Entry for the Quidditch League Competition - Round 3 - Puddlemere United - Chaser 2

Prompt: Dracula by Bram Stoker: Write about someone having a change of heart, for better or worse.

Optional prompts used: 7. (word) monster; 8. (object) locket; 15. (dialogue) "You're better than this."

Word count: 1,753

Warnings: AU!

Moon locket

Remus didn't want to feel this way towards her, but in the end, he couldn't help how he felt. He knew that nothing would ever come from his little infatuation; after all, who could ever love a monster? No matter what his friends told him, he knew that she would never look at him.

"Mate, you need to get out of your funk and just ask her out! I bet she'll say yes, and you two will have adorable nerdy babies who will love their Uncle Padfoot," Sirius said while he watched Remus pacing in their shared dorm. "What are you so afraid of?"

"If this is about your furry little problem, I doubt she'll say anything about it. It's Evans we're talking about!" James shouted from his bed, tired of hearing the same excuse from Remus every time.

"It looks like Moony is afraid that she's going to say yes when he asks her out, so he's creating ways to not have to say anything to her — that way he can make us suffer through his moods."

All the Marauders had been thinking the exact same thing Peter had just said, but no one ever dared to say it out loud. It was what made Remus finally snap.

"Why are you guys trying to make me ask her out? Don't you have your own love-lives to worry about?" Remus growled at them, holding his head in his hands. With the full moon so close, he couldn't help but feel the wolf closer to the surface, and that's why he couldn't ask Lily out — he could never let her be close to the monster he became every full moon.

"Moony, we all know how you feel about your condition, but have you ever thought about... I don't know... asking Lily how she felt about you?" Peter asked, seeing that Remus would be more open to answering him, instead of James or Sirius. "You don't even have to tell her everything — just ask her how she feels about you."

"I… I need to think about it," Remus said, leaving the room.

The other Marauders exchanged looks, thinking about what was going through Remus' mind at that moment. They could only hope that their stubborn friend saw reason and changed his mindset.

It wasn't the first time Remus had thought about what he wanted to do regarding Lily, but he couldn't help but feel that if he ever asked her out, she would turn on him, making him more miserable than he was now. Walking around the Black Lake, he pulled out a locket from his pocket. The golden locket was moon-shaped, with intricate lines covering the surface; Remus knew that if he opened it, he could put a photo inside, and that was his mother's reason to give him the locket. His mother had given it to him to present it to the most special girl he knew. As he fiddled with the locket, he began to think about what he liked about Lily.

She was one of his best friends and was as important to him as the Marauders. He knew that he could always count on her. She was an amazing company when they were studying, always having something good to say or just helping in research, and he couldn't help but fall in love with her. That's why he could never say anything to her.

"Fancy seeing you walking here this time of the night." His breath hitched when he heard the voice behind him; he would know that voice anywhere. The soft, lilting tone haunted his dreams and always made his heart race. It was the last person that he wanted to see right now, but somehow, Lily always found him. "Do you mind me joining you?"

"Not at all. Be my guest," Remus said, putting the locket in his pocket as if to hide from Lily. He hoped that she hadn't seen it, but she had a twinkle in her eyes that he wasn't sure if he had seen it or it was the moonlight tricking him. They walked around the lake in comfortable silence, just enjoying each other's company.

"How are you, Remus? I don't think I have ever seen you walking around here, not so close to curfew at least," Lily said, startling Remus from the reverie he was in. "Something wrong?"

'Nothing is wrong when you're by my side,' Remus thought, but he knew that he could never say that to her, so he only shook his head, missing Lily's frown.

"Is something bothering you, Remus? Is it because I'm here? I saw that you put something in your pocket that you didn't want me to see, so if you want, I can go away..." Lily trailed off, making Remus look at her with a small frown.

"No!" he exclaimed. Maybe it was too forceful, which was why she took a step back. "I'm sorry, Lily. I think I'm just lost in my mind, wasting too much time thinking over and over again about things that are out of my control."

"Something that I can help with? It helps to talk with a friend about it." Lily then conjured a blanket for them to sit on, and motioning to Remus, they both sat side by side, facing the lake. "Now, why don't you tell me what's bothering you? I promise that I'm a great listener."

Remus chuckled at her statement. How could he start talking to her about everything that was going through his mind if everything he could think about was her? Her smile, her shamrock-green eyes, her laughter, everything about her.

Sighing, he looked at her and saw her opening a small smile towards him, making her blush under his stare. "I don't think you can help me in this, Lily. I'm afraid that no one can help me with this. It's something that I've resigned myself to a long time ago, something that looks like my fate."

"You're better than this," Lily said, frowning as she looked him in the eyes. It was at that moment that Remus realised that Lily already knew about the monster within him, and she didn't care. She probably discovered this last month, after she had asked him so many questions about werewolves — Remus should have put the pieces together faster. He could see in her eyes the truth and judging by the heartbeat he could pick, she seems calm. "Why are you feeling so defeated without even trying?"

"Because..." Remus trailed off, not knowing how to continue now that he felt that Lily already knew everything. "Have you ever had to deal with a monster inside you, Lily? A monster you don't even know if it's a different entity or if it's all you?"

"I don't think I understand what you're saying—" Lily started to say, but Remus stopped her, continuing to talk now that he was letting his emotions run free. After discovering that she knew about him and still was around made things better.

"Sometimes I think that I don't deserve to have nice things or even like someone because of what's inside me!" He stood up and started to walk in front of the blanket. "I feel like I don't own my thoughts — I feel like I'm trapped inside my mind, desperate to be let free!"

Remus panted as if he had run a marathon in just a few seconds. He had finally said everything that he felt was trapped inside him.

"You said this because of what you turned to every month?" Lily said, surprising Remus who turned towards her with widening eyes and his mouth opening, without any word leaving. "I'm not stupid, Remus. I know that you're a werewolf and you try to shy away from things you don't think you deserve, but this doesn't change anything Remus. It doesn't change who you're inside."

Remus couldn't help but snort at her statement. "It's easy for you to say it, you don't have to fear that you're going to run free and attack everyone in the castle, and have to live with this guilt for all of my life. I'm an assassin without victims just because I have a good damn control!"

Lily, for her part, didn't say anything; she just let Remus vent. He seemed to sense this, and that was why he took the locket out of his pocket and showed it to her.

"I've been carrying this with me for the past few weeks, trying to find a way to give it to you... but I never felt like I could do it — or even if you would accept it," Remus said, handing it to her.

She didn't say anything as she just looked at it, trying to understand what Remus was saying. "This is a beautiful heirloom, something that you probably should give to someone you like… Why give it to me?"

"I beg your pardon?" Remus said, not believing what he was hearing.

"What made you change your mind now and decide to give this to me?" Lily showed the locket as if Remus had forgotten about it. "Why the sudden change?"

"Because I don't want to be the monster that I know everyone thinks I am," Remus said softly, coming to sit next to her. "I want to see you wear this locket and think of me without feeling like I don't deserve happiness… What I meant to say is... do you want to go out with me? On a date?"

Lily smiled at Remus throwing her arms around him, hugging him with all her might and taking his breath away. "I thought you would never ask!"

"That's a yes?" Remus asked, just to be certain. The laughter that bubbled out of Lily was answer enough.

"Yes, of course, it's a yes!" Lily said, smiling at Remus and giving him the locket. "Now, put it on me! I want to show everyone this beautiful locket."

Remus chuckled but clasped the locket around Lily's neck, and she beamed at him in return. As the lock clicked in place, so did something inside Remus. When Lily admired the locket and snuggled against him, he came to a realisation: it didn't matter what other people thought of him; he had his friends by his side, and most importantly, he had the girl of his dreams. He knew everything would turn out great in the end, but he just needed to believe it himself.