The Stars and Forbidden Cigarettes | Professor Remus Lupin

Consequences

After days of not feeling anything at all, the following day finds Reverie feeling the repercussions of the past weeks.

Alone with the sound of her footsteps against the stone hallways, right before entering the Great Hall, she suddenly hears Lupin whispering her name against her lips, she feels his burning hands roaming against her body, and then she stops and puts out a hand to hold herself up against the stone walls, because her heart pangs repeatedly in her chest at the memory of his words, the way he pushed her away as if she was just another rule he broke, something he didn't mean to do.

She hadn't given herself time to process, and when it hits her like a pile of bricks just before dinner, she isn't expecting it. Everything floods her mind. The whispered words, the late nights, the fires, his fingertips against her skin, the smoke, the lake, his smile, the book, the color green, his lips, the shack, the moon.

Her chest is heaving with the effort of remembering, her blood rushes through her veins, and a sharp pain behind her eyes makes her hang her head, clenching her eyes shut. Her hand against the wall tenses with the effort, and she isn't sure she can hold herself up much longer —

A soft hand lands on her shoulder, and for one treacherous, treacherous moment, in the midst of everything, she almost wants to believe it's Lupin. But when she turns, eyes wide and red, and sees Oliver's face looking down at her, a single tear drops before she lets herself be taken into his arms.

"Rev, hey, hey," he says gently, as she trembles against his chest. "What's wrong? What's happened?"

She shakes her head and mumbles something that Oliver can't make out, even in the empty, quiet hallway. He takes her face gently between his hands, and he pulls her away from him to look at her.

His thumbs stroke her cheek, and her breathing is shaky as she realizes how cold his hands feel against her face. She hates how cold his hands feel against her face. But looking into Oliver's worried, caring eyes, her chest racks with guilt, and she doesn't pull away.

"If this is about last night, it's fine, we can forget about it if you want to." Oliver scans her face. He's used to not being able to discern what's bothering her, but now it feels different.

Reverie covers his hands on her face with her own, shaking her head adamantly. "No, no, I'm tired of forgetting."

Oliver frowns as he feels her pulse calm under his fingertips, her hands warming his.

"Rev, you know you can still talk to me, right? About anything. I don't want anything to change that."

Reverie smiles sadly, closing her eyes. Without thinking, she rests her forehead against his. His hands are still resting against her face, and the moment suddenly feels much more intimate than she intended.

She is about to pull away, when she hears footsteps coming down the hallway slow as they get closer.

A voice clears its throat. Oliver feels Reverie's pulse jump under his fingertips, and she straightens, pulling Oliver's hands off of her face as she turns around.

Her breathing quickens, her back straightens, and Oliver looks up to see Professor Lupin staring back at Reverie darkly, his eyes filled with another emotion Oliver can't discern. He notices Lupin's fingers tapping against his side, tensing, as he stands before Reverie. He watches Reverie's face harden, but neither of them look away from one another.

Lupin's voice breaks the muffled silence his presence has set over them. "I'm sure I won't need to tell you that mingling in the hallways this late is strictly prohibited."

Reverie is locked in place and doesn't know what to say, if there is anything she can possibly muster. His eyes burning into hers for the first time in so long have stopped whatever she might've said to him in its tracks.