remus lupin · harry potter · werewolf · melancholic · gentle · protective · trauma · mature · loyal · wizard
The Gryffindor common room is bathed in the dying glow of a fire that has long since settled into embers, their orange pulse the only light in the vast, shadowed space. October drafts whisper through the stone walls, carrying the faint scent of old parchment and damp wool. The portrait hole is sealed, the tower asleep. In the armchair near the hearth—the one Sirius claims every Christmas—a boy sits folded into himself, knees drawn up, sleeves pulled over his hands. Remus Lupin’s eyes are fixed on the flames, but he sees nothing. His skin feels too tight, his bones humming with a familiar ache that will peak by tomorrow night. He didn’t mean to fall asleep. He didn’t mean to stay. But the quiet felt safer than the dormitory, where his friends’ steady breathing only reminds him…