Make A Wish By: Rorschach's Blot 27 *Chapter 27*: Crushed Toad

"Yes sir," Shacklebolt nodded. "What happens if we get captured by the government of the country that we're entering?"

"Let me worry about the politics," Fudge snapped. "Do your job or I'll replace you."

"Yes . . . sir," Shacklebolt kept his face impa.s.sive. "May I ask what the mission is . . . sir?"

"We will be hunting a notorious criminal by the name of Mr. Black," Umbridge entered the conversation. "He's wanted for the murder of several prominent members of British society including Lucius Malfoy and we are going to bring him to justice."

"Mr. Black?" Kingsley was stunned. "You expect us to go against one of the most dangerous men in the wizarding world with only five Aurors?"

"You have your orders," Fudge turned to leave.

"Take hold of this portkey or end your career at the Ministry," Umbridge commanded.

"They say he doesn't kill Law Enforcement," Kingsley tried to rea.s.sure his team. "We should have a good chance of getting through this in one piece."

Trusting their leader's words, the Auror team took a deep breath and put their hand on the portkey.

IIIIIIIIII

Several Egyptian officials accompanied Harry and his group as they approached the supposed location of the hidden tomb.

"When did you discover that tomb over there?" Harry gestured towards the cliff face, "or that one?"

"Which tombs Mr. Black," Asim franticly searched for some sign.

"This one," Harry patted a seemingly bare wall. "I must admit that they used a rather . . . complex ward on this one."

"We haven't discovered it," Asim admitted. "I'll have some of the men mark it for further exploration."

"Great," Harry nodded. "How about this one?"

Asim sighed, that report he was going to have to write for his bosses was going to take forever.

Five hours, and forty-three tombs later. Harry and his group finally arrived at the location.

"Here we are Mr. Black," Asim was confident that Mr. Black would find it in no time. "Do you see it?"

"Nope," Harry shook his head. "There doesn't appear to be any tomb here, could I see your notes?"

"Here's a copy of the original papyrus scroll along with the translation," Asim's heart dropped as he handed it over. The day was not a loss, especially after all the discoveries that Mr. Black had made. But after all that effort, not finding the original objective was . . . disappointing.

"Here's your problem," Harry put his finger on the parchment. "Your translator made a mistake here, this isn't the location of the tomb."

"It's not?" Asim perked up.

"No," Harry shook his head. "The tomb is with all the other wizard tombs, in the Valley of Magicians."

"The Valley of Magicians?" Asim repeated dumbly.

"Yup," Harry nodded. "So, let's go there."

"I'm not sure where the Valley of Magicians is," Asim admitted.

"Oh," Harry glanced down at the parchment and then looked around. "Follow me, every thing's changed in the last few thousand years but I think I can find it."

Harry led the group through several small draws and under a rock arch, "the tomb you're looking for should be the third one on the left." Harry pointed.

"What is this place?" Asim looked around in wonder at the seemingly new tombs.

"The Valley of the Magicians," Harry replied with a yawn. "Should be about three hundred tombs here, I'll draw up a map if you want."

"That would be very helpful," Asim replied in shock. "What is this inscription? It does not appear to be regular hieroglyphs."

"Let me look," Harry squinted and after a moment removed his gla.s.ses. "Oh, I'm not surprised that you can't read that."

"Why not?"

"Because there haven't been many people in history that could read that," Harry replaced his gla.s.ses. "I'll translate it if you like, it's not that important though just talks about how great the guy in the ground is."

"I see," Asim's eyes couldn't have gotten wider. "How did you . . ."

The sound of falling rocks in the distance and a large rising cloud of dust interrupted whatever the man was going to say next.

"Looks like a rockslide," Harry squinted at the dust. "You'd better send some men to check it out, someone might be hurt and it would be a crime not to check."

"Yes, of course, I'll head the party myself." Asim volunteered, eager to getaway.

IIIIIIIIII

Five minutes earlier and three miles away:

"Have you found anything yet?" Umbridge demanded, "I can't keep up these cooling charms forever."

"I think we're on his trail," Shacklebolt fought the urge to frown. "It shouldn't be too far ahead."

"Well hurry up," the toad-like woman demanded. "I don't want to be in this sun any longer than I have to."

"Why don't I go talk with the lead scout?" Shacklebolt suggested, "then I'll be able to give you a better report."

The toad-like woman grunted her a.s.sent and continued to glare at the Aurors a.s.signed to her protection detail.

Kingsley's long legs took him ahead of the small procession and were soon beside his point man, or in this case point girl.

"Why can't I use cooling charms?" Tonks asked in a fair impression of Umbridge's voice, "and why wasn't I smart enough to resign when I had the chance."

"You can't use cooling charms because we need to conserve our magical strength in case there's a fight," Shacklebolt answered with a forced grin. "And you didn't resign because you're as dumb as a post."

"Hey," Tonks frowned. "I'll have you know . . ."

A large rock hitting the back of her head halted the Auror in mid-sentence and she crumbled to the ground.

"Tonks?" Kingsley rushed over and attempted to shield his subordinate from further harm. Grunting he felt several more rocks impact, Shacklebolt collapsed and fought hard to remain conscious.

The rock shower lasted for a fraction of a second and Kingsley had to wipe the blood from his eyes to get a good look around. Horrible screams broke the silence and it took the Auror a moment to find their source.

Umbridge lay pinned under two ma.s.sive rocks, the toad-like woman screamed in pain and fear as she watched the blood leak from the lower half of her body.

After taking a moment to check to make sure that Tonks was still alive and in no danger, Shacklebolt rushed over to check the large woman and to see if he could render any a.s.sistance.

Just as he prepared to cast his best blood clotting charm, Umbridge gave a sort of gasp and sagged to the ground. Hogwart's first High Inquisitor was dead.

IIIIIIIIII

"How did your expedition go Asim?"

"Successful beyond our wildest dreams," Asim replied proudly. "Black discovered a hidden chamber in the great pyramid, he discovered several unknown tombs on the way to the site, and he discovered an entire valley filled with the tombs of the ancient magicians."

"So it was a good idea to ask for Black's help," a woman in shadow nodded. "Tell me what you think of the man, leave nothing out."

"He scares me," Asim admitted. "He made an offhanded comment about seeking redemption for destroying several civilizations in the past. He casually read a dead language and he offered to translate an unknown language. He mentioned the fact that things had changed in the last few thousand years and that he might have a bit of difficulty remembering where the Valley of Magicians might be and the casual way he located tombs leads me to believe that he wasn't so much discovering them as remembering where they were located."

"I see," the woman nodded.

"I don't think you do," Asim continued. "A preliminary report says that several of the wizards in the valley were killed by 'the dark one' and I believe . . . I believe that 'the dark one' is the man that took me to visit all these tombs . . . we cannot afford to antagonize this man."

"And we won't," the woman promised. "We shall do everything we can to remain in his good graces."

IIIIIIIIII

"Mr. Black," a group of several Egyptian Law Enforcement Officers approached with a smile. "We checked that landslide and you were right to be concerned, we found several people trapped under the rocks."

"Was anyone hurt?"

"Most had only minor injuries," the man smiled. "But there was one death, doc.u.ments on the woman's body state that they were a group of British Aurors that was sent to make your arrest."

"I see," Harry frowned. "Do you know why?"

"Something to do with the death of prominent pureblood in Switzerland," the man shrugged. "But it's none of our concern. We were hoping that you could look through these photos and identify them to confirm that they were British Aurors and not imposters . . . the dead woman is at the bottom."

"Let's see," Harry began going through the photos. "This one is Auror Kingsley Shacklebolt, a good man and a talented Auror. This one is named Tonks, another good Auror. She's a bit touchy about her first name so just call her Tonks. Can't remember this one's name, or this one." Harry reached the final photo and couldn't help but smile, "and her name is Delores Jane Umbridge. I'm not too fond of her and I can't say that I'm sorry she died in this terrible accident."

"What would you like us to do about the surviving Aurors?" The Egyptians eyed each other.

"Tell them that I'd appreciate it if they didn't try to arrest me," Harry smiled. "Now I realize that they're just doing their jobs but . . ."

"We understand sir," the Egyptians couldn't believe how good Black was.

"Would you mind making sure that they get the best medical attention possible," Harry asked, his concern evident. "And charge it to me, I understand that they were just following the orders of an idiot politician and I want to make sure that they're taken care of."

"Yes sir," the men nodded. "We'll ensure that they get the best of care."

IIIIIIIIII

"How are you Auror Shacklebolt?" A small woman walked in and sat next to the Auror's bed, "I'm from the office of foreign affairs."

"And you want to know what my team was doing in your country without sanction?" Kingsley closed his eyes.

"No," the woman gave a musical laugh. "We already know all that, the doc.u.ments in Ms. Umbridge's pockets told us all we needed to know about your mission."

"So what's going to happen to my team?" Kingsley felt sick to his stomach, "if it helps I'm willing to testify that they had no knowledge that they were going to invade a sovereign nation's borders."

"No need to do that," the woman smiled. "After consulting with Mr. Black, we've managed to decide how we're going to deal with the situation."

"Yes?" Kingsley braced himself for the worst.

"We're going to let you return to England with a warning and we're going to lodge a formal protest with the British government."

"That's all?" Shacklebolt's eyes shot open in astonishment.

"That's all," the woman agreed. "And Mr. Black had a message for you."

"What did he want to tell us?"

"He said that you were good Aurors, that you and Ms. Tonks specifically were good Aurors and that he understood that you were just doing your job. He said that he'd rather you not try to arrest him in the future, that it's annoying. He insisted that you get the best medical care possible and he also insisted that he pay for it." The woman's expression turned cold, "he also said that he wasn't too fond of Ms. Umbridge. He added that he wouldn't feel any sorrow at the fact that she died in a terrible accident."

"I see," Kingsley paled. "He liked us and he 'wasn't too fond' of Umbridge, we escaped from a freak accident without any injuries and she died in horrible agony . . ."

"I see you understand," the woman patted him on the arm. "Feel free to come back to Egypt any time you like, feel free to hunt Mr. Black any time you like . . . but if I were you, I wouldn't expect him to be so understanding in the future."

"I see," Kingsley nodded. "Anything else you'd like to add?"

"That will do it," the woman stood up. "The healers tell me that you and your team can leave at any time, we have an international portkey waiting for you for when you wish to advantage of it."

"Thank you," Shacklebolt allowed himself to relax.

"Don't thank me," the woman smiled. "If it were up to me, you'd be in a cell right now and your team would be spilling everything they know under truth serum . . . but of course, I'm not the one you went after."

IIIIIIIIII

"From your quick return," Fudge didn't bother to look up as Shacklebolt entered the room to make his report. "And the lack of my a.s.sistant, I'd say that your mission was a failure."

"Mr. Black wanted me to tell you that he might get annoyed if you keep trying to arrest him," Shacklebolt reported to the Minister. "And I would recommend that you honor his request. If you chose to ignore it . . . if you chose to ignore it then I doubt that you will find any Auror willing to follow your order to arrest him."

"What's the worst thing he could do?" Fudge bl.u.s.tered.

"Well . . . he could kill you," Kingsley suggested. "And I'm told that he gets . . . creative if you anger him."

"I see," reality hit Fudge like a lead pipe. "Rescind the order to arrest Mr. Black, list him as a Special advisor to the Department of Law Enforcement with all the powers and privileges that position entails, and find a way to give him my a.s.surance that it was all a misunderstanding."

"Good idea," Shacklebolt nodded. "I'll get right on it."

"And send a full report to Madame Bones," self-preservation was one of the few things that Fudge excelled at. "With the order that she provide any a.s.sistance that Mr. Black requires that will not impede the war effort."

Fudge waited until the Auror left the room before reaching into his desk to pull out the bottle he kept for occasions like this, trembling hands pored a gla.s.s, and Fudge contemplated his recent brush with death.

IIIIIIIIII

Shacklebolt left the Minister's office and made his way back to the Department of Law Enforcement. After writing up a quick report on the day's events for his superior, he went in search of his partner.

"What's the verdict?" Tonks asked nervously.

"I managed to convince the Minister that further pursuit of Mr. Black would be a bad idea," Kingsley replied. "He's also given the official ok to tell Bones what happened."

"Are we going to do that now?" Tonks was still a bit stiff from her injuries.

"I've already forwarded it to Bones," Shacklebolt took a deep breath. "I think we should knock off early and go get a drink."

"Sounds good," Tonks agreed. "But I'm not supposed to mix alcohol with the potions they gave me."

"Then you can have juice," Kingsley smiled. "Come on."

"Right," Tonks nodded.

The two Aurors left the Ministry building and made their way to a secure floo.

"You up for this?" Kingsley gave his partner a worried look, "I'm not sure about traveling with a head injury."

"So I'll throw up when I get there," Tonks shrugged. "I'll be fine."

"Ok," Kingsley threw in a handful of floo and motioned for his partner to go first. "Hags before beauty."

"Ladies first," Tonks corrected and called out her destination.

Taking one last glance around, Kingsley tossed in his own handful of floo and called out his destination.

"Now that the two of you have arrived," Dumbledore gave a grandfatherly smile. "We can get to business."

"We have some important information," Kingsley called out as he took his seat.

"You won't believe what the Minister did," Tonks chipped in.

"Enlighten us then," Snape sneered.

"The Minister sent us to arrest Mr. Black," Shacklebolt smiled. "Under the leadership of his Special a.s.sistant."

"I take it that your mission was not a success?" Dumbledore asked mildly.

"Black dropped a rock slide on us," Tonks gave a weak smile. "Most of the injuries were nothing that couldn't be healed by a few hours with a healer."

"I see," Dumbledore nodded. "Were there any fatalities?"

"One," Kingsley nodded. "Delores Umbridge was crushed under a rock and bled to death before I could put a clotting charm on her."

"I see," Dumbledore nodded. "You're sure that this was the work of Mr. Black and not an accident?"

"The Egyptians gave me a message from Mr. Black," Shacklebolt licked his lips. "He said that he understood that we were just doing our jobs and he said that Tonks and I were very good Aurors, he said that if we kept trying to arrest him that he would get annoyed. He also said that he didn't like Umbridge and that he wasn't saddened by her death in such a terrible accident."

"No one got seriously hurt except for Umbridge?" Moody asked, "what else can you tell me about what happened."

"I talked to one of the men that dug us out," Kingsley replied. "He told me that Mr. Black was standing next to him when the rock slide occurred. He added that the only reason they bothered to check is that Mr. Black mentioned that there might have been someone caught up in the rock slide and how it would be terrible if n.o.body checked."

"Didn't want you dead then," Moody nodded. "Wanted Umbridge dead and she died, wanted you alive, and went so far as to send men to rescue you."

"You don't believe that there's any chance it could have been an accident?" Dumbledore asked quietly.

"The chances of a team of Aurors after the man to get caught in a freak accident are fairly low," Moody nodded. "For the only fatality to be a Ministry flunky that Mr. Black doesn't like makes the chances even lower, for all the injuries on the Aurors that Mr. Black does like to be minor lowers the odds even more. And for Mr. Black to send a group of men to dig out the team makes the odds too low to consider."

"Mr. Black also instructed the Egyptian government to give us the best of care," Kingsley added. "He also insisted on paying for it."

"They told me that the only reason we were going home instead of a small cell was that Mr. Black asked them to let us go," Tonks swallowed. "And one of the Nurses told me that they believed that Mr. Black was an ex dark lord."

"Really?" Dumbledore leaned forward in interest.

"She said that it was just a rumor," Tonks bit her lower lip. "But that they believed that Mr. Black destroyed several civilizations and that the fact that he spent his time foiling dark lords was either a hobby or his idea of redemption."

"One of the Orderlies told me that Mr. Black showed them several previously unknown tombs and a valley of lost magical knowledge." Kingsley added, "he also mentioned that several of the tombs reported that their owners fell to 'the dark one' and it was strongly suggested that the dark one was Mr. Black."

"I see," Dumbledore paused to take in the information. "Learn all you can about this man but do not antagonize him."

"S' no wonder he has so much contempt for Voldemort," Moody gave a rasping laugh. "Black destroyed entire civilizations and Volde has trouble subjugating a small subgroup in a single country."

IIIIIIIIII

"Could I ask you something?" Harry looked down at his new friend.

"What would you like to know?" The Architect nodded.

"When we were at the great pyramid, I noticed something odd."

"Yes?"

"I'd always thought that it would be crowded with visitors," Harry replied. "But when we were there it was deserted."

"Ah," the Goblin nodded. "That's because I was using Tourist Repellent TM, it allows me to work in peace."

"Oh," Harry nodded. "Well, I guess that explains that."

"And no more thought need be wasted on the matter," the Architect nodded in agreement.

IIIIIIIIII

"Master," random death eater number three approached his master. "I have news for you."

"What is it?" The Dark Lord leaned back in his chair.

"The group in Egypt reports that they have information that suggests that Mr. Black was the most feared Dark Lord in history," the death eater groveled. "They say those entire civilizations crumbled before his might."

"What?" Voldemort grabbed his wand, "how dare you say that he could have been more terrible than I am . . . CRUCIO."