Fate is cruel—it doesn't care if you're just a child.
The fifth full moon of 1973 was fast approaching.
Remus Lupin was starting to realize he really couldn't keep making things up anymore. Every month, he had some "reason" to be away for a few days.
And to cover up the fact that he always disappeared during the full moon, he'd even been allowed to randomly pick a few other days to be absent now and then.
If it were just him, it wouldn't be so bad—he could quietly vanish, and the teachers would help cover for him.
But ever since he made friends...
Lies and friendship were such a bad match.
Unlike his carefree best mates, a difficult childhood had made him grow up far too early. His family had spent all their money dealing with his "condition," and out of fear he'd be judged or exposed, his parents moved constantly, never staying in one place for long.
He knew—being able to attend school like other young wizards, to even hold a wand—was a rare privilege for someone like him.
And he understood better than anyone the importance of staying low-profile and guarding his secret.
Back on his very first ride to Hogwarts, he had already prepared himself to spend seven lonely years here, planning to disappear afterward to some place where no one knew who he was...
But somehow, the two classmates who were the most different from him in both personality and background just wouldn't leave him alone.
They didn't care about his second-hand robes or worn-out books.
They liked him.
Genuinely.
They shared everything with him and included him in everything—
Even though the two of them were wildly unpredictable and caused the kind of chaos that made history, they liked him—unconditionally—and trusted him. When the three of them were together, he was truly happy.
So happy that sometimes, he almost forgot he wasn't like them.
Who would've thought Dumbledore would admit a werewolf child to Hogwarts?
His two friends—well, they just hadn't made the connection yet.
If they knew he was a werewolf, would they still treat him the same way?
He had promised Dumbledore that he would never reveal his true identity on his own. But looking at his two friends, sometimes he actually wished they would find out, that they'd just come out and ask him directly: Hey, Remus, are you a werewolf?
The inner turmoil young Lupin felt was almost comparable to the agony of transformation itself.
…
May 16th—the day before the full moon.
In the Gryffindor common room, the sunlight was just right.
On a large wooden table by the window sat a few delicate pastries, two cups of tea, a pile of parchment, and several books.
Sirius leaned back in a soft armchair with a cup of tea in hand, looking perfectly at ease. James, meanwhile, was pretending his homework didn't exist as he chatted with Remus:
"These were made by the Black family's house-elf. Good, right?"
Remus nodded and sighed inwardly. "I've got to go home again this month to visit my mum."
"Hope she gets better soon."
As Lupin quietly turned back to his homework, Sirius and James exchanged a lightning-fast glance.
…
After saying goodbye to Remus, Sirius and James threw on the Potter family's Invisibility Cloak and slipped out of the common room, secretly tailing Remus all the way to Professor Sprout's office.
They had actually tried tailing Remus once before, but that time they'd run into Professor McGonagall—and in the end, they chickened out. Didn't dare follow through.
Beneath the Invisibility Cloak, the two exchanged a look, eyes firm, nodding in perfect sync.
Thud…
Behind them, a soft thumping noise—something padded hitting the ground—suddenly broke the silence.
Startled, Sirius turned around and saw the tip of a wand poke out from around a corner and wiggle slightly.
Among familiar wizards, you could often identify someone just by their wand. And this one—hawthorn, eleven inches—looked very familiar.
Regulus?!
Sirius hesitated, then pulled his own wand from beneath the cloak and gave it a little wiggle back—twelve inches, oak.
Eye contact made. Identity confirmed.
Rounding the corner, Sirius found Regulus standing there with an innocent look on his face. Lying stiffly at his feet—like an overfed rat—was Peter Pettigrew, a fellow Gryffindor.
"I saw this guy sneaking around. Pretty sure he's one of yours, right?" Regulus muttered, giving the unconscious Peter a nudge with his foot. "I guessed he was tailing you."
He gave Peter another kick.
"What are you doing here?"
"How did you spot us?"
Sirius and James asked at the same time.
"Easy—I heard your footsteps," Regulus replied, wearing a mysterious expression. "I'm exploring the castle's secrets. I've even found a few clues—"
"Later," James interrupted in a whisper, hearing the sound of a door starting to open. "No time to explain—get under the cloak, quick."
Before the door to Professor Sprout's office opened again, Regulus managed to duck beneath the cloak just in time.
A weary-looking Lupin stepped out beside Professor Sprout, carrying a bag in one hand.
"Revelio!"
Professor Sprout checked the hallway, then cast a Disillusionment Charm.
But under the Potters' Invisibility Cloak, they were, of course, untouchable.
"Let's go, Remus," Professor Sprout's voice came from the seemingly empty air ahead of them.
Sirius and James exchanged a look, thinking the trail was about to go cold—
Only to see Regulus give them a quick signal, pointing toward a direction ahead on the right, clearly telling them to follow.
?! Regulus could see through a Disillusionment Charm?
Sound-based positioning?
The three of them huddled shoulder to shoulder beneath the Invisibility Cloak.
The two Gryffindors followed Regulus's lead carefully, hardly daring to breathe. They quickly noticed—Regulus moved with smooth, agile precision, completely silent, almost catlike.
Even his ears seemed to twitch slightly toward the direction of any sound!
The three trailed along—not too close, not too far.
There was still some time before sunset. The rolling green lawns beneath Hogwarts Castle were still glowing faintly.
The silhouette of the Whomping Willow came into view, clearer with every step. As Sirius stared in stunned silence, Regulus signaled for the three of them to stop, just before stepping into the dappled shadow of the tree.
During their past "adventures," they had noticed this tree before. But aside from its wildly thrashing limbs and violent temperament, it hadn't seemed particularly special. They'd quickly lost interest.
"Regulus—" Sirius whispered, unable to hold back all his questions.
"Shh!" Regulus cut him off—he didn't feel like explaining anything just yet.
They waited in silence, for who knew how long, until suddenly, Professor Sprout reappeared on the grassy field—it looked like she was heading back to the castle.
"Remus is still inside," James said stiffly, "We—"
While Sirius hesitated, Regulus calmly checked his watch and said in a composed tone, "Do you want to go in and take a look?"
…
Inside the Shrieking Shack, cluttered and covered in dust, young Lupin placed his bag carefully in a corner where his transformed self wouldn't destroy it later.
After thinking it over, he walked back to the bag, opened it, and gently took out a piece of pastry, then hid the bag again.
The sweet taste made him think of Sirius's absurdly handsome face, and James's sunshine-bright smile.
Huh? Was he hallucinating?
Lupin rubbed his eyes—
The absurdly handsome Sirius had just stepped in and caught sight of Remus sitting all alone in a broken chair, nibbling on one of Kreacher's pastries with a pitiful look.
At once, Sirius yanked off the Invisibility Cloak, and whatever irritation he'd felt about Remus's secrecy instantly vanished.
"Sirius! James! And.. Uh… Regulus?"
Remus didn't even have time to ask anything before the questions came flooding in.
"Remus! You're going to tell us the truth now, right?"
"What else are you hiding? Why didn't you just tell us?"
Regulus stood off to the side, watching the three close friends—firing off angry questions one moment, clearly worried about each other the next—with quiet satisfaction.
Lupin let out a relieved smile. "You've probably already guessed… I'm a werewolf."
"Oh, just a Werewolf—Wait what!?"
"Yes, and now, you need to go. When I transform, I lose all reason. I'm more violent than that Whomping Willow out there. Look around this shack—those marks, I made them while transformed."
His voice carried a bitterness far beyond his years.
In Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them by Newt Scamander, werewolves in transformation are classified as the highest threat level: known to have killed wizards, impossible to tame or domesticate...
"S-So what if you're a werewolf? What's there to hide from us?"
"Yeah! We're your best friends!"
…
"Let's go. Let's not make things harder for Remus," Regulus said, glancing at his watch and tugging the two reluctant Gryffindors away. He looked back and added, "Take care, Remus! We'll be waiting for you to come back."
Watching his friends' retreating figures, Remus suddenly remembered his first time entering the Great Hall at Hogwarts.
He'd been so nervous, trembling as he placed the tattered, old Sorting Hat on his head, afraid it would send him right back home—
"Oh… now here's a very special young wizard… Let me see… ah, such outstanding qualities… How you face fear will be your life's great challenge. Ha! I know—your life is meant to be an adventure, and adventure should be shared—You belong in…"
"Gryffindor!" the hat had shouted.
Adventure should be shared, he repeated silently.
And with that, young Lupin smiled from the heart.