You pray for the day, oh show me the way Characters: Faelan, Sirius Summary: The morning comes, but something's wrong
Curled up on the cool soil at the base of a tree, the wolf snuffled in its sleep, on the edge of waking as the moon began to sink toward the horizon. He turned his head on his paws, whining out a yawn and cracking one tired eye open to see where Sirius was. The dog was sitting nearby, tall and alert as he watched the sky over the sea.
Faelan was very tired, and he knew Sirius must be too. He hoped the man had slept. They'd run chases and played tug of war with fallen branches until deep into the night, and as usual since the Wolfsbane, Faelan had fallen down with an exhaustion that was full of exhiliration, not misery. He was stiff and a bit sore with the coming moonset, but that was to be expected. He hadn't bitten himself or hurt Sirius, and that was all that really mattered. He'd been afraid with magic screwing up all over the place lately that the Wolfsbane potion might fail, but he had nothing to worry about now except the change back and a day of lost work while he slept off the pain.
Lifting his head, Faelan watched as Padfoot walked to the edge of the ridge and began to pace back and forth. It was still quite dark, making the dog a black shadow among shadows, but Faelan always knew right where he was -- it was too easy to smell the protective instincts of an animagus.
Sirius, Faelan said in his head, wanting the man's attention, liking it when Sirius stayed nearby for the transformation. He always covered him with a blanket, gave him potions, stroked his hair until Faelan felt ready to sit up, and then he helped him get dressed. At the beginning, Faelan had hated it. He just wanted to be alone -- wanted not to be seen -- but the man's presence had changed somewhere along the way, from smothering to undeniably comforting. He couldn't imagine being with anyone else during the full moon.
When the sun's rays finally began to peek over the horizon and the moon was nearly out of view, Faelan lumbered to his feet and sat, stiffening as he awaited the change and its inevitable pain. But it would be quick, and then it would be over, and he could go home to his bed.