Disclaimer: I own nothing except my OC Bailey, her mate, and children, and any alterations to the original storyline plot their presence creates to various readers amusement everywhere across the globe.
A Dog's Purpose Is Strange Magic 3 Chapter 15
Despite the numerous distractions that come with being in Hogwarts everyone there is accustomed to absolutely nothing can take Harry's mind off what he had borne witness to in that first Defense Against the Dark Arts session for 3rd year.
It was really quite traumatic for him, seeing Bailey strewn out dead across the floor like that. The only consolation he could get from that is that Bailey wasn't actually dead after all.
If only Harry knew that Bailey's greatest fear would be him the same way in her mind.
Because of the incident, Bailey's made a point of staying even closer to her boy than usual.
This is why Bailey is down at the Quidditch Pitch watching the Gryffindor Team practice underway and she's not alone.
All of her pups are with her, even Whisper. It's been the case during all the training sessions three evenings a week since the school year started.
Being surrounded by her children is a great assist in curbing any anxiousness Bailey's been having with everything that's been going on lately. Their antics really brighten the mood of the day, literally. The weather was getting colder and wetter, and the nights darker earlier in the day.
It amuses her immensely to watch her grown pups frolic around the field. They ran back and forth, yapping and tussling and making general nuisances of themselves whenever one of the team members landed or came close enough to the ground for a leap. Wood, Alicia, Angelina, Fred, George, Katie, and Harry didn't seem to mind all too much. They seemed to enjoy the company and toke to laughing often when Ranger and Bounder took to tracking the Quaffle and whoever possessed it while the girls were more focused on the Snitch whenever it dared to come in range. Bold seems to think challenging a Bludger is a lot of fun. He acts all cocky and confident, but when a Bludger is hit in his direction Bailey's crazy son hits the deck, ducking just in the nick of time so that it misses him by a hair. The way he falls over on the ground and lays there with his belly up and four feet in the air, squalling and yelling at the top of his voice as if he's dying makes his mother place a pay over her face in amused mortification.
Even the all-serious Wood can't seem to resist smiling occasionally at their antics despite being determined to keep the team on track with practice so they can win the Quidditch Cup this year. It's Wood's final year at Hogwarts and given Quidditch is his passion it's understandable why he's so deadest on it. Because of all the chaos with the Chamber of Secrets the previous year all hope of acquiring it was lost.
That's not going to be the case this time around. The entire team is all in.
At the end of one such practice when Harry is on his way to the Gryffindor common room Bailey decides to hang back to spend more time with her family outside. This time Brokefang joins them, lugging a fawn with them for their dinner.
Brokefang and Bailey share a leg as the pups are digging into the carcass with gusto.
Finished with her meal Bailey is in the middle of licking the leftover crumbs off her mate's face when she notices something peculiar out of the corner of her eye. To be perfectly honest, Bailey more than likely would've missed it if it hadn't been a speck of moonlight that seeped through the clouds.
It's Crookshanks.
Instead of curling up in Hermione's lap in front of a warm fire, Crookshanks is sneaking surreptitiously into the undergrowth leading toward the Dark Forest. The dense foliage covered him easily from sight. Despite his fur coloring Crookshanks conceals himself quite well. The likelihood of Bailey having noticed him would've been slim if not for the moon's help. She wouldn't have spotted him if not for the moon.
Bailey decides to investigate, her mate and children following her lead.
They end up trailing Crookshanks deep into the Dark Forest, much to Bailey's astonishment. She never thought the half-kneazle traveled this far. Always staying inside the castle grounds or with Hermione each time they step outside.
Finally, when a small clearing is reached, Bailey and her family find out why.
And it's not a welcome sight.
Crookshanks is meeting with a stray dog that Bailey has seen before. The same disheveled and mangy mutt that had frightened her boy so terribly before the Night Bus came that fateful day.
The wind is on their side. All nine of them are downwind of the duo. So, the stray and Crookshanks can't catch their scent. This won't last for long. The wind can easily change on them at a moment's notice.
Once they're all in position Brokefang gives the signal and they pounce.
Crookshanks hisses, fur standing on end as he realizes he'd been followed. The stray appears startled and caught off guard by their sudden appearance.
Bailey growls at the stranger, telling him he is not welcome in their territory. There hadn't been enough before, but just like with Scabber's she can tell this dog isn't exactly what it appears to be.
This is no dog and Bailey wants him gone, not knowing what his purpose is here. It's obvious he came here all the way from Little Whinging in London. That alone does not bode well.
Charmer, Whisper, and Dreamer flank this intruder to prevent him from escaping. Bold, Ranger, and Bounder are on the sides, and Brokefang standing beside his mate. Before they can attack the stray astonishes them by drawing an image into the dirt with his paw.
An image of a very familiar rat.
Scabber's.
So that's his purpose.
Using the same paw, the stray conveys that he's after Scabber's and nothing else. Not to hurt her boy or any of the other people in the castle. In fact, the stray is quite emphatic about that part.
Luckily, for him Bailey's always felt unease around Scabber's, having known what he really is all along. Her dislike for Scabber's outweighs any inhibitions toward this stray so she and the others decide to work with and trust him.
And now that Bailey's suspicions about Scabber's have been confirmed there's no way in hell Bailey is going to let him stay around.
They've got a lot of work to do.
The first thing is to locate Scabber's and Bailey knows just where to find him.
Authors Note:
I hope you all like this one. Sorry about the wait. I had a bit of writers block for this one.