Chapter Text
Remus stood in the courtyard, smoking a cigarette. Rain fell in front of him, the smoke torn away by the wind. He flicked the ash aside, watching it drift down to the dry ground beneath the building’s overhang—the only thing shielding him from the storm brewing beyond.
Voices emerging from the entry hall caught Remus’s attention; Barty Crouch Jr.’s laugh, sharp and familiar, followed by Evan Rosier’s flat drawl.
Shoes hit the floor as they got closer, their voices getting louder. Remus rolled his eyes and kept staring out at the greying landscape, choosing to ignore them.
Remus knew the moment the two boys noticed him. Their movement stilled, voices dropping into a hushed whisper. He groaned inwardly.
“Oi, oi, Lupin,” Barty called, grinning as he and Evan came over.
“Alright,” Remus muttered, glancing at them briefly before looking away again taking a long drag from his half smoked cigarette.
Evan and Barty exchanged a look. "what's up your ass?" Evan asked with a huff that sounded something like a laugh
“Nothing. I’m just...not in the mood.” Remus mumbled shifting his weight.
Barty smirked joining Remus leaning against the cobblestone wall. “Not in the mood? Careful, Lupin you’ll break hearts talking like that."
Evan bit back a laugh. “What happened to you, Casanova?” he said, eyeing Remus.
Remus tensed, jaw clenched. He really didn’t have the patience for this—not tonight. It had been a hell of a day ,He and Sirius had fought before, sure but the row they’d had this evening had been their worst yet.
“Can I help you two with something?” he said, the edge in his voice hard to miss.
Barty raised a brow. “Touchy...That’s not very welcoming, is it? I thought you had better manners than that.” his tone to playful for Remus's current mood.
Remus looked at him properly this time, something cold settling in his expression. “Go bother someone else.” Remus retorted. his anger simmering just below the surface now.
Evan frowned "I didn't realise we were being a bother" his tone now one of confusion.
Remus let out a short, humourless laugh. “Well, you are.” His voice rose as he flicked his cigarette away and ground it out beneath his heel. thunder rumbling across the grounds of Hogwarts
Barty let out a quiet laugh. “Fucking hell. You always this pleasant, or did we just catch you at your worst?”
Lightning strikes with a flash. Something in Remus finally snapped. He pushes off from the wall striding forward without thinking, closing the distance in a second, jaw tight, eyes flashing amber.
“I said drop it,” Remus snapped, his face inches away from Barty's. voice low and dangerous now.
Thunder rumbles in the background. Barty didn’t move. If anything, his grin only widened, eyes flicking over Remus’s expression like he was taking it in, enjoying it even.
“There he is,” Barty murmured, almost pleased. “Knew you hadn't lost that spark.” Barty emphasised the last word purposefully trying to push Remus's buttons.
“Alright,” Evan cut in sharply, stepping between them and shoving a hand against Barty’s chest. “That’s enough!”
Barty barely shifted, still looking at Remus over Evan’s shoulder, something in his gaze wasn't as light hearted as his tone suggests .
“Go on,” Evan said more firmly, pushing him back a step.
Barty chuckled, finally relenting. “fine...fine,” he muttered, though his eyes lingered on Remus a second longer before he turned and walked off.
Evan stayed where he was, watching Remus carefully.
Remus slumped back against the cobblestone wall with a thud needing some space. time to cool off.
For a moment, neither of them spoke. The quiet stretched, broken only by the relentless rain and occasional thunder.
lighting struck again followed by a crash of thunder that made both boys jump. Evan exhaled through his nose, glancing over his shoulder watching Barty walk indoors before looking back at Remus.
“You done?” he asked, voice quieter now, stripped of its earlier bite.
Remus didn’t answer straight away. His jaw was still tight, fists clenched, like he hadn’t quite come down from the emotional spike yet.
Evan shifted his weight, hands slipping into his pockets.
“He does that,” he added, almost offhand. “Pushes until someone snaps... You just… gave him what he wanted.” Evan said simply
Remus let out a shaky breath, dragging a hand through his hair.
"BrillianT…" he muttered emphasising the T
The fight drained out of him as quickly as it had come, leaving something heavier behind. He let his joints relax momentarily, eyes drifting past Evan watching the rain fall.
“Just what I needed,” he added under his breath.
Evan didn’t interrupt this time.
Remus took a moment, swallowed, his Adams apple bobbing. jaw tightening again—but it wasn’t anger now.
“Sirius and I—” he started, then stopped, like even saying it out loud was too much. He let out a short breath, shaking his head. “We had a row.”
The word felt bitter on his tongue. too small for what had actually happened
Remus huffed out a breath, crushing the empty cigarette box in his fist .
“We broke up,” he said flatly... "Again.”
He let out a quiet, humourless laugh, shifting his weight from one hip to another .
“Ever since the prank, it’s just… not right,” he muttered. “ We just Keep going in circles. Thought it would fix itself eventually”
lightning struck closer to them now just over the hill.
“It didn't" Remus added quietly.
Evan looked at Remus sympathetically and shrugged. “Then maybe stop going back.”
Remus frowned "Its not that easy Ev… we've been through so much together"
Evan’s expression didn’t change. “And how much of that was actually good?”
Remus’s shifted, his gaze fixed on his feet
“Be honest,” Evan added gently. “Not just the bits you keep going back for.”
Remus shifted his weight, his hip was playing up again. something flickering across his face—annoyance, maybe, or something softer he didn’t want to name.
“It wasn’t always like this,” he said, quieter now.
Evan didn’t let up. “That’s not what I asked.” he prompted carefully.
Remus sighed letting his head fall back against the wall.
“There were good parts,” he muttered. “There still are.”
Remus didn’t even sound convinced by himself.
Evan watched him for a moment, then huffed softly. "look on the upside... this gives you both some time apart it could be good for you Remus" Evan said with a small smile.
Remus didn’t answer straight away, just stared out across the courtyard, rain falling heavier now.
“Yeah,” he muttered eventually, "freedom at last" sarcasm heavy in his tone.
The silence stretched again, heavier this time.
Evan shifted, glancing towards the castle before looking back at Remus.
“You gonna stay out here all night, then?” he asked.
Remus let out a quiet breath. “Wasn’t planning on going back.” the thought of going back to the dorm right now made Remus's skin crawl.
Evan studied Remus's face, then jerked his head towards the entrance hall.
“Come on,” he said looking at the box of cigarette's hanging loosely in Remus's hand his tone lighter now. “Got better stuff than that, in my dorm.”
Remus glanced from the now empty packet in his hand to Evan. “Better stuff?” he asked suspiciously
Evan shrugged, already turning. “You can sulk somewhere warmer, at least.”
"I'm not-" the words died on Remus's tongue. begrudgingly he pushed himself off of the wall his hip popping the sound covered by a rumble of thunder as he followed Evan to his dorm.