Closed Wolfsbane

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Set august 2055

A few months ago Briar had heard that there was a young werewolf who had been caught in the foster system continually running away on full moons to the extent that her department had become aware of the small werewolf. It hadn't taken long for briar to decide to take her in. The paperwork however had taken a while. apparently, it was harder to take in a child than the Margera's had suggested when she had been fourteen. or maybe the fact that she had never been in 'the system' had meant that it was easier to do things unofficially. either way it was august when she had eventually welcomed the girl into her home. she wasn't sure if it being timed with lindens return from school was a good thing or not. they were after all a similar age. but Tara seemed so timid that maybe fewer people would have been a better thing. it was, after all that it was and they would have to put up with it. she would not be able to attend Hogwarts in September as it had been a condition of the adoption that she would have to finish the school year in her current school. she would then be homeschooled from Christmas onwards trying to teach her enough about magic so as not to have her too far behind.
that was all a future problem. right now briar appeared at the farm in Australia three large casks of potion in a bag. in one week's time it would be Tara's first full moon with them and it was time to start the preparations. she left the potions in the kitchen before heading upstairs and knocking lightly on willow's old bedroom door.

 

[Tara Hawthorne]

Transforming for Tara had always been a very nerve-wracking, terrifying thing. She'd run away from so many foster homes that honestly she'd thought she would never be safe anywhere. Tara was small for her age. She tried to make up for it by being spunky, but this- this was honestly the most terrifying thing she'd ever had to deal with. She'd been taken in again, but this time, by not one, but two, two, fully grown up, strong, adult sized werewolves.

They were going to eat her for breakfast.

Tara had been too nervous to unpack, most of her limited belongings still in the bag she'd brought. She was sitting against her bag, reading a book and trying to get her mind off of things, when there was a knock on the door. She looked up, shutting her book but keeping a finger in the pages. "Yes?" She called, trying to appear completely calm and confident.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Briar heard movement and a voice from within the room. There on the bed curled up against a bag holding a book was Tara looking more like a scared rabbit than a teenager. hello Tara. How are you settling in? she said not failing to notice that the bag was still fully packed as if she was waiting to check out of a hotel. she knew the feeling. she had lived times when she had been constantly moving when she was younger. and even when settling in the sense of fight or flight took a long time to get rid of. She considered maybe activating the charms around the property that prevented people from entering or exiting during a full moon, she didn't want to make the place feel like a prison but she didn't want to girl to flee like she had done in her past houses. She took a step forward and gestured to the edge of the bed. "do you mind if I sit down so we can have a bit of a talk about the full moon next week?" she said trying hard to be as gentle as she could. it wasn't something that was in her nature exactly but she had worked on it since having children and she was trying hard.

 

[Tara Hawthorne]

Tara watched Briar walk in, trying to look more relaxed than she felt. "Oh, great, its great, the room is great," She replied automatically. Tara hesitated as the woman gestured to the bed, biting her lip and shifting. "Yeah, sure," She offered noncommittally. You're checking to see if I want to be roasted or stewed, She mused to herself, watching the woman wearily. She didn't trust herself to ask any questions, so she just waited for Briar to speak, unsure what the woman might have to say.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Briar smiled as tara said she liked the room trying to pretend like it wasn't obvious how tense she was and that she probably hadn't even noticed much about it. "That is good. let me know if you want anything changing." she said. some of willow's stuff was still in there, one of her old guitars was in the corner and a few of her training snitches were sitting slightly dustily on the shelf alongside her old school books that linden was slowly making his way though.
she took a step forward and sat on the edge of the bed. "I am not sure if this is the first home that you have had where people have known you are a werewolf. but, correct me if I am wrong, I am fairly sure that this is the first home where you have been staying with other werewolves." she said pausing for a moment to see if Tara would say anything. "you aren't the first guest we have had stay with us. and to make sure things go as safely as they can we have a few ground rules." she said. realising how much she sounded like a professor or someone like that, the kind of figure she had not really liked when she had been taras age. "the first thing you should know is there are a selection of charms around the property. when activated they hide the land and stop anyone entering or exiting." she said. it was surprisingly easy to hide 100 acres from muggles it was somewhat obscured in part of a natural valley, and those who were looking in the right direction who just looked right past it, she paused talking again and looked at tara giving her a bit of time to process and to aks any questions she had so far. not that she expected anything too new our ninportant in the information.

 

[Tara Hawthorne]

Tara offered a tight smile at the womans words. We'll see if I survive the next full moon first. She thought to herself, half debating just running off from here too- probably before the next full moon, she didn't think she could outrun two fully grown wolves. She tried to keep relaxed as the woman sat on the bed, nodding her agreement at the womans statement. Tara didn't think any of her homes knew she was a wolf- she'd been careful to hide it, and had been considered quite the flight risk any time she'd been found.

She swallowed nervously as Briar mentioned other guests. And where are they? Did you eat them? She tried to remain neutral, though a tiny hint of fear flashed over her face when Briar mentioned the charms. Oh. Oh no. Tara quickly fixed her face, trying to appear as neutral as possible. "Sure, yeah, that's- that's smart," She offered, hoping it sounded tougher than she felt.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Briar could see that Tara was uncomfortable talking to her. but unfortunately this was a conversation that would never be comfortable. even in a world where they were welcomed it would be a hard conversation. it seemed that everything she was saying was making the girl seem even more tense. maybe she wasn't as good at this as she thought she was. "we have another rule that is very important. we will all be using the wolfsbane potion" she said.
she paused. she wasn't sure how much this girl knew about the wizarding world or about potions, this was was only one potion that she ever had the patience to brew, she knew the importance of it, she still had scars on her face from when she stopped taking it for a few months when she had been sixteen. She bought wolfsbane too but it was expensive but however professional versions were lightly more potent than home brew. this month was bought. she wanted the best for Taras first transformation with them. "do you know what that potion does?" she asked

 

[Tara Hawthorne]

Tara was tense, visibly sliding away a bit as Briar mentioned another rule. Tara swallowed hard, folding her hands in her lap and holding them together tightly. "No," She answered softly. "I've heard the name but, I don't know what it actually is," She was tempted to ask if it was something that would just knock her out, but when was anything ever that easy?

 

[Professor Elvera Le Fey]

.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Briar wasn't particularly surprised that tara had not used wolfsbane before. it wasn't a cheep potion, not by a long way despite her efforts to make it more accessible. and for a girl who was 'in the system' access was almost a sick joke. though it did make her heart sink. she could not even imagine how horrific full moons would have been for her without it. especially as Tara was so scared and alone already. "The Wolfsbane potion is a potion that enables you to keep your own mind while transformed." she said. "it won't stop the transformation on the outside but it will mean that inside you are still tara." she said. ""unfortunately it isn't perfect. you need to drink it every day for a week before the full moon or it won't work. and it is one of the most bitter tasting things ever, but adding sugar stops it from working" she said.

 

[Tara Hawthorne]

Tara's brow furrowed at Briar's words, and she was silent a moment as the woman finished. "You're... joking, right?" She finally managed, looking dubious. "That can't really be a thing," Tara leaned back. This lady was messing with her. She'd seemed nice enough, until Tara had realized she was going to be eaten. Tense, and feeling close to snapping under the pressure, Tara scooted further back. "Look, I get it, I'm stuck and can't leave. Is this some weird playing with your food thing? I couldn't get past one of you, let alone two, just let me finish this book before I turn into a midnight snack," She asked a bit smarmily in an attempt to hide at least a little that she was terrified of being anywhere near these people on a full moon.

 

[Briar Rowan-Cullen]

Briar listened quietly to Tara. as she seemed surprised that wolfsbane existed and what it did. "you may not know me well. but I can assure you my jokes are better than that. I am serious about the potion, I am sure there is a copy of advanced potion making in here somewhere if you want to read about it" she said. there must be a copy somewhere amongst Willows old textbooks. she wasn't one who enjoyed books and would never usually recommend reading one, she was far more a learn on the go kind of lady. but she figured tara seemed to see things differently and she may trust a book more than her explanation.
As tara spoke about being breakfast. she tried not to let her amusement cross her face as she was fairly sure that just like her Tara wasn't joking. "playing with food? midnight snack? get past two of us? What? no." she said confused. is that really what the girl thought of her, of the Cullens as a family? "We wouldn't hurt anything bigger than a wombat. ?Bjorn would be much easier to hunt than a young werewolf. and he has been around for years" she said referring to the pet dog he was getting older now and linden would not be happy with them if any harm came to him.

 

[Tara Hawthorne]

Tara's eyes flickered around the room for a brief moment before turning to look back to the woman. She wasn't sure what to think. This entire thing felt overwhelming. She studied the woman wearily, not quite believing her. She had heard a lot of horror stories. She knew that it might be all hearsay, but Tara had never in all her life met another werewolf, so she was afraid of what may be true. She swallowed nervously, shifting in her seat. "We'll see," she offered nervously, fidgeting with her sleeves.