Feathers in her hair

01. Little Red Wagon

"You're going to love it here, Remus, just give it time." Hope Lupin said, an all-too-perfect smile painted across her pale and dainty face.

"Yes Mum." The small boy looked warily up at the house. It wasn't overly large, just a cottage on the edge of a bustling city. Two floors, red hatched roof, white-washed walls and a cream painted door framed with roses, boxes still littering the front lawn. All to protect him, and others, from his self. Remus subconsciously ran his fingertips along the bumpy scars lining his cheek.

They had moved so many times these last few months, each new house, each new place, each new room, all promised to be permanent. None of them had been. Remus wished this one would be, although he didn't say anything to his parents' faces, he was sick of all this. Sick of them moving, sick of his parents talking in hushed tones, sick of them treating him like something that should be kept hidden.

"Do you want to go and see your room while Dad finishes unpacking?" Hope asked and took her son's hand – leading him inside – before he had the chance to answer.

She led him up the narrow staircase down the hall and into the smaller of the two bedrooms. It wasn't much, just a bed, table and wardrobe. Beams of early morning sunlight shone through the window positioned above the bed. Illuminating the individual dust particles as they drifted lazily through the air. The wall paper was about as beige as muesli, with stains from posters put up in the years gone by.

"Isn't this great!" Hope said, the grin not faltering once, "It may seem a bit bland now, but we can fix it up, get some colourful bedsheets, maybe paint the walls, Dad could fix you up some shelves that we can put your books and toys on. Does that sound good?"

"Mmmhmm." Remus nodded, not really listening. He walked over to the bed and knelt up on the springy mattress. He lent on the window ledge. "Hey Mum, what's that village over there?"

Hope came over and looked over his shoulder. Set in the middle of the yellow and green fields was a small, circular village. Smoke rose from a few of the cottages and birds flew overhead. A tractor trundled across the grass. It looked like a holiday postcard setting. "That's East Linton, maybe we could go down there and look around one day, how about that?"

Remus nodded and sat down on the bed, fingering the beige sheets. "I don't like this room, it's too brown."

"Don't worry, it'll be bright and colourful soon enough." Hope ruffled his light brown hair before leaving the room, "Just call if you need anything, okay sweetie?"

"Okay Mum."

Remus spent most of those first few weeks up in his room. On the first full moon it provided stable enough to contain him. Like I'm a zoo animal in a cage. He thought to himself, leaning on the window ledge early one morning, watching the sun peek over the hilltops.

A small silhouette caught his attention. Pressing up against the glass he squinted at it. It was a small girl. Her dark skin shining bronze in the golden rays. She had dark chocolate eyes, a little bulb nose and a very round face. On top of her head was a mass of dreadlocks with feathers sticking up every which way. She was pulling along a little red wagon filled with eggs, milk and vegetables. She pulled it round the corner of his house and disappeared from view. Remus went back to watching the sunrise.

An hour or two later, Remus saw her again. She was running back the other way, her wagon empty except a small brown pouch. She paused for a moment suddenly and looked over her shoulder. Her chocolate eyes met Remus's hazel ones and she gave a smile that shined like the sun, dimples denting her cheeks. Then she put her thumb on her nose, wiggled her fingers and stuck out her tongue. Then she turned around and ran down the field towards the village of East Linton.