Welcome to the Wolves Den
"We have a lot to talk about." Evelyn said. "I will be right back. Wait here."
The professors watched as the girl stood and walked over to the weaponry hut. She walked inside and returned a few moments later with a couple knives in one hand and a stone in the other. They watched as she walked back over to the fire pit and sat on the log opposite them and began using the stone to sharpen the blades.
"You have questions for me first don't you." She said without looking up from her blade. "But before that I think we should introduce ourselves, I'll start. I am Evelyn Wood, this is my home and these are my wolves." She said as she gestured towards the wolf pack scattered around the clearing.
"I am Minerva McGonagall. I am the Deputy Headmistress, I'm also the Head of Gryffindor House and the Transfiguration Professor."
Fillius went next. "I am Professor Fillius Flitwick, I am the head of Ravenclaw House and teach Charms."
"And I am Professor Severus Snape, I am the head of Slytherin House, and teach Potions."
"Nice to meet you. I'll introduce you to my wolves later, for now I believe you have some questions for me before I ask you mine." Evelyn said as she gestured to the professors on the logs opposite her. Then she turned her attention back to the blade in her hands.
Minerva was the one who replied. "Yes, we just have a few questions for you then you can ask us yours." Minerva paused for a moment to collect her thoughts. "What happened to the owls that we sent to you? The first 2 never returned to the school."
That question got the girls attention, she looked up from her blade and set the stone down on the log beside her before asking a question of her own. "The owls are fine. Tell me, do you do a health check on your owls to see if they're fit to fly before sending them out with the school letters?"
The professors were a bit caught off guard by the girls question. "They are given a basic exam before we prepare to send the letters out." Minerva replied. "Why do you ask?"
Evelyn looked at them skeptically then stood. She walked over to the medium building and disappeared for a few minutes. When she returned she had an owl on each shoulder, one of them looked to be tied up.
The girl sat on her log again and picked up the stone and continued to sharpen the blade in her hands. "I don't believe you." She said not looking at the professors, instead choosing to look down at what she was doing. "These owls are my proof."
"Why is that owl tied up?" Minerva asked.
"He's not tied up. I used this vine to hold his injured wing in place so it could heal." Evelyn replied. "This owl has a name. Do you know it?"
Minerva paused for a moment, a little confused at the girl's outburst. "No I don't know the owls name. What is it?" She finally asked after a minute of silence.
"His name is Nyx, and the other one is called Helios. Both of these owl came to me unfit to fly."
"I checked the owls before I sent them off. None of them had any issues that I could see." Minerva said. "How do you know the owls names? I didn't even know what they were called."
"They told me their names." Evelyn said. "They also told me how they were injured." She paused and looked at Minerva intently, almost studying her like she had been earlier. Severus got the impression that this girl knew more than she was letting on. He was curious about this student and what she'd reveal next. She knows things that she shouldn't be able to know.
"The owls spoke to you? Fillius asked.
The girl nodded at him. "I can prove it if you'd like. I know it's hard to believe." She said. "I had to prove it to these 2 as well." She motioned with her head to the owls on her shoulders.
"How can you prove it?" Minerva asked the girl.
Severus watched as the girl turned to look back at Minerva and continued to stare at her. Finally after a few moments she spoke. What she said just helped to confirm to Severus that this girl was special. "You are a cat." She said. "If you change I can prove it by having a conversation with her."
Turning to look at his colleague he saw that she looked shocked. He didn't blame her for that reaction, he was also a little shocked that this girl knew that. She'd never met any of them before today.
"Yes I am a cat Animagus." Minerva said. "How did you know that?"
"I can sense it." Evelyn replied. "Will you change so I can prove it to you that I can understand the animals?"
Minerva nodded then stood. She took a moment to look at the girl before transforming herself into a cat.
Evelyn watched as Professor McGonagall stood and changed into a cat. She watched as the cat Professor walked around the fire pit toward her and sat a couple feet away. The cat looked up at her and waited for her to speak first. "Tell me how long you've been able to change into a cat." She finally asked the Professor cat.
"I've been an Animagus for 53 years."
"Wow, that's a long time." Evelyn replied, and watched as the cats eyes got big with surprise. "Do you mind if I try something?"
The silver tabby looked at her for a moment then nodded. Evelyn turned her head and looked at Nyx. "Were you able to understand what Professor McGonagall just told me?" Nyx nodded his head before giving Evelyn a questioning look. "Go on, ask her your question."
Nyx looked over to the cat then spoke to her. "Would you like to know how I was injured?" He asked the professor.
Professor McGonagall's eyes went wide with surprise once again at the fact she could understand the owl. "Yes, please tell me." She replied. "How is it I can understand you? This shouldn't be possible."
"We don't know. It has something to do with Evelyn," Nyx replied. "I was injured because a student threw a rock at me while I was hunting. It hit my wing. Evelyn noticed right away and used the vine to help my wing get better."
The cat was silent after Nyx's explanation. "I am sorry I didn't notice Nyx. Please believe me that I wouldn't have sent you out if I had known." She turned her head and looked at Helios. "What about you Helios?"
"I wasn't injured like Nyx was. You sent me out to deliver another letter, and as soon as I got back you sent me off with another for Evelyn. I didn't get a chance to rest before I was sent out again." Helios replied. "Evelyn saw that I was tired and wouldn't let me return until I had rested."
Professor McGonagall looked saddened at what she just heard Helios tell her. "I am sorry for doing that to you Helios." The cat paused before adding. "I will do better in the future to never do this again."
As the professor was apologizing to the owls Evelyn was watching the other 2 professors across from her. She could tell that they were amazed at what they were seeing, and a little confused that they were seeing an owl and cat seemingly having a conversation with each other, which shouldn't even be possible. Evelyn just shrugged at them then turned back to the cat beside her.
Severus and Fillius watched as Minerva transformed into her cat form and walked around the fire pit. They were extremely curious about what they were going to witness. The girl suddenly spoke to Minerva.
"Tell me how long you've been able to change into a cat."
The professors watched as Minerva meowed in answer to the girls question. They were all surprised when the girl answered her then asked and mother question.
"Wow, that's a long time. Do you mind if I try something." Severus watched as Minerva thought for a moment before nodding. He could tell that she was just as surprised as he and Fillius were that this girl could understand animals.
They continued watching as Evelyn turned to look at one of the owls sitting with her. The 2 professors were confused when she asked the owl an interesting question.
"Were you able to understand what Professor McGonagall just told me?" The owl nodded at the girl, then she spoke to him again. "Go on, ask her your question.
What is going on? Severus thought to himself. How can the owl understand the cat? I'm going to study this and figure it out.
Fillius and Severus watched in amazement as the owl hooted at Minerva and have her meowing back. The owl and the cat were having a conversation that shouldn't even be possible. Then the other owl joined in the conversation, the 2 professors watched as Minerva's facial expression changed to one of sadness. They wondered what that was about.
"Thank you Professor. You may turn back now. I think I've proven my skill." Evelyn said to the professor beside her. The cat stood and walked back to the other side of the fire pit to where she was sitting earlier. She transformed back as she went and sat when she got to the log.
The professors were silent for a few minutes, thinking about what they'd just seen and heard. Finally Professor McGonagall was the first to speak. "That was amazing." She said. "How long have you been able to understand animals?"
"For as long as I can remember." Evelyn replied.
"What did you talk about?" Professor Flitwick asked Professor McGonagall.
"Nyx asked me if I wanted to know how he was injured." Professor McGonagall replied. "He said that he was hunting and a student threw a rock at him which hit his wing."
"And the other owl?" Professor Snape asked.
"Helios wasn't injured. He was tired. I sent him off with Miss Wood's letter right after he'd returned from delivering one to another student. He didn't have a chance to rest." She looked down sadly. "But now I'm going to pay extra close attention to make sure this doesn't happen again in the future."
It was silent for a moment before Professor Snape asked about something he remembered Evelyn mentioning earlier. "You said that you could sense that Professor McGonagall was an Animagus." He paused. "Can you sense anything about either of us?" He gestured between himself and Professor Flitwick beside him.
Evelyn sat there for a while just staring at the 3 professors intently, like she had been earlier. She stood up and walked a few paces closer, head tilted in curiosity. Her eyes suddenly widened, then narrowed as she walked even closer. She stopped a few feet away from the professors and spoke. What she said sent chills down Severus' spine.
"One of you has brought evil into my forest." She finally said looking directly at Professor Snape. "Evil has no place in my forest."
Evelyn stood there staring at Severus unblinking. "You." She said as she stretched out her arm and pointed at him. He got a sinking feeling as to what she was going to say next. "Roll up your sleeves."
Severus sat there in shock, then slowly without breaking eye contact with the girl he reached for the sleeve of his right arm. He unbuttoned the cuff and rolled up the sleeve. Beside him his colleagues were tense and watching him with concern in their eyes, they were about to say something but he subtly shook his head at them. They thankfully stayed silent and continued to watch on both in fear and curiosity.
"The other one." Evelyn said, and without breaking eye contact motioned to his left sleeve. Behind her some of the wolves had gotten up and started to come over to see what was causing all the tension in the clearing.
Even slower than the last one Severus unbuttoned the cuff and rolled up his left sleeve, revealing the Dark Mark. The wolves closest to him immediately started growling and all of their fur was raised.
The professors were startled by the wolves reaction. They watched as Evelyn stepped closer to them, motioning for the wolves to stay where they were. She topped in front of Severus, still staring at him. "Why do you carry evil with you?" She asked him. "You're not an evil man."
Surprised by that last statement it took him a moment to respond. "This is a story for another time."
Evelyn looked down at the Dark Mark on his arm and started studying it. "Has it always been angry?" She asked him without taking her eyes off the mark.
This confused him for a moment, but then he thought of something. "Can you hear magic?" He asked her. Beside him he saw his colleagues sit up straighter as their eyes widened slightly. They waited eagerly for the answer to this question.
"Well, I can sense it." Evelyn said. "But it doesn't speak like the animals do. It just feels angry." The wolves had started to come closer, still growling with their teeth showing and their fur standing up.
She raised her head and looked at him. "You are not evil, you are a good man, so you may stay." She said to him, then turned around and looked at the wolf pack. "Enough. He's safe, you're not going to attack him."
The professors watched as the entire pack stopped growling at Severus and went back to what they'd been doing before all of the tension. Evelyn walked back to her log and sat down again. "I think that's a good place to stop for now. We'll continue later, for now it's time to hunt."
As soon as she said this the pack was on their feet and running into the trees. The girl stood and walked over to her weapon building, she turned back to look at the professors. "Don't you want to eat? You didn't have breakfast today."
Quickly the 3 professors stood and went over to where the girl was standing. She was just outside of the building, waiting for them. Once they were beside her they followed her into the small space and watched as she grabbed the bow and quiver and slung them over her back. She then went over to the spears, grabbed one and handed it over to them. Turning back to the wall she grabbed 3 more, one for her and the other 2 she passed over to them.
"Ok, we're ready." Evelyn said, then turned to leave the armory. The professors followed her and watched as she went to the shelter next to the armory and disappeared inside. She emerged a moment later without the 2 owls, she must've left them in there.
Evelyn walked back to the professors and stood before them. "Now before we hunt there are a few things you need to know." She told them. "Most importantly, we move silently through the forest so we don't scare away our meal. I will move through the trees, you don't have to. You can follow on foot, you might not be able to travel as quickly though."
The professors followed the girl over to the edge of the clearing and watched as she effortlessly pulled herself up into the trees. Evelyn then started jumping from tree to tree, she barely made a sound while she moved. If they hadn't seen her climb up they would never know she was there.
Deciding to go on foot the professors followed the barely visible form of the girl in the trees above them. Severus took the lead since he was the best tracker in case they got lost, but they had nothing to worry about because the girl stayed within their line of sight for the most part. They did have to jog a bit to keep up with her though, thankfully this part of the forest was well traveled so it was much easier to move at a quicker pace.
About 15 minutes of jogging later the girl started to slow down, the professors were silently grateful; it was starting to get tiring trying to keep up at that pace for much longer. Severus watched as their student stopped moving and jumped down out of the trees. She landed a few feet away from him. The girl waited until the professors were beside her before she spoke.
"The river is close, we can catch some fish. I also need to check the traps." Evelyn said. She turned around and motioned for the professors to follow her.
They soon emerged from the trees to find themselves on the riverbank. This river was much larger than the one the professors had to cross a few days before. It was also moving much faster. The girl walked over to the edge and looked around for a moment, then she continued walking downriver. She finally stopped when the water was moving much slower than it was where they had come out of the trees.
There was a big tree that was leaning over the water, the professors watched as the girl climbed onto one of the branches and moved across it so that she was over the water. She looked up at them and motioned to the other branches. The professors looked at each other then slowly made their way towards the other branches. There was only 1 other branch that looked stable enough for them to sit on, so they decided to split up.
Minerva and Fillius took the empty branch, Severus joined their student on hers. Once everyone was settled Minerva was the first to speak.
"How are we supposed to catch fish from up here?" She asked the girl.
Evelyn lifted the spear in her hand. "With this." She said. "I will show you."
The professors watched as the girl balanced on the branch and positioned the spear to be ready. She looked down at the water and waited, it looked like she was a deadly predator waiting for the perfect moment to strike.
Suddenly the girl shoved the spear down into the water and just as quickly pulled it up again, there was a nice sized trout stuck to the end. The fish was pierced through the middle and was a couple inches from the point of the spear.
Turning to face the professors the girl spoke. "Now we just need to get 5 more and I think that'll be enough." She motioned to the spear in each of their hands then nodded at the water below them. Silently telling them that it was their turn to try.
Copying what the girl did the professors got their spears ready and got balanced, then waited. Fillius was the first one to try to get a fish. He shoved his spear into the water, but when he brought it back there was no fish on it.
"This is harder than you made it look Miss Wood." He said.
"The timing is the hardest part to get down." Evelyn replied. "You almost got the fish. It took me a lot of practice to get it right. I'll help with the timing."
Fillius got ready again, and waited. He saw another fish coming and prepared to strike. "Now." Evelyn said. Fillius immediately shoved his spear back into the water, and this time when he brought it back there was a big trout on the end.
Evelyn helped the other professors with their timing, and soon enough they had the 6 fish needed. "Now we have to check the traps." She said. They all climbed off their branches and got back onto the riverbank.
"Traps for what?" Minerva asked.
"Rabbits."
Evelyn began leading the professors away from the river, this time she didn't use the trees. They walked for a couple minutes before she stopped. There was a loop of vines on the forest floor in front of her with a trip wire over it. The professors stood back a to give her room and watched as she crouched down and adjusted the vine. There wasn't anything in this trap, so after adjusting it she stood up and they continued to the next one.
The next trap they came upon had a small rabbit in it. They watched as Evelyn reached down and loosened the vine from the rabbit, then picked it up. She grabbed a small piece of rope from her pocket and tied it around the rabbit's legs, then she reached out and reset the trap. Once she was done she stood and slung the rabbit over her shoulder and they continued to the next trap.
They had checked around 10 traps total before the girl said that they were done with them. There were now 5 rabbits tied together over Evelyn's shoulder. The professors thought that they'd be heading back to the camp, but the girl had other ideas.
"We have rabbit and fish, but I'd like to get a deer as well." Evelyn told the professors. "That's why I brought the bow with us."
They started walking again and watched as the girl started following some deer tracks. The tracks lead them to a completely different clearing, and in the center they saw a young buck.
Evelyn motioned for them to stop moving, they watched as she took another step forward then stop. She reached for the bow on her back and pulled an arrow from her quiver. The professors were watching her very closely, they saw her notch the arrow then she waited. Again she looked like a predator stalking her prey, it was a sight to see. This small girl hunting animals bigger than she was, the professors were impressed.
Continuing to watch, the professors saw Evelyn raise the bow and take aim. She took a deep breath and let the arrow fly. The arrow flew through the air right into the eye of the buck, it staggered a few steps then dropped to the ground laying still.
"Nice shot." Severus said. Genuinely impressed by the girl's skill.
"Thanks." Evelyn replied. Then she walked out of the cover of the trees toward the fallen deer. The professors followed her and when she was beside the buck she knelt down and removed the arrow from its eye.
Evelyn took the arrow and cleaned it off with her shirt then placed it back into the quiver with the others. After she put the arrow back she took another piece of vine from her pocket and proceeded to tie it around the animal's legs. She got up and started walking back towards the trees, the professors were confused until the girl came back with a long branch. They watched as she took the branch and put it through the animals legs, then she stood and lifted the branch to her shoulders so that the buck was resting on her back.
"We can head back to camp now." She handed her spear over to Severus, and the rabbits to Minerva so that she could carry the buck easier.
Back at camp Evelyn lead the professors over to the smokehouse and dropped the buck. She motioned for the professors to drop the rabbits and fish beside the deer. Then she walked over to the armory and put the bow and quiver away, grabbed a few knives and returned to the smokehouse.
Deciding to start with the deer since it will take the longest to prepare Evelyn picked up the branch and brought the deer over to a large stump behind the building. She untied the vine from around its legs and tossed the branch aside. Turning the deer so it was laying on its back, she then took one of her knives and brought it to the deer's stomach and cut it open.
Evelyn started to remove the guts and other organs from the deer. She started with the intestines, carefully cutting them out so that she wouldn't accidentally cut them. Once they were freed Evelyn quickly went back inside the smokehouse to get a bucket to put the guts in, she'd forgotten to grab it before she started. She then placed the intestines into the bucket so that she could get rid of them later.
Next she freed the stomach, bladder, and the kidneys, they too went into the bucket. The lungs, esophagus, and trachea were quick to follow. Evelyn then removed the heart and liver, but they didn't go into the bucket. Instead she placed them to the side to use later.
Now that the deer was done she looked up and saw that the professors had been watching her with curiosity. "Is something wrong? She asked them.
The professors shook their heads. "No, nothing's wrong." Professor McGonagall said. "We were just surprised that you didn't use magic to gut the deer."
Evelyn looked at the professors for a moment before she spoke. "Why would you be surprised about that?" She questioned.
"Well, it's surprising that someone your age is able to efficiently gut a deer." Minerva replied. "We don't even know how to do that by hand." She said festering to herself and her colleagues beside her.
"I've been doing it for a long time." She told the professors confidently. "It took me a while to learn the best process, longer than spear fishing." She turned back to the stump and picked up the deer car as. The professors followed her as she carried it into the smokehouse and watched as she took another piece of vine out of her pocket and proceeded to tie the deer to the ceiling, hanging upside down by its back legs.
Walking back to the stump Evelyn picked up one of the rabbits and started to gut it like she'd done with the deer. The rabbits guts went into the bucket and she again set the heart and liver aside. She repeated this process with the rest of the rabbits, then took them into the smokehouse and tied them up the same way she had with the deer.
Next came the fish, and this time before she gutted them she carefully descaled each one so she wouldn't remove the skin. Then she cut the fish's stomach open careful not to cut anything inside, and removed the guts. She repeated this for the rest.
When she was done she turned to face the professors. "We'll need to make a fire now. I have a pile of firewood behind my cabin." She gestures towards where the firewood will be. "Can you start the fire and keep it going? I need to skin the rabbits and deer."
The professors nodded and turned to start the fire. Only 2 of them went, Professor Snape stayed with Evelyn to observe her skin the animals.
Severus watched the girl as she went back into the smokehouse, she grabbed the fish as she went. When they were both inside the girl placed the fish off to the side, then went over to where the rabbits were. He watched as she took her knife and began to cut around the animals back legs, she then cut down the legs and met the cut she'd made earlier on the stomach.
After those cuts were made she went and did the same to the front ones. First starting by cutting around them, then making a cut that met with the one on the stomach. Once that was done she set the knife down and started pulling, the rabbit hide came away easily. She carefully placed the hide out of the way, then went to the next rabbit. She repeated this process for all of them.
"What will you do with the hides?" Severus asked the girl as she moved over to the deer.
The girl looked up at him for a moment before replying. "The rabbits will be used for boots or gloves. The deer will be either a coat or bedding."
He watched as the girl turned back to the deer and started to skin it. The process was similar to the rabbits except before she pulled the skin away she took her knife and made an extra cut around the base of each antler. Then she connected that cut to the one on the front legs, now the hide should come off a lot easier.
Once she had the deer hide she carefully placed it with the rabbits, then she grabbed 3 rabbits and the a couple fish before leaving the smokehouse. Severus followed her as she went over to the fire pit.
By now Minerva and Fillius had a nice fire going, it was ready for them to cook the meat. They watched the girl as she set the rabbits and fish down near the fire then walk to the armory. The girl came out a moment later with a new knife, then she went over to her sleeping cabin. When she came back she was now carrying some wooden bowls, she returned to the fireside and set the bowls down beside the food.
The girl was about to start cooking the food but Minerva spoke up before she got very far. "We can cook the food. You've caught it, so I think as a thank you we can cook it."
Sitting there for a moment the girl finally nodded at them and motioned for them to continue. They each picked up their wands and levitated a different animal over the fire to cook. Severus kept his eyes on the rabbit he was levitating, but saw from the edge of his vision that the student had a look of curiosity on her face as she watched them cook the food.
Soon the first of the meat was cooked so the professors levitated the cooked food over to the bowls next to their student. They then levitated the rest of the uncooked meat over the fire. While they cheeked the rest their student started cutting up the cooked food.
Once everything was cooked the professors helped to finish cutting the meat. After it was all cut the student passed a bowl to each Professor and took one for herself. They settled on their logs to eat quietly.
As they were eating Severus noticed the wolves return to the clearing. This didn't bother him because he knew that these wolves weren't going to be a danger to him or his colleagues.
Around 20 minutes later everyone was done eating, the girl got up and took the professors bowls and set them aside with her own. "I'll take those to the river later, but for now I think you have more questions for me?"
The professors nodded at the question but before they could speak their student spoke again. "I need to finish that cabin. We can talk while I work." She said motioning to the unfinished cabin.