Aunt Rose

51.

A pin being dropped could have been heard in the staff room with how quiet it was. Everyone was watching the altercation and was stunned when it was revealed why Rose was so angry. They still didn't stop her and Severus didn't speak.

"What, cat got your tongue?" Rose taunted, unable to help herself. "That's all right, just call me a mudblood like last time. I'm sure it's still a reflex, isn't it?"

As if it could be possible, the air was sucked out of the room. Those words hung in the air as a nasty reminder of the past. Rose was still staring at Snape, her hair a shade of angry red.

"Stay away from Neville, stay away from Harry, and get over yourself."

With that, Rose swivelled back around and marched out of the staff room, right past an out of breath Remus as he sighed. He was too late and Rose had already ripped Snape a new one.

Not that he was mad about it, of course. He wished he'd been there to watch.

***

At the end of the day, Remus and Rose sat together by the Great Lake. Like old times, when Rose used to sit with her three friends and talk. It was nice.

"Minerva told me what you said to Severus," Lupin said, trying very hard to hold back his laugh. "That was cold, Red. I would give anything to have been able to see it."

"He is such a frustrating man. You know, when normal people have friends that are being targeted by bigots, they try to help. I mean, look at James and Peter. They became Animagi to make sure you never felt alone. And there's Snape, who Lily and I were friends with for seven years. We were being targeted by his blood purist housemates. And what did he do?" Rose asked, looking at Remus. Her knees were by her chest and she was resting her chin on top of them.

"He called us mudbloods and then joined up with the man who wanted to kill us. How could he ever think we'd want to reconcile? Better yet, why does anyone think he's changed at all?"

"I don't know. I honestly can't tell you why Dumbledore even hired the man. He's all right with him bullying his students?" Remus stated, also unhappy with their old classmate.

"Ugh, don't even get me started on that man. I swear he always has some secret plan he won't let anybody else know about. It was like pulling teeth for him to allow me to even come here. But after Harry's first two years, there was no way in hell I was staying home again."

"I know why Dumbledore asked me back. But I can't help but feel Minerva is finding out things she didn't want to know," Remus replied with a mischievous smile.

"What, that you were really the mastermind behind most of their pranks? James and... James didn't have enough brain cells to pull all of that off. Please, you played the part of the innocent werewolf so well no one ever suspected you," Rose said as Remus gave her a smug, cheeky smile.

"It was quite genius, wasn't it? Those days were simple."

Rose giggled and then sighed, looking out at the Black Lake. She'd spent so much time there with her group of friends. So much had changed since then.

But as she looked out at the lake, Rose suddenly started to cry. The sudden shift in emotion caught Lupin by surprise and he became concerned for Rose.