Disclaimer: See Prologue

Deserted classroom, Gryffindor tower, 20:13 April 8th 1974

It was odd without Lupin. Strange things always happened around him and they found themselves somewhat bored without chaos to wreak. The other boys had not seen him in just over a week outside of classes. He even spent lunchtime in his little deserted classroom. Of course, they knew exactly where he was. Indeed, they had visited him there to try to persuade him to come to the kitchens with them and see sense. All to no avail. He was completely wrapped up in the book he had borrowed two years ago and was obviously getting somewhere with it. He had even put an end to his Charms tutoring which were somewhat obvious attempts at flirtation by his little Ravenclaw fan club and while he pretended to hate it, he made it only too obvious that he secretly enjoyed it very much indeed.

So Sirius, James and Peter found themselves sitting with him while he muttered an incantation under his breath and paced. They talked amongst themselves after he had shouted at them for staring.

"Remus," said James, patiently, "why not call it a night if it's difficult?"

Lupin sighed. "It'll be difficult tomorrow at lunch too and I'll have less time. I'm going to do it tonight."

"You've been saying that for the last two years," said Peter, somewhat unkindly.

"I need a memory, Pete," Lupin explained. "I just don't have one that's good enough. I've tried the first time we went to Hogsmeade. I've tried wandering around with the cloak. I've tried flying. I've tried finding out I was coming here. I've tried meeting you. I've tried everything good that's ever happened to me." He growled in frustration and threw his wand down.

Sirius frowned. "I thought you said a Patronus was easy."

"In theory," snapped Lupin. "And I'm trying to get it to speak."

"Remus," said James, raising his eyebrows. "You're fourteen. Give yourself a break."

"No-one else is going to give me one," Lupin reminded him. "I'm a werewolf."

Sirius sighed. "Yes, Remus, believe it or not, we know."

Lupin's head whipped round and he stared at Sirius. For a moment, Sirius thought he was going to die slowly and painfully but Lupin cocked his head to the right and smiled faintly. His eyes glinted and he reached for his wand.

"Remus?"

He did not respond but turned to face the wall and squeezed his eyes tight shut and mumbled to himself. James caught the words, "…best friend…going to kill me…killed me by now…furry little problem…" and then, louder, "Expecto Patronum," more of a murmur than the shouting he had done previously.

Lupin felt the tingle at the tips of his fingers and opened his eyes in time to find his three friends staring, wide eyed and open mouthed. He followed their gaze and watched as the ethereal winged Patronus swooped through the air and landed lightly on James' shoulder.

"What is it?" asked James, staring at its colourless plumage.

"A swallow," said Peter. "Look at that tail."

Lupin was beaming at them and as much as they made him laugh, neither of them had ever seen him this happy or horrified as he realised he would now have to return the book two years out of date.

And this happiness was still emanating from him the next morning as he cheerfully spread marmalade lavishly across his toast and began to make up for all the meals he had missed, much to Mary McDonald's disgust.

"Are you actually going to eat all of that?"

Lupin looked up at her and said, "Are you actually allowing yourself to be seen with your hair looking like that?" He took a bite out of a pancake and smiled at her smugly. "Can you pass the bacon?" His inner Marauder had come out to play.

Lily pursed her lips and pushed the plate over. She glanced from Mary to Lupin who was obliviously working his way through his second helping. "I think," she said, "that Mary was wondering where on earth you put it all."

James took in his friend's twig-like physique and was inclined to agree. If he plated up three helpings of breakfast, he could kiss his sexual attractiveness goodbye. He'd look like Peter - that said, even Peter got dates. He shrugged and reached for more bacon.

"Well," said Lupin, buttering another slice of toast, "I burn it off by running round like a mad thing once a month. I can't handle weekly work-outs. I haven't got the time. I have four lots of homework to do, after all."

At this, the Marauders burst into laughter, leaving a thoroughly confused Mary and a smirking, enlightened Lily who had guessed two years previously. She composed herself and smiled as her best friend tapped her shoulder.

"Snivellus, what a wonderful surprise. How are you this morning?"

James earned himself a withering glance and it perked up Lupin's rapidly depleting cheeriness. He managed a smile for Snape who stared down at his plate and wrinkled his nose.

Lupin sighed. "What is it this morning with people watching me eat?"

Snape made no further comment and Lily left without even acknowledging their presence - highly odd in itself as she was usually perfectly polite to Lupin. As much as Lupin tried to concentrate on his achievement and the fact that he had eaten properly for the first time in months, he found that the scene at breakfast had been troubling him.

"Mary!"

Mary turned in the Charms corridor and flattened her hair. Sirius snorted. "Wow, Remus, suddenly you're the person to go to on the subject of hairstyling."

Lupin frowned and ran to catch up with her. "Mary, I'm sorry. I had just been really happy and I've been skipping dinner for weeks. I was starving and a little bit irritable."

Mary smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I noticed you haven't been around much."

Lupin grinned back, relieved. "And your hair looks lovely, by the way. Shall we go to Charms?"

"REMUS!"

Lupin rolled his eyes. "It sounds like I have a date with the Prince of Darkness and his wand movements. I'll catch you later." He ran back along the corridor to his friends and as soon as he reached them, he was accosted by the tiny and twitching Professor Flitwick.

"I hear you can produce a Patronus?" It was a question and Lupin wondered who had told him. No-one else had seen and his friends wouldn't have had the time. Flitwick was almost bouncing with excitement and he would not have wanted to let him down if he couldn't. He nodded.

"Would you like to make it talk?"

Lupin beamed. "You'd teach me?"

"Naturally, naturally. Anything I can do to enhance talent, my boy. When did you manage it?"

"Last night, Professor. I've been trying for years."

"Well, well done. It's harder than it seems isn't it?"

Lupin smiled broadly, glad that he wasn't really just a simpleton. "It seemed easy; think of something happy and say the words but finding something happy enough was really difficult."

Flitwick nodded knowledgably. "Yes, yes. Well, any time you're free, I know you have a busy schedule…" he trailed off, winking.

Lupin laughed. "Thank you."

He was sent back to his friends, took his seat beside Sirius and beamed, happiness seemingly evaporating from him. Even Sirius, who had no idea what had just happened, was grinning inanely.

"Sweet, sweet karma," murmured Lupin. "I'll charm, you take notes." He sighed and slumped down in his chair. "I think I could use today for a corporeal Patronus. Isn't that great?"

Sirius, having no idea what the hell his friend was harping on about this time, nodded and smiled. "Remus, get to work, yeah? If Flitwick sees I'm not doing anything, he'll go mad again."

Lupin privately thought that seeing a very short man jump up and down as he shouted would actually be the icing on today's cake but didn't want to risk Sirius not speaking to him for a whole afternoon. Idly, he flicked his wand and immediately changed the colour of their snuffbox. "We're sorted."

Sirius stared enviously. "How do you do it?"

Lupin shrugged. "It's karma again. I have to be good at something. I think I'm the only person in this school who has managed to melt a cauldron every year he's been here."

Sirius grinned. "Yeah, but you never know when you'll need to dissolve Pewter. You're just boldly going where no wizard has gone before." He laughed. "So what's going on with you and Mary Mac then?"

And their Charms lesson - as their Charms lessons regularly did - became yet another free period in to discuss girls and the sheer coolness of Gandalf.