The Noble House Of Black

CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Transfiguration

James arose, ready for transfiguration class with his now favorite Professor, Minerva, or as he and his friends had decided, Minnie. "Wake up! We have class in half an hour so if you lot want food you ought to get out of bed!" Only Peter and Remus were left in the room, Caelum and Sirius had dutifully awoken at least an hour earlier and went to have breakfast with Lily and Marlene.

Remus led the way down to the Great Hall after begrudgingly rolling out of his warm and comfortable four-poster due to James's annoying proddings. Having only stumbled into his bed a few hours earlier, bleeding, tired, and angry after he refused to spend the night in the Hospital Wing, he was now greatly vexed with James and his general cheerfulness.

Remus had received his Hogwarts letter on his eleventh birthday, like every other witch or wizard. Thinking like that was becoming a problem however, he wasn't like every other witch or wizard. He was a werewolf. No matter how much he would prefer to ignore it, that wasn't going to change. He hadn't been born a werewolf, he was bitten when he was three. Although very young, he remembered that night vividly. He had replayed the moment in his mind so many times there was not a detail he had lost. It was as though by replaying it he might change the outcome, as ridiculous he knew that was.

When he asked to go outside to play, his mother was sitting at the table with his father, who was content with a glass of whisky in hand. His bill for the Werewolf Restriction Laws had recently passed, a major victory for his father, and now all werewolves, come full moon, were required to report to Ministry approved containment centers. Cages, they were cages, and everybody knew it.

She gave her permission and he ran outside to his favorite small pond in the yard. It was surrounded by beautiful willow trees with branches that gently swept down right to the surface of the water. He bent down to catch a frog and he was seized by powerful hands. It's true that in life he was only used to being touched in friendly, loving ways, like your parents might scoop you up, but this kind of touch was so different he didn't think anyone could imagine it unless they had experienced something similar. It was done with the violence and hostility of a predator to its prey. He didn't even remember the pain, it was the shock of it that stayed with him. Like one might feel if they were just walking down the street and then all of a sudden were attacked by a tiger. It was all so unexpected - one moment calm and the next ferocious violence and power and jolting surprise.

He saw his parents running into the yard, as he kicked and screamed. They had recognized the man, his father had called him Fenrir. The last thing Remus remembered was his parents screaming and the terror in their faces. It all seemed faraway, as if he were watching it from somewhere else. And now he was a werewolf. Remus shook his head to rid himself of the memory, and continued walking.

"James!" Marlene shouted to her long time friend, though Remus thought they acted more like siblings.

"What's up, Marley?" James asked back.

"I just heard from Emi, she wants us home for the holidays" Marlene answered.

"James is an only child," Peter said confused.

"Well technically he is, but I've lived with the Potter's during the school year since I was six. Our parents were best mates in school, so when my family wanted to move to America I stayed on with my Aunt Euphemia and Uncle Monty, so James is as good as my brother" Marlene answered.

"Yup" James said popping the P.

"We'd better head to class" Lily said, already having known this information.

"Oi, Evans!" James called out, gaining her attention as he ran his hands through his already messy hair.

"What, Potter? What could you possibly want?" Lily asked, more than a little sarcastically.