Remus assumed that Potter's invitation had been a passing thought, a mere idle fancy he took up when Remus happened to cross his path. He realized how wrong he was when Potter confronted him just before their potions class Monday morning.

"Lupin!" Potter called, his tone irritable, "Stop right there! I have a bone to pick with you!"

Though this was not a promising start to their conversation, Remus found himself stopping short at the threshold of the classroom. Potter soon caught up to him. He was flanked by his usual companions, Black and Pettigrew, the first looking vaguely amused while the other was bouncing with excitement. Potter had crossed his arms across his chest. He seemed to be making a show of his anger for the other two, but Remus could tell it was only an act.

"Why weren't you at my birthday party?" he demanded.

"I forgot," Remus said placidly.

"Liar!" Potter accused, "I must have mentioned it a hundred times! Everyone was there except you!"

"Planning your party in the common room where anyone can hear is not the same thing as an invitation," Remus countered, "Unless you want me eavesdropping on all your conversations?"

A sly smile stole over Black's face as he interjected, "We were up all night. Most of Gryffindor tower. We didn't see you in the common room, and you weren't in the dormitory when we went to bed."

"That's right!" Pettigrew said cheerily, bobbing his head in agreement, "In fact, we didn't see you come back all weekend! Where exactly did you go?"

Remus hesitated. In truth, Friday's full moon had kept him in recovery through the weekend. He hadn't even returned to his dormitory before class that morning. After breakfast in the hospital wing, he walked straight to Professor Slughorn's classroom.

Naturally, he could not tell the trio this, and in fact he hadn't expected to tell them anything. If he thought of his roommates at all, it was to think of them happily celebrating Potter's birthday, being far too busy with the festivities to notice his absence, let alone care about what he was doing.

"I wasn't feeling well," Remus stated.

Potter's eyes narrowed. "You say that a lot. How many times is it now? Seems to happen about once a month…"

Remus felt his heartbeat quicken. He needed to think of a better excuse for his frequent absences. They were suspicious of him, and sooner or later they would figure out the pattern.

To distract Potter from this line of thinking, he curtly stated, "If it's a present you want, Potter, I'll get you one."

"I don't want presents!" Potter grumbled, "I wanted to see you have some fun, for a change…"

Before Remus could respond, a bright voice called from inside the classroom, "Remus! What are you doing standing in the doorway? Come join us!"

Remus didn't need to turn his head to know who was speaking, but he glanced over his shoulder anyway. Lily Evans waved at him, a welcoming smile on her face, even as her eyes flashed over Potter and his friends.

She probably assumed they were bullying him, and it wasn't as though her suspicions were unfounded. Snape was seated, as usual, beside Evans. Though he did not extend the same greeting to Remus, he was watching Potter with open dislike.

A strange enmity existed between the two boys. Remus hardly knew how it all began, unless their rivalry dated all the way back to their first train ride to Hogwarts. Whatever the case, their attitude toward each other only seemed to worsen with each class the Gryffindors and Slytherins shared. While it had never quite come to dueling in the hallways, it was evident that they despised each other.

Normally, Remus would have ignored Evans as he did everyone else, and yet her invitation provided a suitable excuse for getting out of this conversation with the others. He turned away, but before he could take another step into the classroom, he heard Potter mutter, "You spend a lot of time with that guy. How much do you really know about him?"

"About Snape?" Remus asked, surprised into answering honestly, "We're barely on speaking terms."

Potter rolled his eyes, "Again with the lies… I see you studying in the library with them all the time!"

"As if you've ever been to the library a day in your life," Remus shot back, exasperated by the interrogation, "If I spend time with Snape it's only because of Evans. She's the one who keeps finding me."

"It would be better for both of you if you stayed away from him," Potter insisted, dropping his voice to avoid being overheard by Evans and her friend, who continued to watch them closely. "You've seen the way he is in class, right? He's obsessed with the Dark Arts…"

Pettigrew gave a repulsed shudder and added, "Gives me the creeps…"

Remus hadn't expected Black to contribute anything more to their conversation, but at this mention of Snape, he also suggested, "You'd be better off with us. Gryffindors should stick together."

Remus stared at him, then glanced back at Evans and Snape. The former looked as though she was going to jump out of her seat and fetch him if he didn't come join them immediately. Remus had to suppress a smile as he turned back Potter and the rest.

"If it's a choice between the two of you, I'd much rather spend time with Severus," he stated.

Potter looked as though he'd been slapped. For a moment, Remus thought he'd earned himself a jinx from Black, who was always quick to jump to his friend's defense, but then Professor Slughorn came swaggering up behind them.

"Potter, Black? What are you doing blocking the classroom, boys? Move along, move along… That's right… Ah, and Mr. Lupin, too? Feeling well, I trust? Find your seats, it's time to begin today's lesson!"

Remus made a quick retreat to Evans' table, ignoring her whispered question of, "What was that all about?" It had been an unwelcome confrontation, but inwardly, Remus was pleased with himself. He didn't need Potter and Black looking so closely into his habits and routine, and after insulting Potter like that, he was unlikely to attract the trio's notice ever again…

Not long after this conversation took place, Remus found himself in the common room one evening, long after everyone else had gone to bed. He was completing the final touches on his map of the moving staircases. Admittedly, he had grown used to the stairs, over time. The map would hardly serve its intended purpose, now. But it had been a useful project for a time, giving him something to occupy the many hours he spent alone, and he felt proud of his achievement.

He was particularly gratified to have crafted his own enchanted ink. When activated by a touch of his wand, it moved across the parchment, bringing his stair drawing to life. His meticulous notes had proven useful, as well, and he had successfully found a way to link the movements of his drawing with the real thing.

Sighing with satisfaction, he leaned back into his chair, holding the drawing up to the light of an antique lamp, admiring his work. The room was silent, but for a few popping embers in the hearth. The fire itself had burned down long ago, lending only a faint reddish glow to the common room. He had lost track of time while perfecting his diagram, and hadn't realized how late the hour was. He started to rise from his chair, grateful that he did not have class the following day, when he heard a thump, a hiss, and a voice clearly murmuring, "hush!"

Remus froze. His eyes scanned the dark corners of the room, and yet he saw no one.

He did not fear ghosts, Hogwarts was full of them, after all. And yet it gave him a creepy feeling to think that someone was watching him, lurking just out of sight.

The next full moon was still weeks away, and yet Remus thought that if he tried, he could harness the heightened senses of the wolf. Though his eyes saw nothing, he strained his hearing, and thought he detected a slight rustling sound near the stairs to the boys' dormitories. And… yes, if he really tried.. There was a scent in the air… Ash from the dying fire… And beneath that, freshly-laundered clothing… And something sweet, like candy hidden in a pocket of someone's robes…

"Hello?" he said hesitantly. There came no answer, but he knew he hadn't imagined that voice. Pretending as though he had given up, he carefully put away his map and his ink, gathering his things in his book bag before turning slowly toward the stairs.

Without warning, he lunged across the room. Even in his human form, he was fast. His long legs carried him to the foot of the staircase with alarming speed. He heard the hurried sound of footsteps scuttling backward, but he had the upper hand. Three voices cried out as one tripped over the other, and Remus came to a sudden stop, trying to make out what he was seeing.

It looked as though three pairs of legs had been scattered across the floor in a heap. Legs that were not attached to bodies. The sight would have been horrifying, except there was no blood. But there were voices, and those that Remus recognized. Realizing what must have happened, Remus extended his hand toward the empty air above the struggling, kicking feet, and snatched away the invisibility cloak.

"Potter!" Remus gasped, "And Black? Pettigrew? What are you doing?"

Potter looked at the two of his friends. Black shrugged his shoulders and said, "We've been caught, no use hiding it."

Potter turned his gaze back to Remus and announced, "We're spying on you, obviously."

"But why?" Remus asked faintly.

"We wanted to see where you keep sneaking off to!" Pettigrew declared, "But you were just down here studying like always!"

"What were you studying this late, anyway?" asked Black, "It's not like we've got a test coming up."

"Or… Wait, do we have a test coming up?" Potter asked anxiously, looking at Remus as if he expected him to deliver fatal news.

Instead, Remus had turned pale. He didn't know they possessed an invisibility cloak. It was lucky that they had chosen tonight to spy. If it had been a full moon… If they had followed him to the Whomping Willow…

He shook the cloak in front of their faces, his worry making him bold.

"Is this how you've been sneaking around the school after hours? I ought to report you! I'll have McGonagall confiscate this!"

"You can't!" Potter begged, scrambling to his feet and looking Remus in the face, "That's a family heirloom!"

"Do your parents know you brought it to school?"

"Of course they do! Who do you think told me about the secret entrance to the kitchen?"

"Oh, you have to go down there, Lupin," Pettigrew said, climbing more slowly to his feet and speaking as if he were making a simple restaurant recommendation, "The house-elves are great. They'll fix you anything you ask for. Even black forest cake!"

"I'd lay off the cake if I were you, Pete," said Black teasingly, poking a finger into the boy's rather round stomach. Pettigrew slapped his hand away, though he hardly seemed to take offense.

"I'll show you the kitchen if you give me back the cloak!" Potter offered, holding out his palm with a pleading expression on his face.

"I'm not interested in the kitchen. But I'll give this back… On one condition."

"Name it!"

"Never spy on me again."

He could see the hesitation in Potter's face and was horrified. Wasn't it enough that he ignored the three of them at every turn, and was rude the rest of the time? What could have prompted this fascination with him? Did they already suspect what he was?

"I mean it, Potter! If I find out you've been using it to watch me, listen in on my conversations, or follow me anywhere, I'll tell McGonagall…"

"Alright, fine," Potter sighed, snatching the cloak from Remus, "Not like you have anything to worry about. Listen in on your conversations? The only people you ever talk to are Evans and Snape, and who'd be interested in that?"

Remus still felt uneasy. He had secured Potter's promise, but what of his two friends? His eyes moved accusingly over Black and Pettigrew, as if daring them to say something else. But Black merely shrugged and offered him another of his easy smiles. Pettigrew looked vapid, as if he were still daydreaming about cake. Remus would have to be satisfied for now.

He told himself that it meant nothing. They were probably on their way to the kitchens when they happened to spot him in the common room. He wanted to believe he was nothing more than a passing interest, that they would forget all about this in the morning. But he couldn't ignore the signs. They had said they were curious. They had noticed his many absences. It was lucky the end of the school year was approaching. Remus wasn't sure he could keep himself hidden much longer.