Chapter 5
Wind rushed by them as they stepped out into the cool evening air. Farrah's hair flew up around her, dancing around her face. Remus slowly led her towards the castle, which stood towering over them.
Farrah was in utter awe at the sight of the castle. Nothing had ever been so beautiful, she thought. Orange light shone from windows inside the great stone walls and a large wooden door sat at the front.
Remus walked over and pushed open the door, backing away and motioning for her to move inside.
The inside of the castle was even more beautiful then the outside. Tall stone staircases led up to dozens of floors and lanterns lit with fire sat on ever wall.
Stone covered the floor, and the lanterns gave off an eerie but calming orange glow that swept through every aspect of the giant entrance hall.
"What do you think?" Remus said, smiling at her astonished expression.
"I...I...oh wow.." was all Farrah could say. She was lost for words, speechless, breathless.
They walked towards the Great Hall where a single table sat in the center, surrounded by emptyness and stone walls that held giant glass windows.
Farrah sat down at the large table and placed a small napkin on her lap. Remus sat across from her, close enough to touch her hand.
Remus smiled at her and asked if she would like something to drink.
"Red wine, please" she said, her lips curving into a delicate and seductive smile. Remus felt his heart jump in his chest and stood up, grinning at her.
"Red wine it is."
He walked into the kitchen and grabbed a bottle of red wine along with the cart that held their dinner. The house elves had been kind enough to prepare everything before leaving the castle.
Wind began to howl outside the castle, and Farrah could hear it clearly. Everything was so empty, and yet so historic inside the large hall. Through the windows, Farrah could see the giant moon rising over the mountains. It was a 3/4 full.
Remus sensed the moon, but quickly ignored it. Nothing could spoil this night. Nothing.
He walked back into the great hall with the tray of food and red wine bottle.
Pouring the wine into two large glittering glasses, he began showing her what they would be eating.
Farrah seemed to take great delight in the food, and also in watching him. He enjoyed this attention, and the fact that it was her who was giving it to him.
Remus placed the courses on the table and watched as she immediately began to serve herself. He sat there, watching her, every movement as surreal as the last.
"Thank you so much for inviting me to dinner," she said softly as he began to place food on his plate.
"No problem at all, I much enjoy your company." he said, smiling at her.
Gosh, she thought, why am I feeling this way? She was questioning the warmth in her heart and the butterflies in her stomach. She couldn't explain the feeling nor describe why she only felt it when she was around him. She could only hope she wasn't falling for him.
~*~
After the meal, Remus stood up and went over to a small stereo that sat in the corner. He normally would have used magic, but he was to wait for Dumbledore to explain it to her.
Turning on the cd, the music began to flow freely through the air. It was soft, romantic music. A symphony.
"Come and show me how you dance, tiny dancer." Remus called, smiling and inviting her to come and dance with him.
Farrah smiled happily and stood up, stepping lightly towards him. "I don't think you can keep up with me."
"Oh we'll just see about that." Remus replied, sweeping her into his arms and placing one hand on her waist, the other in her right hand.
The music seemed to fade away in the moment. All Farrah could comprehend was the solid movements of his body next to hers, and how perfectly in tune their feet seemed to be.
Farrah twirled into his arms and they began to step together, doing a sort of tango movement. Twirling again, they switched sides and walked the other way, keeping their eyes molded together.
Her light gray eyes bore into his soul, and seemed to glow with the music.
He twirled her again and this time they went back into a waltz. The music ran slower, and the mood seemed so right. Candles flickered as they danced, some even going out completely.
The room dimmed and they could only make out eachother.
Remus let go of Farrah and watched her dance off. She seemed to float, gliding delicately across the floor and dancing so freely she could have been flying.
He watched in awe as she seemed to melt into the sound, into the music, into the moment. All he could make out was a constant blur of movement, one that entranced him and willed him to feel what he'd never felt before.
He started to feel not a single doubt. Not one single doubt. She was perfect.
Suddenly the music stopped. Farrah stood, frozen in position, staring up at the never ending ceiling. She felt tears streak down her face as she crumbled to the ground.
Remus felt fear strike in his heart as he ran over to her. He wrapped in his soft embrace as she sat there, crying uncontrollably. She seemed to remember everything that had caused her pain, dancing there.
Her emotions had gotten the best of her, and now all she was reduced to was a crying idiot crumbling in the arms of a friend.
Or was he a friend? She didn't know what she felt about Remus, but all she knew was that she'd never felt more comfort in the arms of a man before.
Remus held onto her, allowing her to cry. He felt pain radiate off of her as he whispered softly in her ear, kissing her forehead gently.
"It's okay, sweetie...it's okay." he said, gathering her tighter in his arms. She laid her head on his shoulder and felt the tears fade away. But the pain remained pounding in her chest.
"I'm sorry, Remus...I just get overly emotional sometimes..." she said, trying to shrug off what had just happened. But Remus could see right through her.
"Your hurting...tell me what troubles you, Farrah." Remus said, holding her face up close to his so he could see clearly into her red rimmed eyes.
"I...oh...," she felt more sobs threaten her but pushed them away, trying to remain strong. "I don't know if I can trust you."
Remus felt pain rise in his own chest. "Trust me?"
"Trust you with my deepest feelings...I...I can't explain how I'm feeling about you, I really can't." she said, sobs choking her. "All I know is I don't want it to stop...but I need to know I can trust you with my heart."
Remus felt tears welling in his eyes. "You can always trust me," he said, emotions fueling in his heart.
Farrah let out a stifled cry and wrapped her arms around him, holding him close. She couldn't believe what was happening. Everything seemed to unreal.
She sat back and cleared her throat, gazing up to look into his warm hazel eyes.
"I...I never knew my parents. I was raised with a foster family who never payed attention to me. I would have grown up bitter and alone if I hadn't had my nanny. She cared for me until I was 13 years old. That was the year that she died and left me forever. I grew up from then on, vowing that I would make her proud and do what I felt I was destined to do...dance. She was the one who took me to lessons, who supported me. When she died, I felt like the biggest part of my life had died with her. I fought to gain it back, and even though it was hard, I struggled to make it to classes and struggled to become the best I could be. I never spent time enjoying life, only doing what I could to make up for my loss."
Remus ran his hand down the side of her face, gazing sadly into her eyes and begging for her to continue.
"I simply gave up on life. All I cared about was dancing. When my material foster mother died, my foster father felt free to stay away from the house as long as months at a time. I was alone with servants who did the best they could to care for me. But no one could replace my nanny..."
"What was her name?" Remus asked, staring into her beautiful steel eyes.
"Lonna...she never told me her last name..."
Remus felt a sharp pang of fear hit him when the name was said. He knew of Lonna only too well.
He felt his own pain seem to succumb him, coursing through his veins like blood.
"Why do you cry, Remus?" Farrah asked softly, gazing up at him.
"I can't tell you, Farrah, I can't tell you because you won't understand."
He held onto her, letting her quietly weep in his embrace. "Shh...it's going to be okay." he kept whispering to her.
~*~