Disclaimer: Harry Potter and all characters, places et al. are owned by J.K. Rowling. Also Twilight and all characters places et al. are owned by Stephenie Meyer

A/N: I am terribly sorry, but "normal" work got the better of me in the last weeks and months. I hope I can get to a more regular writing schedule again :) I hope some of you are still with me ;) Enjoy (and review) ;)

Chapter 21: The Old Face

Seth smiled into the mirror as he put the styling foam into his long, silky blond hair and mussed it into form. After almost two months it didn't shock him anymore when he looked into the mirror and saw a stranger. He even got used to the vile tasting concoction that 'wizard' Draco gave him. But still... It was weird to see that tall, blond – and hot, according to Alice – surfer dude smile back at him from the mirror but the worst was the smell. He didn't smell like him – smelling was important to a werewolf. Alice didn't seem to mind that much, which had helped the first days. In fact, the last weeks had been among the happiest in a long time. If someone had told him like a year ago that someday he would be the boyfriend of a vampire chick and trusted member of her family, he would probably have called that person delusional. Now, it was his daily life. Heck, he loved to duke it out, no holds barred, with Emmett in the forests.

"Come on, lazy bum" he heard Alice shout a split-second before her wet towel smacked his ass cheeks. He whipped around and tried to grab her, but she was already at the bed and getting dressed. He rushed up to her and together they fell on the bed.

"We really don't have time for that..." she said weakly.

He looked lustily down on her and smiled wickedly. "Really...?"

"Dammit," Alice snapped, and flipped Seth around the bed, kissing him aggressively.

"You know," Edward greeted them wryly as he and Alice stepped out of the car, "if you kept your hands off each other you would actually arrive punctual."

Seth snorted and grinned smugly. "We're not all into that 'wait till marriage' crap around here like a certain repressed vamp." His grin widened as he saw Edward grasping for words. "That's not-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know" Seth waved his hands in front of him. "'Too strong', 'could hurt her', bla bla bla. Just cut the crap, Ed. You two would be an awful lot happier if you just enjoyed yourself for a change. Draco and Jasper seem to do quite well, for instance."

"I-" he harrumphed. "You are oversimplifying the whole thing!"

"Me?" He laughed and slapped Edward's shoulder affectionately. "You're just comedy gold, pal!" Seth kept laughing as he walked past a slightly stunned Edward to the rest of the Cullen's. And what a motley crew they were. Emmett was leaning against his huge tank of a car and Rosalie chatted to him absentmindedly. Bella was waiting with that special glimmer in her eyes for Edward, as always. And Jasper and Draco... Well, they made a cute couple, he had to admit even though he didn't quite get that whole gay thing. But they were happy so he was happy. But he must admit he still wasn't so sure about that whole 'wizard' thing. Draco had been a good friend so far, though sometimes he felt like there was a world of difference between them. He chuckled. Maybe because he was from a different world, dofus?

And then there was Alice. The simple thought of her sent waves of heat and lust through his body.

She walked slightly behind him but he still could hear her subdued snicker. Ever since the affair between Edward and Bella got more serious, everyone had wondered when they would do 'it'. It was completely obvious to all involved that they were barely keeping their hands off each other. No one really understood all the drama around the whole affair, so Edward was the butt of a lot of jokes.

Seth cast a longing glance at Alice, but in public, they had to behave. He had been introduced as a distant cousin from California after he first had taken the potion that changes his form – polywhatever juice, or something. So at school, they were all just happy family, even though his sex drive was killing him sometimes. Still, it's better than getting beaten to a pulp by your crazy pack mates. He chuckled sadly as they went into the school.

They were all still laughing at a stupid prank Emmett had played on Edward when suddenly they saw Jacob standing together with another of his pack mates a few hundred meters ahead. It took a second to realise that the Cullen's had taken defensive positions around him. But he was more concerned with what they wanted. And they wanted something or they wouldn't be here.

As they got closer, he saw that Jacob looked a bit beaten, with remnants of bruises on his cheeks and a lingering scar on his left cheek.

Edward took up the mantle of the unofficial leader again and stepped forward.

"Jacob," he said flatly, his tone just barely registering emotion.

"Edward," Jacob answered him, his tone just as cold. "There has been a situation," he said, almost mockingly inviting Edward to ask what, but Edward just raised an eyebrow. After a few moments of silence, Jacob sighed. "We have asked Sam to leave the pack," Jacob said and suddenly Seth knew where the bruises came from. His heart beat quickened as hope surged through him. If Sam was gone, maybe he could put his life back together? Or at least be him again?
Edward had also seen the old bruises and chuckled dryly. "Sam didn't exactly jump to your...question I guess?"
Jacob smiled pained. "Let's just say we had to use some convincing arguments..." He looked over the group and his gaze lingered over Bella a microsecond longer than on all the others. "What I want to say is... You can tell Seth that he can come back. We promise his safety. He won't be welcome back into the pack, after what he has done, but I convinced them that we have to accept reality. And Seth is still one of us, after all." Jacob simply nodded once and then turned around and walked away.

"Is this for real?" Seth asked questioningly back in the home of the Cullen's, Alice cuddled up to him on the couch.

"I trust him," Bella said, winning her a reproachful look from Edward but it was quickly changed for an apologetic shrug towards Bella.
"It pains me to say it," he said grudgingly, "but Jacob has always been the reliable sort. So maybe they really got rid of their maniac."

Seth looked around and the confusion was as clear as a bright day in his face. "I want it to be real, really, but if not, they would kill me!"

Carlisle stepped forward and his aura of compassion and family somehow seemed to calm everyone. "It is fair to say that by now you are family, and we stand by you. So even if it was a ruse, we won't let something happen to one of us without standing up for him."

Seth blushed slightly. "I am thankful but I can't expect that of you. After all, I am just a werewolf, your enemy."
"Rubbish," Carlisle swept the words away like so much bad air. "We are all long past a point of pure black and white, them versus us. Whatever brought us together, be it luck, accident or fate, we stand as one."

Seth sighed. "Well, if you think it's good..." He looked at Draco. "And you? What do you think?"
"I told you," his sharp English accent setting him slightly apart from the others, standing there in his impeccable clothes looking regal and aloof, "that this is only a temporary solution. The potion that keeps you bound to that form was never meant to be taken permanent. Sooner or later, you would have had to revert to your normal looks anyway. After you stop taking it, it will not be long until you look your old self again."

Seth nodded. "But would you do it?"He asked, fishing for more opinions to quench his fear.

"Under the circumstances, yes, I would," Draco said thoughtfully. "In my past, I ran away from too much of my problems and what I learned painfully is that they come back and bite you, no matter how long you run. So it's now or never."

Seth looked around one more time and only saw encouragement, then nodded with a solemn finality. "Ok then, let's do it..."

It only took a few hours until the potion had worn off. The transformation started slowly and was just slightly irritating as his flesh morphed and wobbled. He shrank slightly, his hair changed color and the next time he looked into the mirror, he saw his old face again. He actually smiled and winked to himself. He looked at him, and he saw some slight changes. He was a lot bulkier than he was before, his arms thicker, chest broader and less gangly.

"Draco?" He looked a bit confused.

"Hm," Draco murmured and looked at him carefully. "It would seem that your old body changed a bit due to the long exposure. Quite unusual, but you're the first werewolf I know of taking it, so there might be an explanation. For now, just accept it. It looks quite good from here," Draco said with a smirk, only to be hit slightly on the head by Jasper in playful jealousness. "Watch it, Mister," he chuckled.

"You know, Alfred" Kevin Ulan observed and looked around the Department of Magic's Grand Hall, "I haven't been to the USA ever. I just wish it had been under different circumstances."

His assistant absentmindedly nodded as he looked around the hall. "It's so different!" he smiled. "It actually feels welcoming, the light and all."

"Let's hope the people are also more welcoming," he chuckled. "My experiences with officials have been the same all over the world. So I would expect nothing different from the Ministry."

Before they could continue their chat, a middle-aged chubby man came plowing through the people in the hall directly towards them.

"Auror Ulan!" he boomed with a deep basso several octaves deeper than you would expect from a little pudgy man. "So good to have you here!"

"Thank you, Mr...?"

"Oh my manners," he said ruefully. "Gideon Bruke, Head of Internal Auror Security. I was the one to invite you here."

"Glad to meet you, Auror Burke. You sounded quite adamant we come over."

"Yes, yes," he nodded and started to lead them out of the Grand Hall and to one of the offices on the first floor. It was actually a rather nice one, with a spectacular view over the Grand Hall below.

When they were seated comfortably, he continued. "Your war," he said with a shrug, "didn't reach us, luckily. So we gladly agreed to take up some of your cases that were too problematic to stay in the UK."

"Yes, we know," Ulan nodded. "But-"

Burke raised a hand, "just let me finish. It will become clear in a second." He rotated his chair slightly and looked out of the window thoughtfully. "Sarah Mantow was the witch responsible for placing them. We found her two days ago dead in her home, maimed and tortured. In her hand we found the burnt remains of a list of your wizards living here."

Ulan looked stunned. "That really means..."
"Yes, someone is after them it seems. Now I guess I have your attention?"