Sunday. It had become Remus' new favorite day of the week.

January is coming to an end shortly. The weather still remains as it did in November, but things were changing. Paranoia struck Hogwarts and students were fearful that they could be the next one attacked. There was a low murmur running through the corridors that it was somebody working for You-Know-Who in the castle.

Sunlight pours through the windows of the Room of Requirement with a serenity that eased Remus' mind. He sits with his back against the armrest and Sirius leans against him, between his legs. Sirius was sketching, lying his head on Remus' chest comfortably. Remus props his book on top of Sirius' head, his legs extended all the way out. They wear matching motorcycle socks Hope had gifted Remus through the mail.

Remus has read the same sentence four times over without realizing it, staring blankly at the page.

"Stop thinking about it," Sirius says as he outlines treetops.

Remus sighs, pushing his book to the side. He plays with Sirius' hair, braiding it like his mum taught him to do for her as a child. It was poorly done, tragic really. "I'm sorry," he groans ruffling Sirius' hair. "I just can't let you be accused of this. There's something that just doesn't click. It's near impossible for Snape to cast a spell at the Whomping Willow and then curse Lisa. The timing just doesn't add up. Which means Lisa had to have casted the first spell." He throws his head back, "But you would've seen or heard her do that. Ugh!"

"You're overthinking it."

"Or someone else had to have been there. Avery? One of them perhaps?" Sirius bites his lip uneasily. "What do you think? Are you sure you don't remember seeing anybody cast the spell?"

"I don't know."

"What direction it came from?"

"I said I don't know." Sirius sits up, turning to face Remus. "Just...let me figure it out on my own. Please?"

Remus runs a hand through his hair, flexing his arm behind his head. "You know I trust you."

Sirius lays back down, rubbing his hand over Remus' knee. "I know you do..."

*

*

*

Lily was becoming more interested in James recently, but not in the way he wanted. The more she thought about that night, the less she remembered. Whenever she came close to a theory, something was flawed. It was an endless cycle that tortured her mind. She observed James closely, watching his mannerisms and the way he interacts with the Marauders. They trusted him with every fiber of their being. It would be so easy for him to lie and never be doubted. The feeling was unsettling in Lily's mind.

James wrings his hand on the towel, pulling open to door of the lavatory. "Shit!" he gasps bumping into Lily. "Hello Lily."

"James," Lily replies curtly. "I've been thinking."

"You're finally ready to be my girlfriend?"

"No." James chuckles, beginning to walk down the corridor with her right by his side. "If you were following Sirius that night, how come you showed up so late?"

"I ran into Peeves. It's not so easy sneaking out of the castle, you know."

"That's what I suspected. But I've seen you before - you and Peter out late at night running across the grounds. I know this wasn't the first time you've snuck out." James picks up the face, his stride twice as long as her own. "You show up exactly after it happened but didn't see anything? There's no possible way that you could've shown up as fast as you did but not have seen anything."

"What're you going on about, Lily? Because it sounds an awful lot like you're accusing me."

"You're lying about something." James raises an eyebrow. "To me at least. I don't even know why Sirius was going to Remus if you all know he's a..." She surveys the area to make sure nobody was within ear shot. "Werewolf."

"Lily... stop asking me about it. I've already told you what I saw. Maybe I should be asking you the same questions. Maybe you saw something you're not sharing." Lily grits her teeth, standing tall for someone much shorter than James. "Exactly. So quit trying to get at something that's not there."

*

*

*

Sirius marches through the corridor determinedly, his face stone cold. His robes flare behind with each turn until he's nearing the third floor. Down an adjacent corridor, amidst a large group, Frances pushes past, her black hair hanging loosely without tie. Sirius stops in his tracks, bouncing on his feet dubiously. Pivoting around, he picks up the pace until he cuts off Frances.

"Francesca," he says blocking her path.

Frances attempts to go around him but every step is met. "Sirius," she grunts.

"You look different. Where's your thingy." He twirls a piece of his own hair and she shrugs. "What does that mean?"

"I'm changing my look."

"What was wrong with your old one?"

"Nothing. What do you want?"

Sirius is taken back by her brash attitude, staring down skeptically at her. "Haven't heard from you in a while."

"You should be glad then. You don't want anything to do with me."

"Is this some teenage girl problem? I'm not really fit for that talk."

The smirk on his face is wiped away when a group of Slytherins pass by. Regulus is in the center of the laughter, strolling without a care in the world. Frances watches them, tears welling in her eyes. "Sirius shove off!" She brushes past him but he grabs her hand. "What?"

"You fancy Regulus, don't you? That's why you asked me."

"No! I don't."

"What did he say to you?"

"The truth."

Sirius huffs, aggravated. "Frances tell me, please. This is important."

Frances pulls her hand from Sirius and wipes her eyes. "He just said that you two want nothing to do with mudbloods like me."

"That's not true. Regulus is a piece of shit."

"He's your brother."

"Yeah, I know." Frances chuckles. "Now tell me, what were you doing out of bed Tuesday night?"

*

*

*

Abigail sulks along the bookshelves in the library. Her essay is only a third of the way finished and there was no way she could finish it by tomorrow. Remus' words replay in her mind on a loop, each time digging deeper than the last. How could he say those things to her after that night?

Madam Pince was stamping books at her desk, laughing with a student. Abigail scoots her chair back an inch curiously. The only person Madam Pince ever seemed to tolerate was Remus. Low and behold, the sandy haired boy was talking animatedly with the librarian.

"And then he said - Hippogriff's can't read!"

Madam Pince cracks up at the punchline of Remus' joke, sliding the books into a large bin with trembling hands. "Go on, boy, I can't have any more noise in this room!"

Remus smiles, collecting his two books. The second he turns around, Abigail stands before him as if she had just apparated from thin air. "Blimey," he grunts, stopping before he steps on her feet.

"Sorry, didn't mean to startle you," she says.

"Abigail what do you want?"

"I know you didn't mean what you said the other day. You still care about me!" Remus clutches his books tightly, biting back from saying anything else. "What happened that night -"

Remus adjusts his stance, peering around the library anxiously. "What happened that night between us was nothing and you know it."

"Remus."

"Just forget about it, okay?"

*

*

*

Regulus leans forward on the couch, his hands pressed tightly to his cheeks. Tensions were high around the castle. Sirius and Snape were at the heart of it, both centered around the rumors. But they didn't know everything. Not like he did.

Bobbing his leg up and down anxiously, he jumps when the door opens. Snape enters, his head down and greasy hair curtaining around his face. Regulus is on his feet in seconds, cornering the 6th year against the wall. "What're you playing at, Snape?" he demands.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Snape answers sharply.

"First you boast that you're the one who cursed Ward, then you cry to Dumbledore begging him not to get you expelled?"

Snape pushes Regulus off, smoothening out his robes. "And how would you know anything? It's not like you were there." Regulus takes a step back, allowing Snape to walk away. "That's what I thought."