Title: Full Moon Rising

Author: daemonwolf

Rating: PG-13 (for now, may change)

Disclaimer: I own nothing but the plotline. JK Rowling is the one who thoughtfully provided the characters and timeline for me to play with.

Distribution: ask, and ye shall receive

Summary: Another one of those pesky 'what if?' stories. But, forgoing the 'what if' part of the summary, allow me to tell you a secret. (glances around furtively) pssst! Harry's a werewolf!

Notes: Funny thing happened one day... I was schlepping about ff.net and found a were-wolf story that, surprisingly, was not Lupin-centric. So I thought to myself: are there anymore like this one? Or is it (gasp) one of a kind? (a very rare breed at ff.net, I know) With that question in mind, I searched. And I searched, and I came up with... nada. So it was with head hung low that I signed off the 'net, but then a thought occurred to me. Why don't I just write one of my own? Hardly surprising, yes... but what is surprising is that for this, unlike my ahem OTHER fics, most of which never made it off paper, this one has an actual plotline, outline, sequal, and spin-off stories that are already in the works! So it is with great pleasure that I introduce to you a side of Harry Potter that I can confidently say has ne'er been seen before—a hairier, scarier side that only comes out with the full moon. Ladies and germs, guys and dolls, may I present:

Full Moon Rising

Chapter One: Marriage Vows

"Do you, James Potter take Lily-Rose Evans to be your lawfully wedded wife? To have and to hold, through sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"And do you, Lily-Rose Evans take James Potter to be your lawfully wedded husband? To have and to hold, through sickness and in health, as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"Then, by the power vested in me by the Church of England and our Lord Above, I pronounce you man and wife. You may kiss the bride."

James Potter laughed as he swung his new bride over the threshold of their home in Godric's Hollow.

"Welcome home, love," he said, grinning foolishly as he captured Lily Ev—no—Potter's lips in a searing kiss.

"Thank you, husband," Lily returned as soon as she could get her breath back. Eyeing their home, she shivered suddenly in James' arms.

"Cold?" James asked as he set her on the ground, his eyes immediately becoming concerned.

Lily shook her head and chuckled to herself at her sudden reaction to the change in her life that had taken place at eleven a.m. earlier that day. "Prongs, darling, guess what?" she asked, green eyes glowing with mischief.

"What?" James asked, bemused.

"We're married, darling," Lily whispered, standing on tip-toe to reach her husband's ear.

James chuckled, and hung his head in mock-disappointment. "And here I was thinking you were going to tell me you were pregnant. Damn."

Lily smacked his shoulder lightly as she passed him to hang up the coat that had been protecting her wedding dress from the elements. "If you're that disappointed, love, you know we can always try again..." she let the rest of the sentence hang as she turned around and waggled an eyebrow suggestively.

All speech deserted James as he stared at his bride for a long moment. She had opted to don a traditional, non-magical wedding dress in an acknowledgement to her muggle heritage. James thought the dress made her look even more beautiful than a magical one would have. The wedding dresses featured in Witch Weekly always came with certain charms that would shape the body of the wearer into a slimmer, prettier form. There were also charms mimicking the voices of songbirds, the glow of sunbeams across the wearer's face, and (for a nominal fee) there was a specific charm that, when properly cast would produce a curtain of rose petals constantly falling over the bride in lieu of actual flower girls. (Who, the periodical suggested, were rather pesky creatures that one would rather not deal with on one's wedding day, especially if said flower children were the products of a particularly nasty pair of relatives.)

But his Lily would have none of that. Compared to the aforementioned extravagances, her dress was simplistic in its design, but it was that simplicity which made the dress beautiful. The bodice of Lily's dress was pure white with no decoration, excepting that it fit her form perfectly, leaving very little to the imagination. Two long sleeves hooked onto the bodice, leaving her shoulders bare. The sleeves were also pure white, tapering at the ends to form a point at the base of her knuckles. The skirt of the dress, however, was what had surprised James when he saw it for the first time as she walked down the aisle. Instead of the pure white of the bodice, the skirt was pleated, each pleat either white or pale green, accentuating the darker green of Lily's eyes. Her veil and train were also pale green, forcing James to think of dead kittens, lest the desire he felt for his soon-to-be wife show itself physically at a most inopportune time. Speaking of desire...

His now 'lawfully wedded wife' was matching his stare, desire for him flushing her face. Abruptly she shook herself and flashed her best 'come hither' smile. "You want me? Come and claim me." Gathering her skirts, she dashed past her bemused husband and up the stairs to their room. James' eyes were still glassed over, uncomprehending the fact that the object of his desire had just fled the room. In a manner similar to his wife's, he shook himself and galloped like the stag whose form he periodically took up the stairs to where his best friend, his lover, his wife, was waiting for him.

Note: Y'all already know I don't own anything in this here story... but there is one other thing. A bit of dialogue I, aheh, borrowed from another fanfic. To the author who had me in stitches at the 'killing kittens' comment, I am REALLY sorry I can't remember your pen name, but let me know so I can ask (and thank) you properly! Now that that's taken care of, that little blue button at the bottom of the screen is looking mighty inviting, wouldn't you say?