Through the Veil

The screams of his friends faded into silence as he fell deeper and deeper in the darkness. A great wave of cold nothingness fell over him. Am I dead, he thought? He shivered with fear at this thinking, coldness creeping into his bones. He didn't know where he was or what was happening to him. The last thing he remembered was a curse hitting him in the chest and then darkness. This memory seemed to bring tightness to his chest once again and he formed his hands into fists out of anger. He then realized that he was still clutching something in his right hand. He felt the detailed wood carvings on his wand and, as if instinctively, screamed as loud as he could. The words Lumos seemed to echo eerily around him as the tip of his wand cast a small cloud of light. It was no use; the darkness was as thick as fog. Closing his eyes, he cast a warming spell on himself and soon his shivering ceased.

Hours passed as he drifted in and out of consciousness. He was still falling. He laughed sarcastically to himself; I must be dead. He was starting to convince himself that he was in Hell when his speed started to slow. Unexpectedly his body hit the ground hard and he winced in agony. The surface was wet and smelled much like the countryside where he spent the summers of his youth. He gripped the ground with his left hand and felt grass and mud. Amazed that he had survived the torturous ordeal that had taken place, he stood slowly and looked around at his surroundings. The sun was just rising and he could see several pillars of chimney smoke in the morning air. In the distance he saw a cornfield and a large white barn.

Sanity took hold and he realized that soon it would be daylight and he would be noticed. Eyeing a forest only a kilometer or so away, he shifted into his animagus form. Sprinting quickly, he was eager to find shelter. When he was deep into the forest he felt a sense of temporary safety. Collapsing onto a bed of pine needles and moss he instantly succumbed to slumber.

"Come along children. You don't want to be late to dinner." A tall woman with sagging wrinkles in her face directed a group of young girls from a candy shop to the sidewalk outside. She wore a white blouse and a long black skirt, her gray hair pulled tightly into a bun at the back of her head. The street was neatly lined with maple trees that acted like a fence to the historic homes behind them. The girls, who ranged in age from nine to eleven, skipped happily while enjoying the treats that they had purchased. When they approached the end of the street and came upon a dirt road, they all raced to see who could reach the giant white barn first.

Walking briskly behind them the old woman smiled and adjusted her eye glasses at the bridge of her nose. Laughing to herself, she remembered the days of her own youth, when all she worried about was perfecting a new charm or eating sweets. The tall

wood red doors of the barn seemed to open on their own and the girls disappeared inside. Taking refuge outside the building on metal bench, the old woman smiled and gazed out at the sun which was just making its decent into the horizon. Behind her there was a loud snapping sound and she jumped, nearly falling of the bench.

"Honestly, Jolene, must you always apparate so loudly? You'll shock my heart into early retirement." She regained her composure on the bench as a younger woman in her mid-twenties took a seat next to her.

"I didn't mean to startle you, Elizabeth. I was just in a hurry today to gather some herbs before my evening class." Jolene sat a small brown sack next to her feet and tossed her long black braid to her back. Taking a bottle of water from the bag she handed it to Elizabeth who smiled and took a drink.

"You look exhausted. How was the outing?"

"Oh it was good. Those young girls just have so much energy some days, especially when they eat so many sweets." She laughed heartily, thankful for the drink of water. She passed the bottle back to Jolene who sat in down on the ground.

"Oh, Elizabeth, I just remembered. When you seen Professor Archben at your card game tonight, please tell him that I've prepared some tonic for him."

"Is he having nightmares again?"

"No, it's worse; hangovers." They two women stood and laughed. Professor Archben was the Magical History teacher and was known for his good intentions and helpful ways as well as his liking to hit the bottle when the weather grew cold. Elizabeth started back to the barn as Jolene gathered her things. Looking out onto the cornfield she admired the sunset with its hues of red and orange. Something then caught her attention out of the corner of her eye. She shifted her gaze and saw a large black dog standing at the edge of the cornfield. She grew frightened because it was an unusually large dog and it looked directly into her eyes. She felt as if it was reading her soul. She turned and began walking back to the barn in a hurry. She looked over her shoulder to see if it was following her, but there was no sign of the animal. Picking up her pace, she ran into the barn and joined the other teachers and students for dinner.

Sirius Black spent the entire day sleeping, passed out in a relieving sense of escape and survival. He felt very much the way he had the night he rode off from Hogwarts on Buckbeak, the hippogriff. He was starting to stir when he heard the sound of church bells in the distance. Looking up to the sky through the bare tree branches, he noticed that the sun was beginning to set. Casting another warming spell on himself he set off to find food. He found only a few berries that had fallen from a bush but did manage to find a small stream and take a bath. Casting a spell on his clothes to clean them, he dressed and started to walk to the edge of the forest. He remembered the barn that he had seen earlier and thought it would be a good idea to find suitable shelter for the night. He could sneak in as darkness fell and if anyone came to view he would quickly change into his animagus form again. Walking along the edge of the forest he came to a corn field that was right outside the barn. As he approached the building, a strange feeling fell over him. Magic, he thought. I feel magic. This put him on his guard and he decided to shape shift earlier then he had planned.

He crept to the edge of the cornfield and saw two women sitting on a bench. They were talking and laughing until they noticed the incoming darkness of night and began to walk towards the barn. The younger woman, holding a bundle, looked out into the field and saw him. He was frozen; he couldn't move his feet. Not only did he sense magic but this woman was rather attractive. She was instantly startled and began walking quickly back to the barn. He disappeared into the cover of the cornstalks and watched as she looked back to see if he was still there. When she didn't see him she ran quicker to her destination before vanishing into the barn. Sirius didn't know what to think. He started to wonder where he was and why he felt the presence of magic. Was this a magical community in England or was he somewhere else entirely? Keeping these questions in his head he curled up in the middle of a few huge corn stalks. He couldn't take refuge in the barn as he wanted, so he decided he would stay here and in the morning try to find some answers. Still exhausted, he began to sleep.