Good Intentions

A/N: With gratitude, as always, to my beta, MaraudersWolf.

Thankfully, Remus had an open period first thing the next morning, and so he slept in, skipping breakfast to get a few more desperately needed winks. It was also a convenient way to avoid running into Lindi. He was very relieved that they didn't have a class together until the following day. He dreaded seeing her, but thought that every hour their first encounter was delayed gave her a chance to get more used to things.

Of course, as the hours went on, Remus wasn't seeing any improvement in his own attitude about the situation. He was sick over what he'd done. He skipped lunch as well, so Peter brought him a sandwich. He picked at it, but most went to waste. Even by the end of the day, he barely had any appetite for dinner, though he made himself go. Much as he might have liked to, he couldn't hide in the tower forever.

At first, he was relieved that Lindi had decided not to come, but then he was terribly worried about her. Was she in her room, still crying?

When Leanna came towards them after she'd finished eating, Remus hoped he might get some news on how Lindi was doing. What he got was a vicious glare. Remus thought better than to ask how Lindi was, and hoped that Sirius might find out for him, but Leanna walked right by and towards the door without even acknowledging Sirius' presence.

"What's the matter with her?" asked James.

"We had a fight," said Sirius, pausing from gnawing a chicken leg long enough to mumble the words.

"Over what?" asked Peter.

"Moony dumping Lindi."

"Blimey, that's bad luck," said Peter.

Sirius tore another mouthful from the bone, irritably. Remus looked down at his own untouched meal. He could only imagine how Leanna must have reacted to the news, particularly the way Lindi would have relayed it. His first instinct was to apologize for creating problems for Sirius, but then he remembered what Sirius had done to him. He couldn't manage to feel very much sympathy, though he did feel sorry for Leanna. Remus knew she had real feelings for Sirius. They'd actually become more exclusive since the Fiona incident and lately, they had been a fairly steady couple.

So now his furry little problem had become a big problem for yet another person. How many people would it affect? First, there were all the sacrifices Mum and Dad had made all these years; then Professor Dumbledore and Mr. Scamander put their reputations and possibly their careers on the line; and of course, Lindi…poor Lindi, and now Leanna…

It wasn't fair. None of it…But what could he do?

Sirius' voice brought him back from thoughts of running away and joining the werewolf colonies.

"I was thinking about breaking up with her anyway," he said, studying the bare chicken bone between his fingers.

"Why?" asked Peter.

"There's just too much going on. We hardly see each other as it is and it's only going to get worse." Sirius frowned. "She's been hinting lately that she's feeling neglected—and I can do without the added guilt." He shot a pointed look at Remus.

"Why, Padfoot," James said teasingly. "I do believe a person has to have a conscience to feel guilty."

"All this time, I'd have sworn you didn't have one," said Peter.

Sirius smirked darkly. "I must have acquired one, unwittingly. Maybe Dumbledore cursed me with it during detention."

Remus wondered again what the headmaster had made Sirius do in the library, but Sirius continued. "I think I'll look in the Restricted Section for a spell to get rid of the bloody thing. It's a royal pain in the arse." He moodily threw the chicken bone onto his plate with a chink, and after wiping his hands and mouth, flung his napkin down as well, looking sullen—more so than usual. Then he swung his long legs over the bench, stood and walked away without another word.

James turned and looked meaningfully at Remus. His eyes seemed to be saying, "See? I told you he regretted it."

But why couldn't Sirius just apologize like a normal human being? And why on earth did Remus feel guilty? Sirius brought this all upon himself; blast him! Remus was glad the prat felt guilty!


Soon they were back in their room, the tension still weighing heavily in the air. James tried, from time to time, to interject some small talk, generally about the upcoming British League Quidditch Championship in Paris that summer, to little avail. In light of everything else, only James could have cared less about Quidditch at the moment.

A loud pounding on the door made each of them start, shattering the uneasy silence. James slipped from his bed and opened the door. He blocked Remus' view, though the shock of deep red hair visible over his shoulder suggested that it was Lily Evans.

James confirmed it. "Why, hello, Evans," he said, putting on that suave voice he reserved for her. "To what do we owe—"

"I'm looking for Remus," she cut over him, tersely. "Is he here?"

Remus didn't like the tone of her voice. He hoped this was a Prefect-related visit, but, somehow, he doubted it was.

"Hang on," said James, his voice returning to more normal. "I'll check."

Remus could hear Lily make a tsking sound and could imagine how her eyes must be rolling. James glanced over his shoulder towards Remus, eyebrows raised quizzically and called. "Say, Wormtail, have you seen Moony?"

Peter also looked questioningly at Remus, calling back, "I don't know; have I?"

Lily grunted impatiently.

"Yes," Remus said, knowing he couldn't avoid her forever. "Come on in, Lily."

When she pushed past James, there was no smile, none of the usual jovial greetings. This was a business call, though it seemed likely that it was personal and not school-related. He had a sick feeling in his gut that Lily had been talking to Lindi. She stared at him with those fierce green eyes. He felt himself wither a bit under her gaze.

"Well?" she finally snapped.

"Well what?" said Sirius coolly.

"I'm speaking to Remus, thanks," Lily answered, equally cool and not shifting her gaze from Remus' face.

"Is this about Lindi?" Remus asked.

"What else?" she asked, shortly.

"Nothing, I suppose," he said, laying his book on the bed and swinging his legs over the edge. "We broke up."

"So I heard, but I didn't want to believe it." She looked genuinely saddened. "But I want to believe the reason I've heard even less."

Oh, crap… He nearly groaned. Maybe he'd been delusional, but he'd hoped Lindi would keep the unseemly details to herself.

"What have you heard?" asked Peter, intrigued.

Remus hadn't had the stomach to tell his friends what Lindi thought was the reason for the breakup. Maybe it was the difference between male friends and females, but they hadn't asked for the sordid details and he certainly hadn't offered them. He probably should have considered the possibility that this might get out and filled them in himself, but it was too late now. He felt queasy when Lily turned and looked Peter squarely in the face.

"I heard that Remus dumped Lindi because she wouldn't shag him," she said frankly, with a completely straight face.

Peter blinked and his eyes grew to the size of saucers.

Sirius gave a quick bark of incredulous laughter. "What?"

"You are not serious?" James exclaimed.

"As a Hungarian Horntail!"

"Well, you don't actually believe that, do you?" James asked.

Lily hesitated briefly then said, "I don't want to believe it, but…" She turned back to Remus. "Lindi believes it and why would she, if it isn't so? Why else would you dump her?"

It was Remus' turn to hesitate. Should he let Lily believe the ugly lie or tell her the truth? It was going to be awfully awkward either way.

While he considered in silence, Sirius spoke up. "You know, I can't for the life of me see that this is any of your business."

"You know," Lily answered tartly, turning her steely gaze upon him, "I can't for the life of me give a flying fig what you can or can't see. But if it will help your blindness to the obvious, let me explain in terms you can grasp. I feel partly responsible for this. After all, I'm the one who kept hounding Lindi to give Remus a chance. I'm the one who kept telling her not to judge him by the rotten lot he runs round with."

"Oy!" said James, offended.

But Lily was on a roll and ignored him. "I'm the one who kept telling her what a wonderful bloke he is! Now, it would appear that he has made a liar out of me and I take that very personally! So it is my business!"

Remus flinched at her anger and knew he was going to have to tell her something—and it would need to be convincing. Of course, going with the lie meant Lily was going to despise him, too.

But what would happen if he told her the truth? When he thought about it, he realized that he didn't really know Lily that well. Yes, they had been in the same House for six years, and they had generally gotten along well, but they were never much more than friendly acquaintances. Only in the last year had they become actual friends, first through shared Prefect duties and then they had become closer as Lily helped in the plotting to get Lindi to go out with him. Much of their friendship had been based on building his and Lindi's relationship. Was that a solid enough foundation for him to trust Lily with the most important secret of his life?

"I'm sorry, Lily," he said. "I'm sure Lindi doesn't blame you. It's all my fault. She knows that."

"Then it's true?" Disappointment streamed from Lily's eyes. "How could you, Remus? I thought you loved her. I was sure of it."

He should have looked away sooner, for she must have read the truth in his eyes.

"You do love her." It was not a question.

He gave an almost imperceptible nod.

"Then why?"

"Look, he has his reasons, alright?" said James.

Lily glanced away, turning toward James, but her gaze landed on the crumpled Daily Prophet lying on his bed stand. She stared at it for a moment and Remus could almost hear the wheels turning in her brain.

"Oh, my, gosh," she said slowly. Her eyes closed and they all waited, watching her. She opened her eyes and turned back to Remus. "She doesn't know, does she?"

"Know what?" Remus asked guardedly.

Lily swallowed as though she were nervous, but squared her shoulders, and Gryffindor that she was, spoke quite plainly. "That you are a werewolf."

The silence in the room was deafening. No shocked gasps; no forced denials; no cries of panic…. Only four sets of eyes shifting back and forth from one to the next, questioning, "What now?" They all rested on Remus in the end, for it was his secret to confirm—or deny. For an instant, he considered denying it, but he couldn't see the sense in that. She obviously already knew. So did Severus Snape. Everything was unraveling, and Lindi hated him. Did anything else really matter any more?

"No," he said quietly. "She doesn't know."

Lily breathed out slowly. Her face became paler than normal and she took a step back from him to lean heavily against the side of Peter's bed. She looked as if the wind had been knocked out of her.

"Blimey," she said, breathless. "Sev was right."

"What do you mean?" James stepped toward her. "Did that bloody snake tell you?"

His aggressive tone seemed to snap Lily from her daze. She turned a stony gaze upon him and said, "He told me his suspicions, but I didn't believe him; no one did."

"When?" Sirius asked.

"Ages ago. Last year—when we were still talking," she said, a hint of lingering sadness in her voice. "Why? What difference does it make when he told me?" She looked at Sirius suspiciously.

But Remus was too curious to learn more from her. "If you didn't believe him, then how did you find out? How long have you known?" he asked.

Lily looked at her watch. "About two minutes," she said, looking back at him with a twisted little smirk and looking more like her cheeky self. "But I've had my own suspicions for a few months. I just couldn't make myself believe it."

Remus smiled ruefully. She had tricked him into telling her the truth. Clever Lily… "What finally made you change your mind?"

"No one thing. Sev had put the idea in my head, of course, and I started to realize that he was right about the timing of your illnesses and absences. When I finally let myself even consider he might be right, a lot of little things started to make sense," she said.

"Such as?" James asked.

"Well, during that stupid woodyashagga game, you lot—" She nodded towards his friends— "Acted so defensive about everything when Lindi got the shagging a werewolf question…That was suspicious."

Remus shot them a glare and they looked sufficiently abashed.

"And one of you made a comment about him gnawing Lindi's neck when we were on the train last Christmas, and you all nearly burst trying not to laugh. Also suspicious…"

Remus gave them another look, and Lily appeared quite self-satisfied to be showing them that their arrogance could get them into trouble.

"Actually, it was Moony gnawing it," she continued with the evidence against them. "Suddenly, that nickname took on a whole new meaning. And the whole furry little problem thing…it just all started to fit. Then, tonight, none of this with Lindi—you breaking up with her, and that dreadful reason—none of it made any sense at all. Not until I saw the Daily Prophet lying there."

"What did that have to do with it?" asked Peter.

"I'd read about Deirdre Meadows. I knew her from Charms Club, so the news about what happened to her really stuck with me. Plus, there's been quite a bit about trouble with werewolves in the paper lately. Ever since that horrid Greyback was released from Azkaban."

Remus felt himself cringe at the name.

"Do you know him?" Lily asked.

"Yes," Remus said flatly. "I know him."

"He's the one who bit you, isn't he?"

Clever, clever Lily… "Yes."

"How—,"

"First you finish telling us what tipped you off," said Sirius. "It can't have been justbecause there were stories about werewolves in the paper? That would be quite a leap."

"Well, it was that on top of everything else," Lily said, sounding as though it should be self evident. "It seemed like every time I turned around there was something screaming werewolf. And not just Sev…And suddenly, Remus is dumping Lindi for the most awful reason? I just couldn't believe it. So when I saw that crumpled paper lying there, it reminded me of that story, which reminded me of all the other little things. If Remus really was a werewolf, it made the breakup make some sense. I figured if Deirdre was attacked just because she was dating a werewolf, that would make most people give second thought to doing it." She turned back to Remus once again. "Especially a werewolf who really cares about a girl." She smiled sympathetically. "It makes so much more sense than you dumping her because she wouldn't let you shag her. I mean, really…That's the sort of thing I'd believe of Julian Avery, or Evan Rosier, or even Black, here."

"Oy!"

"I'm joking—mostly," Lily teased. "But Remus Lupin? Not in a million years."

"Thank you for the vote of confidence," Remus said, feeling his face flush.

"Oh, I wouldn't go that far," said Lily. "It was a compliment, but I'm not sure I have a lot of confidence in you, just now."

"Why not?" asked Peter.

"Well, he's made a right mess of things for Lindi," she said, watching Remus closely. "Why didn't you just tell her the truth?"

"You know, I was wondering that myself," said James. "I thought you were going to."

"I was," said Remus.

"Why didn't you?" asked Lily.

"You read what they did to Deirdre. I don't know if Lindi could handle something like that. And what if it was even worse? People who do things like that tend to get worse over time. I just couldn't run the risk that Lindi might want to stay with me. If something awful happened to her because of me...I couldn't bear that."

Lily went quiet, pondering. His friends waited along with Remus.

"I suppose that makes sense," she finally said. "It's really rather chivalrous of you, but—"

"That's why he's a Gryffindor, eh?" said Peter.

"Yes, but don't you think she has the right to decide for herself?" Lily asked. "I'd much rather have someone break up with me to keep me safe than because I wouldn't shag him. At least then she'd understand. Right now, she's really heartbroken."

Remus started doubting himself. Had he done the wrong thing? But what if Lindi did insist they stay together? Would he have the strength to insist that she stay away? If she knew how he really felt, how much harder would it be for her to accept not being able to be together? He thought he would get over it much more quickly, if he hated her. As it was now, he doubted he would ever get over it.

"She'll get over it sooner this way, Lily," he said. "Trust me, I wish I could hate her."

Sympathy flooded Lily's pretty face. "Oh, Remus…."

"I really think it's best this way," he said, bringing back the awful memory of last night.

"Maybe you're right," she said, sadly. "Assuming she doesn't kill herself first."

Remus looked up sharply. "That isn't funny."

"No, it isn't," she said. "I take it you didn't hear about what happened last night—after you broke up with her?"

Fear instantly coursed through him. "No."

"Apparently she was hysterical and decided to go out flying, if you can imagine Lindi sneaking out in the middle of the night, alone."

But Remus could imagine it all too well. This wasn't the first time she'd done it. "What happened?" he asked, slightly panicked.

"She was crying so much that she couldn't see where she was going and ended up almost getting smashed by the Whomping Willow."

"What? Is she alright?" cried Remus.

"Yes. Fortunately, she was barely in its range. It only knocked her out of the way, but it still threw her quite a long way and out of control. She fell off her broom and landed in the Forbidden Forest."

"Was she hurt?" asked Sirius.

"Well, yes, but nothing Madam Pomfrey couldn't mend. They said she had a concussion and was unconscious for a while and she had some pretty bad scrapes. According to Hagrid, a centaur found her. He stopped the bleeding and took her to Hagrid's cabin, which is very cool, really. Madam Pomfrey healed her concussion and she had lost so much blood that she had to have a blood replenishing potion. I didn't know she had some sort of hemophilia."

"What?" asked Remus, stunned.

"You didn't know, either?" she asked, obviously surprised.

He shook his head.

"Well, she does. Apparently it's hereditary. Leanna said her grandmother and mother had it, too. It's how they both died."

"They bled to death?" gasped Peter, for it was uncommon to hear a witch or wizard had bled to death, unless of course it was a cursed wound, and even most of those could still be countered by a competent Healer.

"Her Mum must have," Remus said, remembering the story Lindi had told him. He told them the tragic tale. Now everything made more sense. He'd thought it strange that a Hippogriff had attacked Lindi's mum so viciously without being insulted. While he could imagine it striking out at her instinctively, she shouldn't have been injured so badly that a Healer couldn't save her, but with the blood disorder, she must have bled to death before one could even apparate to the site.

"But her grandmother died of a snake bite," said Lily. "Remember what Leanna told us in the forest? I'd thought that was awfully strange, but because her blood was the way it was, the poison went through her system faster than it normally would. It's really scary. They both died of things that should have been treatable by any half-rate Healer. That's why Lindi has to carry a blood thickening potion with her, in case she gets more than a little scratch. Oh, and remember those bruises on her neck that we thought were love bites?"

The four boys nodded, all but Remus grinning at the memory. But Remus was too stunned by these revelations to grin.

"Well," Lily continued. "This is why she bruises so easily. Her blood is thin or something."

Suddenly, Remus remembered the little amulet that Lindi sometimes wore. He'd never given it any thought, since girls often wore jewelry of all sorts. He also remembered Madam Pomfrey handing Lindi something before the broom race against James and she'd slipped it around her neck. That must have been the potion, but he'd had no idea.

And why hadn't she told him? Hadn't they been close enough that he should have known about something that important? He felt hurt that she hadn't seen fit to share this with him.

Until he considered his own failure to share… Honestly, Remus

"Well, is she still in hospital?" Sirius asked.

"Yes. Madam Pomfrey gave her a sleeping draught after she finally calmed down. When she found out what had happened, she apparently went a little berserk, because they hadn't found her broom. You know how she feels about that broomstick."

"Did they find it?" Remus asked, feeling horribly responsible and having every intention of going out that minute and finding it, even if he had to search the entire forest.

"Professor Dumbledore summoned it and fixed the crack in the handle. It's as good as new."

"Thank goodness," Remus sighed.

"So what is Dumbledore going to do to her for being out of the castle?" asked Sirius.

"I don't know. He was very kind to her when I was there, but I'm sure she'll get a detention. She could have been killed."

The thought made Remus nauseous. It would have been his fault. "But she's alright?" he asked, needing to hear it once more.

"Just some scrapes and bruises," said Lily. "And a broken heart."

"Come on, Evans," said James. "Lay off with the guilt trip. Can't you see he feels bad enough?"

"Maybe, but I still think he should tell her the truth."

"It isn't up to you," said Sirius. "He's doing what he thinks is best and I think he's right."

"Well, since you don't have a sterling track record with relationships yourself, you'll have to forgive me for disagreeing," Lily replied.

"That's just it," said Sirius, unphased by her snark. "He doesn't intend for them to have a relationship. So there's no need for him to risk another chance for it to get out that he's a werewolf."

Remus turned and stared at Sirius. How dare he? Who was he to be lecturing on not letting Remus' secret get out after what he'd done?

"Do you actually think she'd tell anyone?" asked Lily.

"She might," said Sirius. "She's obviously prone to a bit of hysteria."

"Shut up, Sirius," Remus said in an even but unmistakably dangerous tone.

Sirius' face hardened, his jaw muscles bulging with the effort not to say something. He must have felt as Remus did, that they shouldn't start an argument in front of Lily. Of course, Lily clearly sensed that something was going on, as she looked suspiciously from one to the other.

"What's going on with you two?" she asked boldly.

"Nothing," said Sirius.

"I don't believe that for one minute. Everyone knows something is going on…"

"Well everyone needs to mind his, or her own business," said Sirius. He then decided to change the subject. "I want to know what Snivellus said and who all he told he thought Moony was a werewolf. You said you didn't believe him, and that no one did. "

Lily stared, lips pursed in thought for a moment. She must have conceded that the rift between Remus and Sirius really was none of her business, for she actually answered Sirius.

"I don't know who all he told," she said. "I know he told Avery, but Avery told him he was a jealous idiot and needed to get over his obsession with you lot. He said no one would like to believe Dumbledore was stupid enough to let a werewolf in more than he would, but that Dumbledore wasn't that stupid. I doubt Sev told many others. It did make him look a bit of a nutter. I have to admit that I thought Sev was just jealous and trying to come up with anything to pin on you lot, too. I'm sorry to say it, Remus, but knowing how a great many feel about werewolves, it was a very huge risk for Dumbledore to take, letting you come. At first, I just couldn't believe he'd do it, either."

"I know," said Remus. "Trust me; at first, I couldn't believe it either."

"Dumbledore's amazing, isn't he?" Lily asked, smiling.

"Truly," said Remus.

"And that's why Moony can't take any chances telling anyone, including Lindi," said James. "Trust me; I know for a fact that he wanted to tell her, but under the circumstances, he's doing what he truly thinks is best."

"And you can't' say anything, Evans," Sirius demanded.

Lily gave him an offended look. "Of course I wouldn't. Remus is my friend, too." Then she turned her gaze back to James. "I'm still not sure I think it's fair to Lindi, and I can't believe I'm saying this, but I believe you're right."

James had the good sense to keep his mouth shut rather than make some arrogant or flirtatious comment. It was highly impressive, in light of the way Lily's mere presence usually caused him to behave. Apparently, James really was growing up.

Lily stayed for some time and they talked more than they ever had. He answered her questions about Greyback, explained about the Whomping Willow, the Shrieking Shack….

She took it all in with a bit of awe, great sympathy, but most of all, calm acceptance. Remus found great comfort in her reaction to the truth about him. After all he'd lost, at least he'd found another true friend, one who accepted him as he really was.

It allowed him to console himself with the belief that Lindi might actually have accepted him, too, had things in the real world been different.

It was a small consolation, when he considered that he would never tell Lindi all the secrets he and his friends had now shared with Lily, but it was good to have another person he could be off his guard with. Lily knew almost all there was to know about Remus John Lupin.

And she still seemed to like him.

Remus desperately needed that at the moment.

However, there were some relatively minor details the Marauders left known only to themselves. For one, they all avoided the subject of Severus Snape and the prank. There seemed to be an unspoken agreement to keep that private, at least for the moment. Granted, by keeping it from her, they ran the risk that Severus would tell her, even though Dumbledore had forbade him telling anyone, but until they'd settled it from within, it seemed a risk worth taking.

For one thing, Remus didn't want what Sirius had tried to do to come between Lily and the rest of them. She had been close to Severus, after all. She might become so angry with Sirius that she wouldn't want to befriend any of them, so long as Sirius was still a Marauder.

And while things were clearly strained between them, Sirius was still a Marauder.

Remus had a feeling James might be thinking along the same lines. Angry as James was over what Sirius had done, he clearly wasn't about to let it destroy their friendship. They had been inseparable—practically brothers—since their first meeting on the Hogwarts Express nearly seven years ago. Remus couldn't think of anything Sirius might do that would destroy James' feelings for him, short of Sirius chatting up Lily or joining the Death Eaters. Since the chances of either of those things happening were as likely as snowballs in Hell, Remus knew that James and Sirius would be friends—brothers—for life.

Truth be told, even Remus couldn't imagine cutting ties completely with Sirius, even with the betrayal he'd been dealt. While he couldn't see ever trusting Sirius as he had before, his inability to hate Sirius was obvious. He'd already found himself nearly forgetting the betrayal at times. Just that evening at dinner, he'd almost felt sorry for Sirius over the fight with Leanna. Of course, eventually he would remember, and his anger would flare.

But they'd been friends for so long…

So neither James nor Remus revealed the incident to Lily, and Sirius certainly hadn't volunteered it. Peter had followed their lead, of course.

They also opted to keep the fact that they were Animagi secret from her.

Remus was quite sure she could be trusted, but there was no reason to test her. She'd already been given quite a lot of potentially very damaging information.

However, the conversation wasn't all one sided. Remus was not going to let her get away without filling him in on a few things, too.

"So does everyone in school know about my breakup with Lindi?" he asked, dreading the answer.

"Pretty much," Lily said.

Remus covered his eyes and groaned.

"I'd groan too. You've gone from straight-laced prefect to having quite the reputation as a bad boy, literally overnight," Lily said, with brutal honesty.

Remus looked mortified.

"Yes, Remus Lupin, the bad boy of Gryffindor," she continued torturing him. "You're giving Black a run for the title."

"Oy," said Sirius. "Why am I the one who ends up getting insulted even when Moony's the one who's supposed to be the randy cad this time?"

"Because we know Moony's really not a randy cad?" said Peter.

Sirius glared dangerously.

"Sorry," said Peter. "I couldn't resist."

"I can't believe everyone thinks—believes I would…" Remus covered his eyes again. "How am I supposed to show my face?"

"Aw, Remus," said Lily. "You really are such a decent bloke. Don't worry; no one knows. I'm only taking the mick out of you."

He pulled his hands away from his face and gawked at her. "Really?"

Lily nodded, smiling.

"But, Leanna apparently knows, and you know. How do you know she hasn't told anyone else?" he asked hoping there was a way.

"Because she made us promise not to tell anyone. She's awfully embarrassed about it, and she really doesn't want Darlene Wilkins to have the satisfaction of saying, I told you so."

"Poor Lindi," said Peter. "She's embarrassed by something that isn't even true."

Remus' conscience prickled painfully and he hoped Lily wouldn't start in on him needing to tell Lindi the truth again. He felt his resolve was not what it should be.

"Well, if no one finds out, she won't need to be embarrassed any more than she already is and neither does Moony," said Sirius. "So hopefully she's embarrassed enough to keep her mouth shut. That's a win-win for all concerned."

Even Lily didn't argue. When she finally left their room, the mood was a little lighter. Lily's acceptance had been good for Remus, but James was in a particularly better mood.

Remus found himself happy for James, even if a little envious. James' prospects for the girl of his dreams, while still a long shot, were a little brighter, but Remus' had never been dimmer.

As he lay in bed trying to get to sleep, he reminded himself yet again, You had to do what's best—for Lindi.