Dumbledore knocked on the front door, the porch light shining in his half-moon glasses. He glanced down at the young girl stood next to him. She looked terrified as they waited patiently for the door to be answered. Nobody did.
"Is he in?" Severus asked quietly, his dark eyes avoiding his niece, who was close to tears.
"Remus does not leave the house often," Dumbledore answered as a light inside the house was turned on. Someone inside was unbolting the many locks that kept out enemies and swung the door open to examine his visitors. He seemed surprised to see Dumbledore on his doorstep and was about to ask what had happened, when he noticed Severus stood behind him, a surly expression clouding his face. Remus froze, his eyes flicking from Dumbledore to Severus, and then eventually to young Esme, who was cowering behind Dumbledore's robes.
"What's happened?" Remus asked quickly, his dark eyes softening at the sight of his friend's daughter.
"Remus, we need to come in and explain," Dumbledore said in a low voice and Remus instantly held the door further open, allowing the old wizard to pass. As Severus followed, the two men exchanged dark looks, but Remus smiled at Esme, who had scurried behind Severus, her dark hair obscuring the majority of her face.
"Where's Elizabeth?" Remus eventually asked once Dumbledore had settled himself on Remus' battered sofa. Severus remained standing, lurking in the corner of the room, and Esme seemed lost, standing next to Dumbledore, her big eyes widening at the mention of her mother.
"Bellatrix and Rodolphus found her," Dumbledore said quietly, his grey eyes flickering to young Esme. She stayed silent, still unsure as to what was going on. All she knew was that her mother was hurt and her uncle and this strange man had taken her to one of her mother's friends, whom she barely knew.
"Is she –?" Remus asked, but didn't require an answer. It was obvious that Elizabeth had been killed, otherwise Severus and Dumbledore wouldn't be there. Remus ran his fingers through his hair, shocked at his friend's death. He had always been close to Elizabeth at school, and when their other friends, Lily and James Potter, were murdered, Elizabeth and Remus had comforted each other. They had grown closer, very close. In fact, he was beginning to have feelings –
"We're here about Esme," Severus said, moving the conversation on so he wouldn't have to think about his sister's death. Remus didn't look surprised as he glanced at the young girl. "She needs somewhere to live."
"I thought that since your reconciliation, Elizabeth trusted you to bring Esme up if she died," Remus said bitterly, moving to sit next to Dumbledore, his eyes still on the young witch.
"I can't look after her," Severus said firmly. Remus smirked, his tired eyes closing slightly.
"Why not?" he asked, rubbing his forehead in exhaustion. Severus raised an eyebrow, his eyes flickering over to Dumbledore for a second, before glancing at Esme, who was watching the conversation unhappily.
"Remus, we need her to live with you," Dumbledore said calmly, smiling at the young girl. "Elizabeth trusted you the most, and she would no doubt trust you to raise her daughter."
"Even with… your little problem," Severus sneered quietly, his dark eyes full of menace.
Despite being irritated by Severus' remark, Remus could see his point. He couldn't raise a young girl, because once a month he transformed into a monster, and could seriously harm her. He glanced at Dumbledore, who seemed to know exactly what he was thinking.
"Every month, Esme will be placed in the care of Andromeda Tonks until you are well again," he said slowly and Remus looked surprised. Andromeda Tonks was Sirius' cousin, but, more importantly, Bellatrix's estranged sister.
"You could be putting Esme in danger if Andromeda looks after her," Remus said urgently. "If Bellatrix sees her –"
"Andromeda has assured me that she and her sister will not contact each other again," Dumbledore interrupted.
"You have already talked to her?" Remus asked, suspicious. If they were bringing Esme to him, it was most likely that Elizabeth had died recently, so Dumbledore couldn't possibly have spoken to Andromeda yet.
"Elizabeth asked that I make plans for Esme if she was ever found by Bellatrix and Rodolphus," Dumbledore calmly lied. "I contacted Andromeda a week ago and asked her to take Esme in full time, but her own daughter is only thirteen and still at Hogwarts, so she wasn't sure that she would be able to raise another child. However, she agreed to look after Esme for one night a month."
Esme looked up at the sound of her name, and Remus glanced at her. Her bright blue eyes were staring at him as she silently struggled to place his strangely familiar face. Remus couldn't help but soften towards the young girl; she looked so much like her mother.
"Esme doesn't have any other family that are willing to take her in," Dumbledore said softly as Esme eventually remembered who Remus was and smiled at him, as memories filled her head. She closed her eyes, watching them, fascinated. They were Remus' memories; of him and her mother at school, throughout graduation, at Elizabeth and Sirius' wedding, Esme's christening and throughout the previous five years, as they spent more time together once Sirius was arrested. Both Remus and Elizabeth usually seemed really happy when they were together. Remus had even taken Elizabeth and Esme out on Esme's last birthday.
"What is she doing?" Remus asked, pulling Esme back to present tense.
"Esme is a natural at Legilimens," Dumbledore explained, smiling fondly at the young girl, who was more comfortable now. She glanced again at Remus, who couldn't help but smile at Esme's abilities.
"If she is to live with me, you must take her in once a month," Remus said quietly, looking at Dumbledore, who nodded in agreement.
"She must be raised away from prying eyes, Remus," the old wizard said. "Her father's betrayal is still fresh in people's minds and there is still a chance that the Lestranges might come looking for her. I will tell Fudge that you have found a guardian for her, and she is now living in France and will attend Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. That means that when she does eventually attend Hogwarts, she must attend under a false name, for her own protection. I am sure that you understand how prejudice can affect a young life."
Remus nodded, suddenly realising how his life was about to change. Dumbledore smiled and rubbed his hands together, raising from his seat.
"Now that that is settled, Severus and I must leave," Dumbledore said, pulling out his wand. He flicked it slightly, and above them all was a small thump. "Esme's belongings are now upstairs."
"Thank you," Remus said quietly, also standing up. He shook Dumbledore's hand and nodded at Severus, who simply walked over to the living room door, eager to leave.
"Severus," Dumbledore stopped him, glancing at Esme. "Shouldn't you say goodbye to your niece?"
Severus froze, his hand on the door knob. Then, he slowly turned around to face Esme, who was watching him intently. The wizard bent down to her level and gave her an awkward hug, saying goodbye, before nodding at Remus and quickly leaving the house without a backward glance. Dumbledore smiled after his colleague, before shaking Remus' hand again, thanking him for Esme's sake, and leaving the two of them alone.
Remus awkwardly turned to face the young girl, who was smiling up at him.
"Are you hungry?" he asked her, and after a moment's hesitation, Esme nodded. Remus waved his wand and a plate full of sandwiches appeared out of thin air landing neatly on the nearby table. Esme greedily attacked the sandwiches, relishing the soft butter as she chewed. Remus patiently waited for her to finish, not wanting to put any pressure on her. The young girl had just lost her mother and was being forced to move in with a stranger, so asking hard questions would not do Esme any good.
Once Esme had swallowed the last sandwich, she politely thanked Remus whilst brushing several crumbs off her lap. She noticed that the wizard was nervous as she sat herself down on the sofa, folding her arms and hugging herself tightly. Remus sat down next to her, trying to collect his thoughts.
"Why can't I live with my daddy?" Esme asked quietly, before Remus had a chance to say anything. Surprised, Remus leant back, wondering how to answer.
"Your dad is away at the moment, Esme," he said slowly. "And, your mother was a friend of mine."
"Mummy was hurt," Esme said in a small voice after a moment's silence. "She told me to hide in the cupboard as a butterfly."
"A butterfly?" Remus repeated sharply, startling the young girl. "How did you become a butterfly, Esme?"
"Because of Mummy's magic," Esme said slowly. "That's what's she said. She said because Daddy was an Ani… Anim…"
"Animagus?" Remus helped her, and she nodded.
"Because Daddy is an Animagus, Mummy made me too. But, Daddy could only turn into a dog. I can turn into anything."
"Anything?" Remus repeated, impressed. "Any animal of your choice?" Esme nodded, smiling at her new guardian. "Does anyone else know you can do this?"
"Mummy knew," Esme recalled, her blue eyes looking up as she thought. Her eyebrows narrowed as she suddenly remembered something, and she said slowly, "Mummy told me not to tell anyone."
"Don't worry," Remus said quickly, hoping to reassure the young girl that she hadn't gone against her mother's wishes. "Your mum wouldn't mind me knowing."
Esme nodded slowly, but it was clear she was still unsure.
"Can I go home now?" she asked quietly, pulling absently at her t-shirt. Remus looked at her, watching her eyes slowly fill up with tears as she lowered her head.
"You can't go home, Esme," he said gently, silently cursing Dumbledore and Severus for not explaining things properly to this little girl. She clearly didn't understand that Elizabeth was dead and wasn't coming back. She was still clinging to the idea that she would be in her mother's arms soon.
"She was only hurt," Esme said, still playing with her clothes. "She could get better with one of her potions."
Remus didn't reply, unable to think of anything to say that he felt would comfort her. Luckily, Esme yawned and her eyes drooped slightly.
"Come on, let's get you to bed," Remus said softly, and although her face was full of defiance, most likely because she wanted to go home, Esme allowed Remus to lift her up and carry her upstairs to the spare bedroom, where her belongings were waiting for her.
The Next Day…
Sirius Black sat alone in his cell, thinking about his wife and daughter. His little girl had turned six two months ago, and he imagined how big she had grown. Elizabeth had always said that Esme had her eyes and dark hair, but her temper and determination came from him.
He looked out of the window. It was late. He closed his eyes and rested his head on the floor to try and sleep, but he heard his cell door clanging and sat bolt upright, confused at a visit.
"Who's that?" he called out, standing up, prepared for fight. In came the Minster for Magic, with a grave face, a hint of terror in her eye. She was followed by two ministry officials, both stood firm as Sirius watched the Minister close the cell door.
"Black, I am sorry to disturb you at this late hour," Millicent Bagnold said. "But I have some bad news."
"What's happened?" Sirius asked sharply, moving forward but was stopped by one of the officials.
"Your wife's body was found at her childhood home by her mother yesterday," Millicent said slowly and Sirius froze. His world broke as he thought of Elizabeth, alone in the house she grew up in, the house she hated, dead. He couldn't speak, his heart twisting and twisting until it started choking him. Anger and rage filled his head, red clouding his eyes, along with devastated tears.
"Who killed her?" he demanded, his head spinning. "Who did it? I'll kill them! I'LL KILL THEM!"
He threw himself towards the cell door, determined to get out and find his wife's murderer, but the officials had prepared themselves. They grabbed his arms and pushed him back into the cell harshly as Sirius cried bitterly. His wife was dead. He hadn't been there to save her. She had died alone. His wife, his beautiful Elizabeth, had been murdered. Esme had lost her mother –
"Esme!" Sirius yelled suddenly, as he stopped struggling against his captors. "Is Esme O.K? Is she safe?"
Millicent nodded quickly.
"Was she there when it happened?" Sirius asked, bitter tears clouding his eyes. "Did she see it?"
"She was being looked after by a friend at the time of the attack," Millicent told the convict, whose thoughts all focused on his daughter.
"What friend?"
"Remus Lupin," Millicent said, secretly happy that Sirius was calming down. "Dumbledore has said that your daughter was with him when your wife was murdered. He also said that Lupin will find your daughter an appropriate guardian."