::Disclaimer:: I don't own it. You don't sue. That balances out nicely, yes?

::AN:: Those of you who read 'Well, What Do You Know?' already know my schedule is hectic and I already told you my "schedule" for writing my two fics. For everyone else, here's the deal: I'm pretty busy lately, but it's nothing I can't handle. Basically I just need to get my schedule on track. The beginning of the school year and everything, you know. SO, I've come up with a solution for at least keeping my fics in order. I will ALTERNATELY update them. For instance, after I post this chapter, I'll be working on my next chapter of 'Well, What Do You Know?' Just so everyone knows.

Well, now that that's all clear! (lol)

Mrs. Drew Malfoy: You're right, that was the part (yay). And I love making people laugh (I don't know, maybe I should be a comedian), but I hope you don't, um, die. (lol) Thanks for reviewing, I hope you like this chapter!

sweetiepiepirate: I know that scene was confusing, and it was hard for me to write, too, lol. I'm not sure if I'll explain it later, though. Basically what it was was that Camden knew Lada wasn't supposed to be there, and so he paused time, then sent her back to the castle. (He's a fairy, so I figure he can do whatever, lol.) Faylinn will matter a little more LATER, but not that much right now. I can't answer your other question, as that would give too much away. Sorry!

gloomy: Again, I'm glad you smiled. Much appreciated, I hope you smile during this chap, too.

randomblinx: Thanks for reviewing, and thanks for the fries. Do it again soon (as in, both). Hope you like this chap, lol.

Faith Wesley: So far, she doesn't have any. But when she HAS some, lol, then she'll give them to Dumbledore first, and then keep them. She'll only give the ministry the reports once the project is over. I hope you like this chapter, lol!

Tintalu: Yes, the Camden scene was a bit confusing (see my review-response to sweetiepiepirate). You think it's a good story on him? Yay! You might already know this, lol, but I'm, like, deathly afraid of making people OOC, hahah. Anyways, thanks for reviewing, I hope you like this chapter!


"I should probably go soon." Lada said after several moments.

Remus gave a small nod, but didn't say anything. He was afraid that risking any sudden movements would cause incidents similar to that morning. I don't know what I accidentally hit… He thought to himself.

"Meet me at the normal time and place, okay?" He heard her whisper quietly.

"Wait." Remus said suddenly, as low as he could. He may not care what other people think of him, be he didn't exactly want to appear schizophrenic or anything.

"Um. Yeah?" Lada's voice came out of nowhere, as usual.

"This morning –" He started before he felt something warm cover his mouth. He shook his head for a moment.

"Oops." Lada's voice whispered. "Sorry. Don't freak out, it's just my hand." Right. Remus calmed a moment. What else could it be? "Anyway, sorry. You were just, um, uh, talking too loud just now. Anyway, don't be late tonight, all right?"

He nodded and felt the pressure on his mouth go away suddenly. That's one strange girl.

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Sirius paced the common room, clapping his hands together in fidgety excitement. "We have to go to Hogsmeade." He decided.

Remus looked up from his Arithmancy text. He was too busy dwelling over that morning to focus on his studies, anyway. What did I hit, what did I hit? Please, please don't let it have been anything horrible! Please, please, please.

"I agree." James said, nodding.

Peter looked around. "Why?"

"Sure." Remus said suddenly. "Let's go to Hogsmeade. Right now." That way, he thought, I won't have to face Lada.

"We have class right now, though." Peter said, frowning. "What's so important in Hogsmeade? We'll be late for Transfiguration."

"Doesn't matter." Sirius said, shaking his head as he commenced pacing. "This is an emergency."

"Exactly." Remus said. Well, not really an emergency. It's just… if I go, then when we return, it will be far too late to have to go meet up with Lada.

"Why are you so anxious to go?" James asked Remus, his brow furrowed.

Remus flushed. Um. "No reason, no reason."

"Alright, enough dawdling!" Sirius exclaimed, climbing through the portrait hole. "Remus, grab the map! James, grab the cloak! Peter, tie your shoes! Let's go!"

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Lada paced the room, staring down at the floor. She glanced at her watch briefly. "Twenty minutes late." She mumbled to herself. After a few moments, she paused in the middle of the room. "Where is he?!" She exclaimed to the empty room. "I've been waiting here and… AGH!" She balled her fists up. "That is so rude!"

Grabbing the ring off of her desk, she jammed it on her finger as quickly as she could and headed towards the door. "Fine. I hope he shows up late, then. I won't be here."

A little over five minutes later, Lada wasn't even sure where she was. "This is great." She said aloud. "Let's see… Anyone out of their dorms after hours? Hello? Anybody?"

Just then, she saw a black-robed figure walk down an intersecting corridor not far away. "Great luck!" She punched her fist into the air. "I'll just follow you… whoever you are…"

"Dungeons…" She mumbled to herself as she followed behind the robed boy. At least I think it's a boy. She thought. "Cold, boring dungeons…"

Eventually the boy stopped in front of an empty portrait, pushed it aside, and walked through the small doorway that lay behind it. Lada had to run quickly through the doorway before the portrait closed. "Sheesh." She breathed, wrinkling her nose at the foul stench in the room. "What is this place?"

Looking around for a moment, she noticed that there was a bit of fog floating about the room. "Fog…? Or… mist?" She asked herself.

She studied a painting behind her for a few moments. What… is this supposed to be? It looks like… a potato? Hmm, interesting.

Hearing the sound of running water behind her, Lada turned around and saw a pale, black-haired boy lathering soap over his body. Showers! This is the BATHROOM!

"GAH!" She screamed, not caring if anyone heard her. "GAAAHHH!" My eyes! My eyes! My young, innocent eyes!

Running towards the entrance, she shoved the portrait aside and ran as fast as she could in the direction of the bedroom Dumbledore had given her to stay in during her "studies."

"Gah!" She exclaimed one last time before she rounded a corner. "This is all that stupid Lupin's fault! I blame him entirely! Gah!" This… This means WAR.

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Lada balled her fists up as she made her way to Remus's bed the next morning. Having failed miserably in her attempts to get a decent night's sleep the night before, she was still thoroughly infuriated with the werewolf-boy. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw that boy again. He was NAKED! She screamed in her mind.

Cracking her knuckles for a moment, she eyed the sleeping boy before her. So peaceful. "Well," she whispered. "Here we go."

"UP!" She shouted, jumping high into the air and landing cross-legged on Remus's bed. …On top of his stomach. "UP! UP!"

"AAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Remus yelled, sitting up straight, causing Lada to slide off of him.

My pain is your pain. She thought as rolled quietly to his side, careful not to touch him.

Sirius shot up in bed and looked around. "Remus?! What the hell is wrong with you?!"

"It's that voice again…" Peter murmured, rubbing his eyes. Lada slunk lower to the floor. Sorry…

"What's with the scream?" James asked, yawning. "Did you have a nightmare?"

Lada watched as Remus shook his head and mumbled something under his breath. "Nothing, nothing." He said, rubbing his stomach and staring ahead of him with a shocked expression on his face. Lada covered her mouth to stifle her laugh, but the tiniest hint of a snort came out. "I'm just, er, um, never mind." He said. "Don't move."

Is he talking to me? He's talking to me, isn't he? Lada made a quiet, "Mmmhmm." Sound, not moving whatsoever. He told me not to move…

"We're not moving, Moony." James said slowly, staring at his sandy-haired friend as though he was crazy.

Remus opened his mouth to say something, but then shut it right away and shook his head. "You okay mate?" Sirius asked him, frowning.

"Fine, fine." Remus said, pushing his blankets off him and swinging his legs over the side of the bed. Thank Merlin I'm on the other side, Lada thought with a small sigh of relief. "Come on," Remus said. "Let's go eat breakfast."

Lada nodded to herself before hopping off of his bed quickly and running out the door behind him. Once the door to the room closed, Remus whipped around and narrowed his eyes at thin air.

"Where are you?" He hissed.

"Good question." Lada replied. "But I think a better question would be, 'Where were you?' Or rather, if coming from your mouth, 'Where was I?'"

Remus didn't make any move to respond. He merely stared at where he thought Lada was most likely to be standing. It's like he can actually see me. Lada thought. It must be his heightened senses of smell and hearing. Interesting.

"You agreed to do as asked." Lada continued after a few moments. "You signed a contract. Therefore, your absence to any meeting is subject to any punishment I see fit."

"What are you talking about?" Remus shot back angrily.

"I'm talking about reading the fine print." Lada said calmly. "I'm talking about you. Not showing up yesterday."

"Don't you have better things to do, anyway?" He scowled.

"Unfortunately no." Lada rolled her eyes, even though he couldn't see her. "I am at Hogwarts for one reason only, and that is to further my studies on Magical Creatures. This isn't some vacation in which I can do as I please." She stepped forward and came face-to-face with him. "And this isn't only about you. This is about werewolves everywhere, Lupin. So I advise you to show a little more compassion and dedication in trying to help yourself and others like you."

"Whatever you're trying to do isn't going to work." He said suddenly. "There's no cure for being what I am."

"No, there isn't." She agreed. "Then again, there wasn't a cure for people like your friend Faylinn until just twenty years ago, either. And yes, I know what she is. I looked it up."

"I've changed my mind." He growled. "I don't want to work with you."

"Fine!" She snapped. "I don't need your bloody help anyway. I can do this myself!"

"Sure you can." He rolled his eyes.

"Watch me." She whispered.

"Funny." He nodded. "I still can't see you."

"Great." Lada said. "And now you never have to." She walked around him and stomped noisily down the stairs and out the portrait hole as fast as she could.

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Lada stood in front of Albus Dumbledore, firmly resolved to not back down.

"Lada, we've been over this." He sighed.

She shook her head. "Not exactly." She corrected him. "We've been over almost everything about this Lupin boy, except…"

"Except what?" He asked.

"Except that he's an unbearable, insufferable, intolerable teenage boy with no intention of showing a hint of responsibility and effort towards the cause that I am here for!" She practically shouted.

Dumbledore studied the young "woman" before him and nodded. "First of all, Lada." He began. "Unbearable, insufferable, and intolerable are all synonyms, thus meaning the same thing." He raised his hand when she opened her mouth in protest. "And second, Mr. Lupin is one of the most responsible students that Hogwarts has to offer."

"Well, whatever!" Lada exclaimed. "Tell that to him and maybe he'll start acting like it when his beloved headmaster isn't around! I'm not lying when I tell you that he's already said that he's 'changed his mind.'" She rolled her eyes. "Honestly, if I could go around changing my mind and backing down on things whenever I pleased, I'd –"

"You'd be a seventh year Hogwarts student." Dumbledore beamed. "And you mustn't blame Remus for being uneasy about this. He has every right to privacy, and you need to take into account that he may be afraid of his peers finding out what he is."

"Oh, yeah." Lada said sarcastically. "Like I'm going to tell them. They don't even know I exist! He's the only one who's seen me!"

"Lada." The old man said her name slowly, a serious expression covering his usually jolly face. "I will contact Mr. Lupin to inform him that his participation is very much needed, and will be appreciated, for your studies to go further than they already are." He gave her a small smile, then. "You may go now. Be sure to eat dinner, I know how you like to skip those sorts of things sometimes."

"I don't skip them." She grumbled as she stood up. "I just forget. There's a difference. Goodbye."

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Remus rubbed his temples as he stared down at his open Charms text. He glanced briefly at the stack of books next to him. Lying on top was 'Alchemy for the Genius's Soul' by Diamond Rocks. Remus's fingers twitched and he felt the sudden urge to shove his Charms work aside and pick up the other book.

"Diamond Rocks." He heard a voice next to him. "He's a very famous English writer for someone whose native language… isn't English."

Remus looked up to see Lada taking a seat across from him at the small table. "What are you doing?" He asked her suspiciously.

"I'm not sure." She shrugged. "You see, that whole… er, let's call it a disagreement, earlier today?" She paused.

Remus leaned his arms on the table. "Oh… So, you came to apologize?"

Lada gave him a sympathetic look. "No, sweetie. I came to tell you that I spoke with your headmaster, and that he said that that whole disagreement we had this morning… It doesn't matter."

Remus wrinkled his brow and tilted his head to the side. "What do you mean?"

"I mean," she raised an eyebrow at him. "That I am not to leave Hogwarts until I have completed my research. And that, your cooperation, no… it was participation… is 'much needed' and such."

"What?" He shook his head and gave her a look as though he thought she was crazy.

"What part don't you get?" She asked monotonously. "We could scream at each other every second of every day and it wouldn't matter. We still have to do this research-experiment-project-thing. No matter what."

"But I already told you I don't want to work with you." Remus muttered, looking back down at his homework.

Lada rolled her eyes. "Yes. And when I was five years old, I used to tell everyone that I didn't want to be a Ministry Department of Magical Creatures Research and Development Physicist, specializing in the exploration of natural science and laboratory procedures."

"What?"

She scratched her head. "Well, I don't think I said exactly that, as my vocabulary was severely limited when I was that age." She cleared her throat. "The point is, that's what I do now. When I was really little, that was the farthest thing from my mind, you know."

"That's the point?" Remus shook his head. "I don't really get it."

"It means that you can't always do things your own way." Lada explained. "Sometimes you have to sacrifice your own desires to get what you want in the end."

"And that would be?" Remus asked.

"Doesn't matter." Lada shrugged. "I lost track of my point. Room of Requirement tomorrow morning. Don't be late or I'll give you a pleasant wake up call again. I know how you like that."

Remus watched as she stood and exited the library as quietly as she had entered. This… he thought to himself. This means war.


::AN:: Hope you liked and please review!