Despite primary reactions to the Daily Prophet’s article being published about Healer Hannah Bombay the dangerous werewolf healing or eating patients, fewer were refusing to be treated by her a couple of months later. The press had stopped covering the Hannah and her dangerous companion Greyfriar individually so the heat had died down. She was being harassed less and was slowly able to continue with her work in a quiet manner.

Life had seemed to become based simply around work. Hannah would leave work to go directly home and leave home to go directly to work. She spent her spare time reading and avoiding the outside world except when the ridiculous probation she’d been put on by the ministry dragged her to their uninviting halls to be once more treated like a criminal or a caged animal. She’d avoided the few friends or family members she had and despite her continuing frustration with the charge she’d been punished with, Bombay hadn’t dipped her toe into anything political and she’d certainly avoided her ‘accomplice’ after her home and snake had fallen victim to fiendfyre.

“You’ve another patient, Healer Bombay”, a mediwitch broke Hannah from her concentration as quill neatly stroked parchment on the final report of a long night shift. It was 8AM and time to clock off and head home to her bed so she could sleep the daylight away until the following evening. Unfortunately it sounded as if that would be put on hold for a little longer.

The witch lifted her hand to her hair and brushed it back, frowning at the mediwitch.
“Why are they not allocated to someone who’s actually on duty now, Helena?” She signed her name on the parchment quickly and dropped the quill into her breast pocket.

“He asked for you specifically Healer. Refused to see anyone else.” Helena squirmed nervously, a newly trained mediwitch not accustomed to the brusk manner Hannah tended to address persons.

Bombay’s brow cocked,
“His name?”

This was when Helena’s lips pursed together as if struggling to contain herself. She glanced back, blurted out a cubicle number and vanished before the young werewolf healer could further question her or refuse the patient she’d been told to pass on.


With irritation quickly mixing with her tiredness, the pintsized healer stalked towards cubicle 13 and pulled the curtains open without politely checking with whoever was behind the curtains about their decency first.

Light brown eyes immediatly narrowed as Bombay focused on her ‘patient’.

“There’s four healers presently on duty that would have been more than happy to deal with you, Sir, I was about to go home. You best be in agony or in the midst of dying.”

It was a nasty thing to do to a person who so thoroughly disliked him, but he had good news.  Also, she'd barged in on his home inconveniently before, so perhaps it was revenge to a person he quite disliked as well.  Good news.  Revenge.  Didn't matter.

"Surprise," he said too cheerfully for the early hour.  He grinned and his ivory-colored teeth showed, his facial hair rimming his wide grin.  His once solid black beard was beginning to silver at the corners of his mouth and the contrast in color only served to emphasize his inappropriate expression of mirth.

"It seems like I've caught you on your way out," he said as if he hadn't heard her at all.  "But don't worry about me.  I'm in perfect health - well except this nagging condition that ... ah, no.  You don't want to hear about that."   He smiled again and laid his hands firmly on the arms of the chair and pressed himself up to standing.

"This won't take long.  Here.  Take my seat."  He gestured that she sit and moved to close the curtain behind her so they might pretend they had some privacy.  For in reality, the privacy of two werewolves was not closely guarded in even these modern times.

"I have good news."

It was a nasty thing to do to a person who so thoroughly disliked him, but he chose to stop speaking at that moment.   And smiled at her.

There were few people Healer Bombay would have been pleased to see in a patient’s cubicle. There were no people she was happy to see in her assigned patient cubicle. Hannah got on with few people and liked even less. She certainly wasn’t what one would describe as a ‘people person’. Hannah was the opposite. Yet she rarely showed a reaction to who was waiting to be healed behind the curtains. She walked through the barrier between the public and the private cubicle with a plain expression of professionalism and maintained that until leaving.

Seeing someone that had the ability to wind her up quite so much very quickly erased the professionalism Hannah usually maintained so well. Knox Greyfriar’s presence never meant good tidings to come.

Despite the seat being offered, Hannah didn’t take it. She remained stood, high heeled feet rooted to the floor as she eyed her hairy companion with suspicion.

Good news?

“You have a time turner licence? You’re leaving the country for an undetermined passage? There’s a cure for the curse?” The healer questioned, arms folded over her stomach.

Oh, that was a look.  She wasn't happy to see him.  She was as happy to see him intrude into her mileu as had been he when she'd called on him without notice. [1]  Knox didn't let it bother him too much.  He was finished allowing Hannah Bombay's happiness weigh but a titch on the scales of his own merriness.

"Bad guesses all," he told her, still with a satisfied smile.  It was kind of nice that she actually had guessed.  It showed interest.  One was an insult, but that was a kind of interest.

"It concerns our recent punishments at the hand of the Wizengamot.[2]  Perhaps you recall.  Probation of seven months where the both of us are required to report early to the Ministry itself for the full moons."  It was November now.  They'd endured the indignity thrice now and it was already a bore, to say the least.

"Oh, and the seven hundred galleons we're both out.  Can't say my financial planning had anticipated that."

His smile faded a little even as he blithely reviewed their mutual predicament.  Even in his contempt-riddled good cheer, it was still very much a sore point.  It was abominable how they'd been prosecuted for what was a completely guiltless accident.  But that was the state of werewolves in this country, wasn't it.

"But the Wizengamot heard our appeal last week."  Knox had not told Hannah that he'd even filed one.

1.	Howlers Gonna Howl - 20 September 2009
2.	WEREWOLVES RECOVERED & SENTENCED - 13 August 2009

After months of dealing with Knox Greyfriar, it only now occurred to Hannah Bombay that he spoke like a character from a classic novel. One could easily have pointed out that Hannah often sounded like a magical journal but her focus was on Greyfriar, the present annoyance in the room. It wasn’t even as if Greyfriar was a horrible or an annoying presence to most people. Hannah simply didn’t like his attitude, his furry face, his loud voice or the trouble he seemed to bring her. Neither did she like his ‘I am Merlin’ opinions of himself and his own power.

The fact that Mr Classic Novel Merlin Imposter Moron Greyfriar was reciting to her the punishments given after the hearing and the trouble he’d got them into was just serving to irritate Bombay more. She was tired, she wanted to go home to bed and sleep and he was there, preventing her and dragging on something that he could have no doubt told her in an impersonal, less irritating owl. That way she wouldn’t have had to stare at his beard, wondering what horrible beings were lurking within.

"But the Wizengamot heard our appeal last week." Greyfriar finished with a smug look and Hannah’s eyes shot from the furry rat hanging from his chin to his eyes.

“What appeal, Greyfriar?” Before the words left her lips Bombay knew exactly what appeal. One she had never been aware of. “Do you mean the appeal we were going to file together?”

Knox cringed before he spoke, knowing she'd be angry.  But that was part of the reason he'd kept her out of the loop - that temper.  He hadn't known her well before her own be-cursing, so it might not be fair to blame it on the lycanthropy, but her behavior in their sentencing had been well enough to keep her as far away from he proceedings as possible.

"Yes.  I decided it was better to leave you out of it.  Mucky old legal tedium.  Also, you do tend to shout in a very disdainful way and it isn't always the most productive."

He shrugged.  It was done.

"It's actually nearly settled.  Our sentence has been hacked off at the knees ," he said with a big smile, clasping his hands in front of him in a gesture of victory.  "Probation's been ended.  We're done."

As she listened to Greyfriar’s insulting form of explanation, Hannah drew a deep breath into her lungs and exhaled slowly, with care. The probation had ended according to the old wizard and Hannah should have been thankful to him, grateful for his efforts and probably hugging him with an eager happiness.

Instead she remained rooted to the spot, mildly irritated to say the least.

“Done with what, Knox?” Bombay enquired; her voice calm. “With each other? With the ministry’s monthly demands? With being known for what we are by every witch and wizard in the country?” She shook her head before her eyes focused on his gaze and a small, awkward laugh escaped her lips. “You’ve got us back...what? 8 days of additional time to prepare for and recover after the full moon for the next handful months?”

Outside of the cubicle the sounds of raised voices could be heard accompanied by a few pairs of rushed footsteps. This only served to remind Hannah how public their business was. She stepped further into the cubicle, closer to Greyfriar. She wasn’t as furious as she’d have thought for the fact he’d gone behind her back. She was simply surprised with what little he’d accepted for them. The negligible amount justice they’d both received because Mr. Bearded Wizengamot wished to do it all himself.

“You’re content with the result, Greyfriar? What precisely did the Chief of the Wizengamot articulate about our case?” The healer’s voice was much quieter now, stern, but quiet. “Since...I wasn’t in attendance was I?”

"Oh calm down," Knox responded gruffly, already beginning to get tired of Healer Bombay's disdainful shouting.  "Done with probation." 

He himself decided to take a seat back in the chair.  He wasn't leaving yet.  He was stuck with her until this was all cleared up, or at least his conscience demanded it.  She'd probably end up in Azkaban if she tried to do it herself.  Merlin what a blunt temper she had...  At least Knox knew the proper channels, how the legal system worked.  He might be misjudging her abilities, but she gave him no reason to think better of her.

"Look, there's still more to do, but this is one step.  The sentencing appeal sub-quorum agreed that the probation was too harsh for first-time offenders.  It's the first step.  That decision can smooth the way to getting a positive response to getting the whole thing overturned in a higher super-sub-committee of the Wizengamot," he waxed on.

"And, if we can get the conviction overturned we may even be able to sue for damages.  Get the fine refunded and then some for invasion of privacy, damages to our reputations, and perhaps even the damage to your flat.  It's not over.  It's far from over.  And you'd better just leave it me."

Of course she wouldn't.  And he really couldn't prevent her.  He'd managed to do the sentence appeal without her, but she'd need to be present for anything further.  She'd have to testify about what happened again.  Provide proof of following regulation.  Again. 

“First time offenders?” Bombay guffawed, cracking her calm exterior and manner for a moment. Yet instead of further protesting this, Hannah let Greyfriar continue. He wasn’t the one that had labelled them this. Or so she presumed as he further explained the situation to her. Greyfriar was just the one that obviously didn’t trust that the young healer knew how to behave in a court of law. He, like every other idiot in the land liked to base a person’s whole attitude on one occurrence in their lives.

“And you'd better just leave it me." Her former professor threatened and something in Hannah sparked, making her decide to suddenly be a lot more difficult than she was already being. He was going to tell her to calm down and treat her like a kid; she was darn well going to behave like one. There were few times Hannah acted her age or younger and gave into her anger but this had just become one.

“Or what, Mr Greyfriar?” She asked curtly, “You’re going to physically haul me out of court again because I don’t know how to behave? Because I clearly make a habit of shouting disdainfully. Have you failed to hear your own deafening roar, sir? It’s what you call regular speech.”

“You come in here telling me you’re handling our appeal and I can’t join in? Who the hell do you imagine you are? You’re a botched ex-headmaster with a Merlin complex and a nasty temper. You have no more right to do all this alone than I do. And if you keep me out of anymore of this, Greyfriar, Merlin help me, I’ll make sure that leg injury you received agonises you until you’re six feet under.”

Knox rolled his eyes and sighed a growling sigh as the sweet Hannah Bombay lit into him again as if he was the cause of her troubles, as if she were the only put-upon werewolf in the world.  He crossed his arms and let her go on with her rant.

Ooh.  Botched.  Well, that was a bit harsh.  But the rest - well, he could give that to her.  He was pretty important.  Headmaster of bloody Hogwarts for seven years, published author, and a Wizengamot Elder.  His voice, however loud, had clout.  And he'd earned that clout.  And he'd always been told he tended to come off as an overbearing boar from time to time.  But honestly, had Hannah never been compared to a harpy?

"Are you finished?" he asked as if he speaking to an unruly student. 

"I don't care if you think I'm arrogant.  And yes - I would haul you out of court if I needed to, if you were acting like a raving maniac and breaching decorum.  I am the best person to be handling this, and if you deny it, you're delusional."

He shrugged dismissively. "You know, I don't have to help you.  I could very well just handle my own business and leave you to yours, and good luck with that!  It'd be no simple thing at all to disconnect our cases and leave you to the hounds.  For the thanks I get, it would be no small pleasure to leave you out cold."

It was nasty of her to threaten his leg.  And hollow.  There were other Healers.  With far better bedside manners.  He narrowed his eyes at her.

"I'm waiting."

“You’re the one that got me into this mess!” Bombay snapped back at the wizard. “You were the reason we were there so close to the full moon. Deal with your business all you like but I am your business. We’re in this together.” The young witch’s voice was full of anger, irritation yet it hadn’t risen. She rarely shouted. It had happened more and more since being bitten but it was still a rare sight. She’d simply gained more bite to her words at a regular volume.

Spinning on her heel Hannah started to pace to the curtain. She suddenly had a lot of pent up energy and the cubicle was too small and too public to let it out in. Therefore the healer forced herself to take a long, calming breath before turning back to face Greyfriar.

“We’re in this together.” The words were slowly repeated. “I’m not a lawyer or some pawn from the ministry, Greyfriar, but I can help. That’s why I’m irate. You may be more qualified with your stuck-” Hannah paused and took another breath “with your job but you’re not the only person that this affects.”

Knowing this wasn’t going to end in a few minutes, Hannah rested back against the patient’s bed of the cubicle they were misusing.
 “The world most certainly does not orbit around Knox Greyfriar and his grotesquely sized ego.”

"There has yet to be a substantive study..." he mumbled very quietly as per her claim about his ego. 

But she had calmed down, she had mentioned helping, and she had re-affirmed that they were in this together.  He decided to take that as the apology he was expecting. 

He stood up then, even as she'd just sat down, and began to make preparations like he was going to go. Donning his hat, straightness his robes, folding up and putting away his glasses.

"First of December," he said.  "That's the first hearing for an appeal to completely reverse the conviction.   We'll meet with the solicitors a few days before to prepare.  We're going to have to make the case that the incident happened during the normal course of duty as Ministry employees and that unpredictable, extenuating circumstances caused by another's criminal negligence caused the breach of werewolf regulations."

He paused and looked at her.  "You'll have to drop this whole It Was Knox's Fault line." 

She needed to be on board and let go of the absurd notion that he was to blame.  If the Wizengamot sniffed out her doubt, it'd be curtains for them both.  A life-long mar on anything else they'd attempt in their life, as registered werewolves. 

The temptation to once again inform Knox that it was in fact his fault was almost too much for Hannah to ignore. Fortunately, however, she managed to resist the urge to retort and instead pushed herself up from resting against the bed to stand straight.

“Fine.” The healer muttered, walking over to him near the curtain. “I’ll stop blaming you as long as you keep me informed. I don’t care how important you believe yourself to be. You’re obviously not as respected amongst your colleagues as you’d imagined so you should accept help in this.”

Hannah’s hand reached out and she grapsed the edge of the curtain.
“Even if it is from a heartless healer with an antipathy to facial hair.” The curtain was pulled back, revealing the strange couple of the ward and Hannah stepped out from the cubicle, clip board in hand. “Well Mr Greyfriar, the matter is of no worry. Change the bandage in a few hours and by this evening it shall be nothing more than a scratch.”

Sly move, that Bombay.  Getting the last word like that.  Fine.  She could have it.

Knox plastered on a classicly supplicant smile oft seen on patients and laid a hand to his thigh.

"Thank you, Healer.  I shall do.  Sorry to keep you!"

And with that, he made his way out.