No matter how many times you do something painful, it never gets easier. It was the exact same with Remus' transformations. He could feel them coming. Almost as if he knew that his body couldn't wait any longer. Looking over to his friends, he widened his eyes for a few seconds, showing dilated pupils, then shoved himself out of his seat in the Great Hall. Nala and Lily looked confused for a second, but looked to one another as they realized what was going on.
Remus could feel sweat pouring down the side of his face, and his heart was pounding against his ribs. He needed to get out of here. Shoving past Thomas Avery, who shouted a rude name at Remus -which he barely heard- Remus dashed for the door. It wasn't until he was outside that he heard the footsteps of his friends. Well, minus James. His legs and ribs weren't up to par yet, and the transformation from human to stag would just slow the process even more.
"I should have left this morning." Remus breathed as his chest heaved up and down. The three of them made a mad dash for the Whomping Willow, neither of Remus' best mates even thinking about transforming anywhere near the castle.
Remus didn't dare lift his gaze from the grass as they finally reached the Whomping Willow. One sight of the moon and his transformation would occur that much faster. They'd done this so many times that they didn't even really talk anymore. Peter and Sirius hid behind a few of the smaller trees by the monstrosity that was the Whomping Willow so they could transform and still hide their clothes and wands.
Remus could feel the change in his bones and muscles. They were aching to move, bend, and change, but at the same time, they were practically screaming for Remus to stop the change. But that was impossible. He'd spent too many childhood nights fighting the change, and that only made it worse. Fighting the wolf that was inside of him, it was almost like fighting one of the Unforgiveable Curses – or what Remus assumed it would feel like.
Moments later, the branches of the massive tree froze in a statuesque pose. Wormtail and Padfoot, now in their Animagus forms, zipped past him. Shoving himself through the entrance as quickly as he could, Remus ran for the Shrieking Shack.
His blood pushed through his veins at probably three times the speed it should have, practically throwing him to the ground in unbearable pain. On his hands and knees, Remus let out a cry of the purest pain anyone could imagine. Digging his hands into the dirt, he heard the seams of his clothes begin to rib. You have to go with the change, or it'll just kill you even more. The wolf inside of him was pushing him on, whether trying to help him or trying to take over, Remus didn't know. Arching his back, he saw Peter and Sirius. They both looked at him with empathetic eyes, but that just made the wolf in him angry. "Go. You know I hate- ARGH!" Another wave of unbearable pain shocked through his body. His clothes had basically deteriorated already. Moony no longer looked human. He was almost there. Practically deaf from the pain, he couldn't hear himself scream, even though he knew he was. His bones popped and cracked in ways that would be unsurvivable to a regular human being. His muscles swelled to an unbelievely large size, almost as if he'd bruised his entire body. His skin stretched, folded, and twisted, trying to keep up with the rest of the changes. Slowly, the pain faded. He felt his skin, muscles, and bones finally begin to settle.
As his senses began to settle to their new form, Remus blinked at Padfoot and Wormtail, only to let out a loud howl. He could smell blood, behind him, in the castle. He wanted it. All of them. Turning his body, Remus started to bolt towards the entrance where he came in, only to be tackled down by Padfoot.
Here's to a long three days.