Chapter 1

Remus Lupin sat on the park bench in some little suburb in London he didn't even care to know the name of at the moment. It was far enough away from the local wizarding communities that he wasn't likely to run into anyone who might recognize him, and that was all that mattered. He flipped through the newspapers in his lap - from both the Muggle and wizarding worlds - focusing on the sections that listed job openings. A brisk wind fluttered the papers, and he tried to hold back the shiver that clawed its way through his threadbare clothes and down his underfed, wiry frame.

Money was tight. Way too tight. He'd only been out of Hogwarts a matter of months, and he was already struggling to figure out how he was going to make ends meet. He rubbed at his bloodshot eyes, fighting the exhaustion that plagued him in the days following the full moon and trying to force his eyes to focus on the words in front of him. He needed sleep almost as badly as he needed a job, but that would have to wait.

Snagging the cup of coffee up from the bench seat beside him, Remus took a long swallow of the bitter stuff; he much preferred tea but needed the extra boost this morning for his job hunt. It was going poorly enough without him falling asleep mid-search.

He had already applied and been turned down at almost all the businesses that were hiring from the "Help Wanted" pages of the Prophet, so he turned to a Muggle paper. Even though his mum was a Muggle, he knew he didn't have a lot of the skills and knowledge necessary for many of the jobs offered in the columns of tidy print. This didn't leave him with a lot of options, but as he literally had no idea where his next meal was coming from - not to mention the fact that rent needed to be paid in the next few days or Sirius would insist on covering Remus' half of the rent for the flat they shared. He would do just about anything at this point.

His eyes trailed down the huge list of jobs, and he circled one here and there with a pen he'd picked up at a Muggle bookstore he'd worked at up until the full moon. As usual, the owner had been thrilled with his work ethic and the fact that he was quick to pick up all the necessary tasks and knowledge associated with the job. However, he was also upset, and for good reason, when Remus had begged for the days after the full moon off. He didn't have other staff who were able to cover the shifts, so Remus had simply not shown up. When he went back in on the third day after the full moon, recovered enough to get back to work, the shop owner had grumpily told him to remove his arse from the premises, "Or else."

Since the werewolf knew he couldn't exactly give his old boss the reasons for his absence, he gave a frustrated sigh and left. He had picked up the coffee and newspapers that now littered his lap and the bench beside him, apparating to a random Muggle suburb he'd visited once with Sirius while chasing some tail a month or two before. Sometimes it was just easier to be away from people who seemed to look at him and know his past, his "disease," and everything that went with them.

Only half paying attention by that point in his search, Remus finally stopped on a small ad that always graced the last page - perhaps because people would be most likely to take it seriously after desperately, and fruitlessly, searching all of the previous pages.

Sperm Donors Wanted

If you are a young, healthy man who

needs to make a little extra money,

consider becoming a sperm donor.

Help a family struggling with infertility

make their dream of having a baby

come true. Apply at our clinic today!

A London address followed, and Remus couldn't believe that he was actually at such a low point that he was considering visiting the little clinic.

When he had first seen the ad, he had taken it upon himself to do some research. It turned out Muggles couldn't be infected with lycanthropy. They would die if bitten, not become infected. And he had even stumbled onto one account of a couple that was made up of a werewolf and a Muggle. They had successfully had a batch of magical children without any odd side-effects. There was much more of a stigma and air of concern over the idea of werewolves procreating with witches, though Remus had yet to come across an actual story of a werewolf turning his spouse or siring werewolves instead of infant witches and wizards. Most of the literature about werewolves was similarly vague and fear-inducing, which annoyed Remus to no end.

When he finished his research, he came to the conclusion that he could probably father children (or donate sperm) if the woman involved was a Muggle. He probably shouldn't if she were a witch. Or he should at least do a little more research first. Since the clinic in question was definitely a Muggle one, he felt like it was probably safe.

Standing up before his conscience and common sense could talk him down from the ledge that was this harebrained idea, he tossed his coffee and The Daily Prophet before Disapparating.

XxxX

A few days later, Remus stared at the magazine on the coffee table in front of him. He was glad that the process for being screened and having his blood tests done had been relatively short. He should be able to finish up today and have enough money to cover the rest of rent and groceries for a little while. He thought to himself that it was kind of sad that money was all he could think about with such erotic magazines in front of him.

He was awkwardly perched on the vinyl-covered leather chair that would have been ridiculously comfortable had it not been covered in the clear plastic and who knows how many men's bodily fluids. Though he did not consider himself a prude or someone who was easily grossed out, he could not bring himself to settle back into the cushions. There was a Muggle television, like the one Lily had brought along when she moved in with James after they all graduated from Hogwarts earlier that year.

Why on earth am I thinking about Lily while I try to do this? Remus berated himself. This was hard enough without thinking about a girl who was basically his sister. The magazines weren't helping much either, since he kept on finding himself expecting them to move like the Playwizard copies Sirius kept hidden around Hogwarts in the past and now stashed all over the flat they shared.

Remus had been enough of an outcast in school that most of his sexual experience was with...himself. That somehow didn't make this any easier, but he eventually flicked on the television and was able to get the job done.

He left his sample on the table, as the nurse had instructed, and made his way out of that extremely awkward room and back toward the doctor's office that he'd been in earlier, brushing past a couple that somehow managed to look discouraged but still hopeful. The woman had curly brown hair and green eyes. The man was balding a little and average in every way - medium brown hair, brown eyes, average height and build. Remus gave them a small smile before he went into his doctor's office and shut the door. Just a little bit longer and he'd have money in hand and be able to pretend like this day had never happened.

XxxX

"Pads! I'm home."

Sirius Black's rakishly handsome (his words, not Remus') face turned to face Remus as he made his way into their flat later that day.

"Moony! Don't you look chipper! I take it the job search went better this time?" Sirius knew Remus usually struggled to hold down a job for more than a month or two and assumed something must be up when he didn't come home before dinner like he usually did after a shift at the bookshop.

Remus couldn't hold back the blush that tinged his ears and cheeks, but he was able to busy himself with putting away his scarf and jacket and avoid Sirius' prying gaze for just long enough before heading into the kitchen. He slapped his part of the rent on the counter before he pulled a tiny bag of groceries from his pocket, returned it to its usual size, and started to put things away.

Both men were aware that Remus hadn't answered the question, but Sirius decided that it had been so long since he'd seen his best friend in such a good mood that he decided not to push it.