It Rains

The Silver Doe

The dark water was still churning where Laurel had plunged. The dark waves were going to crash up to the boulder from where Remus waited desperately for the woman to re-emerge.

"Shit,"— he cursed under his breath as he began to take off his jacket, ready to go looking for her.

"Don't jump, Remus." — Laurel had resurfaced a couple of meters away. — "It is frozen cold",

The woman swam quickly to shore, her bare feet seeming unaffected by the pebbles. Her drenched hair covered part of her face reddened by the cold, the long black robes stuck to her body, revealing the distinctive curves of her figure.

Remus felt a slight tremor in his legs as he saw how the woman walked towards him, looking at him with a mischievous smile as she combed her hands through her hair, freeing herself from seaweeds and small twigs stuck in it. She was alluring, dangerously alluring.

He took a deep breath, taking in the scent of the Akardos, making sure the apparition in front of him was not a Kelpie, a shapeshifter spirit of the Scottish lochs known to hypnotise and drag its victims to the bottom of dark waters. He stared at her feet waiting for them to transform into horse hooves.

"What's wrong with my feet?" — Laurel asked when noticing Remus' gaze.

"I thought..." —The wizard shook his head and descended from the rock. — "Never mind".

Laurel started shaking while doing her best to wring out the water from the robes, her nails turning slowly blue.

Remus pulled out his wand, and whispered a few words, drying her clothes.

"It's a shame you cannot do much for my hair" —she chuckled.

"What were you thinking? You will freeze!" — He exclaimed, approaching her and placing his wool jacket over her shoulders, hugging her tightly.

Laurel opened her eyes, taken aback by the sudden physical closeness. She allowed for a couple of seconds to pass by before trying to wiggle out of his embrace.

"Thanks, but I am heading back". — she said while removing the coat, but he stopped her.

"Jumping out of nowhere into a freezing lake is not rational behaviour, Laurel. You have to tell me what's going on".

"I have already told you..."

"I know is not related to Harry". — Lupin doubted to say the next. — "Is Severus being stern with you? Mistreating you?"

"I wanted to get rid of that horrendous pumpkin juice, that's all". — Laurel put on a fake smile and hugged herself, staring back at Remus. — "About Sev, I don't see why you should care".

"I care. Do you seem fair I tell you all my problems with Dora while you don't bother to share yours? Trust me, if I saw you happy, I wouldn't bother asking, but you seem gloomy recently":

"He doesn't mistreat me". — Laurel felt a sudden heat on her cold cheeks. — "Stern yes. You know him".

"If you are not happy with a relationship, why do you pursue it? He is the coldest man I know. You two don't fit in".

Laurel shrugged her shoulders.

"Tonks didn't have much of a choice who to fall for. You either. It just happens, you know? I just wish...". — Laurel let out a nervous chuckle. — "Look, you are assuming we have something serious, steady... but reality is nothing like that. We have no plans, no future dreams".

"He cannot. Not when he's You-Know-Who's right-hand man. There's nothing for you in his life, Laurel".

"Yes. You are probably right, Remus". — She felt a burning sensation in the back of her throat, her eyes turned red. — "Maybe I am just putting too many hopes on him? I feel ridiculous sometimes, especially because I know he keeps comparing me..."