James spluttered. "What?" he asked.

Remus nodded. "Yeah, they suspect me." He looked down at his lap and grew silent.

James stared at him, lost for words. "What…what did Dumbledore say?" he asked finally.

Remus shrugged. "Nothing much," he said. "He did say that he'll do everything he can to get me out of this mess." He rubbed his chest absent-mindedly, finding it difficult to look up at James.

"But it wasn't a full moon!" James huffed. "So it depends on who would have a grudge on the Ministry."

"Or someone working at the Ministry," Remus conceded.

"But you don't have a grudge against someone at the Ministry!" James said, raising from the bed and pacing around the room.

Remus cleared his throat uncertainly and James stopped to look at him piercingly.

"Um…I don't know if you've heard…" Remus started, feeling a slight blush rise in his cheeks as he looked up at his best friend for the first time since he had announced his news. "But…there's this woman…"

"Remus, spit it out," James said.

"Do you know Dolores Umbridge?" Remus asked hurriedly, as if saying this quickly would ease the uncomfortableness.

"Sounds familiar," James muttered, nodding his head.

"Well, she tried to pass an anti-werewolf legislation making it hard for me to find work," Remus explained. "I protested against it, of course."

"Oh yeah, I remember that," James said thoughtfully. "But they don't suspect you just because you protested against them, do they?"

"Of course they do," Remus replied scathingly. "Apparently if you express your opinion you're an immediate suspect in a murder case."

"Did the law pass?" James asked curiously, apparently forgetting about the more pressing matter at hand.

"No," Remus replied. "I expect she'll try again in a couple of years, though."

"What a right old hag," James hissed. His eyes became hard and cold as he looked back at Remus. "Who else do they suspect?" he asked.

"Well there are a few werewolves that supported Voldemort that hadn't been caught," Remus said. "They have their names down but they can't find any of them."

"Then it's obviously them," James said.

"I wouldn't be so sure," Remus objected. "Most of them believe Voldemort is dead. They wouldn't try anything."

James sighed and rubbed his face. "We'll get you out of this Remus," he said, solemnly. "We'll get you out of this."

Remus remained silent.

"What did Sirius say?" James asked, as though Sirius' answer to this problem would sort the whole thing out.

"I didn't tell him," Remus sighed, looking awkward. "He found out the hard way."

"Which is?" James encouraged.

"You know the Daily Prophet is very efficient these days," Remus smirked.

"He found out from the paper?" James spluttered. "They named you on the paper?"

"Oh yeah," Remus said. "They don't miss anything, do they? I've been sacked to make things worse. My boss had a shock when he found out that I was a werewolf, let alone a convicted one."

"When's your trial?" James asked hollowly.

"Thursday," Remus answered, lying down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling gloomily.

"Dumbledore's on the Wizengamont," James stated. "You should be alright."

"Let's hope."

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

"Hey, Black! Is it true what they said about your furry friend?"

"Your friend killed my mate, Black!"

"Keep Lupin in a kennel!"

"Hey Sirius, my wife's a werewolf thanks to your mate!"

Shouts and accusations followed Sirius around that morning. His face burned red and his eyes flashing dangerously, he strode down the wreck that was previously a corridor at the Ministry of Magic. He was clutching a copy of the Daily Prophet in his left hand and carrying a bag in his right. He reached his office and opened his door just as another loud person called out to him.

"Hey Black, your friend's gone! You hear me? He's gone!"

Sirius didn't even acknowledge the person, but strode into his office and slammed the door behind him.

His office was a large one. Sirius was an Auror, one of the most qualified Auror's the Ministry had to offer. In the days of the first war, James and Sirius were the pair people would look on in awe. Although they were nothing compared to what Alastor Moody had to offer, their foes still feared them. Together they accomplished elite achievements. But James was now unemployed and Sirius was assigned a new partner. When Sirius' partner joined up, she was inexperienced, something Sirius found highly irritating. Not only that, but he found that she was a cheap replacement for James. How could they replace a great Auror like James Potter, for someone so juvenile like this new person? But the years dragged on and Sirius had to admit that this new Auror had improved greatly. She was proving herself to be a wonderful asset to the Ministry and indeed to Sirius himself. It would not be the first time she had 'salvaged him from the banks of hell', as she liked to put it.

And now, as Sirius strode further into his office, he found her sitting at her desk by one wall, staring blankly at his desk by the other wall.

"Aglaia," he greeted the young woman sitting at her desk.

He strode over to his own desk, taking mind of the mess the office was actually in.

"Sirius," Aglaia returned. "I suppose you've notice the mess, then?"

Sirius nodded, looking around, while dumping his bag and newspaper on the desk before upturning his own chair. The office was a complete mess. Papers littered the floor, among other things. He wondered vaguely how Aglaia's desk could still be standing when one of its legs were half missing. It looked as if a werewolf had taken a chunk out of it. His own desk had chunks missing from it and Sirius could smell blood in the air. Pictures that had once been fastened to the walls were now lying in tatters on the floor.

Sirius glanced up and found Aglaia staring at him. He had the decency to flush red and then sat down n his upturned chair and looked over at his partner and not for the first time found her astonishingly pretty.

Aglaia was only a year younger than Sirius. She was not the type of person Sirius would normally go after. She did not wear skimpy outfits. Anytime Sirius saw her, she was completely covered. If you had not known she was a girl you would not have realised that she had breasts. She wore clothing that kept her modest and clean. She never wore make-up and kept her long black hair in a tight ponytail, her blue eyes hidden behind a pair of round glasses, but nevertheless she was pretty. She had the same views and values that James and Sirius held. She believed, like Sirius and James that Voldemort had not died, but had simply disappeared, biding his time. She was a tough girl; someone you would never think would latch onto a man that would protect her instantly. She was strong and reminded everyone that needed reminding that she was not one to be saved, but the one that would do the saving. Sirius didn't like this in a girl. He wanted someone that would cuddle in his arms and plead with him to care for her. He wanted someone dependant.

"You're unhurt," Sirius stated, looking her up and down, or as well as he could with her hidden behind the desk.

"Well spotted," she said a hint of sarcasm and coldness in her tone. "I see you are too. But I wouldn't imagine why a werewolf would come after you."

Sirius sat there for a moment, processing what Aglaia was saying.

"What are you implying?" Sirius asked, his eyes narrowing.

Aglaia shifted uncomfortably, but stared at him defiantly.

"You know what they're saying, don't you?" she said. "About Lupin."

"Since when have you started calling him Lupin?" Sirius shot back angrily.

"He's a suspect," Aglaia said calmly.

"Yes, he is," Sirius growled. "And why did I find this out only this morning? From the Daily Prophet?"

"It's not my fault if your friend keeps secrets from you," Aglaia replied, leaning back in her chair and inspecting her nails.

"I should have heard it from you," Sirius snapped. "Or the head of this damn department."

"You were kept out of it because you know Lupin personally," Aglaia stated. "You would have a personal bias in the investigation. And it doesn't help matters that he ran off to you and Potter either."

"How do you know that?" Sirius demanded, leaning forward on his chair, a mad glint in his eyes.

"We've already interrogated Lupin," Aglaia said. "He wasn't very convincing in his arguments I can tell you."

"So you think he did it?" Sirius asked.

"There is some damning evidence against him," Aglaia stated.

"Like what?"

"Like the fact he wasn't accounted for when the attack happened," Aglaia shot back. "How about his disapproval of Dolores Umbridge, who works here. Or what about the fact that traces of his fur was found just around the corner from here."

Sirius stared at her for a minute, trying to comprehend what she had just said. Aglaia was watching him closely as he turned a nasty shade of green.

"No," he muttered. "No, you've made a mistake."

"Sirius, wake up!" Aglaia was now on her feet. She paced the length of the room to the front of Sirius' desk. She leaned forward and put both of her hands on the desk. "He was not accounted for. His fur was found here. He is not looking too good right now."

Sirius glared up at her, panting as though he had run a marathon. "But…But I spoke to him just half an hour ago. He didn't mention that."

"We didn't want to tell him just yet," Aglaia sighed. "His movements are very important to us."

"You're tracking him?" Sirius demanded furiously, standing up and forcing Aglaia to stand up straight as well.

"Yes," Aglaia said calmly. "We need to know who he's working for. We need to know if he'll lead us to any of the other werewolves involved."

"That's just not right," Sirius said. "What if he wants to visit James? Nobody is supposed to know where he lives."

"Don't worry," Aglaia said. "If he does decide to visit Potter, the monitor will state 'Undisclosed'. Potter's safe."

"This is madness," Sirius said, kicking back his chair and pacing the room, careful not to step on anything too dodgy. "Remus would never hurt anyone. He's not that type of person."

"From what I've heard, you suspected him once too," Aglaia said, swiftly and calmly, but Sirius noticed her reluctance.

He swivelled his head to look at her. "What are you saying?" he snapped.

"Nothing," Aglaia said, bringing her hands up in front of her defensively. "Nothing. It's just that I've heard you suspected Remus of foul play with You-Know-Who before."

"That was five years ago," Sirius said furiously. "That's behind us, now."

"Sirius, do I have to go through with you again what is against him?" Aglaia said impatiently.

"No," Sirius snarled. "All morning I've gotten crap about Remus! I thought I'd get a little support from you at least!"

"What support?" Aglaia demanded, striding to stand in front of him. "You're not the one they're accusing."

"When one Marauder is hurt, so are the rest," Sirius said proudly.

Aglaia gave him a strange look. "What the hell is a Marauder?" she asked bluntly.

Sirius shook his head. "Never mind," he mumbled. "The point is that Remus didn't do it!"

"That's what you want to believe, Sirius," Aglaia snapped. "Don't be foolish! We both know that You-Know-Who hasn't died, just disappeared. Maybe Lupin is showing his true colours."

"You're just prejudiced against him because he's a werewolf!" Sirius snapped back, feeling his anger boil.

"You know that's not true," Aglaia retorted. "I'm a muggle-born. How could I be prejudiced at half bloods or thereof?"

"Remus didn't do it!" Sirius felt his voice grow louder.

Sirius, although he wished it looked otherwise, knew that it didn't seem very good for Remus. Remus did have a certain problem with Umbridge which he had no trouble conveying. And Sirius thought that he had good reason to. If it had been him in Remus' place he knew he would go to any measures to see Umbridge shot down, in a theoretical sense of course. But he knew that Remus would never do anything as rash and violent as kill innocent lives. It wasn't Remus to do something like this. How could the quietest Marauder do something so violent? But he had thought the same of Peter.

"Sirius, stop thinking like a friend and start thinking like an Auror!" Aglaia shouted back furiously. "Everything points his way. Would you put Potter's life in danger because of your pride?"

"My pride has nothing to do with this!" Sirius roared, uncomfortably aware that any sound that had come from outside had now come to a halt. "Remus isn't capable of what you are accusing him of! James' life isn't in danger!"

"Are you willing on gambling Potter's life on that?" Aglaia screamed back. "What about Harry, huh? Come on Sirius! Tell me, are you willing to put Harry's life in danger? Some godfather you are!"

Sirius clutched his hair tightly and stared at Aglaia as she shouted at him, baiting him.

"Remus Lupin is guilty and you know it!" Aglaia shrieked. "He's working for You-Know-Who!"

"NO! HE'S NOT PETER!"

Sirius had never heard such a deafening silence. Not a sound reached his ears. Sirius could not hear a sound coming from outside the office and inside Aglaia was glaring at him firmly, her mouth in a firm line and her blue eyes were glinting in anger and, surprisingly, sympathy. Sirius was breathing deeply, his mind running on fast forward. He couldn't look at her. He couldn't bear to see her expression when she realised what he was shouting about. He strode back to his desk and collapsed in the chair, burying his face in his hands.

"I never said he was Peter," Aglaia said softly.

Sirius brought his head up and looked at her.

"You said he was working for Voldemort," Sirius stated, paying no notice to her violent flinch. "That's all you needed to tell me."

Aglaia stood where she was, watching him closely.

"Lupin seemed like a nice guy," Aglaia nodded. "He was sweet and kind. I didn't want to believe it either. Believe me, I looked at all possible situations. Anything that could have said otherwise, but there was nothing. The fur, his problem with the Ministry. He had no alibi, Sirius. I'm sorry."

"His problem with the Ministry went no further than to one person," Sirius growled. "He never said anything against anyone else. You would be upset if someone was petitioning against you."

"I'm sorry, Sirius."

Sirius glared at her.

"He's not guilty."

oOoOoOoOoOo

Sunlight. Glorious sunlight. Peter Pettigrew hadn't experienced sunlight in the best of five years. But now he was scurrying along a Diagon Alley footpath, looking…searching for anything useful to him. And then he spotted it. A bin.

A bin was straight ahead, standing on the foot path some five feet away while people just hurried by as though this was just a trivial thing. It wasn't like this was a phenomenon. And in some ways Pettigrew agreed with these people. It was just a bin after all. But a bin held many clues. Clues were something Pettigrew desperately desired.

Pettigrew ran as fast as his little rat legs would allow and finally found himself at the foot of the bin, carefully avoiding people's feet as they slammed down near him. He glanced up at the opening of the bin and wondered desperately how he was supposed to get up there. Feeling that his only option was just to climb, he set off straight away. Pettigrew was never an active being. So this, he had to admit, was one of his more energetic moments. The trip upwards to the opening of the bin was not particularly adventurous. Once or twice, Pettigrew made a slip, but caught himself before he completely tumbled down the side. Pettigrew was glad when he reached the opening and slid down into the mess and disgust that lay inside.

Pettigrew was used to the filth, so he hardly noticed when he landed in a half filled can of soup, among other things. Not, it didn't bother him, because he had much bigger fish to fry. And after a few minutes of scurrying around, searching, he found what he was looking for. The latest edition of the Daily Prophet. And looking up at him rather shyly from the front, and dirty, page was Remus Lupin.

Local Werewolf Accused

You may know him as a man that keeps the peace or just as a friendly face, but Remus Lupin is much more than that, reports Henry McTosh. Yesterday afternoon's shocking attack of six werewolves left the Ministry in tatters. Seven Ministry works died in the attack and an approximate number of eighteen were reported injured or in a serious condition.

"We have great reason to believe that Remus John Lupin was involved in the attack that happened yesterday afternoon," Head of Auror department Horris Smith confirmed this morning. "We are not too sure who his allies are at the present time, but we have not lost hope."

When asked why they suspected Mr. Lupin of foul play, Smith had this to reply:

"It is our investigation and should remain only ours until we see fit."

When approached, Lupin replied very firmly with a 'no comment'. However, once the Daily Prophet got a whiff of the Ministry's speculation, we decided to uncover Lupin's history.

Remus John Lupin was born in…

Pettigrew had enough. He didn't need to know about Remus' past. He'd been there. He knew how old Remus was bitten. He knew the day Remus got his first crush and the day Remus was sick all over his bed. He didn't need some paper telling him if his mother was a pureblood or what year he was born. He didn't need all that. What he needed was right in front of him. Remus was accused. But how could he use that to his advantage? And more importantly, how could he get out of this bin?

Author's Notes: So yeah…that's another chapter gone….lolz…I hope this was a quick post for you….lolz…and this might be the last time I post in a while…I'm going on a holiday over the Christmas break! I'm not too happy about that considering the company I'm going to have….sigh…but anyway…Was this chapter slow? Tell me what you think!

Thanks to Lithe Emerald Serpent, animegurl 008, Someone, AmbrosiusEmrys, hedwig136, Agnes1014, Bookworm-Air13, Moni,

Galsrule: Omg, thankyou…that's very flattering…I'm going giddy over here! Lolz…But you're not the first one to say that it brought tears to the eyes…so don't feel weird. I know I've cried so many times on reading a fanfic…some of them are just so damn sad! Lolz…I hope you like this chapter! Thanks so much for the kind review!

Kay05: Glad to hear that…lolz…I really hope you like this chapter…I'm really apprehensive because there were some people who are not happy with the way I portray certain characters and that's fine because we all have our opinions! Please tell me what you think and thankyou again for the review!

IritIan: Oh, James definitely does finish the conversation. Because like you, I don't think Harry should be kept in the dark about his heritage. And I liked James in this chapter too! Thanks for the review!

Hyper Punk 018: I never really thought as any dad as perfect. Every dad has their moments when they just can't handle their surroundings. I suppose when I was writing that chapter, I thought about that. Every story I've read about James surviving as the whole lovey-dovey thing happening and that's fine, but I wanted more…maybe I've overdone myself. OMG, I updated! Lolz…sometimes it'll take me ages to update….sad, yes I know…lolz…thankyou so much for the review:D

Quiyr: When I was writing that chapter I knew I was making a mistake and was hoping nobody would pick that up! Lolz…I guess I underestimate the reviewers! And I'll give you another mistake I've made, just because I'm feeling generous. In the earlier chapters I called Moody 'Made-Eye' even though I said he had both normal eyes…lolz…Thanks for the review!

Athenakitty: Sirius is James' counselor, I think. He's always there for a good laugh but will give James the advice he needs to sort out his life. I don't think he really needs a professional. James and Harry have bonded and I'm sure they will bond again. I love bonding moments, don't you? But as for Wormtail…well…

Fenderbender: I love bonding too! I search everywhere for good bonding stories between Harry and Sirius or Harry and James or just the trio or even Harry and Remus! I love bonding stories! They're so cute! Thanks for the review!

RainingInsanity: That's what I wanted, really, a change from the whole father-son moment. Mainly because I don't believe every father can be so loveable to their children. I'm not trying to portray James as some cold-hearted father that feels like he's stuck to a kid, but I'm trying to put reality into it. Thanks for the review.

NCCJellybean: Lily and James never planned on Harry going to a muggle school. James and Lily saw Hogwarts as being the best school around for their child…that's what I meant. I'm sorry if it came off so wrong. James will tell Harry. I have always planned on James telling Harry, it's just a matter on when. Harry will never grow up as a muggle his entire life. James is just so worried for Harry and he sees Dumbledore as the all knowing that he thought he was doing the right thing.

DemolitionxLovers: I know! Poor Remus! I've always loved Remus and I've always pitied him…especially now since he's the only true Marauder left in the canon version. But at least he has Tonks :D I love the heart-to-heart scenes…they're my favorite and sometimes they can be so heart wrenching don't you think? Thanks for the review!

SeriousSiriusFan: OMG I absolutely LOVE your reviews! They're so fun to read! Trust me Peter scared the hell out of me talking to that rat too and I wrote the damn thing! I really think I should put that grocery scenario in there! It'll be fun! It's just a matter of where to put it! Thanks heaps for the review! OMG have I mentioned I LOVE your reviews! They're GREAT! I can't get over them…lolz…:D