Chapter Two - Meeting of the Marauders

It was twenty minutes before midnight. The weather at the school grounds was fresh. The grass, though damped in mud, was soaked with a gentle layer of dew.

In the distance, running from the castle, could be heard some steps splashing in the soaked grass. The steps seemed to be getting away from the castle.

Suddenly, a jet of light appeared from nowhere and hit the knot of a big tree. The steps walked a little further and got to it.

After that, three teenagers uncovered themselves from what seemed to be an Invisibility Cloak...

James Potter, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew settled themselves to the shadow of the Whomping Willow.

James took the word: "OK,you guys! This is our final Animagi practice. We will at last reveal what animals we turn into and we'll nickname each other. Remus won't take long, so we will hurry up. Peter, you go first."

Peter, who wasn't really paying attention, gave a little jump when he heard his name. He walked slowly ahead, where both James and Sirius could see him. He pressed his eyes tightly... but nothing happened.

"Peter!" said Sirius frustrated. "I thought we had been over this already! You need to relax in order to complete the Transfiguration!"

Peter gulped nervously and shut his eyes again. Several seconds passed by, and then... he had disappeared.

"Where did Peter go?" asked James.

Sirius was too thrilled to answer.

But before anyone moved to find him, they saw something move among the dark shade of the tree.

"Peter? Is that you?" asked Sirius.

And then, something moved forward to the light. It was thin, slimy, and pinkish. Did Peter turn into...

"A worm?" said James, hardly supressing a laugh.

But what seemed a worm moved ahead. James and Sirius realized it was actually the tail of a bigger animal... though not much bigger. Peter was a rat.

The dark gray rat walked ashamed toward his friends. Then Peter Transfigured back into a human.

"I'm not much of an Animagus, am I?"

Neither James nor Sirius said a word for some seconds. Then, after taking some air so he wouldn't laugh in midsentence, James told him. "Well... at least you could... complete the... Transfig... Transfiguration... Wormtail..."

He breathed again. "Now it's your turn, Sirius."

Sirius walked forward as Peter -now nicknamed Wormtail- had done before. He closed his eyes. Immediately after that, he had already finished the Transfiguration. Sirius had become a big, black dog.

"Wow, Sirius!" said James, while Sirius gave a little walk, recognizing his own new body.

He did not notice, however, that he was leaving his paw tracks on the muddy ground behind him.

"Look at his tracks!" said Wormtail in awe. "They're as big as... as... as pads!"

"Then Padfoot you shall be, Sirius."

Sirius became a human again. "I'm okay with that. Let's see what you got."

James grinned. "So you will." He strode confidently ahead and jumped high into the air. When he landed, he wasn't human anymore. He had turned into a grand white stag. He walked boldly around Padfoot and Wormtail, showing them his prongs.

"Calm down... Prongs", said Sirius, laughing.

Suddenly, they heard something in the distance. Someone was running noisily toward them, howling and scratching everything around.

James Transfigured back. "Get ready, Marauders. Moony is coming".

Remus Lupin was striding quickly toward his friends. He stopped, however, when he saw them. He still had a bit of self-conciousness left.

"Remus," said James, walking to him rapidly. "It's us. Your friends. We're here to help."

"Go... away..."

The Marauders watched their friend as hair sprouted viciously on his neck.

"We won't leave you. We'll stay..."

Remus didn't answer. His mind was already blank.
James Transfigurated into the stag and the others followed. He and Sirius tried to control Remus, but he just snapped bites randomly into the air. He injured both Prongs and Padfoot.

They ran away. Prongs was the most injured. As Padfoot, he had been scratched in legs and back, as well as in neck and face.

Moony had already calmed down: the painful transformation was over. He gasped. After several minutes, he wandered strayly toward... the school?

"James!" said Sirius, "Remus didn't go under the Whomping Willow on time!"