Chapter eight: Who let the dogs out?

The next day passed quite quickly indeed. James, Sirius and Peter kept a very close eye on Remus, as did Ziva. Ziva could tell Remus was in pain again and it made her drowsy just by sitting beside him because of the transfer of his emotions. His scars were stinging again and he was totally out of it. When Mr. Limmer announced that there would be an exam for the moon and star cycles the day after this, Remus looked as though he was about to cry or break down into a hysterical fit. Ziva tried to ask him if she could help him study but he simply said "No, there's nothing you can do" and he left without another word.

By the time dinner was happening, Remus was almost dozing off into his Yorkshire pudding and potatoes with gravy and roast beef. He looked green when Ziva turned to look at him. She also exchanged a look with Sirius, who gave her a nod and the two of them turned back to their dinner. Professor McGonagall kept checking her watch and sneaking glances at Remus but Dumbledore gave her a reassuring look and a smile and she seemed to relax for the rest of dinner.

When dinner was over, everyone got ready for bed. Remus knew he had to leave, but he felt as though they were suspicious of him, so he got dressed in his pajamas like normal and quietly got into bed. The boys, however, were already in bed when he got up, all three of them under their covers.

"Man, I'm so tired!" James said with a fake yawn. Sirius stretched out under the covers like a cat while Peter snuggled into his pillow.

"I know! McGonagall worked us hard today." Sirius said, his voice strained with fake tiredness. Remus thought this was odd but he climbed into bed. He snuck a glance out the window and saw the sky was an orange color. He gulped, but he was going to stay here until they were asleep.

"How'd she work you hard?" Remus asked. Sirius quickly thought something up on the spot.

"Uh…she was showing us how to make chairs disappear." Sirius explained. Remus blinked.

"We don't start Vanishing spells until next year." He said confusingly. Sirius shrugged.

"Don't ask me. Ask McGonagall." Sirius said. Remus looked at him before he nodded and settled down in his bed too.

"Well, goodnight everyone." Remus said quietly.

"G'night." The three muttered in unison. The boys immediately shut their eyes and began to pretend to sleep.

After a few minutes, Remus heard their slow breathing and he opened his eyes again. He looked at them all – they all seemed to be asleep. He very quietly sat up and moved his covers off him. The sky was now a light purple – he had close to half an hour. Remus quickly grabbed his wand from the dresser and heard James snoring from the other side of the room. Remus tiptoed to the door where he opened it and slowly closed it without making a sound as he did so. Then he was gone.

Just like that, the three boys whipped their covers off and stood up, fully dressed and awake. They all snatched their wands and they started to head out. Right before they left, however, James seemed to remember something.

"Wait!" he whispered. He ran over to his trunk and grabbed his cloak. However, this was now ordinary cloak. This was an Invisibility cloak. The three boys knew it quite well by now. The boys grinned as James threw it over the three of them, making them disappear underneath the now translucent cloak. Then, completely invisible, the three boys tiptoed their way out of their dormitory and they followed behind where Remus had gone, ready to find out his secret

In the Ravenclaw dormitory, Ziva crashed down on her four poster bed and stared at all the Divination homework she had. She knew she should try to focus on studying, but it was very difficult seeing as all she could think about was the boys going after Remus. She sighed and ran her hand through her curly, black hair and opened the Divination textbook. She quietly glanced at the first couple pages of the book, scanning them with her blue eyes and storing information away.

However, as she went along the chapter about Moon Cycles, it mentioned something that Ziva was sure she'd thought about before and the thought had definitely not occurred in Divination class. Ziva read the sentence out loud.

"It takes 24 days to complete a full Moon Cycle." Ziva listened to the words. "Every 24 days, a new moon appears – this moon is commonly known as the Full Moon."

Ziva's eyebrows pulled together. Then it clicked – the calendar! Ziva took the calendar from her bag and quickly flipped to the month before this one. She found the red 'X' and started counting the days. She counted all the way up to 24, where she stopped when her finger landed on another red 'X' on today's date. Ziva blinked and looked back in the calendar days. She counted the days and how many X's there were. There was only one red 'X' per month and it was always 24 days apart from one another. Ziva felt as though she was onto something.

Tucking a black curl behind her ear, Ziva's eyes roamed her bed for more textbooks. She saw her Transfiguration textbook, her Charms textbook, Defence against the Dark Arts and Herbology. But, underneath all the mess, her eyes focused on one book in particular: Care of Magical Creatures.

She immediately snatched it from under her pile of parchment and she opened it. She flipped through the pages, a guess forming in the back of her head. She finally found the page – Werewolves and other human beasts. She began scanning the paragraph with her eyes and saw exactly what she was looking for.

"Every month, an individual who has been passed on the gene of the werewolf or has been infected with a scratch or Werewolf bite, will turn into a full-grown Werewolf for only one night. Being 24 nights apart in the moon cycle, the individual has time to prepare for the next transformation and can be treated for any injuries it might endure during it's time as a Werewolf. These injuries usually include many lacerations on the torso, arms, shoulders, neck, back and face. Most Werewolves will apply a special type of cream called 'Baneswood', which helps the scars and scratches to heal and fade over time. It also takes any pain away for the time being.

"Note that the individual becomes a Werewolf will become fatigued, drained and in much pain as the night of the full moon draws closer. The Werewolf will not be able to function by doing various activities and it will most likely become very weak and tired as the full moon approaches."

Ziva felt a wave of realization wash over her as she stared at the page. She quickly took the vile of cream and the piece of paper that she'd confiscated from Remus yesterday and examined them. She now assumed the vile of cream was Baneswood. She opened the parchment and looked at the moon cycle Remus had drawn. Her eyes immediately fixated on the full moon – she noticed something she didn't before; the full moon had been scratched out violently. The paper had ripped from the end of his quill scratching against it. Ziva felt her face drain of color as she looked back at the bottom of the book and saw the final paragraph of the Werewolf description.

"During a transformation, the individual will morph into a Werewolf. Once in Wolf form, the individual will lose a conscious mind and forget who he is, where he is and anyone he has ever known. Many werewolves have been known to murder entire villages of people in one night, taking people from their beds and slaughtering them. When the individual is in Werewolf form, there is no difference between his friends and his foes."

And that's when it hit her – Ziva's skin went cold and she felt her heart start to race. James, Sirius and Peter were in grave danger. They didn't know what to do if they found Remus and if Remus spotted them, they'd be dead.

Ziva jumped up from her bed, grabbing her travel cloak and her wand. She fastened her cloak around her neck and branched her wand as she darted out of the Ravenclaw dormitory, out of the door and down the castle stairs, going out to the Forbidden Forest to try and warn Peter, James and Sirius before it was too late.

The leaves and twigs under the boy's feet made sounds as they trotted on them. James had his wand branched out in front of him as the three boys walked through the Forbidden Forest, hidden beneath the cloak. They listened for a sound or a signal of Remus but there had been none – not for the last ten minutes. The sky above them was black now and the moon had begun to peak through the thick clouds overhead. The boys did not notice the change in light as it got darker. They simply walked through the trees, keeping their ears tuned for any sign of noise.

Suddenly, they heard rapid footsteps and McGonagall broke through the bushes, looking terrified. She had her lit wand branched out in front of her. The three boys stumbled to the side as she plowed right through, going at full speed, trying to get out of the forest. That's when they heard it – the screaming.

The boys could tell it was Remus by the sound of it. It sounded agonized and hysterical. James looked back at them and then the three boys ran towards the sound of the screaming. Within two minutes, they found Remus in a dark clearing, shaking and screaming at the top of his lungs. They watched as his body began to grow, his limbs growing longer an his clothes ripping to shreds because of the rapid rate of his body growth. Hair started to grow all over his body as the once teenage boy began to spurt into a 7 foot tall monster with snapping jaws, long clawed hands and a long snout. The human screams soon turned into harsh agonized howling and Remus Lupin knelt over in the ground, snarling at the ground. The three boys stood petrified as they watched what was once their best friend crouch on all fours in a beastly form.

Just then, the huge werewolf stood up on its hind legs and sniffed the air as though it'd caught a wiff of something close by. It's large glowing eyes focused on where the boys stood, shielded by their Invisibility Cloak. When the beast's eyes met James', he made a huge mistake – James through off the cloak and looked straight on at the beast. Sirius felt his blood go cold when the werewolf started snarling at the three of them, it's ears flattening to its skull.

"Remus?" James tried. The beast got on his hind legs and began coming at the boys, clearing the space between them in seconds. James saw he didn't recognize him and he began running, Sirius and Peter at his tail. "Remus! It's us!" he tried to scream. The werewolf just ran faster, it's jaws snapping at the boys heals.

Then, the boys and Remus heard another sound – a girl screaming. They listened closer as they ran, trying to figure out who it was. When James and the two other boys stopped to take a breath, Remus wasn't in sight. The boys thought they lost him. That's when they heard it again.

"-Werewolf! Run, Sirius! Run, guys! It's not safe!" Ziva's voice broke from the silence as the boys caught their breath. She wasn't far away now. "Run! He's dangerous!"

Sirius looked around wildly for Ziva, his lit wand illuminating the darkness in front of them. Just then, they heard more howling and the werewolf broke through the bush, coming right at James, Sirius and Peter. The three boys screamed in terror as the beast came at them with full force. It raised its clawed hand, swung down and-!

"Protego!" Ziva cried, breaking through the other side of the bushes, her wand pointing at the three boys. The werewolf's hand bounced off the invisible shield and it howled in anger. It's head snapped over to look at where the voice came from and it saw Ziva. Ziva's eyes widened and she pointed her wand at the beast as it began running at her. "Stupefy!" the red spell bounced off of the werewolf, causing no harm whatsoever. "Expelliermus!" she cried, shooting spells at him as the werewolf picked up speed, coming right at her. Ziva realized it was no use and tried to turn to run but knocked into a tree. She turned around just in time to see a claw come down and slash her face. A huge gash appeared and Ziva screamed in agony, trying to shield herself. The werewolf knocked her over, sending her body flying.

"Ziva!" Sirius screamed. The werewolf swung his claw down again, scratching her torso as she tried to protect herself, crawling backwards, her wand knocked out of her hand. Sirius raised his wand. "Protego!" the spell shot out of his wand, but it missed Ziva. Sirius ran over, leaving James and Peter behind him. He grabbed a thick tree branch from the ground and stood in front of Ziva just as the werewolf's teeth came swooping down at her. Remus's jaw collided with the thick tree branch, the force of the hit almost knocking Sirius over. He pushed hard against the branch as it's jaws snapped and bit into the branch, tearing it in half. When it snapped, Sirius took one side of the branch and swung very hard at its face, where it collided and made the werewolf stumble away from Ziva. It snapped its head back to Sirius and let loose a growl that made Sirius's hair stand on end. He stared terrified into the Werewolf's vicious eyes and knew this was it. He could feel Ziva behind him, shrieking as the wolf came closer to them.

This is it, Sirius thought. I'm gunna die. He turned and helped Ziva up and shielded her behind him, his entire body shaking. The werewolf advanced and he backed away, trying to get Ziva to safety. Remus came closer and closer until he stood over them on his hind legs. He roared at them and his claw swung down once again.

The beast was tackled to the ground by James and Peter. James hit him over the head with a rock and Peter made sure he couldn't get up. Remus struggled under them, growling and roaring. James kept hitting him with the rock. It looked as though the werewolf was tiring as Sirius watched. Then suddenly, two more people joined them in the clearing.

"Immobulus!" Professor McGonagall shrieked her, wand pointing at the werewolf. Immediately, every joint in its body froze and it could not move. It was still growling and it snarled at them, but it couldn't move. Professor Dumbledore shot thick and heavy restraints around the beast's body, holding him there as the boys fell off and to the forest floor, panting heavily.

From behind Sirius, he heard Ziva's whimpering and then he turned around just in time to see her crumple unconscious to the forest floor. Sirius immediately got down on his knees and looked at her blood-covered body. Her face was bleeding profusely, so much so that you could hardly see her pale skin through the red river of blood. Sirius felt his body go cold with fear as McGonagall made sure Remus was tied up tight enough. Dumbledore came over and knelt beside her too.

"Ziva," Sirius said, his skin going a sickly pale color. "Ziva, please, no."

"Mr. Black, I suggest you give Ms. Ziva some room." Professor Dumbledore told him gently, taking off his purple traveling cloak and putting it under Ziva's head. She did not stir.

"Sir," Sirius croaked. "Her face…"

"I know, Mr. Black, I know. Just stay calm. She'll be alright." Dumbledore assured him as McGonagall came over and spotted Ziva lying on the ground, covered in blood. She gasped, her eyes widening behind her square spectacles.

"Oh my! Albus, what do we do?" McGonagall said as she knelt down also. James and Peter had now come over as well – they went as pale as Sirius had.

"We do what we can," said Dumbledore, picking Ziva's unconscious, limp body up in his arms. "I shall meet you all in the Hospital wing very soon." And with that, Dumbledore Disapperated without a trace.

The three boys blinked for a moment before Sirius looked at McGonagall.

"I thought nobody could Apperate or Disapperate on school grounds." Peter said confusingly. McGonagall turned to them, peering over her glasses at them.

"Mr. Pettigrew, he is Headmaster. Only the Headmaster can transport on Hogwarts' grounds." She said. There was a moment of heavy silence before Sirius looked over at Remus, still in his werewolf form, completely immobile.

"…What do we do with him, Professor?" Sirius asked. McGonagall glanced at the werewolf before turning away, looking rather uncomfortable to see an animal in such a state – its head was bleeding from the rock James had been striking him with and he had many scratches all over his body.

"You can't do anything with him, Mr. Black. Unfortunately, Mr. Lupin will have to remain in this state until the morning, in which time, I will come down from the castle and unfreeze him and then bring him up to the Hospital Wing. For now, I suggest you boys go up to the castle and go back to your dormitories right this instant."

James looked at Professor McGonagall exasperatedly.

"What?! But, Professor, we want to help Remus!" James exclaimed.

"You cannot help him, Mr. Potter. He is beyond helping." McGonagall said harshly. James looked at a loss for words for a moment.

"But, Professor, we want to-!" James started.

"I want to stay with Ziva!" Sirius shouted over him, getting to his feet. McGonagall turned to him, looking furious.

"No, Mr. Black! Do you realize how many rules you have broken just by being out here tonight?! I have half a mind to expel all of you right this instant!"

All three boys looked at her with terrified eyes.

"But, Professor, we're sorry-!" James tried. McGonagall held up her hand.

"I don't want to hear it right now, Mr. Potter. You three boys go up and stay in your dormitories until the morning! And if I hear that you have taken any detours then I will expel all three of you!" McGonagall snapped at them. Sirius saw she was not messing around and he got up. He picked up both his wand and Ziva's and he began heading back. The boys followed in suit and wandered back up to the castle.

"Expelled? Do you really think we'll be expelled?" James asked as they walked.

"I hope not," Peter said nervously, holding his wand in his hands. "What are we gunna do?!"

"Did you see her face?" Sirius interjected. The two boys fell silent as they turned to stare at Sirius, who was looking directly at the ground. Nobody said a word for a moment.

"I'm sure she'll be okay, Sirius," Peter said. "The cut didn't look that deep."

Sirius ignored him as they got to the castle. He got up the staircases and up to the Gryffindor common room entrance.

"Cornish Pixies." Sirius muttered at the door. The Fat Lady let them through. Sirius went upstairs and got straight into bed, his mind only on how horribly bloody Ziva's face was. He ignored Peter's words of comfort as he settled into bed and he fell asleep with his guilty conscious filling his mind with very dark and agonizing nightmares.