A/N:

Not my sandbox, just my sand castle. I don't own anything from Harry Potter. Additionally, no one has permission to bind and sell my works, fandom or otherwise. I can't believe in this day and age we have to go back to making this disclaimer. Shame on you for exploiting other people's works!

Additionally, no part of this work may be used or reproduced in any manner for the purpose of training artificial intelligence technologies or systems. (Thanks Penguin Random House for the wording, and good on you for protecting intellectual properties!)

No Thoughts, head empty :)

This goes up wet with no beta! I hope you enjoy :)

Word Count: 472

Disclaimers/Warnings: none, but let me know if you guys think there should be.

Summary: Ted flees because he knows it's the only way to keep his wife and daughter safe. Bellatrix is tasked with hunting him down.

Prompts:

Hogwarts School Of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Assignment 5

History of Magic with Professor Bex

Task 3: Write about someone feeling/being hunted.

"Outrun"

Ted's breaths came out in measured pants, ragged but not painfully so. He had lost sight of the others he had been with as he dashed through the forest, but that just meant that they each had a greater chance of success in staying alive. As soon as the Snatchers had come to the house to 'round up all of the Muggleborns', Ted knew he had to leave for his wife's sake. As a Black, she would have slaughtered them all to protect him, which only would have prompted a greater retaliation by Voldemort's forces. He had departed with a soul-searing kiss and a promise to see her again.

He hadn't counted on his most insane sister-in-law to be part of the pack hunting him down.

Thankful that he had kept up with a basic exercise routine after Nymphadora was born, Ted continued to run. The sounds of spellfire filled the forest around him, but he just kept going. Occasionally changing direction and zigzaging to make sure he was a harder target to hit, he couldn't help but wish he had left the country months ago when the first signs had come of the Ministry falling.

"Bombarda!" shouted a cackling voice from his left and Ted threw himself out of the way of the spell, landing heavily in the dirt and leaves.

"Bellatrix," Ted greeted his demented sister-in-law–the one who eerily could have been his own wife's twin–as he stood back up, brushing leaves and twigs off of himself.

"Teddy," Bellatrix replied, her voice mockingly close to the baby-talk he used to use with his own daughter.

"Fancy seeing you here," he joked, relaxing back into a dueller's stance he had once seen Professor Flitwick use in a demonstration back in his fifth year at Hogwarts. Bellatrix let out an ungodly cackle.

"I jumped at the opportunity to bring you in. I finally have the chance to erase my sister's shame. And after I deal with you, I'll go after your daughter–"

"She's a metamorphagus, you know," Ted volunteered, inching towards a particularly thick tree. Bellatrix's eyes widened almost imperceptibly. "Andi told me that particular piece of magic had been lost to the Black family for almost four generations at that point." He suddenly dodged behind the tree while sending a blasting curse of his own back at her. Without waiting for her to recover, he took off running again. He wanted to get out of range of her spells as fast as he could. If he could get close to the channel, he could Apparate to France, seek asylum there…or at the very least try to blend in with Muggle London.

Hearing Bellatrix's rage-filled scream echoing in the forest behind him only furthered his resolve. He'd have to wait them all out, for the sake of his family, or die trying.