As daylight waned into dusk, Severus had to admit that Lupin had been quite helpful. But even with Lupin’s help, he had not found the book in question. Knowing his luck, the book had been destroyed. About the only thing known about lethifolds was that the Patronus charm was the only spell that seemed to affect them, but that spell drove them off. He had also searched his memory for any spell that might be useful for capturing one, but even with all his knowledge of Dark magic, he could not think of one.

He rubbed his eyes, trying to focus on the book in front of him. He wasn’t sure if his eyesight was getting worse or if he was just tired. If it were not the latter, he could be in trouble.

Lupin sat beside him on the rubble, holding a few more tattered volumes. “Nothing yet?”

Severus slammed the book shut. Why did everyone insist on engaging him in conversation? “No,” he replied tersely. He jumped when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

“So, nothing yet? Well, there’s still one more day,” she replied sadly. Whether or not they found the book, she knew that they would still be going to New Guinea.

“I’m not sure how much more will be salvageable from the History section. These were the last remaining volumes I saw in that area,” Remus said, holding up four heavily damaged books.

Aurelia grabbed the top one and carefully examined it. The cover was unreadable and she carefully opened the pages. She watched Severus do the same out of the corner of her eye and she could see the fire had drained from his eyes. She pulled out her wand and cast a few spells on the book that would keep it together while she flipped through the pages. Noticing that the book in Severus’ hand was in just as bad condition, she swapped books with him.

Severus clenched his jaw, hoping that Lupin had not noticed what happened. He could see the werewolf was careful paging through one of the other recovered books and gave no outward sign of having noticed what happened with the books. After realizing the book in his hand was not the one he was looking for, he slammed it onto the pile next to him.

“Careful, Severus, I’ve only made temporary repairs to that book. It can’t take that much abuse,” Aurelia admonished.

He glared at her for daring to chastise him front of someone else, especially Lupin.

She held his glare for several seconds before turning her attention to Lupin. “Can I help you make one last sweep of the History section before we lose the light?” she asked.

Remus placed the books next to Severus. “Of course.”

As they walked through the ruins of the library, she asked, “Have you been through the Restricted Section?”

“That was the first part of the library we went through. None of us saw anything else worth recovering there.”

“Well, if we have time, let’s check again, just to be sure,” she replied as she carefully picked her way through the rubble.

After fifteen minutes of searching, Remus asked, “Why is Severus looking for information on how to capture a lethifold?”

“You’ll have to ask him,” she replied evasively.

“I have and he wouldn’t answer.”

While she hated keeping secrets, she owed it to her classmate to keep this one. “Well, I suppose he has his reasons for not saying.” She met his eyes momentarily, silently pleading with him to ask no more questions.

After another ten minutes, that yielded only three more books, she asked, “Shall we move over to the Restricted Section?”

Remus gestured for her to lead the way. They worked in silence until Remus’ curiosity finally got the better of him. “He’s not fully healed, is he?”

“What makes you say that?” she asked in as casual a voice as she could muster.

“Several things. First, the way he rubs his eyes. I’ve seen him read for hours on end without being bothered, but now, he seems to tire easily. Also, I haven’t seen him help much. Now, I know he’s pretty self-serving, but he’s been buried in that research very deeply, and I can tell he’s nervous about something. Obviously, capturing a lethifold is very important to him, yet he has not come to help dig books out of the library. If this was truly important to him, I think he would have rebuilt the library with a wave of his wand, but I haven’t seen him move a single stone.”

“You’re very observant,” she replied cautiously.

“I have found it to be a very useful survival skill, especially in the Order. I’m right, aren’t I?”

“You will have to ask him,” she replied evasively.

“Now, let’s just say that my theory is correct. The two of you are planning on capturing a lethifold. Actually, you are planning on capturing one for him. Now, staying awake for days on end isn’t very practical. I think you need a third person on this expedition. As I’m currently between jobs, I have time to go on this journey with you. While I don’t have any experience with lethifolds, I do have ample experience and knowledge about anything else we might run into.”

She considered his offer. Severus had already told her that he would not accept Lupin’s help. “If I recall correctly, the two of you did not get along well in school. I believe you and your friends used to bully him whenever you found him alone. Why would you want to help?”

He looked away from her, ashamed of his past behavior. “In part, to atone for the past. I am in his debt for other reasons I prefer to keep private. If I can help in this endeavor, I hope he will consider my debt repaid. He might listen to you.”

She continued to move stones around, stacking them neatly out of the way, searching for hidden books. “I will ask him again.”

*******************

Severus looked up from the last of the books and scowled at what he saw. He didn’t like to see the two of them talking. He couldn’t help but think they were talking about him. Lupin was the last person he wanted to know about his weakness.

When they approached, he saw they each had a handful of books. “Well, this is the last of them and they are in pretty bad shape. I’m going to talk to Irma about letting me take them home and see what I can do for them. I’ll bring them back tomorrow. If you’ll excuse me.”

Severus and Remus stared at each other. Severus narrowed his gaze into a particularly harsh glare, willing Lupin to go away. Inwardly, he was impressed that Lupin did not back down. “What do you want?” he growled.

“I want to help. I want a chance to repay my debt to you,” Remus offered.

“You have no debt to me.”

Lupin flashed a disarming smile and sat on a stone next to Severus’. “I beg to differ. My debt has accrued over many years. Most recently for you brewing the Wolfsbane Potion for me.”

“That was in the best interest of Order and at the behest of Albus,” he replied indifferently.

“Well, yes, but you did it. There is also the way I treated you in school. I know that you are not completely recovered and no, Aurelia did not tell me, I figured it out on my own. Others will eventually figure it out as well. I don’t know why you want a lethifold, but let me come with you to capture one. I think you’ll need my wand.”

Severus looked away, afraid his normally stoic expression would betray him. “I don’t need the help of a werewolf.”

“Full moon is more than two weeks away. You need someone that can conjure a Patronus. I can do that. I also know a great deal about dealing with magical creatures. Unless I’m mistaken, you cannot currently conjure a Patronus. What if a lethifold were to attack while Aurelia is sleeping?”

Severus was saved from having to answer by Aurelia’s return. “She was actually happy to let me take the books home and repair them. It’s a shame that so few have been recovered. There used to be thousands, and now…” she let her voice trail off as she realized what she was saying. The book they desperately needed had been in the library. “Well, it’s getting late and I have to get home for dinner. Severus, did you want to come and you can look through the books after we eat?”

He welcomed this reason to leave the werewolf’s presence. He knew he would have to face the same question again tomorrow, but by then he would be better prepared to deal with it. “That is an excellent idea.” He followed her to an area that was out of sight of where everyone was working.

*******************

After dinner, everyone retired to the library. Julia was reading and Helen was intently watching her mother repair the books.

“I spoke with Remus today. He has offered to help.”

“I don’t need his help,” Severus replied gruffly.

She looked up from the book she was working on. “Through observing you, he’s figured it out. I would feel much better about this trip if someone else was there. Since he already knows, you wouldn’t have to tell anyone else.”

“Knows what, mum?” asked Helen.

“Hush, dear. Mind your manners,” Aurelia reprimanded. Turning her attention back to Severus, she continued. “Seriously. Three sets of eyes are better than two and he can conjure a Patronus if things go poorly. Unless you have someone else in mind, I intend to invite him along.”

“You wouldn’t dare?” he asked sharply, anger tingeing his voice.

“I most certainly would. You need me and I refuse to go with just the two of us.”

He sat back in his chair and scowled. “Fine, invite your werewolf. You did know that’s what he was, didn’t you?” he sneered.

“Of course I did. It was in the newspaper. Do you think I’m a complete idiot? The moon is still waning and we will be back before it’s full again. Can I trust you to tell him tomorrow morning? I do need to go into work and he might not be there when I drop you off. Besides, the others might be suspicious if I arrive with you since you haven’t left without me.”

He picked up the repaired book. “Fine, I will tell him.”

“There, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” she replied in a motherly tone and went back to work on repairing the books.

*******************

It was past midnight when she finished repairing the last book. The girls had long since gone to bed and she was barely able to keep her eyes open.

“I’m glad you showed me how to set those wards. Someone tried to get in the house today.”

“And you are sure they didn’t succeed?” he asked suspiciously.

“Quite sure. I ran through all the security spells you taught me. I do have to say that whoever it is picked a rather unfortunate spell to trigger. I’ve sent an owl to St. Mungo’s asking to be alerted if a patient covered in boils arrives.”

“I doubt your intruder would go to St. Mungo’s.”

“But he’ll die,” she said incredulously.

“His life is inconsequential. Through his death, Malfoy will learn that you are not defenseless. Since your house was not actually violated, we should do nothing. If we prove to him that we will indeed leave him alone, he should decide we are not worth the effort.”

“Not worth the effort? This is my family he is trying to attack.” She was getting quite emotional.

“I have given you the knowledge you need to protect yourselves. I know that he cannot break the wards I have had you set. Rest assured, you are better than him. You will be safe, I assure you.”

She knew that he had Lucius’ close associate for many years and had no reason to doubt his assessment. “And when the girls are at the Parker’s?”

“I have no reason to believe he is that interested in your family and he will have a limited number of contacts and operatives in Britain. Some of the simpler spells should be enough to protect them there. I would not worry about leaving them. I believe Malfoy only wanted to scare you. If I find otherwise, I will see him brought to justice.”

“Thank you, Severus.” Watching him, she could see that he was spending a great deal of time rubbing his eyes and was holding the book quite close to his face. “How is your vision?” she asked.

“Acceptable.”

“Well, I don’t believe you. Get some rest. The books will be there in the morning and the odds of finding anything else useful in the library are slim. You may be too tired to notice it if it is in one of these.”

He knew she had a point, but he desperately wanted to find the information. Sleep seemed inconsequential. “I will be fine,” he replied tersely.

With a wave of her wand she doused the lamps. “Well, good luck,” she replied glibly as she left him in darkness.

“Relight those lamps,” he ordered.

“No. Go to bed. The books will be there in the morning. Of course, unless you’ve learned to read in the dark, I don’t think you have a choice. See you in the morning,” she said smugly.

He hated losing and started trying to think of an appropriate hex for her once he was made whole.

***************

When Aurelia woke the following morning, she found that Severus was already up and had prepared breakfast. “You aren’t in a hurry to get out of here, are you?”

“I intend to use today to the fullest as we are leaving for New Guinea tomorrow morning,” he replied matter-of-factly.

“Of course,” she replied as she tried to enjoy her breakfast. She found it very difficult to eat a peaceful meal while being stared at. After she finished eating, she left a note for the girls, and he gathered up the books.

By now he had become somewhat accustomed to Side-Along Apparition, even if he didn’t care for it.

“Let Remus know to meet us at my place in the morning. I’ll come pick you up after I get off work,” she said and quickly Disapparated before anyone noticed her.

Looking around, he saw that no one else appeared to be awake, so he took the books into the tent they were using for meals and began going through them. Even with the repair work Aurelia had performed on them, they were still quite fragile.

He was interrupted by an overly cheerful voice greeting him. “Good morning, Severus.”

Severus looked up with his eyes and replied disdainfully, “Lupin.” He returned his attention to the book and continued, “You are to be at Healer MacLean’s house first thing tomorrow morning. If you are late, we will leave without you.”

“Of course,” Remus replied politely. It seemed that Aurelia had convinced Severus to let him come along. He picked up one of the books and examined it. “She has done a decent job of restoring the books.” He began searching for hint of a mention about lethifolds. “Do you have a plan if you don’t find the book?”

“Judging the creature’s reaction to various spells will determine the plan. As I have found almost nothing written lethifolds, it is pointless to generate a plan ahead of time.”

Remus knew better than arguing with Severus. “Of course.” He went back to reading the book.

***************

By midmorning, they had gone through the last of the books. Severus refused to believe the book had been destroyed. Slamming the book onto the table, he strode towards the ruins.

Remus followed at a discreet distance, curious, but unwilling to risk further chastisement from his reluctant traveling companion. He was not at all surprised to see Severus moving towards the part of the castle that was the Headmaster’s tower. “This part of the castle was hit harder than most,” he said quietly as he saw Severus looking around the ruins.

“Make yourself useful and start moving stones,” he ordered. Since Lupin knew of his weakness, there was no point in pretending.

***************

Aurelia arrived a little earlier than usual. She had been able to get away from work early, having turned over all her duties for the next couple of weeks. She didn’t see Severus in the library ruins or the encampment. Irma was the first person she saw. “Did Severus bring the books back?”

“Yes, he did, dear. Thank you for what you did to them. They’ll need some more preservation, but at least we can tell what they are now,” she replied gratefully.

“Glad to have helped. You haven’t seen him, have you?” she asked as she continued to scan the school grounds.

Irma pointed over her shoulder. “I saw them over on the south side.”

“Thanks,” she replied and headed in the direction Irma had indicated. She saw quite the strange sight as they came into view. Remus was attempting to stack stones while Severus was digging through the ruins, presumably for more books. She tried to remember what might have been in this part of the castle, but could come up with nothing. “There’s an easier way to do that,” she offered.

Both men looked up at her and Remus nearly dropped a large stone on Severus.

“Be careful, you imbecile,” Severus snapped.

Remus muttered an apology in reply.

Aurelia brandished her wand and said confidently, “Munio!”

Severus and Remus watched in amazement as forty or so large stones levitated from the top layer of the ruins and quickly rearranged themselves to form a neat wall.

“What was that?” Severus asked.

Aurelia shrugged. “My father was a master mason. I used to work with him during the summers. I can do a lot more bricks at once, but these stones are quite large and some of them are irregular. It’s a shame he can’t be here. He would have loved to help rebuild the castle. Well, tell me what part of the ruins you are interested in, and I can move the stones out of the way for you.”

“We aren’t exactly sure. The Headmaster’s study was in this area, but when the tower came crashing down…” Remus left that sentence unfinished. Time had seemed to stand still when the tower slowly collapsed. None of them could believe the castle was being so thoroughly destroyed. It was one thing to blast holes in passageways, quite another to take down walls and towers.

“Well, let’s figure out where I should concentrate. It’s an exhausting spell when dealing with objects this heavy.”

****************

They spent the next hour probing through the ruins, looking for any signs of books. Once they pinpointed the most likely location of some of the Headmaster’s private library, Aurelia began clearing some of the stones.

Thankfully, these books were in better condition than those in the library; at least none of them had been burned. Severus was able to sort through them with a glance. When he stopped and began paging through a book, Aurelia and Remus moved over to his side.

“Have you found it?” she asked quietly.

“I think that I have,” he replied without looking up from the book.

She noticed the light was waning and lit her wand to provide him with more light.

“Yes! This is it!” he said triumphantly. “I need to take this back to your library where the light is better.”

“Of course,” she replied. “Remus, would you care to join us?”

Severus glared at her.

“I think we should all be familiar with the contents of this book.” She hoped the two men could work together on this trip. After giving Remus the address, she and Severus found a secluded area where they could Disapparate.

***************

Once they arrived at home, Severus spun on Aurelia. “I can’t believe you invited that…man here this evening.”

She crossed her arms. “Look, the two of you are nearly forty. Anything that happened, happened twenty years ago. Let it go. We are going to be traveling together for some time, perhaps as long as two weeks. I’m not going to spend my time refereeing childish arguments between the two of you. If you can’t behave, then we will come home.”

“You are treating me like one of your children,” he said snidely.

“Only because you are acting like one. No, that’s an insult to my girls. They are much better behaved. Now, we are going to have a nice civil dinner this evening. After dinner, I’ll take the girls over to the Parker’s and then we’ll go through the book and devise a strategy for capturing a lethifold. Go get cleaned up for dinner,” she ordered.

He was not used to being addressed in this manner, but then again, most people did not stand up to him. She was one of the few that he did not intimidate. That might have something to do with the fact that she had seen him at his absolute weakest. Knowing that he was absolutely filthy from his work digging in the ruins, he went upstairs to shower and change before dinner.

***************

When he came downstairs, he could hear Lupin talking with Julia and Helen. Entering the living room, he saw Helen sitting next to Lupin showing him her latest drawings. Severus felt a twinge of jealousy.

Helen saw Severus enter the room, jumped up and ran over to him. “Look what I drew for you,” she said proudly. “Mum told us you were helping to make the castle better.”

Severus sat in a chair and Helen climbed into his lap and began showing him drawings of him rebuilding the castle. “These are very nice, Helen,” he replied. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Lupin smiling at him. “Do you have something to say, Lupin?”

Remus wiped the smile from his face. “No, nothing at all.” He had always suspected Severus had a softer side, but he had never suspected a child would bring it out.

Severus was saved from further scrutiny when Aurelia entered the room and announced, “Dinner is ready.”

***************

Over dinner, Helen and Julia peppered Lupin with questions since he was the new arrival. Severus took perverse pleasure in watching Lupin attempt to explain what he did for a profession. Julia was too young to have had him as a professor.

“Right now, I’m in between jobs,” Remus replied.

“Do you know what you are going to do next?” Julia asked.

“Well, I’ve applied at Hogwarts. I taught there years ago, before you were a student.”

This comment caused Severus to nearly choke on his dinner. He could only imagine that Lupin would once again be applying for Defense Against the Dark Arts, the position Severus had last held and hoped to hold again. He had not considered which class he would be teaching this upcoming term if he did return to Hogwarts, and Brock hadn’t mentioned it either. It was something he would have to address when he returned. Naturally, he would prefer to teach Defense, but depending on the applicants, the new Headmaster might want him to return to Potions.

“Something wrong, Severus?” Remus asked, fully aware of how much Severus wanted to teach Defense Against the Dark Arts again.

Severus had stopped coughing and sipped his water. “No, nothing at all. Do you honestly expect your application to be seriously considered?”

Remus really didn’t want to get into a sparring match with Aurelia’s children at the table. He shrugged. “It can’t hurt to apply.” He thought his chances were better than Severus’.

Aurelia picked up on some of the tension between the two men and wondered if she had been insane to insist Remus come along. Obviously, she had underestimated the animosity between the two of them. “Well, then, since we’re short on time, I think we should finish up dinner. Girls, after we’re done, I want you to clean up the dishes and finish packing.”

“And you promise a shopping trip into London when we get back?” Julia asked.

“Of course. The two of you will need school robes and books. Hopefully they’ll have the book list out by then. Now, since you’re done eating, start clearing the dishes.” She watched as the girls reluctantly carried out their orders. “Shall we adjourn to the library?” She hoped that the two of them could be convinced to behave. Otherwise, this would be a very short trip. She noticed that Remus and Severus took seats on opposite sides of the room. “Okay, look, I have no interest in refereeing the feud the two of you have. I don’t care how it started, either. I’ve already told Severus that I won’t put up with childish behavior. Capturing a lethifold is not to be taken lightly. Let’s take a look at this book and see what we can learn.” She opened the book and began reading aloud the passage on lethifolds:

Lethifolds are greatly feared creatures. This is due to their manner of attack. They will smother a sleeping person, giving them no opportunity to attack. They also move silently and can slip through the smallest cracks in doors and windows. As they seem to have an ability to detect when a person is sleeping, and will not approach when someone is awake, they have been incredibly difficult to study.

Additionally, they have only been seen at night when attacking their victims. All attempts to follow lethifolds have been thwarted due to the speed at which they can move through the thick jungles they inhabit.

They generally prey on witches and wizards and seem to avoid Muggles altogether. This has led to speculation that there is something about magical persons that attracts them. The only defense against a lethifold is the use of the Patronus Charm. Lethifolds are instantly repelled by a Patronus. Readers are warned that only a fully corporeal Patronus will affect a lethifold.

To date, only a handful of lethifolds have been captured. Those that were captured did not survive long in captivity and likely died from starvation. There is no indication of how often one must be fed. Attempts to feed them animals have failed. It appears that humans are the only beings a lethifold will eat.

The essence of lethifold has shown some promise as an ingredient in antidotes, but due to its rarity, it has not been studied extensively. The essence is extracted through magical distillation by boiling a lethifold in water. Of the lethifolds studied, only one had eaten recently, but that did not seem to change the composition of the essence.

The following spell will produce a net that will capture a lethifold. This is a very difficult task since they will not enter a room where an occupant is awake. It is best to capture one in a room, where it will have limited means of escape. The attack must be made immediately, as lethifolds are easily startled.

“Charming creatures,” she said dryly. She could tell that none of them felt too optimistic about their chances at success. While there was a capture spell described, there was no picture showing the motion. Learning wand motion from a written description was always difficult. She handed the book to Severus. “Why don’t you check our movement to the description?”

After Aurelia and Remus had tried the spell a half dozen times with no result, Severus slammed the book down. “You have the wrist movement all wrong, both of you.” He stood up and demonstrated for them. “It should be like this.” He stood, gave his wand an elaborate flourish and said, “Comprendo lodix.”

They all looked on in amazement as an incredibly small golden web emerged from the tip of Severus’ wand, exactly like the book had described.

“This is wonderful. The one of us that doesn’t have the power to cast the spell usefully, is the one who figures it out,” lamented Remus.

“No, this is good,” replied Aurelia. She held her wand at the ready. “Direct me through the motions,” she said.

Severus placed his hand on hers and guided here through the complex motion. “It’s that final twist of the wrist that you aren’t getting right. It’s very subtle.” He guided her through it several more times, until he felt that she had mastered the twist. He then stepped back and watched her attempt the spell again. As before, nothing happened. “It’s a twist, not a flick,” he said in irritation.

“I know it’s a twist, that was what I was doing,” she insisted.

“No, you weren’t,” Severus argued.

Remus could tell the tempers were getting stretched. “Look, it’s getting late. Why don’t we finish getting the supplies together? I still have to go home and pack. I’ll be back early tomorrow morning.”

“Excellent idea. Severus, give me a hand getting the tent out of the attic and then we’ll pack the food.” Once they were in the attic and she was digging through the boxes looking for the tent, she said, “You know, I think I’m glad I didn’t have boys.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” Severus asked snidely.

“It means that boys are petty and childish. I’ve warned you about arguing. I’m not going to play mother to the two of you. We need to work together in order to capture a lethifold. I’ll talk to him in the morning, but I want the two of you to quit antagonizing each other.

“You know, considering I’m your only friend, I’m surprised you would ostracize someone actually offering to help you.” She knew this was hard for him to hear. “Severus, the world has changed. You need to change with it.”

He stood up from the box he was searching. “I am aware of that fact. Don’t you think I know what Dumbledore’s death did?” He paused. “Making friends has always been difficult for me.”

“You seem to have done all right here. I think we all consider you part of the family. I know, a difficult concept for you. Just, act the same way around Remus that you do around us. I don’t think he means you any ill will. I think he genuinely wants to help you. Given the fact that he is a werewolf, I think he knows what it’s like to be alone.”

“I will be civil. Now, where is this infernal tent?”

“It’s here somewhere. It was about four years ago that we last went camping.” She buried herself back in the boxes before she was overcome with emotion.

---

A/N: Comprendo lodix – capture blanket
Munio - to build, esp. to build a wall

Thanks again to those that have reviewed. Trickie Woo's encouragement has gotten my muses on the idea of a follow-up to this story outside the Challenge guidelines. I'll see how quickly they can put together a coherent story.