"you can run with a lie, but you can't hide from the truth"

*

Despite the cold winds of winter, the Divination classroom always managed to be the warmest place in the entire school. Smelling of burnt tea and musty books, it was a perfect recipe for accidentally nodding off, which plenty of students struggled with.

The first few months of school had flown by. October boasted one of the best pranks ever pulled by the Marauders, involving all four of them dressed up like the Beatles and staging a concert in the Great Hall during breakfast. Gryffindor won their first Quidditch match against Slytherin, making Eva wildly popular among all the other Houses for a few weeks. Jokes were made, detentions were given, and as always, life went on.

James Potter stifled a yawn behind his hand and then rumpled his hair out of habit. The night of a full moon always gave him anxiety. While they did tend to have fun tromping around school grounds in their Animagi forms, too many what-ifs plagued his mind.

Eva doodled on the corner of her textbook, effectively tuning out Professor Ruffo's shaky voice. She wondered why she even took Divination for her seventh year. Maybe she should have dropped it like the majority of her friends. She, James, and Kriss were the only survivors.

Kriss sat across from the Gryffindors, twirling a strand of pin-straight hair absentmindedly. The last month had been hard on her. At the beginning of November, she received a letter from her parents with the news that her older brother, Adam, had gone missing. Even though they were separated by five years and different Houses, she still loved him. And he was gone. No one knew where he was. Kriss had a vague suspicion, but she wanted to be wrong with all of her heart.

The quiet girl took great comfort in Remus, who never gave her sympathy or pity of any kind unless she needed it. The normalcy of prefect rounds at nighttime became a thing for her to cling to, a safe place to talk. Merlin, she loved Remus John Lupin. Between worry and studying, she almost forgot about their fights.

Almost.

They hadn't gotten into an argument for a few months, which made her happy, but something replaced the yelling: silence. In some ways, she would have rathered the first option. She understood yelling. If he told her what was wrong, she could do her best to come to a logical solution. Now, it seemed like just when things were looking up, he'd ignore her. It happened a few days previously, and she couldn't for the life of her figure out why, but it was a cycle. He'd shut her out and barely speak to her, then come around a few days later and claim he'd been busy with something, studying or friends or some other lame excuse she didn't buy. Remus Lupin was talented in many ways, but his lies never fooled his Ravenclaw girlfriend.

Today was one of those days. He completely brushed her off at breakfast and she didn't even see him at lunch. She'd exhausted too many possibilities as to why in the last few months and couldn't help but think that she was missing something important.

"My dears! Please read each others' tea leaves and consult your textbooks for their fortunes!" cried Professor Ruffo over the din of the classroom. "Trust the tea leaves! They will not steer you astray!"

"Trust the tea leaves. Trust the tea leaves," Eva mimicked in a high-pitched imitation under her breath. "Because who wouldn't trust a beverage leaf with their future?"

"Just drop the course, then," James advised, skimming over his textbook with interest.

She snorted. "I can't. I needed another credit to graduate because I dropped Potions for N.E.W.T. year."

"Oh, that's right! Remus misses you as a partner, by the way. He's working with Sirius now."

"Poor thing," she joked, grinning. "All right, James, let's take a look at your cup o' prophecy, hm?"

"I'm preparing to be amazed." He winked.

Eva bit her lip and stared down at the cup. "Well, you've got this weird sun, which means 'happiness' and there's also a caterpillar-looking thing, which means 'waiting.'" She looked up, unsure about her predictions. "Happiness eventually? That sounds like a fortune cookie."

"Not a bad one, though," Kriss pointed out, picking up Eva's teacup. "You have a butterfly, which means 'change is on the horizon'."

"Oooh, fun," she wisecracked. "James, your turn."

James, the only one who actually liked reading tea leaves because he found it simple and distracting, snagged Kriss' cup and spoke in a deep, mysterious voice. "Okay. So, there's a raincloud. That means 'truth is coming.' And this thing over here, I think this is a dagger. That's 'danger.' So... the truth is dangerous and apparently on its way."

"Wow," Kriss said drily. "That was inspirational. Truly. I have a cup of very dramatic leaves and an equally dramatic reader of leaves."

He bowed. "I try." The bell rang, startling everyone in the classroom. James glanced down at his watch. "Blondie, we've got practice in fifteen."

"Oh, that's right! Kriss, you don't mind if-"

Kriss smiled and shook her head. "It's no problem at all. I'll stay and clean up. You guys go ahead." She quickly made up her mind about something. "And if you see Remus, can you tell him I'm looking for him? Please? We need to talk."

"Um, yeah," James said, nodding his head vigorously. That didn't register as normal to her, but she brushed it off. "I'll tell him."

"Thanks." Eva and James waved before grabbing their bags and leaving. Sighing, the girl began to sweep spare tea leaves off the table and into her hand. What she really wanted was an honest conversation with Remus and a quiet night to herself.

"My dear, are you all right?" Professor Ruffo's voice startled her into dropping all of the leaves. She blushed beet red and bent to retrieve them from the ground. 

"Mhm. I'm fine. Didn't mean to make a mess, though. I'm sorry."

"That's quite fine, Miss Klarkson. I think that-" She stopped mid-sentence, and Kriss straightened up, alarmed by the odd expression on her professor's face.

"Um, Professor? Are you all right?"

The old witch's eyes had narrowed in on a teacup sitting at the edge of the table. She picked it up carefully, as if it would burn her. "Whose cup was this?"

Kriss peered at its contents, a sick feeling growing in her stomach. "Mine."

"Stay as far away from your Gryffindor friends as you can tonight," she said in a dark tone. "For your own good."

"What?" Kriss asked weakly, praying that her legs wouldn't give out.

"Spend your night alone. You will be safe that way."

"Yeah, mhm. Right. Got it. I'm, uh... I'm gonna just go." The Ravenclaw girl plastered a big smile on her face and grabbed her bag, dropping it almost immediately. "I'm just gonna go, uh, yeah. Bye!"

Once she escaped that humid classroom, Kriss pressed her back against a wall, trying to stem her panic.

Kriss didn't believe in seers or futures or tea leaves. She believed in facts. She took the class for extra credits, reasoning that she would be more employable with more classes under her belt. But this... she didn't know how to take this.

"What an old coot," she muttered, slinging her bag around her shoulders. Maybe she's an old coot I should listen to.

She didn't know what to do.

*

"Come on, we're going to be late!"

"Well, excuse me if you're getting too tall for the cloak!"

"Well, excuse me that you're not!"

"Prongs, Padfoot, shut up!" hissed Peter. "You're kind of defeating the purpose of sneaking out unnoticed!"

"Ow, Wormtail, that was my foot!"

"I know. I did it on purpose."

It really was a wonder that the three of them managed to remain undercover after all of those years. They stumbled towards the Whomping Willow under James' Invisibility Cloak, a device that James himself was rapidly outgrowing. He had to crouch low in order to keep them all hidden.

"It's a nice night," Sirius noted, glancing up at the stars. A thin layer of frost covered the ground, crunching under their feet as they walked on. "Pity it's a full moon."

"Righto, Wormtail," James murmured. "Your turn."

Peter nodded. He quickly transformed into a brown rat and scampered through the grass, easily avoiding the tree's defenses. Wormtail hopped up, pressed the knob in the willow's knarled bark, stopping the branches from smacking his friends.

James and Sirius quickly followed Peter into the entrance before shedding the cloak, which James tucked in his bag. The trio crept down the narrow hallway single-file. James actually had to duck to avoid scraping his head on the ceiling.

"Have you given any thought to what we're gonna do after graduation?" Sirius asked quietly. "I mean, we're not going to have the shack anymore."

Peter frowned. "I don't know. He hasn't told me what his plans are at all. You guys?" The other two shook their heads. "I reckon we'll figure it out, then."

"As always," James replied. Then, in a more spirited voice, he called out, "Moony! You have company!"

"Is it too late to politely ask my company to come back another time?" A strained voice responded from the end of the tunnel. "I didn't have time to clean the house."

"Yep," Peter said, popping the 'p'. "Too late. You should have written a letter."

They all filed into the room to find Remus sitting at a splintered table, head in his hands. Deathly pale, bags under his eyes, both of which made his scars more pronounced than ever. His friends hated seeing him like this, but if they couldn't change his situation, they wanted to improve it.

Remus could feel it coming, could feel the monster inside begging to be released. Still he fought against it, prolonging the inevitable as long as he could. His skin prickled with discomfort, and every fiber of him wanted to scream, but he resisted as always.

"You really should go," he said faintly. "Really."

Sirius put a hand to his chest. "Ah, our dear Remmy, so noble! So caring! So responsible!" He winked. "It's been three years of this, mate. No backing out now."

"Don't call me Remmy," he muttered, gripping the edges of the table until his knuckles turned white. The nickname always irritated him for some reason, especially tonight, with his unusually-short temper.

He felt an especially gentle hand on his shoulder. Even the softest touch bothered him, made him want to flinch away, but he didn't.

"You don't have to put on a brave face around us anymore," Sirius said quietly. The boys around him nodded, backing him up.

Remus felt like he wanted to throw up. Any minute, any minute now.

"Damn this!" He hissed. His deep, coffee-colored eyes found a crack in the building's broken walls and stared bleakly at the moon. "Shit, it hurts."

"We know," James said in a soft voice.

"I don't... I don't want this."

"We know," Peter repeated. "It's okay, mate. We've got your back."

Every word felt like it took effort, like he had to search his memory to remember how to speak. He focused on his friends: the comforting weight of Sirius' hand, the understanding look in James' eyes, the comforting nod on Peter's face, and momentarily found his humanity again. "You could... get hurt."

"No one's getting hurt," James reassured him. "Not even you. That's what we're here for."

"Transform... please." Remus felt it coming. His hands began to shake and he shoved his chair back, striding across the room. Placing his hands on the paint-chipped wall, he leaned over and tried to steady his breathing.

"Remus-"

"Get away!"

He couldn't control it anymore. The moon called, and the monster obeyed.

The last thing Remus saw was a star.

Once his transformation was complete, Moony looked around the shack, pleased to find his usual companions. The dog, stag, and rat all sat waiting like they always did. Their presence satisfied and calmed the wolf, who let out a spine-chilling howl before playfully chasing the dog. And for a few minutes, this was enough.

Out of nowhere, Moony stopped chasing the dog. Padfoot glanced over at the stag, who tilted his head in a confused way. Wormtail scurried up to them and climbed on top of Padfoot's head, nervous for an unknown reason. This had never happened before.

Moony's long ears perked up and he ran over to a cobweb-covered window, but the wolf saw nothing. Either way, it wasn't a sight that caught his interest.

It was a scent.

A human.

Moony hadn't seen a real human for years. His animal companions were enough to keep him occupied, but he couldn't attack them and he couldn't infect them. But this... this he could.

Padfoot barked loudly and pranced around, trying to get the werewolf's attention, but it was no use. Unlike the stag, the rat, or the dog, Moony did not have a mind about him, just an instinct.

And that instinct said kill.

*

Considering how many people regarded her as a teacher's pet, Kriss had absolutely no problem sneaking out of the castle, even without a cloak or a map. She thought a brain was a better tool than either of those things, anyway.

After giving it a great deal of thought, Kriss had come to a decision. To be safe, she skipped dinner and avoided her Gryffindor friends entirely, resolving to explain first thing in the morning. She'd need to see Remus, too, and get to the bottom of whatever was going on between them.

Merlin, it felt good to have a plan. Tomorrow, she would know the truth.

A cold wind blew her long hair away from her face. Pocketing her wand because the moon was bright enough to see by, Kriss pulled her cloak more tightly around herself and continued towards the forest, determined to finally get to see the mooncalves Hagrid was always talking about. She hadn't gotten permission from Hagrid or Professor Kettleburn to be out, but she didn't care anymore.

Part of her wanted to prove to everyone, especially herself, that she was more than a good girl with no personality. That she could break the rules and get away with it. That she could do something other than meekly nod and submit to whatever others said. She wanted to see the mooncalves, so she would see them.

If the wind hadn't been blowing so violently through the bare trees, maybe she would have heard a howl.

Something snapped, and the girl stifled a scream, breathing a sigh of relief at the sight of a broken twig under her boot. The grounds seemed so different at night. More ominous. More dangerous.

She thought she heard footsteps across the frosted grass and quickly spun around, her wand gripped tightly in her hand.

"Hello?" She called out hoarsely, the panic starting to rise in her chest. Still no one responded. And then, in the distance, she saw a silhouette against the full moon, a creature she'd only ever read about, but it still struck fear in her heart like nothing ever had before.

A werewolf.

*

Padfoot tried to engage Moony again, but the werewolf dodged him and ran down the narrow hallway to the exit of the Shrieking Shack. All three animals chased after him, confused but terrified.

James transformed back long enough to yell, "Pete, run ahead!" before morphing back and blocking the werewolf from moving, the dog aiding him.

The rat scampered through the tall grasses, trying desperately to get a grasp on what was going on. So frantically concerned, Wormtail ran into a rock by mistake, causing him to roll down a hill towards the Forbidden Forest. He squealed, shivering from cold and from fear. None of it made sense. And then, in the distance, he saw a silhouette against the trees break into a sprint.

Kriss.

A werewolf howled.

*

Padfoot tried everything. Jumping, barking, circling, playing, even biting. None of it worked. The werewolf was bent on finding something. Moony threw him against a tree, snarling. Whimpering in discomfort, Padfoot pushed himself back up and bared his teeth before leaping into the air and pushing him back, but the werewolf's strength far outnumbered the dog's. Once again, he slammed Padfoot against a tree, and this time, the dog couldn't immediately muster the strength to get up.

The stag bounded forward, keeping Moony away from the dog, who attempted to stand on wobbly legs, but he was clearly disoriented. A stag can't fight a werewolf. It would be incredibly foolish to even try.

But he was Prongs, so he tried anyway.

Moony found his companions irritating tonight. He'd lost track of the rat a few minutes ago, but a rodent was no real competitor for him. The other two were more difficult, but his instincts still won out. Shoving Prongs to the side, he took off in the direction of that delicious scent, determined to find it at all costs.

*

Kriss' breath hitched in her throat when she saw the werewolf. Some sort of animal tackled the wolf, and then a deer ran at it, too. She didn't waste time, though.

She ran.

Something squeaked near her feet, and she nearly screamed when a rat transformed into Peter Pettigrew, a wildly scared expression on his round face.

"What are you doing out here?" He yelled, grabbing her arm to pull her away. She nearly tripped over a root because while the short boy didn't look it, his speed was impressive.

"You're- you're an Animagus? I don't understand! What's going on?"

"There's no time! He's got your scent!"

"What are you talking about? I don't understand!"

"I get it, okay? You're a bloody Ravenclaw who can't stave off curiosity for ten freaking seconds so she can save her own life! Did you even hear what I said? James and Sirius can only hold him off for so long!"

"Him?"

Kriss gasped and turned around, her eyes widening as the werewolf bounded towards her, the stag not far behind.

"Oh Merlin," she muttered faintly as the pieces finally connected in her brain.

Peter didn't give her time to revel in her newfound knowledge. He just pushed her forward. "Run!"

She thought of the tea leaves.

*

Padfoot shook his shaggy head, trying to clear his mind. Everything aches. The dog staggered into a standing position before realizing that he was alone. He barked and galloped as quickly as he could to the top of the hill, where everything became clear all too fast.

Kriss.

If anything happened to her, Remus would never forgive himself.

The dog charged down the hill without another thought, ignoring the soreness of his joints and the scratches across his body. Because that was Kriss, his friend, his mate's girlfriend.

If anything happened to her, Sirius would never forgive himself.

*

Moony drew closer and found a fantastic surprise. Now, there were two humans. A slim young woman and a shorter young man. Both wide-eyed, tripping over their own feet as they ran at a speed that he could easily conquer.

This would be a good night, indeed.

That stag kept trying to deter him. It pranced about, pushing him back and swinging his antlers in his direction, but nothing could stop a werewolf on a hunt. Losing patience, Moony growled and turned on Prongs, lashing out at him. Blood immediately began to drip from the deep cut, and the stag fell.

"James!" The man cried for the deer, but the name had no meaning to Moony. The stupid stag had it coming, anyway, distracting him at a time like this. "I have an idea!" The man disappeared seconds later, and the rat ran towards its injured friend.

The woman drew her wand, her face a shade whiter than the moon above them.

"R-R-Remus," she mumbled. "It's me. It's Kriss."

Moony didn't understand her words and he didn't care. The stench of fear surrounded her like a thick fog, paralyzing her from casting a single spell.

"I d-don't want to hurt you. It's me! Please, it's me!"

He grew tired of watching her and lunged, scratching his paw down the side of her face and knocking her wand out of her hand. She screamed and fell onto the ground, trying to stem the flow of blood, but scarlet seeped between her shaking fingers.

"Oi!" A rock hit the back of Moony's head. He turned around with a growl, but his attention piqued when he saw two men on the hill, one of them bigger than the woman on the ground. The man with long hair threw another rock at him, taunting him. Snarling, the werewolf took after the two of them, leaving the woman and the stag behind.

*

Prongs transformed back the second Moony took after Padfoot and Wormtail. When he did, he let out a shuddering gasp at the pain in his side. Clutching the wound, he staggered over to Kriss, who was still curled up on the ground.

"By Merlin, your face," he groaned through gritted teeth, offering a spare hand to pull her up. Even that movement pained him. "We don't have a lot of time. They'll be able to handle him. Come on."

"James, you're hurt," she whispered in concern, trying to stop the tears from streaming down her cheeks.

"So are you. I'll be fine. Get on and hold on." He transformed back into a stag, ignoring the pain in his side, and tilted his head. Deciding not to question anything, she slid onto the stag's back and wrapped her arms around his neck right before he ran.

Once they made it up to the side of the school, Kriss slid off so James could transform. He pulled out the cloak and threw it over them.

"Okay," he whispered hurriedly, "you need to do exactly what I say. This is a secret entrance. Just walk with me."

They entered through a disguised door and crept down the dark hallways of Hogwarts. Blood dripped on the marble tile, but they went on otherwise unnoticed. James stopped in front of a wall on the seventh floor. A door appeared and he pushed it open, closing it before throwing the cloak off. It was a simple room, just a couch and a table with medical supplies on top.

"Sit down. We can't get Madam Pomfrey involved here, it'll get Remus in trouble."

"Remus... right." Kriss still couldn't process it all. She picked up a rag from the table and pressed it against the cut on her face, staining it red.

"He didn't bite you, right? And you're fine other than your head?" James asked. She shook her head. "Okay."

With shaking hands, he pulled out the Marauder's Map and scanned for a particular name. He could barely grip the parchment. Once he found it, he crossed the room.

"I'm going to get help. Please stay here."

James thought for a moment, and a door appeared in front of him.

*

Lily Evans woke to someone quietly repeating her name over and over. She yawned and slowly straightened up, embarrassed that she'd dozed off in the library again.

"I didn't mean to fall asleep," she mumbled, not even bothering to look up. "I'm sorry. I'll just go now."

"Evans," a weak voice whispered. Her green eyes snapped open and fell on James Potter, unsteady on his feet. She knew something was wrong just by the way he held himself. Her hands went to his pale face and held it so that he was looking at her.

"What happened, Potter? What's wrong with you?"

"Full moon," he said quickly. "I need your help."

"Full moon? Where's Remus?"

"Outside. With Pete and Sirius. I'm fine, I swear. But Kriss-"

"Kriss? Just show me."

He pulled her through a door she didn't remember being in the library and brought her over to Kriss, who smiled with relief at a familiar face. Instead of asking questions, she immediately began to heal the scrape down the left side of her face.

After a few minutes of intense silence and careful spellwork, Lily stepped back and sighed. "There might be a scar, but you're okay now."

"Thank you," Kriss whispered. She hugged the redhead, crying into her shoulder.

"It's okay. You're safe. It's all going to be okay."

"He didn't tell me," she sobbed.

Lily felt something inside her shatter. "I know."

"Evans."

Lily spun around, shocked at the faintness of James Potter's voice. He leaned against the wall, the color in his face draining.

"James?" Her voice jumped several octaves and she ran over to him, barely making it before he crumpled to the ground. "James!"

*

Remus blearily opened his eyes at dawn. Someone had draped a cloak over his shivering body. He pushed himself up from the floorboards of the Shrieking Shack.

"Mate, you... you with us?" Peter's voice sounded uncomfortable.

Remus looked up, and the first thing he noticed was the dark purple bruising up and down Sirius' arms. "You okay?"

No one answered.

"Where's James?"

Still no answer.

Remus felt like he was going to faint.

"What did I do?"

Cliffhangers!!!

I told you that you weren't ready for this chapter. That was intense, and I'm the one who wrote it!!!

I feel kind of bad for writing this, tbh

QOTD: favorite color?

AOTD: yellow

Vote and comment ;) love you guys