Disclaimer:This is a work offiction, a series of images from my owntwisted mind, a story that JK would probably flinch indisgustat if she were ever to set eyes on it.I am sick, something I know, and something I embrace. These characters do not belong to me but I will take full responsibility for thegrotesque thoughts and plotsthat ensue. I apologize in advance for the people I know I will offend.

This is SLASH, tender at times but mostly filled with angst. But do not be mistaken every moment, tender, passionate or angsty, sweaty and heated in filled with irrevocable and inconceivablelove.

The Last Marauder
Chapter Eleven

Of Sudden Happiness and Meaningful Conversations

"Remus, I was wondering if I could have a word," Minerva McGonagall called to the werewolf in the great hall before breakfast on a Thursday morning of the first of school.

"Of course Minerva," he replied, still feeling a little awkward about calling his old teacher by her first name.

The woman pulled him into the empty corridor, "I just wanted to tell you that I do not believe Potter knows about you, about how you used be such good friends with his parents… and I'm not entirely sure it's a good idea to tell him that an old friend of the man trying to kill him is in the school with him. No offence to you," she added when Remus looked down at the floor in slight distress.

"No I understand…"

"I really don't mean to upset you Remus. I couldn't possibly understand how hard this must be for you… but I am truthfully quite worried for him. Just yesterday when he was in divinations class he found the grim in his tea leaves. The grim! It's a dog… a giant black dog… and it mean death, probably scared the poor boy within an inch of his life," she looked at him expectantly and Remus swallowed too loudly.

He knew she had no idea what his friends had done. She would have never allowed it, for it was one of the most dangerous things, being an animagus, and allowing a bunch of teenagers to do so would have been so horrifying for her. There was no way she knew.

And yet Remus feared she had figured it out sometime along the way.

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He was shocked by his class's reactions to him. They seem genuinely engaged in his lessons, and it was almost like they were enjoying themselves. He was also shocked to find how little they actually knew. Though of course this was less of a shock, they had, after all, had two faulty teachers in a row.

He knew the parents of many of the children, and he feared that they knew his secret and passed it on to their children but it seemed that this was a moot worry for him to think of, for the children had nothing but excitement to show in his classes. Even the Slytherins who looked at him in disgust loved how he introduced them into the world of the Dark Arts, with the fear of being attacked, but the knowledge that they were actually perfectly safe.

It was that same Thursday afternoon that he had his first class with the third years from Gryffindor. He was happy that none of them argued as he led them from the classroom and to the staff room where they found Snape, who sneered, and insulted Neville Longbottom and Hermione Granger in one remark, to which Lupin reputed with asking the boy to help him at the front of the class. He aimed several questions at Harry without even noticing that he was always drawn to the boy's eyes. But he was smart; in fact Remus was almost positive that the boy tromped the talents that his father possessed. The boggart was amusing, watching the kids laugh and scream, terrified but having the time of their lives as they chased away their fears. He wasn't only teaching them how to defeat a boggart; he was teaching them a necessity of life. To take a bad situation, a scary situation and make it better with a single word.

Then Harry was standing in front of the boggart and everything stood still. Remus watched Harry carefully, speculating his face, taking in the confusion that came across it when the boggart didn't change immediately… and then Lupin suddenly realized that he couldn't let it change. He knew what it would become… and there was no way he could unleash the image of Voldemort to his students.

He leapt out in front of the boy, hollering "Here!" And instead the hesitating boggart became the full moon, gleaming…silvery white… And completely harmless, "Riddikulus!"

He saw the look of disappointment on Harry's face, and he smiled brightly, hoping the boy didn't take any particular offence to it. He wanted nothing more than Harry to like him, enjoy having him as a teacher. He couldn't handle it if the only part of James and Lily he had left despised him over something so trivial.

But as disappointed as he seemed they still talked happily about the class as they were leaving for their next classes.

It hadn't even finished his week of the school year and he was already feeling like his old self once again.

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Remus fell into a routine. He was happier than he had been in years and even his monthly problem went by faster and with less pain than usual. He supposed that Snape really knew his stuff, as the wolf-bane was better than the stuff that Slughorn himself had made years before.

Yes things were a lot better now that he was back in the school, and suddenly he was determined to break the so called Defense Against the Dark Arts "jinx" and be the teacher for years to come yet.

News of Sirius slowly started to decrease, less and less everyday on the Profit, till his picture was nothing more than a single corner on the third page.

He formed a sort of bond with Harry as he found that the boy was the best in the class, even better than Hermione Granger, who had been showing up a moment late for every one of his classes, due to her time turner he was sure.

Harry was inquisitive, strong, happy… normal. Lupin knew that James would have been proud of him, as he so obviously took after his father in nearly every way. He was even on the Quidditch team. He had been through so much, and yet he acted as though was like any of the other kids at Hogwarts.

Yes, things were good. Great even.

It was Hallowe'en that everything started going downhill. That the memories came rushing back, and it was all he could do to not start ripping his own hair from his head. But that wasn't even the worst of it.

It started out as a normal day. He woke up with a pit in his stomach as he realized it had officially been twelve years since the death of his friends, the imprisonment and the ultimate betrayal of his lover.

He dragged himself to the front of the castle where Hagrid was waiting for him, a crate in hand. "Ah! Good, thank you Hagrid, that's perfect. Did you get to see him?" He questioned.

The half-giant shook his head, "No I didn't know if it was safe to open the crate… you never know with the DADA class… and previous teachers… well I just wasn't sure."

Remus nodded in understanding, "Well come with me, and we'll have a look at the darling creature, shall we?" He motioned for Hargrid to follow him back to his office.

The corridors were particularly empty, as the kids were all at Hogsmeade, which left Filch pacing the halls, awaiting the goodies the students were bound to bring back from Zonko's Joke Shop.

"In here, Dumbledore has already set me up with a tank and everything, come along just through here," He showed Hagrid the giant empty tank in the corner of his office.

Hagrid set the crate down and nodded, "There you are Professor Lupin, if you have any trouble just tell me alright?" He turned to leave but Remus stopped him.

"Don't you want to see the Grindylow, Hagrid?"

The man turned, surprised and obviously excited. Remus liked Hagrid, always had, but the knowledge that this man, this big hearted, loving, half-giant, had been the last one to talk to Sirius before he went after Peter was kind of disheartening. He had been the one to deliver Harry to his aunt and uncle, and he had arrived at the Potter's house only moments after Sirius had. Remus had heard of this during the last Order meeting that there ever was. It had crushed him.

"Can I?" Hagrid asked, regarding the Grindylow.

"Well of course you can, but only if you help me get him in the tank first."

Hagrid nodded and together we opened the crate, where the greenish creature hissed and bared his teeth, splashing violently in the shallow water. The bigger man swiftly picked up the box and dutifully poured its contents into the tank. The Grindylow swam around in the bigger area happily.

"Daring little guy," Hagrid mumbled tapping the glass of the tank.

The creature growled at him before dashing to hide in a thick set of seaweed, only its glowing yellow eyes visible in the dark water.

"Yes, they are quite extraordinary I find," Lupin stated with a smile. The kids would love the monster.

Sometime later, after Hagrid had left, Remus heard footsteps down the hall. Confused, as most everybody was in Hogdmeade, he stood and went to the doorway, poking his head out. He spotted Harry Potter going down the corridor. Remus went back to his reading, but for only a second when he remembered that Harry shouldn't be in the school at all that day, he should be in Hogsmeade with his friends. Why was he walking around the school all alone… didn't he know that there was a mad man after him? Maybe he did. Remus knew how worried everyone was that Harry would go after Sirius if he knew what the man had done… but how could he know?

"Harry?" he called as the boy rounded a corner, his head quickly peeked back around, his green eyes catching Remus' brown ones. The teenager came towards him upon seeing who it was, stopping at the door where Lupin stood. "What are you doing? Where are Ron and Hermione?" The boy shrugged.

"Hogsmeade," Remus knew immediately that he was upset about this, that he obviously wasn't allowed to go for some reason.

"Ah," he replied looking the gangly boy up and down. Lupin decided to cheer Harry up, maybe have an actually conversation with him, get to know him a little better. "Why don't you come in? I've just taken delivery of a Grindylow for our next lesson."

"A what?"

Remus lead his way into his office and stopped in front of the tank, where the Grindylow had remerged, pressing its body against the glass. Remus explained to Harry how it had been easy enough catching it in the Black Lake, and then he went to his desk and offered the teenager some tea. "I was just thinking of making one."

Harry looked a little embarrassed, obviously perplexed by the idea of casually sitting down for a cup of tea with a teacher, and suddenly he so wanted to tell the boy that to him he was so much more than a student. He was a ray of hope in what was a seemingly endless tunnel of darkness.

All the same Harry says, "All right," and after being directed to do so, he sits on the chair across the desk. "I've only got tea bags, I'm afraid – but I daresay you've had enough of tea leaves?"

Harry looked up in surprise, "How did you know about that?"

"Professor McGonagall told me," he handed Harry the cup of tea, "you're not worried are you?" Of course he was talking about Sirius, but he wondered if Harry knew that.

Without hesitation Harry says, "No," and Remus knew in that second that the boy had courage, possibly more than his father ever had. Up until that moment it had seemed impossible that anyone could be more courageous than that.

The boy's eyebrows came together for a second and Lupin tilted his head slightly to the left, "Anything worrying you Harry?"

"No," he replied, and just like Lily he was a terrible liar, but Remus didn't say anything, not wanting to press him as he just stared at the cursing Grindylow. Sure enough after a moment Harry sets his tea down and says, "Yes. You know that day we fought the boggart?"

Moony most definitely was not expecting this, "Yes…"

"Why didn't you let me fight it?"

Lupin's eyebrows went into his hairline. Ah, so that was it. Remus had hurt his pride, "I would have that was obvious Harry," it was true, didn't the boy know that he wouldn't have wanted to expose the horrors of his past to a class room of kids?

"Why?"

Remus frowned, this boy was most definitely James' son. "Well, I assumed that if the boggart faced you it would assume the shape of Lord Voldemort," the boy looked shocked at the sound of the name, but Remus continued. "Clearly, I was wrong. But I didn't think it was a good idea for Voldemort to materialise in the staff room. I imagined that people would panic."

Harry considered this for a moment, and then he says, "I did think of Voldemort at first, but then I remembered those Dementors," he seemed to be carefully considering this and Lupin just had to smile.

"Well, well… I'm impressed. That suggests that what you fear most of all is fear itself. Very wise Harry," the teen looked embarrassed, and so he took a sip of tea and then kept going on. "So you've been think I didn't believe you capable of fighting the boggart?"

"Well, yeah. Professor Lupin, you know the Dementors-" a knock at the door cut him off and Remus looked up.

"Come in," he called. Snape comes in then, a new batch of wolfs bane in his hands. Remus blenched a little, remember that there was going be a full moon the next night. He covered it with a smile, "Ah Severus, Thanks very much, could you just set it on the desk here for me?" The potions master did so, his eyes flitting suspiciously between Harry and Moony, "I was just showing Harry my Grindylow," Remus tried to make his voice even and joyful as he pointed at the tank in the corner.

Indifferent Snape replies, "Fascinating. You should take that directly Lupin."

"Yes, yes I will."

"I made an entire cauldron full if you need more," he pressed, obviously trying to rouse something out of his former class mate in front of their student.

"I should probably take some tomorrow again. Thanks very much Severus."

"Not at all," he finally replied, leaving, his eyes still trained on the two of them until the office door was closed again.

Harry looked at the goblet with a spark of mischief in his eyes and Remus was quick to cover his tracks with another broad smile, "Professor Snape has kindly concocted a potion for me. I have never been much of a potion brewer, and this one is particularly complex."

"Why-" Harry started but Lupin gave him a pointed look that stopped the question from fully forming.

"I have been feeling a bit off-colour lately, this potion is the only thing that helps. I'm lucky to be working alongside Professor Snape, there aren't many wizards who would be willing to brew it," he takes a gulp of the steaming potion and then Harry suddenly blurts something out that suggested just how much he actually disliked Snape.

"Professor Snape is very interested in the Dark Arts."

"Really?" Lupin replied, only too aware of this fact.

"Some people reckon that he'd do anything to get the Defence Against the Dark Arts positions," he hesitated but he actually said the sentence and Remus just stared for a moment… what was Harry suggesting?

Remus, took a breath and then he chugged back his wolfs-bane, "Disgusting," he said flinching at the taste, "Well Harry I'd better get back to work. I'll see you at the feast."

"Right," Harry replied setting down his empty tea cup again.

That evening at the feast Lupin found himself growing more and more annoyed with the constant watchful eye of none other than Snape, who was being all too obvious about it. But he said nothing, for it had been him that almost attacked all those years ago.

But he ignored it, wanting to enjoy this night, as tomorrow he would be holed up in the Shrieking Shack, howling at the moon. He sat next to Hagrid who questioned about the water creature that he had helped with early that day, and Remus found himself laughing with the man about a dragon he had hatched two years earlier, loving to hear more about how Harry had spent his first year at Hogwarts surrounded by the same friends, excelling in the same classes, being tortured by the same Snape. It was as though the boy had always known he was a wizard his entire life.

It was later that night while Lupin was walking back to his room, happily full of delicious food that he heard the commotion going on, on the staircase outside of the Gryffinor common room, everyone whispering his name over and over, saying that it was him who had chased off the Fat Lady from the picture frame. He had been inside the school, trying to get into the common rooms where, on any normal night, Harry would have been sleeping soundly in his bed.

Sirius Black had been in the school.

In the school.

His heart wretched painfully in his chest and he stumbled to the staircase, where more of a crowd was forming around the scene. Dumbledore was ordering everyone around, the most calm of the crowd. The students were to go to the Great Hall, where they were to sleep that night, and the teachers were to start searching the school.

Lupin started with where he immediately thought the man would be. The secret passages that the Marauders had found back when they had been students. He searched every one of them, not finding a thing, unless you counted all of the painful memories that is. Finally on the last passage, behind an old statue, he illuminated the end of his wand to look down the long tunnel that lead straight to Honey Dukes in Hogsmeade.

He let out a breath that he had not noticed he was holding in when he found absolutely nothing. He looked to his feet, letting out a harsh laugh. Of course he wasn't using these tunnels. It would be too obvious. Sirius was anything if not stealthy.

It was then that he saw them.

From years of no use the tunnel's floors had gotten so dusty that it looked like a thin layer of grey snow… but also like they would be if it had actually been snow, the tracks were quite prominent. All the way down the path. They were inevitably, huge dog tracks.