{REMUS V. PITY}

IT WAS THE first night of the full moon, Remus had already been hiding in the Shrieking Shack for the past two days with cold sweats and a fever. The rest of the boys and Ro all subconsciously worried about him the whole time he was out. Roselyn asked the boys if Remus told them about the bad feeling that he had. They told her that he hadn't mentioned anything like that at all. Again, Remus was trying to 'protect' her even though he knew she was perfectly capable of taking care of herself.

Before dinner, Rose went to the kitchens. She asked some of the house elves to put some stew in two containers, and they happily did it for her. She thanked them a million times, then put the containers in her bag. She snuck out the front entrance as quickly as she could once everyone was in the Great Hall. It was still sort of bright outside, so if anyone looked specifically for her from the windows they could easily spot her, so she tried to stay low. She was nearly ten feet from the farthest branch of the Whomping Willow. The small pile of moderately sized stones that the boys had collected for times like this stuck out from the corner of her eye. She grabbed one, beginning to feel nervous for God knows why, and threw it at the small knot at the bottom of the tree's trunk. A small clicking sound was heard, and the tunnel under the tree made itself visible. Ross had never hit the knot on her first try before.

The Shrieking Shack seemed to sway back and forth with the light breeze, and every step Roselyn took on it's old, wood floors seemed to squeak louder than the last. "Remus?" She whispered, finding him in a small and dirty bed, with a thin sheet covering him up to the neck. "Rem?" She poked his arm, and he turned over. "What?" He rubbed his eyes, which remained droopy, and Grace frowned at his complexion. He looked like death.

"Oh, hi, Ross. What'd you bring?" Remus sat up against an old, dusty headboard and made room for her to sit next to him. Roselyn always tried to come to Remus with food and updates on classwork when he got like this, every day during dinner. "I brought some soup, not sure what kind it is, though," She started, and a small "Oh, thank you." came from Remus. "and another blanket just in case, cause it's bloody drafty in here." Rose smiled at him. "Oh, it's freezing, you have no idea." He gladly took the blanket from her and wrapped it around his shoulders. He looked like a sick child, innocent and gentle. He didn't deserve this, nobody deserved this. It angered Rose that Remus was so sweet and kind and brilliant, but he was cursed in such a way.

"Can I ask you something?" Rose fidgeted with her fingers, pulling on the web-like skin between her thumb and pointer finger. "Anything." He replied, his mouth full of soup. "Does it hurt? When you... you know... change?" She knew that he didn't like the pity and special care that came with him discussing what happens when he morphs. He sighed.
"Depends. You know, sometimes I can see exactly what I'm doing, and I remember everything the next day and the whole process goes smoothly. But then," His voice started to shake and Rose looked at him with a greater concern than she ever had before. "Most of the time it feels like there's this whole other being inside of me who just wants blood. That's when it's the most excruciating. I guess it always kind of hurts, though."

"Jesus, Remus. I had no idea it was that hard. I-I'm sorry." He hated the look in her eye. The look of pity. This is not what he wanted. "Don't be. It's not like it was your fault." He said this a little harsher than he had originally intended. "Oh, right." She nodded, knowing that she had angered him. "Well, lunch is probably almost over, and we have McGonagall next period. I'll see you tonight, then." She smiled lightly, flattening out her skirt and standing up. "Ro," Remus mumbled, too quiet for her to hear as she walked out. "Rose!" He called again, this time with urgency. She poked her head through the doorway. He waved her in.

"I'm sorry for asking, Remus. I know you don't like talking about it, but I've just been thinking about that for while, and the boys if weren't here and I thought it was a good opportunity. But I should've remembered that it's kind of a sensitive topic, and I totally understand that, and-"
"Rose, slow down." Remus let out a chuckle that turned into a small cough. "I shouldn't have snapped. I'm glad that you're not avoiding it completely. It's nice. Refreshing, even. I'm not mad." He reassured, watching the nervousness become replaced with relief on her face, her adorable and seemingly getting more attractive everyday face.

"Good." She smiled without showing her teeth, which she thought was better looking than her full tooth smile. "I really do have to go, though." She jutted her thumb behind her. "You know McGonagall."
"Oh, yeah, go. Now. See you tonight."
"See you tonight."