Stepping into the Sky - Chapter 22

Hunted on Valentine

Whizzing through the atmosphere, Elena's shuttle flew with a small crew of soldiers. Her modified scanners were looking for recent points of mass entry into the atmosphere. The shuttle was on automatic pilot and Elena was thumbing through the pages of a leather tome that contained parchments rather than papers.

She paused on the picture of the class photo and her eyes lingered on the boy grimacing at the camera.

The idea of capturing and questioning that boy in the photo excited her immensely.

"Cruiser Titan has responded positively Commander. They caught the boy on their security feed."

Elena's eyes turned to the display screen. "Radio their Captain. Order him to clear the main deck. Relay the message to the Command Centre asking for support to monitor the traffic."

"Commander? Not the landing hanger?"

Elena didn't answer. She didn't need a footsoldier to know she detested being ordinary. Landing on the deck was anything but that and it made her smile.

The night was receding and the sun would be rising soon.

The anticipation for a perfect start to a new day made her smile as they cruised towards the Titan before finally making a howl as their shuttle landed on the massive luxury ship.

On board, against a cold breeze wiping through the decks, Elena was greeted by Captain Decker.

"Welcome aboard Commander," greeted the Captain. "Your arrival is… unexpected."

"Take me to the security feeds," she ordered.

Decker looked at her with patience. "We got the image you sent. Although it was not too clear, we believe we have located the suspect. Could you elaborate on the situation? We need to ensure the safety of our esteemed passengers."

Elena just stared at him, deadpan. Was he seriously thinking this was a discussion?

"Is there something wrong?"

"Don't test my patience Captain. When I give an order, I expect it to be followed."

Decker looked at her with a calculating look and then backed off with a fake smile. "It's right this way." He knew who she was.

The troop of officers followed the captain through the slumbering ship. Guests were still around, lazily heading back to their rooms, some back to bars, others off for massages on the pool deck. The majority were in deep sleep, having pleasant dreams, unaware of the intimidating visitors gate-crashing their vacation.

The security deck was less of a room and more a giant hall lit with soft blue light housing a massive curved screen and staff sitting in a row of cubicles before it, monitoring every movement on the cruiser using intelligent software.

The men and women manning the controls looked bemused when they saw the mark of the Alliance Military on the uniforms of the newcomers. What was the Military doing here, they wondered.

"Have you tracked his movement?" she barked.

"He was at a bar last time we checked."

"Last time you checked?" Elena scowled. "You haven't been keeping track of him?!"

The guards looked to Decker for approval and he nodded. "Show her," he said simply.

-x-x-x-x-

In a bed draped with silk sheets and tangled legs, Harry woke up. At first he was confused. His first recollection was that of River. River in his arms. Naked. Soft. Shock coursed through his body and he sat up in alarm. He hadn't had sex with River had he?! He looked beside him, confused, and to his relief, saw Natalie - still asleep. His memories felt jumbled. He took deep breaths and tried sorting through his thoughts. What the hell had happened last night? Why did his head hurt so bad?

It took him a moment to align his thoughts and when he did he was stumped. He remembered having sex with Natalie and then it wasn't her but River. "What the fuck," he groaned. "Did I hallucinate it? How much did I smoke?"

He groaned and rubbed his temples. "Hangover," he grumbled and stumbled out of bed to look for his pants.

Light streamed in through the window and Harry groaned again. He was probably late to the rendezvous and Mal was definitely pissed. He had to go no matter how much he wanted to wake Natalie and play again.

He found his pants by the bathroom door and pulled out his wand to cast a freshening charm on himself. His lethargy faded and alertness returned as he got dressed and turned towards the beautiful woman sleeping on her stomach with her face flat on the mattress and mouth half open, breathing softly, deep in sleep.

"Natalie."

He had to say goodbye.

"Hey Nat."

She didn't even budge.

He walked over to her and poked her in the shoulder. 

She mumbled something incoherent and her hands tapped around, looking for sheets and pulled the covers over her head.

Harry chuckled. "Maybe I'll leave a letter," he muttered but then a perverse thought entered his mind.

This was a perfect chance for sweet revenge.

Harry grinned and drew his wand.

-x-x-x-x-

When Mal and his crew got back to the shuttles, Zoe was waiting for them patiently and River was there too - fast asleep.

It was an hour before the break of dawn and they had finally worked out a way to leave the planet with the cargo. The plan was simple, the risk; high.

"Are we good?" Zoe asked. She recognised that look in Mal's eyes.

Mal grinned. "Yea, I feel so. Gotta job and a way out."

"And the risk level Cap'n?" she asked.

Mal laughed. "Fire her up Kaylee. Let's go back to Serenity."

"We can't. Harry's not here."

It was then Mal opened his eyes and scanned the shuttle. River was curled up in a ball under the console and he found the tiny smile she was sporting creepy. River never smiled. She only smiled when she was killing something. His fight or flight instincts flared and he felt they had to move fast.

"That kid is so rutting irresponsible." Mal exclaimed. "Everyone was to meet in the shuttle before dawn!"

"Oh relax Mal," Inara snapped. "He probably got caught up with having fun. Fun…. Have you heard of the term Mal?"

"We ain't here for fun Inara. We're on the run… we can't just whore ourselves out of sticky situations like you."

SLAP!

Inara stormed out.

"That tongue of yours is going to get you killed one day Cap'n," Kaylee muttered.

"It was a joke!" Mal shouted at Inara's retreating back.

Inara ignored him and headed back into the cruiser.

"Where are you going? We have to wait for Harry!" Inara didn't respond. "Fine!" Mal shouted again. "We'll just leave without you!"

River giggled in her sleep.

Zoe sighed. "Why don't you tell me what went down Cap'n. What's the job?"

"Well…. It's a funny story….."

-x-x-x-x-

Inara felt a searing anger that she could usually control. That man! She fumed. He knew she loved him. She knew he loved her. And yet there was this divide between them. A bitter divide of personalities that frustrated her. To her, being a companion was a spiritual world where she connected with the soul of another and traveled a path of healing or self discovery. To Mal it was just sex. And that was wherein the problem lay.

Like it or not, he was a soldier. Desperate for freedom. He saw the world in black and white and she saw all kinds of colors in between. She loved his commitment to his crew and his capacity for goodness. His personality on the other hand.

Inara growled. Why did she have to fall for him? All it had done was make her life difficult! She felt like tearing her hair out. Being in love was complicated. She needed to talk to someone. It was the first time in her life she felt like reaching out to another and as if it was spiritual intervention, she saw a plaque on the corridor she was walking down with an arrow pointing left to the Companion Temple.

The corridors seemed to change colors as she turned left. The red carpet that so elegantly draped the insides of the cruiser turned silver and the high metal walls that River had so enjoyed following turned to friendly wood.

As expected, the corridor turned skyward and became steps along the way. Companion Temples were always built as high as possible. Reason being the air was cleaner and minds calmer. Of course, this being a cruiser, wouldn't make much of a difference but the wonderful breeze she felt that swept across the open platform felt almost divine.

The steps flattened into a large open platform that was built at the tail end of the ship. Wind arrestors made of glass surrounded the circular platform allowing a wondrous view of an open blue ocean all around.

At the center was a tranquil black stone statue of meditation surrounded by candles, incense and a few men and women in states of meditation.

Inara smiled. Her anger melted away. She felt home.

She walked towards the edges and looked down at the cruiser. A ship that hosted parties and revelries every night with no end in sight. It was fantasy made reality until the credits ran out.

Her eyes ran up to the main deck of the cruiser, barely visible in the distance and her eyes widened. A shuttle was falling out of the sky and within a few seconds had landed elegantly on the deck. Even though it was at a fair distance, it was easy to recognize the profile of the shuttles commanded by the Military.

Almost instinctively she knew it was a shuttle from the battle cruiser. They had been found… and Harry was missing.

"Gorramit! Why is that boy so irresponsible sometimes!?" Suddenly she was on the same page as Mal and hurrying back to the shuttle. Shit was going to fly. She knew it.

She was back in no time and saw Mal leaning by the shuttle door looking sour.

"Mal," she shouted.

Mal looked up with relief and Inara felt her heart warm.

"Look Inara," he began apologetically.

"Later," she huffed. "We got a bigger problem. The Military is here."

Mal didn't look surprised. "Looks like our entrance wasn't as full proof as it was supposed to be."

The pair hurried into the shuttle and powered her on.

The jolt roused River and with cat-like agility, she was on her feet and on guard.

"Whoa, easy there monkey," Zoe laughed. "What's going on Cap'n?"

"The Military is here."

"Uh-oh. We're leaving? What about Harry?"

"He can teleport aboard. But if we don't leave soon, this ships gonna be locked down making escape impossible. Let's head back to Serenity and think of a plan."

"So," Kaylee said to River with a weary smile. "Did you have a good time by yourself?"

River smiled innocently, "The best."

Kaylee sighed. "Stupid old Cap'n was the worst. Did you run into Harry by any chance?"

River kept quiet. She could still taste him on her lips. Feel his tongue in her mouth, creating a pleasure inside her she hadn't known possible. She knew exactly where he was and who he was with.

"River?"

"No," she replied, feeling her body heat up. "I didn't." She let out a shuddering breath as she turned away from Kaylee. The feeling had been incredible. She wanted to do it again. 

No wonder Kaylee was always pulling Simon into dark corners. River chuckled as the shuttle powered on with a powerful hum. 

“River?” 

“Hope he makes it out alright,” River whispered. 

-x-x-x-x-

A fully dressed Harry was putting the finishing touches on his artwork when the doors to the room burst open.

He froze, his head turned sharply towards the door and his eyes widened when a woman in uniform came into frame, holding a gun in her hand, and it was pointed at him. 

His eyes widened further. It was the same woman from the alliance cruiser!

"Harry P-" she began with an authoritative voice before her eyes went wide . "OH MY GOD!"

"Commander?"

"I… What… Just stand down!"

Harry was too stunned by the sudden entrance and shriek to react.

"Step away from the lady!" Elena switched her gun to stun and aimed.

"Wait!" Harry exclaimed in alarm. "This is not what it looks like!"

It was unfortunate that Natalie had chosen that moment to wake up. "Umm, Harry?" she murmured. Not able to move her hands freely, she realized something was wrong and her eyes snapped open and she was looking down at herself. She was naked, had a phallus balloon between her legs and her hands were tied above her to the bed frame were the first things she grasped upon. Harry! she fumed in her mind for a brief second until she noticed a woman in Military uniform pointing a gun at… she turned her head right and saw an alarmed Harry.

She grinned.

"Help! Help me!" she screamed.

Harry felt the blood drain from his face. Cold fear ran down his back. This was bad. His moment of triumph over Natalie was turning into a clusterfuck of a situation. He didn't have to read her mind to know she was going to make this as bad for him as possible.

"Drop the wand," Elena barked.

Harry gripped it tighter.

"I said drop it!"

Harry grinned. "Bye!" It was time to make a graceful exit. With a picture of Serenity’s cargo bay in his mind, he teleported .

Elena fired as soon as she saw his image disappear with a slight pop but found air in his place and the metal sizzled behind. "Gorram! He got away! Doesn't this ship have rutting anti teleportation shields?!" she screamed at the Captain and the five soldiers behind her, looking dumb.

They didn't respond and she followed their line of sight to the woman staring at the space Harry had disappeared in shock. Across her abdomen, in thick pink paint and exquisite calligraphy were the words, She Came. He Conquered.

Elena felt white hot fury. "Out!" she shouted.

"Commander… what's…?"

"Get out and find him, you morons!"

They scuttled.

"Thank you," Natalie said. As embarrassing and confusing as this situation was, confidence was returning to her voice. "Do you mind untying me? I feel the keys under my ass."

"Be quiet," Elena growled. "We saw the security tapes. You were happily sticking your hands down his pants in the corridor so don't show me that act of innocence."

Natalie went silent. This was the Alliance Military. The most powerful force in the verse. For them to be here and not regular security meant there was more to the story and it probably had something to do with Harry and that fucking disappearing act.

"What can I say? He's a smooth talker and I was in the mood. Is there a problem with that? Why are you here anyway? I'm not underage you know."

Elena stared at the woman calculatingly. Judging by the dragon tattoo, the piercings in her ears and the attitude, she was probably in a rebellious phase of life. She had come across many like this one in her patrols across the verse. Most of them were runaways desiring freedom from the rules of the Alliance.

She walked up to her and removed the balloon. Low on her abdomen more words were written. You should have heard her scream.

"Lift," Elena grumbled fighting the blush spreading along her neck and Natalie lifted her ass.

The cuffs were un-cuffed and Natalie slid off the bed and stood up, looking Elena in the eye with caution. "May I get dressed?" she asked meekly.

"Be quick about it. I have questions and you better have answers."

Natalie sauntered to her cupboard.

Elena found it difficult to look away. The woman was … well curved. Almost Companion like. Her gait, her faint accent, the way she spoke… everything screamed high born to her. She would know seeing she was one of them after all.

The communicator crackled.

"Commander," came a strong male voice. "Mr Spade's cruiser has arrived."

"Tell him to raise the net," she barked. "There's no getting away for them."

The Net was an array of retractor beams that required three battle cruisers equally spaced around a planet. No one who had encountered the Net had ever escaped. It was technology used by the highest authorities of the Alliance. Only they had the power to take command of more than three battle cruisers. Elena didn't have the authority yet but Spade, through her father, certainly did.

She grinned. She couldn't wait to hold that kind of power in her hands.

"Are you done?" she asked.

"Yes," Natalie grumbled. She put on her work clothes, this time fully buttoned up. It was best to appear as a law abiding worker.

Elena pointed her gun to the door. "March," she barked.

Natalie steeled her mind. She needed to be at her sharpest if she had to get out of this bind. This Alliance chick felt dangerous and volatile.

"Head to the main deck."

Along the way Natalie turned to Elena and smiled.

"What is it?" Elena asked with a scowl. She was still irritated that she allowed Harry Potter to escape even though he was right within her sights. Not to mention she knew he could teleport. She should have been better prepared!

"Thanks," Natalie lied. "You kicked those guys out as soon as you saw what that jerk had done to me. Thanks for saving me some modesty." Harry had underestimated her if he thought being naked and tied up was something to be worried about. She didn't come this far by worrying about her modesty.

"If you want to talk then tell me about him. How do you know him? Where did you meet?"

"On Beaumonde," Natalie replied. "I was working there as a waitress before I managed to land this job. We had a one night stand there and kinda replicated that here."

Natalie almost laughed when Elena's eyes widened briefly before settling into a scowl. So this young officer was still naive in the ways of the world, she thought to herself. 

"Keep moving," Elena said stiffly, pointing her gun at the oncoming stairs.

Layer lie with truth. Natalie was preparing the inevitable questions about her heritage.

-x-x-x-x-

On Serenity, Simon was startled out of his wits when Harry teleported right in front of him with a loud crack.

"Ta Ma Duh, Harry!"

"Sorry," Harry gasped. His heart was racing. That was not a situation any man wished to be in. And in his hurry he had nearly splinched himself and instead managed a rough ride through space and time.

"What are you doing back here?!"

"We got to move," Harry said. His breath was still short as he regained his calm and began to see the humor in the situation. "We got to move or we're fucked. The Military is here."

"What!" Simon gasped.

Jayne walked into the medical room at that moment. "Wassup," he grumbled. "Are we running?"

"Yea," Harry said.

"About rutting time," Jayne said with a grin. "I've been waiting to get off this damned planet. Can we please go to a planet with a goddamn old fashioned bar for once!"

"If we can get away," mumbled Simon as Jayne and Harry hurriedly brought Serenity to life. "I hope River and the others are safe!" he called out worriedly.

"They're fine," Harry said. "They're probably bloody furious I didn't make it to the rendezvous."

"You what!"

"It's a long fucking story, Simon," Harry snapped. "Let's focus on retrieving our shuttle and crew first?"

"River," Simon muttered worriedly.

"They're probably fine," Harry guessed. "Me on the other hand…" he shuddered. "If Natalie has it her way, my name's going to be dragged through the mud all over the verse," he muttered. "I got to do damage control…" "For Merlin’s sake!"

Simon and Jayne exchanged looks as the shuttle shook and rose into the sky, disengaging the ship's cloak that Harry had enchanted.

"Where's little Mal?" Harry asked.

"Asleep," Jayne grunted. "I guess we're not dropping him off here either?"

"I think we're stuck with him for the time being, Jayne."

Along the way they were pinged by the shuttle and Mal's voice crackled over the com. "JAYNE! SIMON!"

"For fucks sake, Mal," Harry hissed back. "Keep it down! You'll wake little Mal."

There was a moment of shocked silence.

"Harry? What the fuck are you doing on Serenity?"

"It's a long story but cap'n, we gotta run!"

"You jackass. Do you have something to do with this shit-storm coming our way?"

"Oye!" Harry replied indignantly. "Coming to this planet was your plan! This shit-storm is on you!"

"What are you being so defensive for?" Mal retorted. "You're on Serenity and not where you're supposed to be 'cause you must have run! What did you do? Why didn't you stick to the plan!"

"Well…" Harry sighed. He was getting irritated with all the questioning. It was too awkward to talk about it just yet. "Beautiful women just kept falling all over me," he said instead.

This time the silence meant something else entirely and Harry grinned. He was beginning to feel better. Maybe once they got away, he'd take stock of the crisis and put his mind to it.

Magic was on his side.

Magic.

Suddenly he gasped. The female officer had told him to put down his wand! How did she know what it was called?! She also called him out by his fucking name! Was she a witch in the service of the Alliance? Did she know about the genocide?

This was bad, he thought. His entire psyche shifted from the instinct to run to a deep and foreboding fortune.

Beside him Jayne frowned at the sudden look of worry over Harry's face. "Was the sex that bad?" he asked.

"What?.. No. It's something else… never mind."

Simon and Jayne exchanged another look.

"They’re here," Harry said after a while and smoothly maneuvered the ship to receive and dock them. He then turned the ship around back to the grove so that they could hide and plan their escape.

Metal thudded on metal. Footsteps clanged on steel. The crew began to work on pre-flight checks to ensure the ship was ready and finally they were gathered in their little lobby for a breath of calm analysis.

All that time, Harry had tried to get River's attention but she kept avoiding him, intentionally or not, he wasn’t sure. Now at the table Harry finally caught her eye and he saw nothing. Just her typical distracted self. There was no sign she was aware of what happened last night.

He had thought about it when she came aboard and he was sure it had something to do with magic and the mind. The question was, was it real? Was she really there? Was that really her perky breasts he was kissing last night? Was it her rocking on him with a tight grip on his hair and kissing his neck with roused passion? 

Harry gulped. If she was not showing any signs of that memory, he certainly needed to keep his thoughts to himself. 

"Alright, so let's start with Harry," Inara began. "What happened?"

"What? Oh.." he gathered his wits. "I basically went to a bar, hit it off with the waitress and ended up sleeping with her. In the morning the Military burst through her bedroom door and I hightailed it out of there. They probably caught my face in their surveillance system onboard the battle cruiser. I don't know how though, I was careful."

Mal glared. "So you forgot all about the rendezvous."

Harry grinned sheepishly. "It was sex, Mal. I had no choice!"

This time he felt it, River's eyes were on him. He chanced a look and immediately she looked away. Harry's eyes widened. Did she know? Did it really happen?

"Idiot," Inara grumbled. "Anyway, how do we get away?"

"Cloned navsat and whole lotta luck," Zoe said.

"We need to collect the shipment as well," Mal said. "We can't leave without it."

"We have three hours," Inara said. "Plus Valentine's revolutions are faster than normal so it's quicker than the galaxy standard. We have to be ready. Mal, can you contact the chef? There could be a change in his plans as well."

A few words over the com later, Mal cut the line looking sour. "1 hour, west cargo bay. The boxes will be thrown into the sea and marked with red paint."

Mal took a deep breath.

"Okay. Things have gotten derailed but this ain't something we're not used to. Grabbing and running," Mal paused and smirked. "It's our specialty."

"Hear, hear," Jayne cheered.

"We're going to keep the plan simple. Grab the boxes and hightail it out of the atmosphere. Battle Cruisers aren't that fast and we can outrun them if we exit atmo in the right spot.

"Zoe, where's the cruiser right now?"

"Wo de tian a!" Zoe gasped.

"What is it Zoe?"

"Cap'n. This is bad. There's three battle cruisers evenly spaced out all around the planet!"

"No way!"

Mal rushed to Zoe's side to see for himself and his jaws dropped at the carefully spaced blips on the digital radar.

At that moment Harry felt a shiver of magic travel down his spine. River felt it too and went still.

"We're in trouble," she murmured.

"Mal," Harry called.

"Holy shit Zoe, this is bad."

"Mal," Harry called again, this time louder. "It's worse than you can imagine."

Mal turned his head with mild panic. "Worse? Three battle cruisers can destroy a planet! How can it be worse!"

"I just felt a magical ward lock into place. The cruisers are positioned like a triangle aren't they?"

Zoe looked at the screen. "He's right," she said solemnly. She too was realizing the gravity of the situation.

"This is not just the Military, is it," Mal said quietly.

"It's Blue Sun," Simon said. "They're after you and River aren't they? They found you first."

"Coming to this planet was a mistake," Mal said.

"No," Harry denied. "We poked our nose deep into the Alliance's secrets. This was coming one way or the other. Always."

Everyone went quiet.

"Can we break through the ward Harry?" Inara asked.

"Yes," Harry said. "A triangle is the simplest rune model. It's amazing that they've managed to create a shield based on magical energy. But anyone with a basic Hogwarts education knows how to deactivate it."

"How?" asked Kaylee. She didn't want to get caught by the Alliance. She would do anything in her power to get Serenity away.

"Bomb it," Harry said with a grin. "I can probably enchant a couple of barrels to explode on impact which should create a strong enough energy to cause a backlash to the shield making it fail for a moment. At that moment Serenity can fly through however, there's still the cruisers and they're fighters above us." Now Harry got serious. "The officer who came for me on the ship was the same one on the bridge. She knew what a wand was and what my name is which suggests that her primary target is me at the moment. The only way to get away is a diversion."

"No." Kaylee said immediately. "I agree with Kaylee," Inara reaffirmed. "What you're suggesting is not an option." "They'll torture you," Jayne said.

"There's no other way. Can you make Serenity fast enough to escape three retractor beams from battle cruisers? We're fucked and this is the only way out. They want me. And they also have the answers I'm looking for. I'll work something out."

"Harry. What you're suggesting is insane. Are you ready to hand yourself over to Blue Sun? Look what they did to River," said Simon.

"I know! Are you suggesting we all get caught?" Harry left the implication hanging in the air. They would never get River back. And little Mal would return to hell.

"No," Simon said with defeat.

"This is the way I'm going to find my world. Trust me, I will survive and escape. I have a whole lot more tricks up my sleeve."

He looked at Mal and Zoe. They were soldiers. They would understand. This was personal. It was about truth.

"Well alright then," Jayne said as he lit up a cigar. "We've got ourselves an escape plan and a job. Shall we get started?"

"Jayne!" Kaylee scolded. "Harry's talking about sacrificing himself!"

"Well that's what he wants isn't it? Look at him. He couldn't be more thrilled! He's just making it easy for you."

"We're running out of time," Mal interrupted. "Harry. Letting you take the fall for this is out of the question. And you're valuable. Me, on the other hand, have got nothing they want. I'd make the perfect decoy."

"Mal, shut up." Inara snapped. "Do you think this is the way Harry? You could just as easily take a shuttle, break the shield, use the shuttle as a decoy and teleport back to Serenity. I'm sure the thought has occurred to you. Yet, you'd prefer to surrender?"

"I'm not surrendering," Harry said. "I just want to know the truth."

"And does the truth matter? Your past is exactly that, Harry, it’s the past!" Inara said. "Look to what lies ahead."

"I can't." Harry said simply.

"We're out of time. We need to move now if we want the job. Delivery pays out a million credits," Mal interjected.

"So we're doing this?" Jayne asked.

Mal looked into Harry's eyes and saw determination. "I guess we are. Zoe, fire her up. If anyone wants to say goodbye to Harry, now is the time."

Well," Jayne said with a broad grin. "Looks like we got us some imminent violence."

-x-x-x-x-x-

On battle cruiser Normandy, Elena's eyes were glued to the array of the net. "Relax," Commander Shepard said. "They won't escape. The net's designed to hold specials in a cage." Specials was their code for evolved humans.

"He's different," Elena said. "His powers are beyond anything we’ve seen so far."

"According to centuries old books. Relax Elena. That's an order. Spade's on his way here too and you want to be at your sharpest if you want to escape your dad yelling."

Elena winced. She had not waited and rushed in exactly like her dad had warned her not to do. She bit her lip. If Harry Potter escaped, she was never going to hear the end of it.

A red alert went on in the display screen.

"The net has been broken!" exclaimed one of the operators. "Two objects coming through."

"We're being hailed," added the other.

"Put him through," Elena commanded. She knew who it was. What was he doing?

"Hello?"

"This is Shepard, commander of the battle cruiser Normandy. Identify yourself."

"This is Harry Potter. I'm on the shuttle. If you want me, come and get me."

"The shuttle and the ship are moving in opposite directions," Elena murmured, her eyes on the radar. "Scan the shuttle," she told the operator. What do you read?"

"One person manning it and he's heading straight at us."

"I suppose you also want us to let the other ship go?" Elena asked out loud.

There was a moment of silence.

"It's you isn't it," said Harry's voice. "Are you a witch?"

Elena stilled and the others looked at her with surprise.

"You can insult me to your heart's content when you're in chains."

"Ok, bitch. Now, you know who I am and what I can do. If you pursue the ship, I will rain hell on all of you single-handedly and believe me when I say it will be a piece of cake. On the other hand, I'm willing to peacefully surrender if you don't pursue…. " Harry couldn't resist an insult, "…bitch."

Shepard looked at Elena patiently. If she wanted to interfere, she better finish it. She was turning red with anger but Shepard was impressed to notice she still had her anger on a tight lease.

"We will not pursue the ship," she said tightly. She then cut off communication and looked at Shepard with pursed lips. "He's going to regret pissing me off," she muttered.

"Do you ever regret pissing off Councillor Snape?" came another voice. It was Spade. He was finally onboard.

Elena rolled her eyes. "I caught him didn't I. It's more than you can say with all your tact and diplomacy, Spade."

"The shuttle's docked Commanders," said the operator.

"Put him in the special cells and treat him like a guest," Spade ordered.

"We should put him in chains," Elena immediately argued.

Spade turned to Shepard. "I thought the idea was to teach her how to follow rules, Commander Shepard."

"Apologies sir. She's more headstrong than we thought. I'm sure she'll make a fine soldier by the time we're done with the tour."

Spade hummed. "Well, let's get to it then. Set course for Londinium, Commander Shepard. Elena, do you want to interrogate the boy? You've so keenly taken an interest in the mission, I'll be interested to see how you extract information. Consider it a test."

Chains were the first idea that sprung into Elena's mind but she controlled it and smiled politely. This was a test after all. 

"When can I start?"