Y6: Dreams of Black
She stood in the dark corridor, deep into the shadows. Emmeline was used to hiding now; though it still felt like an enemy to her.
Classes had let out hours ago but she still wore her uniform rather than clothes she could relax in. She knew that if they were ever caught after hours; it would be easier to claim they were doing something school related and get away with it.
"Em," she heard him whisper and she smiled slightly as she stepped out of the shadows.
"Tobias," she said as she slowly walked to him.
He took her hand gently and guided her into a broom closet nearby. He put on some lights so he could see her properly.
"How are you?" he said looking away a bit uneasy.
"I'm fine, I guess," she eyed him carefully unsure why he would ask such a question, "what's wrong?"
He didn't look at her as he slowly said, "I've heard some whispers is all."
"Whispers of what?" Emmeline tensed at his words knowing what was coming.
It would be about Cara. And her escape, a lot of people saw her in the Hospital Wing after the… the attack in Hogsmeade.
"Remus," he said darkly.
Taken by surprise, she whispered back to him, "Remus?"
He snapped his eyes to hers. They didn't match his saddened voice, they were angry and full of disgust.
"Do you honestly not know what's been said about you two?" he spat at her as he took a step back.
She racked her brain, but no she hadn't heard any rumors, "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Do not lie to me," he began to raise his voice, "everyone knows that he fancies you!"
"Fancies me?" she almost laughed, "what the bloody hell are you talking about, Tobi—" but then she remembered. She had kissed him… on Halloween…. At the party. She said hurriedly and desperately, "I was drunk! Tobias, I swear it was nothing."
She reached out for him but he slapped her arm away. She recoiled pained by his touch.
"But you didn't tell me!"
"Well, I—" she searched for words… excuses… anything, "I had a really rough time after that! We were attacked if you don't remember! And it was honestly a drunk mistake! I didn't think it was serious because I don't have feelings for him! I love you!"
In one quick slap, Emmeline fell to the ground knocking over whatever she had been standing by. She was taken by surprise and hadn't even truly registered the pain of his blow as she stood back up to look at him.
"Don't you dare say those words to me!" he screamed to her, "You don't lie to the one you love!"
Emmeline glared at him, "And you don't hit them either!"
So he pushed her instead, "You're a bloody slut you know that! An ugly little slag!"
Emmeline began to pull herself back up but another fist to the side of her head knocked her back down. She whipped out her wand as her eyes spun.
His hands were in the air though he glared at her harshly.
Slow and weak was Emmeline as she stood. The room was spinning but she leaned for the door. She opened it up and he watched her go out spitting on her.
She ran down the corridor and he didn't follow. Running was hard in her state. After climbing one set of stairs, she clattered to the ground. Her stomach heaved and out came her dinner.
Hot tears were falling from her face as her throat opened and closed; her stomach nonstop churning.
As weak as she felt, Emmeline stood on her wobbly legs. Taking one step at a time, she tried to make it through the next corridor; but there was still a number of staircases she'd have to take before getting to the Gryffindor Tower.
Her head felt like it was going to crack open and her eyes wanted to fall out. She was having trouble breathing, that however may have had to do with more of her emotions of what had just played out rather than possibly having a concussion.
That's when she heard the footsteps from down the corridor where she had just come. They began to pick up speed as they came closer and Emmeline tried to move quicker too.
She knew it was going to be him, Tobias. And she couldn't take more of his wrath; she wasn't strong enough at the moment.
But she couldn't keep at this pace when she felt like she might… she might… her feet came from underneath her. Her head hit against the wall pushing her to fall back into a cranny. Her vision went from blurry to black. Her breathing was light; she had passed out.
Remus turned the corner continuing his run. Something wasn't right in the castle. He had heard yelling earlier and then came across some… well, some puke… he had heard soft footsteps so he had started to run stopping at every corridor to hear them.
When the corridor he was in split in two, he slowed his pace and listened. But there were no soft steps any longer. Either he lost the person, or something awful had happened.
He examined both hallways. One would take him back to the moving staircases, the other leads to Gryffindor tower. If the person had run down the first corridor, then he already lost him. However, if the person had gone towards Gryffindor tower, then Remus could still catch them.
So Remus headed towards Gryffindor tower. He turned at the end of the corridor; this corridor was slightly darker than the last, he picked up his pace. He was coming near a stair case when his foot snagged on something. Remus threw out his hands as he fell to stop from hitting it hard.
"Oedipus," Remus said as he rolled over rubbing his knees.
You see, Remus Lupin wasn't much into using swear words like his friends. So he found other ways to say the same thing. For example, when Remus says Oedipus what he is really saying is… well, he's basically saying mother fucker…. But in a much nicer way.
He could feel the bruise forming on his right knee where it had slammed into the ground. He was in a crouched position about to stand up when he saw what had caught up his feet. It was… a leg?
Nervously Remus touched the leg, just a quick poke to see if the person would react. But it didn't of course. Remus slowly crawled towards the leg and watched as it connected to a hip… then the torso… then a neck with arms flailed about the head. He shook the person.
"Erm—excuse me?" he said as he shook what was definitely a girl's hip.
But whoever she was, she did not respond.
Sighing, Remus pulled out the girl's limp body. He knew before he had even pulled her hands from her face that it had to be Emmeline. He knew from her Gryffindor tie and her very short hair.
"Em?" Remus said shaking her shoulder.
Slowly her head rolled to the side and her eyes fluttered open.
Weakly, she whispered something that sounded like a plea, "No, Tobe-ya… no."
Remus had no idea what she was on about so he swooped her up in his arms and headed for the Hospital Wing.
He had seen Emmeline in bad states before; she always seemed to be getting herself in to bad situations. In a way, Remus wasn't so worried. It was as if he was slightly irritated and annoyed with her. Why does she do things to herself? Why can't she just walk away from bad situations?
But at the same time, every time he peered down at her, he was anxious to get her all better.
"Remus?" Emmeline whispered as she became conscious, "where—where are we going?"
"The Hospital Wing," he kept his eyes straight ahead.
She pushed against him whining, "No, no we can't. Just—I'll just go to my room and lay down."
He rolled his eyes as he looked hard at her, "Emmeline, you need a nurse. You've bruised up half of your face."
"I can—I can get a tonic in the morning," she begged, "please I can't go in there."
He looked at her funny, "Why? Why can't you go in there?"
She stopped pushing on his and lay still in his arms, "I'll tell you later. But please don't take me there."
"I have to Em," he sighed knowing she'd be upset.
But he hadn't expected her to yell, "No! No! I can't!"
She tried to break from his grip as he came to a halt fighting with her limbs as the flung themselves at his face.
"Emmeline!" he yelled to her, "Stop it! Stop. It."
"I can't go," she was crying as she weakly punched his shoulder.
"Tell me why and I won't make you," he said as he placed her back on the ground and knelt beside her.
She was crying heavily as she covered her face, "I c-c-can't!"
"Sssh Em," he pulled her into a hug and she didn't resist. He placed her his lap and rubbed her back as she soaked his shoulder.
He hated seeing her cry, but it seemed to be the only way they communicated over the past few years. There was something severely wrong with this girl. And Remus never understood why she did things that would put her in such a bad way. Sometimes he figured, she did it on purpose. Most times, he thought himself stupid for ever thinking anyone would do that to themselves.
But Emmeline wasn't just anyone, Remus knew that. She was very different from the world. Emmy did stupid things all the time but there was always something underneath all that. She always did something stupid because she was feeling desperate for something. It was what that something was that Remus could never figure out.
He picked her back up as she continued crying and turned back to where he had just come. Remus would do as she asked even though he didn't think it was best for her. He would take her back to Gryffindor tower.
When he got to the Fat Lady, she peered at him annoyed.
"What are you doing out so late?" the woman sneered, "And what's wrong with her?!"
"I'm a prefect," he said clearly irritated, "and it's none of your business. Frolicking Trollop!"
The Fat Lady huffed as she swung open the portrait hole.
Remus carried Emmeline into the Common Room and up the boys' staircase. He struggled to open the door but she had calmed down a great deal. Remus carried her into the door and Sirius looked up from his bed. He gave Remus a nod and tossed a pillow down to him knowing the Emmeline-sleep-over routine. Remus laid Emmeline on his bed and pulled the blankets around her. She turned away from him as she quietly cried.
He rubbed her shoulder then left and picked up the pillow Sirius had given him. He placed it on the floor by his bed and grabbed James' blanket as he never used it anyway. He laid on his back looking up at the ceiling.
He peered at it for half of an hour before finally sitting up. Emmeline, Sirius, and the other two were fast asleep now. But Remus was still wide awake.
What happened to Em? Why won't she tell me now? Why do I have to wait? Do I tell her that she needs to stop with these antics? Or do I just be the comforting friend I've been for the last few years? Why do I let her do this? What's he rhold over me?!
He stood up knowing he wouldn't be going to sleep anytime soon without a sleeping draught.
So he went to the Hospital Wing figuring he'd steal a few tonics for Emmeline when she woke in the morning. He disturbed the Fat Lady and she cursed after him as he jogged down the corridor.
In a few minutes, he was in the Hospital Wings. The big lights were off, there were only a few balls of light floating about the place, incredibly dim. Remus made his way towards the back where the potions were kept trying to be as quiet as possible. He didn't want to have to deal with a sleepy Madam Pomfrey.
He was fumbling with a tonic that would heal bruises for Emmeline when he heard the yelling. He whipped around and ran back to the open. It was Cara! He was sprinting to her bed when he heard Madam Pomfrey come bustling from her rooms.
"For the love of Merlin!" she was whining.
Remus slipped into a bed and closed the curtains around it. He peered out as he watched Pomfrey throw open Cara's covers. Cara looked frantic; she was crying and muttering to herself.
Pomfrey held out her wand and Cara was pleading with her.
"Please! No!" she cried, then whispered so Remus could barely make out her words, "I remember, I remember."
Pomfrey was moving her wand and Cara was falling back to her bed slowly. She was still crying and muttering.
Remus strained to hear her words, "Worthington. Worthington. And Black."
Those were the last words she said before she fell back into a deep sleep. Pomfrey bustled out of Cara's spot annoyed. She went back to her rooms and Remus slipped back into the room. He walked over to Cara.
Her hair was swept around her face haphazardly. Remus pulled it back. Cara had tears that streaked her face and he wiped them away.
"Worthington and Black?" he asked her.
But she was dead asleep, she probably wouldn't remember what she had said in the morning but he knew it was important.
He kissed her forehead, "G'night, Cara."
He swept out of the Hospital Wing with three potions; a sleeping draught for himself, a bruise away tonic and a head ache tonic for Emmeline.
When he was back in his room her placed Emmeline's by the bed and took a swig of his. He fell back on to the floor resting his head on Sirius' pillow. He slept. And dreamed of nothing but blackness.