Remus wasn't anywhere to be found for the next few days. He told the boys he was going home to take care of his sick mother. But Rose didn't believe that she knew and she wasn't telling anyone.
Rose wasn't lying when she said she found werewolves fascinating. She had read all she could about them in the books she owned, but that wasn't much. So she went to the library to read more about them.
Her reading habits didn't go unnoticed by the staff. But when you sit in the library all weekend, you should expect the librarian to notice. The librarian even set aside some books about werewolves just for her to read.
While reading about them, Rose came across something that piqued her interest. Werewolves didn't seem to hurt other animals, then she found something else. When she dug deeper she found a familiar name on a certain list.
"Whats an Animagus?" Rose said to a very startled McGonagall. "Oh goodness, Evans. You nearly gave me a heart attack." "Sorry, Professor. But I was trying to read about Animagi, but according to the librarian those books are in the restricted section. So, I thought maybe I should just ask one." Rose began to ramble.
"Why the sudden interest?" McGonagall asked the first year. "Oh, I was... um... just reading this book, you see. And I came across them... they just seem... fascinating?" Rose told the Gryffindor Head of House, trying to explain without outright saying it.
"Is this about your recent reading habits?" McGonagall asked the Hufflepuff girl. "My reading habits? Oh, um maybe." Rose replied sheepishly. "Any specific reason for you to be reading about werewolves?" "Nope!" Rose answered McGonagall right away. "I just find them intriguing." Rose didn't realize which direction they were going until McGonagall opened the door to the hospital wing.
"Remus!" Rose yelled when she saw the little Gryffindor sitting in the bed. "Rose? What are you doing here?" Remus asked her, but she just tackled him into a hug. "Oh Remus, I was so worried. Are you hurt?" The boy just looked at her, not fully understanding what was going on. "Why do you care so much?" Rose was a little shocked by his tone, but she didn't falter as she checked the boy for injuries herself.
"You have another scar," Rose whispered looking at his chin, she gently pulled him into her arms again. Remus let her hold him there for a few seconds before he snapped out of the trance. "It's nothing. I just fell on the stairs is all. Why do you care anyway?" "Don't lie to me, Remus. You did not fall on the stairs." Both first years were beginning to get agitated with one another.
"Why do you care?" Remus nearly yelled. "Because you are a good person and I want to be your friend. And friends care, Remus. So I care." Rose told him with a determination that frightened him.
"No. You can't be my friend. You'll just get hurt." Rose began to tear up at the boy's words, unable to fathom how that could feel. Believing that all you could cause someone is pain. "Well then. I guess you just have to suck it up and deal with it. Because I'm not going anywhere and I will be your friend."
With that Rose hugged him one last time before standing. "Well, actually I am going somewhere. I promised my sister I would meet her and the girls for supper." Remus watched as the little Hufflepuff smiled at him before turning to leave the room.
"Oh, and Remus. Next time, just know I'll be here. Waiting for your safe return." Then Rose left to go eat with Lily. Remus sat there for a minute before it hit him. She knew. She knew his secret and she still held him like he would break if she squeezed too tight. She knew and she told him she was going to be his friend no matter what he said. She knew and she still cared.
"She's quite special, don't you think?" "Professor? How long have you been there?" In the corner closest to the door, stood McGonagall, just smiling at the girl who was down the hall. "I was just making sure she was what we expected," McGonagall replied. "What do you mean? What did you expect her to be?" Remus asked his Head of House. "Herself."
~~~
The next day, Rose sat sketching Marlene and Alice, when Severus came down the little hill to sit with her. "You're sketching? I thought you didn't do that anymore." Severus asked his friend. "Well, I can't exactly bring my paints to the lake without attracting attention," Rose told him with a shy smile.
"Oh, you're sketching them. Shouldn't you find better friends? Ones in your house, perhaps?" Severus told the girl with a frown on his face. "Sev," Rose replied with a warning, "you don't get to criticize my friends. I can choose who I want to be friends with, just like you choose yours."
Severus just huffed and walked away from her, Rose didn't mind though. If he was going to be unnecessarily rude, she didn't want anything to do with him.
"Rose!" Marlene yelled when she spotted the girl she had been looking everywhere for. "Yes, Mar. What is it?" Rose asked her out-of-breath friend. Marlene stopped right in front of the Hufflepuff, bending over to catch her breath. Once she could breathe properly, she turned to talk to Rose. "We have been looking everywhere for you." "We?" Just as the word left her mouth, two more girls came running over the little hill.
"Rosy, there you are," Lily yelled as she tackled the girl in a hug. "Here I am. Now, what is the meaning of all this searching?" Rose asked the three Gryffindor's, who turned bright red at the question. "Well, we were wondering..." Alice started, but couldn't quite finish. Next was Marlene, "If you would maybe..." Then Lily, " Read to us? Or sing? We've missed it and the other two girls wanted you to as well."
Rose looked between the girls before chuckling. "Of course, I will. I'll ask to stay in your dorm tonight instead." All three girls started jumping up and down, dragging Rose to jump too. "Let's go ask now, so you don't forget," Lily suggested, knowing her sister's tendency to forget a lot of things.
So off they went, to ask McGonagall if it was okay. As they were walking, Rose was reminded of Severus' words. At that moment, she made a promise. A promise to never let something or someone come between any of the girls, not even each other. She liked this group, and she wasn't going to let someone tell her not to.