A Werewolf's Prophecy

Part 4: No Good Deed Goes Unpunished

I don't understand anything anymore. I don't understand what I am supposed to do. Every time I think I understand my life and my purpose, it all gets twisted up-side-down and I'm left alone and confused. Curse Dumbledore and this prophecy! Why did he ever tell me? If it was meant to happen, it would happen if I knew about it or not, and I would have rather not!

I am useless, really. I can't do what Dumbledore asks of me, I can't do what that foul Greyback wants of me, and I can't even do what my fate expects of me. And the worst part of it all is that I can't do what I want, I force myself into these situations where I'm as far away from her as possible, half-heartedly trying to prove to myself that I don't want her, that I must live without her. Because I must. I look at what I've become and I'm revolted…

November 20, 1996

Garbage, rotten flesh, smoke, sweat, blood, mold, chocolate… "Chocolate, who has chocolate," Remus thought to himself as he looked around breathing in heavily through his nose. He had recently thought about putting a spell on himself, to kill his olfactory sense and make it easier to bare living in such a revolting environment. He decided against it though, realizing he needed his heightened ability to smell in order to survive amongst them.

A new group had arrived several weeks before. Remus was surprised they were still here. Greyback was hesitant to accept newbies; fearing spies would infiltrate his pack. Remus chuckled softly when he considered how easily he was accepted the day he showed up. Although, he suspected Greyback knew what he was about and had something planned for him. Because of this Remus was in a constant state of apprehension during his first few months in the Underground. He hardly slept, lost even more weight than he thought possible, and even started talking to himself on occasion.

Then he was given his mission. All members of this pack had to have a purpose or Greyback would not allow them to stay, or in most cases, they were not allowed to live. Remus was sent out into the depths of the Underground to make a detailed map of the abandoned tunnel system. Greyback hoped to turn it into an underground city for his pack. Remus had to admit that in theory it was a good idea – if you're an evil werewolf king who wants to rule the world, of course. By establishing themselves beneath the city they could go mostly undetected since not even most wizards ventured down there, never mind Muggles. Greyback could keep most of his pack trapped and isolated during the full moon, and under his control. Secret passageways he either found or created allowed him easy access to the outside world when needed. But most importantly, the desolate environment kept his pack very dependant on him – for food and guidance. Most did not know how to get out or when their next meal was coming. Greyback knew what he was doing… most of the time.

Remus could not even fathom why Greyback had not killed him already. He was granted more freedom than most others, even if he was not allowed to speak with Greyback as much as his closest allies were. Because of his mission he was gone long hours of the day, meandering through the tunnels, drawing, taking notes. When he returned he would immediately report to Greyback who would simply nod and gesture toward Remus's meager reward, usually a raw potato. Remus was aware that the time away from the group might be detrimental to his real mission – to acquire information about Greyback and Voldemort. But he needed this task to keep his sanity and he could only hope he was also gaining Greyback's trust.

Greyback confiscated everyone's wands when they became members of the pack; therefore magic was limited among the group. Remus, of course, did not need a wand, although he decided to keep that information to himself. He would only use magic when he knew he was absolutely alone, and it was usually only to light his way through the tunnels or heal a minor wound. Remus was unaware that Greyback knew about this; he had spies of his own. It was part of what made Remus so curious to the chief werewolf. He wondered why he kept his abilities to himself since most of his aboveground friends did not even know about it; why such a gift was wasted on such a feeble wizard; what else was this man trying to hide from him; and most importantly, he wondered if these powers were hereditary.

Remus was quite aware that Greyback wanted to produce an heir to pass on his reign of terror on the world. What Remus did not know was that Greyback had been quite unsuccessful at this goal for several years and it was not for lack of trying. He usually blamed the women, most of whom he swiftly had killed when they failed to become pregnant. Who the mother was did not matter to him much, as long as she had a womb. This aspect was curious to Remus. Why, if Greyback was trying to produce as heir, did he not choose the mother more carefully? Did he not realize that the child would acquire traits from both parents? Perhaps he did not care, he merely wanted a child to mold as he saw fit.

As Remus gathered his things and stood up slowly, stretching to relieve some of the tension built up from sleeping on a stone floor, he thoughts moved from Greyback's potential fatherhood to his own. His footsteps made tiny splashes as he moved away from the light of the fire pits and toward the darkness of the uninhabited tunnels. His thoughts over the past six months often turned to the prophecy. Some days he thought of little else. Not only did he wonder who it would be or when it would happen, but he also thought of the child. "Would he be spared of this curse?" was the question he contemplated over and over again, "Surely such a powerful wizard could not be a werewolf."

He assumed whoever the mother would be he would surely never see again, leaving the prospect of him raising the child out of the realm of possibility. This was what made him the most heartbroken and caused impossible visions to haunt his dreams. The dreams were not always the same but she was always in them, holding their child in her hands and smiling. Remus cursed himself as he kicked an empty tin can out of his path, trying to push the memories of his visions out of his head. "Not possible!" he scolded himself and continued on.

He was so preoccupied with tormenting himself that he was completely unaware that he was being followed.

Remus slowed his pace as he reached the fork in the tunnel system that he had come to many times before. He usually veered right, but decided to turn left this time, into the unknown. He reached into his small bag meaning to lift out the log that Greyback had given to him to record his findings. Instead, he pulled out a small leather-bound volume that he had scarcely looked at in months. He kept the journal hidden, fearful of it being found even though he put several charms on it preventing anyone else from being able to read it. He had hardly felt like himself since coming underground and therefore never even thought of recording any of his thoughts. He stopped himself just short of opening it and realized he could not bare any more thoughts of the past. He stuffed the journal back into his bag and pulled out the log. Turning left, he moved forward and began his task, pushing other thoughts into the back of his mind.

After several hours of taking notes, drawing images of what he saw, and adding to the map, Remus decided to take a break. He turned around to lower his bag to the ground and noticed a quick movement in the shadows behind him. He quickly threw his bag back over his shoulder and said firmly, "Who's there? Show yourself!" For more than a few seconds there came no response and Remus took one tentative step forward when a small figure emerged from the shadows.

"Who are you and why are you following me?" He clenched his fist into a ball tightly before releasing it and stretching out his fingers, readying himself for a fight.

"My name is Kiara."1. She paused for a moment and took another step forward. "Greyback asked me to follow you."

Remus was looking directly into her eyes, they were cold and grey. "I see. Did he say why?" Remus did not move and did not take an eye off of her.

"No. He simply said, 'You, the one small breasts, go follow Mr. Stick-Up-His-Ass and don't get caught. Come back here immediately and tell me where he goes and what he's doing," she said flatly.

Remus squinted his eyes and turned his head slightly to the side, "So he doesn't trust me?"

"I can't image that he trusts anyone." Neither one moved, each with a pair of dubious eyes fixed on each other.

"No, I suppose not." Remus took a deep breath and began to take a closer look at his spy. She was small-chested, he noted, she was small in general. But she had a fierce look in her eyes, one of pain and determination. He wondered briefly what could cause such a look before continuing, "So what should I do with you now?"

She looked down briefly at the log in his left hand. "I suppose you should continue your work and I should continue mine. We can both report to Greyback as we are supposed to do. I will leave out this aspect of my findings and hopefully he won't discover my lie and we can both go on living."

Remus cleared his throat and spoke in a lower tone, "I do not like being followed." Kiara did not respond, instead she just looked at him, her expression now blank. "But it looks as though neither of us have a choice. Come on." He gestured for her to walk next to him; he did not want her behind him anymore.

They walked on for several minutes in silence. Remus was barely able to concentrate on his assignment, his thoughts kept turning to Greyback and what he was trying to do. "I can understand his not trusting me, especially since he shouldn't, but why send this girl to follow me? She doesn't look like she is particularly fond of him, so she cannot be one of his close allies. Plus she is a woman, and Greyback only uses women for one thing." Suddenly it came to him. He swallowed as if he had a terrible taste in his mouth as he thought about what the woman next to him had to endure.

"So you are… one of his woman, are you not?"

"For the moment." She paused and for the first time since she was discovered she looked uncomfortable. She looked as though she wanted to continue but she could not find the words.

"Are you… Was he successful?"

"Not yet." She stopped and looked at Remus, eyes now pleading. Remus did not know what to make of her. She seemed as if she wanted to tell him something but he could not fathom what it could be. If it was information about Greyback he needed to get it out of her, but she was obviously conflicted and needed encouragement. He would have to try and charm her. His mouth formed a small smile as he contemplated the idea: Remus the charmer. If only Sirius and James were here to laugh at him.

He allowed the smile to widen and said softly as he moved closer to her, "I can see why he chose you."

It backfired. Instead of appealing to her, he seemed to scare her off, and she backed away looking confused. "Moony what are you doing? You laid it on too thick! You've got to do the sympathetic friend bit, that's what you're best at," said a voice in his head sounding a lot like Sirius's.

He backed off slightly and folded his hands in front of him, "Look, I cannot begin to understand what it must be like for you. But I know what it is like to on the receiving end of his wrath." He pulled on the collar of his shirt to reveal a large scar on his shoulder. It was red and rose off the skin, looking fresher than thirty years old. "Greyback is a monster, and not just once a month, everyday. If he could be a werewolf all the time, I'm sure he would." He leaned up against the wall next to him and allowed his bag to drop to his feet. "It's because of him that we are despised, that people are afraid of us and we have no rights. But there isn't much we can do about it except stick together and protect one another." As the words came out of his mouth he was doubtful she would buy it.

She did not respond right away, but she came closer to him and leaned her back against the wall. She began to push up the sleeve of her shirt to reveal a scar similar to the one Remus showed her on her bicep. "I was ten."

Remus nodded. "Six."

She pushed her sleeve back down and crossed her arms, "I did not want to come down here. My only friend, Christine, became enamored with Greyback and believed him to be the answers to all our problems. I couldn't let her come here alone. A lot of good I did for her. She went off with Greyback into his private quarters last month and never returned." She closed her eyes momentarily and when she opened them there was a new flame burning within them. "Why does he do it? Why, if he wants to create this army of werewolves, does he kill half of his 'soldiers'?"

"He thinks you're weak. He doesn't understand that witches are just as powerful as wizards, some much more so. He believes you only have one purpose – to further procreation of the species."

"Yes, that's why it was so important that I come here, that I follow you."

Remus turned to her, unsure he understood her meaning, "What are you talking about?"

"Greyback sent me here to follow you and then… seduce you." She would not look at him. "I don't know if you've noticed, but he hasn't exactly had much luck in that department. Funny, huh. Who would have thought that the great and powerful Greyback, Almighty King of All Werewolves was shooting blanks." She chuckled faintly. "I suppose now he doesn't care if the child is his or not, as long as he has one to claim as his own and raise as the next Ruler of All Things Vile and Hateful."

"I see." Remus's mind was reeling and he began to pace in front of her. After several minutes he spoke aloud but to himself, "So Greyback wants me to produce his heir. Why me? Why doesn't he ask one of his cronies to do it? I suppose he thinks I wouldn't fight him for the child, that he could easily get rid of me. That once I fulfill my duties…" He stopped cold and his eyes went wide and the obvious dawned on him. He slowly slumped to the floor. "The prophecy."

Kiara was watching him intently, her eyes squinting in confusion. "What did you say? What prophecy?"

Remus signed, "You and I. This was meant to be. We are supposed to do this." Sitting on the ground he was leaning forward, both hands on his head and his elbows at his knees. "It's true, it's really true. I can't believe it's true."

Kiara was looking very agitated now, "What are you talking about!" It was the first time she had raised her voice above barely audible since Remus spotted her following him about an hour before.

Remus stood up and moved very close to her, putting his hands on her shoulders. "There is a prophecy about this. It states that I am to father this child, and it can only mean that you are to be the mother."

She looked at him closely for a moment and then pushed his hands off of her and backed away. "How can you be sure of that?"

"Because it's the only thing that makes sense."

She took a deep breath and thought hard for several minutes before speaking. "So, let's say you're right. That there is this prophecy and this is what it says will happen. Do you not have a choice? Are we to just throw away freewill and trust fate? Because I don't really like fate right now! Fate doesn't look like a good idea to me! I'm more inclined to go with freewill and freewill is telling me to run, to get the hell out of here, away from you and your crazy prophecy and away from him."

"He will find you and kill you."

"He's going to kill me anyway." Remus could only remain silent as he knew this was true.

"It doesn't matter if you try and run from it, fate that is. It will only find you. I know, I tried for years, tried to pretend it wasn't true, tried to find happiness that was never meant to be only to be forced to let it go. I can't do it anymore, I can't run from it. It's time to accept it. It will be easier for both of us if you do the same." He was standing directly in front of her now but she would not meet his gaze. He reached up and put his hand under her chin raising her head. He was breathing heavily, resigned on what must happen but still disgusted himself. He moved his head forward rather quickly pressing his lips firmly to hers. For a moment she was stunned and did not move. Finally tears started down her face and when Remus felt them on his lip he backed away as quickly as he had approached her.

"What am I doing? I can't do this, I'm not this person." He walked over to his bag, threw it over his shoulder and faced away from her, toward the dark tunnel he was meant to be exploring. "Go back. Tell him you did as you were asked. Hopefully he will smell me on you and believe you. And do not worry, I will not press my fate on you again. Goodbye." And with that he swiftly walked into the darkness.

1. Kiara is a Celtic name meaning "Small/dark."

A/n: Ok, so no Tonks and another woman! I know, I know, but these are the steps that Remus must take before he gets it. And he'll get it eventually.