"Whoa," Avery declared, holding up a hand and blocking their entrance into the Common Room. "What's going on?"

"Remus is over-reacting," Sirius complained.

"What did you do?" Avery bitterly retorted. "I haven't seen you guys in two days, and Frank says you weren't in the dormitory." She glared at Sirius' injured arm, which he promptly jerked behind his back. Avery rolled her eyes.

"Well, since when have you been all best buddies with Frank?" James accused, pushing past Sirius.

"Since when have you guys decided to be idiots?" Avery challenged. "I don't think you get it. If McGonagall finds so much as a speck of dust in the wrong place, you guys are toast. You're already off the quidditch team, and it's not even Halloween, yet. You know, you guys used to be cool. I think your popularity has gotten to your head. Now, you all you do is bully little kids."

"Says the girl who's gone preppy," James countered. "You're the stereotypical rich-goody-two-shoes-boarding-school-girl. You don't even have an American accent, anymore."

"Yes, I do," Avery snapped in a perfect British accent. She blinked. "You git." Then, she blinked again. "Why am I upset? This is awesome. I don't think I'm ever going to shut up, now."

Krystal rolled her eyes. "You really shouldn't have told her," she informed, walking up.

"Oh my gosh, Kris," Avery gushed. "You're officially Brittish, now, too!"

Krystal grinned. "Nope. I still don't like tea," she admitted. She might have continued, but her eyes rested on Peter's worried face. "What's wrong?" she inquired. "And have you seen Remus? We all assumed he was with you guys. He went to find you yesterday morning, and he never came back."

"He didn't?" Peter uneasily inquired.

Avery's frown returned. "What did you do to Remmy?" she menacingly inquired. "He was our second favorite. You can't kill him."

"Second favorite?" James inquired in surprise.

Krystal shrugged. "Well, he was Catherine's favorite," she informed.

"Not important," Avery dismissed. "I'm seri- not joking. Where's Remus?"

"He… um… left," James informed. "Nothing we can't handle."

"Oh, no," Krystal moaned. "They've killed him."

Avery nodded solemnly. "Let me guess: you four raced into a situation despite Remus' better judgement and found out you were totally unprepared. Something was kicking your butts, but Remus selflessly jumped in and is now mortally wounded."

"He probably was eaten by whatever got Sirius' arm," Krystal suggested. Sirius made a face at her. "What? You're hiding it behind your back, and you wince every time you move. Plus, Peter keeps looking at you like you've adopted a pet Grim."

"Grim?" Avery repeated, something on the edge of her memory.

"You know," Krystal responded. "The giant black dog that's an omen of-"

"Oh, no," Avery interrupted, letting it all click into place. "They disappeared two nights ago, right?"

"Yeah," Krystal informed. "What-? Oh. Oh." She brought a hand to her mouth. "Oh, no."

"What's wrong?" Lily inquired, hurrying over to them. She clearly anticipated a fight. "What did the gits do this time?"

Avery shot the three boys the most poisonous glare she could muster. "Oh, 'git' isn't a bad enough word," she promised. "Try 'utter imbeciles'."

Lily looked from Avery's fury to Krystal's horror and drew her own conclusions. "Was it poisonous?" she inquired.

"'Poisonous'?" James echoed in confusion.

"The thing that you provoked into attacking you," Lily flatly responded. "You lot look like you tried to battle a hippogriph with a cricket bat."

"And lost," Avery bitterly added.

James rolled his eyes. "We won," he retorted. "We just had a few… setbacks. And I wouldn't call it 'poisonous', really."

Lily snorted, but then, her eyes softened. "Are you alright?" she inquired, concern creeping into her voice.

"I'm fine," James responded. "But thanks-"

"Not you," Lily huffed, rolling her eyes. "Sirius. The one that's actually hurt."

James glowered, and Sirius preened at the attention. "Why, thank you, sweetest, fairest, loveliest, fragrant-" (Avery's glare intensified) "-Lily, but I am alright." He started to bow before wincing in pain.

"Oh, let me look," Lily chided. Sirius shook his head. "Oh, you're being a big baby. Alice, come here! Sirius got hurt, and he's too much of dolt to go to Madam Pomfrey."

Alice soon rushed over, with Abbigail and her friend Alex in tow. "Are you alright, Siri?" Abbigail called.

"I'm fine, Abby dear," Sirius called back.

"Okay," she responded. "I'm off to study Defense Against the Dark Arts, then. Fourth years have a test tomorrow."

"Fifth year, too," Alice moaned. "This better be good, well, bad, well, I don't know." She stopped next to Lily. "Let me see. I'm pretty good with this Healer stuff."

"No," Sirius whined, and James stepped menacingly in front of him. Peter carefully edged over, unsure of what to do.

"Sirius, please," Krystal pleaded. "If that's what I think it is…"

"It's a fifty-fifty shot, right?" Sirius responded. "There's nothing you could do."

"Fifty-fifty what?" Alice inquired. When Sirius refused to answer, she craned her neck to try and see his injury. "Oh, wow. That looks pretty swollen. What happened to you guys? Your robes are all torn to shreds." No response. "If you don't let us help, the wound is going to get infected. In fact, it probably already is, but I'd have to see it to know for sure."

Sirius grimaced and stepped forward. James wavered for a moment. "Would it be bad?" James hesitantly inquired.

"He could lose his arm," Alice informed. "Or worse."

"This is my wand arm, mate," Sirius quietly informed.

James actually bit his lip in worry. Avery was so shocked she almost forgot that she was about to kill him. "Do you promise not to tell any teachers?" he begged.

"Only if we can fix it," Lily firmly declared. "If it's too bad, we'll have to take him to Madam Pomfrey. He could die if he's not properly taken care of."

Any resistance faded from James, and he limply took a step out of the way. "Fine," he huffed. "Sirius?"

Sirius clenched his teeth and held up his arm. "Merlin's beard!" Alice involuntarily cried. "That looks horrible. Come, sit down. This might take a while. Mary, can you run to the library?"

Krystal stared in horror; Avery had to force her to move away. Then, Avery whirled back around towards James and pointed an accusing finger at him. "Where's Remus?" she demanded.

James glared back at her, but she could tell he was still rattled. "I don't know," he answered. "He ran off."

"James Potter," Avery warned, "tell me where he went. He's as bad off as Sirius right now, and you know it. Do you want to lose him, too?"

James looked away. "You don't even need my middle name to sound threatening," he muttered. "He ran off towards the Great Lake. I don't know how far he's gone by now."

Krystal sighed. "Poor Remmy. We better go find him." She started towards the door, but then, she stopped. "What is your middle name, James?"

"I'm not telling," James stubbornly responded. Suddenly, Sirius gave a yelp. "Be gentle with him!" James demanded, rushing off to protect his friend.

Krystal and Avery shared looks. "I'll get the umbrellas," Krystal suggested. "Peter, could you sniff him out?"

"What?" Peter nervously squeaked.

Avery rolled her eyes. "We know your little secret," she bluntly informed. There wasn't any time for subtly. "We already knew about Remus' condition, and we saw enough of James' and Sirius' Transfiguration project last year to know that something was up." She paused. "And, we may have followed you guys once."

"What?!"

Krystal turned a little pink. "I'll just… the umbrellas…" she mumbled before racing off.

"We aren't going to tell," Avery demanded, "if you help us find Remus before he does something stupid. Like decides that he's evil or whatever. Honestly, if you have enough concern to wonder if you're evil, you really don't need to worry-"

"Got 'em," Krystal declared, rushing back. "Do you need one, Peter, or..?"

"No," he hesitantly responded. "But I can't walk all the way there, and if you don't want to touch me-"

Avery rolled her eyes. "I'll do it," she moodily declared, "but you better not have the Black Death or anything."

Catherine froze. "What's up?" she inquired. "Please tell me there isn't another dragon."

Avery rolled her eyes. "Nope," she answered. "We're going on a walk."

"In the rain?" Catherine dubiously stated. "With Peter?"

"I'm friends with Peter," Krystal complained. "You don't need to sound so-"

"Avery isn't," Catherine pointed out. "Well, as far as I know."

Avery stuck her tongue out at her. "Just because we're not friends doesn't mean I hate him," she protested. "Or wouldn't go walking in the rain with him."

Krystal smiled a bit. "We sound nuts, don't we?" she mused. "Anyway, what are you doing over here, Kitty?"

Catherine wrinkled her nose at the nickname but didn't protest. "I thought you said you were coming to the study group, today," she reminded. "I was going to see why you were late. You're not coming?"

"Oh, I forgot!" Krystal exclaimed. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay," Catherine dismissed. "I'll drag Penny and Artemisia along. Just don't abandon me for Slug Club tonight."

"We won't," Avery responded. Krystal shot her a look. "Hopefully."

Catherine groaned. "Do I want to know what you're sneaking off to do?"

"No," Avery assured. "Probably not. It involved pep talks."

Catherine wrinkled her nose again. "In that case, goodbye," she declared. Over her shoulder, she called, "Don't kill Pettigrew!" and disappeared around the corner.

Avery rolled her eyes. "No trust," she muttered. She turned to Peter. "Let's go find Remus."

Hagrid paused. "Yer friends are in there," he solemnly informed, pointing inside his house. "Me an' Fang's been keepin' watch over 'em."

"Thank you," Krystal earnestly responded. "Can we check up on him?"

"Certainly," Hagrid responded. "I don' get many visitors. Just the girl. Come, now. Make yehrselves at home."

"Oh, thank you," Krystal repeated. She shook off her umbrella and hurried inside. Avery followed more reluctantly. Peter squeaked and buried himself deeper into Avery's pocket when Fang bounded over. "Hello," Krystal absently greeted, patting the dog's head. "Remus?"

"Leave him alone," a feminine voice declared. "He didn't go off and hide because he wanted to talk to people."

"Tobi?" Avery inquired. "What are you doing here?"

Tobi stood up and stepped protectively in front of Remus. "What are you doing here?" she demanded. "I come here all the time and talk to Hagrid. You, however, are only here to bug poor Lupin."

"Oh, it's fine," Remus muttered, sitting up. "Hi, guys." His eyes landed on Peter's tail, which was poking out of Avery's coat. "You found out."

"James and Sirius… aren't the brightest," Krystal responded. "You'll have to forgive them."

"They aren't the problem," Remus bitterly muttered. "I'm-"

"You warned them," Avery pointed out. "And you can't help it. You were what- four? -when you when you were bitten. In the twelve or so years that you've been a werewolf, there has never been a day were anyone who knew you thought you were a 'monster'." She put the last word in air quotes. "We all have problems. Krystal is clueless when it comes to guys, James is a bully, Sirius has family issues, Peter's still a bit of a push-over, Catherine has a character defect which leaves her unable to relate to humans-"

Krystal huffed, and Tobi burst out laughing. "YES," Tobi agreed.

"-Tobi thinks she's the center of the universe-"

"No; I am the center of the universe," Tobi corrected.

Remus groaned. "That's not exactly the same as-"

"The point is, there is nothing wrong with you," Krystal assured. "You just have more stuff to deal with than most, and if you shut everyone out, no one can help you, and you'll just feel worse, and the people you care about will feel worse, too, and-"

"I bit him, Kris!" Remus interrupted. "I don't think you two get it! I BIT him! I was going to attack them, and he tried to stop me, and I BIT him. Those three were my best friends in the entire world, almost my only friends in the entire world, and I BIT him."

Avery frowned. "Wait. We're not your friends?" She gestured to Krystal and herself.

Remus paused. "I said 'almost'," he pointed out. "Besides, after this, I don't think I'll have any friends."

"I will always be your friend," Krystal indignantly responded. "You can't scare me away that easily."

"I know," Remus admitted in defeat. "That's why I'm leaving."

"What?!" Avery and Krystal cried in unison. Peter poked his head out and squeaked.

Hagrid, who had been watching in silence, finally spoke. "Remus, aren' yeh being a little hasty? He might be fine, yeh know. Dumbledore'll make sure none o' them'll go down there ever again while yehr changin'."

"It's too late," Remus moodily responded. "They're stubborn. They'll always find a way in. It's just not safe. I've already bit Sirius. I can't face them if I've… If he's…"

"Now, listen here," Hagrid chided. "My ol' dad used ter say ter me, 'Never be ashamed o' yehrself. There's some who'll hold it against yeh, but they're not worth botherin' with.' Look at yehrself. There's nothin' wrong with yeh but yehr attitude. Dumbledore has faith in yeh, doesn' he?"

"Well, maybe he was wrong," Remus muttered.

"Don' yeh go talkin' bad abou' Dumbledore," Hagrid fiercely instructed. "Dumbledore's a fine man, an' he knows more'n anyone else I know. Yeh'd do better ter trust him. He won' let yeh down. He helped me when I needed it, and he'll help yeh, too."

"It's true," Krystal agreed. "Dumbledore wouldn't let you go to Hogwarts at all if he thought you were a threat-"

"Tom Riddle," Avery declared.

"Not helping," Krystal hissed, jabbing her shoulder. "Besides, he wasn't Headmaster, then."

"Oh, whatever," Avery muttered, gingerly rubbing her shoulder. "Anyway, Remus, we won't let shut us out. We'll force you to stay, and if you try to run, we'll just follow you, and we'll irritate you to death."

Remus deflated even more. "You would, wouldn't you?" he inquired in horror. "You're all nutters."

"I prefer 'insane'," Avery admitted before batting her eyelashes at him. "You can't escape us."

"What happens at the full moon?" Remus demanded. "You would all-"

"Has anyone tried tranquilizer on him, yet?" Krystal suddenly inquired. "We could knock him out with a sedative before he turns."

Avery contemplated this. "We'd need a lot of Benadryl, but it's certainly worth a try."

"I'll start some Draught of the Living Death," Krystal offered. "We can't make any more on the run, so we'll need to pack a lot."

"We'd have to buy the milk and turkey fresh," Avery continued. "We could get the Claritin and Benadryl, then."

"Don't forget the Melatonin," Krystal added. "And moose tranquilizer as a backup."

"I wouldn't-" Remus began.

"Oh, we'd sneak up on you with a tranquilizer dart the first time," Krystal assured. "The second and third time, we'd just put a little chocolate in it."

"That wouldn't work-" Remus protested.

"Oh, I'm sure it would," Avery responded. "Besides, you wouldn't want to hurt us, would you? We'd guilt you into it."

Tobi raised her eyebrows. "This sounds interesting," she commented. "Mind if me and Bassy tag along?"

"Bassy?" Krystal echoed. "Oh, Sebastian. I don't see why you can't."

"James and Sirius will be coming, though," Avery pointed out. "I don't know how long you could stand them."

"You're right," Tobi responded. "Terrible idea. Oh, well. Be sure to write. Send a few pictures if you can."

"Definitely," Krystal assured. "Should we ask Catherine if-"

"Oh, stars, no," Tobi interrupted. "She'd tell on you in a heartbeat."

"Yeah, that's a definitely no," Avery agreed. "Even if she did come, she'd be a horrible downer. Tell us that we were doing illegal things and such."

"I'll cover for you guys," Tobi suggested. "I'll tell Catherine that Krystal and Remus are trying to elope, but Sirius starts flirting with Krystal. Of course, both Krystal and Avery have had a horrible crush on him for years, but Krystal finally gave up and is trying to move on with her life. Remus knows something is wrong, though, and calls off the wedding. This, obviously, throws Avery into a jealous rage: not only has Sirius scorned her love, but Krystal would have been perfectly happy with Remus, and now it was ruined, just so that miserable player could shatter her sister's heart all over again when she was finally moving on. Avery confronts Sirius, and things turn violent. A rather heartbroken Remus tries to calm things down, but then, James starts throwing nasty accusations at Avery and her 'relationship' with Remus, and Avery can't help but explode. When she tries to throw a pot at Sirius, James ducks out of the way and falls off the balcony to his death. Sirius loses it when his lover-"

"Lover?" Avery echoed.

"Well, Sirius and James had been secret lovers, naturally," Tobi admonished. "Anyway, Sirius loses it when his lover, James, dies a brutal death, and he flies upon Avery before she can overcome her shock. Remus, the valiant gentleman he is, steps in Sirius' way, and Sirius is too blinded by rage to realize that he is murdering his friend. Krystal, who had entered the room just moments before James' death, screams in horror as her fiancé and her love fight to the death. This snaps Sirius back to reality, and he is completely broken when he realizes what he has done. Heartbroken and horrified, he races off the scene. Remus clings to his last bits of life as he makes a shocking confession: while he admired Krystal and would have been happy married to her, he still has leftover feelings for Avery, who had rejected him for her sister's sake months before. Krystal sobs, afraid she has lost both of the men she cared about in a single night. Avery, shocked by the turn of events, swears to never love again for the rest of her life and never rest again until Sirius pay for his crimes. Peter rushes in with the medics, and together, they manage to bring Remus back from the brink, but it is too late. Remus is too broken to love either women, anymore, although he tells Krystal that if she still loves him, he would try to love her back for her sake. Krystal tells him that it is not necessary; she knows there is too much bad blood between them, now, but she promises to always remember him fondly. Avery and Krystal leave for the countryside, trying to escape all memories of the past. Poor Peter, very worried for his dear friend, quietly marries Krystal and treats her well; Avery carefully watches over them while plotting her revenge. Little do they know, Sirius's guilt had overwhelmed him, and he had jumped off a bridge into the icy waters below, thus ending his miserable life of lies."

Krystal, who had listened in horrified silence, finally spoke. "That'll work," she finally responded.

"But it's ridiculous!" Avery complained. "We'd need something a little more realistic."

Tobi huffed. "It's plausible enough," she retorted.

Krystal shrugged. "Catherine definitely won't come after us, and Dumbles will probably help spread it around," she pointed out. "Besides, if it's coming from Tobi, it has to sound a little far-fetched."

"I guess you're right," Avery grudgingly responded. "Remus, where are you going?"

"To bed," he responded, shuffling to the door.

"I thought you were running away?" Avery innocently reminded.

"After what you guys just said?" he demanded. "I'd be better off dying."

"Oh, thank you, Remmy!" Krystal declared. She rushed over and hugged him, not at all noticing how red he turned. "I hate hiking, and what if we got the wrong dosage and we killed you or something-"

"I think I have a headache," he murmured. "I need to lie down."

"Well, let me get my umbrella first," Krystal chided. "You don't have one, and there's no need to get all wet."

"I'm fine," Remus promised, turning a bit red again.

"No, take mine," Krystal insisted. "I'll go back with Avery; there's something we need to talk about."

"Oh," Remus responded, slightly relieved. "Alright." He opened the umbrella, slipped out the door, and disappeared into the rain.

Krystal waited until he was out of hearing range to speak. "Thank you so much, Hagrid," she gratefully declared. "If you hadn't stopped him for us-"

"Oh, it was all Tobi," he assured. "She was comin' ter visit me and my animals when she ran inter him. She made him come inside before he could do anythin' rash. I just kep' the fire goin'."

"Well, thank you for holding him for us, then," Krystal answered. "Thank you, too, Tobi. If he ran off…" She trailed off. "I'd hate to see what he'd have done to himself. He gets so guilty, even though it's not his fault. I wish he could see that we were here for him."

Avery nodded. "It's a real shame," she agreed. "How did you stop him, anyway?"

Tobi smirked a little. "I handle dragons in my free time," she dismissed. "Angsty teenage werewolves are nothing."

Krystal was about to say something, but Avery looked at the clock. "Uh-oh," she declared. "Didn't we promise Catherine we would be at Slug Club? It starts in five minutes."

Krystal squeaked, and the two girls dove for their umbrella and rushed off. Tobi laughed. "Gryffindors," Tobi admonished, but her voice held a lot of grudging respect.

Hagrid rubbed Fang's head for a while before speaking. "Are yeh sure yeh didn' traumatize that boy worse?" he finally inquired. "I'm worried for him."

"Oh, he'll be fine," Tobi promised. "He's got some good friends, and we just used a ton of reverse psychology girl power on him. That'll set him up for weeks." She sighed. "That poor boy, though. I hope he's alright in the end. I'm afraid that his will tear him apart sooner or later. He needs all the love he can get, but the more that people love him, the more he tries to shut them out. He only makes it worse, but he can't possibly know that."

Hagrid nodded. "It's not an easy thin' to live with a curse like that," he stated. "He's a strong'un, though. I think he'll manage for now." Tobi sighed again and curled up smaller in her chair. "Now, don' yeh worry a drop. It isn' yehr job ter fix all the broken'uns. There's only so much yeh can do."

"I know," Tobi sadly agreed. "I just can't help it, sometimes. When I grow up, I'm going to adopt them all and make sure nobody hurts them again." She stroked Susan for a while. "Do you think they'll let me come and visit you?"

"What do yeh mean?" Hagrid inquired.

"After I'm done with Hogwarts," Tobi clarified. "It's only two more years, you know, and I don't want to leave you all alone."

"Oh, I won' be alone," Hagrid disagreed. "I'll have Fang, an' the new animals Kettleburn's lettin' them keep, an'-"

"But no people," Tobi protested. "You need someone to talk to, and don't you say, 'Dumbledore,' because I know he's never visited you once this year."

"Well, he's been busy with work, I suppose," Hagrid defended. "Anyway, don' yeh worry yehrself none about me. I've always been fine."

You're late," Catherine pointed out. "And dripping."

"Sorry," Krystal apologized, still half breathless. "We were… delayed."

"Must have been one pep talk," Catherine responded.

Avery nodded and grinned slightly. "I think it worked," she mildly replied. "I hope Tobi doesn't repeat that story, though, or I may have to kill her."

Catherine arched an eyebrow but didn't ask for details. Avery was probably sure this was because Catherine was sure Tobi would immediately spill it on next contact.

"So, what did Remmy and I miss in study group?" Krystal inquired.

"Oh, not much," Catherine responded. "Only a unanimous vote that Acurso's teaching style was ridiculous."

"Oh," Krystal responded. "Well, I don't know-"

"He actually deducted points when a student asked him for help in my class," Catherine informed. "Penny actually dropped her quill in shock." She paused. "Oh, and I- how does Avery say this?- accidentally on purpose helped a few kids with their homework."

Krystal gasped, but Avery spoke first. "It would be 'purposefully-on-accident'," she corrected. "You purposefully made a situation where accidents were very easy if not impossible to happen. 'Accidentally-on-purpose' means that while you did the action on purpose, you were mistaken about something that led you to act and in no way wanted the effect that was produced."

"How is that different from a regular accident?" Krystal inquired.

Avery rolled her eyes. "Accident: tripping and knocking over the person in front of you. Accidentally-on-purpose: tackling said person because you thought he stole your purse when he really found it and was trying to give it back to you."

Krystal giggled, but Catherine moaned. "The worst part is, you sound like that's happened before," she stated.

"It's understandable," Avery protested. "Sort of. Okay, he looked shifty."

"Of course he did," Catherine responded. "You tackled him for helping you. He probably figured out you were nuts."

"It wasn't me!" Avery complained. "It was someone I know, that's all."

"Was it the little voice in your head?" Catherine retorted.

"Which one?" Avery quipped.

Krystal was laughing so hard that she apparently forgot she was supposed to be mad at Catherine. "If I didn't know better, I would think you two hated each other some times," Krystal announced.

Catherine's smirk melted into a genuine smile. "Oh, we only play," she answered. "Neither of us mean anything by it. For all I know, a great white probably has eaten a license plate."

"If you start that again, I will murder you," Avery promised.

"I was agreeing with you-" Catherine somewhat irately began.

"-no, you were trying to start an argument again, which you full well know," Avery huffed. "I'm right, and you won't admit it, but once it stops being fun and starts getting irritating, you make some big show of pretending to side with me even though you think I'm wrong because you're trying to look like a bigger person or something."

Catherine opened her mouth to speak but thought better of it. "Let's go sit down," she advised.

"You're doing it again!" Avery whined. "Right after I just said-"

"I didn't say anything-"

"But you just 'humored me' and-"

"I obviously didn't if you're still air quoting things I didn't-!"

"Because you thought them-"

"I was trying-"

"-to show me up!"

"You just can't let anyone else win!"

"Neither can you."

"At least I don't always have to have the last word," Catherine snapped.

"Yeah, right," Avery retorted.

An awkward silence stretched between them (the neighboring people had moved away with some concern). "I think you walked into that," Krystal carefully remarked.

"Walked into what?" Avery inquired.

"Nothing," Krystal quickly responded. "Let's go sit down. I think they've got the chocolate cake out."

"Oo, goody," Avery declared. Catherine face-palmed. "What?"

"Nothing," Catherine moaned.

"I know you just said that," Avery defended. "It's just earlier, you did it in an offensive way."

"I offensively asked if we could change the subject when all you wanted to do was change the subject?" Catherine dubiously queried.

"Yeah," Avery answered. "You were-"

"Catherine, you walked into that one," Krystal interrupted. "There. I yelled at her. Now, let's eat. I missed supper."

"Will he be alright?" James anxiously inquired. He looked at Sirius' sleeping figure with concern.

"We'll have to see," Alice responded. "I think so, for now, but if it gets any worse, I have to tell Madam Pomfrey… For his sake."

"I know," James responded. "I'll-" He froze as someone stumbled into the room. "Remus!"

Remus froze. "Oh, I'll leave if-"

He was cut off as James grabbed him around the collar. "You are not going anywhere," James growled. Remus bit his lip but didn't protest as James dragged him into the center of the room. "You scared us, you hear?!"

"I'm so sorry-"

"We thought you'd plum run off!" James continued. "What were you thinking, bolting like that?"

"Wait, what?" Remus stuttered.

Mary took this as her cue to escape.

James ran a hand through his hair, messing it up even worse. "I thought you'd ran away from Hogwarts or something," he continued. "You looked so scared, and we were afraid you were going to hurt yourself or something. We didn't even get to apologize-"

"Apologize?" Remus echoed in surprise.

"What? You really thought we'd hate you?" James demanded. His voice softened. "You really thought we'd hate you. Well, it was my idiot fault. I came up with the idea and said that we were ready, when I guess we weren't. We must have still smelled human enough; I should have thought of that. You warned us though, told us it was dangerous, and we never even bothered to warn you beforehand because we didn't want you stopping us. How is that your fault? Anyway, we tried looking for you, but Sirius was hurt, so we had to come back and get him some help. Peter and the twins went looking for you, don't know if they found you-"

"They did," Remus guiltily answered. "Where is Peter, anyway?"

There was a damp, scuffling sound, and James looked at the coat rack that stood just inside the common room door (for when it rained. One of the prefects put it there so that kids would stop leaving sopping clothes everywhere.) "Oops," he declared, scooping something out of someone's coat. "Avery must have left him in her pocket. It's okay. Nobody else is in here. You can change, now."

Remus appeared startled as Peter morphed back into himself. "It was terrible in there," Peter muttered. He shivered, and water droplets went flying. "She remembered Slug Club, so she threw off her coat and left it there. The pocket's lined with some sort of slippery fabric, and it's all wet, so I couldn't climb out. I thought I'd suffocate or something."

"You actually learned how to become animagi?" Remus inquired in wonder.

"Yup, mate," James proudly declared. "We thought we'd keep you company. Didn't turn out so well, this time. We'll have to do better next time."

"What? You can't!" Remus demanded, instantly horrified. "You'll kill yourself!"

"Well, you'll kill yourself," James retorted. "We're not abandoning you. You're stuck with us, whether you like it or not." He paused. "Besides, we really can't put this kind of power to waste. You can't really prank someone very well with a stag, as cool as they may be-"

"That's you, then," Remus responded.

James grinned. "Of course," he responded. "I'm the cool one. Spot is over there-" he declared, pointing to Sirius, "and you just saw Squeakers change."

Peter turned bright red. "I'm not 'Squeakers'," he declared. "Can't I be something cooler?"

"Whatever you say, Wormtail," James responded.

Peter huffed. "Fine, Buttons," he stated.

"Buttons?" James demanded, while Remus stifled laughter.

"You know, Nubs," Peter clarified. "Mr. Teeny Tiny Antlers."

"Ahem!" James indignantly responded, "I'll have you know I have a splendid rack. I ought to be-" Remus had to sit down because he was laughing so hard, and Peter looked surprisingly smug. "Well, look who's suddenly got a backbone," James wondered aloud.

Peter turned red again and ducked his head. "I'm sorry-" he began.

"No, stop," James demanded. "That was a compliment, mate. Sirius would be proud."

"I taught him everything," Sirius quipped.

"You did not," James retorted. Then, he frowned. "You were asleep."

Sirius smirked. "'Spot' was pretty low," he declared. "I'm all black, anyway, so it doesn't work."

"You mean you were pretending to be asleep the entire time-"

"Did you see how Alice was looking at me?" Sirius interrupted. "Abby's going to be jealous, I believe."

"Well, she is your girlfriend," Remus answered.

"Oh, no," Sirius replied. "We broke up again."

Remus shook his head. "I give up," he muttered. "I'm going to bed." He paused right before the stairs. "And you are not going-"

"Oh, you can count on us," Sirius quipped. "Peter figured out how to get us past the Whomping Willow. You're doomed. And if we get cool names, I want to be 'Fangs' or something."

"That's Hagrid's dog," Peter informed.

"Darn," Sirius muttered.

"The horrible thing tried to eat me today, and Krystal pet it."

"Oh, no one cares, Pettigrew. How about 'Jaws'?"

"Mate, that's a shark."

"Gah. Well, I'm mortally wounded. I can't be expected to think of any good ones. How about-"

"Slobber Face? Butt Sniffer?"

"Oh, shut up, Forky."

A/N

Sorry for the long wait. I've been kind of busy. I made it super long, just for you.

Thanks to Akozu Heiwa, Hopeful Star, Blue Luver5000, Frosted Soul, and Anne, plus all my wonderful favorites and followers. You guys are awesome.

I realized that Hagrid was pretty lacking, so... I thought I'd give him a little spotlight here. He and Tobi are strange animal buddies. ;)

Now, even though it's so beyond old:

Disclaimer:

I do not own Harry Potter, or any of its people/places/terms/ etc. If I did, I wouldn't neglect poor Hagrid so much. ;)

Krystal: Wait. You never told us. What about Sirius?! Is he a werewolf now...?

Oh, look at the time-

Avery: Don't you dare leave us-