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Chapter Text

    London - 27 December 1979

    The Leaky Cauldron had reached its boiling point. Every table, nook, and perch was occupied. Conversation roared. Even Remus, who usually preferred the quieter nights and conversations, was singing along to the dirty versions of all the favourite wizarding carols. James, Lily, Sirius, Mary, Marlene, Remus, and Peter were all crowded into a cosy booth in the back corner.

    Tom, the barman had gone all out for Christmas this year. The decorations were still twinkling and would remain until after Hogmany had passed in a few days' time. The group was due a much needed catch-up. Remus hadn't seen everyone together for a while. He had spent Christmas with his parents and had just returned to London that evening when James insisted they all go out. The group had been celebrating since Christmas when Lily and James had announced they were expecting a baby in seven months' time. They would be leaving London in the next week for Godric’s Hollow and the increased safety and security measures it offered. Sirius’ had been the most excited about baby Potter and then the most put out when he discovered it would mean James moving away from the frontlines of the ongoing war against the Dark Arts and Lord Voldemort.

    Slowly, customers had trickled out, and at one in the morning, Tom rang the bell for last orders an hour before the pub was closed. There were fewer than twenty witches and wizards left now.

    “One more?” Remus asked the group who by now were all thoroughly worse for wear.

    “Definitely,” said James, who leapt up as Remus stood and accompanied him to the bar. “On me,” he said firmly as Remus had reached for his wallet.

    “I can get them,” said Remus.

    “I know you can, but I want to. You can get the first round next time.” James looked up at his much taller friend with such earnest in his eyes that Voldemort himself wouldn't have stood a chance.

    The next time he would see his friends would be at the Hogmany party and no one would be buying the drinks, but Remus didn't want to argue and sour the evening. It had been perfect so far.

    They returned with butterbeers to round out the night. Anything stronger would definitely have turned their stomachs. Peter and Sirius were laughing away, but Lily and Mary looked concerned and were surreptitiously glancing to a table behind Remus and James.

    “What's wrong?” Remus asked Lily. Her brilliant green eyes snapped back to the group and stayed locked into his golden ones for a few seconds before she tipped her head towards the back of the pub. 

    Remus darted his eyes to the corner as he sat down, passing beers to Sirius and Peter. His pulse quickened and his throat suddenly felt very thick as he tried to swallow his first gulp. Selene Selwyn was sat alone, blankly staring at and mindlessly tracing the rim of a firewhisky glass. The liquid inside had turned an anemic murky colour instead of the usual rich amber. The ice inside had melted into thin slivers. She seemed to slip into the shadows, hidden until now. Remus wondered how long she had been here and he hadn’t noticed. Had she noticed him and not said anything? He would have understood if she had.

    “Selene,” whispered Lily, “ you didn't hear what happened?”

    Remus glanced again with a little shake of his head. There was little need to be subtle, a manticore could've crashed through the walls and she wouldn't have noticed. Her eyes were glassy and her face completely blank as she chewed on her full bottom lip. She looked even paler than usual, her dark hair hanging down in an inky sheet that almost gave her the look of a banshee. If a banshee could ever be as beautiful as that thought Remus.

    “Her father died Christmas eve. It was all over the Prophet but it didn’t really say what happened. I don't think she has anyone anymore. Her mother died during fifth year remember?”

    Remus nodded. He did remember. Her brother had died before they went to Hogwarts and they were in their fifth year, close to their OWLs, when her mother had died. He remembered her being absent from the library. Typical Ravenclaw, there were rarely days she couldn’t be found studying. He remembered during their first Herbology class after she returned, her hands had shaken so much she couldn’t hold the shears properly and Remus had taken over without a word.

    She had hugged him for the first time that evening in the library, he'd written up doubles of his notes from the other classes they had together for her. They studied the rest of that night and were a regular fixture together at the library tables after that. Selene was very reserved and quiet and an easy study partner. Their evenings had been a nice break from some of the more elaborate of James and Sirius’ escapades. She had repaid the favour twenty times over copying her notes for him for their shared classes when he was ‘off sick’ or ‘looking after his mother’ each month.

    “I think she’s alone now,” said Lily sadly, “how awful to lose your whole family like that. I don’t know what I’d do.”

    “Well, not her whole family,” said Sirius darkly, “her Uncle is still kicking about in case you’ve forgotten.”

    The group stilled for a moment, all gripping the butterbeer bottles slightly tighter than before. They knew Selwyn was in Voldemort’s inner circle, not just a sympathiser or even a loyal follower but one of his Death Eaters, the highest display of fealty to the Dark Arts. Sirius and James had staked out his house a few times on Order business, trying to find out how the Death Eaters operated and who else was among their number. Dumbledore had sent them all on similar missions, trying to determine if anyone high up in the Ministry had been turned over to Lord Voldemort. Selene’s father had been high up in the Department of International Magical Co-operation but they hadn’t been able to confirm his allegiance yet.

    “Did you ever see her there?” Peter asked quietly. Remus looked to Sirius, heart pounding.

    “No.” Lily answered before Sirius. “Selene was never like that.”

    “No, she was never there.” Sirius replied. “But the Selwyns aren’t exactly known for their tolerance.”

    “Neither are the Blacks,” Lily replied pointedly. Sirius snorted. It was true Sirius' family believed in pure blood ideology but even they were not among the Death Eaters. “Selene worked at my bench during potions for NEWTs, she was always kind. She’s not like that. Not like Aubrey or the others who would refuse to touch anything I had touched without washing their hands afterwards.” Remus turned back to Lily, she, more than any of the rest of them and as much as he, had experienced the bigotry that was rampant in the wizarding world.

    “Bastards,” James gritted, his knuckles white against the table, nails biting into the edge.

    “And besides she was best friends with that Joanne Kerr remember? And she's Muggleborn.” The mood didn't improve. Joanne Kerr and her sister had been missing nearly a year, most likely dead.

    “We should go say something,” said Mary to Lily, who nodded.

    “I’ll go,” Remus said.

    “I forgot the two of you were friendly,” said Mary. The words twisted uncomfortably at the pit of his stomach.

    “Had a bit of a crush didnt you, Remus?” Said Peter, who winced as he recieved a swift kick under the table from James. His butterbeer sloshed around in the bottle and slopped onto the table.

    “Did you keep in touch after school?” Mary continued, ignoring the pair of them. Remus’ stomach twisted further, tying knots inside.

    “No,” said Remus. “Nothing bad,” he added as Sirius raised a sly eyebrow. “Nothing like that, we just got busy with NEWTs and you know what it’s been like after. Hard to keep in touch with everyone. We just drifted I suppose.”

    The knots had turned to lead and seemed to pull tightly all the way up to his throat. It hadn’t exactly been true. Selene had been a good friend to him, and he to her when they were at school. She had written to him a few times in the year and a half since leaving but he had never replied and she stopped. It was for the best.

    The looks that passed between his friends told Remus they could tell he wasn't giving up the full story.

    Peter tried to move the conversation on. “I thought she had a brother?”

    “No,” said Remus shortly. Finishing his butterbeer, putting the bottle back down as he stood, “her brother was killed by a werewolf.”

    He walked away before his friends could say anything and without looking back. He had heard it all before and didn’t need consoling or the sympathetic faces.

    —

    He thought back to their seventh year. The end of May found them all crammed into the library, desperately squeezing in knowledge before their final few NEWT examinations. It was unseasonably hot and balmy, making it difficult to concentrate in the very busy library. James and Sirius had suggested moving revision to the grounds which Peter readily agreed to and left with them. Remus remained, insisting that if he needed another textbook the grounds were simply too inefficient to be considered. Truthfully, it was the view he stayed for.

    Selene was with another seventh year Ravenclaw, Joanne, on a table a few aisles over. Between chapters Remus would steal a glance over to their table and green eyes would meet grey. Selene blushed and looked back down at her books with an embarrassed sort of smile that she tried to bite back. Every time it made his heart flutter. He couldn't wait for the weekend.

    Remus had made plans to meet Selene after their last exam for the final Hogsmeade weekend. The full moon was two weeks away and he had missed the last visit. He took his chance when the rest of the marauders were outside to ask Lily for some ideas which she had been all too happy to volunteer. He suspected James knew about his feelings as well, certainly he had continually abused his head boy privileges to schedule Remus and Selene together for all their prefect duties that year. Eventually Lily left to see Mary after swearing her secrecy and making Remus promise to come down for dinner.

    He had barely been there for another half an hour before a torn out page from The Prophet was placed onto his library table and pushed roughly towards him. He looked up to see Severus Snape sneering at him. “Very interesting articles today. See what you make of that, Lupin.” Snape smirked, tapping the paper twice before slinking off with Avery and Mulciber.

    He blinked and looked down at the small section circled by Snape that was part of a longer piece about the promotion of Sebastian Selwyn, Selene's father. A memorial service for Caliban Selwyn was to be held at the Selwyn estate to mark the tenth anniversary of his death in six weeks time. There was a note underneath from the editor that readers may recall Caliban as a victim in a prolific spate of werewolf attacks orchestrated that year, leading to three arrests.

    Remus was going to be sick. Had Severus Snape known about their date? True, neither of them had exactly hidden their attraction to each other. Sirius had often remarked that the two of them should ‘just find a broom cupboard already and get it over with’. In reality, they hadn't even kissed yet, he wanted to do the thing properly. She deserved it. Perhaps Selene had told her friends why she wasn’t spending her last Hogsmede weekend with them and it had got out to the Slytherins somehow.

    However Snape knew wasn’t important. Remus stared down at the cutting. The word werewolf seemed to swallow everything else on the page, consuming the other worlds in a violent swirl. His hands were shaking as he clawed the paper from the table and balled it in his fist. Struggling even to keep it in his grip. He swept everything else hastily into his bag and slunk out of the library. The walls were closing in on him, the air thin and difficult to breathe.

    —

    Suddenly two years felt like fifteen. An impassable canyon stretched between them instead of a small wooden table. She didn't look at him until he sat down. Their eyes met and, for just a second, Remus could see the old sparkle there. Was she happy to see him? Suddenly she downed the contents, grimacing slightly before pushing her chair out without a word. Remus stopped her before she rose, placing a gentle hand on her wrist. A silent plea to stay.

    A hollow, practiced sort of smile appeared on her face. She placed her other hand over his, removing it from her arm and then holding it in both of hers. She looked into his eyes then and he nearly recoiled from the intensity they had taken on. It passed in a second and they turned glassy and impassive once more. She placed his hand down onto the table.

    “I'm sorry,” he started.

    “You don’t have to pretend to care, Remus.” She said coolly. “I’m so sick of everyone telling me how sorry they are. I've barely seen the man in a year.”

    “You’re right, I'm not sorry about that. But I'm not pretending.” he said, scrambling for the right words, some hidden password that would erase the past two years. It seemed to be working as her eyes perked up. He stood and moved round the table next to her. “I’ve missed you, Selene.” A sceptical smile played on her face, and she raised her eyebrows. “I have,” he insisted, “that’s what I’m sorry for. Sorry to have been such an idiot at seventeen.”

    “Everyone is an idiot at seventeen.”

    Suddenly, Tom wrang the closing bell, and the rest of the pubgoers trickled out. “I’m glad I saw you," Selene said, getting up with the crowd. "I think I needed it." She started to move as though to hug him but changed her mind and clasped his hand briefly with another sad smile instead before leaving without another word. Remus heard the pop of apparition before he had even processed her hand had left his.

Chapter Text

    Selwyn Estate, Cambridge - 28 December 1979

    The service had finally ended, and for Selene, the end was a welcome sight. The officiant had gone through the usual dross; Sebastian Selwyn was a devoted husband, loving father, and respected leader within the Ministry. Two out of three. He had died peacefully at St Mungos from a brief illness with his daughter by his side. One out of three.

    Selene had been there. He was already unconscious by the time the healers had contacted her. It was not peaceful. He had thrashed and yelled for an hour before they managed to get some potions into him. There had been unusual marks on his arms as Selene held his hand. She had no proof other than those marks, but Selene was also sure it was not dragon pox like the healers had told her.

    She stood with her uncle on either side of her father’s coffin, leading it out as it glided down the aisle. Her eyes caught Remus Lupin’s in the otherwise empty upper balcony, and she nearly halted. His robes were a hewn-together, amber wool patchwork above an inky flood of pressed silk below.

    Selene snapped her head back in front of her and tried to push down the growing swell in her chest just from the sight of him. He must have come in through a side door, as she knew, despite the haze she had been existing in, that she hadn’t greeted him before the service. She convinced herself she had imagined him, not daring to look up again in case it was true. It was too much to think about Remus Lupin right now.

    Selene pressed on, solemnly marching the short walk from the church to the small family graveyard on their estate. Her father’s grave lay next to her mother and brother’s. She tried not to look at the empty stretch of snow-dusted grass next to Caliban’s, her own plot, but her eyes dragged back to the spot every time she looked away. The golden lettering on the black marble stone that bore her mother and brother’s name had already been updated with her father's name to match. 

    The attendees pooled around them, and Selene could tell Remus Lupin was not among them. He wasn’t actually there, she told herself, you’re delusional. It was late afternoon, and the winter sun had already started to set, throwing orange and red light through the sky,

    The house-elves were in mourning as much as she was, but both Mipps and Binky had managed to make all the usual festive arrangements. There were Christmas decorations everywhere in the house, and fairy lights twinkled in the surrounding estate as well. Her uncle seemed to enjoy entertaining the host of pureblood society that had descended for the day, and a few families had remained for drinks.

    She was eager to get back to London. Family portraits stalked her through the halls, long gone ancestors grumbling as she walked past. The last portrait was painted when she was just seven years old. Her brother smiled at her. It was, at least, not a magical portrait. The figures within could not follow her any further than the edges of the frame. She wondered if it would spring to life when she died, her own reflection forever stuck at seven years old. Part of her had died then anyway.

    She pushed out the french doors onto the patio - the early evening air a welcome shock to her system. Snow had fallen more thickly over the gardens since the funeral. Selene enjoyed breathing in the cold air. She thought of Remus Lupin again. It had been a year and a half without so much as a word. He’d ditched her. He hadn’t written back to any of her letters, and then there he was. Tall and handsome as ever with those kind eyes and gentle smile. Could it be called a break up if they were never together?

    Selene swore under her breath, the chill finally taking her. It cut through her skin and straight to her bones. She knew she should turn back inside, be seen, and try, at the very least, to be a good hostess. With one last steadying breath, she made to turn back when her eyes spotted movement in the tree line, she started.

    Her heart was racing, and the chill that overtook her had nothing to do with the frigid weather. A tall figure had flashed in and out of view for just a second. And then nothing. The silence around her seemed to thin out, individual hoots and twigs snapping clearer than before as her body reacted to an invisible threat.

    “Remus?” She called out shakily, approaching the treeline. There was no response and no more movement.

    Logically, she knew there couldn't be anyone there. The estate was protected by centuries of enchantments and protective charms. No one could have broken through that without alerting them. She had imagined it, it's because you were thinking about Remus, she told herself. You just wanted to see him, so you did, just like at the funeral. She swept back into the estate, trying to get a hold of herself and her treacherous heart.

    —

    At the centre of it all stood her uncle, in deep conversation with Rodolphus Lestrange. Selene plastered a smile on her face, grabbed a drink in each hand from the sideboard, which she promptly threw back, and then grabbed a third before joining the room. She vaguely recognised most of the faces from the regular parties her parents had once hosted and the hundreds of others she had been forced to attend. Usually, she could sneak off down some quiet hallway to disappear for the evening.

    Her uncle beckoned her over with a grin, “Ah, here she is. My brother always said she was the bright spot in the family. We were just talking about you.” She was sure her father had said no such thing. Selene held a hand out to Rodolphus.

    He was a wiry, average height man with dark hair and a meticulously shaped beard. Stubble peppered the rest of his square jaw. Flecks of grey were woven through, although he couldn’t have been older than mid-thirties. Her uncle, on the other hand, followed the same Selwyn blueprint - tall and slim with a high forehead.

    Rodolphus held her fingers gently in his hand and pressed a polite kiss to her knuckles. “A pleasure, Miss Selwyn.”

    “Thank you for coming, Mr Lestrange.” Selene replied, not knowing what else to say.

    “My deepest sympathies for your father. He was a great man. His contributions to Magical Law will stand as testament to him.”

    “That’s very kind of you to say.”

    “Not at all. Miss Selwyn. In fact, my brother and I were only today discussing how missed he would be in the Ministry.” He called across the room for his brother to join them. “Rabastan, you must meet Miss Selwyn.” Selene didn’t bother to correct that she had met them both multiple times before. In fact she had greeted them both before the service.

    Rabastan was the same height as his younger brother but broader in the shoulder, muscle not fat. He sported a wide moustache that was neatly trimmed. “Miss Selene, how wonderful to place face to name. Your hospitality has been most generous today.” Selene noticed a twitch in her uncle’s eyebrow at this. “Sal here boasts of you all the time. I hear you are following in your father’s footsteps and working within the Ministry?” When he took her hand, he held it tightly and clasped her bare shoulder with his other hand. She wasn’t sure if it was his hand that was heavy or the weight of his stare as his eyes raked over her body. She wished she had put her outer robes back on.

    “Thank you, Mr Lestrange. I am, although I am just an office clerk, nothing exciting.”

    “Call me Rabastan, please. We all have to start somewhere. I think it’s admirable that you are starting where you are. Surely your father offered to get you in at a higher position?” He was exceptionally polished in his tailored dress robes, but something about him was distinctly dangerous. Selene could feel her own nervous energy building in his presence. He was still standing close after their greeting. She could smell his peppery cologne.

    “No actually, my father advised me against it. He wanted me to find something outwith the Ministry. I think he had a hard time remembering I was no longer eleven and going off to work and not back to school.” Selene joked with Rabastan, but she could still remember the shouting match that had taken place once his colleagues had informed him of her application. With her NEWTs, there was no way she’d be rejected, and she’d submitted the application in secret.

    “You were always Sebastian’s little girl,” Selwyn added with a false fondness. He had made more frequent reappearances in the past few years and had always been kind to Selene but she wouldn't have said they were close. Her own parents were distant, but whenever Sal visited, she would at least be asked about her life and invited to share her opinions. He wasn't a particularly warm man but, having lived with complete absence of warmth otherwise, Selene had always appreciated Sal's attentiveness.

    “Well, you are clearly a little girl no longer. You have grown into a fine young woman, Selene.” Rabastan smiled at her once more, and his eyes crinkled but not with the same depth or kindness as Remus’. He took her hand once more and kissed her knuckles like his brother had, though his gesture was more purposeful, and he held her gaze until he dropped her hand. “You must excuse my brother and I. We have another engagement this evening. My many condolences are with you.” He shot his brother a significant look. “Selwyn, you will be busy here, so Rodolphus and I will give your apologies, and we will see you next week. I do hope we meet again in happier circumstances, Miss Selwyn.” He gave Selwyn’s hand a sharp shake, and without another look or a word to anyone else in the room, the two brothers departed. Almost on cue, a number of other guests filtered out after.

    It was very late by the time Selene finally got the chance to sit by the fireside and rest her eyes for a moment. Binky brought her another large glass of red wine, which she gratefully accepted. The glass refilled when she ran low. Selwyn joined her after half an hour, his own drink in hand though he looked on edge.

    “Selene, did your father ever let you know where he kept the key to his study?” The nonchalance in his voice did not match the tension in his frame.

    “No, I was never allowed in. I’m not sure where it would be. Sorry.” Selwyn had a calculating look on his face as though he was trying to catch a lie. Truthfully, she had never seen the inside of her father’s study.

    “Not to worry.” He smiled, “I am sure once the will is formally read and the house is no longer in your father’s name, we won’t need it anyway. I was hoping to sort through some of the formalities before then, but there’s no rush.”

    Selene nodded. The will was due to be read tomorrow. Her uncle had managed to get the paperwork fast tracked through his own connections in the Ministry. A miracle considering the circumstances and a kindness to hopefully get the press to move on more quickly. To let them all move on he said.

    She was a little dizzy and overly warm next to the fire, and the effect of the wine seemed to be taking hold. She stared into the fire, watching the flames lick over the wood. “How is your work going? You’re under Crouch, are you not? We were all saying today that this new business of authorising lethal force is a blind overreaction.”

    “Very far under,” Selene answered, “we’re in separate offices to all the enforcement work. I have only seen Mr. Crouch a few times when I have been asked to fill in and take minutes and only when enforcement is short-staffed.”

    “That’s a very important job,” he smiled, “I thought I saw you talking with Mrs Crouch at the service.” The great and important had all shown face, her father had been a Senior Minister after all. But few had remained after the service. Crouch himself had not come to either, sending his wife instead alongside a very expensive arrangement of flowers.

    “I suppose. Most of my work is clerical. Though enforcement have been more and more short staffed recently. I know Crouch's son. He was made prefect in my final year, so we talked during rounds. We are in the same house. I rarely see Mr Crouch at work.”

    “Of course, of course. I forgot Crouch had a boy. Still, I’m sure in no time you will be very important.” His voice had grown more insistent throughout the conversation. “I have some friends I'd like you to meet. Would it be alright to invite them along to a little dinner in the New Year, bring you into the fold a bit more. Your father was never very committed to his social life and it kept you away, but you’re an adult now. You should be a proud part of wizarding society.”

    “Alright, another day. I really should head back, I’m in the office tomorrow.” The last thing she wanted was to be brought to the attention of pureblood society. She knew what that meant.

    “Listen, Selene. before you go,” Selwyn continued, “I don’t want you to worry about money, you can come and stay here whenever you need and don’t hesitate to write to me if there is anything you require. We can talk about the flat in London some other time. Your father will have made some small provision for you, naturally, and we can go through the rest tomorrow.”

    “ I, uh” Selene stammered. She hadn’t even considered the houses or the gold. Her uncle would own everything, and she would have nothing without his signature. Even her own wages were currently being paid into the Selwyn vault.

    “Not at all, my dear,” he waved back the thank you she wasn’t planning to give, “we look after our family. Before long, you may even have a family of your own. Rabastan is very taken with you. We've come to an understanding, dependent on your approval of course."

    Selene gulped yet more wine. That is what an introduction to wizarding society meant. Lestrange had been pleasant enough to be sure, but he was nearly forty, and she was only nineteen and not even close to thinking about marriage or family or anything past her day to day life. She had just buried her father after all. She still felt like a child. Not only that, she had heard whispers of just how close the Lestranges were to the Dark Lord. Was her uncle aware? It seemed unlikely he wasn't. Which meant that he must be a follower of the Dark Lord as well. “He will be a terrific match for you. I will give him your details and we can set everything up. I’ll bring him along to our little dinner.” Selwyn rose and left Selene by the fire.

    Nothing her uncle had said had been a threat, not directly. But her body was reacting now, for the second time tonight, as though she were in danger. Her heart thundered, and she could feel it hammering in her throat and in her stomach. Her limbs felt heavy, but her skin was alight and on edge. She was alone in the world now. It had been a comfort to her before, not being tied to anyone or anything, but right now, all it made her feel was vulnerable. Selene stumbled out the front door without even pulling her coat on. Desperate for another icy wake-up to reset her.

    The snow was thick and heavy now, like stars falling straight from the heavens when they reflected the outdoor lights. The dread within her remained. She dragged herself forward as she walked the long pathway to the gates at the edge of the estate. Her feet were numb and pink as she pushed them through the snow in her heels. She kept walking past the gates, down the single track road and into the night until her brain kicked in again.

    It was instinct more than conscious thought that steered her apparition back to London and towards the Leaky Cauldron instead of her flat. Maybe she was searching for the last thing that had felt real to her. Maybe she just couldn’t face being alone again. Maybe she finally wanted answers from Remus. She tripped the landing as she apparated into the tiny courtyard outside the pub but managed to catch herself on her forearms against the brick wall that led to Diagon Alley. Her arms scraped the wall as she righted herself, but they were so frozen, and she was still half drunk she didn’t even feel the sting. In fact, drunk Selene was rather proud of her save, not even a fingernail splinched. Her heart still raced, would he even be there? Second night in a row?

    The Leaky Cauldron wasn’t quite as busy tonight. Remus Lupin was easy to spot. He was with a smaller crowd this time, and they were settling up to leave. It was nearly midnight, after all. James Potter, Sirius Black, and Peter Pettigrew were with him. The four men were already standing and pulling on coats. A cold chill as another punter opened the exit wide reminded Selene she’d left her own coat behind.

    Remus was wearing the same suit she had pictured him in at the funeral. He had been there, she had not imagined it. Just the sight of him brought her back to Hogwarts. He was radiant to her. Warmth and honey that she could feel from across the room. Peter Pettigrew nudged Remus with his elbow and pointed towards her.

    A flush of embarrassment overtook her as she envisioned her soaked through appearance in comparison. The snow had quickly melted in the warmth of the pub. Her hair must look like seaweed pulled straight from a bog. Her black strappy dress was stuck to her entirely, like a selkie skin clinging to her wet body. The state of her arms and legs also barreled into her consciousness. Hands and feet that were bright pink and gooseflesh with the cold, scraped forearms with grit from the bricks outside embedded in the dark red grazes that were still sticky with blood. Common sense found her again and she tried to duck around some older wizards at the bar to avoid being spotted but of course, in her state, she was very, very noticeable even if she hadn’t towered over most of the room.

    “Selene.” And without warning, Remus was behind her. She tensed at his voice, willing herself to be anywhere else. She was a complete fool.

    Selene turned to face him. He looked concerned, the way any kind person would when confronted with someone clearly in the throes of a mental breakdown.

    “I saw you today.”

    “I hope that’s okay,” he said, his golden eyes scanning her all over. “Are you alright?” His eyes darted to her arms. He took her elbows gently and turned them over to see the grazes. “What happened? You’re freezing”. His thumbs traced the inside of her elbows in slow circles.

    The goosebumps may have already been there from the cold, but they reasserted themselves fully the moment Remus Lupin’s hands were on her. And then his hands were gone. He took his coat off and went to drape it around her even though she was sopping wet. The familiarity and sweetness made her bristle. She shrugged out of his reach. Regretting her moment of weakness already.

    “I’m sorry,” she said, the words all falling over each other, “I don’t actually know why I’m here. I should go.”

    She lost her balance as she tried to go, her high heels catching together. With reflexes as quick as the best seekers, he caught her before she careened to the ground, dropping his coat onto the sticky pub floor. His arms were solid and reassuring. One hand was firm against her waist, and the other fanned her upper back, holding her close to him.

    Selene desperately tried to ignore the warmth blossoming in her at his touch. They were pressed completely together through to their hips. Remus must have noticed as well. She felt his muscles tense, and his eyes scanned over her. His face was only inches from her own. He surely could feel her chest rising and falling with how heavily she was now breathing.

    “You can’t go like this, Selene. It’s practically Baltic outside. And you’re in no state to walk through London alone.”

    Selene pushed off his chest and put some space between them. Her embarrassment quickly morphed to indignation, “And what’s that supposed to mean?” The many glasses of red wine were starting to feel like a mistake. Her head was spinning, and she could still smell the mix of cloves and pine that could only belong to Remus Lupin.

    To his credit, Remus did not comment on her obvious inebriation. “You're half frozen already. You don't have a coat, and you've had a very long day.” He answered calmly, not mentioning the wine at all. “And you're bleeding.”

    “I'll be fine,” his presence alone was starting to calm her when her brain and heart still wanted to rage against him.

    “Let me walk you home.”

    “What home?” Selene muttered to herself, but she saw his ears prick. Had he heard her even though she had barely breathed the words? She couldn't face her flat, knowing that tomorrow it would belong to her uncle, her condition for staying there an engagement to a dark wizard. It was never really hers. She felt pathetic for even thinking about it. Selwyns were made of tougher stuff than this.

    Remus studied her for a moment, and she flushed under his relentless eyes. His concern crippled her and enraged her in equal measure. He had no right to it. “Are you safe?” He asked, “I can help you.”

    It felt like a slap to the face, forcing her from her own thoughts and sobering her instantly. She could've laughed at her own ridiculousness. She wasn't in any danger, not like that. She was over reacting, the emotions of the day had clearly got to her more than she'd thought. “I'm good,” she replied, feeling more sure of herself now than she had in a long time. “Sorry, you're right. It's just been a very long day. I'm fine now, no need to worry.”

    As though to prove it, she drew up her dress on her right leg and grabbed her wand from her thigh holster. She mended the grazes on her arms with ease. “Thank you for coming today, Remus.” Selene said robotically, “it was very kind of you.”

    He flinched at her empty civility, just for a moment. Then he picked up his coat and handed it to her. “At least take this.”

    “You'll need it.”

    “Not as much as you. I'm staying in town for a few months. Could we catch up over lunch and you can return it then?” He wanted to see her again? Even after this?

    “I'm working through the break.” She replied, still not taking the jacket.

    “Dinner then?” His voice had faded somewhat, and Selene knew she was being unfair. But he had been unfair first. He had disappeared from her life, and now he wanted to talk?

    “Sure,” she said before her brain had a chance to deny again. Selene gingerly took the jacket from him, resisting the incredibly strong urge to hug it close to her chest and breathe him in.

    “Can I walk you back?”

    “Sure.”

Chapter Text

    London - 28 December 1979

    Together they walked through the muggle side of London. Remus stood close by Selene, their shoulders brushing every few steps. She had draped his jacket over her shoulders and huddled into it, her arms hugged it to her chest underneath and the sleeves swung empty and listless beside her. He liked seeing her in his coat. She looked at ease.

    “Where do you stay?” He asked. They had been walking for nearly an hour and he was glad he had insisted on accompanying her. The streets were busy and the majority of the crowd had definitely over-indulged during the festive celebrations.

    Selene looked at him sheepishly, “its actually on the other side of town. What about you?”

    Remus blanked at her. Her closeness had consumed his thoughts he had barely even realised where they were. “I'm just a few streets over,” he replied honestly.

    Selene looked at him, almost expectantly. They looked at each other in silenece for a minute. When he didn't say anything her brows furrowed. “Right, yeah.” She made to take off his coat again and he didn't understand why it upset him so much. “I think I'm sober enough now to apparate back anyway. Thanks again Remus.” She held out his coat for him. Her skin immediately prickled in the cold.

    “Wait,” he sputtered, “do you want to come up for a tea first?” He knew that if she left now it could be years again before he saw her. Before he could have her this close again. If he took back his coat now he knew their dinner would never happen.

    She seemed to be warring internally with herself. The conflict was written all over her in a way her face had never betrayed her before. Remus could have smacked himself upside the head. Of course she was probably thinking he just wanted her to come up for the night, it was late and she was in an emotional state. He was still internally bollocking himself when she said, “That would be nice, thank you.” There was that defensive politeness he recognised so well.

    —

    His flat was a tiny one bedroom he had rented from a muggle. The kind of place you ended up when you really had no other options. On one side a few shoddy kitchen units lined the wall of what was also the living room and the front door opened right into it. Were it not for the near contsant warming charms Remus had placed, the place would have been freezing. The wood round the windowframes definitely rotten and soft enough to break apart if you leaned too hard. He felt oddly embarrassed of it now but as he turned to Selene to let her through first but she was smiling as she put his coat on the single hook.

    Remus put the kettle on and made them tea. He rummaged around for some chocolate bourbons and arranged it all onto the tray he usually used to eat dinner, there was no space for a table. He placed it on his little puffy footstool that James had bought him as a housewarming gift, it stored ten times as much as it looked capable of and also served as Remus' bookstore. He sat next to her on the two-seater, trying to give her some space but the broken springs tended to make both occupants lean towards the centre.

    “How have you been?” He cringed at his own stupidity. How had she been? Was he a total dunce?

    “I'm doing okay,” she offered graciously, ignoring his lack of tact. They had turned into each other so they were face to face. Her stormy eyes were locked into his own. They felt like blinding spotlights to him, laying him bare. If he just looked hard enough he was sure he could have seen her thoughts. She turned back to the room as though she could tell what he had been thinking, clinging to her mug with both hands. “I’m a clerk now, at the ministry,” she added mechanically, “Improper Use of Magic.”

    This surprised Remus. Selene had never revealed any ambition to join the ministry. “Really?” he asked. “I’d always pictured you pouring over ancient texts somewhere.” Remus smiled at the thought.

    “You thought of me?” she asked, and it was Remus’ turn to stare at the floor. He could hear her heartbeat quicken and her breath shortened. His own heart seemed to thunder in return.

    “I, uh,” he stammered. All that was left now was honesty. “Yeah. Somewhere sunny like you always talked about. Studying magic long forgotten.”

    She seemed to wince at this. The hopeful conversations they had once shared at school that warmed Remus had the opposite effect on her. Setting the hair on her arms to attention like a brisk wind. Why did he have to remind her of how close they had been before he'd abandoned their friendship? Remus wished he could take it back. The atmosphere between them had changed in an instant.

    “What happened, Remus?” She asked, braver than him for all his Gryffindor courage to finally address the chasm between them. “What did I do? You didn't want to be together, which was fine, really, I understood that.” Remus’ heart broke at the look on her face. How could she understand something so blatantly untrue? Did she really believe that it would be that easy to let her go? That any man in the world wouldn't be lucky to be with her? “But why say we could still be friends and then nothing for two years? You didn’t have to be my friend if you didn't want to, but you could have just said that instead of ignoring me. I thought we cared about each other despite all that. I wrote to you, more than once.” She stared determinidly into her mug as she spoke. Daring enough to ask but too afraid to see his reaction.

    He was a fool and a coward. There was no way she could know why he couldn't be with her. He didn't want to see the fear and disgust in her eyes once she knew what he was. He had tried so many times to write back, to be a good friend, but it all felt like a lie when he knew how badly he wanted her. “It wasn't you.” He said lamely. She gave a derisive scoff.

    "Really, Remus?” Her indignation was back. “That's what you're going with? Merlin, what was i thinking.” She slammed her mug down and stood. “Why even come today? You made it very plain that you don’t care about me. Is it pity? Because I don’t need it, and I don’t want it.”

    “Of course, I care about you!” He stood in response, his emotions getting the better of him. “Look at this,” he raised his voice and swept his arm around angrily, nearly touching the other side of the room as if to prove his point. At least it was dark enough to obscure the damp creeping up the walls. “Look at me,” he pinched the hand me down shirt that had once belonged to his father. “And look at you. You're perfect. You know what you are. You could run that place one day, Selene, and I’ll still be-” he swallowed thickly, catching himself before blurting 'and I'll still be a werewolf'. “And I'll still be-” He couldn't even finish it. There was so much to say despite his condition. Too poor, too unstable, too undeserving.

    “Did you really think I cared about any of that?” Selene asked. “I thought you knew me, Remus. I know I can be a bit in my own head sometimes, and I’m not the easiest person to read, but I thought I had made it pretty obvious how I felt about you.” Cared, past tense. Felt, past tense. He'd ruined it so thoroughly. She was so close now that he could smell her sweet perfume and feel the heat radiated between them. He saw her eyes glance down to his lips for just a moment. Something hopeful still lived there.

    He longed to kiss her, the primal part of him taking over, masking all his stupid worries. He was inches from her, seconds from having her pressed to him again like in the pub. His arm twitched towards her but he caught himself. He could almost still feel her gentle curves against him. He would have held on forever if she hadn’t pushed him away. How could she not see what she did to him? Time stretched as his brain whirred, fighting against his body and every single urge that howled within him. He would not lead her on, not when he knew she'd never want to be with a werewolf. He wouldn't trick a woman whose father had just died into loving a monster.

    He quickly stepped backwards a few paces, his back hitting the kitchen, breathing heavily. His hands trembled as he gripped the counter, forcing himself to stay away. The moment passed.

    She continued, her voice calm again, “I should go.”

    “Please don’t. What did you mean before when you said you couldn’t go home?”

    Selene actually laughed at this. “You know what’s funny? This time tomorrow, I won’t have two knuts to rub together anyway. You’ll have to put me in touch with your landlord, I’ll need a place.”

    “What?”

    “My father’s will is being executed tomorrow. It’s all going to go to my uncle.”

    “Already? It hasn’t even been a week. Surely there will be something for you.”

    “Ah, well,” Selene said with a bemused smile, “a couple of good contacts at the ministry can get you pretty much whatever you want. And you're forgetting that most pureblood families don't leave anything to anyone other than the next male heir. So it should be a quick one. Don't want all that wealth getting broken up. Hopefully I'll get a necklace or something if I'm lucky.”

    “What about your job? Your salary?”

    “All paid into the Selwyn family vault I’m afraid. And by the time Gringotts opens tomorrow, I won’t have access without Sal’s signature restoring my previous access.” She was laughing, but it was a fearful, resigned laugh that echoed around the pit forming in Remus' gut. “I’m going to open my own account right after. Start fresh. I’ll get paid, save up a deposit and move before he realises. I should be able to stay at my current flat until then if I dont give him a reason to suspect I'm going.” She added in a tone that told Remus she had only just come up with this plan now.

    How was she not panicking? He was panicking for her.

    “Don’t worry,” she said, clocking his expression, “my uncle isn’t going to kick me into the street. He's always liked me. More than my actual parents half the time. I just need to play along. Be the little pureblood princess. I’m lucky you know, it could have been worse. I should’ve thought of the inheritance when I stopped speaking to my father, but he never kicked me out, and I was stupid and selfish enough to happily take his money and live under his roof.” Remus had never quite understood pure blood family dynamics, but he did know that without Mr and Mrs Potter, Sirius wouldn’t have been able to escape his own family until he was seventeen. And even that had only been possible with a significant inheritance from his uncle Alphard.

    “And you’ll be safe?” He wasn’t sure how much to say. Did Selene know what her uncle was? Did she abide it? He couldn’t believe that, but he wasn’t going to reveal anything from the Order without knowing it unquestionably.

    “He’ll have everything he wants. I don’t think he particularly cares what I do, at all. I’ll be fine.”

    “Everything he wants?”

    Selene paused. Her expression flattened, like she just realised how much she'd revealed. But she continued on anyway, Remus got the feeling she'd needed to get this off her chest. “He’s been trying to get into my father’s study. I think he’s looking for the master vault key.”

    Remus’ heart started to pace again, but this time, the war was the only thing on his mind. Why would Selwyn be so desperate for a key he was getting the next day anyway? No, it didn’t fit. There was something else in that study, or that Selwyn believed was in that study, that he didn’t want the executors to see. The ministry had wizards that combed through estates as will’s were being read, the moments when old protective charms were unravelled and new ones formed, to check for dark objects. Sure, he had probably bribed someone to bypass the checks, but some artefacts could be dark enough to still set off alarms.

    “You can stay here, as long as you need.” He said, and Selene seemed genuinely surprised. “You don’t have to go back.”

    “You don’t have to do that,” she said. He knew he had ruined things between them before and that he could never truly have her. But for now, he was going to be the friend she had deserved back then.

    “I want to.”

    “Remus,” she started.

    “I’ll sleep on the sofa,” he interrupted, hoping she didn’t think he had ulterior motives. “You don't have to go back tonight."

    “Are you sure?” her expression was still guarded, like she was waiting for the kick to come.

    “I’m sure.”

    “Just for tonight,” she said, “I promise I’ll be okay after.”

    “I’ll make more tea.” Remus said, smiling.

    —

    London - 29 December 1979

    Remus woke the next morning to a note on the footstool next to his head. It was still dark outside, but the streetlight provided just enough light for him to read. The back had an address scribbled down, but the note was on the other side.

    Didn't want to wake you, I have to be there at eight. I’ll let you know how it goes. My current address is on the back if you need me. See you tomorrow. Selene.

    Bleary-eyed, Remus checked his watch. It had only just gone eight. Five hours of sleep wasn't so bad. They had stayed up for hours talking, only going to bed when Selene had nearly fallen asleep mid sentence. An owl tapped noisily at his living room window, a feathery alarm clock. Grumbling, Remus let the bird in and foraged in his end table for the last remaining box of owl treats. He would have to get more from Eyelops when he was next in Diagon Alley.

    Once sufficiently fed, the tawny owl did not leave but remained steadfast at the windowsill, staring at Remus. He was clearly expecting a response immediately. Remus unrolled the scrap of parchment and read the thin, slanting writing of Albus Dumbledore. Dumbledore wanted to meet with him an hour before the next Order meeting on Hogmany. So it was urgent. Remus wrote his acceptance to the meeting in Hogsmeade and the bird finally left.

    The window had been open the whole time and the icy morning air had filled his room. As much as the young man wanted to crawl back into his now empty bed, he decided he would make the most of his day. He was far too tall for the sofa and the full moon less than a week away, his joints practically creaked and muscles ached. Selene had made his bed and folded up the shirt he’d given her to wear. The place was pristine.

    He tidied up the tea tray from last night, washing everything by hand while he listened to the wizarding wireless. No bad news today. Perhaps Death Eaters get Christmas off too, thought Remus darkly.

    Thirty minutes later, his front door was unceremoniously shoved open by Sirius, today's Daily Prophet folded under his arm. He handed Remus the paper and threw himself down on the sofa, immediately jumping back up again and tossing his leather jacket down behind him.

    “You didn't!” he accused with a grin. Before Remus could respond, Sirius had bounded in three steps to the bedroom door. “Damn it, that is definitely not a bed that's seen some action. You've just lost me two galleons to James. I was sure I'd taught you well enough. He thought you’d be too noble to go for a witch the day of her own father’s funeral. I had faith. I suppose it's usually the other guests at funerals that are the prime targets. Not that I couldn't have done it, of course.” Sirius was more muttering to himself like a contemplative scholar at this point than to Remus. “Oh well, I'll win the next one. Follow my advice and we can stick the landing.”

    Remus sat down with him after bringing the tea and opened the back section of the paper, studying it fervently as Sirius rolled his eyes. Every Saturday, Sirius would bring the Prophet, Remus couldn't justify the cost of a subscription, and Remus would needle through the classified adverts for any job that wouldn't notice his absence every month. Peter would bring the Wednesday evening edition. Sometimes, there would be risky one-offs that paid enough to support him for a good few months. Or occasionally, jobs that were ‘in the field', so to speak, where his attendance wouldn't be watched to closely, but nothing ever stuck. Usually he ended up assisting his father on bigger jobs capturing or eliminating dangerous magical creatures. Remus was too paranoid to stay at any job too long in fear of being discovered and having his name plastered all over the pages.

    “You know, Moony, there's always a room for you at my place if you need it. No need to bother with all this work nonsense, and you can go full time for the Order with me and James.” Sirius’ visits often came with this pitch.

    Remus nodded absently, not looking up from the paper. It was a genuine offer from Sirius. He knew that. But Sirius and James had never quite understood Remus' need to support himself. He had watched his mother and father work hard to ensure he could live a normal life and instilled in him the values of independence and resilience.

    After a few minutes, he folded the paper back up and tossed it onto the footstool. Nothing. He supposed it was the holidays. Something would come up soon.

    “Maybe in the next one,” Sirius said. “Anyway, I've got just the thing to take your mind off it.”

    The grin on Sirius’ face was almost childlike with excitement.

    “Bristol are hosting Aston Villa, and rumour has it that there's going to be a proper scrap afterwards. At least sixty.”

    James had taken out a subscription to a few muggle newspapers to emulate Dumbledore after their leader had mentioned reading them in an Order meeting. It hadn't been long after that he had discovered muggle football. He had missed the intensity of Quidditch and there simply weren’t enough matches in the UK and Ireland league to keep him occupied. He had also hoped it would endear him to Lily's father, a keen sports fan.

    When he had actually gone to watch a match, he had discovered another hobby, football hooliganism. Sirius was on board immediately. They had gone to a fair few brawls now, under the guise of needing to learn to fight without a wand in case they were ever disarmed.

    In their defense, it had already come in handy a couple of times, and if you were in really close range with an enemy, it was much safer to knock them out with a punch than a spell. Still, Remus knew it was the adrenaline they chased. Muggles were much better at fighting than any wizard, and you definitely needed a bit of creativity.

    “It'll be great. There's guys getting the train over and everything.” Sirius said. “Have you got anything bright red?” Sirius stood up again, and Remus heard him rifling through his wardrobe, returning with a very lumpy old green jumper. He tapped it with his wand, and it turned a vivid, bloody red.

    “Is that so no one can tell if I’m bleeding?”

    “I'll just wear this,” he signalled his white t-shirt while he threw his jacket back on “and we can go opposite sides. We’ll stop at ten or when we’ve had enough and meet back at my place. Wormy’s meeting us there. Gideon and Fabian said they might come along to have a go as well. They’re both back in the country for the meeting.”

    If James and Remus idolised Dumbledore, Sirius’ idols were the Prewett twins. Both members of different elite duelling clubs, the Silver Spears and Demiguise Dawn, and both outstanding wizards, aurors, and agents for the Order. They were often part of the most dangerous and risky Order missions, never once failing. Their most recent trip had taken them abroad, and Remus knew everyone in the Order would be anticipating their update the most.

    He tossed the jumper to Remus, who pulled it on. “Alright, but just this once. I'm meeting Selene tomorrow for dinner, so I'm sticking to the scuffles on the edges, I'm out of bruise paste, and I am not turning up with a black eye.”

    “So you did!” Sirius grinned.

    “No, we’re just friends.”

    Sirius scoffed. “Of course you are.”

    "You know why we are."

    "And you know that's nonsense."

This was another frequent pitch from all of his friends. An encouragement to go out and live a little. Remus had never been very good at separating himself from.his condition. James called it his 'furry little problem'. Not a curse but just a quirk. Seeing Selene again, reconnecting, he could almost believe it was possible.

Chapter Text

    Cambridge - 29 December 1979

    The executors had set up camp in the drawing room. She had made sure to change into baggy robes, already eyeing up the room for things she might be able to pocket before they were inherited to her uncle. As long as they were on her person during the final transfer she would probably get away with it. There was a good amount of jewelery up in her parents room.

    There were two ministry officials there and another man she assumed was her father's solicitor. She didn’t recognise any of them. An older witch and wizard in purple velvet robes trimmed with black satin and a middle aged expensive black robes trimmed with some kind of fur who was holding a thick roll of parchment and two thinner ones; they were all tied with green ribbon and sealed with wax. A number of different quills and inks were laid out on the card table that formed their make-shift desk. The study apparently, was still out of bounds.

    Selene fidgeted with her sleeves as she sat down next to her uncle, across from the strangers. She tried to sit as still as possible, her robes contained a reasonable amount of silverware from her detour through the dining room and if she moved too much she was sure the jangling would give her away.

    “Good morning, Miss Selwyn,” the older wizard smiled politely. "We will start in just a moment. Are we expecting anyone else today?” He directed this question at her uncle.

    “No, I believe we will be sufficient. My brother was well organised.”

    “Indeed,” replied the man. Selene probably should have introduced herself and asked their names but it would be a bit forced now if she tried.

    The wizard in black handed over the first thin roll to the witch. She performed some complex wand movement and the seal popped open, the ribbon coiling itself into a roll before vanishing. She tapped the parchment twice and it unfurled across the tabletop.

    “This document is a standard ministry procedural spell, first we will confirm there are no other wills that postdate the one provided.” She explained, giving Selene a kind smile before running her wand over the first line, a tinkling bell chime sounded. “This is the correct will.” She stated, and the solictor took note. She signed the parchment with a very ornate augery feather quill.

    “Michael, the first section please.” He handed over the other thin parchment. The witch repeated her spells and it unfurled atop the first scroll. The older wizard scanned the contents.

    “Ah, here we have details of what remains from the late Mrs Selwyn's will, held seperately from the main estate, in trust by Mr Selwyn. The instructions confirm it was to be enacted when Selene Selwyn reached the age of twenty-five. It seems a backup clause allows for us to bequeath that to you now.”

    Selene's head whipped up. Her mother had her own will? She wondered what it encompassed, maybe some family jewels? Something she could sell? Her mother was a McLaggen before marriage, surely as customary she had revieved a stipend on her marriage.

    The older wizard performed some wand work this time and signed the document with glimmering amethyst ink. “This is just a bit of a transfer,” the witch explained again in a soft voice to Selene, “the estate and full will process would have happened at the execution of Mrs Selwyn’s will.” The parchment vanished with a puff of golden smoke.

    “Now,” said her Uncle shortly, “can we begin?” He was tense in his seat, his knuckles cracking as he gripped the arms of his chair.

    Michael leaned forward and handed over the large roll of parchment and the witch got to work. This time, however, the seal did not break. Instead, it turned night black and doubled in size. The witch furrowed her brow and began again, repeating her spells more slowly. Nothing happened.

    “What is the problem here?” Selwyn’s voice was barely restrained. A thin veil of calm over his obvious fury.

    “The will is refusing to be read,” the witch replied. “It can happen with these very large and old estates. It's not unusual.”

    “Can it be fixed?”

    “Oh yes,” the older wizard replied. We'll just need to make a few more arrangements at the department first. Usually, this only happens if the inheritance is unclear in some fashion or there are unaccounted assets. But it could just be some tricky wording in the will itself. We will have to withhold it for now for a detailed examination.”

    “No,” her uncle interrupted, spitting as his jaw twitched. He started yelling, “it must be done today. I was assured.”

    “Our deepest apologies, Mr Selwyn. With the Christmas break you understand, we are not at full capacity. We will have the will fast tracked I can assure you. It will be the top of the pile.”

    Her uncle looked as though he was struggling not to explode even further, his skin was red and his eyes strained in their sockets. “Fine.” He barked out the words, his teeth grinding together. The ministry officials hastily packed their things away with more mumbled apologies and left via the floo. They were clearly scared of Sal, their hands had trembled grabbing the floo powder. The solicitor gave his own hurried assurances before excusing himself back to his office.

    Selene remained stock still, hoping that Uncle Sal would forget she was even there. She had never seen him like this and it worried her how afraid the Ministry staff had been. He turned to the door and she sighed, relieved. He threw the doors open so hard that they bounced on their hinges loudly. “Come with me.” He barked and Selene jumped up to follow. Until she had the full details of her mother's inheritance, it felt wise to mollify her uncle and prevent any suspicions. As long as he felt she was on board with his plan to marry her off, she would be fine. Her apprehension didn't stop her from quietly sliding an old snuff box off the sideboard and into her pockets as she passed while he thundered up the stairs.

    They were outside her fathers study. The ornate door handles were locked together by a pair of silvery snakes wrapped around one another in a single coil. One had emerald eyes and the other appeared eyeless and cast from solid metal.

    “Open it,” uncle Sal commanded.

    “What? I don't have a key.” Selene stammered. She quickly thought of escape routes. She could apparate to any other Selwyn property from within the walls and then make a run for it from there if needed. She just had to get out.

    He slammed his palms against the door and Selene jumped at the noise. “Open it.” He pointed his wand at her, she had no choice now but to try.

    Selene moved a shaking hand towards the door, closing her fist around the handle near the coiled snakes. The metal was ice cold, so cold it almost felt wet, slimy even. The snakes moved slightly and her uncle's eyes widened. But instead of releasing itself, the solid silver snake had wound itself around Selene's wrist, trapping her in place. She let go of the handle, her fingers splayed as the snake kept her there.

    She pulled against it, tugging desperately at her arm as the snake tightened. Any tighter and Selene was sure her wrist would snap, tears sprang in her eyes at the pain. Her uncle relaxed as she struggled. The snake traveled up her forearm it's scales glinting in the morning light. It tightened further, crushing her arm, and this time, bones definitely cracked. She cried out in pain. She wasn't even sure if it was her wrist or arm that had broken. The pain was so encompassing.

    “Please, Uncle Sal!" She begged her uncle, “please help me.” She continued to pull frantically at her shattered arm, despite the searing pain, trying to wrench the snake off with her free hand. Sal made no move. She managed to get her fingers underneath it's solid form, her nails scratching against her robes but it wouldnt budge. She grabbed for her wand in her robes with her left hand, hoping it would still perform in the wrong arm.

    She wracked her panic-ridden brain for a spell she could use that wouldnt blast through her arm in the process. "Relashio!” She yelped, pointing at the snake. Suddenly, the snake recoiled and two small, sharp fangs sunk into her forearm, just below her elbow.

    Her veins were on fire. Selene cried out again and crumpled to her knees. The snake drew back towards the door and coiled itself back around its partner. Selene pressed the bite wound firmly as blood trailed down from the bite, trickling streams over her hand, dripping from each of her nails. Her breathing was still quick and panicked.

    “I thought, perhaps, Sebastian had tried to circumvent my inheritance to leave you everything. But it seems you have no more access than I.” He sounded mildly amused. “The elves can take care of the mess. I will see you next week, Selene. I'll arrange our dinner for the twenty-fifth, everything will be settled by then.”

    He swept down the hall and back downstairs, leaving Selene in total shock. She was sweating, her knees weak and unsteady as she half pushed herself up and stumbled across the hallway. She leant against the opposite wall, away from the snakes. She tenderly pulled up her sleeve, an enormous, coiling black bruise had already marked the snakes path and the rest of her arm was a raw red colour, the bone clearly mangled underneath. The two bite marks continued to bleed freely. The blood felt cool over her still hot skin but provided no relief.

    She tested her arm with a gentle flex and had to shove her uninjured fist in her mouth to keep from screaming. Selene tried to cast a simple healing charm on the bite with her left but she was so depleted, what little energy she had made no difference to the wound. Sweat dripped into her eyes, the heat spreading through her still. She needed to go to St Mungo's. Her eyes started to feel heavy, weighing themselves shut.

    The two elves popped into the hall with two loud cracks and Selene snappd her eyes open. Uncle Sal must have sent them to make sure she was okay.

    “Miss Selene!” Binky squeaked. Her plate like eyes widened as she took in Selene's injury.

    “Hi Binky,” She smiled weakly at the elf, it was taking all her concentration not to pass out as her arm continued to bleed steadily onto the floor. “I need… I need to go to…” It was difficult to force the words out. “St Mungo's,” she managed to croak out.

    The elf grasped Selene's left arm with her tiny hand. She registered the clean, herbal smell of the St Mungo's entrance hall before the dark overtook her.

    —

    London - 31 December 1979

    The herbal smell returned, coaxing Selene awake. Her vision was blurry or maybe her whole brain was foggy. She pressed herself up with her elbow and shuffled up against the head of the metal bedframe. It was hard but reassuringly firm against her spine. She squinted as her eyes adjusted to the bright light. She was in a small single room and could see into the corridor through a porthole shaped window in the door. The edge of a huge shoulder swayed in and out of her eyeline. A glass of water was sitting on the bedside table and she gulped it down, desperate for more.

    Selene was about to stand when a healer who looked to be mid-thirties bustled into the room carrying a tray littered with potion cups in all sizes.

    “Good, you’re awake. We won’t need this one then. I think we over-egged the strength of your sleeping draught.” She tapped a cup containing a sludgy azure mixture with her wand and it vanished. “And you’ve had some water, good. How do you feel, Miss Selwyn? My name is Healer Brownlee.”

    “I, uh,” Selene looked down at her arm. The spot with the bite had been wrapped in a tight bandage that looked clean. The bruise still snaked around her wrist and into the bandage but was now a mottled blue colour. “I feel fine, thank you. Call me Selene.” She flexed her hand a couple of times. It twinged but was definitely bearable.

    “You gave us a bit of a puzzle, Selene. We got you stabilised easily enough, but none of the anti-venoms stopped the bleeding. If we'd known what had bit you, it would've only been a few hours and a course of skele-grow for the broken bones. You went through six blood-replenishing potions before Healer Forsyth thought to check for a poison antidote despite the fact you’ve got a bite wound. You were poisoned with a serum of dried Hellebore leaves and probably a few other nasty pieces we haven't identified. Do you remember how it happened?”

    Selene wasn’t sure how much to share. There were plenty of things in the house that were definitely illegal. She had always chosen to ignore the obvious truth about her family - keep her mouth shut and keep out of it. The snakes on their own were not illegal, wizards and witches were well within their rights to place defensive measures on their property. 

    However, the poison was most likely a step too far. If she couldn't convince the healers, they'd owl Magical Law Enforcement, and she dreaded her uncle's reaction. Would she lose her job, her one path out of there, if she was discovered to have known about illegal substances or artefacts in their house?

    Had she really been that badly injured? From a door handle? The healer was making it sound like she could have died. Did Sal know that?

    “I was careless with a vial,” Selene said slowly, “the end broke off, and I think I fell onto a couple of metal grow-guide sticks when I dropped it. I was in the family greenhouse and managed to knock back the tentacula before I asked my elf to take me here. I'm an amateur herbologist. The vial had a derivative hellebore suspension in it.” That would explain everything, Selene was almost proud of her quick thinking.

    “All right,” Healer Brownlee seemed convinced. “Ideally, I'd want you to stay here for another day, just to be sure it’s all out of your system. Here is some more bruise paste for your wrist and forearm, which you need to apply for the next two days. But,” and she raised her eyebrows with a jovial smile, “I certainly wouldn’t want to spend my Hogmany here so if you’re feeling better after some food, and your last antidote dose stays down, I think we can let you go. You'll have to give a statement to the discharge team who start at eleven.”

    “Hogmany?” Selene blanched. “It can’t be! I’ve been here two days? No, no, no. I had to be somewhere yesterday, I said I’d... Do you have any parchment I can borrow?"

    She had stood Remus up. After finally getting things back to how they had been without the awkwardness.

    “We had you on some powerful sleeping draughts while we were trying to figure out what was wrong. If it’s a handsome young man you're worried about, he knows you're here and he's waiting just outside. Until you regained consciousness, we couldn't allow anyone other than family into the room, you understand. It's the current climate, protocols for suspected assaults are strict. Now you're awake, I can ask the security wizard to leave. Assuming you are happy to have visitors?”

    “Yes, yes!” Said Selene.

    Remus had come to see her? She could feel herself blushing, warmth spreading through her. She tried to keep it in check. They had had a moment the other night, and he had stepped away. They were just friends. He didn’t want her like she wanted him, she reminded herself. Remus was kind. He cared about people. She should be grateful he was back in her life, even just as a friend.

    The healer left, and Selene could see her talking with the shoulder she noticed earlier through the door. Its owner stepped away and not two seconds later Remus burst through the doors. He looked even worse than Selene felt. His eye was bruised. Deep shadows had set below those warm eyes and his clothes had definitely been worn for too long. Guilt thunked at the pit of Selene's stomach.

    “Remus, I am so sorry I missed our plans.” He gave her a look that very much said, 'Are you being serious?' “I'm fine, sorry to have caused such a fuss, honestly. Bit embarrassing really. They're letting me out after lunch. Nothing to worry about.” The words fell out in one big tumble. He didn't need to how bad it had been and Selene hadn't really faced that thought herself yet.

    Remus pulled the chair over and leaned forward, elbows on his knees. “Did he do this to you?” He asked in a low voice. Where her uncle's rage had been uncontrolled, Remus’ anger was calm, measured and infinitely more formidable. There was a golden glint in his green eyes that flashed like metal. He looked dangerous.

    Selene explained about the discrepancy with the will, her uncle's impatience and the lock on the door to the study. She also kept her voice quiet in case the healers were listening in the hallway. “He sent Binky and Mipps to help,” She finished weakly. “So it wasn't really like what you're thinking.”

    “Are you trying to defend him on this?” Remus was incredulous.

    “No,” Selene chose her words carefully, “but I don't want you to do anything rash. He has powerful friends, Remus. He’s connected.”

    “I know exactly what he is.” Remus replied, but Selene didn't think he understood. Selene wasn't sure she understood. Uncle Sal had been good to her before now, but this and the dealings with Lestrange. She knew what it meant of course, but she hadn't fully accepted it.

    “I think he might be a monster, Remus.” Remus' eyes darkened when she said monster. Maybe he really did know, but how?

    “Did your father ever say what might be in there?”

    “We didn't talk much. But whatever it is, that lock should open for the head of the house, regardless of any Ministry will, and it won’t. I think Uncle Sal added the poison in case anyone else knows and tries to get in. He's tried that lock before, and he didn't wind up in here. I thought he was just after money but it must be something bigger.” Remus’ knuckles were white on the arm of the chair. He looked ready to snap the arms right off.

    “Once I've eaten, I'll be discharged,” Selene changed the subject. “I'm fine, Remus. In fact,” She grabbed the bruise paste and held it out to him, “you look in worse shape than me. What happened to your face?”

    It worked. He had the look of a guilty schoolboy about him. “Got in a bit of a scrap a couple days ago and think the lad must have been a boxer. Nearly knocked me clean out.”

    “A boxer?” Selene had no idea what that meant.

    “It's a muggle exercise where they punch each other in the face and other muggles sometimes pay to watch if they're really good.” Selene's expression must have been a sight because he added with a chuckle, “I'm not explaining it very well.”

    “You fight muggles for exercise?” Selene tried very hard not to laugh. Really, she was just relieved he hadn't fought her uncle or hospital security.

    “It's hard to explain!” Remus laughed too, “I swear it's not as ridiculous as it sounds.”

    “Well, have some of my bruise paste,” She pressed it into his hand, “it looks painful.”

    He daubed a small amount around his eye and the bruise vanished instantly. “Perfect,” Selene smiled. Their hands touched as he handed back the pot, and neither of them moved away. Selene's skin was electric with anticipation, despite telling herself not to hope.

    Suddenly, the door opened again, and Selene recognised Lily Evans from school. She was gorgeous, with long red hair and vibrant features that seemed to bring energy into the room with her.

    “Hi Selene, how are you doing?”

    “Good, thanks, Lily.” Selene felt a little awkward in her hospital gown and probably terrible state. She tugged at her covers and brushed he hair behind her ear.

    “I'm sorry to interrupt, but it's half ten, Remus.”

    Remus nodded, not taking his eyes from Selene. “I have an appointment I can't miss,” he explained, “but I'll be back as soon as it's finished to see you get home all right.”

    “That's okay Remus, you've done more than enough. Really, I'm completely better. I'll be fine.”

    He looked set to argue but changed his mind. “I won't be long,” he smiled. He gave Lily a quick one armed hug and a kiss on the cheek before leaving. Selene expected her to follow him out, but she took his place in the chair.

    “You gave us a bit of a scare. The healers didn't say much, but when they said only family would be allowed to enter, Remus refused to leave. He thought your Uncle might visit. We've been taking shifts.” Of course, Remus must have thought Sal would come to finish the job.

    Selene didn't know Lily very well outside of class and prefect duties. But she was touched that somebody would look out for her like that, even if it was really for Remus. They were both in the Slug Club but Selene hadn't really fit and her fathers position at the ministry hadn't been enough to keep her in the club past third year. She liked Lily, Lily never had a bad word to say about anyone. She was like Joanne in that way. Maybe it was the muggle upbringing.

    “Thank you, you didn't have to. So you're here to babysit me?”

    “Babysit Remus, actually, like I said, he refused to leave. He's been sleeping in the corridor. We had no idea when you'd wake up. You had a whole team of healers in here at one point.”

    Selene let her words wash over her. Remus Lupin didn't make any sense. She wished more than ever that she hadn't missed their dinner.

    “He did all that for me?”

    Her confusion must have been obvious as Lily frowned slightly.

    “Remus has a bad habit of pushing away the people he cares about.” Lily said sadly.

    Selene wasn't sure what to say to that either. The truth was she was very easily pushed. After her brother had died, her parents had become so distant from her that she spent most of her time alone before Hogwarts. She had struggled with it for years, knowing that they would have preferred Caliban to be here instead, if it had been the choice of one or the other. She swore to herself that she wasn't going to ever chase someone to be loved.

    But Remus did care about her, and maybe as more than a friend. Or at least, Lily thought so.

Chapter Text

    Hogsmeade - 31 December 1979

    Remus sat in a rickety chair on the top floor of the Hogsmeade cottage that served as one of the Order of the Phoenix safe houses. Perched on his knees was the wrapped gift he had bought in the boxing day sales. He fiddled anxiously with the bow, tying and untying the knot several times before abruptly placing it on the table and redoing the bow entirely with his wand. He still felt tense from the hospital and the tiredness was finally starting to beat the stress that had kept him awake so long.

    Dumbledore arrived exactly on time, lighting up the dusty room in bright magenta robes. Remus stood and the pair hugged, Albus patting Remus’ shoulder in a fatherly way before they both sat down. Remus was surprised to feel the squishy softness of an armchair behind him.

    “Forgive me,” Albus said, putting his wand away as quickly as he must have withdrawn it. “Nothing worse for an old man's joints than terrible seating.”

    “Happy Christmas, Albus.” He handed over the box.

    “Happy Christmas, Remus.” Albus said, handing over a similarly sized but far more luxuriously wrapped box.

    The pair unwrapped their gobstone sets, sharing wry smiles. It had become a tradition of sorts. The first time Remus had met Albus Dumbledore as an eleven year old child, the older man had sat down with him on the floor of his parents' sitting room, and the pair had played gobstones.

    As a boy, Remus had loved gobstones. You could play the game by yourself, and he didn't have any friends to play exploding snap or practice quidditch with.

    During their first match back then, Dumbledore asked Remus if he would like to attend Hogwarts school. Still, all these years later, Remus couldn't believe his luck. Albus Dumbledore was the reason he had a normal life. Just after Remus won, and Albus was sprayed with a thick orange slime, he was given his acceptance letter. He would never forget that Albus Dumbledore had been his first friend.

    Now, it had become tradition for the pair to play gobstones whenever they met, with Remus winning more often than not. It was as much a skill game as strategy and Remus had the knack for it. And so, today, they played.

    “I was hoping to ask you before the meeting Remus, if you would be willing to undertake a bit of a reconnaissance mission of sorts.”

    “Of course,” Remus agreed, not even needing the particulars before he did. Although he was already intrigued.

    “I have recently been made aware of a group of people like yourself, that I did not know existed, and who I believe will be a key target of Lord Voldemort's ongoing recruitment efforts if they are discovered.”

    Ah, that's why this mission was for him alone. Werewolves. The majority of the Order were aware of his condition but he still had trouble when attention was brought to the fact. Some days, he even managed to forget when the full moon was far away and he was surrounded by his friends and focused on their joint purpose.

    “I do not think Lord Voldemort is currently aware of this group. I do think, however, that we should extend the hand of friendship to them before he has the chance to.”

    “I agree.” Remus replied.

    “Good, I have been in correspondence with the group for the last week and they have agreed to have a guest at their residence for a few days the day after tomorrow.”

    “During the full moon.” Remus finished.

    “Correct.”

    “Is it safe?” Remus asked. Not worried a jot for his own safety, but since his school days, he had never transformed in an environment he wasn't either fully in control of or was completely contained.

    “They have assured me it is. I thought, perhaps, we could send somebody in addition, who would be capable of containing the situation if required. They would need to remain hidden. The property is not far from Hogwarts and there have not been any reports of incidents in the area so I have no reason to suspect they are not being honest.”

    “Sirius,” said Remus immediately.

    Dumbledore was not aware of his friends’ animagus abilities, but even so, the choice made sense. James was perhaps the better dueller, but Sirius could be trusted to do what was required if it came to it. Remus had thought it through hundreds of times, and in the end, he was never quite sure if James would be able to hurt him if it came to it. Peter tended to panic, and his animagus form would provide little in the way of protection. He still felt guilty for keeping the secret from Albus, but their monthly adventures had been so important to him that he couldn't bear the prospect they would be banned. Not only that, but it would put his friends in a difficult situation. Being an unregistered animagus was illegal.

    “By all means. I could ask Kingsley, Alastor, or Benjamin if you'd prefer more experienced wands?”

    “Sirius can handle it.”

    “Alright then, I will leave it to you to explain to him after the meeting and you can decide yourselves which one will attend.” Remus privately decided to invite both Prongs and Wormtail as well.

    “There is something you should know, Albus,” Remus started. “Sallow Selwyn is after something belonging to his late brother. I don't know what it is, but whatever he's after, he is desperate to get it. He poisoned his niece two days ago, trying to get into Sebastian Selwyn’s office at their family estate.”

    Albus considered the gobstone in front of him carefully before rolling it onto the board. It knocked one of Remus’ out of the ring, which then promptly spat an oily purple jet at Remus. It smelled like raspberry jam. Remus smiled despite the seriousness of their conversation.

    “And Selene doesn’t know anything else?”

    Remus wasn't shocked that Albus knew where he got the information from, Dumbledore had an uncanny ability to be three steps ahead of everyone. “I don't think so. She first thought he was just after their vault key, but that doesn’t make sense if he’s set to inherit anyway. I'm meeting her after this to take her back from the hospital.”

    “If he's set to inherit,” repeated Albus, “I agree.”

    On that cue, the door swung open, and Order members filtered in. The top floor of the cottage was gutted completely, the single long room was now able to seat thirty comfortably in little rows facing and old Hogwarts blackboard that had been tipped on its side to fit under the sloped ceiling. The scroll now rotated horizontally instead of vertically, and a secret enchantment and codeword were required to use the erasers that now revealed rather than erased notes from other members and meetings.

    “Thank you, Remus.” Albus cleared away the gobstones into their respective boxes and stood to welcome the others into the room.

    —

    As he expected, Gideon and Fabian Prewett's update was the highlight of the meeting. They had been monitoring the international activity of known and suspected Death Eaters and any previous accomplices. The only marks from their weekend excursion with Sirius and Remus were skinned knuckles that they wore proudly without healing. Remus wondered if a single blow had even gotten near them.

    The two brothers stood at the front of the assembly for the update. Stocky yet lean and well muscled they would have been the most intimidating wizards Remus had met if they didn't both have the faces of mischievous school boys. Both men had identical, deep laugh lines. The only way to tell them apart were their robes. Gideon was always pristine, his vivid red hair combed and set. Fabian, on the other hand, had clearly picked up a set of good enough robes from a pile and had probably never picked up a comb in his life.

    Dolohov had spent a few weeks in Eastern Europe, travelling through a few countries and meeting with blood purists in each. There were rumours of a potential coup in Bulgaria, but it was being fought.

    “We also took a trip to see our friend Violet Felix at MACUSA,” Gideon began. The Magical Congress of America had so far blindly ignored Voldemort's continued rise. Dumbledore had spent months as Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot pushing for increased international collaboration against the dark arts but the council, and the Ministry, was filled with old traditionalists, most of whom were purebloods, who would quit before formally requesting assistance. The same line was rolled out for every single country Dumbledore had tried to improve relationships with. Magical communities had always been insular. It was part of the reason dark wizards had been able to gain power time and time again throughout history.

    Felix was a good contact, sympathetic to the cause.

    “No further word on Dumbledore's speech last month but we hear that papers are making their way up the chain from the lower offices.”

    “But,” Fabian continued, “Felix did tell us that they've got a magical killer on the loose. The victim is unusual. A muggle scientist, Felix says closest equivalent would be an alchemist on Dumbledore's level. We're talking very top level stuff.” Dumbledore smiled appreciatively, Remus thought he may have even blushed.

    “Any links to the magical community?” Asked Kingsley Shacklebolt, who outside of the Order was Gideon and Fabian's boss, he was directly under Moody.

    “Not that we can find,” replied Fabian.

    “Like Fabian said, this guy was a specialist” said Gideon, “no wizard could possibly comprehend the research of the scientist. Not only that, he was retired.”

    “Avada Kedavra?” Barked Moody.

    “No,” said Fabian, looking even more confused, “whoever it was either wasn’t capable or knew they’d need to pass a wand check. They have random checks at MACUSA. So Felix thought they must be an employee there.”

    “So Felix is sure it's a wizard?” Asked Alice Longbottom.

    "That's the rub. There was another victim, a witch in fact. A good friend of Felix's and also a security witch. Apparently she was assigned to protect him. So the higher ups at MACUSA know exactly who he is and why he was targeted. They say its need to know and can only be revealed if Felix doesn't catch the killer within the next six months or more bodies turn up."

    "The sound about as competant and sensible as our Ministry." Sirius shot darkly. A wry chuckle rumbled through the group.

    "Exactly. So she's working in the dark, which is why she reached out."

    “The bodies had definitely been in contact with dark magic, but we think it must be a cursed artefact or weapon that's being used. There were identical magical signatures on all the bodies.”

    “Interesting,” said Dumbldore, “thank you. Do you think Voldemort is involved?”

    “We managed to get a track on the magical signature and followed it to the MACUSA, confirming Felix's theory about avoiding wand checks." Gideon pulled out an old brass reckoning weight on a length of sapphire coloured chain that twinlkled. It swayed slightly as it uncoiled but remained still. "But we also picked it up in the international portkey department. So we know they arrived or left the US under an official capacity.” “We managed to get a hold of the logs.”

    “Very smart.” Frank Longbottom interjected and the twins both grinned appreciatively. Everything they had described so far had sounded so matter of fact when in reality no one else could have pulled this off except maybe Dumbledore himself in his younger days. The dead reckoning tracker was no doubt Gideon's own invention. Remus had never seen anything like it, and tracking signatures was very advanced magic.

    “And we found,” said Fabian, sharing a sly look with his brother, “Ministry delegations from all over the world had been in the country during all three deaths. Now, I won't claim to have cracked it as there are more than twenty names present during all three, and we can't exclude a team effort if they were aware they would be logged. But one name in particular jumped out.”

    The twins paused for dramatic effect. It wasn't needed, even the impossible to impress Moody was on the edge of his seat. “Sebastian Selwyn.” Said Gideon.

    “Senior Minister and brother of dear Sal.” chuckled Fabian. Fabian had easily bested Sal Selwyn in a duel less than a year ago whilst protecting the Deputy Minister for Magic from an attempted imperious attack.

    Remus’ brain was rapidly processing the information.

    “So he gets back from this murder and then not even two days later dies in St Mungo's, supposedly under no suspicious circumstances?” Asked Sirius, who was sporting a similar black eye to Remus’ recently erased one and was sitting unusually stiffly.

    “Exactly our thinking. Which, if true, means someone either in St Mungos or the Ministry is covering it up.” Fabian nodded.

    “Or both,” said Gideon and Sirius at the same time.

    “Any idea who might have killed him?” Remus asked, desperately trying to remember more from the funeral. From his spot on the balcony, he had really only seen the backs of heads, and he had slipped away after Selene had left the church to avoid being spotted.

    “Not a clue," Fabian replied.

    The general crowd broke out in discussion. The consensus was that if Sebastian was working on Voldemort’s orders, why would the death eaters kill him? Especially when, as far as they knew, he was still getting away with it. Not only that, but what was he even getting away with? What did Voldemort care about American muggles? Was the Ministry capable of murder without the Auror department knowing? Did someone else discover what Sebastian Selwyn had been doing and kill him to prevent the complete collapse of the already shaky department of International Co-operation? Was Voldemort even involved at all?

    “Sal Selwyn, Sebaastian's brother, is after something he believes is stored within the Selwyn estate in Cambridge.” Remus added. “Maybe it's whatever this weapon is.”

    He went on to explain the whole story, leaving Selene out of it as much as he could. Everyone seemed impressed with the intel and agreed that it was probably the weapon.

    “If we got close enough to the study, would your tracker pick up the signature?” James asked Gideon.

    “Yeah, wouldn't even have to go inside the estate even just need to be within the wards to know if it's still in there. If its been moved, I doubt the singal will be strong enough to pick up unless its been used and discharged magic there.”

    “I think I could get inside,” said Remus.

    And so he had two Order objectives added to his list. The Auror department were also officially looking into it now that a British witch or wizard was potentially involved. Remus' part would have to wait until after the full moon.

    —

    The meeting ended and Remus pulled his friends aside to discuss arrangements for the werewolf pack. It was like Christmas had come around twice in a week, the four men all thrilled for the chance to relive some of their school adventures again.

    “I'll have to sort this out before we go,” Sirius said, pulling down the front of his shirt to show a rather nasty looking gash in his shoulder.

    James burst out laughing, “I fucking knew it! I knew you'd got stabbed.”

    “You got stabbed?” Peter asked incredulously.

    “Slightly stabbed. Stung like a bitch,” Sirius grumbled, pulling his shirt back into place. “It was a lucky strike really, I still got the guy down. I had a go at healing it but its on my wand arm so couldn't really bend that way.”

    “Maybe stick to wandwork mate,” James said, purposefully clapping the stabbed shoulder so Sirius winced. “We're not all athletes who are cut out for the physical stuff.”

    “I could take any one of you even with a bum shoulder.”

    “Sure you could mate.” James said with another clap to the shoulder.

    —

    Remus apparated straight back to St Mungos and found Selene and Lily chatting away over some very dry hospital sandwiches. Selene looked much better even from just a couple of hours ago. Remus felt relief flood him again. There were moments over the last two days where he was convinced Selwyn had killed her, that he had let it happen, and that she might have died without knowing what he felt.

    He was going to tell her after the full moon he decided, once they’d had a chance to scope out the study. Both about his feelings and his infliction. When he did and she didn't want to be near him, at least it would be honest. Then he could move on.

    “Remus,” She smiled at him, and Lily got up. She gave Selene a quick goodbye and left them to it after giving Remus a one-armed hug and a very discreet “She really likes you, you know,” whispered into his ear. He tried to calm the rising heat in his cheeks.

    Selene got up as well, pulling her robes from the hook. There was a loud clanking noise and a couple of tinkling chimes as she put them on. Remus shot her a quizzical look.

    “Sorry,” She grinned, “I was kind of in the middle of a low-level robbery and pilfering before it happened. Basically stealing anything that wasn't pinned down.” Selene added unabashedly.

    Remus raised his hands in mock surrender, “no judgement here. It should have been yours anyway if you ask me.”

    “Well, unfortunately for me, I wasn't born a man.” She rolled her eyes.

    “Can't say I'm disappointed personally,” Remus replied, Selene bit her lip with a smirk.

    —

    Selene side-along apparated Remus to her building. The flat was in an exceedingly wealthy part of the city. Third floor of a traditional Georgian building that was all magical families. The high ceilings and tiled fireplaces were ornately decorated, and heavy velvet curtains lined the floor to ceiling windows in the living room which was double the size of his whole flat.

    It was exquisite, Remus had never visited Sirius’ parents' place, but he imagined it to be a bit like this, maybe darker. And the Potters house, while big, still felt like a home - nothing like this. Just a few seconds within these walls had him feeling out of place.

    Once Remus had walked through the rooms and was satisfied that nothing else had been cursed, Selene had left him on the sofa with a cup of tea while she showered and changed.

    “I really needed that.” Selene said, breaking his chain of thought. "I want to thank you again, Remus, for everything you've done over the past few days. I've missed you these past couple of years, and I'm so glad we've sorted things." Selene chewed her lip, and Remus knew she was biting back more that she wanted to say. He had done the same thing himself just a few nights before.

    “Don't mention it. I'll be here whenever you need me. You're sure nothing looks out of the ordinary?”

    Selene had a quick glance around, “Nope.”

    “Do you have any defensive wards set up?”

    “Just the ones that come with the property, any strangers come in without me or an invitation and I'd know.”

    “Does that include family?” He stood, ready to add to them if he had to.

    “Look, Remus,” She began, closing the gap between them, clearly having rehearsed whatever was coming next. She placed a hand onto his chest as though she could press her message in. Could she feel his heart stutter when she touched him? “I'm not oblivious as to what my uncle is, and I certainly don’t want him here, but he isn't going to kill me. He was angry after the will didn’t go through and genuinely thought it had been passed to me, and probably that I'd be able to open the door. I don’t think he was planning for me to get poisoned. You don't have to worry. If I make any moves against him now, it definitely will make him suspicious. I just need a bit of time to get things together.”

    She was close, so close he could see her pulse beating in the shallow curve on her neck. The smell of her hair was fogging every thought he had. His eyes never left her full lips. 

    The full moon was in two days' time, and now all the stress from the last few days had subsided he had nothing left with which he could use to push down his animal instincts. He worked hard to control his breathing, to drag his eyes to a spot above her head.

    He felt feral, and he hated himself for it. He pulled his focus back to what mattered.

    “What makes you so sure?” He asked, a little desperately, thinking of Sebastian Selwyn. Sal was his number one suspect. Remus had no doubt: Sal Selwyn was capable of murdering family.

    “His plan is to marry me off to Rabastan Lestrange. I think we're maybe technically engaged already. Probably to earn himself a favour. Young pureblood witches from sacred twenty-eight families aren't exactly common as knuts.”

    The same murderous rage he fought so hard to contain in the hospital rose within him again. Or was it a jealous rage this time? James had pulled him out of the last one, but James wasn't here this time. Remus saw his fists tremble more than he felt them, his brain beyond feeling.

    “Trade your life for a favour? Force you to get married?” He gritted the words out, rubbing his brow in an attempt to hide his eyes.

    To that vile, evil, pathetic excuse for a human being. Sal Selwyn was one thing, but Rabastan Lestrage was the second worst thing he could think of other than Voldemort himself. The Lestrange's were notorious. The thought of that man with his hands on Selene was too much to take.

    The thought that it should be his hands was all too easy to entertain.

    “I'm obviously not going to let that happen. The plan hasn't changed. See what happens with the will, maybe add a bit of extra gold to the escape fund, and then I'm out of this flat and out of that life for good. Promise.”

    Her voice was all too calm as she reiterated her plan. Remus very much doubted Selwyn or Lestrange would let her just decline. 

She was close to him now. So, so close. If he had been a normal man, he could have whisked her away from it all himself. But he wasn't a normal man. He was a werewolf. 

    He had no right to react this way. Was he as much of a danger to those he loved as Rabastan Lestrange? 

    Different breeds maybe, but both monsters all the same.

Chapter Text

    London - 2 January 1980

    Gringotts Bank was all but deserted. Every step across the gleaming marble floors echoed back from the high vaulted ceilings. Perhaps the majority of the wizarding populace was either asleep or still too deeply. deeply hungover to think about banking. No doubt that was also the reason Selene had been able to book such a last-minute appointment with the goblins.

    There had been a teetering tower of paperwork waiting for her at her flat once Remus had left. Selene credited her Ravenclaw skills for argument and logic with finally convincing Remus that Sal was not waiting outside the door to finish her off. Regardless, he checked in again with some soup on New Year's Day to make sure she was healing up okay. He had looked a little worse for wear himself, Selene joked and asked if he had enjoyed Hogmanay as much as it looked.

    He had invited her, but she had declined, claiming tiredness from the hospital. It was partially true. She had barely been alone once since the funeral, and everything seemed to be catching up with her. She had even managed to have a good cry, which had so far eluded her.

    It was also partially a lie, she had refused because she had tried to picture what she would do at midnight. The desire to kiss Remus would have likely overtaken her and spoiled their friendship, not to mention the potential embarrassment when he would inevitably knock her back again. No, it made sense to keep at least a small amount of distance while she worked through her feelings. She owed him that.

    They had spent the afternoon reading together and enjoying steaming mugs of tea, butterbeer, and eventually hot chocolate in the evening as the day wore on. Remus had to leave, he was going away on a work trip for a few days with his father, who Selene knew was an expert in all things magical creatures and had even been a Senior Consultant to the Department of Control of Magical Creatures before Remus went to Hogwarts.

    Selene's heart deflated once Remus left. Three days felt like an awfully long time to wait to see him again now that they were friends once more, but the paperwork prevented her mind from whirring too much. The menial work of completing and signing forms felt almost trance like, the slow scratching of her quill almost meditative.

    Right at the bottom of the stack was a small slip containing a missive from Gringotts that the contents of her mother's security box was now in her name and she could collect the key at her earliest convenience.

    The chamber the goblin clerk had led her to sat just off the main entrance hall, separated by a set of polished brass gates which had been locked behind her as the clerk left through a half height door to retrieve the correct box and key.

    There was very little ceremony to it, unlike the will reading. The clerk placed the box and key on the table and left her to it. The space between the grates clouded over for privacy as soon as the lock clicked. A little bell had been hung on the gatepost once she was ready to be let out again.

    In front of her, now opened at last, lay the contents of her inheritance. She had expected a collection of jewellery, or perhaps even some gold.

    Selene laughed.

    The box contained a watch, a wand, and a tiny maroon velvet pouch holding a gold McLaggen signet ring. Selene pocketed the lot and closed the box back over. She would be lucky if the lot would fetch even a hundred galleons. But it was at least a hundred more than she had before.

    —

    By the time she left Gringotts, it was barely eleven. The process of setting up her own vault was easy, but it had cost a chunk of her savings. The goblins had only allowed her to access gold that she had personally paid in, less all of her expenditure in the past year, even if her father had signed it off. It was standard practice apparently when awaiting ownership transfer.

    The Ministry had informed the bank of the unsuccessful will, the goblins had searched for a possible alternate will in the vault but nothing had been found so they'd sealed the door to all, other than goblins, as a precaution. The clerk gave a hawkish grin as he handed back her key.

    Still, standing in her very own vault had been rewarding in itself, even with the paltry stack of coins piled up in the back corner. It was the smallest vault they offered, no bigger than a broom closet. Otherwise, the temptation would very much have been to live in it.

    No, now was the time for some serious financial planning, after a cup of tea and pastry from Fairholme's Fancies. One last indulgence before exile was surely allowed. Or multiple indulgences. Selene left the shop a few hours later with a paper bag full of treats and a flask of tea for later. They were on sale, business was slow today apparently.

    “Hangover cure?” A smooth voice asked from behind her.

    Selene startled for just a second before turning with a smile.

    “Mr Lestrange, Happy New Year,” Selene gave a nod of her head and lifted her arms, indicating her full hands as an excuse for her less than formal greeting.

    “Happy New Year, Miss Selwyn. I hope you are feeling better?”

    His eyes flitted to her robe sleeves, which had fallen as she lifted the bag. Her gloves were too short to cover much more than her wrist. The bruise was now a shadowy green-yellow colour barely visible unless you knew to look for it. Selene paused, her cordial smile faltering for a moment. Perhaps this was a test to see if she would incriminate her uncle.

    “Just a clumsy accident, all better now. Thank you for asking.”

    “Two nights in St Mungo’s is quite the accident,” Rabastan Lestrange said silkily, pulling in so close they were almost cheek to cheek. His thumb brushed her arm over the bruise. He continued in a low voice that no one would overhear. “Rest assured, Miss Selwyn, there will be no more accidents. When I heard what had happened, I reminded my dear friend exactly how a witch ought to be treated. The lesson was thorough.”

    There was no anger in his words, just a matter of fact tone. They were cold and hollow and made Selene shiver. Rabastan swept a couple of larger snowflakes from Selene’s shoulder as he finished, tucking her hair behind her ear before withdrawing. The skin on her cheek tingled from the closeness. Her wide eyes met his confident stare.

    Selene pictured her uncle, a hundred images flashing through her mind of what a lesson from Rabastan would look like. Not that he didn’t deserve it, but she was certain that torture was involved.

    “I, uh,” she stammered, and he smiled, mistaking this as gratitude.

    “I would have visited in the hospital, but I was informed you had quite the collection of well-wishers already.” Selene’s blood ran suddenly cold. He knew Remus was at the hospital. Would he have assumed a relationship between the two of them? Her head swirled as he continued. “I apologise, I am afraid I am already late for a meeting at the Ministry today. Otherwise, I would have escorted you home.”

    Selene finally gathered her thoughts, “thank you, Mr Lestrange. I’m sure I will find my way back alright. I can’t say the same for these.” She raised the paper bag again and offered him a pastry.

    “Rabastan, please. Or, Stan if you like. Expect an owl from me this week.” He removed his glove, slipping a hand into the bag.

    “Thank you, Stan. I look forward to it.” She gave him the warmest smile she could muster. Not rejecting him was surely the best option right now. She could warn Remus she was being watched, that he was maybe being watched. She had assumed her role as bargaining chip was the reason her uncle would not come after her, but perhaps it was fear of his own friend.

    And with that, Rabastan Lestrange strode on.

    Selene hurried back, just in case her intended husband to be continued to watch her.

    —

    Selene's reasons for running away were multiplying rapidly. She needed to gather as much gold as she could, as fast as she could, inheritance be damned. She would wait the three days for Remus to return, say her goodbyes, and go. She knew what happened to pureblood witches who failed to live up to expectation.

    Selene hastily tipped the velvet pouch out on her coffee table, the ring and watch tinkled and scattered against the glass top. She had to trap the ring as it threatened to bounce onto the floor. She pulled the wand from her robes, inspecting it.

    It definitely wasn't her mother's wand, which had been short and pine. No, this one looked more like her own, longer, springier, and the same dark ebony wood. She turned it in her palm loosely a few times. It even felt friendly. It was always handy to have a spare, and there wasn't much of a market in second-hand wands anyway. They were too temperamental for that.

    Next, she examined the ring. It didn't have a lot of weight to it and didn't feel particularly magical in the way a lot of the artefacts back at the manor did. The crest was definitely McLaggen and had probably been given to her mother on her wedding day as a token from grandparents Selene had never met. She slipped it onto her middle finger to keep it safe. It would definitely be worth selling.

    Lastly, the watch. It was a man's watch, the face much too large for Selene's wrist. The strap looked like dragon hide leather in a vibrant verdant green with a metallic shimmer, like floo flames. A white gold case framed the watch face, which was etched as well, the numerals carved directly into the metal. There were 3 smaller dials set into the face; the first two were planetary movements and the lunar cycle - both pretty standard on wizarding watches, but Selene couldn't figure out what the last one was supposed to show. The tiny hand on the dial only had two options, one a tiny opal and the other a tiny diamond. Today was diamond, apparently. She could feel an engraving on the back.

    She flipped it over and nearly dropped it in shock.

    C. S. Selwyn.

    Caliban's watch.

    But that wasn't possible.

    They buried him with his watch. He had died before his seventeenth birthday, but the watch had already been made. She had never actually laid eyes on it before, but there was no doubt in her mind that it was really his.

    Selene snatched the wand back up, running it through her fingers desperately, smoothing along the length of it with her fingernail, searching. Her nail caught on a miniscule chip near the handle, and her breathing stopped. He had chipped it not even a week after he had bought it. It had always been chipped as long as Selene could remember. Her mother had lectured him about it.

    Calbian's wand.

    The watch was one thing, but for a wizard to be buried without his wand was another. Barely a moment passed before Selene knew and accepted what must be the truth: Caliban was alive, and he was out there somewhere, without his wand.

    The watch still lay in her palm. It felt heavier now, the weight of everything Selene had learned contained in its polished case. She gripped it tightly, feeling the steady ticking, willing herself to bring her own pulsing heart into the same rhythm. As it slowed, she calmed, the weight in her heart lifting.

    Selene opened her hand again, bringing the watch as close to her eye as she could, raking over every detail. Nothing.

    She tapped it with Caliban's wand, murmuring every revealing and reversing charm she could think of from her N.E.W.T. Again, nothing.

    Selene thought to herself. This watch and this wand were important. They had been held outside the main will, specifically for her. In her mother's name. Her mother, who had hated her. Even admitted as much. Her mother who had wanted nothing more than her son back, and her daughter gone.

    She took up her own wand instead and recited the McLaggen words. 

    It clicked.

    Selene stared at the watch. The third inner dial now pointed to the opal. The pearlescent shimmer of the opal rippled, and the watch case unlatched, the face opening like a tiny door.

    Inside was a miniscule scrap of parchment, with the words "Floo address - Ardverikie Estate, wear the ring."

    Selene didn't hesitate. She strode straight over to her fireplace, snapping the watch face shut again and fastening the leather strap to her wrist tightly.

--

Ardverikie Estate, Laggan Loch - 2nd January 1980

Selene choked as the floo flames burned out. 

    She blinked the ashes out of her eyes as she took in her surroundings. It was a grand entrance hall, the fireplace let her out to the left of what must be the main door, arched and huge. There were some plush burgundy sofas and armchairs facing the fire, all empty.

    The candles in every sconce were lit. Selene followed their trail slowly down the hallway as silently as she could. She peered inside each door she passed, finding more empty sitting rooms, drawing rooms, and a grand dining hall. At the end of the ground floor hallway was a library. The walls were lined with dark wood shelves, a great bay window bisected the side wall, panelled in the same dark wood. It felt familiar to her. She couldn't see out far into the garden. This far north, it was already evening, with night coming in quickly. She could just about make out some distant shapes of manicured hedges and trees thanks to the thick white blanket of snow that covered everything, throwing back the silvery light from the moon that hung heavy and full just above the horizon. A lake edge stood in opposite darkness, pulling in the light around it.

    Selene continued to explore, her stomach squirming with every additional step. 

    The staircase was huge, grander even than the Selwyn estate in Cambridge. A tapestry map hung on the wall in the upper landing. It depicted Loch Laggan and four or five other smaller lochs. Around each loch were a number of dotted estates, she found Ardverikie on the east of Laggan Loch.

    The estate must belong to her mother's family. Selene raised her hand to trace around the Loch and read the name of the other estates. The previously plain McLaggen ring now had a sparkling row of rubies set into the band. The ring at least, was home.

    Selene knew vaguely of a few branches of the McLaggan and McLaggen families. They must all live in these estates in the Highlands. Ardverikie appeared to be one of the smaller properties but still encompassed a great deal of land, mostly forestry. A few were marked as unplottable. 

    Everything made more and more sense but made her angrier and angrier to have been kept in the dark in this way by her family. What had happened to cause them to fake a werewolf attack and their son's death? And why hadn't they told her? Not when her mother died, not when she came of age, never. If her father had been conscious when she got to St Mungo's, would she have been told then?

    She needed to find Caliban to find out.

    The upper floor contained a number of very large and impressively furnished bedrooms. All looked used but they were all empty as well.

    Selene looked at the watch. It was only just before four in the afternoon. She headed back down the stairs. Just her luck to visit her long-lost brother when he's not home. She decided to wait in the entrance hall.

    The entrance road was visible out the front windows thanks to a gatehouse about a quarter of mile away. It, too, was fully lit. It was worth checking. Maybe Caliban shared Selene's love of cold walks. She grabbed a cloak from the rack near the main door and then pulled the door open using the heavy metal swing handle.

    The path was a rocky aggregate that gave way a little under each step like sand. It was difficult at first to find her footing in her heeled boots, the soles slipping beneath her. 

    The air was as crisp and sharp as the clear sky. Thousands of stars were suspended above her, far more than she ever saw in London, it reminded her of Hogwarts. Selene realised she was probably only a few hours walk away. 

    She was barely outside for two minutes, not even halfway to the gatehouse, which looked more and more like a miniature castle the closer she got, when several things happened at once.

    Selene saw shadowy movement in the light from the gatehouse window. Her foot slipped on the wet rocks, tripping her over so she had to catch herself on her hands, some of the little aggregate pieces digging into her palms as she pushed herself up. A cacophony of yells filled the air, from somewhere in the forest just beyond the gatehouse. Over all the noise, sharp barking and howls cut through Selene's ears as she stood, barely registering everything that was going on.

    What she did register though were two luminous yellow eyes hurtling towards her and the great beast they belonged to, snarling and snapping it's teeth.

    Selene didn't have time to scream. She turned and ran, not daring to look back. She forced herself forward with every step, half expecting to be knocked down at any moment as the animal would surely outrun her.

    She could still hear the spitting growls when she burst through the huge doors, spinning round and throwing herself against them, her arms flat out as though she'd be able to barricade the doors.

    Selene dragged the air back into her burning lungs. Her heart must have beat a hundred times in the ten seconds she rested against the door. She was spent, almost waiting for the beast to burst through and eat her. She grasped at her trousers, pulling out her wand to lock the door.

    The silence was ringing in the air as her brain struggled to gain control of all her senses again. Certainly, if her brain had been working, she would have heard her own laboured breathing and she would have seen the fireplaces all go out.

     Selene crept round on her hands and knees to the window.

    Wolves, grey, monstrous and enormous, were prowling outside the front of the house. One have them must have been the beast that chased her. Perhaps it had just looked black before with the lack of light. She hadn't exactly waited to get a good look at it before running.

    Selene stared out, her heart still thundering after her sprint. A pair of amber eyes flashed in her direction, making eye contact for less than a second before Selene ducked down again.

    Howling rang through the air, getting louder and louder as the chorus grew with every additional wolf. These were not normal wolves. That wolf had looked right through the window at her. It saw her.

    She poked her head back up. Illuminated by the moon, the wolves all had their heads thrown back to howl. Seeing them there in the moonlight, Selene's brain finally caught up. Werewolves.

Five wolves. Or maybe six. The dark shapes further from the main house were difficult to make out. They seemed to be drawing in slowly towards the wolf she had made eye contact with. They did not rush.

    The door slammed and rattled against its hinges. Selene shrieked and crawled backwards away from the door, holding out her wand with a shaking arm, leaning back on her other hand. Anticipating the doors falling into the hall to admit the wolfpack, Selene braced herself.

    Something cold touched her fingers.

    Selene snatched her hand up with a cry, and swung her wand arm around, ready to blast whatever it was into next Sunday. She was met with a wet, squeaking brown rat. She nearly laughed. It was a muddy brown sort of colour with very bright and alert little black eyes. It looked like her old rat Treacle. 

    Her father had bought her Treacle when she was ten and obviously getting a bit too desperate for attention. After that, Treacle had been her constant companion for seven years before she died during their sixth year. Selene had buried her near the Herbology greenhouses next to the carrot patch. Carrots were her favourite.

    "Hi, little beastie," She cooed at it with a weak voice, the words cracking as she fought the shock in her system. "Sorry, I didn't mean to frighten you. It's very scary out there tonight, isn't it." It squeaked back at her. Selene picked it up and checked its underside. "You're a brave little guy. Dont worry, I won't put you outside again." She ran the back of her fingers over his fur gently. "I'll look after you. We'll be alright." 

    Tears began to spring at the corner of her eyes as she fought to control her growing fear. Another of the wolves had reached the window and pawed at the glass. The thick claws screeching against the glass. It held tough for now, but for how long?

    The rat seemed to make her feel more in control again. She popped him in her inner robe pocket, the warm little bundle already calming her heart down a bit.

    Selene crossed over to the fireplace and grabbed a fistful of floo powder, stepping in and throwing it down. Nothing happened. She tried again. Nothing. 

    If she had been alone, she might have panicked. Instead, Selene pulled open the robe pocket and peeked at the rat. His little eyes met hers, and she found her bravery again.

    Slam. She flinched, eyes darting back up to the door.

    Those wolves were still trying to get into the house. Maybe they could smell her through the door? Selene scrambled, stumbling in her rush to get upstairs, trying to get as far away from the wolves as possible. Selene locked herself into the biggest bedroom at the far end of the hall. She levitated all the furniture in the room and barricaded the door.

    She left a single wardrobe in its original place, choosing instead to curl into the bottom of it and close the door. 

    Selene pulled the rat back out and continued to pat him shakily in the pitch blackness, it's little squeaks keeping her from spiralling. She clung the rat to her chest, leaning her cheek against him like he was Treacle again. Treacle had loved hugs.

    "We'll be okay. Caliban will find us, and we'll be okay."

    She repeated it like a mantra until she finally fell asleep hours later. 

Chapter Text

Ardverikie Estate - 2 January 1980

Somehow, they were already running late. And that somehow was named Sirius Black. He had indulged so heavily on Hogmany that he had actually disappeared for multiple hours and turned up again wearing a full set of Wizengamot robes and hat. He still could not answer how he had got them. It was a national security concern, really.

    If that was not enough, Remus had returned from Selene’s the day before to find an impromptu New Year's Day party in full swing with Sirius at the helm.

    He was certainly paying for it today.

    His usually perfectly tousled hair was straggly and bushy at the same time. He looked more like James than ever. He grumbled as the four men walked in the crisp Highland air. It had been about three hours of hiking so far, and they'd set off at eight, an hour later than intended. They had all donned muggle jeans and jumpers for the walk, far easier to move about in.

    "Where is this place anyway? Don't they live anywhere near a floo?"

    "Ardverikie Estate, south Loch Laggan," parroted Remus, squinting a little to read the note Dumbledore had given him, ripped from the end of a longer letter. "The whole place is protected against apparation. Not sure about the floo, but it doesn't say anything about that here." He passed the note around the others.

    "Laggan Loch," James pondered, "I wonder if there's a McLaggen among them."

    "Must be," said Sirius, "Seems a weird sort of thing to set up if you don't personally need it."

     "I agree," said Remus. "Dumbledore said he had been assured the estate is fully guarded against escape. There haven't been any muggle or wizarding accidents reported in the area for decades, so whoever it is, they're careful."

    "And we're here in case it's a trap?" Asked Peter.

    "Just some friendly backup and reassurance that someone's watching me in case I get loose."

    "We won't let that happen." James was resolute.

    They reached a fork in the track road they were on. Off to the right was a narrower road, the far end blocked by a large wrought iron gate. At either side stood a pair of statues, one a lion rampant and the other a stag with a crown around its neck.

    "This is the one," said Remus, folding up the map. "You had all better change now before we cross the threshold. There's probably wards in place, but I doubt they'd have thought to include animagi."

    "Good luck, mate. Remember we're right behind you." James gave Remus a quick one-armed hug and pat on the back before he stepped back and transformed into an imperial stag, seven points on each antler. Remus clapped his shoulder.

    "This place suits you, Prongs." He really did fit into the heathered fields behind them and the dense woodland that lined the forked road, obscuring the estate even further from the muggle world.

    Remus turned around to see Sirius had already changed into the large black deerhound. "Nice to see you, Padfoot." A little rat scurried up Padfoot's front leg and nestled into the dip between his shoulder blades, tiny hands clinging on. "You too, Wormtail. Are we ready?" 

    The stag bowed its great head as the shaggy dog wagged his tail excitedly. Remus laughed. He felt like a schoolboy again, surrounded by his best friends and off on another adventure. He was grinning so broadly his cheeks were sore. 

    "Okay, off we go."

    The animals walked alongside him up the road until they reached the gate. Prongs walked up to the stag statues and grazed it lightly with his antlers. Clearly desperate to make some sort of joke about the crown.

    "It's round his neck, Prongs. Means he's a servant to the crown, not a king."

    If a dog could laugh, the hacking bark that Padfoot let out was definitely a laugh. Remus looked down at his little instruction sheet again. Then, folding it away, he approached the other guardian statue. The lion rampant was cast in a silent roar. Remus touched the raised paw with his wand and repeated the Latin phrase he had been given, likely family words. The silent roar was made real, echoing in the valley behind them. Remus nearly ducked. The gate in front of them opened in a swift frictionless glide.

    "Easy. I'll stick to the path, and you lot disperse through the woods out of sight until we can see the house. I'll signal if I need you."

    The stag and dog took off into the still dark forest. Remus wondered if the woods too were enchanted. The trees were mostly evergreen pines, but there were definitely a few trees bolstering the thick canopy that shouldn't be green this time of year. He set off along the road.

--

After ten minutes, the trees opened up into the main estate. It was incredible. The house, or castle more like, looked like the perfect result of a combining spell blending a mansion and Hogwarts. Distinctly a manor house but very much the character of a castle. And not even one hundred metres from where he stood was another miniature castle, from which a man exited.

    He had the look of a McLaggen. Thick dark golden blond waves set over a ruddy cheeked face with an air of the upper class. Remus could see the tendrils of scarring emerging from his collar and on his throat. Remus had always been thankful his own bite was easily hidden. The man was perhaps in his late thirties, but it was hard to tell with werewolves, he was probably younger than he looked. Remus had begun to see signs of ageing, even on his young face, that easily made him look mid-twenties instead of nineteen.

    "Good Morning, glad you found the place." The man held out a firm hand. He was about Remus' height and well built. "I'm Cal."

    "Remus." Remus took his hand. 

    "Remus?" Cal repeated, giving him an appraising look. "Not a very common name that."

    "No, I suppose not. I've never met another one anyway."

    Neither man had dropped the handshake.

    "This is a beautiful location," Remus turned to the estate that sat right on the edge of the Loch.

    "Apologies, you have had to use the side path today. We've had a bit of access trouble the past couple of weeks. All due to be sorted soon. But we're in the gatehouse today. I'll introduce you to everyone, and then you can see the grounds."

    "Access trouble?" Remus began to worry.

    "Nothing major, I'll explain inside. You can invite your three friends to join us."

    Remus baulked for just a second but recovered quickly. No point trying to lie. He whistled a few notes, the previously agreed code for 'you've been made but it's not a fight'.

    James, Sirius, and Peter walked out. 

 "No harm done," said Cal, shaking each of their hands in turn, "we have wards just in case any innocent surprise guests find themselves amonst us. The instruction to come alone was for your own safety. But I will have to ask the three of you to keep your wands away while you are here. We don't carry wands."

    James and Sirius shared a look at this. 

    "Only if you choose to stay, of course."

    Cal turned towards the gatehouse, arm out to lead the way. Remus looked at his friends. Silently, the four of them came to the conclusion that they would stay.

    The gatehouse door led right into a sitting room and kitchen area. The furniture and supplies were pretty basic, enamel camping mugs and plates instead of ceramic. Furniture that would have fit in better at Remus' place over a grand country estate. It was still a decent size, three sofas, and three matching armchairs all sat comfortably next to a woodburning stove. A stovetop kettle whistled over the hob.

    There were four men, all probably late twenties to late thirties. "Everyone, this is Remus and..." Cal trailed off.

    "James," said James, rasing a hand in quick hello, "that's Peter, and then Sirius."

    A stocky man with a thick mustache and dark brown scruff dotted with copper scoffed. "Don't think I'll ever get used to half of you having normal names and the rest of you just throwing Scrabble tiles in the air and hoping for the best."

    Cal laughed heartily. Sirius looked amused more than offended and gave a short laugh as well. "You'll have to excuse Grant. He's been here five years but still isn't used to the wizarding world."

    "He's a muggle?" Asked Peter, amazed. "I didn't think that was possible. I thought muggles always died in werewolf attacks."

    "Usually we do," replied Grant.

    "Working theory is that there must be a Squib somewhere in his family tree," said Cal, "giving him just enough magical blood to survive it."

    "Enough to find this place as well, unlucky for me."

    "Grant's just being grumpy. He loves it here really. Anyway, we've also got Steve," a skinny man who was making the tea nodded his head, "Emeric," the oldest looking man who had been reading by the fire smiled, "and last but not least, Garrick."

    "We're usually better company. Three weeks on camping beds has made us all a little grumpy."

    "This is because of your access issues?" Remus probed.

    "Let's go for a walk first while it's still light, and we can save all that for after. There's plenty of sandwiches, but would one of you oblige and multiply out the flasks, we've only got five."

    "More walking? Great, just what I was hoping for." Sirius' grin was so forced it looked like it hurt.

--

The entire estate was beautiful, and they didn't even see half of it. There were the main grounds and gardens, miles of forest and even half a mountain encompassed by the boundary spell. 

     Cal had told them all about his father setting up the reserve after he had been attacked twelve years ago as a teenager and finding other wizards who were struggling to manage with the condition. It had become a refuge of sorts, completely cut off from the wizarding world that had spurned them. 

    It had been a slow and casual walk, but it had still taken them a good few hours. So long in fact, they had barely sat back down in the gatehouse before tucking in to some venison stew for an early dinner at three. Remus, James, Cal, and Grant sat round the ramshackle square table next to the sink while the rest sat across the living room furniture, bowls on their laps.

    Emeric was registered with the Ministry, as was Garrick, but Steve, Cal, and obviously Grant were not. 

    "So the Ministry is aware this place exists?" Remus asked.

    "No," Cal replied, "they know Emeric and Garrick are werewolves. But as you know, the Ministry doesn't really give a toss about what happens to us as long as we stay away from their families and don't get in their line of sight."

    It was true. More and more anti-werewolf legislation was passing each year. Remus had never been registered as a werewolf after his attack. His father had managed to fend off his attacker, and his mother had nursed him without the assistance of magical healers. 

    "But we all know it's only a matter of time before they start tracking us. This place won't be here forever."

    The residents of Arverikie shared a grim moment. 

    "You're lucky to have found your friends," Emeric told Remus, "it's not easy to do when you are forced to exist in this, however beautiful it may be, exile from society. It is rare for a werewolf to have friendships outside of our kind."

    It was Remus and his friends' turn to share their own understanding looks. 

    "You do have a lot of friends." Cal started, speaking more slowly now, more intentionally. "In fact, I believe you know my sister."

    Sirius choked back a snort. No doubt remembering the many, many occasions he had been accused of being too familiar with a sister.

    "You must have me mixed up with someone else."

    "Like I said earlier, very unusal name, Remus. I've heard her say your name."

    "There must be some mistake, I don't know any McLaggen's closely at all."

    Cal laughed at this. "The mistake is mine, I failed to introduce myself properly."

    He stood. James, Sirius, and Remus stood too. Not sure how to read such a sudden shift in tone. But Cal just held his hand out to Remus again. "Caliban Selwyn, Cal is a nickname. My mother was a McLaggen, this house was hers."

    Remus was glad of Caliban's firm grip, otherwise he would have surely stumbled backwards in shock. Blood rushed through his ears.

    "Caliban?" He repeated dumbly. Selene's brother was alive? And he was a werewolf? Did Selene know? Did she accept her brother? Did this mean she would accept Remus after all? If he had shared his secret with her back at Hogwarts, would she have cared, understood? 

    "So your parents faked your death?" James asked as Remus continued to pull himself together. Caliban turned to him and nodded.

    "They were very thorough. My father's position at the ministry, no doubt helped. The wizard who registered my death was promoted into magical cooperation just a few months later. Payment for ignoring a few procedural spells and checks. Disguised as too emotionally traumatic for a grieving, well-esteemed family, I'm sure. My father was an excellent politician."

    "Does Selene know?" Remus finally found his voice, but his eyes were fixed on the back of the chair he held on to for support.

    "Ah," Cal's smile thinned. "No. Does she know what you are?" He asked in return.

    "No," Remus admitted. "I was planning on telling her this week, actually." He could tell Caliban didn't believe him from his squinted, inspecting eyes.

    "She doesn't know a thing. My parents refused to let me near her, disgusted as they were with what I was, at least to begin with. They assumed I would inflict her with this somehow. Eventually, I think they lived with the secret for so long that they didn't see the need to tell her at all. It was easier if I was dead to everybody. I begged, year after year, for them to tell her. First, it was once she was safely at Hogwarts, I could write. Then that was too risky, but once she had sat her O.W.Ls, then she would be mature enough. Then, it was once she was of age. I was given photos, brief updates, and nothing more. Once she had left Hogwarts, I got nothing else. I assume she has parted ways with my father. He refuses to speak of her."

    Remus suddenly remembered, "Cal, I'm not sure if you are aware, but your father passed away a couple of weeks ago."

    "I know. That ties in to our little access problem I spoke of earlier. My father controlled much of the magic." Caliban looked at the clock on the wall, "but that can wait. We've got about half an hour before sunset."

    It had only been two years, but already Remus had forgotten just how short the winter days were this far north. "So there is no protection from us?"

    "There is, the estate has had every conceivable measure, including the ancient protections, known to wizards placed upon the boundary, but on the opposite side. Effectively trapping us in. We can't leave the estate, even in human form. We are bound to it."

    "Woah, woah," Sirius interrupted, pointing a firm hand at Cal, "have you trapped Remus in here? We came here in good faith."

    James' grip on his chair tightened at this, too. Remus could see miniscule movements in his pinky finger, reaching subconsciously for his wand. But, it seemed as though James was waiting for Caliban's answer before taking action.

    "Relax. Remus can leave when he is human form. The measures that keep us here are bound by a magical contract that we each signed in order to remain here." Garrick replied. "We were each, or our parents were, given a choice. If we want to stay here then we remain here. To protect the secret. For most of us the choice is improsonment here or impovrishment and revulsion in the wizarding world. Cal's father has provided to our every need here."

 "So your friend is safe," Caliban added, talking to James rather than Sirius. "But the three of you are not, not here. The house shares some of the same protections, but the gatehouse does not. During the full moon, none of us can get into the house." He sat back down again, continuing with his plate of stew, and the rest followed.

    "So why are we in the gatehouse now?" Peter asked.

    "The same contract that keeps us within the boundaries, protects the house. The contract was owned first by my mother, and then held in trust by my father before passing on to Selene. My mother's will was read privately, so no one knows it was passed on. But without Selene's signature on it, we cannot access the house, even outwith the confines of the full moon. For the past two weeks, we have been trapped between the two enchantments. That is how I learned of my father's death. When it happened, we were forced from the property."

    "But we can get into the house tonight?" Peter asked, shifting his feet nervously. Remus was fifty fifty on whether Peter was an incredible actor or had genuinely forgotten they would be transforming.

    "Indeed you can." Grant continued to shovel down venison. "Going to be a long night, too. I'd get a good sleep if I were you. But if I smell you anywhere near my bed, I'll single-handedly break that enchantment and bite you myself."

    Peter gave a squeaky laugh, which Grant did not return.

    The sun had set, a blue-grey dusk setting in. Steve and Emeric lit some candles around the gatehouse, giving at least a small amount of light for them to sort their plans for the evening. Everyone else had gone outside for some fresh air before they changed. 

    "Apologies for the long walk earlier," Cal started, washing the stack of plates in the sink as Remus dried. "We haven't had time to discuss why I wrote to Dumbledore. We can talk more tomorrow." 

    "Sounds good." Remus nodded.

    All of a sudden, the ceiling lights and sconces flamed into life. Caliban cracked a wide grin, shaking the soapy water from his hands and drying them on his trousers. He rushed over to the window facing the house, hands on the ledge like an eager dog. Remus could see from where he stood that the house too had wakened with light.

    "We'll be able to talk in the house. Selene has found us at last. I expected her to find me sooner."

    "Selene's here?" Remus nearly dropped the plate he was drying. Setting it aside quickly with a clatter to join Caliban at the window. Remus glanced at his watch. Though it was only late afternoon, they only had minutes before the sun would set completely. The transformation site near the edge of the Loch that Caliban had showed them was not far from the house, and they would have to pass the house to get there.

    "She is," Caliban was joyful. "Let's hope she doesn't indulge in one of her midnight walks again." He laughed at this and then continued with a matter of fact tone, "We don't have time to get there and explain everything. If she doesn't leave the house before the sun sets, she'll stay til morning." 

    Remus could not believe how calm Caliban was about this. Selene had just walked unknowingly into probably the most dangerous place to be in all of the country tonight.

    Caliban and Remus went out to the group, and they were all looking at the house, too. Remus ran to James, grabbing his arms frantically. "Selene is here. You have to stop her from leaving the house tonight." His secret would probably be blown the minute Selene saw all of his friends in the house but there was no other option.

    "Just a moment," Caliban had overheard them. "I was happy to let you stay before, despite Dumbledore promising to send just one, but the three of you will need to stay out of the house now. You can use your wands to barricade the doors of the gatehouse, or you can get to the edge of the grounds and come back tomorrow. Selene will want to know why you're here, and I won't allow anyone else to tell her while I'm unable to. She's a big girl, she'll be fine."

    Remus could see the calculations going through James' mind. The same calculation Remus was ripping through. The Order, the mission, Caliban's goodwill, all against the possibility Selene could be seriously injured, killed, or bitten.

    "We'll barricade the gatehouse." James decided. Remus nodded at James, who was already pulling out his wand. Caliban had not mentioned the option of transformation, so whatever wards were in place, they recognised his friends as wizards, not animagi. They still had that secret.

 "We had better get going, Remus. There's another site we can go to. It's in the forest, so will hurt a bit more, but we're a bit further from the house."

    Remus followed the other werewolves into the woodland. Sharing one last, desperate look with his friends before he lost sight of them. They would protect her, like they had always protected him.

    As they reached the clearing, Remus swore he could smell a trace of Selene's hair in the wind. It was fresh and sweet, and cut through the earthy smell of the woods. Then there was the singular sound of Sirius' bark, barely audible even to Remus' heightened senses. They were strongest this close to the full moon. His nerves were already alight, his skin itching and burning.

    Then, far away in the distance, a terrified scream.

    Then came pain. Blinding, searing, world ending pain.

Chapter Text

Ardverikie Estate - 3rd January 1980

Selene woke with a start, banging her head and elbows off the sides of her makeshift wardrobe bunker. Cursing, she rubbed the back of her head, blinking herself awake. Her limbs were stiff and cramped. She listened quietly for a few moments and then kicked the wardrobe doors open before crawling out and into the room.

    The bedroom was just as she left it. The furniture piled by the door hadn't moved an inch. Selene, wand still gripped in her hand from before she fell asleep, cast a spell to put it all right again. 

    Before unlocking the door, however, she peered gingerly out of the window, looking for any sign that those wolves were still prowling about. All she saw was a beautiful winter's morning. The sky was a vivacious red, strips of irradiant sun breaking through the thin clouds, illuminating the Loch below her. 

    There were unmistakable animal tracks in the snow, deeper where they had circled the house, but eventually tapered off and into the woods. Worryingly, the tracks were heaviest just below the bedroom window, like the wolves had known exactly where she was all night.

    At any rate, Selene reasoned that those tracks could only mean they had not managed to break into the house and that she was safe to leave the room. She unlocked the door with her wand and returned to the entrance.

    Selene had already grabbed a fistful of floo powder to try the fireplace again before letting it glide through her fingers back into the pot. It was far less intimidating to see the place in the day, and Caliban would surely return soon. So, instead, she decided to wait.

    There was a werewolf pack living in this house, one of them must be Caliban. The werewolf attack wasn't faked, just the death. She heard voices outside. Selene rushed to the wall next to the window, keeping her back close to it as she turned slowly around the edge of the frame to look out. Five men, maybe her age, maybe older, were heading towards the gatehouse door.

    They were all dressed like muggles and inappropriately for the cold. Just jeans and jumpers, no coats. They didn't seem dangerous, but Selene tightened her grip on her wand all the same. Two of them were turned to face the house, and Selene made a split-second decision. 

    She hauled the door open once more. It gave way more easily than she expected after its sturdy service the night before.

    Hesitation and sense left her as she ran towards the gatehouse, borrowed robes billowing behind her. As soon as she saw the familiar mop of dusky blond waves, she yelled out.

    "Caliban? Caliban!"

    He turned, and she was close enough now to see his easy smile and round cheeks, still full even though he was a man and no longer her teenage brother. A scar ran down the side of his throat, old and dark. Her cheeks were reddening too with the cold as the winter air chilled the tears streaking down her face.

    "Silly!" He called, and he ran to her too. They collided with a thud, laughing with each other as they hugged and then stood apart, examining aged faces.

    "I can't believe it, I can't believe it." Selene kept repeating. Brushing the hair out of his face to look at him properly.

    "Let's get you a cup of tea," Caliban said calmly, putting an arm around her shoulder and leading her towards the gatehouse. "I'll explain everything and introduce you to everyone."

    Caliban rapped the door hard, "Lady coming in, make sure you're decent, and anyone who doesn't want to be seen, hide now." He chuckled at his joke before pressing inside.

--

Selene sat close to the little woodburner, tea in hand. Caliban sat next to her, and three men stayed in the kitchen area. One decided to go for a walk outside. It was a nice gesture, but the gatehouse was so small that they would hear every word even if whispered. Sound would even carry from the upstairs, the little staircase led directly into the sitting area. A creaky floorboard told Selene at least one of the men had opted to remain upstairs.

    "So you found me," Caliban said. 

    "Why did no one tell me? I wouldn't have found you at all if I hadn't put on this watch."

    "So dad didn't tell you before he died?"

    "No, he wasn't conscious." Caliban rubbed his temple and eyes. He looked exhausted. "I got here last night," Selene continued. "But when I tried to look for you outside, the wolves stopped me from leaving, and the floo closed itself." She looked at the men in the room and became aware of the fact that 'the wolves' that had tried very hard to attack her, were actually 'these men', and she was in a tiny room full of werewolves. She curled in on herself a little more. "You, you are..." she trailed off and then looked around at the other men, all as tired looking as Caliban. "You are all..." She couldn't finish the sentence.

    "We all are." Answered Caliban.

    The floorboards upstairs creaked louder, like they were trying to stretch themselves out and reach her. The air felt thick and heavy all of a sudden. Her heart hammered at her chest. She couldn't draw it into her lungs quickly enough, and when she did, it sat there like a dead weight, impossible to push out again. Every physical part of her body screamed fear, but mentally she felt nothing. She tried to force her breath out, but all that would come were shallow little gasps that did nothing to help her. Selene stood abruptly, "I need to get some fresh air."

    "I'll join you," Caliban said, motioning to the other men, "but the boys would really appreciate it if you could let us into the house again. It's yours now, so we've been sleeping upstairs since dad died."

    "How?" She managed to push out.

    "There's a desk in the study. That ring you've got will open the top middle drawer. Inside is the title deed and a contract. You just need to sign it, then roll it up again with wax using the ring as a seal."

--

Selene and Caliban followed the snow-worn tracks around the estate until they reached the house again as he explained everything to her. From the moment he was bitten, to being hidden away and kept here, and the arrival of the other werewolves. 

    "The house has always been in your name. It was just held in trust. You would have got it on your twenty fifth birthday regardless."

    "I probably wouldn't have heard a word about you until then, would I?"

    "Probably not, I begged for years to write to you. I can't tell you how good it is to see you again, Selene. I wasn't sure if I ever would. Dad thought you wouldn't be able to cope with what I am. That you'd be too afraid to see me anyway so there was no point telling you."

    "After dad died, I thought I was alone."

    "Not while I'm here. I saw you at the funeral, you know. Since he died, I've been able to get to the Selwyn properties with the help of Mipps, so it didn't matter not being able to get to the floo. I took his owl, I wrote so many letters to you but couldn't send any of them. I didn't know what to say after all this time."

    Even Mipps had known. Binky must have too. Selene was clearly the only one not let in on the secret.

    "It was you in the trees." She guessed, "I thought I imagined it. That maybe you were someone else. Why didn't you come out? Ypu could have come to the flat. Do you know how he died?" 

    "It didn't seem like the right time. I think I might know why he died."

    "Why?"

    "He was trying to find a cure for this. He has been for years. He pays for researchers, hunts down ancient texts, that sort of thing. I turn thirty soon and gain access to my trust, so he knew he'd either have to tell the world about me or disinherit me completely and give it all to Uncle Sal."

    "Sal? Does he know about you?"

    "I wrote to him yesterday morning, inviting him to visit. If he had anything to do with what happened to dad, he won't be breathing much longer."

    "He's desperate to get into the study in Cambridge. There's something in there he wants."

    Caliban didn't look surprised. "You know what it is." Selene said, "That's why you visited the estate when we were all at the funeral, to spy on Sal. You set the lock to keep Sal out."

     "I don't know what Sal is after but there are things in there I didn't want him to get his hands on. The minute we were expelled from the house, I set the lock. It's something immeasurably powerful that father found that could get us close to a cure. But I can't retrieve it, so I just kept it safe. Listen, there's a lot more I need to tell you, but we should head back inside. It concerns everyone. I've invited some people who can help us with Sal."

--

The rest of them were gathered in one of the sitting rooms. Despite how run down they all looked, it seemed none of them had decided to sleep it off. Selene was still wary around them and stuck to the edges of the room, pretending to browse the many books that lined the walls. She felt their eyes stalking her through the room, analysing her every move and reaction. She was tempted to ask what they had learned. She felt so far from her own emotions that it would have been a relief to be told how she felt.

    Caliban returned, carrying a tray stacked with biscuits and tarts. Behind him, with another tray, was none other than Remus Lupin, followed closely by James Potter and Sirius Black. He seemed relieved, rather than surprised, to see her. Recently, he had made a habit of turning up where she least expected. 

"Selene, I..."

   She didn't let him finish. "This is your work trip? You three are secretly aurors? Or are you directly under Crouch? Or Scrimgeour? You knew Caliban was alive?" She wasn't sure which answer she was hoping for. She felt oddly betrayed.

"None of the above, little sister. They're not Aurors. They work for Albus Dumbledore."

"Professor Dumbledore?"

"They're going to take down the Dark Lord, aren't you boys?" There was an unmistakebale note of derision in Caliban's voice. Sirius Black certainly picked it up. His eye was twitching. "Although, your numbers are already down from yesterday. Shouldn't there be four of you?"

"Peter decided to leave." James replied immediately, but he looked worried.

"Any of you remember eating somebody last night?" Caliban lazily asked his friends. They all scoffed. Selene held in a squeak, but somebody else didn't.

The little lump in Selene's pocket was squeaking and squirming. She had forgotten all about him. Caliban and the rest of the werewolves all turned immediately to Selene. Remus stared too, but he hadn't taken his eyes off her since he entered the room.

    "Sorry, " said Selene, both to the room and to her inside pocket once she had opened her robes again. She scooped up the little rat and held him in her palm. "You've had a good long sleep, haven't you?" She gave him a few strokes down his back with her thumb before kissing the top of his head. "I found him last night, or rather he found me and kept me company." Selene put him back in her pocket. "I might keep him."

    James Potter and Sirius Black both had the look of impish guilt, trying to contain laughter. James' eyes were even watering. "Sorry," Selene said again to her brother. "What's Dumbledore got to do with this?"

    "Throughout my time here, father always ensured I was kept up to date on the wizarding world, ready for the day he could reintroduce me to wizarding society." Caliban pointed to several stacks of Daily Prophet newspapers piled high in the corner. "And, with the copious amount of free time available to me, I poured over every word I was given. I began to notice some patterns, following the information war between the Minitry of Magic, Albus Dumbledore, and the forces of the Dark Lord. I would talk about it with my father. About what it would mean for us here at the house." He looked around at his pack and then back to Remus before adding, "You know, my father has never really been a fan of the Dark Lord."

    Selene noticed Remus' and his friends' eyebrows raise at this. 

    "You don't believe me." Caliban stated, unsurprised. "He put on a good show in public, stayed friends with all the right people, but he was never fully sold on the Dark Lord's final goal of Wizarding rule over muggles. I'm not going to pretend he was some sort of muggle loving nut. He wasn't. But he deeply believed in the statute of secrecy and how it aided international cooperation between magical peoples. He saw the Dark Lord as a threat to that cooperation. He was a true department man, after all. Every so often, he would intervene in a private manner if he felt that the international community might disapprove. Selene, did you know he covered up your clumsy effort at hiding the Junior Minister, Alex Kerr and her little sister? Nearly cost him his cover."

    "Joanne?" Selene stuttered. She hadn't heard that name in over a year. She had been so careful, only used money she had paid into the account and no more. "How? It was my money, I didn't overdraw any gold."

    "Any transactions over a certain value are alerted to the head of the family, Selene." Caliban used the same tone with her that her father had always used to scold her. "And changing that much gold into muggle money? It got straight back to him through contacts at the ministry and probably a few other people as well."

    "I thought they couldn't trace muggle money?" James asked.

    "Joanne, Alex. Are they okay?" Selene desperately asked her brother, interrupting James.

    "As far as I'm aware," Caliban answered. "Father found them at that awful dilapidated hut you bought with the money, and smuggled them out the country. So I assume unless they're as careless as you are, they're fine."

    Selene felt relief for the first time in a year. The cottage in Yorkshire was all she could afford at the time and far away from prying eyes. She thought it had been a good choice.

    "What was I going to do? Let them die? Joanne told me her sister was getting threats every time she was promoted at the Ministry. They started to get serious. It was just supposed to be a temporary place to hide. When I tried to visit, the place was abandoned. I hoped they'd got out on their own. That was the plan." Selene said defensively, not wanting Caliban to think she was some silly little girl.

    "Another few days and they'd probably both have been killed. And you along with them if dad hadn't stepped in. It was stupid, Selene."

    "That was very brave of you," Remus said to Selene. It helped temper the criticism from Caliban and she smiled at him despite the confused feelings for and about him battling inside her.

    "Your father was smuggling muggleborns abroad?" Sirius asked.

    "Not as a regular thing, I believe it was only a few times at most."

    "He never told me." Selene said numbly. She had misjudged her own father. It seemed unreal that Sal, who had never said a bad word to her before, should be a death eater yet her neglectful and cold father could be a saviour.

    "Why would he?" Caliban rolled his eyes. Selene felt more and more like a child being put in her place. Caliban didn't share any similarities in looks with her father but the rebuke felt startingly familiar. She noticed Remus bristle with frustration whenever Caliban spoke to her.

    "We're getting off topic," Grant interjected.

    "Yes, yes, sorry, everyone." Caliban's easy smile was back. "My father's death has made things more urgent, I suppose. Soon, it will be discovered my death was faked when they manage to crack the enchantments father placed on his will. This estate is safe, as it's held by Selene, so at least they won't discover the rest of the boys."

    "Unless she turns us in." Emeric said.

    "I...I wouldn't." Selene found it hard not to be offended at this. Emeric gave her an apologetic look but shrugged all the same.

    "I imagine, the moment I return, the Dark Lord will want it confirmed that I am on side. Uncle Sal is devoted, after all. Dad got away with providing information now again and was protected by the usefulness his position. I doubt Sal will see me as being quite as useful." Selene's stomach turned to lead. Caliban was right, of course. He would have to join or be killed. Sal would give up everything if it meant earning the Dark Lord's favour. And what did that mean for her? She would have to stay, she couldn't leave him now. She just got him back. Her escape plans, so newly formed and so close to being enacted were now in tatters.

    "You don't have to be," Remus interjected, "Dumbledore can keep you safe if we need to."

    Caliban gave Remus a questioning smile. "I didn't write to Dumbledore for protection. I am giving him the opportunity to state his case."

    "State his case?" Sirius gritted out.

    "The end result of this war that's being fought. What do you think happens next? Wizarding kind will just forget it happened and all move on in tolerance and co-operation?" He laughed at the very notion of it.

    "Look you condescending prick," Sirius pointed a finger at Caliban, "we're fighting to take down or lock up every single one of the servile little worms he calls followers and kill the man himself if we get the chance. The end result is every death eater blasted off the face of this earth."

    "Very noble. But to me, it doesn't really stop there. To me, that means more of the same. If the Dark Lord dies, me and my brothers will, more likely than not, remain pariahs. There has never been a single Ministry admisitration that has had even a remote interest in improving the lives of werewolves. Hell, we're lucky we aren't still kill on sight for Aurors. I've been beginning to wonder if we don't first need some radical societal readjustment. I'm not saying the Dark Lord can provide that, but I'm not sure Dumbledore can either. My father and I argued about it often."

    "It's getting there." Said Remus, "It's better than it was when you were bitten." Remus' work with magical creatures must have brought him into contact with werewolves, Selene reasoned. His father surely, in consulting the ministry on policy, was probably an expert on werewolf rights.

    "Do you know any werewolves who are registered and still in society?" Caliban asked, stretching out the 'you' in an accusatory tone. He picked up a mince pie and bit into it, throwing the rest into the fire, rubbing the icing sugar from his hands. "Know anyone who would be happy to have a werewolf boss? Or invite a werewolf around to their homes? Let someone in their family marry a werewolf? Would I let Selene, for example, anywhere near a werwolf if I wasn't one already? My own father kept my sister from me rather than take that risk. The honourable thing to do for any werewolf that cares about their family would be to stay well away." He strode over to Selene and gave her a mince pie. "Wizarding society hates us already. I don't see that changing. Maybe the Dark Lord would be willing to put us in control of our own lives, maybe even force them to respect us, you know they'll never accept us. In fact, now the house is open again, I think Selene should get as far away from me and any other werewolf as she possibly can. I hope she does." 

    "Dumbledore is changing things. Acceptance takes time. Joining You-Know-Who would make it worse. It would make us feared, not respected." Remus rebuked so vociferously he had to catch his breath afterwards. 

    Caliban smirked, catching Selene's eye a mouthing 'us' with his back to the room so no one else could see before turning back. Remus seemed to realise he had let something slip. He looked over desperately at Selene. His eyes roving her face for any hint of expression, but she was frozen.

    Us?

    Time slowed to a stop.

    Us.

    Selene was dumbstruck. Tiny black and white dots swam over her vision. It couldn't be true. Selene pieced together every tiny little scrap of memory she had preserved of Remus. She had only really got to know him in their fifth year. They had bonded over her dead mother and his sick one. Was that just a rouse?

    James Potter was holding Sirius back at the chest with a solid arm. Sirius looked murderously at Caliban.

    "You looked after your mother." Selene said numbly, "You were out of classes to look after your mother."

    "My mother is sick, I do help look after her. Some breaks were for that. Some were for this. It would have been too suspicious if I was only off once a month." Remus stepped forward, closer to her. He raised his arms as though about to place them on her shoulders to steady her but dropped them instead, refusing to touch her. He continued scanning her face, his breathing erratic.

    "You went to Hogwarts?" Caliban sounded surprised for the first time. "I wondered how you knew each other. How many years were you there as a werewolf?"

    "All Seven." He replied flatly, not even looking at Caliban.

    "My father told me it wasn’t possible."

    "Dumbledore made it happen." Said James, taking the lead as Remus worried over Selene. "He's a man of his word. He takes action on his convictions."

    She was present, but barely. Their voices registered, but their words were slow to understand. Her gaze was blank as she stared at a spot just behind Remus' shoulder. How had it been so easy to accept Caliban's condition but so hard to wrap her mind about Remus? Was it because she had gained Caliban back? She hadn't lost Remus, had she? He had every reason not to tell her. She had no right to any of his secrets.

    She met his eyes and tried to convey what her mind could not. Logically, Selene could tell she was in shock and could do nothing about it. She could barely move. She searched in those green eyes for any sign of a monster and found nothing. He was Remus. He had always been Remus. Every moment they had known each other he had been cursed, there was no difference. Her gaze softened and she smiled sadly at him before giving the slightest nod. The relief on his face was palpable. 

    "Dumbledore kept Remus' secret, brought him into the school and ensured he had a safe transformation every full moon. He made sure Remus had a normal education. He was treated no differently to any other student."

    Steve and Garrick both shared tearful looks. "I never got that chance," Steve's voice cracked, "but I can't tell you how glad I am that you got to. Truly." Garrick nodded fervently.

    "It's a good start, Mr. Potter." Caliban admitted.

    "Today was just an introduction," Remus sounded every bit the diplomat as he went round the room. "We'll let you and Selene catch up without us intruding, but we'll stay in touch." He continued to shake hands with Grant and then finally Caliban. "Can we use the floo, or do we need to leave past the boundary?"

    "The boundary, the floo is limited connection only to my father's properties."

    "You can floo to my place." Selene suggested, "and then apparate from there. You all look too exhausted to walk."

    "Thank you," Remus replied earnestly. 

    And with that they left.

Caliban pulled her into a bear hug as the floo went.

"I can't tell you how glad I am to have you back, Selene."

And so was she. She had a family, the only member of of her family who had ever given a shit about her was back. Caliban had been her hero growing up and had spent every summer looking after her, telling her about Hogwarts, showing off the magic he'd learned and putting up with her childish wants.

Having Caliban back was worth staying for.

Chapter Text

    Remus Lupin's Flat, London - 3rd January 1980

    "Why'd you pull us out?" Sirius groaned in frustration. "He was just coming around!"

    "It makes more sense to give him time with Selene. It's what he's wanted for years. Plus, you were two seconds away from jinxing him! It's not something that's finished in an afternoon, Sirius."

    "He would have deserved it. He goaded you on purpose in front of Selene. He's an arsehole."

    Remus had to agree. His first impressions of Cal had been positive. He was clearly intelligent and cared about the other werewolves on the estate. But Caliban had obviously enjoyed playing him. And his condescension towards Selene was hard to watch.

    "I had to tell her at some point, was planning to this week, actually."

    "What are you going to do now?" James asked, crouched over the counter, sending a quick patronus off to Lily to let her know they were back. He put a reassuring hand on Remus' shoulder.

    "I don't know, suppose it depends on how she takes it."

    "She was surprised, definitely, but it seemed like she came around aright." James said.

    She had. Remus had doubted it, doubted her. But he also knew she was still riding the emotions of having her brother back after more than a decade. He couldn't really be sure of how she felt until he could talk to her alone. He re-examined every twitch of her eyes and the rhythm of her breathing. She wasn't disgusted by him, but she did seem slightly afraid. Even if she didn't realise it herself.

    He hadn't really considered what he would do after he told her. The planning generally stopped there to avoid picturing the rejection that would surely come aftwards. And picturing that would make it impossible to do the right thing and tell her.

    "Yeah, maybe."

    "What are we going to do about Pete?" Sirius sniggered. "He got more action off Selene last night than you ever have, Moony." Remus groaned and rolled his eyes. Sirius continued to prod. "Snuggled right up in that pocket. Don't blame him. I bet it was nice and warm. Looked soft too, didn't they, I mean it, the pocket."

    Remus threw his single decorative cushion, a present from his mother, directly at Sirius' face as a distraction before hitting him with a tickling jinx. "Really funny, Sirius."

    "We'll have to hope she does bring him back, then plan a believable rat escape." James waited a few moments before deciding Sirius had had enough and muttered the counter-jinx. "You deserved that."

    "If she still wants to see me, I'll get him next time I'm in her flat. Otherwise, we know the floo address now, and we can break him out."

    "Of course she'll want to see you, she's an idiot if she doesn't."

    Remus didn't have as much faith as James. It was one hell of a thing to have sprung on you. Acceptance was very easy in the moment. It was a completely different thing to sit with, every fear and preconception given time to leech greedily at your mind and grow fat with reason. 

    "I better get the report to Dumbledore." Remus said. The best thing to do after all was to keep busy. Hard to do if you're chronically unemployed, but he had to keep his brain away from what Selene might be thinking. As tempted as he was to guess at her thoughts.

    Realistically, it had been the best time for her to find out. Now, the news was linked with the return of her brother, who she idolised, and not his violent death.

    Remus spent the next hour writing out everything he could remember from the night, alongside James and Sirius' notes and rough maps of the wider estate. The ground much easier to cover in their animal forms. There were no other outbuildings or entrances that they had found. Once the wording had been agreed between them, Remus dictated the note to his patronus and sent him away, burning the parchment they had used for good measure but keeping the maps which had been obscured. This was not something that would be relayed to the wider Order membership, not yet anyway.

    Without notice, Peter popped directly into the living room. The four men were all big enough to make it feel very crowded. Peter had just about landed on top of James, who fell backwards into Remus swearing loudly.

    "Pete!" Exclaimed Sirius, "Back already? We thought you'd given up this life in exchange for pethood."

    "Ha-ha, I thought you'd left me!"

    "We were actually just planning how to get you. How'd you get out?"

    "Selene decided to return back not long after you lot, said she had to go to work. Otherwise, there would be suspicion. She's going to go back when she can. Still seemed a bit out of it if you ask me. She conjured a little cage for me in her flat before she did actually go to work, or at least she flooed to the Ministry guest entrance. The bars were pretty wide on the cage, so I managed to get out. Before I left, though, I transfigured one of her teacups into a brown rat and left him in there. He's a bit dumb and I made him a little bit bigger than me so he won't get out of the cage. I don't think she'll notice the difference." Peter spoke with the speed of somebody who thought the words might run away from him if he didn't catch them and get them out fast enough.

    "You beautiful, beautiful man," James grabbed Peter, who was a good half a foot shorter by the back of the head and then kissed the top of his hair. "Genius!"

    "Why next week?" Asked Remus, who couldn't understand why siblings, so newly reunited, would wait so long.

    "I'm getting to that. I wasn't actually asleep in her pocket, I was only pretending!" His voice still had the high, squeaky quality it took on when he transformed for too long. Sirius nudged Remus with a hard elbow and raised eyebrows, which Remus ignored. "When Cal and Selene spoke this morning and after you left, he told her that he had invited their Uncle Sal to the estate as the chosen envoy of You-Know-Who. He said the werewolves currently known to be in his service were beneath their level or something like that. That they weren't in any position to negotiate so no point letting them in on their hideaway."

    As much as Remus found he disliked Caliban, he begrudgingly had to admit he was right. Which made his position even more frustrating. He knew werewolves were considered second-class to the Death Eaters and was still willing to treat with them.

    "Selene told him that she and Sal had had a bit of a falling out." Remus scoffed loudly, but James shushed him. "And that she'd prefer not to be there when he was. So Cal agreed but said he would write instead until Sal left because he didn't know how long he would choose to stay."

    "Wonder how that's going to go. You don't think Selwyn would kill his nephew, do you?" Remus asked, only really considering how Selene would cope.

    "That's not all, that's not all," piped up Peter with febrile excitement. "Caliban knows what is being stored in the Cambridge estate, well he says he's not sure exactly what it is, but his father is funding significant amounts of werewolf research in America and had told Cal before his last trip that he found something very powerful and whatever it is, might help with a cure!"

    It should have been incredible news, hope beyond hope that he'd never even dared dream before, but all Remus felt was the sudden urge to be sick. He ran to his bathroom, but nothing came up. His dry heaves turned into a sputtering cough before he slunk onto the freezing, chipped tiles. His mouth had turned slimy, so he sat there and spat into the toilet.

    He heard the front door creak open and some muffled voices in the living room. Not wanting to miss out, he hauled himself up. A quick swill of fresh water and some slapped onto his face brought him back. He shook himseslf off and went back through. Lily had arrived with a bag of bacon rolls, and as soon as he entered, she tossed one over to him. 

    "Do we think he's telling the truth?" James asked the room. Thankfully, the only thing Remus must have missed was Lily getting up to speed. He was glad he didn't need to hear it again.

    "I doubt it." Sirius crumpled up the tin foil wrapper and grabbed another roll.

    "Why lie to Selene, though? That was just between the two of them." James countered.

    "He told Selene he didn't know what it was," started Peter, "but it sounded to me like his voice changed. So I wouldn't assume it's the truth."

    "We'll need to write another report for Dumbledore."

    "I think this calls for more than just a report." James was already mumbling to himself, preparing what he was going to say before he could send off another messenger, he was the best at coming up with codes on the fly. "We should take Calbian at his word, at least for now. Remus, do you think you could set up another meeting this week? Just you this time. I think he'll be more open if there's less of us."

    Remus nodded, already writing up a note to Caliban asking to meet as his earliest conveniece. He could hardly say, 'I know you've got Death Eaters coming this evening, so anytime after that, please.' At least it gave Remus a bit of time to sit with the news and get his head straight so he didn't blow Peter's cover.

    "I think we'll need to meet with Gideon and Fabian as well, let them know what we know about Sebastian Selwyn and his trips abroad. They'll have questions."

    "I'll go." Sirius volunteered. "Been meaning to see them anyway. Pete, do you think you could go back in the cage, just for a little bit. It would be good to see if Caliban contacts Selene and what those letters say." 

    "We're not spying on Selene. It's Caliban we're interested in. She hasn't done anything wrong." Remus couldn’t believe it. 

    "If he knows what's in that house, we need to find out." James reasoned. 

    "He's not going to put that in a letter. He's not stupid. We've got no reason to put Selene under surveillance."

    "I agree with Remus, full time surveillance is a bit preemptive." Lily said, but her eyebrows were furrowed as she looked at him sadly. "But we do need to be careful around this."

    She pulled a folded up Prophet page from her bag. Remus had flashbacks to Snape doing the exact same thing those years ago in the library. It made him bristle. Lily flattened it out on the kitchen counter. It was pulled from the society gossip pages. Top left of the page was a photo of Selene with Rabastan Lestrange, taken yesterday. He was standing upsettingly close to her, hand in her hair and smiling near her ear. If Remus had started his bacon roll, he might have been tempted to try and throw up again. There was no story attached, just a caption about esteemed long time bachelor, Rabastan Lestrange being spotted getting close with recently bereaved Selene Selwyn. A snarky comment about the closeness of the pair and Rabastan's age closed the commentary.

    "Sal has made some sort of deal with Lestrange," Remus relayed flatly, "promised him Selene as a pureblood bride."

    "You knew about this?" James asked.

    "We spoke about it a couple days ago. She's obviously not planning to marry him. She was going to go along with it until she had a chance to get her own place and pay her own way."

    Lily nodded. "Well, it sounds like Sal's going to be in for a shock when he realises he doesn't control all that money."

    Remus hadn't even thought of that. If Caliban controlled the accounts, Selene was still rich. Remus tried not to acknowledge the uncomfortable squirming in his stomach. If he was being honest with himself, he might have admitted that Selene being cut off made him feel like less of a burden, like they could have been equals. 

    "Plus, from what you've said, it sounds like she's the only reason the Kerr's are alive."

    "Awful people still make exceptions for their friends." Sirius said.

    "Why are you so set against her?"

    "We're not," James raised his hands, speaking for himself and Sirius apparently, who scoffed. "I'm not. I promise. I actually really like Selene, and she did a brave thing. It is smart to keep our heads and be careful. It's been a long time since school. But if you trust her, I trust her."

    Remus couldn't argue with that. He wanted to. But James was right. 

    "We won't put Pete back in, yet. I won't pretend I'm not glad that we can if we need to." Sirius said before he headed out to meet the Prewett's. His final words on the subject.

    Peter nodded. "Besides, the cage is in her living room, Moony, not her bedroom. Plenty of privacy for the two of you. Plus, that 'flat'," Peter air quoted, "is more like a mansion anyway, the size of it. Wouldn't hear a thing." He grinned as James laughed. Lily rolled her eyes and rubbed Remus' arm in a reassuring way.

--

It was past two before Sirius returned. He had met the Prewett twins and relayed what they knew of Sebastian Selwyn's activity in America. They were intrigued and disappointed at the same time but agreed to look at if this ruled him out of the deaths or if the timing meant he could be both saviour and murderer.

    A gentle knock at the door had them all snapping their heads round. Sirius mock counted around the room to make sure one of them hadn't disappeared and returned. "We're all here." He whispered, "Who's that?"

    Remus answered, the knocker would be expecting him after all. It was Selene, still wearing the same robes as this morning and from her newspaper photo. "Hi," she said dazedly. "I, uh, went to work but got sent home, boss thought I looked peaky. I need to talk to you." She gazed past him to see James, Lily and Peter all crushed into the sofa and Sirius perching on the footstool. "But I can come back later."

    "No need," said Lily, extracting herself. "Hi, Selene. Glad to see you. James and I were just about to leave anyway for some lunch."

    "Come in, Selene." Remus opened the door wide for her to slip past. He was nervous around her now she knew his secret. He felt as though he were holding a giant hammer and she was made of glass. One wrong move shattering her instantly.

    "I can't stay long," Selene said, "you guys stay." She turned to him seriously, "we need to talk more. There's something important I need to tell you, but it'll take a while and I need to get it all straight in my head first. Can you meet me this week? I don''t know where yet. I ran into Rabastan Lestrange yesterday before I knew...what you... everything..." She gazed around the room. Remus knew that look, she probably hadn't even said the word werewolf since finding out.

    But she was here.

    She hadn't ran away like he had.

    She continued, "he saw you at the hospital when I was in there. Or actually maybe someone told him. He told me that he tortured Sal when he found out about my arm."

   So that was the story behind Lestrange's slick smile in the article. Remus had wanted to do the same thing. But in the light of day, could he have actually gone through with it? 

    "I wasn't sure whether or not to come it made me so nervous. I don't have any proof, and I don't think he's following me exactly. But he's definitely keeping tabs on me in public." She continued her gaze around the room, never quite meeting his eye. She paused at the kitchen counter for a few moments, landing on the gossip article.

    "And apparently, he's not the only one." Her tone emptied of all emotion and turned icy.

    "That's not what that is. That was just..." His friends, usually so quick on the excuses, were no help. Remus crumpled up the Prophet page and crushed it in his fist. 

    "That was my fault, Selene." Lily to the rescue, "I thought after the hospital y'know that you two maybe were, and I wanted to see if Remus..." she trailed off.

    It wasn't great, definitely not her best, but it was at least words.

    "Was I just a job?" Selene asked him quietly, turning away from the rest of them slightly, staring at the ceiling, pinching the bridge of her nose and blinking back tears.

    "A job?" It took Remus a second to process her question.

    "Seeing you right after dad died, then you at the funeral, everything you said, then asking about Sal at the hospital, coming round to see me after? And now all this with Cal. I'm so stupid, thinking it was all a coincidence. Was it all for information?" Her voice was thin and grew quieter still with every word. She swept away a tear with a shaking hand and a sharp inhale, but she waited for his answer. She didn't leave.

    "No, Selene. I didn't know about  Caliban until yesterday, I swear." The others all nodded fervently. "I couldn't believe my eyes when I first saw you again at the Leaky. I went to the funeral to see how you were. I was a complete mess when you were in the hospital. I won't condone what Lestrange did, but I can't say I don't understand why he did it."

    He knew he sounded desperate but he didn't care, even with his friends watching.

    "If you hadn't found out about Caliban that morning, I would have told you as soon as I got back. Even though I knew I shouldn't."

    She nodded, and the action seemed to knock the tears from her. They tipped out individually in heavy drops. She was still taking sharp breaths in an attempt to control her emotions, they rattled through her.

    Remus wanted to tell her that everything he had never told her was all down to his stupid curse. Every shitty thing in his life was because of something he couldn't control. He could have had a nice flat like Sirius, or a proper job like Peter, or even a romance like James and Lily's. But those things were for normal men with normal lives. Werewolves didn't get those. They were fairytales, not monster stories.

    How could she understand that seeing her in the Leaky Cauldron had felt like a lightning strike. That he had wanted her all those years ago, and he wanted her now. But that wouldn't be fair to her then and certainly not now. She had been through so much this week. She needed time to process, even if Remus felt that would not go in his favour. Even if he knew half the battle with time wasn't on Selene, it was not talking himself out of it.

    "Sorry," she said to the room at large, "I don't mean to cry. It's just been a lot. I don't even know what to believe anymore. Or who.." She gave an embarrassed sort of smile to his ceiling. She was barely crying, her eyes were watery, but the tears held firm.

    "You have to believe him," said James. "He's an idiot but he's not cruel." Selene gave another bobbing sort of nod, more tears tipped out. Was it a good sign that she wasn't actually crying? That gravity was pulling her tears instead of them being pushed out?

    "I should go anyway, just in case anyone finds out about my early finish and goes looking for me at my place." Her voice broke a couple of times. "I'll let you know when we can meet, Remus."

    "Of course."

    Merlin he just wanted to hold her and tell her everything but ever since she found out he was a werewolf, some part of himself was convinced that if he touched her she would recoil. He nearly touched her arm as she left but pulled back again like he had at Ardverikie. Instead, he watched her go, determined to give her the space she deserved to process it. Not to pressure her into making a decision she wasn't ready to make.

--

"Tell me how it went again. How did she seem?" Remus asked Peter when they were out a few days later. He still hadn't heard from Selene and he wasn't sure if he would. And so, as expected, he began reanalysing every word and every movement. "When she saw what I was."

"Afraid," said Peter. And Remus' stomach tightened even though he expected it. "But she didn't know it was you then remember, I think she knew Cal was among you but it was a whole pack. Very afriad to begin with, but Padfoot had just chased her into the house. And then, when you guys caught up, it got a bit wild. Started howling at the house and trying to get in. So it made sense. It was scary. I've never seen you like that before."

Remus felt awash with guilt and his own fear. People didn't just get over attempted werewolf attacks. But at least he knew the house was safe. Whatever magic Selwyn had used to protect his son had worked. And maybe it could be replicated if he could see the contract. 

"I managed to distract her though,' he added optimistically. She said I reminded her of a friend and that she'd keep me safe. That old pet she mentioned. I think it helped her out of her head a bit. She barricaded us in a wardrobe and just pet me until she fell asleep, saying her brother would look after us. So she definitely doesnt care that Caliban is a werewolf."

Remus imagined Selene curled up in the wardrobe, alone and afraid. He felt sick again. "Thank you for being there, Peter. For making sure she was all right. I'm glad you were."

Peter looked relieved. "Thank Merlin. I kind of knew he was joking, but Sirius said that I looked far too cosy in there, and best not to mention it."

Remus was finally able to laugh. "I appreciated it Pete, but hopefully never again."

His stomach still squirmed uncomfortably beneath the surface. There was still hope. But it was growing more uncertain with each passing hour.

Chapter Text

    Ministry of Magic - 10 Decmber 1980

    The week passed slowly. Selene spent the majority of it at work, with the handy excuse that she simply had too much work to catch up on after missing days last week. She also asked for extra work from whomever she could, anything to keep her brain busy. She had gotten through so much work and gotten so desperate that she found herself agreeing to clear out previously abandoned offices and broom closets that were too foul to work in. The ongoing situation with the Dark Lord had meant rapid expansion of Ministry departments, and there was too much work for Magical Maintenance to handle. In true government fashion, Maintenance had not been expanded to accommodate the increased workforce. So, Selene was tacking the small offices that were either too far gone or too out of the way for the main team to bother with.

    Cal had written to say Sal was there and planning on spending the week at Ardverikie, so it was probably best she didn't visit for now. He hadn't risked writing too much. Sal didn't have access to the floo at Ardverikie at least, so he couldn't pop in unannounced like he could at her flat. He hadn't so far, but Selene still couldn't sleep. So she spent as little time as she could there. Cal had been using her father's owl to reach her, and he had been trained not to leave letters lying around. If the addressee wasn't there, he would wait.

    Her few hours outside of work had been occupied wrestling between feelings of anger at and guilt about Remus Lupin. She knew she had to tell him about the possible cure, and she was going to as soon as she saw him but baulked in front of the audience that always seemed to follow him. That combined with them obviously discussing the gossip article about her had caused her vicissitude.

    She had initially believed him when he said that their rekindled friendship was genuine. But it gnawed at her. It was all so convenient that he was here now.

    He, true to his word, had waited for Selene to contact him, and so she hadn't heard a word from him. She knew she wouldn't. It was wrong of her, but still, she was a little disappointed. It felt like repeated history at this point even though she knew if he had chased her she would have doubted his story even more.

    She continued to scourgify some very dubious looking stains from the dingy office carpet. Now she knew why the atrium was tiled. Most of the stains were impervious to every spell she tried. Today's office was down a forgotten corridor between the Department of Magical Transportation and the Magical Communications team. The communication team needed to expand, and this office had space for at least six much needed desks.

    A particularly grimy stain only came out with an old fashioned tin of Magical Mess Remover that Selene had found in one of the old desks. Fitting, seeing as it had probably been a hundred years since anyone had worked in here. For some reason, the stain made her think of Rabastan Lestrage. Rabastan had not yet written to her either, despite his insistence before that he would. Maybe the article in that rag of a magazine had put him off. Selene had spotted him from a distance a few times crossing the great atrium at the Ministry and had roundly avoided him. He had looked more imposing in a crowd of fawning junior and senior ministers.

    Selene made short work of the office despite having almost no experience cleaning up after anyone, even herself. She did wonder briefly if calling one of her house elves would get her in trouble. There must be some ancient reason they even had maintenance when an elf could do this in seconds. Maybe ownership Magic was too complicated with roles changing so frequently.

    She hadn't really forgiven Binky and Mipps for not telling her about Cal either. They had probably been ordered to keep quiet, but it still stung a little. They had been among her few friends as a child. It was pathetic, really, her only friends being elves and a rat, none of whom could actually leave her even if they had wanted to. They had probably wanted to. Again, like her conflicted feelings towards Remus, she knew she was being unfair. She was filled with so much anger and hurt caused by her parents and had nowhere to direct it to. Not to mention, learning her father had been saving people this whole time made her feel even more guilty and foolish. The source of her pain was now gone, but the wound left to gape and fester.

    That was the root of it all. Being kept in the dark, not trusted to know. Well, she decided, she was more capable than they had given her credit for and she wasn't going to let it happen anymore.

    --

    Remus Lupin apparated directly into her living room with a pop, just ten minutes after she had sent her owl to him. She hadn't expected him so soon, she had just said tonight sometime if he was able, but she successfully managed to suppress any surprise.

    She was glad she had changed before writing.

    It seemed every time she saw him she felt as awkward and ungainly as she had when she was a too-tall teenager. Even after everything. "Hi, Remus. I'm sorry it took so long for me to arrange this. Sal is away at Ardverikie until Friday and looks like Rabastan has lost interest now I'm not a possible heiress. So we can talk here, no one will burst in unexpectedly without an invitation."

    The fact she had added Remus to the security spells so he could apparate straight in was left unsaid, but surely he knew. Before she could even begin her preprepared speech about needing to know more and do more, Remus burst out with hus own.

    "Selene, I am so, so sorry for not telling you what I am."

    She waved a hand at him and gave him a signature eye roll. If there was one secret she wasn't annoyed at not knowing, it was this. "It's fine, I understand." She felt stupid instantly. Of course, she didn't understand. She wasn't cursed for life. Although she knew she would guard Cal's condition - and Remus' for that matter - with everything she had.

    "No, Selene." His voice was firm. Just as she was about to apologise for her flippancy, he went on. "You need to know this. Back at school, that's why I stayed away. The week of our last Hogsmeade visit, somebody showed me an article about what happened to your brother, and I realised that it was selfish madness to think I even deserved a chance at you. I let it convince me that you would be horrified if you knew. That even talking to you, being what I am, was an act of deception. That's why I cancelled on you and why I never wrote back even though I desperately wanted to. It was nothing to do with not wanting to."

    "Remus, I." Selene moved towards him, stunned by his confession but desperate to show him that she could be as understanding to him as he had been to her these past weeks.

    Again, he cut her off, but placed a warm hand on her cheek, holding her with his stare. "I should have told you then, I should have told you a hundred times since. Instead, I assumed to know your thoughts. I was so afraid and so convinced that you would be disgusted with what I am, I thought I would never be able to face you again."

    It was the last thing she had expected to hear tonight, all but resigning herself to the role of grateful friend. But was he offering that now? Or something more? Or was this just explaining the past so they could have a more transparent present to ease the work they had to do moving forward? It certainly felt different this time. They were so close. So close to what they should have been.

    "The fact that I treated you so poorly you thought I was just using you for information, I'm ashamed of it." Selene's vision watered as her eyes began to brim, but she managed to push them back. She was not going to cry this time.

    "I was just being stupid." Selene whispered. "I was tired and emotional and reacted too quickly. You've done nothing to deserve that judgement from me. It wasn't fair. You've gone above and beyond for me."

    Remus searched her face, the worry lines etched into his brow looked even deeper in the low light.

    "You're a good person, Remus. That's what you are. Better than me. You reacted how anyone would." Selene steeled herself. She was rarely honest with herself. She didn't even know if she was a good person. She always just did what made sense. Over analysing and stripping emotion out of her thoughts had helped her cope, but logic wasn't life. If Remus could bare his soul for her, she should do the same for him and let him decide. "I'm not sorry that I found out when I did, or the way I did. I don't know how I would have reacted at school. I don't think it would have been good." She couldn't even look at him as she admitted it. "But you're still you. I go back and forward in my head a lot, but I know that much. I'm sorry I left you wondering."

    Selene pressed her forehead into his and their eyes met. His body was tense, she could see the muscles in his forearms tense as he tried to control his nervous energy. He anchored them on her shoulders.

    Selene took a deep breath and forced away the memories of her night at Remus' flat when he had stepped back and rejected her fir the sevond time. Could she face it again? It felt different. Last time she hadn't known, and he was so unrelentingly good, he refused. But the tension in the air this time crawled all over her skin, convincing her she could just be brave enough to try one last time.

    "Do you think I'm capable of making my own mind up? That I know what, and who, I want in my life?" She asked. "Remus, do you think that we-"

    Before she had the chance to finish, Remus nodded minutely, deciding something in his own head. His eyes locked into hers, projecting a certainty she had never felt from him before. Now, they both knew. He kissed her, tentatively as first and then unrestrained when she returned his kiss with her own desire.

    And then the carefully constructed walls they had both spent so long building and hiding behind collapsed. He pulled away for just a second, stroking her cheek.

    "Of course I do. You're a brilliant witch, Selene. Don't let anyone make you feel differently. Especially not me."

    His other arm wound itself around her waist, pulling her in tight. Every movement against him sent a jolt through her. She threw her arms around his shoulders and pushed into him, grinding against him, needing to feel him.

    Remus groaned in return, and Selene welcomed his tongue happily. He roved over her waist and gripped tightly at the fabric of her dress. His mouth moved to the side of her neck, teasing and sucking as he cupped her head firmly, keeping her just where she needed to be. She gasped and pawed at his shoulders, needing him even closer now she had him.

    She pulled him back with her towards the sofa until they both tumbled onto it. His weight above her was both comforting and maddening. She caged his hips with her own as he continued his daring exploration with his mouth. He kissed along the lines of her collarbones, leading him to the top of her dress as his hands glided under her hem from below. He was everywhere

    "I can't believe I was ever not doing this." He clung to her thigh, and he kissed her again as she laughed. His hand felt rough and so warm and large and all encompassing. Selene bucked against him, willing it, willing him to keep moving up her leg and touch her where she needed more than she had ever needed anything. She could feel the stiff bulge in his trousers and pressed her core against it, writhing and squirming to get closer.

    She clawed at his shirt, tugging it free from his trousers and fumbling with the buttons. Each one gave way quicker than the last as she found her rhythm, and Remus found her lips again.

    "Remus," she sighed as she finally managed to draw his shirt down his lean, cabled arms. Her hands ran greedily over his chest and stomach, finding new delight in his wiry muscles. She barely noticed the hewn scars that webbed across his skin. She moved her focus to his belt, working it open and immediately attacking his button and fly.

    Remus continued his dizzy ascent, kneading glorious pressure into the hollow of her hips. She tried to shift her weight to get her dress off but the sofa was too narrow. "Bedroom," she demanded and Remus was all too eager to comply. He hoisted her up and she wrapped her legs around his now loose trousers, holding them up as he carried her to her bed.

    Before he could lower her down, Selene unwrapped herself. Remus' trousers fell to the wooden floor with a slight clatter from the belt buckle. Her eyes were immediately drawn to his bulge as it twitched beneath his underwear. In turn, she slid both hands under her dress and glided it over her head in a single sweep. She had no chance to feel self conscious about her boobs being a bit small or her thighs being w but big before he proclaimed in a breathy growl, "fuck, you're absolutely perfect."

    "I've never done..." she trailed off, not wanting to ruin the moment. She just knew how much she wanted this. She had always imagined Remus whenever she thought about being with a man. She couldn't picture anyone else and now he was here and he was beautiful and driving her crazy. She didn't want to disappoint.

    "Me either," he kissed her through her insecurities, "but I've done a lot of reading."

*****

    Like an animal he was on her again, lowering her to the bed. Every inch of her skin felt the wet heat of his mouth. His tongue teased her hardened nipple through the sheer lace fabric that covered them and she whined. He chuckled as he moved to the other side and got the same response. They were so sensitive every stroke seemed to resonate to her core, her hips rising with every graze.

    He worked his way down, planting soft kisses over her abdomen and along the top of her now very obviously soaked underwear. Remus kissed her deeply over the fabric before sliding them off deftly and continuing his work.

    "Merlin, that's amazing." Selene keened.

    "The name's Remus, actually." He chuckled darkly, and Selene gave a contented little laugh in return that turned into a gasp of pleasure as he continued to kiss and lick her throbbing clit.

    The sensation was so good and building so rapidly her body seemed to want to either take over or writhe away. Remus wrapped his arms around her thighs, keeping her right where he needed her as her moans grew more and more frantic. One of his perfect large hands spread over her abdomen, pushing ever so slightly.

    "Remus," she cried.

    "I want you to come with my name on your tongue. I want to taste it."

    She lost herself there but could hear herself obeying his command, his name the only word she could articulate. He held her firm and pressed the flat of his tongue against her clit as she rode the aftershocks.

    "Remus," she sighed, "fuck."

    Not her most intelligent sentence ever. Luckily Remus joined her and put her mouth to better use with his own. She could taste herself on him. With anyone else, she might have been embarrassed, but it made her want even more. She pulled at his bottom lip and sucked at his tongue. Thinking dreamily how good it would feel to suck his dick. He seemed to read her mind, or maybe she had told him, "If we do that, I won't last. I've waited for this for too long. I need you."

    She readjusted her hips and could feel his hard cock slide between her folds. His beautiful head nudging her sensitive clit and making her jolt against it. Soon, she was grinding again, and it was Remus' turn to moan deeply. "Fill me," she begged.

    Remus filled her in one incredible, slow, tantalising stroke, letting her adjust as he held himself back. He felt huge, stretching and moving her in ways she had scarcely imagined when dreaming of him before. It was the most satisfied she had ever felt. She could feel herself accommodating him, getting wetter and clenching around him, appreciating every single inch he was giving her.

    Then he started to move. His cock stroked and teased her, the wet sound as he worked her growing more and more obscene.

    "Every bit of you is perfect, you feel fucking perfect." Remus was barely talking in full sentences, he seemed as lost in it as she was. Every stroke seemed to build within her, coiling her stomach tighter and tighter as her pussy gripped him. Selene looked down and swore she could see his cock bulging her abdomen. Her clit was so swollen and needy again, Remus' thrusts caused his pelvis to hit just the right spot to tip her over again with another plea of his name. His own release followed just after with a moan that vocalised the three years of pent up want and need they had both been through.

****

    Remus collapsed to the side of her, the pair of them panting and spent.

    Slowly, Selene's brain caught up to her body and she became very aware of Remus' body next to her. He was beautiful, his lean frame filled out and more muscled than at school. His chest and back were etched with scratches and old scarring. A particularly dark and thick scar ran along his right side and wrapped around his torso. Some matching scratch marks on his upper right arm swirled angrily around a deep, pitted scar.

    A werewolf bite.

    Selene fought the urge to press at it. She was simultaneously fascinated and horrified. Images of a small boy with Remus' sandy brown hair with these terrible, awful injuries flashed through her consciousness. Anger swelled within her. The images morphed to the Remus she had known at Hogwarts, kind and conscientious, helping her when she hadn't even asked. Laughing and joking with her in the library and by the Black Lake. All the while fearing discovery. Anger rose again. Anger that he believed it wouldn't matter how good he was, the wizarding world would surely abandon him if they knew. After all, Caliban had been taken care of, but abandoned all the same.

    Maybe Caliban was right. Maybe nothing would ever change unless it was forced to. After all, how many wizarding children were raised to fear werewolves? Hadn't she been? True, her parents had never uttered the word after Caliban, but the lesson was there. If she met a stranger she had never known, never loved, and learned they were a werewolf, she would have been scared. She wouldn't even know why. Logically, any werewolf was only adanger during the full moon. But since when did logic ever factor into prejudice? She had Caliban and Remus to show her differently. But most people did not. Even the other werewolves with Caliban had unnerved her a little. But was that just shock at the situation? Selene hoped she was a good enough person for that to be true.

    Finally, the images passed, and she could focus once again on the Remus Lupin who lay before her.

    "About time we sorted ourselves out," he grinned at her. "Sorry for being such an idiot before. I'll always be sorry for it."

    "Everyone's an idiot at seventeen. I'm sorry too, clean slate." She replied, shaking off the weight of her conscience. "No more apologies from either of us."

    "Deal."

    He sealed their agreement by pressing his forehead to hers and another long, much overdue kiss. Every anxious thought seemed to die away with Remus' lips.

    --

    Three hours later, Selene made them both tea and heated some leftover steak pie for a late dinner. She tried to relay everything Caliban had told her about her father researching werewolves. She was finding it a very difficult task due to the complexities of what they didn't know and also due to an incredibly ruffled up Remus Lupin sitting across from her. He got more and more handsome even with the serious expression that sharpened his features.

    "So whatever this thing that might help with a cure is, Cal thinks it's in the study at the Cambridge estate." She finally finished.

    Remus didn't speak immediately. His eyes were intensely focussed and completely still as he digested what she was saying.

    "Once Caliban gets it back, what does he plan to do with it?" Remus finally asked.

    "I don't know." Selene admitted. "He hasn't included too much in his letters just in case anything was intercepted. But I'm meeting him again this weekend."

    Selene sighed deeply, finally preparing to say the very thing she has brought Remus to her flat for. Everything had changed so quickly. She'd never expected a confession of feelings from him, let alone for them to have slept together. Or that it would feel like the most wonderful thing that she would ever have the luck to experience. And she was possibly about to drop dragon dung over everything.

    "I've told Caliban I'll continue what my father started and work towards a cure. I think somebody killed him for it." Remus didn't look surprised to hear her father's death was possibly murder. She supposed it was obvious to anyone who bothered to look closely at the current state of things. "I'm going to find out who killed him, and I'd like your help. In exchange, I can be a sympathetic voice for the cause to Caliban and I'll keep you in the loop about what I find."

    "Selene, it's incredibly dangerous. You don't need to do anything in exchange. I'll help you find out what happened to your father regardless."

    Selene had been expecting this, even before their reunion. She tried to keep the indignation from her voice. "I'm capable. You wouldn't refuse this offer from anyone else. I am sick of being the last to know." She paused, taking in his expression, "Sorry, I didn't mean you. I meant this whole mess with my family."

    "No more apologies remember?" He smiled, "And I would never say that you weren't capable. And I didn't refuse." He replied earnestly. He took her hand and massaged it with his thumb reassuringly. "But this war, and it is war, is deadly and cruel and unfair. It doesn't matter how capable you are. I won"t stop you doing what you want to do, Selene, but it doesnt need to go further than what happened to your dad."

    "I'm involved already, so I might as well make sure it's for a good reason."

Chapter Text

    Selene Selwyn’s Flat - 13 January 1980

    Something very bad was about to happen to Remus Lupin.

    It had to be.

    He was fucked, he didn’t know how and he didn’t know when, but something terrible was about to happen to him.

    He just couldn’t be this lucky and not have something awful happen.

    Selene knew what he was and still wanted to be with him. He could be completely himself. She even knew about the Order. Well, kind of. She didn’t know about the Order, but she knew he was working for Dumbledore so he didn’t have to lie about where he was going.

    They had had three uninterrupted days so far to enjoy their glorious reunion, and still, every moment felt as though Remus were stealing it from the sands of fate. Most of it had been spent in the bedroom. Remus had felt compelled to spend a lot of time there after their first frantic performance.

    In between the very frequent sex, they talked. Talked about their lives after Hogwarts, about everything they dreamed of. And together, they talked about their lonely childhoods. It was cathartic for Remus. He never really spoke of it with his friends, convinced it would do nothing but depress them. With Selene, though, it was different. She didn’t make light of it, but somehow she did lighten it.

    Selene had managed to wrangle the last two days of the week off on account of all the overtime she had been doing so they’d all but shut themselves away from the world. Remus knew that if anything happened, the other marauders would make contact.

    “I’ve just realised we need a better way to communicate.” Remus interrupted their comfortable silence. They had both been reading in Selene’s living room, enjoying the always hot tea and endless supply of chocolate biscuits Binky had brought.

    “I think we went over this already, didn’t we?” Selene smirked, looking up from her own book.

    “I mean a safer way. More secure.”

    They had so far managed to avoid talking about Selene’s proposal, but Remus had another meeting with Dumbledore next week and tomorrow was Sal’s last day at Ardverikie. Cal was bound to contact either Remus or Selene soon.

    “I burn all the letters Cal sends.”

    “Better than that, this way ensures you know the message is genuine and so is the sender.”

    Selene closed her book and put it down, the curious glint in her eye shining. “Tell me more.”

    “Dumbledore developed it. You have to know where the person is, so it’s not like an owl. But it can go any distance.”

    “Why doesn’t the Ministry use it? You wouldn’t believe the amount of time I spend checking post.”

    “It’s a little tricky, and it’s good to keep some things up our sleeves.”

    Selene mimed locking her mouth and tossing Remus the key. Then she rolled her hand as if to say ‘continue’.

    “You need to perform a simple recording charm crossed with a derivation of lumos to hold the message in the ball of light. Then, cast a patronus charm, which must produce a corporeal patronus. The patronus carries the message to the location specified with a combination of the four point spell and a similar determination to apparating to visualise the desired location.”

    Selene’s face faltered a little, but she didn’t say anything. “I’m making it sound more complicated than it is. I promise the actual spell work is quite routine.” Remus added.

    “I haven’t ever produced a corporeal patronus. I’m not sure I’ve ever actually done the spell at all, actually. I didn’t take Defense at NEWT level.”

    Remus remembered that Defense Against the Dark Arts was not one of the many classes they had shared. But the NEWT take up had been so large for their year the classes had also been split so he had just assumed she was in the other. Remus had certainly done the spell before NEWTs but he and his friends had all but decided to fight dark wizards from the moment they picked classes in third year and had done a lot of extra spell work to prepare.

    “You didn’t?” He tried to keep judgement out of his voice, but it seemed nonsensical not to learn defensive magic given the state of things.

    “Um, no. It didn’t fit in the timetable,” Selene shuffled uncomfortably.

    Every worry and doubt Remus had about Selene becoming a casual informant resurfaced. The dangers were innumerable as is, but if you didn’t know how to duel or at least protect yourself long enough to get away, there was no way you could survive.

    “Selene,” he started, “we need to teach you defensive magic. Immediately.”

    He expected her to blow it off like she usually did. “You’re right. Where do we start. I got an E for OWLs, so I’m not totally useless, but there are definitely knowledge gaps.”

    “Really, it’s non-negotiable…” Remus had already started. He stopped and gaped like a fish for a moment before collecting himself. “Um, sorry. Let’s start with the patronus. It’s much easier when there aren’t any dementors about, so I’m sure you’ll get it quickly. Plus, we can send anything that can’t go in a letter.”

    Remus stood, pulling his wand from his pocket. Selene had hers ready. She magicked the furniture against the walls to give them some space. “I think I remember reading the theory, happy thoughts, and plenty focus. What’s the incantation?”

    “Expecto Patronum,” Remus swished his wand to show her the movement. “And the happier the memory, the stronger the patronus.”

    His silver wolf burst from the end of his wand and stalked resolutely around him, calm but ready, before he vanished it.

    “Ha, apt. I won’t make the joke. I’m sure you’ve heard it before.”

    “You never know. Yours might actually have been good. I doubt it, but maybe.”

    “Okay,” Selene took a deep breath and fixed her stance. “Expecto Patronum!”

    It was definitely a fair first attempt. It wasn’t corporeal, but the burst of light from Selene’s wand was trying to take form. Remus let out a triumphant laugh, Selene flashed him a beautiful smile and a wink.

    “Much better than my first go.” Remus gave her a kiss.

    “Well, I’m glad I can out cast a fifteen year old.” Selene rolled her eyes jovially. “What do I get if I can get a corporeal one today?”

    “Whatever you want.”

    Selene’s eyes darkened, and she bit her lip. Remus knew exactly what she was thinking. He felt heat begin to pool and his blood rushing to his trousers. He gave himself a little shake. Not the time to get distracted. Selene looked a little smug.

    It took about an hour to see some improvement. Selene was starting to look a little drained. Even without dementors, it was a demanding spell. Remus had been just about to call it a day when it finally took form.

    It looked to be a large, fluffy cat. Not as big as a kneazle but definitely bigger than a normal cat with a wide face and thick, blunt tail.

    “He’s a Scottish wildcat,” Selene answered his unasked question. “They’re everywhere up in the highlands.” Her eyes followed him about the room happily. The patronus was clear and strong as it curiously scoped out the room, occasionally disappearing under the furniture and then popping out the other end. “You know it’s funny. Now that Caliban is back, I’m remembering bits of summers from my childhood up there that I couldn’t remember before. There used to be quite a few of these guys in the woods. Some of my earliest magic was probably not scaring them off. I can’t imagine they’re still there with werewolves going about.”

    Clearly, Selene was remembering happy moments, but somehow, it made Remus sad. He didn’t stop to think before saying. “Your parents probably cast memory charms to stop you asking why you didn’t go up there anymore. That’s why they’re coming back now. You’ve seen it again.”

    The wildcat faltered and dimmed a little. Remus felt awful. “Yeah, you’re probably right. But at least they’re coming back now. So they must have modified instead of removed.” Selene said absentmindedly, still tracking the cat. “In the past now, no point dwelling on it.”

    Remus didn’t push further. He suspected ‘no point dwelling on it’ was really just a learned and well practiced excuse to never face it at all, and push it down further each time it tried to resurface.

    Selene watched for a few more seconds before waving it away with her wand. “I think I was promised a reward?” She asked, turning back round with a slightly too-fixed smile.

    She waved her wand, and the furniture returned to its original position, albeit a little slower and less energetically than it had before.

    Selene seemed to have brushed the afternoon off as they kissed. Remus' heart fluttered whenever they were close. His thoughts falling away with the softness of her lips on his. They were in a rather compromising position when an owl tapped on the window.

    “It’s from Cal,” Selene reassured him. “Sal left early this morning. He wants to meet, both of us. Let’s go now,” Selene said. “And I’ll get my reward when we’re back.”

    Remus sent off a note to James, just in case, as Selene went to fetch her robes.

    —-

    Cal showed them both through to the dining room. It was as grand as the rest of the house. Even more so in some ways. The walls were silk lined in a rich dark navy and an enormous marble fireplace sat sentry along the back wall. The long dining table was formally set with golden wine goblets and cutlery that could have been straight from Hogwarts. Only four of the places down one end of the table however had chairs. It felt very ominous to Remus.

    The muggle, Grant was sat furthest from the door with his back to the corner. It was a habit that reminded Remus of fellow Order member and ever vigilant auror, Alastor Moody. Remus hadn’t had much time to analyse Grant before and hadn’t given him much thought since, but he was clearly Cal’s right hand man. Remus wondered how the muggle had managed that. He projected the air of a man at ease but Remus spotted more and more tell tale signs of a trained soldier about him. The vigilant eyes and air of readiness gave him away. He was both lean and stocky, and probably around the same age as Cal or a couple of years older. He had rusty brown hair flecked with grey and cropped short and a thick moustache, the stubble he previously sported now gone. Cal held out a seat at the end of the table for Selene before sitting at the head himself. Remus took his cue to sit down next to Selene.

    “Just us tonight,” Cal added. “The other guys are enjoying some firewhisky in the library. A gift from my uncle.”

    Selene bristled.

    “He told me he is sorry about what happened with the lock,” Cal said, eying Selene’s sleeve.

    “Fine now anyway. How did he react to you being alive?”

    Remus was amazed that Cal was happy to have him here for this. And thankful Selene could ask the questions that would have been too bold from him.

    “Not very well,” Cal laughed. “Especially when he found out you know about it too. But he has agreed to keep it quiet for now until we can decide how to move forward. He’s arranging for the goblins to do it without the ministry. Easier to bribe.” He added unnecessarily for Remus. “So once I inherit officially, we can negotiate from there.”

    A plate of venison appeared in front of them. It smelled incredible. Grant immediately began eating.

    “Mipps is here with me now. Sal thinks he sent them both up.” He said, pointing at their plates. “He’s a terrific chef. Eat up.”

    “What do you mean, he thinks he did?” Selene asked.

    They had two elves? Would Remus ever stop being surprised at the wealth hoarded by the pure blood elite?

    “He can’t tell Binky to do anything. She likes to be useful so she goes along with things. I don’t think the stupid bastard has even realised.” He chuckled. No love lost there then thought Remus. Or maybe Cal just looked down on everyone.

    “What?” Selene asked.

    “House elves belong to a house.” Cal rolled his eyes at his sister. “Binky is a McLaggen elf, she is passed down through Ardverikie. She’s yours, and mine as part of the family, but you're her master. Mother asked her to stay at Cambridge when I was sent here, to stop me finding loopholes and so she stayed. Probably why Binky was able to take you to St Mungo’s. Mipps told me he was ordered to clean up the mess first and was trying to do it as quickly as possible so he could take you. Mipps will answer to any Selwyn but Binky doesn’t have to. I suppose I'm Mipps' true master now father is dead.”

    Cal did at least look offended at the treatment of the elf. It must have been stressful for Mipps not to help. Remus pushed down the fresh wave of anger her felt for Sal Selwyn. So he was right, Sal didn’t send the elves to help Selene. In his anger he had no issue with letting Selene die. Deal with Lestrange or not.

    Selene blinked rapidly. “Binky?” She called out timidly.

    A crack sounded and Binky appeared. Remus noticed Grant react to the noise although it was very, very subtle. He hid it well.

    Remus had seen a lot of house elves up close. He and his friends had often gone down to the kitchens to get food for post-Quidditch celebrations. So he wasn’t surprised to see Binky. She didn’t look too differently from the Hogwarts elves, hopefully that meant Sebastian Selwyn had taken good care of her. Sirius had told him of the Black family tradition of mounting house elf heads. Thankfully there was no sign of that at Ardverikie.

    “Yes Miss?” The little elf squeaked.

    “Would you like to stay here with Mipps?” Selene asked.

    “Yes Miss!”

    “Alright, you help Cal here and if I need you in London I’ll let you know.”

    Cal looked pleased as the elf popped out of the room as quickly as she had entered.

    “Sorry, you were saying?” She asked.

    “Never mind that for now. Let’s eat!”

    —-

    There had been four courses. Cal clearly had a sweet tooth, Remus counted third helpings of sticky toffee pudding.

    “So, Remus,” he asked, pouring out goblets of wine. “What do you want to know?”

    It was direct and designed to knock Remus off his feet. But he already had the measure of Cal and had been expecting it.

    “You said before that you weren’t drawn to either side of the war. So why get Dumbledore involved at all? I don’t believe what you said before about radical societal adjustment. Sal was bound to find out about you and try to get you on side but you wrote to Dumbledore anyway. Why create unecessary conflict?”

    Cal looked begrudgingly impressed but unfazed.

    “I need a man of Dumbledore’s ability. There are very few wizards who could continue my father's work with the level of secrecy and access required who could also be trusted to keep my secret and faked death away from the ears of the ministry.”

    “And what was your father doing?” Remus pushed. Of course Selene had already told him and to her credit, she didn’t reveal it now. If anything she looked more curious than he did.

    “He was funding research and a potential cure to the curse of the werewolf. He was studying it himself as well, though he was no true academic.”

    Remus held off for a second, feigning a struggle with surprise. His condition had trained him to be an accomplished liar.

    “There’s no such thing.” He finally said.

    “Not yet,” Grant said. “But Sebastian,” Remus made a mental note that Grant was on first name terms with the late Selwyn, “had discovered some new leads and avenues not yet explored by your wizarding brothers.”

    Remus and Selene looked at each other. Grant had barely spoken until now. He had a strong central belt accent but perhaps slightly rougher. It appeared his role in the evening had begun.

    “Before we go in to all that. I think it’s best you both learned a little bit about Grant. Remus, you already know Grant is a muggle.” Selene betrayed a look of surprise. “I thought you would ask how he ended up here.”

    Cal was clearly relishing whatever show he was putting on. Remus supposed there had rarely been a chance in years for any of the men to talk to different faces, tell new stories.

    “How did he end up here?” “Remus asked, playing along.

    It was a fair question. After all the place was magically protected for one, and muggles rarely survived werewolf attacks for another. Perhaps his werewolf instincts had led him to the pack, it had been known to happen.

    “Grant, arrived here before he was bitten.” Cal paused for dramatic effect. It worked.

    “So one of you…” Selene trailed off.

    “Bit me?” Grant scoffed.

    “Surely you didn’t just wander in?” Selene asked, her face rapt with fascination.

    “No,” the well-muscled man smirked. “I didn’t just wander in. I followed my instincts.”

    “Before you were bitten?” Remus asked. He was aware of his own wolf-like senses and knew of other conditions that could improve intuitions; seers for example were said to possess enhanced luck but Grant wasn’t a seer, he wasn’t even magical.

    “Not magical instincts, learned ones. My job before all this was killing beasts like us.”

    It was like a stinkbomb had gone off. Everyone shut their mouths and held their breaths.

    “Managed to take out three wolves before somebody got me.”

    “You managed to kill three werewolves without magic?” Selene asked incredulously. Remus had been just about to ask the same thing.

    “Show them,” Cal smirked at Grant. Grant reached into his jacket and pulled out what Remus recognised as a muggle gun. It was a little thing with a leather handle and looked a bit like a picture on one of his mother’s books about muggle wars but Remus couldn’t have said much more than that, despite having a muggle mother.

    “It’s a revolver” Grant said, spinning the middle section idly. “Passed down in my family for generations. I come from a long line of monster hunters.”

    “A bit like yourself, Remus,” Cal added. “You and your father do similar work do you not?” Remus marvelled at the thoroughness Cal had shown in his research, Remus' father would have featured in the stack of Daily Prophets.

    “Magical creatures, not humans. We tend to capture rather than kill.”

    “I have no other choice but to kill before I get killed. And don’t forget, it’s your leaders that have designated you a creature, it's no different.” Grant said plainly. He placed the gun down, Remus had not failed to notice that it lay pointing directly at him.

    “A single bullet, shot through the head or abdomen from that gun will kill a werewolf instantly, even with the most powerful healing spells or potions applied immediately afterward.” Cal stated.

    Remus was completely dumbfounded. He had no idea what this had to do with a cure as this was clearly the exact opppsite. But in all honestly his thoughts had completely moved on. Caliban had a captive audience and was expertly pulling them along.

    “But you got bit,” Selene said to Grant.

    “Well, I wasn’t expecting a whole pack.” Grant said a little defensively. “Thought I got the lot but I let my guard down after the third one went down. Got the beast that bit me though just after.”

    “We found him bleeding out in the morning. He actually managed to get one more shot in before he fell unconscious. Killed the man who found him. Nothing we could do to save him.”

    “Killed him instantly? Even untransformed?” Remus asked. He knew Cal was leading him along, that there was still to be some grand reveal.

    “Man or not, he was still a werewolf.” Grant said, shrugging his shoulders dismissively and draining his goblet. Remus swallowed uncomfortably. It was true then. Even like this, the monster rested deep down.

    “You don’t seem remorseful at all.” Selene said.

    “Why should he be?” Asked Cal. “Would you let yourself get bit? Would you let a werewolf on the loose get away? Grant didn’t know we were penned in. Didn't even know if he would survive the bite. A valiant last stand.”

    “It could have been you he shot. His last shot was a person!” Selene admonished. "It was murder."

    “Luckily it wasn’t me. I managed to get word to father who brought him round. His wounds weren’t too bad, he’d managed to shoot the wolf that bit him before getting savaged too badly.”

    “So five?” Remus asked. “He killed half of you and your father let him stay?”

    “My father was a very clever man. He could see the possibilities.”

    The fire raged on in the room, the warmth was starting to feel oppressive alongside the heavy conversation. It made it hard for Remus to think. He hadn’t expected Cal to be so willing to share. But whatever this was leading to, his movements grew larger with each revelation, his voice grew louder too like an over-eager showman racing the audience to the punchline.

    “He recognised that the existence of that gun meant that there was knowledge the muggles had that we did not. That wizards, in their arrogance, had never even considered.”

    It was a surprisingly enlightened take for a pureblood thought Remus.

    “Try to transfigure that goblet into pure silver.” He said to Remus, breaking the tension once more.

    It was an incredibly simple spell. Remus didn’t even hesitate to pull out his wand, ignoring the smug looks on Cal and Grant’s faces. He tapped the goblet and tried to cast non-verbally. Nothing happened. He tried again. Nothing. He didn’t even try to cast verbally, the frustration and embarrassment of being made a fool already creeping in.

    “Selene,” Cal said, gesturing to her goblet. She quickly copied Remus and mirrored his own frustration when it didn’t work. Cal stood and retrieved an identical, but this time, silver goblet from the sideboard. It looked cold and unwelcome in the warm glow of the fire and the luminous gold reflection of the other goblets.

    Cal gingerly held the goblet at the stem for just a second as he turned, grimacing, and placed it down in front of them with a shaking hand, it tipped on its edge and clattered as it fell. He sucked in air through his teeth with a hiss and opened his fingers to show two angry red blisters on his fingertips. Selene grabbed his hand from him and tried to heal the marks but her spell work failed again.

    “Don’t worry, Silly,” he said gently to her, “just a slight burn.”

    Selene quickly tapped the goblet which reverted back to gold, as though it too was a dangerous weapon.

    “True silver is poison to werewolves.” Grant said. “But it has to be completely pure, not alloyed.” And to address the confused faces around the table, “it means not mixed with any other metal. Silver plated stuff won't work either. Same with whatever magic your goblins infuse when they smith, it taints the metal. We tested that too. Has to be done the normal way. You lot can’t even conjure it around werewolves, must be some sort of magical defense in the curse. The bullets in this gun are crafted from pure silver and the internals all lined with it. We engrave them using silver tools as well but as far as Sebastian learned the engraving is more for tradition than function. Tradition passed down across generations. From ancestors who were alive before the statute of secrecy, no doubt. This is one of the newer guns actually, just a hundred years old. Back home I've got all sorts of antique weaponry."

    “Father kept Grant alive. And after that, came here more and more often to learn everything he could about Grant’s work and muggle folklore. Not just about werewolves either. If muggles could kill werewolves, perhaps they could cure them.” Cal refilled Selene’s glass.

    “I told him I’d never heard of such a thing.” Grant took over. “But he continued to come and ask questions in exchange for my board here while I recovered, and letting me keep my gun.”

    “Can I ask you something?” Selene piped up. Grant nodded. “How do you feel about being a werewolf? You were clearly raised to hate them.”

    Grant looked taken aback. As though no one had ever asked him how he had felt about anything his whole life. Remus felt a surge of warmth of feelings for Selene in that moment. There weren’t many people who would have asked that question.

    “I didn’t take it well. But I calmed down eventually.” He didn’t elaborate.

    “Father learned all that he could about muggles. He took on more trips at work and learned about the foreign ones too. Kept going on about how neglectful and ignorant wizards were. I think it rather radicalised him to be honest. Said we either hated them or underestimated them and both sides were as bad as the other. It was hard to argue with him when Grant’s walking around with that gun. Who’s to say in another fifty or a hundred years they won’t have a gun that can cut through shield charms or injure wizards beyond magical help?” Remus felt the last part was eerily familiar to the Death Eater argument.

    “So this cure you have,” Selene started.

    “Not a cure. But something that could get us there.” Cal clarified.

    “This thing, it’s muggle made?” She asked.

    Cal and Grant smirked at each other in the way James and Sirius so often did when sharing an inside joke or revealing a grand scheme they had cooked up.

    Remus was on the edge of his seat. He hadn’t wanted to give Caliban the satisfaction but it was too much to contain.

    “No. But only muggles could retrieve it.”

    Was there something like silver that any magical being couldn’t touch? Remus’ mind raced trying to think. If there was it was certainly a new discovery. “Why can only muggles retrieve it?” Selene asked for him.

    “Do you know what happened eleven years ago?”

    Another dramatic pause as Selene shook her head.

    “Muggles flew into space. And they walked on the moon, Selene. Then they brought pieces of it back.”

    Cal leaned back victoriously in his chair. Revelling in his own performance, enjoying his own silent applause.

    Remus nearly blacked out.

    His nausea returned.

    He hadn’t dared believe before.

    Could it actually be true?

Chapter Text

    Ardverikie House - 13 January 1980

    Selene glanced round at Remus. He didn’t look well.

    Caliban ran a hand through his golden hair that fell around his eyes, sweeping it from his view.

    “Father’s got a piece of the moon?” Selene asked, filling the silence. She was having a hard time visualising it. The moon. The actual moon. Muggles had been up there.

    “That he did. Took him years to get anywhere close. Alex Kerr was the key in the end, so thank you for that, Silly.”

    Each time he used that old nickname Selene felt six years old again. She wondered briefly if he meant it to but admonished herself for even thinking it. This was her brother. That was what he had always called her.

    “How?” Remus asked, coming to himself again.

    “In exchange for smuggling the two sisters, Alex agreed to help my father in America. There’s quite a few pieces scattered around the world, gifts for important muggles and for their own research. She managed to track some of them down, along with their estimated sizes. They ranged from dust to tiny pieces the size of gobstones and bezoars all the way up to a very small number of pieces that are the size of your fist or skull. Last month, she led him right to one.”

    Selene knew the comparison to beozars was intentional.

    “Does Sal know?” Selene asked.

    "Not exactly. He knows there will be a price for my loyality and that more than anything I want a cure. I've let him think I believe only dark magic can deliver it. He says they’ve got some hotshot potions expert who can brew all sorts and that ‘the Dark Lord rewards his followers’.” He put on a cutting but accurate impression of their uncle as he rolled his eyes.

    “Do you know what he wants from the study?”

    “No, he didn’t say. Just made up some crock about believing the house to be his. I told him I couldn't leave here until the goblins sort the will to buy some time. But that once I open the doors he can take whatever thing it is that he's after.”

    “So how do you know he isn’t after this?” Remus asked.

    “I suppose I don’t.” Cal conceded.

    “That’s why you need me to get it. That’s why you set the lock.” Selene said, staring down her brother. She felt as though she had finally figured him out. “If father only just retrieved it last month, he didn’t have time to study it. So you don’t know what it’ll do to you.”

    Cal at last looked proud of her.

    “Exactly little sister. For all we know even being within eyeshot of that rock could transform me or kill me.”

    “Why not have Selene get it last week when you knew the house was empty then?” Remus interjected.

    “Believe it or not, but uncle Sal isn’t completely thick. He has the place watched, Mipps has been keeping me informed. It hasn’t been empty since that embarrassment with the will. This,” he pulled a tiny vial of blood from him robes and handed it to Selene. “Is my blood. Father kept samples here for his work. Feed this to that snake and you can get in.” He spoke directly to Selene now. “You need to get in, retrieve that sample and secure it before the will is read. Sal is insisting that we all go into the study together. I don’t think our dear uncle trusts that I don’t care what’s in there, wants to see my reaction. All we need is a valid excuse for you to be in the house and a ten minute distraction for you to get in and out of the room. Then just reset the lock.”

    —-

    Remus had just stepped through the floo back to hers when Cal held her back.

    “I guessed there was something between the two of you.” Cal told her.

    “I think whatever it is, he’s felt it for a long time.”

    Selene didn’t understand why Cal was talking to her about this. Was he about to tell her not to get involved with Remus? Had he guessed she had already chosen a side? It must be why he invited them together.

    “Do you think he would have told you what he is, if I hadn’t walked him to it?”

    “I think he would have. He looked after me after St. Mungo’s you know.”

    “Hmm.” Cal muttered.

    He ran his hand over his face again. Alone like this, he felt more like her brother than ever. Round that dining table he had felt like something else entirely. Something separate from family.

    “I’m sorry to ask you this,” he started, avoiding her eyes. Selene braced herself. What more would he ask of her? Something he couldn’t ask in front of Remus. “Sal told me that Rabastan Lestrange approached him for your hand.”

    Selene gulped. “That’s not happening anymore,” she said assertively. “I don’t think he’s particularly interested either now I’m not set to inherit. I haven’t heard from Stan in over a week.”

    Cal scrunched his face up. “Actually, he wrote and asked me personally yesterday.”

    “It’s not up to you.” Selene could feel the usual nerves building when standing up for herself. Cal wasn’t her father. She could do this.

    “Of course it isn’t, Silly!” He gave her a reassuring squeeze. “I would never tell you who to marry.”

    Selene let out a sigh as the weight in her stomach lessened.

    “But it would be beneficial for us all to pretend, at least for now. I’m sure Dumbledore will be able to use that moon rock to develop a cure. And I want to be on your side. But if I do need the Dark Arts and the Dark Lord to do it, I don’t want to burn any bridges. You want to see me cured, don’t you?”

    The weight returned and multiplied as Selene nodded weakly.

    “Of course I do, but...”

    “It’s just a game, Selene. That’s all it is. We just need to play along for a bit.”

    That’s not what Remus had said. It was war.

    “He’ll be in touch again, I’m sure. Just,” he let out a stressed sort of grumble, “just pretend for now. For me.”

    —-

    Luckily Selene had a good excuse for being slightly out of it the rest of the night. Remus was too, otherwise he would have surely wondered what had held her back an extra five minutes. Or maybe he just assumed it was a normal goodbye. She certainly didn’t do anything to contradict it.

    Remus had left shortly after, to give a report to Dumbledore. Something like this was too big to wait and too complicated to send via messenger. Selene decided to sit in bed with her thoughts, unable to sleep.

    This is what she had already decided to do wasn’t it? Being a spy of sorts. Sure, initially it had just been a helping hand with recruiting Cal but maybe it was a good thing she had an excuse to be near Rabastan Lestrange. Maybe she could be even more useful. She knew she couldn’t lie to Remus, she would have to tell him. He wouldn’t be happy. It was bad enough when he thought it was just for a few weeks. This could be months or more. He couldn’t say out loud what they both already knew then. Stan was a Death Eater, so was Sal. But it was all out in the open now, no more vague innuendo. Maybe he would understand. Maybe he would be grateful for the information she could get.

    Maybe.

    And if she refused? Would Sal really go after Cal and assume that no engagement was a slight against the Dark Lord? She knew now he would have let her die. And they had no reason to keep her alive now, especially if they had even an inkling she was working against their plans. Whatever those were. Was he already plotting to kill Caliban to get the money? Did he kill their father?

    And that muggle, Grant. He had a weapon that could kill werewolves without magic. And her father had let him keep that thing in the house. Why? And if Alex was helping him why hadn’t she or Jo been in touch after he died? Did they even know?

    The moon was just a sliver in the sky. A small tear in the endless black above, the streetlights obscuring any stars that should have shone there. Again, a muggle invention, this one with the ability to change the skies. It just seemed so impossible that they had been up there. It was beyond all comprehension. Did the piece of the moon locked away in Cambridge shine in the same way? Was it the same ghostly white?

    How was she going to get in before the goblins settled the will?

    In even trying to come up with a plan Selene knew she had already decided.

    If it was all a game like Caliban said, then she wanted to be involved.

    And if it was a war like Remus said, then she needed to be.

    Whatever it took.

    —-

    Ministry of Magic - 24 January 1980

    Two weeks had passed and Selene hadn’t heard from Rabastan. She hadn’t told Remus about her almost-engagement yet either, putting it off. It was typical of her really, to ignore the obvious problem. It all just felt too good to be true. Was it so wrong of her to want to keep it that way? It was all too easy to melt into his arms. Those firm, lean arms that were so warm and comforting.

    But hey, she was clearly an accomplished liar and terrible person because he didn’t suspect a thing.

    Besides, if Rabastan hadn’t been in touch maybe he wasn’t interested. She had decided to play along for Caliban's sake but that didn't mean she was going to actively seek out Lestrange. Maybe he had just spoken to Caliban to appease her uncle and not slight the family. It would hardly surprise her that somebody like him, a Lestrange and a death eater to boot, wouldn’t want to marry into a family with a werewolf brother in law. There were other pure-blood witches, a sacred twenty-eight name might not be enough to balance that out.

    They had decided it made the most sense to break into the office during the dinner her uncle had already arranged and invited to at the funeral. No need for an excuse to be in the building which was half the battle. Selene had also arranged to bring a friend to dinner. The friend could then provide a fitting distraction while Selene searched. The friend who would actually be a friend of Remus’ who worked for Dumbledore.

    It gave them time to come up with a decent plan and Remus said that Dumbldore had already started background and research regarding everything they had learned so far.

    She was clerking this afternoon, running to and from meetings to take notes or dictate memos and send them off to call for any last minute attendees. She sat silent as an elf in the back corner, quill racing and mind blank. It was a blessing really, she barely even noticed the time pass.

    They were going out tonight before they rehearsed the plan. Their first date in the wizarding world and not a muggle establishment. Not London, but a well known club and restaurant in Bath. Selene was excited, though she had enjoyed the seclusion of the places they had been so far. Sitting in shadowy booths and feeling his hands running up her legs. No thinking, no checking over shoulders. Surely anywhere he would take her was far and away from anyone that Rabastan Lestrange would know. It would be fine.

    The final meeting ended at six, everyone filing out in an amorphous blob. No one stayed to help her pack everything up and clear the scrolls that covered the table. She’d have to re-index everything. It was all just background information or historic minutes, nothing good or interesting. If it had been she wouldn’t be trusted with it. Still, she scanned and read all of it just in case, figuring it was a good habit to pick up.

    With ams full of parchment, she trekked across the office, hurrying so she would have time to look a bit better before meeting Remus even though she was already late. She had warned him that work could go on. Maybe run a brush through her hair and put on something a bit more appealing than her Ministry robes.

    “Miss Selwyn,” that familiar smooth voice called out.

    Selene jumped, scrolls tumbling from her grasp and rolling about the floor. Before she had a chance to, they sorted themselves into a neat pyramid and floated up in front of her.

    “My apologies, it seems I am always catching you off guard.” Rabastan Lestrange stood before her, wand out and pointed at the scrolls.

    At the scrolls, not at her.

    At the scrolls in front of you, she told herself.

    “No, sorry, it’s me,” she stammered, “it’s been a long couple of weeks.”

    “I heard,” he said, scanning up and down her face. Of course, he knew about Cal. Was she supposed to know he knew? How could she already not keep on top of the lies?

    Selene realised this was the first time she had ever been alone with him not in public. He was as well-polished as ever in a set of dark inky green robes adorned with various silver and jewelled brooches. Selene couldn’t even look at silver anymore without thinking about that gun and what could happen to Caliban or Remus if it was widely known what it did to them.

    “I think last time we met,” she said more confidently than she felt, “you were going to write to me.”

    “I did, that was going to be my next apology,” he chuckled. “But it felt improper without informing the head of the family.”

    “Right.” Selene gave what she hoped was a knowing nod.

    “I was hoping I could take you out tonight actually.”

    “Tonight?”

    He didn’t say anything. Selene started walking and he joined her, the parchment hovering along beside them. She didn’t say anything as she returned them to their shelves, counting them just in case he had sneakily taken one of them. She headed out of the office and he followed.

    There were still a few stragglers in the atrium. Rabastan was still waiting for her answer, he hadn’t said another word. Content to hold his position. He stood close like he usually did, his shoulder nudging against her every few steps. Maybe he couldn’t feel it underneath the thick wool. His step shortened and he tensed as a group of wizards in uniform robes strode past them towards the Auror offices.

    They reached the floos. “If we’re doing things properly,” Selene said, “a last minute invite doesn’t quite fit, Mr Lestrange.”

    Rabastan smacked his lips and his face stretched into a wide smile. He enjoyed the game of it Selene noted. He didn’t want it to be easy. “You’re very right, Miss Selwyn. I’ll send you a date. But I believe I already gave you permission to call me Stan.”

    As they spoke, the floo two fireplaces down from the two of them roared and a man stepped out with a bunch of flowers. Carnations. Her mother had told her they were cheap, nasty flowers. They had always been Selene’s favourites though, in any colour.

    “Alright, Stan,” Selene started, getting into her role with a flirtatious smile. “It’s a date. Good evening.” Rabastan was holding her hand in his and had just kissed it as usual when the other man walked past.

    He was the true professional.

    Not a step out of place or broken stride.

    Not even a blink in her direction.

    Remus Lupin continued walking as though he had never met her in his life.

    Rabastan guided her into the fireplace with the hand he was still holding. “Until tomorrow.” She managed to keep her smile fixed as the flames took her away.

    In the distance she saw Remus disappear into a Ministry lift. He was too far from her to see his expression.

    She didn’t know whether to wait at the restaurant or try to find him. Would he know she was coming home? Did he hear that Rabastan wasn’t about to follow?

    If Remus was still at the Ministry she couldn’t send a patronus there but if she sent one to his flat would he get it in time?

    Maybe she would give it ten minutes.

    She cast homium revelio like Remus has taught her. She had made a habit of doing it anytime she got home or went anywhere she expected to be alone. She also drew her blinds to half height and turned on a lamp she now kept by the window. It was a signal to anyone outside she was alone and they could come in. Remus never apparated directly in, just in case.

    As though nothing had changed, she got ready. Rushed hands smothered sleak-eazy’s shine potion through her hair. She put on her slinkiest backless dress and most dangerous high heels. If she was going to explain herself, looking amazing would help.

    She left a coded note on the table and turned off the lamp. She decided it was best if she apparated to the club. It was four buildings in the same Georgian crescent, magically joined and concealed from muggles, even the ones that walked past didn’t see the entrance. A glasshouse served as the apparition point, soundproofed for additional protection. It was filled year round with roses, lilies and peonies in full bloom. They were larger than life and just a hint of the decadence to be found inside.

    Selene squirmed, it wasn’t unreasonable that somebody might know Lestrange here. Sure, the owners were outspoken supporters of Dumbledore’s and Stan would never set foot in it but that didn’t mean someone wouldn’t mention it off-handedly.

    No, she was being over cautious. They’d have to know there was any reason to mention it and why would they? It wasn't public yet and it was doubtful anyone would remember her from one gossip column weeks ago.

    Selene waited in the adjoining courtyard, on a cool iron bench that faced out into the crescent. About two minutes later, a shadowy figure emerged from the glass house.

    “Remus?”

    Thank Merlin, he was here.

    “You look incredible.”

    Remus kissed her deeply, pulling her in close and running his hand through her hair. She was very tempted to call the whole date off and just stay in bed.

    “Are you alright? What did Lestrange want?” He asked as he pulled away.

    Was it time to come clean? Remus’ eyes were searching her, a relentless gaze.

    “He didn’t take his wand out at all did he?”

    Selene gulped.

    He had.

    She nodded slowly, realising the implication of this question.

    They had, of course, decided on the questions they would ask to ensure a polyjuiced imposter couldn’t take their place but a wand meant a possible imperious attack. Would she even remember if he had? Surely he wouldn’t in the middle of the Ministry of Magic.

    “What essay were we working on together in sixth year Charms when we got kicked out for eating in the library?” Remus asked her, rubbing gentle circles over her shoulders and down her bare back. His hands continued their path down and Selene wondered if he was distracting her on purpose.

    “Disillusionment Charms. What were we eating?”

    “Sausage rolls, so we absolutely should have been kicked out.” Laughed Remus.

    “We? I think you’ll remember it was you that brought them in! I don’t even know how you got hot sausage rolls that late.”

    “In my defense, you missed dinner like three times that week. I knew you hadn’t eaten before we met up.”

    Selene kissed him again. She wanted to keep kissing him. He was the most thoughtful person she had ever known.

    “You noticed I hadn’t eaten?” She asked happily.

    Remus blushed and looked up at the sky with a suppressed smile. “Um, yeah, I noticed you.”

    Merlin she was lucky.

    “Any gaps in memory?” He asked semi-seriously, it was a far fetched possibility that Rabastan had cursed her in the heart of the ministry but he was right to check. She shouldn’t have let herself be caught alone. Wasn’t that one of the first lessons Remus had taught her when preparing for their little mission?

    Selene thought about it. “None, no gaps even for a second and everything feels normal.”

    “Good. What did he say?”

    Selene had hoped he wouldn’t realise she hadn’t answered.

    It was impossible to lie to him.

    “He wants to take me out on a date sometime. Initially tonight but I managed to fob him off without much suspicion.”

    Remus was far too clever for that excuse.

    “Fob him off tonight? Or for good?”

    He, of course, had walked past them and knew as well as she did that wasn’t the face of a man who had been rejected publicly.

    Selene shivered, once again she had not dressed for the weather. “Not for good. Not yet.”

    Remus draped his jacket around her without thinking. “What does that mean?”

    This was the last conversation she wanted to have the night before their plan.

    “Nothing new, I thought it was best not to rock the boat too much before tomorrow. Rabastan will be there.”

    “Not Stan anymore?” Remus asked waspishly.

    So he did hear.

    “I’m just trying to keep a lid on everything. You know I am.”

    Remus sighed deeply and gave his head a little shake. They both headed in, up a tight staircase and through onto the glass enclosed rooftop. It was like a scaled up version of the greenhouse. The only lights were the lamps on each white-clothed table. Vines of all colours coiled around the support beams, adorned with more luscious flowers. A very well dressed waiter showed them to a secluded table behind a thick canopy of ivy. An enchanted piano filled the space with jazz music.

    Selene couldn’t ignore the sneering look he gave as Remus sat down and how gingerly he handled Remus’ jacket, like it would stain his shirt if he held it any firmer. She stuck her foot out as he turned to leave, causing him to stumble.

    “Besides, think about the information I could get from him. No point shutting that door.” She said as she sat, testing the water.

    “No.” Remus said firmly, looking at the menu with a pained expression.

    Selene pretended to look at her own menu, it was definitely pricey.

    “Helping your brother is one thing.” He leaned forward and spoke lowly in her ear, despite their seclusion and the noise of the music. His lips were a hair’s width away from her ear and neck. She could feel the movement to the air as that firm jaw moved. She could picture the way his throat bobbed as he spoke. Selene was incredibly attracted to the authoritative tone in that low voice even if she disagreed with the words. “If it goes too far with Rabastan, he will kill you, Selene. Or worse. It’s not worth the risk.”

    He pulled away and they locked eyes. She nodded slowly, looking at him through heavy lashes.

    What Remus didn’t realise is that she would risk it all for him.

Chapter Text

    Selene Selwyn’s Flat, London - 25 January 1980  

    Remus Lupin paced up and down the bedroom. Muttering the steps of a plan he had no part in. Everyone had thought it best not to congregate in front of the fireplace, just in case Sal popped in before their planned dinner.  

    Selene had left work at five on the dot, returning to find Remus waiting nervously in her flat, poking at the bars of Pumpkin’s cage. They had both decided Pumpkin was a fitting successor to Treacle, even if they both preferred treacle tarts.

    He hugged her tightly and he immediately quizzed her on the plan. Remus found it exceptionally difficult to fight the frustration her felt at not being able to be there, channelling it into preparing Selene as best he could. Instead, fellow Order member and Ministry official Emmeline Vance would join Selene. She was due in about two hours. Emmeline was to pose as a much admired mentor to Selene. It gave her a bit of authority for the distraction as Selwyn would no doubt be thrilled to make another potential Ministry connection. 

    As for the rest of the guest list, they had no idea. Selene guessed at least ten but the dining room could seat twenty'-four comfortably. She remembered her uncle saying it would be about her work in the Improper Use of Magic Office, hence Emmeline’s cover.   

    It was a safe guess to assume however it was the wider departments they were interested in. Selene had also recalled questions about Crouch and his family so perhaps they were targets. Kingsley and Moody had discreetly upped their check-ins with Crouch as a precaution. Selene only really knew the son Barty through prefect duties and house duties, besides he was still at school, now in his seventh year so he was safe at Hogwarts for now.

    Selene looked unbelievable as usual. The frustration he felt was tipped with jealousy. They hadn’t brought up Rabastan again yesterday but a dark mist had seeped in and out of Remus’ consciousness ever since. He didn’t want that cretin anywhere near her. Especially knowing exactly what Rabastan would be thinking when he saw her. Sure, it wasn’t the backless muggle dress from yesterday but even in formal dress robes it was obvious how beautiful she was. Again, he pushed the thought down. Once they had that rock, it would be put to bed for good.

    He held her close as they waited for Emmeline, knowing that they wouldn’t be able to say goodbye properly with a crowd.

    Emmeline was as cool and collected as ever. She went over the signals with Selene who listened with steely focus. Remus could tell she was nervous, the full moon wasn’t for another week and even then, he could almost hear the weight of her heart thundering.

    Caliban had invited him up to Ardverikie again this month for further talks, this time without his friends or Selene. Werewolf to werewolf. Selene, true to her word had convinced Caliban that for the time being, the moon rock was safest in her custody now she had her own Gringott’s account and her mother’s security box. No more secure place in the world than Gringott’s.

    The two witches left together, Selene apparating them to the gates rather than using the floo. It was the proper way to be polite, even if the house was her childhood home. Another unwritten rule of a society Remus had never been a part of.

    Remus knew he couldn’t stay and wait. One, it would probably drive him mad. Two, and more importantly, they couldn’t rule out Sal having his own plans and using the excuse to send a friend of his own to spy on Selene. And third, Remus couldn’t come back until that rock was stored away, just in case something terrible did happen when he was near it.

    He whispered a quick goodbye to Peter and left the cage door open. Remus had initially rebuked the idea but leaving Peter made sense, just in case anyone did drop in or if an emergency patronus was sent to the flat. He still felt conflicted but the prospect of what could happen if they missed an S.O.S had convinced him.

    Peter squeaked loudly and chased his tail to cheer Remus up. It worked. He would be spending the evening with James and Sirius staking out a potions shop that had sprang up last year but only opened one day a week and only sold the most basic of potions any decent witch or wizard would just brew up themselves. A not very subtle front for illegal brewing that the Ministry couldn’t investigate without due cause. It wasn’t a three person job but they knew he would need distracting. And, if Peter stayed behind for any messages, he had no excuse to decline.

    —

    The alley wound around the back of Diagon Alley’s existing shops, giving it a haphazard and jagged profile. The perfect place for a front like this, no one would question frequent visitors and the numerous crooks and back exits made for perfect hiding spots. But every perfect hiding spot was also a perfect stakeout spot. The three men crouched behind a half-height dry stone wall that probably used to section off a back garden. There was a thorny hedge along the top of the wall which gave some extra cover but it wasn’t very high and winter had left it sparse and twiggy.

    So, as an extra precaution, James threw his invisibility cloak over the top of them, and they held it up like a little tent. The three men had long outgrown being able to fit under, even crouched like this so their feet were definitely exposed but you’d really have to be looking for it in the dark evening to see it.

    “She’ll be fine,” James said in a low voice after about half an hour of Remus checking his watch and failing to join in on the conversation.

    “Am I being a git for caring this much so soon?”

    “It’s been a bit longer than this though hasn’t it?” Asked Sirius in a moment of surprising lucidity. Remus shot him a startled look.

    “You knew? Even back at Hogwarts?”

    Sirius chuckled. “Lily told James the whole story at St Mungo’s and he told me to give Selene a break for your sake. And I’m glad he did because she suits you.” Remus continued his incredulous look at Sirius who just gave a non-committal shrug. “You deserve it. But I still think you should be careful. We need to be sure that if Caliban turns against us for Voldemort that she doesn’t follow him and we don’t lose that rock.”

    “Emmeline is there. Selene knows the house like the back of her hand. She’s probably been in and out already and just has to sit through dinner.” James added before Remus could reply to Sirius. It was probably best not to have an argument whilst hiding behind the barest shrub this side of the Thames.

    “Yeah,” Remus nodded, “you’re right. Sorry, what were you saying?”

    “Just that it’s been two weeks of constant surveillance and nothing.” Sirius grumbled, twirling his wand in his deft fingers.

    “What if they’re selling through the day? As part of their legitimate hours? Can’t we just go in and try buy something?”

    “Never thought of that,” replied Sirius sarcastically. It was a stupid suggestion, Remus’ brain, still half occupied with thoughts of Selene, had just spilled out the first thought that came to mind. “Dung has been in a few times, trying to build a relationship with the owner. Some French witch apparently.” Sirius added.

    Mundungus Fletcher, noted thief and general charlatan was a useful, if not a little unpolished, asset to have. His enduring loyalty to Dumbledore was a mystery to everyone but he always came through when needed and granted them access to a society decent wizards weren’t even aware of. Much like Remus and his in with the werewolves.

    “What I wouldn’t give to be able to go in there and just blow the place sky high,”muttered James. “Imagine the explosion cloud that would paint.” He said almost lustfully. “How high do you think we could get it if we shielded the sides of the building?”

    “Higher than your broom could go,” Sirius bet. “But not as high as my bike.”

    James’ broom was propped behind them, ready just in case and Sirius had parked and disillusioned his motorbike around the corner.

    James scoffed. “Right, after this we’re testing that theory”

    “I mean, if you’re that determined let’s put some gold on it. I’ve been thinking about making a few additions to her anyway.”

    Before they could decide on the amount of gold however, a distant but unmistakable crack of apparition reverberated down the narrow alleyway shutting the three of them up instantly. They jostled together to get sight lines through the barren hedge, Sirius even threw the cloak off the get a clearer view.

    It was difficult to make anything out but Remus recognised the opulent robes that Rabastan Lestrange had been wearing just the previous day at the Ministry. The image of him kissing Selene’s hand seared into his brain.

    “Lestrange?” Questioned Sirius. “Isn’t he supposed to be at that Selwyn dinner? Running a bit late isn’t he?”

    “Or making sure he has an alibi if anything does go down after whatever he’s doing here.”

    “Wonder what he’s buying?”

    Lestrange had barely been in the store for two minutes when he reemerged and immediately apparated out of sight with another ringing crack.

    “You don’t think it would be poison?” Remus asked, his stomach growing heavy. What else would somebody be buying from a potions shop so late?

    “Maybe he didn’t buy anything.” James offered, “maybe he was there to check on something. He was still completely buttoned up. There wasn't time to have bought anything and put it away.”

    It helped. It was plausible. “Maybe just putting an order in?” Suggested Sirius. “Dung said the witch mentioned an order book.”

    They continued their silent vigil, all three running through a litany of theories in their minds and working out the kinks before suggesting them. Every passing minute brought a new itch to Remus’ skin. What if it was poison? What if someone had seen them yesterday and it got back to him? Was this witch the potions whizz Sal had dangled in front of his nephew?

    The clouds parted and the alley seemed to glow in the moonlight, the melted snow puddles acting as tiny mirrors bouncing the light around. So much so that the little glowing rat that had appeared scampering around Sirius’ feet surprised them all.

    It was too early for Selene to have returned.

    “Caliban’s here,” was all the rat squeaked in a hushed whisper. Peter must be have hidden somewhere to transform and send the message.

    James already had a hand on Remus’ shoulder, keeping him down. “Pete knows the signals. It’s not an S.O.S, it’s just a message. If we storm in moments after he does, then Cal will know we’re watching the place.”

    “Would be pretty fun to jinx him under the guise of an anti-intruder stop.” Sirius said, he hadn’t taken to Caliban either.

    “Pete’s still watching, he’ll catch if Cal gets up to anything. He’s probably already back in position. Let’s give it another few minutes and then you and I go to check it out. Sirius can keep watch solo for a bit.”

    Sirius nodded but definitely had the look of a man who had already selected which jinx he had planned to use and was disappointed he wouldn’t get the chance.

    Remus nodded and shrugged out from under James’ hand without a word.

    He couldn’t let what he felt for Selene jeopardise the Order.

    —

    Selene’s flat was quiet when Remus apparated directly in with James on his arm. He had taken them into the kitchen to avoid apparating directly into a trap, assuming Caliban wouldn’t be in there. Plus when the heavy doors were shut, they masked most of the crack from apparition. Remus peered his head round first, wand at the ready.

    Caliban was simply sitting and staring into the fire, Remus spotted Peter in the cage as well, chewing at the bars very convincingly. Next to Caliban was the tiny silhouette of an elf. This elf had much pointier ears than Binky, who Remus had seen at their last dinner, so he gathered this must be Mipps. Mipps looked a lot older than Binky, tufts of white hair sprouting from his ears and nose.

    “Hello, Remus,” Caliban said without turning round. The little elf jumped, despite his large ears they were no patch on a werewolf’s.

    “What’s going on, Cal? Is everything okay with Selene?”

    Caliban made a show of checking his now returned watch. “She’s not due back for another hour or so. I’m surprised you’re here. I thought we’d agreed to stay away just in case.”

    “We agreed to drop in, in case Sal sent someone round. I thought you couldn’t leave Ardverikie.” Remus said. It wasn’t a question. At this point he’d have been more surprised if Cal had told him the truth.

    “Selene didn’t say? I said the enchantments penned us in but that was a bit of a simplificiation. We can't walk over the boundary or use the floos but since my father's death with Mipp's help I've been able to visit Selwyn properties.” The elf gave a little sniff at the mention of his previous master.

    Selene hadn’t said. But then again, Remus hadn’t asked and it hadn’t really ever come up.

    “Just wanted to see her flat. We might have lived here together if I hadn’t been bitten and if I hadn’t married yet. My parents would probably want someone to keep an eye on her. We’re all we’ve got left. It would have been my job to look out for her.”

    Remus and James joined Caliban on the seats. James conjured them all glasses of firewhiskey and a butterbeer for Mipps who looked surprised but grateful to be included.

    “You still can,” Remus said. “Selene loves you. She’d do anything you asked.”

    Caliban scoffed. “She barely knows me. I take it she’s already told you what I asked her to do. Seems like it's you she'd do anything for.”

    Remus didn’t know at all what Cal had asked of Selene but he needed to carry on the bluff to find out. Was Selene really working both sides? Is that why she hadn't said Caliban could leave?

    “I don’t think this is going to work.” Caliban said. “I need Selene to be on side to get this cure. And my uncle tells me the Dark Lord has power beyond imagining. But she won’t accept that. I assume her constant arguments are on your behalf? So what can I do?”

    “She is on your side, Caliban. The Death Eaters have no respect or care for werewolves. If anything a cure would take away one of their mechanisms for threats and blackmail. What makes you think the Dark Lord would help?” Remus said calmly.

    “If she was on my side, she would do as I asked. She would use Lestrange to ingratiate us with the Dark Lord. I hear the Lestrange’s have his ear more than any other family. Besides, a cure is also leverage they could use. You should know what a wizard would be willing to do for a cure. What you could ask of the desperate. I’m not apologising for trying to keep doors open. She’s not even trying.”

    Remus struggled to maintain his composure. This was the reason Selene was entertaining Lestrange. Not for more information, the was just a convenient benefit and excuse for Remus. It was to stop herself from losing Caliban again. Remus knew all too well the lengths a lonely person would go to in order to keep what little family they had. Caliban knew that too, and he was taking advantage of it.

    “Your uncle is lying. The Dark Arts are not the answer to a curse no doubt created by a dark wizard.” James was firm.

    “I already said I was giving Dumbledore a chance, didn’t I?” He sounded like a petulant teenager.

    “Then why are you here?” Asked Remus, using all of his resolve to keep himself from physically attacking Caliban.

    Caliban answered by twirling a wand that had been slipped up his sleeve. James’ was ready in seconds.

    “My parents took this from me. Not many werewolves with wands. I think probably less than ten. Even those of us bitten as adults or near adults seem to give them up eventually or have them taken from us under some trumped up charge. At least, those of us who are exiled from society.” Caliban shot a poignant look at Remus. For the first time Remus saw the porcelain features crack. The showman retired. Caliban looked as sad and tired as Remus often felt. “Most witches and wizards don’t even think it should be legal for us to have them. Did you know that? The Prophet did a survey a few years ago. I knew it was in the security box with my watch and the key to Arkverikie. Why didn’t Selene bring it to me?”

    “Knowing Selene,” Remus kept his voice low and steady, “she wasn’t sure if the contract would allow you to have one. If she does anything, it’s to keep others safe. And the Prophet surveys attract only the absolute dregs of respondents.”

    Caliban nodded with the exact same mannerism as Selene had done in Remus’ flat, like he didn't quite believe him. The immediate pushing down of emotions, the return of the smile. Was it acceptance or self-preservation? Despite everything, Remus felt sorry for Cal.

    “Well. Let’s just hope that this rock isn’t all for nothing.”

    Caliban downed his firewhiskey and apparated with a crack. The little elf squeaked and bowed at the two men before vanishing as well.

    So Caliban could move freely between houses now without the elf. At least, more freely than before.

    The fire crackled away in the grate but the two men remained silent.

    “We should get out of here,” James finally said. “Before Selene gets back.”

    He said a quick thanks and goodbye to Peter who was still safely in the rat cage before turning to Remus with an open hand to help him off the sofa.

    —

    “She just shut up shop for the night,” Sirius was already packing up the cloak when they got back. “How’d it go?”

    James gave Sirius a pointed look and Sirius saw Remus’ scowl and they both decided this conversation was best held elsewhere.

    The Leaky was still open and their favourite booth, nestled in a private section was miraculously empty considering the Friday night crowd. At least they wouldn’t be overheard.

    They filled in Sirius with the sparse details they had got from Caliban and the fact he now had a wand and could apparate at will between the Selwyn properties. The two of them continued theorising as Remus’ stewed.

    “Well, that’s not too different to just using the elf,” Sirius reasoned, “the main thing is he’s been able to leave for weeks now. How do we know he isn’t a lot closer to his uncle and Lestrange than he’s letting on? And what else will he do now he’s got a wand?”

    “He did seem genuinely worried about keeping them happy,” James offered.

    "Not worried about us though is he?" Remus finally grumbled.

    "What do you mean?"

    "He's so concerned about keeping his uncle on side because he knows that Voldemort would just have him killed otherwise. And that if he doesn't join us, we won't do anything about it. He's happy to put Selene in danger for his own benefit. He can kick us around as much as he likes because he knows we can't retaliate like they can. And we're letting him just in case he changes his mind and helps us. But he wont't. We all know he won't."

    The other two shared a concerned and empathetic look that Remus wasn't in the mood to appreciate.

    "I feel so useless." He finally admitted.

    "Mate, without you we wouldnt have any of this. We wouldn't even have known anything about it. If you ask me, Caliban had decided the moment we set foot in that place to sign up as a Death Eater but meeting you changed his mind. That's why he was so conflicted tonight. You're convincing him." James said and Sirius nodded vigorously. "Without you, Sal would already be in that study and the Death Eaters would have that moonrock."

    Maybe James was right. It might be an uphill battle but maybe there was still a fight to be had.

    "What are you going to say to Selene?" Sirius asked, "About Lestrange."

    "She told me she was only playing along. But obviously she's doing it for Caliban."

    Sirius looked intrigued. "Maybe, but that doesn't mean it's not a good idea. Not just information about Selwyn either."

    Remus shot daggers at him. "If Rabastan found out he'd kill her."

    Sirius shrugged, "Same is true for any of us on missions. If she says she wants to and she's able to get anything out of him we should let her."

    "She's not in the Order."

    "Not yet. We're always recruiting. Plus we can keep a closer eye on what she and her brother are up to."

    It was lucky they were in public. Remus gripped his hands in such tight fists his nails cut into his palms, stopping himself from doing something he knew he'd regret. His arms felt tense and ready to strike out.

    He was furious but not just at Sirius. His anger was a combination of rage at Caliban, of disgust and jealousy of Lestrage, of frustration at Sirius and of fear for Selene. Sirius was just a conveniently close target, one who had the annoying privilege of being right.

    "None of us are one on one with an inner circle Death Eater." James tried to bridge the tension. But he also sounded wistful, like he would have jumped at the chance to go deep undercover, to really get in amongst the death eaters and bleed them from the inside. "It's a different kind of dangerous. But if we're being offered that sort of access then we'd be idiots not to use it."

    The next order meeting was just a few days away. It wasn't a full meeting, those were incredibly rare, Dumbldore and the Prewitt twins had updates on Selene's father's possible murder. Remus knew he couldn't keep this contained as just his mission anymore. It was all tangled together in one hideous knot.

    Remus couldn't even picture it. Putting Selene that close to consistent and despicable danger was too much for him to handle right now. Especially as she was currently in that cretin's company, risking her life to retrieve the very thing that had likely got her father killed. He just shook his head and downed his firewhisky. He did manage to resist the temptation to hurl it against the wall.

    He had to leave before doing or saying something he'd regret. He apparated straight to his flat from the middle of the pub, incredibly bad manners.

    His head spun about the room, looking for something to vent his anger out when a light caught his eye. Waiting for him, curled up on his shitty little sofa, was a glowing cat. It opened one eye and looked at him for a second before yawning and stretching out then speaking in an excited rush.

    'Back home, specimen secured. No issues, see you tomorrow.'

    The cat disappeared into a thin mist.

    Remus picked up his one cushion and yelled into it. It helped. A bit. But really all that happened was a transference of anger into dread. He was going to have to watch it all play out. There was no way she was going to turn this down.

    Remus didn't have a biological brother like Selene, but he did know what he would risk for James, Sirius and Peter. They were like brothers to him, more in some ways. And that was the crux of it.

    If she was going to do it anyway, wasn't it better she were trained? Was he brave enough to watch?

Chapter Text

    Diagon Alley, London - 26 January 1980

    Selene still couldn't believe she had pulled it off. Emmeline had been amazing, the older witch was perhaps the calmest, most reassuring presence Selene had ever known and she thought a few times how different it would be to have been raised by a witch like her instead of her own family. To top it off, her blonde hair was impeccable, as were her robes.

    It had gone off without a single hitch. Emmeline, with her unquestionable air of authority, had skillfully directed conversation to the loudest voices in the room as Selene excused herself. The vial of blood Caliban had given her unlocked the door instantly, Selene had even been brave enough to catch that blasted lock before it clattered to the ground and gave her away.

    Her father's study was unsurprising. Dark wood and diligently organised. The desk in the centre of the room was identical to the one at Ardverikie and even opened on the press of her McLaggan ring. And right there, in the drawer, sat the rock. It did shine a little when she looked at it properly, and even seemed luminous when she held it up. In fact, looking closer, it seemed to have its own light like normal moonstone. Unlike moonstone, the light was pure and grew brighter once it was out of the drawer, pulling in and refracting any light that touched it. There was a crystalline feeling to the outside of it, straight edges that glinted like a blade.

    Also in the drawer was her father's diary and a gentleman's pocket book. The pocket book looked old, the cover a tattered black leather. Selene couldn't take them with her now, they would definitely show through her robes and she was there for the rock.

    But they were so conspicuous in their presence. If her father had double locked it behind the office door and the drawer then it was important. She knew the first thing Sal would do it demand the desk be opened and he was definitely not above destroying the desk to get to them. The ring lock was a deterrent for wandering hands, not a stringent security measure. It wouldn't keep Sal out.

    She took them both out of the drawer and hid them amongest the book shelves. The diary she placed with a long collection of previous diaries. She doctored the year on the spine with a quick spell and the pocketbook was slid gingerly onto the bottom shelf. She slipped it into the wrong dustjacket for an extra measure as quickly as she could and hoped the disturbed shelves would go unnoticed by a man who would be hunting for hiding places, not searching the obvious.

    After that she just had to relock the door and act normally for the rest of the dinner which she also surprisingly managed to do despite her quickening heart rate whenever someone adressed her directly.

    Emmeline had also complimented Selene for her part when they returned and wished her luck before leaving. Selene had actually glowed with pride at this. Selene did notice however that Emmeline didn't even once ask about what they were there to retrieve. She just turned up, got the job done and left. Clearly this operation of Dumbledore's was bigger than Remus and his friends but it left Selene wondering just how much bigger.

    She felt more confident in herself than she ever had and she couldn't wait to see Remus and Caliban to celebrate and dissect it all. She had written a very coded message to Caliban. Remus probably wouldn't have approved of putting it in writing but she knew her brother would be proud of her. She had also successfuly sent a little patronus messenger to Remus' flat so he wouldnt worry before spending the next few hours tossing excitedly in her bed, unable to sleep.

    She apparated to Remus' hallway, knocking excitedly before realising it was still early and his muggle neighbours might still be asleep. He opened the door, sllightly blearly eyed, and she jumped into him, wrapping her arms around his neck. He wrapped his around her and held her tight, pressing them together as though it had been a month and not a night apart, before kissing her softly. His hand wove into her hair as he deepened this kiss, her hair ran through his fingers like a stream. When they finally unwound, Selene noticed just how tired he looked.

    "Did I come too early?" she asked, holding back a laugh. "I have brought celebratory sausage rolls if that makes a difference?"

    She held up two delicate powder blue paper bags from Fairholme's Fancies. She was nothing if not predictable and it had been a busy morning. The rock was safely stored away in her mothers security box. The last time she had visited Gringotts it was her last indulgence before everything she had was to be stripped away. This time, it was a promise to herself that she was going to fight to keep the family leagcies in the family. To free Caliban and get them both out from the weight of expectation.

    Caliban would not be forced to hide away like all the other werewolves. Remus could live the life he deserved.

    "And, a couple slices of treacle tart for later. For old times."

    Selene put the treacle tart slices in Remus' fridge. Desperate to tell him about her evening of espoinage even though she knew he would probably find it quaint. She could only imagine what other jobs he had done for Dumbledore since they had left school. He and his friends had seemed so practiced when she had seen them at Ardverikie. Like they had done it before.

    She hadn't let it chew at her though. Even after meeting Emmeline had confirmed it. It made sense. Besides everyone had secrets.

    Selene told him everything in painstaking detail. Everyone who was there, what the conversation had been about, even so far as to who had looked at who during the riskier conversation.

    The only thing she glossed over was Rabastan pulling her aside at the end of the evening when Emmeline was in the bathroom. It had admittedly been the most nerve wracking part of the evening, more so than the break in. She had been so convinced that she had given herself away, that she had failed and let the side down. She had feflt so guilty so immediately that her pulse crashed in her ears and she could feel her blood rushing through her brain. It had been so loud she could barely hear was Rabastan was actually saying.

    Rabastan had invited her out on the following Friday, eager to confirm the arrangements that both her uncle and now also her brother had agreed to. He worded it like a choice but it certainly wasn't one and he knew it. She hadn't actively decided to go along with Caliban's wish but her indecision had led her to this point anyway. She agreed to go.

    It would be the full moon.

    Remus was going to be at Ardverikie. With Caliban. Maybe he wouldn't have to know.

    Had Caliban suggested the date to Rabastan? So she could act on his behalf without being watched? Selene still wasn't sure how the deal had been settled with her uncle. The will reading was on the following Monday, after the full moon. They had the stone and Selene knew the location of two books she was sure contained the information Sal was after.

    Selene tapered off her story, unsure how to end it without mentioning Rabastan.

    She knew Remus had been on some job for Dumbledore but she didn't know what and she wasn't sure if she was allowed to ask. Somehow despite telling herself she was going to be involved she knew less than ever. The snippets and breadcrumbs she had were more frustrating than being completely unaware. Each little piece seemed so far from one another she couldn't even guess what the whole picture was. And who was hiding the most? Caliban or Remus?

    No, she told herself, this was big. Getting the rock was big and she was the one who had done it. It was in her vault, ready for whatever research they needed. She forced herself back into her good mood.

    "How was your night?" She asked, digging into her pastry.

    She was so hungry she didn't feel the silence stretch out between them. Remus shifted uncomfortably, tensing up.

    "Did something bad happen? With your job for Dumbldore?"

    Remus grimaced, picking flakes off his pastry and dropping thhem into the bag absent-mindedly. The quiet now so encompassing that Selene could almost hear them drag along the paper as they slid to the bottom of the bag. He swallowed thickly, his throat bobbing as the tendon in his neck tightened.

    "I saw Caliban at yours last night. He arrived not long after you left."

    He did? He hadn't left a note like he usually did. He had agreed that he or Remus being there on Selene's return was too dangerous before they knew what the stone did.

    "He went to get his wand."

    A wave of relief washed through her, she laughed as she let the tenson drop. "I completely forgot I had it. I hid it away before going to work last month and with everything that happened never gave it another thought. At least he has it now."

    Remus stood, running his hands through his hair and rubbing his forehead. "That's what I told him. He thinks you kept it from him."

    That Caliban could think that of her hurt more than she let on. "What? Why would I keep it from him? I need to go see him now. I need to explain. I would never."

    Visions of her distant yet controlling partents flashed through her. Her mother's disgust at her very presence and refusal to talk about Cal unless she was using his as a weapon against Selene. She had used Caliban as a weight of blame or mirror to compare her with. A way to find her wanting. Wasn't that the reason after all she had ignored her uncle's obvious association for so long? Because he was the only one of them who had ever been nice to her.

    Did Caliban think her like them? Did he even know them like that? Selene had pushed down any questions she had for Caliban regarding their parents. Whether they were just as terrible to him afterwards or Selene bore the brunt of it made no difference to her and she didn't want to find out which would make her feel worse.

    She sprang up, determined to make it right with him as soon as she could. "I'll be right back." She would need to apparate home first and use her floo.

    "Wait, Selene." Remus stood and held her hand. He looked almost mournful, like he was about to break bad news. But surely if anything bad had happened he would have said.

    "He also told me about his deal with Rabastan."

    And there it was. Was he breaking up with her? She wouldn't blame him. And she supposed she was technically someone else's soon to be fiancee.

    "Remus, I'm so, so sorry. It's not like before with my uncle. It's just for information," she repeated dumbly, "You know it's not real. I'd never go through with it. Just until we have a timeline for getting Cal safe."

    "There's not much I could say that would change your mind is there?" He half asked with the tone of a man that already knew the answer.

    Selene was so used to expecting a screaming match she didn't know how to handle it.

    "Not much," she admitted.

    "Okay. Go see Caliban and when you're done there's something I want to run past you."

    "You want me to come back?" She asked. Dumbfounded.

    "Of course, why wouldn't I?"

    "I lied to you." Was she really talking herself into this? Her mouth was moving far quicker than her brain which was never a good place to be.

    "I know why."

    When she got to Ardverikie, Caliban acted as though nothing had changed and nothing had happened. Maybe Remus hadn't understood Caliban. He made no mention of Selene keeping his wand from him and actually laughed when she apologised for her forgetfulness. He said he was just glad it hadn't been buried in his coffin at Cambridge.

    --

    Order of the Phoenix Safehouse, Location Undisclosed - 30th January 1980

    Remus had given her more of an idea about the work he was doing for Dumbledore. Only it wasn’t really work, it was more clandestine errands and observation of key targets - be that people or places potentially linked to Death Eater activity. It was Dumbledore who did the piecing together and decided what action to take. He had also extended an offer from Dumbledore himself to meet with her and discuss if she would be willing or even eager to do the same.

    It would be a bigger risk, but the rewards were immeasurable. Wasn’t this exactly what she had wanted to do anyway? Her original offer was just a tenderly dipped toe into the water, a test before the bigger dive. She had all but decided to say yes instantly but Remus had convinced her to wait until she had met Dumbledore before agreeing.

    He had also reiterated just how dangerous it would be, that all this ran far deeper than the majority of the wizarding population would, or could, ever know. That Voldemort had followers high up within the Ministry, known criminal networks and private enterprises. Not just among the elite families either. That the Death Eater attacks publicised in the Prophet were sometimes just people eager to prove themselves to the upper echelon of his followers, desperate for a seat at their table. There was no telling how many people were supportive of the ideology without actually becoming illustrious Death Eaters.

    Remus had offered more lessons in defensive spellwork, even if she didn’t go through with it whilst reiterating that she wouldn’t be expected to duel anyone. It was just for her own safety. And the last lesson had been so much fun that it would be worth it just for that.

    A heavy lock clicked over her right shoulder and Selene turned to the door. Remus smiled and beckoned her in. Selene took in as big a gulp of air as she could manage. Inside, Selene recognised Lily, James, Sirius and Peter all of whom she had already guessed were involved. They were all sat in a haphazard semi circle around a drawing board. Emmeline was there too and gave Selene a nod in silent greeting with a calm smile.

    There were two men around Caliban’s age, possibly late twenties, who were almost identical with rusty ginger hair. One had a tousled mop of and glasses while the other had a very neat combed in style that looked like it was the result of a lot of clever potion application. They were both wearing Auror’s robes and had clearly come straight from the Ministry. And, at the head of the room, Albus Dumbledore.

    Selene felt like a nervous first year all over again. He was somehow both more and less imposing than he had been at school. It was with an almost reverential caution that Selene approached him. She took tiny duckling-like steps before he offered her his hand. They shook and he gave her an avuncular smile that set her at ease instantly. The wrinkles around his piercing blue eyes concertinaed with his smile, his half-moon shaped spectacles had slid down his crooked nose slightly with the movement.

    “Selene,” he said kindly as they greeted one another. “What a pleasure it is to see you.”

    “You as well, Professor Dumbledore.” Selene stuttered a little at the informality. He had greeted her and looked at her now as though he remembered her personally. Which surely could not be the case. Sure, she had been a prefect but she didn’t think she had said more than two or three words to him before today. Yet somehow, there was a warmth in his manner that comforted and steadied her. Parental and reassuring. It made her feel very young but protected and strong all the same.

    “Call me Albus, please.” He smiled. “Take a seat and I’ll try to explain a little of what we’ve been up to in the past month. Remus let me know you were concerned about the death of your father and if we could turn our investigative minds to it. Then, afterwards we can talk.”

    Selene nodded and sat in the empty chair between Remus and Lily. Luckily their numbers were small enough that there was only one row. She didn’t have her back to anyone.

    “Gideon and Fabian have followed the information Remus learned at Ardverikie last month as part of their investigation into the death of your father.” Dumbledore started, indicating the two ginger men. They both gave quick nods and hums of acknowledgement but let Dumbledore continue without interrupting.

    Dumbledore had put two aurors onto her father’s case just because Remus had asked him to. Selene felt a rush of gratitude that sat a bit sickly in the bottom of her stomach. All this help felt unearned, she hadn’t done anything to deserve it yet. And it was more than she had done herself.

    “Everything done in the utmost secrecy, due to the suspected cover up.” Dumbledore added. Had he mistaken her unease and guilt for anxiety? “We retraced your father’s movements in the weeks before his death, including his movements during his last MACUSA trip with the help of sympathetic contacts. We know that in order to retrieve the lunar regolith, there was a struggle between your father and a security witch who had been assigned to ensure its safety while it remained in muggle ownership. That struggle unfortunately ended in the deaths of the scientist who owned the lunar material as well as the security witch.”

    Selene blinked rapidly, taking it all in with an emotional detachment. So her father had murdered at least two people to get that rock. Would she have done the same for Caliban? Could she? It was looking more likely every day that it might come to that.

    “We know this, because we located the weapon used at your family estate a few days ago.”

    The words felt like a prod to the side of the head to Selene. She felt disoriented but alert all at once.

    Dumbledore reached into his robes and pulled out a novelty ice pick with a bone inlaid handle and leather sheath, the top of the handle was ivory and shaped like a beetle. It didn’t look particularly threatening, certainly not like something that could kill two people. Selene recognised it immediately. After all, it was usually found in the Selwyn drawing room on the sideboard-drinks cabinet that housed the rest of the drinks stash. It was barely four inches long, though admittedly very sharp.

    With a steady grip, the old wizard clicked down one of the beetle's antennae which lengthened the pick to a six inch slim black metal blade with a groove down the centre of it. He then opened the beetle’s wings which in turn revealed a tiny chamber housing an even tinier vial. The groove down the blade contained the same potion, the droplets clinging to the metal unaturally. Dumbledore didn’t remove the vial but instead grabbed a peach from his pocket and nicked it ever so slightly with the blade. Tiny ruinic symbols spread from the nick before the peach withered and turned an ashy grey.

    “We have matched the magical signature from that crime scene to the potion stored in this blade. A potion with its own signature like this was likely created through blood magic. A very deadly concoction that kills very quickly but not instantly. Giving the whomever administers it the chance to question their target. Using his trusted clearance through his Ministry position, your father managed to get this weapon and potion through the portkey.”

    The silence that followed the utterance of ‘blood magic’ was almost like a hiss as everyone drew breath through their teeth. The Dark Arts.

    Selene knew immediately of course that Emmeline has been at their dinner with more than one job. She must have retrieved the weapon between dinner and drinks or just before the evening ended. Probably when Selene had been distracted by Rabastan. Selene glanced over at Emmeline who, in return, gave an unapologetic nod as confirmation.

    "From what you described of your father’s condition in St Mungo’s, it matches the thin markings and lack of obvious cause observed on the other two bodies. I think that this ice pick, or at least the poison contained within, is also the weapon that killed your father. As the ice pick can adminster the posion directly to a wound, only the tiniest amount is needed. I think once the victim has passed the potion is all but undetectable in these quantities. "

    Selene just nodded blankly. Remus must have told Dumbledore her concerns. “He was in St. Mungo’s for days after, would it take that long? You make it sound like the others died pretty quickly.”

    “It could have. I can’t say for sure. It would not be unheard of for blood magic to then expect a slower interaction if the blood used to create it was your father’s or brother's.”

    “So it could have been Sal?”

    “We can’t be sure, but knowing that the weapon was either stored in Cambridge or on your father’s person narrows down the suspect list greatly. The evidence we have certainly points to Sal. But it could still be anybody who had been at the estate in the days before his death. Whomever it was would, of course, also have to have known about this potion whicb narrows our suspect list down again.”

    Selene felt multiple pairs of eyes on her but she looked resolutely at Dumbldore’s piercing blue eyes. He had said he wasn’t sure but Selene didn’t see any doubt there. It had to be Sal.

    “For what it’s worth, Selene. I also don’t believe your father went with the intention to murder.” Dumbledore clicked down the other antennae which revealed another little bottle. “As he also brought the antidote with him. But no doubt the ensuing fight altered his plans and he did not have time to adjust. He would have needed to find the regolith fragment.”

    It was still murder. She pictured him rushing around a room, looking for the rock that could potentially save his son while his lead and an innocent security witch lay dead on the floor. Could he have saved them with the antidote or had it all happened too quickly? Was there a moment where he had made the choice to let them die? Had one died as the fight continued and the other continued on? Was there enough for more than one?

    And then the fact that the poison was created with blood magic. So despite what Caliban had said about her father not siding with the Dark Lord, he was still very willing to perform and use dark magic. But it was for Caliban's sake, that had to mean something.

    Blood magic was nefarious and nearly all the literature Selene had read that covered it warned the reader repeatedly of its dangerous side effects. Its uses were almost always despicable. But curing werewolved wasn't despicable was it? Even if the means were undesirable.

    But then, if her father was involved with blood magic, what else was he involved with?

    Selene nodded. The empty feeling refused to leave.

    “Thank you,” she said to Dumbldore and then to the two red-headed men Gideon and Fabian who had clearly pieced it all together. They waved her off with understanding looks.

    Dumbledore seemed to sense her hollow mood. “But we do still have some open questions. For example, why your father’s death was covered up. As far as we are aware, and we have people in places that would hear anything different, the Ministry is not aware of your father’s involvement in the deaths.”

    “Maybe someone at St Mungo’s then,” Sirius Black suggested.

    The meeting was fully underway now, discussion instead of speeches.

    “Rabastan Lestrange has someone in St Mungo’s who informed him of my visitors,” Selene said. “Maybe whoever that person is also falsified my father’s records?”

    Dumbledore nodded sagely. “Perhaps. I think this mixture is the same that poisoned you last month. So I think we have reason to investigate potential links to Voldemort’s Death Eater’s in St. Mungo’s. After all, we know that you were treated successfully. The poison that was slow to act on you, and slower still on your father, can be treated without this specific antidote. I think your father could have been saved and he wasn’t.”

    “Selwyn and Lestrange are definitely up to something,” James Potter agreed. “Getting Sebastian Selwyn out of their way was probably a lucky opportunity they decided to take.”

    Selene agreed with his assessment, even if it was said a little callously. 

Chapter Text

    Order of the Phoenix Safehouse, Location Undisclosed - 30th January 1980

    The meeting continued on after the discussion on Sebastian Selwyn. Remus had been so impressed with Emmeline, Gideon and Fabian’s work that he had almost forgotten that Selene wasn’t there just to hear about her father.

    The conversation turned to the lunar material Selene had retrieved. Dumbledore had certainly done his homework.

    “There are many hundreds of specimens of varying size, just as Caliban told you.” Dumbledore was still addressing most of his speech to Selene and Remus. He had also sat down by this point, the much reduced meeting attendance and Selene attending as a guest had also affected the formality of the meeting. “MACUSA has its own samples, as does our own Ministry, secured through negotiations that took many years. There are also a handful of known private samples held by witches and wizards with consent of the Ministry.”

    Remus sensed that a swift knocking back of any hopes was coming. Selene had described the sample as unlike anything she had seen before but now Dumbledore made it sounds as though Caliban and Selwyn’s supposed potential cure was already being studied by wizards to no avail.

    “There have been multiple visits by muggles, and each time they have taken samples from different locations on the moon. The alchemical make up of the samples are different depending on the location they were taken from. The vast majority of samples are functionally no different to the moonstones we find here on earth, but perhaps more potent, though obviously moonstones are rare and valuable in their own right. But there are others that are like nothing currently known to us on earth.”

    As quickly as his heart had sunk, it leapt back into his throat. Remus wasn’t sure if he could handle the ups and downs. He was certain if he could feel his heartbeat it would be racing. The full moon was just three days away, adrenaline coursed freely through him. His emotions were always stronger in the days leading up to the change. His eyelid twitched at the effort it took to remain in his chair and not start pacing.

    Selene reached a hand over to him, a reassuring anchor on his thigh. She squeezed lightly, still looking forward at Dumbledore. He held her hand, clung to it.

    “These samples are obviously much rarer, and were likely the source of the MACUSA protection order.”

    Gideon and Fabian nodded in agreement. It was the logical conclusion.

    “We’ll let Felix know why they were targeted. She’ll have the contacts to shore up protection on the other samples.” Fabian said.

    “What about the samples the Ministry has here?” James asked, “Are they under protection?”

    Surely if they were, the Auror office, and by extension the Order, would be aware thought Remus. And if neither Gideon and Fabian Prewett nor Kingsley, Moody and the Longbottoms were aware then it seemed unlikely. Surely that was a massive oversight by the Ministry to leave something valuable enough MACUSA had round the clock security for completely open to theft. That however would not be a surprise to Remus.

    Remus could not help himself but scoff. “And potentially do something to help werewolves? I doubt it.” He did not mean to sound derisive but the thought escaped him before he could moderate himself. Another effect of the nearing full moon. “Sorry.” He added but James just signalled no bother. His friends had become used to his vagaries.

    Dumbledore seemed to sit in the atmosphere of the room for a moment, allowing all the racing thoughts in the room to catch up. He seemed aware that there were too many questions that people needed to get out as soon as they could.

    “Are the samples in this country the unique ones?” Peter asked.

    “Who are the private owners?” Gideon prompted, “Do we have access to that registry?”

    “And what are their allegiances?” Fabian added.

    To Remus’ surprise, it was Lily that answered. “We know of one, currently in the possession of Damocles Belby.” She said the name impressively.

    She rolled her eyes at the general blank stares that greeted her. “The country’s leading potion master?” She offered to the continued blank faces. “He’s written about twenty textbooks and invented nearly a hundred new potions ranging anywhere from household to healing to duelling aids. Multi-millionaire.”

    There were some very put on looking nods and looks of understanding. Lily did not buy it. Dumbledore chuckled at his ex Head Girl’s attitude.

    “He’s been a recluse for the past three years,” Lily continued. “I desperately tried to work with him after Hogwarts but he completely shut himself away from the world.”

    “So how do you know he’s got one?” Sirius asked her.

    “Well, after we learned about the potential cure it made sense to get in touch with anybody who would be at that level of spellwork, alchemy, transfiguration or potioneering.” Lily said matter of factly. “Albus covered the first three and I offered to look into the last. I’ve missed brewing. So I got in touch with Professor Slughorn.”

    Remus, Peter, James and Sirius all groaned. They, of course, had excelled at school and had even concocted the complicated potion required as part of the gruelling animagus process. But none of them had ever been part of the notorious ‘Slug Club’. An exclusive club for high achievers and the already well connected, all hand-picked by Slughorn.

    Sirius had been invited in first year but turned it down, keen to stay away from anything even slightly Slytherin related and was not asked again. James probably would have been invited due to his exceptional skills on the quidditch pitch however their consistent and shameless rule breaking was no doubt the reason he wasn’t. All the professors knew about Remus’ condition, including Slughorn and he had never expected an invitation himself. On his darker evenings he wondered if it was James’ association with him that had been the real reason for his exclusion as well. Not that James would have ever accepted.

    Lily rolled her green eyes again, but with a smirk. “Anyway, I met Horace for dinner a couple of weeks ago for a catch up and to thank him for the beautiful housewarming gift he got us. The conversation naturally moved to potion making and I enquired if Horace had heard any more about Belby. He taught Belby thirty odd years ago and mentioned in seventh year that they still kept in touch but obviously this was before he shut himself away.”

    Another perk of the Slug Club, continued access to an impressive network that spanned pretty much every facet of the wizarding world. Once you were in, you were in and had a leg up over everybody else. A prize for Slughorn’s favourites.

    “Well, as a matter of fact, he had heard from Belby at the start of the year and how fortuitous it was that I’d got in touch.” Lily was on a roll now, she even mimicked the way Slughorn would tell stories. The pacing was a perfect match. “And I of course expressed how interested I still was in doing any prep work or brewing Belby needed if he didn’t already have somebody. And did Slughorn know anything about this mysterious project.”

    She had the room completely.

    “He did know a little, well Belby was keeping his cards close to his chest, but did give Horace some clues. As an academic discussion. Horace said that he was well out of professional brewing at his age and not to worry, his research was safe with him.”

    Sirius snorted, “not that safe if he blabbed it all to you.” Gideon and Fabian both suppressed their own laughter as James whacked his arm and Lily continued.

    “Belby had purchased a rare and restricted mineral from an American supplier, half galleons and half muggle money. A bit backdoor and not entirely above board but he registered it with the Ministry all the same. The Ministry probably would have hauled anybody else into a trial and given them a whopping fine but Damacles Belby is a man unto himself. Would get away with anything.”

    Lily finally took a breath before she went on. Her face was nearly as red as her hair by this point.

    “But, as luck would have it. He is now at the point where he could take somebody trusted on.”

    James was sitting with a mixed look of pride and like somebody who already knew the punchline to a joke. No doubt Lily had already discussed it with him and they had been keeping it for the grand reveal at the meeting.

    “Horace had a couple names he was going to recommend, one of which was me and that it was clearly fate that I had been in touch and he would put me forward first before anybody else.”

    There surely weren’t many junior potioneers with the skills that Lily had. It would be a very small list. It did, however ring a bell in the back of Remus’ mind. Caliban had mentioned Selwyn’s offer of a potion master. Would Slughorn know them as well? If they were trained in this country it would have been in Professor Slughorn’s class, he’d been teaching for over fifty years. But maybe they weren’t from Hogwarts, it could just as easily be the French witch from their stakeout. Remus tucked it away for now.

    “I start next week.” She finished with a grin. Dumbledore’s eyes twinkled over his half-moon spectacles. It was definitely a look of pride for Lily.

    “Caliban said that my uncle knows a potions master for cure research when he visited. Is it possible whatever Belby is working on has leaked?” Selene asked. Her thoughts had clearly been on a similar track as Remus’.

    “If Slughorn knows, it’s definitely leaked,” said Fabian. “Belby will need protection as well if he doesn’t already have private wands hired. Anyone who has access to that registry would be suspect as well.”

    “That’s what I’ll be there to find out.” Lily reassured Selene.

    “I could see who has checked out the registries,” Selene offered.

    Remus thought more about their dinner with Caliban. He had made it sound as though Sebastian Selwyn had been following his own research to the lunar fragments. But Selwyn had been a politician, not a warlock or alchemist. What if he had been paying for, or stealing, somebody else’s research?

    “Do we know if Belby is funding his own research?” Remus thought aloud. “Could Selwyn have been a private backer? What if he was close with Belby and used that to direct his own investigation with his own supplies?”

    A chorus of agreement answered him. “Very possible.” Gideon nodded.

    For now all they had were questions. Good questions and solid leads. But there wasn’t much more to say.

    —

    The other attendees all filed out, leaving Selene, Remus and Dumbledore to continue in private. As they were leaving the room, Sirius had tried to tempt Gideon and Fabian out for some more duelling practice but they were both already booked for the day.

    “Can’t today mate,” Gideon sighed, “already promised Molls we would take the boys out for the evening. Give them both the night off. Regret it now obviously.”

    “She always manages to catch us in a good mood and then we end up agreeing to anything. Don’t know how she does it.”

    “Still, there’s a bit of money to be made,” Gideon chuckled darkly, “we put the twins onto the miniature Cleansweeps and place bets on the races. The older three find it hilarious. They’re all sworn to absolute secrecy or she’d have our heads.”

    “Five boys!” Lily was amazed, “I don’t know how she manages them all.”

    “Utter carnage usually,” Fabian laughed, “She’s about a month off the next one as well. I’m convinced it’s another boy. She’s running out of people to name them after at this rate. Thought she was being clever by naming the twins after the pair of us but then swapping the first names round so we wouldn’t have favourites.”

    “Didn’t work.” Gideon added, “Fred Gideon is obviously my favourite.”

    “Whereas George Fabian is going to be my protege.” Fabian countered as Sirius laughed.

    “She’s having another baby this year?” Lily had a bit of a twinkle in her eye and her hand subconsciously went to her stomach. “How lovely.” A smirk played at the corner of James’ lips as well. They hadn’t shared the news with the wider Order yet, Lily was still a good six months off. Remus suspected Dumbledore knew and no doubt Gideon and Fabian had spotted the movement.

    Fabian and Gideon raised their eyebrows at each other. “If you say so. I reckon she’ll be glad in a couple of years once the oldest two are off to Hogwarts.”

    The rest of the conversation was lost as the door swung shut behind them all. The empty chairs were quickly vanished by Dumbledore and replaced with a pair of flowery settees that sat across from each other. They were pink, squashy and very comfortable. Remus sat right on the edge to avoid sinking into the cushions.

    “Selene,” Dumbledore began, “Remus has informed me that you intend to remain close to your uncle and Rabastan Lestrange while we investigate this potential cure.”

    Selene nodded mutely.

    “I will be very clear now. The work we have done and will do in regards to your father and brother is in no uncertain terms, completely unrelated and unbound to your decision to share information with us. If you do not, we will continue on as before. We might not be able to share the detail, but if anything is discovered that cpuld help you or your brother we will share it. We will also continue to try and locate the Kerr sisters to see what they know.”

    Remus was more thankful than ever for Albus Dumbledore. The old wizard could cut right to the core of an emotion in a way no one else could. That Selene’s biggest motivator was her brother was obvious,

    Selene nodded again. “I know. I want to help. In any way that I can and I think this may be the only way that I can. I don’t know if Remus has told you, but my duelling skills are pretty poor.”

    Dumbledore gave a minute shake of his head. “From what I remember, you were a very accomplished pupil and your professors spoke highly of you.” Selene blushed.

    Remus let his gaze wander around the room to stop himself from interjecting. The room was far cosier than their usual meeting spots. The sofas Dumbledore had conjured matched the decor perfectly. The room was painted a dark mauve, even the ceilings which gave the feeling of being in a rabbit’s warren. Like a big cocoon.

    The only thing that threw Remus off-kilter was the lack of paintings on the wall and no photographs. It wasn’t uncommon for the meeting places to have all the portraits removed. The older the painting the less likely you were to know if they had any other hanging spots. Fringed velvet lampshades kept the overall light level low and Remus wondered if it had been a muggle home originally. After all, most wizards did not have electric lighting.

    “We are not short of duelling skills in the Order. What we are in need of are well placed individuals who might be able to act if the need arose. Anything you feel might be important just let Remus know and he can pass on any messages from me. That way, there should be no reason for anyone to suspect you are more involved.”

    Selene nodded slowly. “So you don’t need me to investigate as such, just observe? I think that could work. I don't think I could join up officially, so I have deniability with my brother and uncle. But i can definitely pass on information.”

    Dumbledore smiled gently, “I can't ask any more than that, Selene. We wouldn’t act on anything that would reveal you as the source. At this point in time, I would not be asking you to probe or investigate, nor put yourself at risk anymore than you already are.”

    It gave Remus a little relief but not much. They could continue on as they were and as long as Selene’s curiousity didn’t overtake her or he made sure she didn’t feel the need to prove herself then maybe they would get through this. He just needed to pull her out if it got too far.

    If Belby was already working on his own cure, without dark magic, maybe Selene could be convinced that they didn’t need to continue what her father had started. That Caliban would be able to rejoin wizarding society just as he wanted without Lestrange and Selwyn’s deal.

    —

    They decided to go for a walk after the meeting. Remus was leaving the next morning for another visit to Ardverikie and Selene had her long booked date with Rabastan Lestrange the following night during the full moon. The streets of London were suitably busy and made Remus think of the walk they had taken after Selwyn’s funeral. Back when Remus’ biggest concern was making sure Selene got home okay. Wondering if he would ever see her again. The same feeling was swallowing him now.

    Remus could not help but worry.

    “We’re meeting at The Reluctant Bludger,” Selene assured him, “completely in public.”

    “He’ll probably have arranged another photographer,” Remus grumbled. He had previously shared his theory that Lestrange had been behind the original prophet article.

    “Let him,” Selene shrugged. “And I can act suitably impressed and wowed at his influence. Puff up his chest a bit. That’s when he’ll let his guard down.”

    Remus bristled. Selene wrapped her arm around his waist and he draped his over her shoulder, pulling her in close and planting a kiss on the top of her hair. He was determined not to snip at her. The full moon was tomorrow and his emotions were hard to temper. Jealousy, fear and anger were among the strongest emotions at the best of times. “That’s the last thing a snake like Lestrange needs. A bigger ego.”

    Selene laughed, throwing her head back. “Very true. But that’s the point.”

    “Remember, you’re not there to investigate. You don’t need to get his guard down or do anything to make him suspect you are.”

    The hand that wasn’t holding Selene was thrust firmly in his pocket. He balled and unballed his fist to keep himself from imploding in front of her.

    “I know, I know.” Selene waved her free hand casually in the air. “If Belby really is at the point of taking on more cauldrons then we can show Caliban he doesn’t need them at all and I’ll break the whole thing off.”

    Right, the other cure. Just over a month ago the thought of one would never have even crossed his mind. That’s if what Belby was creating was a cure. They didn’t know what he was doing with his fragment. He would need to see if Caliban was aware of it, if Sebastian Selwyn had been involved in any way.

    Still, maybe it would all work out.

    They rounded a corner to a private crescent park, easily unlocking the gate for their stroll. They sat on a park bench, Selene lay her head on his shoulder and they looked up at the stars. The moon looked full, though in actuality the tiniest little section was still in the dark, waiting for the night after next to transform Remus and all the other werewolves in the country. It was impossible to see the stars in the city, so the moon looked like a punched hole of light, beaming down on them. His heart began to race just looking at it.

    “It’ll be alright,” Selene said, bringing her hand gently to his face, turning him down to her. “Promise.”

    Remus could not control his emotions any longer, but did manage to channel them into kissing her. His lips met hers with an urgency that probably surprised her but within seconds she returned it.

    Her lips were softer than air as they moved together, Remus swept his tongue into the kiss. Every moment of worry, every instance of regret for not doing this sooner poured into his movements. His hands wound into her hair and around her waist, holding her as closely as he could.

    From up above, one of the flats that faced onto the crescent opened a window and they could hear muggle voices. laughter and music spill out into the air. The music was surprisingly loud and carried well into the park. Selene and Remus both laughed as another window opened shortly after and the neighbours began rowing over the noise.

    The music turned up even louder in response.

    Remus stood and turned to Selene, hand outstretched which she took gladly. He wheeled her into his arms and they danced together. Selene pressed her cheek to his and he pressed back, holding her in a tight embrace as they moved. He even managed a passable spin and dip which made her laugh. Her laugh was the balm to all his problems.

    He didn’t think he would ever have enjoyed dancing under a near-full moon, but he wouldn’t have chosen to be anywhere else at that moment. Well, he thought that until Selene grabbed him close and spun them both on the spot, apparating with deft expertise straight into his bedroom.

Chapter Text

    Remus Lupin’s Flat, London - 31 January 1980

    “You will be careful won’t you?” Selene asked Remus as he packed another jumper. He would be spending two nights away at Arverikie. He nodded automatically. “With Caliban, I mean.”

    Selene hadn’t failed to notice the animosity that was growing between the two men. The meeting the night before had confirmed her suspicions. The way Remus and his friends had spoken, they already thought Caliban was a lost cause.

    Selene still had hope her brother could be swayed, she just needed to balance the two courts. Remus closed up his travelling bag and checked his watch. He smiled gently at her and held her hand, pressing reassuring circles into her palm.

    “It’s you I’m worried about,” he said earnestly, “not Caliban.”

    This was the first full moon since she had found out. That week she had shut herself away in her work had also been spent researching the condition. The transformations were said to be brutal and the whole lot of them had looked absolutely run through last time. The days were gradually getting longer but it would still be a long night.

    She had so far refrained from interrogating Remus about his condition. But she couldn’t help her stomach squirming at the thought of what Remus was about to go through. She had been close to tears even reading a description of it. Part of her wanted to join him, to be there afterwards but she knew the floo would be locked before she returned from her dinner with Rabastan and would not open again until morning.

    She pressed her cheek to his, closing her eyes. Caliban had insisted that Remus join them not just for the transformation but a day early to properly discuss everything at length.

    “I’ll be fine,” she repeated. She had said that a lot over the past few days. “Nothing risky.”

    Her heartbeat betrayed her words. Her nerves had been building all week, especially after meeting with Dumbledore. It all just felt so much more important now. Remus pressed a flat palm to her chest, directly over her heart.

    “You will be fine,” he whispered. Selene wasn’t sure if it was her or himself he was trying to convince, but she appreciated him hiding his own nerves. He kissed her, softly at first and then passionately, pulling her in tightly.

    “Remember, if anything, and I mean any tiny little thing feels off, leave. If you need support, Sirius is going to be at his place and if you send a patronus with your location he’ll be there in a heartbeat or you can apparate right there.”

    Remus had given Selene a whistle-stop tour of various safe locations they had set up for Order members so that she had escape routes in her mind if she needed them.

    “I know,” she nodded, thankful that Sirius was also on call for Remus. He had been to Ardverikie and knew how to apparate to the boundary.

    “I have to go,” he almost groaned. “I’ll see you Saturday.” He kissed her again, running his thumb over her bottom lip as they parted. His eyes roved over her face, as though he was trying to memorise every inch of her. Remus looked as though he wanted to say something more, his mouth opening and closing again. His expression was almost pained but he smiled.

    “See you Saturday,” Selene replied with her own sad smile, knowing what she wanted to say in return.

    Somehow she knew Remus felt as she did. That saying it now was an admission it might not go well, and they needed to believe it would.

    —

    The Reluctant Bludger, Manchester - 1 February 1980

    The evening had just begun and already things had not gone to plan. The Reluctant Bludger was a popular private members club with a restaurant and bar, more upmarket than the Leaky and definitely more exclusive in its clientele. On a Friday night, the place was usually fully booked but when Selene arrived at eight, every table was empty. She knew she should have left immediately but she would have felt useless and helpless if she hadn’t even tried.

    Tealights twinkled like stars on the other tables, pin-pricking the space with low light. A well dressed barman was behind the bar and three of four waiters were stationed around the room. So they were not completely alone, she had only promised to leave if they were completely alone.

    Rabastan Lestrange was already sat with a glass of wine at the centre table. He stood as Selene entered and smiled expectantly. She schooled her face to look suitably wowed and not unnerved by her surroundings. How impressed was a witch supposed to look when her date buys out the entire restaurant for the night? It was a move well calculated to give the impression of privacy whilst simultaneously announcing to the other members that they were an item. After all, there would have been questions asked by the other members as to why the club was shut for the night.

    She let the maitre d take her outer robes with a bow. Her wand was securely strapped to her thigh once again, out of view. She had gone straight to work after Remus left the previous morning and when she returned, a gift box had been delivered to the flat from Rabastan. It was a very beautiful dress in an argent silk with butterfly sleeves to wear on their first date. The material had a faintly luminous glow to it, like moonlight reflected on dark water.

    She supposed this was usually considered impressive as well, but to her it felt stifling. She wore it anyway. All it said to her was that Rabastan was a man that wanted to dress his latest accessory in his favourite Slytherin colours. Still, it suited her and she had made the effort to look nice. If she could successfully sell the illusion of interest, Rabastan might be inclined to let his guard down during diner.

    Selene pushed down her promise to Remus not to treat this like a mission. Maybe she could find out what her uncle and Lestrange were working on without having to rely on the auror department.

    “You look radiant, Miss Selwyn,” Rabastan dipped into a short bow and kissed her hand before leading her to her chair. He snapped at one of the waiters to fill her glass.

    “And you as well,” Selene smiled, raising her glass and clinking it into his. Rabastan was dressed in sleek charcoal wool robes.

    The meal was exemplary, nervous waiters ferrying plates back and forth to the kitchens. Selene had noticed a lot of high end and pureblood frequented venues operated in this way, with manpower instead of magic. They liked to know they were being served, to witness it.

    She had managed to keep Rabastan at least two or three glasses of wine ahead of her, logging every drink in the back of her mind.

    “It’s been a wonderful evening Stan,” she fawned over dessert, “but there is something I have been nervous to ask you.”

    “Do I really make you nervous, Miss Selwyn?”

    She looked away bashfully and then back to him through her lashes, feigning a chuckle. “You know what I mean. My father tried to keep me from life so I’ve always been on the edge. Ear to the door but never quite getting the full story.”

    Rabastan twirled his glass between his fingers. Waiting for her to continue. She noticed his smile slip for just a moment so pivoted slightly while remaining on track.

    “You and my uncle are close,” she began, not fully confident of where she was going. “I assume you met at Hogwarts, and you’ve remained close for a long time.” She looked pointedly at the waiters before leaning over the table and lowering her voice. “You know about Caliban. What are you getting out of this? I’m surprised someone like yourself would want to be so closely linked to a family with this big of a secret.”

    “Someone like myself?” He asked, he snapped his fingers again and their empty dessert plates were taken away. The barman brought over a large measure of firewhisky for Rabastan and a gin for Selene, she took spiteful satisfaction in Rabastan’s grimace when she thanked the barman directly.

    Selene felt as though she was hovering dangerously high on a broomstick that couldn’t quite hold her. Like one wrong move would cause her to tumble uncontrollably through the air. Falling, falling, and aware that any second she would hit the ground.

    “Someone with your connections.”

    He nodded as he drank. Selene sipped her own drink.

    “I should have expected Ravenclaw curiousity.” He pulled an expression Selene assumed was meant to be flirtatious. She managed to suppress a shiver. “I understand why your father kept you to himself. I would understand any man wanting to keep you to himself.”

    Selene pulled on every ounce of resolve she possessed to keep eye contact with Lestrange.

    “To answer your question, it’s a temporary problem. Anything worth having is worth being patient for.” He took her hand and held it over the table. “And I am an extraordinarily patient man. My most useful virtue.”

    Selene smiled along with him. Did that mean it would be a long engagement?

    “Are you involved in expediting the solution to that problem? Along with my uncle?” Selene knew she was too close to the tipping point now but she couldn’t stop herself from asking. “Patience isn’t my virtue,” she batted her eyelashes and smirked as she drank another slug of gin, still holding Rabastan’s hand.

    “Luckily, dear Sal and I were already involved in areas of potion work not too dissimilar. Study that might transfer across in some ways.”

    Selene’s chest thundered. She should stop there. She knew she should. But it confirmed that Caliban had asked for a cure and they were at least entertaining the possibility of finding one. Was it really that valuable having five werewolves on side? Especially if you were offering to cure them.

    Unless a cure from the Dark Lord came with a heavy price. One that can’t be paid in galleons.

    “My brother’s happiness and approval means a great deal to me. So if that work helps him, I would be immensely grateful.” She made sure she sounded appreciative, optimistic.

    “It is not well known…” he started but stopped abruptly. Selene could tell the many glasses of wine and whisky Lestrange had consumed were definitely to her benefit if she could just push a little further. His speech had taken on a meandering rhythm. There was however still an unmistakable tinge of frustration laced through his words.

    “The majority of the wizarding population have been hoodwinked and misled, tricked into fearing a branch of magic that has more potential than any other. Mark my words, Selene, that misconception will not hold weight much longer. The Dark Arts are untapped and unfathomably broad, blood magic for example is widely misunderstood. But that will change and those who were foresighted and ambitious enough to recognise it will hold the reins and those who have impeded that progress will regret it.”

    Selene could think of nothing else to do but nod. Rabastan continued to talk passionately in a low voice about the marvels of blood magic and its untapped potential. His eyes were more alight than they had been all evening.

    So the cure they were investigating involved dark magic. It was not a surprise, but hearing it still struck her. Selene's skin prickled with tension and she had to stop herself from itching.

    What if it was the only way to cure Caliban? And Remus for that matter. She was sure Remus would never entertain the idea of taking anything created by dark magic but Selene's curiosity meant she had a harder time writing it off.

    Selene felt it was time to change her tactic before Rabastan became suspicious. His body language was tensing up and she could see that his anger was at a gentle simmer.

    "Can I ask you a personal question?" Selene was amazed at her own ability to still act coy. Rabastan's expression was still slightly stony but he dipped his head to accept. "That gossip article in the Prophet when we met on Diagon Alley, it made a comment on your esteemed bachelor starus and I suppose I've been wondering about it. Why you haven't you pursued marriage before now? It's unusual for a younger brother to marry first."

    That was surely safer but still useful territory. Any serious match would ask that question. Rabastan's sly grin returned and his eyes narrowed with the thrill of another flirtatious back and forth. "Do you think I am too old for you, Selene? Like that article suggested? I thought we made a rather handsome couple."

    It was odd he hadn't answered, he had been unexpectedly forthcoming so far. Selene had checked old records at work, there was definitely no previous marriage license for Rabastan so it's not like he had a hidden or murdered wife anywhere.

    "It crossed my mind," she answered honestly. "But I think connection is the most important thing. Shared values." That was true as well. She thought purely of Remus. "So what has held you back?"

    Rabastan sat back thoughtfully for a moment, a glint in his eye. Selene tried to return the look, a cocked eyebrow and a slight tug at the corner of her lips to make him think she was being playful.

    "I've never had much interest in children and decided to leave it to my brother to produce the next Lestrange heir. I don't care much for legacy in that sense, just passing down a name. I have always been more committed to my work, my own legacy and rememberancr throughout time. Ecentually the names of ancestors are forgotten, achievements rarely are."

    Selene knew that Rodolphus Lestrange was married to Bellatrix Black and had been for a few years. True, they hadn't yet had a child and from what Rabastan was saying, they were unlikely to. So her very first suspicions way back at the funeral had been correct. She was just a means to an end.

    She had never really even considered the idea of having children before, but it sat uncomfortably in her, like deep down she knew she would never choose to.

    "I'm sorry to hear they can't have children." She assumed that was the normal response to that kind of news.

    Selene realised a little too late she had mistaken his demeanour. He wasn't flirting with her, he was testing her. He stood abruptly and Selene knew she had said the wrong thing. He strode quickly round the table and Selene had only just managed to push herself up before his hand was around her jaw, squeezing hard. His grip was so strong she felt some of her weight leave her as his hand tightened, fingers pressing into her neck.

    Her eyes ballooned wide, Selene thought desperately to find the reason for this sudden outburst in his stare so she could say whatever she needed to get him to stop. She wanted to claw at his hand and rip him off but despite her panic she knew it would do nothing but anger him.

    None of the staff moved to help her, they might have flinched but she wouldn't have seen. They must have been either very well compensated or trained enough to look past the behaviour of valued patrons.

    As long as Rabastan didn't have his wand on her, Selene felt she could get through it.

    "My brother is perfectly capable of it," he hissed severely in her ear but low enough that the staff would not hear. "But that bitch wife of his has her eyes elsewhere. I don't care what the Dark Lord thinks of her. I won't have the Lestrange fortune passed to a bastard, even if the father is..." he managed to control himself enough not to finish that sentence but Selene wasn't stupid. Bellatrix Lestrange was sleeping with the Dark Lord.

    Rabastan's grip was so tight his thumb smudged Selene's lipstick and she was sure there would be fingertip bruises along her jaw and throat tomorrow.

    "Patience may be my virtue, Miss Selwyn, but let me be clear.."

    He was practically spitting now, his voice a hollow growl. Selene had kept herself incredibly still through his speech, barely daring to breathe. She just kept her eyes locked to his, fixed to that empty glare.

    "I. Do. Not. Share."

    He threw her head away and she fell back into the pushed out chair. She was half afraid and half playing the part she knew he wanted her to play. He wanted her meek and helpless, unwilling or unable to fight back. If she could just push down the frightened part for a little bit longer, she could leave without blowing the whole thing. It's what she was best at.

    Rabastan sat back down and Selene continued to sip her drink without speaking, as though it had never happened. After less than a moment Rabastan’s usual honeyed voice returned. It was like a switch had flipped.

    "I must apologise, Selene. It's a difficult subject. It was disgraceful behaviour on my part and after already reminding Sal, it will not happen again I assure you."

    Selene noticed he did not ask her to not to break the agreement, he knew as well as she did she had no other choice.

    "Consider it water under the bridge."

    --

    Selene apparated back to her flat directly after they finished their drinks. She was more thankful than ever that propriety prevented Lestrange from taking her back to her flat himself. She had calmly thanked him for the evening and he had kissed her cheek on the lipstick marks he had left and then once again pressed a kiss into her knuckles before seeing her off.

    She stood in her living room for a full four minutes before her nerves overtook her and she began to cry. Painful breaths tore through her lungs and her heart thrummed quicker and heavier with every beat. Without thinking much she apparated once more to Sirius Black's flat like Remus had told her to, finally taking his advice.

    "Hey, hey, hey, whats happened? Is everything alright?" Sirius Black was by her side the moment the room stopped spinning, setting a steadying hand on her shoulder.

    Selene nodded, still breathing heavily. "It was fine, sorry I'm just panicking a little. Nothing bad had happened, I haven't blown cover. I finished the date." She tried to explain rationally between breaths.

    "You've got marks." It wasn't a question. He sounded disgusted more than worried. "Did that fucking scumbag try something?"

    Selene had forgotten about her ruined makeup, but her jaw definitely felt stiff. She shook her head and raised a hand to show she just needed a moment. Just not being alone was helping immensely, making her feel less vulnerable.

    Sirius sat her down in his living room and brought her a steaming cup of tea, sitting down next to her and thankfully not saying anything else. She didn't know Sirius Black very well but he made sure she felt safe, giving her a cosy jumper to wear as she calmed down. She would never tell him but he reminded her of Caliban. He even looked more like he could be her brother than Caliban did with his dark hair and grey eyes.

    She explained about Rabastan's little outburst. She heard Sirius' knuckles crack as she told him, like he would have beat him bloody if he'd had the chance.

    "Please don't tell Remus," She asked him. He began to look uncomfortable at this. "I overreacted and if he finds out he's just going to feel guilty and he's not going to want me to continue. I'm just gettimg used to it. I know I can do this. You said it yourself, its more access than you've ever had."

    "Selene," he began, clearly fighting very hard against the part of himself that agreed with her and the part that had made a promise to his best friend. Sirius had championed the idea and it wouldn't take much to bring him round.

    "Bellatrix Black is sleeping with the Dark Lord." She blurted out and Sirius actually laughed at this.

    "He told you that? Merlin, that's fucking disgusting. Bellatrix has always been crazy but fuck." He made a retching noise.

    "Yep, told me the Lestrange's need a legitimate heir and he wasn't going to share like his brother. Not only that but he is working with Sal and he said that the work they were doing was to do with dark blood magic and potions."

    She had him. In just one evening she had gathered that much and without having to plan an operation or put anyone at risk of blowing their cover.

    This was too good for Sirius to pass up. There was a twinkle in his eye at the possibility of what else she could get. He knew as well as she did Remus would not watch her go back to Lestrange if he knew what he had done.

    "Are you in danger?"

    Again she shook her head. It was easier than lying.

    "Alright."

    "And you can't tell anyone else either. James would tell Lily and she would definitely tell Remus. It wasn't a big deal, I'm just new to this and I panicked. I swear."

    Sirius nodded. He understood the mission comes first

    "Look, I've got a spare room and you shouldn't be alone tonight. We can go pick Remus up tomorrow together."

Chapter Text

    Ardverikie Estate - 2 February 1980

    Remus was exhausted. It had been the longest two days of his life, worrying about Selene whilst balancing his Order mission. But surprisingly he wasn't in much pain. Usually after a transformation it felt as though he had taken about thirty impediment jinxes but upon waking, he would have said it felt more like ten this time. The fact Sirius wasn't here standing over him meant everything must be okay.

    The snow from the last full moon had melted away but the ground was still crisp with frost. The forest canopy dripped intermittently as the winter sun rose. A heavy droplet landed directly in his eye and a predecessor must have been the reason he woke. He was slowly beginning to feel the cold crawling over his skin.

    He sat up and gave himself his usual run over, checking for scratches or bites he might have given himself when transforming. There were almost none, he checked twice just to be sure. His shoulders were often the target for bites and they were nearly clear. It hadn't gone this well since Hogwarts.

    Caliban had shown Remus their usual transformation spot. It was in the Loch. The men had all stripped down and strode into the freezing waters. Remus was shivering wildly when the transformation began but he did observe a distinct drop in the searing and burning sensations that usually came with stretching skin and growing bones.

    He thought back over the past couple of days. He had managed to put his fears for Selene aside while he talked with the other werewolves, reminding himself that if she was willing to risk getting close to Rabastan, he should be putting all his effort into Caliban. If Caliban didn't feel he needed Lestrange, Selene could put an end to the whole farce. She wouldn't have to choose.

    Caliban had spent the first day going over snippets of the research he and his father had undertaken thus far. Most of it prior to the last year had been focussed on easing the transition and testing how various potions and spells interacted with werewolf physiology.

    Polyjuice for example, could transform another wizard into their physical likeness, but no transformation occurred during the full moon. Selene's father had taken the potion at various times in the lead up and during previous full moons and nothing had happened. Similarly, werewolves could take polyjuice but would still transform during the full moon. The curse was seperate to physicality, perhaps bound to the soul.

    Then of course there was the inability to conjure pure silver. Other spellwork seemed largely unaffected. Sebastian Selwyn had even managed to get samples of werewolf venom from the bodies of the wolves Grant had shot. They couldn't be sure if it was another effect of the bullet but those who had been shot while transformed, remained transformed. The thought of that possibility frightened Remus to his core.

    The venom was only present from the saliva of a transformed wolf. If you were scratched or clawed you would not be turned. Similarly there was an ominous note that piercing the flesh with a fully dried and cleaned tooth also resulted in no transference of the curse. Remus hoped that Selwyn had tested that theory on himself but there was nothing in the writing he had seen to say how the experiment had been conducted. It did not bode well.

    Caliban showed Remus his father's makeshift potions and research lab. Sebastian was a vertiginous researcher, that much was clear to Remus. The little room which had once been a parlour on the upper floor looked as though a flock of pixies had been through half of it and a house elf through the other.

    Parchment in a rainbow of colours was scattered around the eastern side of room. The colours must have been some sort of key. There were etchings directly into the wooden panelling that had been burned in, continuations of diagrams on blackboards. It looked like the work if a madman.

    The potions side of the room however was meticulous. Neatly lined and labelled vials sat atop as well as filled a display cabinet with shadowed glass to keep them out of the sun. An argent looking potion in a silver cauldron was sitting at a slight simmer. Remus couldn't see through the glass display cabinet door but he could smell blood. They knew Selwyn had been investigating blood magic and potions but it was good to have visual confirmation. The smell was almost overpowering this close to the full moon and it turned Remus' stomach.

    They had decided that Remus should be the one to keep Caliban informed on the updates regarding his father. That way Caliban didn't need to suspect Selene was involved with Order activities. The previous afternoon, just hours before the transformation he had managed to get Caliban alone and had just been about to discuss it, Caliban instead brought up Selene.

    "I suppose my sister will be getting ready round about now. They make a good match." He was sat lazily in the drawing room armchair in front of the roaring fire. The curtains had all been drawn to keep the winter sun out, it created a false evening before their real evening began.

    Remus was sat just across from him, toying with the whisky he had been given. It was from a muggle distillery and while he enjoyed it well enough, he knew better than to drink before transforming.

    "Why are you putting her in damger like this? You and I both kniw yon't need Selene to impress the Death Eaters. They'd be happy enough to have you as another attack dog without her."

    "I'm simply reasserting both mine and Selene's rightful place in wizarding society, like my father should have done and would already have done had I not been bitten. Instead he hid me away and distanced Selene."

    So it wasn't just a distraction or tactic to buy negotiating time. Caliban was using Selene to bolster the family legitimacy.

    "She doesn't need you to map out her life for her."

    "What about you? If it wasn't for this whole mess with my father you would still be happily not speaking to her."

    "Not happily. I thought she was better off without me. I was informed you had been killed by a werewolf and told myself it was the right thing to let her go."

    "Without even asking her. How very noble. I"ll tell you this for free, Remus. Don't treat Selene like a child. She isn't one, not anymore. Even I’ve learned that. If you tell her not to do something, she'll go in twice as hard. I bet that's how she ended up at the Ministry anyway, because father told her she wasn't allowed to. I dont think she even realised it wasn't what she wanted, just that she knew he didn't. If she does do what I say, it isn't because I've told her to it's because I've given her the choice."

    The men stared at each other, unwilling to break. Remus could feel the pending transformation coursing through him. His blood felt hot and fast, his heart already beating at a faster rhythm than a normal man. Selwyn's notes covered how emotional state pre-transformation affected how the night went. Perhaps Caliban wanted to see if Remus could be goaded into lycan violence. Or maybe he felt the heightened emotions might get Remus to slip.

    "Let me ask you this then. If I wasn't what I am, and you weren't what you are. If we'd all been normal families, do you think there is a world where you would be with Selene? I doubt even my idealist father would have allowed it. Selene was raised in this," he waved his hand around the opulent study, "striving might seem like a romantic notion for a while, but eventually you grow to realise that comfort and security is more important than ideals."

    "I am what I am and you are what you are. I've rarely found any benefit in examining hypotheticals."

    That was true. Once or twice Remus had imagined his father still proud, a senior ministry consultant with a thriving business. He had imagined himself with his own set of skills taking on important and challenging work. Maybe even creating things with his friends. Would they have been as close without the animagus transformations? Would they have done it anyway and he as well? But it never helped. And besides, Voldemort would still exist. They'd still be where they were now, fighting. What point was there imagining a life they would never get to live?

    "How very wise. Noble and wise, Remus Lupin. To the man who has tamed the beast inside him. May we all be so accomplished. Then again, you seem to have achieved the impossible. The biological advantages of being a werwolf and all the strength it affords us whilst keeping your link to magic."

    Caliban twirled his wand again and the flames extinguished briefly before sputtering back to life. "I'm a little out of practice, forgive me."

    "I believe it's possible for anyone who wants it." Remus finished.

    "To making the impossible, possible." Caliban raised his glass and knocked back the liquid, he collected Remus'still full glass and sloshed it onto the fire. "Come, we can get out to the transformation site a little early."

    --

    Remus picked himself up and swept his hand over his legs and arms to knock the melted frost away, shivering heavily. His toes curled tightly as he got his bearings and made his way back to where they had all left their clothes. Luckily he wasn't too far from the Loch and just followed the bank round.

    The others were all already getting dressed, grumbling and yawning. Caliban spotted Remus and gave a short wave. "Were you far?"

    "Just five minutes down the bank," Remus replied.

    "Happens to everyone when they first come," Steve said. "Takes a while to go along with the pack. Few more months and you'll be in the same spot as the rest of us."

    Remus had also spent the past few days chipping away at Steve, Garrick and Emeric. None of them seemed the kind to join Lord Voldemort without pressure. Emeric had been a werewolf the longest, he was the oldest there and perhaps the most cynical that anything would ever improve but Steve and Garrick were open to his arguments. He still had reservations about the muggle Grant so hadn't tried to argue his point to him yet. Maybe next month.

    "Let's head back in, Mipps and Binky will have made breakfast and lit the fires."

    It certainly made an enormous difference to the recovery. The two elves had prepared an enormous spread of bacon, sausages, haggis and black pudding alongside a mountain of mushrooms and tomatoes. It really would have rivalled a Hogwarts breakfast. Combined with the exceedingly comfortable furniture and the roaring fires, Remus felt his energy returning to near normal.

    "The blood and organs from the black pudding and haggis speed recovery like you wouldn't believe. You should also start eating it before the transformation, it'll benefit you even more." Caliban grinned, Remus' reaction to the breakfast must have been obvious.

    Caliban was almost a different person compared to their last meeting and the slight crack the night before. Overall he had been more like the personable, confident man they had met before the last full moon. Remus wondered if his mood swings were due to the curse, didn't he know himself how difficult it was to control? Didn't Caliban deserve the same concessions his friends often had to give him? Now he was like somebody that they could maybe work with. A bit like Mundungus, not without his own motivations, but a resource all the same.

    Remus suspected his good mood was due to him soon receiving his inheritance officially. The goblins had recieved permission from the Ministry to settle the will via Gringotts procedures and the date was set for Monday. From what Selene had said of the first reading and the complete lack of progress breaking the seal, the Ministry department were probably just glad to wash their hands of it.

    It was like a luxury werewolf retreat. If every transformation was like this, with comfort, food and most importantly the absence of fear that he would hurt anyone, Remus could almost believe his condition was bearable. The only thing that would need to change was public attitude.

    "Listen, before you go, you should take some of this with you. Might come in handy. My father had a huge cauldron full of it brewed just before he died for his experiments and it will spoil before we get the use of it."

    Caliban handed Remus a large flask of what was very obviously polyjuice potion. Remus took the bottle to be polite but he doubted he would use it. If they ever needed polyjuice for a mission, Dumbledore had no issue brewing it.

    --

    The walk to the edge of the boundary was longer than Remus remembered but they'd decided that using the floo to Selene's was too risky considering the circumstances. As soon as Remus passed the gate he turned with a pop and apparated directly to Sirius' place in case there was anything to report.

    He did, however, have to think very hard when he apparated to Sirius' because Sirius had a habit of keeping his bike in the living room if he was making adjustments to it. It was painful apparating directly onto the various sharp bits of metal and not something anyone did twice. Or worse, knocking over the bike and facing one of Sirius' ludicrous forfeits.

    "How did it go? Was everything okay?" Selene gave him a good squeeze before her eyes widened and she stuttered, "Oops, sorry probably shouldn't have done that so tightly." 

    "You're back early, we were just about to come and get you."

    Sirius' bike was in pieces and both of them were covered in grease. Selene was wearing a pair of Sirius' overalls.

    "It was good, actually. Learned a lot of tricks to make the transformation less horrendous. It did involve a bit of skinny dipping in the freezing Loch but still worth it."

    Selene beamed at the prospect of Remus and Caliban getting along before putting the kettle on. "Shame it wasn't just the two of us in the water," she whispered in his ear as she handed him a tea. Remus blushed furiously and chuckled when he saw Selene was blushing too at her own innuendo.

    "There's something else too," Remus began. "We obviously know that the poison you father used was derived using blood magic, so is whatever cure he is researching. Caliban took me through some of his research notes and there were about fifty of those little blood vials he gave you."

    "Fifty?" Sirius raised his eyebrows.

    "Well, it's a guess. They were locked in a cabinet but the smell was over-powering. I'm sure Caliban knew I could smell it without having to show me them himself. Showing me without actually showing me. Hard to pinpoint but they definitely belonged to multiple people."

    "You can smell that?" Selene asked, amazed.

    Remus was still cautious about being too obviously a werewolf around Selene. It wasn't that he didn't think she had accepted it, but more that he didn't want to bring attention to it. It had been a relief to feel normal for even just a few weeks. He nodded.

    "Well, that confirms it." Sirius got back to working on his bike. "Sal might not have known what it was for but he was definitely working with his brother on blood potions. It's too much of a coincidence."

    "We don't know Sal was working on the same thing, he could have just found a sample of Selene's fathers potion and used that on the study door."

    Selene moved away for a moment and stared out the window. Remus could see her mottled features in the relection. "We can confirm it. Rabastan told me himself last night they are both involved with blood magic."

    Remus could tell himself it was the exhaustion or the heightened emotions from the transformation but he was aware of himself enough to know that his reaction wouldn't have been much different without it. He was planning to wait until they were alone before asking how her date with Lestrange had gone.

    "You questioned Lestrange?"

    "Not like that!"

    "We agreed nothing that would put you in danger!" Remus stood up and started pacing. "It's not a game, Selene. When we said no one else was this close to the Death Eaters we meant it. If they suspect a single thing is off do you know what they'll do? They won't question you or kick you out of your flat, they'll kill you. And if they get the chance they'll torture you first."

    Remus couldnt stop himself from the lecture, despite the advice from Caliban. It had been good advice, he could see Selene's brow crease as he spoke.

    "I asked him why he was willing to marry into a family with a werewolf and he just went off on his own about it. Any normal person would have asked that question. If I didn't ask any questions it would have been obvious. I can't appear too happy about this. They need to believe the reason I'm doing it is to help Caliban. They already know I have other motivations, that's what makes it believable and keeps me safe."

    "She's right, Remus." It was the first time Sirius had ever even hinted at trusting Selene. "It's not like she had to try to get it out of him, he just gave it up. If she's doing this, she needs to commit or it won't work. Besides, if Sal killed his brother who's to say he won't be after Caliban or Selene next? Finding out what they're planning is more likely to save lives than cost them."

    Remus continued to pace. Sirius was right, Selene was right. He just didn't like it. Of course it was natural to ask why anyone would want to be associated, even tangentially, to a werewolf. Why Lestrange would be willing to look past it. Really what he wanted to say was call the whole thing off. But Selene would never go for that and Sirius would never forgive him if he lost them such a valuable source.

    "So Lestrange and Selwyn are involved with blood magic as well." He finally stated. Calming down. Selene nodded.

    "The real question," Sirius continued, "is what came first. The phoenix or the fire? Did Selene's father get the idea from Sal or was he encouraging their research as part of his backing of other projects? Not keeping all his ashwinder eggs in one basket."

    "Do you think my father was colluding with the Death Eaters in exchange for their help?" Selene asked Remus.

    Truthfully, Remus did think it was likely that Sebastian Selwyn was closer to his brother than either Selene believed. He may have privately been against rule over muggles but that was just one aspect of the ideology, and the least likely to materialise. As Caliban correctly said, if it ever got to the point where the statute of secrecy was threatened the international community would be forced to act. That didn't mean Selwyn disagreed with the rest of the cause or the use of the Dark Arts, especially not if it would benefit his family. But those thoughts weren't helpful right now. He gave a non-committal half nod. "We know they don't tend to help anyone for free. He probably had to be useful to them in some way."

    "You can't pick your family," Sirius sympathised, "and it's hard to seperate the good from the bad. Good people are capable of bad things just as much as bad people are capable of doing good. Just hold onto the good bits." She nodded. "Could be worse, you could be related to Bellatrix." She laughed at that.

    "True."

    "That was the other revalation," Sirius chuckled at Remus' lost expression, "the reason Lestrange wants a wife is because any brat Bellatrix produces would probably be fathered by Voldy himself."

    Selene laughed even more and confirmed it. Remus felt the strangest mix of hilarity and disgust.

    "Merlin, that's a foul image."

    "That's what I said! Wait until James hears about it."

Chapter Text

    Selwyn Estate, Cambridge - 4 February 1980

    Selene turned up early and waited in the drawing room. She hadn't actually spoken to Sal since before St Mungo's. It seemed like an age ago. The night she had retrieved the moonrock he had barely acknowledged her, instead cosying up to Emmeline. She would be surprised if he ever mentioned it again.

    The space felt hollowed out and staged. Everything in the room was still perfectly in place, except the ice pick Emmeline had taken of course, but it all felt less physical. Selene imagined herself trying to touch anything but her hand ghosting right through it. She stood near the fireplace, not even daring to sit down in case the chair's dematerialised behind her.

    "You look well, Selene." Caliban swept into the room. He must have taken a detour through his old room, he was fully outfitted in formal robes. "How did it go on Friday?" He looked exactly like what the head of a respected house should. He wore both Selwyn and McClaggen signet rings, a true mix of both families.

    Selene hugged him warmly, she was glad to see him, to have an ally to face Sal with. His arrival had even solidified the room around her, grounding it.

    "It was alright," she told him honestly. Aside from the blip at the end she really did think she had made a good job it.

    "He didn't try anything funny did he?" Caliban asked with a raised eyebrow.

    "He definitely isn't funny, he's a boring prick to be honest. But he's sticking to his word so far." She side stepped.

    "Good." Caliban clapped her on the shoulder like they were quidditch teammates and the had just scored a good shot. "Got everyone right where we want them."

    Selene agreed. Everything did seem to be going right to plan. They had the moonrock, they were beginning to learn what Sal and Rabastan were up to and Lily was going to be placed near the alternative, non dark, cure.

    Maybe Caliban was right after all, everything was just a series of chess moves and information swaps as part of some great three legged race where each team was trying to hobble over the finish line first. No one quite knowing what was going on.

    "I can't wait to boot Sal out onto his arse." Caliban chuckled, "he's in for a big fucking shock if he thinks I'm going to let him swan about here as though he owns the place."

    As if on cue, they could hear Sal's voice in the welcome hall regaling the goblins on the history of the family and the house. Caliban mimed along and copied Sal's greaselike demeanour to perfection and Selene had to stop herself from giggling. Caliban turned his back to the door as the entered and dramatically rolled his eyes for Selne's benefit.

    "And here we have my niece and nephew," Sal finished for the goblins benefit. There were two goblins but only one of them was wearing a Gringotts uniform. They gave identical nods in greeting which Selene and Caliban returned but no more than that. No names were exchanged and certainly no pleasantries.

    He showed no sign of surprise that Caliban was here and not at Ardverikie. But couldn't hide the sneering look at Caliban's new wardrobe choices. Selene would have thought he'd prefer this to the muggle attire but then again, a jeans wearing and non wand carrying Caliban was less of a threat to him.

    He swallowed it quickly however and rescued his expression into something that could have passed for polite enthusiasm. The Gringotts' goblins were completely uninterested with whatever family drama was playing out before them, already bustling past and getting to work over the will.

    It took less the ten minutes in the end. The seal had been broken with a few drops of Caliban's blood. It was illegal to create blood seals but nobody, not even Selene, was surprised by this either. It almost seemed expected at this point.

    Caliban had inherited the Cambridge estate and the Selwyn vault, Sal had been left the sum of fifty thousand galleons to do with what he wished and Selene had been formally granted a thousand galleons and a few ornaments, antiques and jewelry. Caliban tapped his wand to the parchment and the listed items flew from their current positions and gathered themselves in her room.

    It was enough to leave the flat. If she needed to, she had enough to go. Despite whatever was going on with Caliban, Sal, Lestrange and even Remus, Selene felt comforted knowing that an escape route had been left open to her by her father.

    If anything it confirmed that his coldness had probably been much like her own, unintentional even. He had made the provision for her after all. He wouldn't have asked her to marry Lestrange, she felt sure of it.

    Caliban squeezed her hand and smiled. Sal looked pleased. Fifty thousand was more than she had receieved and more than he really could have expected. The goblins remained impassive as they collected their fee and left briskly, it was almost half of what Selene's inheitance was. Illegal work paid well. They didn't care to stick around.

    "Right," Caliban rubbed his hands together, "Uncle Sal, a deal is a deal. Let's go up to the study and you can take what you'd like."

    The three of them marched upstairs. The first time she had come up Selene had been terrified, the second time on her mission she had been wary but full of adrenaline, now she felt a new confidence that whatever came next she could handle it.

    Caliban gripped the handles and the snakes retreated of their own accord. Selene caught them quickly before they clattered to the ground, having narrowly avoided this on her last visit. Sal squinted at her and Selene was almost expecting an apology for last time but it never came.

    Instead, he immediately strode over to the desk and pressed his Selwyn ring into the ring slot. Selene started to sweat. She didn't have a Selwyn ring so couldn't have checked for another secret drawer. Caliban too, tensed slightly and turned his own ring on his finger, fidgeting.

    Selene sighed when an empty drawer popped open. Sal took on the same fevered anger he had the last time and began ripping out the other drawers and tossing the contents out onto the floor. He only managed to get through three before he was pushed back into the chair by Caliban who now had his wand out.

    "Careful with my possesions, uncle. Let's look together shall we?"

    Sal grimaced but acquiesced.

    Selene froze as Sal rose again and started searching the bookshelves. Caliban continued searching the desk. He hadn't even asked what to look for.

    Selene hadn't told Caliban or Remus or anyone about the two books she had moved and didn't want to give any clue as to their whereabouts now. In all honesty she had half forgotten about them and half not known what to do about them. She wanted to know what they were before she decided who to take them to, if anyone. But she doubted now that she would get that chance.

    It was clear now to Selene that Caliban knew a lot more about Sal than he had implied.

    It was also clear they both knew the book was here and would remain here until it was found. She wasn't going to be able to keep it from both of them.

    Sal passed over the diaries quickly, ignoring them in favour of the huge legal tomes and various textbooks that filled the lower shelves. So he knew of the book but didn't know what it looked like. It was tiny after all, probably less than a hundred pages.

    She mirrored him on the other side of the room, crouching over the shelf she knew contained the little black book and hiding the shelf from view. She slipped her wand from her sleeve discreetly and copied the book non verbally, fake dustjacket and all before replacing the real one on the shelf. Duplication had always been one of her stronger charms and transfiguration skills.

    She shifted over a few cases and waited a few minutes before she spoke. "This book doesnt match it's cover," she pretended to sound curious, looking at the first page and flipping it in her palms. As expected, Sal snatched it from her grip and examined it himself.

    "Excellent." Was all he said before striding out the room with it. They heard the rush of the floo downstairs within moments.

    "What on earth was that?" She rounded on Caliban who had taken up her father's chair and was leafing through the desk. He looked up with a face of mild amusement. "What deal? Did you know the whole time he was after a book? What's inside it?"

    "Relax, Selene. Despite how desperate Sal is for that book, its nothing new. Just a very rare potions book father had found in his research. It has a few chapters Sal has been looking for. Best guess is that there are fewer than ten copies of that book floating around."

    "A book? Sal nearly killed me for a book?"

    "I think the Dark Lord impresses upon results in his followers."

    "What's in it?"

    "You know the answer to that already, Silly."

    "I want to hear you say it."

    "It is a very specialised book concerning the interactions between blood magic spells and potioneering." He said flatly, like it bored him. The confirmation felt hollow. Selene found herself barely blinking at his words. She supposed that's how it's starts, hear it enough and you think it's a totally normal thing to be doing. She had to keep reminding herself it wasn't, even as she checked for the original in her pocket just to be sure it was there.

    "What's he going to do with it?"

    "That's up to him." Caliban had unfurled a roll of parchment over the desktop and weighed it down with a number of ornate glass paperweights. Selene had bought them for her father after getting her job at the ministry, a peace offering after her first paycheck. It had ended in another argument so she was surprised he had kept them.

    "You don't care at all?"

    "Selene, there are things that we can't control and things that we can. Sure the book is rare, but it is not singular. Maybe it would have taken him a few more months or a year or Merlin knows how long but he would source another copy, just like father did. And this way Sal owes us."

    "So what's this deal then?" Selene traced the spines of years worth of her father's diaries, feeling for the one she had hidden. Sal might not have been interested in both books but she certainly was.

    "The deal is that he can use that book for whatever he had planned for it but that he also uses whatever it is in that book that father was going to use in his own research. Father didn't have a chance to test his theories once he'd located that book. Also that he leaves this house immediately, and goes back to his own."

    "Are you going to stay here?" She asked.

    "Yes, and you can too if you'd like." He finally looked up and grinned at her. "We've got the run of the place now, sister."

    "You don't want to stay at Ardverikie? With..." Selene trailed off, unsure what the word was but she guessed it probably wasn't pack.

    "The rest of the pack?" Caliban finished, once again highlighting her timid ignorance despite dating and being related to werewolves. "Well, none of us really chose to be there if you know what I mean. Most of us were all but forced by our parents or had nowhere else to go. Besides, it's your house now Selene."

    "I meant what I said, I would never kick anybody out of their home. I don't really see it as mine anyway, I'm just the legal guardian of it."

    "Which brings us neatly to this," Caliban swept an arm over the collection of documents he'd set out. "This is the other half of the contract that binds us to Ardverikie. We're going to break it so that the boys can see their families again."

    "I thought you said we couldn't?"

    "I said it wasnt that simple, and it wasn't, not with the moonrock in the way. I couldn't safely get to it until now."

    Selene hesitated. Would breaking this contract mean that during the full moon the wolves could break free of the boundaries? Did it matter? Surely it wasn't up to her if the men wanted to leave, she was no jailer. But the thought of knowingly allowing a pack of werewolves to potentially transform near people bristled her.

    "Unless you think they deserve to be locked up?" Caliban queried.

    "Of course not! If they did want to stay though, would it still keep them safe during the full moon?"

    "That's the other half of the contract, don't worry." He reassured her. "This one is for the floo and the human boundary. To protect the secret. When I get back, we'll replace this with some good old fashioned tongue-ties."

    "Okay, what do we need to do?"

    Caliban suddenly looked bashful. She didn't need to ask.

    She couldn't, could she?

    "I'll do the spellwork, you just need to say a few words and a couple of drops and that's it." He was already unpacking vials and notes from his robes. "I wouldn't ask if it wasn't the only way."

    Selene paced around the study. Looking at everything again, was every aspect of her family tainted by dark magic? Dark magic was supposed to corrupt the user, would one spell be enough? Was it a reasonable cost for another person's freedom?

    Almost all the books kept behind those closed doors were darker than any found at Hogwarts, even if not all were directly describing the Dark Arts. How long had it been like this? How had she not noticed it?

    Was it true then, could you study them without the rest of the baggage that came with the Dark Lord? Without the ideology behind it, it was just magic. Using it to free people was surely different that using it for suffering.

    ---

    Selene Selwyn’s Flat - 4th February 1980

    Selene had the rest of the day off and had intended on seeing Remus but she had to fight to find the energy to floo to her flat let alone apparate to see Remus. She couldn't even conjure a patronus so she sent an owl over to let him know she had returned and had some administrative tasks to see to but she would meet him in town later.

    Selene struggled against the fog clouding her brain. She sighed out a heavy breath and forced herself to draw in another. She barely remembered how she had got home, the last image she could recall was Sal leaving the study with the blood magic book and then flashes of an argument with Caliban. The rest of the morning was out of her reach, she couldn't believe it had been three hours since Sal had left, it certainly hadn't felt like it.

    Just before she went home, Caliban warned her not to get too comfortable with Remus and Dumbledore's organisation. That they could only really trust each other especially where the family was concerned. Did he know she had taken a copy and planned to share it with Remus?

    The book! Her heart thunked. She patted desperately at her robe pocket and calmed when she could feel she still had it.

    Even her vision was hazy and she hoped it would clear soon. She didn't understand inheritance magic and had never heard of it taking such a toll before, especially for such a small sum but she couldn't think of any other cause.

    She dragged her feet through to her bathroom, swaying every few steps until she reached her potions cabinet. She still had some healing potions left from her St Mungo's visit. Her eyes couldn't focus on the labels so she uncorked and drank each one in turn, hoping they wouldn't interact with each other.

    They helped immensely. Enough to stop her head spinning and her vision cleared. An idea came to her.

    "Binky, Mipps?" she called out. Not a second later the little elves appeared beaming up at her. "How are you getting on in Ardverikie?"

    "Hello, Miss. Very well, Mr Caliban's friends are very appreciative and kind to Binky and Mipps." Binky said and Mipps nodded.

    "That's good, I'm glad to hear it. I was wondering if you could please go to Diagon Alley and purchase some pepper-up potion for me. Say three flasks worth?"

    "Of course, Miss."

    Selene gripped onto the edge of the cool porcelain sink for just a few more moments, anchoring herself to it as the potions continued to work. She could see the shadow of a long gash that travelled up the side of her arm. Had that been there before? She shook her head a little to test if she was imagining it and nearly toppled herself over from the small movement.

    When she could finally keep her balance she tapped at her pockets and groaned.

    "I haven't got any galleons on me, I'll need to go to Gringotts first, maybe once I've had a little sleep."

    She was just about to ask one of the elves to apparate her the twenty odd steps to her bed when Mipps piped up.

    "Mipps can get you the potion, Miss. Mipps used to go for your father and the shopkeeper knows Mipps."

    "That would be wonderful Mipps, can you also get some wound lotion and let them know I'll settle up when I can, including anyhing left on my father's tab."

    The elf nodded and vanished immediately. Selene splashed some cold water on her face while she waited for Mipps. She didn't look any different in the mirror and she convinced herself the feeling would pass.

    The pepper-up did the trick. It was perfect and even went down more smoothly than Selene had expected. The shopkeeper had also included a sample of a vitality tonic that her father hadn't picked up which had Selene completely back to normal, even if the morning was still a haze for her.

    --

    Leaky Cauldron, London - 4th February 1980

    "A thousand," Selene finished telling Remus about the will reading. Remus had cast muffliatio, a useful spell from school, to ensure they wouldn't be overheard. Remus nodded along. "Sal got fifty thousand but one is one more than I was expecting. Also some jewelry but I forgot to take that away with me after everything."

    "After what?" Remus looked concerned.

    "After we went to the study," Selene added slowly, trying to recall herself but not managing to. She had spoken before her brain had even caught up. "Figured out what Sal's been looking for all this time. Some rare book about blood magic and potions."

    Remus' eyes narrowed and she could see his brain continuing to piece things together. "I wonder what's inside. We already knew they were doing something dodgy with dark magic and potions. We're not much further forward."

    "No need to wonder," Selene slipped the original out of her bag, sliding it across the table. "I managed to duplicate it before Sal got his hands on it and kept the original. I've had a quick look but nothing really jumped out. Dad's made some notes in it but they dont make any sense to me. The whole book was a bit vile to be honest, didn't look like anything close to what my father's potion was like. There are entire chapters the differences between the blood of different creatures."

    "A History of Bridge Ownership and Managing Trolls?" Remus asked bemused.

    Selene rolled her eyes with a smirk, "I faked the cover. Hardly going to walk about with that am I? What if I had been stopped by one of Crouch's new enforcement officers?"

    Remus looked as proud as she'd ever seen him. "This is fantastic. Do you mind if I give this to Albus to look at? I'm sure he'll have some ideas."

    Selene was genuinely surprised he had bothered to ask. Remus Lupin continued to be the most kind and considerate person she had ever met. He had no intention of taking something that wasn't his.

    She nodded happily, "be my guest. I'll be glad to be rid of it. Gives me the creeps."

    That was true, her curiousity had not kept her from reading the little book before meeting Remus but now that she had she was confident she would never want to again. There had also been chapter covering the method to extract blood from the still living to preserve its magical potency and the effect of pain or willingness.

    Remus started to read the pages with a heavily furrowed brow. He didn't seem as shocked or disgusted as she would have expected but he had a lot more experience fighting the Dark Arts than she did.

    He looked determined.

    He looked in control.

    He looked very, very good.

    Selene glided a foot up his leg, slowly stroking the soft fabric of his trousers over his calf. She noticed him trying to control a smirk and caught his eyes widen slightly as he realised what she was doing.

    He continued muttering under his breath as he read, not giving in too easily. She wouldn't have wanted him to. She continued, her own calf now pressed against his as she moved. When her foot reached his upper thigh he gulped and she saw his muscles tense in his arms as he gripped the book.

    He had stopped turning the pages but maintained his gaze on the book. His gaze was slightly too fixed to still be reading. It was far more intoxicating knowing she could do this to him than any amount gillywater and gin.

    Selene had been enjoying teasing him too much. She hadn't noticed his hand slip under the table until he caught her leg in his wide grasp. He massaged her leg, his thumbs rubbing infuriatingly satisfying circles into the muscle.

    He wasn't hiding his smirk anymore, the pair of them were grinning at each other like idiots. His hands were definitely her weakness, she could feel every muscle she had tightening at his touch until he worked the tension out, anticipating the next touch. Remembering exactly where else he had touched her before.

    He didn't need to say anything as he stood, grasping her hand and all but dragging her out to the apparition point.

    You had to celebrate the small victories in this game, and today had definitely been a victory.

Chapter Text

    Lily and James Potter's Home, Godric's Hollow - 13th February 1980

    "It's more complicated than I can put into words," Lily beamed in contrast to the topic. "It's the most intricate brewing process I have even read about, let alone done. I'm learning something new every night."

    Lily had been working for Belby for two weeks, and they had barely seen her. The bulk of the potion work was conducted at night, and so she had spent most of her days sleeping to make up for it. James, too, had taken on more night shifts with the Order, both to line up their schedules and to ensure he was one of the team on watch over Belby's while Lily was there.

    "The potion is brewed in cauldron's of pure silver," she explained, cross-legged and waving her arms in a tangle of limbs on the squashy sofa. The fireplace burned away happily, casting a light show onto the exposed rafters in their little cottage. There were still stacks of books that hadn't found their home yet and half unpacked boxes.

    "That tracks with what we know of Grant's weapons. I wonder if that tip came from Selwyn," Remus added. Lily had all but confirmed the base ingredients of Belby's potion, and the concoction Selwyn had used was the same. Selwyn had just tainted his with blood magic and created a novel poison, either by accident or on purpose.

    "That's what I thought," James agreed, carrying in a tray loaded with cheese and wine for himself and Remus as Lily stuck her tongue out at him in mock jealousy as he handed her a Pumpkin juice.

    "Maybe, I get the feeling a lot of the developments have been quite recent."

    James sat on the floor and cleaned his glasses as he examined some of Lily's pristine notes. He was so engrossed in them that he started to mime along some of the instructions, stirring an invisible cauldron with his wand until golden sparks shot out the end and nearly set his trousers on fire. Lily laughed heartily as they smouldered.

    "And the fire beneath is lit from a mix of six different types of wood. We didn't even start on flame type interactions at NEWT level."

    It was clear Lily was having the time of her life around the potions expert. Remus couldn't help but smile along with her.

    "Have you seen the lunar fragment?" Remus asked, and she nodded seriously. The more Remus heard of it, the more he longed to see it. It was beginning to feel instinctual and obsessive. He wondered if Caliban and Grant felt the same. He had suspected for a while that Emeric, Steve, and Garrick were not kept as informed as the muggle, and his last visit had confirmed it. "What's it like?" He tried to keep the steely longing from his voice.

    "Unreal," Lily said. "You know, I actually watched the first moon landing on TV when I was eight? I'd practically forgotten. It's such a strange thing. I remember it so vividly now and wanting to be a scientist, but it's like the moment I arrived at Hogwarts, everything muggle seemed to fade a little." She sounded almost regretful, Remus reached over and gave her hand a reassuring squeeze, and she perked up again. "Belby has some spells he's developed to irradiate moonlight from it. He isn't using it in the potion. He's only using it to force maturation in the ingredients that can only be picked by the light of the full moon. The light he can generate from it is strong enough to trick the plants."

    Remus had to say he was a little jealous. This all sounded absolutely fascinating.

    "Clever," James said, not looking up from a particularly complicated looking diagram. "If he can crack the potion without using the rock, he won't be limited by material quantity."

    Lily nodded, "and, because the ingredients are the main blocker to the brewing time, he can potentially shorten that too once he hits mass production."

    "Not only that," Remus continued the thought, "fewer potential unwanted effects that might have occured from consumption of unknown material. But if he's thinking of mass production, has he already proven the potion on a test subject?"

    Remus didn't want to dampen it, but he had a sneaking suspicion that the ministry wouldn't care if there hadn't been a proper trial period. After all, it was only werewolves that would be at risk. Belby would probably only have to show it didn't make werewolves even more powerful for them to approve it.

    "Well, no." Lily admitted, tucking her long red hair behind her ear the way she had so often done at school when about to ask an uncomfortable question. "He does have a single test subject, but he says it's not enough, and as he's doing this without the Ministry, he can't exactly advertise."

    "So you were wondering if I would be your test subject," Remus finished for her with a knowing smile.

    "Actually, no. We would need somebody registered if we want Ministry approval. I was wondering if you would ask one of the guys in the highlands if they would be willing to sign the reports."

    "I can ask, I'd have to deliver the potions, though. They can't leave the estate."

    Apparently they had to take multiple doses and it wasn't designed to cure the condition, but allow the drinker to retain full control of their mind. It cured the mental aspects temporarily, if not the physicality, but it was just a start. It could be further developed.

    "I would come with you to observe. Then, we could even compare to controls without the potion."

    Remus squirmed a little. Lily had never seen him transform before, and he wasn't sure he ever wanted her to. He knew she wouldn't think of him differently, muggleborns tended to be less prejudiced, less indoctrinated. But that didn't mean a lot in the practicality of it.

    "Just think about it," she asked gently, "no rush."

    --

    Remus Lupin’s Flat, London - 14 February 1980

    Remus Lupin stared at the uniform in front of him, suspecting a trick or a trap of some kind. He had just returned from Selene's flat. Lestrange had insisted on another date for Valentine's Day, so Remus and Selene would have to wait to have their own celebration.

    The moment she had left, Caliban had apparated in with a package for Remus. He claimed he didn't trust Lestrange and wondered if Remus had anyone who would be willing to keep an eye on things.

    Inside was a uniform embroidered with the Reluctant Bludger logo. Remus felt the material, it was nicer than anything he owned and it was just a uniform. Remus had obviously never eaten there but could reasonably pass as staff. Caliban had also included hair if Remus' agent was in need of a disguise.

    That was the plan, Caliban knew Remus would want to go himself. That's why he included hair and had given him polyjuice on their last visit. Lily had tested it and said it was safe but had been modified slightly. Possibly to account for a faster burn off in werewolves but she couldnt be sure whay the exact modifications were. Whomever he had sourced it from was a master.

    He knew Remus wouldn't be able to resist being the one to watch over Selene.

    There was always a trick with Caliban.

    And yet Remus found himself not caring as he threw back the potion.

    --

    The Reluctant Bludger, Manchester - 14 February 1980

    Remus tugged uncomfortably at his collar before slipping through the back door of the club. The kitchens were quieter than he was expecting. He didn't have time to dwell on it, however, as a paunchy middle-aged wizard nearly ran into him from front of house looking harried.

    Whoever he had transformed into had thankfully been the same size and build as he was, so he didn't feel too out of his own body.

    "Thank Merlin, you're here. The agency said you would be here by seven. Go get Violet back through here. I promised I wouldn't put her front of house tonight, not after what happened last time. But we were so short-staffed." Remus wasn't sure why the manager even bothered to give an explanation, but he was clearly stressed. He hadn't even asked Remus' name, which was lucky because he hadn't thought of one.

    "What happened last time?" He asked but the manager was already hurrying him through.

    "Just stay on your spot and don't say a word."

    Remus pushed through the swing door expecting to come into a busy, mawkishly love filled restaurant. Instead, there was a single table set in the dead centre of the room, the others must have been vanished. Roses and peonies were affixed to every column and wall. A trio of musicians played away in the corner, cast almost entirely in shadow as the only lights in the room were the lit candle sconces and a tiny candle on the table.

    Selene was a light source all her own.

    She wore a deep navy that only stood further in contrast to her glowing skin and dark hair.

    Remus couldn't have said how long he had stood frozen at the scene, only that he was knocked out of his stunned state by a blonde witch who must have been Violet as she rushed past him. He jerked his neck slightly as the waitress gave him a meaningful stare and directed him to a spot with her eyes alongside another waiter.

    And so he went.

    He stood sentry next to the other waiter who hadn't said a word as he joined him silently. They couldn't hear the conversation from where they were and Remus guessed some spellwork had been involved. Every so often Selene would smile or laugh but in the hollow way she had before the funeral. None of it real. He doubted Lestrange would notice, she was playing the part perfectly.

    What had happened last time?

    When Lestrange finished his glass the waiter hurried over quickly to refil it, and when Selene finished hers he gave Remus a sharp nudge with his elbow and tipped his head towards a crystal carafe on the bar.

    Remus tried to copy the upright walk of the professional and managed a passable approximation. As he approached, he must have crossed whatever spellwork obscured their voices.

    "It must be a relief to have the succession sorted at last." Rabastan would have heard about the will from Sal.

    "A big relief, especially now Caliban is so close by." Was that a reminder to Lestrange that she had someone looking out for her?

    Remus poured the wine with a steady hand. He could hear Selene's heart racing and he could just feel her nervous energy. With a sick sense of dread he suspected she was going to try and get information from Lestrange.

    "Is my uncle pleased with his new reasearch material?" She asked.

    He wasn't fast enough to think of a way to stop her without blowing both of their covers. Spilling the wine would do nothing but get him removed from the room.

    Selene looked up and smiled at him as she thanked him for the wine. He bowed ever so slightly before retreating. The smell of her hair and perfume followed him back to the wall, embracing his very being.

    It was maddening. His muscles were hard and tense as he stood there. All he could do was just stand there. A hundred scenarios flicked through his brain, most of them involving him beating Rabastan Lestrange to a pulp. Every flicker of concern or worry or even at one point sadness that crossed Selene's face was like a body blow to his stomach. What was she asking him?

    As they moved on to dessert, all he could do to keep himself sane was stare at Selene, remind himself she was there. She was doing well. But that didn't stop Remus' nerves every time Lestrange tensed or moved his arm in a way that could have been a reach for his wand.

    He may have also enjoyed imagining himself ripping Lestrange limb from limb.

    When the meal ended whatever enchantment they had broke completely. The other waiter gave Remus a hand signal that may as well have been gobbledegook but he followed along as best he could, clearing away the table. The music was louder, filling the room with a low melody played by a tiny wizard on a double bass.

    Rabastan stood and walked round to Selene who was already on her feet. He raised a hand to invite her to dance and she flinched.

    It was minute and she had pulled herself together quickly but Remus' senses had caught it. Along with a rapid stutter in her heart beat.

    Remus had an idea what had happened last time.

    He was going to kill him. He finally saw the real advantage of physical combat. It would be so much more satisfying to feel Lestrange break under him.

    The other waiter vanished the table and returned to his spot against the wall and motioned for Remus to join him.

    It was as though the evening had been designed to torture him. He had barely looked at Lestrange all night and only then realised this was the closest he had ever been to the man. For all that his reputation suggested, Remus found himself distinctly unimpressed.

    The pair danced in the restaurant and Remus wanted scratch and claw at his own skin with the effort it took to remain where he was. He kept reminding himself that it was safer for Selene this way. That no matter how desperately he wanted to take that cretin's hands from her waist that it would just put her in danger.

    He would be doing it for himself, not for her.

    But he had never wanted anything more.

    It wasn't even close to the full moon but every heavy pulse from Selene pounded in his ears like a drum beat, every bead of sweat as she kept herself there hung in the air.

    And the worst thing was he was part of the reason she was there.

    She might have just left if it weren't for him. Caliban could have stayed secret in Ardverikie, maybe she would have just let Caiban join the Death Eaters and kept out of it. She could have left the country.

    Caliban.

    Had he designed this just to torture Remus or had he seen something in Selene that Remus had missed? Was there a chance his suspicion of Lestrange was genuine?

    The song ended and Remus let a tiny bit of the tension leave his jaw. It would be over soon. He shivered as Rabastan ran his hand down Selene's spine before they stepped apart.

    He let his hand sit heavily on her lower back, stopping her from getting away completely. Selene smiled at him but Remus could see her trying to step back.

    At last Lestrange stepped away. He slipped his hand into his robes and the other waiter physically held Remus back before he even realised he had made to step in, suspecting Lestrange was going for his wand.

    "Don't move," he muttered. "You're worse than Violet." He sounded frustrated.

    Instead, Lestrange pulled out a long velvet box, opening it for Selene before dangling a glittering diamond bracelet on a single finger. At least it wasn't cursed. Remus couldn't take his eyes from it.

    That bracelet was no doubt worth more than everything Remus owned put together. He doubted he would ever in his life be able to afford to give Selene a bracelet like that, and here was Lestrange giving it after less than a months almost engagement.

    Lestrange took hold of her arm and deftly fastened it to her wrist. His grip lingering on her arm before she could drop it. "Think of this as a promise and an apology," he said, his words cutting through the gaps in the music. "Let's get out of here and continue the evening."

    She should say no. Remus had gone over it a thousand times, never be alone with a Death Eater. Selene hesitated, Remus thought he could see the pulse in her neck rushing and he could definitely hear it quicken. So much so it was almost frantic. The bracelet caught the low light and sparkled as Lestrange finally let go of her arm which she shakily let drop. It suited her.

    Was Caliban right, did it always eventually come down to class and blood status? Regardless of everything else.

    Selene looked back up from the bracelet and her eyes widened like a frightened cat. What little colour had been left in her face drained away.

    She was staring right at him.

    Remus only just realised the clawing feeling he had felt earlier had only been half jealousy. The other half was the polyjuice wearing off.

    He had forgotten to drink another dose and had been so preoccupied with Selene that he hadn't realised what he was feeling was as much physical as emotional.

    Her eyes darted frantically between the two men and Remus watched the concentration on her face as she tried to adapt.

    "Yes, let's go," she stammered quickly, before grabbing Lestrange by the hand. Lestrange apparated immediately before Remus could so much as intervene.

    The silence that followed was abrupt. He'd blown it.

    She had gone with Lestrange to protect him.

    If anything happened after this it was on him.

    Remus was knocked from his thoughts once more by the manager who bustled in moments after they left. He gave Remus a squinting look, assessing him for a moment like he was trying to decide if his memory was going or if the man before him really had changed his face. He shook his head a little, deciding the stress of the evening had got to him.

    He picked up Remus' arm and dropped a handful of galleons into his palm, closing his fingers back over them. Remus still wasn't in control of his movements, his guilt blocking everything.

    "A gift from the host for the evening," he grinned. "Remember not a word to anybody about anything or anyone you saw tonight. There's more where that came from for private events too."

    It was more money than Remus would normally have made in a month but it felt heavy and uncomfortable in his hand, like it was sinking into his flesh.

    Remus left as soon as he could, he gave half of his pay to the blonde witch Violet. She had initially refused it but begrudgingly accepted it when he insisted. She told him that she had had a bad experience with a boyfriend before. That the last time Lestrange had put his hand around Selene's neck and seeing it had made her ill. She had tried to intervene but Ethan, the other waiter, had kept her back.

    Remus tried to reassure her that it would have just been worse for both of them if she had before he rushed out and immediately apparated to the street outside Selene's flat.

    The lights were still out and Remus wrestled with the choice of staying and waiting for the signal or continuing to apparate to anywhere Selene might have taken Lestrange. Everywhere he thought of however was a place where his appearance would certainly signal Selene as an Order informant if a stranger popped in unannounced.

    So he did the only other thing he could think of, he called for his friends.

Chapter Text

    The Outskirts of the Lestrange Estate, the South'East Coast- 14th February 1980

    She had panicked at the sight of the bracelet. When Rabastan said it was a promise and apology had he really meant that it was a threat and a reminder?

    Then Remus had been there. He had taken polyjuice to watch her and taken the place of the waiter. But it had worn off and she didn't know for how long or if Rabastan had seen him.

    She thought the only way to keep everybody safe was to get Lestrange out of that room.

    It had all happened so quickly that she barely had time to think.

    The only thing she did know was that she was in more danger now than she had ever been.

    The bracelet had reminded her of that.

    After all, she had had it since she was just a girl.

    Splendid diamonds set over the whole bracelet and two charms where the clasp met.

    Lestrange had added the second charm, of course, a tiny silver disc with his initials RL engraved into it. Selene had nearly laughed from the nerves, thinking of Remus Lupin.

    The first charm however was an opal set in the beak of a little silver bird. The bird's wings flapped if you smoothed your finger over the charm.

    It was one of a kind.

    Her mother and father had given it to her after she was sorted into Ravenclaw and she didn't take it off until her mother died. She had packed it away into its box and nearly forgotten about it. That is until she had given it to the Kerrs after hiding them away in Yorkshire. Joanne had promised to only sell the bracelet if they were desperate for money.

    But her father had supposedly found them after just a day. So how had it ended up with Lestrange? Unless they had given it back to her father who had kept it and maybe Sal would have picked it up somehow? It seemed implausible.

    They were probably dead.

    Selene had been growing to suspect the truth since Gideon and Fabian had so far been unable to locate either sister. They were probably dead and it was probably her fault.

    And if she wasn't careful Remus would be next. Or Caliban. If Lestrange found out she had been trying to get information for Dumbledore, he would kill everyone.

    She had no time or space to mourn. Not yet.

    "I thought we could take a walk," Lestrange said, smiling.

    They were in a well-manicured and clearly professionally kept walled garden. This must be the Lestrange estate. Selene was glad for her robes, wherever they were in the country, their air felt heavy and cold. She was sure they were by the coast from the smell in the air, the garden walls probably the only thing keeping out the wind.

    Rabastan took her arm with a smile and so they walked.

    She stayed quiet as they walked, not trusting her voice not to shake and her nerves not to give her away.

    He told her that he had been invited to join another advisory committee in the Ministry. This time looking at expanding Ministry funding for private potions research initiatives. It all sounded very above board, very respectable.

    He had already said during their dinner that progress on their potion was advancing rapidly now they could test with Caliban. It hadn't been the intended use for the potion but it had helped them to secure Ministry funding and prevent any interference from Magical Law Enforcement as it was now officially sanctioned.

    "That's wonderful news, Stan. It sounds amazing."

    Selene was beginning to wonder if Lestrange even knew what the bracelet was. His demeanour was so different to last time. He seemed buoyant and certainly the most pleasant he had ever been to be around. Her heart was still racing from their quick exit but she was managing to calm herself at least a little.

    Maybe she could find out for herself how he ended up with the bracelet. Maybe the Kerrs had returned it to her father when they were in contact with him and Sal or Caliban had given it to Lestrange.

    He didn't seem like a man who had just delivered a threat.

    She fought between the urge to slip away and let Remus know she was fine and the desire to probe further at Lestrange, especially here at his house.

    She didn't ruminate for long.

    She had to know.

    And besides, how could she pass up this opportunity?

    Remus would understand once she told him where she had been and even more so if she got good information from it.

    She already had the names of the Ministry officials who had privately lobbied for their success with the research committee, allowing them to fast-track the approval and approve a submission without a detailed inspection of their facility.

    "Would you mind if we went inside for a drink?" She asked, faking a chill.

    "Of course, Miss Selwyn. I should have thought of the cold, I apologise."

    "Not at all, I think I must just be thin-skinned."

    "I assure you, it's me. I find I rarely feel the cold. It must be the effects of my many years down in the Hogwarts dungeons." He chuckled as he led her through the gardens and up a very impressive laid stone path towards an even more impressive manor house. It was more than twice the size of the Cambridge estate.

    "It must have taken a lot of getting used to, living in the dungeons and coming from such a beautiful estate as this."

    "Not so bad as you might think, my housemates and I got along very well. I was too busy enjoying myself to notice."

    His voice had taken on the same passionate intensity as when he had spoken of blood magic.

    He led her into a very well-appointed reception room. The entire hallway and this room as well were panelled in wood so dark it looked black. The furniture too was upholstered in dark emerald fabrics and the fireplace was not yet lit and the hearth still full of ash. It gave the rather oppressive feeling of being boxed in.

    Rabastan took out his wand swiftly and it roared to life. Selene couldn't remember the last time she had had to light a fireplace, or if she ever had. Even when she was not speaking to her father Binky had the fires tidied and lit before she got home from work.

    There was no floo pot nearby, Selene noted, so she couldn't count on it for a quick escape. Maybe she should start carrying her own supply if there were future visits.

    He mixed a couple of drinks at the bar cupboard and Selene realised her mistake too late. She had put herself in the position of accepting something she hadn't seen the bottle of. Wasn't that one of the first and most important things Remus and the aurors had told her?

    "Our common rooms could get a bit draughty," she tried to make enough conversation that he might miss her not drinking. "We were up in the towers and the windows didn't keep much out."

    "Of course," he smiled, "I keep forgetting you are a Ravenclaw. I so rarely get to properly know wizards from the other houses. We form such close bonds in Slytherin it's hard to break the habit."

    Selene saw the first glint of danger in his dark eyes. She smiled coyly back at him, taking the glass to her lips and tipping just enough that the liquid touched but she did not drink.

    Nothing burned, she didn't feel any different and it did not smell suspicious.

    "Do you mind if I use the restroom?" She asked, "I'd like to freshen up after our walk."

    "Of course, Miss Selwyn," Lestrange turned away and sat stiffly on one of the very hard looking settees. "It's just on your left, two doors down."

    Selene nodded, placing her drink delicately on the sideboard before going into the hall. As soon as she thought she was out of sight she rubbed roughly at her mouth with her robe sleeve, mopping up the tiny amount of drink still touching her lips.

    She knew she couldn't sneak around too much, not on her first visit and not when the bathroom was so close to the drawing room in case she got caught out.

    She did decide she could risk a quick peer of her head into the door that sat between the two rooms.

    Selene felt stuck with shock. The room, a drawing room or perhaps a sitting room and library were thick with dust. The curtains were so cased in the dust they looked like marble, stiff and unrelenting. Tiny specks hung in the air illuminated by strips of moonlight that broke through the filthy window panes.

    Selene would have assumed no one had used the room in years were it not for the obvious markings and channels in the dust where it had been disturbed. There were also mouldy glasses and scraps of parchment thrown around the room. Shards of glass and stains on the walls marked what Selene could only imagine were violent outbursts where drinks or potions were thrown at the walls. Whatever it was had turned an awful brown black shade when it congealed on the carpet.

    Selene extracted herself slowly and entered the bathroom. It looked reasonably clean, as though Lestrange had only tidied rooms he thought guests might enter.

    She ran the taps for a minute in case any loud or squeaky plumbing would give her away.

    It was the details that mattered after all.

    She smoothed out her robes and set her face before returning to the reception room. Lestrange was staring determinedly into the weak, ash choked fire and for a moment Selene thought he looked almost mournful.

    She had only thought of this as a forced engagement on her side, hadn't Lestrange said himself last time he had had no interest in a wife or children. Was he burdened with expectation as well?

    "Stan?" She started timidly, "I didn't realise how late it had gotten until I saw that beautiful clock in the entrance hall. I really should get going before my brother worries."

    "Your brother doubts my honour?" He asked sharply.

    "No, not at all," she said clearly and without a single quiver in her voice. "But I fear the wrath of the gossip columnists once if any of the waiters reveal we left together on Valentine's day."

    "Hmpf," he scoffed, "stupid muggle holiday thay shouldn't be celebrated at all."

    Selene had no idea how she was playing this so badly. It was like every carefully picked word just made things worse and yet earlier she had spoken so freely and nothing had come of it. How could one man be so mercurial in mood.

    "But I suppose you're in favour of blending these muggle traditions with our own."

    Selene saw his eyes flit to the bracelet with a scowl.

    So he did know then.

    And she knew that her friend and sister were dead.

    If she hadn't tried to move them would they still be alive? Or did she at least buy them a few more weeks together before the inevitable. After all, how many earmarked for death by the Dark Lord survived?

    Did she back out of the room now and run? The front gates were not so far. She wasnt the best duelist but she could manage a quick stunned if Lestrange was not expecting it.

    "Your father changed his own views on that quite recently. Did you know that?"

    "No, I had no idea. I'm not sure if uncle Sal told you but neither of us were close with my father before he died."

    That's it, she told herself, link yourself to Sal. Let him know you're not a part of it.

    "You were aware however about the disappearance of the Kerr family were you not?"

    She needed to run but she couldn't make her move just yet. Selene nodded as she tried to unseat her wand which she had shoved up her robe sleeve in the bathroom.

    "A friend of mine told me you were friends with the younger Kerr at school."

    "Childhood friendships often fade after Hogwarts in the other houses. Proximity rather than familiarity. Younger days and younger mistakes."

    He smiled as though he approved.

    Selene managed to knock her wand free and caught it in her fingertips behind her back. The next time Lestrange turned his back to her again she would move.

    "That's good to hear. It was a reservation I couldn't quite get over after your father's betrayal. Mudbloods are worse than muggles in my book."

    "My father's betrayal?" She couldn't help herself from asking.

    She always had to know. Needed to know. Could she not just keep her mouth shut?

    "He was fucking the older Kerr. Can you even imagine." He sounded truly disgusted at the thought. Angry even.

    "Wh...W...What?" She stammered. That couldn't be true. Surely Caliban would have known. "That cannot be true. It doesn't make any sense."

    "I'm glad to see we are aligned on that issue." He smiled, misunderstanding her shock. "Sal found out of course and came to me. He was naturally very worried that the Selwyn estate, everything your family has worked so hard to build and maintain, would be lost to a mudblood's brat like the fortunes of so many of our great families. Pure for more than six hundred years just to be thrown away on some whore."

    "How did Sal find out?"

    "He was informed and acted immediately. Of course we had no idea the fortune would be safe with Caliban continuing the legacy, as Sal does not have children of his own."

    That's why Sal had been so angry at the will reading, was he worried there had been a child? Did she have another sibling? "There was a child?"

    "Thankfully not, we managed to prune that branch in time."

    "And the Kerrs?"

    "No longer an issue." He said with a sly grin, confirming what she already knew and had known for months.

    "Did Sal kill my father?" She asked, knowing that her reaction could give her away.

    "It was handled by our friends."

    The Death Eaters then, a handy execution squad to get around inheritance magic.

    "You understand it simply could not have been allowed to happen. Thankfully your brother agreed. He would have no doubt been cut off completely in the even of a male heir."

    That was probably true.

    For all her father was or might have been, he had gone to the lengths of officially declaring Caliban dead to avoid the shame of it.

    She nodded.

    "Sal certainly did not expect anything to be passed on to Caliban in the will. But at least it stays in the family, even if it is with a half breed for now."

    Selene bristled at the insult and recognised her own precarious position.

    "I'm glad it has all worked out in the end."

    "Nothing worse than a mudblood." Lestrange continued, still ranting about the Kerrs. "You know they will do anything to climb the social ladders and betray the wizarding communtiy wuthout whom they would not even have the robes on their backs. It is our generosity that we even allow them to attend our noble institutions. And how do they thank us? By trying to change our laws and customs? It's a disgrace. Any witch or wizard who normalises their presence in our highest institutions is a traitor. At least muggles know their place."

    He picked up the drink she had left on the sideboard and she took it quickly with her left hand, hoping he wouldn't notice her wand was out.

    "You don't want your drink?" He eyed her suspiciously.

    "I really should be going, Stan. It's very late."

    "Careful, Miss Selwyn. Another gentleman might feel he was being jilted. Are you uncomfortable talking about politics?"

    "No, no, like I said I'm thinking of my reputation. Our repuatations" she corrected at the end.

    "And what have you heard of my reputation?" He was smiling again, almost flirtatiously. Selene blushed, pretending to be embarrassed.

    "All good things," she added.

    "Your reputation on the other hand," he took the glass from her again and threw it forcefully into the fire behind him where it shattered and roared as it touched the fire. "Preceeds you. You have lied to me tonight, you are a mudblood apologist just like your father."

    He had turned to throw the glass and Selene cast her spell in a millisecond. Lestrange fell backwards with a hard thump which Selene did not wait to hear. She ran out of the room as quickly as she could and straight out the door, not stopping for a moment even as she stumbled down the entrance steps.

    Images of running like this at Ardverikie flashed through her mind. She had been far more terrified then, she had fought to keep herself upright. Tonight, nothing was going to stop her from reaching those gates.

    She would have to warn Caliban immediately that the engagement was off and likely whatever deal he had struck with Lestrange. Tell him the Death Eaters had murdered their father and that they would do the same to him as soon as he was no longer useful.

    But could she trust Caliban? After all he had some kind of understanding with her uncle.

    To Remus' then and a letter to Caliban.

    He would be worried about her. She could tell him everything now.

    He had been at the restaurant, hidden without telling her.

    Why had he been there?

    The gardens flashed past her in a smear of mossy greens and blackened brown stumps. The garden too had only been maintained where guests might see it.

    If it had just been to keep her safe surely he would have said? Warned her? She could still see the look on his face when she had seen him. 

    But she could go to Remus first. The Order wouldn't hurt her even if they didn't trust her. She could explain everything and stop trying to play both sides of this.

    Then she could be done of it all at last.

    Selene reached the gates with gasping breaths. She pointed her wand at them but they would not budge.

    She grabbed the heavy iron bars and shook at them with all her might. There was no visible lock to blast open, no catch to remove.

    She thought about sending a messenger but she had no idea where she was and no time to dictate and send one off.

    There was a crunching sound behind her, Lestrange had recovered from her stunning spell and was walking slowly towards the gates.

    He wasn't rushing. Each step towards her felt like a knot tying her to a cage. He knew he didn't need to rush. She wasn't getting out of these gates.

    With one last attempt she tried to climb the gate but it threw her off and onto the ground harshly and she knocked her head against the drive.

    "I appreciate the attempt, Selene. It is so much more interesting than tears I assure you."

    Selene actually laughed at that.

    "Your friend cried when we found them. It was very boring."

    "You're lying." She kept on laughing. Maybe the knock to the head had scrambled her brain and it no longer knew how to respond properly.

    "Muggles would kill every one of us if they could. And they wouldnt think twice. We are compassionate in comparison. They even killed their own in the hope of getting some of us."

    "What on Earth are you talking about?" Selene was slurring her words now. It was hard to concentrate, even with the adrenaline.

    Suddenly her throat burned.

    It was scalding, scratching, swelling all at once.

    She clasped at her throat lamely as her eyes watered.

    Selene tried to speak but instead of words, puddles of water escaped from her mouth. She couldn't tell if it was icy cold or searing hot. Would it have made a difference?

    She gasped and fought for air that would not come, her lungs felt heavy and burned as badly as her throat. She could feel the water bubbling and generating within them, spouting an endless river that strangled her.

    And then it stopped.

    "Drowning was a particularly favoured method in the witch hunts. Barbaric isn't it?" He asked as Selene gulped at the air she could once again breathe.

    "Do you know their other favoured method, Miss Selwyn?"

    Selene nodded and hoped she would not find out what that felt like.

    "Tell me."

    "Burning."

    "Burning," he repeated like a teacher. "Muggles would try to burn anyone they suspected of witchcraft. I suppose drowning was preferred so they would not have to listen to the screams. Muggle screams of course. They are violent, awful creatures and yet so few actually have to stomach to witness the results of their actions."

    Selene braced herself for more pain.

    "That is the culture you and your father seek to defend. Muggles may not have the resolve to observe their own violence, Miss Selwyn, but I do. When the cause is noble."

    So none of this was about the Order or Caliban or the cure or any of it? It had all just been a result of blood purity? The only reason she had come with Lestrange was to keep Remus safe, to protect the Order and to help Caliban. And it had all been for nothing. This would have happened regardless. After all, her father was barely in the ground when her uncle promised her away. Was that one final slight from brother to brother?

    "Do you understand what I am saying?"

    Selene nodded, desperate not to experience the water again, or worse the fire. This was saveable. If it was just about blood purity, she could still turn it around.

Plus, he still hadn't taken her wand from her. 

Chapter Text

    The Street Outside Selene Selwyn's Flat, London - 14th February 1980

    It had been nearly an hour.

    Remus fidgeted in the passenger seat of a muggle car as Lily tried to force a flask of tea into his hands. Instead, Remus took a swig of the firewhisky James had offered as an alternative.

    Sirius was away on Order business but James had let him know the situation. Peter was already stationed inside Selene's flat. When Lily and James has shown up to find Remus pacing back and forward on the pavement, they rightfully let him know that it was not the best move to be seen hanging around on street corners.

    Lily had quickly unlocked and disabled the alarm of a nearby parked car, a very sleek dark green estate, and the three of them had bundled in. Remus didn't know anything about miggle cars but he could tell this one was expensive. So even the muggles in this aera were rich. The interior was full of shiny wood trim and a polished full face clock fitted. Whichever muggle owned the car, they were clearly a heavy smoker and the smell just made Remus feel more on edge. James sat in the driver's seat, every so often playing with some of the buttons and knobs beside him or gripping the wheel. In the event they did need to use the car to getaway, Lily would have been Remus' choice to drive. He still wasn't entirely confident James understood this car would not bend and squash like the Knight Bus.

    "It hasn't been an hour yet," James repeated. "I don't think we need to worry until a bit longer yet. Give Selene a chance."

    "You didn't see her face," Remus replied, opening and closing the glovebox to keep his hands occupied. He had been replaying the evening over in a loop since Peter and James had managed to drag him away from his spot outside Selene's. "She looked afraid. Her heart rate spiked."

    "But is that just because she saw you? After all, she wasn't expecting you." Lily asked.

    "No, it was definitely before." Remus gave his head a little shake as he tried to remember the details. The more he thought about it the blurrier things became. "I think. No, I'm sure of it."

    "Maybe she just really liked the bracelet?" James offered. "Witches lovw sparkly things." The eye roll from Lily in the rearview mirror could have bowled a building over.

    That was possible.

    It was another fifteen minutes, and another six swigs of whisky when James finally asked.

    "Why were you there? I didn't realise that was the plan."

    "It wasn't," Remus admitted. It was getting hard to keep his thoughts straight. "Caliban showed up almost exactly as Selene left." He knew part of his foul mood was due to his own guilt at causing all of this. For being so gullible.

    "Did he see Pete?" James interjected, looking up to Selene's window, clearly concerned for his friend's cover until Remus shook his head.

    "He said he was worried about Selene and Lestrange and if I could have anyone from the Order go and make sure she was okay. That he'd managed to get one of the waiters to floo in sick. Had a uniform and eveything."

    "So it was a trap," James, shrewd as ever connected the dots far quicker than Remus had. "Manages to do all that but not find somebody of his own to watch? He knew you wouldn't be able to stay away if there was a genuine concern."

    "The concern was founded even if it wasn't genuine. I still think maybe he was being genuine. I found out Lestrange choked Selene last time."

    Lily and James were suitably outraged at this and James offered to help Remus with hexing Lestrange into next week in whatever fashion he wanted.

    "I bet the polyjuice he gave you this time wasn't altered to account for your enhanced matabolic burn off." Lily said. "It's no wonder you forgot the second dose."

    James gave a dark chuckle. "He's good, I'll give him that." His face turned suddenly serious. "But why did he want Remus there? There must have been a real reason."

    Remus hadn't even considered that but as soon as he did the answer was obvious. "He's going to convince Selene that we're spying on her. He wants to make sure that she doesn't trust me so that I don't get any more information he wasn't planning on sharing."

    "Which means he's either had a breakthrough or he's expecting one." Lily agreed.

    "So we need to get to Selene before Caliban does." James said. "And you need to make sure she isn't swayed by Caliban."

    But what if she was? It wouldn't take much to convince Remus in the same circumstances.

    Not to mention that just led them back to the same problem Remus had called them for.

    They had no idea where Selene was, who she was with or even if she was safe. They hadn't recieved any emergency alerts from her but what if her wand was gone?

    "Do we think Lestrange has any reason to suspect Selene at this point?" James asked the most salient question.

    "No," Remus answered, "but there was definitely something off about him."

    "Would be weird if there wasn't." Lily added, stifling a yawn.

    The little clock in the car ticked over to midnight and Remus knew he couldn't wait any longer. Without saying anything he opened the car door and apparated directly into Selene's.

    --

    It was exactly as he had left it. He went over to the lamp and clicked it on and off in a pattern to let James and Lily know the flat was empty before going over to Peter and giving him an update on the situation. Pete didn't bother changing back to hear the news, he just squeaked every so often to let Remus know he understood. Just as Remus accepted it would be best if he left again, another apparation pop cracked behind him along with a stifled groan.

    Remus turned to see not only Caliban, who he had expected to show up when he entered the property, but Grant as well. Grant, who had been taken side-along and looked very pale with a developing sheen over his face. "Down the hall to the left," Caliban said lazily as Grant hurried off and sure enough, they heard him throw up into the toilet and flush before he returned still a little ashen faced.

    "Remus," Caliban nodded as Grant jerked his head a little to ground himself.

    "How is he here?" Remus demanded immediately, no longer content to play games with Caliban. "And why did you send me to obesrve Lestrange?"

    Caliban gave him a disgruntled look. "I didn't send you, I asked you to send somebody else. Even I didn't think you'd be stupid enough to go yourself. I thought you'd send one of your little friends. What happened and where is Selene?"

    Remus punched him. It was almost impossible to tell when he was being genuine. Even if he meant it this time Remus needed somebody else to blame.

    He manged to get three or four satisfying hits in before he felt himself being pulled back by his shirt. Remus half expected blows to come but Grant didn't even bother restraining him after, just letting go of his grip as soon as there was a bit of space between the men.

    Caliban wiped the blood from his lip with a handkerchief, examining the red mark with a smirk for a moment before stowing it away again.

    Pete was squeaking like crazy in the cage. Remus wondered if he was offering help or telling him to stop being such an idiot.

    "Tell me what happened, where is Selene and why is she not here?"

    "You know fine well what happened you insufferable prick. That polyjuice you gave me wore off and Selene saw me. She left with Lestrange so that I wouldn't get caught and she hasn't come back." Remus had started forward again but a gentle arm from Grant had stopped him attacked Caliban again.

    Caliban barely even blinked at the insult, "And there was me thinking that I expressly asked you to send someone else. I think your anger is directed at the wrong man, Remus. Do you need me to fetch a mirror?"

    It was too close to the truth for Remus to hear. Caliban continued, and the more he did the more Remus wished he could disappear.

    "The only reason Selene is in danger right now, is you."

    "You're the one who asked her to entertain Lestrange!" Remus could feel his rage building and knew if he didn't calm himself down soon he would do something he would regret.

    "You don't know anything about pureblood engagements and why would you." Caliban sneered at Remus, still dressed in the uniform from the restaurant. "You should keep that, it suits you. Engagements can last for years. Many witches don't get married until seven years after coming of age! All she had to do was act as though she was fine with a busines arrangement. The dates and the snooping were all an attempt to help you."

    Remus had nothing to say to this so Caliban delivered the finishing blow.

    "And if you had trusted her and sent somebody else, she wouldn't be wherever she is right now. You're the reason she's in danger and if anything does happen to Selene, it will be your fault."

    Remus stumbled backward slightly and fell listlessly into Selene's armchair.

    He couldn't look at Caliban, and he couldn't bear to be in Selene's flat doing nothing. He stood again immediately and started pacing. There would be time to process the truth of Claiban's words later. After all, hadn't he always known he was one of the worst dangers there was?

    "Where would Lestrange have taken her?" He asked the room, still not able to speak to Caliban directly.

    "Did he give any hint?" Grant asked. His voice was flat and impassive, businesslike even. Remus supposed Grant had been given little reason to use his tracking skills at Ardverikie.

    "None, he gave Selene a bracelet and that's when she saw me. I couldn't hear any of the conversation before that, there was an enchantment up."

    Remus couldn't see his face but he could picture Caliban's face from the sharp tone his voice had taken on. "A bracelet? What did it look, like?"

    Remus was baffled. Why in Merlin's name did it matter what the bracelet looked like? "It was sparkly." He said dismissively. "Looked expensive." He tried desperately to remember something useful. Lestrange had been dressed for the cold. His cloak was thick but he hadn't worn a hat. Maybe somewhere windy?

    He felt a sting on the side of his head. Caliban had drawn his wand and hit him with a stinging jinx.

    Remus was too accomplished a duelist for such a cheap trick. Before Caliban could so much as blink Remus had his own wand out and had cast a sturdy repulso which threw caliban against the nearest wall. He was about to cast another hex when he heard a metallic click to his right. He spun around and there was Grant, pistol aimed directly at Remus' chest.

    "That's enough I think," he said and Remus could hear Caliban picking himself up. His wand no doubt also trained on Remus. He couldn't beat both of them and Peter wouldn't be able to get a message out in time if anything did happen.

    Remus raised his hands in the air. "You're right."

    Caliban didn't lower his wand. "Tell me what the bracelet looked like."

    "Looked like diamonds, had a couple of charms on it maybe. I didn't get close enough to say any more than that. Why is the braclet so important?."

    That appeared to be enough for Caliban. He swore loudly and Remus' heart dropped even further. Further than he thought possible considering the weight of it since he had last seen Selene. Even Caliban looked worried now. He was muttering to himself under his breath, his eyes resolute on the floor.

    "Do you trust me, Remus?" He asked. "I need more than just me for this."

    Adrenaline was still coursing through him. Of course he didn't trust Caliban. He remembered James' words, this whole evening was likely a trap. And Caliban would surely benefit if he brought an Order member to the death eaters. And a werewolf one at that. Caliban was the one who needed Selene on side. He needed her to help continue his father's work. Remus realised it all now. After all, Selene's blood would be a close match to Caliban's, more than his father's and definitely more than his uncle's.

    Caliban had given away the blood magic book though.

    It was all too confusing.

    Caliban could clearly see the struggle on Remus' face.

    "Do you want my perspective?" Caliban asked, continuing before Remus could answer. "I write to Dumbledore, knowing that my uncle will try to recruit me. I tell him all about our refuge and I even invite him to visit. He tries to earn my trust by saying he knows a werewolf who I can talk to, someone with a shared perspective. I agree. And then not only do you show up, you bring additional armed men into my home without informing me."

    Remus tried to interject but Caliban raised a hand to stop him. "I learn that you have intentions with my sister and yet haven't told her about your condition. I won't ever know if you were being honest about planning to tell her as events took that choice from you. I accept it anyway, invite you back with Selene. And then, when I tell you about the moon rock which I did not have to do, you insist on having a member of the Order accompany Selene, I can only assume their instructions were to survey my family's home."

    Remus didn't respond to this. Emmeline had taken notes on the Selwyn estate but that was standard practice. Dumbledore wouldn't have ordered her to do it.

    "Despite all this, I still invite you back for the next full moon. I try and teach you things you don't even know about yourself, treat you as I would any of us. I do all of this, knowing how important you are to Selene, the only family I have left and the entire time I have been treated like a criminal."

    Remus had no answer. What answer could he give. Was Caliban wrong about any of it? Remus had never actually stopped to think about his point of view.

    "So," he paused "before I ask you once again to put your feelings towards me aside for Selene's sake. I want to know. Is it my birth and blood status as a pureblood that has prevented you from trusting me, is it due to my uncle whom I have no control over as Mr Black well knows one can't pick their family or is it because I am a werewolf?"

    "We were never quite sure of your relationship with your uncle." Remus answered. But the hint of truth behind the other two options, and the prejudice that lay there, wrangled at him.

    Caliban nodded. "All right then. Will you come with me now? For Selene?"

    Remus let his heart beat twice more before he nodded. "What is the meaning behind the bracelet?"

    Caliban had his hand in his cloak pocket and pulled out a leather bucket pouch which he opened for Grant. Grant took a handful of the powder and disappeared from the fireplace back to Ardverikie.

    "It's too much to explain right now, but its not good if Lestrange has it."

    Remus believed him, wholeheartedly.

    "We'll need to floo in directly to the Lestrange estate. Their grounds are protected from apparition and there are gates to prevent anyone wandering in."

    "But surely you can't go in?" Remus asked. "It's not one of your properties."

    Caliban's eye twitched and be grimaced for just a moment. "I've found a way around that for now." He looked as though it pained him to admit it. "You can't blame me for not telling you. Trust can only go so far when it flows one way."

    Remus nodded once more, ready to bury whatever imagined fued he had created with Caliban to save Selene.

    Dumbledore would tell him to trust in people. Even those you don't particularly like.

    How many times had Dumbledore reminded them when they got too far into an investigation?

    The world was not split into good people and Death Eaters.