Her Single Rose (Remus Lupin)

Twenty-Two

Hogwarts.

———————

"How was the wedding?" Marlene asked as she watch her bestfriend unpack her bag.

"The wedding was like any other pure blood weddings, extravagantly boring and expensive." Aries said before placing her now empty bag under her four poster bed.

"Well, I'm just sorry you have to be related to that dim witted, fool. Stupid Malfoy and his egotistically fat head." Mindy said as she pranced around the bedroom.

"He's not that bad when he can't talk, my cousin jinxed him in a conversation we were having making him go mute. He just went on and on and on, it was fun watching his mouth move but nothing come from it." Aries giggled.

"Sounds like it wasn't all that bad after all." Marlene shrugged, but then shuddered. "Nope, it was still pretty bad wasn't it?"

"Bad was an understatement, mother made me change my dress four times because I 'kept getting stains on them'." Aries quoted as she sat on the bed in a huff.

"We all love it when that happens." Marlene said sarcastically.

"Well you shouldn't sulk now, you should be out the door already and in the library." Mindy said as she sat down at the vanity and started curling her hair around her wand for fun.

"Why?" Aries asked as she watched Mindy through the mirror with Marlene.

"Don't you tutor, Potter today? You've been ditching him for the last few sessions." Mindy summed.

"Oh Merlin it's Tuesday."

Aries eyes widened when she realized her roommate was right. She grabbed her wand and her book bag, quickly gathering her charms books and fled the dorm room without another word.

———————

Aries took a breath before walking through the library doors. She walked as her mother did, keeping her back straight, chin up, and heart beat slow and steady.

Her book bag was gently swinging on her shoulder when she spotted the head of messy brunette curls she knew was James Potter.

"Huh, you actually came this time. Oh let me rephrase that. Where have you been?! I could have been failing Charms all this time!" James whisper yelled.

Aries rolled her eyes and opened her book bag.

"Another book?!" He groaned as Aries pushed the book in front of him.

"It's a picture book, now stop groaning and look through pages twenty-eight through thirty-four. Memorize the movements and then try them for yourself." Aries instructed.

"I thought we were doing more complicated stuff now. How is this supposed to help?" James asked in disbelief.

"Trust the methods and just do it." Aries said as she pulled out a drawing book, a quil, ink, and a glasses case.

"What's that for?" James asked as he looked up from the moving images on the book.

"For me, now focus." Aries said as she placed the glasses on her face and pulled her parchment closer to her body so only she could see.

"I meant the glasses, I didn't know you were visually impaired." James smirked teasingly but quickly brought his eyes back to the images when Aries gave him a glare.

She sketched as he began to pull out his wand and practice the movements, after an hour she looked up from her dress design to see James having trouble with the movements.

He seemed to snap his hand instead of flick his wrist, sometimes flinch his arm and develop sparks. Aries watched as he started to notice his faults and retract them.

"Spin and flick, keep your elbow locked." Aries instructed, he looked back at her before doing as she told him.

He pointed his wand towards Aries ink, "colovaria" he said sternly yet quietly, the ink turned a bright red, in which James smiled proudly.

"I did it..I did it! It took an hour, but I did it!" He said in slight disbelief.

"Nice, now change my ink back to black and start practicing the growth charm." Aries said making him sigh.

"Can't we just stop for today, the color changing spell took a lot out of me." James asked.

"Just try this spell, when we learn it next week, you'll be one of the first to master it." Aries told him and pushed the book back to him with her wand.

"We haven't learned it yet?! I have Quidditch training in half an hour." James said as he ruffled his hair.

"Salazar, you complain too much. You won't be on the Quidditch team for much longer if you don't pass this class." Aries tutted. "I'm not too fond of these sessions either, but at least I'm actually trying." She said before going back to her designs.

Her words must've hit a nerve in James, he sighed and decided to actually start working on the spells, within the next fifteen minutes he had not only mastered the color changing charm but also ended up growing her quil two inches.

Aries had to shrink it back but by the time she did, their session was over. James was free to Quidditch and Aries left the library to the Hospital Wing.

As she walked down to the hospital wing she saw Amos Diggory and the rest of the Hufflepuff Quidditch team walking into the castle.

"Hey, Diggory! If I didn't know any better I'd say my Quidditch skills are better than yours!" Aries gained his attention.

He smirked.

"If they were than why aren't you on the Quidditch team?!" He yelled back before jogging over.

"How's my favorite Slytherin?" He asked wrapping an arm around her shoulder, she shoved his arm off in disgust.

"You need a shower, your disgusting! And I'm fine, thank you." Aries said making Amos chuckle.

"Where you headed?" Amos asked as they paused in their step, Aries back facing the wall.

"The hospital wing, Madame Pomfrey normally calls this time of day rush hour." Aries told him.

"Why?" Amos asked as he leaned against the wall.

"Because Quidditch is starting up, and this is normally when everyone starts practice. And let's not forget when there are games too, sometimes we'll get four patients, if we're lucky we get six to eight." Aries explained.

Amos chuckled making Aries smile, "what about you?" She asked as she mimicked her friend against the wall.

"Well, I was planning on going and asking Jess to the Halloween Ball, you know, that fifth year Hufflepuff. But now that you mention it...I think a shower would be good first." He said looking down at his muddy outfit.

Shower first, then give her the milk chocolate candy bar

"Definitely, oh and...Jess likes dark chocolate, she thinks milk chocolate is too sweet." Aries informed him.

"How'd you know I was going to give her candy?" He asked, Aries just smiled in return and shrugged.

"Just a hunch." She said before smiling and walking back to the hospital wing where she opened the big doors and walked inside.

This time she saw her twin on one of the beds. He was unconscious. His arm in a sling.

"Oh, my dear, I'm so glad you're here. Mr. Henderson, right over there, needs some assistance." Pomfrey was already rushing around as she helped patient to patient.

There were five this time, the boy she was assigned to had on a Ravenclaw Quidditch uniform.

Of Course it was Quidditch.