Full Moon Rising, Part Five
Scrambling to their feet they ran through the forest heedless of anything save the water bindings. A thunderstorm blew up out of the clear sky and the wind whipped at them with furious force. When they reached the lake the water was roiling with the sheer magnitude of the power Voldemort was trying to strip from it. Plunging in to the water hip deep Sama and Remus gripped each other's hands, wands raised. Hagrid stayed on the bank with his drum and started to beat it loudly. The binding song welled up and Sama sang with all the force she could muster. Remus began chanting the spells they had worked out for the Forest hoping that this was one of the times in wild magic where the actual words used didn't make a difference in the outcome of the enchantment.
It was raining now, and the drops sizzled as Voldemort tried to strip them of power with Dark Magic. Sama, Hagrid, and Remus were pummeled with debris and battered by wind and wave both. New welts and cuts bloomed on their bodies as they stood defiant trying to force the binding back together. Rainwater and blood plastered Sama's hair to her face and she shook her head impatiently to get it out of her eyes. Forcing the storm back as best they could, she and Remus brought their wands together and focused the spell. They started weaving a net of light that expanded, with them at the center as the maelstrom raged around them. Hogwarts was illuminated behind them as lightning cut the sky and the spells protecting it flared brightly. They were pouring more and more power into the spell weaving, but even so Sama could feel them losing ground to Voldemort and his supporters. Desperately tapping into her own life force, she started using it to counter the spells stripping the power from the very water they were standing in. She felt her strength wane as her wand dipped closer to the water. Next to her, Remus was trying to share his strength with her, but she felt his power draining away also.
~*~
Up in the Gryffindor common room Ron was pacing. Hermione glanced between Ron's frantic energy and Harry's pale face. Padfoot lay at Harry's feet. When the castle shook again, Ron stopped his pacing. Slamming his fist on the table he suddenly shouted. "We've got to DO something!"
Harry looked up, startled. "What exactly did you have in mind?" He said mildly.
"Are you both out of yours?" Hermione broke in. "Miss Sama and Professor Lupin know what they're doing. This is WILD MAGIC! It's dangerous."
"Your point?" Ron stared fixedly at her.
"I just thought someone ought to point out we don't know enough about the spells they're doing." Hermione said petulantly.
"Hermione, my scar has been hurting since the storm started." Harry paused as she gaped at him. They all knew what that meant- Voldemort was doing something particularly nasty. Gently, he continued. "I think they're in trouble. They need us. If Ron has an idea, I for one, want to hear it."
"You've done enough research about the magic they're using, Hermione, you could help. And Harry- you studied some of the spells with Professor Lupin." Ron thought a second and then almost leapt across the table. Falling to his knees in front of Padfoot he whispered to the dog. "Snuffles, I know the tuning- I helped pattern the song magic. You've been part of the strategy planning. Do you think you can help us help them?" Padfoot's eyes flashed and the dog growled quietly. "That's a yes. Come on!" Ron quickly went toward the portrait hole.
"Ron! Wait! We're coming, too." Harry ran up to their room and returned almost immediately with the invisibility cloak. It wouldn't be a good idea to be seen going out of the castle with a Dark Arts thunderstorm raging around them.
The castle shook again as they climbed up to the top of one of the turrets. Exiting out onto the roof, Sirius transformed. The four of them were soaked almost immediately in the torrential downpour. Ron was already at the wall peering out into the storm. "Look!"
They followed his pointing finger and saw that the lake was glowing a sickly grayish green. In the center of the lake there was a horrifying funnel of water reaching into the sky. The storm clouds had a distinctly greenish tint to them. At the base of the funnel they could barely see a patch of blue-purple light, and at the center there were two small figures.
"Moony!" Sirius called out involuntarily. The four of them could see that the blue-purple glow that was the center of power for their friends was losing ground to the malevolent green. "Right! I've got the chant, Ron you start with the song. We're going to lend them some power. Remember, aim your will toward Sama and Remus."
Swallowing convulsively, Ron lifted his wand and started the song he had practiced with Sama. Hermione slipped her hand into his empty one and he felt Harry gripping his shoulder. Sirius started the chanting with Harry and Hermione following him. Ron could feel the rush of wild magic welling up inside him. His own power was joined by Harry's, Hermione's, and Sirius'. Their power built together and Ron aimed his wand towards the figures below. Concentrating hard, Ron let the song be amplified through his wand until their combined power whistled through him. He could feel it streaming outward, and his consciousness followed it to the fading presence of the figures far below them.
~*~
Suddenly Sama gasped as the air around her sparkled blue and a gust of pure power swept around them. Amazed, she realized that Ron was casting the spells from up on the castle roof. Ron was lending his power to her! And it wasn't only Ron- she felt Sirius, Harry and Hermione there, too. As their power merged with her spells, Sama felt rejuvenated.
Quickly using themselves as the focus for the power, Sama and Remus became the lens and broadcast the power out into the storm. Their glow strengthened in intensity, and beat back against the green. With a strange sucking sound, Voldemort's power finally broke. As his spells flew apart, the full force of the wild magic backlash he had held off for months came crashing down on him and his supporters, the water funnel fell back and the storm lessened.
Even before the storm cleared, Albus Dumbledore was at the head of the group that exited the castle to see what happened. They found Hagrid first, unconscious next to the smashed drum. Sama and Remus lay half in the water on the bank of the lake. On first glance they looked dead. Closer inspection found them battered and bloody, hands still gripped tightly together, unconscious.
"Lumos!"
"Their hands won't come apart."
"I've got their wands- we'd better take them up together."
"Move away, I've got to…"
"Lets get Hagrid up to the castle. Professor Dumbledore will look after…"
"Sama hang on, we've got you."
~*~
On the roof of the turret Sirius was the first to recover. As he was sitting up, Harry opened his eyes and groaned. Hermione stirred, but Ron lay silently, crumpled at the base of the wall. Crawling over to him Sirius turned him over, and paled at the sight of Ron's lifeless face. Blood ran freely from his nose, and his freckles stood out starkly against his paper white skin. There were harsh purple hollows under his eyes, and Sirius had to watch carefully to make sure he was breathing.
"Harry, where's the cloak? We've got to get him back to your room."
"Is he OK?" Worry etched his face.
"Unconscious. But he'd do better in a warm, dry place."
Lifting him gently, Sirius stood and allowed Harry to throw the cloak over him. He let Harry and Hermione lead the way back to the Gryffindor common room entrance. On their way through the hallways they noticed a commotion outside of the hospital ward as Hagrid's unconscious form was being transported for examination. Loyalties warred within him, but finally, at their urging, Sirius left Harry and Hermione to put Ron to bed. Becoming Padfoot, he set off to sneak into the hospital to find out what happened to his friends.
~*~
The hospital ward was full of people. Padfoot slunk to Dumbledore's side. Padfoot looked up into the concerned face of the headmaster, and whined. Dumbledore murmured softly to the dog, and with a few words to Madam Pomfrey, Padfoot was allowed to stay, although everyone else was summarily dismissed.
"Out! This is a hospital, not a circus! Out!"
"…agree it looks bad, Professor… just don't know what's…"
Voices faded until only, faintly, "Come on Moony- Don't leave me now!"
~*~
Harry and Hermione carried Ron into the Gryffindor common room and set him gently on one of the couches. They did not notice Ginny Weasley watching them, and turning white-faced, she raced up the stairs to the dorms.
"He's cold, Harry, we need to dry him off." Hermione took out her wand.
"No- Don't!" Harry stopped her. She looked at him with puzzlement. "Hermione, we're too tired. We'll just have to dry him off and warm him up without magic. We're not up to it."
Hermione rubbed her temple and nodded. They were startled when noisy footsteps clattered behind them.
"Ginny, I am sure he's fine…" Fred's voice trailed off as he saw the bedraggled state of Harry and Hermione. His face paled and he visibly swallowed when he saw Ron lying unresponsive. George pulled up short right behind his brother, and Ginny's face, pale and tear-streaked peeked out from behind them.
George found his voice first. Without rancor he said, "What did you do, Harry?"
"Me? It was all Ron's idea." Harry looked so miserable Ron's brothers came over and knelt next to him. Ginny sniffled as she sidled up to Hermione. Hermione reached out put a comforting arm around the smaller girl.
"It's OK, Ginny. Ron's going to be fine. We just have to get him dry and up to bed." Hermione's reassurances sounded a little hollow. The four of them stared down at Ron's abnormally still form in a daze for a moment. Ginny could feel the older girl shaking with exhaustion. Harry didn't look much better.
"Right. Fred, you grab his shoulders. George, you get his feet. We're taking him to Madam Pomfrey." Ginny was as surprised as her brothers when she heard the commands issuing out of her mouth. "Hermione, you and Harry are going nowhere but bed." When it looked like they would object she continued in a slightly fiercer tone. "Go. We'll take care of Ron."
~*~
Ron woke, disoriented. He recognized the hospital ward, but he didn't know why he was there. His brain seemed pleasantly fuzzed over. He felt paralyzed. Wondering if he had been hexed with the petrificus totalus, he kicked out in a numbed sort of panic. This drew the attention of the person he could sense sitting next to him, but he couldn't summon the energy to turn his head.
"Ron! You're awake!" His sister's worried face floated into his field of vision.
"Wha-"
"No. Don't talk. You shouldn't move either. Madam Pomfrey! He's awake!"
Madam Pomfrey came and clucked over him. Raising the head of his bed slightly, she let him sip some water. "You gave us a scare, young man. Attempting wild magic! None of you have any sense what-so-ever." She continued to berate him quietly for a few minutes and then she bustled away.
Ginny came back into view, this time Fred was right behind her. "We thought you'd never wake up, Ron."
Ron was surprised to see his brother's face, normally full of mischief, looking very grave. "I don't understand." Ron whispered faintly. "What happened?"
"You nearly died!" Ginny's voice was high and squeaky. "Don't you ever-" She broke off suddenly with a sob and ran from the room. Fred looked after her with a slightly bewildered expression on his face.
"She was acting just like mum, all iron-willed and businesslike until you woke up and then…" Shaking his head slightly he began to quietly fill Ron in on the events of the past couple of days.
~*~
Time stretched and contracted on itself like pulled taffy. Consciousness came in fits and starts. Pain first, and then awareness, and then rejection of light and sound for the blessed sleep of oblivion. For six days Sama and Remus lay unresponsive in the hospital wing, Madam Pomfrey hovering over them, watching for any change. Sama dreamt she could hear people around her, and whimpering with agony, she tried to shut them out. She felt like she was trapped, wrapped in cotton. Sound was the enemy. It echoed around her in white-hot daggers. The voices wouldn't let her alone, and faded in and out. She couldn't tell if what she heard was real, or imagined. She had no way of knowing if the words were one conversation, or many.
"Hagrid is awake finally… backlash didn't hurt him as much… rest is the best medicine for him now, but these two… I honestly don't know."
"It's been days. Will they wake?"
"It's too… to tell."
"We've been getting owls from Wolf Hollow almost hourly. Apparently, when she used her life force, they felt it through the spells at the farm… Something to do with a blood oath she took…"
"Life force!… could have died…"
"I am not certain what to tell them… want to send someone from Wolf Hollow here… tried to dissuade them… If young Weasley hadn't done that spell work we all may… died that night… too close…"
"…he won't try that again any time soon…"
"…Powerful and…"
"What will happen to them?"
"They'll either wake on their own… continue like this."
"With injuries such as these… Backlash caught them hard… They were the focus…"
"Did you feel You-know-who's power break? It was the most horrible…"
"Yes. Whoever was assisting Voldemort likely didn't survive. We may never know who…"
"This is wild magic- nothing I can deal with in conventional ways…"
"…plants from Professor Sprout, as requested…"
"…put them over here… Never had my infirmary turned into a greenhouse, but maybe with wild magics… good suggestion from Ron Weasley…"
"Physically, they're healing… well as we can expect… If this were anything but wild magic they should be awake."
"Remus, wake up. Wake up Remus, come on Moony, please…" This last voice she thought belonged to Sirius, before everything went silent again.
On the seventh day, Sama woke with the sun streaming in the window. Opening her eyes, she immediately screwed them tightly shut again and tried to cover them with her hand. She found she couldn't even lift her arms. She was incredibly weak. When she whimpered, Madam Pomfrey bustled over to her bed and raised the head a bit, clucking to forestall any questions.
"Professor Dumbledore will be pleased to know you are awake."
"Remus?" Sama managed to croak, her throat felt like sandpaper.
"There, beside you. Don't move. No, he hasn't woken yet, but I expect he will any time now."
With the admonishment ringing in her still tender ears, she turned to find Remus lying pale and still in the next bed. Padfoot lay on Remus' bed curled next to him, asleep. She watched closely to make sure Remus was breathing before lying back on her pillow. She smiled grimly at the profusion of plants that had been carted into the hospital ward. Professor Sprout must have gutted her greenhouse to help them heal.
Remus woke up later that afternoon and with a groan of pain he turned to find her watching him, and smiling gently, he promptly went back to sleep.
Late that night, when the castle was quiet, Sirius, Sama, and Remus talked over Halloween night. Sama was thankful to hear that after Ron had lain unresponsive for a full two days, he awoke recovered from his part in the song magic.
~*~
The next few weeks went by in a blur of periods of sleep broken with periods of lucidity. Once he'd made sure Remus would fully recover, Sirius went off on some business for the Order. Staying in one place, even if the number of people who knew of his innocence was growing, was dangerous for him.
Sama managed to reassure the pack back in Wolf Hollow that she was fine, and not to come en masse. She felt very sure one hundred and sixteen werewolves descending on Hogwarts would not be looked on too kindly by the British Ministry. Eight exhausted owls later, they agreed to let her recuperate in peace.
Hagrid visited often, usually bringing one of his creature friends with him. Harry, Ron, and Hermione visited when their studies and Madam Pomfrey would permit. For entertainment, Ron even treated them to a play-by-play description of the first Quidditch match of the season, much to Harry's embarrassment (Gryffindor won). Dumbledore, who insisted that Sama call him Albus, was a frequent visitor in the hospital ward. After hearing the full account from both Sama and Remus, he continued to visit for tea. Sama spoke to him about wanting to set up a student exchange between the Academy and Hogwarts. He heartily approved of the idea, and went further, saying a student exchange program was all well and good, but a Professor exchange program- what an excellent idea! Remus' convalescence was slower than her own, and he was still in bed when she took her first halting steps outside the hospital ward.
The moon waxed, and the full moon came again. Remus and Sama spent their first change since Halloween curled together, weak as new pups, in a shadowy corner of the hospital ward. On Albus' suggestion, Poppy Pomfrey left the ward locked and unattended that night.
~*~
Sama stood in the room she had been assigned to three months ago, packing her things. As happy as she was to be going home, she was sad, too. She had missed three runnings with the pack, but she had grown fond of the Forbidden Forest, the students and teachers at Hogwarts, and Remus. Especially Remus. Packing was exhausting and her newly strengthened body ached. She was not looking forward to the airplane trip home. Muggle transportation was not comfortable at the best of times and she knew it would be agony today.
There was a knock on her door, and when she opened it she found a number of students waiting to say goodbye to her. It proved to be only the first group of many as they trickled in to wish her farewell. Harry, Ron, and Hermione, were among the last to come.
"I made these for you," Sama handed Ron a stack of parchment. "So you can keep up your studies."
"Thank you." Ron's eyes rested miserably on the papers she handed him.
Impulsively she said, "What would you think about coming to Wolf Hollow to study this summer?" In the shocked silence she included Harry and Hermione in her invitation. "All three of you. Don't give me your answer now. Think it over. Talk to your parents."
Ron looked up, dazed. "Study in America for the summer?" his voice broke and squeaked at the last.
"It won't be easy. When I say study, I mean study. You nearly burned yourself out with what you did on Halloween. I can teach you some things that will help you to call on the wild and song magic - without doing bodily harm to yourself."
"I'll think about it." Harry and Hermione nodded in agreement. Sama knew Harry and Hermione would always be rooted firmly in the traditional magic forms, but they had also shown promise in the spellcasting they did on Halloween. Maybe, with a summer of intensive training, they would be able to call on the older forms as well. Perhaps not with the depth or finesse Ron was capable of, but well enough. They left talking about the possibilities.
As they were leaving she looked up and found Remus standing in her doorway. Sama noticed the backward glances the trio gave her and Remus, and Hermione gently closed the door behind them. Remus was pale and drawn, but he had been pronounced fully healed. He reached out and gently grasped both her hands in his.
Sama's head was bent, her gaze resting on their linked hands. "I have to go."
"I know."
"I have responsibilities- to the pack. To the Academy."
"I know."
"You are always welcome in Wolf Hollow."
"Thank you." He watched, fascinated, as she nibbled her lower lip.
"Wolfgate Farm is a sanctuary for- all of us. You've been a lone wolf too long. You should-"
"No." She nodded, but didn't look up. Gently Remus continued. "I have responsibilities, too. Voldemort is not gone completely- only for now. It seems he always comes back."
"I… understand. Headmaster- Albus has asked me to gather those I know together in an- Order of the Phoenix West, if you will. As a safety measure."
"That's good."
Sama drew herself up to look Remus straight in the eye. "You will be in my heart, Remus."
"You will never leave mine."
"I … Good running, Remus." She embraced him and heard his whispered reply.
"Good running, Sama."
Picking up her small case, she walked alone down the stairs, feeling his eyes on her until she stepped out into the sunny December morning. Remus looked down at the items she had slipped into his hand when she released him. A bit of parchment and a small, faintly glowing stone on a chain. The letter said simply "This Pathfinder Stone will lead you home, whenever you wish. S." Touched, Remus slipped the chain over his head. It was warm against his skin, and he knew if he ever wanted- or needed- to find her, the stone would guide him to her side.
Sama's eyes managed to be dry when she exited the school, but it was close. There was a carriage waiting to take her to Hogsmeade station and from there she would go to London and retraced her steps all the way home to Wolf Hollow. Both Dumbledore and Hagrid were there to see her off. Hagrid's nose was suspiciously red, but his eyes were dry.
"G'bye, Miss."
"Goodbye, Hagrid. I will miss you. Take care of all your charges." The big man cleared his throat noisily and then quickly turned and walked briskly away.
"Headmas… Albus. Thank you. I will speak with Principal Marshal about the summer exchange program we discussed. I think our students would benefit from spending some time with traditional magic older than a couple of hundred years. And young Ron Weasley is very talented with wild magic. He could benefit from some refinement of his obvious gift."
"I will keep that in mind. It would benefit Hogwarts students as a whole to study with you and your colleagues. We must strengthen our ties throughout the whole wizarding community to be able to face and turn the rise of the Dark Arts."
Impulsively, Sama reached out and hugged the headmaster. Surprised, but pleased, Dumbledore chuckled a bit as he hugged her back. Climbing into the carriage, she took one last look up at the school. She saw a shadowed form behind a window, high up in one of the turrets. Uncertain, she gave half a wave before settling back into the seat. Sama was going home.
The End
Author's Notes: There are some things I want to say, and this is the perfect place to say them. So if you are one of those people who is not interested, please feel free to stop reading this right now. I put this at the end specifically so you wouldn't have to scroll through stuff at the top when you'd rather get right to the story. Anyway *clears throat and steps up on soapbox* This fiction came out of the idea that there are wolf-born. As with most good stories, it all started with "What if…" What if werewolves bore children? Would those children also be werewolves? What if they are? What differences would that make to the change? Sama, Wolf Hollow, and Wolfgate Farm were the natural progression from this supposition. A community based around a minority- it happens all the time, everywhere. The second "What if…" was mostly a "Why isn't there…" Why isn't there much mention of the Arts in the Rowling Universe? No song, no dance, no performance, no art. But suppose there are magics that use all of these? Ritual magics, song magics, water magics, wild magics. Now the last, and most important part of the story- how to bring the sketched out bits of supposition into the Rowling Universe with a purpose… We know Voldemort is the ever-returning evil force. Suppose for a moment that he gathered power from the most unlikely of places- wild and song magic. Since Hogwarts doesn't seem to have an expert in this type of magic, POOF! I dropped the whole of my supposed wild-magic world- lock, stock, and barrel- neatly into place. Remus was a likely candidate to play guide. That he struck up an affection for Sama (and she for him) was NOT intended. I whole-heartedly agree with the reviewer who said Sama is not the girlfriend she would have chosen for Remus. She's not the girl I would have given him either! I did not set out to write a "Remus gets a girlfriend" fic. But, well… boat go where boat go (OK- unless you've read "Honk and Holler Opening Soon" that doesn't make much sense- basically it means you can't expect to have control- you just have to accept stuff as it comes along.). I want to be very clear about something, there will be no happily-ever-afters for the two of them. No riding off into the sunset together. No getting married and having lots of little werewolf puppies. They both have responsibilities. This is a war after all. But don't be surprised if Remus ends up in Wolf Hollow some odd evening while the full moon shines down into the valley…As to "to sequel or not to sequel, that is the question. Whether tis nobler in the mind to suffer..." *ahem* So sorry. I got a bit carried away there for a second. No promises. 'kay?
Again, To Ryan, Gwen and especially my CL, Thank you thank you thank you. If Gregor had made an appearance, I would have thanked him, too. For your edits, thoughts, encouragement, and love, I thank you. Now about "His Majesty's Secret Service"-If you are not reading it, go now to do so. Gwendolyn Grace is taking us on a wild ride. And since I know a bit more about where it's going than others, let me assure you it is gonna be GOOD!
Disclaimers: Sama, Wolf Hollow, and the Academy for the Magical Arts and Sciences with all inhabitants mentioned and implied are mine. The universe they help populate in this incarnation, and all other characters belong to J.K. Rowling. No copyright infringement is intended. No money will be made from this fiction.