The Devil wears an Angel's face

Posted originally on the Archive of Our Own at http://archiveofourown.org/works/37953865.

Rating: Not Rated

Archive Warning: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Category: M/M, Other
Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Relationship: Sirius Black/Remus Lupin
Character: Remus Lupin, James Potter, Sirius Black, Peter Pettigrew, Regulus
Black, Lily Evans Potter, Marlene McKinnon, Mary Macdonald, Dorcas
Meadowes, Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody, Euphemia Potter, Frank
Longbottom, Alice Longbottom
Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Supernatural Hunters, Alternate Universe -
Creatures & Monsters, Vampires, Sirius Black Needs a Hug, Regulus
Black Needs a Hug, Werewolf Remus Lupin, Remus Lupin is So Done,
Remus Lupin & James Potter Friendship, Everyone Is Gay, wolfstar,
Minor Jegulily, Minor Dorlene, Found Family
Language: English
Stats: Published: 2022-03-25 Updated: 2023-05-02 Words: 10,928 Chapters:
9/?

The Devil wears an Angel's face

by pad_footxscar24

Summary

Remus Lupin works as a researcher/assistant for hunters, when James disappears on a

mission and Remus is assigned to find him.
Sirius Black was turned as a young teen, along with their brother, and made it their mission
to find a place where they and others like them will be accepted.

Adding this to all my fics: I am the slowest writer ever, I'm afraid. In case you ever wonder,
no none of my fics are abandoned. I am finishing it, it'll just take a long long time and the
gaps between chapters could be between a few days to like 6 months. I'm so sorry.
 Welcome to Hellsgate
Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

"It's been three weeks and Potter still hasn't been in touch", Moody said with a sigh, "I'm going to
need you to go out there."

Remus looked up from his desk, "I'm in the middle of researching this monster. James is fine, he
always forgets to check in."

Moody nodded in agreement, "I know. But Mia and Monty keep bugging me saying they think
something is wrong."

Remus groaned, "Alright. I'll go out there but don't blame me when James is perfectly fine and you
have to deal with the phones ringing nonstop from hunters knowing absolutely nothing."

Remus went upstairs to start packing for the journey, when Euphemia came into the room.

"Thank you so much, Remus. We're really worried about him, he should've gotten in touch by
now."

Remus shrugged, "Just doing my job. He'll be fine, don't worry."

Euphemia laughed, "I can't help but worry. Now you be safe too, alright? And borrow Monty's
horse, you'll get there quicker."

Remus pulled his bag over his shoulders, "Thank you, Euphemia."

She pulled him into a hug, "Be careful, darling."

Remus started his journey, feeling unsteady on horseback. The village was only a couple of days'
journey away, and then he could moan to James about having to go out on a mission because of
him.

He finally made his way to the village, at midday. He wasn't an actual hunter, so he wasn't used to
the long journeys to unknown places, riding on horseback with a horse that seemed to hate him,
and surviving on Euphemia's packed food.

At least he had her food, he thought, as he caught sight of the sign as he entered the village.

He passed the old, crooked sign that welcomed him to the village. The village's name was
ominously dark, the words 'Hellsgate' shone brightly in gold on the dark, rotting wood that the
words were engraved on. Underneath, equally in a strange shining gold were the words 'Pax et
Salutem Omnibus'.

Remus didn't know much Latin, languages weren't his area of expertise; but he knew 'Pax' meant
peace. He almost laughed at the word, it wasn't at all fitting for a place like this.

The small village seemed unwelcoming to strangers, as he entered through. Shopkeepers eyed him
with weary looks, conversations seemed to stop or quiet down into whispers as his horse
approached them.

He made his way to the inn, ignoring the looks and instead looking out for the unruly dark hair and
lively energy of James.

As he reached the inn, a short blonde man smiled up at him. The man sat on the steps of the inn,
drinking from a glass bottle, but dropped his drink to the ground and stood up when Remus halted
nearby.

"Looking for somewhere to stay?" He asked, wiping his hands on his trousers before walking over
as Remus swung down from the horse.

Remus nodded, taking off his hat and wiping his brow, "Just for the night. I'm looking for my
friend, James Potter, have you seen him?"

The man's eyes widened and he laughed, nervously, before feigning confusion.

"Don't recognise the name, Sorry. If he's been here, ask around. Someone'll know."

Remus nodded, the innkeeper knew something but was reluctant to speak. Something was going on
here. Dammit.

He held out his hand, "I'm Peter Pettigrew. My mum's inside if you want to get a room. I'll take
your horse over to our barn."

Remus shook his hand, then the two parted as Remus went inside and Peter tended to the horse.

A small ring sounded as he opened the door, and Peter's mum lifted her eyes towards the door at
the sound.

"Hi, nice to meet you. I'm Lydia, did you want a one bedroom?"

Remus nodded, and made his way over to the counter. He took his hat off and clutched it against
his chest, as he waited for the key.

Lydia gave it to him with another smile, and Remus started to go upstairs before turning back
around.

"Do you remember all your guests, from as far back as a month ago?"

Lydia nodded, "definitely. We don't get many people coming and going around here, and I'd say I
have a pretty good memory."

A little burst of hope seemed to appear inside him, "Do you remember a James Potter? Messy,
Dark hair? A little shorter than me? Brown skin? Extremely friendly and full of energy?"

Lydia strangely reacted the same way as her son had, her eyes widened and flickered towards the
windows for a moment.

"Friends, are you?" She hummed, nervously.

Remus nodded, "Best friends since we were eleven. We also work together, he was sent on a work
trip here a few weeks ago and we haven't heard from him since."

She nodded with a tight smile, "I'm sure he's fine. But, he hasn't been around here I'm afraid.
Maybe he went to a different town, we haven't had any visitors in a while."

The woman refused to meet his eye as she spoke, instead her eyes were transfixed to the window.
 Remus followed her gaze and saw her staring at the sun slowly going down. It filled the sky with a
beautiful pink-ish tint and golden shadows entering into the inn. But, as the sun sunk further, he
noticed it dropping behind a castle on a large hill nearby.

He looked back at Lydia and realised she was looking at the castle as well.

James was most definitely there, and so was the Vampire that James was meant to be hunting.

Chapter End Notes

Pax et salutem omnibus= peace and safety to all

 The People of Hellsgate
Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

The next morning, Remus set out to the castle. It was a tiring walk, especially the full moon being
soon. Remus' muscles hurt like hell. Although it was a fairly short walk, he had to take numerous
rests to catch his breath and give his exhausted legs a small break.

He reached the top of the hill, and the gates of the castle after an hour or so. He estimated it would
take around half an hour normally.

He noticed the gates were locked and chained up; just his luck, his thought.

Remus started climbing the gate, but as he reached the top, a sharp sike seemed to appear out of
nowhere and pierced his hand.

He bit his tongue in pain, stopping himself from yelling as he fell back down to the ground.

His hand oozed with blood, his bone clearly visible and he held it close to his chest. He grabbed a
cloth from his bag and wrapped it around his hand.

Remus looked up to see where the spike had come from, but no one seemed to be around. The top
of the gate clearly lined with spikes that he somehow hadn't noticed. He could've sworn they
weren't there before.

His trek down the mountain was much quicker than going up, the downward slope increasing his
speed as well as his determination to dull the pain in his hand.

He soon got to the town centre, and looked for a place that would sell medicine. He reached a stall
selling 'cures to common ailments' and 'fast working elixirs'.

Remus stood in front of the stall, reading the labels on the bottles until he found one for his type of
injury. God, he hoped it was cheap and would work.

He picked it up and held it in the eye level of the stall owner, "how much for this?"

The stall owner' lip curled upwards and she let out a small laugh.

"You're the traveller, then? What happened to your hand?"

Remus unwrapped the cloth from it to show her the damage. They tutted and picked up a wet cloth
from a small bucket, cleaning the wound.

She then grabbed the bottle from his other hand, pouring it onto the injured one. Once done, she
got actual bandages, and tied it tightly around his hand.

Remus nodded in thanks, "how much do I owe you?"

The stall owner laughed again, "Nothing. We don't use money, or any other form of trade."

Remus tilted his head slightly, "I'm sorry. But, how does that work?"

They smiled politely, "travellers always ask that question. None of us really see a reason why we
should pay each other. We're a community, if someone needs something then they should be able
to get it, no matter their financial situation."

"So… no one here has any money?" Remus asked.

She shook their head, "There's no need for it."

"Right. Um… thank you, then."

The stall owner smiled again, "No problem. I'm Lily, you are?"

"Remus."

Lily waved to him, "See you around, Remus."

Remus made his way back to the inn, waving to Peter who was sitting on the front step, drawing
the landscape.

Once in his room, Remus set out all the information on the case onto the bed and small desk.

Newspaper clippings of strange murders a few miles away from the town, James' last few reports.

An infamous, upon hunters and other monsters at least, family of old vampires lived fairly close
by. Moody had lost an eye and a leg from trying to hunt them in his youth.

Remus groaned, hoping James' disappearance wasn't related to the family.

After hours of pouring over the useless information and realising he wasn't getting anywhere, he
decided to get himself a drink.

Leaving the inn, Remus set out to look for a pub. The sun was almost set and the streets were fairly
quiet. He walked through the empty streets for a while, until finding himself outside of a small
pub.

Remus opened the wooden door, and was smacked with loud music and terrible singing voices
following it.

He felt a hand wrap around his wrist and looked to his left to see Lily there with a wide smile on
their face.

"Remus! Want a drink?" She asked, pulling him further into the place.

They stopped at a booth in the corner, littered with other people. Lily pulled him to sit next to her,
and a bartender came over with large glasses, placing one in front of Remus.

He lifted it to his face, sniffing it to check it wasn't laced before drinking it.

A loud voice close by filled his senses and he lifted his head to see a blonde woman shouting over
the music.

"Reggie was there a couple of days ago as well, I don't think they're that lonely, Cas."

She followed someone, 'Cas', into the booth he was at. The woman sat in their lap, kissing 'Cas'
squarely on the mouth.

Remus gaped at the public display of affection, looking around to make sure no one who might be
 against that sort of love saw it.

Lily poked his shoulder, "What are you doing?"

Remus turned to her and gestured towards the couple, "Aren't they worried about getting beaten
up? And It's a small town, people could talk and they could get banned from everywhere and have
to move."

Lily winked and affectionately tousled his hair, "Everyone is fine with it here. Stop worrying about
everything."

"I'm not!"

She gave him a questioning look, "I'm very drunk right now so I won't remember this by tomorrow.
But, why are you here? You have a secret reason, I can sense it!"

Remus sighed and took a sip of his drink before answering, "I'm looking for my friend. James
Potter."

Lily's eyes widened and the other people on the booth seemed to stop their conversation to subtly
listen into his and Lily's talk.

"Do you know him?" he prompted.

Lily froze for a few seconds before nodding. The other people at the booth seemed to be shaking
their heads slightly, as if to tell Lily to stop speaking.

"He just came through town in passing. I met him at my stall in the town centre, he hurt his ankle."

"So he left town?"

Lily's eyes darted to their friends in the booth. The woman who had been speaking loudly earlier
was mouthing sentences to Lily.

He regretted not letting Fleamont teach him about lip reading now.

Lily turned back to him, "Yeah. I assume so, I haven't seen him since."

Remus nodded, gulping down the rest of his drink and standing up.

Talking to the people here just left him more confused. He needed to get in the castle.

As he walked back to the inn, he made a mental plan. Go through the full moon and take a few
days to recover, then set off to castle with full energy.

He'd find James soon. And kill this fucking vampire.

Chapter End Notes

I accidentally wrote kiss instead of kill when I wrote it,, so true Remus,, you will kiss
this vampire
 The Moon and the Festival

Remus woke up with a throbbing headache, he had closed the curtains before he fell in bed last
night so that he wouldn't be woken with the painful bright light of the morning sun.

He grumbled and pulled the blanket closer to him, dripping with sweat but feeling freezing cold.

He glanced at the clock on the bedside table, reading it to be 3pm already. He had slept for half the
day.

Remus buried his face into the pillow and proceeded to lie there for the next few hours.

Once the sun started to set, he reluctantly dragged himself out of bed and slowly got changed
before leaving his room.

He walked through town feeling like he was about to throw up at any moment, when he spotted
decorations littering every street.

As he came into the town centre, the decorations got more and more. He spotted Lily, putting up
even more decorations as she chatted to someone else who was holding a tray of cakes.

"Remus! God, you look absolutely awful. Are you alright?" Lily said, as she caught sight of him.

He nodded in reply, "Just a little ill. I'm fine, it'll pass."

Lily didn't seem to buy it, but luckily didn't press further.

"What's going on here?" He asked.

Lily took a moment to answer, carefully picking her words. "It's for this monthly festival we have.
They're usually on the full moons, and we have peope volunteer… to help out. Then we drink and
eat loads and dance until the sun starts to rise."

Remus nodded, "right. I'm afraid I'm not going to be here for it, I'll be away till tomorrow."

Lily visibly relaxed, "Great. Well I'll see you later then."

They waved goodbye, and Remus carried on walking. It took him a couple of hours till he found a
safe place to transform. He was deep in the woods, the festival luckily meant no one would be in
the woods apart from him.

His body shifted and he started to scream.

▪︎

He woke up to the bright morning sun blinding his eyes, and quickly checked over the damage on
his body. His arm had been dislocated, and there was blood pouring from around his stomach.

He slowly stood up, clutching his hand to his stomach and picked up a stick to help him walk back.
As Remus got back into town, he saw many of the villagers fast asleep in the streets with blankets
and pillows around them. Nobody seemed to be awake, and the decorations from last night blew in
the wind.

He noticed strange symbols painted on the streets; rainbows, hands, and dripping blood were drawn
onto the ground. A few flags tied to trees and buildings had the same symbols on.

He got back to the inn; Peter and Lydia were both out, likely asleep in the streets with the many
others.

He slowly walked up the stairs to his room, and started treating his injuries before resting.

He grabbed a bucket and sponge and quickly cleaned the wounds before tying a large, long
bandage around his waist. He shoved the sleeve of his coat into his mouth before pushing his arm
back into place, the scream muffled.

As soon as he was finished, he crawled into bed and fell fast asleep.

Sometime later, a loud bang woke him up. Remus opened his eyes to see the sun rising again, and
Peter by the door with an apologetic look on his face.

"Sorry. I didn't know you were still asleep. Mum came to see if you needed anything yesterday and
apparently you looked really ill. Are you alright?"

Remus groaned and sat up, "Just a passing illness. I'm better now, I just needed a little rest."

Peter nodded, and caught sight of the overwhelming amount of news articles on the desk, and the
bloodstained clothes on the floor.

Remus answered before the questions could slip out, "I went on a walk in the woods a few nights
ago and slipped down a hill. Got a little injured."

"Those woods are dangerous", Peter nodded again, "What's with those newspapers though?"

Remus turned his head slightly to see the articles in question.

"My job," He answered. "Speaking of which, I should get going."

"Right. To do what, exactly?" Peter asked, a hint of suspicion blending into his eyes.

Remus laughed, getting up and quickly putting some cleaner clothes on.

"Wouldn't you like to know, Pete."

"I would, actually."

Remus grabbed his jacket and strolled closer to the door. He leant against the wall and folded his
arms, "I'm a researcher. I discover new plants and animals, that's why I was in the woods the other
night."

"I thought it'd be a lot more interesting than that."

Remus shrugged, "Sorry to disappoint."

Peter set another suspicious gaze around the room before sighing and walking back down the
stairs.

Remus quickly grabbed his weapons from under the bed and stuffed them in his pockets.

He left the room, bringing the long stick from his return after the full moon with him, to help get
up the large hill to the castle.

He was determined to get in today.

 Finding James

Remus' trek up the mountain was long and draining, but he was well rested with the full moon
behind him; he managed to reach the top with a lot more energy left than last time.

As he approached the locked gates, his eyes drifted to the top of the fence. The mysterious pikes
weren't there anymore, but Remus didn't want to risk getting stabbed in the hand again.

He walked around the edge of the fence looking for a hole or piece of molding metal to make it
easier to break through.

He eventually found a hole dug out by a fox or some other animal. The mud was slightly wet after
rainfall from the night, making it easier for Remus to make the hole larger.

It took a while, but soon he was lying in mud as he squeezed through the hole and made it to the
other side.

As he looked up at the large castle, he noticed curtains fully closed over every single window.
Definitely a vampire.

He reached for his gun, and pulled it out to clutch tightly in his hand while he ran to the stone
castle wall.

Remus climbed up to one of the windows on the first floor, heavily smashing his booted foot into
the glass. It shattered and fell onto the floor.

He crept through the window, to find clothes stained in blood in a pile on the floor and old
furniture covered by dark cloths.

The room seemed to be some kind of storage room, filled with random objects. But most
noticeably, there on a hanger was the entire outfit that James had worn the last time Remus had
seen him. The day he left for Hellsgate.

What was worse, James' clothes were also littered in blood and stains of mud. Ripped apart in
various places. If someone had been wearing these clothes while it got destroyed, it was almost
impossible for them to have survived.

And as Remus stared at the clothes, his eyes dripped with tears. He hadn't fully acknowledged the
possibility yet. That his best friend could be dead.

And now here it was, right in front of him. Overwhelming evidence.

He felt like crawling into a ball and sobbing on the floor. But he was reminded of the fact he was
currently standing in the castle of the vampire that had killed his best friend. That had killed James.

He prayed to God that the damned vampire was by the other side of the castle and didn't hear the
sound of the smashing window.

Remus needed the element of surprise if he was going to rip this fucking monster to shreds.

As he opened the door and walked down the hall, it became obvious the vampire hadn't heard the
smash of the window. But somebody else had.

"What's going on? I'm trying to sleep! Since you made me play boggle with you for hours last
night, I'm pretty tired. So stop smashing stuff, you angsty wanker!"

Remus immediately ran towards the sound, instantly recognising the voice. He threw the door open
to the room that the yelling was coming from.

James looked up at him in shock, he was sitting in a large king sized bed with dark red bedding and
an extravagant bed frame. He was wearing a tight fitting white silk shirt, and underwear. His
glasses were lopsided on his face and his hair was a mess as usual. He was alive.

"Remus?" James said, untangling himself from the blanket to reach Remus in the doorway.

He tightly hugged him, a beaming smile on his face.

It took a moment for Remus to react, shock holding him frozen in place.

As James continued hugging him, Remus quickly grabbed James by the wrist and pulled him out of
the room.

"James! What the fuck are you doing?" he yelled, clutching James' arm as he dragged his friend
through the castle.

"I mean- I was sleeping. But now, I'm being dragged away from my peaceful nap for absolutely no
reason."

Remus stopped and groaned. He turned to face James for some answers, but the other man just
stared back at him like he was the insane one.

Remus grunted and waved his hands manically around, frustrated at James' strangeness.

James followed the motions back in confusion, "What are we doing?"

"You were dead!" Remus yelled.

James gasped and looked down at his body, "I'm pretty sure I'm alive!"

"I mean I thought you were dead!"

"Well I'm not!"

"What are you doing here?"

James laughed, "I just told you; I was having a nap."

"In a vampire's castle?" Remus asked, completely bewildered.

"I mean, they gave me a room. And their bed's are so comfortable, I just want to lie in them all the
time."

Remus gaped, "You're insane. You've officially gone insane. Where's all your weapons? You kinda
need them if you've decided to start having naps in vampire beds!"

James waved his hand dismissively, "I don't need any of it. Sirius would never attack me."

"You're on a first name basis with it now? They're monsters! They're evil!"

James' smile vanished, "Remus, no. Look, you're a werewolf. People call you an evil monster, but
you're not one. So don't you think some vampires might be good too?"

Remus stepped closer to James, looking carefully at him, as if inspecting him.

James looked at him with amusement, "what are you doing?"

"Did the vampire hypnotise you? Are you under its alluring control?" Remus asked, cautiously.

James laughed, "No. Moony, I'm just friends with them!"

"People can't be friends with a vampire!"

A voice came from directly behind him, "Well that's rude. I have many friends."
 Hot vampires and how to kill them pt1
Chapter Notes

See the end of the chapter for notes

Remus swivelled round, turning to face the vampire, 'Sirius'.

They grinned in an obnoxious manner, a humorous glint in their silver grey eyes. They wore a
tight, black suit with a silk red shirt. The buttons were barely done up, revealing most of their pale
chest. Half of their black hair was piled up into a small bun, revealing an old bite wound on their
neck. As they smiled, their sharp teeth visibly popped out.

And they had just killed someone; judging by the bright red colour decorating their lips.

"Pleasure to meet you", Sirius said, holding out their hand for Remus to shake.

Instead of shaking their hand, he grabbed his dagger and swiftly threw it at Sirius. The vampire
moved out of the way, the dagger piercing into their upper arm.

Sirius hissed in pain, "Wow. That was a very welcome greeting."

James snorted in humour, grinning widely between the two.

Remus reached for his gun next, pointing it right at Sirius who stood still with a cocked eyebrow
and a small smirk. He clicked the trigger; about to pull, when James stepped in between them.

"James", both of them hissed.

They caught each other's eye and Sirius lifted up their hand in a quick, mocking wave. Remus had
a stake in his hand in a second, roughly pushing James out of the way to bodily slam into Sirius and
knock them to the floor.

He lifted the stake about to pierce it into Sirius' chest when he felt something wet going up his arm.

Remus looked down, gaping aimlessly between the wet mark left on his arm and a laughing
vampire with his tongue still hanging half out.

"Did you just lick me?"

The question made Sirius laugh even more; James was no help, leaning against the wall as he
laughed as well.

Remus wiped his arm before realising what he was just distracted from doing and quickly brought
the wooden stake back up and threw it down into Sirius' chest.

He managed to lightly pierce the vampire before James came barreling over, pushing Remus off of
Sirius; Sirius took the opportunity to get back up and glare at Remus.

"You tried to kill me!" they yelled.

Remus almost laughed, this was so utterly ridiculous, "Of course I did. I'm a hunter and you're a
bloodthirsty, murderous vampire who's hypnotised my best friend!"

Sirius gasped dramatically, looking at James, "I thought I was your best friend?"
"Now you're best friends with them?" Remus gasped.

James threw his hands up in defense, "Look, Remus. How about I take you down back to the
village and we can have a drink and talk, alright?"

Remus groaned in frustration, "What about the vampire?"

"I have a name", Sirius muttered.

James took a step forwards, throwing his arm around Remus' shoulder and steering him away from
Sirius.

"Sirius won't kill anyone while we're gone so there's no harm in letting them live a little longer."

"Oh, are you planning on killing me James?" Sirius grinned.

James grinned back, "I'll come back later. Maybe later tonight or tomorrow morning."

Sirius nodded back, "Fine. Bring your vicious friend with you", they winked before leaving at an
inhuman speed.

James turned back to see Remus staring at him.

"What the fuck is going on, James?"

"I'll explain when we get to the pub." He waved, dismissively.

Remus looked at his friend with raised eyebrows, "I think you might be forgetting something", he
said, gesturing downwards.

James squinted and looked down to see his bare legs and lack of trousers, "Oh fuck. I guess I'll
grab some trousers first… and shoes now that I think about it."

☆☆

"James, you're here! It was karaoke night last night and I bet you're so disappointed you missed
it."

James grinned, hugging the blonde girl that Remus recognised from his last time in the pub.

Her eyes widened as she spotted Remus close behind, she coughed uncomfortably.

"So… you found your friend, then?"

Remus nodded stiffly, "And I'm assuming you knew where he was the whole time?"

The girl laughed, "Well I wasn't going to tell you and just let you kill Sirius. I mean, vampires have
to stick up for each other."

Remus gaped in shock, "What?"

She laughed again, purposely putting up her hair and revealing bite marks on her neck and grinned
to reveal sharp canine teeth.

"Is everyone in this town a vampire?" Remus asked sarcastically as Marlene walked away to her
table.
"Not everyone", James answered, "I mean, there's a few others but the majority here aren't
vampires."

Remus immediately turned to James, "And what do you mean by that?"

James grinned sheepishly, "Come take a seat. I'll explain."

They sat at a table together, James going to get them both drinks at the bar before bringing them
back.

"Explain then", Remus said, taking a sip from the glass.

James fidgeted with his own glass, drawing patterns in the tiny droplets stuck to the side. He
looked up at Remus, before dropping his hand down and gripping the edge of the table.

He then started to speak.

"Moody sent me here with information about reports of a vampire killing people-"

"I know that."

"Yeah, yeah. Just let me get to it, alright? What he didn't mention was that the killings were a town
over but the person who got in contact with Moody, suspected someone here killed them-"

"Yeah, Sirius!"

James looked up with an almost aghast expression. Remus held his hands up, in promise to stop
interrupting.

"Thank you", he nodded, "I decided to go to the town where the killings actually happened first, to
take a look at the places they were killed."

**Flashback to James' perspective**

James packed up his things as he left the last scene of the killings. It was a total bust. There was
absolutely nothing at any of the sights, and no one in town seemed to even know anything about
any killings happening.

He was suddenly pushed to the hard ground, dried mud choking him as several people kept him
down while another checked through his bag and pockets.

He tried to fight back, twisting his body to punch and kick. But a boot came down on his ankle and
twisted it until he heard a snap. James screamed in pain.

At the piercing, loud scream another person started slowly walking over.

"Who gave you permission to do this?" A quiet but authoritative voice echoed.

The group started swearing and pleading, some running away as fast as they could. They had
immediately let go of James, he tried to get away but the pain in his ankle kept him lying on the
ground, helplessly crawling without looking back.
A voice suddenly coughed from right in front of him. The man crouched down with a tiny smile
that was almost invisible; but James caught it. He stared at the man, with short and slightly wavy
black hair, high cheekbones and piercing grey eyes. Dressed in an all black suit with a small snake
pin.

"Hello there."

James grinned and greeted him back, then became aware of his own blood in mouth and promptly
spat it out. Onto the man's shoes.

The man got out a black handkerchief, and wiped the blood off of his shoes. James caught sight of
white stitched initials on the handkerchief that stained red as it caught onto the blood.

R.A.B

The man folded it neatly and placed it back into his jacket pocket.

"Did you want some help or were you planning on trying to get out of town like that without
getting beat up again?"

James laughed, "I hadn't really thought it through to be perfectly honest."

The man extended an arm and helped James get on his feet, he held him around the waist to help
him walk.

"This is going to take a long time", James said after it had been almost half an hour of awkward
silence and barely reaching the outskirts of town, "I'm supposed to be staying at Hellsgate."

The man suddenly whirled to him with almost inhuman reflexes, "Hellsgate?"

James nodded, "yep. Meant to be there for work."

"Well then, what are you doing at Purcaster?"

"Also for work."

The man quickly stepped away from James, too fast for James to acknowledge the lack of support.
He fell to the ground and yelled out in pain.

"Why did you do that?"

The man looked down at him in anger, "You are a hunter."

James froze, looking closer at the man. Pale skin, dark red lips, and long sharp fingernails with
traces of something red stained under them.

"You're a vampire."

The vampire huffed, "Quick thinking. I thought hunters were smart."

"We are", he defended, trying to stand up and immediately crumbling back to the floor.

"Well I'm not. Fine."

The vampire folded his arms, "Why are you here? Who are you hunting?"
James laughed, "You. Obviously. You killed a load of people here!"

The vampire's eyes narrowed murderously, "I didn't kill them", he looked around before leaning
down to James, "I'm who sent the report to your agency."

"Why?"

The vampire rolled his eyes, and walked away.

James groaned, he stayed in place for over five minutes, waiting in case the vampire came back.
He was waiting for a vampire to come back to him, defenseless on the ground. He truly was an
idiot.

The vampire did come back, with a dark brown horse in tow.

"Elvendork? How'd you-"

"I was following you as soon as you reached Purcaster."

"Why? If not to hunt me?"

The vampire shrugged, "Boredom. I had a meeting midday so I wasn't allowed to leave the town."

James stroked Elvendork, before turning back to the vampire, "Can you help me get on?"

"I'm coming with you."

"Why would you come with me?"

The vampire grabbed him by the waist and pushed him up onto Elvendork before climbing up
behind him.

"I'm meeting someone."

James huffed a laugh as he set off, "You meet a lot of people."

"Don't ask me who they are."

"I wasn't going to", James defended himself, even though he knew he was going to.

The vampire didn't reply. So James started rambling about how he first met Elvendork, not
knowing in the slightest if the vampire was even listening.

They reached the town around the beginning of nightfall, the sun almost fully sunk. And the
vampire started to direct James on where to go. In the middle of town, they reached a marketplace
packing up and the vampire got James to stop.

He helped him down from Elvendork and put his arm back around his waist.

The vampire took him to a small stall half full of medicine, plasters, and bandages.

The lady behind the counter smiled widely at the sight of the vampire before frowning at James.

"Who's this?"

The vampire took him into the back of the stall and sat him down on a small wooden chair.
"A hunter. Not for any of us. The one I called in."

The lady nodded and turned to James, "I'm Lily. You've hurt your ankle right? Anything else or
just that?"

"James, and it's just my ankle."

Lily nodded, turning away to gather things from the shelves.

James turned to the vampire standing in the corner, "What's your name?"

The vampire frowned, "Why do you want to know?"

Lily laughed, coming back over and sitting down on the floor to get to James' ankle.

She tilted her head to look at the vampire, "What do you think he's going to do with your name?"

The vampire smiled, "Want me to list them?"

She laughed again and beckoned the vampire to come down and sit next to her.

He sat down, close enough to Lily that their arms touched.

Lily looked up at James, "He likes to linger in the shadows in the corner of rooms."

She turned her gaze her the vampire and kissed his cheek.

"I'm a vampire, it's what our species does."

Lily laughed, "It's what you do. I've seen Sirius. They have never lingered in a corner once in their
life."

"Who's Sirius?" James asked.

"No one," the vampire answered immediately.

"I thought James was here to meet Sirius?"

The vampire smiled slightly again, "I've changed my mind. They'd be too insufferable together."

"Well now I definitely want to meet them."

"You will", the vampire answered, "And Marlene too."

"A meeting of the vampires", Lily joked.

"What? I don't want to be alone in a room full of vampires! I'll be killed!"

The vampire shrugged, "We can invite an equal amount of humans if you want. So you feel safe."

"And I'm bringing my weapons!"

"No one said you couldn't."

"Alright, all done", Lily said, "Are you staying at the Pettigrew's inn?"

James nodded, "I was planning to but I don't have any money on me anymore."
 "You don't need money. They'll let you stay for free."

"Oh, cool."

"Isn't it just?" the vampire and Lily mocked.

The vampire helped James back on his horse and directed him to the Pettigrew's inn.

"Tomorrow at ten. Lily will meet you here for the meeting. Be on time."

"Thank you for your help, oh kind vampire."

The vampire stared back at him, huffing out a small smile. James noticed it was similar to the one
he gave Lily.

James started riding away and heard the vampire speak once more.

"Don't be late."

Chapter End Notes

this chapter is a bit longer than previous ones, and the next one is also going to be
quite long as well (and will still be in James' perspective)
 Hot vampires and how to kill them pt2

James woke up early, and headed downstairs to find three people sitting on the counter of the inn's
kitchen while playing some sort of strange card game.

"Hi", he waved, and three pairs of eyes moved to stare at him.

A man around his own age with blonde hair and wearing a women's skirt and a stained white shirt,
jumped off the kitchen counter.

"Hi. Did you want some breakfast? A drink? I was just about to make some tea?"

James nodded, "Yes to the tea, Thank you."

The man stuck out his hand for James, who shook it in return, "I'm Peter. These are my mums-
Lydia and Cora."

"I'm James Potter", he smiled back.

He sat down at the table, and a pot of tea landed in front of him. The three people were still sitting
on the counter.

"Did- Who put that there?"

"Oh, I did," Peter said.

"How? It just- landed here and you're over there… did you throw it? You've got good aim."

He grinned, "No I didn't throw it."

He then muttered under his breath, lifting out his arm and a bowl of sugar flew over to James.

He startled backwards in shock, "You're a witch!"

All three of them seemed amused.

Lydia looked at him, "Most people here are."

"What about vampires?"

The two women shared a look with each other, silent to his question.

But Peter was eager to talk to him, "There's quite a few. I mean the place was founded by a
vampire after all. But really there's such a wide variation of different people here… why are you
here? We don't really get visitors. Other than people who know people that moved here, and even
that's pretty rare."

James didn't know quite what to say. In a room of witches, it was unwise to reveal himself as a
hunter- even if he mainly hunted vampires, not witches.

"A friend. Of mine. I'm visiting them."

"Oh, who is it? We probably know them." Cora said.

"...Lily. I'm actually meeting her today, at 10."

Peter looked up, "Oh! Lily Evans?"

"Uhh… yes?"

"I know her! We're close friends."

James hoped it was the right Lily.

A couple of hours later, James found himself pacing in his room. He was meant to be meeting a
load of vampires soon. And who knows what else. A meeting of the monsters.

There was a knock on the door and he opened it to see Lydia standing there.

"Your friend's here."

"Oh, thank you."

He grabbed his satchel and shoes and ran down the stairs to see Lily waving to him by the door.

"Lily! Hi!"

"Hi James. Ready to go?"

"Yeah, just let me put my shoes on."

She nodded and waited, when Peter appeared from the backdoor.

James' eyes widened and he whispered to Lily, "please say your last name is Evans?"

"Yes, it is."

He sighed in relief, "Peter! Lily's here."

Peter spotted them and came over, "Lily! How'd you know James then?"

She lifted the corner of her mouth, "He's the vampire hunter."

James' eyes widened as Peter just nodded and started putting his own shoes on. Afterwards, he
grabbed his cloak and tied it around his shoulders and made his way to the door.

"You coming?" Peter asked James, still sitting on the steps with only one shoe on.

"What's going on here? You're coming?"

Peter grinned and nodded, "Of course. You know Sirius? The vampire you came here to hunt? I'm
their best friend."

"But… you're a human. Right?"

Peter nodded and Lily opened the door for them to leave.

"See? Another human so you can feel comfortable."

"You're a human too." James said.

Lily hummed, questioning, "I guess."

At James' confused expression, she carried on.

"I'm a witch. So, I guess I am a human but I can just do magic as well."

"But… you're a healer?"

Lily smiled, "Potions, Potter."

Peter turned to James, "You really don't seem to know much for a hunter. I thought you were
meant to be the expert."

James shrugged, "Hunter's don't really do the research needed. We have other people we work with
that are the experts in the supernatural. I just hunt them."

"How many have you killed?", Lily asked.

James looked at her, and shook his head, walking a little further ahead. But she grabbed his arm
and pulled him back.

"How many?"

James' nerves grew as he answered, "I don't know. A lot. I've been hunting since I was a child, my
family are all hunters. So, I don't remember. It's all mostly vampires, that's what we specialise in."

Lily nodded stiffly, "Stop killing."

"What?"

"You should stop killing as soon as you see someone supernatural. Not all of us are evil."

"I'm starting to get that."

They stared at each other, Lily's gaze softening into a small smile.

Peter rolled his eyes and nudged Lily, "You're sickening", he handed her a broomstick.

They were standing in the town centre, by Lily's hut.

"What are you meant to do with that?"

Peter grinned, as Lily ignored him and hopped onto the broom, leaving her floating off the ground.

"You can fly?" James uttered in shock.

"Witch, Remember? Get on, Sirius' place is pretty far to walk."

James excitedly climbed on the back, Peter hopping on after him. Lily then set off, flying over the
top of the trees as they reached the woods.

"That's this Sirius' place? It's giant! And it's only them living there?"

"Yep", Peter replied, "Their brother stays round sometimes but only once every while. Most of the
time it's just Sirius there."

Lily landed over the castle fence, right by the front door.
James frowned, "That must be awfully lonely. Here all by yourself all day and night."

A voice spoke up from behind them, "I didn't know you cared that much about how vampires felt."

James swirled round and saw the vampire walking over to them.

"Hi."

He raised an eyebrow, "Hello, James."

Peter pushed open the door, "Come on."

They walked inside the house, the vampire taking the lead with the rest following behind him. He
knocked on a large door, not waiting for an answer before walking inside.

"I could've been naked, you know." Sirius said, lying down on a chaise longue.

The vampire sat down at the desk chair, "Why would you be naked when you knew we were
coming at this time?"

Sirius shrugged and sat up, Peter and Lily sitting down next to them.

"I don't really own a clock, or a watch… maybe I should get one."

Lily rested her arm on their shoulder, "You probably should."

Sirius nodded before their eyes focused on James.

"Hunter!" Sirius stood up, "I'm so glad you could make it."

"Um… thank you? What actually is this?"

Sirius grinned, "Working out how to kill my family, of course."

The vampire lifted an arm up, "apart from me."

Sirius rolled their eyes, "Apart from him."

"And Andromeda", Lily added.

They groaned, "And Andy."

"And Alphard", Peter added.

Sirius pouted as the vampire shook his head, "Alphard died. Our Mother killed him a few weeks
ago."

Peter muttered, "That's a shame, I quite liked him."

Sirius turned back to a bewildered James, "You must be very confused, hm? I doubt Reggie told
you anything."

James turned to the vampire, "your name is Reggie?"

He glared, "It's Regulus, don't call me Reggie."

"Cute."
Sirius snorted, "This is disgusting. Where's Marlene?"

"I'm here!" Marlene shouted, coming through glass doors that led to a garden.

Her eyes instantly snapped to James, "Human. Can I drink him?"

Lily shook her head with a sympathetic look.

Behind Marlene were a group of other people, two of them putting flowers in each other's hair.

Sirius gasped, "Did you pick my flowers?"

Alice walked over to them and handed them a moonflower.

They grinned and started to twiddle it between their fingers.

"Frank? Alice?" James said, instantly recognising the two.

Frank smiled and ran over to James to hug him, "Potter! What are you doing here?"

"What are you doing here? We thought you had both died?"

Frank stuck out his fangs, "I mean I guess I did. I got bit, mum kicked me out and Alice and I
found this place."

Lily leaned forwards, "You know each other?"

"Frank taught me. I was his trainee when I first became a hunter."

Regulus rolled his eyes, "Can we please now get on with this meeting?"

Dorcas squished into the desk chair next to Regulus, "Calm down, you're so grouchy."

"I am not!"

Mary sat down in the middle of the room; closing her eyes, she conjured a projection of a 3d map
of Purcaster.

Sirius bounded over, "Right. This is mine and Reggie's home town. Our parents' place is here, and
is heavily guarded with about twenty vampires. More than half the town are also vampires and
they travel a lot to bring back humans for our family to survive. Our entire family lives there and
we're all extremely powerful."

Marlene snorted, "Have a little humility."

"They're not exaggerating."

"All of us will be fighting them. But we have to wait for the right moment. Regulus found out that
in a couple of months, all of our cousins are leaving to find more humans, as well as a large portion
of the town. That's when we need to strike. However, since a lot of us don't know how to fight a
vampire, we've brought in another hunter to help. A good one. To help plan the attack and train to
fight."

"That's why you got me here? You have Frank and Alice, they know how to hunt." James said.

Alice spoke up, "We haven't trained in years. Not since we left, 10 years ago. We need your help."
James clicked his tongue, thinking, "Alright. But what about all those people the vampires capture.
They'll kill them."

Regulus shrugged, "Irrelevant."

"So many innocent people will die if you wait that long."

"Who cares. I'll kill them myself… Can I kill them myself? I'm kinda thirsty."

Dorcas groaned, "I hate hunters so much."

Peter put his hand of James' shoulder in sympathy, "We can help the people after we kill the
family. The vampire's won't kill them until they get back to Purcaster."

James nodded in relief, "Thank you."

Peter sent a small smile to Regulus, Marlene and Dorcas, when James looked away.

Sirius jumped up, "Alright. Jamesie! You can stay here if you want, we can get to know each
other. Apparently you think I'm lonely up here all alone."

"You definitely are", Mary grinned, vanishing the projection.

"I'll stay here, why not."

Regulus stood up, "Everyone can leave now."

 Messed up Families and Mysterious Monsters
Chapter Summary

Dorcas-centric.
Still not revealing what monster they are, you'll just have to guess for now <3

(tw for mention of sucide, implied suicide)

Marlene watched as Remus slammed his drink down and walked out the pub, leaving James alone
at the table.

She turned back to the others, "I still think we should kill that new hunter, he's untrustworthy."

Peter shook his head, "I like him."

Mary smirked, "I bet Sirius does. A lot."

"Ugh", Marlene grimaced, "Gross."

Peter and Mary laughed together, whispering to each other.

Marlene nudged Dorcas, "You alright?"

Dorcas nodded slightly, not taking their eyes off of the letter in their hands.

"Cas, love."

They looked up, focusing on Marlene, "Hm? Sorry, Regulus sent me a letter."

Marlene slumped against their shoulder, "Do you need to leave again?"

Dorcas nodded, "Just for a couple of days, I'll be back soon."

They pulled Marlene closer with their hand on their chin until their lips touched.

Dorcas stood up, "Mary, can I borrow-"

Mary instantly passed her a locket filled with vampire blood, charmed so that vampires would
smell the locket wearer's blood as that of a vampire.

They leaned down to kiss Marlene once more before heading out. They stopped briefly at James'
table on the way.

"Hey", Dorcas said to her, "Your friend will come around. You were still sceptical at first, just give
him time."

James offered them a smile in return, before they headed out the bar.

They untied their horse, getting onto his back and heading off to Purcaster.
Dorcas was a frequent visitor of the town, known as a distant friend of Regulus Black, but the rest
of their life remained a mystery to the inhabitants and the Black family. They had been friends with
Regulus for a while, meeting him when Marlene had brought them to Hellsgate. They became
instant friends, being each other's shoulder to cry on and person to mock. Dorcas had gone to
Purcaster a few times when Regulus needed help or his parents had forbidden him from leaving the
town for a while. His family knew Dorcas as another vampire from a distant town, travelling now
and then to visit Regulus. They had no clue of the truth.

Once Dorcas had arrived at Purcaster, they rode straight through town to the castle, no one
bothering them with the locket around their neck. They got off their horse, a stablehand taking the
horse to the castle's stables.

The castle doors were opened for them and they walked straight in.

"Dorcas Meadowes!" Druella called as she walked down the grand staircase, "I assume you are
here to see Regulus? He's just in the parlour with my daughters, I'll take you there."

"Thank you, Druella. Lovely to see you again, as always. You haven't aged a day."

Druella let out a stifled laugh, "Oh how I've missed your humour. No wonder our Regulus is so
infatuated with you, hopefully you'll be married soon."

Dorcas tightly smiled, "Perhaps."

She opened the doors to the parlour room and stepped inside, "Regulus, you have a visitor."

Druella stepped away, walking back down the hall as Dorcas walked into the parlour.

"Hey."

Regulus, lying down on one of the dark green sofas, opened his eyes and peered at Dorcas.

"Dorcas. What are you doing here?"

They resisted the urge to roll their eyes at him, "Visiting. I haven't come around in a while and was
sorely missing the company."

Narcissa stood up, pulling Bellatrix with her.

"We'll leave you two alone", she said with a grin, still clutching Bellatrix' arm.

The elder protested as Narcissa dragged her from the room, "Stop acting like mother, they're not in
lo-"

The parlour door was shut behind them and Dorcas flopped onto the previously occupied sofa.

"What was that letter about? Urgent help?"

"Narcissa. You know the wedding with Lucius is soon? Well, she came to my chambers last night
and urged me for help. Apparently she knows I'm still in contact with Sirius and asked if I could
help plan her fake death and run away to Hellsgate."

Dorcas sat up more in disbelief, "Narcissa? Really? She's really going to leave you and Bellatrix
here?"

Regulus shrugged, "That's what she wants. I think she realised, with the wedding so soon, that she
doesn't want to live like this forever. With Lucius, of all people."

"Well… good for her then. But where do I come into this?" Dorcas asked, leaning back against the
sofa again.

He smiled slightly, "I want you to kill her."

They blinked, "as in pretend to?"

"You believe my family would fall for that?" Regulus said, turning away, "No. They'll know
exactly what happened if it's fake and they'll go burning down the entirety of Hellsgate. Including
Sirius… I assume Lily or Macdonald can make you some of that potion for you to be able to do
this."

Dorcas squinted, staring at Regulus for a moment before replying, "You love Narcissa."

"She'll die either way. Even if she doesn't go through with it and did marry Lucius, you really think
she'd be able to stay forever? I have looked at this from every possible angle, you know I have, and
there's only three possibilities. One, we do as she asked and we fake her death as she runs away to
Hellsgate, our family will then find her and every citizen of Hellsgate will perish, including
Narcissa. Two, I convince her not to run away and she marries Lucius and stays unhappily with the
family forever, causing her to realise she'll never be happy and only death would end her suffering
so she kills herself. Or three, we actually kill her and she'll be free from her unhappy life without
any other innocent people having to die. What option would you like to take?"

Dorcas glared at him, "I hate you."

"I know."

"You can't rationalise murder."

"I disagree."

"You're killing your only ally in this family."

"I am."

They sighed, "If I do this, your family will come after me and they'll find out what I really am, you
know that right?"

Regulus nodded.

"Of course you do", Dorcas sighed again, "And I assume you have a plan for that."

"You can never come back to Purcaster."

"And leave you here alone? Fuck no."

Regulus rolled his eyes, "I won't be alone here."

Dorcas paused for a moment before frowning, "You're not really going to do that?"

"Do what?"

"Regulus, you're not. I won't let you. There's no reason for it."
He gave them a small smile, "I have not a clue what you mean."

Dorcas got up in anger, "I'll kill Narcissa for you. But I am never letting you do that, alright?"

They made their way to the parlour door.

"Dorcas?" Regulus called.

They slowly turned around to face him again.

"If Narcissa stayed here she would eventually kill herself. Having an unhappy life is worse than
death."

"If that was true, I would've died long ago and never met you or Marlene. Don't fucking give up,
Regulus. I'll kill you if you do."

Regulus smiled again, "Not if I beat you to it."

 Remus Lupin, Swimming in Hell

"James sent you another note."

Remus looked up from the small desk to see Peter ducking his head through the door.

"Leave it, thank you, Peter."

Peter set the letter down on the cabinet by the door, not making a move to leave the room.

Remus turned around, in question.

"James sort of alluded to something", Peter began to say, "something about you not being quite…
human."

The papers in Remus' hands all spilled to the floor and he gaped before replying, "Right. I think
you may be mistaken there. I'm a hunter, remember? As in, I hunt monsters. If I was in fact a
monster, then to honour my code I would need to kill myself. I look alive to you, do I not?"

Peter mimicked an unsure expression, squinting his eyes as if to study whether Remus was alive or
dead.

Remus huffed a laugh, pushing his chair out and trying to pick up all the papers, "Very funny."

Peter closed the door, folding his arms and leaning against it.

“Staying in here, are you?”

Peter shrugged, “Everyone knows you’re here to hunt Sirius, to kill them.”

Remus turned back to the desk, “It’s my job.”

“Sirius hasn’t hurt anyone.”

“They’re a monster, Pete. Honestly, it doesn’t matter if they killed that specific person or not,
vampires still kill which means Sirius is still a killer, and to protect other people I have to kill
them.”

Peter nodded, “the same goes for werewolves then?”

Remus froze.

“If I was to see a werewolf, or suspect a neighbour… or guest. Your little organisation would come
to kill that monster?”

Remus turned back around, “Only with the proper proof.”

Peter nodded again, “Someone who disappears for the entire night of a full moon, then in the
morning and next few days they’re covered in mud, twigs, and blood and can barely walk.
Someone with amber, animalistic eyes and scars, that seem from an animal's claws and bites,
dotted in every inch of their skin. Someone with sharp teeth, especially their canines, and seems to
always favour meat over every other food option. Someone who seems to hear and smell a lot
better than the average human. Is that enough proof, would you say?”
Remus slowly shook his head, “Things can be explained. We’d only kill once seeing the person’s
transformation.”

“Person?” Peter frowned, “A werewolf isn’t a person, is it? They’re monsters; uncontrollable
savage beasts that would rip my throat out in a second.”

As seconds passed with Remus, struggling with an answer, Peter’s face slowly broke out with a
triumphant grin.

Remus couldn't stand the sight of it.

“My mistake. Werewolves aren’t people, just vicious monsters. If you ever do suspect someone as
being one, get in touch with me and I’ll gladly investigate, and kill if your suspicions are correct.”

The grin wiped away.

Remus grabbed his cane, slowly walking over to Peter, “Werewolves have an uncontrollable
hunger, they completely lose any sense of humanity on full moons, they’re beasts.”

“That’s only one night a month. They’d be human the rest of the time.”

Remus glared, “That’s one way to see it. But I’ve studied monsters; not to say arrogant or
overconfident, but I am a specialist in this subject, especially werewolves.”

Peter’s brow furrowed, “Well I happen to know one, and I think he’s pretty alright.”

Remus’ glare hardened, “Are you not scared of him? He could hurt you.”

“Nah, he’d never.”

“I think he would- accidentally on a full moon. And if he did, that guilt would never leave him, and
you’d be hurt, badly.”

Peter grabbed him by his shoulders, “Mate. The fact you’d feel unbearably guilty about it means
you wouldn’t, and if you did it wouldn't be your fault. I’m not scared of you in the slightest, you
apologize to my mums for leaving tea stains in your mug.”

“They can be hard to remove.”

Peter laughed, “You’re the least frightening person I have ever seen, and you're a werewolf with a
bag full of weapons to kill one of my best friends.”

Remus tried not to laugh, “This just tells me you have terrible judgment.”

“It should tell you that some ‘monsters’ are good people and aren't all inherently bad.”

“Do you really believe that?” Remus countered, Peter’s hands still clasping his shoulders.

Peter stared intently at him, “Do you think you’re inherently bad.”

“Once a month.”

“You're a wolf, nature’s dog. You roll around in mud and play fetch. Terrifying.”

Remus huffed, “I don’t play fetch!”

Peter just laughed, letting go of Remus’ shoulders and walking back to the dresser with James’
letter on top. Peter picked it up.

“Catch.”

Remus, without thought, outstretched his right arm and caught the letter before it hit the ground.

Peter snorted.

“Shut up.”

After he had gone down to dinner with Peter, he came back to his room and stared at the letter
from James. The conversation with Peter whirled through his mind and he found himself unfolding
the paper. He sat on the bed, resting his cane on his dresser only for it to promptly fall on the floor.
Ignoring it as tomorrow’s problem he leaned against the bedframe and brought the bedside candle
to the letter.

It read;

Remus,

I know you’re mad at me and it hasn’t been long enough for you to become un-mad at me, but
please hurry up with your un-maddening process. I honestly don’t care if you absolutely hate
everyone in this town, I know how self-deprecating you can be towards your own furry little
problem. Although it majorly sucks that you can’t get on with them and want to kill them, lease
refrain for my sake? I really like Sirius and I’m super in love with Lily and Regulus, Sirius’
brother, so I don’t think I could really be friends with you if you killed them. But, you remember
that little mission I told you about? With Sirius’ family over in Purcaster? They’re all vampires
and you have the freedom to kill them! As long as you join our little mission team and yes, work
with the ‘monsters’. But you are one too and you’re not evil or anything, despite what you may
think of yourself. They don’t know either, you know I’d never tell anyone. Although I think Peter
might suspect something, but no one else does! They just don’t particularly like you very much, but
you do want to kill them so maybe if you stopped doing that then they’d like you more. Lily already
likes you a lot, and Sirius seems to!

Anyway, my hand’s getting tired, I hate writing. But please please talk to me again! I can explain
more and we can all help each other! You like to be righteous and do your job and kill monsters,
they want to kill Sirius and Regulus’ family- a perfect match! We’ll all be helping each other!

Love, James!!
 When has Peace and Love ever worked?

“I’m not doing this for them.”

“I know.”

“I still think they’re monsters.”

“You’ve established such.”

“They make one wrong move and I’m hunting them.”

“Right… And when everything is over, you’ll leave them be?

Remus folded his arms, staring at James, “You don’t want us to talk about what happens after.
When we both go back home .”

“I’m not going back-”

Remus pressed his hand to James’ mouth, “I don’t discuss with you what I’ll do to the monsters
once we finish the mission, and you don’t discuss with me what your plans are once we finish the
mission.”

“Fine”, James mumbled against Remus’s palm.

Remus removed his hand, just as they reached the gates of Sirius’ castle. Remus moved to squeeze
through the small hole in the gate, just like last time, when James strolled to the front gates and
stood there, hands on hips, and a large grin on his face.

Remus stared at him in bewilderment, the large gargoyle statues on either side of the gate seeming
to gaze at Remus in distrust.

“James? What are you doing?”

James turned around, “What do you mean?”

“The gate is locked, with like five different chains on it. Do you have a key? If so, please will you
just open it already; and if you don’t, can we please just leave because those gargoyles look like
they’re about to rip me to shreds.”

James scoffed, “Don’t worry, it’s not nighttime yet.”

“What is that meant to mean?”

James laughed, “They’ll only rip you to shreds at night.”

“It’s a statue, James.”

“Yeah, charmed. It’s to keep Sirius’ family out.”

Remus hesitantly took a step forwards, standing next to James.

“So they won’t attack me?”

James tilted his head from side to side and hummed with thought, “Mary’s the one that charmed
them so they really follow her sense of trust and distrust, and she doesn't really like you, she’s close
with Marlene so.”

“The one that still wants to drink your blood?”

James smiled, “She’s only been a vampire for about fifty years, so her human morals are gone but
she’s still got her uncontrollable bloodlust.”

“All vampires have uncontrollable bloodlust.”

James turned to him with a frown, “Aren’t you meant to be the expert? It gets more controllable
over time.”

“... Like potty training?”

James erupted in laughter.

“I guess it is a little like that, although I’d prefer a different analogy.” A voice said from James’
pocket.

James grabbed a small mirror from said pocket, as Remus backed away slightly.=

“Hello Remus”, the voice said again, and James turned it around to show Sirius’ face grinning
from the mirror instead of a reflection.

“A two-way mirror?” Remus asked.

“Yep!” James nodded.

Remus turned to the small mirror, to Sirius’ face, “Do you use both as a way to see your
reflection?”

Sirius’ grin widened, “How else would my makeup look this good?”

“Well you’ve had a couple hundred years to practice”, Remus shrugged, “One would assume you
would be able to apply your makeup without having to look.”

“You’re funny, hunter.”

“You’re vain, vampire.”

Sirius leaned closer to the mirror, “Oh, you flatterer.”

“You have strange views of a compliment.”

“And you have strange views of a dress sense, what in hell is that jacket?”

Remus looked down to his dark orange hunter jacket, it had over ten pockets and a high collar that
covered his entire neck.

“It’s fang proof.”

Sirius gasped, hand over their heart, “You don’t trust me?”

Remus almost smiled, “Not in the slightest.”

Sirius’ grin came back and Remus had to try even harder to not smile, “Smart. I am known to bite
.”

James grimaced, turning Sirius back to him, “Flirt in person, can you just let us in now.”

“Anything for you, love.”

“Open”, Sirius loudly pronounced, and the chain undid, clattering to the ground, the gate opening
wide to let them in.

“See you soon, hunter!”

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