(A/N): Hey Guys! So, here's the next chapter... I plan to end third year reasonably soon, by the way.

Disclaimer: I own nothing you recognise.

Leo

The following morning was Christmas day, though the mood was hardly merry as Elaine and I entered the Hospital Wing to see Remus having his wounds tended to- wounds that I had inflicted. I had hurt Remus before- much like he had hurt me- and I needed to see the consequences hurting my friends would bring. Besides, my side was still stinging from the injuries he had inflicted the previous night, and Elaine had happened to see me wince once and refused to allow me to leave the Hospital Wing without getting checked out.

It was at about seven thirty, an hour after we had arrived, that the others burst in. They didn't seem surprised to see Elaine, but I suspected that was because they didn't know about her part in our trip last night. "Morning, Remus," Lily greeted quietly, before the boys had a chance to make a spectacle of themselves.

I saw James's eyes dart to the bandages peeking out from beneath Remus's shirt before they narrowed. "I see you were a little rough last night," He remarked, jaw clenched tight, but Remus held up a hand to placate him.

"Relax, Prongs, I deserved it." The four shared a look.

"What do you mean, 'you deserved it'?" Sirius asked, and Remus shrugged- albeit with some minor difficulty.

"The wolf mind took control and tried to attack Elaine. Leo was just defending her."

They all gaped at Remus for a second, before turning to me. Turning on me. "Why would you let her out there?!" Sirius exclaimed quietly, knowing we couldn't let Madam Pomfrey overhear us, and Elaine rolled her eyes at him with all the frustration she could muster- which was a lot of frustration, let me tell you.

"Guys, calm down, I was in animagus form!" Elaine objected, and James eyebrows shot up, before they lowered so he could raise them again in a much more controlled manner.

"You've managed the transformation, then?"

Elaine watched him carefully for a second before crossing her arms over her chest. "Yes." Sirius's face lit up at her admission.

"Would you help us then?" I winced, knowing exactly how Elaine would react, given her own experience during and since the change.

"No!" She cried, eyes wide and pained, and the boys fell silent for a minute, seemingly too stunned to speak.

Lily was clearly suspicious of this answer. "Why not?" She asked, and Elaine's frown was deeper than I had pretty much ever seen it.

"Because it's dangerous!"

James snorted, crossing his arms over his chest. "We know it's dangerous, Elaine- joining a werewolf on a full moon isn't exactly a risk free endeavor by nature." She shook her head furiously, and suddenly, he hesitated. "What... what else could possibly happen?" Scanning their faces, I knew they thought the procedure itself was completely risk free, even if their reason for doing it all was far from it.

"You could be killed!" They looked slightly taken aback by Elaine's outburst, even with the preparation they'd had. "Not just by the transformation, or even by Remus!" I glanced at him, but he didn't seem particularly hurt or offended by the statement. "You could turn on each other, like I did to Leo!" I watched as their jaws dropped, and they openly gaped at us.

"What?" Lily said, her voice eerily calm despite the fact that I could sense her emotions going haywire, and Elaine sighed.

"When I first... changed, I lost control of the animal mind." She lowered her gaze to the ground. "Leo was the only thing in the room... so it attacked at him. I attacked him."

I placed a hand on her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her, and she shot me a weak smile. "How badly?" Peter asked, so quietly he almost couldn't be heard. Well, heard by humans, anyway.

"When I came back in, I honestly thought she had killed him," Remus said, not a hint of deceit in his voice or his veins, and I saw Elaine flinch, avoiding both our eyes.

"Oh please, she barely touched me."

She shot me a look that was equal parts gratitude, and disbelief- I don't know if she didn't believe what I was saying, or didn't believe that I believed what I was saying. "So, Leo, if you helped her, why won't you help us?" James inquired, his tone pointed- weighty. He narrowed his eyes at me, and I suddenly felt rather like a bug under a magnifying glass... Why did I feel like he was trying to allude to the my crush on Elaine, as if that was the reason I'd offered her the minor assistance that I had?

"Because," I told him faux-lightly. Jovially, almost. "I know she can take it."

(A/N): So, what did you think?

Please review and/or check out my other stories!

This chapter has had minor edits made to it on 30/12/22 - Because I said Elaine was just defending Elaine, instead of Leo defending Elaine.

This chapter has had edits made to it on 6/3/24 - formatting, and reconfiguring of sentences so they make more sense. Added Leo thinking near the start that Elaine had seen him wince ONCE and refused to let him leave the hospital wing without being taken care of. Added Leo thinking that his friends were 'turning ON him' after 'turning TO him'. Added Leo thinking that Elaine could muster a lot of frustration. Added James saying that they know the risks of accompanying Remus on the full moon, since originally I had him sort of blow it off, and Leo then said they looked like they'd thought the whole thing was risk free, whereas now they only aren't aware of the dangers the actual process of BECOMING animagi brings. Added Leo thinking that there wasn't 'a hint of deceit in Remus's voice or veins' since obviously, Leo can tell when people are lying, and he can tell that Remus is being 100% truthful here- when he says he thought Elaine had killed Leo. Added Leo thinking that he didn't know whether Elaine simply didn't believe him, or didn't believe that he believed what he was saying. Added Leo thinking that he felt like a bug under a magnifying glass under James's scrutiny, and assuming that he was trying to allude to Leo's crush on Elaine (which James absolutely was).