A/N- Do Not Own. It has been forever and I apologize. I have been busy with life and everything. This chapter also took a bit to get right. Enjoy. As always, use your words.
~Case
-x-
She bit back a smile, gazing at her oldest teenager for a long moment. He was sound asleep, snoring lightly, sprawled out on his stomach. Alexis slipped silently into the room, picking up the blankets that child had throw off and draping them over the foot of the bed, where the boy could reach them if he needed them. She doubted he would as the nights were still a bit warm. She picked up a book off the floor, glancing at the title before marking the child's place and setting it down on his nightstand. Alexis watched him sleep for a moment longer, gently running her fingers through his hair and brushing it away from his face before slipping back out of the room. She had been quite displeased with him earlier, but he was safe now and that was all that mattered. She had even managed not to yell at him, after Severus had told her what happened, although that had been a challenge. She sighed, shaking her head and knocking lightly on her middle child's door, listening a moment before opening it quietly. Elijah looked up at her, groggy and fighting sleep. The teenager was writing, again. If he would just give one of his letters to the boy he liked, perhaps he wouldn't constantly be trying to perfect it. "Bedtime, Elijah." She admonished, raising an eyebrow at the boy.
"Five more minutes."He mumbled, biting the inside of his cheek to keep from drifting off again. He already had ink all over his hands and arms, even the bed; he didn't need it on his face again. He wasn't tired anyway, he had slept most of the afternoon and then had to sit through three lectures on taking potions that he didn't know what they were. Three! And Bain kept giving him weird looks. Ugh.
"I don't think so. You need to sleep." She replied firmly, gently tugging the parchment and ink out of the child's hands and placing it on the desk. She summoned his lapdesk, returning it to its hook, before conjuring a wet flannel. "Hands please." She directed quietly, waving her wand briefly at the bed to vanish the ink stains. Minzi would kill her if the boys picked up her bad habits.
Elijah groaned and rolled his eyes before offering his hands and arms up. He was not a child, he could clean himself off! But it did feel nice to be taken care of and he was very tired, he just didn't know why. He had slept most of the afternoon, after all, but he still felt exhausted. But at least the pain was finally mostly gone.
She released his hands, moving his blankets back. "Lie down, Elijah." She instructed, giving the child a half smile when he obeyed, tucking the covers around him. She ran a hand through his hair gently, smirking as he fought sleep still. "Relax and close your eyes."She murmured, biting back a sigh when he ignored her. If she left him as he was, he would be up and writing again late into the night. He needed to sleep; the potion was completely gone from his system but it had drained his magic when his body tried to fight it. He was lucky to be alive. She nearly lost two of her boys in one day...it was terrifying to her. But they were both safe now and that was all that mattered. Alexis brushed the hair away from his face, stroking it gently for a moment. "Doucement, doucement. Doucement s'en va la jour, doucement doucement. A pas de velours. La rainette dit sa chanson de nuit, et le lièvre fuit, sans un bruit."
Elijah closed his eyes, letting the soft tenor wash over him. He didn't know his professor could sing and even though he had no idea what she sang, he could hear the love in her words. He drifted into sleep, feeling a gentle touch to his head before he was out.
She smirked down at the child, shaking her head slightly. It was the only song that had come to mind, a French lullaby that Eric had once sung to her. But it did the trick and the child was out. She set the charm to alert her if he needed anything and slipped silently out of the room, to check on her youngest. She paused at the slightly open door, slipping in to this room as silently as the other two. Alexis sighed softly, gray eyes landing instantly on the thrashing child. Teddy never slept well at night, not unless he crawled into bed with her. The two times he had done so, he had actually slept through the night without nightmares. But he was reluctant to do so and only would after a rather bad day. Today had been good for Teddy and yet...he was still having violent nightmares. She gently ran a hand through his hair, stroking his cheek with a thumb. He stilled suddenly and then his body relaxed. The child whimpered softly in his sleep and she sighed, murmuring soothing nonsense into his ear. She summoned his dragon with her free hand, slipping the stuffed animal into the boy's arms while soothingly rubbing circles into his back, letting tiny bits of calming magic slip into the child. She stayed for a while, waiting until he finally settled into a peaceful sleep before slipping soundlessly from his room. She dropped in her armchair, not even bothering to glance at the man sitting across from her. "Remus." She murmured, letting her head drop into her hands for a moment. Gods, was she tired!
"Alexis." He replied, equally quiet. He felt, rather than saw, her raise silencing spells around the room. "We do not have to do this tonight; you need sleep." Remus tilted his head, studying the younger woman for a moment. It was strange to him; the more he read of the books Eric and Filius had given him, the more he could see the familial magic. Alexis' magic was so intertwined with Hogwarts that he knew the glitters he saw from her contained bits of the school and it was fascinating, if not overwhelming at times.
She scowled at him, straightening up and leaning forward to rest her hands on her knees. "You have book lists to give me." She drawled dryly, raising an eyebrow at him. Hopefully he did, as she really needed to start sending them out. If he had his list, she would look over it and pass it on to Severus, who was compiling the lists for every student. So far, less than half of her teachers had given her book lists to look over. That was also, clearly, not the only reason he was there. She knew that.
He snorted, meeting tired eyes for a moment before picking up a sheet of parchment from where he had sat it. "I do. You can read over it tomorrow, Headmistress." He replied firmly, setting it back on the table before leaning forward and raising an eyebrow of his own. In that instance he went from being her employee to being part of her family, one of the three heads of her family. Three. Filius, Eric, and him. He was not, of course, a full Head of the family yet, but he was being taught. He already fulfilled some of the roles and he would continue to do so. He would take care of the younger members of his family, Severus and Alexis, as well as watch over all of the children, even the ones who were not his. He also had planned a home for them, where all three separate families could live together. But that was not important at the moment; the young woman in front of him was.
She grimaced, folding her hands in her lap and dropping her eyes to study her robes. The very air in the room seemed to change, but she knew that it hadn't. She could just feel the magic change as they switched roles, almost instantly. From Headmistress to little sister in...ten seconds? She wasn't sure she would ever get used to it but the magic felt good to her; it felt right. That didn't mean she wouldn't fight with him; she would be a fool to think otherwise. She was too stubborn. "So..."
"So." Remus sighed, watching her for a long moment. This had been Eric's idea and Filius had backed the other man up on it. That he needed to connected more with Alexis. He knew the young woman, and he liked to think he knew her well, but she had always been Severus' sister, even before the younger man had told him how he felt about the young woman. He could sense the bond between them, the bond that linked them tightly to Filius. He had put her to bed when she was sick and had been perfectly fine with the younger woman sleeping between them, one night last year, over the holidays. She had had a terrible nightmare and Severus had coxed her into bed with them, allowing for them to comfort and protect her throughout the night. He had picked her up and carried her when she fainted, although he knew she didn't know that fact. She didn't know he was the one to place her in her bed that day, last spring. He should have questioned her then, instead of hoping she would go to them. Perhaps she wouldn't be so bad if he had. But that was the past and he knew he couldn't change it. He tapped his fingers on his knee for a moment, thinking quickly. There had to be something, besides Severus, that they had in common. He blinked, smirking suddenly. "Did I ever tell you that Eric adopted me when I was sixteen?" He inquired, grinning at her when her eyes suddenly snapped up to meet his.
"You didn't. How did he find you?" She asked, leaning forward slightly.
"Probably the same way Tim found you. A friend of a friend of a friend decided I was too much to handle as an apprentice. I was apprenticing over the summer before my sixth year and I ended up in France. He took me that summer and adopted me before I returned to school." He shrugged, slipping into thought for a moment. Eric had taught him much about healing and working with children, but mostly about himself. The man had even found him a Defense Master, so that he could study for his Defense Mastery without attending one of the Wizarding University.
"Your family?" She questioned softly, furrowing her brows and tilting her head slightly. She had known that Remus was bonded to Eric and Tim, but she hadn't known that Eric had adopted the older man.
"Kicked me out the minute I turned sixteen. Didn't want a monster in the family." Remus sighed, raising an eyebrow when the younger woman growled angrily. That was how Severus had reacted as well. He would swear sometimes that those two could have been raised together. They were just so much alike, yet so different.
"You are not a monster." She snarled, glaring at the sandy-haired man. She remembered, briefly, seeing him around over the years she lived with the two men. But either he never stayed for long or she was always on a rampage when he visited.
"To them, I was. When Severus first introduced us, I thought I knew you from somewhere. I didn't visit Eric and Tim as often as I should have, but they always found me; always knew when I was in trouble or needed a kick in the rear." Remus grimaced at that thought, knowing quite well that Eric didn't care how old he was, he would still put him over his knee if he thought it was necessary. He knew, however, that the young woman could empathize with him completely on that one.
She snorted, smirking at his expression for a moment. She knew that face, she had made it enough herself. "You know they were wrong, yes?" She asked quietly, after a few minutes of comfortable silence. It was the mind healer in her that made her need to make sure, because Remus wasn't a monster. He was nowhere close. Close-minded idiots.
"I have been informed, repeatedly, over the years, yes. I have a wolf in me, but I control it, not the other way around." He gave a half shrug, smirking when she glared at him. He knew that he wasn't a monster, exactly, he just changed once a month. And he tended to be dominate over others, especially those he considered his pack.. He did still feel like a monster sometimes, but Severus squashed those feelings every time.
She huffed at him, growling softly for a moment before turning suddenly toward one of the windows. A wave of her hand and it opened, allowing an owl to tumble in.
"Who is writing to you at this time of night?"Remus frowned, watching the bird as it landed on the arm of her chair and hopped impatiently for a moment.
Alexis sighed softly, removing the letter with swift hands. She knew this owl well; for it to come at this time of night, it was just after midnight now, wasn't good. This was Lucius' work owl, something had to be wrong. She opened the letter and scanned it quickly, scowling at it for a moment. "Damn." She growled, summoning a piece of parchment and a pen.
"Alexis?"
She scrawled out a quick reply, rereading the letter quickly before tying her response to the owl's leg. "On with you Lightning." She murmured softly, stroking the bird's head for a moment. The owl took off, darting out the window and into the night. "There was a second child assaulted at the end of last semester. Lucius believes she might have been assaulted during the past month as well and is having Eric look her over before he takes her to the manor." She responded finally, running a hand through her hair for a moment. Two students, both under the age of thirteen, were assaulted at school within the last year. None of the staff had been informed of it, unless one of them had tried to hide it. And perhaps it was something Dumbledore had known; she hoped not. The students deserved much better than that. They would receive better now.
He blinked, turning it over in his mind for a moment. Lucius only had a few girls staying at the manor, the rest came and went during the day. The Malfoys always had a full house during the summer, children whose parents had to work during the day or who needed extra lessons; children whose parents had to take work trips or even a few who weren't fit to be parents. Remus knew that Lucius and Cissa would have both checked the health of every child coming to the manor. To discover one late at night was unusual. "How did Lucius discover this?" He questioned finally, turning back to gaze at the younger one.
"The girl had floo'd Narcissa a few hours ago. She was under instructions from her social worker to contact either the social worker or Lucius, who is her advocate, if her father was gone for longer than three days. She waited two weeks to contact Narcissa, so Lucius called her case worker and took her into the office. I'm assuming they did a routine scan on the child and it showed sexual abuse. Her father isn't abusive, just neglectful and forgetful. Lucius said he questioned her and she said she was assaulted at school. She also told him that she knew she wasn't the only one. The Malfoy's will care for her until her father is found, although I can see them keeping her all summer." She replied quietly, glancing through the letter once more before meeting his gaze. She had met the young girl many times, since the child was often bullied and she had stepped in several times to stop it. She also knew, although it wasn't in the child's file for some reason, that the girl, Luna, was a seer. The creatures she made up, the ones that got her teased, helped her cope with the things she saw, although she thought some of those creatures might actually exist. Between her, Filius, and Sybil, they had done their best to stop the bullying and to help the child through her first year, but she knew there was much the girl had not told them. She would have thought that Luna would have mentioned assault to one of them, though, since the child had spent much time at the Malfoy's and had heard the lectures of her rights as a child.
"Her father just left her alone? How old is she?" Remus growled, raising an eyebrow. Alexis' said it like it was a nothing but if she already had a social worker, then it wasn't just a one time thing. He wouldn't leave either of his two children alone for more than a day, but perhaps this was an older teenager?
"Recently twelve. Her father means well but from her files and from speaking with her, she has been removed from his care at least once a year since her mother passed away. The trips he takes are often dangerous and he doesn't want to put her in danger, so he leaves her at home or with the Malfoys. Luna told me that she doesn't really mind much, but that she does get lonely. He isn't suppose to leave her alone for more than three days, at her age." Alexis sighed, understanding the older man quite well. After all, she wouldn't leave any of the children at Hogwarts unsupervised for that long, no matter their age. Most children weren't responsible enough to use their magic wisely when left alone. Even at school they had supervision, or they were supposed to anyway. The Gryffindors had never had that supervision and she knew they would probably fight against it now, but she'd be damned if they'd run unchecked. No longer.
"Twelve?!" She was Karrie and Harry's age and left alone for two weeks?! Remus frowned, raising an eyebrow in thought. Even if she was a mature twelve year old, she was still a child and no child should be left on their own for so long, especially a magical child.
She sighed softly, nodding and standing stiffly. "We will have to continue this later. I need to get her file together for Lucius." She remarked quietly, meeting amber eyes. She had so much to do still, so much work left for this school, so that it would be ready for September. Alexis knew that everything would not be perfect by the start of classes, but perfect wasn't the goal. Not in a castle full of children. Stable, safe, well-balanced. That was the goal. And she would make it so or die trying.
-x-
Alexis groaned, looking up from her desk for a moment. The tingling in her head...someone was out of bed. She glanced at the clock, raising an eyebrow. It was three in the morning. She pushed herself up, summoning her robes with a twitch of her hand. She shrugged the black robes on, striding easily through a side door and down the stairs. She closed her eyes for a moment, letting her mind settle and focus on the magical signature of the child, attuning herself to the Castle's call. Gray eyes snapped open and she turned suddenly, working her way toward the second floor. She let Hogwarts lead her, moving swiftly. The child wasn't in imminent danger but distressed. The closer she got, the more she could feel that distress, that fear. She slipped into the room silently, gazing around the classroom for a moment before spotting the girl curled up against the wall. "Ariana." She recognized instantly, moving swiftly to crouch beside the teenager.
The blond swiped angrily at her eyes, blinking rapidly for a moment. "I'm fine, Alexis." Ariana growled softly, biting her lip for a moment. Of course the healer would find her. The Headmistress always seemed to know when she was needed, even if she wasn't exactly wanted. Why the woman was even up this late, she didn't know. She didn't even want to be up this late.
"Someone once told me that fine stood for Fucked up, Insecure, Narcotic, and Emotional.." She replied dryly, dropping from her crouch to sit against the wall beside the teenager. She moved slightly so that she could see the child, hoping that the girl would relax enough to speak with her. For the child to be up this late and to be here, in the upper level Charms lab, instead of with her sister meant that she was not alright, not at all.
Ariana blinked before giggling suddenly. "I won't argue that I'm not fucked up. Who told you that? Tim?" She smirked briefly, glancing at the woman before dropping redden eyes back to the floor.
"Eric." Alexis answered with a shrug, meeting the teenager's eyes before the child was able to look away. She knew that many older adults would frown down on the way she spoke with this teen, with all of the older teenagers, but it was also how she had such a good success rate when she was working primarily as a Mind-healer. She treated them like equals, like the people they were, and they returned the favour by opening up, by trusting her, by being honest. She had learned that if she was open with them, answered their questions and spoke to them frankly, that they would be more willing to talk to her, especially when they needed help or comfort but just couldn't admit it. "I was your age and shocked to hear the kind man swear." She snorted softly, glancing at the blond-haired teenager again. The girl's hair was dirty, her face unwashed. They had convinced the children to bathe daily, although it was a fight with some of the preteen boys, to try and teach good hygiene habits. Clearly someone had skipped showering tonight... "How long have you been in here?" She inquired finally, keeping her eyes on the far wall, but watching the child out of the corner of her eye.
"An hour? Two?" Ariana shrugged, biting her lip and digging her nails into her palms again. She watched the red lines form, knowing that it would fade within minutes. It always did.
So the child must had either been suppressing her feelings or the Castle's magic had decided that enough was enough, that the child needed someone. She was surprised, though, that the child had been gone for two hours and no one had noticed yet. The counselor on duty was suppose to do bed checks and the wards should have alerted them that a student wasn't in bed. The teen might have bypassed the wards...or she might not have gone to bed at all. The wards only activated when the child was in bed, so if she had stayed in the lounge or been working at her desk, the wards wouldn't have registered her. That was something she needed to look into and fix. That, or someone hadn't been doing their job properly. "Why come here to this classroom?" Alexis questioned quietly, glancing around the Charms lab once more. A shrug was her only answer. "You feel safe here." She remarked finally, gazing at the girl for a long moment. Blue eyes flicked to hers and then away; she was right then. "That makes me wonder what caused you to feel unsafe; what scared you enough to make you run here, in the middle of the night."
She closed her eyes, biting hard on the inside of her cheek for a moment before staring blankly at the floor once more. What did the woman want from her? She knew the Headmistress cared about her students, but she couldn't possibly care about all of them all at once. There was just too many of them and the others needed her help more. Didn't they? After all, she was nothing. Nobody. Just a tainted girl and she would never be clean enough, she knew that. No amount of showers would make her pure again, so she stopped trying. Stopped scrubbing her skin until it bled, stopped brushing her hair. Ariana made sure that Lila was clean still, but Lila was pure, good, untainted. The little girl could never be unclean, she deserved the use of showers. But she didn't and she knew it. After all, why bother cleaning something that would always remain dirty? There was nothing she could tell the Headmistress and she knew that. Nothing that the woman could possibly understand. "You wouldn't understand." She murmured finally.
"Try me." She responded nonchalantly, leaning back against the wall.
She huffed softly, shaking her head. What could she say after all? What was there to say? Ariana knew that she was dirty, tainted, bad. How could she explain that to the Headmistress? How could the older woman possibly understand the meaning of today, the reason why she was still awake? The reason she wanted to take a knife to her wrists...but she was not a self-harmer, she had never been one. Sometimes, yes, she scratched herself or dug her nails into her skin, but she wasn't a real self harmer. But on this day, she always wanted to take a blade to her wrists, to just make it all end. But she couldn't. Lila needed her. The older woman would never understand, how could she? She shook her head slightly, staring at her slipper-covered feet.
"Why not? What's the harm in trying? I might surprise you." Alexis inquired calmly, biting back a sigh. She couldn't force the child to talk to her, but she wasn't going to leave her by herself right now either. Something had caused Hogwarts to alert her to the child's presence, so something was clearly wrong.
"You don't know what it's like. You can't understand! No one can." She growled, frustrated. But she knew that wasn't true. There were people in her group who did understand, she knew that they would, even if she had never talked to them about it. What's more, she had a feeling that both Charlie and Kate would understand, but she also knew that she would never ask them about it. She didn't know how.
"What can't I understand? What don't I know?" She pushed, turning so that she could fully see the teenager.
"You don't know what it's like to be dirty! To be so tainted, so bad! And then to have the date come up and to be shocked by it! Because I was fine! But I shouldn't be! It's all my fault!" The teenager erupted, jumping to her feet and pacing rapidly in around the room for a moment before dropping lifelessly back to the floor, hugging her knees and burying her face into them.
She hesitated for only a moment before resting a hand on the girl's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault." She murmured softly, understanding quickly what had upset the girl. The anniversary of her rape, or perhaps the anniversary of the first time. She knew for a fact that the child had been raped repeatedly; her medical records reflected that, even if the child would not speak of it. "Nor are you tainted, dirty or bad." She added quietly, wrapping her around around the younger girl's shoulders and gently pulling her closer to her.
"Don't. I'll taint you."She whispered, biting her lip to keep the tears from escaping again. They always did, on this day. She couldn't fight it, couldn't ignore it. This day had always and would always suck, she knew that. There was no getting around it.
"Hush child, you will not. You could not. If you believe yourself to be tainted, then I, too, am tainted." Alexis replied firmly, letting the smallest bit of calming magic fall into the blond.
She blinked, meeting the woman's eyes for the first time in several minutes. "But...you can't be." She whispered, tilting her head absently.
"I once believed I was. I am, however, not, and neither are you. Being raped was not your fault, just as it wasn't mine nor the hundreds of women and men who have been raped around the world." She stated calmly, keeping her eyes locked with blue so that the younger girl would understand that what she said was true.
Ariana frowned, shaking her head slightly. The headmistress couldn't be bad or dirty, nor tainted. The woman was too good, too kind. But then, if the older woman had been raped and she wasn't those things, then why was she? She knew, of course, that she was not the only person to be...hurt like that, but she had thought she was the only one who felt tainted, used. And perhaps she was tainted. But maybe she wasn't? How could she not be, though? " I don't understand." She grimaced, dropping her eyes back to the floor.
"What don't you understand, child?"
She hesitated for a moment, taking a deep breath before forcing herself to look up again. "How am I not tainted, Professor? All those things they did to me...how could I not be?" She whispered finally, digging her nails into her palm again.
"What they did to you was not your fault, nor your choice. You are not tainted because someone hurt you, someone used you. It doesn't make you bad or dirty. It was them, Ariana. They are the only ones who deserve blame here. What happened to you isn't who you are; it is part of you now, but it doesn't define you. You are a good, strong, wonderful young woman, don't let anyone tell you otherwise." Alexis answered briskly, firmly, her tone allowing no room for argument. There was nothing wrong with the younger woman; she was not tainted because of what had happened to her, nor was she weak. But she knew that wasn't something the teenager would accept automatically. It would be an upwards struggle from here, but the child wouldn't be alone in it. She wrapped both arms around the sixteen year old as the girl finally broke down, silent sobs wracking her slight body. "Sh, child.
I got you. I got you now, you are safe." She whispered soothingly, rubbing gentle circles in the the child's back, hugging her tight.
For the first time, she believed it. She was safe now, here, in her Headmistress' arms. Ariana closed her eyes for a moment, letting the soothing voice of the older woman calm her nerves. She was safe in those strong arms that held her like she was one of the Healer's own. And perhaps she was, perhaps being the woman's ward meant that she cared for her just as she did for the children she bonded with. Magic was a funny thing, after all. It worked in ways that she would never understand. But that was okay, she was safe for the moment and she didn't really need to understand why, just that she was. That it could only get better from here.
-x-
Charlie fought back a frown, glancing at the Headmistress. The woman seemed asleep in her eggs! She was clearly exhausted, but then many of them were exhausted. There were no real days off here; he was almost always on. And that meant keeping an eye on his boys. Most of which were eagerly digging into their breakfast, although there were a few who were still half asleep. And then there were those who slowly picked at their food, children who pretended to eat by pushing the food around and dropping bits onto their laps, the table, the floor. His boys would be rowdy soon, definitely by ten. It was Friday as well, so...sports first? No, that was tomorrow's schedule. Today must be art first then, art therapy as well, so all of them had to attend. That would be fun. One of his boys had informed him that art was 'sissy' but there was so much magic in art, if only the children could see it. He shook his head, watching the Headmistress for a moment more before turning back to his own breakfast.
-x-
Harry frowned, tongue poking out between his teeth, head tilted to the side in concentration. He blindly groped for a different coloured pencil, using the purple to shade in parts of his drawing. Art was something that he enjoyed creating, when the adults weren't always analyzing it. Just because his paintings and drawings were a bit dark, they automatically assumed something was wrong. But it wasn't. He was fine, he just liked drawing like this. It made him feel better. He furrowed his brow for a moment, picking up the red pencil again; his dragon was nearly finished now.
Teddy grimaced, staring down at his own drawing. Melody had asked them all to draw something that they had dreamed about, something that had stuck with them, and she had said it could be a good dream or a bad dream, but he didn't have good dreams often and when he did, he never remembered them. So he had tried to remember an okay dream, one that wouldn't freak Melody out. Charity's art class was funner, to him at least, because it was much less about therapy and more about creating and expressing themselves. Although perhaps this was still an expression of himself, even if it wasn't one he really liked. He hated when they asked about his drawing and someone always asked; he didn't want to explain what went on it his head. He scowled down at the monster he had drawn for a moment more before glancing over at Harry and then Karrie. Harry was drawing a person in his dragon's claws, probably less of a dream and more of his imagination, but Karrie hadn't even picked up any of the pencils. She just sat there silently, hands fold in her lap. Melody had already been past them a few times now and she kept stopping to speak to Karrie, but his friend seemed to be withdrawn today. That was okay, they were all like that sometimes. He could understand that.
Harry picked up a darker red pencil, deciding to define the scales of his dragon better. He liked drawing dragons; well he really just liked drawing, like Karrie liked cooking. Karrie... he sighed, glancing at his sister for a moment. He would have to make a distraction later so that she could escape again. Neither of them ever got far, but he knew she needed the break from the constant eyes, the constant chatter. They all did sometimes. He turned back to his dragon, ignoring Melody as she came past him once more. He knew she looked at his drawing but she said nothing and kept going. Good. Perhaps today she wouldn't ask and he could just draw in peace.
-x-
Alexis bit back a sigh, surveying the two boys in front of her. Karrie had gone missing an hour ago and she wasn't in her safe room. Although she was twelve and capable of being alone and taking care of herself, there was a reason they didn't want her left alone. Getting two preteen boys to help them was going to be difficult, and she knew that. But their tracking spells had failed and the girl had taken off her bracelet, the one that would allow them to find her. Somehow a preteen girl was hiding her magical signature and Hogwarts was practically screaming in her head to find this child, now. If Hogwarts hadn't been, she would have just let the girl be alone, until the child was ready to be found. But She knew something was wrong, even if the castle wasn't able to tell her where the girl was. She wasn't inside, for one thing. She had to be on the grounds, somewhere. "I know you want to protect your friend, and Karrie isn't in any trouble, I would just like to know where she is boys. If she has a favourite place to go or a little hide away, please tell me. We would like to find her." She remarked finally, watching Harry squirm in his chair for a moment. Teddy was the opposite; her child was completely still. They had already checked every hide out they could find, but no luck. The boys might have some clue where she would go. It was also because of Harry that Karrie had been able to slip away. Their group had been at an activity and Harry had distracted both the group leader with them and the activity leader while Karrie had been able to leave unnoticed. She knew it wasn't just a coincident; Harry's expression had been guilty when she had first mentioned that Karrie was missing and neither boy had acted surprised.
Harry swung his legs, watching his trainers skim over the top of the carpet. Karrie was fine...wasn't she? They were nearly adults! They didn't need babysitters! He understood why they watched Teddy, 'cause Teddy harmed himself sometimes like he did; but they didn't need to know where they were at all times. The adults never cared when school was in session, although there were a lot more students around and there were prefects everywhere then. He knew Remus and Severus wouldn't be happy with him, but he couldn't tell her where Karrie was. She'd get mad and it was their hide out, if Karrie had managed to sneak out there. He glanced at Teddy, scowling slightly when the older boy merely nodded. Why would Teddy want to betray their friend?
"Is she in danger, Alexis?" Teddy questioned finally, glancing up at the older woman. She sounded worried, even if she did hide it well. For Alexis to be worried meant that something was wrong. He didn't want Karrie to get hurt but he also didn't want her to hate him for telling. He wasn't a tattler. He just wanted Karrie to be safe.
"I don't know but the Castle seems to think she is." Alexis replied quietly, meeting each boy's eyes in turn. She knew being honest with them would help them learn that she could be trusted, so she was. There was no reason to lie the the two boys, after all. She really didn't know if the child was in danger but she just had this feeling that she was. She raised an eyebrow, noticing the not-so-subtle look between the preteens and the slight flashes of fear in their eyes.
Harry hesitated, meeting Teddy's eyes for a moment. The school was Sentient and he knew that the Headmistress could feel the wards and speak to the castle, otherwise she wouldn't always pop up when something was going terribly wrong. But she would be mad and Severus and Remus would be mad. Their hideout wasn't somewhere that the teachers would just come across, not unless they were looking for it. When Teddy finally nodded he dropped his eyes back to his trainers, wishing once more that he still had his fringe of hair to hide behind. "She's at our hideout."He murmured, biting his lip.
"Where is your hide out, boys?"
Teddy grimaced, not meeting Alexis' eyes. She wouldn't want him now, he had been bad. Hadn't he? Hadn't they? "In the forest." He whispered, digging his fingers into his knees.
She blinked, leaning forward and resting her wait on her hands. "I'm sorry, did you say the forest? As in the forbidden forest?" No wonder Hogwarts could not locate Karrie if she was in the forest. But the child had not crossed the wards yet, so perhaps she was not too far in?
He nodded, flinching slightly. She wasn't happy with them but she didn't sound angry, not like his father would have been. Not that his father would have cared if he had done something 'dangerous'. Although it wasn't that dangerous, they hadn't gone far into the forest, just to a rather large tree. "It was just a bit inside, under a large tree. Right near the edge." Teddy answered finally, staring at the edge of her desk.
She bit the inside of her cheek, surveying the two boys for a moment longer. As much as she wanted to scold them, she knew she needed to find Karrie first. She also needed to calm down, otherwise she might say something harsh or that she didn't mean. "Alright Teddy, Harry. Why don't you go to our sitting room while I go find Karrie?" She suggested, although it wasn't really a suggested. Those two were going to either her quarters or Severus' until she could get back. Since Severus and Remus were both looking for their ward, it would be her quarters, where Bain would be in earshot of the boys, so that they didn't explode her quarters or something. She wouldn't put it passed them. The two boys nodded, rising slowly and then dashing in her quarters without ever meeting her eyes. It was going to be a long afternoon.
-x-
Alexis growled a curse under her breath, stumbling over yet another branch. She had alerted several members of the staff that the child was in the forest, but right now it was just her and Hagrid. Hagrid knew the forest and woods well; she had the magic of Hogwarts flowing through her veins and with her own magic, she could follow the pulse of magic that would be Karrie's. The boys had said that the hideout was on the edges, so that was where they were looking first. If she wasn't there, then they would have to summon more staff to help search deeper, if Karrie didn't appear before then. She grimaced, stumbling again. This time, however, she fell, sliding down the slight slope and grimacing at the brief flare of pain in her ankle. "Verdammit." She hissed, letting her eyes drift around the area she had fallen into. This was odd. A few metres in front of her was nothing. Nothing. No grass, no trees, no damn rocks. Nothing. Alexis stood slowly, silently releasing the spell on her wand holster so that her wand dropped instantly into her hand. She focused for a moment, honing in on the wards surrounding the school. She was well within them, several kilometres within the border. She could sense the magic coming off of the area in front of her, but it wasn't a cloaking spell. It wasn't anything cast by humans or elves. She was even fairly certain that it wasn't cast by goblins either. She couldn't tell what was behind the wall of nothing but her stomach tighten suddenly in dread. Something told her that Karrie was behind that wall. The logical thing would be to call for her brother and father, to see if the three of them could reveal whatever lied beyond. But she was rarely very logical when it came to her students.
She took a deep breath, hand tightening around her wand, and stepped forward slowly. It was a few metres before she hit the wall and she flinched, gasping as the magic washed over her. "Scheiße!" She growled, taking another step through the wall. She froze, eyes darting around the small clearing, landing on the girl laying still underneath a large...Rowan tree. The child was under a Rowan tree in the middle of a clearing hidden by a wall of powerful magic. The only tree in the clearing, although flowers grew in clutches all around. "Karrie?"
-She is safe, just sleeping.-
Alexis hissed, gazing around rapidly. The voice wasn't aloud though: it sounded within her ears. She took a deep breath, realizing quickly that she needed to calm down and be polite, as she didn't know who, or what, she was dealing with. "May I attend to her?" She inquired slowly, respectfully.
-Of course, Protector. You may step beneath the Rowan tree.-
"Thank you." She responded before slowly moving toward the tree. She knew rushing would be rude and could be dangerous, if anything in this clearing suddenly saw her as a threat. She finally reached the preteen, dropping beside her instantly. She took the child's wrist in her hand, sending waves of magic over her body, just to check. Karrie was perfectly healthy. She frowned, furrowing her brow in puzzlement. The child had not been perfectly healthy when she was at breakfast this morning. She still needed to gain weight, that was true, but all her old injuries, ones that had been healing slowly with help from her and Eric, were gone. They were all gone. Every injury she had at her last appointment was gone. She had only a few then and now...none. "What- how is this possible?" She murmured softly, mostly to herself.
-She was hurting, I healed her. But alas, I cannot heal all. The boy who came with her, a few days gone, he was sick with something I cannot fix.-
"Teddy?" She questioned, feeling the silent affirmative. But there was something she had to know. "Why did the Castle think you were dangerous?"
-That old stone? She does not. This little one was in danger, but not from me. When she came running into the Forest, she stumbled on something she should not have and she was seriously injured. The Centaurs brought her to me. That is why she sleeps still. Her body was hurt. I could not heal it with her awake.-
"What harmed this child?" She growled instantly, checking over the preteen once more.
-A direwolf.-
"But they don't harm pups! And they don't hunt during the day. Direwolves are nocturnal." Alexis scowled, glaring at the ground for a moment in thought. The only reason a direwolf would attack a child, during the day no less, would be if its own pups were threatened or...she swore softly, tracing her wand over the girl in an intricate design. There is was, the traces of a brief, now gone, infection. She growled softly, leaning back and holding her hand out, palm up. A ball of energy sprang up and she sighed, taking a deep breath before starting to speak into it. "Hagrid. There is a sick direwolf in the forest. Find it. If it is not treatable, put it down. I found the child. I will return with her shortly. She is fine." She stopped, staring at the ball for a moment before nodding. It disappeared instantly and she knew it would reach the half giant within seconds. He kept losing his pendant so that was the only way to get a message to him. The direwolf had to be found before someone else was harmed. She hesitated for a moment, studying the child intently, before resting her hands on her knees and rocking back on her heels. "Thank you for saving her." She whispered finally, head bowed in respect. Alexis knew that she would not have reached the child in time to save her from the poison. But now the girl was safe and she would only need a follow-up potion to make sure there that the poison was entirely gone.
-I did my duty as you do yours. I protect the young, the innocence, and those whose innocence has been stolen from them. I cannot right the wrongs done to these children, but I can give them a safe place where they can forget for awhile. The three little ones who have visited me recently are not the first children to find comfort here, to find safety under these branches, and healing from my essence. But I can only heal them once; more than that and my magic would overpower their bodies, so I only heal those who are gravely injured. Only those in need may find this glen.-
"May I ask who I am speaking with?" She requested finally, after several moments of silence. She could feel the magic in the earth, in the very air, so she knew that this was indeed a magical glen. A very powerful magical presence was here and even if the centaurs knew who, or what, it was exactly, she knew they probably would give her some non-answer as they always did.
-Have you no guess, young sorceress? Casilla would not allow you to walk into danger.-
So Hogwarts did have a name. The stubborn castle had informed her that she would have to discover it on her own, that She would not reveal the name the Founders had christen her with, all those years before. But this presence she felt was much older than the school. "You are not Fae nor Elven, even Woodland Elven. You are not even a sprite or spirit." She hesitated, chewing on her lip for a long moment. She had felt the magic of each of those in the past and this was no where close. This was magic that was of the earth itself. This was old magic. And that meant... She gave a half bow from where she still knelt next to the child, eyes lowered out of reverence. "My Lady." She whispered. She felt the very air shifted around her and shivered suddenly, eyes still locked on the ground.
-You need not bow before me child. We have the same duties, the same vows, you and I. We are both protectors, we will both protect this land and this school with the last of our breaths and our magic. Few would recognize my presence for what it is, but not you, mage-child. The moment I allowed you entrance, you knew who I am, deep down, even if you were not quite ready to accept it. I am the Goddess of this Forest, this Glen is a place of healing, for creatures and young wizardlings alike. I have heard your prayers and acknowledged your offerings. When you offer blessings to Magic, to the Earth, to these Grounds, we here you. You practice magic older than you can even imagine, and you do it with a dignity and respect that puts many who were raised with Old Magic to shame. You need not bow before me child.-
She straighten slowly, knowing quite well that she would not see the Goddess but she appreciated her eyes too much to care. "Yes My Lady." She murmured, resting back on her heels once more.
-I do not wish anyone to know that I am here. You will be able to speak only of a healing glen and the children will never know that I am the one to calm them, that when they sob their secrets under these branches, that I will here them and keep them. I do ask that you allow the children who need this place to come here. Casilla and I will come to an agree on how to alert you that they are safe. Any child who needs this place will be able to find it, it is no accident that they come here. Now sleep, young Sorceress.-
Alexis blinked rapidly, fighting the urge to close her eyes. She knew she would not forget but she also knew she would only come here, only be allowed her, if there was a need for her to be. And that was alright. Her children would be safe in the Glen and she had the feeling that the children were drawn directly to the Glen, on a much easier and shorter path than she had taken. She finally stopped fighting and her eyes closed, the last thing she saw was the elf that popped into the clearing at a call that she could not hear.
-x-
Alexis groaned softly, forcing her eyes to open. She had not slept that well in a long time and while she knew she had children to scold, a child to check on, and work to be done, she merely wanted to sleep for just a bit more. She didn't even care how she came to be in her quarters, she just wanted to close her eyes and allow herself closer to the magic of Hogwarts and the lands surrounding it. She took a deep breath, rolling over and allowing her eyes to close once more before falling into a true, dreamless sleep.
-x-
A/N- The definition of FINE is not mine It belongs to MoonFire1 one and the lovely story "My Name is Harry." It is something I strongly suggest to read. The song is a French Lullaby.
~Case