The Light That Leads You Home – Ten – DizzyDrea

~0~

They were getting precisely nowhere, and Ellie was frustrated. Granted, it had only been an hour, but in a kidnapping, every minute counted.

She and Gibbs had harvested a magical signature, but getting the local Aurors to give them a name to go with it had turned out to be the easiest part. Byron Vickers was an utterly unremarkable wizard in all respects. He’d been an average student at Hogwarts, had an average Myrrdin rating, and held an utterly average job at the Ministry for Magic.

About the only thing that wasn’t average about him was his bank account. In short, he was filthy rich. It wasn’t hard to guess how he’d earned that money, considering the low-paying job he had at the Ministry.

Now that they knew who, they needed to know where. Sirius and Max hadn’t returned yet, which could be good or it could be bad.

“Relax, Bishop,” Gibbs said.

He’d been sitting at the table in the conference room the Aurors had given over to them, sipping at his damn coffee for the last fifteen minutes. He appeared utterly relaxed; she wished she could be so calm.

“I’m fine,” she said. She’d been sitting on the table, parchment spread out around her as she munched on a snack and sorted through files looking for any properties he owned or had access to.

Gibbs snorted. “You’re definitely not fine. What gives?”

Ellie craned her neck back and forth, stretching out the stiffness in her muscles. “We found out we’re soulmates, just before we went into the time chamber. We haven’t completed the bond yet, but there’s a nascent bond forming. It feels… like my skin is too tight.”

“Bonds can weigh heavily on us,” Gibbs said quietly. “You’re not thinking about—”

“No,” Ellie said forcefully, before Gibbs had even gotten his question out. “I feel like I’ve found a piece of myself I didn’t even know was missing. Even if we’re only ever friends, I still don’t want to lose him.”

“Good,” he said.

“You don’t seem surprised that soulmate magic is still part of the world,” she said.

“My mother’s people have always known that soulmate magic was still out there,” he said. “Our mate bonds are similar, so if they still exist, why can’t soulmates?”

“Good point,” she said, pointing a finger at him. “You’re okay with all of this?”

“Tony needs someone like you, even if he’ll never admit it,” he said.

“He strikes me as the lone wolf type,” she said. “He has a lot of friends, but I get the feeling that he keeps them all at arm’s length. Even his family hadn’t seen him in years.”

“That’s his father’s fault,” Gibbs said.

“Yeah,” Ellie said, sighing. “I sincerely hope I never meet the guy. I can’t promise I’ll be civilized.”

Gibbs huffed a laugh. “Get in line. What he’s done to his own blood kin… Death would be too kind for him.”

Ellie looked at him curiously. “You treat him like a son. Does he know about your family?”

“He knows a little,” Gibbs said. “Whatever was reported to the No_Maj authorities.”

“Are you going to tell him the rest?” she asked boldly.

“Probably,” he said. “He’s earned my trust and respect. He won’t discuss it with anyone else if I ask him not to.”

“You haven’t asked if he’ll be leaving the team,” she said.

“Not my call,” he said, shrugging. “Now that I know what’s going on with you two, that’ll be your call. You’re both welcome on my team, if that means anything.”

“It does,” she said. “But we have to get him back first.”

“We may have something that’ll help.”

Ellie slid off the table as Sirius and Max walked into the room. “What did you find?”

“Our kidnapper bought a portkey on Knockturn Alley,” Max said. “Took us a while to find the person who sold it to him. Turns out there are a few stores that even I didn’t know about.”

Sirius shrugged. “I spent some time skulking around Knockturn as an Auror before I joined the ICW.”

“Mate, you could take up a life of crime after you retire with what you know,” Max said.

“What, exactly, do you know?” Gibbs asked.

“More than you have time for,” Sirius said. “But we did manage to get a destination for the portkey. Tony was taken to a warehouse near the port. I can’t say he’s still there, but that’s where he was taken.”

“Odds the building is warded?” Gibbs asked.

“Better safe than sorry,” Max said. “I’ll pull a ward buster from our stores. Make sure you put some armor on if you’re not already wearing some.”

“I’ve got some in my bag,” Ellie said. “There should be some in the supply trunk that’ll fit you, Gibbs.”

Gibbs nodded, which was all the answer Ellie knew she’d get.

~0~

They apparated into the shadow of the bridge closest to the port. They didn’t know if Vickers had any sort of proximity alarms set, so they decided caution was better than just charging in.

Well, Sirius and Max had made that decision. Ellie and Gibbs had been all for just apparating directly into the room with the man and letting the chips fall where they may. They were outvoted.

They moved through the streets, glancing around as they walked. It was still daylight, so there were people all around them. They didn’t want to appear as though they were up to something, but for the most part, everyone they encountered just ignored them.

The warehouse appeared as they rounded one last corner. It was utterly average, just like everything else in this situation. After a quick glance around for witnesses, Max cast a spell at the building from across the street. There was a ward on the door, but it wasn’t very robust.

“I probably don’t even need the ward buster,” Max muttered. “Looks like they’re on the east side of the building.”

“Better to just apparate into the far corner of the building, honestly,” Sirius said. “If we use the ward buster, we’ll definitely alert him to our presence.”

“Given we don’t know much about him, we have no idea if he’d kill Tony if he realizes he’s about to be captured,” Ellie said.

“Let’s be clear: capture is the preferred outcome,” Sirius said. “If he draws on you, aim to stun, not kill. Can’t put him on trial if he’s dead.”

“Can’t kidnap anyone else if he’s dead,” Gibbs said.

Ellie huffed a laugh. “I’m with you. Let’s get going before Vickers decides to do something stupid.”

They’d been able to find a schematic of the building, so they knew where they could land that would be far enough away from Tony that they’d likely go unnoticed.

“As quietly as possible,” Sirius said.

Ellie nodded and apparated into a small office. One by one, the other three appeared. They each cast silencing charms on themselves before they exited the office and moved through the warehouse. When they reached the room where they believed Tony was being held, Max checked the door and found it unlocked.

Ellie rolled her eyes. This guy was definitely not a criminal mastermind. Max nodded and quietly turned the knob. The door swung open on rusty hinges and all four of them burst inside, wands drawn and ready for a fight.

They all stopped short when they got inside. Tony was leaning against the only chair in the room, twirling his wand in his fingers. On the floor in front of him, Byron Vickers lay prone, looking pale and sweaty.

“About time you guys got here,” Tony said. “This idiot was starting to wear on my patience.”

“Are you okay, Tony?” Ellie asked before anyone else could.

“Eh,” Tony said with a bit of a shrug. “I’ve had worse. He used the Cruciatus curse on me, so I feel like crap, but I’m still standing and he’s not.”

“How did you subdue him?” Max asked.

“As I said, he Crucio’d me,” Tony said. “After a couple of rounds, I started noticing he was shaky and sweaty. One more time, and he was barely keeping himself upright. The idiot didn’t take away my dimensional store or my ring, so I drew my wand and stunned him. He went down like a felled tree.”

Ellie laughed. “Only you would rescue yourself, Tony.”

“Well, I’m not a damsel in distress, so of course I rescued myself,” Tony said. “Good to know that idiots can be found in every corner of the world. Forewarned is forearmed.”

“Would that all kidnap victims could be so resourceful,” Sirius said. “I’m Sirius Black, by the way. I think we’re cousins of a sort.”

“Sounds about right,” Tony said. He reached out and shook Sirius’s hand, nearly falling over as he did so. Sirius caught him before he went down. “Whoa. That’s not good.”

“Well, you were Crucio’d, mate,” Max said. “Let’s get him back to the Ministry. We can have a healer check him over.”

“Probably better to take him to Gringott’s,” Ellie said. “Healer Trueheart treated him when he first entered the wizarding world. She’ll be able to detect any damage compared to his previous scans.”

“Good point,” Max said. “Are you okay taking him by yourself? I need to get this guy back to the Ministry for processing.”

“I’ll go with her,” Sirius said. “Grandfather will want a report regardless.”

“Why yes, Sirius, I do think a visit to a healer is wise,” Tony said sarcastically. “Seriously, guys, I’m fine.”

“Cruciatus exposure can damage your magical channels,” Gibbs said. “You need to be looked at to make sure the damage is healing.”

“Right,” Tony said with a sigh. “I hate doctors. Except for Brad Pitt. I like Brad Pitt.”

“You like a movie star?” Ellie asked. “That makes sense, actually, considering you’re a cinephile.”

“Brad Pitt’s his doctor from the plague exposure,” Gibbs said.

Ellie laughed. “Only you, Tony.”

“Hey, Brad’s a good friend,” Tony said. “I’ve even forgiven him for breaking my leg in college.”

“Wait, he was playing for the other team?” Ellie asked. “What are the odds?”

“About a billion to one, I’m sure,” Tony said. “I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m about to fall over, so if we could get this show on the road, I’d appreciate it.”

“Right,” Ellie said. “Let’s go. I’ll check in with you later, Max.”

“Let me know how he’s doing,” Gibbs said.

“Will do,” Ellie said. “Let me know where you’ll be. I’m sure you and Tony will want to chat before you head back to the States.”

“He’s welcome at Blackwell Manor,” Sirius said as he shoved his shoulder under Tony’s arm. “My grandfather would be more than happy to host him for however long he’ll be here.”

“Is that where you’ll be taking Tony after he sees the healer?” Gibbs asked. Sirius nodded. “Then yeah, that’s where I’ll be.”

“I’ll make sure you get up there,” Max said. “Give me a hand with our suspect. We should probably have him looked over as well.”

“He’ll be fine,” Gibbs said.

The two of them apparated away with Vickers. Ellie looked at Sirius. “Ready?”

“I’ll side-apparate Tony, and you can follow,” Sirius said.

He didn’t wait for her agreement, just disappeared in a wisp of magic. Ellie huffed as she followed.

~0~

Cast (from top left):
Patrick Stewart, Aiden Turner, Michael Weatherly, Colin Firth, Callum Blue, Emily Wickersham, Rege-Jean Page, Mark Harmon