𝐅𝐀𝐍𝐆𝐒 / 𝐂𝐋𝐀𝐖𝐒 / 𝐃𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐘 𝐏𝐀𝐖𝐒

𝟎𝟔 - 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐬

𝐀𝐮𝐠𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝟐𝟗𝐭𝐡, 𝟏𝟗𝟕𝟓

"—and so then I figured if the beaters flanked right instead of left, it would buy me more time while the other team was distracted fending off an onslaught of bludgers!"

James spoke animatedly, throwing up vague hand gestures as he told his third Quidditch story this morning. He was the Seeker and Gryffindor team captain and had been ever since their first year. None of the other Marauders played very much outside of those fleeting moments where Sirius would hop on a broom to help James prepare for a big game. But even then, none of them showed as much promise.

Remus nodded along, trying to pay attention while using the brunt of his senses to try and pinpoint your exact location. They didn't have any luck in Flourish and Blotts or the Owl Emporium, where Remus knew you tended to wander whenever they took their yearly trip to the alley for school things.

You liked it there best because the little witch who ran the shop allowed you to pet all of the owls for however long you wanted despite the fact that you could never purchase one for yourself. The Potter's, as they were generally known to be, were not keen on pets.

Remus smiled and shook his head at the memory. The summer before their fourth year when James put him in charge of you so that he and the others could go wreak havoc someplace else. Remus didn't complain (although he wanted to, at first) In fact, it was that summer that stopped seeing you as a nuisance and started seeing you as the pretty girl who voluntarily hung out with her older brother and his gang of misfit friends despite how much trouble they often got themselves into. 

That was the summer in which Remus realized there was more to life than petty hexes and shooting firecrackers off of the roof. That was the summer that he realized that he got along with you just as well as he did your brother.

This was one of those rare moments that Remus was not kicking himself on account of his condition; Lycanthropy. AKA Werewolf Syndrome, AKA being the brunt of every dog joke in the history of the English language. He could handle it pretty fine on his own, usually. But this upcoming full moon already had his wolf in a funk and he had no idea why.

Each of his five senses was heightened. Sight, smell, taste, touch, hearing. This made it all the more frustrating to have lost you in the first place. It didn't help that James kept competing with his thoughts for who could be the most distracting. He'd only told that same story what, five times?

All of a sudden, Remus froze and dug his heels into the cobbled walkway. His nose caught something, like an invisible trail hovering low through the air. It smelled of sweetness, like the first sign of spring. Like dandelions and moss, butterbeer, and vanilla. Like you.

"What is it, Moony?" James asked, patting his knees with that mocking tone that reminded Remus of how one might address a dog. But he barely heard his friend — face tilted into the air in a desperate attempt to cling to that scent as he forced his way through the crowded square, twisting and turning through the busy streets and forcing a path between lines that stretched outside of popular shops.

It wasn't until he stopped directly in front of Knockturn Alley that he actually bothered to take a good look around him.

Sure enough, you were standing with your back turned, arms crossed as you spoke to Sirius who's scent was mixing with yours and made the werewolf frown. He could smell the anger in it—like sour fire-whiskey. It burnt his nostrils and made him rear his head back distastefully.

"There she is."

Both heads turned just in time for James to come jogging up from behind, partly out of breath from trying to keep up with his friend. "Good work, Moony," he heaved, clapping him on the shoulder. "The nose knows, am I right?"

You shook your head in aggravation and Remus noticed immediately how flush you were. He prayed to Merlin that you were only angry—your face only truly looked like that when you were. He didn't want to consider any possibilities that could have made you blush as intensely. Without offering either him or your brother a proper greeting, you scoffed. "I'm going home."

Gulping, Remus stepped aside to let you through, silently debating whether or not he was supposed to stop you.

"Wait, (Y/N)!" James called, but you were already long gone, slipping into the waves of people and disappearing as easily as a phantom. With everyone still blinking after you, Remus furrowed his eyebrows and turned back to Sirius, who was sporting an equally wounded expression. 

"What was that all about?"

"Nothing," Sirius sniffled, obviously lying through his teeth as he pretended to brush off the entire affair. "Just a run-in with good old Snivellus."

The air went still and James' shoulders straightened almost instantly at the mention of the name. Remus could feel his nostrils flaring as he bit back an instinctive sneer. "Is she alright?"

"Did he touch her?"

"You think I'd let that happen?" Sirius snapped as if it were the most idiotic thing he had ever heard. His dark, charcoal-colored eyes shot a quick look at his taller friend, offering a curt nod. "Nothing we can't deal with at school, anyway."

School.

School meant freedom. School meant running through moist earthy tunnels on four legs and howling at the moon. School meant nothing but his best blokes and magical feasts until June. He could handle school.

A quick, twitch of a smile pinched at the dimples on Remus' cheeks. This year was going to be different. He could feel the possibilities brewing in the air along with your lingering scent, making the tips of his fingers twitch with excitement. 

"You're damn right about that."

(A/N: Edits coming later -- if you see any mistakes holler at me. Remus Lupin owns my heart!!! This chapter was short because we needed to scoot ourselves away from this setting ASAP. Next chapter we meet a new love interest~ woop woop. I genuinely didn't plan out this story in terms of end-game couples and all that, so if you have any preferences for who the reader ends up with, I'm all ears. I also might do separate endings if the poll is split evenly enough. Cheers!)