Blaze was fast; but Moony was faster. As the white wolf shot up the stairs towards Sirius, Moony leapt ahead of him, knocking his mate and Sirius's godson out of the way. 

The white wolf had a new target by now, and advanced on an ashen-faced Draco Malfoy, baring his sharp fangs. 

Just as he was about to pounce, the golden wolf leapt at him and stood between Draco and the white wolf, snarling viciously. The two wolves issued their challenge, growling and glaring into each other's eyes.

Yet again something else had caught the white wolf's attention, however.

Before anyone else could even move, Blaze had darted out the front door- which Sirius had forgotten to close behind them.

Oops.

The Alpha and the black wolf ran after him first, sprinting to keep up with the wild, blood-thirsty wolf.

The golden wolf paused, however, and looked to Draco. The blonde Slytherin looked beyond confused, a slight hint of fear reflecting in his silver blue eyes. No one- or nothing for that matter- had ever protected him before.

Just The Lady in his dreams...

"You boys lock up this house and don't let anyone in. I'm going to help them." That said, Sirius changed into Padfoot, then followed Moony to the door.

Like a fascinated child, Draco held out his hand to the golden wolf, as if making sure that his guardian was not just an illusion. The female wolf obliged him, nuzzling the offered hand and giving it a soft lick.

Moony barked to her then, as if asking if she was coming or not. Reluctantly, the golden wolf nuzzled Draco's hand  again, then left with Moony and Padfoot.

Draco still seemed confused, but he was no longer afraid. "You okay?" Harry asked, fixing his glasses that had been askew from the fall.

"No. I think I'm having... a moment of clarity." Draco stared at his hand. "She really is the Lady from my dreams. My... mother."

"It's a little much, isn't it?" Harry looked at the still open front door. "Maybe we need to get Sirius some Ginko Biloba."

"What's that?" Draco followed Harry out the door.

-----

Moony was able to catch up with Lobo and Kalika in no time, using his sense of smell to track them down. Sophious kept her pace, running alongside him and Padfoot.

Yet Blaze's wolf was even faster, despite the sleeping potion. Lobo had been right- the pent up wolf finally had his freedom, and wasn't going to give it up easily.

Worse yet, the white wolf wasn't headed for the forest. The vengeful canine was running towards a heavily populated area, out for blood.

Lobo managed to get a burst of speed, but Blaze nipped and snarled at his Alpha, and wasn't phased by his leader's attempts to stop him.

The white wolf suddenly darted into the bushes and horrified screams rang through the air. They followed him, praying that Blaze hadn't cursed anyone just beyond the foliage.

Groups of terrified Muggles were running away, abandoning their picnics and eclipse viewing spots. Blaze stood out like a ghost in the darkness. Suddenly, the wolf stopped and he threw back his head. A low, menacing howl emerged from deep within the beast's heart.

The rest of the pack caught up to him, and Lobo immediately grabbed a hold of Blaze's neck and threw him down roughly. He kept up the grip, pinning the Omega wolf to the ground. The white wolf eventually submitted to it's Alpha, panting and exhausted from his run. His tail curled between his legs, and his eyes pleadingly gazed into Lobo's.

Lobo tackled Blaze, and they wrestled each other playfully, the wolves rolling over the grass. Moony looked over to Padfoot, relief washing over the both of them.

A loud pop suddenly rang out, getting their attention. Each wolf shrunk back, all ears pressed flat against their heads. Ten men had appeared, wands held in a defensive position. One of the men- in the middle of them all- was Cornelius Fudge himself. "I want them alive!"

Blaze's head snapped up. 'Butcher.' Pulling away from Lobo, he ran full tilt toward a boss he really, really hated.

Lobo tore after him. Blaze managed to tackle Cornelius down, but before he could tear into his throat Lobo was on him again.

And from the crowd came a familiar voice. "Well, well… look what the pack dragged in…"

Sophious froze. Her eyes focused on a place in the crowd. An image flashed before the wolf's eyes as she glared into familiar, icy gray eyes. Scars on her pup's wrists. Just two of the man scars caused by Him. Her supposed mate.

But no longer. Stronger than the bond between herself and Him would always be the bond between the mother and her only pup. Snarling, she lowered her head and pressed her ears flat against her head, and advanced on Lucius.

He smirked, but didn't move. No one else had noticed his presence with the commotion between the white werewolf and Fudge. "Come here, Sophie… you've been a bad dog, running away for so long… but no longer." Sophious maintained a threatening pose, baring her fangs and snapping at Him.

She suddenly leapt at him, but Lucius was ready for such an attack. He caught her with a snare, pulling the loop tightly around her neck. The golden wolf yelped in pain, and began to struggle to break free from his trap. He glared down at her, his eyes narrow and cold. "It's too bad you left, Sophious. You finally would have been reunited with your son. It's too late now, though… time to go back into your cage."

"Oh, it's not too late for anything, Father." Lucius turned around, looking as if he'd seen a ghost.

"D-Draco…" He was stunned, then angry. "Harry Potter come and unlock your cage, did he?"

"You neglected to tell the house elves not to let me out." Draco advanced on his father. "And what Harry and I do together is none of your business."

"So joining forces with the Boy Who Lived? Should have known you'd never prove useful to me or the Dark Lord." Lucius yanked Sophious' lead hard and she cried out again. "Especially with this bitch for a mother."

"Don't talk about her like that!" A wolf growled in agreement.

However, it wasn't Sophious who had growled- but Padfoot. Before anyone could move, the great black canine had leapt at Lucius. Too surprised to react, the powerful wizard barely had enough time to raise his arm in defense. The gigantic black dog buried his fangs into Lucius' arm, and he howled in pain. He had released the snare and was beating the dog away frantically, a look of utter horror on his face. Padfoot was stubborn, and finally let go of the arm when the metallic taste of blood became too much. Lucius doubled over in pain, cursing and cradling his wounded arm. Silver eyes like daggers glared at the massive black dog. "Damn you, werewolf! I'll kill you for this!"

Sophious darted over to Draco, the snare still caught around her neck. He kneeled down and removed the snare, tossing it away as though it was on fire. She immediately began to sniff his hands and face, her eyes filled with worry as she made sure her son was all right.

"This the mongrel you replaced me with? Is this your revenge on me? Make me a monster?" Lucius was becoming incoherent.

"You've always been a monster." Draco wasn't going to tell Lucius that Padfoot wasn't a werewolf.

Cornelius Fudge had composed himself, still brushing dirt off his pin-striped cloak. Lobo still kept Blaze in check, chasing after the white wolf as some of the Aurors tried to capture them. Fudge couldn't explain the feeling of déjà vu when the white wolf's eyes met his…

"Sir, they're leaving!" One of the Aurors who was chasing after Moony rushed over, panting.

Cornelius turned around in time to see the wolves vanish into the bushes. He could have sworn he saw two boys running with them, but quickly dismissed the thought. "Let them go for now… we'll take care of them later." He looked at Lucius, who oddly enough was the only one injured. "He's been bitten and most likely infected. Get him in quarantine and get tests running now."

"But sir… we won't know if he's been truly infected until the next full moon… and I don't mean tonight's." Another Auror pointed out.

"Do you think I care about that?" Fudge snapped. "The man's a Death Eater, and with suspicions of You-Know-Who rising and all that other pish-posh it will look good if I imprison the man. Even if it's temporary, it will be good press. Now cage Malfoy and let's go! I've got more important things to concern myself with- like memory charms on all those Muggles who saw a pack of werewolves just now!" He apparated with a pop.

-----

The pack returned to the den moments before the eclipse was over. The wolves rushed down into the basement, but Padfoot, Harry, and Draco remained upstairs. Padfoot turned into Sirius, who suddenly darted from the room. The bathroom door slammed, and both boys could hear him getting violently sick even from where they stood.

Just then the basement door reopened, and Remus came into the living room, looking physically weary but his eyes still very alert. "Where's Sirius?"

"Trying to get the Malfoy taste out of his mouth." Harry looked Draco over. "I dunno. Never made me nauseous."

Remus raised an eyebrow. There were some things he just did not want to know.

Blaze, Kalika, Sophious, and Lobo came into the room. Blaze looked even more stressed than earlier. "I attacked him, Lobo! I attacked the Minister of Magic! My boss! My friend!"

"Calm down, no one was hurt… well, almost nobody." Lobo grinned. "Where is that sly dog?"

"Reviewing his lunch, I'm afraid." Remus sighed, but smiled. "He bit off more than he could chew."

"I have to thank him… for saving me." Sophious had a thankful smile, then her eyes met her son's. "You… all right, Draco?"

"Am I all right? My father just tried to dognap you." He rubbed at the scars on his wrists. "I'm not all right, and I haven't been for a long time!"

"Draco-"

"You left me with him!" Draco was shaking. "How could you do that to me? I'm your son. You're supposed to love me!"

"I do!" Sophious hadn't expected this. "I do, Draco. More than anything. You have to believe that."

"How could you leave me there?" Draco sagged into Harry's touch. "How could you leave me with that monster?"

Tears formed in her eyes. "Draco, I never meant to leave you but-"

"It's my fault." Lobo spoke up suddenly, looking at Draco sadly. "She didn't leave you willingly, Draco… I… I made her do it. So if you want to be angry at someone, it's me."

"I should have known. In my dreams you were always my savior, but actually you were my damnation." Draco angrily stormed from the room.

Harry looked to Remus, who simply motioned for him to follow Draco. Sophious stood there, her eyes closed as tears slid down her cheeks. Lobo went over to comfort her, but she held out her hand and stopped him. "Just- don’t. You've done enough." She raced up the stairs before he could even speak. Lobo looked down, an unreadable expression on his face.

Sirius walked in the room, still gagging from the taste of blood. Half a bottle of mouthwash and a tube of toothpaste had removed it, but the memory of the metallic aftertaste still burned in his mind. He walked over to Remus and smiled. "Might not want a kiss from me anytime soon, Moony." Taking a look around the room, Sirius realized that probably wasn't the best thing to say. He shifted uncomfortably. Silence was never golden to Sirius Black.

Lobo chuckled softly, the sound meek in comparison to his usual laughter. He looked to Sirius, an obviously fake smile pasted awkwardly on the Alpha's face. "You really proved yourself out there tonight, Black. You're officially part of the pack now." His eyes glistened, it was obvious that tears threatened to emerge, but he would never let them see their Alpha cry. "The look on Malfoy's face… Merlin, he actually thought you were a werewolf. Any pup that can trick a wizard like him can definitely run with the big dogs."

Blaze sank onto the couch, pale and shaking. Kalika sat beside her mate, rubbing his shoulders and holding him close against her. "What am I going to do, Lobo? When our eyes met… I could just sense that he knew who I really was… Merlin, I was probably supposed to be there! Dawes, Marsh, and Bennington were all there… he must know! The dementors are probably already on their way!" Blaze shuddered, burying his face into Kalika's chest.

"Don't worry, Blaze… I won't let anything happen to you. You're in my pack, I will protect you." Lobo looked determined, suppressing his own pain to help his pack mate. It was the first time Remus realized what really made Lobo an Alpha wolf- he put the pack before his own life.

"Maybe you're just worried that he met your wolf form, love." Kalika stroked his back and kissed his forehead. "We don't know what's going to happen, my love, but Lobo's right- we'll be okay as long as we stick together."

For some reason, that didn't settle well with Remus. It left him with an empty sort of feeling.

-----

He knelt at Azimodeus's feet. "Master. There has been a slight problem." The fledgling was trembling. "Lucius was… injured. By the wolves."

Azimodeus looked at the cowering mass of flesh. "Are you telling me that Lucius Malfoy has been infected?"

"Y-yes."

Grabbing a sword from the umbrella rack, Azimodeus promptly killed the bearer of bad news. "I swear, Lucius, the Pack will pay for destroying you!"

"Part of me won’t go away
Everyday reminded how much I hate it
Weighted against the consequences
Can’t live without it so it’s senseless
Wanna cut it out of my soul
And just live with a gaping hole
Take control of my life
And wash out all the burnt taste
I made the problems in the first place
Hang my head low ‘cause it’s part of me
Ya hardly see right next to the heart of me
Heard of me the routine scar
New cuts cover where the old ones are
And now I’m sick of this
I can’t stand the sandpaper thoughts that grade away on my sanity
I rather not even be then the man that’s staring in the mirror through me"

~Part of Me, by Linkin Park ~