Chapter Six

A/N: Well I'm back cyber people; hope my absence wasn't too sorely missed- ha, you were all probably bringing out the champagne and 'special occasion' china. I've written this chapter more than seven times, because it just didn't seem right, but I think this is satisfactory. Anyway, here's chapter six, where something exciting happens… maybe; you'll just have to read on….

Disclaimer: Here we go again; I… don't…own Harry…Potter (breaks down in tears)

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17th September

Mist swirled around them, cloaking them in a shroud of silver.

The trio drifted deeper into the unyielding darkness; several metres apart from each other, lost in the alluring web of their own thoughts. The undergrowth barred their way regularly, and they were forced to slow their pace and attempt to continue by shoving the foliage aside. Some of it acquiesced immediately at a shake of their fingers, leaving the boys' paths clear, whilst others snarled menacingly, baring sharpened fangs and cavernous mouths and lunging hidden limbs at their groping hands.

Sirius loved the Forest.

The depth, the mystery that enveloped every leaf, every rivulet that ran along the bodies of the decrepit trees that soared upwards, their very tips vanishing in the oppressing gloom, and most of all; the silence.

No sound emanated from the forest, as was as if he had been separated from Hogwarts and all of its hectic ways; the overwhelming wall of emotion, the petty disputes over dominance; the brittle, easily-made relationships that surrounded any school.

Sirius hated it.

He longed to sit forever in the familiar, craved silence of the forest, to forget about everything that tied him to the earth; his family and their Dark rituals, the scorn and superior disgust that he saw on their faces when they looked at him, the sour, hate-filled bile that spewed from their mouths when they addressed him- all for being different from all the Slytherin-bred people that he was related to. He wanted to leave the antics of the student's far behind- the schemes, the betrayal, the never-ending lust for superiority and leadership, and the undermining plots to uproot the people they called friends. Sirius loathed the behaviour that surrounded him when he sat in the classrooms; the easy, hastily-constructed friendships that shattered at the whisper of a rumour, the casually dropped insinuations that flared bitter hatred that continued to simmer for years ahead.

The yearning to run through the forest grass and see things no human could -or would- ever see was unbearable, the building pressure pounding in Sirius head, making the blood circulate his body faster as adrenaline seeped into his system gradually, collecting speed as he began to move faster.

And then he was flying.

Wind whistled through his fur, ruffling the black hair into irregular and illegible patterns too complicated for Sirius to comprehend as he streaked through over the uneven earth, feeling the dried soil crumble beneath the pads of his feet. He made no sound as he slipped between the spindled trunks, his feet leaving not the barest hint of his passing.

Zipping through the leaves and splashes of moonlight like ghost, Sirius was vaguely aware of the flash of white on his left- it melted back into the array of varying shades of blacks and greys that formed the foliage before he had time to glance its way. Hoof-beats leaked into his acute hearing, and moments later a stag with a full head of antlers galloped into his vision. Sirius glanced at his companion, and uttered a low, raspy dog-laugh. A figure was clinging perilously to the crisp white fur of the stag, their head bent and their cutting through with ease.

Remus glared at him from behind James's antlers (A/N: If you don't think that's a weird sentiment, I advice you reread it.) as Siriusfailed to stop a second stream of bark-chuckles issuing from his lips. Remus opened his mouth and began throwing profanities at the running canine.

Sirius laughed again, and continued pelting through the forest with the stag and his rider right behind him.

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Eventually, Sirius slowed, allowing his spindly legs to fold underneath him and carry him to the cracked earth. Transformation began at the touch of the churned, dried mud.

The stag joined a now-human Sirius in the clearing moments later. Sirius glanced sideways at the advancing forms and lifted his head, a sly smirk already on his face.

The amusement that wafted off of him became almost tangible as Remus slid off the stag's back. His legs buckled and flopped onto the ground next to Sirius with relief.

"Hey Remmie. Have a nice trip?" Childhood innocence replaced the amusement as Remus glared at Sirius.

"Yeah, bloody brilliant. The best ride of my life." Sarcasm dripped from Remus's words like ice on a drainpipe.

"No need to get defensive, Remmikins." Sirius chuckled over his shoulder, walking deeper into the Forest as he did so. "Sarcasm so doesn't become yo-"

Without warning, Sirius slammed into a very immobile, very hard surface. A tree? Sirius didn't bother to look.

He flopped backwards and uttered a string of muttered swear words after completing a fancy movement which resulted in him landing flat on his back on the floor.

"Clever, but very spiteful Remus. I had believed such acts were beneath you." Sirius couldn't hold his grin back though as he turned to face the two buggers.

And froze, the grin sliding of his face in a silent wisp, at the sight that met his eyes.

Remus and James were standing as motionless and as white as statues; pure, unconventional terror evident on their faces. Around both their necks and waists, pale, blood-leached fingers were splayed, appearing fragile in the moonlight that filtered through the leaves above their heads- but one glance at their owner's faces assured you that they were far from fragile.

Two people restrained them; a man and a woman. Ethereal, other-worldly beauty clung to them like a second skin, and their eyes glinted violet in the moonlight, burning with the incredible, insatiable thirst of an animal. Cold rushed over Sirius as he drank in more of the scene in front of him; the people's ragged, blood splattered attires, their dirt-clogged fingers, their tangled hair, matted with soil and dried blood. So this was what you got when you dumped a mass-murderer in a forest with no change of clothes.

Despair flooded his thoughts as the realisation that he had known all along poured into his mind; he knew who- or, more specifically, what- these people were, and one glance at Remus told Sirius he knew as well.

There was no way in hell they would survive this; the three of them knew that fact, so did the formidable people who had sprung upon them so unexpectedly with the skill and practised ease of a professional hunter- even the bloody carrion birds now wheeling in the sky, silhouetted against the moon above them knew that; they were flocking together in expectation like a sales-assistant to an unsuspecting customer.

Sirius was certain of one thing at least; they were well and truly scuppered.

A small voice echoed in his head, telling him that he could run, there were only two of them, and three hostages; they would be distracted, and he may just be able to escape with his life.

At the expense of the only real friends he had.

The thoughts were instantly quashed and shovelled into the farthest corner of his mind before guilt could overtake his actions.

That was when Sirius realised that cold patches had appeared on his body. On his neck, and around his waist.

Hands of another one of Them.

There were three of them after all.

Sirius didn't attempt to struggle with the iron bands that were wrapping around him, encasing him in an unbreakable cage. He knew what they belonged to, and he knew the possibility of escape was futile now. Rasping breaths whistled in his ear, accompanied by the vile stench of decaying flesh; Sirius dry-retched. Blackness clouded his vision as the stench increased as the man holding him brought his mouth closer to him. He caught a flash next his right ear; the man's fangs, outstretched glistening with blood and saliva.

Before he sank into unconsciousness, Sirius thought mildly and was slight annoyance.

We only came for some bloody Lacewing Flies.

A/N: Short but defiantly one of my best I'm a-thinking. And once again, I'm infinitely sorry for the delay; with Christmas, and my birthday; my fathers, my cousins… … and then writers block- you know the deal.

Oh, and all you Broken lovers out there- also updated, but it won't show up on your alerts because I replaced an earlier memo chapter with an actual one. So go and enjoy! And review both stories, we mustn't forget that!

AT