A/N: Happy New Year everyone! I felt the need to counterbalance some of the angst with fluff. Hope you enjoy! And as always, please read and review!

Chapter 13: An Awkward Reunion

Before long, the holidays were over and Remus found himself standing on Platform 9 ¾ with his parents once again. He wasn't sure whether he was more excited or afraid about returning to school. When his mother gave him a long, tearful farewell hug (something that was quickly becoming a tradition with her) and he glanced around the station with embarrassment, hoping no one was watching—Remus was certain he was more excited to be going back; he loved his parents dearly but his mother's constant fretting and his father's paranoia were starting to drive him batty. Then Hope stood up and Lyall gave his son a short hug. His father looked anxious as he examined Remus' face carefully: his brow creased into a small frown as he stared at the new scar and, in that moment, Remus knew he was definitely more afraid to be returning.

The Lupins had arrived at the station rather early and most families were just starting to trickle in. Remus knew he wouldn't be able to hide the scar on his face for long, but nevertheless he said a rushed goodbye to his parents before boarding the train, eager to avoid the crowds.

He claimed a compartment near the front and, after storing his trunk on the shelf up above, positioned himself next to the window in such a way that the scarred side of his face wasn't in direct view. Remus kept eyeing the compartment door nervously, his heart pounding every time someone passed it and he quickly began to regret his choice of compartments.

Peter found him first and sat across from him.

"Happy New Year!" The smaller boy said enthusiastically.

"Happy New Year," Remus grinned.

"Did you get anything good for Christmas?" Remus noticed that Peter was proudly sporting a brand new scarf and hat.

"I got some interesting books." Peter gave him a strange look.

"Oh…" The smaller boy shifted uncomfortably and Remus laughed.

"They were books I've wanted for a long time, they're fairly rare and hard to find." Peter grinned awkwardly and continued to fidget. Remus smirked.

"Did you get anything good, Peter?" It was like a dam had been broken and Peter told Remus all about his holiday: the presents he got, the food he ate, and the games he played with his cousins. A solid five minutes passed during which, Peter scarcely seemed to breathe and Remus listened politely.

The smaller boy's rant was eventually interrupted as the compartment door slid open and James and Sirius walked in.

"Happy New Year!" James nearly shouted.

"Happy New Year," Remus repeated as he turned and grinned at the two dark-haired boys, it was good to see them again. Then, Peter gasped and Remus' smile disappeared.

"What happened to your face?!" He flinched and pressed his hand to his cheek.

"N-Nothing," he stammered before silently cursing himself. He'd had a plan for what he was going to say when the scar came up, but his knee-jerk response was a highly suspicious 'nothing'; it made him cringe.

"Let me see," James crossed the compartment and stood in front of Remus, who instinctively clutched his cheek harder.

"Really, it's alright!" But James wasn't deterred and gently pulled his friend's hand away, exposing the loathsome scar. The boy frowned.

"It's just a scratch. I was clumsy." Remus blurted out and the carefully laid out lie he'd prepared to tell about helping his father with a doxy infestation and getting scratched began slipping between his fingers.

"It's healed badly," James said matter-of-factly, "You'd better see Madam Pomfrey about it when we get back, otherwise that scar might be permanent." The boy then began storing his trunk and for one blissful moment, Remus believed his flimsy lie had worked and the conversation was over; then he noticed that Sirius was still standing in the doorway, giving him an intense and scrutinizing stare.

"But your dad's a wizard," he said quietly.

"Er… Yes?" Remus replied hesitantly.

"He couldn't heal it properly?" Although Sirius' tone remained soft, there was an accusing edge to it that made him wince internally. Fortunately, neither James nor Peter seemed to notice.

Remus shrugged, fighting to keep his nerves under control. "My dad's brilliant at Defense, but terrible with Potions and the healing arts. Don't worry; I'll have Madam Pomfrey look at it."

Sirius looked like he desperately wanted to say something else, but eventually decided against it and gave Remus a curt nod before storing his own trunk and taking a seat.

The rest of the train ride was spent catching up and eating sweets and Remus was surprised to discover just how much he'd missed his friends over the break.

After dinner that night, Remus did, indeed, go to Madam Pomfrey with the hope that she'd be able to help fade the scar even more, but when the nurse examined his face, she sighed and told him that only time would help. Although it was the answer he'd expected, he still felt disheartened.

There were still a few hours until curfew and Remus was feeling exhausted but didn't want to return to the common room just yet, so he decided to head over to the library for some peace and quiet.

The library was virtually empty—only a handful of diligent fifth and seventh year students were scattered amongst the rows of books, so Remus was surprised to see Lily and Severus sitting at a table having an intense conversation. He wanted to go over and say hello, especially since Lily hadn't been at dinner and he hadn't seen her since before the break, but he didn't dare interrupt their conversation.

He was about to start browsing a nearby bookshelf, when Severus stood abruptly and turned to leave, spotting Remus in the process. Snape sneered at him.

"Of course!" He scoffed before pushing past Remus and storming out of the library—muttering "Gryffindor lackey," under his breath as he did so. Lily watched him go, looking miserable.

Remus stood perfectly still for a moment, feeling distinctly like a deer in headlights—too stunned to move. It wasn't until Lily sighed a sad "hullo Remus," that he shook it off and cautiously approached her.

"I'm sorry," he wasn't certain what he was apologizing for though and Lily laughed humorlessly.

"What are you sorry for?"

"Er… I'm not really sure," he replied hesitantly, "Severus seemed pretty mad at me."

"Oh don't mind Sev," she said as she began listlessly picking at a chip in the table, "He's just upset that I went home for the holidays when he stayed here."

"I thought you two lived in the same town? Why didn't he go home too?"

Lily smiled bitterly, "He couldn't."

Remus could tell that it was a sore subject, "Still, I don't understand why he's mad at you just because you went home…"

Lily shrugged, "My sister and I don't get along very well," he didn't understand where the conversation was going but continued to listen patiently, "But she's still my sister and I love her very much. I thought that the holidays might bring us closer together but it didn't go the way I'd hoped. And I thought that Sev might cheer me up, but he got mad and said I should've stayed at school with him instead. He said that my priorities are all mixed up." Lily absent-mindedly wiped a tear from her cheek.

"Nonsense," Remus said sternly, "You wanted to see your family, there's nothing mixed up about that. And Severus made the choice to stay at school—he has no right to tell you that you're wrong because you chose something else."

"Maybe not… but he's still my best friend and it hurts to hear him say it." Remus' confidence faltered, as it always did when the topic of friends came up. He remained silent and examined Lily's face carefully: she looked incredibly miserable and tired—that's when Remus got an idea.

"You missed dinner."

Lily didn't look up from the table as she mumbled, "So?"

"So, let's go get something to eat," Remus grinned as she finally looked up at him with a small smile on her face.

"That doesn't sound so bad."

Then the small smile faded to apprehension. "What happened to your cheek?" He wasn't about to let the conversation change to something so unpleasant though.

"I scratched myself accidentally," a half-truth was so much easier to tell than an actual lie, "It's fine. Come on, I'll show you where the kitchens are." Lily gave him a quizzical look before she grabbed her book bag, and she and Remus made their way to the now-familiar fruit bowl painting.

Remus was feeling particularly proud of himself later that night as he returned to his dormitory. Lily's mood had improved almost as soon as she'd eaten something and they'd sat in the kitchens for over an hour talking about the Herbology assignment they'd had over the break; both feeling equally content to discuss anything other than their holidays.

Peter was sitting alone in the dormitory, his nose deep in the Charms textbook—obviously trying to catch up on the reading he'd neglected to do before the break.

"Where are James and Sirius?"

Peter glanced up from the book briefly before shrugging, "Sirius wanted to talk about something with James. Said it was private." Although he was acting unfazed, Remus detected the note of hurt in his voice.

"They're probably just planning another prank," he said reassuringly but Peter didn't look convinced.

"Maybe," he mumbled.

Remus sighed and turned to his bed only to discover, much to his surprise, three presents carefully laid out on the blankets.

"What's this?"

"Christmas gifts from me, Sirius, and James," Peter answered distractedly.

"Really?" Remus was shocked, "But, I didn't get you anything!"

At this, Peter finally put the book aside and smiled at Remus.

"Don't worry about it."

"But—"

"Seriously Remus, it's only a box of chocolates."

"Still…"

"Just open them!" Peter teased, "I need your help with chapter 11."

He sighed and began to carefully unwrap each gift. There was a box of chocolates from Peter, a set of exploding snap cards from James, and a miniature wizard's chess set from Sirius. Remus thought his heart might burst from the joy that bubbled within him. All three gifts were unlike anything he'd ever received from his parents, who always gave him books or clothes for Christmas or his birthday—these gifts were so boyish and normal and human. His cheeks began to ache from the enormous smile that stretched across his face.

Peter laughed, "I've never seen anyone so happy to get a chess set for Christmas."

As if on cue, the door opened and James and Sirius walked in. Remus practically launched himself at them, wrapping each boy into a one-armed hug.

"Thank you! Your gifts are perfect!" He turned to Peter and managed to give him a quick hug before he could begin to doubt whether or not hugging was appropriate in the situation.

"I'm glad you like them," James laughed, "We should break in those exploding snap cards right away."

Two hours and several scorched fingers later, Remus lay in bed, still grinning. The anxiety from that morning seemed like a lifetime ago and he wondered why on earth he'd allowed himself to get so worked up in the first place. And as he drifted off to sleep, he made a promise to himself that he was going to repay his friends soon.