-Maybe some of you will remember the hopelessly unpopular fic I entitled "Lupin's Tale". Well, needless to say, the fic was pointless. But I recently finished reading a fic called "Canis Lupus", look it up its awesome, and made me want to take another shot at writing about one of my favorite HP characters…cue dramatic music… REMUS LUPIN! Alright. Updating will be slow, since I'm trying to put a lot of thought into every chapter. The story begins right after GoF, when Sirius is supposed to be rounding up 'the old crowd' of Order members. Tell me what you think!-SF12

"He shall return one day Remus; mark my words, he'll be back, stronger than ever…"

Darkness consumed my dream, and I watched as the figure of Albus Dumbledore faded from my mind's eye, and the pale face of Voldemort replaced it. And raised his wand…

I awoke with a start, drenched in sweat. Panicking, I sat bolt upright grabbing my wand from my battered bedside table. "Lumos!" I cried, and the room was instantly illuminated by the light billowing from my wand. I scanned the room, ready for anything.

Except for me, my bedroom was empty. There was no sign of anything dangerous. Nevertheless, I muttered a spell under my breath to make sure. Indeed, there was no one else in my house.

I breathed a sigh of relief. Idiot. It was just a freakin' dream-how old was I, ten?!

Ah well, I couldn't kid myself for too long-I knew that as a werewolf, I had the enhanced side effects of lycanthropy-one of them included annoyingly scary nightmares. And after all, I'd had plenty before-this morn was no different from a dozen others over the years. Dreams about anything from that damn evil villain made of caramel to dreams about…Lily and James.

Shut up, Moony. I berated myself. Dwelling on the past was something I'd learned not to do-the hard way. I got out of bed and got dressed. I seriously could use some coffee after that stupid dream.

Ah, caffeine, my second favorite vice. Chocolate was my first of course- I am nothing in the face of the all-powerful chocolate. It commanded everything.

I descended my rickety staircase into the kitchen, grabbed a mug of coffee, loaded it with enough cream and sugar to make the nearest health nut gasp, and drank it swiftly. I felt instantly better, but I can't pretend that that dream hadn't scared me. In life, I was always willing to face evil-heck, I talked to my landlord every week…

All jokes aside, I generally was able to face a villain and defeat him without too much fear. It had helped me a lot in school so many years ago, before I befriended my fellow Marauders. But in dreams, I felt weak, powerless…I suppose everyone felt that way sometimes. But my dreams had a tendency to come true-that old hag that I'd met while teaching at Hogwarts, Sybil Trelawney, had told me I would be a great Seer if I 'let my Inner Eye seek."

No, I don't know what she was on. Don't ask.

Not satisfied with my dose of caffeine, I pawed through my dilapidated fridge for a chocolate bar. I knew that I was just searching for a distraction, and the logical part of my mind brought me to a halt. I had always been the brainy one in the classes at Hogwarts, the one that makes you feel stupid. But at heart I was a Marauder-brave, reckless, witty, and yet serious when I should be. Which was a lot, considering just how emotional my life can be. So you could say I'm a lot more serious on the outside than on the inside-as one of the last true Marauders, I guess being mature was kind of important.

Needless to say, having to balance the two personalities was both a pain in the neck and sometimes amusing.

Pausing only to refill my coffee mug, I sat down at the table and looked at this situation my habitually logical way:

Okay, so I'd had a dream about Voldemort. Well, more than one over the past month-maybe two or three. No, definitely three. And each dream had involved an appearance of darkness-that was to be expected-and I'd heard at least three different people talking during my dreams- James Potter, his son Harry, Sirius Black and Albus Dumbledore.

I took a quill and some ink from the cabinet, and wrote the names down on the back of my grocery list. So, Albus, James and Harry, and Sirius- what were their significance? All people I cared about, that was one thing. I had been wondering if the dreams meant they were all in some sort of trouble-it was quite possible-from what I've heard, Harry was part of the Triwizard Tournament, one the most dangerous competitions in the world, and I cannot say that I wasn't worried about him. I'd have watched last night at his final round, but I'd been out job-hunting. Ever since that toad-woman, Dolores Umbridge, passed those laws concerning werewolves, I've been out of a job, and out of money-hence, my aforementioned arguments with my landlord were constant.

So Dumbledore's face fades away and Voldemort appears…no, that doesn't Dumbledore mean is Voldemort or anything. Maybe it means that Voldemort's weakened form is somewhere at Hogwarts…or worse.

I was startled out of my calculations by a rather angry owl from the Daily Prophet. Apparently, it had been waiting for along time in my kitchen, but caught up in my torrential thoughts to notice. It didn't really like that.

Let's put it this way- by the next scene in my life, I was washing a large cut on my finger and the bloodthirsty owl had perched itself on my counter. I swear, if animals could smirk, this owl would be the smuggest little bird in the world. I'd always loved pets-I had an owl of my own- but this one was just evil. I gave it the money, but didn't include a treat, and received another cbite on my finger.

"Okay, okay, I'll give you your Owl Treat, just take an anger management class or something." I tossed the little bird its reward for biting me, and it gave a hoot of pleasure, even nudging my hand in a way that could be considered pleasant.

"See?" I said softly to the bird. "I'm a friend. I won't hurt you." Like I said, I have a great love for animals.

I stroked the owl's feathers absentmindedly before it flew off-I knew how it felt. Most adults would lash out at anyone if not given their coffee. Plus, it was so graceful as it flew, so free…

I then proceeded to collapse onto an old armchair, my dream forgotten. I planned a quiet, peaceful morning, starting with a nice crossword puzzle and ending with the news. Plus, I still had coffee left.

I flipped through the paper idly, glancing at headlines while I searched for the crossword. That's when I saw the headline- it jumped out at me like a bird to its prey. I can't describe the awful feeling, the sense of ill…I was shocked, stunned, distraught in the face of one chilling header.

HARRY POTTER CLAIMS YOU-KNOW-WHO HAS RETURNED

My coffee cup clattered to floor and shattered, while I stood with my eyes fixed on the paper. I couldn't say I hadn't expected it one day, but the thought of Voldemort's return was horrifying. We didn't need another all-out war.

Harry…I knew if he said Voldemort was back, it was true. I took a deep breath, and let it out slowly, repairing the broken mug with a wave of my wand.

I now knew what my dream had meant.

I stowed my wand in my robes, and tossed my newspaper across the room. I knew I would read the article in a few moments, but I had to adjust. The bane of some of the greatest witches and wizards had returned, like Dumbledore had always said he would. Like I had always known, but tried to forget.

Ding-dong

I swear, my nerves were so high-strung that I jumped five feet in the air at the mere sound of my doorbell. Forcing myself to calm down, I started towards the door.

Wait.

The first thing Voldemort would do now that he was back is to go after members of the old Order of the Phoenix. That could be him. It wasn't paranoia; it was a fifty percent chance.

I took another gasp of breath and whipped out my wand of rowan, calling out in a commanding tone. "Declare yourself!"

The only answer was a loud bark.

"Sirius," I breathed, and gave a mental sigh of relief, striding over to the door and pulling it open.

A rather large, shaggy black dog growled its thanks and within the second, was a tall, gaunt man, with paling skin that showed the signs of staying inside too much. He shook his long mane of straggly hair to one side and greeted me breathlessly. "'Lo, Remus."

I clapped him on the back, smiling, and led him into the living room. "Sirius! You nearly caused a cardiac arrest-I was sure Voldemort was coming to call. I assume you know he's back."

Sirius blinked in confusion. "Actually, I was coming to tell you about it. How'd you find out?" he questioned, glancing curiously around as if expecting to see a bright neon sign entitled "VOLDEMORT'S BACK" just lying around somewhere.

I pointed my wand into the air, and muttered, "Accio Prophet!" The wretched newspaper came flying out of the room landed pell-mell in my arms. I pointed to the article.

Sirius nodded. "Well, then I guess you know the details. Dumbledore has me out tracking down the old Order members-Figgy, Dung, Kingsley, Elphias Doge…you're the last one on my list. I've been up all night tracking 'em down. Figgy nearly beat me off with her purse-I guess word hadn't got out to her that I was innocent. Damn, what does she pack in that thing, bricks?" He gingerly touched a rather sore-looking bruise on his head.

I shook my head. "Actually, I don't know the details-the information was just started to sink in when you showed up. Oh, and if you look in that drawer there, you might find a copy of The Healer's Helpmate. My mom sent me it for Christmas last year and I use it whenever I forget to make the Wolfsbane potion, and get all those cuts. Might help with your bruise."

"Thanks," Sirius found the book and squinted at the page, searching for the right page. While he gently pressed his wand to his wound, he looked up solemnly at me."Do you want to know what happened?"

I was silent for a moment and then said in what I hoped was a level voice, "I need to know, but I won't like it. Tell me."

Sirius seemed to have expected that answer and began his tale. "It all starts with Harry. He won the Cup, you know? He and Cedric Diggory of Hufflepuff both reached for the trophy at the same time. The Cup was a Portkey… and Wormtail was waiting."

My hatred for Peter Pettigrew intensified tenfold-first he betrays James and Lily and now this…I swear, if I run into him again, I want him punished for all the horror he's caused.

Sirius went on, "He performed some sort of ceremony, and…it happened. Voldemort rose from a cauldron and summoned his followers. He and Harry dueled…and his parents came out of his wand when it connected to Voldemort's. Dumbledore said it had something to do with Fawkes's feathers being in the cores of both wands."

"Priori Incantatem." I said, sucking in a breath. James and Lily had returned to this world today, if only temporarily. The thought flooded warmth through my body, taking away the coldness of Sirius's story.

"Exactly. Apparently, they distracted Voldemort, and Harry Summoned the Portkey, escaping back to the arena. Diggory wasn't so lucky-he was among those in the Priori Incantatem…" Sirius said sorrowfully.

I felt pretty bad myself, but our first concern had to be for Harry. "Who made the Cup into a Portkey? Wormtail?"

My old friend let out a humorless barking laugh. "Are you kidding? The slimy rat couldn't Transfigure a teacup, much less handle a Portus charm. No, someone with power was at hand-Barty Crouch Junior, as it turns out. He was impersonating Mad-Eye Moody all year long."

Now that was news to me. "Barty Crouch Junior? But isn't he…?" I let it hang, not wanting to make a depressing situation even more sad.

"Apparently not. That fool, Cornelius Fudge, set a Dementor on him, though. And as it turns out, the sniveling little coward doesn't believe Harry and Dumbledore-thinks they're crazy. I'll bet you my wand that that article of yours thinks those two are loony, too." Sirius made a noise in the back of his throat that seemed eerily similar to a canine growl.

I'd always disliked Fudge; his employment of Dolores Umbridge made many points against him-but this was getting out of hand.

I Summoned a couple of butterbeers from the kitchen and set one down in front of Sirius, who nodded his thanks before dumping half of it down his throat. It must have been a long journey.

Sirius finished a long gulp and heaved a rather uncharacteristic sigh. "That's not all, Remus."

A sense of awful foreboding entered my soul as I waited for Sirius to finish, hoping with all my heart that Harry was okay.

"Voldemort's potion made it so he could touch Harry. His mother's love is now only protective when Harry is at the Dursleys'-that's a different branch of the magic she set for him. He's not safe from Voldemort anywhere else."

It was as if someone had punched me in the stomach with the news-it felt like a physical blow. It couldn't be…but it must be. Sirius wouldn't lie to me.

I regained my focus and looked up at him in a calm manner. Well, about as calm as I could get at that moment.

"You know, I guess we should thought of this beforehand. Voldemort had always hated weaknesses-we learned that from all those duels, all those Death Eaters battles. Anything that questioned his power had to be stamped out. You remember. We should've been ready for this situation." I said.

Sirius agreed and said heavily, "Yeah, we should have guessed. But there's nothing we can do about it except…" He looked me directly in the eye, and asked, "Do you remember the promise?"

How could I forget? "Of course I remember the promise."

It had been a cold day, and snowy at that-a day full of seriousness and justice-Dumbledore had called us, as a group to Hogwarts, mere hours before James and Lily intended to go into hiding. So cold…

I emerged from the Forbidden Forest where I'd Apparated, shivering and pulling my thin coat around me. Trying to force my teeth from chattering, I waited for several moments, until a gigantic black dog came romping around from behind a tree, greeting me with some loud complaints about the weather, woofing and baying. I smiled to myself Sirius fit his animal well.

Squeaking piteously, a rat named Pettigrewcovered in snow followed us as we strode into the Hogwarts grounds. The place seemed lonely-the governors had decided to close it down for a few weeks, considering the number of Eater attacks lately. I didn't blame them, but it seemed a shame to deprive students of that beautiful place of learning I'd been a werewolf, cast out among society, but I'd stayed there all along.

Dumbledore met us at the gates, flanked by worried-looking Lily and James Potter. He had abandoned his warm, cheery smile and instead looked very tired. Lily and Prongs seemed a little happier-Lily was holding baby Harry close to her chest, and I could see her love for the child, which brought stability to an otherwise sober evening.

We adjourned to Dumbledore's office, and he began to speak, wearily but nevertheless defiant.

" I have called you all here to discuss a matter of utmost certainty and importance. It involves all of you. It unites all of us with our undying love for the one person had the center of this situation." At last he smiled, and his blue eyes twinkled faintly.

"That one person is Harry James Potter."

Once we got over our initial surprise, Dumbledore explained his reasoning to us. Lily and James seemed to know already-after all, he was their son.

"For the sake of safety, I cannot tell all of you what is so special about Harry-this is not a matter of trust, but of precaution. Through my guesswork, which could very well be wrong, I have concluded that Harry Potter is the solution to our problems. He must defeat Voldemort. It is his birthright, his destiny. Or so I believe. There is another child who may possess the gifts to vanquish such evil, but I think it is Harry."

He took a deep breath and carried on, his voice ringing in a way that I knew the words would stay with me forever. "Thus, we must make a pact. It is our duty to protect Harry from the forces that seek to harm him. He must complete the final task himself, but we must assist and defend him in any way we can-even if it means falling in his stead."

We all wholeheartedly agreed to pledge our lives to the cause of Harry's protection-all of us, but Peter Pettigrew. But he promised, too, at last-I should've seen his hesitation, predicted his betrayal…but alas, I did not.

On that cold night, the six of us made a pact, a promise, sealed with love and honor. There was no paper, no ink, no signatures…but it existed magically in our hearts.

I blinked, having replayed that scene at top speed in my head. Oh, yes, I remembered all the details…

"The pact still exists," I found myself saying proudly. "No matter what Pettigrew has done, the pact remains resolved. We will fight to keep Harry safe from harm-as friends, protectors, mentors…but we must never let him know. Harry never wants to put anyone else in front of him-he always wants to do things alone. It would hurt his dignity. We have to make a safe environment for him to emerge as a powerful wizard we are certain he shall be. The Boy Who Lived shall become the Man Who Fought. We shall stay, honor-bound to where we belong-at his side, with Ron and Hermione."

Sirius applauded. "We won't let him down." He said, and raised his tankard. "To the pact."

I raised mine as well, "And to Harry!" The bottles clanked together and we drank to our hopes and quieting our fears.

-I like to see it as canonical, but just not mentioned. After all it was a secret. I've never really like AU fics much, so I'm kind of nearing that line but not crossing it. It's a stretch, I know, but I really love the idea Howver, you may notice that later on in the fic, I might try not to focus on the sad parts of HP, like all the character losses. I figure JKR has done enough of that. Now, hit the big button that makes me really happy. That one. No, a little closer-the one that says REVIEW. Just tell me what you think, but if you're flaming, keep it moderate, for the writer's sake-SF12