Black and Potter didn't seem to want to drop the fact Remus had been bullied, and in the dorm that night they questioned him once more about it, wanting to know what had been done and by who. Remus stuttered and mumbled and finally managed to get out that if they didn't leave it alone he wouldn't help them with 'the fur', speaking in code since Spinnet and Struthers were in the dorm too. That got the boys to shut up, though, and Remus studied in peace for the remainder of the evening until he was the last one to go to sleep.

Running down the corridor, high pitched laughter behind him. BABY! BABY! LION CUB! BABY! The Slytherins were chasing him and cornered him, their wands out. They shot spells at him that just made him feel a lot of pain and then Bulstrode began kicking him. BABY! BABY! they chanted. Then the poltergeist showed up and began pouring vinegar out of a watering can over Remus, chanting with them.

I'm not a baby...! Remus felt his dream-transformation. It didn't hurt even though it should and then he was a wolf, chasing the three Slytherins down the corridor. He chased them into Myrtle's bathroom and lunged, grabbing Avery by the ankle. Avery screamed and cried and begged Myrtle to help but she just floated near the ceiling saying bullies got what they deserved. Remus shook Avery violently, ripping his foot off, blood spraying everywhere.

They'll be shocked when they see your dead body! Myrtle laughed at Avery.

Remus stepped onto Avery and bent in, slobber and blood dripping into Avery's face. Remus opened his mouth over Avery's neck and-

Lights went on in the dorm as Remus thrashed in his bed, screaming and sobbing. "No! No! No!" he cried out, getting all tangled in his blanket and then rolling out of his bed. He just lay there panting heavily as the other five boys surrounded him. "No," he whimpered, curling.

"You okay, Lupin?" Potter crouched down, trying to get the blankets off of him. "What happened?"

"He woke us all up again, that's what happened," Spinnet complained.

Black shot Spinnet a dirty look. "I doubt he did it in purpose."

Remus finally sat up, tawny hair a total mess, tears streaking down his cheeks. He could still smell blood then realized it was his own. He had cut himself on something when he fell. He quickly pulled his hand close to his body, cupping his other hand around to hide the gash. Potter was still crouched there, blinking sleepily behind his glasses.

"You okay?" He reached out, putting a hand on Remus's shoulder. Remus gasped and pushed himself back against his bed at the touch.

"Bloody hell, this is ridiculous, this is the second time and it's only been a couple weeks!" Spinnet growled. "If he's gonna keep this up...!"

"Shut up, Spinnet!" Black snapped back. "Go back to bed!"

There was a knock at their dorm door and Pettigrew stumbled over himself to get it open. There were three boys probably a year or so older, peering in. "We heard screaming, did something happen?" asked the boy in the front.

"Nightmare," Potter said in a rather authoritative tone while Black stood rather protectively in front of Remus. "That's all."

The three boys gave another curious peek around the dorm then left. Pettigrew shut the door and scurried back to the cluster of first-years. Remus felt awful for waking up not only his own dorm but the one down the hall. Spinnet began complaining again and then stomped off to his bed. Struthers gave Remus an anxious glance then returned to bed as well.

"I'm f-fine." Remus got to his feet on his own, ignoring Potter's proffered hand. "D-d-didn't m-mean to w-w-wake you. I'm s-sss-sorry."

"Not your fault," Black replied immediately and a bit loudly for Spinnet to hear.

"Mate, you don't look so well," Potter said and Remus turned to glance at the mirror, seeing he looked almost as pale as he normally did when it was the full moon, the shadows under his eyes just as bad.

"It w-was a b-bad nightmare," Remus mumbled and rubbed his eyes. "I'll be-b-be okay. Sorry," he added again for good measure and then climbed into bed, shutting the curtains. He heard Spinnet muttering complaints and then Black, Potter, and Pettigrew going to their beds. He heard Pettigrew ask the other two if they thought Remus was really okay, and Potter saying he didn't think so, and Black saying he thought Remus needed to see Pomfrey again.

Then after about ten minutes when everyone else seemed to be asleep Remus could hear Black and Potter talking about him. Wondering what was wrong. Remus began chewing at his fingernails. It wasn't even a month into school and already people were becoming suspicious of him. I'll have to do better. I'll have to try and-and...

And what? He had no idea how to be a person. He could only talk normal with ghosts or when he wasn't really noticing he was talking to someone. Just try and be normal. Whatever that is...

()

Tuesday afternoon held another flying lesson and Remus clutched at his broom desperately, not wanting to go the ten to twelve feet in the air they were supposed to. The worst part was they had an audience. A group of fifth years had been walking back to the castle when they noticed Potter doing a particularly fantastic barrel spin to the ground and jerked the broom up just before crashing, which earned a great deal of angry shouts from Hooch. But most the fifth years had seen it and were now stopped, watching the class with interest. Watching Potter. Which egged him into showing off some more. He flipped his broom upside down and flew along hanging off the bottom, then flipped it back around and did a dizzying forward spin. Hooch yelled at him again and he coolly responded he was only eleven feet off the ground just as she asked.

"What a show-off!" Evans drifted over next to Remus and was watching Potter with a wrinkled nose.

Potter was now standing on his broom, arms out, balancing easily. The fifth years were clapping and enjoying the show, and Potter was flushed with enjoyment. He jumped and there were several gasps but as he fell he grabbed hold of the broom and swung himself back up, his feet just barely brushing the tops of the grass. More applause, from some of the first years too.

"POTTER THAT IS ENOUGH!" Hooch yelled, blowing her whistle. "IF YOU CAN'T SIT ON THE BROOM LIKE EVERYONE ELSE YOU ARE LEAVING THIS LESSON IMMEDIATELY!"

Potter promptly got into a proper seated position and gave Hooch an innocent smile. "Sorry, ma'am!"

"It's incredible he can do all that with an old school broom," Remus heard one of the fifth year Gryffindors say.

"He better be trying out for the team next year," added another Gryffindor.

With the wind and the distance of the students Remus figured Potter hadn't heard them however Potter did stand up on his broom again the second Hooch's back was turned and did a quick bow before slipping back into a regular position. The fifth years clapped and Hooch spun around, glaring suspiciously at the bespectacled boy who still had that infuriatingly 'who, me?' smile on.

Black was laughing uproariously.

"Madame Hooch, if all this class is for is to make us watch Potter show off then can we skip the next time?" one of the Slytherins asked.

"I wasn't doing anything," Potter complained. "Just because you can't fly worth beans doesn't-"

"I can fly," the Slytherin snarled, face going rather pink.

Then Potter was upside down again, looking like a messy-haired sloth. "Can you really? Shall we test it?"

"POTTER, I'VE WARNED YOU!"

"Madame Hooch, could we have a race?" Potter asked hopefully.

"NO YOU MOST CERTAINLY CANNOT! NOW GET DOWN HERE THIS INSTANT!"

The fifth years let out a disappointed sigh and Potter did a sort of loopy flip, slithered off his broom and landed expertly on the ground, swinging the broom over one shoulder in a very heroic pose. The fifth years and half the first years clapped and Hooch barreled over, snatching the broom from his hand and giving him detention. Potter didn't seem like he cared.

"What a twit," Evans muttered.

Remus returned to his own flying, unable to argue with that statement.

()

Remus spent the rest of the afternoon working on homework in an empty corridor while Sir Nicholas floated nearby and talked to him. Remus kept glancing up and asking questions to which Sir Nicholas proudly replied, supplying the boy with quite a bit of information about what Hogwarts was like in the fifteenth century. Then he made a brief mention of the court, and Remus dropped his quill, staring a the ghost in absolute awe.

"You-went to court? With Henry the seventh?!"

"Oh, yes, dear boy, I am a Sir Nicholas, it's not just made up for fun you know."

"You were knighted?!" Remus hadn't even considered this before and he scrambled to his feet, excitement etched on his young face. "You met King Henry the Seventh? What was it like? What was the ceremony like? What did you wear? What did he wear? What-"

He stopped as footsteps came down the hall and Evans appeared. "Oh! There you are. Professor McGonagall said to tell you that Professor Dumbledore needs to see you. It's an urgent matter." Her green eyes were full of absolute curiosity but Remus had no idea what it could be about.

"Th-th-thank you," Remus said, picking up his things. "Wh-where's his o-office?"

"I have no idea," she replied.

"I can show you the way," Sir Nicholas said, "however I'm not too sure of the password. I suppose we can find out when we get there."

He began floating along so quickly that Remus had to run to catch up. As it turned out it wasn't too far, just up a flight of stairs and down a brightly lit corridor. Sir Nicholas stopped at a statue of a gargoyle. "Here we are. I'll nip up and let him know you-oh." The gargoyle stepped aside revealing a circular stone staircase. "I suppose he knows you're here, then. Good day!" Sir Nicholas tipped his head and floated off while Remus started climbing the staircase, shaking hard. Then he gave a yelp as the staircase began moving on its own.

I'm being expelled, he thought as he traveled upwards. That's got to be what it is.

At the top of the staircase he went to the door and knocked. "Come in," he heard the headmaster say.

Remus took in a deep breath and nervously stepped inside. Dumbledore's office was large and circular in a twisty way, clearly one of the many towers. There were loads of portraits on the walls, quite a few bookshelves, and dozens of odd looking objects sitting about including one silvery spindly thing that Remus backed away from, feeling it in his bones that it was pure silver. Then he saw a rather grand perch with a brilliant scarlet bird. A phoenix, he thought, impressed.

"Have a seat."

Remus turned to look at the headmaster sitting behind his desk, his blue eyes twinkling rather merrily. This was the first time being in his immediate presence since the time he gave to the Lupin household over the summer. Remus sat down in a chair, keeping his bag in his lap so he could cling to it. "You n-n-n-needed to-to see-see me, sir?"

Dumbledore clasped his hands together and looked down his very long, crooked nose at the boy. "There's no need to look like you're being force fed skele-gro, Remus. You're not in trouble. You're not being expelled."

Remus jerked a bit at the accurate reading of his thoughts though he remained sitting quite straight. "Wh-w-what am I d-doing here?"

"I asked you here for two reasons. The first being I am merely wondering how you are doing. Settling in well? I've heard from quite a few teachers you're pretty much the top in most of your classes."

"Err, ah, I-y-I-I su-suppose so. I mean, y-yes, Sir, I'm se-settling in fairly well, I-I think." Remus clutched his bag tighter, heart hammering away. He still felt like something bad was about to happen.

"Enjoying your classes?" Dumbledore asked, opening up a box of candy and offering him one. "Sugared orange slice?"

Remus didn't feel like eating but took one any, to be nice. "Y-yes, Sir, I-I love them. It's won-wonderful l-l-learning about every-thing. I n-n-never imagined I c-c-could." He put the slice in his mouth and chewed. It tasted almost like sawdust from all his nerves.

"It's terrific seeing such a keen young mind," Dumbledore said and flipped an orange slice in the air and caught it in his mouth. Remus raised his eyebrows a bit at that. It didn't seem very... dignified. "Having fun outside your classes? Making friends?" He said this last bit as if he already knew the answer.

"N... no, sir. I mean, y-yes sir. I mean... y-yes to-to the f-fi-first bit, no to-to the second," Remus said, keeping his face blank as Dumbledore offered him another bit of fruit. He took it and put it in his mouth, chewing on the sawdust.

Up went another slice, disappearing into Dumbledore's mouth when it came back down. "I got it to the ceiling once," Dumbledore said with a wink. "Am I right in guessing you're afraid to make friends?"

Remus stiffened. "Yes," he answered flatly. "I-I'm n-not exactly in a p-position to go-go-go about getting chummy wi-with other students. N-no thank you," he added when Dumbledore offered him another bit of fruit. "I don't th-think my taste buds are-are up to-to trying anything r-right now."

"Sawdust?" Dumbledore asked and Remus frowned. "That's a relief, I thought something had happened to my own tongue. These must be the joke ones." He closed up the box and rummaged in his desk till he brought out an almost identical box. He opened it up and popped an orange slice in his mouth. "Yes, much better." He offered one to Remus who shook his head. "Just because you've got a deep secret doesn't mean you should avoid everyone. I think you'll find life might be a bit nicer if you let someone-or a few someones-in."

"Professor, I-I ca-can't."

"Hmm." Dumbledore sat back and began stroking his beard. "I cannot force you to make friends, just... suggest heavily you keep your mind and heart open."

"It's-"

"The second thing," Dumbledore plunged on, quickly getting up and clasping his hands behind his back as he walked over to the window, "speaking of open minds, is something I've only just thought about this morning. I was having a rather interesting conversation with Rubeus Hagrid regarding dancing pumpkins for Halloween, when I realized I had overlooked something regarding your safety." He spun around and gave Remus an intense stare that felt like it was penetrating into his skull. "Did you enjoy your chat with Sir Nicholas?"

"S-sir?" he asked, confused at the change.

"He was telling you about his time at court, wasn't he?" Dumbledore asked and suddenly Remus realized what happened. It froze him to his very core and he felt almost like he might wet himself with terror. "Yes," Dumbledore said, seeing the look on Remus's face. "I've taken a peek into your mind. Not too deep, mind you, just to show you what's going on."

"You read my mind?" Remus whispered, the ice thawing enough to send him into violent quakes. He read my mind? People can do that?

"Not 'read' per say, however close enough," Dumbledore assented. "It is called legilimency and... it isn't a common gift, or a common talent for those who pursue it. However there are many who do know how to slip into someone else's mind. Which... for someone like you..." Dumbledore trailed off, letting the words dangle in front of the absolutely terrified child.

"How-how-h-how do-do-" Remus stammered, words tangling as he tried to express himself through the hysteria. Tears sprang up. "How-how do-do-how-"

"It's called occlumency," Dumbledore answered, sitting back down at his desk. "And while it is a bit advanced... you can start to learn it now though I don't think you'll manage well until you're a bit older since you're not a natural born occlumens. That is why you will be trained, during your time here. I know of a witch who is rather good at both, who can teach you. Whom you can trust, as she will need to know your secret. Now, you don't need to accept this training-"

"No!" Remus gasped out, his voice getting higher and more ragged with each messed up word. "No. I mean-yes-I mean-please-Sir-I can't-I don't w-w-want anyone... s-see-ss-seeing my-seeing into-"

"That is what I thought," Dumbledore said gently as the boy was wheezing now, unable to say a single word more. "Please calm down, Remus. I'll contact my friend and she will begin lessons with you as soon as possible, if she's so inclined. I trust her with your secret, if you trust me?" Remus nodded vigorously. "Excellent. And try not to agitate yourself too much in the mean time. There are very few here who can perform legilimency and none, to my knowledge, would ever perform it on another student. However if you find anyone staring deep into your eyes either they're trying to get in your head or else are mesmerized by your unusual eye color."

Remus breathed in and out as steadily as he could, trying his hardest to calm down though he doubted he'd ever feel calm again after this news. "Th-thank-th-thank-thank you, S-s-sss-Sir," he managed somehow to say. There were tears on his face still as he bent forward, hair falling across to try to hide them. I didn't know this was possible, I never knew... reading minds... if someone reached in... and saw my secret... I always thought I had to be wary of external attacks, never on my mind!

"Remus..."

He looked up and brushed his cheeks with the back of his hands.

"You'll be fine." Dumbledore promised.