My apologies for the delay on getting this chapter out - I had some terrible writer's block and accidentally re-kindled my love for Game of Thrones fanfics. But I'm back!

A huge thanks to mmauney12 for their review on the last chapter, getting the notification someone has reviewed is the best feeling after I post and I appreciate your continued support! Originally, this chapter was going to skip over Messalina's side of things but I revamped this chapter just for you! I hope you like it!

And to the other 193 of you that read the last chapter - please review! Getting feedback means much faster chapters and I always take any suggestions into consideration.

Previously on Above All Others: Messalina headed off to the Come and Go Room with Remus to get enough firewhisky to get all of Gryffindor House drunk for Sirius' birthday. She makes a move on Remus after he shows her the Marauder's Map only to have Remus reject her.

Mortified. Humiliated. Embarrassed. All words that could describe how Messalina felt as she fled the Come and Go Room, her face redder than it had ever been and her heart in her throat. She had been so sure that she had been picking up signals from Remus that he was interested and had assumed he was too shy to ever make a move first. How wrong she had been. He had flinched away from her advances, nearly as white as Nearly Headless Nick, a look of horror on his face at the idea of kissing her. After he had sprung away from her, he had looked anywhere but at her, his eyes fixating on a spot somewhere above her head as she was barely able to muster an apology, the words sticking in her throat as she tried desperately to remain somewhat composed.

The walk, perhaps more aptly referred to as a sprint, back to the Common Room was a blur. She focused on little else than trying her hardest not to cry lest anyone ask her any questions about the cause. If she was on the brink of tears now, having to tell someone she had been soundly rejected by a boy she rather liked would have the waterworks appearing in seconds.

Messalina wondered if she had ever been so wrong in her life to have assumed Remus was as interested in her as she was in him and briefly considered writing the twins to tell them she was an awful judge of character. There was no way on earth she could handpick people for an anti-Death Eater group if she couldn't detect when a boy was interested, or in this case very much not interested, in pursuing anything with her.

She burst into the Common Room seemingly only seconds after leaving Remus behind, her ragged breathing leaving her chest aching and the stitch in her side burning. Messalina was fairly confident that if she was not able to deliver the promised goods within the next few minutes she would have to forfeit the mission to keep from bawling in front of the entire assembled House.

Thankfully, the rest of the seventh years were lounging in plain view around the fireplace talking about Merlin knew what and seemed to be in a generally good mood. Lily looked confused by whatever turn of events landed her between Potter and Peter and she looked up at Messalina with relief as she approached. The smile faltered as Messalina neared, the scowl on her face likely enough to sour anyone's mood. Trying to put on a somewhat pleasant face so none of the others would notice what Lily had and ask her any questions, Messalina was able to muster something between a frown and a grimace. It was not her best work.

"How'd it go?" Lily asked, her eyebrows furrowed and lips pressed firmly together.

"I got what you asked for," Messalina told Black directly, emptying her pockets onto a spare spot on the couch and ignoring Lily's pointed question. Focusing solely at one of her least favorite people in the school was doing wonders for her ability to stay composed. She was fairly certain she'd rather face the Dementor's Kiss than cry in front of Sirius Black after all.

"Where's Remus?" Merlin curse Peter Pettigrew, she thought darkly in response to his ill-timed question and she could do nothing but shrug.

"He took another way back. I don't feel well, I'm going to take a nap," she replied abruptly, turning on her heel and marching off in the direction of the staircase. It was certainly the rudest she had been in a long time, but she could not find it in herself to care. If they wanted to know so terribly what had gone on in their search for firewhisky, they could ask Remus for all she cared. Had he been someone else, she might have feared he would make a joke of the whole thing, but Remus was too good for such a thing. He would be honorable to the last, or at least she believed so, but she had failed to pick up on signs from him before.

She ignored the soft sounds of what were surely Lily's footsteps her up the staircase, knowing if she was to face the other girl prematurely, she might burst into angry tears right there for all the Gryffindor girls to see. Messalina thanked whoever built the school for putting charms to prevent boys from making their way up the girls' staircases - she would not have felt near as comfortable if there was a remote possibility of one of the Marauders chasing after her, eager to hear about what had happened. She was not so grateful that they positioned every dorm in the order of its occupants year, meaning she had to make her way to the very top of the staircase to find her sanctuary and delay her feelings.

Throwing the door to her dormitory open with as much force as she could muster, Messalina stormed over to her bed and threw herself on it. She glared up at the scarlet curtains that hung over and around her bed, tears pricking at the corners of her eyes and her throat closing.

"Are you okay, Lina?" Lily's voice was soft and gentle, not unlike how one might try to avoid spooking an animal in Care of Magical Creatures. The door creaked as Lily closed it behind her, the sounds of the merriment and excitement from the preparations for Black's party shut out. When the end of the bed near her feet dipped down and the covers rustled, Messalina flicked her eyes from the ceiling to her friend. "What happened?"

Having told herself she would brush off any questions about the events of the last two hours, Messalina opened her mouth to say just that she thought she had something bad and might vomit. But the look of concern on Lily's face made the words stall in her throat and instead she found herself telling Lily everything, conveniently leaving out exactly where it had happened and what they had been looking at when Remus had leapt away from her advances as though they had physically harmed him. By the end of it, she could no longer look at Lily, the embarrassment forcing her to avert her eyes and stare down at her hands as though they were the most fascinating thing in the wizarding world.

"I ought to have actually kept to my decision to swear off boys," Messalina finished her story miserably, rolling over and groaning into her pillow. She was surprised she had been able to make it through without sobbing but the effort to hold it together had exhausted her. "This is karma, I broke a promise to myself and now I have to pay. I'm such an idiot."

"Don't be ridiculous." Lily's stern voice was enough to make Messalina lift her head from the pillow and look at her friend in surprise. "We all thought there was something between the two of you. And you promised to be done with arrogant toerags - it might be karma if you'd tried to snog Black. But Remus isn't like that, he must have a reason for what happened."

"Yeah, his reason is that he doesn't like me." Messalina grumbled, throwing an arm over her eyes and sighing. Remus not reciprocating her feelings stung more than she wanted to admit - it certainly felt much more real compared to when Benjy Fenwick had broken up with her in fifth year. But she hadn't expected it to feel remotely the same. Benjy Fenwick had been a passing fancy, a relationship born more from the desire to fit in with her friends who were also dating rather than genuine feelings. But Remus Lupin was more than that.

She liked him. She liked the way he always seemed so attuned to her emotions and knew what to say and do. She liked the way his green eyes, so brilliant and bright with their gold flecks, fixed on her when she spoke. She liked the way his smile lit up his face and softened his features. She liked his cleverness, not as obnoxious as his friends, but deeper somehow and more meaningful. She liked how he could keep up with her in conversation about coursework without it feeling as though he was trying to make himself seem smarter than her. She liked the way she felt when they spent time together and almost longed for their encounters never to end. She had thought he felt the same way about her. But she had been so wrong and had lost a friend. Even if he didn't hold it against her in their friendship, she couldn't bear to be so close to him knowing he would never feel as she did. The embarassment alone would kill her, let alone having to face whatever emotion made her feel like her chest was caving in.

"I don't think so," Lily said cautiously and Messalina removed her arm from her eyes long enough to glare at the girl. "Don't give me that stink eye, Lina! I think it's far more likely that he has some other reason than not liking you back. I saw how he was looking at you on the platform - blushing and smiling. I've never known him to look at anyone like that."

"You never told me that before." Messalina tried to contain the bolt of hope that slashed through her chest briefly but it seemed to have a mind of its own.

"I was going to keep it a secret, but I can't handle seeing you like this."

"That was ages ago, he probably thought I was decent looking. And then we became friends and he realized I wasn't who he thought I was," Messalina mumbled. The hope that briefly reared its head dissipated at the idea and she scowled up at the ceiling. Below them, cheers arose as music began to blast from the Wizarding Wireless Network - a sure sign that Black's party had begun. "You should go downstairs, Lily. I think I'm determined to be upset tonight and I don't want to drag you down with me."

"Lina-"

"Go have some fun, don't think I haven't noticed how you look at James Potter," Messalina teased, ignoring the stab of jealousy at the idea of reciprocated adoration. Lily blushed spectacularly, immediately averting her eyes from Messalina's to stare at the photos of the Prewett-Weasley clan that had been stuck against the wall.

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"You don't need to lie, Lily," Messalina said softly, sitting up and putting her hand on Lily's arm. "I don't think anyone is going to try to put you in St. Mungo's for saying James Potter isn't as bad of a guy as we'd thought."

"Acting different for two months doesn't mean he's changed." Lily's voice was stiff and Messalina didn't object, instead she gave Lily's arm a tight squeeze.

"Lily-" Whatever she had been going to say next was lost as the sound of glass breaking from somewhere down below disturbed the relative quiet of their room and Lily flinched.

"See? They can't even have a party for five minutes without someone breaking something - they're wore than those dumb the wild animals they've nicknamed themselves after."

"Why don't you go all mother bear on them? Maybe they need someone to look out for them."

"I'm supposed to look out for you, Lina. Not the Marauders," Lily said pointedly, giving Messalina a stern look.

"I'll be fine, Lily. One day we'll laugh about this," Messalina lied, hoping that there was more truth in her statement than she anticipated. The weight on her chest seemed unbearable and she offered Lily a weak smile. "Go keep an eye on them."

As though the Gryffindors at the party below heard her, another crash came and Lily threw her head back with a groan. Messalina chuckled as her friend glared at the door.

"Promise me you'll let me know if you need me?" The sincerity in Lily's voice made Messalina feel slightly guilty as she nodded, knowing full well there was no chance she would be showing her face in public for as long as possible. Could she pass her N.E.W.T.s without ever going to class again? Would the house elves deliver food to her bedside? "Lina, I love you. And if Remus doesn't see how perfect you are, he's an even bigger fool than his friends."

"Thanks, Lils. I love you too." Lily leaned forward, enveloping Messalina in a tight hug that made her wonder if Lily was intentionally trying to break her ribs. Lily offered her a sympathetic smile as she stood and crossed the room and Messalina collapsed back against her pillows the second Lily crossed the threshold.

Glaring up at the scarlet curtains hanging over her bed, Messalina resisted the urge to scream. Music was filtering in through the closed door, something about hippogriffs finding love, and she groaned. The song had been on heavy repeat at the last party before the twins graduated the previous year and she longed for them. Lily was so kind and dedicated, a far better friend than Messalina believed she deserved, but the twins would know exactly what to say. They always knew what to do.

Groaning, Messalina reached out and jerked the curtains around her bed closed. Casting a quick silencing spell to ward off the music, she scowled at the top of her bed and wished she could go back a couple hours to tell herself not to fall for Marlene's trick. Sorry Lily, but she'd rather have had the girls night she was promised and have Lily not interact with Potter than be laying in bed by herself with her heart ripped out. This is what she gets for deviating from her plan to focus on being an Auror. For being stupid.

A few tears ran down the corners of her eyes at the thought and Messalina wiped them away furiously. She was a fool for thinking romance was a good idea at a time like this. Fabian and Gideon asked her to try to recruit people to stop You-Know-Who and a week later she thought it was a good idea to try to pursue something. She sighed deeply and rolled her eyes. Would she ever stop feeling like a foolish little girl?

She asked herself that same question every few moments for the rest of the weekend, avoiding her friends' questions and sympathetic looks, sneaking though the halls to the kitchens, and studying at her desk rather than in the Common Room. There would be no facing Remus when she still felt so raw, at least not until she had to. And as she sat at her desk in DADA, yawning from waking up early enough to slink down to the classroom unseen, she stabbed at the wood desk with the tip of her quill at the thought of Remus entering the classroom soon. Her stomach roiled at the idea of having to walk to Herbology with Lily, Peter, and Remus afterwards. If it wasn't for her dedication to getting the N.E.W.T.s she needed, she would have seriously considered skipping or pretending to be ill enough to go to the Hospital Wing. If only she was as cavalier about her education as Potter and Black. Her life would certainly be a lot easier.

"What's got you in such a mood?" Graham Pucey's voice drew her from her thoughts and she turned to look at her partner. He appeared to be a good mood judging by the smirk on his face and the twinkle in his eyes. It wasn't hard to see why half of the girls in the school fawned over him. Had Remus not been in the picture, Messalina likely would've been a secret admirer herself.

"Nothing," she grumbled back, stabbing her quill into the desk once again.

"I didn't know you'd nicknamed Lupin 'Nothing'," Graham muttered, flicking his eyes towards the back of the room where if the voices were any indication, the Marauders had just arrived with Lily and Marlene.

"I don't know what you're talking about and I am going to ignore you now," Messalina replied, cursing Vector for putting everyone in seats according to their placement and pairing in the class. She and Pucey were in the very front row, closest to Vector's desk and the demonstration space, as the top pupils and Snape and Remus were assigned the desk right behind them. Snape was notably absent, he liked to walk into class at the very last minute, likely to avoid having to associate with Remus for longer than strictly necessary.

"You can't fool me, love," Graham replied, giving Messalina one last smile before sitting back in his seat and looking to the front of the room, clearly all too pleased with himself.

"Your deduction skills aren't nearly as good as you think they are," Messalina hissed at him, all too aware Remus would be approaching within a few seconds. "It doesn't count when the person you're profiling has already told you the information you're pretending to have gleaned yourself."

Graham looked at her in mock outrage and Messalina rolled her eyes, turning to face the ancient desk set up at the front of the room as the chair behind her was pulled out and someone sat down. It didn't take a trained Auror to know it was Remus taking his place directly behind her.

"What do you think we're up to today?" Graham asked, jerking his head in the direction of the desk.

"Knowing Vector, something the Ministry would probably prefer we didn't."

"I'm thinking boggarts, I heard they were on the practical last year."

"Bold to think Vector teaches us based on the exam," Messalina replied, thinking back to his lesson on Dark creatures a few weeks before that could be described as more of skimming over than an in-depth lecture despite it being a likely area for the exams. He hadn't even covered werewolves after all and Messalina made a mental note to go to the library while everyone else was at dinner to see if she could get some review material on werewolves as a refresher.

"BOGGARTS!" The door to Vector's office was thrown open with more force than expected and Messalina turned her attention upwards to see the old man hobbling down the stairs. Had she not been aware of who he was, she would've worried about seeing a man of his age heading down such a treacherous set of stairs. "I've reviewed the materials your so called 'DADA professors' left behind and seen they have avoided exposing you to boggarts. Probably too afraid of seeing their own fears staring back at them - idiots. If you're to go out there into the real world where Dumbledore can't save you, you need to know how to get over your fears! Lupin!"

Messalina almost turned to face Remus when his name was unexpectedly shouted, but her self-preservation kicked in at almost the last minute and she stared resolutely ahead. Vector had made it to the main level and was leaning heavily on his cane, staring at a spot just above her head.

"Sir?"

"What's the charm against a boggart?"

"Riddikulus, sir," Remus' voice came from directly behind her and Messalina swallowed heavily.

"Good, Lupin. Boggarts like dark, confined spaces so it shouldn't be hard to imagine one in this desk," Vector explained, tapping at the ancient, almost crumbling desk in front of him. "Now, you should have all learned the incantation and wand movement in the assigned reading from last week. And if you haven't - I will know about your ineptitude when it is your turn to face it!"

"Something tells me Pettigrew isn't too happy right now," Pucey murmured out of the side of his mouth and Messalina chanced a glance to the side to see Peter had turned a dark shade of red. Serves him right for being such a prat on Friday night, Messalina thought, turning her head back to the front.

"Lupin get up here! You seem knowledgeable enough about it, you'll open this drawer when I tell you to and get out of the way of it. The rest of you - get in a line in the middle of the room this instant!" The class scrambled to do as it was told and Messalina was too lost in her own thoughts about why on earth it was Lupin that was selected for the special job that she did not realize her classmates were not nearly as eager to show off to Vector what they knew. As a result, she stood in the front of the line with the rest of the students at least five feet behind her. Even Pucey, ever so vigilant and willing to prove himself, was nowhere to be seen. Sometimes she was surprised she hadn't been put into Slytherin after all. If blind ambition was the only qualifier for that House, she would have been a great fit.

Vector hobbled over to the side of the room, evidently prepared to intervene if necessary but looking severely over the rest of the line. "Lupin, when Lucien says she's ready, open it."

Resisting the urge to scowl at Vector for forcing her to interact with Remus, Messalina squared her shoulders and looked towards Remus for the first time in almost two days. He looked exhausted, his robes more untidy than usual and his hair bedraggled. Concern was clear on his face as he looked between Vector, Messalina, and the rest of the class quickly.

Before she could lose her confidence in the face of the embarrassment she had suffered, Messalina nodded to Remus. "I'm ready."

It was almost as though time had stopped as Remus pulled open the drawer in slow motion. Her breath hitched in her throat as a familiar hand appeared on the edge of the wood, its manicured fingers gripping the side so tightly the knuckles turned white. Ever so slowly, a figure emerged from the drawer. Its body was contorted as it made its way out of such a tight, cramped spot and several seconds had gone by before it stepped onto the smooth floor of the room and stood to its full height.

Messalina stared at it, her heart beating so fast she thought it might explode. She could hear nothing but her heartbeat, each pulse point in her body practically vibrating with the force. The figure walked slowly ("Don't you ever run in this house, Messalina!") and elegantly ("Next time you slouch in polite company, you won't like what happens!") towards her and Messalina swallowed the remains of whatever saliva was in her mouth.

Had it not been for the robes, Messalina might have thought she was looking in a mirror at a distance. The other Messalina, the girl she was born to be, stared back at her coolly, her eyes vacant of any emotion but disdain and disgust. Her hair was sleek and shining with what was probably several galleons worth of haircare. Her mouth was screwed up in revulsion as she stared at the real Messalina. The other was adorned in emeralds and silver - jewelry Messalina had not worn since her Sorting. The other's eyes raked over the scar on her right side by her jaw from when a fanged geranium chomped on her in fifth year Herbology.

Messalina wondered faintly if she was going to pass out from lack of blood to her brain. She could do nothing but gape at the Slytherin version of herself, the person she would have been if the Sorting Hat had made another decision. A pureblood with rage against people raised in a different world for no reason. Someone she was certain she would have become. There was no doubt in her mind this would have been her future if she had been a Slytherin. A future Death Eater if Antonin was any indication of her future. She wouldn't be surprised if the boggart lifted its robes to show the Dark Mark etched into its forearm.

The other Messalina opened its mouth to say something and the movement was enough to separate Messalina from her shock. Exhaling a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, Messalina raised her wand slowly. She was stunned her hand and arm weren't shaking and thanked Merlin the house elves had given her a stout breakfast.

"Riddikulus," she all but shouted, her voice shaking but strong enough to do what she wanted it to. The other Messalina reeled backwards, tripping on the edge of the robes and falling onto its back ungracefully. Messalina took a few steps backward herself, keeping an eye on the boggart until Jenny Connors stepped forward and it transformed into a gigantic spider.

Turning on her heel, Messalina strode quickly to the back of the room trying as hard as she could not to appear shaken. That version of herself was a fear she had not shared with anyone, knowing they would rationalize it away by saying she was who she was and that was why she was in Gryffindor. But Messalina knew that wasn't true. It would have been so easy to fall into the dream her family had for her. Only a few different choices and that would have been her.

If she hadn't begged her parents to let her go to Hogwarts or if the Healers had said she ought not to go. If her scrofungulus had chosen to act up one more time before she left for Hogwarts. If she had been bolder and more willing to challenge the Sorting Hat while it was still on her head. If the Sorting Hat had allowed her to do what she had always wanted as an eleven year old - follow in the footsteps of her family. Be a great Lucien. Make the Dolohov line proud. Marry Evan Rosier or some other perfect match and have perfect blonde pureblood babies to further their sacred bloodlines. Spend copious amounts of money from one of the largest Gringotts accounts. Support the Death Eaters. Watch as her husband left in the night to terrorize Muggles. Hate Lily. Despise the Prewetts for being blood traitors. Want to kill-

"Lina, are you okay?" Lily's timid voice broke her from her internal monologue and Messalina jerked around face her dorm mates' concerned faces. There were a few stray tears on her cheeks and Messalina raced to wipe them away with the back of her hand before any of the other students noticed. Her throat felt choked and she cleared it roughly, hoping she was the only one who noticed the state she was in. It seemed she had not succeeded as Marlene had gone quiet pale, her dark hair looking almost black in contrast. Lily was staring at Messalina, her eyebrows furrowed and her green eyes questioning.

"I'm fine. Glad to have that over with," Messalina replied softly, the confidence she had exhibited in front of the boggart only a few moments before having left her feeling weak and peaky. She wished her bag was with her rather than sitting in the front of the room by the boggart - she felt rather in need of a good hunk of Honeyduke's chocolate - but there was not a chance she would be going to get her bag until that thing was banished. Even if she knew one bite of chocolate would make her feel better as Gwen Prewett always espoused.

"We thought Remus was going to intervene," Lily confided quietly as Messalina joined them. "He looked like he was in pain."

"It's not fun to be in front of it. I imagine its not much fun watching either," Messalina countered, feeling too unsteady to argue any more. She moved to the back of the classroom without another word, leaning against a wall and staring over the grounds. She had no interest in watching the other students combat their worst fears. Numbness seemed to have settled over her as she gazed at the Whomping Willow, watching its limbs stretching and flexing in the wind.

Vector had accomplished what he had set out to do. She had faced her worst fear and come out on the other side. But she didn't feel empowered or grateful for the experience. Instead, it would be a minor miracle if she did not throw up the contents of her stomach on the floor of the classroom. She had broken out into a cold sweat when she was facing the boggart and even now beads of sweat were running down her back and Messalina knew the icy cold sensation was exactly what it would feel like if the boggart had touched her. Despite the sun coming in through the window, Messalina felt as though she was in the dungeons shivering and wrapped an arm around herself to ward off the feeling of being utterly alone despite the shouts and gasps behind her.

"Lina?" Lily's voice was in her ear what felt like a moment later, but when Messalina turned to face her, the classroom was empty aside from Lily, Remus, and Peter. Lily was holding Messalina's bag in her hand, a strained smile on her face. Peter looked equally concerned, if not also ashamed of how he had acted over the weekend judging by how he refused to meet Messalina's eyes. Remus seemed to have gotten over whatever visceral reaction had to her presence as he looked her over, a frown etched onto his scarred face. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. Let's go to Herbology," Messalina mumbled, tearing her eyes away from Remus. She accepted her bag from Lily, scowling when the girl offered her a signature 'we will be talking about this later and there is no way you will talk me out of it' look. The boys trailed behind them and Messalina wondered if there would ever be a time when she didn't feel awkward around Remus. When she didn't wish she had a time turner so she could go back and save whatever friendship they had had. It certainly seemed unlikely given that she wanted nothing more than to get a time turner to stop herself from being so stupid.

"Lina, could I talk to you for a second?" Remus' voice was gentle, not at all unlike what Lily had sounded like when she tried not to spook her two days before. Messalina wondered if it was all in her head briefly, though the pointed look on Lily's face told her all she needed to know. No matter how much she wanted to say no, Messalina found herself looking over her shoulder at Remus and nodding. He was at looking at her straight on now, his green eyes boring into her and making her feel as though he could see right through her. She wondered if he could sense how upset she was.

At her nod, Lily grabbed Peter's arm and practically dragged him down the corridor with more strength than Messalina knew she had. She smiled faintly as she listened to Peter's objections that he was grown and could walk by himself, thank you very much. When Lily and Peter turned the corner and were out of sight, Messalina turned to face Remus once again with a sigh.

"How are you?" Remus asked, grimacing as soon as the question left his mouth and shaking his head. "Sorry, I'm sure you've...I just mean are you okay after what happened in there? Vector should've warned us beforehand what was going on."

"I'll be okay, Remus," Messalina replied softly, averting her eyes so she didn't have to see the concern in his own. She could only take so much heartache in one day. "It wasn't anything I didn't expect when I went up there."

"I know you don't think so, but you're one of the bravest people I've ever met."

"I think you mean stupidest, Remus."

"I know what I mean." The strength in his voice took her by surprise and she lifted her eyes from the tile to look at him. He had taken a step towards her, looking as though he had made his mind up about something.

"Look, Remus, I'm so so sorry about Saturday. I really thought-" She began, the words sticking in her throat before coming out in a stream of consciousness. "It doesn't matter what I thought, I'm just so sorry..."

"Lina, you don't have to be sorry. I'm the one that should be apologizing. I should've explained what happened instead of letting you leave, I feel a right prat at the moment," Remus explained, stepping closer slightly before taking a larger step back and taking a deep breath to steady himself.

"No, I shouldn't have-" Messalina started, but Remus interrupted her before she could even figure out what she had opened her mouth to say. She shouldn't have what? Tried to kiss her friend when they were having the definition of a friendly time. Listened to her friends' insistence that she and Remus should date. Taken him to the Come and Go Room knowing she wanted to be more than friends.

"Lina, in another life, under different circumstances, I would have asked you out years ago. But I'm really just trying to focus on school. And I know I've sent mixed signals and...I'm just really sorry," Remus finished lamely, averting his eyes and staring at his shoes. He had turned quite an impressive shade of red and Messalina had to kick herself internally for noting how adorable he looked when he was flustered.

"It's fine, Remus. It really is, I promise," she assured him, wondering halfheartedly if they were going to make it to Herbology on time and asking herself why she even thought that mattered anymore. "Please, can we just forget it and be friends?"

"I would like that," Remus replied, offering her a small smile that she was quick to return.

"Good, I was worried you wouldn't want anything to do with me," Messalina admitted.

"That could never be true."

"Good."

"Walk with me to Herbology?" Remus asked, a hopeful grin on his face that made Messalina laugh. It felt nice to not be in such an awkward state and to have worked things out, even if the answers weren't the ones she had wanted to hear. What did 'in another life, in different circumstances' mean? Maybe the twins were right and he was sick or something. She'd have to keep an eye on that if she wanted to decipher what he was talking about.