Adult-FanFiction.org : Harry Potter

Fragmented Soul	By : StrawberryGirl87 & Bickymonster Category: Harry Potter > Slash - Male/Male > Harry/Fenrir Views: 79703 -:- Recommendations : 3 -:- Currently Reading : 10
Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or anything in the fandom. no money/profit is made.

Chapter List
- 17
- 18
- 19
Chapter 18 – Diagon Alley
Damon, Micha, Callie and the three pups appeared in the Leaky Cauldron with a loud crack. Despite the rather intrusive sound in the small, quite pub no one so much as turned to look at them, all the patrons far too used to witches and wizards apparating in and out of the pub to get to Diagon Alley.
The place itself was dark and shabby, though the buzz of customers, who gave off the occasional laugh and joyous cry, gave it a welcoming and warm feel, despite its dingy and uncared for appearance. There were all sorts of witches, wizards and magical creatures gathered, wearing all sorts of wondrous things, some of which the pups just couldn’t wrap their heads around. The room they had arrived in was filled with a bar and numerous tables, most of which were occupied. A man, who stood behind the bar pouring out drinks, gave the new arrivals a quick glance over and seemed to decide that they were nothing to worry about, before going back to what he was doing, disregarding them as harmless.
Keeping a firm grip on the caffeine fuelled, hyperactive Clayton, Damon ushered his son and Harry through the pub, heading for the back door. Micha, Romy and Callie followed behind them as they headed past the wooden staircase, that lead up to the guest bedrooms, and out into the small court yard that led through to the magical street that they had come to visit. Micha, who was unofficially in charge of keeping an eye on Romy while the other two dealt with Harry and Clay, withdrew his wand and, with instruction from Damon, tapped just the right brick.
Micha and the pups all gasped in awe as the wall in front of them suddenly transformed into an archway, revealing a long, busy, cobbled street with a vast assortment of exciting shops and restaurants. Of course Harry had been here a couple of times before but never had his gaze been allowed to linger. Previous trips had been rushed and they had had to conceal who they were, his Dad never allowing him to explore.
There was so much to look at as the six of them stepped through the archway and onto the cobbles, the three pups gawping at everything there was to see. There were shops selling robes, telescopes, odd looking knick knacks that seemed to spin and others that giggled when you touched them. There were windows stocked with all sorts of potion ingredients; most Harry recognized but there were some that he didn’t. Romy was instantly drawn to the bookstore, keen to just get lost amongst the shelves upon shelves of dusty tomes. Callie knew that if they let her daughter loose in Flourish and Blotts then it was likely they wouldn’t see her for days; they might not be able to convince her to leave Diagon Alley at all.
Clayton’s eyes were predictably drawn to Gambol and Japes, a shop which appeared to sell a variety of tricks and practical jokes. Damon made the easy decision to avoid that particular store. The two teenage boys were resourceful enough with their pranks and jokes without adding accessories to them. He dreaded to think what they would be capable of with the assistance of a joke shop.
However, before they could go anywhere or buy anything they needed to pay a visit to Gringotts Wizarding Bank. The imposing snow-white marble building loomed ahead of them. It was the only building on the street that Harry recognised. His Dad had brought him here before but he had always had to keep his head down and wear a number of heavy glamour and illusion charms that had affected not only how he was seen by passers-by but also how he saw everything around him.
This was the first time that he was seeing everything with a clear head and focused vision and he marvelled at it all. The bank towered over the other shops, a focal point on the magical shopping street. The six werewolves climbed the white stairs to reach the burnished set of bronze doors that were flanked by two surly looking goblins in uniforms of scarlet and gold.
Money had always been a problem for the pack. There were nine of them now, ten if you counted Harlan, and no one really did. Only three had any sort of long-term income. Lukas had his job as an Arithmancer and Jenson worked freelance fixing rare magical artefacts; both of them were known as the top in their chosen fields. The select few that knew of their particular condition just didn’t care enough about their affliction to let it affect their judgement on Lukas and Jenson as individuals because of the high level of skill they had in their professions.
Damon too had a steady income but not from employment. Thanks to his maternal grandparents he owned several properties that he rented out to both magical and non-magical folk alike. Between the three of them they managed to keep the pack afloat and anything they couldn’t afford they went further afield from their territory and stole but they liked to avoid this whenever it was possible to do so.
None of them could really hold down steady employment in any job that involved other people because of what they were. Ministry of Magic legislation and law was still strict on the movements of werewolves, though signing a register was not on the agenda just yet it had been hinted at several times. Even so they were still allowed very little in the way of freedom and it was law that lycanthropy had to be declared to an employer before working for them.
Harry wasn’t concerned however, he knew he had access to enough money to buy what he needed for the year at Hogwarts. He and his Dad shared a vault at the wizard bank; his name had been put on all of the appropriate documents very early on thanks to his father’s forward thinking. The vault held more than he would ever need in his lifetime, he was sure. All he needed to do to access it was produce his unique magical signature.
When it came time to visit their respective vaults Damon was rather reluctant to separate the group, however the goblins assigned to deal with their requirements were swiftly losing patience. So, sending Callie and Clayton to the Danes’ family vault and Micha and Romy to Jenson’s with the key required to get inside, Damon then went with Harry.
Severus had always been rather sensible with money, he had been good at his job and paid highly for the more selective and difficult potions he could brew. Using the money he had made some rather smart investments that were still paying off handsomely. It had ensured that the Snape/Prince fortune, although modest compared to some, had always been able to grow. He had also kept not only wizard currency there but muggle too, wanting to be prepared for any eventuality.
Severus had lived his life with Harry always knowing that they might have to go on the run at any given moment. He had been vigilant and ensured that they could go at a moment’s notice and have enough money to always be provided for, he would never have allowed Harry to go without anything he needed, not even for a single night.
FGHP
“Mum can we go to the bookstore first, please, please, please,” Romy pleaded as the six of them met up just outside of the wizarding bank after their respective cart rides to and from the vaults, their pockets now laden down with gold, silver and bronze, ready to be spent. Harry had even snuck out some muggle money, knowing that he would need it later for what he had planned with Clay.
“Ask your Uncle Damon, he’s in charge, sweetheart,” Callie said, smiling at her daughter’s pleading. Romy turned, giving Damon a wide eyed plea to allow her loose in Flourish and Blotts. She had never seen so many books in one place before, she was desperate to get her hands on them and just start reading, her thirst for knowledge unsalable.
Damon sighed, knowing that they wouldn’t get her out of there anytime soon if he said she could go. However, the bright, hopeful look on the young girl’s face wasn’t one that he liked to deny. He had always admired her love of reading and wanted to encourage it as much as possible but he had to be practical; they had to ensure they had everything they needed because he didn’t want to have to come back again.
“I’ll do you a deal, kiddo, we get the robes and everything else we need first and after lunch you can go to the bookstore,” Damon said firmly, thinking that he’d rather not have to come back here tomorrow because they’d spent too long looking at books and the other stores had closed for the day in the meantime. It was something that seemed like a possibility the way the youngest pup was eyeing the bookstore.
Harry and Clay had already bounded down the white stone steps, jumping the last two and landing neatly on the cobbles, poking and prodding at each other, giggling like lunatics while the others were distracted with Romy’s pleading. Neither were looking where they were going and Harry, after being elbowed lightly in the ribs by Clay, barrelled into a large, black robed man who glared at the young teenager.
“Oh,” Harry said in surprise looking up at the stern faced man, “I’m sorry,” he said politely.
The man he was looking at was tall and imposing with dark hair and light eyes, he appeared to be in a group of wizards that were all dressed in identical robes, the likes of which he had never seen before. The unknown man was also giving him a rather odd look now that the glare had faded; it was almost as if he might have recognised him, his eyes sweeping over his face, fixating on the lightning bolt scar upon his forehead.
“Come on, Harry, let’s go,” Clayton said, glaring hatefully at the older wizard whom Harry had just bumped into as he flung his arm around his best friend, “we’ve got some shopping to do!”
“Right,” Harry replied, feeling hugely uncomfortable under the gaze of the odd, black robed man. As Clay tried to practically dragged him off down the street, he couldn’t help but look over his shoulder at man he had collided with. It hadn’t been so much the man himself that had been weird, though Harry thought that he was a little odd, but it was more the way the man had reacted to him. It was creepy if he was honest.
“Madame Malkin's first, I think. Clayton, do you think you’ll be able to hold still long enough for the witch to take your measurements?” Damon asked. Clayton was still buzzing from his overload of coffee just before they had left, practically rocking on the balls of his feet with the need to keep moving.
“I told him not to have so much coffee,” Romy informed her mother knowingly, as she watched her cousin with exasperation and disapproval.
“How much did he have exactly?” Callie asked, turning to her brother, a questioning look on her face.
“Lost count after the third cup,” Damon said with a sigh, wondering just how they were going to survive the day with Clayton so hyperactive on sugar and caffeine. “Not to mention the amount of sugar he put in them,” he added with a frown at his son. Clay just gave him a look that suggested complete innocence but no one was fool enough to believe that look, Harry sniggered his amusement, which only set Clay off laughing too.
“Perhaps we should leave the robes till later then,” Callie said, observing the two giggling boys, wondering why on earth no one had stopped Clayton ingesting so much coffee. He was an unstoppable force of pent up energy as it was without adding stimulants.
“Callie, you take Clay and get the telescopes and scales and such that are on their lists, we don’t all need to be there for that. Micha and I will take the other two to get their robes,” Damon said, keen to separate Clayton from the others until he was a little calmer.
He and Harry were already starting off their play fighting again and he was feeling the beginnings of a headache forming. Separating the two teenage boys was key to keeping his remaining shreds of sanity in tack and ensuring that they all got back to the territory and the Alpha in one piece.
“Dad…?” Clay asked, a hopeful undertone to his voice that instantly had Damon on edge.
“No,” Damon said at once without any form of hesitation.
“But you don’t even know…” Clay began, sounding a little indignant at being denied without even being able to formulate his request.
“But I know you, Clayton,” he pointed out sternly, sending a glare to his adoptive son.
“I was only going to ask if we could go to the joke shop,” Clay said sounding a little huffy and quite put out.
“The Answer is still no, now go with your aunt and behave yourself. If she tells me you were misbehaving you’ll be in a whole world of trouble. Understand?” Damon asked, ensuring that he had Clayton’s full attention by getting and maintaining eye contact.
Callie might have been one of the weaker members of the group after spending most of her childhood being quite ill but she was not a woman to be messed with and Damon was certain that she would be able to handle her nephew without any hassle.
“Yes, Dad,” Clayton grumbled.
“We’ll see you at Madame Malkin’s in about an hour,” Callie said, putting an arm around Clay, who was now sulking a little. Damon nodded and ushered the other two pups and Micha away from his sister and son. He wanted to get this done as quickly as possible so they could just go home.
FGHP
Harry. He didn’t look like Harry, he looked like James, the spitting image of him in fact. Younger though, almost as if… no, it wasn’t possible, there was no way that it could be possible. They were all dead, he was sure of that fact, it had been widely reported. There was no chance that any of them could have lived, especially not the baby. But his name had been Harry… no, Rodolphus decided firmly, it was a coincidence. The boy that he had seen couldn’t have been Harry Potter. That boy was long dead, he hadn’t lived to see his second birthday.
It was seeing that scar that really bothered him though. The boy, Harry Potter or not, had clearly been touched by dark magic in his life. It wasn’t an everyday scar on his forehead, that was for sure. In his mind he ran over the night his Lord had fallen, it had been Halloween, he had gone to the Potter’s house to kill them. The papers had reported something different though, something about the Longbottom’s and he was sure that his wife had been responsible for their current level of insanity. Not even the Dark Lord would have had the patience to torture someone until they lost their mind, that was a talent that was reserved just for his darling wife.
There was one fact that stood out in his mind stronger than all the others floating around in his head and that was that the child’s body had never been found. Something just didn’t add up about it. Someone was lying, there were half-truths and lies all over the place he was sure.
He didn’t know if he should mention it to the others or not. To mention the possibility of Harry Potter being alive could potentially sign his death warrant; but if he kept quiet and then it was him, despite how unlikely that was, then he would more than likely beg for death before Voldemort was done with him.
Rodolphus had gone to school with James Potter, though he had been a couple of years ahead of him. He had known Lily, and Snape’s obsession with her; he had bullied the potions obsessed boy for being in love with a mudblood. It was ironic that Rodolphus had on several occasions thought about how beautiful Lily’s eyes were, though he would never admit it to anyone. She was dead though, so were James and their son. They had to be.
FGHP
Buying the robes had been easy enough, at least for Harry and Romy. Clayton was both larger and a lot more fidgety than the other two combined and had caused no end of trouble for the poor witch who was trying to take his measurements, much to the amusement of the younger two pups who weren’t helping matters by constantly giggling at him.
None of the older three werewolves could explain how Harry, who was quite calm and reserved when without his best friend, could suddenly become a little ball of rebellious energy whenever Clay was around. It was a remarkable change in an otherwise intelligent and reserved teenager. It was even more astounding that he was able to do something that so far Clay had failed at and drag Romy into their antics as well.
However, despite the pups mischievousness, between the six of them they had managed to get everything that they needed; everything, that is, apart from the books. Damon was dreading entering into the bookstore. It was probably the only time in his life where he was thinking that Romy might be worse than either Harry or Clayton and it was perhaps a small mercy that at least they didn't have Lukas with them too.
Damon had decided that they’d eat first before tackling Flourish and Blotts but he was so wrapped up in worrying about Romy and exactly how many books she would end up buying if they didn’t manage to rein her in that he hadn’t noticed the other two pups. They were lagging behind the rest of the group a little and whispering between themselves, planning and plotting their escape.
“Who's up for lunch?” Damon asked, looking around at the group who all nodded eagerly at this suggestion.
“Ice cream!” Clayton suggested rather loudly, eyeing up Florean Fortescue’s Ice Cream Parlour with interest. Even from the street he could see that they had more flavours than he could ever dream off and he was dying to try several of them.
“Don’t you think you’ve had enough sugar?” Romy asked her cousin teasingly and Clayton stuck out his tongue at her. Callie and Damon both rolled their eyes at their respective children’s behaviour. They were waiting for the day when Romy finally conceded defeat and admitted that she liked Clay. So far she had done a wonderful job of resisting his constant flirting and undeniable charm.
“We’re not eating ice cream for lunch and besides its December; it’s far too cold to be eating ice cream!” Damon pointed out with a tired sigh. He was starting to wish that Jenson had been the one chosen for this particular outing.
“Spoilsport,” Clayton said with a pout making Harry laugh. Harry was having a brilliant time, not that he didn’t love being in the territory and being around Fenrir but it felt freeing to be away from it all and away from his domineering mate. There was plenty to do day to day, not just chores and things that had to be done, but fun stuff too; however being out in the wizarding world was liberating for all of the pups.
“What about that place?” Micha asked, pointing to a cafe with brightly coloured umbrellas covering the tables outside. There weren’t many people occupying the outside seating area and, those that were, were using heating charms to protect themselves from the elements.
“As long as it serves ice cream,” Clay said, grinning, not having heeded his father's warning about it being December and therefore too cold to be eating the icy desert. Though Clayton never really heeded warnings about anything, when he got an idea in his head there was almost no stopping him.
“And chocolate brownies,” Harry piped up. He couldn’t think of anything better than a large, gooey chocolate brownie for lunch. He had missed them so much since coming to the territory; brownies weren’t exactly something you could easily make over a campfire.
“You’ll be having a proper meal first,” Damon said tirelessly to the two teenage boys that both seemed to be craving sugar as he rubbed at the bridge of his nose, it was only lunch time and it was already starting to feel like a really long day. It was as he said this that a rather large group of shoppers started heading in their direction, moving too fast for Damon to do much about them. Harry saw this and saw their opportunity, something they had been waiting for all day.
Harry grabbed Clay by the hand, leaning close to him and whispering, “Ready?” Clay turned to him with a wild grin on his face and nodded to him eagerly. “When I say run, we run.”
The mass of giggling witches clearly on an all-female shopping expedition flocked around them, all of them laden down with bags and none of them really paying attention to where they were going, all too involved in their conversations and their gossiping. The six werewolves were enveloped; their senses overwhelmed by the inane chattering and over perfumed bodies as the large herd passed them by.
None of the adults heard Harry when he turned to Clay and said, “Run,” but by the time the crowd of witches had moved on the two teenage boys were gone and no sign of them could be seen.
They had taken their chance and, using the giggling mass of witches as cover, they had made their escape. The two of them had their own agenda for the day and were determined not to return from London without completing their mission. They were both well aware that they would be in trouble when they got back but it was going to be well worth it if they managed to get what they needed.
“Damn witches,” Damon mumbled, looking around at the others before realising that they were missing two of the group, “… wait… where are…? FUCK!” Damon swore; he was going to ring their necks when he caught up with them.
“Where are who…? Oh… bollocks!” Micha said, catching on fairly quickly without the need to turn around and check to see if Clayton and Harry were still there. Not even Callie and Romy looked hugely surprised that the two teenage boys had made a break for it.
“Not again,” Romy sighed, unable to believe that with everything going on that Harry and Clayton hadn’t heeded the warnings to stay together and stay safe. She couldn’t understand those two or their motivations half the time.
“Those boys need to be kept on a leash,” Callie said with a sigh of her own. She was highly disapproving of exactly how much those two were allowed to get away with. She had never been more appreciative of her own daughter’s restrain, especially when it came to the antics of the other pups in the pack.
“Callie, take Romy to that cafe, don’t go anywhere, Micha and I will go and look for them. I swear those two are going to be the death of me,” Damon said with frustration, running a hand through his dark brown hair, trying to think where the two boys would have gone.
Watching him, Micha felt a little sorry for the Beta wolf; even he wasn’t brazen enough to directly defy orders and make a run for it, though he had to admit that he admired Harry and Clay a little for having the guts to do it. Shoving his hands into his jacket pocket to keep them warm his left hand came into contact with something he hadn’t expected. Inside his jacket pocket there was a crumpled scrap of paper that he was sure hadn’t been there an hour ago.
“Umm… Damon, I think you should see this,” Micha said as he unfolded the paper and silently read the words that had been hastily scribbled there, unable to hold back a smile as he offered it over to the Beta.
“What is it?” Damon asked, his tone irritable as Micha showed him the small scrap of paper that he had just found in his pocket.
Don’t panic, be back soon. Harry and Clay.
“Don’t panic? I’ll bloody give them not panicking,” Damon growled, finding himself becoming increasingly more furious with every passing moment. He had been considering foul play, kidnap, Aurors swooping in and snatching the pups right under their noses. Instead they were playing games and running off to do goodness knows what.
“We should check the joke shop first,” Micha suggested. “They wanted to go in there.” He wanted to find them just as much as the others but at least he could see the funny side of the situation. Though he would feel a lot better when the two mischievous pups were back and it was confirmed that they were safe. He also wasn’t going to admit to finding the whole situation a little funny; he didn’t think that that would go down well with Damon.
“Right, come on, because if Fenrir finds out I lost his mate he’s going to flay me alive,” Damon said with a grimace, not wanting to think too hard on what the Alpha would do to him if he couldn’t find Harry. He was sure he wouldn’t be able to return to the clearing at all until he found Harry and Clayton, not that he would want to; for all the trouble they gave him, he did love the boys.
“He wouldn’t do that,” Callie said with slight amusement at her older brother, “that wouldn’t be painful enough,” she added, receiving a murderous glare from her brother who was struggling to see any amusement in the situation at all unlike the other three.
“That would be hilarious, Sis, if it wasn’t true,” Damon snapped at her, feeling as if he wanted to smash his fist into something.
Other than the joke shop he had no clue where they might have disappeared off to and therefore no idea where to start looking. They could see Gambol and Japes from where they stood, if the pups were in there then it wouldn’t be long until they emerged but Damon had a horrible feeling that their disappearing act was for something a lot bigger than just a trip to a joke shop.
“Look on the bright side,” Micha said. “They at least said they were coming back.”
“Why is that a bright side?” Damon asked curiously, wondering why them saying they were going to be coming back, when they shouldn’t have been going anywhere to begin with was a bright side.
“Because with Harry you never know what’s going on inside his head,” Micha pointed out, no one needed reminding of the amount of times Harry had run off with no intention of coming back or the result that had caused the last time he had tried to run away from the pack.
“I suppose you’re right, and at least they left a note so we knew they hadn’t been kidnapped, another plus,” Damon said with a sigh trying to calm himself. He would need a clear head if he was going to locate the two trouble makers.
“And at least they’re together,” Callie pointed out, thinking that Harry was at least protected. Clay was never going to let anything happen to Harry, they all knew that. He was something like a little bodyguard combined with being his best friend. Damon however was not convinced that this was a good thing and gave his sister a pointed look.
“Now that does NOT fill me with comfort” he said with a groan.
“Clay won’t let anyone lay a finger on Harry,” Callie said, not understanding why Damon wasn’t comforted by the fact that they were together.
“I’m more concerned with what they’ve got planned; if they’re together then you can be sure it isn’t anything good,” Damon said rubbing at the bridge of his nose with worry.
“What’s the worst that can happen, seriously?” Micha asked.
“Micha, when it comes to those two, it’s best not to ask that question,” Damon said. None of them had spent the last four years modifying memories, rebuilding walls and mending broken bones from Harry and Clay’s antics; they didn’t understand just how potentially dangerous the two pups could be when they combined their knowledge and trouble making abilities.
FGHP
Harry and Clay were exhilarated with their success at escaping from the group; when they had first been told about their trip to London for school supplies they’d immediately began to plan a way to slip away for a while. Clayton had wanted a new skateboard, he had left his old one in Ingleton and he missed it. Harry felt partly responsible for this and had decided that he was going to help his friend to get a new one whatever it took.
It had been touch and go whether or not they were going to get the chance for a while. Damon had been keeping an annoyingly close watch on the two of them all day. However, it had been a sign when the babble of witches had come at them and distracted the Beta wolf long enough for them to make a run for it. There would, of course, be hell to pay when they got back and it was doubtful they would get their ice cream and chocolate brownies but it would be worth it to get the skateboard. They had at least left a note this time.
“Where are we going?” Clay asked sceptically as the two of them charged through the Leaky Cauldron, much to the annoyance of some of the patrons who glared at the passing teenagers. Harry was in the lead as he dragged Clay through the pub, heading for muggle London.
“My Dad used to bring me here sometimes,” Harry explained, “We used to come here the muggle way. There is a shop close by that you are going to love!”
“So where are we going?” Clay asked again impatiently, not having got the answer he wanted the first time he had asked the question.
“Trust me, you’re going to love it!” Harry said, the two of them were still clutching their hands together.
Clay was determined that he wasn’t going to let Harry out of his sight. He was all up for a bit of rebellious fun but he wasn’t about to put Harry’s life at risk. Though, they were in muggle London now so he doubted anything bad would happen; at least, not until Damon caught up with them.
“Oh… Merlin’s balls… this place is … wow,” Clay said in awe as the two of them came to a stop outside a shop called Slick Willies. It wasn’t a large shop but it was clearly dedicated to selling all things related to skateboards and skateboarding.
“I knew you’d like it,” Harry said grinning from ear to ear. “You wanted a skateboard, so let’s get you a skateboard.”
Clayton suddenly looked rather abashed, “Um, Harry, I don’t have any muggle money.”
“Lucky for you, I have plenty,” Harry said, pulling out the large wad of cash he had stuffed in his pocket while Damon hadn’t been looking as they had taken some galleons from the vault at Gringotts to buy his school supplies.
“I can’t accept...”
“Shut up, yes you can,” Harry said with a roll of his eyes. “It was my fault you lost your last one. Now, if you keep complaining I’m going to do something to you that will make what we did to Harlan look like child’s play,” he threatened.
“I’m not saying a word,” Clayton said with a laugh. He didn’t want to end up pooping his guts out for the entire pack to hear. Though the memories of that happening to Harlan did still bring back a smile to his face, even if his recollections of the smell still made him feel a little nauseous.
Heading into the shop Harry checked his watch, they didn’t have long, the aim was not to be gone more than an hour, two at most. They didn’t want to give Damon a heart attack after all. They knew he and the others would no doubt be worried but after they bought the skateboard there was just one other thing Harry needed to get.
FGHP
Rodolphus couldn’t stop thinking about the boy he had seen that morning; it was driving him to distraction and Malfoy had noticed that his mind was elsewhere. There was no denying those eyes, the boy had her eyes.
He would have to say something to Lucius, he had to be sure, there were just too many coincidences for it not to be a possibility. The teenager's looks, the scar, those eyes, the name, not to mention the fact that a body had never been found. It all amounted to something that ought to have been impossible. He had put it off all day and now, even if he was punished for it later, he would have to say something.
“Malfoy,” Rodolphus said, getting the attention of their group leader, “I think you need to see something.”
“What is it Lestrange?” Lucius snapped irritably.
“Do you remember the Potters?” he asked hesitantly, still half tempted to change his mind and keep his mouth shut on the matter.
Lucius glared at the other wizard, not in the mood for such ridiculously stupid questions. He didn’t see the point of mentioning them here or now, he swore that if there wasn’t a point to this he was going to crucio the man in the middle of Diagon Alley, consequences be damned. “Of course!” he snapped impatiently.
“Their boy… Harry,” Rodolphus said, waiting for Lucius’ curt nod before going on. “He died, right?”
“Why?” Lucius snapped at him, irritated by what felt like annoying and needless questions.
“I think I just saw him!”
FGHP
It had been a little over an hour and Damon felt more than a little ill; there was still no sign of either Harry or Clay, despite having practically turned over every cobbled stone in Diagon Alley searching for them and he now had begun to wonder if they had wandered further afield. He hoped that was what had happened, because the only alternative his mind would supply was that someone had taken them.
He believed what their note had said, that they intended to return, but that didn’t ease his fears at all when he was terrified that they might not be able to. His initial worries had been about what Fenrir would say or do, but now he couldn’t bring himself to care, all he wanted was to find the two boys and know that they were safe. They were both his pups, he’d watched them grow up together, the thought that something might have happened to them while supposedly under his care… it wouldn’t matter what Fenrir did because nothing could be as bad as the guilt he was currently living with.
Even Callie and Micha, who had seen the funny side of the disappearing act to start with, had now lost all humour about the situation and Romy was close to tears. She had just thought it was another of their jokes, a funny game but they still weren’t back and everyone was starting to worry that something might have happened to them; she could see it written all over her uncle’s face.
She had never seen him this worried before. Damon was physically shaking he was so scared. Upon seeing his trembling hands, Micha had wrapped his arms around the Beta wolf and just held him. It had surprised the submissive when Damon had returned the embrace without question, inhaling his scent as he attempted to calm himself.
“We’ll find them,” Callie said softly, trying to reassure her brother but realistically she knew that if they had left Diagon Alley, which was the most likely scenario at this point, then they would have very little chance of finding them. Tracking them was beyond useless, there were too many scents woven through the densely populated wizarding street, their advanced senses were absolutely useless here.
It was frustrating that what they were couldn’t help them when they really needed it. They were werewolves, something that should have helped them in situations like this and in any other circumstances too but of course when it involved Clayton and Harry nothing could be that simple.
Damon couldn’t stand still, as he paced back and forward, despite Micha’s attempts to get him to stop and sit down; but the inactivity, the waiting, the doing nothing, was driving him mad. If they didn’t get back soon…
“We told you not to panic,” Clay’s voice said from behind him and in an instant Damon had spun around and pulled his son into his arms in a tight hug, relief washing over him at the sight of his son being back with him.
“Dad… air… need to breathe…” Clayton gasped as his father squeezed him, taking a deep breath of air as Damon finally released him. However, Damon only hesitated long enough to note that Harry was there with his son too, before he hit Clay over the top of the head with his hand.
“What the HELL were you thinking?!” he demanded from his son, glaring at him fiercely.
“We left a note,” Harry answered with a shrug, clearly not understanding what all the fuss was about. Sure they had disappeared but they’d left a note and said that they would be back, he didn’t understand why they were so worried.
“A NOTE?!” Damon exclaimed, rounding on Harry. “And what if you had been hurt or kidnapped while you were… Where were you?! What the hell was so important you couldn’t have just asked to go?”
“We were really scared!” Romy said from her mum’s arms where she had been standing, scared out of her mind and close to tears. Now however that fear was long gone and it had been replaced with the urge to smack them both round the head.
“Sorry,” Harry and Clay muttered in unison, both pointedly avoiding the question that Damon had asked as well as avoiding looking directly at him.
“Where did you guys go to?” Micha questioned, he too wanted to lay into the pups and give them both a good clip round the ear; it didn’t bear thinking about what could have happened to them during their disappearing act.
“We were just around Diagon Alley,” Harry lied.
“Don’t you dare lie to us, Harry Prince!” Damon snarled, “We turned this place upside down looking for both of you!”
“We were in Diagon Alley the whole time,” Harry lied again, this time looking up to meet Damon’s eyes, he refused to waver in his lie. He and Clay had discussed it on the way back, this was their story and they were going to stick to it no matter what. “You must have just missed us when you were looking.”
“HOME NOW!” Damon raged, realising that there was no way he was going to be able to deal with the boys on his own, this was beyond his capabilities as a single parent. He was used to dealing with their trouble making as a team, either with Severus or with Fenrir backing him up. He was ill equipped to deal with both troublesome boys single handed. This was something that the Alpha would have to deal with.
“But our books…” Harry said, he had been rather looking forward to exploring the bookstore with Romy; the two of them were bound to find some interesting reading material in there.
“Callie, Micha and Romy will get them. Surely if you’ve been wandering around Diagon Alley, like you say, then you would have had plenty of time to look around Flourish and Blotts already,” Damon said, daring them to challenge him and admit that they were lying. He motioned to the others to go to the bookstore; he didn’t want to do it but they’d have to separate. Callie, Micha and Romy would finish the shopping while he took Harry and Clayton home to deal with their behaviour.
“Are you going to tell the Alpha about this?” Harry asked tentatively though he thought that he could pretty accurately guess the answer to this. Callie ushered Micha and Romy away, leading them to the bookstore before they could hear the answer that Damon gave.
“You can bet your life I am,” Damon said as he grabbed hold of the two boys by the scruff of their necks to start marching them towards the Leaky Cauldron only to be stopped mid-stride as four black-robed wizards, and a rather twitchy looking witch, blocked their path.
FGHP
Lucius was curious more than anything, about what Rodolphus had told him; finding Harry Potter would be an excellent way to restore himself in the Dark Lord’s favour. It seemed that either his fellow Deatheater was mistaken about what he had seen or the boy was being strangely elusive. They were almost done gathering the information they needed and so would be returning to the Manor soon, and Lucius thought that it would certainly be disappointing to return, having not located the boy. But it seemed that he wouldn’t have to worry about that.
“There, look,” Rodolphus said, suddenly, pointing towards where a fairly large brown haired man was telling off two teenage boys. “That’s him, I swear it is.”
Lucius surveyed the smaller of the two teenage boys with interest. He could clearly see why Rodolphus believed that this was Harry Potter. The Dark Lord had told his closest advisors what had happened the night he had attempted to kill the boy. Tom Riddle wanted the boy found and had asked for his followers to keep their eyes open for him so it was entirely possible that the teenager they saw before them was indeed Harry Potter.
There had been a list of wanted men released to the public a few years previously that had featured the boy’s name but no leads had turned up from that, at least none that had led to them finding anything. Now however it seemed that the boy who they had been searching for had almost fallen into their laps.
Whether it really was the boy, or not, it was still an opportunity not to be passed up. If it wasn’t him then there was no harm done but if it was and they failed to bring him in then the amount of pain they’d be in would make them beg for death before it came, plead for it, just to end the suffering.
“We cannot be certain, but we should take him with us just to be sure,” Lucius said, as the man that had been shouting took hold of the two teenagers and began marching them towards the awaiting group of Deatheaters.
Without further instruction they manoeuvred themselves to block the path of the three males, forcing them to stop. Upon closer inspection Lucius could see the scar upon the teenager's forehead, exactly where Rodolphus had said it would be and could see the resemblance to James Potter that the boy had too. If this wasn’t the boy the Dark Lord wanted then he would eat his own wand.
“Harry Potter,” Lucius drawled before eyeing the rest of the group the teenager was with as the other two males stood in front of him, protecting him.
“Sorry, no one of that name here,” Harry said defiantly, glaring at the tall blond wizard who had spoken to him. He had heard the name before, it had been on his Hogwarts letter but there was no way he was going to let anyone take away the name he and his father had shared. He didn’t care who these people were, he would never be Potter, he was Harry Prince.
Disregarding his words completely Lucius offered out his hand. “Lucius Malfoy,” he introduced, ignoring the others and focusing solely on Harry.
“Malfoy,” Harry mused, looking directly at the older blond wizard with curiosity. Ignoring the outstretched hand, he surveyed the man with interest, wondering if this was the father of the boy he’d met on Halloween in Hogsmead. The resemblance was there that was for certain. “My father mentioned the name… told me not to trust you.”
“Harry…” Damon hissed in warning, he had tensed upon hearing the name Potter, knowing that Fenrir would not have had the chance to talk to the boy about what they had found yet. Harry didn’t know, at least Damon didn’t think that he knew. Though apparently, despite his warning to Harry, he was about to find out exactly how much the boy knew.
“Your father?” Lucius questioned as his curiosity piqued; he was certain that James Potter was dead and had been since the boy had been an infant, and so clearly someone else had taken up that role. His eyes travelled to the man who was attempted to step in front of Harry protectively.
“Malfoy was it?” Damon said coldly. “You clearly have the wrong person and we’re leaving,” he stated attempting to sidestepped the group in front of them.
“Littlest Potter? Oooh, goody,” Bellatrix cooed, unable to contain herself any longer as she stepped forward getting up close to Harry, who Damon quickly moved behind him. “Thought you were dead, just like your parents, but now we can have some fun. Our Lord will be SO pleased to see you.”
“Bella!” Lucius snapped as the witch raised her wand to cast but he snatched it away before the words had a chance to leave her mouth. They couldn’t cause a scene, not here, not in front of witnesses. They had found the boy but it seemed that he wouldn’t be easy so take and Lucius was beginning to realise that they might not be able to take him to the Dark Lord as they had hoped to.
“He is not going anywhere with you,” Clayton said angrily from next to his father and Harry, having stepped closer to his friend when he had seen the trouble starting.
Damon couldn’t understand why it was that there was always trouble with Harry around. It was like the boy just attracted it somehow. He knew what these people were, he didn’t have to see beneath the sleeves of the robes to know that he would find the branding of the dark mark there. Deatheaters; and they knew about Harry.
“Oh look, how quaint,” Nott said with a sneer, looking between fifteen year old Clayton and Damon. Although Damon was a large guy by anyone’s standards he was seriously outnumbered and the Deatheaters knew that. “How do you propose you’ll stop us taking him if that’s what we want?”
“You’d be surprised,” Clayton hissed at Nott, taking a step forward, away from Harry, ready to fight, but Harry put an arm across his chest from behind him, pulling him back.
The younger of the two teenage boys was all for standing up for themselves and he really didn’t like these wizards; however, he had enough common sense to know that it wouldn’t do to be involved in a brawl in the middle of Diagon Alley. It was bad enough that they were being confronted by these oafs at all and they seemed to be intent on taking him to meet their Lord, something he wasn’t going to let happen. The words that his Dad had left him in his letter were ringing in Harry’s mind. If this Lucius Malfoy was Draco’s father then he worked for the man that had killed his mother.
“They all want to play,” Bella said with a cackle, trying to grab her wand back from Lucius but he held firm, keeping it out of her reach. He didn’t want to have this confrontation end up in a street duel; it would be bad for his reputation.
“Stand aside and let us past,” Damon said, his voice firm as he glared at the blond haired man who was very clearly in charge of this group. His wolf within him was snarling and snapping, wanting a fight, however his instincts were screaming at him to protect the pups and to remove them from the situation. The Deatheaters wanted Harry and there was no way he was going to let that happen. He had already lost Harry once today, he wasn’t going to let it happen for a second time.
Harry hated that these people were after him, his pack were under threat because of him again. He wanted to lash out and deal with them, the werewolf within him fighting for dominance; however, the logical part of his brain was telling him loud and clear that they were outnumbered. It was the knowledge that this man worked for the monster that had murdered his mother that made him step out from behind of Damon and Clay to square up to Lucius Malfoy.
Despite being both younger, smaller and generally a lot less terrifying that the older man he stood his ground and puffed up his chest, glaring at him, wanting to protect his pack brothers.
“Come on then,” Harry said challengingly, “You want to try and take me, then give it your best shot, let all these people,” Harry said as he began motioning to the gathering crowds, “see you kidnap a fifteen year old from his family.” The people around them all seemed curious as to what was going on, some of them were even snapping pictures.
“Fifteen,” Lucius mused. “That is true but you aren’t just any fifteen year old boy, you’re Harry Potter,” Lucius said rather loudly causing the gathered crowd to gasp and whisper at the name. He had done it purposefully; he wanted the world to know. Only then would they be able to keep track of the boy, ensure that he wasn’t lost again. The next time he resurfaced they would know about it.
“My name is Harry Prince,” Harry spat out angrily amongst more whispers from the gathering crowd. Damon had put a hand on Harry’s shoulder, trying to pull him back from the confrontation but Harry wasn’t budging.
“Prince… interesting,” Lucius mulled over, he had heard the name before, he knew who it belonged to.
“Wasn’t that Severus’ mothers name, Lucius?” Rodolphus questioned in a hushed voice. “He did disappear around the time the Dark Lord killed the Potters.”
Lucius had been about to turn around and lay into Lestrange for mentioning it, when he should have been controlling his wife, who was trying her hardest to retrieve her wand from Lucius. However the delicious response that the mention of Severus had from little Harry had the entire group of Deatheaters intrigued.
“Don’t you dare talk about my Dad like you knew him!” Harry spat at them, almost shouting out his rage as he tried to get free from Damon’s harsh grip upon his shoulder; however, the Beta wolf determinedly held on to the feisty pup. Damon didn’t like these men talking about Severus any more than Harry did, though as the older and wiser of them he had to be the one to restrain his building anger.
“Harry, that is enough,” Damon said. He was concerned; they had no idea just what these men might do if pushed or challenged. He tried to pull Harry back, to get in between the teenager and these wizards, but Harry wasn’t having any of it.
Harry just wanted to know what they were talking about; these men had known his Dad but they were clearly not good news. He didn’t want to believe that his Dad had known them, been friends with them, it just didn’t match up with anything he knew about the man his father had been.
“Let’s just go, Harry,” Clay said from his other side. He didn’t like the way they were looking at his best friend and honestly he just wanted to get out of there before everything got worse. Already crowds of people were gathering and whispering around them, and that was making him nervous.
“Clayton, go get the others,” Damon instructed under his breath and was glad that for once his son didn’t even argue before rushing off in the direction of the bookstore. It wasn’t safe for any of them here, Damon just hoped that the confrontation had given the others plenty of time to get everything they needed from the bookstore so that they could all leave.
It seemed that Clayton wasn’t the only one who had noticed the attention they were getting, as Malfoy narrowed his eyes at someone who had taken a photograph. The last thing they needed was to be plastered all over the Daily Prophet in the morning, snatching a child from his family; he wanted the world to know of the boy but he didn’t want to sully his reputation in the process!
At least he would have information to give to the Dark Lord now, they finally had an answer about how Harry Potter had vanished that night all those year ago. Severus, it seemed, was not dead as they believed; but the man had betrayed them all, which was no better. Lucius hoped he would get a chance to meet his former friend once more; that and get a chance at revenge which would be so sweet, but he suspected Lord Voldemort would not leave much of the potions master for anyone else to have a turn with.
Lucius sneered at the threesome in front of him; they had reached a stalemate it seemed and he knew there was nothing more that he could do and it was possible that the other little brat had run to get back up. “I suspect we’ll be seeing each other really soon, Mr Potter,” he said, giving a mocking smile as he nodded his head.
“You can count on it, Malfoy,” Harry said angrily, feeling Damon’s arms come around his shoulders and across his chest, trying to pull him away. “And my name is Prince,” he shouted for all to hear as he finally allowed Damon to turn them both away from the wizards, and witch, in black.
“Come on, Harry,” Damon said, trying to move Harry in the direction of Clay and the others, who he could see exiting the bookstore, their arms laden down with many bags filled with books. “We’re leaving,” he added with a poisonous glare over his shoulder back towards the Deatheaters who seemed to be bickering amongst themselves.
They had to get out of there, and he didn’t know whether to be more disturbed by, or grateful for, the crowds of people watching them. They were likely the only reason they had gotten away so cleanly and without so much as a punch or a spell thrown. He was certainly concerned about why the curious witches and wizards were taking pictures and it seemed that there was even a reporter in the midst, something that worried him even more.
“I want to go home,” Harry said in a whisper, and Damon suddenly realised, that despite the rather aggressive front the teenager had put up, he was very shaken from the whole confrontation. The bravado that Harry had shown was quickly fading as the adrenaline drained from his system and the Beta wolf could clearly see that he had paled considerably, his hands now trembling.
More photographs were being taken of them as Damon gathering Harry close to him, protectively as the others re-joined them, giving questioning looks as to what had happened and why it was that Harry appeared to be going into shock. The gathered Deatheaters were all watching them with fascination, observing them, wanting to give the Dark Lord as much information as possible.
“What happened?” Micha asked, but Damon just shook his head in response, now was not the time and place to discuss it, he turned to his sister and mouthed the word ‘home’ to Callie.
She nodded her understanding, pulling both Micha and her daughter into her arms, before apparating all three of them back to the territory. Damon followed suit, only moments later, with Harry and Clay; leaving the gossiping crowds, Malfoy and the other unknown Deatheaters behind.
FGHP
“What the fuck happened to my cousin?” Aiden demanded when Gideon returned to the rest of the pack with just Axlar, and no sign of Tessie anywhere.
“Settle down!” Gideon snapped at his newest pack member, not about to put up with any crap from one of his lower wolves like Aiden. “Axlar was in his right to try and claim her!”
“She’s still my cousin,” Aiden reminded them. He had heard the stories of what Axlar had done to other girls and he was already sure his cousin was dead, but he at least wanted to bury her with the respect her death undoubtedly lacked. “Where is she?”
“She ran!” Gideon informed him. “If she shows her face here again I’ll kill her myself, I won’t suffer disloyalty in my pack!”
“She wouldn’t do that,” Aiden argued, feeling more than a little stunned that Tessie had supposedly survived; he almost didn’t dare believe it and wondered if it was simply an attempt to ensure his own loyalty didn’t waver. “She had to have been provoked!” he said, with certainty, thinking of his other surviving cousin, languishing in a cell somewhere.
The two of them had been here to protect Jilly, to ensure that she survived. Aiden found it hard to believe that Tessie would run away from that. Jilly was only nineteen years old and had been mollycoddled by their pack, babied to the extreme. Tessie had only wanted to protect her from a world she knew nothing about; Aiden too wanted her safe but he was much more realistic, he knew she would have to learn one way or another. However he didn’t want her locked up and in the hands of a madman to learn those life lessons the hard way.
“If you’ve got something to say, little wolf, say it,” Axlar snarled, towering over Aiden. His mood was already more than a little sour from the bitch’s escape and he was half tempted to slit someone’s throat just to have some blood to play with. If Aiden kept pushing and challenging him then he was the one who was going to have his blood spilt no matter what Gideon said about needing numbers.
“Leave it, Aiden,” Dean said, not wanting his pack brother to provoke the large Beta wolf; he already knew what it was like to be on the receiving end of one of his fists and it wasn’t a nice feeling to endure. He had been shocked to discover that he could actually stomach being around Aiden, which was more than he could say for most of the others. In different circumstances they might have even been friends. “She was weak, she’s better off gone!”
“She’s my cousin!” Aiden growled again as if this made the world of difference when in reality it changed nothing. Family ties were proving to be a weakness, the death of Roderic had encumbered Russ for several days. He much preferred his wolves to bond over spilt blood not shared blood.
“She was just a bitch,” Gideon said impatiently, sick of having to deal with whiney and argumentative werewolves, he wanted killers, not men of sentiment and conscience. “She was a distraction and too weak to survive here, which was proven today. She’ll be dead by now, forget her!”
To the Alpha this put an end to the matter, he just hoped that they wouldn’t have to put up with Aiden moping around the same way Russ had done over Roderic. He couldn’t stand all the brooding and feelings, they got in the way of what was important, killing.
“What did you do to her you fucking monster?” Aiden shouted as Dean took a stand, taking hold of Aiden before he could go to attack the Beta wold. Axlar took several steps forward, grasping Aiden around the throat despite Dean’s hold on the smaller wolf.
“She wanted it, she was so desperate for it that it disgusted me,” Axlar hissed dangerously, bending the truth of the situation. “I rejected her and she attacked me and ran.” Then with a sickening grin he added, “I stabbed her though, right in the back.”
“You sick fucking bastard!” Aiden shouted as best he could, struggling desperately against the hold Dean had on him and the large hand around his throat.
“And don’t you forget that,” Axlar said, with a gleam of pride in his eyes.
Aiden was horrified that Axlar had taken what he’d said as a compliment. It was that comment that made him feel positively sick to the stomach at the company he was currently keeping and instantly he stopped struggling, tears welling up in his eyes as he thought of Tessie and Jilly. Without one he was certain he would be unable to save the other.
Axlar dropped his grip on Aiden, looking at him in disgust when he saw that the man was about to cry. Aiden had to believe that Tessie was still alive, she was the strongest person he knew, she could survive anything. She had been stabbed in the back but it was possible that if she got help she could survive. He needed to believe that it was a possibility that she would be able to survive it because without her everything seemed hopeless.
FGHP
In the absence of Callie, Romy and Harry, the remaining members of the pack left in the territory had struggled a little come lunchtime when their stomachs had started growling hungrily, demanding food. None of them had the first clue about preparing a meal, at least nothing that they had in the storage cave. No one wanted to risk an upset stomach, especially Harlan who was still recovering from the prank that had been pulled on him.
Jenson had watched his mate and daughter cook plenty of times but he still wouldn’t have trusted himself to make anything for the group. Lukas however was on hand to at least make some tea. It was the one thing that they were sure wouldn’t kill them when made by someone other than the three designated cooks of the pack.
Harlan however had point blank refused to accept anything from anyone else if he hadn’t seen it made from beginning to end, not after the last time. He wouldn’t touch anything unless the entire pack were having the same from the same source. No one could really blame him for this, though it was a source of amusement for the others and they didn't care one iota if he went hungry.
Nothing could improve Fenrir’s mood, however; he had been in a bad temper ever since the others had left for Diagon Alley. At first he had gone over to chop firewood to relieve some of his aggression but they already had plenty of that and he soon realised that it would be counterproductive to chop anymore. Now he was just frustrated. He had sat himself near the fire and was playing a game of solitaire to keep his mind occupied until the others returned.
He was in half a mind to take his pent up frustrations and worry out on the omega wolf, after all that was what he was there for, however considering the mood that he was in he probably would have killed the annoying little shit. Plus, even he had to admit that missing Harry, and being frustrated over the fact that they were separated, was probably not a good enough reason to vent on the omega wolf, no matter how much of a fuckwit he was.
“Here you go, my Alpha,” Lukas said, handing over one of the two mugs of tea that he held.
Fenrir took the mug and looked down into it morosely. He was in a bad mood and now he was expected to drink tea? He definitely needed something stronger, coffee at the very least if not hard liquor. His hunger wasn’t helping matters either; he wondered if perhaps sending Callie with the pups had been a bad idea, but then Harry’s safety definitely ranked as a higher priority than his own stomach.
They were going to have to do something about the pack only having three members that were able to cook anything half way decent to eat. This was even more true with two of the pack cooks about to leave to go to school. If anything happened to Callie that rendered her unable to cook then they would all be in trouble.
“I'm sure they’ll be fine,” Lukas said, not really sure what else to say to the sullen Alpha who was glaring hatefully into the fire.
“Sure,” Fenrir grunted. He just didn’t want to think about it, he hated that Harry wasn’t here in the territory and loathed that he couldn’t have gone with him, and protect his little mate, even more. His place was to protect his mate, not let him go gallivanting off all over the place. He was starting to second guess his decision to send Harry to Hogwarts, unsure how he was going to cope not having him in the territory most of the time.
“Tea will help,” Lukas encouraged, noticing the Alpha hadn’t even tasted his yet. “It soothes the nerves,” he explained.
“Prefer coffee,” the Alpha said bluntly, all but forcing the cup back into Lukas hand, before getting to his feet and walking off across the territory, completely disregarding his unfinished card game.
“He still…?” Jenson asked taking Fenrir’s vacated spot by the fire, starting to pack up the playing cards.
“Yep,” Lukas confirmed with a nod, offering Jenson the rejected mug of tea, which was gratefully accepted after he’d shuffled the cards back into their pack.
“Well, try not to take it personally,” Jenson said, “he’s angry with the situation, not your tea. And pretty good tea it is too, by the way.”
“That one is, Assam, not my favourite but I thought it might be nice to have something a little heavier and more straight forward.”
“I’m not going to lie to you, Lukas,” Jenson said with a shrug, “they all taste pretty much the same to me.”
“How can you say that?” Lukas asked with a slight gasp. “My mother would be horrified!” Though there was a hint of amusement in his tone as he spoke.
“Is she the one who got you hooked on the stuff?” Jenson asked curiously, it wasn’t often that Lukas spoke about anything other than academics, certainly nothing about his personal life and he had never mentioned his family.
“Yes,” Lukas said, remembering her sadly, the last time they had spoken they had argued, it had been years ago and she knew nothing of his life now. Not that that bothered him, he had a new family now, one that accepted him for what he was. “We spent many an hour discussing the finer points of each blend of tea, she was a great woman, my mother; though she never could approve of me being a werewolf.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Jenson said sincerely. He had never heard the younger wolf talk about his childhood, but the lack of mention of his parents in the time since he had joined them made him wonder what had happened. “When were you bitten?” He asked conversationally.
“I was five,” Lukas told him. “My parents, they called it my disease. My father handled it the worst, he even divorced my mother because of it. Found himself a new family, one that wasn’t infected.”
“He sounds… pleasant,” Jenson told him, not really wanting to all out insult his pack brother’s father, but not liking the sound of the man one bit, and he knew a thing or two about difficult fathers.
“Yes, well, my father… there are no words to describe him.” After a moment of hesitation Lukas asked, “You’re a born werewolf aren’t you?”
“Yes, though the pack I was born into, they went to a pretty dark place,” Jenson explained, “more or less from the moment my older brother killed my father and took his place as Alpha. My brother was always a little too obsessed with the dark arts.”
“Do you miss your family?” Lukas asked curiously; he would be the first to admit that he was better off without his parents around, but that didn’t mean he didn’t miss his mother occasionally.
“Considering it’s my brother out there attacking us and that it was my brother and my old pack who hurt Romy… No, I don’t miss them at all,” Jenson said through clenched teeth, before taking a calming breath; he couldn’t let his anger get the better of him. He was put more on edge by the fact that his mate and daughter weren’t close to him and that he wasn’t able to protect them right now. He wanted them back in the territory, where they were safe just as much as Fenrir wanted Harry back.
“Your brother?” Lukas asked, staring at him in surprise. He definitely hadn’t seen that one coming, and while he knew that Romy had been hurt when she came to the pack, that it had been Jenson’s own brother… well it was a lot to take in.
Jenson nodded curtly; he really didn’t want to dwell on thoughts of Gideon. Though he hadn’t specifically mentioned that the other Alpha was his blood relation, Jenson was sure that Fenrir knew; the Alpha was far too good at identifying scents not to. It was hardly an issue; this pack were his family now, not the bastard who made his life miserable and nearly killed Romy.
“Does the Alpha…?” Lukas asked, glancing over at where Fenrir was prowling on the other side of the clearing, seemingly just waiting for his mate to return.
“Know that Gideon and I share a father?” Jenson finished for him. “It makes no difference; you guys are my real family now and there isn’t much you can slip past the Alpha with his nose.”
Lukas nodded; he could hear in Jenson’s tone that the older werewolf was done talking about this Gideon guy and his previous pack. He hadn’t met the stray werewolves at all, but he hardly blamed Jenson for not wanting to be associated with them. He sat and listened to Harry talk about what they had done to him. That alone was enough to make Lukas’ blood boil at the thought of them.
“Do you?” Jenson asked. “Miss your family, I mean,” he clarified, hoping to change the subject.
“Sometimes,” Lukas admitted, still looking at Jenson with concern and surprise. “But I’m happy here, happier than I’ve been in a long while.”
“Good to know,” Jenson said with a smile. “Me too.”
The two of them eyed the Alpha male who was prowling around the clearing, looking into the woods; what he was doing they had no idea but they were happy to allow him to do whatever he needed to do while they waited the return of the others. It was very clear that he was missing Harry. No one was going to point this out though, they weren’t stupid and none of them had a death wish. To suggest such a thing would make him appear weak, something an Alpha couldn’t afford to be.
Everyone was on their feet in an instant as a shrill, panicked scream for help pierced the silence of the territory, even Harlan who had been sulking on his own away from the others, became alert and on edge at the sound. It had been undeniably female but it hadn’t sounded at all like either Callie or Romy.
“Jenson,” Fenrir shouted. “Stay here, keep an eye on fuckwit, over there; Lukas, come with me.”
They immediately did as they were told, Lukas discarding his mug of tea and charging off towards his Alpha who was already venturing deeper into the forest after the source of the scream. A second echoing cry for help rang in their ears as they left the safety of their clearing.
Lukas was hardly whom he would have chosen to deal with an unknown intruder in their territory, but he couldn’t leave the younger werewolf with Harlan, that would just be asking for trouble. Why couldn’t people just stay the fuck out of his territory?
The Alpha sniffed the air as he ran, noting the scent of blood that came from the same direction as the scream; he could hear the sound of Lukas’ feet hitting the ground behind him but he hadn’t been able to hear or smell anyone else in the woods. He slowed as the smell of blood became stronger and he listened carefully.
“Help! Damn it, please, help,” the woman’s voice called out tearfully, and he could smell the fear radiating from her; she was damn near terrified.
Fenrir growled deep in his throat, quietly; but she must had heard because her sobs stopped suddenly and the air was filled with the silence of someone trying to hold themselves very still. He didn’t want another werewolf to watch over, who they wouldn’t be able to trust, but he had questions and the unknown woman might have the answers he needed.
“My Alpha?” Lukas questioned as he came up next to him.
“Stay close to me,” the Alpha instructed in a snappish tone , needing to focus; he had slowed his pace down and all he could smell was blood and fear. The desperate pleading for help had silenced but the air was thick with the scent of blood now, they were close. “Girl,” Fenrir called out somewhat impatiently.
“Don’t hurt me, please don’t hurt me,” he heard the woman’s voice plea. The Alpha shifted directions to head towards where he could hear her voice coming from.
“Show yourself,” Fenrir demanded, not making any promises to spare her life. He wouldn’t give her false hope. However judging by just how scared she was, she wasn’t likely to be a threat to them. There were certain things you just couldn’t fake and fear, like what the Alpha could scent now, was one of them.
It was then that he saw her. Her shock of blonde hair was standing out in the sparse undergrowth that had shed its leaves for the winter. She was a beautiful young woman there was no doubting that, though far too skinny and, unfortunately for her, she had a knife protruding from her left shoulder, which had rendered her left arm useless to her. She was kneeling upon the ground having just fallen over and was now struggling to catch her breath.
“Fenrir Greyback,” she gasped out, shocking the Alpha enough to make him hesitate, Lukas just behind him, staring at the girl in horror. She looked a right state, clearly having been running through the forest for a while until she had stumbled across them. “You’re the one they’re hunting.”
“What’s your name, girl?” Fenrir scowled, he wouldn’t kill her, her words had guaranteed that much. At least for now she was safe.
“Tessie,” she said, “I can help you… I have information; the other pack. Please… help me.” Her words were soft and it clearly strained her to speak. She was already on the ground, her china blue eyes looking up at the Alpha wolf pleadingly, begging him to save her.
“What do we do?” Lukas asked the Alpha as the feeble young woman lost her battle to stay conscious, falling to the ground in a heap.
“She could be useful to us,” Fenrir said with annoyance, this wasn’t something he wanted to deal with right now. “We’ll take her back with us.” Another wolf injured and bleeding in his territory; this was starting to become a rather unfortunate common occurrence, one he didn’t like.
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Fragmented Soul