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Chapter Thirty-Four

At Ken No Ie, Sirius was blowing his top. Remus had simply shredded the paper, throwing scraps all over.

Remus had noticed that he still got irritable before the full moon. Before Japan, the two days before the full moon and the two after had been hard. Now, with the potion he was taking, the day before, he was irritable, the day of, he was very irritable. The night of the full moon, he changed, but he kept his mind. He knew who he was and was in total control of himself, even if he was cranky. Today was the day before the full moon and he was not a happy were. Someone had attacked his godson. With words, to be sure, but still.

"Not happy!" Remus' snarl made Sirius grunt.

"Well, I'm not happy either. But trying to get that bitch to see reason isn't going to work."

"I'll bite her." Remus knew that this wasn't a solution but the threat made him feel better.

"Won't help. Then she'd just be an even bigger bitch. We need something else." Sirius motioned to a gaki. "Tea."

Yusuke arrived before the tea. "Remusu-aniki! Shiriusu-oji! That Skeeter ... woman has to be ... I'll chop her into fish bait."

Sirius just nodded to him and asked, "What did the poor fish do to you?"

Yusuke flopped down on a zabuton and stuffed a pillow under his arm so as to support him in his sprawl. "Nothing. You're right. But something has to be done ... and soon."

Sirius nodded over his tea. "You're right. It's too early in the morning for all this ... craziness. Eat some breakfast."

Yusuke settled to eat, sitting up siza and taking a bowl of rice. "Ok, ok. But what are we going to do about that woman?"

"Don't know yet. Something. Need to know more about her first." Sirius took his chopsticks and put a fish on a plate then handed it to Yusuke. "Remus?"

"No, I thank you. Only tea for me. Stomach went off on me." Remus made a face and put a hand on his stomach.

"Usually does." Sirius, used to Remus' touchy 'moon' stomach, left him alone.

Yusuke ate quietly, thinking hard. He finally asked, "I'd like to know how she learned what she did. Who said what to who?"

"I think it's 'who said what to whom,'" Sirius pointed out.

Yusuke's answer was rude, in Japanese, and physically impossible, as Remus pointed out.

Sirius called the waka that were staying in Hogwarts and questioned them, explaining that they weren't under suspicion, but perhaps they'd seen something that was important, only they didn't know it was.

They all thought carefully but no one came up with anything. One waka did complain that the castle was full of bugs.

Sirius started then asked, "What kind of bug?"

"Beetles. I see them flying around from time to time. Most around that red-headed boy." The waka shook his head. "He stinks. Bath is not his thing."

Remus, thinking hard, asked, "Can you describe it better?"

"No. I am sorry. But I will be on the lookout for it." The waka nodded once. "If I'm not needed?"

Yusuke waved his hand. "No, you can go. Be ready to return to the castle in an hour." He finished his tea and stood up. "Now, I will go speak to that woman."

Sirius shook his head. "No, you will not. I will. If I remember correctly, she was a fourth year when we were seventh. And ... something..." he glanced at Remus but Remus shook his head. "Ok. I'm going. Yusuke-san, you go back to school. Or hunt for one of your targets."