attack
James
James admitted it. Capture the Flag hadn't quite gone as planned. Not only had they not won, but he hadn't been able to have a real conversation with Regulus Black.
At least Sirius seemed to be in a good mood again. Even though they had lost. James had asked Sirius what had happened during the game. But Sirius only replied that they hadn't been able to get the flag because the opposing team had set traps. James, however, did not miss the blush that had spread across Sirius' face.
To be honest, James had been quite surprised by Regulus' personality. He had seemed so cold when they first met. He had just glared at Sirius, with his grey eyes.
At least, James thought they were grey at first. But when he saw them up close during the game, he could see faint specks of light blue. Like tiny crystals that stood out in a sea of mist.
James had originally planned to keep an eye on Regulus at first, until he stepped on a branch. Regulus' reflexes were good and he immediately threw James to the ground. James had to improvise.
He actually wanted to talk to Regulus about Sirius and that he should give him a chance. But the conversation didn't quite go in that direction and he got distracted.
To James' surprise, Regulus was quite funny. The bridge of his nose still hurt a little, but he should have seen it coming. Never underestimate a Black. James should have known that, having been friends with Sirius for so many years.
He resolved to try talking to Regulus again. This time, he would be successful.
So it was that he approached the younger Black Brother after breakfast. Regulus was talking to the Rosier twins.
James knew Pandora a little, but only because Lily sometimes talked about her. He didn't know her brother, Evan, at all. He seemed pretty easy-going, though.
James had almost reached the small group, but a shout shattered the relaxed atmosphere.
‘Alarm! Alarm! A monster!’
All the campers immediately turned to the voice. It was a young female camper whose name James couldn't remember. But he didn't have time to think, because a huge monster was towering on the hill behind her.
The monster resembled a cat, if a cat had horns, several pairs of black eyes and a stinger at the end of its tail. James was trying to decipher what kind of monster it was, but he was interrupted by Horror-Cat spitting a jet of fire. Oh great.
Campers grabbed their weapons or ran away. James saw Lily take her dagger and Evan draw his bow. Sirius drew his sword as well, which didn't look as impressive since he only pulled a pen out of his pocket.
Horror-Cat ran down the hill, straight towards them. She was thrown off course, however, when an arrow pierced directly into one of her dark eyes. She let out a loud roar.
James finally drew his own sword, a long blade of celestial bronze with little wings on the hilt, like the winged shoes of Hermes. It had been a gift from his father. The only time James had ever seen him.
Unfortunately, Horror-Cat had recovered and was now sprinting towards them again.
Sirius ran towards the beast, which was perhaps not the wisest decision. James thought he heard Regulus shouting something, but he wasn't sure. His gaze was focussed on Horror-Cat. It lashed out with its giant paw, but Sirius dodged it. He dug his sword into the monster's leg instead, but in the process he was almost impaled by one of Horror-Cat's horns. The thought of horns and impaling brought back unwanted memories. James suppressed them.
He now attacked the monster too, but had to stop to avoid the beast's tail. The sting that grew there was certainly poisonous.
With Horror-Cat now distracted, Lily was able to attack with her dagger. James could never fight with a dagger. Because you had next to no range with it. You had to be quick and clever to use one. That was probably why Lily was so good with a dagger. Because she was quite clever.
With one swift movement, Lily rammed the blade into Horror-Cat's neck. James watched her in awe. Unfortunately, he was distracted. He was snapped back to reality by Sirius as he called out to him.
‘James! Watch out!’
James saw the monster's tail whipping towards him. It would probably have pierced him clear through if he hadn't been pushed aside at the last moment. James looked up. Regulus Black stood above him, glaring at him.
‘Maybe you could try not to get yourself killed, all right?’
James just nodded, gaping. The two looked at each other for a while until a scream snapped them out of their trance. At the same time, they let their heads whirl round.
At the monster's feet lay Sirius, panting and holding his arm. Blood flowed from under his fingers. He tried to hold himself up, but Horror Cat swung his paw and threw him against a rock. There was a loud crack as Sirius hit the ground. He didn't get up.
James ran over to him.
‘Sirius!’
Suddenly, lightning flashed across the sky. James looked up, confused. The sun had been shining before.
His gaze fell on Regulus, who was looking at the beast with clenched fists. His eyes looked as if lightning was flashing around there too. Regulus raised his hands and brought them down. Out of nowhere, a bolt of lightning struck the monster's head. It disintegrated into golden dust.
The storm was still raging and James saw Pandora go to Regulus and whisper something to him. The storm slowly calmed down.
James looked down at the ground. Sirius was still unconscious. He had to be taken to the infirmary as quickly as possible. But before he could do anything, Regulus was already standing next to him. He looked down at his brother with widened eyes. Regulus turned to James. He opened his mouth to say something, but he didn't get the chance.
The sound of a hunting horn rent the air. All eyes were drawn to the hill where the beast had been moments before.
Now a group of girls stood there, all dressed in silver and equipped with bows and arrows. Someone from the group stepped forward.
She had curly, dark hair. In addition to her outfit, she wore a silver, braided hairband. She addressed the crowd with a serious expression on her face.
‘We were sent to warn you. Trouble is coming.’
Regulus looked at him in confusion.
‘Who's that?’
James turned to him with a grim expression.
‘The hunters of Artemis.’