Definition Of A Wolf
Part Three
[Insert Disclaimer Here]
Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to the 'S' key on my keyboard in the hope that it encourages it to work better and to stop jamming. And because s's taste nice.
***
Moonlight picked out highlights in Sirius Black's hair. He wished it wouldn't. He didn't want to be seen.
His gaze travelled up to the house who's wall he was crouched behind. It was a familiar house, large and dark and brooding, a hulk of a building on an otherwise unoccupied hillock just outside London. This was where Sirius had grown up. It had been his parents' house, but he didn't know who owned it now. He hated the fact that he was here now. It meat that whoever now lived in his childhood home was a murderer.
Weeks of careful detective work had led him back here. He had been give a name and an address; this one. The name was unfamiliar. Julian Jackson. Sirius wondered if the man now owned the house. He had been neglecting it if he did. Ivy and other unidentifiable creepers clung to every available surface, almost as if someone had tried to hide the building in its own miniature forest. There were six milk bottles on the doorstep, all of which now contained something closer to cheese. And there was an old car in the driveway. Sirius gasped as he identified his late father's black Bentley Continental; tyres let down, windows smashed, paint peeling, rust ravaged. He spent some time cursing over this. How could anyone let a classic car get into this sort of state? Then he remembered why he was here. Decrepit cars were the least of his concerns. He was on a revenge mission.
He was doing this for Remus. He had spent weeks carefully asking the right people the right questions, following leads, using his instincts, and he had arrived here, with the conclusion that his parents' house was now a hideaway for Werewolf Poachers. Remus knew nothing, of course. He would try to stop Sirius, but Sirius knew this was for the best. If he didn't catch the people responsible for the deaths of Remus' wife and child, they would just keep on and on, murdering perfectly innocent werewolves yet having no effect at all on their population. Sirius was sure Remus would thank him.
A light came on in the house. Sirius scuttled closer, ducking down behind the shell of the Bentley. As the front door opened, he slid into dog form.
It was a familiar male figure which emerged from the house, accompanied by an un-familiar one holding a crossbow. Sirius watched them crunch down the gravel driveway, and kept his eyes on them until they were out of sight. Then he slunk up to the porch and peered through the window. The hallway was empty, as was the adjoining cloakroom. Yet there was still a light on upstairs. Curious.
No one could pick this lock except Sirius, and he did so with the same ease he had as a teenager returning home past midnight. Then he dropped into canine mode again, and trotted up the wide marble staircase. As he neared the top of the flight, his sharp senses detected a faint sobbing sound coming from a nearby door. He crept closer, and put his nose to the door.
A familiar scent filled Remus' nostrils. A sweet scent of flowers and peppermint. A scent which made Sirius think of love and warmth and compassion. But there was something else mixed in with it. Salt, suggesting tears, and - yes - fear too. Sirius turned back to human shape, pushed the door open, and marched into the room.
There was a young woman lying face down on the bed, sobbing into her pillow. She looked up and gasped a Sirius burst in. Then she leaped to her feet and stared at him, wide eyes rimmed with red.
"Sirius?" she whispered.
Sirius nodded. "It's me."
"It . . . It can't be . . ." The young woman took a step closer to him, reached out a hand to touch his face. He smiled at her, and she threw herself into his arms, crying openly again. He stroked her hair, whispering reassuringly, and wondering what the Hell was going on.
***
Remus came round slowly. His head was throbbing and he wasn't sure where he was. Then a familiar face appeared in his line of vision.
"Ah, Remus," said Headmaster Dumbledore, smiling cheerfully, "you're with us again."
The Hogwarts hospital wing swum into focus, as did the rest of Dumbledore, and the entireties of Professor Severus Snape and an unfamiliar woman. Remus blinked, puzzled.
"Do you remember anything?" asked Dumbledore, still smiling in that annoying way of his.
" . . ." said Remus. His mouth felt extremely dry. He tried again. "Peter . . . "
Dumbledore nodded. "Somehow, he overpowered you, Remus. We think he crept into the school to spy on Harry, but got caught in the act. He escaped again. We're declaring it a national emergency, seeing as we know Pettigrew works for Lord Voldemort."
"We're calling your Siamese twin to heel," Snape supplied in his greasy- toned voice. Remus stared at him blankly. "Black," Snape supplied. "You two are joined at the hip," he added helpfully.
"Yes," said Dumbledore. "If anyone is capable of scaring Pettigrew away from Harry, it's Sirius, so I'm bringing him back to Hogwarts."
Remus digested all this as he sipped from a beaker of water. When his mouth felt a little less like something had died in it recently, he asked, "I thought Sirius was on an important mission?"
Dumbledore nodded. "Indeed, it is very important to Sirius, personally. But we must keep in mind the difference between personal and important."
Remus nodded, although he didn't really understand. Sirius was coming back. He didn't need to understand anything else. Then his gaze fell on the woman standing with Snape and Dumbledore. She was watching him intently, her golden eyes probing his very soul. He frowned.
"Have we been introduced?"
The woman nodded. "I'm afraid we didn't get off to a good start. I didn't believe you when you said that rat was actually a man. I'm Linda Garland."
Remus nodded, remembering. He offered her a weak smile. She stared at him for a long time, then finally smiled back.
"Get some sleep, Remus," Dumbledore advised. "I'll speak to you again in the morning."
To be continued . . .
A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys!
Part Three
[Insert Disclaimer Here]
Dedication: This chapter is dedicated to the 'S' key on my keyboard in the hope that it encourages it to work better and to stop jamming. And because s's taste nice.
***
Moonlight picked out highlights in Sirius Black's hair. He wished it wouldn't. He didn't want to be seen.
His gaze travelled up to the house who's wall he was crouched behind. It was a familiar house, large and dark and brooding, a hulk of a building on an otherwise unoccupied hillock just outside London. This was where Sirius had grown up. It had been his parents' house, but he didn't know who owned it now. He hated the fact that he was here now. It meat that whoever now lived in his childhood home was a murderer.
Weeks of careful detective work had led him back here. He had been give a name and an address; this one. The name was unfamiliar. Julian Jackson. Sirius wondered if the man now owned the house. He had been neglecting it if he did. Ivy and other unidentifiable creepers clung to every available surface, almost as if someone had tried to hide the building in its own miniature forest. There were six milk bottles on the doorstep, all of which now contained something closer to cheese. And there was an old car in the driveway. Sirius gasped as he identified his late father's black Bentley Continental; tyres let down, windows smashed, paint peeling, rust ravaged. He spent some time cursing over this. How could anyone let a classic car get into this sort of state? Then he remembered why he was here. Decrepit cars were the least of his concerns. He was on a revenge mission.
He was doing this for Remus. He had spent weeks carefully asking the right people the right questions, following leads, using his instincts, and he had arrived here, with the conclusion that his parents' house was now a hideaway for Werewolf Poachers. Remus knew nothing, of course. He would try to stop Sirius, but Sirius knew this was for the best. If he didn't catch the people responsible for the deaths of Remus' wife and child, they would just keep on and on, murdering perfectly innocent werewolves yet having no effect at all on their population. Sirius was sure Remus would thank him.
A light came on in the house. Sirius scuttled closer, ducking down behind the shell of the Bentley. As the front door opened, he slid into dog form.
It was a familiar male figure which emerged from the house, accompanied by an un-familiar one holding a crossbow. Sirius watched them crunch down the gravel driveway, and kept his eyes on them until they were out of sight. Then he slunk up to the porch and peered through the window. The hallway was empty, as was the adjoining cloakroom. Yet there was still a light on upstairs. Curious.
No one could pick this lock except Sirius, and he did so with the same ease he had as a teenager returning home past midnight. Then he dropped into canine mode again, and trotted up the wide marble staircase. As he neared the top of the flight, his sharp senses detected a faint sobbing sound coming from a nearby door. He crept closer, and put his nose to the door.
A familiar scent filled Remus' nostrils. A sweet scent of flowers and peppermint. A scent which made Sirius think of love and warmth and compassion. But there was something else mixed in with it. Salt, suggesting tears, and - yes - fear too. Sirius turned back to human shape, pushed the door open, and marched into the room.
There was a young woman lying face down on the bed, sobbing into her pillow. She looked up and gasped a Sirius burst in. Then she leaped to her feet and stared at him, wide eyes rimmed with red.
"Sirius?" she whispered.
Sirius nodded. "It's me."
"It . . . It can't be . . ." The young woman took a step closer to him, reached out a hand to touch his face. He smiled at her, and she threw herself into his arms, crying openly again. He stroked her hair, whispering reassuringly, and wondering what the Hell was going on.
***
Remus came round slowly. His head was throbbing and he wasn't sure where he was. Then a familiar face appeared in his line of vision.
"Ah, Remus," said Headmaster Dumbledore, smiling cheerfully, "you're with us again."
The Hogwarts hospital wing swum into focus, as did the rest of Dumbledore, and the entireties of Professor Severus Snape and an unfamiliar woman. Remus blinked, puzzled.
"Do you remember anything?" asked Dumbledore, still smiling in that annoying way of his.
" . . ." said Remus. His mouth felt extremely dry. He tried again. "Peter . . . "
Dumbledore nodded. "Somehow, he overpowered you, Remus. We think he crept into the school to spy on Harry, but got caught in the act. He escaped again. We're declaring it a national emergency, seeing as we know Pettigrew works for Lord Voldemort."
"We're calling your Siamese twin to heel," Snape supplied in his greasy- toned voice. Remus stared at him blankly. "Black," Snape supplied. "You two are joined at the hip," he added helpfully.
"Yes," said Dumbledore. "If anyone is capable of scaring Pettigrew away from Harry, it's Sirius, so I'm bringing him back to Hogwarts."
Remus digested all this as he sipped from a beaker of water. When his mouth felt a little less like something had died in it recently, he asked, "I thought Sirius was on an important mission?"
Dumbledore nodded. "Indeed, it is very important to Sirius, personally. But we must keep in mind the difference between personal and important."
Remus nodded, although he didn't really understand. Sirius was coming back. He didn't need to understand anything else. Then his gaze fell on the woman standing with Snape and Dumbledore. She was watching him intently, her golden eyes probing his very soul. He frowned.
"Have we been introduced?"
The woman nodded. "I'm afraid we didn't get off to a good start. I didn't believe you when you said that rat was actually a man. I'm Linda Garland."
Remus nodded, remembering. He offered her a weak smile. She stared at him for a long time, then finally smiled back.
"Get some sleep, Remus," Dumbledore advised. "I'll speak to you again in the morning."
To be continued . . .
A/N: Thanks for the reviews, guys!
