Prologue to Chapter Twenty-Two

It was only four days to the full moon and Remus could feel the itching in his bones. It always began that way, with the itching and the ragged nerves. The hyperawareness of everything around him. This was not good timing. Harry was here, happily and distractedly walking around Hogwarts' First Transfiguration Bazaar with several students who wanted him dead stalking around in the immediate vicinity. Of course, they didn't appear to be stalking. The Aurors assigned to trail them reported no unusual behavior by the Slytherins at all.

Draco was cheerlessly leading around a fourth-year Slytherin, a girl who seemed relatively harmless. Theodore Nott had parked his carcass in Sylvia's Standard Shop, a Ravenclaw venture that sold anything you could think of with house insignias or family crests embroidered or carved or embossed on them. The Twitchtie girls had just gone by shopping in a pack, chattering endlessly about nothing that seemed important.

Vincent Crabbe, who was getting special attention these days due to the warning from Draco, had not even left his room. He was apparently ill, confirmed by a Polyjuiced Tonks in the uncomfortable guise of Millicent Bulstrode. Tonks had placed a spell in the hallway to go off when Crabbe left the room, and it had as of yet, remained silent. This left Remus very uneasy. This was a perfect opportunity to take Harry unawares.

Everywhere, Remus saw excited, cheerful faces—students jettisoning the worries and pressures that beset them daily and enjoying this small window of frivolity. Sinister forces seemed perfectly alien here. But since here was where Harry was, it was best to simply assume the danger and get ready.

Yes—Remus was a nervous, nervous werewolf. He tapped his wand to the communication bead affixed to his watch. "Is Dumbledore free yet?"

"Not yet," came Charlie Weasley's tired voice. "If it wasn't the Headmaster, I'd blow right in there and see if he needed help, but as it is . . ."

Remus sighed. "Charlie, it's best that he answers as many questions as he can about Gregory's disappearance. If there are too many unanswered questions, then suspicion may swing back Harry's way. I have a feeling it wouldn't take too much to get it there."

Charlie snorted. "I think it's there already. Why else would Fornier come straight back here?"

"Perhaps. But then Goyle was detained here at the castle for almost twenty-four hours before he was released to his parents. Part of the problem is not knowing where the real Goyle was switching with the false one. Did Gregory Goyle return home alive, or was there foul play here at Hogwarts before the boy even left?"

"But they haven't found out for sure that he's dead yet, right?"

"Not yet. His parents are refusing to give any information as to where the real Gregory is, and no body has been found."

"He's just lucky I never got my hands on him. So, how are things looking down there? Wish I was free to help."

"So far? Good," Remus intoned quietly, watching the students pass in front of him, keeping the one with familiar, tousled, black hair always in sight. "And you are helping, Charlie. Stay put. Let us know as soon as the Headmaster is free and on his way."

"You got it. Weasleytwo out."

Remus took a deep breath. Why did they have to have a bazaar now, when Harry was spending the entire year with a target on his back? He watched Harry, Ginny beside him, as they headed for Katie's shop. They looked so carefree, but then, of course, they hadn't heard the news about Goyle yet.

It had just happened this morning that during the trial of young Goyle for conspiring to have Harry Portkeyed from the castle, it was found that he was not himself. That is to say that he was a Polyjuiced cousin of Gregory's, made to look like him and stand trial for him, ostensibly under the Imperius. All hell had broken loose at that point. It had taken mere hours for the inquiry to come to Hogwarts in the form of the Head Auror, Claude Fornier and a few of his disciples. Now they had the Headmaster stewing up in his office when he truly needed to be down here among the students, protecting Harry from whatever horrible scheme Lord Voldemort's disciples had cooked up this time.

Remus shook his head grimly, then arrested his thoughts as Harry and Ginny disappeared into Katie's Kwiddich Keeper. Looking over, he saw Tonks, dressed as a Hufflepuff student with short blonde hair, duck in after them. He relaxed, took a few deep breaths, and then started actively scanning the crowd.

The Aurors had been slowly building up a force within the school to protect Harry. Tonks had been invaluable in this capacity with her ability to blend in, shadowing Harry as he went from class to class, transformed into a student from a different House. She'd done a good job, though she'd almost come face to face with herself the day she'd chosen Cho Chang.

Remus walked around the outside of the shop. There was only one entrance and exit, so he tucked himself away to the side and watched it like a hawk. After a few minutes, Harry emerged from the shop looking very pleased with himself, Ginny right by his side. As he moved to follow, Remus' face creased in a smile. From the back, the pair looked uncannily like another set of lovebirds he'd known.

They met up with Ron, who looked hungry—not a rare thing. Remus sincerely hoped they would not be heading toward Cho's tent next. Torturous to smell that food and not be able to eat! The siblings performed the Bodyguard Switching charm and Ginny headed off to gripe at her brothers. As Remus turned to follow Harry and Ron, he saw Ginny being hailed by Violet Hooch.

The boys, unfortunately, were hungry, it was plain to see. They went straight into Cho's tent, grabbed a tray and proceeded to fill it to overflowing. They paid and sat at the nearest empty table, Harry impatiently waiting while Ron tasted his food first.

Remus exchanged an amused look with the Hufflepuff Tonks who had just gotten a seat near the boys, then he noticed what was on her tray—a mouthwatering array of spicy Thai dishes. Remus sent her a reproachful look. She knew Thai was his favorite foreign cuisine. A minute dragged by as he tried to ignore his stomach's plaintive pangs. When a fourth-year Hufflepuff walked by with a plate of General Tso's Chicken—Remus' favorite Chinese dish—his saliva glands went into overdrive. Perfect. Why did this pre-transformation time have to sharpen all his senses so painfully?

And there sat Tonks, still digging into her food. She flashed him a grin as she grabbed a spring roll, raised her eyebrows and bit into it. Remus gave her a look that must have been more desperate than he had intended, because her gaze melted into sympathy. She grabbed another spring roll and walked over to him. Remus stood up straight, shaking his head at her slightly. He hadn't expected her to approach him. He'd just been—what had he been doing? Flirting, his inner Sirius said with a dry chuckle, you sly dog.

Remus flushed uncomfortably, just as Tonks reached him. "For my favorite teacher," she said with an impish grin, then handed Remus a spring roll.

"Thank you," Remus said stiffly, then watched as she returned to her seat. He didn't know what to think of Nymphadora sometimes. That's a lie, old Wolf. You know exactly what to think!

Remus frowned. She's much too young for me. He shook his head and took a bite out of the spring roll, determined not to think along these lines. Especially when Tonks looked like a fifteen-year-old girl. It was . . . disturbing.

Remus moved his gaze back over to Harry's table and froze. Harry was gone. Remus jerked forward. The two opposing exits were clear—no Harry. The Auror slightly panicked, sprinting for Ron's table, crying out "Where's Harry?"

"Ginny got him," Ron said, then paused. He gestured at the half-eaten spring roll clutched in Remus' hand. "You do know that's not a w—"

"Which way?"

Lupin took off as soon as Ron gestured, desperate thoughts running through his mind—he'd lost Harry because he'd been flirting with Tonks instead of doing his job—Harry was in terrible danger—then realized he was running with a half-eaten spring roll. With self-disgust, he dashed the roll to the ground.

As soon as he caught sight of the flash of red in the alley next door, Remus stopped up short. Oh. Ginny had pulled Harry into there, and they were just talking. There was only one way into and out of the alley. Remus took a few deep breaths. He could cover them easily. He turned away, wanting to give them a bit of privacy. He nodded to Fred, who was walking down the path toward Cho's.

"Good sales?" he called over to him.

"Excellent. Seen Harry?" Behind Fred came Neville, who was listening to their conversation intently.

Remus indicated the alley behind him. "Having a . . . bit of a moment with Ginny."

Fred grinned evilly. "Oh, really?"

Neville looked at Fred uncomfortably. "I just wanted to tell Ginny that Violet's looking for her."

A low cry broke into Neville's words. Harry. Remus' stomach dropped like a stone. Fred was sprinting for the alley. Remus lurched to follow.

"What's wrong?" Neville cried.

Someone shrieked, "AVADA KEDARVA!" over the roaring in Remus' head. The distance to the alley seemed interminable. Fred yelled. Screams erupted from Cho's tent and then Remus was in the alley, wand out, gasping.

Harry was stretched out flat on his back, looking pained and bloodied on one side of his face, but conscious. Had the Killing Curse missed—? Across from him, splayed out like a rag doll, was Ginny Weasley. Her eyes were open, face frozen in horror—dead.

Fred threw himself to the ground beside Harry. "Harry! My God, it worked. It worked! But who was your guard? Was it Ron? Harry, where is Ron?"

Harry stared at Fred dully, obviously on the very brink of unconsciousness. "He's in Cho's," Remus said as calmly as he could, then tapped his wand on the blob of wax attached to his watch. "Phoenix is down. All guards initiate hands-on."

Fred looked up to bark, "Check Ron!" to his twin, who had appeared beside him.

"Is that—" George began, but Fred cut him off with a shake of his head.

"Ron's in Cho's tent. GO!" George lunged for the tent and Neville jerked into action right behind him, crying, "Hermione—I'll get her!"

A strident voice came back to Remus from the blob of wax, "Did you say that Phoenix is down?" McGonagall's query ended on a tremulous note.

"Yes, down." Remus looked again at the second body in the alley. A chocolate cupcake lay inches from her hand. Lupin stalked over to the body and kicked the cupcake over. It was uneaten. He tapped the blob of wax again. "Down, but recoverable."

Fred, pale, looked over to nod in agreement. "Check out that flask. Is that acid?" Lupin saw the almost empty flask and the way the lawn had been burned under it.

"Yes, not sure what type. Be careful," he cautioned as Fred pointed his wand at Harry's face, murmuring a cleansing spell.

"Professor Lupin!" Cho Chang was at the entrance to her tent, calling out tearfully. "George says to tell you that Ron's o-o-o—" she stuttered to a halt, staring in horror at Harry. "Oh my god . . ."

"Is Ron all right?" Fred asked urgently.

"Y-y-yes," Cho got out, one hand moving to cover her mouth, "What's wrong with Harrry?" There were gasps behind her and faces appeared in the tent entrance.

"Harry?" Luna asked, appearing at Cho's shoulder. Her impossibly wide eyes opened even wider. "No—he can't be."

Remus stepped forward, "He's going to be fine," he assured them, "don't panic." But more students were pushing out of the tent, and just then, someone saw Ginny's body. Screams erupted.

"Ginny's dead!"

"Harry!" Hermione shrieked as she ran from the other direction, throwing herself to the ground beside her friend. Neville led a band of Gryffindors behind her and the crowd began to fill in the area, their loud shouts or crying adding to the confusion.

"Professor," Hermione looked up to Remus, tears coursing down her cheeks, "what happened?"

He found he couldn't answer.

"No, that's not Ginny," Fred was shouting out to the crowd irritably. "Now, would some of you nitwits stop your bawling and go find her?"

"I will," said a very sober and pale-faced Collin Creevy, who had made his way to the front of the crowd, his camera hanging limply. He darted away amid shouts of "Let him through. Let him through!"

"How—how do you know that's not Ginny?" Hermione asked Fred in a low voice.

"Because it's not her," Fred said firmly. "Now. You need to go see Ron—in Cho's tent."

"Ron?" she asked weakly. The other Gryffindors took up the question as well.

"Where's Ron?"

"Cho," Fred barked out to the tearful girl, "take her." Cho held out a hand to Hermione and the crowd parted to let them through. Fred put a hand briefly on Harry's shoulder, then stood and stepped over to Remus. "Hundred Galleons says that's Vincent Crabbe," indicating Ginny's body with a jerk of his head.

Remus nodded grimly. "Somehow I suspect you're right. We need to find your sister." Fred's face contracted in worry. They both turned as there was a new disturbance at the other end of the pathway.

Bill Weasley stepped forward, Draco in hand. The Slytherin looked incensed; his face was unnaturally flushed and his body rigid. Immediately, his gaze went to Harry and his face drained to a ghastly pallor.

"Did he do it?" someone yelled from the back and a cacophony of answered them.

"Bastard!"

"A Slytherin, of course!

"Nonsense," he roused himself to scoff at them, but his sneer looked sickly. "I was off polishing my halo."

"Shut it, you—"

"That's enough!" barked Mad-Eye as he came up through the middle of the crowd, toting Millicent Bulstrode as if she were a sack of potatoes. "Let the Aurors do their job."

"Charlie!"

"It's Charlie!" several voices cried.

Charlie Weasley gave a slight nod as he followed Mad-Eye, prodding Rawley Hughes from behind. Remus frowned at the fifth-year Slytherin, who was visibly shaking as he took in Harry's prone form. Something didn't add up with that boy. How had he ever been chosen to be one of the Seven Deadly Slytherins? Either Voldemort had been desperate, or there was something to that boy—something that had yet to come to light.

"See, it was the Slytherins!"

Dean and Seamus moved to stand beside Remus, wands out, their gaze on the Slytherins.

"There's no need for that," Remus told them in what he hoped was a calm voice, though the crowd was becoming quite unruly as the Slytherins were led to one side. The other houses moved away from them, and hands were twitching at their wands. Remus found himself standing with Fred, Dean and Seamus in a semi-circle, guarding Harry's prone form carefully.

"Was it you, Bulstrode, eh?" Seamus shouted at her.

"Calm down, boys," Remus began, but his words were overrun by a sneer from Millicent herself.

"Your little boy hero is dead!" she taunted.

"No!" Remus projected loudly, but no one was listening.

The entire crowd erupted. Wands were out and angry students from every house yelled and surged toward Millicent. In seconds, they were plunged into a nightmare. Mad-Eye, Charlie and Bill found themselves guarding the students they were incarcerating moments before. Rawley cowered but the other Slytherins went for their wands. There was screaming. Spells flew towards the Slytherins, and deflected by the Aurors, went up into the air. Students scattered.

Remus, Fred, Dean and Seamus held their ground, wands out, shifting to follow the students as they panicked. No one was coming at them, but several spells had to be blocked.

Then—SSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHHHHH—BOOM!

The light of a small star imploded in the air overhead, searing an image of itself into the mind of every unfortunate being that looked up. The thunderclap that followed drove Remus to his knees, its echoes reverberating inside his skull.

In the relative quiet that followed, only one figure moved through the moaning, writhing blur of students on the ground. Remus blinked several times, trying to see behind the bright flare of light that continued to impair his vision, but could only get the vaguest impression of the man approaching.

"I got here just in time," the wizard said with a slight accent, one that Remus couldn't immediately place. "Have the suspected students brought to my temporary office one at a time. And it seems Mr. Potter is in need of medical attention—again."

As the figure came nearer, Remus recognized the man as the Head Auror, Claude Fornier.

"I think it is time to clean out this school. Don't you agree, Headmaster?"

It was then that Remus realized Dumbledore was already at Harry's side, tenderly checking the boy's condition. After a moment, the wizened wizard looked up. "Oh. I quite agree," he said simply, but there was an unspoken challenge in his tone, and power seemed to radiate from his very being as he held the Head Auror's gaze.

The werewolf was no fool. He took four steps back and knelt beside Harry.

There was no telling what might happen next.