Frying Pans and Cauldrons

"Stupefy, stupefy!"

Harry stunned the two guards who leaped from their chairs, pointing their stun rifles at him, the moment the heavy door swung open.

Snow and ice blew into what Harry determined was a small guardroom for an Alliance secret facility.

His high made his blood pump faster and he viciously stunned the guards again for good measure. Then his eyes took into focus the rest of the room and his blood went cold.

Stamped in bold, in front of him, over a double door made of steel, were the words, 'Experimental Laboratory' and on either side were the Alliance and Blue Sun stamps. "River," Harry whispered, images of her being hysterical flashed through his mind. He hoped this wasn't the kind of facility he thought it was.

The cloud of bliss rose from his mind and he stood still, unblinking while his thoughts began to race. What should he do? Proceed or come back with help? Were there more people like River beyond the steel double door in front of him? Was he going to have to go on a killing spree?

His courage was leaving him. He didn't want to know what was behind the door. He wanted to curl into a ball and whimper. His lips began to tremble and his eyes teared up.

What the fuck?!

Harry slammed his occlumency shields in place and was left breathless with the amount of magic the effort took.

He wiped his eyes and panted softly. There was an emotion manipulator behind those doors. He steeled his nerves and anger rose in him like a snake. He hated his mind being messed with.

"Bombarda," he growled and the doors exploded inwards.

Alarms started blaring. The white light dulled and blood red emergency lights began to swirl around, casting a red glow in anticipation of the carnage that was to follow.

"Someone's broken in! Guards!" a high-pitched panicked female voice screamed from within.

Harry stepped through and kicked the door that was still swinging on its last hinge. He stepped into a lounge room. Complete with sofas, flat screens, a mini kitchen and dust and debris from the blasted door.

Three men in lab coats shouted and ran to the back. A woman was already through the next door and was running through the white corridors as fast as her legs could take her.

Harry savored the terrified expressions on their faces and swung his wand down.

One man managed to escape his bonds but the other two were caught and they screamed and squirmed.

Harry yanked his wand back and they were dragged back towards him. They were smooth skinned white men, one sandy haired and the other with black. One had blue eyes, the other brown. However they reflected the same emotion: terror.

"P-please!"

"Silencio," Harry said coldly.

Their eyes bulged when they realized they couldn't speak. Harry wrapped them up in more bonds and with a flick of his wand, had them hanging upside down from the ceiling, which magically had hooks out of the blue.

"I'll deal with you later," he murmured. He had to find the emotion manipulator.

Harry stepped into the corridor through the door from where the other two escaped. His footstep echoed in the narrow corridor and was synced to the sound of his heartbeat that seemed just as loud.

The corridor opened into another room and Harry's rage burned.

It was like a surgery room. Steel and white shone in the room under the powerful white lights beaming down from the ceiling.

What fueled Harry's rage were the two white coats who were shielding themselves behind three dull-eyed children.

"Stand back!" the woman shouted panickedly. "Stand back or else you die!"

Harry didn't hear her. His eyes, his mind, his soul were drawn to the three young boys who were staring at him with glazed eyes.

The oldest of them looked barely into his teens and he was the one assaulting Harry's mind with despair.

The woman was right. If he didn't stand back he was going to die. His death wouldn't be spectacular or meaningful if he attacked. His mind would be turned into a puddle of goo and the Alliance would harvest and experiment on his remains.

What was he worth? Why was he alive? What was the point of this struggle to survive? It was better to give in and let go of the pointless will to survive.

Harry's eyes dulled and his wand hand dropped to his side.

The two white coats glanced at each other and the fear in their eyes changed to relief and glee.

"Well done Adrian," the woman said softly. "Now Bobby, do you think you can shock him?"

Bobby; the curly and thin redhead twelve year old nodded.

Harry felt like sinking to his knees. A war raged in his mind. 'Why did I even bother fighting Voldemort? Why did I want to live in the first place? Why did I fight the Dursley's? Why did I want to save people? Why did I fall in love?'

The questions and self-doubts kept coming. His will power was eroding.

And then a single voice, far apart from the rest rose amidst the torture. 'You live because you dream to be free.'

Power surged in Harry's veins. His eyes opened wide and a searing ocean of outrage crushed the dullness.

"You dare mess with my mind!" Harry roared.

Magic burst out of his body in a moment of a complete lack of control and all five, the white coats and the boys were blasted away from Harry.

They slammed into the wall behind and were held in position for a second before they slumped to the floor unconscious.

Harry wobbled on his feet and dropped to his knees. He was absolutely exhausted. His mind was spent and the unconscious blast of magic had nearly drained every bit of strength out of him.

His vision glazed and dark spots winked in his vision.

"Gotta stay awake," Harry groaned, placing his hands on his thighs just to stay upright, but the spots kept dancing in front of his eyes. He wanted to close his eyes and rest. The magical burst had taken a hell lot of energy out of him. His high was gone, his mind had stalled and his body was spent.

He blinked and suddenly there was a figure in front of him.

Harry gasped and jerked and fell on his back. He raised his wand desperately but the figure in front moved so fast that he only felt pain erupt in his wrist and heard his wand clatter to the floor.

"God dammit!" Harry groaned and tried to move, but his vision was too hazy to see where he was going.

He felt a small hand touch his forehead and suddenly everything was clear again.

Harry was confused.

He was feeling great! He didn't feel fatigue, his magic was back to full strength and could now see the figure as clear as ever.

"Are you okay?" said a tiny gentle voice.

It was the smallest boy. Harry doubted he was more than eight years old. The fair child had coarse brown hair and innocent dark eyes. He was wearing a white shirt and white shorts and was peering into Harry's eyes curiously.

Harry took deep calming breaths.

"What's your name?" he asked finally. He couldn't get over the strangeness of the situation. Had this kid nearly crushed his wrist and then healed him?

"Malcolm!" the boy said brightly. "I just got here! I didn't want to heal you when you hurt me but you stopped Adrian and that made me happy. So I healed you."

The boy said that in one breath and Harry just blinked again.

"Err.. Thanks… Malcolm."

"Are you here to take me home?" Malcolm asked. "Doctor Shepherd says my mommy will be coming soon after I get better. Did my mommy send you?"

"Shut up for a minute Malcolm," Harry snapped. His fatigue was gone but his mind was a mess.

Malcolm's eyes filled with tears.

"No wait," Harry said quickly, feeling guilty and ill equipped to deal with a child. "I'm just trying to think!" Harry sighed. "Can you please be quiet for sometime?" he added softly.

Malcolm's eyes were still watering but he nodded.

"Alright then."

Harry stood up and stretched his body. He was really feeling good. The boy certainly had a wonderful gift.

His expression turned to horror when he looked at the other bodies that had slammed against the wall.

They were all dead. He knew they were dead going by the amount of blood pooling all around them.

His eyes fell on the two young boys and he felt like throwing up. Their eyes were glassy and open and blood surrounded them like a deathly halo.

"I…."

"Can we go home now?" Malcolm asked. His voice sounded a little uncomfortable and Harry glanced at him to see the boy looking at the fallen bodies with disturbed eyes.

Harry immediately walked into front of him and turned him away. He could feel those dead eyes staring at his back and accusing him of murder.

It's not my fault!

Harry shuddered. "Yes. Let's get the hell out of here Malcolm."

-x-x-x-

The Underground

"This is all Harry's fault," Mal grumbled.

"It was your plan that was at fault, cap'n," Zoe deadpanned. "If Harry were here maybe we wouldn't have got caught."

Both were on their knees with their hands on their head facing ten-barrel holes that were eagerly waiting for a bullet to swirl through their length and tear a new one in human heads.

"Mal, Mal, Mal," Colonel Fredericks chuckled. "Did you really think you could sneak in here, steal this beauty of a weapon and present it back to that old dog Zolo?"

Mal glared at the tall man with sandy hair in the white suit behind the guns. He was wearing shades hiding his eyes and had a long deep scar running down from his forehead to his neck on a face that was beginning to get comfortable with wrinkles.

He hadn't recognized Fredericks when he saw him but that voice was unmistakable.

"Boros," Zoe spat.

"It's Colonel Fredericks now, actually. And I have to say I am thrilled you made it here. I was just about to start a hunt for you." His voice was gruff and his words came out like a bark.

"Why?" asked Mal, his voice emotionless. Boros was a great soldier. He was an Independent and one of the men who accompanied Zolo into Osiris.

"The war Mal! The war! We lost the battle sure, but the war was never done. The war will only be over once we've won! The Independents are gathering and intelligence says there's already an army ready in New Kashmir!"

A feeling of dread settled in Mal's gut. He glanced at the unconscious Jayne, who had been put through five back-to-back death matches before Boros's men knocked him out.

"What exactly do you want from me?" Mal asked. His eyes were cold and his voice soft.

Fredericks frowned. "You? Well you'd be a welcome soldier to have on board Mal. You always had the spark to be a great General but right now it's not you who I want."

Down in the pit, Jayne groaned.

"Then why are we here Boros?" Zoe growled.

"You have someone on your ship," Fredericks said. "A girl. A girl who my friends helped escape from a Blue Sun facility."

Mal's eyes widened. "What?!"

Fredericks laughed. "Oh Mal! If there's one thing I never liked about you. It's the fact that your plans were always too one directional. It's how I knew you'd be easily lured here. It's how you always fail. You think with your heart rather than your brain."

Mal gritted his teeth. He wanted nothing more than to knock the man's teeth into the man's brain. Then he would see what plans came from that ugly head.

Fredericks raised his arms and feigned a position of fright. "Oh, don't glare at me Captain Mal," he mocked. "I'm terrified of you! Please don't glare me to death!"

All the men around him burst out laughing.

"Good one boss," a crooked nose flunky grunted in a guttery voice.

Fredericks put his hands into his pockets and stood straight, towering over them. He looked like a giant bamboo but made out of rocks rather than wood.

"Will you cooperate with me Mal?" he asked, his voice turning serious. "The Independents are on the rise again. The Brown Coats shall be worn once more. A rebellion is right around the corner Mal. You have no idea how big we are."

"You're insane," spat Mal.

Frederick's expression turned to stone. "What did you say?"

"You're insane," Mal said, a little louder this time. "We lost Boros! The Independents lost! What you're doing now is more like to throw the verse into chaos rather than make the planets Independent like we had dreamed a long time ago!"

"My name," Boros growled furiously. "Is Colonel Fredericks!" He drew the silver gun from its holster and pointed it between Mal's eyes. "You Mal. Have just made a big mistake."

A bang followed Frederick's words and Zoe screamed.

.

.

.

Mal looked at his body in disbelief. He wasn't hurt. There were no blood gushing holes in his body. Instead, Fredericks crumpled to his feet and fell flat on his face. There was a hole in the back of his head and he was more than definitely dead.

Above, near the entrance, River giggled. "Oops," she said with a short glance and a light laugh. "I was aiming for the back of his neck."

Behind her, Kaylee and Simon stared with wide eyes. Two men, beaten to an inch of their lives, were at their feet and were held up by Simon holding the back of their shirts.

The ten men remaining around Fredericks gaped in shock. It was all the time Mal and Zoe needed to pounce.

"Wake up Jayne!" Zoe shouted as everyone suddenly burst into chaotic action and loose triggers were pulled. She ducked under a fist ignoring the loud bangs and buried her elbow in the man's gut. He grunted and dropped his gun, which was immediately picked up by Mal and fired straight into the mouth of the man he was grappling with.

"Aim and shoot them for god's sake!" screamed the crooked nose man desperately trying to take aim amidst all the fighting. He took a shot at random and blew the knee off one of his own friends.

Above, River looked at Simon and Kaylee expectantly and with the patience of a stalking lioness, she asked, "Shall I kill them all?"

She didn't wait for a response. River casually pointed the gun into the ring and fired four times with slight movements in her wrist.

A dead silence rang louder than the ear shattering bangs in the pit and a moment later four bodies fell.

Simon dropped the two men and rushed to the edge to look down. "Mal! Zoe!" he shouted in fear. Did River get them too?

"We're fine Doc. Good shooting River!" Mal yelled back.

Jayne finally came out of his unconscious state and sat on the ground, looking around through dazed eyes. There was a line of drool hanging from the corner of his mouth and the mud had mixed with it and stuck all over his face giving him a dangerous and ridiculous look. "Waahappn'd?"

"You missed the best fight of them all," Zoe said, rolling her eyes.

"I gorram what!"

"Where's Harry?" Kaylee shouted. She could not see him anywhere and he was part of the reason they had come looking for Mal.

They were in the middle of a peaceful happy dinner when suddenly, River had gone berserk. She had started screaming and knocking things over and kept repeating the words, it's gone, it's gone, over and over again.

It was a good half hour after Inara and Simon had calmed her down that they discerned that the mind shield Harry had put on her was gone. River was in complete shock and by the way she kept giggling while looking at the men she had killed made Kaylee certain River was still extremely unstable.

She was frightened.

"Harry's missing," Zoe said. "Let's get outta here Cap'n. Before reinforcements arrive or god forbid; the Alliance."

Mal nodded vigorously and headed for the stairs before turning back and hurrying towards Boros's body. He grabbed Melissa and hurried back. At least the job was done. Now all they had to do was find a missing Wizard.

-x-x-x-

Serenity

Harry apparated directly into Serenity with Malcolm held tight.

Malcolm gasped and stumbled away from Harry. "What was that?!" he gasped.

"Teleportation," Harry said, grinning at the boy's expression of awe and nausea.

Harry had brought them straight into his bedroom. He held Malcolm by the hand and led him to his bed. "Now listen carefully kid," Harry said seriously. "Do not leave this room. Stay here until I get back. If anyone comes onboard, you ask them where is Harry from. If they say Earth, you let them in, you got that?"

Malcolm's eyes were wide. "You're from Earth?"

"It's a trick question kid," Harry said quickly. He had to find Mal and the others. The entire plan was in danger without him. He didn't even know how long he had been gone. For all he knew they were all dead!

Harry took a deep breath and calmed himself. Whatever Malcolm had done to him, it had rejuvenated him and reminded him what he was supposed to be doing at the time he was tripping his balls off!

"Now, tell me what do you ask and what do you do?"

"I stay in this room and if anyone comes I ask where is Harry from," he said in a small voice. He was frightened.

Harry ruffled his hair and smiled. "Good boy. And if they answer Earth, you let them in, got it?"

"Got it!"

Harry turned and quickly left the room but before he shut the door, he poked his head in and smiled reassuringly again. "I'll see you soon Malcolm."

Harry apparated straight to the place where he had met Brownbeard. It was still dark but the sky was faintly beginning to gain a light blue hue, which was slowly, but steadily changing to purple.

Heinlein, the red star, was rising and the unique atmosphere of Paquin was recreating its jaw dropping beauty.

Harry couldn't believe it. He had been gone for nearly six hours. Had it really been that long? He vaguely remembered trudging through thick snow for a while but it hadn't felt that long!

He shook his head in amazement and focused his mind on the task at hand. With the image of the landscape where he met Brownbeard fixed in his mind, Harry disapparated.

And apparated right into a squad of Alliance soldiers.

-x-x-x-

"The tea is really good," River said seriously.

"This is what people on Earth called an English breakfast Miss," said the waiter with a serene smile and a cultured voice. "How would you like your eggs served?"

River frowned. Her brows furrowing and eyes staring unblinking.

The waiter gulped. Had he said something wrong?

"Sunny side up," River answered finally and turned to seriously examine her tea. "This tea is really good," she said again.

The waiter turned uncertainly to the others. He sang praises to himself in his ability to maintain the picture of a classy waiter in spite of his customers covered in dirt, blood and torn clothes. Only the weird girl and the beautiful woman who held herself with a grace capable only of a companion were clean. In fact they looked like they had just come fresh out of the laundry compared to the rest of the group.

"Just get us food," Mal grumbled. "Lot's of it." He turned to Inara as the waiter walked away with a deep bow. "Did you find Harry?"

Inara blinked. The beauty of the star rise had absorbed her full attention. "No," she said.

Her soft husky voice stirred something in Mal. It always did.

"That gorram idiot. Where is he?" Jayne growled.

Kaylee snored into Simon's neck. She was absolutely exhausted.

"Can you sense where he is, River?" Simon asked his volatile sister gently.

"The tea has a bit of spice in it," River replied. "It's difficult to make out but it's there." She frowned again and took a dainty sip.

Mal sighed. "He's going to be on cleaning duty for the rest of the week!"

"Calm down," Inara said gently. "He'll be fine. He's a resourceful young man."

Thoughts of Harry went flying out with the waiter came out of the kitchen hut and the wind brought forth an aroma that made them sigh.

Birds chirped and the wind sang through the trees around the open-air breakfast restaurant.

About five or ten miles to the North a flock of birds suddenly took flight but none except for River noticed. She glanced at them from the corner of her eyes but then forgot about them when her golden eggs came right under her nose.

River looked at the eggs thoughtfully, then raised her fork and stabbed.

-x-x-x-

Harry couldn't believe his luck. He had just gotten out of the frying pan and now he was stewing in the cauldron.

"Take him alive!"

"Accelerate Momento!" Harry roared and all the soldiers in a 100-meter radius were completely thrown off balance when the speed of their movements increased three fold and they inadvertently began to shoot at random.

Harry took the opportunity of the chaos and laser fire to disapparate again. As he had to do it in a split second, he apparated a few kilometers to the east and took a moment to catch his breath.

What the hell is going on? he thought in panic. Where had an entire squad of Alliance soldiers come from?

"He went that way!"

What the fuck? They could track him? How?!

Harry took a peek behind the tree he had apparated behind and noticed a bunch of soldiers running towards him. One of them was holding some kind of device.

"This is not good," Harry thought worriedly.

There wasn't time to think. He placed his wand in his palm and whispered. "Point me River Tam."

The wand spun and pointed towards South.

Harry apparated a kilometer in that direction. If the Alliance could track his use of magic then he had to simply outrun them.

He stopped and used the point me spell and apparated again. He kept repeating the exercise until a hut came into sight and the sounds of the Alliance soldiers following him disappeared.

His heart leapt when he noticed the entire crew sitting outside and apparently eating and relaxing!

"Mal! Zoe!" Harry shouted. He hadn't realized he was still running.

Mal turned his head sharply and his eyes widened. "Harry!" he exclaimed. "Where in the name of Jayne's nuts have you been?!"

Jayne frowned and took an effort to process what Mal had just said.

"No time to explain!" Harry shouted. "Get up and hold hands!"

"I have to finish my eggs," River said, pouting.

Harry reached them and with hands on his knees, panting and recovered his breath. "Alliance! An entire squad! Behind!"

"What?!" gasped Simon. He stood up abruptly and forgot about Kaylee. The curly brunette lost her support and fell to the ground and woke up with a start with mud in her mouth.

"Wha?"

"No time!" Harry shouted.

This time everyone noticed the flock of birds taking to the skies not a few miles away from them and they also heard the faint noise of people running through the forest beside them.

Do they have hovercrafts? Harry thought with wide eyes looking for soldiers through the trees. Seeing the weird device in the soldiers' hands had freaked him. If they had such a device then it was possible they had the means to capture him as well.

"Hold hands everyone!" Mal yelled.

As soon as the last hands linked, Harry placed his hand on Mal's shoulder and closed his eyes. His grip on his wand tightened and he focused on his core. A moment later there was a loud crack and the crew was gone.

The waiter who was looking forward to a good tip could only gape at the empty chairs that were full with big pockets just a moment ago.

What the hell had just happened?!

-x-x-x-

Harry didn't waste any time as soon as he apparated into Serenity. He was barking commands as soon as the crew recovered from the nausea that accompanied apparating muggles.

"River! Start up the ship!"

He summoned Melissa out of Mal's holster.

"Hey!"

"No time! I'll explain later!"

Harry ran out with the gun to the outside where Zolo and his men were still standing guard, absolutely oblivious of what was happening inside. He thundered down the steel stairs into the cargo bay and came face to face with three rifles.

"Whoa! Whoa! Hold on there Zolo, it's me!"

The gigantic brute raised an arm to hold his men back. "How'd you get inside?"

Harry didn't bother replying. He simply tossed Melissa to him and ignored the absolutely stunned expression on the man's face.

The engines on Serenity roared to life.

"How? H-how?" Zolo began to stammer.

"Don't mention it," Harry said, raising his voice over the roar of the engines. He had to use both hands to push Zolo out of the cargo bay. "It's been a pleasure meeting you but you and your guys need to leave now!"

"Wait! I got to see Mal!"

"No time." Harry managed to push Zolo back on the ground and he impatiently gestured to the other men to get out as well. "Buh-bye now!"

He punched the red button to begin closing the cargo bay and Mal finally raced down to join him after recovering his wits.

"What the gorram hell Harry?! Zolo! Wait!" Mal was furious and confused.

Outside Zolo shrugged off the odd behavior and lovingly stroked Melissa. "Thanks for this Mal! I won't forget it!" he shouted.

Serenity began to rise and the COM buzzed to life. Zoe's voice crackled through loud and clear.

"Mal. We have a problem. Sensors are picking up an Alliance battleship on the other side of the planet."

Mal felt his heart jump to his mouth. "A battleship?!"

Harry grabbed Mal's wrist and looked into his eyes with all the urgency he could muster. "We need to leave now," he said softly.

Mal hesitated for a moment and then nodded. "River, take us out and in the opposite direction," he barked over the COM. He then turned to Harry and growled, "You and I need to have a long heart to heart."

-x-x-x-

It was several hours later that Spade finally gave up looking for the wizard.

"Sir, we lost the trail. What are your orders?"

Spade sighed. "Contact Councillor Snape," he said.

The engineer nodded.

"Ebenezer is not going to be pleased."

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