She was fierce, strong and full of fire.

That not even she could hold herself back,

Because her passion burned brighter than her fears.

Monday, December 10th, 1973

Gryffindor Common Room

"Ellie, don't overthink it, he'll be fine." James Potter spoke, noticing the look of distress on his childhood friend. "He's been through this for almost his entire life."

The black haired witch sat on one of the windowsills of the castle, looking through the window. The sun had just set and she knew Remus was now inside the Shrieking Shack, waiting for his bones to pop out of place, waiting for a scrutinizing pain. "You should be there with him already." She quietly spoke, staring at the whopping willow. "He shouldn't be alone."

"We will leave in ten minutes. We have to wait until it's fully dark, you know that." James spoke, putting a hand upon her shoulder and squeezing it gently.

"If he would just let me help him." She gnarled her teeth in slight anger. Eleonore knew how upset Remus would be if she suddenly turned up at full moon in some sort of animagus form. She cared for him enough to respect his wishes, but she also knew she was right. Things would be so much easier if she was there by his side. She was certain he'd feel better.

"Maybe he'll come to his senses in time. He's just concerned about you." James Potter answered.

"You and I both know he'll never come to his senses when it comes to me during full moon." Ellie mumbled, her eyes adverting towards Sirius and Peter coming down the dorm stairs into the common room. "You should go."

"We'll make sure he's safe." James patted her shoulder once more and turned around, checking his backpack once more. He had an extra set of clothes for Remus in there as well as his invisibility cloak. "Ready?"

"Yes, let's go." Sirius nodded his head, feeling a pinch of regret for Ellie still sitting on the window sill looking at the grounds.

"We'll see you tomorrow morning in the hospital wing, Ellie." Peter piped up quietly. In reply, she nodded her head, her eyes never leaving the Scottish night sky.

The boys soundlessly left the common room, not attracting any attention. Most of the Gryffindors thought they were going for another late night stroll. When they managed to crawl out of the portrait, James rapidly pushed the invisibility cloak over them. It barely managed to fit the three of them so they had to be careful their feet didn't show. "I feel bad for Ellie." Peter whispered, being the one stuck in the back.

"Now's not the time to talk about Darensbourg, wormtail." Sirius replied, moving along with James. They were trying not to get caught, so they had to be quiet. The corridors were stranded but he knew Filch was persistent and had the ears of a rabbit. "Let's just try to make it to the whopping willow without getting caught."

If Sirius was entirely honest, the last few weeks he had ignored a certain female third year and it wasn't because she irritated him (which he was certain of, she'd still do if they were in somewhat close contact). No, ever since she sat so close to him on that couch, ever since she had helped him remove those nasty scribbles on top of his head, it felt like he was struck by lightning. And it wasn't the good kind of lightning.

He remembered the look in her eyes, the one she had shown him at the end of their first year. When they patched things up and she wanted to speak to him about his parents. It was the same look, the appearance that she did care a little. The look that said she wanted to help him. As fast as it came in her eyes, as fast it usually disappeared but in those ten minutes, in which he sat so close to her, that expression was there.

She breathed too hot in his neck, she was too nearby. She was gentle and patient with him, something he had never seen of her. For a moment, when he quickly and thoughtlessly wrapped his fingers around her hand to point her wand back on his face, they locked eyes. It didn't take long, Sirius didn't even think it lasted for two seconds because she quickly adverted her piercing, green eyes away from his.

Eleonore Darensbourg had adverted her fierce stare from his.

It was a first and it didn't make sense.

In all those years, he had never seen Ellie turn her eyes away from anyone, let alone him. She could hold eye contact for days if she wanted to. She never had to because usually the other person would quickly unlock their eyes from hers. She was that intimidating.

Did he make her nervous? He didn't feel as if Quidditch practice was uncomfortable. She was as good and as steady on her broom as she ever was. He swallowed roughly, his skin touching the cold, night sky. It would pass, he was sure it would. As long as James wouldn't get hammered anymore and meanwhile scribble on his face, he would not need her help anymore.

The boys touched the one small knot near the base, immobilising the aggressive tree and immediately entering the secret passage towards the Shrieking Shack. James quickly threw off the invisibility cloak, making sure they didn't startle Remus who was waiting for them. They quickly followed the dark tunnel and finally entered the dusty room. "Moony!" James smiled encouraging, noticing his friend sitting on an old, worn out, brown sofa.

"Hey guys." Remus wearingly replied. The boy looked exhausted; unnaturally pale with heavy bags underneath his eyes.

"Another night, eh." Sirius tried to speak a little enthusiastic, hoping he'd cheer the werewolf up and mask his own concern. He had seen Remus a few times before full moon, but never had he seen him this drowsy.

"Unfortunately." Remus mumbled, closing his eyes a little. He hoped that for once, he might actually sleep through his transformation. That he wouldn't notice a thing. In his dreams, he'd just wake up the following morning, cheery as ever. It was stupid, because he knew deep down that in a matter of hours, he'd feel that agony again.

Remus didn't know why but he felt more tired than he had ever been before. Days leading up to the transformation were usually uncomfortable, he was more impatient and had a tendency to act a little more impulsive. This though, this was different. He just felt absolutely drained, as if the moon had taken every inch of his energy. What it used the energy for, he had no idea.

It wasn't until he saw his friends transform into their animagus form and he felt the burning feeling right inside his chest that he knew it would be bad. It appeared as if the moon had taken the energy out of his human form and stuffed it all into the werewolf. As soon as he was transformed, he became restless, searching every inch of the room.

The shabby dog that was lying on the dark brown, scruffy carpet locked eyes with the stag standing in the corner of the room. Sirius had never seen the werewolf this agitated. It was now standing by the door, trying to clench its nails into the wood, hoping to find a way out. Being the only predator in the room, Sirius stood up, hoping he'd be able to stop the werewolf from harming itself.

Slightly biting the creature's fur, he prayed that it would stop bonking his full body against the shaking door. The werewolf didn't feel anything as it was focussed on getting out, following the smell of pure nectar towards the castle. Biting even harder, the dark furred dog took a step back when the werewolf bared his teeth at him, ready to attack.

He backed away slowly when the werewolf growled, a patch of drool coming through his big, fawned teeth. Sirius had never seen Remus this way, his usual dark green eyes were now plastered by a hint of red as it twitched his nose at the three animagi in front of him.

This was not good.

Really not good.

The dog stepped in front of his two remaining friends, watching for the corner of his eye that the stag made himself taller, standing on his two back hooves and throwing the two front ones in the air in a defensive mode. James had hoped that the werewolf would get the message, to calm down. He'd hoped that it would realize they meant no harm.

As soon as the werewolf noticed the stag's height, it backed away a little, realizing its own behaviour. It however, did not take his eyes off the dog for a long time. Its hardened, oppressive glance towards Sirius was unusual as he thought it was safest for now to mix himself into the background. Even though the wolf was outnumbered, they would never make it out alive if it turned on them.

For the rest of the night, the stag, the rat and the wolf watched the werewolf howl and throw himself at the door. Hours on end until it finally knocked itself unconscious into the late am.

Tuesday, December 11th, 1973

Hospital Wing, Hogwarts

Eleonore restlessly bit her lip, her feet never stopping speed as she paced around Remus his usual bed. It was the one in the far left corner, the one you couldn't see straight away when you marched into the hospital wing. It was already eight am, he should have been here already. What was taking the headmaster so long? Where were the boys?

Her eyes suddenly turned sharp towards the entrance, noticing Albus Dumbledore entering the hospital wing, he held his wand pointed up towards the sky as he focussed his blue eyes on his front. Ellie's eyes lifted up in confusion but when the doors of the hospital wing closed behind the headmaster, she could see him taking an all too familiar invisibility cloak off her unconscious boyfriend.

Her stomach immediately turned. "Oh Merlin." She mumbled, her eyes slightly watering. "What happened?!"

"I assume you are familiar with the source of this cloak." The headmaster spoke, placing the cloak upon the bedstand as he levitated Remus' his bruised and battered body upon the mattress. "If you would be a dear and bring it back."

"Excuse me headmaster, but I am quite certain I asked you a question." She gnarled her teeth, her eyes roaming Remus his face in concern. Poppy rushed by the headmasters side, pushing Eleonore slightly away.

"Miss Darensbourg, let us heal mister Lupin accordingly first, as for you questions I do not have the right answers. I am certain others have." He spoke in a riddling voice. She was getting quite annoyed with the older headmaster. This was not the time for his usual paradoxes.

Her thoughts immediately turned towards the three animagi who were missing from the hospital wing. "I can't leave him, look at him! Will he be alright?!" Her right hand placed itself over his as she tried to ignore the blood on his fingers. It looked as if it came from underneath his fingernails. They looked cracked and severely damaged. She swallowed roughly, trying to ignore the pain inside her chest.

"We will try to heal Mister Lupin as best as possible but you will have to step out of the way, dear. There's nothing you can do right now. " Poppy, the healer, spoke already taking several ointments and placing them in a crystal bowl next to Remus' bed.

"The cloak, Miss Darensbourg." The headmaster turned his blue eyes upon hers for the first time that morning.

"Of course, of course." She shook her head, grabbing the silk material. Throwing her head back once more, she tried not to sob at the sight of her boyfriend. She had never seen him this way before. His face was already swollen, his hands were bloody and he had an entire collection of new scars all across his chest.

She would just have to return the cloak and get some answers.

It felt as her feet had a mind of their own, her legs carried her as fast as possible towards the Griffyndor common room. Her mind fully occupied by the vision of her boyfriend, scattered and hurt.

She had never seen it this bad, something must have happened. The boys should have seen this, they should have stopped it. They said they would protect him. She trusted them to calm him down.

Ellie knew they had to go to class in about an hour, which meant they should be getting ready to get some breakfast. Finally spotting a patch of black hair, she immediately went for it. "What the fuck happened?" Her hand grasped Sirius elbow, trying to tug his body towards her so no one would hear her heated, agitated voice.

"Ellie… He just…" Sirius shook his head in defeat. Eleonore could see his tired eyes, bags forming underneath them. "I tried… I tried to calm him down, he wouldn't have it. He nearly bit my head off."

A flash of concern expressed from her face, her eyes unconsciously looking around in the common room, making sure no one heard their conversation. "I don't understand… I don't understand…" She mumbled, tears nearly spilling over her cheeks. "It shouldn't go like this, he shouldn't go through this. He doesn't deserve this. He's the last person to deserve this."

Sirius swallowed roughly, seeing for the first time an emotional Eleonore Darensbourg. It wasn't something he was used to. He wasn't sure how to react to the situation. He wanted to console her, he did. He wanted to make her feel better but somehow, he just stood there. The soles of his feet glued to the hardwood floor. His limbs hanging from his body, nearly lifelessly. "He wasn't himself."

"No kidding." Ellie growled, distantly staring at one particular spot on the couch. Her eyes were still red and glossy.

"You know what I mean…" Sirius mumbled, he knew now wasn't the time to bite back an answer. "He kept scratching the door, he wanted to get out. I think… I think he wanted you… I think Moony wanted you…"

"That why his nails are so damaged…" Ellie mumbled, still holding on the invisibility cloak.

"He… He knocked himself out by throwing his body against the door." Sirius tiredly spoke, concern edging his voice.

"You should have gotten me. I was waiting, I was up all night. I could have been there. I could have helped. I cannot believe any of you seemed to have ignored the fact that I was the one that could have helped him." The black haired witch spoke in a stern, demanding voice. "You guys are absolutely ridicules. To even THINK tha-"

"And then what, Darensbourg?" Sirius Black spoke back in an even more strict voice. "Watch you get eaten by Moony? Watch you get torn apart? Watch Remus waking up, having to tell him he just killed his girlfriend? Is that your answer?! You cannot do anything for him when he's-"

"YOU SHOULD HAVE INVOLVED ME FROM THE BEGINNING." Eleonore shouted, not even caring if there were people in the common room. Ian Willow lifted his eyebrows for a second, but he realised that this was usual routine for Sirius Black and Eleonore Darensbourg.

"IT WAS NOT OUR CHOICE." The heir shouted back, finally hoping she would get the picture. Remus didn't want her there, if they would have involved Ellie, their friendship with the werewolf would be over. Sirius knew how strictly Remus told them to not say a word towards his girlfriend. Things might have blown up in his face later on, but he was still on the same page about that. He did not want Ellie to see him transform. He did not want Ellie to be possibly harmed.

Silence took over the both of them as for a few seconds his words sunk in.

"Right. Hell with anyone's choice, I'll fucking do it on my own." Eleonore mumbled, more to herself than to Sirius Black. "Give this to Potter." She harshly pushed the invisibility cloak into Sirius' stomach.

"Wait, what?" Sirius shook his head in disbelieve. His right hand wrapping around her elbow, stopping her from stomping out of the common room. Ellie turned around and looked at him without saying anything. "You're going to do it yourself?"

He couldn't believe it. Was she that stupid? Remus would kill her. A surprisingly huge amount of concern took over Sirius mind. What if Moony did something to her? What if he attacked her in Animagus form? No, Remus was right. It wasn't safe. After seeing Moony trying to scratch himself out of that room. He knew it wasn't safe.

And even if it was perfectly safe, even if it calmed Moony down that she was there in that room, alongside them, he still knew Remus would be absolutely fuming once he wakes up. "Don't do it, Ellie." Sirius nearly begged.

"I will do as I please." She shortly replied.

"It would mean the end of your relationship." Sirius answered. "It might not be safe."

"It won't be the end of my relationship and I know Remus would never hurt me." She spoke bravely, trying to hide her own concerns. Not for her health, but for the sake of Remus' trust.

"He's not Remus. He's Moony." Sirius whispered, his mouth closing up to her ear. "Remus would never hurt you. Moony would kill you in an instant."

"He won't. I'll be just like you guys." Eleonore discussed back.

"And if he doesn't kill you, Remus will when he wakes up."

"Let him, if it means his transformations will go smoothly and he won't hurt himself anymore."

Sirius shook his head, he knew he would never get to change her mind. She was that stubborn. "You might lessen his pain for one night, but you'll increase it for the rest of the month by destroying his trust in you." Sirius whispered, he knew he had her for a second or two as he saw a flash of pain in her eyes.

Remembering the blood dripping of her boyfriend, her eyes turned harshly towards Sirius. "You won't tell anybody about this conversation."

"You're making a terrible mistake." He stated, not answering her demand.

"Well, you've always wanted me to make one, didn't you?" Eleonore spoke strictly, finally turning around and stomping out of the common room.

Sirius shook his head in defeat.

No, no he didn't.

Tuesday, December 11th, 1973

First floor, transfiguration classroom, Hogwarts

Eleonore's fingers gently knocked on the wooden door. She knew classes would start soon but she had to speak to the head of her house. She couldn't wait any longer. When she finally heard a surprised voice requesting her to enter, she gently opened the door. Mrs Mcgonagall was standing behind her desk, her eyebrows lifted as her eyes looked over her small glasses. "Miss Darensbourg, shouldn't you go get ready for class?"

"Sorry to interrupt so briskly but I need to talk to you… Please." Eleonore nearly begged, hoping that her teacher would give her the green light.

"What's your concern?" The teacher spoke, disturbed about the obvious distress in her pupil.

"I… I want to become an animagus." She blurted out.

"Dear… Do you even realise the risks of becoming one? You are, obviously, a very skilled witch, Miss Darensbourg but becoming an animagus is long and arduous. It has the potential to backfire very quickly if the progress isn't followed step by step." A surprised Mrs McGonagall spoke. Of course she knew the reason why her student wanted to become one, she knew about Remus Lupin's condition. She knew that now, those two were all loved up.

"I… It would be good for my future auror training and for now it… It will help Remus. He injured himself severely tonight. I want to do it, I want to invest myself into it but only if you would help me. Please…"

"I always thought you wanted to be a healer." The teacher spoke with interest, noticing the distress on Eleonore's face.

"Not anymore. There's things happening in the world… Bad things… I know it's coming. I want to help."

"Have you considered the amount of time that goes into this training? You have class, homework, quidditch training,… You need to sleep and eat also, Miss Darensbourg." Mrs McGonagall spoke in concern. She knew Eleonore was bright and clever. She had outstanding grades in transfiguration. If Minerva would have to pick one student who she knew was certain would be able to do the intensive training of becoming an animagus, she knew she would pick Eleonore Darensbourg.

"I would give my left hand for this training." Ellie stated firmly. "I know what I'm getting into."

Minerva raised her eyebrows once again. "And do your parents know about this idea of yours?"

A distressed look covered Ellie's features. Of course her parents didn't know about her little plan, they barely knew she wanted to be an auror. She hadn't thought this through.

Mrs McGonagall wasn't oblivious to the concern on her pupil's face, "Let me tell you what, if you hand me a written approval by both your parents, we'll start the training by the end of January… I suggest you talk to them during Christmas break."

Ellie bit her cheek, understanding her teacher's demands. She knew it wouldn't be an easy one explaining this to her parents. Maybe she could try to convince them that she'd be more safe if she had the ability to change into an animagus. "Thank you."

Eleonore nodded her head one more time before turning around, marching out of the classroom. "Oh and Miss Darensbourg- donating your left hand would be a waste, I would genuinely love to win that quidditch cup for once."

Ellie couldn't help but smile, "I'll try to do that for you, Mrs McGonagall."

Author's note: I'm back! It took a while but I'm here now and I have too much time to spare because I'm pregnant as hell. That means 6 more months of unlimited writing. So anyways, do you think Eleonore is making a huge mistake? I mean, we do want to help Remus in the end... Leave me a little hello or a review, it would mean the world and it gets me to update a whole lot faster! Xo Eva