Creation
Matt Dovey. ©2002 All trademarks/registered trademarks are property of their respective owners and not me blah blah blah I've got no money anyway so suing me is kinda stupid. So :p
The beast waited...
The moon shone down brightly onto the trees. It was a bright orb, full and round. The forest was alive, birds flying happily between the trees, grass snakes slipping between the cool grass. A dragonfly flitted lazily across Remus's vision as he lay on his back in the starlight. His parents were not far away, watching him. He kept tilting his head to see if they were still there, as he knew that if he went near the forest they would come over immediately and stop him, so he was waiting for his chance. As he rolled his head to the right and saw them still sitting there, he sat up and spotted a ladybird on the grass. He picked it up, counted its spots and yelled "Four!" happily. He let it crawl over his hands, twisting and turning his wrists so he could keep watching it as it moved. He watched it fly away, and as he did his eyes glanced over to where his parents had been sat; they had moved away and were sitting facing the river. His heart lept.
The beast shuffled slightly, shifting its weight, and continued waiting...
Remus was running as fast as he could, stumbling occasionally. He had almost reached the edge of the forest now, he could feel its coolness enveloping him. As he reached the first tree, he ran around it and put his back up against the bark, panting and giggling. He peeked around the trunk at his parents and giggled again; they were still watching the river together. His mind was reeling from the scope of his freedom; in here, he was away from his parents, and he could explore on his own, playing out his fantasies. Another quick giggle and he ran off into the trees, a broad smile showing the gaps in his teeth.
Something was stirring in the forest. A high pitched sound caused the beast to prick its ears. The keen sense of hearing that the beast possessed told it that it was approaching, somewhere off to the right, towards the light. The beast rose, walking forwards slowly, its snout wrinkled, teeth bared slightly.
Remus had a long stick, and was holding it in both his hands, between his legs, pretending to be flying on a broomstick. Every now and then he would pick up a small stone, loft it into the air and catch it again, pretending to be a seeker for England. He dropped the stick and picked up a small twig, brandishing it like a wand, and shouted "Lumos!" like he had seen his father do so many times. He giggled loudly, and stopped suddenly. His eyes were staring gleefully at a tree full of glowing lights; he could remember his mother telling him about Clabberts, whose foreheads had a pustule that flashed scarlet whenever someone came near. he laughed gaily, and ran over to the tree.
The beast was walking very deliberately now, determined and inquisitive. It could hear the high pitched squealing yet louder now; but now it could smell the child as well. For it was a human child it had found, and now stalked. It picked up its pace a little more, beginning to leap over obstacles with a little hop.
Remus had sat down now at the base of the tree, gazing up at the glowing Clabberts with a look of awe on his face. His mouth was open as he looked up. he heard a fly buzz near him, but he ignored it, he was entranced by the Clabberts. The fly kept buzzing, and he kept trying to ignore it, but could do so no longer when it landed on his tongue. His head jerked down, his eyes screwed up as he spat repeatedly. When he could no longer feel the fly in his mouth, he lifted his head up again, his tongue hanging out. He could hear a slight rustling now, movement, approaching. He tilted his head enquiringly and listened intently.
It was running flat out now, the hunger consuming it. It no longer cared for stealth or quietness, all it cared for was that it had a prey once more. It was getter closer, starting to salivate now. It could almost taste it...
Remus could hear the noise getting closer, and could tell it was something running. Then there was a noise behind him, further away, of footsteps. he looked around, shocked. He heard his name being called faintly, far away. No! it couldn't be! His parents had realised he'd gone missing and were looking for him! This wasn't fair!
The smell was overwhelming now, but it wasn't blocking out the other smells... it could now smell two others like the first. It ran faster...
Remus struggled to his feet, scrabbling in the cool night grass. He turned and started to walk away from where his parents were approaching, checking back over his shoulder. Suddenly he felt a warm, fetid breath on his face, and turned his head to see...
It was but a child, its head no higher than the beast's face. He could see the terror drawn on the face of the child clearly in the night, the darkness not hindering its vision at all. It advanced slowly, the child backing away, stumbling. The beast looked up at a tree full of glowing lights, and recognised them as Clabbers glowing brightly in recognition of his presence and the danger he represented. It turned its attention back to the boy, a human, its preferred prey. It snarled at the boy, pausing where it stood for a moment, then leaped. It clamped its jaw around the boys leg, biting into the flesh, feeling the warmth of the blood in its mouth. At that moment it felt a huge force hit its side and it was knocked off the boy. It looked up and saw two larger human shapes. It poised itself to pounce, but was suddenly hit in the head again by a huge force, and slipped into unconsciousness.
Remus was in shock. He had large holes in his leg where the fangs had gotten into him. He looked up, his father holding his wand in his hands. His mother was bent over him, looking almost as shocked as he was.
"You... you know what that was Remus..." said his mother.
"No?" replied Remus, his face a mixture of sweet ignorance and agonised pain.
"A... a... a werewolf..."
Remus looked up and stared disbelievingly at his mother.
"Remus Lupin, if you ever wander off like that again..." came his father, the anger evidently rising in his voice. But then he shook his head, as if trying to scatter his thoughts and emotions, and spoke again. "We have to get him out of here now. Get him to a physician, they might be able to help."
"But you know there's no cure!" came the desparate voice of his mother.
"They'll be able to do more than we can stood in this forest... and that bite is still bleeding badly."
Remus's mother looked down at his leg, and hung her head, then rose unsteadily. His father bent down and picked him up, and started to carry him towards the edge of the forest again. Remus looked about, and his eyes rested on the tree of Clabberts. It had dulled somewhat after his father had used the Stunning charm on the werewolf, but it was starting to get brighter now. Remus opened his mouth to question this, and as he did, his tongue felt his canines; they were growing rapidly.