BLOOD AND CHOCOLATE - REMUS LUPIN

𝑜𝑛𝑒 ℎ𝑢𝑛𝑑𝑟𝑒𝑑 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑓𝑜𝑟𝑡𝑦 𝑓𝑖𝑣𝑒.

As Remus stared down at the envelope resting in his palms, the confusion of its very presence was physically and mentally preventing him from opening it. So Remus tried to sort his thoughts as methodically from sure fact and speculation to the best of his ability.

If Laurent, the Rosier owl, was the bird to deliver the letter, then Remus could think with total confidence that Regulus was at Rosier Manor, most likely with Hollis. That alone was enough to make Remus's blood boil, but he tried to push that anger down in order to focus. If the letter had arrived minutes after all of their bracelets split then that meant that Regulus was close to Hollis when whatever had happened occurred.

And as much as Remus hated Regulus, he knew that he would do anything to protect Hollis.

Which most likely meant that the worst case scenario hadn't happened. Also, Remus knew deep within his heart that if Hollis was really gone, he would have felt a disruption the instant it happened. That feeling was almost familiar, like he had been awoken once before because of Hollis being in deep danger. The memory felt just out of grasp, but Remus had to stop reaching if he wanted to wrap his mind around the letter and stay on task. 

If Regulus had written Remus, in particular, a letter, it was most definitely an action enforced by Hollis. 

That Death Eater has too much pride to write only to me without Hollis's influence, Remus thought sourly.

Remus wasn't normally such a person to be so negative and assume the worst in others, but something about Regulus Black made him feel simultaneously threatened and disgusted. 

After a few more seconds of consideration, Remus realized that he wasn't going to get any more conclusions drawn only from the few facts he had and much theory.

"Regulus Black?" Lyall asked. "That handsome young man we saw at the station?"

All three Gryfinndor boy's eyes narrowed at Lyall's pick of adjectives. It just made the boy even more infuriating that he was attractive. And even more of a threat to Remus.

It was just adding on to the long list of things Regulus seemed to know about Hollis that Remus didn't. With this motivation to know more, Remus peeling open the black seal with a dragon impressed in the midnight colored wax. The sound seemed like an Amplifying Charm had been placed on it because of the silence around the kitchen table. 

Pulling the small, folded piece of parchment out of its black case, Remus sighed deeply and briefly shut his eyes before unfolding its creased seams.

The letter was alarmingly short. In fact, it was only one short sentence. 

The bracelet is the only thing capable of being broken.

Remus reread these ten words over and over again with a range of emotions and thoughts.

The strongest was a silent thanks to whatever force was controlling their lives, whether it be magic or some form of god or fate that Hollis was okay. Remus felt a bit of tension leave his shoulders, but the small amount of relief did nothing to relieve his overall stress in any way.

After relief, Remus was infuriated with Regulus and his apparent incapability to write more than ten words. Remus wanted to know more than just that Hollis was alive. Simply breathing wasn't enough for the cavern in Remus's stomach and heart to even remote fill. Breathing didn't mean safe. Breathing didn't mean unharmed. 

And Remus knew from personal experience that sometimes death seemed like a more appealing option than breathing. 

The note fell loosely out of Remus's hand and onto James's empty plate. Fleamont quickly picked up the letter, but Remus was in too much of a trance to notice. 

The boy silently excused himself from the dinner table, and Hope watched him go without moving. She knew that sometimes her son needed his space, and most certainly when it came to this girl.

Fleamont read the letter out loud once Remus was out of earshot so that they wouldn't have to take the time to pass it around.

"The bracelet is the only thing capable of being broken," Fleamont said in a clear voice.

James snatched the parchment out of his father's hands, his pace desperate. James frantically flipped the letter over, double checking to make sure that there was nothing else written in the midnight black ink. When James found no other message, he threw down the letter on the table and ran his hands through his hair.

Sirius was pissed as hell at Regulus. Not for just sending such a short letter, but that he was with Hollis while none of them could be. Sirius had this idea in his head that he was just so much better than his brother, that he could be a better friend to Hollis and actually help her. It was a delusion years in the making, and Sirius was completely invested.

Euphemia and Fleamont were exchanging a loaded glance. They both remembered the state Sirius himself had shown up on their doorstep and had no desire to see another child in a similar or worse state. And the fact that their son's old brother was involved just made the entire matter more ominous.

Hope and Lyall, meanwhile, were thinking of their very brief interaction with the girl. It had been incredibly rushed and somewhat panicked, but in that time they had both learned how complicated things were just by how private they had to be to meet her.

Hope was the second to leave the table, she knew exactly where to find her son.

Mrs. Lupin walked to their kitchen cupboard, opening up the door into the small room. In one corner, there was the ladder that was slightly out of place from her son just using it. Hope climbed up the wooden rungs until she reached the ceiling. With two strong arms, she unlatched and pushed open the trapdoor that lead onto the roof.

Sure enough, when Hope's torso came out of the cottage and hit the cold wind, her son was laying with his back flat on the cream colored roof. Despite the snow or the cold, Remus was only focused on one thing.

A large star that was glowing with a slight purple sheen.

ok this wasn't really a cliffhanger

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