(Note from the author: These are not my characters, my world, and my
situations. They all belong to J. K. Rowling, and are protected by
copyrights.)
(Note for readers under 13: There is a reason for the rating of PG-13. There is another transformation in this chapter, and so we all know from earlier chapters what this means. Please do not read ahead if you are under the age of thirteen.)
The tunnel was dark as the three boys led the terrified Lily Evans to the light that was showing at the end.
"All right," James said, coming to a halt, "Sirius and I are going to transform now, okay? And Peter's going to stay with you. If Sirius barks, you run for your life, all right? And I'm not joking. I mean don't look back and run for the entrance."
Lily nodded, every bone in her body shaking. She had never been so scared in her entire life.
James and Sirius looked to each other, and quietly were replaced by the stag and the black dog. They began to trot to the entrance, where a howling had sounded a few moments ago. Lily went to follow them, but Peter tugged her back.
"Not yet," he said, shivering, "Let them go first."
The trap door was opened, and Padfoot leaped out of sight. Prongs followed, and then the two of them were all alone.
Inside the Shrieking Shack, the wolf had done a pretty good job of wrecking the place in the three hours that they had left him alone. The curtains were in shreds, and the couch looked like it was about to fall to bits.
A raspy breathing came from the pantry, and Padfoot sprinted to where the sounds were coming from. He skidded to a stop as he came face to face with the wolf, covered in flour and tearing a bag of bread to pieces. The wolf snorted, and thrashed his head to stare at this new intruder.
And his eyes softened.
Padfoot let out a breath of relief, and then led Moony back out into the living room, where Prongs was waiting. There was a voice coming from underneath the trap door.
"Remus!" Peter's voice sounded, "We have Lily here with us!"
Moony shot a glare to Prongs, and Prongs shrugged.
"If you think you can handle yourself around her, knock three times on the trap door. If not, then we'll turn back."
He couldn't believe that his friends had done this to him. Let another know about his secret. He stared at Prongs for an explanation.
All he got back was a look that said, She has to know.
The wolf was at bay within him, but not for long. He didn't know how long. The wolf had been terrible to him that night.
He didn't want Lily to see him like this.
Padfoot gave a groan, and ran to the trap door. He took his paw, and rapped three times on the wood. Moony growled, but Padfoot didn't respond.
Prongs and him took their rightful places on either side of Moony, and waited for the door to open.
"Now remember," Peter said quietly, "It isn't Remus. It's . . ."
"Just open the door," Lily said, determined, and Peter turned around.
"Okay," he said quickly, and he swung the door open.
Peter went first, and then hoisted Lily up into the living room. It was the Shrieking Shack, Lily could tell right away. But it had been massacred.
And then she saw it. Standing between Prongs and Padfoot, she saw it.
A werewolf.
She gasped, and Moony blinked.
Blood.
He could smell it.
He shook his head.
No. NO! NO! He would NOT . . .
BLOOOD!
He lunged forward, out of the reach of the stag or the dog, and right at Lily.
"OH MY GOD!" Lily screamed, and ran hysterically for the stairs.
"No, Lily!" Peter stuttered, jumping back into the trap door's hole, "No! Down here! Come back down here!"
But Lily wasn't listening. She shot up the stairs, and flew into a bedroom. She slammed the door, and locked it.
"JAMES POTTER!" Lily screamed, "I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!"
The werewolf bounded after her, and ran full force into the door. She screamed as he collided with the wood and hit the floor with a thump.
"HELP ME!" she screamed.
Prongs and Padfoot, who had just made it to the top of the staircase, leapt in front of Moony to protect the door. Padfoot pinned him to the ground, as Prongs stared over his shoulder at the wolf.
Come on, Remus, he thought, Get a hold of yourself.
A rat jumped up the stairs after them, squeaking. He ran past them, and slid under the door into Lily's room. Another scream came from behind the door, and then Peter's voice trying to calm her down.
Blood. He could smell it.
Blood!
Blood!
Padfoot snarled. It had never been this hard to get Moony to cooperate. Was he losing it?
BLOOD!
BLOOD!
Padfoot bit him on the ear. The wolf's eyes dialated, and he lunged for the dog's throat. The two of them rolled down the stairs, snarling and clawing at each other. Prongs dashed after them, and stomped his feet to get them to stop. But no such luck.
Padfoot swiped a paw at the wolf, and the wolf howled.
Prongs charged at Moony, and butted him to the ground. Moony grabbed the stag's leg with his jaws, and Prongs hollered in pain.
BLOOD!
Padfoot growled, and then leaped onto his back. He got his teeth around the wolf's scruff of his neck, and pulled him off of his feet. The wolf hit the ground, snarling.
Padfoot dragged him into the pantry, threw him up against the shelves. The wolf stared at him for a moment, and Padfoot swore that he saw Remus's eyes submerge from the monster. But it may have just been a trick of the light, because soon enough, the wolf was lunging towards him again. Padfoot got a hold of his front leg, and slammed him back into the wall.
That'll teach you to screw things up for us, he thought to himself, and then slammed the door behind him as he walked out. Prongs took the lock in his mouth, and turned it with a click.
The wolf was caged in.
Moony felt a tinge of fear in his heart. They had locked him in with the beast! They had locked him in by himself!
How dare they lock him in.
He ran full force at the door, slamming against it. But it was no use. He lay in a heap on the floor, surrounded by flour flying through the air. He was losing consciencesnous.
He closed his eyes.
And the wolf laughed at him. He laughed at small little Remus. He just lay there and laughed.
I. Will. Not. Die. Remus said. But the wolf continued laughing.
Remus glared at him, in the corner. His fangs caked with dried blood. His face one of a demon.
You thought you could outwit me. Fight your own monsters. Oh, were you wrong, my friend. How you were wrong.
I will not die, Remus shouted back at the wolf. But the wolf continued laughing.
You think we're different, Remus Lupin? We're the same person. We share the same body.
I WILL NOT DIE! He screamed, and the wolf stopped laughing.
The wolf stood, and snarled at Remus. And then attacked.
Remus felt his body surge, and for a minute, he was forgotten again. Dead. He was dead.
The wolf laughed. He laughed long and hard. He looked down upon the being that he had beaten, and he laughed.
I told you. You cannot fight me. You pathetic excuse for a human being. I am the monster. For it is I that will not die.
Moony had gone quiet on the other side of the door. Prongs and Padfoot had transformed back into human, and they had sat outside the door. He had been knocked out after hitting the door with his body. They wanted to let him out.
But they knew that they couldn't. Not until morning. Peter and Lily had joined them at the pantry entrance, listening through the wooden door to hear if Remus was still alive. Still breathing.
Lily was in shock, and she lay in James's lap as he stroked her hair. But she wouldn't respond to him. She just stared at the door, waiting until the dawn would come and they could see the monster again.
But they didn't see the monster when they opened the door. It was Remus. Moony was gone. The wolf had subsided again.
Remus was laying on the floor of the pantry. He was silent.
"Is he breathing?" Peter asked quietly as Sirius went to drag him out of the pantry. He took his arms, and slid him onto the floor of the kitchen. He then tore off a part of his dress robes, and pressed it to his friend's head.
"Yeah," he said, checking his pulse, "He's breathing. He's alive."
"What happened?" Lily said loudly.
"He's a werewolf," Sirius said offhandedly as he applied pressure to the wound. He himself was cut up pretty badly, but didn't pay any attention to his own injuries.
"Come on, Lupin," James whispered, "Come on, Moony. Wake up."
"Is he all right?" Lily asked.
"I don't know," James said truthfully, "I . . . he's never been this bad."
"Stress, I tell you," Sirius said, wrapping another piece of cloth around his head to tie the other in place, "I bet it's all the stress he's been going through. What, with the Order, and then N.E.W.T.s on top of that."
Remus groaned.
"He speaks," Sirius said.
"Oh, Mr. Lupin!"
The four of them snapped their heads towards the trap door. It was lifting.
"Quick!" James grabbed Lily and took Sirius's hand, "In here!"
Peter followed his three friends into the pantry, and slammed the door behind them.
"What is -" James clamped a hand over Lily's mouth, as they heard Madam Pomfrey gasp from the other room. Then her footsteps went to Remus, and they heard, "Mobilicorpus" uttered. Then footsteps back to the trap door, and then the trap door bang shut.
Lily broke free of James and stared at all three of them in horror, "What the hell was that?"
"I've never heard you swear before," Sirius said, "Quite an improvement."
"That was Remus Lupin," James tried to explain, "And he's a werewolf."
"This is some kind of trick," Lily said, opening the pantry door, "This is some sort of joke to get back at me for trying to figure out what you guys were up to. This is a prank, isn't it?"
They didn't answer.
"Isn't it?" she demanded, swiveling around. She cried out, as she saw that all three of them were gone, and replaced by a stag, a dog, and a rat.
In a minute, they were back to regular human form.
"No," James said, "No, it's not."
(Note for readers under 13: There is a reason for the rating of PG-13. There is another transformation in this chapter, and so we all know from earlier chapters what this means. Please do not read ahead if you are under the age of thirteen.)
The tunnel was dark as the three boys led the terrified Lily Evans to the light that was showing at the end.
"All right," James said, coming to a halt, "Sirius and I are going to transform now, okay? And Peter's going to stay with you. If Sirius barks, you run for your life, all right? And I'm not joking. I mean don't look back and run for the entrance."
Lily nodded, every bone in her body shaking. She had never been so scared in her entire life.
James and Sirius looked to each other, and quietly were replaced by the stag and the black dog. They began to trot to the entrance, where a howling had sounded a few moments ago. Lily went to follow them, but Peter tugged her back.
"Not yet," he said, shivering, "Let them go first."
The trap door was opened, and Padfoot leaped out of sight. Prongs followed, and then the two of them were all alone.
Inside the Shrieking Shack, the wolf had done a pretty good job of wrecking the place in the three hours that they had left him alone. The curtains were in shreds, and the couch looked like it was about to fall to bits.
A raspy breathing came from the pantry, and Padfoot sprinted to where the sounds were coming from. He skidded to a stop as he came face to face with the wolf, covered in flour and tearing a bag of bread to pieces. The wolf snorted, and thrashed his head to stare at this new intruder.
And his eyes softened.
Padfoot let out a breath of relief, and then led Moony back out into the living room, where Prongs was waiting. There was a voice coming from underneath the trap door.
"Remus!" Peter's voice sounded, "We have Lily here with us!"
Moony shot a glare to Prongs, and Prongs shrugged.
"If you think you can handle yourself around her, knock three times on the trap door. If not, then we'll turn back."
He couldn't believe that his friends had done this to him. Let another know about his secret. He stared at Prongs for an explanation.
All he got back was a look that said, She has to know.
The wolf was at bay within him, but not for long. He didn't know how long. The wolf had been terrible to him that night.
He didn't want Lily to see him like this.
Padfoot gave a groan, and ran to the trap door. He took his paw, and rapped three times on the wood. Moony growled, but Padfoot didn't respond.
Prongs and him took their rightful places on either side of Moony, and waited for the door to open.
"Now remember," Peter said quietly, "It isn't Remus. It's . . ."
"Just open the door," Lily said, determined, and Peter turned around.
"Okay," he said quickly, and he swung the door open.
Peter went first, and then hoisted Lily up into the living room. It was the Shrieking Shack, Lily could tell right away. But it had been massacred.
And then she saw it. Standing between Prongs and Padfoot, she saw it.
A werewolf.
She gasped, and Moony blinked.
Blood.
He could smell it.
He shook his head.
No. NO! NO! He would NOT . . .
BLOOOD!
He lunged forward, out of the reach of the stag or the dog, and right at Lily.
"OH MY GOD!" Lily screamed, and ran hysterically for the stairs.
"No, Lily!" Peter stuttered, jumping back into the trap door's hole, "No! Down here! Come back down here!"
But Lily wasn't listening. She shot up the stairs, and flew into a bedroom. She slammed the door, and locked it.
"JAMES POTTER!" Lily screamed, "I HATE YOU! I HATE YOU!"
The werewolf bounded after her, and ran full force into the door. She screamed as he collided with the wood and hit the floor with a thump.
"HELP ME!" she screamed.
Prongs and Padfoot, who had just made it to the top of the staircase, leapt in front of Moony to protect the door. Padfoot pinned him to the ground, as Prongs stared over his shoulder at the wolf.
Come on, Remus, he thought, Get a hold of yourself.
A rat jumped up the stairs after them, squeaking. He ran past them, and slid under the door into Lily's room. Another scream came from behind the door, and then Peter's voice trying to calm her down.
Blood. He could smell it.
Blood!
Blood!
Padfoot snarled. It had never been this hard to get Moony to cooperate. Was he losing it?
BLOOD!
BLOOD!
Padfoot bit him on the ear. The wolf's eyes dialated, and he lunged for the dog's throat. The two of them rolled down the stairs, snarling and clawing at each other. Prongs dashed after them, and stomped his feet to get them to stop. But no such luck.
Padfoot swiped a paw at the wolf, and the wolf howled.
Prongs charged at Moony, and butted him to the ground. Moony grabbed the stag's leg with his jaws, and Prongs hollered in pain.
BLOOD!
Padfoot growled, and then leaped onto his back. He got his teeth around the wolf's scruff of his neck, and pulled him off of his feet. The wolf hit the ground, snarling.
Padfoot dragged him into the pantry, threw him up against the shelves. The wolf stared at him for a moment, and Padfoot swore that he saw Remus's eyes submerge from the monster. But it may have just been a trick of the light, because soon enough, the wolf was lunging towards him again. Padfoot got a hold of his front leg, and slammed him back into the wall.
That'll teach you to screw things up for us, he thought to himself, and then slammed the door behind him as he walked out. Prongs took the lock in his mouth, and turned it with a click.
The wolf was caged in.
Moony felt a tinge of fear in his heart. They had locked him in with the beast! They had locked him in by himself!
How dare they lock him in.
He ran full force at the door, slamming against it. But it was no use. He lay in a heap on the floor, surrounded by flour flying through the air. He was losing consciencesnous.
He closed his eyes.
And the wolf laughed at him. He laughed at small little Remus. He just lay there and laughed.
I. Will. Not. Die. Remus said. But the wolf continued laughing.
Remus glared at him, in the corner. His fangs caked with dried blood. His face one of a demon.
You thought you could outwit me. Fight your own monsters. Oh, were you wrong, my friend. How you were wrong.
I will not die, Remus shouted back at the wolf. But the wolf continued laughing.
You think we're different, Remus Lupin? We're the same person. We share the same body.
I WILL NOT DIE! He screamed, and the wolf stopped laughing.
The wolf stood, and snarled at Remus. And then attacked.
Remus felt his body surge, and for a minute, he was forgotten again. Dead. He was dead.
The wolf laughed. He laughed long and hard. He looked down upon the being that he had beaten, and he laughed.
I told you. You cannot fight me. You pathetic excuse for a human being. I am the monster. For it is I that will not die.
Moony had gone quiet on the other side of the door. Prongs and Padfoot had transformed back into human, and they had sat outside the door. He had been knocked out after hitting the door with his body. They wanted to let him out.
But they knew that they couldn't. Not until morning. Peter and Lily had joined them at the pantry entrance, listening through the wooden door to hear if Remus was still alive. Still breathing.
Lily was in shock, and she lay in James's lap as he stroked her hair. But she wouldn't respond to him. She just stared at the door, waiting until the dawn would come and they could see the monster again.
But they didn't see the monster when they opened the door. It was Remus. Moony was gone. The wolf had subsided again.
Remus was laying on the floor of the pantry. He was silent.
"Is he breathing?" Peter asked quietly as Sirius went to drag him out of the pantry. He took his arms, and slid him onto the floor of the kitchen. He then tore off a part of his dress robes, and pressed it to his friend's head.
"Yeah," he said, checking his pulse, "He's breathing. He's alive."
"What happened?" Lily said loudly.
"He's a werewolf," Sirius said offhandedly as he applied pressure to the wound. He himself was cut up pretty badly, but didn't pay any attention to his own injuries.
"Come on, Lupin," James whispered, "Come on, Moony. Wake up."
"Is he all right?" Lily asked.
"I don't know," James said truthfully, "I . . . he's never been this bad."
"Stress, I tell you," Sirius said, wrapping another piece of cloth around his head to tie the other in place, "I bet it's all the stress he's been going through. What, with the Order, and then N.E.W.T.s on top of that."
Remus groaned.
"He speaks," Sirius said.
"Oh, Mr. Lupin!"
The four of them snapped their heads towards the trap door. It was lifting.
"Quick!" James grabbed Lily and took Sirius's hand, "In here!"
Peter followed his three friends into the pantry, and slammed the door behind them.
"What is -" James clamped a hand over Lily's mouth, as they heard Madam Pomfrey gasp from the other room. Then her footsteps went to Remus, and they heard, "Mobilicorpus" uttered. Then footsteps back to the trap door, and then the trap door bang shut.
Lily broke free of James and stared at all three of them in horror, "What the hell was that?"
"I've never heard you swear before," Sirius said, "Quite an improvement."
"That was Remus Lupin," James tried to explain, "And he's a werewolf."
"This is some kind of trick," Lily said, opening the pantry door, "This is some sort of joke to get back at me for trying to figure out what you guys were up to. This is a prank, isn't it?"
They didn't answer.
"Isn't it?" she demanded, swiveling around. She cried out, as she saw that all three of them were gone, and replaced by a stag, a dog, and a rat.
In a minute, they were back to regular human form.
"No," James said, "No, it's not."