AN: Alright, checklist: 1. Leather jacket? Check. 2. Water skis? Check. 3. Shark? Check!
Chapter 15
"Hospitals are filling to capacity, with some bringing in trailers and even setting up tents as more and more people are afflicted by White Lung. The death toll has reached fifty thousand worldwide, and with no end in sight, drastic measures are being taken. The National quarantine has thus far remained effective, however all citizens of the United Kingdom are urged to take the preventative measures that are scrolling along the bottom of the screen right now. To reiterate: wash your hands frequently, and thoroughly using warm water and soap, disinfect any items that you may have received from overseas, and do not attempt to break the quarantine.
If you do choose to leave the UK, you will not be permitted to return until after a 20 day quarantine in an approved facility. Prime Minister Blair has committed millions of pounds to international relief efforts, and volunteers have been pouring in from throughout the country, putting together care packages. Factories producing personal protective equipment have been ramping up production, and are hiring factory workers at unprecedented rates. Stay tuned to the BBC for more updates." a BBC anchor said, moments before with the click of a remote, the screen went blank.
"Harry, we should get back." Integra said.
"I know.." Harry said, sighing.
"I don't want to." Integra said, snuggling into him. He ran his fingers through her hair.
"Neither do I. This was supposed to be special for you two." Harry said.
"It was. This was the best week of my life, Harry." Seras said, walking into the room nude, drying her hair.
"Holy shit…" Integra said, staring in awe at Seras. Harry grinned.
"You never get used to it. Both of you get more gorgeous every time I see you." Harry said. Seras laughed.
"I agree though. We should return. Once things are better, we can come back and finish our honeymoon." Seras said. Integra smiled and stood, kissing Seras before walking into the bathroom to take her shower.
"Seras? There's something we need to talk about." Harry said.
"What?" Seras asked.
"Integra.. She's fully Human." Harry said.
"So are you." Seras said.
"Yes, but if I get sick and die I'll come right back. We need to plan on what to do when it comes to the UK." Harry said.
"It isn't in the UK though…" Seras said.
"It will come, Seras. It's impossible to keep it out entirely. All it takes is one person to sneak through a checkpoint, come over on a speedboat, or even be careless shipping something." Harry said.
"Oh.." Seras said.
"Yeah." Harry said.
"We could turn her?" Seras asked.
"Not after this week we can't. She's not a virgin any more." Harry said.
"Right… Shit." Seras said.
"Besides, that's not a decision to make lightly." Harry said. Seras nodded.
"I really really really want to beg you to whisk her away to safety and hide out…. But I can't do that to her or you. I'd go spare if you did it to me." Harry said.
"You're right, but I appreciate the thought." Integra said, wrapped in her towel as she walked out.
"Jesus." Seras said.
"What?" Integra asked.
"Hot..." Harry said, staring. Integra grinned and dropped the towel.
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"They're coming back." Rip said, hanging up her phone.
"I'm glad, but also I wish they'd been able to enjoy their honeymoon." Zorin said, groaning as she settled into her chair.
"I feel the same. I hate this.. We get through one crisis only to find ourselves in another." Rip said.
"The timing couldn't be worse. We're still preparing for Millennium's invasion." Zorin said. Rip sat on the ground in front of Zorin, pulled off her shoes and started rubbing her feet.
"Oh god in heaven fuck yes…." Zorin said, moaning in pleasure as Rip massaged her feet. Rip giggled.
"You need to be nicer to your mama." Rip said, looking at her belly. She laughed when she saw a small bulge accompanied by Zorin groaning.
"They're going to be just like their troublemaking father aren't they?" Zorin asked. Just then she felt a vibration from her pocket, so she reached in and opened her compact.
"Schrodinger!" Zorin said.
"Hi Mom… Moms." Schrodinger said with a grin.
"How are you?" Rip asked.
"Good. Got a free period between Potions and Charms. How are you doing?" Schrodinger asked.
"I'm good." Zorin said.
"She's tired, her feet hurt and she's had some minor mood swings." Rip corrected. Zorin glared at her, but there was no heat to it. Schrodinger laughed.
"And you're making sure she rests, right?" Schrodinger asked.
"Yeah, yeah." Zorin said, rolling her eyes.
"How's school?" Rip asked.
"It's ok.. everyone's very tense though. I've been working with Mr. Filch and Professor McGonagall on safety drills in case Millennium tries something. Between that and the disease, everyone's on edge. We've been trying to find a way to keep spirits up, but nothing's working.
"I bet Harry will have some ideas, why don't you ask him?" Zorin asked.
"I don't want to interrupt them." Schrodinger said.
"They're coming back soon, with things getting worse Harry can't really be away." Rip said.
"I'm glad, but also that sucks." Schrodinger said.
"Yes it does." Zorin said. A bright flash of blue light appeared behind Schrodinger causing him to duck just as a bit of debris fell down from the ceiling.
"Sorry 'bout that, mate!" a boy's voice yelled from behind him, followed by the shrill shrieking of Madame Pince.
"What was that?" Zorin asked.
"I'm fairly certain a sixth year Gryffindor just had a practical joke played on them here in the library. I should go, I have no desire to get caught up in that." Schrodinger said with a grin. Rip laughed.
"We love you, son." Zorin said.
"Love you moms!" Schrodinger said, closing the connection.
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"You're serious?" Amelia Bones asked, sitting at her desk. An unspeakable in a dark green cloak nodded.
"Muggles with no magical ancestry don't see the effect, they simply die, but if there's even a squib a few generations back… it happens." The unspeakable said.
"That explains why the muggle news isn't talking about this." Amelia said.
"This is bad, Amelia. If this becomes widespread, you can kiss the statute of secrecy goodbye." The unspeakable said. Amelia nodded.
"I'll contact the Emperor immediately. Hit the books, find anything even resembling this that you can." Amelia said. The unspeakable nodded.
"Make sure your Aurors practice up on the flame whip spell." The unspeakable said before turning and leaving Amelia's office.
"Shit shit shit shit shit…." Amelia said as she fumbled through her robes, withdrawing her compact. She opened it and wrote Harry's name in the makeup.
"Amelia, is everything alright?" Harry asked.
"No, Harry. Will you be returning soon?" Amelia asked.
"We're just getting the last of our stuff packed, Amelia what's wrong?" Harry asked.
"White lung. I just had an unspeakable in here with some rather dire news. The disease is killing muggles, faster and faster any day, but anyone with even a hint of magic in their blood, it's turning into some sort of inferius..." Amelia said.
"Fuck…" Harry said.
"We need to go now!" Seras said from behind him.
"Leave the bags, Ascott can grab them." Integra said.
"Harry, apparate there now. We'll meet you at the manor after." Integra said.
"Right.. be safe." Harry said, closing the compact and kissing his wife and girlfriend before disappearing with a quiet pop.
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Harry arrived at the Ministry building and made his way up to Amelia's office. He grimaced as he looked upward and saw thousands of paper planes flying around between departments. The last time it had been even close to that busy was right after the attack on London. It was telling how serious things were that he was greeted by simple nods or 'Welcome back, Harry' instead of mocking adulation.
Amelia ushered him into her office as he approached, her door had been propped open to allow the planes unfettered access, as she was the recipient of much of the correspondence. She did, however, direct him to close the door when he walked in. He sat in a chair across from her desk, looking over a growing pile of correspondence that required her attention.
"Where to begin…." Amelia said.
"How did we discover the issue?" Harry asked.
"A group of unspeakables were dispatched to a Lithuanian magical community to help with relief efforts. Someone reported that bodies had gone missing, so they investigated… then they found them." Amelia said.
"What do we know about them?" Harry asked.
"Not much. It takes around a day for them to reanimate, and when they do, everything that made them who they were is gone. They're faster and stronger than they were before, but the unspeakables think that's simply because their bodies no longer respond to fatigue or pain. The only magic that seems to be able to stop them is fire magic, even muggle guns were tested. We've been training everyone on flame whips and for the more skilled witches and wizards, fiendfyre." Amelia said.
"Good. What happened to the unspeakables in Lithuania?" Harry asked.
"Both infected. They've volunteered to serve as test subjects…" Amelia said tiredly.
"Damn." Harry said.
"We've reached out to the other countries, and we're getting similar reports everywhere. Aurors and Obliviators are working overtime to preserve the statute worldwide, but I'm not sure how long that will work." Amelia said.
"I need to speak with to the ICW." Harry said, conjuring his patronus and whispering into its ear. It nodded and trotted off.
"What for?" Amelia asked. Harry sighed.
"In a couple of months we're going to be attacked by Millennium again, that's common knowledge. Between that, and now the fucking zombie apocalypse apparently, I'm not sure the statue is worth keeping up." Harry said. Amelia gasped.
"You can't be serious…." Amelia said. Harry nodded.
"We'd waste ungodly resources and lives in what will simply be a futile effort at delaying the muggles from finding out anyway. There's simply no way to contain this. Do you know how many squibs have integrated into Muggle society over the last thousand years? I wouldn't be surprised if one out of every ten muggles out there have enough magic in their blood to be affected." Harry said. Amelia paled.
"Merlin…" Amelia said. Harry nodded.
"I'll handle things on the international front. I want you to get with the other departments and start compartmentalizing the government. I want every department in a different building, and hermetically sealed doors between rooms in all government buildings. The spells are simple enough. Have Imogene put together a pamphlet going over how to prevent infection, and mitigate risk in case that fails, including how to deal with the dead. Tell Eric I want to talk to him when I get back." Harry said, standing and walking out the door.
"Thank you for coming back, Harry." Amelia said. Harry smiled.
"I'd say I'm happy to be back, but it'd be a lie." Harry said.