The full moon rose that Friday, so James spent the evening as Prongs, leading the wolf on a chase through the Forbidden Forest. It was exhilarating; the stag's flanks heaved as it galloped, faster than the other creatures, faster than the wolf —

The dog and the rat trailed behind, nipping at the wolf's hind legs, keeping it from veering too close to the castle. Prongs ran for hours, and although the dog and the rat grew tired, the stag kept running, and the wolf followed.

They returned to the Shrieking Shack as the first rays of sunlight shone through the slats of the boarded-up windows. The wolf collapsed on a pile of rags, panting heavily. It didn't even whimper as its back arched and its limbs contorted; when its fur had fully receded, Remus Lupin remained curled on the rags, soundly asleep.

"I don't believe it," Sirius whispered to James. "You actually wore him out. I didn't think it was possible."

James let out a long yawn. "Yeah, well, he isn't the only one. That damn wolf has so much energy. Wish I could spend the day napping in the hospital wing…"

"Speaking of, Poppy will be here soon," said Peter nervously. "We should go, yeah?"

They slipped out of the tunnel beneath Whomping Willow and went directly to the hospital wing, where they waited until Madam Pomfrey brought Remus in.

"Morning, Poppy," said Sirius brightly.

Madam Pomfrey helped Remus onto a nearby cot and turned, narrowing her eyes. "Remus needs rest, not —"

"We brought him breakfast," said James, and from behind his back he produced a plate piled high with bacon and sausages.

A glimmer of a smile cracked Madam Pomfrey's stern façade. "Fine, Potter. You have ten minutes."

"We'll be out of your hair in five," promised James. As soon as Madam Pomfrey walked away, he, Sirius, and Peter crowded onto Remus' bed. "Alright, Moony?"

Remus rolled towards them, bleary-eyed. "Did we run to Glasgow and back last night? I'm exhausted."

"You tried," said James, setting Remus' breakfast on the table beside his cot.

Remus eyed the food. "Not that I'm not grateful, but my stomach's a bit queasy…"

"You need something to replace all the calories you burned off last night," said Sirius. "Can't have our Moony getting scrawny, can we?"

James grinned. "We should be off before Madam Pomfrey has our heads. See you in the Heads' dormitory this evening, if you're feeling well enough —"

"Wait," said Remus. "There's something you should know."

"You copied my Charms essay last week?" said Sirius. "No need to apologize for that, I left it out on purpose…"

"You wish. I admit I was tempted, but your second paragraph was a mess." Remus glanced towards the far end of the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey was stripping the linens from empty cots.

James pulled out his wand and cast a silent Muffliato around them. "What's this about, Moony? You look worried."

"I am," admitted Remus. He fiddled with the edge of his blanket. "I think… I think somebody tried to place me under the Imperius curse."

James' jaw dropped. "Somebody… what? Who?"

"I don't know. It happened during the Quidditch match. After the match, technically. I didn't get a look at who it was."

"But you — you're okay, right?" spluttered Peter.

"Of course I am," said Remus. "It didn't work."

Unconvinced, Peter scrambled closer to Remus and peered into his eyes, as though he could spot the Imperius curse lurking there. "You're certain it didn't work? What if — what if you just haven't been commanded to do anything yet?"

Remus pushed Peter away. "I'm positive, Wormtail. My… furry little problem makes it rather more difficult for me to be cursed, it would seem."

Sirius glowered. "I'm going to murder whoever did this."

"That," said Remus, "is appreciated, but entirely unnecessary…"

Sirius ignored him and turned accusingly to James, jabbing a finger at him. "You told us that a psychopath's been Imperiusing people in the castle! Why haven't you caught them yet?"

"Er," said James, "I'm trying, but it's a bit difficult, turns out…"

"Not good enough," growled Sirius. "They've gone after Moony, and it's only sheer luck that it didn't work. What if they try to Crucio him next?"

"Well, hopefully Moony will have an advantage there, too —"

"'Hopefully'," repeated Sirius with scorn. "We need to do better than 'hopefully'. We need to catch whoever's going around cursing people. This stops now."

James ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "Well, what do you suggest?"

"We check everyone's wand," said Sirius promptly. "Tell them it's part of prefect patrols or something, I dunno. You're Head Boy, you'll figure something out."

"That's… not a bad idea, actually," said James. An idea occurred to him, and he leapt off the cot. "Hang on, Padfoot — you're brilliant!"

A corner of Sirius' lip curled. "Am I, now? Go on."

James paced back and forth beside Remus' cot. "Illumina is in a couple of weeks. It's supposed to be a celebration of inclusion — the message is that no matter your blood status, you're welcome at Hogwarts." He turned to the others, smiling. "What if we make it a wandless celebration?"

Remus rubbed his lips thoughtfully. "That might work, actually. You could pitch it as something educational, even… say that students will learn what it's like to live as a Muggle for a night, or something similar."

"Right," said James excitedly. "Meanwhile, you lot will collect the wands and analyse them. We'll find the culprit in no time."

"Assuming they attend the celebration, that is," said Peter.

"They will," said Sirius. "Hogwarts is dead boring if you ask me. And whoever's Imperiusing people must be extra bored to use Unforgivable curses as entertainment. I bet they'll jump at the opportunity to shake things up for a night."

"That's settled, then," said James. "Moony, see if you can't keep your head down for two weeks, will you? If you can make it to Illumina in one piece… we'll make sure whoever tried to curse you is expelled."

"I'll do my best," said Remus, reaching for a sausage. "In the meantime, you lot had better leave." He tilted his head towards the far end of the hospital wing, where Madam Pomfrey was very obviously checking her watch.

James, Sirius, and Peter were out of the hospital wing before any of them could say 'Imperius'.

The first two weeks of December brought grey skies and more than one overnight snowfall, so Lily woke most mornings to fresh piles of snow obscuring the view from her bedroom window. As the end of the term drew near, her free time was increasingly taken up by preparations for Illumina. She missed several Potions lessons to Transfigure the massive stone wall that surrounded the castle grounds. After that, Professor Flitwick needed help unpacking the hundreds of boxes of candles that had been delivered by Wiseacre's. She'd barely finished when Professor McGonagall requested that she contact Madam Rosmerta at the Three Broomsticks to order two hundred pounds of food for the celebration.

James helped, of course — he was surprisingly helpful, in fact — but the preparations were endless. When she flung herself into bed at night, she fell asleep instantly, only to wake up early and do it all again the next day. Secretly, she looked forward to getting the Illumina celebration over with; she needed to get some rest over the winter holidays.

The second Saturday in December passed in a blur, as Illumina was scheduled to begin after sunset. Lily and James spent the afternoon placing thousands of candles around the grounds, lining the paths from Hogwarts to Hogsmeade with warm, flickering lights. The work was intricate and exhausting; once they had finished, Lily skipped dinner in favour of taking a nap in her dormitory.

She awoke to a fist pounding on her door. "Lily? You in there?"

James, she thought, sitting up. Her bedroom was pitch black; from the looks of it, the sun had set some time ago.

"Shit," she said aloud, groping about for her wand, which had been swallowed by her sheets. At last, her fingers closed around the familiar smooth willow wood. "Lumos."

Wandlight reflected off James' glasses as the door to her bedroom creaked open. "Alright, Lily?"

"I fell asleep," she said, as though it weren't obvious. She slid quickly out of bed, adjusting her robes and smoothing her hair. "What time is it?"

"Half-past seven. Illumina started an hour ago."

"Shit." Lily pointed her wand at her hair and it twisted itself into a neat ponytail. "Thanks for waking me up. I would have slept right through it."

"Don't mention it. I thought you might actually want to see the fruits of our labour." James waggled his eyebrows at her. "Shall we?"

She pulled on a coat and followed him to the Entrance Hall, where Peter and Sirius were standing at the great oak doors. Sirius extended a hand towards her as she approached them. "Your wand, please, Wondergirl."

"My…?" She glanced at James, confused.

"Ah," said James. "This was a last-minute addition. We thought a wandless celebration would really help people get into the spirit of Illumina. Make them feel like a Muggle, you know." He pressed his wand into Peter's hand. Peter promptly labelled it 'J. Potter' and placed it in a box filled to the brim with other wands.

Reluctantly, Lily turned her wand over to Sirius. "If you lose mine, I'll curse the hair off your head."

Sirius pushed open the door for her with a wink. "Wouldn't dream of it. Enjoy your night of wonderment and unity!"

Lily gasped as she stepped outside. Thousands of candles flickered in the darkness, outlining the winding paths that crisscrossed the Hogwarts grounds. As she stepped onto the nearest path, she turned and looked up at the castle, which was aglow with candles tucked into the alcoves of its stonework. Hogwarts shimmered before her, awash with light, enchanting. Magical.

A figure in a wool coat brushed her shoulder. "Like it?" asked James.

"It's gorgeous. How did Flitwick get the candles up so high?"

"He might have had help." James sounded pleased. "My Comet 260 got a bit of a workout this afternoon."

His hands pressed firmly but gently on her shoulders, and he spun her to face Hogsmeade. "Shall we take a look at the wall?"

She could already see it, shimmering in the distance. "The Transfiguration worked?" They'd spent hours on the wall, but only in daylight.

"Better than worked," he said. "McGonagall put the finishing touches on it, and — well. You'll have to see for yourself."

Lily's eyes widened as they approached. The high stone wall was gone; the grounds were now encircled by a massive ribbon of light. Each stone had been replaced by a ball of softly glowing magical light that hung suspended in the air, arranged in strings that stretched twenty feet tall. The lights swayed gently in the nighttime breeze, leaving just enough room between them for students to weave in and out as they travelled to Hogsmeade.

At last, Lily found her voice. "This is incredible."

James nodded. "Hard to believe that we did this, isn't it?"

They began to walk alongside the ribbon of light, following it as it curved around the Quidditch pitch. Lily reached out a gloved hand and let her fingers trail from light to light. Her fingers came away glowing. "It didn't look nearly as impressive in the daytime, you know."

"Is that why you decided to sleep through the celebration?"

"I didn't…" she realized he was grinning and trailed off. "You're taking the piss!"

"I would never." He nodded at a colourful stand ahead of them, where Madam Rosmerta was selling hot drinks to eager students. "Want a Butterbeer? My treat."

"I have the Galleons —"

"You can't buy your own drink. Illumina is a celebration about you."

"Me? I'm fairly certain Hogwarts: A History never mentioned that…"

James waved a hand. "You know what I mean."

"I don't, actually."

James looked at her, amused. "Me, pureblood," he said, pointing to himself and then to her. "You, Muggle-born."

His finger was nearly touching the top button of her coat. Lily resisted the urge to grab it. "Is this your way of showing unity? Buying me a drink?"

"Exactly! I knew you'd get it." He snapped his fingers triumphantly, which pulled his hand away from her coat. Shame.

The Butterbeer was frothy and hot, and she sipped it as they wound their way up the candle-lit path towards the castle. It occurred to her that she wasn't entirely certain what they were doing. As Head Boy and Girl, they might have helped set up for Illumina, but there was no reason they needed to spend the celebration together as well. It wasn't as if they were on patrol, after all, and they weren't pretending to date, either. James could have rejoined his mates at any moment.

And yet here he was, walking shoulder-to-shoulder with her, chatting animatedly about the festival. This had been happening more and more, lately: they'd been spending time together, not out of necessity but because…

Why?

The answer warmed her from the inside out, more potent than the Butterbeer she was sipping. Because he enjoys your company. And you enjoy his.

She snuck a glance at him as he talked. The golden candlelight illuminated his profile, his sloping nose and the upward curve of his lips. He was beautiful.

James' eyes met hers, and his smile faded a little; he looked puzzled. "Is there something on my face?"

"No!" Lily took a hasty gulp of Butterbeer, scalding her oesophagus as she swallowed. She'd been staring at James like an idiot. Smooth, Evans.

"That's it for the grand tour, I'm afraid," said James as they reached the steps that led up to the castle, and Lily's heart sank. This was the end of their night together. "Unless…"

"Unless what?"

The look he gave her was calculated. "Fancy a bit of flying?"

Lily clenched her jaw reflexively. She hated flying. Though if it was with James…

"I'd like that, actually," she said, surprising herself. What had gotten into her? She'd just agreed to go flying.

His face broke into a broad grin. She tried to memorize the way he looked; she wanted to make him smile like that every day. Tomorrow, and the day after, and forever.

"Wait here," he said, and he jogged around the side of the castle. He returned a moment later, Comet 260 slung over one shoulder.

Lily eyed the broomstick apprehensively as he swung a leg over it. On second thought… "It's a bit cold for flying, isn't it?"

"Oh, good thinking," he said, and Lily's body grew warm as he cast a Heating Charm on them both.

"Hang on. I thought we weren't allowed our wands."

He waggled his eyebrows at her. "I might have nicked mine from the box when Peter wasn't looking."

"James Potter, breaking the rules?" Lily placed a hand over her heart in mock astonishment. "Consider me shocked."

"Thought you might be." He winked and motioned at the seat behind him on the broomstick. "Coming?"

She straddled the broomstick hesitantly. "Is this a good time to mention that I haven't flown in years?"

"No worries, Evans," he said, and the familiar sound of her surname on his lips made her stomach do a jig. "I'll be doing all the flying. You just need to hold on."

Right. She needed to hold on. To James Potter.

Cautiously, Lily leaned forward and put her arms around James' waist. She could feel his abdomen beneath his wool coat, taught and muscled. Maybe flying wouldn't be so bad after all.

James kicked off against the ground and her optimism disappeared. She bit back the urge to cry out and pressed her face into his back so that she didn't have to look at the ground.

Higher and higher they rose, and Lily regretted ever agreeing to go flying. Her thighs clutched the broomstick so tightly that her legs shook.

The wind carried James' voice into her ear. "Alright, Lily?"

Her voice was muffled against the back of his coat. "Fine."

"You're sure about that? You're about to break me in two, you're squeezing so hard."

Well, that was embarrassing. But she wasn't brave enough to loosen her grip. "Sorry."

They were still climbing into the air. How high was he going to go, exactly?

After what felt like an eternity, the broomstick slowed. James shifted, reaching backwards, and Lily let out a terrified squeak.

To James' credit, he didn't laugh. He twisted and carefully draped an arm around her.

If her heart hadn't been beating out of her chest before, it certainly was now. She risked a glance up at him. "What is it? Is everything alright?"

He grinned at her. "Look down."

Her hands made fists in his coat as she turned her head, slowly, to see what lay beneath them.

"Oh," she said softly.

The grounds of Hogwarts twinkled like starlight in a pond. She could see all the lights at once, from Hagrid's hut to the Quidditch pitch to Hogsmeade, all surrounded by the shimmering, glowing ribbon of the Transfigured wall.

Her grip slackened for a moment. "It's beautiful."

"This is the best view," said James.

"It is." Her cheek was still against his coat, and his arm was still around her. She didn't dare move, in case she broke the spell that held them together. Because surely only magic could make her feel so safe, even when she was a mile off the ground.

How long they stayed like that, admiring the lights below, she didn't know. It wasn't long enough.

Remus was in the staff room, poring over the array of wands on the table in front of him. Each wand was regurgitating echoes of the spells it had recently cast, filling the room with shadowy charms. Apart from the occasional hex, the spells were utterly mundane; no Unforgivable Curses in this lot. After waiting another minute to be certain, Remus waved his own wand and swept all the other wands off the table and into a box at his feet.

"Any luck?"

Remus looked up; Peter had entered the staff room, a box full of wands in his arms. "Afraid not."

"At least we're narrowing down the culprit," said Peter.

That was a tad optimistic, in Remus' opinion. Suppose whoever had Imperiused him had simply decided not to attend the Illumina celebration?

Peter placed the box he was holding on the table and picked up the one at Remus' feet. "I'll hand these back out, yeah?"

"Be my guest," replied Remus. As Peter shuffled out, Remus picked a handful of wands out of the box and spread them out on the table. He touched the tip of his own wand to each, methodical. "Priori Incantatem."

Another chorus of ghostly spells filled the room. A yew wand to Remus' left cast the Patronus Charm over and over, never producing more than smoke.

I know how that feels, thought Remus. Next to the yew wand was a thin, walnut wand that he recognized; it belonged to one of the Ravenclaw prefects.

Well, whoever was going around casting Unforgivable Curses certainly wasn't a prefect. Remus raised a hand, about to pick up the walnut wand and return it to the box, when suddenly the wand hissed and began to leak thick, dark smoke.

Remus froze, his hand hovering in the air. The smoke enveloped his fingertips, black as ink.

A soft yet sinister voice echoed from the wand. "Imperio."

Remus stared for a moment. Then he shoved the walnut wand into his pocket and bolted from the staff room.

As he approached the oak doors that led to the grounds of Hogwarts, Sirius and Peter looked at him in alarm.

"You figured it out?" guessed Sirius. Remus nodded shortly.

"Great," said Peter, drawing his wand. "Point us at 'em and let's —"

"No, that's — that's alright," said Remus. "You two stay here. I'll talk to him myself.""

"Moony," said Sirius, "you're mad if you think we're going to let you go off on your own with the lunatic who tried to Imperius you —"

"That's just it," said Remus. "He isn't a lunatic."

"Of course he is," said Sirius.

"No," said Remus, and he fingered the walnut wand in his back pocket. "He's a prefect."

Sirius and Peter gaped at him.

"Let me talk to him," said Remus. "I know him. I can figure out why he did what he did. It's not as if he can harm me, anyway."

"I don't like it," said Peter.

"Nor I," said Sirius. "But I trust you, Moony. If you think you can handle it…"

"I can," said Remus. He fished about in his robes for the Marauder's Map, scanning it briefly, and handed it to Sirius. "Our target's near the lake, apparently. Keep an eye on the Map for me, will you? If it looks like there's trouble, grab James and come help."

He stepped through the great oak doors, heart thumping, and made for the eastern shore of the lake. The pitch-black sky above filled his body with energy as he tramped through the snow, purposeful and sure; on new moon nights like these, he always felt his strongest.

He could not wait to get his hands on that snotty Ravenclaw prefect.

The outer edges of the lake glowed with warm yellow light. Floating atop the dark water were hundreds of candles in little boats that bobbed against the shore. The sight was enough to make Remus slow his pace, acting as if he weren't in any particular rush. He was just here to look at the candles, like everyone else —

There. A thin figure about Remus' height stood by a towering beech tree, staring out at the lake.

Remus was on him in an instant, balling a fist into the prefect's robes and pressing him against the beech tree, his wand at the prefect's throat. When he spoke, his tone was pleasant. "Bartemius Crouch? We need to talk."

Crouch's green eyes widened and darted to the side, as if contemplating calling for help.

"I wouldn't yell if I were you," said Remus cheerfully. "You'll only attract the attention of the professors, and I'd hate to have to tell them what you've been up to."

Crouch wet his bottom lip, clearly calculating. At last, he said, "I don't know what you're talking about."

"Allow me to enlighten you, Bartemius," said Remus.

Crouch's face contorted upon hearing his own name. That was interesting. "It's Barty. Just Barty."

"Barty, then. I had the most interesting experience after the Quidditch match a few weeks ago. Somebody tried to Imperius me. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Crouch began to squirm, trying to get free. "Are you mad? Of course not. I — I'm a prefect, for God's sake! Do you even know who my father is?"

"Interesting that you should bring up your father." Remus tightened his grip. "How do you think he'll react when he learns that his son's been casting Unforgivable curses?"

"You've got — no proof —"

"None but your wand," said Remus.

Crouch stopped thrashing.

"Here's how this is going to go," said Remus conversationally. "The two of us are about to take a stroll up to the seventh floor. You're going to tell the Headmaster everything you've been up to. Dumbledore might show you mercy, but — I wouldn't count on it."

Crouch's green eyes narrowed shrewdly. "Turn me in, and you'll pay."

"I hate to break it to you, Barty, but the threats of a fifth-year prefect hardly make me quake in my boots."

"Is that so? And what will you do when I tell people what you are?"

Remus was careful to modulate his voice. "What I am, Barty? I'm afraid I don't follow."

"I had you. You were right in front of me — inches away. The curse should have worked." Crouch brought his face closer to Remus'. "But it didn't. Why not?"

"Maybe you're not as proficient a spell-caster as you think you are. Have you ever considered that?"

"Or maybe you're not human."

Remus wished he had just a tad less self-control. He would have loved to turn this Crouch boy into a centipede and throw him into the middle of the Black Lake. "You're speaking nonsense."

"Am I? You say it's nonsense — does that mean you won't mind if I tell everyone you're a thing?"

Remus hesitated, and Crouch broke into a triumphant grin.

"What are you, Lupin? A doppelgänger? A werewolf? No — Dumbledore wouldn't allow a werewolf at Hogwarts, would he? Even he isn't that insane — "

Remus let the accusations wash over him. He took a single deep breath to gather his thoughts. "I will say this only once. You mustn't speak of it, Barty. The Headmaster will expel you if you do."

"So what? Expelling me was your plan in the first place, wasn't it? If you're going to ruin my life, I might as well return the favour."

Remus shifted his weight uneasily; he was rapidly losing the upper hand. "I must admit, I'm surprised," he said. "I never thought I'd meet a prefect who'd be alright with getting expelled. Not to mention your father —"

"Leave my father out of this," spat Crouch.

"Head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, isn't he? Can't imagine he'll be pleased —"

"Maybe I don't give a damn what he thinks!"

Liar, thought Remus. The bitterness in Crouch's voice reminded him of Sirius' rants about his parents. And was it his imagination, or did Crouch look afraid?

Bartemius Crouch, Senior isn't a very good father, thought Remus. Expelling Crouch would certainly leave him at the mercy of his father's wrath.

Remus thought again of the Blacks — of Regulus, this time. If Crouch's upbringing had been happier, would he still be Imperiusing people for fun? If his bad choices stemmed from a lack of love, was it possible that he deserved a second chance?

As if you've any right to decide what others deserve, snarled a voice in the back of Remus' mind. Werewolf.

Acting on a gut feeling, Remus released Crouch, though he kept his wand raised.

Crouch hunched against the trunk of the beech tree, looking wary. "What?"

"That's my question for you," said Remus. "We seem to be at an impasse. I want you expelled, but you are certain to retaliate against me if I turn you in. How do we resolve this matter?"

"We don't," snapped Crouch.

"That's one option," said Remus. "I would like to propose another."

Crouch lifted an eyebrow. "You're going to let me go?"

"I'm thinking about it. On two conditions."

"Let's hear them."

"First, you stop making students attack one another," said Remus. "That's what this comes down to, doesn't it? You wanted to Imperius me and make me attack somebody else."

Crouch gave a little jerk of the head that might have been a nod. That was as much confirmation as Remus needed.

"No more violence, Barty. That stops now. I'm giving you one chance to shape up, so don't waste it. In the future, if I hear you've so much as thought about resuming your little pastime, I'll go directly to Dumbledore."

Crouch licked his lips, mulling it over. "And the second condition?"

"I need to talk to the Grey Lady. You're going to arrange a meeting with her for me."

Remus was aware of how ridiculous the request sounded, and he wasn't surprised when Crouch laughed.

"You need to speak to a ghost? Whatever for?"

"It's nothing that concerns you," said Remus. "I know she prefers to speak only to members of her House. Can you convince her to talk to me?"

"I can try," said Crouch, looking at him curiously.

"Do we have an agreement, then?"

After a moment, Crouch nodded stiffly.

"Good." Remus reached into his back pocket and tossed Crouch his wand. He jerked his head towards the castle. "Now get out of my sight before I regret striking a deal with you."

Crouch scrambled away from the lake without so much as a backwards glance. Remus kept his wand trained on him, just in case. When Crouch had vanished from sight, he lowed his wand, sighing.

That could have gone better, he thought. If only Crouch weren't so damned clever. If only he hadn't guessed that Remus wasn't human, forcing him to make concessions.

Well, no use dwelling on it now. He stowed his wand and made his way back to the castle, feeling weary and uncertain if he'd made the right call. The moonless sky above, which had been so energizing moments ago, now seemed foreboding in its darkness.

Hopefully whatever new information they could gather on the diadem would be worth letting Crouch go free.

A/N: The next 3 chapters all take place around the Christmas holidays, making them quite timely! To take advantage of this coincidence, I'm planning to release all 3 by the new year (which is also the quickest update schedule The Mapmakers has ever had, so merry Christmas ya filthy animals!) These chapters feature a love confession, a dragon, and Proper Dark Magic, so get pumped :D

Thanks for reading, and a huge thanks to everyone who's left a review. Reviews are the fuel that keeps me chugging along, I appreciate them so much! Love to you all!