"I can't get ahold of him. The cell number Harry had has been disconnected and he hasn't been into his shop for a month, according to the receptionist. He's 'taking a sabbatical'."
"Damn."
"I hate to mention it, Ms. Murphy, but we probably don't want to call Thomas for help anyway. He's...he got torn up pretty bad by that thing. He wasn't acting...normally. He was dangerous." Molly set the last glass of orange juice out on the table. The younger kids were all upstairs getting washed up and dressed for school. Harry was up there with them, with Charity supervising.
"Karrin, I told you. And okay. Okay. I hate to even bring it up, but we might need to contact the Council. Can you do that? Do you have a contact number or something?" Murphy flipped the pancake in the skillet.
"Uh. Well, yeah. I mean, Harry does, so we could go back to his place and get it. But." She flushed and looked down at the table. "Harry took responsibility for me, Karrin. If we call the Council in, and they find out Harry's not responsible any more..." She trailed off, but Murphy could finish the sentence. From what Harry had told her, he and Molly had just managed to dodge a death sentence with the whole Morgan affair. There were too many people on the Council that couldn't be trusted. The very least they might do would be to sweep in and take Harry and Molly away. More likely they'd take Harry away and execute Molly. Hell, they might execute Harry just for the hell of it.
"It's okay. But we need some help here. It's been three days already and he's not changing back. Cowl hasn't been back either, but I don't expect that to last. He's got to be out there getting something else together."
"Maybe Harry's wards killed him?"
"No body." Murphy waved the spatula through the air. "Maybe Harry's wards disintegrated him, but we're not usually that lucky. Better to assume that he's alive and coming back." She slid the last pancake onto the stack and handed the platter to Molly. "We need help. We need someone who knows more about magic than we do."
A small flood of children hit the dinning room and everything descended into organized chaos. Once everyone was fed, they all trooped out to the van for school drop offs. Molly washed up while Harry and Murphy took Mouse out into the back yard.
"You remember what we talked about this morning?"
Harry sighed and rolled his eyes at her.
"Yes. You've got to go to work and Michael's at work too. So it's just me and Molly and Charity and Mouse. So I have to stay inside." He kicked at a clod of grass and dirt. "Why can't I go to school? I'm really good at math."
"I'm sure. But we're having some trouble getting you enrolled at the new school. As soon as we get it straightened out we'll have you going to class, okay?" She ruffled his hair and smiled as he ducked his head out from under her hand. "I know it sucks, and I'm sorry. But you'll have fun with Molly and I've got some other people coming over too."
"Who?"
"Some kids about Molly's age." Ish. If you rounded up a lot. "You'll like Billy."
~
"How'd it go?" Murphy ran her hands through her hair, shaking it out from being squashed by her motorcycle helmet.
"Fine. They're in the back." Charity grabbed the helmet up from the end table Murphy had dropped it on and put it up in the closet.
"I thought we agreed he was going to stay inside." Irritation flowed through her words and Murphy stepped past the taller woman.
"They needed the space. And Molly's out there with Mouse. Just go see." Charity disappeared into the kitchen.
Mouse and Molly were sitting right outside the back door on the steps of the porch. Molly glanced up as Murphy came out the door and then grinned.
"He's quick." Molly pointed out into the yard where three huge dogs were chasing each other through the leaves. As Murphy watched she recognized Billy and Georgia's wolf forms, easily as long and tall as Mouse but leaner, sleek with muscle, rather than bulky. The different between a runner and a weightlifter in looks, maybe. The third wolf was smaller, his paws had the outsized in comparison to his body look of an adolescent and his fur was thick and dark brown, nearly black.
"They taught him how to turn into a wolf?" Murphy felt like smacking herself in the head. Or maybe Billy. They were supposed to be extra security. Not cause more trouble.
"He knew there was something different about them." Molly shrugged. "Harry pestered them until Billy told him and then he convinced them to show him how they did it. He's a little con-man, Ms.- Karrin. He picked the trick up right away and they've been playing out here ever since."
A few seconds passed and then Billy the wolf caught sight of Murphy on the back porch. He turned to Georgia, barked something at her at ducked behind the addition. When he came back out he was human shaped and wearing a loose pair of sweats.
"I need to talk to you."
"Come on." They circled around to the side of the house, out of sight and out of hearing range.
"Harry doesn't smell right."
"What?"
"People smell like themselves, all the time. Yeah, you can try to hide it under different scents, but people still have a fundamental, individual them-smell that doesn't go away. It's how we can track people. And Harry doesn't smell like Harry."
"Are you saying that's not Harry?"
"No. I don't think it's a changeling or something. I mean, the kid still smells basically like Harry. But there's something else there. Some other scent that's all tangled up in his. Maybe it's the spell that did this but it's...it doesn't smell like a spell. It smells like something alive."
Fill: 7/? scrappy!Harry prompt
"I can't get ahold of him. The cell number Harry had has been disconnected and he hasn't been into his shop for a month, according to the receptionist. He's 'taking a sabbatical'."
"Damn."
"I hate to mention it, Ms. Murphy, but we probably don't want to call Thomas for help anyway. He's...he got torn up pretty bad by that thing. He wasn't acting...normally. He was dangerous." Molly set the last glass of orange juice out on the table. The younger kids were all upstairs getting washed up and dressed for school. Harry was up there with them, with Charity supervising.
"Karrin, I told you. And okay. Okay. I hate to even bring it up, but we might need to contact the Council. Can you do that? Do you have a contact number or something?" Murphy flipped the pancake in the skillet.
"Uh. Well, yeah. I mean, Harry does, so we could go back to his place and get it. But." She flushed and looked down at the table. "Harry took responsibility for me, Karrin. If we call the Council in, and they find out Harry's not responsible any more..." She trailed off, but Murphy could finish the sentence. From what Harry had told her, he and Molly had just managed to dodge a death sentence with the whole Morgan affair. There were too many people on the Council that couldn't be trusted. The very least they might do would be to sweep in and take Harry and Molly away. More likely they'd take Harry away and execute Molly. Hell, they might execute Harry just for the hell of it.
"It's okay. But we need some help here. It's been three days already and he's not changing back. Cowl hasn't been back either, but I don't expect that to last. He's got to be out there getting something else together."
"Maybe Harry's wards killed him?"
"No body." Murphy waved the spatula through the air. "Maybe Harry's wards disintegrated him, but we're not usually that lucky. Better to assume that he's alive and coming back." She slid the last pancake onto the stack and handed the platter to Molly. "We need help. We need someone who knows more about magic than we do."
A small flood of children hit the dinning room and everything descended into organized chaos. Once everyone was fed, they all trooped out to the van for school drop offs. Molly washed up while Harry and Murphy took Mouse out into the back yard.
"You remember what we talked about this morning?"
Harry sighed and rolled his eyes at her.
"Yes. You've got to go to work and Michael's at work too. So it's just me and Molly and Charity and Mouse. So I have to stay inside." He kicked at a clod of grass and dirt. "Why can't I go to school? I'm really good at math."
"I'm sure. But we're having some trouble getting you enrolled at the new school. As soon as we get it straightened out we'll have you going to class, okay?" She ruffled his hair and smiled as he ducked his head out from under her hand. "I know it sucks, and I'm sorry. But you'll have fun with Molly and I've got some other people coming over too."
"Who?"
"Some kids about Molly's age." Ish. If you rounded up a lot. "You'll like Billy."
~
"How'd it go?" Murphy ran her hands through her hair, shaking it out from being squashed by her motorcycle helmet.
"Fine. They're in the back." Charity grabbed the helmet up from the end table Murphy had dropped it on and put it up in the closet.
"I thought we agreed he was going to stay inside." Irritation flowed through her words and Murphy stepped past the taller woman.
"They needed the space. And Molly's out there with Mouse. Just go see." Charity disappeared into the kitchen.
Mouse and Molly were sitting right outside the back door on the steps of the porch. Molly glanced up as Murphy came out the door and then grinned.
"He's quick." Molly pointed out into the yard where three huge dogs were chasing each other through the leaves. As Murphy watched she recognized Billy and Georgia's wolf forms, easily as long and tall as Mouse but leaner, sleek with muscle, rather than bulky. The different between a runner and a weightlifter in looks, maybe. The third wolf was smaller, his paws had the outsized in comparison to his body look of an adolescent and his fur was thick and dark brown, nearly black.
"They taught him how to turn into a wolf?" Murphy felt like smacking herself in the head. Or maybe Billy. They were supposed to be extra security. Not cause more trouble.
"He knew there was something different about them." Molly shrugged. "Harry pestered them until Billy told him and then he convinced them to show him how they did it. He's a little con-man, Ms.- Karrin. He picked the trick up right away and they've been playing out here ever since."
A few seconds passed and then Billy the wolf caught sight of Murphy on the back porch. He turned to Georgia, barked something at her at ducked behind the addition. When he came back out he was human shaped and wearing a loose pair of sweats.
"I need to talk to you."
"Come on." They circled around to the side of the house, out of sight and out of hearing range.
"Harry doesn't smell right."
"What?"
"People smell like themselves, all the time. Yeah, you can try to hide it under different scents, but people still have a fundamental, individual them-smell that doesn't go away. It's how we can track people. And Harry doesn't smell like Harry."
"Are you saying that's not Harry?"
"No. I don't think it's a changeling or something. I mean, the kid still smells basically like Harry. But there's something else there. Some other scent that's all tangled up in his. Maybe it's the spell that did this but it's...it doesn't smell like a spell. It smells like something alive."