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For her first week at Hogwarts, Lee thought there was a surprisingly lack of obviously creepy men. Sure, there were the usual starers and guys who'd ask her out, but none who'd tried to grope her or be an asshole so she thought it was a bit of a win. 

But as it became September 9th 1975, exactly one week since the first day of classes, she wasn't so sure what she thought of the male population of Hogwarts anymore. Fabian, Gideon and Sirius had seemed to be nice so far, along with a few guys who'd picked up her books when she'd dropped them, but overall, she was still suspicious. 

Especially as it was the night of the full moon. She had no idea why guys seemed to get particularly creepy around the full moon, but it was a truth she had become accustomed to throughout her whole life. Men were creepy around the full moon and that's how it was. 

Then again, this time around, she seemed to be one of them. A full moon creep, because as the days went on, she found herself staring at Remus Lupin more and more. He still seemed to avoid her wherever he went, and part of her thought it was fine. 

She wouldn't know what to say to him if he did talk to her. Like, was she supposed to say Hi, I'm very attracted to you and I keep seeing you in my dreams even though we don't know each other and just thinking about you makes my stomach flutter so much it feels like I'm going to throw up? She thought not. That would just sound even creepier than how she felt. 

She knew exactly what it was like being creeped upon (most girls did, in fact) and she wasn't about to force that upon some random, probably super nice, guy she didn't know. 

After having been asked out for the fifth time that day, Lee had had enough. She wanted to go isolate herself and be as far away from everyone, even Fabian and Gideon, who she had enjoyed the company of throughout the last week. 

She didn't know why, but she often felt drawn to the water during times like these. It wasn't rare to find her putting  her fingers underneath the rushing water from the fountains at Beauxbâtons in the past. 

Unfortunately, Hogwarts had a concerning lack of fountains which sort of ruined her usual routine. But the school did have huge lake she could sit by, though she didn't think it was quite as sanitary put her hand in that water. 

But she liked being near it, even if it was probably filthy (and had some giant squid in it for some reason). She decided that the best idea was to sit in the shadows of a large tree right next to it, where she could find some peace as she could read a bit. 

She had been reading a lot more than usual throughout the past months, ever since she found out her and her father were moving to Britain, because she thought she should learn to speak English as well as she could. She was the only French student at the whole school, after all, so it would be nice to communicate as fluently as she would in her mother tongue.

Lee had finished the third page of the classic Wuthering Heights (though it was a bit complicated, but this was her second time reading it, so she hoped it was going to get easier the next time) when she heard footsteps from behind her.

"What are you doing at my tree?" the boy wearing glasses, a Gryffindor judging by the red tie (which wasn't even properly tied) slung around his neck. Lee was sure she'd heard his name before, as she had classes with him but it took a few moments to remember. James. 

Lee looked at him strangely. She had dealt with enough men that day, she wasn't in the mood to deal with him if he was going to be an ass. "Your tree?"

James, very similiarily to Sirius a week prior, did not seem to care about the hostile tone in her voice. "Yes, this is my tree. I'm always at this tree, therefore it is mine."

"I don't see your name on it," she muttered before turning her head to look at her book once more, starting to read the next sentence. 

James still didn't move from his spot, looking a bit peeved that she'd taken his usual spot. He didn't seem like the kind of person who liked it when things changed, or when he didn't get his way from the short interaction she'd had with him. 

"It's literally right there." The Gryffindor pointed to a spot where James had been carved into the wood, which she had definitely not noticed. If she had, she probably wouldn't have said what she did. "I'm James. So..."

She couldn't keep from flushing bright red in embarrassment. "Oh. Right. I guess I'll go then."

"I didn't say you had to go," he quickly blurted out, looking surprised she was actually willing to go. He frowned for a moment as he looked at her, not with a creepy look or with lustful gaze, but mostly weirded out and a bit concerned. "Are you alright?"

She hesitantly glanced up at him, wondering what his play was. "I'm okay."

"Well, I just..." he did not seem to believe her. "You look really tired. And when was the last time you showered? I'm not saying you smell bad, but I'm pretty sure your hair looked a little more shiny a few days ago."

"Charming," she commented dryly, reaching up to run her fingers through her blonde hair. She had deliberately made sure not to wash her hair the past two days. "You're really making me feel good about myself."

"That's not what I meant," he told her, awkwardly pushing his glasses up his nose as they looked close to falling off. "I just... I wanted to know if you were feeling sick so I could help you get to the Hospital Wing. My friend is sick a lot so I'm good at noticing when people aren't feeling well."

"Your friend?" Lee asked, and she hated the fact that a particular face flashed before her eyes. She told her brain to shut up and stop thinking about him, because now she felt close to getting sick from the incessant fluttering in her stomach. 

"Yeah, Remus Lupin." James looked to be carefully studying her expression as he said his name. 

She was internally panicking, wondering if he'd noticed the way she always found herself staring at him. Maybe, unlike most creeps that day, James had walked up to her to find out if she was stalking his friend or something. That's what she would have thought if she was him. 

Lee's expression was as straight-faced as she could make it, but she was sure that a slight blush coated her pale cheeks as her eyes shifted. "Yeah, I think I know who that is. But I'm not sick. Thank you for your concern."

James smiled kindly at her. "Anytime."

"Oi! Beaumont!" a deep voice called out, obviously having spotted her even though she had tried to stay away from people. She barely noticed who it was, a Slytherin sixth year, who she thought was named Leon Larch. She'd never spoken to him, but she was pretty sure Fabian told her a story about him famously falling asleep in the bathroom for twelve hours. 

"Oh no," she muttered, closing her eyes as she grimaced. 

James was pretty confused at her reaction. "What is it?"

It hadn't really registered in her that she was actually standing with someone until he said that. She looked up at him with pleading eyes as she could see Larch striding their way in the corner of her eye. "Hide me."

"What?"

"Hide me!" she hissed, grabbing his arm as she tried to pull him in front of her. She didn't know how she thought it would help, seeing as Larch had obviously already spotted her before and would know exactly where she was. But she was prepared to do anything to help. 

Larch walked up to them, walking straight past James. He stood between them as he smiled sleazily at her as she wanted nothing more than to turn invisible and run away. "Hi, Beaumont, how you doing?"

Lee glanced at James over Larch's shoulder, who looked rather incredulous at what had just happened. "Good."

He didn't waste any time in wrapping his arm around her shoulder as she froze up, holding her close to him. "So, I was thinking, an attractive girl like you must have plenty of date offers already, but I'm prepared to offer you the best one. How about you and me give it a go? I can give you a bit of a taste in a broom closet if you'd like."

James couldn't believe anyone would act like that. Well, sure, he had asked a specific girl out plenty of times but never in such a sleazy way that made him want to puke. Poor Lee, he thought. "Hey, Larch."

The Slytherin finally seemed to notice the other boy, looking at the Gryffindor with a distasteful expression. "Potter."

"So, you have two options right now. Either you can go be creepy over there." James grinned widely as he pointed to the castle courtyard. "Or you can be creepy in the Hospital Wing. I personally prefer the second one, I think that'd be a lot fun for me. No promises for you, though."

"Are you threatening me?" Larch asked, a dangerous expression crossing his face that Lee didn't like. What she did like was the fact that he dropped his arm from her shoulder to walk closer to James, probably to look more threatening. 

"I mean, I thought that was pretty obvious." The Potter boy didn't seem fazed at all by the way an older student looked pissed at him. His grin was crooked as he looked at Lee with raised eyebrows. "Don't you think so, Lee?"

Lee tried to suppress a smile as she met James's gaze, but failed miserably. "Sort of was."

James shrugged at Larch as if to tell him that settled matters. "If you can't even figure that out, I'm not gonna let you think you know how to treat a girl right. I'd keep walking if I were you, Larch."

The Slytherin sixth-year scoffed. "Fuck you, Potter."

"No thanks. I've got standards," he retorted smugly before using his hand to gesture to the French witch next to them, who was trying very hard to hide her snickers. "And so does my girl, Lee, over here."

It looked like Larch was debating whether or not to get his wand out and try to hex James, but he quickly seemed to decide it wasn't worth it. He only cast a quick glance Lee's way with his jaw clenched. "Well, let me know if you change your mind, Beaumont."

"I will..." she told him, still trying not to laugh from the way James had handled it. Larch stalked off, obviously pissed. She waited until he was out of earshot before finishing her sentence. "Not."

James had his nose scrunched up in disgust as he walked the older wizard walk away. "What a creep."

"Yeah," Lee agreed instantly, though she hadn't been surprised at his behavior. She was more surprised at James's. It wasn't often a boy was willing to stand up for a girl he barely knew like that. "Thanks for that."

"No problem," he told her casually, a bright smile on his face. She supposed he probably smiled a lot, seeing as he seemed to carefree. But it was replaced with a strange thoughtfulness, and for a moment, Lee wondered if perhaps he was gearing up to hit on her. She very much hoped not. "Look..."

"Potter! Are you bothering the poor girl?" an unfamiliar female voice asked, storming up at them with fire in her eyes. It suited her fire-y red hair very well. Lee couldn't quite place her name from their classes yet, but she knew she was a Gryffindor in her year.

"Evans!" James grinned, quickly brightening up. If she thought he was happy before, it was nothing compared to when the girl had joined them. Lee couldn't help but eye him strangely. "Good to see you. You don't have to worry, Lee and I are just friends. I've only got eyes for you, you don't have to be jealous."

"I'm not jealous, I just don't want you to bother our new student," Evans snapped at him before turning to Lee, who was a bit surprised at how angry she was. The redhead's expression quickly softened as she offered her a smile and held her hand out for her to shake. "I'm sorry about him. I'm Lily from Gryffindor. You're Céline, right?"

Lee happily shook her hand, happy to meet a few more girls. Not many girls had seemed to like her much yet. "You can call me Lee."

Lily smiled and tilted her head, for a moment looking at James without hostility. "Gideon?"

James nodded and winked at her, which made her grimace. "Yup."

The blonde could easily see that James wanted to impress this girl, and thought she owed him as much as to say that he wasn't creeping on her. "Well, and... James wasn't bothering me. He was actually being really nice, so you don't have to worry but it's really nice of you."

"See, Evans?" James extended his arms and sent a grateful wink Lee's way, obviously understanding what she was doing. "I've got a character reference to add to my resumé for being your boyfriend."

"I don't care, Potter," Liliy said blankly. Once again, her entire demeanor changed and became much more pleasant as she looked at the other witch. "Well, it was nice to meet you, Lee. Tell me if he does end up bothering you, will you?"

"I will, thanks," Lee giggled. Lily offered her a final smile (and James a final glare) before walking off, probably because she didn't seem too fond of the Potter boy and didn't want to spend more time around him than necessary. But then again, she had gone out of her way to go talk to them, so Lee wasn't sure.

James smiled as he looked at Lily walk away, but not in some lustful way where he was checking out her ass or something. He just seemed genuinely interested in watching her. Lee could relate to that, even if she didn't know the person she was subconsciously interested in watching. She couldn't keep from smiling slightly as she watched him. 

James suddenly seemed to straighten up a bit as he grabbed her arm and started walking. Lee was a bit shocked for a moment, but he kept his gaze straight ahead. "Keep walking, I saw a gang of fourth year boys heading this way and I don't think we want to stick around if it's going to be anything like the last guy."

Lee had been worried for a moment that he was going to grab her and pull her away somewhere and make her uncomfortable, but she knew that he wouldn't do that. Not only was he a nice guy, but he seemed to be absolutely infatuated with Lily. "Thanks."

James glanced behind them and smirked as a few boys turned around just at the sight of his face. He let go of Lee's arm as he didn't think it necessary to drag her around more than he needed to. "I think we should be safe now, they seem to have realized they've got not shot at you."

"You really like Lily, don't you?" Lee blurted out without thinking. It sounded a bit weird once spoken, but she had no choice but to go with it as he glanced at her strangely. She tried to find the words in English to express what she meant, but she really had to search her brain. "Like you really like her. You don't just have, euh, un béguin. A crush! That's what it's called."

"I mean, you just met her. She's obviously the coolest person in the world. Who wouldn't like her?" James asked, a boy-ish smile crossing his face just at him talking about Lily. 

Lee found herself being very happy for him, that he found someone he felt that way for, even if she didn't feel the same way. "I think it's sweet."

He snorted as he ran his fingers through his messy, dark hair only to mess it up even more. She wondered if that was a habit of his. "I think that's first time someone other than my mum's called me sweet."

"I'll make sure to do it more often then," she jokingly promised, which he snickered at. For a moment, they walked in silence before Lee once again spoke up. "Hey, does everyone know about Gideon and his nicknames or something? I mean, even Lily brought it up."

"Pretty much. Almost everyone in Gryffindor got one, he had a bit of trouble with Lily, though, so she was let off easy," James explained. "He didn't stop calling me Jamie until last spring when I hexed him."

Lee laughed to herself, though she was unsure of whether or not it was a joke. There was no doubt in her mind that James could have put Gideon in the Hospital Wing if he wanted. "Jamie's a nice name though. Unisex and everything."

"Yeah, and that's lovely and all but I'm a James, I'm super masculine, you know." He flashed her a smirk as he lifted his arms to flex what was supposed to be his muscles. There wasn't as much of it as he'd led her to believe. 

"I'm sure," she laughed. He was rather funny. This was the only time she'd ever talked to him and she already liked him. She especially liked the way that he was so overtly interested in Lily and nobody else. 

"But maybe I could name a kid that one day," James suggested, looking like he'd just gotten the idea of the century. Then he waved it off, looking at her questioningly. "No, that's be too egocentric, right?"

Lee tilted her head and smiled slightly. "Maybe a little bit."

"Dammit. Got to find other ideas then." James frowned quickly after he joked with her as he spotted someone coming their way. Well, it was his friend, so it wasn't surprising, but he didn't think he'd come up wtih him considering who he was with. "Oi, there's Remus. What's he doing?"

Lee's heart suddenly clenched. She knew immediatly where he was coming from, as if she could sense it. She turned to see him walking towards her and James.  "Where?"

"He's heading this way..." As James spoke, Lee's blue eyes met Remus's light-brown ones and, without missing a beat - he turned to his left towards where Lily was standing, chatting with a blonde friend. "Or not."

Lee felt a pang of hurt. It was very obvious that he was deliberately avoiding her, after what had happened in Defence Against the Dark Arts the week before, and now this. Maybe he also thought she was stalking him, which would just make everything that much worse. "What's his deal? I feel like he doesn't... like me..."

"He's just stressed. He's got a lot on his plate right now." But it was obvious that James was as confused as she was. He forced a smile on his face as he briefly put his hand on her shoulder in a friendly manner. "Thanks for the chat, Lee. Let me know if anyone bothers you."

"Thanks," Lee answered quickly. She didn't even notice as he headed off towards Remus and Lily, as she was too bothered with staring at the back of boy with the scarred face as if her life depended on it. She could see his head move ever so slowly to the side, but he always forced it forward so he wouldn't look at her. 

Part of her wanted to run down there, to talk to him. She hadn't felt that urge so strongly throughout the past week, but it was almost impossible to face at that moment. She clenched her hands and pursed her lips tightly before turning on her heel, knowing she needed to get out of there. 

She needed to get away from him before he was able to draw her in even further. 

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A/N: So this chapter was mostly building up a bit of Lee's other relationships before we get more into the Remus stuff, but there will be more of him next chapter, so don't you worry about that. After that, we'll be getting into the good stuff.