A/N: If you're reading this, then you obviously must think this story is worth sitting through 4 chapters for. I own nothing. Thank you Rasa and my wonderful readers!

Remus stared at the hundreds of books on the library shelf, determined to find one with substantial information about Gillyweed and its uses. He scanned each title, row by row, and pursed his lips in thought. He walked over to the next case of books and crouched down to examine their spines. With painstaking scrutiny, he moved up the shelves and then finally let out a long sigh of frustration. Moving onto the next case of books, he glanced around the library and saw a rather attractive girl reading 'Rare Plants and their Mystical Abilities'. 'The one time I wait last minute to do a paper…' Remus thought bitterly at his situation. He bit his lip as he contemplated his next move.

The girl, he recognized, was Kylie Anderson, but he'd never really spoken to her so it would be rude to ask a favor. Besides the fact that the only girl that Remus had ever spoken to was Lily, and that was only when he listened to her rant about how idiotic James Potter was; Remus seemed to have temporarily lost the capacity for normal speech. Thus, he didn't do much of the talking. He knew he had to get that book somehow, but he didn't have enough courage to ask to borrow it. Surely there was another copy. But after ten minutes of searching, Remus knew the inevitable would come soon.

Remus checked his watch and felt time growing short. His insides twisting into pretzels, he paced in a tight circle and gave himself a small pep talk. As pathetic as he felt, he knew nothing else would work. Pulling together all of his strength, he walked over to Kylie's otherwise empty table.

"Um, hello," he started, inwardly smacking himself. Kylie looked up from the book, surprised.

"Hi," she replied. Somehow, the innocence in her voice made Remus more nervous at such a simple task.

"I'm really sorry to bother you, but you're reading the only copy of that book." There was a pause, and then Remus realized that he forgot to explain himself. "I've got a paper due on Gillyweed by Thursday, so…" He wanted to scream, he sounded so rude. "Sorry, I mean, um…"

She laughed uncomfortably. "Um, well I'm comparing two rare plants for a paper that's due Thursday too. Bubotuber and Whomping Willow."

Remus shifted, putting his hands in his pockets awkwardly. He had no idea what to say. "I know a lot about those plants, maybe if I um, well, helped you write your paper, then er, I could borrow the book really soon?"

Kylie seemed to consider this for a moment, and then nodded. "Ok, I guess."

"Ok, right," Remus pulled up a chair and sat down, feeling incredibly out of place. Peter was the only one he ever tutored, and that wasn't particularly nerve racking. Talking to a girl, especially a pretty one, however, gave Remus all sorts of discomfort; his red and orange striped sweater suddenly felt smaller.

"Oh, I'm Kylie by the way."

"I know," Remus replied, and then nearly facepalmed. 'Yeah, that didn't sound stalkerish at all.' "I mean, I saw you play keeper last year and your name was announced and I have good eye sight and, um, I-I…"

Kylie giggled. "Its ok, I know you're Remus Lupin. You're always hanging around Sirius Black."

Remus smiled that she knew who he was, but then frowned when she explained why.

"Don't worry, I'm not one of his groupies."

Remus raised a brow. "What?"

Kylie looked confused as well. "You don't know? He's got a little fan club that near enough documents his every move. Meetings are on Friday nights, I've been invited several times."

At this, Remus let out a loud laugh (Loud enough for a few students next to them to 'shh!') "Seriously? They swoon to the point of stalking him?"

Kylie looked around and then lowered her voice. "I hear they snuck into the Infirmary when he was sick with Dragon Pox and stole pus-covered tissues."

Remus's jaw dropped. Kylie could only hold her straight face for a few moments more before breaking into a wide grin. "Only joking about that part!" she laughed, "Well, at least I hope so."

Remus smiled, smitten at her own beautiful smile.

In a series of six days, Remus lost 10 lbs and most of the colour in his face. Already a pale boy, the change worried the nurses; Dumbledore assured them, however, that he would be back to normal in no time. Dumbledore also relayed much information to Remus about the trial and Kylie's parents throughout the week. Kylie didn't wake until Saturday, the day before the trial, and Remus spent most of the day retching because of the wails he heard down the hall.

"The most important thing is that you don't cry," instructed Janice, Remus's defense attorney. Hired personally by Dumbledore, she, along with the rest of the people involved in the case, swore secrecy of the subject material. Even Remus knew his chances of returning to a normal life would be shattered should the case become public.

"The jury never believes tears, so you have to be strong throughout your testimony. As long as the jury is convinced that it was Kylie who broke the law and not you, you'll be able to return to Hogwarts soon."

Remus wanted to believe her, but by Sunday morning he lost his motivation to even participate in the trial anymore. At 10 am, someone knocked his door. Almost completely healed, he walked over and opened the door. When he saw a thin, blonde standing outside, he felt his knees go weak.

"K-Kylie," he whispered, eyes wide. Her face was much thinner, more feral. Her eyes, once chocolate brown, now looked identical to his, bright amber. She didn't sport nearly as many bandages as when he saw her sleeping days ago, which sent a small relief to his stomach.

"Remus."

He knew that neither of them hadn't a clue where to start. His hands shook at his sides as he stared at her. A million different emotions flooded through him, each spawning the next. The wolf inside of him was elated by her presence, and jumped joyously inside of his head.

"I don't understand," she whispered, "Why do I suddenly feel happy now that I'm here?" She paused, "I should hate you."

Remus visibly flinched and took a step back at her words. Ishouldhateyou. Suddenly, he wondered why everyone was trying to get him cleared of charges when he obviously committed a terrible, terrible crime.

"The, um, w-w-wolf," he replied, but his mouth was too dry to explain anymore. He didn't want to talk; he didn't want Kylie there. He could feel thousands of different emotions going on within her as well, which intensified his stomach ache.

"Kylie, there you are!" her father called from down the hallway. Remus took another step back into his room. When her father walked over to her, he looked inside Remus's room and froze when he saw the boy. Remus uncomfortably shifted his weight from foot to foot and looked away from the two. "You, um, have to get ready. The trial is at one and you haven't even showered yet." He put his hand on the small of her back and led her back down to her room.

Remus sat on his bed, put his hands in his sandy hair, and squeezed his head until Janice entered with fresh clothes and a shower ticket.

"Case number 87463, Remus Lupin and the Andersons versus the Department of Magical Creatures," Announced Judge Harper, reading off of parchment. No one besides Kylie and her family, Remus, Dumbledore, and the lawyers were present in the courtroom. Dumbledore had forbidden Peter, James and Sirius to attend. He pretended that they weren't associated with the case whatsoever. "Mr. Williams, please state your case."

Mr. Williams, a burly man with a handlebar mustache, walked to the center of the room. Dressed in dress robes, like Janice, he turned to the judge and jury. "Remus Lupin attacked and infected Kylie Anderson last Sunday night. Kylie and her family have failed to press charges against Mr. Lupin, but my client fails to see how such serious charges could be dropped."

Remus's had battled his blood pressure since putting on his finest clothes, two hours early. At the words, he felt his heart beating faster and faster as he hoped with all his might that he would get off clean.

"I would like to call my client, Travis Holland, to the stand."

Travis, a balding man with hair as white as Remus's face, took to the stand. He shook his head when he walked passed Remus, and Remus pushed himself farther back into his wooden chair.

"Mr. Holland, would you please explain to the jury why Mr. Lupin cannot possibly walk away from this case?"

Travis drew a shaky breath and nodded. "Crime is crime; it's consequences cannot simply be avoided by the victim not wanting to press charges."

"And what is the punishment of a werewolf attacking a human?"

Travis had a pained expression on his face. "Life in Azkaban." Remus knew pity when he saw it.

"Well, that's all that really needs to be said then," said Mr. Williams smugly. He turned on his heel to Janice. "Any questions?"

Mr. Williams sat in his chair as Janice walked up to the stand. "Mr. Holland, are there any exceptions from the punishment?"

Travis nodded, "If the werewolf wasn't violating any of the Ministry's laws, then they have a chance of having half a sentence at best. No one has ever walked from similar case though." He met Remus's eyes for a minute and looked sadly back at Janice.

"What laws, that you are aware of, were broken during the attack?"

"He was within 3 miles of a human when transformed, endangering not only the victim but the entire population of Hogwarts."

Remus closed his eyes and bit his lip at the words. They confirmed his fear of transforming near Hogwarts for the past 5 years.

"What if I could prove that Remus was within his boundaries during the attack?"

Travis looked at her skeptically. "Well, then I guess that's an entirely different case."

Janice smiled and pulled some parchment out of her robes. She held it up for the jury to see. "This, Mr. Holland, is the documented evidence that a private party found in The Forbidden Forest on Hogwarts grounds. It says here that there were traces of blood found exactly 5.3 miles from Hogwarts Castle, where all students were supposed to be sleeping."

"That's preposterous!" cried Williams, standing up from his seat. Judge Harper silenced him quickly.

"Thankyou Mr. Holland. I'd like to call Ms Kylie Anderson to the stand."

Kylie stood up, her blonde hair braided back to her mid shoulder. She had a limp as she walked to the stand, and Remus immediately knew where she received it.

"Ms. Anderson, could you tell the jury what happened last Sunday night?"

Kylie's face, as white as Remus's, struggled to hold courage. Remus thought she looked extremely confused. He didn't blame her; if he was testifying for Greyback, he knew he would throw up all over the judge.

"I, um," she hesitated, obviously not sure where to begin. "My cat, he's stuck in my dorm all day and I wanted to take him outside for some fresh air."

Remus's mind was sent reeling, his eyes wide.

"Animals like being able to run around in big places. Maybe, if you, uh, took him outside every once in a while, then he wouldn't want to run off."

"That makes sense, thanks, I'll try that sometime soon."

"But he ran off into the forest right before curfew. I… I went after him but I couldn't find him. I got lost for hours; I couldn't find my way back to Hogwarts. Then," she hesitated and stared down at her hands. "I heard howls and this, this huge beast came out of nowhere." She blinked profusely and fidgeted with her hands, clothes, and hair. "I-I tried to run, but it, he attacked me. I don't… I don't really remember what happened after that…"

Remus wanted to cry. But he remembered Janice's insistence and grounded his teeth.

Janice looked like she wanted to take sympathy on Kylie, but her job was more important. "Ms. Anderson, is the Forbidden Forest out of bounds for all Hogwarts students?"

Kylie nodded.

"And you were out past curfew?"

Kylie nodded again.

"Thank you, that's all I needed to know."

Mr. Williams walked back up to question Kylie and Janice sat down.

"Ms. Anderson, could you describe the attack in a bit more detail?" Remus could smell the satisfaction Mr. Williams had in the question, and it made him want to throw up.

"Objection!" Janice said, standing up. "The fact that Kylie was attacked is established; a more graphic description would be irrelevant."

Judge Harper agreed with Janice, and Mr. Williams had to move onto his other questions.

"Did you realize that if you walked into the forest, that you could be put into a life-threatening situation on Hogwarts Grounds?" His face was smug again, but not for long.

"Professor Dumbledore warns us every year, that's why it's called the Forbidden Forest."

Mr. Williams' eyes widened. Remus almost smiled at the backfire.

"So you previously felt safe at Hogwarts, when the Headmaster constantly tells you of fatal dangers in a forest not a mile from the castle?" He didn't look like he believed her.

Kylie nodded. She opened her mouth to speak but seemed to have trouble getting out the words. "Yes sir, the a-attack was my fault too."

Remus's hands began to shake as Mr. Williams stared at Kylie with disbelief. He began to chuckle desperately and look at the jury.

"This girl is obviously under some sort of werewolf spell. No one in their right mind would say something like that!"

"Objection!"

"Mr. Williams, if you have any more questions for Ms. Anderson then by all means, ask her. But if not, can we please move on with this case?"

Mr. Williams ran a hand through his thick, dark hair and sat back down in his chair.

Janice walked back up. "I'd like to call Mr. Remus Lupin to the stand."

"Objection!" cried Mr. Williams immediately. "Besides the fact that he's barely human, he wasn't conscious when committing the attack, and won't have any recollection of the event. His testimony is not credible by any means."

Judge Harper gave Mr. Williams a glare that made Remus assume that Dumbledore had hand-picked her for the case. "Mr. Williams, sit down."

He backed off, but glared at Remus. It wasn't until the courtroom grew quiet that Remus realized it was his turn on the stand. Suddenly, he felt a huge need to run away, disappear. He stood up, knees wobbly and head spinning. When he sat in the stand, he felt like a specimen under a microscope. 12 jurors, Kylie, Kylie's parents, Travis Holland, Mr. Williams and Dumbledore all had their eyes on him. He looked for a comforting face, and bit his lip when he found the crowd empty of his father. His dad only returned one of the owls with a simple 'Busy, will visit later.'

"Mr. Lupin, can you tell me what happened that night?" Janice asked, her voice soft, yet stern.

Remus stared at her, pulling at the hem of his dress robes. "I, um, I…" he started, unable to piece his thoughts together. "I went t-to the Shack that I always t-transform in, one exactly f-f-four miles from the school." He took a deep breath and looked down at his hands. "I transformed and w-w-woke up three days later."

"Thank you, Remus,"

"But," he interrupted, "I sometimes g-get dreams that the, um, the w-wolf puts in my head and I saw…" Don't cry, don't cry "I s-saw everything, it m-matched up to what Kylie said." His lip quivered uncontrollably as he thought over his next words. "I d-d-didn't mean to hurt anyone," Pathetic, don't you dare start crying. "I w-was in my b-boundaries the whole time; h-humans aren't supposed to be near the Forest. I just…." Here it comes… "I-I'm so sorry," he cried, looking at Kylie and her family. He sobbed and put his face in his hands. Reverting to a childlike state, he only wanted his mommy and daddy. "I-I'll n-n-never be ab-ble to tell y-you how s-s-sorry I am."

Janice gave Remus a sad smile. "Thank you, Remus, you can leave the stand."

"Wait!" Mr. Williams said, standing back up. "He's just acting in order to get sympathy from the jury. Remus, did Janice tell you to cry up here?"

Remus shook his head vigorously and looked up at Mr. Williams. "N-No, she t-told me not to."

Hours later, the jury returned with the verdict, and everyone gathered back into the courtroom.

"We, the jury, proclaim Remus Lupin to be not guilty in the case against the Department of Magical Creatures."

Remus's knees gave out and he fell back into his chair. Janice hugged him until he couldn't breathe, but he felt numb. Smiling felt foreign to him, but he smiled anyways to appease Janice. He looked around and just saw the back of the Andersons' robes as they left the courtroom.

Applause? Yes, Remus walked away from the case. Yay him! Did you like it? Just push that button and speak all of your importance. Thanks for reading!