...sorry in advance my friends.
You understand when you get to the end. Feel free to vent.
Fly xx

The staff room was full of Hagrid's wails, and the sound was hurting Remus' head. He was sympathetic for the gatekeeper's plight; he appreciated that Hagrid was losing his Hippogriff to execution that night must be awful, but it was the night of the full moon and he had a pounding headache. He had no classes, but it was lunchtime and the corridors were full of chatter, so he retreated to his office with a mug of tea and a weary acceptance that he'd have to stop procrastinating and mark the first graders' homework. He'd gulped down the Pain Potion Madam Pomfrey had given him, wincing at the bitter taste, and was doggedly working his way through the essays, ticking here and there, when there was a tentative knock on the door.

"Come in," He called tiredly, glad for the excuse to take a break.

Hermione poked her head around the door hesitantly. "Can I come in?"
"Of course Hermione." Remus beckoned her in with an exhausted smile. "Sit down."
Their relationship was complicated. She'd come to see him most days, mostly to ask questions, and it was nice to have the company. Remus was nervous in approaching her; he didn't want to pressure her, she had parents after all, not that they seemed to do much good. He still hated himself for that.
"Are you alright?" She asked, brows furrowed in concern.
"Of course," He said immediately. "Why?"
"It's the full moon tonight. That's why we had Snape for Defence, isn't it?"
"Yes, it is. But I'll be fine, I have the Wolfsbane Potion, remember? So don't worry."
She visibly relaxed, then stiffened again. "Buckbeak's being executed today."
"Buckbeak?"
"Hagrid's Hippogriff." Hermione's brown eyes were clouded with worry.
"Oh of course," Remus sighed. "I must ask Professor McGonagall to speak with him for me."
"He's really upset." Hermione bit her lip, avoiding eye contact, then her eyes zeroed in on the Marauders' Map, folded inconspicuously on his desk. "Is that Harry's map?"
"Yes, it is, I confiscated it."
Hermione exhaled in relief. "Good. I was terrified that…someone might take it."
"Well it's safe with me, don't worry." Remus smiled warmly. "What lessons have you got this afternoon?"
"Ancient Runes, Muggle Studies and Arithmancy."
"In two hours?" Remus frowned, confused.
"Oh, um, yeah. It's arranged with Professor McGonagall."

"Alright then." Remus relaxed. "Make sure you don't go out after dark, the Dementors will be out."
"I was going to go down and see Hagrid, but I won't stay too late-"
"Don't stay out during the execution, Hermione. You don't want to see that."
"I don't want him to be alone…"
"He won't be, Professor Dumbledore will be with him. He wouldn't want you there. I certainly don't want you there."
"You can't stop me," She grumbled.
"I can, Hermione. Don't go down there after dark, okay? Promise me."
"I have to go," She said abruptly, standing up. "The bell will be going soon."
"Hermione…" Remus said in a warning tone.
"You're not my dad." She said quietly, then turned around and shut the door behind her as she left.

The sky was darkening as the day slipped into the evening, and Remus was reading the Daily Prophet in the fading sunlight, as exhaustion drained his body of strength. He was trembling with exertion just by sitting upright, but his anxiety was eased by the Wolfsbane Potion he knew Snape would deliver any moment. Having control during his transformation was the best gift he'd been given in years; he was no longer paranoid that someone would stumble upon him in the Shack and fall foul of his bloodlust.

A thought suddenly sparked alight in his mind, and he pushed himself to his feet to check the Map.
"I solemnly swear that I am up to no good."
The Map blossomed at the touch of his wand, black ink spiralling outwards a perfect contrast of dark and old, yellowing parchment. He cleared his desk and unfolded the massive, sprawling paper so it covered its entire area.
Memories crashed into him like a wave, knocking him to the ground. The labels, each written in Peter's painstakingly neat handwriting. The secret passages, routes sketched out by James, with ink smeared over his hands and a proud grin on his face. The drawings, the intricate castle floorplan, the Black Lake and Forbidden Forest, the hasty scribbled annotations...they were done by Sirius.

"What are you drawing?" Remus asked curiously, legs in Sirius' lap, book propped up in his lap.
Sirius looked up and blushed, a rare sight, then stuffed his sketchbook behind his back. "Nothing."
Remus leaned over and whipped it out from behind him, then flicked it open to the latest page. Sirius protested weakly, swatting at his boyfriend and trying to grab it out of his hands, but he was too slow; Remus flipped to the latest page.
It was a stunning sketch of a boy, with silvery scars on his face and the fire reflecting in his eyes.
"It's you." Sirius said quietly.
"It's amazing…" Remus looked up at him, honoured to be the muse for the drawing. "You should draw the castle for the Map."
"Are you sure?" Sirius stared at him with hopeful eyes.
Remus grinned and squeezed his hand tightly.
"Yes."

Remus forced the memory aside, frustrated, and scanned the parchment for Hermione's name.
She wasn't in the Gryffindor Tower, but that was no reason to worry.
She wasn't in the corridors.
She wasn't in the castle…
Then he saw it.

The five names, clustered together.
Harry Potter.
Ron Weasley.
Hermione Granger.

And then the one that made his stomach flip over:
Peter Pettigrew.

And finally, the one that made his blood run cold, the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. The one that sent adrenaline coursing through his veins. The one that made his heart start fighting to be free of his ribcage.
The one that made his head start screaming. The one that made him drop his mug and sprint out of the door.

Sirius Black.

And everything fell into place.