House: Ravenclaw
Word Count: 2000
Category: Standard
Prompt(s): [Time Period] Marauders Era
Bonus: No repetition of prompts between players
Year: Head
School: Ilvermorny
Theme: Boggart
Prompt (Main): [Object] Invisibility Cloak (not used by Harry Potter)
Prompt (Extras): N/A
Year: Year 3
Word Count: 2000
Remus Lupin's worst fear is that his friends will find out that he's a werewolf, because, honestly, they're the first friends he's ever kept in his life - the first bunch of friends who've stuck with him and haven't left, and he hopes they'll be friends for life. This is his first normal experience with other wizarding children, and he's proud despite it feeling like a pretence.
Remus has done a good job of keeping his secret for two years now, see-through excuses flying off the tip of his tongue every month. But he's lying to his friends. Which only deepens his fear of the secret being uncovered So, this year, he vows to be even more cautious, to continue thinking of good excuses, even when his supply of them is drying up. He's done it thus far, who's to say he can't keep it up?
Well, his friends. James Potter, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew, who are more adamant than ever to find out his secret. After all, what could Remus possibly be hiding from them? Why would he be hiding something from them? Does he not want to be their friend anymore? It's a terrifying prospect, and for good reason.
Remus is their glue; the sensible one who helps them make up after they fight, shows them reason when they're too stubborn to. Without him, they would surely fall apart. So this year they swear they'll figure it out, they'll pay attention to his excuses as soon as he starts spitting them out, and slowly figure out what's eating away at their friend.
0-0-0-0
"My mum's ill."
It's spoken rushedly as Remus leaves the Great Hall on September 12th, his hair a mess. Sirius chimes in first, pointing out how sickly Remus is looking. It doesn't make any sense to them; the excuse didn't add up. If it was Remus' mother who had supposedly fallen ill, why was it Remus who looked like he'd drop dead any second?
It's cause for investigation. And so that night they sneak out under the cover of James' invisibility cloak to avoid detection, determined to find answers. A howl cuts through the night, making them scurry back inside. Finding answers is not worth getting injured.
Remus feels horrible the next day, not only because of the previous night's rough transformation, but because his friends were out past curfew and they could have gotten hurt. He knew it was them, he sensed them, smelled them, knew they were out there and growing closer. They are closer to the truth about him, closer to the danger he poses, and closer to making his worst fear a reality. They don't know yet, he assures himself. If he can help it, they won't know for a long time.
He's more distant the next morning, which worries the other three because they can't lose him. They've grown far more attached to him and each other than any of them had expected. Not having him in their lives is truly a terrifying thought, and a prospect that is far, far away. It has to be.
0-0-0-0
"She's gotten worse," he mumbles after Potions Class on October 11th, hurrying towards Dumbledore's office without another word.
Again Sirius points out how he looks like the living dead - and Peter chimes in, arguing that perhaps the illness is contagious and that their friend is catching it himself. It is plausible, though quickly dismantled as they soon come to realize they would all be affected if it was contagious. After all, they do spend almost every conscious second with the boy.
They sneak out again under James' invisibility cloak that night, trying to catch anything that will give them more insight as to what in Merlin's name is going on. They see Madam Pomfrey leading Remus towards the Whomping Willow.
The urge for answers is overwhelming, and they trek a quarter of the way to the Willow before rushing back, hearing that same ominous howl.
Remus wakes up horrified the next morning because they were out again. He's bloody and scarred - the transformation worsened when the wolf sensed humans. How foolish were they, he wonders, to go out past curfew into the dangers of the night. They could have found out. They don't know yet, and that's all that matters. It's going to be alright.
The Marauders, however, do not feel the same way. They're petrified. They had seen Madam Pomfrey leading their best friend outside at night - where werewolves and vicious creatures roam. Remus is gaining scars, being hurt. None of them know why. He walks into breakfast with a tired smile and they push away their curious thoughts. They'll get to the bottom of it next month, they're certain of it.
0-0-0-0
"She's sick again."
His voice is a whisper as he rushes out of the common room on November 10th. He looks worse than usual, and he doesn't show up for Potions, which is worrying. Remus would never miss a class, and he's used the same excuse three times in a row. He's usually more on top of his excuses, and now they're sure that something is wrong.
It makes no sense; Remus' mother can't possibly still be sick. She could have had potions to cure her. Even so, her sickness is no reason for him to miss class. He could postpone going home. And yet he doesn't.
So, for the third time that year, they use James' Invisibility Cloak to sneak out. But this time they get there first, having caught the trick Pomfrey used last time to get in. They sit silently in the Shrieking Shack, underneath the Cloak, awaiting their friend so they can finally get answers.
Remus enters after what seems like hours, sitting down with a sigh. His jaw is clenched and his shoulders are tensed, anxiety radiating off him.
"Why do you come here every month?" James questions abruptly, throwing off the Cloak. Remus' eyes widen in panic, his chest constricting, he doesn't feel like he can breath. They almost feel bad for giving him a heart attack. Almost. But they need answers.
"No, no, no, no," he replies frantically, "you can't be here."
They know; they found out. They don't understand why they can't be there, and they're oblivious to the danger they're in. The danger he's putting them in. Merlin, they need to leave. He can't be responsible for their deaths, he can't lose them, they can't find out. But it's too late for the last one.
"Why?" Sirius pleads, "What is so bad that you have to hide it from us?"
"Do you not want to be our friend anymore?" Peter adds sadly, causing a moment of silence to pass through the Shack. It didn't feel real until it was said aloud. But both groups' fears are now out in the open. Remus not wanting to lose them, and them not wanting to lose him.
"No," he says, "I do. I really do."
"Then why all this?" Sirius asks, gesturing around.
"You wouldn't understand," Remus replies.
"Why won't you explain it to us then?"
"I-I can't." His eyes dart frantically around the room, latching onto the window where he can see the moon climbing higher and higher. "Not right now."
"Then when?" Sirius asks. Silence surrounds them, Remus desperately trying to find anyway to get them out of there.
"In the Hospital Wing, tomorrow morning," he finally replies. "I'll explain everything. But right now you really need to go."
"Promise?"
"Yes, I promise." His voice is hoarse. "Just go."
They hurry out, worried for their friend. But they don't get it yet, they don't understand why Remus seemed like he was in danger. It's unanswered as to why he made it seem like they would be in danger is they were to stay with him. So why is he staying? They mull over their thoughts in the Hospital Wing as they wait for morning to come. Howls were heard outside again, over and over, they were terrified for a good while. Even when Remus was brought in their worries weren't quelled, because there he lay unconscious and covered in even more scars. They can only wonder if something got to him out there.
They try putting it together: why he would be out there, why he isn't dead. It's Peter who pipes up first, bringing up the very valid point that Remus only ever leaves on a full moon. Which explains why he looks pale and sickly when he claims his mother is ill instead, why he keeps gaining more scars every single full moon.
It is a shocking realization.
Remus is the werewolf. It takes them all a moment to figure out what to do, there's a good amount of panicked whispering. But Sirius eventually brings up the fact that Remus is the softest, wisest, most calm and tranquil member of their group. He folds his socks, and is the only one to do so in their entire dorm. If that doesn't make him harmless they don't know what does. Besides, if he wanted to hurt them he wouldn't have kept it a secret for so long, and he wouldn't have begged them to leave.
He clearly thinks himself dangerous - even though they can clearly see he isn't. So they make a pact that morning, as the sun rises high into the sky, to be as accepting and helpful with his condition as they can. They swear they'll never tell a soul without Remus' permission. But most importantly they swear to each other that morning that they will do everything they can to help him.
They are partially relieved, a weight being lifted off of their chests. Their greatest fear had been losing Remus, but thankfully for them, he'd been ignoring them for far different reasons than they'd originally presumed. So with the dread and anxiety out of the air, they talk cheerfully in the first time in what feels like forever. Waiting for their friend to wake up.
Remus wakes up once the sun is positioned high in the sky, waking up to laughter for the first time since his transformations have begun. The joyous laughter of his best friends fill his ears, though the noise is quickly drowned out by his heart pounding against his ribcage. They know, his mind screams at him, they know and you'll lose them. They'll hate you, they-
"Oh, Remus, you're up!" a cheerful James shouts, Sirius and Peter both turning to him with a smile.
"How're you feeling, buddy?"
"Fine."
"Are you sure?"
"Yeah," he mumbles, "why do you ask?"
"You had quite a night," James states worriedly, "we just want to make sure you're alright."
Remus sighs, the dark circles underneath his eyes more prominent than ever due to the paleness of his skin. He still looks sickly, but at least now they all know why.
"So you figured it out?" His voice is a whisper and he doesn't meet their gaze.
"That you're a werewolf?" Remus goes pale at Peter's blunt question, but nods anyway. He's waiting for it, willing the moment to never come when they tell him they don't want to be his friends anymore. That they can't because he's dangerous, when his worst fear becomes a reality.
"That doesn't change you," Sirius says with a warm smile. Remus' mind blanks for a moment. That's not what he expected them to say. He expected them to hate him, shout curses at him, tell the whole school.
"You're still our friend and nothing will change that," James adds, "unless you don't want to be friends?"
Remus smiles, relief washing over him. Perhaps his fear was foolish, they were true friends, good friends. He can't believe he'd ever doubted that they would accept him, that they'd be there for him. But here they are, all of them relieved.
"Of course I want to be your friend," he replies with a smile, pulling them all into a hug.
"Why wouldn't I?"