Power He Knows Not

Festival of Souls

The rest of October passed uneventfully, Ron and Hermione still refusing to talk to each other.

When finally Halloween came, everyone from third to seventh year was chatting excitedly about their plans once they reached Hogsmeade village. Harry, who had forgotten about the trip, felt a hollow feeling fill his chest, even as Ron and Hermione both assured him that they'd bring him back sweets from Honeydukes, breaking their nearly two weeks frosty silence in the face of Harry's morose mood.

After waving his friends out the front doors, Harry slowly climbed the moving stairs, half a thought of going to the Room of Requirement, but with no real plan.

On the third floor, he was waylaid by Peeves, who was using dungbombs to give the portraits a makeover. Upon spotting him, the poltergeist began chasing him down the corridor, pelting the odious pellets at him all the way.

Harry only managed to lose him by turning a corner and quickly ducking behind a statue of Drua the Dreadful, a witch best known for defending a small village of magicals back when Muggles were actively hunting them, despite her lacking magical abilities.

Harry held his breath as Peeves swooped past his hiding place, cackling maniacally despite losing his quarry. Harry leaned against the wall and let out a sigh of relief, only for his heart to leap into his throat as someone spoke next to him.

"Harry?"

T-M-R = H-J-P

Remus watched from his office window as the students left for Hogsmeade. He well remembered making the trip with his friends, when he was a student.

He shook off the melancholic thoughts, the Grindylow in the back corner of his office making faces against the glass of its tank, resulting in a slight squeaking noise.

He turned away from the window, his heart heavy with the past. He tried to distract himself with digging around his cupboards for his kettle, hoping a cup of tea might help settle his thoughts.

He was distracted from his search by an echoing cackling, proceeding the sound of someone running past his office door. Sufficiently diverted, Remus abandoned his search for the moment and headed to the door. He opened it just in time to see Peeves streak down the hall, throwing dung bombs everywhere as he passed. As the tricky poltergeist vanished from sight, Remus caught the sound of something shifting behind a statue several feet down the corridor. Curious, he walked over, pleasantly surprised to find Harry leaning against the wall, letting out a relieved sigh.

"Harry?" Remus couldn't keep the hint of amusement out of his voice.

The bespectacled teen jumped in surprise, and a loud bang! startled Remus. Looking around, he found a suit of armor across the hall had seemingly imploded, its legs, arms and head flying down the corridor in opposite directions.

"Professor Lupin, I..." Harry seemed at a loss for words. Lupin felt just as lost. Harry was very different from the few times he'd met him as a toddler. Though, that was twelve years ago. 

"Would you like some tea?" Remus offered, curious about who Harry had grown to be.

At the hesitant nod, Remus lead Harry back to his office. With a gesture, Remus gave a silent invite to the seats in front of his desk, as he turned his attention back to finding his kettle. He finally found it behind an old trunk that had been left by one of the previous tenants of the room. He wasn't sure what was in it, but it was rather heavy, and he had begun to use it as a sort of side table.