Under the Unlucky Star

Under the Unlucky Star

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Chapter Four:

Survival

*

Harry cried out in horror as the wolf started to slowly approach. Where had Moony gone to? Could this monster really be Moony? No, this could not be true. Moony was kind and safe!

However, the wolf kept approaching. The child stumbled away from it, not daring to turn around in fear of it attacking his back. He was lucky to not do so; if he had turned and run away, the wolf would have attacked him instantly. Now, it still stalked him, content with teasing its prey before the kill.

'If Dad was here, he could help,' Harry thought desperately. 'Dad was a great wizard; Moony has told so. Dad could save me from the monster!' An image of his father, seen in an old, worn photo, flashed in his mind's eye, and he concentrated on it, hoping with a child's heart that this would indeed save him, that his father would appear from somewhere. Then his father would take the monster away and bring Moony back and make everything good and safe again. Harry knew that he would!

Suddenly Harry noticed that the wolf seemed bigger than before. For a moment he panicked, fearing that it had still grown -- it now could eat him all in one piece! -- but then even his fearful childish mind noticed that the wolf had not grown; instead, he had gotten smaller. This shock was soon forgotten, though, as the wolf growled a bit and he raised a hand in panic to shield himself from the beast's fury. Then, however, he was shocked once again as he actually saw his hand. Instead of the small, pale hand he was used to seeing he saw something that resembled more a paw, covered with black fur.

Harry tried to scream, fearing that he would turn into a monster, too. However, what came out was an animalistic whimper, like that of a fearful dog. And then he fell down, unable to stand on two feet anymore. A bit stunned from the sudden fall and very, very confused, he looked up at the now very close wolf and whimpered again. Now he was turning into a monster, and then this Moony-monster would eat him!

However, the wolf's reaction was not what he had expected. Instead of attacking, the wolf looked a bit surprised at his whimper. Then it carefully pawed closer and lowered its mouth, fangs bare. Harry whimpered again in fear, thinking that the wolf was now surely going to eat him, but instead felt sharp teeth gently taking a grasp on his neck, never breaking the skin. The wolf laid him on the floor and then lay beside him, curling up like a big, furry nest around him, a soft tail as his blanket. For a moment Harry still was fearful, almost forgetting to breathe, but the soothing sounds and gentle licks coming from the wolf calmed him down. Slowly he found himself falling asleep, comforted by the sense of safety that now radiated from the large monster, very similar to that of Moony the human.

So, little Harry Potter slept on by the side of a werewolf, his fear forgotten in favour of peace. And the werewolf lay in guard, listening to the sounds of the night, intent on letting nobody hurt his precious cub.

*

Remus woke up shivering. The memories of the night before surfaced as soon as he was properly awake, making him startle. "Oh, Merlin..." he muttered. "Harry, poor Harry... How could I forget? How could I?!" He tore his hair, wanting to punish himself and knowing it was not nearly enough. He couldn't understand just how he could have forgotten the full moon. Sure, he hadn't been feeling all right for a while now, but surely he wasn't delirious enough to forget such a thing?

Shaking slightly, he sat up, looking around. Strangely enough he saw no blood anywhere, nor were there any wounds on him. That did not change anything, however. There was only one possible outcome of the last night's setting, and because of that, he deserved death.

Just then he felt something soft and warm brushing his skin.

Looking to his other side, Remus saw something lying on the floor right next to him. At first it looked like a black pile of fur, but soon he realized that there was something inside that fur. To be exact, a small, black-coated wolf cub -- one with the white shape of a lightning bolt on his little forehead.

For a moment Remus just stared at the cub, not wholly understanding what had happened. Then he stood wearily, wincing at the pain of doing so, a quiet, though tired chuckle escaping his lips. "I should have known," he muttered. "It is not like James Potter could ever have a son without a secret or two."

He then headed for the self that held his clothes. Grimacing, he remembered the previous night. Oh, he had behaved very oddly indeed. However, by the time he remembered that it was full moon, he had known that there would be no way for Harry to be saved -- or at least he had thought so. The old house wouldn't have held a werewolf away. It'd been better, he'd thought, to have it over soon, rather than have Harry fearing the monster growling behind the door and wondering why Moony abandoned him in danger. Folding his clothes -- was he truly that neurotic? Well, rather it had been clinging to his usual rituals for comfort. As long as he did what he usually did, he could feel that there was a tiny hint of sanity still hiding within him.

Sighing, he then glanced at the child. This was not right. He couldn't care for Harry if he couldn't even remember the full moons! Sure, if the boy had truly inherited his father's Animagus skills, he would be safe, but that was not the point. The full moon, and the danger it posed, was about the most important thing he had to remember and take into account in everything he did. As he had forgotten it, putting Harry in danger, he clearly wasn't fit to be the child's guardian. It'd be better for them both if he just went and gave Harry to the authorities, perhaps telling that he had found the child wandering in the forest.

And Harry would be taken back to the Dursleys.

No. He couldn't allow that to happen. He could only go on and hope that there would be no more random acts of insanity, for that was what he considered his forgetfulness to be.

With a new sigh he sat down next to the peacefully sleeping cub, resting his head on his knees. He was aching all over; although the wolf's instincts to protect the cub had kept him from hurting himself, the transformation was still pure torture and most certainly made its consequences known. The cold of the abandoned house was creeping to him, making him shiver and quickly cast a couple of warming charms to warm up the room. Also he had a feeling of lightheadedness that did not usually accompany the aftermath of a transformation, a symptom, he felt, was most curious. Did it have something to do with his forgetting the full moon? Or was it something else entirely -- and what was it, exactly?

However, along with the lightheadedness and ache, also the exhaustion crept to him. Laying himself on his side on the floor, he curled around little Harry much like he had done the previous night, only now he had no tail to cover the child with. So, he draped an arm over the little ball of fur, hoping to keep him warm.

A moment later they were both asleep.

*

In the afternoon two days later Remus watched as Harry looked out of the window to the recently begun rain outside. After waking up again the day after the full moon he had told the child that they would remain where they were for a few days to rest and collect strength. Harry was already getting better at controlling his hereditary Animagus skills, which only went to show just how great his potential was; once he got them wholly under control they could return to his home and wait for the worst commotion to die down, then perhaps try to approach Dumbledore or just downright hide in the plain sight.

They were both enjoying this well-deserved rest, that was for sure. Remus was now almost wholly recovered from the full moon and Harry, while still thinking of their journey as an "adventure", was glad to just sit for a while and play with the toys Remus transfigured from other objects.

Suddenly an alarming feeling came to him, the wolf scratching at the back of his mind. Remus tensed. This close to full moon all his instincts were at their peak, and thus, he immediately knew that somebody was approaching the house. And not just any someone, but a very particular person.

Sirius.

He shivered a bit as the wolf roared in the back of his mind, sensing its mate even after years of separation. That was the only reason why he already knew about the approaching man while he was still relatively far; had it been anybody else he might have been alerted just in time to make Harry transform and hide all evidence that there was anybody in the abandoned house except for him and his little very wolf-like puppy.

However, Sirius knew all about Animagi. Being an Animagus at the age of four was exactly what he would expect from his wondrous godson. He would not be fooled by any trick.

Now, Remus sighed. "I'm sorry, Harry," he said, sounding apologetical, "but we have to leave. Don't worry about the rain, though; I'll make sure we don't get wet." As the child gave him a questioning gaze, he said, "A bad man is coming this way... A man who might hurt us if he found us. We have to escape from him." Even as he said this he doubted whether they could do that. Sure, he could always outrun Sirius, man or dog; however, he was now feeling rather weak and was not certain about his own endurance. Still, he was going to try. Apparating was only the last resort, as the Ministry might pick up Harry's magical signature if he was side-Apparating; they would run until they couldn't do that anymore.

Harry just nodded seriously, obedient as ever. For once Remus was almost thankful that the boy had been taught such obedience and submission by the Dursleys; not exactly, but almost. Gathering up what little things they had, he then took them both quickly downstairs, casted a water repelling charm, and ran.

For some time Harry ran by his side in his wolf form, which was far better at running than his human self. Then, however, Remus noticed that the cub's steps were faltering, and picked Harry up. He then continued running from the presence of Sirius the wolf was still picking up, the now human-formed child clinging to his neck. However, no matter how he ran, Sirius was only getting nearer.

Suddenly Remus felt his steps faltering, even though the ground wasn't any more uneven than it was anywhere else. He had just enough time to stop and place Harry on the ground to avoid hurting him. Then, however, a blanket of darkness fell over him, and he knew no more.

*

Harry watched in horror as Moony, right after suddenly stopping and putting him on the ground, collapsed to the ground. In an instant the water repelling charms disappeared, letting the rain pour down on them. However, the child hardly even noticed this as he turned his concerned attention to Moony.

"Moony!" shouted Harry, desperately trying to shake the unmoving man awake. "Wake up, Moony! Moo-ny!" Something was seriously wrong and Harry knew it. This was not supposed to happen. His friend wasn't supposed to fall asleep, not in the middle of the forest. It was still day, even, and it was raining. If Moony slept there, he would get cold -- and so would Harry, who couldn't leave without Moony.

However, Moony did not wake despite his desperate attempts. No matter how hard he shook the man or how loudly he shouted his name, Moony didn't stir, didn't open his eyes. And even Harry's little hands could feel the fire that was burning under the pale skin. Moony was sick and wouldn't wake up!

Fear clutched Harry's little heart as he fell to his knees next to Moony, rain drops mixing with tears on his pale face. What if Moony never woke up? What if Moony... died? He was sick, that Harry knew, and sick people could die if the sickness was very bad. And it had to be bad if he didn't even hear Harry!

Sobbing, the child clutched on the robes of his unconscious guardian. Moony had to wake up, wake up and take them both somewhere away from this cold, damp forest. Harry was cold and tired and oh so frightened, frightened that his only friend in the world would die and leave him all alone there in the forest. No matter how much Harry told himself that it would be okay, that Moony would heal, he didn't find it in himself to believe. During his short life he had already learnt that things never went as he wished.

Neither the tears nor the rain stopped, nor did the quiet sounds of sobbing erupting from the tiny child. Also the ragged breaths continued entering and leaving the unconscious werewolf's chest.

However, unlike the other continuous things, the breaths did falter every now and then.

*

Padfoot picked up the pace as he caught a more recent trail right next to the house. Rain made tracking very difficult, especially as the track he'd been following until then was several days old; however, a Grim's sense of smell went beyond even that of the best dogs, and he had indeed managed to track down Remus and Harry. With great relief he had noted that the boy was obviously still alive and at least relatively unharmed. He knew that he was close to catching them now. All he had to worry about was how exactly he was going to keep Remus from attacking him at first sight. Maybe a direct explanation would be the best solution. Yeah, he would try that. Thank Merlin he'd always been good at dodging curses.

Suddenly, however, his ears caught something alarming. Too quiet to be heard by anybody or anything else, the sounds of a child's crying were clear to the Grim even covered with the noise of the seemingly endless, heavy rain. Running even faster than before he headed for the source of sound.

When Padfoot came near enough to see the scene he was so shocked that he almost fell over. The sobbing child was indeed Harry, like he had half hoped, half feared. The thing the child was crying over, however, shocked him. There, on the cold, unforgiving ground, lay Remus, his Remus. As he got nearer and quickly transformed into his human form, he noticed a feverish glow on the otherwise pale face. He noticed other things as well, differences to the Remus Lupin he had once known and so much loved.

This Remus was, for one thing, far thinner than the one he'd known. Too stubborn and proud to use his former lover's money to even properly feed himself, Sirius concluded. His robes were a bit on the worn side, and there was a lot more silver in his hair than Sirius had remembered there to be. Most of the lines on his face were also new, and Sirius found himself wondering how just a few years could have made such a difference. Just what had Remus been through without him to help?

Before he got any further with his thoughts, however, he felt somebody tugging at his sleeve. Turning to look he saw Harry watching him intently. "Are you a bad man?" the child asked seriously. "Moony said that a bad man was coming and he would hurt is if he found us. Are you going to hurt us?"

Sirius swallowed. Yes, that was what Remus would tell about him. "No, Harry," he said, trying to appear as calm as possible despite the circumstances. "I am not a bad man. I could never do anything that might hurt you or Moony." Ignoring the child's queries as of how he knew his name, he turned again to his lover.

And then he noticed that Remus did not breathe anymore.

***