Selene || Remus Lupin

Prologue

Halloween night was not colder than it usually was at that time of year, but Remus felt chilled to the bone, nevertheless. He shivered slightly as he staggered up the long, winding walkway to a small countryside cottage. There were no stars that night, but the moon was present, almost full, like it was taunting him.

Remus felt its affects, like he always did this close to the full moon. His bones and muscles ached, his skin felt feverish, and every step he took pained him. However, that was nothing compared to the absolute crushing weight he felt in his heart; it got heavier with every step he took towards the front door of the humble cottage.

Remus made it to the front door, taking a deep, shaky breath. He tried to muster up some good old Gryffindor courage, but he still felt a little lacking as he reached for the brass door handle. Pushing the door open slowly, he took in the sight before him, and his heart sank.

There was a brightly colored banner stretched across the ceiling, displaying the words, "IT'S A GIRL!" in shiny bold letters. Balloons were scattered across the living room in varying shades of pink. Amidst it all, Selene was standing in the middle of the kitchen, cheeks rosy and eyes shining. Remus couldn't help but notice her ever-growing round baby bump, and his heart sank even further.

"Surprise!" she exclaimed, looking up from a simple little pink cake on the counter that she had been painstakingly icing. "Oh, Remus," she said surprised, perhaps a little stiffly, and she straightened up from her position beside the cake to stare at him awkwardly. "I haven't seen you around here in a while..." She seemed to shake her hesitancy from her head, approaching him to wrap him in a warm hug.

Remus was in too much shock to return it, and Selene seemed to pick up on his discomfort. "I'm sorry, Remus, I – well – I guess the cat's out of the bag now, but Sirius and I are having a girl! Of course, he doesn't know that yet. I – er – I was planning on surprising him tonight when he got home. He'll be here any minute, I think." She crossed the kitchen to grab a couple of glasses from a cabinet, and then looked at him with a small smile on her face. "Stay and celebrate with us, Remus, like old times. I know I can convince Sirius to get over himself if you will. Merlin knows we could use a moment of joy. I think I have some elf-made wine around here somewhere that I can pour for you and Sirius. Obviously, I can't have any, so you both can make sure to drink my share!"

She said all of this very quickly, in a slightly hopeful tone that made Remus' heart sink all the way down to his feet.

"Selene, I have to talk to you," he said very quietly.

Selene had bustled over to the other side of the kitchen, rummaging in another cabinet presumably for the elf-made wine. "Oh, come on, Rem. Let's leave the serious stuff for another day, shall we? Tonight's for celebrating!" she said somewhat cheerfully, successfully pulling a bottle of a sparkling, mauve liquid out of the cabinet.

"Selene, it's important." Remus insisted, his eyes watering. He couldn't keep the wavering tone out of his voice.

Selene set the bottle down on the countertop. She approached Remus, carefully. "Rem, what's wrong?"

Remus couldn't keep his composure any longer. Selene wrapped him in a tight hug as his shoulders began to shake. Sobs began to bubble their way up his throat, and he was soon crying into the crook of Selene's neck.

"Remus, what's wrong? What happened?" Selene asked in an urgent tone, moving to hold Remus' face between her two small hands. She wiped the tears off his face and searched his eyes for answers. "Why are you so upset?"

Remus took a shaky breath. "James and Lily... they've been found... Voldemort..."

Selene's arms dropped to her sides. "What?"

Remus swallowed thickly. "James and Lily have been found."

Selene's jaw hardened, her arms limp. "Remus, that's not funny. What kind of sick joke is that?"

Remus grabbed her hand, holding it tight. "It's not a joke, Selene. They're..." he choked; his eyes watered again.

Selene's eyes widened. "What, Remus? What's going on?"

Remus' shoulders dropped. "They're dead."

Selene didn't react. She just continued to stare into his face. Remus cringed, knowing that this was not all that he came to tell her.

"That can't be true, Remus..." she said in an odd, quiet little voice. "The Fidelius charm... Sirius would have never..."

She had gotten there on her own.

"But he did." Remus cut across her. "And Peter went after him. Alone." Remus' tone was grave; Selene looked as though she was barely holding in tears. "He found Sirius in the middle of a Muggle street—"

"Stop, Remus—"

"There were dozens of witnesses—"

"Remus, I said stop—"

"The entire street, gone. Peter, he's gone—"

"STOP, REMUS, I SAID STOP—"

"HE KILLED THEM!" Remus screamed, his voice shaking with withheld sobs.

Selene merely blinked at him.

Remus' voice was quieter now, but still unsteady. "Selene, he betrayed us. He's the reason they're all dead. He killed them all."

Remus had to lunge to catch her as she collapsed onto the floor. Her cries of anguish echoed through the house as the two clung to each other.

The glasses on the counter stood forgotten.