(no subject)
Title: An Unlikely Ally
For: istalksnape
Rating: G
Characters: Hermione, Remus and CJ Cregg
Summary: Hermione discover Remus knows an unlikely ally in their search for help. Set the summer before book 7. Harry Potter/West Wing crossover
Author's notes: Well I’m not sure if you wanted CJ with the Harry Potter characters but once I’d thought of her and Remus hanging out at Berkeley I couldn’t resist (and please ignore the slight discrepancy in dates) Thank you to significantowl for comma wrangling!
“It’s no good, Remus,” Hermione said finally, slamming the book in front of her down onto the table. “We can read this over and over again but it all comes back to the same point.”
Remus sighed and studied the cold dregs of his last cup of tea.
“If we want to try Alantha’s Parallel we need one of the Stones, and unless you feel like marching into the Ministry and claiming the one there, it’s the only one we can get at in time.”
“I know,” Remus said tiredly. “But it’s not just in America, Hermione, it’s in the White House. Merlin, it’s PART of the White House.”
“I know that.” Hermione snapped. “But I can’t think of any other spell that will let us see into Malfoy Manor and if the Order’s right…”
“The Order is right.” Remus interrupted her. “It’s the best chance we have, I do know that, and if we’re going to try it then it has to be now, before…”
Remus trailed off and looked at Hermione. Unspoken between them lay the feeling that hung over them all: that Harry would leave at the end of the summer. Nobody spoke of it, but all of them felt it.
“Well then,” Hermione said, pushing her hair back behind her ears. “Now we just have to find someone with a contact in the American Magical Government, or I suppose the non-Magical one if they’re friendly. Any ideas where to start?”
“Well, there is…”
Remus picked up the empty teacups on the table and moved towards the kitchen.
“As it happens,” he continued, “I do know a woman who might be able to help us. But I need a cup of tea first.”
“Let me get this straight.” Hermione said, clearing the space in front of the fireplace. “This woman you know actually works in the White House.”
“Yes.”
“In the West Wing itself.”
“Yes.”
“Close enough to the Oval Office that she could probably do the necessary work on the stone underneath.”
“Well yes, probably from her office.”
“There’s a witch working in the West Wing?”
Remus sighed at Hermione’s incredulous tone.
“You know it isn’t that surprising, after all Kingsley worked in Downing Street and,” Remus kept speaking over Hermione’s exclamation, “you really should learn something about American Wizarding history; you know, it isn’t that unusual to have a highly placed magic user but, actually, no. She isn’t a witch.”
“Well then…”
“She’s a Squib.” Remus set the fire alight with a flick of his wand. “She’s got a lot of sensitivity to magic, though, and I’m sure she’ll be able to follow your instructions easily. And it won’t be any trouble for her to get into the Oval Office because she’s the Chief of Staff.”
With that, Remus cast the spell, and suddenly Hermione saw the edges of a bed and what looked like a suitcase appear in the fireplace, and before she could say anything there was a crash and a woman’s face appeared.
“Who on earth is this? How did you know where I was? What… Remus?”
“Claudia Jean,” Remus answered with a smile. “It’s good to see your face.”
In the background Hermione muttered, “How on earth do you know her?”
“Not that it isn’t always a pleasure, Remus, could you please explain why you just appeared in my fireplace, and who’s that with you?”
“Ah, well, it’s a long story I’m afraid, but this is Hermione Granger, one of my erstwhile students and a friend of…”
“Harry Potter!” CJ exclaimed. “Now you say it I remember her picture from the papers. I’d like to say it was a pleasure, Miss Granger, but I imagine this isn’t a casual call.”
“Not really,” Remus said sadly. “You’re up-to-date with what’s been happening over here?”
“A little, mostly what you’ve told me and what I’ve read in the papers so it’s probably not very accurate.” CJ spoke with a businesslike tone. “I imagine things are worse than either source suggested. That was why I sent you that note with my whereabouts, though my Agent would have killed me if he knew.”
Remus smiled ruefully. “Not going to be interrupted are we?”
“No,” CJ said sitting on the edge of the bed. “I’ve just arrived so I’ve got some time. Not a lot though, so cut to the chase.”
“We need to be able to see what’s going on inside Malfoy Manor.”
“That’s His base?”
“We believe so,” Hermione cut in. “There isn’t really anywhere else it could be, and something’s certainly going on there but we can’t get in to see.”
CJ nodded, her face sharp with attention.
“There’s a Spell,” Remus said. “The only thing we think we can use to see right into the Manor since it was built on top of…”
“Alantha Stone,” CJ interrupted.
“Yes,” Remus looked slightly surprised. “That’s not really common knowledge though.”
CJ smiled. “No, it isn’t, but I’m afraid you’re wasting your time.”
“We have to try,” Hermione said desperately. “I know it’s a difficult spell but there’s another stone…”
“Under the White House,” CJ said along with Hermione. “Right under the Oval Office, in fact. And one in your own Ministry too. I’m afraid however that the Spell won’t work.”
CJ held her hand up to stop Remus and Hermione arguing.
“They’re veiled, all three of them.” CJ said with a tired smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Thirty years ago the Council here thought the previous Mr Malfoy was getting too involved in some shady dealings and tried to use them - totally under wraps, of course, not even your Ministry knew - and they almost managed it, but there were too many wards to break through. And before they had it working both the Malfoys and your Minister knew what was happening.”
“The books say nothing about this,” Hermione said softly, a scandalised expression on her face.
“Of course they don’t.” CJ’s smile nearly reached her eyes this time. “It nearly caused a major diplomatic incident. I only know because I’ve read the file, I looked it over when Remus first contacted me again and said the situation over there was looking bleak.”
Remus and CJ looked at each other sadly.
“It was a good thought,” Remus said and toasted CJ with his cup of tea. “But another dead end.”
“I’m afraid so.”
There was a faint sound of knocking over the connection and CJ looked away to the left.
“I’ll have to go I’m afraid, I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help. If there’s anything I can do…” CJ trailed off. “Well, anything I can do unofficially, I’m afraid officially we have to work with your Ministry.”
“Thank you,” Hermione said politely, though the tension was clear in her voice.
“Goodbye CJ,” Remus said. “We’ll talk in quieter times I hope. You can tell me about how things are with that handsome journalist of yours.”
There was a silence as CJ glared across the fire and Hermione fidgeted awkwardly and concentrated on a piece of parchment by her side.
“When it’s calmer there I might even be done here, perhaps I’ll come and see you!”
The knocking sound came again and with a last wave Remus cut the connection.
“Well, we knew it was a long shot,” Remus said warily as he put his tea down and his shoulders sagged. “We’ve managed flying blind so far.”
“I suppose so.”
Hermione stared at the flickering flames left in the fireplace.
“So,” she said quietly. “So how exactly do you know CJ Cregg?”
Remus grinned; his eyes vague as if he were seeing some far away place.
“A long time ago. After James died and all of that I needed to get away and I ended up in California.”
Remus sighed and smiled at Hermione.
“She made me laugh and then it turned out she had a magical family and I could tell her about everything and we just stayed in touch. It’s funny to think of how powerful she is now.”
Hermione shook her head in wonder.
“One of these days you’re going to have to write down your life story, Remus, it’d make an incredible book.”
She paused.
“And Miss Cregg too. All those records she must have seen, her memoirs would be invaluable to both the wizarding and the muggle worlds!”
“Well maybe when she comes to visit you’ll get a chance to talk to her.” Remus said with a smile. “And maybe, just maybe, I’ll get to see her do The Jackal one more time.”
Hermione looked at Remus as if he’d gone crazy but he just laughed and turned back to the books and their search for help.
For: istalksnape
Rating: G
Characters: Hermione, Remus and CJ Cregg
Summary: Hermione discover Remus knows an unlikely ally in their search for help. Set the summer before book 7. Harry Potter/West Wing crossover
Author's notes: Well I’m not sure if you wanted CJ with the Harry Potter characters but once I’d thought of her and Remus hanging out at Berkeley I couldn’t resist (and please ignore the slight discrepancy in dates) Thank you to significantowl for comma wrangling!
“It’s no good, Remus,” Hermione said finally, slamming the book in front of her down onto the table. “We can read this over and over again but it all comes back to the same point.”
Remus sighed and studied the cold dregs of his last cup of tea.
“If we want to try Alantha’s Parallel we need one of the Stones, and unless you feel like marching into the Ministry and claiming the one there, it’s the only one we can get at in time.”
“I know,” Remus said tiredly. “But it’s not just in America, Hermione, it’s in the White House. Merlin, it’s PART of the White House.”
“I know that.” Hermione snapped. “But I can’t think of any other spell that will let us see into Malfoy Manor and if the Order’s right…”
“The Order is right.” Remus interrupted her. “It’s the best chance we have, I do know that, and if we’re going to try it then it has to be now, before…”
Remus trailed off and looked at Hermione. Unspoken between them lay the feeling that hung over them all: that Harry would leave at the end of the summer. Nobody spoke of it, but all of them felt it.
“Well then,” Hermione said, pushing her hair back behind her ears. “Now we just have to find someone with a contact in the American Magical Government, or I suppose the non-Magical one if they’re friendly. Any ideas where to start?”
“Well, there is…”
Remus picked up the empty teacups on the table and moved towards the kitchen.
“As it happens,” he continued, “I do know a woman who might be able to help us. But I need a cup of tea first.”
“Let me get this straight.” Hermione said, clearing the space in front of the fireplace. “This woman you know actually works in the White House.”
“Yes.”
“In the West Wing itself.”
“Yes.”
“Close enough to the Oval Office that she could probably do the necessary work on the stone underneath.”
“Well yes, probably from her office.”
“There’s a witch working in the West Wing?”
Remus sighed at Hermione’s incredulous tone.
“You know it isn’t that surprising, after all Kingsley worked in Downing Street and,” Remus kept speaking over Hermione’s exclamation, “you really should learn something about American Wizarding history; you know, it isn’t that unusual to have a highly placed magic user but, actually, no. She isn’t a witch.”
“Well then…”
“She’s a Squib.” Remus set the fire alight with a flick of his wand. “She’s got a lot of sensitivity to magic, though, and I’m sure she’ll be able to follow your instructions easily. And it won’t be any trouble for her to get into the Oval Office because she’s the Chief of Staff.”
With that, Remus cast the spell, and suddenly Hermione saw the edges of a bed and what looked like a suitcase appear in the fireplace, and before she could say anything there was a crash and a woman’s face appeared.
“Who on earth is this? How did you know where I was? What… Remus?”
“Claudia Jean,” Remus answered with a smile. “It’s good to see your face.”
In the background Hermione muttered, “How on earth do you know her?”
“Not that it isn’t always a pleasure, Remus, could you please explain why you just appeared in my fireplace, and who’s that with you?”
“Ah, well, it’s a long story I’m afraid, but this is Hermione Granger, one of my erstwhile students and a friend of…”
“Harry Potter!” CJ exclaimed. “Now you say it I remember her picture from the papers. I’d like to say it was a pleasure, Miss Granger, but I imagine this isn’t a casual call.”
“Not really,” Remus said sadly. “You’re up-to-date with what’s been happening over here?”
“A little, mostly what you’ve told me and what I’ve read in the papers so it’s probably not very accurate.” CJ spoke with a businesslike tone. “I imagine things are worse than either source suggested. That was why I sent you that note with my whereabouts, though my Agent would have killed me if he knew.”
Remus smiled ruefully. “Not going to be interrupted are we?”
“No,” CJ said sitting on the edge of the bed. “I’ve just arrived so I’ve got some time. Not a lot though, so cut to the chase.”
“We need to be able to see what’s going on inside Malfoy Manor.”
“That’s His base?”
“We believe so,” Hermione cut in. “There isn’t really anywhere else it could be, and something’s certainly going on there but we can’t get in to see.”
CJ nodded, her face sharp with attention.
“There’s a Spell,” Remus said. “The only thing we think we can use to see right into the Manor since it was built on top of…”
“Alantha Stone,” CJ interrupted.
“Yes,” Remus looked slightly surprised. “That’s not really common knowledge though.”
CJ smiled. “No, it isn’t, but I’m afraid you’re wasting your time.”
“We have to try,” Hermione said desperately. “I know it’s a difficult spell but there’s another stone…”
“Under the White House,” CJ said along with Hermione. “Right under the Oval Office, in fact. And one in your own Ministry too. I’m afraid however that the Spell won’t work.”
CJ held her hand up to stop Remus and Hermione arguing.
“They’re veiled, all three of them.” CJ said with a tired smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “Thirty years ago the Council here thought the previous Mr Malfoy was getting too involved in some shady dealings and tried to use them - totally under wraps, of course, not even your Ministry knew - and they almost managed it, but there were too many wards to break through. And before they had it working both the Malfoys and your Minister knew what was happening.”
“The books say nothing about this,” Hermione said softly, a scandalised expression on her face.
“Of course they don’t.” CJ’s smile nearly reached her eyes this time. “It nearly caused a major diplomatic incident. I only know because I’ve read the file, I looked it over when Remus first contacted me again and said the situation over there was looking bleak.”
Remus and CJ looked at each other sadly.
“It was a good thought,” Remus said and toasted CJ with his cup of tea. “But another dead end.”
“I’m afraid so.”
There was a faint sound of knocking over the connection and CJ looked away to the left.
“I’ll have to go I’m afraid, I’m sorry I couldn’t be of more help. If there’s anything I can do…” CJ trailed off. “Well, anything I can do unofficially, I’m afraid officially we have to work with your Ministry.”
“Thank you,” Hermione said politely, though the tension was clear in her voice.
“Goodbye CJ,” Remus said. “We’ll talk in quieter times I hope. You can tell me about how things are with that handsome journalist of yours.”
There was a silence as CJ glared across the fire and Hermione fidgeted awkwardly and concentrated on a piece of parchment by her side.
“When it’s calmer there I might even be done here, perhaps I’ll come and see you!”
The knocking sound came again and with a last wave Remus cut the connection.
“Well, we knew it was a long shot,” Remus said warily as he put his tea down and his shoulders sagged. “We’ve managed flying blind so far.”
“I suppose so.”
Hermione stared at the flickering flames left in the fireplace.
“So,” she said quietly. “So how exactly do you know CJ Cregg?”
Remus grinned; his eyes vague as if he were seeing some far away place.
“A long time ago. After James died and all of that I needed to get away and I ended up in California.”
Remus sighed and smiled at Hermione.
“She made me laugh and then it turned out she had a magical family and I could tell her about everything and we just stayed in touch. It’s funny to think of how powerful she is now.”
Hermione shook her head in wonder.
“One of these days you’re going to have to write down your life story, Remus, it’d make an incredible book.”
She paused.
“And Miss Cregg too. All those records she must have seen, her memoirs would be invaluable to both the wizarding and the muggle worlds!”
“Well maybe when she comes to visit you’ll get a chance to talk to her.” Remus said with a smile. “And maybe, just maybe, I’ll get to see her do The Jackal one more time.”
Hermione looked at Remus as if he’d gone crazy but he just laughed and turned back to the books and their search for help.