Remus stood up

Remus stood up. It was about 5:30 in the morning. His study was dimly lit by a few candles, and his wand. He had finished the book, and Dumbledore's reasoning made perfect sense to him. It all fit.

He walked to the window, opened it, leaned out, and whistled for his owl, which came promptly. Scribbling a quick note, he tied it to the owl's leg. 'Sherbet drop: Yes, I should think. I'll talk to him September the first. Moony.'

The brown owl flew off. Remus sharp eyes watched as it flew off in the darkness. He stroked his chin reflectively, fingering the beard that was beginning to grow there as a result of his neglecting to shave. He hadn't showered in nearly a week; Dumbledore's assignment was too vital to their cause. He and Dumbledore had been in close correspondence throughout the summer. Dumbledore had asked Remus to take up teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts again, and he had agreed. Sirius would share his quarters at Hogwarts, and be allowed to see Harry, providing that he not assume his true form unless he was in Dumbledore's office or where Remus was staying. Sirius would go to Hogwarts before he would, because it would look suspicious if a dog rode the Hogwarts Express.

He stretched as he went to take a shower. Emerging from the bathroom wearing clean robes and feeling thoroughly refreshed, he walked to the kitchen to get something to eat.

Sirius was there, staring into space.

"Hello," said Remus.

Sirius looked up. "Hello," he replied.

"How was Harry?" Remus asked cautiously.

"Fine…Well, I think he was fine…On the outside he seemed well enough."

"That's good." He doesn't know the half of it, thought Lupin miserably.

"Yeah, I suppose. You've come out of your study," Sirius observed.

"I finished the work."

"Find anything interesting?"

"Not really," he lied. I want to tell him, but I can't. I have to wait until it's affirmative. No use in getting him worked up or more worried than he already is.

"Oh. I wish Harry were here with us," Sirius said in a far-off tone, different than his normal one.

"So do I," admitted Remus. For many more reasons than you have, my friend. I have to get to him first, or all is lost. But I have to wait until September the first.

"But I'll get to see him in September, or sooner, if time allows," Sirius' voice interrupted Remus' thoughts.

If that's soon enough…Why does he have to shoulder such a big burden?

A FEW WEEKS LATER…

"Okay, just remember to say 'Diagon Alley' clearly," ordered Sirius. He had connected the Dursley's fireplace to the Floo Network, and had them stunned in the kitchen, so that they wouldn't make a fuss as he got Harry to Diagon Alley. (He would lift the spell and wipe their memories later.)

Harry had given Sirius his Gringotts key, and Remus had bought him school supplies from the many shops. Now he was going to meet the Grangers in Diagon Alley, and they would take him to King's Cross Station to catch the Hogwarts Express.

"I've got it!" said Sirius gleefully, prodding the fire with his wand. He hugged Harry, then threw some Floo Powder into the fireplace. "See you," he said.

Harry stepped into the fire and said "Diagon Alley!" loudly. He felt himself being turned around and began to get very dizzy, but just as he was about to throw up his breakfast, his feet touched solid ground.

He brushed off his clothes and looked around the Leaky Cauldron for Hermione.

She found him. The girl ran towards him and threw both her arms around his waist, sobbing.

Harry felt very strange indeed. Hermione was hugging him; she had broken down in a PUB? People were looking at them. He patted her head awkwardly. "Er, it's okay," he said, trying to comfort her.

"Oh god, Harry, I was so worried! With Ron dead, I thought…Well, it's not important what I thought. You're alive! You're all right! Wait…Are you all right?"

"Yeah, absolutely. You seem to be taking this worse than me."

"I liked him and I never told him!" she cried.

There're lots of things we don't tell people, thought Harry, but he didn't say it out loud. Instead he let her hug him and played the part of Sirius, running his hand up her back silently. Oops. Bra strap. He let his hand rest soothingly on the part of her back above the strap.

Finally she stopped. "Look at the time! We'd better get to King's Cross! My parents are waiting outside in their car." She pulled him out through the door, as people stared after them.

The ride to the station was uneventful, despite her parent's stabs at conversation.

"So, Harry, how was your summer?" Mrs. Granger had asked.

"Fine," Harry had replied.

"Are your relatives well?"

"Yes, thank you for asking." His answers were short but polite. He didn't care much for talking to other people about his personal experiences. He had been used to telling Ron everything…And he told Sirius some things, but he felt that he would become much closer to Hermione this year.

"Harry, guess what! I'm a Prefect!" said Hermione excitedly, apparently trying to get Harry out of the stupor he had sank into.

"That's great!" His voice was ecstatic, but his smile didn't carry to his eyes.

"Isn't it? I have a spiffy badge and we have our own compartment!"

Great, now she's leaving me for prefect-dom. What's the betting Malfoy's one too? "Wow!" he exclaimed enthusiastically. "So what exactly do you have to do?" he asked, feigning interest so as not to hurt her feelings.

"Oh, not much. Tell people off and keep my grades up."

"Sounds like you do that anyway…"

"Yep!" she replied brightly.

Just then, the car pulled into the station. Harry and Hermione loaded their trunks onto carts. Hermione and her parents bade each other farewell, then she and Harry ran into the barrier separating platforms nine and ten.

"Well, see you at Hogwarts," she said as they got on the train and she went to sit with the prefects.

"See you," agreed Harry. He dragged his trunk down the aisle, until he found an empty compartment. He shoved it into the overhead compartment (not so difficult this year because he was taller) and sat down inside. He didn't really feel like talking to anyone, so he stared out the window, musing about Cedric, Ron, and Hermione.

"Damn it!" said a very familiar voice outside. "Not one empty compartment! Well, let's try again, shall we?"

The door to Harry's compartment was opened and Harry found himself face to face with Remus Lupin.

"Oh, hello, Harry. Mind if I sit here?"

"Of course not, Professor," Harry said.

Lupin magicked his trunk into the overhead compartment, and sat down in the seat opposite Harry. "Long time, no see. Have a good summer?"

"Great, by my standards."

"Glad to hear it," said Lupin. He knew what that meant. "Er, Harry, we….by we I mean Professor Dumbledore and myself…think that you might have, shall we call it, a rare ability? But we're not sure, so…"

Harry stared at Lupin. This was a first. Someone coming straight out and telling him their suspicions. No, wait, he hasn't told me anything, just babbled senselessly.

"Would you mind shutting your eyes? It's the only way for me to find out if you have it."

"Okay," said Harry, closing his eyes.

"Do you see anything?"

"Black," said Harry. "Am I supposed to see anything else?"

"Yes, but wait a few moments, it might show up."

After a minute, Harry said, "Mist."

"Good. You're getting there. I want you to just try to imagine that the mist is everything. You're in the mist, the mist is the world, I don't exist, nothing exists. I'm not going to say anything now, just try to do that, and don't open your eyes until I tell you."

Okay, so the mist is the world…Suddenly, he felt himself being spun very rapidly. Was he upside down or right-side up? The mist was swirling around him. Long, delicate tendrils of fog reached out for him. But was it only mist…A tree met Harry's vision. A gnarled willow, drooping, sagging, it's branches touching the ground. And…a man.

"Harry," said the man.

Harry started. How did he know his name?

"We've been waiting a long time for you."

Harry looked around in surprise. He and the man were standing in a circular clearing, gravestones on the perimeter, as far as the eye could see. But none of this took away the shock of the man's chilling words:

"Welcome to the world of the dead."