A/N: Hey y'all hope you enjoy this special, it's from Remus' point of view and it's just a peek into what I imagine full moons are like for the marauders. Jily shippage resumes next chapter!

January 24, 1978

It was dark and quiet. The sun had set and the edge of the moon was just visible on the horizon. Remus checked his watch, it was just past 10, the moon would be up fully soon.

He walked across the grounds to the Whomping Willow, where he paused, just out of reach of its flailing limbs, and looked around.

The forest was quiet except for the soft hooting of an owl. His eyes caught on the reflective surface of a pair of glasses. He grinned knowing the owner of these glasses would soon be changing. He turned back to the Willow and looked for the knot.

A loud scuffle sounded from the edge of the forest making Remus turn. A great stag and large dog were galloping across the grounds towards him, a small rat between the antlers of the stag.

They stopped just before the reach of the Willow and the stag lowered its head so the rat could climb off it.

Remus followed the rat with his eyes as it scurried across the roots and put its paw on the knot that froze the tree. James and Sirius appeared where the stag and dog had been, both grinning.

"Where should we go tonight, Moons?" Sirius asked.

"I don't know." Remus answered. "But let's get to the shack first."

Sirius morphed back into the large black dog and bounded into the tunnel that went under the Willow to the Shrieking Shack.

James grinned at Remus before diving down the hole and transforming midair so that he landed on four paws instead of his face. Remus followed them and walked down the passageway slowly and meticulously. He ran his fingers along the walls of the tunnel, sliding in and out of grooves dug into the earthen walls by his claws as he changed many moons ago.

Remus felt a sudden drop in his stomach as he remembered what would be happening in just a few short minutes.

They reached the shack and emerged into its probably once grand entrance hall.

"Want to be in the bedroom tonight, Moony?" Sirius asked.

"Yeah, stay here until I howl fully."

"Fine."

Remus could feel the familiar, but unwelcome, ache in his bones that meant the change would soon be upon him. He climbed the stairs gingerly and entered the bedroom. It had been a nice room once, but the years, and many nights holding a werewolf, had not been kind to it. It was dusty and the floor was scratched. The bed was ripped and torn, the walls decorated with deep grooved claw marks. Remus touched a delicate hand to one of the marks and sighed.

He moved farther in and towards the window. The moon had almost completely risen. He backed away into a dark corner, away from the light of the moon. He waited, his bones aching, his heart pounding, his skull rattling, and then a sliver of moonlight touched the tip of his foot.

It drew him in, pulling him out of the corner. He was bathed in moonlight, now his face to his feet lit by the pale light of the moon.

The change began in his feet, he curled his toes in gasping in pain as they became not toes, but large padded digits ending in thick, sharp claws. He screamed as his chest exploded into a larger, sturdier, harrier, cage of ribs. He squeezed his eyes shut as his nose extended and grew fur, his teeth elongating and sharpening.

And then, just as suddenly as it had begun, the change left him. He was a wolf now and he couldn't think. The only upside to his new form was that he couldn't remember the pain of the past couple of minutes.

He howled, a deep, animal howl. It was instinct, he was looking for his pack, scaring his prey, and announcing his presence.

The door banged open and a large black dog came padding inside. It sat in front of the wolf and cocked its head. The wolf sniffed, it smelled friendly. Then the wolf remembered, it saw past moons meandering through the forest accompanied by this dog and-

A great stag came in, balancing a rat between its antlers.

Yes, the wolf remembered these were friends. The wolf calmed slightly.

Remus' mind slid over the wolf's mind and took control. He saw reflected in the big black dog's eyes that his eyes were no longer an ominous golden, but his own foresty green eyes.

The dog seemed to smile and wagged its tail. Remus stood and followed the other animals that were his friends out of the bedroom and down the stairs.

Once out of the shack Remus inhaled the scent of the outside. With his heightened senses he could smell the snow-covered pine leaves at the edge of the forest even from here. The snow crunched underneath their feet and the subdued wolf instincts told him that enemies would be able to both hear and track him. The wolf longed for shelter from which an attack could be launched, longed to be out of the exposed area that they were currently romping through.

They reached the edge of the forest and Remus inhaled the smell of it. Closer now, he could smell all the creatures in the forest. He could smell the centaurs deep in the forest with their bows, the owls in the trees, the unicorns scattered and sickly sweet smelling. There was also something more sinister deeper in than he had ever been before. Something large and hairy, no several large and hairy beings.

Remus shuddered. Sirius led the way, his fluffy black tail swishing back and forth, followed by Remus, and then James, carefully avoiding lower tree branches from his massive antlers which sheltered Peter's rat form.

They were getting farther into the forest then they had been before. The wolf instincts were picking up and Remus was having a harder time maintaining control over his form.

A twig snapped somewhere to their left and the fur on his back stood up and he growled. Remus fought to stay in control, but the wolf sensed danger and it was going to fight to try and save itself. A flutter to their right scared the wolf into the forefront and into control.

The wolf was in control, it snarled and backed into the shadows. It sniffed, it inhaled, looking for the enemy.

A stag and dog and tiny rat stared at the wolf quizzically, the wolf recognized them… they were friends…

Remus resurfaced. He moved back to his group and jerked his head back towards the entrance of the forest. His friends seemed to understand and James took the lead in going back.

o0o

They hung around a small clearing and played. After years of exploring the grounds of Hogwarts and its surrounding areas they had discovered everything they could about its terrain and they had resigned to just hang around the forest.

Sirius and Remus had been wrestling and Remus was laying on his back panting when he saw the moon.

It glistened and he stared, transfixed. It was majestic, it was terrifying, it controlled him, he was a slave to it, and there it was looking down at him.

Sirius jumped on him, apparently ready for a second round. Remus shook his head, removing the hypnotic spell the moon had placed on him just then, and rolled over pinning the black dog to the ground until it howled with resignation.

o0o

Remus followed the stag, dog and rat back to the shrieking shack at the end of the night. He slumped into the bedroom. The moon was setting and the sun rising. The wolf skin was getting loose as Remus' bones resumed their normal state and he began changed back into the skinny scar ridden boy. Remus shivered and crawled onto the bed. He pulled the tattered blanket over him, it did little to warm him, but he was grateful for some coverage as his friends came in, also human again.

Sirius saw Remus shivering and turned back into Padfoot. He crawled onto the bed beside Remus and snuggled up next to him.

Remus laughed as the fur tickled him, and he smiled as he felt the warmth radiating off the dog spread onto his skin and warm him up. Remus' eyes fluttered closed as he enjoyed the warmth and happiness that radiated off of Sirius.

He sat up quickly when something landed on him. James had thrown his robes onto him.

"Come on sleepy-head, we've got classes." He grinned and adjusted.

Sirius barked at James and rolled over away from him.

"You too, Pads. We've got Minnie to see, you wouldn't want to disappoint Minnie would you?"

Sirius lifted his and sighed.

He leaped off the bed and landed as a 17-year-old boy. "Just because you don't understand Minnie and my relationship doesn't mean you have to tease me." He said grinning.

"What relationship, Pads, tired detention master and poor-behaved detention receiver?"

"It is so much more than that, Prongs, I wouldn't expect you to understand."

Remus laughed as his friends continued to argue as they left the room.

He stared at the sun. His whole body ached, but on the whole this moon had been very good. He had only lost control once and had regained it quickly.

Remus smiled at the sun, he was so lucky to have such good friends to make his "furry problem" better.