The Forbidden Forest groaned beneath the weight of the Blue Moon. It bathed the world in an eerie, silvery hue—ancient, electric. The trees whispered in languages long dead, and the clearing at its heart pulsed like a heartbeat.
Lucius Malfoy stood at the center of a crumbling stone circle, robes fluttering like black flame. His wand glowed with dark light, its tip hovering above a bowl filled with silver blood—not animal, not entirely human.
Around him, symbols etched into the earth burned bright and blue. They twisted unnaturally as if alive, veins of magic surging through the mossy ground like lightning through roots.
He was chanting in Parseltongue.
Eyes closed. Power rising.
"For the Serpent. For the Binding. For what was taken from me."
Behind him, a bound figure kneeled — their face hidden beneath a hood. Magical chains shimmered around them like liquid metal.
Suddenly—
CRACK!
The air split.
A spell screamed through the forest.
"STUPEFY!"
Lucius spun, robes flaring, just in time to deflect it. The curse burst against the protective runes like a red firework.
Out of the trees came Sirius Black, wild and reckless, his wand gripped tight in one hand and a dagger in the other. His long coat snapped behind him like stormclouds.
Right beside him—Remus Lupin. Calm, eyes glowing faintly gold under the moon. Controlled rage coiled in his every step.
"You've done enough, Malfoy!" Remus's voice rang clear, sharp as a sword. "Step away from the ritual."
Lucius smiled. "Ah. The hounds come sniffing."
The bound figure behind him whimpered.
Sirius's eyes darkened. He recognized the boots. The hair. The helpless stillness.
"...Snape?"
Lucius's grin deepened. "He offered himself freely. Don't insult him."
"Like hell he did!" Sirius shouted, blasting the edge of the ritual circle. The protective ward shuddered.
Lucius turned, flicking his wand again. "You forget, Black, I was born to rule. You were born to bark."
"Funny," Remus said coldly, "I was thinking of making you bleed."
The duel exploded.
Hexes and fire twisted through the night. Trees burst into flame. One of the ritual stones cracked as Sirius smashed Lucius back with a wall of force. But Lucius wasn't slowing—he was laughing.
"You're too late!" he roared. "The moon is mine—"
Suddenly—
A howl split the sky.
Remus's transformation had begun.
Under the Blue Moon, he writhed forward—his body reshaping, his control thinning. Fur sprouted, claws formed.
Sirius didn't flinch.
He stepped into the storm like he'd done a hundred times.
He knew who Remus was.
But Lucius used the moment.
A flash of blinding blue.
A rip in the magic.
Sirius was thrown into a tree—hard. He collapsed, stunned.
Remus snarled, halfway to wolf.
Lucius turned toward the bound boy again—but the hood had slipped.
It was Severus.
Bloodied. Barely conscious. But—
His wand was hidden beneath his robes.
Lucius didn't see the hand move. Didn't feel the spell until it was too late.
"Incarcerous!"
Ropes of golden light slammed into Lucius's chest, binding him like a fly in web.
Severus fell forward, gasping.
Sirius rose slowly, limping. "You okay, Snivellus?"
Severus spat blood. "You smell like wet dog."
Sirius grinned, shaking. "That's more like it."
Remus was crouched nearby now, breathing hard, the moonlight gleaming off sweat-drenched skin—human again, but barely.
Lucius struggled in the magical bindings, but his ritual was ruined.
The Blue Moon dimmed.
And Severus turned slowly, eyes sharp with vengeance.
"This isn't over," Lucius hissed.
"No," Severus whispered.
"But next time, it's my turn to cast first."