Disclaimer – Same as always.
Chapter 63
The December full moon was on a Monday this year. Remus had tried to convince James and Sirius that it would be better to wait for a weekend full moon for the guys to visit him at the shack, but they would hear none of it. Peter kept his silence on the matter. Truth be told, there were a number of reasons he didn't want to visit Remus this full moon, but being sleepy the following school day was at the bottom of the list. However, he knew he would eventually have to face Remus in werewolf form, and now was as good a time as any.
Remus walked himself to the Shrieking Shack and the other Marauders agreed they would meet up with him later that night. Remus had found out the month before that the door leading from the tunnel to the shack sealed itself from the inside so, with a simple spell, someone could enter, but could not leave until the sun came up in the morning. That meant the guys could join him after he had changed, and they wouldn't run the risk of Remus escaping during the night through an improperly sealed door.
The guys snuck out under the invisibility cloak and made their way to the Whomping Willow. Once they were close enough, James whispered to Peter, "Wormtail, can you get close enough to the tree to step on the knot?"
Peter looked at James in surprise. Dodging the killer tree was not on his list of things to accomplish tonight. But he nodded nervously, and started toward the tree.
"As the rat, you git," Sirius called after him.
Peter was very grateful for the cover of night; James and Sirius couldn't see the crimson color he'd turned in embarrassment. He turned into his rat form and scurried forward. He was small enough that the tree barely registered his presence until he was too close to the trunk for the tree to do more than rustle its leaves angrily at letting the little creature slip so close. But soon even the rustling was stilled as Peter crawled onto the knot at the bottom of the tree, freezing it. James and Sirius both slipped into the tunnel and gestured for Peter to follow. Still unable to transform himself back into a human, Peter ran as quickly as he could to keep up. After less than a minute, however, he let out an exasperated squeal.
James looked back and watched Peter run along the tunnel wall. When Peter got to him, James picked him up and carried him the rest of the way, placing Peter on his shoulder.
In their excitement, the tunnel seemed to last forever, but they finally arrived at the door. They could hear howling and crashing coming from inside the shack, though it sounded as though Remus was not in the room on the other side of the door. This was good, as they hoped to sneak James into the shack in human form so he could make sure the door closed behind them. Then he'd turn into his stag form – before the werewolf caught the scent of a human. They underestimated the werewolf's senses.
Sirius turned into the black dog and glanced expectantly at James, who nodded back. James put Peter on the ground, whispered the spell to open the door, then the three slipped into the shack. However, the werewolf knew there was a human present even before the door was opened. The three barely had time to set foot into the shack before the large, bloody wolf was bounding at them. Sirius leapt into action, colliding with the wolf and forcing him back away from the door. Then he placed himself between James and Remus. He instinctively lowered his front end. His ears were back, and he was growling menacingly as a warning to the wolf. But by then, James had already turned into the stag.
The wolf was surprised by the visitors. He was frustrated at the large dog for blocking his path to human prey, and then became confused when the human presence disappeared. He stared at the newcomers, part of him feeling he should recognize them, but he'd never had contact with anything before, except that one night of blessed freedom when he'd escaped his cage and that wretched collar. The first humans he'd contacted that night, so long ago, had been strong enough to chase him away, though he blamed that on the weakness of the voice in his head which had screamed at him to leave them be. So he had run and, in frustration, he'd killed the first thing he came across – a rabbit. It was good, and a little fun, but not satisfying.
Here he was again. There had been a human in the shack, and the dog had blocked his way. Now his quarry escaped. The dog would pay. He turned, growling and barking, toward the dog. The dog stood his ground, but made no attempt to fight him. He contemplated how to proceed. The dog was no rabbit and would be able to hold his own in a fight. Was it worth injury?
As he stood challenging the dog, the stag stepped forward and pawed the ground hard to get his attention. The stag shook his head, his antlers catching the small amount of light that seeped through the cracks in the wall.
The black dog relaxed some with the stag standing next to him. It was clear the stag would help the dog if it came to a fight, so the wolf turned his attention to the stag instead – measuring him up. That annoying voice inside his head told him that they meant no harm and were, in fact, friends. He cocked his head to the side, listening to that voice and feeling, deep inside himself, that this was true. It was a new experience for the wolf. He'd never felt anything but frustration, rage, and longing. Now, he felt a different sort of longing – not the sort born out of hunger, but out of wanting to be part of the pack. He stepped forward and sniffed at the stag. It backed away slightly, and the dog growled a low warning, but the wolf only bared his teeth in response. He stared into the eyes of the stag and saw intelligence there that he knew wasn't entirely natural, but he understood the stag would not harm him either.
Once he was familiar with the scent of the stag, he turned to the dog. The dog sat during his inspection. If it was possible for a dog to appear haughty, this one managed it. He seemed completely unconcerned about what the wolf thought of him or could do to him. No, he decided. The dog wasn't haughty. Looking into the dog's eyes, he saw confidence - confidence and trust that he wouldn't do anything to him. The dog lowered his head and nudged the wolf's leg where he had bitten himself earlier. When the dog raised his head again, he looked concerned.
Feeling oddly uncomfortable, the wolf turned his attention to the rat. He'd smelled him and knew he was there, but hadn't seen him. He sniffed the ground and followed the scent to the old couch. He couldn't get at the rat there, though, so he started pawing at the couch. This turned into frustrated scratching and digging. He let out a low snarl when he was suddenly nipped on the tail. He spun around to find the dog standing behind him. The front of his body was lowered and his ears were forward, his tail wagging. The dog let out a soft woof, then spun on the spot and took off out of the room and up the stairs. The wolf followed behind and a game of tag began.
The rest of the night was spent in play. Occasionally the wolf got antsy, but the stag and the black dog kept him occupied. By morning, even the rat had come out from under the couch.
Peter was too nervous to join directly in the fray, not wanting to risk injury, but he found he was quick and nimble, and when it appeared James or Sirius needed a break, he was willing to give chase for a while, usually cheating by going places the wolf couldn't get to.
Sirius was in the middle of a wrestling match with the wolf, when suddenly the wolf yelped and began to howl. Sirius backed away, fearing he had hurt his friend. He whined slightly and looked at James. James stared, transfixed by what he was witnessing. Sirius turned back and subconsciously hunkered to the floor.
The wolf shook and howled in pain. There were barely audible crunching sounds as his bones either shortened, lengthened, or realigned to fit a different body. His face contorted and his fur receded until all that was left was a shivering, naked boy curled on his knees in the fetal position. He took one last shuddering breath before collapsing into unconsciousness.
Sirius crept forward and nudged him with his nose, whining again and looking back at James. James had returned to human form though. He took his own robe off and draped it over Remus.
Sirius also returned to human form. "That was…" he whispered shakily.
"Yeah," James responded, still kneeling by Remus.
"I didn't realize…"
"Yeah," James whispered again. He rubbed his hand over his face.
Frantic squeaking suddenly erupted from Peter. He ran toward the door, then over to where the others were. When they just stared at him, he squeaked again, running to the door and back again.
James and Sirius looked at each other. "Pomfrey," they said in unison. They started to run from the room, but Sirius stopped James. "Cloak!" he exclaimed. James skidded, turned and retrieved the cloak from where he had laid it over Remus.
They had barely made it into the hall when the door opened and Madam Pomfrey walked in. They could hear her muttering, whether to herself or to Remus they weren't sure. They sat waiting for nearly an hour before heading back to the castle. Peter remained in rat form so he could touch the knot on the tree when they exited. It wasn't until they snuck back into their dorm room, where they found Addison was already up and gone, that Sirius transformed Peter back into his human form, and the three got ready for classes.
The day was long and excruciating for them. They were able to keep themselves awake for Defense Against the Dark Arts by passing notes to each other and otherwise amusing themselves. In Herbology there was too much hands on work to be able to fall asleep, though they started getting silly from lack of sleep. Sirius received detention for falling asleep in Ancient Runes. He felt cheated, too, because he had just barely fallen asleep, making the detention not at all worth it. James and Peter had Arithmancy, and it was very easy to stay awake in that class. Fall asleep and you risked losing a limb, depending on what was being studied at the time. Plus they had each other to keep them awake.
After supper, they snuck to the hospital wing to see Remus. Madam Pomfrey let them in to visit. Fortunately there wasn't anyone else there.
"She's in a good mood," Sirius observed as they sat down with Remus.
Remus nodded. "Yeah. She was thrilled about last night."
"You told her?" James asked incredulously.
"No, no. I mean… I barely have any injuries. She thinks…" Remus cut off, looking a little guilty. "She's hoping I'm getting more control over it."
"Oh," Sirius said.
"Thanks, guys." Remus was looking intently at the blanket covering his bed. "You really helped last night."
James patted Remus' leg. "And this is just the beginning." Remus looked up and smiled.
"Do you remember anything?" Sirius asked.
"Not a lot. Feelings mostly. There are a few images. I remember you lunging at me," he nudged Sirius.
"Yeah. Sorry about that," Sirius said bashfully.
"'S'okay. But I think we need a new plan for how you're getting in. I don't think it's good for any of you to be in human form at any time."
"Well, we could arrive at the shack with you. Then we could change before you transform."
Remus shifted uncomfortably.
"What?" James asked.
"It's just… I don't… I don't want you to have to see that."
Peter mumbled, "I don't particularly fancy seeing it either." James and Sirius looked reproachfully at him. "Sorry. But… maybe we could just go to another room until you're done. Then we'd still be there, and wouldn't have to witness it. You still get your privacy."
Remus looked thoughtfully at Peter, and James said, "You know, that's not a bad idea, Wormtail. What do you think?"
"I think that would work," Remus smiled. And the Marauders planned their next adventure.
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A/N – Thanks again so much for the wonderful words of encouragement and the reactions to the story. Love hearing those! Thank you!
Thank you, too, to my wonderful betas – Mom, mei mei, and J.A. Carlton. Love.
Nonair - Welcome back:) James does seem to have things easier all the way around. Maybe that's what makes growing up feel more natural for him. Glad you liked how they got their names, too. I wanted there to be a bit of a story behind them rather than just random thoughts. You know? Once again, thank you for summng things up so well. It let's me know I'm exactly where I'm supposed to be with each character. Thanks for that.
