Searching for a Savior

The Death of a Princess

"Remus, what is it?" I cried as soon as I opened the door. He had his hands over his face. There was a mirror sitting on the bed in front of him.

"The hospital-" he started. I crawled on the bed beside him and wrapped my arms around him. His voice broke as he continued. "The hospital where Sirius was at...it was destroyed."

"Oh no," I cried, pulling Remus closer against me. "Oh my God, Remus, is he-"

Remus started to tremble. "No. Harry said he's okay. He said they managed to get him out. Jules, there were six hundred people in that hospital. They've only found twelve people alive so far."

I didn't know what to say. I just held him.

"For some reason, Percy, Molly and Arthur's son, was at the hospital. They haven't found him yet."

"But what happened?" I cried, tears starting down my cheeks. "How was the hospital destroyed?"
"I don't know, Jules. I don't know." Remus was crying as well. "Maybe something blew up inside it. I just don't know."

He swiped his hands over his eyes. I could still feel him trembling. I buried my face in his shoulder.

"Was it terrorists?" I asked, remembering the car bomb at the World Trade Centre and the Federal building in Oklahoma City.

"They didn't know, Jules." Remus pulled me into his lap and wrapped his arms around me, burying his face in my neck. I felt him start to cry again. I just held him. Now was not the time for more questions.

"When do you leave for home?" I asked a bit later. He raised his head and looked at me, his eyes still slightly swollen. He shook his head.

"I don't know if I should go. I will if they find Percy, of course. But the Headmaster of my school said they need me here. I have to find what I'm looking for. Now more than ever."

I wished he would tell me what it was. Then I could help him find it. But I'd asked again a few days ago, and he'd said that he couldn't tell me.

"I think we're going to stay here for a couple days though. Harry will need to get hold of me and this way I have a telephone."

I nodded. That made sense, although it seemed strange that he didn't have a cell phone. I picked the mirror up off the bed and set it gently on the table.

"You should lay down, Remus," I said softly. "You're tired and you're in shock. I'll stay in the room and answer the phone. You should rest."
He looked at me for a moment, and then lay down in the bed.

"I will if you lay with me. Please."

He looked somewhat lost, as though he was to blame for that hospital blowing up. It very nearly broke my heart to see him like that. I lay down with him. He wrapped his arms around me and buried his face in my hair. I could feel him shuddering once in a while. I held back my tears, trying to be strong for Remus.

He went to sleep not long after. I lay there with him, watching out the window. I could see children playing in a park. See families laughing. I could see people who had no idea that an entire hospital had blown up and many people had lost their lives. Many families were ripped apart. I closed my eyes to try to stem the flow of tears.

I awoke to the sound of the phone ringing. Remus jerked upright, his hand fumbling for it.

"Hello. Yes, please, put him through."

A pause. Then,

"Harry?"

Remus went silent. I rolled over to look at him. His eyes were closed. There were tears coursing down his cheeks again.

"They're sure?" I sat up, meaning to leave the room, to give Remus some privacy. He caught my hand and shook his head. He kept hold of it, his grip almost painful. I didn't say anything; I just let him hold my hand.

Remus sighed. "Of course, of course. No, Harry, I will be there. I promise." I kept watching Remus' face. His jaw clenched. "Is Sirius still okay? Hogwarts? Okay, good. No, she knows he's innocent. What about the Longbottom's?"

Remus closed his eyes. "God, that poor kid. Okay. No. I'll be there. How are Molly and Arthur?"
Remus was silent for a moment, listening. I slipped my hand out of Remus and moved in beside him, my arms around him once more.

"Fred and George? What about Charlie? Were you able to get hold of him? Okay, good. I know it is, Harry. Just be there. Just listen. There's nothing you can say. Has Hermione talked to her parents? She should let them know. Maybe it wouldn't hurt for them to take a vacation, get out of town for a while." Remus nodded, although Harry couldn't see him. "Yes. Okay. Thank you for phoning Harry. I'll phone tomorrow to find out the...arrangements. Okay. Bye."

He set the receiver down on the table and buried his face in his hands once more.

"Remus?" I asked gently.

"They found Percy." He looked up at me, his eyes stormy. "He's dead."

I closed my eyes, a sob welling up in my throat. Why should I feel this way? I didn't even know the man, or his parents.

"They're sure?" I asked. Remus nodded.

"They haven't, understandably, set a funeral date yet. I told Harry I'd phone him back tomorrow."

Remus reached over and placed the phone received back into the cradle. He then picked it up again and ordered a bottle of red wine. I didn't say anything when he set the phone back down. He glanced at me, his eyes red once more.

"They didn't find any more survivors."

I held Remus again. I didn't know what to say. I knew he was hurting very badly.

"I'll get the door," I said a minute later when somebody knocked. I opened it and took the bottle of wine from the waiter. "Thank you," I said softly. He nodded, bade me a pleasant evening and walked away. I stood there a moment, and then turned back into the room. Remus was looking out the window, watching the same park I'd been watching.

"So many people," he said softly as I poured a glass of wine for him. "So many innocent. And it could all end tomorrow." He turned to take the wine from me and caught me in his arms. "The human spirit is a wonderful thing, Jules. We are born to die. That's all. And yet we live. Every day we wake up, and we've come one day closer to death. Even knowing that, we get out of bed, get on with our day." His voice caught. "We worry about the most idiotic things. A career. Money. And yet the greatest gift we ever receive is usually taken for granted. Children. A family. A home." He brought the wine to his lips and drank the whole glass in one swallow. I stared.

"Damn it, Percy." Remus turned and hurled the glass at the wall opposite. I shrank away from him, watching him fearfully. "All he wanted was a career. Yet he had the greatest family anyone could ever ask for. It's a large family and they all look out for one another. Arthur and Molly Weasley had seven children, and yet they still had room in their hearts for both Harry and Hermione. And Sirius. And me."

"Remus," I said, catching him by the arm as he made for the bottle again. "Please don't do this."

"Do what? I just want a drink."

"You had one. Please, that's enough."

Remus glared down at me. I stood my ground, even though it took everything I had. Remus wouldn't hurt me sober. I didn't know him well enough to know what he'd do drunk.

His eyes softened slightly as he looked at me.

"Okay, Jules. Okay. I won't drink any more. I promise."

*

When I woke the next morning, Remus was already on the phone. I went down to the restaurant to grab some bagels for us for breakfast and then went back to the room. Remus was still on the phone.

"Okay. Wednesday. Yes. I promise I'll be there. Yes. Thank you, Arthur. I'm so sorry. How is Molly? I thought she would be. Okay. Yes, I will see you in a few days. Bye, Arthur."

Remus looked pale and drawn as he turned to me. I sat down next to him. He slipped his arm around my shoulders.

"You don't look well," I said softly.

"I didn't sleep well. And I've got a killer headache."

I nodded. I'd felt him tossing and turning all night.

"How is everyone doing?"

He shook his head. "Not well. Molly has been in bed ever since she found out, which is distressing, but for Molly I think it might be best. Arthur is...well, I'm not sure how Arthur is. He sounded tired. That's all. Bill, their oldest, had to go to Romania to tell Charlie, their second oldest. They haven't heard from him yet. The rest of their children are there. Arthur said that they're holding up."

I nodded.

"When are you leaving for England? When is the funeral?"

He looked at me and his eyes looked relieved. "You don't want to come with me?"

I bit my lip. A part of me did, but I knew I shouldn't. I shook my head.

"It's not that I don't want to, Remus...but I don't know these people and it wouldn't be a good place to meet everybody. I wouldn't want to intrude."

He hugged me tight and gave me a kiss on my temple.

"You wouldn't be intruding. But I understand what you mean. Thank you, Julianne."

I nodded, trying to smile up at him.

"So when are you leaving?"

"Well...the funeral is Wednesday afternoon. I thought I would leave the day after tomorrow. What day is that?"

"Monday."

"Monday then. That way I can...help."

I looked up at him. I bit my lip.

"Will you be back?" I whispered.

He looked down at me, his eyes like steel. He gripped my upper arms in his.

"I will be back. I swear I won't just leave you." He pulled me against his chest. "I promise I will come back for you."

I nodded. Remus leaned down and kissed me softly. I rested my head against his chest when he released me and we sat like that for hours.

*

Sunday dawned dark and rainy. I shivered as I went to close the window. I had a feeling that there was something going on. Something not at all good.

I turned just as Remus came out of the washroom. He smiled at me.

"I ordered breakfast, I hope you don't mind."

I shook my head. He went back into the washroom to finish getting dressed.

"Can you pay for breakfast?" he asked when it arrived. "My wallet is on the bureau."

I grabbed his wallet and opened the door. My feeling of foreboding hadn't gone away.

"Good morning," I said cheerfully to the waitress. Her eyes were red rimmed. "What's wrong?" I asked quickly.

She shook her head. I handed her the money and she walked away. I wheeled the cart into the room, grabbed a bit of orange that was on a plate and picked up the newspaper.

I stared at the newspaper headline. The orange fell from my hand.

"Remus!" I shrieked. He came running out of the washroom and was at my side in an instant.

"What is it? What's happened?" he demanded. I pointed. He grabbed the paper from me and stared at it. I watched his face go white.

I started to cry. Remus read the entire article.

"A car accident. Jesus."
"Oh my God, Remus," I said through my tears. "Princess Diana. How can it be?"

Remus' hands were shaking slightly as he closed the paper. He pulled me against him.

"Jules," he said softly. "I'm going to have to leave today. I'm sorry."

I nodded. I'd known that from the second I'd seen the headline declaring that Princess Diana had been killed in a car accident.

"I'll help you pack," I said softly. He shook his head.

"I've got clothes at home. I'll just finish getting dressed and then I'll be leaving. I'll leave the car for you, but I don't think you should go anywhere just yet. I will be back by next weekend, I promise. I'll telephone you as soon as I get there."

I nodded again. He returned to the bathroom and quickly finished getting dressed. I packed a bag for him with his shampoo and his toiletries in it. He took it from me and gave me a quick kiss. I saw him grab the mirror on the bedside table and tuck it into the bag before he headed for the door.

It wasn't until just after the door had closed behind him that I realised that his wallet was still sitting on the breakfast tray. I grabbed it and yanked the door open. I heard a sharp crack as I left the room.

I looked both ways. I couldn't see Remus anywhere. Yet, he couldn't possibly have had time to get to the elevators or the stairs. People were sticking their heads out of their doors, searching for the source of the noise. I shrugged and went back into the room. He'd probably be back up for it before he left.

Yet he wasn't. He didn't return for it at all.

I was worried about him getting safely to England. I had the television on, but I couldn't make myself watch the reports about the Princess. I paced the room but only made myself dizzy. I phoned my aunt and uncle. My aunt has always been the biggest Royal watcher and I knew she'd be reeling from this. She could barely speak to me. I spoke to my uncle for a while. After I finished speaking with him, I grabbed Remus' jacket and went outside for a bit. There was a restaurant next door that we'd been eating at, so I headed there. They allowed you to put things on your hotel tab.

I walked in to find the hostess as red-eyed as our morning waitress had been.

"Ah, hi Julianne," she said quietly. "We missed you this morning. Will Remus be joining you this evening?"

"No, Rebecca. He's gone to England for a few days. He had a funeral to go to."

She nodded and took me to a table. She looked dead on her feet.

"Rebecca, are you alright?"

She nodded, but I noticed her eyes well up. She sat in the chair across from me.

"It's just so sad, about Princess Diana, is all," she explained. "I've been here since this morning because the afternoon hostess called in sick, and I feel terrible."

"Well, sit with me for a while. You're not busy right now, and you're entitled to a break. When is it?"

She glanced at her watch. "I won't get it for another ten minutes yet."

"Well, come back and sit with me. If you want to, that is. Don't worry if you don't."

"No, I will," she said, climbing back to her feet. "Thank you, Julianne."

I ordered while I waited for Rebecca. She slid across from me just as my salad got there.

We chatted for a while, mainly about the Princess. Rebecca told me that they hadn't been busy at all, because people were staying home to watch the coverage. I found that almost too incredible to believe.

When I went to put my bill on the room tab, I found that there was no bill to be paid. Rebecca had taken care of it. I thanked her and told her the next one was on me. I went back to my room.

I paced some more. I finally decided to run myself a hot bath to pass the time.

And wouldn't you know it. Just as I was sliding into the bubbles, the phone rang.

"Hey, Jules." It was Remus. I smiled to myself.

"Hi, Remus. How are you? That flight didn't seem to take long at all. Did you get there alright? How is everyone? You forgot your wallet. I miss you."

Remus chuckled softly.

"I miss you too. I realized that I forgot my wallet just after I got back here. That's alright. I've got everything I need here with me. My passport and things. My flight was fine. It didn't seem to take long at all. Just a blink of an eye.

"People aren't doing very well here. You should see, Jules. It's heartbreaking. Hermione's parents showed up here today and her mother is crying something awful. Of course, she made Hermione cry. It's chaos."

"I bet it is," I said quietly.

"I will try to be back on Friday afternoon. I've got Percy's funeral on Wednesday, and then I want to go and make sure Sirius is okay on Thursday. And I might be going to the Princess' funeral on Friday, I'm not sure yet."

"Okay," I replied. "Will you need me to come get you from the airport?"

"No, I'll be alright. But I forgot to tell you a couple of things. Just keep going to the same restaurant we've been going to. Put the bill on the room tab, I'll clear it up when I get back. Also, when I get back, I will have the person at the desk call up to the room, so if somebody knocks and you haven't ordered anything and nobody has called up, don't answer it. Okay?"

"Okay...but Remus, why?"

"Just safety. People know I'm there on Ministry business, they don't know I'm gone. Plus...well...it might not be safe for people to know that you're there by yourself. You know?"

"I know...thank you for being concerned, Remus," I said, smiling to myself.

"Well...I don't want anything to happen to you."

I continued to smile my silly smile. I could just imagine Remus blushing.

"Okay. Well, I have to get going. I'll give you a call later in the week."

"Sounds good," I said. "Give my condolences to everybody."

"I have. Good night, Julianne."

"Good night, Remus."

*

The next few days passed by slowly. I slept in late every morning, which is unusual for me. I went down to the gift shop to buy a couple books to amuse myself with. I was finished both of them by Tuesday evening.

Remus phoned me again Wednesday, right after the funeral. He sounded very tired. He told me that he'd been to three funerals since he'd been there, and had at least one more to go to. He promised again that he'd be back by Friday evening. We didn't talk for very long. He told me that he missed me and we hung up.

I ran myself a bath on Wednesday evening. I missed Remus so bad it was like having a constant ache in my chest. I knew that he had to be there right now, but that didn't make it any easier to be away from him.

It was odd, really. I'd only know him for a short time, less than two weeks, but yet I'd never connected with anybody the way I did with him. In only two weeks, I couldn't imagine my life without having Remus in it.

I smiled to myself. I wondered if Remus felt the same about me. Both Harry and Hermione had said that he did, but they were just kids, really.

When I went to bed that night, I had dreams about castles and people flying on brooms and the biggest dog I'd ever seen in my life. Strange.

The phone awoke me around eight. I stared at it for a moment before realising what it was. I grabbed it before it could stop.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Miss Wallace. There's a gentleman down here who wishes to be let upstairs."

Remus! He was back already? It was only Thursday morning!

"Really? What's his name?"

I heard the woman ask.

"He says he doesn't want to say. He says that you know who it is."

That puzzled me somewhat.

"Okay...could you describe him to me?"

"That I can do. He's around six feet and has blond hair."

"Remus! Yes, okay, he can come up."

I hung up the phone and laughed. I spun myself in a circle. I knew I must look like a lunatic, but I didn't care. Remus was back!

I nearly ran to the door when he knocked. I jerked it open.

"You're back earl-" The rest of my sentence died on my tongue. I stared at the man standing before me. Too late, I stepped back and tried to slam the door shut.

"You always were slow, Jules," Noah snarled as he shoved his way into the room.

*

Remus

I left Lockhart's funeral early. I knew it was rude, but I couldn't handle another funeral. His was the fourth I'd been to since I'd been back to England.

The Longbottom's were buried first. They'd been buried on the same day, side by side. Just as they had been ever since Bellatrix Lestrange and the others had tortured them into insanity.

That had been hard, being there. Neville had nearly had to carry his grandmother out. In the end, somebody had conjured up a wheelchair for her and she'd just sat there and cried.

Neville hadn't been in much better shape. I wondered how awful it must be. In some ways, he'd been worse off than Harry. Harry knew that his parents would never come back. Neville had always had that hope to cling to. Now they never would.

Percy's funeral was on Wednesday. As heartbreaking as the Longbottom's funeral was, I had known going in that Percy's would be worse.

It was a lovely service. All of Percy's siblings had written something for their brother and had gotten up to read.

As different as Percy had been from any of his siblings, he had still been their brother. And it was always hard to lose a sibling.

Molly collapsed as they started to lower the casket into the ground. Arthur and I moved to help her, but Fred and George made it there first. Fred helped his mother up and, together, they helped her out of the cemetery.

As soon as we got back to number 12, Grimmauld Place, Bill brewed up a Calming Draught for his mother and she was back in bed. I found this a little distressing, as I knew that she needed to grieve. I didn't say anything however.

"I can't believe he's really gone," Ginny said, her eyes dry and red. She curled up in Harry's lap and rested her head on his shoulder. He stroked her back gently and spoke quietly in her ear.

"He's not gone," Hermione said softly. "He's always going to be with you."

Ron took her hand and kissed it.

"Do you remember the cauldron bottom report?" Bill asked suddenly, his face breaking into a grin.

Charlie chuckled. "Poor Percy. We were always picking on him about something." He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "I wish we could apologise for it all."

"We were the worst," Fred and George said together. "We were always picking on him."

Indeed, since they'd heard the news, both had been quite subdued. That was unusual for the Weasley twins.

I felt like an intruder so I left to phone Julianne. I missed her like crazy. I wished now that I had just brought her with me.

She asked how I was. She asked how everyone was doing. I told her that I had Lockhart's funeral on Thursday. I still would go to Hogwarts to visit Sirius, but I wanted to get back to Canada. I needed to finish my mission.

But I couldn't sit through Lockhart's funeral. I sat at the back and left not long after it began. I felt bad, but I had barely known the man after all.

I scribbled a quick note to Harry explaining where I was going, then Disapparated.

"Remus, you scared me!" Madam Rosmerta exclaimed as I appeared in The Three Broomsticks.

"Sorry Rosmerta," I said quickly. I exited and made my way up the High Street toward Hogwarts.

Hogwarts had started on September first as usual. I knew that many students weren't there because nearly everybody had known somebody in St. Mungo's. Ron, Hermione, Harry and Ginny would be returning Monday. Nobody knew when Neville Longbottom would return, if he returned at all.

I passed Hagrid's hut. The windows stared blankly back at me. I stifled a sigh of sadness as I forced myself to look away.

Hogwarts just wasn't the same without Hagrid.

I opened the doors to the Entrance Hall as quietly as I could. I heard the chatter from the Great Hall and knew that students were in there for lunch. I passed the doors and made my way up to the hospital wing as quickly as I could.

"Remus?"

I turned. Minerva McGonagall was standing at the bottom of the stairs behind me.

"Hello Minerva." I started back down toward her.

"What are you doing here?" she asked quietly. "I thought you were in Canada?"

"I am. I came back for the Weasleys. Plus Arthur needed somebody to look into Lady Diana's death."

She raised an eyebrow at me. "He did? He didn't think that it was You-Know-Who did he?"

"Not really, but there always is that chance isn't there? It turned out that Voldemort didn't play a part in it though. Just idiot Muggles."

She nodded, slightly misty eyed. "I can't even begin to imagine what that family is going through." I didn't know if she meant the Royal family or the Weasleys. I didn't ask. She looked back up at me. "I suppose you're here to see Padfoot?"

I nodded silently. She bade me good evening and I raced up the stairs, hoping I didn't meet anyone else.

I knocked on the door of the hospital wing. Poppy opened it slowly.

"Remus!" she cried, flinging the door wide. She wrapped me in a tight hug.

"Hello, Poppy," I said softly, returning the hug. "How is he?"

She shook her head slowly. "He's stubborn, Remus. He'll be okay." Her face broke into a smile. "He's not changed since he was a teenager. He still doesn't like to be 'fussed over'."

"Can I see him?" I asked as I started past her, but she caught my arm.

"Did anyone tell you-?" She didn't seem to want to finish the question.

"That his arm was badly burned? Harry did." I paled. "He still has it, doesn't he?"

"Yes. It will take a long time for it to heal though."

I nodded slowly. "What about his head? Is he still confused?"

"He doesn't seem to be. He knows where he is. He asks for you nearly every day. He asks for Harry too. He knows who I am, who Albus and Minerva are. He knows the year and what day it is. I would say that his injuries are just the burns right now. He should be able to be out of here by Hallowe'en."

I grinned, unable to contain myself. That was the first bit of good news I'd had in ages. "That's what the Healer at St Mungo's said too."

Sadness flickered over Poppy's face. She nodded and let me go ahead and see Sirius.

"It's about bloody time," he growled as I opened the door. "I heard you come in and I sat up and tried to get all prettied up, but after a second I thought that you'd have to just get sitting up. I'm too tired to do anything else."

"Don't go getting all prettied up on my account. I've seen you at your worst, remember," I said, grinning at him despite the shock of his appearance.

It had been less than a month since I'd seen him. He hadn't looked all that great then either, but now he was completely emaciated. The burn that Harry had warned me about wasn't visible. The left side of his face and his entire left arm were shrouded in thick bandages.

"Oh, Padfoot," I said softly. I sat in the chair beside his bed.

"Moony, don't you start feeling sorry for me too," he snarled. "I've had it up to here with people looking at me like that and I swear I'm going to hex the next person who does it. I was one of the lucky ones."

I nodded as I thought of Percy. Lockhart. Frank and Alice Longbottom.

"How are Arthur and Molly?" Sirius asked softly. "What the hell was Percy doing there?"

"Arthur doesn't know. He wasn't there on Ministry business he said."

Sirius shook his head then winced. I tried to keep all traces of pity out of my eyes.

"Are you in much pain?"

"Not much. It hurts when I try to move that arm or my head. Other than that, I'm dandy."

I knew he was being sarcastic, but I ignored it. Sirius had always hated being stuck inside.

I looked back at him and found that he had a smirk on his face. I raised an eyebrow.

"What are you smirking at?"

"You," he answered. "Harry told me all about your pretty lady that you rescued."

"He did, did he?"

"Indeed. He said that despite the bruises and the haunted look in her eyes, she's absolutely stunning. He also said that she's got big-"
"One more word, Padfoot, and I'll be the one doing the hexing," I warned, raising my wand. Sirius' eyes danced with mirth. Then they became serious once more.

"What were the bruises from? I asked Harry and he got all quiet and angry."

I sighed. "Her boyfriend. She jumped in front of the car that I rented. I nearly ran her over."

Sirius' blue eyes grew hard. It made him just as angry as it did me to hear about Julianne's boyfriend hitting her.

"I haven't asked what started it. She was in pretty rough shape. When she jumped in the car, he shot at her with one of those Muggle wands. A gun? I asked if she wanted to stay with me. She was so afraid, Sirius. She still is. That first night she had a horrid nightmare and cried for probably fifteen minutes before I could calm her down."

Sirius watched me as I told him this. His eyes were angry. Almost as angry as they'd been that night in the Shrieking Shack.

"Moony?"

"Yes?"

"When I get out of here, let's both go to Canada and pay a visit to that boyfriend, alright?"

"Okay."

"I want to meet her. Harry said that she's fun, she's nice and that she loves anything magic."

"You should see her, Sirius! She's obsessed with magic! I've never met a Muggle so open to the idea of magic." I paused. "I could tell her what I am and I don't think she'd be scared away."

Sirius tried to sit up straight. He groaned with pain.

"Don't go doing that, Remus. There's no reason for that unless...unless you plan on her being around for a long time."
"Maybe I do," I said softly. "Harry and Hermione were playing games in the car...bringing up all their past adventures, but making it sound like it wasn't real, you know? And Harry said to Hermione 'Remember when we confronted the escaped criminal? And were rescued by a werewolf?' I knew it was true, but she didn't. She said something about werewolves being portrayed as evil in books, and Harry told her that werewolves have a bad reputation. That it wasn't something we can control. And she was completely open to that, Sirius."

"Oh Moony. You've fallen for a girl you've known for a fortnight."

I visited with Sirius for another couple hours. He fell asleep before I left and I sat there with him for a while. I smiled as I remembered James and Sirius doing the same with me during the full moon. Three times I had thought that I'd lost Sirius. Three times I'd gotten him back.

I passed the Great Hall again on my way out. I nearly went in, dinner smelled heavenly. I knew that I shouldn't let the students see me however. They might wonder why I wasn't teaching when they'd seen me there.

Nobody really knew that Sirius was at Hogwarts. Poppy was keeping him in a private room and only certain people were allowed in to see him. Albus, Minerva, Harry and his friends and myself.

"Remus?"

I turned to find the Headmaster framed in the doorway of the Great Hall.

"Albus," I greeted him.

He stepped away from the Great Hall and gestured for me to walk with him. I did so.

"Have you had any luck so far?"

I shook my head.

"No, sir. When I got there, my instincts told me to go east, so I was going east. Now, however, my instincts are telling me nothing."

He nodded.

"You remember the signs to look for?"

"Of course."

"And you don't think that this...ah...young lady is hindering you at all?"

I stopped and stared at Albus.

"I don't think that for a moment, Albus. Maybe I'm just not in the right area. Maybe I'm not in the right country."

Albus shook his head. "No. There was no other place it could be. Why it had to be Canada...Why couldn't it have been a place like Luxembourg."
"Professor Trelawny didn't say what part of Canada, did she?"

Albus smiled. "No. That would have been helpful."

I sighed. "I'll find it, Albus."

He nodded. "I have faith in you, Remus. However, you must make haste. You've lingered in Britain long enough."

I nodded.

"I will leave first thing in the morning."

"Good. Please hurry, Remus. The entire wizarding world is counting on you."

*

As soon as I got back to Grimmauld Place I telephoned Julianne, meaning to tell her I'd be back first thing in the morning and to please pack everything and be ready to go.

"I'm sorry, sir, there doesn't seem to be an answer. Are you sure that's the right room number?"

"I'm absolutely positive," I answered. "Could she have gone out for lunch?"

"I believe that she left earlier, sir."

"What do you mean, left?" I barked. I realised that my hands were shaking slightly.

"A man came to pick her up. She left around nine."

I swore under my breath. "Did she say where she was going?"

"Home, sir. She told the morning desk clerk that she was going home."

"Thank you." I hung up abruptly, my insides turned to ice.

It looked like Noah had found her.