While Meredith had known that the girls were going to spend the rest of the summer at their friend's house, coming back to what was, in spirit, an empty home was still disorienting.

It wasn't fully empty, of course. Tom was there, of course, tick tackering away on …

"Is that a computer?" Meredith asked once she'd gotten clear of the fireplace. "When did you get a computer?"

Tom turned and smiled at her. "Welcome home! Yeah, it's a computer box. Figured it was time to try something new, since we're in a season of changes."

"You're not wrong there," said Meredith as she felt at where the werewolf, Fenrir, had bit her.

At that moment, the phone rang and, since Tom was busy, Meredith went to answer it.

"Hello?"

"Is this Dr Meredith Granger?" asked a stern voice from the other end of the line.

"Speaking. Who is this?"

"Dr Granger, my name is Captain Remus Lupin of Her Majesty's Special Forces. It's come to our attention that you've contracted a rather rare disease, and we would like to arrange a meeting with you if you'd be willing," said the man. He wasn't stressed, or anxious, just … official.

Meredith sighed. "Captain Lupin, I don't know what you or your people have heard about me from the NHS but I'm feeling quite alright now."

"Lycanthropy isn't something one usually adjusts too right away, but if you're sure," said Captain Lupin, and Meredith nearly dropped the phone.

"No, wait, what? What do you … I mean … what are you talking about?" stammered Meredith, holding the phone tight as she tried to sound nonchalant.

"I'm not calling on behalf of the Ministry of Magic or the NHS, if you're wondering. I'm calling because my particular organization has some expertise in dealing with things like this, although I'll let you go if you think you've got a handle on it," said Captain Lupin kindly.

"NO! I mean, I'd love to have a meeting. Are you … a wizard? Can I ask that on the phone?" asked Meredith. She realized that Tom was now standing near her. He wasn't trying to listen in on their conversation, just being there. She smiled at him. He smiled back.

Captain Lupin laughed. "You can. It's not like they're tapping the phone lines. When would be a good time for you?"

"Um … you could pop by now, if you wish. We're free," said Meredith, pacing a bit.

"How about in thirty mintutes? I'll knock. My codeword is lilacs, yours is lilies,"

"Codeword?" asked Meredith. This was starting to feel more sneaky than official.

"Standard precaution, ensures that neither you nor I are an imposter when we meet," explained Captain Lupin as if he'd said it a thousand times.

"Oh! Well, alright, that sounds good to me," and that was that.

"Is the Ministry of Magic calling?" asked Tom once she'd hung up the phone. "Didn't think they liked using phones."

"No, it was … actually I'm not sure who it was, but they're coming in thirty minutes. And they're going to knock, it sounds like. And they already know I'm a werewolf," said Meredith.

"Well this'll be a fun adventure in bureaucracy. Didn't think that there were multiple Ministries we'd need to worry about. I thought that magic just had the one," said Tom, pulling Meredith into a good hug.

"We'll get through it," said Meredith, holding tight onto Tom. "We managed to raise two witches, didn't we? How much stranger can another magical government be?"

Thirty minutes later, they had a chance to find out.

Captain Lupin was official in every sense of the word. From his shoes to his collar, he had the look of a consummate professional. He seemed to be a military professional at that, although it wasn't from a branch Meredith could identify.

"Lilacs," said Captain Lupin, deadpan.

It took Meredith a moment before she realized what she had to do.

"Oh! Um, lilies," said Meredith, almost forgetting the word as she took him in.

Captain Lupin's deadpan broke open into a large smile.

"Wonderful! Dr Granger, my name is Captain Remus Lupin of Her Majesty's Special Forces. We spoke on the phone a bit ago. May I come inside?"

Meredith nodded and, once he was inside and settled, Captain Lupin got down to business.

"Dr Granger, I'm not going to pussyfoot around. The inherited traits of your kind of lycanthropy depend heavily upon the characteristics of the werewolf that bite you. If you'd been bitten by a philanthropist, you'd be more likely to be a protector now. You, however, were bitten by one of the most violent werewolves our country has seen in over a century, so there's some precautions you and your partners are going to need to take."

It took Meredith a moment to absorb that, and a moment more to respond. "Shouldn't the Ministry of Magic or something be here to tell me this sort of thing?"

Captain Lupin barked a laugh. "The Ministry of Magic consider werewolves to be savage monsters to be pitied at best. You're not going to get much help from them about adjusting to your new life."

"While Her Majesty's Special Forces know everything there is to know about werewolves?" asked Tom, leaning in towards Captain Lupin.

Captain Lupin shrugged. "Wizarding kind has never been shy about serving their countries in times of need, whatever those countries may be. During World War Two, Churchill just decided to collect all of his military wizards into a single unit and forced them to work together. Desperate times called for desperate measures, so now we know more about werewolves and other magical blood curses than the Ministry does."

"Other magical blood curses?" asked Meredith, leaning in towards Tom.

"There are worse things to be than a werewolf, believe me," said Captain Lupin with a nod. "Slowly turning into an animal until you aren't human anymore, for one."

"That sounds horrifying," said Tom, sitting up a bit.

"It is. It's also one of the reasons why we're a little more ruthless than the Aurors are. Well done on blinding Fenrir in one eye, by the way. He's a slippery eel but you've hobbled him good. But regardless, onto why I'm here. We need one of your canine teeth and a little bit of saliva, Dr Granger. Your tooth will be magically restored, no worries there."

"And why do you need one of my teeth? To register me?" asked Meredith, stiffening.

Captain Lupin laughed again. "Hardly. We're going to inoculate your husband and your girlfriend against lycanthropy, if they're both willing."