Bark at the Moon

Screams break the silence

Waking from the dead of night

Vengeance is boiling

He's returned to kill the light

The light of the full moon shone through the cracks between the boarded-up windows of the Shrieking Shack Remus Lupin had assumed his animal form and was pacing the floor, scratching and biting himself. He knew he had to do it. It had been running through his mind all evening. He was thirsty for blood, for his blood. He pictured it over and over, and to his wolf's mind it made a certain crazy sense.

Years spent in torment

Buried in a nameless grave,

Now he has risen

Miracles would have to save.

Those that the beast is looking for

Listen in awe

and you'll hear him Bark at the moon

Hey yeah, bark at the moon

Lupin wasn´t known for holding grudges against anyone. The only malice anyone had seen him show was when he assumed his animal form. But Lupin had never told anyone how he loathed him. How he hated him. He had threatened to reveal Lupin's secret to the school, just to see the fear in the werewolf's eyes. Lupin hated him. However, he knew how to keep his cool when he had to. No one ever saw the glances of pure hatred he shot at him.

He had decided to do it. Lupin knew that the boy would be out there tonight for detention awaiting Hagrid's arrival. He had been caught berating a Gryffindor first year. Lupin climbed down the tunnel and up from beneath the Whomping Willow. Sure enough, he was there, with his wand lit, pacing rather impatiently. Lupin made sure he was neither seen nor heard. He stalked behind the boy, stepping carefully. Just when the moment was right, when his prey's back was turned , Lupin pounced, knocking the boy over, viciously scratching and tearing at Severus Snape.

They cursed and buried him along with shame.

They thought his timeless soul had gone,

Gone to that empty burning hell - unholy one.

But he has returned to prove them wrong

He remembered it as if it were yesterday. From the day he had been bitten, he had been scared and alone. Mothers wouldn´t let their children play with him. He felt guilt that on every full moon, he became an uncontrollable beast, terrorizing his parents. He was shunned by everyone. No school would accept him. He was a loner.

He had realized his loneliness at once. But it took far longer to understand the cause of it. Night after night, day after day he had spent crying, yet not knowing why he was so alone. When he tried to play with the other children, they ran from him screaming. He was always left standing there, not knowing why people should fear him, even in his human form when he was perfectly harmless.

And why, during every full moon did he have to take this hideous form? He knew what had happened and he knew the consequences of being a werewolf. But why? Why did this have to happen to him?

Finally he had been accepted into Hogwarts, where Professor Dumbledore's heart had gone out to him.

"He deserves an education as much as any other child," Dumbledore had said.

The teachers kept quiet about Lupin's whereabouts every full moon. He had never told his friends James, Sirius and Peter where he truly went every month, but Sirius and James were clever and had figured it out. When he had discovered that they knew he became depressed and refused to spend time with them for days.

Finally, they had confronted him during dinner in the Great Hall.

"Remus, what´s wrong?" James asked.

"Yeah, what gives?" added Sirius.

"I know you know," Remus replied, both angry and sad.

"We really don´t care what you are," replied James with a smile.

"After all, we need you to cover for us on our missions," Sirius said playfully elbowing him in the ribs.

"Y- ye- yeah. Friends forever," stuttered Peter.

Remus smiled all of a sudden.

"Where would I be without you guys?"

"Lost," answered Sirius in a jokingly serious tone, "Completely lost." And he shook his head sadly in a rather playful manner.

Remus laughed.

********************************

Two years later Remus had awoken to James and Sirius pulling him out of bed. Peter was close behind them.

"What are you three doing?" he said groggily.

"We have a surprise for you," said James, smiling.

"It´s four am. Can it please wait?" pleaded Remus, still half asleep.

"I´m afraid not, my friend," replied Sirius.

They had dragged him into the common room and made the fire glow a bit brighter. He was still curious to see what this was all about.

"You ready?" asked James

"Yes," replied Remus, rubbing his tired eyes.

"Okay then ," he said, looking at the others. "Everyone on the count of three: one, two, three!"

Suddenly, the only boy standing in the room was Remus. Instead of his friends, the room now contained a stag, a big shaggy black dog, and a little rat.

"You learned to transform?" Remus cried in astonishment .

And with three pops they once again assumed human form.

"So we could hang out with you during a full moon," explained James.

"That´s the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me," Remus said. His smile was glowing more brightly than the fire.

He approached his friends and hugged them tightly. From then on, Remus was known as Moony, Peter as Wormtail, Sirius as Padfoot, and James was known as Prongs. They called themselves the Marauders.

All of these moments played through his head as he ripped away at Snape's flesh. Snape was covered in his own blood and half dead. Lupin finally tore open the boy's chest and finished him off. Lupin was covered in Snape's blood. He had killed him.

Dumbledore had heard Severus screaming but arrived too late. Snape was dead, and Dumbledore could see a grey figure moving into the Forbidden Forest.

Ooh, yeah baby Howling in shadows

Living in a lunar spell.

He finds his heaven

Spewing from the mouth of hell

Lupin awoke the next morning in the Forbidden Forest. He rubbed his eyes with his now-human hands. Memory was returning to him slowly. What had he done? He had murdered a fellow student! He couldn´t, didn´t want to realize this. What was he to do? He panicked and did the only thing he thought he could do . He pulled out his wand and took his own life.

Dumbledore had tracked him down and found his lifeless corpse sprawled out on the ground. Dumbledore bowed his head in sorrow. A tear fell from his eyes.

So scared and guilty about taking the life of another, Remus Lupin had taken his own.

Those that the beast is looking for

Listen in awe,

and you'll hear him-

Bark at the moon,

Hey yeah, bark at the moon

Hey yeah, bark at the moon

Oh yeah, bark at the moon

*************************************

Remus woke with a start the next morning. He wiped the cold sweat from his brow. He looked all around. He was Alive!

"What an awful dream," Remus said to himself.

He had overslept. He changed into his robes and ran down the stairs into the Great Hall, going directly over to the Slytherin table.

"Severus! You´re- you´re alive!"

"What in bloody hell is the matter with you, Lupin?" Snape said, somewhat scared. "Have you gone mad?" then, suddenly suspicious, "Wait, why wouldn´t I be alive?"

"Never mind that! You´re alive!" Remus had to restrain himself from throwing his arms around the Slytherin, so he quickly ran over to the Gryffindor table. He was so happy he could almost kiss Lily Evans. However, he didn't think that would sit very well with James.

"James! Sirius! Peter! I´m alive!"

"Yes, and your point is?" said Sirius.

Remus hesitated. What would his friends think if they knew that he really was a murderous monster at heart? "Never mind," he replied, evasively. "Hey, James, did you get the Potions homework?"

All throughout classes Remus was quite mopey, even during his favorite class, Defense Against the Dark Arts. At lunch, they had definitely noticed something was wrong. James had walked with him to the common room. He knew that it would be best that no one was around.

"Remus, something's up and I want to know what," James said in a concerned tone.

"I had this dream last night where I had killed Snape then myself. I just don't feel right, like it isn't a normal dream for someone like me to have."

"Remus, you'll be fine. Snape is still alive and so are you. You are and will always be the kind, compassionate best friend we've always known."

Remus hugged him with tears in his eyes. James hugged him back, knowing that he was extremely shaken up and needed his friends. Severus was just as equally shaken up by Remus' morning outburst and spent the rest of the day figuring out why he wouldn't be alive.

As for Remus, he was just happy to be alive. And he was actually happy Severus was unharmed.