Note: Ok…none of the characters currently are mine…. they are either Tamara Pierce's or JK Rowling's…. So here is my story…ENJOY!!!

The layout of the palace

A couple of hours of waiting left Sirius anxious and annoyed. His legs ached as well as his neck. He just wanted out of this infernal cage.

Daine had promised that this…Numair…would set him free. 'How did she explain it to me? A "black robe mage"…' Sirius tilted his large head in thought. 'I didn't even see him use a wand, unless he's so powerful he doesn't need one!'

He paused in his incessant thoughts when he heard a single pair of footsteps wondering about in the stuffy silent corridor then sighed as they kept walking.

He had chatted with Daine for a while before she was called off on some other errand that needed to be done. She had explained many things about Tortal and its inhabitants.

As Sirius fought to keep afloat above the impending cloud of sleep, he (for some reason) remembered her conversation, and the way she explained to him about knights, squires, and pages.

…pages are somewhat like pups, they need to be taught how to hunt and to survive…squires are adolescents, always needing an eye to be kept on them… and knights are alpha males and females, protectors of the pack… With that, her voice began to fade, floundering in the heat of Sirius's mind. The cloud engulfed him and he dozed peacefully for some time.

He awoke to a gentle prod in his side. A lazy eye opened to scrutinize its owner's waker. The strange mage, Numair, knelt beside Sirius's sleeping dog form. The mage's hand moved almost lazily across the cage's top. The cage dissolved around Sirius and he decided it was time to see if the mage was as bad tempered, as he had once seemed.

Sirius grunted, the sound coming from the depths of his chest before rolling over onto Numair's feat from where he crouched.

Numair snorted as he looked down at the great beast. 'He's playing with me…this must be some sort of joke to him…'

"Well, you are not that bad…" he shifted his weight, drawing his feat from under the animal's great bulk. He smiled lightly and placed a broad hand upon Sirius's brow. "Come…I'll take you to Daine."

Sirius panted with the effort of keeping up with the long legged mage. 'Why must he have such long legs?'

Numair led Sirius threw the castle to the grand hall (or something close to that). As they walked in they saw Daine conversing with a dark-haired and –bearded man. His eyes were a pure sparkling sapphire and his skin a light tan. Upon his head he wore a crown.

Sirius stopped mid-step. 'He must be…the king?' Daine glanced over and smiled at the two new arrivals.

'Jonathan, meet Padfoot…Padfoot this is…out alpha male of just about everything." You understand?

Sirius nodded to her silent query before inspecting the king. He picked up a strange aura around the dark haired man.

'Does he have magic? And if so, can he help me get home? To Harry?' Sirius sat back on his haunches, oblivious to the conversation-taking place over his head. 'What would they do if I transformed here? Now? Would they hurt me? Or help me? But it is worth a try if I could get home and make sure everybody is alright!'

He jerked back to reality as a knight entered the great hall. The first thing he noticed was that she was a girl. She had short mousy brown hair with the hazel eyes of a dreamer. Jonathan smiled at this new intruder.

"Ah, Kel, just the knight I wanted to see. How is Neal doing?"

Kel smiled a slow smile before replying in a rushed tone. "He is fine, but we need you and the Lioness… The townspeople are becoming restless and uncertain. I heard something about bad omens…I really don't know…you would have to ask Neal."

The king nodded gravely and motioned to a page to go find the Lioness as Sirius watched sadly. 'So much for revealing my secret…'

Daine placed a hand upon Sirius's head before leading him and Numair toward the exit.

"Ahem…Daine, we may need you and Numair…Padfoot can come along too."

The sight before Sirius left him awestruck. Their little party (including the late arrivals of the knights Neal and Alanna) stood upon a great balcony, overlooking the town. Thousands of faces looked up at them, all troubled and unsure. They made signs of evil all around.

The king moved ahead to speak to his subjects. "What had disturbed the peace in my war free kingdom?"

They all fidgeted uncomfortably until an elderly man stepped forward. The white hair for told of his wise qualities as well as a kind attitude toward life and change. But now his features were troubled, even more so than the rest. He stroked his beard before answering in a feeble voice. "Strange things are happenin' M'lord…things disapearin' and reapearin' someplace else…the Gods are unhappy…" He shrunk back as the crowd roared their agreement, chorusing ways to please them in hopeful voices.

Numair flicked his fingers, creating a great staircase for the king to go comfort his people. And that is when Sirius saw his escape.

He bolted down the stairs and past the king (incase the mage thought it funny if he let him fall) and headed straight toward the forest. His mind jolted as he heard Daine's silent and shout for him to return, but he set his mind and kept running.

Sirius's pace slowed, finally, when he reached a fresh water stream. He collapsed, halfway in the water, panting. Finally his body began to cool down. His mind wandered from topic to topic, not noticing the soft humming coming this way.

Sirius grunted and transformed into his human form. A scream awoke him violently from his revelry. And then it struck him, hard; right between his eyes…someone had seen him…and if he didn't quiet them he may not be able to get home.