The Labyrinth of Amagor

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Fleur could only smile and look down. How her friends at Beauxbatons would laugh to see her like this!

Logan nodded, and touched her arm briefly but encouragingly

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Logan went on into the room. Fleur composed herself, then followed him. Scott saw her at once, and his face lit with a smile. Fleur suddenly wanted to run to him, but contented herself with walking a little faster to meet him and to take his outstretched hands in hers. She kissed both his cheeks lightly. He didn't try to kiss her, but squeezed her hands.

"Hi, Fleur! Sleep well?"

"Mais oui, Scott. And you, mon vieux?"

"Like a log. Good thing, too; today's gonna be a bear! Let's get some coffee," Scott said, taking her elbow and walking with her to the table.

***

Less than two hours later, the mixed force of wizards and Mutants was moving into position around the grim Keep. They had arrived by portkey at a staging area about a mile away, and had separated into teams, following the plan worked out the previous day.

Fleur and Scott set up what amounted to an aid-station in a copse perhaps two hundred yards from the tree line. It was on a small rise so that Scott could get an overview of the situation. On another hill, further back in the forest, Tonks, the Weasley twins, Banshee, Polaris and Storm were already in position. Lupin, Moody and Snape took positions just inside the trees opposite the side door, along with Beast and Nightcrawler. Shacklebolt's squad consisted of himself, Arthur and Bill Weasley, Harris, Simmonds, Knowles and Parker; Havok and Wolverine were with them.

The plan was simple. The Aurors had decided that Apparating directly into the fortress would probably trigger any number of magical defences, whereas a frontal assault might only set off defences aimed at Muggle attackers. At the main gate, Shacklebolt and his team would launch an attack designed to draw most of the defenders out. Once that was well under way, Tonks and the twins would arrive from the air to clear the battlements, land in the courtyard and open the main gate from inside. At the same time, Moody, Lupin and Snape would try to get into the Keep through the side door to come on the rear of the defenders and perhaps open the inner door if the first attempt failed.

The X-Men were simply to observe, though they could relay messages through their communicators. Scott intended to monitor the attack until the Keep was penetrated. After that, the X-Men would secure the perimeter and wait. Walls meant nothing to the Hulk, Scott knew, so he could break out anywhere. At that point, the wizards were to disengage from the Death Eaters if possible, to tackle the more dangerous opponent. Should the Hulk emerge, Shacklebolt had agreed to hand over tactical command to Cyclops, though Scott felt that to be a minor point - experience was no guide when dealing with a force of nature like the Hulk!

"Havok to Cyclops--They're moving out."

"Roger that." Cyclops turned to Fleur. "It's starting."

Shacklebolt's people came out of the woods fast and noisy in a wedge formation, the senior Auror at the apex. Before they were halfway across the open ground, there was a devastating response! There were multiple deafening booms as more wizards - far more than the estimated twenty-unexpectedly Apparated onto the scene. At the same time, much larger figures--huge, clumsy, savage-looking brutes armed with clubs and stone-tipped hammers--shimmered into existence.

"Merde!" cried Fleur. "They 'ave trolls! 'Ow could they 'ave 'idden the beasts?"

"Hardly matters," grunted Cyclops. "They're holding their own down there, but for how long?"

Shacklebolt's party had made some headway on sheer momentum, leaving a trail of stunned and petrified wizards. But now their advance had ground to a halt, and they were trying to retreat under shielding spells. But numbers were against them, and they were being surrounded.

"Cyclops to Banshee," said Scott into his communicator. "Get Tonks and the boys airborne. See if they can take the pressure off Shacklebolt."

"Beast to Cyclops--Moody and Snape are trying a flanking attack. Lupin is keeping watch on the side door, just in case."

"Roger that."

The emergence of the two additional wizards out of the forest, however, only brought about the arrival of more Death Eaters and trolls. For a moment, Cyclops was relieved to see Tonks and the twins swoop overhead, then a large squadron of broom-mounted Death Eaters rose from the Keep's courtyard to intercept them.

"Wolverine to Cyclops -- This mission is turning into one big Charlie-fox. What do we do, boss?"

"Hold position for now. Be prepared to cover a retreat if necessary but do NOT engage unless attacked. I'm reassessing the position."

"Well, don't take too damned long, Cyke, or you'll reassess these guys into an early grave!"

Cyclops allowed himself a rare oath. Logan was right, but he didn't want to interfere unless... "Fleur!"

In her horrified fascination with the scene below, Fleur had stepped out from the cover of the copse. She must have been spotted from the Keep, because there was a boom, and two Death Eaters suddenly appeared in front of her.

One, a woman, raised her wand and said, "Crucio!" Fleur was seized with a flaming agony that stopped almost as soon as it began. The woman lay sprawled on the grass, and Fleur realised that Scott was now at her side.

The male Death Eater stared at his fallen partner, then at Cyclops. "What the bloody...?" he hissed, raising his wand. Fleur saw Scott lift his hand to his visor, and a beam of ruby light sprang from his eyes to strike the wizard full in the chest, hurling him back to smash into a tree and crumple unconscious to the ground.

The woman was getting to her feet. Fleur petrified her on the spot, then turned to Scott, embracing him and murmuring thanks into his chest.

Scott asked gently, "Are you OK?"

"Oui, cheri. I am well." It was not how she had dreamed it, but she was finally in his arms, and it felt wonderful.

Cyclops stroked her hair absently, his eyes scanning the battlefield. Shacklebolt's squad was surrounded by a ring of fallen foes, but more kept coming. It looked as if Simmonds was down and the others must follow soon. Snape and Moody had taken terrible toll of their attackers, but were being forced back, foot by foot. In the air, Tonks and the twins had thinned down their opponents a little, but were increasingly having to concentrate on dodging rather than striking. Enough was enough - those were friends down there, however new, and Scott Summers had already lost his greatest friend and love - he was losing no more!

"Cyclops to X-Men--Cancel all previous orders. Render assistance where necessary and engage with maximum force!"

"All right!" replied Havok

"Copy and thank you," came from Beast.

"Bring it on!" snarled Wolverine.

"In the air and coming in hot!" said Banshee.

Fleur was gazing up at him with surprised admiration in her eyes. "Scott, I thought you were only to watch...?"

He shook his head. "It's gone too far, Fleur. Are you up for this?"

"Eef you are by my side, Scott, I can do anything!"

"Good! But for now, you call me Cyclops. Let's go!" He took her hand in his, and they dashed down the hill into the fight.

***

The wizards, of course, had no communicators. Shacklebolt had drawn his squad into a circle around the stunned Simmonds, but they'd had no time to revive him. At any one time, half were shielding and the other half attacking, but sooner or later either a Troll's club or a wizard's curse would break through. Cyclops had been right, their advance intelligence had been severely lacking. There were clearly far more Death Eaters than anyone had supposed, and the Keep itself seemed to have its own defences.

What were they to do? To carry on the attack would be suicidal, but now their retreat was cut off. Shacklebolt guessed that the trolls would not cross the tree line. If they could get there, it would be guerrilla warfare with the Death Eaters. But to get there they must get past the trolls.

Then there was a blaze of white light, and a troll was flung aside like a toy! Arthur Weasley gave a yell of delight. "Kingsley, look!"

From the edge of the forest, the tall figure of Havok advanced steadily. His raised hands emitted bolts of white power that struck into the trolls and wizards with devastating force. Moments later, another tall man joined him: It was Cyclops, who sent beams of red energy from his eyes, smashing away more enemies. Between the two brothers came the small shape of Fleur Delacour, hurling curses and hexes with ferocious intensity. The crowd of enemies around Shacklebolt turned their attention to this new threat.

Bill stooped to Simmonds. "Ennervate!" he said, helping the Auror to his feet.

"Come on!" yelled Shacklebolt. "We've got to join up with those three before they're overrun!"

His people surged forward with a volley of spells, and the two forces were united.

"Glad you could join us!" Shacklebolt called to Cyclops.

"No problem. When's lunch?"

"Damn! Thought you were handling the caterers."

"Oh well. They might have something inside."

"In that case, let's get that gate down!"

***

Snape and Moody were old campaigners. Snape knew every dirty trick in the book, and Moody, it was rumoured, had written the book! They had done far more damage than any two wizards had a right to, but the numbers arrayed against them were simply too large, and now three trolls were closing in.

"Well, Moody, fancy making a dash for the trees?"

"At my age? I am quite beyond 'dashing' anywhere, Severus! We should have brought more people, I--Now what in Merlin's name is that lad doing?"

Snape smirked. "I do believe we are in for some entertainment, Moody."

Wolverine had come out of the forest and made directly for his friend's position. He approached the trolls from behind and yelled, "Hey! Big'n'ugly! Wanna pick on someone your own size?"

The three trolls turned. Each of them was bigger than Colossus and just as strong. Wolverine looked ridiculously small beside them. As one, the creatures roared and attacked him.

The trolls didn't stand a chance. The feral mutant was faster, more agile and more savage than anything they had met before. Swing as they might, neither club nor fist could connect with the whirling dervish in their midst. Wolverine's adamantium claws sliced troll-hide as if it were paper. It was messy, it was vicious, and it was over in seconds. The three trolls were literally cut to ribbons, falling in gouts of black blood to lie dead on the grass.

Wolverine loped up to Snape and Moody. "You guys gonna stand there catchin' bugs in your mouths, or do we go kick some more butt?"

"I thought you Yanks were supposed to wait for this Hulk?" barked Moody.

"Things change, Mr. Moody." Wolverine shrugged. "Cyclops saw you were outnumbered, so he committed the X-Men. You want we should butt out?"

"By no means," said Snape. "I have been avidly anticipating a joint venture with you, Logan, ever since our encounter with those larcenous individuals in New York last month."

"New York?" inquired Moody.

"A place called, I believe, 'Hell's Kitchen', outside an excellent hostelry named 'Chuck's Bar & Grill'," Snape explained.

"I know it," said Moody. "Good food and decent whiskey."

"But the clientele are sadly lacking in refinement," finished Snape, wrinkling his nose.

Wolverine grinned. "Well, we sure taught 'em some manners!"

As they talked, the three had been steadily advancing, driving a squad of Death Eaters in front of them. Unlike Colossus, Wolverine was not invulnerable to spells, so Snape and Moody were volleying curses at the opposition, allowing Logan to take advantage of the disruption and charge in with fists and feet. Moody noted with approval that the mutant restrained himself from using his claws on human foes. Trolls, however, received no such mercy, and lacked the wit to learn from their fellows' fate. Wolverine systematically slaughtered six of the creatures.

About a dozen of the Death Eaters had retreated to the guardhouse. With a sudden dash, Snape prevented them from closing the door behind them, and he and his two allies slipped inside.

By this time, Shacklebolt, Cyclops and the assault force had come close enough to see what happened. The windows of the guard house showed flashes of odd-coloured light and darting figures, while from inside came the sound of shouts, screams and a good deal of swearing. Clearly, there had been even more Death Eaters inside the building.

Havok shook his head. "There's nothing we can do for them!"

"Ah, oui," murmured Fleur sadly. " We cannot 'elp Professor Snape, Monsieur Moody or ze Wolverine. Zey may be lost."

"Huh?" Havok gave her a puzzled glance, "It's not them I'm worried about!"

As Fleur stared at him, the door of the guardhouse suddenly flew off its hinges and the figure of a wizard sailed gracefully out of it to land at her feet. The man gazed up at her with glazed eyes, murmured. "I surrender," and passed out cold.

Fleur looked up as three figures came out through the splintered doorway. Moody stretched. "Kids!" he snorted. Snape brushed ash off the shoulder of his robe. "Incompetents!" he remarked acidly. Wolverine cracked his knuckles, muttering "Amateurs."

"Get over here, you three!" roared Shacklebolt. "They're rallying, and we have to reach that outer gate!"

***

The air battle had been hair-raising, to say the least. Tonks and the Weasley twins had been badly outnumbered, but had managed to hold their own so far, downing about a third of their opponents. The boys, in particular, had used all the skills acquired in seven years of school Quidditch, and a few manoeuvres that would have earned them double detention if used in a match!

But numbers had begun to tell, and they were spending more time dodging than fighting now. Then George shouted, "Look out, Tonks!" She had to crane her neck to see three Death Eaters bearing down on her from out of the sun. For a moment, she thought they had her, then she heard a sound that went through her head like a needle.

Tonks shook her head to clear it, then saw her attackers clutching their own heads in agony as their brooms spun away, out of control. A figure clad in black, flying without a broom, was matching pace with her.

Banshee drew in close enough to call to the young Auror. "Sorry about that, darlin'! I had to hit 'em fast, and you caught the edge of my scream. Now, stay tight and watch my six."

"Watch your what?"

"Me backside, girl!"

"Oh. Well, you're a little old for me, but..." Tonks quipped as she swooped after the veteran X-Man.

The Death Eaters were flying line abreast, and Banshee and Tonks hit the left flank hard with scream and wand. The Weasley twins were nothing if not quick on the uptake, turning fast to hit the right flank with typical reckless courage. Fred knocked a Death Eater off his broom with a Stun spell, then transfigured the broom into a Bludger. This, however, was the Bludger from Hell, conceived from the mind of an experienced Beater. It was large, made of black iron, covered with wicked spikes, and moved in a blur, cutting cloverleaves through the unfortunate Death Eaters.

George was caught up in a frantic duel with a wiry, ferret-faced wizard who had clearly been a Quidditch player in his youth. It was touch and go for a while, as they circled and darted round each other. Then George managed to slice his opponent's broom neatly in two. But even as the man fell, he hurled a brief Cruciatus curse. The surge of pain was enough to send George tumbling from his broom, frantically trying to summon enough concentration to slow his fall. Before he could do so, however, he felt his fall arrested. Looking round, he saw the green-haired girl hovering a few feet away, a hand stretched out to him. A blue aura surrounded them both. "How the bloody...?"

"Magnetism," explained Polaris. "There's change in your pockets, and your belt-buckle is metal." She gave a rueful smile. "Magneto could do it with the iron in your blood, but I'm not that good! You better find a spell or something to help, before you lose your pants."

George nodded and called, "Accio broom!" Among the first things the Weasley twins had done with their new-found wealth was to indulge themselves in a pair of Firebolts, so his mount arrived post-haste and he swung himself gratefully back onto it. "Let's go!" he yelled.

When they rejoined Fred, Polaris promptly demonstrated how formidable her powers could be in the right circumstances. She took control of Fred's Bludger, substituting its random movements for precise, viciously effective attacks. The twins circled nearby, concentrating on defending their Mutant ally from Death Eater attacks.

Both wings of the Death Eater line had been shattered by the reinforced attackers, but those in the centre had fallen back. Now they came on again in an arrowhead formation, several fliers deep. The advantage in numbers was still overwhelming, and this formation would be more difficult to break.

"Storm to Polaris and Banshee--Pull back behind me. It's time to get serious with this scum!"

The two X-Men alerted their wizard partners, and all five streaked back to where Storm hovered a few yards away. Fred swallowed hard as he approached her. Storm hung in the air, poised and graceful, an expression of calm concentration on her lovely face. Jupiter, she's beautiful! he thought. Then he saw her chocolate-brown eyes turn silver. What in Merlin's name...?

They passed her to confront the enemy. The sky suddenly darkened; a cold wind blew up from nowhere. The clouds churned and, possibly for the first time in history, the funnel of a tornado touched down on Scottish soil.

The phenomenon caught the Death Eaters completely by surprise. They were used to weather magic, of course, but such summonings took time and complex enchantments. This creature, whatever she might be, had called forth a devastating force of nature with a simple act of will!

Storm sent the whirlwind forward into her enemies. The best fliers were helpless in the face of such power. The Death Eaters were scattered, many of them flung from their brooms to the ground, the rest hurled away in a dozen directions. Most of those who remained mounted elected to flee as soon as they regained control. The few who hung on after Storm had quieted the tornado were no match for the mixed force of airborne wizards and Mutants.

"I'll stay aloft and keep a lookout," Storm told the others. "You get down into that courtyard and get those doors open!"

***

Remus Lupin had been dividing his attention between the side door and the ongoing battle. When the signal came for the X-Men to join the fight, he had held Beast and Nightcrawler back. "Listen!" he said, "We'll wait here a few moments, then once your friends are fully into the fight, I'll make for the door openly. With any luck, whoever's on the other side of it will come out at me. The three of us ought to be able to get in, if there aren't too many of them."

Remus was proved right. He dashed out of the tree towards the small door, and it opened immediately for half-a-dozen wizards to charge out. Remus dropped two of them instantly, just as the Beast landed among the others. The blue-furred Mutant was even more agile than Wolverine; by the time a spell had been launched at him, he wasn't there! He was also far stronger than a normal human, decking three wizards in as many seconds. Remus petrified the last, only to see that two more stood shoulder to shoulder, blocking the entrance.

For a moment, Remus and Beast paused. Then they heard a bamf! from the trees behind them, and Nightcrawler suddenly appeared behind the two guards and knocked their heads smartly together. Both men slumped to the ground while Nightcrawler grinned at his friends and said, "Are you guys coming, or what?"

"It certainly behooves us to progress with a degree of alacrity," remarked the Beast, "but I would strongly urge caution. I have no doubt there will be more opposition inside."

"We'll find out," said Remus. "What's in there, Kurt?"

"It seems to be the head of a stairway - goes quite a way down," said Nightcrawler.

At the bottom of the stairs, a stone passage led off in the direction of the Keep.

"I think our luck just changed!" exulted Remus. "The others are still tied up outside, but if we can get into the Keep itself! Come on!"

***

By this time, the main body of attackers were within yards of the great gate. The mixed force had quickly adopted effective tactics: The mutants had no defence against spells, so tended to stay inside the crowd of wizards, who shared the tasks of shielding and attacking. The Aurors worked together, as they had been trained to, though Moody showed a marked preference for working with Snape. Arthur and Bill Weasley also stuck close together, communicating wordlessly as only members of a close family can. Fleur Delacour was also proving to be far more formidable than her rather poor showing in the Tri-Wizard tournament had promised. Bill noted with some amusement, though, that Fleur never moved more than a few feet from Cyclops.

Shacklebolt's main concern was that, though their valiant intervention had come close to turning the fight, once the element of surprise was gone, the X-Men could be of little help. He soon discovered his mistake. Whenever a large group of Death Eaters approached in tight formation, a single energy-bolt from Havok, or a blast of Cyclops' optic beams, was sufficient to disable most of them and scatter the rest. Trolls, notoriously difficult to put down with spells, also fell easy victim to the Summers brothers' powers. The other revelation was Wolverine. If any Death Eater or troll were lucky enough to get within a few feet of the attackers, his luck ended there! Wolverine would dart out from the squad and attack with all the relentless savagery and courage of his animal namesake.

After roughly an hour of hard fighting, Parker stunned the last of the enemy wizards, just as Wolverine slashed open the throat of the final troll. There was a pause while the victors took stock, checking each other for unnoticed injuries, or simply shaking hands and gripping shoulders. Then Shacklebolt said, "Right! So much for openers. Now things get dangerous."

They faced the looming obstacle of the outer gate. Both Havok and Cyclops attacked it directly with their powers, but their energy dissipated before it touched the ancient wood. Spells suffered the same fate.

Bill Weasley stared hard at the portal, then called to Shacklebolt. "The gate's protected by a curse, no doubt a very ancient one. I think I can break it, but I need to be on the other side. Hold on!"

He stepped forward, preparing to Apparate beyond the gate. His father leapt to his side, shouting "Protego!" as a fireball shot down from a turret beside the gate. The two Weasleys retreated back to the main group. Now the attackers saw that the small turrets that projected from the walls were manned.

"Damn!" Shacklebolt shook his head. "They're snug in there. We can keep their heads down, but we can't winkle 'em out."

Scott scowled. "Those turrets must have access to the gate controls. If we could get into one of them...."

"That's old stone, pitted and weathered," remarked Bill. "I've climbed walls like that in Egypt. I could get up one of them, if you keep me covered."

"I could get up the other, no sweat," said Wolverine. "Whaddya say, Cyke? Do we give it a shot?"

"Do we have a choice?" asked Cyclops. "Mr. Shacklebolt?"

The senior Auror stared ruefully at the towers. "I must be getting old. Ten years ago, I'd have thought of that myself. Right! Go ahead, you two. We'll cover you."

Wolverine eyed Bill. "I go left; you go right. Last one to the top buys the beer."

"You're on!" agreed Bill.

Under cover of a barrage of spells and mutant energies, the two men darted forward. Wolverine thrust his unbreakable claws into the stone to haul himself up, thinking, Kurt would scamper up here like a monkey. How come there's never a Spider-Man around when you need one?

Bill, with a Sticking charm on his hands and feet, was swarming up the stone with remarkable speed. The kid's good, Logan allowed. I figured he would be.

Somebody else would have to buy the beer, it seemed, as both men arrived at the top simultaneously. The wizards in the turrets both leaned over at the same time. One bent straight into Wolverine's rising fist and slumped back without a sound. Bill was even more direct, grasping his opponent by the throat and hauling him out of the turret to plummet to the ground below.

The turrets let onto the gallery that overlooked the outer ward between the gate and the inner curtain wall. There were half a dozen wizards there, waiting in case the attackers breached the gate. Bill and Wolverine got to work, and a few minutes later the defenders were asleep on the job!

The two men looked each other over. "This is nothing for you, is it?" said Bill. "I mean, Ron told me about you, but I had no idea really."

Wolverine shrugged. "I been doin' this a long time, kid, and I got advantages. I like the way you operate, though, and your Pop. I can see where Hunter gets it from."

Bill took the opportunity to ask, "What did you do to Ron? He went over to America barely able to walk without falling over his own feet, and came back hard as nails and moving like a cat!"

"He's a good student; you just have to motivate him!" Wolverine smiled reminiscently. Ron had been one of his favourite students--once he'd had his butt kicked a couple dozen times.

As they talked, they searched for a way down. At last they discovered in the thickness of the walls a narrow stairway that led to a door beside the gate. Behind the door, a room contained an ancient windlass clearly intended to operate the gate.

They went out to examine the gate. The inside of it was carved with what Wolverine had to assume were spells of some kind. He couldn't read the writing, which was some kind of loopy, cursive script.

Bill rubbed his chin with his hand. "Merlin! This is old! Wolverine, you'd better stand back and let me concentrate." Bill placed himself squarely in front of the gate, and seemed to go into some kind of trance. Wolverine left him to it, keeping a lookout for enemies. There seemed to be a good deal of racket coming from the other side of the inner door. Maybe the airborne crew had arrived?

"Wolverine to Banshee--Sitrep?"

"Banshee here. We're securing the courtyard. Stand by."

"Copy that."

Bill had begun to chant. Wolverine didn't recognise the language, which had a lilting, Irishy sound but seemed to have too many vowels. He felt the hair on the back of his neck prickle as his most basic instincts responded to the chanting with...fear!

The writing on the gate began to glow--first green, then yellow, then red. Bill's voice rose, taking on a tone of arrogant command. Particles of red light began to detach themselves from the writing and float toward the young wizard, vanishing before they reached him. The flow increased, until whole words streamed off the gate until the writing was gone. Bill swayed for a moment, then suddenly crumpled to the ground.

Wolverine darted forward. He carried Bill into the windlass room and set him down. Bill's pulse and breathing were regular; he'd live. Wolverine considered winding up the gate, but decided it would take too long.

"Wolverine to Cyclops--The curse is gone, you should be able to demolish the gate now."

"Copy."

It took Cyclops and Havok only seconds to reduce the fore gate to splinters. The attacking force poured through. Wolverine called Fleur to tend Bill, who was beginning to stir, then informed Cyclops and Shacklebolt that Banshee and the others were busy in the courtyard.

Fleur and a somewhat shaky Bill joined them. "You OK?" Wolverine asked Bill.

"I've been better," Bill admitted. "Some of those counter spells have to be cast from a trance state, and it takes it out of you a bit."

" 'E ees well," Fleur said flatly. "I 'ave given to 'im a potion for the strength. 'E weel be able to continue." She moved next to Cyclops, who casually dropped an arm around her shoulders. Fleur nestled in close, flashing Bill a small, triumphant smile.

"Right!" said Shacklebolt. "We've had our break. Let's press on to the inner gate."

He turned to appraise it, just as it gave an alarming creak. As they watched, fat blue sparks began to crawl over its black iron hinges and other metal fittings.

Havok grinned and pointed. "Not a problem! Looks like that girl of mine is on the job!"

Banshee, Polaris, Tonks and the twins swooped like hawks onto the inner ward. Fred and George swept the battlements of the curtain wall, sending the few watchers there plunging into the courtyard. Banshee and Tonks tackled the larger contingent in the courtyard itself. Stunned and demoralised by Banshee's ultrasonic scream, they were easy prey for the young Auror, especially when the twins joined her. It took only moments to secure the area.

Polaris had waited out the short but fierce skirmish by examining the next gate. Now she settled to the ground in front of it, and called Tonks over. "There's writing on the gate. Is it magically protected somehow?"

Tonks cast a fireball that faded out before touching the gate. "The short answer's yes."

Polaris frowned. "The writing's all on the wood, not the metal. Why?"

Tonks shoved her hair back with her hands. "You're asking the wrong person; I almost failed History of Magic. Let's see...if Salazar Slytherin built this place, it must be nigh on a thousand years old. Back then, wizards were still having problems with iron. They could charm and transfigure gold, lead, bronze and all that, but iron and steel were very resistant. Godric Gryffindor's greatest achievement, they say, was to make his sword out of steel. Things are different now, though in the middle part of this century, older wizards had a hard time with plastics." Tonks chuckled, remembering the frustration of an elderly friend of her parents who had tried to animate a doll for her when she was little--a doll bought by her father in a Muggle shop.

She pulled her thoughts back to the present. "Not that it matters. If you attack the gate, you attack both wood and metal, so the curse will still hold."

Polaris tapped at her chin with a finger. "Tonks, what is your first name, anyway?"

"Nymphadora," muttered the young witch.

"Can I call you that?"

"Better if you don't. When blokes hear that name, they imagine me romping through the woods wearing nothing but daisies."

"A-hah!" Polaris snorted. "Tonks, my power won't affect wood, but the hinges are metal. D'you see where I'm going with this?"

Tonks nodded, suddenly eager. "Do you reckon you can...?"

"It's worth a shot. Stand clear!"

Polaris pretended to spit on her hands, then approached the gate, raising them in front of her. The blue aura George had noticed before surrounded her again, and her long green hair began to move as if it were alive. As the others watched, blue sparks began to appear on the iron hinges and bindings of the gate. The gate creaked, and seemed to shift slightly. Polaris tensed, frowning in concentration. The blue glow intensified and spread. Tonks felt an odd sensation, as if ants were crawling over her skin.

Then there was a groan of protesting stone, and dust began to sift down from where the great hinges were set into it. Tonks stared at Polaris in wonder. She and Bill had had some talk with Lorna and Alex the evening before, and apart from Lorna's green hair, they had seemed a perfectly ordinary, pleasant young Muggle couple. They'd been part overawed, part unnerved by the evidences of everyday magic that Tonks barely noticed any more. But now, the young woman who'd been nervous about Hogwarts' moving portraits was exerting quite naturally a level of power many wizards could only dream of.

The curse on the door remained quiescent; no direct threat was being levelled at the substance it had been laid on. But, slowly at first, then more quickly, the ancient stone around the hinge-posts crumbled as the iron answered the irresistible call of Polaris' magnetic powers. With a final, cracking, crumbling sound, the gate came away from the wall and hung for a moment in mid-air. Polaris lowered it to the ground, then relaxed with a sigh.

Seconds later, the attacking party surged through, and she was in Havok's arms.

"That's my girl!" he said proudly, kissing her soundly.

"Excuse me, mister," she said, a little breathlessly, "but I'm nobody's girl! What am I, twelve?"

"Oh...er...I mean...you know!"

She gave a peal of laughter. "I know what you mean, but you just look so cute standing there with your foot in your mouth. Now I'll have another of those kisses by way of apology."

Bill had dashed up to Nymphadora, but had said nothing. Speech at that moment was unnecessary, and indeed impossible!

Cyclops and Shacklebolt were now considering the silent, looming Keep. "Bloody Hell, another gate," Shacklebolt spat out in disgust.

Cyclops was looking at the fortifications around and above the third barrier. The battlements were unmanned, the windows closed. Salazar's Keep brooded silently above them. "I don't like it," breathed Scott. "It's too quiet."

***

Remus, Beast and Nightcrawler were making their way down a corridor, hopefully in the general direction of the main hall. So far, they had encountered no resistance, but they proceeded cautiously. The corridor ended in a narrow stairway that opened out into what Beast assumed was the minstrel's gallery above the Great Hall. The hall itself was crowded with robed wizards, perhaps fifty or sixty of them, all looking at a slender, blonde woman who stood on a dais before a great chair.

"Narcissa Malfoy!" hissed Remus.

"You know her?" queried the Beast.

"Oh, yes," Remus grimaced sourly. "We were at Hogwarts together. Narcissa had a reputation for being...precocious...in certain ways. I think she and her cousin Bellatrix were in a race to see who could lose their virginity first. It was over by the time they were both fourteen, and I never found out who won!

"After that, Bellatrix went into torturing small animals: flies, mice, First Years and so on. Narcissa made plotting her hobby; she loved cooking up all kinds of vicious mischief. Her parents married her off to Lucius Malfoy as soon as she finished school. He's in Azkaban now, but the Aurors had nothing on Narcissa. I wish I could say I was surprised to see her here."

"OK, later you're going to have to repeat all of that," said Beast, "but for the moment, I recommend a little judicious eavesdropping."

Narcissa had begun to speak in strident tones. "Brothers and sisters! Even now, the Order of the Phoenix, and their monstrous allies are at our gates. They threaten this, the very Keep of Salazar Slytherin, spiritual father of our Brotherhood.

"Our lesser brethren, fools and cowards all, have fled or fallen before them. Now, you, the Dark Lord's elite, are our last defence! Soon, those traitors to our pure Wizarding blood, along with their so-called Mutants-Muggles twisted with dark enchantments-will approach the door to this Keep. And that door will open to them!

"They will come through, here, to this very Hall, and you will be waiting. Here, under the shadow of the seat of Salazar himself, you will destroy them! Show them no mercy, for they will show you none.

"I must go now, to return to our Dark Lord's side. Be assured, his thoughts are with you, and his hand is over you. Fight well, and bravely, and great rewards will be yours."

Narcissa turned regally and left the hall. Once out of sight of the others, she shook with cruel, silent laughter. The brutish scum in the hall were doomed! She had watched the fight outside the Keep, seen the skill of the Aurors and the terrifying powers of their un-Muggle allies. Even if the Death Eaters won, by force of numbers perhaps, many would be killed. Fewer adherents loyal to Voldemort would leave him more open to manipulation by the Knights of Walpurgis. Narcissa even dared to hope that the Order's forces might seize or kill the mad Half-blood himself.

Just now, Narcissa had other plans. Her scrying glass could not show her all that went on in the Labyrinth, but she knew Potter still lived. He could emerge at any time, and the only exit was into this very Keep. Narcissa would be waiting for him, all concern, ready to whisk him away to the 'safety' of Malfoy Manor. Once there, it would be very strange if she could not make the handsome youth hers.

What Narcissa did not know was that three extra pairs of eyes had observed her exit, and that her ambush plan was no longer a secret. Remus turned to the two X-Men. "We have to warn the others!" he whispered.

Beast nodded and held up a hand, speaking quietly into his communicator. "Beast to Cyclops--Where are you?"

"Beast?" Scott's voice responded. "We're in the courtyard. The area's secure for now. What's your situation?"

"Lupin, Nightcrawler and I have penetrated the inner Keep. We're overlooking the Great Hall. I count maybe sixty hostiles waiting in ambush. Do not, repeat do not, attempt to enter by the Keep's main door."

"Copy that. Can you find us another way in?"

"We can try. We'll maintain radio silence until we do. Beast out."

Remus motioned his friends out into the corridor. "This place probably has a dozen hidden entrances and exits. If I remember my lessons, Slytherin wasn't only a sneaky bastard, but a paranoid one as well!"

Their search was, of necessity, a random one, since they didn't really know what they were looking for. They were forced to tap on walls and to look for suspicious panels.

"Oh, for a tricorder!" moaned Beast.

"If you had one, you wouldn't need one," pointed out Nightcrawler. "We could just beam straight in!"

"And we'd have four blokes in red shirts to get killed for us," added Remus. Both Mutants stared at him.

"How?" wondered Beast.

Remus grinned. "Nanna-my grandmother--was a Muggle. She had a telly. I used to watch Star Trek when I was a kid."

"OK!" Beast grinned. "Favorite episode?"

"I always liked 'The Trouble With Tribbles'; it made me howl!"

"Good choice. 'City on the Edge of Forever' was better, though."

"Stow it, you two!" urged Nightcrawler. "You can geek it up later. Right now, we've got a job to do."

It was at that moment that a panel slid open in the corridor wall, and three Death Eaters stepped out of it. The three wizards immediately cast Stun spells. Two of them struck Beast, who collapsed without a sound. Nightcrawler leapt to one side, ran along the wall and kicked one man in the head but was caught by a Cruciatus curse. Before the third Death Eater could strike at Remus, the wizard Disapparated with a bang, only to reappear behind his enemies and petrify them both. He applied binding charms to the fallen as an extra precaution.

Remus bent over Nightcrawler. "Kurt, Are you all right?"

The X-Man was already getting to his feet, shaking his head and swearing in German. He shuddered, finally forcing out, "Mein Gott! What was that?"

"It's called a Cruciatus curse. One of the Unforgivables, as we call them. These Death Eaters are very fond of it. That bastard could have kept you in pain for hours, if he felt like it."

"Then I owe you my thanks, mein freund. I shall not forget."

"No need to make a fuss, Kurt, I--"

Remus' words broke off when he heard Beast stir and groan. "What? He took two Stun spells. He should be out for hours."

Nightcrawler explained, as the two of them went over to their friend. "Hank's a feral mutant, like Wolverine and me. We heal fast. Hank's faster-healing than I am, and Logan's even faster. Those shots would have barely slowed him down."

By this time, Beast was sitting up and looking around. "Ugh! An object lesson in the value of paying attention, I think! What happened?"

"We were jumped," Nightcrawler informed him. "Fortunately, or unfortunately, you got in the way of most of the shots. I keep saying you could do to lose some weight."

"The perils of a sedentary lifestyle; someday I must acquire one. I take it these are our would-be captors?"

"Aber ja. Remus here stole one of my moves to take them out!"

"Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery," Remus felt obliged to point out.

"Quite so," added Beast, rising to his feet. "If the laws about plagiarism applied to combat tactics, Julius Caesar and Miyamoto Musashi would be the richest dead men on the planet!"

"The good news," Remus said, "is that the Death Eaters left this secret panel open. Should we explore further?"

"One way's as good as another," replied Beast. "Lead on, MacDuff!"

The passage had clearly been built within the thickness of the walls. The men followed it in the direction of the main entrance, as indicated by the compasses both X-Men carried. A fairly short walk brought them to a side passage that held a doorway.

"Any bets this door is hidden from the other side?" asked Nightcrawler. "Who wants to be first?"

"I think we'll let you," said Remus, "since you're the gambler."

"Where's your spirit of adventure?" Nightcrawler pushed on the door. "Here goes nothing."

***

The troops are getting restless, thought Shacklebolt. The near presence of the looming, silent, Keep was not conducive to happy thoughts at the best of times. Cyclops' news that an ambush awaited inside had not helped matters, though it had doubtless saved lives. We must find a way to communicate like that, Shacklebolt decided. Magic mirrors are a bit clumsy. I'll have to have a word with the Research Wizards.

Shacklebolt looked around. People were standing and talking in a desultory fashion. The mutant couple, Alex and Lorna-Havok and Polaris, he reminded himself-stood close together, as did Tonks and young Weasley, but even snogging had lost its appeal under the tension of the moment.

Fleur reached out and took Scott's hand. "Scott? I 'ave something to say to you. Last night, our evening together, was for me ze most special. Today, also, though I 'ave been afraid as never before, it 'as been wonderful to be beside you. What may 'appen soon, I cannot tell, but it 'as been good to be with you, and I 'ope we will 'ave soon more time to come to know each other, yes?"

Scott looked down at her and realised that long-dormant feelings were awakening in him. He touched her cheek, saying, "Fleur, you've been amazing! I mean I do this kind of thing for a living, so to speak, but you? You're not an Auror; you're just a volunteer. You had no way of knowing what was gonna happen, yet you came along anyway. Nobody would have blamed you for staying back in the woods when things looked bad, but you stuck with us--with me--fighting like a tiger.

"You're brave and bright and...and what we call drop-dead gorgeous. So, yes, when this is over, I do want to spend more time with you. That I promise!"

She gave him a radiant smile, and was about to speak again, when a shout from Parker distracted everyone. "Oi! There's a door opening here."

Scott grabbed Fleur's hand and the two of them and Shacklebolt sprinted over at once. A few yards away from the main entrance, a concealed door swung open and a familiar blue-skinned face grinned at them.

"Welcome to Salazar's Keep. My name's Kurt, and I'll be your tour guide for today!"