They moved down the tunnel awkwardly, bent double and in small groups. Amelia could see Harry talking to Sirius up ahead; he appeared to be unconcerned that Severus's head was scraping along the ceiling of the passage. Amelia winced every time it hit a rock that jutted out, but she made no move to interrupt their earnest conversation.

Hermione, walking beside her cousin, filled her in on the bits she'd missed before her panicked entry to the Shrieking Shack.

"… and he wouldn't listen to any of us, so we had to disarm him," she was saying. "Which is when you came in." She paused and looked at Amelia out of the corner of her eye. "Mel, are you all right? You – you scared me back there."

In the darkness, Amelia found Hermione's hand.

"I saw them, love. I saw them happy and then destroyed… bodies. Just shapes in the rubble. Like before…"

Hermione didn't need to ask what her cousin had meant; she gave her hand a quick squeeze.

Harry and Sirius had stopped in the tunnel up ahead. They were beaming at one another.

Amelia smiled a little, too.

"They deserve so much more than they've had," she said, in a tight voice.

Hermione nodded with feeling. So do we… she thought.

They did not speak again until they had reached the end of the tunnel. Crookshanks darted up first; he had evidently pressed his paw to the knot on the trunk, because Remus, Pettigrew and Ron clambered upwards without any sound of savaging branches.

Sirius saw Severus up through the hole and then stood back for Harry and Hermione to pass. Amelia paused for a moment to smile at him before climbing out into the night, but he grabbed her arm, gently.

"Thank you," he said.

"I didn't do anything," Amelia said, puzzled.

"Yes you did. You trusted me – I think that helped Harry to trust me… And you've stopped Remus from being alone."

She squinted at the skeletal figure in the gloom of the tunnel.

"You really care for him, don't you?" he said, giving her a piercing look.

She nodded, a little numbly.

"Good. Because I've never seen Remus look at anyone the way he was looking at you back there," he said simply.

Amelia didn't know what to say to this man, who had been taken away from life for so long, but still managed to worry about his friends. After a moment spent taking one another in, Amelia clambered out of the tunnel, Sirius close behind her. At last, all of them were out.

The grounds were very dark now, the only light came from the distant windows of the castle. Without a word, they set off. Amelia wondered whether or not their absence had been noted at dinner… there were a few of them missing. Remus glanced at her in the darkness.

He isn't sure where he stands anymore, she thought. Nor do I, actually.

Pettigrew was still wheezing and occasionally whimpering.

"One wrong move, Peter," said Remus threateningly, ahead. His wand was pointed sideways at Pettigrew's chest.

Silently they tramped through the grounds, the castle lights growing slowly larger. It occurred to Amelia that this felt almost exactly like walking home after a dig, except without the inebriation that usually took place in between finishing for the day and actually arriving at whatever accommodation had been provided (tent, bod or bunk-house). Quietly, she murmured this to her cousin, who gave her a brief smile.

Severus was still drifting weirdly ahead of Sirius, his chin bumping on his chest. And then –

A cloud shifted. There were suddenly crisp, blue shadows on the ground. Their party was bathed in moonlight.

Snape collided with Remus, Pettigrew and Ron, who had stopped abruptly. Sirius froze. He flung out an arm to make Harry, Hermione and Amelia stop.

They could see Remus's silhouette. He had gone rigid. Then his limbs began to shake.

Amelia thrust Harry and Hermione behind her and raised her wand, horrified. She reached out with her mind to feel Remus slipping away and the wolf taking over. Wordlessly, she forced the children to take a step backwards.

"Oh my –" Hermione gasped. "He didn't take his Potion tonight! He's not safe!*"

"Run," Sirius whispered. "Run! Now!"

But they couldn't run… Amelia could feel it in Harry and Hermione too. Ron was chained to Remus as well as Pettigrew. Harry leapt forwards but Sirius caught him around the chest and threw him back.

"Leave him to me – RUN!"

There was a terrible snarling noise. Remus's head was lengthening. So was his body. His shoulders were hunching. Hair was sprouting visibly on his face and hands, which were curling into clawed paws. Crookshanks's fur was on end again, he was backing away –

As the werewolf reared, snapping its long jaws, Sirius disappeared from Harry's side. He had transformed. The enormous, bear-like dog bounded forwards. As the werewolf wrenched itself free of the manacle binding it, the dog seized it about the neck and pulled it backwards, away from Ron and Pettigrew. They were locked, jaw to jaw, claws ripping at each other –

Without thought, Amelia ran forwards, desperate to help her lover and his old friend – she had to do something before they tore one another apart!

Sirius was thrown off to one side as she reached them and the werewolf launched at her instead – she ducked and he missed, rolling and returning to pounce. Somewhere behind her, Hermione screamed and Amelia half turned, instinctively.

As she did so, fierce claws ripped through her chest and shoulder, throwing her back onto the grass.

She was aware of a great weight pressing down on her as her flesh burned and she screamed, howling her anguish into the black. The stars above her went fuzzy with the pain and she coughed and spluttered, reaching for a breath that wouldn't – just wouldn't – come.

As consciousness slipped from her she heard screams and shouting, howls and snarling all around her, as if the very darkness was tearing at her, until all was still.

0o0o0o0

Amelia was having an awful dream.

She was small again and being chased by snarling and spitting things, the trees catching at her clothes and hair. She ran through the thicket and deeper into the darkness, but still they came, scratching and biting and burning. It felt as if the pain might go on forever –

Then, suddenly, she was free; blinded by the moon, out in the open. She strained to hear a sound in the new and bewildering silence, herself once more.

Something touched her hand and she span around, terrified, to face this new demon.

There were two figures stood beside her in the moonlight. Amelia blinked. They certainly weren't demons.

The woman spoke first.

"You're going to be all right, it's just a dream." It was as if her voice was coming from a long way away; somewhere in the back of her mind, Amelia registered that the woman had dark red hair.

"You were hurt," said her husband, running his hand through his messy black hair. "I expect Moony'll be a bit upset about that."

"It wasn't his fault," she managed.

They smiled at her.

"We know that," said the woman, eyes sparkling. "But he won't see it that way."

The man nodded, sombre now.

"Don't let him run away – he's too good at that…"

Amelia nodded, numbly. How was this possible?

The sky was lightening above them.

"Time to wake up," Lily said, kindly.

0o0o0o0

Pale moonlight had become blinding sunlight at an altogether too rapid a pace for Amelia's liking.

"Madame Pomfrey! She's waking up!"

Amelia experimented with her eyes – nope. Sunlight still hurt.

"Ow," she stated and cracked one eye.

Hermione swam into view; she was grinning.

"Everyone safe?" Amelia asked.

"Yeah," her cousin answered. "Well… mostly."

Poppy bustled over, bustled Amelia upright and bustled away again. She appeared to be in no mood for conversation this morning.

Was it morning? Wait –

"'Mostly' isn't a particularly good assessment," she grimaced. "Why can't I move my arm?"

"… What do you remember, Mel?"

Amelia squinted at her cousin.

Moonlight… pain… claws… Remus…

"Remus!"

Hermione pushed her firmly back onto the bed.

"He's fine – well, physically at least – and you aren't going anywhere soon."

Amelia looked at her again, she'd not heard that tone before – at least, not from Hermione. It was the tone that Aunty Bea, her mother and Aunty Ruth used when something was not to be argued with; she'd used it herself in class, and with Hermione.

Hermione was growing up.

"What about Severus?" she asked in a low tone, glancing at Poppy.

"Well, it's kind of a long story…"

0o0o0o0

Harry and Hermione filled Amelia and Ron in on the rescue of Buckbeak and Sirius – she had Ron had gone 'Oooh' and 'Aaah' at all the appropriate bits – and had been chased out of the Hospital Wing by a still irritable Poppy. By lunchtime, Ron was snoozing peacefully in his bed and Amelia was thoroughly bored. There appeared to be nothing that could take her mind off the nagging pain in her arm and shoulder, though Poppy assured her that it was healing well.

The monotony was eventually broken by Severus, who brought with him a bad temper and some grapes.

"Tradition, I believe," he said softly, so as not to wake Ron, and placed them by her bedside. "How's the shoulder?"

"Non-existent," she replied. "How's the head?"

"I'll live," he said, rubbing the small cut on his forehead. He frowned.

"An attack like that should have killed you."

"Probably," she said brightly. "Poppy was saying something about being an inch away from my jugular… I thought I might have died for a bit actually," she continued, more quietly. "But I was just having this weird, weird dream… I assume I have you to thank for getting back up here?"

Severus nodded, and absently stole a grape.

"… Sev', how's Remus?"

His frown deepened.

"I wouldn't know," he said, a little coldly. "It appears he's been helping his old friend into the castle, to get to Potter… Albus won't listen."

Amelia looked at him. Severus looked livid; when he spoke, his voice shook a little.

"I believed him, too! All that stuff about Lily, and friendship, and you!" he snarled. Ron stirred a little in his bed. Severus lowered his voice. "I thought he was my – our – friend, and all this time…"

He looked up at her miserably.

"… You must be feeling pretty rotten about it all too."

She laid a hand on his arm.

"It wasn't like that Severus," she said quietly.

Severus, still smarting from Black's escape, the loss of the Order of Merlin and the revenge that had been wrested from him (not to mention the blow to his pride from three under-age wizards knocking him out cold), did not react well to further confusion.

"What was it like then?" he snapped, and Amelia took her hand away. He managed to look abashed. "Sorry," he said, in a small voice.

"… Do you know that I am a Reader, Severus?" she asked, softly.

"No!" he exclaimed, aghast. How much can she have seen? He thought desperately, before remembering that the world was no longer at war. He looked her up and down a few times before visibly relaxing. "Though it does explain a few things."

Amelia gave him a small smile.

"I think I can show you what happened after you were – ah – incapacitated… if that's what you want."

Severus gave her a hard and wary look for a moment, before nodding and drawing up his sleeve; as she took his hand, she noticed a curious tattoo on the flesh of his inner arm. She filed this information under 'Ask about later' and showed him what she'd seen, what Sirius had shown her. Through her mind's eye, he watched Remus and Sirius unmask Pettigrew and the rat's subsequent 'trial'. He saw Harry prevent his death, then Remus's transformation. She showed him what Hermione and Harry had told her about Pettigrew's escape and the swarming of the Dementors.

When they got to the bit about Sirius's escape on Buckbeak she hesitated, unsure, but decided that Severus deserved to know.

When she'd finished, she was shaky and exhausted; Severus too was shaking, though in his case with horror. He was almost as pale as the hospital linen beneath his hand.

He stood swiftly, saying, "I have to make this right," before dashing out of the Hospital Wing and almost knocking an enraged Poppy off her feet. The small witch shook her fist at him before checking on Amelia and returning to her office, a disapproving expression on her face.

0o0o0o0

*It is at this point in the story that I have to move heavy objects away from myself, as I usually start throwing things at three imaginary students, two teachers and one convict and shout incoherently. Words like 'NUMPTIES!' often happen around this point with alarming frequency.

It was to correct this… oversight on the part of the characters (I mean, Hermione or Remus should have spotted this at the very least) – yes, I know they've had the kind of evening that makes people forget things but still – that I originally started writing this fanfiction. I was going to make Amelia bottle the Potion and arrive at the Shrieking Shack, deal with Severus and Pettigrew, and smack Remus around the back of the head for being such a dipshit (albeit an adorable one).

However, the characters have apparently decided to stage a mutiny, and what I have actually written is much closer to the original story – largely, I suspect, because Amelia and Severus would very much like there to be a sequel (Remus and Hermione aren't sure, they're a little bit embarrassed about the whole people-reading-their-thoughts thing). Honestly, how selfish can you get?

Also, the whole Old-Mouldy-rising-from-the-dead thing just wouldn't work without little Wormy to provide his arm (incidentally, did it actually need the whole arm? I mean, really?), I can't see Barty Junior maiming himself – ok, yes, he's a power hungry loony who is probably the head of the Voldemort fan-club, but it just doesn't seem like his style. And without Wormy to get stuff ready he might not have had an Old Mouldy to help resurrect… it just doesn't work.

I guess I'm just being mean for not giving them all the happy ending they actually deserve.

Might be kinder to Sirius though… we'll see. He's been annoying me today, distracting me while I should be reading papers. Again. I think he wants a story to himself…

(Yes, I am a bit mad – I really hope none of my tutors are reading this…)

Anyway, on with the story…