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Sirius immediately rushed to the transforming man, "Remus, old friend... did you take your potion tonight?"

Lupin twitched, shaking his head. Pettigrew's eyes darted, taking in the situation, then slowly shifted, making note of the wand trembling in Professor Lupin's lengthening fist.

"Run. All of you. Now." Sirius yelled at the four students who were watching in horror.

But none of them did, transfixed, watching as bristles began poking through their teacher's skin. Sirius stepped forward, wrapping his arms around his friend and pressing his mouth next to his ear.

"You know the man you truly are, Remus. This flesh is only flesh," Sirius shouted.

He pounded on Remus' chest, "This heart is where you truly live. This heart! Here!"

As Lupin's wand dropped Pettigrew leapt.

"No!" Harry yelled, aiming his wand at the snivelling man, "Expelliarmus!"

Lupin's wand flew from Pettigrew's hand and he froze, slowly turning. Face blank, eyes closed, he... grinned hideously before starting to shrink into his rat form. Stunned, Iris watched a rat dart into the night.

Suddenly, a howl pierced the air and Iris wheeled. With a shrug, Lupin tossed Sirius into the air, then turned, no longer human but a werewolf.

"Sirius!" Iris shouted in fear as her godfather went flying, hitting the ground out of sight with an audible whimper.

Harry and Hermione began to edge back, Harry reaching out to grab Iris' good arm, pulling her back next to him. Iris watched as the werewolf that once was Professor Lupin stared at them, growling. She shrugged her bicep out of her twin's grip, taking a hesitant step forward.

"Professor...?"

Her friends and brother hissed at her to come back as she took another step closer to the subdued werewolf. Hesitating for a moment, Iris dove within his mind, trying to push past the heavy barriers blocking her. Iris couldn't go through the minds of animals, and she had to assume that that was what was making it more difficult; The werewolf was fighting back.

The young witch finally managed to break through for just a moment, glimpsing a memory of their Professor for just a second before she was forced out once more, this time her focus snapping back to an angry werewolf.

Its eyes blazed, long teeth glittering in the moonlight. Then a horrifying growl erupted from its throat, making Iris jump back in fear into her friends' awaiting clutches. They all held onto each other, backing up slowly.

Just behind her, Ron was whimpering in terror, "Nice doggy... nice doggy."

Just as Remus took a step forward, Professor Snape burst out of the tunnel, eyes narrowing in hatred on them... well, mostly on Harry.

"There you are, Potter," he growled, grabbing Harry by the front of his hoodie.

He, apparently, had yet to notice the large werewolf looming behind him. When it let out a loud growl Snape whipped around, immediately going to shield the four of them.

Professor Lupin stalked forward menacingly, raising his clawed paw and swiping it at them. The five stumbled back, tripping over each other and falling to the ground, narrowly missing the attack.

The werewolf howled, taking a few more steps forward and going to swipe at them again when Sirius in his giant dog form intercepts him in midair. They hit the ground in a fierce tangle of flashing teeth, a single horrible flailing beast. Again and again, Sirius pushes Remus back, but the werewolf is too strong.

After a final attempt at distracting Lupin from the five of them, Sirius bites his arm and pulls him before letting go and running off, starting a horrible game of tag.

"Sirius!" Iris yelled helplessly before pushing past Professor Snape and running after them. The potions teacher tried to grab her arm, though it slipped through his grasp. Unfortunately, it was her broken arm. She didn't stop running though, breathing through the spike of pain it sent up the right side of her body.

Hermione made to follow, but Snape held her back, "Iris!"

Iris runs full out. Up ahead, framed against a full moon, she spied the dog, lying inert, the werewolf's razor-sharp claws suspended over his neck.

"NO!!!"

Desperately, Iris plucked a thick branch from the ground and hurled it with all her might. Bull's-eye. The werewolf froze above Sirius and turned toward her. He then began to move toward Iris, growling loudly.

She backed up, trying desperately to get her wand out of her pocket, but her hands were shaking too much and the werewolf was getting closer quickly. Eventually, Iris pulled her wand out using her unbroken left arm, leading to it falling straight through her shaking fingers and onto the grass.

As she let out a strangled shocked gasp, the werewolf reached her. She had failed to pick her wand up in time and came to the conclusion that she was going to die.

As the werewolf swiped it's sharp claws at her Iris flinched flinging her hands up in a lame attempt to protect herself, including the broken and bandaged one, forgetting about her pain with the rush of panic that overloaded her senses. She waited for the inevitable to occur, for her to be ripped to shreds. But nothing happened.

Iris peeked through her squinted eyes. What she saw made her open her eyes all the way in confusion. The werewolf continued to attempt to slice at her, but it couldn't get past a thin shield of red light.

Iris stood in wonder staring at the shield around her.

When the werewolf realised it couldn't break through, it switched it's attention back to Sirius, who was still in dog form, not moving as he whimpered.

Lupin stalked toward him, the shield surrounding Iris shutting down as the threat left. She stumbled forward a step, swiftly grabbing her wand off the ground. She held it out in the wrong hand towards the werewolf, not knowing what else to do. Iris felt awful, knowing Lupin dwelled somewhere within the beast.

Just as he got close to Sirius, a sudden howl pierced the night. 

The werewolf faltered, cocking its head toward the forest.

Iris waited, petrified. The werewolf's eyes shift back to her godfather. It snarled, moving closer, ready to kill. Iris opened her mouth, ready to cast some spell, any spell that would somehow help when a second howl echoed high above the forest.

Slowly, Iris dropped her arm. She watched as the werewolf bounded toward the forest, vanishing into the foliage. Iris' eyes shift. In the darkness, the wounded dog lurched through the tall grass. Watching him fall and rise again, each time becoming more human. As Sirius disappeared over the ridge, Iris sprinted after.

She stumbled through trees and over rocks down to Sirius, who lay on the water's edge, fully a man, arms and face gleaming with lacerations.

"Sirius!" Iris gasped, dropping to her knees next to him.

She looked into his glassy eyes, feeling her eyes fill up with tears as her hands hovered over his face, unsure of what she should do.

She sniffled a sob, grabbing her wand where she had placed it next to his unconscious body.

Suddenly, a fragile mist escaped Iris' mouth, causing her head to snap up and out at the lake. A raw wind tossed her long hair, chill-bumps pebbling her skin. A fringe of ice appeared at the lake's edge.

Then they emerged, oozing like smoke through the trees across the lake.

Dementors.

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hey guys! hope you enjoyed the chapter!

quick shameless self-promo:

I just started a new fanfiction that takes place in the Marauders Era! It's a bit Gilmore Girls inspired, though you don't need to have watched it to read the fanfic. It's going to be touching on some very real scenarios that so many people have to go through all the time and things that we don't often talk about for some reason.

anyway, I'm really excited about it and I'd appreciate it if you guys would go check it out!

thanks for reading!