A/N: Sorry for being late, guys! I got side-tracked with work. But to make up for it, I'm sure you'll like what I have in store this time around. ;)
Disclaimer: I do not own Remus Lupin, Sirius Black, or any other recognizable character for the Wizarding World universe. I own, however, my OCs the Selwyns and several minor OCs. The plot had been written purely for entertainment value.
Chapter fifteen: The right side
November 1995. London.
It was rather stupid, but as Sirius guided Selene towards the house's large kitchen, she almost felt more an outsider than she had at the Potters' wedding. Here, trapped between four walls, anything could happen; anyone could decide to jinx her for the sole crime of being a Selwyn.
But, apparently, her cousin had anticipated her unease, and smiled a bit as he said "Don't worry, there's only six of us here at this time of the week. And you know half of them." He opened the door and descended the few steps that led into the room.
Selene had perhaps been in the Black's kitchen once in all her life, and she couldn't remember why, not matter how hard she tried to remember. She could honestly say that it hadn't been this clean at the time, though. Nor as…warm?
There was the scent of soup hanging in the air, and something akin to bread, and a stout red-haired woman was charming several pots, humming to herself as she worked. Selene looked at her, wide-eyed. She had never seen a witch do her own cooking willingly, or not in passing. It was…new.
The three other people present were all men, and were sitting at the long table, joking, chuckling and showing each other various articles of the Daily Prophet. Among them, of course, was Remus, accompanied by a balding red-head and a dark-skinned wizard clad in beautiful purple robes and who was vaguely familiar.
"Oh, Sirius, Tonks, here you are!" the woman said, leaving the pots to stir themselves and wiping her hands on her apron as she came to stand in front of Selene. From the corner of her eye, the dark-haired witch saw Remus stand, but she kept her attention on the stranger facing her. "Hello, you must be Miss Selwyn! I'm Molly Weasley."
Selene's eyes widened further, but she didn't comment, either on the use of a formal tone, or on the fact that this woman's last name was notorious for belonging to Blood-Traitors. Members of the Sacred Twenty-Eight, but traitors nonetheless.
Sirius sighed. "Molly…"
"What?" the other woman said, stern, as if she was chastising her child. "Dumbledore doesn't trust her, so I don't!"
Selene pursed her lips. "Well, for what it's worth, I don't trust him either, so we're even."
There was an awkward silence, then Tonks started laughing loud, as if what her 'cousin' had just said was the funniest thing in the world.
Sirius himself smiled before gently pulling her towards the table. "Don't mind Molly. She'll come 'round. Hey Remus, what have you got there?" He joined his best friend, pouring over the same newspaper clips while the werewolf still stared at Selene, as if silently asking if she was alright.
In lieu of a clear answer, she turned to the last two people present. "Good…is it morning?"
"Afternoon," Tonks said, sitting down and grabbing a nearby piece of toast.
"Good afternoon, then, gentlemen. Thank you for letting me sit at the table."
The red-head was the first to kindly smile at her. "Not at all. I'm Arthur. Weasley. Molly's husband. I believe we are loosely related."
She snorted. "Purebloods are related thirty-six different ways, these days…"
He chuckled. "Indeed. This is Kingsley Shacklebolt. You may have crossed paths with him before."
She stared at the dark-skinned stylish wizard, and nodded. Now she remembered. "You are an Auror, aren't you?"
"I am. And so you must understand the importance of your discretion once you leave this place." Again, she nodded, as Sirius nudged her to force her to sit down.
"Kings wasn't supposed to come today, but he wanted to be here when you came down."
She looked at the man in question, puzzled. "Why trust me with this, if Dumbledore doesn't?"
He shrugged. "I trust Remus' judgement."
She turned her gaze to said man, but he avoided hers pointedly.
Just before a steaming cup of tea was placed in front of her, Selene heard Sirius' angered "And why don't you trust me when I say she's alright?" The answer was obvious.
Selene left 12, Grimmauld Place the following day. She slept in the old library, which had been miraculously cleaned of all dark objects and somewhat redecorated, and when the sun rose, she breathed deeply before saying her goodbyes for now and Disapparating back to Dorset.
She was half-expecting to be dead before she'd see Sirius and Remus again, but obviously, she didn't tell them that.
Minty was upon her as soon as she materialised in the hallway of her dear home, although it still felt empty without the two men that had occupied it not so long prior.
"Where has Mistress been? Minty has been worried sick! Minty thought Mistress had been abducted!"
Selene sighed, dropping into an armchair in the sitting-room tiredly. "Well, it wasn't far from the truth. I was a prisoner. In Master Sirius' old home." The House-Elf came to stand next to her, wide eyes narrowing with surprise and also quite a bit of anger. It prompted her, unknowingly, to tell the small creature everything that had happened. Almost.
Minty was fuming by the time she was done. Selene wouldn't have been surprised to see actual smoke come out of her ears. "Minty is going to pay a visit to that Mister Dumbledore! How uncivilized, how cruel, how rude!"
Selene could have laughed, because the sight of the tiny Elf getting all riled up was funny indeed, but instead, she raised a hand. "Don't. I'll handle it. For now, if you don't mind, I'd like a warm and relaxing bath before I go to work and have to spin a convincing lie for my absence.
Minty nodded and seemed to think hard. "Mistress relax. Minty will find a good excuse."
In the end, the most credible explanation for a near on three weeks' absence was dragonpox. Selene had been loath to use it, but it had been must easier a lie to spin than anything else she could come up with. She applied makeup on her face to give the illusion of fading spots, and reported to Frances Bowen as soon as she was out of the lifts.
Bowen, unsurprisingly, was very much displeased with Selene's lack of communication on the matter, but accepted her apology and lie that she was too sick to send an owl. She was sent back to her office and tasked to file in the dozens of cases that had been neglected on her desk. Off duty for another week, just in case any weird symptoms lasted.
Going in her office, Selene made a show of loudly announcing that her door had a problem, and jinxed it in a way that a simple Reparo couldn't fix it. She had hunch that she shouldn't close that panel of wood if she wished to last the day.
She was right on that account.
She didn't count twenty minutes since she'd sat down on her chair before her dear brother barged in, red in the face as if he'd run the whole length of London. He was visibly fuming, and she internally cheered.
"You…" he started, panting like one of those old, balding and fat men after climbing a short flight of stairs. "You…" he repeated, this time, as if he was hesitating on the word to use.
Selene smiled cruelly. "I wouldn't get too close, Aurus. I might still be contagious."
The red on his face turned crimson. "What…lie…have you come up with, this time, you whore?"
She chuckled, making a show of checking something on her desk, as if totally disinterested in him. "I love how your vocable always seems to involve me and countless other men, dear brother. It's not at all improbable…"
A fist connected with the wood of her desk, making ink spill from its bottle and stain the papers she'd been checking. She didn't vanish it immediately, instead rising her gaze to his, appearing unfazed.
"I swear I will find out where you've been hiding from me, you filthy traitor! And when I do, I promise you that you will receive a house-warming visit you'll never forget!"
Selene chuckled louder, taunting him. "You don't scare me anymore, Aurus. You did, back when I was a stupid little girl who thought her Father was right about everything. Unfortunately for you, I've grown a brain. Now, if you don't mind, I have work to catch up on after being bedridden for so long. And, you're making a scene."
Aurus whirled around, glaring at the three people who'd come to check who had been raising their voice so loud in their tiny corridor. He may have been an Auror, but they didn't budge.
He turned back to his sister one last time, and pointed a finger in her face. "I'll find proof, little harlot. I'll find it."
With one last smile, she said "Good luck" and watched as he exited her office, still fuming. Inwardly, she hoped he had a heart-attack on his way back up to the DMLE.
December 1995. 12, Grimmauld Place.
Aurus' threats did not scare Selene one bit, but they still hung meaningfully over her head each time she left home to go to work. She'd asked for her door to be taken off, officially, so she could breathe fresher air and avoid dragonpox after-effects. The truth was, she wanted witnesses every time her brother or his goons came down to try and scare her.
After a couple of weeks during which she daren't go back, she wrote Sirius to ask if she could pop into Grimmauld Place to see him and other few friendly faces.
He'd asked her to come in after 5 p.m. to make sure she didn't see any Order members she shouldn't meet – yet – and she had done as bid.
Tonks had welcomed her with a half-hug she grimaced upon receiving – Sirius laughed a lot – and Molly had seemed a bit warmer when offering her a piece of carrot cake she'd made for the meeting.
That evening, Selene met two other Order members: the tall and beautiful Hestia Jones, and the small and stuttering Dedalus Diggle with his huge hat. Remus hadn't been there, but Arthur and Kingsley had regaled her with stories that made her smile slightly.
After that, she decided to indulge in visits more and more often. Not to mention to give the Order information when she could ear anything of value within the halls of the Ministry. Since Aurus had lost all faith in her, she wasn't welcome in his circle…but she had her ways.
One evening, a bit before Christmas break, she decided to spend the night. Sirius had told her the library was now officially 'her' room, and he'd asked Arthur to install a screen at the end of the room with a daybed and some blankets. She was touched.
Alastor Moody, whom she'd met only once before and who obviously didn't trust her as far as he could throw her, had just left with Tonks for some Auror business, leaving the house in the custody of Sirius, Remus and Selene. The Weasleys had kept to their own home, for once.
"So…" Sirius started, letting his long hair hang low in his face like the teenager he wasn't anymore, "what are you two drinking?"
Selene pursed her lips. "Sirius…I'm not getting drunk."
Remus nodded his assent. "Neither am I, Pads."
"Spoil sports, the both of you…" The dark-haired wizard stood from the table, heading to a buffet where were kept various bottles of wines, liquors and spirits. He seemed to know what each one tasted like intimately. "Besides, it's time you knew what bliss feels like, cousin."
Remus immediately turned his green and amber gaze to hers, a brow raised in surprise. "Have you never gotten drunk, Sel?"
She liked that nickname far too much for what it was worth… Huffing, she said "Of course I have. Alone."
Sirius snorted, head buried in the furniture, clinking sounds the only clue that he was still looking for something specific. "Yeah, well, we need proof."
Cruel, implacable, she said "First time I got drunk was when your brother died. Second time when you got imprisoned. Third time when you broke out of jail."
Sirius turned around so quickly he bumped quite hard into the wood with a loud 'Ow!', and he faced her, eyes wide, a dusty bottle of what looked like Firewhiskey in his hand. "What?"
She shrugged. "Yes, well, I didn't really feel that good for either of these circumstances, so-"
"-You've only gotten drunk three times in your entire life?!" Apparently, that was more preposterous than the reason for her drunkenness. Fair enough.
Remus chuckled, although not at her, but at his best friend. "Not all people in this world are as naughty as we once were, old friend…"
Selene turned to the werewolf, her turn to be surprised. "What's that supposed to mean?"
Sirius grinned as he uncorked the mysterious bottle and poured amber liquid into three shot glasses. "Oh, right… Second Year, wasn't it? Prongs had nicked a bottle from his old Dad when we went to Potter Manor for Easter… Hurt like a bitch the following morning, but totally worth it."
Selene grimaced, affronted. "You two got drunk when you were twelve?"
"Thirteen," they both countered, as if that was any better.
"And not again until Fifth Year, by the way," Sirius said with the same fond grin. "We were celebrating our first successful transformations, right Moony?"
The werewolf's gaze turned fond as well. "Yes, that was a good night to remember."
"I never asked," Selene said, a bit curious now, even as she pointedly ignored the glass her cousin had placed in front of her on the table, "what did James turn into?"
Both friends shared pained but fond glances, and Remus answered. "James was a stag."
"Endless jokes material," Sirius sighed in nostalgia, emptying his own glass in one long gulp.
Selene stared at him, severe. "You shouldn't drink this fast."
"Yes, Mum," he joked, pouring himself another, then raising his now filled glass. "A toast. To lasting friendships, and true family."
He almost made her want to raise her glass too. Almost.
Two hours later, the Firewhiskey was no more, and Sirius had indulged a bit too much. Remus had drunk about five glasses himself, but with more moderation, while Selene had only been coerced into tasting one. She had to admit that the brew was quite tasty, even if she didn't ask for another pour.
"Guys, I'm plastered. Heading off to bed." Sirius wobbled on his way to the door, making Remus chuckle at his state.
The sound made Selene stare at him, almost in awe. She had always been quite partial to Remus' laughter. Or to his entire person, to be more precise.
It was quite alright, until he caught her looking.
They stared at each other silently for another long moment, and although she hadn't had more than one shot of Firewhiskey, Selene found herself start to blush.
In a vain attempt to defuse the moment, she calmly said "We should make sure Sirius doesn't become alcoholic."
Remus nodded, because it was a viable concern and an important topic, but instead of answering right away, he gently reached for her hand on the table, and took it in his own.
Her breath caught.
"Sel," he said, half-whispering, "back in June…"
The blush came back tenfold. Oh. Yes, of course. That evening. That magical moment in her garden. The sunset. The kiss… She'd hoped he'd never bring it up again, but she had been quite wrong in her assessment of the man, it seemed. "What about it?"
He leaned forward, not close enough, but closer, a small smile tugging on his lips. "I had been on the verge of making you admit you loved me."
She huffed, though she did not pull her hand free from his grasp. "You weren't on the verge of making me admit anything."
"Are you sure about that?" The smile that appeared was teasing for a moment, then it turned pained. "Sel… It's been eighteen years… I deserve the truth, don't you think?"
Her heart skipped a beat. Eighteen years? How had time passed so quickly? To her, the first moment she had set eyes on him, in a library far North in Hogwarts, could have been only moment prior… She gasped, and he seized her moment of weakness.
"Did you truly never feel anything for me at all?" And, just to dig her grave and bury her in it, he added, quietly, softly, like a simple breath, "Because I was and still am quite in love with you, you know…"
Her eyes widened the size of saucers, and Selene froze, unable to compute what had just been said. Love. Love was for kids, it was a fake thing, a fairy tale that mothers told their daughters about to make them accept marriage easier. It didn't exist. It couldn't exist.
But then, what else could she call the way her heart stopped whenever Remus looked at her? The butterflies that flew in her stomach when they kissed? The raging fire she felt when he wasn't near? What was it, if it wasn't love?
Her epiphany must have shown on her face, because he smiled again, closer still than he'd been, and asked, quieter still, almost inaudible now, "Please say it."
Selene let go of her principles then, and she leaned in, kissing him gently before breathing against his lips a secret "I love you too, Remus."
And just like that, it was said.
And just like that, they kissed each other again, soft, gentle, loving. If Selene wasn't wrong, she also was crying.
Problem was?
Sirius had come back down for a glass of water…
"What the freaking fuck?!"