Saturday, May 15 – 10:25 am

Remus thought Liam seemed a bit nervous, but then Remus had shown up unannounced and uninvited. They really had started off on the wrong foot, and that was exactly what Remus was here to remedy. He looked awkwardly after Liam, and then cautiously took a step into the small flat, closing the door behind him.

The flat was rather dingy, with the sort of generic furnishings that were functional, but not attractive or comfortable. Remus himself stayed in worse places in his day, but he was nonetheless struck by how lonely this place must be for Liam, so far away from home and kept here against his will.

Remus hoped that his visit here would be well received. Both Katie and Sirius had chided him on his reaction to Liam, pointing out that Remus was basing his entire opinion of Liam's character on Liam's natural reaction to losing everything he had. It wasn't easy, but Remus had to admit that they were correct - to some degree. Liam's attitude and demeanor at Easter had come as a total surprise. He proved to be witty and intelligent and, if what Liam told them was true, a very talented wizard. It was time for Remus to stop judging Liam from a first impression and really get to know him.

Remus glanced doubtfully at the rather worn couch, before wandering over to the bookshelf, and idly reading the titles of the books in Liam's collection. Liam had managed to assemble a fair number of books during his stay in England. Remus mentally chalked this up to a positive fact. There were mostly books on design, which wasn't surprising. There were a few books on England, mostly architectural information. On the cluttered coffee table sat an oversized book on wizard law and several scraps of parchment. Liam must have been working on his testimony. Remus brushed a few of the papers aside, glancing over the text, when he uncovered another smaller book. This was a book he never thought to find in Liam Zetter's flat.

It was his book. The one he wrote several years ago, but which had failed to garner Ministry approval. It had never been published, and there were relatively few copies in existence. When did Liam get this? Better yet, WHERE did Liam get this? It wasn't widely known that Remus had ever written a complete book on lycanthropy. He was better known for his general work in Defense and the two textbooks he had authored at Dumbeldore's request. The only way Liam could have ended up with a copy of this book was if someone who already owned the book loaned it to him. Remus picked it up, curious to see if the original owner's name could be found in the book, just as Liam stepped out of the bedroom.

"You read my book?"

Liam looked pale as a ghost. "Yeah, a while ago. Research. You once accused me of not understanding lycanthropy, so I er..." He casually took the book from Remus. "I decided to take your advice and find out as much as I could." Liam smiled and set the book on the shelf behind him. The silence that followed was most uncomfortable.

"May I ask how you found a copy?"

"Er...borrowed it from someone I met at one of those werewolf meetings." It almost sounded as if Liam had to think of a proper answer to the question. "Is there a problem with me reading it? I mean...should I not have read it?"

"No, not at all. I just haven't seen that book around in a while. I just wanted to know how you ended up with one." There was an unbearable silence again. Remus had to do something to ease the tension. Not only that, but Liam apparently had gone a bit heavy on the cologne, the strength of which was bothering Remus greatly. He needed to put some distance between them. "Do you mind if I sit down?" Remus said, indicating the couch behind him.

Liam rubbed at his neck, apparently still nervous. "Sure. Maybe we should go to the kitchen table. The furniture here is really...lumpy and not very comfortable."

"I'm sure it will be fine," he said, taking a seat. Liam sat across from him, watching his every move quite closely. Remus laughed a bit. "You can relax, Liam. I'm here as a friend." Remus knew that it was going to take a bit of work to get Liam off the defensive, given their history. "Sirius told me you visited him yesterday."

"What else did he say?" Remus noted a guarded quality in Liam's eyes, as if there was something about that meeting that Liam did not want him to know.

"That you've been working very hard on this case. That the two of you would be finalizing things this evening. He appears to be satisfied that the hearing will go reasonably well. That you are ready for it."

Liam nodded, but said nothing.

Remus hesitated for a moment, then continued. "Sirius also suggested that I talk to you one on one before you meet with him. He scolded me for being so hard on you. After a great deal of thought, I've come to the conclusion that," Remus took a deep breath, hoping what he was about to say would put an end to the quarrelsome nature of his relationship with Liam. "That he's right. I haven't been sympathetic toward your situation. I daresay you've come to think of me as a bit of an ass, and I am afraid you are not incorrect. I've expected you follow my advice without question—to rely on my sage advice and vast experience. I've made the incorrect assumption, Liam, that I know what you are going through, because I am also a werewolf. For this, I apologize. And I hope we can start over."

Liam's shoulders relaxed and a look of total astonishment crossed his face. "What?"

"In short, I'm here to make amends. I think we got off on the wrong foot, and I'm willing to make a real effort at bridging the gap between us if you're willing to do the same."

Liam sat looking stunned. "Really?"

"Is that so hard to believe?"

"No," Liam shifted in his seat, looking more at ease with the situation. "It's great, actually. After reading your book and spending time with your family, I've been really hoping that we could...I dunno..."

"Be more civil toward one another?"

"Yeah."

"That's why I'm here." There was a pregnant pause as the two men simply looked at each other. Remus clapped his hands together, breaking the silence. "So, Sirius thought it might be good for you to practice your testimony in front of someone who hasn't yet heard it. I would be more than willing to give my honest opinion if you would like to use me as an audience."

"Sure. I'd like that." Remus noticed the honesty in his voice for the first time. He still had a vague impression that Liam was hiding something, but at least the tension was starting to ebb. "Just make sure you think like a member of the Ministry while you listen. That way you can play devil's advocate." Liam said, standing up. "Would you like some tea first?" Remus nodded and Liam headed , rather quickly, into the kitchen to fix up two cups of tea. It seemed to Remus that Liam was trying to keep a distance from him. Curious. He seems...jittery.

With Liam and his cologne gone, Remus picked up on a soft scent he hadn't noticed before. It was very familiar to him, yet he couldn't quite place it. Remus didn't get a chance really to dwell on the discovery, for when Liam returned his senses were flooded again with the unmistakable smell of bad cologne. The foul scent of the fragrance nearly made Remus sneeze.

"Are you wearing cologne?" he asked, holding back a cough.

Liam fidgeted. "Yes. I er...spilled it when I grabbed these robes."

"It's very strong," Remus said, blinking so that his eyes wouldn't tear up.

"I know. I've been choking on it myself," admitted Liam.

"Surely you have another robe." Remus laughed. "If it's bothering me this badly, then you must be miserable!"

Liam's eyes fell to the floor. "I suppose I could change," he said hesitantly. Again Remus got the feeling that Liam was not telling the complete story to him. But he agreed to change and left Remus to enjoy his tea.

No sugar. Hum...

Liam hadn't brought in a full tea service, only the two cups. That didn't bother Remus, for it was entirely possibly that Liam didn't have a full service. However, Remus hated bitter tea.

"Liam, have you any sugar?" he called out.

"Yeah. In the kitchen. Help yourself."

Remus frowned. Having a guest rummage through your kitchen isn't exactly a polite thing to do, but Remus went to the kitchen anyway. Hopefully the sugar bowl wouldn't be too difficult to find, and it wasn't for there was hardly anything in the kitchen at all. Only a cauldron and a few mugs on the counter.

And one familiar looking goblet.

Now, where on earth did he get this?

For the second time that morning, Remus wondered at how Liam could end up with an item commonly found in his own home. This was Katie's goblet. She bought four of them while on a vacation in France before Annie was born. Remus would know them anywhere.

Liam returned, fully changed, this time wearing Muggle jeans and a button down shirt. He froze when he saw Remus holding the goblet. Not wanting to fully accuse him of anything, Remus said, "You know, it's odd, but my wife has a set of goblets exactly like this."

Swallowing, Liam admitted, "I know. That's from your home. I er...I..."

It appeared to Remus that Liam was doing some quick thinking.

"Mrs. Lupin made a potion for me—I should have returned the goblet sooner."

Remus placed the goblet back on the counter and helped himself to the sugar. "I'm sorry that things have been so difficult for you, Liam. I know that you and I haven't been on excellent terms with each other, but I would have hoped that if you needed anything – especially Wolfsbane – that you wouldn't hesitate to come to me. In the future, know that I will gladly help you when you are unable to get your potion here in town."

Liam sighed and looked relieved. He walked back out into the living room to where his tea waited for him. Remus followed behind and took his seat again on the couch. The familiar fragrance from before caught his attention yet again.

"Honeysuckle. That's what it is."

Liam didn't comment. In fact he pursed his lips and tried to ignore the comment all together.

"Your girlfriend," Remus said cautiously. "The one that you mentioned a while ago. Does she use honeysuckle in her hair?"

Liam nearly dropped his cup of tea. "Why do you ask?"

Remus internally scolded himself. "I know you feel it's none of my business, but I'm definitely picking up a very feminine fragrance." In a rush, Remus added, "I'm not going to reprimand you about this. You're a grown man who can make his own decisions. I was just inquiring as to how things were going with her."

"Things are...fine."

It was clear that this was a topic Liam was not ready or willing to discuss. Frustrated with his efforts to make small talk, Remus pressed forward by again offing help to Liam on the hearing. Liam agreed and picked up some of the notes scattered on the coffee table. In doing so, a sketchpad was revealed. The collection of artwork caught Remus' attention and he leaned forward to have a look. After hearing about Liam's achievements at Easter, Remus was very interested to see if this young man was as talented as he boasted.

"Do you mind if I take a look at your work?" Remus asked, setting down his tea and already flipping through some of the pieces.

Liam nearly grabbed the sketchpad out of Remus' hands. "Those aren't finished!" he exclaimed.

"Nonsense, they're beautiful!" And indeed they were. Some were more detailed than others, but every picture Remus saw proved Liam certainly was quite capable in his chosen field. There were images of buildings, flowers, a dark night, random people...

Remus froze.

"What in the name of Merlin is this?"

It was a portrait of his daughter. She was curled up on a sofa wearing next to nothing. Remus heard Liam's breath hitch. His eyes rose slowly to meet Liam's, whose face was rather ashen and worried.

"This had better be a joke," Remus warned.

Liam's eyes darted from the sketch back up to Remus' face. He exhaled and dropped the papers he held onto the table. "Damn it," he muter under his breath.

"Excuse me? I'm waiting for an explanation as to why you felt it necessary to draw a portrait of my daughter? Especially one as demeaning as this!"

Liam's eyes sharpened. "She didn't find it demeaning."

Bewildered, Remus asked, "You've shown this to her?"

Liam nodded slowly. "Yes. She thought it was beautiful."

"Well, she certainly is more comfortable with your over active imagination than I am!"

"Imagination?"

"You spend an afternoon with my family and it inspires you to draw a picture of my daughter half dressed?"

"You...think I just imagined that pose?"

Remus' heart skipped a beat. His eyes fixed on Liam's face in astonishment. Then everything fell into place. The hint of honeysuckle...just like Roarke's favorite perfume. Katie's goblet in the kitchen. The book on lycanthropy.

"Are you suggesting, that she posed like this for you?"

"She came over here," Liam began explaining. "It had been raining. Her own clothes got wet, so I gave her a set of robes to change into."

"Good Lord!"

"It isn't what you think!" Liam insisted. "She was just here to help me. She sat on the sofa, and the robe fell off her shoulder...and I asked if I could draw her."

"And that's it?" Remus spat, but Liam didn't answer. "She was just over here the one time?"

Liam's eyes darted to the floor, a hard expression on his face.

With that, Remus knew it was much worse than he believed. "How long?"

"What?"

"How long have you been seeing her?"

"What I told you at Easter was true. We met at one of those obnoxious meetings."

"But you failed to mention that you continued to see each other. You left that little bit out, didn't you?"

"Look, I never wanted to hide it from you. But Rory thought that it would be better to just take things slow and not..."

"Rory?" Remus interrupted. "The woman who was with you during the full moon was Roarke?" A fury was building up inside of Remus. He had to remain calm. He was not going to lose it in front of Liam Zetter, of all people. If he could control his temper around Severus Snape, he could control it now.

"She wasn't with me during the full moon. She came here afterwards."

"I see. Apparently all of my advice has meant nothing to you." Remus tossed the sketchbook aside and grabbed up his book from the bookcase. "You got this from her?" He didn't need Liam to confirm because Roarke's name was written on the inside cover. "Just what I thought. And how about the goblet? Did she bring that over here, too?"

Liam nodded. Suddenly, Remus remembered something Katie had said to him a few weeks ago about Roarke popping in on the morning after the full moon. Something about girl talk and a man breaking her heart. "She brought you a potion after the last full moon, didn't she?"

"Again, I didn't ask her to do that."

"That isn't the point, Liam. The point is that it was done. She's been here. You've both been deceiving me, carrying on behind my back."

Liam's face flushed. "I told you, I didn't want to hide it from you!"

"Then why didn't you tell me?"

"Because Roarke didn't want to tell you! She was afraid you would get angry, and now I can see why."

"My daughter would never lie to me about something like this."

"Welcome to the real world, Mr. Lupin, because she most certainly did!"

Remus surveyed Liam coldly. "This conversation is over." He turned and headed for the door, trying desperately to control the rage building up inside.

"Just let me get a few things straight," Liam called after him. "You come over here to make amends – bridge the gap. Those were your words, not mine. But now that you know about Roarke and me, that bridge is impassable?" Remus only glared at him in response. "And what about the fact that you said it was all right for me to have a girlfriend? It's all right as long and she isn't your daughter?"

"Yes," Remus bit out. "I suggest, Mr. Zetter, that from now on you keep your distance from my daughter." Remus pulled the door open, intent on leaving before things worsened.

"Then you might want to tell her that, as well," Liam said rather calmly. "Because she was pretty close to me this morning."

Remus closed his eyes, blocking out the ringing in his head from Liam's statement. "Just stay away from her," he said before slamming the door behind him.