-1"I HATE that stupid git!" James practically snarled as he stormed out of Transfiguration, parting a small crowd of second years with his foul glare. Remus and Sirius lagged behind with Peter, trying hard not to laugh at him. The back of James's head was now bald of all its jet black hair, the edges of the patch singed and smoking.
"Well, Prongs, if you hadn't prodded Snape, Lily wouldn't've-"
"Moony? Shut up before I make you," James growled moodily, stalking up to the Defense Against The Dark Arts classroom. Peter and Sirius broke off to go down to the next level for Charms, leaving Remus with the irritable and aggressive Potter. He tried to help his depressive anger by giving hints to remedy his hair problem which in result did lift his grumbling.
A queue had formed in front of the class, waiting for the teacher by the time they had arrived. Going to the end of it, James waved at a couple of people while shooting murderous glares at the snickering Slytherins. Remus knew he'd rebound easily like he always did. Besides, something else caught his attention.
Babette sat on the opposite side of the hall, her nose buried in the book she had lost the day before. No one sat near her and girls in the line cast her dirty looks which she didn't notice. Tiny, high heeled feet poked out of her long robes, bobbing slightly to a rhythm Remus couldn't detect.
Walking over he noticed a pair of headphones over her ears, blaring music. Sitting down next to her, he waited for her to acknowledge his existence. After a few moments, Remus grabbed a wire and pulled it delicately from her ear.
"Hello."
Babette's head whipped over to look at him, an expression of surprise stamped on her face. A smile spread on her lips when she realized who it was. Taking off her head phones she closed her book.
"Hey, I didn't realize you had this class."
"What're you listening to?" Remus asked instead of answering her, hearing rather interesting lyrics singing their way to his ears. She turned it up for him and held out a side, still cupped near her neck. When he leaned over to listen he caught the scent of vanilla and coconut from her with his werewolf nose.
"It's a band called Nightwish. I like this song especially; its called Beauty and the Beast. The title caught my attention cause I always liked the story so…" she trailed off, noting the surprised look on Remus's face. She turned a light shade of pink and stared at her hands, looking embarrassed and frustrated. "Alright, go ahead and say it."
"Say what?"
"That I'm weird and stupid or I'm a freak or- you know what? Just throw all of them in my face so they don't have to," she nodded almost viciously at the girls across the hall. Remus laughed humorlessly and ran his hands over his tired face. Babette didn't seem to appreciate his amusement.
"Why would I say that?"
"Cause they all do. They're always like that. 'Oh, yeah, she's a nice girl,' but as soon as they hear me go on…oh forget it."
"Was that what you thought I was going to say? No, I just thought it was funny because Beauty and the Beast was my favorite too," he admitted, lowering his voice so the eavesdropping queue couldn't hear. Babette smiled ruefully, almost dryly before she shook her head.
"You don't need to say such things to cheer me up. I know I'm weird."
"No, really! When I was younger I always wished some beautiful girl would come and make me a prince," he said before adding in a rushed voice, "That was when I was little, of course."
Babette gave him a bemused look before putting her headset away and standing up.
"Maybe you'll find her someday. You're still young."
"Maybe."
Babette opened her mouth to say something but instead her face twisted in a mask of pain. Hissing and whimpering, she leaned against the wall, sliding down, her hand clutching at her heart as if to rip it out. Concerned, Remus sat up and looked about to find others staring but not offering any help.
"Hey, are you okay? What's wrong?" he asked worriedly, his voice almost frantic as she leaned forward, hiding her face in her knees. Putting a hand on her shoulder he found her breathing to be hitched and strained, each gasp short and erratic.
"I-I'm fine…I…just get these…pains!" the last word came out in a loud gasp before she shuddered and sat still, her breathing slowing down and evening out. The professor had arrived and Remus heard a student asking for help.
The teacher merely aimed a disgusted look at the shivering student and went into the classroom, ignoring Babette and the glances she earned. A fire of anger sprang up in his chest but he squashed it under a weight of confusion. What had she done to earn that?
"Sorry about that. It happens a lot," a quiet murmur came from Babette. Remus looked to find her sitting up slowly, her hand still plastered to her chest. Her face was extraordinarily pale and drawn, as if she had been sick for years.
"What happened?"
A small dry smile crossed her lips as she stood up again, gathering her things.
"Lets just say it's a family problem," she responded elusively, waiting for him to get up. When her answer didn't dispel his concern she grinned. "Don't worry. I'll survive."
