A/N: THIS IS THE END!!! Thank you, all. It has been so touching to have people listen to what I have to say, for once.

Chapter X: An Offer, and Moving On

I woke up in the hospital wing. It was early afternoon. Dumbledore was sitting next to me, staring out the window.

"Professor," I croaked, "do you want to talk to me?"

He shook himself and looked at me. "Yes, that is why I am here. But drink before listening." He poured me a glass of water, and I drank. "If James had waited one more day, you would have died." For a moment, I loathed James. Then I remembered what he had said. Dumbledore settled himself more comfortably in his chair. "Remus James Lupin," he said, "I think you are the unluckiest student ever to come to this school since I became headmaster."

"You didn't really need to tell me that, Professor," I pointed out dryly.

"I suppose not. However, it is imperative we start with that. You had a difficult condition placed upon you at a very early age, and then were bereft of the three most important people in your life." I couldn't remember what "bereft" meant, exactly, but I got the gist. "You have been tested as I have not been, and I think that many would have simply given up hope and died. Despair, Remus, is only for those who see the end beyond any doubt, and none, not even those skilled in divination, may do so. The only two true strengths in a man are hope and love. Both can be taken, both can be renewed, even when it seems impossible. But I cannot give you hope. I can give you reason to hope, but you must find it in yourself to carry on. There is hope for everyone, Remus; one just has to find it. We can all hope for something better."

I had heard from one or two others about Dumbledore's philosophical ramblings, but had never been on the receiving end of one before now. Far from being dull, it was soothing. "Thank you, Professor," I said out of lack of something better to say. He smiled, as if he knew that was why I had said that. "How long have I been here?"

"Three days. We have excused you from classes again, so there is no guilt to be handed out."

Suddenly I remembered something rather uncomfortable. "Professor, what if I don't get a house before school is over? Where will I go? I had been going to stay with Lia, but…I don't think I could face Darryn, and I don't want to press on her mother."

Dumbledore glanced toward the door. "Would you mind," he half-whispered, "staying at the headquarters of a secret society? It could be done, with the proper promises in order."

"Well, what kind of secret society?"

"I will understand completely if you do not wish to come. It is the Order of the Phoenix, and Voldemort had your parents killed because he found out they were in it. Its business is secretly protecting the world from Voldemort and his supporters."

"If I decide to stay there, will I be part of it?"

"You would have to agree to do so after we decided in council whether you were suitable. You are certainly suitable, I think I can safely say, but you will only be in it if you decide to be."

I thought about that. I could probably back out if I decided to, and camp out at James' for a few weeks—not Peter's. He set my teeth on edge, and he would insist that I was his god the whole time I was there. "I think so. If I decide not to, I'll let you know."

"Good enough. Is there anything you wish to tell me?" That could be his slogan.

"No, sir."

"Then I will see you tonight or tomorrow." As he went out the door, he said to me, "I forbid you to hurt yourself."

"Don't worry. I've learned." Madam Davison gave me a quick look over, then proclaimed me "more than sixty percent." I assumed that she meant I was well enough, and she sent me out.

At breakfast the next day, Lily came over to us and sat, oddly enough, next to me and across from James.

"Hi," I said dully.

"Hi," she answered. She didn't look very good; her nose was blotchy and her eyes were red. "Well, after I found out that Lia had…well, I went through her trunk to see if she had anything that she had labeled, like presents and letters. This was for you. There were a few other things, but they were things I don't think she actually meant for you to see." We laughed mirthlessly. She gave me a small green box. It said Moony, my husband in gold letters on the top. I blinked tears away.

"Thank you," I rasped.

"If you ever want to talk, I'm here, Moony." She kissed me, right there in front of James, then went back to her table. James was looking determinedly at his fried egg, and Sirius was trying not to laugh. I opened the box. On top was a tiny piece of paper folded in Lia's sharp, perfect way. The folding made me cry. It reminded me of the last letter she had sent me. With shaking hands I unfolded it and read it.

Moony, since I'm your wife now, and this was your entire fault—wait a minute, it was Snape's fault—that's creepy. Anyway, I thought I should give you this. My patronus is a wolf. Isn't that funny? Do patroni (by the way, is that right?) predict…um…your matrimonial prospects? Anyway, cheers to you for thinking of this, and I love you.

Lia Lupin (Maybe I won't be Lia Lupin. It doesn't sound good. Do you mind?)

I sighed. It was so classically Lia. Her roundabout, whimsical style, her strange little observations.I put it in my pocket (it's still there, in the worst of times) and picked up the little silver wolf on a chain that sat on the bottom of the box. My patronus was a wolf, too, so how could hers be, too? I looked closely at it. It did look subtly different from mine. Mine looked sad and lonely, this sat on its hind legs and looked up expectantly, like it was saying, "Would you tell me what you're so sad about?" I wonder how many—patroni—they looked at when they wrote that every patronus is unique in the textbooks. I put it on, and have never taken it off.

I thought I did very well on my N.E.W.T.s. My Defense Against the Dark Arts examiner was particularly impressed. I thought I failed rather badly on History of Magic, but I hadn't expected to do well on that. Sirius was panicking because he thought he had failed Arithmancy—he wanted to work at Gringotts, even though he claimed the goblins made him shiver. James wanted to play seeker for the Chudley Cannons, and Peter said he had everything sorted out, but he refused to tell us what he had sorted out. I house hunted. Life went on as usual, sort of.

Three days before school ended, we were sitting under our favorite tree next to the lake, when Padfoot went to talk to his girlfriend Rachel. We understood that there had been some major fallings-out between them, and, sure enough, barely thirty seconds passed before we could hear them shouting a hundred yards away. He came back after a particularly well-put insult, glowering.

"I give up on girls," he snapped, chucking a rock at the giant squid.

"Fine by us," James said tranquilly. "They're probably happy too. You've never had one for more than, what was it, three months?"

"Five, thank you very little. But it doesn't matter anyway."

"I'm sure it doesn't," I muttered. "I'm also sure you won't give up."

When we had all gone to the train station, Dumbledore caught me just before the train came in.

"You will have to apparate," he told me. "The train can be followed, and so can you."

"All right," I said hesitantly. "Can I say goodbye to everybody first?"

"Take your time. We have as long as we want."

I went back to the Marauders to say goodbye. Lily gave me her phone number (James looked sickened), Sirius told me to look him up when I moved to London, and Peter just looked very nervous. I was puzzled about that, but that was how it was. I went back to Professor Dumbledore. I was done with Hogwarts, I thought.

The End

A/n: As a sort of closing note, did you know that a dumbledor, in hobbit verse, is a sort of bug? Hear Me Howl should be up before Xmas, but if it's not, I probably won't have time until mid-January. Thank you again for R&R-ing, and be sure to check out my other stories. :) I think I'll be starting one about Cho Chang as a spy for Prof. Umbridge, so keepan eye peeled.