For August Bingo on the Ministry of Magic Discord.


When Remus' throat begins to itch a couple of days before the full moon, he figures that it's just his luck. Because it's not as if it's enough that he has to recover from turning into a blood-thirsty monster. He also has to recover from a cough. Absolutely brilliant.

Madam Pomfrey is not so amused. She is even less amused when, after successfully healing all of his wolf-related injuries, his cough continues to persist.

"All right. Out you get." She rushes into the room, ushering his fellow Marauders away from his bedside. Remus, propped up against two pillows in bed, has descended into a coughing fit so severe that he can barely raise his hand in goodbye as his three friends scurry out of the room. "Mr Lupin, some cough syrup for you."

It takes a few moments, but he eventually manages to swallow the golden liquid. He looks up to thank the matron, the words die on the tip of his tongue. Madam Pomfrey is staring down at him, her mouth wide open.

"Mr Lupin…" she finally manages. "I hadn't even considered…"

"Considered what?"

She reaches out, hand shaking, and plucks a single flower petal from the bed.

"I'd assumed you had a simple cough," she says. "But this suggests something entirely different. Mr Lupin, I think you have Hanahaki disease."

"Ah." Remus head tips back, hitting the wall behind him. "That's not good."

"Taking your pre-existing condition into account—"

"Very not good, I assume." He gives Madam Pomfrey a weak smile. "You'll want to operate, won't you? Remove the roots from my heart?"

"Or you could confess your feelings to the object of your affections." Her eyebrows rise into her hairline. When Remus begins to object, she raises a hand to silence him. "The procedure for removal is very painful. Even with magic. I insist that you take the rest of the day to consider."

She presses the petal into his palm before walking away. He stares down at it for a moment and has to suppress a laugh. Of course. He should have known. After all, what flower could possibly symbolize James better than a lily?