Stay With Me
Elyon sighed heavily when the school bell rang out for the last time, she started to gather her textbooks and pack them down in her schoolbag. It didn't matter how much she tried her best, it were never enough. She felt more or less unsuccessful and even worse now when she had failed once again.
"To next time, write an essay about Hinkypunks." Professor Lupin told the class as they started to pack down their books. "Describe them and the environment they're often found in. The essay shall be four inches and a half. That's all for today."
All of the students looked so excited, chattering with their friends as they packed down their things and began to exit the classroom. Elyon looked at them, she couldn't feel more isolated from her classmates as they had their simple lives. She knew the consequences if she failed in school and her already decided future would suffer.
Just as she were about to leave, a voice interrupted her thoughts. "Miss Pemberton, do you have a moment?"
Elyon turned around and looked at her professor in Defense Against Dark Arts. "Sure, professor." She said slowly and sat down at her seat, waiting patiently until the whole classroom were empty and now, she were completely alone with Professor Lupin.
"Well, miss Pemberton." Lupin said and took a seat by her side. "I couldn't avoid the fact that something is bothering you. Is the lesson perhaps too difficult?"
Elyon looked at him. "N-no, not at all!" She stammered. "It was a very interesting lesson and I liked it very much..."
"But you have a hard time to keep up, is that right?" Lupin smiled and Elyon stared down at the floor, deeply ashamed of her disability in class. "That is entirely normal, sometimes others has it hard in certain subjects. But if I understand this correctly, then my subject isn't your strongest side?"
"Yes..." Elyon confessed. "I'm just unintelligent and my previous teachers in this subject makes it harder. I mean...I have no basic knowledge in Defense Against Dark Arts."
"And that is entirely fine." Lupin said and smiled kindly to the young thirteen year old girl by his side. "There's always study aids, a teacher exists to help his student whenever he or she needs it."
"What can I do, professor?" She asked. "I really want to learn more and get good grades."
Professor Lupin nodded. "I were about to suggest remedial lessons. I have thought about this and if you learn the basics, then perhaps you understand the subject better. Shall we say Wednesday and Friday evenings, seven o'clock?"
Elyon nodded eagerly. "Yes please, professor! That sounds lovely!"
"Well, that was good to hear." Lupin smiled kindly. "Off with you now, so you don't miss out dinner."
She rose onto her feet and bowed lightly on her head, it were a custom she had learnt by her mother since she were able to talk and walk. "Thank you so much, professor."
"Don't mention it, miss Pemberton.
"You look quite cheerful." Cedric remarked as they met by dinner time, at the Hufflepuff table. "Did something good happened?"
Elyon nodded. "Yes, you could put it that way." She replied, unable to stop smiling when she felt too much at once. Joy and hope of getting a second chance in one of her harder subjects. Professor Lupin were truly a good teacher and an even better person for her, she had never before felt that she could trust at a teacher like him and there were some comforting feeling he came with. Like a mysterious feeling that everything would turn alright.
Perhaps she didn't had any other friends than Cedric, but she felt much happier than before. Did her loneliness really matter now when she knew she could make it in Defense Against Dark Arts?
Elyon felt excited, to the point when she couldn't sleep at the night. Tomorrow would be Friday and her first remedial lesson. And as she expected, it proved to be not so hard as she thought.
Professor Lupin read through books with her, about the creatures of the darkness, the history of the dark arts, their beginnings and falls and all sorts of spells and curses. After every few parts of the chaper they read through together, Lupin gave her oral questions to see how much she understood and told what she had missed and what she needed to work more on.
After every chapter, he gave her a writing test and then another test, this time on oral presentation.
Time went on and Elyon, to her big joy, had advanced much on such short time. Professor Lupin had something that made her more curious and interested. Sometimes they practiced with wands. Lupin found another boggart and had saved it away in a very old jewellry box, to let Elyon practice the Riddiculus spell.
It was a late Wednesday night, barely a week until the winter break, as they had read through another chapter and this time about kappas. "You have worked hard, Elyon." Lupin told her with a smile as he corrected various tests while Elyon readby herself in the textbook. "I wouldn't say you're ungifted as you claim. You just missed certain basic knowledges, which is often needed."
"That is thanks to you, professor." Elyon remarked happily. "It is first time I have liked Defense Against Dark Arts."
Lupin chuckled low. "That was very flattering of you to say." He said. "I hope you will become more engaged in the classes."
Elyon lost her smile when she thought of the classes. "I don't think so..."
"How come?" Lupin asked and looked up from the test he were correcting. "Could you maybe explain?"
She went quiet and stared down in the textbook, worried to even speak of the things that weighted down her mostly.
"Elyon, I can't help you if you're quiet." Lupin said kindly. "To do a good job in class is one thing, but I don't want you to feel badly either."
"...they hate me." Elyon forced forth the words and the demons in her mind hissed, taunted her for show herself as weak and a coward. "My comrades in Hufflepuff, they don't like me at all...they call me spoiled, weak...just because I'm granddaughter to the Minister of Magic of Korea."
Lupin look at her with compassion. Yes, it was almost expected since he was aware of who her mother was as they were old schoolmates and her grandfather was indeed the Minister of Magic in Korea. He had heard rumors, of course, about Elyon was one of the chosen candidates to the election when her grandfather would step back and retire. But now he got a sight in how Elyon felt when she was at Hogwarts and learning knowledge was a duty, not a joy or even an interest.
It was just...so sad. Imagine, such a young girl on barely thirteen year old has to learn duties, forced to grow up into an adult and so soon.
"Elyon, you must listen up now." Lupin said and the girl looked up at him. "I know it's hard right now. There will always be people who will look down at you, push you down and try to convince you won't matter. But you must be honest to yourself and keep looking forward."
She nodded slowly, her eyes were shimmering and before she could stop herself, Elyon felt how the tears leaked out and judge of the amount of it, it was a miserable sorrow and loneliness that had been isolated for a long time. Her shoulders shook and trembled out of control, and the only noise she let out were quiet sniffs.
Lupin gave a sad smile and leaned against the girl. He embraced her, to comfort her and give her a shoulder to cry on. "I'm sorry you're suffering through such awful thing. But it's okay to be sad and cry it out. What you need is a friend who's there when you need it."
"T-thank you, professor..." Elyon mumbled and buried her face into his shoulder. However, neither of them knew that Elyon wouldn't need to search for such friend as she had already found the one she needed.
Not that Elyon ever told him that personally as she saw her then professor as her friend, but it was a pure friendship that would last for rest of her life.
This is the English version of the same oneshot I posted in Swedish, my native language.
Remus Lupin has always been one of my favorites and in this oneshot, he's the center of young Elyon's perspective and shows what a true teacher should be, in my opinion. Elyon is a shy, gentle girl with a high status in the wizarding world and everyone expects her to be perfect. She have so insecurities and anxiety of what to become of her.
Naturally her school preformance suffers and her mental health is low. So...Remus Lupin to the rescue, I suppose? ^^
Elyon is going to be a key character in the installment of As Petals and Flames-series, where she is a very trusted friend of the Golden Trio and helps them on their quests and advenures through the years. It's basically a retelling of the Harry Potter-series with Elyon's existence and influence thrown into it.
This was also inspired by one of my own memories. As young, I was more at ease with my teachers as friends than folks in my own age. Elyon is a girl who's very emotional and emphatic, but very honest and 's like an outcase of Hufflepuff with Cedric as her only trusted friend (as of the beginning). After his death, she's left broken with depression, social phobia and anxiety.
She lives Remus Lupin very much because he gave her confidence and comfort in her hardest time. Friend is another form of love after all and Elyon loves her friends equally and purely. Even when it turns out he was a werewolf, she didn't case as she's very openminded and she doesn't believe that should be an issue.
So, Remus means a lot for Elyon and he's one of the few adults she trusted. He cares deeply for her and her wellbeing, so she looks up to him a lot. Even if she knows she wouldn't be more than a past student for him. Because she was forced to grow up and handle duties, she understans many things as well as an adult does and has easier to accept things as they are.
After all, Elyon likes Remus so much that she only wants him to be happy.
The title "Stay With Me" is taken from a song with the same name and comes from a Korean drama TV-series called "Goblin". (Highly recommended!)
This short tale is dedicated to the marvellous fanfiction writer, Lealover1 and of course, Remus Lupin.
- Loopin' Lunan95