Harry Potter and the Thunderstruck Muggles

Lupin appeared in the lobby minutes before their first round was due, after Harry had already fetched his snake. When entering his suite for this purpose, he had noticed the closed connection between the two suites.

For Harry, the closed doors were reason enough to suppress any remark - partly in favour of politeness, partly also because the risk of showing envy coated with bitterness felt too high. Lupin, on the other hand, suffered from no such restraint.

"How far did you come?"

"Cheyenne - Orlando, about fifteen hundred. Maybe tomorrow, if the progress is the same as before."

"Six hundred per day, that's no reason to make such a face."

Maybe it wasn't, but then, maybe Harry's expression had more to do with lucky people, having reason to close some doors.

After the second round, he felt better.

After the fifth round, he felt really good because Lupin said, "Your portkey track is bloody marvellous! These parks have roller coasters of a mile, but you, you have a coast-roller across a continent. And tomorrow or so, it will be a Terry-go-round, then you can jump yourself dizzy."

After the twelfth round, Harry felt hungry, so they opened their lunch box to diminish the pile of sandwiches, and the row of soda cans.

Harry's last sandwich had been the one too much, or maybe it was the last soda. Whatever, he felt a bit sick when arriving at point (1) in Disney World. Stepping aside to make room for Lupin, he heard Nagini say, "Master, there is a presence ... More than one."

Arriving, Lupin saw Harry drawing his wand, did the same. "Do you feel them?"

"No, but Nagini does. More than one, she says ... If these are Dementors."

Coming out at point (2), Harry's sickness increased; there was a feeling like cold sweat all over his body. He touched Lupin, but kept his voice low.

"Now I can sense it too - this coldness."

"Any direction?" Lupin kept his voice as low as Harry.

Harry asked Nagini, then shook his head. "No. It's too vague."

"Next point, then." Lupin disappeared.

Harry counted, "Twenty-and-one," then followed. The coldness was strong, creeping into his bones - any second now, the dreadful scene would resurface in his mind. He had to suppress the impulse to conjure his Patronus and send it forward.

Lupin whispered, "I can feel them. Any direction now?"

After another question to Nagini, Harry replied, "For her it's the same as for me - stronger than at the center point, that's all she can say."

"C'mon - fourth point." The air popped into the empty space where Lupin had disappeared.

Waiting the second, Harry followed. He came out staggering, sick and dizzy, so he registered Nagini's voice like from a distance.

"Master, over there!"

Where??

Then his vision cleared, and Harry saw Nagini's head pointing.

Lupin had watched, so he didn't need Harry's translation. Instead, he was already stepping forward, ducked low in this narrow path. Feeling a metallic taste in his mouth, Harry followed.

Passing over the separator wall to the next scene section, they saw it - almost instantly, just when Nagini hissed, "There, Master - two of them."

Two huge figures, cloaked, dark, invisible faces - just at the end of the section, where the track went through the next u-turn at the end of eighty feet straight, and a two-seater cart was rolling along, right now passing the middle part where the track was roughed up to give the passengers a rattling shake as part of the scene.

It was too late for what they had planned. Maybe it was even too late at all - fifteen seconds from now, the cart would pass the u-turn, right between the two figures, illuminated by a dark-violet spotlight.

Harry saw Lupin frozen in ultimate concentration, then the scene around him faded. His own mind calmed and steadied. He ignored the expectation of a scene with his parents alive, instead focused on the scene with his parents dead but in full action, under the brilliant arc -

"EXPECTO PATRONUM!"

His eyes open again, Harry watched the golden cloud erupt from his wand, almost bursting into another one, condensing, forming a Centaur, the fraction of a second after a magnificent wolf had taken shape.

Soundlessly, the thundering only in Harry's ears, the Centaur raced down the track, closing in on the wolf, reaching it when they passed the cart at either side ten feet before the u-turn. As if driven by one mind, they crashed into the cloaked figures.

This unearthly, piercing scream - doubled, worse than anything Muggle technology could install. The screams stopped abruptly, then the two figures collapsed to both sides while the echo still was tingling in Harry's ears.

With a slight bump, the cart hit the lower part of one figure and pushing it aside, then the cart jerked around through the u-turn and was gone.

---

The two Patronuses came racing back together, looked at their masters, looked at each other, and disappeared.

Lupin exhaled. "C'mon, Harry - let's move the corpses out of the way."

Awakening from his own trance, Harry jumped to the other end of the section. However, it was Lupin who used some moving spells to shift the cloaked bundles aside, out of the path while the next cart was already approaching.

They apparated outside. Lupin seized his cellular phone to talk with the headquarters in St. Louis while Harry looked around and listened around, hoping he could locate the passengers. A moment later, he saw and heard them.

"... wolf, and a horse, but with a man's body. And that scream - wow, man, that's ..."

Coming closer, Harry saw two teenagers, a boy and a girl, apparently still shaky, although beaming - they had seen quite a show for their money.

Would other passengers come to complain that this spectacular scene could no longer be seen? Not his problem. Harry returned to Lupin.

"They wanted to meet us in Six Flags," Lupin said, "but I told them we could as well meet at the headquarters - seems as if they're not completely used to the logistics of apparition. Well, not too surprising if you can't ... Let's go."

"No, wait - first another round. If they attack simultaneously at several places ..."

"Then we'll be too late." But Lupin followed, speeding along the portkey chain until they reached Ride'n'Joy without having noticed anything else.

The two FBI agents listened to Lupin's description of the events. Then agent Ellis asked, "Okay, Mr Walgrave, what does it mean?"

"Tomorrow morning, or maybe this night after Disney World has closed, you should have some people ready to take care of two dead Dementors. Your scientists might be quite interested, although I don't think they'll learn something useful."

"Not tonight - it's Saturday evening; other people believe there's a home and a family. Tomorrow morning's the earliest possibility."

Lupin explained where to find the corpses, while Harry mused about office hours for FBI agents. Apparently, these two were determined to synchronize themselves with his and Lupin's shift.

Then Agent Chipman asked, "Does your strategy still hold?"

"Today we had no time for anything else," replied Lupin. "But we'll continue - they'll come again, and maybe next time ..."

Harry had found time for thinking it over. He said, "No, probably not."

Heads were turning to him.

"We saw them, and we saw the cart coming closer, and that's why we sent our Patronuses to kill them. But what if they weren't planning the Kiss of Death?"

Talking about it, Harry's certainty grew with every word. "I mean, not at that moment. Maybe they had planned to feed on the emotions for the next hour, and this was just the place they selected. There's a cart every minute - we'd never know what's going to happen if the cart passes them."

Lupin looked thoughtful. "Yeah - they look perfectly normal in that environment, for a normal visitor, that is."

After a short discussion, they agreed to continue the patrol and to wait for a second chance. There was a common agreement that it wouldn't take too long, while almost everybody offered another opinion about why the Dementors had selected Disney World for the third time.

"It's the largest," said Agent Ellis. "They can feed more than anywhere else."

"It's more spacious than the others - just more convenient," said Harry.

"Whatever," said Lupin, "they don't think in our categories. If they come again, it might be any of the six parks."

Nobody expected another attack in the same night - even so, all four of them felt a pressure to end the discussion and to let Harry and Lupin continue their patrol.

However, the rest of this shift went by without any further event, and Harry had time to reconsider the evening, swearing to himself that he would not again eat that many sandwiches while on patrol.

* * *

Coming down to breakfast next morning, Harry found Lupin's seat empty, also that of Almyra. There was little doubt, the two were using the services of a luxury hotel for a leisurely Sunday morning breakfast in bed.

The sting of envy hurt surprisingly much, considering the fact that this was the second day already. Which meant, Harry's tolerance with his own situation wasn't growing, quite the contrary ... Well, he'd never guessed.

Next moment, his grumpiness was gone because he saw another visitor, obviously waiting for him - Marie-Christine.

She stood up. "Good morning, Terry. I thought it might be a good idea to visit you ..." Marie-Christine's eyes studied his face, anxiously waiting for his reaction.

Harry greeted her in French style, with kisses on both cheeks. "That was a wonderful idea. I'm glad to see you - you look marvellous."

"That early in the morning?" Marie-Christine smiled. "But it's nice to hear that - from you."

Harry smiled back. "I had time to calm down, quite a lot, actually. I don't blame you ... for nothing."

Marie-Christine flushed a bit. "Be careful with what you're saying."

They were interrupted by the waiter. To Harry's surprise, Marie-Christine ordered tea - probably with respect to the coloured water they called coffee here. Then he assured, "I know exactly what I'm saying - and I think you know what I mean. You're the only one aiming straight ahead in this mess ... I realized it some time ago, and this is the opportunity to tell you."

"Am I?" Marie-Christine looked a bit wondering. "Then how come I feel guilty?"

Harry grinned. "Must be the company you're in - from my perspective, you're alone with that feeling."

"Thank you - er, Terry, I appreciate that a lot. Still, I'd like to help you - the two of you."

"The two of us? Marie-Christine, your terminology isn't quite up-to-date, I'd say."

"Stop joking! It is, you know that it is, as good as I know, and Cho knows."

"Does she?" Harry sobered up. "I could do with some help - for example to find out what Cho expects from me, or what's her idea of being together."

"I can ask her. And you - what do you expect? From her, or from you being together?"

Harry took his time for answering. "Well - being together, more often than twice a year. And without fighting constantly; I have to fight all the time, I don't need that in my spare time."

Marie-Christine looked thoughtful. "Okay, Terry, I'll tell her that. By the way, how's your fight running?"

Harry glanced around. "I have some other questions to you in that context - but not here, somewhere more privately."

Marie-Christine's expression grew slightly self-conscious. "But not your suite."

"Why not?"

"Erm - it's a bit inappropriate ... Too risky."

Harry stared at her in disbelief. "What do you think of me? Do you expect me to grab you the moment the door closes behind us?"

Marie-Christine smiled. "Maybe not, maybe it's not you I'm afraid of - or maybe I just don't want to say, I spoke with him for a while, and by the way, his suite is splendid ... Whatever."

Harry laughed. "Okay, then I'll show you another place - after the breakfast, meals are precious these days."

Looking around, Marie-Christine asked, "Where's Lupin? And Almyra?"

"Probably in bed - possibly for breakfast."

Marie-Christine grinned. "See what I mean? These luxury hotels invite habits ..."

---

Sitting and chewing and listening, Harry learned that Marie-Christine had heard from Almyra about him being here, that Marie-Christine was busy with her own project, happy with her work and the conditions - and that she and Cho were seeing each other not too often - at least less frequently than some time before.

Breakfast done, Harry told Marie-Christine to follow him outside. Marching ahead, he approached a waste-basket where he stopped. "All right then, what shall it be? I can offer Riverside, Cheyenne, St. Louis, and Nashville - the rest's still beyond reach. But if you want to see Disney World, we can do it in two steps."

Marie-Christine beamed. "Very good, Terry, that's quite some progress ... Erm - yes, I'd like to see Disney World."

Harry spelled the waste-basket as a one-timer to Six Flags, feeling satisfied to see the effect gone after Marie-Christine had disappeared. After a similar manoeuver with another waste-basket, they stood in Disney World, where it was two o'clock in the afternoon, with lots of people walking through the park.

Harry pointed to the large building. "There - yesterday evening, we found two Dementors. We had to kill them, there was no time to talk with them."

Marie-Christine looked startled. "My God ... And now?"

"We'll continue - there'll be more."

"I wonder whether I should tell Cho."

Harry looked astonished. "What's the problem?"

"It'll drive her crazy. You should have seen her, after she'd heard about your patrol - hunting Dementors in narrow places, after some people were found brain-dead. She's worrying, 'arry, what did you expect?"

Hearing that, he felt incredibly pleased.

"And aside from that, she's fighting also with her own sense of guilt. Your defense tactics are taking quite some effect, yes they do."

"Defense tactics?"

"Sure. First the money ... then that bottle ... then that letter from Ginny, and now you're doing a good work for both Muggles and wizards, and by some accident, your residence is just here in - er, not here, in Santa Monica. Expertly plotted, by all means."

Harry suppressed the question he had in mind, feeling sure he knew the answer already. "Only the bottle's my own work - yes, and selecting Santa Monica as our place. The letter was Ginny's idea, and this patrol - after we were asked, the answer was obvious, wasn't it?"

"Yes, probably. But for her, the perspective's different, that's what I'm trying to explain."

"So she feels guilty ... Doesn't seem to help much."

"No, it doesn't, more the opposite." Marie-Christine sighed. "Why don't you visit her, and wait what's going to happen?"

At least, the thought was no longer turning Harry's mind to a raging fury, or his bones to jelly.

"Yes, I might try that, but first some other things must be out of the way. Marie-Christine, I want to ask you something about Voldemort ..."

Harry explained what Paul had found out, and that he would start searching Voldemort with the help of private investigators, scanning an area which was small, compared to the country, but large enough to waste time and money. He finished, "Dumbledore said your psychological profiles were the best. Well, if you have another one, I'd like to hear it."

"What a story ..." Marie-Christine looked impressed. "So he has moved out of England ... Yes, maybe because the effect of his plot was stronger here - or maybe just to have some distance between him and you ..."

Harry didn't believe that.

"... or because Wormtail's still his servant, and his face is known by some people in England - all this together, in any mix. 'arry, I'm guessing as wildly as anyone, but I'd look for a solitary house, some forest around or near enough, not too far from the next town. That's how he lived until his parents' house blew up, so that's what I'd expect now."

Harry nodded. "Okay. I'll tell them to look for such houses first."

"That's all I can tell you. Probably it isn't more than what you'd have guessed by yourself."

"Maybe so. But you know how it is - if you're too close, you can miss the obvious forever."

Marie-Christine smiled. "Sounds as if you just changed the subject, 'arry."

Then he was told that no, she couldn't apparate yet, so Harry had to make two portkeys back to Santa Monica before saying goodbye to Marie-Christine.

* * *

Harry apparated to Fort Fun, the place where his (T) plate hung. He took it off and apparated to Six Flags. A portkey to Riverside, seventeen hundred miles, would be his next milestone.

But first, he sat for a while inside the building, thinking about what Marie-Christine had said. If it hadn't been Sunday, with Cho certainly not in her office, or if he had known where she lived, he would have tried to visit her right now ... Wasn't it crazy? He didn't know her address!

Harry promised himself - having mastered the portkey, having his business with Pinkerton running, he would visit her.

With this decision taken, he felt quieter than in weeks. It should be a good omen for his portkey programming.

Unfortunately, it wasn't.

After a dozen failed attempts, Harry stopped and sat down again. It felt as though he'd come across a barrier. Yes, the distance was greater than before, only what was so special about hundred miles more? What kind of barrier could that be?

Thinking about other barriers, Harry became aware that an apparating body - assuming light speed was also the limiting speed for apparition - would need about a hundreth of a second to pass the distance. How far did the earth globe rotate in this time period? Couldn't be much ... After some calculation, Harry realized with surprise that it was no less than five yards. Could this cause the misdirection in his spell?

Thinking about the globe, it occurred to him that the globe's curvature played quite a role in a connection between two points that far apart. A direct line would be - how deep in the ground, in the middle between both points? His math wasn't enough, while just by guesswork, Harry came up with several miles. He gasped - was that his problem? Did he try to send himself through rock level?

How did an apparating body go from here to there? Harry didn't know, anyway not through the air, so much for sure. Then not through rock level either - but still, physical factors had to be taken into account.

With a totally different perception, thinking in arcs rather than straight lines, Harry tried again.

It worked!!

It worked also the other way around, and it worked from Riverside to Nashville, and to Atlanta - and minutes later, Harry's (O) plate in the Ride'n'Joy building was operative.

For another test, he gave his (T) plate a new meaning - Ile de la Tortue. Moments later, he found himself on the island, jumped back quickly before anyone would detect him.

A final test - from Riverside to Hogwarts. Yes it worked, it worked, it worked!

Harry felt like dancing, then he recognized that his legs, still more his mind, were exhausted. Portkey programming long-distance style seemed hard work. This was why, after lunch with Lupin and Almyra, he called the reception to wake him at half past two, then fell down on his bed for an afternoon nap - the first he could remember.

When he came down into the lobby, he was told that Almyra had returned to Hogwarts.

The only remarkable event in their shift was Lupin's comment, after a beaming Harry had pointed to the (O) plate and had said, "Here - from now on, we can rotate - twice per minute across a continent, if we touch the plates quickly enough."

Lupin touched it, disappeared, and waited for him in Disney World.

"Congratulations, Harry! Now that it's done, I can tell you."

"Tell me what?"

"After you signed for this project, with me as your nominal tutor, I contacted some people to learn a few facts about portkey programming. And they told me, for distances of more than thousand miles, it needs a team of two or three wizards, because a single one can't master the power. And sometimes, it takes them a day or more to manage; seems to be a problem of synchronzation, with all three of them cursing at exactly the same moment."

Lupin grinned. "At first, I thought I should warn you. Then, I remembered that you're the owner of a very undecent super wand - and I thought, let's wait and see ... And I was right - so, as I said, congratulations."

* * *

Next day, Harry prepared the ground for his contacting Pinkerton. It started with a visit to the two FBI agents, whom he asked how to proceed in this issue. They told him that Pinkerton could be found everywhere, with their headquarters in Chicago, Illinois, which belonged to the same time zone as St. Louis.

Agent Ellis made a few phone calls, then looked up at Harry. "It's settled, Mr Pritchard. You have an appointment tomorrow at two o'clock with a Mr Burns - Richard Burns. His office is in their headquarters."

"Thank you, sir. This Mr Burns - who is he?"

The FBI agent showed a dry smile. "He's pretty high in the ranks, and what's more important, he'll understand what you're talking about if you'll tell him that this is a confidential job, and a tricky one."

"What does he know about you, or the FBI?"

Agent Ellis smiled a bit more. "Enough, Mr Pritchard. It'll work as agreed - we have a deal, and you won't find a reason to complain."

Harry was ready to believe that, however he still had another question. "Say, did your scientists find out anything about the Dementors?"

"No, nothing. According to what they said, these corpses might have been rotting for weeks, except that the usual stench was missing. For them it's a mystery." The FBI agent looked as though expecting Harry to know more.

But he didn't. "Mr Dumbledore might know details, but I for my part felt never interested in learning more about the background of Dementors."

After saying goodbye, Harry took a cab to the St. Louis Linkport. He had to wait a while for the next gate to Chicago, where he took another cab to the Pinkerton headquarters.

The building was a skyscraper, with Pinkerton occupying about a dozen floors. And here, Harry found an interesting information. The full company name was Pinkerton - Burns, Security Inc.. Well, if this contact wasn't high in the ranks, then he didn't know.

Having seen the place, feeling sure that he could reach his appointment tomorrow via apparition, Harry apparated back to the Sheraton Hotel.

During their shift, he and Lupin were more on alert than usual; two days after the accident seemed a good time for some other Dementors, coming to see what was going on. But they had no unplanned visitors.

In the breaks, Harry developed a habit of high-speed meditation, by transfiguring into the sphere state for a moment. The effect was remarkable - after four hours, he still looked fresh and clean while Lupin showed heavy signs of mental exhaustion. Examining his partner more closely, Harry said, "You look bad, Seamus. You ought to do the same - a moment of sphere state's enough to recover from the stress."

"Brilliant idea - with just a minor problem." Lupin grimaced. "I can't."

This werewolf used the traditional method for his transfiguration and had never seen a reason to learn what Almyra called the digital method. Harry felt pity.

"Want to have a longer break? I can do a round or two alone."

"No, thanks. And don't get confused by my looks - remember, I'm just older than you, quite a bit, actually."

Harry smiled, feeling relieved. As long as Lupin could give such replies, he was probably right. And his teacher started using the breaks a bit more systematically, with five minutes' meditations of the conventional method. When they had finished the last round for the night, they looked equally tired.

* * *

Next day, Harry had just made his first step into a large office with wonderful antique furniture when a huge grandfather clock chimed two.

A man in his early sixties, two steel-blue eyes in a reddish, weather-beaten face, rose behind his desk. "Mr Potter - you're on time to the second; this is always a good beginning."

"Good afternoon, Mr Burns. This was the easy part, because I've been here yesterday to find this building, so I didn't depend on traffic conditions."

"You - apparated, Mr Potter?"

"Yes, sir."

"And now that you've been in my office, you could apparate into this room any time, is this correct?"

"Yes, I could do that."

"Then, Mr Potter ..." the man looked in mock desperation, "please tell me how a security company like ours could protect their secrets against people with your skill."

"Oh, that's simple." Harry explained how an interference charm protected Hogwarts against apparition and portkeys.

Mr Burns said, "I didn't know that - which tells me that my magical consultants are not quite the experts they claimed to be ..."

Harry had the feeling these experts were in for an unpleasant conversation.

"... and I owe you, Mr Potter. What can Pinkerton do for you?"

"Excuse me, sir - how much information did you already get?"

Mr Burns examined Harry for a moment, then said, "I got the best file about you that exists - please note that I'm avoiding the term complete, Mr Potter. I was told that you have a very special kind of support by the FBI, that you have an order for us ... and that you can pay." The last words came with a smile.

"Yes, sir ... Well, I want to find a man, and I need your help to find him."

"And then?"

For an instant, Harry looked blank.

"If Pinkerton is ordered to find a man, and this man exists, we'll find him, Mr Potter. What will happen then?"

Now it was Harry's turn to examine his host, with more than just eyes. This done, he said, "I'll kill him."

Mr Burns didn't blink. "Does the FBI know about your intentions?"

"Oh yes, definitely ... I had a lot of trouble to stop them from searching him by themselves, sir - and this is already part of the complications which play a role in this case ..."

Mr Burns waited for Harry to continue.

"The man's name is Voldemort. In the wizarding world, he's known as the Dark Lord, and until some time ago, he was called The Man Who Must Not be Named. The problem is, this man must not become aware that someone's searching for him, in particular not that it's me. If he'd find out, he'd kill your - your people ..."

"Field agents is the term, Mr Potter."

"... your field agents, thank you, and knowing that it's me, he'd disappear to another place, this time without leaving a trace."

"So he knows you, knows what you have in mind - and strangely enough, both of you seem to agree upon the possible outcome."

"Yes, sir. I'm the only person he can't kill - he'd kill himself when trying, and he knows what will happen if we meet again. I promised him a year ago."

"Aha ... But you can kill him, Mr Potter?"

"Yes, I can. Voldemort thinks it would kill me too, but there's no doubt about his own fate in such a case."

"Is he right?"

"Probably yes - without precautions. But I feel quite confident to prove him wrong, sir."

"That's good to hear." With a friendly face, while otherwise totally serious, the Pinkerton host asked, "Still - would you mind a payment in advance?"

Harry presented his best smile. "Not at all. Is a million okay?"

Mr Burns still didn't blink. "Let's say, a half. Mr Potter, after reading the file about you, I was wondering a bit. But I have to admit, it's accurate, although incomplete. I could already add some important facts."

"Hmmm." Harry tried to read in this face with these incredibly blue eyes. "If that's been a compliment, then - "

The man laughed, loudly and openly. "No, Mr Potter, and it's been quite a while since someone suspected me of compliments."

"I'm sorry, Mr Burns."

"There's no reason, young man; I feel pleased, really." Mr Burns looked into a folder, looked up again. "Are you interested to hear what I'd add, Mr Potter?"

"Certainly, sir - I'd be interested in the complete file, to be honest."

"I can summarize it for you. It's the FBI file of course, I'm sure you guessed that already. It lists the known facts, nothing you wouldn't know as well, or better. Then it contains a skill profile, and a psychological profile, both of them written by the agents Ellis and Chipman. You know your own skills, so what's left is the psych profile." Mr Burns smiled. "In short - they say you're determined, honest, challenging, and they strongly recommend to take each of your words seriously, and not to confuse you with a graduate student."

Even so - hearing about himself, Harry felt as pleased as the next-best graduate student.

"So I was forewarned. What's missing, though, and what I would add, besides some minor details - you take decisions fearlessly and at an astonishing speed. I'm not bad in that game myself, so you can trust my judgment."

"Well ..."

The man smiled. "You're suspecting me again, am I right? No, Mr Potter - many people are similarly fast, but there's a short moment in which you can see it working in their faces, which means they have to fight with themselves."

Harry looked surprised. "Mr Burns, I fight with myself quite a lot."

"Of course - when you have the time, but not in a confrontation, under immediate pressure. If you're ever look for a job, Mr Potter, Pinkerton would welcome you - and now we'll start to show you that we are up to our reputation."

---

Mr Burns made some phone calls. Minutes later, three men had gathered in the office, now sitting in comfortable chairs, looking expectant.

Mr Burns came around his desk. "What you see here, Mr Customer, are three Pinkerton agents who, from my judgement, would qualify equally well to perform your project. But in my experience, the chemistry between contractor and customer plays an important role, that's why I'd like you to select your choice out of ..."

He pointed. "Mr Chaykin ..."

A middle-aged man, outwardly unremarkable, looking expressionless.

"Mr Lopez ..."

The oldest of the three, furrowed face which might have been staring into a few more glasses than appropriate, somehow looking burned-out.

"... and Mr Hickox."

A young face, looking expectant, and confident.

"You may ask them questions, Mr Customer, or just go by the looks. Take your time."

Recovering from his surprise, Harry regretted for a moment not having brought Nagini with him. Then he concentrated on his own senses - his eyes, his haragei. Silently, he studied the three candidates, registering their appearance, how they were reacting to his examination, what he could feel, while imagining them how they were walking around to look for Voldemort.

Three minutes later, Harry nodded toward the oldest. "Mr Lopez, please."

The agent looked up. "Yes, sir?"

"No - I mean, I had no question ... You're my choice."

Mr Burns reacted instantly. "Thank you, gentlemen - except for Mr Lopez, of course."

While the other two left, Harry could watch how the initial disbelief in the agent's face faded, making room for expectation, and also suspicion.

Then Mr Burns turned to him. "Mr Potter, would you tell me how you took your choice, and what made your decision - if that's okay with you?"

"Sure. I used something which is called haragei ..."

Yes, Mr Burns had heard about that.

"... and Mr Lopez had two advantages over the other candidates, which I think are crucial in this task."

Harry had the full attention of both men.

"Mr Lopez wasn't waiting to prove how good he is, like Mr Hickox, and he seems to know what can happen if something goes wrong - that was missing in Mr Chaykin. Mr Lopez knows what it means to be scared, and that's the most important prerequisite."

"Very remarkable." Mr Burns grinned toward his agent. "That's your day, Francesco, and mine too." He turned to Harry. "There are some people who think my brain's softening, for keeping Francesco Lopez, but I figure I still know what I'm doing. All right, Mr Potter, you've found your partner in this contract - now tell him what it's all about."

Then Harry was escorted by Mr Lopez into another office, some floors below, much smaller, not luxurious at all - for him, being used to Goblin offices, a size that felt adequate.

"Please sit down, Mr Potter. And now, if you please, tell me why I'll have reason to be scared."

Harry told him - the headline, the outline, the details, until the clock showed him that his shift was due in some minutes. "I have to go, Mr Lopez. How shall we continue?"

"I still have a million questions, Mr Potter - I want you to tell me everything you know, everything that happened. Can we continue tomorrow? Here, or at your - "

"Here's okay; I can travel faster than you."

It earned him an envious smile. They agreed to meet in this office tomorrow at ten o'clock, which was eight o'clock in California, so they also agreed to start with a breakfast.

* * *

Returning to the Sheraton Hotel, Harry found Lupin waiting in the lobby. The teacher's face was tense. "I'd rather you wouldn't wait till the last minute, Terry."

"Sorry - I talked with the Pinkerton people since two o'clock - their time. What's wrong with you?"

"Today we'll have visitors, that's wrong."

"You think so?"

Lupin grimaced. "I'm almost sure. This is the third day after we killed two of them. They didn't come yesterday, so it'll be this night. What's more, I won't be surprised to find more than one team. Terry - if I'm right, they'll attack simultaneously at several places, and that's why we have to change our technique."

"And how?"

"If we find some of them, we kill them, make sure the track's free, and jump to the next place. We talk with the FBI people when there's time, after we've found all places empty for a full round, or two ... And forget about negotiating with the Dementors. It takes too long - "

"But then it'll never stop!"

Lupin shook his head. "I thought it through. If I'm right - if we find visitors, then I'll talk with Dumbledore, tomorrow morning Hogwarts time. Dumbledore has to visit the nests and tell them - either they stop harassing Muggles, or the two of us will raid the nest. It's the original plan, except that we send our Headmaster, rather than a Dementor."

Harry had time to think it over, and to wonder why his friend and teacher suddenly behaved like the male version of Professor Trelawney - until shortly past seven west coast time, when the events caused him to drop any parallel to divination.

They were pausing in Ride'n'Joy, outside the building. Harry had just returned from his sphere state when Nagini's hissing reached his ear. "Master, there are Dementors coming closer."

Harry shook Lupin to break his partner's meditation trance, then asked his snake, "Where? Can you locate them?"

"Not exactly - maybe in a moment."

Lupin didn't wait, had a better idea how to find them. He froze in a moment of concentration, then the familiar golden cloud erupted from his wand, condensing to a wolf.

The magnificent shape stood motionless for an instant, not even the ears moving - then it shot forward, around the corner of the building.

Lupin turned to Harry. "Jump - and if you sense something, don't lose time, let your Patronus find them. We'll meet here again."

Harry touched the (O) sign. Coming out in the Disney World building, he felt the creeping cold like a blow in his face. He only heard the first words of Nagini's remark, then he was already concentrating for his own memory.

The golden Centaur took shape and looked at him. "There are Dementors, Master."

"Kill them."

The man horse disappeared through the wooden wall. Seconds later, Harry could feel how the terrible cold broke, faded, while a muffled sound reached his ears, barely distinguishable from the other noises in this building.

Still waiting for his Patronus, Harry twitched when suddenly Lupin appeared only feet away.

Lupin just asked, "You okay?" waiting another second for a confirming nod before he jumped forward along the portkey chain to reach Atlanta.

An instant later, the Centaur returned. "Two Dementors, Master, which are dead now. There is nothing else."

"Thank you - and I think we'll see each other in a while."

The Centaur just bowed - rearing on its hind legs was impossible in this narrow space, then it disappeared.

---

Harry went to the control center and notified the people there that they should run a check whether the track was still free, and that they would find two corpses somewhere, then he apparated to Atlanta right from where he stood, not even taking the time to reach his own portkey.

The College Park building was clear.

Reaching point (3) in the Cumberland Park building, Harry met Lupin again, apparently missing another wolf Patronus by seconds.

"I'm okay, Terry. I'll tell the people - go ahead, and wait in Riverside after a full round without new Dementors."

Six Flags was empty, also Fort Fun, and Ride'n'Joy had been cleaned minutes before. Going through another round immediately, Harry found all six places clear.

Five minutes later, Lupin arrived.

"Terry, do you know where in the Disney World building the corpses are lying?"

"No, I didn't see them. I told those people to check for a clear track."

"Okay. I'd say the ones here are most urgent - they're lying outside, scaring the Muggles no end. I'll call our friends from the FBI - can you do another round without me, until I've talked with them?"

"Sure - if we don't have to locate them, it's easy going."

No, he didn't have to locate them - after passing Disney World, which still was clean, and jumping to the College Park in Atlanta, Harry came out just in front of two other Dementors.

The impact from their emanation was so strong that Harry felt dizzy, like hit on the head. With the cloaked figures only feet away, there wasn't time enough to conjure his Patronus - the closest figure made a step forward and had almost reached him when he found the presence of mind to touch the (1) plate.

Had they realized what he'd been doing? Could they use portkeys? To be on the safe side, Harry jumped further to point (3) before sending his Patronus.

Feeling certain to find more Dementors in some other parks, he just waited until the Centaur was back and had disappeared before racing forward through the portkey chain.

Nothing in the Cumberland Park, where Lupin had stopped an attack minutes before.

Nothing in Six Flags - surprise, he'd been almost sure.

But Fort Fun had visitors, thank God not as close as the previous ones. Harry conjured another Patronus, sent him out, and waited for his return after registering the change with his senses; then he notified the maintenance people.

Attacks in all places except Six Flags ... why not there? Rather than advancing in his tour, Harry jumped back via apparition, and then he knew why. For some reason, they had arrived a few minutes later.

When this Centaur had returned and disappeared, Harry felt another kind of dizziness, like after hours of hard thinking. Apparently, a Patronus in full action drained a considerable amount of energy - conjuring them up worked faster each time, but obviously it was his own power they used for carrying out his order.

Returning to Riverside, Harry found Lupin still talking into his cellular phone. He touched the teacher's arm. "Tell them there were attacks in all places, always twin teams."

Lupin's eyes widened for an instant, then he passed the information further and finished his call quickly to examine Harry. "You look a bit groggy. Get yourself some chocolate, I'll do the next round alone."

Harry had just returned with some candy bars when Lupin appeared again. "I've seen the two in College Park - must have been a real surprise, coming out there."

"Oh yes - as if you'd jumped into a deep-temperature freezer. Say, can Dementors use portkeys?"

"I'm not sure - probably yes, but if they didn't recognize them ... After all, Dementors are not particularly clever."

Dumb or not, Harry had seen - or felt - enough Dementors for the night. However, there weren't any others until the end of their shift - one team per place, definitely not a random pattern.

After they had finished the last tour in Ride'n'Joy, Lupin turned to Harry. "It's eight o'clock in the morning in Hogwarts. I'm going to talk with Dumbledore, to send him to those nests. Could be he wants me to join him - if I'm not back in time, you're on your own." Lupin passed the cellular phone over. "Here - your contact to the FBI. Be careful."

"You too, and don't expect me during the day, I'll be in another meeting with the Pinkerton people."

Back in his Sheraton Hotel suite, Harry had just ordered two club sandwiches at the room service when the cellular phone beeped. The call came from agent Chipman, telling him that the corpses would be taken care of, and asking him some questions about how he and Lupin had managed. Harry told her it had been pretty simple, in a way - after having dropped any attempt to talk with them. Then, as quickly as possible without being too impolite, he finished the phone conversation.

The information she had given him was not really important. For all he knew, this Muggle woman had simply tried to recover from a mental gasp - after witnessing how two wizards, within minutes, had defeated an attack that spanned a continent. Harry could understand her feelings, might have liked talking longer with her, but not that late in the night, not while two sandwiches were waiting for him.

Today, they tasted deserved, better than ever before. The price of a sandwich in the Sheraton Hotel was tremendous by any standard, but the prices for those served after midnight were astronomical. Remembering today's patrol, Harry relished every bite.

* * *

After a night shorter than agreeable, Harry found his next food in the cafeteria of the Pinkerton headquarters in Chicago - a place in which Francesco Lopez was ready to talk about a customer's business, after telling Harry that scanning the large room for electronical bugs was part of the daily cleaning routine.

This out of the way, the Pinkerton detective suggested to call each other by their first names.

Harry agreed gladly.

"Well then, Harry - before I'll squeeze you for every detail you know or will remember, let me summarize what we're talking about. We are looking for a wizard called Voldemort, somewhere near Boston, Massachusetts. Most likely, he lives in a house at some remote place, and if it's more of a castle, then the better. He lives there since October last year. This we have to do without him getting wind of our doing - for the better of you, and most of all for the better of ourselves, because he'd kill our agent without even asking ... That right so far?"

"Yes. Most likely, he hasn't been seen around - Voldemort doesn't like to appear in public, especially not with his new body."

Francesco Lopez twitched a bit when hearing the expression new body - something he wasn't used to.

"That might even make it simpler - someone living in a house, and never seen in town - people register something like that."

"Not necessarily - he has a servant, his name is Peter Pettigrew, also called Wormtail, and I'd think Wormtail is doing Voldemort's errands. But if that's true, it shouldn't be too difficult to remember him."

The detective grinned. "That ugly?"

"No, but his left hand is silvery. I'd expect him to wear gloves all the time, at least at the left hand."

"Silvery? An artificial hand?"

"Yes. Voldemort gave it to him, after his own hand was used for Voldemort's new body."

Francesco Lopez' appetite wasn't diminished the least by this news, except that he glanced toward his customer with palpable suspicion.

Harry assured him it was the truth, and he would tell the story of this event first thing after breakfast - for something like that, this place seemed a bit too public, or Mugglese.

---

However, their first action after the breakfast was a visit in what Francesco called the Designer Studio. A room with a large computer screen, from which Harry had to select facial parts for Voldemort and Wormtail - one after the other, from forehead, to eyes, nose, mouth, chin, each part separately, to check the final result with great surprise, and only minor corrections left.

This was even true for Voldemort's picture, although first Harry had to tell the operator how to modify the nose that came closest to what he remembered. Pinkerton's facial database, large as it was, did not cover a face like Voldemort's by prototypes.

Then, until he had to leave for his patrol, Harry was talking. First he told Francesco all his encounters with Voldemort. Then he told him what other people were thinking of the Dark Lord, and of the events. Then the detective went through each event with many more questions, closing gaps in his understanding, digging one or the other detail, which had been missing before, out of Harry's memory.

He did so with great thoroughness, and when they finished, Harry said, "Yesterday I just thought I'd taken the right choice, but today I'm sure ... Your interrogation technique is quite impressive."

The detective grinned wryly. "Most of my colleagues think it's outdated - they like playing with eletronic tools, and some of them think they could do everything in front of a computer."

"And you?"

"I think the most reliable database is an old lady, peeking through the window all day long, watching her neighbours, and every stranger passing town. You need an access code for them like for every computer database, and this code can only be found in a nice little chat ... But it takes a bit longer, that's true."

Thinking about his deal, Harry asked, "And the FBI database? Will it be of any help for you?"

"Maybe so, maybe not." Francesco smiled. "I didn't say I detest computers, so I'll use them as good as I can. But scanning a computer database is homework, something you do after you've found a name, or a fact, and before you go and ask the neighbourhood." Then he grinned mischievously. "And I'll use it for a few questions I had for a while - after wrapping them artfully in some crap. Don't get me wrong - I can play with databases, I just don't think a computer can replace a private eye's common sense."

They agreed that the detective would contact Harry as soon as he had found a temporary residence near Boston, and that Harry would pass by in regular intervals - to answer questions, to filter out candidates, or to disqualify them.

Returning to the hotel, Harry was greeted by a yawning Lupin. "Dumbledore's on tour - if we're lucky, today is our last patrol."

"And if not?"

"Then it takes him longer, and we have to do still another one tomorrow."

"No - I mean, what if Dumbledore can't convince them?"

"Oh, that - there's little question, after yesterday's dozen didn't return. I'm sure they'll resist the temptation in the future."

"Didn't Dumbledore ask for your company?"

"I offered him, but he wanted to travel alone." Seeing Harry's glance, Lupin added, "He can't do a Golden Patronus, but he's not defenseless. Okay, let's go before I fall asleep."

The patrol went exactly as expected - eventless, boring, seemingly endless before it was finally midnight west coast time.

* * *

Next morning, after breakfast, Lupin apparated to Hogwarts and came back fifteen minutes later, relief in his face. "It's done, Ha - er, Terry. We still have to inform our federal friends, and then back home ..." Lupin looked around. "Has been a nice place, but I've seen enough hotel suites for the next time."

"Er - can you visit them alone? I'd like to do another visit, before returning to Hogwarts."

Lupin grinned. "Not Pinkerton, huh? That's okay - I wish you luck, and may you find the right words."

"Yeah - thank you, I'll try my best. See you later."

"No - tomorrow, because I'll arrive in Hogwarts when it's time to sleep, and that'll be incredibly fine with me."

A human mind could play strange tricks - particularly so in times of emotional pressure. Facing a visit of the difficult kind, Harry had to find a way how to deal with his luggage, and his snake. He could leave it in his suite - except that the suite would then be occupied until after noon, meaning it had to be paid for another day. And while Harry hadn't cared about its price during the past days, he didn't like this idea.

He could just apparate to Hogwarts, drop luggage and snake in his dormitory, and apparate back to Santa Monica, couldn't he?

Not at all - touching Hogwarts ground before the visit would lose him a mysterious momentum, would destroy his chances, or his own perception, in an inexplicable way.

So Harry draped Nagini around his body, took his suitcase, and damned if he looked ridiculous.

The reception lady at Groucho Spectors was either well trained in good manners, or used to wizarding habits, or both. She smiled at Harry, admired the brilliant-green snake, and passed him further to a dragon's ante-room dragon.

Harry felt reminded of visits at Magical Tours. Groucho seemed to grow fast.

He had entered the secretary's room and was about to explain his determination to storm a fortress when another door opened and Jesamine came in - apparently notified by the woman behind the desk.

"Harry! And Nagini - she looks better than yourself, Harry." The ex-teacher for magical creatures smiled. "You wanted to see Cho, am I right?"

"Er - yes."

"What a pity! She left this morning for a two-week's trip to Narita Industries and Narita Spectors - Japan, Hongkong, San Diego, and Sussex."

Feeling numb, Harry asked, "Sussex?"

"Yes - the little company for the crystal boards, remember? It was your own suggestion."

One day late ... And now he had to wait two weeks at the least, would return to Hogwarts, would fall back into habits and patterns of the previous weeks ... Would he?

Walking to the elevator, and leaving the building, because for some reason he didn't want to apparate right from the spot where he stood, another thought crossed Harry's mind. This two-weeks' trip - had it been planned and scheduled long in advance? Or had it been arranged rather quickly, just in the recent days, after Almyra had told Cho some news?

Why didn't he walk back and ask Jesamine?

Very simple - because he was afraid to embarrass someone. Either himself - this would have been still affordable.

Or Cho.