The Prank.
REMUS
—-------
On the day of the full moon, Remus and Sirius seem to juxtapose one another. Whilst Remus is anxious and agitated, Sirius is unusually calm. It unsettles Remus, because Sirius is never this relaxed. Not that Remus is complaining. He’s glad Sirius’ snappy, moody phase seems to have passed. Maybe now he’ll finally talk to Remus about what actually happened over the Christmas break. Or he could talk to James, or anyone really. Remus just knows Sirius shouldn’t keep all those emotions bottled up, because when Sirius spills over, it’s dangerous.
It’s a Saturday, and the marauders spend a large portion of the morning planning out the details for their upcoming prank. The current plan is to replace every single photograph and portrait in the castle with images of themselves. If they can figure out the magic, their portraits will be constantly annoying the other Hogwarts inhabitants with poor singing, long and pointless stories, and half-baked jokes.
Sirius and Remus spend the afternoon locked away in an empty classroom, talking, laughing, snogging, touching. Remus always has a lot of energy on the day before a moon, and Sirius is more than happy to help tire him out a bit. When the sun nears the horizon, Remus sweeps Sirius into his arms and kisses him deeply. “I’ve got to go, Sirius. I’ll see you later, yeah?”
“Yeah, Moons. I’ll see you later. I love you.” Sirius flashes him a charming grin, and Remus thinks about his lips all the way to the Willow.
Remus never takes his wand with him, because he doesn’t want to risk breaking it. He doesn’t need it to open the passage beneath the Willow. After all, it was purpose built for him, and opens automatically when it detects his magic approaching. Remus makes the familiar walk down the cold, manky corridor into the single room shack. He sits down on the worn out mattress in the corner of the room. Usually, Remus would use this time to be a miserable sod. Usually, this would be when he would dwell on all the problems in his life and feel sorry for himself. But for the first time, Remus is blissfully happy. He has everything he wants. Some of the best grades in the school. Lovely, supportive friends and a beautiful boy who we loves. He loves Sirius very much, and has for a long time now, even if he didn’t know it until recently. But he still hasn’t said it, and he suddenly has no idea why. Sirius deserves to know. Remus makes up his mind to finally tell Sirius just how much he loves him tomorrow morning, as soon as they get a moment alone. The thought makes him giddy. For once, Remus isn’t frantic over the full moon, because he is so distracted by love.
***
SEVERUS
—----------
Severus was no coward. Even though he fully suspected Sirius was lying about the passage beneath the Willow, he still approached the monstrous tree fifteen minutes before sundown. On the off chance Sirius was telling the truth, Severus wanted to be the one waiting for him, so he could have the upperhand. He tapped his wand against the base knot as instructed, and watched as the bark on the willow splintered apart to reveal the passage Sirius had told him about. The corridor was longer than Severus had expected, and seemed to stretch on for miles. It was dark and smelt of mildew. Deep scratches lined the walls. In Severus’ mind, they looked like the claw marks of a savage beast. There was a distinct feeling of foreboding, everything in him begging him to turn around, get out, run away. But Severus was too proud to back down from a fight. Sirius Black had everything Severus craved. Pure blood, money, status. Popularity, power, charisma. Sirius had been served everything on a silver platter, and had thrown it all away, for what? Severus was looking forward to showing Sirius exactly what he was capable of. Tonight, Severus would make sure that Black and his pathetic friends would never bully or pick on him again.
As he neared the end of the passage, Severus could hear someone pacing behind the heavily bolted door. Severus pulled out his wand and held it in front of him in an attack stance, then swung open the door, ready for the fight Sirius had promised him. But it wasn’t Sirius waiting for him.
Remus Lupin gaped at him, eyes wide as saucers.
“Oh, you’ve got to be fucking kidding me.” Severus laughed. “What, Sirius was too scared to show up himself, was he? Did he send his boyfriend to fight in his place? How pathetic.”
Remus was shaking, eyes darting between Severus and the door behind him. “Snape, you can’t be here. Get out of here, now.” Remus ordered, his voice filled with terror.
Severus huffed and rolled his eyes, but didn’t move. “Like hell, Lupin. Sirius promised me a duel, here and now, and he’s going to get what he fucking deserves.”
***
REMUS
—-------
Remus heard the footsteps coming down the passageway, even though it was still too early for the others to come. Remus always made them wait until after he transformed before coming into the shack. He couldn’t bear the thought of anyone watching as each of his bones snapped and his body twisted into his hideous deformity. He never wanted anyone to hear his blood curdling screams as his humanity was ripped away from him. Remus was ready to tell his friends to get out and stay away for a bit longer. He was not prepared to come face to face with Severus Snape. Confusion clouded Remus’ mind. What is he doing here? How does he know about this place? Why does he keep talking about Sirius?
“Snape, I’m not joking. Whatever issues you have with Sirius, sort them out later. You need to get the fuck out of here.”
Remus was sweating all over his body. The first symptom of a lycanthropic transformation. At best, he had a couple of minutes before his bones started to fracture. Snape was refusing to move. Remus charged at him in an attempt to forcibly shove him out the door, but Snape was too quick for him. Severus slammed the door closed with his foot. Within milliseconds he had Remus in a body bind, paralysed and whimpering on the floor. But the bind wouldn’t stop the transformation, and while it could restrain Remus, it would be powerless against Moony.
Remus was petrified. If Snape didn’t leave in the next five minutes, he would watch Remus lose all control over his body and mind. And then… well who knows what could happen.
“You have to go!” Remus was yelling at Severus with pitiful desperation. “GET OUT, SEVERUS. FUCKING GET OUT OF HERE.”
“I already told you, Lupin.” Severus responded casually, “I’m not leaving without fighting your boyfriend. We’re waiting here till Sirius comes.”
It might be too late by then.
“Severus, you don’t understand.” Tears spilled over Remus’ eyes, and then he started crying hysterically. “You cannot be here. It’s fucking dangerous, do you hear me? Get out while you can. Please.”
Severus ignored him again. No matter how much Remus yelled or cried or begged, Snape was too fucking proud, too stubborn, to leave for his own good. Remus was utterly helpless. The last thing he heard before blacking out were his own agonised screams mixed with the familiar sound of his bones breaking and reforming.
***
JAMES
—------
“Mate, this is going to be such a killer prank. Everyone is going to be so pissed at us.” Sirius chuckled excitedly. Once Remus had left for the Shack, Sirius had returned to the Gryffindor common room, and along with James and Peter, had continued to hash out the finer details of their portrait replacement prank. They’d just perfected the charm they needed to make the new portraits sing to passer-bys.
“What song are we going to use?” Peter asked.
“Oh I’ve already got that sorted, Pete.” James grinned. “It has to be a Queen song. Lily told me that Snivellus hates Queen, so just imagine the look on his face when it starts playing in every hallway!” James let out a light, carefree laugh.
“Oh, that’s brilliant!” Sirius declared. “But not as brilliant as the prank I pulled on Snape.”
“What? You didn’t tell us anything, Pads!” Peter exclaimed. “What did you do to him?”
Sirius gave them a proud smile. “I told him how to get past the Willow,” He choked out between bursts of manic laughter. “That slimy git is going to shit his pants from fright when he-”
James cut him off, immediately panicked. “What the fuck do you mean you told him about the Willow? Are you serious right now?”
Sirius just kept laughing. “Mate, I’ve said this before, I’m always Siri-”
James had never moved so fast in his life. He sprinted out of Gryffindor tower and raced across the grounds towards the willow. The sun was more than halfway below the horizon, but there was still time. James just hoped he could make it to Snape before Moony did.
MOONY
—--------
It took much longer for Moony to come to life this time. Every fibre in Remus’ being was resisting the transformation. No matter. Moony would make his way to the surface. It was his time, and nothing would stop him. Moony felt Remus’ body get larger and stronger. He could taste Remus’ fear, more powerful than ever before. Moony relished its flavour. In the distance, Moony could hear Remus’ agonised screams turn to howls. And then, Moony woke up.
SEVERUS
—----------
Severus was immune to Remus’ pleading for him to leave. Even when Remus had started yelling and crying, Severus held his ground. He came here for one thing, and he was going to get it. But then Remus started sweating, shaking, screaming. Severus watched, frozen in terror, as Remus’ fingers snapped backwards and his legs bent at extreme and unnatural angles. Severus couldn’t look away when Remus’ muscles began to stretch, until he was almost double his usual size. Remus' skin seemed to melt away, replaced by dark, grey fur. That was when Severus finally realised what he was up against, and he was not interested in sticking around to fight a werewolf today. His blood turned cold. Severus slowly crept back towards the door. He didn’t want to risk any sudden movements or loud sounds which might attract the attention of a turning Remus. His hand grasped the cold handle, but when he tried to pull it open, it didn’t budge. He pulled at it again, more frantic this time. The old frame still didn’t move an inch. Severus recalled the several menacing bolting mechanisms on the outside of the door. Oh fuck. They had an automatic lock charm. Of course they would. It wasn’t as if Remus could lock himself inside this room every month. Severus let out a deep, shaking breath. He was trapped in a tiny room with a boy who was very quickly turning into a dark and dangerous creature. Did Sirius plan this? Sirius was malicious, sure, but did he really hate Severus enough to want him dead? At this moment, Severus didn’t know. He frantically thought through everything he could remember about werewolves, and defence against them. Some of the most deadly creatures, Severus could be turned with a single bite, weakened by wolfsbane, hate silver...Silver. Snape always wore a silver locket. It was a family heirloom. His mother had gifted it to him when he had first left for Hogwarts. Okay, maybe he could use that somehow. Severus kept trying the door, using every version of alohomora and any other unlocking spell he could recall. It was hopeless. It was designed to keep a werewolf inside. There was no way he would be able to break through. Severus scanned the room for anything he could use, and caught sight of a pair of large, beady yellow eyes. The wolf was awake now, and glaring at its feast.
***
MOONY
—--------
Moony could hear three heart beats echoing like drums throughout the room. The first was his own, strong and loud. The second was the undercurrent of Remus’ heart, beating more slowly, more subdued in the deepest parts of his conscience. Moony didn’t recognise the third, frantic heartbeat, but he could tell it was scared. Prey. The stranger’s blood filled Moony’s nostrils. Too tempting. He wanted to bite it, devour it, eat it whole. And then Moony saw the stranger. A tall and scrawny beast. No meat on his bones. No matter, he would still make a satisfactory meal. Stranger pressed against the door. No escape. Moony slowly advanced towards him. He could wait to feast for a little longer. Playing with the prey was half the fun.
***
SEVERUS
—----------
He was standing face to face with a werewolf, who was slowly advancing on him. The wolf was drooling slightly, mouth hanging open. Fuck. There was no way for him to get out of this one. Then, the door swung open, and Severus stared at his saviour in pure shock.
JAMES
—------
James raced down the passageway, running not for his life, but for his friend’s and classmate’s. He threw the door leading into the shack open without hesitation. Moony was here already, towering over a terrified Snape huddled in the corner of the room. Moony stopped his advance on Snape and turned to look at James.
“Severus, run! Get the fuck out of here!” James yelled. Moony was startled by the sound, and changed direction to start coming towards James instead. Severus scrambled to his feet and used Moony’s momentary distraction to bolt out the door. James wasted no time in transforming into Prongs. He used his body and antlers to barricade the exit to the room. Moony was angrier and more dangerous than Prongs had ever seen him. Moony leaned back onto his haunches, and pounced against Prongs with all his force. Prongs was slammed to the ground, the barricade to the exit was broken, and Moony was off, tearing down the passageway after Severus. Prongs leapt to his feet and chased after them, but Moony had enough of a head start to catch up to Severus before he could get there. Human, werewolf and stag came bounding out of the Willow, and the animals followed Severus into the forbidden forest. Prongs was several metres behind Moony, who was rapidly gaining ground on Snape. Moony leapt forward, crashing into Severus and pinning him to the ground.
“Help! James, please help me!” Snape screamed. He was shoving desperately at Moony’s snout, trying and failing to keep his teeth away from skin. James didn’t make it in time. Moony sunk his long, sharp teeth into the flesh on Snape’s shoulder. The sound of Snape’s agonised wailing echoed through the forest. It seemed to antagonise Moony, who clawed ferociously at Severus’ chest, hissing at the silver locket wrapped around his neck. James reached them seconds later. He used his antlers to shove Moony off of Snape, but the damage was already done. Wide tooth marks ravaged the skin across Severus’ collar bone. He was condemned to Remus’ fate. Blood stained Severus' robes, and his screams subsided into pained whimpering. Out of the corner of his eye, James caught sight of a tiny, blurry figure. Wormtail. He must’ve followed James after he’d ran out of the tower. Moony seemed enticed by the challenge of catching the rat, and gave up his interest in Severus and Prongs to instead follow Wormtail back in the direction of the Whomping Willow. Prongs transformed back into James, and he immediately pulled off his jumper and used it to stem the bleeding from Severus' chest.
James had no way to stop the crimson river pouring out of Severus' skin. In his rush to get to Snape and Moony, he'd forgotten his wand on the couch in the Gryffindor common room. “Fuck. Fuck, Severus. Shit. Fuck. What do I do? We need to get you to the medical wing.” James pulled at Severus’s arms, desperately trying to get him to stand up and move. Severus didn’t respond. James kept trying to pull him up, but Severus couldn’t stand. So James slung Severus over his back and transformed back into stag form. They had to take it relatively slowly, because Severus couldn’t hold on and kept slipping in and out of consciousness. Severus slipped off Prong’s back a third time, and wouldn’t let James even try to pull him up again.
“Potter,” Severus choked out, blood leaking out between his lips. “Potter, it’s not working. It’s not going to work.” His face was wet with tears, and his eyes were set with resignation.
“Shut up Snape. We’re nearly there, we’re- you’re… they’re going to help you okay, just hold on.” James was talking a million miles a minute. “Its just a bit further to the hospital wing, Okay, we’re gonna make it, just-”
“It’s not working. You can’t carry me to Madame Pomfrey, James. You can’t.” Severus coughed up thick clumps of scarlet vomit.
“Then you stay here, and I’ll run and get help, okay? Just wait here, I’ll be right back.”
“No!” Severus shouted, and then he started sobbing. He lightly touched his chest, and his hand came away soaked in blood. The cuts were a lot deeper than James had thought. Severus grabbed James wrist, and used all his remaining strength to pull James down to his level. “These are fatal wounds, James. I’ll - I’ll be dead in minutes.” Severus said, his voice nothing more than a low whisper. “There’s no use. There’s nothing anyone can do now. Just stay with me. Please, James. Please. I don’t want to be alone.” Severus heaved out great, harrowing cries. He wailed like a child. James didn’t want to believe it, but deep down, he knew Severus was right. There was nothing anyone could do for him at this point. Except James could… James could make sure he wasn’t alone, at the end.
James held Severus' hand between both of his own. “I’m so sorry, Severus. For everything. You didn’t, you never deserved any of it.”
“Yeah well, I’ll get you back for all of it one day.” Severus choked out. “I’ll still hate you when I’m dead Potter. Might even haunt you. Our rivalry goes beyond the grave.” Severus’ breathing became very shallow, and James watched as the light slowly drained from his eyes. “Protect Lily.” Severus exhaled. His voice carried a lifetime’s worth of love, echoing from a different world. “She’s everything.”
And even though they were sworn enemies, it was James Potter who heard Severus Snape’s last words. Fitting that they would be about the girl they both loved, wholly and completely. James watched as Severus took his last breath, and closed his eyes for the final time. And it was James who held Severus’ body as his soul departed from this world, and moved on to the next.