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When Blood Is Spilled On Moontide: Convergence
by ravenhair
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PROLOGUE. Part III. Moony and Padfoot.
Sirius snorted as he forced himself to watch the fire grow. He wanted to be out. Out of this cave, out of this blasted hillside, out in the forest. Something was wrong, he knew it. He could feel it, with his 'dog sense', which had never let him down yet. He could feel the danger, and his gut instinct told him it has Voldemort written all over.
And when Voldemort's involved, so is that rat.
"Wormtail," Sirius hissed.
"Beg your pardon?" Remus asked, and Sirius looked at his best friend from across the measley campfire. The firelight was small, but Remus looked really pale. He was all jittery tonight and, kind of hairy even. Sirius knew all too well what made Remus go this way, once every month since his early childhood. The full moon.
"Nothing, nothing. Just that I know we both want to be out," Sirius replied, and stuffed his hands in his pockets. It was awful cold tonight, a midsummer night at that. July was supposed to be warm, Sirius knew. And he also knew that the weather had nothing to do with this particular chill.
"But we have t-to sta-y," Remus said, the stutter dampening his seriousness. He knew he wasn't fit to stay, and he couldn't stay, once the transformation is complete anyways. Already, he could feel the symptoms getting worse. "As m-much as Voldem-mo-ort's sc-scent might be so stro-ng, w-whatever our l-leads show us, we can n-not be g-going out into the F-forbidden Forest at f-full mo-on!"
Sirius tried to reason, "But Albus said-"
"Yes, exactly! Albus said to wait and see! To observe, yes. But for Merlin's sake, from a safe distance! Albus expected us to return alive, Sirius!"
The exclamation astonished Sirius as much that it was without a single stutter as it was delivered with Remus' eyes glowing bright amber, like a wolf. Remus must've noticed the unusual shock, because he was about to apologize for his outburt when the pain bit into his gut.
"Moony!"
"I-its s-star...start-ing..." Remus doubled over and clutched his chest. He felt the familiar pain, the tightening, the slowing beat of his heart, the shifting of his organs with that sickly slide of fluids clearly audible to him. He tried to claw at his chest, to rip his shirt open as the muscles expanded and the bones grew to bursting. By the sound of ripping to his very acute hearing, Remus knew that he already had paws for hands and the sharp inch-long claws were effectively tearing his shirt to shreds.
"Let me help you out of your clothes!" Sirius sounded a bit panicked. He was rarely there for the transformations itself, often waiting patiently outside the secret entrance to the Shrieking Shack for Remus to fully change and Moony to surface with a growl.
Right now, Remus was growling, too. It scared Sirius, to be this close to the beast at a full moon. But his best friend was in there, somewhere, and he hoped that Moony still remembered Padfoot. 'I sure hope you do, for both our sakes,' Sirius hoped silently. He watched as Remus tore his shirt to shreds with the scariest claws he had ever seen.
"Wow, Moony. You've grown since last I saw you!"
Technically, that was the truth. The whole of Harry's fourth year, when Sirius had spent most of his time as Snuffles, pining for his godson in his best friend's cottage, Remus had kept to himself in a cell once a month, down in the basement. Sirius never ventured into the basement, let alone the cell, as he preferred to spend the night in the local pub. Remus had advised him of the danger, and Sirius took heed of the advice, although it pained him not to be there for the werewolf, as he was wont to do during their Hogwarts days. Remus feared that, while he remembers Sirius, Moony might not have been able to hold on to Padfoot's scent for 13 years. It was a dangerous bet, and Remus wouldn't have Sirius losing limb or life for it.
Remus eyes widened, more in alarm than surprise, to still be hearing Sirius around. He should be leaving, for Merlin's sake! Doesn't he realize the danger? Gone was the teenage werewolf, with the young, slim build that Padfoot the dog could wrestle. Even then, Padfoot was hard put to wrestle with the wolf. In its place was a rabid, wild animal who hasn't been tamed or wrestled with for 13 long, bitter years.
"P-padfoot, go! Go, you fool!"
"Moony! Moony!" Sirius was worried. He didn't want to leave. Not just yet. But Remus looked determined. And, Sirius reasoned, it wouldn't do to hurt the poor werewolf's feelings by discovering that he had ripped his best friend's throat while he was in wolf form. Besides -and at this Sirius believed he had the best reason yet, didn't he want to be out in the first place?
A moment later, a black grim bolted out of the cave and into the woods. The moon glowed brightly in the clear sky, draping the hillside in silver and shadow.
When Blood Is Spilled On Moontide: Convergence
by ravenhair
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PROLOGUE. Part III. Moony and Padfoot.
Sirius snorted as he forced himself to watch the fire grow. He wanted to be out. Out of this cave, out of this blasted hillside, out in the forest. Something was wrong, he knew it. He could feel it, with his 'dog sense', which had never let him down yet. He could feel the danger, and his gut instinct told him it has Voldemort written all over.
And when Voldemort's involved, so is that rat.
"Wormtail," Sirius hissed.
"Beg your pardon?" Remus asked, and Sirius looked at his best friend from across the measley campfire. The firelight was small, but Remus looked really pale. He was all jittery tonight and, kind of hairy even. Sirius knew all too well what made Remus go this way, once every month since his early childhood. The full moon.
"Nothing, nothing. Just that I know we both want to be out," Sirius replied, and stuffed his hands in his pockets. It was awful cold tonight, a midsummer night at that. July was supposed to be warm, Sirius knew. And he also knew that the weather had nothing to do with this particular chill.
"But we have t-to sta-y," Remus said, the stutter dampening his seriousness. He knew he wasn't fit to stay, and he couldn't stay, once the transformation is complete anyways. Already, he could feel the symptoms getting worse. "As m-much as Voldem-mo-ort's sc-scent might be so stro-ng, w-whatever our l-leads show us, we can n-not be g-going out into the F-forbidden Forest at f-full mo-on!"
Sirius tried to reason, "But Albus said-"
"Yes, exactly! Albus said to wait and see! To observe, yes. But for Merlin's sake, from a safe distance! Albus expected us to return alive, Sirius!"
The exclamation astonished Sirius as much that it was without a single stutter as it was delivered with Remus' eyes glowing bright amber, like a wolf. Remus must've noticed the unusual shock, because he was about to apologize for his outburt when the pain bit into his gut.
"Moony!"
"I-its s-star...start-ing..." Remus doubled over and clutched his chest. He felt the familiar pain, the tightening, the slowing beat of his heart, the shifting of his organs with that sickly slide of fluids clearly audible to him. He tried to claw at his chest, to rip his shirt open as the muscles expanded and the bones grew to bursting. By the sound of ripping to his very acute hearing, Remus knew that he already had paws for hands and the sharp inch-long claws were effectively tearing his shirt to shreds.
"Let me help you out of your clothes!" Sirius sounded a bit panicked. He was rarely there for the transformations itself, often waiting patiently outside the secret entrance to the Shrieking Shack for Remus to fully change and Moony to surface with a growl.
Right now, Remus was growling, too. It scared Sirius, to be this close to the beast at a full moon. But his best friend was in there, somewhere, and he hoped that Moony still remembered Padfoot. 'I sure hope you do, for both our sakes,' Sirius hoped silently. He watched as Remus tore his shirt to shreds with the scariest claws he had ever seen.
"Wow, Moony. You've grown since last I saw you!"
Technically, that was the truth. The whole of Harry's fourth year, when Sirius had spent most of his time as Snuffles, pining for his godson in his best friend's cottage, Remus had kept to himself in a cell once a month, down in the basement. Sirius never ventured into the basement, let alone the cell, as he preferred to spend the night in the local pub. Remus had advised him of the danger, and Sirius took heed of the advice, although it pained him not to be there for the werewolf, as he was wont to do during their Hogwarts days. Remus feared that, while he remembers Sirius, Moony might not have been able to hold on to Padfoot's scent for 13 years. It was a dangerous bet, and Remus wouldn't have Sirius losing limb or life for it.
Remus eyes widened, more in alarm than surprise, to still be hearing Sirius around. He should be leaving, for Merlin's sake! Doesn't he realize the danger? Gone was the teenage werewolf, with the young, slim build that Padfoot the dog could wrestle. Even then, Padfoot was hard put to wrestle with the wolf. In its place was a rabid, wild animal who hasn't been tamed or wrestled with for 13 long, bitter years.
"P-padfoot, go! Go, you fool!"
"Moony! Moony!" Sirius was worried. He didn't want to leave. Not just yet. But Remus looked determined. And, Sirius reasoned, it wouldn't do to hurt the poor werewolf's feelings by discovering that he had ripped his best friend's throat while he was in wolf form. Besides -and at this Sirius believed he had the best reason yet, didn't he want to be out in the first place?
A moment later, a black grim bolted out of the cave and into the woods. The moon glowed brightly in the clear sky, draping the hillside in silver and shadow.