It was summer now. Ash sat in the kitchen. It was already late in the night. She was writing a letter to Remus. Just the basics, asking how his summer was and when he would be heading over to the Potter house.
Everyone else was already asleep but she enjoyed the feeling of writing a letter in the middle of the night. She liked being able to start her letters with good morning.
She was about to sign it and send it off when a knock was heard. Her heart raced, it was 2 in the morning.
She grabbed her wand and braced herself for an attack. When she opened the door and saw an exhausted and bruised Sirius she let out a relieved sigh. She helped him onto the couch and tossed him a bottle of water.
"You aren't going to ask any questions?" Sirius pants.
"You'll just have to repeat the answers in the morning. Plus, you look tired."
"I'm exhausted Wings."
Ash casted a cleanliness spell on him, "you can sleep on the couch tonight, or you can head to the guest bedroom beside James's room and take a shower. I'm making biscuits if you want one."
"I should tell you why I'm here..."
"I think I already know why. Get some rest okay?"
Sirius scoffs, "I always forget that you have a friendship with Regulus."
"Regulus talks about your parents about as much as you do, or less. I just know Sirius," Ash gets the ingredients for biscuits out.
"I guess I'll see you in an hour."
Around an hour later Ash had just finished baking and Sirius had finished cleaning himself off. Sirius sat in front of Ash with a huff. They eat the biscuits in silence as she adds a postscript to her letter to Remus.
PS: Sirius arrived unannounced. Bloody and bruised. I have a feeling he's staying indefinitely.
Ash sent the letter out but when she looked back at Sirius her heart broke a little for him. He looked so sad like the events of the day had just hit him. He didn't have a home anymore.
Tears were brimming in his eyes as he looked at the biscuit in his hands. What was he going to do now?
Ash walks over to him and pulls him into a warm embrace. It was all so natural, what else could she do for such a broken boy who found his way to her doorstep?
"I don't have a family anymore," he whispered in realization.
"I'm your family, you have family," Ash responds.
She ran her fingers through his hair and he returned her embrace, he had family.
"I'd never be able to thank you enough."
"Good. I like you being indebted to me."
Sirius smiles despite himself, he felt so at home here.
Ash hugged him for a few moments more. The moments turned to minutes. Until Ash felt an hour pass. An hour she spent pretending she couldn't feel the tears seep in through her sweater. Like she couldn't feel the way Sirius was shaking as she held him. As if she didn't know he was crying as he had never cried before. He had lost a family today but he would always have this family.
"What were you doing... before I."
"I was writing to Rem," Ash answers.
"Rem," Sirius repeats.
"Remus Lupin."
"I know who you're talking about. Rem just seems very... I don't call him Rem."
"No you call him Moony. You call me Wings, and my brother Prongs. Not to forget Wormtail."
"Do you like Moony?" Sirius asks ito indicatethat it has been on his mind for a while.
"As nothing more than a friend."
"Good."
"Good?"
"Good."
Ash gets up from the table and heads closer to Sirius. "Alright what'd she do?"
"Hm?"
"How many crucios, how many punches, how many cuts? You didn't get here unscathed," Ash rolls up her sleeves.
"You aren't allowed to use magic during summer."
"Who's gonna stop me? Episkey," Ash casts.
"She crucio'd me twice, I don't know how long. A few bruises around my stomach and a cut on my arm."
"Let's get started then," Ash goes to remove Sirius's shirt and for the first time, he's shy.
Sirius spends the next moments avoiding her gaze and not saying a word. Ash was so focused on casting the correct spells and taking care of his injuries that she doesn't notice the blush that had spread all throughout his face. He was toned, muscular, ash wasn't oblivious. She knew, she acknowledged it, maybe this was how he got so many girls.
"Done," Ash smiles, "Now sleep. The couch should be comfortable enough for tonight and then tomorrow we will get you settled in."
"Ash?"
"Padfoot?"
And then he leans in and kisses her. Ash didn't know what to do. Sirius was always very touchy and affectionate. Was this just how he thanked people? Surely she would know if it were. She didn't want him to feel bad so she kissed him back, and then she pulled away. She looked at him, the shock not fading from her face. Sirius just kissed her.
"Thank you," Sirius says awkwardly and treads over to the couch.
"No problem."
Ash puts up her stuff and waits for him to fall asleep, he dozed off as soon as his head hit the pillow. That's when she wrote her letter to Regulus.
Reg,
We need to talk. The pad is safe, is the ruler?
Ash.
She hated that they had to speak in code but Walburga and Orion Black did not play games or respect privacy.
The next morning.
"Padfoot? What are you doing here?" James asks, "Ash? Why are you down here."
Ash had fallen asleep on the sofa next to Sirius with her wand clenched in her hands. Just in case they came to take Sirius back. She woke up instantly after hearing James's voice. Her wand raised as she scanned the room.
Sirius smiles at the girl's intent to protect him, "I left. I needed somewhere to stay. Could I stay here?"
"Of course," Euphemia Potter enters the room.
"James always wanted a brother," Fleumont shrugs.
"I didn't," Ash says.
"Brothers. Really you're going to let me stay?" Sirius asks again.
"Why not?"
"Thank you, thank you so much," Sirius smiles as he hides the tears that had surfaced.
"Aw Padfoot's all emotional," James pulls Sirius into a hug.
"Yeah well I always thought I'd become your brother by marriage so this was a twist," Sirius returns the hug.
"Oh this is just perfect," James smiles even wider, if possible, "Now you really can't date Ash 'cause she's your sister"
"I don't think that's how it works," Euphemia shakes her head.
Knock. Knock.
"Regulus?" Ash wonders as she moves to the door.
"Regulus?" Sirius repeats.
"I was hoping he'd follow you but I thought I was being too optimistic..."
Ash opens the door and finds a panting Remus.
"Oh," Ash says hiding her slight disappointment, "James your friends keep arriving at our doorstep in less-than-ideal shape. Take care of it."
"Moony what happened what's wrong?" James walks over.
"What's wrong? That's what I'm wondering. Imagine my surprise when I get Ash's usual letter this morning with an alarming postscript. Something about Sirius arriving bloody and bruised for an indefinite stay? Is he dead?" Remus rambles in terror.
"Nope," Ash says curtly.
She found his franticness funny.
"What happened?" Remus asks catching his breath.
"Ran away from home, coffee?" Sirius smiles.
"Coffee?... I just boarded two trains and ran two miles to get here and that's the explanation I get!?"
"Mhm," Sirius rocks on his heel offering the coffee to Remus again.
"Thanks."
"Moony, I actually wanted to talk to you," Ash grabs him by the arm and drags him to her room.
Once they get there she closes the door and quickly moves across to retrieve a few items. She tells him to sit so Remus takes a seat on her bed as he looks around. He had never been in her room before. James had always tackled him everytime he so much as walked by. He had seen her room a few times before but had never actually been inside. It looked like what he expected it to look like.
Books were everywhere and overflowing from the shelves, it was a disorganized mess with a window open creating billowing curtains. His eyes scanned over the framed pictures. Her and James as kids, her and James as teens Family vacations. Her friends and her time at Hogwarts. He noticed that a large amount of the pictures had himself in them. They hung out quite a lot. One framed picture in particular was just of Remus, he looked really good in that picture. It was by Ash's bed.
He scanned the other photos. Her and Remus drinking hot chocolate together during Christmas a few years ago with the brightest smiles on their faces. Her and him arguing over a book. She and him asleep on the floor, his arm draped around her. Her and him studying together. Her and him with Peter and Sirius and James doing what they usually do together. Then Remus staring at Ash with an expression no short of love the day she wore Regulus's dress. Looking at the photo now he blushed, he looked like a lovesick puppy. Photo Ash did too. Their photo selves would just stare at each other and a few times Remus thought they would kiss.
"I have a few books that I wanted to send you but I thought Herm wouldn't be able to carry them all. He's an old bird," Ash lifts a pile of books and places them next to Remus.
It was around 30 books, Remus laughed and shook his head, he would have to start reading soon.
"Thank you Ash I really-"
"Stop stop stop, that's not all. Now that that's out of the way, I have to tell you about the really big thing. Drum roll please..." Ash has a mischievous smile plastered on her face.
"Dramatic," Remus drums on the bedpost.
"A potion! Now I know the full moon was a day ago and the next one will be when we go back to Hogwarts but... I did it." Ash revealed a shimmering blue bottle. Remus's eyes widened, he knew what it was.
"Ash... you didn't- It's not-"
"Oh, but I did and it is. I brewed Wolfsbane! Now I know it'll still hurt a lot when you transform but at least now you have some control."
"Ash I..."
"Yes?"
"..."
"Come on Rem say something. It took me a while to learn how to do that."
Remus looks up at Ash and takes the potion out of her hand. He places it on her nightstand carefully and pulls her into a hug. She returns it and she chooses to ignore the tears she feels on her neck.
"I don't know what to say."
"Well, I'd say it makes us even. Makes up for the lack of a birthday gift I got you last year."
"No one's ever done anything like this for me..."
"Well, I'm the best so."
"You really are. Thank you, Ash. I love you, Ashlyn Euphemia Potter," Remus says.
"Aww I love you too Remus John Lupin," Ash patts him on the back and the hug ends.
Ash was smart. She may not have noticed it for four years but she noticed it now. She was smart enough to brew two advanced potions without a hitch. She was smart enough to know that she loved Remus. She realized it the night she brewed the potion.
She looked at the iridescent liquid and couldn't stop herself from kicking her feet and giggling. Remus would be so happy. Then like an epiphany she stopped. She was acting like a little school girl (she was in fact a school girl). Giggling? Over giving a boy a potion. No this was different it was just Remus. But it was never JUST Remus. Remus was everything, Ash could never belittle him.
And that's when she connected the dots. It was because she loved him.
That same night she used floo powder to meet Theo. Who she was still dating at the time. She broke up with him. It would be cruel to date him when the only thing you want is someone else.
She would have confessed to Remus that same night. But it would never work, he refused to date. There have been girls in the past that liked him. He always rejected them. Even the ones he liked. Ash had an inkling as to why but she was smart enough to preserve their friendship over getting rejected.
Remus didn't date so neither would she.
"Just take it before the full moon," Ash explains.
"A lot's happened today."
"Yeah, but I think they're good things."
"They are..." Remus looks at Ash.
"The map is almost done too. Just a few more finishing touches."
"Thank you Ash."
"Anytime Rem."
"Ash?"
"Yeah?"
"Why'd you do it?"
"It cause you're cute."
"I'll have to maintain my looks then," Remus nods seriously.