Dark Moon {Remus Lupin}

Chapter 2

{CW: Drug use}

I felt the ground beneath me crunch as Weslie and I made our way to the carriages, luggage floating behind us. This was always my least favorite part, seeing those dark and emaciated horse-like creatures. They had been briefly mentioned last year during a Defense Against the Dark Arts lesson, but Gilderoy Lockhart quickly skipped the subject and went on to talk about his travels and how incredible of a wizard he was. A bunch of hogwash if you ask me. Now he's at St. Mungo's and completely insane - not that he wasn't already insane before. Seeing the thestrals was always a reminder that I had seen death. I had seen tragedy, though I could never fully remember all of the details of the most horrendous moment of my life. What I do remember has been etched into my brain, begging to remain there until my last breath.

My brother, standing in front of me, was shaking. He knew something, but wouldn't tell me what was going on. I had just turned 5, my birthday short of anything special. Finn's eyes started to fill with tears.

"Brother, why do you cry?" I asked, my voice quivering ever so slightly. He looked away from me, almost like he was ashamed.

"You do know I love you, petite étoile?" He looked back towards me, giving me a sad and desperate smile. Petite étoile was a nickname he had given me for the rare but cherished times that he showed me any form of affection.

"Finn?" He had never said he loved me before then.

A flash of green. That was all it took and he was gone, his body collapsing to the grey carpeted floor. My screams echoed throughout the room and throughout my memory. A shock went through my body forcing me to the ground. It felt like something had latched onto my soul and my very existence. I crawled slowly, as I was weak, over to my brothers corpse.

"Brother? Please." My tears dripped onto his pale and lifeless face. His eyes were still open and yet there was nothing in them. No life, no love, and no more sign of his wild personality.

"Brother, please wake!" I shook his body desperately.

I felt a hand on my back, snapping me out of my thoughts. A thestral was staring right at me, its white eyes shimmering from the rising moonlight peeking through the clouds above us. I had walked towards it, standing in front of it as though it might have an answer to that fateful night. I wiped a few tears away before looking back at Weslie a small smile beginning to form on her lips.

"Hey, lets just get to the castle okay?" She scratched my back affectionately and guided me towards the back of the carriage. We climbed in, a few other students following suit. Sitting down onto the wooden bench, Weslie and I exchanged knowing looks.

She was the only one that I had ever told about Finns death and what I could remember about it. In fact, Weslie was the only one that really knew just about everything about my life. It was our first year and we had sat on the train in a compartment with other first years. She had just as fiery of a personality then as she does now, but time has only amplified that trait ten fold. We didn't really start talking until we got to the castle, both of us nervous to be sorted. If I was sorted into anything other than Slytherin, my family would most likely disown me. My brother had been a Slytherin, same as my father, my mother, and nearly all of my other family members. All but one - Sirius Black. He had been sorted into Gryffindor and it became a huge scandal amongst the family. My mother shuddered at the thought of that happening with me, I had always been the black sheep of the family. Much to her excitement, I was placed in Slytherin along with Weslie. After that, we never left the others side. She was the only one I felt I could trust.

The carriage started to move as conversation began to flow amongst the group. It had finally registered who was sitting amongst us. Cedric Diggory, Oliver Wood, and Orsino Thruston were talking about the new song that Orsino and his band, The Weird Sisters, were writing. Penelope Clearwater sat next to me reading a book called Olde and Forgotten Bewitchments and Charmes by E. Limus.