I'm back again! Trying to bounce around from one story to another in an effort to keep my enthusaism up.

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Chapter 7

The Australian Ministry of Magic

Several things happened in rapid succession: the crowd around them screamed, while Harry (on pure reflex and adrenaline) drew his wand and deflected the spell, before he was even one hundred percent sure which direction it had come from. Ron and Ginny had both drawn their wands and fired off their own stunning spells at whomever had attacked (they must have gotten a better look), and now stood glaring at the rest of the onlookers dangerously, as if daring any of them to try something else.

Security wizards were there in seconds, clearing people away, checking over the downed assailant, and making sure there was no one else with plans to try anything. Harry, Ron, and Ginny had to be asked three times to put their wands away, which they finally did very reluctantly when the witch in charge of security arrived herself and implied she wouldn't ask a fourth time.

They were led to a roped off area just a short walk away from the stadium exit. The man who had attacked Harry had been revived and carried off elsewhere. Quite aside from worrying about being in trouble, Harry was already itching with anxiety about being without his wand.

'Please have a seat,' said the security witch, indicating a handful of folding chairs. They were still out in the open, so whatever was about to happen couldn't be too bad; they likely would have been taken inside away from prying eyes for that.

'Can we have our wands back?' Ron asked abruptly.

'As soon as I'm certain you're not going to be a danger to anyone with them,' came the reply.

'Us, a danger!' Ron yelled indignantly, the same moment Ginny let out an angry cry. Harry, much more accustomed to the inanities of government officials, was managing to hold his temper in check for the moment.

'You saw what that bloke tried to do!' Ginny yelled.

'Actually, I didn't,' said the witch. 'I was called in when the three of you refused to surrender your wands. I got the gist, but I need to know why you wouldn't cooperate.'

At that moment, something clicked in Harry's mind.

'You haven't the slightest idea who we are, have you?' he asked. Ron and Ginny immediately went from incensed to bemused.

'Should I?' the witch asked.

'I suppose not,' said Harry. 'We're halfway round the world, after all. Do you know what's been going on in Britain the last few years?'

'I've heard about it, yeah. Some Dark wizard trying to take over the government or something. Why?'

'He did take over the government,' Harry said. 'There was a war that only just ended a few months ago. The three of us were heavily invovled. I was something of a high value target for the other side; you might say. You can see why we might be a little jumpy, and why we might be reluctant to give up our wands after we've just been attacked.'

'Come off it,' said the witch, sounding halfway between incredulous and annoyed. 'You're trying to tell me you three kids fought in a war? And one of you was important enough to be a target? What, are you Harry Potter or something?' She laughed as if she'd made a joke. Harry, for his part, was startled to learn which parts of his story had made it this far abroad and which parts hadn't.

'Yes, actually,' he said.

'Funny,' she replied, giving him a slanted look. 'Look, you kids probably aren't going to cause any trouble, but all the same you're going to need to sit here and talk to someone from the MLES.'

'Are you serious?' Ginny demanded hotly. 'He just told you he's Harry Potter!'

'And I'm Merlin's aged granny,' said the witch, suddenly harsh. 'You'd get a lot farther being straight with me rather than trying to be funny. I can understand about being jumpy after living through a war against a Dark wizard, but that's no excuse for not complying with security personnel. Especially after a violent encounter.'

'Is there a representative from the British Ministry we can speak to?' Ron asked, sounding very annoyed.

'Think you're really important, do you?' the witch asked. 'Listen, I was prepared to let you three walk out of here after a talking to, but I can't say I like your attitude.'

Ron and Ginny both looked ready to shout at her again, and Harry hung his head. This was spiraling out of control very quickly. Before he could intervene, however, an older wizard in nicely cut robes stepped over the ropes to join them.

'What's going on here?' he asked brusquely. The security witch stood up straight at attention, looking straight in front of her and meeting no one's eye.

'Mr Bly, sir!' she said. 'I didn't think they'd call you here for this!'

Mr Bly was obviously someone important.

'They didn't; I was here watching the match,' Bly said calmly. 'I was however on call so you can consider me on duty. Now what's this all about? Some of your security team say you've got Harry Potter detained over here?' he turned to look at Harry and the others; Harry instinctively lowered his eyes, obscuring the man's view of his scar.

'They should know better than to be spreading tales,' said the witch, whose name Harry still did not know. 'Children's tales, at that.' Harry couldn't keep his eyes from going wide. He glanced at Ron and Ginny; their reactions were much the same.

'Children's tales?' Bly asked, nonplussed.

'Well, I mean to say, Harry Potter, sir? May as well say I've got the Twilight Merwitch over here.'

Harry had no idea who or what the Twilight Merwitch was supposed to be, but it was clear from the context she assumed he was a made up folk story parents told their children. It would be funny if the situation wasn't so aggravating.

Evidently, Bly thought so too. He blinked a few times, his jaw slightly slack. Then he said, 'Er, Ms. Comey, Harry Potter is a real person.'

Now it was the security witch's – Comey's – turn to be stunned. She had no chance to respond, however, because Ron burst out laughing.

'Wait, you thought...you thought Harry was just a story for kids?' he guffawed even louder. Even Ginny was giggling. 'That's the funniest thing I've ever...Harry, this is probably the first time you've ever gone unrecognized in your life, and it's from someone who thinks you're not even real! This is brilliant! I can't wait to tell Hermione! And George! He'll piss himself!'

Ginny was covering her mouth with both hands, trying desperately to clamp down on her laughter and was failing miserably. Harry, who was more annoyed with them than with Comey at this point, turned to face Mr Bly, who seemed to be the only one in the area with any sense left in him.

'Mr Bly, was it?' he asked. 'I really am Harry Potter, for whatever that's worth, and I was attacked at the entrance to the stadium, if you haven't heard that already. Are you from the MLES? Ms. Comey here said we couldn't leave until someone from there had spoken to us, and I'd really like to have my wand back as soon as possible, if you don't mind.'

Bly's eyes did the familiar flick up to Harry's forehead, but whatever he thought was a mystery; he schooled his features well.

'I understand, Mr Potter,' he said. 'I apologize for any inconvenience, but under the circumstances we really must speak with you. I'm the deputy director of the MLES Outback Division, so I can debrief you myself. Comey, please give me their wands.'

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Deputy Director Bly was thorough in his questioning, though Harry quickly deduced that he was merely trying to corroborate what he'd already heard from the people in front of the stadium. He remained calm and polite, so he must have been satisfied with their answers.

Officer Comey merely sat to the side, observing, and occasionaly shaking her head and muttering things like, 'Harry Potter!' to herself. He imagined it must feel like meeting a character from Beedle the Bard come to life.

'This all seems to be in line with what our security detail and other witnesses have said,' Bly announced after Ron and Ginny had gone over their version of events for what had to be the fifth time. They were the ones who'd actually jinxed the man, after all. 'I do have one more thing I need to clear up before I can return your wands.'

'What's that?' Harry asked cautiously.

'I could be mistaken; it's not my department after all, but I'm sure I would have heard. There doesn't seem to be a record of you entering the country, Mr Potter. You or your companions. Would you care to explain?'

'We came the muggle way,' Harry said. 'On an aeroplane.'

'I see,' said Bly. 'You must understand how that looks.'

Harry began to nod, but Ron burst in.

'Hang on!' he said. 'What do you mean "how it looks"? How does it look?'

'He means it looks like we were trying to sneak into the country undetected, Ron,' Harry explained. 'Without their Ministry knowing.'

'Precisely,' said Bly.

Harry could see both Weasleys building up to another explosion, so he did his best to head them off.

'We have passports, Mr Bly,' he said. 'Real ones, issued by the muggle British government. Have we done anything illegal by coming here that way?'

This seemed to catch the MLES agent up short.

'Well, no, not exactly,' he said. 'But you surely must see why it raises questions. What are you doing here in Australia? If you just came to see the World Cup, why the secrecy? Why not come by normal means?'

Harry took a deep breath and forced himself to keep his temper.

'As you may have noticed, my friends and I tend to attract a lot of attention wherever we go,' he said. 'Even in places where I'm apparently nothing more than a bedtime story. As for my reasons for going on holiday after over a year at war, I don't think that's any of your business. If we haven't done anything illegal and you're finished questioning us, I'd like our wands back so we can go, please.'

Mr Bly was clearly not accustomed to being spoken to in this way, but he composed himself quickly.

'I think it would be best, Mr Potter, if your holiday came to an end sooner rather than later. We can provide you with assistance in leaving the country should you need it, along with our apologies for the unpleasant incident you were subjected to this afternoon. We discourage our citizens from taking the law into their own hands, but we can appreciate your unique circumstances and your desire to defend yourselves. It is my opinion in my official capacity that you are not a danger to anyone.' The last seemed for Comey as much as for them. Ron mercifully had the wherewithal to keep his mouth shut.

He handed them their wands, but the message was clear: Leave the country and there won't be any trouble. His eyes said it all even without all the diplomatic language.

'Thank you, Mr Bly, but an escort won't be necessary,' said Harry. 'We were planning on leaving within the next few days anyway. If it makes you feel any better, this was our only planned public outing. I can give you the address where we're staying if you like.'

He hoped his own message was clear: We'll leave when and how we want, thanks. Watch us if you want; we're not doing anything.

Bly didn't look happy with this response, but he took the paper Harry gave them with Hermione's parents' address and told them to stay out of trouble. Harry expected they'd be hearing from him in the next few days if they hadn't managed to leave yet. Hopefully Hermoine had made some serious progress while they'd been gone.

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Hermione was not impressed when they told her they were expected to be out of the country within the next few days, and would likely be watched until they were.

'Some maniac attacked Harry!' Ron railed in their defense. 'You would have done the same!'

'I probably would have,' Hermione conceded. 'At least none of you were hurt and you're not in any legal trouble.' She paused. 'You're not, are you?'

'No, Hermione,' said Harry. 'He just strongly implied it would be for the best if we didn't stick around in Australia for much longer.'

'Well, there's nothing we can do about it now,' she said. 'Fortunately we should have everything taken care of in another day or two. Harry, do you need me to come with you to get the return tickets?'

Shit. He'd forgotten about this when he'd told Bly they wouldn't be leaving the house.

'No, I can handle it. You stay with your parents and finish up here.'

'There's no way you're going out on your own after what happened today,' said Ron fervently.

'Ron…'

'It's all right, Ron,' said Ginny, cutting Harry off. 'I'll go with you; you stay and help Hermione.'

'I expect we'll have a tail from the Ministry as well,' said Harry resignedly.

'At least that's one more person who can help of some other moron decides to have a go at you,' said Ron. Then his face lit up as he thought of something. 'Oh, Hermione, we forgot to tell you the best part!'

'What?' asked Hermione. 'Best part of what?'

Stifling giggles, Ginny picked up from Ron. 'Apparently for a lot of folks in Australia, Harry's just – what did she call it? – a "children's tale".'

'What?' Hermione repeated incredulous. The Weasleys were laughing uproariously now.

'They actually think he's a made up character!' Ron howled. 'Like Babbity Rabbity or that Zorro bloke from that film Ginny told us about!"

Even Hermione could not stop her amusement, though she did have the grace to try and hide it behind her hand. Harry just groaned. He wasn't going to live this down for a long, long time.

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Identifying the MLES agent assigned to observe them wasn't difficult. Australian wizards were no better at blending in with muggles than British ones. Honestly, the man wearing a rain slicker over an old fashioned one-piece swimming costume while walking a crup was probably a violation of the International Statute of Secrecy. Or maybe muggles in Australia were just odd.

'We're headed to the airport to buy aeroplane tickets,' Harry informed the man on his third pass in front of the house in five minutes. 'You can come along, but you might want to be a little less conspicuous.'

At first the man pretended not to know what on earth they were talking about, but when they managed to convince him he looked ridiculous, he allowed them to take him round the side of the house, where Harry and Ginny transfigured his outfit into a simple polo shirt and khakis.

'I wouldn't do any vigorous activity in those, mind,' Ginny advised him.

'I know how clothing transfiguration works,' he snapped at them, obviously still a little embarrassed – though over being spotted by his marks so easily or the absurdity of his outfit, Harry couldn't tell.

The three of them apparated to the airport – well, within walking distance of the airport, anyway – and the man, whose name was Wilson (he refused to tell them his first name – "It's unprofessional") insisted on walking up to the ticket counter with them. It was clear he didn't plan to leave them alone until they returned to the house, which annoyed both of them; they had talked of making a date out of this.

Wilson was suspicious when their flight path included a three hour layover in Hong Kong ("What sort of business do you have there?"), and no matter how many times the ticket agent explained the necessity, he insisted they must have some ulterior motive. She began to look at him as if he were insane.

'Not big on flying,' Harry explained to her, improvising wildly. 'Says he doesn't trust it.'

'Wouldn't even let us come and get the tickets by ourselves,' added Ginny. 'Said he needed to make sure no one tried to pull anything funny on us.'

A look of understanding and sympathy came onto her face. 'I get it,' she said. 'I have an uncle who's the same type. Will he be going with you?' Harry wondered what protocol she had in mind if he said yes.

'No, just seeing us off,' said Harry.

'Right, then,' she said, back to business. 'That's six tickets for London, day after tomorrow, via Hong Kong. Everything look good?'

'Six?' Wilson interjected again. 'Since when are there six of you? What exactly are you trying to pull here?'

Harry did his best to look put-upon and embarrassed – it wasn't difficult – and Ginny spoke to Wilson in a very soothing, patronizing voice – the kind you might use on an elderly relative who wasn't all there anymore.

'We told you, Hermione's parents are coming with us, remember?' She reached out and put her hand on his shoulder to sell it, and he only slightly flinched. Did he think they were hardened criminals? 'Please calm down; you're frightening this kind lady.'

'It's all right,' the woman said. Then she turned to Wilson and said, 'They're in good hands, sir, I promise,' evidently under the impression that she was putting him at ease. She returned her attention to Harry. 'This'll be all, then?'

'Yeah, that's it,' said Harry. 'Thanks very much.' He paid for the tickets and they hurriedly left. As soon as they were far enough away as to be out of earshot of any muggles, Wilson opened his mouth to say something (he looked angry), but Ginny rounded on him first.

'What the hell was that about in there?' she shouted. 'It could not have been more embarrassing! Have you never spoken to a muggle in your life? What's the matter with you?'

She sounded as if she were scolding an unruly toddler, and whatever scolding Wilson had been about to deliver was completely forgotten as he was quailed before her.

'I...I merely...'

'What's with all this heavy-handed nonsense, anyway?' Harry asked, his own irritation with the man boiling over. 'Who exactly did Bly tell you we were, black market hit-wizards?'

'Well, no, but...'

'Then why are you treating us like criminals?' Ginny demanded, still furious. 'We haven't done anything! We were randomly attacked, defended ourselves, and then asked by your Ministry to leave the country so we don't cause more trouble. Which we're doing! Though it's ridiculously unfair, by the way.'

'I...I was told to make sure you don't get into any more trouble,' Wilson defended himself weakly.

'Purchasing airline tickets is a notoriously troublesome activity,' said Harry, dripping with sarcasm. 'They closest to trouble we've come is that woman calling security on us for you acting like a paranoid nutter.'

'Now see here!' Wilson said, finally at the end of his rope. 'I am a Ministry official, and -'

'And if you arrest us when we haven't done anything, it'll cause an international incident,' said Harry. He was beyond done with putting up with governmental bureaucratic nonsense. 'Now if you don't mind, we're going back to the house. We'll be gone in another two days and then you'll never have to see us again.' He and Ginny pulled out their wands to disapparate. 'Be careful with those clothes, by the way. The seams are already coming undone.'

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I'm experimenting with shorter chapters again. I need to break myself of the habit of arbitrarily making them longer for the sake of making them longer and just end them when I reach a good ending point.

Thanks for reading. Please leave a review if you liked it (or didn't)!