Redamancy - R. Lupin

Chapter 26 - Lassulus

Lassulus - (adj.) worn out, having one's strength exhausted by toll or exertion.

Roughly three weeks had passed since the night Evangeline and her siblings had confronted their father and suffice to say, life hadn't gotten any better for her.

After telling Dumbledore of what they had learned in their less than pleasant meeting with their father, he had ordered all three to stay under house arrest for the time being until they figured out more on whether or not the attack was a direct link to his past as a Death Eater. Elio had gone to stay with Tonks at her parents house, saying that Twelve Grimmauld Place was too gloomy even for him. This left Lillian, Evangeline, and Sirius- at least, she wished that.

Remus had moved back in- why or for how long, she hadn't bothered to ask. For the most part, aside from glances and long stares, he stayed clear of her thankfully. It was bad enough that he had moved back in, she didn't need him speaking to her.

On top of being caged into such a depressing place with her sister, her sisters kind of boyfriend, and her ex-boyfriend, she hadn't been feeling well at all for the past few days. She felt horribly weak, struggling to even get out of bed, had terrible bouts of nausea leading her to not eat much (something she really hated), and had an almost constant headache; the kind that radiated from behind your eyes.

It was nearly dark out and Evangeline had yet to pull herself from her bed, her limbs too weak and her nausea too strong. She had been curled up amongst her pillows, a thin sheet covering her legs. She never had a problem with heat in the room, but she had been sweating all day, the room far too hot. As a way to pass the time, she had been reading A Study In Scarlet, the first of the Sherlock Holmes books. She was nearly done- the book not being all that long- when a knock sounded at the door.

Sighing, she figured it was only a matter of time before Lillian or Sirius came knocking. Marking her place in the book, she called out, "come in."

The black door that read R.A.B on the front crept open, light from the hallway seeping in to the dimly lit room. Along with the light came the comforting scent of potato soup, no doubt Lillian's doing.

However, neither Lillian nor Sirius stepped into her room. Instead, Remus bloody Lupin took a hesitant step inside, his hands tucked in the pockets of his trousers. "Evangeline-"

She was in no mood at all to hear from him, not with everything going on with her family and her currently dwindling health. "Get out."

His eyes shot up, meeting hers before she could avert her gaze back to her book. His chocolate brown eyes shown with guilt and desperation, conveying an incredible amount of emotion in the few seconds before she looked away. The amount of pleading she saw in them had gut twist. Perhaps she was being a bit harsh.

"Lillian sent me to get you for dinner," he paused, waiting to see if she would snap at him again. When she didn't, her eyes boring into the cover of the book, he continued, "she and Sirius are worried, you haven't gotten out of bed today."

"I'v been reading," she mumbled, drumming her fingers against her knee.

"I can see that," he made a noise that could've been a chuckle, an unsure one. He lingered by the door a moment before speaking again, "you are able to get out of bed, right?"

"Yes," she snapped, huffing in annoyance, "I can get out of bed." The longer Remus stood there talking to her, the quicker the anger she felt towards him began to resolve, rapidly replacing itself with the grief she had tried so desperately to push away.

"Alright, then lets head down. Wouldn't want the food to get cold, would we?"

The rhythmic drumming of her fingers halted. Remus knew she couldn't get out of bed, the slight smirk of his lips telling her just that. But, she was petty and determined and wasn't going to let him get the satisfaction of being right.