milliways_bar | (no subject)

Harold's eyes grow BIG and he wiggles out of Snow's arms and drop to the floor inbetween Snow's legs.

He reaches out to grab Snowball, but not before Snowball touches Wolf's leg again, this time a bit harder.

Then Harold has Snowball by the neck and pulls him back. Thankfully he does remember what Prue told him about people being able to hear him if he talked, but Snowball will be in BIG TROUBLE later.

Snow shifts her legs closer together, an innocent enough move to all appearances, but one that will allow her to hold the pair gently where they are. Given the circumstances, paranoia that Harold will try to run off again is understandable.

Her expression never wavers, and she tilts her head at Wolf.

"Is something wrong?"

There it is AGAIN!

Wolf looks down.

"I... I could have sworn something touched me."

Snowball's being difficult. She's wiggling and brushing Wolf's legs and Harold's TRYING SO HARD to hold her but she's SO MUCH BIGGER THAN HE IS.

Harold lets out a slight yelp.

"That's odd. It might have been one of the smaller patrons . . . I've seen talking cats and dogs and foxes around, and I suppose they might occasionally avoid notice . . ."

Snow will not reveal Harold's location until Harold is ready for his location to be revealed.

Wolf STAAAAAAAAAAAAARES underneath the table.

As in, crouches down and is alternately staring at the empty space underneath the table, and squinching up his eyes because Snowball is pushing against him and licking his face.

He raises a hand to try and feel the thing (it's a dog. It has to be a dog. It smells like a dog. And it feels like a dog.) licking his face, when he hears the yelp.

And he knows that yelp.

Wolf straightens up a little and looks over the tabletop at Snow.

Lucy, you got some 'splainin' to do!

Snowball lays down at Snow's feet, mission accompished. If a dog ever could look smug, this one does.

Harold crawls back up in the booth, and then into Snow's lap. He puts his head into her chest and whimpers.

Scared and upset would be an understatement. He would run, except that would mean leaving comfort. And comfort is good.

Snow hugs Harold tight, no longer caring how it looks, and silently swears.

"I'm sorry, Wolf. Harold made it clear that he'd rather avoid you for now. He hid from me for some time, just because he was afraid I'd turn him over to you. We need to get this sorted out, but right now my first priority is making sure Harold feels safe."

Wolf hears Harold whimper, and has to fight to keep himself from snatching up the toddler. He can smell how upset Harold is, curses inwardly at himself, because it's somehow his fault.

"I... It's because we've been gone so long, isn't it."

Harold clings tighter to Snow.
These are the issues he's been trying to avoid but have followed him everywhere..
The bad issues.
The ones that hurt.

Snow holds Harold firmly and assuringly, then begins to slowly rub his back in small circles. She's not going to let him go before he's ready.

She looks up at Wolf.

"That's at least some of it. He hasn't spoken about his reasons much, beyond how people keep leaving him. I'm not sure if he knows precisely why, himself."

"Oh Harold..."

He'd completely forgotten about Harold not being able to find his birth parents.

"I'm sorry, pup. We didn't mean to... Virginia was hurt very badly by a really bad guy, and she needed help."

Yeah, Snow probably tried to tell Harold all this. Harold either didn't listen or didn't understand so..this is all news to him.

There's concern in his voice.

"Yeah, she did. We almost lost the baby. That's why we had to go."

And then there's alotsa confusion.

"Don't you remember Virginia's big belly? She was pregnant, pup. There was a baby in there." When he says "pup," there is love in the word. Cubs are pack, and you love them.

He's getting his mind around the idea. After all, no one ever told him where babies come from.

"Yeah, baby."

...

"Do you want to see him?"

Harold squirms around a little. He's not ready to go with them, even for a little while.

He's talking! It's progress!
Slooow progress.

Snow gets some feeling of this, and speaks up.

"Perhaps we could all visit Hunter another day, when Harold's feeling up to being visible?"

"We can do that..."

It's rather unnerving, trying to look at/for Harold.

Invisi-baby.

Just great.

"Harold.... I'm sorry we left you, pup. I really am. We never would have done it if we didn't have to."

And then Harold starts to cry.

Almost completely muffled into Snow's chest,

. . . kids always ask the hardest questions. Snow manages to keep from actually flailing, fortunately.

"Life don't always go the way we'd like. Things change, people leave, and the world moves on. But sometimes change can be for the best, and sometimes people come back. No one has ever left you deliberately, never on purpose. And we're here for you, now."

It's hard. He wants to touch Harold. Wrap him up and hold him and nuzzle him and protect him, let him know that he never wants to leave ever.

But he can't.

"Sometimes bad things happen. But Snow's right; nobody ever has left you on purpose, Harold. Not because they wanted to. I was so worried about Virginia."

"I'm sorry."

It's not Snow that Harold doesn't trust. If he had been worried about her before, her not telling Wolf Firmly Convinced him that she's forever good in his mind.
Wolf he's not too sure about.

But he does hear sincerity and concern in Wolf's voice...
Harold's tears become sniffles and somewhat unaware he allows his outline to become a very light shadow.