A/N: I wrote this for a HP contest, I didn't want to simply put all of my entries to waste, since they took a little time, so I'm just posting the bits of them to see how others think I did.

Things happen I've learned, and I've also learned to just accept them for the way they are. And I keep thinking, maybe if I have never gotten angry at my parents, this would have never happened, that maybe if they hadn't had that fight last week, it never would have happened. And maybe...

But I had been thinking about those things that night, I had...just not about the things that counted. Maybe I wanted to show them all that I wasn't some baby, even if I hadn't hit the magic age of ten just yet.

After my parents broke the news to me that, yes, they were getting separated, and that yes, the world wasn't perfect, I was too shocked to be thinking straight.

So out I ran, outside, away from them. Our house was nice, big, because Dad had a good job with the Ministry, he was high up in status, very respected, and I wanted to be just like him some times. We lived near a forest; it engulfed our house with shadows and darkness. I wished that night that it would have just swallowed me as well, so that I could disappear in the depths of it's mystery, and not have to think about the worries that had now unfolded in my life.

Little did I know that I would be standing in that same place a lot more often through the years, at the very edge of the forest. Nightlife all around me, the sound of crickets, the sound of the wind rushing through the trees and it sounded like the ocean, but I had never been to the ocean. I hoped maybe someday I could go there, when I'm just as respected as my Dad.

The wind gushed its way through every branch, every leaf...making the trees sway. I just stared into the darkness of the forest, a darkness where no light reached but the ripe full moon itself, hanging in the sky like a pendent worn by gods.

It was fall, autumn, and the dead leaves on the ground crunched as I walked a little bit forward, not going too far...never too far. It wasn't like I was afraid of the forest, I had been in it during the day with my friends...but now I wondered. Would I ever see it again now that I would have to choose between my parents? Would my Dad hold the same respect now that he was leaving? Would he still be with the Ministry?

Would he still be with me?

And then I saw it, a glimpse of golden dark eyes. That made me stop walking right away. Maybe I was seeing things, I always convinced myself that noises in the night were not real...and that had always made them disappear...disappear into my too-active imagination, into the dark depths of my mind forever.

But this fantasy, it turned into a nightmare from which I could not awake. In an instant, with a growl of dissatisfaction, a creature jumped from the edge of a forest I knew so well. In an instant I was on the ground, staring up at the scariest thing I have ever witnessed, my heart leapt, and I stayed perfectly still. It loomed over me, a werewolf...it was so close, its pelt black as the night it was forced to endure, and its claws as long as the glistening yellow teeth.

It stood above me first, sniffing the air, and I took that opportunity to back away as quickly as possible, but then with a wail of surprise I realized that there was more than one. This other identical monster, unlike its twin, knew I was there, and gave a howl that sent every bone in my body shaking. I turned quickly, and it was face to face with me, I could feel its hot breath on my face, my eyes watered, I wanted to cry for my Dad, for Mum, for anyone!

But that would only alert them more...I had to stay quiet. If I stayed quiet they might leave, since they didn't seem too bright anyway...they would not bite me. I would not let them bite me.

Never.

"Remus! Come back! We can talk about this!"

No...

I heard my father's voice call from the house, and in that instant, the nearest werewolf leapt, and the next thing I knew, I was pinned to the ground. I screamed in pain and in surprise, both mixed up in one, choking my voice I felt tears that had built up finally come out.

And I heard my dad yell my name again, this time it sounded closer, and I wanted him to be with me so bad, I wanted to take back what I had said, what I had done. Just as long as it didn't bite me...the look in its eyes told me it had other plans, and it's teeth bared as it moved for my shoulder. I knew what it was going to do...

And at that point I struggled, though its claws dug deeper, and then I wondered where the second werewolf was, what it was doing...would it go for my father? Then I realized that it did...and my Dad had been unprepared for it, didn't even know it was coming. Not ready. I heard his yell of surprise, and it kept going, ringing in my ears.

After moments I knew my Dad couldn't have survived, and the werewolf on top of me almost seemed to smile mockingly at what its partner had done, but now it wanted its own fair share. I felt it. Its teeth went so deep, the poison of its bite, and I just want to perhaps die, just right there. So it would all be over. Over for good...forever...

And that was the story, all of it to the time that I couldn't remember the rest. I just know my Mum saved me, hearing my Dad's screams. Maybe if he had remembered his wand, he would have saved me. Maybe if my mom had come out instead of my Dad, she would have figured it out sooner. There area a lot of maybes...

But it won't change what happened.

And I'll know that forever, each time I relive the experience, the anger I felt, and the shock in my darkest dreams.