The Quiet before the Chaos (Remus)

[lily]

Defense Against the Dark Arts....as educational as it was it still something the elicited curiosity as well as distaste.

It was not one of Lily's strongest suits, really she preferred something a little less focused on the violence and damage magic could cause. Creation over destruction, it was how she was raised and how she wanted things to be. Still it didn't prevent her from studying and attempting to get the best marks she could, but it scared her that there would be students in the very classroom that would want to use their magic for hurting others. It was baffling, but at the same time not surprising on how some looked at it eagerly. War and battles romanticized...until it happened it was just fairytales.

It was still early before classes started, lunch break not over yet for most as she started down the hall. Usually she'd stay with the other sixth year girls and eat and chat, but today she wanted to get to class early to study a bit more. Defense Against the Dark Arts only got harder with each year, scarier as talks of uprisings even now still happened so close to everyone. Of course that was just here, the rest of the world now was in rebellion it seemed. She tried to shake it from her thoughts. In the end things worked out for the good, not the bad.

Getting to the classroom she shrugged her books to one arm, curling them close to her hip as she used her free side to get the door open. Really she just liked the sort of hush of the rooms before other students started pouring in. She knew James and his buddies would probably get in later, a few of the ruder Slytherins, but really she paid them little mind. They usually didn't bother her too much other than the noise. Stepping in she started towards her desk, lost in her own thoughts. It was still close enough to the start they hadn't started in on the heavy stuff yet. Mostly review, a few more details, more dueling when the time allowed.

Not too bad really, fairly easy days for the September month as it grew shorter and colder.

[REMUS JOHN LUPIN]

Defense Against the Dark Arts was certainly Remus's favorite class, but not only because he was damn good at it. He genuinely enjoyed studying defensive spells that would protect against the Dark Arts (which he assumed some of the darker students practiced in secret). It was one of the classes he was able to show off in, though that occasionally meant letting his friends copy his homework.

Actually, in most classes that ended up being the case, and it wasn't because Sirius and James were stupid (poor Peter could really use the help), but they didn't apply themselves, especially not when they had "good ol' Moony" to help them out. Of course, this particular day, they hadn't had an assignment due, and he had gotten a good amount of sleep without homework or a full moon to worry about.

That was exactly how he ended up in classes before his friends. Last he had seen them, Peter was scarfing down food, and Sirius and James were taunting some poor Slytherin third year into trying to hex them so that he would end up with detention. Sometimes, he never did understand his friends' motivation.

He spotted Lily as she arrived and gave her a hesitant smile. He knew that she wasn't fond of his group of friends, but she wasn't a bad girl- and James liked her, so of course Remus wanted to try to be friends with her. Not too close, though. He imagined James would have his head if he even thought that he was trying to move in on "his girl." Remus didn't understand why James didn't just go after some other girl, there were plenty far more willing...

"I didn't think you were that fond of Defense Against the Dark Arts?" Remus inquired of the red head, trying to strike up some sort of conversation. He had seen her enthused about some of their classes, but this was not one of them.

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TAG - Lily
WORDS - 429
SONG - Switchfoot - Dare You to Move
MUSE - Great!
NOTES - :3 Let's see how this goes.
CREDIT made by flyy~

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[lily]

The voice drew her up from her busy little preparations in setting up her spot. She was good in theory, with books and definitions, and vocabulary, but really this was the one class she scooted a bit further back from the front. It wasn't even that she didn't like the professor, it was just not something she was keen at, or very good. It was here she really felt the eyes on her. Violence was one reason, but it didn't help that if she messed up in front of certain people it would come back in snickers.

Looking a few rows over she looked at Remus and a small smile drew upon her lips. It was strange, most of Potter's friends Lily tended to steer clear of, but Remus was sort of the odd man out. Not like he wasn't apart of their group, but he was just different. He felt more mature to her than the others, and though she was still mad at Potter for his last prank Remus was not included in that frustration.

"I'm not very fond of it at all." She agreed, nodding gently, "We don't agree with one another, however as my father always says, 'Everyone who is good at something was once bad at it.' So here I am." She motioned to herself with a small chuckle before running a hand through to ruffle her red hair.

"I scored well enough last year to take it, Just barely. Professor said I need to focus less on the act of using magic to harm, and focus more of it on protection." It stung a little to hear that, like splitting hairs she wasn't completely convinced, but still she came back. Protecting someone she loved and cared about...it was important to her.

"What about you? You just seem good at everything." It was true, a few older girls gossiping about it already, but there was talk already about Head Boys for next year and it was hard not to hear his name come up. Lily could see it. Remus always did impress her, smart, quiet...even if he did run with Potter. "Look at you in here already studying before everyone. Here I was hoping to be the first." She laughed gently, moving a little closer now.

There was time before others started to pour in. Time to talk and catch up with her fellow housemate. "I'm a little curious about what the lecture will be today with all the reading on ancient curses we've had to do though. Was a rather interesting read."

[REMUS JOHN LUPIN]

He wasn't always the good, smart boy people expected him to be. Aside from that one time a month where he transformed into a rabid wolf, he was just as much of a prankster as his friends. But his difference was that he usually had tact and taste. He liked to think his pranks through- James and Sirius seemed to dive in head first and think through later.

But out of all of them, he ended up looking the most responsible. And they used it to their advantage. With him as a prefect, he could award and take points away, so if his friends royally screwed up, he would find a way to compensate them later. And if someone initiated a fight with them, he could be the one to take points away from the rival house. He was a protector of sorts, but he never really thought of himself in that light. And he was sure that if others could read his mind, they wouldn't either.

He gave a pleasant smile to the red-haired girl. "Congratulations," he commended her for continuing to take the subject despite her struggling. "You're still very talented, Evans." He knew that she knew that, and he felt a little ridiculous after saying it. But he hoped that the girl would just laugh it off. He was still a little awkward girls- who knew how their minds worked.

"Ahh," he hesitated when she said that he was 'good at everything'. He didn't believe this was true- not in the very least. "Thanks..." he trailed off, letting the subject drop so that they could move forward. "How was your summer? Busy, I expect?" he knew that she was muggle-born, and while he was half-blood, he had still grown up within the wizarding community.

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TAG - Lily
WORDS - 408
SONG - Switchfoot - Dare You to Move
MUSE - Great!
NOTES - :3 Let's see how this goes.
CREDIT made by flyy~

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[lily]

Lily just sighed and shook her head, "Barely Remus, just barely earned any sort of congrats. I guess this time around I should just try to put more heart in this like I've done with Charms." She ran a hand through her hair, ruffling it as she got a little further back. Some days she thought to just hack it all off, but she liked it long, the pretty red strands fun to braid back when it wasn't so bad. "We'll see I guess. I mean it's important for anyone looking to work in the ministry, right?"

She blushed a bit when he called her talented. "That is a compliment from you." She chuckled. And it was for her. Sometimes she wished they'd gotten more time to chat. As Prefects they had some things in common already, but there was the issue of a student that came up between them.

When summer was brought up she gave another small sigh and let her head fall to the side. It was the first question it seemed to most people she talked to. Sev had been the only one who had gotten anything other than a quick "fine" but then again it hadn't been as nice then.

"It was okay. I spent most of it reading and just inside. Went to the pool with some of my friends from back home, the library. Mum and Da took Petunia and I out over the channel and we did a small weekend trip to Europe for a bit. It was nice." Shaking her head she gave a small shrug, "It's weird being home around people who don't know magic, but nice to have the holiday." She smiled again, this time the expression a little warmer now as she took a seat close by to chat.

"I love being back though. Even with classes I'd rather not have, I'm glad to be back. I missed Prefect duties almost too." She joked softly, though in reality she loved the school, loved working with students.

"What about yours? Any fancy holiday trips?" She stopped herself from spitting out the rest of her own inquiry realizing that the words probably wouldn't be taken to lightly, "Spent time with the others you hang out with? All of you stay in the wizarding world don't you, year round?" It wasn't that she cared what Potter or Black did, but they were Remus' friends and she really didn't want to burn a bridge with someone she liked over people she didn't care for too much.

"Anything new to look forward to this year for you? I hear some students are already making plans if they don't come back next year. One more year left now...it's weird to think about it."

[REMUS JOHN LUPIN]

Remus knew it had been a generic question, one that she would have likely received time and time again. Everyone wanted to know how your summer was, what you did, where you went. He'd asked it to be polite and because he was genuinely curious, but he wouldn't have blamed her for being exhausted from hearing it. That was one of the biggest differences between him and her- they were both intelligent, but she was popular, and he wasn't.

He was a Marauder, but he was part of "the other two". Him and Peter. Sirius and James were the real stars, and everyone knew it. To say differently would be a lie. And yet, he wondered how much it would hurt to hear someone to say it out loud. He imagined it would, just like hearing cutting remarks about werewolves were hard to hear.

"Ah, yeah, I guess it is," he said in response to the class being necessary for someone wanting to work in the Ministry. Truth be told, Remus wanted to be an auror. His marks excelled, and there was no doubt that they would get him training, but his condition... his lycanthropy was going to be a problem, and he knew it. Discussing it with the teacher in charge of Gryffindor House, she had gently let him know that they may not accept him no matter how adept his skills were.

So when Lily asked how his summer had been, he wasn't going to tell her that he had gotten five new scars on his chest, three on his leg, and a nice set of teeth marks on his arm. He wasn't going to tell her that he spent most of his time reading schoolbooks and optional reading material in hopes that if he could prove himself good enough, he would somehow be accepted. He wasn't going to tell her that he was absolutely miserable, or about the meals ate in silence with his parents, or the fact that his parents couldn't afford to buy him new robes, so he ended up with a set of hand-me-down ones that were a bit too big on him and had a few patches on the interior.

"Oh, it was fun. Mother and I visited muggle London. It was quite fascinating; I hadn't been since I was a small child," since he had became a werewolf. He had been surprised by his mother's offer, but perhaps that had been the highlight of his summer. Still, he was worried about her- she seemed to forget a lot of things, including the fact he transformed once a month into a horrid beast. "And I went to see a Quidditch game, but other than that, it wasn't anything special. I'm glad to hear that your summer was eventful. That makes one of us."

He looked confused. "What do you mean not coming back next year? Aside from those graduating, is there talk of students leaving? I know I kept my nose in books most of the summer, but Hogwarts is by far the safest place... anyone would be a fool to choose not to come back and complete their education," he frowned. "I just intend to get through with the best marks possible. ... You have to if you want to be an auror," he saw no harm in sharing his dream, even if it was a pipe dream.

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TAG - Lily
WORDS - 682
SONG - None
MUSE - Great!
NOTES - :3 Let's see how this goes.
CREDIT made by flyy~

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[lily]

“I don’t know about you, but I really admirer the aurors. If I could ever get my Defense Against the Dark Arts marks up then I might have a chance...but I think I’d be happy working within the areas that deal with Muggles too. It’s funny knowing that some wizards and witches don’t know anything more about muggles as they know about us.” She, giggled softly as fingernails traced carvings in the desk. One was some sort of ancient rune that slowly would change into another, then another...probably someone’s cheat sheet from another class long ago by the look of it, and how occasionally a dirty word or picture would pop up. Oh the class of some people, though some part of her wanted to add in her own little thing just for giggles of knowing it would be there until someone broke the little trick.

She didn’t though, not that was not the behavior expected of a Prefect of Gryffindor, even though it would be amusing to her. No, instead she gave Remus her full attention. Once Potter or Black got here chances were she’d end up going to her own little corner again leaving them to toy with their friend. As far as those two went it was easy enough being quick enough with her tongue to get back at anything they might say or do, but then she’d have no time to talk with Remus. Even though Peter seemed more involved with Potter and Black prank-wish, even she preferred him as he wasn’t so loud. So for now before the chaos that was Marauders and other students came pouring in she enjoyed the peace. Really she’s always wanted to drag him away for tea, he knew this stuff about DADA, and picking his brain seem the best option when she couldn’t get Sev to meet her for practice.

“Oh you went to London!” She exclaimed softly, surprised as she often didn’t hear others who weren’t from Muggle families going to the Muggle world. “Oh I wish I had given you the number to our house. I’m not that far, I think it would have been grand to see you and show you around. I was lonely...really didn’t have any others like me around to talk to.” Or that she’d wanted to talk to this summer after last year’s tiff with Severus. It had been exceptionally lonely, left to study, read, study some more...occasionally get out of the house when Petunia was too much of a bother.

“Goodness, Quidditch, already the House Cup has become talk too. They say Ravenclaw has a good team this year...I’m not very good at looking at those things and knowing.” It was all just talk, things she’d heard in the hall...much like how she’d heard some sixth years saying the didn’t want to deal with school for another year. She sighed, nodding in agreement with Remus’ reaction, “It’s like with any school, Muggle or magic...there will always been students that were never meant to stay too long. I personally am trying to figure out how not to leave this place. I’ve been so happy since I first discovered that this existed. Though some places I love more than others.” She gestured around the room slowly.

Green eyes lit up though as she heard Remus let slip what he thought and she moved in a bit closer, “You too? You want to be an auror?” She smiled and reached out touching his shoulder, “If anyone can do it...it would be you Remus!” She exclaimed soflty, “Just don’t let Potter or Black distract you too much.” Lily added with a playful wink.