Learning to Grow - Remus Lupin

Chapter 3

Remus Lupin was something more than what he thought of himself.

He wasn't what a typical Gryffindor boy looked or acted like. He was thin and scrawny, scars ran all over his body, and he was too much of a book lover for his own good. But those were the small things that attracted Atlas to the boy when they were young. She loved the way he acted like he was as much as a player as James Potter and Sirius Black, his two best friends, when he was really the sweetest boy there.

They had met their freshman year and even though they were in different houses, the two were inseparable. They simply met by sitting next to each other in Herbology, and soon after they would share a table at the library to study together. He would invite her to sit with his friends, The Marauders they called themselves, and she would join them for breakfast. She eventually helped all of his friends with their work and they realized she wasn't just some boring Hufflepuff. She excited them and soon she became all of their friends and would join them on their antics.

It took a long time for Atlas and Remus to figure out they both had something for each other, something more than just a friendship. It wasn't until their friends convinced them ( forced them) to go to Hogsmeade together alone that something blossomed. However, Remus knew he couldn't let anything happen. Not with his dangerous condition he hid from her.  He had rejected her, even though it was the hardest decision he's ever faced.

But Atlas was never a fool.

She realized something was wrong with her friend. Days of disappearance with scars showing up every month. James, Sirius, and Peter were figuring it out at the same time and she wasn't going to be left out of it. They tried hiding it as well but she figured out just as soon as they did.

Remus Lupin was a werewolf.

He turned into a blood lusting beast every month and was locked away in the Shrieking Shack every full moon. At first, the new was terribly shocking for Atlas. A werewolf so close to Hogwarts was never heard of and it terrified her. But he had to trust her gut and help her friend.

So, just like any Marauder would, they broke the law and became a Animangi illegally. One of the hardest wizarding tasks in the world was completed by four fifth years with a book and the dedication of friendship.

Did it upset Remus that his friends were risking everything for him? Yes. Did he love them for it? Of course.

James Potter was the first to finish the long process. He turned into a majestic stag with antlers that stood high above his figure. Sirius Black was next, waking form of a black wolf who could bite a hand off with the crunch of his jaw. Atlas then transformed, she wasn't as large as her other two friends though. Her animangus took shape of a little white and brown ferret. It wasn't much to help fight Remus as a beast, but it certainly helped with getting into all of the small cracks and climbing up to hard to reach places. The little ferret would play games with the werewolf to calm it down, and it was enough to her that she had some part in helping. The last to become one was Peter Pettigrew. He was a sweet boy who didn't exactly look as attractive than the others but he was a friend no less. He became a small rat who, just like Atlas, was more useful for the smaller inside jobs.

Together they created the best, mix matched team they had ever seen.

And since Atlas knew of Remus's condition and finding her own way around it, she attempted to spark a relationship back up. And whilst Remus wanted just the same, he was too scared to do it.

Rejection was the one challenge Atlas never overcame. She didn't know how, and it pained her. But she had to stick to it and fight for what she stood for.

School had ended for the five of them. But the war had just begun for everyone. They all joined the Order of The Phoenix, a group banded together to stop death eaters and Lord Voldemort. He led an army whose only goal was to kill all muggleborns, muggles, and halfbreeds to make the wizarding world 'pure' again.