UNDER THE MOON, Remus Lupin

xxx.

APOLOGISE, FORGIVE, FORGET

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Alice glared at both of them. They both looked down at the times floor in shame; each with blood dripping from their noses as a commotion was made in the background. Fred and Clint sat in the hospital wing with Alice, whose arm was on the mend. What to do with them? Alice rolled her eyes and scoffed. For whatever reason they decided that violence was the answer, Alice disagreed completely. And she hated that it had led to this.

Clint glanced up, then immediately down. "Let me explain-,"

"Shut up," she hissed at him.

Fred snickered. Alice kicked him in the leg. "That goes for you too."

Dumbledore pulled Fred out a moment later to talk to him. Clint awkwardly cleared his throat as he and Alice were left alone. "He just pissed me off, okay? He hurt you."

"That doesn't give you the right to attack him, Clint," Alice said, shifting her arm uncomfortably.

"It's not like you were going to do it. He had to learn his lesson," Clint muttered, crossing his arms. The atmosphere that set in was dull. Alice wouldn't let Clint get away with this. She didn't really believe in revenge. At least not the kind that bears ill-will.

"That lesson isn't for you to give..." Alice poured herself a cup of the nasty concoction that she had to unfortunately drink in order to fully heal her wound. It tasted like stale pumpkin pasties and feet.

He thought he was doing something right by punching the shit out of Fred. Then Fred began to hit back. And before they'd knew it, McGonagall had caught them yet again, this time in a locked classroom with blood and cuts all over. So now... they were here. Getting patched up and questioned.

Alice looked Clint up and down, dropping her shoulders. She got up and sat with him, putting an arm around his neck. "You're a good friend. Thank you. But you still shouldn't have done it."

Clint felt slightly relieved. He shivered when he felt her begin to scratch his head with her head on his shoulder. Hesitantly, he patted her thigh just above her knee. Alice didn't think of anything of it. "Ali?"

"Hmm?"

"I've been meaning to ask you about something," Clint took his hand off her thigh and laced his fingers together. Fidgeting with his bracelet, Clint breathed out. "When Draco accused you of sleeping with Marcus Flint... was it true? Did you do him in the locker room?"

The silence could've indicated her answer, but Clint was finished assuming things about Alice. He'd made that mistake one too many times before. Alice lifted her arm off Clint and looked at the side of his face. Then he turned toward her. To him, it seemed awfully close. But he was also in love with her. To Alice, this was normal. Finally, she sighed and responded, "It wasn't... it was never like that."

"Flint was a lot older than you, Alice... how could it not be like that?"

"He wasn't that much older, Clint. I was 16. He was 17." Alice wasn't sure why she was answering him in the first place. Maybe because lately, everyone had been making her feel like she had to be ashamed of her careless past.

Clint scratched the back of his neck. Marcus hadn't really ever been nice to anyone. Now that Draco had mentioned it, Clint realized that he was only ever nice to Alice, aside from a few of his friends. Was it because she'd been screwing him? "You were in 5th year, Alice. He was in 7th. He knew better."

"Can we drop it? You're making this a big deal," Alice said. Clint had never liked hearing when Alice was intimate with other people. Even though it had happened years ago, he was still getting riled up about Alice and Flint.