just like me || remus lupin

let me fix it for you?

September 2nd, 1971

Remus anxiously walked to the Great Hall, making sure he wasn't going the wrong way. He had just met his roommates and was delighted to find that two of them were the same blokes he met on the train. James and Sirius seemed pretty close to each other already, and Peter seemed very quiet. They were all walking together to the Great Hall, being pushed by older students as they scurried to the Gryffindor table.

It was his second day at Hogwarts and he'd been pretty excited and nervous. The one thing he was terrified about was people finding out what he was. He was also frantically panicking about how he would manage to transform later in the month without his father helping him. He looked at his tie, anxiously trying to fix it himself without asking anyone but failed to do so. He looked around at the Gryffindor table to see all his other peers having perfectly tied ties and he began to fret thinking he'd get in trouble if his wasn't like the rest of them. James, Sirius, and Peter were talking to themselves, trying to get to know each other more, not even paying attention to Remus. He fidgeted with his hands, looking down at the plate and nothing else until he felt a tap on his right shoulder. He turned thinking it was a professor but saw a tiny girl who was a few inches shorter than him. She had long black hair that fell all the way to her legs, wearing a bright red headband, and a red and gold tie around her neck.

"Oh! I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you," She began, tucking her hair behind her ear. "I-I just noticed you were having trouble with your tie a-and I was wondering if y-you would let me fix it for you?" Her voice was soft and high. She stuttered a lot, Remus finding comfort in the fact that they both had something in common, as he also had a small stutter. He was confused as to why a random stranger was offering help.

"What's in it for you?" He shuffled in his seat, sitting on his legs.

"I don't want anything in return, silly. I just wanted to see if you need help. I'll be off if you're fine-"

"No! N-no," He stammered, surprised by the selfless act of kindness, "I'm sorry. Yes, I would like your help please." She smiled at him in satisfaction, bending down a little, and began fixing his tie. He blushed as the girl was very pretty. "I-I'm Remus by the way. Remus Lupin."

She smiled as she finished fastening the perfectly tied tie. "I'm Cerise Rein."

———— ᕦ(ò_óˇ)ᕤ ————

December 6th, 1976

"You what?" Sirius yelled as he was on the edge of his bed listening to Remus tell them everything about what happened the night before. James was rapidly stretching like always but gradually stopped the farther Remus got into his recap, while Peter sat on his bed crisscrossed listening intensively, putting his head on a pillow.

"Holy fuck, Moony," James said now standing awkwardly still. "You got the girl." They all began slowly clapping. Remus frantically waved them to stop.

"No, I didn't. I promised to distance myself more because it's getting too much. I like her but I can't have her like me. I can't risk hurting her and the only way for me to do that is staying just friends." He sulked into his bed. The words "just friends" hurt him badly as he knew him and Cerise were anything but. Sirius hit him over with a book.

"Stop trying to be some kind of martyr, Rem. Accept that you're a teenage boy who's going to gain feelings for people, and sometimes those people will like you back. This is one of those cases. Instead of running like some git, tell her how you feel. Instead of making it your life goal to grow up alone and die a virgin, let yourself live a normal life. Cerise is one of our friends, and we know she won't care about you being a werewolf." Sirius rambled. James and Petter nodded in agreement.