NOTHING GIRL || Remus Lupin

-Forty Nine: This is What it's Called-

Remus paused in his frantic packing, glancing backwards and forwards between James and Sirius with a disbelieving and distrusting expression on his face.

"It's only right." Sirius stated.

"Only fair." James confirmed.

"The least we can do really."

"We owe it to them."

"Happiness and space to work through their feelings."

"And to have a thousand children, all named after us regardless of gender."

"Cut to the chase guys," Remus sighed, returning to his packing.

"So that is why-" James held bent one arm behind his back and thrust his finger into the air.

"-we solemnly swear to leave Helia Blacksmith alone-"

"-as soon as we can figure out where she disappears to at night."

Remus grinned at them over the potions ingredients that he was currently throwing across the room, only some of them landing in his trunk. "I was wondering what the catch was."

"No catch." James raised his hands, palm up in a sign of his innocence, "Just give us a little tip off and you and the scary one will be left in peace for all eternity."

"Not a chance." Remus didn't look up, choking on a laugh.

"Why?" Sirius pouted.

"Because I am way more scared of Helia than I am of you." Remus grinned, and even as he said the words, he knew they weren't true.

"Yo, James!"

A red haired girl leaned into the dormitory. Instantly, all of James's attention switched and focused onto Lilly Evans. Even the way he stood, with not a single part of his body angled way from her, was like a compass pointing north. And all his eyes could see were stars.

The change happened so suddenly that even Sirius exchanged a glance with Remus. They had both assumed that James's crush on Lilly was just that: A crush. But now they were both wondering if all that blustering, flirting and casual annoying had been a cover for this, much more real, emotion.

"Hey, Lils." James grinned, more something than Remus had ever seen it.

"Someone's waiting for you outside the portrait. She said to tell you to bring the cloak and not to be thick."

What did Helia want with James?

It took Remus a moment to realise that, without even thinking, he had known that Lilly was talking about Helia. The thought filled him with a kind of warm, fuzzy feeling.

James sighed, and scooped the cloak off his bed, traipsing down the stairs with a kind of moodiness that was too loud to be real. Lilly grinned at Remus.

"Good to see you're okay." She smiled. Remus returned it, "Maybe one day you'll trust me enough to tell me what was wrong."

Thankfully for Remus, she didn't wait for an answer, turning and flouncing out of the dormitory. Sirius gave Remus a raised-eyebrows, that-was-close kind of look. Remus just shook his head, grinning as he threw an old pair of trousers into his trunk.

.................................

Helia waited until everyone was on the train and she had bribed Jade into taking her trunk on for her with the promise of Skittles before she wrapped the cloak around her shoulders. She boarded silently, praying that she would encounter no one on the journey down the narrow corridors. Something must have been smiling down on her that day, as she found the Slytherin compartment without issue.