"What do you think of Edith Hopper?" Peter asked the Marauders out of the blue as they relaxed in their quarters. What none of them noticed was Remus tense as he feigned reading his book throughout the conversation.

"Don't tell me you're interested in Edith Hopper," Sirius complained.

"Why not?"

"Well, first of all, she isn't exactly a looker." James put in his two cents. Remus felt his face grow hot with embarrassment and anger, relieved he had a book to hide behind.

"Yes, but…" Peter made a gesture to imitate fondling breasts, since Edith was well endowed in that area.

"Fair point," Sirius allowed. "She does have great knockers." Remus' grip on his book tightened even further – much tighter and he might break the cover.

"And she isn't much taller than me," Peter added.

"Also a fair point," James mused. "Maybe you ought to take a crack at her. She definitely isn't out of your league." Remus disagreed; he believed Edith Hopper was well out of Peter's league – especially intellectually. But of course, he was too shy to tell them he fancied her immensely.

So of course, the following evening, when Peter returned to their quarters, he hung on his friend's every word – slightly pleased his friend looked defeated because it meant Peter was probably rejected. "I can't believe she said no," the short boy whined. "I even went in thinking I wouldn't take no for an answer, but when I said that, she only got angry."

"Did she say why?" Sirius asked.

"She got angry again when I asked," Peter grumbled. "But after I pestered her awhile, she admitted she fancied another bloke."

James snorted. "She's not likely to have any luck with that. Come on, Wormtail, I'd hardly call her a catch. Besides, you can do better, anyway. How about you try to go out with Missy Bracknell? I heard she's into purebloods." That last part was a stretch but let it not be said that James didn't put every effort into comforting his friend.

"She's a little homely," Sirius added. "Isn't that right, Moony?"

Remus felt himself shaking with discomfort, so he said, "I've got to hurry to the library" before scurrying off to do just that in an attempt to escape this particular conversation with his friends. Unfortunately, when he got there, his situation only became more uncomfortable.

"You'd better not be here in an attempt to convince me to go to Hogsmeade with your friend," Edith warned as Remus nearly rammed right into her.

"N-never," he stuttered. "I was coming here to study for my N.E.W.T.s." He held up his book as proof.

"Oh, okay," she responded awkwardly, clearly embarrassed at having jumped to conclusions.

"He probably won't stop, though," Remus admitted. "He's surprisingly tenacious."

"He doesn't even know what the word tenacious means," she complained. "I'm sorry but your friend is a moron. Isn't he only taking one N.E.W.T. class because it's the only O.W.L. he managed to pass?"

"Correct on all three accounts. I'm sorry he's bothering you."

"I'm just hoping he gives up eventually. I also have a feeling his desire to go to Hogsmeade with me has less to do with appreciating me as a person and more to do with wanting to stick his cock in a willing recipient." Remus made a choking sound at her comment. "I wouldn't say it if it wasn't true."

"I'm afraid you're correct on that account, as well. I believe his interests lay in areas apart from your personality."

"I thought as much. It's been nice chatting with you, Remus," she informed him seriously. "And feel free to chat me up again, but keep your creepy friend away from me." She left him alone in the library then, and Remus believed he would have not a problem in the world with keeping Peter away from Edith.

Later that week, Edith was studying in bed when her friend Missy burst into the room. "There's a party with Firewhiskey in the Gryffindor common room!"

"How is this relevant to me? I'm studying for my Transfiguration N.E.W.T." Edith griped.

Missy gave her a knowing smirk. "Remus will be there. I have it on good authority you've fancied him since third year."

"Whose authority?"

"My own."

"He hasn't taken any notice of me in the last four years; what could possibly make tonight any different?"

"Come on, it can't hurt you to go."

"I beg to differ. I could be embarrassed in any number of ways – especially knowing me."

Missy rolled her eyes. "Edith, I don't know anyone who needs a good shag more than you. Ditch the glasses and come to the party." Missy flounced out of the room, frustrated with her boring friend, when Edith marked her place in her book. She could study at the party, right? And it's not as if she would be stuck there if she were to go. She could leave at any time, after all. There was a chance Remus would talk to her, too. He had talked with her not long ago at the library. So, with this in mind, Edith gathered all the gumption she could possibly muster and made her way to the Gryffindor common room where, maybe, if she was lucky, she would talk to Remus Lupin.

He and his friends had been drinking that night – him less so than them – and the Gryffindor common room had been filled with a number of people in their year besides Gryffindors. Edith did not like parties, Edith did not like people, and Edith did not like the Marauders – except for Remus. She sat quietly in the corner, curled up with her book, anxiously pushing her dark glasses up her nose, hoping she would not be noticed by anyone there. Admittedly, she partook in a little of the firewhiskey as well as she paged through her library book. It was near the end of term and, thankfully, she had been studying for her N.E.W.T.S. for months now and was satisfactorily prepared for the upcoming exams. However, thanks to the firewhiskey, she took a moment to notice a tall figure standing above her. When she looked up, she saw none other than Remus Lupin. Even if she didn't like the Marauders, she did have to admit they were all exceptionally handsome and Remus was most certainly no exception. Well, except Peter.

"Do you mind if I sit with you?" he asked. Edith shook her head quickly to tell him she didn't mind, trying to return her attention to the book she was reading but finding herself thoroughly distracted by her fellow seventh year sitting next to her. "Why aren't you enjoying the party? We'll be graduating soon, after all."

"A party isn't exactly how I would choose to spend my time. Missy convinced me to come somehow, when I should have just stayed in bed."

"It isn't really my thing, either," he admitted. "Far too many people for my liking." Her eyes traveled to his face and saw he was not only being sincere, but gathering the courage to say something even more scandalous. "We could leave, you know. Just you and me?" he stuttered out. Even with the liquid courage he was nervous. Interacting romantically with the opposite sex was not something Remus was good at.

"Just us?" she asked.

"Just us."

She pushed up her glasses again and set her book on the floor. "That sounds nice."

Remus quickly led to her one of Hogwarts' many unused classrooms where the firewhiskey in their systems began to hit full force – things said that may not otherwise have been uttered. "So Peter tells me you fancy someone. He's one lucky bloke."

Edith beamed. "He's brilliant. Both inside and out. I've never met someone who works as hard at their studies as him and I've never heard an unkind word come out of his mouth, though his friends are a different story. He's definitely not hard to look at, either."

Remus grimaced, never thinking in a million years she could be talking about him. "Like I said: one lucky bloke."

"It's you," she blurted out, hoping he would say something but was met with dead silence. "I'm sorry, you don't have to say anything," she stuttered quickly, standing up with every intent on running out of the room when he grabbed her hand and pulled her into a kiss.

"I'm sorry, I should have asked," he realized miserably as he pulled away, referring to the kiss.

"I'm afraid you'll have to bend down here if you want to kiss me again. You're quite a bit taller than me and I can't reach you all the way up there." Remus was surprised, but thrilled that Edith wanted to return the kiss.

Within half an hour, clothes were on the floor and Edith was about to take off her glasses, just as Missy had advised. "Leave them," Remus said gently. "They suit you and besides, don't you want to be able to see me when we do this? Not that you're not pretty without them, of course."

Edith nodded eagerly, leaving her glasses on and giving Remus a sweet kiss before they continued doing the deed. It all happened so fast but Edith remembered all of it vividly. Every single beautiful detail.

She had been stupid to think it actually meant anything.

As soon as the firewhiskey began to make its way out of their systems, Remus' eyes went wide as he scrambled to put his clothes on. "This was a mistake," he informed her, practically hysterical.

"What?" she asked, dejected.

"This can never happen again," he told her as he rushed out of the room, leaving her there naked and alone. What he didn't tell her was that he had fancied her for years, only just now gathering the courage to do anything about it, that he had enjoyed every single second they had spent together and that he thought she was the most amazing girl he had ever met. He even kept her book she had left safe and sound in his room, right next to his bed.

When Remus returned to the common room, the party had begun to die down but, much to his dismay, he ran into James and Sirius, who took in Remus' appearance – disheveled hair and clothing – and immediately understood what had occurred. "Moony finally shagged someone," James ascertained with a smirk.

"Way to go mate," Sirius told his friend emphatically. "So, who's the lucky girl?"

Remus shook his head and insisted on going to bed, almost getting away, when Peter approached the group. "Hey, Remus," he greeted his friend happily. "I saw you leave with Edith. Did you try to convince her to go to Hogsmeade with me?"

James and Sirius turned to Remus. "You didn't," they gasped simultaneously.

"You shagged Edith Hopper?" Sirius asked, accusation coloring his tone. "Remus, you could have shagged any girl but you choose to shag the girl Peter fancies."

Remus didn't try to defend himself. In his mind, shagging Edith was not only morally wrong because he was a werewolf and he had no business trying to become romantically involved with anyone, but also because he knew it would hurt Peter, despite the fact that the shortest Marauder had less than noble intentions with the spectacled girl and she held no interest in him. The shattered look on Peter's face was enough to make him feel guilty without the glares sent his way by Sirius and James. "I'm going to bed," he quietly informed them as he slipped up the staircase and did just that.

Meanwhile, in the Ravenclaw common room, Edith ran into Missy. "Naughty!" Missy exclaimed delightedly as they went to their room.

"I'm not in the mood, Missy." Edith had quickly gone from cloud nine to rock bottom as soon as Remus had run out of the room.

"How was it? Is Remus Lupin a Casanova?"

"Well, the sex itself wasn't great and didn't last very long, but I'd say the experience as a whole was nice until he left me there naked on the floor."

"He what?" Missy demanded, quickly becoming enraged.

"He told me it was a mistake and left," Edith sobbed. "It must have been awful for him or he doesn't like me or-"

"Remus Lupin is a prat for doing that to you. I ought to cut off his cock."

Edith shook her head. "I'm just going to try to talk to him, maybe see what happened. He looked so happy and not in a 'look at me I'm getting a good shag' kind of way but as if he cared about me and felt lucky I had given him a second glance. He never seemed like a one off kind of bloke."

"Whatever. He's still a complete tosser and you can do better."

For weeks afterward, Edith had tried desperately to stay in contact with Remus. She would smile at him as they passed each other in the halls, but he would quickly look away. She would begin to approach him at the library but he would gather his things and scurry off. Eventually, she stopped trying, realizing she wasn't getting anywhere. She tried to conjure something – anything – she had done wrong that night but could think of nothing.

Remus was alone in his bed one night, studying away, when Sirius strutted into the room and flopped into his own bed. "So, Moony, how long have you fancied Edith? Longer than Peter, I imagine." Remus started. "That's right. You see, James and I have been putting some things together and the best we can figure is you've fancied her nearly the entire time we've been here at Hogwarts. Am I wrong?"

"No," Remus admitted glumly.

"Then why didn't you say anything? Especially when Peter was going on about her knockers?"

"Because I don't have any right to fancy her. She doesn't deserve to be shunned because she had a one off with a werewolf."

"It didn't have to be a one off, mate."

"It would only have been worse if I had stuck around. What if she found out eventually and told the whole school? Trust me, I'm better off alone."

Sirius' face fell, realizing just how deep his friend's self-loathing went to believe he didn't deserve to find happiness with another person.

Edith herself had finally begun to heal her self-confidence after that night and was beginning to feel better, hoping her mood would improve in time for N.E.W.T.s. In fact, she was beginning to believe she could make it through the year.

That is, until the symptoms started becoming too obvious to ignore. The terrible nausea that followed her throughout the day – sometimes ending in vomiting – the fatigue, sometimes dizziness, sore breasts and a slowly expanding waistline told her that there was a memento from their night together. Memories from two months ago flooded her mind. That one, glorious night with Remus Lupin. A very unwelcome memento. At one time, she almost vomited during one of her N.E.W.T.S. and scrambled out of the test as soon as she could, barely making it to the lavatory. Now, she spent a lot of time in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, crying along with the miserable ghost. She was the sensible one, the practical one. These types of things weren't meant to happen to her. Yet it had happened. And now she had no choice but to tell Remus.