Marauders 1971 - 1978

22nd December 1971

Remus was delighted. He was wrapped in a throw blanket, snuggled on the sofa, dipping biscuits into a mug of tea. On the small TV, The Magic Roundabout played quietly, just audible over the stotting rain outside. His mother was curled comfortably on the other end of the sofa, leafing through a muggle newspaper. What more could he want? No full moon 'til almost a week after Christmas, his dad had managed to get time off work and it seemed his mother had gone overboard with the Christmas snack stock-piling. The house was brimming with biscuits, nuts and oranges. Remus didn't think he'd gone an hour without eating since arriving home.

Their little Christmas tree stood on top of a small chest in the bay window, to give it a bit more height, and underneath, an enchanted train set that Remus remembered admiring in a Diagon Alley shop window a few years ago chuffed around the base. They didn't have many magical things in their house. The Lupins had moved several times in the past few years, favouring muggle towns over wizarding settlements simply because muggles were more likely to think they had a badly behaved dog than a werewolf son. It was easy enough to get away with. His mother was a primary school teacher - so there was always work - and Lyall didn't need to worry about his commuting distance. He just needed a dark alleyway to apparate from.

Weirdly, he supposed they were the perfect family for him. Loving and willing enough to reschedule their entire social lives around the affliction of their child. Unbothered by blood politics and appearances enough to not reject and disown him. Content enough with the family they had that he didn't hold them back from any ambitions.

Well, those were the things he told himself when he was in a good mood. He could only pray it was true.

He'd held his biscuit in the cup of tea for too long and it had broken off into the drink and disintegrated into sludge in the bottom. He abandoned the cup on the floor, a little disgusted.

"Hey," Hope whispered, reaching out to poke Remus in the leg with her toe. He turned to see her smiling at him from around her paper.

"Yeah?" He whispered back.

"We missed you."

Remus wanted to try and play it cool - it was hardly the first time she'd said it since he'd returned home a few days ago. But who would he be fooling? He'd missed them so much that he'd cried at the station (much to his embarrassment).

And so, he smiled softly back and flicked the blanket to cover her legs too.

"I missed you too."

She put her paper down on the floor and sat up so she could huddle closer and give him a one-armed hug. Remus let her rest her chin on the top of his head. She still smelled like rain from her run to the corner shop earlier.

The TV was interrupted by static as the rain fell heavier than ever.

Hope hadn't even realised she was asleep before she was jolted awake by the most horrifying sound she'd ever heard.

She was halfway down the corridor, heart hammering, before she'd even realised she was awake. Remus had screamed, she was sure. From behind the door ahead of her, she could hear a low rumble and high whimper.

And then another shriek. She only became aware of Lyall behind her when she felt him push roughly past her and slam the door open with his shoulder - ignoring the handle completely.

From behind him, she saw a sickening image. A huge wolf, the size of a grown man, crouched over on the floor of Remus' bedroom. In its wide mouth, an obscenely small leg. And then the blood.

On the floor, on its fur, coating its teeth and dripping from the horrifying jaws, and worst of all, running down that one pale leg. A brutal kind of comprehension fell upon her with the tenderness of a brick as her eyes followed the bloody leg to the stained pyjamas on the tiny body, and landed on the wide-eyed, tear and bloodstained face of her child.