The Magic of Family

The Chase: Alt end to Chapter Thirteen

This chapter idea was given to me by Enjali in a review for Chapter thirteen.

The giant orange monster swiped at Harry's exposed feet and ran for the door, stopping to hiss at the two staring boys. Confused, they grabbed their boots and followed the fluff ball. Several turns in, Harry realized that Crookshanks was leading them back to Gryffindor Tower.

Turning into the corridor that housed Gryffindor House, they froze as Crookshanks ran up to a giant black dog and twined around its front paws. The giant beast took a step toward the frozen boys before an ear lifted and the dog disappeared into the hidden passage behind the rolling hills tapestry.

Before the tapestry could finish settling, Harry had taken off after the two animals. He pounded down the stairs, more concerned with speed than stealth, Sephiroth's lighter steps echoing right along. Harry stumbled as he hit the flat ground at the end of the passage, but managed to right himself in time to see Crookshanks tail disappearing around the corner.

Harry and Sephiroth skid around the corner and pelted after the Grim and Crookshanks down the corridor. The two animals had the advantage in the flat stretch of the corridor, but as they entered a second secret passage with a steep set of stairs, Harry and Sephiroth were able to gain some ground.

Harry cursed as the dog and the cat both jumped over the trick stair, having hoped it would slow them down. He had to slow down for the jump, trusting his athletic skills, but not so confident that he could make the jump going full tilt down stairs that could probably be better termed as a ladder. Unfortunately, his slowing down meant that Sephiroth bumped into the back of him, sending them both stumbling into the walls. Harry could already tell that his shoulder was going to be an amazing starburst of color come morning, but he did not have time to think of that right now.

Righting themselves as quickly as possible, Harry and Sephiroth continued the chase, bursting out of the passageway and into the first floor corridor. Crookshanks and the dog were nowhere to be seen, but Harry could tell by the tilt of his head that Sephiroth was able to hear something. When the silver haired boy took off toward the Grand Staircase, Harry easily fell into step, trusting Sephiroth's senses over his own.

Harry grabbed the beginning of the banister and used it to slingshot himself around and onto the staircase. From the top of the stairs Harry could see the two animals crossing the entrance hall, heading for the massive entrance doors. With a burst of speed, Harry and Sephiroth were able to reach the bottom of the stairs just as the doors somehow swung open.

Harry winced as he slammed injured shoulder first into the unopened door in order to slow his speed enough to slip out of the small crack. The curse word Sephiroth released as he hit the door after Harry was not one he had heard previously, but the tone let Harry know that it was quite severe.

The dim light of the castle at night was still brighter than the grounds and it took several precious moments for Harry's eyes to adjust well enough for him to catch the sign of movement. His eyes were still adjusting to be able to see more than just shadowy shapes as he hurtled across the dewy ground, ignoring the sound behind him similar to the one they heard every morning when the post owls would arrive.

He cursed as he stepped in a hole, managing to right himself before he fell face-first, but adding another mark to his mental tally of bruises he would have in the morning. Crookshanks orange fur stood out from the shadowy grounds, allowing Harry to see the two stop just out of reach of the Whomping Willow's branches. He managed to gain enough ground to see the Grim look over its shoulder as Crookshanks dodged the deadly branches and scrambled up the trunk of the tree, a clear destination in mind.

The Willow's branches slowed in their deadly dance, before stopping altogether and Harry knew that he only had seconds to act before they were likely to lose the two animals for good.

Protego, shouted Harry, pointing at the base of the tree. He watched with grim satisfaction as the beast skidded to a stop, slamming bodywise into the clear shield Harry had summoned, before scrambling for purchase in the dirt and hurtling toward the Forbidden Forest.

Harry cursed as he once more put on a burst of speed, Quidditch practice and Harry Hunting had not prepared Harry for the amount of running he was doing this night and he could feel the stitch beginning to burn in his side. Suddenly all three runners froze as in a flurry of dark feathers, Sephiroth alighted on the ground in front of them, a single dark wing extended behind him.

The sight was shock to Harry, but he was quick to shake off the surprise in favor of figuring out what the creature in front of him was, for while it looked like a normal dog, the amount of intelligence in its eyes gave lie to that belief.

His wand was surprisingly steady in his hand as he pointed at the Grim, "Who are you?"

Several tense moments of silence passes, causing Harry to question whether he was crazy to believe that the beast was a human being, when suddenly a tall, rail thin man with matted and gnarled black hair took its place.

After weeks on the run, Sirius Black looked even worse in person than he had on his wanted poster. But Harry continued to hold his wand steady and Sephiroth did not move from his guarding stance as the number one wanted criminal in the United Kingdom held out his hands in supplication.

"Harry," croaked a voice weak and rough from disuse, "Pup, you have to listen to me."