"Over twenty five years ago, a werewolf took this family's son away," I say, dragging my good friend Chelsea Parkinson up a stone pathway up a manicured lawn to a huge mansion on top of the hill. "Now, a werewolf is going to return the son to them. Poetic, isn't it? Man, these people are loaded."
"Annalise isn't here! She has too work, remember? Stop getting into my problems!"
"Ah, but she's a ministry worker. Department of Magical Law enforcement. In fact, she's an assistant for someone who works for Hermione Weasley, who is at the moment having lunch with both her husband and Harry Potter. When those three have lunch together, the assistants are sent home by the others because by the time Hermione gets back and gives them more work, it's quiten' time anyway."
The two of us and the tiny bag containing Carlisle Lytton's remains arrive at the front door. The second after I knock on the door, I wonder for the first time if this is really a good idea.
"Hello?"
Annalise Lytton opens the door. Her tiny frame barely reaches my shoulder, like when we last met, but she traded her school girl straight-backed hair for a modern, wavy yet sleek shoulder length blond do'. "Lupin?" Upon seeing me her eyes open wide, then narrow. "What are you doing at my house." Her eyes wander to Chelsea. "Why is she here?"
"I'm actually an Aurror now, meaning that if there's any funny business here today, I have the authority to arrest you. Why not you get your folks and we sit down for a minute. Your family got wrapped up in a case of mine."
Annalise reluctantly lets Chelsea and I inside. "Mum! Dad! Some Aurror wants to see us."
The group gathers in their spacious, bright sitting room. The Lyttons sit side by side on the couch, while Chelsea sinks comfortably into a large sitting chair and stops, as if realizing she remembered she is no longer welcome to make herself at home. I remain standing.
"Right," I say. "Mr. and Mrs. Lytton, I know you don't want to think about this, but your son was killed by werewolves, right? And his body went missing?"
The two nod. I take a deep breath and glance at Chelsea who hands me the bag. "In this bag is a body I exhumed this morning. The women who buried him believed the boy to be her son, his bones sent to her as proof of death. Turns out he was not."
"You mean-" Mrs. Lytton says, sitting up slightly.
"This bag holds your son's body. I would recommend viewing the body with caution, it's been almost thirty years, but it's policy to give the family found bodies so that they can arrange a burial."
The family looks at me in shock. For a moment, no one speaks. Then, Annalise pipes up. "But why is Parkinson here?"
"This is a very delicate situation. Chelsea Parkinson knows your family well and, like your late son, suffers from lycanthropy. She seemed like a good person to advise me-"
"Now wait a moment!" Mrs. Lytton "You can hardly call my Carlise a- a werewolf! A monster!"
I want to strangle Mrs. Lytton, but I outgrew the urge to use fists upon bigots a long time ago. Fortunately, Chelsea composes herself and draws herself out of the chair and approaches Mrs. Lytton.
"Forgive me, Mrs. Lytton," She starts. "You know how much I respect you and your family. I mean, you took me trick-or-treating and taught me the easiest way to peel potatoes," she tells her, starting to smile a little bit. "But no amount of bigotry or hatred will change the fact that Carlisle has been dead for a very long time. I want you to remember, Mrs. Lytton, that for the last few moments of your son's life, he was a werewolf. Just like me and Teddy's father."
Chelsea turns to the door. "Thanks for taking me here, Teddy. I know you wanted it to turn out better, but I'm just glad I was able to put that out there."
The two of us let ourselves out while I mentally slap myself. Why did I think taking Chase here would magically change years of pent up anger and prejudice? Chelsea seems okay about all of it at least. She even smiles at me.
"CHASE!"
The two of us turn around to see Annalise standing on the edge of the stone steps on her manor porch, hands wrapped tightly around the door frame. She pushes herself out of the house and runs barefoot across the yard. "I'm so sorry!" She cries as she pulls Chelsea into a tight hug. "I'm so, so sorry."
For a moment I simply watch the two women cry into each other's shoulders like blundering idiots. Eventually, I recognize the importance of a private moment. "Um, I'm going to let you two catch up," I say, pointing over my shoulder.
"Get out of here, Lupin," Annalise sobs. I grasp my wand and the next thing I know I'm back at the ministry.
"I just found out a woman's son might still be alive, returned the remains of another boy to his family, and reunited two long separated best friends. What did you do today?" I ask, to no one in particular.
"I didn't do anything, but my wife just gave birth!" One of my co-workers exclaims in a sort of daze.
"Oh, thank God you finished that undercover job!" another co-worker exclaims. "Let's get you to the hospital to see your new little girl."
"Yeah, take your accomplishments somewhere else," I mutter, walking back to my cubicle and away from the other Aurrors who ran over to fuss over Mr. Upstager. Although my next step should be too go get the Keel's medical records, since I have a warrant for that, I don't want to go with half the rest of the universe so I file some paperwork to receive the profiles found on all the kids from Greyback's camps. I send a memo to Vic telling her I'll be home late and grab some dinner at a local cafe before heading to St. Mungo's.
I arrive at a crowded street corner and make my way to a discrepit looking department store. The mannequin lets me in and I make my way to the reception desk. A young auburn witch sits at the counter twisting her wand.
"Hello," She says, looking into my eyes. "What's a handsome man like you doing in a sad place like this?" She asks me with the hint of seduction in her voice. I pull out the warrant.
"Need to see some medical records. Where would I find those?"
"Right back here," She says, leading me into the back room with a hand on my shoulder. Desperate.
"Thank you. I won't be long."
"Just ask for Nurse Varnes if you need anything. Or Venus. That's what everyone calls me. Do you want me to write it down?" She asks, pulling out a quill and placing it on my hand.
"No thanks," I say, pulling it away. She pouts her lips and walks out of the room.
I've never seen so many filing cabinets. They must have one for every wizard who has ever been here in from the time it was built. I meander down the aisles until I find the 'K' section. Alright, I think. First drawer first?
I reach for the first drawer, when YOWL! The handle burns my skin. Guess I don't have the clearance.
"Um, Caleb Keel?"
At that, Caleb's file jumps out of a drawer and into my hand. On a whim, I ask for Marta's file as well as Caleb's. Nothing wrong with that. She said I could, so the warrant covers both of them.
There's nothing new in Caleb's file, except something peculiar on his birth certificate. It has Marta's name on the mother's information, but everything regarding his father is blank. Odd that Edward Sinclair's name was missing. Actually, come to think of it, I wonder why Caleb used Marta's name to begin with. Teenage pregnancy or not, wizards are a little old fashioned and if Marta and Edward were living together on good terms, there was no reason not to use the name Caleb Sinclair. Maybe it was because Edward was a muggle during the war. That made sense, right?
I opened up Marta's medical file. First was her birth certificate. Then an incident from when she was seven. Apparently she picked up her mother's wand and accidentally vanished her left eyeball. Next was a file transferred from Hogwarts of various injerjuries and spell damage. I expected to see a document of her admittance to the maternity ward next.
I did not. The next page document an incident on Christmas Day, 1993. According to the description, her father and uncle got into a drunken argument and drew wands. Marta was in the same room and got hit by three of their stray curses. She stayed in the hospital recovering for nearly a month.
Healer Ray treated her.
I pulled out Caleb's birth certificate. Born September twentieth, 1994.
No way.
Author's Note: Bah Ha Ha! What will Teddy do upon learning that Healer Ray met Marta Keel approximately nine months or so before Caleb was born? And where is Caleb, anyway? Is he still even alive? All will be reviled...