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Secrets - Chapter 2: Moon calendar

Remus Lupin × Adrienne Macmillan

Summary: Adrienne Macmillan is a Slytherin student in Hogwarts, who gets curious about his fellow classmate's, Remus Lupin's scars. Upon finding out their meaning, what will she do with this secret and the feelings she begins to feel towards the boy?

Word count: 1,782

Keywords: Marauders-era, Remus Lupin x Slytherin girlfriend, secret relationship

Trigger warnings: scars, "hate speech"

Author's note: To be honest, this might be the last work I post; recently I've been having a hard time and I even considered deleting my account. So we'll see how that goes. If anything happens and I disappear this story might be continued on AO3. Sorry for the ranty rant, hope you'll enjoy this next chapter!

Previous chapter: A rainy day

Taglist: @errruvande

The very same night Adrienne returned with her friends to the dark, green-toned common room after dinner. She spread her books on the floor and settled down herself. 'Don't tell me you are going to do homework still,' Rachel sighed. 'It's this Divination crap… Don't worry, I'll be done quickly.' 'I'm curious what Professor Trelawney meant by those transits in your chart,' Chloe said as Ada flipped to the back of her book to the moon calendars of the year. 'Probably nothing,' Ada rolled her eyes. 'Remember how she predicted Anderson to be dead by the end of last semester? Seems to be in perfect health to me.' 'I was kinda hoping for it,' her strawberry blonde friend scoffed, and the three girls chuckled. Anderson was clinging constantly to Rachel's boyfriend; not that it mattered, for Rachel was a lot prettier, and, if nothing else, "exotic". 'Still,' Chloe pressed on. 'Astrology is a lot more exact branch.' 'I'll look into these moon phases then,' Ada joked and pointed one out at random. 'Oh, it says I shouldn't go to high places next week, cause Mars makes a challenging aspect to the Moon and I'm more likely to fall. I guess that rules out the ladder to Divination class.' Rachel laughed and Chloe threw a pillow to Ada's head. 'Just get your homework done quick, I want to tell you about Lucius.'

However, Ada found it difficult to focus. The murmured conversation of her friends, and the splashes against the underwater window, which were usually soothing, now annoyed her. The water reminded her of the rain that ruined her notes; she pulled it from her pocket and smoothed the parchment on the floor. She was replaying the Divination professor's words in her mind, the woman's big glasses, the heavy fumes of sage, the twinkle of her many and long necklaces. 'The 25th of February, my dear, the 25th of February,' Trelawney egged her on and Ada had to shake her head to wake from her stupor. With every word she wrote on the parchment, the same date flashed before her eyes and she couldn't figure out why - she checked on the moon calendar. It was a day after the full moon but of no importance to her. Then, she glanced at the notes next to her homework: still a blotchy mess, but almost clearly, the 25th of February was there.

Ada pulled the notes closer and ran her fingers across it. Now, under the warm light of the fireplace it was clear that, though the ink itself ran across the paper like many tiny spider legs, her writing left indentations into it. It was a terrible habit of hers, pressing the quill into the parchment with such force it carved into the page - not only did it make quill purchases more frequent, but also rendered any eraser spell ineffective for her.

Finally, it played into her hand.

February 25, the date that was nagging at her, was marked as one of the days Remus turned up to class with new scars. Half-heartedly, Ada checked the dates against the moon calendar. There were some days when he appeared sick and others when he missed class and stayed at the hospital wing. Huh, what are the chances, a boy syncing up with the Moon?

A boy syncing up with the full moon.

Blood flushed from her body. Surely it was a coincidence. They wouldn't let…

'I've gotta check something out in the library,' Ada jolted up, swiping her books and papers into her arms. 'What?' Rachel sounded like she had a very bad cold. 'It's late, the library is almost closed,' Chloe reasoned, but her friend was already out the door.

'Please,' begged the brunette later to the librarian. 'I have a very important essay tomorrow.' The librarian, although with her mouth pulled to the side, allowed her in, if she'd be quick. Ada didn't have to be told twice: she pulled a few volumes about magical creatures not to make it too obvious. On her way back, she steadied herself. After all, she couldn't be sure. Lupin was a quiet kid, nice, even. He can't be a bloodthirsty werewolf.

She snuck into an empty classroom and got to reading. Her own reassurance dissipated with every page she flipped, leaving no doubt when she finished all her books.

She pushed the last dusty volume close and stared into the dark classroom. The moon was waning, casting a pale veil of light on the desks. Ada turned her Lumos spell off without saying a word (she used it so often to read or study after her friends went to bed, she needed no incantation).

During the first month or so, she devoured every book that was available in the library about werewolves. She learned of the signs, of the condition, the history, and the remedies - she'd read how vicious and dangerous these people can be, but she couldn't help thinking how unfitting it was to her classmate.

She kept this discovery to herself, although everything afterwards proved her assumption to be right. A few days after the next full moon, Lupin finally returned to class after a few days of "being ill". He was still slimmer and his face sickly, with dark circles under his eyes. He just about fished out a niffler from Ada's hair (it was trying to steal her earrings) when she noticed, that, however healed they seemed, there were new scars on the boy's otherwise delicate hands. It puzzled her; why would he always get new scars - she couldn't tell, why, but she felt a pang in her chest.

A year had passed and Adrienne made no mention of this to anyone - although being close to Remus or seeing him left her with an uneasy feeling she couldn't quite explain. She tried to chalk it up to fear. It made sense with how her heart was racing every time the boy caught her staring at him, or how she trembled ever so slightly when they had to work together during a lesson. It did not, however, explain why she always hoped to bump into him.

Well, her wish was soon granted.

They were headed towards the Great Hall after a long session at the library. Chloe was in the midst of an animated retelling of a dragon sighting around the Hebrides as they descended the staircase, when Ada spotted the Marauders, as the four boys (James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus) liked to refer to themselves, around the end of it. She half-registered the boys being there when her friend turned to her: 'What do you think, Ada? Are there still Hebridean Blacks left in Scotland?' Adrienne felt her foot stuck - she forgot about the enchanted step and her left foot was now swallowed by it. By reflex, she tugged on it, only to then be sent flying ahead the last few steps. She tried to grab onto the handrail, but her hand slipped on the smooth marble as if to hasten her fall. She braced herself for the inevitable impact, yet she felt two hands on her waist, and her upper arms, instead of the cold, hard floor, were stopped by someone's chest.

She carefully looked up but forgot all about her absolute humiliation when she saw Remus' face. It was in terrible shape, with a long scar stretching across his face and his eyes were still red. 'What happened to you…?' She blurted out, but, feeling the disapproval of her friends burning her sides, she adjusted her robe and added: '…freak.' Remus' surprised expression turned to a frown, but it was Sirius who jumped between the two of them: 'What did you say?' 'Khm, what, Black, are you deaf?' Ada did not want to repeat that word. It just felt… Wrong. 'I can make you to be,' the boy aimed his wand at her without missing a beat and Adrienne pulled out hers in return. All the students around them took a step back in shock (and unconcealed anticipation). Upon this, James also joined to support his friend. 'I wouldn't go around saying things like that if I were you.' 'Hey,' Chloe stepped to Ada's side and grabbed her shoulders. 'Cut it out, you two.' 'Take it easy, Avory, or you're gonna be next,' Sirius' grey eyes were burning. If looks could kill… 'What is the meaning of this?' Came the stern, croaky voice of McGonagall from the other end of the hallway. She hurried to the scene to dispel the onlookers (unsuccessfully). 'Black, Potter! Why is it always you two? Miss Macmillan!' 'Professor she stated it!' Claimed James. 'This is unacceptable! Lower your wands, all of you! Five points from Gryffindor and Slytherin and all of you get detention.' 'What? It's not fair!' Even Pettigrew joined in the commotion of pleas: 'But she was calling Remus…' 'Professor this is outrageous!' 'Yes, she should definitely…' 'Silence!' McGonagall said gravely. 'I don't want to hear about it. Potter, Black, in my office. Miss Macmillan, go to Professor Slughorn's office, and don't try to sneak off. I will get his account after dinner.'

Adrienne felt horrible as she walked away from the scene, even more so as she caught a glimpse of Lupin. He seemed down and would never look towards her again.

Her friends waited for her when she emerged from Slughorn's office after a detention was assigned to her. 'Miss Macmillan, I'm very disappointed in you!' Slughorn had said just minutes before, and he was baffled, especially once he heard the full tale from McGonagall. He did not go easy on her - he hoped to discourage one of his finest students from ever acting out like this. Without any background knowledge, it seemed disproportionate and her friends weren't shy to point that out: 'Are you serious? Cleaning the hippogriff stables for a week?' Chloe asked angrily. 'For calling that freak what he is?' 'Sush,' Ada gestured with her hands. 'Don't make it worse.' 'Serves him right with all those scars. He looks hideous,' Rachel added with a giggle. 'Rachel!' the brunette scolded her friend. 'What? You're already converted to freaks without starting detention?' She giggled with Chloe but Adrienne did not feel like laughing. How could she tell her friends that mentioning "freak" every time caused her shame and that she did in fact think that she deserved her detention? That she did kind of find Lupin's scars cute and him avoiding her after this incident hurt more than shovelling hippogriff poop for a week?

Part of these, she learnt later, but she knew it must be another secret she kept from her friends.

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