Semper Fidelis

Chapter 11.5

Harry was in his chambers preparing a lesson plan for the following week when a silver hummingbird flew through his closed door and hovered over his desk. It wasn't the actual animal but a corporeal patronus used by the Gryphons to signal that a message needed to be relayed. He told his team that if they ever needed to contact him outside of their bi-weekly scheduled floo meetings then they should send the hummingbird. Seeing as he just spoke to his team last week, this hummingbird came unexpectedly.

Harry immediately rose from his desk and walked to the fireplace which Professor Dumbledore had specially installed for cases such as this. No sooner after he situated himself in front of the fireplace did he see Remus Lupin's head emerge from the flames.

Remus was Harry's second-in-command and had taken over most of the work while Harry's on his "extended holiday". He's Harry's main source of all things Ministry and Auror related while at Hogwarts.

"Remus," Harry said in greeting. "What's going on?"

The fiery head of Remus Lupin crackled and sparked in the fireplace. "Harry," he began. "Our contacts in North America have reported signs of dark magic in New York this morning."

Harry's brows furrowed at Remus' statement. Magic, light or dark, if used inappropriately in Muggle communities could risk the exposure of the wizarding world. It's especially alarming that Remus mentioned it was dark magic. "Dark magic? What kind of dark magic?"

Through the flames Harry could see Remus frown. "That's the thing, Harry. Some of the traces left weren't from just simple spells. They're something we haven't seen before, but the residual aura mimics that of the Unforgivable Curses. The MACUSA thought to alert us since they haven't seen anything like it before either."

Harry's mouth formed into a line as he processed the information. Spells and curses leave a trace after casting. Simple spells like Accio or Lumos leave a trace so inconsequential since the amount of magic required to perform them, in the grand scale of things, was very little. Spells requiring more concentration, more thought, and more magic to cast leave larger traces. To go hand in hand with traces, which tells of the amount of magic cast, are auras. Auras identify the type of magic that was cast. Most spells were varying shades of grey, but dark spells like the Unforgivable Curses which can only be cast when the intent to do harm was present, leave very dark auras. Feelings of dread, discomfort, and unhappiness can immediately be felt after entering the vicinity where this spell was cast. What Remus stated meant that someone had casted a spell so dark and so powerful to leave such a trace and aura behind.

"Where did this happen?"

"The Met."

Harry cursed. Someone in New York City was performing very dark and unknown magic in a Muggle-rich area.

"Any casualties?"

"Not that we're aware of."

"Send people from our team immediately to liaise with the MACUSA agents. Include Malfoy on the team. Maybe he would be able to tell us what spell was cast after he surveys the scene." Harry instructed. It had surprised everyone when Draco Malfoy, after The Defeat, decided to join the Aurors. It was difficult for him to find employment after the war since the Malfoy name had been stripped of its former glory when the acts of his father were made clear. Trenton Winchester took pity on the young man and offered him a position in the Auror academy. Draco, very much like Harry, worked himself from the ground up until he earned the reputation of being a keen researcher and analyst. Harry took him in as part of the Gryphons at the team's infancy and he and Harry had worked closely since. Now, not only was Draco Malfoy an integral part of the team but he and Harry, despite all odds and their very difficult history, became good friends.

"I was already planning on it. I'll send Adams and Cheng along with Malfoy. Hopefully we'll get to the bottom of it. I don't like this one bit, Harry," Remus said with a grimace.

Harry nodded his head in assent. "Keep me updated. Find out who is casting this dark magic and what spell they're using. Once we know the why, I want this matter taken care of cleanly."

"Got it."

"I'll talk to you later, Remus. Take care."

"Always. Goodbye, Harry."

At his words, the flaming bust of Remus Lupin disappeared from the fireplace until only crackling embers were left behind. Harry leaned back on his chair and laid his head on his hand. He wanted to be out there. He wanted to be the one to go to New York and see for himself the trace left behind by this spell. For the first time since he got back at Hogwarts, Harry felt trapped. He wanted to be with his team and it did not sit him with him well that he couldn't.

However, he couldn't physically do anything for the Gryphons right now and he had new commitments to take care of. So, with that uncomfortable thought in mind, Harry tried to turn his attention back to the class notes he was making for his next lesson. But try as he might, he couldn't shake off the nagging feeling that something much bigger was starting to unfold.