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Chapter 16
Remus,
We need to talk as soon as possible.
Aurora
Aurora stood in the Owlery reading over her short but to the point note before attaching it to a tawny owls leg.
"Take this to Remus Lupin's dormitory and leave it on his bed." She told the owl before it took off through the open window wall.
Remus was due back tomorrow and she was insistent on getting everything out in the open. The sooner the better.
She touched a hand tentatively to her cheek feeling the healing marks. It wasn't the fact that he was a werewolf that bothered her. It was that he didn't believe in her enough to tell the truth.
The way she looked at it, this whole thing could have been avoided if Remus had just trusted her. But he hadn't. And that hurt her more than was probably wise.
Because some time over the two months they had been seeing each other she had fallen for him.
Remus opened his eyes slowly, blinking against the bright morning sunlight and stretched out on the dusty hard wood floor. But when he rolled over he knew immediately something wasn't right.
Sirius, Peter and James were all sitting on the floor staring at him apprehensively.
"What?" Remus asked as he sat up. He watched his three friends share a look and braced himself.
"What is it?" He asked again, this time with a nervous bite in his tone.
"Erm, Remus..." James finally said. "Something has happened."
"You attacked somebody on the first night of the full moon." Peter added helpfully.
Remus felt his stomach clench at that news but before he had a chance to ask Sirius broke in.
"She's fine, Remus. No harm, you didn't bite her or anything. Just scraped her up a bit."
"I attacked a girl?" Remus asked looking pained.
"You got her shoulder and her cheek." James said.
"How did she get away?"
"Well Padfoot attacked you to distract your attention from her and then she rode away on my back." James replied.
His three friends were silent as they allowed him to absorb the information.
"Who did I attack?" Remus said in a would be casual tone.
Again, the three of them shared a look that caused the knot in his stomach to worsen.
"Aurora." James said after a tense silence.
Remus felt the bottom of his stomach drop entirely at this news.
"My Aurora?" He asked, swearing softly.
James nodded.
"She, uh, sent you this mate." Sirius said handing Remus a letter.
He unfolded it and read the short note quickly. Expecting more, he turned it over but found nothing.
Remus sank his head into his hands and groaned.
"She knows." He said with the utmost certainty.
"Honestly, you're lucky she didn't bust you before. She's not stupid." Sirius agreed.
"She must be furious with me." Remus said.
"Maybe. Maybe not. Just be honest with her from now on." James replied.
"If there is a from now on." Remus snorted, running a hand nervously through his shaggy hair.
"There will be." Peter assured him.
"Where is she? I need to find her." Remus said as he glanced around for the Marauder's Map.
Sirius was already holding it and combing the grounds for her.
"She's in Potions. With Slytherin."
"Well I'll just have to go pull her from it. Forge a note from Dumbledore would you Padfoot?" Remus said as he shoved a blank piece of parchment toward Sirius.
"Why me?"
"Because you do the best forging." Remus said impatiently.
"I know. I just like hearing it." Sirius said and laughed as Remus rolled his eyes.
Professor Gwenog,
Please excuse Aurora Moon and send her directly to my office.
Headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry,
Albus Dumbledore
"Thanks. See you later guys." Remus said before running down the stairs of the Shrieking Shack.
He ran across the grounds, into the castle and down into the dungeons. He skidded to a halt outside the Potion chambers door, letting his breathing return to normal.
Remus threw back his shoulders doing his best to look like an official prefect before knocking on the door and entering.
He marched across the room to Professor Gwenog and waited while she read the note.
"Miss Moon? The headmaster wants to see you, dear." Professor Gwenog called kindly.
Aurora looked up from her potion and felt a dead weight drop into her tummy. Remus was standing at the front of her classroom, eyeing her with apprehension and a trace of sadness.
She bent to gather her belongings and made her way to the front of the class with a sense of foreboding.
Remus gave her a weak smile then led her out of the room. When the door had closed behind them he spun around to face her. He trailed a finger down her scabbed cheek and bit his lower lip.
"Aurora, I.." He began.
"Do you really want to this here?" She asked as she pulled away from his touch and looked at the floor.
Remus dropped his hand immediately and nodded. He turned again and led her up to the main part of the castle and up seven flights of stairs until he stopped in the middle of the hallway.
He closed his eyes as if concentrating very hard on something and to Aurora's utter bewilderment a door suddenly appeared.
Her eyebrows raised in surprise as Remus stepped back to allow her to enter.
"What is this place?" She asked curiously as she looked around. It was as if they had entered someone's lounge. Two squishy armchairs and a sofa formed a triangle around a cozy fireplace and the end tables that flanked the chairs were laden with butterbeer.
"The Room of Requirement." Remus said as he guided her to the sofa then sat down next to her.
"I've never been in here before."
"We, my friends and I that is, just discovered it this year. It's whatever you want, whenever you want. You just have to stand outside the door and concentrate on what you want it to be."
"Oh." Was all she said as she looked uncomfortably around.
"I, erm, got your note. We do need to talk Aurora." Remus said as he chucked a finger under her chin to bring her gaze to his.
"I know Remus." And he knew that her statement had more than one meaning.
"I'm so sorry. About everything." He spilled out. "I'm sorry for lying to you, it killed me to do that. I'm sorry about attacking you. I would never intentionally cause you pain...of any kind. You know that don't you?"
"No, I don't know that, Remus. You lying to me hurt worse than you attacking me. You didn't trust me enough to share and you had plenty of opportunities to tell me you're a werewolf." She said as her eyes so shone brightly she had to look away.
"I do trust you!" Remus cried out louder than he intended. "I knew from the first moment I bumped into you on the train that you were different. From anyone. It's just that everything was going so perfect...you're so perfect and nothing ever goes my way. I guess I just wanted to hold on to the feeling of an uncomplicated life as long as I could."
"You just make it more complicated than it has to be." She told him in what she hoped was a cold voice, a single tear now trailing down her cheek.
"So I've been told." Remus said wryly.
"Listen, you are the most important thing I have in my life right now. It pains me to no end knowing that I hurt you...mentally and physically." Remus said sincerely as he turned her face back to him and stroked a finger down her uninjured cheek to her neck.
Aurora felt her anger and hurt melting away at his heart felt apology.
"No more lies?" She asked.
"Nothing but the truth." He promised.
"Then apology is accepted."
Remus breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her into a bone crushing hug.
"Remus, I can't breath!" She exclaimed as she tried to loosen his grip.
"Sorry bout that." He said and relaxed his grip slightly.
They sat in silence, wrapped in each others embrace for about ten minutes before Aurora finally spoke.
"So, how private is this room?" She asked shyly.
"Extremely. I don't think anyone else knows about it. Why?" Remus replied.
"I have something I've been wanting to talk to you about." She said as she toyed with a lock of her hair.
"What's that?" He wondered.
Aurora shifted suddenly on the couch so that she was on his lap with her legs straddling him, pinning him. Her face so close Remus could feel her hot breath on his cheek and stirring his hair.
"Us." She said and watched as Remus swallowed hard.
Hmmm, guess we all know what's coming next...