Later that day, Lupin paced into his classroom, patched robes swirling around him, reading glasses perched low on his nose. Despite being appointed by the Ministry to fill this position at Hogwarts, he was still uncomfortable in an academic setting. It generally wasn't until class was begun and the students occupied that Remus could relax.
He looked up owlishly through his glasses before pulling them off and polishing them on his robes. Holding them up against the light, he decided they were clean and shoved them into a pocket. Remus finally looked at his students in earnest, examining their apprehensive expressions.
"Advanced Defense," The words hung heavy in the air. "This class, on orders from the ministry, is a shabby attempt to make you into miniature Aurors." His voice was tinged with bitterness and he sent a glance out across the room gauging reactions. Even Neville, one of his biggest fans, was watching the scarred surface of his desk as though fascinated by the message it might contain.
Lupin heaved a huge sigh and sat on the edge of his desk, steepling his fingers in his lap before looking up again.
"Miss Greengrass," his tone was sharp. "How many Death Eaters do you know?" Daphne looked up, her eyebrows rose, and she laid her nail file on her desk with a rasp.
"I know 17 Death Eaters, Professor." Her tone was civil and even respectful until she added. "I know 2 Gryffindor Death Eaters." Ginny and Luna shoved a struggling Colin back into his seat as he swore loudly and in several languages. Lupin held in a few choice words of his own as Daphne picked her nail file back up.
After a long pause, he finally said, "That will do Colin. Miss Greengrass, I will need to speak with you after class."
"As you wish, Professor." Remus smiled tightly at her and continued the process, asking the other students about their Death Eater contacts. By the end of the first hour, the class had accumulated a total of 251 Death Eaters. Although he knew that most of them knew the same Death Eaters, Lupin was impressed with the number. As his students filed soberly from the room, he erased the board and closed his notes. Looking up from the board, he noticed Miss Greengrass standing in front of him.
"Did you want to speak to me, Professor?" She was a pretty girl with wavy blonde hair and lidded gray eyes.
"Sit down, Daphne." Lupin's mood was well hidden within his gravely tone. Daphne sat elegantly, tucking her skirt under her and crossing her legs at the ankles. He furrowed his brow and decided to simply state his concerns. "Why are you in my class?" Turning her face away, Daphne chuckled, surprised but not angry.
"When you were in school, Professor, did you have good relations with Slytherins?"
"No." Lupin's response was emotionless and even guarded.
"Most people assume that all Slytherins are heartless whores or bristling cavemen hiding in the dungeons. If we're not hiding in the dungeons we're out killing people for Voldemort." She spit the word out with absolute hatred. Remus waited patiently. Suddenly, Daphne pulled up her sleeves and laid two bare forearms on her desk. "Check my arms, Professor. I'm no Death Eater. I may be a Slytherin but there are those of us who do not want a dark Lord." Her voice, so composed at the beginning of her tirade trembled only slightly as she pulled her sleeves back down and recrossed her legs, this time at her knees.
"That's exactly what I wanted to hear, Miss Greengrass." Lupin smiled at her. "Exactly what I wanted to hear."
Ginny found lunch to be an awkward affair and abandoned the Great Hall with her old standby, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. As she strolled down the hallways, she hummed tunelessly to herself, nodding her head and pausing to stare out the window. The light hit Dumbledore's tomb just right and it glowed white and pristine.
"What are you doing here, Zacharias?" She felt him come up behind her, his hands on the cold stone window frame around her.
"He looks peaceful, don't you think?" Zacharias looked over her head for a minute before pushing himself off the window frame. "I wonder, sometimes, what he'd be doing now… if he weren't, well… you know." Ginny looked up at Zacharias and smiled before looking back out over the lawn.
"Yeah," her voice was quiet, almost pensive. "I miss him, Zacharias. I miss him and I never really got to know him. Isn't that ridiculous? I almost feel like I'm capitalizing on the genuine feelings of people who actually knew him. Sometimes I like to pretend I knew him but-" She stopped suddenly and shrugged. Zacharias smiled, knowing exactly what she was talking about.
"I think we all do that, Gin." For just a moment, Ginny wished she could lean back into Zacharias' arms, just for a quick moment. Then she laughed at herself and pulled away from the window.
"I've got class, Zacharias. I'll see you later."