Chapter V: The Keeper of the Keys

They were fifteen minutes into their first History of Magic lesson, when the Gryffindors realised that Romulus had been right about Professor Binns. His lecture could have been sold to Beds and Bedknobs, and used to cure insomniacs.

More than once, Remus had to poke Peter in the arm because he was snoring so loudly. James and Sirius were taking absolutely no notice of the Professor and were both scribbling on a piece of parchment. All of the girls seemed to be paying attention, but Elizabeth's head drooped on occasion. This was in severe contrast to Holly, who was hanging on Professor Binns' every word and writing furiously on her parchment.

Dee had decided to sit next to Josh Huneycutt and Kevin Dunstable, and from what Remus could hear, they were arguing about Quidditch and who would win the league, though none of them seemed able to agree.

Remus was taking Romulus' advice and trying to take as many notes as possible, but on occasion he felt his mind wander, in particular to Defence Against the Dark Arts. He was sure that Professor Praeiudico was going to do something to him during their next lesson on Tuesday. It would be just the sort of thing he would do, especially only one night after the full moon.

Before he knew it though, it was the end of History of Magic and the Gryffindors hurried to Charms. The Slytherins caught up with them as they rounded the corner to the Charms classroom.

'Remus!' Medusa Parkinson exclaimed, as she snaked her arm around his, and led him away from the others. 'I haven't seen you in ages.'

'You saw me on Wednesday,' Remus pointed out as he tried to avoid the look Elizabeth was giving him.

'Yes, but not yesterday.'

'Oh, yes, I suppose that's right.' As they entered the classroom, Remus felt himself being pulled in the opposite direction of the Gryffindors. 'I-I was going to sit with Peter,' he added.

'Oh, I'm sure he'll find someone else to sit with. You have every class with him; you only have two with me."

Remus gave Peter an apologetic shrug when Medusa pulled him down to sit next to her. He also pretended to ignore James and Sirius' questioning looks, and turned to face the front, where a tiny man, he assumed to be Professor Flitwick, was standing on a pile of books.

'Welcome, students, to Charms! Charms can be very useful allies in everyday life. If you're feeling a bit down, you can always perform a Cheering Charm on yourself, or if you're in a rush to pack for the Christmas holidays, you can always use a Packing Charm. This subject can be very exciting and fun if you do the work. Now, when I call out your name, please give me a sign that you're here. Very well, Amanda Applebee?'

For the most part, Charms continued quite uneventfully, until Daisy Oliver managed to set part of Severus Snape's cloak on fire, much to the amusement of the rest of the class. Remus felt a bit sorry for the poor chap, as he obviously didn't see what was so funny and didn't look the happiest of fellows to begin with. Sallow skinned and hook-nosed, he gave off the air of a pot-plant that had been left in the dark. His hair hung in locks around his face, and his black eyes rarely left the piece of parchment he was writing on. And while James and Sirius had pushed two desks together so that Peter could sit with them, Snape was sitting alone, with a space between himself and the next desk.

'Why isn't anyone sitting with Severus?' Remus asked Medusa quietly.

'Because he's a berk,' Medusa replied silkily, not taking her eyes off the sentence she was writing. 'Or to be more accurate, he's a greasy little slimeballed, toffee-nosed, pig swilling berk. But 'berk' works just as well.'

'Oh.' Remus didn't really know how to respond, so he decided it was better not to at all.

When they left Charms, Remus said goodbye to Medusa and walked over to the other Gryffindors. Elizabeth and Sam pushed past him without saying a word and continued out of the classroom. The other girls left soon after them with Dee, who was going back to meet with Kevin and Josh, which left Remus alone with Sirius, James and Peter.

'Why'd you sit with her?' Sirius asked questioningly.

'I didn't have much of a choice, to be perfectly honest with you,' Remus replied jerkily, and they moved out of the classroom and back towards the Great Hall for lunch. After getting into an argument over which Beatle they would have been, Sirius and James sat down next to Kevin at the Gryffindor table, and became engaged in yet another argument over Quidditch.

Remus looked down the table, and saw Elizabeth in a hurried discussion with Sam; she paused and looked up at him, a scowl marring her face. Remus decided to lighten the mood a little.

'Why don't we go down to Hagrid's after lunch?' he suggested to the rest of the table. 'Go and explore the grounds a bit?'

'Sounds great to me!' exclaimed Peter.

'It doesn't just sound great, Peter,' James added. 'It's brill-i-ant. Say it with me Sirius!'

'Brill-i-ant!' they cried in unison, and then fell about laughing.

'Kevin, Josh and I are going down to the greenhouse, to investigate this weird plant they saw on the way to History of Magic,' Dee said excitedly. 'So maybe another time, yeah?' He stood up with Kevin and Josh and said goodbye, before retreating with a cheese sandwich in hand.

'We're going to the library,' Sam said, and the girls all stood up and walked out. Lily was the only one who lingered slightly, giving Remus a small smile and a wave before quickly retreating, leaving the boys to ponder as to why the sudden hostility.

'And then there were four,' commented Peter dryly.

'The Fab Four,' Sirius added.

'I bags being Paul!' yelled James.

'I'm John!'

'I can't believe you know about the Beatles,' Peter commented. 'You don't know about The Rolling Stones or anyone like that…'

'The Beatles?' Sirius asked incredulously. 'Of course we know who The Beatles are! The Beatles were the first wizarding band to cross over to a Muggle audience. That's why they were so popular. They were the band that got wizards interested in Muggle music. They're famous for it.'

'I heard, that they're really good friends with Professor Dumbledore,' James added, looking impressed and waving a ham sandwich around.

'So, if you're Paul, and Sirius is John, then who are Remus and I?' Peter asked eagerly.

'Well, who do you want to be, Peter?'

'Uh… I really like Ringo. He used to live near me.'

'Well then, Ringo you shall be!' Sirius exclaimed dramatically. 'I dub thee, Ringo Starr, member of the Hogwarts Fab Four… Volume Two!'

'Just as well,' James added, 'because Remus is just so obviously George Harrison.'

Sirius let out a bark of laughter and considered Remus. 'He is, rather, isn't he?'

Remus smiled, but was confused. He was sure that The Beatles had gone to Muggle schools. Shaking his head, he turned back to his lunch.

After they were fed and watered, Remus took Romulus' map out of his pocket, and had a look as to where Hagrid's Hut was. He discovered the scribble and label near the edge of the forbidden forest. The four of them walked out, and across the sloping grounds, where they saw a large hut, with a gigantic pair of galoshes outside the door. They looked up at the huge door; it was at least twelve feet tall, and five wide. After a hurried argument, it was decided that James should be the one to knock on the door.

'Maybe he's not in,' said Peter nervously, and turned to leave. 'Let's go.'

'Don't be such a wuss, Peter,' Sirius snapped, and grabbed the back of Peter's cloak, though as he did so, he, gave a rather nervous look too.

It appeared that Hagrid wasn't at home. James knocked once more, but after waiting for a few moments, there was no response. The four boys had turned to walk back up towards the castle, when they heard a loud voice boom from the forest.

'Yer lookin' for me?'

They spun around to see Hagrid walking out of the forest, tugging a large rope behind him. He appeared to be leading some sort of animal, and when Remus saw a flash of white, he realised what it was: a unicorn.

'Wow,' gasped James, as the pure white unicorn came cantering out of the forest behind Hagrid. 'Er – yeah, we were,' he added more loudly, as though just remembering he was supposed to answer.

'Yer'll be the new Gryffindors then? Lupin told me yer'd be comin'. I'll jus' be a sec, gotta tie up this one, 'fore I entertain. Go inside an make yerselves at home.'

The Gryffindors nodded and walked back up to the door. Peter turned around to watch Hagrid walk away, before helping open the door.

'Do you think we should have helped him?' he asked.

'No,' Remus replied. 'Unicorns aren't that keen on boys. I'm surprised that Hagrid managed to get one at all…' he didn't want to add that as a werewolf, unicorns couldn't bear to be within fifty metres of him.

The boys looked around Hagrid's hut. There was only one room inside. Hams and pheasants were hanging from the ceiling and in the corner stood a massive bed with a patchwork quilt over it. They had to heave themselves up onto the chairs, and when they finally got settled, their feet barely reached the end. After a few minutes of them looking around the room, Hagrid opened the door and came in.

'Right, now tha's done. Anyone for some toffee?' he had crossed the room and picked up a large tin. He opened it up and held it up to Sirius.

'Uh, thanks,' Sirius said, looking at the toffee dubiously, before picking it up and popping it into his mouth. Hagrid proceeded to offer it to James, and Peter, and finally stopped in front of Remus.

'Ah, now yer'll be Remus, tha' right?' he asked, smiling down at Remus. Remus took the smallest piece of toffee left.

'Yes. Thank you for the toffee.'

'Yer welcome. Yer brother's told me a lot about yeh,' he added, quite indiscreetly winking at Remus. He put the tin back down on a table, and sat down in a large armchair. 'So, what are yer names then?'

Sirius, James and Peter had frowns upon their faces. They were looking at each other with their faces a mixture between frustration and worry. Remus was wondering what was going on, until he put Hagrid's toffee in his mouth and tried to chew. It felt as though someone had clamped his mouth shut with a particularly strong set of braces. Now he understood why the others all had frowns on their faces; they were rapidly trying to get their jaws unstuck from the ruthless toffee.

Hagrid also had a frown on his face, though he hadn't eaten any toffee. Apparently, he didn't know what was going on.

'Wha's wrong?'

Sirius pointed to his jaw, and James, Peter and Remus all followed suit.

'Oh!' exclaimed Hagrid, it finally dawning on him. 'Sorry 'bout that. I like it chewy.' He picked up a large, pink umbrella from beside his chair and pointed it at Sirius' mouth, before doing the same to James, Peter and Remus.

Remus felt the toffee inside his mouth become less hard, as though it was melting. He chewed a bit more, and it became the consistency of bubblegum. The same appeared to happen to the others, because before too long, James was talking rapidly to Hagrid.

'I'm James Potter,' he said. 'This is Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew. And you already seem to know Remus.'

'Yeh, tha's right. Well, yer already know me. So, how're you enjoying Hogwarts so far then, eh?'

James then proceeded to tell Hagrid, in detail, of the events that had happened since their arrival.

Hagrid asked Sirius and James about their detention that was set for that night, and was surprised to find that they were actually looking forward to it. And, inevitably, the conversation turned to the topic that people had been talking about since their first day; Defence.

'And then he made us take a test! On our first day, of all days,' James finished with relish. 'We've started calling him "Professor Prat",' he added, and he and Sirius started sniggering into their hands. Peter looked uncomfortably at Hagrid, as though he wasn't sure whether or not they should be telling a member of the staff something that could give them detention. Remus was inclined to agree with him. Romulus had told him that Hagrid was a good bloke, but it remained to be seen just how far Hagrid could be pushed before having to inform a Professor. But to Remus' great surprise Hagrid chuckled.

'Yeah, I don' like him that much either,' he replied. 'I remember him when he was at school 'ere. Right snarky little kid. Never met a Hufflepuff like him since.'

'He was a Hufflepuff? Peter asked incredulously. 'I thought Hufflepuffs were meant to be nice.'

'Yeah, there's always an exception to the rule though, 'aint there?'

'He's a classic example of "When Hufflepuffs Go Bad",' said James, and he and Sirius both burst into fits of giggles, followed shortly by Hagrid and Peter.

Remus smiled. He was very comfortable sitting in the over large chair, with good company, good conversation (as they had skimmed over Professor Praeiudico's question of him), and, well, food that was now edible.

'Why did Professor Dumbledore hire him?' Sirius asked.

'Well, he's qualified, 'aint he? Don't matter whether people like him or not, does it? Jus' matters tha' he teaches 'em properly. How to defend themselves, an' that.'

'I'm not so sure whether it's dark wizards and witches we should be learning to defend ourselves against. Not with the likes of Professor Praeiudico roaming the hallways,' Remus said gloomily, to which James and Sirius both burst out laughing.

Remus was glad that they found this statement amusing. He, however, had never been more serious.

The next morning, Remus went to the library, to look up everything he could find on defences. He was rapidly becoming obsessed with finding every possible way of surviving Professor Praeiudico's classes. Deep down, he knew he was overreacting, but he was still looking, just to be on the safe side.

He ran through everything, from basic defensive spells, through to Protection Potions, and even to Occlumency, which seemed a bit too far out of his league. Still, it was an interesting prospect. Legilimency and Occlumency seemed like something to look into in the coming years. He wondered idly whether his father should be told about Legilimency, as Faustulus Lupin was often saying that he had no idea what his wife was thinking. Remus often didn't know what he was talking about. His mother usually seemed like an open book to him.

Remus looked at his watch, when his stomach started rumbling around twelve, and decided that a lunch break was in order. He really did have to eat something substantial today, as the full moon was the following night. If dread could have filled his stomach the way food did, he wouldn't have gone hungry. But, as it was, he headed down to the Great Hall, and sat down next to Sirius, before starting to make himself a lamb sandwich. He spread on the fruit chutney, and put on pickled onions, cheese, and finally the lamb itself, when he noticed that Elizabeth, who was sitting opposite him, was looking at him pointedly.

'Hello,' Remus said to her. Perhaps she had gotten over whatever it was she was upset about the day before.

'Afternoon,' she replied, and smiled.

Remus let out the breath he hadn't realised he was holding. 'How was your morning?'

'Fantastic. I just got up.'

'You just got up,' Remus repeated.

'Yeah. I love sleeping in, don't you?'

'I, uh, I don't usually. But, when I do fall asleep, I'm out like a light.'

Elizabeth laughed. 'Join the club. Listen, about yesterday,' she continued, idiosyncratically tapping her bright green fingernails on the table, 'I'm sorry I was upset with you. It's just that I don't like Parkinson, and it irked me to see you sitting next to her. When I saw you sitting with her, I had Mars the Bringer of War from the Planet Suite stuck in my head.'

'I really didn't do it to spite you. Medusa just wanted to sit with me, and she didn't give me much of a choice, anyway.'

'Yeah, we just don't get on, and both of us don't share very well.'

'Share?'

'Yeah, never have done. As children it was lollies, then it developed into dolls and books, and now, apparently, it's friends.'

'Well, I promise to share myself equally,' Remus replied, and smiled at her, to let her know that he was joking.

'So, Remus,' James said loudly, 'you looking forward to flying lessons?'

'Flying lessons?' Remus asked and took a bite to eat. If James was talking about flying, then he'd be able to eat almost constantly for the next ten minutes without having to talk.

'Yeah, there was a notice pinned up in the common room. Flying lessons start on Thursday. Personally, I don't think I need flying lessons. After all, one of my first presents as a child was a racing broom. Mum went spare, but Dad didn't listen to her. He said that his son was going to learn about Quidditch from an early age, and that he wanted to see me play for the Chudley Cannons by the time I was seventeen. Of course, my Dad has no taste in Quidditch Teams. He should have said the Wimborne Wasps, obviously. So, I think that some people shouldn't have to go to these silly little lessons, when they don't need them. On the other hand, I suppose I could help the teacher with the other students. You know, help with the really hopeless ones.'

'Yes,' Remus replied after swallowing, completely forgetting what the question had been. 'Er – what did you ask me?'

'If you were looking forward to flying lessons.'

'Oh, not really, I suppose. I think I'll be one of the people you'll have to help. I'll probably make a complete idiot of myself.'

'I'm sure you'll be fine.'

Sirius, who had managed to roll his eyes several times during James' rant, then went on to say that he had never even been allowed near a broom, because his overbearing mother didn't want any son of hers to fall off and embarrass the family name. And that even if he did somehow manage to convince her, she would have insisted that he wear the full Black family woollen robes at all times, which was a garish prospect even in its infancy. But, now that he was at Hogwarts, where the school brooms could be used, he was going to fly as much as possible so as to annoy his mother even more.

Sirius' explanation conjured up a group discussion, and everyone had his or her stories about flying. Sam and Lily were both excited at the prospect, especially Sam, who loved sports, and was fascinated by Quidditch.

Diana and Holly had both been flying before, and followed the League, but had no interest in actually flying themselves.

Elizabeth had been flying since she was little, and when her family went on holidays, she used to play in the Under 12's Winter Roster in Australia as a beater.

Peter hadn't been flying either, but said he'd had very bad experiences on bicycles. When he was four, his cousin had pulled him onto the back of his bike, taken off at an alarming pace, and swerved to avoid an oncoming lorry, crashing into a bush-strewn wall, breaking his own leg. The incident also caused Peter to have a twig removed from his ear. The second was so bad that Peter couldn't actually talk about it, for fear of having a nervous relapse.

Sunday came far too soon for Remus' liking, and the afternoon seemed to fly by in the blink of an eye. Before he knew it, he was saying goodbye to the other Gryffindors and making his way down to the Hospital Wing, with his overnight bag under his arm.

He was so deep in thought that as he rounded the last corner, he got the fright of his life, when Romulus stepped in front of him.

'My God, Romulus!' he exclaimed. 'I almost jumped out of my skin!'

Romulus grinned. 'I thought that you were meant to be able to sense people.'

'I can, but my mind was on other things.'

'Fair enough.' He knelt down in front of Remus. 'I just wanted to have a talk with you before you go, okay?'

Remus nodded.

'Okay, so, I just want you to know that I'll be there when you wake up. Madam Pomfrey said that she would keep you sedated until the end of classes, so that your body can heal. So, I'll come straight down after Transfiguration, okay?'

'Okay. I don't want to keep you from anything though…'

'Don't be stupid, Remus. You're the most important thing in this school to me. Of course I'll be here for you. Besides, I'll bring my homework with me, so that I can get that done until you wake up.'

'Sounds good to me,' Remus replied. He looked down at his feet, wondering whether he should tell Romulus how he was feeling.

'You okay?' Romulus asked, and leaned in to catch Remus' eye.

'Yeah, fine. Well – actually – no. Not really. I – I'm scared.'

'Look, Remus.' Romulus shifted uncomfortably on his knees. 'I'm not going to sugar coat it for you. You're probably going to be a bit worse off than usual, but Madam Pomfrey is one of the best Matrons you could possibly hope for. And, if you're not happy with her, we can always owl Dad, and he can come and help.'

Remus nodded numbly.

Romulus considered him for a moment, then stood up and pulled Remus into a sweeping hug, picking him up off the ground as he did so. He started planting kisses over Remus' face, who tried to squirm out of his grip, laughing at his older brother.

'Romulus – stop it! Gah! Stop being a prat! Ha!'

'There. Feel better now?'

'Yes. I'm more scared of you!'

Romulus laughed and put his brother down. 'All right. You ready to go in?'

'Yeah. Let's go.'

The brothers walked into the Hospital Wing and found Madam Pomfrey sitting in her office, engrossed in a book called, Lady Lucia and her Lover, the Luscious Lionel.

'Madam Pomfrey?' Romulus inquired, after he and Remus had been standing there a few moments, with no visible acknowledgment from the matron.

'Hmmm?' she asked distractedly and turned a page.

'Uh, Remus is here…'

The matron's eyes quickly darted up towards the two.

'Oh, my! Is it that time already? Well now, right, yes, well then, off we go.' She looked a little flustered, in Remus' opinion, he could see the colour rush to her cheeks.

But before he knew it, he was saying goodbye to his brother, and walking down with Madam Pomfrey toward the Whomping Willow. Madam Pomfrey waved her wand at the willow, and a jet of light hit a small knot in the trunk of the Willow, making the limbs of the waving tree still.

Madam Pomfrey walked up to the trunk of the tree and pointed to a gap in the trunk.

'This is the head of the passageway. You have to slide down it. I'll show you.' She put her feet in the hole, pushed off with her arms, and slid down a passageway feet first. Remus followed soon after, and came to a small tunnel. Ahead, he saw Madam Pomfrey, she said, 'Follow me,' and she started up the tunnel. Remus had to bend to fit down it, and the matron was fully doubled over. And then the tunnel began to rise; moments later it twisted and they came to a patch of light, which turned out to be a door. Madam Pomfrey lead him to a room, showed him a cabinet where he could place his clothes and wand and how it would magically seal itself after being closed. And before he knew it, Remus was standing alone in a large shack, the door magically sealed from the outside.

He checked his watch, then walked over to the cabinet. Inside, he placed his watch, after he had undressed, his clothes, and finally, after some hesitation, his wand, before closing the door. The outline of the door lit up for a moment, before returning to its original state.

Standing naked in the middle of the dusty room, all he could do was wait, for the full moon to take its course.

Now that he was there, the minutes seemed to drag by. He knew he had little more than twelve minutes left, but time seemed to have come to a stand still. Remus looked around a bit more and realised he'd been taken to a room with no furniture in it, save for the cabinet. Probably for his own safety. But he vaguely remembered coming through rooms with chairs in them. For some reason he felt slightly irritated. Why had they left furniture in here at all? It wasn't like it would serve any purpose other than to be smashed. Or maybe that was the purpose. So that he wouldn't take his actions out on himself as much. But, if that were the case, then why put him in a room with no furniture?

The more he thought about it, the more agitated Remus became. He started to pace backwards and forwards.

After realising what he was doing, Remus came to a standstill and let out a deep breath.

Calm down, Remus, he thought to himself. You're not doing any good getting yourself worked up.

He looked towards the windows, but found them to be boarded up. Remus wasn't surprised. He rather wondered why he'd expected them not to be. He walked over to a window and ran his finger along one of the boards. There was a slight gap. He poked his little finger through and felt a cold stab of pain move right up his arm. Gasping, and immediately drawing his finger into his mouth, Remus realised that this must have been one of the protection spells that had been cast on the house.

He had to admit, it was pretty deterring.

A few minutes later, an unbearable pain racked his body. He doubled over, before falling to the floor, screaming in agony as he felt his bones breaking and changing shape.

He wished for the pain to stop, praying to God that it would all be over soon; that he would blackout. He tried to accept the pain, not fight it, but the side of himself that he kept hidden from so many people wanted to be let out. It was angry. Angrier than Remus had ever remembered. He felt tendrils of himself slipping away through his fingers, like sand, as new thoughts entered his brain; new emotions. Anger. Hate. Hunger.


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Next Chapter: Chapter VI: Duelling For Beginners
Remus recovers from his transformation, we have our first proper encounter with one Severus Snape of Slytherin and we have another lesson with Professor Praeiudico...

Peace,
Rotae