Aunt Petunia looked around the breakfast table. "Remember, Aunt Marge arrives this afternoon," she repeated for the third time. She turned to Harry in particular. "At least we don't have any of your kind …."

The doorbell rang. "Is Aunt Marge early?" asked Dudley.

"She's never early!" answered Aunt Petunia. She turned to Harry. "If this is your minder, he'd best know how to act normally," she hissed, glaring at Harry as if he had deliberately arranged the visits to coincide.

"He's not my …" Harry stopped what he was going to say in response to his aunt's scowl.

"I'd best be off, Pet," Uncle Vernon announced, heaving himself from his chair. "I'll try to be back early tonight. Be good as always, Dudders." He nodded at Harry.

The doorbell rang again. Aunt Petunia sniffed. "At least whoever it is knows how to use a simple doorbell. Harry, with me."

The three of them reached the door at the same time. Uncle Vernon opened it imperiously to the sight of a man in shabby and patched clothes. His pale face had scars cutting across it and his light brown hair had streaks of gray. Aunt Petunia just started to shut the door in his face, saying she didn't support panhandlers, when Harry pushed past her. "Remus!"

Aunt Petunia stared from one to the other. "This is … he's a, you-know-what?"

"Yes, Aunt Petunia. Professor Lupin taught me for a year."

"A professor?" repeated Uncle Vernon. "No doubt as wooly headed as any real professor. Good day to you, sir." With that, he pushed past Remus and headed down the walk to the car.

Professor Lupin acted as if he didn't hear the comment, though Harry knew he had.

Aunt Petunia mumbled under her breath about academic professors before saying, "Come in then, and mind your shoes."

Aunt Petunia led Remus past the sitting room and into the kitchen. Remus held back a snort, realizing he was supposed to be insulted.

When Dudley saw them coming into the kitchen, he resignedly turned off the telly. "I'm heading out, Mum. I'll be back in time for dinner," he said.

"Here, take some money for lunch, dear," Aunt Petunia said. She kissed him on the forehead as he squirmed and turned red.

Once Remus was seated at the kitchen table, Aunt Petunia felt confident enough about this man dressed in clothes with several visible patches to start lecturing him.

"Look here, Lupin, is it? My husband's sister is coming for a short visit and I'll not put her out. You'll just have to bunk in Harry's room whether you like it or not. The…"

"I'm delighted to spend time with Harry, Mrs. Dursley. I'm an old friend of the family. I'm sure we'll find a lot to talk about."

Aunt Petunia narrowed her eyes. "Remus Lupin … I think I remember that name. Weren't you friends with that bully my sister eventually married? I remember hearing her complaining about you and your friends for years until she was just about done with that school of yours."

Remus glanced at Harry. "Yes, Lily, James and I were all in the same House. I feel fortunate to call James one of my best friends, and Lily was one of the kindest people in the school."

Aunt Petunia had stiffened when Remus had begun to talk but her shoulders dropped when he described Lily. Harry practically quivered with the knowledge that he and Lupin would have time to discuss his parents.

"Harry, show Lupin your room. Bring up that old mattress from the basement – you can argue over the bed for all I care. Get the sheets and a spare pillow from the closet."

Harry rolled his eyes but headed up the stairs. "I'm sorry about that, Professor. Of course you can have the bed."

"Call me Remus – I'm not your professor now. I think your aunt forgot that, while you can't perform magic during the summer, I certainly can."

A few minutes later, Harry's room reminded him of the Gryffindor dorm room. Remus had transformed the rickety desk chair into a solid four-poster bed for him to use. He pursed his lips at Harry's bed and transformed that as well, evening out the legs, fluffing up the mattress, and adding a headboard with room for books. He nodded in satisfaction.

Harry grinned. "I love the change, but I'm still sorry you don't have a room to yourself," he said.

"I still vividly remember living in the Gryffindor dormitory. Sharing a room with just one other person is luxurious after that," replied Remus with a small smile. "Actually, I'm glad we'll have more time together." He motioned Harry to sit down. "Now, how have you been?"

Before Harry could answer they were interrupted when the doorbell rang. Harry winced as he heard Aunt Marge's hearty "Petunia! How wonderful to see you again! Now where's my darling nephew?"

"We'd better get downstairs," Harry said in resignation. "Just ignore anything she says."

Remus became very still. "Is that a dog I hear?"

"Yeah, she usually comes with Ripper. Is that going to be a problem?"

Remus gave a toothy smile. "Not at all. I love dogs."

Aunt Petunia heard them on the stairs. As she took Aunt Marge's bag she said, "Unfortunately we have an additional guest. Harry's school sent him to keep Harry in line. Marge, this is Professor Remus Lupin."

"Pleased to meet you, ma'am," Remus nodded politely. He turned his head to the yapping dog, who suddenly whined, lowered his head, and put his tail between his legs. A wet spot on the floor caught Aunt Marge's attention.

Passing her coat to Harry, Aunt Marge glared at Ripper. "Sorry about that, Petunia. I can't understand why he did that – he's been housetrained for years and has never had an accident before."

"No harm done, dear. I'm sure Harry will be happy to clean it as we catch up." With a pointed look at Harry she led Aunt Marge into the sitting room.

"Yeah, happy to," whispered Harry as he headed to the closet.

Remus grabbed his arm. "Have you forgotten I'm here?" He took out his wand and cast a Scourgify.

Harry grinned.

Remus smiled back. "Something tells me you'd like to get out of the house for a bit. Shall we go for a walk?"

Harry poked his head into the sitting room and waited for a lull in the conversation. "Aunt Petunia, Professor Lupin and I are going for a walk."

Aunt Petunia looked up sharply. "Don't let that stain set in."

"Oh, it's already cleaned up," Harry said, trying to look innocent.

Aunt Petunia glared at him but then glanced at Aunt Marge and stopped herself from saying what was on her mind. "Go then. Be back in time to …" she looked at Remus, "help with dinner."

Harry took a deep breath once out of the house. "I'm glad you're here, Remus. It may be a bit trying but …"

He stopped as he realized the neighbor's dog had stopped barking. "Uh, oh. That's not right. Scruffy barks whenever anyone walks by." He looked around. "Do you think the dementors have returned?"

Remus let out a gentle laugh. "I don't think it's that at all. You see, most dogs can scent something about me that lets them know that unless they're the size of Padfoot they'd better not start a fight that they're sure to lose." He paused. "And even if they're Padfoot's size, they'd still risk losing."

"So, no need to have to scout trees to climb, huh?" Harry said without thinking.

Remus looked sharply at Harry. "What was that?"

"Just making a joke," Harry replied awkwardly. "So… How long can you stay?"

Remus put a hand on Harry's shoulder. "Only three nights, unfortunately. I need to leave before I have to start taking the wolfsbane. That would be too hard to explain to the muggles."

"Oh, of course." Harry kicked a rock off the sidewalk.

Remus smiled. "But that will give us plenty of time to catch up."

"So what's going on in the wizarding world?" Harry asked eagerly. "No one has been willing to talk about it."

Remus looked around but didn't spot any eavesdroppers. "The Ministry now acknowledges the return of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. They can't avoid it, actually – too many witnesses saw him before he Disapparated after the battle. However, there's been no outbreak of Death Eater attacks." He continued to fill Harry in on events that had occurred over the summer.

As they passed a small restaurant, Remus looked in the window. "You must be starving. Lunch?"

Harry suddenly found the sidewalk fascinating. "I, uh, don't have any money with me."

"Oh, not to worry – when I knew I was coming I got some muggle funds, more than enough to cover us while I'm here."

Harry's stomach growled. "I'll pay you back, I promise."

"No need for that," Remus insisted. "I'm enjoying the time with you. Now, where would you like to go?"

"There's a fish and chips stand around the corner. That would be great."

Remus suspected Harry was considering only the price but shrugged and agreed.

On the way home late that afternoon, they spotted a figure in the distance. Remus squinted his eyes. "Is that your cousin? He ran out of the house so quickly this morning we weren't introduced."

As the figure approached, Harry could see it was indeed Dudley, heading home from the opposite direction.

As they got even closer, they saw Dudley had his boxing gloves slung over one shoulder. Remus smiled. "Dudley, we didn't get a chance to talk this morning, but I'm Remus Lupin. With your build you must be a pretty good pugilist. What's your favorite strike?"

Both Dudley and Harry looked at him in surprise. "Are you a boxer yourself, sir?" Dudley asked. Harry was astonished at the "sir' as he had never heard his cousin express respect before.

"I've gone a few rounds. Never good enough to fight professionally, of course, but won a couple of bouts," Remus said casually.

"Wow. My coach says I could be ready to enter the end-of-summer match if I keep practicing. Could you give me have any tips?" He suddenly glanced at Harry. "If it's OK with Harry, that is."

Harry was amazed that Dudley had bothered to ask him.

Remus replied with a soft smile. "I'm sure we can find some time in the next couple of days to chat for a bit, right Harry?"

Harry felt resentful at Remus taking his attention away from him and giving it to his cousin. Professor Lupin was HIS guest. However, he felt saying so would make him seem petty, so nodded.

"Tomorrow morning, then, Dudley," promised Remus.

Harry was bursting to know where and when Professor Lupin had learned to box but didn't want to seem ignorant in front of Dudley. An opportunity to ask soon came. When Harry began to make dinner as Aunt Marge and Aunt Petunia continued to chat in the sitting room, Remus volunteered to help in the kitchen.

Harry looked over at Professor Lupin as he was cutting up some potatoes. "I didn't know you boxed. Do many wizards?"

Remus chuckled. "As far as I know, I'm the only one."

"What got you into it?"

Remus took out some spices. "You know that people like me have a hard time getting jobs. In either world, it's hard to explain why you need several days off every month. One day I was walking along, and I saw a sign for an amateur bout that had a grand prize of five hundred pounds. I walked into the gym and watched the sparring for a bit, and decided I could do that. I familiarized myself with the most of the rules and entered. I made some serious fouls and was disqualified, but one of the coaches saw my speed, strength, and resilience and took me under his wing. After that, I never lost a bout. I always felt I had an unfair advantage, though, so never entered more tournaments than necessary to pay for my necessities."

Once everything was ready, Harry, dreading dinner, notified the four Dursleys.

Remus stood by Aunt Marge's chair. "Allow me, madam," he said as he motioned for her to sit. Harry was sure that a bit of magic was involved as he smoothly scooted the portly woman's chair in.

Aunt Marge smiled. "Ah, a courtly man." She turned to Harry. "Pay attention to your professor," she snapped.

Remus took his own seat. "I find Harry to be a most attentive student," he replied mildly, "May I serve you some of the beef stroganoff?"

Aunt Petunia heaved a sigh of relief. Except for the small incident with Ripper, everything had gone smoothly. The thought of the dog led her to looking around for it. She saw him crouching underneath her sister-in-law's chair.

Though it was still early, Remus and Harry went upstairs as soon as the dishes were done. Harry was eager to get more news. "So, what do you think is going to happen next?" he asked as he sat on his bed and kicked his leg against the frame.

"Our source tells us that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named ordered his people to temporarily stand down until he can plan his next few steps, and he's unable to do so right now as he's recovering from his exertions."

"Source? You mean Snape," Harry said with a frown

"Professor Snape, Harry," Remus corrected gently.

"He outed you! You were our best DADA instructor!" Harry protested.

Remus sighed and leaned back. "Thank you for that, Harry. But the curse on the position was going to get me one way or the other, and to be frank I'd rather have been outed than died in office like some of my predecessors."

Harry crossed his arms. "You never hurt anyone."

"But I could have. Professor Snape was right. I knew it was a full moon. I knew I hadn't had my wolfsbane yet that he'd spent much of his valuable time preparing as he did every month I was there. I ran out anyway. I could have killed you, all three of you. If it weren't for Sirius, I would have."

Harry's stomach clenched and he looked down. Familiar pain tore through him as he thought about the loss of his Godfather and Remus' friend. "I'm sorry about Sirius, Remus. I should have known it was a trap. It was all my fault. If Snape had just paid attention to me…"

"Professor Snape, and he did, Harry. How do you think Sirius got word that you'd gone to the Ministry?"

"But he didn't tell us Sirius was safe!" Harry objected.

"By the time he was able to actually reach headquarters, it was too late – you had already taken off and he had no way of reaching you."

"Oh." Harry thought about the mirror Sirius had given him and guilt once again gnawed at him. If only … "It's all my fault," he repeated dejectedly. "Sirius dying, my friends injured…"

"But your friends will be fine, multiple Death Eaters were captured, and you forced He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named to reveal himself before he was ready," Remus reassured him.

"But Sirius …"

Remus reached to grab Harry's shoulder. "I miss him too, but he died as he would have wanted to, fighting the Death Eaters." He gave a sad smile. "All of us were eager to join the Order, of course, but you could really see the fire in Sirius' eyes."

"It killed him to be locked up in Grimmauld Place," Harry said softly, "unable to get out."

Remus nodded and leaned back. "He always hated being confined. I think that's what made him so sympathetic to my plight. Sirius and your father, and even Peter, knew how I'd hurt myself if I stayed locked up. Once they'd learned to transform, they'd come through the tunnel and then unlock the door from the outside before quickly shifting into their animagus forms. I'd smell them and burst through the door. They'd lead me down the tunnel and together we'd exit at the Whomping Willow."

Harry's eyes shone. "And then they'd keep you company in the forest."

Remus shook his head. "I knew it was wrong. We had some very close calls as without the wolfsbane I have no control over my actions. Headmaster Dumbledore trusted me, and I betrayed that trust. Each month I'd vow to myself to follow the rules that had been laid out for me for the safety of others. I'd tell my friends to roam the forest without me. But each month I'd be weak and give in to their urgings to join them. I convinced myself that the Headmaster must have known since I wouldn't hurt myself when I was allowed to run free and that Poppy must have told him that I was in surprisingly good shape when she came to get me in the morning." He paused. "I was very good with the excuses."

"You didn't deserve to be locked up."

"None of us do. At the same time, no one deserves to be bitten by one of us."

"Snape does," Harry responded bitterly.

"No, Harry, not even Professor Snape," Professor Lupin said sharply, "and to wish that on anybody shows you don't understand what a terrible curse it is." He laid down on his bed and put his arms under his head, staring at the ceiling but not seeing it. "Go to sleep, now Harry. We'll talk more tomorrow."

Harry was glad the lights were out because his face felt red in embarrassment.

The next day Harry finished his chores unnaturally quickly with help from Remus, but Aunt Petunia couldn't remonstrate him in front of Aunt Marge so she kept her suspicions to herself. Despite her thoughts, she was pleased with how clean things were and at the delicious meals. Remus seemed oblivious to her attitude towards magic but never performed any in front of her.

Harry resentfully followed Remus and Dudley into the back yard later that morning. He sourly slouched down on the garden bench. Remus looked over at him. "Want to join us, Harry?"

Harry shuddered at the thought of being Dudley's punching bag. "No, that's all right," he replied.

"Are you sure Harry?" asked Dudley. "My coach is always saying boxing is a great way to reduce stress."

Harry was surprised at Dudley's offer to include him in the lesson but shook his head. "That's OK, I'll just watch." To Harry's surprise, Dudley was an attentive student, willingly following directions. Afterwards, he thanked Professor Lupin and nodded to Harry before heading inside.

After lunch, Remus and Harry left for a walk. Harry decided to try to make up for his churlishness that morning. "Do you want to see Mrs. Figg?" he asked. "She lives right around the corner."

Remus let out a soft chuckle. "That's OK, Harry. I like Arabella, but I doubt she'd appreciate her cats scattering to the four winds when I got near."

"Oh, another of those, um, furry little problem things?"

"Exactly. Now, where were we?"

"Everyone always told me how wonderful my father was. I only learned by accident that he wasn't. Tell me more about him."

Remus squirmed. "Harry, people don't like to speak ill of the dead."

"Look, most people learn their parents aren't perfect as they grow up. I know Mrs. Weasley has a temper and confuses Ron's likes with those of his brothers. Mr. Weasley would let his kids get away with almost anything if his wife didn't stop him. I want to know about my real parents, not some idealized version of them."

Remus was silent for a moment. "You have to understand, Harry. James and Lily were my friends, good friends. I don't want you to get the wrong impression of them. James was loyal, smart, popular, good looking, funny…"

Harry snorted. "Funny to some, maybe. I'm sure his victims didn't think he was so fantastic. Look, I already know my dad was a bully. I saw some of his detention slips when I had to recopy them. You know what? I don't think I'd have liked him. He reminds me of Draco – rich, pampered, thinking he owned the world. Attacking people for no reason …"

"Stop, Harry. I won't have you speaking that way. You saw one incident. It was probably the worst one of all. I was embarrassed by what my friends did that time. James and Sirius attacked Snape completely unprovoked. I was a prefect at the time. I should have stopped it. When McGonagall heard what had happened, she chewed us out and gave us a few detentions, and rightfully so, but they basically got away with it. After all, detentions didn't mean much to them."

Professor Lupin paused. "I think that after that James and Sirius felt they could get away with almost anything, and the pranks got worse. When we were told that Sirius had killed Peter and a dozen muggles in the process, no one was shocked. They knew about his reputation at school. I'm sure that's why Albus didn't push for a trial. I feel horrible now that I believed him being the traitor in the Order that we'd been warned about." He smiled bitterly. "Of course, Sirius suspected I was the spy because of my furry little problem."

"No one suspected the rat?" asked Harry.

Remus shook his head. "Never. Peter was always a follower. He seemed to idolize James in particular, but Sirius too. Even though he was a Gryffindor, he never seemed particularly brave without us to back him up. We were all fooled – it must have taken great bravery to go to You-Know-Who, not knowing if he was going to be greatly rewarded or killed on sight."

"So much for friendship," Harry said bitterly.

Remus sighed. "I guess if we wanted a loyal friend, we would have sought out a Hufflepuff."

After dinner, Remus and Harry continued their conversation in their room.

Harry was silent for a moment. "Sirius said Snape knew more hexes as a first year than some seventh years," he reminded Remus, still trying desperately to find a reason for the attack he'd seen in the pensieve.

Remus shook his head. He leaned back against the wall and looked at the ceiling. "Hardly. Snape was creative, but his hexes weren't any darker than most others. They'd drive James and Sirius wild though. He'd change their hair color to green, do something to their voice to make them attractive to bats – things like that."

"Sirius said he and Dad continued to hex Snape behind Mum's back after telling her they'd stopped," Harry said in a soft voice.

Remus let out a soft snort. "They'd hex each other, more like it. Severus gave as good as he got, and he had friends to back him up, just like we had each other. His friends, though, were dark wizards."

Pausing, Remus looked down at his feet. "To be honest, it wasn't just him. We were sixth and seventh years by then. A lot of hexing was going on, but we all had learned enough to be able to keep our fights secret from the staff. Things were getting more serious. Everyone knew that once we graduated we'd have to pick a side, even if it was only to offer silent support. We had to be prepared. We knew if we were unsuccessful in convincing others to join us, we'd soon be facing them in battle. Whether we convinced them not to join You-Know-Who by showing them what they'd be up against before they committed themselves to the forces of the dark side or whether we learned their weaknesses, we felt we were preparing for the future."

"You knew who was going to join Voldemort?" asked Harry skeptically.

Shaking his head, Remus continued. "When you put it like that, we sound pretty sanctimonious. And every now and then I wonder if our targeting certain people made them more likely to become active in the war rather than remaining on the sidelines." He sighed. "You have to understand that our motives were good. Getting back to your original question, Lily wanted to see the best in people. She wouldn't understand what we felt we had to do, so we didn't let her know."

Remus folded his arms behind his head. "Enough for tonight. We'll talk more tomorrow."

Discussions in the morning were delayed, however, when Dudley brought his boxing gloves to breakfast. "Sir, yesterday afternoon I practiced what you said, particularly about my footwork. Would you be able to spend a bit more time with me this morning to correct any more mistakes in my form?"

Harry snorted. "All of a sudden you decide to be polite?"

Dudley gazed at Harry. "My boxing coach insists that you must show respect to your teachers and seniors, your place of practice, and the art itself."

"Quite right, Dudley. I'm proud of you," interjected Uncle Vernon as he grabbed for another scone. "A true chip off the old block."

More like a brick, thought Harry to himself.

Remus nodded. "Let's go back out immediately after the breakfast dishes are cleaned up."

When the meal was over, Harry pushed his chair away from the table. "I'll get the dishes while you two go outside," he said trying, mostly successfully, to keep the resentment out of his voice.

Remus raised his eyebrows but didn't say anything.

Professor Lupin and Dudley were in the back yard most of the morning. It wasn't until after lunch that Remus and Harry left for a walk to the park.

"You don't seem happy that I'm spending a bit of time with your cousin," Remus said casually. "He seems like a decent bloke."

Harry snorted. "He's a bully and teaching him to box is just going to teach him a better way to beat up on people."

"I know you haven't gotten along in the past. After all, he's one of the reasons so many of us are spending a few days here this summer. However, people can and do change if you give them the right guidance and opportunity."

Harry kept his thought to himself.

On the way back home, a woman walking a large German Shepherd found herself having to tug at the animal who was suddenly laying on its side, exposing its belly.

"I was going to warn you to keep you distance as Max here isn't very sociable, but he must sense you're dog people. He usually asks for belly rubs from just me and my husband," she said with a laugh.

Remus smiled. "Oh, dogs and I have always gotten along well."

As they walked away, they could hear the woman trying unsuccessfully to get her dog to its feet.

After dinner, Harry waited impatiently for Remus to get ready for bed. When he returned from the bathroom, Harry spoke up even before the man could put his towel over the desk chair. "Can you tell me anything more about my mum? Everyone tells me I've got her eyes, but no one tells me what she was like," Harry pleaded.

Remus turned around with a smile. "She was a beautiful woman, inside and out. She was smart and kind. She'd even volunteer to partner with Slytherins when necessary– it drove James nuts."

Harry snorted. "I can imagine that."

"What made it worse was how she excelled when she when she worked with them. By the time we were in the NEWT level classes, though, we were able to choose our own partners, and she and James began to team up halfway through the year."

"I'll bet they were the top of the class."

Remus shook his head. "No, they did well, but not outstanding. I'm sure it was because they were more focused on each other than on whatever concoction we were making that day. And in DADA they made a great team, but they didn't like to curse each other."

Harry gave a smile that slowly dimmed. "You've seen how my mum's sister turned out. I can't believe my mum would have nothing in common with her. What were my mum's faults?"

Remus sighed. "She could be short tempered – Sirius always said it went with her red hair. And unforgiving – it took her a long time to forgive James for his bullying when he was younger. But remember what I said this afternoon – people can change if given the right incentive."

"Remus," asked Harry in a small voice, "do you think my parents would be proud of me?"

"Harry, there's no doubt in my mind that they would be very proud of you."

Harry blinked, but the moment was broken when there was a knock at the door. Harry opened it to find Dudley. Almost resentfully, he asked, "Do you need something?"

Dudley was taken aback by the barely hidden hostility until Remus spoke up. "I'm glad you stopped by, Dudley. I wanted to wish you luck in this summer's match before I leave in the morning."

"Thanks, professor." He cleared his throat and looked at Harry. "Actually, I was curious about that game you play, kiddup or something like that?"

"Quidditch. You play it on brooms," Harry said with forced politeness.

Dudley scuffed the floor. "Umm, are you any good at it?"

Remus interrupted. "Good? Harry is the best seeker in a generation!"

"Wow! So, do you play on teams or one-on-one?" Dudley asked with what seemed like honest curiosity.

"Seven players form a team." Harry sighed and looked at Professor Lupin. He wasn't sure what had gotten Dudley's interest, but he was willing to give his cousin a chance. "Want to come in? I can show you a magazine or two about some of the teams."

Because Aunt Marge was catching an early train, she and Uncle Vernon ate breakfast before the others. Aunt Petunia let the others sleep in. "I have to say," Aunt Marge told her brother after finishing her kippers, "that Lupin fellow certainly kept your nephew in line. And such a polite gentleman himself."

Uncle Vernon put down his coffee. "I have to admit that school of his is doing him a lot of good. He hasn't been any problem at all this summer." He glanced at his watch. "Ready to go?"

An hour later, Remus took his things to the door in preparation of his own departure, Aunt Petunia found herself wishing he would stay longer. She approached him. "Are you sure you can't stay another week?"

"I'd love to ma'am, I've enjoyed being with Harry and getting to know Dudley." Aunt Petunia didn't notice the slight to herself. "But what with next week having a full moon, I'm afraid that's not possible."

Aunt Petunia frowned. "A full moon? What's that got to do with anything? Is there some kind of ceremony you types do then?"

Remus smiled gently. "Did Harry forget to tell you? I'm a werewolf."

Aunt Petunia turned pale. "A were… Werewolves are real?"

"It's OK, Aunt Petunia," Harry hurriedly said. "He's fine now. It's not the full moon."

Aunt Petunia acted as if Harry weren't there. She continued to stare at Remus. "I've had a werewolf in my house for a week?" she shrieked.

Dudley ran to her. "Mum, what's wrong? I could hear you yelling over my show."

"Dudley, get to your room immediately and lock the door! Don't come out until I tell you it's safe."

"But …"

"Now!"

Dudley tromped upstairs but stopped when he reached the top and looked down over the railing.

Breathing rapidly, Aunt Petunia turned to Remus. "Out, you, you, creature! Out!"

To Harry's surprise, Dudley spoke up. "Mum, what are you doing? Mr. Lupin's a great guy!"

Aunt Petunia glanced up at her son. "He's a monster and needs to go!"

Remus gave her a sad smile, deliberately displaying his pointed canines. "It's been lovely, Petunia." He looked up at Dudley. "Good luck in those bouts." He turned to Harry. "Enjoy the rest of your summer." Returning his gaze to Aunt Petunia, he added, "I hope our paths cross again," but his voice had turned cold.

As Remus headed down the pathway, Aunt Petunia stared at Harry, breathing rapidly. "You had to have that … creature as a teacher? Did you know what he was?"

"Not until the end of the year," Harry admitted. "He's a fantastic professor, really he is. He just has … a furry little problem a few nights of the year."

Aunt Petunia started to hyperventilate. "You poor thing. A werewolf for a teacher." Harry grabbed her arm as she began to stagger towards the sitting room. As she dropped into a chair, Aunt Petunia had the sudden thought that she could never tell Uncle Vernon that she had let a werewolf stay at their house.

She never heard the soft pop of Apparition coming from outside.

FanFiction seems to be having problems with alerting people. I'm glad you were able to find this chapter. Though I won't be alerted to reviews, I'll be able to find them, so please give me your comments. Thanks!