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[mssr-black.livejournal.com]

Date: October 1st, early morn
Status: public
Setting: the road leading to the Manor
Summary: Mssr. Black comes to the Manor...
Rating: PG, but PG13 for those with particularly vivid imaginations.

Sirius Black opened his eyes. As the Veil lifted, and the world once again came into focus, all of his senses returned to him at once.
This was unfortunate because it’s rather a shock to the system to go from a content state of nothingness to the over-stimulation of laying nude in the wet grass of a misty gray morning with a sharp breeze cutting across your skin and raindrops rolling into and out of places they never should have been. He shivered, despite himself.
Without moving, he began to take stock of all the movable parts. Nothing seemed to be broken, or indeed even pained. Sitting himself up, he brushed the grass and mud from what he could reach and looked at the world around him. It certainly looked like the one he’d so recently left.
There was a road just to the side of where he sat. Probably led somewhere, he decided, and anywhere was better than here at this moment.
Good God but it was freezing. Only one thing to do...

No more than a half of an hour later, a large, black, and very wet dog padded up to Tadfield Manor, trying its best to look forlorn and hungry.

Comments

[dontcallmegabby.livejournal.com]

Gabriel loved the rain.

Not a drop touched him as he sat, wings outstretched, under a sky the soft grey of a dove’s feathers, but its soft, sizzling sound as it struck the ground all around him was mesmerizing. He closed his eyes, letting the fresh scent wash over him, lapping at his senses as the rain fell and washed the earth clean.

Heavenly...

His eyes opened as soon as he became aware of the presence, and he had quickly tucked his wings away just before looking up to find a... dog? That didn’t seem right. He blinked at the mangy creature as it wandered into view, knowing something more lay beneath the appearance of a shaggy, half-starved animal. Something new to this plane, he thought, and yet already weary.

"Hello," he said gently, raising a hand in a friendly gesture. "You..."

He tilted his head curiously, trying to put a name to the vague sense of desperation he sensed in the other being.

"You look like you could use something to eat," he finished with a soft smile.

[mssr-black.livejournal.com]

He couldn’t remember ever being this hungry in the entirety of his life. It was almost as though he hadn’t eaten in years. As he trotted along the road, the dog picked up the scent of food... or at least what it perceived as food. Upon closer examination, the food source appeared to have died several days beforehand. While the dog didn’t mind this in the least, the part of it that was still Sirius resisted the urge to wretch and turned its nose sharply back to the road.
A sudden gust of wind tugged at the dripping strands of the dog’s coat and made him colder still, but his head snapped up, peering intently in the direction from which the wind had come.
Scent... the scent of...
He couldn’t place it. It was neither natural nor unnatural, but some level of the dog’s brain recognized it. Sirius tried to feel around in the animal’s perception to get a picture of what it was, but met with nothing, save a feeling of warmth and contentment that he’d never be able to understand. Whatever it was, it couldn’t possibly be harmful.
He picked up the trot again.
As he came over a small ridge he saw him. For a mere fraction of the moment, barely hundredths of a second... he thought he was looking at an angel. He would have sworn there were wings, that the man had some divine aura, that the rain itself didn’t dare touch him, but in an equally small moment of time, the image passed.
Scent of... what? What is it exactly?
It was Heaven. The dog knew it. Sirius, on the other hand, was mystified. He padded forward, undoubtedly looking pathetic and travel-worn. The man on the bench appeared friendly, and that would just have to be good enough.
“Hello,” he said gently, raising a hand in a friendly gesture. “You...”
The dog inched forward and sat warily in front of the stranger, the dog smug with the promise of a friendly face, and quite possibly food, and Sirius curious, grateful, and embarrassingly hopeful.
“You look like you could use something to eat,” he said, and smiled.
The image he'd had coming over the top of that hill came flooding back.
Before Sirius could stop himself, the dog was already wagging its tail in defeat.

[dontcallmegabby.livejournal.com]

The rain had begun to soak into his clothing, clinging to his dark hair and trickling down the pale curve of his cheek. To an archangel who had spent most of existence in the pristine glow of Heaven, it was a wonderfully alien sensation. The creature before him, however, looked drenched and miserable; he perceived very well now that some consciousness in the animal understood him, so he said softly, "Let’s just get you out of this rain first, shall we?"

He rose without waiting for a response and moved toward a roofed pavilion, turning to see that the dog had followed. He gazed at the creature for a long moment, curious, discerning. Outside the soft rain fell, creating a curtain of silver haze all around the shelter.

Gabriel smiled suddenly. His eyes wandered to a nearby table, and with a thought there appeared on it a platter of succulent fish and a loaf of rye bread, its warmth and wafting scent suggesting it could have come freshly from the oven. Next to the meal was a pint – certainly not Gabriel's own preference, but even the beer held an inviting golden glow, ambrosia alight deep within itself.

He turned his gaze expectantly back to the animal. "I hope it’s to your liking," he said, smiling faintly as he waited for a reaction.

[mssr-black.livejournal.com]

“Let’s just get you out of this rain first, shall we?” said the man, as he rose and started to walk towards a pavilion. A few paces away, the man turned to look back, stared at the dog for a long moment, and finally smiled. Sirius had the distinct impression that he was being read. Half a moment later the smell reached him.

Fish? Fresh rye? Beer?

His stomach growled audibly and he started after the man. Every cell in the dog wanted to leap upon the table, and be nothing but happy in the light of the food and the new friend. Sirius on the other hand, decided that it would not do to leap blindly. This man exuded trustworthiness, calm, confidence. He was going out of his way for a creature he’d never met, and moreover, one that he obviously recognized as more than just a dog. That in itself raised questions. Suspicion and self-preservation had not failed the black dog yet.

He stepped out of the rain and into the pavilion where the man now sat.

“I hope it’s to your liking,” said the man, with a faint smile.

If dogs can grin, Sirius did. He padded closer to the man and sat down, just out of arms reach, bowing his head slightly in thanks. The scent was killing him slowly, he was certain, but dinner would not be had. There were questions yet.

The great black head rose sharply, with as much majesty as a bedraggled starving thing could muster. His eyes burned yellow, and stared directly at the man before him. It was a question of trust.

[dontcallmegabby.livejournal.com]

"Ah," Gabriel uttered softly, understanding the question implicitly. The creature looked at him, trying to discern trust from the angel’s face. Gabriel smiled gently. "Well, your meal will stay warm for a while yet."

He blinked once, tilting his head as he considered the creature curiously; there was an age in those burning eyes that did not fit such a creature, a cautious, self-restraint in its tenseness that was much more human than animal. Slowly, cautiously, Gabriel knelt, bringing himself down to the dog’s height so that their eyes met on an equal level. "I understand your concerns," the angel said quietly, "and yet I can’t help but wonder how to gain the trust of one who has been through so much."

[mssr-black.livejournal.com]

Sirius decided then that there was little else to be done.

Slowly he backed away to the edge of the pavilion, his eyes never wavering from the man's face. He blinked once, gave a barely audible sigh and took a leap of faith.

Fur became flesh, bone became longer, as the man imprisoned in the body of the dog stretched his arms to the sky, flexing the muscles of his back in a release of an unknown tension. The transformation was quick, and where the dog once stood was a man who while at once appearing frail and mortal, gave the impression of intoxicating heights and the strength of an army.

The last vestige of dog were the eyes, and they burned a brilliant yellow still, as he stared at the man knelt before him. After but a moment, his eyes faded to a bloodshot white. The intensity was gone, and what was left was only fatigue, hunger, and a hidden coil of animal instinct.

He gave the man a gentle nod, and took his seat at the table, ignoring the needles of cold on his bare flesh. There was fish to be had.

[dontcallmegabby.livejournal.com]

Gabriel straightened up, smiling as animal became man and the presence in his mind was suddenly sharpened - though the question briefly crossed his mind of just why so many of the Manor's inhabitants insisted on wandering about naked.

Still, even as the man sat down to eat, Gabriel could sense something not quite right. There was a weary quality to his character that did not befit his age, something tired and haggard and worn. He had seen more in his time, the archangel thought, than perhaps a mortal should, and still carried about him the sense of something mystic.

He could not help but wonder just what had happened to the mortal - whatever it was that clung to him was unfamiliar, though it lacked the dark tinge Gabriel had come to associate with evil. But the angel said nothing of it, instead giving the man a genuine smile. "Is there anything else I might do for you, Mr. ...?"

[mssr-black.livejournal.com]

Sirius gave the man what he could only hope was an odd look. Sitting across from him was a man of some kind of power, that much was clear. It made him wary, but the overall sense of good (as opposed to evil) was what troubled him most.

To trust, or not to trust.

A long drag on the beer brought a seldom used smile of serenity to his face*.
"Black."

He tore the bread in half, offering some to the man across.

"Thank you for this."

A fresh wind carried a barrage of rain to his back, and he shook himself without thinking.

Aura of calm and good, strange generosity, power sans magic, and bloody beautiful. Toss those together with the flash of imagery from earlier... Hmm. He wondered vaguely if he was dead after all and sent a silent prayer of thanks** to Heaven.

"If you don't mind,... Would you mind telling me where we are at the moment? And I'm sorry... what was your name sir?"




* Altogether unfitting with the haggard appearance, it might have looked to the casual observer to be little short of maniacal.

** The kind of thanks that one says with one eyebrow raised and a note of question tagged to the end.

[dontcallmegabby.livejournal.com]

It was the prayer more than the words themselves that sent a little thrill through the air around them; imperceptible to the mortal, it made the hair on the back of the angel's neck stand up. That was more thanks than could be expressed in words.

"You are very welcome, Mr. Black," Gabriel said. He accepted the bread with a nod, and, though he did not need it, broke off a small piece to eat as a show of good will before continuing. "I am Gabriel, and you're in a place called Lower Tadfield. It's not quite Heaven, despite what it looks like sometimes." He broke off, smiling faintly though his worried thoughts strayed once again to Adam as he wondered just how much of the boy's influence was intentional and how much unconscious.

And which would be more dangerous in the times to come.

Meeting the newcomer's eyes once more, he added, "This is Tadfield Manor. They'll be a room for you inside, I suspect, some clothing, and anything else you'll be needing."

[mssr-black.livejournal.com]

A vague sense of relief washed over Sirius, and yet... the suspicion lingered.

Again, Mother Nature saw fit to remind him of his distinct lack of clothing, and pelted his back with icy cold drops.

Quickly, he finished off the last of his meal, and turned to face this new companion.

"Clothes, hmm? I could go for a bit of that."

He stood, and looked towards the Manor.

"Em... Have you other business to attend to? I'd be rather indebted, well... more so than already, that is, if you'd accompany me. I'm not sure a nude visitor would get the warmest welcome..."

[dontcallmegabby.livejournal.com]

"Of course, Mr. Black, it would be my pleasure," Gabriel said with a smile, standing as well.

"And I do apologize, it was silly of me to forget, but..." He gestured, as one casting a spell, but for Gabriel all it took was the thought to materialize the robe which he then offered to Mr. Black. "It'll do," he added as he helped the man slip it on, "until we can find you something more suitable."

The robe was warmer than it by all rights should have been, and though it was hardly waterproof, when Gabriel led the way towards the manor, not a drop of the lashing rain saw fit to touch them.

[mssr-black.livejournal.com]

As the robe slid over his shoulders, and the rain ceased to beat against his body, Sirius Black thanked Heaven for the second time that morning. While he remained slightly mystified at this rapid turn of events, he was nonetheless grateful.

His mind began to turn towards the man who was leading him gently toward the manor. He was obviously of some talent to pull the robe, the food, and this charm from nothing, and with nothing but a bare suggestion of a wave.

He had questions yet. Why would this man just decide to help him? He'd first appeared as a pathetic looking animal - that part was understandable. Pathetic looking animals are far easier to help than pathetic looking men. But when he'd changed... there was hardly a blink of surprise. Who was he and what was this place that they were in the habit of accepting completely nude, run-down individuals with no obvious means of repayment?

He glanced again at the man called Gabriel. He seemed inhuman in his composure, but genuine at the same time. Sirius had seen the lines of worry flash across that face, and wondered whether he was getting into something perhaps more complex than a bath and a bed. It unsettled him.

The questions hung in the vicinity of his throat, and he might have asked them, but they had reached the door. Gabriel opened it.

Sirius walked inside.