A/N: Here's the second part of my Elaborate Lives series. This one is told from Amity's perspective. It should fill in some gaps for those who read Kristin's Tale. You don't have to read it before reading this, but I do hope you give it a read. I hope everyone enjoys it!

Disclaimer: I do not own the characters from the Harry Potter series. I do own any original characters in this story, especially Amity Anderson-Bernard, Elysia Lupin-Bernard, Kristin Wright and Philomena Wright.

Elaborate Lives: Amity's Tale

Amity Bernard had enough of funerals. Of hearing phrases like "gone too soon" and "he'll be missed by all who knew him." Of seeing nothing but black robes and clothing. Of people looking at her with pity in their eyes. Of staring at holes in the ground. She had enough of loss.

"Mum? Are you in here?" She sat up upon hearing her daughter's voice. Elysia leaned against the doorway to her mother's room. She wore a light blue dress paired with dark stockings and shoes—her school uniform for Beauxbatons. The matching blue coat lay over her arms. Her sun bleached hair was pulled into a bun.

The older woman sat up, smiling. "You ready to head back to school?"

"Madame Maxime said the carriage would come to pick me up before sunrise." Elysia frowned. "But perhaps I should wait a bit more."

"No, no. You've missed enough school. It's best you go back."

"Are you sure? I could ask to stay another few days if you want."

Amity shook her head. "No, you need to go back. It'll be good for you. Just give me a minute and I'll change. Go."

She ushered her daughter out before closing the door. With a deep breath, she steeled herself for the day. Amity opened the dresser drawer and paused. Neatly folded in there were her husband's shirts. Hands shaky, she picked one up and held it to her face. She inhaled deeply, a cinnamon scent overpowering her. Michel's aftershave. Tears pricked her eyes but she fought them back as she shoved the shirt back into the drawer.

"I thought you had gone back to bed." Elysia stood at the bottom of the stairs as her mother came down.

Amity wore a simple blue robe with black boots underneath. "I couldn't decide what to wear."

"You were smelling Papa's shirts again."

"The way you say it makes it sound perverted. And don't think I didn't see you curled up on his chair last night."

"I was reading and the chair is comfortable," Elysia protested. Her mother though smiled while shaking her head. Elysia crossed her arms. "Are you sure you'll be fine without me?"

Amity placed her hands on her daughter's arms. "For the umpteenth time, yes. Don't worry about me, Elysia. I've survived this before and I'll survive this again."

"You're thinking of Daddy?" Elysia's voice became higher, almost like when she was a child.

Hugging her only child again, Amity sighed. "Let's not dwell on such dark things. It won't do either of us any good."

Elysia nodded. "You're right. And the carriage will be here soon. I don't want to be a depressed mess."

"Good call. Do you have everything?"

Her daughter rolled her eyes with a sigh. "Yes, Mum."

"Are you sure?"

"I checked and double checked. I am becoming more organized." She crossed her arms. "So you can stop writing to Amelie."

Amity shook her head. "Not until you graduate. And besides, I need to thank her and her family for their condolences."

Knocking interrupted their conversation. Amity hugged her daughter. "Have a good time at school, dear. Write me every week."

"I will, Mum, I promise." Elysia hugged her mother back. Stepping away, she put on her blue coat and grabbed the bag by the door. "I'll see you at Christmas."

"Wait, I'll walk you out." Amity hurried after her daughter. The sun had yet to rise but the streetlamps had gone out. She had no doubt the driver of the carriage, a tall skinny man holding open the door for her daughter. He was so pale his skin seemed to glow in the dark and Amity had to wonder if Madame Maxime sent a vampire to fetch the girl.

Before climbing fully into the carriage, Elysia looked back at her mother and waved. Summoning up everything in her, Amity smiled and waved back. Elysia disappeared within the carriage as the driver took his seat. His team of thestrals pawed the ground, waiting to take off. Amity closed her eyes, unable to look at the beasts as they were a reminder of why she was able to see them.

Opening them again, she focused on the carriage as it took off into the brightening skies. She watched as it disappeared above the clouds as the street lamps blinked back on one by one. With a sigh, she returned inside.

The house was emptier with Elysia gone. Amity realized how silent the place was as she sat with her morning tea. Alone with her thoughts, which were not very comforting right now.

She had no appetite. Not since she learned the news about Michel. Two husbands lost to her; she had a lousy track record. In her kitchen, staring at the steam emanating from her mug, she swore off marriage.

Taking the mug into the living room, she lounged on the couch to muse about what to do for the rest of the day. Amity had a pile of books she had intended to read but kept putting off for another time. Perhaps this was the time to start working through it.

She could always go to work. Her employer told her to take as much time as she needed but it would keep her busy. Keep her mind from thinking about how alone she was now.

Amity stretched out on the couch. She could stay like that all day. Do nothing but eat and stare at the ceiling. But it would not keep the thoughts at bay.

Nothing seemed appealing.

Stretching, a frame caught her eye and she sat up to grab it. It was taken years ago, back when she still lived in the United Kingdom. A younger Amity stood, holding a newborn Elysia. She wore a red sweater while her daughter was dressed in a beautiful red dress bought by her grandmothers for her first Christmas. Beside the two was a tall young man with brown hair. Gray eyes shone out as he gazed down on the two beside him. He was Elysia's father, Amity's first love—Remus Lupin.

Remus. The soft spoken, intelligent boy had stolen her heart their second year of school. It took them both a few years to admit it and even then only because their friends had intervened, forcing them on a date. She recalled their awkward first kiss underneath a tree on the road between Hogsmeade and Hogwarts. It wasn't anything like the novels Kristin hid under her bed at school but Amity treasured it forever.

She knew she was different from the other girls in her class because she knew after a year of dating she would marry Remus. Kristin and Lily, her best friends, thought it was sweet but many of the other girls thought she was being foolish.

"You can't decide your life at fourteen," one girl said.

"And to choose Remus Lupin? Don't you think that's settling?" another added.

A third piped up. "Look around. You'll find someone way better than Remus Lupin."

"Shut up, Persephone. You would be lucky to end up with someone that's half the man Remus already is," Kristin shot back. She crossed her arms. "We would all be so lucky."

Lucky. Amity had been lucky to have Remus in her life, brief as it had been. She reached up to the chain she always wore. From it hung a silver ring with a small diamond set on it. Remus had worked hard that summer to try and earn enough to buy her one. It was small but beautiful. He had proposed before their senior year, even asking her father for permission.

It hadn't been easy, though. Remus had a dark secret, one which Amity had to confess to her parents. He was a werewolf, bitten at a young age and forced to experience agonizing transformations every month. Amity always worried about him during those periods, afraid he would not be able to survive. But somehow he always did, even if he grew more tired with each one.

The prejudice against werewolves was great and Amity's parents were no different. Remus had been over to her house before she revealed his secret to them yet they still had banned her from seeing him upon learning it. She didn't give up though; instead, she kept reminding parents of the courteous, soft-spoken young man who had dined with them. At last, they were able to look past his condition and her father gave them his blessing days before they left for Hogwarts to start their final year. They walked along Platform 9 and ¾ with the diamond on her ring glinting in the light. Kristin and Lily had run up to her to admire it as well as congratulate the pair. Sirius and James had begun to plan their friend's stag party.

Getting her parents to approve had been easy compared to getting official approval from the Ministry of Magic. They had been surprised when, shortly after arriving at Hogwarts, the headmaster had called them to his office.

Remus held her hand the entire way. "I am certain it is nothing to worry about," he said, trying to assure her. It did little to calm the butterflies in her stomach.

Their head of house, Professor McGonagall, met them at the door and led them to two chairs set up in the office. She took her place beside the headmaster, Albus Dumbledore. He watched the two over the rim of his half-moon glasses and his beard hid his mouth. "I've heard congratulations are in order for you two."

"Thank you, sir," Remus said. Amity still was unable to speak. Or swallow.

Dumbledore didn't smile. "You know it will be a hard road ahead."

The two nodded. "But we got my parents to accept it," Amity said.

"The Ministry of Magic will be much harder than your parents, my dear." Dumbledore sighed. "There are laws preventing werewolves from marrying."

"And from having children, I presume?" Remus asked. Dumbledore nodded.

Amity rubbed her hands on her uniform skirt. "Are you saying we should break up? Because I'm not going to do that, Headmaster."

Dumbledore smiled at last. "Of course not. I just want to make sure you two are prepared for the prejudice you are going up again."

The two nodded. "I believe we are, sir."

"Then you are dismissed. Have a good year, you two."

They did have a good year, despite the threat of Voldemort hanging over the wizarding world. Hogwarts was separate; a world unto itself. Entering the real world was the problem. Remus found it difficult to hold a job as he had to take off at least once a month to recover from his transformations. A few employers found out he was a werewolf and fired him for it.

She knew he felt bad about not being able to provide for her but she didn't blame him. It had been the prejudice Dumbledore had warned them about. Remus had even offered to let her break their engagement, to find a man "who could give you a normal life."

"I don't want a normal life, Remus. I want a life with you."

And they had been on their way to having that life. She smiled as she remembered the she had a rather embarrassing episode at work for her. Her employer at the apothecary was very supportive when she threw up in a nearby garbage can after coming in contact with an herb she had used without incident before. Giving her the afternoon off, he advised her to see a healer. The kind witch who saw her listened to her symptoms and administered a simple test.

The woman returned after a few minutes, smiling. "Congratulations, dearie. You're pregnant!"

Emotions flew through Amity at that moment. Fear. Hope. Excitement. Anxiety. Once everything settled, though, only happiness remained. She was going to be a mother! Thanking the witch, Amity resisted the urge to run home.

Remus was not as happy as she at first, which deflated her enthusiasm. "What's wrong?" she asked. "Aren't you happy?"

"I'm…overwhelmed. I need some time to think about it." He sat down, eyes glassy.

"About what?" Amity took a seat by her fiancé.

"Many things. Like the fact I can't hold steady employment. Or that I turn into a dangerous animal once a month. What if the child is a werewolf as well?"

Amity took his face in her hands. "We discussed all of this, back when we were in Hogwarts. Remember?"

He sighed, averting his eyes. "I know, but now…it's real. It's not this hypothetical situation anymore."

"I know. And I'm scared too. This is more than playing with dolls. But I know you'll be there. We can do this together, right?"

Remus smiled, kissing the palm of her hand. "We're going to be parents!"

His demeanor changed afterwards and he became excited for their impending arrival, as Sirius took to calling Elysia. Amity was treated by a midwife recommended by Madame Pomfrey, a witch who promised to use discretion. The Ministry forbade werewolves from procreating, fearing the gene could be passed on—something the midwife believed had a very low chance of happening. She assured Amity and Remus their child was going to be normal. Amity had been relieved but didn't want to show it to her husband; she didn't want him to think it had been important. But he had been as relieved as she.

"No child should have to experience what I go through," he said.

Elysia had been perfect at birth. Ten fingers, ten toes. Healthy and happy, just what they wanted. Remus and Amity had asked their friend Kristin Wright to be the girl's godmother and she had agreed. Everything was going right at last.

But their perfect little world popped. Voldemort kept growing in power, his darkness covering the wizarding world. People they knew—classmates, friends, family—were dead or presumed so. Remus had joined Dumbledore's Order of the Phoenix along with the rest of their close friends, fighting against the Death eaters. Amity had wanted to join but given her pregnancy, she and Remus decided it was best she didn't.

Their friend Lily soon became pregnant but there was little time to celebrate the birth of her son Harry. For reasons Amity never understood, Lily and her husband James were whisked into hiding with their baby boy. Remus' explanation gave her chills.

"Dumbledore suspects there is a mole amongst our friends." Remus rocked a young Elysia, who was fighting sleep.

Amity dropped the shirt she was folding. "What? Why would he think that?"

"Things that are happening suggest someone is feeding Voldemort information."

"Isn't that Snape's job?"

"He feeds him misinformation. And Voldemort seems to be acting on information not even Snape knows."

Nerves tightened in the pit of her stomach. "But our friends? Who amongst them would do such a thing?"

"Dumbledore and the others are pressing us to name someone. We all refuse but I know we all suspect someone. Sirius suspects Kristin because of her relationship with Snape and the fact her brother was just arrested for being a Death eater. And though she hasn't said anything, I think Kristin suspects me. I can see it in her eyes."

Amity hesitated, afraid to ask the question haunting her. But she had to know. "Who do you think is the mole?"

"Amity…" He sighed. "Sirius."

She gasped. "No! He would rather die than betray James."

"But he was raised by Purebloods who believe what Voldemort does. It's difficult to shake that. Look at Kristin. I know the only reason she suspects me is because of the hatred of werewolves she was raised with."

"But Sirius has always been so different…"

"Everything is so confusing." He kissed the top of their sleeping daughter's head. "At least things make sense here."

"And it's safe here."

Remus was once again silent, choosing instead to bring Elysia to her room.

A few weeks later, Remus came home to tell her he was going on a special assignment for Dumbledore. She wanted to go to her parents' house in Northern England but it wasn't safe. Fate then stepped in. Her employer asked her to go help a friend in southern France. "Attacks there are few and far between. It's best for you and your little girl," she said.

Remus and her parents agreed. "Go and take Elysia. And when it's safe again, I'll send for you. I promise." He kissed her forehead.

So she disappeared into the French wizarding world as the war continued to wage around her. Elysia started walking and talking, all away from her father. Amity tried to take as many pictures as possible, but it was a daunting challenge. She hoped Remus forgave her for giving up and was happy with what she managed to capture.

Then the fateful issue of Le Plume, the French wizarding newspaper, arrived at her doorstep. LE MORT DE VOLDEMORT! Amity had to read it three times until it finally sunk in. Voldemort was dead. The war was over. She could go back home.

As she continued reading the article, nausea grew. The war was over but at a price, a price too steep for her. Her friends, the Potters, were dead and their son orphaned. She let the paper fall from her hands as she raced to pick up her daughter, kissing the girl's hair. Tears fell down her face, confusing the toddler. Elysia patted her mother's cheek, trying to get the woman to smile.

"It's okay, baby. Everything is going to be okay."

She didn't know how many times she had said that over the course of Elysia's life. The second time she uttered it was after she returned to England, reuniting with her parents. Elysia had been overwhelmed by the attention of the family she hadn't seen in a long time and had started crying in the middle of the reunion. Amity took her outside to calm down and whispered the words again to her, while praying the reunion with Remus was smoother.

At that time, the reunion was uncertain. She had delayed returning to England, waiting for him to send for her—as they agreed before she left. Nothing came. But she was a patient woman and so she waited. There was much to do, she realized. It wouldn't go back to like it was before Voldemort's reign overnight. No, it would take work. And then Remus would send for her.

Yet even her patience ran out, especially as she passed the holidays again in France. Amity wanted to be home, with Remus and her family. So after New Year's, she told her employer she wanted to go home. He was sad to see her go but understood. "Remember, you always have a job here if you need it," he told her.

So she returned to her parents' house. And she waited. Nothing. Every day she would wake up, hopeful today was the day. But by the end of the day, she went to bed disappointed. Finally, she had to face the truth: Remus had died. No one was going to report a werewolf's death. Dumbledore may not even know for certain, depending on whatever his mission had been.

After coming to this realization, she tried to find the one friend she had left—Kristin Wright. Peter had been killed by Sirius, who was also responsible for the Potters' death. Remus had been right, she thought sadly. How could they have been so blind? How had Sirius fooled them for so long? Perhaps Kristin had the answers she needed.

The trouble was finding her. Amity sent many letters to her friend's flat in London but received no answer. So she wrote to Philomena Wright, Kristin's mother, in hopes of finding out what happened. This time, she received a response.

Amity peeled herself off the couch, walking over to the bookcase in the room. She found an old leather-bound scrapbook and pulled it out. Flipping the yellowed pages, Amity landed on the one she wanted. Pasted there was the letter from Philomena.

Dear Amity,

It was good to hear from you. And thank you for the pictures of Elysia. She is growing into a beautiful girl. You and Remus must be so proud!

But I must inform you that Kristin is no longer in the country. The war was too much for her, I'm afraid. Between the Potters' deaths, Sirius' betrayal and her relationship with Severus ending…Well, she needed a fresh start. So she moved to Rio de Janiero in Brazil. I have enclosed her address there.

I should warn you, though, she has left the magical community. Do not worry, she hasn't broken her wand. But I think you should know.

Good luck, my dear. If you ever need me, do not hesitate to write.

Yours,

Philomena Wright

Amity closed the scrapbook, clutching it to her chest. She never wrote the letter to Kristin. It seemed pointless if her friend was no longer a part of the wizarding world. How could she help?

So she lay in bed at night, thinking. And it came to her—France. It was the best option for her and Elysia. She had a job there and could easily find a house. There were also some friends she could rely on as well as a strong magical community. When she spoke of it to her parents, they agreed it was for the best but they declined to come with her. "Our lives are here, my dear. But we will visit, I promise," her father said.

"And I promise to bring Elysia here regularly," she said.

It was a promise they all kept over the years. Her parents had returned the day before, once they were certain Amity would be fine on her own. She missed them already. But she didn't regret staying in France; it was for the best.

Ding dong! Amity rolled off the couch, landing on the floor. Her hip connected with the coffee table, a stinging pain running up and down her torso. She pulled herself up, wincing as she did so.

Limping over to the door, she opened it. An older gentleman wearing long navy blue robes stood on the outside. Gold half-moon glasses were perched on the tip of his nose as his blue eyes studied her appearance. His long beard was just as she remembered, if a few shades whiter.

Her mouth hung open. "Headmaster Dumbledore?"

"Hello, Amity. May I come in?"