AN: I am sooooooooo sorry! I tried to get this out earlier, but my muses totally deserted me! I love my wonderful readers, especially my wonderful reviewers, and I will try to never go this long without update again!

Disclaim Her: It's not mine, people.

Chapter 24: Hunger

It was not long, really, before ten came around. I almost forgot to stop the tree. I held it still for about fifteen minutes, figuring that Ron would have been there early, and knowing that any longer would be a risk. He finally came up the stairs to the upper level, looking worse for wear. I briefly considered asking what had happened, but I dismissed it, certain that he would tell me soon anyway. He squinted, and I realized just how blind he was compared to me. There was no light in the shack at all, not even sunlight coming through the cracks in the walls anymore, yet I could see perfectly. Finally, Ron's eyes adjusted to the darkness, and he noticed me.

"Harry," Ron gasped, panting. "Thank Merlin. I was worried."

"Why were you worried?"

"Fudge came to arrest you today."

"What?" I stood up, angry, my eyes blazing. Arrest me? I had expected it, but not this soon, and the idea filled me with rage.

"Take it easy, mate!" I took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm down. It almost worked. I turned, and demolished rail on the staircase with my hands, which were now tipped in claws. Finally, after three more, I turned back to Ron, now calm enough to speak at least, and a lot less likely to kill him just for giving me the news.

"What do you mean, 'came to arrest me'?"

"He showed up with five Dementors, and said that he had come to take you to Azkaban. Hermione told him that you killed Snape. They weren't even going to bother with a trial."

I was confused. "Why would fudge care if an ex-Death Eater turns up dead? Isn't that a job for the Aurors?"

"Professor Dumbledore has been pressing for your execution. He released a statement saying that you were a dangerous dark creature, and that you were going to join Voldemort, and that you would only kill more people if you were allowed to live."

I snorted. "Well, I should have expected that. At least he got most of it right."

"...Harry?"

"Well, I am a dangerous dark creature. And I am going to kill more people."

The idea did not appeal to Ron.

"You don't really mean that, do you? I mean, once everything calms down, there's no reason that you can't come back. I'm sure they would understand..."

I sighed, realizing just how ignorant Ron really was about the situation. He seemed to actually think that I would be able to return to life as a student.

"Ron. I am a dark creature," I spoke softly, drilling the words into his head. "I have tasted blood. I have killed. And I will do it again. Things are not going to calm down. They will get worse. And I will be in the middle of it all. I can never come back."

He shook his head, disbelieving. "But...what are you going to do?"

"I'm starting my own side. Feel free to sign up."

"Harry, you know I'll be there for you no matter what. But what about Dumbledore? And how are you going to...'recruit'?"

I opened my mouth to answer, but I heard something strange coming from down the stairs. I gestured for Ron to be silent, and crept down the stairs, blending into the shadows so thoroughly that there was no chance that I would be found. I reveled in my ability to simply disappear, and took my time in getting down. When I did, I was surprised by what I found.

Apparently Ginny had followed Ron, and the sound I heard was her climbing through the entrance to the shack. She was breathing heavily and peering around in the dark, trying to adjust her eyes to the complete lack of light. I shook my head in disbelief. I didn't feel like revealing myself just yet, so I watched her fumble around blindly fro a while until it got boring, then I came up behind her, and grabbed both of her arms, pinning them behind her back to keep her from attacking me as I...I didn't know what I was going to do. I just knew that I did not want my prey to fight back. The word 'prey' should have set off alarms in my head, but I was already too far gone to notice. She tried to scream, but I put a hand over her mouth and told her to be quiet. She must have recognized my voice, because she immediately relaxed. It was a dangerous thing to do. For the first time since I had woken up, I was getting...hungry, and the smell of her fear was intoxicating. I couldn't pinpoint the exact feeling, but it was hard to resist the urge to rip out her throat, which was right in front of me. I leaned forward, and I was about to...but I heard a soft 'Harry?' come from the creature in front of me. I recoiled in horror, realizing what I had been about to do, and threw her away from me. I panted, shocked at the thoughts that had been flowing through my head. She had scratched her arm in the tunnel, and it was bleeding. I could smell it from across the room, and it did not help my situation at all. I turned away with great difficulty, and ran up the stairs, leaving a bewildered Ginny behind.

"Ron," I gasped when I got back up the stairs. "Ginny followed you. Please deal with her, but neither of you leave."

He gave me a strange look. "Alright, mate. But...what happened?"

"I almost took a bite out of her."

"WHAT?"

"Look, I'll explain later. Please, Ron. Take care of her, make sure she doesn't freak out, and I'll be back soon. Okay?"

He nodded, looking at me like I had grown another head. I climbed up the wall, ignoring the shocked gasp that came from the stairs, where Ginny apparently was standing after following me up, and moved one of the rotted boards on the wall over so I could get out. I crawled out onto the roof of the shrieking shack and crouched down, staring hungrily at the sight of Hogsmeade, filled with people. Wizards, to be specific, full of life and magic and blood.

I breathed in the sharp smell of the night, and was gone.