Dum Spiro Spero

Chapter 46

The days dragged on, every soul in Shell Cottage was solemn. Evalyn had yet to wake. Bill and Fleur had transfigured Sirius and Regulus a couple small beds that were squeezed into the room with her. Every morning Sirius woke up early and brushed Evalyn's hair. He would braid it gently so that it wouldn't tangle throughout the day. Afterwards, he would take a warm rag and clean her scars. With each passing day, they would fade slowly into thin pink lines. There was a combination of stab wounds, burns, and werewolf claw marks. The latter seemed to cause the most damage since they didn't heal as well.

Regulus had taken it the hardest. Most of his time was spent on the shoreline. There were many moments he wished he could have stayed in the after life. It was one of his many occurring thoughts as he stared into the waves crashing along the sand. Nobody knew how to make him feel better. The only person who could help him was currently unconscious due to his inability to save her.

One night, Remus arrived. He was unaware of all the guests currently at Shell Cottage. The werewolf stepped inside with the biggest smile that seemed to widen even more at the extra faces present. "She had her baby!" He ran up to Sirius who gave him a big hug. "His name is Edward Lupin, but we have started calling him Teddy."

"Congratulations Moony!" Sirius clapped him on the back and popped open a bottle of fire whiskey. Regulus finally made his way inside and saw the big celebration. He furrowed his brows and shook his head before walking off to the bedroom.

Remus took that moment to look around the room. His eyes landed on Harry who was smiling back at him. "I'd like for you to be the godfather Harry." The teen gave him a nod before running up into his arms.

"I'd be honored to."

When the moment calmed down, Remus noticed there was still a face missing. "Have you gotten any word from her? I'm sorry I couldn't help you rescue her."

Bill and Fleur shooed the children out of the room while Sirius pursed his lips. He swirled the alcohol around in his glass before taking a long sip. It was obvious to everyone in the room how anxious he became. His hand shook while his leg bounced rapidly up and down. "She's here Moony. Come with me." He stood up and walked to the bedroom. Regulus sat in a chair next to her. His face was stone cold as he stared into the distance.

Remus covered his mouth with his hand. The witch laid on her back. Her breathing was slow and steady while her eyes were closed. She still looked to be on the brink of death. "What happened?"

"Hermione said that Bellatrix and Greyback were there, but we aren't sure about what happened." Sirius mumbled as he leaned against the wall. Remus walked over to her side and ran his hand along several of the scars that he could recognize as werewolf scars. "The kids and the house elf were able to bring her back when they escaped. Bill did his best to heal her but she's been like this ever since."

Remus walked back over to Sirius and leaned against the wall next to him. "She'll pull through Pads. I know she will."

"I hope you're right, I lost her for 12 years. I don't think I can lose her again. Without her and James..." Sirius shuddered to hold back his tears. "I think I might turn into what my parents said I would become."

Remus pulled his best friend into a hug. "I won't let that happen Pads. Besides, I bet you she'll be awake in no time."

In that moment, Harry popped his head around the corner. "Hey Sirius, can I speak with you for a minute?" He looked around the room briefly. "Out there?" He gestured to the other room. Sirius stood up and brushed his clothes off before following him out.

Instead of leaving, Remus decided to go sit next to Regulus. It was quiet for a moment, before Remus spoke up. "How are you doing?" Regulus scoffed and said nothing. His grey eyes were locked onto Evalyn as if she would move at any moment.

"She will be alright." The werewolf spoke quietly. Regulus leaned his head back and looked up to the ceiling. Remus noted it was something both him and Evalyn did when they were upset.

"It's my fault really." He blinked hard to stop any tears from falling. "She gave herself up for me."

Remus hesitated before he spoke. "She seems to do that a lot. For everyone she cares about."

"If she dies, it's on me. I would be the cause of death for one of the only two people in this world I care about. The only person who believed in me when I had nobody. I'm so stupid. I should have done something to stop her. I should have given myself up, found a way to protect her. It should be me in this bed instead of her! It makes me sick to see how badly they hurt her. And then on top of that I have to watch my brother cry and drink himself away because of something that was my fault!"

"I don't think she —."

"And even worse, as you said, she's given herself up for everybody in the damned Order and not a single person was willing to help her when she needed it aside from Bill and Fleur. I can understand that everyone had their own issues but not one person even bothered to check in with us to see if we've heard anything. They were all writing her off as if she were already dead!" Remus stayed quiet, knowing he needed to get it out of his system. "Did you know that she still seems to have nightmares even when she's unconscious? Randomly she starts twitching and gripping at the sheets. Sometimes she will even scream until Sirius will crawl into bed and hold her." His voice quieted down and the tears finally fell. "How am I supposed to even look my brother in the face anymore if she doesn't make it?"

Sirius stood in the doorframe with his jaw tense. He overheard every bit of his younger brother's rant. A wave of emotions hit him. He stepped forward bringing the attention to himself. "I'm not mad at you Reg... I know in the past when I was younger I would have blamed you. I would have taken it all out on you. But I've grown. She's helped me grow. It's not your fault. Believe me, if she didn't wake up on her own, she would wake up and murder me if she found out I did blame you. We will need to get through this together." He gave a tiny smile to Regulus. In return, the younger wizard wiped his tears and nodded.

Regulus' face grew deathly serious as his emotions calmed down. "I'm getting revenge on whoever hurt her."

Sirius clapped joyfully, "Can I take our dear cousin Bella?" A crazed smirk sat on his face. Remus looked from Sirius to Regulus in disbelief. It soon morphed into a look of horror when a matching smirk sat on Regulus' face.

"You two are crazy."

"It's in the blood." Sirius shrugged.