Hogwarts
School Healer
Creature Task Force - Registrar
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21 years old
Hufflepuff Alumnus
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Trish
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Dismal
May 7, 2017 18:03:19 GMT
Post by Mali Johar on May 7, 2017 18:03:19 GMT
Azkaban wasn't a comfortable place for a visitor to be, so the thought of Remus there as a prisoner was absolutely heart breaking. It wouldn't be much longer, Gabriel had assured her of that. (They were cooperating with each other at the moment, Mali didn't really know who else to go to for information and the blonde seemed happy for the chance to talk to someone.) but knowing that Remus must feel alone and scared was difficult to cope with. She came to visit the moment that she'd heard it was allowed, it never would have been when Azkaban was run the 'old' dementor filled way. The terrible cloaked creatures weren't needed to create a dismal, cold atmosphere that sent a shiver down her spine. It was like those feelings radiated from the walls, seeping in from underneath the peeling paint.
The witch felt small and fragile as she sat in a depressing windowless room waiting for Remus to join her. Getting there was no easy task, there was lots of brusque guards and searches to make sure she hadn't smuggled anything in. Mali even had to turn her wand in when she arrived. She had nothing for the werewolf but a stack of drawings by his kids that she stubbornly refused to let the guards man handle. The wait was tedious and minutes stretched to feel like hours in discomfort. Mali hummed as she waited, twirling a few strands of long dark hair around her finger. Eventually the door scraped open and Mali was on her feet in a second, moving forward to greet the poor man as he shuffled in.
Mali caught Remus in a quick hug, asking "Hello, how are you?" before she slipped an arm around his waist. The witch threw the guard accompanying her friend a dirty look before guiding him over and depositing him in one of the chairs. The guard only grumbled and slipped out of the room to take up his post at the door. "Are you doing alright? Eating? I tried to bring you cupcakes but they wouldn't let me bring them inside. I think they were just hungry. Honestly, cupcakes are harmless. What am I going to do, sneak you a nail file so you can file away at the bars to your cell? Are there bars on your cell? It feels so damp in here. Are you warm enough? I did manage to get these through." Nervousness made her talk a mile a minute, not allowing for Remus to get a word in edge wise 'til she realized she was doing all the talking. She slid the drawings across the table to the werewolf. "I actually can't stay long. Theo's alone with the children and he's already sent me a couple texts... And--Oh, I'm talking too much. How are you? Do you know anything? Have you heard much?"
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Hogwarts
Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor
Werewolf
Order of The Phoenix
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44 years old
Gryffindor Alumnus
Wandless Magic
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Mego
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Dismal
May 8, 2017 17:29:50 GMT
Post by Remus Lupin on May 8, 2017 17:29:50 GMT
Remus had a visitor. He both hoped and dreaded that it was Gabriel - their last meeting hadn't gone as well as Remus dreamed up in this dank place, and he wanted another chance. He needed another thousand chances. He didn't think it was Gabriel, though. He wasn't a visitor; he was an Auror. Remus couldn't think of who else would be visiting him (not that his brain was very conducive to much critical thought right now). Most of his close comrades were locked up right along with him. Everyone else he knew on the outside, they were all probably busy holding his life together for him until he got out.
But, lo and behold - his visitor was none other than Mali. He only caught a familiar blur of dark hair before she was hugging him and dragging him away from the guard. Remus was very close to smiling. His face felt too tight and moving the muscles took too much energy he just couldn't muster, so he settled with enjoying the feeling of his spirits lifting instead. He let Mali put him in a chair and patted her forearm in delayed gratitude before she was on the other side of the table. There was no way Remus could keep up with what she was saying; Remus was tired. But he was happy to hear her voice, and to see her, so he nodded along to all her questions - even the ones he should have been answering in the negative. One only had to look at Remus to tell he was not doing alright.
When Mali passed him a stack of papers, Remus did smile. He knew those lines and shapes instantly. He spread the drawings all over the table and looked at them for a long time, running his fingers over the textures. "They're feeding me, I promise," he said absentmindedly. When Mali mentioned his kids, Remus looked up. "Are they okay?" More questions. Thinking felt a lot like running through mud for Remus right now. He had no idea how he was, or when he was going to get out of here. That was kind of Azkaban's thing - they left you in the dark. "No. I haven't heard anything." He shook his head. "Have you? I haven't been able to see the others. Gabriel's been by, but...well." Remus dropped his gaze back to the drawings.
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Hogwarts
School Healer
Creature Task Force - Registrar
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21 years old
Hufflepuff Alumnus
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Trish
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Dismal
May 17, 2017 1:44:17 GMT
Post by Mali Johar on May 17, 2017 1:44:17 GMT
Mali was in mid pull away when Remus patted her arm and she froze. "Are you okay? D'you need something? I dunno what I can get you but I'll try--Oh, that's not what you meant, is it?" No, he didn't really seem to need anything and she misinterpreted the pat. Gratitude, not trying to catch her attention. Prison made her nervous. She almost was a resident and not a visitor months ago. Turning over her wand was like a kick in the gut, every time someone else took her wand she was without magic at the worst times. The first time she was locked away in her home for a long time without any means to cast a single spell, and not doing magic made her feel sick and weird.. Heavy, like it was building up and weighing her down. The last time it was Theo taking her wand, to snap it under the direction of Death Eaters. Mali didn't like the feeling of the wand leaving her possession and it was very hard to allow it to happen again. She'd stood with her fingers frozen around the wood 'til the person got annoyed and just took it. The witch felt off without it... Almost naked, and very jumpy.
The woman was a perceptive little thing and half way through her string of questions she got the distinct impression that Remus wasn't really listening, but she continued with them anyway because she didn't know what else to say. She shifted in her own chair so much that there was no denying it, Mali was very uncomfortable visiting Remus but he would've done the same for her. The pictures seemed to engage Remus in the conversation like she thought they would, who could resist the sweet little drawings from two precious little babies? "Oh, I'm so glad to hear that!" For some reason, she could see them starving the prisoners. Maybe an interrogation method? It would break Mali in an hour, a Hufflepuff had to have tasty food to eat or they would wither and die. "They're having the time of their life, I'm their funnest babysitter yet." Lots of sweets, no real bed time and she came with a human jungle gym to scale and climb over. "I told them you were on a long field trip with your students but of course they don't know what a field trip is, they've not been to primary school." She shrugged. "It's like when you take your students away somewhere else to learn, usually they're really fun but occasionally they're boring like some terribly boring folk art museum but I made it sound like you were having a good time. I didn't really know what else to say? If I told them the truth I think they'd be scared, don't you? I'm scared for you."
Remus looked so sad and forlorned when he looked back at the drawing that Mali reached out her hand but stopped. "Am I allowed to touch you?" Her fingers wiggled in the air and she looked towards the door and chewed on her lower lip, thinking with her arm still outstretched. "Oh who bloody cares? " Not Mali, she already touched him anyway. The witch patted the werewolf's hand before taking it in her own to give it an affectionate and reassuring squeeze. "No sad faces, he'll come 'round. He's just overwhelmed. It's a lot to process." How did she know that? Because they were scheming together and that forged bonds of friendship really quickly. They weren't friends yet, but well on their way. They had to be, for Remus' sake. She couldn't very well give him dirty looks and then try to ply him for information, could she?
Mali looked back towards the door again before her attention turned back to Remus. Her voice dropped to a whisper and she leaned in close. "D'you think they're listening? I've not heard much because everyone who would know anything is here but I did overhear a couple of Enforcers talking..." Overheard, eavesdropped on... same difference. "And they're talking about not giving you Wolfsbane. I don't think the Minister would go through with that, it doesn't mesh up with her whole push to have everyone on the stuff but..." Mali leaned back in her chair and shrugged. "It's likely just watercooler talk. I'm sure I could manage to get some in if we needed to. Dunno how, but we'd think of something, wouldn't we?"
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Hogwarts
Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor
Werewolf
Order of The Phoenix
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44 years old
Gryffindor Alumnus
Wandless Magic
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Mego
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Dismal
May 18, 2017 19:15:14 GMT
Post by Remus Lupin on May 18, 2017 19:15:14 GMT
Mali was in overdrive. Not only were her questions coming at a million a minute, her movements were all over the place, too. She almost seemed jumpy; definitely uncomfortable. Remus would try not to keep her too long, to pretend like he didn't need this visit of a friendly face more than water or food. He didn't want Mali to worry about him when she already worried enough; she wasn't near old enough to give herself a heart attack yet. "I'm okay," he tried to reassure her after patting her on the arm and getting a million more questions for it. "Just happy to see you."
Mali didn't just seem jumpy, she was jumpy. Jumping from one question to another as Remus nodded halfheartedly, jumping around in her chair because she just couldn't get comfortable. Mali didn't belong in a place like this. Remus straightened up in his chair and try to focus on her, give her his attention so she had something to focus on as well. As long as Mali was talking, she was usually okay. Remus didn't have the energy to talk about much, but at least she was taking it sort of easy on him by talking about the things he knew best. He could probably talk about his kids in his sleep. "I'm glad you guys are having fun. Hopefully they haven't completely exhausted you yet? If you need a break, I've got a couple of people you could write who would be happy to see them for a few hours." Most of Remus' most trusted babysitters were locked up right alongside him, but there were a few more distant friends and relations out there who served as backup just fine. Mali explained what she told the kids about where their daddy was, and Remus nodded. "That's good, thank you. I don't like to lie to them but I don't like to scare them, either. They're rather precocious for their age, don't you think? But this is all so very...complex." Remus sighed heavily, slumping his shoulders back down as another wave of exhaustion hit him. "I'm scared, too. I miss them." Remus couldn't but a finger exactly on what he was scared of, he couldn't name it, but he felt a certain terror and never more clearly than when he thought about his separation from his children. And his family.
Fuck. And from Gabriel. Gabriel was something new to him but Remus felt it deeply that it wasn't just novelty that drew him so intensely to the man. He loved him, and when Remus loved, he got attached. Being away from what he loved was ripping at his seams. Remus shook his head when Mali asked if she was allowed to touch him, but it was a halfhearted shake at best. He squeezed her hand as soon as she held his. Mali was actually kind and understanding about Gabriel, making Remus look back up at her. "Do you think? I screwed up, Mali. I lied to him - a lot. Have you seen him? Does he look okay?"
Remus was feeling a little better, thinking about his kids and Gabriel and having a real, physical Mali here to do what she did best. But then she dropped a bomb on him that he wasn't at all prepared for. She looked like she had something to say, and he expected something about the investigation proceedings, or maybe what the Prophet was publishing about it all...not that they were thinking about denying their prisoner the medication he needed to thrive. Remus didn't want to scare Mali, but he couldn't control the visceral reaction his body had to the news. His eyes went wide and his skin cold. "What?" Before, when they spilled the potion in Mali's kitchen, Remus had pretended like a no-Wolfsbane transformation wasn't a big deal. And it wasn't, really, if he was prepared. But right now, he was very much locked in a cage and there was nothing on Earth a werewolf hated worse than confinement. "They wouldn't," Remus tried to agree, tried to convince himself, shaking his head. "They would never. It's...it's going to be fine. That's right. We always think of something. I'll be fine." Remus' voice was a little shaky, he felt like his rapid heartbeat was rattling his windpipe.
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Hogwarts
School Healer
Creature Task Force - Registrar
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21 years old
Hufflepuff Alumnus
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Trish
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Dismal
May 19, 2017 5:45:30 GMT
Post by Mali Johar on May 19, 2017 5:45:30 GMT
"Oh no!" Mali shook her head enthusiastically, trying to extinguish the thought before Remus could think it. "No, they're not a problem. I'm not exhausted at all! You know me, lots of energy." The witch forced a bright and toothy smile onto her face, hoping to bat away any thought that the children were possibly too much, that she needed a break from them. That was absolutely the last thing Remus needed to worry about, the poor soul. Mali would make sure his kids were taken care of and that was that. "Theo's helping! He's great with children! Sort've a big one himself, in a way." A little lovesick, Mali ran a finger over the little owl tattoo on her wrist, allowing the smile to take on a more genuine and fond quality than the fake cheeriness she'd been projecting before. Theo always made her feel better, no matter where he was or where she was. Just the thought of the adorable troll made things feel more tolerable.
"Mm, they are." she agreed with a nod before moving on from her tattoo to tapping her fingers mindlessly against the table, fidgeting out all the nervous energy that Azkaban was building up. She didn't like to see the slump of Remus' shoulders. The utter defeat written all over the poor werewolf. "I think they can use magic already. Have you taught them some spells? I lost--they--we were playing hide and seek" a nice way to phrase that she'd lost the children and the little tykes had managed to evade both her and Theo for some time. "and I swear on the badger they were apparating from place to place. They apparate better than I do. Of course they're going to be brilliant at magic, look at who their father is." Maybe she could sweet talk him into a better mood. Flatter him with compliments to boost up the self esteem the prison seemed to have beat out of him.
Taking his hand made it easier to focus on just him, and not the dismal atmosphere that was threatening to choke all the happiness out of her. "Shh.." she shook her head, waving her free hand to shush him. "He will come around, Remus. Sometimes people have to lie. You've done him a favor by not telling him, I think. You've got no reason to be suspicious of him.. Like if this had happened and you'd told him, you'd suspect him of telling someone, wouldn't you?" She patted their hands with her free one. "I think you'd feel worse if you were in here and felt like you couldn't trust him. He's just got a lot to process. It hurts, I'm sure, but he'll be okay." Remus, of all people in all situations, was concerned about someone on 'the outside' who was not facing life in prison or separation from his family. It made Mali laugh, which she tried to stifle with a hand over her mouth. "Remus! You should be worried about you! He's fine. I promise. He's alright, he looks like he always does. Handsome with cheekbones I'd kill for!"
The lightness the laugh had brought was quickly smothered out with rumors and terrible whispered news. Mali kept hold of Remus because he needed to know someone was there, to feel it. She only tightened her grip as he reacted with pure fear and dread. A frown weighed down her features, her heart just as heavy as her the weight dragging down her smile. "If they do---I don't think they will but if they did-- You'll be alright. You'll get through it. This moon and the next if you have too, because your kids are waiting for you at home. They need you to get through it, so you will and I'll help however I can. So will Theo and Eoin and Gabriel, too. We're all going to get you through this."
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Hogwarts
Defense Against the Dark Arts Professor
Werewolf
Order of The Phoenix
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44 years old
Gryffindor Alumnus
Wandless Magic
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PLAYED BY OOC NAME
PLAYED BY Mego
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Dismal
May 26, 2017 18:03:10 GMT
Post by Remus Lupin on May 26, 2017 18:03:10 GMT
Mali seemed to be overcompensating, almost begging Remus with her happiness for him not to think he was asking too much of her. No dice. "Right, but there's only one of you." Mali was a wonderful, clever, compassionate person but she was young. She didn't have children of her own yet. It wasn't fair to suddenly task her with the well-being of two of them, but Remus didn't trust anyone more than her to do it. Gabriel, apparently, didn't either - and that spoke volumes to Remus. Remus got the impression that the relationship between Mali and Gabriel was icy at best, and still, Mali was the first person Gabriel thought of in the short time he had to make sure Remus' children were taken care of. Remus knew they were safe with Mali, and Mali assured him that she was fine, too, because she had her own helper. The mental image of the twins undoubtedly climbing all over Theo almost made Remus smile. "That actually doesn't surprise me at all. Just let me know, okay?"
Maybe he was convinced Mali could handle it now, but he would never be convinced that taking care of those twins was anything close to easy. Mali seemed to agree, too, backing up her point with her own theories and stories. Remus blanched at her question with a quick, "No, of course not," and a glance at the door, as if they were ready to throw him in double-prison for teaching magic to underage children. Couldn't be too careful once you were already in Azkaban, he reckoned, he just wanted to make positively sure they knew he had never done that. Remus looked back at Mali once she complimented him, relaxing with his hand in hers. "I can't believe I've never warned you about hide and seek with those two. They both picked up their mother's power, obviously. I'm embarrassed to tell you how many times I've lost them at the park. Never her, though. I think the power has more to it than just changing appearance, honestly. Maybe that's why they seem so smart already." Remus had always had that theory about Dora, further evidenced by the children they produced together. It was completely unfounded otherwise, not in any book or text he read on Metamorphmagi, but he just knew there was a special, deeper magic to them.
Talking about his kids was distracting in the best way, but Remus wasn't the kind of person who could stay distracted for more than a few minutes. His mind was always jumping from one thing to the next. And now, he was thinking about Gabriel. He drank Mali's words down like cool water; he had little hope for himself, so whatever she said, he made himself believe. She could be just as right as she could be wrong, right? Remus needed to think about Gabriel and to think that something so lovely might be willing to wait for him beyond these prison walls. "I suppose," he agreed vaguely, wondering if he could ever even have the heart to be suspicious of Gabriel. Wasn't that why he chose not to tell the man in the first place? He didn't even want to invite the possibility that one day he might not be able to trust this wonderful man - and he did it, without once realizing he was putting that exact burden on Gabriel. "I just can't lose him, I can't," Remus shook his head. When Mali laughed, Remus looked up in confusion. He listened to her, and she knew he was right, but Remus felt sick worrying about himself. It made him feel better to worry about other people. He blew out a long breath, trying to bring himself back to center. "I knew you'd fall for him eventually," he murmured, barely audible, a bit of his old cheekiness shining through.
That was pleasant, for a very brief moment. And then Remus had to hold onto Mali like an anchor because he felt like he was being dissolved into the very walls of Azkaban, his terror becoming yet another haunting of the prison. He looked right at her, not daring take his eyes off hers for fear he would spiral. He nodded at her words. He could do it. He had to do it, for his kids, because they lost their mom and he'd promised them they wouldn't lose their dad, too. Remus refused to die. He would look Death in the face and spit if he had to. The imagery was emboldening. He sat up in his chair a bit, squeezing Mali's hand and still nodding. "It's going to be fine. It's nothing that hasn't happened before." He was very obviously trying to convince himself more than Mali, though he was still looking at her. "I will probably hurt myself, if it does happen...do you think you can help with that?" Making plans always made him feel better, too. That's why he was here in the first place. He and his friends, making plans for a fight against the end of the world.
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