Hungry Like the Wolf
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter or any of the characters associated with it.
Warnings: Violence, slash, torture, language
A/N: This is an implied RL/SB story. It is a 'what if' scenario that examines what might have happened if Remus had been bitten in his 5th year instead of as a child. This story is dedicated to bluudyrabbitofportland . Much love to everyone who reads.
Wandering the Forbidden Forest in the middle of the night was such a bad idea. Remus knew this, and yet despite his better judgment, here he was looking for a specific component to a potion that a certain dark haired friend of his had destroyed earlier. Since Remus needed it for his take-home exam and if he lost anything he needed he would fail, Remus was out looking for a new one.
Damnation, where the hell was a bloody Dryad when you need one? he wondered. He just needed one bloody hair for the exam. As a tree spirit, Dryads could be rather elusive, but he meant no harm and it shouldn't be that hard to find one as long as he knew where to look. As Remus wandered, he made sure to keep his hand on his wand the entire time. These woods weren't just filled with pleasant things like Dryads and Unicorns. These particular woods were also full of dangerous creatures that would rip him apart as soon as look at him.
After about half an hour had passed and he still hadn't seen any Dryads, Remus considered going back to the castle. He might have to, if he hadn't heard the rustling of leaves just a little further in. Taking a deep breath, Remus pushed past a cluster of branches and stopped cold where he stood.
There, just beyond the tree line, was a Dryad all right. Unfortunately, it was dead. Not only was it dead, but a group of men and women were hunched around it's body, ripping flesh from it with their teeth. Oh God, they were eating her. Taking a horrified step back, the blond tried to resist fleeing and attracting their attention. He just needed to get away slowly, so that they didn't attack him too. He only had a wand and he strongly suspected that it would not be enough to defend himself with against a group of whatever those things were.
Taking a slow, deep breath, Remus turned away from the scene. When he began pushing his way back through the trees, however, one of the roots he stepped on seemed to be displeased with being walked upon and it snaked up and wrapped itself around his leg and yanked him to the ground with a loud thump. The pain of hitting the hard ground and impaling part of his leg on a thorn as large as his forearm in the process was too much for Remus to be silent through. With a strangled cry of pain, the small 5th year tried to pull himself off the thorn as blood began pouring from the wound.
Either the cry he had emitted or the smell of fresh blood drew the creatures attention and before he knew it, Remus was surrounded by the blood soaked figures. Looking up at the dark forms through his wide brown eyes, Remus whimpered, trying to pull away but only succeeding in causing himself more pain from the thorn that was deeply embedded in his limb.
With a shaking hand, he reached for his wand but was stopped short as one of the strange figures slammed it's foot down on Remus' wrist, crushing it into the ground. The feel of his bones beginning to strain beneath the pressure being applied to it hurt and Remus tried to jerk free. The man who stepped on him only pressed harder until he heard the first sounds of cracking bones.
With a scream of agony, Remus felt hot tears roll from his eyes and down his dirt streaked cheeks. Oh God, I'm going to die here, he thought, eyes rolling back in his head as one of the other figures bent and lowered it's blood splattered face to his. When the mouth was close to Remus' throat, the blond cried out in fear.
When he didn't feel his flesh tearing, he stared into the pale yellow eyes of the man leaning over him.
"Please..." he whispered, pleading with his eyes. "Don't kill me."
From his left, he heard a low rumble of a laugh pour from someone's mouth. The sound was harsh to his ears and Remus winced away from it. Above him, he heard the man whisper into his ear.
"No, we won't kill you. You're going to come with us."
"Please..." Remus asked again. "Please, I just want to go..."
"It's too late, pup," the man said, a sick smile creeping onto his twisted and scarred face. "Come on, lift him and bring him to the den."
That's when it dawned on the blond exactly what was happening. These people were werewolves. They were taking him with them and with his broken wrist and severely bleeding leg, he couldn't struggle enough to escape. He was lifted from the ground and carried through the trees as his eyes grew heavy from blood loss. As he struggled to stay conscious, Remus felt a pang of fear stab through him. As his eyes closed for the last time that night, he smelled the over powering scent of blood and musk that came from the man that carried him.
The feel of something hot and wet rubbing against his calf was what Remus woke to when he finally regained consciousness. Rolling his head to the side, the blond looked down to see a boy not much older than him crouched over his lower body, licking his leg. Jerking back suddenly, Remus smacked his head against the hardness of the stone wall behind him. The brown haired boy that had been licking the skin of his leg looked up, appearing to be amused.
"Awake huh? Was beginning to think you were actually goin' ta kick it for a while."
"Where the hell am I?" Remus demanded, voice coarse. "Why the fuck were you licking me?"
"Jus' doin' my job ye' know," the boy replied, sitting back on his heels to get a better look at Remus. Feeling exposed, Remus reached out with his injured hand to grab the blanket that had been thrown to the side and quickly regretted it. With a hiss of pain, he fell back into his sitting position.
Panting hard through gritted teeth, he glared past his untidy hair at the other boy.
"Tell me what's going on," he growled, fresh pain blossoming in his leg as he pulled it away.
"What's going on, pup, is that we're gonna turn you," came the gruff voice Remus had heard the night before. Straining his neck, he looked up at the aging man above him and shuddered.
"Greyback," the brown haired boy said, bowing his head deeply. "I was jus' cleaning the wound, sir."
"Getting a taste of blood was what you were doing. Now get out of here before I break you in two," Greyback snarled, pushing his way forward from where he stood near the back entrance of the room.
"Aye sir," the boy said, bowing again and quickly ducking out of the room. As he did so, Remus felt panic rise in him. Greyback. He knew that name, just as every wizarding child knew it. Greyback was the notorious werewolf who attacked kids as revenge against their parents. How had he ended up here, so near Hogwarts? Granted, for a man who specialized in children, it was probably like a buffet. Remus swallowed and tried to draw back from the man as he approached but couldn't because of the pain in his leg and wrist.
The older man laughed when he saw the struggle and climbed so that he was crouching over the boy, body held a distance away but close enough to me more intimate than anything else Remus had experienced. He leaned forward and pushed the hem of Remus' shirt back until his entire chest was exposed and lowered his face to the soft skin there. For a second, Remus was paralyzed. What was Greyback doing? The older man ran his tongue along the soft skin there slowly, sensually, and smiled.
"I love the taste of children's fear in the morning," he growled and by the tone of his voice, Remus was afraid he would eat him right then and there. But that didn't make any sense. Werewolves only killed people when they shifted. Even as he thought it, Remus remembered the body of the Dryad and how the people who killed it had eaten the flesh straight from it's body. With a shudder that only seemed to excite the other man more, Remus let out a soft gasp of fear as Greyback bit lightly into his belly.
"I can't wait to sink my teeth into the soft flesh of your young body...The taste of your blood filling my mouth..." the man whispered, licking the red area he had just bitten.
"Please," Remus said, trying to stay as still as he could.
"Say it again, I love it when they beg..."
Remus let out a soft cry of fear as the man bit again, almost breaking skin. God it hurt, but he knew his cries were only making Greyback happier. As he lay there, the man bit even harder, cauing Remus to writhe beneath him. Suddenly, the older man pulled back, eyes locked with Remus'.
"Yes, I think I'll enjoy turning you, pup."
With a last lick, Greyback climbed off the injured boy and pushed the door open. Glancing over his shoulder, he smiled wickedly.
"Oh, and don't try to leave. This building is surrounded and I'd really hate to let my friends play with you. They can be a little rough..."
Remus swallowed and nodded as he watched Greyback exit. When he was sure he was alone, Remus looked down at his body where the wolf had bitten him. Sure enough, there were angry red welts forming in the shape of the older man's mouth. Tugging at his shirt with his good hand, Remus pulled it back into place, wondering if he would get any other unpleasant visits like that tonight and prayed that he didn't.
Laying with his head resting against the wall, Remus wondered if the school was looking for him yet. Surly someone had noticed he wasn't in the dorm that morning or classes that afternoon. He smiled slightly as he thought about Sirius. He was probably pulling his hair out with worry over him. He knew where Remus probably was and no doubt had told the proper authorities what probably happened.
Actually, now that he thought about it, Remus started to worry that Sirius would try something foolish. Shaking his head, he cradled his wrist against his chest, trying to ease the pain there. As he slumped against the wall, he sighed. He should try to run but the veiled threat of death given to him by Greyback made him hesitate. It wasn't until the door opened and a tall, slender man entered that Remus looked up again. He started at the sight of the man, who was nude and holding a rope in his hands.
"Get up. Time to go"
Struggling, Remus tried to rise but apparently his attempt was far too slow for the slender man who grabbed a handful of Remus' thick blond hair and jerked him to his feet. Pain rushed through him and Remus thought his leg might give out if the other man hadn't caught him.
Slipping the rope over Remus' wrists, the taller man yanked hard, tightening it until it was unbearably painful. Without waiting for Remus to adjust to the pain, the man pulled him ferociously out of the building and thrust him into the clearing outside. It took a second for Remus' eyes to adjust to the dimness around him. It was dark already? When did that happen? When they did adjust, he tried to step back but could not. The rope around his wrists pulled him forcefully to the center of the clearing and he stared, speechless.
Everyone around him was nude. Men, women, and even the kids. There were about 15 of them in all and they were all looking at him like he was something good to eat. As he watched, Greyback stepped forward and smiled in feral way of a beast.
"Good to see you, pup. It's time."
"What are you going on about?" Remus asked slowly, trying to keep the tremble out of his voice.
"Look up, pup. See for yourself."
Hesitating for only a second, Remus raised his eyes to the sky and felt panic bubble up inside him. Lord, it was a full moon. Trembling slightly, he looked back to Greyback and began twisting his wrists to free them of their constraints. The pain from the broken bones must have been overridden by the rush of adrenaline he felt because he didn't even notice any discomfort as he struggled to free himself. His attempts only seemed to amuse his on lookers and Greyback cackled.
"You can try all you like, but if I was you, I'd run. There's only a few minutes until the moon rises and I'm feeling generous. Give ya a head start."
A second passed before what Remus had been told soaked in. Only a few minutes. Looking around at the faces before him, he knew that he would die if he didn't run. Taking a step back, he turned and ran. He ran like he never had before. His leg felt like lead as he tried to weave in and out of the trees. The branches slapped his face painfully and he could feel the blood running down his leg from the reopened wound. In the back of his mind, he knew they would be able to follow the trail of blood right to him. If he could just make it back to the castle, he'd be safe. He just had to make it that far.
He didn't know how long he ran for, but by now it was full dark and he could barly see the gorund in front of him. All around him, he could hear the panting of dogs and the sound of their paws hitting the dirt. Visions of trees flashed before his eyes as he ran, desperately trying to escape. Fear rode him and somehow, he managed to find his way to a familiar area.
Panting with relief, he turned quickly to the left and continued to run. There, just ahead, he saw the edge of the woods. That's when it happened. From behind him, a strong pair of jaws snapped closed around his already wounded leg. Letting out a strangled cry of pain, he fell to the ground, bound hands doing nothing to break his fall. On the ground and in agony, Remus rolled and kicked the huge grey beast in the face, causing blood to gush from it's left eye.
With a howl of pain, it fell back and another took it's place, gnawing at Remus' limb like a dog with a ham bone. Screaming as loud and long as he could, Remus tried to crawl, kick, to escape. He was less than 100 yards from the grounds, why hadn't anyone heard his cries? Bunching in around himself, he reached out and clawed at the head of the monster that had attached itself to his leg.
Tears rolled out of his eyes as he grabbed the wolf by it's thick fur and kicked it hard in the jaw. That had been a bad idea, he realized, as the strong jaws clenched, snapping his bone cleanly in two. Blinded by pain, he gave in as more of the pack moved closer to the kill. He knew Greyback said they would only turn him, but he also knew when werewolves were deep in bloodlust, they lost all that was human about them.
Helpless beneath the beast and with more closing in, Remus prayed he would bleed to death before they could eat him. From the way his leg twisted in an inhuman angel, he knew if he survived but received no medical attention, he would never be able to use it again. With another cry finding it's way out of his throat, Remus screamed loudly, wordlessly into the dark. What startled him was when his scream was answered by another.
"Costas! Costas!" Remus heard from behind him. Dimly, he looked up and saw a figure running towards him even as the wolves were thrown into the air around him.
"Sirius..." he gasped, astonished by what he saw. What was that idiot doing, running into a pack of Werewolves with only his wand to protect him?
"Costas!" Sirius screamed again as one of the thrown wolves rose to it's feet and charged. The beast was struck squarely in the chest and tossed again. This time, however, it did not rise.
Wand still at the ready, Sirius dropped to his knees next to his fallen friend and muttered 'proteja-nos' softly. Around him, Remus felt a warm barrier go up, keeping the wolves at bay. As Remus looked at him, Sirius' hair blew loose from his holder and wrapped around his determined face. Remus reached up with his bound hands and brushed his fingers that face, a smile touching his lips.
"Nice spell, Sirius..." he whispered, wondering if he was dead already and if this was a dream.
At the sound of his voice, Sirius looked down and tried to smile. The worry on his face told Remus that he was still alive. If Remus had been dreaming, Sirius wouldn't look at him like that. In his fantasies it had always been something much more pleasant.
"Thanks Remus..."
"I thought you were asleep during that class..." Remus murmured, resting his head against his friends chest.
"Naw, just pretending, mate."
With that, Remus' head rolled back, eyes closing from blood loss. As he drifted into unconsciousness, he felt Sirius bend over him and place a kiss on his forehead. His lips are soft... Remus thought happily. Just like I thought they would be... Glad he finally got to feel them, Remus let himself go, wrapped in Sirius' strong, protecting hold.