Once Upon A Full Moon Night

Lupin galloped across the snow-covered lawn of Hogwarts. He tasted the small stars falling gently to the ground as though weightless against the night sky. The full moon haunted the night, watching the land dwellers count the many companions glowing beside it. Two people were out that night and did not forget the moon as the star gazers had. They feared it and despised its unshadowing.

Yet tonight was different.

Tonight the two werewolves raced in the untouched snow trying to catch an invisible menace that did not dare show itself.

Only in their minds did this menace become real.

Lupin caught a falling star on his nose and watched it melt away in a wisp of wind. Then he chased his companion as she crossed towards Hagrid's hut. He warned her not to get too close, but she only gave a happy bark, that reminded him of the Hagrid's absence.

She was right, for they were the only ones in Hogwarts at that time, except for a few teachers and two very sleepy Gryffindors.

Hagrid was on a mission, and the parents of the students wished for them to come home at every chance they had. The dark Lord had risen, causing panic among those who knew the true limits of his destruction.

If he had any limits.

Many felt safe as long as Dumbledore watched over the Ministry, answering their endless questions and staying awake all night just to bring them comfort. But, Dumbledore, though weary, could still manage a small smile as he watched the prancing wolves. This was one of the only chances they had to run free together without worry of hurting or killing someone.

They did not enjoy the small shack built for their transformation. They did not like the small space and the closed in walls. The furniture had worn out and had fallen apart from age and constant knowing. The blankets used for games of tug-of-war had ripped and seen their last day. The rug that had been torn from endless tripping and claw shredding was now nothing more than strings hanging from a rag. The once polished woodwork on the walls was now an artwork of claw marks and blood.

The cool winter air felt good on their fuzzy faces, and the snow on their paws were like clouds floating miles above the ground.

Dumbledore watched the two wolves play beyond the musty walls of the shack and laughed. How long ago it seemed that Lupin had had friends like the she-wolf. Though Lupin had broken many school rules, Dumbledore knew his friends' attempts to make him forget about his pain and worries were quite appreciated by the young werewolf. Lupin's new friend was a student who had been bitten by a werewolf at fourteen. She had been transferred to Hogwarts with many thanks and a tight squeezed hug of happiness.

Lupin was to watch over the new student who enjoyed his company more than anyone could imagine. Many fears sprang among those who knew her secret when she ended up in Slytherin. Many thought she would become bad and use her transformation for harm.

But the only Sltyherin part of her that really showed was her ability to get what she wanted, no matter the cost.

She did not get along with her fellow Slytherins, and all the other houses hated her for reasons she could not tell. She sat and cried the night of her first transformation; she did not know of the professor who shared her pain and fears. The professor who had walked into the room she sat in, and watched her with his golden eyes and brushed back his curly light brown hair, which had fallen into his worried stricken face, was the one who was just like her. . His voice was soft and comforting and made her salty tears dry up. They transformed that night and in the old shack they howled together in anger to the ghostly full moon.

After that the young werewolf spent every moment of her free time with her professor. They talked over cups of tea until the water they had boiled turned ice cold. Lupin had become her only friend, and she could not imagine a day without seeing him at least once. She enjoyed his shaggy patched robes and golden eyes. He told her stories of his adventures as she sat motionless listening to his voice and his light laughs.

Yet she still had her quarrels with the other houses for she could only see but three colors after her transformation. This did not aid in her attempt to get answers from fellow students when asking for help. They became angry at her for she could not tell which house each student belonged to and they refused to give directions to a "mere Slytherin." Usually it only lasted three days. The werewolf she had been bitten by had affected her vision.

She never returned home for vacations and was missed sorely by her parents. She wished to stay especially for that night. To stay and run free on the grounds along side her new friend.

Her secret love.

But her love for him never crossed his mind and he enjoyed his new companion as he did his old friends. The only clue she gave him of her affections were the small gifts she left him as she said goodnight and left for her dormitory.

The two wolves ran beside the still lake, lapped up some water, and gazed at the castle's reflection in its dark surface. The two wolves could not imagine a more perfect night for transformation. More perfect than evenings during the spring when they shed their heavy coats and could dance among the night flowers.

Moon flowers they were called. They opened up into silver and gold shining lights and made paths in the forbidden forest. They glowed like stars that had fallen and were trapped in a cage of dark woods making the forest seem innocent. They followed the path of moonflowers and drank from the streams hidden from human eyes.

Now they sat side by side waiting for the sun's appearance, wishing for more full moon nights like this one. They talked about putting unbreakable ropes in their shack, so they could play more rounds of tug-of-war, as well as acquiring tastier chewing things that they might sink their teeth into when given the urge. For now the two wolves closed their eyes and fell asleep listening to each other's breathing. One brown wolf and one white wolf slept that night and dreamed of a day when they would prance eternally together in peace.

When the winter months had melted away and the sky had cleared up from a deep dark gray, the young werewolf cub walks down the golden-lit hallway to Lupin's classroom. But instead she sees only darkness inside a locked room.

Where is her friend?

Where is that kind, warm smile that greets her every day?

A story ripples through the castle like a wave upon the seashore. Lupin had gone off to war. It was a battle for life, friendship, and love. A battle to the death that no one had won. Does death really count as victory for either side?

Does the blood drained from the hearts of the defender really bring tranquility?

Obviously not for all.

Voldemort's wand, with one simple wave and two deadly words, destroyed precious life for reasons he did not even understand. For he could not understand the value of love for he did not receive it. Those who followed him did it for the promise of a worthless reward and left him to die after his final defeat.

Yet he took many down with him to the depths of the unknown. Her friend was among the many who fell to his death. And how little it took but a lot to understand. A lot to take in that her friend had really gone. Gone, but she could follow, follow and stay just to know he was okay.

Her tears, now wet again, find no warm words to dry them.

She takes a silver vile of wolf's bane juice and mixes it with sleeping drought. She stirs it clumsily then ties her shoulder length hair back. She drains the potion in one swift movement. She shudders and lies her head down on the stone flagged floor in front of her old friend's door. Her eyes no longer shine with their old light but now hide under two eyelids that will never promise to open again.

Now the two wolves dance in a field of forever-green grass and flowers that can never die. They had finally reached what they had dreamed of that snowy full moon night. They pranced across the heavens in peace.