A Circle of Flame- Sirius Black x OC

Chapter 20

Remus's gaze shuttered. "Alright. Going to the Hospital Wing because I'm afraid I've got a cold coming on." He gave a sudden cough, as if there had been something tickling his throat.

Opening her mouth, Liza realized it was probably impolite to agree. "Er—I hope you feel better."

Remus offered her a tight smile before continuing his brisk stride down the hall. There was a slight limp to his right leg as if an old injury were bothering him.

Liza raised a slow brow. Perhaps she had just discovered a new way to spend her time. Walking quickly, she hurried in the direction of the library. Books were always a good place to start her investigations. And she was eager to forget her and Myra's row.

Ignoring Madam Pince's glare, Liza practically ran to the medical injuries section. The sour librarian acted as though every student were an invader in her home. Regulus had developed a theory that Pince really slept among the books on a roll-out cot.

She pried a few heavy tomes from the shelf before settling in at a desk. The first, An A-Z List of Common Wizarding Diseases, was much too obvious to explain Remus's condition. The following book offered only a selection of potion treatments for infected dragon bites.

Liza let out a long sigh before shoving away several pamphlets to come upon an annotated scroll. Magic's Most Unusual Maladies offered very little information on scars outside of those inflicted by beasts like the Chimera or the Acromantula. Liza shivered at the thought of the giant spiders. Arachnophobia ran in the family.

Scanning the list, Liza considered the effects of mermaid saliva (sudden seasickness), mandrake screams, and she nearly closed the scroll when her gaze flickered over werewolves. Of all the ridiculous—

Liza stopped breathing. She unfurled the scroll once more, reading the passage that she was already familiar with. Self-inflicted wounds, routine weakness, chronic fatigue—she thought of the purple circles under Remus's eyes.

Still, she shouldn't get too ahead of herself. Liza sprinted over to the annual calendar that decorated the library's back wall. Dates changed by themselves to represent the various events at Hogwarts and those around the wizarding world. Some even included a corresponding image or newspaper clipping.

Liza swallowed. Full moon was tomorrow night.

Flicking her wand, she reverted the calendar back about three months ago when she had overheard the Marauders in the hospital wing. It was the night after Minnie had given her detention with Sirius. She trailed her wand down the calendar. Her chest tightened.

The night she had let Sirius go was marked with a full circle. The moon shone brightly, winking in the dim light of the torches.

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Liza pulled her scarf closer around her throat, knowing what she was about to do was a horrid idea and yet unable to stop her footsteps. The Whomping Willow stood less than a few paces in front of her and its large branches shivered in the breeze. Only the stars in the obsidian expanse above appeared to hold any merriment. White light bathed her face as she tilted her chin upwards. The Milky Way was bright with stardust that made it crisper in the December air.

Then, a low howl pierced the silence. Liza's teeth rattled as she clenched her jew, reminding herself for the tenth time what an idiot she was.

Yet, the clink of several vials in her pocket brought her some comfort. She had brought as many healing antidotes as she could manage from Slughorn's stores. Several were brews of her own, enhanced with a few extra ingredients. Managing to bypass the potions professor had been rather easy. Liza had just told him that she desired to undertake an extra credit assignment. Slughorn was vulnerable to tales of greatness. Rather, he just hoped that his students would lift him to the admiration he had never been able to achieve himself. He had been all too happy to let Liza into the rare storage cabinets.