Moony's last morning at Hogwarts

The inspiration for this segment- and the plot bunny for this story, really- was a post by Tumblr user Feministsirius that went viral on Facebook's many HP fan pages in early October. If that poster ever comes to this site, I say thanks for your post.

Enjoy! There will be lots of stubborn!Ginny, Lupin being his caring and awesome self, Marauders info, etc., in this final part.

June 10, 1994.

Ginny woke to find the summer Sun bathing the Second Year Gryffindor girls' dormitory in a golden glow. She looked over to find all of her companions' beds empty. Hardly a surprise, as she had never been a morning person. Yawning, she pulled on her robes, and began traipsing down the stairs. In the Gryffindor Common Room, she noticed a small group of Gryffindors that hadn't yet gone down to breakfast and were still animatedly discussing something. Her stomach turned over as she began hearing individual snippets of the conversation.

"Potter, and Granger…"

"Haven't seen Weasley here, either, so he'll be in the Hospital Wing too…"

"Sirius Black…..he was so close to getting them all killed…."

"Then a swarm of a hundred Dementors attacked them all, Dumbledore's apparently insisting they go after the latest incident…"

"Hey, Ginny." Parvati Patil's voice interrupted the worried fog in Ginny's mind. Sighing heavily, she approached the couch by the fire where the older girl, plus her friend Lavender, as well as Seamus Finnigan, Neville Longbottom and Dean Thomas, were all sitting, also animatedly discussing whatever drama had taken place before she'd gotten up. "Yes?" she asked, unable to keep the defensive bite from creeping into her voice.

"So, tell us what your brother and the other two were up to last night," Lavender pleaded.

"Sorry?" Ginny replied, nonplussed. "I only just got up- what are you talking about? And what's with this encounter with the three of them and Sirius Black?" Parvati nodded at Neville, who began the story.

"McGonagall came in here about thirty minutes ago- she told us that Harry, Ron and Hermione are in the Hospital- they're fine though," he hastily added as Ginny opened her mouth, "…but it was a narrow-run thing. Apparently, they'd decided to visit Hagrid before Buckbeak was executed…."

Ginny rolled her eyes, but inwardly, she had to smile at their dedication to Hagrid. "Of course they did," she sighed exasperatedly, "but when did Black come into this?" Dean then leaned forwards.

"Well, details are murky, but Black apparently spotted Harry, then attacked and kidnapped Ron to lure him and Hermione out of the grounds. I guess Harry should've then alerted Dumbledore, but he decided to rush after them…"

"Of course he would," Ginny smiled slightly, remembering with affection how the same boy had taken the exact same action when she was kidnapped a year earlier. However, her poorly-disguised dreamy look had been spotted, judging from Seamus' and Parvati's knowing smirks. Blushing slightly, she snapped out of her reverie to give Seamus a filthy look. "Continue, Dean."

"Anyway, Snape and Lupin found them soon enough, Black made the three of them attack Snape, and Lupin then disarmed Black and arrested him. Then the details are murky….Black then knocked your brother out- he should be out of Hospital by midday- and escaped. For some reason, both Harry and Hermione ran after Black, then they were attacked by a swarm of Dementors down by the Lake. Snape arrived to find them and Black all unconscious, but Black escaped again just hours later. By now, he's probably in the Canary Islands, if he's gotten any brains."

"But then again," Seamus added, "Black's not the only one to escape. Did you hear about Buckbeak?"

"The Hippogriff?" Ginny queried. "The one that attacked Malfoy?"

"The one and only. He's escaped too. I bet you ten butterbeers that Malfoy will be fuming." Seamus was making no attempt to hide his glee.

"Sounds good," Ginny replied, feeling considerably heartened by the news that the Hippogriff had escaped execution. "I'll head down to breakfast."

Sure enough, she arrived at breakfast in the Great Hall to find Draco Malfoy sulking at the far end of the Slytherin table, while many other students clad in emerald green were gleefully whispering amongst themselves.

Ginny plonked herself down at the middle of the table with her buttered toast with marmalade. Turning to her seatmate, she asked "What the devil are the Slytherins so happy about?"

Colin jumped, then turned towards her, face white. "You weren't here when Dumbledore spoke five minutes ago? Lupin's resigning."

"Why? What good would that do?"

Colin grimaced. "Turns out that right when McGonagall was telling us about the drama involving Black, Harry and his friends, Snape revealed to the Slytherins he was attacked by a Werewolf. That Werewolf is no-one other than Professor Lupin."

"What?"

"I know, right? Apparently that's why he's been sick every other fortnight. Anyway, it seems that Dumbledore told Fudge- who was here last night too- that Lupin simply forgot to take his potion, transformed, and let Black escape. That's why he's resigned; he let Black escape, and almost got Harry killed. He's packing right now."

At that, Ginny shot out of her seat. Colin looked at her, mouth agape.

"What are you doing?"

"I need to get my exam results back," she quickly lied.

"But Lupin said he'd be owling them to us first week of the holidays!" Colin objected. Ginny's jaw clenched. She'd made a decision, and that was final.

"Don't care, I'm seeing him now." And she rushed off, abandoning her toast.

Ginny arrived outside Lupin's office. Not even pausing to knock, she barged through, to find much of Lupin's belongings already packed. There was no sign of the Grindylow in its tank, the Hinkypunks, Red Caps, or any other of the fascinating Dark creatures that Lupin had all educated them on. Instead, all that remained was a bookshelf, a handful of shabby waistcoats, a few empty tanks, and Professor Lupin himself, back turned to her as he rummaged through filed paperwork. Finally nodding to himself, he turned to Ginny.

"Morning, Ginny," he greeted in a welcoming tone. "I have to say I'm unsurprised that you're here." He approached his desk and separated a crumpled piece of parchment from the neatly-ordered essays underneath. "I saw you on this." He gestured towards the parchment, displaying a detailed map of Hogwarts. Sure enough, beside a dot marked 'Remus Lupin,' there was a dot titled 'Ginevra Weasley.' In a flash, Ginny realized she'd seen Fred and George with that very same piece of parchment last year when they were planning something mischievous around the school. She could ask about the map later, though. There were things of a higher priority in her mind.

"Take a seat," Lupin smiled. "Given you're here, and given I'm no longer your teacher, I might as well hand your last essay back to you. Fantastic work, by the way, including in the practical work. Best in your year."

Two years ago, Ginny would have jumped with joy at the thought of receiving such high grades. However, she reflected sadly, she was no longer the same girl, and instead continued to look morose.

"That's not what I came for, Professor," she said quietly, and gravely, in a tone that sounded foreign to her. Lupin looked up, blinking in surprise. "What do you mean?" he asked evenly, although Ginny noticed the tautness in his face- for the first time, she noticed deep scars crisscrossing his cheeks and forehead. In this light, he looked more ill than ever. In fact, Ginny could have sworn he looked fearful, almost childlike, in that instant.

"I mean," she continued. "Why are you resigning, after all you've done?" Shoving her essay towards her, Lupin let out a dark chuckle. There was no mistaking the bitterness in his voice.

"After what I've done? Ginny, you must have heard the story from Sn-, I mean, one of my colleagues by now. I damn well near killed Harry Potter. Just how I managed avoiding biting any one of them, I don't know…. I'm just so sorry I decided to come here in the first place, betray Dumbledore's' trust and put all of you at risk."

Ginny stood up, anger surging within her. She knew under ordinary circumstances, she was facing a whole week's worth of detentions. But this was not happening under ordinary circumstances, Lupin was no longer her teacher, and she most definitely was not going along with this self-pitying crap. Not when the person delivering it was fantastic at what they did, regardless of what they were.

"Professor," she said, in a voice somewhat louder than necessary for the enclosed office. "I know you're a Werewolf." Lupin sighed and leaned back his chair, spreading his hands in a despairing 'what do you know?' gesture.

"And I don't care," she added fiercely. Lupin's eyebrows shot up into his greying fringe. "You…don't?" he queried with guarded incredulity. "Ginny, do you have any idea how dangerous my kind is? There's a reason why Dumbledore arranged for a secret passageway underneath the Whomping Willow for my use only during a full moon when I was a student. There's a reason I've used the Wolfsbane Potion, and it was to keep you all safe. Last night, both those protections failed, and one of the people I could have easily killed was your brother, don't forget…"

"I know that," Ginny cut across him. If Lupin spoke another self-degrading sentence, she was going to get seriously peeved. "But in case you've forgotten, Professor, I know what it's like to be possessed by something evil and uncontrollable. It doesn't make you evil." At that, Ginny remembered those comforting words from Luna, right before the Dementor showed up and forced her to confront her worst experiences, again. Lupin was now staring at her, mouth agape and clearly in shock that a student would speak back to him like that. And he bloody well deserved it, she thought bitterly. But then Lupin slammed his hand down on his desk, making Ginny jump backwards in shock. His face bore a savage, almost wolfish quality as he stared back at her, breathing heavily. "I'm such a fool," he muttered.

Deciding now might be the time to de-escalate the tension for once in her life, Ginny sat back down. Seeing their now-former Defence Against the Dark Arts Teacher in such a state was disconcerting to say the least.

"You knew, didn't you Professor?" she asked tentatively. "About what happened last year?" Lupin nodded, his face partially buried in his hands as he repeatedly butted his forehead against them. It then dawned on her, something that had been bothering her since her first lesson with the Boggart. For some reason, Lupin had acted as if she wasn't there, avoiding letting her face the Boggart, although she had nearly burst out sobbing at Colin's worst fear. Suffice it to say, it involved an evil version of her, and a giant, deadly reptile. At that point, Lupin raised his head to make eye-contact with her.

"Yes, I heard from Professor Dumbledore last July about the Chamber business, and what Lord Voldemort did to you." Ginny shivered at the name, as Lupin continued. "I thought how on earth a twelve-year old could cope with that, to be honest, and I knew full-well why you reacted the way you did on the train. I also think, Ginny, you know who gave you that bar of chocolate the dinner after that Boggart session?" His tone was mild, but his eyes gave away a hint of mischief. Ginny chuckled. "I have no idea," she replied wryly with a roll of her eyes. "And Professor, if I may, I prefer to think of him as Tom Riddle. Takes all the fright out of his name, don't you think?" At that, Lupin whistled.

"Of course you'd know. No doubt Dumbledore decided to go into explanation overdrive, like he usually does. Well, Ginny, I'm impressed. And you think you can handle Boggarts fine, can't you?" Ginny nodded. The evening before the exam, Lupin had given her a private lesson on how to handle a truly terrifying Boggart, like one assuming the shape of Tom, for instance. She admitted that her idea of defeating the Boggart was somewhat macabre, though; it involved Riddle hissing out Parseltongue, then being eaten by his own pet. But at least it worked.

Lupin was now smiling again as he leaned forwards. "You know, you weren't the only student I privately tutored. Guess who can now perform a fantastic Patronus?" Ginny's mind flashed back to the Gryffindor/Ravenclaw game, when Harry had unleashed a full-bodied Patronus on Crabbe, Goyle, Malfoy and Flint, and smirked. Malfoy had really experienced an awful year. His rich father was no longer pedaling his views with the Governors, he'd been humiliated in front of an entire Quidditch stadium while being an arse, and now his plan to cause Hagrid pain had spectacularly backfired.

"Let me guess?" she said with a grin. "Harry?" Lupin nodded.

"The one and only. That boy can also fly. I'd swear he could even out-do James. Harry's dad, and my school friend," he explained as Ginny initially looked puzzled. "But getting back to his Patronus skills, you might not know this, but I suspect he also performed one last night, while saving himself."

Ginny looked shocked. "But I heard over breakfast that it was massive, and powerful; it repelled a hundred Dementors! How could Harry fend them off if he and Hermione collapsed when they were around?" Now there was no denying it, Lupin was smirking.

"It's an excellent tale," he smiled, "and not one to be told by me, as I wasn't really….feeling myself at the time, if you know what I mean. Perhaps you can ask your brother, or Hermione about what happened that night?" Ginny grumbled slightly at that statement; as if her brother would let her in on the picture. And Hermione was far too involved with the pair of boys to spend much time with her; the other girl particularly seemed to particularly enjoy joking with Ron if there was a Hogsmeade day on, funnily enough…. But that was another story. Lupin was staring at her, waiting for a response. His smirk grew wider.

"Perhaps Harry then?" he suggested. Like had happened so many times before, Ginny felt her face heat up. Trying to get her ridiculous crush under control had just become more difficult, courtesy of her mind's image of a weakening Harry singlehandedly and heroically fighting off a hundred Dementors. She shook her head. For once, words failed her. "We're, sort of, well...in different social circles," she finished lamely.

"Illuminating," Lupin replied drolly. "And getting back to Patronuses, Dumbledore told me Harry's last night took the shape of a stag. James was an Animagus; he transformed into a stag, usually to keep me company out in the grounds and in my selected transformation spot when I was a Werewolf. I doubt Harry's Patronus shape is a coincidence; they seldom are."

"Wow," Ginny breathed. "And was he a legal Animagus?" Lupin chuckled.

"Absolutely not. He was unregistered, I also had other two friends who, when they found out about my condition, became unregistered Animagi to keep me company. One was Peter Pettigrew, and the…" he cut off abruptly, and a harsh look fell across his face.

"The other was Sirius Black, wasn't it?" Ginny queried. Lupin nodded.

"Yes. Back then, before he was fr-, I mean, before he betrayed Harry's parents to Voldemort, he was one of my best friends. Before they found out about my condition, I only had myself in the Shrieking Shack to attack, so that's what I did. The howls coming from the place made everyone in Hogsmeade believe it was haunted; that's why no-one has frequented it since." Brushing the comer of his eye, and briefly snapping out of his nostalgia, he looked at Ginny and shook his head. "I'm sorry, I don't want to drone on like Professor Binns." Ginny chuckled. "Believe me," she replied, "I'd rather have you as a History teacher than Professor Binns. I'm actually enjoying this, for one. Any more of what happened back then?"

Lupin cleared his throat, then continued.

"The four of us called ourselves 'The Marauders'; got into a bit of frequent trouble with the teachers, and even designed this map." He waved the mysterious bit of parchment in front of Ginny's face. "I recognize that," she blurted out. "Fred and George used it lots." Lupin nodded slowly. "Then they must have stolen it from Mr. Filch," he said. "We all forgot to steal it back on the final day of Seventh Year. Your brothers must have had a nerve. Well, anyway, we created this map, and also created nicknames for ourselves. I'm Moony, James was Prongs, because of his antlers, Sirius was Padfoot, because he turned into a dog, and Wormtail was Peter, because he was a rat. Let's just say that with our alter-egos, there's a lot of untold stories, ones that I think would be improper to tell anyone at this present time. Perhaps in the future, when circumstances have changed."

"But how did you get it back?" Ginny asked, curiosity piqued, and paying no attention to Lupin's sudden stumbling and excuse-making.

"From Harry. It turns out your enterprising brothers gave it to him, and he used it lots to sneak around. It certainly explains the reason why Mr. Malfoy got assaulted with snowballs unexpectedly while in Hogsmeade." He was trying to look stern, but the attempt was failing somewhat. "Anyway, I wasn't best pleased with Harry at the time. I thought he was taking his parents' sacrifice for granted, so I confiscated it."

"But then," Ginny began. "You must have known Harry's mum?"

"Yes I did. A loving, fierce, and incredibly stubborn young witch she was. Not unlike yourself in fact. If I'm honest with you, your outburst reminded me a little of her attitude towards me when she found out about my condition. And noting yours, Fred's and George's tendency to get detentions, I have to say you're sort of channeling us when we were your age, I suppose. Given all I've revealed about my childhood, this will make interesting conversation material with Harry in a few years, I daresay."

Not again. Ginny felt like she was about to burst into flames; couldn't she just damn well get over Harry? She really needed to talk to Hermione about this, preferably sooner rather than later. "That's never going to happen, Professor," she stated firmly. "I'm not crazy over him, well, not anymore." At that Lupin laughed.

"Ginny, I know the Weasleys went to Egypt last summer. But unlike you, I don't need to go to Cairo to see denial. I've seen it before, with Lily and James, actually. God, it was torture…." He stared dreamily into the distance, chuckling to himself. But then he compose himself and leaned forward. "But that's where, I suppose, the next factor comes in. Not all students liked our ways. In fact, a certain, greasy, sallow Slytherin boy seemed determined to pick fights with James and Sirius, and both sides played dirty, no denying about it."

"Snape," Ginny groaned. "So that's why he has it in for you!"

"Not quite, there's more to it than that. Anyway, one evening Severus Snape saw me being escorted by Madam Pomfrey to the Whomping Willow- it was planted to stop anyone stumbling across me while transformed at the other end of the passage- and Sirius decided to tell him how to get past the tree. He hoped I'd knock him off."

"That's horrible!" Ginny gasped. "I can see how he turned into a murderer." Noting Lupin's expression, she quickly apologised. "Sorry Professor. I know he was a friend." But Lupin waved a hand. "The thing is Ginny," he sighed unhappily, "I can't. Pete- er- Sirius certainly didn't display any back-stabbing tendencies, then. But what followed was probably James' finest moment, short of sacrificing his life for the woman and child he loved. He told Sirius what he was doing was unacceptable, and despite his revulsion towards Severus, rescued him before I could attack him. And as to why Severus let the whole school know about my condition, he was so sore he couldn't hand over Sirius to the Dementors himself last night that he took it out on me, because he believed I was helping Sirius hunt down Harry. You see, he was once close friends with Lily, and he also owed a life debt to James, so no wonder he was angry at Sirius."

By now, Ginny could barely stop trembling with fury. That slimeball had failed to get the glory and exact his own revenge, so he instead decided to turn on an easy target- Lupin- and destroy his career. "But Professor," she pleaded. "Dumbledore knows what you've done. We all know what you've done. We truly don't care you're a Werewolf, that's infinitely better than having Lockhart." But Lupin shook his head. "What's done is done," he said resignedly. "I believe I've given the job my best shot anyway, and I'm especially proud of what Harry now knows. I also am very impressed with your performance Ginny. Hopefully, we might meet again sometime." Ginny stayed where she was, rooted to the spot with all of the new information she now had about the history of Lupin, Snape, Harry's parents, and Harry himself, she reasoned. Unbidden, her vision began to blur with tears, as Lupin cleared his throat.

"It might seem cruel to you, all of this," he said. "But remember this. I'm used to these difficulties by now, and I remain optimistic about the future. I also don't think Ron, Harry and Hermione will face the tragedy we faced. We didn't start properly defying the forces of evil until we were out of school- they've already done it three times, and they're holding firm as ever. Whatever life throws at you, I have every expectation you'll shrug it off too." Ginny smiled weakly, wiping her eyes as Lupin stood up, offering his hand to shake.

"But enough of crystal ball gazing, because I'm no Professor Trelawney. Your conversation has inspired me to get some breakfast, the last one before I slip back into my old rebellious ways." Here, he gave Ginny a roguish wink, before shaking her hand. Once again, words failed Ginny as Lupin strolled over to the door. However, something then clicked in her.

"Bye, Moony," she whispered. Lupin jumped slightly as he registered the use of his old childhood nickname. He slowly turned to face her, with once again a wistful, nostalgic look appearing on his features. He appeared to be struggling for words himself, before he settled on an appropriate farewell.

"Goodbye Ginny. Take care."

And he was gone.