Among The Stars --- Remus Lupin

•twenty-eight•

Ara walked back to the common room slowly. She needed time to decide how she was going to explain to her friends she was the daughter of Death Eater's and the greatest dark wizard of all time wanted her for his army. It would've been easier if she had just been put in Slytherin, then she wouldn't have had to keep such a terrible secret.

"Oh!" Ara exclaimed. She had walked in to the common room only to find Evans and Potter finally kissing. 

She smirked as the two jumped away from each other, both bright red. Lily promptly punched James on the shoulder.

"Ow!" he yelped, rubbing the sore spot.

"You can't just go around kissing people!" Lily scolded.

"Pretty sure you kissed me first," Potter countered.

This remark earned him another bruise directly underneath the first.

"What's up with Remus, Beauxbatons?" Sirius asked, descending the stairs as James complained about Lily messing up his "lucky quidditch arm."

Ara grimaced at the familiar nickname, "What do you mean?"

"He looked like someone told him that books were being banned worldwide."

Oh yeah. Not only had Ara gotten a miserable letter from her parents, she had also yelled at her boyfriend. Lovely.

"I just...we, well, I kind of had an itty-bitty outburst." Jones explained.

"About what?" Lily questioned, now curled up into James' side as if she hadn't just hit him. Twice.

"Could you just go get him? Peter, too? I have something to tell all of you."

Sirius nodded, aware that something serious (A/N: ahahahaha) was going on, and bounded up the stairs.

Ara nestled into an arm chair. Then crossed her legs, uncrossed her legs, recrossed her legs, and uncrossed them again. She grabbed a pillow and started picking at a loose thread on the seam.

Sirius and Remus appeared at the end of the stairwell, Peter treading behind. Luckily it was late enough that no one was around to hear their conversation.

"I, um, wow this is a lot harder than I thought it would be."

Lily, sensing her friend's discomfort, stood and joined her on the arm chair. 

"What's going on Ara?" she asked, concern lacing her features.

"Well, first of all Ara Jones isn't my real name. It's Araminta Lestrange."

Saying her name out loud left a bad taste in her mouth.

Sirius gasped, "Then we're--"

Ara nodded, "We're related."

"I know your parents, but I didn't... make the connection."

She laughed at the twisted irony of it.

"Wait, your parents are Death Eaters?" Lily whispered the name.

"Yep, and what's even better is that he knows how powerful of a Legilimens I am and wants to recruit me. My parents are making me finish my education first."

They all sat in stunned silence.

Remus spoke, "Ara I'm so sorry. I had no idea--"

She interrupted, "No, I'm sorry. For keeping this from all of you... and to you especially Remus. I knew about your... well I knew and I still didn't feel comfortable telling you. Also I'm sorry for earlier today, I was just overwhelmed."

Lupin pulled her from her chair and into his arms. She started to cry softly. 

"I'm sorry," she whispered, "but we can't anymore. I thought I could pretend that I was normal. I can't put you in danger."

His grip on her tightened, "Ara, no. We'll make it work."

She started to cry harder, "We--I can't. I'm so sorry."

Ara pulled away from him, "I'm sorry, all of you, but I have to do this."

Grabbing her wand before she could change her mind, Ara performed the Petrificus Totalus charm. This put them all in a state of temporary paralysis. 

Obliviate.

It was better this way. It was better that they didn't remember her. 

She sneaked into the owlery where she wrote a quick letter to her parents. Then she hurried to her dorm. Professor McGonagall stepped in as soon as Ara had slipped under the covers. 

McGonagall carefully shook Ara awake, and feigning tiredness Jones followed her down to Dumbledore's office.

"Oh honey," her mother greeted. "We're sorry to be here in the middle of the night, but there's been a family emergency."

Ara faked worry and followed the Death Eaters out of Hogwarts. 

For what she thought was the last time.

And then she woke up.

~~~~~

A/N: HONESTLY I HAD NO IDEA THIS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN AND THEN MY FINGERS BETRAYED ME BY TYPING THIS HORRIBLENESS

WHOOPS SORRY 

GOOD THING IT'S JUST A DREAM