AUTOPHOBIA - G. WEASLEY

Summer, 1993: Escape

✯ CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE ✯

❝Perfect is merely a standard.❞

1st August, 1993.

ESTELLA READ OVER the last few lines of her Potions essay for what must have been the thirtieth time. There was something in her last paragraph which didn't make any sense; she just couldn't figure out what it was.

Estella knew this wasn't good enough to hand in, especially not when the Professor marking it would be Snape. So, sighing, she stood to go and show it to her Father; hoping he could maybe point her in directions which would make it better.

She walked into his study, expecting him to be in the place where she'd last seen him, but was immediately met with his empty seat. She then checked the kitchen and living room with absolutely no luck.

"Dad?" Estella called out, his disappearance confusing the thirteen year old. He'd been in the house just forty minutes ago -- when Dumbledore had shown up uninvited and Estella had been sent to her room to let them have an 'adult chat.'

It wasn't until she heard the familiar tune of David Bowie's Changes that Estella thought to look outside for her Father. Neither of them used the garden very often; it was the place she would least expect him to be.

But there he was. Sitting on a wooden bench Estella didn't even know they owned, blaring music out of his record player, smoking on a cigarette - which set immediate alarm bells off in Estella's head.

Remus only ever smoked when he was stressed; it was something he thought Estella had never noticed. As far as he was concerned she didn't even know he smoked at all; but she'd noticed it, and she'd noticed that it was only ever if something very serious had happened.

Like when his Dad had died a few years earlier -- Estella noticed he'd picked up on the bad habit shortly after that.

She decided to make her presence known.

"Dad, what are you doing?" 

Remus jumped out of his skin; the cigarette went flying, and he quickly stood on it as if that was going to make Estella forget it was ever there. His face hardened as he looked up at her.

"Estella? I could ask you the same question. I thought I told you to go work on some homework?"

She nodded. "You did, when Dumbledore was here. But he's gone now. And the whole reason I came down here was to ask if you could check it, but..."

"But?"

"You were smoking. Don't play stupid with me Dad -- I've seen you do it before, but only when you've been stressed. What's the matter?"

Remus said nothing. He seemed like he was dodging the question. After what must have been a good three minutes, he looked down at his goddaughter and said sternly, "Smoking is bad for you. I don't ever want to hear of you doing it."

Estella raised a brow. "You can't talk."

"I only do it when I'm stressed, as you seem to have noticed," Remus shrugged. "I mean it though, Stell, if I ever catch you smoking I'm grounding you for life."

She chose to ignore that last part. "So you are stressed?" She looked at her Father. "You just admitted it. What's happened? Did Dumbledore say something to you?"

There was a ringing silence. Remus brought his hands to his face, sighing deeply as he muttered, "I can't keep this from you."

Estella stared at him.

"Sweetheart, sit down for a minute."

"Dad?" She took a seat on the bench next to him. "What's wrong?"

Remus put his hand on her shoulder, his face suddenly turning very serious.

He took one deep breath. "There's no easy way for me to tell you this.....Your Father has escaped from Azkaban Prison."

In the moment those words had escaped Remus' mouth, Estella felt her heart drop. She wasn't sure if it was fear, or heartbreak, or anger, or shock -- but it was probably all of those things combined. Her brain immediately started asking all these different questions; When? Why? How?, until eventually she looked up at her Father and fell into his chest as she burst into tears.

"Stella, darling, look at me," Remus comforted, "It's going to be okay."

She looked up, her face tear-stricken and bright red. "How do you know that? Isn't Azkaban like....impossible to break out of? You told me ages ago that the guards were really good at their job. If he can get past them, surely he's powerful enough to do pretty much anything?"

Remus sighed. "Estella, calm down!"

"No. No, I will not calm down. Are you forgetting all the people my Father killed? What he's capable of?"

"Obviously not, he was my best mate you know," said Remus harshly. "But so many people are out hunting for him, and because he's so famous he's not exactly going to be able to show his face on the street, is he? Dumbledore told me even the muggle world has been warned about him."

Estella took a few deep breaths, analysing her surroundings. Bowie was still playing in the distance, except now the song had changed to Moonage Daydream. Remus was breathing heavily, stroking a scarred hand through Estella's brown hair. She sighed eventually, playing with the necklace her Father had got her for Christmas in first year.

"Why did he escape?"

Silence.

"Dad, why?"

"Stella..."

"WHY?"

"I don't know exactly," Remus was now fiddling with his hands, "however the rumoured reason is to bring Voldemort back into power, which would probably mean going after Harry."

Estella remained silent.

"It's also thought that maybe he would  want to see his child."

She was at a loss for words.

"But don't worry cub, he's not getting anywhere near you while I'm alive. The reason Dumbledore came to speak to me today was to offer me a job at Hogwarts; and I accepted it. I'll be with you when you're there. You'll be safe. I promise."

Estella nodded her head. "How do you think he did it Dad?"

"Did what?"

"Escaped. I mean, that hasn't been done before, has it?"

"It hasn't, no," Remus shrugged, "but I guess only time will tell. I've no idea how he got past those guards --" there was an edge to his voice that told Estella he was lying "-- but what I do is know is that it's unlikely to happen twice. They'll catch him eventually."

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Now, you wanted me to check your homework?"

"Oh, yes," Estella took the piece of parchment she'd tucked away in her pocket and handed it to him. "It's my potions essay. For Snape. I need it to be perfect."

"Perfect is merely a standard," said Remus, his eyes scanning down his goddaughters essay. "You've spelt a couple of words wrong, but other than that it looks fine."

"It's definitely not going to look fine when he reads it."

Remus rolled his eyes. "He can't be that bad."

"He is," said Estella, and she wasn't joking. "He hates me, Dad! I don't even know why. Merlin, even if I did hand in a perfect essay, he'd probably still find a way to fail me."

"You're so dramatic Stell," Remus laughed. "Come on, let's go make dinner."

And even with the news Estella had heard just minutes earlier, she still managed to enjoy her night; all thoughts of Sirius in the back of her mind.

A/N: I'm only posting this as a celebration because today is my birthday! I'm in my dancing queen era, seventeen years old! It feels so scary getting old omg