Silent Paws

Epilogue

Cita tumbled to the ground, landing on something soft.

"Are we back?" Rosaly squeaked. "Did we make it?"

The woman pushed herself up on her elbows, then frowned. The ground was moving. She looked down.

Green eyes stared at her. Then Kefir bared his teeth.

"Sorry," Cita apologized and quickly got up.

A quick scan showed her that they were in the same room they'd just left. Except the shelves were covered mostly with books, not blinking junk.

"Welcome back," a dreamy voice said.

The four flinched and whirled around.

At the desk sat an elderly woman, who regarded them with a smile. Long white hair cascaded down her back. She had startling blue eyes, which were currently fixed on Cita.

Then she turned to the wizard. "Mr. Snape."

"Professor Lovegood," said Severus and inclined his head. "I apologize for the sudden intrusion."

The witch waved it off. "It's not a problem, after all, one doesn't get visitors from the past every day." She paused. "Although technically, you were only visitors to the past and are now returning to the present."

Severus raised an eyebrow. "You know?"

"I assumed at first that you were a descendant of the extinct flutterbies, but Guardian of the Titans seems more logical."

What? Cita exchanged a look with Kefir. He shrugged.

The wizard sighed. "You are exactly-"

"Like my mother." Professor Lovegood smiled. "I know."

She flicked her hand and a door manifested in the wall, opening silently. Stone steps lead down, lit torches brightening the darkness.

"I assume you are here for the birth place, dear," Professor Lovegood said to Cita. "Just head straight down in your feline form. It's not possible to miss."

The young woman swallowed nervously. She wasn't very fond of dark places, but Mioha had told her what to expect. So-

She steeled herself inwardly and nodded. Her transformation happened soundlessly. Once the white cheetah had disappeared behind the door, Kefir turned to Severus.

"How long will she be?"

"At least a few hours," said Severus. "It won't take her as long as Mioha to break through the barriers since she only spent a short time in a human body."

Kefir frowned. "How long did Mioha need?"

"Months," came the terse reply.

Kefir's jaw dropped.

****

At some point, Severus left to get food and to stretch his legs. Kefir would have loved to join him, but wasn't allowed to. So, he was left with a crazy witch and a twitchy elephant baby, who kept staring at the door Cita had gone through.

Lovegood stared at him serenely.

Kefir shifted uncomfortably on the sofa. Did that witch ever blink?

"What do you think about nargles?"

****

The moment Cita entered the birth place, a flood of memories rushed through Kefir. He clutched his head in pain, not noticing how he tumbled to the floor.

Pictures filled his mind, all from different moments of his past lives.

A scene of him and Cita appeared, sitting on top of a roof. They were both young, staring silently at the night sky.