On Remus and Sirius' return, Juliet had instantly been apparated to Marlene's house, where she would stay with Arabella until the Hogwarts express the next morning.
"It's safer here. Proper wards and spells and that," was all Remus had said to her. "I'll see you at Hogwarts tomorrow."
She had been confused at his coldness and had reached out and grabbed his hand as he left, squeezing it and saying, "thank you, Remus."
He'd smiled absentmindedly back at her, "you're welcome, Romilly."
"I cannot, for the absolute life of me, fathom what I have done to deserve such cold treatment," the witch said, her feelings finally exploding as the three witches sat in Marlene's bedroom.
"Lupin kissed Juliet," Arabella said, filling Marlene in.
The blonde witch's mouth dropped open, "you didn't tell me!"
"We were slightly busy getting attacked, McKinnon," Juliet responded, rolling her eyes.
"And since then nothing?"
"Yeah, clearly regrets it," she muttered back, feigning interest in a potions book. "Don't really care either way."
"Merlin, am I stupid for not seeing that coming at all?"
Arabella laughed, "a tiny bit stupid, my darling."
"I mean, Romilly," Marlene started. "For one, you're engaged, to the boy you've been best friends with for the last six years. We didn't know you properly until this year. Before this you were Regulus' suspected girlfriend. What's he meant to think?"
"That's complicated."
"There isn't really time for complication on the brink of war."
"So I'm not worth his time?" She scoffed.
"You Slytherins are so bloody dramatic," Marlene sighed. "And secondly," holding her hands up she said, "this is no judgment on my half, but you've got that on your arm, and again, we're on the brink of war. And you're being protected by one of them. Your fiance bloody fired shots at Remus for Merlin's sake. What on earth must be going through his head?"
Juliet groaned and put her head in her hands as she sat on the edge of Marlene's bed, feeling selfish and confused.
"That's not really fair, Marl," Arabella said gently nudging the blonde witch beside her. "Juliet didn't choose any of that, none of us did. And Remus has known her long enough to understand that she's not the dark mark, and she's certainly not her fiance."
"I know that," Marlene said, chewing her bottom lip and looking guilty. "We all know that. Remus out of all of us the most."
"He's just being a man," Arabella said decidedly. "He's scared and he's confused."
Juliet grinned and rolled her eyes, pulling a blanked up to her chin. "I forgot how wise you are about men, Greengrass."
The Gryffindor witch mocked a vomit.
Arabella winked at Marlene, "night ladies."
Sirius and James arrived at Marlene's house at 5AM the next morning. After several complaints, a lot of nagging from Marlene, and Juliet soaking Arabella in water, the two witches made their way downstairs and sleepily greeted the two wizards.
"I thought you said we could get muggle trains," Arabella grumbled, apparently having a new fondness for them.
"It took us nine hours last time, Bella," Juliet said, rolling her eyes and handing her trunk to James' outstretched hand, gratefully taking the help. "Lupin didn't fancy the trip down?" She asked, trying to sound casual.
Sirius grinned, not missing the edge tp the witch's voice. He'd decided on the way over that he wouldn't tell the girls that Remus had been up all night trying to contact Dumbledore about getting the two witches to school before the Hogwarts express leaves, so as to keep up the pretence that the girls had been there all Christmas (at one point he had even considering writing to Regulus for his opinion, but Sirius had swiftly talked him out of that).
"Ah, why would you want that stinky old werewolf when you've got us, Romilly?" James whispered to her as she handed the bag over.
"Ha."
The two boys apparated Juliet and Arabella to a part of London that they did not recognise, Remus Lupin stood leaning against a blue car, saluting at the marauders when he saw them.
"Bright and early, I'm impressed Padfoot," he grinned, taking Arabella's bags and opening the car's boot.
"Wicked," she grinned. "Is this yours, Lupin?"
"My mums, she doesn't really drive anymore, though," he said, addressing Arabella and avoiding Juliet's eye.
"Why?" Juliet asked, utterly confused as to why she was expected to get into a muggle car at six o'clock in the morning.
"They all think you're at Hogwarts," Remus said bluntly.
Arabella clapped a hand over her mouth and gasped, "fucking hell-"
"How in Salazar- How could I forget!?" Juliet exclaimed, scolding herself for having been so distracted.
"It's fine," the wizard replied calmly. "I remembered."
"Thank you," Juliet sighed, feeling utterly relieved and trying not to think about what might have happened if he hadn't. "Merlin."
"We'll love you and leave you, Pete'll be wondering where we are," Sirius said, grinning and grabbing James' shoulder, pulling him into an apparition with him."
"So, where we going Lupin?" Arabella asked cheerily, opening the front door before receiving an odd look from Remus and an elbow from Juliet. The witch smiled and stepped back, holding the door out winder and bowing as Juliet got into the front seat, "your majesty."
"Fuck off, Greengrass," Juliet said, rolling her eyes.
"There's a portkey-" Remus started, clipping his seatbelt in before eyeing the two witches and saying, "seatbelts."
The two blinked at him, confused, he rolled his eyes, "Merlin, I forget how stupid purebloods are sometimes." He leant over Juliet and pulled her seatbelt over her, being careful to avoid making any physical contact.
"Juliet's not a pureblood," Arabella said sweetly, leaning through the middle front seats and kissing her friend on the cheek. "She's a halfblood."
Remus suppressed a smirk and turned round to Arabella, pointing at the belt beside her, "can't you do mine for me too, Lupin?" She pouted.
"It's too early for your flirting," Juliet snapped, turning around and giving her friend a sharp glare. Arabella poked her tongue out but said nothing more.]
"There's a portkey," Lupin began, watching the road as he drove, "about an hour from here."
"Why couldn't we just apparate?" Juliet asked, watching every move the man made intently.
"Too far," he shrugged. "We're all fairly new to apparating, don't think Dumbledore wanted to risk it."
"I can't believe you wrote to him and he replied," Arabella said, clutching onto the back of Juliet's seat with every turn that Remus took.
"I didn't," he replied. "I- er- sent a patronus."
Juliet turned to smile at him and she felt herself blush a little when he finally met her eye, "and it made it that far? Well done, Remus."
"I can't do those," Arabella chattered, oblivious to anything but her own voice, "in fact, I think you were the only person able to perform one in Slytherin this year, no?"
"I believe so," she smiled, inwardly rolling her eyes.
"It's not even that I haven't got happy memories, I do," she continued, "probably more than Juliet - sorry darling - I just can't do it!"
Juliet and Remus shared another smile at the witch's chattering, holding each other's eyes for a few seconds.
"Lupin - will you watch the fucking road!" Arabella screamed, noticing he was drifting towards cars ever so slightly.
"Oh Bella, you are incredibly dramatic," Juliet groaned. "We're fine, for Merlin's sake."
"You can look at her all you bloody want when we get to the portkey, but for now, Lupin, keep this muggle death trap on the road."
Remus stole one last glance at the witch beside him, whose shoulders were vibrating in silent laughter, and smiled to himself. Helping her was worth it, no matter the outcome. No matter if she married Regulus, he'd tried, and that was all he cared about.