Out of the Woods (Alek)

[Christine Montgomery]

Christine's legs were heavy, her feet were blistered, bruised, and shredded by walking barefoot for so long. She was naked. Her body had many of the same contusions and cuts; she almost looked as bad as her feet did. Her face was dirty, with lines running down her cheeks where her tears had washed away the blood and dirt.

She stumbled and fell to the ground tripping over a tree that had fallen. She hit her jaw hard, and cried out. The tears came once again, she was never going to escape him, she would never be free.

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

Alek had been at it for almost a week now. Lex cried when he brought her no good news and blamed herself for the Christine girl's kidnapping. That was complete bollocks. If Dorian hadn't botched the whole thing the girl wouldn't have been taken, Lex wouldn't be in the hospital, and Alek would be hunting with his pack instead of acting as a lone search party. But it was his duty to his sister to look until something was found. The Aurors hadn't had any luck, no surprise there, and the girl didn't vanish into thin air. He knew because days before the attack some of his wolves reported smelling humans in the forest near the safe house the Lex was working. It was a dense, thick wood full of dangerous creatures, and not a likely place for campers. But after a week of searching Alek was losing faith.

Until he smelled something different. He was deeper into the forest now, the sunlight barely pushed through the thick tree cover casting the forest into an eternal night. He followed the scent. A girl. Alek picked up speed as he followed the trail until the smell was overwhelming. He had found her. Her fear permeated through the trees like a perfume. He approached her carefully.

[Christine Montgomery]

Christine felt him before she heard him, which was easy since he didn't make any sound. Her heart rate sped up, but she was not a victim. She refused to go quietly. When he was close enough she lashed out at him with a yell so fierce the forest shook with it.

She didn't know where the power came from or where the energy had come from, she was long past her last reserves, but she was not letting him take her back. She was not letting him take her down. She swung at him with a jagged piece of rock, and kept swinging.

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

"Woah, love." Alek leaned back out of the way of her furious swinging, being nearly knocked unconscious by the naked girl with the wild eyes. Finally he grabbed hold of her wrist as she swung once more.

"I'm not going to hurt you." It was hard to keep the anger out of his voice when he was being attacked but she was clearly frightened and look like she'd ran through hell to get where she stood now.

[Christine Montgomery]

She twisted her arm back out of his grasp and watched him with wary eyes. His voice was different, not just the sound but the way he spoke. There was a different lilt to his words, it wasn't the distorted crisp English accent that had terrified her, rather it felt more European. That too had been the only thing saving her sanity when M would pretend to be Dorian, he could change his face, but not the way he spoke.

Her panic receded and relief poured through her, but she had pushed herself to hard and was suddenly dizzy, and lost her balance. She held a hand out to him to stop him from coming closer or leaving while she tried to come back to her senses.

"I'm...Christine...Montgomery..." she got out between dry heaves, "I...need to get... to the Ministry..."

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

He moved to catch her, but stopped when she held her hand up. He knew better than to approach a wounded animal without consent. He stayed where he was but evaluated her body as she stumbled. She had cuts and bruises all over her, she must have been in tremendous pain, and yet she fought against him. Alek appreciated that.

"I know." He took off his jacket and gave it to her to cover herself with. "I've been looking for you. My sister sent me. Lex."

[Christine Montgomery]

She took his jacket, but kept her distance - until he mentioned Lex. She covered her mouth as tears fell once again. Christine cried silently though her shoulder shook and she gasped for air, "She's alive?"

She had been afraid to hope when one of the other girls had told her that Lex had survived. She could have meant a different auror, or even if Lex had survived, it didn't mean that she wouldn't die from her wounds. But to have her brother here told Christine that Lex was indeed alive, and the relief was more emotion than she could handle.

She closed her eyes tightly. Lex was alive. She had escaped. She had to keep going. She had to tell them about the other girls.

"I have to get to the Ministry." she said with renewed panic.

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

"Yeah, she's alive. In the hospital, but..." Alek forced himself to keep his thoughts on Aurors and the Ministry to himself. He wanted to rant about how idiotic the Ministry had been to let something like this happen to his sister, but it had also happened to the scared girl standing naked and beaten in the middle of the dark woods, so he kept his mouth shut.

Christine insisted she go to the Ministry but Alek could see she was in no state to go there, not that they would be able to help her. She needed to see a doctor. She needed something to wear. "Right, well maybe we should get you cleaned up a bit first."

[Christine Montgomery]

"No there's no time." she said wild eyed, "There were others! He still has other girls. I left them...I had to...she told me to keep running and I just...I just..." she closed her eyes biting back the bile she felt rising up.

"I have to go to the ministry. Please help me."

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

Alek felt a lurch in his stomach as Christine explained that there were more kidnapped and tortured girls being held prisoner somewhere. Alek was a grade A asshat sometimes, and an angry son of a banshee most of the time, but he wasn't an evil person. He couldn't let those girls suffer at the hands of the same sadistic bastard that had nearly killed his sister. 

He nodded. "You at least need something to wear." He pulled his wand and conjured her a pair of pants and a t-shirt, as well as a pair of shoes. Her feet were bloodied and filthy. He politely turned his back while she dressed. "Can you apparate?" She didn't look up to it, but apparition would be the quickest way to the Ministry.

[Christine Montgomery]

"Thank you." she said quickly grabbing her arms that were still covered by his jacket. Her body still ached, but the warmth of suddenly being clothed made her feel a little more human. A part of her worried about whether or not this was some trick, and while she reasoned that if he were the mysterious serial killer taking another person's face, he would have taken her back already, another part of her truly believed the madman capable of anything. Even letting her think she had gotten away from him.

"I...I don't-" she started, then confessed, "He broke my wand. I can't do it without one." she said a small tremble going through her. She would have apparated earlier if she could, and the idea of side-along apparation with this person was terrifying. If it was the serial killer, he could just take her back to his lair.

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

Alek frowned as she visibly trembled. The smell of her fear was overwhelming. "We're about 60 miles in," he estimated. "The Knight Bus wouldn't be able to pick us up here." The forest was quite vast, and in her condition she wouldn't be able to go on foot. Apparition was really their only option. "Are you comfortable if I take you?" She really had no other choice, but she was scared and he would not be the reason for any further stress.

[Christine Montgomery]

Christine's heart was pounding, all of her stress receptors were going off and adrenaline was coursing its way through her veins. She didn't know how to explain her fear, though she imagined it wasn't difficult to understand. She looked around, there really were no other alternatives than what he suggested, but it made her want to cry. If he wasn't who he said he was then it was all for nothing, she would never be able to tell anyone about the others. But if she didn't take his help now she wasn't going to make it to the Ministry or anywhere else.

She kept her eye on him and reached out tentatively.

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

He understood her hesitation and countered with slow, steady movements. He took her hand and squeezed it tight as they disapparated with a loud crack that echoed through the forest.

When they reappeared, they were in the atrium on the Ministry of Magic. Alek made his way to the gates that led to the lifts which would take them to the Auror department. First, however, they had to deal with the reception witch who was, as most other Ministry officials, a twit.

"We need to see Dorian Humbert," he said through gritted teeth. 

"What department, sir?"

"The bloody Auror Department! Hurry up, this is urgent."

"Do you have an appointment?"

"Does it look like we have an appointment?" Alek was wearing jeans and beaten leather coat. Christine was filthy and dressed in sweats and a baggy t-shirt. This was not the apparel of people who had scheduled a meeting. "Let us through to the Auror Department or so help me Merlin..." Alek's distrust of the Ministry was exemplified by this woman's incompetence. In a lower, darker tone he added "it's about the serial killer he's hunting." At that the reception witch permitted them entrance and soon they were standing in the lift on the way to the MLE Department and Auror Headquarters.

[Christine Montgomery]

Christine tensed as he held her hand, her heart was beating so fast she was afraid she might faint. All the worry and second guessing came through at the last minute, she almost pulled her hand away knowing for sure he was taking her back to the lair. Taking her to be executed, where she could never tell anyone about what she had seen. But it was too late to second guess anything as she felt a familiar compression tighten around an already weak and battered body.

When she landed she wanted to throw up, but there was nothing in her stomach. She dry heaved instead.

In the moments of clarity after she felt steady she realized she was indeed at the Ministry. In that moment she loved Aleksandar Eiriksen, and she always would. She held his hand a little tighter and stood close to him. The sights and sounds of the ministry as well as the bustle of so many people was jarring to Christine who had spent the last few weeks underground.

She wasn't even aware of his arguing with the woman or anything else until he was moving. She mutely followed him keeping wary eyes on everything around her.

[Aleksander “Alek” Eiriksen]

The lift carried them up and they got off at Level 2. Alek looked around a bit, having never actually be in this department (one of the more corrupt departments, in his opinion) and then turned the corner to find two large doors with a plaque announcing the Auror Department. He held the door for Christine and scanned the offices, spotting a placard on a door to their right. Agent Dorian Humbert Alek suppressed a snarl as he directed Christine and then knocked on the door to his half-brother's office.

[Dorian Humbert]

Dorian was a mess. He had come into the office every day since Christine’s kidnapping. He had been determined to track her down, until Kate had given him the news that they believed Christine was dead. Dorian didn’t want to believe it but they had a witness who saw the dead girl just after Christine was taken. Dorian now came into work daily to keep himself busy. If he stopped for too long he would be overtaken by grief. Grief for the loss of Christine. Guilt at being the reason she was dead and Lex was still in the hospital. And a confusing rage at the knowledge that, while alive, Christine had lied to him about who she was; a rich heiress to the Montgomery Shipping fortune who had still been in school at the time of the affair. Dorian had to stay busy, or else he would do something terrible.

There was a sharp knock at the door, and answered. “Come in.”

[Christine Montgomery]

Christine was posted at Alek's side. Everything was still so overwhelming to her. The brightness, the loudness, people shuffling along as if it were an ordinary day. She felt so weak that she could tip over at any moment, but the one thing driving her, the one thing that pushed her forward was that there were others. Christine had to let them know, she had escaped, but at what cost?

She resembled a timid mouse shrinking at every sound as if it would harm her. Again she hid behind Alek and let him do most of the moving.

She heard his voice. That was Dorian. She recognized the timbre and depth, the lilt and cadence. In all of M's attempts to disguise himself as Dorian, there were certain things he could not hide, his voice was one of them. She eagerly pushed at the door longing to see the man she loved, the real man she loved.

But when she opened the door and saw him a hundred images shot through her mind, none of them were the warm memories she had held onto while captive, instead she saw the man of her nightmares.

[Dorian Humbert]

Dorian closed the file he was reading. It was Christine's. Her pictures, school records, her real life. Not the life she had pretended to have with Dorian.

He looked up as the door opened and saw a ghost. His eyes widened in disbelief and he simply stared at her for several seconds before he was able to choke out, "Christine?" He stood, moving around the desk and swiftly closing the gap between them. He was so thankful when his arms wrapped around her, realizing she was real. Not a figment of his imagination. He didn't think on her deception at the moment, he only cared that she was alive. Dorian didn't even notice that Alek was standing in the doorway.

[Christine Montgomery]

The way he said her name broke down the barrier she was putting up at his appearance, but as he swiftly moved toward her, her fears grew again. It wasn't fair! Godric it wasn't fair!

She cried out in fear when he reached her and pushed back away from him, until his scent permeated the thoughts in her head, "Dorian...?"

His scent and the way he held her, the pure essence of him, the real him was shattering the impostor's illusion allowing her to accept the real man who now held her.

Then the sobs came, harsh and soul twisting sobs that were so deep her entire body shook. She clutched at him as tight as her feeble strength would allow and cried, all the while murmuring her relief incoherently.

"It's you. It's really you." she said at last between sobs as she strained to hear his familiar heartbeat.