“They were what?” he snapped at Minerva.

               “You heard correctly.” Minerva shook her head. “I caught one of your students as well. Mr. Malfoy – said he was just trying to catch the others and prove they were breaking rules. I have no idea why they all decided to visit the Astronomy tower outside of class times. They concocted this cock-and-bull story about a dragon. It doesn’t matter. They will be serving detention tonight in the Forbidden Forest.”

               “Wait, what?” Severus’s eyes widened with raised eyebrows.

               “Can’t you keep up, Severus? You aren’t acting very articulate. They are serving detention in the Forbidden Forest tonight. Hagrid needed help tracking an injured unicorn.”

               “So you send four first years to assist him?”

               “They will stay with Hagrid.”

               “He barely counts as a responsible adult. That forest is no place for children.”

               “If they are so obsessed with dragons and running around at midnight, then this ought to be a good lesson for them. Trust me, they will be fine.”

               “Sure they will be. After something devours them, they will be just fine, indeed.”

               “You are being dramatic.”           

               “The forest is a dangerous place, hence why it is forbidden. And I’ve had to inform Mr. Potter several times this year to keep away from it and now he has no choice but to go in. Not only does that undermine the rule, but now he will think that he can enter whenever he desires. What made you think this would be remotely reasonable? There are hunting creatures out at night, a manticore even.”

               “Those creatures never come this close to the school where fully trained wizards are. Hagrid is not taking them in that far. If they do not find the unicorn within thirty minutes, they will turn back and leave. Is that alright with you, Severus? Or must we call a staff meeting for further discussion tonight?”

               “Ah, forget it,” Severus said, turning away. “I’ll just keep an eye on everyone from a distance. Someone should.”

               “If you insist,” Minerva said, shaking her head and muttering under her breath. “I’ll never understand you.”

               Before the sunset, Severus left the school, bow and quiver with arrows in hand, and disappeared into the trees. If he was to watch the children, he would have to sleep outside that night. It had been almost two weeks since he had to do so. As he walked deeper into the forest, he paused as he heard the soft fall of steps on the ground. His hand tightened on the bow as he listened closely.

               Silence.

               Keeping his guard up, he continued through the trees as the sun lowered in the sky, resting against the mountains behind him, scattered light streaming through the forest, disappearing slowly as the sun sank. Severus didn’t turn around to watch the sun drop behind the mountains. He kept his eyes forward and listened with his ears.

               Hooves hitting the ground vibrated under his feet, and he pulled an arrow from his quiver and prepared his bow, holding it up as a centaur slid to a halt in front of him. The red-headed chestnut centaur narrowed his eyes at Severus.

               “You brandish a weapon similar to my own, wizard,” the chestnut said. “Why so?”

               Severus glanced at the remaining light in the sky. A few more minutes. He looked at the chestnut, keeping his arrow aimed at the centaur. “I do not have my wand on me,” he said.

               “No? A wizard without his wand does not seem fitting.” The chestnut cautiously circled around Severus, forcing the man to move in tight steps to keep the arrow fixated on its target. The chestnut paused, leaning forward slightly and narrowing his eyes. Severus kept the centaurs gaze until the chestnut stood upright, ears erect. The centaur looked to the remaining light then back at Severus. “It is you. You are Ajax.”

               “Congratulations, you figured it out,” Severus said. “Would you like a reward? A carrot, maybe? A sugar cube?”

               The chestnut bared his teeth with an angry snort and charged Severus, who thought better of firing the arrow and stepped out of the way. The centaur reared, turning on its hind hooves, and tried to stomp Severus, who dodged the attack and had to roll away. Glancing up, he saw the last bit of light fade and felt the twinge in his muscles.

               Finally.

               Not caring about his modesty before the centaur, who charged at him again, Severus allowed the robe he wore to slip as he shifted into a centaur himself. The chestnut leaped away, keeping a safe distance as he watched the transformation, something which no centaurs had witnessed yet, despite the many years they had known him.

               Once Severus was his centaur self, he shook himself out, stretched his legs briefly, then faced the chestnut, baring his teeth himself.

               “Now it’s a fair fight.”

               The chestnut accepted the challenge with a horse trumpet, galloping at Severus with fists clenched at his side and his tail switching. Severus’s ears flattened. He side-stepped the centaur as he reared, then reared himself and brought his hooves down hard. The chestnut managed to trot forward and out of the way.

               Turning, the centaur’s fist connected with Severus’s cheekbone. Before Severus could turn himself to face the chestnut, the centaur rammed its entire body into him, and Severus stumbled on his feet, nearly falling over. He watched the centaur gallop a circle around him before charging at him again, and this time, Severus turned and kicked. The chestnut squealed as the sharp hooves cut his flesh.

               It was Severus’s turn to gallop around the centaur and charge in, punching the chestnut in the eye. He reared quickly while he had the upper hand, bring his hooves up and out, shoving the other centaur, who growled under his breath and kicked at Severus, forcing the black centaur to back off.

               Severus was losing his interest more and more in the fight. The chestnut was a younger adult. He had had his share of them challenging him in the past, usually in an attempt to impress their clan leaders. And they knew the lone centaur Ajax was an easy target – one constantly targeted by the older members of the herd. He tried to end the fights by running off, even if it made him appear as a coward. He didn’t want to turn the centaurs against him more by severely injuring or killing one of their own.

               Deciding he had had enough, Severus charged at the chestnut, forcing the other centaur to back away. Severus scooped up his bow and quiver, then turned and galloped away as fast as he could, the chestnut taking a moment to recognize the retreat and follow.

               “Come back here, coward! Finish what you started.”

               “You mean what you started,” Severus said, kicking his hooves back, stirring up small pebbles and dirt that struck the chestnut in the eyes.

               The chestnut stopped abruptly, wiping at his eyes while Severus disappeared in the trees. He galloped until he was sure the chestnut would see no point in trying to track him. He sighed. That little tussle had managed to kill some time. He wasn’t sure at what time the children would be serving their detention, so he’d wait until he heard noises of the half-giant and children.

               Surveying the ground, Severus found some blood trails and began to track this injured unicorn himself. His mind wandered to the hunting compass Remus was working on fixing. Unicorns were no easy target; they were swift and outmaneuvered predators easily. He had suspicions that Quirrell may have been hunting them, but for what reason he wasn’t sure. The man wasn’t dying, but perhaps he was helping someone who was. And the few ideas that came to Severus’s mind were haunting. He wanted to be wrong.

               If Quirrell was still hunting the unicorns, how was he doing so now? Did he have a second hunting compass? Severus wondered how easy it might be to sneak around the man’s classroom and office to search for one. Not only would it help stop the slaying, but it would give him a new tracking devise he could use to find a sphinx. Remus had said the hunting compass was most likely irreparable.  

               A noise startled Severus out of his thoughts and he froze, looking over his shoulder, ears straight up and turning every which way to pinpoint the direction of the sound. It was like a cloak dragging along the forest floor. He peered through the trees.

               A shadow figure walked out from behind a tree and disappeared behind another. Severus cautiously stepped back, leaning forward slightly as his eyes searching for the shadow figure to reappear.

               It did not.

               Licking his lips, Severus continued his walk through the trees, looking for any silvery blood splatters or trampled plants. He saw no more signs of the injured unicorn. Severus was about to head back to Hogwarts to see if the children were out with Hagrid yet when thundering hooves forced him to freeze and shrink back into the trees. A small group of centaurs halted in a nearby clearing, looking up at the sky.

               “Mars is unusually bright tonight,” a black-haired centaur said.

               “You are correct,” said another, who looked to the trees. “Firenze, you are late.”

               A blonde centaur walked into the clearing, joining the five others. “I was observing the stars from the hills, Ronan. I find that I have a much better view away from the trees. Mars is beautiful, but unnerving.”

               “Bane has noted that as well.”

               The three-beat gait of a canter caught everyone’s attention. Severus narrowed his eyes as he recognized the young red-headed chestnut he had fought with earlier. The chestnut slowed to a halt as he reached the group, coming to stand next to the other chestnut, Ronan, who frowned at him.

               “And where have you been, Korath?” Ronan asked.

               “Just . . . patrolling.”

               “What happened to you?”

               “Nothing, really. I don’t want to talk about it.”

               “Picking fights will not earn you a spot among our warriors,” Bane said. “You will stick with us for the remainder of the night. You must learn the ways of the stars and how they speak to us.”

               Good riddance, Severus thought, though he felt some pity for the young centaur. Astrology, as fascinating as it was, could be quite boring to focus on.

               A loud scream echoed through the forest, followed by sounds of barking. Everyone, Severus included, stood up straight and attentive.

               Draco? Severus thought. He turned away from the clearing and galloped through the forest, listening to Fang’s barking and the sound of running feet. He paused as he saw Fang run down a path that led out of the forest, Draco not far behind the dog. Looking in the opposite direction, Severus saw Harry stuck to the ground, the same shadow figure making a grab for the boy.

               His heart hammered in his chest, but he ran for the figure, ready to defend Harry when another centaur soared out of the trees, forcing Severus to slide to a quick halt. It was Firenze, and the centaur chased the figure off, pawing at the ground.

               Severus huffed, moving around the trees to stay out of sight and get closer to Firenze and Harry.

               “Are you all right?” Firenze asked Harry.

               “Yes – thank you – what was that?” Harry asked.

               Firenze was staring – at Harry’s scar, Severus was sure.

               “You are the Potter boy,” the blonde centaur said. “Best get you back to Hagrid. Can you ride? It will be quicker.”

               Harry nodded and clambered on the centaur’s back with practiced ease. Firenze stood tall once more. “My name is Firenze, by the way.”

               There was suddenly more galloping, and the other centaurs appeared, half circling around Firenze and Harry. Severus stepped back further.

               “Firenze!” Bane shouted. “What are you doing? Are you a common mule now? Why do you have a human on your back?”

               “You realize who this is, do you not?” Firenze snapped. “He shouldn’t be out here.”

               “What have you been telling him? Remember, we are sworn not to set ourselves against the heavens.”

               “I’m sure Firenze though he was acting for the best,” Ronan interrupted, stepping forward. “Truly, haven’t you? After all, it is not like use to run around like donkeys after lost humans in our forest.”

               Firenze reared on to his hind legs in anger, and Harry, having been thrown off a centaur before, gabbed on to the centaur’s shoulders. Severus pawed the ground nervously, wanting to remove Harry from the group.

               “Do you not see that unicorn?” Firenze demanded. “You know what the planets have told us about this slaying. I set myself against what is lurking in the forest, Bane, yes, and with humans alongside me if I must.”

               “You’ll turn against your own,” Bane snarled, stepping closer. “You would turn against us? You know how we feel about those who disgrace our herd. You know the penalty.”

               The other centaurs snorted and pawed the ground with flattened ears while Bane and Firenze glared at each other.

               “You won’t attack me. Not with a foal upon my back.”

               “So sure of that are you?”

               The other centaurs took intimidating steps forward.

               With a snort and shake of his head, Severus darted out of the trees, standing in front of Firenze. He pawed the ground, his ears flattened. “You will have to fight me as well.”

               Korath growled and dug his hooves into the earth at the sight of Severus, while the other centaurs gruntled their displeasure. Harry smiled at Severus, opening his mouth as if to speak but he closed it again.

               “Of course, the great Ajax would side with you,” Bane said. “You’ve always had a soft spot for the disgraceful blood. And I see he’s had his own battle earlier.” Bane noted the wounds on Ajax, then glared at Korath, who looked away. “No matter, it’s still two against six. If war is the price to pay to keep our race pure and untainted, then so be it.”

               Then loud snarls and growls suddenly filled the air, and a large werewolf slowly stalked out of the trees, ears flat on his head, canines bared, hackles raised. Moony joined Ajax and Firenze, standing in front of them in a defensive posture, his tail straight out behind him.

               “Werewolf!” Bane said, jumping back and pulling his bow out, readying an arrow. The others followed his lead, though they did back up some more. Bane looked to the moon. “How can that be? It is not a full moon.”

               “You will have to face all of us,” Severus said, stepping up next to Moony, his tail switching. “But know that I will not allow you to hurt my foal.”

               Moony barked aggressively, then resumed his growling.

               Bane crinkled his nose and curled his lip at Severus. “You claim a human boy as your foal? You have reached a new low, Ajax. And you have befriended a werewolf – an enemy of the centaurs. You are a disgrace. Firenze, I expect you to rejoin the herd later tonight. We will discuss your act of betrayal then.”

               Bane reared with a neigh-like sound, stomping his hooves on the ground. With that, Bane turned and left the clearing, the others following with annoyed tail flicks.

               Once they were gone, Moony instantly lost the dangerous wolf look as he sat down and panted, tongue out, his fur flattening and his ears perking up. He looked up at Severus and his tufted tail gave a wag.

               “And you’re back to the dumb mutt,” Severus commented, turning to face Firenze and Harry, walking up to them.        

               Firenze was smiling softly while Harry looked back and forth at everyone in confusion. Moody jumped around at the centaurs’ hooves playfully, his tail wagging.

               “I believe I have something of yours,” Firenze said, turning to the side slightly.

               Severus lifted Harry off Firenze’s back and transported the child to his own. “Thank you,” he said, “for keeping Harry safe.”

               With a nod of acknowledgment, Firenze said, “we must bring him out of the forest.”

               The two centaurs walked down a narrow, dark path, Moony trotting ahead at their side, sniffing randomly at trees and bushes, clawing some when he could. Harry shifted on Severus’s back, leaning forward slightly.

               “I don’t get it,” Harry said. “Why’s Bane so angry? What happened back there? What was that thing?”

               Firenze suddenly stopped, forcing Severus and Moony to do the same. Moony sat in front of the centaurs.

               “Harry Potter,” the centaur said, “do you know what unicorn blood is used for?”

               “No,” Harry said. “We’ve only used the horn and tail hair in Potions, right, Ajax?”

               Severus nodded his head, his ears back slightly. Firenze explained the purpose of drinking unicorn blood: to stay alive even when on the brink of death. But to drink it would mean being cursed forever.  

               “But who’d be that desperate? Death would be better than being cursed forever, right?”

               “Not unless you drink something else that would restore one to full strength and power. Do you know what is hidden in the school at this very moment?”

               “The Philosopher’s stone! It can make the Elixir of Life. But who would –”

               “Can you not think of anyone who is awaiting their chance to return to power after so many years?”

               Harry paled, Moony whined, and Severus wondered if he should cut this conversation short. Firenze was revealing a lot of information. However, he would feel rude interrupting now, especially after everything he centaur had done.

               “Do you mean,” Harry croaked, “that was Voldemort?”  

               “Don’t say his name!” Severus shuddered, turning his upper torso to look at Harry.

               “Sorry,” Harry hunched his shoulders.

               “Harry!” Hagrid’s voice echoed through the trees. The half-giant was very close. “Harry, where are you?”

               Severus sighed, then lifted Harry off his back. He gave the boy an encouraging push forward while Moony happily jumped around Harry, nudging the boy with his wet nose.

               “Go on, now,” Severus said. “Catch up with the others.”

               “Thanks again, Firenze,” Harry said, petting Moony.

               “Stay safe, young foal.”

               “I’ll try,” Harry smirked. Severus snorted.

               “You better try your hardest,” he told the boy. “Go on now.”

               Harry took off down the path toward Hagrid’s voice, Moony leaping after him.

               “Not you,” Severus said, snatching the wolf by the scruff to stop him. Moony yelped, then whined as Harry disappeared. He glared up at Severus.

               “Killjoy,” Moony growled.

               Severus narrowed his eyes at Moony, then looked back at Firenze, who motioned with a jerk of his head to follow him. “Walk with me,” the centaur said.

               Severus walked at Firenze’s side, Moony running and leaping around ahead of them.

               “That was quite brave,” Firenze commented, “what you did back there with my herd. You care greatly for the young child.”

               “I did what I thought I needed to do.”

               “You acted appropriately. I’ve been watching you with those children for some time now. I believe you give us centaurs a good image, despite what the others may think.”

               “Will you be all right returning tonight?”

               “I will be fine. They are nothing I can’t handle. They are my family, no matter what.”

               “Some family,” Severus muttered as he watched Remus dig at a rabbit hole. Firenze tilted his head and furrowed his brows.

               “You are unfamiliar with our customs. You did not grow up in our ways, so what we do to you may seem –”

               “Barbaric?” Severus supplied.

               “Barbaric may be a bit harsh . . .”

               “That’s how you come off to me. I spend most night in this forest running from your herd.”

               “I can only do so much. When the others see you, it sparks emotions they do not like, and they react instinctively. I understand you cannot control what you become, but when you bear our appearance, there are certain expectations you are expected to live up to. At least, in the herd’s opinion.”

               “What I become is a curse,” Severus snapped.

               “For he who slays what he calls a monster must beware the monster inside,” Firenze recited.

               “You know it?”

               “The stars align in strange ways,” Firenze said, looking up at the dark sky. “And they reveal so much. I believe you will find that luck is in your favor in these next few months.”

               “Luck hasn’t been in my favor for thirty-two years,” Severus said.

               Firenze slowed to a stop, and they watched Moony sniff around the clearing, then gnaw on a bone he found. Severus looked at Firenze, who kept his eyes on the wolf.

               “Do you,” Firenze spoke, “believe the words of the curse?”

               “The curse would not exist if the words were not true.”

               “No, it would not. But the words were given to a Prince centuries ago. Are you or are you not the same person?”      

               Severus sighed. “I am not, but that doesn’t stop me from becoming a monster.”

               “Is that what you are, Ajax? Is that what that boy sees in you? I find that the worst monsters are not what we see but the fears that hide within us all. I wouldn’t call myself a monster. Would you?”

               “No, never.”

               “No? What about him?” Firenze nodded toward Moony, who was busy pouncing on jumping crickets, snarling irritably. Severus snorted and shook his head.

               “No, I would not.”

               “And yourself?”

               Severus sighed, looking back down at the grass. “I don’t feel like a monster, despite the transformations. And I don’t think most creatures are monsters.”

               Silence reigned for several moments, then Firenze spoke once more.

“Have you ever met a real monster?”

               Severus looked down at the damp grass, pawing at some blades softly as his ears dropped to the sides. “I’ve met some horrible monsters in my time. Three were human, and one was a dementor.”

               “Then prejudice cannot thrive, can it?”

               Severus kept his gaze down, mulling over the words of the curse in his head. His eyes strayed over to Moony, who was rolling around on his back in the field. He smiled softly. Moony simply embraced his wolf nature whenever he shifted. And while Severus accepted his reality, he never quite embraced it fully as Moony had. He wondered if he could. He remembered Christmas with Harry and how much fun they had before the centaurs interrupted.

               “Think about what you are, Ajax,” Firenze said, turning away from the field. He glanced back at Severus. “Think about . . . who you are.”

               With that, Firenze galloped away.

               Severus sighed. His eyes slowly lifted to the sky, the stars twinkling in new ways he had not seen before. Mars was unusually bright tonight.