Forgive Me

Forgive Me

"Forgive me, Remus."

How many times had Sirius Black uttered those words in his life? More than he could readily count. It struck him, even in this serious and potentially lethal situation, that there was a sense of satirical irony in the way that each time he asked Remus's forgiveness, it became more and more important that he actually receive it. Now it could mean his life. If Remus did not forgive him for being wrong about Pettigrew, he would die, very simply. If Remus could not forgive him now, his life would end. Even now, standing cornered and beaten, staring into the amber eyes that still held the wolf, Sirius remembered vividly the first time he'd had to speak those words.

Gryffindor had lost. They had lost because of him. If he, Sirius, had not missed that final goal before the Snitch had been caught, Gryffindor would've defeated Slytherin and he could be with James celebrating in Gryffindor tower. But, as things were, he was standing in the rapidly cooling shower water of the boy's locker room, feeling too ashamed to show his face in the Common Room.

"Sirius?" A familiar voice came from behind him.

Sirius turned to see Remus standing in the doorway of the shower room, giving him a look of bemused concern. Sirius simply let his head fall back under the shower water.

"You do realize you've been in the shower for an hour and a quarter. It's barely forty degrees outside. You'll get hypothermia and die naked in the boy's locker room. The scandal shall be monumental."

"I lost the game, Remus!" Sirius snarled without turning around. "Now kindly go away and let me freeze to death in peace."

"Bollocks." Remus said firmly. "You did no such thing. You of all people should know that Quidditch is far too chaotic and complicated a sport to ever know if someone 'lost the game' all by themselves. Frankly, I think you give yourself far too much credit, thinking you have the ability to crush a winning season all in one fell swoop. If I were on the team myself I might be insulted."

"Shut up Moony, you're distracting me from my suicide attempt," Sirius barked. "It takes more concentration that one might think, freezing to death."

Sirius felt a hand on his shoulder. Against his cold skin, Remus's hand was so warm it set his shoulder ablaze. Sirius jolted and turned to look at Remus. He was staring at Sirius's face with poorly-contained amusement, and Sirius felt irrational anger bubbling up inside him.

"It's fine for you to stand there smirking! You didn't just make an arse of yourself in front of the entire school."

"Oh come now, Padfoot," Remus said, still smiling. "You make an arse of yourself so often I should think you'd be used to it by now."

In spite of himself, Sirius grinned. It was not often Moony would trade insults with the rest of them, and Sirius realized he was only doing it now in an effort to lighten his mood. Sirius gave Remus's shoulder a sporting shove.

"Watch it, mate. I'm on the edge right now. I might snap at any moment and drown you in the nozzle downpour."

Remus grinned and shoved Sirius back. "I would be exempt from the end of year exams, so by all means, drown away."

Sirius shoved Remus a bit harder, and Remus pushed Sirius with both hands. Sirius grabbed hold of Remus's head and threw his arm around it. They laughed and fought as they traded snide remarks.

"This must be the most action you've gotten your whole life, mate!" Sirius laughed as he hung on to the back of Remus's neck.

"Aside from all your girlfriends, I suppose that would be correct," Remus replied, spinning round and grabbing Sirius's wrist. Suddenly, as Sirius stepped back, his feet flew out from under him on the slippery tile floor. He went down squarely on his bum, dragging Remus down with him.

"Ah!! Cold floor, bloody cold sodding floor!!" Sirius howled as he tried in vain to get his feet under him again. Remus was laughing so hard, he had not even tried to move off top of Sirius. Suddenly, Sirius stopped struggling and looked at Moony's face as he laughed. His eyes were crinkled up and his mouth was wide and smiling, revealing white teeth reminiscent of the wolf's fangs. Remus so rarely laughed like this that Sirius found himself staring quite unflatteringly. Remus abruptly stopped laughing to look back at Sirius. When Remus met his eyes, Sirius saw something different in them. Moony was looking at him, but his eyes were more alive than anyone's had ever been in the history of Sirius's world.

Sirius mentally shook himself. This was Moony. Moony, who always scolded him for not doing his assignments. Moony, who let Sirius copy when he panicked in Potions tests. Moony, who refused to drop to the scuffling schoolboy level, but who ran the forests with him in wild abandon. Moony, who...

And before Sirius knew quite what he was doing, he leaned his head up slowly to touch his lips softly to Remus's. Remus did not pull his head away, nor did he lean in. He simply let Sirius kiss him, without moving at all.

When Sirius pulled away, Remus looked at him with an unfathomable expression on his face, then slowly stood up and stretched out his hand to help Sirius up. Sirius took his hand, feeling confusion and the beginnings of humiliation creep up on him. He retrieved his towel and mumbled, "I've got to finish dressing."

Remus put his hand on Sirius's shoulder again, briefly. Sirius could not bear to look at him, but as he heard his footsteps falling further away, he called over his shoulder, "Forgive me, Remus."

The footsteps halted, and there was an agonizing moment of silence, then "Not at all, Padfoot

Sirius could have sworn on all that he held sacred that Moony's voice trembled as he answered, but the footsteps continued out of the shower room and onto the Quidditch pitch.

"Forgive me, Remus."

How many times had Remus Lupin heard those exact words pass those exact lips? More than he cared to remember. And, as most of the times past, Remus felt a hot swoop of guilt at the readiness Sirius had always shown to ask forgiveness of him when Remus knew he should be asking it of Sirius instead. With a rush of emotion so strong it took his breath, Lupin remembered the first time he had given forgiveness that need not be asked

Remus stopped laughing as he noticed the look on Sirius's face. It was a look he had never seen before on Padfoot, and whatever it held, it made Remus's head swim. He suddenly became painfully aware that the two of them were interlocked on a cold, stone floor with nothing but his robes between them. Then, miraculously, horribly, Sirius leaned his head upward and put his lips to Remus's. Remus felt his heart stop dead in his chest. He could not move, could not breath, could not even think. He was so frightened that any move he made would startle Sirius back to reality, and he would take his lips away. Moony closed his eyes and felt Sirius's lips move on his, soft and warm, tasting of salt. Then, all too soon, the moment was over and Sirius broke away. Remus's heart was awash with love and excitement, but his body was crippled with fear and doubt. He was afraid that Sirius would snap back to his senses and denounce the kiss, saying that it had been a mistake and should be forgotten. Above all else, Remus did not want that. He did not want to feel that disappointment, that injury. He wanted to believe that Sirius had felt what he himself felt now.

So, fear and rigidity controlling his every move, Remus stood slowly and offered his hand to Sirius. Sirius could not look him in the face, and Remus felt all of his fears confirmed as his friend muttered something about getting dressed. Remus could not resist resting his hand on Sirius's bare shoulder one last time. The cool, smooth skin felt like silk under his fingers. But he felt Sirius tense underneath his touch, and, heart breaking, he turned to walk away.

"Forgive me, Remus," Sirius called, and the anguish in his voice was evident.

Lupin felt his heart, that a fraction of a second ago was shattered, jump into his throat. An entirely new emotion flooded him now - panic. It was instantly crystal clear to him that every action he had taken since Sirius had kissed him had been wrong. He had been afraid Sirius would reject him. Wrapped up in that fear, he had never once realized that his own behavior seemed more of a rejection than Sirius ever could have managed. He turned to look at his friend, but his head was hanging and he was resolutely facing the wall. Remus was sure at that moment that he would have given anything and everything he possessed to make Sirius understand how he truly felt. Inside his head, a voice screamed, "Tell him! Tell him you're sorry, tell him you want him, tell him anything, just TELL HIM!" But he was equally sure from the tone he had heard in Sirius's voice that the damage had been done, and Remus could not undo it. Slowly, and with great effort, he responded with the only phrase that entered his mind.

"Not at all, Padfoot."

As he walked out onto the Quidditch pitch, his footsteps heavy from the weight of his regret and his mind tired from the magnitude of the last few moments, Remus vowed to himself he would ask for Sirius's forgiveness someday. He only hoped he might get the opportunity.

So many memories of pain wrapped up in three little words. Lupin stood, shuddering, looking between three ghosts; the ghost of an old friend turned vile and grotesque, the ghost of his dearest friend in the eyes of his son, and the ghost of the man who had been not only a friend, but everything to him. Lupin had not heard the words pass Sirius's lips in thirteen years, but as he let his eyes fall closed for simply a fraction of a second, the last encounter they shared rushed back to him, forcefully projected behind his eyelids.

"Forgive me, Remus."

"What the bloody hell are you thinking?!".

"James needs someone to protect him. He's my best friend Remus, I can't simply leave his life and the lives of his family to some strangers hand!"

Remus felt his heart pounding against his ribs. He felt emotions welling up that had no business surfacing, but more than anything he felt anger; hot, irrational fury at Sirius.

"Dumbledore was supposed to be their secret keeper. He volunteered, everyone decided he was the best suited for the job! Who in the name of arse do you think you are to be taking on responsibilities the most powerful wizard in the world was slotted for?"

"Remus," Sirius said soothingly, in a most uncharacteristic moment of control "Dumbledore has enough responsibilities for ten men, and to make him James and Lily's secret keeper just puts him even further into danger. We cannot afford to lose him, Remus, and if I can help to draw fire from him, I will."

"We can't afford to lose you either!" Remus felt his voice begin to rise. Nothing would be accomplished by provoking Sirius with shouting, but Remus knew no other way to behave. He began to feel the hair on his neck prickle, and in the back of his mind, warning bells began to toll.

"Dumbledore is the key to our survival, Remus. The wizarding world hangs on his shoulders. While I'm flattered, I'm not sure the same could be said of me." Sirius offered some small semblance of a grin, but Remus was not to be placated. When his face remained hard, Sirius looked him straight in the eyes. "Remus, I can do it, I'm prepared to do it."

"Chuh!" Lupin scoffed. "You're prepared to go into hiding for Goddess knows how long? You're prepared to sit and read books indoors for years and wake up twitching every night, just waiting for the Death Eaters to find you?"

"If it means saving James and Lily, then yes." Sirius's voice was beginning to quiver slightly now, Remus noted with satisfaction. He was finally losing his cool.

"You're prepared to bloody well die?" he snapped.

"Of course I am!" Sirius shouted suddenly, causing Lupin to flinch slightly. "It's Lily and James, Remus! What else am I supposed to do but die for them?" His voice held pleading and desperation.

"You're supposed to live for the rest of us!" Remus shouted back even more loudly. He was not aware that he had ever shouted in anger before. But the panic he felt was growing as he pictured what Sirius was preparing to do. The alarm bells tolling were beginning to break through, and for the first time in his life, Lupin felt control begin to slip away from him.

"I'm not going to sit on the sidelines like a coward and watch this war happen! I realize that's what you want, Remus, but I'm not made for it! You with all your damned cautious ways and careful consideration, what the hell do you expect to gain from all that?!" Sirius was shouting as angrily as Remus had ever heard.

"It's what I expect not to lose that makes it so important!" he shouted back, and as he did he felt a strange energy mounting in the air, and finally realized where this argument would end. But this could not happen. He would not do this now!

"What's more important than keeping Lily, James and HARRY alive, Remus? What in the fucking world could be any more important than that?!" Sirius was trembling with anger now.

"Keeping you alive, you blithering fool!!" Remus shouted.

"Keeping me alive versus an entire family of our friends? How the hell do you average that? How in the name of Christ and his disciples could I be more important to you than all of them?"

"Because I love you!" Remus shot at him, knowing how this would end, and hating himself for not being able to stop it immediately. Everything would fall apart, and because of adrenaline or fear or simple inability to keep it bottled up any longer, he could no more stop speaking than he could stop time.

"You love them too, you sodding arse!" Sirius yelled.

"I'M NOT IN LOVE WITH THEM, YOU STUPID, RUDDY IDIOT!!"

And it was done. All the adrenaline drained out of Remus the moment he realized what he had said aloud. Sirius looked at him, and the color began to drain out of his face as well. The pallor looked strangely beautiful next to his dark hair and eyebrows, but the look on Sirius's face was one of pure shock. His jaw was even hanging opened slightly.

Then, without a word, Sirius turned on his boot heel, wrenched open the door to Remus's house and walked out, leaving the door open behind him. Remus walked to the door and watched Sirius walk away, his black hair blowing as the wind caught it. He was struck with a sadness so heavy he thought he might collapse under the weight of it. Watching Sirius walk away and knowing that things were altered forever made him ache, but he was at least grateful for the chance to watch him leave, drink in his image one last time before reality truly set in. The soft blue glow reflected off Sirius's shoulders and streaked his black hair with silver as he retreated into the night. Remus had rarely seen anything so beautiful.

Remus turned his eyes toward the sky. The moon would be full in two days. He already felt the stirrings of the wolf inside him, and it was mourning. Mourning for the loss of a partner, a friend, but more than that, mourning the loss of its mate. Remus let his eyes fall closed, seeing only the imprint of the moon behind his eyelids. He breathed in the night air and felt tears seeping out the corners of his eyes. He took a few deep breaths, allowing himself to feel the first pangs of anguish he knew would hit him fully in the face tomorrow morning. Slowly, he turned back into the house, pulling the door shut behind him.

The moment before the door latch clicked, the door was thrown violently open, wrenching the knob out of Remus's hands. He turned around, all sadness replaced by panic, to see Sirius standing there, looking disheveled with his chest heaving.

"Padfoot, are you-" Remus's words were cut short and Sirius grabbed him by the back of the neck and pressed Remus's mouth onto his own. The world suddenly melted away, and all that was left was the taste of salt and Sirius's mouth, and the sound of breathing, heavy and quick.

Sirius pulled away as quickly as he had begun and looked at Remus with an intensity that Remus had never seen in his face before.

"Forgive me," he said again. He didn't elaborate, and he didn't have to.

"Not at all, Padfoot. Not at all," he smiled, and was rewarded with another long kiss.

Remus opened his eyes once again to look at this gaunt and fearful figure before him, a mere shadow of the Sirius he remembered. Feeling his heart splinter at the though that all of these changes were due, at least in part, to his unwillingness to share Sirius, Remus heard his throat hitch slightly as he replied in the only way he had ever known when it came to Sirius and forgiveness.

"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend."

Forgive me as well. Remus thought with remorse, but as he stood with Sirius, all he could manage was a sad smile.

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

Sirius searched Remus's face as he waited for his response. This was not the first time he had asked Remus to forgive him, and it most likely would not be the last. But it was what concerned him at present.

"Not at all, Padfoot, old friend," Remus said, and the twinkle in his eye coupled with the phrase Sirius had heard so often in their younger days, lifted his spirits in a way he could never have imagined possible. He could almost have laughed. With a jolt and the bittersweet sting of remembrance, the last moments he had spent with Remus rushed back to him. Mingled fury, regret and pleasure swirled around in his head as he looked into the amber eyes he had not seen for thirteen long years.

As Remus lay quietly, curled around him in the bed, Sirius felt the beginnings of a happiness he had only read about his whole life. He smelled Remus every time he breathed in, and shuddered every time Remus exhaled onto his bare back. He had thought Remus asleep until he heard him speak quietly.

"Padfoot?"

"Moony," he parroted playfully.

"You won't do it will you?" he asked quietly.

"Well, I'm a bit tired now, but keep breathing on me in that obscene way-"

"Sirius," Remus admonished.

A sigh, followed by a silence so long that Sirius felt Remus begin to tense beside him. Then, "No. I won't do it."

"What will happen? Will Dumbledore-"

"No," Sirius stated firmly. "No, I won't ask Dumbledore."

"What will you do then?" Remus asked, curling his fingers around Sirius's hand.

Sirius thought for a long while, idly opening his hand to interlace their fingers.

"I'll ask Peter. He'll...he'll be willing. And Voldemort would never imagine...he won't expect..." Sirius broke off, feeling both horrible and wonderful.

"Sirius..." Remus began.

"It's a good plan." Sirius said, coming to his decision. "I'll take care of Peter, I'll check on him, make sure he's alright. It'll all work out." Sirius turned over to face Remus, looking into the eyes he had memorized long before tonight.

Remus smiled sleepily at Sirius as consciousness began to slip away. "Thank you, Padfoot."

Sirius waited until Remus' breathing had become rhythmic and deep before replying "You're welcome, Moonshine."

Sirius felt Remus breathing slowly, and felt a fierce internal battle waged in his heart. He wanted to protect James, he wanted to be in the center of protecting him. It would be cowardly to not to be his Secret Keeper. Sirius was not a coward.

But he would be this once. He would be for Moony. Somewhere deep inside, he felt he would regret it...but he would be for Moony.

*******************************************************************

* 2 years later *

Remus stood at the entryway to the Shrieking Shack. In a way, Remus had been thankful that there had been no body to bury, no gravesite to pick out. These small absences had made it a bit more difficult for reality to truly set in. And what with arranging all sorts of extra protection for Harry's sixth year at school and trying to keep pace with his many assignments for the Order, Remus had managed to feel only the edges of the misery and loss that Sirius's death had left him with. However, as he stood outside the one place he always imagined he would hate forever, feeling the cold November wind lifting his hair, his heart began to uncoil, and he felt the numbness begin to abate, as music building before a final crescendo.

Lupin opened the doorway and stepped into the dusty house. Looking around at the ruined furniture and battered walls, nights of pain and joy returned to him. The smell of the house was familiar, yet very dull to his human nose. Slowly, and with both dread and hunger, Remus climbed the stairs up towards the bedroom. He had been told that he should let himself hurt; that it was impossible to heal before the pain had been dealt with. In truth, he hadn't thought of this at all when he had set out for Hogsmeade one evening with the express purpose of visiting the Shack. He simply felt that he owed Sirius as much remembrance as he could possibly manage, and the best place to start would be the most painful. The place they first began their adventure, the place they had been reunited after all hope had long since been lost, should, by all laws of poetics and love, be the place it was finally laid to rest.

As Lupin put his hand on the doorknob to the bedroom, he felt a rush of fear so sharp it stopped him in his tracks. Suddenly, he realized how unprepared he was for this. He had come to say goodbye, but he had never thought about what that might entail. He could not bear to say goodbye to Sirius, he could not abide trying to forget him. The injustice and agony of this ordeal was slowly creeping up his spine, and he suddenly wanted to run from this place of finality, to settle down with his denial and his happy memories and anesthetize himself for the rest of his life. But more than all these things, he wanted to talk to Sirius one last time. And though Lupin had very little faith in any sort of afterlife, if one existed at all, Sirius would hear him better here than anywhere else.

His heart pounding painfully, Lupin pushed open the door. The bedroom looked exactly the same as it always had; dingy, dusty and torn all to hell. The feelings of deathly pain and rending loss did not wash over him as he expected them to. Instead of relieving him, this disturbed him greatly. He had been prepared to hurt at the sight of this, the one place that reminded him of Sirius more than any other. He suddenly felt ashamed; he owed it to Sirius and to what they had lost to hurt, to reel, to die of heartbreak. And he stood in the doorway, virtually unmoved. He walked into the room and strode about the place for a moment; nothing. He looked at old claw marks on the walls and furniture, most likely made by him long ago; nothing. He even sat down on the bed that he had so often woken up in, always to find Sirius sitting over him with a look of concern hidden behind a smile of mischief; nothing at all.

Remus sat, feeling empty and utterly horrible at his lack of pain and suffering. If the positions were reversed, Sirius would have been pining and agonizing over him, he was sure. But then, Sirius had always been the one to willingly offer himself. Remus had never been able to. It had taken pushing and prodding and horrible timing to finally force Remus into allowing Sirius in, and Sirius had never once refused him. Before he knew what he was saying, the words tumbled from his lips.

"Forgive me, Sirius."

The thought burst into Lupin's mind with the force of a sledgehammer. I never told him. Not once, in all our years, did I ever say it to him. It took him dying to get me to ask.

And the dam broke. Lupin's heart, so long tight and throbbing, felt as though it was torn in two. His vision blurred and his lungs seemed to stop as the full force of his regret hit him. For a moment, he could not even breathe for the utter agony of his whole being. He felt his lungs forcefully draw breath, and the pain increased. He felt himself sob deep, wet sobs as tears poured down his face. Each bone in his body felt as though it could no longer support the weight of his unhappiness and he fell over onto the bed, grasping the covers in his clenched fists, willing to trade his life, the lives of all those he knew to turn the fistfuls of covers into fistfuls of black fur. Flashes of Sirius's face rushed up to him behind his eyelids; Sirius, smiling at him from high upon his broom, Sirius waving frantically to get his attention on Platform 9 ¾, Sirius looking at him with warmth and curiosity across the common room, Sirius, fierce and dangerous as he faced down anything threatening those he loved, and Sirius, looking into his eyes with love and hope and passion, for all the world the only person Remus had ever or would ever love. He would never see Sirius smile again, he would never feel irritated at his habits, he would never get to fight with him again, and he would never get to hold him and feel his skin ever, ever again. The words NEVER AGAIN blared through Lupin's head until he could no longer stand it, he wanted to die, to lay on the bed and will his lungs to stop working, his heart to stop pumping, his brain to stop thinking and his soul to stop being. He wanted to be with Sirius, wherever or whatever he was. He could not stand this pain one moment longer. He would die of a broken heart and go to be with Sirius. The thought did not scare him; it elated him.

"Professor Lupin?"

Remus started and jerked his head upward. His eyes widened as he saw Harry standing in the doorway of the bedroom, looking more like James than Lupin could stand. He wanted to reassure Harry, to help him understand or to ease his pain. But as he looked at Harry, he saw James, and his heart felt all the pain that went with remembering when things were wonderful and they were all together. Lupin lowered his eyes to stem the flow of memories, and sat upright slowly. He was amazed that he managed to do so.

"Harry," was all Remus could say.

Harry was silent for a moment, but then footsteps padded over to where Lupin sat, and he felt the bed sink as Harry sat down beside him.

"Why are you out of school? It isn't safe for you," Remus admonished, but he could not muster any conviction to put behind his words.

"I come here every so often," Harry said, and the sadness in his words was evident. "It helps me remember."

" Yes," Remus agreed, feeling his heart begin to break open again. He would not be able to keep his composure; he was beyond any acting to be done. He held his breath to delay the outburst as long as possible.

"Do you know, I've talked to Sirius since it happened," Harry said, and Lupin's head jerked upwards, all pain forgotten momentarily.

"What?"

"Yeah. When I dream. It was funny at first. I just remember wishing so much for him to be alright, having so much to tell him that he didn't get to hear. I fell asleep wishing for it, and then he suddenly was there. He was talking to me just like nothing had happened. But, it wasn't really like a dream, because he did know what had happened. We talked about all kinds of things." Harry said all of this with no trace of embarrassment, as if he were simply stating a fact instead of talking out of his head.

"Yes?" Remus asked, feeling both let down and sorry for Harry.

"He said we couldn't talk every night, but that if there was ever something that desperately needed to be said, he could probably arrange it. It's worked a couple of times, but only when I can think of something that makes me so miserable I won't be able to go another day without saying it. I asked him one time why this happens and he just smiled and said that surely I didn't think there was no reward at all for loving someone enough to die for them." Harry turned to look at Lupin and smiled. His smile was not what Lupin would've expected. It was sad, yes, but also almost content, as though he had actually gotten all of the unspoken words out and no longer regretted, but simply longed for. Against all of his good sense, Lupin felt his chest begin to lighten at the prospect. But almost immediately, he felt it deflate. People do not come back from the dead. Harry might have hallucinations, or he might have just been sent over the edge. God knows Lupin couldn't blame him for it.

"Oh, and he told me to tell you something as well. It didn't make any sense at all, but he made me promise that, next time I saw you, I'd tell you."

Lupin's eyes widened. No, this could not be. Surely Harry's delusions hadn't progressed this far.

"He said to tell you 'Not at all, Moony. Not at all.'"

Lupin's heart exploded within his chest. His head began to swim, and he felt as though he was flying, soaring and falling all at once. The words echoed in his head as he sat, remembering the sound of Sirius's voice and the beating of his heart. He could not disbelieve any further. He couldn't understand, he couldn't begin to fathom, but all the pain and loss of regret and self loathing suddenly vanished, as if they had never been. He stared at Harry, sitting on the bed, seeming so unbroken by all of the events in his life, and without any doubt, he believed him. Sirius knew how he felt, knew the question he had always wanted to ask, but had never been able to. Sirius could hear him. As though it was magic, Lupin's heart leapt and threatened to send him shouting out into the night how much he loved his fallen comrade and how much he would do to remember him; to do anything at all just so he could call out to Sirius and feel like he was heard.

His throat too tight to speak, Lupin nodded slightly as he felt tears welling behind his eye. But these tears did not burn or scar, they simply fell gently onto his robes as they rolled off his chin.

As Lupin sat, sending prayers and pleas and heartfelt thanks out to the Gods and to Sirius, wherever he was, he reached his hand out and put it on Harry's shoulder, squeezing tightly as he looked into the face of one of his oldest friends and the eyes of another.

"It will all be good again someday, won't it Professor?" Harry asked, seeming much younger for a moment, like a small child begging for assurance, his eyes now over bright.

"Yes, Harry," Lupin assured him, now beginning to believe that it could be true. "Someday, all will be as it should be. It will be alright."