The boys had their first Transfiguration lesson on Tuesday. For once, most of the students found the classroom before class began. The four boys took their usual seats in the back of the room. They were chattering loudly, when Professor McGonagall swept into the room and everyone except James fell silent. James, who had been holding Sirius' quill far above his head and taunting him, was facing away from the door when Professor McGonagall walked in. She took one look at his antics and waved her wand in a complicated manner. Sirius' quill froze and turned into a small garden snake.
"That was transfiguration. If you sit down and pay attention in my class, you may learn how to do that someday." Every student in the class was enthralled. McGonagall waved her wand again, and handed Sirius back his quill. "Now, boys, I do believe that you four should sit up front in order to improve your listening skills. Your permanent seats are now in the front row." the four boys gathered their stuff and moved to the two tables in the front of class with resigned expressions. Remus looked mortified that a teacher already believed he was a troublemaker. The other three were just frustrated that they would be unable to get into mischief on the front row. "Take out your quills and write down Humbleberg's theory of basic transfiguration" McGonagall said as words appeared on the chalkboard at the front of class.
Remus wrote furiously and was pleased that he was able to earn five points for Gryffindor by naming the five basic thoughts behind elementary transfiguration. James also earned five points by being the first person to be able to turn his matchstick into a needle. Unfortunately, Sirius lost fifteen points by waving his wand randomly at his matchstick until it finally burst into flame.
To the boys' utter horror, Professor Slughorn also wanted them in the front of class for Potions. As soon as they entered the door, he marched over and shook Sirius and James' hands with a large clammy one of his own. "Welcome, Welcome, boys sit right down here at the front so we can get to know each other" Slughorn blustered. "I had both of your parents, of course,. Excellent wizards. Excellent" Slughorn ignored the rest of the class for several minutes as he continued to talk about the Black and Potter families. Finally, he began to take roll. He paused slightly over Remus' name, and seemed to frown at it. The other boys looked at Remus with confusion. Remus' father worked at the Ministry of Magic and was well known. Slughorn shouldn't have any problem with Remus. They shrugged it off when Professor Slughorn moved on without comment. The class went pretty well, but Professor Slughorn seemed to go out of his way to avoid speaking to Remus.
Remus left the room feeling a little bit cold. He was actually surprised that more teachers hadn't reacted that way or worse. Remus knew that all of them were aware that he was a werewolf, and he had been shocked that they had treated him so equally. James came up from behind him and poured a bunch of purple invisible ink onto Remus' cloak. Remus grinned as his cloak was soaked in a lurid purple that quickly faded away. He pushed the messy-haired boy and chased him all the way to the Great Hall.
The rest of the week went incredibly quickly. They ate an incredible roast beef dinner on Friday night and began to plan their exploits for the weekend. James and Sirius were desperate to explore the castle for secret passages. Peter wanted to talk to some more of the portraits. Remus was unusually quiet. The boys had noticed that he had been getting paler all week, and now the smallest boy seemed to be picking at his food. James looked at him with a little bit of concern. "All right there, Rem?" He questioned. "I'm fine. And it is Remus" the boy answered quickly. James smirked. Nicknames were so much more fun when they were unwanted. "Oh, of course, Rem, I will never call you that again" he chortled. Remus just glared. Their tiff was interrupted when McGonagall walked over to their table.
"Remus, if I could have a word with you in my office when you have finished your dinner."
The tired looking boy pushed his plate aside. "I'm finished now, Professor" he explained. She smiled and led him out of the Great Hall. The other boys immediately began to brainstorm theories for why Remus was required in McGonagall's office. Remus heard them mention something about him being involved in an exploding toilet crime ring before he left the hall. He smiled to himself. Hopefully, they would continue to think the same way when he disappeared on Sunday. Remus was pretty sure that this meeting with McGonagall was about the upcoming full moon.
Professor McGonagall told him to sit down and offered him a gingersnap biscuit. Remus took it shyly and nibbled at the corner. "I called you in here to discuss the arrangements for Sunday." McGonagall explained. "You will go to Madam Pomfrey by four in the afternoon, and she will lead you to the Whomping Willow. That is a dangerous tree that has been planted to hide this secret passage." Remus smiled slightly at this. James and Sirius would be so jealous if they knew that he had found a secret passageway first. Of course, he would never tell them where it was. "Madam Pomfrey will be able to neutralize the tree so that you can safely travel the passageway. It leads to a house in Hogsmeade that should be a safe place for you to transform. Dumbledore and I have put layers of protective spells on the house so that you cannot escape and harm anyone." Remus looked relieved at this. "I wish that we could do something to make the experience easier on you" Professor McGonagall added taking in the weariness of the boy in front of her.
"It's alright, really, Professor. It will just be nice to not have to wear chains" Remus tried to reassure her. Professor McGonagall did not look convinced, but continued talking. "You may tell your friends any excuse for disappearing, but for your safety, I must ask you not to tell them about your condition. All of your professors know about your condition. You will be granted extra time for assignments that are missed because of the moon, and you should feel free to visit Madam Pomfrey if you are feeling sick. Your health comes first." she finished.
Remus left the room feeling so grateful to be able to stay at Hogwarts. He was also terrified that his friends would find out his secret. He knew that he must be showing signs of sickness from the moon. James had noticed at dinner, and he was exhausted and nauseous. Remus entered the portrait hole intending to go straight up to his four-poster bed and call it an early night. He was delayed by three exuberant voices that demanded to know if he had secretly been kidnapped at birth and raised by pirates. "Um, no. That's not quite what happened." Remus chuckled. "I just have to go home for a bit Sunday afternoon. My mum's sick, and Professor McGonagall was arranging for me to visit her." The other three boys looked stricken. They had never thought that something was actually wrong. "I'm so sorry mate." James said. The excited mood had died down immediately. "That's alright. I don't think it is too serious" Remus said hoping to downplay is absence. "I think I will just head up to be now though." The other boys let him go. Sirius clapped a hand on his shoulder before he climbed the stairs to their dorm. There was a long silence after Remus had left the room. The three boys were thinking about ways to help their new friend. "We should plan a surprise for him, when he gets back." Sirius said. They all sat around the fire to discuss ideas.
A/N: Thanks so much for reviewing! First moon and first prank are coming up. :)