The Reprise

June had rolled around and despite the cheery weather outside, Remus hadn’t been able to sleep for weeks. The haunting thought of Sirius lingered in his mind, keeping him up at night.

Was he right about Sirius not coming after Harry? How had Peter survived? What really happened that night in October 1981? His head swam with unanswered questions.

The stress of it all was beginning to take its toll. Remus spent most of his time holed up in his office, only emerging for lessons or, occasionally, to grab a quick bite to eat.

The only visitors he received were students confused by their homework or Madam Pomfrey, who would storm in to scold him about taking his Wolfsbane Potion—something he had neglected for the month. He kept telling himself he’d get to it eventually, but Snape had been particularly mad at him after that one night's patrol and refused to deliver the potion personally. Without the usual reminder, Remus found himself forgetting about it entirely.

As the end-of-year exams approached, he had his students complete a course designed to teach them quick thinking and how to handle potential dangers. There were no students who failed his class, which managed to lift Remus’ mood at least a little.

Sooner or later, exams had ended, and Remus found himself sitting in his office, once again, staring into the Marauders’ map. He had been doing that quite often ever since it got into his possession.

However this evening he was awaiting something more specific. The news of Buckbeak’s execution had reached him—a cruel fate for Hagrid’s Hippogriff. He suspected Harry, Ron, and Hermione wouldn’t take it lightly. If they didn’t try to comfort Hagrid, they’d be sneaking out to watch or intervene.

Remus was right.

He watched as their name tags moved across the map toward Hagrid’s hut. He almost thought about going there and personally drag them away from the scene but a horrific site made him sit back down. When the trio seemed to finally be leaving, another name appeared alongside theirs—a name that sent a chill through Remus.

Peter Pettigrew.

Remus blinked, his heart pounding. He couldn’t believe his eyes. How could Peter be with them? How was Peter allowed in the castle without anyone noticing him? He was dead; or at least that’s what everyone else thought. If someone noticed him, they surely would’ve told someone. He must’ve disguised himself as something ordinary, something nobody would spare a second glance. Remus thought about Peter turning into his animagus but then. Hogwarts didn’t have any wandering rats; they were either thrown out of the castle, or caught by ms Norris. Then, like a bolt of lightning, it hit him.

Peter was Ron’s rat. Peter was Scabbers.

Shock turned to dread as another name suddenly appeared on the map—one he hadn’t seen in over a decade.

Sirius Black.

Remus watched, breathless, as Sirius’ name tag rushed toward the group. Moments later, Sirius and Peter’s tags were moving together, accompanied by Ron’s, abandoning the rest of the group. Remus guessed Sirius was dragging Ron somewhere, and it didn’t take much to figure out where.

The Whomping Willow.

There was no time to lose. Grabbing his wand, Remus bolted from his office. He didn’t bother closing the map as he sprinted through the castle halls, out into the grounds, and toward the violent, swaying branches of the Whomping Willow.

His heart hammered in his chest as he found the entrance to the underground passage. It had been years since he’d gone this way, but his legs seemed to move of their own accord, guiding him down the familiar path.

This was it. He was about to confront Sirius after twelve long years.

Would Sirius even remember him? Had Azkaban driven him completely mad?

The nerves crawled at Remus as he descended deeper into the tunnel, his wand trembling slightly in his grip. He was heading straight for the Shrieking Shack, the place where so many secrets had once been kept.

And now, it seemed, the truth would finally come to light.

Remus pushed the heavy wooden door open, its hinges creaking loudly in protest. He stepped inside, the floorboards groaning beneath his weight. He hadn’t been inside the Shrieking Shack for quite some time and an odd nostalgic feeling came back to him as he looked around the room. Dust blanketed every surface, and the windows were barricaded with weathered wooden boards.

Suddenly Remus heard a shout from upstairs; he suspected it was Hermione: "WE'RE UP HERE! WE'RE UP HERE–SIRIUS BLACK–QUICK!"

Remus wasted no time in bolting up the stairs, his heart pounding, a sharp pain pounding in his hip with every step. Reaching the second floor he barged into the room everyone was in with his wand at the ready. 

His eyes flicked over the room: Hermione and Ron huddled in the corner, pale and wide-eyed. Harry stood in the middle, his wand trained on none other than Sirius Black, who was sprawled on the dusty floor.

Remus’ breath hitched for a split second as he looked at Sirius. 

He looked older—so much older. Lines creased his face where there hadn’t been any before. His robes were tattered and filthy, his face thin beneath a scruffy beard. His hair was still shoulder length, except not nearly as well taken care of as it was all those years ago. 

But it was still him.

The sight stirred something deep inside Remus. It was as though no time had passed, and they were sixteen again.

“Expelliarmus” Remus called out as he disarmed both Harry and Hermione of their wands, which flew into his hand. Harry instinctively took a few steps back to Ron and Hermione as all three of them looked at him in horror.

Remus ignored them, his focus entirely on Sirius, who laid motionless on the floor.

He stepped forward, his voice tense. The first words shared between them in the past 12 years. “Where is he, Sirius?”

For a moment, Sirius didn’t move. His face was unreadable, but his eyes—his haunted, sunken eyes—searched Remus’ with an intensity that made the air feel heavy.

Then, slowly, Sirius raised a trembling hand and pointed straight at Ron.

Or, more precisely, at the shabby rat in Ron’s pocket.

Ron looked horrified when Sirius pointed to him but Remus ignored it, instead he was lost deep in thought. 

If Peter was alive that meant he couldn’t have died that fateful night, which also meant that Sirius didn’t kill him. But then that didn’t explain why Peter cut his finger off.

"But then..." Remus muttered, his voice barely audible. His gaze never left Sirius. "Why hasn’t he shown himself before now? Unless..."

The realization hit him like a lightning strike. His eyes widened, and he saw the answer reflected in Sirius’ anguished expression. There wasn’t anything to say, they both knew each other’s almost every thought. Or at least they did at some point and the remnants of it seemed to stick

"...Unless he was the one. Unless you switched—without telling me?"

Sirius nodded, almost imperceptibly. His face betrayed the pain he had tried so hard to hide, but Remus saw it. He knew.

Peter was the secret keeper. Peter ratted James and Lily out to Voldemort. He was the one responsible for James and Lily’s death. He cut his finger off to fake his death, while blaming the entire thing on Sirius. Sirius had been wrongly imprisoned this entire time and Remus loathed him this entire time, for practically no reason at all. Remus thought he was going to throw up.

"Professor," Harry interrupted loudly, "what's going on --?"

Remus didn’t answer. He extended a hand to Sirius, who grasped it tightly and allowed Remus to pull him to his feet. But instead of letting go, Sirius used the momentum to pull Remus into a tight embrace.

For a moment, time seemed to stop.

No words were spoken, but none were needed. The silent exchange carried a thousand unspoken apologies, a lifetime of loss.

“I DON’T BELIEVE IT!”

Hermione’s shrill voice shattered the moment.

Reluctantly, Remus stepped back, turning to face her. She was now pointing directly at him, her face pale and livid.

“You—you—” she stammered, her voice trembling with disbelief.

“Hermione—” Remus began, trying to calm her.

“YOU AND HIM!”

“Hermione, listen to me—”

“I didn’t tell anyone!” she shrieked. “I’ve been covering up for you—”

“Hermione, please,” Remus shouted. “Let me explain—”

She was covering up for him? Remus was utterly confused.

"I trusted you," Harry shouted at Remus, his voice wavering, out of control, "and all this time you've been his friend!" 

The pain in Harry’s eyes stung more than any curse could, and Remus had to steady himself.

 "You're wrong," said Remus. He wasn’t exactly Sirius’ friend for the better part of the time they spent together.

 “I haven’t been Sirius’s friend. Not for a long time.” His gaze flicked to Sirius, the man looking ragged yet defiant in the corner, and something unspoken lingered in the air. “But I am now. Let me explain—”

"NO!" Hermione screamed. "Harry, don't trust him, he's been helping Black get into the castle, he wants you dead too -- he's a werewolf!" 

There was a deafening silence. Everyone's eyes were now on Remus. He was suddenly entirely too aware of how small the room seemed to appear, how the floorboards were slightly groaning under his weight and how all eyes seemed to be staring into his soul. He felt beads of cold sweat run down his spine. Despite the tension, he forced himself to remain composed.

 "Not at all up to your usual standard, Hermione," he said, feeling a bit smug. "Only one out of three, I'm afraid. I have not been helping Sirius get into the castle and I certainly don't want Harry dead.” He paused, drawing a steadying breath. "But I won't deny that I am a werewolf." 

Ron recoiled, looking horrified. Harry stared at him, wide-eyed and stunned.

“How long have you known?” Remus asked Hermione, his tone surprisingly neutral.

“Ages,” she whispered. “Since I did Professor Snape’s essay...”

Oh he could kill Snape right this instant. He noticed Sirius glancing at him, confused but silent.

"He'll be delighted," said Remus dryly, clicking his tongue. "He assigned that essay hoping someone would realize what my symptoms mean.... Did you check the lunar chart and realize that I was always ill at the full moon? Or did you realize that the boggart changed into the moon when it saw me?"

“Both,” Hermione admitted quietly.

Remus let out a short, hollow laugh. “You’re the cleverest witch of your age I’ve ever met.”

“I’m not,” Hermione whispered, guilt obvious on her face. “If I’d been cleverer, I’d have told everyone what you are!”

“But they already know,” said Remus softly. “At least, the staff does.”

“Dumbledore hired you knowing you were a werewolf?” Ron asked, his voice filled with disbelief. “Is he mad?”

Remus couldn’t help a faint smile. “Some of the staff thought so,” he admitted, thinking of Snape’s constant banter. “Dumbledore had to work very hard to convince certain teachers that I was trustworthy—”

“AND HE WAS WRONG!” Harry shouted suddenly. The outburst made Remus flinch.

"You’ve been helping him this entire time!" He was pointing at Sirius, who suddenly crossed to the four-poster bed and sank onto it, his face hidden in one shaking hand. The orange cat leapt up beside him and stepped onto his lap, purring. Remus’s heart clenched at the sight.

“I have not been helping Sirius,” he said firmly, forcing his focus back to Harry. “If you’ll give me a chance, I’ll explain.”

He separated the three wands he held and tossed them back to Harry, Ron, and Hermione. They caught them, startled by the gesture.

“There,” he said, tucking his own wand back into his belt. “You’re armed. We’re not. Now will you listen?

Harry looked at him with a questioning look before asking "If you haven't been helping him," he said, with a furious glance at Sirius, "how did you know he was here?"

 "The map," said Remus. "The Marauder's Map. I was in my office examining it –”

"You know how to work it?" Harry said suspiciously. 

Remus almost laughed at that, "Of course I know how to work it," said Remus, waving his hand impatiently. "I helped write it. I'm Moony -- that was my friends' nickname for me at school." 

"You wrote --?"

 "The important thing is, I was watching it carefully this evening, because I had an idea that you, Ron, and Hermione might try and sneak out of the castle to visit Hagrid before his hippogriff was executed. And I was right, wasn't I"

The trio exchanged uneasy glances but said nothing.

“I watched you cross the grounds and enter Hagrid's hut. Twenty minutes later, you left Hagrid, and set off back toward the castle. But you were now accompanied by somebody else."  Remus continued.

"What?" said Harry. "No, we weren't!”

" I couldn't believe my eyes," Remus pressed on, ignoring the interruption.  

"I thought the map must be malfunctioning. How could he be with you?" 

"No one was with us!" said Harry. 

“And then,” Remus said, his voice growing quieter, “I saw another dot moving toward you; Sirius Black. I watched as he collided with you and pulled two of you into the Whomping Willow.”

“One of us!” Ron corrected angrily.

“No, Ron,” Remus said firmly. His gaze shifted to Ron’s pocket. “Two of you.”

Ron looked confused, but Remus ignored him. His attention was on Sirius again, whose shoulders had stiffened.

“Do you think I could see the rat?” Remus asked evenly.

“What?” Ron said, clutching Scabbers tighter. “What’s Scabbers got to do with anything?”

“Everything,” Remus replied, his eyes flicking briefly to Sirius.

“That’s not a rat,” Sirius growled suddenly, his voice rough but intense.

“What d’you mean—of course he’s a rat!” Ron protested.

“No, he’s not,” Remus said quietly. “He’s a wizard. An Animagus. By the name of Peter Pettigrew.”

“You’re both mental,” Ron declared flatly.

“Peter Pettigrew’s dead!” Harry shouted. “He killed him twelve years ago!” He pointed accusingly at Sirius.

"I meant to," Sirius growled, "but little Peter got the better of me... not this time, though!" 

"Sirius, NO!" Remus yelled, launching himself forwards and dragging Sirius away from Ron again. It was the first time they had any physical contact in the past 12 years and Remus’ grip faltered for a moment as memories of him and Sirius flashed in his mind for a brief second.

 "WAIT! You can't do it just like that -- they need to understand -- we've got to explain --"

"They've -- got -- a -- right -- to -- know -- -everything!" Remus panted, still trying to restrain Sirius. They haven’t wrestled like this since their Hogwarts years. "Ron's kept him as a pet! There are parts of it even I don't understand, and Harry -- you owe Harry the truth, Sirius!" 

Sirius stilled, his breathing heavy. Their eyes locked, and for a moment, it was just the two of them again. Sirius nodded slowly and released a shuddering breath, stepping back.

"All right, then," Sirius said. "Tell them whatever you like. But make it quick, Remus. I want to commit the murder I was imprisoned for..." 

"But Professor Lupin... Scabbers can't be Pettigrew... it just can't be true, you know it can't..." 

"Why can't it be true?" Remus asked calmly, though his tone carried a quiet intensity.

"Because... because people would know if Peter Pettigrew had been an Animagus," Hermione said, sounding slightly desperate. "We did Animagi in class with Professor McGonagall. And I looked them up when I did my homework—the Ministry of Magic keeps tabs on witches and wizards who can become animals; there's a register showing what animal they become, and their markings and things... and I went and looked Professor McGonagall up on the register, and there have been only seven Animagi this century, and Pettigrew's name wasn't on the list."

Remus let out a laugh. He thought how he must’ve looked like he was going mad. "Right again, Hermione!" he said. "But the Ministry never knew that there used to be three unregistered Animagi running around Hogwarts." 

"If you're going to tell them the story, get a move on, Remus," Sirius interjected, his eyes never leaving Scabbers, who was trembling violently in Ron's hands. "I've waited twelve years; I'm not going to wait much longer."

"All right... but you'll need to help me, Sirius," said Remus, turning to face him fully. There was something in his gaze—an unspoken understanding, a connection so familiar that it made Sirius falter for the briefest moment.

“I only know how it began,” Remus added, his voice softening ever so slightly, just enough for Sirius to catch the undertone.

Remus turned back to the trio, drawing a steadying breath. He told them everything—how he was bitten as a child and became a werewolf, how the Shrieking Shack had earned its name, and how it was never haunted at all, only used to contain his transformations. He explained how James, Sirius, and Peter had become Animagi in secret to help him, how their friendship had been his lifeline during those dark years.

Harry, Ron, and Hermione listened in stunned silence, though Hermione’s eyes occasionally flickered to Sirius, as though trying to imagine the man before her as the boy Remus described.

But Remus didn’t stop there. His voice dropped slightly as he spoke about Snape—the way Snape had tried to expose his secret all year, and the infamous prank Sirius had set up in their fifth year, nearly leading Snape into the Shrieking Shack on a full moon.

The memory made Remus hesitate, his words faltering for the first time. He swallowed hard, his gaze falling briefly to the floor. Sirius shifted beside him, his hand twitching as though he wanted to reach out but thought better of it.

There was a beat of silence before Harry spoke, his voice slow and thoughtful. “So that’s why Snape doesn’t like you—because he thought you were in on the joke?”

"That's right," sneered a cold voice from behind them, making everyone jump.

Remus whirled around, his body instinctively moving to shield Sirius and the trio as Snape stepped out of the shadows, his wand pointed directly at him.

"Severus --" Lupin began, but Snape overrode him.

 "I've told the headmaster again and again that you're helping your old friend Black into the castle, Lupin, and here's the proof. Not even I dreamed you would have the nerve to use this old place as your hideout --" 

"Severus, you're making a mistake," said Lupin urgently. "You haven't heard everything -- I can explain -- Sirius is not here to kill Harry --"

"Two more for Azkaban tonight," said Snape, his eyes now gleaming fanatically. "I shall be interested to see how Dumbledore takes this.... He was quite convinced you were harmless, you know, Lupin... a tame werewolf --" 

Remus stared at him in disbelief, his mind went blank as he ran out of words to reply. Sirius however didn’t; he never did.

“It’s truly wonderful that you think you’re so clever, however, you have once again come to the wrong conclusion. Now, if you’ll excuse us, Remus and I have some unfinished business to attend.” Sirius took a few daring steps towards Snape. Snape didn’t seem to take it lightly as he pressed his wand against Sirius’ neck.

Sirius let out a small gasp in response and Remus instinctively took a step toward Sirius to help him, but then decided against it.

“Give me a reason. I beg you.” Snape snarled.

“Severus, don’t be a fool.” Remus said pointedly.

“He can’t help it, it's a habit by now..” Sirius let out.

“Sirius be quiet!” Remus cut him off, raising his voice. That stupid idiot would actually get them sent to Azkaban again. Well, perhaps they’d be able to share a cell? What the hell was he even thinking about?

“Oh quiet yourself, Remus!” Sirius shouted back at him and Remus rolled his eyes as he looked to the side to check on the trio to see if they’re still doing okay. They looked horrified but didn’t seem to be going anywhere, which Remus took as a positive.

“Listen to you two, quarreling like an old married couple.” Snape stated. Remus didn’t know if he wanted to laugh or cry.

“Why don’t you run along and go play with your chemistry set!” Sirius shot back and Remus almost let out a chuckle but that was until Snape pressed his wand to Sirius' neck even harder and Remus flinched in response.

“I could do it, you know.” Snape started, “But why deny the Dementors when they’re so longing to see you?”

Remus was one step away from punching Snape right there and then. Instead he watched as Sirius started taking small steps backwards, Snape being close to follow him.

“Do I detect a flicker of fear?” Snape’s mouth turned into a disgusting smile. “Oh yes, the Dementor’s kiss. One can only imagine what that must be like to endure. It’s said to be nearly unbearable to witness, but I’ll do my best.”

“Severus, please.” Remus pleaded, cutting him off. He didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if Snape was to turn Sirius in. He definitely wouldn’t be able to bear it. 

Snape however didn’t even spare Remus a second glance as he pointed to the door behind him “After you.” he said in a harsh tone and pointed his head at the trio on the other side of the room, signaling them to leave.

At that Harry took a few steps forward, wand in hand which he was pointing directly at Sirius. Remus’ heart dropped. This was it wasn’t it? They were going to be turned in for something they haven’t done. Remus wondered if this is what Sirius felt all those years ago. He also wondered what Sirius was feeling right now.

When Remus had practically lost all hope, Harry suddenly pointed his wand at Snape and shouted “Expelliarmus!” which sent Snape flying backwards into a wall, making him fall unconscious. Remus’ eyebrows shot up in surprise. 

He heard Sirius snicker under his breath as he murmured “Who the hell let him be a teacher?” Remus was about to snigger but before he could, Harry was shouting at him.

“Tell me more about Peter Pettigrew!”

“We thought he was our friend!” Remus pleaded back.

“No, Pettigrew’s dead, he killed him!” Harry pointed his wand at Sirius to which Remus jumped forward without second thought to protect him.

“I thought so too, until you mentioned seeing Pettigrew on the map.” 

“The map was lying then!”

“The map never lies!” Sirius shouted, making Remus turn his head back to him. Remus could suddenly feel a horrible ache in his hip, which didn’t seem to be going away. He leaned against the wall for support. Today’s full moon was going to be awful, he could feel it.

“Pettigrew is right there!” Sirius pointed at Ron’s rat again.

“But I’m telling you! That’s not possible, Scabbers has been in my family for-” Ron started but was cut off by Sirius again.

“Twelve years?” Sirius kept his voice loud “Curiously long life for a common garden rat!”

“He’s missing a toe isn’t he?” Sirius pointed at him again.

“So what?”

“All they could find of Pettigrew was his finger!” Sirius shouted “He cut it off to make everyone think he was dead and then transformed into a rat!”

Sirius was now standing very close to Ron. The rat in Ron’s hands was horridly squeaking and trying to get out of his grasp but thankfully Ron was holding him firmly.

“Show me.” Harry declared, his voice firm.

Sirius looked back at Harry with hopeful eyes and in that moment Remus noticed how shabby and scary looking he was. Remus pushed the thought aside as Sirius started grabbing the rat from Ron’s hands, who was of course protesting.

“Give him the rat, Ron!” Remus stated and surprisingly, Ron seemed to compel, despite the face he was making which was filled with fear.

Sirius gave Remus a pointed look as he held the dirty rat in his hand. Remus nodded and prepared his wand.

Sirius suddenly let the rat go and as it started desperately trying to escape both him and Sirius, who had most likely borrowed (stolen) Ron’s wand, and now were firing spells at it. It took a few tries but one of Remus’ spells finally hit Peter straight into his small body and he instantly turned into a horribly looking man. 

Any thoughts of Sirius looking shabby quickly crumbled at the sight before him.

It had obviously been Peter, but if Remus hadn’t known that, he probably wouldn’t have recognised him in the slightest. Half his hair had fallen out and he had massive bald spots all around his head; the few greasy hairs he did have reached his shoulders. He was horribly dirty and in desperate need of a bath. His face had many creases that Remus didn’t recognise and he still seemed to be behaving like a rat, despite being fully human in the moment.

Peter seemed confused for a moment, almost as if he didn’t register turning back, until he suddenly gained consciousness and looked between Remus and Sirius with a rotten smile, his yellow teeth showing.

“Remus? Sirius!” Peter exclaimed, “My old friends!” Remus thought he was going to puke. Neither him nor Sirius said anything in return.

Peter then turned around to scan the room as his eyes landed on Harry. “Harry!” he said as he moved towards him, Remus was fuming with rage “You look so much like your father! Like James! We were the bestest of friends!”

Sirius stomped toward him and threw him off Harry, to which Remus smiled in satisfaction 

“How dare you speak to Harry!” Sirius shouted. “How dare you talk about James in front of him!”

Both Remus and Sirius suddenly hurled Peter into a corner; it was like instinct, they were both moving together.

Suddenly Remus spoke up, pointing his wand at Peter “You sold James and Lily to Voldemort, didn’t you?” he raised his voice.

“I didn’t mean to!” Peter pleaded, tears flooding his eyes. Remus' eyes twitched in disgust. 

“The Dark Lord, you have no idea of the weapons which he possesses!” Peter suddenly started rambling before his dreadful face suddenly disappeared and was instead replaced with one full of hope as he turned to Sirius.

“Ask yourself, Sirius. What would you have done? What would you have done?”

“I would have died! I would have died rather than betray my friends!” Sirius shot back, his voice full of fury. It was amusing to Remus how Peter thought that out of all the people standing in this room, Sirius would be the one to agree with him. Remus realised in that moment how much Peter had not known them at all.

Sirius hissed, so venomously that Peter took a step backward. "I thought it was the perfect plan... a bluff... Voldemort would be sure to come after me, would never dream they'd use a weak, talentless thing like you.... It must have been the finest moment of your miserable life, telling Voldemort you could hand him the Potters." 

“You should have realised, Peter, that if Voldemort hadn't killed you then we would!” Sirius exclaimed and Remus silently agreed as they both pointed their wands at him. Remus was ready to do this, and if he was going to be sent to Azkaban for killing the man before him, then so be it. He was desperate for revenge and he would never forgive someone for taking everything from him and leaving him utterly helpless for more than a decade.

“NO!” Harry suddenly exclaimed, making both Remus and Sirius turn to him.

Remus took a deep sign before saying “Harry, you’ve got to understand that the man before us-” but he was cut off by Harry’s strong voice.

“I know what he did! We will instead take him to the castle.”

Peter suddenly fell to his knees “Bless you, boy! Bless you!”

“Oh, get up! We’re not sparing you! We’re going to go turn you in so you can properly serve your time in Azkaban!” 

Peter’s face turned to horror and Remus fought back a smirk.

"Very well," said Remus. 

Harry shifted uncomfortably as Remus pointed his wand at Peter. 

"I'm going to tie him up," said Remus. "That's all, I swear." 

Thin cords then suddenly shot from Remus' wand as he conjured a spell without even saying it out loud, he became quite good at that over the years. The next moment, Peter was wriggling on the floor, bound and gagged. 

"But if you transform, Peter," growled Siirus, his own wand pointing at Peter too, "we will kill you. You agree, Harry?" 

Harry looked down at the pitiful figure on the floor and nodded so that Peter could see him.

"Right," said Remus as he straightened up. "Ron, I can't mend bones nearly as well as Popp- Madam Pomfrey, so I think it's best if we just strap your leg up until we can get you to the hospital wing." 

He hurried over to Ron, bent down, tapped Ron's leg with his wand, and muttered, "Ferula." Bandages spun up Ron's leg, strapping it tightly to a splint. He learned that spell during one of Poppy’s extra medical lessons she used to give to students who volunteered after school.  

Remus then helped him to his feet; Ron put his weight gingerly on the leg and didn't wince. Remus smiled to himself; glad he could help.

"What about Professor Snape?" said Hermione in a small voice, looking down at Snape's prone figure. Remus fought the urge to laugh at him and Sirius seemed to as well.

"There's nothing seriously wrong with him," said Remus, bending over Snape and checking his pulse. "You were just a little -- overenthusiastic. Still out cold. Er -- perhaps it will be best if we don't revive him until we're safely back in the castle. We can take him like this...."

Remus muttered a small, "Mobilicorpus." As though invisible strings were tied to Snape's wrists, neck, and knees, he was pulled into a standing position, head still lolling unpleasantly, like a grotesque puppet. He hung a few inches above the ground, his limp feet dangling.

"And two of us should be chained to this," said Sirius, nudging Peter with his toe. "Just to make sure." 

"I'll do it," said Remus. 

"And me," said Ron savagely, limping forward. Remus thought about protesting for a while but Ron seemed determined enough and he didn't have the heart to tell him no.

Sirius then conjured heavy manacles from thin air; soon Peter was upright again, left arm chained to Remus’ right, right arm to Ron's left. Ron's face was set. He seemed to have taken Scabbers's true identity as a personal insult. Remus had too.

Getting back into the tunnel was difficult. Remus, Peter, and Ron had to turn sideways to manage it; Remus still had Peter covered with his wand and was trying his hardest to focus. He would never forgive himself if he let go in the moment. However, that resulted in them edging quite awkwardly along the tunnel in single file. 

Remus could hear someone bumping into the ceiling behind him and suspected it was Sirius, who was still making Snape drift along ahead of them and kept bumping his lolling head on the low ceiling, in which Sirius was making no effort to prevent this.

He also heard Sirius and Harry talking about something but he was far too focused on getting out of the tunnel, as their words went into one ear and straight out the other. 

The only thing he did manage to catch was Sirius explaining how he managed to escape, and because Remus was also interested, he listened in. 

"I don't know how I did it," Sirius said slowly. "I think the only reason I never lost my mind is that I knew I was innocent. That wasn't a happy thought, so the dementors couldn't suck it out of me... but it kept me sane and knowing who I am... helped me keep my powers... so when it all became ... too much... I could transform in my cell... become a dog. Dementors can't see, you know...." He swallowed. "They feel their way toward people by feeding off their emotions.... They could tell that my feelings were less -- less human, less complex when I was a dog... but they thought, of course, that I was losing my mind like everyone else in there, so it didn't trouble them. But I was weak, very weak, and I had no hope of driving them away from me without a wand...."

"It was as if someone had lit a fire In my head, and the dementors couldn't destroy it.... It wasn't a happy feeling... it was an obsession... but it gave me strength, it cleared my mind. So, one night when they opened my door to bring food, I slipped past them as a dog.... It's so much harder for them to sense animal emotions that they were confused.... I was thin, very thin... thin enough to slip through the bars.... I swam as a dog back to the mainland.... I journeyed north and slipped into the Hogwarts grounds as a dog. I've been living in the forest ever since, except when I came to watch the Quidditch, of course. You fly as well as your father did, Harry...."

Remus felt a pang in his chest as he listened to Sirius ramble. His mind was racing with thoughts on what everything they could've done differently to prevent all this from happening. Guess it was too late now.

Just as they had finally exited the tunnel Remus’ body went rigid. He completely forgot; it was a full moon.

It was a full moon and he forgot to take his Wolfsbane potion. Stupid fucking idiot. 

A horrible indescribable pain shot through his entire body as he writhed and bent in pain. He could hear Sirius shouting to the others to run away but seemed to do the opposite as he grabbed Remus by the shoulders.

“Remus!” Sirius tried to shake him, Remus was still groaning in pain as he felt his bones pop and break.

The pain was excruciating and he was convinced he was about to pass out. He felt his skin tear and grow and there was too much happening to his body at once. 

He tried to fight it, he really did, but as it was every full moon before his potions, he felt his consciousness slip and everything go blank.