Wolf Pups Can Find Their Way Home

Naomi sat crouched beneath a sill in the Shrieking Shack at midday, the top of her head just barely above the sill, her hand clutching the scruff of the large wolf-dog Hyde and her other hand clutching her wand like one would hold on to a dagger; ready to attack. Snow blanketed the expanse around the shack, and a low hanging branch laden with snow had drooped so that any sight of herself would be hidden.

It had been difficult. She had returned to the place she had originally been kidnapped to, Felix's actual house, but only to scrounge some clothes, what food she could fit in her bag, and a smaller tent that they had not used when on the run. That was all she had risked before fleeing the place, hurrying back into the various forest places. She had even stayed in the Forest of Dean but had left soon after; too many wizards may be checking.

She had been uneasy about seeking out the help of Death Eaters. Something about the situation told her they were not happy with Felix. If they were not happy with Felix, she had nothing. Even the fact that her father had been in their ranks would mean nothing if they wanted to get revenge on Felix. She would be in danger with anyone it seemed. So she had stuck with Hyde and their had been close calls, but without Felix's protection, she had mostly been in flight mode.

Luckily, her time pretending to be a victim had made her grow accustomed to silence and feeling hungry, whereas being on the run had taught her a bit about roughing it. Hyde was a huge asset as well, because he was sometimes able to bring her rabbits and various other things to eat. He seemed to realize she was his only ticket to freeing his master. Hyde was intelligent, strong, and fiercely loyal. If she could not have Felix by her side, his faithful dog was her next choice in an ally.

She knew what lay in her future. Seek the help of more powerful and break Felix out of Askaban. She kept thinking back to her encounter with the werewolves... How they had wanted her to join them. Her father was a sign of hope for a future where they were on top. That must live on in the name. They had not fully transformed, having taken the Wolfsbane potion, but even then, they lusted to have her in their ranks. And she was considering the benefits of leading them.

But she also knew she could not continue to run, either. People were looking for her and she could not afford to be caught. Running on her own, wolfdog with her or not, she was too easy a target. Eventually she would be caught. She was not stupid enough to think she could escape. And that was when she had realized her best bet for safety was with her half-brother, Ariel.

Naomi knew there was the possibility that she had many siblings due to her father's promiscuous nature, but she did not care for any of them, nor did she know most of them. She had only learned about that Gryffindor weirdo because Ariel knew. She had had a whole conversation with the guy without understanding. But Ariel and her got along. In fact, he was probably the only person who really understood her before she was kidnapped. They were close in age, from the same loins, and sort of similar. They even looked pretty alike. They might be twins if they did not have different mothers.

Nevertheless, once Naomi thought of hiding with Ariel, she knew that was what she had to do. She had sent him a letter with a large pawprint- Hyde's, which more closely resembled a wolf's than a dog's- and the simple sentence Shrieking Shack. Midday. She did not know when he would be there, but she herself had immediately camped out there. Everyday at midday she would crawl over to the window and wait. She hoped he waited for a Hogsmeade weekend, but she did not want to specify to much in case it was intercepted. She just hoped he had used his common sense to figure this part out.

She slowly flexed her legs, feeling the muscles begin to tense and then seize up. Hyde stared forward and she knew she had made a good decision not to risk going outside to sent up protective spells. Hyde would hear any human before any spell would be able to let her know someone was approaching. Her eyes stayed trained on the fence that was supposed to keep people away. She slowly licked her lips. How much longer would she need to wait?

Staring at one’s self in the mirror should have been an ample opportunity to appraise the reflection. All Ariel currently saw was disaster. He was coherent for the most part but he could barely hold himself up on his feet. His grip on the basin could have broken it and sure enough the ceramic was beginning to crack around his hands. It seemed as if he still possessed his canine’s strength. The animal had fun last night. It took advantage when it had no right to. He’d forgotten his Wolfsbane. Well, he hadn’t, he’d just left it too late. The dog had taken advantage of his tardiness and had wreaked havoc upon the woods. Ariel was sure that it was an arrow wound in his thigh. Clearly the sodding animal had taken it upon itself to go and harass the centaurs. Obviously it wasn’t smart enough to get out of the way.

There was a crack from behind Ariel and he lifted his head to see Mops appear on the laundry hamper. She squealed and lost her footing. Ariel watched as the House Elf teetered on the edge of the hamper for a few seconds before losing her balance completely. She fell into the other hamper, the open one, and sent socks and shirts and underwear flying. Her head poked out from the hamper and Ariel smiled. A pair of boxers had somehow managed to cover her head. It was amusing, even if it was completely unsanitary. But it seemed as if Mops preferred dirty underwear to her master’s nudity. Ariel was insulted, sort of. But then again, if he was a House Elf, to be presented with his master’s arse so early in the morning couldn’t have been pretty. Ariel just thanked Merlin he had a nice arse and that he wasn’t a House Elf.

Mops’ presence made Ariel feel better although not by much. She was as neurotic as they came and she wasn’t to be trusted with anything valuable. She had her moments of greatness though and this was one of these moments. After she pulled herself from the hamper, she got to work, healing Ariel of his various injuries, both self inflicted and accidental. She even confirmed that the pain in his thigh was the result of arrow head penetration of the skin. He hoped that ruddy animal howled for its creator when the centaur hit it. Mops was also kind enough to set out some clothes for Ariel. It seemed as if she knew something he didn’t as she purposely set out clothes that he would wear if he decided to go out. He didn’t want to go out at all. He wanted to go back to bed, actually.

He was reluctant to get dressed and it must have showed on his weary face for Mops forced the pair of trousers she’d set out, into his hands. Ariel met her saucer gaze and bit his lip. Mops was firm. She wasn’t going to take his shit, not today. He just wanted to sleep. Was that too much to ask? Apparently yes, it was.

Ariel slowly got dressed, spending an agonising amount of time popping buttons through their allocated holes in his shirt. Each one made his hands hurt just that little bit more and his fingers began to ache with the fiddling that had to be done. The buttons weren’t particularly large after all said and done. He pulled his trousers on not long after, tucking his shirt into his trousers and buttoning them up. He pulled them up over the elastic waistband of his boxers and threaded his belt through the loops. He tightened his belt and after that, began to speed up the process. He tied his tie and pulled his waistcoat on. Once that was buttoned up he shrugged on his blazer and, with the help of Mops, got into his coat.

“Hold on,” Ariel stopped halfway through putting his gloves on. He dropped his hands down by his waist and looked at the House Elf curiously, “Why am I getting dressed to go out, Mops?” The House Elf held her hand out and clicked her fingers. A rolled up piece of parchment appeared in her hand and she handed it to Ariel. He took it from her and unrolled it. He didn’t expect to be presented with a paw print and one from a wolf no less. No, it wasn’t quite a wolf. It was hybrid. Half domesticated, half feral and wild. The words above it explained all he needed to know. It was just devoid of a date. That was too risky though perhaps. Especially for this person who wished to remain anonymous. Ariel had a feeling he knew who it was though. “When did this come, Mops?” He asked.

“A few days ago, Master. Before the Moon. Mops didn’t have time to reach you. Master didn’t wake until earlier. Mops thought it best to tell master.” She explained, not missing a beat. Ariel rolled up the parchment and placed it in the pocket of his coat. He pulled his gloves on and pulled the wolf-head topped off of the headboard where Mops had hooked it. Ariel got to his feet and leaned on the cane for support. He hated these things but this one in particular held Firewhisky. It was enough to keep him content during the day. It would also aid his walking which he’d need if he was going to get down to the Shrieking Shack without killing himself in the process.

When he worked with the snow, it wasn’t nearly as hard as Ariel had first imagined. He’d abandoned the cane, having shrank it and put into his pocket, and was walking without aid much to the dismay of Mops who was sat in one of the naked trees dotted around the area. When Ariel came to the fence, he took his wand out of his pocket. He ran it across the fence and it fell away. He didn’t have the energy to climb. Ariel walked over the fallen fence and once he’d stepped off of it, it jumped back into its position. He put his wand back into his pocket and looked up at the building that shouldn’t have still been there. But it was and thank Merlin for it. It protected his sister. That was what mattered.

Ariel pressed forward into the house. He heard the creaking of floorboards above, the squeal of door hinges and not once did it cross his mind that he could have been in danger. He didn’t think for a second he was. No, he recognised the handwriting. Ariel headed for the staircase and proceeded to take two steps at a time, energy appearing from seemingly nowhere. He reached the landing of the floor he believed Naomi to be on and took his wand out of his pocket. He put his hand to the door handle and twisted it, pushing the door slowly open. “Naomi?” He called out to her. He pushed the door fully open and his eyes fell on the blonde and the ruddy great animal beside her. “You like you’ve got a few stories to tell.” Ariel said with a small smirk.

Naomi watched the figure approach with her now impassioned eyes. Since her kidnapping a lot had changed. She had grown incredibly thinner, almost looking bony, but what meat she did have on her was muscle, built from the literal running she had been doing, on top of various exercises of climbing and one instance of swimming through a freezing river. Her hair had grown longer only to be severed by her wand, leaving the ends terribly damaged. Her face had thinned out and she had grown a bit tall. She was a woman now. But the most obvious change was her eyes. They had always been a dull grey, making you feel as though you would get no mercy. They were the same, only now they were on fire. She had something to live for and save yourself of you got in her way. Her eyes told you that you would not last very long.

Hyde had bristled, but she snuffled quietly to him. While she may not take on the body of a wolf during full moons, she often took on the mind of one. Therefore this noise, which would have sounded foolish coming from someone else, was an actual method of communication. Hyde understood and though he raised himself up, he sat back and watched, his sharp eyes trained on the approaching figure that his companion seemed to have no worries over.

Naomi did feel her eyes scan the area just in case, making sure he had not been tailed by authorities or someone who would not mind to find out where she was currently hiding. Ariel was not stupid, but he would not be the first to be followed when he did not want to be. Naomi had learned to never stop expecting the worse, but it seemed that fate had decided she needed a break, finally. She needed this one thing.

He entered the house and Naomi breathed easier. She pointed her wand at the door and unlocked it, before reaching up and closing the window, carefully latching it. She stood, her thin legs unfolding beneath her and she raised her pointed chin, her seemingly heavy lashed lifting off her cheeks and preparing to greet her brother.

He entered the room and she did not spare him a smile. She raised her wand and pointed over his shoulder, sending the door closed and locking it before dropping her arm. She stared at him for a second before a very similar smirk alighted on her own face. “That I do, but I'm sure you could always check the Prophet.” She nodded her head at Hyde. “This is Hyde. Don't worry about him, much. He's good.” She could not say he was trained because his intelligence was what marked him apart, not his obedience.

She then realized how tired she really was so she pointed at the ground. “Let's sit. I'm exhausted.” She glanced at the ground and then sat. “This place was so disgusting when I showed up. Grime and dust everywhere. Luckily I've become handing with cleaning spells. So now the ground is spotless.” She paused for a second and then reached over for her bag and reached in, withdrawing a small loaf of bread. She broke off a piece for herself and held the rest out to Ariel. “Hungry?”

Ariel bit his tongue, stopping himself from commenting on Naomi’s corpse-like appearance. He plastered a smile on his face, one that managed to resemble something half genuine, although it came out like more of a grimace. The door closed behind him and Ariel jumped, glancing over his shoulder. The intimidating wood now covered the doorway he’d walked through and although he had no reason to leave as of yet, he was mighty concerned by it. The shack was about ready to fall to the ground. Anything too forceful might end its hundred years or so history.

The floorboards creaked but remained firm underfoot none the less. Ariel moved closer to Naomi, glancing down at the dog when she mentioned it. That was a big dog, vicious too no doubt. The puppy would probably be able to take it but there was no Full Moon for a while yet. Ariel thanked Merlin for that fact too. He wasn’t quite ready for relapse just yet. It didn’t matter about him though; not at this moment in time. Naomi was his responsibility and had been from the moment he’d decided to go to her. Now he had to look after her.

“Here,” Ariel popped the buttons out of their holes and shrugged his coat off. He draped it over Naomi’s shoulders and sat down next to her. Ariel kept his gloves on, not quite willing to part with them as of yet. He watched his sister carefully, as if she was going to fall through the floor and he’d have to spring forward to stop her from tumbling to her death. As convenient as that would have been for the Ministry, Ariel wasn’t going to give Naomi up. They’d underestimated her. They’d also underestimated Felix it seemed. Not only was that dog massive but it was pretty damn smart.

Ariel looked at the bread Naomi was offering to him and he shook his head, holding up his hand as he did so. “I am but you must be starving. Eat what you have, we can get more food later,” He instructed, a soft tone to his voice. Although it could have easily been an order for anyone else, it was more of a firm request as far as Naomi was concerned. She was going to eat it though, whether he had to force it down her throat or not.

There was only so much small talk Ariel could stand. A few sentences was it if he was going to be frank about it. He needed to get to the point. He also needed Naomi out of the public place that Hogsmeade was. They may have been protected by the shack but the walls were only so thick. At some point someone was going to see in. Ariel had seen wanted posters up all over the town. Felix’s face was no longer moving and big bold lettering was spread across each poster. ‘CAUGHT’, it read. Naomi’s bore no such thing and, if Ariel got his way, they never would.

“We’ll Apparate to mine,” Ariel said, keeping his eyes on Naomi. “In half an hour’s time the village will be empty so it’s an ample opportunity to smuggle you in. There’s no need for this camping business anymore. I’m sure you’d like a bath, eh?” Ariel raised an eyebrow and smiled at Naomi. “What exactly should I know though, Naomi? The Ministry are going to come knocking at some point. The Lupins are fully aware I’ve been sniffing around and they’re not happy about it. As much as I’d love to incriminate myself, which I am in the process of doing, I’d much prefer it if I could keep you out of Azkaban – which is where they’re going to send you if you’re caught. I don’t think they’ll even bother with a trial at present. They’re all far more interested in Mr. Barker.”

Ariel was grimacing at her, something that incited a sort of twisted smirk. She and her brother had always been so caught up in appearances and, once she was bathed and had clean clothes, she would surely return to that when she had a more steady condition of living. But she had learned to be practical rather than fashionable. Her hair had actually looked quite lovely long, but she had cut it for practicality. She had washed when she could, but there was grime under her fingernails. She had learned a lot.

Ariel took off his coat and threw it around her shoulders and her hands immediately grabbed the sides and pulled them closed in front of her. Ari and his heavy, fashionable coats. The coat was much needed, rather large on her small frame, but enveloping her in a warmth it had been hard to find. She and Hyde were independent. Only on the coldest nights had she curled against his back to find warmth in his fur. But the two remained independent of each other, allies and friends, but nothing like the loyalty he had for Felix. Nothing like the loyalty she had for Felix.

Ariel sat next to her and, thankfully, turned down the bread. She nodded and ate it quickly, managing to keep her manners, but eating it a lot faster than she ate food when she was eating at her own leisure. She glanced at Hyde and threw him the piece she had offered to Ariel, which he snapped up and swallowed in one bite before glancing away, watching the cracks and corners of the precarious house that they were stationed in.

For a bit, it was silent, but for the noises of Naomi finishing off the bread, wiping the crumbs from her hands, the wind against the shack, the creaking the house admitted whenever it was even slightly, if at all, disturbed. The eerie noises filling the silence did just that- filled it. There was no awkwardness, just a sense of patience. Naomi finally felt as though she need not be on edge.

Ariel said that they would Apparate to his house and she turned to look at him, to make sure he was completely confident in the idea. He continued on, saying that in a half hour the village would be emptying and they could take a chance to get her home. He said that she would probably appreciate a bath and she smiled widely at him. “Amen.” She would not lie. The worst part had been lack of clean body and clothes.

Ariel asked what he needed to know and she sobered up. She felt a bit pleased to hear that he had already tried to figure out where she was which, as far as she knew, was a lot more than her own parents had done. Her stepfather had probably been to afraid about what it would do to business to seem like they had enemies, and her mother was... well she had never been stable, so she was hard to predict or explain.

But Ariel was her brother and they had to watch out for each other and that was what he had tried to do. She understood that, by now, her fate was probably Askaban. There was still the hope that they had planted enough evidence of bewitchment into conversations with others, but the fact she still had not made an appearance was suspicious. She knew this but... she could not go back.

She sighed, trying to sum up what she needed to tell Ariel and what would just waste time or set her back even more. “Felix and I are together. The rumors are true. I do love him. He never tortured me, for the record. But we kept up appearances of torturer and tortured, bewitcher and bewitched for our 'audiences.'” She paused. “I barely escaped, thanks to Hyde. I was never directly involved with torturing Khaat and Elijah, but I pretended to be a victim and Khaat's cellmate.” He did not need to hear all of her 'adventures' on the run, that could come later. “I don't plan on returning to Hogwarts. I plan on joining the Death Eaters or-or.... the werewolves.”

She paused again. This was something she had not ever told Felix. He had told her to seek help from the Death Eaters but Naomi knew she was not welcome there... yet. She needed the werewolves, who had already come looking for her. She would have to explain later though. She plowed on. “I don't know yet, I just know that I have to break Felix out. I'm going to do everything I can and there's no stopping me. That's all, I think.”