Diana had heard rumors about where the Gryffindor common room was. A Ravenclaw girl named Sarah who had been unfortunate enough to get her heart broken by Sirius Black had said that their common room was behind a portrait of a rather stout lady.

    Diana didn't want to know how the girl knew this, and she didn't even want to think about it. But she was pretty sure it was Black who had let the girl in, back when they had been going out.

     It took her a while to find the portrait of the Fat Lady, but she didn't have the password, so it appeared to be useless even when she reached it.

    "Er... Godric?" Diana tried to guess.

      The Fat Lady scoffed. "Yeah. As if we're that obvious."

      Diana glared at her. "I don't like you."

      "Well, no wonder you were sorted into Slytherin."

      Diana gritted her teeth together in anger, taking a step closer as she said, "Listen here, you piece of —"

     Her words were cut off the next moment when the portrait swung open and someone stepped outside. Diana looked at the boy who had just walked out if the common room, who looked to be in sixth or seventh year. He probably had a free period at this time of day, which is why he wasn't in class like everyone else.

     "Oh! Hi, Greg! Hadn't seen you in a while!" Diana said enthusiastically, patting him on the shoulder. The boy stood there in confusion, so Diana took her chance to walk past him and quickly snuck through the open portrait and into the Gryffindor common room.

     "I'm not Gre — OI! YOU'RE A SLYTHERIN! STOP RIGHT THERE!" the boy shouted after her as soon as the realization hit him, but Diana had already ran through the room, looking around her.

     Once she caught sight of the spiral staircase, she ran up the left side, following her instinct. In the Slytherin common room, the boys' dormitory was at the left side, so she decided to go with her gut feeling. She was lucky that the rest of the students had classes at that time of day and so the common room was empty.

     "WAIT!" the boy kept yelling as he ran after her, but Diana was faster.

     Her bad manners which her mother always scolded Diana about came in handy when she skipped two stairs at a time as she climbed up the staircase.

As soon as she reached the dormitory's door, she opened it and entered, closing it behind her as fast as possible. She then quickly took out for her wand from inside her robe before the boy could reach her and pointed it at the door, saying, "Colloportus!"

     The door locked only a second before the boy tried to open it. "OPEN THIS DOOR IMMEDIATELY OR I WILL CALL FOR PROFESSOR MCGONAGALL!"

     Hoping that it would take long for the boy to remember that he could use Alohomora to unlock it, Diana went in search of the dorm with the sign 'Fifth Year' on its door.

    When she finally found it, Diana entered through the door. To her relief, Remus was inside the room, laying down on his bed as he read book.

     Startled at the sound of the door bursting open, Remus got off the bed and shot up to his feet. But his shock grew much more and his eyes widened when he saw who it was.

     "What are you doing here!?" he said in surprise, but Diana only gasped in horror at his sight.

      Just then she had realized that Remus was shirtless, and all he was wearing was his trousers.

     "What?" Remus questioned, confused at her reaction. He was so surprised to see her that the thought that hhe wasn't wearing a shirt had completely escaped his mind.

     Before Diana could answer, someone else burst through the door, breathing heavily. It was the same boy who had been chasing her.

     "You — you — get out!" He said as he panted hard, trying to catch his breath.

     "Oh, shut it, Greg. I'm here to see him." Diana rolled her eyes, gesturing at Remus who was still standing behind her startled.

      "My name is not —"

      "It's fine. She's with me," Remus told the boy, cutting him off.

     Even though the boy was probably a year or two older than Remus, he sent a worrying look at him and then left the dorm, closing its door behind him. He definitely wanted no trouble with the Marauders.

     Even after the boy had left them alone, Diana still didn't dare to turn around and face Remus, knowing that he was still shirtless.

     "What are you doing here?" Remus asked again. "And why are you acting so — weird?"

     "W-well — you're not really — you're kind of — shirtless."

     "Wha — shoot!" Remus muttered under his breath in panic, quickly going toward his trunk to search for something to wear. "Don't turn around!"

     That made Diana roll her eyes again. "Oh, relax. There's nothing special to see —"

     Although she broke off when she threw a quick glance behind her shoulder at where he stood, as he was taking out a baggy sweater from his trunk. Her eyes lingered on him as though she had lost all control on herself, stealing a glance at his bare chest.

     Shaking her head briskly, Diana looked away as he threw on the sweater, cursing herself for even looking in the first place.

     "Okay. What are you doing here?" Remus said again, and so Diana finally turned around to face him. But he wouldn't meet her eyes. "You're not really supposed to be in the Gryffindor common room, you know. Let alone the boys' dormitory."

     "I can see why," Diana said with a teasing grin, pointing at a few posters of bikini-clad women hung on the wall above one of the beds. Some of them weren't even wearing the top half of their bikinis and were completely shirtless.

     She could tell they were Muggles, because unlike Wizarding photographs, those posters weren't moving.

     "Those — those are Sirius's," Remus said awkwardly, rushing toward the wall in an attempt to take the posters down, but they were stuck.

     Diana snorted with laughter. "Don't worry. I'm not judging. I mean, I am judging a little. But it's fine."

     Remus sighed in embarrassment, running a hand through his hair. "Can you please just say why you're here and get it all over with?"

     "I just wanted to know why you hadn't showed up to the classes for a whole week. Because you seem fine to me right now."

     "That's it? That's why you caused that scene? Just to see why I've been missing a few classes?"

      "It's not only about the classes. It's like you had completely disappeared. I was beginning to worry about you, you jerk!" The words left her mouth before she could stop herself.

     Remus gaped at her from across the room. "You — you were worried about me?" he whispered. She quickly threw her head down, avoiding his eyes.

Trying to hide her embarrassment with a fake cover of anger, Diana glared at him. "You're an arse, Lupin. Forget I even said anything!"

      "No, wait! I'm sorry!" He chuckled, briskly walking forward to block her way before she could reach out for the doorknob.

      Diana sighed. "Why have you been hiding in your dorm?"

      Remus looked away from her. Last week, it had been just another full moon — or so had he thought. Sirius had thought it would be funny to tip off Snape and tell him how he could get into the Whomping Willow. And if James hadn't been there to pull Snape back in time, Remus would've killed him. He would've become a murderer.

     Remus didn't leave the dormitory for a whole week after that, grievously troubled in mind and vexed in soul. The guilt lingered with him for days, and he was afraid to face Snape. Dumbledore had made him swear that he would keep it as a secret, but all Remus could think about was that now Snape knew what he was.

     A hideous and dangerous monster.

     But throughout none of this time had Remus thought that he would have to face Diana too. This was what he had been afraid of the most. She was the last person in the world that he would want to find out about his secret, but he was way past the point of pushing her way. He couldn't bring himself to do it, even if he wanted to. Even if he tried.

     He couldn't ask her to stay away from him, and he felt like the most selfish person in the world to want this. To want her.

     "I've been sick," Remus said the lie he had perfected for years, and it broke his heart a bit more with each time that he said it. "It happens frequently. The Healers haven't found a cure for it yet."

     "Oh..." Diana's face fell. "I'm sorry to hear that." She had realized before that some days he looked pale and ill more than ever, with dark bags underneath his eyes, just like now.

     Diana let out another sigh. "Well... I think I should better get going. The Ancient Runes class will be over in a few minutes, and my bag and books are still in the classroom."

     "Okay..." Remus nodded lightly. He wanted to ask her not to leave, to stay with him, but the words died at his lips.

      "Right... See you later, Lupin." She gave him a small wave and opened the door to step out, but before she could, he called after her again.

     "Diana," he spoke and took a step closer to her, mustering all the courage he had left in him. Her name sounded so soft on his lips.

      "You know," he started awkwardly, rubbing the back of his neck in a sheepish manner, "I've been — um — I've missed the last two Ancient Runes lessons. Do you — I mean, if you've got the time — do you think you can help me catch up?"

     Diana couldn't help but to smile this time. This was the same boy who had finished reading many books over the last summer and had caught up with the class even though he had missed two years of it, and now he was asking for her help.

     But Diana said nothing on the matter to tease him. Instead she nodded, and all she said was, "Of course."