Remus had been brought into the Hospital Wing.
She hadn't seen him since his last full moon at Hogwarts. Once she had deemed him well enough to leave, he had done just that: left with hardly a word. And she hadn't seen him since. With the majority of her students, that was completely normal. Why would they return to the castle, and if they did, what would prompt them to visit the Hospital Wing? However, she had hoped for something else with Remus. He had never been a normal pupil, and not just because of his lycanthropy. He was a friend, or as close to one as a pupil could ever be. She had missed him.
And now, at last, he was here again, but in all the wrong circumstances. She had known that he was in Albus's Order, known that he and his friends must be putting themselves in danger, but until now, she hadn't had first-hand evidence of that. She had never before had to bandage a wound caused by spell damage with Remus, never before seen him unconscious from a pack of Stunners. That wasn't comparable to the routine suffering of his lycanthropy; it was heartbreaking.
Here he was, though, lying between the sheets that she had kept so meticulously neat in preparation. On the neighbouring beds, the Prewett brothers and Marlene McKinnon were also unconscious. Of course Poppy was worried about them too -- she knew the Prewett family, and Marlene had been a pupil here not so long ago -- but they weren't Remus. It was very unprofessional of her, she knew. Her thoughts shouldn't dwell on a patient to that degree.
In a way, a selfish way that she disliked greatly, she welcomed the distraction. Of late, she had spent far too much of her time dwelling on things she would much rather forget. Her engagement to Hippocrates had been ill-advised; rejecting him instantly would have been far less cruel than the drawn-out heartbreak she had subjected him to over the past year and a bit. She felt guilty, but that marriage would not have been a happy one. They hardly ever saw each other, due to their respective careers, and she could never have brought herself to leave her position at Hogwarts, not while there were still students in need of her help. Students, and Remus.
Poppy sat down on the edge of his bed, folding her hands in her lap. There was a perfectly good chair next to it, but that didn't feel right. The distance wasn't right with Remus. And with so many Order members wandering around the castle, wanting to check on their friends and needing to speak to Albus, she was sure someone else would want it. Tilting her head to one side, she observed him for a moment. He was still a young man, most definitely, but he didn't seem it. If you looked closely enough, there were odd specks of grey in his hair, and his face had grown even more weary in the eighteen months he had been away from Hogwarts.
He stirred. Poppy was sure she had seen it. He was waking up. His breathing was changing, his eyelids fluttering slightly. And there it was; his eyes opened, slowly, hesitantly, but there was recognition in them.
–Hello, Remus,†Poppy breathed.
He blinked heavily. –Madam Pomfrey,†he said indistinctly.
–I... Please, call me Poppy,†she said.
Through the grogginess, she thought he looked rather surprised, but a trace of a smile was playing around his lips.
For a minute, neither of them spoke.
Eventually, a thought seemed to come to Remus. –Your ring--it's gone,†he said.
Poppy looked down at her lap, where her hands rested. She had sent the ring back to Hippocrates with a school owl only a few days ago, and now, there was no way of telling that it had ever been there. She was surprised that Remus had noticed. –Yes, I... Well, I terminated the engagement. In this job, other relationships have to take a back seat.â€
–Oh, um, I'm sorry,†he mumbled, looking bashful and not altogether sorry at all.
Poppy couldn't help but smile at him. –No, it's quite all right. You're allowed to know, and really, I think I will be better off now.â€
He nodded slightly, and smiled. –I hope so.â€
–I'm certain of it. However, the most important thing is making sure that you get better. My romantic entanglements can take a back seat. Now, I really must leave you to sleep.â€
She half expected him to protest, as he had on his last visit here--the occasion was strangely fresh in her mind--but his eyelids were drooping. Instead, he just nodded slightly, his face returning to blankness. Leaving him be was the best thing she could do.
Remus knew that smell -- sweet and gentle and lovely. It was the first thing he noticed as he drifted into consciousness. He had smelt it not too long ago, but it was also something that felt innately familiar, that he might as well have known forever. As he opened his eyes, it clicked into place in his head.
–Madam Pomfrey,†he murmured.
The mattress shifted next to him, and he he saw her getting up hastily, as if she hadn't meant him to see her there again.
–I didn't think you were about to wake up,†she said, her cheeks pinkening slightly.
–It's okay,†he said. –I don't mind you sitting here.†And he didn't. After the sort of night he had just had--with the images of spell flashes and falling bodies that were seared onto his mind--he would normally have wanted to be alone. Perhaps it was that smell, but somehow, he found that Madam Pomfrey's company was actually better than solitude. As she still looked hesitant, and he really didn't want her to go, he tried again.
–Please, Poppy, sit down.â€
–You remembered,†she smiled.
–Remembered?†he asked.
–Last night,†she explained. –I said you could call me Poppy, but I hardly expected you to remember after the sleeping potion.â€
–I, um... Oh.†Remus was almost embarrassed. He couldn't help but remember, and he didn't quite see why she didn't understand that. Hastily looking around for something else to say, he noticed that the rest of the Order seemed to have vanished; he was sure they had mostly been around in the night. –Where did everyone else get to? Peter and James and Sirius, I mean.â€
–Oh, they all went home to sleep. You can hardly all go back to your old dormitory now.â€
Remus smiled. –It's strange to think of someone else using it now. It felt very much like it was ours, more than any other part of the castle.â€
–And you made the rest of the castle yours, too!†Poppy laughed. –No other students have dared do as the four of you did, not in all of my time here.â€
–Well, James and Sirius always were rather exceptional.â€
–Modest as ever,†she said, rolling her eyes. –You were very nearly their equal.â€
–Oh, but in some respects, I could never have kept up.†Remus couldn't help but think of Sirius and all his girls, of James's school-wide popularity, discounting Snivellus and co.
–In what way?†Poppy asked.
–Um, quite a few things,†Remus hedged.
–Yes, but what?†she asked again, grinning. –I think I have a very good guess.â€
Remus's eyebrows shot up of their own accord. –Do share.â€
–Oh, it's only I overheard plenty of girls talking about the lovely Mr Black.â€
Remus laughed. It was as if she had read his mind. –What did they say?â€
–Some good things, some bad things. It was a different girl each time, which is rather revealing.â€
–There were probably more girls than even you heard about with your sleeping potions. I said I couldn't keep up.â€
Poppy smirked in a way that made Remus's stomach drop. –Oh, I think you could have kept up if you'd let yourself. They mentioned you once or twice too--wished you were slightly more receptive, for the most part.â€
Remus blushed. Once or twice, there had been a girl who had seemed interested, but he had never let himself believe it. He couldn't be with someone who didn't know he was a werewolf, and any girl he had told would doubtless have run for the hills. To this day, he was amazed that Sirius, Peter and James hadn't done the same. –They wouldn't have said that if, well, if they'd known me a little better.â€
Poppy frowned at him, seeming confused for a moment. Then, he saw the understanding hit her face. –You mean the lycanthropy,†she stated sadly.
Remus nodded.
–No woman worth her salt would care about that, Remus. No woman worth you would care about that.â€
–Then perhaps they should,†he said.
Poppy just shook her head. –I should go. You're looking much better, but you do need to rest. Spell damage doesn't go away by itself.â€
She moved to get up again, but instinctively, unthinkingly, Remus grabbed her hand. He didn't want to go. Seeing the surprise on her face, he let go almost instantly.
–Sorry, I shouldn't have...†His voice faded into nothing as Poppy sat back down and looked into his eyes, unblinking and still.
Moving slowly, like she didn't want to break the spell that had fallen over them, she reached out and took his hand again.
Remus levered himself into a sitting position, ignoring the ache in his ribcage. Neither of them breathed; the stillness was pervasive. He leaned forwards slightly. Poppy mirrored his movement. Simultaneously, they both leant forwards again to bridge the remaining gap. Their lips met in soft, sweet hunger.
His first kiss with the Hogwarts matron, with Poppy, and, he realised, he couldn't imagine it being any other way.