If Remus were to say that Emma made a complete turnaround, he would be telling the biggest lie he's ever told – and he's told many. Though he wanted to be optimistic and hopeful, it was too soon. However, he could see that the Patronus lesson inspired something in Emma, could see something clicking in her mind. After their short lesson, she settled back onto the couch, her expression thoughtful, and then Remus saw it – the fire was back in her eyes. She wanted to be able to cast the Patronus.

"What's your Patronus?" she had asked him quietly.

Remus met her insistent and curious stare. He hated his Patronus, always casting a non-corporeal form so that he didn't have to see it, but it would help her see that he could cast one. For a moment, he wasn't sure how to answer, and then he had an idea.

"I'll show you when you can successfully cast the spell," he answered.

A slight frown crossed her face, and Remus worried he said the wrong thing, but then that fire behind her eyes was stronger than before. Rather than fighting him, she nodded and settled back into her corner of the couch to curl up. When she turned her gaze to the fireplace, it wasn't with despondency, it was with determination. By some sheer miracle, he figured out the one thing that reignited Emma's spirt. He just had to hope that it remained.

It was only mildly surprising to him to wake up the next morning and find Emma sitting on the living room floor surrounded by stacks of books.

Remus couldn't help but allow himself to lean against the wall to watch her, just as she had been doing to him all week. She was so immersed in what she was reading that she didn't even realize he was there. It worked in his favor because he didn't want to forget this moment, silently praying that this was what truly helped her. The Patronus would force her to dig into her thoughts and remember the feelings of happiness. It wouldn't solve all of her problems, but it was a step in the right direction.

He glanced over at the title of the closest book he could see and grinned. She was trying to dig up any information she could, determined to figure out how the Patronus worked. A quill was stuffed in her hair, holding up the messiest bun he'd ever seen on top of her head. A pen was held between her teeth, and a notebook was clutched in her hand as she flipped through the book sitting on the floor in front of her. To his amusement, she must have used the wrong end of her pen to scratch her face as ink was smeared on her cheek. This was how Remus always wanted to remember Emma – curious and hopeful.

It took Emma a few moments longer to register that she wasn't alone and looked up at Remus, blinking slowly. She took a look at the books around her, pulling her pen from between her teeth to give him a shy, but genuine smile. Remus could have cried just from that alone; he was overjoyed to see it.

"Hi," she said quietly, setting her notebook down and pen down.

"Bore da cariad," Remus said softly with the realization that this moment was bittersweet. There had been a possibility of this moment never even happening, and he had to slyly try and wipe the corners of his eyes from the tears that sprung up. It had been for naught as Emma had been watching him closely.

Her brow furrowed in concern, the determined look on her face washing away to worry. Remus realized that she thought she did something wrong, but she didn't understand he was just relieved. Her worry just wasn't going to do.

Remus crossed the room to crouch down next to Emma, looking at the books with an amused grin. "It looks as though you've taken half the books from downstairs and brought them up here," Remus mused. "How long have you been up?"

Emma studied Remus for a minute, and a small smile crossed her face when she realized he wasn't upset. "A few hours," she admitted. She leaned forward, craning her neck to peer out the closest window. "The storm woke me up. It's miserable out there."

Remus hummed thoughtfully, inspecting Emma's face. Though the dark circles around her eyes were still evident, they weren't as harsh. "You looked like you finally slept well."

"Much better than usual," she admitted, stretching her arms high over her head. She sighed and took a look at the books surrounding her. "I really did grab a lot, didn't I?"

"You did, indeed," Remus chuckled, switching to kneeling so that he was a little more comfortable. "Must have been one hell of a levitation spell to get everything up here."

Emma's face immediately fell, and she covered her face with a moan. "Oh, why didn't I think of that?"

"Y-you brought these all up by hand?" Remus looked around at the books – there had to be at least fifty she decided she needed. The entire situation was much more amusing than it was moments before.

"I forget that I can do magic!"

Remus couldn't hold back his laughter at the visual of Emma going up and down the stairs with stacks of books. He felt terrible laughing as Emma let out an embarrassed whine, but he absolutely adored her and the forgetfulness of her magic. He tentatively reached out to pull her into a hug, and she leaned readily into his embrace.

"Oh, I love you so much," Remus said, kissing the top of her head.

"I love you, too," she mumbled into his chest. She immediately groaned as he pulled her closer. It had been weeks since she'd said it, and it made him happy, so incredibly happy.

"I was trying to figure out the blue flames, too," she muttered, trying to peel herself out his arms. Realizing that he wasn't about to let her go, she relented and wrapped her arms around him. "Do you plan on letting me go at any point?"

"Shh," Remus whispered. "Just let me hold you for a few minutes. Besides, I need to keep a hold on you to get that ink off of your face."

"Get the what?"

Remus didn't answer and instead made an overdramatic show of licking his thumb in preparation and wipe off the ink that was on Emma's cheek. She let out a shriek and tried to pull away at the realization of what he was doing, but Remus didn't relinquish his hold. Emma was not at all thrilled to have him use his spit to remove the ink on her face when magic would have done it, but she was laughing.

The sound was like music to his ears, and he couldn't resist kissing her cheek once, twice, three times, and kept going until she was breathless from laughter. He only stopped at the incredibly audible sound of her stomach growling, looking at her in amusement.

"Merlin, I believe the entire castle heard that," Remus said, finally letting go of his red-faced, but smiling daughter. He gently brushed away her tears with his thumbs, glad that they were from laughter and not sadness.

"Stop it," she said, giving him a playful shove. "I've been up for a while. I'm hungry."

Remus sighed, feeling as though things could change for the better. "How about this. Let's get ready to head downstairs, and I'll finally teach you how to make the flames?"

"Oh," Emma said quietly. "Well, I thought I would stay and try to learn more about the Patronus Charm."

"Could you be tempted to join me downstairs if I asked the elves to make cinnamon toast for you?"

"Cinnamon sugar toast," Emma corrected, sounding absolutely exasperated.

"Oh, right," Remus grinned. "Silly me. What do you say?"

It took a moment for Emma to think about Remus's proposition. He knew it was hard for her to resist her favorite breakfast food, but she wanted to go through the pile of books she had. For a moment, he thought she would decline, but he was rewarded with a smile instead.

"Okay, she said quietly.

In between trying to get dressed for the day, brushing teeth, and combing hair, Remus managed to teach Emma how to make the blue flames. It wasn't a hard spell to learn, but her recent exhaustion made things challenging. After several attempts, she was able to reignite and extinguish the flames in the jar next to her bed, and Remus couldn't be prouder.

He would have to make a list of simple spells to teach her. As long as she was willing to learn, he was more than willing to teach. Though he wasn't meant to pick favorites, Emma was by far his favorite student. But of course, he was also terribly biased.

Remus peered out the windows with a slight frown as they crossed the length of the classroom. "It's a miserable day for Quidditch," he noted, turning to Emma, who hummed in agreement. "It's Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff. Are you planning on going?"

"Oh," Emma said in surprise. "I don't ever go to the games."

"What?" Remus was equally surprised. They had talked about her going to games before, and he was confused. Did she just tell him that she went? "Have you ever gone to a Quidditch match?"

"A few times my first year, I think I went maybe once last year," Emma shrugged. "I've never really been interested in it."

"Well, that just won't do," Remus said. He couldn't have his daughter not going to Quidditch games while at Hogwarts. It was Quidditch – there wasn't a witch or wizard that didn't enjoy the game. "You're going to that game today."

"Pardon?" Emma was completely taken aback. "You like Quidditch?"

"Of course, I like Quidditch!"

"You do?"

"It's Quidditch! Everyone likes Quidditch!"

Emma was quiet for a moment as she slowed her pace. "I don't," she said quietly.

Remus skidded to a halt and turned to Emma, who stared back at him with wide eyes. "You don't like Quidditch? Oh, this really won't do. Now you're absolutely going."

"Daddy, there's a storm going on outside!"

"And there are charms to keep you from getting completely soaked through," Remus said, crossing his arms. "Did you already forget that you can do magic again?"

Emma huffed and mirrored his posture, crossing her arms as well. "No," she said, but the blush on her cheeks betrayed her.

"I'll make you another deal," Remus said thoughtfully. "Go to the game, and we can work on the Patronus charm again later."

"That's not fair," Emma frowned, looking out the closest window. The weather was absolutely miserable, but the allure of working on the Patronus charm again was tempting. "Fine, you win again," she said grumpily. "You promise?"

"I solemnly swear it."

Emma's eyes narrowed slightly at the word choice. "Why do you say it like that? You solemnly swear...It's odd," she said.

"It's the ultimate promise that one can make," Remus said. "It was how my friends and I knew that we wouldn't break our promises. It's the highest honor, I assure you."

"You and your friends were strange when you went to school here," Emma said, deciding that it would be better to just continue the trip to the Great Hall and walking away. "And you were obviously an absolute oddball swot," Emma muttered under her breath.

Remus snorted as he followed her this time. "You know I heard that loud and clear, right?"

Emma threw her arms up in exasperation and shot Remus a glare. "That is incredibly inconvenient," she said.

"If only you knew," Remus said dryly.

That remark made Emma fall silent in pure embarrassment, and she practically booked it down the stairs to get to the Great Hall. Remus snorted in amusement, a smile on his face. These were all good things.

By the time Remus made it into the Great Hall, Emma had been swept into an over-enthusiastic hug from one of the Weasley twins while the other was shouting in delight. It took him a moment to figure out which twin was which, but he shouldn't have been surprised. Of course, the one currently latched onto his very embarrassed daughter was George. He noted with a hint of smugness that Draco looked absolutely annoyed. Good, he thought with a smirk. Draco wasn't good enough for his daughter.

"I'm going for Hufflepuff," Emma laughed, not trying too hard to get out of George's embrace. "I'm not going for you!"

"Don't lie to us! We know that you're coming for us and not Diggs over there!" George said, looking as though he didn't really want to let go of Emma. Remus had seen the looks he'd given Emma before, but he was grateful that she was blissfully unaware. However, the blush on her face seemed to tell a different story.

"Oi," Cedric shouted over at George. "We'll see what happens on the pitch!"

"Save it for the Quidditch pitch, gentlemen," Remus said, walking with purpose in the direction of Emma and George, forcing them to separate. George looked embarrassed, and Emma just shot him an annoyed look.

Ah, and there's my answer, Remus thought to himself as he walked past the two red-faced teenagers. He had felt Emma would have a crush on Cedric, most of the girls did. Emma and Cedric were getting close, but he wasn't entirely surprised that she fancied George instead. He was the calmer of the two twins, something that Emma needed. Fred, though incredibly good-natured, was the instigator of most attempted pranks and far too energetic for Emma.

True to his word, Remus made sure to discretely call up a house-elf to order Emma's toast. When it showed up in front of her at her seat, she let out a delighted squeal and flashed him a smile in thanks. It made Remus's heart swell with joy, and he finally felt comfortable enough to start eating breakfast himself.

Remus found himself fixated on his thoughts from the other night as he ate. There were so many unknowns to figure out; the incomplete birth certificate, the name he was told when she was born. There were the old conversations with Sirius that Remus found himself thinking about more and more. Ghosts of those memories kept returning, but he didn't understand. What did all of it mean? He glanced up to watch Emma for a moment, wondering when it really clicked in his mind that he saw Emma as his daughter. Was it at nineteen when he only imagined the possible stolen life he would have with Sirius? Or was it much later, more recently, when he had finally given in to his own feelings? Remus wasn't entirely sure.

He ate slowly, only dragging his eyes away from Emma long enough to speak to Minerva, who sat to his right. His old professor, now colleague, was discussing her thoughts on that day's match, both worried and excited. Remus must have been too slow to turn back to her, for she was looking at him with such a knowing smile that he felt himself blush.

Minerva turned to look over at Emma, her expression soft. "You know, Albus told me seeing you two together recently was wonderful to see," she said, "but I think it's nicer to see how you look at her. Especially now – you've always looked at her with nothing but fondness, but now I see pride. I always knew you would be a wonderful father."

"I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing," Remus said quietly. "Being here with her has been incredible, though. It's been challenging, though."

"No one knows what they're doing," Minerva said sagely. "Parenthood isn't meant to be easy, Remus. Although, I truly do believe that you've figured it out."

"Oh, I don't know about that. I'm struggling to get through to her. I think I might have figured it out, but I'm afraid it's still the wrong thing."

Minerva grew quiet for a moment, watching Emma for another moment. "I would say that whatever you did between yesterday and today was the correct thing," she said. "What brought about that change? I haven't seen her smile like that in a long time."

"The Patronus Charm," Remus said. "I wasn't sure what else to try. She gets stuck in her head, and with everything now out in the open…" he trailed off with a slight frown. "The idea of her past scares her, and I'm afraid she won't let herself work through it. I just felt that if she could see that she was happy at one point before knowing, perhaps she could still continue to be happy. It's not as though she wasn't living with her demons, she just wasn't aware of it."

Minerva hummed in understanding. "You know, she's very much like you, Remus. If it weren't for her name at the time, I would have thought she was yours right from the start. When I picked Emma up from the children's home to take her to Diagon Alley, it was like looking at you." Minerva turned to smile at Remus. "She's always been a curious child, but that went away for a long time. It's slowly coming back. You might not see it, but having you here has made her much more confident, even in her worst moments."

"I don't know about that…I kept so much from her."

"Never doubt her love for you, Remus. You have both made mistakes, but it's how you grow from them that'll shape how she sees the world. Do you mind if I make a suggestion?"

"Please, anything," Remus said earnestly. "I want to be able to help her the best way that I can."

"Teach her how to play," Minerva said simply. "She had to grow up far too quickly, Remus. Emma is very much like a shy little Gryffindor I once knew, but he had three friends that helped him figure it out. She's made good friends, but she's afraid to join them when they decide to do things less than academic. Emma needs to see that it's all right to let her hair down sometimes. It's a miracle that you convinced her to go to the Quidditch match today. I've seen her attend maybe five matches in total. She needs to see from you that it's okay to have fun. However," Minerva wore an almost conspiratorial grin on her face, "I think a particular Ravenclaw girl might be able to help."

Remus rubbed his chin in thought as he watched Emma for a few moments more. He looked over at the Ravenclaw table, his eyes immediately finding the blond-haired second year girl he was looking for. He hummed quietly to himself and looked over at Emma again. Perhaps Minerva was right – they had similar situations to relate to. He just wasn't sure how to bring the two of them together without making it obvious. Emma wouldn't be too thrilled if he tried to make friends for her.

"They can absolutely help each other," Minerva said to Remus before turning to Filius on her other side to tell him Remus's unspoken idea.

"Oh, excellent idea!" Filius said, clapping his hands in delight. "Those two will be fast friends. How did I never think of that?"

As if Emma knew she was being talked about, she turned to look at Remus with a questioning look. He earned an eye roll when he waved her off, and she turned to speak to Leanne so that she could ignore the animated game of Exploding Snap between Ernie and Justin next to her.

By the time breakfast was over, Remus was sure he had a plan. As he watched Emma and Persephone leave for the Quidditch match, Remus felt much more confident about things. He had a lot of work to do, and in time, Remus knew it would pay off. Emma could be happy again; he was sure of it.

Emma had no idea how Remus managed to convince her to go to the Quidditch match so easily. He was going to teach her the Patronus charm regardless, but why had she been so easily swayed to go?

Even with Remus casting seemingly charm after charm on both her and Persephone and their umbrella, she was less than thrilled. Emma loved storms, but she preferred them when she could stay inside next to the fire and read. Being outside with the gusty winds and rain was not her idea of a good time, but spirits were high, almost infectious.

She didn't particularly like being so high in the stands, but Persephone insisted. Chatter was loud and raucous over the wind, and Emma was finding the energy slightly infectious. Maybe she could let herself enjoy herself if everyone else was, even with terrible weather. It was fun to watch people starting chants for the team they were supporting that day. It was hard to tell who had more team spirit as the stands were equal parts red and yellow.

"What's with the dog? Did Hagrid get a new dog?" Persephone asked suddenly, peering just past Emma. "It keeps staring at you."

"Dog? What dog?" Emma had been so busy fascinated watching everyone else that she was confused by the mention of a dog. She turned her head to follow Persephone's gaze and frowned at the massive black dog that was sitting close by in the stands. "What are you doing here?" she hissed.

Padfoot had decided to make an appearance and looked absolutely pathetic with his fur plastered to his body. He sat at the end of the row, hidden just enough that most people wouldn't even notice that he was there. He must have peered out a little too far at them for Persephone to notice. Luckily, it seemed as though most people were distracted enough that they didn't see him.

"Why are you talking to it like that?" Persephone looked at Emma as though she was mental.

Emma huffed and grabbed Persephone's arm, standing up. "Come on, we need to move to a different spot. You have to promise me that you won't say anything to my dad about this. Dad's not really a fan of strays," Emma said, pulling Persephone through the stands to a much emptier section. She shot Padfoot a glare as they approached but held her hand out in greeting anyway. He stepped up quickly next to her, butting her hand with his nose in return.

"You know the dog?" Persephone asked curiously.

"I do," Emma said. "Very well, apparently," she muttered under her breath, grateful for the strong wind.

They made their way further up in the stands, and Emma took the umbrella from Persephone. "Could you use the drying charm on Snuffles? He's completely soaked through."

"Snuffles?" Persephone questioned, taking out her wand and pointing it at Padfoot, who seemed more than excited to be dried off. He shook out the remaining water droplets off of his fur and pressed himself up against Emma's leg so that he could stay underneath the umbrella.

"He liked the name," Emma muttered, wiping off the water droplets that had hit her. "Effie, I need you to use every ounce of Slytherin discretion that you have. My father cannot know about this dog, no matter what."

Padfoot let out a grumpy woof, though, to what, Emma wasn't sure. She let out an aggravated huff and tried to shove him off of her leg, but he refused to budge.

Persephone looked at Emma and then down at the dog, who was staring at her intently as if he was daring her to say the wrong thing. "He's scary," Persephone frowned, taking the umbrella back. "Are you sure he's safe?"

"He's a complete lap dog," Emma said. "Trust me, he's harmless. Do I have your promise?"

"Well," Persephone sighed, "it's not the first time you've forced Slytherin honor on me to keep your secrets. No one will know."

"Good," Emma said, sitting down. She turned to the dog with a pointed look. "We have to talk later." Padfoot only gave her a look that said, 'Yes, we do.'

"Merlin, if I didn't know you like I do, I would think you've officially gone completely mental," Persephone said, sitting down next to Emma and eying the dog suspiciously. "Why can't Remus know about the dog?"

"Uhm," Emma frowned as she looked at Padfoot and absentmindedly scratched the spot behind his ears. She didn't mind Sirius like this in the least. It was surprisingly comforting, and it eased her anxiety of being so high up in the stands. "I'm going to invoke my honorary Slytherin card, and I'll just say it's a long story."

"Damn you and the stupid 'Honorary Slytherin' thing," Persephone muttered. "Funny how you forget that the hat was considering you for Slytherin when you feel like it."

Emma was nearly positive that Padfoot gave her the dog equivalent of 'if looks could kill' and she cleared her throat. "Oh, look," she said, squinting down into the pitch. "I think they're finally coming out."

Padfoot hopped onto the seat next to Emma, pressed his nose to her cheek like a kiss, and turned to face the pitch. His tongue flopped out as he smiled, and his tail was wagging furiously. Emma couldn't help but grin at her furry friend and his excitement. She was grateful he didn't lick her face again. She might have cried now that she knew what he was.

"Absolutely mad," Persephone said, turning to face the pitch, shaking her head.

It was hard to hear what Lee was saying, but luckily, she could figure out who was who, even if it was just barely. It was only with Persephone's commentary that she had any idea of what was happening.

The sky was a blur of red and yellow amongst the heavy raindrops. It was all so fast, and it was oddly fascinating to watch. She had never actually paid attention to Quidditch before, and the happy dog next to her made it that much better. Quidditch wasn't entirely about the game; it was the entire experience. How he could see what was happening, she had no idea, but he seemed delighted as he kept his eyes trained on Harry.

Emma watched in fascination as the twins dipped and swerved around each other to keep the Bludgers away. She watched Cedric scan the stadium, searching for the elusive snitch. The lightning that cracked across the sky made the game that much more dangerous and fascinating. Perhaps Remus had a point. Quidditch was rather interesting if you paid attention.

As a time out was called, Padfoot ran further up into the stands so he could get a better view. He wanted to be in the topmost row, and she didn't blame him. If she felt like leaving the cover of the umbrella, she would have joined him too. The game suddenly started back up again, and the blurs of red and yellow returned to the sky.

The crowd suddenly went wild, and Emma watched in awe as Cedric went flying across the pitch towards the extremely tiny snitch. How did they even see it? She could barely notice it herself. She was too fascinated by the beaters and the chasers of both teams. However, something strange was happening. There was suddenly no noise in the stadium.

Emma frowned, and she looked over at Persephone in a panic. Where had all of the sound gone? She could see people cheering, but she couldn't hear a sound. A sweeping cold swept over her, and she saw Persephone point down into the pitch, and Emma's eyes followed. A swarm of Dementors had descended into the pitch, and that cold, suffocating feeling she felt on the train returned.

She turned her face into Persephone's arm and held on for dear life, hoping that it would anchor her, but that awful screaming came back. It was horrible, pained screaming. But then it got worse – it wasn't just screaming she heard, it was Fenrir's laugh. Was she the one that was screaming? The implications of what she was hearing in her mind was terrifying.

Emma pulled her face from Persephone's arm with a jolt as she felt something wet and cold pressing against her face. She sucked in a deep breath, her eyes wide as she found Padfoot staring at her in concern. She turned to Persephone and then took a look around, searching for the Dementors.

"Emma, they're gone," Persephone said. "You're fine – everything's fine…well, mostly."

"W-what happened?" Emma asked, her breathing coming out ragged. One of her hands immediately flew to Padfoot's fur. She didn't care that he was soaking wet again; she needed something to ground her.

"Well," Persephone frowned. "Hufflepuff won, Cedric caught the snitch, but…"

"But what?"

"Er, Harry fell off his broom when the Dementors came."

"H-Harry fell?"

Padfoot made a whining noise, and Emma looked over at him. He looked distressed, and Emma wasn't sure what else to do besides wrapping her arms around the massive black dog.

"Is he all right?" Emma asked, turning her face to look over at Persephone. Emma tried to slyly wipe her tears off in Padfoot's fur. The Dementors made her cry again, and it annoyed her.

"He's fine. Dumbledore stormed out onto the field and slowed Harry down before he hit the ground. He cast a Patronus like Remus did to make them leave only a few minutes ago." Persephone sighed. "Come on, we should get you back to Remus."

Emma nodded, letting go of Padfoot. "Harry's fine," she said, smoothing back his fur. When Padfoot gave her a look as if to ask if she was okay, she nodded. "I'll be fine. I'm sorry I haven't been able to come out and bring you something to eat. Dad's got me on lockdown, but I'll get out. You know where to find me."

Padfoot stared at Emma for a moment and gave her a quiet whine, but quickly retreated up to the topmost steps and ducked down so that people wouldn't notice him. With one final look back at the shaggy black dog, Emma and Persephone followed the crowds back into the castle.

Remus immediately swooped in to take Emma from Persephone the moment they returned to the classroom. He sat Emma down, shoved half a bar of chocolate in her hand, and passed the other half to Persephone.

"Eat it, both of you," Remus said firmly. "You'll feel better."

Emma snorted, taking a bite from the chocolate and letting out a relieved sigh. She leaned heavily into Remus as he sat down next to her and put his arm around her shoulders.

"Guess that means you know what happened already?" Emma muttered, watching as Persephone sat down at the desk next to them.

"Professor Dumbledore is absolutely livid," Remus said, smoothing back Emma's hair. "There'll be a meeting about it later, but he made sure to let everyone else know right away. The Dementors are getting restless, and with all the excitement…well, it was a feast for them."

He wasn't entirely surprised when a small crowd of hesitant looking students appeared at his door. Remus sighed, pressed a kiss to the top of Emma's head, and stood to address the newcomers. "How does hot chocolate sound?" Remus asked, motioning for the others to come into the classroom. There were quiet murmurs of agreement, and one by one, the classroom began to fill.

The Defense classroom had never been so full before. People sat at desks, on the tables, on the stairs up to the office, and even on the floor. Remus called up service from the house-elves to accommodate everyone. It appeared that a lot more people were shaken up by the Dementors than he expected, and Remus idly wondered if it was this bad on the train. Perhaps not, he thought to himself, there had been only one Dementor that night, and it focused on their compartment.

He wanted nothing more than to stay with Emma, but she had Persephone to one side and a freshly showered and changed George on the other. She seemed relaxed, even unconsciously leaning on George, who immediately blushed when she did. It brought a smile to Remus's lips. Though he didn't want her dating until she was at least thirty, it was sweet.

Eventually, Persephone left, leaving Emma and George alone, and it allowed him a rare glimpse to see how they interacted. Fred was busy talking to Angelina, leaving his twin to speak with Emma. Emma and George spoke shyly to each other with quiet, nervous giggles. He kept an eye on them as he checked on his other students. Emma could be okay without him for a little bit. He could trust George.

It was a long while before the classroom cleared out to finally leave Emma and Remus alone. He set about gathering the mugs that were left about the classroom and turned back to Emma.

"How are you feeling?" he asked.

"All right," Emma answered back quietly.

"Don't tell me what I want to hear," Remus said, sitting down next to Emma and pulling her into his side. "How are you really feeling?"

Emma molded herself into his side, gripping tightly to his shirt like she always used to when she wanted comfort. "Confused," she said quietly. "I remember what Harry said…about hearing screaming on the train, but no one else did. Except I did. I heard screaming, too. I-I thought for the longest time it was mum, but it wasn't." Emma looked up at Remus and swallowed hard. "It was me."

Remus frowned as he met Emma's gaze. "What makes you say that?"

Emma slowly separated herself from his embrace and stood up and slowly crossed the room to peer out one of the windows. "Because I heard Fenrir, too…"

Remus was torn between standing up and pulling Emma back into his arms and remaining where he was. "Maybe we should work on the Patronus another day," Remus said gently. He was surprised when Emma turned to look at him and looked offended.

"Why? Today just showed me that I need to learn it," she huffed out in annoyance. She fixed Remus with a hard stare before peering back out the darkened window. "But I need to know more. I know that you tell me you're going to be there to protect me, but we know that won't be possible all the time. I know that there's going to be a time where you can't be there to help me. I don't want to be unprepared when it happens."

Emma turned her face to look at Remus, an obstinate look on her face. "I've had a lot of time to think about it. I think it would be rather foolish of us to pretend that we've seen the last of Fenrir. I think when he showed up my first year, the message wasn't just for you; it was for me. Not so much a threat, but a promise." Emma sat back down next to Remus, pulling his arm back around her shoulders. "I need you to help me be ready. I don't want to be afraid of him anymore."

Remus wanted to deny it all, pretend that there was a potential truth to Emma's words. He wanted to tell her everything was fine, but he knew how Fenrir worked. If Jude truly promised Emma to Fenrir, the werewolf would never stop until he had her. The idea of it being a reality made him sick. Remus couldn't let Emma be unprepared; he needed to teach her how to fight back. He didn't want her to be afraid anymore, either.

"All right," Remus agreed. "We'll start tonight."