Hope In Hiding (Book 2 of the Lost Potter Series)

A Whirlwind

After a flurry of misunderstandings explained and time travel used, Sirius Black and Olivia Potter flew to safety on the also wanted hippogriffe, Buckbeak. They continued flying in a seemingly random direction for ages, doing their best to keep warm and keep on the beast. Ocean became their only view and soon enough neither of them had any idea where they were. They took turns sleeping through the night, each keeping a sharp lookout for any land up ahead.

It felt as if an entire day had passed before Sirius spotted land. They were exhausted, starving, and dehydrated, but managed to muster up some energy to try and get Buckbeak to land. As they approached the landmass, however, they started to notice how densely populated it was. A city was sprawled underneath them, and Buckbeak was going nowhere near it. Despite their urging, the flying creature continued its course for another five hours.

Buckbeak finally touched down in a dense forest area with no cars, crowds, or buildings in sight. He crashed down with as much grace as he could muster, flung the unwelcomed passengers off of him, and wandered off to find substenance.

"Sirius, where are we?" Olivia groaned as she scanned the sky above her.

Sirius was the first one to move, sitting up slowly as his bones protested, "Based on my limited geography, we've either landed in Scandinavia, Canada, or the States. I'm betting on one of the last two."

He turned to face Olivia, his words trailing off as he realised the girl had passed out on the dewy grass. He smiled to himself briefly and began to get up. No matter where they had ended up, he wasn't sure it was safe— or if anywhere would ever be safe for the three wanted criminals.

Sirius's stomach growled and knawed at itself as he sturdied himself against a grand oak. It smelled of fresh rain and pure nature, and he felt briefly nostalgic of his days roaming the Hogwarts grounds.

He was snapped out of his memories by a shuffling sound coming from the distance. He backed up slowly, standing over Olivia. He knew they had no chance of running, but maybe if he found Buckbeak in time...

The hippogriffe must've gone further than he thought for Sirius couldn't spot the stormy grey plumage anywhere. The shuffling got even closer, and Sirius slowly crouched down to try and wake Olivia. He had barely laid a hand on her shoulder when a loud voice called out.

"Hello? Anybody out here?" A man's voice boomed in a strange accent. Sirius cursed to himself and looked down at himself and Olivia, thinking about a cover story. He stood and faced the direction of the voice, facing a man dressed in camouflage clothing and a bright orange vest. He held a rifle and aimed it at Sirius briefly before lowering it.

"This is private property! What're you doing here?" The man took his left hand off the rifle entirely, making Sirius relax a slight bit.

"I'm so sorry, my daughter and I were hiking and seem to have gotten lost!" Sirius gestured to Olivia as he spoke, still standing in front of her protectively.

"Lost? Where were you hiking from?" The man had entered the clearing, but kept a safe distance as he saw Sirius tense up again.

"We were near the border, I think? I am so sorry about this, we're just visiting Canada from England and aren't quite familiar with the area." Sirius hoped with every part of him that his acting wasn't as atrocious as it felt. The man, however, seemed to buy it.

"Near the border? You really are lost." The man stopped and seemed to think for a second, his eyes focusing on Olivia, "How about I take you two home and let you eat and get your bearings? The missus should be finished with dinner by now."

Sirius kept his guard up, "We wouldn't want to impose on you or your wife, if you could just point us in the right direction."

The man laughed a hearty laugh, "The right direction? You've got miles until the next town. You won't be imposing, neither, we take in company all the time. Name's Joe Turner, by the way." He stepped even closer, shouldering the rifle and holding a hand out for Sirius to shake.