Beethoven, again.
Guinevere stilled in bed, facing the ceiling, as a shiver tore through her spine and numbed her hands. Even with the warming charm added on the quilt wrapped around her, the January air hit her harshly. Propping up with the help of her elbows, she reached for her wand that sat on the nightstand, pushing the window closed.
Lost in her thoughts, Guinevere went back to staring at the ceiling as soon as she put back her wand. The room was warm now. Warm enough for her to fall in a good night's sleep, convinced that the reason for her insomnia was the room's temperature. After minutes spent tossing and turning in her bed, she sighed.
Perhaps seeing her mother wasn't as easy as she thought it'd be.
Seeing as she wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon, she decided to do something else instead. Groaning as she sat up, Guinevere rubbed her tired eyes and slowly trudged out her room.
The house was quiet, the silence almost deafening. Sirius was asleep a few rooms away, and Remus was probably resting too.
The witch wasn't quite sure on what she should do, but eventually made her way downstairs; Perhaps she'll just read a book.
The house was dark and cold, giving Guinevere chills as she walked down the stairs gingerly. The place was frightening at night, and the shadows seemed to be alive. She felt like she was being watched by unseen eyes.
"Lumos," Guinevere whispered, as she reached the floor below, illuminating her path.
She was about to make her way to the sitting room, but she caught sight of a familiar elegant door, and she felt herself drawing closer to it.
Guinevere pushed the door open, taking in the beauty of the ballroom bathed in moonlight. She walked inside, heart heavy with hidden emotions as she drew closer to the piano.
She remembered Grace patiently teaching her how to play, singing along softly while guiding her fingers. Guinevere felt a lump growing in her throat as she sat down, hands ghosting over the keys. She could almost hear her sister's voice as she replayed the memories in her mind.
Guinevere needed a way to let her emotions out without actually saying it out loud. Heavens know how much she wanted to let everything out, but can't seem to actually do it.
Guinevere took a deep breath, then closed her eyes briefly before opening them again.
And with that, she began to play.
Remus crept downstairs, not wanting to disturb anyone, a book on one hand and a wand on the other. Looking over to the book on his hand, he smiled to himself. It would seem that he'd never get tired of reading The Great Gatsby.
Sitting down on the most comfortable armchair in the sitting room, he flipped the book open, trying to find where he last stopped.
He didn't often take nightly trips to the living room just to read a book Fitzgerald wrote. It was just one of those nights where his body refused to sleep. In fact he found it quite funny, it was nearing the full moon but it seemed he could go on another day with little to no sleep.
Never in a million years would he have thought that he would wish to see more people. Yet again, the universe is full of surprises. He really wasn't a fan of interacting with people much, save for people close to him, of course— although he constantly found himself begging to see more people.
Resisting the urge to go out for a walk, Remus stood up and brought his book with him.
Seeing as he couldn't find the will to concentrate on the book before him, he figured that sleep would be the best option as of now.
In the hopes of feeling the comfortable confinement of his bed, Remus stopped midway, hearing a familiar tune ahead him.
Beethoven, again.
He knew exactly where it was coming from and who was playing. Which should've given him all the more reasons to mind his own business and head to sleep— which was the exact opposite of what he did.
As if his feet had minds of its own, he began walking towards the room Sirius showed them a week ago. The sound became clearer as he drew nearer, hand reaching out to quietly push the door open.
There she was, playing the piano with so much passion and emotion. It was clear to the wizard that Guinevere was laying her emotions out in the open, letting everything go.
She looked alluring bathed in moonlight, beautiful even. It was as if the moon was her spotlight, shining down on her as she played her heart away.
Remus was captivated by the sight, almost tempted to walk closer but refrained. He merely stayed by the door, watching carefully.
"You're not as subtle as you think you are," Guinevere said without looking up.
Remus cleared his throat, not moving from his place as he awkwardly scratched the back of his head. He looked as if he wanted to say something, but decided against it.
"Are you just gonna stand there?" she said sarcastically, "Or maybe you'd like to play too?"
The taller man scoffed and approached Guinevere, who moved in her seat to give him space. Remus sat beside her, leaving a small gap between them.
"My mother used to play that for me." Remus shared, briefly glancing at Guinevere before dropping his gaze to his hands.
"Grace taught me this," admitted the Slytherin, "My sister."
"How is she?" he asked genuinely, curious as to why she's never been mentioned before.
"Dead."
Remus's eyes narrowed, turning to the girl beside him, who didn't appear to be bothered. Before he could even speak to apologize Guinevere cut him off,
"Don't— you had no idea." said Guinevere sincerely.
Remus just nodded, and continued watching her play. He noticed how she struggled to keep her hair tucked away from her view, as another strand fell over her face. This made her shrug her shoulders irritatedly, much to her dismay, it wasn't any help.
Remus was tempted to brush it away, so after a few moments of debating, he hesitantly reached his hand out before tucking it behind her ear. "Here."
Under the moonlight, he could see her cheeks turn red at the gesture and brief contact. Remus continued to watch her play.
"Why are you still awake?" she asked suddenly, not taking her eyes away from the piano.
"Dunno," Remus shrugged, earning a small chuckle from the witch. "Why are you awake? Isn't it past your bedtime?"
Guinevere scoffed, and without looking at him, she said sarcastically. "I can handle myself, thanks."
Remus rolled his eyes, without the witch noticing. Deciding that he wouldn't reply to that, the two sat in silence. Surprisingly, the need to make conversation didn't matter much as they sat in comfortable silence, listening to her play.
"Couldn't sleep." Guinevere admitted after a few seconds.
"Oh. Why's that?" Remus said, raising his eyebrows curiously.
"Just.. stuff." Guinevere answered vaguely.
Remus nodded, not wanting to pry. But curiosity got the best of him."Is it because of the mission?" He asked quietly. When Guinevere stayed silent, he knew he was right. "Knew something happened when you lot got back."
"I saw them at the ministry— my parents, I mean," She started quietly. The witch seemed to hesitate before continuing again. "They didn't recognise me though."
Guinevere said the last part quieter than she had meant to do so. Who was she kidding? Of course they wouldn't recognise her face, considering that it wasn't even hers.
The witch closed her eyes tightly, breathing in deeply as she continued playing the piano in a more aggressive way.
"The mere thought of them pisses me off."
Remus's brows furrowed, "Seems you miss them though."
Guinevere let out a bitter chuckle, shaking her head. "Merlin, no." She said. "They weren't very.. good to us, growing up. It was like we never mattered to them unless there was something in it for them. We felt trapped— Grace especially."
Remus noticed her play the instrument more feverishly as she talked, missing a few notes every once in a while. Clearly, her childhood was a sore subject for her, and he almost regrets asking about it in the first place. Guinevere let out a shaky breath before continuing.
"They went on with life as if nothing had happened. As if they didn't kill their own daughter. As if it didn't bother them." she spat, voice cracking at the end. "Sick isn't it? Think they're all this and that when in reality, they're nothing but vile."
Remus stuttered a few times, failing to see how he could interject when it seemed that she could go on for hours and hours.
The Slytherin noticed the taller man stutter a few times, "You're not obliged to say anything. In fact, you don't even have to listen because God knows why you're here. Maybe you wanted to play the piano, and now you're stuck, listening to me talk about my fucking awful—"
Guinevere stopped talking as she felt another hand on hers, refraining her from playing any further.
"Stop," he breathed out, holding her hand in his. "Please."
Guinevere didn't say nothing, or did nothing rather. She sat there in shock, looking at the larger hand that held her small ones. The witch found herself at a loss for words, as though her throat had gone dry.
Finally composed, Guinevere turned to him with eyes narrowed as she started rambling. "I'm sorry! I don't usually talk about them and it all came out really sudden and—"
Probably for the nth time of the night, Remus cut her off. "It's fine, really." he insisted. "As a matter of fact, I liked listening to you. No one forced me to stay." he smiled at her.
Guinevere's expressions began to relax, exhaling a breath she didn't know she was holding. As they held each other's gaze, it seemed as if she could go days simply staring at his eyes. She felt her stomach churn, causing her to break eye contact.
Noticing that he was still holding her hands, Guinevere cleared her throat and quickly pulled away, standing up and fixing her clothes.
Chuckling awkwardly she smiled, "I should go to sleep, you should too."
"Right." Remus replied, standing up and running a hand through his hair as he smiled back.
Guinevere turned away and began to make her way
to the door, smiling stupidly at herself. Without thinking, she turned around, facing the man once more. She saw how he was flexing the hand that held hers earlier, and felt her stomach turn again.
"Goodnight Lupin."
The Gryffindor looked up surprisedly, as if he was caught doing something illegal.
"Goodnight, Lilith."
————
A/N
sorry for the long wait and thank you so much for 10K!!
thoughts on this chapter?
also, did u guys notice the lil pride & prejudice reference i did with the hand flex thingy?? hihi
stay safe everyonee xx
-katie and demi xx