A/N: This is a newer, hopefully better version of By the Light of the Full Moon. I don't really have anything to say besides review!
Disclaimer: Guess who I am? Miss Effie! Guess who I'm not? JKR!
A sharp, lonely howl broke the crisp night air. Upon hearing this, many children called for their mothers and grown men shivered. In the moonlight of a forest, a lone werewolf stared up at the round moon. His eyes were intelligent but pained. Suddenly, a stag leaped from the brush and walked up to the werewolf with no hesitation. A dog was soon to follow, and then a rat scurried out. It was the only one that seemed to hesitate and when it did join the circle of animals, it cowered behind a small clump of overgrown grass. Then, after a few minutes, the strange group of animals dispersed.
Remus Lupin stared at himself in the mirror. He had bags under his eyes and his hair was rumpled. Every muscle in his body was sore, and his eyelids were drooping.
"Good morning, sunshine!" said a cheery voice behind him. He saw Sirius grinning back at him from the reflection in the mirror. He too had a tired look about him, but there was a huge grin on his face and a twinkle in his eyes.
"You don't look so good yourself, Sirius," replied Remus.
"I always look better than you do, Remus, full moon or not," he replied saucily. They both examined themselves in the mirror.
"Be careful you two," said James, walking through the doorframe, "No one appreciates shattered mirrors." Peter Pettigrew was not far behind James (as usual) and chuckled appreciatively at his joke.
"Now, Mr. Teacher's Pet, you won't tell on us for being out all night, will you?" asked Sirius after a minute.
"I don't know…depends on your attitudes today," replied Remus. "What were you saying about how I looked, Sirius?"
"I was just remarking on how those bags under your eyes become you! And that hair! I can't get over how beautiful you are, dear Remmykins," said Sirius.
"I thought that's what you said…" replied Lupin, smiling.
"I'm famished, let's go to the Great Hall," said James.
"What? We aren't even out of our pajamas yet!" said Sirius.
"He just wants to be there early because he knows that Lily is leading a study group in the Great Hall at six-thirty, and a certain boy that he loathes is in it," Remus remarked.
"Ah! So he gets to impress his girl and make fun of his enemy!" said Sirius, slyly. James didn't look phased.
"So what if I do? You both hate Snivilius too," James said, coolly.
"Of course! He's a slimy git!" Peter agreed, repeating an insult he had heard his friends use many times.
"I see that Peter is my only good friend here!" said James. He clapped Peter on the back. Peter looked very pleased with himself.
"Well, I'm going…catch you two later," James said, and quickly exited the room. Of course, Peter followed doggedly at his heels.
"I hope he knows that he still has his pinstriped jimjams on," muttered Sirius to the closed door.
Remus just shook his head and started brushing his teeth. Sirius retreated into the dormitory but came back again quickly, dressed in his Hogwarts uniform. Of course, the tie was loosened in a carefree manner, and Sirius' robes had a shimmery blue quality to them. Remus, on the other hand, put on his crisp black robes and tied his tie neatly, tucking it into his ironed shirt.
"You're so boring, Remus. No wonder you haven't had any girlfriends," said Sirius teasingly.
"You know, you never forget to remind me of that. But at least my grades are good, and I am respected," he replied, with no hurt in his voice.
"They wouldn't respect you if they knew what you really are…," kidded Sirius.
"And whose fault is that?" Remus replied sharply, not thinking of the terrible hurt he would cause his friend.
Sirius was hurt. "I thought you'd forgiven us for that, Remus," he said.
"I'm sorry, Sirius. I don't blame you, James, or Peter anymore. I'm just tired…last night was long."
"I know what you need!" Sirius grinned wickedly as he pulled a small bottle of Firewhiskey from underneath his mattress on his bed.
"Sirius! If anyone caught you…"
"They won't. Come on, old friend, have a drink. I promise you'll feel awake!" Sirius nearly shoved the bottle into Remus' mouth. Remus took a quick sip and shuddered.
"How can you drink that Sirius?" he asked as Sirius took two big swigs of the whiskey.
"Easy. You're just not manly enough, Remus."
Remus snorted. "I'm sure that's the problem."
They walked down to breakfast to find James sitting on a bench all by himself, rubbing his cheek.
"She slapped you again, did she?" said Sirius as they joined him.
"She's got one strong arm," said James, half mad, half admiringly. He peeled his hand off of his face.
"Wow…that's pretty wicked," said Sirius.
"You can see her handprint! You could probably take a palm reading!" remarked Remus, laughingly.
"What did you do this time to provoke her?" asked Sirius.
"I just told her that she could have her study group in my dormitory!"
"Are you sure you said dormitory? Or did you say bed?" Remus asked seriously.
"Shut up, Remus. You are girl impaired, so I wouldn't be talking if I were you," James said as he glared at Remus.
"I already reminded him of that," Sirius said, shaking his head.
"Where did Peter go?" asked Remus, looking around.
"I haven't got a clue," replied James, scanning the Great Hall. "There he is." James pointed to the Hufflepuff table. "PETER!" he shouted. Peter looked up, and started walking quickly to his friends.
"Yes, James?" asked Peter breathlessly.
"Why were you over at the Hufflepuff table, ol' boy?" asked James, one eyebrow raised.
"Just talking to Melissa," Peter replied, looking slightly smug.
"Oh ho!" Sirius exclaimed. "Peter's found himself a girlfriend!" Peter blushed.
"We're only friends," he replied, modestly. The Marauders looked at each other.
"All right, Pete," James said, dropping the subject.
Peter smiled and squeezed in between James and Sirius, grabbing some food and beginning to eat.
"You lads ready for the Charms exam?" asked Remus after awhile.
"Charms exam!" chorused both Sirius and James.
"Yes…the exam we have today…"
"You didn't tell us that there was an exam today," said Sirius through clenched teeth.
"So sorry, I didn't know that I was supposed to," said Remus, grinning.
"That's a load of bollocks," said James. "You love seeing us frantic, don't you?"
Lupin laughed, "It is quite amusing."
"Ahh, I just remembered something. I've got this blondie on my right and she's completely taken with me. I'll just cheat off her," said Sirius.
"Have you forgotten that we have bewitched quills?" asked Lupin.
"Dammit!"
"Nice try, Sirius," commented Peter.
"I feel betrayed…I can't believe they don't trust us enough to let us use normal quills!" said James, taking a big swig of pumpkin juice.
Remus scoffed, "What have you done to earn their trust?"
James spit pumpkin juice at him. Remus daringly flicked a pea in James' direction and then quickly withdrew from the fight. Sirius, on the other hand, was just getting started. He thwapped a huge spoonful of mashed potatoes in James' direction. Then, Peeves entered the hall.
"FOOD FIGHT!" he giggled maliciously. He took a student's plate and threw it up into the air.
"PEEVES!" yelled Filch, running into the hall. But there was no stopping him now. Food was flying left and right, and students were yelling. Finally, Dumbledore's voice echoed through the hall.
"Stop."
At once the students put down their weapons and sat down in their chairs, watching Dumbledore attentively.
"Thank you all very much. I think Mr. Filch has a few things he would like to say to you all."
Filch was spluttering red faced in the corner of the hall. He was finally able to spit out, "You all…you all…CLEAN IT UP!" Some of the students immediately got down on their hands and knees and started scooping up the food. Others got out their wands and did different spells, many resulting in even more mess. Remus was using a scouring spell when Professor McGonagall came up behind him and put her hand on his shoulder.
"Do you know who started this, Remus?" she asked.
"Err…no, Professor McGonagall."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes, Professor McGonagall."
"Well, if you find out, you are to immediately report it to one of the staff." She looked at Sirius with a grim look and shook her head. Un-satisfied, she walked off.
"Why do they always think it's me?" asked Sirius.
"Because it usually is you," answered Peter from underneath the table. James, however, wasn't listening. He was busy showing off in front of Lily.
"I could really clean up this whole place by myself. I know just the spell…" he bragged.
"Good!" said Lily, coolly. "Then I'll be off and let you do the work!" With that she walked off.
"Good one there, James," remarked Sirius.
"And you laugh at me for my girl skills..." said Remus, shaking his head. James almost threw some mashed potatoes at him but stopped in mid-launch and stomped off.
"Now you've done it," said Sirius, "now he's going to be in a strop all afternoon."
"What? He can make fun of me about girls, but I can't do the same to him?"
"Yep."
"Is there a "James Potter Book of Rules and Regulations" that I don't know about?"
"Aww, come on. You know he's sensitive about Lily! He's been going after her ever since he saw her on the train."
"All right, all right. But he knew that I was just joking."
"Obviously not."
After awhile, the Great Hall was finally scoured and inspected by Filch.
"You all can go now. But…no more FOOD FIGHTS!" Filch wheezed. Then he walked by Sirius and James and said, "I've got my eye on you two…"
"Why is it always us?" chorused James and Sirius at Filch's retreating back.
"I could give you a list if you like," Remus replied saucily.
"Could you really clean this whole place up with one spell?" asked Peter, coming up behind James.
"What?" asked James. "Oh!" he said, finally realizing what Peter was talking about.
"Of course he couldn't," replied Sirius for James. James just ignored him and joined the crowd of students shuffling out of the Great Hall.
After all the classes were over, Remus retreated to the common room, ignoring his friend's pleas to play Quidditch with them. He was exhausted. Not only had he been deprived of his sleep the night before, but he had overexerted himself in all of his classes. He settled down in one of the red chairs by the fire and before he knew it, he was asleep.
He was outside in the dark, with Sirius, James and Peter prodding him along.
'What am I doing?' he thought to himself as he trudged over the uneven ground by the Whomping Willow. Without the light from the full moon, they never would be able to make it through the dark. 'It's after hours! If I get caught…'
"We won't get caught," said Sirius, reading his thoughts. Remus sighed.
"Come on, I saw him go this way!" said James, turning sharply.
"Not the Forbidden Forest! We are not going in there," he said. "Doesn't the name say something to you?"
"Aww, no one will know. We have to terrify the Slytherin boy," replied James.
Remus sighed again. That week, a Slytherin boy named Marlon had called Lily a Mudblood, and he was about to pay. Why Marlon was going into the Forbidden Forest at all was puzzling Remus.
'Well, he's about to get the scare of his life,' he thought. They trudged on for what seemed like hours, and they finally stumbled upon an open grove. Marlon was standing in the middle.
"Shh!" James hushed them. They squatted behind a huge bush and waited. Remus looked up at the sky and saw the full moon. It was a big disadvantage for them because it was flooding the normally dark night with a glowing light. Suddenly, Remus' attention was drawn to the boy as he made a groaning noise. He watched in terror as the boy changed before his very eyes. His face sprouted hair and his ears grew. He huddled on his hind legs, which were turning lean and hairy. His fingers twisted and melted into paws, each one tipped with a long curling nail. Remus gasped.
"A werewolf," he said aloud, disbelievingly. Immediately he realized his mistake. The werewolf pricked up his ears and turned towards the brush they were hiding behind.
"Noo!" yelled Peter suddenly as he ran out into the grove, trying to escape the forest and the werewolf.
"Peter, no!" said Remus, trying to grab him and pull him back. It was no use…fear had given Peter wings, it seemed. The werewolf lunged at Peter as he ran through the grove, barely missing him. Lupin ran out into the circle and pushed Peter back into the foliage surrounding the grove. He saw the werewolf coming closer, and he could hear his friends' yells. Then he felt excruciating pain.
Remus screamed. He awoke from his dream, sweating and panting.
It was just a dream, it was just a dream, he told himself. Suddenly Sirius and James rushed in.
"What's wrong?" they asked worriedly.
"We were walking down the hall, and we heard you scream…" said James.
Sirius took one look at Remus and said, "No. Not again." Sirius plopped down on a chair across from Remus. "You had the dream, didn't you?"
"Yeah," said Remus, unbuttoning his collar. "It's no big deal, it wasn't bad."
"Wasn't bad?" said James, seating himself on the floor, "You dreamt about that night and you say it wasn't bad?" Sirius rubbed at his temples.
"Remus, I'm really sorry—"
"You've apologized hundreds of times. It was no one's fault. Let's just forget about it." James and Sirius nodded.
"Want some firewhiskey?" asked Sirius, wickedly.
"Hell yes!" said James. Sirius ran up to the dormitory to get it. He passed it around, and they drank in silence. Remus slowly began to feel better, comforted by the presence of his friends and the warm feeling in his stomach from the whiskey. Then they heard footsteps.
"Quick! Hide the whiskey!" said Remus, urgently. "If we get caught…"
"Shut up," James and Sirius said simultaneously. Sirius stuffed the flask of whiskey behind one of the cushions and leaned nonchalantly on it. They all looked at the portrait hole. Lily appeared and stepped onto the floor, brushing herself off. Then she looked up and noticed Sirius, James and Remus all staring at her.
"Yes?" she looked at them angrily, daring them to say anything cheeky.
"Lily…what a pleasant surprise!" said James, his voice becoming silky smooth.
"Potter, I'm sure you have no desire for me to repeat what I did to you earlier this morning, so watch your mouth," snapped Lily.
"Why so angry, dear?" Remus snorted and shook his head. James was in for it.
"Would you care to repeat that last comment, Mr. Potter?" Lily looked at him threateningly.
"What? You mean the part where I called you de—" James was interrupted by Lily's hand making contact with his cheek. Just then, Professor McGonagall walked in.
"Miss Evans! Would you like to explain your action please?"
"Professor McGonagall!" Lily screeched, her voice cracking. "I…err…"
"It was my fault, Professor," said James. "I just said something very…rude and inappropriate to Lily. I deserved getting slapped."
"Is this true, Miss Evans?" asked McGonagall disbelievingly.
"Umm…yes?" replied Lily, looking at James confusedly.
"Is that a question or an answer, Miss Evans?"
"It's an answer."
"All right. I will be seeing you, Mr. Potter, at detention tomorrow night, eight o' clock sharp. Ms. Evans, please refrain from using force to solve problems in the future. Good day." McGonagall walked off.
"I believe thanks are in order," said Lily, coolly. She held out her hand for James to shake, but instead he kissed it. She sharply drew her hand away and stalked off.
"Since when did you become a gentleman?" asked Remus.
"Since always!" retorted James, smug about his noble deed.
"Well, I think I'm going to turn in for the night," remarked Remus, getting up slowly from his chair.
"It's only eight o'clock!" exclaimed Sirius, looking anxious.
"You've finished your homework already?" inquired James, obviously wanting to cheat.
"No," replied Remus.
"Remus going to bed without doing his homework?" Sirius exclaimed. James pretended to faint.
"I'm going to get up early tomorrow and finish it," replied Remus, ignoring their taunts. "Goodnight. And not too much more of that firewhiskey!"
"All right, Mum," the boys chorused. Remus staggered up to his bed, where he fell into a fitful sleep, dreaming about that fatal night. The night which changed his life forever.
A/N2: Well, please review! If I get enough reviewers, I'm totally prepared to add on to this, or at least write a sequel or a companion piece, whatever you want to call it.