second waning gibbous ☾

[werewolfoflondon]

[action - 1485 Kramden]

[Honestly, those sword-fighting "lessons" with Crown had been far less "lessons" and much closer to "beating Remus' face in with a piece of wood." The day following had found him laying very, very still on the couch and rather wishing he were dead. Now, he's simply approaching everything quite gingerly.

Going about his daily life in excruciating pain. My, but this feels familiar. Perhaps he's simply a glutton for punishment.

Reasoning that perhaps it won't be quite so bad if he binds it, Remus has left the bathroom door cracked, and -- shirt abandoned on the floor -- is trying to work out the best method of wrapping ace bandage around all of the bruises on his badly-mottled torso. Most of his ribs and abdomen are an angry purple bruise at this point, but the shirts hide it well.

When he hears the front door, he pokes his head out of the bathroom.]

Lily? Is that you?


[action - library; later]

[Torso properly bound, Remus feels far more confident in his ability to venture out into public. Granted, cycling to the library isn't exactly comfortable, but he contents himself with the knowledge that he'll be able to barricade himself in an armchair with a stack of books when he arrives.

And that is precisely what he does.]

Comments

[werewolfoflondon]

[Remus shrugs it off with a wistful smile. Oh, if only it were as simple as that. What family life he has is unstable, simply because of his condition. Mother blamed Father for Remus' encounter with Fenrir, Father fell into depression, and the household had never quite been the same since.

He's gotten so sick of long silences.]

Well, you're my family here. [Remus looks away and scrubs a hand through his hair.] ...honestly a better family than I can speak of back home, when it comes down to it.

[bespell]

We all deserve second chances at happiness, don't we? Even if it's with new families. [But Lily's face does go warm at the high compliment. Remus has hardly been unpleasant to her in Mayfield, which is more than she asks for from others.]

[werewolfoflondon]

True enough. [Remus draws a deep breath.]

...they had a cage built in the basement. They didn't have much choice, of course. It wasn't as if either of them could deal with what happened every month. But they put me there in the evening and walked away, and-- just ignored the sounds all night.

[Remus looks incredibly distant when he speaks, staring at the floor. Though in the midst of that, there's a quiet laugh.]

James, Sirius, and Peter. They did more for me than my own parents could. I hope they'll tell you about it some day.

[bespell]

[A chill's gone through Lily's body, and it takes her a few moments to realize her body's gone cold, colder, so she rubs the warmth back into her arms. But when she looks up at Remus her eyes are brimming with tears she's not noticed herself.]

[werewolfoflondon]

[Remus stiffens, and he quickly wraps Lily's shoulders in his arms. Merlin, he wouldn't in a million years have imagined that would make her cry, and the fact that he has simply makes his stomach drop out.]

Stop it, don't do that. [Remus reaches up to pet the back of her hair gently.]

[bespell]

But it's horrible. [Lily's voice breaks despite her best efforts. Even with her level headedness, she doesn't possess enough maturity or distance to understand the desperation in the actions of Remus's parents.] And you had to live with that all this time, too.

[werewolfoflondon]

Only when I was home.

[That's not much of a consolation, but it's the best he can muster. He's always been rather crap at this comforting thing.]

It would have been much worse if they'd let me harm people. Keeping me restricted was the only responsible thing to do.

[bespell]

[No, they should have actively searched for a cure, but Lily swallows a hiccup and calms herself down. There's not much either of them can do about it at this point.] I think you've been very brave.

[werewolfoflondon]

Bravery has little to do with it. I didn't have much choice any other way.

[Remus gradually releases his grip on her, slowly becoming aware that it probably hadn't been the best manners to simply grab her like that.]

[bespell]

Don't be like that. It takes a brave person not to collapse into a pile of uselessness at something like that, but you still try to maintain a normal life.

I guess having three crazy friends to distract you doesn't hurt, either.

[werewolfoflondon]

Helps quite a bit, actually.

[Remus grins. If said friends had not been so crazy, it's doubtful they would have gone to the trouble of learning the art of the animagus.]

[bespell]

I'd forget who I was half the time, if I were you, waking up every day in the same room as them.

[werewolfoflondon]

Perhaps that's the point.

[It's a wistful statement, made with half a smile. Enigmatic, but Remus doesn't elaborate the point.]

[bespell]

[Lily rubs at her eyes with the back of her hand.] Good for them.

[werewolfoflondon]

[Remus gently tugs at a bit of her hair.]

You were going somewhere?

[bespell]

The flower shop, but my nose is all red now. Such a sight, right?

[werewolfoflondon]

It's not so bad. Didn't even notice it until you'd mentioned.

[Remus offers an encouraging smile.]

[bespell]

I thought the house could do with some cheer. Everything else is so... Artificial.

[werewolfoflondon]

Can't argue with that. [Remus purses his lips thoughtfully.] Perhaps some poison ivy...

[bespell]

And geraniums for the window sills. There is this lady with the most beautiful geraniums in her flower bed. I should ask her where she got the bulbs.

[werewolfoflondon]

You're speaking a foreign language again, love.

[bespell]

I can't help it. Flowers are what I'm named after.

[werewolfoflondon]

That they are. Though I've always wondered, what sort of lilies?

[bespell]

I guess my parents left that for my imagination. If it were up to me, I would be an Easter Lily.

[werewolfoflondon]

Those white ones? [Remus smirks.]

I think tiger lilies suit you best.