Deep In The Woods

11 ~ A Friend In Any Form

Gnarled roots and turned over stones littered the floor and ceiling. Sharp turns and sharper rocks led to you narrowly missing multiple injuries as you walked along for what felt like hours. The musty smell of the earth was stuck in your nostrils and clothes, and you were sure that it would take multiple showers to get it off of you. The only comfort was that you were particularly good at the lumos charm.

After what was probably five minutes of jogging down the path, you came to a dead end. Despair would have set in were it not for the trap door above your head, which was wide open and providing you with more light. You cast nox, putting your wand in your cloak and pulling yourself up through the hole.

It was a house. The tunnel led to a house. Why were you expecting something more? It was dingy and dusty, and no lights were on. The only light came from between the flimsy boards that were the walls, so hastily put together that the moonlight was shining through not only the windows, but the rest of the house, too. Old furniture was torn to shreds, claw marks having destroyed the fabric and freed the stuffing.

Shivers shook your body. Claw marks. The full moon. Mrs. Lupin's note. Why else would Remus disappear once every month? Why had he been so disturbed by your scar? Your friend was the werewolf that had attacked you months ago.

"Remus...?" You asked, looking around the house. You weren't sure you wanted to find him anymore. Would he attack you, like before? Did it matter? You wanted to find him. He wouldn't hurt you again, right? "Remus."

You didn't even feel like you were calling anymore. Unsure if you wanted to find him or not, you continued through the old halls of the house. He might have been one of your dearest friends, but did that really mean you had to go searching for danger?

Yes, (Y/n), you told yourself as you walked up the creaky floorboards. It does. He was one of your first friends. The first person to show you kindness. You wouldn't turn your back on him.

"Remus!" You said more boldly, now determined to find him. "Are you okay?"

A sound came from the top of the stairs. "Remus...?"

It was exactly like you would think a werewolf to sound, and the same as you remembered it. A wolfish sound, but something about it was off. Like when you saw something so close to human, but something about it wasn't. It was discomforting.

"Remus, are you alright?" You asked as you came to the second floor landing. "Please, answer!"

You did not want the answer you got. A loud growl from behind the door intrigued you, though you knew it was dangerous.

"I'm coming in! ... okay?"

There was no stopping you now. You needed to know what was behind that door, wolf or not. The curiosity was killing you.

Your hand pressed against the splintering wood, and taking a deep breath you went to open it.

You never got the chance. The door flew open, blowing you backwards. You slammed to the floor, lucky to land ahead of the staircase. You were quick to stand, and just as expected, there he stood, on all fours, before you. Remus Lupin, a werewolf.

You couldn't do anything now. All you could do was get out of there, and he would be back soon. He had done this before, right? But something made you want to stay with him.

That feeling vanished as he swiped at you, his claws narrowly missing you. You turned and ran down the stairs, which was beneficial as they were much easier to descend for humans than wolves.

Reaching the first floor landing as Remus slammed into the wall farther up, you dashed at the door. What were you going to do, fight him?!

You shoved it open, running blindly into whatever was outside. As you sprinted out, you could see the full moon above, illuminating the area around. Hogwarst was in the distance, and much closer, from your vantage point on the hill, was Hogsmeade, the wizarding village next door.