Happy Birthday, Remus! In honour of this lovely day I am uploading another chapter! I hope everyone enjoys it! Thank you for the positive feedback on my little Miss Eleanor! I hope everyone continues to enjoy!

I plan to introduce the Tonks family in the next chapter! And then i have to make the decision if Remus and Dora do end up together... I LOVE them together but I'm just not sure it would work with this fic... Votes?

Thank you to all my lovely reviewers! I am very grateful for your lovely words!

"Eleanor, this is your new home." Remus gentle placed the trembling child onto the floor.

"Want Lu." Was the pitiful response.

Remus nodded. "I know, Sweetheart, but Lu has gone away. What if I show you where you can sleep?"

She stared at him for a long time before slowly, warily, nodding. Strangers did not give kindness without a price.

"I knew your mum before you were born." Remus hid his wince when she ignored his outstretched hand. Leading her carefully up the stairs the werewolf was forced to swallow the protective urge that screamed at him to swoop her into his arms and hold her close.

"This is your room, for now anyhow." Remus paused at the door of the room he had woken up in almost a lifetime ago. "It is right next to my bedroom and there is a little door here so if you get scared you can come in." The room was plain, walls that were painted lemon, a bed, a chest of drawers. "We will make your room pretty later and you can help." Remus carefully guided her out the door. She was so small.

"This is Harry's room. Sirius has gone to get him from his friend's house. He is eight and I hope you and he will get along."

She was quiet. Staring at him with huge blue eyes that will filled with accusation. "Lu don't like you." She stated suddenly.

Remus nodded once. "You are right." She was unusually perceptive. "Are you hungry? We can go to the kitchen. Sirius and Harry will be here soon. Perhaps after you eat you can see where we keep some of the toys. Sirius and Harry will get you some of your own soon; we were not entirely sure what you would want."

She blinked at him and Remus swallowed. She was a child. A frightened child.

"I bought some clothes from Molly." Sirius set the packages on the table and enlarged them with a flick of his wand. "How is…?" He glanced at Eleanor and Remus shrugged.

"Harry, this is Eleanor. Eleanor, this is Harry, he has lived with us for a few years now."

Harry looked at the girl curiously. "Why are her clothes funny?"

"Harry." Sirius straightened. "Eleanor hasn't had many new clothes. We have some from Molly. So, Miss Eleanor, you have some pretty new clothes to wear. Hungry, Harry?"

"Yeah. Uncle Remus?"

"Yes?"

"Are you still sad?"

"No, Cub. I am not." Remus ruffled the dark hair affectionately. "I am just hungry." His eyes flickered to the little Eleanor. Looking at her brought back memories he had worked so hard to forget. Her eyes were haunted; her skin showed signs of sores, of bruises, mostly faded now. She flinched whenever there was noise. She was plainly terrified of the strangers who had taken her from what she had known.

"Moony?" Sirius nudged his shoulder. His dark eyes were concerned. "You look as if you have seen a ghost."

Remus busied himself with serving dinner. "We will need to see Severus." He glanced back at where Harry was talking to Eleanor. The little boy looked determined to make her like him. Remus felt a rush of pride, he had so much of Lily in him.

"Minerva said she would arrange for him to come over." Sirius murmured.

"Good. Eleanor, this is stew, make sure you eat it nice and slow."

He placed the bowl in front of the child and her eyes widened. She hunched over it protectively and Sirius winced. "Will it be too much for her?"

"No." Remus smiled thinly. "It will be fine. Stop staring and eat up, Harry."

Harry frowned. "You aren't eating." He accused.

"Harry, don't talk to Uncle Remus like that. Molly sent us chocolate cake; if you two eat up everything you can have some."

Amusement settled into Remus' blue eyes. "Very generous." He said dryly. "Slowly, Eleanor."

"Well, you will have issues getting the potions into her, so we will start with small doses." Severus glanced at the sleeping child. "She is severely malnourished. She will need vitamin supplements and she will probably be very weak for a long time. She has been…" He hesitated and glanced at Remus. "She has been forced to work, there are cuts and callouses on her hands."

Remus, face buried in his hands, moaned.

"There are bruises on her, but they look like they are mostly faded. I saw some of the other werewolves, Remus." His voice was low. "She was not treated as harshly."

Remus looked up and nodded. "She has known nothing but that compound. It is her spirit I am worried about."

"She is a child. She will heal faster than you anticipate. You healed."

Remus nodded jerkily. He rose. "Excuse me. I am very tired."

Sirius turned to Snape. "How bad was it?"

"You took him out of there. Surely you remember the conditions he lived in."

"Yes. He refuses to speak of it though."

Severus nodded. "It was not pleasant. I would not wish that life on anyone."

"It won't be easy on him." Sirius sighed. "He… He said that reminders of the compound were his dementor."

"That surprises you?"

"No." Sirius paced to the window and stared at the glass that threw his reflection back at him. "No, it doesn't."

Harry was playing with his Lego when he heard a noise in the doorway. Looking up he saw the girl that had come to live with them.
"Hi." He offered a shy smile. "Want to come play?"

Eleanor shook her head quickly and Harry frowned. He remembered Sirius telling him that he had to be gentle with her. "Ok." He slowly went back to playing with his blocks. Remember when Uncle Remus was sick? We had to be gentle? We have to be like that with Eleanor because she has had a sad life.

He saw the edge of a red skirt and looked up again. "Don't be scared. I won't hurt you."

She slowly sank onto the floor. "What is?" She whispered as she pointed at the blocks.

Harry blinked. "They are blocks." He sounded surprised. "Haven't you seen blocks before?"

She shook her head. Remus had spelled her hair clean, she refused to go anywhere near water.

"Here, you use them to build things." Harry began to demonstrate exactly how blocks were used and Eleanor watched, silent, attentive.

It was mid-day before things changed. The whole morning Eleanor had barely uttered more than six words. Remus and Sirius watched her closely, watching Harry delight in coaxing smiles out of her. And then. It changed.

"Eleanor?" Harry sounded worried. The little girl's face had paled and she darted to the corner of the room. He walked towards her. "What's wrong?"

"Please don't hurt me! Please! I will be good!" Her voice was shrill with panic.

Remus, appearing suddenly in the doorway spoke quickly. "Don't touch her, Harry! Sirius, take Harry outside."

"What's wrong with her?"

"Just take him outside!" Remus' voice was shaking.

"Come on, Kiddo." Sirius swung Harry onto his back and hurried out of the room.

"Eleanor?" Remus settled onto the floor, cross-legged. "It's midday, when the guards in the compound would come to inspect everyone and make sure that everyone is working." He swallowed. "But you know here, you don't have to work, Sweetheart. We want you to play and have fun. You don't have to work any more You are safe. The guards are not here and Sirius and I will never hit you. You are safe now."

Her whimpers of terror has ceased and she was looking at Remus warily.

"The guards were not nice, were they? I remember they used to hit us if we didn't do enough work."

"It hurt."

"Yes." Remus nodded. "It did hurt didn't it? And they would come around at midday, and if we hadn't done enough work we wouldn't be allowed to eat. And then they would come again at seven and it was the same."

"Hit you?" Eleanor was only a foot away from Remus now.

"Yes, they used to hit me. You must not be afraid of us, Eleanor. We won't hurt you. Were you having fun playing with Harry?"

A slow nod.

"Good. Why don't we go find Sirius and Harry and then have some lunch?"

Another nod. Remus rose stiffly. He held out his hand, dropping it when he saw the child flinch. "Outside we go then." He forced a light note into his voice as he led her out of the room.

"She ok?" Sirius watched, amused, as Harry scoffed down sandwiches and Eleanor watched, nibbling slowly on her own.

"She will be. Eventually, when she realises she is safe here."

Sirius nodded. "Are you ok?"

Remus nodded. "Yes."

"Moony."

"They hit her."

Sirius swore softly.

"They used to come around twice a day to see if we had reached our quota of work. She is a baby and they forced her to work." He shuddered.

Sirius turned to rescue a glass of orange juice that Harry knocked but his eyes continued to drift to Remus' haunted features. This would be much harder than he could have anticipated.

"Here, I thought you might like to have a teddy to sleep with." Harry held out a fluffy teddy to Eleanor. "I used to sleep with my hippo. But I am a big boy now so I don't need to."

He didn't see the amused looks Sirius and Remus exchanged above their heads.

"So, you can keep it if you want."

Eleanor nodded and clutched the teddy to her chest. Her cheek rested on the soft fur of the bear.

"Ready for bed, Eleanor?" Remus' voice was gentle. "Harry, I'll come in to tuck you in soon."

Harry grinned. Turning to Sirius he tugged at the animagus' robes. "Chess?"

"Sure. But you are still getting into bed at eight whether we are finished or not!"

Harry sighed dramatically before dragging Sirius away.

Remus lifted Eleanor onto her bed. "Do you like it here, Eleanor?"

She nodded.

"I am very glad. Perhaps tomorrow we can wash your hair?" Remus lightly brushed the hair from her cheek. "And give you a nice warm bath? When I left the compound the first thing I remember enjoying a bath quite a lot. I brought a book in; perhaps I could read to you until you fall asleep? Would you like that?"

Eleanor looked at him with fathomless blue eyes before she nodded.

Remus smiled carefully and opened the book. His soothing voice lulled her to sleep in a matter of minutes and Remus finished the book, watching the child wistfully. He desperately wished she would relax, that she would smile, that she would talk. He wanted her to heal; he wanted her to be happy.

Sirius had become quite adept at watching and reading Remus. From the day he had carried the emaciated werewolf from the compound, to the day Harry had finally accepted him, to when Peter Pettigrew had finally been caught. He had watched him, had learned to decipher Remus' moods like he had been able to do, a lifetime ago when James was still alive. Now, Sirius watched Remus more closely than he had in a long time. He was worried, Remus looked haggard, he was barely sleeping, even Harry was noticing. It had been three days since Eleanor had collapsed, shrieking with terror at the thought she would be punished for not working, three days since Remus had been forced to give a little more information about the hell he had endured for four hellish years. He watched as Remus patiently spoke to Eleanor, coaxing her to look up him, to talk in whispers. He watched him struggle for normalcy as he played with Harry, tried and failed.

"Moony?" Sirius knocked on the half open bedroom door. "Can I come in?"

"Of course." Remus looked up from the book he was reading.

Sirius half smiled. "Nothing has changed in fifteen years I see."

"You expected it to. What is it?"

"How do you know I didn't come in to chat? We never seem to just talk anymore."

Remus' eyes narrowed. "Because you are dancing around questions. What is it?"

Sighing, Sirius settled into a chair on the opposite side of the window that Remus sat on. Their eyes met.

"Are you all right? And don't give me your standard response. Having Eleanor here is bringing back memories for you because you have to face them to help her."

Remus half smiled. "You are much more perceptive then you were when we were children."

"I grew up. Stop deflecting."

Remus closed his book and set it on his desk. "Every time I look in the mirror I am reminded of that place and what you saved me from. When I look at Eleanor… She is a child yet they treated her no different. Of course, her work quota was lower but that is all. She still has a tattoo that has silver in it, she is still traceable, she will grow up to be scorned and hated for something that is not her fault. She was looked after, in a way even loved by the other werewolves. They protected her. But she still knows what it is to be treated harshly. She is still terrified that this is a joke and we will beat her or starve her." He shook his head. "It breaks my heart, Sirius, and every time something else happens, every time she apologises for not working hard enough it is like I am back in the commune and can hear them screaming at us to work harder."

"What did they make you do?"

"Me specifically?"

Sirius nodded.

Remus was staring at his hands for a long moment, long enough for Sirius to regret asking, before he spoke slowly. "There was a group that were the lowest of the lows, the worst offenders. Mainly Greyback's henchmen. Five of them, including me. They had all bitten and slaughtered innocents. We were forced to dig ditches. I could never manage as much work. My arm alone could not hold up to the strain of a shovel but because… Because I was educated even when I was a werewolf it was a thousand times worse, they would beat me and then force me to work. The worst was in winter. I would wade through ice cold mud. Fifteen hours." His voice choked to a stop and he shuddered. "If I didn't fulfil my quota, and I rarely had the strength to, then I would be starved. Of course, that was before it became more fun to torture me." He glanced up and winced. "Padfoot, this is not your fault! You have to remember you got me out of there!"

Sirius, his face ashen, stared at Remus' slighter frame for a long time. "We always tried to protect you, me and James. You were easily the smartest but you always looked so frail. We always wanted to protect you from the world."

Remus smiled. "I know. I was never as frail as you thought. Werewolves are surprisingly, I suppose, deceptively strong, but I knew you tried to protect me and I was grateful." His lips twitched. "Amused, but grateful."

Sirius grinned briefly. "I don't know how you survived." He murmured.

"You survived Azkaban, why does my surviving surprise you?"

"Because in Azkaban it was mental torture for you… For you, you were beaten, abused and then forced to live through James and Lily's deaths."

Remus was quiet for a moment. "Do you know the first happy memory I have since then? It was when I finally was able to believe you. To believe that you were not the traitor. To believe that Harry was alive. That was the moment I wanted to live again. You gave that too me, Sirius. You must not forget that, ultimately, you saved me twice."

A giggle. It was the first time she had laughed and it was Harry who had pulled the laugh from her. He was giving a puppet show. Remus and Sirius were sitting on the lounge, Eleanor on the floor in front of Harry's stage and he played out a pantomime that rivalled any Judy and Punch show he had seen in Muggle London.

At the sound of her laugh, Harry's head popped above the stage, he was grinning, almost smugly before he went back to performing for his new 'sister' the puppets becoming more absurd the more that giggles spilled from the little girl.

Remus' eyes were bright with tears. One week and they had a giggle. It was musical in his ears. Sirius was beaming proudly. She was turning into a much harder case then Harry had been but with the sound of her first laugh, it seemed worthwhile. One stone at a time to break down the wall she had drawn up as protection. One step closer to her finally being able to love them. To be loved.