Running in the dark

Chapter 33

They were all by the lake by midday where they found Marlene and Dorcas. Marlene sat next to Dorcas both of them leant up next to the tree that they all usually sat at, peering over her shoulder at the newspaper Dorcas was reading, an unreadable expression on her face.

"You alright McKinnon?" James asked, curious about her expression.

She looked up and Dorcas did too, before handing the paper over to James.

'Three wizards and one witch killed by known death eater Rodolphus Lestrange,' the heading said. It wasn't catchy as usual it was there to be informative.

"This war isn't good, all these people Dumbledore has helping him, they're getting hurt," Marlene muttered.

"Aren't your parents part of helping James?" Lily asked him, she knew about the war a bit less than the others because of her Muggle family.

"Yes, they are close with Dumbledore," James replied. It was silent for a few moments.

"Someone just needs to kill Voldemort and get it over and done with, but he's like the bloody wind," Sirius muttered.

Regulus was quiet, he didn't like talk of the war. He didn't know how he felt about it. He knew well that his parents were supportive of Voldemort, and Rodolphus Lestrange had not long ago married his and Sirius' cousin Bellatrix. He also knew that they wanted him to be part of it when he was older, but that was something Sirius was not aware of.

Lessons started on Monday and James was happy to find that he and Sirius had nearly all the same classes. Remus had most of his classes with Lily but was in James and Sirius, charms, transfiguration and defence against the dark arts classes.

Remus was rather sure potions would be calm this year, he had it with Sirius as his partner last year and he was rather destructive. He knew Sirius and James weren't taking it for NEWTs so it seemed like the lesson would be calm.

He walked into class a little late and Slughorn didn't seem the slightest bit annoyed, he liked Remus a lot, he always liked the smart students.

"Ah Remus my boy, come now, sit next to McKinnon, I was just explaining how you brew a temporary cloaking potion," he said and Remus was surprised to see Marlene smiling at him.

He took a seat next to her and began to whisper "I didn't know you were good at potions," he said to her, it was surprising, but he had never been in Marlene's potions class since the first year.

"Yes, it's how I'm so good at blowing stuff up, it's why I want to be a healer, that and to help," she said to him.

"I didn't know you have a heart Mckinnon," he laughed quietly as Slughorn droned on.

"Shut up Lupin, or I'll cut your fingers off," she snapped back and he smirked at her. Marlene was a loud person in so many ways rude but she was kind in an indescribable way, she was so open to Dorcas even though of her Slytherin heritage which usually gave people a bad reputation and she was so kind to her friends even if she laced that with mean jokes and jokey threats.

Friday evening was the night of the full moon. Remus was never completely open about his whole werewolf life until the marauders. He didn't tell any of them but James, Sirius and Peter figured it out at the start of their third year and by the end, they had turned into animagus for him.

Regulus and Lily had figured it out the year after and were as accepting as the marauders. It helped Remus get closer to Regulus and by the end of that year, he would confidently say Regulus was one of his best friends.

His father was always someone who made him hate himself for being a werewolf, made him know and realise how much of a monster he was, but his friends showed him he was still a person, that it was just an illness, something that didn't change him but made him stronger than them all in his way.

Of course, because of the moon, Remus was very restrictive of his personal space and that was one thing Sirius' didn't like, but he liked to relish in how much Remus liked to hug him and lay on his lap after the moon.

The normal routine happened, he went to the hospital wing where madam Pomfrey gave him his potion and then made his way to the Whomping Willow, it wouldn't let students through to it, but because he was a werewolf it didn't see him as a threat.

He walked through the familiar passage that led to the shack and waited until James poked his head through the trap door and Sirius and Peter went into the room afterwards. It was the same as always, Remus unchanged and they turned into their animagus forms, Peter into a rat, James into a stag and Sirius into a dog.
James hadn't told Regulus about being an animagus but swore he would at some time.

And soon enough Remus was changing, the pain going through him as always, the faint feeling on his bones breaking as they shaped differently, and then darkness and then he awoke again and found a familiar blanket that had been put on him the last few months when he woke up. Sirius was looking down at him with a worried look and Remus felt a burning sensation on his thigh.

"You've gashed your leg Moony, don't move, she should be here soon, I'll come to the hospital wing as soon as possible, alright," Sirius said Remus nodded and Sirius placed a kiss on his forehead before disappearing through the trap door behind James and Peter.

Madam Pomfrey soon came and fixed his leg up and he got dressed, when he was unable to change until he was fixed up, he would sometimes think of him in the first year, he used to be so embarrassed and even cried once and now it was like nothing.