Jondrette Girl | Regulus A. Black [2] ( ON HOLD)

Chapter Thirty

After returning inside with Sirius, Éponine enjoyed the rest of her Christmas among the Potters and her friends. It was quiet with the exception of James singing Christmas carols and eventually, she joined in. For a short time, she allowed herself to forget about Regulus and all the events that had happened before. She had once read that even during times of war, muggles would ceasefire to celebrate the holidays. She couldn't ignore reality forever, but it was nice to have several hours where the greatest worry in her life was remembering lyrics to a muggle Christmas song that Lily had taught her the previous year.

And when the night festivities finally came to an end, mostly due to exhaustion, Éponine agreed to return to the flat with Sirius that evening. They departed through the Floo Network after James and Lily left first. She had kissed Euphemia and Fleamont on the cheek, wishing them a Merry Christmas one last time before lifting Toulouse into her arms, and stepping into the fireplace beside Sirius.

Upon her arrival, Éponine released Toulouse onto the floor, watching as he hurried off to explore the home, and then proceeded to step out of the fireplace. The flat had not changed much, if at all since she had left for the start of term. It barely looked like anyone was living there. She looked over at Sirius, who walked over to drop the presents they had recieved onto the sofa before he glanced over in her direction.

"You haven't been here much since I left, have you?" she asked him quietly. "It's like nothing has been moved."

"I've been pretty busy," Sirius said rubbing the back of his head. "And I don't like how quiet it is when I come back here. Usually I just end up staying with James and Lily, but I imagine they're getting tired of that. It's just kinda hard to be here alone. I get so used to you being here during the summer, even if I'm not here all the time, you're always here when I get back."

Éponine walked over and sat down on the sofa, grabbing the few presents and stacking them onto the small coffee table. She pattted the spot next to her, inviting Sirius to sit with her. He didn't need to be asked a second time as he glady took a seat next to her and allowed her to rest her head on his shoulder. Raising her wand, Éponine quietly lit a fire in the fireplace, allowing the warmth to pour into the sitting room as she closed her eyes.

"Can I tell you something and you promise that you won't get upset with me?"

Sirius peered down at her with a curious look, not sure if he liked the idea of making such a promise. However, he wanted her to confide in him, regardless of what it was.

"What it is it, Nin?"

She opened her eyes and stared at the fire. " When you were in hospital with James, I couldn't bring myself to believe what Regulus had done. I didn't think you or James were lying when you told me what happened, I just believed there was more to the story. I didn't want to believe that Regulus was lying to me, so...I..."

"Nin, please, don't tell me you-"

"I went to the Grimmauld Place to see for myself," she admitted to him, not daring to look in his direction as she spoke. "I thought if there was a chance of a misunderstanding that he would tell me and maybe, maybe I could save him."

It was quiet for a moment, and perhaps people would tell her one day that she was too honest, but Éponine didn't care. Even if it made for an uncomfortable situation, she always felt better after telling the truth. It was better than having it weigh heavy on her chest and fill her head with negative thoughts. And even though she had made Sirius promise her that he wouldn't get angry, she wouldn't blame him if he become upset because it was only a natural reaction.

However, he didn't become as emotional as she had anticipated but rather, remained mostly calm.

"What happened when you went there?" he asked. "Was he there?"