The Wolf and The Raven, Bk 2

Ch 11 - The Sorrows of the Wolf

That day in Hogsmeade began one of the most miserable months the Marauders had ever known. To avoid the criticisms of her brother and friends, Branwen started spending all her time with either Regulus. Sometimes her room-mates would join them, but Alice and Emmeline were hesitant to be seen with Regulus. If Frank caught Alice sitting with the Slytherin boy, he would make a point of stalking to their table and removing her. Her Hufflepuff friends all but deserted her as well; Charity refused on principal to associate with Regulus and Dorcas followed her lead.

And when the novelty of having her candy paid for wore off, Branwen realised how dull it was to spend time with someone from the only family in the wizarding world that was as rich as hers. He bought her lots of lovely things, but none were as personal as the tiny gold locket she continued to wear around her neck.

Remus found himself in a similar situation. He tried to hold on to his relationship with the Marauders, but they wanted nothing to do with him, leaving him with only Lily and her girl-friends. They were clever and funny and helpful when studying for tests, but there was still that shadowy part of his life that they could never begin to understand. Even Lily, who was beginning to suspect some deeper issue that kept him constantly ill or injured, remained in the dark.

James, Sirius, and Peter tried to put on a front by increasing their usual amount of mayhem; but without Remus and Branwen to temper their actions with logic and compassion, the pranks turned nasty.

In one of their DADA classes, they exploded half a dozen Bubotuber plants, the sticky sap bubbling into boils on the skin of everyone it touched, including Remus and Lily. They used the fifth-floor tunnel to dump gallons and gallons of liquid (that smelled suspiciously like hippogriff urine) into the Slytherin hallways. In the Entrance Hall one day they started a fierce battle with Peeves, smashing several suits of armour, holding everyone up from their evening meal, and breaking a first year's nose.

The detentions they received kept them even more isolated from their friends.

When Branwen awoke on a Tuesday in mid-November, she didn't have to look at the lunar calendar beside her bed to know what was coming that night. She tried to shove away thoughts of what would be happening in the Shrieking Shack in a few short hours. She had other things to focus on. McGonagall was pressuring her class more than ever and Branwen had to work doubly hard to keep up her grades. It was why she gave up her lunch hour to spend time on her essay that was due at the end of the week.

When Regulus noticed her absence during lunch, he went searching and found her at a table in the back of the library. He pressed a sandwich into her hand. "You need to eat. You can't pass Transfiguration if you starve yourself."

Branwen sighed. She was staring at the pages of Theories of Transubstantial Transfiguration but absorbing nothing. The guinea hen she had tried to turn into a guinea pig in class was so noisy, she had trouble concentrating on the spell. Then again, she had trouble concentrating on anything lately. Her lack of focus had caused her to miss the Snitch in the first match of the season and lose miserably to Regulus and his team.

Regulus faked a cough. "Uh, Bran? Everything all right?"

"Yes," she sighed once more, then glanced at the clock on the wall. Four hours until moonrise. She shook her head as if to dispel any further thought of the werewolf that would soon be unleashed. Reaching into her bag, she pulled out a fresh sheet of parchment. As she did so, a book tumbled on to the floor.

"What's this?" Regulus picked it up between his thumb and forefinger as though it was covered in mud.

Branwen snatched it from him. "It's a book of poems."