Rewrite the past

Chapter 20

November 1971, Remus' room, Ravenclaw Tower, Hogwarts, Scotland

"Remus, can I come in?"

She opened the door and stepped into the bedroom Remus shared with Severus.

He sat there, on the windowsill, looking out at the dark night sky and especially the moon that was only a mere day away from being full yet again. It looked as if he was completely enchanted by the cold light coming from it.

Very carefully, so that she would not disturb him, she walked up and sat down next to him.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" He did not take his eyes off the sky, his voice sounding trance-like.

"Yes," breathed Hermione back at him, feeling slightly lost.

"I found that something purely beautiful does not exist. Behind each and every single beautiful thing, there is always a truth hidden by the beauty itself. It's some sort of facade. Take the moon, for example: each time, when it is at its fullest and most beautiful, it makes the worst come out of me. The stars seem beautiful, they spark something in us, and we enjoy looking at them, especially the bright ones like the one up there."

He pointed at one of the brightest stars above them and Hermione followed his hand with her eyes, silently agreeing with him. People always enjoy looking at the bright stars.

"Right now, as we are talking about it, it is slowly dying. That process might take very long for us, but it shows that nothing is truly immortal. Everything around us is slowly dying. We are dying a bit more every day. You see, everything good is masking a bitter truth."

At first, he did not look at her, instead, his eyes were still fixed on the dying star, but when he turned to his friend, he saw tears sparkling in her eyes.

Ashamed, she looked away, hastily trying to sweep away the tears threatening to fall down her cheeks.

At that moment she felt as if she was talking to the adult Remus and not an 11-year-old boy. These thoughts, which he had just shared with her, were a direct picture of how he felt deep inside, or at least it seemed like that to Hermione. She could not shake the feeling that moments like these were the only moments where he was truly expressing his emotions, when he was really showing the true Remus.

Neither of them talked for the next few minutes, both looking out at the night sky, following their trains of thought.

It was sometime later when Hermione pulled out the small bottle containing the wolfsbane potion for him and set it down next to him on the windowsill.

"Come meet me tomorrow after dinner in front of the common room with that potion. I will show you a safe place ideal for your transformation."

He nodded and looked at her puzzled but also very thankful before she returned a sincere smile and turned to leave the room.

+++++++++++

The next day came and went by faster than anyone would have thought and soon Hermione was waiting for Remus right outside their common room.

As soon as he had reached her, she asked: "Do you have everything you will need?"

He nodded his head yes, trying to put on a brave face considering what would happen to him the next few hours and the pain it will ensue, but Hermione knew better. Instead of saying anything that would most possibly make him feel uncomfortable, she started guiding him towards the Room of Requirements on the 7th floor.

"You just have to imagine an ideal room for you, no matter what it is you need, and walk up and down this hall three times. Then, a door will appear, and you can go inside. Only someone knowing this room and explicitly searching for you will be able to enter so you're safe here. I won't tell anyone," explained Hermione, motioning for him to try it out.

Only a few moments later, a small brown door appeared, and Remus set to enter. Once inside, he seemed to be waiting for her.

"Oh no, that is your room, your personal space now, I will not invade it if you are not in danger," said the brown-haired girl before smiling and turning to leave.

She was already halfway down the hall, when he said: "Thanks, Hermione, for everything," as he stood in the doorway.

His posture was anything but straight and his fear of what was to come now made him look fragile and Hermione was once again reminded of the fact that life was not fair at all.

Hermione nodded at that and then turned to leave for the common room again.

Once there she sat down next to Severus in front of the fireplace.

"Have you seen Remus? I wanted to borrow a book from him, but I can't seem to find him anywhere," said Severus looking over at the brown-haired witch.

"No, haven't seen him since dinner," answered Hermione, staring into the flames of the crackling fire.

Puzzled, Severus' eyes remained on her for a while before slowly drifting to the flames. "Can we talk? Somewhere more private?"

Hermione nodded, unsure what he was going for but still, she stood up and led him up to his own room.

"Are you sure we'll be alone here?" asked Severus, looking around nervously.

"Sev, this is the most private place you'll be able to find in Hogwarts," said Hermione, trying to reassure him as she guided him to sit down on his bed. She took a seat on the windowsill right next to it.

"Now, what is it you wish to speak about?"

The black-haired boy dug into one of the many pockets of his robe, pulling out a folded piece of parchment.

"My mom - she wrote me a letter. I mean, that's not unusual but... I'm concerned. She has never talked or wrote to me like that. Something seems to be off at home and I don't know what to do about it."

He sat there with his shoulders slumped down and Hermione knew that he was really concerned for his mom. She knew about his father, after all.

"Severus, I'll look into this, alright? We will figure this out, together." Her voice was soft as she lay her hand on his shoulder.

He turned and looked up at her, his eyes showing gratitude and hope. The last time she had seen him look this way was when she said goodbye to him before she left for her mission.