Remus Lupin and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Chapter 28: Payback

As the 3rd year Gryffindors filed out after class that afternoon, Remus allowed himself to sit back in his chair and scrub a weary hand across his face; It had been a fine enough class but the morning's Dementor attack had left him feeling wrung out, despite the chocolate. He still had a dull ache that lingered in his deepest scars, like the cold that had permeated them in the Hogsmeade streets was refusing to leave. Absently, he massaged a particularly nasty one that was throbbing on his shoulder and grimaced.

"Professor?" He opened his eyes with a start. He had assumed form the growing quiet that everyone had already left, but he found Harry standing before his desk, looking eager.

"Ah, hello, Harry. Did you have a pleasant holiday?" Tired as he was, his smile came easily at the sight of James' son.

"Yeah, but I wanted to remind you; it's the beginning of term? You said you would teach me...?" He trailed off expectantly, hitching his school bag higher on his shoulder.

"Ah yes." 'Ah yes' indeed, he thought dryly at the guilty lurch in his stomach. The thing that you have yet to find a solution for. "Let me see...how about eight o'clock on Thursday evening? The History of Magic classroom should be large enough.... I'll have to think carefully about how we're going to do this.... We can't bring a real Dementor into the castle to practice on...." Yes, you've made a promise; is this really who you would like to fail? He smiled far more brightly than he felt. "I'll have to ponder this, but I will see you then."

Harry smiled and nodded, "See you then, Professor."

Remus spent the rest of the day wracking his brain with increasing alarm for his solution. He stationed himself behind his desk, pulling out book after book, trying to see if there was a Charm he could replicate or a creature that invoked a similar response. This was done, however, without much hope. Most of his research of Dark creatures and magic was still fresh in his mind from his summer study and he knew Dementors to be a uniquely vicious creature in that respect; there was a reason they were used to guard Azkaban. Nothing affected humans in quite the same way and nothing was as repelled by a Patronus Charm. He had known this, honestly; the past few months had just been something of a blur and the logistics of lessons with Harry had never surfaced with any sort of strength behind them. He still wasn't used to having so much to do--outside of keep a job and a place to live. With the bare basics taken care of, the complexity of maintaining the rest of life still continued to take him by surprise.

He sighed and sat back in his chair, stretching his arms up and out before settling them on top of his head, gazing absently out the door. Filch scuffed down the hallway with a broom, grimly swiping at the stone floor.

It was in no way feasible or safe to confront a Dementor on the grounds and absolutely inconceivable to bring one into the school--besides the fact that they were incredibly dangerous, he did not fancy the Dementors as agreeable proponents for education and had no desire to ask one for a favor. Nor was he sure how he would going about doing so; 'Hello, sir and/or ma'am and/or predatory apparition, could I have a moment of your time?' He snorted. Filch passed slowly again, stabbing randomly into corners with the broom bristles, and he grumbled darkly when he saw Remus through the doorway.

Remus held his hands up in apologetic surrender for daring to meet his gaze and Filch stomped away. With a sigh, he rose and stretched before going to stand by the window, gazing out his view across the frozen lake, glowing with a hazy light in the blue-grey gloaming. In truth, though he would get to spend time with Harry, he doubted it would be very enjoyable for either of them, if he ever found out how to facilitate the lessons. Harry having to hear his mother being murdered every time he failed to produce a Patronus--which was not something they even knew was even possible--Remus having his own aversion to being near the things. Not to mention having to watch Harry suffer as he did on the train.