"Yes," Sirius confirms, dragging the cloth across Kieren's shoulders, frowning faintly at the puckered sort of scar there, cleaning around it as carefully as he can manage.
"He was bitten very young. Very, very young. Our headmaster knew of Remus's condition and, despite the laws and regulations against dark creatures, he was allowed to study with us. Of course, there was no escaping his transformations so a shack was built far off grounds, accessible from school via this massive Whomping Willow tree.
"It was perfect, really. Except it meant Remus was forced to be alone every month during the hardest days and nights. And we weren't supposed to know, of course. Nobody was. But apparently Dumbledore -- the headmaster -- didn't count on boys as clever as me and James. Werewolf transformations are not like me turning into Padfoot; they're not easy things. And every month, we'd see Remus return to school worn to the bone and bruised, covered in marks. We figured it out. We didn't tell Remuse we know, couldn't worry him. And we didn't know what to do. Not at first."
no subject
"He was bitten very young. Very, very young. Our headmaster knew of Remus's condition and, despite the laws and regulations against dark creatures, he was allowed to study with us. Of course, there was no escaping his transformations so a shack was built far off grounds, accessible from school via this massive Whomping Willow tree.
"It was perfect, really. Except it meant Remus was forced to be alone every month during the hardest days and nights. And we weren't supposed to know, of course. Nobody was. But apparently Dumbledore -- the headmaster -- didn't count on boys as clever as me and James. Werewolf transformations are not like me turning into Padfoot; they're not easy things. And every month, we'd see Remus return to school worn to the bone and bruised, covered in marks. We figured it out. We didn't tell Remuse we know, couldn't worry him. And we didn't know what to do. Not at first."