The helicopter landed on a broad lawn. The landing was so smooth that the passengers didn’t notice it until the noise died away. Leo and Daphne unbuckled and stepped out into bright sunshine. To the east the green lawn finished in a line against the blue sea. To the north were wind-blown trees. To the west was a view out over calm waterways bordered by tall reeds. To the south was the house.
It had as many extensions stuck on as The Burrow, but the impression was entirely different. The original structure was a Norman castle built in 1082 by the Purbeck ancestors who had arrived with William The Conqueror. It was partly demolished, then a Tudor house was added onto the stone walls. The house was rebuilt in Elizabethan times and a new front was started in 1805. Then an Art Nouveau greenhouse was built on to one side. On the other side, modern style glass walls and roof were built over an indoor swimming pool, very ‘Mies van der Rohe’.
Leo and Daphne followed a wide gravel path around to the Georgian front which faced the main drive. As they approached the front portico two people in dark trousers and green jackets with a crest on the pocket hurried out to greet them. They were the manager and her assistant.
Leo felt, rather than heard Daphne step back. Leo tried to feel these greeters, they were blank. He didn’t see anything in them. They both seemed to be happy and were smiling broadly.
Daphne called out; “Leo! Go on in, I have a stone in my shoe.”
Leo felt an urgent push from Daphne. He felt for his wand in its concealed holster. Then he turned his head just enough to see Daphne draw her wand and hold it tightly against her leg.
The two staff walked ahead apparently unconcerned. Two more uniformed staff were waiting in the reception hall. They were also smiling but their response to a touch was blank.
The manager turned to Leo, “Lord Purbeck, a government official arrived here this morning. He is waiting to speak to you personally about an important matter.”
A man dressed in a dark cloak walked in from a side room. As he approached Leo, he sensed a level of hostility that would come from a champion boxer determined to knock him down. The stranger walked up to Leo, smiled, and started to draw a wand.
Only Leo saw what happened next. It was over in an instant.
The stranger’s head snapped back. There was the sound of something breaking. The stranger fell over backwards and crashed full length on the floor.
At the same instant Daphne called, “Finite! Finite! Finite! Finite!”
Leo finished drawing his wand and called, “Expelliarmus!”
The stranger’s wand flew out of his hand and Leo caught it.
The four uniformed staff fell to their knees and rolled onto the floor.
Leo called, “Incarcerous Maxima! Ropes shot out of the end of his wand and tied the ‘official’ from head to foot and gagged him.
Leo and Daphne held their wands out and scanned the hall. Leo felt the building was clear. “I don’t sense anyone else, do you?”
Daphne spoke in a clear voice, “The building is clear, your security team are still outside. They are running in.”
Then came many apparation ‘crack’ sounds from outside. Then, there were the same number of disapparation sounds.
Leo looked out the open front door. “What was that?”
Daphne stared at a window. “I saw someone disapparate just outside that window, then they apparated again instantly.”
The tall security team leader arrived at the main door. His magically amplified voice boomed out, “What is the situation?”
Daphne looked at the four staff. One of them shakily asked, “What happened? I blacked out.”
The ‘official’ was awake and glaring but couldn’t move. Leo kept his wand on him.
Daphne walked to the doorway. “I’m Daphne Greengrass. Please verify my identity.”
The team leader pointed his wand at Daphne, “State your name.”
Daphne replied, “Daphne Greengrass.”
The wand sent out red light which enclosed Daphne and disappeared.
“Your identity is confirmed. What happened?”
Daphne spoke with a slightly shaky voice, “As we met the house staff both Leo and I sensed that they had been Imperioused. We entered the hall and an intruder came in from the side room. I didn’t see what happened. Leo disarmed him and then bound him. I lifted the Imperious Curses from the staff. We think the house is now safe. We heard many apparations and disapparations. I saw one disapparate and apparate instantly at that window. I don’t know what happened.”
The team leader turned and spoke quietly. “Scan the grounds and buildings. Report every issue.” The security team heard him and moved off to search.
He then turned to Daphne, “Let’s see inside.”
He verified the identity of each staff member. The intruder growled at him. The team leader spoke to both Daphne and Leo, “The aurors are on their way. This man is supposed to be a Ministry official. He shouldn’t be here. I would like to hear what you did Mister Blake, but the aurors should hear that first.”
There were three distant apparation sounds and three aurors could be seen walking towards the portico. One of them was Harry Potter.
Harry listened to the team leaders report. He then asked Leo, “What happened Leo?”
Leo looked uncomfortable. “I had an outbreak of my old life. Let me explain. For years when I was younger, I trained as a boxer. My first boxing coach was a university-trained social worker, psychologist, and counsellor. He worked for many years around South London. When he took early retirement, he distilled all that training and experience into a simple mantra for his junior boxers if there was trouble in the street; ‘Don’t hesitate; one straight punch will make them step back before they can use their knife; then run.’”
“Well, today I just substituted wand for knife. He telegraphed his intention when he started to draw his wand. He got so close to me he couldn’t have reacted to anything I did. I gave him the best left upper cut I could, and he took it right on the snout. That gave me time to get my wand up and I disarmed him, then Incarceroused him.”
Harry looked around at the assembled security experts and Daphne. “You got away with it because he didn’t expect you to resist. You have only had three months of wand practice. He thought he had surprised you, but you turned it around. The aurors will have to debate this. Maybe we should be thinking about adding to our pack of surprises for the unwary.”
One of the investigators came in, “Harry, this isn’t a muggle house. It now has enough wards and charms active on it to be another Hogwarts. We checked this place weeks ago, there was nothing. Now, I’m guessing here; when Lord Purbeck turned up all the ancient enchantments came to life. They are powerful ones. The disapparations and apparations; all those wizards trying to come here were instantly apparated down into their own private cells in the dungeons. They are still there; making a few complaints about rats and so on but they aren’t going anywhere. They are the Bulgarian kidnap and ransom gang. I’m making another guess, but I think the house will do that to any unfriendly disapparations.”
Harry looked at the tied-up Ministry official. “What about him?”
“Yes, he arrived here before Lord Purbeck, so the house was still asleep.”
Daphne stepped up beside Leo. “You have got a fabulous house here, Leo. I’m jealous.”
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