Honey was stressed. It had been a whole week, and she hadn't worked up the nerve yet to talk to Remus, and they had Transfiguration together that day. It seemed like the roles had been reversed- now he was the one avoiding her. So it seemed like she'd have to get creative to talk to him and apologize and give him that potion. And she was running out of time. The next full moon was a little over a week away, and according to her research and hypothesis, the potion she made would need to be consumed every night for the week leading up to the transformation.
She couldn't just hand him a bag of an experimental potion in class, but it seemed like that would be the only time she could talk to him, as he took off anytime he saw her. So on her way to their shared class, she worked up the courage to talk to him and apologize, and hopefully get him to agree to meet her somewhere private later on. But the closer she got to the classroom, the more nervous she got. She was never very good at apologies, and had never had to apologize for her views on magical creatures before. She knew she had really hurt him and probably their friendship- how little there had been.
When she reached the classroom, she let out a sigh when she saw that Remus wasn't there yet. But maybe that was a bad thing; she was already ready to chicken out. But she reminded herself that she had to do this for him, and tried to steal her resolve.
Dropping her bag to the floor next to her desk, she slid into her chair and prepared to wait. She was expecting to wait with dread filled anticipation in silence, but the bowtruckle curled around her ear had other ideas.
The bowtruckle- which her grandfather had endearingly named Fergus, who knows why- pulled at her ear and began twittering.
"Not now," she hissed. Fergus only twittered louder in her ear. "What's the matter with you? Can't you see I'm spiraling here?"
Remus, of course, decided to take his seat as she was talking to herself for all intents and purposes. He didn't glance her way, and instead moved the chair as far away from Honey as was possible. Honey took a deep breath and prepared herself to speak.
McGonagall chose that moment to start class.
"Hello, students. I hope your break was invigorating and that you are all ready to get back to work."
Honey slumped in her seat, moment gone. Now she would have to hope they'd have time to practice amongst themselves, or she would have to somehow stop Remus before he left when class ended. The silence between her and her desk partner was horribly awkward and tense, and she wished it would go away. During her break, she hadn't really had the time to think about what her grandmother had said since she had been so busy working on that potion. But the last week had provided nothing but time to stress and overthink everything, and she had come to a conclusion:
She might just be falling hopelessly in love with a werewolf.
She pushed this thought away and tried her best to focus on what the professor was saying, and for a while it went well. Until Fergus decided to act up again.
"Stop it," she hissed. This was becoming a new norm for her, and Honey was not happy. She didn't miss the way Remus glanced at her quickly.
The bowtruckle pulled at her earlobe, once again making an annoying amount of noise so close to her ear. "If you don't stop, I will wrap you in an envelope and send you home."
Apparently unhappy with this promise, the bowtruckle gave an annoyed sound and dropped from her ear into her hair, pulling at it.
"Ouch! Stop that! You bloody-"
A snort cut her off, and she turned in surprise to look at Remus covering his mouth with a hand. Her face fell into a scowl. "What are you laughing at?" She demanded in an angry whisper.
His eyes widened and he seemed to flounder. "I- I'm not-"
"Lupin! Scamander! If you're done causing a ruckus, please pay attention," Professor McGonagall scolded.
"Sorry, Professor," they said immediately, falling silent.
McGonagall raised a brow and continued on with her lecture. Honey grumbled angrily as she pulled at the bowtruckle now stuck in her hair. Once she untangled it, Fergus climbed up her hand and resumed his place around her ear, chittering angrily.
Honey and Fergus both remained quiet the rest of class, which unfortunately did not include a moment for her to talk to Remus. And her plan to catch him before he left fled faster than he did when McGonagall dismissed them. Honey stood with a sigh, slinging her bag over her shoulder before leaving as well. Time for a new plan.
Remus startled as hands grabbed him and snatched him from the crowded hall, pulling him into a hidden alcove. He struggled against the hold but the hands disappeared as a voice shushed him. He turned around and froze when he came face to face with Honey.
"Honey!" He gasped, stepping back quickly until his back hit the wall behind him.
"Be quiet, and take this," she whispered, shoving a heavy messenger bag into his hands. He frowned and looked down at it, opening the flap.
"Drink one bottle every night for the next seven days."
"Wha- What is this?" He asked. "Is this going to kill me?" He looked at her with wide eyes. "Are you trying to kill me?"
Her face fell for a moment, and he regretted making her look so sad before the expression was masked with a bland blankness. "Do you really think me so heinous a person that I'd try to poison you?"
He couldn't quite get the fear to leave him as he answered, "Uhm... No?"
She sighed and looked down at her feet, shuffling in place. "Look. I'm no good at apologies. But I am sorry. I shouldn't have been eavesdropping, and I shouldn't have run away and avoided you. My papa said to make it up to you, and this was the only way I knew how."
"By... Making me a potion?" He asked, shoulders untensing as guilt flooded him for jumping to such a terrible conclusion.
"It should work better than drought of peace for your... Problem," she said awkwardly.
"I thought you said you hated magical creatures? Why are you helping me?"
"I do. But I realized that sometimes there's a scared little boy behind that creature, and I can't hate him." She peeked up at him from under her lashes, looking ashamed.
Remus blinked at her as warmth filled his body. She didn't hate him. The wolf inside him preened at this, and he cleared his throat of the emotion welling up inside. "So, uh, what is this?"
She flushed, and even in the dim light of the alcove behind the banner, he could see the pink tinge her cheeks. "Well, i-it's something I came up with. I'm not a hundred percent sure it will work, but it won't kill you."
His brows rose. "'Something you came up with'? When? Over- Over break?" He asked incredulously.
"Yes," she said. "I wanted to have it done in time for when we came back."
"Honey- Potions like this don't just... Did you even sleep at all?"
Her eyes skirted away as she fidgeted. "I had to make it up to you."
He groaned, closing his eyes. "I appreciate it, really, I do, but you shouldn't have pushed yourself so hard. We- We saw you on the train coming back, and you looked-"
She waved him off, breaking in. "That doesn't matter. I have a tendency to... Forget about things when I'm focused. And this was important. I needed you to know... That I don't hate you," she said quietly, blushing again.
He swallowed thickly. "Thank you." He paused to allow the tightness in his throat to go away. "So, uhm, what does it do?"
She quirked her lips. "In theory? It should lessen the effects of the full moon. You'll likely still turn, I'm not a miracle worker, but if you drink one of those each night for the week leading up, it should combat the worse side effects."
He felt the sudden urge to cry. Not only did she not hate him, but she had spent her entire break pushing herself to the brink to try and help him. He didn't even know what to say, all he could do was thank her again.
"Don't thank me yet, it might not work. Speaking of which, I need you to keep a journal from the time you take the first dose until after your, erm, transformation, of all the side effects and things you notice. Everything. It's very important, especially if it doesn't work."
He nodded quickly. "Alright."
Honey stared at him with those expressive brown eyes of hers that he loved, and it was him who blushed this time. She seemed to be searching for something, and must have found it, because she gave him a curt nod before peaking out from behind the banner.
"Hallway's clear. Take the first dose in two days. I hope it works."
And with that, she was gone.