Kiss of the Wolf

III

It was after twelve o'clock when Remus Lupin emerged from his room at 12 Grimmauld Place. He walked slowly down the dusty stairs, limping slightly as he went, and turned into the basement kitchen. The previous night had been the full moon, a bad night in general for Remus. The Wolfsbane Potion that he usually took had hardly worked and he had woken up with a broken leg and wounds over most of his body. He had mended his leg the best he could, and left the wounds to heal on their own.

Remus walked into the kitchen and took a seat at the long wooden table. Sirius lay opposite him, passed out with a bottle of Oldgen's Old Firewhiskey clutched in his hand. Normally, Remus would have woken his friend up but today he lacked the strength to do so. He turned in his seat and caught a glimpse of himself in a nearby pot. His skin was pale and there were huge bags under his dark brown eyes. Despite this, and the fact that he had a huge scratch across his face, he was pleased with his appearance. He had looked much worse in the past. He had started to get up to make a cup of tea when a single flame burst above the table and a letter floated down, accompanied by a single red feather.

"Fawkes," he said simply, taking the letter and opening it. He recognized Dumbledore's handwriting immediately and started to read.

Remus,

Go to St. Mungo's as soon as possible. Ward thirteen, 1^st floor. Send word as soon as you arrive. I will explain later.

Remus frowned, noted the important information and set the letter on fire with the tip of his wand. The ashes collected on the table and then vanished with a wave of his wand. For a moment, he wondered if an Order member has fallen, but no...Dumbledore would have said so. He got to his feet and walked in back of Sirius. He raised his wand and poked Sirius sharply in the ribs with it. Sirius yelled and jumped up.

"What the bloody hell do you think your doing, Remus?" he asked, half yelling in shock.

"You're getting like Mundungus, Padfoot," Remus said, using Sirius's childhood name. "I have to go to St. Mungo's. Dumbledore's orders."

The drunken stupor vanished from Sirius' face and he immediately looked alert.

"Is it Harry? Is something wrong with Harry?" he started towards the door, causing Remus to promptly pull him back.

"It's not Harry, or any other member of the Order. I don't know who it is, just that I am to go to St. Mungo's." He looked Sirius in the eye. "And do you really think that if Harry were injured, Dumbledore would send the letter to me? Use your head, Sirius."

Sirius grumbled a reply and returned to the table.

"Tonks and Kingsley will be 'round for dinner tonight," Remus said as he crossed the room, and grabbed a cloak from a peg on the wall. Sirius waved a hand and Remus left the house. When Remus had reached the center of Grimmauld Place, he looked around quickly, thought 'St.Mungo's' and disapparated.

He apparated in the waiting room of St. Mungo's. Almost immediately, he was knocked over by a large wizard with three more arms than usual.

"Sorry, mate," the man said, using one arm to lift Remus to his feet while still hurrying forward.

Remus straightened his patched robes and started forwards towards the stairwell. As he walked up the steps, he noticed a large sign which listed the various purpose of each level. The first floor was dedicated to Magical Creature injuries. Remus sighed, memories from the past flooding his thoughts.

He was five and sitting in a bed on the 1st floor. His side hurt terribly and he couldn't understand why his parents were so upset, why some of the healers were looking at him as if he were dirty. More importantly, he couldn't understand why he felt so sick. After all, it was only a dog that had bit him, wasn't it...

"Sir?"

A voice jerked Remus back to reality and he spun around.

"Sir, are you looking for someone?"

It was a witch, dressed in lime green robes with the crossed bone and wand. She was looking at Remus carefully.

"Oh yes. I need to find ward thirteen," he said, trying to make his hoarse voice co-operate.

"Third door on the left. Healer O'Riley is in charge of that ward. But I can't understand why you would want to go down there. There's..."

"Thank you for your help," Remus interrupted. The healer had taken on a nasty tone and he didn't like it. If this unknown person held the attention of someone like Albus Dumbledore, than they deserved no more than the utmost respect. The healer shot him a nasty look and proceeded down the hallway. Remus started walking down the hallway and eventually came to the door to ward thirteen. A brass plate outside read 'Intensive Care, Healer In-Charge: Denis O'Riley.' He took a deep breath and pushed open the door, not knowing what to expect.

The room was dark and had a strong smell of pine trees. A bed was positioned in the corner of the room and was occupied by a girl. Remus approached the bed slowly and saw that the girl appeared to be asleep. He looked around for any sign of who she may be, but there was none. Remembering what Dumbledore had said about sending word that he had arrived, he walked over to the corner of the room and pulled a long chain from the neck of his robes. At the end was a small mirror. He held it in front of his face and whispered 'Albus Dumbledore.' Almost immediately, Dumbledore's face appeared in the mirror.

"Ah, you have arrived," the old man said, his face grave.

"Yes, but Professor..." Even after all these years, Remus could not bring himself to call his former teacher by his first name.

"You want to know who she is. When she is ready, she will tell you. She is a muggle, bitten last night by a werewolf on the Hogwarts grounds."

Remus felt a wave of pity for this unknown girl. "What was she doing at Hogwarts?"

"I do not know. The healers, of course, wish to heal her and wipe her memory. But I sense that there is more to this than we know." He sighed and Remus could see that he looked tired. "I have a theory, Remus. One that I will tell you later, when I am sure. But for right now, I wish you to act as her guardian. Healer O'Riley knows that I am the one who brought her in and is eager to wipe her memory. You must not let this happen," he said firmly.

"Of course, Professor," Remus said at once.

"If anything happens, Remus, do not hesitate to contact me."

Remus nodded, raised his wand and tapped the mirror, severing the connection. He shifted his gaze back to the sleeping girl. A thick bandage had been wrapped around her left arm and her entire middle section. Her skin had taken on a greenish color and she was moaning slightly. Remus started to step closer when the door opened and a heavy-set red-haired man entered the room.

"Sir, this is a private ward," the man said, irritably. "You must leave at once."

"I am the acting guardian for this girl," Remus said evenly. "Remus Lupin, and you are?"

"Healer O'Riley. I am in charge of the muggle." He stared at Remus, clearly noting how tired he looked. "Lupin...I've heard that name before."

"Hmm, I don't think so," Remus said quickly. "What do you know about the girl's condition?"

"Oh, the standard case . She was bitten by a werewolf last night, brought in by the headmaster of Hogwarts and has been unconscious ever since. She had a broken wrist and fractured ankle, along with multiple bites and scratches to the body. I've treated the wrist and ankle and have wrapped the bites. Of course, they will take longer to heal. She will need to take a blood replenishing potion every day just to make sure." O'Riley walked over to the bed and looked at the girl. "If I had my way, as soon as she wakes up I'd perform a memory charm and send her on her way. Let someone else deal with her. But Albus Dumbledore wants her to remain here, to be told of her...condition," he sneered.

"So there is no doubt that the curse has indeed been passed on to her?" Remus asked, choosing his words carefully and trying to hide his dislike for the healer.

"Oh she's a werewolf, alright. Already the characteristic signs have appeared. The bites are slow to heal, and she is getting sick." O'Riley watched Remus carefully. "The first thing to change is the immune system. She's trying to fight off the curse but will be unable too. For the next month, she will slowly change, until the full moon when the curse is complete."

Remus watched the girl, who had not moved. "So she will suffer too," he muttered quietly.

"Huh? D'ya say something?"

"Nothing. I was just talking to myself." He walked towards the bed and sat on the edge.

"Right...well, I need to go on my rounds. Should you need anything, just give a shout down the hallway." O'Riley left the room.

Remus raised his eyebrows but said nothing and concentrated on the girl. His feeling of pity towards the girl had intensified. To be bitten by a werewolf was horrible, as he knew, but to be a muggle as well! The Wolfsbane Potion wouldn't be available to her as it had to him. He got to his feet, conjured up a chair that positioned itself against the far wall, and settled in for a long wait.

IV

The first thing Zoe thought when she woke up was that she had died. She could see nothing but blackness all around her and could concentrate only on the pain that seemed to be radiating from her arm.

No, you're being stupid, she thought suddenly. Look, already you can see shapes.

And indeed her eyes had adjusted enough so that she could see she was in a small room, lying on a bed. The only other objects in the room were a chair and its occupant. A man was asleep in the chair.

Good thing. He looks like he hasn't slept in years, she noted to herself. She tried to push herself to a sitting position in order to see better, but was pushed back to the bed with a mixed wave of pain and nausea. Zoe moaned involuntarily.

The man jumped to his feet and looked around. When he saw that Zoe had woken, his expression became one of worry and he started to walk towards the bed. Zoe pushed herself to a sitting position, fighting through the pain to form a coherent thought.

"I'm sorry if I disturbed you, sir. I will be on my way in a few moments," she said, trying to keep her voice from shaking.

The man watched her for a second, reached out and put a hand on her shoulder. "No. Sit," He said hoarsely, gently pushing her back down again.

The man appeared to be quite young, though his brown hair was flecked with gray and he looked ill. He was tall and his clothes hung on his body as if he had recently lost weight. His clothes were strange but looked very similar to the clothes that her parents wore whenever they left for London.

Another wave of nausea hit Zoe and she groaned. The man's worried expression grew deeper and this startled Zoe. Never had anyone been worried for her. Her parents couldn't care less about her, so this expression had never appeared on their faces. She found herself staring at the man and looked away.

"Sir," she tried again when the nausea had passed. "Where am I?"

The man hesitated before answering in the same hoarse tone as before. "You are in St. Mungo's Hospital in London. You were brought in two days ago."

Zoe had never heard of St. Mungo's...indeed she had never been to London. She struggled to remember the last time she had been awake.

"Apparently, you had a broken wrist and fractured ankle as well as multiple other injuries. Do you remember what happened?"

She started to shake her head then paused. "Wait. I do...some of it, I mean. I was walking home and it started to rain. So I decided to head for the castle ruins to take shelter. I'd never been up there before so imagine my surprise when I see that the castle is not in ruins at all. And there were lights coming out of the castle. But anyways, halfway across the grounds, I was attacked but..." She looked at Remus and, for the first time, met his eyes. "I don't know by what."

The man nodded and looked away. "My name is Remus Lupin. I am your er...guardian during your stay at St. Mungo's."

Zoe's eyes widened. "You make it seem as if my stay will be for an extended period of time. I'm not too badly injured. I mean, my ankle and wrist are..." she stopped and looked at her wrist, which bore no sign of even having been broken. "Healed," she said slowly. She furrowed her brows and stared at Remus.

At that moment a red-haired man walked into the room. Zoe shifted her gaze to him and saw that he was wearing the same type of clothes as Remus, though his were bright green.

"So you're up, then," the man said, sneering at her. "It's about time. Accio Potion." A flask filled with an evil looking red liquid floated into the room. Zoe yelped and brought her knees to her chest.

"Its...it's floating!" She looked from the bottle to Remus and back again.

The other man shot her a dirty look and muttered "Muggles," he said before approaching Zoe. "Drink this. All of it." He handed her the flask.

Zoe looked at it and then drank it down, gagging as it went. "Horrible," she said as she handed the bottle back to the man.

"I'm healer O'Riley. I'm in charge of your health while you are here. Ask me any questions right now, because I have rounds to go on."

Zoe hesitated. "What is this place? What are you and him?" She pointed towards Remus.

"This is St. Mungo's, girl, hospital for Magical Maladies and Ailments. We are wizards. Yes...magic does exist, and yes, there are more of us. So get over it," O'Riley snapped.

Zoe raised an eyebrow and continued on. "What happened to me?"

"Didn't he tell you? You were attacked by a werewolf, girl. You were bitten in three places and there are scratches all over your body as well as a broken wrist and ankle which I have already healed. As the curse has been passed, the bites will take a little longer to heal. You might be here for another couple weeks, depending on how bad the symptoms are. But, I'm sure that we will have you home before the full moon." He smirked.

"C-curse? The full moon?" She was stunned and could barely breathe, let alone speak. The frankness in the healer's voice was unbearable. "You've got to be kidding me. Werewolves don't exist."

"I assure you, they do." Remus's voice broke through her thoughts. She turned and looked at him but before she could ask him how he knew, the healer butted in.

"Look, muggle, your feel naucious, right? Sick to your stomach and the like? The first symptom. After this, your vision changes, what you can eat, your mood, and everything else. So, you're a werewolf now. Your life has changed. You can either deal with it, or sink under it. It's your choice." The healer shot her another look and left the room.