Finding Andromeda
Originally written: 11.07.16 – Rewritten: 05.02.17

DISCLAIMER: I do not own these characters.

Part I

"I think you should try and find her again."

Sirius Black, Auror and Hogwarts Graduate, frowned at the words he heard and looked up from his newspaper at the speaker. In front of him, by their kitchen table, stood Remus Lupin – his best mate of ten years and boyfriend of just-over two years. Studying the werewolf's face, Sirius found only seriousness and slight hesitancy.

Remus calmly sat down at the kitchen table and clasped his hands together in front of himself professionally, watching Sirius attentively. The Animagus carefully placed his newspaper down and sat back in his chair, watching Remus as well and trying to process the words he'd just heard.

He reckoned he knew what Remus was talking about but he was confused as to why the subject had been brought up after all this time.

Sirius hadn't seen his cousin, Andromeda Black (or Andromeda Tonks as he reckoned she would be known as now), in years; not since she had left the Black family to marry for love rather than pure bloodlines and power.

Where Sirius couldn't stand most of his family, he could her; his uncle Alphard and his cousin were about the only family members that he could tolerate.

His uncle Alphard had been a grumpy old man but a kind one and he had always treated Sirius different – in a good way; with respect and an odd sort of admiration. They were very similar – Sirius and Alphard – and Sirius reckoned that was why his uncle had left everything to him.

Andromeda was Sirius' favourite cousin. She had always been there for him and she was incredibly kind despite who she had grown up with. Once she'd left Hogwarts, she had ran away from the suffocating Black family to marry a Muggle-born wizard – a Hufflepuff by the name of Edward Tonks, from what Sirius knew.

As soon as the Black family had found out about what she had done, they had disowned her. Sirius' mother had burned her off the family tree, and most of the Black family had elected to pretend she never even existed – including her own sisters who had been fairly close to her beforehand.

Andromeda Black certainly wasn't the first to be disowned and she definitely wasn't the last.

After she had been disowned, Sirius hadn't been allowed to look for her but when he ran away from the family in the summer between his fifth and sixth year, he decided that he wanted to find her. He wanted to find her and be her family again. But, he soon discovered that she seemed to have disappeared off the face of the planet.

No matter what he did, he couldn't find her! Every time he thought he was close or had a lead, he'd been put down and eventually he just gave up trying. When he was nearing the end of seventh year, he gave up searching and, after then, he talked about her little. But when he did talk about her, it was because he missed her.

So, when Remus said he should try and find her again, Sirius was understandably confused. He'd already tried. And he'd failed. Multiple times. He didn't quite fancy going on a ghost hunt again.

"Sorry?" he asked, knowing he'd heard right but asking regardless.

Remus sighed silently and leaned back in his own chair, eyes still trained on Sirius. "I think you should try and find Andromeda again," he repeated calmly. He paused to gauge Sirius' reaction; when Sirius did nothing but stare back blankly, he continued, "You said it yourself: she was your favourite cousin, and you miss her; I know you do. She's part of your family, Padfoot – the only part you could actually stand," he said gently.

Sirius sat up straighter and leaned forward across the table, closer to Remus to stare into the hazel-amber eyes that he knew so well. "Moony, I've already tried. I spent months – years – trying," he shrugged, "I couldn't do it. I couldn't find her. What makes you think I could now?"

Remus smiled softly. "You've got me this time," he replied calmly.

Sirius huffed a laugh and nodded agreeably. He sat back and thought about Remus' words for a moment.

He wasn't necessarily alone that last time he'd tried; he'd had James. But even with both of them and their connections, he and James had both still come up blank. He'd had Remus and Peter to a certain extent, too. But they weren't really able to help.

Peter was too busy trying to pass every class and they didn't live together over the summer. And Sirius hadn't wanted to bother Remus. Remus was too busy trying to sort out all of his own problems and Sirius hadn't wanted to add more. Despite that, though, Remus had been there for him in other ways. They'd talked late at night about his worries and Sirius had been able to handle the dead-ends and rejection because of that.

Sirius didn't have Remus completely last time, but he did now.

Sirius licked his lips nervously and sat forward again, placing his arms on the table on either side of his newspaper. "Okay," he began. "So, say – hypothetically – I was going to try again. How would you suggest that we do it?"

Remus smirked slightly and Sirius recognised it as his 'Marauder-smirk' – the one he wore when he had already thought things through and knew exactly how to execute a plan.

"Simple," Remus replied. "We both work at the Ministry. We both have contacts. We're bound to find someone there who has a file on her. Pads, there are files on everyone in the Ministry archives. I would suggest that we use our contacts. It can't be that hard to do now. You were sixteen the last time you tried; you didn't really know anyone. You do now," he reassured, placing a hand on Sirius'.

Sirius nodded and looked down at the hand on his unseeingly as he thought about it. Remus was right, he realised. He was only sixteen the last time; he didn't have the right contacts back then. Now, however, he knew a lot more people who could help him. He also had Remus who knew a lot of different people who worked in Research and in the Archives.

Plus, Sirius was an Auror now. In a way, it was his job to find people. Remus was also right when he said that the Ministry of Magic held files for nearly everyone in the UK's Wizarding World. Just because the Black's had rid themselves of Andromeda, it didn't mean that the MoM would.

He knew that they wouldn't destroy Andromeda's file – especially if she was a Black. She might be a disowned one but she was still biologically a part of the Black dynasty. Every part of the family was accounted for, being part of the influential family.

The more Sirius thought about it, the more he was convinced that he could probably find her now.

Remus sat patiently in his chair and waited while Sirius thought everything through. When Sirius finally spoke after a few minutes of silence, Remus started.

"You really think we could find her?" he asked quietly, looking at Remus again.

He knew there was a tinge of worry in his voice and he tried to mask it as best he could but it didn't matter how hard he tried; he knew Remus saw through it easily, having always been able to read him like a children's book. Sirius disguised it as much as he could nonetheless.

Remus stared unflinchingly into his eyes again and nodded determinedly. "I know we can," he said strongly, squeezing Sirius' hand reassuringly.

Sirius thought it through once more before he nodded and grinned nervously. "Okay," he murmured. "Okay, let's try and find her."

A/N: Greetings! So, I have rewritten this story because I read the original version and thought that it desperately needed improving and updating. I have also added a few new scenes and this one, as opposed to the original, is rated M (for reasons that will become clear in chapter four). The original version of Finding Andromeda has been deleted.

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoy the rest of the story! =)