Sirius Black waited impatiently against the greenhouse walls in the crisp October air. It was full moon, and James and Peter were running late due to detention with Filch, one Sirius had narrowly escaped himself. After a few minutes of muttering angrily under his breath, he saw Madam Pomfrey emerge from underneath the Whomping Willow. The transformation was underway.
"Well, fancy seeing you around here, Black." Said a slimy voice that made Sirius clench his fists.
"Sadly, I am incapable of saying the same, Snape." He retorted. "Even sarcastically."
Snape ignored this comment and ran a hand through his greasy hair. "Say, where does your friend Lupin go to every month?"
"Well, wouldn't you like to know, you slimy git?"
"It is my prefect duty to keep the students in toll." Said Snape, as if describing the role of an Auror, his prefect badge gleaming in the moonlight.
A derogatory laugh escaped from Sirius' lips. That was a terrible excuse, even for Snape. "Well, prefect," he said, flicking the badge with his forefinger. "Why don't you go over there, right at the base of the tree, and see for yourself?"
"How, with all the moving branches?" Snape asked, clearly intrigued.
Sirius laughed as if the answer was obvious. "Why Snape, all you have to do is prod the knot at the roots of the tree to freeze the branches. That simple."
Snape remained still for a moment, probably evaluating whether or not Sirius was hoaxing him.
"Go ahead," Sirius encouraged, as if talking to a child. "Give it a try."
After a brief few seconds of hesitation, Snape walked past Sirius towards the Whomping Willow, with a stray stick in tow. As Sirius watched the Slytherin's figure retreat, his hatred towards him blinded him of the consequences of what he had led Snape into could cause. After a few whips from the branches, Snape managed to freeze them and go through the tunnel.
"Bloody hell!" Sirius cried as James and Peter appeared abruptly next to him, peeling off the Invisibility Cloak.
"Greetings mate," said James with his ever-present smile. "What'd we miss?"
"Well, Madam Pomfrey just came back which means the transformation must be happening as we speak and Snape is about to get front row seat to that spectacle." He explained nonchalantly.
Both James and Peter looked up incredulously. "S-Snape?" Peter asked, his voice quivering. "Whatever do you mean?"
"Sirius, do you mean to tell me that Snape just went down that tunnel towards the Shrieking Shack?" James inquired, clearly livid.
Sirius nodded.
"Are you mad?!" Peter bellowed. "Oh, this is terrible, we have to do something!"
Before he finished, James was already sprinting towards the Whomping Willow. As he approached the monstrous tree, several branches lashed at his face, one creating a long gash at his neck. Thankfully, Wormtail was already racing towards the knot, his small figure unharmed. The branches froze and James took the opportunity to dive into the tunnel.
His head hit the low ceiling of the tunnel, forcing him to double down. He ran forwards, his breathing heavy and sharp.
"Snape!" he called out into the void. No answer. He ran on, fearing the worst. A muffled howl rang from above, making him run faster. "SNAPE!"
Like art of magic, Snape's lanky figure formed against the dim patch of light where the tunnel ended. "Sod off, Potter!"
As James was reaching him, he screamed "SNAPE, DON'T!" But it was too late. He had already climbed through the tunnel and onto the landing.
James himself climbed through the tunnel as he heard an enormous roar. He found Snape crouched on the floor, terrorized, and Remus in full-fledged werewolf form bounding towards them. James grabbed Snape by the back of his robes and flung him into the tunnel, then himself as fast as he could, narrowly escaping Moony.
He ran back with Snape in tow, his head swimming. He winced at the thought of what could have happened had he arrived a few minutes later. He looked back to see Snape running and panting heavily, a panicked expression etched onto his face.
A thin slant of moonlight became visible at the end of the tunnel and they pulled themselves back up towards the Hogwarts grounds. As soon as Snape landed on the grass, he fell to his knees and exhaled sharply, as if letting out a breath he'd been holding in all this time.
"What was that?!" He asked Sirius and Peter, who had come running to James' aid. Neither of them responded.
Snape seemed to be gathering his wits, since his panicked expression was now dissolving, being replaced by one of pure hatred. "What sick game are you pigs playing at?"
"Sick game?" James asked incredulously, propping up his upper body by placing his hands on his knees. "I just saved your life, you ungrateful git!"
He watched as Dumbledore looked out the window, the last rays of sunlight spreading across the grounds. Severus had spent the entire day in and out of the headmaster's office, recounting last night's events along with the four boys he despised the most. He felt sick to his stomach just looking at them. Thankfully, they were just filing silently out the door, leaving him and Dumbledore in an even more uncomfortable silence. As soon as he heard the heavy door shut, he diverted his eyes forward to avoid the Headmaster's gaze.
"Severus…" Dumbledore called out to him in an exhausted voice. The black-haired Slytherin did not look over.
Dumbledore stood in front of him, forcing Severus to look into his glassy eyes. "I trust that you understand the severity of what we have discussed today."
"I trust that you understand that they could have killed me last night," Severus retorted.
"I do understand, Severus, and they will receive their proper punishment," Dumbledore explained. "but your life was not the only one on the line last night."
Severus didn't even want to respond to that remark. For a couple of years now, he had known something was amiss with Lupin, even landing on the conclusion of werewolf, but to have his suspicions confirmed was more than he could bear. No, scratch that. Having his suspicions confirmed and having to keep quiet about it was more than he could bear.
"I don't expect you to be anything other than angry," Dumbledore said calmly "but I do need your word that you will speak nothing of this."
"And what's in it for me?" Severus demanded, whipping his face to look the Headmaster square in the eye.
"I have been noticing that you have a certain knack for the Dark Arts," Dumbledore said, nibbling on a lemon sherbet. "you wouldn't want to have that revoked, would you?"
They shared a silent moment on contemplation, their gazes fixed on each other. After a while, Dumbledore held out his hand. Hesitantly, Severus shook it and headed out the door as quickly as possible, leaving the Headmaster and their silent agreement behind.
AN: Hey guys, remember to leave your comments and/or suggestions! Lots of love.