Chapter 6

As the wait neared an hour, Remus was growing more impatient. If Sirius was correct, he might be in danger. Every time he heard a noise, he jumped. His hand kept going to his wand as he prepared to defend himself. Though, from what Sirius had told him about Wendy, he doubted he would have a chance to defend himself against the Dark Magic she knew. She seemed very well versed in obscure magic and most of the defenses he knew were against the more common Dark spells.

He decided to go wait in the library. Perhaps he could find something interesting in one of the books there. Of course, she had indicated the books on Dark Magic were at her family home, but the Westin family had also supported dark wizards in the past.

Cappa stopped him in the foyer. "Sir, please, where is you going?" she asked nervously.

"I'm going to wait in the library. I thought that I might read a book until Wendy returns."

Cappa once again looked around nervously, trying to decide if she could leave him in the library. "You may go the library, but sir must be staying there," she finally decided.

He began perusing the shelves, impressed by her vast collection. There were many very rare tomes, and he couldn't help but notice the number that dealt with some aspect of Dark Magic. After choosing a book, he settled into an overstuffed armchair.

Checking the clock, he could see that he had been waiting nearly two hours. He was contemplating returning to Grimmauld Place and letting Albus know that she had not been home yet. He was also getting quite hungry, since it was well past dinnertime. As he set his book down, the library door opened.

"What do you want?" Wendy asked gruffly. She didn't like having uninvited guests, and he was not only uninvited, but unwanted.

"I've come about the ring," he replied.

She crossed her arms and asked defensively, "What about it?"

"Sirius says that it is dangerous..." He realized how stupid this must sound. She had already accused him of blindly following Sirius and he had denied it.

She mocked, "Of course 'Sirius says,' and we know he doesn't trust me. Typical. Of course, since he can't leave, he sent you. And you agreed to this?" she asked in a condescending tone of voice.

"Well, yes," he admitted sheepishly. He watched her sit at the desk and begin sorting through a stack of mail. "Where is the ring?"

"Safe," she replied shortly as she perused her correspondence.

"Safe?" What did that mean? Had she already turned it over to the Death Eaters? He somehow doubted there had been anyone in the Department of Mysteries to take custody of the ring at this hour on a Friday.

She looked up at him. "I thought we had gotten past the point where you believed everything Black said about me? I haven't turned it over to the Death Eaters and I have no plans to do so. I have put it someplace safe until I can turn it over on Monday. Those who can destroy it don't work on the weekends. So, since it's not here, you may leave," she said dismissively.

"Actually, no, I can't. Sirius sent word to Albus, and I'll be remaining here with you in case he orders it returned."

She sighed. "I assure you, he won't." She put down the letter she was attempting to read. "Let's theorize that I did turn it over to the Death Eaters. Wouldn't it be better for you if you weren't here when word comes from Albus that I am to turn it over to you? If I were a Death Eater, I would react very poorly to being discovered. I could just Obliviate you and all you would report is that you waited here and I wasn't at home. After all, according to Black, I am a dangerous Dark sorceress that is not to be trusted."

"You wouldn't do that," he replied semi-confidently.

She smirked at him. "How do you know?"

"Because you aren't that type of person. Yes, you know things about Dark Magic that very few know, but you don't strike me as the type of person to do that sort of thing."

"Exactly!" she said triumphantly. "I'm honorable in my own way and I definitely take my oaths seriously. Not the traditional way, but I am loyal to the Order and committed to defeating the Dark Lord." She saw him cringe. "What?"

"You said Dark Lord," he replied uncomfortably.

She suddenly realized why it had bothered him. "Oh, right. I know that's how the Death Eaters refer to him, but look at the environment I was in. Grow up. I've heard you refer to him by his name. I am truly tired of having to continue to try to convince all of you I'm loyal to the Order. The Black family is even less upstanding than either the Leah or Westin families and no one questions his loyalty. And do you know why? Because he was sorted into Gryffindor." That one little fact that people still couldn't get past her Hogwarts House affiliation bothered her.

"You're really going to wait here until you hear from Albus, aren't you?" She was growing tired of this conversation.

"Yes," he replied firmly.

She sighed. "And I suppose you've been here since I left Grimmauld Place?"

"Basically, yes."

"Then you might was well join me for dinner since I have no idea how long you're going to be waiting here for a reply." She finished sorting through her mail and headed to the dining room without saying anything further.

They sat in, what Remus considered, an uncomfortable silence until about the halfway point of the meal when he decided he had to say something. "You have some interesting books in your collection."

"They come in handy as an Auror." She was spared the necessity of further conversation when Cappa brought a letter into the dining room. She unfurled it, read it quickly and handed it over to Remus. "I'm sure Black will be thrilled." She resumed eating her meal with a victorious smile.

He read the letter twice. He knew that Sirius would not be happy.

Wendy,

I know that Sirius will not be pleased at my decision, but it stands. The less said to the others about the ring, the better.

It was not signed, but the handwriting was unmistakably Albus'. "No, I'm sure Sirius will be livid." He was not looking forward to returning home. He wiped his mouth with his napkin. "Well, thank you for the dinner. I'd best be on my way."

"Good luck with Black," she replied. While she felt no particular friendship towards Lupin, she was well aware of how horrible one of Black's bad moods could be and did not wish that on anyone. Once again, she found herself wondering why someone like Lupin had befriended Black.

He turned and smiled at her. "Thank you." That was one of the few times she had been decent to him.

Remus was waiting in the kitchen with the other members of the Order. The only one they were expecting who had not yet arrived was Wendy. He wanted to trust her; she had seemed very sincere yesterday.

"Figures that she wouldn't show up," whispered Sirius.

"I think we can trust her. I told you that last night." He had listened to Sirius vent last night when he returned home and had tried to defend Wendy, but Sirius hadn't listened.

"Oh, yeah. She took two hours getting from here to her place and now she's late tonight. Real trustworthy," said Sirius sarcastically.

Remus was glad that Albus started the meeting. He really didn't want to get into another argument with Sirius. Wendy had been correct about Sirius not changing his mind.

It was fifteen minutes into the meeting before Wendy arrived. Her clothes looked somewhat disheveled. She walked up to the table and deposited a book in front of Albus. He picked up the book and flipped through the empty pages before looking up at her.

"This is the book I was telling you about." Since all the chairs were taken, she conjured herself a chair and sat on it backwards so she could rest her arms on the back of the chair.

Remus thought she looked very much like the proverbial cat that ate the canary.

"Thank you, Wendelin. I will see that someone with proper skills gets to work on deciphering it." He gave her a look that said he needed to speak with her after the meeting was over.

She wasn't surprised by his reaction. There was no doubt in her mind that she would be chastised for what she had done to get the book. Even though she was working for the Order, she wasn't going to completely change her methods. There were times when Aurors were required to work alone, and she had decided this was one of them.

Reports were given and new assignments were handed out. Overall, the meeting was useful, but Wendy still thought they were moving too slowly, being too cautious. The Death Eaters were not well organized and not large in number. The Dark Lord was most vulnerable now, yet they were giving him time to gather new followers.

"If there are no further questions, that concludes our meeting," said Albus. He stood and gave Wendy a quick glance before walking out of the room.

Sirius snorted. "Serves her right. Hopefully Dumbledore will take her to task for what she's done."

Remus found himself hoping she hadn't gotten herself in too much trouble. He knew why she had decided to retrieve the book and, while it might not have been the wisest decision, it would hopefully provide them with some valuable information. Her methods definitely had the potential help their cause.

Once the door to the drawing room was secured, Albus held up the book. "Would you care to tell me how you came to possess this book?"

She lounged in one of the chairs, trying to act like she wasn't intimidated. Albus had always been able to let people know when he was disappointed. "I had some time this morning and decided to pay our Death Eater cell leader a visit. He remembered me from the pub the other night and was more than happy to invite me in. Once inside, neutralizing him and finding the book was easy enough. Don't worry, he has no memory of what happened."

"And if Voldemort uses Legilimency to verify his story on the loss of the book?" While Wendy had hung out with a mischievous crowd at Hogwarts, she had never been outright disobedient when specifically ordered not to do something. While her reputation as an Auror was that of one willing to skirt the rules, she had an impeccable disciplinary record.

"Do you honestly think he's that important? I don't. Besides, his mind was a mess. I doubt my work would be noticed," she commented off-handedly, refusing to be intimidated or feel guilty for doing what she knew was right.

Albus sat across from her, looking at her sternly. "Wendelin, if you are going to be a part of the Order, you need to be able to take orders and respect authority. I know that you have been granted a certain amount of latitude within the Ministry, but that does not extend here. You have been assigned a partner for good reason. With two people working together, it reduces the risk of capture. I know that you do not care for werewolves, you made that abundantly clear in your letter, but it will not change the assignment of Remus as your partner. The two of you are particularly suited to work together. His heightened senses make him an excellent match for the type of work I have assigned the two of you and he is rather adept at defending against the Dark Arts. Do you have any further questions about my expectations?"

She clenched her jaw, forcing herself not to talk back to him. "No."

"Excellent. I trust there will be no more solo excursions?" he asked sternly.

She met his eyes, refusing to be intimidated. "No."

He sighed. "Even though you operated against my express orders, excellent job on retrieving the book. Even if we can't infiltrate Voldemort's communication network, we may be able to use something similar."

She watched him leave before getting up. She hated being treated like a child. They had recruited her, and now they were limiting her ability to do her job. She was actually getting used to working with Lupin, but there were some things it was better if she did alone. Unfortunately, she had now promised to play by their rules. She sighed and headed back down to the kitchen.

On her way down stairs, she saw Severus loitering in the front hall. She entered the dining room, eager to speak with him in private. "You got my message?" she asked after disarming the room.

"I did. You have really found it?" he asked eagerly.

She nodded. "I knew it was here, well, I hoped it would still be here. I was going to turn it over to the Department of Mysteries, but I have a bad feeling about the whole situation. I can't say what it is, but something is going on with the Unspeakables and I don't trust them with it." She reached into her pocket and pulled out a ring. "Can you keep this at Hogwarts? I would feel safer with it there."

Severus accepted the ring and slipped it into his pocket after only the briefest glance. "Of course. No one will know that I have it."

"That's best. The others believe I'm taking it to be destroyed. I may want it back at some point, but for now, it's safer with you. I have a good set of wards at home, but nothing compared to those at Hogwarts." She stopped talking as she tried to place the sound she had just heard from the hallway. Dismissing it as someone going up the stairs, she continued in a whisper, "I'll be going into the library sometime after the children leave. There may be some books that would interest you there. If you have any titles you wanted to add to your collection, let me know and I'll save them from the purging."

"That would be appreciated. I heard that a great many artifacts were destroyed in the last purge," he replied.

"I noticed what was missing more than what was thrown out. They've even done some cleaning here. They don't seem to understand the value in studying those artifacts," she replied sadly.

"I was quite surprised to see that you have not managed to secure a new partner," he said dryly.

"It's not for lack of trying. Albus seems convinced we are perfectly suited for working together. I will admit his refined senses have been of some use and, quite surprisingly, he is a quick study for fieldwork. Speaking of which, I need to get back downstairs. Send me an owl for any books you might like. I'll see what I can do."

Remus was waiting in the kitchen when Wendy returned. He thought she looked angry more than anything else.

She poured herself a cup of tea. "There's a valise in the front hall that has some suitable attire," she said shortly.

He nodded and left to change. Once in his room, he pulled out the clothes. They were well tailored and looked practically new. Of course, one living a life of privilege got rid of clothes once they began to show the first signs of wear. He should have expected no less from her.

After changing, he could not help but look in the mirror and think about how different his life would have been if he had not been bitten. He sighed, knowing there was no way to change the past. He had always made the best of the situation, no matter how dire.

When he returned, she was alone and in a worse mood than when he left. Obviously, Sirius had decided to antagonize her again.

"About time," she replied tersely. "Let's go."

"Is there anything you want to talk about before we leave?" He hoped that if she opened up, it might dispel some of her bad mood.

"No. I don't know how you live under the same roof with that man," she spat.

"What did he do this time?" He knew full well that she was referring to Sirius.

"Oh, nothing special. Just being his usual spiteful self," she replied casually.

"You could be a little less spiteful to him yourself," he reprimanded.

She pointed an accusatory finger at him. "Do not blame any of this on me. I'm perfectly content ignoring him. He is the one that continues to make an issue of my existence. He hates me for what I did to him as child. Now, add to that list the fact I know more about this house than he does and that makes it even worse. He had the nerve to demand I give him back the ring and let him in the library. Neither one of those two things is going to happen. I really don't want to talk about him. Let's go." Actually, Black had done more than demand. The two of them had ended up with wands pointed at each other and only Moody's intervention had prevented them from launching hexes at each other. She didn't know what he had intended, but she had been planning on something much worse than turning him into a Flobberworm.

Remus returned to the house early Sunday morning to find Sirius still up. "Couldn't sleep?" he asked.

"Truth be told, I was worried." He had feared that Wendy might take out some of her hostility towards him on Remus. She had never seemed too discriminatory in her youth. "I heard her talking to Snape before you left. I couldn't really make out the words, but I thought I heard something about books. Whenever two Slytherins start whispering, it makes me nervous, especially those two. They're scheming something."

Remus took a seat and grabbed a bottle of butterbeer. "I think that she would have done something to me already if she wanted to. You can probably quit worrying about my safety." It had actually been an almost pleasant evening. As long as he didn't mention anything having to do with Sirius, he found that her mood improved. She had almost been friendly toward him.

Sirius looked at Remus suspiciously. "Your problem is that you're too eager to trust people."

"Your problem is that you hold a grudge. It's been twenty years, can't you admit that she's changed?" He took a seat next to Sirius at the table.

"No," he replied gruffly. "You saw how she has disregarded the rules. And I don't trust anyone that comfortable with Dark Magic. She knows too many secrets of this house and doesn't seem eager to give them up. Doesn't that sound suspicious to you?" What would it take to convince Remus he was wrong to place his trust in her? He feared it would take serious injury. Of course, Albus had not listened to his concerns either.

"We'll see, once the children are gone. She said she would open the library once they left," he defended. He knew how much Sirius had hated his family, and even though Wendy was not a direct relation, she had strong ties to his cousins.

"Do you want to bet on it?" Sirius asked, sure that he would win this bet. "And in order for you to win, she would have to open it without any prompting."

"You know I don't have anything to bet." Sirius always liked to bet on things. Normally, Remus did not like to make wagers because it only accentuated his Spartan lifestyle.

"How about cooking duties for a week after everyone leaves? You know Molly has said she's not staying here after the kids go back to school," Sirius offered. He was almost positive he was going to win this bet and since he hated cooking anyway, it seemed like a bet that would benefit him greatly.

"If I won the bet, I would still lose. Your cooking is horrible." He watched Sirius for a few seconds before they both burst out in laughter. He finished off his butterbeer. "It's late and I'm off to bed. She has a scouting mission lined up in the morning. Good night."

The following two days were uneventful. The Death Eaters seemed to be lying low. Remus and Wendy spent Sunday in Glasgow and, other than hearing about some minor anti-Muggle mischief, were unable to uncover anything of importance. Remus had to admit this was a tiring mission. Of course, most of the work the Order was doing now seemed yield little immediate reward.

They were walking down the street in Edinburgh late Monday, enjoying the cool night air after the stifling air of the last pub, when Wendy suddenly yanked him into an alley. He watched her peer cautiously around the corner. "What is it?" he whispered as he tried to determine who or what she was looking at, his hand wrapped around his wand in his pocket.

"My brother and his family," she replied sadly.

He watched as she moved out of the shadows to keep an eye on them as they made their way to a nearby restaurant. He saw a man and a woman, both in their forties, a young woman, probably in her early twenties, and young teenage girl. He shifted his gaze to her when he heard her whisper, "Andorra." He watched her come back into the alley and lean against the wall with her eyes slammed shut. She sank down to the ground and pressed her hands against her eyes as if trying to block a painful memory. "Wendy?" he asked gently as he knelt next to her. He knew that it must hurt for her to see the family that had disowned her, but this reaction seemed to be something far more intense.

She wiped a lone tear off her cheek. "I'm sorry," she apologized. It wasn't like her to lose her composure like this. She had always prided herself on maintaining control.

"What's wrong? Was it something to do with your brother's family? I heard you whisper 'Andorra.' Is that your niece's name?" He thought she might have been referring to her lycanthropic niece.

"No, she's my daughter," she replied sadly. She could see the look of shock in Remus' face.

"Your daughter?" he asked incredulously.

Her voice took on a distant quality and she stared at the far side of the alley, "I was pregnant when Edgar was arrested and she was born while he was in Azkaban. I was distraught over the whole affair and couldn't really take care of myself, let alone a baby. My brother knew this and was awarded temporary custody. At that time, I lived with him, but I didn't see much of her. I didn't want to be reminded of what Edgar had done and that's exactly what she was, a reminder. When she was about a year old, I started to pull my life back together. I wanted some sort of purpose, something more to life than raising a child that reminded me of a traitorous husband.

"Through family influence, I got a decent job at the Ministry, but it didn't make me happy. I didn't think I was making a difference. True, the Dark Lord was gone by that time, but pushing paper and writing speeches didn't satisfy me. I started talking with some of the Aurors and I thought that was a field suited to my particular talents. They were still chasing around those claiming to be the Dark Lord reborn and all that nonsense. I knew that my knowledge of Dark Magic would be useful. That's when I decided to become an Auror.

"At first, my family humored me, figuring I would never be selected or if I was, that I wouldn't make it through training. I even suspect my brother tried to block my acceptance. Once I was accepted, my family used that as proof that I was definitely not fit to be a parent and they petitioned for full custody. Of course, they won, since they are the Leahs. The fact I didn't fight the ruling helped, too. I still had visitation rights up until the incident with the werewolf. That was the last time I saw her from anything more than a distance. That was about ten years ago. I'm sure she's forgotten all about me by now."

He could hear the pain and loss in her voice and comforted her by embracing her. She collapsed into his arms and he could feel her sobbing. He rubbed her back reassuringly, hoping it would help her calm down. "Would you like me to take you home?" he asked after a few minutes when her sobbing began to subside.

Pulling out a handkerchief, she wiped her eyes. "I'll be fine. We have work to do." She still couldn't believe how weak she was and it angered her. Seeing her family should not have bothered her like this.

He looked into her eyes, which were red and swollen. "You're not fine. We can always come back out later." He helped her to her feet. "Right now you need some time to recover." There was no way she would be of any use tonight. No matter what happened, her mind would be preoccupied. It really was best to get her home.

She really didn't feel like arguing and pulled her locket out of her dress. "Here, touch this. It's a Portkey to my foyer."

"Why didn't we use this when you were injured?" he asked.

"Because I lost it and had to go back for it later." She touched her wand to it and they both felt the pull of Portkey activation.

Remus led her into the drawing room and asked Cappa to bring them something to drink, hoping it would help calm Wendy.

She took the drink without question and stared off into the distance. "She's beautiful, isn't she? She's growing up so quickly now."

"She's a very beautiful girl," Remus agreed. Using this as an opening point, he asked, "She's starting her third year at Hogwarts, isn't she?"

"Yes. How did you know?" She was taken aback by the accuracy of his knowledge.

"I taught there her first year. I remember her from my class. She was very bright and eager to learn, though I thought she knew quite a bit more than an eleven year old should." When he saw the look of confusion on her face, he added, "I taught Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"Ah, yes, that's a bit of a family trait. She no doubt learned some of it from my brother and some from my niece. Bella and I were very good in that class, though we were smart enough not to let on how much we really knew." She gulped down the remainder of her brandy.

"Did your niece attend Hogwarts as well?" he asked as he refilled her glass, hoping she would drink this glass a little more slowly, though it might not be all bad if she passed out.

She shook her head and accepted her refilled glass. "No. My brother sent her to Durmstrang because of her condition. He didn't want anyone here in Britain to find out what she was. I'm actually surprised he sent Andorra to Hogwarts. I thought for sure he would send her as far from me as he could. At least there is the chance I can see her during her Hogsmeade visits this year."

She looked into his eyes. "I worry about her. I can only imagine that with the Dark Lord's return, my brother has renewed his ties. I don't want to see her hurt. I know my brother's smart and it kept him out of jail last time, but I don't know if he can repeat that performance this time." A part of her wanted to be the one that saw her brother brought to justice since he had been the one to recruit Edgar and turn her life completely upside down.

He moved closer to her so he could place his arm around her to reassure her that she wasn't alone.

She welcomed his warm embrace and snuggled against him. It had been so long since she had been with someone who would just hold her. He really wasn't a bad person, despite being a werewolf and a Gryffindor. "I'll see her again in a few days at King's Cross. I only wish I could talk with her, get to know her. I know she sees Timor and Elena as her parents, but I just wish I could be a part of her life again but it won't happen. If I talk to her, Timor will see that I am punished. He's made it clear that I am to have no contact with her," she said forlornly. Yes, after the werewolf incident he had made it quite clear that he had enough influence at the Ministry to see that I would be fired if I disobeyed.

He continued to hold her. There was nothing he could say that would make it better. Instead he kissed the top of her head.

After several minutes, she said, "Thank you."

"For what?" He was confused.

"For being here, for listening, for not judging me. You could have called me selfish or told me that I brought this upon myself," she replied.

"That's what friends do," he replied as he rubbed her arm.

"After how horrible I've been to you, you consider yourself my friend?" It was odd for her to have someone say that. Even among her coworkers, Kingsley was the closest she had to a friend. Most of the others had a hard time accepting her for what she was and the way she did things.

"I'd like to, if you'll let me. I'm really not a bad person." He tried to sound upbeat, but wasn't sure he had succeeded. He knew how lonely it could be as an outsider and he had never wanted anything more than to make her feel welcome in the Order. Unfortunately, she had let her hatreds of both werewolves and Sirius cloud her perception of him.

She sighed. "I know." After a short pause, she added, "I'm sorry."

"Whatever for?" he asked. He had not expected her to apologize for anything.

"For treating you the way I did. I acted like a real git, every bit as bad as Sirius. Will you forgive me for the way I acted?"

He nuzzled her hair, enjoying the scent of her shampoo. "Of course. Though, I think now I can understand why you behaved the way you did. You blame that one werewolf for the ostracism from your family and the loss of your daughter and you chose to take it out on all of us."

She nodded and sat up so that she could look into his eyes. Taking hold of his hands, she said, "I'm sorry about that. You really are a decent fellow. Thanks again for looking out for me. I know I've been a real pill about the whole thing."

"Yes, you have," he replied playfully. He didn't like her "decent fellow" comment, and tried to hide the sting those words delivered. That was too much like the infamous, "let's just be friends." In fact, he had dated women who had claimed he was too nice. Sirius, the bad boy, had always had more luck with the girls in school.

"Well, you didn't have to agree with me." She returned his smile.

"You know, you're quite beautiful when you smile. You should do it more often." He brushed a stray lock of hair off her face. The hard edge that was normally part of her expression was gone.

She self-consciously ran her fingers through her hair and looked away from him. She wasn't the type of person that normally got compliments anymore. Even in her youth, she had always paled in comparison to the Black sisters and had rarely been called anything more than pretty. "I don't normally have much reason to smile." Right now she was a mess of conflicting emotions and sitting in Remus' arms wasn't helping matters. It had been several years since her last boyfriend. "I think I'm ready to go back out now."

As she stood up, he closed his eyes and sighed. He wasn't really ready to leave, but they did have a job to do. He stood and moved to face her, trying to control his anxiety. "I was wondering, I know we spend a lot of time together, but I thought perhaps you might like to have a quiet dinner some day?" he asked nervously. Now that he had said it, he thought about how stupid it sounded. Not only did it sound stupid, but he also realized he really had no way to pay for dinner.

She could see the change in his expression and quickly figured out why he was suddenly uncomfortable about a suggestion he had made. "My work week is unpredictable, but I could send you an owl and we could have a quiet dinner here. Cappa's quite an excellent chef, though I'm not sure how much advance warning I could give you."

He smiled warmly, thankful that she hadn't rejected his offer. "That would be nice. And don't worry about the short notice, I'm used to doing things that way." He was glad that the air between them finally seemed clear, though he did find it hard to concentrate on the task at hand with the promise of an intimate dinner in his future.

They got a few whiffs of Death Eater activity, but nothing they could follow up on. "I'll write a report for Albus when I get back," he offered.

"There's not much to report. Once again, we seem to have gotten a lot of empty leads." Working for the Order was even more frustrating than working for the Ministry. It took a large number of hours to turn up even the smallest bit of information. She knew they had to be cautious, but it didn't mean she had to like it.

"That's the way it's been all summer. And I think it will be that way for a while. The Death Eaters are being very secretive." There was a brief awkward silence before he continued, "I look forward to receiving your owl. And in case you've forgotten, I won't be able to patrol with you on your next off period, full moon, you know."

"Keep yourself safe when you're transformed. I won't know it's you." There was no spite in her voice, but genuine concern.

"Don't worry. Severus brews the Wolfsbane Potion for me and I sleep quite peacefully as a wolf. I don't go outside transformed. I don't know if I could bear hurting someone." There had been too many near misses while he had been at Hogwarts. He involuntarily shuddered as he recalled the time that only Sirius and James attacking him had prevented him from biting an unsuspecting farmer. For that matter, Sirius or James could have just as easily been his victims.

She hadn't noticed his reaction. "That's good to know. I'll let you know when I get a free evening." She stared at him awkwardly for a few seconds before flashing him a smile and disappearing with a crack.

Remus stared at the place she had stood for a few seconds. He should have kissed her, or at least hugged her. Something, anything was better than standing there with his feet frozen to the pavement. He was definitely out of practice as far as courting went. Unfortunately, there was no one he could ask for advice.

When he arrived back home, he was not surprised to find Sirius still awake. "Good evening, Sirius," he said jovially.

"You're in a very good mood. Did you find out something about the Death Eaters?" Sirius asked anxiously.

"Not exactly," Remus replied as he began digging through the upper shelves of the pantry.

"Then what?" Sirius asked. What could possibly have Remus so happy?

"A-ha!" Remus said as he emerged from the pantry with a bottle of Firewhisky. He waved two glasses to the table. "I knew she hadn't gotten rid of all of it. A toast."

"To what are we toasting?" Sirius asked suspiciously as he clinked glasses.

"I have broken though her exterior, invited her to dinner, and she accepted," Remus said victoriously.

Sirius spit out the mouthful of whisky. "You what? Are you mad?"

"I'm not mad. I'm happy. Sirius, she knows what I am and she isn't shunning me. She explained to me why she has a general hatred of werewolves and so much more." He leaned forward across the table. "She opened up to me. We really connected."

"Remus, you're delusional. She's using you." There is no way that Wendy could be serious in her intentions towards Remus. She was the type of person that didn't have a compassionate bone in her body.

"Well, thank you for trying to put a damper on my happiness, but it's not going to work. You weren't there. I was. Besides, what would she be using me for?" he retorted.

"So...When is this dinner?" Sirius asked cautiously.

"Not sure exactly. It depends on her schedule. She said she'd send me an owl." He would not let Sirius ruin his moment of joy.

"And you believed this?" Sirius leaned back in his chair and shook his head. "Remus, Remus, Remus, you have a lot to learn about women. She's not going to send you an owl, that's what they say they want to let you down gently." He knew Remus didn't have a lot of experience with women, but he never thought his friend would be this naïve.

Remus slammed his glass down, some of the liquid sloshing over the sides. "You're wrong. Please, don't ruin this for me."

Sirius placed a comforting hand on his friend's shoulder. "Remus, old friend, I don't want to see you hurt. She's not right for you," he pleaded.

"She's not the same person you knew. She's been through a lot since then. I'm going to bed before you ruin all my happiness." He drained the last of his whisky and headed upstairs. He reminded himself that Sirius had a very strong distrust of Wendy and that was sure to cloud his judgment of her. She had been correct; Sirius really didn't know her anymore. This evening, he had seen a different side of her, the human side that did not hide behind a tough façade.

The Order, led by Moody, escorted Harry and the others safely to King's Cross. Remus was watching the station not only for danger, but also for Wendy. He had brought up the rear with Fred, George and Ginny. That had been more of a chore than he had anticipated since Fred and George tried to take advantage of now being of age by trying out small magical tricks on Muggles. This had left him precious little opportunity to look for Wendy since, in the hustle and bustle of the station, the boys were causing more mischief. She had said that she would be there to see Andorra and he hoped to be able to speak with her after Harry was safely seen off. While they were waiting to cross onto the platform, he thought he saw someone that might be her. He did not expect to see her on the platform where her brother might recognize her, so he couldn't search after they crossed through the barrier.

After the train was gone and he was back through the barrier, he scanned the station, but didn't see any sign of her.

"Did you see something?" Moody asked as he stepped next to the younger man.

Remus gave one last scan of the area. "No." He tried to keep the disappointment out of his voice. She had to have seen him and he had hoped that she might wait to speak with him. Molly and Sirius had joined them now and he definitely didn't want to bring this subject up around Sirius.

Moody looked at him in disbelief, but said nothing, though his magical eye spun in its socket.

Remus left the station to return home, and hopefully to a letter. He just knew that Sirius was wrong. Her not staying to see him didn't mean anything. She hadn't been part of the escort because she couldn't get away from work. Perhaps it was just that she couldn't stay away from work for very long. Yes, that had to be it; it made perfect sense.

The end of the week was approaching and Remus was growing more anxious. He still had not heard from Wendy. The full moon was approaching and if he didn't hear from her today, he would have to decline her invitation.

"Would you quit pacing?" admonished Sirius as he looked up from his game of solitaire. He had not yet convinced Remus that dreaming of a nice dinner with Wendy was just that, a dream. This was just one more way that she would hurt him. No matter what he said, Remus continued to defend her and insist that she was worthy of his attention.

"Sorry," Remus said as he took a seat and picked up the book he had been attempting to read. He should be used to waiting by now. His life was filled with nothing but waiting. Waiting for the next job, waiting to be evicted, waiting for someone that would accept him and most of it ended in disappointment, but he held steadfastly to the belief that this time it would be different. There would be no disappointment.

"I told you she wouldn't contact you. Why did you get your hopes up?" Sirius asked. They had had this argument countless times over the last few days. Sirius was beginning to believe it was fruitless, but he wouldn't give up.

"Dammit, Sirius, there's something between us," Remus insisted as he closed the book. "You know that Aurors are busy. Besides, you know that we have to keep the owl traffic down so as not to draw attention." Now he was making excuses for her, but he didn't care. It was the truth.

"Keep telling yourself that," Sirius muttered as he flipped over his next card. He noticed that Remus was holding the book upside down and only shook his head.

The both looked up as an owl fluttered into the room and landed by Remus. He took the letter from the owl.

Remus,

P.S. It was good to see you at King's Cross the other day and I wish I could have stayed longer, but I had to get back to work.

Remus smiled triumphantly as he looked from the letter and waved it at Sirius. "So, she wasn't going to keep our date? Looks like you owe me an apology."

"She isn't there yet. She could still stand you up," said Sirius sardonically as he waved a card at his housemate.

Remus was scribbling a reply on the bottom of the piece of parchment Wendy had sent. When he was finished, he ripped it off, rolled it up and gave it to the owl. "Wendy Westin's in Chelsea, for Cappa." He watched the owl fly off. "Now, if you will excuse me, I'm going to get ready for dinner."

Sirius abandoned his card game and followed Remus upstairs to continue heckling. He watched as Remus pulled clean clothes out of his wardrobe. "Am I the only one that finds it disturbing that you are wearing her dead husband's clothes?" he asked.

He brushed the wrinkles out of the clothes and replied, "I haven't owned any new clothing in more years than I can count. What does it matter if I get them from a second-hand shop or they are given to me by another?" Everything he had gathered from Wendy was that she didn't really feel any further emotional attachment to her deceased husband.

"I think it matters a great deal. She's out of your class, mate. I mean, honestly, what can you offer her?" There had to be a way to stop this before Remus ended up hurt. Every relationship Remus had ever been in had ended in pain and Sirius steadfastly held the belief this would be no different.

"Sirius, it's dinner, not an engagement," he replied as he peeled off his well-worn shirt.

"So you would be happy being her kept man? You really don't think she would marry someone like you, do you?" Sirius had to stop this. There had to be a way to get his friend to realize how bad an idea this was. He had hoped that she would stand Remus up; that would be the quickest way to convince him to give up.

"Would you quit trying to plan my life? We can talk about this later if it really becomes an issue." He pulled on his trousers and tucked in his shirt before working on the tie. "Besides, would it really be that bad being a kept man? I mean, it's not like I'm getting a lot of job offers or anything. Just about everyone I meet shuns me as soon as they find out what I am." He put the finishing touches on his tie and smiled. "I think it might be kind of nice. Think of it, never having to worry about working, having your every desired met. Would it really be that bad?" he joked.

Sirius chuckled. "You're twisted, mate. Though I will admit there is a certain appeal to that plan. I suppose I'm not going to talk you out of dinner since you've been talking about nothing else all week?"

"Nope. Don't wait up for me," Remus said cheerfully.

Sirius laughed at the audacity of this comment. "See you tomorrow and I guess good luck, though I have no idea what you see in her. You did take your potion, didn't you?"

"Yes, mother, I took my potion and I promise not to stay out past my curfew," Remus replied sarcastically.