Glad you guys liked the last chapter! I'm a fan of it myself. BTW, I wrote a story about Slepnir's birth (and the circumstances surrounding that) that's gonna be posted here soon - check it out!

I won't say much, but there is some interesting stuff coming up soon! Keep an eye out for foreshadowing...and there might be some action this chapter, but honestly I won't know until I'm done writing it.

"Someone's coming," Sköll said, ears pricked, staring towards the open end of the quarry.

Hati stirred, and Fenris hauled himself to his feet. The quarry was not deep, nor was it very protected. All they'd wanted was somewhere big enough to rest peacefully without being out in the open.

Was it too much to ask to be left alone?

"How many?" Hati asked.

"Can't tell. Smells like Æsir."

"How close?"

The forest came alive with figures with swords.

Fenris lunged forward, snapping at the first person he could get at. A sword bit into the side of his muzzle, but he ignored it. It was too small to bother him.

The Æsir were a little bigger.

It seemed like a blur, clawing and biting until he had somehow ended up on his side, pressed against the quarry wall and floor. There were a lot of sharp swords, and Sköll was crouched defensively over Hati, bloody teeth bared. Fenris could not see what had happened to Hati.

They had tried to wind a cord around his ankles. Fenris dug his claws into the stone and stood rigid, refusing to let them move him. He would not let this happen again, this would not happen, not now, not to him if he could help it!

One of them had thrown himself across Fenris's muzzle, trying to stop him from opening it. They'd see how well that would work.

Fenris twisted, trying to slip out of the cord's grasp. It took a few tries to shake the Ás off his muzzle, tries that came at the cost of the cord drawing a little tighter, Sköll yelping as some sword found its way home and cut her or worse-

Fenris snarled. He slashed at the Æsir - how dare they-

A sword cut deeply into his ankle.

Fenris yelped, and for only a moment, his solid stance faltered.

The cord drew his ankles tight together.

It was enchanted. That much was obvious. The Æsir beat a hasty retreat and the cord kept winding itself around him on its own. Fenris pressed himself close to the stone, but it kept going, magically unhindered. Either Sköll or Hati bit down on it, pulling desperately with a snarl, but it didn't stop. Soon Fenris felt a nose pressed into his side, and whoever it was was forced to let go a moment later.

He was not going to let them get away with this-

Fenris lashed out at as many Æsir as he could reach, trying desperately to get as many of them as he could - they'd change their minds when their friends lay dying - he lunged forward with a howl as the cord lashed his front legs together.

Something jabbed into his mouth, cutting through his tongue and forcing him to keep it open-

And Fenris woke up, clutching his mouth so hard his fingertips were going numb, hot tears trickling down his face.

He breathed harshly through his fingers. His hands were shaking. Or maybe he was shaking. He felt sweaty and tense, like he'd just run a hundred miles. Carefully, Fenris let go. His mouth did not hurt. His hands shook harder.

Fenris flexed his hands, fisted them, and flattened his arms at his side. He tried to forget what claws felt like.

But it was difficult to forget what blood had felt like under them.

Fenris jerked, eyes shooting open, when a larger, warmer hand curled under his. Not holding his; just touching.

He looked to the side. Loki's eyes were open a crack, gazing at him.

Silently, Fenris turned and curled into Loki, clutching at his arm too tightly and pressing his face against his dad's chest. Loki's hand twitched like he wanted to hold Fenris close, too, but he didn't try and move. Maybe he could feel Fenris shivering.

Fenris closed his eyes and told himself he'd forget the dream in the morning.

There were only a few days left in winter break, and they seemed to blur past until the day Fenris was to head back to Hogwarts. He let himself he driven there, tugged along to Platform 9 3/4, his trunk deposited for him in the luggage carriage.

Loki, however, did not say goodbye. He studied Fenris with unusually serious eyes, instead.

"Are you okay?" He asked. "You've had a rough coupla days, it seems like. You don't have to go."

Fenris wished Loki hadn't offered, because he was really tempted to accept.

"I'll be okay," he said. "I can't leave in the middle of the year."

Loki scoffed, but it didn't seem like it was aimed at Fenris. "Okay." He spread his arms, cocking one eyebrow in invitation. Fenris hesitated for half a second, then darted forward to hug his dad.

Loki's hands settled lightly on his back, like he wasn't sure how tight he was allowed to hold Fenris. He squeezed a little for a brief moment, and then let go.

"You got a train to catch, if you're staying," he said.

"I know," Fenris said. Loki gestured him off, and Fenris went.

He didn't look back until he had both feet firmly on the train. Loki was still on the platform, watching, half-swallowed by the crowd of other parents.

Fenris went to find an empty compartment. In the time it took him to close the door, drop his backpack, and press himself against the window, Loki had vanished into the crowd.

Fenris sank into the bench seat. He had not been able to find either Lysander or Lillian on the platform; he figured he would simply wait for them to show up. It would be harder for them to find each other if they were all moving around.

The train lurched, and pulled out of the station. Fenris watched London pass by, and then stood up to reach into his backpack and draw out his wand.

He'd barely touched it since it had been bought for him, much less used it. Even in school, he avoided doing so whenever possible. The simple fact was that he didn't have the right kind of magic that this wand was meant to channel; it had been a fluke in the wandmaker's shop that had made the old man decide on it. Or so it seemed to Fenris, at least. Whenever he was forced to use it, he had to struggle to create the right kind of reaction, or else cheat and figure out how to do it his own way.

The second way would be easier if he didn't have to hide what he was doing. Maybe Muriel would have let him, but their Defense professor never would have, nor would Flitwick. The only classes Fenris was really any good at were the ones that didn't require wand magic. He liked Herbology and Potions alright, now that he thought about whether he did or not; they were fun, and Herbology was actually quite engaging. Literally, counting that one time he and Lysander and Xavier had had to wrestle a plant back into its pot. The plant had been very insistent about getting loose, and it had possessed a multitude of vines that moved quickly. Xavier had nearly gotten strangled, but then Sprout had intervened and pushed them all out of the way.

That had been fun, but not that much. It was still the most fun he'd had at Hogwarts, now that he really compared it to being at home.

And he had five more years to go. Five and a half, counting the rest of the current year.

But he couldn't leave in the middle of the year. He'd decided to go to wizard school, and he'd stick with that decision. Or maybe he could get himself kicked out for poor grades. Fenris twisted his wand in his hand thoughtfully, looking down at it again. He'd heard that people got their wands snapped when they were expelled. Did that happen if you were let go for poor grades?

He couldn't remember what the wand was made of. Something something unicorn hair, he was pretty sure. He'd like to see a unicorn; he wasn't used to being somewhere where they actually existed outside of stories. He doubted they'd let him get very close, though.

Fenris put his wand away and distracted himself by breathing on the window and drawing little pictures in the fog.

The train passed out of London. The sun sank a little lower. It would probably be pitch black outside by the time they get to school - the sun set so early in the winter. There was still a ridiculous amount of snow on the ground, which at least made it easier to distinguish where the horizon was. For now, all that snow was reflecting the light straight into Fenris's eyes.

He drew a shell on the window, like Jormungand had done, and then a couple sloppy fish, and then wiped everything away and started over. He got through a couple more repetitions of that process, drawing various things, before the compartment door slid open behind him. Strangely, it was Lillian by herself.

"There you are," she huffed. "I've been looking everywhere."

"Sorry, I didn't see you on the platform." Fenris frowned slightly as Lillian threw the door shut, dropped her bag on the floor, and flopped onto the seat opposite him.

"We were late." Lillian scowled at nothing in particular. "It doesn't matter."

"Where's Lysander?"

"Talking to some other Hufflepuff friend." Lillian shrugged and looking out the window. Fenris tried to think of who it could be. Someone in their year, probably. Damnit, he still wasn't sure he knew everybody's names and faces. "He'll show up eventually."

Fenris didn't know what to say. Lillian glowered at the floor. He briefly contemplated asking what was wrong, because something obviously was, but he thought Lillian might actually try to bite off his head if he did.

Fenris went back to drawing on the window. After a few moments, Lillian scooted over on her side and started trying to do the same.

"How are you getting it to stick so long?" She demanded, after a few failed attempts at more complicated patterns.

"Magic."

"I'm serious."

"So am I," Fenris protested.

"Making window fog stick longer is magic?"

"I'm just fiddling with the heat of the window. It's not that hard."

"Oh, it's not, it's just wandless and nonverbal magic."

"Wandless and nonverbal doesn't mean much when I don't need either of those things," Fenris pointed out. Lillian huffed and flopped over again to lie down across the whole seat.

"Whatever." She closed her eyes. Fenris didn't think she was asleep, or even trying to fall asleep, but he stayed quiet anyway.

The sun set far enough to be not shining in Fenris's eyes, nearly hiding behind the horizon. A clatter made Fenris turn around, but it was only the door opening; Lysander saw Lillian lying down, and sheepishly closed the door a little more carefully, which did not do much about the noise.

"Hi," he said, sitting down next to Fenris. "Is that supposed to be a tree?"

Fenris looked at the thing he'd been drawing on the window, and shrugged. He'd meant it to be lightning, but it had come out wonky, so he'd just added what he thought were artistic-looking scribbles. He wiped it away and started on something new.

Lysander, even quiet as he usually was, seemed unusually silent. He slouched in his seat and kicked his heels against the floor. Fenris fidgeted a little. He was fine with silence, but normally he didn't get any, especially not around Lillian.

"Did something happen?" He asked eventually, unable to stand holding his curiosity in a moment longer. Lysander looked at him sharply, but his expression wasn't angry; Lillian opened her eyes.

"Why would something have happened?" Lysander asked, completely failing to sound casual.

"You're both acting weird," Fenris pointed out. "Lillian's being quiet."

"It's not like it's been that long," Lillian mumbled.

"It's been hours." Fenris cast a skeptical, pointed glance out the window, but he wasn't sure she caught it. The sun had definitely set by now, though, and the lights had come on inside the train a while ago. Only the snow on the ground gave any indication of where the ground ended and the sky began.

"It's nothing," Lysander said. "Some...stuff happened over break."

"After you came over?" They'd seemed fine then.

"Yeah." Lysander kicked his heels again, staring at his feet (or maybe the floor) and to all appearances done talking. Fenris had given up finding anything else out when Lysander blurted out, "Our dad came to visit."

Lillian made a sound somewhere between a groan and a growl. She'd closed her eyes again, and her arms were crossed tightly over her chest.

"That's it?" Fenris said blankly.

"It's not - you know we're adopted, right?"

"No," Fenris said, surprised. "Why would I know that?" Their mom was a lot paler than them, true, but Loki was a lot paler than Fenris. And Fenris had always thought Lysander and Lillian did resemble their mom - or maybe it was just that the three of them were all blonde. "What does that have to do with this?"

"Mum's not married," Lysander said. "So - our dad isn't, well-" He grappled valiantly for the right words for a moment or two, and then settled on, "He gave us up for adoption and it's weird to have him walk in after thirteen years and try to be our dad again."

"I thought you were twelve," Fenris said.

"Our birthday was in November and that's not the point," Lysander said. "The point is-"

Lillian got up with a loud, pointed huff and stormed out, throwing the door shut behind her with a clatter.

"Lillian's upset," Lysander said, in the ensuing silence.

"Wow, I hadn't noticed." Fenris gave him a dry look, but he still felt mostly curious. "Is it - I mean, I guess your dad never tried to talk to you before?"

"I never knew who my dad was," Lysander sighed, slouching further. "Lillian and me - we knew someone had given us up to be adopted, but we didn't know which parent had done it. We didn't even know what their names were. Nothing. And he just - showed up on Christmas morning and we didn't know who he was supposed to be or why he was at our house."

Fenris couldn't imagine what that had been like - having a parent that was a complete mystery, because they hadn't wanted to know you. That sounded terrible.

"What did you do?" He asked.

"I - well, mum told us who he was, and Lillian stormed off and refused to come out of her room, so..." Lysander looked faintly guilty, for some reason. "He said he wanted to talk, so I - I let him talk. I couldn't, you know, just - I'm not like Lillian. It seemed rude to leave him alone with Mum when he came for us?"

"Like, to-?"

"Oh, no. No." Lysander looked apprehensive. "To talk. Not to take us away. You don't think he could do that, could you?"

Fenris shrugged. He'd never met anyone who was adopted - that seemed like a more modern thing to him. If someone had a child back when he was a kid, they either took care of it or abandoned it. And if someone had been adopted and their father showed up to take them home, the father probably would have had the right. Unless the adopted parents were royalty, maybe, or nobility of some kind.

"That can't be legal," Lysander said, sounding more like he was reassuring himself.

"I don't think so," Fenris said. So much had changed, he wouldn't be surprised if the father no longer had rights like that. Lysander and Lillian didn't even have a father, in their adoptive family at least.

"I don't think he wanted to, anyway," Lysander said, fidgeting with the edge of his sleeve. "He seemed - distracted? He didn't stay very long." He was quiet for a moment, and then, "He said he only gave up me and Lillian because he was too busy to take care of kids."

"What about your mom? Other mom," Fenris corrected himself.

"I - I don't know. I didn't think of asking." Lysander looked troubled. "I don't think I need another mum."

"Alright," Fenris said, and let the conversation end there. He didn't want to talk anymore about moms, because-

...Just because.

Lillian wandered back in hours later, evidently having judged (correctly) that neither Fenris nor Lysander could possibly have carried on a conversation for that long. But she didn't get any more talkative, and though Lysander was more his usual self, he was quiet by nature. So the rest of the ride to Hogwarts was boring and seemed much longer than it actually was.

Getting off the train, when it pulled into the station, plunged them into a sea of black-robed children. Fenris tensed at every careless student that bumped into him, or shoved past, and was wound tight when Lysander grabbed his hand and tugged him towards an empty carriage. Lillian had vanished after spotting a Slytherin friend in the crowd, and the carriage began to move as soon as the two of them were sitting down. Fenris glanced, distracted, at the thestrals, which were nearly invisible in the twilight, coupled with the snow-free road.

The darkness crowded up against the edges of the carriage, but there was a lantern hanging at the front, and once they got up to the school everything was awash in yellow light. Fenris tried not to look like he was walking too fast to get inside.

He hadn't seen anything move inside the Forbidden Forest, not on the way up, but that didn't mean there wasn't anything. And he definitely hadn't been looking for a flash of blue eyes.

There was a feast, like there always was, and everything seemed like it was just as Fenris had left it - nothing had changed, except him.

Winter break had been too short, but the last time he'd been at Hogwarts might as well have been a year ago.

"Hey," Lysander said, breaking Fenris out of his thoughts. "You alright?"

"Yeah." Fenris managed to conjure up a smile. "Just thinking." It would be fine. So a lot had happened over break - he could deal with it. He knew more about his own situation - wasn't that better?

Lying in bed, waiting for everyone else to settle down and with no intention of going back to sleep, it was hard to keep thinking that.

Fenris stared at the ceiling, mind buzzing with questions. Should he go visit Hati and Sköll? They were right outside in the forest - if he went looking, they'd find him if he couldn't track them down. He felt nervous and agitated at the idea, but...less afraid. Maybe because the story of the prophecy had assured him that Hati and Sköll actually were a few of the only ones that might be on his side; maybe because he'd dreamed about being with them so peacefully, as opposed to his regular nightmares, that he'd gotten used to the idea.

Did they know about the prophecy? Fenris didn't know if he'd have been able to tell them. He didn't remember ever hearing about it before, but that didn't count for much. Had they really tried to help him? He had been free in some of the memories - had they broken him out?

Fenris absentmindedly rubbed his wrist, and the scar there. He knew what it was - it looked like a dog bite, but he doubted it had been a dog. Could he really trust them, or was there another explanation?

Something rustled, like rapid movement against a thick blanket, and Fenris's attention was wrenched back to the dorm. Nothing else moved for a moment or two, and then there was more shuffling, a couple light steps, and the curtain around his bed parted.

"I had a bad dream," Lysander whispered. "Can I-?"

Fenris rolled over wordlessly. Lysander let the curtain fall shut, making the bed dip as he got settled. He felt a shaky breath on the back of his neck.

"Can we talk?" Lysander breathed.

"Yeah?" Fenris matched his volume.

"I just - mum said it helps, to talk about stuff."

Fenris turned over, trying to stay quiet about it. "Like nightmares?" He knew he sounded skeptical; he didn't try to hide it.

"Well, yes."

"Why?"

"I don't know. It worked over last summer."

"What happened - oh." The cultists. Fenris had almost forgotten about them. That had been almost a year ago, though.

"I guess it wasn't as scary for you," Lysander said, a little wryly.

"I...didn't realize it was that bad." Fenris had been scared, but they were only human.

...Then again, so was Lysander.

"It's...the dreams aren't, really. I just dream about what happened. Except you never show up. Or Lo - your dad." Lysander shifted, and for a moment his knee bumped against Fenris's leg.

"Memories can be scary," Fenris said, very quietly. For a minute or two, the only noise was of their breathing.

"Is that what you dream about?" Lysander asked, just as quietly.

Fenris breathed carefully in, then out.

"Sometimes," he said softly. "I don't remember any of it, so I can't tell if I'm dreaming or remembering. And I can't ask anyone else to make sure." Except maybe Hati and Sköll.

"I'm sorry."

"Why?" Lysander had never done anything to him.

"I...I'm sorry that it happened to you?" Lysander clarified. "It's what people say."

"Oh."

Fenris counted his breaths. In, out. In, out.

"Do you-"

"Go to sleep, Lysander." Fenris turned over, putting his back to Lysander again. They had school in the morning, and he'd rather not be too tired for it on top of everything else.

"...Goodnight."

Oh, Fenris. He's just trying to help.