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"Are you all hungover?" Josie inquires as she joins the Slytherin table. Since it's Saturday, the teachers are more lenient about seating arrangements, allowing them to sit wherever they please.
Regulus, Dorcas, Barty, Evan, and even Pandora let out soft groans.
"Yeah," Evan groans, resting his head on his hands and blinking slowly.
Josie chuckles softly, realizing she didn't see Dorcas the previous night. Dorcas didn't return to the dormitory.
"Are you okay? You didn't come back last night," Josie whispers to Dorcas.
"I'm fine. Pandora and I stayed with the boys in the Slytherin dorms," Dorcas replies.
Josie nods, then her gaze shifts to Regulus, particularly his neck, which is covered in small marks—hickeys.
She feels an uncomfortable sensation in her stomach but decides to focus on something else.
"Did you not drink?" Barty asks, taking a sip of water.
"I wasn't there for long. I left after someone spilt their drink on me," Josie explains.
"Ah," Barty responds wearily, lowering his head as well.
Regulus turns his attention to Josie and asks, "Are you alright, Josephine?"
"I'm fine, are you?" Josie responds with a forced smile.
Evan playfully puts his arm around Regulus. "He gets lucky last night, obviously," Evan says, staring at Regulus's neck and gesturing towards it.
"Stop," Regulus mutters, pushing Evan's arm off.
"Well, anyway, I have to go. I have some school work to do," Josie says, preparing to get up. She has tasks to complete for her extra class, Care of Magical Creatures.
"You didn't eat," Regulus points out, looking up at her as she stands.
"I don't usually eat in the mornings," Josie replies, or at all she wants to say. She waves goodbye and heads towards the library.
The Care of Magical Creatures professor always provides her with lesson plans in advance, allowing her to work on assignments ahead of time. It's an extra class that she only attends once a week.
Upon entering the library, Josie finds no available seats. "Are you fucking kidding me?" she mutters in frustration.
She spots Remus sitting at a table in the back. Nervously picking at her nails, she walks over to him.
"Is it okay if I sit here? You're the only one I kinda know here," Josie asks, hoping for a positive response.
Remus looks up, appearing tired. Right, the full moon was a few days ago.
"Sure," Remus smiles, and Josie pulls out a chair and settles herself down.
Josephine retrieves the lesson plans and her books from her bag.
"What are you working on?" Remus asks, his curiosity evident.
"I have an extra class this year, so the professor gives me the lesson plans in advance so I can stay caught up," Josie explains.
"An extra class?" Remus's eyebrows raise, and the scars on his face twitch slightly.
"Yep," she nods.
"That's quite a lot. Aren't you also a prefect?" Remus inquires.
"Yeah, but I can handle it, or at least I'm trying," Josie replies, absentmindedly picking at her nails. This is probably the longest conversation she has ever had with Remus.
"That's impressive. Good for you," he yawns as he compliments her.
"Are you tired?" Josie asks, noticing his fatigue.
"Yeah, I was, um, sick a few days ago," Remus stumbles over his words. She debates whether to playfully tease him about the full moon but decides against it, not wanting to scare him.
"I hope you're better now," Josie says with genuine concern.
Remus nods, appreciating her sentiment, and they both immerse themselves in their respective work. Josie efficiently manages all the assignments from the previous week and even tackles some additional tasks before being interrupted by James and Sirius.
"Why are you two together?" Sirius asks, raising an eyebrow as he and James sit down.
"We're doing schoolwork," Remus replies, closing the textbook he's reading.
"Together?" James questions, slightly taken aback.
"Yes," Josie and Remus reply simultaneously, confirming their collaboration.
Sirius seems to display a particular expression on his face before swiftly masking it, throwing his arm around Josie.
"Josie, my love! I haven't seen you in days," he melodramatically whines.
"Get your arm off me," Josie retorts, promptly pushing his arm away.
"My love, don't do this," Sirius persists.
Annoyed, she presses her tongue against her cheek. Leaning closer, she whispers in Sirius' ear, "I will tell Remus that you have feelings for him. I know you do."
As she pulls back, she observes Sirius's widened gray eyes. In truth, she would never actually reveal such information to Remus; she isn't that mean. However, if it scares Sirius, she is willing to exploit it to her advantage.
She smirks slightly and says, "Bye, guys." Josie packs up her belongings and leaves.
Reflecting on the encounter, Josie realizes that Remus seems genuinely nice. It's mostly James and Sirius who cause the most trouble. She recalls her third year when she had a crush on Remus, acknowledging that almost everyone had a crush on him at some point.
