The Cast List
"Not mad, but bound more than a madman is. Shut up in prison, kept without my food, whipt and tormented..."
Sirius Black, moved by the sincere ache behind those words which were truer to the speaker than anyone but he could know, raised his soft grey eyes to the stage where they rested fondly for a moment on his dearest friend, Remus Lupin. I can feel your old pain with every word you speak, Moony, he thought sadly, "Moony" being the pet name he liked to whisper in their quiet moments together. Even in ill-fitting sweater and rumpled slacks, Remus made an excellent Romeo. How could he not? He was by far the best actor in the company.
But Sirius couldn't stop long to watch the rehearsal; there was work to be done. He turned his attention back to his cast list, giving it a final look-over to make sure he hadn't forgotten anyone:
Romeo - Remus Lupin
Juliet - Bellatrix LeStrange
Friar Lawrence - Horace Slughorn
Mercutio - Gilderoy Lockhart
The Nurse - Dolores Umbridge
Tybalt - Cho Chang
Capulet - Albus Dumbledore
Lady Capulet - Sybill Trelawney
Montague - Rubeus Hagrid
Lady Montague - Rita Skeeter
Paris - Lucius Malfoy
Benvolio - Harry Potter
Prince Escalus - Ron Weasley
Friar John - Filius Flitwick
Balthasar - Quirinus Quirrell
Sampson - Neville Longbottom
Gregory - Hermione Granger
Abram - Nymphadora Tonks
The Apothecary - Pomona Sprout
Peter - Argus Filch
The Chorus - Luna Lovegood
Yes, the whole cast was listed. He wondered if Severus had memorized his name yet, or if he should add Sirius Black - Stage Manager at the bottom. While he was at it, he would like to add Minerva McGonagall - Former Director before she came down with pneumonia and had to hand over he position to... Severus Snape - Current Director, rumoured to be a bit harsh and more than a bit lecherous.
Ah well, Minerva was likely to be out of commission for the remainder of rehearsals, so he knew he'd better get used to the new guy. Severus was a well-known theatre director from the next town over, and although he came across as a dour old crank, he was bound to put on a good play in the end.
"Tell me, Sirius," Severus said as he took the cast list and nodded toward the stage, "why Minerva thought it appropriate to put scars on our Romeo's face? I've never seen that in a production of Romeo and Juliet, and I have no idea where she's going with that."
"Oh..." Sirius rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably, his long curls tangling around his fingers. "That's not makeup, that's his face."
"Oh? I don't understand..."
Sirius took a deep breath. He knew as long as he kept it vague, Remus didn't mind him providing a small explanation to curious onlookers. In fact, Remus appreciated not having to field such questions himself. Still, he felt as if he were gossiping as he told Severus quietly, "Remus had a rough childhood."
From the stage, Remus's voice rang out as Romeo speaking of his precious Juliet: "Beauty too rich for use, for earth too dear."
No, thought Sirius, as he watched the new director's face come alive with sudden understanding and shock, the rise of his dark eyebrows and the slackening of his lips until they formed a small 'O', not Juliet; Moony, it's you. You're the one too beautiful, too dear for this earth. How could anyone have hurt you?
He knew that Remus still suffered from the things that were done to him, but he also knew that that man could light up a stage like no other, a perfect Romeo.