Sirius watched the scenery change as the train moved.

The compartment he was occupying was completely empty so he guessed that it must be the last compartment in the train.

It was good that he was completely alone though that way no one would attack him and he won't have to bite anyone else.

He wondered if Marlene was alright now since he must have bit her hand hard, He made a mental note to apologise to her if he ever gets to see her in Hogwarts next time.

His thoughts wandered to his three best friends, Were they worried that he suddenly stopped sending letters? Were they looking for him?

He hoped they wouldn't go through the trouble of visiting his former home his parents would most likely chase them out if they do.

Thinking about his former home made him remember his brother and the letter he gave him.

So he tried to return back to his human form to open the letter but only managed to stay human for a few fleeting seconds.

They were enough for him to tear the envelope open and unfold the paper but it only increased his concerns, Why can't he turn back to his human form anymore? What if enduring the cruciatus gave him a mental shock and he carelessly used the last of his magic to turn into a dog?

He hoped from the bottom of his heart that none of this would be the case.

He was exhausted and depressed and starving to death, That should be why he can't use his magic.

His growling stomach interrupted his thoughts so he looked down at the letter then placed one of his feet on an empty part of the paper to keep it from flying away.

It wasn't a letter in a sense but it was more like a quickly scribbled note.

Don't come back or the consequences will be severe on both of us.

R.A.B

This simple note made his heart shatter to pieces, Deep down he knew that he won't go back to the mansion even if it killed him, But where was he supposed to go now? And how can he possibly help his brother if he can't go back?

He decided to just wait until he finds a place to stay then think of a way to get him out of there.

For now he decided to watch the scenery carefully as he waited for the train to stop moving so he can get off.

After sometime of waiting the sun was down and yet the train didn't stop so Sirius decided to just jump off instead of getting lost any further.

He took a few steps back then ran as fast as he could before jumping off the compartment.

The snow covered ground was too slippery though so he ended up rolling on the ground instead of landing gracefully, This difficult fall caused him a few cuts and a difficulty with using one of his four legs.

He stood up and started walking slowly trying to find a place to rest.

•☆☆☆•

James and Peter split up and went to search different blocks near the Black mansion but it was futile.

So James went to an alley and changed back into human before putting on the invisibility cloak, After making sure that he was completely covered he went to the nearest motel and put on his clothes before hurriedly leaving the place unnoticed.

He remembered that Sirius once said that muggle beggars usually sat in markets so he decided to look there.

It was a really stupid idea but it was still an idea and maybe he'll find him there since Sirius was practically penniless.

He walked into one of the shops and went over to the keeper.

"I was wondering if you could help me find my brother, That boy" James said.

Then took out a picture of Sirius and showed it to the man.

"I'm really sorry I haven't seen him" The man said even though he didn't look so apologetic to James.

James nodded and left the shop.

Where else was he supposed to look? He checked all the distract surrounding the Black mansion including markets and even small shops and food stalls.

The beggar streets weren't of much help either.

He decided to try looking through the market near the Black mansion, It was the last resort so he really hoped he'd find some valuable information there.

He took out a notebook from his pocket and wrote something on the first paper.

"Have you found him yet?" He wrote.

A minute or so later Peter's answer appeared indicating that he didn't find him after all.

"You go back to the bookshop I'll continue looking" James said.

Peter's answer appeared after that saying that he's going to find Remus so the two of them could wait for James at the shop.

James put the notebook back in his pocket then went to the market, He asked in the shops and even asked passersby people.

After a bit of walking his feet already felt too numb to walk him any further but he pushed himself to the limit and continued walking, Luckily his efforts were finally rewarded when he noticed three familiar figures walking through the shopping district with an ugly looking house elf accompanying them.

He didn't waste any time with thinking and put on his cloak then walked closer to them.

Bellatrix Andromeda and Narccissa were accompanying Kreacher to the market.

"Why did you suddenly ask me to go shopping?" Narccissa asked her sister.

"Your school year is starting in three days so I figured you might need a lot of supplies and clothes to make you look pretty" Andromeda said to her younger sister.

"Too bad little Sirius won't be able to join you this year, Such a shame" Bellatrix said before letting out an obnoxious chuckle.

Andromeda noticed from the corner of her eye that the snow behind her had footsteps but no one was shown to be following her and her sisters, She decided not to alert her sisters or Kreacher since the person following them didn't seem like they wanted any harm.

Maybe that person was looking for a certain piece of information but was reluctant to approach them directly knowing who they actually were, The Black family was quite well known after all.

She could only think of one thing that the person following them would want to hear and she really hoped her hunch was correct.

"Whether he joins the death eaters or not is his choice so I don't get why aunt Walburga had to go as far as using the cruciatus curse on Sirius" Andromeda said a bit louder as she turned her gaze to Bellatrix.

Bellatrix scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Sister, You're really soft don't you know what a huge honor it is to join the death eaters? But poor little Sirius had to be useless as always" Bellatrix said.

"Are you saying that using one of the unforgivable curses as a way to discipline him should be overlooked?" Andromeda asked.

"What of it? It's not the first time auntie did that to him, You were disciplined for helping him whenever auntie said to leave him alone too so I really don't get why you're still defending him up until now" Bellatrix said.

Then let out another obnoxious chuckle as she focused her attention on her younger sister.

"I suppose little baby Sirius couldn't handle the honor of being a death eater so he chose to disgrace himself by escaping instead of being a man" Bellatrix said in a sing song voice.

"And your idea of manhood is mindless killing of innocent people?" Andromeda asked.

"Innocent people? Those mudbloods should die like the disgusting maggots they truly are, If Sirius doesn't get that at his age then we're better off without him" Bellatrix said.

"How can you possibly say that? He's still family" Andromeda said angrily.

"Family family family, You keep saying family do you even know the meaning of the word?" Bellatrix asked.

"I suppose I do but I'm sure that you don't and will never know because you only think of yourself" Andromeda said.

Narccissa looked between her two older sisters who were glaring at each other in anger then cleared her throat to get their attention.

"Enough talking about that I think we should split up and look for our supplies" Narccissa said ever the calm peacemaker she always was.

Andromeda huffed and nodded.

"Alright, Since I no longer need to go to school you and Bella can go ahead without me, I'll take Kreacher to the magical herbs shop to look for some herbal remedies" Andromeda said.

"Alright" Narccissa said.

"Why do you get to be with Kreacher and I get Sissy? Sissy can't carry the bags" Bellatrix whined.

"One of these days you're going to kill the poor elf from how you treat him, Besides Kreacher isn't supposed to carry your bags as long as you have two well functioning arms" Andromeda said.

Then she grabbed the elf's hand.

"We'll meet at the dress shop in three hours, Let's go Kreacher" Andromeda said.

Then she turned her back on her sisters and went on her way.

James followed her and the house elf for a few more minutes unaware that Andromeda was actually leading him somewhere.

He realised what happened when he found himself out of the market standing in a completely deserted area with only Andromeda Black and the house elf in front of him so he mentally cursed knowing full well that he recklessly fell into the older girl's trap.

"So, Are you going to show yourself or should I just hex you?" Andromeda said.

James removed the invisibility cloak and let it fall to the ground by his feet.

"You're from Hogwarts a classmate of Sirius right?" The older girl asked him.

"Yes, I'm James Potter" James said.

Andromeda nodded.

"Did you hear what I said before? Sirius is no longer at the house" Andromeda said.

James had so many questions for her but he supposed that the most important one was about what she told him indirectly.

"Did Walburga Black really do that to her own son?" James asked.

He couldn't believe that someone can be cruel enough to torture their own child, that only proved that the woman was truly mad.

Andromeda folder her arms over her chest.

"Are you suggesting that I lied to you about it Potter?" She asked in a voice that showed authority.

James gulped and shook his head.

"It's not hard to believe considering the fact that Sirius boldly refused to join the death eaters which is considered to be the definition of disappointment in our family's vocabulary" Andromeda said.

James nodded.

"Do you know where he is?" He asked.

"I don't, But Reggie tasked me and Kreacher with delivering a letter to your family, Good thing you came to us on your own show me the way to your house since Reggie instructed Kreacher to give the letter to no one but your parents" Andromeda said as she put her hand out for him to take.

"Apparition?" James asked as he looked at her outstretched hand.

Andromeda nodded so James took her hand then the two of them apparated taking the house elf with them.

James landed on his feet and supported Kreacher with a hand gripping the fabric the elf was wearing then turned to check on the girl.

Andromeda stumbled forward so James quickly gripped her shoulders to stop her from falling to the floor.

"Bloody hell apparition always gets me no matter how hard I practice" Andromeda said.

James let go of her and put his hands in his pockets.

"You don't look so affected have you tried it before?" She asked.

"Not really but I guess you can say I've been through a lot of messier mischievous schemes" James said cockily.

"What's there to be proud of? You broke the rules" Andromeda said.

"Have you not? I heard what you said to your sisters, From what I heard I suppose you and I are not so much different" James said challenging her.

Andromeda looked around the place which appeared to be a library.

"I get why Sirius always said you were his favourite cousin" James said.

Andromeda turned to James.

"He said that?" She asked.

"Yes, He always bragged about you whenever we spoke about our families" James confirmed.

Andromeda smiled sullenly.

"Sad thing that I couldn't stop auntie like always, I was a coward" She said.

"Here you are helping me find him so I don't think you're that much of a coward" James said.

Then walked ahead of her and opened the door of the room.

"The elf should be well hidden since this house is full of muggles" James said.

Then turned to her with a smile.

"Ladies first?" He asked.

Andromeda chuckled then walked over to the door then James and the elf followed her out of the room.

They went to the dining hall since it was almost dinner time and James saw the table already starting to fill up with delicious food.

"Claude where's my mother?" James asked one of the house stuff who was setting up the dinning hall.

"Good evening young master, Madam Euphemia is in the study and master Fleamont is in his lab" The man said.

Then he turned his attention to Andromeda, James looked behind him and noticed that the elf was gone so he mentally sighed in relief.

"This is Andy she's my friend from school" James said when he noticed the man's inquiring gaze.

"My apologies miss Andy will you be joining us for dinner?" The man asked.

"No, Thank you for the offer but I don't find it necessary" Andromeda said.

Andromeda suddenly frowned and tilted her head to the side before turning her gaze to James.

"Wait, Your father's name is Fleamont? As in Fleamont Potter the famous potioneer?" Andromeda asked.

James grabbed her hand and walked out of the room quickly.

"It's chemist in the muggle world my father is a chemist not a potioneer" James said.

Andromeda nodded in understanding as she repeated the word to memorise it.

"I'm a huge fan of his creativity" Andromeda said.

James rolled his eyes.

"Yeah, I get that a lot everyone is a huge fan of his shampoo" James said.

James led her to the study where his mother was reading.

"Mother I'm back" James said as soon as he opened the door then turned his attention back to Andromeda.

The older woman looked at him with a smile before turning her attention to the girl.

"Welcome back dear, Who might you be young lady?" Euphemia asked.

"I'm Andromeda Black, I came to give you an important letter, Kreacher you can show yourself now" She said.

The elf appeared next to Andromeda.

"Give her the letter Kreacher this is madam Potter" Andromeda said.

"Young master Regulus instructed Kreacher to give this letter to mister Potter or his wife as a second choice" Kreacher told the older woman.

"I'm his wife you can give it to me" Euphemia said.

The elf walked over to the older woman and gave her the letter his youngest master entrusted him with.

"Alright we should go now or my sisters will suspect me, I hope this letter will help" Andromeda said.

Then she turned to the elf and put out her hand for him to take.

"Let's go back to Diagon alley Kreacher" Andromeda said.

The elf took her hand and the two of them apparated back to Diagon alley where her sisters were.

James turned to his mother.

"I'm going to tell Remus and Peter to come back here" James said.

His mother nodded so he took out his notebook and told his friends to come over to his house as soon as possible.

•☆☆☆•

After sending the letters Remus went back to his workplace and Peter returned after a few hours.

He was currently waiting at the bookshop with Peter when some of their Gryffindor classmates and the quidditch team members returned.

"Do you have any news?" Remus asked Mary Mcdonald.

He hoped that at least one or two of them would have clues but his hopes were crushed when she shook her as she smiled apologetically.

"No news I'm sorry I couldn't be of much help" Mary said.

He turned his attention to Marlene who also shook her head then to Dorcas who didn't have any news either.

"It's alright we still have time to look further" Remus said hoping that his words were enough to soothe the girl.

Mary smiled at Remus in appreciation but her smile was still sad.

"That's right getting depressed won't help anyone" Dorcas agreed as she soothingly patted Mary's shoulder.

"What about James? Any news from him?" Marlene asked.

"Not yet but..." Remus started.

He was interrupted when Peter nudged his shoulder lightly to get his attention.

"James is writing another message through the bewitched notebook" Peter said.

Remus leaned over Peter's shoulder to see the message James was writing.

Come over to my house as soon as possible, All of you would want to hear what I have.

"Alright it's settled, To the Potter mansion" Remus said.

Luckily it was close to night time already so the shop should close any minute now and considering the condition of the weather there weren't much customers at the shop anyway.

"There's another fireplace in the shop owner's office we should use it now he's out getting some food so his office is empty" Remus said.

"I have some floo powder but I don't know if it can help all of us" Dorcas said as she handed Remus the bag that had the magical dust.

"I have some too" Marlene said then gave Remus another two bags.

"Why do you have that much?" Peter asked frowning.

Marlene only shrugged in response.

"That should be enough let's hurry up before the owner comes back" Remus said.

He took them to the owner's office and used a match stick to start a fire in the fireplace then threw the floo powder into the fire and everyone jumped into the fireplace disappearing from sight just in time before the door of the office opened and the shop owner walked into the room with a package of warm food in his hands.

He frowned when he noticed the fire in his fireplace.

"Strange, I don't remember setting up a fire before leaving" He said to himself.

Then decided to let it slide, Maybe one of his employees set it up to keep his office warm it was a cold snowy night so who was he to complain?

He sat down on his chair and started eating.

•☆☆☆•

After sometime of aimless walking Sirius finally collapsed to the snow covered ground unable to take another step, The fatigue, lack of food and cold along with the ache in his body were catching up to him all at once keeping him in place.

He closed his eyes and howled pitifully as he came to terms with the fact that he's most definitely going to die here as a dog.

Alphard Black was on his way back to his house after he was done with buying some dinner necessities from a nearby grocery market when he noticed a group of three children surrounding something.

He walked over to them to see what they were doing.

The three children were surrounding an impossibly huge black hunting hound that looked in a really terrible shape with a few bruises and cuts up its legs and torso.

One of the children poked it with a thin branch causing it to whimper.

"Is it even alive?" One of the three children asked.

"Children, Hurry home your parents must be worried" Alphard said.

The children turned to him then left hurriedly.

Alphard knelt down and put his grocery stuff aside then started inspecting the strange hound.

The street was completely deserted considering the weather so no one was going to take care of it, It'll die if it stays here.

He decided to take it back to his house and tend to it so he put his groceries in his bewitched wallet then put it back in his pocket.

Sirius whimpered in pain again and growled in an attempt to scare whoever was carrying him but he was too tired to do anything more.

"It's alright, I'll take care of you" Alphard said in an attempt to soothe the poor hound.

Then walked over to his house.