Moonlight Games

By Cybra

A/N: And Cybra stumbles into her first ever Harry Potter fanfic. It's a Christmas present to my good friend Mel! This is a Prongs, Moony, and Padfoot fic, as she calls it! Enjoy!

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or I'd be rollin' in dough by now!

A stag gracefully leapt over a rotten log, a large black dog and a wolf on his heels. He laughed at how their attempts to catch up.

"Prongs, slow down!" the wolf snarled with a playful chuckle.

The stag – Prongs – slowed and simply trotted. The black dog and wolf began to pant. They walked on opposite sides of the stag.

These animals enjoying a romp through the Dark Forest were obviously not normal. Two of them were what wizards called "Animagi". In reality, the wolf was a werewolf named Lupin while the stag and black dog were the animagi, James and Sirius respectively.

Sirius – or "Padfoot" as he was called in this form – gave a throaty laugh as he commented, "Why're you so eager to get away from us, Prongs?" He gave a canine smile. "Could it have something to do with the fact that we know about your little fancy?

James tossed his head haughtily. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Oh, I think you do. Isn't that right, Moony?"

Lupin exchanged a knowing and mischievous smile with Padfoot. "Oh, you mean his affection towards Lilly?"

The stag's ears flattened against his head. "There's nothing going on between Lilly and me."

"Yes there is!" the two predators howled, laughing.

Prongs muttered, "How'd you two like a couple of hooves shoved right up your – "

"As if you would!" Moony laughed.

Sirius gave a canine smirk at the only herbivore in the group. "You wouldn't dare."

"At the rate you guys are going, I just might."

This nearly put the two carnivores in stitches. They knew that Prongs wouldn't do something like that. After all, he himself was considered food by the other two but they didn't eat him. It was only fair that the stag not harm the wolf and dog. Besides, the three of them had been friends since first arriving at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

"Knock it off, you two!" James ordered, trying to collect what was left of his pride.

"First, you have to admit it!" Padfoot responded, gasping for breath.

"All right! All right! Fine! I like Lilly! Now get off my back about it!"

"You don't just like Lilly!" Moony teased, ducking away from an annoyed but playful kick.

"You can just – What was that?" James' ears pricked in order to listen.

The three animals held still just before they reached the edge of the Dark Forest. The sound was unmistakable. Someone was walking around outside.

"Maybe it's Filch," Sirius reasoned, sitting down, raising his left hind foot, and twisting his head back to scratch a flea.

"It's not Filch," the werewolf growled. "It's Snape."

"You're sure?" the stag asked.

"Of course I'm sure! Take a good sniff. It has to be Snape!"

The trio each took a whiff of the scent of a human being. Yes, it was definitely Servius Snape. No doubt about it.

"Great. Just great," Sirius snarled. "Now what?"

"It's not like he's going to recognize us," James slyly stated.

The other two looked up at him before exchanging mischievous smiles with their comrade.

"Okay, Padfoot. You look kind of like a wolf, so we'll just make it look like you two are part of a wolf pack trying to hunt down little old me," Prongs explained.

"Sounds good to me, Prongs. You in, Moony?"

"You have to ask?" Moony snorted.

"Ready? Let's go!" James ordered, darting forward.

The wolf gave a truly chilling howl before he and his "pack mate" ran forward, snarling and biting at their friend's heels.

"Not so close!" James protested, kicking back at them.

"We have to make this look real, right?" Sirius asked, still snarling.

"Fine."

Snape leaped back in shock as a stag fled from the Dark Forest. Two wolves followed close behind it as the stag ran in terror. He had thought he'd try to catch a few Gryffindor students leaving their house dorms. Instead, he found three animals racing towards him.

Yelling in surprise, he ran away from the hunt…but the stag continued to run in his direction. Unknown to Snape, the stag and "wolf pack" were secretly laughing at him.

The Slytherlin student ran back to his dorm faster than Moony would've thought he could. As soon as the human had reached safety, the three animals nearly collapsed with laughter.

"Perfect! Absolutely perfect!" Sirius panted, laughing so hard his sides hurt.

Lupin and James were feeling about the same as the sun started to peek up over the horizon. Another night of fun had ended.

"Back to usual, I guess," Prongs sighed as they ran back towards the Gryffindor dorms.

"Same time next month?" Moony asked, already starting to regain human shape as he ran.

"You have to ask?" the other two asked, laughing.