Some of this chapter is based on a TV series called Forever Knight, I do not own Forever Knight. Some of this chapter is based on a series of books entitled Harry Potter and the whatever the particular title of the book in question has written by J. K. Rowling, I do not own the Harry Potter series (not even copies) and I do not own J. K. Rowling.
This chapter is dedicated to Hope. I am crossing my fingers that you'll like this. Sunna caught my misquote of the lyrics to the song, which is awkward 'cause I really do listen to this stuff. Thanks Sunna!Chapter Forty-three:
The Raven. The red neon sign wore a lurid halo thanks to a thin fog that had rolled in at sunset. He paused to let Sirius give another of his annoyingly quaint explanations.
"You've been hiding in Muggle-Muggle land haven't you," he interrupted and rolled his shoulders in an effort to dispel the tension that was building in him.
"Well I couldn't very well hide in Hogsmead."
"Muggle lover," he breathed as he pulled open the door and tilted his head to motion them in.
As soon as they crossed the threshold Remus was acutely aware that a large percentage of the clubs patrons were not among the living. Suddenly Sirius' high neckline and sunglasses seemed like a good idea.
People started to notice the trio and some called out greetings, "Hey, Necro! Long time no see." "Necro I thought you had moved on." "Made up your mind yet Neco?" and other things that made less sense.
"Are they talking to you," Sirius asked It.
"Like I told you," he shrugged comfortably, "I don't exactly have a name. They call me Necro, the Morlocks call me Breaker, I go by many names but none of them is mine."
He led them to a table in the back and a rather pretty girl (she had been bitten at he age of fourteen) took their orders and returned a few minutes later with their drinks.
"Don't get much call for Ogden's Old," she unnecessarily brushed against Sirius as she put his drink down. "And a gin and tonic for the handsome Were." She winked as she placed Remus' glass in front of him. "And for Necro… nothing, as usual." She smiled sweetly and swayed her hips all the way back to the bar.
"Gina," he shook his head in a dismissive manner. "She is a flirt, obviously, but she's not as easy as she makes herself out to be. I've never known her to actually accept anyone but her master. And he treats her like the child she is."
"I understand Necromancer," Sirius took a sip of his whisky, "But what does Breaker mean?"
"If you two are going to be fine for a while, I'll go see if I can find Nick." He stood and pushed his chair back in, "and it's short for Necrophile." He loosely imitated Gina's walk as he made his own way to the bar.
"Janet, dear," he crooned to a willowy dark-haired woman in her early thirties. "Have you seen Nick yet?"
"Necro, I thought I saw you come in, with two thumpers," a hint of French still clung to her words.
He slumped against the bar and regarded her through the hair that fell into his eyes.
"What happened to your eye?" she was concerned and nearly reached out to touch his face. At a sound low in his throat her hand dropped back to her side. "Nick has not had time to get here from his loft, he might pick up Natalie first and that will push him further behind. I expect that if he arranged to meet you then he will not be more than an hour." She glanced over his shoulder, "Now I think you should go back and get your friends out of trouble."
He looked back and swore under his breath, "Of all the-" There was a tall blonde Vamp built like a muggle pro-wrestler leaning over the table trying to get Sirius mad enough to start a fight. 'Great just what I needed.' He drifted across the room, "Hullo, Blow Jack," he drawled coming to a halt behind the Vamp in question.
Brown eyes not backing down from Sirius for a moment, "It's Lo-Jack, pup," he growled, "The last one to call me that-"
"Had stringy black hair blue eyes and kicked your ass," one corner of his mouth quirked up as the hulking brute turned to face him.
"Necro." It was less than friendly, even with the smile. "It's been nearly twenty years, a long time for a mortal, and you remember me? I'm touched."
"You'll be more than touched if you don't back off on my charges." He didn't need to put force behind the words.
The air became charged, every Vampire in the building felt it, the subtle shift in power. An Ancient had just arrived.
LaCroix at more than a millenium in age was truly an Ancient. Short grey hair, a fair build, hazel-grey eyes that told of countless ages come and gone. He took another step into the room and smiled. It was slightly creepy, as he didn't force his mouth into that particular shape often. It was a genuine smile none the less.
"Remus J. Lupin?" he approached the table that had been the center of attention and offered his hand to the Werewolf. "It has been far too long, in mortal time. And your friend…" he took a moment to assess Sirius, " Black, I am correct?" Remus nodded. "Now what seems to be the trouble," he fixed Jack with a disapproving gaze.
"He," a finger stabbed toward 'Snape,' "Is here against pact and threatening us."
'Snape' at the time was leaning against one of the decorative pillars that separated the drinking and dining portion of the establishment from the dance floor. He responded to the charges by crossing his arms over his chest.
"I had heard that you were back," LaCroix's voice was cultured, vaguely French, "I had also heard that you were dead."
"Dead, an unusual word from a Vampire," he straitened his back and threaded the spaces between the tables and chairs to stand before the Vampire lord. "LaCroix I have no quarrel with you, don't start one with me."
"Can I buy you a drink then?" the only ones not shocked by LaCroix's offer, were a couple necking in the back and they weren't aware of much of anything.
"What!" the outrage in the blonde Vamp's exclamation matched his expression.
Gina rushed over and, shyly (for once) took LaCroix's order, "And for you," he raised an inviting hand to 'Necro.'
"A Black Ice, I think," came the bored response.
"Are you just going to let him get away with this?! On our territory?!" Jack was not backing off and no runty blue eyed freak was going to humiliate him again.
Gina handed him a goblet and LaCroix answered with eyes half lidded, "And what would you have me do Jack?"
"If you are still the keeper of this territory you could always take his creds."
"The taking of credits is a very complicated thing. Necro has proven himself to me," he took a sip of his Bloodwine. "You have not."
"I don't need to prove myself to you! I am your son! He needs to prove his innocence, that is the law."
Lazily 'Necro' took a seat at LaCroix's table and when Gina brought his tumbler of Black Ice he took it from her tray before she could pick it up to hand it to him.
"Are you formally accusing Necro of coming here, on a hunt, without declaring his target to me?"
"Yes!"
"Necro," LaCroix stood and waited for him to do the same. "I have been given a formal challenge. I stand and formally give credit to your honour. The challenge was to your honour, which I have formally testified to. I disavow all ties of rightful vengeance that I hold on Jack and demand satisfaction for my honour, which he has formally questioned."
Bowing his head Lacroix sat back down and took another sip of his drink.
"You what?!" Jack spun from 'Necro' to LaCroix.
"You can not possibly think that I would challenge Necro. For you?" a short, quiet chuckle, "You may issue your challenge to him directly, or you may take it back and forfeit one of your own credits. But I will have my honour upheld either way, he will kill you and I will no longer have to put up with your hotheadedness. Or you will be cowed, and I don't have to put up with your hotheadness."
Remus was becoming nervous. It had been a surprise to see LaCroix after all these years, but this was not the kind of reunion that he would have hoped for. 'Not that I could really say that I hoped to see him again… but he did help me when no one else would. I can't believe this is all happening because Sirius wanted to know who was a Vamp and who was still alive.'
"Are these seats taken?" The question came from a tall sandy hared vamp.
"Uh, no." Remus wasn't sure that a Vamp at the table was a good idea, 'Especially not if this comes down to a duel.'
"Janet told me that you came in with Necro," he was obviously trying to start a conversation. Taking a moment to seat the woman with curly red-brown hair that had been standing by his side, he held out his hand. "I'm Nick."
"Remus Lupin," he shook the offered hand and nudged Sirius under the table to tell him to do the same.
"Sirius Black." He tried not to flinch at the feel of room temperature skin.
"This is Natalie," they both looked at the woman with a great deal more interest.
"So you're the ones he brought us here to meet," Remus looked over and saw the blonde Vamp trying to hypnotize a very unimpressed 'Snape.' "He's busy right now."
Chapter Forty-four:
Nearly an hour later they managed to get out of the Raven without killing anyone (for the first or second time.)
He led them down several dark and rather unfriendly streets cutting through lots and alleys on a direct rout to the car that he had arranged for. It was there. The rental car was at the right place at the right time. 'Maybe things won't get worse.'
"A Ford Taurus?" Sirius had expected something a great deal more outrageous.
He checked under the driver's side door for the magnetic key holder, "Yah, get in the back," he opened the driver's side door and unlocked the others. "Lupin you get to ride in the front." He revved the engine (as much as you can rev a rented Taurus) and waited impatiently for Lupin to figure out the door latch.
"A Ford Taurus LX?" Sirius repeated in disbelief once they were on their way.
"Yah, spruce green with medium parchment interior. You two want to buckle your seatbelts?"
He had to take extra time at a stoplight to help Remus. First to find his belt, then to actually buckle it in.
As they turned right onto Bloor Street West Sirius leaned in between the front seats (he had slid over to sit in the middle) "Why am I in the back?"
"Because," one corner of his mouth pulled up slightly, "He doesn't know how to mess with the radio." Sirius couldn't see the grin but he heard it, just before the cabin of the car was filled to overflowing with Hungry Like the Wolf, by Duran Duran. He lip-sanch the words.
Dark in the city, night is a wire
Steam in the subway, earth is a fire
Do-do do doo, do do doo, do do do, doooo
Woman you want me, give me a sign
And catch my breathing even closer behind
Do-do do doo, do do doo, do do do, doooo
Sirius had had more than the one whisky and it wasn't very long until he nodded off and tipped over to sleep on his side.
Turning the radio down some he glanced over at Lupin.
"Why are we going to America?" Remus asked.
"Because that's where they insist on keeping UnderNewYork," he adjusted the station as it went out and brought up more eighty's techno.
"Then why are we going to UnderNewYork? We have the test results, what is in UnderNewYork that you need?"
"Her name is Cardigan. I need to call in an old debt from her."
Seeing that he was getting nowhere, except New York, Remus pulled out the files that he had received from Natalie, "Do you mind if I-"
Rather than distract every driver they passed by letting Lupin use Lumos he reached up and turned on the map light.
"Thanks."
Pages were slowly flipped. A while before the New Jersey border he had to stop for gas. By the time he got back in the car Lupin had taken off his seatbelt and fallen asleep with his head propped up on the armrest they had been sharing.
~
At midnight he stopped to take a sip of the red potion that he always had on him. 'Stuff tastes awful, can't imagine why he insists.' Remus half woke while he was putting away an empty syringe.
Unable to stretch out enough to get comfortable Remus blindly pushed at the barrier. It moved up, he stretched out enough to fall back asleep, and kilometers eventually became miles.
~
"It's time to wake up."
As Remus continued to slowly awaken, he became aware that the car had stopped. He tried to open his eyes and sit up, but the movement was too much and he sank back down. 'I must have had way more to drink than I thought. I don't even remember him putting me in the back with Sirius.' He groaned at the throbbing headache that was making itself known, "Sorry Sirius, I can't get up yet."
"That's ok."
Something was wrong. A gloved palm brushed the stubble on his cheek.
"I don't think he cares too much. He hasn't woken up yet."
"Gloves?" he rolled enough to look up, into a darkly blue eye.
"Not really," he looked at the half-glove on his right hand with a watery smile. "No, not really. Just like the rest of me." He had to turn his head, till his chin was nearly touching his right shoulder, so that he could look into Remus eyes. That didn't seem like such a good idea, now that the Werewolf was awake.
"You're not Sirius." He tried to get up again, and again he fell back down into the other's lap.
"And you're not sober. We are about two kilometers from the place where I was planning to drop off the car though, so you should start to wake up soon." He pulled back onto the New Jersey Turnpike, just before it became Newark Avenue. "Here," he fished a smallish hip flask from a pocket in his jacket and put it in Remus' unsteady hand. "It should help with the worst of the hangover. They have yet to create a perfect hangover remedy, but this is one of the better."
"Thanks," Remus some how sloshed enough of the bitter fluid into his stomach to do some good. "I'm still tired…" He felt the other catch the flask before it fell from his hand. "… sorry…"
"Hey, Black," he called to the figure stirring to life in the back seat. "Here, drink," he handed the flask back and Sirius took a swig and passed it forward before collapsing onto the backseat again.
~
'Why did I touch him? It wasn't The Other's influence, he's so stoned right now he couldn't tell Gilly Weed from Devil's Snare. So why did I do it?' He caught himself flexing his right hand and instead roughly gripped the steering wheel. The warmth that he had half expected to feel at the contact was slow to fade.
~
"Are you sure you know where we're going," Sirius asked for the fifth time since they had left the car. "Cause that looks like the same Beny' Discount Porn shop we passed three minutes ago."
"It is and I am. You could help me you know," things were not getting better. The Taurus had lied.
"How," Sirius challenged.
"By shutting up for two minutes."
One minute and twenty-seven seconds of silence later, he found what he was after. To the Silent Sirius and Remus it looked like he was politely asking a rat for the location of the Wandering Market. He was. When he and the rat parted ways he knew where they had to go, the shortest rout there, and whose territory he would pass through.
"It's set up at the Empire State Building, in the lowest three levels of the main parking garage, and it closes at sunrise so we need to hurry if we're going to have time."
"Time for what," Sirius asked as they hurried down another alley.
"Cardigan is a WFIG." He started an easy run and the other two kept pace.
"Whiffig?"
"It was ratified by a Meeting of the Global Council of Magic. While you were in prison, apparently. Witness for Innocence of the Guilty is what it, and they, stands for. I need time to find Cardigan and get you free."
~
UnderNewYork turned out to be a great deal like UnderLondon. It was hard to feel letdown though; any Under-city was like a treat and a trick rolled into one.