the gentle moon / george weasley

then I am here to stay

August and Jade walked out into the living room where Remus Lupin sat, in an armchair with his face down and hands in his hair. The melancholy silence that filled the room was broken by the sound of footsteps entering. Remus got up, and when he saw Jade, his face showed so many emotions.

"You got old." Jade said, followed by a light chuckle escaping Remus' lips.

Jade and Remus were standing in the same room for the first time in 13 years. The first time since he left, the first time since Lily and James died. It had been 13 years since they saw eye to eye again.

"You have grey hair." Remus jokes, walking towards the woman and engulfing her in a hug, "God, I missed you."

"I've missed you so much." Jade whispered into his neck. August, surprised, didn't feel uncomfortable when Remus kissed her mother on her forehead. Their faces lingering in front of one another, their foreheads stuck together. As she looked at them both, she sees it now. She sees who she became a carbon copy of. She does have his hair, and she notices they have the same nose. She has her mothers eyes, and her ears. For the first time in August's life, she knew exactly where she came from. She knew who she was now.

"August." Remus looked at her, he looked like he wanted to run to her and engulf her in a hug and never let go. But his hands stayed to his side, holding the leg of his pants with a death grip.

"Professor Lupin." August says, "Remus."

He sighs in relief that there is no anger in the way she says his name. There is no anger in her big, brown eyes. And there is no anger in the way she ran to him and engulfed him in a hug. A hug he had been dreaming of since the day he left her. There is no anger in the way she tightens her grip around him when he picks her up, his hand running down her hair. There is no anger in the way she sobs into his shoulder.

"I've missed you so much, August." He cries to her, "I have never once stopped thinking of you."

He lets her down, and wipes a tear off her cheek. He hides the pain he feels when his finger rises and falls over the raised scar on her cheek. He hides the anger he has caused by all the scars that have litter his beautiful, baby girl. His anger melts away when she mirrors him, running her finger over a matching scar on his nose.

Jade excuses herself from the room, as the father and daughter share their intimate moment. Because Jade can not hide her pain as well as them. She can not hide the pain she feels as the two of them look at each other for the first time as family. She does hide her face in her Aunts arms, as she sobs and hates herself for what she had done to the two of them. What she had taken away from the two of them, thinking she was protecting them.

"Did you know who I was when we met on the train?" August asked, the two of them are on the front porch sharing a pot of tea.

"I could never forget your eyes." Remus tells her, "I always knew where you were."

"Is that why you came to Hogwarts?" She asked

"You were the reason I accepted the job offer, yes." He told her, "Of course, I needed the money. But I also needed to see you."

"Were you a Gryffindor?" She asked

"I was." he smiled at her

"So you were the other werewolf prefect?" August smirked at him, causing him to laugh.

"Yes." He smiles

"Am I your bogart?" She says, causing him to stiffen in his seat

"You saw?" He asked

"I'd know her anywhere." She tells him

"That," he says pointing at her, "You always say that. Her, like she is another person."