AN: I am nothing if not a patron of the pattern. Patterned titles, patterned number of chapters, patterned stories. The first two parts of this series are four chapters each, but at the end of chapter three of this fic, I just stopped. I actually stopped for NaNo, but in the process, I decided that I didn't want to end this series the way I had originally planned to do so (that would be with the canon deaths of my two main character).
So this is a happily ever after. And an unapologetic one at that. And even though it means that I don't get to include the scene which inspired me to write the whole thing in the first place, I am okay with it. Thank you all for following along.
Disclaimer: I do not own Harry Potter. Surprise!
Spoilers: Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince
Rating: Teens
Summary: The pieces are in play, and now destiny waits. Third and final part of the Adversus Luna Ne Loquitor Trilogy.
Chapter 1
Remus Lupin usually avoided Diagon Alley. Even before he was outed at Hogwarts he'd been uncomfortable there. When he was a student, when he went with Sirius and James and Peter, his furry little problem seemed unimportant. As an adult, however, the wolf loomed above him, making him undesirable. Even if those he met didn't know it, Remus was barred from their society, and he carried he stigma with him everywhere he went.
People wondered why he'd disappeared after Lily and James had died. He'd always assumed they'd chalked it up to grief and disillusionment. It was exceptionally rare for a Hogwarts Prefect to just vanish, after all. Traditionally, they went on to greatness. After Snape blew his cover, people stopped wondering. Instead of pity and vague confusion, Remus found himself the focus of distaste, mistrust and sometimes outright hatred.
By that point, however, he had very few ties to the wizarding world. Just Dumbledore and Harry, and a few people like Kingsley Shacklebolt who didn't care how he spent the full moon. He ordered things by owl, travelled as much as his limited funds would allow, kept to himself, and came to believe that it was better for everything that way.
But something was different now. Something had changed. For the first time in years, he longed for the wizarding world to accept him again. For the companionship of his colleagues, not just their respect and tolerance. For specific companionship.
He knew he might have missed his chance on that particular point. He had kissed her. She had kissed him, and when he's felt the wolf surge inside him, he'd shut it all down. He was afraid, more afraid than he'd ever been in his entire life. He'd always feared the wolf, the swell of emotions and feelings that accompanied it, but this was different. No potion could dull these instincts, and he found himself craving more.
There were rules, laws even, that should prevent him from pursuing this. He could barely walk down the street in the wizarding world, let alone be a fully contributing member of it. It wasn't fair to her.
Except he was sure that didn't bother her. She had never treated him as anything but a friend, and she trusted him enough that she had turned to him for help. And somewhere between his front door and his sofa, he had decided he didn't want to be her friend, and her immediate and unspoken agreement terrified him.
So here he was in Diagon Alley. A test. If he couldn't go to Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes, a place where he had no doubt of welcome from the proprietors, and make a simple purchase, he had no business pursuing anything with Tonks, regardless of their seemingly mutual attraction.
He had chosen this particular day deliberately. School had begun, so the rush was over, and during the day he was not liable to meet any Ministry employees. He would meet only a few people, and with luck, no one besides Fred and George would notice him, or care.
Weasley's Wizarding Wheezes was easily the most visible shop left in Diagon Alley. It was brazenly decorated, standing out from the drab and in some cases vacant shops that surrounded it. Remus couldn't help but smile when he saw it. Fred and George had clearly not been stifled under the Ministry's tenure at Hogwarts.
People had wondered where the twins had got their start up money, but Remus had not. Where Sirius had known Harry as a dreamt-up extension of James, Remus understood him quite well. Since they wished it kept a secret, Remus shared his conclusions with no one, and let everyone believe that the mail order business the twins had run was a disproportionate success.
The inside of the shop was even more flamboyant than the exterior. Remus, no fool, exercised extreme caution: he kept to the centre of the aisle and touched nothing. He's seen the twins as experimental fifth years. He could only guess at what they'd picked up in the interim.
"Moony!" Fred exclaimed loudly from a level above that Remus couldn't make out through the sheer amount of things that obstructed his gaze. "George, get down here! We've got an important customer!"
Remus winced. Fred's volume had ensured that every patron with a sight line was now staring at him. Any chance of anonymity was gone. At least Fred hadn't used his name.
The twins, identical to the last freckle as far as the world was concerned, though Remus never had a problem telling them apart, appeared beside him. He smiled at their sudden appearance, even though he knew how they'd contrived it, and shook both their hands.
"Welcome Mr. Moony," George said effusively. "We are very glad to welcome someone with your, shall we say, history of contribution.
Remus's answering smile was completely genuine. He never could have guessed what far reaching effects the Marauders' Map would have, but he was glad that it had crossed paths with the Weasley twins after Sirius had lost it to Peeves.
"Always a pleasure," he replied, and discovered he was telling the truth.
"What are you in the market for?" Fred asked.
"I'm not sure what it's called, actually," Remus admitted. "Crookshanks ate one, and your mother was furious."
"Ah, the Extendable Ear," George said airily. "One of our very first endeavours. A classic, if you will."
"We invented them specifically to eavesdrop on Igor Stravinsky," Fred added, leaning in conspiratorially.
"On who?" Remus asked.
"Muggle composer," said George with a wink. "Wrote a beautiful piece for the horn called the Firebird Suite."
"Ah," Remus said. "Excellent choice."
"We got it from Tonks," Fred said. Neither twin noticed the flicker of emotion that passed across their customer's face. "Her dad still loves that sort of music."
"That goodness Muggle Music is the one thing our father isn't obsessed with," George said.
"Oh, I can't see how any of it could be worse than 'A Cauldron Full of Hot, Strong Love'," Fred replied. Then his face grew serious. "Am I to assume, Mr. Moony, that you will be doing some work for Mr. Stravinsky?"
"You are," Remus replied, feeling a swell of pity for anyone who had ever thought these two were the duds of the family.
"We have a particular package for you, then," George said. "If you will step into one of your testing rooms, we will assemble it for you."
Remus followed George into a side room with a comfortable chair and table. Fred tossed him something small and flesh-coloured.
"That's the Ear," he explained. "Why don't you try it out while we assemble your package?"
The twins disappeared as Remus opened the Extendable Ear. It was a little gruesome looking at first, but once its Chameleon Charm kicked in, Remus could barely see it.
"Wingardium Leviosa!" Remus whispered, sending the Ear out into the hallway and setting it to hover in front of the first closed door he found. He put the string to his ear.
" – Frankly, Molly, I am not sure it's any of our business." Arthur Weasley's voice faded in like a radio being tuned.
"Arthur, I'm worried about them," Molly replied. "Both of them. It's not healthy."
Remus shifted in his seat, wondering what was so wrong with the twins that their parents would visit them in the middle of the day in Diagon Alley.
"I just think you could say something to him," Molly went on. "About how you understand a bit about what he's going through."
"What, because we're poor and the Ministry doesn't like us much, but we still manage to be happy?" Arthur said bitterly.
"Well, I don't know that you need to say it like that," Molly said. "But it wouldn't hurt Remus to know he's got friends and people who support him."
Remus nearly dropped the string connecting him to the Ear. They were talking about him and Tonks. They knew about him and Tonks.
"Andromeda things that Tonks is upset because of Sirius and Bellatrix," Molly said.
"It is rather upsetting," Arthur pointed out.
"Yes, and what did Andromeda have the last time Sirius and Bellatrix were involved in something that was upsetting?" Molly demanded. "What did we have, the first time You-Know-Who came to power? And again now with – Percy?"
For a long moment, Arthur Weasley was silent. Remus found he was holding his breath.
"You're sure?" Arthur said finally.
"I'm sure," his wife replied.
"All right," Arthur said. "I'll – "
Remus heard footsteps approaching and jerked the string. The Extendable Ear flew back into his hand just as George arrived with a large brown box.
"It's the Shield Hat," George explained off of Remus's questioning look. "Apparently we've made it immune to compaction charms."
"I see," Remus said. He was unable to stop the ghost of a smile from appearing on his face, even given his present state of shock. "What do I owe you, then?"
"Igor Stravinsky sends his compliments," George replied. When Remus would have protested, he held up a hand. "Don't. It's standard procedure. If it makes you feel any better, we're fleecing the Ministry."
"And they know it," Fred appeared in the room. "They even sent our own father to pick up their order. Thought it would soften us up."
"Mum came with him," George said. "You should say hello."
"No!" Remus said emphatically. Both twins looked at him. "No, I must be going. This part of the Firebird Suite is a little time sensitive."
Both twins instinctively glanced upwards for a moon they couldn't see through the ceiling of their shop. They nodded their understanding, and showed Remus out of the shop with instructions to report on each item's effectiveness upon his return.
Once back on the street, Remus felt his legs nearly give way. It was easy to misjudge the Weasleys. Most people who met them forgot that they had raised seven of the best wizards and witches in their generation. Even Remus, who was often misunderstood himself, had counted them short. Molly Weasley missed nothing, and she never fought a battle she didn't know she could win.
What unnerved him was not their knowledge of his personal life, but rather their ease with it. For the first time since getting this assignment from Dumbledore, he rebelled against it. He wanted to go to her, to tell her what he'd heard and that he was sorry, and that he – that he loved her.
Somewhere in Muggle London, a church bell began to toll the hour. Remus counted the strokes and sighed. There was no time. It was for the best, he decided, as he prepared to Apparate. There were simply too many things in the way, and she deserved someone who wouldn't have to disappear every twenty-eight days.
As the sounds of Diagon Alley were abruptly replaced by those of the Forbidden Forest, he heard a wolf howl in the distance.
It was time to get to work.
