Disclaimer- All cannon characters belong to JK Rowling and anyone else belongs to me just like the plot, unless stated otherwise. It will likely be awhile until I can add another chapter or update this story. I've got a lot of other things I'm working on now; school assignments and stuff but this fan fic will be one of my top priorities. Please bear with me-Gadget

Also, Diogenes Pendergast belongs to Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child. That he is a werewolf is something of my design, not something from their novels. Thanks for reading, how about a review? Sorry for the wait, just a few more chapters to go until I've finished this fic and then I'll get to work on the next one and back to my DMC fics. -Gadget.

CHAPTER 9

Remus Lupin's POV

Two nights after Aly's sudden arrival, the full moon that was the same color as blood rose in the sky. I stalked through the Forbidden Forest, nose to the wind as I searched for the other werewolf. I couldn't smell him, but then I could only vaguely smell the difference between his human and wolf scents. His wolf smelt woodsy, but we were in a forest and that was nearly all I could smell.

That was when I saw a flash of white out the corner of my eye. I ran after him, pouncing on his back when I was close enough and he snapped his teeth at me. We rolled over and over, snapping and biting at each other. It was just a game but we were starting to get a little out of control.

He bit my ear and I yelped, twisting about to bite his. He growled and pinned me to the ground, pushing his muzzle into my neck. Then he jumped to his feet and ran away, stopping when he reached a clearing where the moonlight was nearly as bright as the day.

I made my way to him and plopped onto my stomach beside him. Aly nudged me playfully and I lifted a paw to swat at him. He dunked his head and brushed against my side. I lowered my face and licked around his muzzle; he made a pleased sound and burrowed into me as the sun rose. In moments we were both asleep on the forest floor.

I woke up on the hard wooden floor of the Shrieking Shack with Aly standing in the shadows as he pulled on his clothes. His back was to me and I saw even more of the scars I had witnessed a few nights ago but these were more ghastly and had likely been more painful.

I got slowly to my feet, edging closer to him while he wasn't aware that I was awake. His shirt still lay on the ground and while I had the chance, I let my eyes wander over the many scars that marred his pale flesh. Each and every single one of them was pearly white, shaped like claw marks and I could only imagine the pain he had felt when he'd received them.

"They're from my brother," He said without looking at me.

"What?"

Now he turned around, sliding the white shirt over his shoulders. "The scars are from my brother; our wolves used to fight when we were children."

It was the first time he had actually talked to me about Diogenes and I moved still closer to him; I wanted to touch him. I wanted to touch the scars that his brother had left, I ached to touch them. His skin was cool under my fingertips and the scars were very smooth, the texture of them almost felt like satin. His silver eyes watched me from beneath half closed lids as my fingers touched every inch of exposed and damaged flesh.

"He…didn't have any scars," I whispered finally.

Aly looked away. "Diogenes is my younger brother and my responsibility. I couldn't hurt him like he did me, as evil as he was…I still loved him."

I nodded although I didn't fully understand the obligations that siblings held for each other. Aly turned away, buttoning up his shirt and moving to look out the window. I suddenly realized that I was nude and suddenly very cold.

"Let's have a day to ourselves Remus," He said, his tone light and playful as if he hadn't just been talking about his hated sibling. "I don't really feel up to returning to the castle." He tossed me a smile over his shoulder.

I smiled up at him. I didn't want to go back to the castle either.

PAGEBREAK

Alessandro Malfoy hadn't made any friends yet, even though it was already late November. He didn't have the same charisma as his cousin, uncle or even his father and he was nowhere near as confident as they were. He spent most of his time near the edge of the school's boarders while he did his homework.

He didn't like Hogwarts all that much, his family had told him that it would be a very good experience but so far all he had 'experienced' was boredom and ridicule. All because he hadn't been sorted into Slytherin; he'd been placed in Hufflepuff. The professors were nice to him, especially the flight instructor but then again, he was nice to everyone. Even Professor Snape. Actually, now that Alessandro thought about, Instructor Spencer was nicer to Snape than he was anyone else. He heard older students say that they were dating but he knew they were lying to him, trying to goad him into something foolish. He knew it had to be a lie because he knew that two boys didn't date. It was just… impossible… and weird.

Alessandro sighed as he closed his Transfiguration book, tired from all the studying he had been doing. Studying was all he had to do since he didn't have any friends. Looking up at the sky, he realized that he had better get back to the castle before the sun set. He pushed his books, quills and ink holder into his back pack and slung the thing over his shoulder.

"Hello there child,"

He whipped around, nearly dropping his bag in fright. A woman stood on the path back to the castle. The woman was unlike anyone he had ever seen before, even living in the Wizarding World like he did with all its wonders and strange creatures. She was very tall, probably the tallest woman he had ever seen. But the really weird thing was that the woman had blue skin and purple hair.

"H-hi," He said uncertainly. "Who-who are you?"

"My name is Vertus," The woman told him.

"Vertus?" He asked. "That's not a name; it's Latin for 'truth'." His cousin had taught him Latin phrases before he'd come to school and he still remembered a lot of them. It was an interesting language.

"You're right, it is Latin, but it's also my name." She smiled. "And what is your name?"

"Alessandro," He told her, his young voice shaking with nerves.

"Italian for 'defender'," Vertus said with a smile.

"Really?" He asked, picking up his back-pack and holding it to his chest protectively.

"Yes, Alessandro. Are you a student here?"

He nodded. "Uhuh,"

The smile grew by several teeth. "Then you know Halo Spencer."

"Yeah, he's my Flight Instructor."

"I want you to give him something for me…"

SNAPE'S POV

Halo withered underneath me, purring with satisfaction. I kissed him gently, licking over his lips as we moved against each other. Lupin and Pendergast had gone off to share the full moon, it was the weekend and I had given my class work to Clawsyn. Halo and I had the night to ourselves; the first we'd had in several days.

He pulled my head down for a more thorough kiss and I felt the beginning tingle of orgasm. I pulled his chest against mine and nipped his tongue as his hands slid down my back. I thrust harder and he gasped as I brushed against his prostate.

"Shit Sev," He murmured.

"I love you," The tingle had become stronger, more insistent as I neared my peak.

"You…you promised… Jesus Sev, right there…" He sucked in his breath and I felt him release hotly between our joined bodies. I kissed him again, rocking into him hard and fast until I too came.

"I love you," I whispered again, leaving a trail of kisses along his face and neck as my heart pounded in my ears.

"Sev,"

"I know, Halo, I know." I had promised that I wouldn't say those three words to him. He didn't give me a reason as to why he didn't want me to say them but I didn't care. Our love was shown by our actions and not our words. Clichéd, I know, but still true.

I waved my wand over the both of us, cleaning away all the evidence of our lovemaking. I knew that we were both too sore to get up and take a shower.

"Can't breathe, squishing me," He muttered.

I moved carefully off him and lay down beside him, sliding my arm beneath his head. "Sorry,"

"It's okay Sev," His eyelids drooped a little.

"Sleepy?" I asked.

He smiled. "You wore me out,"

"And here I am, hoping for another round,"

He laughed at that and turned to snuggle into my side. I hugged him to me and bit his ear playfully. He chuckled and tickled my sides to get me to move away. I sighed and moved away like he wanted, giving him space to stretch out.

"Good night Sev," He said.

I poked him in the ribs. "What? No second round?" He chuckle lightly.

"Night Severus,"

I smiled. "Good night Halo."

POP!

Halo and I both moved apart, my wand spinning forward in my hand as Halo's erupted into flame.

"Please don't hurt Betulio!" A high pitched voice screamed and I lowered my wand at the sight of the mangy House Elf. "The Headmaster sent Betulio to find you. He needs the both of you to go to the Hospital Wing now." Another pop and the creature was gone in a little puff of smoke.

"What in the fuck is going on?" Halo exclaimed.

Halo's POV

Sev and I were dressed in record time and heading toward the Hospital Wing before either of us had time to complain about the lack of sleep. The castle ghosts stayed out of my way as I tore down the corridors at top speed with Sev struggling to keep up. Professor Sprout was just entering as I rounded the corner.

"Professor," I huffed, sliding to a stop. Sev crashed into a half second later, using my shoulder for balance. "What's happened? What's going on?"

The plump woman opened the heavy doors and led us inside. "A body was found on the grounds," She told us.

"A… a body?" Sev asked lowly.

"Of a student," Tears sprang to her eyes and I put my arm around her shoulders. Obviously it was one the students from Hufflepuff or the Headmaster would not have summoned her too. "The Headmaster has asked all of us here while we wait for the child's parents to arrive. This is horrible Halo, just horrible."

I felt Sev squeeze my arm. "Who is the child?"

Professor Sprout looked over her shoulder at us. "It's Alessandro," She murmured.

Sev pressed his hand against my spine as I swayed with shock. I licked my suddenly dry lips but it didn't get rid of the cotton feeling in my mouth. "Who found him?" I forced myself to ask.

"The Headmaster found him while he was taking a walk on the grounds."

Sev's hand tightened on the back of my shirt; a silent warning. Abruptly, the Headmaster stepped into my view and grabbed me away from Sev and Professor Sprout. He didn't say anything to me, but his expression held anger unlike any I had ever witnessed in the man.

PAGEBREAK

"Young master Malfoy will live," Dumbledore said and I let out a sigh of relief. "His parents have requested that he be transferred to St. Mungo's within the next hour."

I let my hand fall into my hands with relief. "Thank the gods,"

"Indeed you must Halo," The Headmaster said. "You know who it was that injured him."

I looked up and I felt the color drain from my face. What Dumbledore had said had not been a question; he knew that Alessandro's injuries were somehow related to me. I stayed silent, heart pounding in my ears.

"He was attacked by a Sidhe, Halo," He told me. "And this Sidhe left a message for you…"

The Headmaster threw a crumpled scrap of paper onto his desk. At the top of the paper was a symbol I had hoped I would never see again.

PAGEBREAK

By the time the sun had risen, Diogenes Pendergast had had a lot of fun under the full moon. Of course, his definition of 'fun' was very different from that of most peoples. And by the time he'd had his fill of the preternatural power his fur had been covered in blood. He'd bathed in a local stream right as the sun had risen; now he walked back to Hogsmeade in stolen clothes.

Once he had got back to the hotel he would take a more thorough shower and put on his own clothes. Then, Diogenes guessed he would just lie around and annoy Vertus. The Sidhe woman was fun to banter with because she was so different from modern women. The world that she had grown up in was so different from his, so exotic, along with her temperament that Diogenes actually found her company refreshing. Vertus actually had a few things in common with his elder brother. Her way of speaking, for instance, was very similar to Aloysius'.

…."The Headmaster wants us back at the castle."

"Did he say why?"

Diogenes knew that voice and he quickly stopped in some random doorway to listen. He hadn't heard his brother's voice for years, not in person anyway, always over the phone or some other recording device.

"Halo has something he wants to tell everyone, and we're on the top of the list." The first voice said and after a moment, Diogenes recognized it as the raspy voice of Remus Lupin.

That's odd, He thought. What's dear brother doing with the little wolf?

His brother sighed softly as the two of them walked past. The red-wolf's heart leapt into his throat when he saw just how close together the two men were walking. Their closeness wouldn't have registered as odd to any passerby, but Diogenes knew that Aloysius greatly loved having his own space. There was something growing between them, something unseen, a relationship of some kind.

Are they lovers? Already? The plan is moving much faster than I had thought it would….

"Very well," His brother said to Remus. "We'll take a rain check on today."

More soon guys, just let me type it all up. -Gadget.