Strangeways, Here We Come

Discoveries…

Throughout the years he had spent a lot of time trying to convince himself that people cared about him, despite his status as a dark creature. His heart knew that Sirius, the Weasleys and Harry were like family and wouldn't abandon him, but practically a whole lifetime as a werewolf had exposed him to so much prejudice and bigotry that sometimes he found himself utterly surprised when people stood by him.

He was far more used to reactions of fear and disgust – and he was ashamed to say that at first he thought Nymphadora would be lumped in with that group. It was nothing specific to her, of course – it was just that throughout his life a precedent had been set. However, after he was exposed to her sunny disposition and open attitude more he found that sort of outcome increasingly unlikely.

Still, he had hoped to have more time with her before she found out about his furry little problem – that would let her see he really was just a mild-mannered gentleman, one completely different from most werewolf stereotypes. Unfortunately, things hardly ever worked out the way he wished them to.

When the full moon rolled around he locked himself into the heavily warded library. Sirius was downstairs entertaining the Weasleys, and had insisted that if he wasn't going to be there to keep Moony company then he should at least be comfortable. Yes, the library with its roaring fireplace and plush rugs would be cosier than the cold and draughty attic, but Remus worried that people would be more liable to walk in.

"You worry too much," Sirius had scoffed. "You've taken your Wolfsbane, so it doesn't really matter, does it? Besides, everybody knows better than to go in there."

Yes, everybody did know… Except Nymphadora, who came to the house after her guard shift that night. When he heard somebody attempting to open the door, his head shot up from where he'd curled up beside the fire. His heightened senses picked up her scent (an intriguing blend of citrus and cinnamon), and his heart sunk. He would have welcomed anybody but her!

"Bloody hell, who locked this door?" he made out her grumble, before she performed a series of counter-spells to open it. He should have known that a few simple wards wouldn't keep out an Auror… And now it was only a matter of seconds until she found out what he was.

He warily watched her stumble inside, a bit of cocoa sloshing over the side of the mug she held before she dropped onto the settee. Without a further glance about the room, she pulled out a book and began to read.

She hadn't noticed him? He briefly contemplated sneaking over and hiding behind the furniture, but the next second she looked up and her eyes (currently blue) met his amber ones.

There it was – the dropping of a jaw, the sharp intake of breath. He expected her to run screaming from the room any second now. Or perhaps worse, pretend that everything was fine but then slowly start to distance herself from him.

To his complete and utter surprise, she only quirked an eyebrow in curiosity. "Remus?" she asked, and not even in a horrified way. He wondered how she knew it was him, but then the witch exclaimed, "Oh bugger, I can't believe I forgot it was a full moon tonight!"

She had been aware of what he was? But she hadn't breathed a word! Now his jaw was the one to drop. Still, that didn't necessarily mean anything – he was still fatalistically anticipating shrieks of terror, but she only grinned sheepishly. "Sorry for interrupting. I just wanted to read in front of the fire… Mind if I join you?"

He blinked. Did she really just ask that? It took a few moments to sink in, but he eventually managed to shake his head. Frankly, he was too surprised to do anything else – this sort of scenario was entirely new to him.

"Lovely!" she chirped, tripping on her way over to plop down right beside him. As if that wasn't enough of a shock, she absentmindedly began stroking behind his ears while chattering away about her day.

The pleasure resulting from her rubbing fingers chased all rational thought from his mind, but he still managed to come to a realization. It was funny, he reflected; he spent so much time trying to convince himself that people cared, yet it was somebody not caring that made all the difference.

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Toodles,
- ish -