Lupin's True Love

September 1, 1973

James shoved his trunk onto the trolley that Thomas had rolled over to them. Veronica was trying to contain the giggles that seemed to bubble up every time she looked at the color-changing boy. Evelyn just smiled as she rummaged through her bag trying to keep from laughing at her son. Sirius appeared next to him and it made it next to impossible to keep from laughing.

"Mom's still mad about the incident at the camping trip." Sirius put his trunk on a third trolley and pushed it along side James's.

Veronica flipped her hair over her shoulder as she shoved her trolley past the boys. "I wonder why." Her eyes flitted over Sirius and watched him switch from black to neon purple.

"Gee, I wonder." Sirius turned to look at James. "We've got to get back at her for this one."

"The question is... how?" James watched as Veronica hugged Lily before walking over to the train. "We'd better come up with a plan before we get to the castle."

"I do have a small idea but I'll tell you later when the girls aren't around." Sirius smiled as they approached the giggling girls. "Morning, ladies."

"Heavens. Hasn't that potion worn off yet?" Patricia approached the small group.

"Not yet." Veronica smiled broadly. "James has tried everything that Mom has in her bathroom to try and make it stop but nothing's worked yet."

"That's because Mom won't give me the antidote." James glared at Veronica while as she and Lily lifted their trunks onto the train. I swear I'm going to get even with them for this. He cocked his head to the side. Did Evans get a little curvy since I last saw her? He shook his head.

"That's not the point." Patricia jabbed her finger into James's chest. "You shouldn't have been flirting with those girls at the beach when you had plenty of girls in camp."

Sirius rolled his eyes. "It's not like you girls weren't flirting with those boys."

"We most certainly were not! You'd better get your facts straight, Black!" Emma whirled around on her heel and shoved her trunk onto the train. "If you don't mind, I think I'm going to sit with someone else today."

Sirius watched Emma flounce up the steps of the train before turning to face James. "What did I say?"

"You pretty much told her that you aren't interested in her." Jessica folded her arms across her chest. "And I don't blame her for being mad. I still don't understand what she sees in you." She turned to Veronica and Lily. "If you want me, I'm sitting with Emma." She quickly followed Emma onto the train, completely ignoring the fact that Peter had just joined them.

Peter looked around the group, his face slowly changing colors. "What did you guys say to Jessica?"

"Nothing." James rolled his eyes. "Sirius and I just made a simple observation and she and Emma went off in a huff." He shook his head slightly. "These girls are starting to take things out of context a bit too much."

"Well. You won't have to worry about me taking things out of context because I'm going to join them." Lily turned to Veronica. "Are you coming?"

"No. I'm going to make their train ride miserable." Veronica's eyes narrowed slightly causing James to shiver slightly in fear.

James turned to Sirius and Peter and swallowed hard as Lily climbed onto the train. "We're going to die."

"Maybe we can get Remus to keep her busy the whole trip." Sirius kept sneaking glances at Veronica and shivering.

Remus walked over as Veronica climbed onto the train. "What's going on?"

"Nothing. Just James and Sirius putting their big feet into their mouths again." Veronica grabbed the handle of her trunk and started to pull it down the corridor.

Remus turned to James, Sirius, and Peter. "Why is it I can't leave you with any of the girls for two seconds without you three getting all of us in trouble with them?" He tapped his foot slightly. "So what did you say to her?"

"Not a bloody thing. We just said that they shouldn't have flirted with the guys at the beach." Sirius shoved his trunk onto the train. "They just took it the wrong way."

"Took it the wrong way?" Remus shook his head before he loaded his trunk onto the train. "Don't you realize that they are going to make all our lives miserable for the next, say, three weeks?" He followed Veronica down the corridor.

Severus was standing, unnoticed, nearby and had heard the ranting Veronica and the other girls had done. He smiled as he loaded his trunk onto the train and hurried to an empty compartment. Bellatrix had also overheard everything. She smirked as she followed Severus into his compartment. Veronica was fuming in a compartment a train car away that she had saved for the boys. Remus found her staring out at the emptying platform and mumbling under her breath.

"Stupid idiots. Can't even agree with us this one time." Veronica kicked the wall under the window.

"Now what did that wall do to you?" Remus wrapped his arms around her.

"Morning." Veronica pulled herself out of his arms.

"Hey, I don't agree with them. They need to get their acts together before you girls kill them over something stupid like this again." Remus turned Veronica around to face him as Sirius and James pulled their trunks into the compartment.

"Hey! You're supposed to be on our side." Sirius slammed his trunk into the overhead compartment and flopped into one of the seats. "After all she started it."

"No I didn't. You guys were the ones that were flirting with the girls and making us upset. We just retaliated." Veronica glared at the two cowering boys for a minute. "You should know better but obviously, you don't."

Remus watched helplessly as Veronica flounced out of the room. He turned to his friends. "I see the foot-in-mouth syndrome is back."

"It's not our fault that she's so sensitive about everything." James flopped into one of the seats.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Veronica wandered the corridor of the train smiling to the new students and to the ones that she knew. Severus watched her pass his compartment. Bellatrix saw the look of longing on his face.

"So you want the Mudblood for yourself, don't you?" Bellatrix leaned back in her seat and watched a blush flow over his cheeks.

"Maybe. Lupin doesn't deserve her. She deserves someone who will help make her powerful."

"And you think you're the one to do that?" Bellatrix smirked slightly as the blush seemed to deepen.

Severus turned back to the potions book in his lap. "Lupin's a fool to let her walk the train alone. What if there's another attack like last year?"

"Do you think that old fool Dumbledore would let her ride the train unprotected after the disaster last year? Father told me that Aurors are scattered throughout the train to prevent another attack. She is safe... enough."

"Do you think that I believe you for one moment? You have made your life from lies and deceit, Bellatrix. And I won't have it."

"You won't have it? What would you have to say if I told you that the Dark Lord is looking for new recruits?" She gave him a genuine smile as he looked up from his book. "I know that you want to be powerful but what is power unless you have the people to back it up?"

"What makes you think that I would follow him when I have my own plans to follow?"

Bellatrix's harsh laughter filled the compartment. "If you join the Dark Lord, he might give her to you."

"If I get Veronica it will be of my own doing, not the doing of some maniac that remains in hiding."

"Do you honestly think that she will even look at you once those insipid brats are finished with you?" Bellatrix didn't give Severus time to answer her. "They'll trash her mind against you and everything that you stand for. You'd be better off with the Dark Lord and receiving his help."

"She might. Veronica is a caring person..."

"...Who made a bet with you causing you to have to endure those blood traitors!"

"That was my own fault. I felt that Slytherin was going to win the cup for sure last year."

"She won't have anything to do with you. You saw what she did to them for making her mad. She'll so the same to you." Bellatrix leaned closer to Severus. "She's very powerful and will need someone with the kind of power."

"Never!" Severus jumped to his feet and hurried out of the compartment.

Bellatrix smiled to herself as she pulled out a sheet of parchment and reread what her father and uncle had told her. Everything is going exactly as they planned it. One day I'm going to be the right hand woman of the Dark Lord.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Lily relaxed against the back of her seat and closed her emerald eyes. "I can't believe those guys are such jerks."

"You know you like James, Lily." Emma ran an emery board across her nails.

"I don't like James Potter!" Lily glared at Emma for a minute. He did get a few muscles over the summer. No, I don't like James Potter. "I can't believe you think I like him."

"Why else do you act like you do around him?" Patricia glared at her friend.

"I don't act like anything around him. He's arrogant and obnoxious and has a big head." Lily crossed her arms and stared out the window.

"Whatever you say." Patricia turned back to Emma and Jessica.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Veronica stared out one of the exterior windows and watched the scenery fly by. She thought back to the previous year and the attack that had been foiled. She sighed as she started back down the corridor. She saw Severus leaning against on of the corridor walls. Severus gave her a tenuous smile. Veronica grinned back at him.

"I see you've left them to their own devices." Severus lifted Veronica's hand to his lips.

"Yeah. I'm going to head back to my compartment now, Severus. You're more than welcome to join me." Veronica tilted her head to one side.

"No, thank you. I know that you are sharing a compartment with Potter and Black."

"What do you have against them?"

"Other than the fact that they have played pranks on me since I arrived at Hogwarts, nothing."

"That's no reason to hate them so much. One day they might need your help."

"Never." Severus stomped down the corridor.

"Boys." Veronica started down the corridor only to be stopped by Fabian and Gideon Prewett. "Fabian. Gideon. How were your holidays?"

Fabian shrugged his broad shoulders. "Considering that our older sister didn't invite us to go camping with you, okay."

Veronica tilted her head to one side. "Who's your sister?"

"Molly Weasley." Gideon held out his arm and Veronica looped hers through it. "May we escort you back to your compartment? It's not safe for you to be wandering the corridors alone."

"I'd rather not go back there. The guys are driving me crazy." Veronica smiled softly. "Besides, Mr. Potter said that there were going to be Aurors on the train this year."

"We heard about what you did to them. Nice touch to make it last until school started." Fabian was a step behind them.

"Actually we weren't going to have it going for so long but they decided to put frogs and toads in our beds. We had to retaliate." Veronica giggled as she remembered what else they had done to the boys.

Veronica allowed herself to be led into Fabian and Gideon's compartment. Inside were several other Ravenclaws. Veronica smiled softly as Fabian let her sit in his seat.

"This is Veronica Croft. She's in Gryffindor. Veronica, these are just a few of the Ravenclaws. Mandy Hollingsworth, third year." A girl with blonde hair and chocolate eyes looked up from her book and waved slightly. "And Alice Browning, fifth year." A girl with long dark brown hair waved from her seat beside the window.

"You're the girl who's dating Frank Longbottom." Veronica watched Gideon drop into the seat opposite Alice.

"Yeah." Alice blushed slightly as she turned back to the window. "Did you have a good summer?"

"If you call putting up with James and Sirius most of the summer good, then my summer was great." Veronica smiled as the others burst out laughing.

"What did they do to cause you to make them change colors like that?" Mandy stuck a piece of parchment into her book and set it aside.

"They just changed my hair color to neon purple." Veronica giggled slightly. "They even managed to change your sister's hair color as well."

"They did?" Fabian laughed even harder. "I wonder how they managed to do that."

"No telling but I think Mr. Potter and Mr. Evans were in on it." Veronica relaxed slightly as she sat with the Ravenclaws.

"Well, well, well. Isn't it interesting that the famous Gryffindor is sitting with a bunch of bookish types?" Anthony Abernathy smirked from the doorway. "What's the matter? None of the Gryffindors want to sit with a slut like you?"

Fabian and Gideon jumped to their feet and pulled their wands from their pockets. "Leave now or you might be on the end of some very nasty hexes."

Bellatrix stepped from behind Anthony. "You might want to watch who you hang out with, blood traitors. You'll wind up at a very sticky end, just like her parents."

The air around Veronica started pulsate. Fabian and Gideon kept their wands trained on the Slytherin students. Veronica's voice seemed to go a bit misty as she spoke.

"Never, in all the centuries I have existed, has anyone spoken thus to me. Thy words are hateful and untrue. Thou must pay." Veronica's hands raised and were aimed at Bellatrix, Anthony, and the other Slytherins.

Fabian pulled Alice to the floor while Gideon dragged Mandy down with him. A silvery-green light shot from Veronica's hands, causing Bellatrix, Anthony, and the rest of the Slytherins to sprout tentacles all over their bodies.

"You'll pay for that, Mudblood!" Bellatrix's shriek echoed throughout the train as she hurried away from the compartment.

Veronica lowered her arms and collapsed to the floor in a boneless pile. Gideon started to gather her into his arms and lift her onto the seat when Thomas stepped through the door.

"What happened?" Thomas took Veronica from Gideon's arms.

"We're not sure, sir. One minute, she's sitting in the seat. The next, she is talking funny and hexing the Slytherins." Fabian helped Alice up from the floor while Gideon turned to help Mandy up.

"You young men did the right thing by getting these young ladies out of the range of fire." Thomas glanced down at Veronica's face.

Her eyes started to flutter open. He smiled as Veronica looked around the compartment. "What happened? Where did Bellatrix go?"

"She went running out of here with her 'tentacles' tucked between her legs." Fabian helped Veronica sit up as Thomas stepped back from his 'daughter'.

"Are you alright?" Alice sank into her seat and watched Veronica for a minute.

Veronica ran her hands along her thighs and forearms, looking for any type of injury. "I guess so." She looked up and saw Thomas. "Morning, Dad. So, this was your top secret mission that you wouldn't tell us this morning."

"Hey. I had to make sure that my best girl didn't run into any more attackers. But I can see that you can take care of yourself, just like you keep telling James and Sirius." Thomas dropped a quick kiss on her forehead. "Do you want me to walk you back to your compartment?"

"No thanks. I'll get Fabian or Gideon to walk me back." Veronica slowly climbed to her feet and swayed for a moment. "Whoa. That sure took a lot out of me."

"Tell us about it. The voice said something about centuries. I wonder who it was." Alice turned back to her book as Thomas just nodded and left the compartment.

"Look. I'd better head back to the guys. There's no telling what kind of trouble they're getting in without me around." Veronica moved toward the door.

"I'm coming with you." Fabian jumped to his feet and motioned to Veronica to continue out the door.

Veronica and Fabian made their way through the corridors to her compartment. Veronica smiled and waved to her friends as they passed them in the corridor. Fabian bowed slightly once they were outside her compartment.

"Thanks, Fabian. You and Gideon were a big help." Veronica kissed Fabian's cheek.

"No problem. Just remember that not everyone thinks like the Slytherins." Fabian waved as he headed back to his own compartment.

James looked up from his exploding snap cards that he was trying to stack in a tower as Veronica stepped into the compartment. "I see you've decided to return to us."

"Yeah. Not that I really wanted to, butthead." Veronica flopped into the seat beside Remus. "Have they done anything to redeem themselves in my eyes?"

"They'll never redeem themselves. That's what makes them family." Remus draped his arm around Veronica's shoulders.

"I guess that's a good thing." Veronica reached for her red bag.

"Where were you?" Sirius opened one of his eyes and stared at Veronica rummaging through her bag.

"With Fabian and Gideon Prewett. We were talking about our summers. Did you know that they're Molly's brothers?" Veronica pulled out her worn copy of Gone with the Wind.

"No we didn't. Why so would you want to hang out with a bunch of Ravenclaws?" James placed another card on his tower.

"Because you guys are being a bunch of jerks. Besides, if I had been with you guys, would you have protected me from Bellatrix and Anthony?" Veronica glared at James and Sirius over the top of her book

Sirius jumped to his feet, knocking over James's tower of cards in the process. "Bellatrix attacked you?"

Veronica nodded and waved her hand dismissively. "Don't worry your pretty little head about it, Sirius. Fabian and Gideon took care of it, I think."

Remus watched Veronica for a moment and knew that she was lying. "What really happened?"

James's head whipped around to look at Remus. "What do you mean?"

"She's not telling us the whole truth." Remus continued to stare into Veronica's eyes while James and Sirius were huffing in their seats.

"So I'm not telling you guys about it. I need to figure it out first." Veronica slammed her book closed. "All I know is that I managed to give Bellatrix, Anthony, and the other Slytherins tentacles all over their bodies."

"Did you say tentacles?" Sirius bit his tongue to keep form laughing.

"Yes. Tentacles. At least that's what Fabian and Gideon told me." Veronica flipped open her book again. "Oh, by the way, James, Dad's on the train."

James jumped to his feet. "Did you say Dad's on the train?"

Veronica nodded. "You know how he kept telling us that he had a secret assignment today." James nodded slightly. "Well, we're it."

A booming voice filled the compartment. "We will be arriving at the station in five minutes. Please leave your luggage on the train. It will be taken care of."

Veronica climbed to her feet. "I'm going to go change."

"Why don't you just pull your robes on over your Muggle clothes?" Sirius's head popped out of his robes.

"I guess your right." Veronica pulled the robes over her head. Once they were on she pulled the end of her ponytail out of the robes. "I'm ready."

"So are we." James slid open the door to the compartment. "Ladies first."

"James, she isn't a lady." Sirius ducked as Veronica swung her red bag at the back of his head. "You missed." He never saw Remus's fist swinging toward his. "Ow!"

"But I didn't." Remus placed his left hand on the middle of Veronica's back and guided her out of the compartment.

James shook his head slightly as he watched Sirius rub the back of his head. "I thought you knew not to pick on her in front of Remus. Next time he just might kill you."

"James is right, Sirius. She's special to him but you never know maybe someone else might be able to make him feel like that." Peter scurried past James and Sirius before either of them could get the idea to hurt him.

"He's right you know. Maybe we should find Remus a new girl." Sirius followed James from the compartment.

"He'll never go for it. He loves Veronica and only Veronica." James looked through the crowd on the platform. He saw Remus helping Veronica into one of the horseless carriages. "There they are. Let's go."

James scrambled into the carriage behind Remus while Peter hurried in on the other side. Sirius jumped into the carriage and closed the door. The carriage started to move toward the school and another year of learning and unknown to them, adventure.