[He transfers his gaze to the floor between them instead, still not pulling away entirely himself, but sitting, tense.]

It's worse.

[Than Remus being gone, he means, but he doesn't qualify that.]

He was better than me. In-- everything. And he's gone back, and he's just going to die, because he's--stupid and noble and good, and-- [He makes an irritated noise between his teeth, shoves the heel of his hand against his eye--] Merlin. I hate this.