The Shadow of the wolf.
A/N: This is a short story focusing on Remus Lupin, not the movie verse Lupin but the book version. AU from Fred's and Lupin's death, unfortunately I am not bringing back Tonks as much as I love her with Remus.
Summary: "And for the first time, Harry saw the shadow of the wolf upon the human face". Only Harry didn't realise the wolf as always there.
Many people thought werewolves were savage and unsophisticated, brutal and feral. They were right for a small portion. They were brutal, even the quiet ones with the soulful eyes.
That's one way to recognise a werewolf, their eyes. Two colours were most dominant in a werewolf's eyes: common amber or the ghostly silver. Remus obtained the common amber eyes, they had the earthy tones of brown flecked through them, like the grey flecked through his hair. Similar to the fur coat he wore once a month or twice in a blue moon.
But if you look past the entrancing colours you will see the deep black of the abyss of fear, pain and hunger, it was the look of the wolf that Harry saw magnified only a few months ago. Harry had felt fear then, in the short moment it was magnified. Remus dreaded to think what he would feel if he knew the wolf was always there.
Especially now the hunger had doubled in the loss of his pack. He lost his best friends Sirius and James, his truly beloved wife and in a bitter custody battle, his son. Tonks mum had never liked him and did not trust him with his own son. He didn't blame her, but he hated her for not letting him see Teddy.
He was a lone wolf and lone wolves are not happy. Ever.
His instincts ruled him, but he was never sure which. His human instinct or the wolf's because they fought so hard for dominance and yet thought so alike. Two sides to the same coin except for one difference while the human craved humans for companionship the wolf craved their flesh. But even so the wolf hungered for more than flesh, for friends, his pack any pack would do as long as they trusted him and he trusted them.
The Weasley's and Harry were a distant pack members in his mind, they weren't fully his pack because Molly though she cared and in some way loved the Lupin family she had never fully trusted him and in return he didn't trust her. But you can't mistrust one member of the family, you have to mistrust the others too because blood was thicker than water. But Harry was oil and that's thicker than both.
It hurt him bad; Hermione couldn't be either now she was married to Ron, family links.
But one thing he couldn't handle was living with those he didn't trust and so he cut himself away for the most part. So much so he doubted Harry's eldest son would recognise him anymore.
So the wolf was alone and therefore the human had no reason to keep the shadow away.
Everyone knows there is only so much you can take before you crack...
And Remus is afraid it already had.
A/N: Bitter? I know but I just see Lupin as an understated character. Many agree that I already know from the nearly 30,000 fics written about him. I would love to hear some feedback please.
P.S. This is just a one-shot because I am almost swamped in writing sorry. Do leave suggestions though and check back because you never know, I might just.