Khanele - I'm glad the fic suits you! Characterization is done really well? Why thank you very much. I'll be posting more in a bit so don't worry .!

Celebrean - Yup, Sirius is always looking out for his friends.

Misthea - You really like the Quidditch Match .! After reading it a few times I thought it was kinda corny... but that might just be me.

Author's Note: Thanks for everyone who's reading. I try to comment back... without sounding to repetitive. Please keep reading and reviewing! I'll be ever so greatful! Harry Potter belongs to JK Rowling, btw.

Chapter Twelve: More Werewolves?

"B—But!" Peter pleaded, stumbling off of his bed and crawling on all fours towards James.

"All right, Peter?" he asked, curiously, sitting up. "We're just going to look. It's not like we're not going to do anything reckless. Right, Sirius?"

James shot a glance at Sirius when he said this and Sirius agreed simultaneously. Despite their efforts, Peter's expression didn't change as much as they thought it would; his face was still up in concern and fear. They were extremely disappointed by this and wondered what Peter was concerned about this time.

"What seems to be the problem, mate?"

"Tonight's a full moon!" Peter whimpered, chewing lightly on his right index finger.

"You're lucky it's not a red moon." Sirius retorted, crossly.

"B—But! Werewolves!" gasped Peter, shivering continuously.

James and Sirius glanced at each other in wonder. They remembered reading about werewolves in the book, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander, and they distinctly remembered that werewolves actively seek people as their prey. The young ones seemed to be a werewolf's favorite dish. Just remembering it made James shudder with much excitement. He then smiled and looked lightly at Peter.

"I don't think Dumbledore will allow a werewolf to come into Hogwart's grounds. I mean he is the great Albus Dumbledore!" James laughed aloud, patting Peter on the shoulder.

"You won't be saying that if you happen to get bitten, mate." Said Sirius in a cocky fashion, joking around seemed to be the only thing they could do to lighten up the moment.

James shrugged; the only thing they needed now was a map! Remus was the kind of person to know where they could get a map of Hogwarts at this time of night, but then again, there wasn't exactly a complete map of Hogwarts known in all of the Wizarding World.

The three of them already knew their way to the Whomping Willow and they already knew what their objective was: investigate the Willow and take with them the hidden secrets of the tree. The three of them decided it would be best to keep their wands with them at all times during their short journey for evil maybe lurking about on the grounds at night. James also brought along his trusty invisibility cloak in which he was able to hide all three of them underneath its protective magic.

It was already getting close to midnight, and they all knew that moon would be high in the sky while they walked toward the Whomping Willow. If they did see a werewolf, the lot of them would be killed without realizing it.

As they walked down to the common room they were startled to see Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore seated in the comfy red chairs by the fire. Oddly enough, Dumbledore was able to catch sight of them even if they were hiding underneath the cloak. The old man stared at them from behind his spectacles for a few seconds then gave then a warm smile. Did Dumbledore really have the ability to see them, or could he just sense they were there? Not only was that bothering them, but Dumbledore seemed to be occupying McGonagall for them! Why, in all the Wizarding World, would Professor Dumbledore do something like that for them? They're breaking rules!

"Albus, is there something the matter?" Professor McGonagall asked looking at his expression with the deepest concern.

"Oh no, it's nothing Minerva." Said Dumbledore calmly, "Did I ever tell you about the Erumpent I met a few decades ago?"

Professor McGonagall's back was faced towards both the door and the three boys whom were disregarding the rules. The only one who had a clear view of the three was Headmaster Albus Dumbledore who appeared to be buying time for them to head out of the common room.

James, Sirius, and Peter looked in a confused manor at Professor Dumbledore for a while then moved on toward the door. No matter if Dumbledore could see them or not, they were already there and they definitely weren't going to turn back.

James slowly creaked the door open, large enough for the three of them to fit through and not too wide. The fat lady who was asleep sitting in a chair stirred slightly, but didn't look up to see who was opening the door. By the time they closed the door, they swore they heard Professor McGonagall stand up from her seat.

The four of them quietly walked through the drafty stone corridors toward the grounds. Upon their first step out of the castle, a rush of white, and biting coldness surrounded them; inevitably making them huddle closer together. There ahead of them was nothing but pure whiteness and splendor. James was quick to notice that the snow they were trudging through was leveled above their ankles, and they occasionally stopped to shiver as the wet snow seeped into their shoes, drenching their warm socks.

"Y—yeh pi—picked a fine n—night to go—ah—investigating, James!" Sirius grumbled, shivering and nearly stumbling over a hidden tree root.

"Sa—Save it." James retorted, pulling the cloak off them. The willow was not far away now; it appeared to be no less than twenty meters from where they stood.

Peter was quick to grab the cloak and huddle it against his round body. James frowned; Peter had wrapped his body with the cloak causing it to grow invisible leaving his head suspended in midair. Sirius found it rather humorous for a second, but the cold easily blew away all the fun.

"Do—Do you think the Willow's frozen, too?" asked Peter, hopeful.

"Probably. But I wouldn't keep your hopes up." Said James casually.

"It's well passed one o'clock by now, shouldn't we head back, mate?" informed Sirius, "You can't even see the moon anymore!"

"Y—yeah, the wind is getting too strong, James!" Peter whimpered as a rush of freezing cold air passed them. "We might get caught in a blizzard or even worse! Werewolves!"

"Would you stop the werewolf thing?!" Sirius stammered glaring harshly at Peter, "It's bad enough that we have to worry about the cold, but with you talking about the end of our lives; I feel like were already dead!"

James frowned harshly at the both of them. They were so close to the Whomping Willow, there was no way he was going to turn back now!

"If we hurry we might be able to sneak a peak, before the blizzard!" he shouted, trying to be heard over the howling wind. "If we can't see the moon, neither can a werewolf! No moon, no werewolf!"

Sirius shrugged hopelessly; as much as James wanted to have the charm and good looks of Black, Sirius seemed to long for James' great courage and determination. Once James Potter had made up his mind that was it, and even if he died everyone would know that he pushed himself beyond his limit. He would still be announced a great hero.

Just then Peter gasped, pointed one of his small fingers at the direction of the Whomping Willow, and squealed, "Look!" James took no time in asking questions; he hastily looked at where Peter had pointed. What he saw stunned him, his mouth hung open for a second; there in front of the frozen Willow laid a boy, face down in the snow. The child's short hair distinguished him to be a young boy about their age, but they were much too far away to really see to whom this kid was.

The three struggled toward the boy, trying their best to ignore the numbness of their nose, fingers, and toes. James, being as athletic as he was, was the first person to reach the Willow. Sirius arrived not long afterwards. Peter kept stumbling in the snow and it took a fairly long time for him to arrive. Upon his arrival, James and Sirius were already gathered around the boy, pulling him out of the snow. They then flipped the boy over and rested his head on James' lap. There was snow all over the boy's face, hair, and clothes, and they quickly brushed as much as they could off of him.

"Hold on…" Sirius murmured, staring at the boy, his hands trembling. "D—doesn't he look familiar…?"

James and Peter looked carefully at the boy and were shocked to see who it was.

"This is—"

"REMUS!" squeaked Peter, shocked.

Sirius yanked the invisibility cloak from Peter and wrapped it around Remus. Peter, who had been comfortable with the cloak, shivered more than any of them.

"I don't want to hear any complaining!" shouted Sirius, glowering at Peter.

"Hey, mate, yeh should calm down a tad bit." Said James lifting Remus onto his back. "I really think we should get him to the infirmary."

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Madam Pomfrey didn't give the three the kind of welcome they had expected. They thought she would take Remus into her good care, lay him on a comfy bed by the moonlight, and then give him some good medicine to help him sleep soundly. Instead, Madam Pomfrey, oddly enough, became utterly surprised, scared, and stunned to see Remus in her presence.

"Lupin?!" she screamed at the top of her lungs, looking at the three boys, and Remus on James' back. "What in the world are you three trying to do!?"

"He was face down in the snow!" yelled James, trying to calm her down.

"He looked like he was about to die!" cried Peter.

Madam Pomfrey groaned loudly. She then spun around, frantically looking around the room.

"The windows!" She screamed, rushing toward all of the open windows and hastily pulling the curtains close.

"What are you—?" Sirius began, but was cut off by the sudden darkness that surrounded them.

James, Sirius, and Peter looked curiously around the pitch-black infirmary room; they could no longer see even their hands in front of their own faces.

"Lumos!" said James causing the room to be filled with light.

"NO!" Madam Pomfrey cried rushing towards James. "Extinguish that light right now!"

"O—okay." James jerked backwards and immediately said the counter spell, " N—nox!"

The room was once again enveloped with darkness; the three boys were utterly shaken and tense for words. The only thing they could hear was the sound of their heavy breathing and the rustling of Madam Pomfrey moving around the room hastily.

"Quickly, put him down on this bed." She told them as she lit a small candle.

The bed was positioned in the furthest corner of the room, and it was surrounded with curtains. James, with the help of Sirius, let Remus off of his back and onto the soft bed. It was the furthest bed away from the windows, and it puzzled them as to why Madam Pomfrey wanted them away all of it.

She then hastily pulled out a long needle from her front pocket. At first, James thought it was some sort of dagger, but quickly realized it was just an injection. Madam Pomfrey then took Remus' left arm, felt around for the right spot then injected some sort of silvery substance into his body.

"W—what's that?" Peter whimpered looking horrified at the size of the needle.

"Oh, this? Why, this is a tranquilize—"

"Poppy, it's not very nice to joke with the students!" said a voice that was unmistakably Professor McGonagall's. "That injection is just a medicine that will allow Mr. Lupin to feel better. He should be all right in the morning, though, I can't say the same about you three. You'll have to explain exactly why you're out of bed at this time!"

The three boys gulped. James, huddle his invisibility cloak close to him as he looked at their Professor. They really didn't have a good reason to tell her and they stood silently like three helpless animals awaiting their fate. Awaiting their punishment…

"DETENTION! The lot of you! Tomorrow, first thing in the morning, got that?!" she yelled aloud, causing Remus to stir slightly.

"Professor, where's your holiday spirit?" James pleaded, his face shifting into the saddest, loneliest face one had ever seen. "It's Christmas, and we just want to make sure Remus will be all right in the morning. Would you please, just this once, let us off?"

Professor McGonagall sighed, "Fine, but this is the last and only time I'm going to let you three off."

"Thanks, Professor." Said Sirius, faking a smile.

"Merry Christmas!" squealed Peter cheerfully.

The three of them, secretly, grinned at each other and walked out of the infirmary toward the Gryffindor common room.

They were able to worm their way out of detention this time, but even if they did, there were so many questions James wanted to ask. He had a really big feeling that the teachers, Dumbledore, and Remus were hiding something from everyone else. If they are hiding something from us, James thought to himself as they walked into the common room, no matter what it is; I'm going to find it out.

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Professor McGonagall's prediction was very wrong. It actually took three weeks for Remus to recover completely so he didn't have a chance to join them for neither Christmas nor New Year's Day. Of course, James, Sirius, and Peter would frequently visit him once every day and tell him about what homework him had missed and other things.

By the time he was released from the infirmary it was already the second week of January, and he was slightly behind in his classes, especially Potions. Fortunately for him, though, he had friends like James and Sirius who kept him in check with his homework when needed.

"Would you put that book down just this once, mate? It's a weekend, enough reading!" Sirius groaned at Remus, relaxing his hands behind his head as they walked toward their usual spot under the oak tree. "We've been meaning to ask you exactly why you were near the Whomping Willow."

Remus quickly closed his book and sighed. "I told you, I got lost in the snow and accidentally got hit by one of the Willow's frantic branches."

Both James and Sirius frowned, the thoughts, "I don't buy it," and, "He's hiding something," ran through their brains. Peter, apparently, didn't have any problem with Remus' explanation, and Remus seemed rather grateful to Peter for doing so.

"HEY!" yelled out a familiar sweet voice from not too far away. The voice came from Raven Crescent; the girl really looked up to Sirius, James, and Remus, and she did her best to contribute information to the group. She seemed like a very good and helpful friend.

"What's up Ravie? Any interesting news?" Asked James excitedly.

"Sort of, it's about that spooky ol' house down in Hogsmaede. I've been hearing a lot of odd rumors about it lately." She said, the tone of interest in her voice.

"Rumors? Well even the ghosts avoid the place! I'm not surprised," smirked Sirius, combing his hair with his hand.

James rumpled the back of his messy hair and motioned Raven to continue.

"Well, for the passed four months, people have been saying that they're something moving around in that house," she explained to them, "there have been reports in the Daily Prophet that there's been a lot screams, shrieks, and howls coming from it lately."

"That is odd." Peter admitted, frowning.

"What's odd about it is that it only happens once a month! A lot of people are beginning to think it's some sort of vengeful spirit." Raven continued.

"Once a month? Don't tell me; under a full moon?" implied James.

"How'd you know? Anyways, folks and even the Prophet are beginning to refer to it as the Shrieking Shack, so to speak. Huh? You feeling okay Lupin?"

Remus appeared to have gone quite pale, his light brown hair partly covering his face. His hands seemed to be trembling and he hid them behind his back to avoid further questions.

"Me? I'm fine." He replied calmly, color returning to his white cheeks. "It must be the weather…"

"Well, all right," sighed Raven scratching her head, "anyways I need you to check over my notes for Defense Against the Dark Arts class. You don't mind, do you?"

"No, no. It's all right. What's the topic?"

"Werewolves." She smiled cheerfully, "It's the essay I chose to do for extra credit. It's interesting, don't you think?"

"Quite." Remus murmured looking at her with interest. "I'll go ahead an look over it. Though I think I've had my fill of wolves."

Raven giggled slightly, pulled out a small stack of papers and handed it to him. She then stood up, said good-bye, then walked away rather satisfied with herself. James snickered and nudged Remus lightly.

"Wha—?"

"She likes you!" laughed James patting Remus on the head.

"She doesn't." Remus replied casually, skimming through the pages of Raven's report, "Even if she did, I'd probably turn her down."

James' jaw dropped open and it stayed there for a few seconds.

"W—why would you do that?!"

"I can't fall in love." Said Remus again, his expression serious, he seemed to have no interest in the topic. This caught Sirius' attention and he eyed Remus strangely.

"Can't fall in—? You're crazy! Everyone falls in love at one point in your life, right Sirius?" James exclaimed, his face going pale.

"Speak for yourself." Sirius shrugged, rubbing his forehead in aggravation. "It's his decision. Remus isn't as girl-crazy as you are, mate. Face the facts."

James frowned and gripped his hand firmly on Remus' shoulder. Remus on the other hand, seemed as though he wasn't enjoying a lecture on "how to fall in love" nor "why you should fall in love." Peter was sort of enjoying the chat, but then again, he enjoyed whatever James had to say even if it was something incredibly stupid.

"A world without love is—"

"I get your point, James." Remus frowned, and slowly pushed James' hand off his shoulder. "But I have this—uh—physical—uh—problem."

"You have what?!" shouted the three in unison.

"I—I was just kidding!" exclaimed Remus; obviously sorry he had even spoken of the topic.

James, Sirius, and Peter sighed in relief.

"You scared us…!" Peter cried out.

"Don't—Ever—Do—That—Again." Sirius panted.

"Yeah, but do tell us if you really do have some sort of problem with yeh, mate. No matter what it is, we'll be right here for you!" James smiled putting his arm around their light brown haired friend.

"No matter what it is…" Remus murmured, his face suddenly looking sullen and sad. James couldn't help, but feel worried. There was definitely something Remus was refusing to say to them, and it was something important…

"You sure you're all right?" Sirius asked staring at him.

"I think so." He replied looking up at them; their faces as he looked at them were solemn and worried, they were indeed really worried about him. He smiled gently at his friends and nodded, "Yeah, I'm all right."

:: Dun Dun Dun ::

Next Chapter: The Passage

I had to do quite a bit of research for this chapter because of some of the spells and stuff... If there's something wrong please point it out to me! Thanks very much! !