REMUS

"Of all places to meet, this is the worst," growled Mad-Eye as he peered up at the school between the boar statues flanking the gates.

"Dumbledore believed that calling us here during Slughorn's Christmas party would attract less suspicion since you and I are not favored by the Ministry anymore. Well, mainly me, but Kingsley is head of the department now," said Remus, tapping his wand just inside his sleeve with his forefinger to a nonexistent rhythm.

"It's just chits like Umbridge who bask in the screams of people they torture who have a problem with werewolves now, Remus. It's perfectly acceptable for you to be back here as much as it is for me. Hell, you taught here, didn't you?"

"I did," said Remus, watching a lantern bobbing closer as its carrier came up to the gate.

"Identification?"

"Remus Lupin and Alastor Moody here to attend Professor Slughorn's Christmas party," said Lupin swiftly.

"Password?"

For sending someone like Filch to answer at the gate, Dumbledore must have been quite confident in the protection he had set up around the school, but since Dumbledore was not here to question them, a password would have to do, though why the headmaster chose to have this particular password, Remus had no idea.

Moody nudged Remus in the ribs, but Remus shot him a look of annoyance as if to say, I'm not going to say it.

"Password, or you stand out here all night," said Filch with a nasty grin.

"It's a damn stupid password, that's why we haven't said it yet," Moody growled.

"Perhaps Dumbledore thought that Death Eaters wouldn't want to say it either," Remus suggested, but decided to be the responsible adult and said, "U-No-Poo."

Filch raised the lantern slightly higher to signal the Auror within the castle and the humming Remus had heard since coming to the gates stopped long enough for him and Moody to step through onto the grounds. The caretaker led them up to the grand double doors and to the marble staircase. The castle had been decorated for the holidays with the banisters festooned with holly and wreathes, the suits of armor sporting everlasting icicles, and mistletoe hanging from the ceiling.

Behind him on the stairs, Moody gave Remus a shove between the shoulder blades and he was forced to lean sideways instead of walking straight up the staircase.

"Mind where you're stepping," said Moody as he limped past Remus. "If you land under any of those damn leaves, I'm not kissing you, and if you try to make a move on me, I'll hex you."

"You're in a festive mood tonight," said Remus with some amusement.

"We're going to a Christmas party, of course I'm festive," said Moody.

Filch led them to Slughorn's office which had live fairies glittering just outside the door. Inside, it looked like something out of a designer's shop for the most overzealous Christmas host ever. Students and semi-famous well-to-do's clogged the room, resulting in people squeezing uncomfortably closely past each other just to get to the loo or take a breath of fresh air on the balcony.

"Shall we?" said Remus, ushering Moody in.

Though relatively unknown, Moody's peculiar and shocking appearance attracted attention almost immediately to where Remus felt as if they were suddenly standing in a spotlight until Horace Slughorn himself rescued them with a grand sweep of his arm. He beckoned them over to the fireplace where he was conversing with Harry Potter who looked almost as out-of-place as Remus felt, though he had successfully managed to contort his discomfort into a look of polite puzzlement just like his father had done so many times. Unlike James, though, Harry seemed to have mastered the act (most likely attributed to his unwanted fame).

"I believe you both know Mr. Potter here?" said Slughorn as Remus and Moody joined him. "You both taught him, isn't that right?"

"That was only Lupin. I was stuffed into a trunk for all of Potter's fourth year," said Moody warningly since it was a touchy subject. "Never got around to teaching him much, but I've met him once or twice."

Harry shook hands with both of them, but said nothing besides the formal hello since Slughorn was not to know of any of their involvement with the Order.

"Oh, Remus, you remember Severus, don't you? I taught the pair of you back in the day," said Slughorn genially, pulling Snape towards them as his other hand balanced a magnificent glass of spiced mead.

Moody rested his hands atop his staff and then planted his chin on top of them, staring with both eyes at Snape who reserved a look of contempt for him before acknowledging Remus. Apparently, Dumbledore had already spoken to Snape of their mission (the finer details of which were still unknown to Remus and Moody), for Snape had no scathing remarks to make about Remus for the first time since—ever.

"The two of you were some of the best pioneers in academic potion brewing, well, you and Lily Evans of course," said Slughorn fondly and though Harry accepted the compliment on his mother's behalf, Snape's face had suddenly darkened as if a shadow had been cast upon it.

"Oh, there's Garrick Boyle, manager for the international branches of Honeydukes. You know they're trying to set up another location in Winnipeg? Do excuse me, lads, but talk amongst yourselves and be merry!"

Slughorn departed to consult with his benefactors and with an awkward shrug, Harry slipped back into the crowd, leaving Remus, Moody, and Snape standing in an even more awkward silence.

"What time did he tell you?" asked Moody, both of his eyes still watching Snape.

"One," replied Snape curtly, glancing at the clock above the mantelpiece as if the party could not be over soon enough.

"And just what does he expect us to do for the next five hours, sip punch and stuff ourselves with h'ordeuvres?" asked Moody, snatching a bite-sized crab cake off of a servicer's platter, sniffing it, and swallowing the whole thing in one bite.

"Mingle and be merry, I would expect," said Remus.

"Us maybe, but who do you expect him to mingle with? The stuffed moose head over the piano?" Moody gestured at Snape whose eyes had narrowed with distaste now that Slughorn was gone.

"You have a very strange sense of humor, Moody," he drawled.

"And you have no sense of humor. You'd best be damn well merry, Snape, or people will start to wonder why two people on the same side are staring daggers at each other."

"The extent of my merriment lingers on the fact that I only need suffer through another week of holiday cheer before all talk of Christmas ceases until this time next year," said Snape.

"You're just a genuinely, all-around unlikeable git, aren't you?" said Moody.

Remus put his arm out to separate Moody and Snape and pointed to an Auror who was moving through the crowd towards them.

"He must be new, otherwise he would recognize one of us. Best to divert him before he starts asking questions," Remus suggested and Moody stomped off to not only alleviate the Auror's suspicions, but probably give him a few pointers on how to not get caught by his quarry.

"You've become quite the expert at diffusing situations, haven't you, Lupin?" asked Snape.

"I dislike conflict," said Remus modestly.

"Didn't seem to stop you from casually observing when your dearly departed companions were up to their usual misdeeds."

"Is this the time to discuss schoolboy bickering?"

"You must not be very keen on the subject since the last time it was brought up you ended up sprawled over and bound head to foot," said Snape nastily.

"As I recall, you ended up knocked unconscious by three teenagers," replied Remus despite himself. "But if we're going to insist on bringing up these old quarrels, we might as well go to Dumbledore and tell him that we've aborted the mission before we've even begun. Do you wish to tell him, or shall I?"

Snape had no time to reply as a head of subtle blue hair suddenly blocked Remus's vision. Tonks looked thinner than when Remus had last seen her, but her face was bright and cheerful as opposed to somber and ill-looking.

"Remus!" she said excitedly. "What are you doing here?"

"Dumbledore invited me. He thought that a change of scenery from my, ah, other occupation would do me some good," Remus invented. "Mad-Eye's here too."

"I've just spoken with him. He told me you were here."

Remus found Moody in the crowd and he shot him a look of annoyance to which Moody winked and returned to lecturing the Auror, but Remus knew the magical eye was still pointed his way.

"I'll get you something to drink, shall I?"

"Oh, no, Tonks, I—"

"He was sounding quite parched; a refreshment would be ideal," said Snape wryly and Remus had to wonder if Snape and Moody were working together to create an extremely discomfited evening for him.

Sidling back into the mass of strangers, Snape left Remus alone to await Tonks's reappearance with two goblets of some steaming purplish-brown liquid.

"Blueberry hot chocolate with a drop of firewhiskey," she said, clinking her goblet against his and motioning to the now unoccupied balcony. A light snow had begun to fall, but Slughorn had enchanted the balcony so the snowflakes diverted. The view showed the frozen lake far below and on either side, the white-capped mountains.

"Hard to believe that there's so many forces trying to break through Dumbledore's defenses right now," said Tonks vacantly. "There aren't enough of us to protect the students if the defenses fail."

"They'll hold," said Remus, taking a cautious sip of his drink, inhaling the steam, and nearly suffocating as he tried to swallow back a cough. Eyes streaming, he turned away from Tonks and ran his sleeve over them.

"Remus, are you alright?" asked Tonks in concern.

"Oh, it's nothing; I swallowed too much and it went down the wrong tube," said Remus, allowing himself to bend over the balcony and heave. Tonks thumped him on the back and he was able to breathe, but he set the drink aside to be safe.

"I thought I'd bored you to tears for a moment," said Tonks when Remus's cough had subsided.

"My kind have that problem with tears. Only extreme physical pain can really bring out tears—or else a traumatic experience, but the latter sometimes takes weeks or even months to show. It was almost a year after my mother died that I was able to muster a single tear, though that might have been from getting hit in the head with a pan in the Hog's Head when the bartender swung at an old warlock who didn't adhere to the dress code."

Tonks chuckled, but her face was solemn as she took another gulp of her hot chocolate. After a moment in which Remus contemplated excusing himself to go get a glass of water, Tonks asked, "Do you miss him?"

Of course, there was only one person him could be in this instance, but Remus took it to mean them. On Halloween fifteen years ago, he missed his friends, James Potter murdered, Sirius Black a convicted Death Eater and murderer, and Peter Pettigrew struck down by Sirius. He was alone for twelve incredibly difficult and long years, discovered a harsh reality in unveiling the truth, but found solace in the one friend he still had. Then, seven months ago, he found himself in the exact same situation: James Potter murdered, Peter Pettigrew a known Death Eater and attempted murderer, and Sirius Black struck down by Bellatrix Lestrange. Alone once again, the last of the marauders. Yet, he had not been able to shed a tear for any of them at any time and it was something he felt he desperately needed to do.

"Remus?"

Tonks was staring at him to the point where he wondered if perhaps he was turning purple from the chocolate.

"I do miss him," he said. "I just—can't quite convey it like normal humans do."

"There's nothing wrong with that."

"Not everyone would agree with you."

"Well, I don't care if everyone agrees with me or not. I can change my face to meet the wizarding society's standards, but how often do I do that? I don't give a damn what people think of me; you shouldn't either."

"I've been around long enough to have figured that out myself," said Remus slightly testily, unsure if he should be insulted or grateful for Tonks's comment.

"You know you can be honest with me, right? I'm your friend and I care about you."

"I'm aware."

"Right. Well…did Dumbledore really invite you, or does he have something else planned for you and Mad-Eye?"

Treading carefully so as to not hurt her feelings, Remus patted her shoulder in what he hoped was an understanding motion. "Dumbledore was concerned about me being out of contact for too long, so he pulled me out for the holidays. He's leaving it up to me whether or not I wish to go back when term resumes. As for Mad-Eye, I couldn't tell you because we only met at the gates."

"You're sure that's all?"

"You would know if there was more. I can't hide anything from you."

Tonks punched him playfully in the arm and Remus checked his watch, now of the same mind as Snape in hoping for the party to end quite soon.

/ /

"Lucius Malfoy," Moody repeated. "That bastard who helped kill Sirius. The man who used to be You-Know-Who's lieutenant—and you want to spring him because you're feeling guilty about his son. Have you lost your mind, Albus?"

"The Daily Prophet used to preach about that very thing, but I believe I am still in possession of my mind, Alastor," said Dumbledore. "This is more than just ensuring the safety of a student; this is about giving a second chance to a family who still has the opportunity to choose the right side. Draco could be an asset in this war, but he needs his parents, especially his father."

"If it were a matter of saving Potter again, I'd volunteer out front, but I despise that family almost as much as I despise this one," Moody gestured at Snape, "and I'm not about to risk getting my own cell in Azkaban for pure-blooded bigoted two-faced—"

"I would not have asked you three personally if I didn't think this to be crucial to winning the war, Alastor. Not every move of the chess pieces must involve Harry. We should be grateful that this particular strategy does not include putting him at risk. But Lucius can give us information that Voldemort passed on to him and Narcissa might be able to give us even more valuable information from her sister. As for Draco—"

"Where is he now?" asked Remus.

"In his dormitory, I should imagine," said Snape. "The train leaves in the morning and he will be on it."

"And you plan for us to go through with this once he has returned to the castle?"

"Yes. It would be much too difficult to protect him at home if Voldemort has taken up residence at his house. Contacting his mother will not be a problem, as my request will be sent through Severus."

"We've arrived back at him, have we?"

Dumbledore stood up from his desk, looking between Remus and Snape.

"I want your word that both of you will set aside your differences and forget the events that happened between the two of you at any point before this very moment. For the sake of innocent lives, I ask that you act as a team and not rivals."

"Of course, Albus," said Remus.

Snape nodded.

"I trust that I don't have to ask the two of you to shake hands like I did with Sirius," said Dumbledore, though he seemed to be directing his comment towards Snape rather than Remus.

"They're adults, Albus. And they'll act like it during the entire breakout or I'll hex their genitalia."

"I don't require a babysitter, Moody," said Snape heatedly.

"Then act your age," Moody retorted.