Chapter Eleven

A Quidditch Game and the Full Moon

The first Quidditch game of the year was coming up, and the whole school was buzzing with excitement. The Slytherins were fiercely determined not to lose to Gryffindor, and we were just as determined to win. In three days, I would be flying on a broom in front of nearly six hundred students, plus about twelve people in staff. Was I nervous? In a word, no.

-xXx-

Wednesday brought about a whole new batch of problems. I had gone down to breakfast in the Great Hall for no particular reason, other than to watch whatever strange events would take place that morning. I had been down there for no more that two minutes when I heard footsteps behind me. The person who's scent I recognized as Sirius, had been trying to sneak up on me, but he wasn't even close to being quiet enough.

"Hello Sirius," I said when he was ten feet away from me.

"How'd you know I was here?" he asked, picking up his pace to stand behind me.

"Sirius, I'm a vampire. I can hear a heartbeat in Australia, I can smell you from the other side of the castle, I can see each fiber in a splinter of wood, I can taste every grain of salt and sugar in a scone, and by running my hand over a shirt, I can feel every fiber in a piece of thread. So when you try to sneak up on me, you will fail miserably every time." I said, whispering just loudly enough so he could hear me.

"Right, it's just a little odd to hear you talking about being a vampire. And I'm still just trying to get used to it. I mean, you know a person for three years, and then you learn that they're something that makes them different, it just takes a while to get used to. Wait a minute, is that why Remus and Parker call you Fangs?" Sirius whispered, finally understanding.

"Uh-huh," I said sarcastically, nodding my head.

"Ha ha, very funny, Asana," he said.

"Okay, so what did you want?" I asked, picking up my goblet that some lovely house elf had filled with crow's blood.

"Right, Marauder meeting, and we are requesting your presence." Sirius said, giving me a mock bow.

"Right, I'm going to say, no." I said, taking a large mouthful of blood, and drinking hungrily.

"Okay, no isn't an option, you're coming with me." he said, taking me by the arm, making me stand up.

"But I don't wanna!" I said, using an annoying high pitched whinny voice. He sighed, and said,

"Nope, not going to work," and he picked me up. He slung me over his shoulder, and carried me over to the rest of the Marauders, and Parker.

"Sirius, I swear to Merlin, if you don't put me down this instant, I will drain you dry," I growled. But by this time we were already over there, so he put me down.

"Happy now?" he asked.

"No, you made me leave my- uh- drink over by me seat, and I wasn't done yet." I whined.

"Well, oh well, if you had just come when I asked, you would still have it." Sirius said, giving me a cheeky grin.

"James, please?" I asked, giving him my best puppy dog look. He just grinned and nodded, saying,

"Alright, I'll be the nice guy."

"Thank you James!" I said, using my sweet voice. He winked and walked to the end of the table.

"You know that you could have just used accio and have it come to you," Remus pointed out.

"Yeah, but then I would have to take out my wand, remember the spell, and wait for it to come to me, and then I would have to use my energy to catch it." I said, shrugging. When he came back, I took the goblet from him, and drank hungrily, finishing the blood. When I pulled the goblet away from my mouth, I heard a faint clang and knew that my fangs must have slid out, so I closed my eyes and focused on them going back to normal.

"Okay, so what did you need me for at the oh-so important Marauder meeting?" I asked, putting the goblet on the table.

"Right, yeah. We're plotting a new prank." James started.

"Let me cut to the chase. Exactly what are you doing, and why am I here?" I asked, growing impatient.

"Well someone woke up on the wrong side of the coffin," Sirius said, earning him a dark glare from Parker.

"She doesn't sleep in a coffin, she sleep in a bed, you dolt." Parker growled.

"Right, well-" James started, but was interrupted by a sneer. I turned around and was surprised to see Malfoy and Crabbe.

"Look at this, Mudbloods and Mudblood lovers all sitting together. It's disgusting." Malfoy sneered. I felt Sirius and Remus tense up on either side of me. I sighed and stood up, knowing that this wasn't going to end well.

"What do you want Malfoy?" I growled.

"How dare you speak to me you filthy Mudblood. Someone needs to teach you a lesson." He said, pulling out his wand and pointing it at me. I just gave him a small grin and said,

"Do you really think that you can scare me with a piece of wood?" He raised his wand, glared, and said,

"Once a Mudblood, always a Mudblood. Even refers to a wand as just a piece of wood." He raised his wand, and time seemed to slow down. I saw his lips open, and I moved out of the way, using my enhanced reflexes, knowing that the way we were standing, the spell would hit one of the teachers. He said a spell that erupted from the wand, streaking past me in a blur of dark purple. I knew that whoever it hit, would be incredibly unlucky. I heard a shout, and spun around to see Professor Sprout clutching

Professor Flitwick.

"Holy Merlin," I gasped. From where I stood, I could hear that Flitwick's heartbeat had slowed down dramatically.

"Oops, my mistake. Either way, you need to learn to keep your filthy mouth shut." Malfoy sneered, turning and stalking off.

"Asana, why did you do that?" Remus asked, sighing.

"Because the bastard doesn't scare me, and he needs to learn that." I said, sitting back down and staring longingly at my empty goblet, wishing that it still held it's former liquid. Almost as if I had said a spell, or said anything, it was once again filled with sticky red liquid. I inhaled deeply and knew that it wasn't a normal animal's blood. It was the blood from a threstle. Odd, I thought, but didn't think too much about it.

-xXx-

The first Quidditch game of the year brought the school outside, even though it was a little past the middle of October. James, Sirius, Parker, and I were in the change room, putting on our scarlet Quidditch robes.

"Alright, let's go kick some Slytherin-" Drake started, but was cut off by Parker shouting,

"Let's kick their asses!" That earned lots of applauding, and a dark look from Drake, even though he was grinning.

We walked onto the pitch, the whole crowd cheering, aside from the jeering Slytherin.

"And welcome to the first Quidditch game of the season. I'll be your commentator for the match. On the Gryffindor team we have, James Potter, Anthony Childes, and Kathie Morningside as Chasers, Sirius Black and Parker Brown as Beaters, Drake Reynolds as Keeper, and Asana Russet as Seeker." announced third year Ravenclaw, Benjy Fenwick. He announced the Slytherin team, and Madam Hooch walked onto the pitch. She made the captains shake hands, and the game started. We mounted our brooms, and kicked off of the ground.

"Quaffle goes up, taken by Potter, passes to Childes, passes to Morningside, back to Potter. Gryffindor scores! 10-0, Gryffindor in the lead." Benjy announced. Ever since the Snitch had been released, I hadn't taken my eyes off of it. At that point, it was above the Slytherin Keeper's head. I didn't want to make it obvious, so I would be waiting a while.

"Quaffle goes to Avery, passes to Malfoy, intercepted by Childes. Passes to Morningside, passes to Potter, back to Childes. Gryffindor scores! 20-0, Gryffindor leading." This continued on for a while, until Slytherin scored. They scored three times, and then a Bludger came soaring toward me. It would've taken my head off if I hadn't rolled over, dangling from my ankles and hands, letting loose a string of profanities the whole time.

"Asana!" somebody shouted as it flew over my broom. I recognized the voice as James' and rolled my eyes. That was when I realized that I had used my vampire reflexes, moving faster than any mortal could have. I pulled myself onto my broom, and waved to the crowd, showing that I was okay. They cheered.

I closed my eyes, focusing on the sound of the Snitch's wings. My eyes snapped open, and I looked directly at it, this time near mid-pitch, near the ground. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw that Rosier was learning on his broom, flying toward the Snitch. I flattened myself against my broom, flying straight down. A Bludger flew by me, but I almost didn't notice. I was about a foot above the ground, when I leveled out, gaining speed. I had been near the Gryffindor goal posts, but it only took me a few seconds to get to the line that marked the very middle of the pitch.

"The Seekers are neck and neck, racing to get to the Snitch first!" Benjy shouted. At this point, the rest of the game had pretty much stopped, some of the players flying around to get a better look.

When I got to the line that marked the middle of the pitch, I sharply turned left, going as fast as I could, but Rosier and I were trying to gain more speed. We hurtled across the field, but I just couldn't get a lead on him, I knew I would loose, so it was time to go to drastic measures. I jumped off of my broom, and somehow managed to land on my feet, grasping the Snitch in my hand.

Unfortunately, Rosier didn't stop, and plowed into me. I heard at least three of my ribs break, I was thrown backward, landing on my back. I heard my spine shatter. If I wasn't a vampire, I would have been paralyzed. My head hit the ground, and I heard it crack.

"Asana!" somebody shrieked. I recognized the voice, and felt the pounding of feet as people ran toward me. I opened my eyes, and I saw Rosier smirking.

"This is your last warning, learn some respect." he whispered so that only I could hear him. Then he stalked off. Next thing I knew, I was looking into a pair of golden eyes. They were staring into mine, a combination of anger and fright in them. The full moon must be tonight, I thought.

"Are you okay?" he whispered.

"My ribs and spine are shattered, and the back of my skull is badly cracked." I whispered back.

"Will you be okay?" he asked.

"In a day, I'll be back to normal." I said, giving him a small smile. Remus called Poppy over, and told her what was wrong. I was levitated off the ground when I remembered something.

"Here," I said, giving Remus the Snitch.

"Asana," he said, sounding exasperated.

"Give it to Drake, or he'll give me hell about it later." I said, sliding my gaze from the Snitch, back to Remus.

"Tell them that I'll be fine. From here I can here I can feel how upset Parker is." I said, whispering so that only he could hear me. He nodded and I heard Benjy say,

"An unbelievable catch made by Seeker Russet gives Gryffindor the first win of the season. I don't know how she makes these catches and still lives. This one earning her a one way trip to the Hospital Wing for a few tests, just to make sure that nothing is too serious."

Poppy brought me up to the Hospital Wing, and gently put me on a cot.

"Do you want a potion or-" she started, but she wasn't sure how to finish.

"Or, definitely." I said, giving her a small smile. She walked over to a locked cabinet, and returned a few seconds later with a large bottle of blood. One sniff told me that it was lion's blood. I finished it quickly and felt myself getting drowsy. I closed my eyes, and fell asleep. The dream scared me, and it takes a lot to scare me.

I looked around, and quickly came to the conclusion that I was in a rundown shack. Then I heard the shrieks coming from the second floor. I ran up the stairs and saw Remus on the floor, squirming and scratching at the floorboards. I knew what had to be coming, so I ran back downstairs, and started looking for a way out. I tried to climb out a window, but got a painful stinging feeling. I tried to go out the door, but got the same result. By now, I was starting to panic. The shrieks had turned to growls and howls. That meant that he had transformed. A single thought entered my mind: run, and get out.

I looked around, trying to find a way out. That was when I heard the creaking floorboards above. Crap, I thought, he knows I'm here, and he's coming to get me. I allowed my vampire side to come out. If it came down to a fight, I would need every advantage that I could get. I heard him come down the stairs and I had to reminding myself that this wasn't Remus. It would try to kill me if it got close enough, and I needed to keep my head on straight.

It entered the room, and I made an odd squeaking sound. The werewolf stood at least six feet tall, with silver fur and golden eyes. The eyes didn't have their normal warmth and kindness, instead they held fury and hatred. Long claws scraped the floor, leaving long grooves in the floorboards. It growled from low in it's throat, and opened it's mouth, revealing three inch long fangs, dripping with saliva. It's ears were pricked, listening to every sound. It advanced on me slowly, prolonging my terror.

I stayed on the balls of my feet, bouncing a little. It got so close that it's warm breath tickled my cheeks. My eyes were wide in fright. I wasn't sure if I could fight this thing. The person inside was my best friend, and I would never do anything to hurt him. But this isn't Remus! My mind seemed to be screaming. Then, it hurled itself at me. It's claws dug into my side. I could feel my blood trickling down my legs, and pooling on the floor. It lowered it's head, looking me in the eye. Nothing but anger, hatred, and aggression were there. It wanted to kill me. I took a deep breath, inhaling every scent that I could.

I was surprised to smell candy, butter beer, and tea of all things. The Shrieking Shack! my mind seemed to scream. The werewolf moved slightly, and I saw a tunnel in the corner. I knew that this might be my only chance. I jumped as high as I could, and did a sort of front flip over it's head. I landed on my feet and pelted out through the tunnel. I could hear it behind me, chasing me. I could see light up ahead.

I kept running until I came above ground. That was when I noticed the willow branches waving around viciously. I ducked just as one came toward my head. I kept running, weaving in and out of the way of the branches. I heard a yelp from behind me, and had a feeling that the werewolf hadn't been as lucky as I had. I kept running until I was out of the way of the tree. I turned around to look at the werewolf, but I wasn't watching where I was going, and ran, head first, into a tree. I fell to the ground, and blacked out.

Almost immediately, my eyes snapped open, but I was still outside, I was still next to the tree, and I could still hear the werewolf howling behind me. I looked down and saw that I was still bleeding heavily, except now the wound stung. That was when I realized that I was awake, I was outside, and I was still in terrible danger. I stood up on trembling legs, and looked around. The werewolf was about twenty feet behind me, but it was laying on it's side, whimpering. I looked at the moon, but couldn't see it. But the sun was just visible on the horizon. So Remus must be changing back.

I watched as his legs snapped and fixed themselves, watched as his spine morphed back to normal, watched as his snout shrank back into his face. The whole time, the werewolf was whimpering, until it turned to shrieks and moans. This continued until I was watching Remus laying there, moaning. I realized that I was still wearing my school cloak, so I rushed over, took it off, and covered Remus with it. He opened his eyes to slits, and then his eyes were just about bulging out of his head when he saw me.

"Welcome back to the world of humans," I whispered. Suddenly, my side seemed to erupt with pain. I hissed through my teeth and clutched my side. Remus rolled over and stared at my side.
"Holy Merlin, did I do that?" Remus whispered, looking terrified. I nodded and continued to clutch my side.

"I didn't bite you, did I?" he asked, looking horrified.

"No, you just got me with your claws." I hissed though my teeth again. That was when I crumpled to the ground, grasping my side tightly.

Remus stood up, wrapped my cloak more tightly around him (since it was at least three sixes to small), walked over to me, and easily picked me up.

"I'm taking you to Poppy, and don't even try to argue with me," Remus said. He carried me over to the steps and through the big wooden doors. When we got up to the Hospital Wing, Remus called out to Poppy, and she quickly came bustling over.

"HOLY HELL! REMUS WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?" she shrieked at the top of her lungs.

"AND ASANA, WHY DID YOU LEAVE?" she continued. I raised my head from where it had been resting on Remus' chest, and explained what had happened. After I had finished, she ordered Remus to put me onto the first cot, and told him to get into the one next to it. After she rushed off to get some stuff for Remus and me, Remus turned to me and whispered,

"So what do you think you did, sleep walked?" I shrugged and said,

"I don't know, I've never done it before. I don't know why I would start now." Then Poppy came back, holding a goblet that held a potion that smelled nothing short of horrible, and a canister of pale pink paste. She handed the goblet to Remus (thankfully), and came toward me with the pink paste. She put the canister on the small table next to my bed, and closed the curtain around my bed. She made me take my shirt off, and put it at the foot of my bed.

"Okay, this is really going to sting," she warned.

"Oh great," I said sarcastically. She made a face at me and poured some of the paste into the palm of her hand. She raised her hand and started rubbing it into the wound on my side. When she first started, I cried out in pain. It felt like my wound had been set on fire.

"I'm sorry honey," she said sympathetically. After she had been doing it for a while, the stinging died down, but it had started throbbing. After she had finished, pinkish smoke curled up from the wound, and it seemed to make a howling sound. I knew what the paste was doing, it was getting every last bit of werewolf venom out of my body. That didn't mean that it didn't make me want to rip all of the hair out of my head.

After it stopped steaming, it stopped hurting all together, and felt warm. But, it still hadn't healed yet. Poppy went over to a cabinet and came back with a large roll of bandages, a needle, and some surgical thread. After she had finished sewing me up, (and I had finished screaming in pain) she started bandaging me. By the time she was finished bandaging me, my stomach was covered, from my sternum to my hips.

"You won't be allowed out of here for at least a week, and after that, you'll have to come back twice a day to get your dressings changed." Poppy said, handing me a pair of cotton pajamas. I changed gingerly, not wanting my stitches to get torn. After I had slipped under the covers, I called out to let Poppy know. Remus was still in the bed next to me, and after the curtains were pulled I looked over at him. He had also gotten some cotton pajamas. But, unlike me, he was asleep. I wanted to follow his example, but I was afraid that I would wake up and be outside again. Eventually, I couldn't fight sleep anymore, and fell into a deep, dreamless, sleep...