Indus, Sar-spasm, and Starlight. Thanks for the reviews, and welcome!
Clover - welcome back! *waves*
No1 - who says the madness ends?
All I can say is that it would have been much worse if it hadn't been so late at night.
Most of you probably know that one of the things that Maine is famous for is the L. L. Bean store in Freeport that is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I can't even begin to tell you how busy that place is this time of year, but I can tell you just how many wizards had to be called in from the Augusta branch of the Bureau of Magical Affairs to handle the mass memory charms in the crowd there because of Severus. About two dozen.
It started when Remus, Sirius, and Severus decided that the store was one of the landmarks they wanted to see while they were spending time in Maine. I figured that the cute little village of Freeport would be nice to see in all its holiday splendor, so I took them with me to do a little more Christmas shopping late one evening.
We split up once we got into Bean's, and the three of them promised to do their best to blend in and stay inconspicuous. (It's odd to see them in jeans and flannel shirts.)
All I wanted to do was to pick up a few little stocking stuffers, but unfortunately the first person I encountered in the store was my ex- boyfriend. My just-doesn't-get-that-it's-been-over-for-quite-some-time ex- boyfriend. And let's just say there's a healthy list of reasons why he's an ex, including the fact that he still gets very jealous and remains a bit possessive.
I tried nicely to get rid of him without making a scene, but he just doesn't quit, and it soon became apparent to people nearby that he was obviously harassing me. Apparently it was also obvious to Severus.
He might not have intervened if my ex had just let it drop and left, but he didn't, and when he grabbed my arm when I tried to walk away, some long-buried sense of chivalry must have awakened in my Slytherin friend, and of course he reacted reflexively. He hexed my ex into next week.
Now, as satisfying as it would have been to stand there and watch my ex braying frantically in the form of a cute little donkey in the middle of the camping section, (apparently 'ass' was the first thing that came to Snape's mind when he saw the man, as well as mine) I was now surrounded by screaming shoppers that just weren't handling the fact that there was a wizard and a donkey standing next to the tents.
Let me tell you, those boys from the Augusta bureau were some unhappy campers, but do they ever work fast. I suspect there were a few muggles that managed to get out of the store without being obliviated, but as a general rule, Mainers keep to themselves so it shouldn't be a big deal.
Besides, who in their right mind would say they saw a wizard turn someone into a donkey at L.L. Bean at Christmas anyway? ;)
The Werewolf Capture Unit ~*~
Lorien jumped to her feet and Snape's head snapped up. "What?" He gasped. "The werewolf is OUT?"
Hermione nodded and quickly told them what she knew.
Lorien and Snape both headed for the door. "Come with us." Lorien said, wanting to make sure Hermione made it as far as Gryffindor tower with an escort, since no one knew exactly where the wolf was at this point.
Hermione headed for the common room as Lorien and Severus met up with Dumbledore and McGonagall at the entrance.
"We'll go in pairs." Dumbledore instructed. "Minerva and I will head toward the whomping willow and the lake. Severus, you and Lorien head toward the forest."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
"I know that Remus has had the wolfsbane potion and should be relatively harmless, but no one has ever really put this to a true test, so please be very careful." Said Dumbledore as the four of them split up.
Ariel was pleased with the chaos she had created, and she cast off the invisibility charm as she walked down the hall. This would certainly give them all a good scare, and with any luck, they might question the wisdom of having a werewolf remain as a teacher here at the school. She looked up as she walked, and saw fourth year student Jane Hillyer emerging from a room just ahead. It was Marlina Perkins that she now heard talking to the student in the hall.
Sinistra smiled again. Just when she thought things couldn't get any better!
Ariel put on her best 'very concerned' face and walked quickly up to the other Slytherin witch. "Professor Perkins. Thank goodness I found you!"
Marlina looked up at her. "What's wrong, Ariel?"
Sinistra looked at the student and motioned for her to step back inside. "A moment if you please." She said, and then she spoke urgently to Marlina.
"It's just terrible, Marlina. I'm afraid for the safety of the students." Ariel professed.
"Why? What on earth has happened?" Marlina asked, obviously puzzled.
"It's.....it's the werewolf." Arial whispered dramatically. "He got out."
Marlina felt a knot form in the pit of her stomach.
Arial continued on. "Dumbledore and several of the staff have gone after him, but I'm worried about them. They could be in grave danger with the wolf running rampant like that." She was winding Perkins up and she knew it.
Marlina reacted quickly. "I'll deal with this." She ducked back inside her rooms.
Sinistra smiled. "I rather thought you would." She said quietly, and she walked away humming to herself again.
Marlina grabbed her cloak and ran to the entrance to the school. She had instructed Jane to stay with Noah and had immediately retrieved the crossbow from her trunk. Now, she ran into the dark and lit her wand as she went. She knew the wolf would head for the forest and she set off in that direction.
There was no sign of anyone when she reached the edge of the woods, and Marlina heard nothing, but she searched the ground as she went and finally found what she was looking for. Footprints. Two distinct sets of canine footprints went off slightly to her left, and Marlina set out to track the wolf.
Severus and Lorien went out into the forest, searching for signs of the dog or the wolf.
"How the hell did that bloody wolf get out?" He asked, eyes casting about the edges of the wandlit perimeter. He did not relish the thought of coming face to face with the werewolf in the woods, wolfsbane potion or not. One close encounter with the beast in his life was definitely more than enough.
Lorien shrugged. "I wish I knew." She said. "I hope he's alright."
"And I hope that damn potion does what it's supposed to if we find him." Snape grumbled.
"I wonder if he'd respond if we called him?" Lorien suddenly wondered out loud. "He'd be likely to understand us in his present condition."
"Maybe." Snape ventured, mentally voting for not calling the wolf.
She decided to try it. "Remus?" She called into the woods. Nothing. She waited a minute as she strained to hear any sound in the woods around them. "Remus? It's Lorien." She called again. "Remus it's ok. You can come out." Nothing. She turned to face Severus. "We'll have to keep looking. He's probably...."
She stopped as she saw the look Severus was wearing. He was staring, unblinking and unmoving at a spot on the path somewhere behind her. "Lorien." He said in a low whisper. "Behind you."
Lorien turned very slowly and now could see that about twenty feet behind her, just outside the light cast by Snape's wand, was a set of eyes that reflected eerie green in the dark. She looked back at the glowing eyes for a long moment and then risked calling to him. "Remus?" She called hesitantly.
The green glow disappeared as the large animal stepped just inside the circle of light, and Lorien found herself looking into the amber eyes of the wolf for the very first time. She swallowed hard and tried to speak comfortingly. "Remus, it's ok."
The wolf's ears pricked forward when she spoke, and then he sat down on his haunches.
Lorien spoke to him again. "Remus, it's alright. Really. You need to come back to the castle."
The wolf dropped his ears a little and whined plaintively. He clearly was torn as to what to do.
Lorien started to take a step forward, but Snape's hand on her shoulder suddenly stopped her. "Lorien, don't." He hissed the warning quietly, never taking his eyes, or his wand off the wolf in front of them. The wolf snarled and flattened its ears back as it watched him grab her arm, and Snape ever so slowly released his hold on Lorien. The wolf stopped growling when he saw Snape let go.
"Should we try to talk him into coming back?" Lorien whispered to Snape behind her. "We should be able to reason with him because of the potion, right?" She asked.
Snape kept his eyes on the wolf. "Don't move, but say something to him." He directed her, trying to gauge how lucid the wolf was.
"Remus," Lorien began softly. "You know we aren't here to hurt you, don't you?"
The wolf yawned nervously as it watched her steadily.
"Remus?" Lorien called again. "Come on." She said softly, beckoning to him.
The wolf growled low in it's throat, but then took a quick step toward Lorien and she clutched at Snape. Although he didn't appear to be threatening her, Snape could tell that Lupin wasn't quite in his right mind. He didn't like the way things looked at all, and despite his misgivings about being anywhere near the werewolf again, stepped in front of Lorien to keep himself between her and the now growling animal that was regarding him with flattened ears.
Lorien tried to tell herself that Remus wouldn't hurt her. She tried to quell the nervousness she felt about having the wolf come closer, after all, she'd been only inches from the wolf in the past. But of course, it was inches away behind a door of solid English oak, and there was no door here now. She put her hand on Snape's arm, not knowing what it took for him to put himself in the line of fire after the previous trauma he'd experience with a werewolf encounter in the past.
"Let me try once more." She said unsteadily. "You're irritating him."
Snape would have shot her a look that said 'serves him right' if he hadn't been so intent on keeping his eyes on the beast. "Once." he agreed reluctantly, and he felt Lorien come to stand alongside him.
Marlina was nearly lightheaded with the effects of the adrenaline flowing through her veins as she closed in on the wolf. It was a feeling almost forgotten and no longer welcome because it brought with it so many memories. Too many terrible memories. She tried to subdue the feelings of dread she always had on the hunt, and to focus on the task at hand.
She had come to a spot where she could see the tracks indicated that the wolf had slowed to a walk. He probably was not far away. She listened for a minute for the faintest sound, the faintest breath and heard nothing, so she decided to go a little further. The quiet around her was suddenly interrupted by a voice not very far off.
It was Lorien calling for Remus. 'That idiot.' Marlina thought. 'She'll be a sitting duck as soon as he zeroes in on where she is.' Marlina decided that the best thing to do was zero in on where Lorien was first and then wait for the wolf. She made her way to where she heard the woman calling again, and slipping quietly through the trees, came to a spot where she had a partial view of the path. Lorien and Severus were standing together, and had obviously seen something.
Marlina dropped to one knee and kept one eye on the witch as she loaded the crossbow. She was reaching for a dart when she saw the wolf step into the light not far from Lorien, and another flood of nightmare memories hit her as she looked upon the creature. It took a step toward the two people, and almost instinctively her hand grabbed for black feathers. Lorien might not realize it, but she was in grave danger, and Marlina planned on doing something about it. She was not going to let one of THEM claim another victim.
She sighted the crossbow at a point just in front of the wolf where she would have a clear shot, and she waited patiently for him to take just one more step forward.
Lorien stood alongside Severus for a moment, trying to wait for the wolf to calm down, and to steady her own nerves. It was difficult to believe that the large gray wolf in front of her was actually Remus, but she tried to keep focused on that thought as she spoke again to Snape. "I'm going to call him again." She whispered.
"If you insist." Snape replied. "What if it doesn't work?" He asked her without looking at her.
Lorien frowned. "I guess you'll have to stun him into next week." She said reluctantly, and Snape found himself rather hoping the wolf wouldn't respond.
Lorien held onto Snape still for reassurance, and spoke once more to the wolf. "Remus, it's time to get you back to the castle, don't you think?" Snape winced a little as her nails dug into his flesh where she had a death grip on his arm.
The wolf tipped its head as it appeared to be considering what she'd said, and after a moment heaved a snort with its decision, and then calmly stepped toward the woman that he knew.
Suddenly there was a loud growl and a crash in the bushes to the left and a faint 'thwack' sounded from just beyond on the right. The wolf jumped suddenly and laid his ears back again with a terrible snarl, and whirled and ran back the way he came as a commotion broke out where the first growl came from.
"Remus!" Lorien called out, unheeded by the rapidly retreating werewolf.
Angry voices now sounded through the trees just to her left.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" It was Sirius, yelling at somebody. Lorien and Severus ran to where the voices were coming from.
"You made me miss! Don't you know that lives are in danger?" Marlina was yelling back at Sirius.
When Lorien and Severus got to the spot, Sirius had grabbed Marlina by her shoulders, and was still yelling at her. "You could have killed him!" Sirius gave her a small shake for emphasis.
Lorien ran to them and placed a hand on Sirius's arm. "Sirius, let go." She tried to say it calmly, but heard her own voice waiver. She didn't think she wanted to know why Marlina was out here in the forest with a crossbow.
Sirius brushed her off, a little rougher than he meant to and Lorien stumbled a step backwards. He shook Marlina again. "You murderous Slytherin bitch. He wasn't hurting anyone!"
Snape watched Sirius shake Marlina and then push Lorien, and decided that he'd seen enough. He quickly stepped behind the animagus and placed a hand firmly on his shoulder, speaking in a low dangerous voice. "That's quite enough, Black. Let go."
Sirius was already upset, and when Snape's had closed on his shoulder he saw red, and immediately released Marlina. He spun quickly and his fist connected squarely with Snape's jaw, sending him staggering back a pace himself. "Don't ever touch me, Snape!" He snarled viciously.
Snape was pressing the back of his hand against his mouth and when he pulled it away and looked at it, he saw blood. He glared furiously at Black. "You son of a bitch." He stepped forward quickly and raised his wand. Black drew his own and the two black haired wizards squared off.
"You arrogant bastard." Snape growled. "You're going to pay for that, Black!"
"Just try it." Black sneered at Snape. "Go on, I dare you to."
Lorien knew that this was a potentially lethal situation and ran between the two men, hands outstretched to keep them apart. "Stop it!" She cried. "Stop it, both of you."
Sirius spoke to her but never took his eyes of Snape. "Sorry sweetheart, no can do."
"Lorien, get out of the way." Snape said firmly, taking a step forward.
Lorien stepped in front of him. "Severus, no!"
Black sneered at Snape again, egging him on. "Need to have a little witch protect you, Snape? Can't handle your battles by yourself?"
Snape was livid, and Lorien grabbed his arm as she saw the look in his eyes. "Severus!" She cried again. Snape shook her off with a snarl and faced Black again.
Suddenly everyone looked up at the new voice that interrupted the confrontation.
"What on earth are you people doing?" Keath Moody asked. Kaneene and Keath were on duty and had been drawn by the noise.
Lorien spoke first to the aurors. "Kaneene, would you help me talk sense into these two idiots? They're trying to kill each other."
Kaneene could see by the way the two wizards were watching each other with drawn wands that Lorien was probably not exaggerating.
She came closer and folded her arms. "You boys care to tell me what's going on?" She asked, looking from one to the other.
Sirius spoke first. "Snape drew first. He started it."
Snape narrowed his eyes. "I started it?" He asked incredulously. "What about this?" He pointed to the blood on his lip.
"Yeah, well that was for being an ugly git." Sirius taunted.
Snape lunged for Black who lunged back.
Disaster was only narrowly averted by Lorien and Marlina flinging themselves on Severus to hold him back as Keath and Kaneene grabbed hold of Sirius and tried to drag him away. The two wizards were only able to hurl obscenities at each other instead of hexes, and chaos reigned as six people were all shouting at once.
"ENOUGH!!!"
Dumbledore's voice cut through the bedlam and the tumble of six people fell silent and looked up at the headmaster, standing there with McGonagall. Dumbledore looked from one person to the next and then spoke quietly in a deadly serious manner. "Have you all quite finished?" He asked.
Evidently everyone had. No one said a word.
Dumbledore watched them all with quiet anger for a minute longer and then he let it pass.
"Now." He said, in a somewhat lighter tone. "Since Remus has obviously retreated far into the woods for the evening, I suggest that we all go back to the castle. Minerva informs me that all of the students are tucked safely away in their dormitories for the night, so I think it would be best if we all turned in as well."
The group nodded and began breaking up. Lorien still held onto Severus firmly as Kaneene stayed latched onto Sirius. Finally sensing that things would be alright now that the headmaster had arrived, Kaneene rejoined Keath to resume their rounds.
"Thank you for intervening." Dumbledore said to the aurors quietly. Both nodded and walked out of the woods.
Dumbledore spoke to Lorien next. "Get some rest. Remus may need you when he comes back in the morning." He patted her arm reassuringly and Lorien got the distinct impression that she'd just been dismissed. Dumbledore looked at Marlina. "Would you mind accompanying Lorien and Minerva back to the castle?"
Marlina shook her head, and caught up with the other two women.
There were only three people left, and Dumbledore stood facing the two remaining wizards in silence for a long moment. He looked from one to the other, opened his mouth as if to say something, and then shook his head sadly and walked away.
Neither said anything, and each would have felt better if Dumbledore had yelled or given them a lecture, but each one knew that the older mage was disappointed in them both.
"Damn." Snape swore quietly.
Black looked at him and held his thumb and forefinger up with about an inch between them. "Feel about this big right now?" He asked, knowing it was how he felt.
"I'd say you're being generous." Snape replied and stalked off.
Marlina walked back to the castle with Minerva and Lorien, and no one said a word until they walked through the doors.
"I'll be glad when this night is over." McGonagall said to the other two, and started to leave them to head for the Gryffindor tower. "I suppose things could be worse, though."
"How's that?" Marlina asked.
"It'd be much worse if he hadn't had the wolfsbane potion." McGonagall replied.
Lorien nodded in agreement.
"Goodnight, ladies." McGonagall said and walked away, leaving the other two witches standing together in the hall.
Marlina looked puzzled and finally spoke up. "What on earth is McGonagall going on about?"
"The wolfsbane potion. Severus makes it for Remus." Lorien said, matter-of-factly.
"The what?" Marlina asked, a little confused.
Lorien seemed confused herself. "You're not familiar with it?"
"Evidently not." Marlina said sarcastically.
"I would have thought that a member of the WCU would know about such things." Lorien replied, a touch of sarcasm in her own voice.
Marlina frowned. "Well I don't. I've never heard of a wolfsbane potion. What exactly is the big deal, anyway?"
Something nagged at Lorien and her mind raced. Marlina had left the WCU over six years ago. The potion had been invented maybe a year or two before Remus first came to teach at Hogwarts. That meant Marlina was probably unaware of it's existence.
Marlina continued to speak while Lorien hesitated. "I don't really see why we've called off the search. The school might be safe but there could still be a threat to Hogsmeade."
"There's no threat." Lorien said quietly, shaking her head.
Marlina snorted. "You just don't get it, do you? I saw you try to play Red Riding Hood to the wolf, Lorien. Obviously you haven't ever seen what happens to the victims of a werewolf, or you wouldn't have done something so dangerous and stupid." Marlina sounded disgusted.
Lorien barely held her tongue. "Marlina, let me explain something to you." She said, trying to sound less irritated than she felt. "Evidently you retired from the WCU before the wolfsbane potion came into existence, and I can well imagine that you had little to do with werewolves or anything associated with them since."
"I'm still trying to have nothing to do with them." Marlina snapped.
"Yes, well let me finish." Lorien said, not controlling her irritation quite as well. "The wolfsbane potion is an amazingly complex and powerful substance that has been of great benefit to the werewolves that have access to it." She said.
"Why don't they all use it, if it's so wonderful?" Marlina asked flippantly.
"It's difficult to come by." Lorien explained. "Only the most skilled Potions masters will even attempt it. Many of the components of the potion on their own are deadly poisons, and if they aren't mixed with great precision, it could turn into quite a fatal concoction."
Marlina gave Lorien a look that said she failed to see a problem with that.
Lorien sighed with exasperation. "You don't have the faintest idea what it does, do you?"
Marlina shrugged.
"When taken daily for a week before the full moon, it allows the werewolf to maintain their human faculties after transformation. Severus makes the potion with great skill, and Remus takes it faithfully every month. He curls up and goes to sleep in his rooms as a normal wolf until morning."
"I find that hard to believe." Marlina said.
"I've been with him outside the door to his rooms all night after several transformations. I assure you it's quite true." Lorien replied sharply.
"Well, if he's so damn safe after taking the potion, why lock him up?" Marlina asked with a sneer, but something was beginning to eat at her.
"That's Remus's choice. He chooses always to err on the side of caution because everyone else's safety comes first." Lorien snapped. "I knew I was speaking to Remus in the forest tonight, and not some murderous beast, so as for your accusation of being stupid.....well, you might want to rethink who that label applies to." Lorien turned on her heel and walked away.
Clover - welcome back! *waves*
No1 - who says the madness ends?
All I can say is that it would have been much worse if it hadn't been so late at night.
Most of you probably know that one of the things that Maine is famous for is the L. L. Bean store in Freeport that is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I can't even begin to tell you how busy that place is this time of year, but I can tell you just how many wizards had to be called in from the Augusta branch of the Bureau of Magical Affairs to handle the mass memory charms in the crowd there because of Severus. About two dozen.
It started when Remus, Sirius, and Severus decided that the store was one of the landmarks they wanted to see while they were spending time in Maine. I figured that the cute little village of Freeport would be nice to see in all its holiday splendor, so I took them with me to do a little more Christmas shopping late one evening.
We split up once we got into Bean's, and the three of them promised to do their best to blend in and stay inconspicuous. (It's odd to see them in jeans and flannel shirts.)
All I wanted to do was to pick up a few little stocking stuffers, but unfortunately the first person I encountered in the store was my ex- boyfriend. My just-doesn't-get-that-it's-been-over-for-quite-some-time ex- boyfriend. And let's just say there's a healthy list of reasons why he's an ex, including the fact that he still gets very jealous and remains a bit possessive.
I tried nicely to get rid of him without making a scene, but he just doesn't quit, and it soon became apparent to people nearby that he was obviously harassing me. Apparently it was also obvious to Severus.
He might not have intervened if my ex had just let it drop and left, but he didn't, and when he grabbed my arm when I tried to walk away, some long-buried sense of chivalry must have awakened in my Slytherin friend, and of course he reacted reflexively. He hexed my ex into next week.
Now, as satisfying as it would have been to stand there and watch my ex braying frantically in the form of a cute little donkey in the middle of the camping section, (apparently 'ass' was the first thing that came to Snape's mind when he saw the man, as well as mine) I was now surrounded by screaming shoppers that just weren't handling the fact that there was a wizard and a donkey standing next to the tents.
Let me tell you, those boys from the Augusta bureau were some unhappy campers, but do they ever work fast. I suspect there were a few muggles that managed to get out of the store without being obliviated, but as a general rule, Mainers keep to themselves so it shouldn't be a big deal.
Besides, who in their right mind would say they saw a wizard turn someone into a donkey at L.L. Bean at Christmas anyway? ;)
The Werewolf Capture Unit ~*~
Lorien jumped to her feet and Snape's head snapped up. "What?" He gasped. "The werewolf is OUT?"
Hermione nodded and quickly told them what she knew.
Lorien and Snape both headed for the door. "Come with us." Lorien said, wanting to make sure Hermione made it as far as Gryffindor tower with an escort, since no one knew exactly where the wolf was at this point.
Hermione headed for the common room as Lorien and Severus met up with Dumbledore and McGonagall at the entrance.
"We'll go in pairs." Dumbledore instructed. "Minerva and I will head toward the whomping willow and the lake. Severus, you and Lorien head toward the forest."
Everyone nodded in agreement.
"I know that Remus has had the wolfsbane potion and should be relatively harmless, but no one has ever really put this to a true test, so please be very careful." Said Dumbledore as the four of them split up.
Ariel was pleased with the chaos she had created, and she cast off the invisibility charm as she walked down the hall. This would certainly give them all a good scare, and with any luck, they might question the wisdom of having a werewolf remain as a teacher here at the school. She looked up as she walked, and saw fourth year student Jane Hillyer emerging from a room just ahead. It was Marlina Perkins that she now heard talking to the student in the hall.
Sinistra smiled again. Just when she thought things couldn't get any better!
Ariel put on her best 'very concerned' face and walked quickly up to the other Slytherin witch. "Professor Perkins. Thank goodness I found you!"
Marlina looked up at her. "What's wrong, Ariel?"
Sinistra looked at the student and motioned for her to step back inside. "A moment if you please." She said, and then she spoke urgently to Marlina.
"It's just terrible, Marlina. I'm afraid for the safety of the students." Ariel professed.
"Why? What on earth has happened?" Marlina asked, obviously puzzled.
"It's.....it's the werewolf." Arial whispered dramatically. "He got out."
Marlina felt a knot form in the pit of her stomach.
Arial continued on. "Dumbledore and several of the staff have gone after him, but I'm worried about them. They could be in grave danger with the wolf running rampant like that." She was winding Perkins up and she knew it.
Marlina reacted quickly. "I'll deal with this." She ducked back inside her rooms.
Sinistra smiled. "I rather thought you would." She said quietly, and she walked away humming to herself again.
Marlina grabbed her cloak and ran to the entrance to the school. She had instructed Jane to stay with Noah and had immediately retrieved the crossbow from her trunk. Now, she ran into the dark and lit her wand as she went. She knew the wolf would head for the forest and she set off in that direction.
There was no sign of anyone when she reached the edge of the woods, and Marlina heard nothing, but she searched the ground as she went and finally found what she was looking for. Footprints. Two distinct sets of canine footprints went off slightly to her left, and Marlina set out to track the wolf.
Severus and Lorien went out into the forest, searching for signs of the dog or the wolf.
"How the hell did that bloody wolf get out?" He asked, eyes casting about the edges of the wandlit perimeter. He did not relish the thought of coming face to face with the werewolf in the woods, wolfsbane potion or not. One close encounter with the beast in his life was definitely more than enough.
Lorien shrugged. "I wish I knew." She said. "I hope he's alright."
"And I hope that damn potion does what it's supposed to if we find him." Snape grumbled.
"I wonder if he'd respond if we called him?" Lorien suddenly wondered out loud. "He'd be likely to understand us in his present condition."
"Maybe." Snape ventured, mentally voting for not calling the wolf.
She decided to try it. "Remus?" She called into the woods. Nothing. She waited a minute as she strained to hear any sound in the woods around them. "Remus? It's Lorien." She called again. "Remus it's ok. You can come out." Nothing. She turned to face Severus. "We'll have to keep looking. He's probably...."
She stopped as she saw the look Severus was wearing. He was staring, unblinking and unmoving at a spot on the path somewhere behind her. "Lorien." He said in a low whisper. "Behind you."
Lorien turned very slowly and now could see that about twenty feet behind her, just outside the light cast by Snape's wand, was a set of eyes that reflected eerie green in the dark. She looked back at the glowing eyes for a long moment and then risked calling to him. "Remus?" She called hesitantly.
The green glow disappeared as the large animal stepped just inside the circle of light, and Lorien found herself looking into the amber eyes of the wolf for the very first time. She swallowed hard and tried to speak comfortingly. "Remus, it's ok."
The wolf's ears pricked forward when she spoke, and then he sat down on his haunches.
Lorien spoke to him again. "Remus, it's alright. Really. You need to come back to the castle."
The wolf dropped his ears a little and whined plaintively. He clearly was torn as to what to do.
Lorien started to take a step forward, but Snape's hand on her shoulder suddenly stopped her. "Lorien, don't." He hissed the warning quietly, never taking his eyes, or his wand off the wolf in front of them. The wolf snarled and flattened its ears back as it watched him grab her arm, and Snape ever so slowly released his hold on Lorien. The wolf stopped growling when he saw Snape let go.
"Should we try to talk him into coming back?" Lorien whispered to Snape behind her. "We should be able to reason with him because of the potion, right?" She asked.
Snape kept his eyes on the wolf. "Don't move, but say something to him." He directed her, trying to gauge how lucid the wolf was.
"Remus," Lorien began softly. "You know we aren't here to hurt you, don't you?"
The wolf yawned nervously as it watched her steadily.
"Remus?" Lorien called again. "Come on." She said softly, beckoning to him.
The wolf growled low in it's throat, but then took a quick step toward Lorien and she clutched at Snape. Although he didn't appear to be threatening her, Snape could tell that Lupin wasn't quite in his right mind. He didn't like the way things looked at all, and despite his misgivings about being anywhere near the werewolf again, stepped in front of Lorien to keep himself between her and the now growling animal that was regarding him with flattened ears.
Lorien tried to tell herself that Remus wouldn't hurt her. She tried to quell the nervousness she felt about having the wolf come closer, after all, she'd been only inches from the wolf in the past. But of course, it was inches away behind a door of solid English oak, and there was no door here now. She put her hand on Snape's arm, not knowing what it took for him to put himself in the line of fire after the previous trauma he'd experience with a werewolf encounter in the past.
"Let me try once more." She said unsteadily. "You're irritating him."
Snape would have shot her a look that said 'serves him right' if he hadn't been so intent on keeping his eyes on the beast. "Once." he agreed reluctantly, and he felt Lorien come to stand alongside him.
Marlina was nearly lightheaded with the effects of the adrenaline flowing through her veins as she closed in on the wolf. It was a feeling almost forgotten and no longer welcome because it brought with it so many memories. Too many terrible memories. She tried to subdue the feelings of dread she always had on the hunt, and to focus on the task at hand.
She had come to a spot where she could see the tracks indicated that the wolf had slowed to a walk. He probably was not far away. She listened for a minute for the faintest sound, the faintest breath and heard nothing, so she decided to go a little further. The quiet around her was suddenly interrupted by a voice not very far off.
It was Lorien calling for Remus. 'That idiot.' Marlina thought. 'She'll be a sitting duck as soon as he zeroes in on where she is.' Marlina decided that the best thing to do was zero in on where Lorien was first and then wait for the wolf. She made her way to where she heard the woman calling again, and slipping quietly through the trees, came to a spot where she had a partial view of the path. Lorien and Severus were standing together, and had obviously seen something.
Marlina dropped to one knee and kept one eye on the witch as she loaded the crossbow. She was reaching for a dart when she saw the wolf step into the light not far from Lorien, and another flood of nightmare memories hit her as she looked upon the creature. It took a step toward the two people, and almost instinctively her hand grabbed for black feathers. Lorien might not realize it, but she was in grave danger, and Marlina planned on doing something about it. She was not going to let one of THEM claim another victim.
She sighted the crossbow at a point just in front of the wolf where she would have a clear shot, and she waited patiently for him to take just one more step forward.
Lorien stood alongside Severus for a moment, trying to wait for the wolf to calm down, and to steady her own nerves. It was difficult to believe that the large gray wolf in front of her was actually Remus, but she tried to keep focused on that thought as she spoke again to Snape. "I'm going to call him again." She whispered.
"If you insist." Snape replied. "What if it doesn't work?" He asked her without looking at her.
Lorien frowned. "I guess you'll have to stun him into next week." She said reluctantly, and Snape found himself rather hoping the wolf wouldn't respond.
Lorien held onto Snape still for reassurance, and spoke once more to the wolf. "Remus, it's time to get you back to the castle, don't you think?" Snape winced a little as her nails dug into his flesh where she had a death grip on his arm.
The wolf tipped its head as it appeared to be considering what she'd said, and after a moment heaved a snort with its decision, and then calmly stepped toward the woman that he knew.
Suddenly there was a loud growl and a crash in the bushes to the left and a faint 'thwack' sounded from just beyond on the right. The wolf jumped suddenly and laid his ears back again with a terrible snarl, and whirled and ran back the way he came as a commotion broke out where the first growl came from.
"Remus!" Lorien called out, unheeded by the rapidly retreating werewolf.
Angry voices now sounded through the trees just to her left.
"What the hell is wrong with you?" It was Sirius, yelling at somebody. Lorien and Severus ran to where the voices were coming from.
"You made me miss! Don't you know that lives are in danger?" Marlina was yelling back at Sirius.
When Lorien and Severus got to the spot, Sirius had grabbed Marlina by her shoulders, and was still yelling at her. "You could have killed him!" Sirius gave her a small shake for emphasis.
Lorien ran to them and placed a hand on Sirius's arm. "Sirius, let go." She tried to say it calmly, but heard her own voice waiver. She didn't think she wanted to know why Marlina was out here in the forest with a crossbow.
Sirius brushed her off, a little rougher than he meant to and Lorien stumbled a step backwards. He shook Marlina again. "You murderous Slytherin bitch. He wasn't hurting anyone!"
Snape watched Sirius shake Marlina and then push Lorien, and decided that he'd seen enough. He quickly stepped behind the animagus and placed a hand firmly on his shoulder, speaking in a low dangerous voice. "That's quite enough, Black. Let go."
Sirius was already upset, and when Snape's had closed on his shoulder he saw red, and immediately released Marlina. He spun quickly and his fist connected squarely with Snape's jaw, sending him staggering back a pace himself. "Don't ever touch me, Snape!" He snarled viciously.
Snape was pressing the back of his hand against his mouth and when he pulled it away and looked at it, he saw blood. He glared furiously at Black. "You son of a bitch." He stepped forward quickly and raised his wand. Black drew his own and the two black haired wizards squared off.
"You arrogant bastard." Snape growled. "You're going to pay for that, Black!"
"Just try it." Black sneered at Snape. "Go on, I dare you to."
Lorien knew that this was a potentially lethal situation and ran between the two men, hands outstretched to keep them apart. "Stop it!" She cried. "Stop it, both of you."
Sirius spoke to her but never took his eyes of Snape. "Sorry sweetheart, no can do."
"Lorien, get out of the way." Snape said firmly, taking a step forward.
Lorien stepped in front of him. "Severus, no!"
Black sneered at Snape again, egging him on. "Need to have a little witch protect you, Snape? Can't handle your battles by yourself?"
Snape was livid, and Lorien grabbed his arm as she saw the look in his eyes. "Severus!" She cried again. Snape shook her off with a snarl and faced Black again.
Suddenly everyone looked up at the new voice that interrupted the confrontation.
"What on earth are you people doing?" Keath Moody asked. Kaneene and Keath were on duty and had been drawn by the noise.
Lorien spoke first to the aurors. "Kaneene, would you help me talk sense into these two idiots? They're trying to kill each other."
Kaneene could see by the way the two wizards were watching each other with drawn wands that Lorien was probably not exaggerating.
She came closer and folded her arms. "You boys care to tell me what's going on?" She asked, looking from one to the other.
Sirius spoke first. "Snape drew first. He started it."
Snape narrowed his eyes. "I started it?" He asked incredulously. "What about this?" He pointed to the blood on his lip.
"Yeah, well that was for being an ugly git." Sirius taunted.
Snape lunged for Black who lunged back.
Disaster was only narrowly averted by Lorien and Marlina flinging themselves on Severus to hold him back as Keath and Kaneene grabbed hold of Sirius and tried to drag him away. The two wizards were only able to hurl obscenities at each other instead of hexes, and chaos reigned as six people were all shouting at once.
"ENOUGH!!!"
Dumbledore's voice cut through the bedlam and the tumble of six people fell silent and looked up at the headmaster, standing there with McGonagall. Dumbledore looked from one person to the next and then spoke quietly in a deadly serious manner. "Have you all quite finished?" He asked.
Evidently everyone had. No one said a word.
Dumbledore watched them all with quiet anger for a minute longer and then he let it pass.
"Now." He said, in a somewhat lighter tone. "Since Remus has obviously retreated far into the woods for the evening, I suggest that we all go back to the castle. Minerva informs me that all of the students are tucked safely away in their dormitories for the night, so I think it would be best if we all turned in as well."
The group nodded and began breaking up. Lorien still held onto Severus firmly as Kaneene stayed latched onto Sirius. Finally sensing that things would be alright now that the headmaster had arrived, Kaneene rejoined Keath to resume their rounds.
"Thank you for intervening." Dumbledore said to the aurors quietly. Both nodded and walked out of the woods.
Dumbledore spoke to Lorien next. "Get some rest. Remus may need you when he comes back in the morning." He patted her arm reassuringly and Lorien got the distinct impression that she'd just been dismissed. Dumbledore looked at Marlina. "Would you mind accompanying Lorien and Minerva back to the castle?"
Marlina shook her head, and caught up with the other two women.
There were only three people left, and Dumbledore stood facing the two remaining wizards in silence for a long moment. He looked from one to the other, opened his mouth as if to say something, and then shook his head sadly and walked away.
Neither said anything, and each would have felt better if Dumbledore had yelled or given them a lecture, but each one knew that the older mage was disappointed in them both.
"Damn." Snape swore quietly.
Black looked at him and held his thumb and forefinger up with about an inch between them. "Feel about this big right now?" He asked, knowing it was how he felt.
"I'd say you're being generous." Snape replied and stalked off.
Marlina walked back to the castle with Minerva and Lorien, and no one said a word until they walked through the doors.
"I'll be glad when this night is over." McGonagall said to the other two, and started to leave them to head for the Gryffindor tower. "I suppose things could be worse, though."
"How's that?" Marlina asked.
"It'd be much worse if he hadn't had the wolfsbane potion." McGonagall replied.
Lorien nodded in agreement.
"Goodnight, ladies." McGonagall said and walked away, leaving the other two witches standing together in the hall.
Marlina looked puzzled and finally spoke up. "What on earth is McGonagall going on about?"
"The wolfsbane potion. Severus makes it for Remus." Lorien said, matter-of-factly.
"The what?" Marlina asked, a little confused.
Lorien seemed confused herself. "You're not familiar with it?"
"Evidently not." Marlina said sarcastically.
"I would have thought that a member of the WCU would know about such things." Lorien replied, a touch of sarcasm in her own voice.
Marlina frowned. "Well I don't. I've never heard of a wolfsbane potion. What exactly is the big deal, anyway?"
Something nagged at Lorien and her mind raced. Marlina had left the WCU over six years ago. The potion had been invented maybe a year or two before Remus first came to teach at Hogwarts. That meant Marlina was probably unaware of it's existence.
Marlina continued to speak while Lorien hesitated. "I don't really see why we've called off the search. The school might be safe but there could still be a threat to Hogsmeade."
"There's no threat." Lorien said quietly, shaking her head.
Marlina snorted. "You just don't get it, do you? I saw you try to play Red Riding Hood to the wolf, Lorien. Obviously you haven't ever seen what happens to the victims of a werewolf, or you wouldn't have done something so dangerous and stupid." Marlina sounded disgusted.
Lorien barely held her tongue. "Marlina, let me explain something to you." She said, trying to sound less irritated than she felt. "Evidently you retired from the WCU before the wolfsbane potion came into existence, and I can well imagine that you had little to do with werewolves or anything associated with them since."
"I'm still trying to have nothing to do with them." Marlina snapped.
"Yes, well let me finish." Lorien said, not controlling her irritation quite as well. "The wolfsbane potion is an amazingly complex and powerful substance that has been of great benefit to the werewolves that have access to it." She said.
"Why don't they all use it, if it's so wonderful?" Marlina asked flippantly.
"It's difficult to come by." Lorien explained. "Only the most skilled Potions masters will even attempt it. Many of the components of the potion on their own are deadly poisons, and if they aren't mixed with great precision, it could turn into quite a fatal concoction."
Marlina gave Lorien a look that said she failed to see a problem with that.
Lorien sighed with exasperation. "You don't have the faintest idea what it does, do you?"
Marlina shrugged.
"When taken daily for a week before the full moon, it allows the werewolf to maintain their human faculties after transformation. Severus makes the potion with great skill, and Remus takes it faithfully every month. He curls up and goes to sleep in his rooms as a normal wolf until morning."
"I find that hard to believe." Marlina said.
"I've been with him outside the door to his rooms all night after several transformations. I assure you it's quite true." Lorien replied sharply.
"Well, if he's so damn safe after taking the potion, why lock him up?" Marlina asked with a sneer, but something was beginning to eat at her.
"That's Remus's choice. He chooses always to err on the side of caution because everyone else's safety comes first." Lorien snapped. "I knew I was speaking to Remus in the forest tonight, and not some murderous beast, so as for your accusation of being stupid.....well, you might want to rethink who that label applies to." Lorien turned on her heel and walked away.
