Chapter 177 - – Hook, Line, and Sinker Ⅲ

"Sara!" Cried out the voice of Percius Clements as he abandoned the muggles on the hill and ran in the direction of the dark mark in the night sky.

Running down the grassy slope in the dimly night sky the figure of Percius stumbled several times but did not stop as he raced towards where his partner has last been seen. Suddenly, he froze at seeing at rounding the slope to see a weeping child. With deliberate slowness, his eyes dart to the side as he almost falls to the side feeling all the breath in his lungs leave him feeling faint. There on her back and still was the corpse of his closest friend and partner for the last ten years.

"Sara," Percius croaked as if still expecting an answer. The night seems eerily silent despite the voices in the distance and the crackle of fire being extinguished. Numbly he stumbles forward until he falls onto his knees before the corpse of his partner. Gently reaching over with trembling fingers, he closes her eyes and closes his eyes as tears gather under his lids. Blinking his tears away, he suddenly comes too at a particularly loud sob.

Percius glances over at the tear-streaked child and suddenly feels a dash of guilt and shame at having ignored the frightened child in his grief. "There, there, now,' Percius whispered as the child threw itself into his arms and loudly continued to sob. Holding the child tenderly in his arms, he gently rubs soothing circles on the boy's back. Rising to his feet, he turns and takes a startled step back at seeing the twisted half-man, and half-beast creature in the dim moonlight.

"Lumos," Percius murmured as he raised his wand high for a closer look. Instantly his eyes widen in recognition of the half-twisted face as that of Fenrir Grayback. Percius lets out a sad cry of triumph, before turning away and spotting the corpse of a muggle man some distance away with his neck having been torn open.

"Can you tell me, what your name is?" Percius lightly asked as he walked back up the slope making sure to keep his shoulder in the boy's view lest the child gazed upon the corpses again.

"David McGregor," the boy sniffed as he clung tightly to Percius's neck.

"Thank you, David," Percius gently murmured. "And how old are you?"

"I'm six years old."

"Oh, my, you're quite big for your age."

"That's what my daddy says," David burst into tears again. "My daddy's gone; the bad man got him."

"Your daddy?" Percius mumbled as he recalled the dead muggle man on the floor. A muggle father had challenged a werewolf for his son's life. And that was far braver than most wizards and for that, he was to be commended for.

"What's your daddy's name, son?"

"Dougal McGregor," David sniffed.

"Well, he was very brave in protecting you," Percius said as they reached the top of the slope. In the distance, auror's and other arriving department members can be seen aiding the wounded and beginning the reconstruction of the town of what can be salvaged. While others began the arduous process of forging a credible story.

"Mm, the lady who saved me is too," David whispered. "-But another baddie got her from behind."

"Did he know?" Percius said with an angry gleam in his eyes.

"A-huh, he did. But she still protected me with magic," David said with awe as his teary blue eyes widened. "Was the bad man, a werewolf?"

"Yes," Percius honestly said as the little boy would have his memories erased soon of the incident.

"Are you going to erase my memories?" David suddenly asked.

"Why would you ask such a thing like that?" Percius said with a frown not wanting to answer the question.

"That's what they do on the telly," David whispered. "But I don't want to forget daddy and the nice lady who save me!"

"You never will," Percius lied. "They'll always be a part of you."

"David!" Cried out a frantic weeping woman as she clung on to three older children.

"Mommy!" David cried out as Percius set him on the ground. The little boy instantly ran over to his mommy. The now newly widowed Mrs. McGregor wept as she placed hugs and kisses on her youngest son's face.

Leaving the family now one member short, Percius walked back down the slope. Not even at the edge of the slope, he is met hallway by the very angry face of the head of the department, Bob Ogden. Short and plump, Ogden appeared rather enraged as his eyes sparkled with fire behind his enormous thick glasses. "Clements, what happened here?" Ogden barked.

"It was a routine check, sir," Percius hoarsely replied. "We'd received a missive that there was to be a planned attack tonight. And there was."

Ogden nods his and says, "I have word that Gideon Prewett was badly injured, but his brother, Fabian managed to get him to St. Mungo's in time. We've found two dead masked bastards matching the same as those responsible at Malfoy manor. Though I must admit that's new." Ogden gestured with his head to the Dark Mark hanging over them.

"Now, I want you and Auror Vinovich to hunt down any clues and leads" Ogden firmly instructed. "You'll both be in charge of this case and have full leeway. The minister wants these bastards found!"

Seeing Percius remain so very pale Ogden glances around and fails to see Auror Vinovich. "Where's Vinovich?"

"That's just it, sir," Percius chokes up for a moment, before hoarsely answering, "Vinovich is dead."

"What?!" Ogden said in utter shock.

"We split up," Percius confessed. "I took to protecting the muggles, while she went after the werewolf, Fenrir Grayback!"

"That mangy wolf got her!" Ogden interrupted in utter rage.

"No, sir, she got the bloody wolf," Percius said with a weak smile. "I'm afraid that an unknown assailant attacked her from behind and killed her."

Ogden begins to curse under his breath as his eyes grow a bit damp. His eyes fill with a burning emotion, Ogden hisses, "Auror Clements, you are hereby authorized full rank to fulfill your assigned obligations."

"Understood, sir," Percius said as he turned away and paused. "She's over the hill over there with the corpse of that rotten wolf. I don't want to leave her all alone out there next to that beast."

"Auror Clements," Ogden called out to the slightly round Auror. "Take the rest of the night and tomorrow off. You'll do me no good in this state. I'll personally go and collect her."

"Yes, sir," Percius reluctantly said, before apparating away to change at home, before rushing off to St. Mungo's.