Eventually it was confirmed that if Sirius Black had been in the castle, he was no longer there. The students were allowed to leave the Great Hall the next morning, returning their lives to normal. Yet for the next few days, everything seemed to be anything but normal for Oriane.
She didn't notice it at first. Classes went on as usual, she ate meals with her roommates like normal, everything was just as it had been. Until it wasn't. A terrible, sick feeling followed her everywhere she went. Her skin seemed to burn every time she walked through the halls.
Something was wrong.
"Is no one else finding this weird?" Charlotte asked as the four girls scrambled through the common room entrance.
"Finding what weird?" Emerald asked.
The common room was warmer than ever, as the fire roared strongly in order to starve off the cold, bitter rain of autumn. Water droplets tapped on the glass of the windows, making the room feel sleepy. But the girls were anything but.
"Don't tell me I'm the only one who's noticed," Charlotte sighed as she quickly led the girls upstairs. "For the past week Snape has watched us meticulously as we walk to and from Hufflepuff House. Creep just appears out of nowhere to watch us. Doesn't even say anything either."
They entered their dorm room, where the fire in there was just as big as the one downstairs. The girls said nothing as they sat on the edge of their beds, looking at Charlotte as she explained her theory.
"You can't blame him, can you?" Emerald asked, scratching the back of her head. "I mean, all the teachers seem to be a bit on edge since Sirius Black attacked the Fat Lady. They're probably just keeping an extra eye on students as a safety precaution."
"Yeah, it's not just Snape. McGonagall watches us like a hawk when we walk to and from Transfiguration," Calista sighed.
"But why us?" Charlotte asked.
The girls froze, all eyes locked on Charlotte. The glow of her eyes seemed to hold back something terrible. It disappeared as she rubbed her throat, turning her attention towards the fire in the middle of the room.
"I've noticed the same eyes consistently watching us all week," she choked out. "You can't tell me they're doing this for all the students."
Once she mentioned it, it was impossible for Oriane to not notice it. McGonagall watching her in her transformed cat state. Professor Sprout offering to walk her to the bathroom between classes. Snape's dark, beady eyes as she walked to the common room. It was then that she was painfully reminded of all the signs even before she attended Hogwarts.
The conversation between Remus and Esme. Esme's constant warnings of that dangerous criminal. How she could be targeted because of her parents. Out of the four of them, Oriane was certain they were being watched because of her.
Her suspicions would be confirmed a few days later after Remus summoned her to his office. Rain had relentlessly pelted the window of Hogwarts all week. The dark, overcast sky casted an odd grey light into Remus's office, something that was unfamiliar to see, as his room always seemed rather bright.
Yet, he sat at his desk, the circles under his eyes seemingly darker than ever.
"Ori," he greeted her with a smile, "thank you for taking the time to visit with me."
She nodded her head as she took the empty chair across from him. "Is there something you wanted to talk about?"
His smile softened at her question, only for it to be replaced with a slight grin moments later. "Am I not allowed to just have a cup of tea with my favorite student?"
Her eyebrow raised as her own smile spread across her lips. "Favorite student?" she repeated. "I didn't think professors were allowed to admit that outloud."
Remus's strong but delicate chuckle bounced off of the walls around them. It was a comforting sound for Oriane. A sound of her childhood.
"No, I don't think so either," he admitted. "Besides you were right, of course. There is something I wanted to speak to you about."
Of course there was. Though they had known each other for Oriane's whole life, they had become very busy people since being at Hogwarts. All of their interactions had been strictly school and work related for quite some time. There was no reason to interact otherwise.
"I'm going to tell you this because I feel awful for keeping it a secret but…" He swallowed. "Well, I've asked the other staff and professors to keep an eye on you."
So Charlotte was right all along. Not that Oriane had really doubted her in the first place. She had begun to take almost everything she said as truth. The girl had a strange affinity for sniffing out anything unusual.
"Really? I hadn't noticed," Oriane responded, words dripping in sarcasm. Then, in a more serious tone she asked, "It's because of Sirius Black, isn't it?"
Remus opened his mouth to speak, only to quickly shut it moments after. Then a grin formed on his lips, larger than the one before. "And here I had a whole speech ready."
She laughed nervously. "Sorry. I've had a lot of time to think about it."
"Don't worry," he said, shaking his head. "You're a bright girl. It was foolish of me to think you wouldn't catch on."
She nodded, eyes turning to look out the window for a moment. The scenery was so clouded by rain and mist it was impossible to make out the fiery orange colors of autumn that overtook the grounds. For the time being, she would have to pretend.
"Not bright enough to figure out exactly why he poses a threat to me, though," she mumbled.
"Well, your father was an Auror," Remus explained, "and both him and your mother were close followers of Dumbledore during the war-"
"And oftentimes the sins of the parent are bequeathed to the child," Oriane interrupted, finishing his statement. She finally turned away from the window, cold eyes landing back on Remus. "You sound like you're reciting from a drilling manual."
His smile faltered, but ever so slightly. "Perhaps it sounds that way because I am."
Thunder sounded, causing the windows of the room to vibrate with its force. Rain continued to relentlessly assault the castle, almost as if it attempted to drown out the sound of their conversation. But in that moment, it did nothing but fill their silence.
"Why won't anyone tell me what's actually going on here," Oriane asked, hardly above a whisper.
Remus's face seemed to age a few years at her question. The dark bags under his eyes hung heavier, his eyes lost that friendly shine. He glanced down at his hands only to glance back a moment later.
"If it were up to me, I would," he admitted carefully. "I wanted to tell you the day I gave you your letter, actually."
"I know," Oriane revealed, "I overheard the two of you talking before you left." Tears of frustration began to prick at the corners of her eyes. Anger boiled in a deep part of her chest, but it wouldn't burst. The pressure continued to build and build, yet she couldn't let it out. "She sent me here to keep me safe, didn't she? Hogwarts is supposed to be the safest place in the world, Esme said so herself. But how am I supposed to hide? How long do you expect me to run from a shadow?"
And she wanted to say more. Strings of words she had thought of for the last few months while she had been away at school. She had been starving off her anger so long it was a ravenous beast in her chest. Neglected for so long, too long, that it began to swallow her whole.
And there was Remus, sitting still, eyes adverting from meeting Oriane's until finally he caught them. They were so cold it hurt. But if he shared the truth, he knew her gaze would freeze over permanently.
"As long as I'm here, shadows are all those dangers will ever be."
"Guys, I've got bad news," Calista said in a hushed whisper.
"Speak louder, the halls are too loud to be whispering," Emerald sighed.
The four roommates walked down the packed and crowded halls of Hogwarts. An electric buzz hummed in the air as students chatted during passing period more than normal. Tomorrow Hogwarts would be hosting the first quidditch game of the season, and it was all anyone could talk about. Gryffindor vs Hufflepuff. It would have been Slytherin in place of Hufflepuff, had Draco Malfoy stopped milking the wound on his arm.
Quidditch games and whiny boys were the least of Oriane's concerns, however. For the past few days Remus's words continued to echo in her mind. It was a broken record she couldn't get rid of.
Besides, according to Calista, there were more dire things to worry about than a quidditch game anyway.
"Professor Lupin is out sick," she informed her roommates. "I overheard a few Ravenclaw's complaining about the class, which seemed super out of character and guess what… Snape is teaching it today."
"Snape?" Charlotte repeated. "You've got to be kidding me."
But she was right. As the girls entered the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom, they were greeted by a dark room, with Professor Snape's beady eyes watching their every movement. Several other students were already seated at their desks, keeping perfectly silent, and the girls decided to do the same.
No one spoke a word as they waited for the clock to tick forward until Professor Snape decided to eventually answer the unasked question that hung in the air.
"Professor Lupin says he is too ill to teach today," he spoke, with a small twisted smile on his face. "Unfortunately for me, he is quite disorganized and hasn't seemed to be following your textbook at all. So, I have taken the liberty, as I have with the other classes, to move forward onto the topic of werewolves."
Oriane wasn't surprised at Snape's actions. Rumor had it, he had been gunning for Remus's position for several years. Being a substitute for the class was giving him a crazed power trip that she unfortunately had to be a part of. So she tried to keep her head down and get the class over with as soon as possible.
"Turn to page 394," he continued.
Silence continued, where it was quickly followed by the sound of shuffling pages as the students opened their textbooks.
"This doesn't make sense," Emerald muttered under her breath.
"What was that?" Snape barked, quickly appearing in front of Oriane and Emerald's shared desk.
Emerald's eyes shifted downward, refusing to meet the wrath of Snape's glare. "Nothing sir, it's just that-"
"It's just nothing," Snape interrupted. "You will open your textbook now. And no more muttering."
Nothing. Snape was right. It was nothing. That whole class was nothing to Oriane. Not while he was teaching it. Not his lecture, not the textbook in front of her. She didn't care what the man had to say.
However she was a great pretender. She stayed silent as she used her quill to write mindless notes on whatever Snape was addressing. Just something to pass the time, that's all it was.
Until it wasn't.
Her notes, the classroom, the monotonous drone of Snape's voice; all of it vanished. Instead she was outside, the night sky shining bright above her, and a giant glowing orb dangling in the sky. She was obviously on Hogwarts grounds as the Whomping Willow, a giant sentient tree, stood tall in the background.
But what was directly in front of her was what drew her attention.
Before her stood a large, beast-like wolf with grey fur. It stood on all fours, staring directly at her, a deep growl rumbling in its throat. Its face was short, but its teeth were no less terrifying. And it's eyes; a terribly familiar green color focused right on her as it lunged forward.
"Remus!"
"What?" Oriane breathed.
Everything vanished. The wolf, the stars, and it was replaced by her notes on werewolves. She had lost control of her quill, which had fallen out of her hand, splattering ink on her parchment.
Instead of a terrible beast standing in front of her, she had a terrible professor. Snape stared down at her, dark eyes glinting in rage as he leaned forwards slightly.
"I said," Snape seethed, teeth gritted, "you will each write an essay, to be handed in to me, on the ways you recognize and kill werewolves. I want two rolls of parchment on the subject, and I want them by Monday morning." He paused for a moment, leaning away from Oriane. "Must I repeat myself a third time, Morissette?"
She stared up at the man, eyes blank as she attempted to process everything that happened. It happened again; a vision, or her spacing out. A terrible imagination playing tricks on her. Each one was proving to be more disruptive than the last. She was growing frustrated with it.
"No, sir," she said, shaking her head.
"Good," Snape said stiffly. "Class is dismissed."
Oriane quickly gathered her items off of her desk. Her notes became crumpled as she squished them between her textbook and her arm, but she didn't care. All she wanted to do was get out of that room, and so she did, leaving the rest of the students far behind her.