I decided to crash on the couch and stay awake for when he returned to being human, but that proved unsuccessful. Sleep crept up on me soon enough. The sun shined when I awoke, and I knew that Remus would be back to himself by now. I went outside to find him near my home, sleeping in the grass, curled up in a ball like a tame wolf would do. Every trace of the bloodthirsty werewolf had disappeared. Lying there was the frail man whom I loved dearly, scars and all. I sat on the ground and softly lifted his arms, wanting to see if he’d inflicted any harm on himself lately. It broke my heart to think of him deliberately doing that, to think that he loathed his own being. He clearly saw a different person than I saw in him. Thankfully, there were no fresh marks. I ran a finger on the faded ones as if I could make them vanish.

“You really don’t know how brave and perfect you are,” I whispered, hoping Remus could hear it. He kissed my hand to show that he was listening.

Opening his eyes, they darted to my injured forehead. His eyebrows creased with agony. “Did I…”

I nodded. “Yeah. It’s nothing to worry about, though, Remus.”

“Nothing to worry about!?!” he exclaimed, sitting up. “Not only did you disobey me, but I could’ve killed you!”

Overcome by a wave of guilt, I said, “It won’t happen again. I just wanted to see things the way you saw them, because, technically, I’m missing out on part of your life. It’s what makes you… you.”

He smiled meekly. “Your hair looks wonderful. Almost as wonderful as your heart.”

After blushing like a little girl, I offered him my arm for support. Then we rose to our feet and we walked towards my home. Very soon, it would be Remus’ home, too.