The next day, Harry, Hermione, and Kreacher received an unexpected, but not necessarily unwelcome visitor.

At 1 P.M. Number Twelve Grimmald Place time, Kreacher was taking a nap while Harry and Hermione were quietly sitting on a white Ashley Furniture sofa in the living room.

To their surprise, it was Remus Lupin who approached them.

"Hi, Harry, Hi, Hermione," said Remus stiffly, "Can we talk?"

"Yes," replied Harry and Hermione together simply.

"Can you tell me what you two have been up to and will be up to while you are away from Hogwarts?"

"No," said Harry matter of factly, "I'm sorry Remus, but if Dumbledore didn't tell you, then I don't think I can or should. "

"Ginny admitted over the summer to being curious about that," acknowledged Hermione, "But we didn't tell her anything about our mission and she understood the need for as few people as possible to know about it for as long as possible."

"I thought you'd say that," admitted Remus calmly, "Nevertheless, you know what I am and what I am capable of doing. I would like to offer my services to you. You don't have to tell me exactly what you are up to all the time. But I'm sure James would want me to stick with you."

"Actually," retorted Harry, "I think he'd want to know why you aren't sticking with your own kid."

A very squeamish and uncomfortable look came across Remus's face.

"I have left Tonks," sighed Remus bitterly, "My kind don't usually reproduce. I may have passed on my condition of Lycanthropy on to an innocent child! And if by some miracle, this child is not like me, it will be a million times better off without a father that it must always be ashamed of."

Harry and Hermione both saw the problem at once. Remus was trying to run away from his responsibilities and his self-loathing was also causing him to make bad, rash decisions."

"Remus Lupin," said Harry in a crystal clear voice, looking him straight in the eyes, "You are being a huge fucking asshole to abandon your wife and child."

Remus had a very shocked look come across his face, though he kept his composure.

"You are also making a very poor decision from a practical standpoint," added Hermione.

"When you chose to have a child with Tonks," growled Harry, "You took on a moral responsibility of being there for that child and of being there for Tonks as she helped to raise the child."

"And," added Hermione, "If this child does indeed have Lycanthropy, you would be well positioned to help show Tonks the ropes about raising a child like that entails precisely because of your own Lycanthropy. Since you know what it's like, the wisdom you could impart on Tonks as she helps raise the child and on the child itself would be invaluable."

"Remus," said Harry sharply, "You are making a morally reprehensible choice rashly out of your own self-loathing. And it's not the first time your self-loathing nature has caused you to make a morally reprehensible decision."

"In Harry's and my third year at Hogwarts, when you were our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher," Hermione reminded him, "You knew that Sirius was an unregistered animagus. But you didn't tell Dumbledore that you knew this out of not wanting Dumbledore to be disappointed in you for leading three students to become unregistered animagi while you were a Hogwarts student."

"If," said Harry heavily, "Sirius had actually been guilty of the crimes he was accused of, and if he really had been a powerful Dark Wizard, your silence could have led toa mass murder at Hogwarts."

"Staying silent was the wrong thing to do then," barked Hermione, "And abandoning your wife and child now is the wrong thing to do."

"Parents," said Harry in a very serious voice, "Shouldn't leave their kids unless, unless they've got to. As someone who was orphaned as a baby and understands that there is no worse tragedy than a child losing a parent, I am ashamed to see a parent abandon a child because of his own internal personal struggles."

"Remus," said Hermione bluntly, "Tonks needs you and your child needs you."

"Remus," said Harry quietly, "Think about this: Put yourself in Tonks's position. How do you think she feels about having her husband abandon her and her child because of internal personal struggle. Just as importantly, put yourself in the child's shoes, not just now, but down the road. Imagine what it would be like to be abandoned by a parent because of the parents' internal personal struggles."

"After you reflect on this," interjected Hermione, "We hope that you will reconsider your decision."

For the next few minutes and the next few nanoseconds, Remus stood silently with a very thoughtful look on his face.

Finally, Remus said, "Harry, Hermione, people should listen to you two, your instincts are almost always right."

"You're going back to Tonks and the baby then, right?" Hermione asked him to confirm.

"If she will accept me back," said Remus quietly.

"I think she will forgive you and accept your return," said Harry confidently, "Tonks genuinely loves you and would be willing to put any personal pride aside to continue the relationship. Moreover, I know that Tonks is a person with a high forgiveness coefficient."

"She's also smart and introspective," piped up Hermione, "Tonks will appreciate the value of having you as a mentor to raise a child with Lycanthropy, if the baby proves to have that condition. If not, you can still offer both Tonks and the baby plenty of practical help because of your skill as a wizard and dense academic knowledge."

"I was being selfish," admitted Remus, "I was trying to avoid potentially challenging responsibilities. Moreover, my self-loathing led me to choose to isolate myself to avoid dealing with who I am and my life's circumstances. Harry, you had the smartest line of all when you said that parents shouldn't leave their kids unless they've got to. James would be very proud of you for standing up to me."

And with that, Remus walked away and left, on his way back to Tonks and his baby.

Harry and Hermione, meanwhile, smiled at each other, feeling optimistic that their words had saved a marriage and a parent child relationship.