A/N:  This chapter went on far longer than I anticipated.  Still - here it is and I hope you continue to enjoy it.  I want to thank all of you who have reviewed it. For those of you who have expressed concerns that Harry/Rand is overpowered - be patient.  Harry's enemies are currently unaware of his new abilities and may be caught with their pants down initially, but the path will get much harder thereafter.

Big thanks to the people at DLP for giving this chapter a read-through and helping me refine this into a better work.

Enjoy the Story!

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"If I wanted to take a tour of London, how would I go about doing it?" Egwene asked as she set her steaming cup of tea down onto the kitchen table.

"Head over to my place around eleven and I'm sure Andi will be thrilled to take you.  She got such a kick out of doing muggle tours after we got married.  Just err…do your shiny doorway thing into that spare room I showed you yesterday. I don't want you to accidentally lop off Andi's head," Ted Tonks said without looking up from the financial section of The Times.

Egwene nodded her assent before turning her attention back to the Oxford English Dictionary in front of her.

Harry was thankful that Egwene wasn't dependent upon him to learn modern English.  He already found it difficult enough to speak as a modern Englishman as his brain kept interjecting vocabulary and allegories from a different age.  Lews Therin just compounded the problem with his sporadic use of the Old Tongue.

Ted had been invaluable in helping Harry and Egwene adapt to twentieth century England in the past few days.  He had arrived the morning after the Order meeting with galleons and pounds from Harry's Trust Vault to help them purchase necessities. Harry had insisted on shopping in muggle London first; after wearing pants and shirts for everything from combat to diplomacy he had no urge to return to drafty cumbersome robes.  Upon her first visit to a boutique however, Egwene had forsworn muggle styles as being "more scandalous than that horrid Domani style." She had been satisfied to find a tailor on Diagon Alley that produced her several cloaks and simple woolen dresses that could be worn in both muggle and magical worlds.

Most of all, it was Ted's status as a muggle-born that aided the pair.  When asked if he knew of a source of impartial information about the muggle world Ted had simply gone out and purchased the most recent editions of the Encyclopedia Britannica and the Oxford English Dictionary.  Egwene had taken to them with a vengeance, they both distracted her from her thoughts and helped her adapt to living here as quick as possible.

Working on his sword-forms had occupied Harry's free time. It had been years since he had two hands to practice with his sword.  He had found a collection of blades downstairs.  While none matched the quality of the heron-marked blade of his father, they did allow him to practice his forms. Losing himself into the void helped him to take his mind off the loss of his beloveds.

"Oh blast, it's work time for me," Ted muttered as he stood up to put his dishes away. "Andromeda should be somewhere around our place if you two need anything today. No sign of Tonks though, although that's par for course with her Auror work." He shook his head slowly. "I can't believe she was detained for a week and we never heard of it.  I swear her profession is going to drive me bald. Well, I'm off," he said with a smile and a wave.

An absent wave back from Harry acknowledged Ted before a sharp crack signaled his departure.  Harry frowned as he flipped the page of The Daily Prophet to only find a description of a Death Eater attack buried on the 18th page.  Mass media was a double-edged sword in his opinion.  It did serve to disseminate information rapidly, but it spoke with such authority that it discouraged debate about the factuality of the news.   Peddlers and gleemen told tall tales, but there tended to be a nugget of truth buried in the stories that would come out as villagers debated the veracity of the stories.  Since The Daily Prophet devalued the news of the Death Eater attacks the readers naturally thought that they were inconsequential.

"Why do you look as if you just shaved playing Maiden's Kiss?" Egwene asked as she closed the dictionary after marking where she had left off at.

Harry snorted.  He briefly imagined Ron trying to play Maiden's Kiss and could only conclude that the Weasleys would end up one son short.   "It feels odd trying to plan a war without the Far Dareis Mai breathing down my neck.  I'm actually unsure on how to wage a campaign at all without an army."

Egwene shook her head and gave him a look as if he was a small child. "You do realize that as the Dragon Reborn you had several prophecies that declared you would lead the world of men to battle against the Dark One?  I am not belittling your accomplishments Rand al'Thor, stop looking at me like that. Light, I know better than most how much you struggled to achieve what you did.  All that I am saying, hear me out, is that you best apply those lessons Moiraine gave you on the Great Game and get some allies."

"What allies? Elements of the Ministry want me dead or locked away in a cell and the Order is more likely to treat me like a leper after the way I dispatched Snape," Harry griped as he grabbed his plate and took it to the sink.

"Your new tendency to whine like a child who was just swotted for stealing a pie is very unbecoming woolhead.  Stop! If I see you even look as if you're going to stew again I will channel Nynaeve and box your ears in.  Now tell me, why did Moiraine initially take an interest in you, Mat and Perrin in Emond's Field?"

"Simple, we were all ta'veren."

"Precisely," Egwene said in a lecturing tone. "Now as it was drilled into me while a novice at the White Tower, a ta'veren is 'a person around whom the Wheel of Time weaves all surrounding life-threads, perhaps all life-threads, to form a Web of Destiny.' I cannot believe that you forgot how influential you are because you're ta'veren."

Pondering her words, Rand poured a cup of tea from the kettle that was resting upon the stove.   He was grateful that Tiper apparently considered Harry part of the Tonks family and served at his beck and call.  "I have taken the fact that I'm ta'veren granted for so long that I actually forgot its effects. This is why nobody truly reacted to you killing Snape, isn't it?"

A small smile graced Egwene's face.  "As far as they know you're the one who killed Snape. No women there at least had the spark, so they wouldn't know any better."

"Good point.  I'll be in the study most of today then drawing up plans to get my own armed force to deal with the Death Eaters."

"You may enlist me, but I will swear no oaths to you," Egwene offered.  "It's a pity that I have no idea on how to create angreal or sa'angreal.  The lack of those will severely limit my effectiveness in battle."

Harry stopped at that comment.  She raised a valid point.  Without an angreal to buffer his channeling he would likely burn himself out in the heat of battle if he followed his modus operandi.  A sa'angreal would make removing Voldemort a breeze, but the little he knew of crafting them indicated that it would take a large team of both men and women linked together to forge one.  In a best-case scenario it would take roughly a decade to train enough channelers of both genders to reach the point where they could craft a sa'angreal.  Too bad only channelers from the Age of Legends knew how to create them. Wait a tick.

"I may know of a source to teach me about the creation of angreal."

Egwene cocked her head, a perplexed expression on her face.  "How? All knowledge of how to craft them was lost thousands of years ago.  Only channelers from prior to the Breaking…oh Light! You're still hearing Lews Therin, aren't you?"

Harry shrugged,  "I'm still saddled with him."

"Light! How could you have not mentioned this? How could you channel? I know how you had to fight with him for control!" Egwene vexed with a raised voice.

"He has been relatively quiet since Tarmon Gai'don," Harry said before he scowled. "How did you know about my issues with Lews Therin? I don't recall ever telling you."

Egwene drew a breathe as if to calm herself down, before taking another sip of tea. "If you recall I did have Nynaeve attend the final set of interrogations of Semirhage before she was executed.  Nynaeve was not gentle and extracted much information, such as your condition.  I ordered her to tell me as was my right as the Amyrlin."

With a slight nod to acknowledge the statement, Harry pondered the revelation.  He thought that his condition was relatively private.  He truly should have anticipated that Semirhage would have leaked information.  Well, it was no longer his concern.  Egwene was the only other person left who could appreciate that information and he doubted she would tell.

"I will not take foolish risks, but if I can rediscover how to create angreal that at least channel saidin, it will be a huge boon," Rand stated. A grin cracked his face, "Besides, you aren't the only one with problems keeping information.  Elayne told me how you were able to recreate Traveling with saidar off of a random comment from Moghedian.  With your strength in all five flows, it is possible for you to create your own angreal that will channel saidar if I discover their creation using saidin."

A smile returned to her face, "I think you overestimate my abilities, but I am flattered none the less.  This returns me to my original point about ta'veren before our conversation was diverted.  I believe that Dumbledore himself is a ta'veren, although I would wager that his strength pales before yours. How else could he convince so many people to pursue such a foolish course of action in regards to Voldemort.  Anyone with a wit of tactics would have challenged Dumbledore's insistence at fighting a war using non-lethal force.  Even though you are a woolhead, you are at least not foolish enough to ignore advice from those with more experience than you."

That made sense.  Before he had gone with Tonks to the reading of Sirius's will, Harry had wondered why everyone blindly followed the Headmaster. Now there was a plausible explanation for the sheeple effect he saw amongst the wizards.

"Good point, I wouldn't have thought of that. It's too bad neither of us can see the aura of a ta'veren."

He took a sip of his tea while Egwene mimicked him. "Who do you plan to recruit into our effort?" Egwene inquired.

"For now, just members of the Order who I trust," Harry said in a contemplative tone. "I will wait to see the Ministry's reaction to my new status before I decide to expand recruitment."

"Do you think the Ministry will prove to be an obstacle?"

With a gulp he finished his tea and stood up. He placed his cup in the sink before heading out towards his room for exercise. At the door he turned around to face Egwene, who was patiently waiting for a reply.

"I'd rather deal with Whitecloaks."

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Albus Dumbledore blew a bubble out of his mouth as he stared at the parchment in front of him.  It contained yet another withdrawal from Hogwarts.  It was already the seventh one this summer, which was just over halfway through.  He gazed wistfully at Fawkes's perch, but the phoenix was elsewhere. He envied his longtime companion, having the freedom to come and go at a whim.

He was convinced that this was his worst year since he had to fight Grindelwald.  The only positive spin that he could imagine was that only a few close friends of his had died so far, in contrast to the late 70's where it seemed that he attended more funerals than faculty meetings. Otherwise though, the year had been a complete disaster.  Cornelius had nearly alienated the entire Hogwarts student body from the government.  He feared that due to the ludicrous actions taken by Dolores at Hogwarts and the exposure that Cornelius squelched the news of Voldemort's return would make skeptics of even the most faithful Hufflepuff. It was dire that during the time the Ministry needed the most support it had lost the faith of nearly an entire generation.

Worst though was the schism between him and Harry Potter and the impact it was having on the Order.  He knew that it was going to be difficult to repair his relationship with Harry after the events of the Ministry Battle.  He simply did not have the time to cultivate and train Harry properly.  Between his obligations to Hogwarts and fighting to retain his influence at the Wizengamot he had neglected Harry and it appeared that it was going to come back to bite him.

Harry falling through the doorway was a very unexpected and unwelcome development.  The foolishness that young Nymphadora demonstrated almost made him think that she was trying to aid her Aunts.  Additionally it took away the time he had set aside to go poking around Little Hangleton.  It was clear that Harry had experienced several years in that Doorway and could now harness unknown forces. Perhaps that was the "power he knows not."

The loss of Harry's scar completely baffled him.  If his suspicions that it was a Horcrux were true, than hopefully the loss of the scar symbolized the destruction of the Horcrux. A little voice in his head feared that Harry's utter rage aimed at him during the last Order meeting might symbolize that the Horcrux did not go quietly into the night.  

Thinking of the Order simply compounded his headache.  He could not believe the passiveness his comrades had demonstrated upon the brutal murder of Severus. Unsure of who dealt the killing blow and how they accomplished it, Dumbledore decided that it was best to simply allow for the disposal of the body and evidence without raising too much of a fuss.  Guilt crept into his thoughts as he wondered if he had truly mishandled the situation with Severus. Not a single member of the Order had mourned Severus's passing. He knew that Severus had the tendency to be anti-social and confrontational, but did his death truly merit a miniature celebration? With the loss of his spy they would have to resort to the traditional means to detect Death Eater attacks used prior to Severus becoming a double agent.  The timing of all this was possibly the worst it could be.

The Gargoyle at the base of the steps to his office creaked as it moved to admit someone. Ah yes, Minerva was here for her meeting.

"Good morning Minerva," Dumbledore greeted just before her head came into view, eliciting a small scowl from her.

"Albus," Minerva said as she took a seat to the side of his desk. "Shall we cut straight to business?  The timing of your trip is simply…horrendous."

"I am aware of that.  It is most unfortunate that I am forced to fulfill my obligations to the ICW at this time. A month ago I anticipated I would have the entirety of the summer to deal with matters at home. Then I was reappointed to all of my former positions.  Alas, Cornelius does tend to do more harm than good no matter his intentions. Care for some tea?"

Minerva nodded her head slightly and a house elf popped into the room with a tea set. He poured a cup for her that she received with a look of satisfaction as she took her first sip. He waited patiently for her to start up again. "It would have been for the best if you still were stripped of your Chairmanship.  Now you're going to be off wasting away time in Shanghai until the end of August."

"Unfortunately, bureaucracy cares not for the demands of current events.  Granted, it would have been much more convenient if the convention was being held in Brussels as it was four years ago, but that ship has sailed and Asia has the right to host it now.  Remember Minerva, there is always a silver lining. I will have over a month to solicit support from our allies for our struggle."

A sniff of disbelief was the only response he received.

"Do you have something you want to say Minerva?"

"Yes Albus.  You have yet to tell me who is going to teach Defense or Potions.  What do I do about Mr. Potter?  He is far too old to be a student, but he still only has the knowledge of a fifth year. And something tells me that if we let him loose here we would lose all of the Slytherins to Severus's fate."

"I am still not convinced that was Harry," Albus countered.  "It very could have well been that Mistress al'Vere."

"Who exactly is that young woman?"

Albus clasped his hands together to rest upon his desktop. "I'm afraid I have no clue.  I have been unable to find anything about anyone named 'al'Vere' no matter the spelling.  I suspect that she originated from wherever Harry has been.  I can only speculate as to what their relationship is to one another."

Minerva took a sip of her tea.  "I suppose we will simply have to wait to ask.  You'll be glad to hear that I had Andromeda over for tea yesterday.  From what she said, Harry and that woman haven't left Grimmauld Place except to purchase necessities.  They are currently 'grieving' according to her, although she did not tell me why."

"Interesting. I wonder what he grieves for? At his age, he could have left behind a lover or a child.  That could explain his overreaction to Severus."

With a snort Minerva held up her hand. "No Albus, I'm afraid there were other factors at play. Molly stopped by while I was talking with Andromeda and joined in. Apparently Ms. Granger let loose some information while she was at the Burrow and fretting about Harry.  Apparently Harry's 'remedial potion classes' were regarding him being trained in occlumency.  After each lesson he would suffer from debilitating headaches.  Ms. Granger said that he once confessed while on the verge of being unconscious that Severus had been deliberately going after his worst memories and forcing Harry to relive them.  I do have training in occlumency Albus and I most certainly do not recall being taught in that manner."

A sigh escaped from him before he could stop it.  So Severus truly wasn't teaching Harry. It sounded as if he was simply destroying any barrier that existed in Harry's mind.  How deep did Severus's treachery run?  Perhaps it was for the best that Severus had been removed from the Order, but Harry did not have to resort to killing in order to accomplish that feat.  It would be horrible for him to lose sight in the value that each individual life held.  

"You should host more tea parties Minerva," Albus murmured. "You seem to have uncovered most unpleasant and vital news."

Minerva smiled dryly, "Yes. Well, I'll try to invite Mr. Potter to my next party.  It would be good if we were able to ascertain his intentions for the next year.  That still leaves the issue of who will be filling the positions of defense and potions."

A grin tugged at his face. "I actually got back last night from talking to an old colleague. You should be glad to hear that Horace will be returning to his old position as both Potion Instructor and head of house for Slytherin.  If the Minister does do what I fear, a viable Defense Instructor should make themselves available."

"Could you be anymore cryptic Albus?" Minerva said as she shook her head and took another sip of tea.  "Well, at least Horace should be a step up from Severus.  What idiotic move by our Minister do we have to concern ourselves with now?"

"It is all speculation that I'm hearing. But I'm afraid that Cornelius has a full copy of the Unspeakable's report concerning the events of the past two weeks on his desk now.  I have been avoiding him but I'm afraid he will be able to corner me in Shanghai when he gives his speech next week.  I can only imagine what will happen when he learns about Harry's new adult status."

Minerva rolled her eyes, "I dread what response that fool will have.  I also dread what Mr. Potter will do.  If he continues to demonstrate such a wanton use of lethal force …"

"As do I.  Now, shall we discuss the issue of enrollment before I must leave for Shanghai?"

He relaxed as Minerva began to rant about the withdrawals from the school.  Perhaps it would be for the best if he were away from Harry for a month. Harry had always gone to Minerva first with problems in the school, so hopefully that trend would continue with this newest development.  He could only pray that Voldemort would remain quiet while he fulfilled one of his many duties.

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Three days later Harry stood in the void, reveling in the torrent of saidin.  Holding a sword of flame he flowed from Parting the Silk into Wood Grouse Dances to Tower in the Morning.  Each transition was seamless as he moved about the spare room.  Its original purpose unknown, he had discovered it last summer while on Mrs. Weasley's enforced cleaning of Grimmauld Place.  It was spacious, slightly larger than the dining room and once the furniture was removed the room was perfect for him to practice his forms in.

Here it was nothing but flame and void. The flame and void of his mind were replicated by the vast emptiness of the room and the flame sword he wielded.  Nothing else existed.  He scowled as he overreached his right foot as he went into Water Flows Downhill.  This new height for his body was still tripping him up.  His muscle memory recalled him having several inches of height that he had no longer.  Losing his scowl, he stood back into a ready position before sliding into Folding the Fan.  Time had no meaning as he continued to condition his new body.

The roar of a lopar brought a halt to his workout. Someone was approaching and had triggered his wards that created the roar.  He released saidin and walked towards the corner where a towel lay bunched up out of the way.  Grabbing hold of it, he picked it up to start to wipe down his sweat when a sharp catcall grabbed his attention.

Tonks stood leaning against the doorway, with a shit-eating grin on her face.  "If I knew you were putting on a show I wouldn't have bothered going into work this week."

Harry rested the towel over his shoulders as he involuntarily glanced down at himself. He didn't see what the big deal was. Sure, he was shirtless and covered in sweat. Oh yeah, Tonks didn't share the same lack of modesty the Aiel did.  Glancing up at her he wasn't surprised to see her wearing a garish muggle outfit.  Her jeans, while ripped were at least ordinary denim blue.  For every other item though it was if she chose them based upon how strongly they clashed. Her electric blue hair fit in perfectly with the neon plaid tank top she wore.

"Afternoon Tonks.  Been busy at work?" Odd, her mood visibly dropped upon work being brought up.

"Busy getting fired.  Apparently exposing you to foreign magics is a no-no for Aurors. That combined with my 'mysterious' appearance at the Ministry in June led to my boss ruling that I was no longer a 'loyal employee who served at the will of the Minister.' Blimey, that Scrimgeour is nothing more than a scheming brown-nosing son of a bitch!" Tonks raved, her arms gesturing wildly to accentuate her words.

Harry continued to dab sweat off of himself to buy time.  How was he supposed to react to this?  He knew how to comfort someone for the loss of a loved one or a regime change - implemented by himself more often than not - yet he did not know how to provide comfort for something as inconsequential as losing a job.  He knew Tonks took pride in being an Auror.  The only reason that he cared was…she was the only adult he knew that treated him like an adult and went out of her way to make his life easier.  She wasn't afraid to defy authority and bend the rules to accommodate him. "I'm sorry to hear about your job.  Anything I do?"

A leer on Tonks sent a shiver down his spine. "Well, I'd love to see what you're doing down here. Mum and dad have been saying you spend almost all your time here and yet they're clueless as to just what you're up to. I think right now nothing will make me feel better than seeing you work up a sweat."

Light! He would never understand women.  He had planned on two more hours of practice though.  He nodded at her and embraced saidin again.  He heard a gasp as he channeled and formed a sword of fire in his right hand before he stood at ready position.  Before he started he glanced at Tonks. Her mouth was agape, staring at his hands that seemingly wielded live flame.  He turned back and once more the world became void and flame as he slid into Lion on the Hill.  Time once more lost meaning.

A roar once more signaled that his wards had been triggered. He released saidin and looked towards the door. To its left Tonks was sitting on the ground with her knees scrunched up to her chest, with a silly grin on her face.  

"That was so worth being fired for," Tonks drawled out. "I do want to know the story behind those rockin dragons tattooed to your arms. I've never seen anything like them."

Harry just smirked as he caught the towel Tonks lobbed at him and began to wipe the sweat away from his eyes.

"Yes Mr. Potter, do tell me why you felt as if you had to mutilate your body."

He blinked. Professor McGonagall was not one of the people he expected to visit today.  She stood primly at the door in her standard robes, her nose scrunched at the smell of perspiration that filled the room.  He raised his arms individually, to inspect the dragons and herons imbued upon him.  "I had as much say in receiving these as I did on getting the scar on my forehead," Harry said at last.  

"I see, I came here Mr. Potter to inquire as to how you are and to see if you planned to return to Hogwarts."

"I'm surprised Professor, I assumed Dumbledore would be coming after me directly."

McGonagall openly scowled, "Please remember to respect the Headmaster Mr. Potter. And for your knowledge he is attending to business for the next six weeks in Shanghai.  Now will you be attending Hogwarts in the fall?"

It was surprising the way McGonagall was forcing the issue.  He anticipated that the old man would try to force him back to Hogwarts, even though he was a decade older than the average student. "No, I will not be returning," Harry said in a firm tone. "I do not have time to play at being a student.  If you feel that it is vital to me to learn wanded magic, I may permit a tutor to be attached to my command."

He saw McGonagall mouth "my command" while Tonks perked up. Her hair flicked to emerald green.

"Oi! Oi! Attach me to your command. Seeing as how I'm lacking in employment and on the verge of becoming a vagrant."

Harry cracked a smile at Tonks's antics until McGonagall interjected, "Oh, Albus did mention that a viable candidate would be available before he left.  Ms. Tonks, would you be interested in the Defense Instructor position at Hogwarts?"

Tonks whipped her head over to face McGonagall as she heard the offer.  Harry couldn't risk losing his only adult wand user asset that was solely in his camp. "Once me and your dad resolve the issue of my accounts with Gringotts I should be able to pay to hold you as my retainer Tonks," Harry said with what he hoped to be a sincere smile.  His amusement increased as he saw her head swivel between him and McGonagall continuously for nearly a minute.

"Wow. I thought I would be spending tonight on a bender wallowing in my sorrows.  Thanks for ruining my plans you two," Tonks said in a mock chided tone.  "Minerva, I'm honored at the offer. I'm afraid I'm going to have to decline though. I'm young enough that all the males will be paying attention to me instead of the lesson.  Harry, we can hammer out the details later.  A little knowledge of what happened to you would be nice though, although I can be a good Tonks and be patient I suppose if the price is right."

Harry knew that his smile was sincere now; Tonks was clearly in his corner.  Looking at McGonagall, he reached a decision. "I am willing to give the basics of what happened to me to both of you and your parents Tonks. Professor, I will want your word that what I say only gets to Dumbledore, told face to face with only the two of you present.  No familiars, no portraits and no recording devices.  You will also have to ensure that Dumbledore does not spread this information. If either of you break your word…the results will be most unpleasant."

A harsh scowl filled McGonagall's face before he recalled her earlier admonishing on respecting the Headmaster.  "Mr. Potter, who exactly are you to demand such things?"

"Agree to my terms and you'll find out," Harry said in a dry tone as he began to walk towards the kitchen. Seeing Tonks reach out with her right arm he grasped her hand and gave her a lift to get her standing.  As they approached the kitchen he heard a cacophony of voices. "McGonagall didn't come alone, did she?"

"No I didn't Mr. Potter," McGonagall said as she walked up from behind.  "Molly could not be restrained any longer and demanded that she and the children be given access to you to verify your condition."

This was going to be a headache. Thankfully Egwene was over at the Tonks, otherwise he would already be facing her wrath for stranding her with the Weasleys.  Reminding himself to request Advil from Tiper, he strode into the kitchen and faced Molly, Fred, George, Ginny and Ron Weasley along with Hermione.  "Hello all."  The entire group spun around to greet him, only to have their voices die in their throats. Oh yeah, he was still clad in only pants and a towel hanging around his neck.

Ron acted first, throwing his hands around Ginny's eyes to receive a yelped "no fair!" This brought the rest out of their stupor with Molly scolding him over proper dress and Fred and George taking Hermione's sides to whisper in her ears resulting in an increasing blush.

"I wasn't expecting any visitors, so you'll have to put up with my dress.  If you'll excuse me, I need to take a shower," Harry said positioning Tonks in between him and Molly who looked like she wanted to hug him.  He was in no mood to be mothered.  Lily Potter had died shortly after he had turned one and Kari al'Thor died when he was five.  He needed no surrogate.  Looking at the group assembled around him, he quickly reached a decision. "Tonks, will you get a hold of your parents and Egwene and have them meet us in the library in twenty minutes?  Professor, Fred, George, Hermione, will you meet us there as well?"

"Mate! What about me?"

Harry stared at Ron in the eyes until he flinched and turned away. "I can trust them to keep their mouths shut. I know your temper Ron, you yell out whatever is on your mind when you get angry. Develop discipline and I'll see what I can trust with you later on.  Ginny, I don't know you well enough." He looked over to Molly who was putting forth visible effort to curb her tongue. "Mrs. Weasley, you're still loyal to Dumbledore. I'm not against him, but I'm not for him."

Harry brushed past a stewing Molly while giving a friendly pat to Ron's shoulder before heading up to take his shower. He could trust Fred and George. He knew their mother would have blown a gasket if she knew he was the one who funded the shop that was apparently open by now.  Hermione could keep secrets from her friends; the time turner had proven it third year. He was confident that he exerted enough authority now that she would not be tempted to run off to McGonagall. The fact that he included McGonagall into his confidence would be a further incentive for Hermione to fall into line.  

After his shower he stared at his expanded wardrobe.  He would be "officially" starting his own armed force to combat Voldemort and those who would get in his way.  He pulled a black t-shirt onto him, sliding black cargo pants on before placing a plain black coat over his shirt that came down to his mid-thighs. No dragons would adorn these sleeves like those of that thrice-sworn Darkfriend Taim. He reached into his desk to withdraw a silver dragon and a sword to pin to his collar before sliding boots on, completing his uniform.  While he breathed the Asha'man would exist in one form or another.

With swift strides he marched to the library.  Tonks stood outside the double doors with her hair still emerald green, twirling her wand with a smirk on her face.  

"No worries my lord, I kept the barbarian hordes away from your sanctuary.  The quota of two redheads inside have been maintained and there is harmony in your realm."

Harry rolled his eyes at Tonks while she opened the doors for him in an exaggerated manner. It was annoying how she brought levity to nearly every situation. "Wait Tonks, can you pull Hermione out here quickly?"

He waited for a few moments while Tonks ducked into the library until Hermione walked out. She was wringing her hands, looking nervous.  "Hi Harry."

"Hermione," Harry greeted in a mild tone. "How are you?"

"I've been a complete wreck these past two weeks because of you! You disappear, come back, ignore us and then you just totally blew off Ron and Ginny.  Why?"

Harry stood there, allowing Hermione to vent.  "I am doing what I can. As I said downstairs Ron and Ginny are liabilities for now.  You have stuck with me in the past and I need it again.  When we go in there I'll explain the basics, alright?"

Hermione nodded her head demurely as her eyes glistened.

"I will be referring to several things that you will never have heard of before when I describe to you what happened. Do not seek clarification.  The answers do not exist here and if you were to somehow find them…there is a reason that Tonks and I are the only survivors to through the ter'angreal.  Most of my story I won't tell until Voldemort is six-feet under and the Ministry is off my back.  Can you handle not knowing every detail right now?" Harry asked.

Another set of nodding happened while Hermione wiped her eyes.

"Good.  Let's go in and start this," Harry said as he reached over and grabbed Hermione by the small of her back and led her into the library before releasing her.

"Should I have worn my shawl?" Egwene said with a laugh in her voice upon seeing him dressed in the standard outfit of an Asha'man.

"That won't be necessary," Harry said looking around the room as he stood in front of the doorway.  The hairs on his skin stood up as the door behind sealed itself.  Thankfully Egwene was going to handle the warding of the meeting.  Tiper had obviously been by to deliver tea.  

McGonagall sat in a stiff wooden chair with one hand grasping her cup and the other her saucer waiting patiently.  Egwene sat with Andromeda and Ted on a large couch facing the fire, all looking relaxed.  Hermione sat down, still wringing her hands and looking uncomfortable.  It may have been a mistake to involve her so early, but she was his friend and he didn't want to keep her at arm's length.  Tonks was sprawled out on the floor in front of the fire.  Fred and George were on the other couch, hunched over a piece of parchment whispering to one another.  Noticing Harry's gaze upon them, they ceased talking and looked up at him.  "Evening.  You are all here tonight because I trust you and your discretion and I know in some form you care about me.  I will be disclosing a basic overview of what happened to me once I went through the ter'angreal in the Department of Mysteries.  Finally, I hope to recruit some if not all of you in my effort to wage war against the Death Eaters and Voldemort."

By now, everyone's attention was solely upon him.  He hated giving speeches. Let Perrin or Bashere give the speech, he simply approved the orders and led the charge.

"At the beginning of last week, I visited the ter'angreal that Sirius had fallen through with Tonks. Due to circumstances out of our control we both fell through as well.  We encountered an Eelfinn, who informed that my existence as Harry Potter was an unintended consequence of an enemy of a past incarnation of mine. 'I' was needed where I was intended, but due to the fact that I was born here I had to be lured to their territory for them…to somehow jumpstart my next incarnation." He held the rapt attention of everyone, except for Egwene who looked slightly bored and Hermione who looked like she was going to burst with questions.

"I was reborn as Rand al'Thor.  I grew up in a village named Emond's Field with Egwene here," Harry started with a wistful tone.  "I was a simple shepherd until nearly my twenties…when Trollocs led by a halfman attacked my farm and our village.  I learned that I was a target of the Dark One himself and the Forsaken."

"Why?? And what's the Dark One and the Forsaken?" Hermione blurted out.

"The Forsaken were thirteen channelers of incredible power and skill that served the Dark One.  The Dark One… can be considered to be the equivalent of Satan." Gasps came from the entire room as Harry saw Egwene visibly frown.  "Yes Egwene, I realize the implications of how similar the names are. And I was targeted because…I was a male channeler."

"No Rand, there's no need for you to be modest.  You were targeted because you were the Dragon Reborn, arguably the strongest channeler of the One Power in existence.  Don't play humble, you were never good at it," Egwene chided. "Do you need me to list your titles?"

"Titles?" George asked his interest piqued.

"Oh Harriekins, we see how it is," Fred said in a mournful tone. "Leave us and become some stuffy noble!"

Egwene snorted. "A noble?  You're addressing the Dragon Reborn, He Who Comes with the Dawn, Shadowkiller, Lord of the Morning, Prince of the Dawn and True Defender of the Light.  Chief of Chiefs to the Aiel.  Chosen One of the Seafolk.  King of Illian.  Husband to the Queen of Andor.  De facto ruler of Arad Doman, Cairhien, Mayene, Murandy and Tear.  He commanded the blades and bows of the Borderland nations. Yes, Rand here is a mere stuffy noble."

Silence greeted Egwene's diatribe.  All humor had left the twin's faces at this proclamation.  Hermione trembled with nervous energy, her mouth opening and closing as if she couldn't decide what to think or ask.  McGonagall along with all three Tonks simply stared with their mouths agape, their eyes never leaving Harry.

"Thank you Egwene," Harry said dryly.  "To conclude, I killed most of the Forsaken and the prison of the Dark One was resealed. Any questions?"

"Wait! Why did you need to reseal the prison? How did you go from leaving your village to killing all those Forsaken? What does it mean to be a channeler?" Hermione said in a near babble stream of questions.

"Husband!! You're married?" Tonks cried out while inspecting him.

"She was hot, wasn't she?" Fred inquired.

"Rand…or Harry here, was married three times over," Egwene said before sipping her tea to cover up her grin. Once again she had silenced the room.

"Three times over!?!" Fred and George cheered after several moments. They promptly high-fived one another as if they themselves had accomplished a great feat.

"Our Harry is truly a man Fred."

"Indeed he is.  Went from Miss Soggy to his own harem."

"Puts our deeds to shame.  Makes us look like little boys."

"Hah, you mean puts your deed to shame.  Alicia told me about your proposal to our dear friends.  How did it feel to get rejected thrice-over?"

"Probably the opposite of what Harry here experienced.  Wait a second, where are your women Harry?"

Harry had retreated to the flame internally when Egwene brought up his wives, pouring salt in his wounds.  Light he missed them!  He should throw her loss of Gawyn in her face, seeing how she liked it. Who could possibly understand the feeling of loss that he had experienced? Ilyena Lews Therin echoed in his head in a mournful tone. Light! Love where are you? Ilyena? It wasn't a pleasant feeling to know that the only person who could emphasize with your position was utterly insane.  "Gone.  Forever beyond my reach."

The sheer lack of emotion in his response killed all exuberance that was present in the Weasley twins.  He heard a sob and looked up to see Hermione covering her mouth with her hands while staring at him with tears coming down her face. He didn't dare make eye contact with anyone else.

"I'll take over answering questions now," Egwene said after nearly a minute of silence. "I won't go into what happened between our leaving Edmond's Field until Tarmon Gai'don for that would take months.   What I will say is that Rand…I suppose Harry to you folks, commanded the forces of the Light in a war on the scale of your World War II.

"Channelers are an easier question to answer. Both me and Rand here are channelers.  Only a fraction of a fraction of humans are able to channel.  We are capable of tapping into the One Power, which is drawn from the True Source.  The True Source is divided into male and female halves, saidin and saidar respectively.  The True Source is…everything. It powers the Wheel of Time, which weaves the threads of sentient life into an Age Lace that forms the reality for our Age. That clear?"

"As mud," Tonks muttered giving worried glances to Harry that he could see while focusing on the fireplace.

"At a later time I may be willing to expand upon my explanation. But for now I don't know any of you well enough to divulge…such arcane knowledge.  But this takes us off topic, I believe we were going to next discuss your plans to fight Voldemort."

Harry ceased his introspection to see everyone's attention had returned to him again. It was time to outline his strategy to combat the Death Eater and Voldemort threat.  He sorely missed Mat; his ability to fight guerrilla warfare was unparalleled.  "I plan to succeed where the Ministry and the Order have failed, successfully destroying the Death Eaters terrorists and Voldemort." He was proud to see no one in the room flinch at the name Voldemort. "For simplicities sake, we will be structured into either active combat units or intelligence assets with me in overall command.  On the combat side, I will be in charge directly of all users of saidin, Egwene will command the users of saidar, while Tonks, if you accept the position will command wand units." He paused when he saw Tonks raise her hand.

"Was Mistress al'Vere exaggerating when she named all those new nicknames you picked up?" Tonks asked in a serious tone.

"I have been called many things. But yes, I have been called all of those at one time or another."

"Wicked! I'll take the job.  It's nice to know that you have the experience and credentials to back up the offer.  You've seriously made me getting fired the best thing to happen to me yet."

"You got fired princess?" Ted Tonks interrupted starting at his daughter in shock. Andromeda did not look pleased as well.

Tonks casually dismissed her parent's concerns with a wave of her hand from her spot on the floor. "Eh, I was in places I wasn't supposed to be, so Rufus decided I wasn't loyal enough.  No worries though.  Harry put on a show for me and then decided to hire me for what appears to be a promotion from my old position. All's well that end's well I say."

Andromeda grunted noncommittally while Ted stared at her for a few more moments before smiling at her approvingly. "Way to land on your feet princess! So what have you got for me and Andi Harry?"

"I'll need both of your assistance in financing this operation.  You two hold the purse-strings to what money I have."

"You do have some wealth Harry, enough to live comfortably by yourself without working for maybe up to ten years.  No matter how stingy those bastard goblins are, they at least let the interest accrue while you were growing up."

"For now earmark up to half of it for operational use.  Tonks, what was your salary with the Minister?"

Tonks went to open her mouth but was interrupted by her mother before she could speak. "Nonsense Harry. You're virtually family and still technically our ward.  Her salary will at least come from the Black vaults."

Harry shrugged, "Very well.  As long as Tonks get paid at least a comparable salary I don't care where the money comes from." He then turned towards Fred and George.  "I won't pigeonhole you two into any one role. I can imagine many uses for you.  If you are agreeable I would like to contract you on an ad hoc basis." He waited for them to nod in agreement before turning towards Hermione. "I'm not sure what to do with you.  I suppose that if we have any questions regarding magic that the resources of Hogwarts can answer I'll send them your way."

"I'll be glad to help Harry." He didn't like the quiver in her voice. It sounded like she was going to have a breakdown in his name. "Do you want me and Ron to continue the DA?"

The DA would be a useful asset. Trained properly he could expect several witches and wizards to supplement his ranks come June, plus Hogwarts would have a built in militia to defend it. He would just have to insure that they were loyal to him and not Dumbledore. "That works.  Change the name though to Defense Association. We will no longer be suckling from the tit of Dumbledore." A sharp cough indicated that the comment had not gone unheard by McGonagall. "No need to be concerned Professor, I haven't forgotten you. How would you like to be the liaison between my organization and the Order?"

"That would be satisfactory Mr. Potter.  Although I would greatly appreciate it if you could show some respect to the Headmaster."

"When he learns that he makes for a good politician and not a good general he'll start to earn my respect."

"Very well Mr. Potter. I'll convey your concerns.  And how am I supposed to refer to your new organization?"

That was a good question.  He hadn't even considered that issue, giving more credence to the thought that he really needed to identify some good help fast.  Names from several of the military units he commanded jumped out at him. Yet he felt awkward trying to attach one of their names to this new organization he was establishing here.  He immediately ruled out naming it after any of the Aiel sects; he would not tarnish them by bestowing their name upon individuals who did not share their ideals.  To be honest, the more he thought about it he ruled out the names of units such as the Band of the Red Hand, the Winged Guard, or the Companions.  He was simply too attached to their commanders and with the exception of Egwene…the people here were untested compared to the men who formed those units.

He did like the concept of the Band of the Red Hand though, paying homage to the men and women of Manetheren.  He recalled Moiraine telling the story and the battle cry of the last king of Manetheren: Carai an Ellisande! For the honor of the Rose of the Sun!   The rose.  Not only did Elayne wear the Rose Crown when she ascended to Queen of Andor, the rose was the national emblem of England.  "Shen an Ellisande. That will be our name."

Puzzled looks greeted his pronouncement until clarity struck Egwene. "Very nice, you pay homage both to Manetheren and Elayne." Seeing more confused faces around her, she smiled, "Ellisande is Old Tongue for 'Rose of the Sun.' She was the last Queen of Manetheren, who upon feeling the death of her husband King Aemon, she drew too much of the One Power and incinerated herself and her capital city while destroying the invading forces of the Shadow.  While Emond's Field was technically part of Andor when we grew up, it had been part of Manetheren when it existed.  The rose also symbolizes his wife Elayne.  The Rose Crown was worn by the Queens of Andor."

"Merlin! Our group is going to be called the Rose of the Sun?" Fred asked looking a tad queasy at the name.

"No, it translates as 'Band of the Rose of the Sun'.   But it will formally be known as Shen an Ellisande." Harry looked at the grandfather clock ticking away next to the fireplace.  It was after 1900, well past the usual dinnertime he assumed for most the people here.  "For now I will not require any oaths to me or the cause.  The people who know this though are limited.  The only person I expect to learn anything besides you assembled here is Dumbledore. On that note, shall we adjourn for dinner downstairs?"

Agreements were uttered by all present as they began to file out of the room as the wards dropped and the doors opened.  Harry noticed to his consternation that Egwene had remained in her spot and closed the doors upon Tonks leaving with Fred and George.  

"I apologize for bringing up Aviendha, Elayne and Min Rand.  I…thought you were taking time by yourself to cope. Light knows I've spent half my days here bawling my eyes out over Gawyn and everyone else. I've even cried over the fact that I won't have to put up with Mat anymore.  You truly have been only going through your sword forms, haven't you?"

Harry coolly arched an eyebrow back at her. That was all that was needed to let her know she was correct.

"Fool of a man. Why must men be so lacking of common sense? Are you going to require me to guide you through the mourning process?"

"I'd prefer a spot of violence."

"Light help me.  I'll give you until tomorrow to get your fill of violence. And no, I refuse to 'spar' with you.  If you are still retreating into yourself by the midday supper I'm going to hold you to my bosom until you remember how to cry."

He was tempted to leer, but guilt immediately hit him for even entertaining that thought.  He reluctantly nodded his head to signal his consent to her plan. Immediately the doors opened themselves.

"I'm glad you can listen to reason.  Come now, dinner awaits," Egwene stated as she walked out of the library.

Cursed Aes Sedai always trying to subdue us.  How dare she thinks she can command us!?

For the first time in a while Harry fully agreed with Lews Therin.

______________________________________________________________________________

Harry awoke to the sound of a redwing.  Light! Those were only native to the Two Rivers.  Somebody had stepped onto the fourth floor that he solely occupied, triggering the wards.  He embraced saidin while throwing off the covers.  His door flew open as Tonks ran in, only to blush and turn around at seeing him naked.

"Put on some sodding clothes Harry! There's a Death Eater attack in Pickering! Moody is going to be here with a Portkey in two minutes, so get your arse down to the entry hall," Tonks spat out before sprinting back towards the stairs.

Weaving air, the outfit he had worn earlier in the night came towards him, as if being guided by invisible hands.  He quickly dressed himself, before heading down the stairs.  Thankfully only Egwene was present, clad in a dark cloak that covered the top of her head along with Tonks tapping her wand impatiently, her hair now black to blend in with her robe and the night.  The Weasley's along with Hermione and Professor McGonagall had thankfully left after an awkward and quiet dinner while the elder Tonks had returned to their home.

"So how do we know where they're attacking?" Egwene asked idly.  "I thought your only source of intelligence amongst them was Master Snape."

Tonks snorted softly saying "master" under her breath.  "No, mind you this all comes from Moody, but as I understand it all the police stations in the British Isles are warded to detect dark magic.  I've been told that the first few 'revels' the Death Eaters participated in were cut short by muggle emergency services showing up quickly.  They learned that in order to have free reign of a place, they had to take out the EMS personnel first.  It will usually take an hour or two for there to be enough magic saturation to alert the Ministry so they could easily raze a village of up to ten thousand before the first Auror or Obliviator responds."

Harry blinked at Tonks's long-winded explanation. To be frank he was surprised that the purebloods that formed the Death Eaters knew enough about the muggles to neutralize them like that.

He heard a whoosh along with muttered curses before a distinctive gait was heard coming towards them. Mad-Eye Moody facial expression as strode towards them looked as if he had a hedgehog attached to his crotch.  "Can I trust you and your woman not to blow out my neck Potter?" Moody demanded.

"Don't point your wand at us and we won't harm a head on your hair," Harry said in a flat tone.  "Are you willing to pay the butcher's bill?"

"Always.  Probably won't tonight though. Killing wizards takes too much damn paperwork and the purebloods at the Ministry throw a bloody hissy fit unless you do them a favor and knock off a muggle-born.  Now lets stop talking as if we're at a tea party. Grab hold of this umbrella so I can activate this Portkey."

All four of them grasped the umbrella before Moody tapped his wand against it.  The world blurred away as Harry's equilibrium was shot as he spun about at a dizzying pace. After far too long the world phased into normal as he and Egwene were tossed to the ground. He noted with small amusement that Tonks lasted all of three steps before she too ate asphalt.

The acrid smell of ash was the first thing he noticed when he took in his surroundings. He appeared to be in the middle of a parking lot with a spattering of cars parked in it.  A row of brick and stone houses stood in front of him while turning his head there appeared to be an art boutique standing next to a small market. The electricity was out though. Street lights stood dead, allowing only the stars above and a waning moon to provide light. Focusing back on the houses he could see the flicker of flames from inside the house something…most likely someone was burning if he could tell from the smells.

A loud shout caught his attention.  He stood up into a crouched position before heading towards a parked car.  He raised his head above the hood to only see a black robe enter a house.  A muffled "Crucio" was heard before a woman's scream tore through the air.

"Damn fools aren't even bothering to cast silent," Moody griped as he started towards him.  Harry heard a strange pop - as if his ears had decompressed - and turned around to see sixteen more people appear in three clusters.  He assumed they were Order members since Moody didn't attack them.

A rustle distracted him as Egwene withdrew a bolt of powder blue cloth from inside her cloak that promptly cut itself into several equal swathes. "Quickly, tie these to your left arms so that we can identify friend from foe."

Harry stared in satisfaction as the members of the Order quickly complied. He couldn't easily tell who they were due to the darkness - he thought he saw Bill Weasley - but was glad to see that the powder blue armbands were easily identifiable.   They fidgeted nervously though.  Except for Moody they were all too green.  He doubted a single one sans Moody had a killer's instinct.  The Order had been operating for over a year though.  It seemed more and more likely that Snape had been withholding information if the Order hadn't seen any battles yet.

The woman's screams had died off; time was wasting.  "It is time for the pipers to play the dance," Harry said reveling in the void.  Saidin sang to him as he began to draw it into himself.  He idly noted a concerned look from Tonks before the predominance of goose bumps on his skin signaled that Egwene was escalating her own channeling.  

Emerging from the house of the woman being tortured were three figures in dark cloaks and white masks.  Death Eaters. Without a second thought he weaved fire and air.  Lightning lashed out from a cloudless sky striking all three, nearly deafening Harry from his position as thunder reverberated down the street. Nothing but charred corpses remained of the Death Eaters. He was already moving on, advancing slowly in a walk towards the west where he could see further fires.  Thankfully stone and ceramic tiles didn't take easily to burning.

"What the bloody hell are you? How and why did you kill them?"

He quickly glanced back, staring at an unknown man with a powder blue armband on his left arm.  Did he not realize they were in a battle? Looking beyond him he saw the rest of the Order members grouped loosely beyond the man.  A woman was throwing up noisily against the car he had previously hid behind.

"Speak to me only if you have information about Death Eater movements or attacks.  I'm here to fight and win. Shut up and get out of my way."

"Rand, I will risk burning myself out if I make a gateway and then try to fight without an angreal. Could you make a gateway to the middle of those fires there," Egwene said pointing to the west.

Ideas swam through his head.  There were an unknown number of Death Eaters here.  It would be far easier to simply drop down in the middle of them and draw them to his position. "How large of a dome of air can you channel?"

"Perhaps one five hundred spans in all directions. I could maintain it nearly indefinitely once the weaves are complete."

"Do so once we arrive. Wand users, you will shield our position," Harry ordered in a flat tone. "Be sure to maintain barriers of earth to stop the unforgivables.  Prepare to cast quickly." He glanced worriedly at Egwene and Tonks.  He did not want to add any more women to the list.

Harry made a gateway on the sidewalk, three meters tall and three meters wide, and ran through as he tied off the weave, filled with saidin and Egwene and Moody at his heals.  He arrived into the razing of a street. Gouts of flame spat from houses as the trees and fields burned liberally.  The all too familiar stench of charred flesh wafted through the air.  A flurry of ash blew through the air while the smoke suffocated Harry with every breath he took.  The melted frames of cars only completed the apocalyptic scene in front of him.

He was pleased to see Moody and three other wizards transfiguring the asphalt pavement into barriers.  Egwene stood in deep concentration in the middle as she deftly weaved air to trap the Death Eaters into their grave.  He waited for the Order members to finish running through the gateway before he closed it.

"Full circle you wankers. Jones, take you and Richards to cover us from the east.  Weasley you and Roberts have the south.  Billings and Martin take the west while Perkins and Lee take the north. The rest of us reinforce the gaps and lay down fire when we can," Tonks said in an authoritative voice. "Spread out further!  We don't want to be clustered so tightly to make this a barrel shoot for them."

Harry was impressed. He had never seen her perform her duties as an Auror and was pleased to see her assume a command position so rapidly.  With his hold on saidin though he could see the involuntary jitters that racked her body, displaying her nerves as light from flame flickered over her face.  It spoke to the strength of her character that she could overcome her nerves to get the job done.  

The tingle he felt on his skin subsided from a near roar to a trickle as Egwene turned to face him and nodded.  Her role was done, which meant it was time for him to play his.

Harry thrust his hand high and channeled. "Death Eaters!  You cowards face helpless muggles!  Come here and prove to me that you are not feckless inbred pureblooded servants of that insane bastard Voldemort!" Weaves of air and fire helped his voice boom across the west ward of Pickering.  He anticipated that whoever was in charge of the Death Eaters would be unable to resist retaliating to his taunts. His goal was to kill as many as quick as possible before they caught on.

Twin flashes of green came from the South nearly two minutes later as two Death Eaters strode out of a house.  Harry noted with satisfaction that immediately two barriers expanded to absorb the magic before they exploded into dust.  He channeled fire and the two Death Eaters fell to the ground, fire gutting out of their orifices.

A wizard behind him grunted as spells slammed into his position, knocking him to the ground, blood seeping from his right side.  It was either Billings or Martin.  The witch he was partnered with began to desperately cast Protego Horribilis repeatedly as she sought to protect him from further harm.  Looking, he could see several Death Eaters now hugging the terrain as they cast various colored spells towards him.  It made no difference. Fire blossomed from the ground in geysers, sending chunks of asphalt and stone flying through the air mixed with blood and flesh.  Groans from a man could be heard as he stumbled forward a few steps at an odd angle before collapsing, exposing the left third of his body sheared off.

Egwene took advantage of Harry clearing out the Death Eaters to the west to approach the wounded wizard and heal him.  He was in good hands, Nynaeve had taught her what tricks she could.

 

A figure darted out from behind the ruins of a wall to disappear with a sharp crack.  Moments later a red shower came raining down above where he Disapparated from.  It appeared that Egwene's dome of air acted as a fatal Anti-Apparition ward.

Harry heard Bill cry out to only see that his partner lay dead with a glassy-eyed expression on his face.  Moody was laying down a stream of low powered curses silently to light up the location from where the curse had come from.  Harry focused in that direction channeling earth now.  The ground shook beneath the building to have it collapse in on itself, trapping whoever had killed Roberts inside the wreckage.

Perspiration was now getting in his eyes as the heat of the spreading fires began to get to him.  His eyes stung as smoke began to rapidly reduce his visibility as he further opened himself up to saidin ready to dispatch the next attack.

But no more curses came.  Straining he could hear voices drifting in from the east only for a few moments before he heard a "Morsmordre" being yelled out. Then the only sound to be heard was the crackling of the flames.  

"Stand down," Harry ordered after a few more minutes of nothing happening.  He refused to release saidin, incase this was a lull before another attack.

"John? Oh god John, oh no oh oh no…" the woman who had earlier thrown up chanted in a mantra.  She was either Billings or Martin now that he paid closer attention as she cradled Roberts's body.

Seeing no movement he focused back on the Order members. Excluding Egwene and Moody, all of the Order members looked either shell shocked or nauseous.  He noted with satisfaction that Moody, Hestia Jones, and Tonks had refused to relax their wands though as they trained their eyes on the surroundings.

"Merlin…what did you do to those people? How could you have just killed them like that?" that same annoying man from earlier asked him.

He ignored the man as he channeled air to clear out the smoke limiting their visibility to twenty meters.  Towards the east the sickly green sigil of the Dark Mark was visible. "How much longer do we have until the Ministry arrives?"

"At most an hour," Moody said in a gruff tone.

"Do we have time to help save the muggles who survived and start putting out these fires?"

"Yes.  Hestia, you take care of Elena here.  Tonks, you guard our two new best chums.  The rest of you lot follow me."

Harry watched as Hestia Jones pulled the woman…Elena into a gentle embrace as she broke down into tears. Moody set off in a fast paced clip for him with thirteen Order members, barking out instructions as they began to put out fires in order to sweep the houses one by one to look for survivors.

Egwene stood up slowly from where she had been healing Elena's partner to stand near him and Tonks. "Light," Egwene said softly. "I need to find an angreal."

"You did well.  Did you see how your weaves of air acted as a fatal Anti-Apparition ward?  I wonder how they got out of it. I suppose it doesn't stop Portkeys," Harry mused in a cool tone.  "You performed excellent as well Tonks.  I saw how you took command immediately once we went through the gateway."

Tonks smiled wanly.  "You did tell me I was in command of the wand users.  Plus I ran my own patrol of four Aurors back with the Ministry.  Helps to take top marks in the Academy."

Harry returned the smile.  "Can you drop your barrier in case any EMS wants to get in?"  Harry asked looking at Egwene.  He felt his skin tingle as she complied before he turned back towards Tonks.  "If I wanted to get a report from you and Moody at least, where should we meet?"

"McGonagall said we would start meeting at her house on the outskirts of Glasgow.  I can see if we can meet up at her place tomorrow evening."

"Make it happen.  I believe we have found several recruits for Shen an Ellisande tonight."

A comfortable silence fell amongst the trio as they watched Moody's men put out the last fire in their vicinity.  Unfortunately, not a single survivor had yet to be seen.  The Death Eaters were as savage as Trollocs.

Seeing no further threats Harry released his hold on saidin.  Considering the circumstances, tonight's encounter had been a smashing success.  One loss to at least fifteen Death Eaters by his count.  The butcher's bill had been light.