Chapter 14

Both Remus and Sirius plopped down on the couch, back at Lupin Cottage, exhausted and bloodied but alive.

"Well, that was fairly easy wasn't it." Remus mused out loud.

"I had planned to take care of him for a while Lupin, it was easy because it was planned, we had the element of surprise and Greyback was pretty weak for a werewolf." Tom replied, then added "Dumbledore could barely control him back then, and definitely did not offer him any kind of protection or pardon, Greyback and his pack had to flee once the violence was over. Dumbledore used him for his violent tendencies to spread fear and horror, to rally the troops so to speak but he's always been more of a wild animal than man."

"He fled to the continent, and lost the majority of his pack along the way, and became weak from stress and hunger himself. A life on the run. Besides, Dumbledore likely completely controls him through either an unbreakable vow, control over someone he cares about or something else, but he never uttered a word to anyone even though he knew who gave him his orders. Also, he came back running when Dumbledore called. I honestly don't think I want to know how he made Greyback into such a lapdog."

Remus shuddered, "Right, well at least he's been dealt with and won't bite children or terrorise anyone anymore.

Thank you for that, he irrevocably changed my life when I was 4 years old, because he disagreed with my father, I really needed the circle to close."

Tom sighed, "He didn't bite you because he disagreed with your father or wanted to teach him a lesson Remus. You were attacked on Dumbledore's orders, the plan to have a grateful werewolf lackey had been in the works for a while, it wasn't a decision he made at the last minute. I assume he grew tired of barely being able to control Greyback, but also needed a werewolf who wasn't a complete psychopath."

Remus closed his eyes, his head resting on the top of the couch. It had been a very confusing and exhausting day. He was glad Greyback couldn't hurt anyone anymore, and he knew Azkaban wouldn't have been able to hold him anyway. The mind-blowing revelations that completely shifted his worldview, however, were a bit much. If he didn't trust Padfoot as much as he did, he probably would have never believed it, it sounded like a very far fetched conspiracy theory. However, it made sense, it filled the holes he could see in the narrative and all the questions he had since the war, or even before really.

No one knew what really happened the day James and Lily were killed, but the "official" story was leaked almost immediately, a victory for the Order, a baby surviving the Killing Curse and a mother sacrificing herself to save her son. It was a really beautiful story, but it was only a story.

Remus didn't think he was ready to hear how his friends really died.

Tom stood up, "Right, I better get back home, I really want to hear how Hermione's first day back at Hogwarts went. I believe Severus will be by shortly."

"I'll tell him you said hello!" Tom added with a wink to Remus and promptly apparated away with a pop.

"What was that?!" Remus asked a bit panicked and cheeks flushed.

Sirius groaned.