A/N: Hello everybody! This chapter is more or less the translation of my first ever fanfiction Blutige Würmer, which I originally wrote in German. Naturally I adjusted it a little so that it fits the story. Oh, and I raised the rating of this story due to future events. I hope you don't mind. Read and enjoy.

Chapter 11 – Bloody Worms

Sirius was struggling to keep his mind on the Flutterby seedlings he was supposed to chop for his Silencing Solution. His mind was firmly set on Béarra and refused to be put somewhere else. The reason for his mysterious visit on which, despite his considerable efforts, he still hadn't managed to get more information still bothered him. Potions was easily Sirius's worst subject – apart from History of Magic of course, but who other than Remus took that subject seriously anyway – which meant that he actually had to put some effort into it to achieve the shiny marks he usually got in all his other lessons by doing – almost but not quite – nothing at all. Not that he really cared for school grades but the fact that Peter, who usually was the bottom of every class, was really good at Potions seemed to kindle his ambition. Being worse than Peter in any subject was simply unacceptable.

And, sure enough, Peter's potion was already turning a pale orange, just as the textbook described. Sirius groaned slightly and turned back to his own seedling shreds. Peter's knack for Potions bothered him more than he would like to admit to himself and that in itself bothered him even more which confused him profoundly and made his head spin which didn't help the matter in the slightest. He didn't like feeling superior to anyone but somehow he just couldn't help it.

A small cough from his right pulled him out of his thoughts and he turned his head to see Remus who was bending low over his cauldron which was obscured by a foul smelling grey cloud that hung over it like a bad omen. Assistant Professor Belby rushed over to help him and Sirius silently grinned to himself. Once again Remus lived up to his reputation as an abysmal potioneer. Sirius reflected on that. Odd really, how things were sometimes so different from what was expected. Remus was a hard worker and thus managed to get high marks in all his subjects – except Potions. Peter on the other hand was the exact opposite. Then again, Peter seemed to like to follow orders, which was essential in potion making.

Oh, and speaking of unfulfilled expectations, then of course there was the case of one Sirius Black, he thought proudly. Hadn't he himself lived proof to his own little theory by getting himself landed in Gryffindor rather than Slytherin which had been expected not only by his family? He looked up, ginning slightly, to find his gaze caught by balding Professor Slughorn who was sitting at the teacher's table, stuffing himself with crystallised pineapples. Slughorn was throwing him reproachful and almost longing looks which he found highly disconcerting and thus hastened to busy himself once more with his silently simmering potion. He checked the list of ingredients in his book to see what to do next.

…add a quarter of a frog spleen (fresh, not dried or pickled), then stir counter clockwise while slowly counting to six, stir clockwise three times until the potions turns a pale orange, then add half a pound of flobberworms…

Frog spleen? Ugh! No way!

"Oi, Peter!" he whispered as loud as he could without attracting any of the teachers' attentions. Peter looked up from his cauldron quizzically. "Wanna do me a big favour?" Sirius asked him, wearing his best puppy eyes and waving the spleen at Peter, spraying droplets of frog pee all over himself and Remus. Peter merely grinned at him, shaking his head gleefully.

A small "Oh!" sounded at that moment from behind his back and Sirius rolled his eyes. "What now, Remus? Cauldron meltdown?" he asked, turning lazily in his seat to face his friend.

"Merlin's beard!" he yelled at the sight of the bloodbath Remus had caused next to him. "What in heaven's name do you think you're doing," he thundered, watching in disbelief as Remus wrapped his bleeding left hand in his far too long sleeve. He must have cut himself while preparing his ingredients and, sure enough, there lay his knife, twinkling innocently in the dim dungeon light, right next to the pile of flobberworms he had been cutting which were now drenched in Remus's blood. Sirius had to fight back a wave of nausea at the thought of the state of the knife which had without a doubt been quartering a frog spleen before slicing the now bloody worms. Open mouthed, Sirius watched as Remus lifted his injured hand to scratch his nose, leaving a smear of blood on his pale skin. He still watched as he dropped his hand again to check today's notes – Sirius had until now failed to see the use of said notes ("Notes? Pah! Humbug!").

"Professor!" he said loudly, sticking his hand high in the air in a very uncharacteristic fashion. "Please allow me to accompany this complete idiot," he indicated Remus, who was looking at him confusedly, with a jerk of his thumb, "to the hospital wing because he's bleeding bloody everywhere!"

That said he grabbed Remus by the arm and dragged him out of the classroom, not waiting for Slughorn's or Belby's answer.

"Hey! What are you doing," Remus started to protest after he had been dragged down half of the corridor, shaking off Sirius's grip.

"What a stupid thing to ask."

"Fine. Then I'm sure you will excuse me," Remus said coldly, turning on the spot to walk straight back into the classroom they had just left together.

"Come on now, Remus," Sirius said hastily, hurrying to block Remus's way. "I saw that you hurt yourself. Let me get you to Madam Pomfrey. She'll patch you up in no time."

Remus merely stared at him with an unusual stubbornness. "Never mind," he said forcefully. "It's just a scratch. It will probably heal by itself. And now will you please let me through? I've got something on the fire, you know." He tried to force his way past Sirius.

Sirius seized the opportunity and grabbed Remus by the wrist of the injured hand. Remus flinched causing Sirius to yell "Ha-haa," in triumph. "Just a scratch, is it?"

But at that moment the long sleeve of Remus's robes slid down his arm which Sirius was holding up to reveal his naked skin and…scars – dozens, hundreds of scars. Old ones which were barely visible and new ones which wound themselves across his pale skin like bloody worms.

For a short moment both of them just looked at each other, equally shocked. Sirius felt the horror that must register in his eyes, the horror that was etched in every line of Remus's features. But then something in his friend's expression changed. So far Sirius had seen Remus's face thoughtful, smiling and gentle, always with a tiny hint of sadness. But now it showed something he had never seen there before, something that looked completely wrong there, something that gave his heart a painful pang and took his breath away.

It showed fury and…hatred!

Remus wrenched his arm free and jostled Sirius aside, disappearing – not inside the classroom but down the corridor. Sirius didn't see him vanish but he heard his footsteps fade away. He was still staring blankly at the spot where Remus's arm had been – the scarred, injured arm of his friend.

He was confused, shocked and appalled – not so much by the uncountable injuries he had just seen but rather by the look on his friend's face.

Yes, there had been fury and hatred, but that hadn't been all. The image became clearer the longer he thought about it. What he had seen was…fear!

Remus blindly stumbled up a flight of stairs and along a corridor he didn't recognise. He had no idea where he was going nor did he really care. His left hand was throbbing painfully but he ignored it, merely wrapping it a little tighter in his sleeve. His thoughts were racing so fast that he only managed to catch a glimpse of them every now and then. There was only one thing he knew for sure: he was going home tonight. No more Hogwarts, no more magic, no more friends, not anymore.

He suppressed a howl of misery that was trying to force its way out of his chest and got stuck in his throat instead, almost suffocating him. He slumped down against the wall, burying his face in his hands. He told himself over and over again that this could hardly come as a surprise. It had been a miracle that Dumbledore had accepted him to his school in the first place and hadn't he had a few wonderful months? It was really ungrateful and selfish to expect more, wasn't it? He bit his lip against the sudden burning sensation in the corners of his eyes, reminding himself that he was a Gryffindor after all.

A sudden cackle from above made him jump. He looked up to see Peeves the poltergeist bobbing in midair over his head, a large dustbin in his hands which he was obviously planning on upturning over his head. "Nasty firsty," he sang mockingly, "shouldn't you be in classy?" but at the sight of Remus's face he suddenly fell silent. The expression of complete misery, hopelessness and defeat seemed to be too much even for the uncontrollable poltergeist.

Remus seized this opportunity to get up as quickly as he could. He really preferred to be alone at the moment but he particularly didn't need the company of Peeves. As he turned the corner he could distinctly make out the sound of a dustbin being emptied in the middle of the corridor. For a short moment he thought what to do now. He decided on heading up to Gryffindor tower to pack his trunk before any of the others turned up in the dormitory. He didn't feel like answering any of the questions he'd seen in Sirius's eyes when he'd seen the scars on his arm. He didn't think he could come up with a satisfying explanation at the moment. But just then the school bells rang for today's final lesson, which meant that hordes of students would soon be making their way to their common rooms to drop off their schoolbags before dinner. Feeling a little panicky he tried to figure out where else he could go instead. And then he remembered that he still had his books and bag in the dungeons and he made up his mind to go there to collect them first. He could pack the rest while everyone else was at dinner. He waited in an empty classroom until he was absolutely sure that no more students would come running past before he made to find his way back down to the potions classroom. It took him a few detours and the assistance of the portrait of a small girl sitting on the back of a giant hippogriff to find it again and he hastily entered without bothering to knock, assuming that everyone was at dinner anyway. He hurried up to the table he had been working on with Sirius only to find it completely empty.

"Remus?" a voice came from behind him and he wheeled around so fast that he bumped into a chair and almost fell over. He managed to steady himself and looked up to find Assistant Professor Belby standing a few feet behind him, wearing a puzzled expression. "What are you doing here? Why aren't you at dinner?" he asked curiously.

"I…well, I forgot my schoolbag when Siri-…when I went to the hospital wing, so I came down here to pick it up," Remus stuttered, feeling his cheeks go red.

"But your friends have picked your belongings up for you, of course," Belby said in surprise. "Mr Black came in here to collect them right after the end of the lesson."

"Oh, of course he did," Remus mumbled, feeling his heart give an involuntary pang at the mention of Sirius's name. Had he already told James and Peter about his discovery? Very likely, he thought.

"How is your hand then?"

"Huh? What," Remus said distractedly, his mind on James's and Peter's possible reactions.

"Your hand, Remus. How is it? I believe you hurt yourself? Isn't that why you had to go to the hospital wing?"

"Oh, that. I'm fine. It was only a scratch. Nothing serious," he mustered up a little smile and a nod to bid Belby goodbye.

He turned around, his hand already on the door handle as Belby suddenly said, "I expect you are used to far worse injuries once a month, am I right?"

Remus froze. He felt his heart miss several beats and his mouth suddenly became very dry. It felt as though he had been struck by lightning. He swallowed hard. "I beg your pardon?" he said and was horrified at how thin and tremulous his voice sounded. He didn't think he could stand anymore surprised today. Feverishly he tried to remember what Dumbledore had told him last summer when they had discussed his school year and the necessary preparations for him at Potter Manor. Dumbledore had told him that, naturally, his future head of house and the school matron Madam Pomfrey would be in on the secret but apart from them, no one else.

"I think you know what I'm talking about," Belby said calmly and Remus could feel his gaze in his back. He wrenched himself out of his stupor and opened the door to escape into the corridor as he felt something warm graze his cheek and the door slammed shut again, locking itself. Remus's heart seemed to want to make up for the beats it had missed earlier and was now positively hammering against his ribcage. What was this all about? He thrust his uninjured hand in his pocket and fumbled for his wand but his hand was now so sweaty that the thin piece of wood kept slipping through his fingers.

"Please, don't be frightened," Belby said soothingly and Remus gave an involuntary shudder. "I'm a good friend of your father's and I want to help you…"

"You should have seen his face," Sirius was saying for what felt like the hundredth time. They were all huddled in a solitary corner in the library, Peter still munching on the corner of a chicken sandwich he had brought himself from dinner and smuggled in under the vigilant eyes of Madam Pince, the librarian. The reason why they were holding their secret meeting in the library was that this was the place Remus would least expect them to be and since he was the subject of their little gathering, they preferred not to be found by him.

"Yeah, you said so," James said annoyed. He hated keeping secrets from Remus seeing as he was one of their little gang and his friend. But, as he grudgingly had to admit, Remus was obviously keeping at least one big secret from the rest of them, so they were even.

"I just can't figure him out," Sirius stormed. "I thought I had, but I guess I was wrong."

"People aren't something you can open like a book and read in whenever you want," Peter said wisely but immediately shut up when he saw the look on Sirius's face.

"There's just something wrong with that kid," Sirius grumbled.

"And what's that supposed to mean?" James asked, firing up at once. "Are you trying to say that he is…what are you trying to say?"

"Don't wet yourself, James," Sirius scoffed. "And don't tell me you haven't noticed yourself. All those injuries…"

"Yeah, well, I suppose that's because he can't walk a straight line without breaking his leg or cracking his skull. He's dead clumsy sometimes, in case you haven't noticed."

"And that's another odd thing about him. He can't walk a straight line without having at least a dozen accidents but during our flying lessons he was almost…"

"Graceful," Peter finished the sentence for him, earning himself a matching pair of disbelieving and slightly amused looks from both, Sirius and James.

"Never mind that now," Sirius growled. "And then he vanishes every now and then. Forgotten scales, sick mother, dying rabbit…James, you said your parents are friends with Remus's mother. Couldn't you ask them to check whether she's really ill all that time?"

"As a matter of fact, I already did that. You're not the only one with brains, you know?"

Sirius chose to ignore the last comment. "So? What did they say?"

"Well, they checked with Mrs Lupin but everything seems a little fuzzy if you ask me. She seems to have been ill but apparently she couldn't remember exactly when."

"That's curious. And I've noticed another thing. Remus has the worst injuries right after those trips home."

Thoughtful silence fell after this statement.

"Do you think…domestic violence?" Peter finally broke the silence, his voice sounding hesitant.

"It's a possibility we must consider," Sirius said curtly.

"No way! You don't know his mum but I do. She wouldn't hurt him, no way," James said forcefully.

"Maybe you're right, maybe you're not," Sirius said indifferently, shaking his head a little. "And what about his father? What do we know about him?"

"All I know is that he's been gone for almost six years now. He used to be one of my dad's best friends and they worked at the ministry together."

"He was a wizard then?" Peter asked.

"What if he was? What has that got to do with anything?" Sirius snapped. Peter chose not to reply, knowing how touchy Sirius could get on the subject of pure wizarding blood.

"Anyway," James shut him up soothingly, "his father hasn't been seen for years now. For all we know, he's probably dead."

"Why did he leave in the first place," Peter asked curiously.

"It happens, Pete, you know?" James said mockingly. "When a mummy and a daddy don't love each other no more…"

"Oh, shut up."

"I'd love to know what he's up to when he disappears," Sirius said thoughtfully, bringing the other two back to their original subject.

"Why don't you ask him if he takes you with him the next time?" James said, suppressing a yawn. It was evident that he didn't see a big mystery behind the matter.

"Yeah, right, thanks for nothing James. If only we had someone to follow him, to dog him where ever he goes…"

"Oh, don't you dare, Sirius! That would be treachery," James yelled hotly, forgetting for a moment that he was in a library.

But Sirius wasn't listening anymore. His eyes had lit up at the mention of the phrase dog him.