RISE OF THE FALL | R.B.

LXVIII.

Disclaimer: The Harry Potter World belongs to J.K. Rowling.

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CHAPTER LXVIII.

Remus looked like he hadn't slept in weeks.

He had dark eye bags underneath his once bright hazel eyes, and he had a range of scars across his face and body.

There was a particularly fresh one on his right cheek, and he had been holding his wand, but when he saw Reia, he lost his hold on it and it clattered to the ground.

His eyes widened and he inhaled sharply as he whispered, "This isn't real."

Regulus and the kids stood behind her, but Remus either didn't notice them or didn't care that they were there in that moment, because his eyes were fixed on his little sister.

The same girl—woman, now—that he hadn't seen for eleven years.

"Remus," She breathed, "I'm here. I'm back." Her eyes were beginning to tear up, and she quickly wiped them away with the back of her hand.

Her heart was pounding, and the moment Remus' eyes lit up, as if finally coming to terms with himself that his sister was really there, Reia let out a laugh of pure joy and delight and threw her arms around her brother.

They stood in silence for a long moment, just embracing each other.

"I missed you so much, Rei," Remus whispered, "Where did you go? Why didn't you come back?"

"I'll explain," She promised him, as they finally pulled apart, and he kissed her forehead, smiling.

She reached down and picked up his wand for him, placing it into his hand, and he blinked rapidly to stop the tears that threatened to spill from his eyes, even though his smile didn't fade in the slightest.

***

Remus couldn't remember the last time he had smiled this widely. It was uncontainable, and it spread across his face without him forcing it to.

For the past few years, he'd lived alone, barely speaking to anyone unless it was to his niece and nephew, Regulus, or Dumbledore.

After James and Lily were murdered, Sirius was put into Azkaban for the murder of Peter, and Remus was left alone.

He'd depended on his friends so much. He'd loved them, and he'd forgotten what it felt like to not have them around.

He'd forgotten how frightening the night of the Full Moon felt without his brave friends at his side, and how scary every day was without anyone to turn to.

His father had passed away not long after the murder of James and Lily, and he hadn't spoken to his mother in a while.

She lived alone in the same house Remus had grown up in, and though he tried to visit her, it was difficult enough for him to get out of the house, let alone face his mother.

He knew that she'd be overwhelmed with guilt if she saw the countless scars that covered Remus' skin, and the tiredness that seemed to constantly plague his eyes.

But Reia...she looked almost exactly as she had eleven years ago, except so much more mature.

Her eyes still held the same brightness, her smile the same radiance, and her voice the same Hope, and it reminded Remus that though his friends were not with him anymore, his sister was still here.

They were all sitting at the dining table, since there was no other place where they would all fit.

The table only had so many seats because he used to have his friends over sometimes, back when they were still around.