Severus paced the length of the trees impatiently, watching as the sun descended more and more in the sky. He hated the wait – he hated the anticipation of the change – the pain of the transformation. And what’s more, he was right outside Remus’s cabin, the man having already drank his wolfsbane potion. What a brilliant way to risk his life.

               The sun lowered more, settling against the trees. Severus had learned to hate sunsets. They had become a symbolic meaning of the last few seconds he had left. Severus sighed and adjusted the robe he wore. He hoped he didn’t have to stay at Remus’s long, Harry was still expecting him back at Hogwarts. But he had to observe Remus in case the potion did not work.

               The last couple weeks had been quite tolerable. Harry seemed to adjust well with the news of Ajax being Professor Snape. Although the boy had yet to approach his human self for casual conversation or even homework help, Harry always looked forward to their nightly talks. And Severus was always glad for the company, even if all the boy chatted about each night was his friends and how his day had been.

               The sun lowered just an inch more, and Remus stepped out of his cabin, locking the door. He walked over to his man-sized metal box. The more Severus stared at it, the more it resembled a large muggle school locker. It had slanted vents on either side for air entry, but otherwise was completely closed off.

               “Just in case the potion fails,” Remus spoke, “this should keep me inside. I’ve enhanced the metal durability and strengthened the chains.”

               “So glad you have confidence in my brewing skills,” Severus remarked.

               “Oh, I have complete confidence,” Remus retorted, before closing the door on himself, “but better safe than sorry.”

               “And how exactly do you plan on getting out if it works?”

               The chains began tightening around the box.

               “Well,” spoke above the clanking of the chains, “since you seem against carrying a wand, I guess I’ll have to improvise. Don’t worry, I’ve made some adjustments for myself to get out of here. Things a wild, senile werewolf wouldn’t think of compared to a sane one.”

               “Marvelous,” Severus said, watching the last of the sun disappear. He dropped his robe now that Remus was in a confined space out of sight. He hissed as his muscles stretched and his back hurt as two extra legs grew. Finally a centaur, Severus turned to see Remus’s progress, hearing the man’s pained cries and a body hitting against the metal as he morphed. Severus took an unconscious step back.

               Then it grew quiet.

               Severus twitched an ear.

               More silence.

               Cautiously, Severus took slow steps toward the box, wondering how a werewolf fit inside after transforming. There was hardly enough room for a man to take a step forward, forget a large canine that stood on four legs. Another step closer and Severus stretched out his neck to sniff at the containment.

               Thud!

               Severus jumped away, his tail flicking.

               Thud! Bang, bang! Thud!
               Tilting his head, Severus narrowed his eyes at the box that shook and teetered with each noise, debating whether Remus was a mindless werewolf fighting for freedom. He heard no wolfish sounds, just a lot of bangs.

               Crash!

               The box fell over, the top splitting open and spitting out a large wolf, which rolled and tumbled to Severus’s hooves, landing on his back. Severus blinked down at the large grey furball, the animal blinking up at him before sneezing and rolling over.

               The wolf shook out his fur, stared at the box, then began leaping and jumping in a playful way.

               “It worked!”

               Severus was shocked to hear Remus’s voice in his head.

               “You can talk?”

               “It’s telepathy,” Remus explained, bowing in downward dog and wagging his tufted tail. “The Marauders and I taught ourselves how to communicate this way. Isn’t it great? I have my mind. I’m not some raging, bloodthirsty animal – I can think and focus. I can run! I can jump! Come on!”

               Remus took off into the forest, leaping through the trees.

               “Remus, wait!” Severus called, galloping after the man.

               “It’s Moony!” said Remus, or Moony. The wolf didn’t slow, instead, he jumped up on a fallen tree and howled, then clawed at it, running away when Severus was near enough to grab him.

               “Moony, then!” Severus snapped. “Stop! Where are you going? This is a new potion for you, there could be side effects. One of the most common being drowsiness. Will you get back here?”

               “You’ll have to catch me first.”

               Moony ran in circles around Severus, a dog-like smile on his face and his tail swinging.

               “Act you age, Moony, this is serious. No time for games.”

               “I am acting my age. In werewolf years. Dog years. Whatever you want to call it. I’ve never felt so alive in my life.”

               Moony jumped up a tree, pawing his way to a branch and tightroping down it gracefully, hopping over to a branch in the next tree before leaping for the ground.

               “You need to head back to your cabin,” Severus insisted. “Just because you have your sanity doesn’t mean you can go running off whenever you like. Besides, you are still unstable, and this is just a trial run. That potion could wear off any minute. Get back here.”

               Moony didn’t listen. He ran ahead of Severus, sniffing every burrow and scratching as many tree trunks as he could. It had been so long since he had just romped as a wolf. He had been so afraid of someone finding him out that he always tried to lock himself up somewhere, especially in muggle areas. But the werewolf always managed to escape and terrorize the place he had been starting to call home. And he would move once more. Now here he was, free and sane in wolf form. And he wasn’t wasting a second of it.

               Severus was growing more annoyed. At this rate, he would be late to see Harry. The boy should be finishing up with dinner soon. And here he was chasing a wolf through the Forbidden Forest. He wasn’t sure what was going on through Moony’s head – obviously Moony had a much younger mindset than Remus. Severus was glad only his appearance changed at night.

               Pausing to catch his breath, Severus glanced around the trees for any signs of other life, be it centaurs or manticores. Owls and nightingales sang while the occasional cricket’s chirp cut through the cold air. And then Moony’s joyous barks and yaps would join the night noises. Severus groaned before sprinting once more, following the sounds of the werewolf. 

               He managed to catch up to the wolf, but remained a length behind Moony, no matter how hard he pushed his hooves to run faster. Moony seemed to be enjoying himself too much.

There was a fallen tree in the way, and Moony leaped. However, when he landed, the earth beneath him crumbled and his lower quarters sank. He gripped the earth with his forepaws and pulled himself up. Trotting away, he stared at the small hole he had nearly collapsed down, his tail tucked between his legs.

Thundering hooves reminded him of Severus and he barked in warning, forgetting his words. Severus leaped over the broken tree, broke through the earth, and fell harshly to the ground below, grunting at the impact.

               Moony barked and ran forward, staring down in the deep hole. He could barely see the centaur, save for Severus’s eyes glowing in the darkness. The hole was deep, and obviously dug out. Moony doubted this was a natural sink hole.

               “Moony,” Severus growled from down below.

               “Severus, are you okay?”

               “I’ve been better, but no thanks to you. This is a wolf trap down here. I just missed getting bit by a jaw trap. This must have been created to capture you or another werewolf.”

               “I’ve seen these werewolf traps before. Can you get out?”

               Moony sat by the hole and listened to the sound of hooves meeting the earth as Severus jumped and pawed at the earth repeatedly. He could hear the centaur pacing before trying to gallop up the side of the wall, only for the earth to crumble and force the large horse-man to slide back down.

               “No,” Severus finally answered. “The walls are too smooth and too steep for me to climb out. I’m trapped.”

               Moony sniffed the hole’s edges, walking the length of it. He wondered if he’d be able to slide down to Severus, carefully sliding down his front paws before deciding against it and pulling out of the hole. He whined and looked around the forest as if someone would appear and come to their aid. What should he do now? He needed to go find help, that was what.

               “I’ll go find help,” Moony decided.

               “And who are you going to find? A lone traveler in the forest?”

               Moony didn’t answer. Instead, he ran into the trees, hearing Severus yell out, “Moony!” He would be back. He wouldn’t leave the miserable centaur down there all night, even if Severus deserved it. Moony remembered that Severus had planned on visiting Harry that night. Perfect. The boy may not be much help pulling out a one-ton centaur, but Harry should at least have his wand on him. That should be enough to help Severus.

               Moony ran as fast as he could through the forest, looking for any break in apparition wards that would take him directly to Hogwarts. It would take him all night to get there this way. Finally, he saw a patch of grass with some magical residue, like the paths near his home. He hoped it led to Hogwarts and not some deeper part of the forest. Or out of the forest all together.

               Taking his chances, Moony ran for it. When his paws landed on the grass he found himself facing Hogwarts from the tree line near the lake. Wagging his tail, Moony scanned the area for Harry, wondering where Severus met with the kid. He didn’t see Harry anywhere.

               Snorting to clear his nose, Moony tried to remember Harry’s scent from the last (and first) time he had ever seen the boy. Sniffing the air, Moony focused for a specific scent: soap, a herbal shampoo, broomstick wood, and just a hint of treacle tart . . .

               Bingo. Moony pointed his nose at the greenhouses, focusing his eyes on his destination. He pranced over to them, excited to see Harry once more. However, when he turned in between two of the houses, he heard a startled gasp and squeak that made him stop.

               Harry was staring at him wide eyes, his eyes glancing at the door to one greenhouse. The boy had his wand trained on Moony.

               “Ajax,” Harry whispered, his voice quivering. Moony could hear the boy’s knees shaking.

               Moony whined softly, hoping to seem nonthreatening. How could he forget he had nearly attacked Harry the last two times the boy had encountered him? He offered a small tail wag, wondering if he should speak to the boy or of that would be too surprising at the moment.

               “Ajax,” Harry whispered louder. Harry gulped, then said, “Shoo. Go away.”

               Moony whined again, taking a hesitant step closer, lowering himself slightly submissively. The last thing he wanted was for Harry to fear him. It made him feel sad, knowing that right now, the boy was petrified. Harry lifted his wand higher, licked his lips as though he wanted to say something, then quickly scooped up a few rocks and threw them at Moony, who scurried away, keeping his tail tucked between his legs.

               “I said go away,” Harry said.

               Moony gave Harry a sad, puppy look before standing up and looking directly at him. Harry tensed. Then Moony lowered himself into a submissive bow, curling a front paw under him and tucking his head under his arm, pushing his tail up against his side, and flattening his ears. He froze in his position. He could hear Harry’s breathing even out as the boy took a hesitant step closer. Moony looked up for a second before tucking his head under his arm again, holding his position, emitting a low, friendly whimper.

               Harry took another step closer, reaching out a hand towards the wolf. Moony’s ear twitched under Harry’s cold fingers, but he didn’t move. Harry stepped back again, tilting his head curiously at the wolf.

               “Are you a . . . a normal wolf?” Harry asked. “You look like that werewolf that kept coming back. But . . .”

               “My name is Moony,” Moony said, tightening his submissive hold, “I mean no harm to you. I need your help.”

               Silence enveloped Moony for a long moment. He peeked an out at Harry and snorted at the sight. Harry was wide eyed, and his jaw was hanging. He resumed his position – better safe than sorry, though his tail gave a single wag.

               “You can talk?”

               “Telepathically, yes,” Moony said. “I am a friend of your friend, Ajax. He is trapped right now and needs your help.”

               “Ajax? Where is he? We have to help him then.”

               Moony peeked out at Harry.

               “Why are you still like that?”

               “It is only right for me to remain this way until a dominant tells me otherwise. I am giving you my submission, you must either accept or reject.”

               “Oh,” Harry frowned. “I-I . . . accept. I wouldn’t reject you if you’re a friend of Ajax.”

               Moony stared at Harry a second longer before slowly raising his head. Harry took another step back, his eyes widening at the size of the wolf and just how close he was to it. And he thought Fang was the biggest dog he had ever seen.

               “Follow me,” Moony said, motioning to the trees with his head.

               “Into the forest? What if something tries to attack me? I’m not supposed to go into the Forest.”

               “Stay close and I’ll keep you safe. Quickly, we must hurry back to Ajax.”

               Moony slowly led Harry to the treeline near the lake where the break in the apparition ward was, seeing as Harry still seemed very wary of him and what they were about to do. They made it to the trees, but Harry stopped, looking back at the castle.

               Moony lifted his head and howled, sending a message to Severus: “I have help. We are coming.”

               When he was finished, he looked at Harry, who bravely stepped closer and allowed Moony to lead the way to the small patch of grass where it would bring him to the area Severus was trapped. Moony stepped through it, and waited for Harry.

               And waited.

               And waited.

               Fearing the worst, Moony leaped back through the break and arrived back to the treeline near the lake. Harry was standing there staring shocked at the Moony, frowning and looking at the grass and the trees.

               “How did you do that?” Harry asked.

               “Just walk on the grass. It is a breach in whatever magic keeps this place safe and warded against danger. It allows for faster travel through the forest. Come, we must help Ajax.”

               Moony stepped through the grass again and ended up back to where Severus was. Three seconds passed, and Harry appeared at his side. Unable to keep his slow pace much longer, Moony sprinted through the trees to the wolf trap, Harry running after him.

               “Hey, wait!” Harry called to him. “Slow down!”

               Moony paused a few strides ahead until Harry had caught up to him, then ran again. They arrived to where Severus was impatiently waiting. Moony looked down the hole, hearing the pacing of the centaur. Harry stepped close to the edge, looking down.

               “Wow,” he said, stepping back.

               “Well, it’s about time,” Severus’s voice echoed. “Who did you find? Better not be any centaurs.”

               “What if it had been centaurs?” Moony asked. “That question would have insulted them, and they would have you left you down there to rot.”

               “Ajax!” Harry said, a smile growing on his lips. “Moony brought me to help. Are you okay?”

               “You brought Harry out into the Forbidden Forest! What is wrong with you, you mangy mutt? And you, Harry – you actually followed a werewolf out into the Forest? What were you thinking? What if it had been a trap? You could have been killed.”

               “But sir, it wasn’t a trap and . . .”

               “No buts. This is outrageous. When I get out of here . . .”

               “Will you calm down?” Remus snarled. “It’s not like Harry is in any danger. I was with him the whole time. He is in safe hands. And I needed someone to come help you.”

               “And how is a first year supposed to help me?”

               Moony looked at Harry, spotted the wand, snatched it out of the boy’s hand and dropped it down the large hole.

               “That’s how,” the wolf concluded.

               Severus felt around the darkness for the wand he heard Moony drop. The wolf couldn’t have given him a heads up. And when he got out of there, he was going to knock some heads together. Dealing with one idiot was bad enough, but now two – and Harry certainly knew better.

               Finding the wand, Severus lit the tip and observed his surroundings. With a little earth shaping charm, he could flatten out a slope to climb out. It would take some time, so he hoped Moony and Harry would be fine without him for ten minutes or so. The two had survived this long.

               Waving the wand, he began collapsing the earth downward, the dirt crumbling and falling to his feet, starting from the top and working its way down. Little by little, the earth in front of him caved to form a steep but manageable slope. Before leaving his ditch, he vanished the jaw trap. He hated those terrible pieces of metal.

               Patting the ground with his hooves, Severus made his way up, slipping a couple times but not sliding down. He made it to the top and shook himself off, looking down the hole he had just crawled out of. The warmth in his hand told him the wand was overexerted, having never performed such intricate magic.

               “Ajax!” Harry jumped up from where he was sitting by Moony and ran over to Severus, hugging what he could reach of the centaur’s torso. “You made it out. Took you long enough.”

               Severus narrowed his eyes at Harry as he grabbed the boy’s shoulder and pushed him back, shaking him slightly as he scolded, “Are you crazy? Following a werewolf into the forest. After everything you have been through with werewolves, you didn’t even think for one moment of the dangers Moony could have presented. What was going on through your thick head?”

               “I just wanted to help you,” Harry said. “And Moony spoke. No other werewolf did that before.”

               “He’s the same werewolf!”

               Harry’s eyes widened, and his head snapped over to Moony, who looked away guiltily, ears turned out.

               “Look at me when I am speaking to you,” Severus growled, taking a hold of the boy’s chin and forcing him to look back at him. “You had no idea what could have happened to you. You should have found an adult or a professor and reported the situation to them.”

               “But I would have exposed you and our visits,” Harry argued. “And Moony seemed . . . honest.”

               “Honest, hmm? And I could care less if our visits were exposed, your safety is my number one concern and I cannot ensure that if you risk your life so imprudently.”

               “I’m sorry, sir,” Harry lowered his gaze. “But I’m not sorry for coming out and helping you. You could have been trapped there all night.”

               “Maybe, but you would be in the safety of Hogwarts,” Severus said. “Now you are out here deep in the middle of the Forbidden Forest.”

               “Moony knows a quick way back,” Harry said.

               “He does, does he?”

               “I do,” Moony said excitedly, jumping through the trees. “I’ll take us back to Hogwarts.”

               Severus rolled his eyes, herding Harry in front of him to follow the wolf.

               “Ajax,” Harry looked up at Severus. “Did you know Moony is Remus Lupin?”

               Severus snapped his head down to Harry. “He told you who he was?”

               “I don’t think he meant to,” Harry said, keeping his voice low as if it would keep the wolf ahead from hearing them. “While you were busy getting out of that hole, he talked to me about how nice it was to meet me, since he was friends with me dad and all. And how my dad helped pick out the name Moony for him and it just slipped.”

               Severus frowned. It seemed Moony had a younger mind set and a loose tongue compared to Remus. He wondered how much Remus would remember of this night.

               “Was he born a werewolf? Or did . . .”

               “These aren’t my questions to answer, Harry,” Severus said.

               “Oh,” Harry watched Moony dig at a rabbit hole, completely sidetracked.

               Severus rolled his eyes and fired a spell at Moony, reminding the wolf of what they were doing. Moony growled but carried on his way, leading Harry and Severus out of the forest.

               “You can’t tell anyone about him, you know,” Severus said.

               “I figured,” Harry said. He smiled up at Severus. “Moony can join our herd.”

               “Ha,” Severus snorted, “that was almost hilarious.”

               “I’m serious. I don’t know much about werewolves, but I know wolves live in packs. They need a family. We can be his pack for him. We can be a . . . pack-herd.”

               “I forget how young you are sometimes,” Severus shook his head. “A pack-herd. The very idea.”

               “I like it,” Moony said, wagging his tail as he bounded over to them, jumping around Harry. Harry laughed and gave Moony some pats on the head.

               “You should visit more often,” Harry said. “Can he, Ajax?”

               Severus glared at Moony, who gave Harry a sad look.

               “I believe you are forgetting that Moony is a werewolf,” Severus explained. “He only changes on nights of the full moon and the only reason he is acting like this is because he took a Wolfsbane potion. And Remus can’t keep showing up at Hogwarts, if he’s around enough, someone could figure out his condition.”

               “Would that be bad?”

               “Not everyone is as accepting of me as you are,” Moony smiled, nosing Harry’s cheek playfully. Harry laughed, petting Moony some more.

               “I wish there was a way you could spend more time with us,” Harry said. “I like your stories and your fun.”

               Severus tried to ignore the pang of jealousy rising in his chest. He huffed loudly, encouraging everyone to move along. “It is not possible,” he said, “this is all out of his control. It’s not like Remus Lupin is an animagus or something.”

               Moony stopped in his tracks, his ears perking and a wolfish smile growing on his lips.

               “What’s an animagus?” Harry asked.

               While Severus explained with thick irritation at such a question, Moony’s mind was elsewhere.

               The next morning, Moony woke on the porch of his cabin, turning back into Remus. Last night had been the best night he had had in years. After leading the way back to Hogwarts, he spent time playing with Harry, as gently as he could anyway. He had the chance to observe Harry and Severus together as well. The boy had a true fondness for the miserable centaur, and Severus was clearly attached. The man could deny it all he wished, but Remus knew there was something forming and growing between them.

               And now, he was back to his old self again, unable to see the boy for another twenty-nine or so days. But Severus’s comment rang through his head. An animagus. All his friends had been animagi – he was sure he could do the same. But it took months for anyone to go through that process, and he wanted to see Harry now.

               Perhaps there were cheats around the process. Or other ways to get closer to Harry that would keep is identity safe and win Severus’s approval – not that he needed the man’s approval, but it was probably better to stay in the man’s good books.

               He would think on it more. For now, where could he find books an animagus training?