Returning to Hogwarts was the happiest moment in Catherine's short life. She couldn't believe how much she had missed the castle, the lessons, and her friends. That evening, the young witch sat on the carpet in front of the Gryffindor Common Room fireplace, reading her Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration. She had the book leaned against Sirius' head, which was resting in her lap.
"Remus is sick again." – he said all of a sudden.
"I know, James told me earlier." – sighed Catherine – "I'm really worried about him. He looks very pale and exhausted after every time he's been sick, and that happens almost every month."
"I have the weird impression that he's hiding something from us." – continued Sirius – "Every time I try to ask him about his illness, he gets nervous and changes the topic."
"Well, arguably you are not the most tactful person." – smiled Catherine.
"Oh, this goes straight to the heart." – moaned Sirius dramatically and stood up – "Anyway, then maybe you can try talking to him?"
"I'll see what I can do." – promised Catherine.
At that moment, James entered the Common Room, followed by Peter Pettigrew.
"Sirius, Flame, do you want to make a quick run to the Kitchens?" – James asked – "I feel in the mood for some of the Hogwarts apple pie."
"Yummy!" – said Peter, his eyes gazing at James with admiration.
"You go without me." – said Catherine – "I'm still digesting all the boxes of Dragonfire Delights you sent me for Christmas."
"Who told you to eat them all?" – Sirius laughed jokingly.
Catherine responded to him by sticking her tongue out and left in the direction of the girls' dormitory.
"Merlin, I missed you all." – said Sirius – "I had the most dreadful Christmas ever."
"Did they give you a hard time for being sorted into Gryffindor?" – asked James.
"Yeah." – answered the boy.
"Why would they do that?" – interrupted Peter with a worried face.
"Same old bullshit about pure-bloods and keeping magical knowledge a secret, available only for the chosen ones." – imitated Sirius with contempt – "Can you imagine that the old hag wanted to get me engaged."
"What?!" – exclaimed both James and Peter.
"True story." – continued Sirius with bitterness – "She even presented me with a list of suitable candidates."
"Mate, this is insane!" – whispered James.
"What's insane is that Bella is also included in the list." – said Sirius with crooked smile.
"The fuck? Isn't she your cousin?" – gasped James.
"Such insignificant details have never stopped the noble House of Black." – laughed Sirius.
"I didn't know your family was that aristocratic." – said Peter, looking at Sirius with a newfound respect.
"Yeah, right, they certainly wish they were." – barked Sirius – "I know we are distantly connected with one of the aristocratic families, but they really don't care about us. My parents would have done anything to be recognised by aristocrats. Tough luck, though!"
"I'm really at a loss for words, mate!" – said James.
"No worries, I appreciate the support." – Sirius said, patting James' shoulder – "Now, let's go get that pie!"
The new term began with a snowstorm that lasted for three whole days and forced the students and the teaching staff to be imprisoned in the castle. Herbology was cancelled and the Potions class had never been so challenging in the freezing dungeons where one's breath was floating around in the form of a white fog. Catherine managed to cut her finger, stiff from the cold, while attempting to slice a piece of serpentroot bark and she was in a foul mood for the rest of the week.
On Saturday the first-years Gryffindor boys including Remus, who had recovered from his illness, went outside and dedicated their afternoon to a spectacular snowball fight. After an hour or so, Sirius got bored and took out his wand.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" – he said, pointing the wand towards a few freshly made snowballs.
"What are you planning to do with those?" – asked James, his eyes gleaming with excitement.
"You'll see." – answered Sirius with a concentrated face while the snowballs were flying higher and higher, but suddenly they went right back, ending up falling on top of Peter's head.
"Am I seeing it now?" – asked James, laughing.
"Damn it, I wanted to levitate them to the Gryffindor tower and smash them on the girls' dormitory window." – moaned Sirius.
"Honestly, if you want to impress Catherine, that might not be the smartest idea." – said Remus through his thick woven scarf.
"Most of all, because she is not there." – said James looking at the path coming from the Forbidden Forest. Catherine was slowly climbing up the hill, carrying a whole bunch of dogwood stems.
"Flame!" – shouted Sirius, waving his hand.
Catherine didn't change her walking pace and reached the boys in a few minutes. Her face was pale from the cold, which made her green eyes appear larger and brighter. Sirius extended his hand, trying to cup her cheek.
"Didn't I warn you about touching me without permission?"- said the girl in frustration and slapped his hand away.
"You look cold." – explained Sirius – "Plus, you touch me all the time, how is that different?"
Catherine didn't bother to answer him and eyed the pile of snowballs.
"What are you doing with these?" – she asked.
"We were planning on throwing them at some well-deserved people, but nobody came around." – sulked James.
"What's the point? They'll see you and you'll get in trouble. There is a much more elegant way." – chuckled the girl – "Hold my stems."
"What are you using them for, Catherine?" – softly asked Remus, while James put the dogwood stems aside.
"For decoration of course." – answered the girl and took out her wand, making a tiny flicking motion.
"Glacies Amissus!" – said the young witch, and a few snowballs flew away towards the castle.
"What did you do?" – asked Sirius curiously.
"I enchanted the snowballs to find a certain DADA professor and hit him in the face." – answered Catherine carefreely.
"Ingenious!" – exclaimed James – "Is that one of your spells?"
"No, I found it in a library book called Stealthy Incantations." – explained the girl.
"But why Professor Thorne?" – asked Remus confused.
"I owe him for that unfair punishment with Madame Pince." – said Catherine vengefully – "Actually, it was during that time I found the spell."
"Nice!" – nodded James – "Now, will you teach us how to do it?"
"Certainly!" – smiled the girl – "It's pretty easy; you just need to concentrate on the person you want to send the snowballs to. The incantation is Glacies Amissus."
In fifteen minutes, the spell was adequately mastered, and the pile of snowballs had completely disappeared.
"Too bad I couldn't see Malfoy's face." – gloated Sirius.
"True that. I bet Snivellus also enjoyed it. Tomorrow his hair will be much cleaner." – laughed James.
Remus was staring at his friends with a concerned expression. "Maybe it's better if we leave now."
"Why?" – asked Peter – "We're just chilling outside."
The first-years burst out laughing, except for Remus.
"Really, let's go back inside. I'm cold." – he pleaded.
"Fine, let's go." – finally agreed James, and the Gryffindors slowly walked towards the castle. When they reached the gates, however, Professor Carter Thorne was already waiting for them there, his lips forming a thin line. His hair was not wet but definitely didn't look as perfect as it usually did.
"If it isn't the Snow Fairy and her little friends?" – hissed the Professor, glaring at the students, his sky-blue eyes sparkling with cold rage.
"Good afternoon, Professor!" – James greeted him a little bit too enthusiastically.
"Your wands!" – said the teacher abruptly.
"Pardon?" – asked Catherine with a nasty feeling in her stomach.
"Take out your wands, all of you!" – ordered the Professor – "Priori Incantatem!"
The smoky echo of the snowballs erupted from each of their wands, except for the one belonging to Remus. The silence was deafening.
"Next time, Miss Plantier, choose your prank victims in a way that won't point straight to you." – Carter Thorne snarled.
"It wasn't Catherine's fault!" – protested James.
"Silence!" – the DADA teacher warned him – "50 points from Gryffindor and two weeks of detention with Mr Filch for all of you!"
"Why are you punishing Remus too?!" – shouted Catherine – "He didn't do anything."
"You are in no position to have this tone with me, Miss Plantier." – Carter Thorne bent over so his eyes were at the same level as the girl's – "Despite what all of you think, you are subject to the same rules as everyone else here. Hence, I, as a teacher, have the power to discipline you in any manner I see fit for the noble purpose of making you functioning adults. Mr Lupin is punished for being an accomplice. Is that clear?"
Catherine had the overwhelming desire to set this smug bastard on fire but that would have probably got her expelled. Therefore, she took a deep breath and answered with voice full of hatred.
"Yes, Professor!"
"Good, you are all dismissed." – the teacher said, moving from the gate and staring at the youngsters climbing the Grand Staircase. Carsilion wiped away the cold sweat, covering his forehead. He had the distinct feeling of narrowly escaping a great danger.
The two weeks of detention involved a lot of scrubbing floors and polishing armours. Catherine thought it wouldn't have been that insufferable if it hadn't been for Filch. The caretaker and his damn cat had accepted torturing the young Gryffindors as a personal mission. He sent every one of them to different parts of the castle. Catherine was not entirely certain if it was on purpose, but somehow, she always ended up where the most Slytherins were passing by. This resulted in giggles, hissing, and occasional insults thrown her way. Being called a house-elf, a Muggle maid, or a Mudblood servant was definitely unpleasant, but the girl didn't pay much heed. She didn't think it was offensive to be compared to a house-elf, since in her household the creatures were very respected and well-treated. As for the rest, Catherine found secret pleasure in laughing at those so-called pure-blood jerks, knowing that if they had known about her lineage, they would have been as subservient and obsequious as they were toward her brother. Still, she was glad when the detention was over, and life at Hogwarts returned to normal. The young witch was also concerned about the lost house points, especially after their Quidditch team didn't do well against Ravenclaw in February. If they wanted to win the House Cup, it was necessary to put some effort into earning points for Gryffindor.
Just like that, it was already the end of March. The snow had melted and been replaced by sticky brown mud. The cold wind blew above the naked branches of the trees in the Forbidden Forest. Nevertheless, in the evenings, one could smell the fresh aroma of approaching spring.
Catherine was enjoying the violet dusk, seated by one of the windows in the Gryffindor Tower when Remus approached her and whispered furtively.
"Sirius wants to meet on the third floor in fifteen minutes. He said you know where."
Catherine closed the window and sighed.
"What now?" – she asked.
"It's for James' birthday." – said Remus, looking around anxiously.
"Oh! It's tomorrow, isn't it?" – the girl jumped, alarmed – "Let's go then."
The two of them hurried through the familiar halls of Hogwarts, currently filled with shadows. The last rays of sun coming from the windows illuminated Remus' tired face.
"Has your mother been doing better?" – Catherine asked gently.
"She's still recovering." – answered the boy – "It's good I was allowed to see her. I think she was happy to have me home even for a few days."
Catherine noted that her friend visibly blushed but decided not to dig deeper for the moment. She was not sure if Remus' mother was indeed sick, but the young wizard looked like he needed to spend at least a few days in bed.
They finally reached the statue of the one-eyed witch, where Sirius was waiting for them impatiently.
"You are late! Filch almost caught me." – he complained.
"So what? It's not after curfew. What's the problem of being here?" – asked Catherine unapologetically.
"You know how he is. We most certainly don't want to direct his attention towards this place."
"Will someone please tell me what we are doing here?" – asked Remus.
"We'll explain along the way." – Sirius shushed him – "Let's go before anyone comes. I wish I had a way to know who's nearby. Dissendium!"
The three students quickly passed through the crack behind the one-eyed witch statue and slid down the stone slide.
"I can't believe you didn't tell me about this earlier." – protested Remus.
"It happened just before the Christmas break; you were sick afterwards, and it slipped my mind. Sorry, mate." – apologised Sirius and lifted his wand a little to better illuminate the narrow path ahead.
"Wouldn't people wonder where we got those snacks, though?" – said Catherine absentmindedly.
"I've already thought about it. We shall say we ordered them on behalf of James for his birthday." – answered Sirius confidently.
"So, we are stealing his birthday gift?" – asked Catherine again.
"No, Miss Goody-two-shoes!" – Sirius retorted – "I brought money with me, we pay for what we take, as per your example."
"Can I give you my part later?" – asked Remus hesitantly.
"Don't worry about it. I have plenty of gold, and so does Flame, although I keep wondering where from." – laughed the other boy.
"None of your business!" – the girl snapped – "But really, Remus, don't worry about it. It's fine."
The three friends continued walking in silence for a while until they finally reached the old staircase and entered the cellar of Honeydukes.
"Don't forget to take some Fudge Flies." – instructed Sirius – "James likes those a lot."
"Are we ready to go?" – asked Catherine after half an hour of wondering in the maze of wooden crates and boxes.
"Almost." – answered Sirius, looking around frantically – "I just want something really special, but I'm not sure what exactly."
"There is a door here." – said Remus from the left corner of the cellar – "Do you think there might be more goods inside?"
"Could be! Let's go and check." – suggested the other boy – "Damn, it's locked."
"Alohomora!" – mumbled Remus pointing his wand towards the lock of the door.
The three kids entered the small, dusty room, filled with old cupboards and broken crates.
"I'm not sure there are any sweets here." – said Catherine, looking at a pile of smashed cartoon boxes.
"Yeah, doesn't look promising." – sighed Sirius, trying to lift the lid of a big, rusty chest. It opened with a dreadful creaking sound.
Suddenly, the lights of their wands disappeared. Catherine felt frozen to the core. Desperation and loneliness were crashing on her like angry waves. It was as if she would never experience happiness in her life again.
"What's happening?" – shouted Remus – "Lumos!"
The weak light of the wand illuminated Sirius, who was trembling on the floor, trying to escape as far as possible from the iron chest and the creature coming out of it.
"Catherine, come here!" – screamed Remus in utter panic – "This is a Dementor!"
Catherine was desperately trying to control her shivering body. Sweat drops were running down her face. In her head, a maniacal female laughter rang lauder and lauder.
"I'm not leaving Sirius here!" – she said firmly, trying her best to make her feet move towards the Dementor.
"We need to use a Patronus Charm!" – cried Remus, grabbing Catherine's hand – "You should not go near! What if it had gone rogue and tries to kiss you?"
"What if it tries to kiss Sirius?" – asked Catherine stubbornly, attempting to free herself from Remus' hand – "Plus, I don't know how to perform a Patronus Charm."
"You don't understand!" – stuttered Remus – "The Dementor's Kiss…"
"I understand perfectly!" – screamed Catherine, turning around to face Remus. Her eyes were sparkling, and her whole body was emitting insane magical power. The boy let go of her hand and took a step back fearfully.
"I'm sorry." – he mumbled, bowing his head.
"I guess we have the best chances if I set it on fire." – said Catherine to herself and took a step towards Sirius, who had almost lost consciousness while the Dementor was no more than a meter away from him. She felt someone run past her and saw Remus launching himself between the creature and Sirius.
Catherine heard a whip-crack sound, and the Dementor disappeared. Instead, there was a silver sphere floating in front of Remus.
"What the actual fuck!" – swore Catherine.
"Oh!" – exclaimed Remus – "I know what this is. It's not a Dementor. It's a Boggart!"
"What a relief!" – said the girl sarcastically – "How do we get rid of it?"
"You need to turn your greatest fear into something amusing." – said the boy and pointed his wand at the Boggart – "Riddikulus!"
The silver sphere deflated with a high-pitched squeak and flew around in spirals like a balloon, landing at Catherine's feet. Once again, there was a whip-crack sound, and the girl found herself face to face with an exact copy of herself, except that the Boggart had glowing red eyes. It opened its mouth, and the maniacal laughter, Catherine had been hearing solely in her head, filled the room. The witch pointed her wand decisively at her doppelganger.
"Riddikulus!"
The hair of the Boggart became bright green and curly like a clown wig before the creature burst into thousands of pieces.
The room went silent. Catherine ran to Sirius' side and tried to help him stand up. He was sobbing uncontrollably, his handsome face a grotesque mask of pure horror. The young witch hugged him gently and caressed his hair. In a minute or two, he stopped shivering, and the girl released him from her arms, looking worryingly at his face. Sirius tried to avoid her gaze, but Catherine was having none of it. She caught his chin and forced him to look into her eyes.
"This stays only between us." – she whispered – "Nothing changes in how either I or Remus see you."
Sirius stared at her wordlessly.
"Do you trust me?" – the girl asked.
He just nodded slightly. Catherine smiled and planted a small peck on the boy's cheek.
"We should leave quickly before someone comes to check about the noise." – warned Remus, and the three of them quickly left through the trapdoor.
"Catherine…" – Remus said while she was passing by him.
"Let's not talk about this for the time being." – she interrupted him softly and hurried to catch up with Sirius in the dark passageway.
James' birthday was a complete success. The Common Room was buzzing with chatter and laughter, fuelled by the excellent sweets provided by Honeydukes. Eventually, Professor McGonagall had to come and angrily send everyone to bed.
Initially, James was thrilled by their adventure in Hogsmeade and even regretful since he hadn't participated. However, looking at his friends' stone faces, he decided not to comment on it anymore. Whatever happened in the cellar had deeply affected all three of them. This became apparent by the fact that Remus was purposefully trying to avoid both Sirius and Catherine.
One week later, Catherine was coming back from a late afternoon stroll around the lake, carrying a small bouquet of wild violets when she saw a familiar figure sitting not far away from the Whomping Willow. She quietly approached Remus and sat next to him on the ground. He raised his head in surprise, and the girl noticed traces of tears on his face.
"I'm sorry, I didn't see you, Flame." – he tried to smile at her – "I come here from time to time when I feel lonely."
At this moment, Catherine spotted a not-too-big white marble stone which looked a lot like an open book.
"What's that?" – she inquired, pointing at the stone.
"It's the Memorial Stone of Hogwarts." – answered Remus – "It's supposed to represent the Book of Life. People come here to pray and feel closer to their loved ones who have died."
"Who do you pray for?" – softly asked the girl.
"My little sister Caelia." – he mumbled.
"What happened to her?" – Catherine continued asking.
"She died when she was just four years old." – admitted Remus, his amber eyes once again filling with tears – "She was killed by a truly vile man who had a fight with my father."
Catherine gasped and covered her mouth with her hand.
"He hurt me too." – continued Remus – "But I survived, unlike Caelia. To this day I can't help but feel guilty I got to live, and she was put in the ground. Maybe if I were older, if I were stronger, or smarter I could have protected her."
"These are a lot of 'ifs', Remus." – gently said Catherine, taking the boy's hand in hers – "Why haven't you said anything about that? It's too much of a burden to carry alone."
"I didn't want to bother anyone." – said Remus shyly – "My problems are only mine to solve, regardless of how difficult it is. I've been given more chances than I deserve."
Catherine stood up and looked at her friend with a thoughtful expression.
"You know, you may think you are alone, but you are mistaken." – she said – "You stopped being alone from the moment you jumped in front of Sirius in that cellar. It was stupid as hell, but you did it to buy me time to escape, and hopefully help Sirius too. Therefore, Remus Lupin, whether you like it or not, our fates are tied together."
The girl left the stunned Gryffindor boy still sitting next to the Memorial Stone and headed towards the castle. After a few steps, she stopped and turned back smiling at Remus.
"Ah, and next time you feel down, please, bother me!"