A note to the anonymous person who reviewed this story, if you are still caring to read: I do write my own fictions. The reason they are not on this site is because this is a sight for fan fiction. This means this site was created for stories like mine as well as the millions of others like it. It is an open public forum for writers with any idea to express it whether it be good, bad, or ugly. First Amendment, kiddo, the freedom of speech, I have it, you have it, everybody has the right to it. This is not a message to slam on you, or to rip what you said, but to merely point out the facts (As a side note: Yes, what you wrote is a flame when it came to commenting on my story, but I'll be the first to admit that it was the most complimentary flame I have ever received). If you would care to look at some of my original creations, please go to It is run by the same people who do but for original works of fiction. My pen name on there is Allison Norris, but my stories are fairly dated, and are definitely not my best pieces of writing. Rest assured, if anybody cares to read those, I have improved greatly since then.

As for my character being a "Mary-sue" . . . I'll admit she has some admirable qualities, but she is by no means "perfect". She has weaknesses and strengths while many "Sues" only have strengths. In the last chapter these are evident: the fact that she cannot defend herself, that she is having trouble with Defense Against the Dark Arts, and that she is struggling with learning how to manage weapons. There shall be even more of these instances of weakness to come. I am doing my best to make sure she does not turn out perfect and become a "Mary-sue". Not to mention that if somebody crosses two stories together that does not instantly make their character a "Mary-Sue"; its all in how they portray the character that determines whether or not they fit the typical profile.

Of course, if you had read more than the first chapter, you may have realized this. And you very well could have read more than one chapter, and left your comment on the first, but normally when a person leaves a review on the first chapter and doesn't care to comment on the others, that normally means that they only cared to read that one chapter. It's all relatively logical, don't you think so?

I know first chapters make a big first impression, but it's normally in the second chapter where many readers decide whether or not to continue reading a book or fan fiction. So, please, let's not jump to petty conclusions, shall we?

So, time to put away my soapbox and finish ranting for today. A page in word processor single spaced is more than enough to make my point clear, I think.

Next, to the reviewer, randomish, yes, they did go into the west . . . four years after the war of the ring. Therefore, if Aragorn and Arwen had children within those four year, Galadriel and Elrond would be there for the birth. I know in the Lord of the Rings books and movies it seems like they left right after the war and the wedding of Aragorn and Arwen, but they didn't. I'm not a Lord of the Rings expert, but even in the movie, Frodo says, "It's been four years to the day since Weathertop," which proves that the elves dwelled in Middle-Earth for sometime after the war. As a side note, for future reference, people tend to take reviews more seriously when words are spelled correctly and "internet lingo" (such as "ppl" and "r") isn't used.

Alexis Ravenlockes

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Chapter 4: Welcome

Their first week of classes had flown by in the blink of an eye, but with a great deal of weighty homework to load them down for their first weekend. And what a beautiful weekend it was going to be. Fall was still settling in and the air retained its summer warmth. The honey rays of the sun illuminated the land with a soft golden glow as it rose in the east. The students rose early on that first Saturday to enjoy it, for it may be the last bit of good weather for a while. This meant that the Great Hall was unusually full for how early it was in the morning. Sairina entered and looked for Lily, and after discovering her spot at the Gryffindor table sat down across from her.

"Don't forget your books, because we are going to be studying in the library today," Sairina said pouring herself a glass of pumpkin juice. Lily giggled softly.

"What time are we going to be meeting at the library and what are the plans for the rest of the day?" Lily asked as she poured syrup on her pancakes.

"After your measuring," Sairina said in a low voice so only Lily could hear, "I was planning on giving you a tour of part of the tower and its gardens. Then we could do a little bit of homework until the seamstress finishes the template dress, which you would have to try on so she can make any alterations to it, and so you wouldn't have to come back every time she would need to see if a dress fits properly or not."

"Sounds like an interesting day," Lily smiled and began to eat her breakfast.

"What are you doing here?" a voice sneered from behind Sairina. She looked over her shoulder to see Sirius standing with the other Marauders with his hands on his hips and tapping his foot impatiently.

"What? You mean to tell me, Black, that I can't sit and talk to my friend on this lovely morning," Sairina asked with mock hurt. He rolled his eyes and opened his mouth to say something but someone cut him off.

"Just let her be, Sirius," Remus said in a smooth voice, "She's not hurting anyone. We can find somewhere else to sit; because I still personally believe that it is way too early for James to start flirting with Evans again." The boys sauntered off with James glaring at Remus and Sirius and Peter laughing at James. Lily and Sairina looked at each other.

"Boys," they muttered at the same time.

/0/0/

After breakfast, Lily ran up to Gryffindor tower, shoved her books into her bag, and left for the far end of the eighth floor corridor. When she arrived she saw Sairina already waiting patiently, leaning on her staff for support, with her bag of books as well. She smiled when she saw Lily turn the corner.

"Ready?" she asked and Lily nodded. Sairina turned back to the mirror waved her hand and muttered something in Sindarin. Lily gasped as the mirror melted away and created a doorway into another large room. She stepped through the portal behind Sairina and the mirror resealed itself.

"Welcome to the white city of Minas Tirith," Sairina said dropping her bag onto the floor. Lily gawked at the room. It was roughly the same size as the Gryffindor common room. The floor had soft woven rugs on it and there was a large canopy bed along one wall. There was a great fireplace and in front of it a table surrounded by four chairs. A warm breeze blew in through the open balcony doors. The balcony was long and seemed to connect to the next room. Lily also took notice of four doors.

"Where do those lead," she asked with childlike wonder. Sairina smiled and motioned Lily to follow. The first door, which was close to her bed, was the door to her personal study. Lily gaped in wonder at the book filled shelves that lined the walls. The next door, on the opposite wall from the bed and study was a grand bathroom which had another door on the far side of it.

"That door," Sairina said gesturing to the largest door, "leads out into the hall, and finally this door," she gestured to the other door on the same wall as the bathroom door, "leads to your room." Lily did a double take.

"My room?" she asked as she opened the door, "wow." Her room was about the same size as Sairina's and it, too, had a large canopy bed, fireplace, and an assortment of rugs and large inviting chairs.

"It doesn't have its own study," Sairina explained, "and we share the bathroom. But other than that it's all yours. What do you think?"

"I love it," Lily sighed which caused Sairina to laugh.

"Excellent," she said and vanished into her room for a moment. She returned with a simple mint green gown draped over her arm and a pair of matching slippers in her other hand, "Like I told you before, we dress quite differently here, so this should suffice until you get dresses of your own. I'm a bit taller than you, so it might be a bit too long." She handed Lily the dress and slippers.

The girls were wandering the halls a few minutes later. Lily listened with rapt attention as Sairina explained the significance of some of the tapestries and statues along their way to the royal seamstress.

That was when they heard it. Although what it was is still debatable.

It sounded like a cross between a loud crash and a sickening thud of a person falling hard on the floor. It also sounded to the girls like there was a loud splash and a sucking, squelching sound of something liquid. There was also a very loud roar of rage that sounded distinctly dwarvish. Then there was a pounding sound that sounded like several people running on marble floor. Well, it wasn't several, Sairina knew for a fact that only four people were running, and she was right. As she flung herself and Lily against the nearest wall four teenage boys rounded the corner going full tilt and laughing loudly.

"Shut up," the lead boy with dark hair growled, "Legolas will be able to track the sound." Sairina laughed and the four boys did a double take and stopped in front of the two girls. The boy who had just spoken looked brightly at her, "Little sister! Please tell those two that we were with you all day. Please, we will forever be in your and your lovely friend's debt."

"Oh, Eldarion, my dear brother, they would see through the lie from a mile away," She sighed patting her brother's shoulder, "I'm at school, remember?" Eldarion's face went pale, "Plus why would I miss the opportunity to see you renegades get a tongue lashing from Legolas and Gimli?" A sly smile spread upon her face and the boys paled even further before taking off again.

"Oh-no you don't," Lily taunted in a sing-song voice as the boys looked over their shoulders at her as they continued to run, "Glacius," she shouted as the floor beneath the boys turned to ice and they all fell with a collective thud. Sairina laughed so hard she couldn't stand.

"C'mon, Lily," she said between gasps for air, "let's go to the seamstress. We're running late."

The seamstress was slightly upset with the fact that the girls were late, but after hearing the reasons for their tardiness instantly forgave them.

"Those boys have it coming I swear," she muttered as she pulled out a marked bit of rope, "Please step up on the stool, dearie." Lily obliged willingly and the head seamstress quickly took several measurements and told an assistant to jot them down. Once she finished she told Lily she could step down.

"Such a strange hue of hair," she murmured entranced by Lily's hair, "Are you of Rohirric descent?" Lily shook her head.

"I'm Irish actually," she responded but only received a strange look from the seamstress, "Um . . . It's a lineage from the city of . . . of . . ." Lily struggled.

"Bree," Sairina said quickly covering for her lost friend. The seamstress nodded.

"It is a beautiful color," she said twirling one lock, "and your eyes look like pure emeralds . . . yes . . . I know the perfect fabrics to use. You may go." Lily curtsied and she rejoined Sairina at the door. As they exited they ran into a familiar, flushed face.

"Ada and Nana would like you two to join them for an early morning tea," Eldarion muttered glaring daggers at the girls.

"How much trouble did you get in?" Sairina asked cheekily. If looks could kill, Sairina would have dropped dead at Eldarion's glare.

"Pre-dawn training for all four of us, and we are Legolas' and Gimli's personal servants for the rest of their stay," he spat, "We would have gotten away with it too, if it weren't for two bothersome curuni." Sairina shrugged as the three other boys sauntered up.

"Ah," Sairina said, "Allow me to properly introduce you to the Trastahíl, Lily." She gestured to her brother, "This is Prince Eldarion, my older brother," he nodded curtly, "This is Prince Elboron, the steward's son," a boy with chestnut brown hair did a mock salute, "That is Prince Elfwine, heir to the throne of Rohan," a boy with golden locks shook away a star-struck look and winked suggestively at Lily, "Finally that is Prince Alphros, heir to the princedom of Dol Amroth," the last boy with black locks nodded.

"Menaces to society," Sairina addressed the boys, "This is Lily Evans, my lady-in-waiting. Now we must be off." Sairina led Lily away from the four boys. Once they were out of earshot, Lily let out a great laugh.

"They are exact duplicates of the Marauders!" she exclaimed, "Your brother is James. Elfwine is Sirius. Elboron is Remus. And, well, Alphros is Peter by default." The girls looked at one another and a fresh wave of laughter struck them. It took them several minutes to regain their composure and continue their journey towards the king and queen's chambers.

Before Lily could say "Galloping Goblins" she was seated in front of the two most amazing and beautiful people she had ever seen. Queen Arwen was the divine picture of beauty. She had her long ebony lock cascaded over her shoulders like dark waterfalls and her blue eyes were gently but piercing. She had a petite frame, but Lily could tell that there was a great strength hidden beneath the soft exterior.

King Elessar had brown locks that fell to his shoulder and a full beard. Both his hair and beard were flecked with gray that gave him a very regal look. His eyes were a gentle gray and filled with laughter. He sat up straight and had a sturdy build conveying the strength he possessed. His hands were weathered and calloused with little scars decorating them, yet when he took Lily's hand, they were the gentlest hands she had even encountered.

After examining their characteristics, Lily decided that Sai looked very much like her mother, but with her father's laughing eyes.

Sairina chatted happily with her parents and told them of her lessons thus far. Lily would comment every now and again, but she was mainly content with listening and sipping her tea.

"What is that game you play?' her father asked, "Quidditch, have you started playing that again yet?" Sairina shook her head.

"Practices are starting up next week," Sairina explained, "I believe the first match is in a month, Ravenclaw versus Slytherin." Her mother shivered.

"I must profess," she said, "The name of that house reminds me to much of the black speech of Mordor. Evil lurks in that name; however, I do desire to see you play in a match," she turned to her husband, "Perhaps we can see this first match?" He nodded.

"There are several of the lords and ladies who have expressed a desire to see this game once you explained it to us last year," he said and turned to Lily, "Are you on your house's team?"

"No," Lily said setting down her tea cup, "I fear I am no good when it comes to ridding a broom." Sairina rolled her eyes.

"I keep telling you it's like riding a horse," Sairina said, "and you are quite good at that." This peaked her parents' attention.

"You like to ride?" the king asked stroking his beard. Lily nodded. "Then we'll just have to see to getting you a mount. I'm sure Eomer would have a horse for you, or would you prefer an elvish bred steed." Lily shrugged.

"I would think a horse that I could get along with," Lily said thoughtfully. The king nodded.

"Elvish bred then, I would say," he said as someone knocked upon the door, "Enter." In through the door stepped a tall man who had the same chestnut locks as Elboron. "Ah, Faramir, it is good to see you again my friend. What brings you to my chambers?"

"My lord," he said bowing slightly, "I did not realize that you were otherwise disposed. I was hoping to have a word concerning the state of the seeing stone." The king waved his hand.

"What news have you learned?" he asked lightly. Faramir pulled out a roll of parchment.

"Our spies in Harad have sent news," he said unfurling it, "They say that there is talk of an ancient prophecy made by Melkor himself concerning the rise of a dark lord of some sort. We do not know the details as of yet, but they are working restlessly to discover the prophecy the Lady Galadriel predicted." He then cast a worried glance to Sairina. Lily, in turn, then cast a sideways glance at Sairina which begged for an explanation of the whole situation.

"I see," the king said stroking his beard and turned to the two girls, "I fear we will have to cut this meeting short, my dears. Perhaps we can finish another time." With that he shooed the girls from the room. Lily turned to companion and opened her mouth to question her about what they were talking about, when a small slip of a girl came up to them saying that the seamstress was ready for Lily's final fitting. By the time they were finished it was mid afternoon and they decided it would be best to head back to Hogwarts before it got too late. Passing through the mirror doorway the girls began to weave their way towards the library.

"What is going on in your world?" Lily asked point blank. Sairina hesitated.

"As you know," she began, "My great-grandmother was a great elvin sorceress. When I was born, she made a prediction or had a vision, I'm not quite sure. But she basically said that a prophecy that was long forgotten would be remembered, bringing about the rise of a dark lord, probably the dark lord, Sauron, and that I would be the key in preventing his third rise.

"Do you remember the night of our sorting, how I passed out?" Sairina asked and Lily nodded, "I had a vision of one of the seven seeing stones being found by a group of orcs. In its depths I saw a great burning eye; Sauron's essence was still alive within that dark sphere waiting to be released. It said something to be before I regained consciousness," she hesitated momentarily and said the next words with pain etched on her face, "'Búrz goth fitgta! Bûrzum fitgta! Kaal lûmpta!' It was the dark lord's tongue, and it means 'the dark lord will rise, darkness will rise, and light will fail.' My father and the steward do not think that this is the actual prophecy, but they are trying to find any ancient prophecy that may fit the profile. As you could tell, they aren't having much luck."

"Where is the stone now?" Lily asked as they passed a large tapestry, "Maybe the key to the prophecy is in it." Sairina shrugged.

"It was in the white tower," Sairina began, "but there were many threats and attempts to get it, some of these attempts endangering my family, so it now dwells here in Hogwarts. Only my father and Dumbledore know where it is, and they know it will be safe here and that my family will be safe because there were many decoy stones spread out across the far regions of Middle-Earth.

"As for the prophecy being hidden in it, my father tried that, but he found nothing but a shadow of something lurking down in the depths unwilling to be exposed."

"Sauron?" Lily asked. Sairina nodded. "I guess that explains the Sorting Hat's song our first year." They walked the rest of the way to the library in companionable silence. From the shadows behind the tapestry which hid a secret passage four boys stepped out.

"This stone sounds pretty important," Peter said, stating the obvious. The other boys rolled their eyes.

"That's why we are going to find it," James said defiantly. The other boys looked skeptically at him.

"I don't know James it sounds dangerous," Remus said, "Maybe we should figure out where Middle-Earth is first. It doesn't sound like any place I have ever heard of."

"If it's dangerous, then I don't want Lily getting hurt," James said with passion burning in his eyes.

"You're not the only one concerned with the safety of a girl," Remus murmured to himself.

/0/0/

Sairina did not understand Defense Against the Dark Arts. That's all there was to it. It had be fifteen years since there were such creatures that inhabited Middle-Earth whose sole purpose was to be evil and to kill. Yes, there was still evil, but it was in the hearts of men, who were easily corrupted, but that was different from being purely evil.

She just couldn't understand.

She sighed as she walked into the DADA classroom. Her only saving grace was that she had this class with Gryffindor, which meant Lily was in her class. There was, however, something different about the classroom today.

All the desks and chairs had been pushed off to the side walls, leaving a majority of the floor open. At the far end of the room was a large cabinet which was shaking rather violently. Professor Ambrose was beaming at his students as they entered.

"Today, class," he began, "You will be learning about how to deal with a boggart. Now does anyone know where a boggart's power lies?" Remus Lupin raised his hand eagerly, "Yes, Mr. Lupin."

"The boggart draws from the mind of his prey their worst fear, and turns into what ever that is," he stated simply. Professor Ambrose beamed.

"That is exactly correct," he said, "Five points to Gryffindor. Now the key to breaking a boggart is laughter and the spell to repel against its power is riddikulus . . . everyone please repeat." There was a murmur as the students practiced the spell. Once Professor Ambrose seemed satisfied, he called Peter to the front of the class. After a few moments of hushed conversation between two the professor turned to the rest of the class.

"Let us begin," with a wave of his wand the door to the cabinet flew open, and before Peter was a great snake.

"Riddikulus," he shouted and the snake transformed into a jack-in-the-box. Many of the students laughed along with Professor Ambrose.

"Lily!" he commanded and Lily stepped forward. The jack-in-the-box considered her carefully before there was a loud crack and it transformed into a huge spider.

"Riddikulus," she said and with a wave of her wand the spider began sprouting flowers all over it. The class roared with laughter.

"Excellent," Professor Ambrose said, "Mr. Watterson." Sam Watterson, one of the Ravenclaw boys, stepped forward taking Lily's place. The flower covered spider quickly transformed into the largest wasp anyone had ever seen.

"Riddikulus," he said and the wasp's wings fell off and it writhed around on the floor. The laughter continued.

"Sirius!" The dark haired boy stepped forward and the wasp transformed into two people, both bearing a great resemblance to Sirius.

"Riddikulus," he scoffed and their black robes were transformed into muggle clothing. The Marauders laughed the loudest out of anyone at this.

"Sairina!" She stepped forward. She didn't know what her greatest fear was, and so she didn't know what to imagine of turning it into. As she took Black's place, the woman of the pair smiled vindictively. There was a loud crack and a burning red eye appeared in the air. Sairina hesitated.

"Ri . . . ri . . .riddik," she stammered but then a booming voice filled the room.

Ash nazg durbatuluk, ash nazg gimbatul, ash nazg thrakatuluk agh burzum-ishi krimpatul.

By this time, Sairina was on her knees covering her ears and crying out in pain. The black speech seared her ears and spread throughout her body like a raging fire. Everyone in the room was seemingly spellbound by the eye. Sairina looked up as tears ran silently down her cheeks. The eye transformed then into a tall armored covered man, he towered over the class. His face was hidden beneath a wicked looking helm. In his hand he held a huge spike covered club, and on that same hand was a golden ring with bright red script on it burning brightly. The class had no clue who or what this was.

But Sairina knew, and that was all that mattered.

The class let out a collective gasp as the being lifted up the club and swung it downward with great force. Sairina had barely rolled out of the way as the club crashed into the floor tearing up the wooden boards. The thing pulled the club from the floor and prepared to bring it down again when someone jumped in front of Sairina.

CRACK!

The creature was gone and a bright orb was floating in the air.

"RIDDIKULUS!" Remus roared and the orb flew around the room like a deflating balloon before flying back into the closet. With a wave of his wand, Professor Ambrose shut the closet door. Silence settled over the classroom.

"Well, that is all for today," he said quickly, "you are all dismissed." The class quickly filed out of the room except for a few people. Sairina was on the floor shaking like a leaf with silent tears rolling down her face. Remus was kneeling beside her with one arm wrapped around her waist for support. Lily had made her way quickly to her other side and was murmuring something in a strange tongue. It seemed to have a calming effect. Professor Ambrose kneeled down in front of her.

"Was that him?" he asked. Being a teacher, he of course knew about Sairina's true identity, and in the previous year (during a tutoring session) she had told him about the tale of the ring. She nodded silently, still trembling. "Mr. Lupin, Miss Evans, could you please escort her to the hospital wing? I don't think she was injured, but Madame Pomfrey may have something to calm her nerves. After you drop her off there, I need to have a word with you Remus. Right now, I need to go speak with Professor Dumbledore." With that, Professor Ambrose swept out of the room. Remus glanced down at Sairina.

"Do you think you'll be able to walk?" he asked and she shrugged. He then gently took one of her arms, put it around his shoulders, and then wrapped his arm tightly around her waist. "Try to stand on three. One, two, three." Remus helped Sairina get to her feet and continued to hold her for support. Lily stepped out of the way and followed the two as they made their way slowly towards the hospital wing.

Arriving there, Remus gently lifted Sairina onto one of the beds while Lily ran to get Madame Pomfrey. Remus gazed upon Sairina who was still trembling with fright and had silent tears streaming down her face. He gently took the sleeve of his outer black robe and wiped the stains from her face.

"Don't cry," He murmured, "I'd never let anyone or anything hurt you." This second part was whispered so softly that Sairina at first doubted as to whether or not she actually heard it. Remus gently tucked a stray hair behind her ear and noticed that her ears came to a slight point. Granted it was so slight it could be easily missed, but as Remus ran his hand over it, the oddity was quite obvious.

"Thank you very much you two," Madame Pomfrey said shooing the two students from the room, "but you must go, this girl needs her rest." The infirmary door closed with a snap, and the two students slowly walked away. Remus glanced curiously at Lily who was walking with her head down, avoiding his eye.

"You and Sairina have been friends ever since you first met," he stated bluntly, "What was that thing the boggart turned into?" Lily wrung her hands nervously; she was so nervous Remus could smell it.

"I . . . I don't know," she stammered and quickly walked in the direction of Gryffindor tower leaving Remus standing by himself in the hall. Sighing, he gave up and quickly remembered that Professor Ambrose had wanted to speak with him. He turned on his heel and headed back to the classroom. When he arrived he noticed that the desks were back in their correct places and that Professor Ambrose was sitting at his desk pinching the bridge of his nose and looked as if he was attempting to block out the entire world.

"Professor, you said that you wanted to see me?" Remus asked as he approached the desk. Ambrose looked up and smiled weakly.

"That was a brave thing you did during class today," he said weakly, "I don't think you will ever truly realize how brave your actions were." He sighed heavily.

"What do you mean, Professor?" Remus asked intently, "What was that thing Sairina feared so much? Don't deny that you know it, because I heard you ask her if that was him." Remus stared as intimidating as possible at his professor, Ambrose chuckled softly.

"You were always the smartest of the Maraurders," he stated, "and I won't deny that I know what it was, but I fear that it is not my place to tell you who that was and what it means. Only Miss Telcontar has the right to share her past with whom she deems fit. So far that seems to be only one student." Lily Remus thought instantly.

"But the reason I asked you to come back is concerning Sairina," he said interrupting Remus' thoughts, "After the display in class today, you know as well as I, that she is very weak in the area of Defense Against the Dark Arts. I am asking for you to tutor her," He could see Remus preparing to object, "Now before you say anything allow me to explain why I am asking you.

"Believe it or not Remus, in your year, out of all the houses, you are the top student when it comes to defense," Remus looked quite surprised, "Ironic isn't it? Especially considering your condition, but I believe that because you are werewolf you have a better understanding of things of this nature. Where Sairina comes from, she has not had the experience of dealing with creatures of darkness, and it is very hard for her to see anything as being purely evil."

"Whatever that things was she fear seemed pretty damn evil to me," Remus scoffed.

"But she has never met him," Ambrose said, "She has only heard about him in tales and legends. She never actually had to come face to face with him until today," the professor waved his hand dismissively, "Will you tutor her?" Remus nodded silently. "Thank you Mr. Lupin, that is all." Remus left without another word and shut the door behind him. Sighing he leaned up against the closed door.

"How much of that did you guys actually hear?" he asked painfully while looking into the shadows to his right. The three other marauders stepped out into plain view.

"Enough," Sirius said crossing his arms over his chest, "but we already knew most of it anyway. We knew you were the top student in DADA . . ."

". . . And we figured Ambrose would want you to tutor Sairina . . ." Peter continued.

" . . . Oh yea, we also knew that you were a werewolf, too," James concluded. Remus looked at them aghast.

"You guys knew?" he asked incredulously, "but . . . how? And why are you guys still hanging around me? Don't you know that I'm a terrible beast who shouldn't be trifled with?" He said the last part bitterly. The other boys just looked at him.

"Well first off," Sirius began, "there are only so many times a grandmother can die, and you exceeded that limit. Same goes for how many times your mother could be deathly ill."

"Secondly," James continued, "You would be gone one night a month and the next day. It was Peter here who finally realized that you were gone the night of the full moon."

"And thirdly," Peter began, hesitated and looked to Sirius and James, "Wait was there a thirdly?" The other boys rolled their eyes.

"The point is," James said, is that you're our mate, a fellow Marauder in arms. We can't abandon you, especially when what happened wasn't your fault." The words struck home for Remus. His parents had been telling him for years that what happened wasn't his fault, but it wasn't until he heard those words coming from a true friend that they actually had meaning.

"C'mon, Moony," Sirius said, "We have transfiguration to finish."