Under the Wings of a Snake.

Chapter 1

At first Remus felt numb, then a shock flooded over him. A shock that screamed at him to get up, to run, to yell.

He didn't.

He couldn't.

Faint sounds flooded his ears. It was all indistinguishable, Remus felt as if he was was drowning in a sea of thoughts and feelings. Every ounce of water trying to muffle his instinct to move. Finally he was pulled out, the water's surface broke and he felt his lungs fill with not only air but also his surroundings.

A familiar palette of beige and whites made it easier to wake up. The hospital wing always made him want to try harder.

He didn't.

His hip and legs hurt. His torso stung more than anything. It stung so much that Remus didn't even realize the sounds he was hearing were slowly coming more and more into focus.

"Moons!"

"Moony..."

"Moony please!"

Remus's eyes fluttered open, the boy sitting at his bedside shifted.

"Remus? Are you-..."

His mouth felt dry as he croaked through his words.

"Yeah, I'm fine...James?"

James let out a noise, something between a dry chuckle and a motherly sigh of disapproval. James narrowed his eyes, Sometimes Remus wished the boy beside him wasn't so perceptive.

"Please Moons, don't brush it off again. I can see your bandages."

Remus ignored that, he always hated when everyone fussed over him.

That's when it hit him like a bullet. He smelled blood. It wasn't his, his was normal. His own he had learnt to block out, this was James's. This blood was mixed with lively and comforting magic.

"No, James... What happened? It doesn't feel normal."

"Its.. difficult."

"How?"

"Like... really difficult."

Remus rolled his eyes. It seemed like even in his lowest, Remus couldn't escape his scathing nature. His voice seemed to come easier now, not as forced. Just like the memories breaking into his mind now from the full moon.

"No, like... what happened?"

James looked down at his hands now as he fidgeted with the fabric of his cloak.

"James. Please."

The scent of blood was strong. It was taunting Remus, teasing him dry.

"James!"

Remus jerked up and groaned in pain. His hip was gnawing at him, it made him lay back down. James looked at him in pity. The same look everyone used for him. Remus wasn't helpless, he could endure, he really could.

"At least tell me where Pads is."

"No."

"No?"

"No.. I mean..."

"Please just tell me, please prongs."

James looked up at him, he broke the fidgeting. His voice was small, it didn't seem real. This was James for fucks sake, the same James who always seemed bigger than life, the same James who founded the marauders, brought all of them together after being broken down. Why did he all of a sudden seem to be the broken one?

"Sirius did something. He's outside right now."

"Get him then. He's always here.."

Remus swallowed hardly, looking into James's eerily dejected eyes.