The Bug Collector | marauders

Plato's Symposium

While Rose took note of every sunny day at Hogwarts they didn't actually occur all that frequently.

More often than not the sun was hidden behind clouds, it was uncomfortably cold, and almost no one was out on the grounds.

The grass always remained a vibrant green, however.

February 15th 1978

On the grassy shore of Black Lake Rose and Sirius looked up into the gloomy skies from where they laid on their backs.

Occasionally their finger tips would brush softly, twitching between the blades of grass. Neither would address the touch, nor pull away from it. Rose's throned wand lay to her left with Sirius at her right.

His hair was bunched up against the grass accompanied by his chest rising and falling with each smooth breath. A variety of his tattoos were on display.

"Have you looked through your book yet?" He asked making an effort to look at her, though his hair obstructed his view.

"I have. I found the apologies too. Stephone and Ode were being a bit nosy, so they may have seen them as well." She informed him.

Her own hair was a mess, coppery waves tangling together beneath her head. On her stomach sat a pile of miniature yellow and lilac flowers. Earlier she'd conjured them, and
throughout their conversation she'd been picking them.

"Since you're here with me I assume all is fine." Sirius said, moving his line of sight back up to the clouds.

"All is fine." She agreed, picking another tiny flower and placing it into her pile.

"How was your Valentine's day?" She asked, looking over to him this time.

"It was bloody amazing." He admitted, eyes remaining on the sky.

Rose thought about how her own night was spent, fingers tangling through Regulus' curls and peppering kisses up his left arm. That was fine. She thought.

She though about murmuring words of comfort to him.

She exhaled, her fingers involuntarily tapping at Sirius' again.

He removed his hand, using it and the other one to to pull her up and onto his lap. She gasped at the unexpected action. Once she was stable he laid back and placed his arms behind his head

Rose's tiny flowers had spilled onto the grass and Sirius' chest during the quick transfer.

"Has Regulus informed you on what our mother has done?" He asked.

"He has." She reported with a sigh, head hanging down defeatedly. He nudged her cheek with a hand gently.

"You're so dramatic, love." He said, picking up a small flower and placing it on her head.

"Oh, Says you. Piss off, Sirius." She responded, trying to hide the warm smile that had begun to form on her face and shaking the flower out of her hair. It bounced off his nose and onto the grass below.

Rose brought a hand to his chin. Feeling the bristly hair that had begun to grow there.

"You're growing a beard." She said, surprised.

"It's hardly a beard, and so is Moons."

"Moony's looks good."

"And mine doesn't?"

"It's not very prominent."

"You're just not wearing your glasses."

Rose leaned down closer, until their noses brushed and her cheeks flushed.

"I can see perfectly fine, Black. Remus is just better at growing facial hair than you." She said, voice a little unsteady, this had been the closest she'd been to Sirius in a long while.

When her challenging eyes finally meet his he moved beneath her, swiftly knocking her off
him as he scrambled to his feet.

"I've got to go." He said, clearing his throat and stuffing both his hands in his pockets, rocking back on his heels.

"Alright?" Rose said, confusion on her face as she dusted the grass off her.

"I'll see you around?" She asked, looking up at him.

"Of course, Thorns." He agreed, giving her a rushed wave before making his way towards the castle. Rose began picking the little flowers again, making a new pile for them.

—

Rose hadn't expected any visitors that night, but she had one. A very brief one.

She was in the Slytherin common room studying well into the night when she heard a noise over the sound of crackling fire.

Knock knock

It was a light, normal knock.

It was the knock Remus had picked out as his own years ago when the lads needed secret knocks to come steal her away for pranks and mischief.

Rose opened the entrance for him, he had a
lethargic look and moved a bit slowly as he entered the dungeon, sitting on the antique green velvet sofa near the fire. He wore an old sweater, it was once oversized but now it fit him perfectly.

"I had a smoke with Pads and Regulus in one of the greenhouses. You weren't there." He said, she sat on the other end of the large sofa, running her hand over the velvet material.

"I had to study, I told them they could use it if they wanted." She explained, Remus nodded.

"Regulus is a decent bloke really." Remus said, Rose nodded, his visit was sudden, but she question it. It was nice to talk with him.

"They're planning to prank you in there somehow, but you didn't hear it from me." He said groggily, perhaps still feeling the effects of his smoke session with the two menaces.

"Thanks for the heads up." She said with a little smile.

"Anytime." He replied, half lidded eyes peering over at her.

Remus was someone Rose never felt she truly understood.

Out of all her mates Remus talked about himself the least by far.

She knew things about him, she'd overheard him talking about his parents once or twice. He only talked about them in the past tense so Rose didn't push for more information.

She knew he was good enough at taking care of plants to keep the potted flower she'd made for him alive.

She knew he loved muggle literature. Lily had told her that.

He also loved coffee, Dorcas shared that bit, she loved it too.

Sirius claims he'll sleep all day if you let him, maybe into the night as well.

Most of what she knew of Remus she'd learned from others, but she had learned about him first hand as well. In fact the notes he'd left her while her and Sirius were not talking still sat in a neat pile on her bedside table, held down with a small pink stone.

"I should go back to my own common room, Thorns." Moony's voice brought her out of her thoughts, he was already standing and yawning.

"Be careful, don't get caught. I like cats, but I think the one that prowls around at night looking for students might be evil." She warned, making a little face as he made his way to the exit.

"It was nice to see you, Moons." She added, he huffed out a satisfied "hm" before leaving the common room.

The crackling fireplace became the only sound once more.