Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or any of its characters.

Now that that's out of the way, let's begin…

Last time,

"Relax, he wasn't attacking me."

"Then we can talk about it later. Someone's here."

"Who?" Anthony and Greyback both ask at once.

"Auror Crown."

Now,

28th December 2001

"Well, crap. What do we do?" Anthony asks, looking around frantically as though the answer to all of their problems would just magically appear.

Harry huffs, "What do you mean what do we do, we apparate out of here!"

The three leave just as the front door opens and Crown walks in, wand out.

"You heard that too, right?"

Lillie Polka frowns as she walks in after the Auror. "The famously loud crack of apparition? Yes."

"Well, can you do your thing?"

Lillie sighs, feeling around the room as she tries to find a point to focus on, some remnant of primal energy that she can pull. She finds what she's looking for, hand glowing green as she grabs and pulls, a whole network of green energy in strings shows itself. She hears Crown gasp but ignores it, focusing on what's in front of her, pulling a string apart to find the centre. She immediately recognises it. "Greyback."

"You're sure? He was here two days ago?"

Lillie looks at her and shakes her head, "He was here two minutes ago."

Crown looks shocked before moving around the room, looking for new pieces of evidence. "Keep looking for before that," She directs before moving into a different room.

By the time she gets back, Lillie is frowning. "Find anything?"

"Nothing," Lillie replies.

"So…Greyback didn't use magic."

"No, Greyback wasn't here. Not in the last few days, anyway. Not before just before we got here."

Crown stares at her, "Are you sure?'

"It's more than that Auror."

"What do you mean?"

Lillie lets the strings fade from view. "This was on a full moon. If a werewolf were here, there'd be remnants of primal magic. You can't transform into a werewolf without it, willingly or no, it's primal. If any werewolf were here that night, I'd be able to see it."

"So what are you saying?"

"I don't know who killed these people, and I don't know if it's the case with the other attacks. But the people who died here were not killed by a werewolf. Or any other magical creature, they're all built from primal magic, they all leave a trace except Centaurs, but I think you'll agree that's unlikely. You're looking for a human."

Crown frowns, "If Greyback didn't kill them then what the hell was he doing here," she mutters to herself, then her eyes widen, "Unless…" She looks at the evidence bag in her hand, sighing, "Why does he make me do this."

Tonks and her team sit in a briefing room with Ron, his team, and Robards.

"So you're telling me the Lupin we've had in Azkaban for the last few months wasn't even him?" Robards asks, the others nod. "How in the hell did he manage that?"

"It happened while the new wing was being built," Tonks explains, "Seems at least one of the construction wizards was in on it. We found this behind a loose brick in his new cell." She puts down a bag of hair and a bottle. "It's Lupin's. Looks like someone was using Polyjuice potion to look like him."

"We got any idea who on the construction team was in on it?"

"We're screening them all now," A member of Tonks' team replies.

Ron sighs, "This has been in the works for a long time, Sir. We're three layers of deception deep now, they clearly know how to cover their tracks."

Robards nods, frowning severely, "We –" He stops short as he looks out the window over everyone's heads. "Malfoy, looks like your boy's in trouble again."

Everyone looks over to see Anthony being taken to interrogation by Crown. And, as everyone is aware, if he's in trouble, Harry probably is too.

Crown walks over after closing Anthony in the room. She knocks on the door frame, Robards nodding her inside. "Malfoy, not to put you in the middle of this or anything, but would you mind letting your not-husband know that I've got his partner?"

"You're baiting him?"

"He's a hard man to pin down when he wants to be, and I've got enough on Goldstein there to put him away for a good few years."

Branson sighs, "Crown, I know this is your first time tangling with Potter directly, but word of advice, don't try and back him into a corner."

Crown raises an eyebrow, "What happens when you put him in a corner?"

Ron snorts, "He starts wearing a scary mask and plotting destruction."

"You know, I always wondered what was with the masks," Tonks comments, everyone turning to Malfoy who sighs.

"Look, we were sixteen. Pansy wanted masks, Blaise and I made masks."

"And the names?"

"Also Pansy's fault," Draco claims as he pulls out his phone and texts Harry Crown's message.

"Just tread carefully with him, he's difficult," Branson concludes, earning a snort from Ron.

"Yeah, well, difficult or not, Inimicus or not, I'm looking for a murderer and he's got information. So he's gonna learn to share." With that, Crown leaves the room.

"He's gonna eat her alive," Robards comments, everybody else nodding their agreement.

Sim clears her throat, earning the attention of everyone in the room, though she does not look up from her file. "Boss, you're gonna want to see this." She looks up, turning the picture in the file around. "One of the construction wizards."

Robards raises an eyebrow, "What about him?"

"Look at his wrist."

Everybody looks, and everybody sees.

"Blood Moon."

After apparating out of the crime scene, Greyback, Harry, and Anthony arrive back at Black Manor. They walk inside, sitting at the table in the dining room.

"So, after all that, we got nothing."

"Not entirely," Anthony replies. He looks to Greyback, "You haven't actually seen that wound, have you?"

Greyback frowns, "…it's on my back."

Anthony huffs, but nods. "They didn't just rip out a chunk of flesh and fur. They carved." He grabs paper from his notepad and draws the symbol cut into Greyback's shoulder. He shows the other two. "I don't know what it is though."

Both their eyes light up in immediate recognition.

"Blood Moon."

Harry looks to Greyback, "They aren't just setting you up."

"They're setting werewolves up; they're trying to destroy everything that's been done the last few years."

"I have a few files on Blood Moon at the office, we can use it as a starting point."

"No, you're on leave, you turning up will raise questions," Anthony tells him, "I'll go. Blood Moon, you said?" Harry nods. "Okay, I'll be back."

Greyback growls lightly, "In the meantime, you mind burning that off my shoulder?" He asks Harry once Anthony has left.

Harry looks at him in shock before rolling his eyes, "Why am I surprised, you're nuts." He gets up and moves over, pulling his wand. Greyback grabs his wrist, Harry tenses.

Greyback turns his head slightly to look at Harry. "Crazy or not, I am trusting you to stand behind me with your wand and burn my flesh." Harry stares for a moment, then nods. Greyback lets go.

Anthony gets to the office, searching around Harry's filing cabinet until he finds Blood Moon. He opens them, looking through, curious since neither of the others actually explained what it is. In the files he finds old notes and stories from the 70s, apparently the last time Blood Moon caused any significant amount of trouble. But also bits and pieces from then onwards, later it's Harry's own work. Clearly, he's been keeping an eye on them. He feels a hand on his shoulder and turns to see Crown, a smile on her face.

"So, easy way or hard way?"

Anthony looks at her, at the cuffs on her hip, and back to her face. "Easy way, definitely."

Crown nods, "Good choice."

Harry's pacing and frowning.

Greyback rolls his eyes. "I'm sure he's fine, Riddle."

"He should have been back by now."

"What could've happened in his own workplace?"

Harry opens his mouth to reply but is interrupted by his phone chiming. He looks down to see a message from Draco.

'Crown's arrested Anthony. She wants to talk to you.'

Huffing, Harry turns the phone around to show Greyback. "That."

"It's not your fault, you know."

Severus sees Benni nod slightly, but ultimately seems unconvinced as she stares at what's left of the Sanctuary she's been working on since she was seven years old.

"This was supposed to be a safe place for them. I promised they'd be safe." She turns to Severus at last, tears streaming down her face. "My brother did this. My twin. He won't stop here, Papa."

"I know, Little Benni."

Benni buries herself in his arms. "I just want him to go away."

"They'll find him, they'll stop him."

Benni nods, then clears her throat. "We'd better get to that meeting with King. See where we go from here. Can we stop by and see Auntie Del after?"

"Sure. I think she'd really appreciate that."

Harry arrives at the Auror department, walking in calmly. He gets directed towards an interrogation room where he finds Crown and Anthony inside.

"Auror Crown, a pleasure as usual."

Crown narrows her eyes, "Let's cut to the chase, shall we?"

"Should we be getting a lawyer?"

"I'm hoping we can come to an arrangement so that none of that is necessary."

"What kind of an arrangement?" Harry asks as he takes a seat beside Anthony.

"I want everything you have on your story, on my case."

Harry scoffs, "Right, sure. Would you like anything else? All the gold in my vault, perhaps?"

Crown leans back in her chair, "You're mighty cocky for a guy who broke into a crime scene and is working with a fugitive and the main suspect in a murder investigation. Tampering of evidence, obstruction of justice, harbouring a fugitive. I could go on but, I think you get the picture."

"Quite a list of accusations there, I'm curious how you plan to prove it."

She drops a bag onto the table in front of them. Harry stares at it blankly while Anthony sighs a little at the sight of his handkerchief, complete with embroidered initials courtesy of his mother.

"Oops."

Crown smirks, "Oops, indeed." Then she sobers up, "Look, I know Greyback didn't kill those people. The last victims at the very least. And if you're working with him then you know it too. Problem is, I can't prove it. So, you can get a story, or you can help the victims get justice. I'm betting a lot on you doing the right thing here, gents."

Anthony and Harry look at each other in debate for a few moments before Anthony nods to Harry who sighs and looks back to Crown, leaning forward and resting his elbows on the table.

"Listen, we can't help you here. All you've got is us breaking into a crime scene, big deal, but deal-able." Crown looks at him in annoyance but, after a beat, he keeps talking. "So, I'd like to go pick up those files my colleague was collecting for our story when you arrested him. I'll be back with the lawyer."

Crown frowns at that, something niggling in her brain before she nods slowly, "No need. You're both free to go."

As the two leave, Crown smiles and heads to the elevator, moving down to the records room.

"I need to see everything you have on Blood Moon."

She's willing to bet they've got more on the group then the Daily Prophet has. Whatever connection they found; she'll find it too.

"How'd it go with Harry?" Ron asks as Crown walks over to his team's desks.

Crown nods, "He was vague and convoluted about it, don't understand how someone can be convoluted when a conversation only lasts a minute or two, but I got a lead so…" She trails off with a shrug.

"Hold up, hold up, hold up," Branson says, waving his hands about, "He actually helped you? No bullshit?"

"Well, minimal bullshit."

"I can't believe that ass actually told you something. Last time I crossed paths with him in a professional capacity, I spent three hours with him getting circles talked round me, it was a nightmare."

Draco snickers from his seat, "Welcome to my fucking life."

"Your kids are gonna be interesting people when they grow up," Sim tells him, Draco just snickers again.

"Anyway, I'm actually over here about some files you lot checked out. I need information on Blood Moon, but I guess I'm not the only one looking into them."

The whole team looks at her in shock before looking around at each other.

Ron shakes his head in disbelief, "No way Greyback and Sevrin are working together. Literally no way."

"There's some kind of connection here, but Lupin's trying to ruin everything for Werewolves, fuck off Greyback would work with him," Branson says, as much to himself as to the others.

Crown clears her throat, getting their attention back on her. She moves forward, gesturing them all closer. "Listen, I'm not looking for this to get out yet," She tells them. They all nod in understanding so she continues, "Looking at the possibility that it's not Greyback at all."

"Even another werewolf wouldn't make sense working with him," Draco explains.

"Yeah, well, thing is, it's looking more and more like it's not a werewolf behind all this. Thinking maybe Greyback's being set-up, and if it's Blood Moon behind it, not too hard to work out why."

"You think they're stirring the pot, attempting to reignite fear and hatred of werewolves," Sim guesses, Crown nods.

Ron wipes a hand over his face as Branson leans back in his chair, huffing out a humourless chuckle.

"Well fuck me," Branson mutters.

Draco stares forward at the partition between Draco and Branson's desks, he's looking at a picture of his parents and the Lupin's, minus Sevrin, taken just before his third year. It's the last picture he has of them all from before Remus and Severus broke up, but he can't help but see the distance that was already between them. Even then, their marriage was over. They just didn't want to see it yet.

"So maybe we're looking at this wrong," Draco says, staring at the picture, "Sevrin would do anything to ruin the lives of lycanthropes. Maybe we've been working the same case all along."

Ron frowns at him, "You think Sevrin's the one killing people and setting up Greyback to take the fall."

"How the hell did Potter put any of this together?"

Crown cringes, "I have my suspicions but if I say them out loud I actually have to do something about it and I'm still hoping he will before I have to get involved." Everyone nods their understanding.

"Look, this is all theoretical, we've got zero evidence here. And I don't think any of us want to go suggesting that crazy bastard's innocent unless we're damn sure," Sim states.

"Innocent seems like a stretch, just not guilty of this crime."

"So where do we go from here?" Ron asks Crown who sighs.

She rubs at her forehead for a moment before nodding, "Blood Moon is the connection. Someone there knows something. We shake them up, see what falls loose. We still got Lupin's other fall guy in lock up? The one you arrested before?"

"Yeah, he's under heavy guard. He won't talk though, trust me, we tried," Ron replies.

"You tried asking about Sevrin, clearly he won't turn on him. But, we try talking about Greyback, maybe he'll be a little less careful what he says."

Ron looks around at his team who all seem to think it's worth a shot. He looks to Crown and nods. "Let's give it a try. Meantime, Malfoy, you and Sim are gonna go talk to Blood Moon again. Crown, you want one of your people there too?"

Crown nods, turning to face down the aisle between desks. "Hey, Williamson!" Dominic Williamson looks over at his boss, coming to join them when she gestures for him. "Malfoy and Sim are about to go question some Blood Moon members about Lupin, you're going with about our case."

"Still thinkin' it ain't Greyback, boss?"

"More and more sure by the moment. Looks like our case might be linked to Lupin."

"We're suspecting that Lupin's setting Greyback up –" Sim begins to explain.

"To make werewolves take the fall for the attacks, right, makes sense. On it, Boss," Williamson concludes, nodding to Crown who seems impressed as she nods back.

"Right then, people," Ron says, "Let's get on this."

Draco, Sim, and Williamson get to the clubroom Blood Moon uses and walk to the reception desk.

"Aurors Malfoy, Sim, and Williamson. We need to speak to whoever's in charge," Malfoy tells the person behind the desk.

They roll their eyes. "Like searching here in the middle of the night wasn't enough? Now we've got Aurors and reporters up our ass?"

"Reporters?" Sim asks in confusion. The receptionist nods over to the back of the room where three people stand.

"Two of 'em. That's the Boss over there, try your luck all you like."

"Thanks," Draco tells them before the three head over. He curses under his breath as he sees who these reporters are.

"Should've seen that coming," Sim mutters to herself.

"Ah, Auror Malfoy, Sim, Williamson. Nice to see you again," Anthony greets as the three walk over, smiling brightly.

Draco glares at them both, "Pleasure's all yours."

They stand awkwardly for a moment before Harry clears his throat. "Right, well, I think we're done here. Thank you so much for your help, Miss Eagles."

The woman smiles flirtatiously, "Anything for the Prophet's best, Mr Black."

Draco rolls his eyes at that, constantly exasperated by Harry's insistence that people use all three of his surnames, right up until a specific one of them would be more convenient for him, Gryffindor my ass. "Yes, well. If you wouldn't mind, Mr Black, I'd like a word with you."

Harry smiles at him, though Draco can see the wince he hides from this Miss Eagles, whoever the hell she is.

"Of course, Auror. I'll catch up," He tells Anthony who nods and leaves.

Draco jerks his head at Eagles while looking at Sim and Williamson. They both nod and move over, beginning their interview as Draco and Harry walk to the side of the room. "What in the hell are you doing here?" He whisper yells.

"My job, Dray, same as you," Harry whispers back, "Actually, what are you doing here, anyway? You're not working on the attacks."

It's then that Draco realises, if Sevrin is involved, Harry has no idea about it. And a moment later as he watches a light appear in Harry's eyes, he realises his presence here has totally given it away. Damn.

"Sevrin," Harry states, "he's the one behind this. Of course. But hang on, this started before he even escaped, who's he been in contact with outside Azkaban?"

"Harry," Draco emphasises, frustration clear in his voice. "Would you just stay out of the way."

"Not on your life, honey. This is huge!"

"I thought this wasn't about the story anymore?"

Harry huffs, "You don't get it, do you? If it's Sevrin behind this not only can we clear werewolves of this, but we can fix the damage already done to the community's reputation, this is brilliant!" Draco looks at him in complete disbelief. Harry pauses a moment, then clears his throat, "I mean, horrible, obviously, but convenient."

"How in the hell does this help with that anyw- no, I don't want to know. We aren't even sure Sevrin is involved, alright? How'd you even know it wasn't Greyback?"

"…it's complicated."

"Breaking into a crime scene, complicated?"

Harry winces, "Heard about that, did you?"

"Yes, I heard about that. My god, I thought you were frustrating when we were friends as kids, but I'm really starting to understand how much worse it was for Father trying to deal with you sticking your nose in when you ought to back the hell off."

With a sigh, Harry nods. "Yeah, I caused Lord Malfoy a lot of headaches in the short time I was living there, I'm aware. And I'm causing you a lot now, I know that too."

"But?"

Harry rubs at the back of his neck, "Yeah no, no but, that was it."

Draco huffs, "Just go." Draco takes a moment to breathe deeply before he heads over to join his colleagues as Harry leaves the building.

The interview is not at all helpful, but on their way out Sim stops suddenly, walking over to a pinboard by the door with a whole bunch of photos.

She hesitates before turning back. "Miss Eagles, mind if we take this?" She asks, pointing to one of the photos. The woman looks confused but nods for her to go ahead. Sim unpins the photo, stepping out of the building and stopping. Draco looks at her in confusion. She holds up the photo, pointing at one of the people in it. "Look familiar?"

Draco looks closer, then his eyes widen. "Oh… oh we've got a problem."

Harry steps outside, walking down the road and into an alleyway. He pulls out his phone and calls Anthony.

"Hey, so, ask Greyback if he's ever heard the name Sevrin Lupin… Who? …okay, yeah, we've got a problem."