A/N: I would like to give a special thanks to my Beta Reader, Rasa Von Tabula. And of course, to my readers. Reviews always encourage me to write more, and constructive criticism is always helpful. I own nothing. Anyways, enjoy the story.

Remus didn't sleep well that night because of the dreams. The wolf's memory, as good as Remus's, played across his eyelids after he drifted to sleep.

Moony hated being enclosed in the small shack, so his release relieved him greatly. Padfoot barked and led the way into the forest where the others waited. Moony trotted happily behind, letting the Alpha male lead. If he could grin, he would.

10, 20 minutes later, Padfoot stopped. Moony howled loudly when he saw the rest of his pack up ahead. Prongs and Wormtail walked over to the two and then the games started. Moony spent a half hour chasing Wormtail around the forest, trying to catch him in between his paws. Another half was spent wrestling with Padfoot and Prongs, each playfully trying to best the other.

Suddenly, Moony stopped. His nose picked up a whiff of something extremely enticing. Immediately, he felt saliva drip down his chin. Moony knew he wouldn't have to run very far to catch the prey, so he took off away from the pack.

"Rumbles!" A girl's shaky voice called from not 100 feet away. Her voice carried in the quiet night. Padfoot must have heard the girl as well, because Moony heard him following behind. He reached the girl in a matter of seconds, and he stood on his hind legs to intimidate her. He saw her horrified face and tensed up, ready to attack.

But not for long. He quickly met the ground when Padfoot slammed into his side. Shocked that the Alpha attacked him, Moony stayed on the ground for a moment. Padfoot capitalized on that and changed back into Sirius.

"Peter!" he screamed, eyes bulging, "Go get Dumbledore!!"

He changed back and tackled Moony again. Moony, however, possessed a much greater strength and threw Padfoot off, snarling. Prongs, not close enough to attack yet, sped up his gallop. Moony smashed Padfoot into a tree after the smaller attempted to stop the hunt yet again.

Moony turned back to the girl, who had sprinted in the other direction. He caught up to her and slashed a clawed paw at her back, ripping her Ravenclaw robes. She screamed before her voice was muffled by her face full of dirt as she smashed into the ground. Moony howled and then took advantage of her position, biting down on her thigh. The blood rushed into his mouth and he shuddered in euphoria. The sweetness overcame him and his mind only thought of the flesh that would soon be in his stomach.

He felt cool air replace the bloodied muscles as Prongs charged into him with his antlers. He was falling backwards, away from the girl who wouldn't stop screaming and crying for help. He fell and

fell and fell

and fell and fell…

"Remus!"

Remus's eyes opened and he sat up straight in the bed. James stood next to the bed, his eyes wide. "You were having a fit," he explained. Remus felt a sudden rush and then recalled the dream in vague images. Him running and playing. Him seeing a girl. Sirius yelling. Him being tackled. Him attacking and biting a girl. Suddenly, he realized the dream probably portrayed accurate events. His stomach twisted into pretzels and he put his face in his hands.

"Chocolate?" James offered, seeing his friend in distress. Remus accepted the goods and sighed. "Kylie's parents…" James started uneasily, "They, um, they're reconsidering pressing charges." He wore a tense smile, the only kind Remus had seen in the past day. He felt relief from the words, but an overwhelming guilt still pressed into his chest.

It was clear that James was uncomfortable talking about what happened. Remus knew he was trying to make him feel better, but James was just as uncomfortable as anyone else. They were starting to treat Remus like a time bomb, and if they said the wrong word then he would start bawling again. In truth, Remus did feel like he would break if he was told anymore negative information.

"So, Dumbledore brought by your homework," James said, trying to keep up conversation. A small stack of books, papers and quills lay at the foot of Remus's bed. He appreciated the gesture.

"I suppose you haven't started on any of it," Remus teased with a forced smile. James chuckled and shook his head.

"I was hoping you could help me while we wait for the mutt to get here."

Remus looked up at James. "Sirius? When is he getting here?"

James checked his watch, "Dumbledore said Sirius is supposed to drink the Polyjuice after he finishes his afternoon classes but…"

As if on cue, someone knocked on the locked hospital door. James walked over and cautiously opened it a crack. "Um, I think you have the wrong room Ma'am," he said, attempting to shut the door but a barefoot stuck itself between the door and the frame.

"No, I don't think so." Remus raised his brow at the deep, although womanly, voice. The woman must have made some sort of gesture because James suddenly doubled over in laughter.

"Oh, so sorry to be rude, Ma'am," he laughed, letting her inside, "I didn't realize your particular level of priority."

Remus's mouth dropped open at the sight of the obese woman. Standing at least 8 feet tall, her dark curls brushed the ceiling. Her beady eyes looked straight at Remus and her meaty mouth formed a frown. She looked back at James and crossed her huge arms over her voluptuous chest.

"He said I was going to turn into an American school boy. I can promise you that I am definitely not a boy anymore."

The comment confused Remus, but then he let out a genuine laugh. The absurdity left him with a wide smile on his face and tears of mirth in his eyes. "Floral dresses really do suit you!"

"Shut it, Moony," Sirius glared, but a smile peaked its way through and it wasn't long before all three of them were laughing.

Peter walked in holding a plate of food. He almost dropped the tray when he witnessed the scene before him.

"Look Peter, your mum's joining us for lunch," James said. Peter, too confused to be offended, just stared.

It wasn't long before Sirius transformed into his old body, and he conveniently found some of his clothes under Remus's bed (Dumbledore always seemed prepared). For a moment after Sirius got dressed, everyone grew still. Remus desperately wanted to keep up the charade of laughter, but it didn't last.

He played with his hands in his lap and listened to his own breathing. His thoughts inevitably turned to Kylie and her frail body wrapped in bandages. The air between the four of them, not quite appropriate for serious conversation, reminded Remus of his luckiness. Four awkward teenage boys, three of them there for the sole purpose of helping their fallen comrade.

"Ew," Sirius said, looking at a bag of Ice Mice, "Who sent you those?"

And so began the rest of the week full of jokes that weren't very funny and vein attempts to pretend that nothing was wrong.

So, did you like it? Too short? Probably. The next chapter will skip to the Trial. Thanks for reading!