The man fleetingly wondered how much longer he would have to endure such treatment. He had lost all track of time. As far as he was concerned, he could have been imprisoned for months, or even years. Time no longer had any meaning for him. He just wanted to know why they had kept him alive this long. Why hadn’t they killed him already? Death would be a sweet release from his terrifying reality.
The man twinged, as he heard the scuffing of feet from outside the room’s door. Moments later the latch released and the metal door swung open with a rusty creak. A piercing light flooded the room, blinding the still prone man. He could hear something hit the floor with a thud, and a gruff voice jeer, “Here’s some company. Have fun.”
His jailer howled out a terrifying laugh and closed the cell’s door with a loud bang. Once alone, the man peered into the shadows, trying to glimpse what the guard had meant. To the man’s horror he saw the outline of a body in the far corner. He tried to call out to the other, but his words caught in his cracked throat. A barely audible hissing noise erupted from his vocal chords.
Frustrated the man slowly pulled himself up with great effort from the floor, and began crawling his way to the figure. As he got closer, he could see the body was an old man with white hair and a long beard. The person seemed vaguely familiar to him, but he the name would not come to his mind. The shaking man edged closer.
Once he was within inches of the body, he stretched out a trembling hand and roughly jabbed at the still form, but there was no response. Two more quick jabs had the same result. The man decided the person must be dead. He sighed and quietly crawled back to his previous resting place. Instead off lying back on the floor, he rested his back against the wall and brought his knees up to his chest. One thought kept running over and over in his mind, Please let him be dead. Please let him be dead.
Time stood still as the haggard man began rocking back and forth slowly. His eyes fixed on the outlined figure before him. Was it his imagination or did he see the old man move? No, it must have been his imagination. It had to be.
The light streaming into the room, from the gap above, started to become dimmer by the second. It would be night soon, but more importantly there would be a full moon tonight. The trembling man was more than just cold now. He was frightened of what he might do, of what he knew he would do.
The man suddenly doubled over in pain and screamed. It was starting. The transformation would take place soon and there was nothing he could do about it. Familiar spasms shot through his body, as tears came to his eye. Remus managed to whisper three words between sobs before the transformation completed, “No, not again.”
The next day, Remus awoke to being dragged violently from his cell between two large men. His mind was a whirling mass of confusion and his body in agony. Remus tried desperately to remember where he was, as he was unceremoniously hauled up a flight of steps and down a long dark hall. He was taken into a large room and placed in shackles hanging from a wall at the far end.
Still confused, he looked around at the nearly empty chamber for a clue to where he might be. He could see a lonely table set against a distant wall. A cauldron and multiple potion vials littered the wood surface. A thick green smoke was currently belching from the black pot, filling the room and making it difficult for Remus to breathe. His eyes teared up from the repulsive aroma, as the smoke turned into a haze of green fog. He squinted through the vapor and saw that three walls of the room were lined with chains very similar to the ones he now was in. He caught a glint out of the corner of his eye and turned to see a large silver shield with an emblem of a great black bird etched in its surface.
Remus winched in pain. He closed his eyes and tried to remember what had caused his body so much affliction. As if struck by lightening, his memory came flooding into him, pushing back his other murky thoughts and sending cold chills through his body. Despite the chills, Remus suddenly began sweating profusely, as he hung limply in his restraints. He knew what was coming next, only because he had to endure it more times than he could remember since his capture.
Remus eyes remained tightly closed as he desperately tried to think of something else, anything else. At first he could only think of his plight, but slowly a familiar face came into focus. It was such a beautiful and comforting face. A tingling warmth soon worked its way through his body as he thought of her. Before he knew what was happening, it had spread into every inch of him like a fire gone wild. It was then when Remus knew that everything would be okay, that he could endure what was coming. As long as he could hold that precious image of the pink haired smiling love of his life, he could withstand anything. The pain and agony that had previously racked his body disappeared. It was replaced with peacefulness and a warm fire that burned brightly inside him like a beacon of hope.
Remus lifted his head, as he heard someone enter the room. The guards who had chained him to the wall had long disappeared and left the door ajar. Greyback walked through the open door and approached Remus with a sneer on his face and wand at the ready. The shackled man simply looked at his captor and smiled. Instead of seeing the large intimidating man glaring down at him with a maniacal glimmer in his eyes, Remus could only see the sweet dark twinkling eyes of his wife staring back at him.
The room was dark and quiet as two people stretched out in front of a cozy crackling fire. A woman leaned up against a plush sofa cradling a man’s head in her lap, “Remus, let’s get married,” Tonks said, lovingly caressing the saggy scalp.
“What?” he asked, lifting his head to gaze up at the woman.
A look of annoyance came to Tonks eyes, but it quickly passed. She pushed him back into her lap, “What do you mean, what? We talked about this, remember?”
“I remember. I was the one to ask you to marry me.” A moment passed, as Remus drew repeating circles on her arm, his face screwed up in concentration. “When?”
“Now.”
“Now? So soon?” The disbelief he was feeling must have been evident in his voice, because this time Tonks’ annoyed look did not go away.
She pushed the man roughly away from her, eyes flashing with anger, “And why not now? You’ll be leaving again soon, and who knows when you’ll be back.”
Remus looked confused, as he tried to figure out exactly what had just happened. His confusion quickly turned into frustration as he realized he had just lost his comfortable spot. He would never admit it, but he loved the way she played with his hair, “But Sugar Pops-”
Tonks anger dissipated at hearing his nickname for her, but she wasn’t ready to give up yet. She shook her head. The large silver and blue baubles in her ears swung freely in the fire light, “No, Remus. No buts. Let’s just do it. Come on, it will be fun. It’s not like we have to invite a bunch of guests or anything. You’re the one who wanted a private ceremony. So why wait?”
“But-”
“There you go again. But what? Are you saying you don’t want to marry me now, that you don’t love me?” Tonks cocked her head to one side. Her dark eyes twinkled with mischief.
Remus feigned a look of utter horror, but said nothing.
Tonks slapped him and pouted, “Well?”
Instead of answering, he leaned in and placed his lips on hers. He hungrily pulled her into his embrace, kissing her with passionate zeal. A few heavenly moments later, he pulled away and gently rested her fuchsia head on his chest. He nestled his nose in her soft hair whispering tenderly, “Of course I love you, my sweet darling. And if you want to get married right now, then we will.”
Tonks looked up and stared deep into her lover’s eye, “Really?”
“Really.”
“But what about-”
Remus put a finger to her lips, “Now whose being difficult? And you’re right it may be awhile before I come back.”
Tonks threw her arms around his neck, “Oh Remus, I’m so happy. I wish this moment could last forever.”
Remus sighed contently, as he held his future wife, “Me too.”
Remus was jolted out his peaceful dream by a maniacal scream, “WHY HAVEN’T YOU FOUND HIM YET?”
Startled he looked around trying to get his bearings. After a quick glance, he noticed that he was still in the large chamber from before. Greyback was nowhere to be seen. Remus guessed he must have passed out from exhaustion during his routine interrogation. But if he was alone, then where had the angry voice come from? He knew he hadn’t imagined it. His heart began to pound in the ears, as he wondered who was so upset. He suddenly heard a sound coming from the open doorway. Remus closed his eyes straining to hear what the low nervous voice was saying.
“My- my Lord, we’re… everywhere. H-h- he… can’t be found… maybe… Prophet was-.”
“Crucio.”
“Aaahhhh…” a terrifying shriek filled the air and reverberated off the walls, as it filtered in from the hall.
The menacing voice spoke again, but in much quieter and threatening tone, “I would know if Potter was dead you imbecile.”
Chills ran up and down Remus’ spine as he finally realized who the voice belonged to. Blood chilling screams drowned out the rest of what was being said. Remus shuttered as the man’s cries became louder and louder. To his shame, he was glad that it was someone else being tortured for a change and not himself. After awhile, the noise died down and an eerie quiet hung in the air. Remus struggled to hear more, wondering what had happened to Harry.
Anger coursed through his veins, as he heard an all too familiar voice break the frosty silence, “My Lord, may I a make suggestion?”
“Make it short Snape,” Voldemort snapped.
“Potter can not stay in hiding forever, and I don’t think he would want to. We could draw him out before he is ready. This would give us the upper hand.”
“Don’t waste my time with the obvious. If you have something to say, then say it.”
“Of course, my Lord, I was purposing that we should exploit his weaknesses to bait him into a trap.”
“This is not news to me. In fact, I will be putting just such a plan into action. Since some of my servants are incapable of doing as they are asked,” the distain in Voldemort’s voice left no doubt to anyone in who he was referring to. He continued, “It appears that I am surrounded by incompetent fools. You have been one of the few that has proven your loyalty to me. Therefore I want you to implement my plan.
“But my Lord, I thought I…” a woman protested.
“SILENCE! You forget your place.”
“Yes, my Lord,” the woman answered nervously.
“All of you leave us. I want to talk to Snape alone.”
The voices were suddenly cut off as he heard feet walking down the hall and a door close. Remus pulled against his restrains in frustration, hoping to hear more. But he knew his actions where futile. He rested his back up against the wall wondering what was being said behind the closed door.
He had to find away to warn Harry. To let him know that they where planning something to catch him. He had to figure a way out, or at least somehow to get word to him. Remus took a deep breath and tried to pull against his restraints again, but this time exerting more strength. As he expected, nothing happened. It was no use, he wasn’t going anywhere.
Remus’ thoughts were interrupted by a large figure coming through the door across the room. It was Greyback. Remus sighed. It was going to start again soon. He braced himself for what he knew was coming.
Several agonizing hours later, Remus’ mind was beginning to weaken. He didn’t know how much more he could take. He had long forgotten about the conversation he had overheard earlier, and was close to forgetting even who he was. His world was turning upside down and he was powerless to stop it.
Remus looked up at his tormentor and saw a wicked smile plaster on Greyback’s face. His stomach began to get queasy, as he saw everything start to swirl around rapidly. Nothing seemed real anymore, while he watched everything collided together and become one large pool of light and color. Deep inside the whirling mass, he caught a glimpse of a bright pink head, and dark eyes that peered deep into his soul.
“Ssssgggrrr Possss-”
Greyback leaned in closer to hear what the tormented man was trying to say, “What was that?”
“Ssssuugrrr Popssss.”
Greyback got a strange look on his face, “Sugar Pops? What does Sugar Pops have to do with anything?”
Remus did not hear the burly man’s question. He was too busy watching a beautiful dancing woman float in and out of sight. She was breath taking, as she skipped freely among a large field of bright blue flowers and large stocks of vivid pink Sugar Pop candies.