Seven-year old Remus J. Lupin was enjoying himself in the forest located just beyond his house. "There is nothing like the outdoors to release your inner self," his mother, Hope Lupin, had always mentioned to him.

She's right, Remus thought to himself he admired the capturing beauty of a nearby wildflower. He loved nature, just like his mother, and adored all of the animals that lived in unity with it. Nature brought and bound everything together in the world like a complicated puzzle, and Remus was captivated by that; it seemed so simple, but was yet so complicated. And the forest, his forest as he liked to call it, was just that. So many different plants and animals seemed to fit together to create one great big beautiful picture.

Remus jumped onto a pile of large boulders and climbed to the highest one on which he perched himself. He pushed back his shaggy, brown hair from his face that was somewhat like his mother's to reveal curious brown eyes taking in the sights of everything around him. The rock had a flat, smooth top that opened up to the pink and orange sky of the setting sun; one of Remus' favorite places to relax.

He lay on his back and stared through the opening in the trees into the transfixing summer sky. Remus realized that he should've been on his way home quite a long time ago, but the mesmerizing enchantment of the forest begged him not to leave and he couldn't resist the temptation to just gaze at the open sky above him.

When the sky began to turn black, Remus realized head home; he wasn't even supposed to be this deep in the forest.

So he slowly slid off of his sanctuary rock and started for home.

Fenrir Greyback stared into the clearing in the forest. There lay, so simply on a large boulder, the son of that Jonathan Lupin, whom he despised. But it was too early. He would have to wait until the full moon is visible to attack.

He licked his lips in excitement. Tonight, he would get his revenge with that horrible man by ruining the lives of him and one of his most prized possessions: his only son.

Greyback was snapped out of his reverie by his prey that suddenly had the whim to leave that vulnerable area.

Brilliant, Fenrir thought sarcastically, if the boy could've just stayed put in that susceptible place for five more minutes that would've made the attack so much simpler!

No matter, he told himself. He should've been used to this type of routine already! I'll just make sure he doesn't leave my eyesight before I transform, that's all, he assured his mind.

And with that, he began to follow the unwary child through the forest.

Remus knew that he was in for trouble this time. It was way past curfew and in a few minutes (or seconds, really) the moon would have already risen! Remus cursed himself for staying out in the forest to long. Close as she was to nature, his mother would have a fit and a long lecture with him if she knew long he spent out in the forest. Just outside was bad enough, but deep in the forest was, in her words, "absolutely, positively dangerous." He could just hear her voice ringing in his head the afternoon last summer that she asked him to heed what she had to say when he called to her that he was going to make his first venture into the forest alone. Remus could already picture her long, dark brown hair in a low, tight ponytail. She wore a cautioning expression on her normally calm face.

"Sometimes there are dangerous creatures in there near or after dark," she had warned him. "Not all things in nature are good, especially for a young boy like you."

Remus thought of this and quickened his pace. He didn't have the faintest idea what sort of thing (or things for that matter) could do something that terrible to him to make his mother worry so much and his mum wouldn't tell him. His mother meant well, he knew that, but at times she worried too much. Either way, Remus considered, she had a real knack for scolding those that make inappropriate decisions, even his dad.

The edge of the forest was in view when he heard the crackling and snapping of leaves and twigs behind him. He snapped around in a flash. Remus had been gazing contently at the full moon above and the sudden noise snapped him out of his daydream and made him look around in fear.

A soft growl was heard from behind a tree that gave him the feeling that the owner of it had finally cornered his prey in triumph-and it didn't make Remus feel good at all. He froze with fear as a full grown werewolf with dangerous looking gray fur emerged from behind a large tree trunk. It paused, and then let out a howl that pierced the calm night air. Remus finally picked up the courage to move and decided to run for it.

He sprinted towards his house, knowing that the bloodthirsty chaser was hot on his heels. Remus could hear the energetic panting of the beast and the quick sounds of its soft paws hitting the grass with each great step.

The front door was just a few yards away. He screamed at the top of his lungs with all the strength he could muster:

"MUM! DAD! HELP! HURRY!"

Remus saw his astonished mother and father, as surprised as they were, quickly emerge from the front door with their wands raised high, coming to their son's aide.

Nearly there, Remus thought. Nearly there.

A few meters from the door, he stumbled and fell to the soft, cool ground. All he remembered was a great pain on his side, screaming, a flash of red light, then blackness.

"Oh my goodness. H-how could I let this happen? How?"

"Don't blame yourself, dear. None of this is because of you. If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I angered that thing so he wanted revenge. How could I be so…so…?"

"Y-yes, but I should've kept an eye on him and l-looked for him before it got dark! T-that was completely foolish of me! I'm…I…I'm a failure as a mother!"

"Now, now Hope, don't think like that. You're a great mother. We just got unlucky because of something Idid, not you. Besides the Healer said that he'll live…."

"But…b-but…every f-full moon he'll…he'll…Oh Jon! W-what will we do?"

"Don't worry so much, Hope. We'll think of something. And try to keep your voice down- you might wake him."

Remus stirred, but he kept his eyes close. The past events were just a blur and the voices meant nothing to him. All he knew was that he was that he was stiff and slightly aching, but the bed he was in (he's pretty sure it's a bed…) was quite warm and comfortable. The distant voices in the background gradually became clearer and louder and Remus realized that they belonged to his mum and dad. He carefully opened his eyes and took in his surroundings.

He was in a bed that was completely white, plain, and, in his opinion, boring. Remus' eyes moved to the pale blue night stand that held a dull- looking light brown lamp with a white shade, a tall, green glass bottle that looked like it held a type of medicine, and an empty drinking cup right next to it.

He then became aware of the purple curtains surrounding his bed that looked extremely bright against all of the monotonous colors. Gold embroidery was stitched in the center of each of hanging. Remus squinted to read the cursive letters:

Property of St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries

So that's where he was. Remus was contemplating on what he should do next when the curtain opened up to his mother and father who were still in deep conversation and did not seem to notice that their son was awake and was looking at them with great interest, searching for more details on what was going on. His mother wore a worried expression on her face while his father plastered a half grim, half exasperated look on his like he was trying to decide which personality to use.

"I'm telling you, Hope, Remus is going to be just-oh," said his father, finally realizing that his son was conscious. "Err…glad your up."

Unless it was just his imagination, his father had suddenly gone timid at the sight of Remus and seemed to be trying to avoid eye contact with him. And his mother looked like she was going to burst out crying at any second.

Remus began to push himself upright when a sharp pain exploded from his right side, sending tingling needles throughout him. He collapsed back onto the bed then looked from his mother's to his father's apprehensive expressions searching for an explanation.

Are you all right?" asked his dad, Jon, startled by the sudden weakness of his son. His hair, which was brown just like Remus', was messy and looked like it hadn't been brushed while his face, which was not like his son's at all, was concerned and tired.

Responding to his father's question, Remus nodded back feebly while his parents sat themselves slowly in two maroon, metal chairs on either side of the bed. Once they were all seated, a long silence echoed between them. It was finally broken by Mr. Lupin.

"So, Remus…" started Jon uncertainly, trying to find a place to start. "Do you remember what happened the other night?"

"Well, sort of…" Remus replied, trying to remember the past events as well as he could. "I was coming back home from the forest because it had gotten dark. Then I remember a wolf chasing me and then I tripped after called you and mum out…But, I mean, it's probably not his fault!" he added, seeing the look on his father's face that showed that he wanted to make a bad comment about the animal. "He probably was chasing me on accident and had no control over it!"

He saw that his father was planning to try an prove Remus wrong, but his mother looked at her husband and muttered, for the first since she saw Remus awake, "Not right now."

Jon looked like he was going to argue, but Hope gave him a piercing stern look so he decided to drop the subject.

"Well Remus, you do know what happened after you fell, don't you?" Mr. Lupin continued looking quite angered about not being able to say what he wanted.

"I think the wolf bit me, but I'm not exactly sure…" Remus answered, racking his brains for any recollection of the incident.

"You're absolutely correct about bitten by that…thing…" Remus' father confirmed. "But do you know about the…how should I put this…aftereffects?"

Remus shook his head slowly, wondering what was going on.

"No?" his father said, clearly wishing that his son had already known them or perhaps read at least a little about it in one of those fat books that he usually buries himself in when he wasn't outdoors. "Well, since you were bitten by…an animal like that, you will get some…err…wolfish characteristics from now on…"

Remus cocked his head to the side, thinking what on earth was his father talking about?

"Which means," Jon went on seeing his son's confused look and not wanting to say more. "That every full moon you will transform into…a werewolf," ending quite silently, but abruptly and quickly.

Remus stared at him for a few seconds, not believing his ears.

"A what?" he exclaimed in horror.

"A werewolf," his father repeated, even smaller than the first time as though he was trying to reduce the problem of their dilemma.

Remus Lupin lay in his bed, completely devastated, and stared at the plain, white ceiling, depressed by the news. A werewolf….He would never be able to be a normal boy again.

In his grief, he didn't notice his mother finally letting her tears go and weeping or his father looking at Remus, wishing that there was something that he could do to help his only son.