= Wands High =

Chapter 4 - 8 May 1998, Friday

- Griffin Slade... I should've known – a stern voice came from somewhere behind him, prolonging the last syllable.

The young man straightened up dusting off his camouflage jacket with his free hand and, turning to face the newcomer, gave a faint, informal nod.

- Constable March. I'd say "nice to see you" but I'd rather meet you at the local watering hole.

- Keep your wits to yourself, boy. I don't drink. What brings a... renown Auror as yourself around here? Investigating forest fires? – the man nodded towards the large charred ellipse on the ground. The trees weren't very thick here but the grass and the tiny flowers around were recently burned to crisp in almost perfect geometrical shape.

- Funny as usual, Constable, I see some things don't change – the young man smiled for a brief moment, then all signs of joy disappeared from his face as he pointed at the black spot with his wand. – Unfortunately, this here is the mark of a powerful protective charm with double function – to mask and to destroy anyone curious and unlucky enough to get too close.

- And what exactly was this charm protecting? – March raised his eyebrows in a slight expression of disbelief.

- That, Constable, is exactly what I – and the Ministry – would like to know. My partner and I have been chasing a few people on the "Wanted" list for several weeks now when some seemingly unrelated cases of unusual magical activity started to happen, always not very far from the places where the job took us. The closer we get to these guys, the more often these "things" happen.

- What kind of "things"?

- Unusual bursts of magical energy as if from very strong spells but with no visible sign what kind of spell has been performed. Traps that would take way too much time for the convicts we're chasing to just set on the run. Twice we ran into small areas where our spells didn't work well for no reason, as if the places were somehow protected against magic. Stuff like that.

- And the Ministry is making a fuss over a few coincidences and shenanigans that some smartass kid tossed around?

It was Slade's turn to raise an eyebrow.

- Believe me, Constable, I'd love to sit around and discuss current Ministry affairs with you, but I'm on duty. I have to find my partner and proceed with the tasks we've got.

- And I'd love to see how the Ministry handles my area better than me – March growled, – but I also have my responsibilities. So how can I help?

Slade was about to say something when a sudden movement drew his attention awry. A tall short-haired woman in a muggle outfit appeared between the trees and quickly headed towards the two. Despite the clothes she also had a wand and her demeanor didn't leave any space for doubt about what she was doing there.

- Did you find anything? – she spurted looking at Griffin.

- Another trap, almost blew my face off. But no other sign of our guys, they must have gained bigger lead than we thought.

- Merlin's beard! – the woman hissed under her breath. – Then we proceed with the precautions.

Griffin nodded and turned back to the older man.

- Constable March, this is my partner, Amaltiya Smith. Mal, meet my old friend, Constable Emerson March, whose life I probably shortened a bit by sticking my nose here and there in my teenage years.

- Mrs. Smith – the constable touched his hat respectfully. The woman responded with a brief nod.

- Constable.