Shrieking Shack: Lupin's Transformation
Teddy Lupin sat across from Professor McGonagall in her office, anxiously awaiting judgement from the headmistress for his misdemeanor.
"Mr. Lupin," McGonagall started, giving Teddy a terrifying glare. "What made you think you should be out after curfew, and at the Whomping Willow of all places? That tree is murderous and very much off-limits."
"I--I wanted to see where my father had his werewolf transformations." Teddy spoke with confidence about his father's disease, never ashamed of him. Still, though, the disappointment in McGonagall's voice made Teddy feel small.
"Ah," McGonagall said, standing and walking over to a stone basin swimming with mist. "I suppose it's about time someone shared a memory of him with you."
"My family shares memories all the time," Teddy replied, slightly offended. "Just the other day Harry told me about a time when--"
"No, no, I meant real memories, Mr. Lupin," McGonagall said, motioning for Teddy to approach the basin. "This is a pensieve. With it you can watch memories that have been given to me. I happen to have a memory from a friend who was keeping watch over Remus on a particularly bad full moon when he, too, was a student here at Hogwarts. I must warn you, it is not easy to watch. Would you like to see it?"
Teddy nodded eagerly, and McGonagall allowed him to fall into the memory.
~~~
Remus knew it was a bad idea to not tell his friends he would be transforming without them, but he couldn’t risk them getting hurt. Even if they changed into their animal forms, he had a bad feeling about that night.
The transformation in the Shrieking Shack started as it always did: pain slowly coursing through his body and wolf instincts kicking in, telling him to bite, kill. He tried to resist but eventually the werewolf in him fully took over. He howled at the moon and thrashed around at the doors and windows that were chained, bolted, and boarded shut with magic. He shredded and scratched the furniture, not caring what he destroyed as long as he destroyed it completely.
He heard voices on the other side of the door and smelled human blood. He pounded on the walls, trying to get closer to the scent. Suddenly it was gone and replaced by the smell of animal blood. His frustration built and he charged at the door again.
This time, he knocked the door down. He picked himself up and saw animals that he vaguely recognized. A stag, a black dog, and a rat. He ran past them and chased human blood.
Out of the tunnel and into the brush he went. His heart rate shot up when he spotted the targets: dozens of men in blue uniforms. As he neared the town, he passed a shrine with an unlit candle. He crossed the town’s fence and a blaring noise went off. As men raised their voices in concern and gathered in groups to investigate, the werewolf took his chance to attack. He found a stray man in blue to attack first. The werewolf stood up on his back legs, readying to attack, and—
A dog howled close by, momentarily distracting the werewolf from his hunt. The man in blue turned around, eyes wide, and the werewolf knew he would soon be outnumbered when the man screamed for help. He jumped over the fence and ran off. As he headed toward a new human scent, the stag stopped him, looking intimidating and pointing his antlers at the werewolf. The rat sat on the stag’s antlers, and the black dog came up behind the werewolf.
We’re here to help you, the stag seemed to say.
The werewolf didn’t want or need help, but he found his adrenaline dying and his heart rate slowing. He tried to pass the stag but it blocked him with its antlers.
Let us help you, the black dog appeared to say, nudging his nose against the werewolf.
The werewolf was growing tired and he could feel the full moon leaving him. He followed them back into the room where he had started. As he turned to the animals to ask where the human blood was, he felt something fighting him. He began to lose the urge to bite. He didn’t want that anymore. His body ached all over and an overwhelming exhaustion filled him. He could see specks of early morning light flit through the cracks in the boarded-up windows. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the stag, rat, and dog change back into James, Peter, and Sirius.
“Remus?” one of his friends asked cautiously.
He moaned and fell to the floor, caught by someone at the last second. He could feel three pairs of arms wrap around him.
“You’re okay, Remus,” Sirius said quietly. “Nobody got hurt.”
“I’m so sorry,” Remus choked, trying to hold back tears but failing.
“You don’t have anything to apologize for,” James replied softly.
“We’re here for you,” Peter said, hugging Remus even more tightly.
They were glad that the town was safe, and they were especially relieved that Remus was okay.
~~~
Teddy was suddenly pulled out of the memory and back into McGonagall's office. The headmistress was handing him a tissue, making him realize his face was streaming with tears.
"Thanks," Teddy mumbled.
"Your father was a very brave man, Teddy. I hope you are proud of him."
Teddy was. Incredibly proud, and glad that Remus had three friends who took such a heavy burden off of his father's shoulders. He left McGonagall's office punishment-free and already planning a sneakier way to enter the Shrieking Shack.
Author's Note:
Building a story around a werewolf folklore story was the original idea for this, and The Morbach Monster story fit in perfectly with the kind of story I wanted to tell. The original is about a town that has a shrine with a candle that, when unlit, werewolves often target. The "men in blue" were policemen mentioned in the original story. A werewolf sets off the fence alarm in the town and a policeman sees it run away at the last second.
The "Morbach Monster" story became the main setting of attack for Lupin as a werewolf in my version. I imagine it as showing the other side to the story--why the werewolf was there and why he ran off. I wanted to show him in a more sympathetic light, because often werewolf stories show them in a negative way. Lupin is definitely one of my favorite characters from the Harry Potter series and I knew I wanted to do a story with him and his friends. They have such an interesting dynamic, constantly showing love, care, and sacrifice for each other. His werewolf transformations were a big part of their time at school, and I feel like Teddy (Remus' son) would want to hear a story about it.
Two notes for those who have not read the books:
- Lupin's friends would transform into animals on a full moon to accompany Remus's werewolf transformations. This made it easier for him because he didn't have much incentive to attack animals, and they would stay with him all night until his werewolf instincts to kill humans went away.
- Teddy is obviously Remus' son, but the original series does not give very much information on him since he is born at the end of the last book. I just took what little we know about him and applied it to his character here.
Image Information:
- Werewolf drawing for the story "The Werewolf Howls" from Weird Tales magazine. Image from Wikimedia Commons.
- Banner Image: Dark Corridor from goodfreephotos
Bibliography: The Morbach Monster from Werewolf Legends from Germany. Translated and edited by D. L. Ashliman.