𝒞𝒽𝒶𝓅𝓉𝑒𝓇 𝐹𝑜𝓊𝓇𝓉𝑒𝑒𝓃

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"Sally, if one more Gary Glitter song plays, I am throwing your tape out the window."

"And what? Listen to Let it Be for the fiftieth time this week? Hogsmeade mornings are about getting pumped up, Tracey, not falling asleep."

Valeria was quick to snap her head towards Tracey, halting the bloodbath that could have ensued, "If you two start this fight again, I'm voting Jane gets to torture you both with whatever classical shit she feels like listening to."

Cringing back, both girls retreated, focusing on preparing for the day. A very important day. Hogsmeade day. Every third year and up were permitted to travel to the nearby town of Hogsmeade. Every student dreams of being off of school grounds and out for a day to shop, explore and escape their school life.

Sally-Ann's alarm had brutally destroyed any peace the morning had to offer at approximately 5:00 a.m. For at that time, all three roommates were up and going, and a certain Jane Yaxley soon after burst through the door.

The dedication to one of the few allotted days allowed off-grounds was commendable. But Iris still did have a bone to pick with that alarm.

Jane called out from the bathroom, "Time check."

Iris, who laid face up at the foot of her bed, lazily looked towards the clock, "Six twenty-three."

Being the only girl left out from attending the trip, Iris had finished her morning routine nearly an hour ago. She was about to leave to seek peace out in the common room when Sally-Ann demanded she stays to make up for not even making an attempt at sneaking out to Hogsmeade.

"Okay, so I have time to finish my hair… and Tracey, you said you wanted to braid yours, right?"

Tracey nodded from where she sat, doing her makeup before correcting herself, "Yeah, you still okay with doing it?"

Jane simply hummed.

Valeria turned towards Iris, holding up two shirts, "Iris, opinion."

Rolling over, Iris placed her head in her hand, studying the options for a moment, "White shirt, red cord skirt."

Turning back to the mirror, Valeria nodded, "Wish I could just wear your clothes, ugh… why are you so tall."

Smiling, Iris bit back, "Why don't you just grow…" she paused as the new song began playing. Rolling her eyes as the intro started, she grumbled, "Seriously, is Gary Glitter all you own Sally-Ann."

Looking up from painting her nails, Sally-Ann glared into the room, "Gary Glitter will go down in history. All of you just lack taste."

Rolling off the bed, Iris descended upon the player, "Okay, change in music." She took the tape out and turned to the room, "Sally and Tracey are both out. Jane, classical isn't allowed to be even thought about while I am in the five-mile vicinity, too many flashbacks to piano lessons."

Sally snorted, "Piano lessons… tell us you are rich without telling us you are rich."

Iris rolled her eyes playfully, "Anyways, Valeria, that leaves you. What is your pick?"

The said girl shrugged, "Never really been all that into music… think my sister really likes this one guy that does all these weird dances and sings about some dude named Billie."

Iris and Sally both stopped for a moment, sharing a look as the words hit them. Iris just seemed… flabbergast, "You mean Micheal Jackson… the song is Billie Jean… about a woman."

Valeria paused, "Really?" Shrugging, she simply let out a "huh" before continuing to change.

Together Sally and Iris both mocked her, "Huh…."

Iris clapped her hands together, tossing Sally's tape to the nearest bed. Returning to her own bed, Iris pulled a box out from underneath and opened it to reveal several tapes. "I think all of you are seriously lacking," reading the back of a tape before nodding, Iris closed the box and stood, pushing the box back under the bed with a foot. Returning to the player, she crouched down, "The Beatles are legendary, of course, and Gary isn't the worst you can do, but how boring all of you are."

Backing up after hitting play, Iris smirked, "And my father would have your head for 'never really being all that into music.'" Approaching Valeria just as the soft violin intro took a more upbeat turn.

Sally's face scrunched, "Blackwell, what is this."

Ignoring the girl, Iris grabbed Valeria's arm, pulling her towards the center of the room as the song blared out a quick, "Come on Eileen" once before continuing its beat.

Stabilizing Valeria in the center of the room, Iris smiled deviously. Valeria asked, "I'm not dancing to some weird Irish jig or whatever this is."

Jane poked her head out from the bathroom as another "Come on Eileen" was heard. Positioning herself to watch, she smiled.

And then the song truly began, and Iris, smile wide, began pulling Valeria along in a few simple steps. Bopping her head along as she mouthed the words.

Valeria stubbornly held out and remained as serious as she could manage, "Iris, I am not dancing."

Iris heard none of it as the song picked up, and perfectly in time, she yelled out… "COME ON EILEEN…" And so she went, dragging along her partner in her silly dance as Valeria broke into laughter.

The other girls, giggling, began clapping along. Watching as Iris stepped her feet to the beat, speeding up, slowing down. Jumping about while bopping her head all around. Valeria could only stumble along, her insistent laughter not allowing her a moment to collect herself.

When the song eventually came to a close, Iris led Valeria through an exaggerated bow as their audience of three applauded them.

Allowing a quiet laugh to leave her, Iris smiled wildly as she walked back over to the player, turning down the volume as Elton John's Saturday Night's Alright took its turn. The girls teased at Valeria as she tried to force her smile away and seem slightly threatening.

Iris hummed as the guitar intro played; smiling softly, she lightly tapped along to the rock song, "Elton John is probably my father's favorite. Mother was more into Elvis." Iris's eyes widened as the words left her month. She paused, closing her eyes in a silent sort of prayer.

The room stopped moving at those words. The teasing ceased, and Valeria's smile faded. And looks were shared. Looks that made it all too clear that questions were on their mind. But looks that showed that not one of those girls was confident about approaching to ask.

Sally-Ann, as always, took the lead, "Your parents sound awesome. I would have to tie mine to the chair to get them to listen to anything good."

Iris clenched her jaw but was quick to flip the switch. Opening her eyes, she turned back around with a smile, "Your parents are still pretty great from what I've heard. Appreciate them. Yours still shine in ways neither of mine ever could." Glancing towards the clock, Iris nodded, "Theodore should be heading to breakfast about now, have fun in Hogsmeade."

And in seconds, she was gone.

~~~~~~

Jazz… that was Remus Lupin’s music of choice. Instrumentals in particular. Saxophones, trumpets, pianos, maybe a bit of bass. But absolutely no singing. No Frank or Billie. Nope, just the saxophones, trumpets, pianos, and maybe a bit of bass.

In a way, it didn’t seem to match the man. The jazz was too upbeat, too cheery. Remus acted far older than he looked. He was the type to drink tea, the type to find a world of joy in the stories of the written word, the type that never stayed up past eight. He should have been listening to the soft chords of a piano, not the screams of a trumpet.

But when you got a proper look at Remus Lupin, the choice started to make more and more sense. When you saw the devious look in his eyes when he talked to Filch, the grumpy caretaker. When you watched him laugh along with the pranks performed by the troublemaker Weasley twins. When you looked around his office and caught sight of the candy quills and chocolate.

Remus Lupin was full of energy; at some time or another, in a past life perhaps, he was probably the talk of the school. He pranked Filch, the caretaker. He ran rampant with his friends as the twins did. He lived off sweets.

Sure he still drank tea, and the years and times had aged him, but Remus Lupin definitely had energy suited to the world of jazz.

Hence why he sat, at his desk, tapping a red pen to the sound of a saxophone. Finding the joy and familiarity of the upbeat song to be more of a distraction as he attempted to grade the papers in front of him.

There did seem to be more distracting him beyond the song he found himself unconsciously moving to. Perhaps the substantial bags beneath his eyes. Or whatever caused him to frown when his eyes carried over to the calendar upon the wall.

Or maybe it was how Iris Blackwell sat before a tank, which held a strange creature that Remus called a Grindylow, playing a game.

The Grindylow’s monstrous appearance would distract anyone. A pale green octopus-looking creature with a mouth full of sharp teeth and horns upon its head. Many would call it a horned water demon. Iris preferred ‘Cousin of Ursula.’

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

But there Iris sat, teaching the creature a form of the game Simon. She would tap a pattern on its glass enclosure, and the Grindylow would copy.

17 taps was the record.

Remus, finally giving up on pretending to grade, moved his attention to Iris as the Grindylow attempted the 10th pattern of the new round, “You’ve always had a way of humanizing monsters.”

Iris shrugs as the Grindylow fails the pattern. Standing up, she turns and settles into one of the empty chairs in front of the desk, “Just about taking the time to really understand them.”

Remus shakes his head, “There is more to it than that; it’s so engraved into you as a person we used to think your ability to read minds somehow allowed you to understand animals,” he pauses as he smiles, a distant look appearing in his eyes.

“Did you ever hear about your first zoo experience?”

Iris hums as she thinks on the question for a moment, then shaking her head, “No, nothing is coming to mind.”

Remus’ smile grows wider as he throws himself into the memory, “You and Ryker had been begging to go to the zoo for weeks, but Octavia was off in Paris, Leonardo in and out of meetings. Hayden and Melody had to be involved in all the meetings. So they eventually just let me take the two of you.”

Iris smiled fondly, the sarcasm dripping in her tone a stark difference from the joy of old memories, “That must have been an exciting adventure.”

Remus nodded, sitting forward as he grew more animated, “Oh yes, I was doomed from the start, even with the twenty bodyguards that followed our every move.

“Anyways, the three of us are waiting to get some food. Before we get to the front of the line, I turn to ask you and Ryker what you want and,” he shoots up his hands, “both gone. Immediately I start losing my mind. And almost instantly, a woman screams, and people start running for the exit.

“I notice a few guards fighting through the crowds, and I do the same. And the further I get, I notice that a crowd has formed around something. So I get to the front, and there sitting on the ground, you are. And three feet in front of you is a lion. And you are just sitting there talking about blueberries to this lion which just sits there watching you.”

Iris reverts her eyes to the window as she lets out a soft laugh.

Remus sits back almost in disbelief at the story, “I watched as one of the guards almost made a move to go grab you, but Ryker just grabbed him and said, ‘No, Iris is okay.’ And that was just that.” his head shook, “The glass of the enclosure had just vanished, MACUSA had a time explaining that one away. But it was the day Iris Blackwell showed her first signs of magic.”

Iris smirked, “Joyous day for all I would imagine.”

“For everyone but the mansion staff, I can assure you.”

The jazz overtook the room once more while the pair quieted, sitting in the moment. Giving in to the nostalgia. Giving in to that wistfulness that can only really come from memories of those past moments.

Iris shifted as she returned her eyes to Remus, “Did I ever tell you about my earliest memory?”

Furrowing his brows for a moment as he racked his brain for an answer, Remus eventually just shook his head, “Don’t believe you ever did.”

The girl’s eyes closed, a small smile overtaking her lips as she breathed in. Fully submerging herself into the past, “I must have been four or five, probably five. I remember that one green dress I always wore.”

Remus laughed, “Yes, with the collar and almost puffy sleeves, you tried to sleep in it once, and your maid, Autumn, I believe, almost lost her mind.”

Iris nodded, laughing a bit herself, reopening her eyes as she continued on, “Anyways, it’s a short memory, more of a quick snapshot than anything. But I was counting coins in the fountain. You sat beside me, helping me whenever I stumbled or skipped a number. And my father sat on a bench, just watching. It was just calm, and I think back on it and just felt like a normal kid.

“A normal kid who fought tooth and nail to never take off her favorite dress. Who’s father was always available to just up and take her to the park. Who only had to worry about what number came after 29.”

A somber air grew in the room. The jazz slowly being drowned out. Remus studied the girl. Watching as she stared out the window, as she kept talking, “I miss those years. Before I started really growing up. When I looked at the world, and I thought I could do anything.

“The older I get, the more bitter I grow towards those years, the more I realize that the past is just that, the past, I struggle to feel that joy.”

Iris faded off, lapsing the room into a silence that not even the record player seemed to fill.

Remus was quick to move along the subject, “This day always has a way of becoming overly sentimental.”

Iris sat a bit straighter, her gaze moving to Remus, “How are you today?”

A sigh escapes the man as he moves to sit up straighter himself, but before an answer could be spoken, a knock comes from the door.

~~~~~~

Iris made a point of keeping her gaze firmly locked on the window. Anything to avoid causing the tension between her and Harry to spike. Everyone knew it was there. With Harry and Iris pointedly ignoring one another, it was apparent as day. Remus was very good at ignoring it as well.

When Harry first entered the office, Remus did spend a second looking between the two teens, but that one glance was all. After that small look, he made a point to allow Iris to simply just be there as he and Harry Potter spoke.

The two were discussing something to do with the dementor lesson or tea leaves or something; either way, Iris wasn’t the least bit interested in anything but that window.

Until yet another knock came from the door.

Her eyes darted to the door, watching as Professor Severus Snape walked through the door; in his hand was a smoking goblet. Iris stiffened, her eyes dark as they locked onto the goblet. Watching as it made its quick journey over to Remus’ desk. Iris clenched her jaw, holding her breath as it passed by.

As Snape set down the smoking goblet, his eyes darted between the three other occupants of the room.

Remus attempted polite conversation as he pointed at the tank in the corner, “I was just showing Harry my grindylow.

“Fascinating,” Snape didn’t spare the tank so much as a glance, “You should drink that directly, Lupin.”

Iris finally moved her gaze from the goblet; instead, giving her attention to Severus, she narrowed her eyes at the man as Remus responded, “Yes, yes, I will.”

“I made an entire cauldronful,” Snape continued. “If you need more.”

Remus’s polite smile never wavered, but Iris’s glare did seem to grow more intense, “I should probably take some again tomorrow. Thanks very much, Severus.”

“Not at all,” there was a look in Severus’s black eyes. It was cold and watchful. He gave Harry one more quick glance as he backed out of the room.

Iris and Harry both looked at the goblet. One cautious, the other tense. Remus just smiled.

“Professor Snape has very kindly concocted a potion for me,” he said. “I have never been much of a potion-brewer, and this one is particularly complex.” He picked up the goblet and sniffed it. “Pity sugar makes it useless,” he added, taking a sip and shuddering.

“Why — ?” Harry began.

Remus cut in before the question could be finished. “I’ve been feeling a bit off-color. This potion is the only thing that helps. I am very lucky to be working alongside Professor Snape; there aren’t many wizards who are up to making it.”

As Remus drained the goblet, Iris released a breath, relaxing in her seat.

“Disgusting,” he said. “Well, Harry, Iris, I’d better get back to work. I’ll see you both at the feast later.”

Iris simply nodded as she silently left the room.

Harry was more hesitant, “Professor Snape’s very interested in the Dark Arts,” he blurted out.

“Really?” said Remus, his face a bit strained at the lingering taste of the potion.

“Some people reckon —” Harry hesitated, then decided to go for it, “some people reckon he’d do anything to get the Defense Against the Dark Arts job.”

Remus just nodded, smiling, “I will see you at the feast Harry.”

And with that, Harry could just place down his empty teacup.

~~~~~~

Harry spotted Iris just outside the classroom, staring out a window overlooking the grounds below. Fall had definitely set in. The leaves fell from the trees, and the grass died.

He paused for a moment, looking at the back of her head as he almost seemed to stop and talk, but he moved to keep walking. But before he could get more than a few steps away, Iris made the first move, “Potions always have the strongest smells; that one is particularly bad. Makes me nauseous.”

Turning towards her, Harry asked, “What was it?”

Iris hummed, her eyes following as a bird flew by, “A very expensive potion; it’s made with a flower… aconite.” She paused, “They are beautiful, but….”

Iris trailed off as Harry simply nodded.

Not entirely sure what to do, Harry just turned back around, continuing on his way.

But yet again, Iris stopped the boy, eyes widening; she reached into her back pocket, “Oh, wait. Harry.”

Walking up to the boy as he halted in his tracks Iris pulled a small picture out of her pocket. Harry turned back to her as she stopped in front of him, handing him the picture, “I was going to ask Re…” she corrected herself, “Professor Lupin to give this to you, but since you are here….”

Iris trailed off again as Harry took the picture.

It was a normal picture. No magic where the people were moving. Just a picture. Still. A snapshot of a single moment.

One man sat on the floor. His hair messy, glasses slightly askew as he smiled widely at a small baby boy. A baby no more than one as he walked towards a small girl who stood a bit away, staring at the camera as she reached for it. And on a couch behind the three was a second man, smiling softly at the small girl.

Harry simply blinked as he quickly turned over the picture reading over the four initials and a date, July 31st, 1981, “I.R.B and L.P.B?”

Iris nodded, “Regan is my middle name. And uh… L.P.B is my father. Leonardo Philip Blackwell.”

Harry turned the picture back over, “You look a lot like your dad.”

“An almost exact copy… just like you and James. I never really know how to feel when people call out the resemblance.”

Harry looked up at Iris, something seeming to click for him, the tension fading. Iris, however, had her gaze locked on the picture, “I have more, some with Lily; they used to watch me a lot back then. Our parents wanted us to grow up as close as we could.”

Iris took a breath, meeting Harry’s eyes, and holding out a hand, she smiled at Harry, “I am Iris. I can not promise that I am ready to tell you everything about me, but I hope that you and I can grow to be friends. So maybe that someday I can tell you everything.”

Harry looked down at her hand, to the picture, and finally to her eyes. He watched for a moment as the dark green slowly retreated to a ring around the very edge, the strange cobalt blue fire fighting through.

Iris was an anomaly; everything about her was beyond him. She was full of secrets, and yet she was still somehow so sincere. Her secrets didn’t feel like secrets, and they weren’t bad, just scattered puzzle pieces of her that needed to be put together in order to get the complete picture.

Harry took her hand, smiling slightly, “Harry.”

~~~~~~

Only maybe minutes after the Grand Halloween Feast, everyone had been called back to the Great Hall.

Iris had expected to be the first there as she had been hiding out in a hidden enclave behind a tapestry when she heard the commotion, her private dinner rudely interrupted. She happened across Professor Edwards, who quickly hurried her to the hall with no word of what was happening.

And so there she sat for ten minutes. Separated from the Gryffindors, who all whispered to one another. Iris had caught Harry’s gaze for a moment, and the two smiled before Harry was brought back into conversation with Ronald Weasley.

Theodore was the first to find his way to Iris, the girls just a step behind, “Haven’t seen you all day. You didn’t even bother to turn up at the feast.”

Iris smirked at the boy, “Thought you would enjoy your little break, don’t tell me you missed me, Theodore.”

He rolled his eyes as Sally-Ann sat down next to Iris, her question instant, “What is all this about? Snape didn’t say anything, and the prefects are just as clueless still.”

“Sirius Black tried to get through the Gryffindor portrait.” The group all blinked at the nonchalant announcement. None of them quite sure how to react.

Tracey asked absently, “So Sirius Black is in the castle?”

Iris simply nodded as Sally-Ann burst, “For what!”

Jane was the one to answer, “He was a huge supporter of he-who-must-not-be-named, he sold out the Potter’s—”

“Stop,” Iris interrupted, her voice firm, “Harry doesn’t know, and we don’t need it getting around the school. Gossip later.”

The girls quieted, turning to themselves as Theodore side-eyed Iris.

She just kept looking forward. Not really at anything, just ahead. Face expressionless. Eyes blank.

Theodore looked up to find prefects handing out sleeping bags at the door. He tapped Valeria to point them out to the girls and then left Iris alone as he went up and grabbed one for himself and one for Iris.

He dropped Iris’s sleeping bag in her lap as he began setting his own up. Making sure to not be heard, he asked under his breath, “Whose head are you in?”

Iris blinked as she drew herself back into her own head, “Dumbledore mostly.”

He raised an eyebrow, “You can get into his head.”

“Only the surface, digging deeper, into memories and such is something I am still figuring out when it comes to him. He keeps a lot under lock and key in there.”

Shrugging, Theodore began retreating into his bag, “To be expected, anything on his mind right now to worry about?”

Iris sighed as she moved to begin setting up her own sleeping bag, “Nothing beyond what I already knew.”