Heyyy! Very long time, no see! ;)
I am finally back with the LAST chapter of this story. Now, I did keep writing on this chapter for months, didn't have time, lost inspiration...but then I also really wanted to finish this story. I hate unfinished stories so much :D
Now, first of all, thank you to my amazing readers, and a big THANK YOU to my reviewers, Gypsyrose98, Rozmeen, and Guest! Love y'all!
Secondly, I am not sure if I will write another fanfiction. Life has been busy, and lots of stuff changed (in a good way), so I am currently not working on anything. I do, however, have some ideas for a shorter Christmas story called Thawing Thomas (haha) buuuut we will see. If not this Christmas, maybe next one. I am not going to commit to anything anymore, and I will definitely not make the mistake and publish a story like I did this one again before finishing it completely. I understand that readers want to know how the story ends/ continues, but some comments just put a lot of stress and pressure on me to keep writing when I did not feel like it.
Anyway. I am more than happy this is finished.
Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year to all of you!
Alas, the change did not last…
"I…I don't know", Tom had to swallow, feeling a bit overwhelmed with both boys staring at him for guidance, "we…could tell Relius and…"
"Who's Relius?", Kasim interrupted him.
"He's my older brother", Tom and Sirius answered at the same time, and then they both blushed, looking down.
"So…you're brothers?", Kasim asked, disbelief in his voice, "you don't really act like it."
"That's not really important right now", Tom replied more fiercely than intended, since his relationship with Sirius was the last thing he wanted to talk about, "we need to figure out what to do about Dumbledore, and what Lupin has to do with all that."
"Remus has nothing to do with any of that! He's my best friend!", Sirius shot back immediately, anger in his voice, "this is all Dumbledore's fault, I am certain of it!"
"It sounded like Mr. Lupin knew about…", Kasim began, but Sirius cut him off, "Remus would never do anything that would hurt me! Never!"
"We should talk to Relius", Tom repeated, "this isn't getting us anywhere. Relius will know what to do. He's smart."
"Smarter than you, anyways", Sirius sneered, "to even assume Remus would ever…"
"Shut up, Black, you're not helping!"
Kasim looked from one to the other, frowning, "makes me glad to be an only child", he mumbled, "you're the worst example of brothers I ever met."
Tom and Sirius both shot an irritated glance at him for that, not wanting to admit that Kasim's casual observations stung.
"Let me…contact Relius really quick", Tom eventually said, his voice subdued, and this time, Sirius just nodded, feeling equally dejected.
Relius?
Hey there, Tommy. Everything okay?
Tom had to smile at the concern and love in Aurelius' voice. It was simply amazing to have a brother who cared about him so much.
Actually…we have a bit of a problem here.
He proceeded to tell Aurelius all about what had happened, about Kasim, and about what he had told them. Aurelius listened attentively, and when Tom mentioned the word horcrux, he inhaled sharply.
I will need to speak to father about this. It looks like we finally know who was helping Dumbledore with his scheme…no one else but Lupin.
Sirius says that's impossible. Lupin would never want to hurt him.
Lupin might have his own motives here, Tommy. I need you boys to get out of the dorms, though. It is not safe there for you.
But…where should we go?
To my old quarters. Sirius knows the way. You are protected there. Take Kasim with you, please. And I need you to hurry.
Oh…okay.
Don't worry, Tommy. I am going to take care of everything. You will be fine.
Tom smiled again, grateful this time. He thanked his brother, and the carefully closed their mental connection.
"And? What did he say?", Sirius' voice was impatient, "Remus didn't do anything, right?"
"We need to go to his old quarters", Tom responded, ignoring Sirius' question, "he said to hurry up. We're not safe here."
"But what about…"
"Let's go. We can discuss the other stuff later", Tom cut him off, taking charge as the oldest, "Sirius, you know the way, so you will go ahead."
The younger boy stared at him for a second, clearly also surprised by the way Tom was taking charge, but then he simply gave a small nod, turning for the door.
They made it to Aurelius' quarters without much trouble, and once the door closed behind them, Tom let out a relieved sigh, "ok, we're safe here for now. Kasim, no one will get to you here."
"Why would anyone want to anyways?", Sirius felt a sudden rush of jealousy when he saw the grateful smile Kasim shot Tom, "didn't you just hear it's me he's after?"
"Let's take a seat", Tom suggested, ignoring Sirius once more, and the younger boy angrily balled his hands into fists, "right, why would you care about that!", he spat out, "maybe it was you who put Dumbledore up to this, maybe this is all your…"
"Believe whatever you want, Black", Tom replied cooly, tired of the hateful attitude of the younger boy who had done nothing to help him since he had started at Hogwarts, "I really do not care."
Sirius had already opened his mouth to respond, but then he closed it again and sat down without another word.
Of course he doesn't care. Fine by me, I don't care about him either.
He turned away from Tom and Kasim, pretending to be deep in thought when really he was just feeling upset, confused, and lost.
Remus, his best friend…he would never put him in any danger. Or anyone, for that matter. Remus was kind and caring, there had to be an explanation for all of this.
There had to be.
"Godric."
"Salazar."
For a few seconds after that, neither of them spoke. They simply looked at each other wordlessly, an invisible mountain between them.
"It's…been a while", Gryffindor finally managed to say, and Salazar sighed, stepping to the side to let the other man enter, "come on in then. I am assuming you have a good reason why you are showing up here in the middle of the day."
"I…do."
They did not speak anymore until they had entered one of the living rooms, and Salazar made an inviting gesture to the couch, "have a seat. Would you like some tea?"
"Yes, please."
He hated how formal and painfully polite they were being with each other, and being here again, in this very room that brought back hundreds of memories of them together also did not help.
Salazar had a waiting house elf serve them tea, and then they drank, quietly.
"Now? How can I help you, Godric?"
He had to close his eyes for a second, feeling like he wanted to scream. But he had to control himself, he had to control his emotions, he had to…
"Godric?"
"I miss you so damn much", he blurted out before he could stop himself, "and all of this is my fault, I was such an idiot, Dumbledore set me up, there are no horcruxes, he wanted us to fight because we are stronger together, and Lupin was in on it apparently and…"
"Hold on", Salazar's face has gotten pale, "and then say that again."
"Dumbledore doesn't…"
"Not that. The other part."
Godric swallowed, suddenly feeling nervous, "yes, that- I'm sorry. I…I know you don't feel the same about me, and…"
"Look at me. Please."
He didn't want to, he rather looked anywhere else than Salazar's face now, the face he had grown to love, to adore, to miss…
Salazar was smiling.
He was smiling at him, his eyes tearing up at the same time.
"I miss you too, Godric", he whispered, his voice hoarse, "I miss you every day, and our boys, and us…I miss us…"
"I'm so sorry", he croaked, "I messed it all up, I didn't realize it was a scheme, it was all planned out from the beginning…Dumbledore and Lupin did a hell of a job there, I still don't know all the details, we need to go to Hogwarts…"
"We do", Salazar got up, "whatever is going on seems to have Dumbledore written all over it- and it is time to end all this. We've been waiting far too long."
"Tom and Sirius are safe in Aurelius' quarters, and Aurelius is investigating the situation at the moment", Godric quickly informed him, "it's probably best to apparate straight into the quarters."
Salazar just nodded, and seconds later, they vanished from the living room as if they had never been there in the first place- and appeared seconds later in Aurelius' quarters, where three boys were sitting, two of them talking amicably, and one on the other side, looking quite miserable.
All three boys froze when the Founders apparated into the room, clearly shocked to see them- and even more shocked to see them together, since everyone knew they had been through a very public divorce.
Salazar did not waste any time and started asking questions about what had happened, which Kasim and Tom tried to answer as best as they could.
Sirius said nothing, he simply bit his lips and stared down, feeling worse than before. He tensed when he felt Gryffindor sitting down next to him.
"Sirius…", Gryffindor's voice was surprisingly mild, "there's something you know about this, don't you?"
"About…what?"
Gryffindor laughed softly, "don't play dumb with me, boy. There's a connection between Dumbledore and Remus Lupin- and I'd like to know what you have to do with that."
"Remus…is my friend. He's a good person, he's…"
"Answer the question, Sirius."
He winced at the undertone in Gryffindor's voice, knowing very well it was over. Done. He'd lose Relius forever, he'd lose any chance of having a family, he'd lose it all…just because he had been jealous, and spiteful, and hateful.
It was over.
"I…I told Remus. I told…Remus about Tom, about him being at Hogwarts, and then he…he told me about this spell, and…I…didn't know it would get that bad, I didn't…"
"Lupin put a spell on Tom?", Gryffindor's voice was calm, too calm, "what spell, Sirius?"
He had to sob, dreading Gryffindor's reaction, "I…please…"
"What spell, Sirius?"
He started to cry, silently, "the…Rusticitas spell."
For some time, Gryffindor did not respond- and that somehow made it worse, and his whole body was shaking with silent cries now, sensing the disappointment and disgust in Gryffindor- the man he had hoped to…
"Do you want to tell me why you went along with that or should I just take a guess here?"
Please don't, please stop, please…
"Or maybe…I should let Tom guess for me. Come over here, Tom."
Nonono, please no, not that, not…
Tom who had been discussing the current events with Salazar and Kasim and had gotten quite engrossed in it, blinked in surprise when his dad called him over, and his surprise only increased when he saw Sirius…
Is he…crying?
"It seems like there's been a few things you haven't been telling me, Tommy", Gryffindor started, his voice even, "first of all- are you happy here? At Hogwarts?"
He frowned, now utterly confused, "what? Uhm…happy? I mean…I work…uhm…and…shouldn't we talk about Dumbledore? I am not sure why…"
"Just answer the question, baby boy."
The nickname did it- he had to swallow, hard, and then it all came rushing out of him, "I'm not, no one likes me, and I constantly fall, and hurt myself, and they all call me names, they…they call me Tripping Thomas and I hate that so much, and I have no clue why I am so clumsy all the time, I don't…"
"Well, I can tell you why", Gryffindor shifted his attention to Sirius, "or- maybe I should let Sirius do the honors here."
Sirius looked up, his pale face wet with tears, "you're…not clumsy. It…it was a spell. Remus put a spell on you, I was so mad that you were here and…I was jealous. I didn't want…to share Relius. Not that any of that matters anymore", his voice sounded bitter, and resigned, "and…it was…the Rusticitas spell. That's why you tripped all the time and had all these accidents."
"That was you? You knew this whole time it was a spell and you still mocked me?", Tom's eyes began to sparkle in anger, "you should get expelled for that! And I hope you will, so I don't ever have to be around you again, you hateful little jerk!"
Sirius shrank back like he had been slapped but he didn't respond- he just sat there, staring down and watching the tears fall on his shoes. He knew there was no excuse- and he did not even want to think about what Relius would say to him when he found out.
He's gonna hate me. They all will…
And then the door to the quarters opened, and in walked Aurelius- and with him, a very pale looking Remus Lupin.
Remus is here, Remus will help me, Remus will explain everything…
Sirius looked up, he looked straight at his best friend, and when he saw the look of guilt and shame in Remus' eyes, he thought his heart would stop for a second.
"Remus…"
The werewolf winced, but he did not reply to Sirius, he did not answer the underlying question.
"Have a seat, Lupin", Gryffindor has gotten up, and his voice was cold now, cold and demanding, "you have been my informant, you have been the one telling me about Dumbledore's horcruxes- that was you."
Lupin swallowed, "there are…no horcruxes", he admitted, his voice flat, realizing just like Sirius had that it was over, "Dumbledore instructed me to tell you this to get you away, to have you run around in Scotland and to distract you from the fact that he is planning to create real horcruxes. The…first one was supposed to be…Sirius. He…he lied to me, of course, he knew I would not have supported him if I knew he wanted to kill Sirius to make a horcrux, so he told me he was going to use a boy from Hogsmeade named Kasim."
"Because he figured you wouldn't care if he killed someone that's not Sirius?", Godric's voice had gotten icy, and Remus started to tremble, "I…I went to warn Kasim. I lied to his aunt to take him with me to Hogwarts and I was hiding him here until he overheard me talking to Dumbledore and ran away."
"I…was hiding Kasim in the dorms until Sirius found him there", Tom added, "he was getting suspicious why I sneaked food out- not that it was any of his damn busi….", he stopped when Godric shot him a warning glance.
"Dumbledore came to see me, and he finally told me that he wanted Sirius to create the horcrux. I did not understand why Dumbledore didn't care for Kasim to be gone since he never made me investigate Kasim's disappearance. I found that…odd. I then realized that he didn't care I was hiding Kasim because he never wanted Kasim. He wanted Sirius."
There was a silence.
"In conclusion…you spied for Dumbledore, you lied to me about the horcruxes, you put a spell on Tom to make him miserable here, and I am assuming by now you also had a hand in those truce negotiations months ago- did I miss anything?"
"No, Sir", Remus' voice was quiet.
"But…why? Why did you do all that?", Salazar now asked, "what did Dumbledore promise you?"
"I just…believed him. At first, at least. I did not know he wanted to create real horcruxes. And putting the spell on Tom was his idea, but…I…well, I wanted some revenge. For Lily and James."
"I'm sure they would be proud knowing you put the Rusticitas spell on a third grader", Salazar's voice was cutting now, "I expected more from a professor at the school I built with my very own hands, Lupin. You're a disgrace."
"I'm…sorry", Remus' voice was thick with guilt, "I let this go too far, and…I want to make things right now. I really do."
"Oh, you will", Gryffindor smiled but there was no friendliness in his smile, "you will go to the Ministry with me, and with Salazar, and you will tell Fudge everything you told us- Dumbledore will get arrested, and there will be a trial, and you will make sure to repeat all your accusations against him in that trial."
"Yes, Sir."
"You will also immediately take the Rusticitas spell off my son", Gryffindor continued, "now, regarding your position as a professor here…", he paused, exchanging a look with Salazar. They both knew that Lupin, being a werewolf, would have trouble finding another position, and it probably was better to keep him here under their eyes.
"You are allowed to stay here as a professor- for now. And since you seem so fond of putting spells on students, I personally will put one on you- the Custodio spell."
Remus' cheeks turned red with mortification. The Custodio spell was mostly used on unruly teenagers- by parents who were worried they got in trouble. The spell allowed the person who casted them to always know what the person bound to the spell was doing- down to when they went to the bathroom.
"Yes, Sir."
There was nothing else he could say. He had to be grateful they let him stay here as a professor- something he had not expected them to do.
Gryffindor waited until he had taken the spell off Tom, then the Founders apparated straight to the Ministry, leaving the three boys and Aurelius behind.
And now Tom could not hold back any longer.
"Sirius knew Lupin had put that spell on me, he knew this whole time! He's the one who told Lupin I was…", Tom stopped when Aurelius gave him a look.
"Kasim- you are not in any danger, thankfully, and I am sure your aunt will be excited to have you back for a little while. I know you are not supposed to start at Hogwarts until September, but Professor McGonagall agreed to let you come back here tomorrow to get you sorted into a house- so you get to start earlier, if you want to."
Kasim's face lit up, "I'd love to! I hope I will make it to Gryffindor with you guys!", he grinned at Tom, "thanks for hiding me. It was fun", then he looked over to Sirius, "and…don't be so hard on him", he added quietly, so Sirius couldn't hear him, "I think he's really sorry for what he did. And…he's your brother, right?"
Tom bit his lips, not wanting to answer that.
Kasim exchanged a few more pleasantries with Aurelius, and then he left.
And Sirius felt the dread rising inside him again, not wanting to be here, not wanting to hear what Aurelius would say to him now.
"Look at me, Sirius."
He kept staring down.
Aurelius sighed. "A spanking, then?"
You can't spank me.
"I can't? And why's that?"
Because.
"Because? Very eloquent, baby bear."
He had to sob, "don't…don't call me that", and then his sobs grew louder, "I was…I did…"
"I understand what you did, Sirius. You were being jealous, and you were being spiteful- and you will be punished for that."
No spanking, no spanking please…
Aurelius laughed softly, "no, not this time- but there's something else I want you to do. Go stand in the corner."
Sirius swallowed, hating that he was getting disciplined in front of Tom- but it was not like he could complain. He quickly walked over to the corner, facing the wall. He was secretly glad that he was at least not facing Tom's scornful face any longer.
Tom watched silently as Aurelius took a coin out of his pocket- and now he knew where this was going.
Now, here's what you are going to do, boy- you are going to hold up that Galleon for me, all the way up, and whenever you drop it, that's one spank for you.
He remembered how desperate he had felt when he had dropped the coin, and how badly he had wanted to please Aurelius- and how difficult, how extremely difficult it had been.
Sirius won't win this. Just like I didn't.
He bit his lips, hard, watching how Aurelius placed the coin carefully between the wall and Sirius' nose.
He could hear Sirius sob in defeat, and then suddenly, he heard Kasim's voice in his head again.
You're brothers, right?
Brothers, right?
Brothers…
His lips were almost bleeding now from biting them so hard, and when he heard Sirius sob again, quietly, and full of misery, he couldn't stand it any longer.
"Stop. Please, Relius. He…he's…he doesn't deserve this. I don't want him to get punished. I…please."
He feared Aurelius getting angry for a second, for interfering, for doubting his authority, but when Aurelius turned around to look at him, he looked…proud?
"Well done, Tommybear", his face was glowing with pride for his younger brother, "this was a test- and you passed it. I had hoped you would step up and not let Sirius suffer through what I unfairly made you suffer through- and you didn't. That's how a big brother should be, hmm? Always making sure your younger brother is protected."
Sirius was crying now, and Aurelius smiled, walking over to the corner and easily picking the smaller boy up, holding him close, "I think you learned your lesson, haven't you, baby bear?", his smile grew bigger when Sirius nodded, sniffing and snuggling closer, "I'm sorry, Relius", he whispered, "and…I'm sorry, Tom. I…I was jealous."
"There's no need to be jealous…I love you both the same. Not much, not less- the same", and then Aurelius pulled Tom closer as well, and Tom was smiling now, too.
Now something had changed- and it lasted.
"I'm so excited!"
"Me, too!"
"What do you think we're gonna get?"
"I want a new broom!"
"I want a pet dragon!"
Aurelius quietly stepped back from the door, chuckling silently. His younger brothers were over the moon excited for tomorrow morning- Christmas morning.
The day Remus Lupin had confessed to them in his quarters, his family had been completed again. His parents had made up, and talked and talked- and they had all moved back to Gryffindor Manor, and Tom and Sirius each had their own bedroom, but they now mostly preferred to spend the night with each other so they could talk and giggle most of the night.
Kasim was now a first grader in Gryffindor, and close friends with both Tom and Sirius, and they loved their time at Hogwarts together.
Dumbledore had been sentenced to life in Azkaban a few weeks ago, and Remus Lupin had been the main witness in getting justice for the wizarding world.
Remus was still teaching at Hogwarts- and after the trial, Godric had lifted the humiliating spell off him. The werewolf had worked hard to get back into the Founder's good grades, and his hard work was paying off.
Squirrel, the dog, enjoyed his time roaming around the lands of Gryffindor Manor with Princess, the other dog Aurelius had taken from Tom's abusive foster family.
Mike, Pat, and Felicity were still living in the house, but they had been banned from being able to adopt again- and it had made each of them a lot more subdued.
McGonagall was now headmistress of Hogwarts, and she was taking her job seriously, being as just and fair as she could be.
Life was finally good again.
"Merry Christmas, sweet boys", Aurelius smiled, closing the door, before he went to join his parents in the living room.
Merry Christmas.
Thank you all again! Love you!
Antonie :)
