In Pursuit

Chapter 2: "Take Me to Your Writer"

It wasn't a long wait for the Ministry to show, and the miserable creature was sobbing so uncontrollably that she was barely able to take three steps away by herself. How utterly pathetic. However, Airbourne had refrained from saying anything about that strange man, Sirius Black. What he had to do with a Mary Sue and why he wanted to protect her, Karin didn't know, but she was going to find out without the help of some meddling supervisor.

Now in the Ministry, very few of the workers had access to the records, but this was another privilege of being an Unspeakable. Every single person in England, or who had ever crossed it's borders physically or through magic, had their own record where all their important details were recorded and constantly updated automatically. Some of them were hours in length. Karin pulled open the filing cabinet drawer waringly, and cringed at the noise that suddenly burst from it.

"I hate records," she scowled to herself while browsing through the 'B' section. "How old fashioned. We really should upgrade to CDs."

Three anti-migraine charms later, Karin finally found the record labeled 'Sirius Black' and shut the drawer. Ears ringing, she placed the record on the phonograph and placed the pin. A voice sounded from the disc, identical to Black's.

"Sirius Black, aged 20, went on a date with Madison 'Maddy' Hatter on May 4th, 1980 to a club in London called 'The Raving Loon"... it went on, describing his looks and even how Karin had questioned him.

But then it stopped.

It didn't make any sense at all! It wasn't 1980, that was most definetly not when it had happened! It was 2001.. but the records NEVER made mistakes... And no date of birth? No death? He couldn't have just appeared out of nowhere. She put everything away, feeling even more confused then she had before.

***

"You rang?" Karin asked sarcastically as she entered the lab, pulled on a white lab coat, and tightened her bun. Thomas Quicksilver gave her a stern look, as he brushed some of his graying hair away from his eyes.

"This is serious, Airbourne," he sighed as she rolled her eyes at him. "Come now, you're not a child. This is Monsieur Christiophe Savant, one of our connections from France. He's been studying... it." The man, who did seem to have a French look about him, sort of dark and handsome with black thick eyebrows. Karin laughed to herself, wondering how anyone would work voluntarily on Mary Sues.

"Ze Mary Sue is razzer calm conzidering ze tings zat 'ave 'appened," he said with an accent so strong that it took a while for the meaning to sink in.

"I assumed you'd want to question her, Airbourne." Quicksilver suggested.

"I do," she answered, and the chief motioned for her to follow him. Not even a few yards away, he stopped in front of a steel door. "Due to special precautions, it won't be able to do anything magical in there."

"How's that?" she asked, unsure.

"Aconite," he continued, and then began elaborating when he saw the blank look on her face. "It's a type of rock that limits the magical ability of particularly strong magical beings...."

"Why haven't I heard of it? It must be useful..."

"Nah," Quicksilver brushed away the idea with the wave of his hand. " We like keeping it quiet. There was problem a few years back, and some Dark Wizards got a hold of summa the stuff. There was a whole fight and confusion.. and well, the Ministry didn't wipe the memories properly. After that those muggles began going on about some 'superman' and 'kryptonite'. Loads of rubbish."

"Oh... yes.." Karin agreed, those words ringing a bell. "Well, Thomas. I'll go in now. Lock the door behind me." He nodded and she swooped in for the kill. Already she had the questions forming in her mind.

Karin heard the door click behind her, and turned to face that was sitting in the far corner of the room. Her face no longer held the mask of cuteness and adorability. Her eyes were bloodshot and had dark circles under them. She called out in a raspy voice,

"What do you want?"

"You're going to answer a few of my questions," Karin answered solemnly. "How many have you gotten?"

""What?"

"How many men? How many people have you played your little Mary Sue tricks on?"

"None, I-"

"Don't give me any of that. Who's Sirius Black. What happened to him?"

The Mary Sue gave a dry laugh, that is, if you could call it that. "There is no Sirius Black. He was just a gift, but he's gone now..."

"Where is he?" Karin demanded, but got no answer. "Where?!"

"You can't keep me here," Hatter said after a moment, her voice quavering. "I'll get out..."

"And how will you do that exactly?" Karin asked sarcastically. The creature answered with a faraway grin.

"The Writer always saves me. Always..."

And who's the Writer?" Karin began prompting. The Mary Sue was weak now, emotionally vulnerable.

"You'll never find her. No one can."

"Then where's Amanda Mancini?" As soon as it came out, Karin saw Hatter's grin fade and eyes widen.

"I don't know what you're talking about," she answered, obviously lying.

"I want answers, Mary Sue, whether I'll go to your boss myself." Karin threatened. "Take me to your 'Writer'."

"What?!" Hatter burst out suddenly. "You think that the Writer can just answer everything? She can't you know! Especially not the ones by Amanda Mancini!"

"She?... Wait, why the hell not?!"

"Because my Writer isn't hers! She's MINE!" Hatter retorted, slamming her face down in her crossed arms that laid across her knees.

"Are you going to answer my questions, or am I going to have to kill you?" finalized Karin, who had enough. Slowly raising her head and staring menacingly, the Mary Sue answered in a toneless voice.

"Amanda Mancini will be coming back soon. I heard it somewhere, but I dare say we'll know when she does. I don't know anything else."

"But why?!" Karin hollered furiously. "You're a Mary Sue like she is! Why don't you know?!"

"Because," Hatter finished, " we don't have the same Writer."

"What the hell... How can you not have the same Writer?" The Mary Sue's grin twisted from faraway to just plain wicked.

"We do not have the same Writer," she repeated.

"What the hell is a 'Writer'?!"

"The Writer is our creator... she made me."

"You mean God," Karin corrected.

"Not God. God made the Writer. The Writer made me, but there are many different Writers," she said sharply.

"So.. you believe in multiple Gods? Polytheism?"

"No, not God, the Writer."

"Right," Karin said, feeling deflated and utterly unsatisfied. Sighing, she straightened her shirt under her coat."You'll be staying here until we have further use for you, Hatter. You better think of a few better answers then that next time, or you'll find yourself in a much rougher situation." The Mary Sue looked at her wide eyed as Karin used her wand to unlock the door and left.

Making sure the steel door was secured behind her, Karin Airbourne made her way back to Quicksilver and Savant who were anxiously waiting for her.

"Worthless, absolutely worthless," she growled. "Something will happen soon, but it looks like we'll have to wait..." Quicksilver sighed.

"We couldn't get a peep out of her."

"Well I'm going to keep patrolling until something turns up."

"Zen take zis vith you," Savant said, handing her what looked like to be a roll of orangish ribbon.

"Um... alright?" Karin answered, casting an unsure glance at Quicksilver.

"It's a new invention, and it's passed all the tests. It should help you in finding Mary Sues."

"What is it?"

"It eez Mary Sue Litmus Paper," Savant explained. "If zee tip turns pink it eez a Mary Sue. However, if zee tip iz only a leetle pink, then perhaps zee person is just a leetle more lucky pretty zen ozzers. If zee tip is turning red, zen ve are dealing vith a very strong Mary Sue, a newbie."

"A what?" Airbourne asked, starting to feel that these names were becoming even more perpostrous.

"Didn't you hear him?" Quicksilver asked starting to become frustrated. "A newbie. They're just stronger then regular Mary Sues. We don't know why, we don't know how, they just are. And this litmus paper will help identify them. Don't ask questions, Airbourne!"

"Fine," Karin sighed as she hung up her lab coat, and put the roll into her pocket. Nodding goodbye to her co-workers, she headed out of the building through winding halls, her head full of thoughts. That Maddy Hatter.... she had said that Amanda Mancini would be coming back soon, but from where? Where would a Mary Sue have to go, and why?A chill down her back made Karin feel she didn't want to know.