MAELSTROM

CHAPTER FOURTEEN-SELF CONTROL

"Okay," Lily said as she put her wand away. "Who here thought that was really creepy and scary?"

She raised her hand into the air as if voting. We all did.

"That definitely wasn't normal behavior," Remus said flopping down on the couch.

His robe was opened exposing the hem of his vest and black belt around his waist.

I sat down next to him.

"They were too defensive," Arthur said sitting on the chair across from us.

"I did threaten him though," I admitted facing Remus and tucking one leg beneath me.

"That's no reason for them to act the way they did," Remus said reprovingly.

"They didn't even say whether or not they were chanting either," Molly reminded us. "This is really odd because they didn't even try and clear their names. So they probably were chanting."

"Exactly," Remus said nodding.

"I think we should tell Professor Dumbledore," I said.

"Good idea,"

"Why don't we go?" Arthur suggested. "We need to talk to him about…classes anyway."

He gestured to Molly and himself.

"Sure," Lily said.

Molly and Arthur left the common room.

A while later, they still hadn't returned.

"They got lost I bet," Lily said rolling her eyes. "Let's go after them."

We left the common room and headed to Professor Dumbledore's office.

When we arrived there, we stood outside the door, listening. Molly and Arthur were talking.

Remus put a finger to his lips and we fell incredibly silent.

"Professor," Molly's voice said with sadness. "We're hurting our friends. I think it's cruel. Why can't we tell them the truth yet?"

"Because we have to make sure that everything is safe again. You remember what happened don't you?" Professor Dumbledore's voice said calmly. "I don't think you want that to happen again."

"Carrie hates me," Arthur's voice came next.

"I don't think she does," Professor Dumbledore said kindly. "Why don't you head back?"

Hearing that, Remus, Lily and I hid behind a statue.

Molly and Arthur left and passed by us.

Once we were sure they were out of sight, we entered the office.

"What can I do for you?" Dumbledore asked gently.

"Those new 'guests'," Remus said, using the term 'guests' loosely. "They're acting oddly."

"In what way?" Dumbledore asked immediately.

Remus began explaining what happened.

Professor Dumbledore scratched his chin.

"Arthur and Molly distinctly heard them using the Imobilus Taratella charm?"

We nodded.

"Indeed," Professor Dumbledore said. "They wouldn't lie either. I'll have to have a word with them. Why don't you head back to the common room and send Sam and Holly in?"

We nodded.

We left his office and began heading back to the common room.

When we entered the common room again, Arthur and Molly were sitting on the couch. We flopped down on the chairs across from them.

"Have Sam and Holly arrived back?" Lily asked.

"Yes," Molly said.

Sure enough, Sam and Holly appeared. Sam from the boys' dorm, Holly from the girls'.

"Everything okay?" Sam asked looking from one person to the next.

"Yeah," Remus said brightly. "Dumbledore's just questioning some students about James' crash. He requested that you two go to the office next."

"Oh," Sam said. "Okay."

He and Holly left.

We pretended that we didn't overhear them in the office.

"So what did Dumbledore say?" I asked casually.

"He reckons it was weird," Arthur said.

"I see," I said nodding and then glanced at Remus and Lily.

Lily pretended to be interested in what was in her bag and Remus leaned back against the chair and closed his eyes for a moment.

About a half hour later, Sam and Holly came back into the common room.

"So," Sam said his eyes narrowed. "You told Dumbledore that we used the Imobilus Taratella charm."

Molly and Arthur looked at each other.

"Why'd you tell?" Holly demanded.

"So you admit it," Remus snapped as he stood up. "You were using the charm."

Sam pulled out his wand and aimed it at Remus.

"You really are nosy," Sam said angrily.

Holly did the same.

Without hesitation, Lily, Arthur, Remus, Molly and I pulled out ours.

It was like a standoff.

"All I'm going to say is…back off," Sam snapped.

"Or else what?" Remus challenged.

"You don't want to know," Holly said narrowing her eyes.

Once again, they tucked their wands into their robes and headed off to the girls and boys dorm.

"Ooh," Molly said through gritted teeth. "They're starting to get under my skin!"

"You and me both," Arthur said.

"I say we stand clear of them," Remus said. "They're obviously unbalanced. If they did that to James, then anyone of us could be next."

We all nodded.

We headed to the last two classes before bed time. I remained in the common room for a bit. I looked out the window.

A full moon hung in a midnight sky. Remus would change.

But what I was nervous about is the fact that James isn't here to keep him in line.

I heard toenails clicking on the floor behind me. I was sitting on the couch staring into the fireplace. The fire crackled softly.

The next thing I knew, the gray wolf had jumped over the back of the couch and landed gracefully next to me on the cushion.

"Hey," I said softly.

The wolf stood beside me and tucked his hind legs underneath him. He laid down, stretching his front legs out and they dangled over the edge of the couch. He rested his head on my thigh.

"Oh Remus," I said quietly. "I just don't understand what's going on. I wish none of this was happening. First, Sirius is killed, and then James is badly injured. I beginning to think that I'm bad luck."

At that, the wolf raised his head and stared into my eyes with those beautiful haunting jaundice eyes.

His ears were perked upright.

He licked my hand slowly as if reassuring me.

I smiled.

After that, he returned his head to my thigh.

It was really quiet and I found myself beginning to doze off.

Suddenly, around midnight, I heard a noise coming from the boys' dorm. I snapped awake. The wolf's head was raised off my thigh and his ears were flattened sideways. I heard him growling.

"What is it?" I whispered.

The wolf continued to growl. I began getting worried as I reached into my robe and pulled out my wand.

"Whose there?" I called.

No reply.

I held my wand like sword. Suddenly, the wolfs growling seemed to turn onto me. I slowly turned around.

Remus was standing on all fours now on the couch. His ears were pinned flat sideways and his lip was pulled back exposing white canines and incisors.

He snarled.

"Remus?" I asked in a shaky voice. "Not again…please."

Remus momentarily licked his lips when he snarled. I lowered my wand.

"Remus?" I said in a pleading tone.

Just then, Remus leapt into the air, tucking his front legs against his chest and he pushed off the couch with his powerful hindquarters. I screamed as he landed on top of me.

I was knocked onto my back. I ended up hitting the back of my head on the table. I drifted in and out of consciousness.

The wolf was standing over me now. I moaned.

Then, Remus flicked out his nails. I screamed again as I felt the wolf dragging his front paws over my chest and arms.

LILY.

I heard screaming in the common room. Immediately, I threw off my covers. I glanced over at Carrie's bed. She wasn't in there.

"Oh God," I breathed.

I fled from the girls' dorm and ran into the common room.

Remus was standing over Carrie, dragging his front paws across her chest, shredding the uniform and robe.

Carrie was screaming in pain and sobbing.

"What on earth?" I heard Arthur's voice from the boys' dorm.

He appeared in the dorm entranceway and froze when he saw the gray wolf standing over Carrie.

"Carrie?" I heard Molly's voice next.

"Oh my…" Molly said beside me.

Arthur's face drained of all color. He looked like he was going to vomit any moment.

I pulled out my wand and aimed it at Remus.

"Sorry pal," I whispered. "Stupefy!"

The wolf was hit directly with the spell…but Carrie had fallen silent now.

Fear that she was dead filled my chest. I shoved my wand into my robe and rushed over to her.

I dropped to my knees beside her.

Her robe and uniform were shredded and bloody. Her eyes were opened and her head turned to the left. A thin trickle of blood flowed from the corner of her mouth.

"Please…don't do this," I pleaded as tears began forming in my eyes.

I took a deep breath and put two fingers against the side of her neck.

I didn't feel a pulse.

"Oh God…no," I said as tears began streaming down my cheeks.

"Carrie," Molly said as she began sobbing.

Arthur fell to his knees in the entranceway and swallowed. He was even paler than before.

He turned his face away and he ended up vomiting.

Molly was crying hysterically in the chair.

"What…oh man," Sam's voice said behind Arthur.

"Go get Dumbledore,"

Those were the only three words I could choke out.

Sam flew out of the common room.

Arthur was in shock.

Professor Dumbledore arrived with Professor McGonagall shortly.

Professor Dumbledore told Sam to alert Madam Elkin that we were bringing Carrie in.

As soon as Sam left, Dumbledore unfroze the wolf and Remus changed back into a human.

"OH GOD NO!" Remus howled when he saw Carrie.

He began punching the wall. He looked pale and immensely guilt ridden and grief stricken.

"We'll take her to the hospital wing. Then you can tell us what happened," Professor Dumbledore said quietly.

He magicked Carrie's body onto a stretcher and the four of us followed him to the hospital wing.

Once in the hospital wing, Carrie was gently placed onto a cot. Her head rested on a pillow.

Some of her blood began staining the sheets already.

James had woken up.

"CARRIE, NO!" James yelled.

I saw him angrily punch the mattress that was under him. Tears began streaming down his cheeks.

I sat down in a chair beside the cot where Carrie was lying. Arthur and Molly were standing at the foot of it.

James was sobbing. Molly went over to him to comfort him.

Remus looked beyond words.

"What happened?" Professor Dumbledore asked him.

"All I remember was curling up beside her on the couch," Remus said so quietly, that Dumbledore had to lean close to hear him. "Then, it was like I had no self control."

James had his face pressed into Molly's shoulder. He was in bad shape.

I was in shock too. Arthur dropped onto an empty cot and just stared at the floor.

Remus' expression changed. He went over to the wall and punched it.

This ended up causing his knuckles to bleed, but he didn't care. He kept punching it until the skin was raw and bleeding.

"Remus stop!" I cried snapping out of it.

I got up and went to put my hands on his shoulders but he angrily shoved me off.

"Remus, this wasn't your fault," Molly said in a shaky voice.

She had tears in her eyes also.

"Remus, please," I begged him, but each time I went to touch him, he angrily moved away.

"Someone is deliberately doing this!" he said with so much venom, I was actually a bit scared of him now. "This is the second time this happened when I changed! I could've hurt her before and now I end up killing her!"

Remus turned to me.

"Why didn't you act sooner?" he spat.

I felt a lump rising in my throat.

"She stunned you," Molly said as the tears streamed down her cheeks.

"Why didn't you do it sooner?" Remus said as he grabbed my shoulders.

There was anger in his eyes…close to rage. I felt the tears filling my eyes and they began streaming hotly down my cheeks.

"I was momentarily stunned!" I said bursting into tears. "I couldn't believe what was happening! It's my fault!"

"No," Dumbledore said firmly. "It's no ones fault."

Remus let go of my shoulders and angrily spun away, pacing.

"Carrie probably saw it coming," Remus said angrily more to himself than anyone. "I bet she had a vision."

That only made me feel even worse.

"Professor Dumbledore," Arthur said quietly, speaking at last. "I think its time to tell them the truth."