The Wolf's Howl

Meeting

Hey y'all! You hoes are getting an early update this week since I will be in Europe on Friday and won't be able to update then. Enjoy the chappie!

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"Severus, describe your encounter with the Carrows again," Minerva said. Severus stifled a sigh of annoyance and explained his night patrol for the seventeenth time. At the end of his explanation, all the professors sat back in their chairs. 

"How do you think they got in?" Flitwick asked. He was perhaps the most irritated at his failure to detect their presence. 

Severus shrugged in a rare show of weakness. "Probably the same way anyone would get in," he muttered. All the professors sighed. 

Suddenly, a loud noise echoed throughout the room. All the professors jumped up, wands drawn and defensive faces in place. Severus, however, recognized the sound as soon as it reached his ears. 

"It's fine," he said, causing the others to look at him quizzically. However, Severus paid them no mind as he strode to the door and pulled it open. "Hello, Ajax," he said. The large black wolf looked up at Severus and bowed his head majestically. 

"What do you want?" Severus asked, used to Ajax's human-like understanding of English by now. In response, the canine prowled into the room and sat next to Severus's chair, ignoring the twenty-four wands pointed in his direction by slightly panicked faculty members. 

"Ajax, you can't stay here. This is a private meeting," Severus explained, mildly exasperated. He knew the animal would get what he wanted, but it was worth a shot. The wolf simply looked at Severus with a determined gaze. Severus sighed and walked over to the wolf. 

He grabbed Ajax around the middle and went to pick him up, struggling a little under the weight. Ajax allowed him to try for a few seconds before letting out a ferocious growl that had Severus stumbling back, surprised. Severus looked at the animal, who glared at him in turn. 

"You're not going to leave, are you?" he asked. Ajax shook his head, to the surprise of the other professors. Severus allowed the tension in his shoulders to drain, admitting defeat. "Very well. But do not interrupt," he commanded as he took his seat. The wolf gently nudged his hand with his cold nose, showing affection and forgiveness. 

Severus allowed himself to run his hand through Ajax's soft fur, feeling Ajax's calming presence clear his mind as it always did. The other professors were hesitant to sit, especially Poppy, who was sitting on the other side of Ajax. However, eventually, all the professors sat, and it seemed that they forgot about Ajax's presence within a few minutes. 

"It doesn't make sense," Severus began, leaning forward. "They showed up in the middle of the night. As you all know, we made precautions since the war to keep people out of the castle when it is not daytime. Therefore, they had to have entered the school during the day, and right under the guards' noses." 

Ajax stood up suddenly, drawing all eyes to him. He looked up at Severus with wide eyes, almost seeming startled. Severus would later swear, however, that there was a light of realization in the pits of those emerald orbs. "What is it?" he asked, ignoring the fact that Ajax was interrupting the meeting so soon. 

Ajax stomped the ground with his forepaw, something Severus had never seen him do before. A few minutes later, a large tome came flying into the room. Severus had to work very hard to keep his jaw from dropping. "Did....did you just.....did you summon that?" he asked, uncharacteristically stumbling over his words. The large wolf spared him a quick glance before nosing the book open. 

The book began to scream, causing everyone to jump. Ajax whined and ducked his head, prompting Severus to cover the poor creature's ears. Madame Pince stood and ran a finger down the center crease of the book, silencing its screams. Ajax sent her a wolfy grin, making her step away but smile back at him at the same time. 

The entire staff table watched in amazement as he gingerly used a black claw to turn the pages of the book, being careful to not damage the old parchment. Soon, he came to the page he was evidently searching for and appealed to Severus by nudging the professor's leg with his shoulder. 

Severus looked down, as he had been studying the wood grain while trying to figure out how an animal pulled off magic. "Of course!" he exclaimed, picking the book up off the floor. He rubbed Ajax behind his ears, earning a contented look and a small yip. "Why didn't I think of that?" he muttered to himself as he placed the book on the table. 

"It is possible," he began, "that the Carrows used Polyjuice Potion to disguise themselves as students to enter the school during the day without any suspicion." The professors nodded, though Minerva had an apprehensive look on her face. "If that is the case, Severus, then where are the students hid?" she asked. Everyone froze, minds registering what Minerva had not said. The Carrows definitely had no qualms about killing students. 

Ajax nudged Severus, prompting the professor to look at him. In a small game of charades, a game that Severus was quite used to at this point, Ajax sniffed Severus's cloak before walking around the room with his nose to the ground. He sniffed corners and other people, and when he came back to Severus, he sat down and yipped happily. Severus thought for a second, then nodded slightly. Ajax turned, opened the door, and left. 

Severus stood and locked the door behind him, then pivoted to see his colleague's baffled expressions. "He said that he would track them down," he explained shortly. "How?" Minerva asked. "I'm just going ignore his uncanny intelligence and ask. How is he going to track them down without a starting scent?" 

Severus sat down wearily. "I don't know. But Ajax is, as you said, uncannily intelligent. If he says that he will do a job, the job will get done." Minerva fixed the Potions Master with a steely gaze. "I do hope you are right, Severus." 

She sat back and thought for a minute, before leaning forward again. "Do you trust this wolf?" she asked, eyes skeptical. Severus nodded. "With my life," he replied, startling the majority of the staff in the room. 

"Are you sure that is wise?" Minerva pressed. "For all you know, he could be an Animagus working with the Carrows." Severus took a deep breath and sat back. 

"Being an Animagus would explain his intelligence, but I do not believe that he is working with the Carrows," he stated. "I actually have left a part out of the story," he began. He then told how Ajax played a large role in the capture of the twins. 

"The Carrows looked extremely shocked. They would not look like that unless Ajax was unknown to them, or he was working with them and defected. Either way, without Ajax, I would not have captured them," he reasoned. 

Minerva nodded. "If you trust this Ajax, then I will as well. However, if he turns on us, it will be on you." Severus nodded once to show his understanding. "He has been with me several times over the past few days, and has had ample opportunity to harm me if he would. Seeing as I am unharmed, I trust him enough and believe in him enough to accept that charge, should it occur," he stated, making eye contact with every professor and faculty member in the room. Everyone nodded grimly in return. 

"Well," Minerva said, lightly clapping her hands together, "I think enough has been said tonight. You all may go." Severus stood with the rest of the professors and walked out the door. However, he did not go to his rooms. He walked up to the Astronomy tower and looked over the grounds. 

He saw a small black blur streaking across the Quidditch pitch, and sighed. "I hope you know what you're doing, Ajax," he muttered. Then his brainstorming with Minerva popped into his mind. 

"If you're an Animagus, I'm going to find out who you are," he said with conviction. He needed to know who he was cuddling with for the majority of every night. If it was a student, that would be wholly inappropriate. 

He decided that he wasn't in a hurry however - he didn't want to lose Ajax. The cuddles were nice, and the wolf's calming presence was much needed, especially after a long day of suffering in class with first years. 

"Make it hard for me, ok?" he said, knowing full well the wolf couldn't hear him.

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This sucks, but I hope y'all enjoyed it.