The Hardest Thing You'll Ever Learn

a/n: I haven't uploaded any of the stories I've written in ages. They're all on my old account. Which I left in the end. I've been reading and reading for a long time and I've finally settled on a storyline that I'm happy with. It's not a masterpiece, but I don't intend it to be. It's based on my life. So… Don't be tooooo judgemental. enjoy, my lovelys. Olivia.

Edited. Chapter One is essentially an Intro

The chapters following this will not be written in the style that this chapter is written in.

Summary:

Remus rarely loses his temper but when he does, he loses it with Eliza. The bickering, laughing, whining and flirting is obvious to all but the two of them, often leaving them confused and hurt. The hardest thing that they will ever learn is just to love, and to be loved in return.

(bad summary) JPxLE SBxOC RLxOC LMxOC MMxOC

Chapter 1

Shuddering and gasping, he paused in the shadow of an oak tree, trying and failing to catch his breath. His nose twitched as scent upon scent caught his attention, a scintillating array of animals.

Which to chase?

The blood across his muzzle smelt sweet and metallic and his nose twitched as he tried again to catch the scent of the next worthless animal which would fall prey to him.

The moon was falling silvery through the trees, but the darkness reigned supreme. The leaves and mud and trees merged together in varying degrees of total blackness.

Semi-blind he relied on his senses to get him by. The sounds of life sounded all around him; the rustles and shuffling of those who don't want to be heard.

His ears pricked. The low thudding beat of a heart was pulsing nearby.

As silently as he could, he skulked through the trees, senses on high alert. Emotionless, the beast moved forwards and as he did so he caught sight of a human; a defenceless human, standing in the clearing, moving towards the trees opposite him. A low sound rumbled through him like a throaty chuckle, but as the human walked into the darkness the low sound became a growl and he padded forwards. The moonlight through the trees glistened on his fur, its blueish glow lingering on his fur. He moved forwards silently, following the human into the darkness. His sharp eye sight picked it out again immediately and he followed it at a distance, waiting for his chance to strike.

Suddenly, the human stopped. It had bent down to its feet. He didn't know or care what it might be doing. His time had come.

With an almighty growl he leapt forwards, stalking around the girl as he spat and hissed and moved closer and closer, even though as he did so he felt a wrench of some feeling in his gut. He didn't know what it was, that wrench of feeling that twisted like a knife in his stomach, but nevertheless, his senses overrode it and he pounced.

The human lay on the floor now. He saw a glimmer of something in its shining eyes.

Was it fear? He hoped it was fear.

It had pulled out a stick and was saying something.

Repeating a word over and over again.

The same word.

The word made his hair stand on end, although he didn't understand it. He howled. It had put its stick away. Stupid creature.

He moved forwards so that he stood over it, his breath blowing into its face, making its hair shuffle back and forth.

He paused. That wrench in his stomach again. It was as if…

Then it said the word again.

With an echoing snarl of frustration, he swiped his gnarled paw at the human. He saw its blood on his claws, and felt satisfaction. He swung again and again.

Its face was covered in thick red blood, now, and the smell of it pulsed through him, his heart rate quickening as he moaned and opened his jaws wide.

He licked at the blood, digging his claws deeper and deeper as the pleasure flooded him. He sat back on his haunches and howled.

With a thirsty grunt he swung forwards again, lunging in for the kill but there was a sudden cracking noise.

It was loud.

It startled him.

The human was gone.

Gone.

Fury flooded him.

But suddenly, he caught the scent of blood. Animal blood… Deer perhaps? With a snarl, he turned and charged off through the undergrowth, leaving nothing behind him.

Nothing but blood soaked ground and the human's cloak.

Meanwhile.

A girl staggered as she apparated to the steps of St Mungo's. A nurse standing outside having a cigarette gasped and came charging down the steps towards her. The girl collapsed into the nurse's arms, blood seeping from her. The nurse began to shout for help; a man rushed up and together the nurse and the man carried the girl into the hospital. More nurses rushed over with a stretcher.

The nurse shouted orders as the girl was levitated to the emergency room.

Loss of blood.

Broken bones.

Skelegrow.

Animal attack.

Permanent scarring.

Contact her family.

Who is this girl?

Does anyone know this girl?

But the girl's face is so torn it is unrecognisable and her body is quickly shutting down. One of the nurses shakes her head. Another bites his lip. The air is full of tension, as internally the nurses and healers seem to be giving up.

Is there anything they can do?

She is so nearly gone.

There is a bang as the head healer runs in, with bottles and cloths, and as he waves his wand the wounds begin to close. He dabs at her injuries with cloths dowsed in the liquid from the bottles and indicates the nurses to do the same.

The nurses look confused, but comply with his orders.

He waves away their questions; barking out instructions, requests for materials.

It is chaos, as healers charge around the room, mending her, fixing her, sewing her back together.

As her face reforms, the head healer sighs.

"This was no animal attack." He slumps into a chair next to her and buries his head in his hands.

"Check her for bites."

A month later

Remus groaned as he came around. His mother pressed a compress to his head and smiled down at him, sadness etched into her face and echoing in her deep blue eyes. The white ceiling above hims is grubby, the dingy air of the basement clammy on his aching skin.

"It wasn't so bad this time, Remus."

He jolts at the sound of his mother's voice and in the heavy silence.

He takes a peek at his body. It seems that his mother's right. The criss-cross of wounds doesn't seem very new or deep.

Not that many new scars today.

He lies in silence for a minute, his eyes closed, every inch of him racked with pain. His lip is split and he licks at it, sighing. He tries to think back to last night. What happened? As per usual, he remembers nothing amazing, just blurs and rushes of smell and sound. Same as always, same as last month, same as every time he is at home, all he can remember is the look of the trees.

The taste of the blood.

He shudders and looks up at his mother, "Well, that's something at least, eh?" He smiles his crooked smile at his mother, and her face relaxes a little, "Not many new scars."

"Does it hurt an awful lot, honey?" She murmurs as he flinches under her light touch.

Remus shakes his head and grasps her hand, "Thank you."

"It's never a problem." She places the compress on the table next to him and clutches his hand. She turns to his father, who lies sleeping in an armchair next to them, his head lolling on his chest. "He wants to say goodbye. He won't be home tonight, so he won't see you before the Express leaves."

Remus nods, and leans over to prod his dad. "Oi, sleepy."

His dad jerks awake and when he sees that Remus is awake he grins, albeit a sad and haunted grin.

"How goes it?" His dad moves to stand by the bed and hold his hand, "Was it a bad one?"

"Not so bad. I must've found something to hunt." Remus avoids his Dad's eye. He hates to talk about it so casually, as if it is totally normal.

His Dad laughs lightly. "Some defenceless rabbit I hope?"

Remus shrugs and stares at the floor, "I never remember, you know that."