Chapter Thirty-Nine
Confronting the Faceless 💀 CompleteApril 15, 1998
"I am not worried... I am with you"
Matangi never had a favorite season before - days and months and years just were what they were and what they were was usually stuffed full of racist, ist s she spent all her time having to put back in their places.
Now though? Now she has a new appreciation for spring and it's lengthening days and warming temperatures. Spring is much easier to survive than winter when on the run from said racist, ist s. "Better wet than cold" as Xander has taken to saying every time it rains.
Of course, this spring decides to be a raging when overnight and out of nowhere it decides to dump a pile of snow on top of the forest again.
"Are you kidding me? Snow? Now?" Matangi groans when she wakes up to a familiar chill that she thought they'd finally left behind. "It is spring. We dealt with weeks of slush to prove it."
"They say the world is getting colder you know." Xander says, clearly woken by her complaints. He yawns and stretches, then pulls out his wand and leans over to look past her out of the tent and to the woods beyond. "Well, it's not that deep - it should melt in the next few days. And hey, easy water will be nice."
"We stole water skins from that last Snatcher raid, we don't need more water right now." She grumbles, even as she pulls on her boots and steps out into the fluffy whiteness.
"We can keep them topped up though!" Xander declares cheerfully, slipping out behind her and packing up the tent, shrinking it and shoving it into their backpack which he then passes over to Matangi.
Matangi just rolls her eyes. "Whatever. When this stuff melts it better stay gone. I was sick of snow after a week of it the first time."
They take their time with moving on - lately they haven't run into any Snatchers and while they're still on their guard it has meant they don't need to be as tense as back in the winter - now they can spend more time hunting or bathing as needed. No berries have started growing yet, unfortunately, but enough animals are out and about that they aren't regularly starving, which is a massive improvement.
They do eventually get moving, walking along as quietly as they can with the new snow now making each step crunch slightly. Matangi knows they have leftover squirrel meat in the bag, but she's still annoyed that they probably won't be able to do any hunting today - sneaking up on any animal is going to be extremely difficult now.
Xander doesn't seem to mind (not that he seems to mind much of anything ever) and he happily fills the silence between them with tales of his friend Kent's exploits as a Hit Wizard, which have admittedly become her favorite to hear, not that she's openly said that. Xander knows though - it's impossible to travel together as long as they have and not know each other inside and out.
The day is once again completely and utterly boring - no Snatchers, no squirrels, just Xander chattering away. They decide to pause and set up camp again before the sun has entirely set, and this time Matangi sets up the tent manually (after Xander unshrinks it) while Xander roasts the rest of the squirrel they'd caught the day before. It isn't much, but Matangi will take a tiny bit of freshly cooked meat over the endless stale sandwiches and granola bars they'd been subsisting off of all winter.
"So I'm officially a little concerned by how we haven't run into anybody in the past few weeks." He declares once they've finished off the squirrel. "It seems super weird that they were all over the place during the winter, but now when the weather is actually tolerable they just up and vanish?"
Matangi kicks him lightly in the side. "You're just whiny because you're going to get out of practice." She says with a yawn. "Now shush, I want to sleep."
Xander mumbles something but Matangi doesn't catch it as she's already halfway asleep with the happy weight in her stomach and the lingering warmth from the embers just outside the tent flap.
When she wakes up the next morning it's with a start. She can admit she's started sleeping heavier recently - between the fewer Snatches sightings, better eating, and general proximity of a professional dueler her body isn't wound quite as tightly as it had been at the start - but she definitely heard something outside the tent and her instincts are screaming that it wasn't an animal.
She moves to nudge Xander, but a glance reveals he's awake as well and already reaching for his wand with one hand and shoving the backpack over to her with the other.
She pulls it closer and slowly opens it to minimize the sound, while Xander slips out of the tent, wand up and disillusioned. This isn't the first time someone has stumbled on their camp, and so far they've come out on top every time it's happened. This time won't be an exception.
She grabs her "stealth knife" - it's the smallest of the bunch, which means she can move fast and not worry too much about over swinging and stabbing something she didn't mean to - and scoots up to the entrance of the tent, cracking it open just enough to peer out.
She can't see Xander, which means his disillusionment spell hasn't been noticed or countered yet. They still have the upper hand.
Footsteps begin approaching the tent only moments later, and she adjusts her grip on the knife and steadies her breathing to ensure her own heartbeat doesn't overwhelm her hearing.
As soon as the Snatcher is close enough she leaps out, knife swinging, only for the person on the other end to successfully duck out of the way. However, they'd planned for that - a blast of blue light freezes him in place moments later and Xander finally releases his cloaking charm.
Matangi eyes the intruder suspiciously, keeping her knife pressed lazily against his throat and retrieving his wand from his robes as Xander scouts the area for his partner (there's almost always more than one, after all). He's young, but most of them are, with sandy brown hair and a body build that indicates his job keeps him very physically active. Matangi isn't surprised he'd managed to dodge her attack - he's probably an Auror or something when not being an .
Xander trots back over, wand still up but held must looser than before, lit from behind by the rising sun. "He's alone - early riser I bet, it's barely dawn." He looks down at the figure, blinks, and then crouches next to Matangi, nudging her knife out of the way. "Hold up a second, I think I know him." He studies the man carefully before suddenly barking out a laugh.
Matangi leans back, knife still raised threateningly, and tilts her head in a question.
Xander glances over at her with a grin. "I don't think this guy is a Snatcher Tangi - he's a Lion. And, if I'm not mistaken, the new starting Keeper for Puddlemere United." He raises his wand and with a flick the man on the ground can move again.
He sits up slowly, keeping his hands up in a gesture of surrender as he does, though Matangi once again points her knife at his jugular. Athletics or not she's confident she can reach his throat before he can reach his wand.
"Yeah, just started this season, though I've been reserve since graduating Hogwarts." He finally says, once he's fully upright. "Oliver Wood, at your service and here to help, actually. Though you two seem to have things pretty under control." His grin is relaxed and natural despite the blade at his neck. Matangi would be impressed if she didn't think he was lying.
"Hey yeah! You replaced Kent after we graduated, I remember you and the Weasley kid tailing him around a bunch our seventh year!" Xander exclaims brightly, and Matangi briefly looks away from their captive to glare at him. He's trusting this stranger way too easily.
"People can change in a decade." She says sharply. "Why are you out here and what do you want?"
"Jeez, wow, no wonder you guys are doing so well. Most of the Fugitives I manage find these days are on their last legs." Oliver laughs, finally inching away from the knife a bit. "Look I'm here to help, I swear. I'm part of this group called the Underground. We specialize in moving Muggleborns out of the country through a series of safehouses. We've gotten nearly fifty out in the past few months. I know you have no reason to trust me, but I can get you somewhere safe."
Matangi isn't buying a word of it, but she can tell that Xander is, the sentimental idiot.
Oliver's expression twists slightly. "I mean, you can just walk away if you want, but I've got access to medical aid, regular food, and a proper shower." He offers, and Matangi glares at him. Bribes? Really?
But another glance towards Xander tells her that he's already made up his mind to trust Oliver, so she slowly lowers the knife. Worst case, they're a good enough team to escape again, especially considering she won't be giving Oliver his wand back.
Oliver grins at her far too brightly. "Great! You won't regret this." He says, clearly taking the knife no longer being an immediate threat as acceptance of his offer. Which is it, but still, presumptive much?
Then her knife flies back up when he pulls out a wand, her free hand checking that she still has the one she'd taken off him before in her robes.
He grins. "Trust me more now? I could have used this at any point you know, but I didn't."
"No." She replies flatly, even as Xander voices the opposite. She glares at him sharply.
"Hey, worst case we get food, a shower, and then bust out, right?" He says, unapologetic. "Trust me on this, okay? I've got a good feeling."
"Well when I have to save our bacon you're going to owe me big time." She hisses back. Oliver politely pretends not to be able to hear the entire conversation before offering his arm.
"Side-Along is required since I doubt you know where the Dearborn mansion is." He says with a grin. "It's a little awkward with multiple passengers though, so please put the knife away." He adds.
Xander nods at her and, sighing, she does as instructed. Xander also takes the time to break down and shrink the tent before tossing the backpack to Matangi. She slings it on and then reluctantly accepts Oliver's hand.
The world swirls around them disconcertingly, and when they land she immediately throws up. Why everyone fusses so much about getting to Apparate at seventeen she officially doesn't understand. That was the most uncomfortable form of travel she's ever experienced.
"I'm going to have to throw that carpet out at this rate." An irritated male voice sighs, and Matangi immediately fumbles for the backpack and her knives.
"The cleaning spells work perfectly." Another voice, female this time, says calmingly. "If you don't need to replace the sheets in the hospital room you don't have to throw out the rug."
"Oh I'm getting rid of those sheets as well." The male grumbles, and then seems to walk away if the tap of shoes is anything to go by.
"You alright T?" That's Xander, and he doesn't seem concerned which automatically lowers her fight urge a bit, though she manually keeps it from dropping off entirely. After all, he's being way too trusting just because Oliver is a Gryffindor.
"She's jump sick, it's not uncommon in first time Apparators." The female assures him. "Particularly Side-Alongs."
The room has finally quit spinning and Matangi immediately takes stock of her surroundings. They're in a large room that looks rather like a parlor (old white money then, great, like that doesn't immediately scream Deatheater) and there are three other people in the immediate vicinity besides herself.
Two are, of course, Xander and Oliver, but the third is an unknown. The woman is a slim blonde wearing what Matangi vaguely recognizes as Healer's robes and her hair braided down her back and out of the way. She's smiling softly in a way that makes Matangi instinctively want to punch her, just to prove she's not some broken, traumatized child.
The woman seems to recognize that as she takes a slight step back and then looks over to Oliver. "She's fine, underfed for sure but anyone with that much fight left isn't sapping energy trying to heal." She looks over at Xander who beams at her far too brightly. "He's alright too. However with both your permission I would like to at least cast a few diagnostic spells to ensure my assessment is correct."
"Go nuts." Xander says, and Matangi shrugs stiffly when the woman looks to her for permission, though she does step back to make sure Xander is scanned first.
The spell doesn't feel like anything when it washes over her, but the blonde seems content. "They're fine." She confirms. "We can relocate immediately. I'm thinking Owl and Fox have room, correct?"
"Yep." Oliver confirms cheerfully. "Thanks Setter, I'll see you later."
The blonde tuts. "No you don't Hawk, don't think I didn't check you as well. Sit down, I'm healing that cut on your throat."
Oliver rolls his eyes as the blonde turns back to them. "Menna should be in the hallway to show you where the restrooms are. Deer and Hawk here will clean your clothes while you shower, though we will get you new ones soon."
Xander looks thrilled at the prospect of being clean, and while Matangi definitely feels the temptation of it she's also extremely uncomfortable with the idea of not having access to her clothes in this unfamiliar house.
The blonde - Setter, had Oliver called her? Weird name - gives her a supportive smile. "We'll leave you your clothes if you prefer, but the offer to clean them is out there. Menna can fill you in more."
"Thanks so much for all this." Xander says as he grabs Matangi's arm and tugs her towards the door. "Seriously, it was getting really boring out there."
Matangi rolls her eyes. "Only you would say that not fighting for our lives daily is boring." She grumbles, but another layer of her unease peels off when Xander laughs.
"Menna" as it turns out, is a girl about Matangi's age with white blonde hair and a flighty disposition.
"I'm a Muggleborn too, but Uncle Gareth has been hiding my mum and I from the beginning." She tells them as they walk. "So I'm really happy he's helping the Underground save other Muggleborns. I just wish I could do more personally."
"Hey, you're showing us the way to our first real shower in months, that's not nothing." Xander assures her.
Matangi rolls her eyes, but she admits the teen in front of them is doing a lot to dispel her suspicions of this all being a ruse. The Snatchers aren't nearly so clever, and besides, this girl should be in school right now. She thinks.
Actually... "What's the date?" She asks, probably a bit ruder than is polite but she's justified in being prickly.
Menna doesn't take offense to the tone and simply purses her lips in thought. "Um, April fifteenth? Or sixteenth?" She counts on her fingers and then nods. "Fifteenth. It was Easter Monday two days ago. Happy Easter I guess." She adds with a wry grin.
Okay, so she could be home for the holiday. Matangi's suspicions rise again slightly.
Menna shows them to different bathrooms, which of course makes sense but Matangi can admit it feels weird being this far away from Xander. After months together she definitely feels safer if she knows he's nearby. Thankfully Menna lets her keep the backpack, and she lays out her favorite knives in reach in case they try something while she's showering.
It does feel good though, and once she's certain the door is locked and no one is going to come in she relaxes under the hot water and scrubs at months worth of grime and sweat. There's even some blood that washes out of her hair, old and long dried and throughly disgusting. She's going to appreciate showers a whole lot more now than she ever had before, that's for sure.
She's pretty sure she takes a few hours scraping every part of herself clean, but frankly she could care less about the water bill when she steps out of the shower and wraps herself up in one of the fluffy towels hanging next to the wall: finally feeling clean is worth whatever she just cost their host.
She also realizes that at some point someone had slipped in and cast a vigorous cleaning charm on her clothes, but she can't even bring herself to mind - she probably wouldn't have wanted to wear them in the state they'd been in before.
She redresses and shoves her knives into the backpack that's been left untouched beside the door and then heads back out into the manor's halls to find Xander.
She finds an older woman instead, who momentarily looks startled to see her, and then smiles.
"You must be the new Fugitive Hawk brought in." She says warmly. "I'm Scorcha, Menna's mother. Did you need help getting back to the living room?" She offers.
Matangi eyes the woman suspiciously but nods sharply a moment later. Scorcha is willowy and seems like someone Matangi could take out in a fight if need be.
She follows a few step behind the red head, ping the side of her bag to allow easy access to her knives if necessary.
They reach a large, unfamiliar room maybe a minute later (and really, who needs a house this big? The nonsense rich white people spend their wealth on will forever baffle her) and she's relieved to see that Xander is already there (less hair to wash, she supposes, so it would have taken him less time to get clean) though Oliver and an unknown man are also present, and the man doesn't look too happy.
"Don't mind Gareth, dear, he's always grouchy." Scorcha assures her in a stage whisper that the man - Gareth - definitely hears but doesn't react to. "Alright Hawk, they're all yours." She adds louder, nodding to Oliver who tilts his head back in thanks.
Oliver grins. "Cool! So now that you're clean and hopefully feeling a little more relaxed we're going to move you straight to Owl's place so you can have dinner there and get to know them a bit. The next portkey out of England won't be for another couple weeks - we can't have them too often or they'd become too easy to track - so you'll be lying low with them for the time being."
Xander nods. "Sounds like a plan. Are we Apparating?"
"Floo, actually. We've got a private, untapped network at our disposal which makes moving out to the country safe houses way easier." Oliver grins.
Matangi pretends she isn't relieved to hear that, even if part of her brain is shouting that the Floo is easier for a Deatheater to track than Apparation and thus more vulnerable. She still has her knives, and frankly all this feels too elaborate to be a Snatcher scheme - they aren't smart enough or patient enough to have waited this long to pounce.
So despite her undercurrent of misgiving she steps forward and accepts the Floo powder Oliver offers her.
"I'll go first - just say the same destination as I do." He says as he tosses the powder into the fireplace. "Owl's nest!" He shouts, then steps into the green flames and vanishes.
"I'll go next then?" Xander offers, but Matangi shakes her head.
"We go in together. If there's an ambush on the other side we need to back each other up."
Xander rolls his eyes but nods anyway. "Sure sure, because after all that they're definitely just going to drag us to Azkaban T. Really, you need to learn to trust that there are actually a lot of people out there who have good intentions."
"Maybe so, but they aren't usually the ones acting." She fires back as she tosses her handful of Floo powder into the fireplace and the green flames fill it again. "You'll have to forgive my caution. Owl's nest." She ennunciates clearly to the fire and then steps through, Xander right beside her.
On the other side they find Oliver chatting with a young woman a few feet off to the left. The room they step into is cozy, and Matangi can smell something that instantly makes start watering.
"-isn't back from work yet but I can introduce them, I live here too you know." The woman is saying with a mix of annoyance and amusement. "We were hiding long before Lion approached Fitz with that offer to join the Underground you know, I'm capable of not blowing our cover with one house tour."
Oliver has his hands up defensively despite the lack of real bite in the words. "I know I know, sorry Fox. These two are just twitchy."
"T is twitchy." Xander corrects with a laugh. "But she's getting better." He adds, and Matangi just rolls her eyes.
"So this is the so-called safe house?" She guesses. "What makes it so safe?"
"It's out of the city center, carefully charmed so that it's hard to find without being impossible so if anyone does come looking they won't be suspicious that they can't find it, and beyond all that the owner is a pureblood with relatives in the Deatheater ranks." Oliver says proudly.
Matangi tenses at the same time as Xander does and her hand flicks back to her bag, tugging at the zipper.
The woman - Fox - laughs and walks over to them. "My husband is about as different from his family as it's possible to be." She assures them. "I mean, he married me and I'm Muggleborn. It was a pretty big scandal for all of two months before everyone forgot he existed again. There are definite benefits to being the quiet one." She grins and then holds out a hand. "Evie Selwyn, and my husband is Fitzwilliam. He's at work right now but I'm happy to show you around our little home and get you settled."
Oliver gives a little wave. "I'm going to head out then, I've got a meeting with Rat in twenty minutes and I kind of want to shower myself before seeing her." With that he spins on his heel and Apparates out.
Evie claps her hands together and smiles at them. "Alrighty then! Let's get your rooms picked out, and then see if we've got any clothes that aren't falling apart to give you." She decides. "Cassie is watching the stove so don't worry, nothing's going to catch fire." She adds when she sees both of them glance towards where the delicious smell Matangi had noticed earlier was coming from.
Matangi actually hadn't been thinking about that at all, but the fact it was Evie's first assumption is... worrying, to say the least. And now she's worried about fires.
"We've only got Cassie with us at the moment since we used to be more of a transitive safehouse before Gryphon finished setting up the Floo, so it'll just be the five of us. Oh, I didn't catch your names earlier!" She adds, turning to face them and continuing to walk backwards down the hallway that's much longer than Matangi would expect from a house that looks as quaint as the living room had.
"I'm Xander Orton." Xander says immediately, with his usual amount of caution. "And this is-"
"Tangi. I go by Tangi." She interrupts before he can give her full name to a total stranger.
Evie doesn't seem put off by her brusqueness. "Got it! Xander and Tangi. My husband is Fitzwilliam but he goes by Fitz because Fitzwilliam is gross quite frankly. And then I mentioned Cassie already, she's been with us a few days now."
"Another fugitive Muggleborn?" Xander guesses, and Evie nods.
"A Kneazle breeder, actually! She's got some really fun stories about her Kneazles, I'm already trying to get Fitz to agree to adopt one of her next litter."
"Well I think I've got some pretty good stories myself." Xander brags, and Matangi decides that now is a good time to intervene, before Xander starts spouting both their life stories.
"How is this hall so long?" She interrupts, and Evie blinks in surprise before shrugging.
"Some sort of magic. The house looks the same from the outside, but we can have up to ten people in here at a time, counting me and Fitz. You two can choose whichever rooms you like, by the way, except foooooooor-" She darts ahead about a foot and then dramatically gestures to one of the doors, "This one! This is Cassie's room."
"Well then I'll snag this one." Xander declares, tapping the door right next to him. Matangi takes a little longer, actually peering into each room before realizing they're all identical (and none of them has access to the outside) and takes the room next to Xander's.
"I'll let you both settle in then and get back to dinner. There's clothes with different sizes in the closets and the bathroom is back the way we came if you need it!" With that Evie skips back down the hallway towards what's presumably the kitchen, leaving Xander and Matangi to their own devices.
Xander shrugs. "Well, I guess this is home for a bit. Better than the forest."
Matangi hums noncommittally, and Xander sighs.
"For goodness sake T, could you stop? I get it, you're suspicious, but at this point they're losing money if they're just trying to get us to relax. You're the Slytherin, so you should realize the Deatheaters wouldn't do that even if they were smart enough to set something like this up." He sighs heavily. "Can you just accept that something good is finally happening for us? Because as long as you keep that stick up your rear I can't enjoy this either."
Matangi bites her lip. He has a point about the money, and it's not like she hadn't had similar thoughts even before he'd brought it up. "Fine, sorry. I just worry. We've survived this much it would to be taken out by a shower."
Xander laughs. "Fair enough, but just try to be a little nicer? I actually think I remember Evie from school too, and she was harmless, and definitely not a Deatheater."
Matangi shrugs, which is as good an answer as she'll give, but she knows that Xander knows it's an agreement.
They both go into their rooms after that, and Matangi is pleasantly surprised to find that there are clothes that both fit her and don't completely insult her tastes. They aren't her usual style, of course, they're too new for that, but she wonders, if she asks, if Evie would get her some sewing equipment. And also let her rip some of these clothes up.
She changes out of her old rags and easily finds a hamper to drop them into before trying on the new ones she's selected. It isn't a perfect fit, but it's better than the oversized Snatcher coat she'd had all winter.
She peers out into the hallway, hoping to spot Xander so they can go to the kitchen together, but he's nowhere in sight. Taking in a shaky breath, alone in a doorway of an unfamiliar house, Matangi finally feels scared. Months alone (and then less alone) in a forest running for her life had been fine, but apparently a bit of kindness is now the most terrifying thing in the world.
She's frozen in the doorframe, hoping Xander will come out of his room and unfreeze her, mentally screaming at herself for her sudden, pointless weakness.
A door nearby swings open and she jerks around to face it, relief starting to spill into her veins before she realizes the person now in the hallway with her is a total stranger.
The girl in front of her is a malnourished strawberry blonde with sallow features made worse by her obvious lack of sustenance. Something in Matangi's brain registers that this must be the other Fugitive Cassie, but a louder part is overwhelming her thoughts, screaming about how it isn't Xander.
Cassie smiles at her, utterly oblivious to the roiling mass of emotion overwhelming Matangi. "Hi! You must be Tangi! Xander talked about you a little - he's in the kitchen helping Evie not burn dinner." She says brightly. "Want to go join them? Or I can show you more of the house."
"The kitchen sounds fine." Matangi manages to sound completely normal despite the effort it took to actually speak. She wants to be near Xander, and she absolutely hates it.
Cassie beams. "Cool. Xander says you two were traveling together since before the snow fell - I'm jealous. I was alone pretty much the whole time and it was hellish."
She continues rambling on, though Matangi mostly tunes it out, instead focusing on her comments about how long she and Xander had been together. Of course she doesn't like being away from Xander - she's felt safer around him for months now, it's probably become ingrained into her psyche that his presence equals safety.
When she enters the kitchen her eyes immediately fly to her travel buddy, who's by the stove stirring a pot. He turns to her and she can visibly see the tension draining from his body.
So they've become codependent, good to know. But as she looks around the domestic scene, Matangi slowly starts to accept that maybe this might be real.
They might finally be safe.
Author's Note: Some hopeful moments! And now we enter what I like to call the Gauntlet - the final lead up into the final battle!
Next Time: The longer it takes to learn a lesson, the worse the consequences are
So I'm thinking I might do a final 'afterwords' chapter to share my thoughts and feelings on writing this story, if that's something people would be interested in? I'm also open to answering any lingering questions people might have there as well!
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