Remus waited in the dingy office for the secretary to appear. There were soda bottles, old Witch Weekly s and boot tracks all over the floor. Maybe they didn't have enough gold to hire a janitor, but someone could at least tidy the place up a bit. However, he immediately felt ashamed at thinking it, seeing himself in his best suit, which wasn't exactly the best. It was frayed at the hem, the knees, and most embarrassingly, the crotch. A few buttons were missing on the vest as well and the black pattern had long faded to gray. He supposed he would fit right in, then. It had been Lily that had always motivated him to tidy and to clean, but she wasn't here and he was trying to abolish all thoughts of her.

He was startled out of his brooding by an owl rapping on the grimy window. He recognized it as a Hogwarts school owl and wondered how it got so lost. He nearly broke the glass trying to force it open, but it unjammed and the owl swooped in and hovered for a moment, dropped its letter into Remus' hands and swooped out again in less than five seconds.

Remus examined the prize:

To Remus J. Lupin

St. Hera's School of Remedial Magic

The Main Office

Dear Remus,

I regret to receive your resignation and hope that the second enclosed letter will help you in your acquisition of a new position at St. Hera's. I have long been a private benefactor of the place and know you will serve it well. I hope you will continue correspondence whenever possible but I will not impose on you.

Sincerely and fondly,

Albus PWB Dumbledore

Dear Mrs. Victoria Glenn-Caster,

I am writing on the behalf of my friend and associate Remus Lupin. In employing him in the services of St. Hera's, he will surely benefit the students and the faculty in his practical and reasoning abilities. He has received Excellents in both his O.W.L.s and N.E.W.T.s in Defense Against the Dark Arts curriculum. I highly recommend him for this post if it is not already occupied. He is also a former Auror and has shown extreme aptitude in application of Defense. I am reluctant to give him up but he was insistent on coming to St. Hera's. I wish him well and wisdom on your part in choosing him.

Much oblige,

Albus PWB Dumbledore

Headmaster of Hogwarts

"So sorry, did I keep you waiting?" asked the lady at the desk. She was a ghost, no doubt, transparent as the glass (I apologize for the poor simile; the glass as stated before was rather grimy). Her hair was old fashioned, twisted and tightly piled atop her head which made Remus think of her as a slightly pompous Professor McGonnagal. Her glasses had cat eyes and her gown was extremely horrendous, flower in pattern and frilly in texture. She also had one, big, fat mole beneath her lips that one couldn't help staring at for a moment. "Can I help you?"

"Yes, I'm here to apply for a position. I saw the ad in the Daily Prophet."

"Ah, right this way. My name is Vicky Glenn-Caster. Can I interview you now?" she asked.

"Yes, please," he said, nodding vigorously. He followed her into the copy room where a card table and folding chairs had been set up. She sat down and he followed suit on the other side of the table.

"Now, your name is-?"

"Remus Lupin, from London. And I have a letter of recommendation." He handed her the letter, still disbelieving of his luck and Dumbledore's sheer brilliance, fine timing, and exaggeration in good taste.

"Aha, very nice," she commented. "We think very well of Headmaster Dumbledore. He has always been, as some say, our 'panic button'. He comes through in emergencies. Anyway, what former situations have you held, Mr. Lupin?"

"Not many. I was an Auror-in-training at the Ministry and, shall we say, an agent of Dumbledore. I'm only two years out of Hogwarts, Mrs. Glenn-Caster."

"Two years? How old are you?" she asked.

"Twenty-one."

"Twenty-one years old! Goodness, you look ten more than that."

"Having the two jobs gave me excess stress," Remus lied casually. "The division was more than I could handle, so I decided to come to St. Hera's. I needed to get away from the city."

Mrs. Glenn-Caster looked suspicious, an expression that was peculiar on a ghost. She titled her head from side to side looking at him.

"You left a high-paying career in the Ministry and direct protection from Dumbledore to come to St. Hera's?"

"Actually, it's a little more complicated than that," said Remus. He hoped to lace together two truths with one lie. "I stated before that I was Dumbeldore's agent, no? This town, and possibly school, has hints of Dark loyalty. He wanted me to investigate and monitor the situation long-term. He wrote me a letter of recommendation to help me get a job here."

"So Dumbledore's sent his spy to sniff out my students and staff?" said Mrs. Glenn-Caster.

"What if someone inside the school is recruiting disciples of Voldemort? Would you risk it?" asked Remus, leaning forward.

"Look, Mr. Lupin. It does not seem to me that this arrangement is going to work. You have obviously given up much to come to St. Hera's for a position assigned by Dumbledore. I will tell Dumbledore all of our positions are full and you can go back to the Ministry."

"Ma'am," pleaded Lupin. "I asked for this assignment."

"Why?"

"It's my lady love," blurted Lupin. God smite me, he thought. "You see, I'm a werewolf. I loved her very much but she became frightened and I could never persuade her to come back to me. I had to leave London because she was there and I came to teach here. It's sort of a purging, in a way."

"Poor thing," sighed Mrs. Glenn-Caster with huge pity eyes, and Remus knew he was in. "Ah well, your credentials are excellent, Dumbledore certifies you, and you'll be helping to keep the students safe, I think. I believe a post is open for you as a double Transfiguration and Defense teacher. It's quite a bit of work, and the pay isn't excellent. But you're young, you'll bounce back, and hopefully other teachers will apply to help share the burden."

Double classes? Remus winced at the thought but quickly stood up and shook Mrs. Glenn-Caster's hand, then forgot she was a ghost as his hand felt like he had just stuck it in a freezer.

"Sorry," he said quickly, yanking his hand back.

"No problem," said with a shadow of a laugh. "You're the first to try all summer. Well, you've come at an inopportune time. Classes don't resume until the middle of August. The best I can do is give you to our Potions Master as a teaching assistant. It'll be good for you to get used to the students and practice the skill. You'll be learning as well as teaching."

"Great. When do I start?"

Remus' finger tips were bright red from burned away skin. The chemicals were not exactly meant to touch. But he gazed in pride at the entire countertop of glass flasks that were spotless. He looked around for something that could treat his sore phalanges but nothing was in sight.

Suddenly the door to the classroom was opened and two giggling women entered. One was so small he thought she was a child of ten before he saw the defined features on her face. The other was angel-like with long, thick, white hair that was bound at her neck. Despite the color, she was quite young, if possibly younger than Remus.

"Oh, hello," said the small one in a high voice. "Is Professor Abergane in?"

"No, he stepped out to get some coffee," said Remus. He was slightly bitter that he had been left to clean two hundred potion holders. "Maybe I could help you. I'm his new TA, Remus Lupin."

"Most happily met, Mr. Lupin," said the small woman with a gracious smile. "My name is Professor Fiona Flitwick."

"Flitwick!" Remus exclaimed in pleasant surprise. "Are related to the Professor Flitwick at Hogwarts, the Charms instructor?"

"He is my uncle, yes. And I teach the same subject. This is my colleague, Professor Anne Castor."

"Nice to make your acquaintance," said the white-haired woman. "I am the Astronomy teacher here at St. Hera's."

"Good to meet you," said Remus, nodding.

"We were going to ask Professor Abergane, but perhaps you could concoct us the Draught of the Living Dead?" asked Castor.

"That's a N.E.W.T level potion," said Remus knowledgably. "It'll be ready in five minutes, if you want to stick around." He snapped his fingers and a flask flew into his hand. It was a parlor trick that Remus had learned from Dumbledore, but it was nonetheless impressive. He had to manually search for the ingredients, though. He lit a fire under a cauldron and lit the vinegar simmer. "So how has your summer been?" he asked conversationally.

"Unkind," said Fiona with a sigh, and sat upon one of the stools next to the lab station. "Last week we were in Drakshire and the fare was poor. We caught two measly ones and by misfortune, the alpha male. He hasn't stopped fighting since the net was put over his head. It's what the draft is for."

"Do you mean dragons!" exclaimed Remus and Fiona nodded. "Goodness, what do you need dragons for?"

"We harvest the whole package," said Professor Castor. "Horn, headstrings, heartstrings, saliva, digestion, brain, lungs, blood, liver and hide. It's a fundraiser and a practical activity for students. We're hoping to start a breeding program next year. We've got a female in the dungeon which has already had her pyroectomy, but we can't get close enough to the male to do the same operation."

Professor Flitwick wiggled her fingers for Remus, displaying the burn bandages wound around her fingers.

"May I ask a question?" asked Remus.

"Certainly," said Professor Castor.

"How will you hide the dragons from the Muggles? Isn't half of the town Muggle populated?"

"An excellent point, Mr. Lupin," said Anne. Her voice was smooth and deep. "However, St. Hera's is large enough to hold one hundred dragons inside its keep without the notice of any outside."

Remus raised his eyebrow thinking about that claim. From the outside he had seen the total of the school—not anything like Hogwarts in appearance, nothing regal or impressive, perhaps it had twenty classrooms. If one dragon was inside, it would probably set the building on fire.

"I can't imagine that," said Remus with a frown. "St. Hera's has plenty of room for its students and staff, but for dragons?"

"You haven't been to the dungeon yet, I take it, Mr. Lupin?" asked Professor Castor mildly.

"No, ma'am."

"It might be safe to say St. Hera's is like an iceberg...you are sitting on only the tip."