Disclaimer: See the first chapter.... as always.

WARNINGS: Just to remind you, there's going to be Remus/Sirius slash!

Note: Takes place at the beginning of PoA (before Harry & Co. go back to Hogwarts). In Azkaban, Sirius mulls over things.

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Interlude - Sirius In Azkaban



Forever, more than anyone, I want to be with you...
-Hiroko Asakawa, Moonlight Destiny (English translation)



~August 25~

Tonight will be the night of the full moon.

Sirius Black murmured these words to himself as he sat on his bunk with his chin on his knees, looking out the window and across the grounds of Azkaban. The sun was sinking rapidly now, and as Sirius sat watching, his mind was on something else besides his own innocence. He ignored the slow, rattling breathing of the dementors outside his door as best he could, as he had been ignoring it for the past twelve years. Slipping his hand into the pocket of his ragged grey robes, he took out a plain golden ring. He studied it for a few minutes, watching the last few rays of daylight glimmer on it. This ring, along with the silver necklace, were sometimes his only comforts. He had been careful to keep them hidden; if anyone saw them (Fudge, for instance) they would most likely be taken away. He sighed and slipped the ring on his finger. It didn't fit as well as it should; he had lost too much weight over the years. But the familiar weight of it soothed him, and he closed his eyes and let his mind drift to Remus... his Moony.

The full moon. How would he cope? Had he been locked up for the night? Would he be lost in his own rage, alone in the Shrieking Shack with no one to hurt but himself? Running free, perhaps? Or maybe he'd be doing what Sirius saw him do countless times - staring at the moon and cursing it for the pain it causes him.
Sirius could see him in his mind's eye, his sleek silver fur shining in the moonlight, his yellow eyes full of laughter as he waited for the big black dog to catch up to him. What people don't understand about werewolves is that they are among the most beautiful creatures on Earth...... the most graceful..... but their instincts lead people to think of them as monsters, things to be feared....
After James got married and Peter began acting distant, after he and Remus started living together, it was always just Padfoot and Moony together during the full moon. Sirius never knew why, but Moony was calmer when it was just Padfoot there, and he would curl up beside his mate, perfectly peaceful. Padfoot would rest his head on Moony's back and growl softly whenever he tried to rise. Every time Padfoot growled, Moony settled down immediately. Whenever Sirius tried to think of how hard it must have been, for Moony to ignore his instincts and stay with him.....

Opening his eyes, Sirius wondered if Remus was still wearing his ring.

He reached back into his robes and pulled out the article again - the article he had gotten out of the Daily Prophet last month. He's at Hogwarts... Sirius whispered under his breath, scanning the picture heading the article. I swear, I'll get him. If I could get him... bring him to the Ministry.... Remmie and I could be together again. He fell silent, not wanting to say much. The dementors were blind, but they were certainly not deaf. Looking down at the smiling Weasley family, he thought, I *will* get him. Tonight. I need to start tonight. Remmie isn't the only one in trouble - Harry is in worse trouble than anyone knows.

Azkaban is hell. Sirius is convinced of that now. After twelve years of being trapped between its stone walls, alone in this cold, damp, dingy cell with nothing to think of but his dead friends, the friend who had betrayed them all, and the lover who now probably hates him now, Sirius did not fear hell. There is no hell like being trapped in your own mind with not one cheerful thought to see you through. Knowing he was innocent helped, but it was not a cheerful thought. It did help him keep his sanity, but it was a poor substitute for *really* being free, being able to walk outside and go to work and visit his godson and make love to his mate.....
Hell. Ever since he was very small, his mother had always told him, Don't be bad, or when you die you're going to go to Hell! Well, he hadn't been bad -not really- and he had still ended up there - at least, one of those Hell-on-Earth' places. The worst thing of all was the separation from Remus... and from Harry.... he loved both of them with all his heart, and more than anything he needed to see them, touch them again. Thinking of poor Remus, all alone... knowing what Remus went through whenever they were separated for long... hurt him most of all. He had heard a rumor a week or two ago that Remus was going to teach at Hogwarts this year; Sirius could imagine Remus teaching Harry's class, and he smiled a bit at the thought. He wondered idly if Remus and Harry would become close... As much as Sirius hated to admit it, Harry had been very young when they had all been taken from his life, and he doubted if Harry remembered life with his own parents, let alone himself and Remus.

Still gazing down at the Daily Prophet article, Sirius let his mind wander from Remus and Harry to the plan he had been formulating in his mind ever since he had seen this photograph. He needed to escape. He had to get to Hogwarts and do his best to protect Harry... do his best to get revenge. Then at least if he got recaptured, they'd have a real reason to imprison him this time....

He could hear the dementors coming with his food. He let out a shuddery sigh - it was time. Slipping the article and the ring back into his pocket, Sirius summoned all the strength he had left, and transformed. When the door opened, he slipped past the dementors and ran. Padfoot ran as fast as he could through the prison, nothing but a black blur as he passed the confused dementors. He was across the grounds in no time, and he plunged into the freezing water surrounding the island without hesitation, swimming as fast as he can to the mainland.

Even though it was August, the waters around Azkaban remained extremely chilly (part of the dementors' powers). The coldness of the icy water began to seep through his heavy fur after a short time; he soon began to get tired. He was out of shape. He supposed it was only a combination of nerves and adrenaline that had given him the speed he had needed to escape the prison. Paddling on grimly, trying his best to ignore the cold and his increasing weariness, Padfoot held his head as high as possible above the water and tried his best to keep up his pace. It seemed like forever before he caught the first glimpse of the shoreline. He paddled faster, paying no heed to his mounting exhaustion, and at long last, the water became shallow enough for him to stand. Padfoot hauled himself out of the water and laid down, panting and shivering, trying to catch his breath. He paused to sniff cautiously at the air. He could catch a faint scent, very faint... almost nonexistent, but he recognized it at once... the smell of wolf. Not an ordinary wolf - not at all. This scent was as familiar to Padfoot as his own name. Remus had been *there*, not very long ago, in his human form (but Padfoot could always smell the wolf on him)... doing what? Watching... waiting?

Lifting his head, Padfoot looked back over the water. Azkaban was nothing but a tiny dot on the horizon from here (and the darkness made it harder to see), but in the daytime, on a clear day, it would have been easy to see. So Remus had been here, looking out over the water, looking at the fortress? What had he been thinking? What memories had been running through his head? Had he been, perhaps, thinking of a man he once loved? Maybe.... still loved?

It gave Padfoot hope, and he began running again, heading north. North... to Hogwarts... to Harry. He needed to protect Harry. Yes, Sirius knew he would be all over the news by this time tomorrow... but he had an advantage... they didn't know he could become a dog. His coldness and exhaustion fell away from him as he ran, not thinking of anything but the long journey and the hard tasks ahead of him. He passed through a grassy field, a quiet, sleeping village, and through a small apple grove which quickly became a dense forest. Running through the woods, he headed to where he needed to be - as he ran, he could still pick up the faint scent of his mate, getting slightly stronger as he went. It's wasn't just Harry Sirius was going to. He was heading for his friend, his lover .... his husband.

Heading for Remus.



To Be Continued......


(Coming Soon: Remus is feeling particularly angsty until a very unexpected visitor arrives.)


(A/N: Yes, I am aware this is short. It was meant to be short. Interludes are SHORT, people. But I had to do this, just to give an insight into Sirius' thoughts while he is in Azkaban, and I thought it would be interesting to put in his escape. Maybe I should've entitled it The Great Escape instead of Sirius in Azkaban... but it sounded kind of dumb..... Anywho. The next chapter will be a little longer but... you know we are approaching the end. It won't be as long as you'd all like. (Sorry, fans of my very long chapters....))