Moonstruck | A Remus Lupin Love Story

Chapter 19: The Shrieking Shack

Esmeray's body was numb. She was entirely senseless. She only had one mission. Get to the Shrieking Shack. Her shoes pelted craters into the earth as she sprinted towards the site. Her jeans had been sprayed with freezing muck. Bits of dirt, sludge and grime painted her face as she scurried down the tunnel underneath the Whomping Willow. Her fiery curls had been frayed from the speed she was running, collecting twigs and dust and whatever else fell around her. Her thighs burned. Her calves screamed. Her lungs wailed in agony. But Esmeray kept moving. She couldn't let anyone else get hurt. Especially not because of her. Why were Harry, Ron and Hermoine out here anyway. Why were they always in the midst of the trouble. Those kids that she had grown to love so much, could be hurt, or worse, if she didn't hurry up. Hopefully Remus was there already. Though she despised him, she knew he was a skilled wizard, and could help protect them until she got there. The one thought that grumbled in her stomach, louder than the rest was, why on earth was Sirius Black there, and what was he going to do. Her memories of her fatherly figure only held kindness and joy, but after this year, she didn't know the truth anymore. He was convicted to Azkaban for Godric's sake. He was an escaped criminal. He's already terrorized the school. He wanted to capture her, right? So, what was he planning to do with her friends. But despite the nasty thoughts, something didn't seem right. Only one way to find out, she thought, as she finally reached the dusty steps to the shack. With one final push of her deteriorating legs, she busted through the door.

The sight before her was chaotic. Ron was crumpled in the corner with a bleeding ankle, desperately holding Scabbers. Hermoine stood in front of him with her wand out. Harry was on the floor, looking wide eyed towards Remus, who stood with his own wand facing towards the others. A haze of dust spread amongst the scene, appearing as the only thing that breathed, as all stunned faces turned to her. But she only focused on one. From behind the gloom, a pair of silvery eyes stared at her. There he was. Sirius Black. He was still wearing his black and white striped prison suit, that was now more of faded gray and shredded rag. He was paler, and skinnier than she remembered. His head of black curls, laced with oil and sweat, hung around his face. The room held its breath for a moment in anticipation. And then Sirius' mouth grew into a warm smile, his eyes began to tear and whatever his body had previously wanted to do, forgot all about it as he turned to face Esmeray.

'My...dear...girl' came breathlessly muttering out of Sirius' mouth. In that moment, Esmeray knew. She knew deep down within her soul that this man was innocent. She knew that her memories were real. She knew this was the long-lost man that raised her. Who provided her with dreams and hopes and warmth in her isolation. Esmeray let out an expired breath as she gasped out, 'Dad,' and she ran into his arms.

The moment their bodies met in embrace, she was taken back to a simpler, more innocent time. Where fields of flowers grew above her head. Where she would adventure through mossy forests on top of his shoulders. Where she would fall asleep on his lap as he told her stories. An overbearing sense of home washed over her. And for that moment, she felt like they were the only ones in the room. She felt the world melt away. She felt relieved. And she relished in this sensation of belonging, before it was quickly taken away from her.

'What are you doing Esmeray!' yelled Ron. 'He's trying to bloody kill Harry!' Esmeray looked around confused. There was no way he would do something like that. And that's when she found Remus's befuddled expression. He mustn't have known that his friend had watched over her during her time in hiding. She went to speak but was quickly cut off by Hermoine.

'Esmeray, get away from Professor Lupin, he's helping Sirius - he's a werewolf!' and with that, pieces of the puzzle began to lock into place. It made so much sense. Of course Remus was a werewolf. How could she have been so ignorant. Amongst the stress and consumption of her own power and problems, she had completely neglected Remus's own problems. The absences, his sickly appearance, his mood shifts, his love for nocturnal creatures and then his distained outburst towards werewolf kind. It all clicked. He was obviously just trying to protect his identity. As the bits of information whirled around her brain, she soon grew sorrowful towards Remus. She felt sorry for the man who had to endure so much pain and loneliness. Somewhat similar to her own situation. Everything became overwhelming. Finding Sirius and unveiling Remus's secret, it was too much. Commotion was happening around her, and she grasped bits and pieces of it, but her mind was far from the action. It was understood that Sirius was after Ron's rat, and the rat was an Animagus who was hiding, and so Sirius was innocent. But it all played in the background as Esmeray kept her eyes on Remus. Remus only stared back at her, emotionlessly and hesitantly. This was the moment he had been fearing. She now knew his true identity. A monstrous beast. And he was terrified that she would shrivel away from him. Scream. Become horrified by the idea of him. But she hadn't moved a muscle. She hadn't moved anything really. She stood like a statue among the chaos. And that was almost more uncomfortable than anything. More uncomfortable and shocking than finding out that she was the somewhat daughter of his eldest friend. They continued to stare at one another, coming to terms with each other's secrets, and not really knowing how to act towards the other, out of fear of rejection. Until the door slammed open and in stormed Severus, his midnight cloaks billowing behind him. It broke the trance between the two, as the Potion's professor stormed towards Sirius, grabbing him by his rags.