- Eternal Curse -

0.2 Chapter Thirty

Thirty

Annie swung open the common room door and stormed inside, hunched over to avoid her fellow pupil's gaze. Students who were still up and sitting around the cozy hearth watched her as she scurried down the hall to her room. She didn't feel like chatting after the day she had thought was starting to look up until it crumbled all around her once more.

Why would Remus go to kiss her? He never showed he had feelings for her so why now did this sudden burst of passion rise out of him? Maybe it was just the heat of the moment, she assured herself. And she certainly never felt that way towards him either. Maybe she was too busy being hung over Sirius to notice how he felt. The thought saddened her, had she wasted her time pouring her heart into someone who didn't love her that she didn't even notice the perfect guy right in front of her eyes?

The person who would make time for her, listen to her and put her life before his own. Annie took that for granted and she was ashamed. Sirius was never going to be boyfriend material and she had to accept it whether she liked it or not. No matter how much he played the nice guy she new deep down that's not how it would stay. The only reason he was acting like he did since they got back to school is because it got through his thick skull she was more than angry with how he treated her. It was time to turn over a new leaf, for good this time.

"Annie! You look crappy, what happened to you?" She'd made it to her dorm room where Lynn and Marie sat innocently on one of their beds. Annie rarely lost her temper but on this occasion she could feel she was about to snap.

"Well you know what, I feel kind of crappy! Actually no, I feel like utter shit and where were my best friends? No where to be seen. Off gallivanting without me. You leave no note, don't tell me in advance? I looked all over the bloody school for you today in between the row I had with Remus and jumping off the astronomy tower to my near death which you wouldn't know about because guess what, you pissed off somewhere else! Now, where did you go?"

"Did you just say you jumped off the astronomy tower?" Marie yelped.

"Answer my question first." Annie snapped.

"Not until you answer mine." She retorted, angrily.

"Then I guess you'll never know!" Cried Annie, picking up George from Lynn's bed and putting him on her own, kicking off her shoes and robe, putting them on the armchair alongside her bag.

"Alright then, likewise!" She quipped, arms folded across her chest, giving Annie the look of absolute disgust. Lynn with an not so effective, calming hand on her shoulder, also glaring at her.

"And another thing!" Annie stormed, a slight quiver forming on her lip, showing her tolerance for heated arguments was wearing thin. "I guess I wont be telling you that Remus went to snog me only a few moments ago!" And with that she pulled the curtains of her four poster bed shut with a snap whilst Marie and Lynn gasped, aghast that Annie wouldn't share such juicy gossip they would usually be fawning over by now.

"You wouldn't!" Lynn insisted, taken aback. Poking her head out the curtains, Annie pulled off her tie and chucked it at their heads.

"Watch me." She responded before pulling her head back in. She lay on her side. George purring loudly under her chin, comfortingly. There was a silence for just over a minute until she could hear Marie begin to laugh with Lynn eventually joining in the hysterics. Annie pulled back the curtains and pouted.

"You can't laugh!" She moaned. "I'm Serious!" This made Lynn laugh even more and between deep breaths, she wheezed,

"You're not- you're not Sirius!" She pointed over to a picture frame on Annie's bedside table. "He is!"

"Oh Merlin you're worse than the man himself." Annie grumbled. Marie cackled and added,

"Oh come on, Anna Banana, laugh! You know you want to, don't fight it."

"I don't want to laugh! I haven't forgiven you all of a sudden, you know." Marie sat up and composed herself, reaching out a comforting hand to Annie's.

"You're right, we're being horrible. We never should of hung out without you, I don't know what possessed us. We wont do it again and if we do I'll allow any punishment of your choice."

"Yeah we are really sorry sweetie. Anyways our stupid mistake got you some late night sugar from Remus which means the day failed successfully, right?" Lynn joked.

"I think you mean almost, Lynn. He walked me back the long way from dinner and apologised for the row we had in the library. I forgave him but then suddenly he started saying all this stuff about how I don't deserve him and he's a monster. So of course I argue back and say he's none of those things then out of the blue he just gets... so close to my face (as if he was going to kiss me) then he drew back, shook his head and walked home without explanation! I just can't wrap my head around it."

"Glad you didn't suck face I say, didn't you hear boys have cooties?" Marie giggled.

"That utter moron!" Lynn exclaimed, "God if I was him i'd tap that with no hesitation."

"Gee thanks." Annie smiled sheepishly.

"Happy to be of service."

"He probably got nervous, it might be his first time kissing a girl?" Marie questioned.

"Well it's Annie's first time kissing a boy and you don't see her running for the hills." Lynn replied.

"Shh! Don't say that so loud!" Annie whispered, embarrassed. Then there was a creak of the door handle to reveal Sally standing at the door, holding a rather overgrown plant, the contents draping over the pot to the floor.

"Uh- Annie? Remus is waiting in the common room. I swear I find more Gryffindor boys in there than ones that belong to our own house. Annie looked at her friends in panic.

"Go, you'll be fine." Marie assured with a sweet grin.

"Yeah he's probably just going to finish what he started." Lynn wiggled her eyebrows and Marie swatted her arm. Annie got up and walked down the hall to the common room, her heart racing.

There he was, standing by the stairs, still in the same clothes he wore to dinner. He spotted her coming towards him and he gave a small smile, whilst tugging the back of his neck, nervously.

"What are you doing, it's really late!" She asked, leading him down the hall to the entrance for more privacy. They stopped about half way and she turned to face him.

"I went to walk back but I couldn't get myself to do it." He pulled at his sleeves of his sweater, "I had to talk to you and apologise, for the second time today." Remus let out a breathy laugh.

"You don't need to apologise Rem, I don't know why you did it, and trust me I was pulling my hair out over it just now, but for whatever reason it's okay. I know what you're going to say, 'no it's not okay, you didn't deserve such a horrible thing to be forced upon you', and all I have to say to that is," She finished that sentence with a tender kiss on his lips, pressing her forehead against his. He froze up, going a deep scarlet.

"S-see?" She shifted on her weight, side to side, bashfully. "It's okay, I wanted it too. You don't have to be so doubtful all the time,"

"You... you smell nice, like vanilla. Oh god that's so stupid..." He stumbled over his words as he spoke. She laughed at his odd remark, running her hands through his hair. He gave a breathy laugh in return and they stayed in a loose embrace until Annie stepped back, her grasp trailing down his arms to his hands that swung idly at his hips.

"You should go back to your dorm, Rem. Before Filch starts his patrol."

"Right, yeah. Night Ann." He beamed in a slight haze as he walked to the door.

"Night." She replied faintly as he'd already gone out of earshot. A grin was sketched across her face as she brushed her thumb against where his lips had once touched hers, longingly. Here we go again, she thought.