Thank you so much 'James Birdsong' for reviewing! Sorry I have to proclaim it here as you are a guest so I cannot PM you. However, I really wanted to show my gratitude. It literally makes my day when people review.

Also, lil' POV change this chapter, because I can.

Remus felt uneasy. He had been feeling uneasy for weeks now, ever since Sirius had come back. Pleased as he was to see him, Remus couldn't help thinking that things had just got so much more complicated since Sirius had come back. He had been happy, sort of, being in denial, pretending that none of it had ever happened. And now he had to face all of the thoughts and feelings he had been repressing for so long. It made him uneasy.

He felt like his head was stuck in the past. The memories, suppressed so long, kept flooding back in. They were still painfully vivid, even after all this time.

But right now, he had an excuse to push it all out of his mind again. He had a task. Remus relished it, being able to turn his mind to other things. He had to get the marauder's map off Harry. If Harry even had it. Sirius was sure about it. but then, Sirius had always been sure about everything. Sure that they would all make it through the war. Sure that Peter had been the best person to act as secret keeper. Sure, that going to kill him was the best course of action.

Remus waited for Harry after class. The class had flown by, Remus always forgot how fun teaching could be. Especially with his Gryffindor class. Not as hard working as the Hufflepuffs but just as enthusiastic. He was taken by surprise when the bell rang.

"Well, that's all we have time for today," there was a scraping of chairs as everybody stood up to leave, "wait a minute," Remus stopped them, "I've marked your essays. And you have homework."

The class groaned, all except Hermione, who pulled out a folder labelled 'Old Essays' from her bulging bag.

"Oh, thank goodness," she said, "I've been worrying about that essay all week. Don't you just find it hangs over you, if you haven't got the result?"

Ron snorted, "No. Honestly Hermione, you're going to get full marks anyway, don't worry."

She smiled at him gratefully.

"Well, I really want to see where I'm going wrong. I've started writing my revision timetable you see..." she continued earnestly, not noticing that Ron was trying very hard not to laugh.

Remus handed the essays out quickly, fully aware that his students would want to miss their break time.

"Once you've got your essay you can go," he told them, "homework is to go down to the lake and see if you can spot any mermaids. Try greeting them like I taught you and make notes of your observations."

"What if we don't see any?" Seamus Finnigan asked.

"If you use the right pronunciation in your Mermish greeting, then you almost certainly will," Remus replied. He smiled, "but if not, just make it up."

Seamus looked shocked, and Hermione looked outraged, though she cheered up when she saw the mark on her essay.

"Full marks?" Ron peered over at it, "told you so."

"Harry, will you wait behind please," Remus called, seeing that Harry, clutching his essay, was surreptitiously sidling toward the door. Harry stepped back to wait by the door of the classroom, looking nervous.

Remus was about to call him over to the desk when the round face of Neville Longbottom appeared in front of him.

"Please Professor," he fiddled with the cuff of his robes nervously, "I've finished the book you leant me on magical marine plants."

"Already?"

"Yes. It was really interesting. Do you have anymore?"

"Well Mr Longbottom, if you want another book on the same thing, I would suggest going to Professor Sprout. She'll be able to give you something of the right level of detail."

Neville looked anxious. Well, more anxious than normal.

"I can speak to her for you if you like," Remus offered.

Neville nodded gratefully.

"Well done on the essay!" Remus called as he hurried out of the room.

He turned to Harry, who was still standing sheepishly by the door.

"Sorry about that Harry. I've got to get more organised when it comes to ending lessons on time."

Harry grinned, then looked serious, "I'm sorry about the essay Professor Lupin, Quidditch practice is really intense at the moment and I just haven't had much time."

"Don't worry about its Harry, the standard of your work is perfectly fine on average, and that's what matters. You've clearly understood the concept here, the essay is just a little…"

"Rushed?"

"Yes, a bit," Remus agreed, "but that's not what I wanted to talk to you about."

Harry read the gravity of the situation in his face, "What is it?"

"I have reason to believe you have come into possession of a certain magical object."

"No offence Professor, but you're going to have to be a bit more specific than that," Harry said.

"A map."

Harry looked shocked, "How?"

"Sirius," Lupin explained, thinking it was unfair to leave Harry in the dark, "don't be angry with him though," he said quickly, "he's just worried. That map is dangerous Harry."

"I thought you made it?" Harry looked defiant.

Remus deeply regretted not getting more information out of Sirius, but it hadn't felt right to quiz him on his private conversation with his godson.

"So, I know better than anyone else how dangerous it is," he kept his voice measured. Inwardly, he was really rethinking this plan. Why didn't he just tell Harry the truth, that they needed the map to try and find Peter? He opened his mouth, then shut it. He didn't want Harry to go after Peter and get himself killed. He hadn't been able to stop Sirius, but he could stop anyone else getting harmed. He stuck to the original plan, "there's a reason why we hid it in Filches office Harry."

Harry still looked angry. Fine. Angry was better than dead. Remus tried to block out the images of all the corpses he had seen in his life, at least half of them of people he loved, but the pictures flooded his mind. They strengthened his resolve.

"You have to give it to me Harry," he said.

"But…"

"I can make it safe for you to use in the future," Remus found himself saying, "you have a right to it, after all."

Harry looked as shocked as Remus felt. But he realised he had said the right thing. And he hadn't technically lied. The map would be safe for Harry to use if Peter wasn't on it. it might even keep him safer in the future. And Harry did have a right to it. the Marauders were over, and it was time for the next generation to take over.

"Thank you, Professor," Harry started rummaging in his bag. He still looked shocked but seemed to want to hurry up before Remus changed his mind.

"I'll teach you how to modify it," Remus told him, as he handed the map back to him, "you're Patronus is coming on really well, and we'll need something to do in our lessons. I'm sure there are secrets in the castle that even we didn't find."

"I've got some ideas," Harry gave a small grin.

…

They met in the cave. Remus was grateful for the presence of Sirius. He had always felt like a bit of a third wheel around Crowley and Fell. The two of them shared something, something old and completely ineffable.

"So?" Sirius really reminded him of a dog, eager and excited. He was more like a dog now than he had been before. Azkaban had forced him to cling to that part of himself, the part that the dementors couldn't get to.

Remus produced the map and Sirius grabbed it off him. Remus felt memories wash over him, drowning reality for a minute. All the times Sirius had grabbed the map, when they were planning pranks, or spying on Severus, or checking whether or not the way to the kitchen was clear. He forced himself back to reality.

Sirius was bent over the map, his dirty hair falling on either side of it like a curtain. He pressed his wand to the centre of the paper.

"I solemnly swear I am up to no good."

Crowley doubled over laughing. Aziraphale gave him a disapproving look, but he could help the corners of his mouth twitching. Remus laughed too. It sounded so ridiculous now. At the time, they had thought that they were so cool. He was going to have to change the activation words. How to do it was ingrained in his memory, probably from the number of times he had had to change them back when the only way to open the map had somehow become, 'Severus Snape is an asshat'.

Crowley had stopped laughing now, staring intently at the map.

"Wow," he breathed. He looked up at Remus, "this is actually very clever."

"Why do you assume it was all him?" Sirius looked up from the map for a minute, "I made some valuable contributions to making this map."

"Really?"

"It was Sirius' idea to track all the people going round the school," Remus confirmed. People tended to underestimate Sirius, but he was actually very talented.

"Because that's not creepy at all," Crowley said, turning back to the map.

"Can you see him?" Aziraphale asked.

Sirius was frantically turning the map this way and that, folding and unfolding it along its many creases to reveal new sections of the castle and its grounds. Suddenly Crowley's arm shot out, holding the map still.

"It's him," Aziraphale gasped.

"Where is he?" Remus asked eagerly, peering over the map too.

"It looks like…Hagrid's hut," Aziraphale looked up. his face was pale with shock; his eyes were bright with excitement.

There was complete silence for a minute, in which the only sound was the wind in the hills around the cave.

"You don't think Hagrid…" Aziraphale started to go on, but Remus stopped him.

"Hagrid wouldn't do that, not on purpose," he said.

He remembered one night, when the full moon had been particularly rough, he had gone afterwards to see Hagrid, not wanting to wait until Madame Pomfrey came to take him back to the castle. he had told the gamekeeper everything, and Hagrid had made him a cup of tea. They had sat by the fire with Fang, till the sun rose properly and it was time to return to the castle. He would never forget that night, when he had been so afraid, of himself, of what he was. Hagrid had provided him with comfort in that dark time, and he refused to believe that he would ever intentionally do anything to harm anyone, especially not Harry.

"Yeah," Sirius agreed fervently, "either Peter has tricked him into thinking he's innocent, and on the run or something, or Peter's hiding there in his Animagus form."

"Well," Remus said, "we'll have to find out."

"Let's go tomorrow," Aziraphale suggested, "it's a Saturday, so we'll have plenty of time. Crowley and I will go, so that Pettigrew doesn't suspect anything."

They agreed to the plan, though Sirius didn't like it. Remus wished he could be involved in capturing Peter, but he agreed that it was best if just Aziraphale and Crowley went. He could always confront Peter afterwards. They had plenty to catch up on…

…

He stayed in the cave afterwards, when Aziraphale and Crowley had stepped out into the night. He often stayed with Sirius, sometimes even all night. He felt like it did something to make up for the lost time, and it felt something like being back, before the war, when everything had been easy.

"I wish we could go to," Sirius burst out, pulling Remus out of his thoughts. He had been away in happier times, nights like this in the shrieking shack, with his friends around him, waiting to transform so the fun could begin.

"Yeah," Remus agreed reluctantly, "but it's better this way."

"Is it though? Peter's clever, he could give them the slip."

"He's not as clever as Aziraphale and Crowley."

Sirius glared at him. He didn't like it when Remus didn't take his side. Remus remembered when they were younger, and Sirius would get angry with him for taking James' side on an argument and wouldn't speak to him for days. It was always Sirius, though, who broke first, realised he was wrong, and sought Remus out to apologise.

"Why are you just taking this Moony? We deserve to be the ones who get him, who bring him to justice."

The room seemed to jolt as a wave of anger washed over Remus.

"I just think that it's better that Peter goes behind bars and Harry is safe, than we get revenge on a stupid coward."

"Don't be like that," Sirius shifted, no longer leaning toward Remus, but away.

"Just because I'm doing what's right for everyone and not just what suits Sirius Black."

He didn't raise his voice, but the words came out in a snarl. He felt the wolf within him rising up. Wolves are pack animals, and they look after their own.

Sirius bit back an angry retort, forcing himself to stay calm.

"I don't understand why you're getting so upset Moony," he said, raising an eyebrow.

"Because I care about Harry. And…" Remus swallowed hard, "because I care about you. I don't want to lose you again Padfoot."

Sirius' face softened, "I thought… after all this time…"

"I didn't think it would be right," Remus admitted, "you know, to just pick up where we left off. It's been so long, and everything has changed. But nothing's changed as well."

He didn't know what to say, how to explain, so he leaned forward and kissed Sirius. It was the best way he could think of to communicate all he wanted to say.

And it worked. Sirius understood. He slid his hands into Remus' hair and held him close. And Remus felt his mind slip back in time, to so many other moments like this, before spiralling back to the present, because this time was different again, and infinitely special.

Yes. I ship Wolfstar. I can't write romance though, so I was a bit worried about putting this in here. Let me know what you think.