we are a low word count, any level of experience rp set in harry's 3rd year at hogwarts. students and adults alike are welcome! given we are set fairly early in the series, everything that happens from this point on will be up to us! perhaps sirius black will be cleared and peter arrested, or perhaps something darker lurks in the shadows...
Remus had just had a nice lengthy chat with his sister and that ended with him finding the last open compartment. He placed his suitcase up on the rack and pulled his jacket over him, so he could get some darkness to sleep. Tired. Very tired. He just wanted to sleep, and he could deal with all of that later. However, things continued to weigh on his mind. How would he deal with this when he couldn’t keep running? He had time, and hopefully he would figure it out eventually. Sleeping on things usually worked well when he was confused. She just didn’t seem to understand, and it was annoying.
Under his jacket he nibbled on a bit of chocolate he kept on him. The sweet flavor always seemed to help. It made him feel less depressed all the time. It reminded him of the good and helped forget the bad. He remembered the cookies his mother would bake – not Amelie, his mother, chocolate chip. Her face smiling at him, and then her face when she was dying. How sick she looked. Standing by her side while she passed on.
He took a small shaky breath curling up slightly, jacket still covering his face. He could feel the train moving under him. The slow chugging of the train.
Post by Hermione Granger on Jun 26, 2018 19:26:18 GMT
Hermione walked purposefully down the hallway of the train, peeking in compartments as she went. Nothing was open and Harry and Ron were nowhere to be found. She had originally been in a compartment with Ginny and the Weasley twins, but the boys had gotten up to no good. Hermione didn’t want any part in whatever they were cooking up (literaly) and opted to take her book to another compartment. Unfortunately, she was regretting her decision now for she could find nowhere else to sit.
With a sigh, she checked the final compartment, expecting to see it full as well. Thankfully, it wasn’t. Well… there was someone in it, but they appeared to be sleeping soundly. Though having them wake up and find her there would be awkward, Hermione was far too desperate for a quiet reading spot to care too much, and having made her decision, Hermione carefully sat down diagonally to the man, who she noted was called “Prof. R. J. Lupin”, thanks to his suitcase.
It was odd for a professor to be on the train, but Hermione had never read about a rule preventing it so she shrugged it off. Not to mention, her excitement began to develop as she realized that the only post she knew to be open was the Defense Against the Dark Art position, and coincidentally, it was the Defense Against the Dark Arts text that Hermione held in her arms for a bit of pre-term preparation. She had almost finished the entire book so she hoped that would be enough to be well prepared for her first class with the sleeping Lupin. Hopefully, he would be able to teach her something useful. ‘If only Harry were here to meet him,’ she thought to herself. Harry was very talent at Defense Against the Dark Arts, and Hermione knew she would need to read the book at least twice more before she could hope to get higher marks than him.
With that thought, Hermione brought herself out of her thoughts and back to the present. She sat back in her seat, crossed her legs, and opened The Essential Defense Against the Dark Arts by Arsenius Jigger. It appeared this year would focus on dark creatures such as Boggarts, Werewolves, and Grindylows. With her book open, Hermione wondered if Grindylows could be found in the Black Lake and made a note to ask Professor Lupin or look it up in the library later.
Given the paranoia of living like he had for the past several years, the compartment door opening woke him up – but not enough to cause him to stir or give any sign that he was awake. After all, he was lucky enough to find this compartment empty after what happened earlier, he was losing hope when he searched for a compartment thinking he would have to sit in the aisles, which, while not safe, at least would be a place he could sit and possibly think. Given the worn threads on his jacket, he could barely see through, the light peeking in, allowing him to observe the one who entered the compartment.
She seemed nice enough, a very fine young girl. Probably around her third year. It was apparent she was looking at a book, having glanced just a moment at his suit case with his initials on it. There was no way she could know he was in here, and yet from the blurry view he got from through his threadbare jacket, he could have sworn that was the book they were required for his class this year. Smiling slightly at the thought, he considered his options of what to do next. If he just emerged from his shell she might think she woke him up (and while she did, he didn’t want her to feel bad). If he just sat here pretending to sleep, that would pass up the chance to meet this student of his. Also it might be a little bit weird for him to just sit there pretending to sleep while watching a child read.
That look on her face. She was wondering something. It almost mirrored that of Lily’s look when she was curious about something. He attempted to guess about where she was in the book, so he could guess what she was wondering about. After all, he was good at reading the body language of people, as well as intuiting their thoughts. It was one of his gifts and something Dumbledore seemed to value when he came to ask him to be a professor this year. ’Why do you want me?’ He remembered he was confused, it didn’t make sense why he would want him other than the fact Sirius Black had escaped. However, wouldn’t that have worked in the opposite way as well? Couldn’t he be helping him? And yet, Dumbledore, after all these years of knowing him, surprised Remus with his response. ‘You possess a unique ability to draw out the potential of those around you and understand others in a way no one else can.’ Flattered, of course, Remus did partially agree with Dumbledore. Except when it came to Sirius apparently.
Given the contents of the books, mostly focusing on magical creatures, he wondered if she thought they would be practicing how to defend oneself from them. She didn’t look too much like someone who focused on the practical parts, much like Lily and himself, learning information and reading was paramount. The next idea was the fact perhaps she was wondering if any of those creatures could be found at Hogwarts. She would know better than to assume a werewolf in the forbidden forest like some might. But there could be many other things lurking in the forest or the lake.
The Forest wouldn’t be something to really be afraid of, given the fact students weren’t allowed, and the black lake was a large part of the Hogwarts experience, especially in your first year. There was the rumor of the giant squid in the lake so someone like her may wonder if other aquatic creatures lived in there, specifically something the book liked to talk about, Grindylows. While he knew he could be wrong, he felt it made the most sense out of all the questions. And well, if he was wrong, he’d admit that he was wrong.
“Yes,” Remus said slowly emerging from his shell, though he looked a bit tired and downtrodden, “There are Grindylows in the lake. That was what you were wondering right? Or was it about the Boggarts? That was my second choice.”
Post by Hermione Granger on Jun 27, 2018 19:22:55 GMT
Hermione was deeply engrossed in the textbook when a voice startled her. To her credit, she didn’t jump, but she did look up and meet the teacher’s eye. “The Grindylows. How did you know?” she asked intently. Picking up her piece of parchment, she scratched her question about the Grindylows off the list. “Oh, pardon me. I’m Hermione Granger. I’m a third year. Gryffindor…. How did the grindylows get into the lake? Did someone introduce them to it or did they evolve on their own?” she asked in a rapid-fire manner, missing the fact that she hadn’t given him to answer her first question.
Introducing yourself was always polite and proper, and those were two things Hermione always tried to do. Yet, as she facing her professor one on one, it was only natural that she had a million questions come to mind about the text to ask. A conflict developed in her mind about whether to continue asking or not, and she fidgeted in her seat. She needed to let him answer her other questions first before continuing. Blurting them all out wouldn’t get her answers any faster. Nevertheless, she couldn’t help but to glance at her piece of parchment with her list of questions and notes at least once before facing Lupin again.
She studies him a bit then. His clothing seemed a bit worse for wear. In fact, all of him seemed a bit worse for wear. But the whole basically reading her thoughts thing was helping with his credibility, and Hermione knew better than to judge a book by its cover. She had learned this from actual books and their covers, of course, but she had heard others say that about people too.
Remus chuckled. His conclusion about her was correct – she was much like Lily. It was amusing and almost nostalgic to hear her questions fired off and then looking like she wanted to ask more. Out of everything in his life, he enjoyed helping others most of all, teaching others something new. This job would be perfect if it weren’t for something else in his life. Yet here he was, sitting with a student who was curious.
“I’m sure you’ve already figured it out, I am Professor Remus Lupin, your new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher. It’s a pleasure to meet you, Hermione.” Now it was time to explain his thought process, though he was sure she would understand, and not think he was just being a freak and somehow reading her mind. It was something apparently, he had since he was little, to just understand people in general. Probably because he was so oppressed given his upbringing. It made him more understanding as to why people acted the way they did.
“I figured out what you were thinking mostly because, well my jacket is a bit worn so I could make out your expression. It reminded me of a friend when I went to school. You seem more like a bookish sort of learner, as opposed to someone who enjoys the practical aspects more than anything. From that, I knew the book deals with magical creatures. Then I figured you probably were wondering if any of them lived at Hogwarts. That narrowed it down to the forest or the lake, where creatures roam. Given you aren’t allowed near the forest, I figured it was something to do with the lake. Grindylows are usually tamed by merpeople, who also could live in the lake, along with the rumors of the giant squid…”
He took his time speaking, explaining everything he could, after all, if she was like Lily she wanted to know everything possible. She might not look like Lily, with the brown bushy hair instead of the straight red and the eyes were all wrong, but it was the way she held herself that reminded him of her.
“You’ll be taught most of this in class, but I don’t mind answering a few questions.” There was only one so far, so it wasn’t as bad as someone who just ran their mouth without thinking about it. Regardless he wouldn’t have minded. “The grindylows were introduced to the lake a couple centuries ago by a Headmaster Derwent. He used them to protect the lake, but when they couldn’t tame them, they moved merpeople to the lake in order to take care of them. To his surprise, the merpeople didn’t destroy the grindylows, instead they were tamed by them.”
Post by Hermione Granger on Jun 28, 2018 15:07:20 GMT
Hermione leaned forward and listened attentively as Prof. Lupin spoke. She was correct in his identity, but that did not surprise her at all. (It was literally written on his suitcase!) She found herself enjoying his company, and any awkwardness that she worried about previously was dissolved. Furthermore, Prof. Lupin’s explanation about his friend at school allowed Hermione to feel connected in some minor way. Not a weird way, of course! But a student-teacher way where she felt that she could truly learn from the person in front of her. Not to mention that his explanations were so thorough and beneficial!
He was also truly quite correct with his explanation of her. He must have good discernment. Yes, Hermione was a bookish sort, and though she did well with practical application, she preferred to have researched properly to ensure that her application was flawless. Feeling that she needed to respond to his somewhat heartfelt explanation, Hermione said, “Well, I have a friend who always seems to put us in situations where practical application is necessary. I want to be certain that I know how to apply any magic perfectly. Though, admittedly, I do enjoy reading a great deal.” Her tone was that of someone merely stating facts rather than giving a personal disclosure.
She always thought of Harry when practical application and Defense Against the Dark Arts were being discussed so it was natural that she would bring him up. Would Prof. Lupin see Harry’s talent or merely his fame? Hermione hoped that perhaps this man in front of her would see Harry as a person and not a commodity. Perhaps, they would get the chance to have a quiet, normal year this time around and in the years to come. But Harry would never get to be “normal,” and that made Hermione’s heart hurt for her friend. Maybe this professor would be able to teach Harry’s favorite subject without making a spectacle of him.
“I wonder how the merpeople tamed the grindylows… “ she finished, wondering more to herself than to him.
Remus had heard about the past couple years at Hogwarts when Dumbledore had come to talk to him about the job. Harry had gotten himself in a lot of trouble, and Remus was hoping he could help keep him out of it this year, but if he was anything like his father, that would be impossible. It was like making him a prefect all over again. Regardless, her description of her friend made him wonder if she was perhaps one of Harry’s friends Dumbledore had mentioned – he didn’t mention their names, so he wasn’t sure. He was told one was the brightest witch of her age and the other was a brave, intelligent boy with a knack for strategy.
“I see. My friend did not have that kind of friend, but unfortunately, I did.” He chuckled softly and looked out the window for a moment. “When I was at school, I had three wonderful friends. They always got themselves in trouble. There weren’t the things that happened during your first two years happening during my time, but my friends always seemed to find something to do and somehow to get into trouble.” He quickly looked down at his hands and then back up at Hermione. “None of that matters anyhow.” The flash of a quick smile before he continues on as if he didn’t just remember a difficult memory of his dead friends and the one traitor of a friend.
Running a hand through his hair, he searched for something in her words to latch onto in order to change the subject so he didn’t have to feel that internal debate anymore, he quickly continued on. “Reading, while amazing, I agree, is not the best way to learn magic. Practice is what makes your reflexes faster and learning from your mistakes during your practice is what makes you more powerful. Of course, one likely won’t be the most powerful if they never read a book to help them.” To him, it was like listening to a parent not to do something as opposed to doing that something and learning the consequences for yourself. Both were good, but the parent telling you not to do it would not be as effective as learning yourself, but at the same time if you did what your parent taught you, you would at least not have to suffer the consequences despite not fully understanding.
“It’s unknown. Grindylows will attack humans if they have the chance, and no human has ever tamed a Grindylow. There’s a few theories based on the Merpeople’s magical abilities, but they’re still relatively unknown.”
Post by Hermione Granger on Jul 2, 2018 14:02:18 GMT
Hermione, still sitting properly and listening attentively, thought that she saw some emotion she couldn’t quite identify in the professor’s eye as he spoke of his friends. “Are you excited to be going back to Hogwarts?” she began, “And forgive me for being so frank, but our previous instructors have not been very remarkable, I was wondering what your qualifications are?” she finished, afraid that she had been too frank but too curious to have filtered the question. Hermione considered her education to be one of the most important factors of her life, and their DADA curriculum had been lax thus far. If Hermione were going to pass her OWLS and NEWTS in later years, she would need some quality instruction!
Hermione was about to say as much until she remembered that Lupin had said that reading was not the best way to learn magic! She sat a bit stiffer at that and had to visibly restrain herself to keep from shouting at him. “All of the foundations of magic is learned through books! With no foundation, people will never be able to properly cast anything! Plus, almost every spell book provides a section on common mistakes and how to correct them. I’ve found that with enough reading, one can be almost impeccable when practical application occurs.” she said defensively as if he had attacked her personally. Nevertheless, Hermione did recognize that practice makes perfect. She just preferred to have everything down perfectly before practicing. After all, it was rare that she ever struggled to learn and apply any magic and this was all do to being well read before attempting to do magic.
Remus chuckled when she asked his qualifications. Well, for one, this year they were going to be focusing on creatures and he was one of those creatures they were to learn about. Not that he was proud nor going to say that, but it was still the first thing he thought of. Instead, he carefully decided to word his response. “Well unlike your previous professors, I don’t have You-Know-Who inside of me and I’ve actually faced the dark arts. Whenever You-Know-Who was at the height of his power, I was part of a group that fought him and his followers. That and, I did achieve an O on my N.E.W.T.” She was smart and likely would make a connection that he knew her friend’s parents, though not necessarily the fact he was best friends with both of them.
Regardless of her outburst he continued to smile, finding it amazing she considered her education so important, but she did not seem to understand his message, though understandable as he had been a bit vague with his point. He held up a hand. “Don’t get me wrong, reading is important – but it isn’t the most important when dealing with defense against the dark arts. Defense Against the Dark Arts, at least in my view, is one of the most practical branches of magic. You must hone your reflexes and be able to act quickly, sometimes based on muscle memory, else if you’re faced with a deadly threat, you might know what you need to do, but thinking will eat up the precious split seconds you need in order to react.” Of course, he hoped she would not have to face something deadly, but given her friend and the amount of trouble they had already gotten into together, it was highly likely she would face something dangerous and she needed to be prepared – even if the other professors before had essentially refused, he would attempt to make up for their failures.
Post by Hermione Granger on Jul 4, 2018 15:11:59 GMT
An O on his N.E.W.T? That was a good sign and having faced the dark arts in the war was even better. (Not to mention not have You-Know-Who on the other side of his head.) Maybe this man would teach them something. Hermione couldn’t even begin to imagine what it was like fighting You-Know-Who all those years ago. She knew Harry had faced him in weaker forms since and hopefully would not have to again, but to personally see the destruction… It made Hermione’s heart hurt, and though she was still a bit affronted about his insult to her books. Hermione did realize the wisdom in his words and let the subject drop with a nod. Harry’s ability to act quickly had saved him the past two years and Hermione could not argue with that logic. Even her own ability to quickly recognize how to face the Devil’s Snare and not be killed (just petrified) by a Basilisk had been life saving.
Other thoughts weighed on her young mind now, and she couldn’t help but to voice them. “You fought against You-Know-Who? Did … did you lose anyone close to you? Wha - what was it like to be part of that?” she asked before realizing what she had said. “I’m sorry. That was inappropriate to ask. Please, pardon me. I’m sorry. I just… I….” she apologized a bit frantically and trailed off dropping her head to stare at her hands in her lap. Those were very personal questions and she was a bit ashamed to have asked them! But Hermione couldn’t help but wonder if he had connections to Harry’s parents. Even if he didn’t, it was very likely that someone he knew had died or been tortured or some other horrible fate. There was no reason for her to ask him to think of those horrors just to satisfy her insatiable curiosity.
Ah, he was expecting those questions, though expecting something didn’t mean that it hit him any easier than if he weren’t expecting it. “No, no it’s alright.” As someone who did not tend to talk about his personal life, even with those who were part of his personal life, he rather not reveal too much about what he knew – as well as the fact he didn’t want anyone to know his association with Sirius Black or, like Severus, they would distrust him. He wasn’t working with Black either, he was attempting help capture him at this point, and distrust among the student body would not help him capture Black nor do his job to the best of his abilities.
“It was awesome.” He didn’t mean it in the modern use of the word, more of how it could create awe in someone. “Both good and bad at the same time. To feel like you’re fighting for a better world, a world where those you care about can live in peace and grow up happily, to have a better life than you could have had… but terrible at the same time. The horrors you see, the prejudices that come out to extremes, its amazing to think that people could think that way. Not only that, those you considered friends turn against you, you learn a lot about those around you, the deepest parts of those you considered friends.” He paused feeling he was saying a bit too much. If she made the connection to Black… well there went the whole plan. Black was a known traitor, someone who was supposed to be against Voldemort but turned out to be working for him, though not commonly known to have given up the Potters.
“We lost many good people. Edgar Bones and his entire family. Dorcas Meadowes. The Prewett brothers. Marlene McKinnon. So many good witches and wizards fell… and of course, as you likely know, the Potters. They’re likely the most famous of those who fell…”
Post by Hermione Granger on Jul 5, 2018 18:30:22 GMT
Hermione was not so sure it was alright, but she stayed silent anyway. Her curiosity was getting the better of her even though she knew it was not proper to being asking a professor about his past and personal life. She was sure he probably did not want to discuss it with a random student on the train, but he was being quite gracious about it all. He seemed to be a kind man to Hermione, and his words about the war were inspiring in their own way. He made her want to go fight for this better world and to fight to make the world a better place. Hermione had experienced some of the prejudices personally though not nearly to the level that Prof. Lupin was talking about. She had been called a ‘mudblood,’ but she had never been tortured or almost killed for her blood status the way that other muggleborns had during the fight against You-Know-Who.
Hermione could not imagine the pain of having a friend turn against her to the extent that Prof. Lupin seemed to be describing. She could not help but to wonder who had betrayed him. Hermione was not as familiar as she could be about the previous war, but she knew that if her time at Hogwarts kept with the same theme it had in past years, she might just experience a similar war before it was all said and done.
After he finished speaking, Hermione was silent for a few moments. Reflective. Then she said, “I’m sorry. For everyone you lost and those that betrayed you. Did you know - ” she paused, clearing her throat and the sudden emotion that had formed a lump there. “Did you know the Potters? Harry… He’s my friend.” she finished quietly, meeting his eyes and unashamed of the emotions that were in hers. The grief, compassion, and empathy.
Ah, there it was. He didn’t mind too much revealing he knew them, just not quite to the extent he did know – after all James had supported him. He had been best friends in school, even had a name for their group. They were the dorks of the school but also the popular group. It was almost like they were a boy band. There was the bad boy, Sirius, the cute one, James, the friendly one, Peter, and the quiet one, himself. Too bad they were terrible at singing or they could’ve made a very famous band. Remus chuckled internally at the thought.
“Ah, yes, I did.” He seems a bit sadder at the mention of the Potters, though the memories were almost bittersweet. There were so many good times only to be ended by a traitor and James’s best man. “Lily Potter, she was the friend I was talking about earlier – the one you reminded me of.” He gives her a small warm smile. “The Potters were some of the greatest. I’m… glad that Harry survived. When I heard the news the Potters were dead, I thought they meant everyone until someone mentioned Harry to me.”
He bites his lower lip looking up and remembering the good times. For a short time, he even had a crush on Lily, though he knew she was off bounds since James had always seemed to like her. Even still, she was kind and understanding – plus she liked to read so he could talk to someone about a new book he had read. The others just tended to say ‘that’s nice’ and move on. She would go in depth and ask about the characters – and normally she would have already read it or she would read it right after he suggested it to her.
Post by Hermione Granger on Jul 7, 2018 18:14:18 GMT
So he had known the Potters. He had even been friends with Harry’s mother, and Hermione reminded him of her? Hermione did not really know anything about Harry’s parents but the little she had heard was always good. Hermione was slightly awed to be compared to such a hero as Lily. In fact, it left her speechless, which was a good thing because Hermione did not know what to say to the Professors display of grief after his willingness to share.
The brief silence was loud and heavy to Hermione until Lupin mentioned Harry’s eyes. Had Hermione heard that comparison before? She knew Harry supposedly looked a lot like his father, but Hermione had never heard his mother mentioned when it came to how Harry looked. Even with the emotional statement, Hermione was not sure what to say. This conversation had taken a touching turn, but that did not disturb Hermione. No, she felt glad that maybe Harry would find some connection to his parents. Maybe she should say something…
“Thank you, sir.” she began, still hesitant to speak. “Thank you for sharing those things… Um… I think … um I think Harry might like to hear about his parents… if you ever wanted to tell him about them.” she suggested as another thought hit her. Did this man know the escaped prisoner as well? Sirius Black?
One of his greatest abilities was to share his experiences but also leaving out the hardest and most painful parts out of it and leave whoever he was talking to none the wiser, though he was sure to leave Hermione in the dark would be difficult when compared to others. Either way, there were some things he would refuse to talk about and hoped no one would even think to ask about them.
Pulling out a small chocolate bar, he took a small bite allowing the chocolate to lull himself into a happier mindset, reminding him of when he was very young, and his father had bought him his first candy bar. At first, he didn’t like it – but it took just a little bit for him to start loving it and soon he became addicted in a way to chocolate. It seemed to have a kind of magic to cheer him up, remember the smiles on his parents’ faces.
“I’m sure he would. I did not come here intending to discuss my past with my students, but I think it would be in Harry’s best interest – well, provided he wants to hear. I haven’t yet met the boy.” He smiles looking to Hermione and gave he a small nod. “I’m sure in due time I’ll meet him and I’ll make the determination if he needs to hear what I have to say or not. He does deserve to know – to know everything he wants to know, even if that information may cause trouble for him.”
