A/N: Thanks, as always to the wonderful Zarathustra--bless you for your time and patience with me! And hugs to the amazing SortingHat47, who still loves me even if I drop my infinitives.
I apologize because I did a horrible thing in the last chapter: I forgot to thank all of you for reviewing and for putting my 'little' story on alert. Please know that no disrespect or arrogance was meant by it. I truly appreciate every review and cheer for every alert that I receive. Thank you all very much!
Disclaimer: Yeah, well, I want to say that Remus and Moody were my creations, but they aren't. They belong to JKRowling. Lucky wench. (But thanks, Jo, for letting me play with them!)
Chap. 27: Pulling Strings
Tuesday, 25 February, 1986—7:10 p.m.
Remus had been unable to find a suitable place for his transformation. He Apparated to an abandoned cottage on the moors in Mid Wales that he had used a few times, but it was now in such a state of disrepair that it was useless. The strengthening charms he had used once before would never be able to hold the wolf in now.
Moody had suggested going to the Ministry, but Remus' one experience there had been so awful that he couldn't bear the thought of going back.
Unable to come up with another alternative, he went back to the Shrieking Shack, leaving it to Moody to tell Dumbledore he was there. He was too disheartened at what was obviously his first failure to stand on his own two feet to go to the Headmaster himself.
When the sun rose, pale and listless, on the morning after the full moon, Remus was awakened by strong, but surprisingly gentle hands applying a sweet-smelling ointment to a gouge he had bitten from his forearm.
Moody saw his eyes flicker open and then close again. "You've done a number on yourself."
Remus winced at the sudden onrush of pain that the Auror's words seemed to bring on.
"Ripped your hip open," Moody continued. "Don't figure you'll be able to walk right for a day or two."
The torn flesh on his hip did seem to be the worst of it, and Moody Apparated them both back to his place. Patiently and gently, he helped Remus to the guest room, where the werewolf had stayed the two nights after he had left Hogwarts.
"I've got to go to the Ministry," the Auror said. "You'll be okay by yourself?"
Remus smiled sleepily at the man's question. He had handled these transformations alone for years now.
"Be fine," he mumbled. "Jus' need t' sleep."
"All right, then. I'll be back later to check on you."
The younger man wasn't sure, but he thought he felt the slight weight of a calloused hand on his shoulder just as he drifted off…
5:10 p.m.
Remus carefully limped down the stairs, his fingers gripping the banister tightly to keep his injured hip from pitching him forward. Moody would have a fit that he was up, he knew, but the need for a pain potion was greater than the thought of the Auror's wrath.
Why doesn't he keep them upstairs in the bathroom like normal people?
He made his way into the kitchen and practically fell into one of the kitchen chairs. He was sweating and trembling from his exertions. No, Moody would not be happy at all.
"Accio pain potion," he said, reaching out to catch the vial that flew out of a small cabinet to the left.
It was cool and brought instant relief. It also brought back the exhaustion.
He crossed his arms on the tabletop and rested his head upon them, planning on only resting for a moment or two before either getting up and going back upstairs to bed or, since he was here, and if he could manage it, preparing dinner.
He was awakened by a gruff voice swearing and he jerked his head up, blinking wearily.
"Lupin, what in the hell are you doing up? You should still be in bed!"
Remus rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger and stifled a yawn. "I came down for some pain potion…"
"I left one on the table by the bed. Didn't you see it?"
Remus smiled sheepishly. "No."
"Then why didn't you just Accio the damned thing from upstairs?"
The werewolf shook his head. "I honestly just didn't think about it. Stupid of me." He offered a lopsided smile. "I don't always think clearly the day after a full moon."
Moody made a harrumphing sound and stomped over to the icebox, which was charmed to stay cold. As he passed Remus, he dropped a letter on the table next to the younger man. "Saw Albus today. He said this arrived this morning."
Remus had forgotten the job he had tried to get with the researcher in the Alps. After reading the letter, he realised it was just as well that he had. He crumbled the parchment into a tight ball and tossed it onto the table.
"Bad news?" Moody asked.
"Nothing unexpected," Remus replied bitterly.
The Auror set a butterbeer in front of the younger man and set to opening one for himself. "How's the hip? Need another potion?"
Remus' hand automatically went to the bandages. "It's stiff. Hurts a bit, but not too badly."
"Beef stew good enough for tonight?"
Remus nodded. "Fine."
Moody put a paring knife and some potatoes and carrots in front of Remus, and began to work on cubing the beef. They worked in silence for several minutes.
Suddenly Moody cleared his throat and asked, "Who hexed you?'
Remus looked up quickly, just missing slicing his finger open with the knife. "What?"
"When I was bandaging your hip, I saw the mark on your leg. Who hexed you?"
"Oh, that." Remus smiled. "Severus Snape."
"What possessed him to do that?"
"I insulted him, and then he insulted me, and one thing led to another, and the next thing I know, we're duelling in the Great Hall."
Moody, who had been putting the chunks of meat in a pot, stopped and turned to look at Remus. "Come again?"
"I haven't in months, so I can't again right now," quipped Remus before he really thought about it.
Moody's magical eye seemed to pierce him through for a moment, and then the Auror started roaring with laughter. "Merlin, I've missed that sense of humour of yours!"
"Glad someone has," Remus muttered under his breath.
"You were duelling in the Great Hall?" Moody prompted.
"Yes, well, his office was a bit tight for tossing spells around haphazardly, and there was the likelihood that we'd release something poisonous or lethal…"
"Gods, boy! Why didn't you let me know? I'd have come to watch the fun!"
"You and everyone else, apparently," Remus said with a sigh. "McGonagall and Flitwick had wagers on it."
"Damn, Minerva will bet on anything… I don't suppose Albus was happy about it."
"No, he definitely was not happy," Remus admitted. He finished peeling the skin from the last potato and reached for the carrots.
"Who won?"
Remus rolled his eyes and looked up at the ceiling, thinking of Jonathan. "Why does it matter who won?"
"Don't tell me you lost! Not to Snape!"
"I didn't lose!" Remus protested. "It was more of a draw than anything."
"He got your leg —"
"And I got him on the face," Remus said grumpily. "Can we change the subject?"
Moody started cubing the potatoes, dropping them into the pot along with the beef. "Albus didn't tell me what happened. He just said you'd had a difference of opinion with Snape and you were determined to leave. I didn't realise a 'difference of opinion' meant fighting in the Great Hall."
Remus blinked. "'A difference of opinion'?"
"That's what he said."
Remus couldn't help himself. He started chuckling and before long, he was laughing hard enough to bring tears to his eyes.
Wednesday, 5 March—6:35 a.m.
Remus slid another link of sausage onto a plate meant for Moody and then whispered a warming charm over it. A quick glance at the clock told him that Alastor would be down soon.
Though he and Moody had never discussed it, he had taken it upon himself to make himself a sort of oversized house-elf to show Moody how appreciative he was of the Auror's offer to let him stay there until he found a decent job.
The older man seemed to know what Remus was doing, but beyond a simple, "Hey, Lupin, if you're going to do any shopping today, I need…" or a, "You know, I was thinking some fish might taste good tonight…" he remained silent about Remus' efforts. He always managed to talk Remus into accepting money to pay for everything, with the exception of a bottle of wine or some butterbeer now and again.
It was perhaps a strange arrangement, but they both were content with it.
Remus hadn't had any luck in his hunt for a job in the wizarding world. He'd been to one interview, but got up and left when the prospective employer had started ranting about half-breeds… and what he wanted the Ministry to do to them.
Glancing through the window and seeing snowflakes lazily falling, Remus sighed. There was nothing like walking aimlessly through the streets of London looking for work in the cold and snow…
An owl suddenly popped into his line of sight and he raised the window before it could tap on the glass. It dropped the Daily Prophet on the table, received a piece of sausage along with payment, and then flew off.
Remus unfolded the newspaper and glanced over the headlines. Overhead, he could hear Moody tromping around in his room. Realising he'd have a few minutes before the Auror came down, he opened the newspaper to look at the advertisements. One couldn't know when there'd be a 'Help Needed' listing that actually said, 'Werewolves welcome.'
As he flipped through the pages slowly, scanning the articles to see what he'd need to return to read more thoroughly, something caught his eye.
With every word of the article, his heart seemed to beat a little faster, and his weight was shifted more subtly to his arms as he leaned on the table, because his legs just couldn't support him. When he finished, he looked up, stunned, to see Alastor Moody standing in the doorway.
"Should I have warned you?" the Auror asked.
"How did this happen?" Remus' voice was quiet, almost filled with awe.
"Well…" The Auror limped across the kitchen and headed for the icebox. "Some strings got pulled."
Remus knew he had to look positively gobsmacked. "But — How — Why?"
"I suppose if you're going to be known as 'Dumbledore's pet werewolf,' you might as well get some kind of benefit from it."
Remus sank down onto one of the chairs and ran one long-fingered hand through his hair. "But for this —"
Moody grabbed the pitcher of juice from the icebox, a glass from the cabinet next to it, and plonked himself down on the chair next to Remus. "Parsons and Bentley deserve this. You know that."
The werewolf couldn't quite decide what to feel about 'this.' The words were still sinking in, and the implications…
"The Ministry found them in violation of sixty-nine regulations and codes," Moody said. "I know the article may have said more —"
"It says 'eighty-seven' here," Remus said, letting his finger rest at a point on the page.
"— But some of the charges have been dropped already."
"Like what?" Remus asked.
Moody stared at him intently for a moment, then said, "We know that they had a werewolf, and they allowed crowds of people in the same room with that werewolf while he was in a transformed state. That is a clear violation of the law. But, initial charges that the werewolf had been brought there and kept there against his will were dismissed months ago." Seeing Remus was about to speak, the older man continued quickly, "That werewolf chose not to testify, you understand, so the Wizengamot didn't get his side of the story. There is also an unofficial report that states there was a mermaid that died from neglect, as well as a centaur that had been murdered, but there isn't anyone who has come forward to testify as to those charges. So, the Wizengamot decided to drop those as well in favour of other charges that they can prove."
'Bentley and Parsons Charged With Eighty-Seven Violations,' Remus read silently, yet again. After a moment, the headline of the magical newspaper flickered to read, 'Animals Seized From Oldest Running Carnival in U.K.'
He looked up at the man sitting next to him. "It says the Ministry didn't close them down completely."
"They didn't, no. But, Bentley and Parsons are, at this point, prohibited from keeping any creature that the Ministry could classify as a Being. They are also prohibited from keeping any animal above the Ministry's danger Classification of XX for at least five years; longer, if they have any violations during that time. This will definitely affect their popularity. They'll be closed within a year," Moody predicted with a satisfied smirk.
"Where did they take the creatures?" Remus asked, deciding to ignore the tightening inside his chest.
"The Erumpent has been re-released into the wild. The hippogriff was taken to a trainer in France. The jarvey was taken in by another carnival… Lupin, do you really want me to tell you what happened to every single animal?" The man sounded vaguely concerned that it might be exactly what Remus wanted.
"What about the colt?" Remus couldn't believe how breathless he sounded. "The Granian foal?"
"Taken to a reputable breeder in Ireland."
"And the clabbert?"
"It's still there, since it's not classified as a dangerous animal. But it's doing well, if that helps."
Remus' eyes scanned down through the article again. "Why weren't they ever found in violation before?"
Moody looked more disgusted than Remus had ever seen him. "They've been paying off the inspection teams to overlook some of the missing charms and wards, and to ignore some of the problems they'd had with Muggles. Bribery counts for at least eighteen of the charges against them, and the inspectors are going to wish they'd never even heard of Bentley and Parsons by the time we're through with them."
"Why now?" Remus asked after a moment's thought.
"It does take a while for the wheels of departmentalized government to move," Moody said with a shrug. With a sudden laugh, he added, "Though it helps when you've got Dumbledore greasing those wheels."
"Dumbledore…" Remus whispered.
"He and Alexander—remember him? From the Beast Division? He was there that day at Hogwarts…" Remus nodded, not needing further explanation of which exact day Moody was speaking. "… They got an inspection team to go to Bentley and Parson's in the first part of November. The inspection team said they didn't find anything suspicious. But that made me suspicious, so I let Dumbledore know. It took him three months to get the authorisation to put together a new inspection team — one that hadn't been corrupted."
"And they found all this?" Remus pointed to the article.
"We know of more," Moody said, with a meaningful stare at the werewolf. "This is what we could nail the sons of bitches with. They're going to fight the charges, of course. It will probably take a year for the dust to settle from this, but I'd be willing to bet they'll both be sitting in Azkaban for a bit."
Remus sat back and exhaled slowly.
"Are you all right? I know this is a bit of a shock." The Auror's voice was full of concern, though it certainly didn't show on his scarred and rugged features.
"I don't really know," Remus admitted. "I never thought it would go so far."
"That's one reason why Albus didn't tell you about the investigation. Even though he was doing everything he could to push things along, he was afraid it would fall apart at the last minute." Moody rubbed his chin slowly, thoughtfully, still keeping his eyes on the younger man. "They had another werewolf there when we went out there day before yesterday."
Shock, undeniable and sharp, went through Remus' body. "Another –"
"He was about five years older than you, but he'd been bit only five years ago. He lost everything then. He was just looking for a place to stay and regular meals. He didn't know what they're capable of doing."
Remus shuddered. And there, but for the grace of God, go I… The truth of that thought was painful. He couldn't fathom ever being so lost that he'd voluntarily subject himself to the horrors that had been the carnival. He couldn't imagine he'd ever consider such an alternative for the sake of food and shelter. "Did they — hurt him?" he finally asked quietly.
"No," Moody replied. "I think they were letting him settle in, letting him get used to them before they tried anything. He wasn't happy we were taking his new home away from him, even after I'd told him he'd have to pay for it eventually with blood."
"Shit," whispered Remus, chills stabbing through him as Moody's literal and accurate phrase reminded him painfully of things he'd hoped he'd forgotten: kneeling on the concrete floor, naked and bleeding; Parsons gloating about the blood they'd collected…
"Lupin?" Moody was looking at him, a strange expression on his face, but Remus couldn't answer. His thoughts were slashing through his head, ripping his memory open with the subtlety of a dragon's claws…
… The last transformation at the carnival, when the wolf had been taunted and teased by the presence of hot flesh and blood on the other side of the bars; the morning after that, when Remus had awakened for a very brief moment in a pool of his own blood before sliding into unconsciousness again…
He could barely hear Moody call his name again, because of the blood roaring in his ears…
… And suddenly, it was as if everything in front of him had been Transfigured into the building in which he'd transformed while he was at the carnival. The dank, still air filled his lungs, and he could smell a coppery, salty sweetness… Blood. Lots of it. All around me… He could feel the stone of the floor against his hands, and it was cool and comforting… But it's hard. It's hard, and I don't want to lie here anymore… And he couldn't breathe, because his chest hurt…
"Lupin!"
Parsons is coming, and he'll heal me, but only so he can do this to me again next month…
"Damn it, Lupin! Look at me!"
A rough hand shook him and he winced, knowing that every move would set off explosions of agony throughout his body. Can't breathe. It'll hurt more.
"Fuck!"
Suddenly rough, calloused fingers were gripping his jaw, turning his face…
He recoiled greatly at the sight of the grizzled man with an oversized eye that was whirling violently, and he felt himself fall, and he hit the floor with a loud and painful thump… How could I fall? I was on the ground already… Wasn't I?
"Remus! Snap out of it, boy!"
He blinked. The man now leaning over him wasn't Parsons. He was… He was… Who was he again?
"Come on, Remus!" It was an order, but there was a pleading note to it. Moody didn't plead.
Moody.
Remus sucked in a deep, sobbing breath. Reality crashed around him, and for a moment, he was completely blind and deaf to everything but the knowledge that he wasn't in the carnival. He was in Moody's kitchen. They had been talking about the carnival…
He curled into a ball, putting his trembling hands over his face as he fought to put some kind of reasoning to what had happened. I was there. For a while, I was there. It was happening all over again. How could that happen? How could I lose control again? It's been months…
He became aware of Moody's hand gripping his shoulder tightly and he whispered, "I'm sorry."
The Auror actually sighed with relief, something that he'd never done in Remus' hearing before. "It's all right. I'm going to get you something to drink. Stay here."
Remus didn't think he could move if he wanted to. How could I have thought I was there? How could that happen?
"Here. Let's get you up." But Moody didn't mean back up in the chair. Not yet. He helped Remus sit up until his back was propped against a cabinet, and then handed him a mug. The young man expected it to be water or coffee, but as he lifted it to his lips, he smelled Firewhiskey. He shot a questioning glance at Moody, who was sipping some of the same liquid from his own glass.
"Drink up," the Auror ordered, dragging his sleeve across his mouth after he'd finished the drink in two quick swallows.
The Firewhiskey burned, as it always did, but it brought warmth and life back into Remus' limbs. "What happened to me?" he asked shakily.
The older man didn't answer right away. He stared at Remus for a moment and then gestured for him to finish the liquor. As Remus handed the mug back to him, he said, "Sometimes, when someone's been through something — difficult and painful, certain things will set that person off to remembering that time. It happens."
"But something like this —" Remus swallowed hard, "— hasn't happened for months."
"Lad, you went through hell for three months. You think you're going to just forget that in a matter of days or weeks or months?"
The younger man closed his eyes at the thought of going through this again.
"It's normal," Moody reassured him quietly. "It happens."
Remus shivered.
"Ready to get back up in the chair?"
It shocked the werewolf how weak he was, that he needed to rely so much on Moody to get back on his feet and then into the chair. The newspaper was already folded back up and at the other end of the table.
"I'm sorry," Remus apologised again. He was thankful that he didn't hear panic in his own voice now.
"You have nothing to be sorry for," Moody told him. "Someone should've warned you — I should've done it — that this might happen at some point."
"And it might happen again," Remus said, trying to make it sound like a question, but failing miserably.
"It might," Moody affirmed.
"At any time."
"Well, whenever something strongly reminds you of the carnival or Parsons," Moody told him.
"Shit," Remus whispered, holding his head in his hands.
"Pretty much," Moody agreed.
8:35 a.m.
Whatever it was that had happened to Remus had sapped the strength from him completely. Moody helped him back up to his room, where he fell asleep almost immediately.
"Gods, Moony. I've never seen ol' Moody so worked up."
"Shut up, Sirius."
"Temper, Moony, temper! Have you had your rabies shots?"
"Screw you."
"Why are you so mad at me?" The dark-haired young man seemed honestly puzzled.
"You betrayed James and Lily. You killed Peter and a bunch of Muggles. You got yourself thrown into Azkaban, leaving me alone, and now you're picking at Moody, who, I might point out, is the only person who honestly gives a flying fuck about me right now."
Sirius chuckled. "I'd say Dumbledore might have something to say about that."
"He's got something to say about everything," Remus muttered, repeating something that the Animagus had often said years ago.
The chuckle became barking laughter. "So, you did pay attention to things I said."
"Only the important things. Which meant I ignored a good eighty-five percent of whatever came out of your mouth."
"You're cruel, Moony. To think you ignored some of my most brilliant and creative musings."
"Act of self-preservation, Padfoot."
There was a moment while the dark-haired young man stared intently at the werewolf. "Are you all right, Moony?"
"Gods, Pads, I've had a bloody awful morning and feel like shit right now. How could I bloody be all right?"
Hands went up in the air in a gesture of surrender. "Sorry." And then softly, "Will you be all right?"
Remus sighed. "I hope so, Padfoot. I hope so."
"If I weren't here, I'd go and hex that bastard Parsons until he had two extra legs and nothing between them, if you know what I mean."
"He might be going there," Remus told him. "The Ministry has pressed charges against them, and Moody says they'll probably spend some time there."
Sirius smiled wickedly. "Then I'll have to change into Padfoot and rip their throats out for you. How's that?"
"Why would you bother, Pads? After what you've done to James and Lily and Peter, how could you even think of doing something nice for me?"
The other young man huffed in annoyance. "I told you, I didn't do it."
"Then who did?"
There was a long pause, and then Sirius said, very seriously, "Just remember this, Moony: Things are never what you think they are. You'd know that more than anyone." There was a flash of white teeth, as the Animagus smiled. "You need more? You really shouldn't. The answer is just a fingertip away."
Friday, 21 March—11:24 a.m.
The sidewalks and streets were still slushy, wet, and slippery from what everyone was hoping would be the last snowfall of winter. Remus had many reasons to thank McGonagall for her Christmas present to him as he went slogging down the streets, peering in windows for placards advertising the need for employees. The fact that this was not a popular shopping season and the weather was not conducive for shoppers made it a difficult atmosphere to find a job.
As he turned a corner and winced at the blast of cold air that assaulted him, he noticed a ragged piece of yellow cardboard in the shop window next to him. He glanced up and noted the name of the store —"Barney's" — and took a closer look in the window. He couldn't tell what was sold here. It could have been a pawnshop. It could have been just used goods.
Shrugging inwardly and telling himself it didn't matter as long as it wasn't illegal, Remus pushed the heavy door open. An electronic buzzing sounded somewhere in a room behind the back wall of the shop.
A man's voice called out "Be there'n a minute!"
It gave Remus a chance to look around at the variety of things. It was definitely a pawnshop, judging by the signs behind the counter that announced the terms of transaction. An occasional half-hearted postcard-sized piece of paper told customers that stolen items were not welcome. Four huge signs mounted in obvious sight warned that only cash was welcome, that cheques and credit cards were not acceptable.
There was an amazing quantity of knives, several guitars, and inside the glass counters, jewellery sparkled cheerfully in the gloominess. Furniture of all sorts cluttered the small space, making it impossible to move in any direction without bumping into something. Pewter and silver pieces were strewn haphazardly around the room. And, strangely enough, a stuffed moose's head looked down upon it all with a rather whimsical expression.
Remus smiled at it. Sirius would have bought that and presented it to James and Lily as a wedding gift. He was almost positive of it, considering that Sirius had purchased a pair of stuffed gnomes that had been charmed to sing several different songs that were popular at the time. In harmony.
An older man, close to Moody's age if appearance counted for anything, suddenly emerged from the other room and shuffled to the counter closest to Remus. He was tall, lean, and his face was heavily-lined as if he'd spent many years working out-of-doors. "Whatcha got?" he asked Remus harshly.
Remus shook his head. "Nothing. I saw your card." He pointed toward the window.
The man eyed him sharply. "Need a job, do you?"
Remus nodded, biting his tongue to keep the words, "No, I just wanted to tell you I saw the card," inside his mouth.
"Got any experience with pawnshops?"
"Just in selling," Remus admitted.
The man asked him about any sales experience he might have, heard the list of Remus' last four employers, and then said, "You're a bloody teacher. Why're you here wanting a job?"
The werewolf swallowed hard. First lie. "I was away for a few months. When I came back, the schools had already started their newest semesters. I haven't been able to find a position yet."
"So, you plan on leaving when the new school year starts?"
"Maybe. It all depends on if a school is interested in hiring me." Wishful thinking, but not a lie…
The man nodded. "I'll have to tell my brother, Barney, about you. This is his place. He's got final say in who gets hired and all."
Remus nodded.
"Fact is, you're the fourth person to stop in and ask for the job," the man went on. "Didn't like the looks of the first two, and the third was a thief if I've ever seen one. He tried to nick the spoons out of that box there," the man pointed to a small chest that was specially designed to hold silver tableware, "while I was asking him questions. I think he got away with two spoons, though."
One grizzled eyebrow rose and Remus felt himself the subject of a suspicious glare. "You're not a thief, are you? No criminal record or anything, right?"
"No, not at all," Remus assured him. The Ministry would have killed me if I had committed a crime.
The man put a pen on the counter and began rummaging for a blank piece of paper. "You got any problems with working late on Friday or Saturday nights?"
"Not usually."
"Weekends are always busy. And Mondays. Too many people get in over their heads over the weekends. Spend too much time at the races or on football games…" The man mumbled a few other things that Remus didn't hear and then placed a piece of notebook paper on the counter. "Here. Write your name, address, and phone number there for me…"
"I don't have a phone number," Remus told him. "I'm living with a friend who's a bit unconventional. He won't have one in the house." Again, not a lie. Moody is unconventional.
"Can't blame him," the man grunted. "Wish I could toss mine out the window sometimes. How am I supposed to get in touch with you, then?"
"I'll stop by tomorrow," Remus promised, writing his name and Moody's address on the paper.
"'Lupin'? What is that, Spanish?"
"French."
"Gawd, don't tell my brother that. He hates the French."
"Not a word," Remus said, smiling. Wonder how he feels about werewolves? He straightened, slid the paper across the glass surface to the other man then looked up at the moose. "That's the most interesting thing I've seen in a pawnshop."
"I call him Maurice," the man said, without looking up at the animal. Instead, he was peering at Remus. "You okay? You look a little peaky."
Considering the full moon is in four days, I'm not surprised. "I'm fine." Suddenly Remus felt compelled to add, "I guess I should tell you that I do tend to miss a couple of days every so often. I've got… a condition, I guess you'd call it."
"'A condition'? What kind of condition? Heart? Stomach?"
"No, not at all. It's — blood-related." Not a lie. Merely an understatement.
The man reared back slightly. "You don't have that AIDS thing, do you?"
"No!" Remus rushed to reassure him. "It's not fatal. It's just something that makes me tired sometimes and makes me feel like I've got the flu or something." All right, that's lie number two.
"Like anaemia or something? My brother's got something like that. What's it called?" the man asked, his eyes bright with curiosity now.
Should I? He's a Muggle. What are the chances he's heard the proper term? Remus took a deep breath then said, "Lycanthropy."
The man froze. For the longest moment, there was complete silence in the store, and every instinct in Remus' head was screaming at him: Run! Run! Get OUT!
"You're a werewolf?" the man asked.
Yes, yes, I know; another cliffhanger. Sorry. If it makes you feel better, you'll only have to put up with me for another 3 chapters -- and an epilogue. Does that make you feel better now?
