Chapter Eight: Remus's Secret
The next few days passed without incident. The Marauders still wouldn't allow Ermengarde out of their sight for too long, even when she was with Lily and the others. Remus was looking paler by the day and was coughing more. James, Sirius, and Peter had taken to grinning at Remus more often and putting emphasis on the "Moon" syllable of the word "Moony". Ermengarde pretended not to know what that meant.
It was quite late on the last night of the full-moon phase when Ermengarde went into the common room, having accidentally left her schoolbag behind. She lit her wand and walked cautiously as the boys had advised her to do after she had been attacked. It was a good thing she took their advice, too, because sure enough, as soon as she reached the chair where she had left her bag, the portrait hole suddenly opened.
"Psst!" said a whisper.
Ermengarde wheeled around, wand at the ready. Whoever it was began to speak softly and shush someone.
"Who's there?" she hissed, squinting in the darkness.
No one came or went, yet the portrait hole closed behind whatever had opened it. Ermengarde, her curiosity overruling her common sense, flew out into the corridor and down towards the Entrance Hall. The whispering did not come again, but she kept wandering nonetheless. She knew it was stupid, that it was exactly what the boys did not want her to do, that it was exactly what could get her attacked all over again, but she kept on creeping, following her instincts all the way out of the castle, onto the grounds. She hadn't gone very far when she heard another faint whisper.
"Ermengarde?" said the low voice.
She shone her lit wand around and saw, to her amazement, Remus's face peering out of a bush.
"Er – Remus? What are you doing in a bush?" she asked.
"I haven't got any clothes on," he said in a manner so slurred that Ermengarde almost didn't understand him.
"Why haven't you?" asked the shocked Ermengarde.
"I'd explain," he said. "But I'm in a rather...bad situation...could you lend me your robe, please?"
Ermengarde quickly obliged and tossed her white robe over the bush. Remus quickly wrapped himself in it and came out, tying the sash. It was a very funny thing to see Remus, his face glowing so brightly red that it was almost as dazzling as the light coming from Ermengarde's wand, wearing a girl's lacy white bathrobe.
"Are you okay?" asked Ermengarde, trying hard not to smile.
"Fine," said Remus.
"Are you planning on explaining, or—" she said, but Remus interrupted.
"It's nothing," he said.
"Nothing...except that you're a werewolf?" said Ermengarde gently.
Remus stared at her fearfully, as though afraid that this information would prevent her from being his friend anymore. She quite understood why he would think that: werewolves were not exactly cute and cuddly and were feared by wizards everywhere.
"Don't worry," she continued. "I haven't got a problem with it. It's only a bit of who you are, and it's not even something you can control. I like the rest of you very much, and that's what matters."
When Remus did not respond, Ermengarde gave him a reassuring smile.
"Let's...let's go to the common room," said Remus lamely.
They walked quickly, silently, and carefully, trying hard not to get caught. Once they reached the common room and had closed the portrait hole, Remus turned angrily around and faced the other three Marauders, who were regarding him with faces mixed with guilt and amusement.
"What were you playing at, leaving me out there totally naked?" said Remus hoarsely, fighting not to raise a racket.
"Well, Moony, we...um..." James started, but he trailed off and just grinned broadly.
"Sorry," said Sirius. "It was just...too good an opportunity to pass up."
"I'm never speaking to any of you again," said Remus. "Never. So you can forget next month altogether, right?"
"Oh come on, Moony...admit it, if it had been one of us, you'd have left us out there, too..." said Sirius.
"Should we really be talking about this in front of...well..." Peter began, indicating Ermengarde.
"Oh, it's all right," she said. "I already know."
"Yeah, she does," said Remus. "She's clever, this one...anyway, you should know that I'm completely furious with all of you and will hate you forever. Good night."
Remus turned on his heel to storm off up the staircase to the boys' dormitories, but James and Sirius caught him.
"Look, mate," said James. "We're sorry, okay? We thought it would be funny. It obviously wasn't...but stop being so touchy and enjoy the moment, okay?"
"Do you realize what could have happened if someone other than Ermengarde had found me?" said Remus, his voice shaking. "What if Snape had found me?"
"Didn't think about that," said Sirius, frowning.
"No, really?" said Remus sarcastically. "Look...I know you just meant it as a joke, and I'm all for jokes...but not ones that could get all of us into trouble, okay? Next time you want to play a joke on me, just pick something a bit less stupid next time."
"We really are sorry," said James.
"Yes, we are!" piped up Peter.
"Come on, Remus...it's Padfoot and Prongs. What did you expect?" said Ermengarde, and even Remus smiled a bit.
"All right," said Remus heavily.
"This thing, though," said James, plucking the robe. "It's a good look for you, Moony, it really is."
"Shut up," said Remus, but he was still smiling slightly.
"So you know, then, do you?" said Sirius to Ermengarde, who nodded. "All right, then. It's better you know than anyone else."
"I suppose it is," said Ermengarde in agreement. "I wouldn't tell anyone ever."
"That's right," said James. "We can trust her, can't we?"
"So, then, I suppose you may have also worked out our nicknames?" asked Sirius.
"Er, no," said Ermengarde in a bit of embarrassment.
The other boys raised their eyebrows at Sirius, who looked sheepish at having admitted that their nicknames really meant something.
"Oh," he said. "Oops."
"We may as well tell her that, too," said James.
"Oh, go on," said Remus.
"Well," Sirius began. "You know what 'Moony' means, obviously. Full moon, werewolf, whatnot...Padfoot is for me, of course, because...because I can turn into a dog."
"You're an Animagus?" asked Ermengarde in astonishment.
"Yes," said Sirius. "We all are. Well, not Moony, but he doesn't need to be, does he? James turns into a stag, so he's Prongs...and Wormtail is Peter."
"What sort of animal is he?" asked Ermengarde.
"A rat," said Peter.
Now that she looked, Ermengarde could see where the features of a rat lingered around Peter's face and mannerisms, right down to his nervous tic of twitching his nose.
"Well," she said. "As long as we're sharing secrets, I must confess one of my own."
The boys looked around at each other, then at her and leaned in expectantly. With a small half-smile, Ermengarde suddenly transformed herself into a beautiful snowy owl. The boys all gasped, then Sirius gave a hearty, barking laugh, Remus's eyes bugged out, James looked positively thrilled, and Peter just looked a bit terrified. Ermengarde changed herself back with a wide grin on her face.
"How – when – what?" stuttered Remus.
"My whole life," said Ermengarde. "I've always been able to. No one knows why, exactly...but I can. It's caused a bit of confusion, I can tell you that...I look exactly like...well, just like my friend's owl back at my old school."
She meant, of course, Harry Potter's owl, Hedwig. More than once, Harry had mistaken Ermengarde for Hedwig when she had visited the Owlery, and however much she had pecked him, annoyed, he had still sent letters with her. Naturally, after he had left the Owlery, she had returned, transformed back into a girl, and sent Hedwig along with the letter, but all the same, it had been a bit irritating.
"That's amazing," said Remus. "You've always been an Animagus?"
"As long as I can remember," said Ermengarde. "I seem to have a strange knack for Transfiguration, though, so maybe that's got something to do with it."
"A knack!" said Sirius. "I'll say!"
"Quick conference, boys," said James, motioning to the other Marauders.
The boys stood in a huddle as though at a Quidditch game discussing strategies. The sight amused Ermengarde. They broke apart, all grinning broadly.
"Here's the thing, Swi," said Sirius. "We've said before what a shame it is that none of us are animals who can fly, you know...act as sort of scouts on our outings, letting us know if danger's ahead...fancy coming along next full moon?"
Ermengarde considered this for a second, but then thought, What's there to consider? She nodded fervently, excited about the offer of adventure.
"That's settled, then!" said James. "Welcome, Ermengarde Switoviak, to the Marauders!"
The next few days passed without incident. The Marauders still wouldn't allow Ermengarde out of their sight for too long, even when she was with Lily and the others. Remus was looking paler by the day and was coughing more. James, Sirius, and Peter had taken to grinning at Remus more often and putting emphasis on the "Moon" syllable of the word "Moony". Ermengarde pretended not to know what that meant.
It was quite late on the last night of the full-moon phase when Ermengarde went into the common room, having accidentally left her schoolbag behind. She lit her wand and walked cautiously as the boys had advised her to do after she had been attacked. It was a good thing she took their advice, too, because sure enough, as soon as she reached the chair where she had left her bag, the portrait hole suddenly opened.
"Psst!" said a whisper.
Ermengarde wheeled around, wand at the ready. Whoever it was began to speak softly and shush someone.
"Who's there?" she hissed, squinting in the darkness.
No one came or went, yet the portrait hole closed behind whatever had opened it. Ermengarde, her curiosity overruling her common sense, flew out into the corridor and down towards the Entrance Hall. The whispering did not come again, but she kept wandering nonetheless. She knew it was stupid, that it was exactly what the boys did not want her to do, that it was exactly what could get her attacked all over again, but she kept on creeping, following her instincts all the way out of the castle, onto the grounds. She hadn't gone very far when she heard another faint whisper.
"Ermengarde?" said the low voice.
She shone her lit wand around and saw, to her amazement, Remus's face peering out of a bush.
"Er – Remus? What are you doing in a bush?" she asked.
"I haven't got any clothes on," he said in a manner so slurred that Ermengarde almost didn't understand him.
"Why haven't you?" asked the shocked Ermengarde.
"I'd explain," he said. "But I'm in a rather...bad situation...could you lend me your robe, please?"
Ermengarde quickly obliged and tossed her white robe over the bush. Remus quickly wrapped himself in it and came out, tying the sash. It was a very funny thing to see Remus, his face glowing so brightly red that it was almost as dazzling as the light coming from Ermengarde's wand, wearing a girl's lacy white bathrobe.
"Are you okay?" asked Ermengarde, trying hard not to smile.
"Fine," said Remus.
"Are you planning on explaining, or—" she said, but Remus interrupted.
"It's nothing," he said.
"Nothing...except that you're a werewolf?" said Ermengarde gently.
Remus stared at her fearfully, as though afraid that this information would prevent her from being his friend anymore. She quite understood why he would think that: werewolves were not exactly cute and cuddly and were feared by wizards everywhere.
"Don't worry," she continued. "I haven't got a problem with it. It's only a bit of who you are, and it's not even something you can control. I like the rest of you very much, and that's what matters."
When Remus did not respond, Ermengarde gave him a reassuring smile.
"Let's...let's go to the common room," said Remus lamely.
They walked quickly, silently, and carefully, trying hard not to get caught. Once they reached the common room and had closed the portrait hole, Remus turned angrily around and faced the other three Marauders, who were regarding him with faces mixed with guilt and amusement.
"What were you playing at, leaving me out there totally naked?" said Remus hoarsely, fighting not to raise a racket.
"Well, Moony, we...um..." James started, but he trailed off and just grinned broadly.
"Sorry," said Sirius. "It was just...too good an opportunity to pass up."
"I'm never speaking to any of you again," said Remus. "Never. So you can forget next month altogether, right?"
"Oh come on, Moony...admit it, if it had been one of us, you'd have left us out there, too..." said Sirius.
"Should we really be talking about this in front of...well..." Peter began, indicating Ermengarde.
"Oh, it's all right," she said. "I already know."
"Yeah, she does," said Remus. "She's clever, this one...anyway, you should know that I'm completely furious with all of you and will hate you forever. Good night."
Remus turned on his heel to storm off up the staircase to the boys' dormitories, but James and Sirius caught him.
"Look, mate," said James. "We're sorry, okay? We thought it would be funny. It obviously wasn't...but stop being so touchy and enjoy the moment, okay?"
"Do you realize what could have happened if someone other than Ermengarde had found me?" said Remus, his voice shaking. "What if Snape had found me?"
"Didn't think about that," said Sirius, frowning.
"No, really?" said Remus sarcastically. "Look...I know you just meant it as a joke, and I'm all for jokes...but not ones that could get all of us into trouble, okay? Next time you want to play a joke on me, just pick something a bit less stupid next time."
"We really are sorry," said James.
"Yes, we are!" piped up Peter.
"Come on, Remus...it's Padfoot and Prongs. What did you expect?" said Ermengarde, and even Remus smiled a bit.
"All right," said Remus heavily.
"This thing, though," said James, plucking the robe. "It's a good look for you, Moony, it really is."
"Shut up," said Remus, but he was still smiling slightly.
"So you know, then, do you?" said Sirius to Ermengarde, who nodded. "All right, then. It's better you know than anyone else."
"I suppose it is," said Ermengarde in agreement. "I wouldn't tell anyone ever."
"That's right," said James. "We can trust her, can't we?"
"So, then, I suppose you may have also worked out our nicknames?" asked Sirius.
"Er, no," said Ermengarde in a bit of embarrassment.
The other boys raised their eyebrows at Sirius, who looked sheepish at having admitted that their nicknames really meant something.
"Oh," he said. "Oops."
"We may as well tell her that, too," said James.
"Oh, go on," said Remus.
"Well," Sirius began. "You know what 'Moony' means, obviously. Full moon, werewolf, whatnot...Padfoot is for me, of course, because...because I can turn into a dog."
"You're an Animagus?" asked Ermengarde in astonishment.
"Yes," said Sirius. "We all are. Well, not Moony, but he doesn't need to be, does he? James turns into a stag, so he's Prongs...and Wormtail is Peter."
"What sort of animal is he?" asked Ermengarde.
"A rat," said Peter.
Now that she looked, Ermengarde could see where the features of a rat lingered around Peter's face and mannerisms, right down to his nervous tic of twitching his nose.
"Well," she said. "As long as we're sharing secrets, I must confess one of my own."
The boys looked around at each other, then at her and leaned in expectantly. With a small half-smile, Ermengarde suddenly transformed herself into a beautiful snowy owl. The boys all gasped, then Sirius gave a hearty, barking laugh, Remus's eyes bugged out, James looked positively thrilled, and Peter just looked a bit terrified. Ermengarde changed herself back with a wide grin on her face.
"How – when – what?" stuttered Remus.
"My whole life," said Ermengarde. "I've always been able to. No one knows why, exactly...but I can. It's caused a bit of confusion, I can tell you that...I look exactly like...well, just like my friend's owl back at my old school."
She meant, of course, Harry Potter's owl, Hedwig. More than once, Harry had mistaken Ermengarde for Hedwig when she had visited the Owlery, and however much she had pecked him, annoyed, he had still sent letters with her. Naturally, after he had left the Owlery, she had returned, transformed back into a girl, and sent Hedwig along with the letter, but all the same, it had been a bit irritating.
"That's amazing," said Remus. "You've always been an Animagus?"
"As long as I can remember," said Ermengarde. "I seem to have a strange knack for Transfiguration, though, so maybe that's got something to do with it."
"A knack!" said Sirius. "I'll say!"
"Quick conference, boys," said James, motioning to the other Marauders.
The boys stood in a huddle as though at a Quidditch game discussing strategies. The sight amused Ermengarde. They broke apart, all grinning broadly.
"Here's the thing, Swi," said Sirius. "We've said before what a shame it is that none of us are animals who can fly, you know...act as sort of scouts on our outings, letting us know if danger's ahead...fancy coming along next full moon?"
Ermengarde considered this for a second, but then thought, What's there to consider? She nodded fervently, excited about the offer of adventure.
"That's settled, then!" said James. "Welcome, Ermengarde Switoviak, to the Marauders!"