Luck of Nines

12

His day continued as normal, drinking up the tap water in a desperate attempt to fill his stomach, and then setting about catching rats. He'd already checked for an escape route his very first day, but the house was locked up tight. There was no escape.

      The first few rats had the same sluggish and just plain off feeling to their internal workings so with a snap of their necks he threw them onto the pile. At least this way they won't be tempted to get rid of him for being a pain, since he was doing the job they had set out for him to do.

        The fourth one though, was not. He froze as the realization dawned on him, just about to snap its neck and be done with it, before slowly lowering his head and stretching his senses even more.

      ... it was safe. It was safe.

       Triumphantly he bit down then, the blood oozing into his mouth as he tore into the meal. It was delicious. More so than just about anything he'd ever eaten before, although he knew that was the hunger talking. In his almost frenzy though, he nearly missed a familiar smell. Not willing to wholly abandon his kill, he only glanced up and horror struck him as he glanced up just in time to see the door swing shut. He just barely bit back the howl of frustration. Muller had returned, this time with Bennett sling over one shoulder as the other man had once been.

        Calmly, Muller went through the same process as before, Chipper watching once more, the sudden realization he had missed his chance to escape toning down the victory that came with finally being able to eat. He would not let himself lose his mind and let his instincts control him like that again.

        Still, that did not stop him from taking a few careful bites even as he observed with all his other senses. Muller was in trouble; he wasn't supposed to have brought somebody here who was connected to any of them, especially not someone who had people looking out for them; a bunch of fumbling apprentices or not.

        He'd learned quite a bit, in his time here; what they were doing was highly illegal for one. And revenge based. The potions master had a major chip on his shoulder from his time in something called 'Slytherin', and Muller had a temper, but looked up to the man as he shared a similar type of rage against 'good for nothing pure blood dogs'. Chipper got the idea he was not talking about the actual animal. Bennett factored into this somehow, as did Seine and Alice and possibly Jonah too, but many of the words didn't make any type of sense. Like 'potions', they seemed to be in code.

      Still he knew enough to know he needed to get out of here.

He already knew there was no way to escape the building, not without help from someone who knew what exactly there's 'wards' were and how to deal with them. He couldn't enter the workshop because of it, some invisible type of wall.

But, the rodents could.

Because the ward... was only right there, not touching the door or walls as it would apparently interfere. The realization came to him sharply he needed to get smaller. Before Bennett ended up dead like the previous man who had been brought in was.

Focusing as much as he could on becoming smaller, he left himself no room for doubt and wriggled his way into the rat hole closest to the workshop as he could get. He made some progress, but not much as the hole narrowed some after the entry. He was trapped. His hind paws wriggled as he tried to push himself forward some more to get out of the small narrow part. It was of little use. Distantly he heard the quiet footsteps of a rat.

He fought even harder at the sound. He needed to get free, not just from this, but from the house as well. Was freedom too much to ask? To be able to remove freely without being held down. He hissed and snapped to warn the rat back.

He was trapped like this, near defenseless, and rodents were not defenseless creatures. Like any other they were wild and cruel. His mind flashed back to Ripper, who had similarly been trapped at the mercy of creatures he could have driven off under normal circumstances. Chipper grit his teeth in frustration and willed himself smaller with each moment as his eyes caught sight of the rodent's beady black ones just centimeters before him. He hated his teeth, but miraculously, he shrunk.

The realization struck him even as he lashed out at the still approaching rodent; he was no longer a cat.

Was he a rat then?

It didn't matter. He struck with all the force that he could muster, digging in large front teeth as he wrested for control. Quickly he worked, throwing his all into the fight until the rat was dead, he scampered onward through the winding tunnels, his new wounds painfully smarting from the scuffle, until he saw the entrance to what had to be the workshop. He could hear the labored sounds of Bennett's breathing nearby and quickly he slipped out and around the object blocking the tunnel from sight.

Muller was present as well, but not the potions master. This was his chance, transforming mid-leap, he fell upon Muller in the canine form like he had pounced upon so many of the mice before. Muller barely managed a startled shout before he had gone limp and Chipper was left to search through their pockets.

"Wha? Huh?" Bennett grumbled. Chipper could smell it, he was drunk. "No jus' leave me here. There's no point." Chipper turned, having shoved Muller into the cabinet and out of sight in the hopes of buying more time before the potions master suspected anything should he return.

"What do you mean there's no point; they'll kill you! Come." He demanded, shoving the wand into Bennett's hand. Bennett didn't take it.

"And? Better dead then..." he made a disgusted noise, "This."

"I'm starting to think you are already dead." Chipper huffed, putting both hands firmly on his hips.

Bennett stared at the kid, wearing warm clothes and covered in blood. A few odd knickknacks that looked as if they had been dug from the trash hanging from his belt. "So am I."

"Then it doesn't bloody matter what you do, get up!" Chipper shouted, "Do you want to stay like this forever or do something!"

"It's too late..."

"You're still alive, aren't you!"

The potions master had returned, Chipper could hear him going through the motions to return and he quickly snatched up the bag Muller had gotten and was sorting through, and then hid. Bennett still remained quiet, staring morosely into the distant. "Fine, just be quiet and die here then."

"I'd only ruin things for more people that way..."

"And what about John?" The man, John, or whatever his name had been, seemed to genuinely care about Bennett despite his complaints and what Muller had said.

"What about him?" Bennett scoffed. He sneered in response, rather than throwing Bennett aside as he destroyed himself, the man had foolishly worked himself to the bone trying to help. And yet, the other didn't care, not about the effort, not about John. Not even about himself. Chipper was not so foolish as to help somebody who wouldn't except it and actively make it harder for him to escape as well.

The door swung open.

There was an exit in here, he knew that much, even if he didn't know where.

The potions master glanced around upon entering, "They're still not back then? As if that brat hasn't caused me enough trouble today." With a quick movement he began pulling a clear type of divider about the fireplace so that he would be sealed in by a dome. "I suppose I'll have to go get him then." Taking the risk, Chipper darted inside, unseen, and when, upon the fireplace turning green, the potions master stepped inside, Chipper quickly followed.