Story: War Bites!
Chapter: 4; Thunder And Rain
Chapter 3 Summary: Viv told her true identity and left to go mail a letter. Nina's coming, but Sirius seems to have a problem with that. I wonder why?
Nina's House
"Come on people!" yelled Nina. "I told Dumbledore we'd be there in an hour!"
"We're coming," muttered Xander, walking down the stairs. "Not all of us can pack with magick. Some of us have to actually think about what we're going to need."
Willow and Nina looked at each other, the rest of the group walked down the stairs, bags in their hands.
"Alright, everyone grab your luggage and stand in a circle," commanded Nina.
"Is everyone here?" questioned Willow. She looked around the circle. Nina and Willow stood opposite each other, Buffy, Faith, Spike, Giles, Xander, "Wait, where's Dawn?"
"I'm coming," huffed Dawn, stumbling down the stairs with her bag.
"Alright, everyone form a circle," instructed Willow. Everyone stood in a circle, bags at their sides, and waited. Nina and Willow stared into each other's eyes, almost in a trance-like state.
"The house of Black," they commanded together, and as one the party apparated onto the front doorstep of the house.
The House of Black
They all looked up.
"Whoa, that was so cool!" jumped Dawn. "Can we do that again?"
"No," stated Buffy. Dawn rolled her eyes.
"Fine."
Nina walked up to the front door, and knocked lightly. She knew of the picture that hung on the wall inside, and did not wish to disturb it. She heard the many locks on the inside of the door unlock, and the door slowly opened.
"Nina!" greeted Remus.
"Hey," she smiled, giving him a hug and stepping in. "Everyone, this is one of my old friends, Remus Lupin. Remus, this is (she pointed to them in turn) Faith, Buffy, Dawn, Xander, Willow, and Spike."
"Come on in," invited Remus. They all quietly entered. Thunder rumbled behind them and it started to pour.
"Well, that doesn't seem very promising," stated Willow.
"So where is everyone?" questioned Nina.
"I think they're all in the kitchen," answered Remus, leading them down the hall; everyone left their luggage at the door. When they got to the kitchen everyone was formally introduced. Conversations started here and there, but, all of a sudden, Nina noticed someone was missing.
"Remus," questioned Nina quietly, "where's Sirius."
"I'm not sure, but he might be upstairs. He seemed to be rattled when he found out you were coming," Remus whispered back.
"I think I'll go find him. We're going to be spending a lot of time here, and it would be better if we got everything out in the open in the beginning."
"You're probably right. You remember where his old room was?"
"Yeah."
"He moved to his parents room instead, it was bigger so he could fit Buckbeak. Um…try there first, and then…"
"Alright, thanks…" Nina slipped out the kitchen door, and climbed the stairs to the second floor. She walked down to the end of the hall, and opened the door directly in front of her. Sirius was sitting on the floor with a bag; Buckbeak was tearing the meat off a bone. "Hey," said Nina, approaching quietly. Buckbeak dropped the bone and stared at her. She stopped and turned to him, going through the motions, which were necessary when meeting a hippogriph. She was accepted and pet Buckbeak as she spoke her next words to Sirius. "How are you?"
"Never better," mumbled Sirius sarcastically.
"What?" questioned Nina.
"Fine," he answered.
"Are you sure? I mean, spending all that time in Askaban, I'd feel awful afterwards. And being cooped up in here…"
"It gives me time to reflect," he stated, cutting in. "Look, I'm not really in the mood to talk, so if you could just…"
"I'm not leaving until we work something's out. Listen Sirius, I'm sorry for what I did, but I was only here for a year, I figured I'd never see you again, and then when I read the news…I really didn't think I'd ever be able to be with you again, so…"
"So you what, jumped the first guy you could find…"
"I did not. Spike and I had been friends forever, we weren't even together when you saw us…"
"You certainly looked together."
"We were working a case, I told you that! I had to pretend to act evil in order to find out the information I wanted to know…"
"And what, you can't act unless he's there!"
"I needed him to pull the whole plan off! You weren't there, you wouldn't have been able to help anyway… what was I supposed to do…what did you expect? You weren't supposed to be released from Askaban, and then you found a way out, and it's not my fault! Did you expect me to wait for you?"
"Of course I did! You said forever, and you lied. I'm sure it didn't take you more then a year to find someone new!" Sirius had already gotten up, and was now walking out the door and down the hall. Nina followed close behind.
"Sirius wait!" yelled Nina, Sirius turned around, glaring at her.
"What?"
"What I said forever, I meant forever," Nina spoke in a lower voice now, but still with as much intensity, "and I'm sorry for all the pain I caused you. But you have to understand, I never thought I would see you again…and Spike…"
"Did you come here with Spike?" questioned Sirius.
"What does that have to do with anything?" questioned Nina. "Of course I did. He's a great fighter and one of my best friends."
"And who did you sleep with last night?" questioned Sirius.
"What…" started Nina, her eyes dropped a little at the question, but she hadn't thought Sirius had noticed.
"This friendship you want us to have," stated Sirius, "will never work." He slowly turned walked out the stairs, and out the front door.
"Sirius!" yelled Nina, as the door shut. But he didn't stop; he just left. Remus and everyone had heard the yelling, and had come upstairs to see what the problem was.
"What happened?" asked Remus, coming up behind Nina, who was now standing and staring at the door.
"He left," she mumbled, "he just left. I've got to go after him," she continued, getting her nerve back up and taking her leather jacket from a hanger on the wall."
"I'll come," offered Spike.
"No," shot Nina quickly.
"Well, one of has to come," started Faith, "you can't go alone. It's too dangerous."
"Fine, come on," invited Nina to Faith. Faith grabbed her jacket as well, and Nina opened the front door. A blast of thunder and a crack of lightening filled the area. Nina could see Sirius's footprints in the mud. She lit them up with magick. "We'll be back," she said, as she walked out the front door into the pouring rain. The two slayers ran, sloshing in the mud. All the footprints vanished behind them.
"Be careful!" yelled Buffy. And Remus shut the door.