"HAPPY BIRTHDAY REMUS! (I missed it but ehh)"
The morning of April 10th dawned rainy and still, Hogwarts soaked in soft gray light. The Great Hall was unusually quiet for a Saturday, and Remus was perfectly fine with it that way. If he could help it, he’d keep today like any other—normal. No fuss. No eyes.
Unfortunately for him, Lily Evans had a memory sharper than a Howler and a heart ten times softer.
She didn’t say anything at breakfast, just shot him a look that said I know, while pretending to be focused on her porridge. James Potter, munching loudly beside her, hadn't caught on. Sirius was distracted making butterbeer mustaches. But Mei did. And so did Narcissa, who had caught wind of the date in passing weeks ago. Severus noticed the quiet way Remus pushed food around his plate and raised an eyebrow—but said nothing.
Lucius, seated further down the Slytherin table, looked vaguely annoyed by the whispering among the first years. Dorcas rolled her eyes and muttered, “I swear, they’re planning something.”
They were.
That evening, the common room lights in Gryffindor flickered unusually early.
Remus walked in to find nothing... until the candles floated down from the ceiling. Tiny flames on parchment stars. In the center of the room, a modest chocolate cake (baked by the house-elves thanks to Lily’s "kind requests") sat on a carved tray surrounded by transfigured plush wolves, courtesy of Sirius’s new favorite spell.
James grinned. “Happy birthday, mate! You didn’t think we’d forget, did you?”
Remus blinked. “How did you—”
“Sirius saw your records by accident,” Lily interrupted quickly. “Long story. You didn’t want anyone to know, we know. But...” Her voice softened. “You’re our friend.”
He didn’t cry. Not exactly. But when he blew out the candles, one flickered stubbornly and winked out only when Lily whispered something under her breath.
Down in the dungeons, Mei shared a grin with Narcissa as they watched the soft candlelight dance from a charm mirror Mei had enchanted to spy on the Gryffindors for "research." Even Dorcas looked a little touched.
Elsewhere, Lucius scowled. Not at the birthday—but at Severus, who was watching the flickering mirror image too, with a softness Lucius didn’t like.
Remus’s first birthday at Hogwarts passed not with loud noise or wild celebration—but with soft voices, small gifts, and the kind of warmth Remus had never dared to hope for.