James pulled him out of the tunnel and hurled him to the ground. Snape, utterly surprised by the sudden invasion, looked James over before giving him an angry glare.

"I knew it!" he cried triumphantly, throwing one arm into the air. "I knew he was a werewolf!"

Sirius sat in the bush, listening to their transaction as best he could. He could only hear Snape's yelling so far. He was truly shaking with fear; James would yell at him so…he had acted stupidly, telling Snape all that…

He stealthily arose and made his way around the other side of the castle to escape. James would not know just where he had been.

"Snape, you can't tell anybody what you just saw!" James fumed.

"And who's going to stop me? I finally know all about the werewolf at Hogwarts, and all about Lupin's horrible secret…I'm telling everybody!!!" James looked panic-stricken for a moment before suddenly sprinting back towards the castle. Snape looked dully after him, not noticing how menacingly the tree was shaking.

Suddenly the willow started up again, knocking Snape hard against his back; he heard a sickening crack and began running away from the tree.

James ran straight to Dumbledore's office, hardly thinking. He began pounding violently against the door, hoping Dumbledore was still inside…

"Is there a problem Mr. Potter?" Professor Dumbledore stood before him, watching his arms wave in midair.

"Remus, Snape, werewolf, tree, found out!" James said quickly, not quite sorting out his words.

"James, sort out what you're trying to tell me," Dumbledore said both calmly and urgently.

"Snape found out about Remus being a werewolf and how he went into the Whomping Willow," James said clearly.

"Where is he now?"

"I don't know; I ran to get you."

"I'll handle it," Dumbledore said confidently, striding quickly out of the office. James was about to follow him when Lily came rushing up.

"Snape, secret, Cynthia, Remus, werewolf!" she cried, much as he had just moments before.

"Slow down Lily, now what did you see?"

"Snape told Cynthia that Remus is a werewolf!" she practically shouted in her panic.

"That little rat! Where did he go?" James asked hopefully, praying Dumbledore hadn't strayed too far by now.

"They're still down there; I used your cloak, by the way." He didn't acknowledge that comment and they both ran to find Dumbledore.

"Professor!" James called desperately. Instead he found none other than-

"Potter? Tayfor? What are you doing out at this hour?" Professor Traint, the Potions teacher, asked maliciously.

"I need to find Professor Dumbledore, it's about Snape-"

"What about him?"

"He knows something about Remus Lupin that he shouldn't!" James snapped, getting impatient.

"Why don't you tell me about it?" Traint questioned.

"I don't have time!"

"You're walking on thin ice Potter!" he snapped.

"Hey, just let us go all right?" Lily asked, becoming exasperated. Traint looked thoroughly abashed, but it was at that moment that Dumbledore returned.

"Did you call me?"

"Yes," James quickly answered before Traint could say anything, "we know where Snape is!"

"Lead the way," Dumbledore commanded, and they both followed Lily down the corridor, leaving Traint behind. He walked off angrily, muttering to himself.

They showed Dumbledore the secret passageway that they had been using; but said nothing of the cloak or how they had found it. They found it deserted, much to the dislike of Lily and James.

"Don't worry, we'll catch him in the morning," Dumbledore assured them, walking down the passage to exit. Lily and James exchanged skeptical looks; who knew how many people he could tell by then?

They sadly returned back to their common room, said goodnight, and returned to their respective dorms for the night. It was then that James realized; Lily hadn't known Remus was a werewolf! "Hey, Lily, wait!" he cried suddenly.

"What is it?" she asked incredulously.

"Uh," he began, now at a loss for words, "what do you think of Remus being a werewolf?" She looked deep in thought.

"It's rather strange I suppose, but I'll become accustomed. It was a bit of a shock, and I rather disliked hearing it from Snape, but I'm fine with it." He nodded. "Well, goodnight then," she said, turning back up to her staircase.

James continued up his own staircase wearily. When he reached the room, he saw two sleeping bodies. Then he remembered another thing-Sirius. Upon closer inspection, he realized that Sirius was not asleep. He brutally turned on a nearby light, causing Sirius to jump.

"Good morning! I'd like to have a bit of a chat with you," James said brightly. Sirius smiled nervously. Peter sat up too. "Morning to you too Peter, you might as well try to sleep, though this talk won't be very quiet…" James said dangerously.

"Where did you go tonight Sirius?" he asked calmly.

"To, to go see the sun set and study astrology, like I said," he answered shakily. It reminded James of how Remus had sounded when talking about his sick mum.

"Oh, well then, I suppose you'd both like to know what happened!" James said gleefully. Peter cowered in his bed; Sirius attempted a look of interest.

"Snape found Remus," James said simply. Sirius faked a gasp and Peter gave no response. James, now getting quite angry, continued.

"I tried to stop him, but he got there too quickly; it was as though he knew how to get in! I warned Snape afterward not to tell, but then Lily caught him telling that girl Cynthia…it's just awful!" Sirius looked truly scared now. "But the real thinker," James pressed still, "is just how he got in there! It's just not understandable!" Sirius looked guiltily away, not saying anything.

"Oh, COME OFF IT SIRIUS!" James suddenly shouted. "YOU TOLD THE BLOODY BASTARD ABOUT REMUS!!!!" Sirius swallowed hard; Peter was completely hiding under the blanket.

"Yeah, I told him…" he finally admitted. James was too angry to contain himself.

"What the hell were you thinking?"

"That he would get hurt and never get to Remus!" Sirius said.

"He could've been killed! If it wasn't the tree, then it would've been the full-grown werewolf he was about to go see!" Sirius looked away, anger flooding him too.

"It seemed like a good idea at the time!"

"How is that even close to a good idea?!" James raged.

"I wanted to get him back for saying all those things to Remus!" Sirius pleaded.

"By proving him right?"

"It was a mistake, I know…"

"He's going to hold this against us forever! The rest of our years at Hogwarts…" James trailed off painfully.

"Can we please just try to sleep now? We can tell Remus in the morning," Peter suggested feebly.

"You're right, let's just deal with it tomorrow," James said; he was quite worn out from the whole ordeal. Not another word was said as Sirius switched off the light and they drifted to sleep.

~*~

The next morning, they all met Remus at breakfast. "Morning all!" he said cheerfully. He always seemed to be in a better mood the morning after. They were all tense, but he didn't seem to notice. Finally James spoke up.

"Listen, Remus, something happened last night that you should know about…" he began, shooting an angry look at Sirius. Remus looked concernedly at James.

"What?" he asked.

"Snape found you."

"WHAT!? HOW?" he burst, disregarding the rest of the hall. Sirius raised his hand slightly, indicating it was him who had tipped Snape off.

"WHY WOULD YOU DO THAT?" Remus further shouted. Many people were now looking suspiciously at them, causing James to grab them both by the arms and lead them out, Peter close behind.

"I wanted him to get hurt!"

"So you told him I was a werewolf?"

"No, I told him that I knew where you went, figuring he'd never get through-"

"Well he got through didn't he?" Sirius nodded slowly. Remus was angrily pacing up and down the corridor.

"Did you tell someone?" he asked James. He nodded quickly.

"I went straight to Dumbledore."

"And what did he do about it?" Remus snapped.

"We couldn't find Snape."

"I thought you said Lily found him," Sirius interjected.

"You," Remus said, turning towards Sirius, "better just keep your mouth shut right now!" Sirius looked hurt, but didn't say anything else.

"Yeah, well, by the time we got there, he was gone. Traint kept us up," James said spitefully.

"No surprise," Peter muttered.

"Then what did Dumbledore do?" Remus continued.

"He said he'd deal with it in the morning."

"We're going to his office; NOW," Remus ordered, and they all set off.

When they arrived, James did as he had the previous night; only this time he knocked more calmly. There was no answer, so Remus impatiently pounded his fist against the door. Finally Dumbledore came.

"Ah yes, I figured I'd see you all here today," he said knowingly. "Come in." They all entered and marveled at his huge office. It was much like it would be many years later, only with different pictures upon the walls.

"Have a seat," he offered, motioning to four chairs that were placed in front of his desk. They sat, and James opened his mouth to begin, being cut off by Dumbledore before he uttered a syllable.

"In answer to your question," he said, "I have spoken with Severus." James closed his mouth objectively. Dumbledore waited. Remus finally looked as though he was about to say something, when Dumbledore cut him off also.

"In answer to your question," he continued, grinning, "he only told one person, whom I have also had a word with." Sirius was fidgeting in his chair.

"Uh, professor," he began, yet again being cut off.

"In answer to your question, I know how Severus got in, knew how, what he saw, and who here is at fault." The others looked involuntarily at Sirius, who slouched in his seat.

"Actually professor, I was wondering what you said to Snape," Sirius admitted quietly.

"Oh yes, about that. I told him simply that it would be in his best interest not to tell anyone else, lest he die." There was an awkward pause here, James wondering whether or not it was a joke. "That meaning that he will suffer quite a consequence; other than death, of course."

"Oh, of course," Sirius said, a little relieved.

"And I told Cynthia the same."

"Professor?" Peter began.

"Yes, Peter?" Dumbledore asked kindly.

"Are you sure we can trust Snape?" Dumbledore sighed.

"No, I'm not sure. But if he tells, I will know. Don't worry."

~*~

"Hestia, what you thought is totally true! But you can't tell Crystal or Jenny; they won't take it the right way," Lily said breathlessly at breakfast.

"So, he is a werewolf?" Hestia questioned eagerly.

"Oh yeah, he is…" Lily said. Hestia was speechless.

"I just can't wait until Charms class today…" Lily said worriedly.

~*~

Just as Lily had feared, Charms class was just as expected. Remus, fearing the worst, complained to Professor Guidrick that he felt sick, and was sent down to Madam Royhurst, the school nurse.

Nonetheless, Snape didn't resist bragging about what he had found out the previous night to James, Sirius, and Peter. "How's it feel being friends with a werewolf?" he asked maliciously.

"Just fine, thanks," Sirius said coolly. Snape grimaced.

"Why don't you tell me a bit more, eh Black? I'm rather curious on how he transforms, and just how dangerous he is…" Snape continued. Sirius, having the short temper that he did, was about ready to snap.

"Why don't you keep your nose in your own damn business, Snape?" he muttered perilously.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought that since you told me that first bit, that I could just have a little more," he continued nastily.

"I only told you that bit to get you killed!" Sirius said, a bit louder.

"Didn't even think about the well-being of your friend?" Snape asked.

"I was more enticed by the thought of seeing your body in shreds!" Sirius said. They were face to face now, looking venomously into each other's eyes.

"More enticed than keeping a friendship?"

"Remus is still my friend!"

"But what about Potter?"

"What about him?"

"He was the one who stopped your little plan, wasn't he? He pulled me out of that tunnel to ruin everything you had planned…" Sirius was silent. For a moment they just stared at each other, neither losing eye contact.

"He only pulled you out because you didn't have the sense not to go near a fully grown werewolf," Sirius whispered, trying not to blurt to the entire class of Remus' secret. Snape turned red.

"I was just seeing what all the fuss was about!" So the tables had turned.

"You just can't admit that James saved your life!" Sirius accused. James, who had been listening the entire time, looked nervously away, concentrating on his wand.

"Potter didn't help me at all!" Snape said nervously.

"You just said it yourself; 'He pulled me out of that tunnel to ruin everything you had planned'…" Sirius said, a grin breaking through. Snape was speechless.

"You watch yourself Black, there's a lot you don't know," Snape said, shooting an angry glare at James and going back to his workstation.

"Sirius! What were you trying to prove?" James asked. "Now he's really going to get me!"

"But I proved him wrong, didn't I?" Sirius asked proudly. James rolled his eyes.

"That's all that matter to you, isn't it?" he accused. He turned around angrily, again concentrating on his wand.

~*~

The next day things weren't so friendly, considering Remus had returned to Charms. Snape was like a predator ready to spring upon his prey.

"Lupin, glad to see you're feeling better," he lied, slinking up to him.

"No you're not. You better just leave me alone Snape, or I might be tempted to attack you next month," Remus said serenely. Snape scowled.

"I don't think so. I have a few questions for you," Snape continued.

"And I'm not providing any answers, so you might as well leave."

"I think not. Last time we had a conversation like this, I got indirect answers." Remus then remembered how Snape had dug out that he was lying from their last conversation, but was determined to use a 'poker face' to keep his answers from him.

"Does it hurt when you transform?"

"I'm not telling you anything," Remus said.

"Oh come on, this is just a useless piece of information…"

"Or so you'd like me to think," Remus said, facing Snape suddenly. Snape scowled again.

"Fine. What sorts of things happen during the day that lets someone know you are going to transform that night?"

"I'm not telling you anything," Remus repeated calmly. Snape was getting agitated.

"Who came up with the idea of the Whomping Willow?"

"I'm not telling you anything," Remus again repeated. Snape finally got sick of it and returned heatedly to his friends. Remus, quite pleased with himself, returned silently to his work.

~*~

None of them even realized how fast the year had passed them by until Dumbledore announced the end-of-year feast would be the following evening. James thought sadly about what summer would be like back at home, without Remus, Sirius, and Peter.

The feast was magnificent. Peter, Sirius, James, and Remus hadn't even cared enough to be angry that the hall was decorated in green and silver, Slytherin's colors. Lily, Hestia, Crystal, and Jenny weren't all that depressed either.

Remus had finally almost forgiven Sirius for what he had done; after all, it wasn't worth losing his friendship over. The rivalry between Snape and James would only grow with time and power…

And then there was Peter. He certainly wasn't the liveliest, or most interesting character among them, but somehow he seemed to fit like a puzzle piece into their group. No one questioned it, or even paid mind to it, except James. One day he even asked him about it.

"Peter, why are you so quiet? How can you be, when you're around us all the time?" Peter just shrugged.

"I just it's just my nature."

"Still, I don't know what we'd do without you!" James said, clapping him on the back. To this Peter simply smiled.

They all ate, drank, and laughed for the last time that year as they all prepared for the summer ahead. James and the others packed in silence back in their dorm, each afraid of getting too emotional in front of the guys. James personally wasn't looking forward to another summer with Magnus and Tempesta; but he would manage. It was nice to get away for the time that he did.

They all boarded the Hogwarts Express with heavy hearts, wondering what things would be like the next time they saw the castle.

Lily walked into their car after about an hour's trip. "James? Can I talk to you?"

"Sure, Lily," James said, a little reluctant to leave his friends when they had such short time left together. She led him to an empty compartment, and they sat down.

"I want you to write to me this summer," she said very seriously, conjuring a piece of paper. She pulled a quill out of her back pocket and scribbled down her address.

"Here, let me give you mine-"

"No! I want it to be your responsibility to write to me," she said hastily.

"Why?" he asked. He didn't notice the blush rise to her cheeks.

"Just, just because," she said uneasily. "Now take it, and I expect to hear from you soon!" Silence followed that.

"Uh, yeah, I will!" he said tensely. More silence.

"Well, I should be getting back," James said finally, motioning towards his compartment.

"Yeah, right, me too. But uh, James?"

"Yeah?"

"I had a great year. I'm really glad I met you," she said honestly, a sweet smile meeting her lips. He returned it readily.

"Me too. You became one of my really good friends." They both stood and hugged rather awkwardly. Then they turned in opposite directions, and with a small wave, departed.

~*~

James returned to his friends, who sat silently in the car. Their emotions were definitely catching up to them as more familiar scenery began coming into view.

"Listen, guys," James finally said, his courage mounting since his talk with Lily, "I had a really great year, and I'm thankful that I got to meet and become such close friends with you all. The summer won't even come close to what the school year brought…"

"Yeah, me too," Sirius agreed.

"Me too," Peter said shortly.

"I'm just glad I found friends who can accept me the way I am," Remus said sensitively. They all smiled at him. Stillness engulfed the car as the train began to slow, and come to a complete halt.

They all got off and were about ready to go find their families. "Well guys, this is goodbye," James said sadly. They all quickly exchanged addresses, promising to write often over the summer.

And with that, James and Magnus both set off for home, and a summer beyond all long summers…