Disclaimer: I in no way own either Harry Potter or Blood and Chocolate. I'm just playing with the characters, I'll give em' back when I'm done. *Grins* Promise.

Warnings: slight anti-police stuff, hobo-ness, mild to moderate language, and thievery.

AN: Still in the UK, which I know little about. Blood & Chocolate WILL appear in the story soon. It really will. Still hinting BTW…

Enjoy!

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Chapter 3: Blank fur-Half moon.

"Oi! Fuck me-look at this!" someone shouted.

Remus jumped. The voice was still shouting, and it was joined by another angry voice.

"Looks like someone been in ere'!"

"See if' they nicked anything!"

"Yeh mate, I'll go call the boss!"

Ice plunged through Remus as he felt the color drain from his face. The factory was opening, and the workers' angry shouts were rousing other newcomers. They weren't close to Remus yet, but they would soon enough. He looked wildly around for an exit; there were no windows, but rather a high ceiling with large metal beams. Remus could feel the hair on the back of his neck rise.

He looked quickly up, his heart choking with anxiety. Remus just wanted to curl up; Fenrir's words reverberated inside his skull. Remus scrambled up the crates, and his teeth chattered and splinters dug into his palms. On the highest stack of crates, Remus's head brushed the metallic ceiling, and the fat silver rafters were close enough for him to touch. Remus shakily tried to mount it, the sweat on his palms made it hard to get a good grip. He tried not to make a sound as he managed to swing one leg over it as if it were a horse.

Remus faltered, nearly loosing his grip and sliding off; he was trying not to yell. He decided to scoot forward, his palms flatly pressed on the cold metal, and shivered at the contact. Remus propelled himself forward with his hands and arms, his legs following sluggishly. Fear made his chills worse, and made his skin crawl.

Every time a voice yelled, Remus froze for a moment and pressed himself flat on the rafter. Inching along until he was in another room, he could see a metal staircase, the walkway was just a jump down from his perch. Remus took a breath, steeling himself before he slid down and jumped.

He landed on the walkway feet first, the shock reverberating through his entire body; Remus saw spots and swayed for a moment, before losing his balance for a moment. The clattering sound his body made against the metal was loud and grating. Remus could feel the impact-

"OI!"

Remus sprang up, and went full pelt to the door. The workers had heard the noise and gave chase. It open reluctantly, and Remus took the lower of the two staircases inside. Remus slid down the banister, wobbling and sliding dangerously fast.

"Oh Shiiiiiiit!" he screamed.

Remus leapt off a banister, rushing down the stairs and found another metal door. The door gave way after a few desperate tugs, and Remus flinched when he felt a blast cold air hit him. Remus let the door slam behind him as he ran across the snow covered lot. Remus ran. Not listening to the shouts of the people he ran past, concentrating on trying not to fall down, Remus was stopped by a chain link fence.

The workers were closing in, and Remus slammed his hands into the fence, rattling it in fear. He looked back to see the faces of the workers distorted with anger. Suppressing a shiver, Remus started to climb, his feet sliding over the metal. It felt like trying to walk on top of a river. The fence was tall, and Remus was only half way to the top. The workers were grabbing at his feet, their calloused hands brushing against the fabric of his jeans.

Someone yanked him down by one of his trainers, and rough hands grabbed his legs. One even managed to get as high as his thigh. Remus was being roughly dragged down to the ground. He was hanging onto the fence only by his hands, his fingers curled around the links in the chain and each digit was screaming in protest.

Remus felt like he was being squeezed, the air in his lungs was being throttled out of him. Whenever he tried to take a breath, all he could do was cough; his air was being stolen, ripped out by ragged wheezing. He looked upwards to see the overcast sky, but was seeing spots and blackness curling at the edges of his vision. It looked like burnt paper.

Remus could barely feel the wetness on his face, even the cold was turning into a numbing blistering heat. It made his limbs prickle, and his stomach kick. He was shaking so badly that he could barely hold onto the fence. The shouting and cursing didn't sound the same; a terrible snarling was filling his ears until it was the only sound he heard.

Remus's legs flailed blindingly, becoming frantic-

CRUNCH.

His foot had struck someone in the face. There was a lull in the crowed, and Remus kicked his legs upward, almost shooting to the top of the fence. He reached blindly, gaining speed. He barely felt the top of the fence before he leapt down, the air screaming in his ears.

He landed feet first, nearly toppling to the ground; he could feel the fingers from the other side of the fence brush his clothes. Remus stumbled away from them, almost falling a few times before gaining ground. His feet felt heavy, and closer to the ground then normal; he was still running, vaguely aware that the factory was farther behind him.

He slowed to a walk, feeling more drained than ever; he could finally breath properly now, and his vision was getting better. He felt sluggish and weak all over, his feet kicking the litter that lined the streets. Remus ignored the graffiti scrawled over the buildings, the glittering symbols looked alien to his eyes. He didn't care about anything at the moment, his surge of whatever energy he had had faded and left him with exhaustion.

Remus walked up to an arched doorway and not caring, slumped down under it's roof. Ignoring the smells day old food, urine, and cigarettes, leaned back against the bumpy concrete and closed his eyes.

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When he woke up it was raining, and the air was crisper than it was before. His body felt stiff, and like it had been run over by a truck. Remus could feel stray raindrops flecked on his skin; his jacket was uncomfortable, and he couldn't get warm. Remus sniffed a couple of times, trying to actually smell something. It took a while for Remus to stand up, and he wobbled for a moment before he was able to get his bearings.

He still wasn't sure of the hour, day, or even where he was. Remus didn't care. His mind wasn't as hazy as before, but he strangely wished that it was. Remus barely looked on either side of him before stepping out of the doorway. He shivered from the shock of cold water coming down on him. His nose prickled, but he suppressed it.

He tried to hold everything in, from anxiety and anger to the prickling in his nose and throat. His head pounded, feeling heavy from the effort. He took a steadying breath, but was quickly cut of by a violent sneezing fit. Sniffling, Remus looked around for a signpost. It took him about an hour to try an locate one, the effort of looking was more calming than he thought.

The prickling was starting to subside slightly, and it gave him relief, from the throbbing cramps in his stomach and groin. Remus turned down a street, noting that he was leaving the industrial district. He seemed to be closer to the city, and that meant there would be restaurants. Remus hurriedly searched the pockets, and growled in irritation. Empty. Remus walked on, noting the desertedness.

'Where the bloody hell am I?'

Remus looked for any pedestrian to flag down, but continued on when he couldn't find anyone. Walking by a restaurant, Remus stopped. Through the glass he could see small pockets of customers at their tables. He stared. The fact that people were eating reminded Remus that he hadn't eaten in the last few days or so.

The was no money in his pockets, not even a single quid. Remus groaned, and walked away when he felt some patrons stares. He crossed the corner of the restaurant, and noticed the dumpster next to their back door. Remus couldn't stop looking at it. He wriggled uncomfortably at the sight; would he be proving Fenrir's point?

Remus flinched. He strode over to the dumpster, its contents overflowing. The smell wasn't particularly awful-of course Remus couldn't really smell too well at the moment. He could see crates next to the dumpster, and their contents were nearly the same, except fresher. Suddenly the back door open. Remus ducked down out of sight, and watched as a man in a messy apron threw out a few huge plastic bags. The man disappeared back into the steaming kitchen, and the door slammed heavily behind him.

Remus waited a few moments before darting forward. He ripped open the glossy black garbage bags and thrust his hands inside. Leftovers and day old vegetables came out by the fistful. Remus stuffed it all into his mouth. He couldn't tell what flavors belonged to what, but it was partly warm and Remus kept going for mouthful after mouthful.

His fingers desperately groped for more, the plastic sliding past and the sound was wet and gross. Sated, Remus quickly withdrew his hands from the bag. His mouth felt hot and sour, his stomach was full, but his face felt hot and he glanced quickly around; no one was in sight. Remus stood up and walked away quickly, wiping the traces of his meal on his clothes.

He suddenly wanted to rip his clothes off, they felt dirty and scratchy. He didn't know who they belonged to. Without warning, Fenrir's face flashed in front of him.

'These don't belong to me! I wasn't stealing anything-he's wrong! It can't be true!'

'Can it?'

'Shut up!!'

Remus kicked a wall. It felt like Fenrir was walking right beside him. The coarse man's body was hot and rough next to him. The heat was radiating off his dirty body in waves. The sleeves of their jackets brushed together, making an unpleasant sound. Everything was sour, hot, and constricting. Rancid stenches rose up like steam, and Remus thought everything was disgusting. From the way people's face looked, to the clothes that clung to their bodies.

'Wish I had fur-'

'Oh…and what if-'

'NO. I can control myself.'

'Who says you want to?'

Remus shook his head so hard his ears rang. The whistling was so loud he clapped his hands to his ears; shaking all over, Remus just wanted to scream at everything to be quiet. Instead he looked up. He had walked near a train station; the whistling was the train pulling in. A ripple of nervousness went through him at the consequences his current train of thought that now pulled up.

He shifted from foot to foot. He couldn't see anybody who would notice him.

'You really want to do this?'

'What's the worst that could happen?'

'I think you know the answer to that.'

Remus now felt scared. This was a big deal now.

'Just for a little while eh? Lets just see how far we can go, then we'll turn back.'

The train was signaling its last boarding call, and Remus's heart fluttered rapidly. He could hear what everyone would say. He was the mature, responsible one. He would get in trouble, his marks would be poor, it was a bad idea. It was out of character.

Out of character. Remus was seething.

'How dare they think they know me! What gives them the right?! I can do what the fuck I want!

In his mind, Remus was shouting. His throat felt hot and his eyes stung. He was so angry, and angry at them-Their faces flashed before his eyes, their expressions well known to him. It suddenly made him angry to see their smiles-the very idea of them-

"Sod them!" Remus yelled, relishing the extreme venom in his voice.

He strode down the platforms, and walked up to a vacant stair step, and boarding the train. He smiled viciously as he watched the station get smaller and smaller from his window seat.

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He got of the train with a jump. He walked into the crowd. With the press of a crowd, he felt uncomfortable being so close together. He wanted to get away, but every time there was a lull in the crowd, Remus had a phantom limb sensation at the space. He ignored the sign that told him where he was, he felt he get to it later when he needed to.

However, he did want to know just what the day was. Just to keep track. He spotted a woman looking at a large display map in the center of the station. Remus had to throw a few elbows to get to her. She was mid thirties and blonde.

'Oh, she looks like a Tory' the thought randomly popped up.

"Excuse me." Remus started at the sound of his voice-it was so rough.

"Y-yes?" she turned to him.

"Could you please tell me the date?"

"I-it's the twenty fourth." she sounded incredulous.

She blanched, looking strange under bright lights with her heavy make up. She was making some odd, disgusted expression.

"Is there anything else I can do for you?" her voice was shaking and stilted.

"No thank you."

Remus turned away, quickly shoving through the crowd. Thoroughly rattled, Remus ducked into the bathrooms. He ran in, and picked an open stall. He leaned against the locked stall, panting heavily.

'What the hell was that?! Did she realize what I was?'

Remus froze. He remember where he had seen that look from. It was on the faces of people who had known of his condition. They always ended up looking like that. Remus shuddered as he imagined when Fenrir would say about this. He wanted to be sick. There were only three people who knew about it who didn't look at him like that but. But. As their faces flashed in Remus's mind, he quickly turned into the bowl and was immediately sick.

He rose unsteadily to his feet. Unlocking the stall, he ignored any of the other people there, that went past him. He stood next to a sink, and looked into the mirror. Starting in shock, Remus stared at what could only be him.

He face was pinched and sallow-er than usual, and under the florescent lighting, he had extreme angles to his face. Normally, youthful looking, now it was skull like. He didn't have much color except for the redness in his nose, making it look stuffy. His lips were cracked and almost blue. He had no visible flush, but his eyes were glassy and unfocused. They were slightly red-rimmed and puffy. His normally soft pale brown hair was now dull and was starting to get greasy.

Despite the shock of his appearance, Remus didn't bother to wipe any of the dirt or grime that covered him. His hands felt sticky, and he wiped them on his jeans. He knew he probably smelled awful, but he didn't care at the moment. He just walked away.

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The city's bright lights made his head spin, and he giggled occasionally. He had been wandering about again. He went into a few places that didn't require money, and he looked at the shops, pretending he had the money to buy things. He'd leave a place if patrons were eyeing him or whenever he'd need another distraction. Remus managed to find a few bills lying on the ground and bought himself a coke.

The caffeine made him even more eager to explore the city, and he bounced around brightly colored alleyways with vendors selling things Remus hadn't seen before. There were secret niches and paths that led to different parts of the city, each one different from the last. It was big enough that anything and everything could be found there, with enough people around to cater to the most eccentric of needs.

It was an exciting fairy land to explore. One giant carnival that would never end. That meant endless distractions, and Remus knew he was going to see it all. He didn't want to miss a single thing. Remus found an arcade. It had pulsing lights and bubblegum music. He swayed to the beat, feeling as jingly as the coins that tumbled through the machines. He even got to play a few free games when some people left them unfinished. Remus watched as two little girls tried to win a teddy bear. He walked past them a few minutes later, leaving the arcade to find new toys.

He went back out into the cold air. Slumping on a bench, he fell asleep with the barest hint of a smile on his face.

"Oi!"

A hand shook him awake.

"You can't sleep here." a voice said.

Remus looked up. Two police officers loomed over him. Both looked annoyed, hard faced, and disgusted. Annoyance rippled over Remus, and he suppressed a growl.

"Do you have anywhere to go-" The first officer asked.

"Bugger off." Remus snapped.

"Oi, you little berk!" the other snapped back.

"Right, lets take you to the station then." the first said.

"Shut it piggies, I'm trying to sleep." Remus barked.

"Why you-"

"Come on then-."

The two officers hoisted Remus off the bench, ignoring his indignant shouts, and half dragged half hit Remus back to their patrol car. Remus writhed in their hands, as both men struggled to get a hold of him. Remus ignored their shouting, drowning it out with his own. The second officer tried to carry Remus, but he was head butted. The first officer tried to catch Remus, and support his partner. He had Remus in a chokehold, and Remus twisted, screaming in his ear. The other officer hit Remus with the back of his hand, and meant to continue; Remus kicked that man in the groin.

When both men lost their grip, Remus ran as fast as he could. Turning down a corner and running down a few blocks, he slowed to a walk in a quieter district. It was less crowded, but he could hear one close by. He found the source of the noise. It was a boardwalk, the area was lined up with families and tourists thronging through the novelty stores and sweet shops. The boardwalk spilled into a carnival. Remus looked at the bright whirling lights with longing. He had no money for rides.

He could hear the happy screams of passengers on the roller coasters, and it competed with the music blaring from loudspeakers. Despite the fact that he felt awful, he already felt a bit better. He enjoyed the smells of vendor food, and smiled when he watched the game stall venders haggle with customers for one more game of darts.

'Maybe if I ask nicely, they'll take me with them. I could learn how to throw darts.'

Remus smiled wistfully at the thought of being a carnie. It looked like so much fun, and the idea of traveling was appealing to him. Remus continued on walking, and he noticed that it was quite a large place. He could even see the pier that lead up to the marina and even to the docks that lead out to water.

The brine of the sea was enticing to him, and he was surprised that he could smell it. Remus coughed for a few moments before walking down the path that led to the docks. The wooden pathway creaked, and it complemented the waves hitting back. The boats swayed gently in the water, tethered liked horses and calm without their owners. The pier only went so far, with an odd indention on the far right hand side. It looked crooked, as if it was being deliberately hidden. Remus smiled at the idea that it could be a place to take someone to somewhere magical. He laughed at the thought.

Intrigued, he turned into the boarded in cove-like part of the docks. Remus walked to the far end of it, and he could see what looked like a ferry. It was brightly lit with a almost florescent glow. People milled about it, loading and unloading various items. Reus couldn't hear what was being said, but the buzz of conversation seemed pleasant enough.

He walked up to the men, watching them load things onto the boat. Since it was a ferry, it seemed large enough; a few people were milling about. Remus looked around until he spotted a large man who looked in charge. He was talking to a few workers, and he was wearing a smile. Remus took it as a good sign and walked up to him.

"Excuse me." Remus wished he didn't sound so hoarse.

"Ah, yes? Can I help you?" the man turned around to face Remus.

"Ah yes, can you tell me if you are taking passengers, and if so, where to?"

"Oh. The states, we're near Maryland ya know. Going to a little inland called Pine Arches. We're takin' passengers, an' its two hundred pounds for a ticket." he said.

"Oh, when are you leaving?"

"Bout' an hour."

"Thanks."

"Not a problem." the man smiled.

Remus turned away, walking back the way he came. Feeling anxious and disappointed, he went back to the carnival; he needed money for that ride, and money was something he didn't have. The sounds of the carnival sounded washed out to his ears, and the flashing lights were starting to painfully throb.

'Having no money means having to go back, and then I'll have to answer questions, and then it'll be more of the same-'

Remus stared at the flashing roller coaster lights, trying to burn the thoughts out with candy florescent lights. The cold air went through him, searing him. If someone knocked him to the ground, he felt like he would smash to pieces at the touch. He couldn't go back.

He walked against the crowed, feeling jumpy; he rubbed his arms rapidly for warmth. Remus walked by a vendor promising delicious sweets, and warm meats. He stood off to the side, staying out of the way for the customers in line. Hungry kids tugged on their parent's sleeves, and groups of teenagers chattered or watched the rides spin dizzily around while they waited. Remus shifted slightly, trying to get warm off the heat of the vendor cart.

One of the people inside the cart glared at him, and Remus quickly glanced down. He studied the ground, watching the hot food get frozen and the chunks of ice turn dirty. Then only thing that wasn't trash was the small leather brown wallet. Remus started; the wallet was lying helplessly on its side, half hidden by a Styrofoam cup. Nervously, Remus looked around, not knowing if he dared.

He bent down, his eyes wary. Trying to act nonchalant, Remus pretended to fix the laces on his trainers. His fingers brushed past the snow and the cracking cup, to grasp at his prize. He enclosed his fist around it, before pulling back up and putting it in his pocket. Remus walked quickly away.

When he felt safe enough, he pulled the wallet out of his pocket and flipped it open. Crisp notes nestled tightly together; there was enough for a ticket. Remus looked hurriedly about, and took another look at the carnival. His chest ached fiercely as he saw the bright lights, the wild music, the thick smells of warm food. He knew that he wasn't fitting right. Remus knew who'd enjoy this place, and they weren't here. No longer able to continue his train of thought, Remus wiped his eyes and set off for the docks.

He paid the man the money and boarded the ferry along with a woman and her children. He could hear the prattling of her children and Remus smiled slightly. His skin felt clammy and raw, chest aching and hollow and Remus wandered over to the railing and watched the water break against the boat.

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R&R Folks. Oh BTW, a Tory is Brit slang for a Conservative.