Remus still didn't know about my Animagus form because I kept backing out when the full moons came around. I wanted to tell him, but if the moon came, and I didn't show up, Remus would think I was afraid and backed out. I would never admit to it, but I was afraid. I didn't know if his wolf side would accept me, or tear me to pieces.

It was the December full moon when I finally worked up my courage. I sat on my bed in the Room of Requirement staring at my packed trunk. Winter break started the next day, and I had everything packed. Instead of thinking about how I would deal with Brandon and Natalie, I could only focus on Remus. He always felt so sick after the full moons. He would have to make up for the school work he missed, so he wouldn't be able to go home for the holidays.

Like every year I wrote a letter to my family asking if I should come home for break. Brandon told me in his reply that I was missed, and Kevin really wanted to see me. Knowing that, I couldn't stay at Hogwarts, so the only time I had left to spend with Remus before break would be during the moon. Technically it wouldn't even be Remus it would be the wolf.

I mentally berated myself for being so weak. Part of the reason for becoming an Animagus would be to keep Remus company on the full moon. Curfew approached too quickly for my liking, and I forced myself to leave the safety of the Room.

I scurried through the castle with a notice-me-not charm to prevent any confrontations. I still froze in place, not breathing, to make sure a passing Prefect didn't notice me. I waited until he completely left the corridor before moving again. It took me about fifteen minutes to get from the seventh floor to the first.

When I reached the front door I hesitated. Unease curled in my stomach, but I forced myself to ignore it. I laid my hands on one of the doors and pushed. To my surprise it opened without resistance. No doubt with wards around the castle they didn't think locked doors were needed to keep unwanted visitors out. Too bad they had nothing to keep students in.

Using the shadows beside the castle walls I shifted into my leopard form. I didn't want to run across the grounds in case somebody saw me. A human would raise a lot more questions than an animal. Since it was night people would just see a large cat running around. The light of the full moon hopefully wouldn't be enough to show what type of cat I was.

When I caught sight of the Whomping Willow I broke into a sprint. It felt amazing to have the wind rushing past my fur. In the Room I would ask the room for a forest so I could run around. Actually being outside felt so much more freeing.

As I grew closer to the tree I didn't slow my pace. If I did the tree would have time to "wake up" and start thrashing around. I didn't want to be one of those kids that got broken bones because they stood too close to the tree for too long. It had "Whomping" in its name for a reason.

There was a hole in the base of the tree somewhere. I quickly crawled over the tree roots until I finally spotted a hole just large enough for a person to crawl into. My cat body easily fit through the opening into a dirt tunnel.

Lifting my head into the air I took a deep breath. Dirt was the main scent, accompanied by grass and damp. Chocolate was the smell I was most interested in. That mixed with a scent I could only describe as male.

My paws were silent against the dirt tunnel. I could tell the tunnel was well used by how packed the dirt was. It wasn't loose like the dirt on the walls.

The further down the tunnel I got the more I could hear. The smell of a dog wafted through the air, one I could easily recognize as human, and easily identifiable now that I was a leopard. It wasn't strong, and I only smelled it once I made it halfway through the tunnel. I didn't see anything until the tunnel ended, and I found myself in a dusty, rundown shack.

I took in the dust covered floorboards, the peeling wallpaper, and the holes in the walls, all the while listening to the grunts and growls coming from the second floor.

Instincts warned me to get out of there as quietly as possibly. My rational thoughts were inclined to agree, but I forced myself to approach the wooden staircase. The moment my front paw touched the bottom step a loud snarl echoed through the house. I immediately stopped moving and stayed frozen in place.

Worry shot through me when no other noises were made. When I came in I could hear him, but now he was silent. I knew werewolves had sharp senses, and it was possible he smelled my presence even before I exited the tunnel.

Inhaling deeply I slowly continued up the stairs. Almost every step produced a loud squeak. They seemed even louder in the silence, and I knew for sure now that Remus would have heard me.

The growls returned, getting louder with every step I took. My instincts knew I was near a dangerous predator. They were the reason my ears pinned back against my skull, and a pitiful mewl fell from my mouth.

For a second time the noises from the second floor disappeared. I pressed myself as close to the steps as I could get. I was only a fourth of the way up the stairs.

A low rumble came from the second floor. It lasted a few seconds before slowly dissipating. I waited a moment, in case he made another noise, and when nothing happened I purred. I'd only made the noise a few times when I felt relaxed, and it was never voluntary, so this startled me slightly.

Intrigued I let out another purr. I made sure it would be loud enough for the wolf to hear up on the second floor.

An insistent scratching started from somewhere up the stairs. I didn't smell any other animals, and it was too loud for a rat to make, meaning it came from the wolf.

I started climbing the stairs a little faster than before. When I made it to the landing halfway up I let out another loud purr. The scratching paused briefly before resuming more vigorously.

Facing the next set of stairs with wavering determination I took another deep breath. While walking up I let out a continuous amount of meows. I didn't growl because I wanted him to know I didn't want any trouble. A growl might be taken badly.

The top landing ended up being some sort of hallway. The incessant scratching came from behind a door slightly off to my right. Once I made it closer the scratching stopped. A nose appeared at the small gap between the floor and the bottom of the door. I heard him take deep breaths to catch my scent.

I let out a drawn out purr. While doing so I lowered myself onto my stomach and crawled over to the small gap, stretching my neck so I could cautiously take in his scent. Remus' chocolate scent was completely replaced by forest, mixed with the distinct scent of dog.

The wolfs growl did not sound very welcoming. I let out and pitiful whimper to hopefully calm him down. The scratching continued while I moved to look at the door knob. I didn't know if cats could open a door that had circular handles, but I was about to give it my best shot.

Leopards didn't have the opposable thumbs needed to open things. I tried opening the door with only one paw but that didn't work. The initial struggle caught the wolfs attention, and I heard him abandon his scratching.

With both paws on the knob I had to wait, and make sure I wouldn't lose my balance. When I was sure I wouldn't fall I attempted to move my paws in a way that would get the door open. After many failed attempted I finally got one paw on top of the door knob. My other paw went underneath it so I cradled the knob in both paws.

I pulled the paw sitting on top of the knob towards me, and pushed with the bottom paw. The knob slowly turned until the latch came free from the wall.

To my surprise the door swung inwards. I had no time to back up since I had all of my weight against it. With the wolf standing in the doors path it hit him, causing him snarl harshly.

He backed up quickly, and I tumbled to the floor. I huffed as my jaw hit the ground. In another situation I would've waited for the pain to go away, but I had a werewolf staring at me from three feet away.

I scrambled to get up, but the wolf growled at me. When I tried a second time he snarled, so I relaxed against the ground. As I stared into his eyes he began growling. Low at first, but after a few moments it became louder.

I averted my eyes but the growling didn't stop. It grew closer as Remus slowly stalked towards me. I watched his giant paws, almost twice the size of my own, press against the ground with each step. He was a very intimidating size, and if he decided to fight me I had a very small chance of surviving. My best bet would be to run, but there was a chance he would follow me through the tunnel, and he'd be on Hogwarts grounds.

Probably the reason the door had been closed.

I felt the fur on my back stand up as he scented along my spine. He started at the back of my neck and slowly went down to my pelvis. After going over my side he placed an insistent paw against me, telling me to roll over.

Hesitantly rolling onto my back I tilted my head, so I could see his face. He immediately shoved his snout into my personal space with a snarl. His sharp teeth were meant to intimidate me, and it worked. I was in a more vulnerable position than before.

I did a lot of research on wolves when I was planning on joining Remus. Barring your throat is seen as a sign of submission, so that was exactly what I did. With a small mewl I extended my neck and waited to see if I would live, or if this would be my death.

A cold nose brushed against my fur. I felt it trail up to the base of my jaw when it disappeared. In its place I felt sharp teeth gently bite down around my throat. I waited with panicked breaths to see if he would bite down, but after seconds of waiting he slowly backed off.

For a few moments I stayed laying on the floor. It didn't register in my mind that I'd survived the encounter before I heard and impatient growl off to my left. I rolled over and turned my head to see Remus, in all his werewolf glory, chest to the ground and tail wagging high in the air.

His golden eyes shone with a happy excitement I never would have thought a werewolf could feel. Cautiously standing up I faced him and copied his stance without the tail wagging. He barked, and tackled me to the floor. At first I thought he was attacking me, but instead I felt small nips at my shoulders and realized he just wanted to play with me.

Giddy excitement welled up in me. My plan to join him on the full moon worked. The wolf didn't kill me, and it's a good thing because if he had Remus would've felt massive guilt.

Not once the did I get a chance to rest. The wolf was full of energy the entire night, making me second guess my decision to join him. I valued my sleep, and I had to pull an all nighter because the wolf would give me a painful nip every time he saw me try to lie down. The next day was a Tuesday, and I couldn't miss class because we were reviewing for finals.

When the sun started coming up I decided against running back to the castle. This was a big deal that concerned him. He would probably be mad I put myself in danger, but he'd eventually have to accept it since it wouldn't be the only time I would do this.

Watching him transform was painful. His bones had to break and reshape into a human skeleton while all of his fur disappeared back into his body. Pain filled howls became whimpers which soon turned into groans. For several minutes Remus laid on the floor, ragged gasps the only noise in the room.

Once his breathing became manageable he slowly got onto his hands and knees. With a small struggle he got onto one knee then stopped to take steadying breaths. That was the moment I made my presence known by purring loudly.

Remus' head snapped up, and his eyes widened the moment he spotted me. A few seconds of gaping later and I morphed back to my human self. I was happy Animagus transformations didn't have the pain a werewolf did.

"W – What?"

I smiled sheepishly. "Hey, Remus."

He couldn't seem to stop gaping at me. "You… ? What?"

His struggle to form a full sentence made my lips twitch amusedly. "Take a deep breath and think it through."

As instructed Remus took a slow, deep breath, and let it out at the same slow pace. He did it two more times before staring at me worriedly. "What happened last night? Were you here?"

I nodded. "Yes, I spent the night with you." The wording made me snicker.

Remus couldn't help but roll his eyes at my immaturity. Afterwards his worry returned, and he looked my body up and down. "Are you alright? Did I hurt you? How are you alive?"

"Come on, Remus, you're smart." I turned into a leopard before quickly changing back. "What am I?"

He stared at me with wide eyes before quickly thinking of all the possible options. I knew he figured it out when his amber eyes lit up, and he stared at me in amazement. "You're an animagus?"

I nodded with a proud smile. "Found out my form last year, so I could help you out on the full moon. I know werewolves don't have the same effect on animals as they do on people, so if you bite me I won't become a werewolf."

Remus let out a laugh, but it sounded more like a sob. "I can't hurt you?"

"Nope." I popped the "p". "Not when I'm an Animagus. Your werewolf accepted me, and we played the entire night." The reminder made my muscles ache. "It was fun at first, but going to class is going to suck major ass."

He huffed at my use of foul language. "Rosabell," Remus licked his lips, "why did you do this?"

I smiled gently. "Because I consider you to be my best friend, Remus. I know how much your wolf side bothers you, and every full moon you have a new scar somewhere on your body. I hate seeing you so negatively affected by this. Becoming an Animagus was the best way for me to help you."

Tears welled up in his eyes, and my smile became sad. "C'mere." I walked over to him, and wrapped my arms around his neck. I didn't often give people physical affection, but I knew he needed it. He returned the embrace, and dug his head into the crook of my neck. I ignored the wetness appearing on my neck as I ran my hands gently through his hair.

I heard a quiet, "Thank you," causing me to hug him even tighter.

We sat there for an unknown amount of time. I stared out the window and watched the amount of sunlight increase. "Remus I'll need to get back to the castle. I'm not sure what time it is, but I want to make sure I don't miss class."

Remus nodded and pulled away. I pretended not to notice him wipe his eyes with the sleeve of his robe. He stared at me for a while then laughed disbelievingly. "You became an Animagus, one of the hardest pieces of magic, at thirteen?"

I felt smug. "Started at twelve and finished the transformation last year after finals."

He huffed incredulously. "Unbelievable."

We walked out of what Remus informed me to be the Shrieking Shack. Apparently we were near Hogsmeade, and the villagers gave it the name because they heard Remus' howls. Now they thought the shack was haunted. I laughed when I heard that.

To get back to the castle I put a notice-me-not spell on the both of us. Walking to the castle was a bit of a struggle for me. When pulling an all-nighter I would usually be able to manage it once I got over the initial surge of sleepiness. In this case I had been active the entire night, so I just felt exhausted.

Remus helped me to the fourth floor, but we had to go separate ways because he needed to go to the Hospital Wing to get his scrapes checked on. A huge improvement from the usual cuts.

I made it to the Room without collapsing from exhaustion. I asked the Room for a clock and saw it was about 6:30 in the morning. class wouldn't start for another hour and a half.

I debated whether or not I should stay up or try getting some sleep. In the end I decided to stay up. If I went to bed in this state I might sleep through my alarm and not wake up in time. I passed time watching "The Lion King" on a flat screen TV. I discovered the futuristic TV on a night I felt bored out of my mind. It only got better when I learned I could watch movies from my time.

When it was almost time for class I changed into my school uniform and headed for the Great Hall to get breakfast. Once I was moving it was easier for me to stay awake, though the same couldn't be said for when I took my seat in Ancient Runes. I struggled to stay awake for the rest of the day, and when dinner rolled around I skipped my usual jaunt to the Kitchens and went straight to the Room, so I could get my much needed rest.

Edited: 1/22/2019