Rachel Ayanami was feeling a bit put out. Apparently, her dear baby sister Leah had decided that the Mendocino Poly-Magical Institute was completely unworthy. Of course Darcy, the second youngest girl, had been saying the same thing every year, but Rachel was fairly certain that her complaints were regarding the 'truly hideous school uniforms', and the 'profoundly stupid name', rather than substandard curriculum, which was undoubtedly Leah's complaint. Well, the kid should know something about curriculum, given the fact that she'd just graduated from Beverly Hills High School. Not that it was abnormal for witches and wizards to attend grammar school until they were eleven, but Leah was determined to finish both her magical and non-magical education. And besides, she couldn't stand to be bored.
None of this was particularly surprising to Rachel, who was home visiting her family for her twenty-first birthday. No, the surprise was something else…well, more than one something else, actually. One, her parents were actually giving in to Leah's demand to attend a different school. They'd never given in to Darcy's, and she would be starting her fifth year at the dreaded institution in the fall. Two…
"So, why don't you just owl the schools? Or have floo conversations with the Headmasters? How did I get the short straw?"
Madeline Ayanami crossed her arms as her eyes narrowed. Rachel had a terrible feeling that she should have worded that differently. Her only hope was that it might not be too late for damage control. "Mom, I…"
"I do not wish to hear it, young lady," Mrs. Ayanami replied crisply.
All hope of damage control lost, Rachel resigned herself to the oncoming guilt trip.
"I do know what your life is like, Rachel. I know quite well, from the appalling lack of visits, that you are a very busy woman. Sometimes, in fact, I wonder why you bother to keep an apartment. And, regardless of what you may believe, I did not plan on celebrating your birthday by asking you for a favor, but this is very important to me. Todd was going to go, but he finally got that promotion and can't take any time off work."
Great, here we go again, Rachel thought. Big brother got a promotion in the Department of Magical Affairs; what a little trooper. Rachel could not help but wallow, just for a moment, in self pity, think that if only she'd been born a witch instead of Garou, her mother might actually have a clue about what her life was like. Maybe then she'd get sympathy and compassion, rather than the guilt and nagging.
What am I, she griped inwardly, but the youngest Athro in a hundred years? Her mother probably didn't even know that that meant she was already nearly an Elder, the highest rank of her people, at twenty-one years of age. And she undoubtedly had no idea that she'd had already seen more people fall in battle than she had friends in school before her little 'accident', and she'd been popular. But there was no point thinking about that at the moment. It was exhausting enough simply to try and pay at least a little attention to what her mother was yammering on about.
"…sending my children off to a school far away from home, I'd like to know more about the school than one can learn from a letter or, as you put it, from floo conversations with the Headmasters. I need to be home with Leah and Darcy. Darcy is quite upset that I never granted her wish to attend a different school, but have 'given in at the prodigy's first complaint', in your sister's words. And don't look at me like that. If Darcy had ever given me a decent reason for a transfer, I'd have listened. What sort of excuse is 'the name is stupid', or 'look at this hideous uniform'? Leah's complaint had merit."
Mrs. Ayanami paused, and her jade eyes met Rachel's weary hazel ones. "Honey, the list of schools is not long. And don't think I've forgotten what you mentioned about your pack. You said that the others have grown weary of the life you lead, and that they want to settle down and have families. And I know where they're coming from. You push yourself far too hard; you always have. And you think I don't notice, baby, but I do. If you keep pushing yourself the way you do, you're what, a year or two away from Elder status? Try not to look so surprised, dear. It doesn't set well on your face."
Rachel couldn't help but wonder when her mother had begun to pay attention. "Mom, I… You're right, I suppose, I probably push myself, and those around me, harder than I should. But we're fighting a war here, us against the darkness. And, at the moment, the darkness is winning. How can I take a break from it and still respect myself? I have responsibilities."
Rachel turned away from her mother's concerned gaze. When did this become about her, she wondered. Her mother was right, of course. Her pack really was falling to pieces. They were exhausted, physically and emotionally, and wanted to stay in one place and put down roots. Evil, unfortunately, did not stay in one place, and her pack had become, more or less, a consulting firm. They could go into any Sept and, using their various talents, identify the strengths and weaknesses of the group. Garou wouldn't always accept their findings, often did not want to take their advice, but those who did always saw an increase in efficiency and morale as well as a drop in casualties.
It wasn't all they did, of course. They were also particularly renowned for Umbral quests, but with Owl as their totem, that was more or less to be expected. Why would he gift his Children with Umbral wings if he didn't expect them to be used? And though Garou around them seemed to drop like flies, she had yet to lose a packmate.
Secretly, Rachel thought the only thing that could improve things even more would be the addition of a wizard into the mix, but they were, well, maybe hated was too strong a word, but definitely not trusted by Garou. She might be able to get away with having one in her pack, but it would cost her and her pack a great deal of trust and respect from their people.
And wizards, as a rule, did not even know the Garou existed. Well, wizards knew of beings that they called werewolves, unfortunate souls who were infected by a wyrm-toxin. Well, it was a little more complicated than that, but that was neither here nor there. At any rate, it was easy enough to reverse…well, easy enough if said unfortunate soul could survive the process anyway. Probably the only wizards who knew of the existence of the Garou were those who had a little Garou blood running through their veins. After all, both Rachel's parents were wizards, as were her brother and two sisters. The only known non-wizards in her entire family bloodline, according to her father, were Garou. Hattori Ayanami was quite proud of this, but sometimes she wondered if the same were true of her mother.
Her mother, after all, came from a long line of witches and wizards with virtually no non-magical folk of any kind. If she did go through with this favor for her mom, she thought, maybe she could start with that British one, Hog-something. If she remembered correctly, her mother had some family over there. Rachel turned around. Her mother was sitting on the couch, apparently studying the floor, her shining auburn hair covering most of her face.
"Mom, don't we have family over in England somewhere?"
Mrs. Ayanami raised her rather confused gaze to meet Rachel's. "Yes, my cousin Arthur and his family live there. Why?" Her countenance brightened as Rachel's meaning became apparent.
"I'm not saying I'll go. You know quite well that I have responsibilities here." Rachel held up a hand as her mother's mouth opened to argue. "I'm also not saying that I won't go. But if I do, I wouldn't mind starting somewhere that we have family. It really isn't like I'm not allowed to take a break, and anyway, I'm sure there's evil over in England too. I suppose I could look into fighting that." Good lord, she asked herself, was she talking herself into going now? After putting it that way, she knew she may as well go ahead and say yes.
She went to the window and looked outside. Looking out at the immaculate grounds, she felt a pang of regret. She really did miss the place when she was away. She missed the neighbors that had no idea wizards were living in Bel Air, California, not to mention the really great Thai food. Mostly, though, she missed her own apartment in Long Beach. On quiet nights, she could just hear the ocean.
Rachel heaved a sigh and plowed ahead. "Look, Mom, I'm prepared to do this for you, but if, say, the first school I look into proves excellent, would you still want me to investigate the others?"
The smug expression that crept onto her mother's face really was quite intolerable, but Rachel fought down the urge to smack it off.
"Though I would prefer a wide range of choices, I believe I could accept those terms. Hogwarts, I take it, will be your first destination?"
What could it hurt to go? She really could use a vacation of some kind. And Aton, Pascale, and John would probably turn cartwheels the moment she told them that vacation time was approved all round. Rachel sighed, "Sure Mom. Hogwarts will be my first destination."
A/N: I hate notes at the beginning of chapters, so don't expect them. Harry Potter belongs to the fantabulous JK Rowling, and I, sadly am not her. The Garou belong to White Wolf publishing. I own only my original characters and my idea, so don't sue me. If you are interested in the story, but have any questions about what the Garou are, or 'what is this World of Darkness of which I speak,' just shoot me an email, I'll be happy to explain.