Hey! So I got a little carried away with this chapter. I could have easily split it in two chapters, but I kind of realised that after it was done. Hope you like it!

-5-

Animal Instincts

Remus Lupin was an accomplished liar.

Although according to his friends, who could go on and on about how they read him like an open book, that statement was highly disputable. He had been told his poker face was absolute crap and, to be frank, except on occasions when his life depended on it, the werewolf was incapable of misleading anyone. He simply found it much easier to hide behind some textbook or another than to try and school his features into a blank mask like Sirius could so effortlessly do.

However, true masters of deceit are not defined by the way they deceive others but by their ability to fool themselves. When it came down to this, Remus was gifted with unequalled talent. He lied to himself on a regular basis after all, little white lies that kept him going through the day. He kept on repeating the same words until he was convinced of their truth.

"I'm fine."

"It doesn't hurt."

This was a routine he was accustomed to, having been bitten at age four, the boy had a lot of practice at faking to be alright even though he was not. At first, he had done so to appease his parents who felt incredibly guilty, particularly his father, Lyall Lupin, who had been denouncing Fenrir Greyback's barbaric acts publicly for weeks before the monster launched his attack on his son. After a while though, the werewolf had come to realise that he felt relief at the comfort, no matter how small, those familiar words provided. There was not any real meaning behind the reassurances, nothing could take away the pain, and he knew that. However, constancy was something that was severely lacking in Remus' life, what with his condition and the atrocious transformations which came with it, and hearing someone, even though it was himself, tell him he was going to be okay was strangely soothing.

Things were easier since he came to Hogwarts. For the first time in his life, Remus had a purpose, something to strive for and that, finally gave him hope that his lycanthropy was not the only thing the world would remember him for. Remus was ready to do anything, going as far as working himself close to exhaustion, if it meant he got to be something else than a monster before he died.

Somehow, Remus had gotten into his head that if he graduated as one of the top students he might get a chance at a more brilliant future than the one he was destined to. It was a foolish dream, and yet, Remus couldn't help but to hold on desperately to it. How could he not? Remus, albeit relatively humble, was a proud man and, therefore, could not resign himself to a life of misery and self-loathing. He knew he could become more than an unemployed social pariah. Giving up now would be the death of him.

And so, against all reason, Remus studied, working his ass off to prove to himself he deserved to attend Hogwarts; that he was worthy of the trust Dumbledore had shown him by accepting him as a pupil. Unlike James and Sirius, whose brains simply soaked up spells and jinxes like sponges absorb water, Remus had to stay up late on most nights, sitting at a desk in the confines of the library, surrounded by tottering stacks of books. It did not bother him though, wearing his eyes out on textbooks written centuries ago was always better than what was waiting for him elsewhere.

It didn't matter if people thought of him as a goody-two-shoes, keeping his mind busy was all he could do, not to let his disease take over his life. Being inherently anxious though, there were nights when, laying wide awake in his bed with nothing to distract him from his dark thoughts except for Peter's loud snoring, Remus was submerged by panic. The day's pretenses dropped with the dying light of the sun and Remus could not help but despair.

He was aware Hogwarts was a safe haven, people out there were not as understanding as Dumbledore and healers were not as compassionate as Madam Pomfrey. On the rare occasions when his condition had been revealed to strangers, the response had been quick and harsh. Remus doubted people's hate of werewolves was going to change anytime soon, especially these days. Rumours were that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named was recruiting amongst werewolves, promising them a better fate than what society could offer, which was not much. Deep in his heart, Remus knew his relatively worriless days would end the second he stepped out the door of Hogwarts and this, no matter how much he fought for it not to happen.

These were the fears that plagued Remus' nights and that he tried so hard to evade during the day. Being rejected for something he had no control over was agonizing and it ate away at him. More often than not, Remus would be able to calm himself enough to fall asleep. Sometimes though, his heartbeats, drumming painful against his ribcage, would keep him awake while chills ran down his back and his breathing got ragged.

This first time it happened at Hogwarts, Remus was distraught, his mother was usually the one to sooth him back to sleep. Alone on his bed with the curtains drawn, Remus had started hyperventilating, he was far from home and nobody was there to embrace him when he needed it. He was feeling downright miserable until someone had quietly poked his head through the scarlet curtains and then sat on the edge of his four-poster bed.

"Remus?" had come the small voice of James Potter from within the darkness. "You alright?"

Remus didn't have a clue about how the boy had figured out he needed help but he was grateful he had. James Potter had given Remus the impression, when he met him on the train that same day, of being quite spoiled and obnoxious, but there was apparently much more to him. The eleven year-old boy, his hair dishevelled and his eyes barely opened, had somehow known what to do when he did not get an answer from the young werewolf, leading Remus to the Common Room, he had made him sit in front of the dying fire and had taken place beside him, his shoulder touching his.

Remus had eventually calmed down and, as the two teens had returned to their dormitory, the werewolf thought that, as long as his secret was kept safe, maybe making friends with someone like James Potter would make his life at Hogwarts much easier and fun. He had been right of course. Stepping out of his comfort zone and breaking out of the shell he had retreated into since the day Fenrir Greyback had crossed paths with him was totally worth it, especially since, through James, Remus befriended Sirius and Peter.

Being part of a group that acknowledged him and accepted him as part of their own was liberating. Remus could not believe his luck, things like this habitually did not happen to him. Such happiness was reserved to others, people unstained by hatred. Years later, well after his friends had discovered his lycanthropy and had confronted him about it, Remus was still quite bewildered. He had friends. People actually cared.

Knowing he was not so alone anymore was amazing but it did not make his anxiety disappear and every few weeks or so, James, in an attempt at shaking Remus from his panic-induced state, would get up, grab him by the collar and drag him down to the kitchens to have a hot chocolate. Remus still had not figured out how James could possibly guess when he was silently freaking out, but the bespectacled boy always did and he never talked about it when morning came, which was a blessing in the werewolf's eyes.

Finding people that were ready to become animagi for you was not something that occurred every day and Remus was careful not to ever take the Marauders for granted. He would go through thick and thin for them without a second of hesitation.

This being said, Sirius, James and Peter were not perfect and could act like dumbasses from time to time, especially when Slytherins or girls were involved. Since Amelia Deauclair was a girl and a Slytherin, she could only mean trouble. Well, the witch was not a Slytherin per se, not for a lack of trying, but she was still a haughty pureblood and Remus knew from the dark expression on James' face that things were just about to turn ugly.

After he was done with his Prefect's duty for the night, which consisted of leading the first years to their dormitories, Remus had joined the rest of the Marauders as they lounged on the couches that faced the hearth. The atmosphere in the Common room, habitually joyful, was heavy and it did not take a genius to guess why. What had happened during the Sorting was obviously still in everyone's heads. Gryffindors were sociable people by nature and to have someone reject them so thoroughly was not something they were accustomed to. Remus was also shaken, after all it was not every day that a girl challenged the Hat's and the headmaster's decision, but, unlike his friends, he was used to strangers looking down their nose at him.

Noise was then heard from outside the portrait hole and a few seconds later, the picture of the Fat Lady swung opened. Amelia strolled into the Common Room, looking distracted. Remus raised his eyebrows in surprise, the young witch had remained behind with the Slytherins after the end of the Welcoming Feast and the werewolf was pretty sure no one had bothered to tell her where the Gryffindor Common Room was. Her finding her way around the castle was quite a miracle in itself but how she had managed to bypass the portrait without knowing the password. That was a real mystery.

The second she set a foot into the room, Amelia was the center of attention. After taking a few steps in, she seemed to realize that all eyes were on her and that around a dozen of teens or so had risen from their seats and were slowly making their way to her, blocking the staircase that led to the girls' dormitories.

"Oi Deauclair!" called James from the armchair he was sitting in. The boy's face was relatively calm but Remus could see the storm raging in his eyes, James was preparing for battle. He got up and joined the crowd now gathered around Amelia, Peter following closely behind. Remus casted a glance at Sirius, who was still blankly watching the fire, and hesitantly got to his feet. Might as well try to contain the damage.

Amelia scanned the faces of the people surrounding her until her gaze found James'. She smiled lazily. "What is this? Am I about to get mugged?"

A dangerous smirk appeared on James' features. Remus almost groaned. This was not good, this was not good at all. James was pretty laid-back but if you angered him well enough, he reached a point where his usual morals did not apply anymore and he turned real nasty. Do not poke a sleeping dragon, they say. Looking at the Gryffindors now, Remus was reminded more of a pack of wolves than a pride of lions.

"Oh nothing like that. Don't worry. I just fancy a little chat with you." said James, his voice so sweet that Moony felt his insides squirm in discomfort.

"A chat?" asked Amelia gesturing mockingly to all the onlookers. Clearly she thought their attempt at being intimidating made this encounter something more than a friendly conversation. Remus could not really blame her. In the back of his mind, a little voice was screaming at him to put an end to this masquerade before it got out of hands, this was his duty as a prefect, it was what was right. However, when Amelia's eyes bored into his, a spark of recognition lighting her gaze, Remus looked away. She was the one who had started it. She had almost asked for it. She should be the one dealing with the turmoil she had created. Right?

"And who demands to have a word with me, may I ask?" continued the girl.

"Potter. James Potter." supplied Prongs.

"Ah yes, Dorea Potter's son. I remember meeting you at the ball Mr. Malfoy held this summer." said Amelia, looking expectantly at James. The boy, though, refused to acknowledge her attempt at reaching out to him and remained silent. Amelia took the hint. "What is it that you want to talk about, Mr. Potter?"

James squared his shoulders. "I'd like you to explain why you seemed so adamant in your refusal of your sorting in Gryffindor."

"Yes, I think we would all like to know." added a new voice. Startled, Remus turned to his right. Sirius had, at some point, risen from his spot in front of the fire and joined the party. Remus, although he was glad his friend had shaken himself out of his catatonic state, was not sure this was for the best. If James could be impulsive, Sirius was certainly ten times worst.

Amelia's eyes, upon seeing Padfoot, widened slightly but she recovered fast enough. "Well, Black I would say this comes as a surprise but I probably should have expected this." she said. She then turned back to James. "You obviously took my reaction in the Hall the wrong way, Mr. Potter. It was not my intention to offend the Gryffindor House. I simply wanted to communicate to Headmaster Dumbledore my wish to be sorted into the Slytherin House and nowhere else. You should not have taken my statement as a personal insult."

Bursting into laughter, James turned to the Gryffindors that stood all around them. "Hey guys. Did you hear the missy over here? She basically spat at our feet and begged to be sorted into another house, but that's okay, we're the ones who are making a big deal out of this. Why don't we all stop overreacting, eh?" exclaimed James condescendingly. Nudging Sirius' arm he added "Padfoot, mate, that girl is hilarious, is she not?"

"Quite." replied Sirius dark eyes fixed on Amelia.

James, dropping the cheerful act at once, faced Amelia. "So Deauclair, enlighten me, what do the Slytherins have that we don't?"

Amelia had been watching James do his little show impassively until now but, suddenly, her face broke into a mean smile. Shit was going to go down. "Well, I think it's quite obvious Potter."

"I want to hear it from your lips."

"Fine. I wanted to be sorted with the Slytherins since, apparently, that's where all purebloods go. Well all the ones that matter, that is." added Amelia meeting Sirius' glare.

"What? You're afraid being in presence of muggleborns and blood traitors is going to contaminate you?" snarled Padfoot.

"You are making hasty assumptions yet again." replied Amelia in a flash. "I have been introduced to many people during the summer and they all happened to be nobles. They represent known territory for me. We are all looking for the sense of security that comes with familiarity Black, it is the nature of mankind."

"That's bullshit." scoffed Sirius rolling his eyes at her.

"Really. Well, let me demonstrate then." Huffing, Amelia turned away from Sirius and addressed James. "Tell me Potter. Your family is all in Gryffindor, yes?" Taking Prongs' silence and the deep scowl that appear on his face as a sign of acknowledgment, she carried on. "It has been drilled into your mind since you were a boy that you would find a new home in the Gryffindor House, has it not? Pray tell, what would you have done if the Hat had sorted you in, say... Hufflepuff, instead of sending you with the lions?"

"I certainly would have been disappointed but I still would have learned to know my comrades." said James defiantly. Remus had noticed his slight hesitation though and therefore he had no doubt Amelia had spotted it as well.

The witch threw her head back and laughed. Her laugh was cold, humorless and it chilled Remus to the core.

"Potter if you are going to lie to me at least try and be convincing."

James was unsettled, this confrontation was going awry. James was used to having the upper hand in these altercations and right now, Amelia was leading him by the nose. "Our situations are different. Your parents were not students here, they didn't have expectations as to which house you would end up in."

It was obvious James was grasping at straws and had started talking without thinking. Remus knew as soon as those words left James' mouth that they were inaccurate and he was sure Prongs was aware of this as well. The werewolf did not know much about Purebloods but, if Sirius' family had taught him anything it was that nobles always had high expectations for their children.

Raising one delicate eyebrow, Amelia stared at James in a way that suggested she could not imagine he was being that stupid. "No expectations? Really, Potter? I do not know how your parents raised you, but mine always taught me to keep within my own kind." drawled the girl. If the coldness in her voice was anything to go by, James had just crossed the line.

"By your kind you mean narrow-minded bigots, I suppose? Obviously, my parents aren't prejudiced purists like yours! They understand that the value of a wizard can't be found in his blood but in the force of his character. They know that two individuals don't need to come from the same background to be friends." James told her hotly, fists balled.

"Friends?" asked Amelia with a smirk. "Oh, you poor naive little thing. I did not come here expecting to make friends, dear. I don't need friends. What I need and expect from people is respect, something you seem incapable of."

"Respect is earned." declared James standing tall in front of the witch.

Amelia's face softened for a fraction of a second. "Maybe in your world Potter, but not in mine."

"That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard." snarled James with conviction. "Respect given to you for anything else than your actions isn't worth crap."

Amelia's eyes flashed dangerously. "Fine. I will humor you." she snapped. "Tell me, what have you lot done so far that could have inspired respect on my part? Let's have a look at Gryffindor's virtues." Amelia paused and raised a finger. "Noblest of the heart." Two fingers in the air. "Courage." The girl took the time to survey the crowd disdainfully. "Well yes, I certainly have been served." She turned on herself and pointed to various teens as if counting the people present in her head. "About... twenty against one. That's perfectly chivalrous. Maybe as much as letting it happen." Her eyes found Remus and she glared at him haughtily. The boy felt himself flinch.

"Correct me if I'm mistaken but, knowing something to be wrong and not acting on it because one is too afraid of the consequences, that's the definition of cowardice, is it not? In terms of bravery, I have seen better." continued Amelia still pining Remus with her stare. The werewolf's cheeks were red with embarrassment. Unable to defend himself against the accusations blatantly directed at him and he immersed himself in the contemplation of his shoes. She was right. He had told him himself he was a prefect and that she was to come to him if she required help. It did not matter who she was or what she had done to deserve this, it was his duty to avoid these kinds of situations.

Unfazed by James' reddening face, Amelia went on with her tirade. "Let's not even talk about arrogance because that, that I've seen plenty tonight. All in all, Gryffindors seem to be all talk and no trousers." spat Amelia. "After all this, can you really blame me for not wanting to be sorted with you lot?"

Anger reaching its peak, James drew his wand. The silence grew deadly.

"Mate, don't do this." warned Padfoot as Remus called James' name in alarm. "That's exactly what she wants."

Padfoot was not mistaken, there was a weird glint in Amelia's eyes. Attacking her while she was defenceless would put James in an extremely tricky situation. If he won the duel, people would think he was a coward, and violent at that. If he somehow lost, the whole school would know by morning that he had been defeated by a weaponless girl and he would become the laughing stock of the entire faculty. Either way, cursing her now, even though she was being more than infuriating, was not an option.

"Stay out of this Black. I think your friend is old enough to make his own decisions." said Amelia suavely without looking at Sirius. "So what is it going to be, Potter?"

Amelia closed the distance between James and her in two strides. She stood so close from the boy that the tip of his wand almost touched her forehead.

Time stilled while everyone held their breath. Then...

"What on earth is going on around here?"

Sprinting down the girls' staircase was one enraged looking Lily Evans. Face as red as her hair, she started to elbow her way through the crowd and, within seconds, she was by Amelia's side, hands on her hips. "Care to explain this mess, Potter?!"

James went to open his mouth but before he could make a sound, Lily had already interrupted him. "I was gone for fifteen minutes. Fifteen! All I wanted was to make sure the first years were settled well and then go back to bed. Imagine my surprise, Potter, when I stepped out of their dormitory only to hear raised voices coming from downstairs." said the redhead in a low tone that betrayed her frustration. One thing to know about Lily was that it took a lot to spark her ire, but when someone succeeded, mainly James, her temper was quite volatile.

"Merlin Lily! You know she's the one that started it. All she's done all night is to insult us! You didn't hear the things she just said. Girl or not, she deserved to be hexed." exploded James.

"By Morgana! Stop being such a drama queen, Potter. You practically begged me to make this personal." sneered Amelia.

"I do not want to know who's at fault here. I want this insanity to stop. Now." Lily stated while rubbing her temples. Looking up at the onlookers, she dispersed them with a glare. She then cocked her head at Amelia. "Well, Miss Deauclair, for someone who just made it here, you instilled quite the reaction. You sure know how to make an entrance."

Advancing on Amelia, she offered her a hand. Behind Lily, James' eyes seemed about to pop out of their sockets. "I'm Lily Evans. Gryffindor prefect. And muggleborn." added Lily with an afterthought. Remus had known Lily long enough to recognize this was a test, the redhead always made her own opinions on people and always gave them the benefit of the doubt.

After a moment of consideration, Amelia, amused, copied Lily's particular way of presenting herself. "Amelia Deauclair, heiress of the Deauclair House. Pureblood. But that goes without saying."

Then, to the Marauders astonishment, she shook Lily's hand. A little satisfied smile appeared on Lily's face. "Well, you will be sharing a dormitory with me. The other sixth years girls already hit the sack so I'll show you your bed. You must be exhausted."

"Indeed."

And with that, they were gone. The Marauders stayed rooted on the spot for a long minute, dumbstruck.

"Well, that settles it." said James. "I'll never understand birds." More silence followed.

"Let's go to bed. I'm beat." sighed Peter finally.

They climbed the stairs that led to their dormitory and once inside the familiar room, Sirius made a beeline for his bed, closing the curtains around him without a word.

Seeing James' distraught expression, Remus patted him on the back comfortingly. "Don't worry Prongs. He'll get over it soon enough." said the werewolf half-convinced by his own words.

James nodded distractively and changed into his pyjamas, still looking quite worried. Remus threw himself on his bed without bothering to undress. Soon, Peter loud snores could be heard. And Remus was still staring at the canopy of his bed.

"Come on Moony. Wake up. We're going to be late for class." whispered a voice in Remus' ear, slowly shaking him from his slumber.

"What day is this?" asked the werewolf, head buried deep into his pillow.

"Wednesday." supplied James.

"Fucking hate Wednesdays."

"Good thing it's Friday then." deadpanned the bespectacled boy.

Remus extracted his face from his bed long enough to shoot a glare at his friend. "Bloody hilarious, Prongs."

Attempting to block out James' loud laughter, Remus pulled the covers over his head. However, he soon accepted defeat and slowly sat up in his bed. He watched dazedly as Prongs coaxed Peter out of bed by bribing him with bacon before bending over the lump that currently was Sirius Black. Blinking back sleep, Remus went in search of clean boxers to wear. He heard a yelp in the background and knew without turning that Sirius was now drenched in water and throwing daggers with his eyes at a cackling James.

"Shower's mine!" called Remus making his way to the bathroom before anyone could stop him.

"Argh, Moons! Don't be an arse! You always take forever in there!" yelled Padfoot moodily.

"Like I care this early in the morning." thought Remus flipping Sirius the bird over his shoulder.

Once the four of them were ready, "Moony, I swear to Merlin, if you don't come out now, I'm blasting the door off its hinges!" and fully awake "Just try it and I'll bite your head off, you sod!" they made their way to the Great Hall, where McGonagall gave them their schedules.

"Aw man, we got Potions first thing in the morning." groaned James.

"I don't." piped up Peter, mouth full of eggs.

"Shut up Wormtail." mumbled Prongs with squinted eyes that clearly did not intimidate Peter. The boy simply smirked and continued to stuff his face.

The Marauders parted ways and, as James, Sirius and he went down to the dungeons, Remus' heart started to fill with dread. He sincerely wished he could afford not attending Potions class, he was real rubbish at it. Unfortunately, the remedies he required to treat the injuries caused by his condition were not cheap nor easily made so he had no choice but to be competent enough to brew them himself. He simply hoped this year was not going as much as a disaster as his fifth. He was not entirely sure Slughorn had yet forgiven him for filling his classroom with toxic gases by the end of the previous semester.

The door to Slughorn's domain was in view when suddenly Sirius slammed his books out of his hands and sprinted to class, James in tow.

"That's for hogging all the hot water, you dimwit!"

Grumbling under his breath, Remus picked up his belongings and followed his friends, albeit at a more reasonable pace. As he entered the room, Remus' eyes travelled the length of it and quickly found his friends, who were sitting in the back looking quite pleased with themselves. Since this was advanced Potions the group was considerably smaller than the year before and was made up of all Houses safe from Hufflepuff. Only students whose score had been sufficient on their O.W.L.S were present. Frankly, the only reason Remus was standing there was because of Sirius' help. When he was not busy throwing random ingredients in other people's cauldrons, Sirius was a pretty decent potion brewer.

The second thing Remus noticed was that Lily had chosen a seat beside the Ravenclaw prefect instead of pairing up with Snape as she always did. Severus, on his part, was sullenly ignoring Adrian Nott who, in return, was staring at something on the opposite side of the room. Following Nott's line of vision, Remus was surprised to see Amelia Deauclair, sitting all by herself by a cauldron in the front row.

Frowning, Remus shook his head in confusion. He would have thought the Slytherins would fight among themselves for a chance at being Deauclair's potion partner. Oh well.

Remus scanned the rows in search of an empty seat and his heart stopped for a second. No. There was no way.

"For crying out loud..."

He made his way moodily to the only available seat remaining, all the while cursing his rotten luck.

"Excuse me. May I?" asked Remus with a grumpy tone. He didn't care if he came off as rude at this point.

Amelia slowly turned to him and sluggishly blinked as if waking up from a deep slumber. Then, she looked around and raised one eyebrow. "Well. It does not seem like either of us really have a say in this." she said, a little smirk appearing on her face.

Remus had barely had the time to sit when Professor Slughorn made his grand entrance, his large belly preceding him in the room. "Ladies! Gentlemen! Welcome, welcome to advanced potions! I hope you chose your partners well because they are going to remain the same through the whole year." exclaimed the teacher as he made a beeline for his desk. Then, facing his pupils, he ignored the look of horror that could be seen on some of his students' face, including Remus', and beamed. Then, he took attendance, stopping every so often to inquire about the students' summer and keep tabs on some of their famous relatives.

While Slughorn was on Rosalind Toke's case, Amelia turned to Remus. "So… Since we will have to work together for a couple of months, I would like to know. Tell me, are you any good at this? You are not going to make things blow up in my face, are you?" asked the girl. The humor in her eyes suggested she was teasing, obviously believing that, as Remus had made it through the O.W.L.s. examination, he was a decent potion maker. Unfortunately, this could not have been farther than the truth and Remus could not help but grimace. Upon seeing his defeated look, Amelia's face fell abruptly. She turned to stare at the blackboard. "Merlin save us all."

Slughorn finally made it to their table and the fat man, completely overlooking Remus, went straight for Amelia. The professor engaged her and made a show of puffing out his chest while they talked. Apparently Amelia's family was quite wealthy, like most purebloods were, and was living off a fortune built on the export of rare potion ingredients and high priced concoctions. Remus tuned Slughorn out like he usually did. It took nearly fifteen minutes before the man was satisfied with what he had learned on Amelia before he decided now was the time to start teaching something actually useful. Clapping his hands together, he went back to the front. "Before we start, are there any questions?"

Nott raised his hand. "Yes, Adrian. What is it boy?"

"Well, I would like to know. Is there really no possibility that we could change partners, Sir?"

Slughorn's eyes widened in surprise. Looking at Snape, who still sat by Nott's side and seemed frankly bored, the teacher frowned. "Well Adrian, do not get me wrong, but I think you are pretty well off with Severus. Mr. Snape really does have a gift when it comes to brewing."

Nott attempted to hide his displeasure but his annoyance still transpired in his tone. "This might be right Professor, but some of us do not have the chance to be paired off with someone who is not a walking hazard." seethed the dark-haired wizard shooting a dirty look in Remus' and Amelia's direction.

Well, it did not take a genius to guess which one of them was considered a failure.

So that is what this is about, thought Remus gritting his teeth. The werewolf did not know why it was that Amelia sat alone at the beginning of the class instead of being accompanied by some Slytherin or another, but apparently, the decision was not theirs.

A call came from the back of the room where Prongs and Padfoot stood. "Oi, watch it, Nott!"

"Boys! Boys! Let's calm down." cried Slughorn raising his hands. The teacher eyed Remus doubtfully for an instant before he turned to Amelia and smile a ten thousand watts smile. "I'm sure Miss Deauclair will be perfectly fine. Her family has been in the potions industry for decades, certainly she is more than capable of brewing even in the worst conditions by now. Maybe with her guidance, her partner will not cause any disasters this year." said Slughorn cheerfully, completely unaware of the beetroot shade Remus' face had taken at his words.

As soon as they knew the nature of the potion they were making that day, Remus got to his feet. "I'll get the ingredients." he said to Amelia without glance sent her way.

He made his way to the storage cabinet in a record time and was back to Amelia's side even faster. He could see Sirius and James trying to attract his attention out of the corner of his eyes, but, right now, he really did not want to talk about what had just happened. It was frustrating, humiliating at best and he wanted this class to be over already.

Amelia took care of the fire in silence, which was fine by him. A few minutes passed and Amelia started putting things in the cauldron. From time to time, she would ask him to prepare some ingredient or another. Remus' irritation was still pretty fresh and he had taken upon himself to pass his frustration through the slicing or the grinding of whatever it was Amelia needed next. He was beginning to chop the bloodroots rather viciously when he felt someone at his side. Looking up from his mutilated plant, he stared into Adrian Nott's infuriated face.

Can't a guy catch a break? Remus thought. Breathing through his nose, he tried not to lose his cool. "Can I do something for you?"

Not sparing him a glance, Nott focused all of his attention on Amelia. "Miss Deauclair, I think it would be in your best interest to ask Professor Slughorn to swap partners." said the Slytherin in such an uptight manner that Remus actually wondered if the boy was not choking on something. Grasping the knife he was using to reduce his roots to dust, Moony almost wished Nott would really drown in his own spit. The nerve of this guy...

"This is getting incredibly tiresome Mr. Nott." replied Amelia, her annoyance made quite obvious. "Professor Slughorn has already made his decision and I was under the impression that it was final."

Maybe Nott did not sense the danger. Maybe he refused to acknowledge the warning. Either way, he made the bad decision of pushing the issue and be an overall nuisance. "You had no problem challenging Dumbledore's decision last night. I really do not see how this is different." he retorted haughtily.

Bent over his now nearly non-existent roots, Remus held his breath. He did not know much about Amelia Deauclair, but she clearly had one sharp tongue and quite a short temper. Urging her to do something she did not feel like doing was like poking a snake with a stick. Daring and quite stupid.

"You obviously know nothing about the art of negotiation." said the witch patronizingly. "I, for one, have known for a long time that if you are already trying to obtain something from an individual, you are more likely to get it if you stick to one demand and one only. Asking for too much guarantees failure."

"But…"

Turning his head slightly, Remus saw Amelia raise an eyebrow so high it disappeared behind her fringe. Nott immediately stopped spluttering. "Right now, what I want most is for Dumbledore to reconsider my sorting. I think I can handle a slightly difficult potion partner." she added derisively.

She then turned her back to him in dismissal. However, Nott seemed determined to act quite dense that day and with the arrogance of someone who is not used to be denied anything, he defied her once again. "You said you preferred working alone!"

Amelia swirled around so fast Remus had to duck to avoid getting a mouthful of hair. "I do prefer working alone and now I am not. Whose fault is that?" spat Amelia. For some reason Remus did not quite understand, the girl seemed a lot more worked up by this confrontation than by the one that had taken place in the Gryffindor Common Room. Her eyes were dark as she glared down at Nott who, for once, looked like he realized he has made a mistake.

"This class was supposed to have an uneven number of students! I could not possibly guess… He should not even have pass his O.W.L.s!" burst out Nott pointing to Remus.

Amelia continued as if he had not talked at all. "Besides my exact words were that I would rather avoid dealing with idiots, if I recall well."

"This is exactly my point."

Remus' hands started to tremble in anger.

Now... Remus rarely threw fits. Being blinded by rage was the closest he got to his werewolf nature without actually turning into his wolf counterpart, Moony. In the rare occasions when he really lost his temper, he had had a hard time keeping his inner monster in check. So he usually avoided getting frustrated to the point he wanted to punch a wall. Call him paranoid, but, whenever he felt his ire mounting, he was always a little worried people would catch a glimpse of the wolf's eyes deep down in his.

Remus generally ignored his animal instincts, no matter how useful they could be. He liked to able to think of himself as being as normal as any other wizard. He had a better sense of smell, so what? Moony was simply had part of him, an inconvenience he had to deal with on a daily basis. Moony was his furry little problem.

Nott was making it difficult to keep it together though. Remus was having a hard time not listening to Moony as he yelled at him to rip this guy's face off.

Amelia took her time before she said anything back, but when the answer came, it was devastating. "Mr. Nott." she smiled largely. "Are you assuming you would be a better choice? I do not wish to offend you, but I have been brewing my whole life. For me, almost everyone qualifies as a danger when it comes to potions."

Nott paled. His jaw locked. "Miss, I have to insist." he fumed.

What was this moron's problem? Seriously?! This was not about protecting Amelia from Remus' inability to brew a potion anymore. This much was clear. This was about pride and resentment for last night's disastrous Sorting ceremony. Nott was acting like a petulant child whose lollipop had been stolen right under his nose. People like Nott did not take no as an answer. It simply was not in their nature. When confronted by such an obstacle, they became impatient and rude. Being snubbed by Amelia certainly did not help Nott's case. However, the tribulations of dolts like Adrian Nott were not Remus' problem and the boy had had enough. Before he could think about it, Remus finally straightened up and faced the obnoxious Slytherin. "Leave it alone already. This is getting really repetitive."

Not having been able to talk back to Amelia due to her status, Nott seemed relieved to have someone to lash out to. "No one asked you blood traitor!"

Well, they are not really getting creative in their insults, are they? thought Remus.

"I think it would be best for you to regain your seat now." said the werewolf out loud. It was a miracle he had managed to keep his tone polite what with Moony screeching at him to claw the jerk's eyes out.

Nott sneered. "What? Are you going to make me? How? By asphyxiating me to death maybe?" He then had the audacity to laugh in his face. "Do us all a favor and get back to what you do best, shut up and try to blend in the background."

A shiver went down Remus' spine and he suddenly got goosebumps. "Why don't you get back to snogging your cousin in a broom closet, eh?" growled out Remus. He balled his fists and took a menacing step towards the pureblood whose hand dived into his robes.

Before the boy could grab his wand though, Amelia's cold voice rang out. "Nott, get out of my sight. You are embarrassing me."

Nott finally obeyed but not before looking daggers at Remus who replied in kind. As the Slytherin went back to his place, the werewolf went through a battle of wills. In the end, he decided hexing Nott in the back would only lead to a messy exchange of curses and that would only serve at getting him kicked out of class. Rightly so too. In presence of volatile potion ingredients, a duel would be extremely reckless. Maybe later then.

Returning his focus on his roots, he realised with a start that there was almost nothing to do with them in the state that they were in. As he stared at them grimly, trying to decide whether to throw them out or not, Remus felt Amelia's eyes on him. Really not in the mood for her snide remarks now, he snapped. "What?!"

Amelia scrutinized him for a moment before she grinned strangely. "I was about to ask you to if you planned on adding the frogs livers anytime soon but I was kind of apprehensive you would accuse me of incest as well."

Remus grunted. In all honesty, he was kind of ashamed. It had not been his best comeback for sure.

On the other hand, considering most purebloods were related and exclusively dated among themselves, there certainly was some truth in the insinuation. If you could call that an insinuation at all.

Deciding to leave it at that, Remus ignored Amelia and carried on with the making of the potion. He was determined to brew it correctly and prove all these self-entitled prats he was not the imbecile they all seemed to think he was. Unfortunately for him, the room was quickly filling with the different smells and fumes the various cauldrons emitted and it was making his mind fuzzy as always. Remus fought against the dizziness and the headache he could feel coming and made a physical effort to continue reading the instructions.

His progress was not helped by Amelia who, after the altercation with Nott, seemed content with watching him work all by himself. In fact, observing her discreetly, Remus could not even tell if the girl was really paying any attention to what was going on around her. Gone was the fierce witch from a few minutes ago. Amelia seemed lost in her own little world. She looked so out of it that Remus was startled to hear her address him.

"So I was thinking, if we are going to spend some time together in this classroom, it might be a good idea for me to know your name." said Amelia absently. Even as she directed her gaze at him, her eyes seemed slightly out of focus. Remus frowned, this was definitely strange.

"I am guessing it is not Peterson." she continued with a hint of a smile and looking a little bit more like herself.

Remus stared at her skeptically. After last night's fiasco, the insults and the exchanged glares? This had to be a trap. No one could go from looking down at someone with despise to acting cordial in so little time. Besides, the girl had this way of observing him that made Remus think this was not idle chit chat. Amelia Deauclair seemed like the kind of person that always thought one step ahead. Remus did not know what the witch expected to get out of him but he was not about to let her have her ways. He was tired of mind games.

After a minute, Amelia realised he was ignoring her and laughed quietly. "Really? The silent treatment? Well then. I guess I will have to come up with something myself." she said cheerfully.

At her words, the boy almost looked up to study her expression, his mind reeling. Was this still part of her taunting? It seemed so out of character.

To Remus, the giggle, the distrait tone, the vacant eyes were suspiciously starting to resemble the symptoms of a strong Confundus Charm. Glancing around frantically, all Remus saw was students pouring over their textbooks hysterically or stirring their potions with worried expressions. None of them seemed to be the caster of the spell. However, Amelia was obviously affected by some sort of magic, there was no other explanation for her spaced out behaviour.

Now that he knew what this was about, Remus felt a hint of worry. Being disoriented in a potion classroom was not safe. However the werewolf did not think that Amelia would appreciate him pointing a wand at her now, even if it was to disenchant her. For the meantime, Remus decided to simply keep an eye on the girl.

She stayed silent for a while; deep in thought, she stared into nothing mumbling things under her breath. Remus could tell she was getting deeper and deeper inside of her own head with every second that ticked away. It was gradual, but, near the end of the class, Remus could tell Amelia had gone deaf to the sounds that attacked her from every side of the room. The boy had never seen something quite like it. Even though he knew she was under a spell, he could not quite shake the eerie feeling he got when he heard her humming softly to herself.

"Sandy."

Jumping out of his skin at the sound of her voice, it took a while for Remus to comprehend what the girl had said. "What?"

Amelia directed her attention on a point near Remus' ear and grinned. "Sandy like the color of your hair." she explained gesturing vaguely to her own mane. "From now on, that will be your name."

"That's not my name." replied Remus dumbly.

Amelia rolled her eyes. "Of course not, you refused to tell me." she mocked him.

Remus' temper flared again. Even in such a state, Amelia Deauclair still found a way to make him feel like an idiot. Some people were simply rotten.

Amelia must have sense his displeasure because, a moment later, she seemed to regain some of her composure and looked at him directly. "Listen, I have to be able to warn you if something goes awry. We are dealing with dangerous substances after all and I cannot possibly yell , 'hey you!' every time an explosion is imminent."

It pained Remus to concede anything to the likes of Amelia Deauclair, but he had to admit she had a point. "Lupin. My name's Lupin." he told her begrudgingly.

"No." retorted Amelia, after an afterthought. "It is too late. I much rather like Sandy."

Remus held back a groan of frustration. Nott and then this. What had he done to the heavens to deserve such a fate? He felt like wiping the stupid smile off her face. "That is ridiculous. You can't call me that." he grunted.

"Well I like it." she pouted. "Besides, people do not get to choose their own nickname. If they did, do you really think Barnabas the Barmy would have allowed to be humiliated by such a nickname as his?"

Was this girl channeling Padfoot or something? Remus could remember quite vividly Sirius mentioning something similar when the werewolf had first objected to him being called Moony. Pads, having been the one to find said nickname, had taken upon himself to convince his friend of the validity of his 'brilliant' idea.

"Whatever." Arguing with a bewitched girl was almost as futile as reasoning with Sirius. Remus gave up. Swallowing back his irritation, he turned back to the cauldron. Merlin, he was going to develop an ulcer by the end of this.

"As you say Sandy." answered Amelia with satisfaction.

Head pounding, Remus tried to concentrate on his potions book but the words all seemed to swarm across the page. Blinking rapidly, the wizard cursed his lycanthropy. His over-developed senses were overwhelmed by the colored puffs and the persistent stench that floated around the classroom.

He was about to add flowers of some sort in the concoction, when a hand grabbed his wrist.

"Stop. If you throw the belladonna in now, the mixture is going to get so abrasive that the cauldron will melt. Turn twelve times anti-clockwise first." Amelia still looked a little dazed, but her voice had lost some of its dreamy quality. "I will… I will take it from here."

She rose from her seat and took a few steps towards him. She clearly was still disoriented but it seemed like she fought against it. She grabbed a hold of the work bench and closed her eyes, frowning.

Hesitant, Remus leaned his head her way. "Are you alright?" he asked.

"I've got this massive headache." she murmured.

Amelia did not look like she was aware of his presence anymore and she definitely had not noticed how her speech had suddenly became a lot more informal than usual. It was as if she was talking to herself once again. Concerned, Remus got closer.

"Shut up."

The mumble was almost inaudible, a mere whisper really, but little escaped Moony's sense of hearing. "What?" said Remus, disbelieving. He could not have heard right.

Amelia opened her eyes quickly and gaped at the werewolf as if she was surprised he was at her side. Remus knew from the way she gawked at him that Amelia Deauclair was back in the game. It was almost as if she had awaken from a long nap.

"Nothing."

"Five minutes left!" came Slughorn's booming voice from behind them.

Shaking her head, Amelia went to work; adding, stirring, crushing and tapping with her wand over the potion. In a blink of an eye, the brownish slush Remus had created had turned a beautiful turquoise and the girl was putting some in a vial for Slughorn to grade later on.

"Here Lupin. I really do not know why everyone thought you were such a buffoon. You did great mostly." said the blond haired girl, handing him their sample. "Maybe I will make it out of this class without losing any part of my anatomy after all."

Then, she stuffed all of her things in her bags and marched away. Clutching the little flask in his hand, Remus stared at her retreating form.

There was not much Remus understood about what had just transpired. One thing was certain though, something weird was going on with Amelia Deauclair. There was more to the girl than meet the eye. She was quite a mystery and it seemed like she liked it this way.

Call it animal instinct, but Remus got the feeling Amelia Deauclair was one of these Pandora's boxes that were better left unopened.

What do you think?

On my part, I really like the Remus Lupin J.K Rowling came up with and I wish we could have seen more of him. This desperate need to fit in and this fear of failure, it's something I think a lot of people can relate to.

So yeah, three Marauders done, one more to go. I will do a chapter from Wormtail's point of view later on. I won't be easy as I don't really like him but there is some things I want to clarify about his personality so..

Until next time!