Remus shuffled himself through the door of Flourish and Blotts, carrying about twelve books in two rather heavy paper bags. Groaning quietly, he walked out onto the busy street that was Diagon Alley.

He had been searching for any book he could find on werewolves. It was true that he knew just about everything someone needed to know so that they could be safe every full moon, but since Rae hadarrived... He felt as if he needed to learn more. The books in his bags were ones that mainly focused on the needs of the wolf within the person, and how to meet those needs safely.

If he was lucky, there'd be something about the "Life partnership" Rae had mentioned earlier. He wanted to know everything, and though Rae was still working on telling him, the concrete information written in a book made him more comfortable. It always had.

There were witches and wizards bustling around noisily, talking to one another, smiling. It was strange that he had so many things going on in his life right now, that he couldn't remember the last time he had just walked around Diagon Alley, or any other place for that matter, not having to worry about anything.

Just then, his stomach gave a fairly large growl, and he changed his direction to the Leaky Cualdron.

Remus sat down at one of the wooden tables against a wall. The Leaky Cauldron was dim, with candles illuminating the small tables, and reflecting off of the bottles of butter beer and fire whiskey that were sitting innocently on the edges of tables. He was waiting for his bowl of soup and his large butter beer, deciding that it was a bit early for something as strong as fire whiskey, plus he'd never been a whiskey man himself, though he could be spotted drinking one on occasion.

He had just been about to pull out one of his many new books, when he saw someone climb into the seat across from him.

It was Harry, looking only slighty disgruntled, but well all the same. He didn't say anything at first, only grinned his welcome, and Remus wondered to what he owed this surprise.

" Harry, well this is a pleasant surprise. " He grinned, placing the book in his hand face-down on the table top.

" Hey Remus... " Harry muttered, looking a bit akward. Remus understood... it wasn't often that the two of them found themselves enjoying each other's company, and not being under any sort of stressful situation.

" How are you, I haven't seen you in a few days... " He mentioned, finding it odd that they were staying in the same house, yet hadn't run into each other once for quite a long period of time. He worried about Harry often, feeling a sort of paternal instinct when it came to him. It was hard to describe, but not difficult to understand.

Remus caught Harry glancing at his over turned book, but didn't mention anything. It wasn't that he would mind terribly much if Harry were to know that he was reading up on werewolves, it was just a bit... embarassing that he'd need too.

" I'm okay... I suppose. " Harry answered, looking away from Remus' reading material, apparently not finding it odd for his former professor to be carrying books around. It was clear that Remus had perhaps asked the wrong question, because given Harry's past, and everything that was inevitably going to happen -in quite possibly the near future -he was bound to be stressed.

" How about you? What's been going on recently? "

Remus was about to say he was fine, but stopped himself. The truth was that the events of the past few days had been swarming through his mind, and the only other person he had spoken them aloud with had been Rae, who just happened to be about fifty percent of all the swarming.

" I've been... a bit preoccupied with something. Are you sure you'd like to be bothered by the problems of an old man like me? " He asked, shifting in his seat.

Harry grinned softly, nodding, meeting Remus' gaze for moment.

" Of course, I mean... I'd like to know. " He said quitely, giving Remus the impression Harry did actually care what was going on with his father's best friend. It was a comfort that he still had that little part of James, something that was undeniably Prongs. " I still can't believe we practially live in the same house, and I have absolutely no idea what's been going on with you lately... " It was something that Harry had never told Remus, that he actually regretted not talking to him as much, and Remus couldn't say that he didn't feel the same way.

" Well, we both have our own seperate lives, no matter how close of a proximity they exist... although I do regret not including you into my own more. Assuming, of couse, that you want to be... " He said, looking at Harry expectantly. It had been many years that the two had known each other, and he still couldn't believe how much this boy resembled James, it was scary actually. If he didn't know any better he would have said that he was seventeen again, having a drink with his best friend, as they often had.

Tom came up to the table at that moment, carrying a platter that held a large bowl of steaming vegetable soup, placing it in front of Remus. After he recieved his butter beer, he looked back up at Harry.

" Are you hungry? " He asked, holding out an arm, stopping Tom from going away.

" Oh... I'll have the same thing. " Harry told Tom, watching as the aged man nodded, limping back to the counter. He turned back to Remus.

" I'll listen to anything that will take my mind off of my own problems... Plus, you sort of looked like you needed someone to... listen. " He told him, looking interested.

Had he? Perhaps Remus wasn't as good at masking his emotions as he thought he was, or maybe Harry was just incredibly sympathetic... Either way, the boy was right.

" It has to do with my being a werewolf... just to warn you. " He knew that Harry didn't mind much that he was what he was, but he also knew than there had been one occasion that this fact had actually put Harry and his friends in great danger, a fact that filled Remus with shame every time he thought about that night. He just wanted to be sure that Harry was alright with talking about things that had to do with it.

Apparently, it still didn't bother him, for Harry didn't say anything, only looked at Remus expectantly, interest shining in his emerald eyes - Lily's eyes. Remus was quiet for a second, thinking some things through for himself, before he started blurting things out.

" Remus... what is it? " Harry asked impatiently, his voice taking on a strikingly James-like tone.

Remus was again hit with how much he enjoyed seeing Harry, being able to talk to him, have him staying at Grimmauld Place, however often they actaully crossed paths.

" Just to let you know, I'm glad that you've choosen to stay at Grimmauld Place until school. " He added, placing his spoon back into its bowl. He opted instead for his bottle of butter beer.

Tom arrived back at their table, placing a bowl, and a steaming mug of butter beer in front of Harry. Mumbling a thanks, Harry grabbed for his drink, just as Tom turned to leave.

" Put it on my tab Tom. "Remus called after him, Tom turned his head, still walking to the counter.

" Aye, will do Remus... " He mumbled, smiling all the same, showing his yellowish teeth.

" You don't have to-- " Harry started, already reaching for his pocket, Remus shook his head, motioning to Harry's soup.

" Eat. " He told him, grinning as Harry seemed to give in, sighing as he pulled his hand from his pocket. Again, the boy looked at him expectantly, and Remus decided that he may be ready to say a few things that might make sense.

" It has to do Raeanne Cummings... have you met her? " He asked, knowing that since she had just arrived at the headquarters, along with the fact that Harry hadn't been very social lately, there was a chance that they hadn't run into each other quite yet.

" Not really, I think I've seen her though. " Harry said, looking as if he were trying to place a face with the name Remus had provided. Rae hadn't mentioned seeing Harry anywhere, although they hadn't talked about much else during their little meeting. " So... what's going on with her, why is she here? "

" Thats a good question, actually... " He answered, laughing. He really didn't know where to start with this whole Raeanne bussiness. The begining, he supposed, sounded like a good choice.

" Well, she arrived only a few days ago... " He started, eating another spoonful of the surprisingly good soup. " She's part of the Order now, Dumbledore sent her a letter... " How much should he tell Harry? He had no real problem with him knowing, but would Rae object to him telling their bussiness to a seventeen year old boy that she barely knew?

At the mention of Dumbledore's name, something about Harry grew darker, the interest in his face faultered for a moment, but, rather impressively, he gathered himself shortly afterwards. Remus pretended not to have noticed anything, he knew that Harry had shared something with Dumbledore, found shelter and safety from him, and now that he was gone, Remus had to admit that he too felt a little more lost than he'd like to.

" From the second she arrived, there was something about her... I don't know... It's hard to explain... " He said, and it wasn't a lie. The more he thought about how to describe the feeling he had first had when Raeanne had introduced herself, the more confused he got. How did you explain to someone, that you may be in love with a woman that you had just met, not to mention everything else that came along with the fact?

Harry looked back up, managing to catch his eye. Remus tried hard not to display the full extent of his emotions, but he could tell that Harry was catching on. He was a quick one, Potter, like his father, nothing got past him, he'd catch it eventually.

" You like her. " He stated, brightening up a bit, he took another sip from his mug.

" Is it that obvious? " He asked, shaking his head slightly. He didn't like the fact that he was so smitten over this woman that it was showing in his everyday activities. Yet, apparently it was.

" I do though, she's a lovely woman, but it's not as simple that... " He continued, thinking about this "life partner" thing that she had been so keen on telling him about. It seemed so extreme, yet very right, it was strange.

" Why not? " Harry asked, watching Remus from over his butter beer. " I mean, surely you've dated before, just tell her you're a... " He trailed off, looking at Remus in a way that made Remus slightly uncomfortable. " Wait... It shouldn't matter, unless... "

There it was again, Harry's uncanny ability to tell what Remus was thinking or implying. It was amusing, and Remus decided to just let Harry know that he was right, he was sure that Rae wouldn't mind him telling Harry anyway. She had been open about the fact in the first place.

" She's one as well. " He finished Harry's sentence, confirming it for him. He drank from his bottle again, almost finishing it. Harry was silent for a second, before smiling openly.

" Well, that's good isn't it? " He asked, obviously totally oblivious to the fact that werewolves couldn't have the same type of relationships that normal people did -or at least to an extent. Remus was stalling again, playing with a bit of carrot that had fallen out of his bowl.

" You can tell me. " He heard Harry say as helooked up from the table.

Another smile came to Remus's mouth, Harry obviously wanted to get that point across, that Remus could come to him, and tell him these types of things.

" I know. " He said, realizing that he now actually had to try and put all of his thoughts into actual, understandable sentences.

" I'm not saying that it's not a good thing, because it is. I'm incredibly attracted to her, and she's made it quite clear thats she's attracted to me. But... For werewolves, apparently, it has to be more than that. " He said, running a hand through his sandy brown hair. He saw Harry cock his head to the side, looking curious, but remaining silent.

" She mentioned something about an Ulfric and a Lupa, which are just fancy names for the male and female wolves in question. Anyway... They mate for life, and only seperate if one of them dies. " This was the first time he was actually speaking the thoughts of this nature out loud, and the more he said, the more he felt that he was working through them... slowly.

" Right... " Harry provided, looking thoughtful. Remus would have asked him whether these facts had been in past homework assignments, as he had heard that Severus had at one point given Remus' class werewolf essays to write, but chose to just get on with his thoughts.

" She... " He started, then looked down at his cooling soup. He smirked once, then brought his head back up. " She seems to think that we could be each other's life partners, that we are meant for each other. She said that our inner wolves were drawn towards one another. " This sounded crazy, he knew. That was the first thing he had initially thought when Rae had brought it up the first time. Now, it was a different story.

" I felt it though... " He thought out loud. " The first time I saw her. "

" Well... I don't have a lot of experience with anything of this sort, but... This sort of sounds like something that would just take some time, something you shouldn't rush into. " Harry said, finishing his own drink, and letting it hit the table with a thud.

" I know, and I don't plan to. " He said, pushing his bowl of cold soup to the side, so thet he could place his arms on the table in front of him. " I figure I'll give it a while, to see if what I'm feeling is genuine. But I don't want to wait too long. "

It was true, Remus had been somewhat "alone" for more of his life than he would like to admit. Sure he'd always had friends, best friends at that, but never someone who was romantically interested in him, not like Rae was. He had to admit that he liked having someone like that, and he didn't plan on losing it.

An image of Tonks made its way into his head, but he snuffed it out. That had been a mistake, something that should never have happened, something he should have been smart enough to not have let start in the first place.

" Would you like another drink? " He asked, motioning to Harry's emptying bottle.

Harry lifted his wrist to his face, looking at his watch, and Remus' mood dropped slightly as he saw Harry frown.

" I'm meeting with Ron and Hermione... " He said, sounding a little guilty. He shouldn't feel that way, because as much as it pained Remus to know that Harry hadn't been coming to him with things, he couldn't imagine how Ron and Hermione felt. He knew for a fact that they hadn't been spending as much of their time with each other as per usual, which used to be a rare occurance.

" Then you should go. " Remus said, nodding at Harry. " It's certainly been nice talking to you. "

" Yeah, I'm surprised we haven't talked more since... " Harry was now the one averting his attention. The two of them hadn't spoken much of Sirius since that night, and both were happy with it that way.

Remus stared off at a random place on the wall on the opposite side of the pub. He didn't usually like to think about Sirius... not that that stopped him from doing so. He missed him, to no extent. He had been all he had left, one of the only things that had kept Remus going those few months that things had been looking really bad for the wizarding world. And now he was gone, leaving Remus here to feel guilty and alone.

But thats not true anymore... He said to himself. You've got Rae now, and Harry's here, you have to look after him, for Sirius. He nodded, then stopped, realizing that Harry had no clue as to why he was nodding.

" I know, and I'm sorry... " He said, bringing his bottle to his lips. " That's probably not what he would have wanted. " He finished, not saying Sirius' name, probably for the same reason Harry hadn't said it.

" No, he wouldn't. " Harry said briskly, finally turning back to Remus. He was starting to rise from his seat, and Remus followed him with his eyes. " I've really got to go... See you at the house? "

" Yes, see you there. "

" Bye. " Harry said, throwing Remus another smile, and a small wave, as he turned around.

" Good bye, Harry. " Remus called, watching the back of his jet black head make its way to the front door of the pub. Before the door even had a chance to fall shut, he saw Harry disapparate, leaving the entrance empty again.

Remus didn't stay much longer, and after leaving the Leaky Cauldron, he stepped out into the heat of the sun, walking for a while, looking through a few of the shop windows, his books hanging in a bag from his arm. After a while, when his arm became sore from the strap of the bag, and his bad leg began to protest against the walking, he found himself disapparating, the long street where Grimmauld Place sat, replacing Diagon Alley.