Chapter Fourteen: Bad Moon Rising
"I see the bad moon risin'
I see trouble on the way
I see earthquakes and lightnin'
I see bad times today
Don't go around tonight
Well, it's bound to take your life
There's a bad moon on the rise"
Images swirled and meshed together within my mind as I tried to throw harmless, dull memories in place of the important and private ones I treasured. They weren't just coveted memories; it was a test to see if I could keep up and keep away the one who probed my mind. I replayed the memory of boring class discussions that felt lifeless to think of, traveling through the countryside and the serenity that was quick to leave once a pub fight, I instigated but didn't stick around to see the result, caused a flare of anxiety and the smug feeling of fleeing. The quick and decisive memories I showed him felt like a hare running desperately through the forest to avoid the hungry, practiced fox. He was pulling them quicker than I needed him to, but I kept up the pace flashing a memory of a harmless girls' night of the smiling face of Aurora Ramsey. Her ever-present summer warmth invaded my senses. A clear decision to test what I've been taught so far, and to see how I'd fair against a more difficult memory extraction. After Aurora's face, I felt him push further and pulled a memory of speaking to Severus as his young face smiled. He must've found the same warm feeling only magnified with his precise skills and with that the adult version of the man swirled up–
"Now, darling, I'm getting close!" The man's sing-song warning echoed through my mind as the swirling stopped and his invasion of my mind finally released like a thorn being removed after being pushed into the skin. Gasping for air I snarled up at him and growled at his less-than-serious entertainment of my lesson. My uncle, Jethro, held his Cheshire cat smile while raising his eyebrows. Those venomous green eyes were glittering as he gave a pleased chuckle. "Tut, tut, Selini!"
"For the hundredth time," I hissed while rubbing the middle of my forehead from the headache I was developing. "it's Maeve!" I spat at him. My anger did nothing to soothe the pain in my head but amused him with a roll of his eyes.
"And for the hundredth time, I need more concentration from you!" He declared with no faltering of his smile. His arm raised to hold the point of his wand at my face once more. "Again, or I'll find out more about that tall drink of poison you keep hiding from me!"
I readied myself with heated determination as Jethro's invasion penetrated my mind once more. It was more of a struggle now to avoid thinking about Severus since Jethro knew what to call upon. Instead of completely avoiding the memories I threw any thoughts of our fighting within our adult years, putting nearly all the details of past animosity I could recall. I felt the confusion, the offensive emotions, and frustrations as I recalled upon our first few days at Hogwarts, his punishment for Elowyn, and his perceived disdain for me. It was working far better than I expected with the emotional ammunition until Jethro found the image of Severus gazing at me with longing on a snowy night, and I felt the chill of the night and excitement. I fought the connection as much as possible, freezing the imagery that burned away with the thought of Sirius and I fighting when we were younger. That was easier to focus on as those memories held harsher feelings, harbored annoyance that I held to this day but the faint feeling of remembering things had changed caused a rocky transition. I then moved on to images of fighting strangers for their money, food, or clothes, which presented the imagery almost backward. My younger self aged quicker until grappling at another memory that landed on me holding a small child with wisps of black hair, and bright, innocent sour-apple green eyes before Jethro pulled away.
"Much better, darling. Still needs improvement but you're not backing down from the task—if only you had kept up with your lessons!" Jethro scoffed lightly as he spoke before waving his hand in the air and putting his fists on his hands.
Panting, with the headache worsening through the mental tug of war, I looked up at my uncle with bitter annoyance that I didn't care to hide. If he had treated this more than just taking him up on an offer to practice, making it seem remedial given the situation, then I probably wouldn't have felt so moody about our Occlumency lessons. It had been my third lesson since the school term ended and my life had changed considerably. Within the confines of a rather spacious cottage just outside of Hogsmeade village, I had spent a few weeks adjusting to the situation at hand. Severus and I had spent as much time as we could together before he'd take off to continue his spying endeavors. The tug of war within my mind to understand his position and to be selfish enough to keep him with me never waned.
If I had to be honest it was getting harder to watch him leave, and more of a blessing when he had returned. Thankfully the last two times he had left he wasn't as damaged as he had been that first time. This did little to lessen my anxiety, however.
To take my mind off my worrying thoughts I had spent my free time creating a safe space with protective enchantments placed all about the inside and outside of the cottage. Aurora Ramsey, my long-time assistant and best friend, had taken to bring a warmer ambiance, and more inviting aesthetic by adding plants, her artistic touch, and lots of talismans that stuck to her vision. If we were to be here for a while hiding away from most of the world then she'd get to work on making it comfortable for us all. It was her way of contributing to a situation that made her feel restless in action. Her thoughts weren't just involving us and also catered to the idea of using the space in case any Order of The Phoenix members needed to stow away, or occasional meetings were to commence. Since we were technically Order members as well it only encouraged Aurora to make this place feel like a safe, inviting, and comfortable haven.
After comprising a rather cryptic message to send to my Uncle Jethro, it wasn't long until he arrived after sending an owl for directions via the floo powder channel. As always, he arrived dramatically and spared no time acting as if we hadn't spent many years apart. It wasn't that I held a grudge for his lack of involvement in my life; any time I needed him he never turned me away. It was more so that we didn't have to have that type of relationship, but with family feuding issues that were long over with since the passing of my parents, I felt like his presence didn't have to be so sparse.
Still, upon explaining this particular situation I had to be careful with my words. Jethro had been a morally grey man who followed his path rather than picking a side. I could admire him for his own thinking, and for following his instincts rather than following someone else. I didn't know much of his dealings with his social group, but from my distant memories and knowing him personally, I could only assume he knew more crooked folk than decent citizens.
Yet when explaining the magnitude of the situation and allowing him to view the memories as proof of the dire news I shared with him, he didn't hesitate to offer a helpful hand. I say he didn't hesitate, but it took some pleading with him to understand that anyone trustworthy was needed. Jethro agreed to work but as someone in the background, and explained he was in this to help me, and our little family, only. I wasn't one to argue with his loyalties; I practically asked him to risk his life if he were caught dealing with me or the Order. I was thankful enough for his help as it was.
"Don't get so flustered at me." He cooed while tilting his head to the side. "You'll get the worst kind of scowling wrinkles–like that Severus man!" He teased giving me a sly smirk. In rare moments like this, I could see my father's face in his, and it only pained me more to stare instead of fighting back. I sighed and stood up from my chair while folding my arms.
Jethro's objective was clean cut; teach me Occlumency in order to avoid certain memories and figures within those memories. Dumbledore's mission and orders were a priority, but I stressed the importance of Severus to him. Sparing him the exact details the point seemed to have been made. I wasn't sure how the stars aligned the way for neither Jethro nor Severus to meet each other, but perhaps there was an underlying secret within the universe that I wasn't aware of. Regardless, he was surprised to find out that the "poor, unkempt, ill" boy from my childhood that I would yap about became the subject of avoidance in our lesson.
"If it weren't for our meeting it would be safe to say you've overstayed your welcome, Jethro." I grabbed all of my hair to move it to fall over my shoulder, fanning myself to try and calm myself down.
"Oh, darling, you know as well as I do that you enjoy my banter. No need to take it seriously, besides–" He took a few steps before turning with fluidity to face me, looking down through his brows. "You're a natural at this. Celebrate with me!" He turned away from me to quickly open the door and head out of my room presumably to raid our limited alcohol supply. If I rolled my eyes any harder, they would've rolled onto the floor.
Rubbing my temples I got up from my bed to hurry after my uncle and remind him of the importance of our meeting. As I passed the threshold, I looked into the living space that doubled as a dining area to find Aurora watering the potted plants near the window seal above the couch and Evelyn with her headphones on as she read from her newly acquired potions book that Severus asked me to give her before we departed last. The gesture had thrown Elowyn off similar to the last gesture of reinstating her extra credit lessons. Through her persistence and determination, she was able to finish all of her potion assignments by the end of the year, and knowing Severus she had impressed him enough to offer her reading material that might've interested her. It was amusing to me because only I could see that Severus was warming up to Elowyn, and this was his way of showing approval. Ever since then, she had been absorbed in the depths of the book. Aurora looked up at me while giving a supportive smile before nodding her head at Jethro's sauntering.
"I take it that it went well," Aurora commented light-heartedly.
I walked past them and threw my hands up while flicking my eyes to the ceiling. Walking past them I started shaking my head as I watched him wave his wand to bring out four glasses that levitated toward the counter. "Let's see here–Aha! Sweet Jasmine Wine, my, my what fancy taste you all have!" He said while going to pour the wine. Ignoring his excitement, I put a hand on his arm to stop him before he was able to do so.
"Jethro, we are less than thirty minutes away from our first meeting, and celebrating, as you say, isn't exactly the kind of mindset to have when discussing the safety of our magical world!" I seethed while giving him my best teacher stare. He sighed while putting the bottle down and turning to me. "And just what are you thinking bringing out four glasses?"
"Oh, Elly-Girl is old enough to have just a bit, don't you think?" Scrunching his nose, he nodded lightly. "I had mine when I was her age, and if I remember correctly, I believe I've seen someone dabbling into liquid luck around the same age." He threw back at me with an all-knowing smile and a glint of mischief in his eyes. I cursed him mentally at remembering our first lesson when he nearly caught my late-night rendezvous with Severus.
I sighed slowly while closing my eyes to regain my composure. As grateful as I was for the help, I had quickly forgotten how much of a childish influence my uncle could be regardless of a serious situation. "Jethro, I asked you to be a part of this because we need your help, not your silliness, and for you to give my daughter wine. Can you please just… take this seriously?" I begged while softening my harsher stare.
He rolled his eyes and waved me off once more. "Alright, fine. Spoil any little fun we might have before everything goes to shit then–but I do implore you to have a small glass. It'll help with your headache after our lesson, you know." He added while pouring half a glass into one of the glasses before corking the wine and putting it up. "Might not hurt to lighten your mood, either!" He jested.
I took the glass and decided not to argue with him. He was the teacher after all, and at this point, nothing could soothe my headache better. After finishing the glass rather quickly I watched as he headed back into the living room where Aurora was now standing and watching us with curiosity. Locking eyes with her I shook my head to signal that a conversation wasn't needed, nor did I feel like explaining my sour mood. At this point, I was getting anxious for the first meeting with the Order. Meeting new people, reuniting with old friends, and the nagging thought of being in a room with Severus and Sirius once again did not help the moodiness.
"When is that almighty wizard coming to get us, by the way? I hate the idea of sitting around and just waiting." He exasperated while looking to Aurora, holding out his hand for her to take and join him on the loveseat. Aurora put down the watering can on the side table while crossing her legs.
"I don't believe it should be too long," Aurora answered while glancing at Elowyn who seemed engrossed in her reading but had removed her headphones. "He did say eight, didn't he?" she asked setting her coca-brown eyes at me.
I nodded while putting my glass into the sink and pulled out my wand to put the rest of the glasses back into their respective spots in the cabinets before walking to the living space. Glancing at the magical clock that hung above our fireplace the sands within the enclosed glass spelt out '7:57' in a decorative fashion. "It's about that time, actually."
"Tell me, Selini," Jethro asked while looking around the room. "Who exactly are we meeting today?"
"That," I stated while holding up a finger. "Is a surprise. I can only assume a few familiar faces, but the rest will be a first-time meeting."
"Will Uncle Remus be there?" The airy voice of Elowyn broke through the conversation bringing all our attention to her. With her book now closed she had put her Walkman away and was staring at all of us as if she were a part of the conversation beforehand.
I smiled and gave her a nod that was met with a satisfied grin.
"Now don't tell me he's become your favorite, Elly-Girl!" Jethro exclaimed while fashioning a dramatically saddened look with his lips pouting.
Elowyn giggled and shook her head. "No one can take your place, Uncle Jethro."
Immediately Jethro lightened up while smoothing his hair out of his face.
"I'd like to think that Molly and Arthur Weasley will be there with the kids right, Maeve?" Aurora questioned earning a hopeful expression from Elowyn.
I nodded thoughtfully. "No doubt if Molly has anything to say about it. It'll be quite the full house with most of the Weasleys, presumably Remus and Sirius… not to mention Dumbledore and Severus…" My voice trailed for a moment while reaching up to fiddle with my hair nearly losing myself in thoughts of my lover. "... and Minerva, yes, I think she'd be there." Clearing my throat, I gathered myself.
I watched as Aurora raised her eyebrows to me lightly as a clever smile spread across her lips that she tried to hide. As private as I'd have wanted to be when it came to my intimate time with Severus, I couldn't risk creating a situation that would not be suitable for anyone if I happened to end up pregnant. Aurora, after doing what I could to calm her giggle fit and teasing, had proclaimed herself responsible for making sure no future little mini-me's or tiny Severus's were walking around with a contraceptive potion. An idea that I had mixed feelings about but heavily leaned into how this was neither the time nor event to ponder on such ideals.
"What a small world it is don't you think?" Jethro mused. "To think, Selini, you've run around the world only to come back and surround yourself with your little gang. An interesting cycle you've found yourself in!" Jethro added while giving me an odd look. After our lessons together it would be foolish of me to think he wasn't trying to piece together my life in the sequences of memories. He knew of Sirius–met him once too, and even knew were together at one point, but that was long after he had cut off contact with my father. The memories of my relationship with Sirius could only have painted the picture as clearly as it could without all the nitty-gritty details. Ever since then, he had done nothing but push the idea of "rekindling an old flame" and no matter how many times I told him, or cursed at him, that it wouldn't happen he didn't let up.
Granted, with the mysterious mission of trying to guard memories involving Severus, I could only assume he was cooking up ideas of a messy muggle T.V. drama show that Aurora would rave about.
Narrowing my eyes I readied myself to explain once again to extinguish whatever dramatic suspicions Jethro had when the fireplace erupted in green flames. The silvery robes of Albus Dumbledore stepped through and beamed about the gathered group with a pleasant smile.
"Good to see all of you are prepared," He said while looking at Jethro. "This must be the great teacher I've been told about, yes?"
"Yes, indeed Mr. Dumbledore!" Jethro said while lifting himself off of the couch with ease. "Malachi Jethro Keir Thorne, at your service!" With a great outlandish bow, Jethro straightened up and extended his hand proudly. "But please, call me Jethro." The signature bright, and wry smile spread across his features.
Dumbledore took his hand without any trace of indulging Jethro's flashy flare and gave another polite and serene smile. Turning to me Dumbledore put his hands together. "To delay suspicion of where we are meeting, I've decided it's best if we apparate to just outside of Islington. Behind this little cafe called Cool Coffee Bean, if you will. Once we're there headquarters is just a few blocks down." He explained while looking between the adults before his sights landed on a now-standing Elowyn who came by my side. "I believe you'll enjoy the company of most of your friends, Miss Beaumont."
A bright smile spread across her face as she looked up to me affirming our pleasant suspicions. I smiled back down to her while smoothing her long, flowing raven hair before looking back to Dumbledore. "Anything we need to do once we get there?"
"Other than enjoying the view of the little borough we're about to enter and staying close, nothing else." He answered. I nodded and looked to Aurora who looked ready with anticipation, and Jethro currently studying his nails for a moment.
"Now if you'll all link arms together." Dumbledore offered the said arm to Aurora who linked with Jethro, then to me, and finally to Elowyn. With a coordinated send-off a loud pop and a pull of my navel we apparated. The swirling of our home passed by as we landed behind the alley behind the presumable cafe. The scuttling and hissing of a started cat from behind caught my attention as we all let go of each other, looking over the bricks of the alleyway that held trash cans that were predominately filled with most of the garbage. The smell of the rubbish wasn't contained, unfortunately, and much to the group's dislike it lingered. Letting out a heavy exhale I looked at my traveling group to see everyone was fine and recovering from the jumbled mess of apparating.
We followed the lead of Dumbledore through the streets of the town. Buildings stacked together painted a picture of sporadic lights turned on, the fascinating Muggle automobiles known as 'cars' passing by, and just a few strangers walking on the opposite side of our street. After a few blocks, we ended up in a borough where the homes aligned. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary which was convenient for a hideout, marking the headquarters for lodging the resistance within the unsuspecting quarters of a Muggle borough. Dumbledore didn't bother looking both ways before crossing into the middle of the street, and a pause later pulled out his wand to tap three times in the direction of the stacked homes.
The sound of rumbling broke through the general silence of the night and with amazement, I watched on as a space formed between the buildings and started to slide apart as another building came forward in the space between. I could even see the Muggles through the windows remained undisturbed by the motion of it, seeming to ignore or just completely oblivious to this magic.
"Wow… how do the Muggles not know?" Elowyn asked out loud in awe.
"A great question once we've entered," Dumbledore answered patiently just as the building settled into place with a halt. Dumbledore pulled something out of his pocket and held the device in the air. It was silver and shiny, almost resembling a Muggle lighter that once Dumbledore pushed the button had gathered the light from the surrounding lamppost. Dumbledore repeated this process a few more times before the street around us fell under darkness that wasn't pitch black but considerably easier to hide under. "That should keep us concealed for now from any wandering eyes," Dumbledore spoke before heading straight to the door.
As we walked up the steps to the door Dumbledore had pulled out his wand with his other hand once more to tap the door that had no keyhole or letterbox. The only thing the door adorned was a silver door knocker with a twisted snake in the middle. Loud clicks and metal-on-metal sounds clattered around before the door finally creaked open. Before Dumbledore took a step further to walk through, he turned to us.
"It's best if we keep our voices low when entering first. You'll find out as to why at some point, just trust me." His tone seemed amused at whatever secret he kept and stepped through the door, turning to step aside and let the rest of us follow through. Aurora was ahead of us and squeezed past the headmaster followed by Jethro who turned pressing his finger to his lips as a teasing gesture while giving Elowyn a wide and mischievous grin. Elowyn held her hand over her mouth to stifle her giggling as I pushed Jethro forward.
Stepping through the dark, damp building gave me an eerie feeling. There was a strange sweet yet rotting smell that erupted my senses and forced a curled lip. Once I passed through the threshold I turned to watch as Dumbledore opened the silver lighter object once more to distribute the light back to the lamp post. Turning back to let Dumbledore finish up his task and close the door. I looked ahead to continue taking in the appearance of the home. A staircase immediately to my right ran far along up the several flights looking as if it went on farther than I could immediately tell. The noise of old-fashioned gas lamps hissed alive as the light helped guide my group further. Cobwebs were everywhere and especially upon the chandelier that hung above us, peeling wallpaper rang along the hallways that hung crooked and age-blackened portraits. This place looked like it was deserted of any inhabitants for years, and did nothing to make me feel like it was our supposed safe haven.
Up ahead of us, I noted that a light emerged, and the pointed hat of Minerva McGonagall stepped out. When she spotted the face of my uncle, she wasn't sure what or who to think of him before finding Elowyn's face and nodding. Her tight smile didn't seem disingenuous but more stressed and motioned to follow her through the door. Taking the steps to follow her lead it wasn't long before all five of us were filling through the door and down the creaking stairs to what looked like a basement kitchen. Several iron pans and pots hung from the dark ceiling while multiple chairs were crammed around the long table that took most of the room's space. The table had been littered with pages from the Daily Prophet, parchment of notes, and goblets with wine bottles strewn around.
Around the room, I noticed the faces of Arthur Weasley speaking between his son, Bill, and the tall, shabby-looking figure I recognized as Remus Lupin. A smile found its way to my lips.
"See, Selini," Jethro pointed out while grabbing one of the wine bottles once the door had closed. I noticed that Dumbledore's presence had not wandered down to this room with us, and wondered for a moment where he had gone. "We should've prepared better; next time you must let me bring my finest elf-made wine I procured!"
"Yes, enjoy yourself…" Minerva mumbled while throwing me a look I understood as she walked to find her seat on the other side of the table.
I rolled my eyes and folded my arms with a defeated sigh while looking down to ignore his jesting. Molly didn't pay mind to Jethro but came instead to hug Elowyn, asking if she was alright while receiving Elowyn complied to answer. She looked at me while holding her arms out to me too, the smile seemed to relay the sympathy of our last meeting as I accepted her warm greeting.
"Oh, how're you, Maeve-deary?" I smiled while pulling away and avoiding her gaze when answering.
"I'm… alive, I suppose." I chuckled as she beamed with agreeance.
"That you thankfully are—aw, Aurora! It's so good to see you! And is this the mysterious new member?" Molly asked out loud while looking at my uncle.
"Malachi Jethro Keir Thorne, madame." Jethro, like he always did, gave a dramatic greeting while taking her hand and placing a quick kiss on the top before bowing low to her. A bashful giggle from Molly left her speechless just before Arthur Weasley came up to introduce himself. In Mr. Weasley's attempt to establish his marital status by standing next to his wife, putting a hand on her shoulder, and giving a less-than-warm greeting it did nothing to sway Jethro from another flashing introduction. I fixed a deadpan expression to Aurora and sighed through my nose who shared her sympathies as best as she could and tried her best to hide her amusement.
"Uncle Remus!" Elowyn exclaimed while making her way over to the other side of the table to hug Remus Lupin as tightly as she could. I watched the man I've called a friend for years hug the petite frame of my daughter; his face covered in more scars than the last time I saw him. It didn't dim his light as he smiled warmly at the gesture, chuckling while patting her back for a moment before she pulled away.
"Did you remember?" She asked in earnest.
"You're anything but not forgetful, dear Elowyn," Remus answered while pulling out a small bag and handing it to her with a smile. "A chocolate for each year I haven't seen you, as promised."
Elowyn's smile grew brightly as she took the bag from him and hugged him once more. I couldn't help but smile warmly at the scene as I walked forward slowly toward the two. "You can't hog all of his time to yourself, my Star," I spoke while playfully nudging the teen who pulled away to stick her tongue out. I looked up to Remus and gave him a warm, and nostalgic, hug. His hug was soft but rememberable and held me for a moment before pulling away. I looked up at him to take in the scars on his face before putting a gentle hand on his face.
"My dear Moony," I sighed.
"As it's always been, Maeve I promise I'm fine." I gave a sympathetic smile to my friend who patted my hand before I pulled away. He smiled back almost bashful of his state, but I only wish I could take that away before bowing his head to break the eye contact.
"Selini Maeve Thorne," The familiar voice of Sirius Black pulled my attention toward the door as he leaned against it. Blinking I would be lying if I said I wasn't taken back by his change of appearance. This time I was able to recognize the man from my past.
He wore a dark purple suit with a dark grey undershirt. The chain connecting his petty coat added a nice touch of elegance to his attire. His hair was tamed back into dark ringlets styled nicely to frame his face like I remembered, and his face looked like he had aged backward from the short amount of time he had been away. Even the way his lively, steely eyes twinkled as he stared at me was a bigger improvement than last time. I raised an eyebrow while putting my hands on my hips taking a few steps closer to stand across from him, Aurora and Jethro created space between us.
"I hate repeating myself, you know. It's Maeve–"
"Darling, you were named after your great-grandmother, it's quite the honor that you're missing out on!" Jethro threw up his hands as Sirius crossed the room, nodding to Aurora who gave a kind smile as he stopped in front of us. "And this must be the devil-may-care lad I've heard about!" Jethro gave Sirius a sly smile before looking back to me.
"Hard for you to not talk about me eh, Maeve?" Sirius pushed while looking at me just to wink.
"Professional talk, Sirius, and unfortunately my uncle lacks the understanding of what that means." I offered with less enthusiasm with another flick of my eyes to look at Sirius's amused expression.
"Ah! The escaped felon who was wrongfully convinced! My, what a title! You know dear boy you're looking quite well for someone who spent over a decade in Azkaban, but let me turn you onto my glamour potions that double as a healing agent. You'll be looking younger than most here; just take Aurora for example!" He motioned to my friend who's cheeks flared from the attention.
"They do work well, but maybe this is a conversation for afterward, yes?" Aurora bashfully explained while motioning to the table and those watching our interaction.
"We might need them now if he doesn't remember me," Sirius leaned in with a chuckle.
"Oh, forgive me, I'm speaking as if we hadn't met!" Jethro lightly bowed his head. "Gods, I can't believe this is the same strapping young lad you were so smitten over, Selini! You know, it's never too late to rekindle long-lost love." Jethro flicked his eyes between me and Sirius while wiggling his eyebrows.
If I thought Elowyn and Sirius together were going to be the death of me, I was clearly underestimating the effect that Jethro would have with him. This was all becoming far too involved for me to handle and could feel the irritation bringing back the headache that otherwise had subsided. Holding my hands up I glared at Jethro and opened my mouth to speak until a silky, and quite annoyed, voice interrupted from the doorway. My heart skipped a beat as I recognized the sound of his voice immediately.
"Yes, a fine match with a felon who can't even leave the premises of his home. Should the wedding be held here in the basement, or next to the screaming portrait of his mother?" Severus Snape walked slowly followed by Dumbledore who didn't seem bothered at the potential squarling about to happen. Severus's glare directed at the man in front of me was quite deadly. There was no telling how much of that awkward conversation he heard, but I could venture a guess it was enough to boil his blood. I didn't want anything spiraling out of control, but even I couldn't deny the way his clear distaste had stirred attraction inside of me.
Gods, it had been far too long since we had a chance to be alone together.
Sirius scoffed as he turned toward the man when Aurora's person came between them. She looked back and forth before looking at me with slight panic in her eyes before looking up at Severus. His glare only broke after he realized Aurora had stepped in front of him, but this time his glare was directed at Aurora just less murderous.
"Oh, Severus, it's so great to hear your dry humor again!" Nervous laughter from the woman as she lightly backhanded his shoulder. Severus looked to the spot on his arm before quickly looking at the woman like she'd lost her mind. "Have you had a good summer doing… stuff?" Another anxious titter came from Aurora who did her best to distract from the growing temper of Sirius. It had little to no effect.
"I'm sure he's had all his fun with his bloody Death Eater friends. Too bad he couldn't stay with them!" Sirius spat back stepping forward in a way that made Aurora shrink back. Severus and his signature sneer readying himself for another round of insults.
"Are they going to fight?" I heard Elowyn ask from behind me.
"No, they're not!" Molly answered heatedly while briskly making her way in between the two men to motion for Elowyn to come forward. "But I do believe it's about time we get you upstairs to be with your friends, my dear."
Elowyn stepped forward with slacked shoulders and huffing her disappointment. Maneuvering through the tight space between bodies with Molly Weasley who put an arm around her shoulders to guide her out of the room. "I wanted to see who wins…" She mumbled.
I looked to Aurora who shrugged with a snicker. "Can you blame her?" She whispered while earning my disapproving stare causing her to look to the side, a hand covering her amusement. "Honestly, darling, those two look like they would actually kill each other!" Jethro interjected between us in a not-so-subtle whisper.
"If you don't mind," Dumbledore's serene voice interrupted the heated stare down, the three of us onlookers and the awkward bystanders within the room. "Perhaps now would be the time to start before the children come down expecting a brawl."
With that, we broke apart to take seats. I was able to catch Severus's eyes, but he did not betray any warmth or comfort with a smile or nod. Even understanding that the act of restricting ourselves in front of everyone was necessary I couldn't ignore the pang of dejection from his actions or lack thereof. Going with the pull of instinct I moved to sit with him. It was a minuscule thing for me to do, but I couldn't dismiss how drawn I was to be around him. He must've peaked through my mind as the images of laying with him, the peace I felt within his arms and the lingering memory of a small kiss on my forehead were pulled to reminisce.
It was his way of assuring me while using treasured memories. I did what I could to suppress the smile that wanted to show before I dared to sneak a glance his way. Catching the last bit of his lingering stare before he looked down and pulled out my chair before his own.
A gentleman, even despite secrecy. Sitting down I took in our positions around the table; Remus and Sirius sat in front of us while Aurora and Jethro took the last two seats next to Sirius. Dumbledore had taken the seat at the front of the table, and Mr. Weasley and Bill, who nodded to me, were sitting on our side a seat spaced between Bill and Severus. Taking in the number of people I couldn't help but wonder about our numbers, and worried if this was it.
"I've gotten word from a few stragglers that they will be a bit late, and in the meantime, we can discuss some issues first before getting into the more ominous," Dumbledore explained from his seat at the front while looking around at all of us. "First and foremost, the ministry and our uncooperative Minister, Cornelius."
"Uncooperative would be putting it lightly, don't you think?" Remus questioned earning a humorless check from Arthur.
"With the Prophet constantly scrutinizing Dumbledore and Harry, I think it's safe to say they're doing everything they can to discredit any story about You-Know-Who coming back." Arthur Weasley added with a slow sigh of frustration.
I raised an eyebrow at this piece of information. "What do you mean by discrediting Harry? I mean," I looked at Dumbledore with an incredulous stare. "I can understand a public feud of differing opinions with two adults, but a fourteen-year-old?"
"Fudge is trying to dissuade any talks about You-Know-Who, not just Dumbledore here." Sirius answered while looking at me. "Even if it means going after a fourteen-year-old." His bitter tone wasn't hard to miss in his words.
"What does he have to say then?" I scoffed leaning forward, raising my eyebrows to look between Dumbledore and Sirius. "I can't imagine an old fool such as himself have much to say about a teenager," I asked.
Sirius nodded his head to the side once, lifting a hand for a pause before carrying on. "Much like we saw with the Triwizard Tournament there's plenty to make up in his opinion."
"Not to mention," Remus spoke up with his hands clasped together on the table leaning forward. "We suspect Fudge speculates this is how Dumbledore is trying to take over his position as Minister."
A huff from Aurora who looked to Dumbledore. "What an incredibly intricate plan you have, headmaster!" Her sarcasm earned a bemused hum from Dumbledore.
I mulled over all the things I'd like to say and do to Fudge once this was over with. "So, he thinks you've started a panic because you want his job?"
"Flattering of him, I know. Unfortunately, I don't fit the narrative as someone who aspires to be Minister of Magic–in my opinion." Dumbledore concluded. "We can then assume they'll continue to sway others' ideals of Harry and me until something horrid occurs. In the meantime, I've been stripped of my Chief Warlock of Wizengamot title, taking away my Order of Merlin, First Class title as well. All of which I can live with, but I do hope I'm able to stay on the Chocolate Frogs Cards."
Aurora snickered and I couldn't help but smile myself from Dumbledore's wishes. A small knock from the door behind us came through gathering our attention. The figure of a purple-haired girl walking in tripping over her feet but quickly gathering herself as her hand grabbed the table. She gave a sheepish smile as a tall, dark-skinned man who wore midnight blue and purple robes followed. I was recognized as Kingsley Shacklebolt, head of the Auror department. I remember seeing him from my younger years at Hogwarts. The disgruntled and irritated face of Alastor Moody came in with his whizzing eye that scanned the room quickly, his metal foot clinking as he walked. Molly entered at the rear while closing the door and heading the opposite way to the back to join Arthur.
"Sorry for our late arrival," Kingsley's deep booming voice spoke while motioning a wave to everyone in the room. The purple-haired girl locked her hazel eyes with me and lit up for a moment while waving. I tried to recall anyone who may have resembled the girl but was unable to. An ex-student? A short-lived, friendly comrade during my heathen days? I offered a small wave while looking at Aurora who shrugged once more.
"Sorry, I don't mean to act like an annoying fan or anything, but I've heard so much about The Wandless Witch!" The girl said as she took the empty seat next to me with a bright grin. "I'm Tonks," She offered her hand. I gave a small smile and shook it lightly. It was rare to meet someone who was more fascinated than distrustful of my abilities.
"It's nice to meet you given the circumstances." I chuckled. I motioned to Aurora with a nod. "You'll be happy to hear I have my assistant with me, then."
Tonks turned and quickly made her way over to Aurora who returned her beaming smile to the girl, shaking her hand with a bit more enthusiasm. "You two are absolutely brilliant!"
"You can fawn over Thorne and Ramsey after the adults talk, Nymphadora!" Moody snarled as he limped to take the other only other empty chair next to Remus. I watched as the vibrant purple hair melted into a fiery red that darkened with the girls' expression.
"My name is Tonks!" She hissed at him walking back to where I was and plopping down in the chair next to me, her narrowed eyes reminiscent of the expression I gave to my uncle. I decided then I could like her just for her ferocity, and commitment to being recognized for how she wanted to be. Her uniqueness as a presumably Metamorphmagus was an added touch to her appeal.
"Severus," Dumbledore ignored the feud and moved the conversation on, gathering our attention once more. "Can you give us any insight as to what Lord Voldemort is planning?"
I could feel all eyes fall upon the quiet man to my left. I didn't want to add to the showcase of curious gazes, but I would be lying if I said I didn't feel just as much anticipation.
"At the moment," Severus began. "It seems the Dark Lord is currently gathering his following, and plans for recruitment. His focus isn't on attacking Potter or anyone else at the moment. Death Eaters will be doing anything and everything to appease him since he considers most of his followers faithless."
"Faithless, how?" Kingsley asked from the corner.
"The Dark Lord believes that his followers' efforts to bring him back were less than acceptable, and therefore believes they're unworthy of his forgiveness. This could result in the majority looking to earn back his favorability by going for drastic measures."
"Drastic? That sounds like they would be out murdering, or something." Tonks asked. I watched as Severus locked eyes with Dumbledore for a moment, silence taking place before a thoughtful nod came from the headmaster before looking at me.
"Perhaps a chance to gain favor by bringing in one of the four he's been searching for..." Dumbledore concluded.
"Four? Not just Harry?" Bill questioned.
"Unfortunately," Sirius spoke once more. "Voldemort's sights aren't just set on Harry. He seems interested in Maeve, and Aurora here, but also the little one upstairs." Sirius looked between me and Aurora with an unreadable expression.
"Why on Earth would he want either of you two?" Molly Weasley's voice pipped up from the left down the table, leaning forward as she also looked between us.
I felt the attention move to me and while straightening up I figured now would be the time to have a drink. "For this," I answered while holding up a hand and calling forth the scarlet energy that covered my palm and fingers. I moved the energy to bring forth a bottle of wine that was opened and one of the unused glasses in front of me, bending my finger to pour the wine till I was satisfied, and lowered my hand to set the items down. Grabbing the glass, I looked down at her to further explain. "Barty Crouch Jr.'s mission wasn't just to make sure Harry won the tournament, but apparently to gather information about me and those who travel with me." Taking a swing I put the glass down and looked away. Even after some time to deal with what had happened the small lingering guilt of letting the fake Moody extract information from me flared up for a moment.
"Which means we need to make sure that all four of you have studier protection, or better yet stay around headquarters more." Sirius offered giving a nod to me.
"We've set up our home quite nicely as far as protection goes," Aurora stepped in after possibly noticing my exasperated look. "Wouldn't it be spreading ourselves thin, or maybe exhausting the time of the other members if we did that?"
"You're not concerned enough by this?" Remus inquired while looking over to Aurora. She blinked while shrugged showing her loss for a rebuttal.
"With the three of them, I find it hard to believe they'd need much more protection." Jethro snickered before throwing back the last of his drink. "You've got one who can create magnificent things, hallucinations or transfigurations, with a flick of her wrist–" Jethro motioned to Aurora, "You have Selini here who can carry quite a punch with her powers, not to mention her spell work with it–" He nodded to me before raising both hands, motioning with his glass upward. "And the little savage above us who doesn't need a wand at all excels at her defense charms! They'd be foolish enough to try, I say!"
"As magnificent as you've painted all three of them, it would be foolish to leave them without any backup. Or would even suggest leaving Potter be on the mere fact of his grandiose achievements?" Severus cut through.
Jethro looked at him as his smile slowly fell before, he tilted his head and popped an eyebrow. "I'm merely suggesting that they're not as fragile as one might think. Being prepared to defend oneself can go quite far, my brooding friend." The little quip of a pitch in his voice, along with the sassy head swivel told me that Jethro was ready to fight on this subject. Closing my eyebrows together I gave Jethro a warning glance, but it went unnoticed by the men.
"Friend…" Severus scoffed.
"Regardless," Sirius interrupted without looking at the two. "It wouldn't hurt to have a few helpful hands-on standby. I do agree maybe it wouldn't hurt to exercise those incredible talents you three have." Sirius looked to Jethro who gave a satisfied smile to Sirius before looking back to Severus with a mocking expression.
I looked to Aurora who seemed just as lost on what to say as I did. I worried about the extent of her abilities; she was nowhere near the level of going without her wand for most spell work, and while I was able to lay my wand down for days it had changed recently. I relied more and more on the unique wand now that things were so chaotic, and stormy. Would we be able to not only strengthen our abilities but carry on with our lives? Would we overextend ourselves on the notion of "what if" situations?
Dumbledore cleared his throat. "I find it best if you three were able to rely on more than just yourselves," Dumbledore stated looking between me and Aurora. "Perhaps if Sirius doesn't mind, you three may find safety here."
I looked to Aurora who shrugged, "Elowyn won't like the moving as much, but I suppose that's better than… well…"
I sighed and looked to Sirius who seemed hopeful for my input. It seemed we were going to be traveling, albeit a short distance compared to what we were used to, but nonetheless we were on the move once again. "As long as we're not taking up too much space, then I suppose… we can scuttle around here."
Sirius gave a triumphant smile while glancing to the left of me. I followed his gaze to a see less-than-pleased twitch in Severus' lips. Of course, this was more than just our safety; an immature sleight of hand to have us around more had to of stemmed from our younger days, and that stupid article by Rita fucking Skeeter. Whatever was going on in the mind of Sirius Black had to of been stopped if he was getting any ideas, and after one particular letter I received months and months ago I had the feeling it involved "old flames". Damn Jethro! He wasn't helping this at all!
"But," I said to turn our attention to something else. "That brings us to the safety of Harry," I went on. "Is he better off being stuck with that family? He's not exactly protected by the likes of them."
"When it comes to his protection, I can assure you that for the time being it's for the best. I do think at some point we should consider bringing him here, though." Dumbledore said.
"We should consider a plan then how to do such," Minerva spoke while looking to Alastor Moody. "That would be best suited for your expertise."
Moody grunted in agreeance.
"Shouldn't he be in some need of training as well? I've read some interesting articles in the Prophet, but we all know we can't rely on that, so how powerful is the little tyke anyway?" Jethro asked while taking another sip of freshly poured wine.
"As a blanket statement I was able to teach him the Patronus charm," Remus spoke earning varied responses of shock and awe from those around us.
"Sweet Circe, the Patronus charm?!" Jethro exclaimed with more seriousness than I had seen from him this whole night. "Are we sure we don't want him fighting?" He scoffed.
"That is incredibly impressive magic, Jethro, but he is just a boy!" Aurora stated while backhanding his chest, causing him to choke on the sip of wine.
"Agreed," My tone raised while narrowing my sights on my uncle. "Joke all you want and trust me I wish you didn't, considering the danger we're in, but Harry doesn't need any training. Prepare him for what's to come, sure, but can we at least give him some semblance of a childhood as much as we can?" I looked to Sirius who seemed hesitant and avoided my stare.
"Thank you, Maeve!" Molly spoke up. "It's not funny to joke about a teenager's ability to stand against such a vile man! I suppose you'd send little Elowyn to face He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!" Molly's face flared with splotches of red on her cheeks.
Jethro threw his hands up while chuckling. "Of course, I wouldn't put her right there, but I'd be lying if I didn't say her and Harry Potter would be a powerful duo! They're our next generation of fighters; denying them the ability to try and fight for their lives and you may as well just hand them over." Jethro's exaggerating tone lessened and turned more critical at the end.
The whole time I stared at Sirius who kept glancing at Jethro and the look in his steely eyes made my heart rate rise. He couldn't be actually looking at my uncle in agreeance, could he?
"What do you think, Sirius?" I cut off whatever Minerva had been ranting about drawing the attention back to me. "You're awfully quiet about our Godson. I'm surprised you're even quiet about Elowyn given how you two have hit it off."
Sirius cleared his throat before looking to Remus who looked upon his friend with scrutiny. Seeing that there was no way to avoid it Sirius sighed and looked at me readying himself for what I doubt would be something I'd admit a good idea.
"You remember what we could do at that age, Maeve. I have to agree with your uncle that if Harry wants to fight then he should have every defensive spell learned to do so. Not to mention we weren't too far apart in age when we started fighting–"
"Are you serious?!" I exclaimed while leaning forward once again.
"I am, and I am!" The smug little smile he had on his face only pissed me off more.
"We're supposed to be protecting him, Sirius, not arming him with ideals of taking on someone hell-bent on killing him! It'll be over my cold and rotted body before I even extend the idea to my daughter!" I bit back scrunching my face with disgust.
"Wouldn't protecting them mean we let them know just how important it was to fight for their lives?" Sirius retorted while raising an eyebrow. "You say he's just a boy but as it's been discussed he's dealt with much more than an adult has–if not as much as an Auror would!"
With a humorless and breathy laugh, I was ready to retort, but Molly beat me to it. "All of what Harry has gone through has been enough to scar him for the rest of his life, Sirius! If you want to truly protect him don't subject him to any more violence, or–or heroism!"
I looked over to Molly and loudly thanked her, and she welcomed me just as stubbornly before we turned to look at Sirius.
"Perhaps," Remus interjected while delicately entering the fighting ring. "A compromise could be in order. Now, Sirius, we can all agree there are several people here who care about Harry, and that even extends to Elowyn's safety as well," Remus looked to me as I folded my arms and looked away trying to stifle the pout of whatever logic Moony was about to offer. "And keeping them hidden from the truth could only harm them more. They're at this age where curiosity, and thinking they could handle anything the world offers, could only prove to be harmful maybe even fatal… Arming them like they're soldiers would only encourage them, but opening them to the reality of the situation is only sensible."
"So, you suggest a firm warning then?" Tonks spoke up. I watched as she eyed Remus with something unreadable but akin to interest.
"In a way yes. Whatever You-Know-Who has planned you'll bet he'll play on the ignorance of innocence when it comes to those two. The Death Eaters would follow in suit and use their experience from the past, and their knowledge of the dark arts to… see to their ends."
For the first time, silence fell over the group as we all contemplated Remus's words. I hated to admit that he was right; if these two weren't informed enough they were capable of taking things into their own hands. Elowyn already proved she was ready to run off at the first chance of excitement involving her friends, and Harry attracted people hell-bent on killing him like fleas to a sweet puppy. I could see those closest to the two teens following in pursuit, friends becoming allies in a fight they would hopefully, through the grace of all the Gods, never see.
"A reasonable compromise then," Dumbledore broke the pregnant quiet of the room. "Keep the dark horrors of the details away from them but allow them to understand it's a serious matter they're involved with." It seemed like there wasn't much left to discuss once Dumbledore had made the decision. I looked back up to see Sirius who seemed compliant, but not happy with this decision. His eyes flickered at me, and I had to look away. "Is there anything else, Severus?" Dumbledore asked.
Severus hesitated for a moment after such an exchange between everyone. He took a subtle breath to respond. "I have my suspicions to believe there's something else the Dark Lord might be after, but as far as what it might be he has yet to inform me." Another long look cast to Dumbledore that I assumed was a relayed message via mind magic.
"Kingsley," Dumbledore said while looking at the man. "Any news you can enlighten us with?"
"So far things are quiet I'm afraid," The deep voice of Kingsley Shacklebolt stated. "The only thing to report is that the department is following the false trail I've created so Sirius here can breathe a little easier." Kingsley nodded toward Sirius who pursed his lips and decided it was his turn to have a drink.
"Sleep a little easier, Sirius, but we have a long way to go until we can let you safely roam the streets again." Dumbledore directed his attention to the man who seemed to pout at his predicament. "With that being said I can only think the rest of this meeting is finished unless anyone else has something they'd like to share?"
"Spoke to a couple of the old Order members that couldn't make it tonight," Sirius stated after gulping his glass. "Hestia Jones and Sturgis Podmore should be able to make the next one but had to settle affairs beforehand. Dedalus Diggle seems hesitant, but I think he'll come around. Mundungus Fletcher should also be here next time. Apparently he's sorting out more pressing matters before he could make it."
"Mundungus Fletcher?!" Jethro and I exclaimed in unison. A disgusting, lousy, treacherous name of a man I had a long-standing grudge against, and that also spilled over into Jethro's affairs. The shock of our outburst gathered attention to me and my uncle once more, Sirius and Remus looked between each other before looking back at me.
"Well, yes. He was a part of the first Order when it was first established—" Minerva started to explain.
"Yes, that's fine and dandy, but he's established himself completely untrustworthy, my friend!" Jethro countered while giving a bewildered look to the rest of the group. "Having dealt with him personally I implore you to redact his invitation!"
"Mundungus may be a crooked man but his insight to the wicked is exactly what need." Alastor Moody cut in. "As if the current company of a Death Eater is more calming than someone like Dung could be."
I turned to glare at Moody who didn't at all care about my obvious disapproval of his comparison. "Mundungus Fletcher only thinks of himself not to mention he'd be more than happy to throw any of us to the Dark Lord with the proper amount of Galleons or treasures!"
"Sounds personal, Thorne," Alastor's tone dropped as he leaned in. His human eye narrowed as the other swirled to land directly on me stopping its motion for a moment as he spoke. "Curious to know why you're so concerned about his dealings. Not hard to guess it's probably something suspicion in of itself!"
"Actually, Mundungus stole valuable items from me that cannot be replaced! On top of that tried to hand off his debt to my uncle and get him into serious issues with a few nasty people. Sorry, but I don't fit your narrative for suspicious dealings!" I seethed holding my narrowed eyes, my Russian lilt showing itself more pronounced in my tone.
"I hate to be the voice of reason, but Mundungus could keep an eye on streets that none of us can," Kingsley said wincing from the now-heated stare I was giving him. "My condolence for what you've experienced, but we must look at the bigger picture here." His gentle firmness didn't go amiss for me but did little to subdue my temper.
Pursing my lips I looked to Jethro who shook his head lightly looking once again uncharacteristically serious since we'd gotten here. Looking down I let the issue drop until I felt a light nudge from my left. Looking over to see Severus raise an eyebrow I could feel the Legilimency probe through my mind and allow for the memories to flash through.
A younger, naiver, version of myself thinking I was getting ahead of the short and robust-looking man by tricking him into a deal that would've left me with more money than him. Imagery flashed of me entering the small flat that was turned over in chaos and flashed to a new image of me when I realized that the ruby-incrusted hair comb that my mother left me was gone, along with the goblin-made silver ring with the small, black pearl with purple and green iridescence given to me by my father. The memory of the grief had washed over me, and I couldn't allow him to see how I handled that situation when I finally broke eye contact.
There wasn't much to finish with. We decided on another day to come in in the next few weeks and planned to discuss our moves when it came to Harry's eventual transportation to headquarters. Severus agreed to find out more information on his theory of what the Dark Lord was planning and to see how applicable he would be able to succeed. Aurora and I agreed to remain here while Tonks and Moody, though the former was reluctant but compliant, retrieve our necessities from our cottage for a prolonged stay. Dumbledore had suggested it would look less suspicious with that sort of traffic in the Apparating department to track. Jethro agreed to occupy the cottage in the meantime, though asked Sirius if he could take a bottle of wine for the road to which he was happy to oblige.
The meeting broke and the antsy Molly decided it was best that everyone deserved a late meal, and sent Arthur to retrieve the children. I didn't realize how hungry I was until the idea of food came up. Once Dumbledore beckoned Severus to follow him out I felt irritation at not being able to catch him before he was sent off. I sighed and decided I wanted to get away from most that lingered and offered Molly some help in the kitchen.
"Now, Sirius, I have a few items that are my personal favorite to enhance our inner beauty regardless of what age does to us! I have here a balm…" Jethro's voice faded out as I rolled my eyes and walked up to Molly as we got busy. I mainly followed her directions on what she wanted me to do, cutting vegetables as she prepared the large pot for the soup we were about to enjoy. She gathered herbs while preparing the bread as well. Most of our conversation dealt with cooking with an unspoken need to distance ourselves from the meeting. It wasn't until Molly stopped stirring the ingredients within the pot that she pulled me away from washing my hands.
"I'm curious to know your stance, Maeve." She said while turning to me, a hand placed on her hip. "I've been fighting with myself on letting the boys and Ginny return to Hogwarts this year."
Grabbing a washcloth directly in front of the sink I turned the water off and blinked at her a few times. "Oh, really?" I thought for a moment before continuing. "You think it wiser to keep them by your side, then?"
"Wouldn't you?" Molly asked as she pursed her lips with fretfulness filling in her eyes. "I mean, given if you weren't a professor and you were told all of this… wouldn't you do anything to keep them safe?"
I stared at her for a moment before licking my lips. "Of course, and quite frankly I understand where you're coming from." Putting down the cloth I leaned my back against the counter and looked down. "There isn't anything I wouldn't do to make sure Elowyn was safe, or would never have to endure anything I grew up with. I'll admit the idea of taking her and Aurora to the farthest side of the world just to get away crossed my mind several times. Hell, abducting Harry and taking him to see the world had its charms." I looked at her smiling softly with my playful, but truthful, words.
She tried to give me a small smile in return, but her worry held its place.
"That being said running and hiding would work… minimal at best. Especially when targeted." The bitterness in my words flowed at the end of my conclusion. "The only thing we could rationally do was live our life the best we can and put our trust in our allies as well as ourselves that we'd make it through. Hogwarts is by far one of the safest places within our region–if not the most. If we ran, we'd only be living in fear, and truly at risk of something more sinister." I looked up at her to see my words affecting her as they sank in. "While I'm there, and I'm sure this goes for the professors within this room tonight, the Weasleys will be protected. They've dragged Elowyn into their circle as you know, and I'd say she wouldn't be the only one upset if they weren't around." I bent at the waist to look at her with another comforting smile.
She nodded and the genuine smile returned to her face but said nothing else as she went to stir the now boiling soup. The sound of chatter had picked up considerably by the sounds of laughter and conversation.
"Oooh, Miss Selini!" The ever-sensational sing-song voice of Jethro broke through and immediately exhausted me.
"He better be careful with that volume of this or else that dread painting will start howling!" Molly warned me as I made my way out of the back room to the scene where Aurora was fluffing the curly locks of Sirius's dark hair and Jethro was putting up small vials before looking up while gesturing with his hands to Sirius as if he were on display. Elowyn sat next to Remus with Ginny on her other side while the twins sat across from them with Bill and Arthur chatting away.
"Ta-daaa!" Jethro presented. "Not a wrinkle or line to suggest imprisonment, but only natural age!"
I had to admit I was impressed to see the difference in his face a second time tonight. Jethro's vanity was something he prided himself over, and after years of working with potioners and mediwitches to help his little glamour potion experiments he had been able to develop a line of nearly anti-aging formulas. When Aurora first met him she bravely allowed herself to be experimented on and thankfully the results were successful. Aurora may be older than me, but her youthful appearance was all thanks to my uncle's vain need to appear ageless.
The results on Sirius were impressive, to say the least. If he looked better the first time, I saw then him he looked miraculous now. Jethro was right; his appearance didn't suggest any hardship in the last twelve years. I had trouble hiding my shock.
"You've stunned her to silence, Jethro." Sirius mused while giving a smug look to my uncle. "Just how old are you then?"
"Oh, let's put it this way, when I'm on my death bed the eulogy will proclaim I had more time left! Remus, dear, are you positive you don't want to try? I'm up for any kind of challenge, you know." Jethro leaned over while looking at Remus through his brow. I could tell it made Remus uncomfortable from the closed space but also the attention on him once more. What Jethro didn't know was those scares couldn't be fixed with anything he had on him. Werewolf damages didn't work like that.
"Uncle Remus doesn't need anything," Elowyn said while leaning over him. "He looks perfectly fine, Uncle Jethro!" Elowyn folded her arms and lifted her chin in her stance.
"Yeah, besides," Tonks spoke while smiling at him. "There's nothing to fix." Remus and Tonks stared at each other, and I could've sworn I saw the budding of red on his cheeks.
"Professor," Ginny spoke up while looking at Aurora. "How old are you if you don't mind me asking?"
Aurora loved this question and didn't shy away from it like most women I knew, even younger. I looked around at all of them until my eyes landed on Sirius once more. His eyes were already on me with a small smile on his fresh face. Had he been looking at me the whole time? A strange feeling swirled in the pit of my stomach as I felt heat rise in my body. Clearing my throat, I looked down and ran a hand through my hair to shake away whatever the hell that was.
"Anyone care to show me where we'll be sleeping?" I asked not realizing that most were preoccupied with their own conversation. The only one who wasn't speaking to anyone was Sirius.
"This is my home," He answered while getting up from his chair, and grabbing his glass of wine. "It would only make sense to give you a proper tour." A smirk on his lips as he crossed to the door to grab the knob. "Not much to show in the hallway, however. Mind your volume or my mother will give her a warm greeting." The sarcasm in his voice wasn't lost on me, and knowing how his relationship was with said mother I could only speculate it would be in our best interest to not test that.
Sirius opened the door and allowed me to step through first only causing me to shake my head at his display of manners. As we headed up the steps through the next door that I opened I was greeted once more by the run-down hallway. With a sudden hand on my shoulder, I pressed my back to the wall as Sirius slid past me. With the narrow hallway, it was almost inappropriate for the paused moment when he looked into my eyes. Breath hitched in my throat just before he moved past me to lead the way, the impression of his grey eyes made me feel just as strange.
'Get a grip, bitch!' I scolded myself harshly for my behavior as I reluctantly followed him to round the stairs and head up. Following Sirius's cautious steps and doing my best to not make much sound upon the creaking stair board we made our way to the second floor.
"I think this room should do just fine," Sirius spoke softly while opening the door for me to walk through. It was far too dark for me to be able to see anything until the sudden soft lighting of the gas lamps sprang to life. Looking around I was able to see posters of Muggle bands and women scantily claded in their frozen state. Gryffindor memorabilia was also plastered upon the wall. The red coloring of the bed and curtains matched the Gryffindor theme. With an unimpressed sigh and hands on my hips, I turned to look at the mirthful smile of Sirius Black.
"Really? A tour and the first place you take me is your room?"
"You misunderstand my motives, Maeve. What kind of gentleman leads a beautiful lady to the privacy of his childhood room with such an assumption? Tut, tut." Sirius feigned offense while motioning to the bed. "It should be big enough to fit two people comfortably, and the armchair is actually quite comfortable to sleep on." Motioning to the plush armchair under the window. "I've done what I could to clean up most of this room, but until Molly gets her hands on everything else it should do."
I looked around and started walking to take in more of what was once Sirius's escape from the outside world. I touched a few pieces, an old picture of him and his little brother Regulus Black had collected so much dust it seemed untouched compared to what he did clean. "I'm surprised your parents left everything the way it was," I commented before turning back to him. "After you ran away, I figured they would've… well, changed it."
"I was sure they would've," Sirius said while looking around for a moment before looking back at me. "But I suppose with most of these pictures enchanted with a permanent sticking charm, and knowing how stubborn my father was, I believe maybe it was easier to just not deal with it." I could hear the nostalgic and melancholy tone in his words. This was after all his home for most of his life, but with the issues within his family making him rebel and run away, I could almost understand why there would be such feelings. It was all he knew for the longest time, and it was still during a part of his life that much innocence remained. To leave it all behind knowing now that after he did life only became darker, harder without the knowledge of future events… I could only imagine the memories that flooded him.
"Now," I said while taking a few steps forward. "We can use this place for good and make use of it–to deal with it, in other words." I offered a smile to him in an attempt to change his mood.
For a moment he stared blinking at me before a smile came across his face. It was not a moment later when I felt his arms around me, the movement of putting his glass down next to the dresser we stood by before resuming the position. Sirius was important to me, and while he was able to find every nerve ending, I had and stomp on them, I had to admit that being able to see him recover and grasp at the light of hope in the oncoming foreboding days was enough to make me hug him back.
A/N: Welcome back! It's been a while since I've posted and I must admit it was for a few reasons. Happily finishing the first Act I decided to rest while cleaning up the plot points on my layout for the story. I also happened to of started a new HP fic called VVicked Crimes. If you're interested the first chapter is posted while the second one is in the works. It'll be a much darker story than this one has been, though don't underestimate TMBTE just yet. We've got this act to cover and two more afterward where a lot is headed into a gloomier direction. This chapter was more focused on discussion, and it killed me to give such a minimal interaction with Severus, but trust me our two love birds will have their moments. I can't help but also admit that the way Sirius and Maeve interact is fun to play out LOL. How do we feel about Jethro? I think I explained his face character is Neil Newbon, and if you're a Baldur's Gate 3 fan, then just know his character inspiration is nearly exactly to Astarion. I highly recommend if you don't know who that is to look up some Astarion scenes; the writing doesn't do his character justice!
I'll be working on two stories now so please be patient with me as I bring together two different worlds. Thank you for sticking it out this far!
Much love and thanks,
TJ