When Wade stepped out of the fireplace in the Leaky Cauldron, Lupin was already waiting for him.
Compared to their first meeting, the man was clearly in much better shape.
He wore a deep blue-green wizard's robe, no longer the patchwork of old clothing he used to wear. The worry and exhaustion on his face had mostly faded, replaced by a calmness born of time, with a touch of melancholy.
This version of Lupin had an undeniable charm, and Wade noticed some young witches discreetly eyeing him.
Lupin ignored their glances. Upon seeing Wade, he smiled and walked over. "Long time no see, Wade."
In the past six months, they had met only a few times in person, but Lupin's magical lessons had never stopped. Through their text exchanges, Lupin had come to know Wade quite well.
Despite his young age, Wade lacked the common flaws of children—laziness, impulsiveness, immaturity, and restlessness.
He had clear goals and an exceptional ability to focus. Always learning, always growing, he exuded a spirit of determination and progress. He was also a good listener, and able to express his own ideas without simply parroting others.
Wade was also incredibly trusting and respectful of those around him. He understood other people's difficulties and treated Lupin with the same respect he showed his professors at school, never acting superior despite paying Lupin for his services.
Lupin, having spent years as a wandering outcast, had encountered many different employers. Some had the mentality of "I'm paying you, so you must be my servant," trying to squeeze every bit of value out of their employees.
Because of this, Lupin's respect and admiration for Wade had grown tremendously. The only thing that held him back was his own werewolf identity.
What Lupin didn't know was that Wade had known from the start that he was a werewolf.
"Remus," Wade greeted him. "I hope calling you over didn't interrupt anything important?"
Lupin smiled. "I haven't been too busy lately… Did something come up for you?"
"You know, Harry and I are classmates, and we get along well."
Wade didn't mince words. "Since the holidays began, Harry has cut off contact with all of his friends. Everyone's a bit worried, so I offered to check on him at his house—"
The moment Lupin heard Harry's name, a subtle change came over his expression. It was a mixture of distraction and pain.
Wade looked at him and said, "I heard Harry's parents were your friends during school, so I thought maybe you'd want to help..."
He paused for a moment before adding, "But if it makes you uncomfortable, forget it... I assume Harry is probably fine. If anything serious had happened, Dumbledore would have already stepped in."
Lupin's face had become a bit grim, as if someone had just poured cold water over him.
"...No... it's not difficult," Lupin said slowly. "I do want to see him... it's just... I'm not sure if I should get close..."
He seemed a bit lost in thought.
"If you want to see him, then go see him," Wade said. "Who has the right to stop you from checking on the orphaned child of your old friends? Especially since he might need help now."
The word "orphan" struck Lupin, causing a moment of visible discomfort.
"You're right... I should see him... I should have visited him long ago..."
Once Lupin made up his mind, he didn't hesitate anymore. The two set off together. To avoid attracting attention, they changed into more ordinary clothes, taking the subway and then a taxi to Little Whinging in Surrey.
They got out on Privet Drive, where identical-looking houses lined the street. Lupin asked, "Wade, do you know where Harry lives?"
Wade studied a house's nameplate and said, "It should be around here. His uncle's last name is Dursley."
"Dursley... I remember now—Vernon Dursley, Lily's sister's husband. He was at Lily and James's wedding," Lupin said, frowning with disgust. "A rude, obnoxious madman."
"What happened?" Wade asked, puzzled.
In his mind, James Potter had been the kind of person who acted like a school bully, always surrounded by loyal friends. A Muggle like Vernon Dursley should have been powerless against them and only on the receiving end of pranks.
But Lupin's attitude didn't seem to be aimed at a poor Muggle who had been teased. It felt more like Lupin himself had been mistreated.
Lupin took a deep breath and said, "He's the worst Muggle I've ever met... The first time I saw him was at the wedding. He looked down at James and asked what kind of car he drove. James told him he had a racing broom..."
Lupin's voice softened with pain at the mention of James, as memories of the past surfaced.
After a pause, he continued, "Then that man—Vernon Dursley—loudly declared that all wizards are just welfare-dependent paupers."
"James told him that he had a lot of gold in Gringotts. Vernon didn't understand what Gringotts was and thought James was mocking him, so he flew into a rage. The couple left the wedding right then and there, which made Lily cry her eyes out."
Lupin chuckled bitterly. "You don't know—James was willing to do anything for Lily. He promised her he'd make amends with Vernon as soon as possible... but their attitude... Can you imagine? To them, we're all just freaks."
Wade understood—clearly, there had likely been more unpleasant conflicts afterward.
"I should have come to see Harry sooner... I didn't know he had been left with the Dursleys," Lupin said with a mixture of worry and guilt. "Damn it... I should've seen it coming—they were his only living relatives..."
"But with your circumstances back then, you probably wouldn't have been able to raise a child properly."
Wade suddenly stopped in his tracks. "We're here."
The two of them looked at the house by the side of the road.
It looked almost identical to the neighboring houses, as if it had been copied and pasted—there was no difference between the gray roof tiles and the weathered bricks of the walls. A car was parked in the driveway, and the garden was neatly kept.
An ordinary house, an ordinary life—nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
The living room windows were shut tight, making it hard to tell if anyone was home.
By now, the sun had set, and a faint light shone from within. Lupin squinted suddenly.
"Look at that window, Wade," Lupin said. "Doesn't the shadow seem strange?"
Wade looked at the crisscrossing long shadows and said, "It looks like it's been blocked from the inside."
"Perfect," Lupin said with a cold voice. "Now we know why Harry couldn't send any messages."
"Stay calm," Wade reminded him. "Using magic on Muggles is illegal."
Since there was an underage wizard in the Dursley household, revealing magic to them didn't violate the Statute of Secrecy. However, using magic to harm Muggles was a clear breach of the law.
The Ministry of Magic's enforcement was always "ambiguous"—sometimes, if you cleaned up properly afterward (by using Memory Charms on witnesses), there wouldn't be any consequences. Other times, the same actions could land someone in Azkaban.
Hagrid once gave Dudley a pig's tail, which by law should've resulted in a prison sentence, but Dumbledore managed to smooth things over.
However, if Lupin broke the law, given his status as a werewolf, the law would be applied to him far more harshly.
"I understand."
Lupin gritted his teeth, forced away the anger from his face, and pressed the doorbell.
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