While the castle was massive, the two modern white buildings that sandwiched it were bigger in length. Tonks could see the two buildings were lined with numerous windows and balconies.

The van quickly stopped inside the driveway, the area thankfully shaded by the castle's structure. The battlements were massive and Tonks couldn't stop staring. She wasn't alone as the other two aurors were somewhat dazed as they observed their surroundings.

"Welcome to the Excalibur Hotel. This is where you will be staying for the duration of the program." Chester Harrison said. "Now get your luggage, and I'll help you check in and let you rest."

They quickly followed their guide inside as cool air once again washed over them. The spacious lobby was designed with the ancient medieval period in mind, but still tastefully decorated with ornate chandeliers, carpeted floors, and sculpted cream pillars. The lighting was more subdued, and it gave for a more relaxed and sleepy environment.

The group moved to the front desk where they were quickly accommodated. It seems like they were prepared for their arrival since their rooms were already prepared. The concierge handed out sets of folded cardboard, with their plastic card keys inside.

"Get some rest." Chester Harrison said to the three. "The food buffet is good, and it's all paid for. Just tell them your room numbers. Remember the statute of secrecy, do not be caught by nomaj. I'll see you all here at nine in the morning, and I don't want anyone with a hangover. You're not little cadets anymore."

"Yes, chief." The three aurors simultaneously answered.

"Good." Chief Harrison looked at the senior auror beside him. "Let the kids take care of your luggage, Mr. Shacklebolt. Want to head to the bar? Some of the senior aurors are there and I think you might recognize Auror Villeneuve from France."

"She's here?" Kingsley asked with a smile. He handed his trunk to Auror Hill and patted the MACUSA wizard on the shoulder. "Lead on, Harrison."

"Just Chester, Shacklebolt."

"Only if you call me Kingsley, Chester."

Tonks quickly moved to her room, ignoring Hill's grumbling at having to deal with Shacklebolt's luggage. They were on the same floor anyway, so she didn't understand what his deal was.

Tonks quickly reached the door to her room and opened the door with her card key. A large spacious room greeted her, and she moved her trunk inside and closed the door. There was a desk, a couch, a few lamps, and a telly. She looked at an open door and inspected the bedroom, which had a large queen-sized bed and several fluffy pillows.

"What do you think, Kit?" Tonks asked as she allowed herself to fall into the soft bed.

"I think I'm going to enjoy it here." Harry replied, already eating an apple he took from the table. He moved to the large window and watched the busy street below, the blue spires of the castle at the forefront. He couldn't wait to explore this city

********o0o*********

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