The Best of Me

Chapter 13: Nice to See You Again

A/N: Sorry for publishing late, but I needed the rest and the fact I'm busy with my studies. I planned to publish finish 2nd year before resting again because I have also other fanfictionsthat I would also like to finish.Anyways let's go Chapter 13!

Previously:

Seeing that the sky has a mix of orange and black, Remus decided that it's time to go back. "Looks like this is the end of my first year in Hogwarts, ey." He muttered under his breath, turning to the baby dragon besides him who tilted his head in a confuse way.

"..."

"I believe that we'll see each other soon." A lopsided grin appeared on his face at his own words and he went back to his book; the grin presented on his face never fading.

"..."

Look, Remus, there's sirius the dog star." She pointed towards a bright dot in the sky where a constellation is.

Remus chuckled, "You have a great eye, Nymphadora."

"..."

A large smile appeared on the young Weasley's face, "See you soon, Remus." He bumped his shoulders at him before turning to Tonks, "I'll miss you too, Tonks."

Remus

He reads both the letters that his friends send to him before turning of the lights. A smile curled up to his lips at the thought of seeing his friends again. Suddenly it turned much more softer when his mind flashback to the package that Nymphadora send him yesterday.

He pulled out his arms to gaze upon the black charm bracelet that the young girl send him. In the letter she told him it's a protection charm that keep you safe from harm. She also stated in the letter that she send Bill one and he couldn't help but think that Nymphadora had made them wear matching friendship bracelet.

Well, he will found out tomorrow. He pulled up his cover and closed his eyes. Sleep came over him and he went to dream land once again.

"..."

After waking up, Remus begins his daily morning routine. First, he would do morning stretches and warm-ups, after that he'll cool off for five minutes and will hit to the shower, then he'll eat breakfast and brush his teeth. He put on a simple white buttoned up shirt, some of his brother's old jeans and a brown jacket.

Since he still have time, he chose to read some few books. However, he stopped when he heard the familiar engine. He looked out from the window to see the familiar car. Pushing himself up from his chair, he quickly fixed his things before going outside.

He lifted up all his things to the car that will be sending him to school. Finished, he went inside and placed his owl's cage besides him. When the engine starts up, he knew that it will be a long ride. So, he took out his book and begun to read.

When he made it to the King's Cross Station in London. Remus pulled out a trolley and placed all his things on it. He then pushed his trolley to the secret entrance way of Platform Nine and three-quarters. When he got trough, he left his baggage with the other student's bags and walk his way to the train.

Before he could boarded the train, he felt his heightened sense acting up. He spun around to the left and it seems like he dodge something with ginger red hair. He raised an eyebrow at his friend who was at the floor groaning. Before he could open his mouth, he felt another presence and this presence wrapped their arms around him.

Jasmine filled his nosestrils and a smile appeared on his lips.

He turned his head to see the intruder invading his personal space, "It's nice to see you again, Nymphadora." He greeted her and at the mention of her first name, the hooded girl (that was still hugging him) glared at him.

"Nice to see you to, Mister-who-has-a-fetish-on-calling-people-with-their-real-first name." She glared at him and a chuckle escaped from him.

Remus rolled his eyes, "Very original, Tonks." He teased and heard a groan from their friend who was still on the floor.

"No fair!" Bill protested when he manage to get up, "You didn't dodge Tonks when she tried to hug you, but me!" He pointed to himself and the young werewolf snorted at his friend's overdramatic exclamation; also, the redhead wasn't finished yet with his rant.

Remus noticed that he and his friends had gathered some attention because most of the people in the station are looking at them weirdly. He sighed and turned to his ranting friend, "You're making a scene, Williams." He stated, pointing his head towards the prying eyes and the redhead quickly shut up.

Bill stared at him with a smirk on his lips, "We'll finish this later." He told him and the auburn haired boy nodded at his friend. Suddenly his two friends all stood straight when a plumped redhead woman and a raven haired woman shouted their name.

"Nymphadora" / "William!" The two woman called their children and both his friend stifled their groans at the usage of their first name. Remus couldn't help but snickered and he also noticed that the raven haired woman was followed by a light brown haired man while the plumped redhead woman was followed by a tall redhead man and two young redhead boys.

When the woman who Remus identified as Tonk's mother got closer to them, she quirked an eyebrow at him—no, she quirked an eyebrow at the arms wrapped around him and Remus let out a sigh.

"You can let go now, Nymphadora." He smiled at her, "You've been hugging me for five minutes." His smile turned into a wolfish grin when the girl flushed pink before pulling away.

He turned to her mother, bowing like a gentleman first before greeting her. "Greetings, Ms. Tonks." He greeted to the older Tonks first and turned his head to Bill's mother who playfully slapped her son's shoulder. He sent her a small smile and greeted her like he did with Tonks' mom, "Greetings to you too, Ms. Weasley."

He saw shock came over at the two woman's face and he winced at the fact he knows why they are staring at him in that way. Suddenly concerned flashed in Bill's mom while Tonks' mom has a observant look. Yup, like mother, like daughter. The older Tonks turned to stare at her daughter who was at his right.

She then turned to him, all shock gone, as she returned his greeting. "Pleasure to meet you, Remus. My name is Andromeda Tonks." She introduced herself and there was a twinkle of amusement in her eyes, "I'm sorry if my daughter was too much for you to handle." She told him with each word emphasised.

He only shrugged his shoulder and grinned, "She's alright despite getting a lot of detention, so I'm fine Ms. Tonks."

Remus heard Tonks shouting besides him, probably protesting at his statement. He bowed to the older Tonks in respect; then, turned the direction of his gaze to Bill's mom who has a curious and happy look on her face right now.

The plump redhead woman walk towards him with a smile, "Oh, you must be Remus." She said and he nodded in response. Ms. Weasley placed her hand on his shoulder, "Thank you for keeping my son in place." She sincerely told him and a smile came up in his scarred face.

He bowed his head in respect again, "No, I should be thankful that he's my friend." He honestly confessed and a gasp came from Bill. He pointed an accusing finger towards him, "Who are you and what happened to my blunt, sometimes sarcastic and quite friend."

Remus once again rolled his eyes. He playfully pushed the redhead's side, as a result the young Weasley glared at him. The older woman in front of him giggled at their display, suddenly the train's bell echoed trough the station and the three of them knew that it's time to go.

His forest green eyes glanced back to the train, seeing that other students are boarding. He gripped the sling of his satchel before turning to his friends, "Looks like the train is leaving." He bluntly stated and pointed to his friends, "You better say your goodbyes." He reminded them and both of twelve years old friend nodded at him.

Both family exchange goodbye and Remus turned his away from the scene. He felt like an intruder in their moment, so staring at them will be disrespectful. He clutches the sling of his bag tightly, as a tremor of pain came over him. Now, he remembered the reason why he boarded the train first in his first year.

Seeing the warm exchange between families makes him remember all those buried memories that he hid. Shaking his head, he quickly walked away and his two friends followed. He felt someone's stare behind his back, but he ignore it. Since he was too busy sorting out his thoughts and fixing up his mask.

The trio entered the train and quickly found a compartment. The trio begins chatting a little bit and when it's time for the train to leave, his two friends pulled the window down to peek out and wave goodbye to their family...

A bitter feeling came over him, so he shook his head to read himself of this thoughts. Then, he felt somebody sittings besides him and he saw Tonks smiling at him. Despite his mood, he returned her smile. She really can lift up any persons' spirits up or he's just bias.

He turned towards his redhead friend who flashed him a large grin, "Remus, you're in the duel club right?" He asked and the young werewolf let out an amused sigh.

"Weasley, you already knew that." He laughed, but the redhead waved off his reply. He stared out of the window and sighed, "You're good in D. A. D. A, right?", He questioned and Remus thought for a moment. Well, he likes to read all his father's book and sometimes he would read some of his research or even join him in one of his research.

So, what is Bill pointing at. Then, the redhead leaned back to his seat, "Have you guys heard of all the rumours about the D. A. D. A professors?" He asked and Remus snorted remembering all the useless things their last year D. A. D. A teacher teached.

"The teacher didn't even teach one useful thing. Is he teaching this year? " He sigh, feeling irritated that he might see the old wizard again. Bill let out an amused snort, "Well that's the catch. It is said that not one single D. A. D. A teacher have ever lasted more than a year." His redhead friend shared and Tonks who was besides him let out a gasp.

She then spoke up, "I already heard that rumour." Pulls out her wand, "My mom told me that position was cursed by You-Know-Who." Her face remained emotionless and she moved her wand in a circular motion, adding a more mysterious effect. "Nobody knows why he did it." She shrugged her shoulders and Remus shivers at how she casually mentioned him.

When they got off the train, Hagrid was there to greet them. He informed them that second years and above will take the carriage and when Bill was about to point at that there was no carriages in sight. The young werewolf's ears picked up the galloping of horses, but it sounds much more hollow rather than firm solid.

Suddenly horses with a skeletal like body, scaly features and bat like wings stopped in front of them. The three of them turned to Hagrid who motioned them to go in. Remus green forest eyes scanned the horse's face and he noticed the weirded out look on his friend's face.

"What are you staring at?" He asked and Remus lifted his gaze to his friend; then, back to the horse. He reached out his hand to brushed its mane and smiled at the fact it didn't panic, "A Thestral, the horse that's pulling the carriage." He answered him and saw his friend raised an eyebrow in question.

Then, Tonks who was done fixing her bag walk towards them. Her stare lingered at the horses and Remus raised an eyebrow. She can see the horses?

His question was answered when Tonks opened her mouth to speam, "Thestrals are horses that are invisible to people." She explained while wrapping her hands around her body, "Except for people who had witness death and had gained an emotional understanding what death is."

Seeing the uncomfortable look in Tonks' face, Bill ceased his questioning and nodded in understanding to her; then, to Remus. The three of them boarded the carriage and the Thestrals pulled them to a path that leads to the castle.

"..."

The opening feast came to an end and both him and Bill retreated to the dorms. When the two of them passed by the Hufflepuff table, the duo waved their hand to Tonks. She responded with a smile and a wave before standing up to follow her house's prefect.

The next day was the start of classes and the three of them were walking to the hall. They were about to walk down the stairs that leads to the dungeons when two familiar Slytherins blocked their path. Ceasar who has his hair longer than last year and maybe a much bigger ego too was sneering at them while Ferrer stood besides him.

Ferrer smirked wickedly at them, "Nice to see you again."

"Oh, long time no see, Mr. Poor, Scar-boy and Blood traitor." Ceasar mocked them and Remus ignore him. He walked passed them, bumping shoulders with the Slytherin a little bit to hard, so he could go to potions class.

His friends followed his lead in ignoring them, as the three of them walked away. Remus still felt both the Slytherins' glare at his back, but he ignored them.

"..."

Bill and him where at the lake they found in their first year. It had been a secret spot that the three of them only knew, so it was a hangout place for the three of them...and Skips.

They were dipping their legs in the water, waiting for their late friend. Remus was chatting about different dark creatures to Bill and his redhead friend was immersed in their conversation.

Then, his ears picked up the sound of shoes stepping on dried grass. Remus craned his head up and narrowed his eyes at the girl before her. Tonks' was wearing her usual smile, but something about it seems strain. Also, the fact that she's limping made the wolf in him angry.

His eyes narrowed at the bruises on her legs and how dirtied her uniform is. Without even waiting her to speak, he held her shoulder in a tight grip. She winced at his strength and his eyes softened, so did his grip. Bill must have noticed their friend's disheveled state and his blue cerulean eyes narrowed in anger.

"What happened?" Remus asked camly, but a wolfish growl escaped from his throat. He lifted up his right hand to carrased the right side of her face, seeing there are a lot of scratches. "Who did this to you!"

At the sudden rise of his voice, Tonks flinched, but she stood on her ground. Her stormy gray eyes narrowed at him, "It's not a person, Lupin." She spatted and he growled in response.

Seeing that getting angry would make her deny more. Remus calmed himself down and put the wolf back to sleep, "What happened?" He asked again, much calmer and gentler this time.

She sighed, "I rolled down a hill."

He knew that she was lying and knowing how independent and stubborn she is. He didn't press her anymore. Although—"Let's get you to the infirmary." He bluntly told her and before she could protest. He slid his left hand under her legs and his right hand to hold her back.

He lifted her up in a bridal style carry and she saw her face flushed pink. He raised an eyebrow at that, thinking that she must be sick. He saw Bill whistled in a impressed tone, "You lifted her up with ease." He awed, but his face turned into a grin when he added, "Despite her weighting like a hundred kilos."

The redhead let out a laugh and Tonks was about to yell at him when she let out a hissed pain. Remus raised an eyebrow and Bill walked towards them to inspect her ankle. The redhead raised an eyebrow when he held her right foot and moved it a little bit. Tonks let out a gasp and a whimper, as tears filled her eyes.

Bill narrowed his eyes, "Seems like you sprained or broke your foot." He told her before turning to Remus, "You better go slow, mate." He patted the young werewolf's shoulders and the auburn haired boy nodded at his redhead friend.

The two of them walked back to the castle. They received some stares, but both boys ignored them and just focused on their friend. Remus was calm and taking slow strides while Bill was besides him and glaring at the prying eyes.

They made it to school's Hospital wing, Bill was about to push open the door when Remus picked up the sound of snickering. His eyes glanced at Ceasar and Ferrer who are smirking at them.

His eyes narrowed at them before entering the infirmary. His friend's health is more important than being suspicious at those Slytherin. However, he has a theory and he didn't like it.

"..."

It was Tuesday today and both him and Bill were working on their potion. The redhead was about to add the water of Lethe in the cauldron when an annoying Slytherin purposely bumped into him. Remus glared at Ceasar who was apologising to Bill before taking his leave.

Suddenly he and his friend noticed the cauldron bubbling before exploding. Smoke exploded out of the now broken container and it filled the entire classroom. All the students quickly exited the classroom and Professor Snape was glaring at the two of them.

"Twenty points taken away from Gryffindor." He snarled and Bill was about to retort when Remus held him back. Both boys turned their head to the irritating Slytherin duo who were laughing and smirking at them.

Ferrer pointed at them and said, "Loser!"

Remus ignored them, but he was boiling inside.

"..."

It was the third week of Remus' second year and tomorrow will be the first full moon in September. He was getting angsty, moody and distant. His friends didn't understand what was happening to him and he couldn't blame them.

He wants to be alone for now, afraid that he might explode when someone bothers him. He was entering the courtyard when his eyes widened at the sight in front of him. Both Ceasar and Ferrer have their wands drawn out to his friends. Tonks was crouched down besides Bill who was on the floor. The redhead was holding his right arm in a pain expression and the wolf in him howled in anger.

They are attacking his pack! The wolf in him begin to growl and in real life, Remus was gritting his teeth. His sharp canines showing, as he glared at them. He snapped out of it, realising that his furry side wants to get out.

He shouldn't give in. He needs to calm down, maybe he could talk them out of it. Remus walked towards them with face paled and his head aching. Ferrer noticed him because the blonde Slytherin turned his direction just to smirk at him, "You look much more awful than before." He laughed and Remus kept his temper in check.

They're just kids, they're just human...

You cannot hurt them, cannot—

Ferrer laughed, pointed his wand at him and shouted. "Flipendo!"

The air in his lungs was knocked out when he flew towards the fountain. He hissed at his now bruised back. The wolf in him was getting angrier, but he held himself back.

Cannot hurt them, cannot kill them, cannot tear them—He gasped out loud when he was hit with a stunning spell. He felt the wolf cried in anguish and anger.

He begin chanting in his head that he can't hurt, kill or tear them apart. Suddenly the spell stopped and he opened his eyes to see Tonks standing up with wand in her hand. She casted Expelliarmus towards the blonde haired boy, as a result Ferrer's wand flew from his hand.

She was about to cast another spell when the black haired Slytherin cast a Flipendo at her. The spell pushed her to a wall, the side of her head smacked on the wall hard and his eyes widened in horror when blood spilled down from her forehead. Seeing this Bill scrambled up to help the disoriented Hufflepuff.

Ferrer who found his wand laughed out loud and Ceasar smirked at his achievement. He could have hurt her...

No, they could have killed her! Are they really that stupid!? She could have died from that! What were those two thinking!

The beast in him roared and his mind continued his chanting—Cannot kill them, cannot hurt them...

But, they had hurt them.

He heard the banging of metal in his head and for the first time. The wolf took control. He growled and his eyes narrowed when Ferrer was about to cast another spell at his friends. He bent his legs and dashed towards the blonde. He tackled him to a wall, lifted him up by his shirt and threw his wand away.

The boy let out a gasp of pain, but he ignored it. Something in him finally snapped and he couldn't care less what will happen to either the blonde boy or him. He pulled him back and smashed him back to the wall. He didn't know what happened, but all he saw was a bruised boy in his hands.

His fist continued punching him. The wolf in him wasn't satisfied yet. His screams and yelps weren't enough. Then, he heard a startled gasp. He heard the other Slytherin casting Flipendo, so he flipped the boy in his hand. Turning around to let the spell hit the Slytherin instead of him.

Ferrer crashed down to the floor and his friend shouted out his name. Remus saw Ceasar glaring at him and before he could open his mouth to cast another spell. He heard a scream and Remus found himself on the ground with the raven haired boy under him. His fist came towards his face and the wolf in him let out a satisfied growl at the blood on his fist and on the Slytherin's face.

He was about to punch him again when a familiar voice shouted across the courtyard, "Remus, stop!"

The wolf in him let out an irritated growl. His body turned to the intruder interrupting his beating. His green forest eyes met with gray stormy eyes. He stopped and let out a growl at them. Bill was taken a back, but Tonks stood firm in her spot. She was terrified, but something in her was making her put on a brave face. The girl was being supported by Bill who gazed at him with worry.

"Remus, they have enough." She stated and he let out a wolfish growl. What are you saying? They had hurt you and you're still defending them!?

He growled out loud, the wolf in him protesting at her statement. The girl's eyes were suddenly filled with tears and both he and the wolf were shock.

"You aren't like this, Remus!" She cried, "They already had enough!"

Seing her cry made him whimper and the wolf in him felt immensed guilt. Why is she feeling this way? Wouldn't it satisfied her that her attackers are hurt? Were the questions swirling in his head, but it stopped at the sorry look on her face.

And why does she have that look?

"Please, Remus." She croaked and the wolf in him went back to his cage. Remus came back to his senses and he had to blink twice to regain his bearings. His eyes landed on Ceasar who was on the floor. The boy had fear written in his face and his heart broke at the familiar stare.

He cursed himself when he saw the boy's face was bruised and bloodied. He stood up and stared at his knuckles to also see them bloody...but it was not his own blood. He heard a groan behind him and he found Ferrer sitting up, his face was bruised and bloodied; however, he noticed his uniform was ripped a little bit.

Then, he heard multiple footsteps and his eyes were met with numerous eyes staring back at him. The faces on the students who came to find out what's happening in the courtyard turned into shock at the scene in front of them.

Remus picked up a familiar scent and he saw professor Dumbledore making his way in front of the crowd. Disappointment and concern was shown in his feature before it flashed back to his signature calm face.

He studied his bloodied schoolmates. His eyes filled with guilt when he saw the concerned faces of his two friends. He sighed and clenched his eyes when he heard the headmaster say, "To my office, Mr. Lupin."