ENDLESS NIGHT!

DECEMBER 1977

6th Year

• • • •

"Some are born to sweet delight, Some are born to endless night." - Agatha Christie, Endless Night

Leah Sherlock got bored very easily.

And with a halt put to her most exciting case in years, she was incredibly bored.

"Leah, would you please stop your incessant tapping?" Warren begged the girl.

Leah raised an eyebrow at the boy from the other side of the Ravenclaw table, "That's a big word, Warren. Where'd you learn that?"

"Okay, no need to be mean." Claudia sighed, jotting a few things down in her notebook.

"How much have we made this month?" Felix asked, his mouth still full with his lunch.

"Okay, say it, don't spray it." Warren groaned, wiping off the crumbs of Felix's sandwich that had landed in front of him.

Felix rolled his eyes, "Shut up."

"Well, we've made twenty-five galleons in the past week alone." Claudia said.

"Really?" Emily asked.

"December's an easy month for us," Leah shrugged, "People are always wanting to find out what someone else got them for Christmas. They simply can't use their heads."

"We're reaching one hundred galleons for December so far." Claudia added up, slipping her notebook back into her robes.

"We're only a week and a half into the month." Emily said.

Claudia shrugged, "It's like Leah said. December's an easy month."

"Has anyone's Head of House given them a lecture lately for taking money off of students?" Warren asked.

Emily shook her head, "Professor Sprout actually used us to find out what Madam Pomfrey's getting her for Christmas."

"No way." Felix laughed.

Warren nodded with a chuckle, "The teachers use us just as much as our classmates. Isn't Kettleburn on the waiting list."

"Every year," Claudia nodded with a chuckle, "Even though Binns gets him the same thing every year."

The four of them chuckled, only to stop when Leah abruptly stood up and proceeded to walk out of the Great Hall.

Emily sighed, "Is she still annoyed over the whole Lupin thing?"

"We've gotten nowhere with the case in the past month," Claudia shrugged, "And with his friends eyeing her every move we're not going to any time before they leave Hogwarts."

"I've not seen her like this before." Felix said.

"Neither have I," Claudia frowned, "And that's what scares me."

Meanwhile, over at the Gryffindor table, Sirius sighed.

"Mate, you don't need to keep watching her," The boy told Remus, "She's leaving you alone - all of us alone."

"I just don't get why." Remus shrugged, picking at his lunch.

James, Peter, Sirius and Lily all shared a look.

"Maybe she's realised that we're not going to let up." Lily shrugged.

"Yeah, but she never lets up herself," Remus muttered, "Something's off about this whole thing."

"I wouldn't think about it too much, Moony," James told him, "At least you're no longer being watched at all hours of the day."

"Yeah." Remus muttered, his eyes travelling back over the doors of the Great Hall, which he had just seen Leah walk out of.

___

Remus shoved his hands into his pockets as he wandered around the halls of the castle, his prefect rounds soon to finish, feeling bored. He made his way up the tall and winding staircase up to the Astronomy tower, he smiled, the memory of when he was up there all but two months ago, learning about the enigma that was Leah Sherlock. He'd been up there almost every night since and she hadn't shown up. 

Remus didn't know why he kept going, call it foolish hope that one night she would be there, too, but that small bit of hope was always snuffed out as he would reach the top of the tower and she wouldn't be there. He'd stay for an hour or two every night, just in case, but he always ended up making his way back to the Gryffindor tower, dejected.

So, when he came to the top of the Astronomy tower, he had to blink a few times to make sure she was actually there, leaning against the railing, just like she was that first time they had met up there.

"Hi." He said so softly, his voice almost got lost in the wind.

Leah's head turned slightly to the side, "Oh. Hello."

"You've not been up here." Remus noted, slowly walking to stand next to her.

Leah made a gap between them, stepping to the left, "Well, I knew you'd be coming up here."

Remus smiled slightly, running his hands over the metal railing, "You did."

Leah shrugged, "It's in your nature."

Remus' tongue ran gently over his lips, before he cleared his throat and nervously asked, "So, if you knew I'd be coming up here, why haven't you?"

"I'm not allowed to talk to you." Leah told him.

Remus stared at her, blinking a few times, "I'm sorry, what?"

"Your friends," The Ravenclaw girl shrugged, "They complained to Professor McGonagall. For harassing you all. And now I'm not allowed to talk to any of you unless one of you instigate the conversation. Not that I want to talk to any of the others."

A small smile fought its way onto Remus' lips, "You want to talk to me?"

Leah nodded slightly, "I know, it surprised me too."

"Why?"

"I'm trying to find out what you and your friends are hiding, and yet you're still nice to me. You've come up here every night for two months in hopes of talking to me," Leah said, "Why don't you hate me like your friends do?" She whispered, looking up at the boy.

Remus sighed, taking a step towards her, shortening the gap between them and leaning his elbows against the railing, glancing up at the sky, "Do you remember when we first talked? In the library."

Leah nodded, "I do."

"You asked if I knew who you were, what you could do." Remus said.

"I remember, I was there."

Remus let out a chuckle, "The next day, when I sat with you in the library, you said that my friends and I had intrigued you for a long time. And I've felt the exact same way about you, Leah. You're a mystery. One I'd like to solve."

"I'm usually the one solving the puzzles."

"Well, why don't you let me have a go?"