𝐒𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐖𝐇𝐈𝐒𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐒

「 missing muggleborns 」

   "I didn't despise you." Lily tried to reason weakly with him, finding some confidence to speak her truth like he had just done. No more hiding. However, James wasn't convinced. His heart was listening to his head for once; he had had enough. The boy climbed the stairs and headed into the common room, leaving Lily to chase. "James!" She shouted, making him stop. It was always Potter, never James.

   "Look Evans, I don't need your pity. Also, I don't need you to lie to me so you can avoid feeling guilty for 'hurting my feelings.' I can handle a few harsh words." The boy sighed, not even bothering to turn around. It would just end like every other argument that the two had had over the years.

   "You're not listening to me!" She shouted, not sure how she was going to explain herself anymore. "Nothing I have ever said was to protect your feelings. They were to protect mine." The girl admitted because it was the truth, for years she had been selfish. And now, she felt selfish for making this choice to tell him, it was like she was stringing him along when she truly meant this. Every part of her screamed to stop but she persisted.

   "Protect you from what?" James questioned, now intrigued. The boy turned around to face the redhead who seemed to be complementing her next steps very wisely. She was torn between her words. It was the silence that was scarily loud, no longer a whisper in the distance. It was a strange atmosphere, neither tense nor uncomfortable.

   "Maybe during my first and second year, I did despise you. But then I started to notice the little things that you did. How you comforted Isadora when she was having a panic attack or when you take the blame for something that someone else did to avoid them getting in trouble. Things you don't brag about. I see them but for a long time, I chose to forget them because it made me feel better when I said no. But I said no because I felt guilty. How am I supposed to admit that I like the person that I spent years critiquing and judging? It's not fair on you." She told him in a quiet voice as the boy forced himself to blink. "You're right, I'm the one that hasn't changed because I hate being wrong." The girl begrudgingly, causing the boy to let out a small chuckle. Her resistance never ceased to amaze him. "And then, there is everything grand you do that you don't brag about. You took Sirius in as family and spend every full moon frolicking around so Remus doesn't hurt himself. And yes, I know about him. I have for a few years. You were supposed to be the one that I hated but it turns out that you are everything that I try to be but I am not. For a while, I was jealous and now it is something completely different." Lily spoke to the boy who was trying to process everything that he had just heard. It was almost surreal and took him a moment to find his words.

   "How do you know? About Remus." James asked carefully, the rest could wait. He couldn't have that information out, even if it was Lily. There was a duty he had to protect the boy, no matter what.

   "The signs are obvious when you know what you are looking for. Eleanor introduced me to her friend, Celine. She's a- one too. Very open about that, actually. Told me what to look for, symptoms, appearance, etc. How to care, properly. How to protect myself." The redhead explained, leaning her side against the armchair as she patiently waited for him to form an answer. He seemed satisfied with it.

   "Have you told anyone?" He countered, staring at the floor as he chewed on his bottom lip. Though the answer was obvious, she could be lying. After all, Snape knew very well what Remus was. He was far too curious before Sirius said a word.

   "No, of course not. I'm well aware of the prejudices that people hold against werewolves. I would never risk Remus being exposed to that." She argued, slightly offended that he would even ask such a thing. But she understood why. The girl would have done the same in his situation. He lifted his head, giving her a light smile.