A/N: Well, it's obvious the first part didn't receive a very good reception. One review. *sigh* ah well, just to prove that I don't give up easily I will continue trying. For anyone who's interested, I have six parts to this already written and the rest planned out. So review! I want to post those parts *wink*. I promise I won't wait so long to post as long as I have some feedback.

Artemis flew ahead of Arianna and her new companion as they made their way back to Arianna's apartment. She shifted the dog's weight so it would be easier to carry, and to her surprise, it did not protest. It merely seemed too tired to do anything, much less whimper or thrash about.

Soon enough, they reached Riverside Apartments, much to Arianna's relief. The dog was extremely heavy. Artemis hooted softly and perched on a small stump near the building while Arianna stopped to assess the situation in her mind. Technically, she was not allowed to keep pets inside her room. Small animals like Artemis her landlord didn't mind, but she knew he would have a fit when he saw the huge black dog she was carrying. She certainly could not keep the dog. But she knew she just couldn't leave him alone outside with a terrible bullet wound either, even for only one night. Siding with her heart (as she found herself often doing), she tiptoed toward her building slowly, hoping, perhaps no one would be about this late to spot her. Artemis flew onto her shoulder, as she was accustomed to when inside.

Lucky I live on the first floor, Arianna thought, thanking the stars. Somehow she managed to get through the front door without upsetting her animals. And, there was no one passing through the halls as she walked cautiously, looking over her shoulder every few doors. Finally, she reached her own door and carefully placed the dog on the ground. It sat patiently as she used her wand to open her door, and walked right in. Arianna thought that was a little odd, but she was so exhausted that she paid it no heed and flopped onto her couch after making sure Artemis was in her apartment.

Artemis flew to her perch on the ceiling and huffed indignantly at the black dog, which was studying its surroundings carefully. If dogs could do that, anyway. Arianna watched the dog for a minute and then walked over to it, patting it on the head. "Well…I suppose since you're at least staying the night…let's see if I can find something for you to lay down on…" She disappeared into her room, grabbing the flowered pillow she hated from her bed and a brown wool blanket.

"Here you are," she said, smiling down at the dog as she laid the blanket out. Arianna stood back and prepared to coax the dog over, but to her great surprise, it walked over on its own accord and collapsed on top of the pillow.

From her perch, Artemis hooted indignantly and ruffled her feathers, turning away from the black dog. "Don't be rude, Artemis," Arianna said, scratching her head. The owl just stared at the wall. That's strange, too, Arianna thought. Artemis is usually only grouchy with humans…Finally, she knelt down and patted the dog's head as a sign of surrender.

Glancing over the dog's large yet oddly skinny body, she suddenly noticed its mangled leg. She quickly stood up and wet a towel in order to clean the blood with. "This may hurt," Arianna told the dog, "but please, don't struggle…" She lightly touched the dog's wound with the towel while scratching it underneath the neck, a technique that usually calmed them.

It seemed Arianna did not need her techniques, though, for the dog merely closed its eyes and let her wash its wound. She studied the wound carefully. She had seen many different kinds of scars on animals before, and judging from the shape and imprint, it looked like the dog had been shot with a Muggle handgun. She wondered what kind of person could possibly shoot a poor stray dog. It wasn't even vicious. She brought her face close to the wound to search for a bullet, but there was none to be found. Perhaps it dropped out, she thought as she rubbed the towel over a particularly terrible-looking part of the wound. The dog whimpered slightly, but did not move.

"It's so odd," she whispered suddenly, gently wiping at the clump of dried blood, "You're not even struggling…it's almost like you know I'm only trying to help," She had worked with many different animals, and she could not think of one that hadn't struggled at least a little during wound treatment.

The dog opened its eyes at the sound of her voice. She smiled at it, and to her astonishment, the dog stared right back at her. Dogs usually avoided eye contact at all costs. But this one stared right into her eyes, and for a flickering moment, Arianna felt like she almost saw something human in those eyes. Something oddly familiar.

And then, it was all over, as the dog's head returned to its place on the floor. Arianna blinked and wondered if perhaps she was imagining things. As she started to unwind the bandage she had brought with her, she heard Artemis hoot from her perch. She looked at the owl, which flapped down onto the ground where Arianna and the dog were situated. The dog's ears flopped up, and it watched Artemis as she waddled over to Arianna and started preening her feathers. "Hungry, are you?" Arianna said, recognizing Artemis' begging habits. "Well, hold on, while I attend to puppy, here," she said, taking the dog's leg and wrapping the bandage carefully around it.

Artemis huffed again and hopped around Arianna spontaneously as she waited for her to finish. Another odd habit, Arianna thought, shaking her head sadly as she turned her attention to bandaging the wound. The dog, however, watched Artemis with amused interest, his tongue hanging out of his mouth and a huge dog-grin on his face. Arianna soon recognized this as animal laughter. The dog seemed to act more and more human every minute.

Her job finally accomplished, she stood up and walked to the kitchen to wash her hands. Artemis hopped along after her, and after a few chuckles, Artemis finally fed the poor owl. It was quite obvious that Artemis was recovering splendidly from her injury, Arianna thought to herself. That's good, since she's supposed to go home tomorrow, Arianna thought a little wistfully. Although, the small white owl was moody and somewhat annoying, Arianna knew she would miss her funny antics.

That's right…I have to work tomorrow, Arianna remembered and she stopped wiping her kitchen counter to think. What am I supposed to do with that dog? He's—(Although she hadn't checked, she was fairly certain it was male) too injured to walk far, and I'm certain it was pure luck that I was able to sneak him inside here. I can't leave him alone—my heart won't let me…and at the same time, my landlord won't let me keep him here.

She peered over at the dog, sitting peacefully on his blanket. He looked positively helpless. Arianna sighed. Well, he doesn't have to know. It'll only be for a fortnight or so, anyway…

Artemis settled back onto her perch after she had her fill and Arianna sat down next to the dog again, this time bringing a small bowl of water and dog food with her. "Hungry?" she asked, setting them both on the floor in front of the dog. It slurped happily at the water, but did not even look at the dog food. Arianna decided to leave both there overnight in case it changed its mind. Then, because she was dying of curiosity, she lifted its leg to verify its gender. Definitely male.

The dog seemed mortally offended by this gesture and tried to move away. Arianna crouched on the floor, preparing to stand up and head straight for her bed. Without warning, she felt a rough tongue lick her arm gently. She looked at the dog, which seemed to smile at her and then lean his head back comfortably against the pillow. Arianna shook her head in disbelief and stood up, more than ready for a long night's sleep.

~ * ~

The next day, Arianna woke up to a bright sun and blue skies, which set her off in a pretty good mood. She yawned and looked at her clock. 7:00 AM, Good, I have about a hour to get ready, she thought, rising from her bed and walking out into her living/dining room.

Just as she walked in, the black dog's ears perked up and he watched her closely. She smiled at him. "Good morning, puppy. How is that leg of yours?"

The dog sat in stony silence as she approached him and knelt down to examine his leg. He turned his head so he was sure of what she was doing, but did not make any real protests.

Arianna unraveled the bandages on the dog's wound and saw that it had at least stopped bleeding. She ran a finger and touched the wound's surface. It was healing at least. The dog would most likely need care for around two weeks, though, if not more. She sighed and wrapped the bandage back around his leg. "All right, well, I suppose you're hungry, eh?"

Just then, Arianna heard a loud hoot from the ceiling. She stood and turned to see Artemis staring down at her, almost as if to say, "Hey, I'm awake, too!"

"Good morning to you as well, Artemis," she greeted, holding her arm out. Artemis flew down and clutched Arianna arm gently with her talons and nibbled at her hair affectionately. Arianna chuckled a little and brought Artemis into the kitchen with her. She settled the gray barn owl on the counter, and Artemis watched curiously as she made arrangements for breakfast.

Soon enough, Arianna has set out food for both animals and was sitting down to her customary breakfast of oatmeal. She spooned a mouthful into her mouth and her eyes wondered to the dog, which was watching her eat. "You have your own food there, you know," she said, gesturing towards the bowl she had set out the night before that still had not even been touched.

The dog continued staring at her silently, but suddenly, his head turned towards her window and he growled softly. Arianna put her spoon down and realized that she could hear a soft tapping at the window. Artemis hopped around nervously on the floor as Arianna stood up and looked out the window. She wasn't sure, but she thought she saw something white near the top of the window…she took her wand out from under her sleeve and said, "Alohomora!"

The window flew open and something white swooped inside, dropping a letter on the dog's head. The letter slid off and onto the floor, and the dog stared at it curiously. Arianna blinked and saw that the "something" had been a white snowy owl, which had perched on her table. Artemis hooted at the other owl, annoyed, but the white owl hardly paid the small gray barn owl any heed and proceeded to preen itself. Arianna watched the owl, confused—obviously, it was delivering a message, but she couldn't think of anyone she knew with such a beautiful snowy owl—and no one had ever bothered to owl her before, anyway.

She suddenly remembered—the letter. Her eyes turned to the envelope next to the black dog, and she bent over to pick it up. For some odd reason, her hands were shaking. The letter wasn't addressed. She sighed, trying to calm herself as she broke the seal and unfolded the letter. She nearly dropped the letter when she read the first word—

Sirius—

A chill crept up her spine. Why was someone sending a note to a convicted murderer on the run? And, more importantly…how had it found its way into her household. Her hands were shaking even more, and she felt her heart almost stop as a haunting question floated through her mind.

Did someone know who she really was?

Arianna tried to put the letter down, or better, rip it up and throw it away, but something stopped her. She looked down at the dog, and suddenly, she knew she had to read the rest of that letter—otherwise she would never forget about it.

How are you? I am hoping Hedwig was able to find you in one piece—I know you told me not to send mail, but I'm so worried. I heard about what happened on Muggle television…I couldn't stop thinking about your condition. Please send a reply back with Hedwig—I know it's dangerous, but I really need to know that you're not in agony on some back street.

Your godson, Harry

Arianna read the letter several times, but after each time, it made less and less sense. She was pretty sure she knew who "Harry" was; no doubt it was Harry Potter, James and Lily's boy, but she could not imagine why he would be writing to Sirius Black of all people! He was after all, responsible for Harry's parents' deaths. Wasn't he?

She looked at the snowy owl, which she was assuming was the "Hedwig" mentioned for some answers. But the owl's gaze was directed downward, and Arianna realized she was looking at the dog. Quite suddenly, the dog's head turned to the side, towards the open window, and Hedwig took off flying.

Arianna watched the bird fly out of sight and looked back at the black dog, bewildered, but it just resumed its position on the blankets, looking as comfortable as ever. She took one look at the letter and sighed in distress. "I give up," she whispered. "I don't understand anything…"

She set the letter down on her table, and for a moment, her eyes lingered onto the clock on her wall. To her surprise, it was nearly 8:00 AM. Time for work. Almost grateful for a distraction, she quickly gobbled up the rest of her oatmeal, packed Artemis up and ran out of the building, eager to sort out her confusion at work. Or hopefully, anyway.

~ * ~

For the remainder of the morning, Arianna was at the Magical Menagerie, working her shift behind the counter. Artemis' owner, a short old lady by the name of Lexington, came by around noon to pick up her owl. Arianna handed Lexington Artemis' cage and smiled pleasantly. "She was no trouble at all, Ms. Lexington, and she seems to be doing well now,"

Lexington looked over Artemis and snorted. "Well, I certainly hope so. How much do I have to pay you?"

"10 galleons and 5 sickles," Arianna said. Lexington mumbled grumpily about the price and Arianna was strangely reminded of Artemis. Owners are often like their pets, she thought, smiling to herself as she took Lexington's money. "Thank you, Ms. Lexington…goodbye to you both," she said, touching Artemis' feathers through the wire bars. Lexington snorted again and muttered farewell as she briskly walked out of the store.

Arianna sighed, wondering what made that woman so grumpy. Perhaps it was simply her nature. She laid her head on her hands and let her mind wander back to the dog at home…and the letter...she groaned inwardly; she still had no idea what to make of it…

"Good work, as usual, Ari,"

Ari! The name made her jolt with sudden surprise. Only her immediate family had ever called her that before, and it brought horrid memories of older siblings she knew she would never see again. She turned around suspiciously, only to be met with the eyes of a fellow co-worker, Matt Jarvis.

He was of medium height and build, with dark hair and the deepest blue eyes Arianna had ever seen. She sighed and turned her back towards him again. "Please don't do that, Matt,"

Matt walked around the counter and stood in front of it, forcing her to look at him. "Do what?"

"Call me…" she sighed a little and avoided his eyes. "That name."

He cocked his head a little in surprise. "What, not Ari? All right then, how about Rianna? Or Anna? Or just Ri? "

She rolled her eyes and shook her head.

"Why not?"

"Because I said so."

He batted his eyes in mock sadness at her. "I let you call me Matt…"

"Everyone calls you that," she observed, looking pointedly at him.

"Aha," he said, pointing a finger at her. "Finally she looks at me."

Arianna sighed and shook her head in exasperation. Matt sensed his presence was clearly not wanted. He smiled a little, and said, "All right, then, Arianna, I'll leave you here. Just tell me when your shift is over, 'cause then it's my turn." He turned and walked back into the hospital part of the shop.

Arianna watched him leave and inwardly kicked herself for being so antisocial. She knew he was only trying to be friendly. Somehow it was very, very hard for her to talk to men anymore, and she wasn't exactly sure why, although she suspected it had something to do with her developing fear. After her whole family's sudden departure, Arianna found it hard to trust people.

He was right, though, Arianna thought to herself, It is almost time for me to leave. She took her apron off and hung it on the wall. Time to go back home to that dog, she thought, smiling. She knew she was growing fond of the creature, which was bad considering the fact that she could never keep it. She called Matt to the counter, and surprisingly, he just nodded and resumed his place without any further comments. Arianna came very close to trying to apologize for her behavior as she walked out the door, but some underlying doubt still kept her from doing it.

Arianna used her wand to Apparate in front of her apartment complex and opened the door. She walked to her door, thoughts racing of the dog and the letter…the door opened and she anxiously peered around, searching him out.

His pillow and blanket laid alone on the ground. Arianna stared at them for a moment. There was an odd aura about her apartment. Something was different…she could almost feel it in the air. She looked around cautiously, and her eyes suddenly fell on a pad of paper and a pen on her dining table. That's funny, I don't remember leaving that out…she felt a little sick inside with fear. Suddenly, she heard footsteps behind her, coming from her bedroom.

She had never felt more terrified in her life. She clutched her wand in her trembling hand as she bravely choked out, "Who's there? Come out now!"

She heard the steps hesitate, and then, finally, a tall man stepped out of the shadows. As Arianna saw his face, her heart sunk even lower into the ground. It was a face she knew so well; a face she would have to work to forget. A face that she had been sure, at least a few minutes ago, she never wanted to see again.

The face of her older brother, the escaped convict and murder, Sirius Black.

A/N: Well there you have it…sort of a cliffhanger. The faster you review, the faster I post!

Disclaimer: You possibly think I own this stuff? Bah. I'm just a crazy teenager using J.K.'s ideas! Anyway, I suppose Ariannna, Artemis and Matt are mine…joy…

Names:

Matthew- "gift of God", Hebrew