Sorry for taking so long... again. I'm suffering from writer's block, and so I can't promise you that I'll update soon. But I'll try.

*Hands out chocolate cookies to reviewers*

Now, to each of you personally:

Ecavi: Yes, Remus mood will improve – I can't tell you when, but it will…

Ofiri: Good. I don't think I could use the address, but I'd like to know what they think…

Kimmaree: Glad that you like it!

Ivy Crane: Yes, poor Remus. I know I'm evil! ;-)

James-Padfoot: Thank you. And yes, I will keep it up. And I didn't forget about this "mark him as his equal" – another part that gave me headache, but it will happen, don't worry.

Munch: Glad that you felt it, it was meant to be sad. And I hope this was soon enough.

FallenAngel664: Remus will forgive Sirius – some time. But it takes time.

Kantomon: From now on, there will be more of Remus; there was just no way to put him in the story earlier.

Kaleigh: Glad that you like it. I'll keep writing, it may just take longer to update.

Estelle Took: Glad that you like it. And take care of Elwen. It won't be good if she burns this story…

SiriusWolf: Yes, they will one day get over this. To your other questions: wait and see. But I'm glad I made you curious for more! ;-)

Sabina M. Paveling: Well, I'd say committing suicide is an option, when the other choice is betraying your friends and then get killed. And yes, Sirius committing suicide would be an interesting idea, but it would have been stupid to kill him when there s another option. No reason t kill someone unnecessarily. And I don't think you could marry Remus: there are to many people with whom you'd have to fight for him. And greetings to June…

LM C: Well, Remus will get around, eventually. But Sirius thought he had betrayed them, so it will take time. And he is happy that Sirius is well, but he didn't have time to worry about him, he didn't know Sirius was captured, so the worry didn't influence his opinion so much. And in the books, Remus thought Sirius to be a traitor for twelve years, so I figured that would influence him, too.

ME: Here, you get another one! ;-)

So, if you want me to mail you when I update, just tell me in your review (don't forget your mailadress); or you could join my mailinglist. You can join it on my homepage… Oh, and to those who already asked me to mail them: Could you please do so again? I misplaced your addresses, sorry!

Now, on with the story…

Chapter 8

Sirius and Remus stood opposite of each other for quite some time, looking in the other's eyes. Finally Remus said something. "I'm not angry, just-" he didn't know how to explain. He took a deep breath, as he felt like he couldn't get enough air. "Things changed. Even between us. Peter's betrayal - our mistrust in each other - it will take some time to get over it." And then he added something that scared Sirius deeply. "If we ever get over it."

"Moony, please, don't say that. I understand that you need time, but what I thought... that wasn't because you are a werewolf!"

"Then why?" Lupin asked surprisingly calm.

"Well, I was sure it was one of the four of us. And it wasn't James, and it wasn't me either. And I believed that Peter had neither the nerves nor the intelligence needed to double cross the four of us – and even Dumbledore. (Better now?) Obviously I was wrong. I'm really sorry."

"Sirius, please, I think I need some time alone. I'll be seeing you tomorrow, when we all make plans because of Peter." With those words Remus turned around and left the room without looking back once.

That evening Sirius turned around in his bed for hours. And although he was still washed out and exhausted, he couldn't find sleep. Again and again he saw Remus' face, sadness in his eyes, without the sparkle it usually showed when in company of his friends. And Sirius was plagued by feelings of guilt. He was the reason those sparkles had disappeared. He had hurt his friend, deeply.

Finally exhaustion took over, and he fell into a light, unrestful slumber, that was plagued by nightmares. When he woke up early in the morning, he was hardly rested. Fortunately, Madam Pomfrey soon visited him and brought him breakfast. He used this opportunity to ask her for a dreamless sleep potion. She eyed him carefully, but then nodded without further questioning him, and fetched the potion. After what he had been through it wasn't unusual to have nightmares, but he couldn't afford to deal with them now; his body still needed rest to fully heal. After drinking the potion, Sirius slept through until almost noon.

And again he was awakened by Dumbledore, Remus and Snape.

"I'm sorry for disturbing you again, but we have to find a way to render Peter harmless. And we have to find a way to expose him, without Voldemort realizing that we knew Pettigrew is the traitor beforehand." Dumbledore started the discussion, as usual.

"We could tell Peter a lie. We could perhaps tell him that Sirius wasn't the secret-keeper; that I was. Then he tells Voldemort, and when the Death Eaters then try to kidnap me, some members of the Order will stand ready to catch them." Remus suggested. He had obviously thought about it before the meeting, and had come up with this idea.

"And you'll just tell Pettigrew, Lupin?" Snape asked pointedly.

"Well, he could get me drunk. Can't you make a potion that will neutralize the alcohol, Severus?"

Snape nodded his head slightly; he could indeed make such a potion.

"That's an idea. Has anyone else a suggestion?" asked Dumbledore.

Everyone shook their head no.

"Good, then Severus will start brewing the potion now, and I will now tell some members of the Order that I have a special mission for them. However, no one besides the three of us and Poppy shall know that Sirius is still alive. So far, we haven't seen him for quite some time, and hope he went into hiding. Okay?"

"It will take some time to prepare this potion, so you should wait a little until you inform them, Albus," Severus cut in. "I do have the ingredients in my lab, but the preparation needs time. We can do it in three days time; it will be ready by then."

"What do you mean, 'I have the ingredients in my lab'? You don't have your lab here, now do you?" Sirius asked, not sure of what to expect.

"Yes, I indeed have my lab here; I am the professor for Potions here in Hogwarts." Severus said with a small smile, knowing that Sirius would be not too pleased to hear that.

Actually, "not too pleased" was an understatement of Sirius' reaction. His eyes went wide, his face rather pale, and he opened his mouth, closed it again, before finally calming down and asking Dumbledore. "That's not true, is it? I mean - this is Snape, for God's sake. He was a Death Eater, and he loathes children. You can't possibly let him teach?"

"Sirius, you're being irrational. Severus was a Death Eater, yes, but he is now on our side. He even saved your life. And Hogwarts needs a Potion Master who knows what he is doing. So please, stop those arguments, we can't afford them at the moment." The Headmaster ordered the two men.

His usual amused twinkling had left his eyes, what made him look older, and stricter. "So, now that matter is settled, I'd say we all go do our work, and prepare ourselves. Have a good rest Sirius!"

Everyone except Sirius left the room, and the hospital wing once again became silent. Fortunately for them, no children were injured or had fallen ill the last days, so no one had yet discovered that a part of the hospital wing had been separated from the rest.

Three days later, in the evening, Remus and Peter sat at a table in Peter's flat. The empty bottles in front of them - 6 bottles of fine wine, and one started bottle of Fire whiskey - indicated that both of them were severely drunk by now.

"I'm afraid for Sirius!" Remus told his opposite confidentially. "Perhaps the bluff worked too well!"

"Which bluff?" Peter asked curiously - and the sparkle that appeared in his eyes would have told an observer that he wasn't half as drunk as he seemed. And Remus did notice, for he was immune to the alcohol, too, but he was careful enough not to let show what he had seen. Instead, he continued to play his role.

He looked down guiltily, and said "Please forget what I said, I can't talk about it; it is really nothing."

"You can't tell me, you mean."

"No. it's just- it's really nothing, okay? Just forget it. I've drunken a little too much, and I am worried about Sirius and James, and the whole situation, and am talking nonsense."

They sat there for some minutes, just looking into their glasses and saying nothing.

Then Peter started: "Perhaps. No, that's impossible!"

"Perhaps what?"

"Oh, I just thought, perhaps Sirius was the traitor."

"No, I don't think it was Sirius. I rather think it's one of the Order."

"You're right, Sirius wouldn't. And besides, if he were, than James and Lily were dead by now, weren't they?"

Remus looked as if he wanted to comment on that, but then he didn't. He just stood up, and put his empty glass on the table.

"Well, I think I'll best be going. Can I take some of your Floo-Powder? I think it wouldn't be such a good idea to apparate right now." Remus asked. He had said enough to make Peter think. Now he just had to go and wait.

"Of course, take as much as you like!"

Remus went to the fireplace, took some of the Floo-Powder Peter had in an old jar-glass over the fireplace, threw a handful into the fire, went into the fireplace and said loud: "Merlinstreet 15!"

Then he disappeared, and Peter suddenly stood up, now appearing completely sober, and went to the fireplace, too. There he made the exact same movements Remus had done seconds before, but he didn't stand in the fire before he said : "Lucius Malfoy!".

Malfoy's head appeared in the fire a short while later.

"What do you want?"

"Hello, Lucius, short as always, no?" a short, nervous laughter came from Peter, while Malfoy stayed serious, looking even a little bored.

"Ah, well, Remus was here just now, and he made some comments."

"Yes?"

"Well, it could be that Sirius was just bluffing, and in truth Remus is the secret-keeper."

"Are you sure?"

"Well, quite. He didn't say it openly of course, for this he wasn't drunken enough" - again a hysterical laughter - "but he hinted at it."

"I will tell the Lord!" With those words Malfoy's head disappeared.