Danger of the Stranger

"Wake up, Harry."

"Mm... I'm up, Aunt Petunia," mumbled Harry. He had been having such a good dream too. About wolves, and a clan of people living in the woods, and being treated better then he had ever been at the Dursleys. He really didn't want it to end yet.

There was a small chuckle that didn't sound like Aunt Petunia at all. "Have you forgotten my name already, cub?"

'Cub?'

Opening his eyes, Harry blinked a few times as he tried to clear his vision. Instead of the low ceiling of his cupboard under the steps from the stairs that he usually woke up to, he saw a high brown ceiling, and a smiling face. "Elysia," he said after a moment, stunned. It hadn't been a dream.

"Good morning," said Elysia cheerful. "Time to wake up - breakfast will be soon. I'll bring you some fresh clothes, alright?"

"It wasn't a dream," Harry whispered to himself after Elysia went over to the trunk. He really was in a village full of werewolves. And Elysia had taken him in, despite almost being thrown out of the clan. She was his new protector.

"Mm? Did you say something?" asked Elysia as she brought over a new shirt and trousers.

Harry shook his head.

"Well, you get changed, and I'm gonna have a talk with my... parents. So just stay put until I get back, okay?" Elysia cocked her head. "Unless you need help?"

Shaking his head again, Harry watched as Elysia made her way outside. He waited for a long moment before he started to change clothes, going as fast as he could without aggravating his injures. Even though it only had been a day, his body already felt a lot better. Harry guessed it was a lot better to get someone to treat them for you rather than trying to do them on your own with limited resources.

He had just slipped on his own shoes, worn as they were, when Elysia returned. "Ready for some breakfast, cub?" When Harry nodded, she scooped him up into her arms and went back outside.

It was still dark outside, the sun hadn't risen high enough into the sky yet. But already, everyone was coming out of there huts, even the youngest children. For being creatures of the night, it seemed they were more like early birds - err - wolves.

Near one of the larger buildings that Harry had decided must be the kitchen, there was a woman who had set out various trays on a wooden table that hadn't been there the day before. The smell of warm bread, honey, and freshly cut fruit filled the air. There were a series of logs that surrounded an unlit campfire, an area of just tables near that, and already people were starting to wait on line to eat. Even though he had eaten last night, Harry felt his stomach start to grumble.

"I'm gonna sit you down at the logs while I get in line for breakfast, okay?" said Elysia, and after Harry nodded, she glanced around before going on. "You just give a shout if anyone starts to harass you, alright, Harry?"

"M'kay," Harry answered as she sat him down on a empty log. Elysia gave him and everyone else a long glance before she went to get in line.

Glancing around himself, Harry noticed what strange looks everyone was giving him, like they weren't sure what he was doing here, but weren't going to ask him to find out. Some of them gave much harsher looks, like Logan and Stephen. He fidgeted and stared down at his lap. He wasn't use to so much attention. The Dursleys had ignored him unless it was to order him around, and the few times he did go out, people didn't even notice him.

Something tugged at his sleeve, and Harry looked up to see a girl, maybe three or four, at his side, looking up at him with wide dark brown eyes. "Are you the human that Aunt Emmy told my mommy about?" she asked quietly.

"Uh... yeah," answered Harry. "I guess am."

Her eyes went a little wider. "Whoa... You don't look that different though." She leaned closer and seemed to sniff him. "Smell funny though."

"Do I?" Harry sniffed his arm, earning a giggle from the younger girl.

"Morgan!" A woman came running over and scooped the girl into her arms. "What do you think you're doing?"

"But Mommy -"

"I told you not to go near him," the woman hissed as she started carried Morgan away.

Harry couldn't hold back the flinch that came from that. He recognized that tone all too easily. That's how his old family use to talk about him. Like he was some deceased ridden animal that they only took care of because they were forced to. One they couldn't wait to get rid of. It seemed that werewolves and humans weren't that much different sometimes.

"Enough, Sophia!" Suddenly at Harry's side, Elysia glared at the mother of Morgan. "He's just a child! Would you treat an child of our kind that way?"

"He's not our kind," snapped Sophia. "He's a human! I can't believe you brought one into our camp, and I'm more shocked that Agatha and Jason agreed to it!"

"You question our decision, Sophia?"

Sophia stiffening as she, along with everyone in the pack, turned towards the voice. Jason and Agatha were emerging from their hut, still looking as powerful as ever in their plain clothes. Jason had an eyebrow raised as he stared down Sophia. "Well? Answer, Sophia."

"No, Alpha," said Sophia with a bowed head. "I do not. I just... I couldn't believe it at first when Emily told me."

"Believe it now, then," said Jason simply. "And let me remind you - just because of my daughters temporary rank, it does not mean you can attack the child she cares for." Then he turned to his Elysia. "Come here with the child, Elysia."

Nodding slowly, Elysia picked up Harry, who wrapped his arms around her neck, and wove through the crowd to her father. Jason waited until she had reached her side before he spoke to his clan. "My friends, as I'm sure many of you know by now, my daughter, Elysia, has brought a human child into our camp. It seems that his guardian had left him for dead in the outskirts of our territory."

Whispers broke out among the werewolves and Harry could hear various conversations, most of them commenting how disgusting humans were.

"My daughter then made a promise to both this child and to me. She will be caring for the boy, Harry, as any of you would care for your own children. She has until the end of winter to prove that he can live among us, and if he succeeds, he will be turned if he chooses after his first age ceremony."

This caused a burst of outrage, and Harry buried his face in Elysia's neck as the others yelled out to their leader.

"A human become one of us?"

"No, this can't happen!"

"What are you thinking, Jason?"

"He'll just hunt us down like the rest of them!"

"Silence!" barked out Jason. "We the Alphas, the Betas, and even our own Healer and Elder, Arianna, have made this decision. Would you doubt all of us?" As silence fell over his people, he turned to Elysia. "My daughter, have you told Harry what we are?"

"Yes, father, I have." Elysia's voice was unusually loud in the quiet.

This time, Jason turned Harry. "Harry." He paused as he waited for the boy to lift his head. "Do you understand what we are?"

Gulping, Harry nodded. "Yes, sir," he answered.

"Speak what we are, child, so everyone knows you understands."

"... Werewolves," Harry said after a moment.

"And do you still want to live among us, even with the idea of being turned in the future?"

"Yes, sir, I really do," said Harry without any hesitation. "Because... because I have no where else to go. And Elysia's taken care of me like no one else has."

There was a moment of silence as Jason turned back to the crowd. "You've heard it straight from the child's mouth. He will be staying here, among us, and I expect you all to treat him like another other child of this clan. Is this understood?"

"...We hear and obey, Alpha Jason," said the werewolves in unison, though most of them did it hesitantly.

"Good. Now, lets eat." as the crowd started to move around, Jason stepped forward, Agatha following behind him, and the two Betas joining them. They moved to the front of the line, and the woman nod her head politely before handing them each a plate with food already on it.

"How come they cut in line?" Harry whispered into Elysia's ear.

"Since they are the heads of the pack, they're privileged to the food first," Elysia explained as she placed him back on the log.

"Oh..."

"I'll be back in a little while," said Elysia before she went to the end of the line again. Harry watched her this time, and frowned. Every time someone joined the line, she stepped back, letting them go ahead of her. And none of them gave her a second glance. He gave a small frown. It seemed he had more to learn about werewolf behavior, especially if he was going to live with them now.

At that thought, Harry couldn't help but smile a little. He had a place to live now, and he had someone who wanted to take care of him. It felt really nice. So he would do his best to make Elysia proud of him.

Everything was going rather well until the snow first started to fall.

From inside the hut that she and Harry shared, Elysia gathered warmer clothes for her cub to wear for the winter now that it had suddenly arrived. It had just started to snow, and she could hear the children gather outside to play in it. She heard a giggle, and she glanced up to see her cub standing outside the hut, holding out his tongue as he tried to catch the snowflakes. Both his arm and his ankle had healed up nicely in the last few months, and beside the fact that he couldn't transform like the rest of them, he was the same as any other child in the clan. In her eyes though, Harry was just fine the way he was. Not that the others of her clan agreed.

Smiling as she watched Harry giggle to himself again, Elysia poked her head out of the hut to call out to him. "Harry! Get in here and put on these clothes before you freeze!"

"Coming!" called out Harry, smiling as he turned to go back inside the hut. The moment he was inside, Elysia immediately started to smother in a fur blanket, wrapping him from head to toe till not a hair of his wild hair could be seen. Yelping in surprise, her cub with a careful wiggled around until his head popped out. "Hey!"

"I told you not to go out there dressed like this," said Elysia chidingly as she looked over Harry, even giving him a sniff for good measure to make sure he hadn't caught cold in the last five minutes. "You'll freeze!"

"But its not that cold!" protested Harry.

"We can't have you getting sick!" said Elysia firmly. "Father wants to see that you can make it through the winter, so you can't stay inside the entire time, but it doesn't mean you can go out without warmer clothes on." She sighed then, relaxing a little. "And I'm worried about you, too, cub."

"I didn't mean to make ya worried," said Harry sadly. "I'm sorry - achoo!"

"See?" chuckled Elysia as she stopped Harry from wiping his nose on his sleeve, handing him a square cloth instead. "Now come on, lets get you bundled up and send you off to your lessons." As she turned to get the clothes, there was a moment she thought that she saw a sad look on Harry's face. Grabbing the clothes, Elysia turned back to him. "Cub, are you alright?"

Glancing up at Elysia, Harry gave her what looked like a forced smile. "Yup, I'm fine," he said cheerfully.

Frowning slightly because she wasn't really sure whether to believe him or not, Elysia didn't say anything as she removed the fur blanket and started to help him change into warmer clothes. "So, are you liking your lessons?" she asked.

"Uh huh, its great," said Harry. "I didn't know that werewolves learned so much."

"Well, we do try to be a little civilized," said Elysia with a laugh. The children were taught reading, writing, and spelling in lessons, and their parents had the duty of teaching their children their packs history and customs. "And someday, we might have a chance to visit the human villages - I mean, cities. They would suspect us if we didn't even know the basics." Slipping the hat over his messy hair, the female werewolf glanced over him. "There we are, all done."

"How come you're not all dressed?" asked Harry, mentioning her lack of boots, mittens, and coat.

"I'm going on patrol, cub," said Elysia with a grin. "It;s a bit hard to travel as a wolf in boots and coat, just like normal clothes." She would in fact be getting naked soon, leaving her clothes at the entrance with the others. She nudged Harry towards the door. "Come on, I'll walk you over before I go."

The snow had coated the ground by this point, but was disturbed by the many footprints as other children played in it before their lessons began. Elysia noticed that they completely ignored Harry, who seemed to be used to it. Elysia wanted to sigh, wishing there was something she could do to help.

"Now Harry, you'll tell me if someone hurts you, alright?" asked Elysia as they reached the hut that served as a classroom.

"Yes, Elysia," promised Harry.

"Good cub." Placing a kiss on Harry's forehead, Elysia said her goodbyes before going off to join a group of werewolves at their place past the entrance. Her month as a Omega had been over a long time ago, and she was again treated as the daughter of the Alphas. Meaning that she was in charge of this patrol again.

"Morning, Elysia," said Lucas with a kind smile. At his side, Logan huffed and crossed his arms angrily. And the final, who was the youngest and the quietest werewolf of the group, Tyler, just looked to the forest, probably eager to run.

"Good morning, everyone," said Elysia with a nod to them. "It should be a routine run, but the previous patrol says they've been smelling someone wandering around our borders. If we see this intruder, we're to take him down - alive if possible - and bring him to the Alphas. Understood?" When the group gave their answers, Elysia started to strip off her clothes, and the others followed soon after.

The moment her clothes were off and placed in a chest nearby, Elysia forced her body to change. It wasn't as easy, not like during the full moon, but as it got closer, it also got easier. Her hands and feet became paws, her skin was covered in dark fur, and all her senses started to heighten as her nose, mouth, ears, and eyes got larger. And finally, she gave a tiny yelp as her tail appeared before falling to her front paws so she was now on all fours. Shaking out her fur, Elysia stretched with a yawn. It had been a while since she'd been able to change, and it felt good.

Someone's nose bumped into her shoulder, and Elysia turned her head to meet the gaze of Lucas, who gave an eager whine before tackling her to the ground, which they hit with a thud that knocked the breath out her momentarily. Both growling and barking playfully, the two rolled around in the dirt, nipping at each other and occasionally kicking in an attempt to see who would win.

"Quit playing around!" snapped Logan. "It's time to move!"

Growling in anger, Elysia jumped off Lucas, who stood with his tongue happily hanging out even though he'd been losing. Logan had liked taking her place while she had been Omega, and even months later, he still liked to order her around. "Then let's get move!" With a powerful leap, Elysia raced forward, leading the group into their run. She twisted through the trees, and leaped over those that had fallen. It was the best feeling for her - running. She wondered for a moment if Harry would ever feel this, but pushed that thought aside as she lunged forward again.

It was a hour into their patrol that Elysia finally came to a slow stop, panting happily even though she was tired. Half their run was done now, and this was usually the point where they stopped to take a break, right near a creek.

"Break time!" Elysia barked out, almost giving a laugh when she watched the other three werewolves practically collapse to the ground. "You are all like a bunch of cubs!"

"Sorry if we can not all run as fast as you," panted Tyler, and Elysia nudged his shoulder with her own before going over to the creek to get a drink. Lapping up the cool water, Elysia made sure to keep alert, her ears turning to listen for any strange sound. Not far off, Logan and Lucas rubbed against the trees that were their borders while Tyler also made his way towards the other end of the creek.

When her thirst was gone, Elysia lifted her head and looked towards the trees beyond their boundaries. Something didn't seem right... but she wasn't sure what it was. There was no strange sound or smell though... And maybe that was the problem. It was too quiet.

A dark growl filled the air just before Elysia could alert the others, followed by a yelp of pain and surprise. Whirling around, Elysia snarled at the large wolf that had tackled the teen to the snow covered ground, pinning him down with his paws. There was no doubt that this was a werewolf, because of his size, which was much bigger then that of even a normal werewolf, with dark gold eyes that were almost black. His black fur was matted, and despite his large size, he was starting to look thin.

With a snarl, Elysia leaped forward, tackling the strange werewolf - but even she had to admit it was more out of shock that the black wolf stumbled off Tyler rather than the force of her tackle. Growling, Elysia started to circle the werewolf while Tyler scrambled behind her to join Logan and Lucas. "In the name of the Estriatus Clan, I demand you tell me what you are doing in our territory!" barked Elysia.

Lifting his head, the werewolf turned to look at her with a dark look, following her movement. "So, this is what the famed Estriatus Clan has to offer me as welcome," he growled as he stood, putting everyone on edge. "I have to admit, I expected more."

With a howl of anger at the insult to her clan, Elysia leapt forward, this time pushing the werewolf to the snowy ground. But the stranger fought back instantly despite being weakened by hunger and travel, snapping at one of her front legs with sharp teeth, almost biting into it before he flipped them, so that he was on top. In retaliation to that, Elysia delivered a kick to his stomach, pushing him off her so he landed nearby with a thud. Scrambling up though, the werewolf managed to wrap his jaws around her shoulder, threatening to break the skin.

Yanking her shoulder away, almost yelping as the teeth tore into her skin momentarily. Elysia raised a paw and hit him hard in the head, so that his world would be spinning for a moment. While the dark wolf shook his head to get rid of the feeling, Elysia bent her head down and clamped her jaw around his front leg, biting down hard enough that she tasted blood, and the stranger howled before yanking his paw away, a splatter of blood staining the snow.

Leaping back, Elysia growled at the now limping werewolf, though she was in no better shape with a bleeding shoulder. Lucas came up to her, whimpering and sniffing at her shoulder. "Do you want our help?" he asked. It was normal after all to attack as a pack.

"No, I'm fine," Elysia reassured him before looking back to the stranger. "Surrender, and you will be brought before our Alphas with no further harm. If you continue like this, I will be forced to hurt you further."

"Now, where's the fun in that?" said the wolf with a bark-like chuckle, his dark eyes surprisingly bright, alert. "This is the most fun I've had in awhile."

Grinning as best she could in her wolf form, Elysia started to circle the stranger. Even she had to admit, she was having a good time. "Just don't be too sad when I win," she barked confidently.

"Don't count on that, girly." With another growl, the werewolf jumped at her, his snapping jaw dangerously closer to hers before she managed to move off to the side. Elysia snapped in return, but before she could even think of another attack, the stranger pushed her to the ground, her head hit the frozen ground with a painful thud while he used both his paws to pin her down. "I have a lot more experience then you."

Growling lowly, Elysia twisted and turned so that she was on her stomach, kicking the werewolf more than a few times in the stomach before she was let go. Springing up, Elysia didn't waste any time before she lunged at the werewolf, who met her halfway. Standing on their hind legs, both the wolves snarled as they tried to bite each others neck.

A yelp of pain escaped Elysia when she felt sharp claws dig into her chest momentarily, the small drops of warm blood already staining the snow below her. Snarling, she snapped at him again, almost howling in triumph with her teeth dug into his the shoulder of his wounded leg, very close to his neck, which caused him to howl in pain while she twisted her jaw so it would cause him more pain.

Removing her jaw from his shoulder, it was more by sheer chance than anything that Elysia managed to knock him down, using all her weight to do it. The werewolf struggled against her, but stopped when Elysia placed a paw on his throat, pressing it down slightly to show that she would crush it if he decided to move. "Will you surrender now?" she asked in a low growl. "I've been order to bring an trespassers in alive, but if you push me, I'll simply drag your carcass back to the Alphas."

"...Fine," snapped the werewolf. "I've had my fun anyway."

"Then do I have your word that you'll not fight us unless provoked?" asked Elysia carefully, knowing that asking a promise of any werewolf was serious.

"My word. Now let me up - you're not exactly light."

Ignoring the jab about her weight, Elysia removed her paw and sat of the side as the werewolf struggled to get up, unwilling to show how tired she was. "Are you alright, Tyler?" she asked the young werewolf. When Tyler nodded yes, she nodded towards the stranger. "Go back to the clan. Let the Alphas know that we have company."

"Yes, Elysia!" Bounding to his feet, Tyler raced off, out of her sight in a matter of seconds.

"Elysia?" The dark werewolf, who was now standing, looked at her with a tilt of his head. "As in the daughter of the Estriatus Clan's Alphas, Jason and Agatha?"

"Yes."

His laughter came out in barks, the werewolf licked his bleeding leg. "Then I don't feel as bad about losing."

"And now that you know my name, its polite to tell me yours," said Elysia, wrapping her tail around her feet.

Looking up to her, the werewolf grinned wickedly. "The name's Fenrir. Nice to meet ya."

The trip back to the clan did not take anymore time than it should have, since Fenrir insisted that he could keep up. And surprisingly, he did, even with his wounds and the fact that it was clear he hadn't slept or eaten well in the past few days. It made Elysia wonder what fighting him would be like when he was healthy. She made a mental note to do just that if she had the chance.

Tyler was waiting at the entrance, now in human form, with a bundle of clothes in his hand. "For the newcomer," he told the wolves. "And the Alphas are waiting for you."

Nodding her large head, Elysia changed, becoming human in a matter of seconds and standing. "Thank you, Tyler," she said as she took a moment to look over her wounds before grabbing her own clothes out of the chest.

"Not bad, girly." Glancing back, Elysia finally saw Fenrir in his human form, currently naked as the day he was born. He must have been in his early thirties, though it was hard to tell with werewolves, and was taller than her by at least a foot with dark, shoulder length hair that was in knots and brown eyes that looked over her appreciatively. "You've grown up."

Looking away and ignoring the blush that was started to creep up, Elysia shrugged on her shirt. "Have we meet before?"

"It was a long time ago," said Fenrir as he took the clothes that Tyler handed to him. "When you were still a cub."

Pulling her dress over her head, Elysia gave the new werewolf a strange look, but pushed that thought off for another time. "Come along," she said instead, motioning towards the entrance, "my parents are waiting for you." She glanced back to the rest of her patrol. "Logan, Lucas, after we have delivered our guest, I suggest you go rest up until the Alphas call for you."

"Sounds good to me," said Logan with a groan, rolling his shoulders as he followed her.

It seemed that her parents weren't the only ones waiting for Fenrir. A number of werewolves were standing outside in the snow, watching the stranger enter with her group with wariness. Even the children, whose lessons seemed to have ended early, watched with wonder.

"Elysia!" Before she could register the call of her name, Elysia was suddenly stopped by a pair of skinny arms wrapped around her waist. "You're back!" cried Harry, burying his face in her stomach.

"Harry? What's wrong, cub?" asked Elysia, looking down at Harry with worry.

Sniffling, Harry looked up to her, crying. "Some of the of the o-older kids called me a-a freak," he whispered, shaking at the last word. "Un-Uncle Vernon calls me that..."

Giving a short growl, Elysia glanced up to see some of the children looking at them with smirks, only to glance away when they noticed her looking. "It's alright, Harry," said Elysia soothingly, picking him up and run a hand over his hair, which was wild as usual. "I'll have a talk with them later, alright cub?"

Nodding, Harry ran a hand over his dripping nose.

"Well, well. This is interesting."

Looking back to Fenrir, Elysia saw the new werewolf staring at the lighting bolt scar on Harry's head, which for once wasn't hidden by his bangs, with narrow eyes. Suddenly suspicious, Elysia clutched her cub closer to her, who seemed to notice the new werewolf and buried his face in her shoulder out of fear. "What's so interesting, Fenrir?" she asked with a snap.

Crossing his large arms, Fenrir smirked at her. "I'm just wondering - what do you think you're doing with a wizard?"