When Sera received Michi's text, she had just started to settle into bed for the night. She'd been propped up against her headboard, trying to get through her Arithmancy assignment but she'd mostly just been dozing off. Buzzing next to her bed from her phone brought her to though, she definitely hadn't expected it to be Michi, and certainly not from the hospital. She had honestly been expecting Jenny, telling her good night or something. Reading the text though, she jumped up quickly, pacing briefly and looking a bit lost. "Keys!" she decided, grabbing the her keys from the top of her desk. She didn't bother to change, just throwing on a sweater over her pajamas.

Her first thought, at least until she got Michi's second text, had been that something was wrong with the baby. Tatum getting hurt had been the very last thing she had was expecting to hear, and by a wolf. Just a wolf. Something about it didn't sit right with her, but her real concern was still getting to the hospital. Michi had said it was bad, and frankly she didn't know what she would do if something happened to Tatum, especially before she got there to be with her.

They may not have got along all of the time, but she was still her sister, they weren't exactly the type of people who would tell each other often but she loved her. Most of the time lately, Tatum felt like the only family she had left. She had her mother, of course, but she couldn't help but feel a little bit like Madeline still sided with her father, even if not outwardly. She hadn't exactly fought to get Tatum back in the house. She just couldn't lose her sister, she knew she was younger but she couldn't help but feel responsible for the other girl.

She doubted she could have done anything to stop it, what happened to Tatum, not just the attack but everything. Tatum was her responsibility now, they were kind of each others responsibility. Tatum might disagree, but now more than ever with them both out on their own, Sera felt they needed to look after each other. Their parents still needed to know though, of course they did, even if her father was pissed. Wouldn't he still want to know if one of his children was injured? She was still his daughter.

Immediately after leaving her room, Sera called Leland, already on her way to the parking lot. She doubted she'd be able to drive herself, not with the way she was shaking, she was still a novice driver as it was. She basically told the older boy to apparate and meet her at the campus parking lot as fast as he possibly could, and continued on her way there. He'd probably have to bring Eddie, she felt sort of bad for probably waking them up, but there would be plenty of people at the hospital to take turns looking after her, and the little girl was always a good distraction for Hunter anyway. They had very similar mentalities.

She began to cross the parking lot, trying to ignore the mess of what she was sure had to be her sister's blood on the ground near some other cars. There was a lot of it, more than she had ever seen, and she felt her stomach turning as she kept walking as fast as she could. She was crying almost uncontrollably by the time she met up with Leland, it had been a miracle that he had been able to understand her on the phone at all, and she was crying much worse now. But there he was, she knew she could count on him.

Still sobbing, she tossed her keys over to him and took Eddie, helping to buckle her into the booster seat in her backseat. It was lucky there was still one in there from the last time that they had gone into town together. She tried to get herself under control, not wanting to upset the little girl, but she didn't think this would be the last crying that she'd have to see tonight. Things were bleak. Getting into the passenger seat, she sniffled. "Just hurry," she told Le. "Speed if you have to, just.. I don't care, just get there."

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Eddie had been in bed for a while now and Leland had just gotten to sleep himself with a wand core manual laying open on his chest when the phone rang. He almost rolled over on the couch and ignored it but seeing the caller ID he thought twice and answered. He had barely understood Sera but from what he got was that she needed him and that Tatum was in trouble. The phone call woke him up with a jolt, his hair was standing on end, he felt guilt creeping into his stomach like it was somehow his fault.

Quickly he ran through the apartment to get Eddie. He knew Sera would understand he couldn't leave her there by herself and at the very least kids were a comfort when the world was going to shit. He picked her up gently and held her close to his chest. "We have to go visit Auntie Sera okay baby," he cooed as she started fussing.

"Daddy," she whined. "Moosey..."

"I'll bring Moosey too," he grabbed the Moose out of her crib. Then apparated to the school parking lot. He walked toward Sera's car to wait for her, the faster they got there the better, he was only waiting a few moments before he spotted her. While she was buckling Sera into the booster seat he got the car started and buckled in. As soon as Sera was buckled he took off, driving faster than he ever would with Eddie in the car, but he knew it was important that they get there.

He reached over and took her hand, a small comfort. "I'm gonna get you there," he said gently as the sped down the nearly empty road toward the hospital. It was the only reassuring thing he could stomach to say. "What happened?" he braved to ask after a few minutes.

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When Leland reached over and took Sera's hand, she turned to her friend offering just a weak smile. It really was calming, even if she could still feel herself shaking. She just couldn't stop thinking about her sister, but mostly all the blood she'd seen in the parking lot. Tatum didn't even technically weigh enough to be allowed to give blood at the blood bank, let alone lose that much of it. She couldn't shake the sinking feeling in her stomach, or the nausea that was still accompanying it.

"Tatum was attacked.. just by a wolf, Michi said," Sera began with, sniffling a bit when she first spoke. "They don't just do that, do they? It must have been something else, right Le? Did you see all the blood back there?" She lowered her voice down a bit, so Eddie couldn't hear from the backseat, if she was even paying attention.

Sera really hadn't realized how fast they were driving until they finally passed another lone car on the street. She jumped a bit as they passed it, squeezing Leland's hand. "Maybe slow down just a bit.. i-it's just really dark and no one else needs to get hurt tonight." She tried to her best to smile looking over at him. "Seriously thanks though, I don't know what I'd do without you right now. I owe you so much."

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His grip on the wheel tightened as he listened to Sera's explanation of what had happened to the little red head. He realized for the first time that he was shaking but holding Sera's hand "Wolves don't just attack," he said darkly. "But the fuckin thing I pushed off her last full moon did. It-" he sighed, shaking his head. "It was a fuckin were and it had her scent. Them damn things don't back down from a hunt. I fuckin told here not to go out into the woods alone," he pursed his lips. Not for the first time he felt like he could have prevented something bad from happening.

He took a deep breath. "We're gonna do whatever it takes to help her get out of this thing okay?" he tried to reassure her. H e knew it was looking pretty grim if he was right though. At the best she'd be a lovable house trained ginger wolf once a month, at the worst she'd be an insatiably hungry.

"Sorry," he said quietly. He was sorry for it all really. He eased on the gas pedal as soon as Sera asked, not having noticed how hard his foot was pressed down. He slipped into a slower but still speedy pace, racing down the road. "You don't owe me nothing little sis," he said gently. "We family, we gotta take care of our own."

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For the first time, Sera realized that Le's hand was shaking as well. In all of the time that she had known him, she had never known him to be the type to be easily scared. Whatever he was about to say was not going to be good, Sera could just tell. She turned to him while she listened. Werewolf? That just couldn't be. That would mean Tatum was going to be a werewolf, too.

She pulled her hand away from Leland's, covering her face. It was a lot to take in, she was already on the verge of breaking down as it was. If she had known there was something out there, a werewolf, why the fuck had she gone out there? Some part of her wanted to yell at Tatum as soon as she got there about being so completely stupid and foolish. What was that going to do at this point? If Le was right, then what was done was done now. Even after her cuts healed up, her life would never be the same again. She highly doubted he could be wrong, the full moon was too convenient, no matter what she tried to tell herself or how much she avoided looking at it.

"Le, it can't be.. it just can't be, you know what that means-- not to mention the size of them," she gasped. "How big was the one you saw last month?" she asked, but kept her face covered. She really wasn't sure she wanted to know, in fact she was pretty sure that she didn't. Her stomach felt like it couldn't sink any lower, and she really thought she was going to be sick.

Sera had never seen a werewolf in person before, not in real life, but she had learned and read enough about them to know all that she really needed to. They were huge and extremely vicious. Tatum was barely even ninety pounds, and that would be soaking wet. She was really lucky to be alive at all against something like that.

When Leland slowed down the car a bit, Sera relaxed somewhat but just barely. Reaching over, she took Le's hand again. "Thanks," she offered with a weak smile. She wanted to say something else but she wasn't exactly sure what. Family or not, she owed him really more than he could ever know. She knew she'd have been losing her mind with fear if she had to be alone right now. "For everything," she added. "Just being here tonight, telling me about the wolf.. saving her last time. Why would she go back out there?" she asked. "If she knew, why would she go back out there by herself.."

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He didn't want it to be true but there was a nagging sense that he was right about this. When he heard her speak again though, he instantly regretted how he had said it. He hadn't thought about softening the blow. Fuck he hated this. There were so many things to deal with. He didn't know how much longer his brave face would last with the way Sera was crying.

"I know, but we'll take this day by day," he said quietly. He didn't know if he wanted to tell her the truth about the wolf but he sure as hell couldn't lie to her, not little sis. He nodded. "This thing wasn't no pup. At least two and a half - three times her size," his voice was almost fragile when he said it.

He was glad to have her hand in his again though, it was calming and reassuring. "Any time," he didn't really didn't know what to say, he had never been good with words. "I'm here for you no matter what kid." As for her question, he had no idea why Tatum would go out when she knew there was danger out there. He sighed and shook his head. "I don't know what she was thinking. She probably wasn't even with it," he shook his head. "I shoulda reminded her er somethin," he grumbled.

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