Sleep eluded Remus on the nights leading up to the full moon, slipping through his hands like sand in an hourglass. It was beginning to show, too, as dark clouds popped up under his eyes and the colour drained from his skin. The days leading up to his transformation were when his mind slipped, playing tricks on him and altering realities. It was how he found himself at the edge of the forbidden forest, racking his brain for any reason why Francesca continued to ignore their past.

The cold crisp air penetrated his muscles deeply; one would almost think he was mentally ill for standing out in the cold. However, no one was around at quarter to midnight to judge him, only his mind and the wild animals. A glance at the watch Francesca bought him for their graduation told him to venture back into the warm castle, yet he couldn't rest until the moonlight answered his questions.

A fond memory flashed across Remus' eyes as the wind brushed ripples across the surface of a small stream he stumbled upon.

"I'm going to marry her."

Was the sentence that caused Sirius to spit out the tea he was drinking onto Henry's newspaper, which in turn knocked the toast off the table while attempting to cool off the scalding along his knuckles, leading to Remus slipping on said jammy toast and whack his head against an open cabinet.

"You're going to what?!" Sirius asked his friend in disbelief.

"I'm going to marry Francesca," Remus reiterated, clutching his temple," Merlin, Pad. Do you have to be so dramatic?"

"Of course, I'm going to be bloody dramatic! My best friend just said he's going to chain himself up for the rest of his life like some lost puppy, and we're never going to see him again," Holding his hand to his head, Sirius flopped onto Henry's lap.

"I thought I was your best friend?" Henry asked Sirius.

"No, darling, you got upgraded to boyfriend." Sirius landed a cheeky kiss on Henry's cheek before returning to his theatrics," You realise you're setting yourself up for a lifetime of agony."

"-and suffering!" Henry added.

Remus sighed as he rubbed his temple," You're really going to keep this up?"

"Oh yeah-"

"-All day."

The couple replied synchronised, sharing a look of mischief. 

"Ok fine!" Stalking away down the hallway, Remus stopped at the edge of the doorframe hiding a cheeky smile," Guess you won't want to be my best men then."

Sirius and Henry immediately clamoured from their chair, Henry pushing Sirius off him and falling to the ground, to be more precise, as they began to sing their praises and plan their speeches.

Blinking his eyes a few times, the picture disappeared, and Remus was suddenly reminded of how much the temperature had dropped since he strolled outside. Using a wandless heating charm on his cardigan, Remus left his questions by the stream for the night and headed to his classroom to prepare his next D.A.D.A lesson.

Morning came too soon for Remus as the sun blinded him, his eyes heavier than iron. Looking around him, Remus concluded that he must have fallen asleep while working on his Grindelow class. Yawning, he grabbed his wand, fixed his shirt, and headed to his private quarters to brew some well-needed coffee. Feeling a bit more energised, Remus decided it was time for breakfast.

"Ouch! My apoli ..." Rounding a corner, Remus bumped into someone, and that someone had tumbled back, spilling the contents of their bag across the limestone floor.

Remus promptly gathered up some of the parchment, "Are you ok? It was my fault; I should look where I'm going."

"Jack, what are you doing here? Shouldn't you be in Hogsmeade?" Remus asked, handing back the papers.

"Da forgot to sign my form- he's very busy with work at the moment", the boy added with a forced smile.

Remus felt pity for the boy left behind with no one else in the castle. Deciding that his coffee could wait a little longer, he invited Jack to a tea and a biscuit in his office. The walk back up was quiet until Jack saw a ginormous tank sitting in the corner of the room.

"I've just taken a delivery of a Grindylow for our next lesson", he explained, detecting Jack's curious glance towards it.

"Bit of an ugly brut, init?" Jack backed away from the glass.

Remus chuckled, handing the boy a cup," I suppose it is! We shouldn't have any difficulties with this one, not after the Kappas. I'm afraid I only had tea bags - but I daresay you've had enough tea leaves? Mr Potter was in this morning and mentioned Professor Trewlany's 'predictions'."

Jack rolled his eyes, fiddling with the handle of his chipped cup," No offence, teach, but she's a few sandwiches short of a picnic! She made Lavander cry, told Padma to avoid Ron and apparently, Harry will die again this year. I hope he'll kick the bucket around May so Dumbledore will cancel exams."

"What was your prediction, if you don't mind me asking," Remus inquired.

The boy's face paled slightly," Oh- I don't remember much of it, something about a deadly enemy, a load of codswallop."

They fell into a somewhat comfortable silence, sipping away at their teas. Something of Jack's thoughts must have made their way to his face as he stared at the Gridelow tank, catching Remus' attention.

"You're not worried, are you?"

"There's nothing to worry about; unless you count Professor Snape," Jack smirked a bit as he held the cup's brim to his lips.

"You would tell me if anything was bothering you?" Remus asked sincerely.

He couldn't imagine what Jack must go through daily, but he vowed he would not let it happen under his watch. Many peers have let Jack slip through the radar, seen as the class clown and nothing more. You fall once, and getting back up seems impossible and unrealistic. Remus should know that once he got good grades, his parents never asked too profoundly about him or how he was coping with making new friends with his condition. Luckily, he had a family of friends to support him, but he couldn't be sure that was the case for Jack.

"Yeah, course," Jack replied, trusting Remus more than when he came in.

"Merlin, look at the time! We've almost missed dinner," Remus collected the cup and waved his wand to tidy the table," You head on down; I've got to finish a bit of paperwork."

"Also, why don't you compare your recent essay with Harry's. I noticed you're having a little trouble with Boggarts," Remus said.

"Will do, teach!" Jack answered as he walked out the door, throwing thumps in the air.

Once Remus was sure Jack was gone, he rummaged through the drawers in the bureau. He pulled out a silver goblet. Turning up his nose, Remus sighed before downing the drink. Crinkling up his forehead, he gazed out the window at the moon, and his mind ventured to the agony he would have to endure later tonight when the monster inside came out for feeding. He decided not to linger on any longer and headed down to tea.

The empty goblet was still smoking on his desk, sparkling in the moonlight.

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- Guess who's working in a theme park for the summer! Updates will be very random as I'm at work five days a week, but I hope to have at least one every month. Have a great summer!

*The_lost_flower*