Boys Will Be Bugs

Chapter 33: Lily

Remus had no choice but to tell his friends what had happened with Yaxley, if only to warn them to keep away from him, but Sirius and James were predictably livid.

"The bastard," muttered Sirius, hand poised near his wand. "I have a right mind to knock him out."

"Already tried that," replied Remus. "And now I'm gonna have him breathing down my neck for the rest of the year."

"He's a dick," said James. "If he tries anything we'll have your back, mate." Peter nodded along with them.

"I'm getting really good at blocking spells," he informed. "So I could help too."

"Thanks, but I don't want any of you to fight him. I'll just keep out of his way."

Remus did a good job at keeping out of Yaxley's way, if only because he stayed close to his friends and didn't wander off unnecessarily. He couldn't move freely through the castle anymore for fear of running into Yaxley or any of his mates, but he didn't think the risk was worth it. It wasn't as if he hadn't caught any glimpses of Yaxley because he had, mainly in the Great Hall at lunch or dinner time. Yaxley would accidentally catch his eye and glare at him, and Remus simply couldn't hold his gaze for long before breaking eye contact. He did, however, note with a certain satisfaction that Yaxley still looked fairly bruised around his nose.

All in all, though, Yaxley seemed reluctant to cause a scene, so Remus pretty much got away with it. Until a few of Yaxley's friends decided to take it upon themselves to cause a scene for him.

Lunchtime was always ideal for a quick fight. No one knew why, because it was also the ideal time to get caught by a teacher, but if Remus was stupid enough to sit by the oak tree, which was a good couple of hundred yards away from the courtyard where the teachers roamed, then he was asking to be cornered.

His friends were supposed to be there, but something was delaying them, so he was completely exposed. A perfect target for the two Slytherin boys that came towards him: Amycus Carrow and Geraint Goyle. Both third years, and both very scary indeed. Remus had nowhere to run; he saw them heading towards him when they were only a few metres ahead, and he only just had time to put his book down and stand up, pressing his back against the tree trunk behind him.

"Oi, mudblood!" shouted Goyle. "Out here on your own, are you?" They finally reached him and stood there, Carrow with his arms folded and Goyle with his arms at his side. Both looked as threatening as each other.

"No," replied Remus.

"Don't see anyone else here."

"There will be. My friends. And we're not scared of you." It was a weak statement, but Remus didn't want to silently take whatever the two would throw at him. All it did, however, was make them laugh.

"Aw, did you hear that, Carrow? His friends aren't scared!" Carrow grinned.

"Good! Hopefully it will make things more interesting."

"Just leave me alone, I haven't done anything to you."

"No, but you went after Yaxley, didn't you?" Goyle asked rhetorically. "He's our friend, you know."

"I didn't go after him. He was being a dick and I defended myself." Carrow came nearer, circling around him like he was sniffing out his prey.

"You'll have to repeat yourself, mudblood, I can barely understand your ridiculous accent." Remus refrained himself from replying, mostly because the only reply he could think of was calling Carrow an idiot. Remus bit the inside of his cheek instead.

"Yaxley was right," continued Goyle, going to Remus's side, opposite to Carrow. They had him properly surrounded, and all Remus could do was ignore whatever they were planning on teasing him with. "He looks like a wimp." Goyle prodded at his arms, checking out the almost non-existent biceps. Remus harshly pulled his arm away which only made Goyle smile even more, happy at the reaction he was getting from him.