The Three Broomsticks pub wasn't quite full when they arrived, and they were able to grab a table in the corner, away from the prying eyes of students. Rosmerta herself came to take their order.
"Charity," she said, "I was wondering when you'd drag your fellows down here; Aurora, Septima, good to see you," her gaze fell on Lyra, and she frowned slightly, "You're new, I think."
"Lyra," she said, "Lyra Rosier," she emphasized the 'Rosier' in case Rosmerta got any ideas. Sirius had spent a lot of time here, she knew, and she could almost see the proprietor connecting the family resemblance.
"Lyra teaches Artificing," Burbage said, "It's new this year."
"I see," Rosmerta's gaze lingered on her a bit longer than strictly necessary, but eventually looked back at the rest of the table.
No one else seemed to have noticed, too busy perusing the handwritten menu at the bar.
"We'll start with a round of butterbeer, I think," Burbage said, gesturing her hand in a circle, "Probably too early for much else, but we'll do lunch in a bit."
Rosmerta nodded, and went to fetch them the drinks.
By the time Lupin arrived at half noon, Lyra was halfway through her second glass of whiskey and Rosmerta had taken to eyeing her with open suspicion every time she came by.
Lupin slid into the seat next to her, folding his lanky figure neatly to fit in the small space. Burbage and Sinistra looked up from their conversation as he did so, and smiled.
"You made it," Burbage said, "I wasn't sure if you would, Lyra was in a right mood; I wondered if she'd scared you off."
Lyra rolled her eyes, "I was perfectly polite."
Lupin gave a small smile, "She was fine, really, I just had some last minute things to grade."
"Remus Lupin, you naughty boy, how long has it been?" Rosmerta said loudly as she approached the table again, arms wide, "I heard a rumor you were teaching at Hogwarts, but I didn't believe it - you wouldn't go so long without seeing me."
"Rosie, my dear, would you believe I simply haven't had the time?" Lupin grinned widely, even as Rosmerta threw her arms around him.
"My boy, when I heard about James and Lily, I cried for three days, you poor thing. And then to learn Black was arrested the next day," she shot Lyra a dark look, "Well, whatever you want is on the house, I insist," Rosmerta turned to Burbage and the rest, "Remus and his friends were some of my favorite students in their day," she said.
"James and Sirius came by weekly at one point," Lupin said, once Rosmerta had left, "Always bought way too much for the quidditch after parties as well. Rosie loved them."
Lyra hummed in response, sipping her drink. She was reasonably certain it wasn't the goblin made whiskey she'd asked for, but was resolved to ignore the slight.
"She must have loved you too, I think if I called her Rosie she'd chase me out of here," Vector said.
"Well you are a handsome young professor, aren't you?" Burbage laughed.
Lupin had the decency to blush slightly, scars across his face stark against the red skin.
Rosmerta came back, carrying Lupin's drink and a pitcher of water, which she managed to drip all over Lyra as she refilled water glasses. Lyra felt a headache start. This was a waste of time; she could have been working on her research, using the quiet castle to look up more old English stories for hints on the sword. Croaker hadn't responded to her yet, and she was thinking of writing to him again in case the owl had gotten lost - it wouldn't be the first time the man was unreachable; she'd send the next letter directly to his office.
With that thought in mind, she pushed her unfinished drink aside, moving to stand.
"Leaving so soon?" Lupin asked quietly, "I only just got here."
"Headache," Lyra said, "Think I'll go see Poppy, I've been meaning to see her anyways."
Burbage looked over, "You can't leave yet, we haven't gotten to the fun part."
"Betting on student couples," Sinistra said, "Five galleons Weasley and Clearwater break up during N.E. ," she gestured to a table where the Head Boy and Girl sat, sharing a butterbeer and pouring over a stack of notes.
"It's barely November, exams are ages away," Vector said, "I give them until Christmas, I reckon Weasley will panic."
At another table, Roslyn Perks was gesturing animatedly at the Hufflepuff boy she'd been with at the beginning of the year in the Astronomy tower.
"Who's the Hufflepuff with Perks?" Lyra asked, nodding towards them.
"Michael Stebbins," Vector said, "He's a good kid, too good for Perks."
"She'll eat him alive," Sinistra agreed.
Lyra's head throbbed. She reluctantly sat back down, and rubbed her temples.
A soft snapping noise made her look at Lupin. He'd pulled a bar of chocolate from somewhere and was breaking it into chunks.
"Here," he said, handing her a piece, "it's not Poppy, but it helps my headaches."
It was dark chocolate, with a higher cocoa content than she'd seen at Honeydukes. She expected it to be bitter, but it wasn't, it was surprisingly smooth and faintly nutty.
"I got this one from Brazil," Lupin said, "Sirius always liked dark chocolate over milk, so I got used to carrying it around. It's found its way back into rotation lately."
He wrapped the bar back in the packaging and tucked it into a coat pocket.
"Thanks," Lyra said. Her headache wasn't gone, but it didn't throb anymore.
"Bets on Granger and younger Weasley?" Sinistra said, "Odd seeing them without Potter."
"It's for the best," Vector said, shaking her head, "from what I've heard, anyway. Potter needs to be careful."
"I didn't think Weasley was Granger's type," Burbage said, "She's much too smart for him."
Lupin frowned, engaging in the game for the first time, "I wouldn't say so," he said, "Ron is quite competent himself."
"Oh he's competent," Sinistra said, "but he is rather underperforming compared to his brothers. Well, maybe except the twins."
"I rather like George and Fred," Lyra said, "They're quite clever if you motivate them properly."
Vector slapped the table gently, "I give them three years to dance around the issue before doing something about it. Ten galleons, anyone taking it?"
"Ten galleons on Weasley and Granger not getting together for three years? You're on," Burbage said, grinning.
The rest of lunch continued similarly, and by the time the group was making its way back to the castle, Lyra was feeling better, and admittedly glad she'd stuck around. Burbage didn't know when to stop talking, but Sinistra and Vector were used to quietly shushing her to let someone else carry the conversation for a while. Lupin had a dry humor she remembered from school, and if he didn't speak often, the others found themselves listening when he did. On the way out, Burbage grabbed Rosmerta in a side hug.
"Be nicer to Lyra next time. She's going to stick around for a while," she said.
Lyra raised an eyebrow; she didn't think anyone had noticed the proprietor's casual rudeness.
Rosmerta didn't say anything, but met Lyra's eyes and gave her a small nod.
The good mood was short-lived, though, as they arrived at the castle to find Snape waiting.
"A word?" He said quietly to her, as the others disappeared to get ready for the Halloween feast.
Lyra frowned and folded her arms, leaving a good six feet between her and Snape.
"I want to apologize for my earlier behavior, it was… uncouth," he said, taking her silence as an answer.
She didn't respond.
"I admit, Halloween is a… difficult time for me. To remember my part in everything is beyond my capacity for comprehension, and Halloween reminds me that it happened, that I..." he trailed off, swallowing.
Students had started trickling back in from Hogsmeade, cheeks red from the wind, arms laden with bags. Lyra sighed, and looked at Snape.
"Are you more sorry for what you did, or that she died, Severus?"
He opened his mouth to answer, eyes narrowing.
Lyra continued over him, "Because I rather think you dislike Halloween not because of the things you did in the war, but the things you didn't do. It's time to grow up and learn that being responsible includes your inactions just as much as your actions."
The trickle of students became a flood, and as the doors to the outside opened to let them in, the afternoon sun streamed through, illuminating the entrance hall. Lyra watched the dust dance as the hall filled with voices.
"You called me a coward, earlier," Lyra said softly, "and you were right, sort of. I was a coward. But I made peace with myself years ago, after I watched Regulus die, and Sirius... go away. I had to. You need to do the same."
Lyra heavily debated not going to the Halloween feast, her headache back and worse than before. She only reluctantly forced herself to the hospital wing after she realized it would make Snape think she lost whatever it was they had going on. It didn't seem right, telling him to grow up, and then hiding away in her sixth floor rooms all evening.
She took the headache relief potion from a distracted Pomfrey, who was busy with a student sprouting a large jack-o'-lantern for a head, and descended slowly into the chaos of the feast.
She didn't intend to stay late, but got wrapped into a conversation with Babbling, about the latest edition of the Spellman's Syllabary.
"They've finally organized it sensibly," Babbling said, "alphabetically, instead of randomly."
"I'm not convinced it was totally random, but at least I'll be able to find things now," Lyra agreed.
"And the ability to search for rune or function translation will make it so much easier on students."
The pair left the Great Hall last, trailing behind a Ravenclaw prefect who was rounding up some sleepy first years. Lyra had almost made it to the stairs when a frantic looking Percy Weasley came clattering down.
"Professor," he said, out of breath, "we need the Headmaster, the Fat Lady has been attacked, and Peeves says -" he stopped as Dumbledore himself came up behind her.
"What does Peeves say?" He said urgently, gesturing for Lyra to follow him.
"He says it was Sirius Black, sir," Weasley said, "but that can't be right, can it?"
"We shall need to find the Fat Lady, but first get all the students into the Great Hall," Dumbledore cast his eyes around, locating McGonagall.
"Minerva, get the rest of the Heads to bring their students to the hall, I don't want any student left out of sight tonight," he turned to Lyra, "I need you to fetch Remus and get to work seeing if Sirius is still in the castle. If anyone will be able to find him, it's you two."
Lyra nodded, and ran for Lupin's chambers, a strange ringing in her ears.
Was he really here? Had be been so stupid as to come where the Ministry thought he would, where Dumbledore lived and worked and protected?
She nearly ran into Lupin as she turned the corner, steading herself by yanking on his sleeves.
"He's been here, we need to find him," she said.
Lupin's eyes widened, "Where was he seen?"
"Gryffindor tower, attacked the portrait to the common room. She's missing as well, but Dumbledore said -"
"He wants us looking for him. Right, there's a few shortcuts off the tower we should check first, and then…" he trailed off, looking uncertain, "No, even he wouldn't be so stupid…"
Lyra has already started back towards the tower, catching the last sentence as more of a mumble than anything else.
"He's already come to Hogwarts, I'm not sure he's thinking clearly. If there's something you know, we need it."
Lupin didn't move. Lyra looked back, and saw emotions flashing across his face in rapid succession.
"Remus, what do you know?" Lyra asked again, more quietly.
He scrubbed a hand across his face, fingernails digging into his skin, leaving red marks, "Third floor. The statue of that humpbacked witch. It's closer than any of the other exits, especially if he was caught as people left the hall."
Lyra nodded, setting off for the stairs again. She heard Lupin swear quietly behind her, then follow.
Lupin overtook her as they approached the statue. The hallway was empty, almost too quiet. He pulled out his wand, and stopped, head tilted slightly, like a dog on a scent.
"Sirius, you wanker, you better not be here," Lupin said softly, and tapped the statue.
Lyra wasn't sure what she was expecting but she didn't have much time to think as the statue swung open like a door, revealing a dark passageway.
"What is this?" She asked.
"One of many secrets to our escapades," Lupin said, "One I am always surprised stayed a secret," he ducked into the tunnel, lighting his wand as he did so.
The passage was carved from stone and sloped gently downward. It was tall enough for Lyra to stand up, but Lupin had to hunch to avoid hitting the ceiling. As their wands swept back and forth, small carvings stood out on the walls. Crude lions, snakes, badgers, and eagles, etched out by some long gone students. A wobbly but identifiable Hogwarts crest. And, further down, names.
Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs were here
The names seemed familiar, somehow, like a half forgotten dream.
Lupin suddenly stiffened, "He's still in the tunnel, we can catch him if we hurry," he took off running, an awkward movement, considering he still had to duck.
Caught off guard, Lyra hurried to follow him. She had no idea how he could tell anyone was in the tunnel, she could barely see outside the light her wand cast.
The ground began sloping back upwards, and just on the edge of her light, Lyra saw Lupin raise his wand for a spell.
A low growl echoed through the tunnel.
Lyra reached the top of the slope, finding a ladder up and Lupin frozen, staring down a large black dog. There was no sign of Sirius.
The dog growled again, eyes wide, whites showing. It moved towards the base of the tladder.
"Remus," Lyra said slowly, "on three I will cast an incarcerating spell to keep the dog away. You need to get up that ladder after Sirius."
Lupin slowly lowered his wand, "No."
"What?"
"He's long gone by now," Lupin's voice was strained, "It's not worth provoking whatever this is that he's conjured."
"We can still catch -"
"He's gone, Lyra, we should go back and help the staff."
"I don't even know where that ladder goes, how can he be gone? What is this dog? I don't understand."
"You don't have to. We should go back. He knows we're both here now, and I don't think he'll be stupid enough to try again."
"This is ridiculous, move, I'll do it myself," she pushed past Lupin, raising her own wand.
The dog sprang at her. Lupin shouted a spell. Everything went dark.