Disclaimer – I own nothing. Except 4 cats…and a little sister…
"Hey James." James heard the voice of his best friend as he climbed through the portrait hole leading to the Gryffindor common room.
"Hey Sirius." James replied.
"Where were you?" Sirius asked as James plopped himself down on a chair next to the couch where Sirius was sitting.
"Library. I had to do that dumb Potions essay for Slughorn."
"You know if you had just taken the detention, you wouldn't have had to write that essay."
"I couldn't have. I already had detention that night and the following week. Plus I promised my mum that I would try to cut back on my 'hard time.'"
Sirius snickered. "Yeah right. James Potter cut back on his detentions. Maybe when the Slytherins confess their undying love for Gryffindors."
"Or vice versa." James grinned. "Where's Remus?" He asked, though he already knew the answer. Remus had a habit of mysteriously disappearing every month, only to return the next day not willing to talk about where he had been.
"I don't know. I had been talking to him, then I turned to write a bit of my Transfiguration essay, I turned back to ask him a question and he was gone. Almost like he Apparated or something."
"We're too young to Apparate." James said.
"Thanks for pointing that out." Sirius said sarcastically.
"Besides, no one can Apparate or Disapparate inside of Hogwarts." James continued.
"How do you know that?"
"My dad told me. Back in his day students were required to read Hogwarts: A History."
"Poor them." Sirius stared at the fire. After a small silence, he said. "I wonder…I mean…do you think Remus tells us the truth…you know…about visiting his mother?" He almost looked guilty suggesting that their friend was lying to them.
"I…don't know." James replied honestly. "He does act awfully strange about it. Of course if my mother was sick I probably wouldn't be too eager to talk about it."
"Yeah, but he always seems so weary when he comes back. And what about those scratches he has all over himself?"
"He said he has a cat."
"Yeah, but remember that time he came back with that scratch across his eye that caused it to swell shut?"
"Well yeah but-"
"Cats don't scratch like that James. It doesn't matter how mean it is. Cats can't scratch people so bad that their eyes swell shut."
"Well then where do you think he really goes?" James asked.
"I don't know." Sirius said thoughtfully. He let his eyes wander from the fire to the large picture of a lion, and then out the window where a full moon shone brightly over the Forbidden Forest. As Sirius gazed at the moon, something clicked. Suddenly everything made sense. He gasped.
"What?" James asked a little startled.
"That's it…"
"What's it?"
"That's why he's not here."
"Sirius! Snap out of it! What is it?" James shook Sirius' shoulders. Sirius turned to face him, his eyes wide.
"James! He's a werewolf!" He said intensely. James stared at him
"That is the dumbest theory I've ever heard." He said blankly. "I think you need some sleep."
"No! Look! Tonight's full moon!"
"Well, yeah, tonight is. But we don't know that it was full moon all the other times he was gone."
"He always comes back looking sick…Transforming has got to be hard on him…and all those scratches…I bet he scratches himself since there's nothing else for him to-"
"Sirius! Be serious! Werewolves are dangerous! They were classified with 5 X's by the Ministry of Magic. That means that they are known wizard killers. Do you really think that Dumbledore would expose children to that kind of danger?"
"If they took the proper precautions." Sirius said softly. "Besides, it's Dumbledore we're talking about! He let Snivellus into school for goodness' sake! Why wouldn't he let a werewolf?" James stared blankly at him. "Ok bad example. But you know that Dumbledore is the kind of man that would feel sympathy for a werewolf."
"Maybe, but Sirius! This is Remus we're talking about! He's our friend! He can't be a werewolf. There is no evidence-"
"What? What do you mean there's no evidence? I've just given you about three reasons to suggest-"
"Well yeah, but those reasons don't mean much coming from your sick, twisted mind." James interrupted. "Besides, don't you think he would have told us?"
"Not necessarily." Sirius said. "He probably thinks that if we knew he was a werewolf, we wouldn't want to be around him anymore. It's probably happened before-"
"Ok, have fun with your strange little theories. I'm going to bed."
"No! Do you remember when we first met him on the train? He seemed too scared to even tell us his name! Even you said that there was no reason for him to think we wouldn't want to hang out with him! But he did have a reason! He had one the whole time! And he still does…"
James stared at Sirius in shock. He was right. He remembered meeting Remus, how scared he had been to talk to them, to even look at them. James couldn't believe it. Sirius, who could not pay attention in any class for more than 2 minutes, had managed to put all the pieces together and come up with a picture as clear as day. Sirius saw the look on James' face and realized that he had finally gotten his point across. After a few minutes in silence, Sirius asked,
"So how do we find out? Ask him?"
"Oh that'd be a nice greeting when he comes back tomorrow. 'Good morning Remus. Here, help yourself to some bacon. By the way, are you a werewolf?'" James said sarcastically.
"Well, we've got to find out."
"I believe that has been established." They went back to staring at the fire. There was another awkward silence.
"I suppose we are right? I mean…what if that's not it at all?" Sirius wondered, firelight dancing in his deep brown eyes.
"Wait a second, you just spent the last ten minutes trying to convince me that you were right and you finally did and now you're suggesting that it's not that?" James asked incredulously.
"I don't know…I just don't want him to get offended or anything. I mean…what if he really is just visiting his sick mum?"
"Sirius! Shut up! You know just as well as I do that he is not visiting his sick mother. If he was, he would be able to look us in the eye whenever he tells us where he was. Now I'm sounding like this whole werewolf idea was mine and I'm trying to convince you of it!" Sirius looked at James and then they both looked back at the fire. The two friends sat staring at the flames into the deep hours of the night. Finally, they silently headed to bed.
Morning came too soon for James and Sirius. They groaned and sat up slowly as Peter told them it was time to wake up.
"How late were you guys up last night?" Peter asked.
"Well past 4." James replied sleepily as Sirius fell back on his pillow, fast asleep.
"What were you doing up that late?"
"Talking."
"About what?"
"Stuff.
"What kind of stuff?"
"Stuff stuff." Peter finally got the point that James wasn't in the mood to talk. "Get UP you prat!" James heaved a pillow at Sirius who sat up, startled.
"Why?" He whined.
"If I have to suffer through today then so do you!"
"But I'm sleepy."
"Yeah? Well so am I! And you know what? It was all thanks to your crazy little ideas that we were up practically all night!"
"Whatever." Sirius muttered as he lay back down on his pillow a second time and pulled the covers over his head.
"Oh no you don't!" James snapped as he walked over to Sirius' bed and began smacking him repeatedly with his other pillow. "Get your lazy buttocks out of bed! Come on! Up up UP!"
"James! Stop! You're messing up my hair!" Sirius complained.
"Oh shut up. You sound like a 2-year-old. Now get up!"
"Fine." Sirius sat up from under his covers, though he certainly didn't look very happy about it.
"Finally!" James said irritably.
"Oh it's always hard to wake Sirius." Peter said as Sirius stumbled into the bathroom to shower.
"Like I don't know that. But today is harder than most since I'm JUST AS TIRED AS HE IS!" James shouted to the bathroom door, which opened and a hairbrush came hurtling out in James' direction. James dodged it and said, "I pity the woman who ends up with him. He is such a pain in the morning."
"I heard that Potter!" Sirius yelled from the bathroom.
"Oh yeah? Well, I'm keeping this hairbrush! See how well you survive without it!" James shouted back as he began getting his robes on. A few minutes later however, Sirius emerged from the bathroom, fully clothed, his wet hair falling across his eyes as usual. "Wait a second. You just heaved your hairbrush at me! How is your hair so neat?"
"You think with natural elegance such as mine I actually need a hairbrush to be devilishly attractive?" Sirius asked.
"Whatever. You better go deflate your head because it's taking up all my breathing room." James said.
"I think I know someone else who isn't exactly cheerful in the morning."
"Yeah, I guess so. Now let's head down to breakfast. Peter already left."
They made their way down the stairs. As soon as they reached the last few steps, they looked up just in time to see Remus collapse on the couch, looking pale. James and Sirius gasped and rushed over to the couch. They had never seen Remus return from one of his nightly ventures. They usually just met up with him in class. He looked worse than they had ever seen him. His face was so pale, it was nearly white. There were dark circles under his eyes and he had two new scratches on his cheeks.
"Remus!" James said somewhat loudly, but Remus didn't respond. He was dead asleep, breathing heavily. James and Sirius were horrified and they jumped as they heard a sharp voice from behind them.
"Black! Potter! Why aren't you two at breakfast?" They turned to see their Head of House, Professor McGonagall.
"Professor! We were running late to breakfast and we came down here and saw Remus collapse and-"
"That'll do Black. Run along now."
"But Professor, what's wrong-"
"Not now Potter. You two just head down to breakfast. I will see to it that Lupin makes it to class."
"But-"
"Go!" James and Sirius left without another word.
Just as McGonagall had told them, Remus met them in class, looking weary, but much better than he had lying on the couch. He seemed his usual cheerful self, but certainly more tired than usual. The day passed incredibly slowly for James and Sirius who attempted to sleep through every class, including Defense Against the Dark Arts, their favorite. After losing 5 points from Gryffindor for not paying attention, Remus asked them, "What's wrong with you two? I thought I was the one who had earned the reputation of sleeping in class."
"Late night." Sirius told him as he put his head back down on his desk.
"What were doing?"
"Talking." James said dryly as he had already had this conversation once before.
"Oh." Remus said, getting the feeling that James and Sirius weren't in the mood to talk.
After dinner, James and Sirius told Peter to head on up to Gryffindor tower without them. Since it was a Friday, they didn't have to work on their homework just yet, so they felt they could take as much time as they needed. Of course, neither of them really wanted to take a long time since they were all so tired. James and Sirius led Remus to a dark corridor under the stairways, a place they had discovered their first week and where they knew they would not be disturbed. The waning moon shining through the window was their only source of light. Remus looked around curiously. "Why are we here?"
"Well…" Now that they had him here, they didn't know how to spit out what they wanted to talk to him about.
"Where were you last night?" James asked. Sirius cast him a look that said, 'I want to get this over with so I can go to bed. We both know perfectly well where he was last night.'
"My mother was sick." Remus said to the floor.
"Why do you always look at you feet whenever you tell us that? They can't be as interesting to talk to as us." Sirius said.
"I don't always-"
"Yes you do. You're doing it now." Sirius told him. Remus looked up at them, paler than usual.
"Well, I-" He said timidly.
"You're mother's not sick." James said. He and Sirius could tell by the way Remus was breathing his heart pace was quickening.
"No she's not." He whispered, refusing to let his eyes meet theirs.
"Well then would you like to tell us the truth?" James asked. Remus remained silent as he slowly shrunk into the dark corner, looking terrified.
"Remus, we're your friends, but we can't help but wonder where you disappear to every month…Every full moon." Sirius felt shivers run down his spine as he spoke the final three words. Remus' breath came shakily; his gray eyes wide and full of tears.
"Are you a werewolf?" James asked quietly, feeling numb and light-headed as if it were not he who had just asked the soul-shattering question. Remus nodded meekly and closed his eyes, allowing tears to stream down his face. He slid to the floor, buried his face in his arms, and wept silently. James and Sirius felt their hearts go out to him.
"Remus…" They felt helpless as they watched him weep, and almost guilty that they had caused him more pain that he already felt. "We're sorry…We just had to know. It was driving us crazy. That's why we were up all night." Sirius told him.
"Why didn't you tell us?" James asked. Remus raised his head, but not enough so they could see his face.
"I wasn't supposed to tell anyone." He said quietly.
"Not even your best friends? You could have trusted us and you know it. We wouldn't have told anyone…and we still won't."
"It wasn't that I was afraid you would tell."
"You were just scared that if we knew, we wouldn't want to be your friends anymore." James said simply. Remus looked at them, amazed at how easily they had read him. More tears escaped from his eyes as he nodded and placed his head back in his arms. Sirius knelt down and forced him to look at him.
"Remus, you are one of the best, one of the only friends I've ever had." He said seriously. "And I think that I can speak for James as well as myself when I say that we would never abandon you."
"Of course we won't!" James said bending down next to Sirius. "Like it or not, you're stuck with us pestering you for life." Remus choked out a laugh before tears were pouring down his cheeks again. He threw his arms around James' and Sirius' necks. They returned his embrace and hoisted him to his feet.
"Ok, enough weepy stuff." Sirius said after a brief moment. "I was up past 4 last night, I was rudely awakened by a stupid prat hitting me with a pillow, and desks do NOT make good cushions. I want to go to bed."
"I believe I am with you on that one." James said. With that said, the three friends, knowing that an unbreakable bond of loyalty had been formed that night, smiled at each other and walked back to the Gryffindor common room.
Hey! I hope everyone liked the story. I want to say thank you to all who reviewed my other stories and hopefully will review this one as well.
OK – I have a problem. I don't know what color Sirius' eyes are! hides face in shame I mean, I've personally always imagined them to be a deep, soul-melting brown…but a LOT of people and websites say they're supposed to be gray. I think in one of my stories, I said he had brown eyes then gray…oops.
Finally…to all you fellow Harry Potter fanatics out there…I want you to know about this great website! www. artdungeon. net. It is an awesome site with a lot of Harry Potter fan art of every character! They are very realistic and all of the characters are drawn EXACTLY how I imagine them! They're all drawn by the same girl and they are AWESOME. So, if you'd like to, check it out! I don't think you'll be disappointed. My friend, who is an amazing artist and a Harry Potter fanatic thought the site was "freakin' awesome."
Happy reading!