Prisoner, Who?

Chapter 22 WHAT'S NEXT

LAIA POV

When I woke up next morning, they explained, how they saved Buckbeak and Sirius, using Time-turner, that's how Hermione managed her class this year, Me, Harry, Ron, and Hermione left the hospital wing at noon, it was to find an almost deserted castle.

The sweltering heat and the end of the exams meant that everyone was taking full advantage of another Hogsmeade visit. We are not felt like going, we wandered onto the grounds, still talking about the extraordinary events of the previous night and wondering where Sirius and Buckbeak were now. Then I decided to pay visit to Remus, so I leave them and get to Remus Office, when I entered, He is packing.

"Packing, going somewhere?", I asked,

"Laia, yaeh, I am leaving", he replied, still not look at me.

"Look at me, and speak, or are you still mad at me about Marauders Map", then he stop packing, turned to me.

"I'm not mad at you....."

"Then?"

"I'm mad at me, I -I hurt you... I did this to you", his tears broke out, his face is full of guilt,

"But you recognized me, Remus"

"That's because of your potion"

"No, Remus, that's because of you, you, you alone, you knew that it's me, you fought against yourself, I saw that, you fight to save me"

"You don't understand, Laia, I-"

"No, you are wrong, I understand, what you think, but I want you Remus, you don't hurt me, it's nothing, compared what Dad gave me, you care about me, even then you cared about me, trust me, don't blame yourself", he just look at me, loss of words,

"Why are you packing?"

"I am leaving Hogwarts, Snape accidently slipped that I am Werewolf, so it's will be chaos, so it's time to leave"

"What, Snape, did what?"

"No, Laia, I know, he cares you, I saw that myself last night when he came to save you from me, he stake his own life to save you, and he taught you how to make Wolfbane, isn't he? Don't blame him, don't hate him for us, he has very reliable reason to hate us"

Before I replied, he opened the door again, Harry entered,

"I saw you coming," said Lupin, smiling. He pointed to the parchment he had been poring over. It was the Marauder's Map.

"I just saw Hagrid," said Harry. "And he said you'd resigned. It's not true, is it?"

"I'm afraid it is," said Lupin. He started opening his desk drawers and taking out the contents.

"Why?" said Harry. "The Ministry of Magic don't think you were helping Sirius, do they?" Lupin crossed to the door.

"No. Professor Dumbledore managed to convince Fudge that I was trying to save your lives." He sighed. "That was the final straw for Severus. I think the loss of the Order of Merlin hit him hard. So he — er — accidentally let slip that I am a werewolf this morning at breakfast."

"You're not leaving just because of that!" said Harry. Lupin smiled wryly.

"This time tomorrow, the owls will start arriving from parents. . . . They will not want a werewolf teaching their children, Harry. And after last night, I see their point. I could have bitten any of you. . . . That must never happen again."

"You're the best Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher we've ever had!" said Harry. "Don't go!"

Lupin shook his head,

Lupin asked, "From what the headmaster told me this morning, you saved a lot of lives last night, Harry. If I'm proud of anything, it's how much you've learned. . . . Tell me about your Patronus."

"How d'you know about that?" said Harry, distracted.

"What else could have driven the dementors back?" Harry told Lupin what had happened. When he'd finished, Lupin was smiling again. "Yes, your father was always a stag when he transformed," he said. "You guessed right . . . that's why we called him Prongs." Lupin threw his last few books into his case, closed the desk drawers, and turned to look at Harry. "Here — I brought this from the Shrieking Shack last night," he said, handing Harry back the Invisibility Cloak. "And . . ." He hesitated, then held out the Marauder's Map too. "I am no longer your teacher, so I don't feel guilty about giving you this back as well. It's no use to me, and I daresay you, Laia, Ron, and Hermione will find uses for it." Harry took the map and grinned. But Remus turned to me, and said, "But it doesn't mean, you can use this to see boys"

"Remus", I hissed but blushed.

"You told me Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs would've wanted to lure me out of school . . . you said they'd have thought it was funny."

"And so we would have," said Lupin, now reaching down to close his case. "I have no hesitation in saying that James would have been highly disappointed if his son had never found any of the secret passages out of the castle."

There was a knock on the door. Harry hastily stuffed the Marauder's Map and the Invisibility Cloak into his pocket. It was Professor Dumbledore. He didn't look surprised to see me and Harry there.

"Your carriage is at the gates, Remus," he said. "Thank you, Headmaster."

Lupin picked up his old suitcase and the empty grindylow tank.

"Well — good-bye, Harry," he said, smiling. "It has been a real pleasure teaching you. I feel sure we'll meet again sometime. Headmaster, there is no need to see me to the gates, I can manage. . . ."

"Good-bye, then, Remus," said Dumbledore soberly.

"I'm coming with you, atleast to gates" I asked,

"How can I say no to those puppy eyes, Star" he said,

Remus shifted the grindylow tank slightly so that he and Dumbledore could shake hands. Then, with a final nod to Harry and a swift smile, We left the office.

"So what do you have in your mind?", He asked me,

"How do you know", He just turned to me, and smiled at me,

"I know you, Laia, so tell me"

"I was thinking, what will Peter do", he stopped walking, so do I.

"What do you think he will do?"

"He will not stay as rat again, since he would have guessed Dumbledore knew the truth now, but he can't go back to Peter, other than the fact he is considered dead, he knew death-eaters will not let him live, so..."

"So?"

"So he will try clear his name to be in our side, but it is not possible, so he have to join death-eaters, in that case the only way is..... to join Voldemort, and help him come back"

He stays silent,

"Say something, say I am wrong, please Remus"

"I can't say that, Laia, we will take care of that, you don't worry, you know, Sirius wrong, about Lily won"

"What, you think, I am not smart", I pouted, he laughed,

"No, I meant, not only Lily won, but also Sirius, he said you were like him and James, and you are"

"You think"

"Yes, I know, so don't worry, you take care of your camp, while we care of Peter, deal"

Then we reached gate, there is thestrals pulling carts, they bowed, they started calling me, I patted them,

"You can see them", Remus asked me,

"Well, actually can talk to them, they are descendants of Pegasus, from My father..., you know"

"Hmm, that's kinda interesting", then hugged me, and said, "Take care, you always got us, now Sirius too, don't worry about Luke or Peter, be strong"

"Ok, you too, I will cure you"

"Yaeh, I know, I will wait for that"