Remus John Lupin

You see before you a truly broken man.
'Cause when it gets to midnight, I don't know who I am.
Full moon's a-callin', and it's put a curse on me,
And it will never set me free.

Birth Certificate

Name: Remus John Lupin
* Also known as Moony, to his very select group of friends.
Birthdate: 10 March 1960
Age: 15
Year: Sixth
Job: Student // Prefect
Blood: Halfblood

At First Glance

Hair color: Sandy brown
Eye color: Dark brown
Height: 5”8
Distinguishing Features: A few odd nicks and scars along his cheeks, arms and hands, with a particularly large one across the bridge of his nose. He goes out of his way not to draw extra attention to them though.
Desired Play-By: Edward Speleers
Description: Remus isn't the type of person you'd easily find sticking out of the crowd, which is just fine with him. He likes the anonymity of being relatively unremarkable. Compared to the company he keeps, he isn't particularly athletic or notably good-looking. Neatness would most likely be his most easily recognized trait, as never leaves the common room without having everything tucked, brushed and clean.

Although he keeps himself well-assorted, it's easy to tell that he comes from a family that isn't exactly well off. His uniform, and especially his casual outfits have some hint of wear to them; faded knees, tears in the material that mended seamlessly – little things. He doesn't seem particularly bothered by the second-hand nature of his clothes, they are comfortable items to him. These fraying turtlenecks and shirts at least allow him to cover the worst of the various bruises, scars and cuts he receives on a monthly basis.

He isn't known for having the best of health. At the very least, it's clear he has some problems in getting a decent night's sleep. Being fair-haired, he's never tanned well, but thanks to what claims to be some 'immune deficiency' he is remarkably peaky. Of course, it probably doesn't help that for a teenage boy he spends an inordinate amount of time in the library when not in the company of his friends.



Tell Me More

Likes:
-- The occasional game of Wizard's Chess or Snap
-- Defence Against the Dark Arts and History of Magic
-- Being able to work through a particularly difficult problem or delicate charmwork.
-- His Favourite armchair by the fireplace in Gryffindor Common Room (or his mother's loveseat at home) and some quiet time.
-- Sleeping in on the weekends.
-- Peter, James and Sirius – otherwise known as his fellow Marauders.
Dislikes:
-- Visiting the Hospital Wing any more than he has to.
-- Lying (Not that it stops him...)
-- Astronomy and Potions
-- Flying: He can perfectly fine, but he'd much rather watch than participate.
-- Being up and about late into the night - particularly outside (as it comes with some pretty nasty memories)
Habits/Quirks:
-- Shows his anger by hiding, rather than having it out with someone.
-- Trying to talk some sort of sense into his friends when they come up with an incredibly stupid idea, and almost always backing down from it.
-- Never really raises his voice, choosing keeping either an even tone or lapsing into silence.
-- Picking at the beds of his fingernails when he's particularly nervous.
Strengths:
-- Shows an incredible determination to see things through – particularly from a scholarly prospective. You never have to worry about him backing down on a project, even if he does get sick. There's a reason he gets the marks he does.
-- Pretty good crisis control skills – he can usually figure out what to say to calm someone down – or at least knows enough to keep out of it and find someone who does rather than get in on a fight.
-- Patience. Live in a room with Sirius, James and Peter for five years and you can't HELP but develop a willingness to try again or to wait for a particular result. Usually comes most in handy when helping struggle through assignments or particularly complex pranking schemes.
Weaknesses:
-- Lycanthropy. Once a month he loses all control over his body and his mind, which is terrifying in itself. Add to that is the knowledge that he becomes a flesh-eating monster, and it's enough to make himself sick just thinking about it. Even planning excursions for full moons gives him no real joy; it's the only sure topic to make his anxiety skyrocket. He's usually either recovering from a transformation, or preparing for the next one.
-- Constantly enabling his friends, either by not speaking out against what they do or actively participating in schemes that just don't feel right.
-- Self-Doubt. No matter what he does, there always seems to be a little voice in the back of his head telling him what he should have could have WOULD have done if he were a better, stronger person.
Overall Personality: Remus is the type of teenager who, despite the relatively rowdy group of friends he has landed in, likes to try and keep the peace. He's quite happy with not making a splash anywhere. He has good grades, though he could do better. He is friendly, but doesn't exactly go skipping down the halls making friends left and right. For too long, he's been used to not drawing attention to himself, and has carved a perfectly good niche out of being the 'responsible' one with his three friends. He's perfectly content with it this way.

Within his social circle, he tries his best to reign in the wilder ideas of the Marauders, but often fails. These are his friends after all, and he's so tentative in opening himself up to everyone that one of his biggest worries is that he'll step too far out of line and they'll abandon him. That might be irrational for most teenagers to think, but Remus has dealt with demons substantially bigger. He has quite a large stake in anyone else finding out about them. He keeps the balance in a way that allows him to placate his own morals and at the same time not come off as a wet blanket around his best mates.

Often, his efforts are seen as being quite mother hen-ish: he can nag about the importance of finishing homework rather than constantly slagging off, and help them with assignments in some cases. He can voice his dislike for a particular prank, which usually involving Severus Snape as a victim, but as far as putting his foot down, he really doesn't. Remus is not a forceful presence. You could argue that nobody really could be, with the combined mentalities of Potter and Black running their little gang. He just does his best to make sure they stop short of any serious damage, and is better at running damage control after the fact than stopping them in the long run.

Bring It Home

Father: Elias Lupin
Mother: Maureen Cafferty-Lupin
Siblings: Not likely.
Other Important People: --
Overall History: Remus' chances of having the perfect family life were brought to a crashing halt by the actions of a literal lunatic. He hardly remembers the time that came before his bite, seeing as he was barely five at the time. Monthly bouts of pain have done more harm than good for recovering any memories of being 'normal'.

Yet there was a time where the Lupin family could have been considered storybook. A relatively young couple, settling into a muggle and magical household in the village of Tinsworth, his parents' lives revolved around their adventurous toddler. His father worked at the Ministry, while his mother stayed home to keep an eye on him. Although Remus has never actually bothered to learn the particulars, something in his dad's job had him crossing paths with a werewolf named Fenrir Greyback. Somehow they had gotten at odds, and this petulant werewolf was out for revenge soon enough. Unfortunately for Remus, his preferred method of seeking payback was in attacking children. One night wander outside was all it took, and before his life could barely begun he was saddled with a true curse.

To their credit, the Lupin family didn't do what others might have and abandoned him to the so-called 'Support Services'. In the face of moonlit nights, they took things months at a time: alternately searching for some sort of cure, and all the while making by the best they could. Finances took a hit, but if anything, relationships were strengthened. They cut off many ties, most of their old wizarding-world friends no longer wanted anything to do with them and their infected son, but still, they worked remarkably well as a single unit.

There were always other questions to be answered. The hardest of them all was when a growing Remus began showing signs of inheriting his father's magical capabilities. None of the Lupins even considered a chance for him to attend Hogwarts. At least, not until the year before Remus' eleventh birthday, when Albus Dumbledore excelled to the position of Headmaster.

Precautions were put in order; a safe house where Remus could manage his monthly transformations with a formidable guardian. If all went well, no one would ever need to know Remus' affliction. It was a new start, so on September 1, 1971, he set off towards the impossible; an education at Hogwarts. He was sorted into Gryffindor, and in short order made friends with fellow first years James Potter, Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew. It was easily one of the happiest times of his life, though he lived in constant fear of what they would do were they to ever find out what he was.

Never being close to anyone his age before, he was desperate to be liked, after spending so many years being the subject of persecution. But those friends didn't remain ignorant. How could you, when you were disappearing all the time, and could barely keep the excuses straight in your own head. Remus was in for a second impossible event, though. His friends did find out - but he wasn't turned away. In fact, he was helped. Plots were put into play; dangerous ideas about becoming animagus to help him. Of all people. As frightened as he was, he was more shocked to find that people besides his family were willing to care enough to want to help someone like him.

Despite everything, things are going right. He's even begun to look at his chance at a future in a bit more of an optimistic light than even his parents have dared. Much to his surprise, last year he was even made a Prefect, perhaps in the hopes he'd buck up and try to reign his friends in a bit more.

Show Off

It was quite. Too quite. If there was one lesson to take away from six years sharing a dorm with the likes of James Potter and Sirius Black - it was that silence, while blissful compared to friendly banter over Quidditch scores, and harping about homework - generally meant that something was about to go down, and it was best to get moving, unless you didn't mind explaining to Madame Pomfrey exactly how you ended up covered in violently pink spots. He had tried to keep the sense of foreboding at bay, delving back into his battered copy of Advanced Magical Defense and You. Judging by the position he had woken up in, he had fallen asleep reading the night before, but for the last three minutes he'd only managed to re-read the same two sentences. 

Time to face the day, Lupin. He told himself, gingerly beginning to stretch out the tensed muscles in his folded legs. You'll only regret it later, wasting your whole weekend away. Especially as the work begins to pile up. It had only been one week of classes, but it was clear that sixth year was to be just as laboriousness as any other. The fact that their Professors seemed bent on drilling them relentlessly in preparation for NEWTs when they had only just made it through OWLs a few months ago bordered on cruel and unusual punishment.

Parting the thick velvet curtains that he had drawn around his bed for sake of privacy, Remus swung himself over the edge and stood up, hissing with displeasure when he found out exactly how cold the stone floor was in relation to his formerly cozy feet. The dorm was empty. Perhaps the bumping and shuffling he had heard earlier wasn't in his imagination at all, but had been the other boys getting up and ready to take full advantage of the day off. Good for him, as he would have the bathroom to himself to finish getting ready himself, but Remus found it irritating that no one had even bothered to see if he was up, or wake him if he hadn't been. He probably would have welcomed a jet of cold water to the face, or someone yelling and jumping on the end of his bed, if it only meant that the previous tension had all been forgotten.

Opening the door to their en suite cautiously (half-expecting something to fall from the ceiling on top of him, ready to jump out of the way if it did) he took his time going through the motions of getting up. Washing his face while carefully avoiding the newest raised line of tender pink skin that ran along his lower jawline, brushing his teeth, and coming through his sleep-tousled hair so he no longer looked liked a scrawny, paler mirror of James. He slipped on a pair of slacks that he had folded atop his trunk the night before, and opted for a grey-black cardigan rather than going through the rigamarole of the school uniform. It was the weekend after all, they were allowed some comfort.

He passed several other students on his way down the numerous flights of stairs to the Great Hall, but none of them were the people he was looking for. Not that he was actually desperate enough to search for any of his dorm mates or best friends. Maybe they needed space, or thought that for some reason he needed it. He hadn't exactly been the picture of good cheer over the past few days. Who knew, maybe James had somehow managed to get Lily talking to him without either pitching some sort of fit. In that case any interruption would land Remus in more trouble than he wanted by getting between the love struck Potter and the object of his (apparently unwanted) affection.

As he came to the entrance hall, he was drawn by the promising aroma of breakfast. Although he couldn't quite say that he was starving, it would be a better to not bother to think about the whereabouts of his friends until he at least had gotten something in his stomach.

Behind The Mask

Alias: Kit
Age: 21
Years Roleplaying: About 10, roughly
Other Characters: None
Best way to contact you: Email, PM preferred though.
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