The Hardest Thing

Two hours later, Alison's mind was still reeling with all that Sirius had told her. They were on a train heading north, Sirius having transformed into a dog while Alison secured a private compartment for them. For the first hour, he'd explained everything to her, about wizards and witches, about Lord Voldemort and Death Eaters and Harry Potter and Animagi. Apparently, the man they were going to see now, Sirius's friend, was a werewolf.

Alison would have thought the whole thing a grand joke if Sirius hadn't pulled out his wand again and demonstrated several spells. That, plus the whole dog thing, made her a believer. Once his explanations were finished, they'd sat in silence, Alison staring unseeingly out the window, struggling to take it all in. Sirius was whistling to himself in the corner while filling out the crossword puzzle in what he called "the Muggle newspaper".

The train pulled into the station at Pidlington, where Sirius said his friend would meet them. Alison had no clue how his friend would know they were arriving, but she didn't have the energy to ask questions.

"Put this on," Sirius said, using his wand to conjure a long burgundy hooded cloak out of thin air. Alison did as he said, privately thinking the robe would make her more conspicuous instead of less, and turned around to see Sirius staring at her with a speculative gleam in his eyes.

"No, burgundy isn't really your color, is it?" He said, waving his wand slightly. The cloak changed from burgundy to a deep midnight blue. "Much better," Sirius said with a grin. "Matches your eyes."

"Jules was right about you," Alison said, then stopped as something occurred to her. "Jules! What will she think of all this? I've run off and left her!"

"Relax," Sirius said, steering her toward the door. "I explained everything before I took you to your flat."

"You-you-explained -everything?" Alison said weakly. Jules would be going crazy.

"Well, I explained you weren't feeling well and were taking the day off-then I modified her memory so that she wouldn't remember seeing me. She's alright."

"Modified her memory? What the HELL does that mean?"

Impatience flickered through his cool gray eyes. "It's a spell, alright? You can make someone forget either everything or certain memories. I couldn't have her running to the police the second I left, telling them Sirius Black had kidnapped her cousin. Aurors would have been swarming all over the place. No, I'd imagine Jules is home right now, enjoying a few days off while her boss is sick with the flu. Now be quiet. I'm going to transform, and then we'll leave the train."

In a split second, Sirius was a dog again, and Alison gripped the fur on his neck tightly, not sure whether she was more frightened of Death Eaters, a werewolf, or Sirius himself, but deciding that Sirius was the lesser of the three evils.

If she'd been worried about standing out in a crowd, Alison soon realized that she needn't have. Apparently, Pidlington was full of wizards, since the majority of the people there wore robes and cloaks in various colors.

A tall, thin man with gray-flecked light brown hair and lines around his eyes and mouth approached them. He had kind green eyes and a tired smile, and held out his hand as he came.

"Alison?" She nodded, shaking his hand. "I'm Remus Lupin." Remus Lupin patted Sirius on the head, and Sirius bared his teeth, growling. Remus Lupin laughed, then turned. "My house is just down the main street here. I don't have a car, but it isn't far to walk."

It only took five minutes to walk to Lupin's house, which was lucky, as it began to rain the second he opened the door. Ducking inside, Alison looked around, curious to see a wizard's house. At first glance, it was no different than any other home. A sagging yet comfortable-looking couch, covered in faded blue fabric, a scuffed coffee table, a square dining room table and two chairs. But on closer inspection, Alison noticed not only the conspicuous lack of electricity or appliances, but the owl in a cage in one corner, and the fishtank in the opposite corner that held not fish but an evil-looking little creature that bared its teeth at her and gurgled when it saw her looking.

Lupin followed her gaze and chuckled. "That's Liam-my grindylow."

"I'd ask what that is," Alison told him, "but I'm much too tired and confused by all this."

"Here, sit down. I'll make some tea." Gratefully Alison sank onto the faded blue couch, closing her eyes. She opened them to find Sirius sitting next to her, looking at her.

"What?" She asked, his steady gaze making her self-conscious. Sirius didn't answer, just shrugged and gave her his most charming smile, revealing a dimple in one cheek.

Lupin came back in, carrying a tray with three steaming cups of tea, sugar cubes, and a plate of biscuits. Alison took a mug, the hot liquid making her feel much more alert and up to whatever she'd been dragged into.

"So, Sirius," said Lupin, pulling one of the dining room chairs into the living room, "what brings you here? You didn't explain anything in your note."

"Death Eaters," Sirius said around a mouthful of biscuit. "I was on my way to my dear mother's old house, which Dumbledore thought would make a good hiding place-hiding in plain sight, as it were-when I was hit by a car. I don't know whether that part was deliberate or not, but Alison, who is a vet, took me to her office-I was a dog at the time-and fixed me up. Then this morning, Goyle shows up with some story about a lost dog, and when Alison stood up to him, he tried to kill her. So I brought her with me. Dumbledore suggested I come here."

"I know. I got his owl telling me to meet your train."

"That's all I know," Sirius finished, wiping crumbs off his chin before devouring another two biscuits at once. Both Alison and Lupin watched, appalled yet fascinated, while Sirius ate the last four biscuits on the plate. He looked up when he was done, and gave Lupin an odd look.

"What, Moony?"

"You eat like a wild boar, Padfoot."

"I've been living off rats and stolen food for a year, Moony. I'm starving for something real. Besides, in prison they don't exactly encourage good table manners."

"Fair enough. Do you want a sandwich or something?"

"Anything," Sirius said gratefully. Lupin turned to Alison. "Would you like anything?"

"A sandwich would be great, if it isn't too much trouble," she said, realizing she'd had nothing to eat but two doughnuts and a few biscuits all day.

Lupin disappeared into the kitchen. Alison heard drawers and cabinets opening, and wondered where he kept food if he didn't have electricity for a refrigerator.

"You can stay here for a day or two," Lupin called from the kitchen. "Dumbledore is relatively sure it's safe, since I'm supposd to hate you so much for betraying James and Lily." He said it lightly, so Alison was surprised to see a look of pain cross Sirius's face.

The rest of the day passed quickly, Sirius and Lupin keeping Alison laughing by telling her stories of the two of them and their friend James and Peter when they were in school. Alison wanted to ask where those two were now, but something stopped her from asking, the memory of the pain on Sirius's face when Lupin mentioned James and Lily making her hesitant to pry.

The clock struck twelve before any of them realized it, and Alison yawned hugely. Lupin jumped up. "You must be exhausted! Why didn't you stop us?"

"Yeah, Alison, if we're that boring you should have told us," Sirius said, grinning cheekily at her. Alison laughed sleepily.

"You're not boring at all," she assured him, "I'm just worn out. It's not every day strange men turn into dogs right in front of you."

Lupin showed her to the spare bedroom down the hall. "It's not very comfortable, but it's clean at least. There are extra blankets in the closet if you get cold."

"Thanks," she said, and closed the door behind him. Alison got into bed, and fell asleep almost before her head hit the pillow.