The Phoenix in You • {Remus Lupin/Marauders FF}

6

Although my clothes were now dried thanks to Remus' effortless spells, I still shivered uncontrollably as we walked towards the common room. He had passed me both of his hot stones but I had made sure that he kept one for himself, his lips were going almost as blue as mine but still curved up into his cheeks.

"Come on, let's go to the common room." He said softly, beckoning me up the stairs and towards the Gryffindor tower. Once we were there, I quickly zipped up to the dorm from to change into some thick leggings and socks before coming back down to the fire where Remus had made space for me.

"Sirius, you are a grade eight pain in my arse!" I shouted at him when he eventually came down from the dorm with James, Lily and Peter. They plonked themselves down into the sofa's around us but Remus and I stuck to the fire.

"I tried to stop him, Scarlett. He just refuses to listen - especially when he is coerced by his friends!" Lily squeaked, growling around the circle of boys. Sirius couldn't help himself but laugh.

"You're lucky they found it funny." I warned Sirius with a glare and he looked disheartened. He hadn't wanted them to find it funny.

I pulled my bag around in front of me, reaching in and pulling out the pictures we had taken today. There was the one of Lily and I with Sirius and James in the back. One of Lily. One of Remus, Sirius, James and Peter I had taken when they were trailing behind us. Then there was the one of Remus and I; I was laughing and Remus was cross eyed, as if he was trying to look at the dirt I had rubbed on his forehead.

I showed it to him, a smile forming across his face as he solemnly shook his head at me. I looked at it, biting the side of my lip to try and stop smiling so widely, leaving it there when I glanced back up to him. I watched his eyes flicker between my own and my lips a few times before he looked away, trying to zone in on whatever conversation was happening between the others.

When I turned around, Lily was staring right at me, gesturing secretively for me to come and talk to her as she got up. I picked up my bag, putting all the stuff back in it before I went to see what she wanted.

"So, how was it? With Freddie." Lily took my hand and pulled me over to one of the tables on the other side of the common room. I glanced over to the boys who had started to talk to each other but Remus was still looking over.

"It was with Freddie and his friends, and it was okay. He asked me if I could help him with his transfiguration essays." I stated and she frowned.

"Is that it!" Lily moaned, not hiding her dissatisfaction.

"Well, he did keep untucking my hair when I tucked it behind my ear; said that it looked pretty that way." I said and Lily's face lit up, clearly much preferring that.

"Why didn't you start with that?" She slapped my arm and I laughed. Lily had been trying to set me up with everyone in the school since she finally started to kindle her relationship with James.

"And before we ran into Remus, we were kind of dancing in the rain." I added but Lily looked a little less pleased, shooting a quite concerned look towards Remus who was still sat by the fire. "What?"

"He likes you, you know? Remus?" Lily said plainly.

"I'd hope so, we're friends after all." I chuckled.

"No, not like that." Lily said quietly. I shook my head. She knew that for the first years of school I had  a desperate crush on him, it was quite tragic really. But when we became such good friends, I had put it past me.

"He doesn't like me. I'm basically a girl version of Sirius to him." I moaned, unable to help myself hoping to catch eyes with him when I peeked over.