In a universe where Voldemort never became powerful enough to terrify people for decades after the first Wizarding War, Peter didn't betray his friends, and Remus Lupin fell in love with his best friend's twin sister.
Marauders era
Remus Lupin × fem...
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February to March 1975
Juliet Potter woke up to weird noises. When she opened her eyes she recognised the couch she was laying on and assumed she was brought to the Gryffindor's common room by Remus.
Note to self, thank Remus by offering him chocolate. And tease him about his pretty face.
She then turned around and jolted up when she saw a stag. A scream of surprise left her mouth but ended muffled because of a hand suddenly covering it. It smelt like cigarettes. That's definitely Sirius Black's hand.
Juliet turned around and saw the boy hovering over her with a panicked face and glared at him making him retrieve his hand. Her glance moved back to the front where she saw the stag now closer to her than it used to be, causing her to lean back into the couch.
She then looked away from the animal and saw an equally panicked Remus and Peter.
"What do we do?" The blonde whispered to his friends.
"I got this." Sirius then leaned down to be at the girl's level, whispering to her in a low gentle voice. "This is all a dream, and you will forget everything by tomorrow."
Juliet blinked. Then smacked him in the face. "Nice try." Watching the animal closely, as if daring it to approach her more, she just noticed James wasn't in the room.
And then it was this weird familiar feeling coming from that stag. And Juliet remembered about the Animagi situation, and impulsively blurted. "James!?"
The three boys gasped and the stag stumbled back in panic. "How does she know? How do you know?" Peter screeched.
"Oh my God, I was right!?" She stood up abruptly and pointed to the wild animal. "That's James!?"
"You just guessed!?" Remus asked, bemused.
"Yes! I mean I knew about the whole Animagi thing but-"
"You did!?" Sirius gaped from behind her.
"Okay, calm down!" She sighed. "You're gonna wake up the others."
James nudged her with his antlers and she stepped back, weirded out. "Nope. Don't touch me." She turned back to his friends. "Why is he like this?"
"Well..." Sirius hesitated.
"We were just practicing for the next full moon and he got stuck in his animal form!" Pettigrew snitched.
"Full moon? What's happening during full moon?" The brunette furrowed her eyebrows making the other three gasp in panic again.
"She doesn't know! She doesn't know!" They repeated before receiving a pillow in the face.
"Shut up!" She shushed them then turned to the stag and drew out her wand, pointing it at her brother and murmuring the Animagus reversal spell.
James turned back in his human form and blankly looked at his friends. "Why did we not think of this?"
"Because you are idiots." Juliet replied, walking towards the girls' dorm stairs. "And I'm going to sleep."
"Wait! Hold on!" Her twin called, and she turned, already on the first step. "How did you know?"
"You're an annoying douchebag and I'm a nosy bitch. We all have flaws." She shrugged nonchalantly and walked up the stairs, deciding not to overthink everything that just happened for she already had a terrible headache.
It was two days later. Two whole days of the Marauders stealing glances in the youngest Potter's direction here and then, murmuring between themselves. And two days that Remus Lupin has been avoiding Juliet Potter.
And Juliet Potter hated it. She didn't know why she wanted to have his attention so bad, but she longed for him to glance her way just once.
She followed him around, without him knowing, waiting for the perfect occasion to corner him. Which she was able to when he was alone in the library, looking at the books on a shelf.
"Remus." She called, her voice low, so she wouldn't get caught by the school's terrifying librarian, Miss Pince.
The tall boy's head snapped in her direction, obviously surprised and he just stood her. Does he think that if he doesn't move, I'll go away?
With raised eyebrows and an upset expression, she crossed her arms. "Why have you been avoiding me, Lupin?"
"Um..." He scratched the back of his head, looking everywhere but at her.
"Is it about what I saw?" She tilted her head, playing with her fingers. "I've known for a year. I swear I haven't told anyone, your secret is safe with me."
"What.." He paused. "What exactly do you know?"
"I just... I just know that you boys were planning on becoming Animagi. I don't know why, though." She left out the part where she was herself an Animagus.
He looked down, uncomfortable and she noticed it. It quite honestly hurt her. Making Remus Lupin uncomfortable was never something she thought she'd be able to pull out.
"I'm sorry." She stepped back. "I'll just.. Stay away."
And so she did. She stopped following him around, she stopped looking his way, she stopped sitting next to him during class. She even asked Regulus and Pandora to help her with Charms again so Remus wouldn't have to. She went to the extent of asking for another partner for the prefect patrols.
This went on for exactly three weeks.
Pandora, Regulus, Amos and even the Gryffindor girls noticed the terrible mood she's been in recently. Lily tried to make James talk, thinking they've got into a fight again, and she was more confused when she found out they didn't.
So what exactly was wrong with Juliet Potter?
That seemed to be the question that her new prefect partner seemed to be asked himself. It was a Hufflepuff, Henry Abbott. They were in the same year, were both friends with Amos but never really talked before, though he could tell she wasn't normally this quiet. He tried cheering her up, unsuccessfully.
"Juliet!" They heard, when their patrols was coming to an end.
It was Amos, he rushed to them, a bit panicked. "Mulciber made a first-year go in the Forbidden Forest and she hasn't been back yet!"
"What!?" The two prefects exclaimed.
In a second, Juliet turned to the two boys. "Go get Dumbledore, I'll go find her!"
And before they could even process what she just said, she was running to the gates.
Perhaps it was the hero complex, but that was the stupidest, bravest and most impulsive decision Juliet Potter ever made.
* * *
I've been planning the next chapter for some time. You will get an Animagus reveal yay!
