Disclaimer: Must I continue to put this up!? I think everyone's got the idea of who belongs to who! Thorn, Sparkie, Maken, Cade, Celestial, and Taffy are the only ones that belong to me or a friend of mine. JK owns the rest.

Author's Note: Okay, the eighth chapter! Yay! Thank you all for the reviews! I love reading them! (I am amazed that ppl acctually like my story!!!) Anyway, here's Chapter eight!

Chapter eight

Mixed-breed and Animagus

"Thorn!" Cade said as she saw him in the hall, "Come on! Shooter's going crazy!"

Thorn looked at him oddly, "Shooter? What's wrong? Where's Maken?"

"I dunno! He came out of the forest not long ago, and he seemed, I don't know, ecstatic, or afraid, or something, Maken's out there now, trying to calm him down."

Thorn nodded and they two of them sprinted down the hall, running into Celestial standing in front of a statue of a Griffin. Cade quickly explained and she joined them in running to the forest.

They ran past Peeves, the school poltergeist, who was throwing chalk at students. Thorn took her wand out and immobilized him before he could pelt them with chalk. He stared at her angrily, swearing between his clenched teeth.

When they reached the grounds, Thorn saw Maken standing with Shooter, doing his best to calm the unicorn down. Shooter was rearing up and neighing like nothing Thorn had seen before. "Shooter!" She called to him and he instantly stopped and looked to her. "What's wrong?"

"I have no clue!" Maken said and ran a hand through his hair, "He just came out and, well, you saw!"

Thorn watched him, then said, "He wants us to follow him."

"Follow him?" Celestial asked, out of breath, "Follow him where?"

"To the forest," Cade stated as Shooter began to sprint off towards the trees.

"Well, c'mon then!" Maken said as he ran after the unicorn. Thorn, Cade, and Celestial followed suit. When they got to the trees, they saw nothing.

"Why in the world did he drag us out here?" Cade asked as he looked around the darkness.

Thorn shook her head, "I don't know." Then a form came at them from ahead. "Talon?"

Sparkie, who had climbed onto her shoulder, said, "Thorn! Look! In the darkness! Is that, Feather?"

She followed the lizards gaze and saw the same, Feather standing, Shooter next to her, and, between them... "What in the..." she muttered.

"What is it, Thorn?" Maken asked as he stood next to her. She saw him take his wand out in the corner of her eye.

"There's something there, that, well, it's just," she shook her head, "I'm not entirely sure."

Maken then saw what she did, and his eyes widened. "Woah! What the heck?"

Sparkie shook his head and rubbed his eyes with little claws. Then, he looked back, as if expecting it to have changed, yet it didn't. Standing in the middle of the unicorn and pegasus was a little black horse, with wings, and a unicorn horn.

"Oh my god," Thorn murmured, "They crossbred..."

If any of the four had ever wondered what a mix between a unicorn and pegasus was, they didn't anymore. The baby was a rich, black color, and had a golden horn. Its wings were large and it's eyes a radiant blue.

Celestial gasped, "Oh... It's beautiful!"

Cade nodded, "Yeah, I can't believe that they, well, ya know." He snickered.

Maken laughed, "Well, apparently they did!" Even Sparkie began to crack up.

"Oh will you two just shut up!?" Celestial screamed.

Thorn ignored them as they began to bicker, but soon they stopped and followed her as she walked to the three animals ahead of her. "Hey Shooter, Feather, this must be your... baby."

Feather neighed lowly and nuzzled the child forwards. It wined in distraught, but soon walked forwards, locking eyes with Thorn, and calmed down. Then she heard a word wander across her mind. Thorn...

This shocked her slightly and she looked to Sparkie, who shrugged, for he had heard it too. Then they heard, Shadow, mommy calls me Shadow. The sentence was much less clear then when Sparkie and Thorn spoke, hazy, and distant. Then Sparkie and Thorn realized who it was.

"Oh, I see," Thorn said, then she rubbed the baby, well, pegacorn's head, "Shadow." Shadow nodded her black head.

Maken looked confused, as did the others. "What?"

Thorn stood and turned to the others. "She's much more powerful then any magical creature that I've ever read about. She can talk to people in her mind, it's distant, but she can."

"Ah, okay..." Maken said. Then, Shadow turned her head to him and his eyes widened. "Woah, how did she know my name?"

Thorn shrugged, "Feather must've told her."

Maken nodded, "Right..."

"Well," Cade said, still a bit bewildered, "Let's get back, it's almost dark, and McGonagall will have our heads if we're late."

The little pegacorn grew quickly; soon she was the same size as the others. She was extremely strong in her magic ability and in her physical strength as well.

Thorn was sitting in her dorm, reading one afternoon. Celestial was off somewhere unknown again, and the boys, well, she had no clue where they had gone. Her new book was called, Animagi for beginners, and she was really into it. It explained how to change into one, and the disastrous effects that could occur if it went wrong.

Then Sparkie sighed annoyed and turned to Thorn. She looked to him and saw the familiar glint in his eye. "Ah, hello Maken."

"Hey! Thorn!" Maken's voice came from Sparkie's mouth, the lizard looked rather annoyed, "Cade and I were wondering what you were doing, we're bored as everything, so, yeah, got any plans?"

Thorn began to shake her head, then an idea struck her. "Wait, what do you say to, hmm..."

"What?" Sparkie/Maken asked.

Thorn thought, then said, "Meet me near the forbidden forest tomorrow morning, before the sun's up, you, Cade, and tell Celestial as well."

"Why?" he protested.

"You'll see."

The next day, a Saturday, Thorn stood waiting in front of the forest cover. The sky was still dark, and it was colder. Winter was almost upon them.

Then she saw something moving towards her and, in an automatic response, she took her wand out with amazing speed and held it in front of her and, with no hesitation, muttered, "Lumos!" and a thin beam of light came from the tip of her wand and shone in the darkness.

It fell onto the face of her best friend, who looked rather annoyed and extremely tired. "Thorn," he mumbled, "Why in the world did you make us get up this early?"

Thorn smiled and flicked her wand up, "Nox," the light at the tip of her wand went out. "Well, you said you were bored, and, well, I've come up for a way to keep us occupied."

The three Gryffindors were close enough for her to see in the darkness, and each had a look of confusion on their face. "Well, what is it?" Celestial asked.

Thorn led them into the forest, not saying a word. Maken's hand was firmly gripping her shoulder so he wouldn't get separated, and, Thorn figured, the others must be holding onto each other as well. It was too risky to light her wand again; the creatures in the forest might see it.

She led them deeper into the forest for a long time, then, just as she was sure that her friends had had enough, she stopped in a rather large clearing. The sun was still far from rising, so, with a wave of her wand, she made a few lanterns appear. "Lacarnem Inflamare!" She said and set a fire in each of the lanterns. Setting them up in certain places, it lit the clearing rather well.

"Thorn," Celestial moaned, "Are you ever going to tell us what we're here for?"

Thorn turned to the others and held her book, Animagi for beginners, up for them to see, and Maken grumbled, "Reading? You brought us here to read?"

"No," Thorn said, rolling her eyes a bit, "Read the cover." She said as she threw the book to him. He caught it and did as she said.

"So? What's that have to do with anything?"

Thorn sighed. Maken was not a morning person. I can't believe that you're friend is this stupid! Sparkie said in her mind.

Thorn shook her head then said, "Maken, Animagi, people that can change into animals. I brought you here because I figured that you three would want to join me in becoming one."

Cade's eyes lit up, "Oh! Yeah! I'll join you!"

Maken nodded in sudden realization, "Ah, yeah! That'd be fun! Let's do it!"

Celestial bit her lip, "But, Thorn? Isn't it illegal to become an Animagus if the ministry doesn't know of your doings?"

Thorn nodded, "Yes, it is, but I've never been one to follow the ministry's orders. In fact, I've never been too fond of the ministry at all."

Thorn felt a small surge of anger flow through her. She hated the ministry, well, not the ministry entirely, but Cornelius Fudge. When she had killed her parents, he had wanted to lock her up in Azkaban. He had wanted to lock a three year old girl in the wizard prison! If not for Severus and Albus Dumbledore, she would probably have been there right now.

"Thorn?" Maken's voice brought her out of her thoughts. "Thorn? What's wrong?"

She looked up to him, the other two seemed confused. Maken, Severus, and Sparkie were the only ones that could see if something angered her. No one else could tell.

"Nothing," she lied, though she knew perfectly well that he knew it was a lie. He could tell oh too well when she was thinking. "Anyway, Celestial, you in for becoming an animagus?"

Celestial still seemed hesitant, yet she nodded, and a smile spread over her lips. "Count me in!"

Thorn smirked and said, "Well, let's begin! Think of what animal you want to become, but don't tell the others! Let's keep it a surprise until we succeed. Remember, it has to be something that fits you."

Maken looked to the ground, thoughtful. Cade was staring at the black sky. Celestial was looking into the darkness of the trees.

Thorn was looking at the moon, her eyes seemed lost. She was thinking of what to become. A dragon? That might be too difficult. How about, some kind of cat. Not a house cat, but a... Tiger, she said to Sparkie.

He glanced up to her, A tiger? Why a tiger?

Thorn shrugged, They live alone, they're strong, and determined. Just seems like me.

Sparkie pondered that, then said, You don't live alone! You have me! And Severus! And, sadly, Maken! How can you say you live alone?

Sparkie, Thorn sighed, Maken doesn't know of my past, and I killed Severus's sister! I'm amazed that he took me in after that, and you, well, you're more or less part of me.

Sparkie shook his head, Thorn, you should tell Maken about your past, and just because you killed your mother doesn't mean that it puts him far from you. In fact, I think it brings you closer.

No, Thorn said stubbornly, I won't tell him. He's the best friend I have, to tell him would be to loose that friendship forever. Wouldn't that be nice? "Hello Maken, I thought I'd let you know that I killed my parents with an unforgivable curse, but don't hate me for it, I was only three." Sparkie sighed and was about to interrupt, but Thorn continued, And how does my killing of my family bring me closer to Severus?

Sparkie rolled his eyes and said, You didn't mean to, he understands that, and you're the last link to his sister, he'll protect you forever and won't let you get away.

Thorn was about to say something when Maken suddenly said, "Thorn! Snap outta it!" and shook her shoulders. She had been so engrossed in her talk with Sparkie that she had forgotten where she was. "What's with you today? You seem out of it."

She shook her head, "No, I'm okay." She noticed that Celestial and Cade were giving her odd looks, "So, you figured out what animals you want to become?"

The three of them nodded, Celestial and Cade still seemed a bit confused, and Maken was still watching her intently. See? Sparkie said, He cares about you. You're like his sister, he could never hate you for what you did. It seemed to Thorn that it had been hard for Sparkie to admit that.

She ignored him, and said, "Now, for step two. We have to try to feel like the animals. If it's a bird, feel like you're light enough to fly. Feel like you're a lion running through the tundra. Get it?"

Cade and Maken nodded, but Celestial said, "Wait, aren't we supposed to think of markings that we want to have?"

Thorn shook her head, "No, we don't choose what we look like, just what we become. Ready?"

They worked all day on their Animagi skills, yet it takes more then a day to succeed in becoming one. At the end of the day, the four of them sat around in the clearing. The sky was a rich red as the sun set.

"So, Cade," Celestial asked, "What made you so eager in becoming an animagus?"

He shifted slightly in the grass, then said, "Well, my mother was an Animagus."

Celestial looked down, "Oh, I'm sorry for bringing it up..."

"No, it's okay," Cade looked down to his wrist, then said, "She died in her animal form as well. This bracelet was made from one of her teeth."

Maken nodded, "How... if I may ask, did she die?"

Cade sighed, "Muggle hunters." Thorn noticed that his fists had tightened, "They shot her down."

"What animal could she become?" Celestial asked.

"A tiger."

Thorn, who had been looking at her wand, looked up. "Really?" Cade nodded. "Hmm."

You still want to be a tiger, Thorn? Sparkie asked.

Yes.

"Well," Celestial said, as if trying to cheer Cade up, "If it helps at all, my mother is in St. Mungo's, and I have no idea who my father is. I was raised by my great uncle, Albus Dumbledore."

"You're related to Albus?" Thorn asked.

"Yep! It's nice having a relative that's the greatest wizard of all time."

"Kind of like being connected to the greatest feared," Sparkie yipped.

"Shut up, Sparkie," Thorn hissed back lowly.

Then Cade said, "St. Mungo's... that's... the hospital, right?"

Celestial nodded, "Yes, St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries. She's in there because, well," she sighed, "She insists that Sirius Black is innocent." An angry glimmer appeared in her eyes, "He's the reason she's there. He hurt her the night he attacked those muggles and Peter Pettigrew."

Thorn's eyes held fast. "Sirius Black?" She said in a harsh voice, the others looked to her startled, "That man, he deserves what he got."

Celestial nodded, "Yes, for what he did to all those people, did he hurt someone you know?"

Thorn watched her, then said, "Somewhat." He had hurt Severus's pride, and that is something that you never want to do to a Slytherin. "And, it's said that he supports Voldemort."

Celestial looked taken aback. Maken was way too used to Thorn saying his name, though he never said it himself, she always had. Cade had never heard that saying his name was bad, so he didn't flinch. "Thorn!" Celestial scolded, "Don't say his name! Only powerful witches and wizards should! Like Albus."

Thorn stared at Celestial, the hate for Voldemort flowing new through her veins. "I will not call him anything but his name, Voldemort," Celestial flinched again, "I do not fear him."

"Why don't you fear him, Thorn? He killed so many, and, if he came back, he would probably kill us all. How can you not fear him?"

"Celestial, he is the reason for so much in my life," Thorn said, "People would think that I would fear him, but the only thing I have for him is hate."

There was silence for a moment, then Maken said, "So, is, um, is he the reason that you... that your parents are, well, dead?"

Thorn looked to him, Sparkie muttered, "Tell him!"

She shook her head, then to Maken she said, "In the long run, yes." No one seemed to notice that in her left hand she gripped her wood wand with white knuckles.

"How did they die?" Maken pressed. His best friend had never told him what had happened, and now he was hoping for an explanation.

Yet Thorn wouldn't give in, "It's nothing."

"Well, explain why you use occlumency then," Maken pleaded.

"Maken, I use occlumency to protect myself, I told you that."

Maken shook his head, "Protect yourself from what? What in the world can hurt you through their mind?"

Thorn sighed, "Maken..." she whispered, If only you knew...

Well he would, Sparkie reminded her, If you'd tell him!

Cade sighed, "Okay, I'm new to the magic world, so, if anyone would explain, who's Voldemort?"

Celestial sighed, "Please don't use his name, Cade."

"Why not?" Thorn said, thankful for the change of subject, "He's not afraid of Voldemort, and why should he be?" Then, ignoring Celestials complaints, she said, "Voldemort was the worlds most powerful dark wizard, he gathered people called Death Eaters to follow him," she unconsciously rubbed her left for arm, "He fell nine or so years ago, when Harry Potter lived through his curse."

Cade nodded, "Ah, so, I guess that he is the most feared wizard in the world, then."

Thorn nodded, "Almost everyone fears him, save for maybe Albus Dumbledore and myself. Harry Potter might not, yet at the moment, he doesn't even know of him."

Celestial sighed in annoyance and said, "Well, we'd better get back, Uncle Albus will be expecting me for tea soon."

"Oh!" Maken said, still sounding slightly annoyed that he hadn't gotten a strait answer from Thorn, "So that's where you've been off too!"

Celestial smiled and led the way from the forest, Cade behind her, and Maken and Thorn taking up the rear. "Thorn," he asked her quietly, "What's wrong? Tell me what happened to your family, maybe you'll feel better."

Thorn shook her head firmly, "No, Maken."

"Why not?" he asked her, a bit more angrily then he had intended, "What are you afraid of."

She stopped dead, "Maken, the single thing I fear has nothing to do with my parents, or Voldemort at that matter."

"Then why won't you tell me?" he stood in front of her, his hands on her shoulders, grey eyes betraying his worry that he had been trying to mask.

"Maken, I have my own secrets, maybe you'll know someday, but today is not the day." She stepped out of his hands, went back towards Cade and Celestial, who had stopped some ten feet away, and heard Maken sigh behind her and follow.