Chapter 12

..... The sun was barely visible when Tanner led Sirius to a cliff of rocks. It was bitingly cold. He was glad to see a very small campfire there, just a handful of flames, kept out of the wind by a crouched figure. The figure stood up, showing itself to be a small woman. And this is Rosie, Sirius thought, squinting at her in the dimming light. Rosie was short, dark, and pretty, with a cloud of black hair around her face in a dark halo. The firelight reflected off her eyes with an eerie green glow, like a cat’s. She gave Sirius no more than a glance and then looked at Tanner, who jumped up on her like a friendly dog, going as far as to lick her face.

..... “Stop it,” she told him. “Who’s your friend?”

..... “Any friend of Esme’s is a friend of mine,” Tanner replied, shifting back to his ragged human shape. He still snuggled her, wrapping his arms around her neck. Rosie shoved him off and turned to look at Sirius. With her back to the flames, her eyes returned to a natural brown.

..... “Who are you?” she asked. Sirius shifted back to his true form, which put him over a head taller than her. Unfazed, she tilted her head back, keeping her eyes on him. It was easy to see what Esme had meant when she had said that the key to recognizing shapechangers was in their eyes. With Tanner, his scent marked him as inhuman, but the real give-away were his mismatched eyes, the normal blue eye and the feral yellow one. With Rosie, both eyes were pools of wildness.

..... “A mute?” she asked coldly when he didn’t answer right away.

..... “No,” snapped Sirius, annoyed. Tanner chuckled, sitting on a rock and stretching his bare feet to the weak fire.

..... “Rosie, posie, puddin’ and pie,” he said, earning a sour glare from her. “Prettiest thing under the sky. Sharp of tongue and hard of heart, it’s her face that sets her apart.”

..... “Lovely,” she snarled. “I needed warriors and I get a mad poet and a mute.”

..... “She’s really very nice,” Tanner whispered loudly to Sirius.

..... “She hides it well,” he answered, crossing his arms over his chest. The cold was making him shiver without his fur. Tanner nodded, grinning. Rosie growled audibly as she turned to face them again.

..... “Hear me,” she said, staring grimly at Sirius. “I owe the Zephyr family nothing. The Orderkeeper is the one I want and so long as you don’t get in my way, I won’t let the sun into your black hide. Understood?”

..... “What she means by that is that she will never admit that she needed help once in her life and Esme was the one who gave it to her,” Tanner piped up. Rosie turned on him in fury. He cowered, but went on talking. “She covers that up with her dislike for The-One-Who-Must-Have-Order and if one of us gets between her and him she’ll tear so many holes in us, we won’t be able to cast shadows!”

..... The last few words were shrieked as Rosie lunged at him, becoming a wolf in mid-leap. She was black, with a gray pattern over her lower back and tail. To Sirius’ shock she tackled Tanner and sank her teeth into his throat.

..... “I give! I give! Uncle!” Tanner yelped, his breath coming out in clouds.. Rosie gave him a shake, but released him. Snarling, she stalked away, clicking her fangs and swishing her tail. Tanner sat up again. He wiped away the blood on his neck and turned back to Sirius, who was trying not to stare as he saw the puncture holes heal up before his eyes.

..... “Esme,” Sirius said finally, tearing his eyes away from it. “She’s a Zephyr?” He remembered that she had told Snape the box was sealed with a blood seal that only a relative of Ms. Zephyr could open. Tanner was chuckling again though.

..... “She’s more like a hurricane,” he said, eyes twinkling. He rubbed his hand together to warm them. “A tsunami! Destroying coastal villages and all semblance of sanity in her path.”

..... “Don’t make it worse,” sighed Sirius. “I’ve had all I can take of figuring that woman out.”

..... “Oh, she’s a Zephyr all right,” Tanner added. The ragged shapeshifter was suddenly looking out over the rocks. A growl was heard from Rosie, somewhere in the dark. Tanner raised his voice to carry over the chill wind. “Just like her pretty twin.”

..... Sirius turned to follow his gaze to where Lorelei emerged from the mist. She eyed Rosie carefully as the black wolf circled her. North bristled at the professor’s side, trying to keep an eye on Rosie without leaving her. Sirius got to his feet. His emotions were finally as numb as his ears. This new information didn’t leave him with any sense of relief or surprise. The Elmskill Defense teacher came a few steps closer and stopped, tucking her hands into the sleeves of her robe.

..... “Why didn’t you just say Esme was your sister?” he asked her. She met his eyes and didn’t move.

..... “Because she was denounced, disowned, and almost mercifully forgotten by everyone but me,” she said. “After she brought about my ‘accident’ she was disgraced. And then she disappeared. Our parents got word that she was running with some dark wizards on the west coast, but they didn’t give up on her until we found out that she had given up magic and was living as a Muggle.”

..... “Why would she do that?” Sirius asked. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a red blur as Tanner shifted to a wolf and joined Rosie in their circling. North growled, unable to stay block both of them at once.

..... “How should I know?” she answered coolly. “I’ve only seen her once since she tricked me into a vampire’s ball. At midnight the masks came off, and I was the only without fangs. But you’d know all about pranks gone wrong, wouldn’t you, Mr. Black? “

..... Sirius all but bristled. A bolt of panic shot through him that she knew his name. Lorelei made no sign that she was enjoying the affect that she had caused.

..... “I know the official story. I was curious about the boy and did some research while that mad nurse kept me in the infirmary. It seems you outsmarted yourself there, sir. Of course, the story can’t be entirely true or the child would not be so fond of you and the Headmaster here wouldn’t be covering your tracks.”

..... “The whole truth is hard to come by around here,” Sirius growled. He advanced a step on the woman. “I’ve been trying to dig it up for days now. What do you know about the Morthahg?” Her mask-like face seemed to stiffen even more. “Why is YOUR Headmaster so anxious to be sure that no one thinks it was you that summoned it unless there was some evidence that you had?”

..... Rosie was suddenly human again. “If it was you that released that thing,” she said. “I’ll kill you, no matter your kinship to Esme.”

..... “I didn’t!” Lorelei hissed. “A blood-sealed item was used to summon it up and the item was sealed to my family’s blood. The only other kin I have on this shore is Esme. Ask her who released it.” Rosie narrowed her eyes, but didn’t reply.

..... “You believe your sister would do such a thing?,” Sirius said, making them break their staredown to look at him.

..... “Do you believe I am wrong/” she asked, turning on him with her arms crossed. Behind her, Rosie became a wolf again and resumed circling them.

..... “What about the vials?” he reminded her. “If Esme gave up magic than why was she hunting vampires? She killed five of them for you. Or at least for your cure. That means nothing to you?” Lorelei’s face shut like a door. Sirius continued, relentless. “Or is that why you’re angry? Perhaps you grew fond of your masters while you were a pet.”

..... “How dare you,” she hissed, seeming to swell with fury.

..... “If you don’t have answers you’re no use to me,” he told her. “That’s all I want from the sister you seem to hate so much.”

.....“I do hate her,” she said, more softly. “Almost as much as I miss her.” A strange emotion flickered in her eyes, then vanished. “I’ve followed her trail here. She owes me some answers, too.”

.....North quickly made a snapping lunge at Tanner, who had come too close to Lorelei. The red wolf danced away on his hind paws, disappearing into the mist and the emerging again as a human. North yelped in surprise, retreating to Lorelei’s side. Lorelei herself blinked, taken aback.

..... “Shall we continue the hunt then?” purred Rosie, also reappearing as a human. “Lead the way, cat, and we will follow.”

..... “I can’t shapechange again,” Lorelei admitted after a pause. She held up the bracelet to show them. “It’s only good for three changes until it’s recharged.”

..... “We’ll have to go slowly then,” the contempt in Rosie’s voice was plain. She and Tanner shifted back to wolves and started off into the mist. Sirius went after them. He decided to stay in human form despite the cold. Lorelei and North fell into step beside him. She fiddled with the bracelet some and noticed him watching her.

..... “The Zephyrs are known for making magical items,” she said. “It’s the family business.”

..... “You made it then?” he asked, motioning at her wrist. She nodded, pulling her sleeve back over it.

..... “Esme’s better at it than me,” she said. “She has a gift for Personalification, but there isn’t as much call for it in the States now. People don’t care for inanimate objects telling them what to do anymore. She has a knack for it though. She made this horrible quilt when she was just a kid and it was better than any babysitter.”

..... “I’ve seen it,” Sirius sighed, shaking his head. He shivered as a sharp gust of wind cut through his robes and put his hands in his pockets. An electric buzz went through his fingers as they brushed past something. He pulled it out and found Esme’s rings. Too bad it isn’t that heat ball she had in the cave, he sighed, but it gave him an idea. After a moment of thought, he slipped one onto his little finger. An unfamiliar tingle stung in his knuckles, then faded out.

..... Sirius cast a warmth spell and felt a wave of toasty air surround him. His breath still came out as steam in the cold, but he felt no more chill. Lorelei was having trouble going. Her wound was bothering her and she clutched at her chest. North had placed himself between her and Sirius and was eyeing the woman worriedly.

..... The wolves led them through the rocks and back into the trees. The mist was still thick and the ground was gnarled with tree roots and sharp with slivers of rock. Sirius would have changed to Padfoot for easier going, but Lorelei was having too much trouble for him to desert her. She stumbled every third step, but no sound of pain or complaint escaped her. He took her by one arm to help steady her. She braced her free hand again North and the dog did his best to help her, all the while keeping a careful eye on Sirius.

..... Rosie and Tanner were barely visible ahead of them, running along almost soundlessly. After a long stumbling way, the two wolves stopped at a huge rock, half covered in withered moss. Near the ground on the far side of it was embedded an iron ring, Rosie sniffed it carefully and shifted to her human form.

..... “It was here,” she said. “And Esme too, but both scents are cold.” She took hold of the ring and gave it an experimental tug. The whole face of the rock moved, making her drop it in surprise. It slid back into position with a low grating noise.

..... “Don’t know your own strength, sweetness?” Tanner asked, also shifting back. She shook her head and took the ring again. She pulled more gently and the rock lifted again, as if it weighed nothing. Beneath it, a flight of stone stairs disappeared into blackness below.

..... “It’s not even magic,” Lorelei said, her voice raspy in the quiet. She pointed to something hidden in the moss. “It’s set up in hinges. The stone is probably hollow.”

..... “Who’d go to the trouble?” Sirius wondered aloud. Rosie sank forward onto her hands and transformed again. She crept forward cautiously onto the stairs. Tanner edged forward too, setting a bare foot carefully on the first step. He sniffed noisily, tossing back his shaggy hair so his yellow eye could peer into the darkness. “This isn’t old...” he said, sounding unsure of it. “The dirt still smells disturbed.” Rosie was out of sight down the stairs so he shifted and followed. Sirius took a deep breath and stepped down after them. He heard an uneasy growl from North, but then Lorelei came behind him.

..... The ceiling was low and treeroots dangled from it. After a few yards, the dirt tunnel became a water-worn stone cave. There was no light at first, but as his eyes adjusted he could make out the weakest of lights further down the corridor. It was warmer underground, out of the wind and mist, or at least Sirius thought so until he stepped into an ankle-deep puddle of icy water. He gasped before he could catch himself, and then forced himself to keep walking. He moved slowly so he wouldn’t splash any more of the frigid stuff.

..... It was amazing how cold feet could chill the whole body, he thought as his teeth started to chatter. Ahead of him, he realized he could make out the lean silhouette of Tanner as the wolf paused to look upwards. The cave opened out into a large chamber. It was at least thirty feet to the ceiling, which was a surprise to Sirius as he hadn’t thought they were that deep underground.

..... The dim light was coming from a small swarm of glowing creatures. One drifted close enough to Sirius for him to get a decent look at it. It looked like a big-eyed freshwater shrimp with tiny oval wings moving at a blur. Its body was transparent, but it generated a pale green light. They brightened the room enough for him to see Rosie and Tanner sniffing at something on the ground. Drawing nearer, he saw that it was Esme’s trenchcoat.

..... There was no sign of violence, it looked like she had left the coat carelessly. The only reason he could think of for her to do that when it was so cold was to leave a clue for someone to find. Did she know they were following then? An idea dawned on him and knelt to go through the coat’s pockets. The first thing he found was the battered cup. He set it aside and kept looking.

..... It turned out that Esme kept everything in her pockets. He found a coil of wire, lockpicks, an orange, three different knives, a small mirror, her blue jay quill pen, her green robe, needles and thread, fish hooks, magnets, an umbrella, a purple toothbrush, several maps of different places, and three packs of Muggle chewing gum.

..... Some less practical items were a shark’s tooth necklace, all kinds of mismatched earrings, a Peter Gabriel tape, pages torn from phone books and magazines, half a bag of gummy worms, and a postcard from Thailand. (To: E, Having a great time! The bugs are very big, but the food is wonderful. We’re riding elephants on a jungle tour tomorrow. M. is upset because some monkeys stole his sunglasses. He’s also developed a horrible snake phobia. I think he’s having fun though. Love, B.) Finally though, he found what he was looking for; the magic compass. He stood up with it and found Lorelei holding the cup.

..... “More of your family’s work?” he asked her.

..... “Mine actually,” she said, turning it in her hands. “ I made it for her long camping trips.” He nodded and cupped the compass in his hands as he had seen Esme do. Lorelei brightened when she saw it.

..... “Say what you want to find first.” she said, standing closer. “Then the spell.”

.....“Esme,” Sirius said at once. The wolves were watching with interest now. “Compasstos.” It began to spin in his hands and a beam shot off into the dark. Rosie followed it first, Tanner on her heels. Sirius started to go too, but then Lorelei cried out and fell. She clawed at the wound on her chest, face contorted with pain.

..... “What?” he asked her, trying to pull her back to her feet. “What is it??” North began to bark wildly, acting panicked. A vicious orange glow began to light the far side of the chamber.

..... “Morthahg!” she gasped. “I can’t...” Sirius grabbed her up as best as he was able and ran. The compass hovered over him, still trying to point the way. The glow built behind them, bright enough to cast his shadow out in front of him. Outside the chamber, the cave narrowed again and an outspur of rock created a nook big enough for him to stuff Lorelei into. He wedged himself in next to her and tried to crouch down.

.....North piled in over top of him, landing heavily on his mistress, who squeaked with pain. The big dog licked her face in apology and they all waited. Sirius hadn’t seen the Morthahg before, but he could feel a cold dread at the thing’s presence. Even in the still cave, it felt as if the air was being pulled from him, sucked back towards the advancing orange light. He peeked around the rock to see the thing as it approached.

..... It was a fiery cloud, twisting into shapes as it moved. The floating glowers went out like candles as it passed them. Sirius saw their fragile little bodies dissolve into ash. His eyes begin to sting in their sockets and he cowered back against North and Lorelei. He clenched his eyes shut, but the vision of the Morthahg seemed to burn through his eyelids. He could see it clearly, even through the rock.

..... Slowly as a cloud, the Morthahg passed them. Its very presence seemed to repel them. Sirius felt Lorelei convulse against his back and his own guts jerked. North howled miserably, as affected as they were. Overhead, a tendril of the Morthahg caught the enchanted compass. It dropped, bouncing off Sirius’ shoulder and rolling to the floor. There was a long twenty seconds of heat and pain and then the thing disappeared down the tunnel.

.....Sirius recovered slowly. Something trickled down his chin and he wiped at it, tasting blood. He had bitten his lip. Lorelei was still a huddled mess. North cowered beside her, barely visible now that the glowers were dead. Sirius cast Lumos with Esme’s ring and it glowed enough for him to pick up the compass. It was a normal compass, suspended in a glass orb. It didn’t respond to any spell he tried on it and so he set it down again. He wondered what had happened to the wolves.

..... “Back again?” Esme’s voice said. He froze, spinning toward the sound. It came from the direction the Morthahg had gone and he ran to it, leaving Lorelei to North’s care. Some kind of commotion broke out and a familiar snarl echoed from somewhere. The tunnel branched out into several. Without the compass’ beam, he had no idea which way to go.

..... The slap of feet on the stone floor made him turn again, just as someone plowed into from the dark. He fell backwards, grabbing onto whoever it was. They landed on the damp floor and tussled briefly until they recognized each other. It was Esme, cold and out of breath. She hugged him fiercely before he could speak, squeezing the breath out of him.

..... “I need my rings,” she said, snatching it off his finger and quickly starting to go through his pockets for the other one.

..... “Is that all you have to say?” he sputtered, pulling her to her feet. He handed her the second ring before she could tear his clothes off.

..... “I’m glad you’re all right,” she said. “But I don’t have much time!”

..... “Your sister is here looking for you,” he told her. and she eyed him more coldly.

..... “Tell her she need to take another vial within 24 hours,” she said, slipping her rings back on. He caught her chin to make her look at him.

..... “Rosie and Tanner are here, too,” he said. She took his wrist to pull his hand away.

..... “Don’t let Rosie fight him,” she whispered, glancing over her shoulder. “Tanner will back you if behave sensibly.”

..... “Fight who??” he demanded. “I need some sort of explanation!”

..... “I have two more days,” she reminded him. “And then everything, I promise. But you’ll be killed outright if you’re seen with me now. Take care of those idiots for me, Lorey included.” She started to go, but he grabbed her arm again.

..... “Your friend the Potionsmaster may need some care, too.” she added, pulling free. “You’re needed elsewhere, sweety.” She smooched the end of his nose and ran off back into the blackness. The sound of the wolves fighting could still be heard from another tunnel. Torn between finding them and following Esme, Sirius nearly screamed when Lorelei grabbed him. She lit her wand and peered at him hopefully.

..... “I heard her,” she said. “Where is she?”

..... “Help me find the wolves,” he replied. “Send your dog to track them.” She looked like she wanted to argue but sighed and knelt beside North. She murmured to the white dog and his tail fanned the air gently. He dropped his nose to the ground and circled. When he picked up the scent, he trotted down a corridor to the right. Lorelei and Sirius followed. Glancing back, Sirius saw the faintest glimmer of green. Perhaps one of the glowers had survived then. Insignificant as it was, it gave him hope.