Wednesday morning after Potions, Slughorn asked Remus to stay behind. He stayed in his seat as everyone else left, wondering if this was about the Slug Club again; Slughorn hadn't bothered him about it for a while, so he hoped it wasn't. He wasn't really surprised when it turned out to be an accusation, though. Avery told Slughorn that Remus had burned him with sparks.

"He was in the hospital wing last night," Slughorn said, giving Remus a stern look. "Did you do it?"

Remus kept his chin up. "In defense, sir."

"You don't have Defense Against the Dark Arts with Slytherins," Slughorn replied hotly.

"No, sir. In my defense. Avery threw me against the wall and was going to punch me. He called me half-blood."

Slughorn smoothed down his mustache, his brow wrinkled in thought. "Hmm. What happened before that?"

Remus didn't want to say too much; didn't want to admit Peter was with him. He'd rather take detention. "I didn't bother him. He saw me and began chasing me. I fell and he pushed me against the wall."

"And that's when he hit you?"

"He didn't hit me."

Slughorn narrowed his eyes. "I thought you said he hit you?"

"Oh." Remus ducked his head. "Um, n-no, I said I thought he was going to but—but he didn't. He did snap my wrist."

"You assumed he was going to punch you, and you shot sparks into his face?"

Remus swallowed. "In both our faces to be fair, his face was practically against mine."

He began fussing with his mustache again. "Well. I have his word against yours. Now, I know Mr. Avery dislikes you and your friends however… I only have evidence of you hurting him. As well as you admitting it. This puts me in a difficult situation." He began rocking back and forth, hands on his stomach. "I do believe your story, Mr. Lupin. But I do need to punish you for using magic in the corridors, and one to purposely injure another student. Fifteen points from Gryffindor."

Remus flooded with gratitude, as well as slight shock. Slughorn believed him over a Slytherin! It felt like a miracle. "Thank you, sir." He got up and quickly left before Slughorn could change his mind.

"Oh, and Mr. Lupin?"

He stopped in his tracks and turned, forcing a pleasant smile back on his face.

"Er, I also wanted to discuss another matter with you. It's about… what happened over the holidays. With your, er…" Slughorn fiddled with the cuffs of his robes, making a lot of harrumphing noises. "What you gave me."

"My leg," Remus said flatly.

Slughorn looked a little embarrassed. "Yes. I wanted to be clear with you that I took it because you seemed keen on getting rid of it. It isn't something I would have ever thought of myself."

"Yes, sir."

"Also… I gave it to a friend of mine. A colleague. A fellow expert in potions." Slughorn raised his eyebrows as all the color drained from Remus's face. "I didn't tell him how it came into my possession, let alone that it was from a student. But he has been doing research into potions to possibly cure werewolves, so I thought your—erm—that it might help him in some way."

Remus kept his hands against his sides, trying not to squirm. Nothing can cure us, he wanted to say, but kept his mouth shut.

"I only wanted you to know what happened to it," Slughorn said, nodding more to himself. "That it might do some good. Hmm. Yes, and if you ever wish to meet Mr. Belby, I'm certain he'd find you—"

"Thank you, sir," Remus cut him off, "but I'd prefer to keep my status from as many people as possible." He also didn't want to become some sort of test subject to some do-gooder who had lofty aspirations to rid the world of werewolves. 'Cure' for lycanthropy was always death.

Slughorn looked surprised at that. "Er, yes, quite. Well. That's all, Mr. Lupin. Have a good day."

He was glad to get out of the stifling room and out from under Slughorn's even more stifling stare. He practically ran into his friends who naturally wanted to know what was said, and, doing his best to keep his voice even, he informed them of the first part of the conversation. They were annoyed by what transpired since Remus was defending himself, but Remus kept pointing out the only evidence at hand were spark burns on Avery's face.

"And you admitted to it!" James groaned, smacking his forehead. "For someone so smart, you can sure be real dumb sometimes. Well, I suppose now we should figure out what to do to him in return."

"You know, we don't need to get rev—"

"We should do something with flobberworm mucus," Sirius suggested, cutting Remus off. "Something goopy."

While James and Sirius plotted their revenge, Remus tuned them out, not wanting to be part of it. He noticed Peter didn't really seem to be listening either, and looked a little upset. Maybe because they weren't trying to get revenge for him? Or was something else going on? He asked him before lunch if he was all right, and Peter said he was, giving one of his big smiles… but it felt off.

There wasn't much time to talk to him at that moment since Remus was having lunch with Lily—the birthday girl. They met up in an empty classroom where they had lunch, dessert, and Remus gave her the present. She ripped the paper off of the book and exclaimed over it, very happy.

"Thank you! I think this is a better gift than last year," she said.

"What did I get you last year?" he asked, trying to remember.

Lily's eyes glinted. "A kiss." His face began burning at the memory and he gave her a light shove as she began giggling. "At least now I know why it was so gross for you!"

He thought for a second then made a face. "Yes, I suppose that's true enough. Still! That was not your present, and you know it!"

She straightened up, still giggling. "I appreciate it, though. I'm glad you were my first kiss."

"Me too," he said, not wanting to add it would probably be the only kiss he ever had from someone not his mother. How pathetic. "Speaking of kisses…"

"Did you kiss someone else?" she asked, eyes widening.

"NO!" he shrieked, going even redder than before and looking horrified. "I w-was going to ask if you decided about giving the girl you like the flower or not! Bloody hell!"

"Oh!" She looked down, inspecting her fingernails. "I still haven't decided. Even though she'd never know it was me, it's still a bit embarrassing. And frightening. Augh! I wish I could just know how things are going to go!" She slumped back for a moment then glanced askew at him. "Wait… you can!"

"Eh?"

"Your card thing!" She grabbed his hands. "You could do that card thing, can't you? Tarot?"

Remus swallowed. "Er, I—it's not… I mean, it doesn't really tell the future. It gives—it more—"

"I know," she interrupted. "But it could give me an idea. Do you have them with you?"

Remus sighed and pulled the deck out of his bag. "We're supposed to keep them with us as much as we can, to… connect with them or—or something." He began shuffling. "What do you want to know? If you should or not?" She nodded, chewing at her thumbnail. "All right." He shuffled some more, split the deck, and pulled a card. When he flipped it, he didn't even need his book.

Lily didn't need him to say anything. She gave a faint 'oh' sort of sound and began blushing.

In between them sat the lovers card.

"It means other things too," he said, digging in his satchel for the book before remembering that while he had his cards with him, he didn't have his book. "Er, I'd have to go get the book. I think it also has to do with choices and—"

"That's it, though, isn't it?" She looked up at him. "It's a choice. There are other cards that have to do with making a choice, aren't there?" He nodded. "But you pulled this one. Which means something. Obviously." She gave a nervous laugh. "I guess all the cards mean something."

Remus took the card and put it with the others, putting everything up. "Tarot isn't a yes or no. It's supposed to help you. Guide you."

"It's helped me," she said, burying her face in her hands as she began giggling more. Once she got hold of herself, she wiped her face off on her sleeve and grabbed the last bit of cake off her plate, picking it apart and putting the crumbs on her tongue. "Have you ever asked the deck about being gay?"

He choked on nothing, fingers curling into his palms at that word. "Lily…!"

"Sorry," she said, not sounding like she meant it. "About liking boys?"

He wasn't too keen on that description either, but he let it slide. "Yes, and if I had listened to them when I asked, I would have sorted it out a lot sooner."

Lily moved so she was sitting next to him, leaning against him, her head on his shoulder. "I do wish it was easier for people like us."

Remus put an arm around her, his head against her head. "Me too."

"Can I take back my birthday wish?" She eyed the candle on the napkin that she had blown out. "I have a better one."

Remus chuckled a little. "I don't think it works that way."

"I only blew out one candle, don't I get thirteen more?" she joked, a little sadly. "I wish it did work that way. Blow out a candle and I don't have to be so afraid of anyone finding out I like girls."

"Same. Only… er, you know. That I don't like girls," he said, and she grinned. "Though if it did work that way, there's every likelihood that the purists would just blow out a candle and make us disappear."

"Not only for our preferences but also our blood." Lily looked down at her hands. "We—no, you know what?" She straightened up, wiping her cake-smeared hands off on her skirt. "Let's talk about something happier."

So they did, talking and laughing until it was time to gather everything up and head to their next class. Before they left the empty room, Lily hugged Remus tightly and kissed his cheek, telling him how happy she was that they were friends. Remus hugged her back and said how happy he was too.

He used to wish he wasn't so lonely, that he had friends; at least those birthday wishes had finally come true.

X

Normally on Wednesday evenings, Remus spent his time studying. James had Quidditch practice and Sirius always went, and Peter had his Photography Club. Remus was usually invited to the practice but almost always turned it down, preferring to have some time to himself to work on schoolwork.

After they ate, James and Sirius went to the pitch while Peter and Remus headed up to the dorms, so Pete could get his things. This time, however, he told Remus he'd see him later and split off before they got to the common room. Shrugging, Remus went to his dorm and happily put his Elton John record on, since David and Spinnet were down in the common room.

He lost himself in his work and Elton's voice, easily breezing through his Herbology essay (not due for another week) and then re-doing his Astronomy work (finished days ago, due the next day). He was just reaching for his Transfiguration notes when the door opened. He quickly flicked his wand to turn the music off, not wanting to deal with Spinnet complaining about Muggle music; but it was Peter. He looked distressed and his face was rather puffy, as if he had been crying.

Remus jumped to his feet. "What happened? Why aren't you at the club?" He glanced at the clock to confirm it was after 6:30, when the meeting started.

"I c-c-can't find it!"

"Find… what?" he asked, confused.

Peter sniffled, wiping his nose off on his sleeve. "My bag! From yesterday! It's got all of tomorrow's books in it, and my camera too!"

He realized then Peter had been hauling that day's books around in his arms instead of his bag. "It's all right, we'll find it," Remus promised, turning towards Peter's part of the room.

"Nooo!" Peter shook his head. "It's not in here. I know where it is."

He froze, wondering if his ears were working. "Erm, all—all right…" He pushed his fringe from his eyes, frowning at his friend. "You lost it but know where it is?"

"I left it behind last night," he mumbled, wringing his hands. "When I was hiding from Mulciber and Bulstrode. I didn't realize I didn't have my bag till after I got back but it was too late to get it. I've been back there lotsa times today but it isn't there!"

Remus rubbed his forehead. "Maybe Mulciber or Bulstrode took your bag? Or," he added as Pete was shaking his head again, "someone else found it? We can go ask the teachers—"

"No! Not my bag isn't there… the room isn't there!" He gave a moan and sunk down on the edge of his bed. "I've been loads and the room just isn't there! What am I going to do?! Ohhh, James is gonna be so mad if I lost that camera, he—he—"

"Shhh." Remus quickly sat down next to Peter, taking his hand. "I'll help you find it. Rooms in the castle don't usually move around so it's probably close to where it was. Where does the door open to now?"

"No door!"

"It's a secret room then," he said, pulling Pete to his feet. "A hidden room, and we just need to figure out how to get in. You know where the door was?" Pete nodded. "What—what was the room, by the way? Storage? Class?"

Peter sniffled again as they left the door. "No, neither. It was like a—a sitting room. Honest!" he added when Remus gave him an unsure look. "Couches and tables and—and stuff like that. I hid behind one of the couches."

Maybe a storage room for furniture, Remus thought as they left the common room. He followed Peter through the halls but not, as he expected, down any stairs. Instead they went to another part of the seventh floor that was rarely ever used. Peter led him straight to a long corridor that didn't have much in it, not even furniture. No doors, that was for sure.

Peter took him straight to a large tapestry and Remus faced the tapestry, about to work out how to get in when Pete tugged at his sleeve and pointed at the opposite wall.

"There's where it was."

Remus stared at the long stretch of blank, empty stone wall. There were some sconces that were lit, albeit faintly. There really wasn't much to look at, but he crossed the corridor and pressed his hands against the wall. "Here?"

"Uh-huh. I remember distinctly 'cause it was across from this silly tapestry." Peter waved his hand at the tapestry that depicted a wizard trying to teach trolls how to do ballet; Barnabas the Barmy, Remus remembered. The trolls, all in old ballet outfits, kept stomping around and Barnabas kept shaking his head, clapping his hands, and demonstrating the proper movements.

Remus turned back to the wall, running his hands along the stone. "What did the door look like?"

"I don't know. A door."

"Right." He licked his lips, trying to figure out the best way to go about this. "I think the first thing we need to do is establish whether the room is there or not."

"How do we do that?"

"Wait right here."

Remus went down to the sixth floor, his fingers crossed that Theodore was in one of his favorite spots. He didn't feel like tracking the ghost down, but would for Pete's sake. Luck was on his side as he turned a corner and saw Theodore sitting forlornly in his window seat. He smiled when Remus approached and, after being told what was going on, nodded in agreement to help.

They went back to the seventh floor and Theodore looked at the wall then pointed before lifting his hand, palm upward. It took a second for Remus to realize what he meant. "Yeah, there."

Theodore nodded again and then went through the wall.

Or rather, tried to go through the wall.

His edges slipped into the stone before he reeled back, mouth hanging open in shock. He put his hands against the stone and pushed, and didn't go through. He whirled around to look at Remus then tried again to no avail.

"What in Merlin's name?" Remus whispered, eyes going wide.

"What's going on?" Peter asked.

"He—he can't get through the wall."

"I thought ghosts could walk through anything."

Remus swallowed, suddenly feeling a little sick with fear. "They can. Or should be able to."

Theodore went over next to the tapestry and easily slid his hand through the wall. Scowling and looking determined, he returned to where Peter said the room was and began trying to push his entire body through the wall… and was unable to. He scrabbled for a moment before swinging back, chest heaving a little.

"Um, you—that's—it's okay, thank you," Remus said, not wanting Theodore to get upset. "At least we know something is there. Erm. Is there any way for you to—to figure out how big it is?"

Theodore studied Remus for a second then the wall again. He pressed his hand against it and began floating down the corridor. Remus wasn't sure what he was doing until his arm slipped through the wall. Theodore immediately went into the wall then came back out, pointing at the spot where the room was and shaking his head. Remus got his wand out and marked the wall with a chalk spell. Theodore put his hand against the wall and went the other way, also shaking his head after dipping through the wall on the other side. Remus marked that spot too.

"Thank you so much." Theodore put both hands out, palms up, mouthing the word 'sorry'. "No, it's okay. You helped a lot." Remus looked at the two marks. "Have you ever heard about a room being here?" The ghost furrowed his brow in thought then shook his head. "Have you ever experienced not being able to go through something?" Another shake of the head but this time Theodore tapped his ear. It took a few seconds then, "You've heard about it?"

Theodore nodded and put his hands out together, then unfolded them like a— "Book, you've read about it in a book," Remus said, and the ghost nodded. "So it is possible." Another nod. "I'll—thank you, thank you so much. I'll have to look into it. I appreciate your help so much, thank you."

Theodore cast a glance at the wall before leaving them, floating through the opposite wall as if to prove to everyone he could. Once he was gone, Remus started chewing at his thumbnail. Something was there. But how to get in?

"What did you do to get the door to appear?"

"Nothing! It was just there."

Remus stepped back, putting his hands on his hips as he surveyed the wall. "Hmm." It must have been a super secret room if there were spells (or whatever) set up preventing ghosts from going in. "Well, the best thing to do is retrace exactly what you did. Which direction did you come from?"

Peter tugged at his lip. "When?"

He blinked, trying not to snap or be snarky. "When you came to the door."

"Oh, when I went in, right. Yeah, sorry, I ran around this corridor for a while so that's why I got confused. I ca—"

"You ran around?" Remus asked before he could go on. "Tell me exactly what you did.

Pete sighed. "See I came from there—" he jabbed his finger to the left, "—cause of the staircase. Mulciber was chasing me. I turned down this corridor and ran along and went there." He pointed at the direction they had come from. "Bulstrode was coming that way. So I ran back, thinking maybe I could slip past Mulciber but there wasn't any side corridors so I ran back, thinking maybe I could try to—I don't know, but maybe I could get past Bulstrode since he's not as fast as Mulciber. But when I came back, there was the door. But it wasn't there before."

Remus surveyed the corridor, eyeing the floor. Had Peter run across the trigger? That seemed unlikely. Even though the corridor wasn't used much, that would be too easy of a way to open up.

"Right." Remus stepped back and went to the left.

"You're leaving?"

He paused, glancing over his shoulder. "I'm recreating the scene." He went around the corridor and then, after making sure his shoes were tied tight, began running. He ran down the corridor as fast as he could then once he reached the other end he turned and ran back. Then turned and ran down once more. He didn't even reach the other end because Peter began shrieking.

He skidded to a stop and spun around, staring at the doorway that had appeared. Running back and forth seemed to be what opened the room. Though that certainly was a strange way.

"YOU DID IT!" Peter screamed, throwing his arms around Remus and hugging him tightly before going to the door. "Oh thank MERLIN! I was so scared that—that—" He stopped speaking as soon as he opened the door.

"What is it?" Remus asked, panting a bit from the exertion.

"This… isn't the… room…"

Remus peered around Peter, eyes going huge at the sight in front of him. It was an enormous room. Bigger than where he had left the marks on the wall, that was for sure. And it was crammed full of things. So. Many. Things. Furniture of all kinds, books, lamps, pots, candelabras, mirrors, empty bottles, full bottles, a catapult, clothes, suits of armor, a life-sized stuffed troll… it was an endless sea of stuff.

"This isn't the room," Peter said again, rather stupidly. "This—my room was smaller, a lot smaller. It only had some couches 'n stuff in it. Not like this. It wasn't—this isn't right."

Remus was still looking around, mostly at the piles of books. Old books, new books, torn books, shiny books, floating books, even one book that oozed water and sat in its own little puddle.

"This isn't where I left my bag," Peter said desperately, tugging hard at Remus's arm to get his attention.

"Huh?"

"My bag!"

Remus took in a deep breath, tearing his gaze away from one ancient-looking tome that seemed to be calling his name. "Your bag?"

"This isn't the room!"

"It's… here though. Where you said the room was." Remus pointed. "Is that the couch you hid behind?"

Peter gave a disgusted sort of sound. "No! Come here." He pulled Remus back and began pointing. "It was probably only as big as—oh." The door disappeared. Remus swore and ran forward, pressing his hands where the door had been. "Sorry."

"It's okay. I think you need to run back and forth three times to get the door to open," Remus said, folding his arms tightly and studying the wall. The storage room had been so, so, so much bigger than the chalk marks on the wall. If Theodore had gone through the wall there… he should have been in the room.

Unless…

"It's more than one room."

"What?"

He began bouncing a little on his toes, excitement sweeping through his body. "Pete, I think it's more than one room. It's your room and the storage room. See? Theodore should have gone into the storage room but he didn't. Maybe… it opens up every other time?"

"So if I run back and forth now it'll be the room I left my bag in?"

Remus shrugged. "Maybe."

Peter nodded and then took off, running back and forth three times and sure enough the door appeared again. He and Remus rushed over and when they looked in… it was the room Peter had described. A small lounge sort of room, with cushy couches and chairs, low tables, rugs, soft lighting… It was so much smaller than the other room.

"My bag!" Peter ran in and picked his bag up, going through it to make sure everything was there. "You did it!"

"I want to test something," Remus said. "You stay in here, count to twenty, then come out."

He hurried outside, shutting the door behind him. When he turned, the door was gone. Fifteen seconds later it appeared again as Peter came out, disappearing once more when it shut.

"Right, so the door goes away even if someone's in there. That's why Mulciber and Bulstrode couldn't find you. There was no door."

Peter shouldered his bag. "So if we run back and forth again, it'll be that room of stuff again?"

Remus bit at the inside of his cheek, thinking. It didn't make much sense for a room to go back and forth between two rooms like that. There had to be something more. Maybe it depended on the person? But why would it do that? Why would it give Peter the lounge room and Remus the storage room? Especially since the lounge room was perfect for what Peter needed, since the storage room would have overwhelmed him and he'd probably have just stood in the doorway too long. Coincidence? Or…?

"You got that look on your face. You're thinking hard."

"I am," Remus said, pacing as he tried to sort his thoughts out in a logical manner. The room appeared when you ran back and forth three times. It gave Peter what he needed at the time. But why give Remus a storage room? He hadn't needed a storage room, he needed Peter's room.

Except you thought it was a storage room, he told himself, stopping in his tracks. You expected a storage room. It gave you a storage room. Peter expected—

No, Peter hadn't expected anything. So why…?

Peter WANTED.

Remus's mouth hung open and he stared blankly ahead. Peter wanted a hiding spot, and got a hiding spot. Remus expected a storage room, and got a storage room. Maybe if he expected—wanted—the lounge he'd get the lounge.

Whirling around, he began running back and forth three times, focusing on the lounge, needing the lounge, wanting the lounge. The door appeared again and he flung it open, grinning when the lounge room appeared before him. Before Peter could do anything Remus shut the door and began running again, this time focusing on the storage room. After the third time he opened the door and laughed triumphantly at the sight of the storage room.

"Erm…" Peter coughed. "Can you maybe fill me in?"

"It's a room of want," he said, shutting the door and beaming at Peter. "Or a room of need? Expectations? No, not expectations. Want, I think, is the closest thing. Maybe need; that makes more sense for you though not for me, when I got it the first time. Want. Need?"

"You're babbling."

Remus took in a deep breath, then realized how tired he was from all the running. One more time, he thought, preparing to run. Then… Why run? He went back and forth three times, not going very far. The door appeared. Thank Merlin. He grabbed Peter and pulled him into the lounge, flopping down on one of the super comfy couches. To his surprise there was a pitcher of water on the table, and two glasses. He was tempted to pour himself a glass but wasn't sure if he trusted it.

"It changes between this room and the storage room depending on which one you need," Remus explained. "Or… are thinking about? You passed by three times needing a hiding spot so it gave you this room, someplace easier to hide out in than the storage room on quick notice. When I went past it the first time, even though we wanted this room… I was thinking it would be a storage room, so it gave us the storage room."

Peter looked around the room in awe. "So it gives us what we want?"

"Or need, or—or are thinking about," Remus confirmed excitedly, itching to go back to the storage room and look through some of the books.

Now Pete was grinning again. "James and Sirius are going to absolutely flip out!"

Remus imagined showing them the two rooms, knowing they were indeed going to flip out over them. Especially the storage room. Although he knew they'd want to really explore the storage room and look at everything which would probably take a while. They couldn't do it that night since the others wouldn't even be back until after curfew. Nor could they do it during a free period. And Remus helped Jean-Marie on Thursday evenings, so they would put it back until around seven and only give them an hour. He knew they'd need more time than that.

"Let's not tell them until the weekend," he said and Pete frowned. "Friday, after Quidditch practice. That way we'll have loads of time to check out the storage room."

"Why not tomorrow night?"

"We'd only have an hour before curfew," he said. "I mean, I know that doesn't mean much to them but I don't like staying out too late. Plus I just think it would be better to spend the time without having to worry about classes the next day."

Pete rolled his eyes. "Um, no offense but you're the only one who worries about classes the next day."

He felt his cheeks going a little red. "All right, yes, that's true. But still. I'd rather us have an entire evening free. And that way we also have the weekend ahead of us, and they won't be tempted to skip class."

"Yeah. All right, yeah, I can keep it a secret till Friday." He began giggling, rubbing his hands together. "They're gonna go wild though, oh Merlin! And we discovered it! Not them!"

"You did," Remus pointed out.

Peter looked pleased. "You figured out how to get in."

"Yes, but you discovered it." He didn't add that he wanted Peter to have all the credit because he knew Pete needed it more than he did. "Now come on, we better get back to the dorm before they come back from practice."

They left the room and the door disappeared behind them. Remus stared at the blank wall for a second before walking off, excited to figure out what secrets the storage room held.