Waking up the scarred boy rolled and blinked his memories even more mixed up and confusing. He wasn't entirely sure where he was, only that it was for the moment safe. So he yawned and stretched out across the floor and then rolled over onto all fours before sitting up. Then he pushed himself into a seated position and sort of flopped a bit resting his head on one shoulder and leaning ever so slightly to the side.
It's entirely too quiet really but the boy barely registered that. He was too calm and relaxed. Finally free his mind was now more interested in the magic that spun in his body, and the air. And, on trying to sort through his chaotic memories.
The ones that belonged to the part of him that was a wizard. And the ones that belonged to the part that was a shinobi.
Neither set felt entirely as though they were his. Or that they were even real. How could he trust his own mind, how could he trust anything that he remembered. He was free but at the same time still trapped and caged, with cuffs on his wrists and a cage around his soul.
Who was he?
He shook his head and shook away the thoughts and memories. He had more pressing worries. Such as the other children still trapped in the lab, such as the fact that his magic now flowed freely. Such as the fact that everything in him wanted to go home but he couldn't quite place where home was. Vague emotions said Hogwarts, but what was Hogwarts? A school? A place? He didn't know anymore.
Faces flickered across his vision, a girl with bushy hair a smile and a book open in front of her, a boy with ginger hair and freckles sitting in front of a chess board, a girl with the same ginger hair and a soft smile holding an infant... A blond man who seemed mismatched as though he were two in one, another brown haired girl but this one with purple rectangles marking her cheeks and finally a boy in a mask with silver hair.
It confused him more than anything so he primarily tried to focus on what he did know. Such as the fact that while this abandoned caravan had been safe for the night it wasn't the best place to permanently set up camp. Also the other children who still needed to be rescued. He growled and his fists clench once more.
The madman was dead but that didn't mean anything to those still trapped within the laboratory.
To the ones who he only knew existed because of the screams that he would hear while in his own cage. Except it was here that he stumbled upon another clear problem... He didn't actually know where he was aside from in a forest, so he didn't know how to find the laboratory again.
He couldn't rescue the others.
It made his chest tighten and he felt like screaming because that was wrong. It was wrongwrongwrong and he clutched at his head. He was the Boy-Who-Lived, savior to the Wizarding World. Even if he didn't remember exactly what those titles meant he still remembered that they were his.
The madman could take away his name and identity, but they couldn't take those away from him. Not when they had been used more around him than his actual name had. Reminded him of the times when he'd been known as nothing more than Freak, or Boy... Maybe those were his names. They were things that he'd been called down in the lab anyway, and familiar from purple and red angry faces.
Out of the two, Freak felt only slightly more like a name so he decided that until he could recall his actual name(either of them) then it would be the one that he took.
That settled he looked over the area that he rested. Orange tinted his view but that was a relief even as he sorted through what he knew. He was outside and there was forest all around him. The caravan was broken, with no animals in sight and the clothing was in varying sizes but a fair amount of it could actually fit him without feeling as though he were drowning in fabric. Also, there were a few discarded weapons and splashes of blood on the ground that he'd missed from the night before.
No body parts lying around though so none of the blood belonged to his captor.
That only served to make him more nervous though, because it had been a long time since he'd been in such a situation. And that time he'd at least had some back up. And he'd been camping in a magical tent? There was some weird details there, he wasn't sure if it had been an assignment during his time as an auror or during the year of darkness.
So now he scanned the area body tense and everything in him alert. Nothing, there was no sign of anyone or anything in the woods. Not even the faint stirring of any animals. So with nothing in the range of his sight or hearing he stretched out with his magic.
Still nothing.
He stiffened and crouched a bit because that just made him feel a bit worse. He could feel a burning behind his eyes and everything sharpened. He could see faint dust particles in the air and the movement of every blade of grass and leaf on the trees. It was a bit of an overload and he grit his teeth trying to keep calm in the face of all the information that he was gathering just from what he could see.
Eventually he shut it off and shook his head. Memories of terminology filled his mind. Chi, Ki, Chakra. Spiritual Energy, or Chi, combined with Physical Energy or Ki, they make Chakra. Chakra can be used to fight using ninjutsu, genjutsu and taijutsu. He blinked a bit overwhelmed by this new information being told to him by a strangely familiar voice. A flash of blond crossed his mind, with sharp blue eyes and he felt something in him ache.
Tears trail down his cheeks, one side scarred the other clear and he moved a hand to wipe them away. Why was he crying?
He sniffed a clutched at his shirt over his chest as other images and faces crossed his mind. A village. Home.
It wasn't like Hogwarts with magic filling the halls but everything in this body screamed and cried that it was home. He wanted to go home, but he didn't even know where to begin and he also really, really wanted to help those who were still in the lab.
Except that he didn't know how to reach those back in the lab... Unless. He'd apparated yesterday. He recalled the feeling and recalled the images of the laboratory... Only after memorizing this location. Memorizing the caravan. Wrapping his magic around him he spun and popped back into existence standing in front of the cage that had been his home for who knows how long.
He glared at it before walking down the halls and listening. It was eerily quiet with absolutely no noise from anywhere.
It was unnerving and he felt almost like popping right back out. Except that there were still others down here. He'd heard them, seen them, been forced to fight them on a few more memorable occasions.
So he drew upon all of his Gryffindor courage and took a deep breath. Another, then a step. One foot in front of the other, he moved down the halls and tunnels. When he finally stumbled upon the others trapped there he let out a sigh of relief. For the most part they were actually not that far away from one another, not that far away from where he'd been kept. It was actually kind of surprising really. Everyone was kept separate, but still incredibly close.
All of them were just as on edge as he was. But when he offered freedom they practically leapt for it. Eager to see the sky again and feel the wind in their hair and on their skin. Some of them though were only able to achieve freedom through death. Too changed and altered by that madman's twisted experiments.
Kids with missing body parts, swapped parts, or one who was more tree than human. One with dog ears and a girl with the tail of a fox. Kids more animal than human and there were those who begged for death. Death that he found all too easy to grant.
It was so simple to just take away their lives, without even leaving any marks on their bodies. Death simply heard his call and took them away.
It scared him and comforted him in equal measure even as he finally stumbled into the last room. To see the last cage. The last person trapped here, red eyes glittered in the darkness glaring at him. He froze, the reflection of a pale face with a missing nose. A sneer and narrowed eyes, wands raised.
Ready to fight...
He shook his head and took a deep breath as the other child, only appearing to be five, maybe six came out of the shadows. The had messy pale blue hair and two furry triangle ears that poked out above their head. A tail swished behind them and they peered at him, those red eyes making him jittery.
Red eyes reminded him of the man who he'd killed. Destroyed, completely erased, and of spinning tomoe and a whisper of sharingan, disappointment. He shook his head and knelt down in front of the child.
"Are you okay?" his voice was quiet and the child sniffed the air, ears twitching visibly. "Do you want to continue living?"
"Of course I do!" they bared their teeth at him and he felt a bit embarrassed because he supposed that question was a bit stupid. Most of them there did want to continue living for the most part after all. The child's eyes narrowed at him and they snarled "Why do you care anyway?"
Everything about them was guarded and he paused trying to get his thoughts in order.
Before he could respond though a red haired child cut in and drawled out a response. "We're here to rescue you obviously." Ne waved nir hand in the air lazily and something in him twisted and a voice in his head whispered troublesome. "So do you want to be rescued or not..."
"No tricks?" the child seemed skeptical, but at the same time hopeful and he nodded his head. Their ears perked up and the fox tail wagged behind them. "Great! Just get me out of here then!"
He nodded his head and quickly moved to the lock before moving automatically and with a twist of his magic. The lock clicked and the door swung open. A blur and the child was clinging to him repeatedly thanking him and he didn't have a clue what to do.
"That's everyone now Alpha!" hearing that particular voice speak made him automatically shiver before he nodded his head. Sharp teeth glinted in the darkness and the scaled teenager stepped into view. "So now we're ready to leave right?" the crossed arms over their chest and he nodded his head slowly even as the five year old scrambled and shifted to attempt to sit on his back.
The child then peered over at the girl who simply grinned back with razor teeth before dropping the smile and focusing back on him.
He took a deep breath before releasing it and stretching out his senses. Six signatures aside from his own stood out light bright lights in the darkness. Six who had chosen to stick with him instead of running away and down the tunnel to new found freedom. Six who were going to rely on him and follow him to some new future.
The child on his back, the scaled girl, a boy with hair that was both brown and red at the same time, a Kaguya child, a lazy red haired boy, and a girl who had spikes in the back of her hands. They were who they were and now they were a pack.
"Before we leave, we're going to search for any records of our names..." he spoke softly the words barely filling the air.
"Right of course." the Kaguya child nodded their head before turning and walking back down the tunnel. The scaled teen quickly followed and he took several deep breaths before kneeling down beside the five year old they had just rescued.
Names were important, but so was making sure that the newest addition to their 'pack' was unharmed. The child blinked at him ears twitching and eyes shining. Even if they made him nervous he pushed past that and absently cast the single diagnostic spell that he was able to automatically recall.
It was one he'd used on many an Auror mission to check up on his comrades.
It also came back clean aside from a few bruises and malnourishment. Both problems easily solved with time and proper care. Relieved he sighed before standing back up, at least those problems were actually ones that he could solve without needing to constantly watch over the child to make sure they weren't going to cause a disaster.
Now he just needed to find the others, and hopefully their names.
Taking the child onto his back he turned and walked down the tunnel.
Sitting with his back against a cave wall Alpha stared out at the odd group that he'd gathered as his pack. In the end they had only found a few names.
Kaimetsu Zuken, who was originally from Kaosugakure where ever that was. Her green hair and dark eyes, with the spikes on her hands and a sneer on her face. He wasn't sure if she was happy with her name or not.
Nara-Uzumaki Zurasu, the red haired child was simply lazy and only sighed upon leaning nir name.
Kaguya Chinoke, who had already known their last name had simply glared before ruffling his hair.
Erika Freedom. Who had to explain that Erika was clearly their given name all the while scowling with duel toned(red and brown) hair flopping over.
Rhyli Indominus who had to explain the same thing as Erika before swearing and beginning to cure shinobi for even existing.
The child had simply been left nameless, and so had he. Nothing in the now abandoned and ravaged underground base had his name on it. So in the end the others had 'gifted' him with his new name; Alpha. Since he was more or less their leader anyway.
And, he'd been the one to pick out a name for the child. A name that had simply spoken to him and called out as the one that belonged to xem.
Elliot Kingston. Again using the Western Countries name ordering system.
Now the mismatched group simply rested in a cave not that far away from the Caravan that he'd originally found. It was a relatively secluded and peaceful spot and he found it relaxing to reside in. A nice place to rest and recuperate after the days(?), weeks(?), months(?) under the 'mercy' of the madman.
It was nice really and he closed his eyes absently listening to the pack around him.
He could get used to this...
Except that he still yearned for home. For his name(either or both), and to see his family again. Whoever they were.
Notes: Okay, this will probably be the only other note that I will ever post for this. First of all these OCs will probably only really be predominant for a few more chapters, and then they'll sort of be nudged out of the picture.
Also on pronouns and character genders. Some of them may be a bit weird to understand or follow. But just for reference: xe/xem/xir/xirs/xemself means that I'm talking about Elliot and ne/nem/nir/nirs/nemself is Zurasu. Both are agender, and those are "neutral" pronouns. Also yeah this is just for quick clarification.