Chapter 2, notes: Obviously, if you haven't picked up on a couple things, Sirius is not dead, neither is Dumbledore. It simply just isn't as fun without these characters, you see.

Remus did not wake until late in the afternoon. He was rather groggy, and though the skin had healed from Molly's spell, his side still stung. Remus sat up and looked over at Sirius, who was drooling all over a pillow.

He crept quietly out of the room and downstairs. Molly, Arthur, Ron, Hermione, and Ginny were all in the sitting room, talking.

"Oh, hullo, Remus," Mister Weasley said pleasantly as Remus entered the room.

"Good morning Arthur," Remus replied with a smile, trying to flatten his bedhead. "What time is it?"

"About quarter of six."

"Isn't anyone else awake yet?" he inquired, stifling a yawn.

Ron shook his head in the negative. "And it's been boring all day."

Remus nodded, stretched, and slowly sauntered into the backyard. He sighed heavily and leaned against the house. He was having difficulty in staying positive, which was a skill that he'd learned in his youth, after he had been bitten. But now, there was no silver lining. Voldemort was gaining strength faster than the last time, people were being murdered every day, Remus wasn't as able-bodied as he had been the last time, and now Voldemort had control of some vicious, soulless—

"Demon. Feh. How ridiculous. And they didn't even catch my good side."

Remus spun on his heel, looking wildly around for the owner of the unrecognizable voice. There wasn't anyone around. His hand hovered over his pocket for his wand, just in case.

"It's a pity, too. They have no consideration for my side. But I suppose I'm in no shape for fighting the Daily Prophet. What do you think, Mister Lupin?" All of a sudden, something dropped from the roof.

A thin, raven-haired girl stood, the front of her shabby black traveling cloak drenched in blood. She was the demon they had encountered in the middle of the night, but as she took two steps forward, Remus did not reach for his wand.

Her eyes seemed to have life in them now—they were a soft gray and looked warm. This young woman had black hair that reached her waist, with bangs cut straight across her brow. Her face was covered with dirt and blood, but even so, Remus couldn't deny that she was beautiful.

"What do you want?" he asked apprehensively. His heart pounded in his chest—Remus had seen how fast this creature could move, and no part of him cared to see how she would attack.

"I'm afraid I need a bit of help." The woman- or demon, whatever she was –pulled back her traveling cloak to reveal a once-white button down blouse which was soaked in blood.

"Your friend did quite a number on me, you see, and I can't figure out how to heal it. And I know it seems strange, my coming to you lot for help, but since Uncle Severus says that you're all for the same cause, I'd figured that it would be safe to come to you. Especially you, Mister Lupin, since you know what it's like to be…afflicted," she said hurriedly. The girl looked faint and weak, and even through the mask of dried mud and blood, it was obvious that she was turning a sickly shade of green.

Several thoughts flew through Remus's head, and they seemed to just topple out of his mouth. "Uncle Severus? But you're a Death Eater! And how do you know—about me?"

She smiled weakly. "I'm not a Death Eater, nor am I a demon. And I could smell the wolf in your blood when I was following you here. And, you see, I was not born with

these powers. I was something of an experiment, being that my parents loathed the thought of a girl, all because I can't carry on the family name and all that rubbish. So, since they are such good little servants, they offered me up to Voldemort when he asked for a child. Since then, I'd been locked away and kept a secret. Oh yes, how rude of me. My name is Lily Malfoy. Pleased to meet you."

Remus stood there, mouth agape in shock. He couldn't think of anything to reply to this strange explanation.

He was saved from a response, however, for Alastor stood in the doorway, his magic eye swiveling wildly around.

"I knew it!" he growled. "This eye never fails. Stupify!"

"Not you again, old man," she said with a sigh as she leaped high into the air.

Moody began shooting jinx after jinx at the girl, which she barely avoided. Remus moved to stop him, yelling an explanation, but Mad-Eye paid no attention. A manic smile was twisted on the old man's face, and just as Remus grabbed his wand to stop him, the girl fell to the ground with a yelp.

Thick ropes bound around the girl's wrists and ankles, though she did not fight against them. "Ha!" Moody shouted triumphantly. "Not so tough now, are you, you silly little demon?" He took long strides toward the girl, Remus following behind.

"Alastor, don't! She isn't what you think. She wasn't attacking anyone!" He glanced at the girl, who didn't stir, her face turned away from them with her hair covering her face. "She needs help!"

"Oh, I don't doubt that, Lupin, after I'm done interrogating her and she gets sent off to Azkaban." They were upon the motionless figure, which was sprawled out quite awkwardly. "Up, demon!" Mad-Eye barked at the girl. She did not move. Mad-Eye kicked her in her side, evoking a groan from the girl. Remus released the breath he had not been aware that he'd been holding. The girl was alive, at least.

The girl—Lily Malfoy—shook her head to remove the hair from her face. She squinted up at the two. When she spoke, her voice was weak, and sounded tired. "You're not really that charming, Mad-Eye Moody, but your reputation does precede you," she said calmly, though there was a mixture of pain and anger in her voice.

"Get UP!" he commanded again, and he kicked her again.

"Stop it, Alastor! She can't get up because she's injured. Not to mention that you bound her ankles," Remus said angrily. He crouched before the girl, ignoring the soft pop! his knees made as he went down. "Listen," he started, looking directly into those soft, silver eyes, "I'm not sure if what you said was true, but you need to get to St. Mungo's. You're badly injured, and I'm not sure if we're able to help you here. I mean, Molly knows some basic healing spells, but I don't think she knows much more"—

Lily interrupted him by shaking her head. "I can't go to St. Mungo's. There are loads of Death Eaters working as Healers these days, and at least half of them know by now that I didn't return with the others. They'd bring me straight back to Voldemort. Besides, magical medicine won't work on me."

"Liar," Moody growled. Remus looked up to find that the entire Weasley household as well as the others who were on that eventful trip from Privet Drive now stood outside. All faces held an expression of shock.

"How did you know we were here?" Kingsley asked apprehensively.

"Keen sense of smell. Look" –she grimaced in pain- "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have come. Just let me go and I'll go heal this myself. I'm no stranger to being feared and hated." Remus swore that he saw sparkles of tears in her eyes, but he couldn't be sure, for she closed her eyes tight and started to fight against her bindings. She thrashed, but to no avail, and yelled in frustration.

They all just watched at the girl's struggle, and Remus felt a pang of sympathy for the girl. He understood all too well what it was like to be hated. With his back to the

others, he inconspicuously slipped his wand out of his robes, pointed it at one of the ropes, and whispered, "Diffindo."

Instantly, the rope broke, and Lily was able to break the others. Immediately, she was up in the air, though she clutched one hand to her chest. She sped away faster than Moody could shoot jinxes, and she was out of sight within seconds.

Mad-Eye swore underneath his breath. "Ah well. No big loss. It's been bleeding all day. It'll be dead by the night."

"Shut up!" Remus growled. This startled everyone assembled, for Remus was always the rational, level-headed one. He got to his feet, again ignoring the protest from his knees. He looked around the sea of people as he spoke. "She isn't a demon, and she wasn't trying to attack anything! She doesn't want to be under Voldemort's control, and—and she called Snape 'Uncle Severus!'" he said eagerly.

"Severus, who disappeared after the girl," Sirius added. Remus was shocked at his friend's fast comprehension. Sirius was usually the last to rationalize things. "So, that puts quite the amount of suspicion on Snape, doesn't it?" Well, Remus thought, it was only wishful thinking.

"She knows Snape because she's a Malfoy," Remus said, ignoring his friend. Everyone's attention was right back on him. "Her parents are Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy and Voldemort told them he needed a child for an experiment, and they offered her up because she's just a girl. I didn't mean that the way it sounded, Tonks. I think women are equal—but anyway, she's hurt very badly, and she followed us for refuge from Voldemort, and now she's… a hundred miles away by now." He sighed in desolation. "And, I suppose, it's as Alastor said. She'll be dead before tomorrow."

Tonks and Molly edged toward him, piteous expressions on their faces. "Remus," Tonks started, "she lied. Of course she lied, to get to you. These are dangerous times, and Death Eaters are using even trickier ways to get information. She might be injured, but remember, she's not even a 'she.' She's a demon, nothing but pure evil and deception. And even if she really is a Malfoy, that would mean she's probably equally evil and deceptive."

"But, Snape," he feebly replied.

"Severus is probably keeping an eye on the demon, making sure she doesn't get too close to the Order," Molly answered. "Come, Remus, dear. We'll get you a nice cup of hot tea for you. Don't look so distressed, dear. It's not the first time a woman lied to a man." She began steering him toward the house, and Remus began doubting himself.

They were right. Remus had no reason believe a single word that this girl—demon, rather—had said. She had sucked him right into his greatest vulnerability, and he had believed her. He silently wondered, as he sat down at the Weasley kitchen table, if he'd also been fooled because he found her beautiful. Even her scent, which had then been covered up by blood and the smell of dirt, was beautiful, and so female.

Then, after a couple gulps of his Firewhiskey, Remus jolted upright, knocking over his chair. This made Molly, Tonks, and Sirius (who was looking quite afraid for his friend's sanity) jump.

"She can't be a demon!" Remus declared decisively. "She smelled like a woman, not a demon!"

Molly and Tonks looked quite disturbed.

"You can…smell females?" Tonks asked, an eyebrow raised.

Remus felt his face fill with heat. "I've been a werewolf for thirty-three years, Tonks. My senses are a bit stronger than those of…normal people," he hastily divulged. "But anyway, she didn't have a hint of demon on her."

"Have you ever smelled a demon, Remus?" Molly said gently.

"Well, no, but…"

"Then maybe they don't have a scent that's any different from any other woman," Molly pointed out.

Remus sank back into his chair. He had been so certain… Maybe his mind was playing tricks on him. It was only a few days after his last transformation, after all, and he'd been known to be a bit off just after the full moon. Then again, he wondered, if his senses were just beginning to go because of his age. The age of forty was creeping upon him, and it would be understandable if merely his werewolf senses started to fade.

The rest of that night was spent mostly around the Weasley kitchen table, the Order of the Phoenix assembled. An abundance of arguing and whispered chatter was silenced the moment Dumbledore and Snape appeared from the fireplace.

"Why did you break ranks?" Moody was first to bark.

"That will be explained, and more, Moody. First, however, I would appreciate a cup of tea," Dumbledore said quite calmly, though his expression was quite solemn. Molly handed him a cup of tea, he thanked her, and then silence resumed for a moment.

"I've heard that you injured her, Alastor, and quite severely at that," Dumbledore said, and sipped at his tea.

"That thing attacked Tonks!" Moody protest, his face reddening.

"She did not!" Snape countered, an uncanny hint of defense in his voice. "She didn't touch Tonks, Mad-Eye, and you still hit her three times with Sectumsempra!"

"Well, if I recall correctly, Snape, Sectumsempra is a specialty of yours," Moody said grumpily.

"Stop arguing, the both of you," Molly said sternly. Her gaze turned back to Dumbledore. "Even if she is a demon, she isn't…dead, is she?" she asked carefully.

"No, she is very much alive," Dumbledore said, sipping his tea again. "Miserable, but alive."

"Miserable?" Remus couldn't keep himself from questioning the state of the demon.

Dumbledore nodded gravely. As he opened his mouth to speak, however, Snape interrupted him.

"Yes, Lupin, miserable. Most people don't favor the thought of being disowned by one's family, any powerful associations she might have had, all for the acceptance of the opposing side, and you lot have made it perfectly clear that she's far from accepted! Anyone that's picked up a Daily Prophet despises and fears her, and that's not something to be miserable about? Mad-Eye, you better pray to your God that she is found unharmed, or I swear on everything I value, that you'll regret every utterance of a curse that you cast on Lily," Snape growled, his face turning increasingly red.

Moody's natural eye twitched. "Are you threatening me, Snape?" he said dangerously.

"No, no he wasn't!" Tonks quickly said. "Now, is what Remus telling us true, Dumbledore? That, you know, she's a Malfoy, and that she's not really a demon?"

"Yes, it is true, Nymphadora," he replied, though she noticeably cringed at her own name, "Lily Malfoy is daughter to the infamous Death Eaters, and in her youth, Voldemort has directed them to perform merciless, excruciatingly painful—I think she called them, 'enhancements.' From the second she was found out, Voldemort made every effort to turn her into a weapon. Lucius and Narcissa have kept her under a very strict Imperious Curse, though I believe it must have weakened, for she followed the moving party here.

"And I'll tell you all now that she is not a creature to be hated. I've met Lily in times where their Imperious has worn off, or when her parents thought she was secure in the basement. The fact remains that she is not the enemy. Should we find her again, which is doubtful from what I've heard of her greeting at the Weasley home, she is not to be harmed. Lily is a useful ally, and a singularly charming woman."

"She tried to kill Tonks!" Mad-Eye barked suddenly, making a few of them jump.

"That isn't true! She didn't touch a hair on Tonks's head!" Snape yelled in return.

"But she would have, if Potter here wouldn't have hit her with that finely-aimed curse!"

"She was under Voldemort's control, not her own!"

"Still!"

Remus tuned out the rest of the quarrel. He'd been right, and he's nearly convinced himself that he was wrong. Lily was just as innocent as he had supposed, and while Remus was unsure as to why, he was relieved. When she'd spoken to him, she didn't sound angry or bitter at the treatment she'd gotten during the flight to the Burrow. She seemed weary and sad, but Remus also found a sweetness that was just beneath the surface. He pondered about the girl all evening, and his curiosities even kept him awake. Every time he closed his eyes, an image of Lily Malfoy appeared in his head.

Remus was assigned to stay at the Burrow with Sirius, as basic protection to Harry, Hermione, and the Weasleys. So he and his best friend ascended the staircase again to Charlie's old residence. But this time, as Remus's head hit the pillow, it did not find sleep as quickly. His head was filled with thoughts of Lily Malfoy, wondering where she was, and if all she'd wanted was a little companionship, just as he had when he started at Hogwarts.