'Remus, darling, are you ready?'

It was the same question every month.

Was he ready?

Never.

Not even after all of these years.

And not that he would admit it to anyone either.

'Yes.' His voice was strong. Inside was a different story. He would not, under any circumstances, allow his parents to see.

His mother smiled sadly. It was the kind of smile that caused his heart to constrict; he hated knowing he was the cause of her sadness.

'I'll see you in the morning.'

'See you in the morning,' Remus echoed.

Then, as she always did before he left, Hope Lupin engulfed him in a tight hug and planted a kiss on his forehead, before reluctantly letting him go.

'I love you.'

The sky was clear; flecked with hues of brilliant oranges and reds as the sun slowly descended below the horizon. The scene was idyllic. The last rays of daylight were still breaking through the gaps in the trees, though fading fast. Artists would spend hours perfecting the image on to a canvas in an effort to capture the moment in more than just a memory. Memories faded, a picture was a lifetime. There was a lot of beauty in it, there was no denying it. However, for Remus, the absence of light brought an immeasurable amount of pain, suffering, misery, and terror. Once a month, with the moon full, nightfall awoke the monster within. And tonight, he would endure it again.

Boy by day, monster by night.

His father walked faithfully beside him, as he did each month, as together the pair of them made their way through the mass of trees that concealed their home to a shed hidden deep inside the woods that his father had placed where Remus would spend the night. It was reinforced with spells and enchantments, allowing Remus to transform. But it was not always safe and secure. A werewolf was strong, even at ten-years-old.

Pain.

Excruciating pain.

Blood burning, bones breaking, flesh tearing pain.

Remus screamed, and not a single soul could hear him.

Hope could not sleep. She never could on nights like this one.

It was the same old questions playing on her mind: was he safe? Was he hurt?

Remus was her son, her only child, and her heart ached for him. He was her baby.

Her bones were weary and her heart was wearing thin from worry.

She glanced at the clock, wondering how long they had left.

3:17am.

'Are you awake?' she whispered to the darkness. She knew what the answer would be. She always knew.

Lyall slipped his fingers into hers and squeezed.

It had not been an easy road for them. All the failed attempts at finding a cure and all the times they had moved from village to village to avoid detection had worn them down. It felt, at times, almost impossible to keep going. But they marched on in the face of adversity, leaning on each other to get through it. Most of all, they did it for Remus. They had to remain strong for him; he needed them.

Together they waited, over the next few hours, for the first rays of the morning light to shine through their window.

And there we go. This is not a chapter, more like a glimpse of what's to come, which is why it's so short.

I haven't written anything in... it must be reaching near enough two or three years now. However, I was inspired to just write something and this was the result. Since it has been so long since I've written, I am highly convinced this is a whole load of garbage. I wanted to do this to see if I could do it again. That being said, I hope you like it, and if you do then I'm hoping to write more.