Moony

St. Mungo's
29 March, 1964

Howls ripped from the basement cell; bouncing off the walls unable to escape thanks to the spells around it. The small furry cub raced around the concrete prison in vain as it scratched for freedom and a way to get out.

The smell of human blood and flesh had lingered in the cell; driving the golden eyed pup wild. He growled and scratched trying to get free; the smell only coming from his own fur and skin. It was the remains of what was Remus John Lupin.

The wolf cub howled again and bit into his arm; scratching at its own flesh as it trying to escape the confines of himself. Blood fell to the ground, whimpers sounded from the small cub, and howls of pain escaped him.

All through the night it happened in this small cell; and no one in Saint Mungo's heard.

The morning of the twenty-ninth rose over London slowly; the healer had been up all night too anxious to sleep.

There was nothing they could do to ease the transformations of any lycanthrope and with their current patient being so young there was no telling what the results of the moon would have on the four year old.

Silently he made his way down and slowly took the charms down.

Silence rang through the basement of the hospital as the healer unlocked the door. His hand shaking as he peered in expecting to see the mangled remains of Remus J. Lupin.

In the middle of the room lay Remus Lupin; his body curled in a ball looking pale as death.

The man hurried over warily of the boy laying on the hard, cold ground. Carefully he kneeled down and felt for a pulse a sigh for a relief.

Small breathes were slowly coming from the boy's mouth and as he got the four year old onto a stretcher.

Four large scratches ran deep across the boy's chest; blood starting to ooze out of it again as the boy was disturbed from his ball. His right arm showing signs of an attempt of being chewed off.

The healer quickly got the boy out of the cold room and up the stairs; taking the back ways to avoid any peering eyes of visitors. A werewolf after the moon would cause some alarm within the visitors even one as young as this.

He got the boy on the bed and started to heal the wounds as far as he could with the limited supplies down there; just to make the bleeding stop its severe ways. Wrapping gauze around him and getting blood replenishing potion into the child when he became conscious for a few moments before fading away again.

There wasn't much the healer could do for the child after that point; a werewolf attacking himself when alone was not uncommon and with a body this small there was not telling if the child would survive from his wounds.

After one less check he left the room. With little else to do he could only hope that rest would save the four year old.

Slowly Remus' eyes cracked open to the white room once again. A familiar as this was the shock of the ache in his body made him wince and want to cry again but he held it in.

He blinked his eyes once again and looked around the room the best he could without moving much. The window showing the outside world showed that it was nearing the end of the day in London.

His mouth felt dry as he licked his chapped lips and pushed himself up. He winced in pain when he put pressure on his right arm and once he got up he stared at the tight bandages around it.

Tears started to prick into his eyes when memories started to surface. The moon, the pain, the transforming, and worst was the small conscious thoughts he got from the wolf.

The desperate need to be free, to hurt people, to hunt.

That was him, it had been him. He was the monster's that wizard kids learned about to keep them inside and good.

The tears started streaming down his face as all the stories his father had told him to scare him a little resurfaced. The whispered conversations of the medi-wizards and witches whispered now into his ear. The alarmed tone in his father's tone as he talked to his mother when they thought he was in bed and not listening on the steps.

He would never get to be like his dad now; he could never be a great wizard.

The door to his room opened by he didn't notice; he only noticed the new presence when he felt arms wrap around him and got the familiar sent of the woods, vanilla and lilies.

His small arms wrapped around his mother and he buried his face into her shoulder the tears staining her shirt.

"It's alright, baby. Mummy is here, and she will always be here for you."

His father stood behind her silently; watching them without saying a word. Slowly he turned away and went to sit outside the room.

He put his head in his hands before running them through his lightening hair and resting them under his chin.

So far his research had led to nothing; no one had any clue how to reverse the effects of a werewolf's bite. There wasn't even anything out there to contain the pain of the transformation. All the research he had done while sitting in his office and filling out the papers to get it documented that his son was a cub had come to nothing but the facts that werewolves were mindless killers.

He sat up when his wife came out and looked at her sadly as the healer went back into the room.

"He is alive, Lyall. That is all that matters right now."

She sat next to him.

"Hope, he is a werewolf. You saw how he looked and this was after one moon; what about the amount he has to go through for the rest of his life. He will never get to go to school and we will have to move to make sure no one notices."

He buried his face in his hands again and he felt her hand on his shoulder.

"He is still your son, and we will do anything and everything to help him through this and show him that he is loved."

Lyall nodded slowly and sat up as the healer came out followed by Remus.

Remus looked pale as a sheet with bags under his eyes. The bandages around his arm peeking out from under the sleeve.

Hope gave him a small smile, standing from her seat next to her husband and picking her son up. Cradling him close like she did when he was just a small baby.

Seeing the look in the healer's eyes, she tooking her son down the hall to wait for her husband to be done.

Lyall watched them before turning his attention to the healer who was standing silently by the door.

"I know I have been over this with you but I do want to repeat myself so you know," the healer started.

Lyall nodded.

"He will not be much trouble to restrain during the moon at this age but as he gets older more trouble may come along. You will need blood replenishing potion for the wounds and basic healing skills should help with the wounds though the special healing medicine made for wounds like that does help him recover quicker; and remember to get him registered with the ministry."

Lyall nodded, it was a lot to take in.

This wasn't how their life should have gone; it should have been just him coming home and teaching his four year old son a few magic tricks to help him before school. School was not an option anymore, and neither was a normal life.

"If you have any questions, please contact me Mr. Lupin…and I wish you all the best of luck."