"I thought your aim was to keep your head down; to get through your own problems without causing a stir and trying to change the law."

"That doesn't sound like me..." Knox murmured.  Had he said that? I couldn't remember now. 

But the rest of it.  Yes, that sounded quiet familiar.  Hannah had strained and ranted against his plan - to work within the system to find some sense of justice.  Knox had felt they'd had no choice.  And in the end, Hannah's anger had been founded and the Wizengamot had ruled against them.  But he still sat on the court, still did his duty as it was required of him.  Why?  The answer went to the heart of who he was, and always had been.

"Whatever I can," he said simply, aware that the lack of specificity would bother her.  "We must stick together.  If I can be of help, then it seems a moral imperative to try.  I have resources that others do not.  A spare bed. A bit of gold. Friends.  Have you ever heard the expression about teaspoons? That the ocean is vast, but ultimately, it can be drained with teaspoons?"

"Sometimes all we have is a teaspoon.  And a spare bed."

He had a great deal more to say now that she'd got him talking about it.  But he stopped himself for a moment.  Normally he'd just bulldoze on, but it mattered to him what Hannah thought.  She was so completely pessimistic, he doubted she'd be satisfied with a wheelbarrow, much less a teaspoon.  He wondered if she'd find him foolish for carrying this kind of altruism.

Hannah was an extremely cut and dry person. Analogies such as Knox’s teaspoon description were quite lost on her technical mind. She might well have informed him of the near impossibility of draining the ocean with a teaspoon within his lifespan when he continued to tell her that some only had a teaspoon and a spare bed.

Light brown brows creased together as the healer regarded her companion with mild confusion.

“So your new aim is to change the world with a teaspoon and your spare bed?” The young witch didn’t seem so convinced. “Asking me to heal the odd unregistered werewolf is not going to make any real changes, Knox. That wizard upstairs isn’t going to go and register. He’s going to continue to endanger himself and others because we helped him and essentially told him it was acceptable.”

Knox sighed.  Hannah's response was all he probably should have expected from her, but after all this time, he might truly be done arguing with her.  Well, for now, anyway.  The older wizard shrugged his large shoulders.

"Whatever you say, Healer Bombay," he said.

But he didn't share her skepticism.  Not in the slightest.  He was a flawed man, surely he was.  But he was never the sort to doubt the purest intentions of the sons and daughters of Helga Hufflepuff, to always help those in need if one could.  To never be discouraged.  She seemed to think their small act of kindness today made the world a more dangerous place - a fearful soul, by his evaluation.  That would explain all the snapping.

"What Higgins does with the rest of his afternoon or the rest of his life, I can't hardly know.  But he needed help and we helped him.  That's a job well done.  If you truly believe we've done wrong, I won't call you again."

His steady gaze.  Did the old bear mean it?

It seemed that the couple wouldn’t agree today. Hannah wasn’t sure what she found the most irking. Whether it be the fact he’d asked her to break the law, the actuality that she’d done it and put her job in danger, the reality that she would do it again, or that Knox Greyfriar had taken so long to actually want to do something and stand up for himself and others in their position. Her urging him to take a stand had fallen on death ears and now the law abiding, law enforcing burly wizard was acting as if she was completely unwilling to help. This certainly didn’t sit well with the young healer.

“You misunderstand, Greyfriar.” Deciding she wanted out of the shack as soon as possible Hannah rose from the chair and to her feet. She slipped her shoes back on.
“We did no wrong in helping the wizard. I will never refuse to heal someone. We’ll do wrong in not insisting he register. If our exploits tonight became public knowledge it wouldn’t just me be out of a job.” How would it look to the Wizengamot to have one of their own breaking the law and harbouring a wizard, who in their eyes, was a criminal?

“I’ll check him now. My uncle is waiting for me at home. He was released today and I’m not sure I trust him there alone.” Knox would have undoubtedly known of Uncle Lawrence’s release considering the position he so regularly raved about having.

Hannah vanished up the stairs.

"Musgrave! He's staying with you?"  Knox had to lean forward in his chair to hiss his query at Hannah's back as she quickly disappeared up the narrow staircase.  It had taken him a moment to grasp what Uncle Lawrence meant, but he certainly did remember that one!  The disgraced Auror?  Was staying with Hannah in her charred, firepit of a flat?

What a strange woman! He hesitated while he considered following her.  But the upstairs was so cramped and she likely didn't need any help from him.

She'd be out the door soon enough and he'd be able to keep an eye on Hector until he was ready to be on his way. 

And hopefully that would be that. 

fin