Disclaimer - see Chapter 01

-~/\~-

~...~ = Parseltongue

/.../ = Telepathy between Harry & Carya (in italics)

' ... ' = thoughts

~*~*~ ... ~*~*~ = Flashback or changing POV

Chapter 21 - Third Task and Voldie's Return or Duels and Death Eaters

(A/N: Just a note, I'm not forgetting about dear Rita. She's still in the jar, still alive and fed and cleaned regularly by Hermione. She'll live later on too but I don't need her right now so ... *insert evil grin here*)

The whole group started the day with a long walk around the castle. Harry was sorry that he couldn't let his guardians into the Slytherin Common Room but Snape had made crystal clear that such an offence wouldn't go unpunished.

He hoped to get the Fat Lady to let the two former Gryffindors into their old Common Room but that was unlikely since Sirius attack on her during the twins second year. Perhaps they should just ask McGonagall.

The children also showed the two adults what they'd found and added to the Marauder's Map. But the six still hadn't told anyone about the Founder's Chambers and they hadn't planned on telling anyone for the foreseeable future.

While walking around the old castle Remus noticed something. Neither Harry nor Carya or Draco let go of the hand or body of their girlfriend or in Carya's case her boyfriend. He thought that it was really adorable and good for them too.

The three of them had suffered while being little kids. Draco had to leave his home and mother behind and the twins had lost their parents before they could really live with them. To see that they had a beloved and trusted person with them was something to be truly happy about.

To Remus the twins and Draco would always be special. As a werewolf he wasn't allowed to have children on his own. It had been difficult enough to be allowed living under the same roof. He rather felt like an uncle of sorts for those three.

Sirius was playing the overprotective 'mother-hen' part perfectly well on his own. At times he could even put Molly Weasley to shame with his fussing over the kids. The eight of them ate lunch in the Great Hall together.

They were sitting at the fifth table and it was fun to explain the two why that table had been set up in the first place. Remus thought that it had been about bloody time someone did something against the house rivalries.

He remembered how difficult it had been for James and Lily when they finally fell in love. Halfway into the meal he caught Carya staring at Sirius and then looking somewhere else. He followed her gaze and realised what she was doing.

Carya had noticed something in the middle of lunch. She was currently watching back and forth between Sirius and her Potions professor. The girl was really amused that the two supposed adults hardly ate in favour of glaring at each other.

Carya nudged Draco with her foot and told Harry in her mind what was going on, /Hey brother. Look at Padfoot and Snape! They don't eat they are only glaring at one another! It's just too funny to watch that./

Carya saw that Draco had caught on and was telling Ginny. Harry told Hermione and Carya made sure that Tom knew about it too. Once the six all knew about that behaviour they kept shooting careful glances at Sirius and Snape.

After a few minutes they couldn't really suppress their giggling and chuckling anymore. Those surrounding them noticed that something odd was going on. The 'Slytherin Six' never behaved like this in public.

Sure, you could see them laugh occasionally but not really anymore since the second task. These particular sounds were usually not associated with the six friends. Those who looked hard enough could see what they were doing.

The children's glances darted back and forth between Sirius Black and Severus Snape. The moment the two adults realised what the kids were currently doing they started to glare and scowl at the six in perfect unison.

The sudden change in behaviour and the incredible likeness between the facial expressions of the two was finally too much to take for the friends. They looked at both one last time and burst out into heartfelt laughter. As soon as the rest saw what seemed so funny the whole Great Hall joined them.

They were all laughing at a miffed Severus Snape and fretting Sirius Black. And although the two of them were still scowling and glaring at everyone who came across their gaze the tension that had been almost tangible earlier was nearly completely gone.

A refreshing change of atmosphere in the opinion of those who had noticed. The next few hours were over faster than anyone had anticipated. Soon the Champions were called together to be briefed on the final task which was about to start.

The friends wished Harry good luck before hugging him and sending the boy towards the other participants.

"Good luck Harry, do your best!" said Hermione before hugging him fiercely and giving him a kiss.

Ginny and Draco settled on giving him a hug too. Tom was biting his lip and smiled at his girlfriends brother. He then hugged the other boy too and wished him the best.

"Show them what you're made of Harry. You're the best! I'm proud to be called your friend. Now go and kick whatever you have to face in the butt!" Tom advised him smiling.

Carya was the last. Remus and Sirius had already gone to save them some seats near the maze.

"Be careful Harry, I have a very bad feeling about this all. Watch your back, okay? And don't trust anyone, especially not the teachers or the other Champions while you're in there. Not even us if you see us. Who knows what you're facing there. I'm serious Harry!" she told him worriedly.

Harry tried to take away some of his twins worry by cracking a last joke, "No you're not, dear sister. Padfoot is Sirius!"

"Eh, you know what I mean. Here, take the potion with you. There's an unbreakable charm on it so it won't crush even if you fall onto it with your fat ass, brother mine. Save it until the last moment possible but don't hesitate when you're in grave danger.

The antidote is in the blue vial that you took with you earlier," Carya said and hugged her brother before turning around and quickly walking away.

"She's just worried about you. Be careful okay?" remarked Tom, nodded to Harry and left to find Carya.

Harry joined the other Champions and prepared himself for the last task of the Tri-Wizard Tournament. He wondered a moment when his sister and Tom had found the correct antidote for their potion but put it aside for now. He'd ask them later.

Ludo Bagman was briefing them on the procedure for the third task.

"You'll go inside based on the rank you've got until now. Mister Potter will be the first, two minutes later Mister Diggory will follow another two minutes later it'll be Mister Krum's turn. In two minute intervals you'll go in as the following, Miss Delacour, Mister Kravec and Mister Solet.

Any questions? No? Then we'll start the final task of the Tournament. At my sign you'll go inside Mister Potter. Are you ready? Off with you then, go!" Bagman all but shouted the last part for the crowd to hear.

Carya grew even more worried now. The sun was already setting and her brother was on his own now. She couldn't help him any longer but she knew he was good at what he did. She could feel it. Tom put his arm around the distressed girl and hugged her close.

Ginny and Draco watched in silence while Hermione sat close to Sirius and Remus being reassured by them that Harry would be alright. Carya did have the Marauders Map with her but for now she watched for anything unusual at all. She saw Moody patrolling the western side of the maze and she didn't like it.

Meanwhile Harry was using every trick he knew to avoid the traps in the maze. He'd already met some curses by now and was suddenly faced with a Dementor. His heart sank as he heard his parents screams but he shook it off and bellowed,

"Expecto Patronum!"

A bright silvery white stag appeared out of his wand followed by a large dog and they chased the Dementor. It started to stumble slightly and Harry then knew that it was a boggart-Dementor. He smiled grimly.

"Riddikulus!" the boy shouted and the boggart turned into dust.

For a few minutes there was nothing new to try and stop him until Harry came across a crossing. He used the direction spell the girls had reminded him of and saw where north was. Seeing that he was slightly off path Harry chose the right corridor.

This repeated a few times until Harry ran across a plant which he recognised from first year. It was a Devil's Snare. He had no time to find another way if there even was one. Harry tried to remember what they'd done back then and it came to him after a minute or two.

He could use the sunlight spell or set the plant on fire. Doing the latter would allow the others to simply follow him if there was no other way. If he used the former the plant would rearrange itself once he was through.

Harry decided to use the light and said firmly, "Lumos Solem!"

The plant suddenly 'crawled' out of his way and the boy was able to pass. Having overcome this obstacle he looked around and did the direction spell once more. He was still heading into the right direction.

And he knew because he made sure of where he was going whenever he walked around a corner. The Champions had been in the maze for at least fifty minutes now and the night sky settled over the grounds of Hogwarts.

The excitement grew as the onlookers watched the Champions on their way. Not that they could see everything of it but sometimes you could catch a glimpse on the spell they used. Everyone had seen the use of the sunlight-charm because it had been very bright.

Harry was walking more carefully now as the traps increased in frequency. Suddenly he was faced with the next one. It was a sphinx who wouldn't let him pass. He knew it had to be the only way since he'd run into five dead ends already in his way here.

She was a mix between a woman, a bird and a lion. Her lower body was that of a lion and her back paws and the front claws rested on the pedestal she was on. Wings were sprouting from her back and her face was incredibly human for a magical creature like her.

She looked at him in a weird way before starting her riddle.

'First think of the person who lives in disguise,

Who deals in secrets and tells naught but lies.

Next, tell me what's always the last thing to mend,

The middle of middle and end of the end?

And finally give me the sound often heard

During the search for a hard-to-find word.

Now string them together, and answer me this,

Which creature would you be unwilling to kiss?'

"Hm, what to make of that. Can I hear it again, slower perhaps?" Harry asked and the sphinx complied to his wishes.

After she'd finished the last line Harry thought about the riddle again. The first part was easy. He knew what it had to be - it was a 'spy'. Harry then thought about the second part and after some serious thinking he found the problem.

It was just taking it word for word and looking for the letter that all three things had the same which was the 'd'.

"So to summarise this and I want to make sure this isn't my answer, alright? First we have the 'spy' then the letter 'd' but the third one, eh ..., what could that be? A sound often heard while solving this? Hm, the word has three parts, 'spy' - 'd' - eh?

Wait a sec, I have it. It's spider! I'd never want to kiss a spider!" Harry exclaimed the last sentence smirking and looked at the sphinx questioningly.

She only smiled at him, got up, stretched her legs a bit and let him pass without further words exchanged. Harry nearly ran into the next trap but stopped just in time. It was one of Hagrid's Blast-Ended-Skrewts. Harry looked wide-eyed as it walked up to him.

That beast was huge and Harry didn't know how to get past it. The impediment curse had already failed and he did what was best and put up a shield against fire. It only helped halfway. In running past Harry got hit by the beasts exploding end and his face was burnt slightly.

'That was close. Damn Hagrid's love for dangerous animals. The only thing that's missing now is a basilisk or giant spider like an Acromantula' Harry thought desperately hoping that he wouldn't come across one of them.

He heard a scream that sounded like a girls one.

'Fleur must be out then. I wonder how the others are holding up,' he mused.

Harry hit a few more dead-ends before coming across the mentioned Acromantula. He gulped and retreated to where he'd come from. But the spider followed him. Harry again used the sunlight charm to momentarily blind the spider's eyes and tried to slip past her.

'Why, oh why couldn't I have wished for a Flobberworm?' the boy thought desperately, regretting his earlier words and musings.

It didn't work just like it hadn't done so with the Skrewt. Harry got hit with one of the sharp legs. He now had a deep cut on his leg which was bleeding but surprisingly not too much. He hit the spider with the strongest stunning spell he could think of.

It didn't render the spider unconscious but made it collapse for now. Harry ran away as fast as he could when he heard Cedric scream. He rounded the corner and saw Krum standing over the other boy holding up a curse which Harry knew from his countless nightmares and from seeing it in the Chamber of Secrets.

Viktor used the Cruciatus on Cedric Diggory. Without thinking Harry shot a spell at Krum who fell to they floor immediately. The Potter boy got a glimpse of the others eyes though. They were glazed over. Maybe he hadn't been in control of himself?

'It could have been the Imperius Curse,' Harry thought and helped checking Cedric and Krum for injuries.

Once he was sure both were okay he suggested to shoot sparks that Krum got rescued and walked away not waiting for the other Hogwarts champion to respond anything. After checking his direction once again Harry knew he had to be fairly close to the middle if he had measured the maze right.

The boy rounded another corner and saw the cup in front of him but it was guarded by - a mountain troll! Harry shook his head and was thinking 'Why me?' before jumping out of the way for the first time. He got his wand ready and levitated the trolls club over it's head.

The creature was dumbstruck and looked at it's empty hand when Harry dropped the levitation charm and stunned the oblivious troll with a well aimed curse. Harry made sure he was alone and pocketed his wand by tucking it into the right sleeve of his pullover.

He then reached for the cup feeling a bit reluctant to do so but he still continued. Afterwards he knew it had been a very bad idea to grab it. But right now he just wanted to win. Harry grabbed to shimmering cup and felt a tug behind his navel. It was a portkey!

Some brief thoughts were whirling through Harry's mind. Was this supposed to happen? Why didn't anyone tell me? How do the other's get out if they reach the middle? He had seen Cedric's shocked face when the other boy had rounded the corner just before he had been whisked away.

With a thud Harry landed on the hard earth on what seemed to be a cemetery of sorts. He felt uncomfortable. It was too silent to be part of the task and he looked around nervously. This wasn't good at all. He was alone, armed only with his wand.

He couldn't do anything because a high pitched but well know voice instructed someone and before he even could reach for his wand he was tied to one of the headstones.

"Bind him, Wormtail! Now!" a high voice commanded and the other one complied by muttering a spell under his breath.

But Harry didn't need to hear the voice to know the caster's identity. The name had told him everything he had to know. It was the ugly form of Voldemort and his lackey Wormtail once known as Peter Pettigrew.

~*~*~ Meanwhile at Hogwarts ~*~*~

Carya was watching the maze with worry written onto her features. The sickening feeling in her stomach had grown over the last thirty minutes and just wouldn't lessen. Moody was still patrolling around the maze and all the while muttered something under his breath.

He took a sip from his hip flask and for a brief second the girl thought he did have blond hair but as soon as she blinked it was gone again. She must have imagined that and dismissed the thought for now. Suddenly she felt a sharp pain in her leg.

'Harry must have been injured quite a bit in order for me to feel it,' she thought but didn't say anything.

She took a look at the Marauders Map to see where the other Champions currently were when she noticed something on it. Barty Crouch who was supposed to be ill and at home if you believed Percy Weasley was at Hogwarts. He was at the northern side of the maze now and was moving into their direction. When he came around the corner Carya saw that he was where Moody stood.

'What in Slytherin's name ...? Something's not right here!' she thought and nudged Remus with her elbow.

"Remus, would you please take a quick look at this? What do you see?" she asked him in a low voice.

"Nothing, why? Wait, what's Crouch doing here? I thought he was ill!" Remus whispered back fiercely.

"Look where Moody's supposed to be!" she replied.

Remus looked at Moody then back at the map and his eyes widened immediately. They had used Veritaserum when they'd created the map. It couldn't lie. The man down there at the maze was not Alastor Moody but Bartemius Crouch!

Remus told Carya that they had to tell Dumbledore and she reluctantly agreed to that. Remus left her and took the map with him. Suddenly Carya felt truly sick and the sense of dread in her guts was at its peak. They saw a small flash of light and Harry was gone. Carya shouted out in horror,

"Harry!" she yelled and sank down into Tom's arms - unconscious.

Tom laid her on the ground gently but the second he touched her face he was pulled by something and collapsed on top of her. The boy felt like using floo-powder before coming to stand next to her in a graveyard.

Dumbledore was gathering some professors around him and together they stunned the impostor of Moody without too many visitors noticing. They brought him into one of the old cells in the dungeon and Severus, Remus, Minerva and Albus waited for the polyjuice potion to wear of.

They'd found it in one of the man's hip-flasks. Samira Sprout, Sirius Black, Filius Flitwick and Poppy Pomfrey had went back to the maze to ensure the students safety. They all knew that Harry was gone. They just didn't know how and why. Perhaps this man could give them some answers.

When he changed back it was a shocking sight. It wasn't the Barty Crouch they had expected. It was his son, supposed to be dead and buried outside of the Fortress of Azkaban. Dumbledore immediately sent for Fudge and some aurors. He showed them the evidence and sent them to Crouch's manor for investigation.

Fudge didn't complain for once. He just let Dumbledore do his work. He was still too shocked to see a dead man sitting before them breathing and alive. Severus just came back with a vial of clear potion.

"The potion you requested headmaster," he said and Fudge eyed the vial.

He recognised it. It was Veritaserum. Well, even if he didn't like Snape at all the man was a true Potions Master and a certified one at that. They administered it and revived Crouch. He answered all their questions and when they asked where Harry was he replied to that inquiry too.

"He's with my Master and will be dead before dawn. My Master will be back in all his glory by then - more powerful than ever before," the man told them in his drugged state of mind.

They had already heard enough and Fudge ordered his men to bring him to Azkaban immediately. They were worried about Harry now and hoped the boy could escape somehow. At that moment Sirius came running into the room.

"Albus, its Tom and Carya! They're unconscious and Poppy can't wake them up!" he said frantically.

The professors left Crouch to Fudge and the aurors. They had a full testimony and it had been recorded too. Right now they had to get back to the pitch to tend the students. Remus had already cast privacy spells that kept everyone but the professors out of the circle, where he, Carya and Tom were.

~*~*~ End Meanwhile at Hogwarts ~*~*~

In the middle of the graveyard stood Harry, tied to a headstone and Wormtail was in front of him while carrying a bundle of robes it seemed. Harry couldn't do anything and neither could Carya and Tom. It was a vision of sorts and Tom felt uneasy about this.

Suddenly someone was speaking. It was a high pitched voice that was full of venom. Incredible pain flared up in Carya's scar and she just knew that Harry felt the same. Tom looked at her in concern as she pressed her eyes tightly together and gasped for air.

Several feet in front of them Harry did the same. Wormtail who had been recognised by Carya the second she'd seen him was currently dragging a very large cauldron to the place where Harry stood. He then filled it with water and lit a fire under it.

Tom held his girlfriend since she was hardly able to stand on her own at first. It got better once she was more accustomed to the pain in her chest. Wormtail was dropping some things into the cauldron that was large enough for a grown man to sit in.

The pieces that were thrown into it looked like potions ingredients though. The thing on the ground wrapped in the bundle of robes instructed him to hurry up and he did just that. Soon it was time since the potion seemed ready.

Wormtail pulled something out of those cloth and what was revealed was so revolting that Carya and Tom had to suppress a gagging reflex. The thing didn't have any hair. The skin was of a reddish-black colour.

It's arms and legs were thin and even though it looked a bit like a human child it was nothing like one at all. It's face was flat with slits for nostrils and no nose. The eyes were the most frightening part if you had never seen them. But the twins already had so it was only Tom who gasped.

They were almost glowing and blood-red nothing at all like the gentle crimson eyes of Tom Riddle. All in all the creature seemed to be more snake than human. Tom heard Carya whisper something in hatred and utter disgust though.

"Voldemort! " the girl all but spat, "That monster is going to come back," she murmured.

Wormtail lifted the creature up and pulled it over the rim of the cauldron before dropping it into the same. Carya shuddered, as did Harry and Tom. The rat continued with the ceremony. The first step didn't involve Harry though, just the one beneath him.

Harry was standing on the grave of someone called Tom Riddle - Voldemort's father he assumed.

"Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!" Wormtail said while waving his wand.

The grave opened and a bit of dust flew out before falling into the cauldron. The potion started sizzling violently as the dust made contact with the surface. The brew now turned a poisonous looking shade of blue.

Wormtail was shivering violently now and pulled something out of his robes with his left hand.

"Flesh ... of the s ... servant ... w ... willingly given, ... you will ... revive ... your master " he stammered and held his right hand over the cauldron, a dagger in his other one.

He looked away and brought the sharp knife down cutting his hand off just above the wrist. The potion turned a vivid red now and Harry gulped as he was reminded of blood by that particular colour.

The man howled in pain but kept going. He clutched his bleeding stump to his chest and walked over to Harry. The boy tried to squirm away but couldn't move at all. Wormtail took a knife and a vial. He set the vial on the ground before cutting the crook of Harry's left elbow with the knife.

He dropped it and grabbed the vial to collect some of Harry's blood. Harry was pretty angry now and the pain in his head was blocked out mostly by his fury. He tried to get his legs free and the boy managed to kick Wormtail into his lower parts with one of his knees.

The other howled in pain even more and cowed on the ground. He unfortunately hadn't dropped the vial though. The balding man crawled over to the huge stone cauldron and poured the contents of the vial into it while saying the next part of the spell.

"B-blood of the enemy ... forcibly taken ... you will ... resurrect your foe!" he stammered in obvious pain.

The brew turned a blinding white when he had done that and Wormtail collapsed onto the ground. Harry's headache got worse now as did Carya's. She cried out in pain while Harry's cries were muffled by the gag in his mouth. Though he managed to spit it out a few moments later.

Pettigrew was crawling on the floor now trying to stop the bleeding and yowling in pain every so often. Harry didn't pity him though. It had been his own fault after all. For a short time nothing happened at all and Harry wished for the creature to have drowned but no such luck.

After a few minutes white steam erupted from the cauldron and Harry could make out something within it. A tall figure had just climbed out of the basin and was now talking to Wormtail.

"Hand me my robe, Wormtail!" the voice ordered and Harry froze when he caught a glimpse of the other man.

His skin was stark white and he was thinner than anyone should be. His face was the worst though. He didn't have any hair, his nose was flat and he had slits for nostrils like the tiny creature before. The worst was his eyes though.

Now he knew why everyone had been scared of Carya the day they used colour changing potions. She had looked like that too. Voldemort's eyes were a dark, vivid blood-red and they seemed to glow slightly. They were nothing like the gentle crimson ones of his twins boyfriend.

Having to watch his biggest enemy resurrected did it for Harry. He wasn't afraid anymore. He was in fact rather determined to make it back to Hogwarts alive and well. He just had to - for his schoolmates, for Hermione and for his family.

For Carya, Draco, Sirius and Remus he had to get back somehow. Voldemort conversed with Wormtail but Harry was too wrapped up in his plans of escape to understand a word. Suddenly he could hear many popping sounds and saw that many Death Eaters had apparated to the graveyard.

Harry recognised one immediately as he caught a glimpse on the hair. It was Malfoy and Harry knew from Draco that the man was loyal to Voldemort even if he only was deathly afraid of the Dark Lord.

Harry thought about the situation he was in and came to some conclusions, 'Holy Slytherin, this is a mess. What do I have? I still have my wand with me since that idiot didn't search me. Terrible mistake on his part. I also have Carya's potion so that'll give me another chance.

If Wormtail hasn't told him Voldie doesn't know that I'm in Slytherin. And I doubt Malfoy had the chance to tell him either. That means he'll probably assume what everyone does, namely that I'm a stupid brainless Gryffindork.

Which leads us to problem number three. How the hell am I going to get out of these bonds? Oh and not to mention how to get back to the cup over there without being killed as well,' he thought desperately, all the while watching Voldemort and his lackeys,

'And to think that I used to despise Tom for what he could have become. I will apologise to him, that's for sure. This monster here is worse, I hate him more than anything in the world. Tom could never be like that, never in a million years!'

A voice startled him out of his thoughts though, "And here we have our guest of honour - the famous Harry Potter!" Voldemort sneered and Harry snorted slightly which seemed to annoy the other.

"A bit disrespectful are we now, eh?" Voldemort taunted Harry since he knew the boy couldn't move an inch.

Harry was sick of playing patient little captive, so he talked back to his enemy since he had managed to spit out the makeshift gag, "I'm not but you are! You've not even introduced your little pets when they joined the party."

Shouts of outrage were heard in the ranks of the Death Eaters and Voldemort narrowed his eyes at the boy before raising his wand without words. Harry suspected what was to come and it did.

"Crucio!" the Dark Lord shouted before adding, "You will learn not to talk back to me, Potter!"

Harry started screaming in pain. He didn't bother to hide it. He wouldn't use all of his strength to fight this curse now. Let them think you're weak. That way they'll only underestimate you. Seeing no struggle within Harry at all, the dark wizard tired of the curse very quickly and turned to face his minions again.

He talked to them and called everyone by name. Harry stored them away for future use. He smirked at the name Malfoy and scowled when Voldemort mentioned the one who was faithful above all and already back in his service currently residing at Hogwarts.

The boy just knew it had to be Moody or rather someone making a pretty good impersonation of the paranoid ex-auror. Unfortunately the Dark Lord got bored quickly with reprimanding his Death Eaters for not looking for him over the last thirteen years.

He returned his attention to Harry and decided that it might be fun to finish him off in a little duel.

"So what do we do with you now, Potter? It's not satisfactory to just kill you. You shall suffer like I have. Therefore we will duel. I assume you've been taught how to duel?" the Dark Lord taunted Harry but the boy remained unresponsive.

Harry observed the situation. There were too many Death Eaters. He couldn't risk trying to escape just now. It wouldn't work. He settled on glaring at Voldemort instead not saying a word.

"Untie him Wormtail!" Voldemort growled and his servant did so.

Harry took his time and carefully rubbed his wrists which were hurting where the ropes had cut into them while he was under the Cruciatus Curse. His eyes never left his opponent though. It certainly wouldn't be easy to get out of that mess but Harry would wait until he got his chance.

The dark wizard then told him to bow but Harry simply refused. Voldemort took drastic measures to get what he wanted then.

"Imperio!" he shouted angrily, "Now bow to me, Potter!"

Harry was still reluctant and fought the curse with every fibre of his brain. He wasn't totally successful but kept almost upright. He managed not to lose eye-contact with his enemy though.

This angered the Dark Lord since he couldn't control the boy like he wished to. His minions backed away a bit and Harry noticed that with growing satisfaction. The further apart they stood the easier it would become to slip out of their circle.

-~/\~-

Finished May 28th, 2010

Revised June 10th, 2010