Amongst the Hunted Moons

Remus Lupin, The Forbidden forest.

It was a trick spell in the end that had caught Pettigrew, one, ironically enough, he had helped create. It was created by the Marauders back in their school days to turn an item transparent before yanking it to the caster quickly, the spell wasn't perfect, the transparency wasn't all that powerful or perfect so a keen eye could catch it, and the range was limited, and worst of all, it didn't summon something to your hand, you had to figure out where it was going and catch it. It was more of a string that you cast out before hooking it onto something and railing back like a Muggle fishing pole, the Marauders had created the spell to pass notes in class or snap something up that would get them in trouble before stuffing it out of view. The spell could work on anything smaller than a book, living flesh or not, the only thing it didn't work on is James' cloak, but not even the Accio charm worked on that damn thing.

So, after exams were done for the day and dinner was coming quickly, Lupin found himself in his office, organizing his notes of everything that he had gone over for each year in his tenure working at Hogwarts, while he hopes the curse may leave him whole and healthy, he honestly was more afraid If something happening to a student, but either way, he was going to leave a stack of organized notes for whoever the defense professor was next year, he was just about finished with it when he decided to take a peek at the mad, a quick sweep of it, checking the perimeter of the wards, that's when he saw something that made his blood run cold.

Peter was in the same room as Harry, he was in Hagrid's hut. He took off from his office, running full tilt through the school only slowing down to cast a Patronus with a message to Sirius of where the Rat was and where to meet him. As he leaves through the clock tower courtyard he checks the map again and sees that Peter hadn't left yet, and makes it to the Hut, sneaking around the side and peaking through the window he sees the Rat, sneaking around the bottles on the shelves on the other side of the Hut. He closes his eyes and hopes his prayer would be answered for a distraction for the occupants inside the but before casting out his wand in a quick circle and a flick. He feels his spell connect and knew he had the Rat as it goes translucent, the stove in the hut makes a loud pop just as he rails the rat to the window, catching it before conjuring a cloth bag and charming it to be unbreakable as a bottle falls and shatters on the floor of the hut.

"Don't even try it, Peter, the bag is charmed, you'll die if you try to transform while in there," Moony hisses at the bag as he shoves the map and his wand into the pocket of his robes as he walks into the forest.

Lupin walks for a while, thinking of their next move, they had to get Sirius, Peter, and Dumbledore in the same room without the Headmaster killing Sirius as soon as he saw him and Dumbledore was out of the castle at the moment on business. Soon enough he enters a clearing, cleared of underbrush with a circle of stones laid down in the middle of it as if the older students were trying ritual magic in it, worrying but not concerned by it at the moment, he walks down one of the three low hills that surround the clearing before he hears the sound of someone walking through it, turning to his right he sees a large black dog standing at the top of one of the other hills and runs over to meet it as it transforms back into Sirius.

"Did you get him?" He asks quickly as Moony approaches.

Lupin nods and holds up the bag with a smirk, "Right here, he won't be able to escape this time." Moony says with a smirk.

"Yes!" Sirius cheers, a grin full-blown on his face, as he claps his hand and jumps around like a kid at Yule time.

"We've got you now, you fucking rat!" Sirius says as he takes the bag from Remus, "How'd you pull it off with everyone in the Hut?" He asks.

"Vitrum et Hamo, hooked the bloody little bugger and pulled right through the open window," Moony says with a laugh, and Sirius starts to laugh as well, smiling a real smile for the first time in a long time.

"Okay, okay, enough with the back-patting," Sirius says, "What's our next move? Call in the Aurors?" Sirius asks.

Lupin shakes his head, "No, they'll come in with the dementors and won't ask questions, it's either Amelia bones or the Headmaster, and I think Dumbledore is our best bet at the moment, don't give me that look, Sirius." Moony says at the angry look on his friend's face.

"He can offer you sanctuary in the castle, after you throw Peter at his feet and punch him in the nose," Moony says, "The problem is that he's out of the castle right now, we could always go to Minnie, you can be transformed during and let me do the talking, hopefully, Dumbledore will be back to-" Remus stops talking then, his face going white as a sheet.

"Fuck!" Remus curses to Sirius' confusion.

"What?" Padfoot asks, "What's wrong?"

"I forgot to take my potion," he says as he turns to look at the sun getting closer to the horizon, the pinks and dark blues of twilight already painting the sky.

"Oh, yeah that's a fuck," Sirius says as he paces a bit as the bag he held squeaked with every shake, "Okay, Okay, easy fix. We get deeper into the woods, pass the wards, we let you transform, I'll transform, we keep Peter in the bag and wait for the morning, easy fix."

"It's not that simple Sirius, my tenure at Hogwarts is based on taking that potion, and besides that, Severus is the one who makes it for me," Moony says, "when he doesn't find me in my office when he comes with it he's going to hunt me down to make sure I'm not a threat to the students." It was then Sirius' turn to curse.

"Oh, that's just perfect," Sirius says angrily, he had no doubt old Snivellus would kill him first and never ask questions, "Then what the hell do we do? Can you make it back to the castle in time?" Sirius asks and Lupin shakes his head.

"No, I'd never make it back in time, it would be better if we head deeper into the woods, by the dementors, no one would go out there, not even Snape," Lupin says as he watches Sirius' face twist into fear and look deeper into the woods.

"Oh, I wouldn't say that Lupin," a voice hisses behind the werewolf as he feels the tip of a wand pressed to the back of his head, "I'd like to think I'd follow you both into hell itself for a chance to kill you both," Severus Snape says as he peels himself from the shade.

Sirius whips back around, drawing the wand of the Hearth, and points it at the potion master who is standing behind Moony using him for cover. Sirius grinds his teeth as he sees the pale face and hooked nose of the man who had caused the Marauders so much trouble back in school and after as a Death Eater. Padfoot growls in his mind as Sirius grips his gifted wand harder, Sirius and Severus glare at each other in mutual hatred but neither of them speaks.

"Severus, you nee-" Lupin tries to speak as he raises his hands slowly but is cut off by Severus and the tip of his wand grinding into the back of his head.

"Be quiet, you mangy wolf." The potion master says, "I told Dumbledore months ago, I told him you were helping Black into the castle. But he wouldn't listen, and to all surprises, I was right." He says with vindication, "Now, I'm in for a treat tonight, the death of the last two Marauders and vengeance paid in full, oh, how I have waited for this day." He says with a smirk.

"You don't understand Severus," Lupin yells, "There's more going on here than you know!"

"I said be quiet!" Snape snaps back, "I know enough, I know you've been helping Black, you were probably helping him back during the war, spying on the Order, getting Lily killed, and leaving her brat to rot wherever Dumbledore put him." Snape sneers at the back of Lupin's head, "And when Black broke out of Azkaban you went running back to him to finish the job the Dark Lord started." Snape accuses both men as Sirius steps to the left trying to get a better angle at Snape.

"I didn't betray them!"

"He didn't do it, Severus!"

Both of the Marauders yell, but Snape ignores them both as he steps to the right keeping Lupin in between him and Sirius.

"Like I'd believe either of you," Severus says, glaring at Sirius, "Now, put the wand down Black, or I'll blow your pet wolf's head right off his shoulders." He threatens and digs his wand into the side of Remus' head and watches Sirius take another step to the left.

"Not gonna happen, Snivellus," Sirius says, taking another step, watching Snape do the same getting into view of Remus, "What's gonna happen is I'm going to knock your ass around like I did during school, and then I'm going up to the castle, and maybe I'll tell Dumbledore to come get what's left of you after Moony's furry little problem gets done with you, that's if you don't let him go,"

"Oh, you think you can take me after rotting away in Azkaban for twelve years?" Snape asks, "When I was free, keeping my skills sharp all these years,"

Sirius shrugs, "Maybe, but at least I'm not alone," he says with a smirk just before Remus swiftly knocks Severus' wand away from his face and jumps back, launching a cutting curse at Snape's leg before the Potion master casts a quick shield, blocking it.

Sirius spins his wand, twisting the branches on the forest floor into serpents before sending them to Severus. Snape vanishes the transfiguration before he starts to lunch curse after curse at the duo, Remus and Sirius dive behind trees, taking cover from the onslaught. As bark and wood chips fly Sirius takes the opportunity to transfigure them into flying and biting insects full of venom and sending them at his opponent. But as they buzz towards him the man casts a powerful flame charm burning them to ash before he is forced to take cover behind his own tree as Remus pops out of his and begins casting the red light of stunners at him.

They crash against the tree and Severus turns the leaves on the ground into spinning blades before banishing them at the pair, cutting into the trees at high speed. The Marauders duck behind the trees in time before returning fire with stunners from Lupin and conjured ropes from Sirius, but neither could tag the Dark Man as he zips from tree to tree using the shadows.

"You can't win this Severus, we are wasting time, the moon will rise in a little bit and I don't want to be around when that happens!" Lupin yells out from behind cover.

"Then it's lucky that I brought your potion then, huh, Lupin!" Snape says before popping out of his own cover and casting a wide range Aguamenti at them, as the Marauders duck behind the trees to avoid it, confused, Snape calls out, "Besides I'm not trying to win this fight right now," he says with a smirk in his voice.

"Then why are you even trying!?" Lupin yells, as he hears a sizzling sound that confuses him, and as he looks around trying to find out where it was coming from Snape answers back.

"I'm buying time," Snape says as the Sodium blades he had sent at the duo early begin to react to the water they were now soaked in, exploding with a thunderous crack, splitting the trees and making them come tumbling down on the two men, before they swiftly dodge out of the way.

Snape leaves his cover sending spell after spell, curse after curse at the two of them, "You see Black, when you said I was outnumbered, you were wrong!" Snape yells as he blocks more stunners from Lupin, "While the wolf was curled up in his room, safe and sound another predator moved into the forest!" The potion master says sending conjured razor wire made of silver at the werewolf before vanishing the conjured dogs Sirius had sent at him, "and trust me when I say, the Lioness is far more fearsome than the wolf!"

As the Marauders take cover behind the trees once again, Remus looks over to Sirius with a confused look, and mouths "Lioness?" At him, before Sirius pales and before he could curse, shout, or start running, he's smashed into by a silver blur and is once again folded and sent flying with a kick, as Remus cries out his friend's name, he watches as the bag that held Peter fly through the air and land at the uncovered feet of the Lioness, Atalanta had arrived.

The Lioness was focused on the fallen form of Sirius Black as she stepped over the squeaking bag and began to stalk across the hill of trees to her downed prey. There was no castle to hide in, no hearth to escape through, no, Black was in her realm and her Goddess' domain, this ended tonight.

"Atalanta, Stop! There's more going on here than you know!" Lupin screams out as he raises his wand above his head to cast a blasting curse at the hunter if he needed it, as thin silver wire comes from behind the tree his back was to, binding him to it. When Atalanta doesn't stop he was about to swing down with his wand but with blinding speed, the Lioness draws one of her hunting knives and flicks it at Remus catching the sleeve of his cloak, pinning his arm to the tree just before the werewolf feels the point of Severus' wand back at his throat.

Sirius begins to crawl backwards, fear in his eyes at the hunter stalking forwards toward him, he raises the wand of the Hearth, brandishing at Lioness, "Stop! Don't come any closer!" He yells at her, "Don't make me hurt you damnit!"

Atalanta tilts her head, in curiosity, those words coming from a supposed madman who didn't have a problem with mass slaughter didn't quite fit, but it didn't matter, she had her orders, "If you really think that wand is gonna help you, Black, you are stupider than Snape," Atalanta says as she continues forward.

Severus took offense to the comment but decided that it wasn't worth the argument that would undoubtedly spark if he said anything back, so kept his silence as he gleefully watched Black backing away like a scared animal.

Sirius curses in his mind as he sends a wave of animation magic at the roots of the trees by Atalanta's feet, they quickly rip themselves from the ground to wrap around the Lioness' feet, but before they could firmly bind her she moves with a swiftness breaking the roots as she leaps at the fallen man she had been hunting, twice he had escaped her, there would not be a third time.

She lands just before him and as he raises his wand for another spell Atalanta stomps on his stomach, knocking the air from his lungs, as he gasps trying to refill them, Atalanta grabs his wand arm and twists it, almost snapping his arm in two before she rips the wand from his grasp and stepping back. As she moves out of the way, thin conjured ropes snap around Sirius Black, binding his legs and arms together.

"No!" Padfoot roars, he was close, so close to freedom, but it was denied to him much like his vengeance as he thrashes in his bindings.

"Finally," Snape says as he stalks up to Sirius Black bounded on the forest floor, "This is for Lily, you backstabbing cunt," he says with a viciousness he rarely shows nowadays and raises his wand "Avada ka-" but before Severus could finish the curse as he stood over Sirius, a hand lashes out, grabbing his wrist and squeezing hard enough that Severus could feel his bone shift, he hisses in pain as his glare turns to the offender, Atalanta.

She stands to the side of Severus, one hand holding his wrist, twisting it away from pointing at anyone, in her other, the wand Black was using. It was a short thing, covered in ash from a hearth and burnt black with a dull orange glow coming from the splits and seams of the wood where it had cracked in the fire. As she held the wand she did not feel the cold darkness of magic she was sure Black held in his soul, no. She had felt warmth from it, like from the campfires of the hunt, the closeness of her sisters as they snuggled up in the cold of the night to protect the younger ones from nightmares, she had felt…home.

Her eyes were wide and firmly looked onto the wand, mouth slightly open as she tried to process the fact that Sirius Black had a fucking divine favor from the Goddess of Hearth and Home, How? Why?

"What are you doing, you fool girl!?" Severus yells at her, "Unhand me at once and let me finish this!" He scowls at her, trying to pull his arm from the band of iron that was Atalanta's hand.

Atalanta's head snaps to Severus, "No," she tells him, "the Headmaster had told me to take him in alive, so that's what I'm going to do," she tells him before the man scoffs.

"Have you started taking orders from him now too?" Snape says angrily as Atalanta lets his wrist go before tilting her now free hand back and forth in a "kinda" way while making a face.

"Besides I have questions for him," Atalanta says before walking up to the downed form of Black, grabbing the front of the Jacket he was wearing and pulling him close, bringing him face to face with the man holding out the wand that she had stripped from him, "Where did you get this Black? Who gave it to you? How did you escape the tower that night?" Atalanta growled into his face.

Snape scoffs, "Those are obvious to answer, girl, Lupin helped him escape that night, and he gave Black a spare wand he picked up in some back alley, not that hard to put together." The potion master says.

Atalanta looks back at Snape with a scowl, "Both those I doubt, as far as McGonagall described it the hearth in the common room was of normal fire, not green, and if Lupin somehow found this wand in a back alley deal, I'll break my oath tonight. This," the Lioness says holding up the wand, "is a divine favor, Snape, you don't just find these," she tells the man before said man grimaces and mumbles "not again" under his breath.

Atalanta turns back to Sirius, "Who gave this to you?" She asks for a final time.

"Hestia," Sirius says with a solemn voice.

Atalanta's eyes widened, he had said the name she had most feared for him to say, "Why? You're an oath breaker and as good as a kinslayer as far as I can tell, why would Lady Hestia want to help you? A person she would cast into Tartarus without remorse, Why does she want to kill Harry!?" Atalanta shouts at the end.

"WE DON'T WANT TO KILL HARRY!" Lupin screams, "Neither does Hestia, she's been helping us to catch the real danger, the person who actually betrayed James and Lily that night, Peter Pettigrew." Remus says as Atalanta and Severus look over at him, Snape scoffs again.

"Pettigrew is dead," Snape says, "He killed him, was that how he bamboozled you and a God, Wolf, he spun you both a tale to match his madness," Snape scowls as his head snaps between the two men.

"Severus, Shut. The fuck. Up," Atalanta growls out, "You can't trick a God with a lie, especially about their own domain," she tells the man before turning back to Black, "How do you know he's still alive, I want proof, now." The huntress demands from her prisoner.

"I can do a bit better than that," Sirius says with a smile, "He's here, right now, in the bag."

Atalanta turns and looks over at the small bag laying on the forest floor, it wasn't even big enough to fit a book, let alone a man, she turns back to Black with a confused look, so Sirius explains.

"He's an Animagus, a rat Animagus," he says with a grin.

Atalanta turns to Severus, "is there a spell to detect them? An Animagus I mean?" She asks.

"This is Lunacy," Snape snaps at her, "You can not be beli-" but is cut off by the Lioness.

"Is there a spell!?" Atalanta yells, to which Snape scowls but nods, "Then use it on the bag, if he's lying we beat the shit out of him before dragging him off to Dumbledore." She states before Snape rolls his eyes and flicks his wand to the bag.

"See, noth-" Snape starts to say but stops as the bag glows a light blue, he gawks at it for a moment before flicking his wand and levitates the bag over to him and he can hear the squeaking coming from inside, "Wormtail…" he says under his breath as his eyes widen in understanding.

"Is there a way to force him back into a human form?" Atalanta asks as she grabs the bag from the air, holding it as something struggles within.

Snape nods, "Yes, there is a spell, but I don't know it," he informs her looking at the bag.

"We do," Sirius says from the ground, "kinda needed when you're trying to become Animaguses, give me back the wand, and I'll happily cast it on him."

"As if I'd-" Snape begins to tell the man before Atalanta walks over and draws a second knife, and places it under his chin, "Try anything other than the spell on the rat, orders be damned, I'll gut you, understand?" She asks Sirius and the man simply nods.

Snape does not look happy but moves his wand to point at Sirius as Atalanta cuts him free. Sirius stands up and Atalanta hands him back the wand of the Hearth before nodding at him before opening the bag and reaching in. The squeaks are quickly cut off as Atalanta removes the rat from the bag and holds it out with her fingers wrapped around the animal's throat as Sirius casts the spell. Like watching a tree grow in fast forward, Atalanta watches as the rat grows into a man.

She had dropped the rat when it had started and didn't look away, she watched the form of a rat become the form of a man in ragged clothes and robes, face sunken in from not eating enough, large patches of hair had fallen out due to stress, the man's eyes were small, beady, and watery as they started to dart around the woods where he stood in between Atalanta, Sirius, and Severus and soon we're joined by a robeless Remus, who had somehow got out of the silver wire that held him. Snape slowly moved his wand from Sirius to the man quivering in the woods.

"Peter. Pettigrew." Snape says in a breathless voice filled with hatred, "It was you, wasn't it? You're the one who sold Lily and James to the Dark Lord, weren't you?" He's hissing at the rat by the end of it.

"N-No, Sev-Severus, it was him!" Peter squeaks out pointing at Sirius, "H-He tried t-t-to k-kill me!" The man backs away from the advancing Snape, bumping into Lupin, Peter turns to find Lupin's wand pointed at his nose.

"R-Remus, you must believe me, it was Sirius!" Peter tells his once friend.

"Then why stay as a rat, Peter, why hide for twelve years while Sirius was locked away in Azkaban?" Remus asks calmly, wand still leveled at the rat.

"He would have found me, he would have killed me like he did Lily and James! I knew he had powers that he learned from the Dark Lord, I knew he would escape!" Peter tries to explain, but Lupin just glares.

"You should have known Peter, you should have known if the Dark Lord or His followers didn't kill you, we would have," Moony tells wormtail solemnly, shaking his head.

"But I'm not one of his followers, he is Remus, even his brother joined them!" Peter tries, but Snape and Sirius had had enough.

Sirius spins Wormtail around, punching him across the face, "Leave Regulus out of this!" As he and Wormtail fall to the ground, "This is about us, The Marauders! And what you did, you sold Lily and James to the Dark Lord, you betrayed one of the people you called brother, you broke an oath sworn, that we all did! To watch out for each other! And worst of all you damn Harry to hell he didn't deserve!" Sirius screams at the man he beats on him, "Oathbreaker! Kinslayer!" No one watching does anything to stop Sirius Black from beating the rat under him.

"He's killing me! He's killing me! Help! Please help!" Peter begs, but no one moves to help, but Sirius does stop, breathing hard.

"No Peter, I'm not going to kill you," Sirius says as he stands up, pulling Peter by his collar with him, "No, I'm turning you over to the dementors," Sirius says with a vicious smile.

"No…" the horrified whisper escapes Pettigrew.

"Oh, yes Peter," Sirius says as he drops Pettigrew to the ground, "I will have my freedom, I will see you locked away in dreads domain, and I will do what I should have done twelve years ago," Sirius swears, before kicking Peter in the side.

It was Snape that speaks next, "Your right arms, pull up the sleeves and stick them out," the potion master says to Black and Pettigrew, "I need to make sure."

Sirius throws off his jacket and pulls up the sleeve on his right arm, revealing pale blank skin that bore no tattoo or mark. Peter tries to crawl away, whispering "No, No…." Over and over again before an uncovered foot slams down onto his back, knocking the wind from him he turns to look up into the merciless green eyes of a Lioness, before she bends down and drags him to his feet by his hair.

She puts him in a chokehold as she slashes down the right sleeve of his robes, before putting the blade away and holding out his too-blank arm.

"See, see, I'm not one of them! It's him, let me go!" Peter says as he watches Severus swipe his wand over Sirius' arm, and nothing happens. The two men glare at each other before Snape moves over to Pettigrew, who was struggling in Atalanta's iron grip to no avail, "No, no, no, please, no!" Peter begs as Snape's wand moves over his arm, and as it does the flesh on his forearm begins to twist and ripple until the skull with a snake coming out of its mouth appears in dark ink and Peter begins to sob.

"What the fuck is that?" Atalanta asks as the three men look at the mark grimly.

"That," Snape says, "Is the Dark Mark, it is the brand that the Dark Lord marks his faithful with." As he looks into Atalanta's eyes.

Atalanta nods, kill anyone who has one, got it, she thinks to herself, and Snape nods before turning back to Black.

"You're coming back to the castle, you will be without a wand and restrained, locked in a spare room in the dungeons as I find Albus and some Veritaserum and we get the whole truth out of this, do you understand me?" Sirius looks at Snape, before turning to look at Remus seeing the werewolf nod, he sighs and nods his head to Snape, "Atalanta will be guarding both of you, and trust me when I say, not a soul here could take her on alone." He says as Atalanta smirked, Snape learned that in his office when she had beaten him into a paste, but she wouldn't say he gave as good as he got, and insult her own pride like that.

"One way or another I get to see the man who betrayed Lily suffer a fate worse than death," Severus thinks to himself as he summons the smoking goblet from the shadows, "Here wolf, before the Moon rises, I won't have you put the students in danger," Snape tells Lupin as he floats the Goblet in between them as Atalanta pushes Peter to Sirius.

"Here, hold him for now, I need to go check where Harry is and make sure he's not upwind from us before we start making our way back. Don't need him catching Blacks sce-" she cuts herself off as her hat twitches and her eyes widen before she spins on her heel "DON'T!" the Lioness says but it is far too late and three things happen all at once.

Atalanta tries to grab the black blur that comes shooting from the west to stop it but is too late as it clipped her in the side, sending her spinning before she slams into the ground. The black blur then hits the floating goblet knocking its contents to the forest floor, two men look at the mess made before both look at each other's faces, horrified. Lastly, the blur slams into Sirius Black, knocking him off his feet and down the hill as he dragged Peter Pettigrew with him.

Harry Potter, Midst the Hunt.

As Black, an unknown man, and Harry tumble down the hill into the former camping site of Atalanta, Harry doesn't let go of Sirius Black, he wasn't getting away this time, Black was His! He finally had him! Harry uses his momentum to control the roll down the hill, the three bodies hit the ground below at the same time as Harry swings on top of Black, sitting on his chest he pins him to the ground before he starts to lash out at the man beating his fists down on top of him. He was going to do it, he was going to get revenge against the man who had betrayed his parents, who locked him up with them, for the cupboard, for the beatings, for being the freak, all of it! He'd feed the hunt, one way or another.

As Harry roared and beat down on the man he thought responsible for everything that had happened to him, the man himself had brought up his arms to block the blows raining down on him, he didn't try to throw the boy off him, he didn't say a word, he took the blows, and even as he felt the bruises form and his bones crack under the blows he took them all without making one aggressive move against him. When the blows slowed down and stopped, he looks up through his arms, and his gray eyes meet the emeralds of Lily's but something was off about them, a ring of gold or amber had appeared around the iris and slowly starts to make its way to the boy's Slitted pupil. "Are you going to kill me, Harry?" Sirius asks up to his Godson, as his Godson glares with hatred unimaginable down at him.

Harry flicks his wrist and draws his wand, ignoring the useless sound everyone is making around him as he stabs his wand at the man's throat, "Yes," he growls out full of burning rage, he would finally feed the Hunt, He would finally get revenge.

All around him the other prey makes sounds, ordering him to stop, begging him not to do it, telling him he was missing something, but Harry doesn't care. He had his prey under him, the man merely letting his arms fall to the side as he looks up at Harry and smiles a mocking(sad) smile, nodding his head, seemingly accepting his death, and Harry found it…unsatisfying, he'd have to hunt more, plenty of prey around to feed the Hunt, he'll just have to do quantity over quality.

They still wouldn't shut up! With the screaming and the begging and the barking orders, he didn't care, he wanted them to go away, he wanted to hunt them, he wanted to be back in his cupboard because something was wrong. No, it was right the prey was right here, it was time to feed the Hunt!

So, Harry digs his wand into Sirius' throat, the spell on the tip of his tongue as those around him are screaming at him to stop, Hermione in tears, Atalanta in worry, Snape in fear, but it was Lupin that stopped Harry with a simple question.

"Harry, where did you get your Jacket!?" Lupin yells, and all heads in the clearing, the adults who were here before. Atalanta kneeled on top of the unknown man, keeping him pinned to the ground so he couldn't get away, Snape who had his wand pointed at his head, Sirius taking a beating from Harry. Even the two newcomers, Ron and Hermione who had rushed into the clearing one minute after Harry had crashed into Sirius, all turned to Lupin confused.

Harry looks at his mentor, equally confused, but shrugs it off as the Hunt calls him back to his prey, "I told you, I don't know, and it doesn't matter!" Harry roars, he had to finish a hunt and he wanted to savor it.

"But it does matter, Harry. It matters more right now than any other time," Remus says as he takes slow steps towards Harry, his hands up to show he wasn't a threat.

"Remus, you need to leave, now!" Snape hisses at him.

"One minute, Severus, and then I'm gone, just let me tell him this, please," Lupin says to Snape without looking at him

Lupin continues on, "You've had it for a long time, you told me yourself that you've had it as long as you could remember, but you can't tell me how you got it, and I don't know how you did either, but you have wondered, haven't you? Who was there that night, who cared enough about you to make sure you were warm before you were dropped off with your aunt and uncle?" Lupin asks, Harry's eyes jump back and forth between Lupin and Black, as Lupin gets closer he can see the light gold almost taking over Harry's eyes as the boy bared his teeth at him, but Lupin had his interest, the man could tell.

"Because the only man who can tell you how you have it, is the man you're sitting on," Lupin says quietly and he hears Hermione gasp, Smart girl probably already had it all figured out by now, Lupin watches Harry's eyes widen as he looks down a Sirius' face, the light-gold color slowly bleeds out of his eyes. Lupin nods to Snape, "The map is with my cloak," Lupin says before tossing his wand to Snape and running off deeper into the woods, hoping he would make it out of the wards in time.

"What does he mean?" Harry asks, But all Black does is look at him. '' He could see tears starting to form in the corners of his eyes, "Answer me! What does he mean!? Why are you the only one who can tell me!?" Harry screams because he had asked Hagrid years ago when the man had told him about his flight to the Dursleys, all Hagrid had said was he had it on him when he got him.

Sirius is quiet for a moment as he looks up into Harry's eyes, so much like both of his mothers but the looks of James, he speaks in a quiet whisper barely loud enough for the normal wizards to hear in the dark of the forest.

"It was chilly that night," Sirius starts his tale in a breathless whisper, drawing on memories long forgotten over the long cold years in Azkaban, "I was on my way over when I felt the wards fall, and I knew, I knew what had happened, I had gotten there just after it all, the first on the scene. I found, …I found James first, in the kitchen, it looked like a war had happened in there. The cottage was barely standing, I knew I couldn't weep over James because he would never forgive me if I didn't make sure his son and his wife were okay before doing it." Sirius was openly crying now, remembering that horrible night when he had found his brother in all but blood dead along with his wife, "I went up the stairs and found Lily, laying on the floor, gone as well. A hole was blasted through the roof letting in the chill, but then I heard you, crying, you were alive but when I picked you up you were cold, so, so cold. I didn't want you to get sick so I wrapped you in my jacket, I was making my way out of the house. I was going to take you to my place, I was going to get Remus to watch you or maybe Andy, but I was gonna be back in a few days, then I ran into Hagrid. He said he was going to bring you to Lily's sisters." At this Snape Hisses in anger, but other than the bookworm no one else noticed.

"A few days is all I thought, I was just gonna take a few days, I'd go after the person who sold out your parents and kill him, and be back to pick you up," Sirius says, "Just a few days, …" He whispers.

"That's when I betrayed them, Harry, when I handed you over to Hagrid to be taken from me, I should have fled with you, left for France or America, prayed to your other mother to get her to help, but I didn't. I chose revenge over my duty as your Godfather and chased after a rat right into a trap, and got locked away in Azkaban for twelve years when I should have been there for you." Sirius admits his crime to the one to whom it had caused the most harm to like a Sinner before his Gods, "I'm sorry Harry, I'm So, so sorry…"

How long did Harry wait in that dark cupboard, alone and scared, with only the spiders and dust bunnies for friends? Waiting for the day someone would take him away from the dark and hunger, to free him from his Aunt and her scornful looks, his Uncle with his heavy hands and rage-filled words of hate for him. No one came because he had thought there was no one left to come to save him, all hope died in that darkness until a friendly giant freed him from his relative's clutches and had his first taste of freedom and friendship he had never had before. To learn that he, the broken and unwanted freak, had someone who should have been there, who would have been there, that had wrapped him in the only hope that hadn't died because he had cared for him, was locked away in another type of hell for just as long. It tore at him and the heart he thought he had all but locked away, he could see it in Sirius' eyes, the sadness, the mournful want of going back and doing it again, to do it right, and the sorrow of not doing right the first time.

The regret that he did it at all to Harry, sent the first wave crashing down in the faulty foundation of the walls around his heart.

"Then who?" Harry asks, fighting back tears with gritted teeth, "Then who did it? Who betrayed them, betrayed you?" Harry wants to know, he needs to know, he needs to hunt them.

"Sirius, don't," Atalanta says, well aware of what would happen if he does, how the Hunt wasn't done, just shifted, she needs to get Harry away from everyone, give him a moment to collect himself before he loses himself. But whether the words fell on deaf ears or it was too late by the time she had said it doesn't matter, for Sirius turns his head to look at Peter Pettigrew with a glare and Harry followed his eyes to look at the scared balding men being pinned down by Atalanta and lets the hunt take everything for the revenge he so craved.

As Harry stood up, wand raised above his head to slash down, to sever the head of the traitor, or the rat, or the prey, from his shoulders, a beam of red light hit the back of his knee and he felt his wand ripped from his grasp flying behind him as his knee buckles. Ron catches Harry's wand from where he stood next to Hermione whose wand was drawn and pointed at Harry.

Atalanta leaps from Pettigrew and tackles Harry to the ground, He tries to stand and charge at Peter but is pulled to a stop by Atalanta, and as Peter looks into the complete yellow-gold eyes of the boy who lived, he knew he was prey this night, and the sound that escapes Harry's throat was not human, it was that of a beast, it was one of the Hunt.

Notes:

Show of hands, who thought Harry was gonna be the beast of the hunt howling in the night?

When I was first considering my ending I had thought that I would put in the shrieking shack because that's where it ended in the book, then a thought hit me, what if I had Harry lose himself to the Hunt and chase something, and that? That felt more right.

So that's what I'm doing.

This chapter is named after what Artemis said about the Jacket all the way back outside of number 4, " like A forgotten hope that was never voiced because the boy was afraid if he did, it would die."

The jacket to Harry was proof that someone had, once, cared for him enough to wrap him up to keep him warm. That to someone he wasn't a freak, he wasn't unwanted, that someone somewhere cared about him.

And he was right.