Springfic: "Rips and Shreds" for star54kar
Title: Rips and Shreds
Author: Fugacious_Love
Recipient: star54kar
Character(s): Remus Lupin, Albus Dumbledore
Rating: G
Wordcount: 1,129 words
Warnings (highlight to view): None
Summary: Remus Lupin awoke to find himself curled naked in the corner of a dimly-lit room.
Author's Notes: My original recipient dropped out of the fest...but the place was quickly taken by an awesome pinch-hitter. This is for the pinch-hitters, who are beyond amazing... I hope you like it even if it wasn't something you'd request.
Betas: My good friend Sashah.
Rips and Shreds
Remus Lupin awoke to find himself curled naked in the corner of a dimly-lit room. The September chill crept through the walls of the shack, and goose bumps crawled up his legs and across his torso. The first rays of daybreak filtered through a cracked and foggy window high on the wall opposite his corner; these had awoken him from whatever fitful sleep he had managed to achieve after transforming back into human form. Unfolding his aching body into a sitting position, Remus clasped his hands around his knees and absorbed the room’s furnishings. The previous night, he had given the furnishings only half a glance-- the full moon had been quickly approaching, and his mind had been preoccupied with fresh feelings of shame and embarrassment.
The walls were plastered with crimson wallpaper. Every so often along the room, he noticed rips in the paper in the distinct shape of desperate claws. His stomach jolted slightly upon the sight of this destruction, as though he feared Dumbledore would be angry that he had destroyed his interior decorating. Two chairs and a couch (red, as though to match the wallpaper) were in the center of the room. From his corner he could see the stuffing of the couch poking out from its side. Never before had he seen the effects of his wolf state. While damage to a couch was hardly the worst that was possible (he visibly shuddered at the idea of another human appearing in the tunnel while he was in wolf form), Remus felt a sudden surge of helplessness and humiliation.
Slowly, the memories of the previous night were returning, but he knew not to force this recollection. When he was eight, he had tried to recall how he had awoken two miles from his home. With a shock, he had remembered not his actions but a vague growling somewhere in his chest, as though a part of the wolf had not quite receded. The moment continued to haunt his nightmares, leaving him with a nauseous feeling as his mind grasped the concept that, once a month, he was completely in the control of a monster.
He stood, but slowly, finding the particular aches along the back of his calves and his lower back. Rubbing them, he glanced down at his bare body and immediately regretted doing so. A long scratch ran from his knee to his upper left thigh, and a dog-like set of teeth marks formed an indent on his right forearm. These injuries were a small shock to his system; he couldn’t remember having ever attacked himself in his wolf form. During the full moon, his father had made sure of bringing Remus to a secluded forest, in which there were plenty of other animals to attack. Yet alone in the shack, he supposed that his wolf self had nothing to turn to but the now-torn furniture and himself. Dumbledore had warned him of all these things, although Remus had not quite believed the Headmaster. The mind of the wolf couldn’t be understood for more than brief seconds while he was in human form, and thus trying to understand the concept of biting, scratching, and attacking whatever was in sight was impossible.
Against the wall adjacent to his corner was an oak dresser, barely scratched. A dull pain crept up his left leg as he walked to the chest and opened its drawers, pulling out his clothing. The transformation, pain, fatigue, social rejection, and vicious wolf-mind were enough of a curse without having to ruin a perfectly good set of robes once a month. Dumbledore seemed to have known this without asking; in fact, Dumbledore seemed to have thought out the entire shack brilliantly. A wave of admiration washed over Remus as he dressed. Without Dumbledore, there would be no Hogwarts for him. Without Dumbledore, he would be covered in dirt and leaves somewhere deep within a forest, his father Apparating at random locations in the forest to find him.
A knock coming from the doorway made him jump nearly out of his skin. “H-Hello?” His voice was hoarse and weak.
“May I come in, Remus?” Dumbledore was behind the door, and Remus felt a relief that his visitor was not the school nurse. He knew she couldn’t help her instinct, but he could recall her fleeting expression of disgust as he had entered the tunnel the previous night. He was no longer offended by this, as even his parents couldn’t hide their subconscious mind-set towards werewolves. Yet Dumbledore had never given any inclination of these feelings, and Remus was quite convinced that, to the Headmaster, his condition simply did not matter.
“Yes…” The word lingered on Remus’s tongue for a minute as he took another glance around the room, his eyes skipping over the tears and scratches as though to convince himself they did not exist.
The door creaked open, and Dumbledore entered. His mostly-gray hair was peppered with auburn, and though he wasn’t smiling, his blue eyes were friendly. He glanced at Remus, scanned the room, and then turned back to face his student.
“I must say, I rather prefer your decorating to the original. I was never a fan of this wallpaper, and you have most certainly given it character.”
Remus was taken aback by this comment, unsure of how to respond. Then he caught the twinkle in Dumbledore’s eyes, and only replied with a weak smile and a shuffling of his feet. Silence lasted for a few seconds, and Remus stared at the floor during this time, feeling the relief of Dumbledore’s presence ebbing away as the usual shame settled somewhere in the pit of his stomach.
“I realize,” Dumbledore began, his voice light, “That it is naturally terrifying to begin anew, to create a home with unfamiliar faces, and to face the challenges of change. You have the added stress of an unfortunate condition…but do not let this interfere with your time at Hogwarts. You will not be alone in this school, Remus.”
Remus looked up at these words, rather struck by Dumbledore’s accuracy, as though he had known that Remus had convinced himself that the next seven years (and indeed, the rest of his life) would be a lonely existence. From the window, sunrise’s reddish-yellow light struck Dumbledore’s mane impressively.
“Thank you, Professor.”
The two shared eye contact for a moment, and then Dumbledore smiled.
“You may want to consider returning to Gryffindor Tower soon. I hear that we are to have wonderful kippers this morning.”
Unless Remus was very much mistaken, Dumbledore had winked after these words, his eyes twinkling. He then made his exit from the room, and Remus looked out of the high window, his eyes watering slightly at the brightness of the morning sun.
Author: Fugacious_Love
Recipient: star54kar
Character(s): Remus Lupin, Albus Dumbledore
Rating: G
Wordcount: 1,129 words
Warnings (highlight to view): None
Summary: Remus Lupin awoke to find himself curled naked in the corner of a dimly-lit room.
Author's Notes: My original recipient dropped out of the fest...but the place was quickly taken by an awesome pinch-hitter. This is for the pinch-hitters, who are beyond amazing... I hope you like it even if it wasn't something you'd request.
Betas: My good friend Sashah.
Rips and Shreds
Remus Lupin awoke to find himself curled naked in the corner of a dimly-lit room. The September chill crept through the walls of the shack, and goose bumps crawled up his legs and across his torso. The first rays of daybreak filtered through a cracked and foggy window high on the wall opposite his corner; these had awoken him from whatever fitful sleep he had managed to achieve after transforming back into human form. Unfolding his aching body into a sitting position, Remus clasped his hands around his knees and absorbed the room’s furnishings. The previous night, he had given the furnishings only half a glance-- the full moon had been quickly approaching, and his mind had been preoccupied with fresh feelings of shame and embarrassment.
The walls were plastered with crimson wallpaper. Every so often along the room, he noticed rips in the paper in the distinct shape of desperate claws. His stomach jolted slightly upon the sight of this destruction, as though he feared Dumbledore would be angry that he had destroyed his interior decorating. Two chairs and a couch (red, as though to match the wallpaper) were in the center of the room. From his corner he could see the stuffing of the couch poking out from its side. Never before had he seen the effects of his wolf state. While damage to a couch was hardly the worst that was possible (he visibly shuddered at the idea of another human appearing in the tunnel while he was in wolf form), Remus felt a sudden surge of helplessness and humiliation.
Slowly, the memories of the previous night were returning, but he knew not to force this recollection. When he was eight, he had tried to recall how he had awoken two miles from his home. With a shock, he had remembered not his actions but a vague growling somewhere in his chest, as though a part of the wolf had not quite receded. The moment continued to haunt his nightmares, leaving him with a nauseous feeling as his mind grasped the concept that, once a month, he was completely in the control of a monster.
He stood, but slowly, finding the particular aches along the back of his calves and his lower back. Rubbing them, he glanced down at his bare body and immediately regretted doing so. A long scratch ran from his knee to his upper left thigh, and a dog-like set of teeth marks formed an indent on his right forearm. These injuries were a small shock to his system; he couldn’t remember having ever attacked himself in his wolf form. During the full moon, his father had made sure of bringing Remus to a secluded forest, in which there were plenty of other animals to attack. Yet alone in the shack, he supposed that his wolf self had nothing to turn to but the now-torn furniture and himself. Dumbledore had warned him of all these things, although Remus had not quite believed the Headmaster. The mind of the wolf couldn’t be understood for more than brief seconds while he was in human form, and thus trying to understand the concept of biting, scratching, and attacking whatever was in sight was impossible.
Against the wall adjacent to his corner was an oak dresser, barely scratched. A dull pain crept up his left leg as he walked to the chest and opened its drawers, pulling out his clothing. The transformation, pain, fatigue, social rejection, and vicious wolf-mind were enough of a curse without having to ruin a perfectly good set of robes once a month. Dumbledore seemed to have known this without asking; in fact, Dumbledore seemed to have thought out the entire shack brilliantly. A wave of admiration washed over Remus as he dressed. Without Dumbledore, there would be no Hogwarts for him. Without Dumbledore, he would be covered in dirt and leaves somewhere deep within a forest, his father Apparating at random locations in the forest to find him.
A knock coming from the doorway made him jump nearly out of his skin. “H-Hello?” His voice was hoarse and weak.
“May I come in, Remus?” Dumbledore was behind the door, and Remus felt a relief that his visitor was not the school nurse. He knew she couldn’t help her instinct, but he could recall her fleeting expression of disgust as he had entered the tunnel the previous night. He was no longer offended by this, as even his parents couldn’t hide their subconscious mind-set towards werewolves. Yet Dumbledore had never given any inclination of these feelings, and Remus was quite convinced that, to the Headmaster, his condition simply did not matter.
“Yes…” The word lingered on Remus’s tongue for a minute as he took another glance around the room, his eyes skipping over the tears and scratches as though to convince himself they did not exist.
The door creaked open, and Dumbledore entered. His mostly-gray hair was peppered with auburn, and though he wasn’t smiling, his blue eyes were friendly. He glanced at Remus, scanned the room, and then turned back to face his student.
“I must say, I rather prefer your decorating to the original. I was never a fan of this wallpaper, and you have most certainly given it character.”
Remus was taken aback by this comment, unsure of how to respond. Then he caught the twinkle in Dumbledore’s eyes, and only replied with a weak smile and a shuffling of his feet. Silence lasted for a few seconds, and Remus stared at the floor during this time, feeling the relief of Dumbledore’s presence ebbing away as the usual shame settled somewhere in the pit of his stomach.
“I realize,” Dumbledore began, his voice light, “That it is naturally terrifying to begin anew, to create a home with unfamiliar faces, and to face the challenges of change. You have the added stress of an unfortunate condition…but do not let this interfere with your time at Hogwarts. You will not be alone in this school, Remus.”
Remus looked up at these words, rather struck by Dumbledore’s accuracy, as though he had known that Remus had convinced himself that the next seven years (and indeed, the rest of his life) would be a lonely existence. From the window, sunrise’s reddish-yellow light struck Dumbledore’s mane impressively.
“Thank you, Professor.”
The two shared eye contact for a moment, and then Dumbledore smiled.
“You may want to consider returning to Gryffindor Tower soon. I hear that we are to have wonderful kippers this morning.”
Unless Remus was very much mistaken, Dumbledore had winked after these words, his eyes twinkling. He then made his exit from the room, and Remus looked out of the high window, his eyes watering slightly at the brightness of the morning sun.