Werewolves at Hogwarts

Chapter 30

Remus watched the small, neatly made woman across the fire laugh and sing as she strummed her guitar. All around him, the people joined in the medley of Muggle and Wizard songs, some pop songs, some ballads. It was a wonderful end to a wonderful day and he was content to watch his contemporaries relax on the communal village green on this cold, crisp April night.

When they had woken up this morning, Remus had been apprehensive. Severus was leaving for the Isle of Skye to collect his Greenman's Sea Grapes, a rather rare potions ingredient that had to be harvested in the spring and only at the lowest ebb of the tide or some such. Knowing he had to go, Remus had put on a brave face over breakfast and he thought he had hidden his apprehension well, until Severus had pulled him close and kissed him reassuringly, before he apparated out. Without the looming black presence at his back to give him courage, Remus hoped he could face the Isle of Cardoul with some sort of equanimity.

Before the pop had even finished, Betty McFarlane was at his side, her white hair sparkling in the sun. "Come on, Lad, I want you to meet my niece," she said gleefully, grabbing his elbow and dragging him off down the cobbled street to a neat stone cottage set back from the road in what looked like a well stocked market garden.

Her niece proved to be Morag Douglas, a classically trained singer, guitarist and very capable writer of music. They struck up a friendship straight away, almost as if they had known each other all their lives and were just meeting after a break. It was uncanny!

Betty had asked Morag to write down the howls she knew, making up the notation as she went along. Remus looked at the music with a faintly puzzled air until Morag laughed at him and began to interpret the notes on a very odd sort of double staved piano paper. "I couldn't think on how to get the rolling howls in so I just added the top stave to accommodate," she shrugged depreciatingly. "I also decided a single rising howl should not be written in notes so I made up this bar note, see? It can be as long or as short as you like and going up scale or down scale but it is a continuous note."

Remus studied the paper then threw back his head and howled it in a smooth baritone, rising to tenor then up higher almost into contralto. Betty stuck her head back into the kitchen and shook it as her window glass rattled under the impressive volume. "Take it outside, you two!" she scolded.

Both of them giggled like naughty children and indeed, 'took it outside', Morag nodding her approval at Remus' ability to follow her notes. "Okay, now it's just a matter of teaching people to read the music and then for them to teach others. We need a handbook of the common duty howls and Law howls that everyone can learn to yodel. And I need to pick your brain and get what you know written down too."

"I suppose so, although making up the Lore needs more than just one man's input," Remus mused.

"Which is why we will all be assembled here tomorrow, to lay down the foundation truths in writing," Betty said firmly, dragging them off to lunch.

They had spent the afternoon learning the new script and the quirks Morag had had to invent to accommodate the purpose. By the time night fell they had pretty much hammered out the new notation system and its necessary variations. They had also collected an audience of both residents and visitors who often joined in the howling with varying degrees of success. When the crowd became too large, they had moved it to the village green and lit a fire in the fire pit in the centre.

The spontaneous party was in full swing when they switched to dancing and the village band struck up old Scottish tunes for those who wanted to shake a leg. Remus partnered Morag and Betty as the night went on, joining in reels and waltzes with equal facility. He loved to dance and was fairly light on his feet, and thus a sought after partner. On one of the few dances he sat out, a tall, grim looking man threw himself down beside him, a bottle of beer clutched in his hand. "So this is what the Isle is all about, then, is it? Singing and dancing werewolves, on parade without a care. God, I hate this sickness."

Remus shot the half drunk man a rueful smile. "You haven't been Turned long, have you?"

"Turned! What a euphemism for being savaged by a wild beast and condemned to an eternity of pain and fear, because you weren't quick enough with a hex, or a partner let you down. I was a happy camper, a good job, good friends, nice flat, girlfriend and then that fucking animal tore a chunk out of my shoulder, and suddenly I'm a fucking animal too."

"Who was it?" Remus asked, a frown drawing down his brow as he tried to remember when the last attack had occurred but couldn't think of any.

"What do you mean, 'who', don't you really mean 'what'?"

"No, I mean who did it? Who bit you and why wasn't the incident reported to the Council? If it was one of the Wild Ones, we would deal with it; if it was one of us then we would also deal with it, in our own way."

The man shifted uneasily, remembering their first experiments with the werewolf turning potion and it's unexpected, and very fast effect. "I don't know his name, only that he had light grey fur and bloody big white teeth."

"Oh, not much to go on; I'm Remus Lupin, by the way."

"Yeah, I know, someone told me you were one of the big shots around here."

Remus laughed. "No, just one of the longer serving; I've been with Mistress Moon for more than forty years and have learned a thing or two."

He snorted in reply. "One thing you haven't learned then, Remus Lupin, is that not everyone is what they seem, and that sometimes people you thought you knew can turn on you, just because they find out you have a real bad hair problem."

"Oh, been there, done that, got the tea towel." Remus laughed harshly. "Most of us have had similar problems and we have all had to deal with the loss of friends, the ostracising of our people and the general distrust and terror associated with lycanthropy. Hopefully, we can build a better relationship with the rest of the wizarding world in the future."

"Or end up as potions ingredients," he shot back glumly.

"Or end up as potions ingredients," Remus agreed wryly. "But not tonight. Tonight we sing and dance, drink a little, and forget we are not fully human, nor are we fully outcasts, just people having a good time." He rose and held out a hand to the man. "Do you want to dance?"

"What? Dance with you? You gotta be joking! You think I'm fucking queer or something?"

"I don't know, you are talking to me and I assumed you knew that I am, er, queer."

"Oh Man, I sure can pick them," he muttered in disgusted tones as he stumbled off into the night.

Refusing to feel hurt, Remus looked around, saw a pair of sympathetic eyes watching him and shrugged ruefully.

"Never mind, Remus, I'll dance with you," Christiana Edmunds said consolingly as she came closer.

"That's okay; it was only a passing thought. I didn't know you were here, I thought you would apparate in for the meeting tomorrow."

"I had a couple of empty days so I thought I'd come up early and see the infamous isle. It looks like fun actually; I haven't tried those Scottish folk dances since I was in primary school."

~~*~~

The twelve Alphas of the council were never easy to get on with; each as egocentric as the next. Christiana glared at the assembled men and shook her head as yet another fight broke out. Remus sat back and grinned at her, not lifting a single finger to stop them. Sighing deeply, Chris rose from her place, walked carefully around the table and slammed the toe of her court shoe into the nearest set of ribs. The men sprang up defensively and she slapped them both across the back of the head. "Naughty boys! Bad children! Sit down and shut up immediately," she snapped, pointing to their seats.

Totally astonished at being treated like little kids both men sat down.

"That's better. You twelve are supposed to be the biggest, bravest guiding lights in the whole werewolf world. So far you have all whined about the cold, the fact that the chairs are a little uncomfortable and that it's a nuisance getting up here when you have other things to do. Not one of you had made any attempt to even read the agenda I have put together to try and get some value out of my time here."

"Why, are we at a business meeting? Are we going to call ourselves 'Howls Incorporated' or some such?" a burley man taunted. "Listen girlie, we only let you win because...."

"That is the Lore; the one who defeats all is the Alpha Prime. I defeated you lot, she defeated me, therefore she is the Alpha Prime and as Alphas, you are obliged to either listen or challenge, your choice, Blaster," Remus said quietly, causing instant silence. "If you have a Challenge to present, then do so. If you do not then be quiet and try to learn something."

"Damn it, Lupin! Our people are being murdered and you want us to sit around like bleeding lapdogs and listen to a bloody bitch to tell us what to do! I say we have to go out and find this murderer and tear his throat out!" There was a chorus of growls and laughing agreement.

"Fine," Chris said, tossing the paperwork down on the table and smiling at Sean Murphy, Blaster. "So, who do we kill? Show me the murderer and I'll rip his throat out personally, or you can if you like. Let's do it now! Come on then - you're so gung-ho and ready for action - show me the action and we'll take out the murderer!" There was another round of rumblings and snarls and Chris smiled toothily. "That's right; we HAVE NO TARGET as yet! What we do have is ideas. While we are away from the packs we hear things and we need to pass those things on, but so far we don't have the skills and this is why we have an agenda, to keep us on track. And yes, I suggest we start a company - call it 'Howls Incorporated' if you like - and we start getting revenue in for the Werewolf Nation we are all part of. Money is power and we need power if we are not going to be turned into a slave nation, no better than animals. Now, I know how to create, run and promote a company, and I can do it very well, but I don't know what product we can sell, so I need your creative input."

"Maybe we should become private investigators and go find our own murderer," Blaster said snidely.

Christiana nodded. "Good suggestion actually; with our natural advantages we are good at investigating things. Do you want to look into that idea, see if it is viable?"

"What? Are you serious?"

"Yes. Remus was a security guard in the Muggle world; we could easily do that, and employ Muggles or unconverted family members to cover the Moon Nights. It would gain prosperity for our people and help a lot of them who are living in abject poverty. Just remember, we are the lucky ones, we have enough to eat and somewhere warm to sleep every night. Many of our brethren do not even have the luxury of being able to afford their own wand."

The silence around the table changed feel, no longer hostile and mocking, but thoughtful and calculating. She had them, she was in and Remus let out a silent, imperceptible sigh of relief as he relaxed.

"You're not off the hook yet, Lupin," Chris said in amusement as she turned and smiled toothily at him.

~~*~~

"Werewolf run businesses..."

"Making our own industries...

"...being able to afford decent food..."

"Oh Merlin, can you imagine...."

"...Pipe dreams!"

"Aye, perhaps, but better to dream big and grand than to ha'e no dreams or hope at all!"

The gossip mill was grinding only half an hour after the meeting finished. Betty offered Remus a bowl of thick rich stew and a hunk of freshly baked bread as he sat at her kitchen table. "Well, the lassie has put the cat amongst the pigeons this time, and no mistake. Think she can pull it off?" she asked, dark eyes twinkling.

"Oddly enough, yes, I do," Remus said quietly. "She is one of the foremost business consultants in both the Wizarding and the Muggle world, and if she says she can do it then she bloody well will, or die trying."

"Having done what you can to ensure the future of the werewolves is more comfortable than the past, what now?"

"Oh, I will go home at the end of the week, and back to teaching school on Monday," Remus smiled. "She's right though, times are changing and we need to keep up or we will go down, not even as a footnote, just another extinct species."

"So you'll not be staying for Full Moon?" Betty asked her head cocked inquiringly.

"Maybe in June but not now; I have responsibilities and must be there for my kids."

Morag, the second diner, pushed her notes across the table to him and grinned. "I finished the first draft so you can take it with you and check it over, see what needs editing."

"I'll do that. I had a note from Sev this morning to meet him in Armidale tomorrow morning so I'll have to get packed and ready to leave this evening. He must have found his sea grapes early in the piece as I thought he was coming here to collect me on Friday."

"Aye well, you have both made a good start on the language, and Remus now knows what we have here on the isle. It has been a productive week and a nice quiet month so far despite there being two moons. As soon as the Second Moon is over with, I'll be happier."

"Nothing untoward will occur, Betty; we will all get out of your hair and the Isle's population can get back to its normal lives and business." Remus grinned at the old woman who was beginning to look a little tired.

"Aye, we'll see, we'll see; but the month with two moons is always a month of surprise and upheaval."

"It can't get much worse than the last Alphas meeting; now that was full of surprise and upheaval, and not a little contention too. Never mind, Chris has them all well in hand and all but begging to know what they can do to help start businesses or support causes."

"We should start a printery and get our Book of Lore printed up as fast as possible," Morag decided, swirling a finger around her cup's rim and making it ring.

"Stop that Girl, you put my teeth on edge," Betty complained then grinned. "Agreed, but the printing stuff costs money, money we just don't have to spare."

"For just now we could try using a duplication spell, just to make quick copies for the others to take home and learn. It would be best if the other Alphas had the written Lore so they could begin teaching and learning in their own areas."

"Agreed. Do you want to do the spell, or shall I?" Morag asked cheekily, pulling her wand out.

Remus grinned back and spent the rest of the evening hunting and begging for parchment to make copies.

~~*~~

"I spoke to him at the party they had on the village green and he told me he had planned to leave on Friday to get back to school for Monday."

"Did he recognise you?"

"No. He even asked me to dance. You didn't tell me he was a screaming faggot. You know I hate queers," Mr Blue spat in disgust.

In the flames, Mr White hid a sly smile. "I didn't know, although we should have guessed, considering how he hangs around with that bastard Snape. So, are you all ready?"

"Yes, it should go without a hitch."

~~*~~

The park Severus had chosen for the apparition point was delightful and appropriately named, smelling of rain-washed earth and growing things as Remus apparated in. In the distance he could hear children playing and further away again he could hear cars and trucks, so he guessed it would be a Muggle area. Taking out his wand, he adjusted his robes into a raincoat and stepped up onto the path. As he began to walk toward the park's entrance, the hairs on the back of his neck rose. Without conscious thought, he flung himself left then apparated forward ten feet, spinning as he landed. The man on the grass swore angrily as something silvery and glistening hit the footpath where Remus had been, and splashed.

A hex flew at Remus' head, his own protego spell covering his vulnerability as he dodged again and threw a simple confundus. This opponent swore but was not confused, not put off as he pushed the curse aside and slung two whirling blade hexes at Remus' head and legs. Remus jumped aside, ducking under the high hex and cancelling the low curse as his opponent apparated away.

Gasping, Remus kept his wand at the ready as he hurried out of the trees and into the main road of Armidale. Severus wanted to meet him at the Flying Sporran, a wizarding pub with a good reputation. It only took a minute to get there and Remus ducked into the cool, beer scented bar with a sigh of gratitude. He hadn't wanted to start flinging hexes in the middle of a Muggle town, certainly not where any Muggles might see him. The result of such a debacle would be all the worse for him, as a werewolf, than for anyone duelling with him.

The barman looked up and smiled as Remus approached, recognising a wizard immediately. "Snape? Oh aye, he has taken a parlour out the back, I'll show you where." The obliging man put up his dishcloth and ushered Remus to the reserved room. "He's not in yet, but he said you were to make yourself at home and he'd join you as soon as he arrived. Can I get you a beer?"

Remus assented and took a seat in one of the comfy chairs near the fire. He was almost half way through the pint when the door opened and he smiled, beginning to turn. "That you Seve..." The hex caught him in the temple and he knew no more.

~~*~~

Apparating into the Island hotel, Severus was very surprised to see the room he and Remus had booked was empty and the bed stripped. Looking around he saw no sign of Remus' occupation anywhere. Puzzled but not unduly alarmed, Severus made his way down the stairs and inquired at the front desk where he might find Lupin at this time of day.

"Professor Lupin left yesterday to meet... you ... in Armidale, as the note you sent told him," the girl on the desk said, her uneasiness growing as her intelligence caught up with her mouth. "Oh dear, you didn't send him a note, did you? I'll call someone." She tipped a pinch of powder into the fire and spoke quickly, the party on the other end making explosive exclamations. A few seconds later a large, burley man came out of the flames and glared around impartially.

"So what's going on then?" he demanded belligerently, rubbing his nose carefully. "Did you just come in from the Mainland? Thought I smelled something odd. Now what's this about Lupin disappearing? He can't have just vanished."

"He got an owl from Professor Snape and the note asked that the Beta Prime meet him in Armidale yesterday morning. But Professor Snape says he didn't send it, so I don't know who would have."

"Have you the note, Kirsty, or did he take it along with him?"

"He took it away, Uncle Gordon; put it into his pocket before he went to Betty McFarlane's for dinner. He looked happy yesterday morning when he booked out and filled in the registration card to leave. Oh, he left at about nine am, said Professor Snape was not fond of dawn and preferred to take a later start than an early one."

Severus snorted; his glare sharp enough to cut glass as he studied the young woman and her burley interrogator. "He was not coerced to leave in any way?"

"No, Sir, of course not; he even said he might be back in June with his pack for the meeting."

"He didn't mention where in Armidale he might be meeting 'me', did he?" Snape asked, a cold dread invading his stomach as he thought on the possibilities and cringed inside.

The girl shook her head then paused thoughtfully. "He did mutter something about a park and that your stay on Skye had made you a nature lover all of a sudden."

"And that alone should have told him it was not from me!" Snape snapped bitterly. "So, I'm looking for a park in Armidale. It's not much to go on but it's all I have."

"We have," Campbell corrected. "He is our Beta Prime, you know, so we do have to find him. Kirsty, run up to Betty McFarlane's and see if the Alpha Prime is still there, she'll want to know her Beta is missing."