Chapter 22
Harry quickly glanced at his wrist, thankful Minerva had the ability to transfigured watches and Filius Flitwick could charm anything to run properly. Lunch time was coming up fast and he knew one determined witch would be waiting for him inside his office, waiting for answers he just might not give. "Sir?"
"I simply have a required appointment around lunch."
"Could you explain why you had those pets in class?"
Harry smirked. He knew that wasn't what Remus wanted. The young werewolf really wanted to know something else but afraid to ask in front of his friends. "As a Dark Predator, I have the ability to cause other Dark Creatures to be very dominant. Meaning, my aura, you could say, forced the wolf in you to react. The wolf wanted to dominate the scent it could smell, to dominate the control you had over it. I had to buffer that scent to keep you safe. To do that, I had to bring in an Alpha werewolf to keep your wolf in check and to bring its mate to keep my scent in check. Domino's mate is an Alpha's Beta to me, a second to the chain of command, therefore, you felt nothing of my scent because Elixa absorbed it while Domino forced your wolf to back down."
"Absorb?" Remus was slightly confused but everything was becoming clearer with each explanation.
"Something like masking a scent. To make it seemingly disappear."
"Meaning, I could have hurt someone?"
"Sadly, yes. Which is why they are around at all times. You just can't see them. And if they weren't around, you could have permanently injured your fellow students, friends, even kill them, without a passing glance. Not even they could control you or comfort you as they have done on most full moons."
"You knew!" Three mouths fell open in shock as a smirking Professor nodded his head, knowing their little secret.
"I've spent some time in the Forest to allow my animal free from its cage. I have seen you from afar, watched you play."
James flushed, "We swore Remus would never be alone once he had told us. And I figured maybe becoming an Animagus could help him. Or at least make sure he doesn't hurt himself much. Took us almost a year to achieve."
"Quite an achievement without help. I suggest keeping it quiet. You never know in this war." They sighed in wonderment, knowing he wouldn't force them to register.
And Remus was anxious to show them off, almost like he was trying to impress the older man. "Siri's called Padfoot." Harry watched as his Godfather turned fluently into a large black dog, "He looks alot like a Grim our Divination teacher likes to talk about." Then pointed to James, "James is a stag called Prongs."
Harry fought to keep himself under control. There before him stood a majestic stag, almost too proud of its stature. For the first time since he arrived in this time, he was truly happy to know who his family was before they were taken away. "A stag of such stature means leadership. A dog, in Muggle terms, is always said to be man's best friend."
"Thanks." They all flushed bright red at the compliment. "We're called the Marauders. But I'm sure the Professors already told you that when you arrived; they do that with all the new Professors. We're just missing a fourth."
A brow raised, "A fourth?" This Harry knew. It had already been explained.
"Peter Pettigrew. He's a small grey rat. We call him Wormtail."
"Ah, yes, a rat. A rat means many things. To some a lonely friend, a shadow in the night, sneaky, unobtrusive, and usually overlooked. One would never suspect such a thing." He could see the guilty looks already, and made his exit. "But I must go. I promised to speak with Miss Evans shortly."
"Lily!"
"Yes, Lily. She was quite curious about some things from class." And with those words he swept away, breaking his wards. Now all he had to do was enter his office and leave unmarked.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All Severus had to do was enter the Headmaster's office and leave feeling cleaner. Knock, knock. He waited for the familiar voice to bid him entrance, please let him help me. I can't continue on this path. I just can't. "Come in, Severus."
"Hello, Headmaster."
"Care for a Sugar Cane? Very sugary. All boys like sugar."
"No, Sir. But I will try the lemon drops." A black tin was held out to him. "Why am I here, Sir?"
"I'm merely an observer. Chess?" Albus had a feeling as to why Severus Snape was visiting. He had once failed his student, causing the young wizard to turn to another for comfort. He didn't want to make the same mistake again. But ever since the arrival of one Assassin Vulcan Shadow, things had been spiraling out of his control and straight into the hands of the Vulcan. Albus never thought anyone could make him feel as if he was on the sidelines, watching and observing, rather than being a part of the game.
"Professor Vulcan said you had a solution to my problem." He was very nervous. Without looking he simply moved a piece onto the chessboard that had been pushed before him as he stated, "I made a mistake."
"We all make mistakes. Trial and error is human nature, my boy. We can only learn from them, some later than others."
"But I don't want this. It was appealing at the time. Not anymore. And it hurts."
Albus lifted a delicately carved black knight, "Have you ever considered a good trap?"
"Uh, no."
A shrug, "For the best I suppose. Only a true chess master could think of one."
"Headmaster?"
"Come to my office Thursday after curfew. I'm sure you'll have a good trap then."
Frowning, "Why?"
"For the chessboard of course!" The Headmaster laughed, delightfully. "Besides what better way to set a trap, then to involve all the players."
"But..." A SPY! I can't be one! He'll know!
"Now, now, my boy. Just come to my office Thursday. And everything will just be peachy." And Severus just knew the Headmaster was truly baffling.