HP/YGO, and more serious than my other two fics. Of course, that's what I always say, but random humor always pops up in there somewhere. Though serious doesn't exactly mean not having any humor at all…
Without any more rambling, please enjoy chapter one of Enter the Shadow Realm!
Chapter 1
Free Falling
He was falling.
Down and down he plunged, the atmosphere becoming icier with every foot he dropped, the shadows deepening with every inch he fell.
He felt as cold as ice and every muscle in his body screamed in exhaustion. Yet he clung to life, desperate not to die. There are people waiting for me to come home. I will not let them down.
The wind whistled as his descent quickened, gaining more momentum the more he plummeted. He began to choke on the rapidly thickening air. He could only watch as he fell down into a world hazed over with wispy purple clouds and crackling black energy.
And all of a sudden the ground appeared below him.
He shut his eyes tightly, his body impulsively preparing for impact. There's no way I can survive hitting the ground from that far up. All that hoping, all that wishing…it was all for nothing.
And he fell down, down, down to meet his doom…
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Yami and Yugi jumped up from the couch simultaneously, spilling popcorn all over the carpet. Yami looked rather frustrated. Yugi looked worried.
"Did you…did you get a vision?" he asked anxiously.
Yami only nodded. "It looked particularly like the Shadow Realm…perhaps we should go investigate. There has been a strange energy pulsing from inside there for days, though neither Bakura nor I have been able to figure out where it's coming from. Then again, aibou," he said, lightening up, "maybe that's due to the fact that you've been forcing all of us to watch the DVDs of these movies for…what is it, a week now? We've had no time to really look around."
Yugi flushed. "They're good!" he said defensively. "You like them too!"
Yami sighed.
"Well, we should at least go check things out. It might ease my mind."
"Fine, fine," Yugi grumbled. "I'm putting the tape on pause. We'll watch it when we get back."
Yami rolled his eyes.
"Well, the way you were glued to the television…"
Yami glanced at the exciting sword fight that was frozen on the screen. "Okay, okay! I admit it! Let's go before I change my mind and first make us finish Return of the King before we go there."
"What's the problem with that?" Yugi whined.
"One, you've already watched the thing three times, even though this is my first time. Two, that man looked like he needed help and fast."
"Oh, you're right," Yugi realized. "Let's go!"
With a muttered incantation, Yami summoned the Shadow Realm. When they were safely encased in the hazy world, they looked around.
"I don't see anything…"
"Wait, there's something happening over there!" Yami cried, pointing at a large congregation of Duel Monsters. They sprinted over to the expectant-looking group and skidded to a stop.
"There's something…falling from the sky," Yugi said, squinting upwards.
"It…it looks like a man!" Yami realized.
"The one from our vision!" they both yelled simultaneously.
"Curse of Dragon!" Yugi cried, reacting quickly and summoning the monster from his deck. Hopping aboard the dragon's back, he swooped to catch the man before he was devoured by the hungry-looking monsters.
"Good work, Yugi!" Yami praised. "Okay, show's over, shoo," he said, turning to the group of disappointed Duel Monsters. Slowly, they ambled off to what they had been doing before, some looking rather disappointed, before the last of them disappeared into the shadows.
Once they were back from the Shadow Realm, Yugi and Yami heaved the man upstairs to the guest bedroom, piling a few blankets on him and checking his pulse and temperature.
"He's freezing, but he doesn't have a fever," Yugi reported. "I think he just needs some rest. He's unconscious."
Yami nodded slowly. "Well, while we wait for him to wake up then, I think we have unfinished business downstairs."
And the two of them raced back downstairs to finish Return of the King.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Harry ripped open the letter that Pigwidgeon had just brought from the Weasleys with interest, ignoring the hyper little owl that was now slamming itself against Hedwig's cage. Hedwig was hooting in annoyance, but Harry tuned that out too.
Dear Harry,
Mum says that Dumbledore doesn't want you coming over to our house this year. He says it'll be safer for you to stay at the Muggles' house. But she's still arguing with him. Who knows what'll happen. At the very least, you should be able to come to Diagon Alley with us this year.
Hermione made me attach her letter. It's pretty short, so I guess Pig won't have a problem with the extra weight. So how are you doing?
We didn't go anywhere over vacation, Mum said it was too dangerous. Egypt seems like such a long time ago. Write back,
Ron
Harry smiled faintly, put the letter under his floorboard, and pulled out Hermione's fragment of parchment.
I'm sorry about Sirius. Try to lighten up, Harry. It'll do you no good to become depressed. It's natural to miss him, but pining over him won't help you either. I'm sorry if I sound flippant, but I've had to deal with this kind of thing before, and I'm here if you need me, and so is Ron. Don't keep it all bottled up inside you- if you need anyone to talk to, we're here for you.
I suppose I'll see you at Diagon Alley then. Have you got your OWL results yet? I have a feeling Dumbledore may be too busy to send them by owl over the break. I suppose we'll get them when term starts. I hope the rest of your summer vacation ends nicely!
Hermione
Harry stared at the letter with mixed feelings. He wanted to crumple it up and trash it, but he also wanted to just pocket it and keep the heartfelt words in mind. He winded up stuffing it in the pocket of his Hogwarts robes and flopping back on his bed, staring at the ceiling.
He was so lost in thought that the next owl that arrived had to peck him back to reality. He accepted the parchment and unrolled it, rubbing his neck, which was the body part that the owl had chosen to attack. Dumbledore's familiar, loopy handwriting greeted him.
Harry,
My deepest condolences about your godfather. I understand he was the only friendly family figure left in your life, but do not despair. Not all hope is lost. Sirius may not be dead- Tonks was on a trip to Japan this summer and she swears she saw two teenagers carry a man who looked exactly like Sirius into a Japanese game shop. We plan to send Aurors there this afternoon to confirm the man's identity.
I will keep you informed this year, Harry. I won't make the same mistake twice.
Sincerely,
Professor Dumbledore
This got Harry's attention faster than a jolt of lightning would have.
Sirius…may not…be dead? But I saw him fall into the veil myself…
Unless…
The veil doesn't really kill you?
He felt hope welling up inside of him and overflowing. He wanted to dance for joy, shout in happiness, anything to express his feelings, but Dudley would just come in and tease him until Harry turned his wand on him.
So he stayed silent and lay back on his bed.
He would find out soon enough if Dumbledore was telling the truth.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The banging on the front door startled Yugi awake.
After the movie, Yugi had dozed off on the couch. He had been faintly aware of Yami moving to the other sofa, but then he had fallen asleep.
Yugi calmed his racing heart and leaned over to shake Yami awake, only to find that Yami was wide awake and staring at the door downstairs.
"Strangely dressed people," Yami muttered. "I don't really see any threat though. I guess you can open the door. Although I'm not sure what they would want, the shop's closed today."
Yugi hopped off the couch, unlatched the chain lock, and pulled it open for the guests.
"We're closed today," he said politely. "So if you're looking for cards, you'll have to come back on Monday."
"No, that's not what we're looking for," a scarred man with mismatched eyes and long, grizzled, gray hair growled. "My name is Mad-Eye Moody. We were wondering if one Sirius Black was here…"
~End of Chapter 1~
Short first chapter- this is just to see if people like it. Anybody think that the plot is moving too fast? But it's not really revolving around Sirius being found. It's more about the veil in the Department of Mysteries…you'll see what happens later…
And were you wondering about the vanishing cabinet that was mentioned in OotP? That comes into play later too.
Review please! Expect slow updates though, unless inspiration strikes. ^.^
