26.
(A/N: I was listening to "Monster" by Skillet and thought that it would work rather well for this chapter.)
Avoiding his friends was harder than Remus had thought it would be. They always seemed to want to be near him or they seemed to find him shortly after he had managed to get away from them, while he was grateful and amazed that they wanted to protect him…it was getting a little annoying. Didn't they understand that there was a monster inside him, barely contained and wanting to get out? Of course they didn't, he hadn't told them, perhaps he should simply so that they would stop hanging around something as dangerous as he was…they would be safe from him then. He could feel the wolf under his skin, feel it waiting and wanting to be let out, and it would be…tomorrow night it would be let out, freed from its prison.
The secret side of me I never let you see
I keep it caged, but I can't control it
So stay away from me, the beast is ugly
I feel the rage and I just can't hold it
Remus was steadily growing more afraid of what he knew was the wolf growing inside him, desperate to be let out, wanting to unleash its anger upon the outside world. He really was a monster, he understood that now. He was a monster, he was waiting, lurking in the shadows…waiting to be set free. He never should have thought that he had ever been anything else, he wasn't like the others and he never would be. There was no escaping what he was—a monster, a half-breed, a freak, and when he got older…something to be put down.
Full-moon—shrieking shack
It's scratching on the walls, in the closet, in the halls
It comes awake, and I can't control it
Hiding under the bed, in my body, in my head
Why won't somebody come and save me from this, make it end?
As he sat in the dark, waiting for the moon to rise and set the wolf free, he couldn't help noticing the damage that he had done to this house that Dumbledore and some of the other teachers had made for him. There were marks on the walls where his claws had gouged into the wood, there were hunks of furniture littered about the room, dried blood everywhere, and all of it had been done by him. It didn't matter to him that he hadn't actually been aware of what the wolf had been doing; it was still him who was destroying everything…he who was the monster. He was the one who was a blood-thirsty wolf once a month, the wolf hiding inside him, always wanting out, yet only able to get it's freedom once a month. It was uncontrollable and there was no help for him, there was no cure.
I feel it deep within, it's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become, the nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
The moon rose and bathed the world in its light, creating a picturesque landscape, with a castle silhouetted against the moon and a lake, which reflected its light. Indeed it was a most beautiful and awe-inspiring sight. Yet for one boy alone, in a shack, it was anything but beautiful. For, it brought immeasurable amounts of agony to him, ripping him apart, breaking his bones, and realigning them to form a different creature. Coarse hair pushing through his skin and covering his body, a tail forcing its way out from the base of his spine, his knees breaking and turning around before solidifying in their new position. His screams rent the night, morphing into howls as his body changed once more into that of a wolf.
I, I feel like a monster
I, I feel like a monster
It's hiding in the dark, it's teeth are razor sharp
There's no escape for me, it wants my soul, it wants my heart
No one can hear me scream, maybe it's just a dream
Maybe it's inside of me, stop this monster
The wolf growled low in its throat, its hackles up, fangs bared, and eyes full of hate. It could smell the humans and the scent of one particular human called to it, taunting it with how close it was to the humans. It was free, yet still held captive by the walls of the building. The wolf wanted out of its second prison and when it got out then it would hunt that one scent, the scent of its tormentor, that particular human would not be safe once it got out. It threw itself against the walls until it found a weak point, the wolf moved with renewed vigor, throwing itself against the wall and making it splinter under the force. The wolf paid no attention to the pain in its shoulder, merely irritated as it moved for one final crash into the wall, and went right through it. The wolf howled in triumph and sped forward through the forest and towards the scent of that one human who had tormented it.
I feel it deep within, it's just beneath the skin
I must confess that I feel like a monster
I hate what I've become, the nightmare's just begun
I must confess that I feel like a monster
The wolf charged through the forest, howling its joy at being free and finally hunting the only thing that it wanted. It halted when it caught the scent of something strange, something…big.
It moved forward cautiously, sniffing curiously until a hut came into view, a hut with a strange smelling individual inside. The wolf wasn't going to waste time on whatever was in there, it moved stealthily around the hut and towards the castle, searching for a way inside, searching for a way to reach its prey.
Thank you for reading, this latest chapter. Please review, and I hope that this story will continue to be at least interesting. Thanks again and you are all awesome!