Ties That Bind

She smiled when he said he was helping the kids. That impressed her.

"Good for you," she said. "And good for the kids. They're very fortunate to have you and those working with you. It seems to me that you have two significant issues. First, the tracers. Second, the security issues that you might be found even if you can bypass the tracers." She gave it some thought for a moment.

"What if one or the other of those risks were reduced? What if someone could remove the tracers from those particular students? Or--what if someone could help you make your location...less plottable...harder to find? Or--what if you had a new location that was significantly harder to find? Would that help you?"

Her mind was working quickly. A place that was hard to find, better security, a fluid line of supplies or efforts to make them as self sufficient as possible so that they didn't need to go out. Stellar escape plans for everyone there. Millie was a wonderful young woman, but this sort of thing just wasn't in her DNA. Her new husband was right to be protective of her, but that also meant he was significantly more pressured and on his own--and needed help. This was something Remus wouldn't have hesitated to throw his support behind.

"It sounds like you need more allies. Its no secret I don't like whats going on at the Ministry while my father is out. So--how can I help you?"

Keiran listened to Khaat's suggestions, nodding at the appropriate times, and only cutting in intermittently to provide answers as needed. "Well Jack Dyllan is part of our team and she's been looking into the trace. But if you have suggestions, I'm sure they would be appreciated. As for our location, spells only work so well, y'know? It's just me and Jack and Rivah what's put up spells around there. And while I believe that we have a good foundation, there is no promise that we can keep them safe on our own. It's just the three of us there, after all."

Considering the offer of general help as they ended up needing it, Keiran settled on the question of the parts of his team involved at the Ministry. "Well, I'm not sure if you have any away at the Ministry considering Gideon and Ana, but if you have any ideas, it could be a help. I've got a couple people keeping an eye on things. Listening for any word regarding people who might know about us and what we're doing. But they're on different floors, and there's just two of them. I've been trying to figure how to get them involved in other areas. To make it more complicated, Avery is about to be sent on pregnancy leave since she can't exactly work with Dragons while expecting. So we'll need a new plan for her regardless."

It was lucky, Keiran supposed, that he was warmer and nearly dry, because he couldn't help but feel his mood would've been dampened by the weather. Luck was clearly on his side, tonight.

"You let me worry about the tracers," she smiled. "I have friends in...well, all sorts of places. I'll need an actual address. It'll be far less noticeable to do it by address rather than all the people going in and out."

That part of the ministry was generally under very high security. She had learned, though, that she had a friend or two--one in particular--that could go anywhere he darned well wanted without being caught. And turning off a tracer or putting a block in for a location was something he had done for her many, many times.

Michael could, and surely would, do it in his sleep. It was simple for him--and rather routine. Not to mention that Marcus was well experienced, not with cat burglary, but with espionage. She was sure that if Michael were not available, Marcus could be. But there was just about nothing that Michael couldn't get into if he truly wanted to.

"And if its eyes and ears you're looking for on the inside, I believe I know who I can ask to help us there too. So far, that's the easy part. Now--how secure do you really think your location is? Because I'm wondering if you need something a bit more self sustaining and unplottable. The less anyone is seen bringing in the sorts of food amounts and supplies that you, no doubt, have to be using, the more safe you'll be."

Keiran glanced around the room, standing to retrieve a napkin so he could jot down the address of the Galway home. It was a bit risky, a voice in the back of his mind pointed out, so give written proof of the place in question. But he had been given no reason to keep from giving Khaat his trust. So the square of paper was pushed across to table to rest in front of her. "That's where they're staying. They'll be moved to Jack Dyllan's home should we fail to protect them there."

As she continued, Keiran registered the truth of her words. His mother's home felt safe but was in no way a guarantee of safety. It was a mass of contradictions if considered realistically and without bias. So he nodded slowly, turning over the words in his mind.

"The problem, I think, is that the home is very far into the countryside, and has a good bit if acreage around it. Most wouldn't know it's even there. But as you said, getting things to and from is just as difficult as getting the children there to begin with. It's frustrating for them to be trapped within a house so far from everything. But even if we were in somewhere more obvious - somewhere hidden within plain sight or somewhere around a big city - the issue would be whether or not they would do anything risky like go out and get themselves in trouble.

"I don't expect them to make a mistake like that. But fear and isolation can cause many people to do things they wouldn't usually." Keiran had not experienced as much first hand, but history told of the dangers of such things. "I do agree that somewhere else may be more efficient. Then it would come down to us keeping them busy with classes and taking their mind off the threat. If that's done, the worry of mistakes can be mitigated."

She read the address and showed it very briefly to Marcus, who also put the address to memory and then he tossed the napkin into the fireplace, burning it to ash. They wanted no chance that the address would be recovered.

"Porting would work very well for you," Khaat said. "However, even if we can make the location unplottable, which is possible, the problem you might have is in security."

"Layering," Marcus said quietly.

"Agreed," Khaat said. She looked at Kieran and said softly. "Your best bet is to put, in essence, a net of protection spells over your property after it is unplottable. Layers of protection spells."

"Its more effective," Marcus told him. "One large protection spell, no matter how large, can be undone by a skillful wizard. If you layer many spells over top of one another, you create a stronger safety grid over your property. Even if a skilled wizard breaks one spell, it is much more difficult for him to breech all of them simultaneously. Its not unpenetrable, but it certainly does buy you time. You also need to have alternate escape routes out."

"If you get a farm property, you can put up barns and other outbuildings that would hold pantries, storage rooms for supplies, and other larger rooms that would look rather innocuous," she said. "It also gives you countless opportunities for them to learn by doing. Herbology, care of magical creatures, defense against the dark arts, potions--you need all of it on a hidden farm location just to survive. And, what most students seem to hunger for is seeing how their magic can be put to practical use. That would certainly reduce boredom."

She took a sip of her drink, thinking. "If you are in the city," she continued, "it seems to me that you could take over a large warehouse in the muggle industrial district and secure it. If it were me, I would have both and have portkeys between both properties."

"She has a point," Marcus said. "The best way to protect any client or target is, actually, to keep them moving. Letting them sit too long is making it easier for someone hunting for them to hone in on them. The problem for you in doing that is that you may well not have the resources to keep uprooting them from location to location. And the tracers will have to be moved, turned off and on, repeatedly."

Her mind was working overtime. "I think I can help you. I'll arrange for you to have another spot for you all to land in. And I'll find a back up. I'll make sure they're supplied. I'll get you portkeys. From there, I think we can train your people to assemble and maintain a protection grid. If there's one thing my family has learned how to do, its how to make a safehouse. Or safehouses, as the case may be. Do you think it'll work?"

It was almost like Khaat knew about Keiran's family home, and he offered a pleased smile in return for her suggestions. "Coincidentally, my mother's home was meant to be a farm of some sort. We've got a stable already; adding buildings would hardly be a surprise to anyone who might live nearby and notice. We never really had many visitors as altar as I can remember from growing up there. But yes, there are options, in that."

As she and Marcus continued, Keiran had to admit that they inevitably knew more about security than he could ever claim. His life had been one of doing as expected and remaining in control. He was very far from being in control, now, when he was taking such a ridiculous risk. But ensuring the safety of others was not something he could term 'ridiculous.'

"I'm sure with help and choosing to be dedicated to these children, it will work out fine. The only thing I'm wary of is separating them into any sort of groups. If one place gets attacked and not the other, some will be safe and I understand that it will protect those people. But the others being harmed will call forward guilt and fear. But perhaps there is less truth than I could be aware of regarding the ideal of safety in numbers."

Keiran ran a finger over his jaw in thought before adding, "I imagine it would be difficult to move them back and forth between mother's and the place - or places, as you suggested - that will be prepared? If they move it will certainly cause a bit of distress," he mused aloud, gesturing with one hand in a sort of questioning movement, palm up as it swung back and forth. "But perhaps if they're used to transferring it will make an escape more plausible in the end? I don't know how many portkey usages will call attention to us, though. It may be better to pick one for a bit and move around less frequently. If they're as protected as we can now expect, they may not need to move..."

Shaking his head, Keiran ran his fingers through his hair. "I really am not so indecisive on a usual day. I think it's just the stress of this, and my father, and worrying after Melissa. It all makes me question everything so much more."

"Your mother's farm sounds fine," Khaat said.

"I wouldn't have much hesitation about grouping people into smaller groups. After all, a handful of people are easier to port than the entire student body of Hogwarts, for example," Marcus said.

"If I were doing it," Khaat said, "I would hire a great many house elves. I would hire them as not just cooks and maids and butlers, but also, at least temporarily as security for your students. The magic of a house elf is powerful. If I were to do it, I would certainly appoint a certain number of students to each house elf to be responsible for--whatever the elves feel comfortable in managing. Then I would insist, because of the high risk just overall in what you're doing, that your students stay together in those small groups at all times."

"She's right," Marcus said. "It really isn't unlike what we would need to do in protecting members of a body of government or a large family. When I'm responsible for that, I have to make sure I can move them at a moment's notice, and usually smaller groups work best. It is counter to what we think of with children because our nature is to gather them together under our wings but for a large number, that philosophy actually works against you."

"But that actually gives you more flexibility just in managing them on the grounds of your farm. If you have a house elf in charge of four or five, they can be getting out on the grounds and not feeling so closed in," Khaat said. "Your elves would need to know and have portkeys for wherever your back up locations are in case of trouble, but that eliminates great expenditures of magic that would be more detectable. A few house elves apparating or porting aren't going to raise anyone's suspicion most likely. That also frees you and your staff to fight and defend if you need to, with any house elves that aren't assigned to children."

Marcus added, "You need a skeleton crew at the farm that always stay there, no matter what. And you need a skeleton crew that always stay and maintain your safehouse location. That will largely be cooking, cleaning, gardening tasks probably along with security. So, yeah. House elves are ideal for that, and they are unshakably loyal."