A/N - Okay peeps. Get your umbrellas, cause the sh** is about to hit the fan. Hope you guys are enjoying this stuff.

Later,

A.A.

What Have I Done?

Sable awoke in the hospital wing the next morning. While trying to orientate herself to her surroundings, she heard a faint whimper from the other side of the room. Gathering her gown around her, she went to the other space and peeked in. Remus was tossing and turning in his sleep, calling out to anyone who would listen. Before she could go to him, a hand was placed on her shoulder.

"Ms. Robbins, what are you doing out of bed?" the wizened headmaster questioned. "If Madame Pomfrey finds you, she'll have my head and yours, too." Sable's thoughts were a quick succession of blurs. Memories from the night before came flashing back to her, causing her to blink rapidly.

"Professor Dumbledore," she said quickly, "I need to speak with you about some incidents that occurred last night." Dumbledore nodded his head and continued.

"Very well, Ms. Robbins. I found it odd that Madame Pomfrey found you alongside Mr. Lupin this morning in Hogsmeade when she went to retrieve him." Sable didn't know what to say without incriminating anyone else. She figured that James and Sirius had brought her back to Hogsmeade last night, but she couldn't implicate them into the mess.

"I can explain that." she answered abruptly. "Please, just hear me out."

"I have every intention of hearing your story, Ms. Robbins. However, it can wait until you are released from the hospital wing. As I said, if Poppy finds you up and out of bed, then...."

" Albus Dumbledore!!" came a screechy voice, "What is that child doing out of bed? I distinctly remember telling you to make sure that she stayed in bed." The school nurse, Madame Pomfrey, came to stand in front of the headmaster.

"I'm sorry, Poppy. But she wanted to check on Mr. Lupin." he explained. "Who am I to stop her?"

"Is he alright?" Sable asked gently, pointing to the tossing form of her friend.

"He's fine my dear. Other than some minor cuts and abrasions, he will be fine. However, I would like to know why YOU were all beat up when I found you." The nurse eyed the dark headed girl critically, waiting for an answer to her question.

"I need to tell both you and the headmaster what happened, because it involves a few more people. But he needs to be awake." she said, nodding her head towards Remus.

"I think it better to allow Mr. Lupin to awaken before we continue this conversation." Dumbledore said.

"It's alright," came Remus' groggy voice from behind the curtain, "I'm awake." Poppy pulled the curtain back and a very roughed up Remus sat up in the bed. Sable did a quick glance over, noting the dark bruises that had formed around his shoulder. A large scratch was on his left cheek, remnants of the fight with her parents last night.

"Mr. Lupin, I need to see you and Ms. Robbins, as well as Madame Pomfrey, in my office as soon as you feel up to it." Remus nodded and Poppy ushered them out so she could check him over.

Ten minutes later, Poppy, Sable and Remus were dressed and sitting in Dumbledore's office.

"Okay, what happened last night?" Albus asked gently. Sable took a breath and glanced to er right, where Remus sat. He nodded and she continued.

"Last night was the full moon, obviously. Well, when Remus and I got to the willow with Madame Pomfrey, we made it to the Shack without incident. When we got inside the Shack, there was a note on one of the outside windows. It said that we were to leave the Shrieking Shack and meet Professor Kettleburn on the eastern side of the castle on the edge of the Forbidden Forest. We thought it was weird, but the note was signed by you, Professor Dumbledore."

"Do you have the note with you, Mr. Robbins?" the headmaster asked. Sable rummaged through her pockets until she found the wrinkled parchment. She handed it to the man and watched the wrinkles on his forehead furrow down into a frown. He put the note in a drawer and returned his attention to the girl in front of him. "Continue, Ms. Robbins." he said.

"Well, Remus and I left back for the castle. When we got there, Professor Kettleburn was no where to be found. We waited a little longer, but no one came. We were about to leave when someone started firing hexes and curses at us. Remus was hit, and he fell down, unconscious. The next thing I know, two guys in black cloaks are hovering over us. Remus was out cold. I asked them what they wanted... and they said ME. The said that Voldemort had chosen me to go beside him and help the dark side.

I knew that Remus was about to change, and when he did he would have his strength back. I tried to bide my time until the moon was full up by talking with the two. I figured that Remus and I could run after he changed. But one thing led to another and the next thing I knew, the men told me that they had captured my parents to use as an incentive to draw me over. They said that they would bring them to me, and they did. The tallest of the men whistled and two wolves came out of the forest, it was my parents. I didn't know what to do, so I played along. Then, before I realized what was going on, Remus had transformed and so had I. My parents attacked us on the commands from the men.

They were so weak from whatever it was Voldemort had done to them that we almost killed them before it was over with." Sable broke down crying, hugging herself as she cried. Poppy hugged the girl and let her cry. The two teens had been through a rough ordeal, and Dumbledore realized that this was not the only time they would despair over the situation.

"I know this is hard, dear." the nurse crooned, "But we need to know as much as you can remember." Remus watched as she cried her heart out. He wanted to help her, hold her and make her feel better. But their fight for the last week was still fresh in his mind, even though he'd been cleared of any part in the whole mass by the confession of the two Death Eaters.

"Mr. Lupin, can you tell us what happened next?" Dumbledore asked. Remus nodded.

"When her parents fell, the two men disappeared, leaving us there. Sable had reverted back to her human form, but she was weak from blood loss. She managed to conjure up some stretchers and bring her parents and myself back to the Shrieking Shack." he explained. Remus knew that he couldn't tell anyone that Sirius and James had helped them. If anyone did find out, the whole lot of them would be expelled form school. "She locked her parents up in separate rooms and sealed the doors. She tried to heal the majority of the cuts from the fight. She did what she could, but passed out before she finished. That's how you found us this morning."

"So your parents are still in Hogsmeade?" Dumbledore asked.

"Yes, sir." Sable said. "The two men said that they had been feeding some kind of mind control potion to them for two weeks. But, I couldn't just leave them out there in the snow to die. They're my mom and dad for Christ's sake!"

"I understand, my dear. You did the right thing, I assure you." He turned to Poppy, who had a look of horror on her face. "Poppy, I need you to get her parents to St. Mungos. The medi-witches can help them. I would say to bring them here, but we are not equipped to handle this type of situation." The nurse nodded and quickly left the office at a quick run. When she was gone, Dumbledore turned to the two children.

"Did either of you happen to know either of these men?" Both teens shook their heads.

"I hear the shorter guy call the other one Luca, or Lucas, or Lucifer, or Lucius. Something like that. But I don't know who they were." Sable said. Dumbledore nodded, saying nothing. Meanwhile Remus was seething. 'Lucius Malfoy, you dirty snake! I'll kill you with my bare hands the next time I see your rotten face around here!!' He thought.

"Professor, what will happen to my mom and dad?"

"Well, they will be transported to St. Mungo's where the doctors will check them over and make a decision from there."

" I want to go see them." She said. It was not a request, it was more like a statement of fact, and Dumbledore knew it.

"I don't see why not, as long as you have someone with you, preferably a teacher. I'm pretty sure your other friends will want to accompany you also."

"What about the lycanthropy. The medi-witches will be able to tell, won't they?" Remus asked quickly.

"It's fine. Poppy knows who to send them to. They will be fine." Sable nodded and started crying softly. "You may go back to the Tower now. Clean yourselves up and I will have Professor McGonagall take you to St. Mungo's. Mr. Lupin, make sure she goes directly to Gryffindor Tower. No side stops on the way. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Remus replied. He and Sable left the office, not knowing what was going to happen. They were silent until they got past the second fligh of stairs. Finally, Sable cracked under the strained silence.

"I'm sorry, Remus." she said, refusing o make eye contact with him. "I'm so sorry for everything that's happened." He stopped walking and grabbed her wrists gently, turning her to face him. Even standing directly in front of him, she still would not look directly at him.

"It's not your fault." he said gently.

"Yes, it is." she said. "I'm an idiot for not trusting you and the other boys. I should have listened and most, if not all, of this could have been avoided." She tried to walk away, but he pulled her into a gentle hug, letting her tears stain his shirt and cloak.

"Look at me, Sable." he said fiercely, finally letting her go.

"I can't." she said, her voice sounding defeated and tired.

"You can, and you will." he said firmly, taking her chin and forcing her to look up at him. Her eyes were closed. "Look at me, Sabriel." he said again."

"Remus, I can't." she said quietly. "As bad as I've treated you in the past week and a half..."

"Will be like heaven compared to what I'm going to do if you don't open your eyes and look at me." he growled. Sable opened her eyes, expecting to see a very angry boy, but only finding a face of sympathy.

"Remus.."

"Listen to me, Sable." he said. "This. Is. NOT. Your. Fault."

"But..."

"No 'buts'." he said. "You didn't plan this out. Now that we know what happened on the Pitch and by the lake, everything is fine."

"I didn't trust you, though." she said.

"Trust me, love," he said. "If it had been me seeing YOU with someone else, I would have done the same thing."

"Please forgive me for doubting you, Remus."

"There's nothing to be forgiven now that we know the truth." he said, hugging her gently and kissing her forehead. "Now let's get ourselves cleaned up and to St. Mungo's to see your mom and dad." They made their way up to Gryffindor Tower and into the Common Room before they were barraged with questions from their concerned friends.

Sable just sat down on the couch in front of the crackling fireplace. Meanwhile, Remus was trying to explain what had happened. Sable finally gathered up her courage and walked up to James, Sirius, and Lily. She looked at their worried faces and nearly cried again.

"I'm sorry." was all she said before turning around to leave the Common Room.

"Where are you going?" James asked.

"I've got to go get some clothes. McGonagall's taking me to St. Mungo's to see my parents, and I need to get dressed." she said.

"Uh, Sable," Sirius said, "we can't leave the Tower." Sable shook her head in confusion. "When Dumbledore found out that you and Remus were found all beaten up this morning, everyone was sent back to their Common Rooms. We have strict orders not to leave until further notice."

"How am I going to get to my stuff?" she asked. "I can't leave the school looking like this." She pointed to her rumpled, torn clothing and frowned.

"We can use the passageway behind the portrait." Remus suggested.

"No." Lily said firmly, "I'll lend her some of my clothes. I don't want anyone roaming the halls. Not now, anyways. And we can use the Head's bathroom to get ready. Meanwhile, you can explain to me what happened." Lily said as she wrapped an arm around her friend's shoulders and guided her to the back of the common room where the entrance to the Head's dorms were accessed. The two girls left to clean up and James and Sirius rounded on Remus.

"What happened?" Sirius asked. "We followed you after about half an hour, but couldn't find anyone when we got to the Shack?"

"We didn't know what was going on, so we thought you might have headed for the forest. It wasn't long before Sirius heard the snarls and barking. By the time we got there, both of you were bloodier than Hell!" James exclaimed. Remus explained about the note and the smaller details as best he could, including the set up by the lake two weeks before. Needless to say, James and Sirius were NOT happy when they found out that there was a spy somewhere amongst their friends.

"Those two wolves were Sable's parents." Remus told the two shocked boys. "Voldemort captured them to use as bait for Sable to come to the dark side. He drugged them with something and they almost lost their sanity. Anyways, when Sable and I changed, they attacked. You guys came in after everything was over."

"Sable passed out, and so did you. We got both of you back to the Shack with the wolves and locked them up." James said quietly. "And since when does she have an Animagi form?"

"She doesn't." Remus said expasperatingly. "It's a side effect of being a ranula. She can change forms at will, but I think it is only during the week of the full moon."

"She's a born Animagi?" Sirius asked. Remus only nodded in response.

"She just figured out how to do it a few days ago." he said. "I was supposed to help her with it, but things didn't work out that way." The boys nodded and sat down on the couch to wait for the girls to reappear.

The girls came out of the bathroom a few minutes later and sat down on the chairs. Sable's eyes were red from crying and her head was bowed in exhaustion. Remus figured that she had told Lily what had happened. He looked her over carefully and noticed the battle scars she had received. There were black circles under her eyes, and red scratch marks all over her hands where the ripped flesh had been repaired. Her normally brilliant violet eyes were downcast and lacking the normal luster they exhibited.

The boys quickly changed and McGonagall came to get them, not surprised that the whole group was coming. They walked down the corridors to the Great Hall in silence. Outside the huge entrance doors were three horseless carriages. Sirius, Remus and Sable climbed into one while McGonagall, James and Lily climbed into the other one. They were in Hogsmeade within minutes of leaving the school. They were dropped off at The Three Broomsticks. From there, they would use floo powder to travel to the main lobby at St. Mungos.

When they arrived at the hospital, there was a sudden change in Sable's demeanor. She went from the quiet and upset lady they had found that morning to an all-business phase in less than two seconds. She went up to the receptionist and told her who she was. The young witch pointed them in the direction of the third floor and said that Dr. Penske would be there, waiting for them. She thanked the receptionist and went over to the elevators with the others following behind her. As the doors slid open to the third floor, Sable recognized Dr. Penske. He was a man of about thirty with reddish-brown hair and little, gold glasses. The doctor seemed to know who they were and immediately summoned them to his side.

"Ms. Robbins, I presume." he said politely, shaking her hand.

"Yes, and you must be Dr. Penske?" Sable asked.

"That I am, my dear." he said respectfully. "It is a pleasure to meet you."

"Likewise, doctor." she said politely. "These are friends of mine from school and this is my Professor from Hogwarts, Minerva McGonagall." She pointed to the Head of Gryffindor house and nodded.

"It is a pleasure to meet all of you." he said warmly. The kids murmured their thank-you's and stood still. Sable turned back to the doctor and frowned.

"Dr. Penske, I'm going to come straight to the point," she said politely, "What is the diagnosis for my parents?" The doctor seemed a little uneasy to speak in front of others about the condition of one of his patients, but Sable prompted him to go on saying that whatever it was the rest of her friends already knew about it. McGonagall seemed surprised, but said nothing to her.

"Well, Ms. Robbins," he said clearly, "so far as we can tell, they have a large amount of a mind numbing ingredient in their blood stream called Banewood, a plant very similar to Wolfsbane, as I am sure you are familiar with. It has reacted with the active lycanthropy in their blood and put them in a form of stasis. Until we can get their healthy blood built back up and the Banewood cleansed from their system, there is no telling how long they will remain unconscious." Sable nodded her head in acceptance and focused on her questions.

"If ..... when they wake up, will there be any difference in their mental capabilities?" she asked.

"Well, considering the amount, concentration, and frequency of the dosages they had been receiving, I can't give you an answer to that right now." he said sadly. "However, the preliminary blood work shows that their were no other elements present in what they had been given, so there is a slight glimmer of hope that their bodies will be able to fix itself at a quicker pace."

"I see. How long do you estimate that they will be unconscious?" she asked, hoping that he would only say a few hours or at the most a day or two.

"They could be like this for anywhere from two hours to four weeks, Ms. Robbins." If they are going to wake, it'll be within a four week period. By then, their body should be fully recovered from the shock." Sable nodded to show that she understood what he was talking about. The doctor looked a little dubious at the girl, but said nothing.

"Can I go see them?" She asked quietly.

"Yes, you may; however, they are in separate rooms for the time being. And will remain there until the first two stages of detoxication is complete. And I only want two of you at a time in there." Sable nodded and thanked the red headed doctor before turning to go down the hallway were her parents were being treated. She found her father's room first and took a deep breath before entering it. She felt a hand grip her shoulder and reassure her. She smiled up at Professor McGonagall through her tear eyes and opened the door. Her eyes came to rest on the still figure in the bed.

"Oh, my God," she gasped, "What have I done?"

On the clean, white sheets of the hospital bed lay the unconscious form of Robert Robbins. Sable fought back the tears that were threatening to fall from her eyes and slowly walked into the room, her eyes focused on her father. There were bruises on his face, remnants of the fight with her the night before. His head was bandaged in clean cloths. 'Must be from the blow to his head.' she thought. There were deep gashes on his hands and bite marks on his neck. Sable hung her head as the shameful tears fell from her violet eyes.

"Daddy.... daddy, I'm sorry." she sobbed to the unconscious man. "Please daddy, please tell me you can hear me. I'm here, right by you. And Momma's not too far away. Please, daddy, at least let me know you hear me." she begged the man. She took her dad's hand and placed it between her own, rubbing the cooler flesh to slightly warm it up.

McGonagall was not sure of what to do. The girl in front of her was nearing hysterics. She had not realized, nor really wanted to believed what had transpired the night before, but looking at the beat up form of Robert Robbins, she knew Sable had not exaggerated. Minerva gathered the girl into a tight hug and tried to pull her gently from the room. Sable resisted and firmly stood her ground.

"I want to see my momma." she said in an almost child like voice.

"Are you sure, Ms Robbins?" The professor asked. Sable nodded and gave her father a quick good bye kiss.

"I'm going to check on momma, so you be good daddy." she whispered. She backed away and went to the door, a fresh well of tears coming over her eyes. She walked out of the door and straight into a pacing body. Pushing whoever it was to the side, she ran across the hall and into the room her mother was in. Through the tears, she could see the older version of herself lying in the bed. She felt someone come up behind her, but she did not even turn around to see who it was, not really caring who saw her tears of shame and anger. Walking to her mother's bedside, she knelt down and laid her head on the side close t to her mother's hand.

Remus walked in right behind Sable after she had pushed Sirius down. He followed her into the mom's room, not sure what to expect. Carol Robbins was lying on the bed, unconscious. Dark black marks had formed around her eyes. Her usually tanned and supple skin was cold and clammy. The paler skin was stretched taunt over her beautiful features, make her look more dead than alive. He noticed a few red marks on her hands and neck, the only thing left of the gashes he had inflicted upon her. He broke out of his revere when Sable started sobbing.

"Momma, I'm so sorry for all of this. It's all my fault. None of this should have happened to you and daddy..." Remus bent down and pulled the sobbing girl into his arms, nearly crushing her in his attempt to comfort her. She was weak and upset, not a good combination.

"Shhhh.... it's alright." he said, stroking her hair, "They are going to be fine." Sable was beyond help right now. Clinging tightly to him, she cried harder than she ever had before. "Come on, Sable," he said smoothly, "they are just sleeping. They'll be awake in no time. I promise." Remus wasn't sure as to whether he could keep that promise or not. 'But I'll do whatever I can to keep it.' he thought. Sable shuddered as another wave of grief hit her.

"Remus, look at what I've done to them." she said, "They're lying on death's door because of me. Voldemort nearly killed them because he knew I wouldn't join them voluntarily." She pulled back from him and looked up at him, her eyes were swimming in anger, shame, and sadness. "My God, Remus, what have I done?" She lowered her head and broke out of his embrace, moving to sit on the couch nearby, her knees drawn up to her chest.

"It's not your fault." he said simply, sitting next to her. "You didn't do this to them, Voldemort did."

"But I am the reason they were captured. I'm the reason they were drugged. I'm the reason why they fought us. I'm the reason they are lying there right now." she said. Remus knew she would try to place the entire fiasco on herself if she could find a way, and he wasn't about to let her. He had fought her mother that night. He was the reason there were bite marks on her skin, not Sable. He shook his head and turned to her.

"You didn't do this to her, Sable, I did." he reminded her.

"But if Voldemort hadn't wanted me, then he wouldn't have captured them." she said, trying to rationalize everything. "I wouldn't have been on the edge of the forest, and you wouldn't have been caught out in the cross fire." Remus tried to hug her again, but she moved away swiftly.

"Are you ready to go?" he asked quietly, after a while. "Dr. Penske will be in here in a few moments to get us out."

"I'm not going anywhere." she stated firmly. Plunking down in another chair on the opposite side of the room.

"Sable, you can't stay here." he said. 'Now she gets stubborn!' He thought tiredly. 'Just bloody great!'

"And why not??"

"Doctor Penske said they needed rest, Sable."

"Then they'll rest while I'm here." she said quickly. "I'm not leaving them again."

"Sable...... we can't ....."

"I'm not going ANYWHERE!!!" she said loudly. About that time, Dr. Penske stepped into the room. Sable glared at him, and folder her arms defiantly.

"I'm sorry Ms. Robbins," he said, "but you need to let them rest now."

"I'm not moving until one of them wake up." she said.

"Ms. Robbins, I'm afraid I can't let you do that. Your parents need rest."

"They can rest while I'm here. I'm not leaving them again."

"You need to rest, Sable" Remus said quietly. The doctor nodded in agreement.

"I would have to agree with your friend, Ms. Robbins. I'm sure you had a rough night last night; after all, it was a full moon. Both of you look like you could use some rest."

"What?" Sable asked, the older man's words finally sinking into her mind. "How do you know..... last night?" She looked up at the doctor in amazement.

"You are not the only one who has lycanthropy in their blood, Ms. Robbins. I assure you of that." Dr. Penske said with a wink.

"You're ... you're one of us?" Remus asked, amazed that he had found another werewolf. The man only nodded and rolled up the sleeve of his white coat to reveal two rather large, scarred bite marks on his forearm.

"Yes, Mr. Lupin, I am." he said simply.

"I'm still not moving from this spot." Sable said firmly , regaining the men's attention.

"Ms. Robbins, their condition is not going to change for at least four to five days. It will take that long to get all of the Banewood out of their system. Until that time, they will remain just as you see them now. There is very little, if anything you can do for them at the moment. After the first stage of de-tox is complete, then you can be of help." Sable's head fell at the man's obvious admonition.

"Is there anything I can do to help them now?" she asked.

"The only thing I would suggest would be to gather up some of their belongings and bring them here. Pajamas, bath robes, anything that may make them more comfortable when they wake up." he said slowly.

"I can do that." she said.

"Good. Now, go and get some rest. I'll send word to Dumbledore about you needing to take a trip home. Where do you live, by the way?"

"Godric's Hollow."

"Good, then let's get you out of here. I daresay your friends are worried sick." Remus helped her up off of the couch, careful not to rush her. Before walking out of the door, she glanced back at her mom. 'I'll be back soon,' she thought, before closing the door behind her. 'I love you, momma.'

James, Lily and Sirius were sitting outside in the waiting room with Professor McGonagall. They saw Dr. Penske come around the corner with Remus and Sable in tow. The three friends jumped up when they saw the other coming.

"Professor McGonagall, may I have a word with you?" the doctor asked. She nodded and followed the man to the hallway. Remus was still holding a weak Sable to his side when she returned.

"Dr. Penske has informed me of your need to go home. He is sending the Headmaster a letter as we speak." Sable nodded numbly, not really hearing any of it..

"Let's get you two back before you pass out from exhaustion." Sirius said, pointing to Remus and Sable. The two friends nodded and quickly trudged to the fireplace. Throwing the powder into the flames, each one shouted 'The Three Broomsticks' before being whipped away.

Sable stumbled out of the fireplace and the pub and was caught by James. When everyone had reappeared, Sable allowed herself to be guided to the outside of the building where the carriages were waiting for them. She stepped into the carriage and watched as the forest surrounding the village disappeared and the castle came into view. Dumbledore was at the doors, waiting for them as they arrived.

"You have returned safely, very good." he said. "Ms. Robbins, you are going to be moved into the Gryffindor dormitory until further notice. I want someone with you at all times."

"Yes, sir." she said meekly.

"Very good," he said, "I will have the house elves transfer your belongings to the Gryffindor dormitories. I am afraid that until this matter is resolved, you will be required to stay in the dormitories.

"But what about my research?" she asked.

"Professor Dumbledore," Remus said, "You can't stop her from working. She'll go nuts."

"Thank you for that wonderful vote of confidence in my sanity, Remus." she said sarcastically. "I really needed that right now."

"Sorry, you know what I meant." He apologized.

"You may bring your potion's supplies down to the dungeons to work there until the beginning of term. My suggestion is to brew enough of the Wolfsbane Potion for the next few months. However, I am afraid you will have company everywhere you go for the rest of Christmas break."

"Is there anyone staying over the holidays in Slytherin House?" Sirius asked.

"Severus Snape is the only seventh year you will be concerned with." he said.

"So much for peace and quiet." James mumbled. Sable grimaced and nodded to the headmaster.

"I'll finish my work over the course of the next few days."

"Very well, Ms. Robbins." He looked at the others and nodded. "Until the rest of the students return, I want one of you four with her at all times. That is the only way we can insure her safety." The four friends nodded in acceptance, quickly understanding the gravity of the situation. "Now, Ms. Evans, I want you and the others to take her directly to the Gryffindor Common Room, and no side stops along the way. Understood?"

"Yes, sir." Lily said. She guided her friend up the stairs and into the Common Room with out pausing. When the Fat Lady closed behind them, Sable immediately went to the couch and drug out a quill, ink, and parchment.

"What are you doing?" James asked, concerned that she might be writing a suicide letter or something.

"It's a list of the things I am going to pick up from my house when I go home. Dr. Penske said that the only thing I can do right now is pick up a few familiar things that may make them feel better when they wake up. So I'm making a list so that I don't forget anything." she explained.

"When are you going to get the stuff?" Sirius asked.

"Whenever the Headmaster will let me leave." she answered.

"Well, let's find out when we can go." James said. He walked over to the fireplace and threw ap inch of green powder into the flames, crying out the headmaster's name. Two seconds later, the wizened head of Dumbledore could be seen in the flickering flames.

"What is it, children?"

"Sable wanted to know when she could go to Godric's Hollow to get a few things for her parents."

"Ah, yes. I have just received Dr. Penske's letter to such an extent." the Professor said.

"So I am allowed to go?" Sable asked.

"Of course you may go, my child. In fact, I am particularly sure that you would find a way to get back to your home even without my consent." he laughed and Sable only nodded her head in agreement. "However, there is one stipulation for this trip that I need inform you of. You must have a few people with you as precautionary measures. If you travel alone, I fear you may be attacked again. But if you have company, I doubt that Voldemort's minions will attack so readily."

"When can we leave out for Godric's Hollow?" James asked quickly. Sable ignored the comment since she didn't have to ask if the others would come with her, they had already volunteered.

"You may leave in the morning around ten o' clock." Dumbledore's persona answered, "I will contact the Ministry immediately and have the necessary precautionary barriers set up in time for our arrival."

"Professor," Lily chanced, "you do realize that we will have to spend the night at Sable's house. There is no way that we can get to Godric's Hollow, gather her stuff, and be back in one day."

"Of course, Ms. Evans. I have taken that into consideration as we were discussing. I see no reason for you to make the trip in one day. However, I will expect you back no later than nightfall day after tomorrow. That is the only safe amount of time I can grant you."

"That's fine, sir." Sable said, "I won't be long once we get to my house. A couple of hours at the most."

"Very well, children. Is there anything else that I can do for you at the moment." the headmaster asked.

"No, I think that is the only thing I was worried about right now, Professor. Thank you." Sable answered.

"You're welcome, Ms. Robbins. Now, I suggest that you get some lunch and some rest. You will have a long and tiring day ahead of you tomorrow."

"Thank you, Headmaster," Remus said. "We'll make sure she is ready for the trip for tomorrow." The disembodied head seemed to smile, but not quite. He nodded slowly and disappeared from the surrounding flames, leaving the fireplace barren and cold.

Sable turned back to her writing, mumbling incoherently to herself.

"So, is anyone else in here hungry?" Sirius asked. "It's already after lunch time, and I'm starving." Murmurs came from the others, who echoed his sentiment. Sable, however, was in such a nervous state that she felt her stomach cutting flips and moaning.

"You guys go on and get some lunch. I'm not up to eating at the moment."

"We're not leaving you alone." Remus said. "You heard what Dumbledore said."

"Remus, I'm in the Gryffindor Common Room. I don't think anything can get me in here."

"That was also the edge of Hogwarts grounds last night, and we didn't think anything would happen." Remus countered.

"Okay, point in case taken." she sighed. "Let's go. But I'm not eating." They went down to the Great Hall, where a few other students were finishing up lunch. Sable noticed that Snape seemed to get rather nervous when they entered the Hall. He got up and left before they ever sat down to eat, but she passed it off as the normal Slytherin/Gryffindor animosity. She took her seat next to Remus and stared at the plate in front of her as her stomach began to groan.

"I think you many need to eat a little something." Lily said kindly.

"I don't think I can keep anything down. My nerves are fried." she answered, picking at her food.

"Just try a little something, please." Remus said. He had piled more food onto his plate than she thought was healthy and was still adding more as he spoke. "Anything is better than nothing." She nodded and looked down at her plate. Due to the lycanthropy present in their systems, Remus and Sable had the appetites of growing wolf cubs after the full moon. However, she was not in any state to eat, even though her stomach begged to differ. 'Doesn't seem like it bothers him any.' she thought, watching as Remus began to eat at the pile of food on his plate. She picked up a fork and slowly began to eat the food.

By the time lunch was finished, Sable had eaten a little, but in everyone else's opinions, not enough to keep anyone alive. They went back up to the common room and found a surprise for them as they opened the portrait hole. A little house elf was coming out of the portrait. She had a big, brown eyes and a white pillowcase wrapped around her small body. At the sight of the Marauders, the little creature became instantly talkative.

"Oh, Misters Black, and Lupin, and Potter, sirs." the elf said quickly. "Is there a Misses Robbins with you, sirs?" Sirius stepped forward and knelt down to the little creature with an easy smile.

"Yes, Mitsy, there is." he said. "She's right here." He pointed back to Sable and she stepped out from behind James and Lily.

"What is it, Mitsy? Is something wrong?" she questioned anxiously.

"No, misses," the elf stammered, "nothing is wrong. But Mr. Headmaster Dumbledore sir wanted Mitsy to tell Misses Robbins that Misses Robbins' stuff have been put in the room next to Misses Evans' room." Sable nodded in understanding and smiled at the frail creature.

"Thank you, Mitsy." she said. "Is that all the Headmaster wanted you to tell me?"

"Yes, misses. The Headmaster sir did not tell Mitsy anything else."

"Well, thank you so much, Mitsy. You saved me a lot of work." she smiled. The elf's smile beamed back up to the girl in pure happiness.

"Tis' no problem, miss." the elf said. "I is happy to work for Misses Robbins. But now, Mitsy must be going, for Mitsy has other matters to attend to." Sirius patted the elf on the head and grinned.

"Well, go on then. We wouldn't want to keep you from your work." James said kindly. The little elf bobbed a curtsy and was walking away as the others made their way into the common room. Remus waited until the others were in the Common Room before calling out to the little elf. He pulled the little creature back and whispered quietly to her. The elf nodded and sprinted off towards the kitchens at a break neck speed. Remus grinned and went through the portrait hole and into the common room.

They spent the next half hour involved in various activities. James and Sirius were playing a game of wizard's chess while Lily was doing some holiday homework she had been assigned. Remus was sitting on a chair with a book in his lap, and Sable was sitting on the floor with a deck of cards in her hands since she was utterly exhausted, but could not seem to go to sleep.

Remus watched as she carefully laid the cards on the floor in a certain pattern. She held the deck face down in her hand and picked the first card up and flipped it onto the floor, the Queen of Hearts. Then, she placed six more cards face down to the right of the first one. When she finished filling the seven spaces, she went back to the second card and flipped up the next card, the Ace of Spades. And so on until there were seven piles of cards with a card face up on top. He watched as she began to place the cards in alternating colors in descending order. Curious as to what she was doing, he shut his book and sat down next to her.

"What you doing?" he asked, watching as she picked up a whole line of cards and moving them over.

"It's a Muggle game called solitaire." she said quietly.

"How do you play?" he asked.

"Well, the point is to find all four of the aces, and build the suits up from there." she answered. "Supposedly, it can be done anytime you play. Unfortunately, I dealt myself a screwed up hand this time." She put the cards down and rubbed her temples. Remus noted that she seemed really tired and strung out.

"How many other games do you know how to play?" he asked, picking up the cards and expertly shuffling them.

"I only know how to play a few." she said. "Battleship, solitaire, rummy, gin rummy, poker, bullshit, blackjack, and a few others."

"That's only a few?" he asked. She smiled and nodded, leaning back against the couch behind her.

"Oh, man, I need to get out of here for a while." she yawned.

"How about a game of Quidditch?" he asked, eyeing her for a reaction. Sable's eyes popped open at the mention of her favorite game and she grinned.

"That's not a bad idea, Remus." she said. "But who else are we gonna get to play. I think the rest of our friends are a bit preoccupied at the moment." She pointed back to Lily, who still had her head stuck in a book. Sirius and James were in the middle of a violent chess game that left half of James' black pieces destroyed and the majority of Sirius' white pieced incarcerated.

"Damn it Padfoot!" James yelled. "I needed that rook. Why didn't you take that pawn. I didn't need him!" Sirius grinned and moved another piece.

"The same reason you took my queen a minute ago, Prongs." he said, as if it was the most obvious thing in the world and James had missed it entirely. "It was there, so I took it." James only grumbled and went back to his plan of attack.

Remus grinned and stood up from the floor.

"Hey guys, you feel like playing a little Quidditch right now?" he asked. "Or are you to engrossed in your game to give it up." James grumbled as Sirius finally took his king and turned to Remus.

"I'm game. How 'bout you, Sirius?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm game. James needs something to redeem himself after that horrible loss in chess." he grinned.

"You're going to pay for that comment, Sirius." came Lily's reply. "You know how bad James' ego is hurt when he loses."

"Hey, I don't have an ego!!" James said loudly.

"Of course you don't, honey." Lily said, rolling her eyes.

"Yeah, and a Snitch isn't gold." Sable muttered. Remus grinned and tried to keep from laughing at her.

"How are we gonna play?" Sirius asked. "We only have five people. That makes the teams uneven."

"I'll go get Bell," James said, "He stayed over the holidays and is always is up for a scrimmage. I'll be back in a minute." He quickly went up to the dorms and found the boy.

"So who's playing what position?" Sable asked.

"Well, let's see." Sirius said. "I think we need to split the teams up first." He looked around the room and saw James coming back with the Gryffindor Beater in tow. "James, how are we going to pick teams?"

"I don't care, Padfoot. You pick your two and I'll take the others." he said.

"Good." he snickered. "I want Sable and Bell."

"Fine, then I get Remus and Lily." he answered. Lily stuck her head out from behind the book she was holding and glared.

"Who said I was playing?" she asked. "I'm in the middle of homework over here." James winked and put on a puppy dog face that was guaranteed to get what ever he wanted.

"But Lily," he begged, "we need another player, and you are already here. Plllllleeeeaasssee come play."

"James Potter, don't give me that look." she warned, sticking her head behind her book. James took the book out of her and blinked back imaginary tears.

"But Lily, pppplllleeeeaaasseeee." he whined.

"Oh, alright, already." she conceded. "But you know how horrible I am on a broomstick."

"That's alright, dear." James smiled. "That's why you are going to be playing Seeker."

"SEEKER!!!" she shrieked.

"It's okay, Lily." Sirius said. "I'm putting Bell as our Seeker. So it all evens out. He's used to hitting things away from us. Trust me, his seeking skills are as bad as yours."

"Hey, I heard that." grumbled Bell.

"It's only the truth." James said.

"Yeah, well, you didn't have to rub it in my face." Bell grumbled. Sable smiled and grabbed her sweater off the back of the couch and picked her cloak up from the floor where she had discarded it earlier. They bundled up against the cold weather and made their way outside.

As the two teams scrimmaged. James wondered why Sable refused to join the House team as a reserve. Her abilities on a broom were amazing, and she was such a natural flyer. His own team was not doing too well at the moment. Lily was circling above the scene, tailing Bell. Both of them were looking for a flicker of gold in the diminishing light of day, but neither had seen it yet. Remus and himself were actually doing a decent job of scoring against the other team. Even though, Remus was not on the team and James' normal position was Seeker, they were doing fairly well against Sirius and Sable. Sirius and Sable worked together as flawlessly as humanly possible. They actually seemed to sense where the other was about to go as they flew down the field at breakneck speeds. The teamwork put out by the two was the only thing that kept them alive, since Sirius was not a very good scorer -at least not with a Quaffle-. He'd get the Quaffle and pass it to Sable, who was lighter, faster, and a better aim than himself. So far, the two black headed students were up by twenty points. James groaned as he seen Remus loose the Quaffle and Sirius pick it up. 'This is gonna be a long evening.' he thought.

By the time the sun had set, the six friends were completely exhausted. They had played hard and were wearing the battle wounds to prove it. Somewhere along the line, Sable and Bell had crashed into each other, sending both of them to the ground about ten feet below and almost causing Remus to have a heart attack. Luckily, they were both fine. Sirius and Remus had been fighting over the Quaffle and had left a few bruises on each other. James and Lily had somehow collided as he was about to score a goal, leaving them teetering dangerously on one broom.

Sirius set down onto the ground and looked around at his friends. Lily was still peeved at James for running into her. Bell was dusting off some dirt that had accumulated on his cloak, and Remus and Sable were laughing at James, still clutching the Snitch that neither appointed Seeker had been able to catch, as Lily laid into him again. James could do nothing but take the berating with a grin. When she finally got done yelling at him, James gave her a hug and she shut up. Sirius grinned and looked back over to where Remus was standing with Sable. She looked tired and worn out to him. 'Those full moons are a killer on those two.' he thought bitterly, 'It's a shame that two people like Remus and Sable can't live a normal life.'

As they trudged back up to the castle, Sable finally realized exactly how tired she was when she started stumbling up the stairs. When they made it up to the Common Room, she told Lily that she didn't want any thing to eat and that she was going to bed. Lily nodded and showed her where the bathroom was for the Heads, and where her bedroom was. She left the black headed girl with a smile and the advice of taking a hot bath while they were gone. Sable nodded and grabbed a few clothes from her room. Hearing the portrait hole snap shut, she went into the bathroom and ran a very hot tub of water.

Half an hour later, Sable pulled her exhausted self out of the tub and into some pajamas. She went into her room and crawled up into her bed, snuggling into the blanket's warmth. Across the room, someone was covered up with James' invisibility cloak on the couch, watching to make sure that no one got near her again without him ripping them to pieces first.

A/N - Oh dear! What does she see? Tune in next time for the next episode of this wonderful saga.

Later,

A.A.