Warning: RL/SB slash, violence, language, and possibly other things

Rating: PG-13 at the moment

Spoilers: Probably

Notes: This is my new pet project divided into eight parts, and three within each part of that. You may continue...

Year One: The Ears Have It

Page One- Fall

Little Remus Jacob Lupin was a size too small for his robes and a size too large for his hat. The toes of his sneakers were just barely visible from beneath the folds of black cloth, while the tips of his ears were pointing noticeably out from under the brim of his hat. They were oddly shaped ears, slightly longer than normal, with a bit of a point at the end, and they tended to turn a brilliant red when the boy was embarrassed.

And right now, his ears were roughly the color of a cooked lobster. His book had been plucked unceremoniously out of his hands and was now being thoroughly made fun of by a Mr. James Harold Potter and his friend, Mr. Sirius Orion Black. Of course, Sirius had nothing to laugh about, considering the state of his initials, but Remus still didn't feel comfortable having his cherished book poked at by such a pair of mischief makers as these two obviously were.

It didn't help that the book was a Muggle romance novel.

The other boys had already crowed delightedly over the fact, but instead of continuing on with just Remus' book (and soft spot for romance), they had settled themselves into the roles of classic hero and damsel in distress and were clowning around the small car, arms waving everywhere. Remus could tell that they were not intending to be cruel- they just wanted to have a bit of fun. And yet, he was a little nervous and still quite red.

He sat quietly on the edge of the seat, his toes brushing the floor, eyes wide, ears back, like a puppy. The tears that had been welling behind his eyes when he first boarded the train were now gone, replaced with a vague excitement and a great deal of apprehension. They were a nice hazel color now, just soon enough after the full moon that their natural green had been at least partially restored. For, you see, Remus J. Lupin was a werewolf.

Bitten at the age of seven, Remus had been struggling for the past four years to find his footing as a "normal" human being. His parents, not knowing what to do, had called several specialists and worked out a schedule for him to follow. More meat in his diet, a well padded cage for full moons, and blood transfusions were part of the plan. When he had gotten his Hogwarts acceptance letter, Mary and Blake Lupin had planned on politely refusing. However, Albus Dumbledore made a special house call to the Lupins and talked through a plan to deal with the lycanthropy before they had a chance to object. When they had finished, Remus was well on his way to Hogwarts.

And now here he sat, across from a pair of dark haired pranksters and next to a blond boy who seemed to fade into the cushions. As previously stated, the boys across from him (who were by now nearly on top of each other) were Sirius Black and James Potter. The boy next to him had quietly said his name was Peter Emerson Pettigrew. Silently, Remus had assessed them.

Sirius had shaggy black hair that seemed a bit too long for school standards, blue eyes and a mouth that never seemed to close. He was the most boisterous of the three, caterwauling a poorly rhymed love song to James while beating a small pillow of his to death. His eyes were constantly darting everywhere, often pausing to rest on Remus's red ears or hazel eyes, which he seemed to find interesting. The little werewolf crossed his toes in the hope that Sirius would never find out why he had such odd body parts.

James also had black hair that was much shorter than Sirius's and seemed to stand on end, as if he had just experienced static electricity from a load of fresh laundry. His brown eyes were so dark as to be almost black, but glittered as brightly as Sirius's behind his round glasses. James seemed to be the most confident of the three, every movement he made was deliberate, and he could switch his playfulness off easily, which was something Sirius did not seem to be able to do.

Peter was small with the baby plumpness of a child half his age and had a tidy, short haircut. He was about the same height as Remus, had a more charming smile than Sirius, and James's ability to turn off his emotions. He had told them quietly as they left Kings Cross that he was terribly sad, but prided himself in never having cried in all his eleven years. He tended, however, to fade into the background quite well, dark blue eyes turned down and small hands folded neatly in his lap.

Already, though James and Sirius were embarrassing him, Remus found he was enjoying the company. Peter, as well, was rather an enjoyable companion, and was currently studying his Transfiguration textbook. He seemed like the studious type, and Remus had seen several classic books peeking out of his book bag.

"Say, Lupin," called Sirius from his upside down position on the opposite seat "d' you happen to have James repellent in your bag? I'm in desperate need of some."

Indeed, he looked as if he needed some... and NOW. James had taken off his robes and was attempting to choke his best friend with them, yelling something about how maidens were idiots, and boy-maidens were worse. "I will NOT go picking flowers with you, having tea with you, OR buying dresses with you, Sirius Orion!" he growled, shaking the robe and making Sirius' dark head bob in protest.

"I'll go," offered Peter, smiling winningly. He really had a lovely smile, the kind that could charm thorns off a rose.

"Thank you! At least someone appreciates the finer points of female nature," sniffed Sirius, kicking James unceremoniously in the stomach. Unfortunately for the poor "maiden," James let go of his hold on the robes, and Sirius fell over backwards, tumbling head over heels and finally ending up in a sprawling heap on the compartment floor.

Remus started forward, but Sirius laughed and stood up, stretching his boyish frame until it seemed to fill the area. "Free!" he crowed, and then darted out of the door, as James took off after him, shouting murderously.

However, both boys' flight was impeded almost at once by a pair of burly boys, who looked meaner than eleven-year-olds should. Sirius stopped dead in his tracks and Remus (who was peering out the compartment door) was amused to see James run straight into his back. After that came a short scuffle between the two sets of boys, and the smaller pair ran back into the compartment, slamming the door behind them.

Sirius was panting. "If they ask, I'm not here!" he said in a loud whisper, and pretended to hide underneath the seat.

Remus couldn't help it. He burst out laughing, hands clutching his knees for support. This seemed to delight Sirius and James, who both broke out into wide smiles and laughed along with their new companion. Peter, too, let loose one of his award winning grins, and they all shared a moment of completed happiness. "A happy ring," as James later referred to it. A happy ring... where the only thing you are concerned with is whether or not your mouth will stick permanently in a smile.

Half an hour later, none of the boys were smiling. The first years were all crowded into an anti-chamber just outside the Great Hall of Hogwarts. One person had fallen in the lake and smelled like a human fish to Remus. He and his new friends all were standing near the door leading out, each with their eyes nervously watching the other students and then flicking back to the door, waiting for the return of the professor who was to lead them in. Peter looked positively ill. "I'm going to be in Slytherin... I know it... I just know it!" he squeaked, eyes wide with terror. "They'll eat me alive in Slytherin! I'll be fried Peter on toast!"

Remus smiled shyly at him. "Maybe you'll be in Hufflepuff. I heard they're really nice there."

"Really nice, and really dumb!" said Sirius, a little too loudly. He looked as though he was about to faint. Fortunately, none of the to-be-Hufflepuffs, or anyone outside of their little group heard him. "I hope I don't get in that house."

"Oh come on, Sirius. You know you're a Slytherin." James was attempting to hold his fear under. He smiled weakly.

"Yeah," he said, a bit glumly. "And you're going to be a Gryffindor. That's for certain."

Remus bit his lip. Split up a new friendship? That could Not be fun.

One of the professors returned and herded them into an uneven line and began to march them down the length of the Great Hall. Overhead, the ceiling showed bright with stars, and closer to them, candles floated above the tables. Sirius had grabbed the back of Remus' robe and was trotting along behind him, the other hand holding tightly to Peter's sleeve. The head of the line stopped, and the tattered Sorting Hat on a stool began to sing. Remus, however, was not paying attention. Instead, his eyes were wandering over the magnificent ceiling, picking out constellations out of habit, and trying to feel at home. He knew what he was required to do, and therefore it didn't worry him that he was missing the first part of the ceremony.

Then they began to call names. Remus's mouth went dry. "Abbot, Jean!"

James nudged Peter and whispered something in his ear. Peter went red and nodded, then whispered something back. James grinned at him.

"Black, Sirius!"

Sirius gave Remus' robe a little tug and then flounced up to the stool. Sitting down, he looked up patiently at the professor who placed the Sorting Hat on his head. It became still and Sirius sat, looking up at the brim expectantly. Then suddenly the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!" And Sirius went slack with released tension.

Remus paid no attention to the next few names. Sirius was in Gryffindor? And he was waving at them from across the room. Well, at least he and James could be together. A little smile twitched at his lips. They could be happy. But he..? He would probably end up in Ravenclaw. Ravenclaw. The word had at first sounded fierce and sharp- like a brain on edge, brilliance in motion. But now it sounded lonely... so incredibly-

"Lupin, Remus!"

Trembling, he approached the front of the Hall. Settling down on the stool proved to be harder than he had thought it would be- due to the fact that it had only three legs and was extremely hard on the buttock region. Then the hat was placed gently on his head and a little voice wormed its way into his brain. "Ah... so you are the little one with the dark secrets..."

Remus felt himself cringe.

"Don't worry. I won't tell. Hm... the Slytherins are mighty protective of their own kind. You might be very well cared for there."

His brain was rather numb. He had no idea what to think.

"Well, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuffs are definitely not right. You have a douse of mischief in you... perhaps..." The voice stopped for a moment and then yelled "GRYFFINDOR!" so loudly that it made the poor young werewolf nearly fall off the stool in surprise.

And then he was at the table, a faceless group of happy beings patting him on the back and cheering him on in his dazed state. Sirius was hugging him around his waist and someone had dropped a wreath of strange smelling flowers from the table around his neck. In less than five minutes, the names of Peter Pettigrew and James Potter were called, both of them joining the two radiant boys at the Gryffindor table. Altogether they had nine Gryffindor first years- five girls and four boys- a fact that made James wince and Peter blush.

Someone across the table passed Remus a note that had someone else's name on it and told him to pass it along, which he did without a word. Sirius reached for the gravy and knocked over a bowl of vegetable soup. Peter was too busy reading to discover that he had dipped his bread in hot mustard until it was too late. But other than that, dinner was a rather uneventful meal. Delicious, but uneventful.

One of the prefects, with an imperious tone, directed the youngsters along the confusingly twisted corridors towards their dorms. James caught a hold of Sirius' robe and whispered something in his ear. Remus was so nervous that his wand fell out of his sweaty grasp, and was picked up and returned by a sweet faced Gryffindor first year. "Dropped this?" she asked, her rosebud lips parting to reveal a line of pretty white teeth, one of which had fallen out.

"Thanks," Remus replied, taking the wand back and sliding it into a pocket of his robe.

"I'm Lily."

"Remus."

"Excited?" she asked, eyebrows raising into her mop of unruly red hair. It was cut a bit too short for her face, but would be obviously very pretty if let grow.

"Nervous," he replied, smiling shyly.

"Oi! Loopy! Stop flirting and come with your gang!" Sirius yelled cheerfully back at him, gesturing the shorter boy to join the rest of his little pack- pack... Remus cringed a little. They were his gang. His mob. His mafia. His friends. But not his pack. Never his pack. Obediently, he trotted up to them, nodding a short goodbye to Lily.

Peter was chattering in the manner of frightened folk, his small ruddy hands gesturing wildly. "I didn't think I'd get into Gryffindor. I'm such a little frightened rat, I should be in Hufflepuff. Yes, I think they put me in the wrong house, but I'm not going to take it back," he giggled nervously. "Take it back, I can't take it back! Can't take anything back.... oh dear... do you think I'll fit in? We're the only boys in the first year? Just us... right? And all those girls. Do either of you have a schedule? I seem to have lost mine...."

James clapped a hand over Peter's mouth and shoved a schedule into his hands. "I'll share with Sirius."

"Like hell you will!"

One of the paintings on the wall frowned. "Watch your language there, young chap. Uphold the Gryffindor face and all that..."

Sirius stuck out his tongue at the painting and handed James his schedule. "You can keep mine. I'll just use Remus'."

James made a dissatisfied noise, but Remus smiled and said softly, "Okay." His friends.

~ * ~

"Ha ha... catch me!" Remus woke, sweating, still hearing the words whispered against his ear, the bite of the sharp teeth against his throat, the welling of blood that rushed to all points of his star-like body. The cold fingers on his shoulders, the greedy growls and the red blood that flowed down his neck into the vampire's waiting mouth... He sat, shivering, hands gripping his elbows. His eyes were shadowed by lashes, and his lips were pressed together in a thin, firm line.

Sunlight was peaking through the window to his left, and James was already stirring into wakefulness. It would take at least another hour to get Sirius up, but Peter would come along shortly. But to his surprise, Sirius was not in his bed. Remus' forehead crinkled. They had been roommates for four weeks already, and he thought he had gotten used to his friends' habits.

Suddenly, Sirius slammed the door open and yelled happily, "Double Charms with Hufflepuffs today!" He bustled around the room, throwing the clothes off each of the beds, singing a ridiculously obnoxious song. When he got to Remus' bed, he paused to lean over the smaller boy and croon, "And I'll wait for you... in the dumpster, my love! After you've thrown me out...." before prancing over to the window and throwing it open. "Get up, boys! Today is the day for...." He glanced over his shoulder at James. "My big plot!"

Remus felt like throwing his covers over his head and hiding. The "big plot" had been brewing for about two weeks now, and Sirius got more and more excited with each coming morning. Though not quite sure of the details, he knew that it had something to do with a Hufflepuff named Carlos and the new professor's large bowl of lollies. James, on the other hand, had leapt out of bed and was frantically pulling his pants on. Peter had rolled off of his and was curled up with his arms around a pair of James' socks. He mumbled something in his sleep.

Sirius pulled on James' hand and the two ran out the door, leaving their dormmates to get dressed on their own.

Remus stretched a little and reached out for his shower bucket and clothes. He liked to clean up in the morning and at night, so that he had a fresh face for both times of the day. His roomies didn't share his sentiment for showers, but didn't mind him being absent for the showering. James and Sirius showered with him in the evening, while Peter was a morning washer.

The boy slid across the floor in his stocking feet, the slick waxed wood making a good sliding area. Out the door and up a few stairs Remus alternately slid and trotted, reaching the bathroom in less than thirty seconds. It was already steamy, as someone from the upper classes had already used the facilities, while another was still using the third stall from the left. The showering person was singing loudly in a strong and rather beautiful voice. Remus smiled to himself. It had to be Arthur Weasley- the only seventh year who showered in the morning and sang with such an amazing voice.

Quietly, Remus began to take off his clothes and fold them neatly. He picked up his shower bucket and entered the shower after hanging his towel on the door where he could easily reach it. Turning on the water, Remus tilted his head slightly so that the warm spray could reach down his neck and back. Aaahhh... showers in the morning.... he gave a small girlish squeal... absolutely perfect! To be equaled only, perhaps, by showers in the evening.

It was at that moment that the water went freezingly cold.

There was a burst of laughter and Remus saw red. He grabbed his clothes and yanked them on without waiting to dry off. He knew who was behind this. Lollies my tail. This is what they were planning all along, he thought with bemused anger.

Storming out of the bathroom with a dripping wet robe and his fists clenched, Remus tripped right over James Potter, who was actually sitting on the floor and laughing. Sirius appeared from behind the door, laughing as well, nearly bent in two. Remus could barely keep hold of his mingled fury and amusement. "You... you planned this! You...."

Sirius lay one hand on Remus' shoulder. "Of course we did! Was it refreshing?" He snorted through the word.

"Refreshing?! REFRESHING?! It was...." Remus paused, noting the half guilty looks his friends were giving him. "It was perfect! A wonderful prank. Brilliant. But next time, play it on someone else, okay?" Now they really looked like they regretted it. Sirius was giving him "I'm sorry" glances from under his eyelashes. Remus gave a defeated sigh and smirked at them. "And let me join in."

To be continued in "Page Two- Winter" ..... ^_^ Love to the world!