Chapter 3
"Remus!"
"Sirius, GET BACK!"
James ran forward and grabbed his friend by the shoulders, out of reach of the wolf's gaping jaws. The wolf gave a loud roar as James herded Peter and Sirius out the door. The trio rushed down the tunnel and out of the suffocating darkness of the passage.
"Remus is a—"
"Duck!"
All three boys immediately hit the ground, barely missing the thrashing branches of the Whomping Willow. They scrambled across the muddy ground to get out of reach of the tree.
For a moment, Sirius, Peter, and James sat motionless in the dirt, breathing heavily.
"He's a monster." Peter whispered. "Remus is a werewolf." He heard a faint cry from the direction of Hogsmead and shuddered.
The three sat, bloody thoughts racing through their heads and silencing their mouths. James thought back to his childhood; he remembered pictures in his bedtime stories of werewolves—teeth stained red, paws covered in that thick, red liquid, cruel eyes shining.
Sirius ran a hand through his long, dark hair. "How could Dumbledore let this happen? Remus goes to Hogwarts. He's in our classes. He sleeps in our dorm, for crying out loud! Doesn't that crackpot of a headmaster know a werewolf when he sees one, or does he just not care students getting eaten alive?!"
"I thought Remus was our friend," Peter whimpered.
"He's not!" Sirius snapped. He recalled his parents telling him about dangerous half-breeds ever since he was little. "Werewolves are bloodthirsty monsters, and they're cunning. A wolf will infiltrate places where humans live, and when they're gained everybody's trust, it strikes! I wonder how many full moons we had left before that...that CREATURE gobbled us up in our beds!"
Peter whined again. "What can we do?"
"One thing's for sure: we can't trust the teachers. Dumbledore's not stupid. He let Remus into Hogwarts, knowing BLOODY WELL he's a werewolf!" Sirius scowled at the full moon, shining above them like the polished blade of a guillotine.
"We'll have to take care of this ourselves."
James slowly nodded in agreement.
"I called him my friend." James thought. "And all this time, he's been lying to us." In the boy's head, the image of a monstrous werewolf blended together with a mental image of Remus's scarred face.
"We'll confront him at dawn. Peter, go to the castle, and bring back all the silver you can find. We'll drive him out of Hogwarts. We'll make him regret the day he walked into the castle."
(A/N: lol "Remus is a duck!" I'm such a horrible person!)