Super Glue for Broken Families

Jack had to back up. She was getting nowhere by attempting to plow forward with her cold, professional demeanor. The girl was simply too emotional, too hysterical to be reasoned logically with about her estranged brother. Jack could almost understand. Her brother had become distant with her, but she was on the receiving end of the disinterest, so she could only presume what it felt like to be on the other side - if all Toby had said was true, that was. Jack could not believe everything he said and judge this girl, even if it was the only information she had.

Jack slowed down and stepped back in the conversation, starting over completely. "Okay. All I know is this - he told me he was kicked out of the home because his family found out he was gay. He's been living in my home, perfectly fine, eating and resting and completely at ease. He's fine."

'Hold on a second.' Hallie said, the tears suddenly coming to a halt. This didnt make sense, her story and Toby's supposed story weren't parallel. Toby hadn't been kicked out because he was gay, he wasn't gay and even if he turned out to be gay surely at the age of ten he wouldn't have known? 

'When did he say he was kicked out?' She asked, frowning and rubbing her teeth with her Tongue in concentration. Perhaps it was the wrong Toby? Or maybe whoever Jack presumed to be Toby was using a false identity? 

Suddenly the happiness of knowing her brother had been found alive and well. Even if she had been heartbroken at Toby's feelings of being kicked out. Now, Toby could be anywhere - perhaps dead? 

"He didn't," Jack responded curtly. "He's been very hesitant to give me any sort of information. I haven't pressed him much and I imagine most of the information he has given me may not be the fullest truth." She could see he girl was suddenly looking doubtful, so Jack fished through her pockets, withdrawing a picture of the boy that she had managed to take. She held it out for the girl. "I should have probably led with this, huh?"

Taking the photograph from Jack Hallie stare down at it. There a boy, who was approximately fifteen years old. His hair was a dirty blonde and longer than it had been years gone, and he also seemed to have more facial hair - granted it was only White body hair and not a fully formed beard but it was possible to spot his transition in puberty. The jaw law had also become more prominent with age and his teeth were sharper. Perhaps it was was the werewolf in him? 

However one thing stayed the same: the blue eyes. It was like looking in a mirror as Hallie gazed into them, the owner repeatedly attempting a smile. It felt strange, seeing the jump in his age. 

'Can I see him?' Hallie asked, removing her eyes from those of Toby's and up to Jack's. The ex Gryffindor didn't want to tell her Mum just yet about what happened, he may not even decide to come back? Whether he did or didn't Hallie wanted to talk to him first, clear up some things. 

Jack paused. The girl's expression told it all - she was drinking in the photograph, her eyes flickering as she found familiar features, deeply affected by the sight of the photograph in a way that indicated it had to be her brother. The girl looked up and asked whether or not she could see Toby. Jack thought here - she had been given no information. At every turn, the girl had deflected her questions. Jack was taking care of the boy and she could not just pawn him off on a family who had rejected him. She had to collect more information first.

"I'd really like to get my information first," Jack said. "As you can imagine, he doesn't know I'm here. I'd like him to be apart of any decision to reunite. I really do need to know what happened, though. If you could," she said, putting up a cupped hand, in great need of the information that had been systematically denied to her.

Hallie bit her lip. Jack was asking for more information on what had happened between Toby and her. She was asking for her greatest secret, the one thing she'd kept herself from disclosing to anyone.

How could she get around it? Jack clearly wasn't the type to budge and seemed to be concerned about Toby.

'Five years ago.' Hallie began not looking at Jack but her eyes finding the photo in her hands again. 'We had gotten into an argument with our Mum. She wanted us to be back from playing for a certain time, we didn't know her reasons at the time. So we went into the forest behind the cottage and well, we went a bit too far and stayed out longer than we should have. A lot longer.' Hallie said, taking a breath as she widened her eyes. 

'We, we were climbing and then out of nowhere we sudden hear an odd noise, it sounded like a large animal. Then we see the teeth. The fur. The large snout and stubby tail.' This time Hallie gulped, returning her gaze to Jack. 'We ran for it. Luckily we were small so could weave our way under the small trees, squeeze through gaps as the werewolf chased us but... I heard Toby fall but I just thought it was a branch or something. I kept running then... Then I turned round and..' Hallie raised a hand to her throat. 'Toby was becoming a werewolf. He'd been bitten.' 

Blinking back the tears Hallie raise herself from the sofa and went over to the window where, on the windowsill was a family photo: Her Father, Mother, Toby and herself. Together. She gazed out of the window for a moment, then, turning around the tears leaked and began to streak down her face. 'There was nothing I could do! I ran for it back to the house! My Mum was in the back garden, she heard my screams and then... The werewolves caught up with us. Mum didn't know one was Toby. I- I don't know how she did it but she managed to fight them back and get us safely in the house.'

Sounding less hysterical Hallie's eyes went misty. This was the next bit she didn't want to talk about. The thing that not a soul but her knew. 

'I found Toby in the wood the next day and... He went.' She'd avoided saying that it was she who'd ordered him to leave for their own safety, hopefully Jack would assume that Toby decided to leave on his own accord. Hallie was honest but everyone has a secret, and this was hers.

'I never told our Mum that Toby was bitten. Nobody knows. She, she just assumed that he had been attacked and by the werewolf, or managed to escape. She- she hoped that he'd escaped but... He never came back and.' The tearful tone was beginning to flood back into her voice and this time she collapsed back on the sofa next to take.

'She blames herself for letting us play out and not being firm, you know, and making us stay inside! I - I let her feel that way when it was all, m-my fault! I l-let Toby, g-ge-get bitten!' 

Jack listened to the younger girl's story with interest - Toby had not revealed his lycanthropy to her. Jack supposed she might have noticed had Toby not been known to spend a night or two away from her house every once in awhile. He was a teen boy, and no kin of hers, so Jack allowed him the freedom, as she had been allowed to wander at his age and she had survived and turned out normal enough - alright, almost normal enough.

She blinked - was she supposed to comfort the girl? Jack really could not. It was the past, it was irreversible, it was over with. Jack was not one to muster up fake sympathy for someone else, especially a stranger, unless the matter was incredibly painful or serious.

Jack nodded. "I see. But why is he no longer living with you?"

Teardrops were still cascading down her cheeks and splashing on the photo of Toby. However, Jack's next question caused them to suddenly stop. Maybe it was the trauma of reliving what happened five years ago in her mind. 

'I just said!' Hallie gasped, looking up into Jack Dyllan's eyes. 'He was bit by a werewolf then in the morning he - left.' There was a slight pause between Hallie's final too words, partly due to the passion of which she spoke and partly because of her fib. It was true, Toby had left although Hallie was refraining from saying it was her who asked him too.

'Look.' Hallie began, wiping away her tears and standing up. 'If you're just here to keep tormenting me of my past then you may as well stop I've told you everything there is to know! Please can you just take me too him?' She insisted, hoping that Jack would see how emotionally draining the topic was for her.

Jack was not one to go easy on people, especially people who allowed them their emotions to get the best of them. Jack found that these people were not always the most truthful, nor the most composed. It wasn't out of traits of badness or malice, but because they were not composed and lacked self control. A few years in the real world did these people well. So it was not Hallie's fault, but she would not be going easier on the girl and delay the inevitable wake-up call.
 
"He left?" Jack repeated, making it clear she did not believe the story she had been given. The girl continued on and Jack remained calm. "Listen carefully. I'm not here to torment. I'm here for the facts, I'm here to fix things. Stay with me here. I can't take you to him until he agrees to it. He seems a bit hurt. I want to try and get everything mended here so I can go mend things with him. Then, you'll be free to see him as you please."

Hallie shook her head, looking down at her hands. 'The only thing that can mend my broken home is Toby.' The blonde closed her eyes and fought back the tears that were still trailing down her cheeks. 

'If I told you that I asked him to leave would you still let me see him?' Hallie asked, looking up and clutching her stomach as though she was going to unleash vomit from her mouth along with the words. 

That had been the first in her entire life she had spoke those words. The dark secret that hate ate her away throughout her fourth year before settling deep within her and allowing her to move on as she furthered her life. 

Hallie wasn't sure how Jack was going to take it but she was wanting to see Toby and sort things out with him, tell her it was her biggest regret, that she was being irrational that... That cowardice had once been a part of her among the bravery that she was known for.  If Hallie could take back what she'd done then she would have hundreds of times over.