Different

suffering

The Pack was surprisingly close to central London. The old house was falling into a state of disrepair, but the kids playing in the front yard didn't seem to care. The two adults watched Claire and Remus as they walked up to the house, their eyes judgmental. Claire gave Remus a confused look, but he just stared straight ahead.

"You're not welcome here," the man said, standing up and blocking Remus from entering the house. The man was a few inches taller than Remus, and Claire wasn't used to her dad looking small next to someone else. The man looked intimidating, with large muscles and an air of superiority. He wasn't much older than Remus, which surprised her since she thought that Leo only helped younger Moon Children. His eyes gave away the secret because he was missing the ring of gold that identified people as a Moon Child.

"You've never had a problem with me before, Jack," Remus said lowly. Jack grimaced and looked disappointed in the other man, like they had been friends before all of this happened.

"That was before you let Annabeth get killed," Jack spat.

"It wasn't his fault," a woman said softly. Jack let out a dry laugh and looked at the woman, who gave him a look that made the man back down a little. This woman had the ring of gold, and Claire assumed that they were married, and one of the boys still running around and playing belonged to them. The boys were paying attention to what happened, particularly Claire, but their game of soccer was much more important.

"Bella is right. I tried to stop Emaline," Remus spoke up, a slight quiver to his voice.

"Of course that's what you would say. I seem to remember you following her around like a lovesick puppy," Jack accused. Remus tensed and was about to retort when the door opened, effectively ending their argument.

Leo looked horrible. He had dark bags under his bright red eyes, and his hair was greasy and unwashed. He didn't look healthy or threatening at all, but the members of the Pack all stepped back, still seeing him as their leader.

"Jack, mind your own business," Leo warned, his voice sounding surprisingly strong. The man clenched his jaw but nodded, sharing an unhappy look with Bella. He avoided looking at Claire, and looked right at Remus. "The Pack is done helping the Order. We're done doing missions and getting no thanks. You have ruined our trust and we're done living in your shadows."

"Leo, I never wanted any of this to happen," Remus said sadly. "I'm sorry. Really, I truly am sorry."

"Get off my property and never come back," Leo spat at the werewolf. The young boy turned to go inside without even looking at Claire a single time.

"Leo, please," Claire finally spoke. She watched as his shoulders fell and he sighed before he finally looked at her. Claire's breath got caught in her throat at the sadness behind his eyes.

"Let's walk," Leo said. Claire nodded and gave her dad's hand a reassuring squeeze before following her ex-boyfriend. The two lapsed into an awkward silence while they walked through the house. The inside didn't look much better than the outside, and there were only about five other people in the house, but no one else said anything to the two.

"So, is this where all the Moon Children live?" Claire asked as they went up the steps, which squeaked loudly, protesting each step that they took.

"We have a few other houses, but this is the biggest," Leo answered. "Jack and Bella stay here year-round and take care of it. Bella is actually my half-sister on my dad's side, which is the only reason I deal with Jack. He's an asshole most of the time and he tries to undermine me when he isn't a Moon Child at all. Bella can usually keep him from doing too much, but I already know he's going to be extra difficult now. But their son is technically a Moon Child, so I have to let them stay here."