The Marauders: Year One | #Wattys2016

The Myth and The Truth

"You planned this?" Peter stammered, "Where was I?"

"Sleeping. Shh, he's telling a story, don't interrupt," James replied, waving Peter off, "Go on then, Sirius."

Sirius told them about his journey with the blankets across the grounds and through the tunnel to the Shrieking Shack. He told them about his confrontation with the werewolf - making Peter squeak in terror - and how he'd only narrowly escaped and run all the way back to Hogwarts, only to be found by Derek Bell on the front steps to the castle.

"Why didn't Derek tell them he found you outside?" James asked, confused.

"I reckon he didn't want to have to answer questions about why he was outside," Sirius replied with a shrug, "Dunno. I haven't had a chance to talk with him. I was thinking of going to find him on the way to London."

James shook his head, "He's staying at Hogwarts for the holiday." He lowered his voice, "He hasn't got a family to go home to now, remember? I reckon he didn't want to go to his cousin's just yet... and who could blame him, I can't imagine how awful the holiday will be for him."

"Nor can I," Sirius said.

"Does this mean you're a werewolf now, too?" Peter asked tremulously, eyeing Sirius's bandages suspiciously, as though the arm was going to turn wolf and attack him on the spot.

Sirius answered, "I dunno. I couldn't very well ask Madam Pomfrey about it, could I? I don't think so though. I looked in our Defense Against the Dark Arts book and it only mentions werewolfbites as being a way to turn wolf in there." The question had been nagging him, too, and he'd worried about it a good portion of the night in the hospital wing, laying awake, staring at the full moon outside the window. He'd have turned then if he was going to, since the moonlight had been falling right on his bed the whole night. At least, that's what he told himself. There was a little part of him that was absolutely terrified... yet another part, a much smaller part, had almost hoped he would have the condition just so that he could keep Remus company every month. It seemed that also being a werewolf would be the only way anyone could get near that awful beast that had taken over his friend.

"Is it terribly nasty?" James asked, nodding at Sirius's bandaged arm, "The cut, I mean?"

"You wanna see it?" Sirius asked, grinning.

James nodded as Peter shook his head no.

Sirius unraveled the bandages to reveal his arm mostly healed. The skin was hot pink and seared together along the lines where the werewolf's scratches had dug in. Pomfrey had done her best, but since they were created by magical claws, the cuts were much harder to mend than regular ones. "I didn't think that old cat had enough magic left in her to cause this much trouble,"Pomfrey had complained while she had smeared some sort of potion over the skin that mended it as best she could. But Sirius didn't mind the scar. It looked rather cool - like a muggle tattoo, sort of.

"That doesn't look so bad," James said, though Peter looked a bit queasy.

"You didn't see it when it was gushing blood and oozing pus," Sirius replied, "It looked right terrible then. There was loads of blood! Pomfrey had to throw out the robes I was wearing."

James looked more impressed at that.

"I just don't know what I'm going to tell Remus about it," Sirius said, wrapping the wound back up in the bandages carefully. James reached over to assist him. "I don't want him knowing he's done it, he'd be really upset."

Peter's eyes were wide, "But he's attacked you!"

"Doesn't mean he needs to be feeling guilty," said Sirius sternly, "It isn't his fault. He was in werewolf form, totally not himself."