They briefing room was typically reserved for brainstorming larger cases and had the scattered evidence of old meetings at the edges. There were a few folded notes flitting about, waiting for the usual Aurors to return. There were several chalk boards with mostly erased notes that were unnaturally illuminated in the glow of magically lit gas lamp.

Without the natural light that usually streamed through the windows, most of the room was cast in shadows. Teddy wasn't here this late very often and it made the familiar place seem creepy. Maybe it was just his mood.

There were far less people gathered in the room as well: only Harry and another set of junior Auror partners who had been in the same classes as Teddy and Hasan. They sat in folding chairs that barely stayed in the circle of lamp light. It was like a strange play was about to begin and Teddy was an actor who didn't know his lines.

Harry looked up, a sardonic expression glinting from the shadows. "Ah, Hasan's victim is awake so we can begin," Harry said.

Hasan stiffened beside Teddy. Hasan hadn't gotten used to how sharp Harry's tongue could be. Usually Teddy would have said something to counter Harry, but his mind was a blank buzz. He merely shook his head and sat down, giving Harry a glare as Hasan joined them.

Harry ignored them and began his briefing, which was relatively short. The victim had been found in her house early that morning when one of her packmates had come to visit her. Harry had already been there and collected some of the evidence but now the investigation was going to be handed over to the two teams in the room.

The whole routine was so normal that Teddy felt a bit disassociated from it.

The briefing done, Harry sent them back to the main office space, just as empty and creepy as the other room. Everyone trailed off to their desks so that they could gather the things they needed. As Hasan prepped his bag to leave for the murder site, Teddy moved robotically to do the same. They had said her. There weren't that many females in the pack. Kamya was in the clear because he had just barely seen her. But that left Lilith.

The thought brought his robotic movements to a jittering stop. No. No, it couldn't be. Yet there was something that squirmed around in his stomach, like swallowed lake water, that told him that it might be.

Someone grabbed his shoulder and Teddy looked up to see Hasan beside him. "You okay?" Hasan asked.

How could someone be okay when they were drowning? Teddy forced himself to focus on his hands, which had frozen around one of the potions he had been packing. He slowly tucked it in a pocket, giving himself time to recoup. It didn't have to be Lilith. There were other female werewolves, he told himself with a horrible sort of hope.

"The other team is ready," Hasan said, gesturing to where they and Harry stood at the doorway.

Teddy nodded again. Hasan reached and patted Teddy's shoulder several times before turning it into a strong grip. "Come on, Teddy. Don't let yourself get thrown by our busted stake-out.."

Teddy nodded and gulped, glad that Hasan had supplied an excuse for his behavior. He should have said something but all he managed was a pained smile. Then he shouldered his bag and silently joined the others.

They all walked down the hallway to where apparitions were allowed. The silence seemed to follow them down that hall, but Teddy wasn't sure if that was his imagination again. Harry pulled out a port key and motioned for all of them to hold onto it. A little more of Teddy's hope died when he saw the location written on the port key: Werewolf Forest. All too suddenly, at least in Teddy's opinion, the port key was activated with a lurch that didn't help his stomach at all. After a dizzying blur of limbs they landed in a clearing of the werewolf's forest.