Disclaimer: Really people. I would think you were smarter than this. I've only said it five thousand times before. I don't own this stuff.

Chapter Thirteen: The Next Day

"It was the worst night of my life." Remus was in the Hospital wing again after the full moon. His friends had come to see him, skipping their first class to do so. "It hurt so much. The transformation, being stuck in that shack, everything."

"Remus… I'm so sorry…" Lily's eyes were filled with tears. She, as well as the others, still felt guilty for causing Remus' lycanthropy.

"It's okay. It's not your fault." Remus tried to comfort her.

"Actually, it is." A tear fell from one eye. James put his arm around Lily's shoulders.

"Not really. I didn't have to come that night."

"If it's anyone's fault, it's mine. I made you come." Jenna wasn't one for crying, but she felt at least as bad as Lily did.

"You guys. It's okay. I can deal with it. I know that I can get through a full moon now. That was my only worry- that I might die out there. But that's really a dumb thing to worry about. Nothing with a brain will try to confront a werewolf." Remus smiled. "It's not so bad. If I could get out it would be better."

"Why is that?" Jenna asked.

"There are good parts, believe it or not." Remus looked a little more alive now. Before, he had been tired and out of energy. Now there was a spark in his eye. "I want to be able to run. In my dreams, I can run so fast… And I can smell everything so well. Really, I can live with this."

"But is there anything we can do for you?" James asked.

"Well…" Remus grinned. "You could bring me some breakfast."

"Last night, we were in the library." James had called a meeting of the newly christened Marauders in the boys' dormitory, to show the map to Remus. They couldn't show it to him in the Hospital wing, since Madame Pomfrey was hovering around him, checking on him every five minutes. Remus was finally able to leave, after he promised to return if he felt the least bit tired or ill. "Sirius found this book that showed us how to make something extraordinary."

"Yep, it was all my idea!" Sirius was quite proud that he had started the map.

"Cool it, James was talking." Lily smacked Sirius.

"Wait, all four of you were in the library?" Remus was skeptical.

"Yes." James looked impatient.

"Doing what?"

"Uh… studying, what else?" James had to cover their real object in going to the library.

"Sirius was studying?"

"Okay, the rest of us were studying and Sirius found this book."

"I still don't believe you managed to get him in there."

"We promised him sugar." Lily supplied.

"Lots and lots of sugar," Sirius added.

"Oh, okay. That might work."

"Anyway," James said loudly. "Lily charmed a simple piece of parchment to be this!" He unfolded the map with a flourish.

"Um, it still looks like a simple piece of parchment."

"That's because you haven't seen the real beauty of this masterpiece. Lily, care to do the honors?" James held out the parchment to her.

She pulled out her wand and tapped the map. "I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."

As if it was being drawn with a multitude of invisible quills, the map of Hogwarts spread across the surface. Little flags unfurled, marking many black dots with names. The legend, "The Marauder's Map," graced the top in large elaborate lettering.

"Wow." Remus took the map. "You did this, Lils?"

"Yeah, she's quite good in Charms, if you haven't noticed."

Lily nearly blushed at James' praise. It didn't happen often. "They weren't hard spells."

"So this map shows all of Hogwarts?"

"And the grounds," Jenna added.

"And the secret passages," Lily put in.

"And the kitchens," Sirius made his comment. That was possibly his favorite thing about it. He had already been there twice. The house elves now knew him by name and his favorite flavor of ice-cream.

"Awesome."

Remus went back to class the next day. Despite his long hiatus in the Hospital the month before and spending the night as a werewolf, he was just as on top of the school work as always. His classmates wondered where he had been the day before, but figured it was just something to do with his wounds. They still wouldn't know about the werewolf, and, Remus hoped, they never would.

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