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Chapter 16:

Peter woke up early for the second time since he has been at Hogwarts. He sat up and looked around the room. He was still getting use to not seeing Remus wrapped up in blankets, Sirius snoring and James talking to himself. Then he remembered what happened last night in the great Hall, and the things that Sirius said about him. He blood boiled and a lot of anger built up inside him.
Today I will put my perfect plan into action. He thought to himself getting dressed and leaving the dormitory.

He walked down a few corridors until he reached the Potions storage room. He quietly opened the door and looked around for a specific Potion. Where is it?... Bing.

He climbed up onto the stool and took two of the same Potions.

He quietly closed the door and left, but he didn't realize that there were a few Slytherins watching him.

"What do we have here? Peter Pettigrew the Marauder, stealing? Oh, shock horror." Malfoy said as Severus, Narcissa, Bellatrix and Rodolphus stood behind him.

"W-what are you d-doing here?" Peter stuttered, looking at all the Slytherins before him.

"Well we could ask you the same question, Marauder tag-along." Malfoy said, looking down at the two Potions in Peter's hand.

"Don't call me a Marauder. I am not one of them anymore. I hate them" Peter told angrily, as the Slytherins smiled with pure happiness.

"What are you doing with the potions? Payback perhaps?" Malfoy asked. Peter looked down at the potion and back at the group again. He was going to ask for their help but decided against it.

"No, two of my friends have hangovers" he lied rather well considering the curious looks he was getting.

"So, why didn't you take them to Madam Pomfery?" Severus asked.

"Because they passed out and, I wasn't going to carry them" Peter lie again. Sirius was a bad influence on me. He thought. The Slytherins seemed to believe his story and let peter go. "He is up to something" Rodolphus said as the others nodded and went back to the common room.

Peter walked back to the common room as fast as he could until he reached his dorm.

He began to think about his little run into by the Slytherins and now wondered why he didn't ask for their help.

I could have asked for their help but then I would be unfair to Remus. He was the one that was nicer to me than the other two. He still made fun of me so he still has to suffer.

He looked down at the Potion. It was the opposite of Wolfsbane Potion. It must be slipped into the drinkers drink at least two days before transformation. The effects of a full moon will be worse and when they are in their werewolf form, they will be out of control. He thought this would be the perfect plan. If Ella and Remus were out of control than James, Sirius, Lily and Claire will be in for a rough night on Wednesday.

It was now seven o'clock and students were only waking up, to get ready for breakfast.

Peter went down to the Great Hall and slipped the potion into Remus and Ella's cups.

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At Head Quarters it was silent. The sounds or heavy breathing and clock ticking was all that could be heard until……. BEEP! BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

Lily alarm clock went off waking up Ella and Claire who groaned and rolled over. Lily got out of bed and went to go wake up the boys. Knowing them Sirius probably turned Remus' alarm off when everyone was sleeping.

"Wake up guys." Lily yelled, clapping and poking each one of them. They sat up and rubbed their eyes. They rolled out of bed and Lily left so they could get dressed.

Lily woke up the girl who fell asleep again and made them get ready. Ella and Remus looked slightly paler as full moon was in two days.

On their way down to breakfast Sirius groaned. "I hate Mondays".

"Pfft… don't we all?" James asked. They reached the Great Hall. On their way to their usual seats they greeted Peter good morning.

"Morning Peter" they all said.

"Mmhmmmm" he replied not even looking at them.

"What's wrong with him?" Sirius asked as we reached the table.

"I don't know but I feel bad. We have hardly spent any time with him lately" Remus said

"Yeah, well maybe we can organize something later." James said as they all started eating.

Peter watched Ella and Remus as they took a sip of their pumpkin juice.

"Um… guys this tastes weird." Ella pointed out, as Remus nodded as well.

"Well mine tastes fine" Claire said.

"Guys, it is probably because transformation is soon. Your taste buds are all messed up" Sirius whispered so no one could hear.

"I guess" Ella said uncertainly until she felt a large jolt in her stomach. She began to feel sicker than ever before. She felt like she was going to vomit any minute.

Remus was feeling the same but his muscles began to tighten up and his head was pounding.

"I think I am going to be sick" Ella said running out of the hall.

"Guys, there is definitely something wrong." Lily said grabbing Ella's cup. She ran her finger around the edge of the glass and a liquid that was stickier and smelt bad was left on her finger.

"Oh no. Someone has spiked their drinks, and not with Firewhisky" Lily said. She and Claire got up and ran after Ella.

"We will meet you boys in the hospital wing" Claire shouted.
James and Sirius helped Remus up and lead him to the hospital wing where they waited for the girls. They put Remus on a bed, but that was pretty hard seeing as every time they moved him he would scream with muscle pain.

The girls arrived at the hospital wing with Ella. She was still vomiting in a bin the found in a near-by classroom. They sat her on the bed.

"MADAM POMFERY" they yelled. The medi-witch came running out in her gown and slippers, very startled.

"What is it?" she asked but they didn't need to answer when she saw the two patients lying on the bed. One groaning in pain and the other vomiting in a bin.

"We think someone spiked their pumpkin juice, but don't know who and with what" Lily explained.

They stood back and watched Madam Pomfery mutter spells under her breath. Fifteen minutes later Sirius exploded.

"Can you tell us what is wrong with them or not?" he exclaimed getting impatient.

"Well I can tell you that they won't be able to attend classes for two or three days, that is with the exception for their … nightly adventures." As she liked to call it.

"Yes someone has spiked their drinks, but I am sorry to say that the potion that they used cannot be identified. That is why we must keep them here and observe the side effects, so to speak"

Claire and Lily gasped. James and Sirius put their arms around them and held them close.

"We still have to take them outside on Wednesday" Sirius said as Madam Pomfery nodded.

"But I don't want anyone else in the school to know. I don't mean to scare you, but for all we know this potion might be dangerous. Let's keep it a secret. I will inform Professor Dumbledore and he will tell their teachers. I think it is best that you go to classes and you can visit later, after class." Madam Pomfery said putting large emphasis on the word 'after' looking at James and Sirius who sighed n defeat. The nurse pushed the group out of the hospital wing and shut the doors.

James, Sirius, lily and Claire walked to their first class which happened to be Divination. They could talk in that class because it would be a bit more productive than sleeping. Usually they slept or played games but they really needed to talk about what was going on.

They reached the Divination room. It smelt of really strong incense and was dimly lit with lots of cushions and random pieces of fabric lying around the room. The four students sat down in the corner and waited for the rest of the class to come.

"Guys something is not right" Claire started.

"You can say that again" James said.

"Guys something is …." Sirius repeated.

"Sirius, he didn't actually mean say it again" Lily pointed out.

"I know but I wanted to try and lighten up the mood a bit" he answered.

"Well I don't think that is possible. Who do you think spiked their drinks? And why?" James asked. They looked at each other.

"I dont know, but for some reason I have a feeling that it is related to the fact that they are werewolves" Lily whispered. "Remember when Ella said that we shouldn't be together on Wednesday?" she asked. They all nodded.

"Well, after that she told me that she has a bad feeling that this full moon will be worse than any other" lily explained.

They thought about it a little more. "Well if you are right than it would have to be someone that knows Remus and Ella have furry little problems. As far as I know we are the only people that know… and Peter" James said. They all exchanged looks. Lily and Claire looked at each other. The boys noticed and realized what they were thinking.

"You don't think it was Peter, do you?" Sirius asked.

"Well, we didn't really say it was him. Do you think he might have told someone, or that it might have slipped out somehow?" lily questioned.

"Snape!" James exclaimed a little too loud. Some of the people in the room looked at him. He just slid further down on his cushion.

"James, you can't blame Snape for everything that goes wrong in the world. Besides you have no proof" Lily said looking at him.

"Yes he can, and he will. Five galleons says it's Snape." Sirius reached into his pocket.

"Sirius this is no time for jokes and bets" Claire said pushing his money back into his pocket.

"Malfoy!" James exclaimed but this time when everyone looked at him he was playing dead on the floor. When no one was looking he sat up again, as it nothing happened.

"Oh, ten galleons says it is Malfoy and his gang" Sirius said.

"Ok. If you guys don't stop it I will get really pissed and not talk to you for a week after this." Lily said getting very frustrated. The boys were silent in an instant, as if Professor Dumbledore walked into the room.

"Ok, but I really think it is someone that knows their secret, and not many people do. Come to think about it peter wasn't talking to us when we greeted him before" Lily told.

"Stop right there. If you think that Peter has something to do with this, than you are wrong. He wouldn't do that. Besides even if he did have something to do with this, than it wouldn't be under his own will" Sirius said. They all froze.

"What did you say?" Claire asked.

"… I can't remember" Sirius answered deep in thought about his spoken words.

Claire rolled her eyes. "You said that Peter wouldn't have done something like this, under his own will. What if he was forced to do it? By… an evil Slytherin?" Claire said looking up at them.

"That makes sense. You guys probably don't know this but Snape knows about Remus' furry little problem" James told.

"Yeah, he knows about Ella as well" Lily said.

"So, do you think it is Snape?" Sirius asked.

"Well it is a possibility, but we have no proof." Lily replied.

"How are we going to find proof?" Claire asked, sighing.

"I don't know" James answered.

At that moment the bell rang and all the students ran out of the room before homework was given out. Their next few classes seemed to go really long. They tried to go visit their sick friends in the hospital wing at lunchtime, but Madam Pomfery didn't allow them. Then they tried sneaking in and got kicked out as well.

Their next few classes seemed to go really long. They tried to go visit their sick friends in the hospital wing at lunchtime, but Madam Pomfery didn't allow them. Then they tried sneaking in and got kicked out as well.

After lunch the group walked to their next class as slow as possible hoping to waste time, not that it helped because they just got in trouble for being late.

It was their last class of the day which just happened to be History of Magic. James and Sirius were sleeping with their head on the table. Lily and Claire were still away but were dozing off with the head in their hands.

Their professor was going on about something to do with elves and trolls when Professor Dumbledore walked into the classroom.

"I am sorry to interrupt but I was wondering if I could borrow Miss Evans, Miss Potter, Mr. Potter and Mr. Black for a moment please?" the Headmaster asked. James and Sirius woke up abruptly before getting up and following the old wizard with the girls.

When they reached the Headmasters office he sat down and watched them stumble in and place themselves on a chair. When everyone was settled he started:

"Now I was informed this morning about Miss Attard and Mr. Lupin's condition. I have studied some of the effects of the potion and I have come to a conclusion. "

They all sat up in their seat a bit higher, and waited for their headmaster to carry on.

"It is a potion called The 'Asper Encontra' Potion. This potion can be used for many things. It all depends on the person who brewed it." The Headmaster stopped for a moment.

They were all sitting with wide eyes. They had heard of the potion before and knew that the potion basically cause pain to become worse or even more unbearable.

"Have you heard of the potion before?" the Professor asked. They all nodded.

"This potion is basically considered to be brewed by people who believe in Dark Magic. Now before you go jumping to conclusions I want to inform you of something else." The headmaster said as he saw James' eyes flash with anger.

"Now a few weeks ago your Potion Professor asked me if he could carry out a few experiments. Just between us, he isn't very fond of werewolves. He asked me he would have permission to make this potion. He thought that if there was a way to make it less painful for a werewolf to transform then there must be a way to make it worse. He has been working on it for a while now and finished it last week."

"Why did you let him brew the potion if it was considered evil?" Sirius asked.

"Well at first I was very reluctant but after a while I thought, that if it was brewed now than the sooner we can find an antidote. Better to find the antidote now than wait for a Death Eater or someone with evil plans to use it. It would cause a person more suffering than we know it." Dumbledore answered.

"So there is an antidote right?" Claire asked.

"I am afraid not. This potion was brewed recently and we had no proof to believe that is actually worked. Now that we have discovered it does work we have to work hard to find a cure before Wednesday." The Headmaster said.

"Professor, what do you mean by Wednesday?" Lily questioned, preparing herself for the news she hoped not to hear.

"Well if we don't find an antidote by Wednesday night then when Ella and Remus transform it will be worse. I know they must have told you that when they transform it is so unbearably painful, but now with this potion taken it will be much worse"

"How much worse?" Sirius asked closing his eyes as if he was about to be hit.

"Ten times worse" Professor Dumbledore said. He watched as the teenagers faces turned into worry stricken looks. They slumped into their chairs.

"Professor, is there any hope of finding a cure by Wednesday?" James asked.

"Well I have many people at St Mungos looking and Professors at this school, but the chances of us finding a cure are very scarce." He answered.

"So there is nothing we can do except wait and hope that they are alright?" Claire thought out loud.

"I'm afraid so. I know this is a lot to take in. I haven't informed Miss Attard or Mr. Lupin yet. That is why I called you up here to ask if you wanted to tell them yourself or if you would like me too?" Dumbledore watched as they exchanged glances.

"Sorry Sir, but we don't think we will be able to tell them something like that. Do you mind?" lily asked.

"Not at all, but perhaps you should be there when I do tell them. Before we go I think I should tell you that this morning the potions cabinet was broken into and this specific potion was stolen. I want you all to keep an eye out for strange behaviour. The person responsible for this will not get out of this easily" they all nodded. The Headmaster stood up and the upset students followed him in silence to the hospital wing.

When they reached the hospital wing they found Ella lying on her bed, not throwing up anymore and Remus on the bed next to her staring at the ceiling, not moving an inch.

Lily, Claire, James and Sirius were at their sides in an instant.

"How are you?" Lily asked them both.

"I'm great. As you can see not throwing up anymore." Ella answered, slightly sarcastic and happy that her regurgitation has stopped.

"Remus?"

"Peachy" he said without moving. Every time he moved his body it would ache but it isn't as bad as it was that morning. Madam Pomfery gave them a few potions to ease the pain, although it didn't completely go away.

"Hello Miss Attard, Mr. Lupin" the headmaster greeted once he was finished talking to Madam Pomfery.

"Hi, Professor Dumbledore" the replied. They could tell it was him by it warm, calm and caring voice, but they turned their head to face him, so they weren't being rude.

"I hope you are feeling better" he asked again as they smiled up at him.

"Well I come bearing news. Unfortunately not good news." He said. He told the two lying in their bed about what they should expect to happen. He stopped and was silent, letting then take in everything he just told them in that five minutes.

"I am afraid I must go. I am expecting a visit from some of the healers at St Mungos. Hopefully they will be able to tell me some good news. If you have any questions tell Madam Pomfery and she will let me know." The headmaster said before leaving the hospital wing.

Everyone was silent until they heard a sniff coming from one of the beds. The girls looked down at Ella who was crying to herself silently. They hugged her and reassured her they everything would be alright.

"You are the strongest person I know, and we will be there right next to you. Don't worry too much." Lily said, rubbing Ella's arm.

"Remus, mate, are you ok?" Sirius asked looking down at his friend who had been silent.

"I guess so, for now" he replied turning his head to look at Ella crying into her pillow.

"Don't worry. We will take care of you" James insisted.

"Yeah I know you will" Remus told. Without any warning Remus sat up very painfully and swung his legs over the bedside. He stood and walking over very slowing to Ella. He sat on her bed as she made room. He put his arm around her as she cried into his chest.

"Don't worry I will be there with you as well" he told her.

Lily and Claire had silent tears rolling down their cheeks at the sad scene that played out before them. James and Sirius saw them crying and walked over to them smiling.

"Don't worry they will be fine" James said hugging Lily.

"We will help them through this. It will be just like every other full moon" Sirius said as Claire wrapped her arms his waist and held on.

The couples stayed cuddling in the hospital wing until two were kicked out.

"They need their rest" Madam Pomfery said pushing them out, for the second time that day.

They said goodbye and walked up to Head Quarters in silence. Claire got a weird feeling that they were being watched and walked closer to Sirius, who put a protective arm around her.

Standing alone in an empty corridor was a short, chubby boy. He smiled to himself when he saw the look of sadness on their faces.

"They deserve it" he said to himself.

He stood in the corridor a bit longer. He did not realize that a short, house elf by the name of Twinkle was standing behind him.

"Oh no, I must tell Mr. Potter and his friends." the little elf thought to himself before running back down to the kitchens.

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