Disclaimer All HP characters belong to J K Rowling. I am not profiting monetarily from this, but I am having fun. I have borrowed all the characters in the story (Except Lorien - I only borrowed her name) and will send them on their way at the end.

A/N: Here you go Harue.

A Wolf at the Door ~*~

It was several days prior to the start of the new school year at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry, and the headmaster sat at his desk reading the headlines of The Daily Prophet. As he sat humming to himself, he realized that he was reading some of the same things over again, his mind too distracted with other matters to have absorbed them the first time. He pushed the paper away from him and rose from his desk. Crossing to the nearby window, he stood gazing out at the clear blue sky.

A knock at the door brought him out of his reverie. He smiled to himself, and then to his visitor as the younger man outside his office entered.

"Remus, my friend," Dumbledore began warmly. "How are you? Safe trip?" He grasped the professor's hand firmly and clapped him affectionately on the shoulder with his free hand.

"Fine, Albus. And you?" The younger mage looked a little pale, but the soft gray eyes were bright as he smiled back.

"Fine, fine. I can't tell you how glad I am to see you, and I can't thank you enough, Remus. I hope you know how much I appreciate you returning. Sit." Dumbledore indicated a chair.

The two men sat together.

"You know that I'm glad to help," Lupin began. "Besides, there are not many places I'd rather be, and you know I love teaching."

"Yes, that I do. I want you not to worry, Remus. We've taken all the precautions," Dumbledore said reassuringly.

"And Severus? He's helping?" Remus sounded concerned.

"I've already spoken to Severus. He'll brew the wolfsbane potion as needed."

"I bet he's thrilled." Lupin grinned.

"He'll get over it. Are you settled back in?" The headmaster asked.

"Yes, and I have a few days to get all my lesson plans in order," replied Lupin.

"Good. Any news? Have you talked to Snuffles?" The white-haired wizard grew slightly more solemn.

"We've been in touch. He's fine but not much else to report," the younger wizard sighed.

"Remus, you look tired from your trip. Do me a favor. Take this class schedule down to the hospital ward and have Mistress Lorien take a look at you," said Dumbledore.

"Sorry?" Lupin wasn't sure who he was referring to.

"The new Healer. She's here while Poppy is on leave with her sister," he explained.

Lupin gave a tired smile. "Really, Albus, I'm fine."

"She's really very nice, and quite talented from what I hear," Dumbledore said.

"It's ok, I....

"I believe she's about your age, Remus." Dumbledore looked amused at something. "She's blonde, quite attractive really."

Lupin eyed the headmaster with suspicion. "She doesn't really need a copy of this, does she?" he asked.

Dumbledore shrugged.

"She's single." The headmaster smiled.

"Honestly, Albus." Lupin feigned exasperation.

Dumbledore sat patiently, still smiling slightly.

"Merlin's wand, Albus! Do I just walk in and say 'Hi. I'm Remus Lupin, and I'm a werewolf. Care to have tea sometime?'" Lupin gave a strained laugh.

The older wizard smiled kindly.

"Go meet her. It's good that she gets to know who all the professors are anyway," he said quietly. "Decide later about asking her to tea." The blue eyes twinkled.

"Fine." Lupin rose from his chair, taking the parchment the headmaster offered him.

"Oh, and Remus?" he added when the younger wizard's hand was on the door.

"Yes?"

"Leave out the wolf part, just for now."

Lupin rolled his eyes and sighed, but Dumbledore could see the faint smile as he turned and walked out.

The dungeon at Hogwarts was quiet during the summer. Very quiet. Exactly the way the Potions master liked it.

"Umbra."

He stepped through the doorway carrying ingredients for the potion he was about to begin and set them out at the large table in the front part of the room.

"Caligo." The torches in the smaller chamber sputtered and ignited. He pulled a small odd-looking key out of a pocket in his robe. The lock clicked and he gave the dark lacquered door a quick shove. It popped open.

He frowned as he reached inside to grab the dried Aconitum.

'Unthinkable that I'm going to have to do this every month'.

He often questioned the headmaster's decision concerning the werewolf, but in the end he knew he would do as Dumbledore wished. He was motivated not by concern for his old schoolmate, but out of respect for the white-haired mage.

He threw the cabinet door shut and returned to the cauldron and the table. He was still grumbling internally as he reached for the knife, the mortar, and the pestle and set them out as well. He needed to have everything ready. It was a complex potion requiring many components that had to be added with precise measurement and rapid-fire timing.

He chopped, and ground, and peeled and measured. And measured again. When he was satisfied that all the preparations were in order, he began.

It was then that the transformation took place. His brow furrowed once again, but now in concentration.

He spoke but a word and kindled the blaze.

He lifted the first ingredient deftly and sprinkled it over the steaming cauldron. The water turned black. His slender dexterous fingers moved to the next vial, the next powder, the next herb, setting up a mesmerizing rhythm that continued as the seemingly endless array of components began to dwindle. The contents of the cauldron went gray, then blue, then a sickly milky color.

He came, at last, to the final ingredient, the powdered wolfsbane, and eyeing it carefully one last time cast it into the cauldron. The surface of the simmering liquid flashed briefly as the last, potent ingredient made contact.

He counted to five.

And the milky swirl before him went crystal clear.

It was done.

Severus Snape ran a hand back through his black hair, slightly damp from the issuing steam. The smallest of smiles tugged at the corner of his mouth. It was perfect.

The Master of Potions was finished.

Lorien sat in the small office reading the letter that had already arrived from Poppy Pomfrey. More reminders. More suggestions. The blonde witch rolled her eyes.

'We'll see how many reminders you send in a week when the twins arrive'.

She smiled at the thought of the older witch bustling about and focusing her energy on her sister and two new additions to the Pomfrey clan.

Thud, thud, thud.

"Hello?" a man's voice called out softly.

"In here." Lorien got up from her seat and went to the door of the office. The sleeve of her robe swept across the desk as she rose, and she had a brief glimpse of a handsome young wizard with light brown hair as she bent to retrieve the flurry of parchment that tumbled to the floor.

"Oops. Excuse me a moment," she said with a laugh as she leaned down.

Remus Lupin regarded the young healer with interest and faint amusement as she reached about her snatching up paper. 'That old fox. Dumbledore was right'.

Lorien stood up with an armful of recaptured parchment.

He was looking at her, smiling , with his head tipped slightly to the side, reminding her of a dog contemplating a familiar word from its master.

"Hello, I'm Grace." She poked fun at herself as she walked over to stand near him. "No, really, I'm Lorien Desjardins."

"Nice to meet you." His voice was soft, as were the gray eyes that met hers. "I'm Remus Lupin."

"You're teaching Defense, right?" Lorien asked him.

"Yes," he replied.

"You've taught it here before?" She remembered Poppy said something about it.

"Yes, two years ago," he answered.

"Well, Remus Lupin, I should warn you that I've heard lots about you," Lorien teased.

"Anything good?" he asked.

"Maybe," she said slyly.

"Anything bad?" He wanted to know.

"Mmmm..." She hesitated, teasing him.

He laughed.

"Well, if you're still standing here talking to me you can't have heard the worst," he said with a smile.

"You mean the full moon business?" she said softly.

His face dropped

"You already know?" he asked.

"It's not much of a secret anymore, is it?" Lorien spoke in a kind voice.

"I suppose not." He looked serious.

"Tell me, are you pretty nice the rest of the time?" She was teasing him again.

"Saintly." He looked a little more cheerful.

"Well, then Saint Remus, how about having tea on the lawn with me?" Lorien asked.

"I'd love to," he admitted.

Lorien walked with the Defense professor across the lawn to where she had left her things.

"We'll have to conjure another....oh!" She was surprised at finding two chairs and two glasses at her table.

"Did you just do that?" She eyed the additions.

"What?" he asked.

"The second chair?" She indicated the addition at the table.

"No." He looked innocent.

"Right," she laughed.

Remus let it go at that because he had a strong suspicion that he knew where the second chair came from. He glanced in the direction of the tower window.

Lorien spent the better part of an hour talking with Remus out on the lawn. She found him easy to talk to with a dry sense of humor, and she found herself smiling often during their conversation.

He filled her in on why the DADA position had been vacated so frequently, and told her that it was his love of teaching that had finally overcome his fear of returning.

"Why would you be afraid to return?" Lorien asked.

"My greatest worry is that there could be.....um.....complications from having a werewolf present at Hogwarts."

"I can understand your anxiety, but surely things will be fine with the proper measures taken," she said.

"I believe so. Unfortunately the full moon arrives in just over a week, so we'll hardly have started the term when I will be incapacitated for a bit."

Lorien looked concerned. "You'll need to start taking the wolfsbane potion soon," she observed.

"Yes, Professor Snape is already seeing to it's preparation," Remus assured her.

Lorien suddenly chuckled.

"What?" asked Remus

"Nothing. It's just, well, I had the pleasure of making Snape's acquaintance yesterday," she told him.

"I see." Remus smiled wryly.

"Poppy told me he could be a bit intense. I'd say. He nearly scared me senseless in the dungeon," said Lorien.

"You went to the dungeon?" he asked curiously.

"Yes. I had to get something out of the supply room in the potions lab," she said.

"Did he give you a hard time when you asked for it?" Remus sounded a tiny bit concerned.

"I didn't know that I had to ask first. Poppy had said....."

"What?" Remus cut her off. "Don't tell me you went and took something out of his stores without asking!?" He was grinning. "And you lived to tell the tale. Brave girl!"

"Not brave, just uninformed. Snape was good enough to inform me of the error of my ways. I have promised to be better in the future," Lorien said with mock solemnity.

Remus suddenly looked at her soberly.

"Lorien, be sure you take Severus Snape seriously. True, he does bark a lot, but I believe he has even more bite." Remus seemed quite serious.

"I know, Remus. I'm afraid that it's inevitable that I'll have to deal with him. There are some potions that I can brew myself, but many of the more potent ones are beyond my capabilities. The wolfsbane potion for example. Have you ever actually seen anyone make it, Remus?" Lorien asked.

"No. I confess I haven't."

"It's a monster. I've only ever seen it made once. Only the most talented Potion masters will attempt it. I suppose we are lucky that Snape teaches at Hogwarts."

"Do I have to say yes?" Remus lightened the mood once more. "How about 'hmmm'. That's sufficiently non-committal."

Lorien found herself laughing again.

Remus Lupin found that he liked her laugh.