Blood of the Moon {Remus Lupin}

Chapter 64

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Auriga entered Grimmauld Place and hung her cloak up. She wasn't used to it being this quiet, but she supposed she'd get used to it. Fred or George would pop by every now and then to get something they were keeping in their room, but Arthur and Molly had moved back to their house when Hogwarts started again. Aside from Order meetings, it was just her and Sirius staying there, and occasionally Tonks would pop round for dinner.

She sniffed the air, and was pleased to find the scent of dinner wafting in from the kitchen. As she made her way there, she grinned to herself at the sound of Sirius. "...Me. Somebody to Looove. Find. Me. Somebody to Looove..." Auriga poked her head round the door just in time to see him drop the spoon in the pot and turn around, eyes screwed shut and arms in the air. "Can anybody find meeee, somebody tooooooooo...looooooooooove," He finished, semi triumphantly.

"Very good," said Auriga with a grin as she threw her satchel onto one of the kitchen chairs. "Really. Spectacular."

"Shut up," said Sirius with a grin as he returned to the stove.

"Nice apron," she said as she rummaged through the cupboards for a glass. She referred to the red gingham he was wearing.

Sirius shrugged. "I liked the colour." He stepped back and frowned at her. "Tough day?" he asked, looking at the bruise on her cheek.

"Not really," said Auriga. "Just a poorly restrained Death Eater."

"You caught one, then?" Sirius asked, hopeful.

"No, it was the Avery from a few days ago," Auriga said, her brow furrowing. "Some idiot forgot to check her handcuffs before I interviewed her with Robards."

"And here I was thinking rich people were supposed to be classy," said Sirius. "So she swung for you?"

"Yep," said Auriga, sipping her water. She caught a tin that Sirius plucked off a shelf.

"Bruise paste that Molly left," he explained. Auriga nodded and applied some, noticing an instant difference in the stiffness.

"Cheers," she said. "Do you want any help?"

Sirius stood back and shook his head, frowning at different spaces around the room. "Should I redecorate?" he asked.

"Looks fine to me," Auriga said, flicking through the report she was writing on The Avery Manor raid, and not really paying attention.

"Maybe I should get a job," said Sirius, sitting down at the table.

Auriga snorted. "You don't need a job," she told him. "You run the Order headquarters. What you need is a hobby."

"Like quidditch?" suggested Sirius.

"Maybe something more flexible," said Auriga, looking up to see he was still frowning. "Like painting, or writing."

"Or research," he said, a terrifyingly excited grin on his face.

*****

Auriga looked up from the transcript she was reviewing as Shacklebolt neared her desk. "You busy, Malfoy?" he asked, sitting down at on a nearby chair.

Auriga shrugged, "I could be busier. What's up?"

"We need another member for the raid we're doing on one of the estates," he said. Auriga frowned - he looked nervous and hesitant, which was very unlike him.

"That's fine," she said cautiously. Shacklebolt sighed.

"It's on an estate in Dartmoor," he said, shifting uncomfortably. "And we've got a team of fifteen ready to go."

It clicked in Auriga's head. "You're doing a full raid on my family's holiday home?" she asked, keeping her tone firm and her face neutral.

Shacklebolt nodded. "It'd be really useful having you there. We've tailed a few ex-Death Eaters there over the last few days and we reckon it's teeming with fugitives."

"I don't know how many times I have to say it," said Auriga, standing up and downing her coffee, "But there's no such thing as an ex-Death Eater."

"You're coming?" said Shacklebolt, a glimmer of hope and surprise in his voice.

"What, and let you lot have all the fun?" she teased as they made their way to the lift. "How come you drew the short straw then?"

"It was between me and Tonks-" he began.

"Tonks and me," corrected Auriga.

"Because I've worked with you before and Tonks knew you at school," finished Shacklebolt, unfazed by her interruption. Auriga was only mildly impressed.