White Wolf, Lone Wolf. (A Harry Potter fanfiction)

Chapter 11

You sat down on the chair and watched Professor Lupin sit down at his desk. He poured two cups of tea and gives you one. You take a sip.

"So. Anything interesting happened today?" He asked.

You nod. "Yes Prof-" Lupin gives you a look and you quickly corrected yourself. "Moony."

Lupin raises an eyebrow. "Oh? What happened?" He takes a sip of tea.

"I befriended a centaur then a dog." You said casually.

Lupin chokes on his tea. "You what?" He asked, looking at you with a mixture of shock and surprise. "Wait wait wait. You befriended centaurs? In other words you walked into the Forbidden Forest?"

"Mhm." You hummed, nodding.

Lupin puts his cup down and put his head on his forehead. He looked... Pale. Lupin looked at you.

"Do you have any idea how dangerous the Forbidden Forest is?!" He shrieked.

You winced. "Relax Moony. It's all fine. Everything is good." You muttered.

"Good? Everything is goo-" Lupin inhales sharply, trying to calm himself down. "The Forbidden Forest. Is called the Forbidden Forest. For a reason."

You laughed softly and take another sip of the tea. "Moony. I was in good hands. I gave the centaur an apple and he gave me his bow."

"Oh right. Yeah. It's all good. It's not as if that bow has an advanced tracking spell on it." He said sarcastically, waving his arms.

You rolled your eyes and rested the cup on your knee. "Professor. I came out of the Forbidden Forest alive didn't I?" You raised an eyebrow.

Lupin sighed heavily, closing his eyes and leaning back. "You so remind me of him." He muttered.

That struck your curiosity. "Of who?" You asked, having forgotten your tea.

Lupin smiled softly, opening his eyes and looking at the ceiling. "Of an old... Friend of mine." His smile disappears and he sits up. "But he's gone now. Sort of."

"What happened between you two?" You asked.

Lupin went quiet, looking at the desk. Paper was strewn everywhere, some stacked at the two corners far away from him. An ink pot with a quill in it was placed in front of him with a flask beside it. Lupin sighed.

"He betrayed my friends. My dearest friends. And killed another one of my friends. And while killing my friend, he killed twelve muggles." He whispered.

You nod slowly. Your heart ached for Lupin. Here you were, thinking that your life was already bad but Lupin had it worse. His best friend betrayed his other best friend and killed twelve muggles in the process.

"I'm sorry for your loss professor." You whispered, leaning forward.

Lupin looked at you with a soft smile. "What did I say about calling me Professor in private?" He quipped.

You sighed. "I'm sorry for your loss Moony."

Lupin chuckled and you remembered the tea on your knee. You lifted the cup to your lips. It was no longer piping hot but that was okay. You'll drink it still. You and Lupin sat there, in silence. Finally, it was time for you to go.

You stand and give Lupin his cup. Lupin put his hand on your shoulder.

"Stop getting yourself into trouble." He said with a slight smile.

You make a face. "Psh. Please. Trouble finds me Moony."

Lupin chuckles. "That's something he would also say. Goodbye *Name*."

You walked out of the office, feeling a little lighter. Professor Flitwick had fallen ill and so did Professor Sprout so you had a couple of hours to yourself. You thought of the dog that you had befriended yesterday. He looked like his nails needed a clipping and he needed food.

You walked to the kitchen and asked a couple of house elves for three raw steaks. The house elves were bewildered but they gave you the meat. You put them in your bag and walked out of the school and walked to the Forbidden Forest.

The weather was nice for the past few weeks but now it was overcast. Grey clouds hung high in the air and the smell of rain was present. You walked into the Forest and looked around for the dog. It was nowhere to be seen, which was strange. Maybe it went to Hogsmeade. Or somewhere. A twig snapped behind you and you whirled around.

One of Draco's friends was following. He looked up at you and grinned.

"Lovely day for a walk isn't it?" He asked. An owl hooted and he jumped.

You narrowed your eyes slightly. "What are you doing here?"

The boy puffed out his chest, trying to look tough and mighty. If you were to be honest he looked pathetic. You crossed your arms and the boy put his fists on his hips.

"Just making sure you're alright." He said.

You nod slowly. "I can take care of myself, y'know that right?" You asked.

The boy snorted. "Yeah but you're eleven. You only know a few spells."

"What did you say asshole? You should know that I can use my fists." You glared at him.

The boy laughed. "Using your fists against centaurs and acromantulas? That won't work."

You looked at him with contempt, turned on your heel and walked away. You heard footsteps and looked over your shoulder. Draco's friend was lumbering after you, breathing heavily. You looked back with an eye roll. If you kept rolling your eyes you might lose your eyesight.

"I'm Gregory Goyle." The boy said.

"Uh-huh." You muttered and kept looking around.

"Malfoy sent me to keep an eye on you." The boy said.

You froze. Your brother was keeping an eye on you? That mustn't be good. That must mean that Lucius knows you're here. You looked over your shoulder.

"Pardon?" You asked, unsure if you heard him right.

"Oh. Er. Nothing." Gregory said quickly.

You nod slowly then kept walking. No longer than five minutes later you hear running and immediately got knocked onto your back. A tongue locked your face and you laughed.

"Hey! Hey! Not the face buddy! Not the face!" You yelled in between giggles.

The dog whined and got off you. He pawed his face then sniffed your bag and tapped. You sit up, smiling.

"Hello there. Did you miss me?" You asked but the dog was more interested in the food in your bag at the moment.

You sighed and took out one of the steaks. You give it to the dog and watched as the dog gobbled it all up hungrily. You smiled softly, watching the dog. You and the dog had a few things in common. Shunned from family and society, homeless and finding ways to survive. When the dog finished he looked at you and tilted his head.

You smiled softly and took the rest of the steak out. "Listen. These two you'll have to ration. I'll be back in two days okay? I'll check on you as much as possible without raising any suspicion."

The dog sat on his hind legs and tilted his head. You sighed. The dog wouldn't understand. But at least you tried. You put the meat down and looked at the dog. Then, you got an idea. You stand up and take a ball out of your bag. The dog's eyes lit up and he immediately jumped up, getting into a crouch and sticking his tongue out. He started panting.

You waved the ball left then right. The dog watched the ball. You threw the ball and the dog zipped off, chasing the ball. He came back a minute later with the ball. And so, you and the dog played with the tennis ball. You felt like this dog could be your best friend. You felt a sort of... Connection to the dog.

When the sun started setting was when you realised you had missed all of your classes. You had too much fun and lost track of time. You swore and grabbed your bag, rushing away. The dog tilts his head, his ears flopping down, dropping the ball. He whined and lied down, putting his head on his paws.

Gregory ran after you and the two of you ran into school. You headed for the Great Hall for dinner.