He brushed nearly right next to Adrian.
Lutain struck- his body a single well oiled machine. Fangs as white as bone needles, piercing flesh...
James Potter shouted, scrambling back with his hands flashing to his neck- blood was pouring out at a dangerously fast pace.
Lutain hadn't- Lutain hadn't injected venom...
"Dry bite," Lutain assured, feeling his tension, "Let's go. Adalonda awaits."
Adrian paused, watching as James Potter collapsed, eyes wide and horrified. He paled, not from blood loss but from horror of the situation.
"James! James help me-"
"It bit me," James choked out, stumbling backwards, "I- A snake- A snake bit me."
A pause before more muffled swearing and a keening suffering werewolf still trapped in icy water.
"Let's go!" Lutain wailed, tugging towards the vague direction of the castle, "Flee!"
With how dark the night was, even with the full moon, Adrian doubted he could have found the recess in the ground that led back to Adalonda's cave. They would have to run for it, thankfully both Potter and Black were occupied, allowing him to slide back in the trees. There was still the chance that Hermione and Skylar was lingering in the woods- come to think of it, why were they out there anyways?
The moment he was hidden behind an ancient Oak, he took off in a loud sprint. Trees and fallen leaves from the autumn crunched under his shoes; Adrian abandoned all attempts of stealth as he sprinted through the underbrush, occasionally running into reaching tree branches.
He wasn't sure how long he had been running, adrenaline pulsed through his deafening heartbeat. His legs burned yet he forced them to move faster- branches whipped at his face leaving him teary eyed and stinging.
The forest broke in a clean line- he had run off course from Hagrid's corral and ended up nearly out of sight. The castle of Hogwarts loomed high in the sky, looking something of mythology under the stars and moon.
"The Hippogriffs," Adrian strangled out, resisting the urge to vomit from his unexpected sprinting.
The plan was that Adrian would sneak back to Adalonda, informing her that the Hippogriffs had been sacrificed. She was the one adamant in making sure the bodies were not wasted. With how the night had turned into a disaster, Adrian doubted that was possible.
"Leave them," Lutain complained, making a sigh of defeat when he knew Adrian wouldn't listen anyways.
He lumbered across the uneven grass, his cloak snagging on a few small shrubs of scottish heather. The tendrils of Dementor's cloak were more durable, drifting over the branches like silk on skin. The rest of his cloak was the problem. Small barbs from prickly forest plants stuck around his hips, pieces of broken twigs and bark clung to his shoulders and arms.
He hobbled over, finally having his breathing under control. The wooden slats for the fence were frozen, decorated with the thinnest layer of frost.
The Hippogriffs were sprawled in odd positions; a normal person would assume them dead if not for the deep breathing and moving chest.
Adrian placed one foot on the lowest rung of the fence, already hiking himself up and over.
"Master! No." Lutain yelped, "Master no! Back to the castle! Do not!"
"Relax," Adrian mumbled, hopping onto the soft grass on the other side, "I only want a feather."
"A feather?" Lutain squawked, "You risk our scales for a feather!"
Adrian wisely didn't respond to his fuming familiar, and approached the nearest Hippogriff. Something mahogany brown with speckled feathers around its neck. Adrian reached out, pressing a hand to the warm fur by its flank. He could feel its heart, such a strong heart to send blood to the wings and its massive body, constrict and beat with a distracting calmness.
"Master! If you want feather, fine! But be fast!" Lutain hissed, flicking his tongue quickly, "Not safe here."
"Right," Adrian blinked, pulling his hand away as he walked up to the Hippogriff's giant wings, tugging at the primaries uselessly.
"Stop playing!"
"I'm trying! It won't come off!" Adrian complained, scowling at the beautiful speckled object as if it had offended him. He tried another, using his leg to hold the wing to the ground.
It came free with a cracking noise- he had pulled too hard and broken the bone. The bone had been weaker than Adrian expected.
"Look what you done!" Lutain hissed, his tail twitching in agitation, "Broke it!"
"It's already dead!" Adrian defended, holding the feather reverently in his hands, "Completely worth it."
"You're a worm," Lutain insulted, "With a useless collection."
"My collection is not useless!"
"Will you ask Adalonda for a fang?"
"Okay," Adrian paused, trying not to cave so easily, "Do you know how amazing that would be? A real Basilisk fang?"
"Master?"
"Yes, Lutain?"
"You're a worm."
Somehow through the anxiety and rapidly fading adrenaline, Adrian found it in himself to breathlessly laugh.
....
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