Geneticus

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN: UNDERGROUND FLOO

Mulder had the distinct feeling that, although he and Sirius were back at the hill in plenty of time, Dumbledore still knew that they'd been down to Little Whinging. The Headmaster didn't say anything, however, and Mulder got the further impression that Dumbledore had expected Sirius to do it all along.

With less than twenty-four hours before the mass departure of wizards to points abroad, Dumbledore was eager to reassert the objectives of these missions.

"It will not be easy to convince these foreign wizards of our cause," he admitted. "They know little of how it was last time. As you tell them about it, they will be loathe to believe that such Dark power could be built up even once, and certainly not twice. You will have to tell those outside of Europe about Harry. South Americans, especially, who have no real connection to Britain, will possibly never heard of him.

"And, of course, you must warn them of Voldemort's attempts to recruit members for his side from their country. In the same breath, you must also be wary of who you speak to -- it's quite possible Voldemort has already had made conversions, especially in countries who aren't particularly fond of our Ministry of Magic or the Muggle government of Britain. Also be aware that if you speak to any government employees, there is a chance they will contact our Ministry and hear that you've been lying to them."

Dumbledore looked at all the wizards seated in a circle around him. "Most of all, be wary of any witch or wizard who approaches *you* regarding the Order. There is every chance that Voldemort will try to infiltrate us, just as we have infiltrated his Death Eaters. Stay alert for signs of the Imperius Curse, and keep one eye on your own back at all times. Each of you is essential to this cause, and any losses at this stage of the war could be disastrous."

He began giving specific instructions to individual wizards, including contacts to make and methods of communication, plus code words and phrases to use if by chance they were to meet another member of the Order. Those going in pairs were told not to leave each other's sight.

"Fox and Sirius, here's a list of initial contacts to make," he said, handing Sirius a slip of parchment. "They know how to prove their identity to you, and I've written that down, too. Memorize that sheet, then destroy it.

"Sirius, you should be able to travel without fear of capture, but be wary of any wizarding officials you should run into in any case."

Dumbledore held out another slip of paper to Mulder. "Fox, do not bring Dana and William over here until you've finished your work there. But I've written some instructions here for you to begin protecting them as soon as you like. Keep them with you wherever you go." Mulder smiled; he didn't need Dumbledore to tell him not to let Scully or William out of his sight ever again.

When the meeting broke up, Addie approached him with yet another slip of parchment in her hand.

"Remus told me you'll be looking to get a wand in the States. There are a couple good wand shops over there, but the best is in New York City: Calypso's. Here are directions to New York's wizarding section, and a spell Sirius can put on Dana if she goes with you..."

"Why would we need to put a spell on her?"

"So she can get into the wizard shops and things. Muggles can't see magically protected places, you know. You'll just need to do it once, though, it's a permanent charm, and then she'll be able to see everything."

Mulder frowned. "If Muggles can't...why didn't you...?"

With a shrug, Addie said, "I figured you'd already had the spell done."

"Oh. Well, thanks for this. I appreciate your help." He smiled at her, and felt the urge to give her a hug. She accepted it easily, then broke off and turned to her brother.

"Now you! I'll not have you running off to the colonies with your hair in such a state! No one will join our group if their recruitment officer looks like an ex-con..."

Sirius smirked. "If the shoe fits, little sister..." But he sat down obediently and allowed Addie to cut his hair down to a far more respectable length. He drew the line, however, at going as short as Mulder's. "Like it or not, I *am* an ex-con, and I certainly don't want to look as goody-goody as Muggle over there..." In the end, his hair grazed his earlobes, with a few bangs making him look years younger, probably much closer to his actual age.

"There!" Addie said. "You look presentable. Dad would be pleased."

Mulder saw Sirius give his sister a sly grin. "And Mum?"

Addie sighed dramatically. "Oh, she'd love you with a mohawk. She's far too easily pleased..." But Addie smiled fondly; Mulder found himself wondering about the man and woman who had raised such...energetic children.

Taking into account the five-hour time difference between England and Georgetown, Mulder had proposed that he and Sirius leave at nine o'clock that night, allowing them to show up just in time for dinner, if all went well. They quizzed Mundungus Fletcher again, who told them that they'd probably come out of the Underground Floo in a pub in Alexandria that was run by a wizard. The fireplace was in the back of the bar to keep the comings and goings of wizards secret from Muggle clients. With luck Mulder could use the bar's phone and call Scully, letting her know he was back and was bringing company. It would be simple enough then to hail a taxi to take them to Georgetown.

The rest of the day moved quickly as they took time to bid other members of the Order farewell and good luck on their own journeys. One by one, they Apparated away or stepped into the fireplace, and as the main room became emptier and quieter, Mulder found himself nervous. He was pleased to be going back to Scully, but he never expected to be doing it as a wizard. And what if, when Sirius tried to teach him, it turned out he was lousy at magic? Mulder had seen Neville Longbottom in action; how embarrassing would it be for him to have just gone through this whole self-reinvention only to find out he was a flop?

Better swear Sirius to secrecy and not let Scully in on the lessons, just in case.

When at last their departure time came, they were one of the last groups still in the hall. Mulder and Sirius stood at the fireplace, bags at their sides. As promised, Addie had gone back to Mulder's room in Hogsmeade and picked up his things, then set out to purchase more Muggle clothes for her brother. With his freshly styled hair, crisp new jeans, and Mulder's leather jacket, Mulder wondered if he'd even have to admit to Scully that Sirius was a fugitive from British wizard law.

"What time is it, Muggle?" Sirius asked, reaching for Mulder's wrist. "I saw we just go now, it's near enough."

Mulder took a deep breath, still not looking forward to several long Floo trips under the Atlantic. "Right, we might as well." Together, Mulder and Sirius turned to their friends and offered final goodbyes, which weren't terribly long or sappy, but heartfelt to be sure.

"Let's go then," Mulder said, staring at the open fireplace that suddenly so dark and small.

Sirius stepped onto the hearth and grabbed a handful of the powder from the flowerpot on the mantle. With a grin, he tossed the powder into the fireplace, stepped into the flames that roared up, and clearly yelled, "Underground Floo!" The flames grew large then died down, and Sirius was gone.

Quickly, Mulder followed suit. He gave a hearty wave while standing in the cool, tickling flames, then called out the same destination, and was pulled away from the hill.

* * *

The first station on the Underground Floo was bleak and damp and, according to the map, underneath the Azores.

A small table was set up with a few loaves of bread and some cool drinks, and instructions on getting to the next stop. Sirius was studying these and the map carefully.

"It appears we'll be taking the scenic route, Muggle. According to this, we'll have to go by way of Africa and South America before we get to the States." Sirius bit off a hunk of bread, gestured to the parchment. "See?" he said, his mouth full.

Indeed, they did seem to be taking the long way around. A glowing blue line traced out their path, flowing from the Azores to the coast of Africa, then to the nodule of Brazil, up the coast of South Africa, then to Bermuda and, finally, the east coast of the United States.

"Good thing we left a bit early," Mulder mused. The first Floo trip had taken nearly fifteen minutes, he guessed. Each leg looked nearly equal, and Mulder was already quite tired. Traveling by Floo powder, Mulder decided, was *not* his favorite mode of magical transportation.

"I suppose we should try and plan a rest about halfway through, take a short kip," Sirius suggested, pointing to Brazil's coast. "Probably here. We'll see how crowded it is."

Before Mulder was really ready, they were back in the fireplace, hurtling through the magical network to their next stop. When they got to Brazil they did take a brief nap, although Mulder felt it left him more tired than he'd been. The Brazilian stop was filled with interesting wizards. One was en route to Peru where he could pick up a shipment of magically enchanted llama dung. Another group of wizards were returning from Florida and towing several supposedly bottomless cauldrons; in reality, one of the wizards drunkenly confessed to Mulder, it was a literal truth: the bottoms were really magical projections, and wouldn't stand up to anything that was put into the cauldron.

Sirius had been worried that one of these upstanding citizens would recognize him and try to redeem the bounty on his head. Luckily, though, everyone seemed to keep his eyes to himself; perhaps it was common courtesy to ignore the identities of those who chose to travel away from prying eyes.

The trip from Brazil to Bermuda was the worst by far, as there seemed to be a steady stream of traffic going in the opposite direction. At the other end they learned that a smuggling circle had been busted and members who had avoided the Enforcers had hurried to get off the island. The excess of bodies in the network slowed their progress, and it took nearly a half-hour to pop out the other side.

Finally, over two hours after they'd left England, they were standing outside McCoy's Bar & Grill in Alexandria, Virginia, attempting to hail a cab.

"So," said Sirius, scratching his jaw, "she's expecting two of us?"

Mulder shrugged, waving his hand at a passing cab, cursing when it went past without slowing. "We're not going to her apartment; she wasn't home yet. I called the office, spoke to my old boss. We're meeting them all over at Hoover..." Another cab flew by, no passenger that Mulder could see.

"Wait, we're going to your old office? A government building?" Sirius seemed less than thrilled by this prospect.

"Don't worry, Sirius, we'll hurry through the security checkpoint, get down to the basement." As a third cab approached, Mulder stepped out further onto the street, determined not to let this one drive by. "Let's go, Mr. Black! Time for you to learn a little bit about *my* world for a change."

* * *

Sirius was fairly familiar with the Muggle world, at least by wizard standards. His maternal grandmother was Muggleborn, and had raised her children to not ignore some of the more useful of Muggle tricks. Sirius's mother followed suit, and so Sirius was one of the few wizards with a "pureblood" surname who appreciated Muggles and their way of life. But the transition from England to the States was enough to put him slightly on edge. He stood on the curb while Mulder used the Muggle phone to call his...Sirius smiled: his Scully. The first thing to get used to was these Americans' backward way of driving...

Mulder stepped up to his side, and Sirius looked over at the former Muggle, pleased to see a small grin on his face. Mulder took a step into the road as he spotted a yellow car -- a taxicab, Sirius remembered -- heading towards them.

"So, she's expecting two of us?" He wasn't entirely convinced that Dana Scully would appreciate a second person accompanying Mulder home.

The other man waved his hand at the taxi, which sped past without slowing. "We're not going to her apartment; she wasn't home yet. I called the office, spoke to my old boss. We're meeting them all over at Hoover..."

Sirius frowned, remembering that the full name of the FBI headquarters was the J. Edgar Hoover Building. "Wait, we're going to your old office? A government building?"

Mulder tried again to attract a cab driver's attention. "Don't worry, Sirius, we'll hurry through the security checkpoint, get down to the basement." A third car approached, and this time Mulder hurried out into the road, nearly standing in its path. Luckily, it stopped.

"Let's go, Mr. Black!" said Mulder, opening one of the back doors. "Time for you to learn a little bit about *my* world for a change."

The drive to Mulder's former workplace was slow and tedious as the car fought late-afternoon traffic. Sirius took in the scenes of the foreign city, eyes searching out something, anything that was familiar; something that announced itself as magical. Back in Britain, he could always spot a witch or wizard, even if they wore Muggle clothes. But these Americans...if there were any wizards mingling on the sidewalks, he couldn't spot them.

When the cab reached its destination, Sirius had to hold back some laughter as he took in the remarkable ugliness of the government building. "Don't you Americans know anything about aesthetics?"

Mulder chuckled as he handed the driver some slips of paper, presumably American Muggle money. "I didn't design it, that's for sure."

The car pulled away, and Sirius watched his companion stare at the edifice, drawing in several deep breaths. Sirius knew the feeling well; the first time he'd laid his canine eyes on the tall towers of Hogwarts after twelve years imprisoned, it was almost too much to bear. He'd slipped onto the grounds and quickly found a nicely hidden rock, where he transformed back into a human and cried both in relief at having reached his goal and in sadness at having missed it for so long. Hogwarts was the grand symbol of his life as a wizard. For Mulder, this Hoover building must be the symbol of his own definition of himself. To see it again after months away would be difficult.

"Sirius, you're about to enter a vortex of Muggleness," Mulder said, finally stepping towards the front doors. "If at anytime you feel the cloud of disbelief is choking you, let me know and we'll move the party to someplace less...official."

He couldn't help but grin as he followed the American. "Not a problem, Mulder. Let's go and find everyone."

END CHAPTER SEVENTEEN