Back outside the passage way, the night air was cool and welcoming. It's brittle sting seemed to wake me up and my mind began reeling. Watching Harry save Pettigrew had made me slightly sick, but what if he was right? Now, Pettigrew was going to be handed over to the Dementors, Black would be free and then . . . what? I was going to start playing happy families with an escaped ex-convict and a werewolf? The more I thought about it, the more confused I became.

A hand fell on my shoulder gently, and I shook myself to see Hermione stood next to me, scanning my expression cautiously. "Hey, are you alright?" she asked quietly. "This must be . . ."

I scoffed with a heavy sigh. "Yeah, it is."

"Do you think Mia will be okay with all of this?" she continued with a small grimace.

"Probably," I replied without hesitating. "Luke . . . well, let's just say he isn't going to want Rosie anywhere near us."

Hermione sighed. "He'll come around, Arty. He's just upset, that's all. He's been your father for twelve years, after all."

"That's what I thought," I muttered.

Her lips pursed tightly. "You know you're always welcome to stay with me," she said. "Mum and Dad wouldn't mind." I glanced sideways at her, and suddenly I wanted so badly for it to be that easy. To not have to worry that Hermione lived too far away from Harry, or what her parents would say if something went wrong and a werewolf turned up on their doorstep.

But it wasn't. Not only did I have to worry about all of that, but I had a feeling things were going to get a lot worse, very quickly. I didn't tell Hermione that, though. Instead, I smiled tightly and pulled her into a hug before she could move. "Thanks, Hermione."

She hesitated, obviously taken aback, but the next second she wrapped me in a hug. "Anytime. You know you're like family to me." My throat closed up as I pulled back, nodding at her. "And, you know, speaking of family . . ." She trailed off, shooting a pointed look toward Lupin and Black.

I followed her gaze with an uncomfortable feeling settling in my stomach. Lupin and Ron were still chained to Pettigrew, but the three of them had stopped just beyond the Whomping Willow. Ron, who was pale and obviously in pain, was trying bravely to mask it all and convince Lupin to continue on to the castle, while my Uncle himself was having none of it, insisting on examining his wounds more closely. Pettigrew sat, almost forgotten, on the floor beside them, quivering and blubbering in fear.

Further away, Harry stood with Black on the edge of the forest, already in deep conversation. It surprised me to realise how much that worried me, though I wasn't entirely sure why. Black already knew about Harry and me, Lupin had said they knew when we were less than a week old. And Harry was still his godson. The two of them had a lot to catch up on.

"It's going to be okay, Arty," Hermione said softly. "You're not alone." Smiling encouragingly at me, she moved to help Lupin and Ron.

"Not yet," I muttered after her. Gulping hard, I turned away from all of them and slipped my hands into my pockets.

I didn't get to sulk on my own for long, though. I'd barely been stood collecting my thoughts for a few minutes before someone cleared their throat behind me and I turned, forcing myself to keep a straight face as Black stepped closer. His eyes scanned my features for a couple of seconds, and his lips turned into a small smile.

"You remind me of her, you know," he told me quietly, and I dropped my gaze with a frown. "I wish I could tell you more, Artemis. She really was an amazing woman." He lowered himself to the ground with a heavy sigh and I shuffled. Awkwardly, I glanced back to meet Harry's gaze, but he just glowered at me pointedly.

Pursing my lips, I slowly sat down beside Black, still frowning to myself. "This is weird," I admitted quietly, and he laughed, nodding.

"I suppose so." He hesitated, then turned to look at me properly. "Are you going to tell me what happened to Luke? He didn't . . . die, did he?"

I lifted an eyebrow at the concern in Black's voice, something that had been distinctly lacking when Luke spoke of him. "No, he's fine," I replied. "He just . . . well, he didn't take it well when you escaped over summer. I had no idea who you were back then, but over Christmas I heard the Minister of Magic talking about it all in The Three Broomsticks. When I started asking Mia and Luke questions, he went off the deep end. Started going on about how dangerous it all was. Haven't seen him since."

Black choked. "He walked out on Mia?"

I nodded slowly. "From what I hear, Rosie isn't taking it too well."

"Rosie?"

"Their daughter," I explained. "She's only two."

"Oh," Black said, coughing awkwardly. "I didn't know they'd had a kid. I'm sorry."

I shrugged. "Don't be. Honestly I'm surprised he didn't try and get rid of me sooner. Always found something to complain about when I got back home for the summer. Admittedly, that was probably my fault."

"Really?" he chuckled. "You surprise me. Dare I ask what you did?"

I winced. "Probably not."

He paused for a moment, trying to weight up whether or not to get the truth out of me. "So . . . what about Harry?"

"What about him?" I shrugged, and Black shot me a pointed look. "Look, I've told Lupin time and time again. He's my best friend. That's it." He held his hands out in surrender with a small smile, and I couldn't help sighing heavily with a roll of my eyes. "What about . . . what about you and Selena?"

Black flinched when my voice broke at the end, but he drew himself up and took a deep breath. "As Remus said, Selena only managed two years at Hogwarts before the Lupins had to start home-schooling her. She managed the odd term, and in some ways, the hospital wing here was much better for her. Even when she wasn't being taught here, if anything went wrong she was taken to Pomfrey."

"Why?" I blinked.

"They'd only start asking questions at St. Mungo's if she was taken there," he pointed out, frowning when I shuddered slightly. "Anyway, I met her when she started her sixth year. I'll bet it's hard for you to believe that all of this will one day make sense, but after her sixteenth birthday, she became much more relaxed. Of course, she was already one of the most powerful witches in the country by that point, so it would have taken a lot to worry her. I met her on one of the weekend trips to Hogsmeade when Remus finally convinced her that James and I weren't always so bad. As you might have guessed, the moment we shook hands, I got this." He pulled the left shoulder down on his robes and showed me a strangely golden pattern caved into his skin, almost identical to mine and Harry's.

"Admittedly, I panicked," he grimaced, and I snorted, rubbing my forearm.

"I know how you feel," I mumbled.

He laughed shortly. "Exactly. Selena knew what it meant of course, but even she didn't know what would happen next. Not everybody like this gets married you know, and while I saw a lot more of her after that, it was awhile before we started dating. And after that . . . well, we left Hogwarts, got married, and had you." Black smiled sadly. "She adored you, you know. Terrified anyone who came near you, but then she was always going to be over-protective. We were at war."

"Hmm." My eyes found Pettigrew again.

"Did you mean it, back in the Shrieking Shack?" Black asked. "When you said you'd rather we killed him?"

I sighed. "I'm glad you didn't. But . . ." I trailed off, the image of Pettigrew's face when he saw Harry's arm making me shudder.

"Hey," Black started softly. "By the time the Dementors are through with him, he won't be telling anyone anything."

I gulped hard and nodded. "I suppose so."

He smiled, pushing himself to his feet and offering me a hand to help me up. Hesitating just a second, I took it and climbed back to my feet. Chuckling, he opened his mouth to say something else, but a shrill scream suddenly cut through the silent night and my insides froze as I spun.

Hermione was stood rigid, her face as white as a sheet of paper and her eyes wide with fear. They were locked onto Lupin, who had suddenly gone still on the spot, as though he was completely unable to move. Harry was frowning, his expression a mixture of fear and concern as he shifted toward Ron, still chained to Lupin and Pettigrew.

"No," Black muttered beside me, starting forward. Immediately, I took a step after him, but he grabbed my shoulder and pushed me back slightly. "Artemis, get Hermione and run for the castle."

"But-"

"I'll get the others, now go!" he insisted, giving me one last push before spinning toward the group. As I unsteadily rushed toward Hermione, snatching my wand back out of my back pocket, Black ran at Ron in an effort to free him from Lupin, whose body was now shuddering violently. Behind them, Harry bolted forward to grab Ron and my knees almost gave way.

"Harry!" I yelled, but they'd broken Ron free and Harry was already wrapping one of his arms over his shoulders, hauling him back toward us as Lupin started to change.

I couldn't describe what happened next. Honestly, I didn't think I wanted to. But I would never be able to forget it, despite how determined I was to try. Not because I was scared, or because I thought Lupin was going to kill us all, but because I could see how much pain the transformation caused him. Because every howl he let out felt like a knife through my chest. After everything he had done to help me, there was nothing I could do for him now.

I felt my body go rigid on the spot as I watched in horror as my uncle lost himself to the transformations that had ruled his life for so long. Black and Harry were yelling at me and Hermione was pulling at my shirt, but I could hardly hear them. It was as though I was wearing earmuffs and everything they said was being blocked out. Lupin's back arched in agony, his face constricted with the pain. All too soon, he was no longer Professor Remus Lupin. He was a wild werewolf and his eyes were fixed on us.

"ARTEMIS, GET OUT OF HERE!" Black ordered. Before I could even blink, he had disappeared and a large, jet black dog was stood in his place. Without warning, the werewolf howled and bounded at us, but in the same second, the dog snarled and leapt at its throat.

"No," I muttered in a trance, straining at Hermione's grip. My father and uncle were battling it out, each looking so violent it seemed their only intention could be to kill. I knew that couldn't possibly be the reason for Black's actions, but it was all too reasonable to assume that for Lupin right now.

"Arty, we have to leave," Harry insisted, shifting Ron's arm over his shoulder and wrapping a controlling arm around my waist. Ron's face was drained of all colour, his eyes closed. His strength had been drained trying to help Black free him. He was out of it. "Arty, please." Harry's eyes were pleading and his voice desperate, but I couldn't move.

"They . . ." I couldn't even speak. A large, painful lump had formed in my throat and I watched as the werewolf snapped his jaw at the dog. It leapt out of the werewolf's reach, taunting it. But it didn't mess around for long. It snarled at the wolf, then leapt at it and over it, toward the forest. Annoyed, the werewolf let out a howl and chased after it, leaving the four of us alone.

"Can we go now?" Hermione pleaded with a shaky voice. "We need to get Dumbledore, or Professor McGonagall to tell them what's happened." Slowly, my eyes never leaving the spot they had vanished from, I nodded.

Until I realised something was missing.

"Pettigrew," I mumbled. My eyes met Harry's for a split second and we turned for the chains, but he had gone. Automatically, my jaw clenched, but I couldn't find the strength to be angry anymore. It was as though everything that could go wrong was doing and I didn't know if I could bear it for much longer. The lump in my throat wouldn't move and my eyes burned. "This can't be happening. I-" I couldn't even finish my sentence. Harry's arm tightened around my waist and he pulled me into him comfortingly. I heard Hermione take Ron from him and felt his free arm wrap around me.

"We should go," Hermione muttered. Harry's arm tightened for a second, but he let go and started leading me up to the castle. I didn't argue. I wasn't sure I could.

A pain howl ripped through my chest like rusty knife.

My stomach dropped through the ground and Harry and I went rigid. "Dad," I gulped, and I yanked myself out of his hold and bolted for my father.

"ARTY, NO!" Harry yelled, racing after me. I didn't stop, or slow down, or even look back. I skirted around the edge of the Forest, as fast as my legs would move. It can't have taken me long to run the distance, but it felt like forever. I had to help him. And Lupin if I could. As hard as tonight was to deal with, I'd finally found my family and I'd be damned if I was letting anyone take them away from me again.

I skidded to a halt on the bank of the Black Lake and felt my chest tighten in horror. Black lay flat out on the pebbles in human form, barely alive and unmoving. The lake seemed to have frozen over and it didn't take me long to find the source. Around fifty Dementors were hovering in the sky, all looming ominously as though they'd been waiting for me the whole time.

For a moment, I wondered what my worst memory was. I couldn't remember my childhood very clearly, but as far as I knew, I had always been safe with Luke and Mia. And I'll admit, over the past two years, there have been times that I was scared for my life. But more often than not, it wasn't my life I was worried about.

Suddenly, the only thing I could see was a bright, golden light. I gasped, my heart pounding and my stomach twisting so tight, I doubled over. I saw the Boggart, the figure on its hands and knees, clawing at its own heart desperately. The image alone was so disturbing it was terrified me, but what it felt only made it worse. My body suddenly shut down and my knees crashed to the ground. I fought it as hard as I could, trying desperately to remember why I was here. But my eyelids were too heavy and no matter how many times I blinked, the image was there whether my eyes were open or closed.

I felt my body hit the pebbles and still, the light didn't fade.