Once they reached the top of the hill, they stopped and took a moment to catch their breath. The house loomed above them, eerie and abandoned. It's windows were missing, some boarded. The wood was rotted and it looked like it was about to fall over. "Looks dreadful." Ally stated. "Let's get closer." She grinned and ran ahead, laying her dress box on the stone wall. Lilly laid hers down as well and followed Ally up the flagstone path to the front door. Eleanor reluctantly set her box down and followed behind them. "Alohomora!" She heard Lilly shout when she reached the door where Lilly and ally were standing. The door unlocked and slowly creaked inward. All three of them just stood there, staring inside. Ally was first to enter. Eleanor went behind her. Her curiosity finally got the best of her, though the fear was still present in her mind. Eleanor held up her wand. "Lumos." the tip of her wand exploded in light, illuminating the dusty old foyer in which they stood. Lilly closed the door behind them. Eleanor jumped at the sound then shot Lilly a threatening glance. "Shh." "Sorry." Lilly whispered back. "Let's go upstairs." Ally suggested, motioning toward the dusty, unstable looking staircase off to the side of the foyer. "You first, Nell. You've got the light." "Here! Take it!" She tried to hand it to Ally but before she could, they were surrounded by the echoing sound of a man screaming. All three of them gasped and jumped, their eyes widening to try and see what was there. The sound had come from upstairs. "What in the name of Merlin was that?" Ally croaked. Lilly pushed Eleanor toward the stairs. "Let's go." They started up the stairs, Eleanor in the lead, her wand out in front of her. Other than their breathing, they heard a hoarse sort of gasping sound. Like someone was fighting not to choke or throw up or something. Eleanor took another step and peered through the railing of the landing above her. Through an open door across the hall, she saw a man sprawled on his hands and knees. He was sweating and attempting to dig his nails into the floorboards. His head was hung, his dirty blonde cheek-length hair hanging toward the floor. A wave of moonlight came through the window, splashing over his huddled figure. Suddenly, he flew back on his heels, his face twisted in pain. He let out a scream and Eleanor gasped. "Remus!" She took off up the stairs, turning the corner and running to the room. Swinging open the door, she gasped. Remus was gone. In his place, wearing his shredded clothes, was a huge, snarling werewolf. It's yellow eyes looked at her for a second, taking her in. Then he lifted his head and howled. Eleanor stepped backward. "What is it?" Lilly and Ally kept repeating. They didn't dare come up the stairs. The werewolf grew silent before bounding toward the door. Eleanor's heart jumped and she backed up, her butt hitting the railing. The top half of her flipped over the railing and her legs followed. She howled in pain as she fell to the floor, a loud crack echoing through the house as her arm hit the stair rail on the way down. Lilly and Ally came screaming down the stairs. They pulled Eleanor to her feet and toward the door. Lilly ripped the door open as she heard the werewolf barreling down the stairs. They ran out and down the flagstone path. The werewolf almost came out of the door after them, but before he reached it, a great black dog tackled him from somewhere inside and the door slammed shut. A moment later, the door opened and James ran out, slamming it behind him. He had a small scratch across his cheek and his hair more of a mess than usual. The girls stared at him in disbelief. "James!" Lilly shrieked. "what the hell was-" "Look," James demanded as he reached them, looking them all in the eye. "Promise me you won't say anything! Every full moon...Pomfrey brings him here to transform to get him away from the other students!" James looked furious at them. "If anyone finds out, he'll be kicked out of school! He worked so hard and agreed to so many rules to be able to come and get a proper wizarding education! Please don't mess it up for him!" James walked up to Eleanor, who was clutching her broken arm to her chest. He conjured up a splint and tied it around her neck to cradle her arm. "Eleanor...go straight to Pomfrey. She knows about it already. I've got to go help Sirius..." He turned his back on them and ran back into the house. The girls stared after him, dumbfounded. "Let's get out of here." Ally spat. They grabbed their boxes and headed quickly for the school.