Chapter 1
Chapter 1: Lonely Nights
Israni was a quiet person. They never showed much interest in making acquaintance with anyone beyond their best friend, Remus, and, by extension, his three mates. Still, there was nothing quiet about those full moons, the painful nights locked away deep beneath Hogwarts each month.
The room was deep beneath the castle grounds, below even the Slytherin dungeons. It was small, and had always felt like a jail cell to Israni. The stone walls made it feel like a medieval dungeon, although the feeling fit well with the olden style of the Hogwarts Castle. There was no window, just a door that was magically sealed, only openable from the outside. The walls had been thoroughly sound-proofed, protecting any unlucky students from hearing the tortured cries that come with each full moon.
On the floor of this small, jail cell of a room, lay a still figure, their chest just barely rising with each shuddering breath. Their skin was a smooth brown, scars crisscrossing over every surface. They had short, choppy hair, cut into a mullet-like style, with two green streaks at the front, although the hair was tangled and looked as if it had been torn at some. Their face, one that was normally striking, was marred with a look of deep pain. Blood dripped from wounds on their muscular body, and yet they still seemed dangerous, unapproachable, even.
Their eyes opened slowly, although there wasn’t much light in the small room to adjust to. It was bare, with just a mattress in the corner that was tattered, with deep gashes carved through it. They laid on the stone floor, blood dripping from deep wounds, the thick substance running like small, red, rivers across their brown skin. Israni didn’t bother trying to move, the throbbing pains in their body making it hard to think. They barely manage to tilt their head, looking down at themselves, taking in the sight.
It was a harsh one, and they could see two deep gashes on their left leg, and one on the side of their torso, marring the scars that were already there. Still, the blood didn’t bother them very much. It never had. It felt like their right arm might even be broken, and they wondered just how hard they had thrown themselves against the walls this full moon. The moons seemed to be getting harsher, harder to recover from, although they always somehow managed. Sometimes, a small part of them wishes they didn’t, that one day it would all finally end. Still, their siblings always proved to be far too important to them.
Kashvi and Arjun, twins that were four years younger than Israni, and possibly the most important thing in their life. Israni toyed with the idea of attempting to move to the torn mattress, but it might as well have been years away with how they felt. They could feel it getting harder and harder to stay awake, their vision darkening around the edges, a result of the blood loss. It was welcomed, a quiet retreat from the pain. Their last thought before they lost consciousness was “I hope Remus is alright.”
…
When Remus woke in the Shrieking Shack the morning after the full moon, it was to the thumping sound of a dog wagging their tail against the floor. He groaned softly, reaching up and rubbing his eyes. The shack was dilapidated, moss growing up the walls, the only piece of furniture still in one piece being the tattered mattress and steel bed frame that he was currently laying on. There were deep gouges in the walls, where claws had raked across it during restless full moons.
Remus was happy to discover he could actually move, that the only affects left from the moon were a pounding headache, a terribly sore body, and only one cut this time. It was a wonderful revelation, and he smiled softly at he thought. He glanced down to where the sound of a dog panting was, finding a large stag, a black dog, and a rat curled up on the floor by his bed, laying on top of each other. The dog was the only one awake, and it’s tail wagged happily at the sight of Remus awake. Suddenly, it began to shift, stretching into a smiling, black-haired boy, Sirius Black, Remus’ boyfriend and favorite person in the world. Every time Sirius smiled, Remus’ heart throbbed, and he still wasn’t sure how he managed to love this boy so much. “Awake, are we moony?” His grin was infectious as he spoke, and Remus grinned back. “I suppose I am.”
Sirius kneeled down by the bed at Remus’ head, reaching out and brushing one of his amber-brown hairs out of his eyes. “You look happy, love. Any reason?” Remus considered the question for a moment, and nodded. “I just can’t get over waking up with less injuries each month. It’s elating, honestly,” he’s smiling as he speaks, despite the headache or the pain deep in his bones. “And, you’re just beautiful.”
Sirius’ deep blush at the compliment just makes him even happier, and he can almost forget the night before. He hears something stirring, interrupting the moment, and looking down, Remus sees the forms of the rat and stag waking up, blinking softly. They stand, and shift, their forms stretching simultaneously into James Potter and Peter Pettigrew, Remus’ other two best friends. James grins, running a brown-skinned hand through his tightly curled black hair.
“Morning, Moony, Pads. How are we on this fine day?” At this, the three boys turn to him, expecting an answer. “Feeling like I just changed into a hulking beast overnight. So, brilliant.” James rolls his eyes at the response, looking down at Remus like an exasperated mother. “A real answer would be lovely, moons.”
“Not terrible, honestly. Just sore, as always, and only one scratch,” He answers truthfully, this time, rolling his shoulders and attempting to stretch some. The wound was on his arm, and the blood flow was already beginning to slow. There was a small chance it might not even scar, although Remus didn’t get his hopes up. He didn’t hate his scars, exactly, but he hated what he was, what happened to him each month. A small part of him always seemed to constantly be saying ‘You’re cursed. A horrid beast, and you should be far away from all of these people.’ It was always hard to disagree, but he was doing his best, determined to do well for Sirius and his mates. He realized he had zoned out for a moment, and snapped back to his thoughts, continuing his sentence. “That, and a bugger of a headache. Could be worse.” He pauses then, seemingly considering something, then eventually deciding to voice his thoughts. “I wonder if Israni’s okay…”