𝐆𝐑𝐄𝐘𝐁𝐀𝐂𝐊 ❧ remus lupin

XX. The First State of Awareness

"Some things are the result of sheer, dumb luck."

Juliet's POV

After meeting in the library, Remus and I came up with the best way for both of us to escape potential danger tonight. Many different ideas, thoughts, and major realizations later, a plan was born, and we were ready. The full moon was on its way, and we had no time to waste.

Still, in the secluded corner of the library where no one could see us, I pulled the water bottle in which I had poured the Liquid Luck into, out of my backpack. Based on what we had just discussed, and we knew we had to do tonight, it was vital that Remus and I split the potion, instead of me drinking it all. So he pulled out a cup, and we split the water-like potion into equal groups.

"Bottom's up," Remus said as we cheered our cups together. Although it didn't taste very good, the immediate after-effects of the potion caused any feeling of Fenrir's curse to go away. I felt completely myself again. And watching Remus right after he had taken the potion made me laugh. He was grinning from ear to ear and had an immediate burst of happy energy.

"Wow! I feel great!" he burst out. Still so cheery, Remus said, "Well, I better go do my part, but good luck Juliet!" Remus then stood up, kissed my cheek, and left the library. Wow, I guess the potion gave Remus a sudden burst of confidence as well as energy. I slightly giggled to myself and blushed.

But I knew that I had no time to waste, and I had to prepare for what was coming next. With almost thirty minutes left of sanity left, I grabbed my backpack, equipped with anything I needed, and my wand, and left the library in the same burst of energy that Remus showed only minutes prior.

Taking the short cut, I walked down to the most terrifying tree I had ever seen, the Whomping Willow, and braced myself for the potential horror that it could show me. But I guess the potion was already working, because as soon as I touched the specific root that Remus had told me to, the tree was motionless, and I descended to the secret passageway inside the trunk of the Whomping Willow tree.

I walked for a good ten minutes before reaching the Shrieking Shack, and once I arrived I walked up to the upstairs area and patiently waited for the full moon to show itself. I prayed that the small dose of the Liquid Luck was strong enough because that combined with the Wolfsbane potion that I was about to take would hopefully stop me from doing anything savage to someone who was as innocent as a baby.

I took the mixture of the Wolfsbane potion and water, and sat on the floor until my inner demon took over. And when it finally did, my claws came out, my eyes turned a bright shade of yellow, and hair sprouted all across my body.

But the strange thing was, I was aware of everything.

I was a fully-fledged werewolf, but I didn't black out. I was aware of my surroundings, and the mind of the werewolf inside of me hadn't taken over. As a werewolf, I was in the right state of mind for the first time ever. I could control myself, and the only reasonable explanation for it was the Liquid Luck. And with the help of the Wolfsbane potion, I didn't feel violent or angered at all.

Being aware now would make it so much easier for me to resist Fenrir's urges and to keep myself safe tonight. And assuming that the Liquid Luck worked the same way when Remus took it, he too is probably aware just like I am. Thank Merlin we found that potion.

I paced around the room, my paws making the wooden boards creak below me. It was only about five minutes later when Fenrir shattered the window into the room and got my attention. At first, I thought he was still in his human form which confused me momentarily. But upon further inspection, I realized it was almost as if he was a human-werewolf mix because his claws were just as sharp, his teeth were just as sharp, and he had nearly as much hair as a regular werewolf would. But he was standing up straight with a wand in his hand, so clearly he was in a right state of mind and was aware of what he was doing.

"Get up," he commanded, and pretending as if I was still under the curse, obeyed him. I made no noise and waited for my brother to do something.

"Follow me," were his words, and so I did as he jumped out of the window of the two-story shack, and walked through a thicket of trees before approaching the same house that I was in a month prior. The last time I was here, I saw my mother in peril. Even though she did betray me, she was still my mother and I was going to help her once Remus and I got rid of Fenrir.

Still, I followed him into the dirty, old house and watched as another werewolf came into view. And after I heard Fenrir call the other werewolf Isola, my mother's name, and order her to follow him just as he had done to me, I safely assumed that my mother was that werewolf and she was under the Imperius curse the same as I.

But I had to act obedient and civil at the moment, so I disregarded her and continued to act as though I was under the Imperius curse. Still inside the house, Fenrir began to tell us what our job for the night would be. We were told that we would be traveling to the town of Hogsmeade, where we would be attacking some of the children that lived in the homes in that area. So much I wanted to scream, cry, and shout out loud, but I had to play the act, so I kept quiet while trying to hold myself together.

Fenrir then led my mother and I towards Hogsmeade, where we crept through the forest and towards the houses of innocent families and people who most certainly didn't deserve to be attacked.

However, I knew that with the plan that Remus and I had come up with, that we couldn't possibly lose to my brother. But that didn't stop me from worrying about the consequences of messing up. I grew nervous and began to break a sweat underneath my fur despite the weather being cold, and I prayed that no one, other than Fenrir, would get hurt tonight.

Word Count: 1125

a/n: dang that's a lot — anyone got any predictions for the next chappy??