Various x reader oneshots

(Remus Lupin) Pianissimo 27.12 - Initials carved into a tree

Published: December 27, 2020
Word count: 2126
Prompt: Initials carved into a tree

Christmas. Usually a time of joy; of unbridled happiness inside that made you feel giddy, so much joy that you felt like you'd overflow at any moment. Yet here you were, a deep, melancholy pit having replaced the warm pot of happiness.

Christmas. A time to be with friends and family; to share the love and joy that came pouring from a seemingly endless supply in your heart. Yet here you stood, alone in the snow, with not a living soul to be seen.

Christmas. A time of warmth, a time to be carefree as a bird, to let the stress and worries of your daily life melt away like the snow falling from your boots upon entering. A time to enjoy the pleasures of life without a single vexing thought nagging at you in the back of your mind. And yet, as the first tear trickled down your cheek and you fought to keep the cracking dam holding them at bay intact, you wondered if you'd ever get to have that again.

Snowflakes floated down on the icy wind, some getting caught in your hair while the rest fell at your feet. You shivered, pulling your – or actually, your fiancé's – beige shawl tighter around your neck, but made no move to leave, to go to a warmer place. Your eyes remained fixed upon the thick trunk of the tree before you, one of many trees standing scattered hither and thither on the snowy carpet.

The tree looked almost identical to all the rest of them, but it was only this tree which held one of your most treasured memories.

Your hand reached out to touch the wood, fingertips tracing the heart carved into the bark. The heart symbolizing your love and the promise of forever, of a life together, further reinforced by the initials carved inside it. Yours and his; Remus Lupin and (y/n) (y/l/n).

Your touch lingered over his initials. You came here daily since he passed, in an attempt to hold on to everything you had. When you stood here, even though the branches of the tree were bare, even though the landscape resembled little more than a barren wasteland, it felt as if Remus were still here, standing beside you with one arm slung over your shoulders.

You still remembered the exact day you made these markings together. The memory of that wonderful summer day in the little forest near your parents' house was something you'd cherish forever.

Remus pulled you along, both your hands held tightly in his warm ones. You were both laughing, the happiness rolling off of you in waves.

You knew exactly where he was taking you; you went there every chance you got. It was quiet and secluded, and beautiful too. It was your peaceful shelter, your little woodland kingdom, your escape from the world. It was your spot, something only the two of you knew about.

His beautiful honey brown eyes held you captive, captive in a prison you never wanted to escape from.

You had forgotten all the little unimportant things you talked about that day. Deemed irrelevant by your brain, they had been discarded in favor of setting the most beautiful moments in stone so you'd never forget.

At one point, you were sitting between his legs as he leant against the tree, wrapping you in his warm embrace.

"Remus?" you asked tentatively.

He hummed, a signal for you to continue.

"Will- will we still be together in ten years? Like, long after we've left Hogwarts?"

"Always, (y/n)," his soft voice murmured in your ear. He knew about your fears, that someday he'd get bored of you or you'd fall out of love, and he was always very patient in reassuring you. "I promise that I'll always love you. I'm not leaving, not unless you want me to."