Disclaimer: Everything belongs to JK Rowling, except Serena.
Chapter Nine
Remus had disappeared. No one could, or would tell Serena where he had gone.
Frustrated, and worried, Serena finally left the headquarters, no destination in mind, just intent on finding him. Once outside, standing in a street corner in London, she looked up at the sky. A full golden moon was rising.
It was a full moon.
Of course. She had overheard him saying something about the potion. That it wasn't quite ready, and might not work. He would want to hide away from other people, then. She bit her lip. So where was he?
She wandered for a little while, lost in thought. Where was he? As she passed an abandoned building it suddenly occurred to her. The shrieking shack.
Without another thought, she apparated there. A lucky hunch, for as soon as she arrived, she see flickering light through the boarded up windows of the ramshackle house.
Remus.
She went to the door, knocking loudly.
A snarl answered her, accompanied by random thumps and crashes.
"Remus." She called softly. "Let me in."
"No, Serena." He growled. "Go away."
"I'm not leaving." She replied calmly. "Open the door."
There was an animal-like whine. "Serena, please. Just go." His words trailed off in a groan.
She took a deep breath. She couldn't leave him like this. She placed her hands on the door. It unlocked and swung open slowly.
The interior of the house was dark, except for a dying fire in the grate. The soft glow of the embers illuminated a figure crouching in the corner.
"Remus." She whispered, stepping inside. The door shut behind her on its own.
"Serena," his voice was rough and distorted. "Get away."
"No." Her own voice was steely.
He groaned again, shuddering. "Please. I don't want you to see me like this."
Her heart throbbed in her chest. He had already shed his clothes and had a ragged cloak wrapped around him. Crossing the room, she went to his side and sank to the floor beside him. "Oh. Remus." She sighed, reaching her hand out to touch him.
He lifted his head, snarling at her. His teeth had lengthened, and hair had sprouted along his jaw.
Instead of backing away, Serena leaned closer, cupping his cheek with her hand.
He whined low in his throat.
"I'm not leaving you." She whispered.
He pulled away from her, arching his back and wrapping his arms around his middle. "I don't want to hurt you." He ground out.
She slid closer, putting her arms around him. "You won't." She said with absolute certainty.
He started panting. "I don't know if the potion is going to work."
"I don't care."
His eyes met hers, dark with desperation. "Serena. If anything happened to you, I wouldn't be able to live with myself." His heart was in his tortured gaze.
"You won't hurt me." She insisted.
This time when he pulled away, growling, she let him go. She could tell by the ripples shaking his body that he wouldn't be a man for much longer. She backed away, covering her face as his snarls turned into pain filled howls. It wasn't that she was afraid to see what was happening to him, but she couldn't stand watching him suffer.
The transformation was quick once he gave in to it, and within moments, the painful sounds had stopped, replaced by a steady low growl. She lowered her hands.
Where she had last seen him there now stood an enormous tawny wolf. Head lowered, teeth bared, its hackles rose as she faced it.
"You won't hurt me. You won't hurt me." Serena chanted quietly. She hid her fear by force of will alone, and reached a hand out to the huge wolf.
Its growls deepened, and it sniffed at the air, its golden eyes holding hers. Serena held her breath and stretched her arm out closer. The wolf took a tiny step closer, suddenly falling silent, its muzzle lifting toward her hand.
She couldn't help it. A flash of uncertainty flooded her and she closed her eyes.
She barely bit back a scream as something warm and wet touched her fingertips. Her eyes flew open and she found the wolf closer, its long pink tongue delicately lapping at her fingers.
A relieved giggle bubbled out of her throat. "Ok, Moony." She said to the now grinning wolf. "Let's go have some fun."
***
A fat white rat crawled out of the bushes after the witch and wizard left. His nose twitched rapidly, a sign of the excitement he felt at what he'd seen.
His master would be pleased.
The air shimmered around the rat. And where rat had been now stood a man with rodent-like features and watery eyes. He had found a weakness. The werewolf had a mate.
***
When morning came, Remus came to his senses lying on the cold damp floor, his cloak wrapped haphazardly around his naked body. His first coherent thought was of Serena.
He bolted upright, looking around quickly. He found her a few feet away, curled up in front of the cold fireplace, her own cloak wrapped around her, one arm stretched out toward him. She looked to be sleeping peacefully. Spotting his discarded clothes folded neatly nearby, he rose letting the cloak fall away. As the pale early morning light washed over him, he stretched his tired muscles.
He was surprised that he didn't fell nearly as weak or tired as he usually did after a full moon. Actually, he felt energized.
He crossed to wear his clothes lay, putting them on.
He didn't notice the lazy blue eyes watching him as he dressed.
When he finished dressing and went to her side, her eyes were closed and her breathing was slow and even. He sat beside her, one leg bent, the other stretched out in front of him. He gently tugged her cloak away from her sleeping form to look for injuries.
He let out a relieved sigh when he didn't see any. He hadn't hurt her. He only remembered bits and pieces of the previous night. Obviously, the Wolfsbane potion hadn't been strong enough.
But he hadn't hurt her.
He reached out an unsteady hand to stroke her cheek. "Serena." He whispered. "Wake up."
She sighed, leaning into his touch. Then her eyes fluttered open. "Good morning." She said softly.
He toyed with a lock of her hair, needing to maintain some sort of connection with her. "You stayed." He murmured.
She gave him a sleepy smile. "I said I would."
"I didn't hurt you?"
"Remus." She sounded exasperated. She shifted, laying her head in his lap.
He gazed down at her. "You couldn't be sure I wouldn't."
"Yes, I could."
"How?"
She sat up then, dragging her fingers through her sleep tousled hair. "There's something you ought to know."
His blood ran cold at her somber tone. "What?" He whispered.
"This." She said and in the blink of an eye, a dainty black fox sat where she had been. Serena's blue eyes stared out at him from the furry pointed face. After a moment, she transformed back.
"James, Sirius and Peter weren't the only ones to learn that particular spell because of you." She told him quietly.
"Bloody hell." He replied with astonishment. He didn't know which surprised him more; that she was an animagus, or the speed of her transformation.
"Does anyone else know?"
She shrugged. "Well, Albus knows. And Sirius knew, because I used to bring him messages. But that's it."
"You're not registered, then?"
She snorted. "Of course not. What good would that do?"
She sounded so much like James and Sirius then, he had to smile. "Oh, of course. Silly me."
"That's how I knew you couldn't hurt me. When I'm in animal form, you can't infect me."
But a tiny fox was no match for a wolf. "I could have killed you."
She shook her head. "Not when there was so much fun to be had."
"Fun?" He asked.
"Running together under the full moon."
Together. He liked the sound of that. And right now, he was almost ready to hope…
Serena rose, stretching luxuriously. "I had forgotten how wonderful it felt to be that free."
"When was the last time you did it?" He questioned.
"A long time. When the Marauders were still together." She ducked her head, embarrassed. "I used to follow you."
"You did?"
She shook her head. "Pathetic. I know. But I worried about you."
He stood, giving in to temptation and touching her face. "That's not pathetic. That's wonderful. You're wonderful."
She lifted a hand to her disheveled hair, trying to return it to some semblance of order. "Wonderful?" She pulled a twig out of her hair. "Ugh. I need a bath."
Remus looked thoughtful. "A bath…" Then he smiled.
Serena cocked her head. "What are you thinking?"
"Do you trust me?" He asked.
She nodded. "Of course I do."
He held out his hand. Serena placed her hand in his, surprised when he pulled her into an embrace. "Hold on." He said softly.
Serena wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her face against his chest. Then he disapparated.