Chapter Twenty Three

A/N: No reviewers.

Fred looked over his shoulder, trying to be discreet enough to avoid catching Professor Wormwood's attention. He was struggling to keep up with Transfiguration enough as it was; the last thing he needed was a detention.

Selena had spent many hours over the past term tutoring him in the subject, running over the incantations with him so many times they were written on the inside of his eyelids by the time they were done. There was something about the way she explained things that made them so much easier to understand than the professor's ramblings. Unfortunately, his best friend was currently sat in the back of the classroom next to an overly proud Ravenclaw boy, seeming to do everything in her power to avoid meeting his eye.

He did not understand it. Almost a month had passed since Selena began to withdraw herself from her friends, spending her days alone in silence, in darkness. It had taken a fortnight for Teddy to gain her trust again, the two becoming inseparable almost immediately after. But no matter how times Fred tried to talk to her, Selena never lingered long enough for a conversation to start. She would look at him for a moment, the way she used to, before she would shiver and scuttle away. Fred pretended he did not recognise the look she gave him then, but it burned itself into his brain. It was fear.

'How could Lena be scared of me?' Fred asked himself, running the question over and over in his head. He thought his way through conversations and memories they had shared ever since they met, but he drew a blank. 'I thought we were friends. She's even like a sister to me, even more than Roxanne half the time. We tell each other everything, we've spent every minute together since the Sorting Hat sent us to Hufflepuff. How can that not mean anything anymore?'

By the end of the lesson, Fred was no closer to understanding, neither his friend's behaviour nor the content of the lesson. Realising contemplation would not make a difference, he decided to change course, remembering what his grandmother had taught him. If the people who care about you don't tell you the truth, the best thing you can do is ask them.

"Selena!" Fred exclaimed, as the class filed into the corridors. He did not know what possessed him to call her by her full name, something he had not done since the first day they met. Perhaps it was because the nickname was a part of their friendship; he was not confident enough to use it because he did not know it was right.

He had expected her to keep walking, to ignore him and run away, but she turned to face him without a moment's hesitation. Fred did not meet her eye, too frightened to see the distance reflected in them.

"What do you want, Fred?" she asked. Her voice was not as frustrated as he had expected, nor the friendly calm there had once been between them. There was no emotion in her voice at all.

"I want to know why you're avoiding me." Fred stated back, trying to remember his grandmother's words. "You haven't spoken to me properly in ages. Why?"

"You're being silly." she told him, an edge creeping into her voice.

"No, I'm not." Fred bit back. "Every time I've tried to talk to you for the last month, you've either walked away or ignored me completely! You can't deny that, Selena, you know it's true."

To her credit, she did not try to deny it, instead pushing her hands into the pockets of her robes, swinging forward onto the balls of her feet and back again. There were all familiar gestures to Fred, indicators of nerves or boredom. But it was not the familiarity he had wanted.

Out of the corner of his eye, Fred saw the Gryffindors retreating down the staircase from their classroom. He arched his hands around his mouth and hollered across the corridor. "Teddy!"

"Fred, don't!" Lena chastised, but it was too late. Her brother was already making his way towards them, a judgemental look in his eye. He did not waste any time with greetings, turning straight to his sister.

"You haven't told him." Teddy blurted, much more a statement than a question, though Lena still answered it with a shrug. "Lena, I've told you a thousand times-"

"I don't care, Teddy!" she cut him off, her eyes flitting between her brother and her friend. She looked like a wounded animal caught in a trap, waiting for the hunters to fire the last shot. It was the same look she had given Fred for weeks. The smallest of weights lifted from his shoulders; perhaps it was not his fault after all. "I can't tell him."

"Yes, you can." Fred contradicted. "No matter what it is, it's not going to make a difference. I'm not going to abandon being friends with you, I care about you too much."

It was almost an echo of Teddy's words just a fortnight ago, the words that had cut through the fog of despair and allowed her to see clearly at last. Perhaps that was what allowed Selena to summon the strength to speak.

"I'm a werewolf." She realised in hindsight she could have phrased it better, allowed Fred a little more time to prepare before she crushed him with the weight of her revelation. Breathing heavily, the girl looked to her brother, his encouraging smile giving her hope.

She wished she had never looked back, because all she saw when she did was an empty space where Fred had stood, the sound of the rapid footsteps echoing off the walls. Selena stood frozen in shock, then her shoulders heaved with a dry sob. The blow was so great she could not even find the tears to cry.

Teddy was speaking now, his hand comforting on her arm, assuring her that is was just a shock, that he would come round. But she was not listening anymore. All this time, Lena had thought the greatest nightmare was discovering the truth about herself. She had been such a fool. It did not matter what the truth was, so long as those she loved continued to love her despite it. She had been so sure that Fred would love her all the same.

She was wrong.

A/N: I know he was mean, but they're eleven! It'll all get worked out soon, promise! Please review!