Here it is! Enjoy it.

Chapter 4: Under the White Moon

Remus Lupin looked up at the darkening, periwinkle sky, awaiting with dread the ascending of a most unholy, most wrathful eye- the moon. The moon was his fated Keeper, and tonight he would see it in all its belligerent glory. He turned away from the window.

"The moon is supposed to rise at 9:30 tonight, guys." He said solemnly.

"Don't worry about it, Moony!" James said with an enthusiasm that sharply contrasted Lupin's somberness. "We'll get to the Shrieking Shack problem-free! I got the cloak ready and everything."

He clapped Remus on the back in a supportive way, bringing the young werewolf from his thoughts. Remus cast him a wary look.

"Relax, it'll be fine. You do this every month without a hitch, why do you always worry?"

"I'm afraid, my friend," Remus sighed a sigh that seemed to have been repeated many times. A crease formed on his face, a small wrinkle that would one day become a permanent frown line. "That you have only proved that you have no idea what it is like to be a werewolf."

James gave a mock-thoughtful expression, tapping his chin as though thinking with all his brainpower.

"No, no I don't. But all you've proved is that you don't place enough trust in us." He patted Lupin's shoulder. "We've done this before, nothing's gonna go wrong, I promise. Go relax- have a snack, take a nap."

"I'd rather not." Remus replied, something like the faintest laugh coming out with his words. He sat upon his bed and drew a book onto his lap, trying to follow James' advice as best he could. Still feeling unsettled despite his most genuine efforts, he turned to Sirius. "Will you be coming too?"

"Of course!" Sirius said, pushed into a sitting position by sheer enthusiasm. "I spent five years of my life working on-"

His eyes scanned the room with utmost caution. Besides the four Marauders, there was a fifth boy who shared that dorm room, but he was nowhere to be found.

"-on that thing." He whispered. "Do you think I'd ever miss an opportunity to try it out?"

With a grin, Sirius disappeared. In his place was a large black dog, but in less than half a blink, Sirius the human had reappeared.

"Don't do that!" Lupin hissed in a voice so low Sirius contemplated turning back into a dog just so he could hear him. "The last thing we need is for people to find out we're really three unregistered Animagi and a werewolf!"

None of them had ever heard Remus angry before, much less assert himself so boldly, but it was that overwhelming note of nervousness took so much away from his argument.

"Was anybody standing there?" Sirius snapped. "No? Then there's no problem!"

"B-b-b-but he's r-right, Sirius!" Peter squeaked.

Sirius shot him a silencing look. Remus gave a defeated sigh.

"And stop sighing all the time!" Sirius barked.

"Just shut up!" James commanded. "I know everyone's on edge because we've never had to leave while the sky was so light, but we've got the Invisibility Cloak, what else do we need?"

No one replied.

"Exactly. So just try to keep yourselves busy for the next couple of hours." James pleaded, but he was looking up at the moon as though trying to strike a silent deal.


"Alright you guys." James said. The sky was darkening but it wasn't too dark yet, and now was there best opportunity to move. "I've given us a solid hour and a half to get out to the Shrieking Shack before the moon rises. The common room should be empty, what with most people trying to get some shut-eye before O.W.L.s."

He chanced a look at Myron Lynch, the other fifth-year boy, who was sleeping, unaware, in his bed.

"Padfoot, Wormtail- you're under the Cloak with me. Moony, you go ahead and open the portrait for us. From there, it's all the usual."

The four moved out with Moony in the lead. Leading those under the Cloak was Wormtail, a choice that was more tactical than hierarchical. James and Sirius both knew that if either of them were allowed to set the pace, Wormtail would surely fall behind or stumble in his attempt to keep up, exposing them all.

And so they generously let him set the pace. They crept through the abandoned common room down the darkened portrait hole. Things were going perfectly.

Suddenly, Remus went down with a thud. Peter, whose reflexes were about as sharp as a ball of dough, tripped over Remus, taking the Invisibility Cloak down with him but not James and Sirius. Lupin gave a groan. A squeak bounced through the corridor.

"What the-? Lumos!" The tip of Sirius wand ignited, bringing light to the scene.

It was a girl who had emitted the piercing note. Remus had fallen across her lap. She was wearing her daywear, which, considering it had been a beautiful Sunday, consisted of black denim capris and a simple sky blue shirt. Her hair was like fine strands of moonlight. She had big eyes the color of a Crocus.

Galatea Stapleton.

"Remus?!" She gasped.

Remus did not respond, but rather turned to James and Sirius with a look that both begged for help and seemed betrayed by the fact that both their reassurances that 'things would go smoothly' had been false. Sirius felt a stab of guilt that he was sure James was sharing at the moment.

"Of all the people..." Sirius moaned.

Galatea gaze transferred onto the two boisterous Marauders, drawn by the light.

"And you two, too? What the hell is going on?" She demanded, going from them to the crestfallen boy in her lap and back.

"We should be asking you that!" James said, pulling the stunned Remus to his feet and dusting him off. The petrified expression did not change, but it seemed Remus had begun to sweat.

"Galatea," Sirius kneeled down beside her, speaking in a loverly tone. He picked up her hand, but she snatched it away. James knew two things about Sirius- he liked girls, and he was clever as hell- and so James couldn't quite tell whether Sirius was trying to distract her or whether he was just picking a very inopportune time to hit on her. "Don't get mad at me, but I'm going to have to ask you to get lost."

"As if!" She snapped. "You're not in any position to tell me what to do!"

James seemed very frustrated at this.

"But Remus is!" James retorted after some thought. "He'll give you detention if you don't disappear now!"

He pointed to Lupin, whose collar was by now very damp-looking.

Poor guy. James thought. Galatea's one of the few people that's nice to him. If she knew he was a werewolf she'd...

"Go ahead!" She folded her arms. "I've already got detention this week for beating up the Ravenclaw Quidditch captain anyway!"

There was silence save for the inaudible sound of minds cranking out come-backs.

"And besides," Galatea seemed to have thought about it a little more. "Any kind of shady activity you drag Remus into compromises his prefectship!"

"Who said we were doing anything shady?" Sirius asked angrily. Underneath, however, he was laughing at the irony. She had accused them of dragging Remus into this endeavor, but it was actually for him that they were all doing this.

"Then what are you doing?" Her cheeks were getting pinker with frustration.

"What are you doing?!" James ruffled his hair not out of pompousness but out of sheer anger.

"Remus!" She demanded, rounding on the prefect. "Tell me what's going-"

The quiet boy's oak-hued hair was plastered to his forehead. The collar of his white shirt was transparent from sweat. With a startled, pitying look, she pulled out a white handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his brow. He avoided her eyes at all costs, looking desperately up at the cieling as though hoping to evaporate.

Galatea rounded on the two angrily, shooting one last pitying look at Remus.

"I'll cut you a deal. I'll go my way, you go yours. No questions asked, nobody mentions anything that happened tonight." She stated so firmly that the thought of Galatea as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot popped into Sirius' mind.

"We don't have to do as you say!" James protested.

"Take... the offer..." Lupin breathed. He was looking very pale and very faint.

James looked at Galatea defiantly. "We're only agreeing to this because he said so!"

"James!" Lupin cried desperately, his voice reduced to a whisper.

"Okay, okay..." He conceded, covertly kicking the spot where he knew Wormtail lay hidden. As always, Wormtail had done an excellent job of avoiding trouble, but for once, James thought this was a good thing. The last thing they needed was for Stapleton to know he had an Invisibility Cloak.

The four of them- or at least it appeared, for James had clearly seen Peter's feet as he'd clambered out- exited the Gryffindor tower. It made it all the easier that the Fat Lady was gone. The Marauders and Galatea stood facing each other, at a crossroads.

"I'll go right then," Galatea suggested. James opened his mouth, but she had already rounded the corner and was gone.

"Well, let's go," James said simply. He felt around in the darkness. "Gimme my Cloak, Wormtail."

"Wait a sec," Sirius whispered, following her path with his eyes to the corner. "I wanna see where she went..."

"Sirius..." Lupin pleaded with the same voice as someone who had to go to the bathroom very badly.

"What does it matter?" James said hurriedly. Moony now looked so distraught James thought he might pass out.

"There's no staircase in that direction," Sirius noted. "There's nothing in that direction. How is she going to get off this floor?"

"That's not really our concern at the moment!" The Chaser said, pointing at Lupin.

"Right." Sirius said dutifully. "I'll be back in two seconds."

Sirius darted to the corner. There was no trace of her. His mind churned as he tried to figure out how she could have possibly disappeared. He was still thinking about it as he, Remus, James, and Peter got under the Cloak, marching double-time and taking the short-cut on the sixth floor to save time.

The Marauders slipped through the doors of the Entrance Hall into the cool, springtime air. James slipped the Cloak into his pocket.

"Alright, let's do it." James said. His companions nodded, and in an instant three of them became a stag, a dog, and a rat.

The rat scurried up the stag's back, and the four Marauders were off. As they crossed the field to the Shrieking Shack, the Animagi heard the faintest of tunes in the air. It almost could have been a breeze, but it was too melodious. Padfoot and Prongs paused, and Remus mimicked them after just one step, looking about wildly.

Having been alerted, Padfoot's gaze zeroed in on one of the trees that dotted the grounds. Sitting in the shadow of the tree, well-hidden from any eyes that might chance a look upon the grounds from the castle, was a familiar beauty he admired, one he had in fact seen not too long ago. The big, black dog ambled over toward her, but when he heard the 'pet-pet' of hooves and trainers behind him he about faced and pawed the ground adamantly. They seemed to get the message and journeyed on without him.

It was some time before Galatea finally heard the behemoth moving in the shadows near her. When she saw him, she gasped, and a high note escaped her flute. He could smell her fear, hear her baited breath, and so he stretched his front legs forward, bowed his snout, and waited. She spared a moment to doubt his trustworthiness before finally gracing his long snout with the touch of her fingertips.

Sirius instantly nuzzled into the caress. Galatea, tickled by his soft nose, laughed softly and stroked the crown of his head. Sirius seized the opportunity to tilt his head so that her fingers tread behind his ears. He wanted very badly to make the best of this moment, to enjoy this gentle Galatea that he could see and hear, but never touch, never talk to. For as long as he was Padfoot and not Sirius Black, she did not hate him, and he was free to enjoy her laughter, her caresses, her affections. He wondered if he would ever be able to redeem himself in her eyes. He knew he was not the most pure-hearted person in the world, but wished she would see that he was not the worst. He laid his tar-hued paws in her lap and rested his head atop them. At the edge of the Forbidden Forest, three white blotches paced among the trees as though waiting for something. The black canine closed its eyes to them, the better to envision the fantasy in which he lay in her lap as a man. It unfolded like a map, and soon the sun had come out in hopes of playing in their paradise... and James... and Remus...

Remus. Sirius remembered.

The black dog ripped itself from her gentle strokes, drawing level with her gorgeous face. It seemed to say 'What is it, Lassie?', but with all the gentleness of a passing cloud. The mighty, black creature met her eyes, and for what felt like the first time, Galatea Stapleton looked at Sirius Black with something other than contempt. His chops parted compulsively, and he tenderly, softly licked her lips.

She stared, spat on the ground, and wiped her mouth with her sleeve. She looked up as though expecting the dog to offer an explanation, but it merely shot her an abashed look and ran off in the direction of the rising moon. She did not watch it go, but picked up the flute and began to play again, letting the wind carry her tune into the forest where the white blotches danced.

Sirius dived down into the tunnel beneath the Whomping Willow, but proceeded more slowly as he approached the shack, not wanting to startle its inhabitants- the werewolf in particular. He entered without being attacked, but seemed to have entered a tension as thick as butternut soup. The reason lay with the humanoid wolf that was moving about the center of the room. Its movements were controlled, but its limbs were so long their seemed a certain drunkenness to its every move. There were brief moments where even the courageous Sirius found himself frightened by this. It seemed as though the beast would lash out at any moment, but in that monstrosity was the docile mind of Remus Lupin, and Sirius knew that it was the presence of the other three Marauders that allowed Lupin to dominate his own body when the full moon came.

Wormtail was already resting in a corner, delaying his shift in his oh-so-Peter-ish way. James, otherwise known as Prongs, had taken the first shift, but upon seeing the massive dog he tapped his hoof lightly upon the ground- careful to avoid agitating Moony- and trotted over to his own corner and began to rest. Without words, James had designated the first shift to Sirius, and Sirius had the distinct feeling that James was doing it to punish him for his tardiness. Not that it mattered- he would simply wake James up after he had minded Moony for three hours, and James would take the next shift while he rested.


In the morning, after only six hours of sleep, Padfoot felt something run across his snout. Irritated, he gnashed his teeth at it, but it squeaked and ran away, pulling him out of the world of dreams. Wormtail had stirred him before quickly becoming Peter Pettigrew once more. Sirius looked about him. On this first day of exams, none of them looked refreshed. Lupin in particular, now once more human, had the face of a man who had not slept in days. However, he did not have the panicked demeanor he had donned the night before, and to Sirius this was worth a few extra yawns and even a failed exam or two.

"Damn, I'm sleepy," The black sheep of the Black family yawned, stretching his human limbs. James laughed.

"I've got it covered, mate," He withdrew from his cloak four vials. He handed one to each of them and kept one for himself. "Invigorating Potion." He said to Sirius and Peter's puzzled looks. "Should get us through the exams alright, but we'll probably conk out soon after."

Remus smiled slightly, but his mouth gaped, revealing his incredulity.

"Told you I had it all under control." James smirked as he withdrew his Invisibility Cloak from his pocket. "Let's get back up to the tower."

The four left the Shrieking Shack crouching very low, with Peter in the front, then James followed by Remus with Sirius bringing up the rear. After some bickering about visible feet, the majority ruled that a rat was perfectly inconspicuous and therefore Peter did not need to hide under the Cloak in order to get back into the castle. Having been pushed out, he assumed his rodent form and scurried up to the castle. Sirius followed his path with his eyes. The brown rat scurried across the field, passing the tree where Sirius had had his encounter with Galatea just the night before. He examined the tree in hopes of seeing her once more, but she was no longer there. He thought he heard a rustle in the leaves, but when his eyes caught up with his ears there was nothing to be seen, and the leaves did not rustle again.

When they finally reached the common room, Peter was already snoring lightly in his bed. At James' urging, Remus mimicked the action, climbing beneath the sheets and falling asleep almost instantly. Sirius was by all means ready to make the best of these few hours before exams with a nap, but James prevented him.

"What kept you?" Sirius had hoped James had forgotten.

"She was out there." Sirius confessed. "Galatea. She was the one playing the flute."

"Do you think she was trying to spy on us?" James inquired, narrowing his eyes at the door as though expecting to hear her breathing on the other side.

"No, she didn't even notice us-"

"You mean she didn't notice me, Wormtail, and Moony," James sneered in an unfriendly way. "I'd bet my broomstick you went to her."

"Yeah, I did." Sirius retorted, not liking James' attitude. "So what?"

"What did you do?" James said icily. "Snog her as a dog, because she won't let you touch her as a human?"

Sirius reddened, remembering what he had actually done.

"I bet she liked that, her being a bit-"

"What are you getting at?" Sirius seethed. For one white-hot moment he had contemplated decking James.

"You dicked over one of your best mates for a girl!" James lashed.

"I did not! I came, didn't I?" A look of dawning spread over Sirius's face. "You're jealous."

"You're nuts." James heaved an angry sigh. "Just don't go losing your head over her. I don't wanna lose my best mate."

"Is that all?" Sirius laughed openly. "I'm Sirius Black- if anyone loses their head around here, it'll be her when she realizes how badly she wants me."

The two laughed together, all qualms forgotten. In an instant they were asleep, and so well did they sleep that Remus almost had to hex them out of their beds for their exams.

Chapter 5 will be up soon! Just on a side note, I do accept anonymous reviews, which means there's no excuse not to leave a comment ; ) I really appreciate every review I get, so even if it's just a silly comment on how dog spit is gross, please review!