Hogwarts AU: New York City

[serinusniger]

It's been days.

She doesn't know how many. But if must have been days. There's been food, there's been the occasional sleep.

Not enough of either.

Dinah has told them... she can't remember right now quite what she has told them, but it feels like she's told them everything. Like there's nothing in her lefty to tell them. She'd tell them more, if they asked her.

She gave up trying to escape a long time ago. She gave up hoping for a rescue not long after.

Now she's just waiting, and hoping it ends soon.

Comments

[thehim_heshouldbe]

It isn't that impressive bird. Just a run of the mill average looking American Robin.

Which ruffles its feathers when it notices the kids looking at it, and takes off from its perch.

What lands on the street, ignored by the New Yorkers around them, is a pair of battered sneakers, worn by a redheaded man wearing jeans and a leather jacket, his hands tucked into his pockets.

[mnt_mike]

"i have got to learn how to do that," Mike whispers in a hushed, yet no less full of awe, whisper.

Raph is less impressed, and while everyone else has stopped walking, he continues on, so as to make sure he's between his party and the newcomer.

[thehim_heshouldbe]

The newcomer glances at Raph, unsmiling, and then past him at the other four, looking them all over. He stops for a few seconds on Renee.

"Five kids walking over from Brooklyn. Guess she was right."

[mnt_mike]

"OH! You're the bird. I was so expecting to see a chick."

Don shushes his brother.

"Was she?" Leo says in a cool voice.

[thehim_heshouldbe]

"Usually is."

He establishes or nominates Leonardo as a leader and looks at him as he jerks his head up Centre Street and starts strolling that way, hands still in his pockets.

[mnt_leo]

Raph, who hasn't taken his eyes of this Robin, follows closely in the kid's wake.

"Good to know," is all Leo says. He waits a good five paces or so before following as well.

Don turns to Renee.
"The Plot thickens."

[interrogoiterum]

"And you could already stand a spoon up in it," she opines, looking ahead to the guy now leading them.

The man turns his head part way as he walks, addressing Raph as the closest person to him.

"My man Arsenal pulled all the strings he can. Tell her she's out of favors, now."

[mnt_leo]

"Tell'er your..."

"Raph," Leo warns. Raph let's the reflex quip-back die on his lips.
"We'll do just that. Send our thanks to Arsenal for the assist."

[thehim_heshouldbe]

"Yeah."

He turns his head a little more to look at Leo, regret flashing in his eyes.

"Wish we could do more, I do. But..." he stops midsentence, not breaking a stride in his stroll, and brings a hand out of his pocket, passing a folded sheet of paper back to whichever brother grabs it first.

[mnt_mike]

Mike is there taking the note before Raph can react. Which is just as well, as he's going to want to run a series of charms, charm detectors, and a jinx or two on it just to be sure of anything.

"Thanks," he says quickly before dropping back to confer with Renee and Don.

"It will be enough." Leo sounds so sure of himself, but then that's always been one of his stronger talents: sounding more confident than he really is at the moment.

[interrogoiterum]

Renee glances down at the paper Mike is unfolding which is why she misses when the man leading them suddenly folds back into a robin and flies away into the skyline.

"Well," she says. "Lizard nuts."

The paper turns out to be more or less blank, except for an inky black footprint, and the scrawled pen marks saying: C & 9th

[mnt_mike]

"She must not have had that many favors left to begin with." In Mike's defense, he says it before he thinks better.

"What is it?"

"An address, Leo. An address and what looks like a print of some sort. Mikey, let me get a closer look at that...

"What do we think the odds are that it's an address to a trap?"

"Gee, I dunno, Mikey. You really want the over/under on that?"

[interrogoiterum]

"So, are we going there?"

It seems a fair question. Either they go to the address and walk into the trap or... something else?

[mnt_don]

"Not tonight." It's Leo's leader voice. "Raph, you said we'd have crash space?"

"Sure thing. All we need is a phone and a corner. You up for some tinkering, Braniac?"

"Find me a junction box, Raph and I'll get you a line. Leo? A word."

[interrogoiterum]

Renee watches Leo carefully for a few seconds, then puts out her hand to Mike for the paper.

"Let me see that."

They figure out crash space, she'll look at the clue again.

[mnt_leo]

Raph disappears down an alleyway as Leo and Don quietly converse a few feet away.
Try as Leo might, he just can't seem to keep his ever schooled expression in check.

Mike, as is his way, begins to babble.

"Here. It's clean as far as I can tell, but then, it's not as if I'm fool proof, you know? There could be anything on this that I'm not detecting with my usual bag of tricks. Or there could be nothing at all. Maybe the nothing at all is the real clue. What are you thinking?"

[interrogoiterum]

"Not a lot," Renee admits, holding the paper up and squinting at the print on it. "Except maybe that there's something not magical about it? What does the footprint mean?"

It's rhetorical, mostly.

[mnt_mike]

There's something about the way that Renee says footprint that jogs Mike's memory, causes his face to drain of color, and causes him to look up and over at Leo.

There's a whistle down the alleyway, a clear sign Raph has found what he was looking for.

Don reaches out for Leo's shoulder, gives it a reassuring squeeze, and then disappears down the alley. Leo looks over, sees Mike staring at him, and turns away.

"...nothing good."

[interrogoiterum]

Renee says nothing. She gives Leo only a glance, and looks at Mike, raising a questioning eyebrow.

Is she going to have to ask the question?

[mnt_leo]

"It's a long story..."

"And," Leo cuts him off. "One best told somewhere safe. Somewhere not here."

There's a crackle of electricity down the alley, along with a flash of blue. And then a few seconds later a whiff of ozone reaches them. If they listen closely might be able to hear Raph talking to someone.

[interrogoiterum]

Renee turns her head towards the sound of Raph's voice and nods, folding the paper into half, and then quarters to stick it in her back pocket.

"Where are we going?"

[mnt_raph]

"Not entirely sure. Raph's got a friend in town. A muggle, drives a yellow cab," Mike explains, turning his attention towards the alley.

Raph comes lumbering out, with Don not too far behind, shoving what looks like the handset of a rotary telephone into a bag.

"Case is on his way. Be here in ten, five if there's no traffic." Raph turns on a dime and squares off against Leo.

"Is it true?"

"Is what true?" Leo replies.

"Oh don't gimme that, Leo. What Don says about the note. Is. It. True."
Leo looks towards Don, who shrugs sheepishly.

"Maybe."

"Maybe. That's the best you got? Maybe?"

Mike moves to put himself between Raph and Leo.
"Raph...now's not really the best time," he gestures...well the everything around them, including Renee.

[interrogoiterum]

Renee is right beside Mike, putting herself between Raph and Leo in the same way she puts herself between Raph and the object of his aggression whenever Mike isn't there. And next to Mike when he is there.

"Keep it for later, okay? You can punch him out later."

[mnt_raph]

Raph takes a step forward, and even though this puts him well into Mike and Renee's personal space, his eyes never leave Leonardo.

Mike instinctively reaches for Renee's hand.

"Oh you're damn right I can. And I will."

"Raph, back off," says Don as he puts a hand on Raph's shoulder.
A fraction of a second later Raph turns on Don, arm raised in a fist. The taller brother flinches.

"Enough!" This time it's Leo. And he follows it up with a string of Japanese.

Raph snorts in displeasure, but backs down, going so far as to distance himself from the group until Casey arrives.

[interrogoiterum]

Renee squeezes Mike's hand, and then drops it as Raph finally backs off.

She shoots a questioning look at Mike, but she doesn't expect an answer. Yet, at least.