Author's note: This is just a little something I wrote because I needed a break from my story Beast.
The first time Remus Lupin noticed Bree Collins was on the Hogwarts express. It was a small encounter; just an accidental brush of shoulders and a polite excuse me. He vaguely recognized her face in his class of seventh years, but thought nothing about it.
Her boggart hadn't particularly stood out to him. She saw the body of her mother crumpled on the ground dead—disturbing but not uncommon. He was a bit impressed that she managed to beat it (most children couldn't handle the sight. She made it jump up and start cussing about tripping and spilling ketchup all over her new dress) but gave it no more thought.
It wasn't until she turned in her first essay that he realized the girl was special. Instead of turning in a cookie-cutter, textbook outlined paper on how to defend against Red-throated Zulots, she turned in a brilliant paper elaborating on the points she felt the book was mistaken in and based off other research what better methods may be. Most shocking though was the way the paper read; it was so eloquently crafted that Remus forgot he was reading a student essay.
When he handed back papers to the class, he locked eyes with Bree. She held her chin up high, not defiant but proud. 'Go ahead, give me a T' her stance seemed to say. 'I wrote a bloody brilliant paper and no grade can change that.'
He smiled, watching her closely as he handed over her O paper, complete with handwritten notes critiquing her proposed techniques and underlining those he thought would work. Her answering look wasn't one of pride or happiness: it was one of understanding.
'You get it,' her eyes said. She leaned back in her chair lazily and gave him a nod. 'I approve of you teaching me.'
Later Remus would laugh and tell himself that he'd imagined it—no one could be that expressive without talking—but as the year went on he had to admit that maybe Bree Collins could.
He remembered waking up after a transformation in the hospital to a bag of chocolate sitting beside him for the first time since his school days. Madam Pompfrey smilled at him. "A student dropped it by," she explained.
Remus shook his head. "No students are supposed to see me."
"She didn't. The girl came up to me and said that if you were sick I must be hiding you somewhere, so I might as well deliver the chocolate to you. It was like trying to argue with a lawyer," she chuckled.
Remus gingerly picked up the chocolate. Spying a small note, he quickly opened it. It read: Professor, I know you have a chocolate fetish (you pop Hershey kisses more than druggies pop pills) so I figured you might like this. Before you interpret this perfectly innocent gesture as something creepy, let's just call it my way of thanking you for not failing me. Much thanks—Bree Collins.
Remus smiled shaking his head. That girl… It made him feel warm, knowing that he was a good enough teacher that a student cared about his well-being.
He never mentioned the chocolate to Miss Collins, but he received a new package after each full moon.
She came into his office one day about half way through the year. It wasn't uncommon for her to show up (she liked to discuss points he'd said in class and comments he'd made on her essays), but she was looking unusually nervous. He frowned, setting his book down worriedly. Nerves were not something to be seen on Miss Collin's face. "Can I help you?"
She ran a hand through her short honey-blond locks. "I understand if you're too busy, but do you think you could write me a recommendation letter for a muggle college?"
Remus blinked in surprise. "Muggle college? There's nothing wrong with that, but I never pictured you having a muggle career."
She shook her head. "I'm not. I want to be a lawyer in the wizarding world, and I'd also like to write books. Both of these require a skill with language that I don't think I can acquire at a magic school."
Remus smiled nodding. "Smart. Many people underestimate the value of basics. Though it will take you a long time to go through your law training this way.."
She shook her head. "Don't worry, I can take internet courses."
Remus didn't know exactly what she meant by that but nodded anyway. "So I take it you want me to pose as an English teacher?"
"If you don't mind.. I've seen muggle-classics lying around your office so I figured you'd do a good job of it."
"Ah, so you've caught on to my secret obsession. You do realize I have to kill you now right?"
"You could try, but I won't go down without a fight."
Remus flexed his arms, seeming to think about it for a while, then shook his head. "Nah. Too much work for these old bones. I'll get to work on your letter later tonight. Now, about that point you brought up on in class today…"
Essays on werewolves. How much of a git could Snape be! Honestly, assigning that topic to his class… He'd agreed—albeit a bit reluctantly—to grade any that were done for extra-credit. After all, it wasn't his students fault Snape had a master's degree in holding grudges.
Seven depressing essays later and he couldn't put it off anymore. He had to do it. He opened Miss Collins essay with trepidation, afraid of what the opinionated girl, one of his favorite students, had said about his kind.
Most of the essay was pretty straight-forward identification. It was the closest to the textbook she'd ever stayed. But one sentence stood out. One sentence brought a small smile to his face.
'Personally, I don't feel that students should be taught how to properly identify a werewolf until the Ministry enacts laws that will actually protect werewolves from discrimination and abuse.'
He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. His quill felt like it weighted a thousand tons, but he wrote anyway.
'Excellent point as always Miss Collins, but I'm afraid I must disagree. While the Ministry really should offer more protection for magical creatures, knowing how to properly identify a werewolf could save your life one day.'
He closed his eyes, rubbing his temples. Damn Snape. Damn him.
Home. It felt cold and empty compared to the hustle and bustle at Hogwarts. He dropped his head in his hands. He'd loved his job teaching, but he couldn't keep it…couldn't face the angry parents..the fearful students..disgusted faces… He just couldn't…
Tap, tap.
He looked up at the window, seeing a tawny owl. He grimaced. Probably an angry-parent letter. He should have known that resigning wouldn't be enough for them. He let the owl in and ripped open the letter, anger growing.
Remus, (as you are no longer my Professor and I'm of legal age I think it's appropriate to address you on a first name basis) you are one of the most brilliant professors Hogwarts has ever seen. I pity the future generations who don't get to benefit from your chocolate-munching, literature-loving expertise. Composed below is a list of students who agree with me. Just thought we should let you know how displeased we are.
The list was long. Really long. Nearly every Gryffindor, the majority of the Hufflepuffs, a large portion of Ravenclaws, and even a few seventh-year Slytherins had signed.
He smiled, holding the letter close to his heart. Never in his life had he imagined so many people wouldn't care. His house didn't seem so cold anymore.
Every full moon Bree's owl showed up with a bag of chocolate. They exchanged cards on holidays. Otherwise, he didn't have any inkling of how Bree was doing for two years.
Her familiar tawny owl showed up with a large package at Grimuald house. Everyone stared in confusion as it dropped the package in Remus's lap and nipped his shoulder affectionately. He patted its head, picking up the package curiously.
"That must be one smart owl to find you out here Moons," Sirius whistled.
Feeling everyone's eyes on him, he carefully peeled back the plain brown paper, expression freezing. Sirius pulled the package out of his lap, eyes widening. In his hands was a book. The cover had a man, eyes closed, face in pain as a full moon began to rise in the background. He flipped the book over, reading the back cover out loud.
"This gripping thriller is being both blasted and elated as both the best and the worst account of what life for a werewolf is like. It stands unabashedly against most common textbook knowledge about werewolves and has been banned from several high-end bookstores. Read it and see what the controversy is all about!" Sirius looked at Remus in confusion. "It's by some bird named Bree Collins. You know her Moons?"
Remus nodded, a smile spreading over his face. That girl…
"She went to school with us didn't she?" Ron asked.
Harry nodded. "Yeah, she was always nice. Remember how she and Hermione always used to get into debates?"
Hermione laughed. "I think she was even more stubborn than I was."
"So she's one of your old students then," said Tonks.
Remus nodded. "One of the best in her class."
Sirius slung an arm around his shoulders. "Awww, see Remmie! You did get through to them! I don't know what's in that book but if decent book stores won't sell it, it must be good!"
And indeed it was. For a book not sold in major stores, it sold a large amount of sellers, topping the best seller list so often that eventually only the most prudish of bookstores didn't relent and begin selling it.
He married Tonks and had a beautiful baby Teddy. The three lived together with Tonk's younger brother Lee—real name Leeamphormon—in peace. Bree sent a new toy for Teddy every year on his birthday.
Over the next five years, two more books were sent to him. Both were entertaining yet dealt with a controversial social or political issue. They made Remus proud.
Three years later he saw her name in the Daily Prophet. She had won a difficult case for a vampire who was wrongly accused of assault. He smiled cheerfully, happy that Bree was living her dreams. Writer, lawyer, and all-around antagonizer to popular Ministry rule. The only thing that made him happier was seeing her name frequent subsequent times afterwards; the little lawyer was causing quite a stir in the Ministry. The Daily Prophet blasted her as an anarchist rebel which made him laugh. Knowing Bree the more the Ministry condemned her, the happier she was; it was most certainly making people pay more attention to what she said.
Lee was practically bouncing around the kitchen in excitement much to Remus's amusement. The boy (well technically man but Remus would always see him as a boy) had been dating some girl for a good six months now and had finally decided to bring her home to the family. He'd wanted to pick her up, but her work ran late so she was coming on her own (Lee lived next door so she'd have no problem finding the house).
There was a knock on the door. Lee ran for it, but Remus got there first. He sent a smirk at Lee, prepared to embarrass the nervous boy. Tonks snickered in the background, and Teddy watched with a wide smile.
Remus opened the door and froze, gapping. Her hair was still short, complementing the face that had matured well. Her eyes danced with amusement, but he could see a thread of nerves lying underneath. "Hello Remus."
He stared at her, blinking slowly. "Hello Bree."
Lee slipped passed him, slipping an arm around her waist, smiling mischievously at his family. "Bree I'd like you to meet my sister Tonks, nephew Teddy, and of course you already know my brother-in-law Remus."
She smiled at them all. "Nice to meet you all. Dinner smells great."
And it was. Bree fit in with their family like she'd always been there. Teddy was ecstatic to meet the mystery woman who always sent him birthday gifts, and Tonks was happy to gossip about what Remus had been like as a teacher, and his unearthly chocolate addiction. The best part of all though, was seeing Lee's eyes soften every time he looked at Bree. The boy was one hundred percent head over heels in love no doubt about it.
The wedding was beautiful. Remus stood behind Lee as his best man. Bree looked amazing in her dress; her hair had grown out and was pinned back by a white lily. Seeing her in her dress and Lee in his suit made him realize just how much time had gone by. The years seemed to flow so much faster when he was filled with happiness. Bree was no longer a gifted student and Lee was no longer Tonk's overprotective kid brother. They were two wonderful young adults who never ceased to make him proud. His smile as they said their I-dos was almost as big as the grooms.
The hospital waiting room was to bright, too sterile. It made Remus fidgety and nervous. He wrapped an arm around Tonks to keep himself from launching into sporadic pacing. Finally Lee came out, looking tired but smiling. Remus jumped up, not waiting for him to lead the way and charged into the hospital room.
Bree was the picture of exhaustion, but she was positively glowing. Tonks cooed by his side, but Remus was frozen on the spot, eyes drawn to the small bundle in her arms. Lee laughed softly, gently pushing him towards Bree.
Bree leaned forward and carefully slid the warm little body into your arms. "Say hi to your niece Lea."
Remus looked down at the pale pink face, soft blue eyes, and thick honey locks and felt his heart miss a beat. "She's beautiful" he murmured, rocking her gently.
"Just like her mamma," Lee said, wrapping a proud arm around his wife.
Leah smiled toothlessly up at Remus.
Bree laughed quietly. "Awww, she already likes Uncle Remus."
Uncle Remus…
Remus reluctantly returned Lea to her mom, and placed a kiss on both girls' foreheads. He would forever be thankful for the day he met Bree Collins Tonks.