Crave

As Mori had planned, Dazai left on the twenty-seventh. His flights had practically lasted the entire day, though he supposes he’s lucky he flies first class, courtesy of Mori’s credit card.

The airport was dead. Only one or two people passed by as he made his way to the exit. He wanted to spend as little time as possible in the filthy building.

The streets were just as dead as the airport. He had expected Mori to send a car for him, just as he had done every single other time. But, leave it to Mori to be a bastard and leave him stranded.

It was too late, or he supposes it’s too early here to catch a cab. Dazai is too stubborn to call Mori for help finding a ride. He’ll just have to walk. And find the Leaky Cauldron. It couldn’t be that hard.

And so he began his long trek. Wherever it was leading him. He moved away from the airport, seemingly not moving at all with how large London’s Heathrow airport was. This was certainly going to take a while.

When he had finally reached a normal road leading towards what he had hoped was central London, he decided to pull out his phone and find a map. It couldn’t lead him to the Leaky Cauldron, but it could get him somewhere familiar. He wished he had Featherbrain here with him, but he had sent her ahead of his flight.

What a disappointing evening. He had no transportation and was stuck lugging his stupid bags around.
Dazai had dragged himself and his personal belongings over to a nearby bus stop. A street light illuminated the advertisements adorning the walls of the small boxes in space and the bench wasn’t terribly disgusting. He plopped down onto the seat and checked his pocket briefly. Dazai pulled his wand out of it, giving it a twirl between his delicate fingers. The movement irritated his recently injured wrist with a quick twinge of pain. Ah, so it hadn’t quite healed all the way just yet. Stupid Mori. Moving his heavy stuff all night wouldn’t help either.

He held his wand up, wishing he could cast some sort of spell to help him. Dazai scowls at the thought. Magical law wins this time. Casting could get him expelled, and while disrupting Mori’s plans normally brought him joy, failing him this time would be anything but joyful.

“If only Mori thought about poor me when I got here, huh? Maybe I could wait here till I can get a bus for the morning. Sounds better than walking.”

He sighed, putting his wand back in his pocket. No use lamenting over such menial things. He’d survived living in the container, staying at a bus stop doesn’t sound much worse.

He leaned back on the bus stop's back wall and pulled out his phone. Unfortunately, Mori would be asking for him at some point and he didn’t feel like hearing the man at this hour.

Made it here fine. I’ll contact you from school next.

The text should stave off any desire Mori has to write to him for a while.

A sudden movement in the bushes across the road brought him out of his thoughts. He looked into the distance, the street lights only making small areas visible. He didn’t spot any animals, though it was only logical that some may be up at this hour. Dazai stands from his spot squinting to see if any outlines were apparent.

Curiosity got the better of him. He thought it a better idea to find out who or what it was instead of being surprised later on when it decided to make itself known. After all, he left his weapons behind in Yokohama.
He moved slowly, his footsteps gliding silently across the pavement. He had reached the far sidewalk when there was movement once more. A low growl made its way to his ears.

Oh. That was not good.

He stepped back when another growl, louder in volume, came from the bush. If he were to be attacked by a dog now, there would be no help for hours. No Mori watching over him, no Snape to happen upon his disfigured body.

A small panic overtook him. He turned to run back to the bus stop to grab his things. Upon reaching the other side, he turned to see if the dog had come out from its hiding spot when he was stopped as a dramatic woosh flipped his hair into his eye and he briefly shut it to avoid the offending wind.

The sound of screeching brakes filled the air and the smell of burnt rubber filled his nose. Dazai reluctantly opened his eye back up to see what trouble had found him now. Maybe the dog would be scared off by the racket.

The dark purple color of the Knight Bus filled his vision, the front door only inches away. The doors creaked open to reveal a man dressed in a disheveled uniform.

“Welcome to the Knight Bus, emergency transport for the stranded witch or wizard. Just stick out your wand hand, step on board, and we can take you anywhere you want to go. My name is Stan Shunpike, and I will be your conductor this eve-”

“I know about the Knight Bus you don’t have to finish your lines. I didn’t know you ran this late.”

“For your information, we run at all hours, boy. And you're the one that called us. Now do you need a ride or not?”

“Can you take me to the Leaky Cauldron?”
“Of course, I did say we go anywhere.”

“Wonderful, let’s get to it now, my bags are right over there, you’re like my knight in shining armor rescuing me from that dark, scary place.” Dazai pointed to the bus stop, feigning a look of terror. The man followed his finger to the small pile of Dazai’s things and grumbled. He moved away from the bus steps and Dazai happily made his way up the stairs. To think he would get this lucky at such a time. He wouldn’t have to drag his things, stay on a bench, or fend off a wild dog attack. Perfect.

The inside of the bus was filled with beds on rolling carts this time, and the only bench sat towards the back where he had entered. No Longer Human buzzed under his skin. The bus was entirely magic and one wrong move on his end would put a damper on the whole experience.

“Sit down, boy. You might want to hold on for this.”

Oh, Stan took less time than he thought then.

Dazai found his seat on a bed to the left at the front of the bus. He pulled out his gloves purchased the previous year from the pocket he had been holding his phone in. If there was one thing about Mori’s coat he appreciated, it was the practical amount of pockets. He couldn’t hold onto the bus without the gloves and at this point, they would have to remain on as he was re-entering magical society.

“Take it away Ernie!”

A talking head at the front yelled out to the white-haired man sitting in the driver’s seat. The bus jerked and Dazai had to quickly grab a rail on the side of the bus to not go flying back. The bus began moving at lightning speed, the magic in the air moving just as rapidly. If Dazai wasn’t acquainted with the feeling already, he thinks he might have thrown up.

“What did you say your name was again?” Stan spoke up as he pulled open what appeared to be a copy of the Daily Prophet. So he didn’t seem to remember him from that first trip he took with Snape. Good.

“I didn’t. Say my name that is. Why did you want to know?”

“Oh, I don’t care much about that. You just look very familiar.”

“Ah, I guess I just have one of those faces.”
The talking head yelled something out at the man driving and Dazai jerked forward harshly. He glanced up out the front window to see an older woman crossing slowly. The head yelled for the man, Ernie, he remembers, to get going. Screeching about wasting time. The bus began driving its route once more, and an unbothered Stan adjusted his newspaper. The front of his paper now showing the mugshot of a rather deranged-looking man.

“Who is that? There, right on the front?”
Dazai pointed at the image of the man and Stan raised his eyebrows, a look of disbelief washing over his features.

“That is Sirius Black. Don’t tell me you’ve never heard of him! He went crazy and killed his friends while working for you know who. They locked him up in Azkaban. But it seems he’s managed to escape. Those fools somehow managed to lose him.”

Just as Dazai went to speak on the matter, the bus slowed down, less fast than it had taken off.

“Well, I suppose we’re at your stop. Time to get off.”
Damn. That statement shut down any chance of questioning the man on Sirius Black. Whatever. The man would be caught and dealt with eventually. He’d have to tell Mori about him though. He may be interested in such a person.

Dazai exits towards the back of the bus again, glancing up at Stan as he passes. The man began to follow him with Dazai’s largest bag. Dazai went to peer into the windows of the Leaky Cauldron’s door. The place wasn’t well-lit, but candlelight shone in some spots.

“If you ever need another ride. You know how to reach the Knight Bus, boy. Now go on.” Stan stood at the exit of the Knight Bus, shooing Dazai towards the building with a vague gesture. The bus shot off into the distance and Dazai was left standing alone in the dark.

————————————————————————

The Leaky Cauldron was empty. That made sense given the hour, but Dazai had never seen the place so quiet.

He made his way over to the bar counter, looking for a certain familiar face. He’d found the man slumped over with his head on the backside of the bar counter sitting on a stool. Dazai heard light snores coming from the man and decided to make his presence known.

“I didn’t know napping was part of your job, Tom! How fun,” Dazai lightly yelled. He promptly threw his personal bag up onto a stool. The bag shook the counter, causing a startled Tom to jump up from his seat.

The man looked around confused, perhaps thinking that Dazai was an intruder and not a guest. Tom’s eyes finally landed on Dazai and his look went from shocked to something softer in mere seconds. Tom was looking at him but not at him. He was looking at his eye. More specifically at his right eye, well, technically the sleek eyepatch that adorned it. But if he had something to say, he kept to himself as he began to speak up.

“There’s a room up the stairs to the left, three doors down. I was wondering when you’d arrive. I received that letter of yours asking for accommodations and saw your owl a few times. Didn’t expect you here this late…” He looked back to the door and met Dazai’s eyes as if he were saying he disapproved of the situation.

“Well, there were no taxis at this hour and I had to start walking from the airport! I had to drag all my things and they’re quite heavy if you didn’t know! Then all of a sudden there was a bus right in front of my eyes, waiting for me to board. The Knight Bus. That's what you Brits call it.”

Feigning innocence worked on the innkeeper. He looked with mild horror at the story.

“You shouldn’t have been out so late. And the Knight Bus is shady. I wouldn’t recommend making a habit of using it,” Tom’s tone turned serious.

“It’s not like I meant to take the bus! And it was a rather decent ride here. Now if you don’t mind, it’s been a long night, and my bags won’t move themselves, Tom!”

Dazai hopped off his stool, the wooden floor below him creaking under his weight. He grabbed his bag next to him and made his way to the stairs. He heard a long sigh come from the man, though he seemed to begin moving too. Good. Dazai certainly couldn’t drag his stuff up the stairs. And he didn’t feel like casting magic at the moment. Not with the looming threat of a possible headache that began with the bus ride. He hadn’t cast since June. Perhaps this year may be different. He had been able to cast spells with little to no reaction last school year. Maybe No Longer Human finally got used to his magic. He certainly hoped so.

He’d found the room just where Tom had said it would be. The room had been lit up with various candles, and everything was almost the same as it was the year before. Dazai left the door askew for Tom, who would surely be quick about gathering his things. He set his bag on the small table on the far side of the room and went to open the window. Featherbrain would be waiting for him and he didn’t need an overzealous bird pestering him to be let in during the night.

He ungracefully flopped onto the bed, closing his eye for a moment. All this work to get here was a hassle.
A quiet knock brought him sitting up to face Tom at the door. Dazai’s belongings hovered in front of him.

“Your things are all here.”

“Thank you, Tom! If you don’t mind, I’m rather exhausted and would like to sleep now!”

“Alright then. You shouldn’t leave that window open long. You’ll catch a cold that way.”

His eyes wandered over to the window. A light breeze flowing through had put out some of the candles closer to it. Whatever. Not like Dazai planned on sleeping anyway now after the night he’s had.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it. My owl’s got to get in somehow though. And it's practically morning already! I’ve got lots to do tomorrow, Tom! There’s no need for you to worry about me getting sick while I sleep if I don’t go to bed right?”

“Well, I suppose that’s one way to look at it. I do wish you’d get some rest though. You’ve been traveling, and I know you’re headed back to Hogwarts. Try to get some sleep while you’re here if you can.”

Tom looked sincere in his statement. He turned to leave, shutting the door behind him, Dazai’s bags left neatly stacked by the wall.

He leaned back once more on top of the soft, albeit mildly lumpy bed. Adults were always so frazzled when worrying about him. He’d rather they brought their attention to other things and left him to his own devices. Unfortunately for Dazai, he doesn’t think he’ll ever be left alone by the adults.

————————————————————————-

By morning, Dazai had found himself rather bored. Featherbrain had found her way to Dazai about two hours after Tom had left him. After checking over the owl for a bit of time, he found himself reading. A book he had managed to snag from Snape before his departure sat unread all summer as Mori forbade him from studying magical material while in Yokohama.

The book was rather interesting. Much more so than any other work he would likely be subjected to at Hogwarts this year. Perhaps he could buy something similar during his trip to Diagon Alley.

Dazai stood from his place at the small table and went to Featherbrain’s spot perched on the window. He gave the bird a pat on the head before opening the window back up. No doubt there would be a pile of dead mice left by her when he returned later in the day. Whatever, as long as she continued to harass Mori, he didn’t care what she did.

He started to make his way to the bar area of the pub, looking to bother Tom about opening the entrance to Diagon Alley. But a familiar laugh filled the air and stopped him in his tracks. Well, one of two very similar laughs.

The site of Fred and George Weasley greeted him as soon as he reached the staircase. They both leaned up against one of the posts at the bottom of the stairs and as soon as they heard the groan of the wood, spun around to meet his gaze.

“Fancy seeing you here Dazai!”

“It’s not like we were waiting for you or anything!”

“But it would be nice if you could join us now!”

The twins spoke quickly and both latched onto one of Dazai’s arms as he reached the bottom. He quickly shook them off, scoffing at the unwanted physical touch. But the boys seemed to move on quickly from the reaction.

“Look who we found, Ron! Your little boss made it here safe and sound.” Dazai watched as the two moved around the table, George tugging on Ron’s cheek for good measure before they vanished behind a door leading to somewhere unknown to Dazai.

“Hello my subordinate, I hope summer has treated you well.”

“Cut the crap, Dazai. You haven’t written all summer. Don’t act like we’ve been chatting since June. Blaise said you never even answered him.”

“Unfortunate things happen, Ron. Maybe Featherbrain just dropped them while flying. She can be careless.”
Dazai moved to sit at the long table that filled most of the main room. He wished Ron would just move on.

“You know your owl wouldn’t do that. We thought something happened.”

“Who’s we? I was only supposed to keep in contact with Blaise,” a smirk formed on his face. His subordinates always fret too much.

“Erm…well… I was sending mail back and forth with Hermione, and Draco contacted me to see if Egg could stay with me for a bit then it turned into an argument, and he mentioned Blaise hadn’t heard from you, so he sent his own mail, hoping you could take Egg, and when you didn’t respond to him, I tried. But nobody got a reply. And then it just kept the letters going, speculating what was happening.”

Ron looked up at Dazai sheepishly, which prompted Dazai to burst out laughing.

“Seriously? You’re all chatting because of me? That’s hilarious! I’m just fine as you can see, what good subordinates you are!”

Ron looked particularly peeved at that statement.

“Quit laughing, you ass. Can’t believe we got worked up over nothing! And quit calling us subordinates. The word ‘friend’ exists for a reason. I know you know how to use it.”

“I would, but subordinate fits so much better,” he sent an artificial smile to Ron. The other boy let out a huff and went to pull something from his pocket. A moving photo filled Dazai’s vision, just like Sirius Black had the night before.

“If you had got to read my letters, you’d know that my family went to Egypt this summer. Dad won the Grand Prize Galleon Draw and Mom wanted to use it to visit Bill, so to Egypt we went.” He slid the photo across the table. Dazai could now see that it was a clipping of the Daily Prophet itself. The moving image had all the Weasleys lined up in a row, beaming big smiles and shoving each other to fit in the photo. The thing catching Dazai’s attention wasn’t just that though.

“You brought that stupid rat with you?”

“Angel is not a stupid rat. He’s part of the family.”

“Alright, Ron.”

“He is, just because you don’t like your pets doesn’t mean I-”

“Hello, Dazai dear! It’s been so long since I’ve seen you last!” The boisterous voice of Molly Weasley cut off Ron. She appeared in the doorway Fred and George had disappeared behind, Ginny trailing her closely.

“Ron, I need to speak with him, go find something to keep busy with.”

“But I just started talking with him!”

“Now.”

“Yes, mum.” Ron’s voice turned to a dejected tone.

Wow. Dazai wished they listened to him that easily. It would make his life so much easier.

Mrs. Weasley moved to replace Ron where he sat, while Ginny wandered after her brother. The woman looked around, most likely looking for any of her rogue children eavesdropping before continuing.

“Dear, I just wanted to check in with you. The headmistress said she hadn’t received your response regarding school until just a few days ago.”

“Oh, that? Mori is just a pain and forgets to fill that kind of stuff out for me. Being a doctor takes up so much of his time, you know?”

Lying to her was easy. Mori’s legal profession explained enough about his lack of response to those outside Yokohama. To Dazai, Mori never forgot a thing. Not that Mrs. Weasley, or the outside world would ever know that.

“Alright, Dazai. McGonagall did send me your school list to gather though. She thought it might be easier for me to pick up your things since you’d have so little time.”

“Thank you! How very sweet!”

“Do remember to pack up your things properly. I would hate for you to be missing anything because it got left here. Your materials were brought to your room by the barkeeper. Please stay out of trouble this year. I hate to hear about you children getting hurt.”

She went to pat his arm, causing Dazai to recoil. The woman must have noticed his reaction. Pulling back, and standing to leave.

Dazai couldn’t keep that promise to her about staying out of trouble. It was his job to cause havoc.

————————————————————————-

Dazai had made it to King’s Cross promptly thanks to Tom’s help. He was going to call the Knight Bus once more when Tom offered to apparate him there. That seemed better than the bus at the time, so Dazai took him on the offer.

Tom had helped him load his bags onto the trolley and wished him good luck before walking to the hidden alley they had apparated to. Dazai still couldn’t believe that muggles were so oblivious to the world of magic. It appeared in front of them every day.

He pushed his cart as his thoughts wandered. Upon reaching the platform he held his breath and ran into the barrier. The process made him nervous that someday No Longer Human would retaliate against the wall's magic and leave kids stranded. What a horrible way for his ability to be exposed.

Dazai spotted two recognizable shocks of silvery blonde hair in the distance. Lucius and Draco Malfoy stood waiting for the train's doors to open, and Lucius was leaning over whispering to the younger Malfoy.

When Draco caught sight of Dazai, he ran over immediately. The look on his face told Dazai he was to be scolded once more.

“Why have you not answered my letters? Or Blaise’s for that matter? Even Weasley tried contacting you.”

“Save the lecture, ‘Weasley’ already chewed me up for it.”

“Well whatever the reason for your lack of response, we have problems that need solving.” Dazai pulled the boy closer before speaking again.

“Wait until we’re on the train. We don’t need someone overhearing.”

That got Draco to shut up. He glanced back at his father who looked annoyed, but not angry. At that moment, the train doors flipped open.

“I’ll meet you on the train. Say goodbye to your father.”
Dazai pushed Draco towards his father and moved to find the rest of his little group.

It took a few minutes for Dazai to find the compartment housing Blaise, Pansy, and two other Slytherin girls Dazai couldn’t bother to remember the names of. When he had opened the compartment he was met with Pansy’s scornful wrath.

“Well, look who finally shows their face again. You can join us later, we’re having a conversation.”

“Nice to see you again too, Pansy!” Blaise stared at him from where he sat. He acted as if he were to say something, but before he could, Pansy slammed the compartment door shut.

Well, at least he could sit with Draco, and he’ll likely also have Ron and Hermione there. Not a full group meeting, but it would have to do.

He made his way closer to the front of the train from his spot in the middle. He found where the bright blonde had come to sit and where unsurprisingly, Hermione also was sitting. The only out-of-place part of this image was that Ron was missing. And the man sitting in the corner, tucked beneath a suit jacket. He’d never seen anyone other than students on the train.

“I have exactly two questions. Where’s Ron? And who is that?” He pointed towards the sleeping man and without even looking up from the book balanced in her lap, Hermione quipped out an answer.

“Fred and George dragged Ronald away to talk to the Griffindors about quidditch. And the man sleeping there is Professor R.J. Lupin. Says so on his suitcase if you don’t believe me.”

“Ok... You only call Ron his full name when he’s acting like a fool or he’s pissed you off, so I’m guessing he’s done something in the past hour or so to cause such a reaction? And I can see his name from here. Don’t get angry with me now.”

“If you must know, Ronald’s blaming my cat for Angel going missing. I told him he’ll be back by the time we get to Hogwarts. That rat never stays gone, and they only ran off once we were on the train.”

“Ah, how fun! We should make a new club for those of us with pets! You can bring your cat, Ron can bring Angel, and I’ll have Egg. Draco what will you be bringing?” Dazai looked at the boy sitting closer to the window. An incredulous look filled his face.

“Sit down already, you damn weirdo. If anything I should be bringing Egg. I did care for her through the whole summer. If anything, she's my dragon.”

“Draco shut your mouth. We don’t know if he’s listening, and didn’t Ron watch Egg too?” Hermione gestured to the sleeping man while talking. Draco huffs at the notion and ignores the plea for caution.

“Oh please, he’s out cold. We don’t have to worry. And for your information, Weasley barely counts as a caregiver to Egg. She is much better off in my care.”

“Then stop complaining.” The two bickered over the trivial matter with no end in sight. Dazai would have loved to let it continue, but he had questions he never got to ask Stan on the Knight Bus.

“As fun as this whole argument is, I have a few things we should talk about. I saw in the Daily Prophet there was a man named Sirius Black who escaped Azkaban. What do you know?”

Hermione and Draco shared a look. Even with Hermione also being a muggle, she was in contact with the group all summer, so he hoped she would know something.

“He murdered the entire Potter family, close friends of his, about twelve years ago. He claimed he had nothing to do with the matter, but the Aurors on the scene also found that a childhood friend named Peter Pettigrew was missing at the same time. They figured Black had killed the man, hid him away, and would try to frame Pettigrew and to get away. But they didn’t believe him.”

“You make it sound as if he’s innocent!”

“He could be Draco! They never found Pettigrew, and I heard his trial was riddled with unfair logic! You never know!”

“You really are crazy.”

Once again the two began to bicker. Dazai took in the new information, mulling it over in his mind. A man who may be innocent escapes from one of the most secure locations in the wizarding world. Something deeper had to be going on if he had managed to hide from the authorities this long. Mori would certainly find him more interesting now.

A jolt in the train brought Dazai out of his thoughts as it stuttered to a halt.

“Did you see something happen? Maybe something is blocking the railway.” Hermione looked towards him accusingly, but he could only shrug in response. It’s not like he was paying attention either.

The man in the corner slept on, even with the unexpected stop. Dazai did wonder if the man was asleep or pretending, he certainly hoped it was the latter due to Egg being brought up.

Hermione stood to look closer to the windows. Dazai couldn’t see any movement, but maybe she could get a better view from her position.

“I don’t see anything. Nobody’s gotten up yet.”

“You’re overreacting, the train will just be delayed a bit and we-“ Draco was interrupted by a yelp from Hermione. She fell back into her seat, staring at her hands. She held them out for Dazai and Draco to see. Her palms were bright red, prompting both boys to look at the window she had her hands on.

Frost covered the window. The air went frigid. Immediately Dazai turned to the outside window. That one was covered too, but not open to let in any of the coolness of the outside. It’s weird for the outside to suddenly change, but the inside too?

But the brief moment with the frost became interrupted by the most gut-wrenching magic Dazai had ever felt. No Longer Human began to coil around his stomach in knots. His face betrayed him as shock had him searching for the source of the magic.

“What is it? Can you feel whatever is happening? Can you stop it?” Hermione is staring at him accusingly now. She has her eyebrows raised as if Dazai is hiding what this feeling is from her just because he had the ability to detect magic.

From behind Hermione, Dazai spots a dark silhouette. The figure nearly reaches the ceiling and seems to move in a floating sort of way. Hermione must have watched him freeze as she quickly follows his lack of action, Draco stopping his movement as well.

No Longer Human spiked and Dazai twitched momentarily. The figure slides the compartment door open, how it did that, Dazai doesn’t know. It never touched the door. Everything about this creature's actions screamed danger.

The figure had no face, but it was watching him. He could only stare right back, hoping his lack of movement would force it to move elsewhere. But the creature did not leave. The sound of inhalation filled the air, and the strangest feeling washed over Dazai. He couldn’t hear, or see, or feel a damn thing. Pitch black washed over his vision as the sound of a man screaming at him filled his ears. The feeling of unconsciousness ebbed in his head.

Damn. He didn’t expect to fulfill Mori’s wishes this soon.