Nineteen Years Later
Plot: AU in which the Lupins survived. Remus and Tonks are taking their children to Platform 9 and 3/4 to begin their school year at Hogwarts. This is basically the epilogue, just in Remus's POV and the Lupins are very much alive! Yay!
A/N: I would like to add now that I do not own Harry Potter, though here I saved some of her characters from their fate, and that there is some direct phrases from DH itself. I do not own those quotes, either. But then again, I am adding to Jo's epilogue script, so not everything is the same.
Without further ado, here you go! Please tell me what you think of this!
The crisp air of autumn had arrived quite suddenly this year. My family and I bobbed across the rumbling road toward the great sooty station, the fumes of car exhausts and the breath of pedestrians sparkled like cobwebs in the cold air. Teddy pushed his brother's trolley, making faces and mimicking voices at the indignant owl that was inside of the cage on top of the trunk.
Jack grinned, looking between his brother and his owl. I knew that Teddy was doing this to take some of Jack's nerves. He always made them laugh when they were having troubles. Jack grabbed a hold of the trolley and my two sons broke into a run towards the barrier, moments later they vanished.
Caroline gave Dora and I a slight wave and then turned, pushing her trolley through the barrier as well.
I meant to lead Dora and I on to Platform 9 and 3/4, but she stopped me. The simple tug of my hand made me turn to face her, knowing what was going on. She had cried last night as well, and by the look on her face I can tell that she is trying to fight the tears now.
"Dora," I said hoarsely, rubbing her back. "You can come to the castle now and sleep there if you wish. You won't have to stay home alone."
"I... I know," she cried. "I was going to sleep at the castle whether you wanted me to or not," I chuckled slightly and she went on. "It's just... My baby is going to Hogwarts now!"
I winced slightly. "Your baby is almost the same height as you, Dora... I think you need to come to terms with him growing up."
Dora shoved me away and wiped her face dry. "Teddy is taller than you and he is still my baby. They came out of my body; I'm allowed to coddle them."
I smiled slightly and nodded. I grabbed her hand and together, we walked through the barrier and onto the platform. The platform was obscured by thick white steam that was pouring from the scarlet Hogwarts Express. Indistinct figures were swarming through the mist, into which our children had already disappeared.
"Where are they?" Dora asked anxiously.
"We'll find them," I assured her, looking around through the thick vapor.
I heard Percy Weasley to my right and directed Dora to the left. He was scolding someone, probably his oldest daughter, Molly, about broom stick regulations.
"There!" Dora exclaimed, pointing forward only a little in front of us. Jack's trunk and owl were being loaded onto the train by Harry and Ron, who seemed to also have put Al's and Rose's things away too.
"Where did Teddy go?" Dora asked her son.
Jack shrugged. "Maybe to find James?"
I looked around at the kids and, sure enough, there was no James. I seriously doubted that Teddy would be able to find the thirteen year old, if that is even what he is doing, because James runs nearly everywhere he goes. Albus and Rose were standing beside each other, looking at the train with a nervous expression that was also on Jack's face. Lily bounded over to me, leaving her discussion with Hugo, and hugged me.
"I'm going to miss you," she whispered. "And your cakes."
I laughed and hugged Lily back. She has always been quite taken with me, she used to come to our house with her brothers and look through my pictures while the boys destroyed the home.
"I'll miss you, too, Lils, and all your compliments." She pulled back and grinned up at me happily. "Only two years, and you'll be going too."
Lily scowled. "I want to go now."
"I parked all right," Ron told me proudly, standing beside Harry and I now. "Hermione didn't believe that I could."
Hermione sighed and I got the impression that she's said this before. "I had complete faith in you, Ron."
Ron brushed off his wife's comment and Dora and I snorted, sharing a look.
"If you're not in Gryffindor, we'll disinherit you," said Ron to the kids. "But no pressure."
"Ron!" Dora, Hermione, and Ginny yelled at him, giving him a warning look.
Harry and I grimaced, looking at the new first years. Rose and Al looked solemnly at us and Lily and Hugo laughed at Ron. Jack turned back to look at me, looking rather alarmed too.
"He doesn't mean it," I told him, and Rose and Al. I looked at Ron purposely, trying to get Ron tell the children the same thing, but he wasn't paying attention any more.
He caught Harry's eyes and nodded past me. Dora and I turned as well, seeing a family of three some fifty yards away. The steamed had thinned momentarily allowing us to see them clearly. Draco Malfoy was standing there, talking to his wife who, if I remember correctly, was a Greengrass. They had one son and he looked much like his father. The resemblance was just as uncanny as it was with Jack and I, Albus and Harry.
"So that's little Scorpius," Ron said under his breath. I mentally questioned how he and Harry knew the boy's name, but Dora shrugged at my expression.
"Draco has been helping in the auror department lately, with the last mission that was just assigned," she explained. "He must have been eves-dropping and heard the name."
"Makes sure you beat him in every test, Rosie. Thank God you've inherited your mother's brains."
"Ron, for heaven's sake! Don't try to turn them against each other before they've even started school!" Hermione only sounded half stern, and Harry and I shared a grin.
"You're right, sorry," Ron said, raising his hands in defense. But, unable to help himself, he said, "Don't get too friendly with him, though, Rosie. Granddad Weasley would never forgive you if you married a pureblood."
"I think he meant 'I'," Dora muttered to Harry and I, and we both laughed.
Jack and Albus grinned at Rose, pleased to see that she was bright pink.
"Hey!" I turned around and jumped aside just in time for James to run into the center of the small circle we had formed, obviously bursting with news.
"Teddy's back there," he said breathlessly, glancing at all of us. He grinned more directly at Dora and I and I felt myself get a bit sick. That kind of grin could mean several different things. "Just seen him! And guess what he's doing?" We all stared at him, knowing better than to interrupt him. "Snogging Victoire!"
I felt my eye brows shoot towards my hairline. I had not expected to hear about my nineteen year old son snogging a barely of age Weasley, nonetheless a Weasley who had been one of his best friends growing up.
James looked around at us, evidently disappointed that the only reaction was Dora and I's eye brows disappearing behind our fringe.
"Our Teddy! Teddy Lupin!" he added, as if we had not known who he was talking about. "Snogging our Victoire! Our cousin! And I asked Teddy what he was doing -"
"You interrupted them?" said Ginny. "You are so like Ron -"
"- and he said he'd come to see her off! And then he told me to go away. He's snogging her!" James added loudly as though he was worried we hadn't paid attention.
"Oh, it would be lovely if they got married!" whispered Lily ecstatically to her mother and Dora. I cringed; he is way too young to think of getting married. "Then you would really be a part of the family!" I looked away from Lily's face, her face was too adorable to deny.
James seemed pleased to see Jack grinning at him about the 'Teddy snogging Victoire' news, and he grinned back happily.
"Looking forward to Slytherin, eh, JJ?"
"James," Harry warned, shaking his head. James backed off and I chuckled. Al looked suddenly indignant.
"What, he can only make me miserable!?"
Harry nodded. "He's your brother. You bother him just as much."
Albus gaped at his father and then shook his head at me, obviously confused at the injustice of it all.
"You better get on board," I told them, glancing down at my battered watch. "It's nearly eleven."
"Don't forget to give Neville our love," Ginny told James as she hugged him.
James made a disgruntled face. "Mum! I can't give a professor love!"
"But you know Neville."
"Outside, yeah, but at school he's Professor Longbottom, isn't he?" James adjusted his cloths coolly. "I can't walk into Herbology and give him love..."
Shaking his head at his mother, he aimed a kick at Al.
"Don't worry, Ginny," I said clearly in order so James could hear me. "Professors are allowed to show love, I'll be sure to dote on James in class."
She grinned mischievously back at me and James stopped messing with Al, looking horrified.
"You actually do that?" Al asked, also looking horrified.
"Oh, yes, he does." Caroline reappeared and stopped in between Harry and I. She threw me a look only fifteen year old girls could produce. "It's even worse when your last name is Lupin. Everyone knows how we know each other."
Jack, who had been smirking at the Potter boys, suddenly looked terrified at me. I smiled at him and ruffled Caroline's hair affectionately. She rolled her eyes and fixed it. Caroline turned and hugged me, muttering that she'd see me tonight, and then switched places with Jack to hug her mother.
"What if I am in Slytherin?"
I wouldn't have picked up on Al's whisper if it wasn't for my werewolf ability to hear better than an average person. I turned myself away as Harry crouched down to talk to his son - I understood from the past month or so that James had been making quite a big deal about it. I hugged Jack tightly. I knew I would see him tonight, of course, but at that time I will be his Defense professor and he will be my student.
I bent my knees a little big and ran my hands through his honey colored hair.
"You ready?" I asked softly.
Jack shrugged, playing with the hem of his t-shirt.
"It's okay to be nervous, JJ," I told him quietly. Jack sighed.
"What if nobody likes me?"
"Of people will like you," I told him easily. "You and Al are already best friends, and Rose will likely keep hanging out with you guys."
"But what if Al and I are in different houses?"
"Then you'll become friends with your dorm mates as well, you will still have classes with Al and can eat with him."
Jack bit his lip. After a moment he must have decided that he would be okay will only eating with Al if it came to that, and that living in the same room with other boys would most likely spawn him new friends. He nodded and gave me a feeble smile. I hugged him again tightly, and the whistle blew loudly.
I caught Dora's eye and she looked smugly. She's only more open with her emotions on our baby going to Hogwarts. I, on the other hand, am trying to remain passive. I assume by her smirk that I had momentarily faltered, though.
Jack climbed the aboard the Hogwarts Express and stood next to Al. Both of them waved at the other parents and I nervously, but both seemed very excited.
"Why are they all staring?" demanded Albus as he looked around. Jack shrugged in response.
"Don't let it worry you," said Ron. "It's me, I'm extremely famous."
I grinned as all the children laughed, and watched, waving at Jack, as the train rounded the corner and went out of sight. The steam evaporated and I Dora came up from behind me, tucking herself under my arm.
"He's going to be okay," she told me.
"I know he will," I told her, smiling. "Once he gets rid of his nerves I'm sure he'll be causing mayhem around the castle."
Dora laughed. "Of course he will be."
"I feel old, seeing JJ off," came a familiar voice.
Dora and I turned to see Teddy talking to his godfather absentmindedly.
"Yes, because I'm sure seeing Victoire off made you feel younger," said Dora dryly as we approached them.
Teddy turned a light pink to match his morphing hair. He opened his mouth to say something, but then shut it suddenly.
"Jamie - god damnit," he said, Harry grinned at him. "I'm going to send an owl after your son, if you don't mind."
Harry shook his head. "I don't mind at all," Ginny laughed, but swatted her husband's arm.
"Ooh," Lily said excitedly, looking up at Teddy with wonderment. "Write to Al first so he knows and can get a good seat. It will delight him!"
Teddy grinned at her and we all laughed.
"I will be sure to do that, Lily-Bug. Most definitely."
I looked around at all of the people who have become my family over the past nineteen years. Harry and I are very close now, as are our children. My children are considered part of the Weasley family, and we spend every holiday with them. All was well.
Did you like it? I very much hope you did - let me know! Sorry there's not much of 'Caroline Lupin', but what teenager spends that much time with their parents? And JJ stands for Jackson John. :) Thanks for reading!
