Reading Between The Lines ~ Remus Lupin ~ Book 1

chapter 7

Sunday, 3 October 1976

"Get off," Lena moaned as Maggie shook her awake.

"Get up, Lee! You'll miss breakfast," Maggie commanded.

All Lena wanted to do was sleep. She had not gone to bed until well past midnight. Lena rolled out of bed and threw on her new Cauldron Coven t-shirt and tucked it into a pair of blue jeans. She went to the washroom and stared at herself in the mirror. Her hair was a tangle of curls and there were bags under her eyes. She brushed her teeth, but did not bother to brush her brown hair. Instead, she tied her hair back into a messy bun and pulled a few stands out to frame her face.

"Alright," Lena sighed, "Let's go."

Lena, Maggie, and Ava walked side by side as they approached the Great Hall.

Ava turned her head to her, "Where did you go yesterday. We fell asleep around ten last night and you weren't back! We were so worried about you!"

"We even went to your brother," Maggie added.

"Ugh, he's going to be so annoying about it," Lena groaned, as she and her friends sat down at the Hufflepuff table. "I can't even say I was doing something exciting and that's why I came back so late! I just lost track of time when I was drawing at Hogsmeade and then I fell asleep. I barely got any sleep the night before."

"I'm not even surprised," Maggie laughed.

Lena piled her plate with bacon, hash browns, and toast. She was spreading strawberry jam on her toast when her brother sat across from her, his friends trailing behind him.

"Hi, Petey," Lena greeted before biting a piece off of her bacon.

Sirius snickered, "Petey."

Peter shot him a look and turned back to face his sister. "What happened to you yesterday? Were you with a guy?"

"Merlin, I wish," Lena mumbled.

Remus frowned and crossed his arms.

"Sadly," Lena continued, "the highlight of my day yesterday was falling asleep after losing track of time."

Peter nodded his head. It seemed plausible enough that Lena dozed off. Just this summer, Lena had fallen asleep at the Leaky Cauldron, one of the noisest places in Diagon Alley, when she had not gotten enough sleep the night before. "Alright, I'll see you later, Lee," he said, returning to the Gryffindor table with his mates.

Before leaving, Remus spoke. "I'm glad you're okay. I was worried something bad might have happened."

Lena bit her lip, feeling guilty for lying. "I'm sorry. I didn't want you to worry."

"S'alright." Then, Remus smiled. "You're wearing the shirt."

Lena grinned. "Of course, I love it. Thank you for getting it for me."

"Anything for you," he said, before walking off.

Lena smiled happily into her plate as Maggie and Ava giggled.

"Oh, shut up and tell me what happened on your dates."

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Friday, 8 October 1976

Lena was fuming as she spoke to the Fat Lady, demanding to be let into the Gryffindor Dormitory. Peter was supposed to meet her an hour ago to help her study for her upcoming History of Magic exam. She desperately needed to pass the exam. She had gotten a P on her last quiz for the class.