On Monday afternoon, the Astrals sat in Defence Against the Dark Arts waiting for the moment their prank would be set off.
Their professor was mind-numbingly boring, but Emmy had been assured by everyone she'd complained to that they'd only need to wait until next year before he'd quit. The job was cursed after all.
However, this prank didn't include him, just his classroom's windows, or more specifically the lack of them.
At a height of 192m, the DADA room was significantly colder than the rest of the tower and the wind that hurtled around the turret was ferocious at the best of times. So when the glass protecting the students from the gale force winds and snowfall suddenly disappeared halfway through the lesson, the room broke out into chaos.
Parchment flew around the room and paintings crashed off the walls as everyone frantically hurtled out of the room and slammed the door shut behind them.
Pressed against each other in the stairwell, the girls were desperately trying to stifle their giggles but it became too hard to hide when their professor awkwardly cleared his throat and said with a shaky voice, "Well, we shall just have to conclude our lesson elsewhere today."
Their pranks were getting better every week and, despite the Marauders' eye rolling, they knew the rest of the students were loving it.
Tuesday morning was overcast and just as cold as the day before. Emmy woke up too early, and it set her on edge for the rest of the day. Unfortunately, Lily noticed something was wrong about two minutes into Herbology and caught up to her afterwards as they headed to lunch.
"Emmy, hey! You alright?" she called. "Is something wrong?"
Surprised she'd let her emotions shows and that someone had noticed, she panicked and spoke hurriedly, "Nothing! Nothing at all, I'm fine!"
She felt Sirius' eyes on her and did all she could to block him out. Just her luck, she thought, he's definitely going to make a fuss later.
"Ok," Lily replied slowly. "I know something's making you nervous, and I know you don't want to tell me what it is so I won't push it."
Emmy felt like crying with relief.
"But I just want you to know that there's nothing you could ever tell me that I won't try to help you sort out. I'm your friend. I just want to know you're ok."
"Thanks, Lily," she smiled softly.
At dinner that evening, Emmy told the girls that she and Remus were going to see a family friend to pick up the last of their father's belongings.
"But have you seen the storm outside, is it even safe to apparate?" questioned Alice with concern.
"Yeah, don't worry. McGonagall's going to take us in two journeys," she replied cheerfully.
"It's such late notice though," added Dory, "How long are you staying for?"
"Hopefully just tonight, I've only packed a small bag."
Indeed she had, it's just that she'd hidden the holdall containing the sufficient missing clothes and toiletries inside a suits of armour in the Astronomy tower where no one ever walked unless they had to.
As everyone headed back to the dormitories after dinner, Emmy hugged her friends goodbye and held them tight.
Lily's worried eyes followed her to the Marauders waiting in the doorway but rolled them as James winked. She was getting worse at hiding her smiles for him by the day.
He used to annoy her so much with his constant messing around and bullying Severus. It wasn't until the day when her old friend decided he was too good for her and called her a mudblood in front of half the school that she realised how much James truly cared for her.
His reaction caught her by surprise and the apology she received from Sev the next day just wasn't enough.
Since they'd come back to school this year, Severus had ignored her completely and James had... changed. He was certainly good-looking and bloody funny, but anyone could tell you that. The reason she could feel herself falling ever so slowly in love with him was complicated and confusing and she didn't quite understand it herself, but one thing she did know was that there was no one on earth who made her feel quite like he did.
—————
After the disaster of the last full moon, everyone was tense as they walked down to Hogsmeade in the drizzling rain. They decided that Peter and James would stay behind with Remus to make sure the wards stayed up, and Sirius would go with Emmy.
As they reached the fork in the road that would lead one trio to the old house and the other two up into the mountains, Remus pulled Emmy into a hug. They held each other tightly, both knowing what was in store for them that night, both terrified of what might happen if their plan went south.
"I'm so scared, Rem," she whispered, knowing no one could hear but him.
"It's going to be ok," he consoled her. "I'll see you in the morning and everyone will be fine. Trust Sirius and trust me. Just don't forget that we trust you too."
She took a deep breath and brushed her hair from her face.
Cracking a smile, she turned to Sirius, "You better not slow me down," she joked.
He passed her the other broomstick and replied with a smirk, "Funny, I was just about to say the same thing, Ems."
They had about half an hour before sundown and it only took them twenty minutes to reach the right spot; from there they could see the house where Remus was as a speck on the horizon and weren't somewhere so isolated they'd seal their fates if anything went wrong.
They couldn't talk on the flight there due to the howling wind and the rain that lashed against their faces, but thankfully the snow had melted for the time being.
Emmy watched as Sirius stashed their backpack in a cave behind a gorse bush containing some medical supplies and clothes for the morning.
Luckily for animagi, the clothing they wore before transforming reappeared on them when the changed back – much to any werewolf's embarrassment, theirs did not.
They sat down on a rock watching the first rays of moonlight slip over the horizon. There was nothing either of them could say to make the other feel better, so they waited in silence carefully aware of each other's presence, and the comfort it brought.
Emmy stood up as she felt the moon drawing closer and looked back at Sirius one last time before the world around her faded out and the pain began.
—————
The next morning as the sun rose over the mountains, Emmy began to transform once again. She could feel her bones bending and her skin tearing, and then Sirius wrapping a warm cloak around her freezing body.
The pain and the adrenaline and the shame were too much for her as she was held and comforted after a transformation for the first time in a decade.
She sobbed as he held her tightly and she felt him crying too, tears falling into her hair.
"I've got you, Ems, it's going to be ok," he whispered. They stayed there for a while watching the sun come up and stain the sky a breath-taking pink. To a werewolf, there truly was nothing more beautiful than a sunrise. Fumbling with her robes to stand, he moved forwards to help her and made sure she was decent as he helped her to the shelter of the cave.
He passed her a set of clothes and had to conceal a small smile when he saw she'd packed the jumper he'd given her a few days ago at practise.
He looked away as she dress, fighting the urge to just turn and help her as he heard her moans of pain. There was still snow on the ground from where it had started falling just after midnight, and she rushed to cover any bare skin, despite the many grazes and bruises.
Sirius was painfully aware of his aching shoulder. He'd dislocated it at some point and had to change back to his human form to heal it; unfortunately he'd done a pretty bad job in the midst of a snow storm and the bruising was worse than he'd expected. He tried to cover it with his jumper as he took out the flask of tea and healing potion, but she noticed the way his hand trembled as he held it out to her.
"You're hurt," she stuttered, remorse filling her eyes. She reached up to touch the bruising but he flinched away.
"Don't," he stopped her. "It's not your fault."
"But it was me that-" she tried to argue.
"No, it's not your fault, Ems. You could never hurt me, not really."
She smiled softly, but it never reached her eyes.
"Look, just drink this and I'll bandage that leg for you."
He filled her in on the events of the night before. She'd made it to about a mile north of the house where Remus was before he'd managed to force her back up into the hills, but the rest of the transformation had passed quickly and without a hitch. Their plan had worked.
—————
Emmy sprinted to her brother as he emerged from the doorway of the house into the pouring rain, tossing her broomstick aside as he swung her into a hug and buried his face into her neck.
He felt tears come to his eyes as he breathed her in. She was safe, this time at least, and that meant more than he could ever express. He caught Sirius' eye over her shoulder and an understanding passed between them.
"Thank you," he mouthed.
Sirius nodded. It was the least he could do; Remus had been there for him more times than he could count when his mother had sent howlers or he'd returned from the Christmas holidays with one too many bruises. It was only right that he'd be able to repay him.
That's not to say he wouldn't have done it just for Emmy without knowing Remus. In just the two months they'd known each other, it felt like they'd know each other a lifetime.
There was something about her, he'd never known in anyone else – a light that he would follow anywhere.
He didn't know what it was about her, but he knew she felt the same way.
And everyone else around them was beginning to notice it too.