A/N: Hey! Sorry I haven't updated in so long. I got sick a couple times and then I got swamped with homework and a bunch of make up work. Then, I got major writer's block!

I hope this chapter goes okay with the last chapter. It doesn't start exactly where I left off, partly cause I had to rewrite it a few times because I kept getting stuck.

I posted a pic of Anna's fox slippers!

Padfoot laid curled next to the tree stump that he and Anna had chosen for their meeting place. His black ears were flat against his skull and his head was settled on his paws. The marauder whined impatiently.

'She should be here by now.' Thought Sirius.

Anna had told him that she would be bringing him more food that day, right after the Quidditch game. That way, everyone would be too focused on the game's outcome to notice her disappearance. Now, she was late. Hours late. He was becoming very bored and his stomach growled in protest of it's neglect.

Finally, his ear's twitched and his head shot up. He sniffed the air, which was now filled with Anna's familiar scent and the heavenly aroma of a Hogwarts feast. Padfoot licked his chops and stood up, at once changing into his human form. He smiled at his friend when he saw her, but it quickly faded.

It wasn't hard to see something had happened.

She looked...wrong to put it simply. Her skin was pale and she looked drained. The normal, witty, bold, lively Anna now looked almost comparable to a corpse. He watched her with concern as her emerald eyes darted anxiously about her surroundings, as if waiting for something to jump out of the shadows and rip out her throat. Her eyes weren't red and her cheeks were dry but he'd long ago learned the signs that she had been crying.

Red knew he had already figured out something was off, but she couldn't help but look to the ground, veiling her face with her scarlet curls. She felt ashamed, although she knew she had no reason to be. Sirius had helped her through much worse. She thought she'd be over what she had happened by now, but the more time she had to think about what she saw, the more she remembered from her little episode. Her hands shook a little as a particularly nasty nightmare came to mind and she closed her eyes tight, not sure if she could bare facing Sirius. She'd put up a brave face so everyone would let her leave he infirmary to sneak into the forbidden forest. How else would she be able to get Sirius the food he needed to survive?

The witch was jolted out of her thoughts when she felt a hand clasp her own gently. Her moss green eyes opened slowly to meet his gentle grey ones.

Sirius tugged her hand wordlessly, and she let him lead her to the stump and sat down. The basket she had taken with her sat forgotten on the ground. He kneeled beside her, keeping hold on her hand as he spoke to her in a soothing, yet solemn tone of voice, "Tell me everything."

And she did.

At first, her sentences were slow, hesitant, and unsure. But after she began the story, she couldn't seem to stop the ever flowing rush of words that spilled from her lips in a stream of sentences.

After she was done, she looked up at her friend. There was so much fury brewing underneath his stern expression, that she could've sworn she saw lighting flash in those storm grey eyes. It wasn't hard to tell what he was thinking.

Finally, he broke the silence, "I'm going to fix this, Annabelle. I promise. That rat won't get away with this." She could've sworn she heard a growl bubble in his throat. The redhead saw the wheels turning in his head. He was planning something. Which worried her. His plans tended to backfire.

Anna was about to comment when she looked at the sky and saw the sun was going to down. She cursed and stood up, "I have to go. I've been here to long."

She hugged him in thanks for letting her vent and switched to fox form, dashing from sight.

Once she was gone he dug into the food, but despite his hunger from before, his appetite had shrunken significantly after seeing Anna so distraught and he ended up eating much less than he needed. He couldn't really concentrate on food because of the gnawing of rage towards Peter that was threatening to overcome him. He felt the insanity that he had been staving away for all those years at Azkaban start to chisel away at the wall that kept his hatred towards Peter at bay so he didn't do anything rash. Suddenly, the dam broke and he felt newfound determination surge through his bones.

He wasn't truly insane, but the insanity that had already taking refuge in his mind danced with his anger and drove him to organize a plot (a rather stupid one) to kill Peter Pettigrew once and for all.

*Time Skip*

To Harry, the Gryffindor victory felt hollow after finding out what had happened to his aunt while he had been on the field. The Gryffindors had a party and everything in their common room to celebrate the win but it hadn't felt like a party until Anna had arrived, much to everyone's surprise. Many had heard about her condition but the rumors had exaggerated a lot of the story.

According to Remus (who had accompanied Anna to the party), she was only late to the festivities because she needed some time to herself for a bit. Only Anna and Sirius knew where she had really gone during that time and no one really thought it was their place to ask. But whatever she had done seemed to calm her down a bit and she seemed to be almost back to her normal self.

However, things got more complicated as bedtime drew closer. Remus had suggested than he and his wife retire for the night. Anna had immediately refused and both Lupins secretly knew the reason for it. She didn't want to risk having more nightmares.

Remus tried to reason with her. He argued that she couldn't avoid sleep forever, that it wasn't healthy. When she remained stubborn, he sighed and raked his hand through his hair, trying to come up with a solution.

Anna told him to go to bed on his own and that she would try and figure it out on her own. Moony wanted to protest but as he grew more and more weary, he accepted her compromise and went off to bed, uneasy feeling settling in his stomach.

Anna paced for thirty minutes, pondering her predicament until finally she snapped her fingers once the idea struck her, "Sev can help me!"

So the redhead tiredly made her way up the stairs to her friend's room. She knocked hard and fast onto the painting that guarded the entrance until it slid open to reveal a drowsy, slightly annoyed Potions Master.

Once he realized who was at the door, his irritated glare softened slightly, "Anna, is this really so urgent that you can't wait until morning?"

She bit her lip, "Do you have any potions for dreamless sleep?"

It was that one question that melted all annoyance off his features as he realized the purpose of her visit. He sighed and stepped aside so she could gain entry, "It will take half an hour to make, probably longer in my drowsy state. Merlin, couldn't you have thought of this sooner?"

The witch shrugged innocently, "It didn't occur to me until now. Need any help?" He nodded and pointed to his shelf of ingredients, "Pass me the lavender, the Juniper berries, and the wasp wings." She did as he asked, walking over to the row of ingredients and gingerly selecting the previously mentioned items. After she did so, she sat on he friends bed next to Loki, Severus' black-furred companion. She cooed at the creature as he purred, which made the potions master roll his eyes.

Once the potion was done he brought out a small, cylindrical, dark green glass bottle. With the poise and focus of a potions expert, he slowly, carefully, ladled the translucent, copper colored liquid into the container. A small cork was placed in the mouth of the phial with a small squeak of friction against the container. He presented it to the redhead who smiled gratefully. She pocketed the flask and gave the Slytherin a sort of half hug before saying her goodbyes and, finally, exiting the dorm.

Anna immediately made her way to her own living quarters. She whispered the password to the painting. Once it swung open she quietly stepped inside, careful not to wake her husband. The witch slipped into her pajamas, making sure to put the potion on the nightstand before letting her former clothes hit the floor. After that, she sat on the edge of her bed and uncorked the concoction. She wafted the scent toward her nose (since it was sometimes dangerous to sniff a potion directly) and raised an eyebrow at the odd odor of nutmeg and wet cat (a smell she'd come aquatinted with after poor Holly, her kitten, had wandered into a puddle after a stormy evening).

Finally, she pinched her nose and tilted her head back, downing the whole thing in seconds. It was a technique she'd used when she was younger and had to take nasty medicine at home. It wasn't 100% effective but it protected her tastebuds from the brunt of the flavor. Her mother had always shrugged off her complaints about the method and said that it was healthier than a spoon full of sugar.

The witch yawned and was glad that she had waited until now to actually take the potion. The potion went to work immediately, relaxing her muscles and making her eyelids grow heavy. The faint soothing scent of a flower like lavender or jasmine tickled her nose, though not in a way that caused her any discomfort.

Anna yawned once more before tugging her bedspread up so she could slip under them. She heard her husband shift slightly and felt an arm wrap around her waste like a belt. She closed her eyes and emitted a blissful sigh. For once, she felt completely and utterly relaxed.

Two Hours Later...

The Lupins groaned in unison when the sound of someone knocking at their chamber door echo about their chambers. Anna pulled a pillow over her head and nudged her husband, "It's your turn, Remy." He sighed and slowly sat up. He stretched his arms and called to the person on the other side of the door, "I'm coming!"

Finally, he came to the entrance and opened the door. To his surprise, it was a house elf. The werewolf's eyes softened at the sight of the nervous creature, "Hello, is there something you needed."

The elf nodded, "Yes, sir. Dobby was told by Professor McGonagall to come fetch you. It's a very urgent." The wizard raised eyebrow, "Just me? Not Anna?" Dobby shook his head, "The Professor said it may not be best to involve Mrs. Lupin but she needed help with the student."

Remus looked surprised, "Did she say why?"

"Sirius Black broke into the Gryffindor common room, sir."

There was a sudden creak behind them. The werewolf turned to see his wife tumbling out of bed. She quickly put on her fox slippers and a plush scarlet bathrobe and came to the door. Remus grabbed her arm, "Anna, you should get your rest. Are you sure you want to deal with Sirius after what happened-"

She gave him a hard look, "I'm fine, Moony. Don't you think for one second that I'm staying behind. These are my kids we're talking about. I have a duty to Harry and all the other Gryffindors in that tower, so let go of me or, so help me Remus Lupin, I'll-"

He dropped her wrist. She gave him a quick apologetic smile before turning to uneasy the house elf, "Lead the way."

-In the Gryffindor Common Room-

The house elf disappeared once the Lupins had reached their destination. Anna was kind of sad to see the little guy go. She enjoyed the company of a house elf. They were wonderfully strange creatures and Anna seemed to specialize in 'strange yet wonderful' things. However, once they had gotten past the painting knight, Sir Cadogen, who was filling in for the 'Fat Lady,' Dobby was momentarily forgotten.

All of the students in the house fidgeted and spoke to one another in hush tones as Professor McGonagall conversed with Albus. She noticed a few glares were cast in Neville's direction and frowned. She stepped forward to approach him, when Minerva noticed their arrival. She looked at the redhead in disapproval, "I told Dobby only to bring Remus." Anna folded her arms to her chest stubbornly, "And I told him that I am an adult, experienced witch, and former Auror. I've faced a thousand more dangerous threats than Sirius Black and It'll take something stronger than a stupid nightmare to put me out of actions. Now, tell me everything."

Albus and Minerva looked at Remus questioningly, who just shrugged. His wife hated feeling helpless. He could see how she'd be annoyed being treated like she was made of glass after everything she had done to earn her tough reputation, just because of one incident. He winced, and made a note to perhaps try and make it up to her later.

The two older professor debriefed their younger colleagues on what had happened. Anna bit her lip when she heard poor Neville was the one who had accidentally lost the list of passwords. The boy really had the worst luck.

But then something more troubling occurred to Anna. Sirius had broke into the tower. Why would he do that with a knife of all things if he wasn't planning to kill someone? And even if he was trying to kill Harry, why would he go for Ron? What the hell had her friend been thinking?

Anna shooed those thoughts away for now. She'd question Sirius later. For now she had a job to do. The redhead head took out her wand, which she had slipped into her pajama pocket before leaving her room, "You three search the school for Black. Make sure he's really gone. I'll protect the kids and try to calm a few of them down."

Minnie nodded, "That sounds reasonable." Remus and Albus agreed. Anna kissed her husband's cheek, "Be safe." He smiled slightly, "You too, love."

Once they had departed, Anna went to approach Neville but again. He sat in a soft red chair, looking blue. Anna looked around for a place to sit and ended pulling up the chair's matching red leg rest to sit on, "Hey, Neville."

He smiled halfheartedly, "Hey Prof-...I mean Anna. Yeah, I'm fine." She raised an eyebrow, not believing that one bit, "Don't lie to me, Longbottom. I know you're upset. You feel guilty." He shrugged and looked to the floor ashamed, "So? I should feel guilty. It's my fault for practically giving the password to a murderer! I might as well have invited a vampire in the Castle!"

The redhead rolled her eyes, "First of all, vampires don't really work like that. That whole myth started because of one particularly nutty vampire who was overly polite and...never mind. You'll probably learn it in class someday. Second, it isn't your fault. You didn't loose them on purpose and Sirius would've found his way in with or without your help. Trust me, he's been sneaking in and out of this place starting from his first year. Sure, it would've taken longer, but at least this way we had Sir Cadogan to confirm that Sirius was in the castle. If he'd broken in some other way, everyone would think Ron had just been dreaming and we wouldn't know to search the castle. So, really, your mistake helped us."

Anna hoped he wouldn't think to hard about her reasoning. She wasn't sure how solid her explanation was through all of her rambling. The woman just wanted to make him feel better and it seemed to have worked. Neville shot her a small, grateful look, "I guess you're right. Thanks, Anna."

She nodded and stood, seeing her work was done, when she heard her name, "Anna?" She turned and felt arms wrap around her waste. She smiled in relief at her nephew and squeezed him tightly, "Harry! Are you alright? Is Ron okay?"

He nodded, "Yeah, we're both fine. I don't think any of us is going to be able to sleep, though." She nodded empathetically, "Me neither. But that's okay. I have to stay awake to protect you rascals." There was a brief pause. "Have either of you seen Hermione?"

Harry pointed in the direction of the young girl, ignoring Ron, who was obviously still cross with the girl. Anna followed her nephew's finger to where he was pointing and saw the brunette sitting alone reading quietly. The redhead thought it best not to disturb her.

Seeing that all the students were fine, though a little spooked, Anna figured her work there was done. She accioed a book she had started reading to her and sat down in a chair of her own to read as well.

She had a feeling she was going to be there for a while.