Disclaimer: Even polyjuice potion wouldn't make me JK Rowling, so I, unfortunately, will never own Harry Potter. :(

A/N: Sorry for taking so long to update. Finals have been driving me insane! But they're over now, and I'll be able to get a move on on the story. Thanks for all who have read and my two new subscribers! :) Please someone leave a review. I'd really appreciate some feedback. Thanks :)

Now, to the story!

Chapter 2

~*The Land of Aernor*~

Remus Lupin sat on his small bed, the moonlight slanting through his window, illuminating the book on his lap. His room was rather small consisting of a small bed to the right of the door, which touched three walls, a desk to the left of the bed which was right up against the head of the bed and right under the only window in the room, a small bookcase which took up the rest of the small wall and most of the left-most wall, and a small chest of drawers. A worn, frayed, red rug covered most of the wooden floor. Pictures of family, places they visited, and a couple Quidditch posters hung on the walls.

Remus stared at the words on the yellowed pages of the large, leather-bound book in his lap. He sat on the bed with his back to the wall and his small legs crossed. Remus could read very well for his age. He loved to read. Books held so many stories, secrets, and information that were just waiting to be discovered. Remus loved to learn, and books taught him a lot. When he was reading, Remus found himself transported to different worlds and different times. He could be whoever and whatever he wished. Books were the keys into strange and wonderful worlds, the gateway to imagination. He could lose himself in a book and not have to worry about all that was going on around him. Yes, Remus loved to read.

However, tonight was different. He had crawled onto his bed, his favorite book in his hands, and had tried to read, to clear his mind, to think of something other than the thoughts that were plagueing him, but, for the first time in his life, Remus found he could not escape into the story, could not read and understand the words that were painting an imaginary world. Try as he might, his thoughts wouldn't leave him.

A strange feeling of foreboding had settled on the small boy's heart, causing an uneasy feeling in the pit of his stomach. He did not know why, but he had the strangest feeling as if something terrible would soon happen. He had seen dark shadows in the corner of his mind when he went out into the forest with his brother. He constantly felt as if there were a pair of eyes watching his every move. A sense of insecurity kept the boy inside the house. His father was too busy to notice these changes, being at work most of the time and his mother seemed troubled with her own thoughts, but Anthony noticed. He did not like the changes he was seeing in his younger brother.

Remus seemed haunted…frightened…as if he felt something would jump out at him at any minute. The entire family had noticed that Remus was eating less and less. He didn't have breakfast and barely touched his lunch and dinner. When they tried to force him to eat it, he would begin to retch uncontrollably. Remus did not tell his family, but he also suffered from strange nightmares, nightmares that would cause him to wake up suddenly in the middle of the night bathed in cold sweat and gasping for air. He could never remember what the nightmares where about, but the emotions they left him were enough to scare him even more.

Remus heard the door to his room open and close. In one stride, his brother crossed over to the bed and sat down lightly next to the smaller boy. Remus scooted closer to him and rested his small head on his brother's shoulder. Anthony pulled the smaller boy closer, stroking his sandy brown hair with one hand. He found it almost frightening how small, fragile, and scared his once energetic, carefree brother had become. His grip tightened on the younger boy.

"Anthony?" asked Remus weakly. Anthony's heart contracted at the sound. He felt he was losing his little brother.

"Yes?" asked Anthony quietly.

"Will you read to me?" Remus sat up and handed his brother the book he had been holding.

"But of course," said Anthony smiling. He chuckled as he realized the book his brother had selected. "You do love this book, don't you?"

Remus nodded, smiling; the first genuine smile Anthony had seen him give in almost a week. The sight lightened the other's heart.

"How many times have I read this to you?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.

Remus shrugged and waited expectantly for his brother to start, pulling his knees up to his chest and resting his back against the headboard. Anthony chuckled again. "The Land of Aernor," Anthony began. "There once lived two children, a brother and a sister, who enjoyed playing by the old oak tree near the Keriki River outside Old Town. On days when the sun was bright and warm, the two could be seen frolicking by the river, laughing merrily, carefree as the breeze. Their house was set on Garper Hill and smoke could often be seen rising from the chimney as their cheerful mother prepared the evening meal. The mouthwatering scent of roasted chicken and steamed asparagus pouring from the cottage drove the two children back to the hill at dusk. Their father would be there waiting for them, having returned from his daily hunt in the mountains surrounding the small valley. The four would sit down together and enjoy their meal talking and laughing merrily, enjoying eachother's company. There was never a happier family in the Magical Land of Aernor…"

Remus let the smooth, calming voice of his brother fill his thoughts, the familiar words forming beautiful pictures in his mind. He closed his eyes and let his brother's voice become his thoughts, let the thoughts take shape, and watched as the story of the two siblings, Ilecia and Daemon, played out before his eyes. The story was a tragic one, though the end brought hope and joy. It spoke of the two siblings who lived in a seemingly unbreakable paradise far from the rest of the land, not a care in the world. One fateful night, the two children were snatched from their beds by men robed in black and their house was burnt to the ground, their parents still inside. The two were taken across the mountains without rest and barely any food. The two devised a clever plan and managed to escape their captors, however, they found themselves in a strange forest they knew nothing about.

The story went on to speak of their many wanderings in the forest as they attempted to return to Old Town, and all the people and creatures they met along the way. Near the end of the story, a werewolf attacked the two. They managed to escape, but Daemon had been bitten while attempting to shield his sister. At the next full moon, he transformed and was unable to stop himself killing Ilecia. Absolutely heartbroken and frightened of himself, Daeomon wandered aimlessly around the mountains. Months later, he found himself at the brink of the valley he used to call home. There he saw the old oak and the remains of his old home on Garper Hill. On the opposite bank, however, he saw his sister Ilecia, who was smiling and waving to him. Daemon dove down the waterfall and swam down the river until he reached the other bank where his sister was waiting. The land seemed much warmer and brighter and Keriki River was a brilliant display of clear, rainbow water. The Phoenix's Call could be heard in the distance And he could see their parents waving to him, for this was the true Land of Aernor, where those we loved and lost, we meet again, and all is well.

Anthony looked down at his brother. Somewhere in the account of the Bandits' trek through the mountains with the captured children, Remus had fallen asleep…smiling. The elder smiled and carefully lay the boy down on the bed and tucked him in. He placed the old, leather-bound book on the boy's desk before moving over and kissing his younger brother on the forehead.

"Good night," he whispered. Anthony tiptoed out of the room and closing the door lightly behind him. In the distance, the beautiful sound of an unknown bird singing in the night reached the ears of the sleeping child. Remus's smile widened as if he could hear the sweet sound, and for the first time in many days, the boy dreamed of Ilecia and Daemon meeting again on the far bank of a clear, rainbow stream…The Land of Aernor. All was well.

A/N: Well, what do you think? Was it good? Please review!

Cheers,

Phoenix Call