Chapter 18:::In the Light of the Moon
Emily gazed around the empty entrance. It was 9:00 on February 4th, the day of her rounds with Evans, and the day Lupin disappeared.
Emily had searched for him during meal times, her break, and in the library, where she usually saw him during the day, but he was gone.
At first she thought she missed her chance, but she noticed that her brother, Sirius, and Pettigrew were still in school and looked as though they were anticipating something. There was also the fact that she overheard them muttering in the corridor as she passed. They had stopped talking when they saw her, James giving her a glare, but she caught a couple words.
Remus…moon…tonight …tree…Whatever they're going to do, it's going to take place on the grounds tonight.
Emily crossed her arms and tilted her head as she heard quick footsteps heading her way.
"You're late Evans."
Emily heard a huff and Lily Evan stopped in front of her, an annoyed expression on her face.
"Well, your common room is in the dungeons and mine is on the seventh floor. It's only logical that you get here first."
Emily shook her head. "Not true, if you left earlier, you could have gotten here before me."
Lily crossed her arms. "I usually leave the common room with Remus and we just start the patrol, we never have to meet."
"Well I'm not Lupin and you're late." Emily stated. "Now, can we start our rounds so I can get back to my common room and do something that's actually productive?
"Fine." Lily snapped, turning to walk back up the stairs. "If you're that eager to get away from me."
Emily raised an eyebrow. "And what's that supposed to mean Evans?"
Lily stopped and turned her head to look at Emily coolly. "Well I only assume that you wouldn't want to be in the company of someone like me."
"An annoying over obsessive know-it-all who thinks she's so important that everyone cares about her opinion and is the biggest tease that ever lived?"
Emily smirked at Lily's outraged expression and fake realization dawned on her face.
"Oh…you're just talking about the fact that you're a muggleborn. Well that was the furthest thing from my mind and I really don't care less about your heritage or where you came from, it's just the earlier facts that bug me about you."
Lily glared at Emily and her hands clenched into fists at her side. "You Potters are the most arrogant and self-absorbed bunch of gits I've ever met." She hissed through gritted teeth.
Emily suddenly straightened to her full height, which was a whole three inches taller than Lily's 5"4', and glared down at the redhead.
"Do not group me in with my so called brother, I am nothing like him! If you actually paid more attention to other peoples' feelings besides your own oversensitive ones then you would know that James could never say something bad about you, even if it is true. And if he was here right now, whom do you think he would be defending?"
Emily scowled let a scowl form. "Me from you, for calling me something that's not true, or you from me, for calling you things that are true?"
Lily didn't answer and took a step back in surprise, looking unsure.
Emily's scowl dropped from her face and she inwardly rolled her eyes. She composed herself again and raised an eyebrow.
"I thought so. Now if you're finished with the whole 'Oh poor me the younger girl called me bad name five years ago that I just can't seem to get over' act, can we please begin our rounds?"
Lily caught herself mid-nod and straightened, trying to regain some dignity she had misplaced. "Fine, I'll take first floor you take the ground floor and dungeons." She turned on her heal and stalked up the stairs.
"Oh, and Evans?" Emily called.
Lily paused, but didn't turn.
"Next time you call someone arrogant for just expressing their true feelings you should really look at the way you present and express yourself closer." Emily said.
Lily stood at the top of the stairs with her back to Emily for only a moment longer before continuing on her way.
Emily smirked, but it quickly faded when Lily was out of sight. Looking around the entrance hall she searched for a nice hiding spot, and found one in the side room of the entrance hall. She left the door opened a crack and waited.
Emily checked her watch once, then again, then again, and then again. By the fourth time it was 9:49. She was about to give up on waiting when the sound of heavy footsteps falling onto the stair, heading her way, caught her attention. She watched and watched, half of her thinking it was Lily, but the other half hoping it was one of the Marauders.
One half was proved right as she watched pudgy Peter Pettigrew stumble down the stairs quickly and rushed out of the castle, muttering to himself quietly
Emily drew her wand and tapped her own head, casting the Disillusionment Charm on herself. She shivered as she felt the spell took effect, washing over her body and making her blend into her surroundings. Once complete she left the room, her wand still drawn and held firmly in her hand, and followed Pettigrew, keeping an unnoticeable distance between them.
She was glad clouds covered the rising full moon so the darkness of the night plus the charm kept her hidden, because the older boy was constantly looking around nervously for followers. As he passed the greenhouse she paused behind one and watched him continue walking. She felt confusion when she saw that he wasn't heading towards the Forbidden Forest, like she suspected he would have to meet the rest of his group, but towards the thrashing twisting Whomping Willow.
Emily had no idea why that tree had ever been planted. It was a danger to the students and an eyesore to the school grounds.
Emily narrowed her eyes and watched as Peter stopped in front of the tree.
What's he planning?
He eyes widened as he suddenly disappeared.
Moving swiftly, Emily hurried towards the tree. She squinted and looked around frantically. She was glad when the clouds moved away from the moon and the moonlight lit up the grass, causing her to be able to spot something scurrying through the grass and towards the tree.
The small thing, an animal if she had to take a guess, reached the tree and jumped onto a raised root. Suddenly the branches of the stopped moving and Pettigrew's figure rematerialized.
He then quickly descended into the tree through an open space in the roots.
Emily hesitated for a moment before following down the hole before the tree began to move again.
Once inside the tree she stopped to let her eyes to adjust to the dark before following the sound of Pettigrew's footsteps, her mind on what she just witnessed. How Pettigrew had shrunk and made the Whomping willow stop moving.
Pettigrew is an animagus, and I have no doubt that the rest are as well, but…why? And why are they meeting under a tree?
A pain filled cry of agony and torture made Emily stop short. Her eyes widened as it continued and caused a fearful chill to run through her veins and her heart rate to escalate dramatically. She began to walk again, her pace increasing, and a sudden strange curiosity to rise.
She began to wonder what the hell the Marauders were doing, and whom they were doing it to.
She turned the corner of a bend and found herself in front of a door that was ajar. She winced as a howl-like scream tore through the air and she cautiously leaned forward look into the room.
What she saw shocked her. Moonlight was streaming into a room that was the image of destruction. Torn drapes, the bed in the corner was shredded; mattress springs coming out of its torn cloth, and mud, dirt, and grime covered the room. Sitting rear the bed was a white stag, a big black dog, and a rat.
Emily realized that the dog and the stag were Sirius and James, while the rat was Peter. She had been right about them being animagi.
Emily then turned her attention to the withering and twitching figure of Remus Lupin in the center of the room. He was clad in only a pair of jeans, leaving his chest bare open for Emily to see the scars that covered his chest, arms, and neck.
Emily watched with sick fascination as Remus began to claw at his own skin, screams and howls leaving his mouth. He was screaming his throat raw, Emily could imagine, and his screams only seemed to get louder and sharper as more moonlight entered the room through the window.
Emily looked out the foggy and dirty window and saw all clouds leave the moon's path and watched the moon's pure light streak through the window and settle on Remus's panting and tortured form.
He let out another pain filled howl, this one sounding more animalistic, and he clawed at the ground, his nails growing longer and sharper and digging deeply into the wooden floor. He arched his back and Emily watched, unable to look away, as his skin stretched and torn as his bones grew and shrunk, and fur began to sprout all over his body, his jeans ripping as his legs grew longer and muscles bulged, and more fur began to grow at a excruciatingly fast rate.
Soon Remus was not Remus anymore, but a fur covered beast with clawed toes and hands, and fanged teeth shining eerily in the moonlight as the boy turned beast let out panted breaths from his mouth turned muzzle.
The furry figure turned on its side and stood up, stretching and arching his new body, letting out a one last howl, but this time of pleasure instead up pair.
Emily's eyes were incredibly wide with fear and her mouth was parted in shock. Her hands shook and it took all her willpower to not faint or drop her wand.
Lupin…Lupin is a…a werewolf!
Emily knew it was time for her to leave before she was noticed and killed. She took a step back, and then another, heading towards the bend and corridor that lead back to the exit. However, her heart stopped as a twig snapped underneath her foot.
Her eyes turned back to the room and the rustling and growling inside informed her that the werewolf had heard her. Emily turned swiftly and ran, but before she could get far the door flew off its hinges and a large chunk of wood hit her and caused her to fall forward.
She twisted her head to look behind her. The werewolf was crouched on his hind legs and a growl on his lips, his yellow eyes watching her hungrily.
Emily whimpered and tears began to fall from her eyes. She didn't want to move, in fear of provoking the werewolf, but knew she couldn't stay there because the beast would attack her eventually.
Suddenly another growl sounded, followed by a bark, and the big black dog Emily identified as Sirius ran in front of Emily and growled at the werewolf.
Emily watched mystified as the werewolf took another step foreword and Sirius pounced.
Emily could not move or look away as the two canines fought. She knew she should have been moving, her mind was screaming at her to move, but her body refused to listen, and she felt an overriding fear take over her. Partly for herself, and partly for Sirius.
A sudden urgent nudge made Emily look into the familiar hazel eyes of James in the form of a stag.
It didn't take any more for Emily to get up and run full speed towards the exit, but a sudden crash and pain filled yelp made her look over her shoulder. The werewolf had thrown Sirius off him and into the wall.
It was now James trying to block the beast's path, but he too was thrown out of the way, leaving his prey open for the chase.
Emily let a sob/scream loose and tried to run faster, but she knew it was no use as she felt her skin rip and tear as the werewolf's claws slashed against her back to stop her. Emily's head hit the stone of the passageway's wall as a result from the beast's powerful swipe, and a loud crack rang through her head, and a warm liquid slid from her temple.
Her vision began to blur and she son found herself lying face down on the ground, the werewolf's looming figure hovering over her, ready to deliver the fatal blow, but he was once again thwarted by Sirius as the large dog jumped on the werewolf's back and bit at its neck.
Emily panted and tried to stand, but failed as the world around her began to spin. She was nudged again and she looked up with pain filled eyes, her brown eyes locking onto James's hazel ones.
"James…" She whimpered. "I'm sorry."
His eyes flashed and he knelt down beside her, motioning to his back.
Emily understood and wrapped her arms around her brother's, in stag form, neck. James stood with a little difficulty and galloped toward the exit. Once out he began to dodge the Whomping willow's branches, that had began to move again, but one swept above him and knocked Emily off his back and flying through the air.
She landed in a painful heap some yards away, and her consciousness left her, leaving her broken and bleeding on the Hogwarts grounds.
