Dobby led Harry to a small meeting room with a dark oak table covered in food. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Lupin, and Snape were waiting for him, along with Minister Fudge, Ambassador Payton, and, standing beside Fudge with a suitcase in his hand and a pompous look on his face, Percy Weasley.

Harry stopped in the doorway and fought the urge to sigh. Could the next two days possibly look any bleaker?

"Come in, Harry," said Dumbledore, beckoning him to the table. "Have some breakfast before you leave."

Harry went slowly to the seat next to Lupin, hoping it didn't look too much like he was retreating from Fudge and Percy—and Snape. At least the food gave him something else to concentrate on. "There were a few things we naturally must go over with you before your departure, Mr. Potter," said Professor McGonagall. He looked up at her and waited, so she went on, "As you may or may not know, the headquarters of the American wizarding government exists in the same building as the American Muggle government." Harry nodded. "For that reason, we are sending you with clothing that will allow you to pass—respectably," she added with a faint smile, "as a Muggle. It is the policy of American wizards to coexist closely with their Muggle community, but their standards for secrecy are just as strong as ours. Fortunately, you are experienced at interacting with Muggles, so I assume you know how to conduct yourself in their presence."

Harry nodded again, but frowned thoughtfully, "Surely they do magic sometimes."

"Sure we do," said Payton, looking up from his grapefruit. "We're in the same buildings, but our offices are in the lower levels. Works out fine. Just no magic allowed outside the offices."

"Except in self-defense, naturally," said Lupin from next to Harry.

"I doubt that will be necessary," Snape sneered, "as long as the boy doesn't get into any mischief."

"Harry wasn't getting into mischief the last time Voldemort decided to come calling—"

"Remus, please," said Dumbledore as the others flinched. "Every precaution is being taken to ensure Harry's safety. Ambassador Payton has been discreetly making preparations for the past few days, and Professor Snape is well-experienced with the methods of Lord Voldemort."

"I'll bet he is," Payton remarked. Snape smirked. Percy sniffed.

"In any case, Harry, for secrecy reasons, I suggest that you do not use magic at any time for any reason except self-defense," said Dumbledore. "To do so would provide unfriendly wizards with yet another means of tracking you."

Harry finished his toast and looked at Professor McGonagall. "Is there anything else?"

She looked at him sternly. "Only to impress upon you that you are representing not only yourself and Hogwarts, but all of Wizarding Britain, Mr. Potter. It should be clear to you that you are functioning as an Ambassador yourself in this endeavor, and your success could mean a good deal of support for us in the war with the resources of a nation who remained neutral last time. I trust you will behave accordingly?"

Harry nodded gravely. Dumbledore still did not meet his eyes, but he smiled. "Then all that remains is to wish you luck. Shall we?"

Dumbledore led the way out of the castle toward Hagrid's cabin. Harry saw Hagrid appear and wave at Dumbledore before disappearing behind it. He glanced over his shoulder, wondering how secret this trip really would be. "Not to worry, Harry," said Lupin, walking beside him. "Professor Dumbledore charmed all the dormitories so the occupants would think this was an excellent morning for a good sleep in."

Startled, Harry asked, "Does he do that often to keep people from seeing things?"

"Very seldom," said Professor Dumbledore. "And it is hardly a controlling spell—I believe at least two people in Gryffindor have interests in the windows that have overridden the desire to sleep in." He smiled and gave Harry a little wink, then turned toward Hagrid's cabin. "Ah, here we are!"

From behind the cabin came a carriage, painted a dark gray and drawn by a team of six gray winged horses. Hagrid grinned at Harry. "Beautiful, aren't they? Granians, sent special by the Ministry! They'll have yeh to the point in under three hours!"

"They're flying us across the Atlantic Ocean in three hours?" Harry exclaimed.

Lupin laughed, "No, the carriage will be taking you to a departure point. It's an intercontinental portkey—you'll find a few of them in most countries. It'll take the whole carriage straight from Belfast to Washington."

Hagrid took Harry, Snape, and Percy's bags and stowed them in the back of the carriage. "All set, Headmaster. The Granians'll know where ter go."

Professor Dumbledore extended a hand to Percy, who shook it after a brief hesitation. "All the best, Mr. Weasley. Severus," he put a hand on Snape's shoulder and looked him in the eyes. "I have great faith in you. Take care." Snape simply nodded. Dumbledore turned and smiled in Harry's direction without actually looking at him. Harry knew the reasons for it, but it still rankled him that Dumbledore could look Snape and even Percy in the face and not him. "Good luck, Harry. Come back safely."

Harry shook Fudge and Payton's hands in farewell, and Professor McGonagall took one of his hands in both of hers. "Be careful, Mr. Potter."

"I will, Professor," he said, and then Lupin came to see him. Once again, Harry found himself remembering Remus on the steps of Number Four, Privet Drive. At the moment, Remus looked as if he wanted to drag Harry away from that carriage. "I'll be careful," Harry repeated quietly.

"I know," Lupin replied, aware that Fudge and Percy were watching. He smiled and murmured, "Your godfather—and probably your father—would most likely be giving you loads of advice right now about all the trouble you should cause on this trip. But do me the favor of ignoring it, would you?"

Harry had to grin. "I promise." They shook hands discreetly, but both their grips were tight.

"See you tomorrow night." Then Lupin stepped away so Hagrid could sweep Harry into a massive hug of farewell.

"Take care o' yerself, Harry!"

"Bye, Hagrid!" Harry grunted before Hagrid stopped crushing his ribs. Then Hagrid went to stand with Fudge, Payton, and the Professors, and Harry found himself standing beside the carriage with Snape and Percy—and with an increasing sense of dread at the impending forty-eight hours of misery.

"After you, Potter," said Snape in a snide tone, and with a mental sigh, Harry climbed in, sitting on the wide, velvet-upholstered seat and peering out the window at Remus and Hagrid. Percy and Snape followed, sharing the opposite seat because clearly neither one wanted to sit beside Harry. Harry refused to look at either of them, and kept his eyes on Remus as Percy tapped the ceiling with his wand.

Curiosity got the better of Harry, and he leaned out the window a little to watch the winged horses break into a trot, swinging the carriage out onto the field and gathering speed. Harry glanced, wide-eyed, back at the grinning Hagrid, and even Remus and the other Professors were chuckling as they waved goodbye. Harry stuck a hand out and waved back, then watched as the Granians spread their gray wings and lifted the carriage off the ground.

Remembering what Dumbledore had said, Harry turned toward Gryffindor Tower as they soared past it. He couldn't see whether anyone was at the windows—they were going by too fast—but somehow he just had this feeling that Ron and Hermione were there. He waved.

Within a minute, the Granians had swept the carriage around past the mountains, and Hogwarts was gone. Harry pulled his head back in with a sigh. Percy had pulled out a book and was determinedly ignoring Harry, and Snape said, "If you're finished with your grand send-off, Potter, kindly do us the courtesy of being quiet for the remainder of the trip."

Harry didn't bother answering, but pulled out his Specialized Defense book and a notebook and spent the next three hours working his way through the latest Auror chapter's Problem-Solving and Critical-Thinking Exercises. Hermione would have been proud.

Some time later, the feeling of descending made him emerge from a frustrating question about whether to draw his wand when approaching a witness to a crime who might also happen to be a suspect, and he peered out the window. They were definitely lowering through the crowds. Percy reached up and pulled a lever in the ceiling, and Harry watched with fascination as the outside of the carriage and the winged horses were Disillusioned—as was his own head anytime he stuck it out to look around. But there was nothing to see until they finally broke through the cloud cover, then a city spread out below them.

They swept downward at a dizzying angle, heading for what looked like an empty airplane hanger. At first, Harry thought he saw wisps of smoke in the air as they approached, but he realized they were other Disillusioned carriages. When they had nearly reached the ground, the charms vanished, and the area was as busy as an airport terminal with people carrying luggage and carriages running back and forth.

Their carriage touched down, and the Granians fell into a trot in a line of other carriages. Up at the front, Harry could see a wizard taking some kind of tickets from the people inside each one. "Get your head in, you stupid boy!" Snape snapped at him. "And cover your forehead."

Gritting his teeth, Harry did so, and ducked his head over his books as their carriage reached the attendant. "Destination?"

"Washington, DC, United States," said Snape. Out of the corner of his eye, Harry saw him hand a small parchment to the attendant, who stamped it and handed it back.

"You're fifth in line. Put away all loose items and come to a full stop on the platform," said the wizard, and he waved the Granians on.

Without giving Snape a chance to snap at him again, Harry quickly closed his books and stowed them in his bag, holding it tightly in his lap. He stared out the window as they rolled slowly on, and watched another line of carriages moving to another platform parallel to them. A carriage rolled onto the platform and came to a stop, then the platform disappeared. As Harry looked on in fascination, a few moments later the platform reappeared, with a different carriage on top that rolled off so the next one in line could roll on.

It was like a magical airport—only faster.

Their carriage bumped up onto their own platform and rolled to a stop. Instead of a tug on his navel, Harry felt the movement in his whole body, and screwed his eyes shut as the carriage sped away in a whirl of wind and color.

They landed with a loud thud that jolted Harry off the seat, forcing him to grab the armrest to steady himself. The first thing he noticed was how warm the air coming through the windows was. Bursting with curiosity, he peered out the window.

"Expecting fanfare, Potter?" Snape sneered, but Harry ignored him, flattening down his fringe so he could lean further out.

They were galloping away from the platform onto a green field surrounded by lush, hilly countryside in a breathtaking array of fall colors. Harry saw no sign of the American capital city. "Where are we?" he asked without thinking.

"Falls Church, Virginia," said Percy. "It's to the west of the city, some miles out for security, though still far too well-populated in my opinion. I can't imagine what possesses American wizards to live this way, disguising themselves as Muggles to live and work among them." He sounded so disdainful that Harry stared at him.

The carriage rolled to stop beside a dirt road, where four men in gray suits were standing beside a shiny black car. One of them approached the window. "Hogwarts party?"

"That's correct," sniffed Percy. "And you are?"

"Don Spalding, Federal Magical Security."

Percy and Snape nodded to each other, apparently satisfied that the wizards were genuine, and Snape shoved open the door and jumped down. Percy disembarked after him, leaving Harry to climb tentatively out, dragging his book bag.

"I am Percy Weasley, Junior Undersecretary to the Minister of Magic, and this is Professor Severus Snape of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry," Percy recited in an appallingly aloof voice. He did not mention Harry's name, though Harry got the impression that was out of secrecy rather than spite, so he hefted his book bag and said nothing.

"Allow me," said Spalding, taking Harry's book bag, and gesturing to one of the others to help Snape and Percy. Leaning close to Harry, he held out a hand and said in a low voice, "Welcome to the U.S.A., Mr. Potter."

Harry was startled by the sly smile the American wizard gave him, but shook his hand and said, "Thank you."

"This way, gentlemen," said one of the others, and they opened the car door for Harry.

As they drove, Spalding said, "We'll be your escorts while you're on American soil. Incognito, you understand. We'll stop at the hotel so you can switch to non-magic attire. The U.S. Capitol is a Level One security zone—full Muggle interaction at all times."

"That seems a dreadfully inconvenient way to run things," said Percy.

Harry cringed, hoping Percy wasn't going to start offending the foreign wizards, but Spalding just shrugged. "Inconvenience ain't a good enough reason to ignore the Muggle populace, as far as we're concerned. We do pretty well."

Curiosity got the better of Harry. "Don't Muggle police or guards ever ask you what you're doing in their government buildings?"

Spalding grinned at him in the rear view mirror. "Sure they do, and our reasons are perfectly legit. You'll see."

They arrived at what appeared to be a red brick mansion nestled in the trees. "Is this the regular foreign wizard accommodation?" Percy asked curiously.

"Uh-uh. This one's exclusively for high-security VIPs. When you leave, you won't be able to find it again. No one can who's not driven with prior approval by one of our cars."

"That's well," said Snape gruffly.

They were led through the glittering hotel lobby, before Harry had a chance to gawk at the gleaming marble floors and columns and chandeliers, and up the stairs to three rooms. "This is your room, Mr. Potter, in the middle," said one of the other guards. Perched upon a stand next to Harry's door was an enormous bald eagle.

Spalding grinned at Harry's startled face. "That's Prairie. She's one of our guards. They work in shifts; the other two are Trouble and T.J. If anyone tries to get through this door who isn't one of us," he pointed at the other three escorts, "or one of you," he nodded at Percy and Snape, "they'll get their eyes gouged out. And if you ever arrive to find the stand empty," Prarie flapped her wings vigorously, "or if the eagle doesn't do that, get the hell downstairs and call for help."

Harry nodded gravely, then Prarie pecked a small notch in the wall behind her perch, and his door swung open. "Be ready to go in ten minutes, Potter," said Snape.

The room was the most luxurious place Harry had ever laid eyes on, but he didn't have much time to look around. One of the guards had deposited his suitcase on the bed, so as soon as the door closed, he threw it open and hustled into a pair of plain, dark gray trousers and a maroon shirt that would feel much cooler than the finely-knit jumpers in such hot, humid weather. He was in front of the mirror trying to comb his hair down over his scar (and the mirror kept telling him, "Give it up, hon, it's hopeless,") when Snape rapped on the door and yelled at him to hurry it up.

They drove to Washington down a busy highway through Arlington, Virginia. On the way, Spalding handed Harry, Snape, and Percy identification badges that read, Future Youth Leaders International Relations Summit, Hogwarts Prep.

The guards were now all sporting badges that read, CIA.

"Can you get away with that!" Harry exclaimed, knowing full well who the CIA were.

"Sure we can," Spalding laughed. "Truth be told, the badges are genuine. FMS is a branch of the CIA, although our Muggle colleagues believe we're the Fraud in Music Section. We tell them hysterical stories around the water cooler; they still think we're the ones who exposed Milli Vanilli."

Harry was baffled but couldn't help laughing, understanding more of what Spalding was talking about than either of his traveling companions. Snape's brow was furrowed in confusion, and Percy merely looked scornful.

The car was zooming along with the heavy traffic onto a bridge by then, and Spalding pointed ahead. "There's an impressive view coming up for you, Harry."

Harry peered ahead curiously as they rounded a final bend, then the high-rise offices gave way to a towering obelisk, pointing skyward from the center of a long, tree-lined park surrounded by white buildings, and down at the end of the park, a massive, domed edifice that seemed to glow against the blue autumn sky.

Harry didn't realize until he gasped that he'd stopped breathing.

Spalding grinned back at him. "You feel it, don't you?"

It was very odd; Harry did feel something. The entire city seemed to exude power, but not merely magical power the way Hogwarts did. It was unnerving, but not menacing the way Harry's various encounters with Voldemort felt. "What…what is that?"

"Washington, DC's a powerful city, by Muggle and magical standards," said Spalding. "The wizarding population had as much to do with its construction as Muggles—and our guys added a few touches of their own. It's the most warded city in the world. There's the White House," he added, pointing to a smaller building nestled among green lawns and trees as the car sped along the left side of the giant obelisk. "We're on the National Mall now. That's the Washington Monument," he gestured to the obelisk.

"Rather conspicuous for wizards so set on secrecy," said Percy.

"Oh, House side, Coop, House side," Spalding told the driver. To Percy, he said, "Wizards didn't build this stuff—the Muggles did that. Well, the designer of the Capitol was a wizard, but aside from him, our ancestors mostly added the magical touches. The Founding Fathers wanted to design a city that'd intimidate and humble foreign visitors," Spalding chuckled. "Let's just say the Founding Wizards made sure that if the design of the city didn't do it, the enchantments would."

Apparently, it had worked, Harry thought appreciatively, trying to read the names of the white marble buildings as they passed. They drove in front of the giant Capitol building…but in a rush of amusement, Harry realized that in spite of its sprawling, square sides and the tall dome, the building wasn't really that big, it only felt big. Magic.

Then the car was pulling up to the curb across the street from the Capitol's right side. "Hop out," said Spalding.

"Keep your head down, Potter," Snape muttered at Harry as they climbed out. He did so, but thought he looked more like a dangerous criminal than a visiting schoolboy with the knot of suited men around him. Percy looked comfortable enough in his gray coat and trousers, (he could easily have belonged there, in fact), but Snape looked as though he intended to make someone pay for forcing him into a black Muggle-style suit and tie (which in Harry's opinion were better-suited for a funeral than diplomacy.)

Spalding gestured to the strangely-shaped buildings in front of them. "The House Office Buildings. Home to the offices of members of the United States House of Representatives—both of them," he added with a grin. "The one we want is the Cannon Building, there on the end." They walked up the marble steps to a revolving door, and Spalding muttered at them, "Drop any watches or money in the basket and leave your wands hidden. Metal detectors won't pick them up."

"What?" exclaimed Percy in confusion.

"Just follow my lead." Spalding dropped some loose change and the gold watch he was wearing into a basket, then strolled through the squarish plastic archway. Harry caught his imagination doing nasty things to the metal detector and shook his head; he'd seen metal detectors long before he'd known about magic, how could he react like to them like this?

But the arch shape still made him cringe.

With helpless shrugs, Percy and Snape dropped their coins into the basket and followed Spalding through. Harry did the same, and as the police officer monitoring the equipment handed their baskets back, he blinked at them. "What're these things from?"

Harry's heart lurched: he, Snape, and Percy were carrying Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts. The officer looked more curious than suspicious, so he hastily said, "Coin collection. Just bought them today," and emptied the baskets back into Percy and Snape's hands.

"Good thinking, kid," Spalding muttered at him. "Sorry, forgot to warn you."

"Do you use Muggle currency as well?" Percy asked.

Spalding shrugged. "We've tried to get them to use our currency a few times, but they just like to keep it for collections." He pulled a few coins from his pocket to show Harry. "Double Eagles, Sacajaweas, and Kennedys. This way to the stairwell."

The American Muggle government was certainly impressive enough, Harry decided, looking up at the rotunda they passed beneath on their way to the corridors. Feet echoed on the gleaming floors, and the soft lights and wooden office doors gave the cream-colored marble walls a golden look. Harry read some of the names next to the doors as they passed: U.S. Rep. Clint Verne, R-Florida, 6th District, U.S. Rep. Gill Flounder, R-California, 22nd District, U.S. Rep. Ray Bryce, D-North Carolina, 4th District.

They went through a side door with a sign for the men's toilet, which baffled Harry until he noticed that the lavatory was to one side, and the door Spalding was taking them to opened on a narrow stairwell that, for some unfathomable reason, had a hair salon nestled off the landing next to the defunct lift doors. "Is that for your people?" he whispered to Spalding as the barber waved cheerfully at them.

"Nope, the upper floors are all-Muggle space," said Spalding. "Our offices're in the basement levels between two of the House Office Buildings."

"Between two buildings?" Harry repeated.

"They're all connected by tunnels—and that was the Muggles," Spalding told him with a fatherly pride that reminded Harry of Mr. Weasley. "But there's more rooms down there than they could possibly need, so we've appropriated a few of them. And made sure the Muggles forgot that section's even there."

The basement corridor they emerged into was just even more bustling than the upper floors had been, and from the warning look Spalding gave them, these were all Muggles too! They passed through yet another rotunda—this one entirely underground with a large, scale rendering of the Capitol Building in marble in the center, and a bust of a man that winked at Harry as he went by—then Harry jerked to a halt.

They were entering another tunnel that sloped unmistakably downward; he had seen this place before. Snape gave him a nudge, and he forced his legs to carry him forward past a shoeshine booth into a corridor lined with bricks.

Harry knew he was gawking like a tourist, but the Muggles had built a veritable little city under their Capitol! There was a bank, a post office, a gift shop, an office supply store, a dry cleaners—even an ice cream parlor! The place was very crowded, and Snape and Spalding had Harry pressed in between them, making it hard for him to look around. The tunnel kept sloping downward until they finally rode a descending escalator under a sign that read Longworth HOB, and left the worst of the crowds behind for an area that appeared at first glance to be storerooms and mailrooms of some sort.

Then they reached a door with the gray paint peeling and a sign that read, Area Closed for Renovation, and Spalding surreptitiously pressed his badge against it. There was a little flash, and the sign changed to read, American Wizarding Congress, House of Representatives Offices, then the door swung open.

"We're heading for Kate Leland's office first, she's Chairwitch of the Magical Defense Committee," Spalding told them. "You'll have a chance to chat with her about what to expect from Lord You-Know-Who before lunch with the senior Members, and then the individual meetings today and tomorrow. Oh, and dinner with the Magical Defense Committee, breakfast tomorrow with the International Relations Committee, and lunch tomorrow with the IRS." He strode ahead to the first door while Harry stared after him, dumbstruck. Bloody hell, we're booked solid. He didn't dare look at Snape.

Spalding led them to a heavy, carved wooden door next to a nameplate that read, U.S.W. Rep. Katherine Leland, D-Florida, 5th District. The door opened to reveal, not a dusty storeroom, but a busy office suite.

A blonde witch around Percy's age was sitting behind the desk nestled in a corner right next to the door. "Morning, Mr. Spalding." Then she noticed Harry, and her jaw dropped. "Ohmigod! It's—"

"Easy, Pat," Spalding cautioned. Once the door had closed behind them, he said, "Yes, yes, this is Harry Potter. And this is Professor Snape from Hogwarts, and Mr. Weasley from the Ministry." Pat had recovered from the shock, but still shot Harry a broad grin, making him blush. Percy looked offended that his title had been omitted. "Let your boss know we're here."

Pat jumped up and went to a tall door on the other side of her desk. She rapped on it, then opened it a crack, and Harry heard her whisper, "Kate, they're here!"

"Right on time!" said someone, and two women came quickly out. The first was tall, with wavy, short brown hair and a very nice, warm smile that Harry couldn't help returning. The second witch was shorter than Harry was. She had chin-length, dark blonde hair, a broad smile, and keen, twinkling eyes that reminded Harry so much of Dumbledore that he was startled. She thrust out her hand at him and said in a slightly-drawling accent, "Hey, Harry, how are ya! Welcome to Washington, was your trip okay? It's gonna be a busy couple of days, but we'll make the most of it."

Wondering how someone so small could generate such an impression of power and at the same time seem so nice, Harry awkwardly shook her hand. "I'm pleased to meet you, Madam."

"Oh, sorry, guess you haven't been introduced," said Pat. "Harry, this is Congresswoman Kate Leland, and our Chief of Staff, Lila Brandon."

"Hi, Harry, good to meet you," said the tall woman, shaking his hand firmly.

"And I take it you've met Pat, she's our Scheduler," said the Congresswoman. Harry nodded, trying not to look as bewildered as he felt. "Let's have a seat in my office. We've got about ten minutes before we should head to the Committee Room for lunch."

She led them into a large room with a table, many chairs, and a loveseat all opposite a huge oak desk, which she scorned in favor of sitting cheerfully on one side of the loveseat and patting the opposite side for Harry to join her. He did so hesitantly, but this left him facing the others, and he caught a glimpse of Percy and Snape. Percy looked a bit sullen, but while Snape's face was completely blank, something in his eyes warned Harry that the almost-doting attention he was receiving from the American wizards and witches would not go unpunished later.

Congresswoman Leland's face was gentle as she regarded Harry. "So we're told you were the last person to see Alex alive?" Swallowing hard, Harry nodded. "And You-Know-Who didn't say anything about what he wanted over here?"

"No," Harry said quietly, looking at the covers of the books upon the coffee table. "It looked like he was after something down in these offices. I saw the tunnels."

"So do you think he's going to come here himself?" asked Lila Brandon in a concerned voice as though she were asking Harry whether he was feeling well.

"I…don't know," Harry admitted. "If you have something he wants badly enough, he might send Death Eaters." The Americans wrinkled their noses. "But if the Death Eaters fail, he could come himself."

"The Dark Lord only places himself at risk when all other methods have failed," said Snape curtly. "If it is merely information he desires, he will kidnap and murder as many of your people as necessary until he finds someone who possesses it."

"They say he uses Legilimency?" asked Congresswoman Leland.

"Proficiently," replied Snape. Harry managed not to shiver.

"But if it's an object he wants, the odds are we'll have Death Eaters trying to get into the MR and D Department," said Spalding.

"MR and D?" asked Harry.

"Magical Research and Development," Lila Brandon explained. "Like your Department of Mysteries—are you okay, honey?" Harry hadn't been able to suppress a shudder.

"The Dark Lord set his sights on something in the Department of Mysteries last year, I heard," said Spalding. Harry nodded, looking at his hands.

The Congresswoman mercifully changed the subject. "So what is it you plan to ask the old U.S. of A. for in the way of help?"

"Anything," Harry heard himself say quietly. "Everything you can give, Aurors or spells or…anything." The words sounded very stupid in his ears, and he was too embarrassed to look up. Why had Dumbledore and McGonagall thought he would be able to accomplish anything asking a bunch of American leaders for help? He didn't know anything about fighting a war!

But to his surprise, Congresswoman Leland patted his hand. "Y'know, a lot of people think we should've gotten involved during the last war. After what happened to Alex, I doubt it'll take much convincing to get their full support. Especially with the request coming from you."

Harry looked at her and felt himself turning red; she grinned. "Hell, just on the cuteness factor alone, they'd probably do what you asked." He turned redder, and her grin got broader. He wished he could sink into the loveseat and die. Snape would never let him forget this. He was relieved when she got up. "Let's start heading down there. Don't be surprised if the people from Darren Hoynes' office want to pick your brains on the way."

Feeling like a marionette being tugged along on strings and saying the things they wanted to hear without really knowing anything, Harry followed her out of the office back into the tunnels. They'd passed a few more doors when several people came out of another office ahead of them, and waited for Leland's group to catch up. "This who I think it is?" asked the man in the gray suit in the lead.

"Harry, this is Congressman Darren Hoynes. He's from my home state. You can grill him later, Darren, let's get to the Committee Room first. This stuff's all confidential."

Behind them, Pat the Scheduler had been attempting without success to chat with Percy, so she finally gave up and came to talk to Harry instead, to his intense embarrassment. "So what's Hogwarts like?" she asked him.

"It's wonderful," Harry said with feeling. "I'd rather be there than anywhere else."

"Including here, huh?" she whispered, grinning slyly at him. "What, celebrity doesn't agree with you?"

"No," said Harry, so firmly that she grinned, and he heard Snape snort behind them.

As Pat shook her head, Harry's eyes were drawn to the dark silver charm she wore around her neck. His heart nearly stopped. It was a solitary pillar, carved intricately, with nothing but a squarish chunk of stone at its top and base.

And Harry had seen it before. "What's…" his voice cracked, and he cleared his throat. "What's that on your necklace?"

"This?" she held it up. "It's the Pillar of Storgé. Good luck charm. Heard of it?"

"Well…no. I mean…I may have seen it," Harry stammered, trying to keep his near-panic from showing.

Fortunately, Pat was looking at the charm. "Don't see how you could have seen it recently, it's here in the MR and D Department. We've had it for years, not that it's done any good," she chuckled.

"The Ministry of Magic had it before the Americans," Percy put in from behind them.

"Yeah, and your Ministry didn't know what to do with it either," she retorted playfully.

"Then why did they keep it?" Harry asked faintly.

Pat shrugged. "Nobody knows where it comes from. Legend has it that thousands of years ago, ancient sorcerers created a building made of pillars that contained all the most powerful magical forces in existence. What the forces are exactly, we don't know, and how they could be contained in a pillar, we are clueless—and so were your dudes," she added to Percy smugly. "But the story is that if the right person could match the power in one of the pillars, they could tap it and become very, very powerful." She rolled her eyes. "And again, what they mean by someone 'matching' the power in a pillar, we haven't any idea, nor how they could tap it."

"What happened to the other pillars," Harry asked.

"Nobody knows. This is all that's left. But it is true that people who touch the pillar seem to get good luck. Hence the charm," she said, fingering it cheerfully.

Harry swallowed hard. "Interesting," he murmured. "'Scuse me a minute." He slipped back to find Professor Snape.

Snape's eyes narrowed when he saw Harry coming; Harry must have looked rattled. As he opened his mouth to speak, movement behind Snape in the corridor caught Harry's eye. He frowned, looking past Snape, and was startled to see a tiny black kitten following them down the corridor. "Bastet?" he said in surprise, even though Ginny's kitten couldn't possibly be here.

By then, Pat and her Congresswoman were glancing back after Harry and they spotted the kitten. "HOLY CRAP! LOOK!" someone yelled.

The reaction of the Americans confused Harry completely. Wands were brought to bear, and shouts and profanity rang out. Doors flew open up and down the corridor and several people shrieked at the sight of the cat.

"Oh no!"

"Oh, geez!"

"Guys, it's here! It's here!"

Snape had no more idea than Harry what was prompting the uproar, but he grabbed Harry and yanked him away from the cat, aiming his wand at it. "Hold up!" shouted Leland. "Won't do any good!"

Snape didn't move, one arm still aiming his wand at the black kitten, the other arm thrown out to keep Harry behind him. What this seemingly-inoffensive cat was, Harry couldn't imagine, but he stood motionless behind Snape and braced himself for the worst. The kitten crept along, sniffing at the air just like Bastet or Crookshanks in an inquisitive mood, then turned its face directly toward Harry.

Harry felt Snape stiffen in front of him, and Leland said in a tense voice, "It's never hurt anyone before."

"The usual rules don't apply with Potter," Snape growled at her. "If it comes any closer, I'll kill it."

"Professor…"

"Shut up, Potter!"

The kitten cocked its head at Harry, regarding him with its yellow eyes for several moments, then turned slowly away and faced the American wizards. Slowly, it began to walk toward them. "Oh man," someone muttered.

"Just let it say its piece, and it'll go," Leland said firmly, never taking her eyes off the cat.

Say its piece? Harry watched the kitten in confusion. He could hear it purring as it walked leisurely toward the frightened wizards, but then…it began to grow larger. "What the…" Snape muttered.

Now the size of a full-grown cat, the strange creature kept growing until it was as large as Crookshanks, then larger still. Harry noticed that the noise he was hearing wasn't purring anymore. The creature was growling.

The American Congress workers were breathing very heavily, but no one tried to hex the cat, which was now the size of a small tiger, as it stopped directly in front of them. Then it gathered itself on its haunches, and Harry yelled along with everyone else as the thing let out an incredible roar and launched itself into the crowd of wizards.

A jinx from Snape went straight through it as the Americans yelped and ducked, but no one was hit—and no one was scratched or bitten either. As soon as it struck the ground, the creature vanished.

"Aw, hell, I hate it when that thing turns up!" Leland said. She patted a scared young witch who was crying on the floor. "Take it easy, we probably should've expected this." She gestured to Harry, who wished fervently that he had his Invisibility Cloak.

"What was that thing?" he asked.

"Nobody really knows," she told him. "But we do know what it does, and I guess your Professor's right; the usual rules don't apply to you." At Harry's confused look, she explained, "If that cat has two rules, it's that it never actually harms anyone—though a few people have died of heart attacks—and it always jumps at the very first person it sees. It looked right at you and kept going."

"Maybe it's because I'm not American," Harry said desperately.

Several people snorted; they didn't appear to buy the explanation. "But what does it do, other than frighten people to death?" asked Snape.

"It always appears right before a major national crisis," Leland sighed. "Even Muggles see it from time to time." She patted Harry on the shoulder. "Well, that'll be one more reason for the Congress to approve allying with Britain in this war. That cat doesn't lie." She started back down the hall. "All right, people, fun's over, let's get to the committee room!"

It was the sight of Pat, still white-faced and clutching her pendant, that made Harry remember. He caught Professor Snape's arm as they started walking again. "Sir, I think I know what V—what he's after here. Do you know anything about the Pillar of Storgé?"

Snape shot him a disgusted look. "It is one of the more useless artifacts being studied by both British and American wizards, Mr. Potter."

Keeping his voice as low as he could, Harry murmured, "But I saw it. Last night, in a dream. And one of the witches says it's here, in the MR and D Department."