KASIMIR VALENTINE WASN'T EXPECT ANYONE AT THREE IN THE MORNING. It was the middle of the night, he'd just put Tessa to sleep after she'd cried for hours over the searing pain of the lightning scar on her wrist. He'd tampered with her memories to make her believe she'd gotten it from falling off her toy broom.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming," Kasi muttered grumpily, rubbing sleep off his eyes as he shrugged on a shirt to go with his pajamas. He padded out of his room and checked to make sure Tessa was still asleep before making his way to the front door.
The person's fist pounded relentlessly against the door, and Kasi grunted under his breath. "I said I'm coming, quit knocking or you'll wake the kid!" he snapped irritatedly. One of the first things his sister Catherine learned as a child was to never wake up Kasi in the middle of the night or you'll never hear the end of it.
Kasi didn't know who to expect when he yanked open the front door, but he certainly wasn't expecting Remus Lupin.
The frustrated scowl and furrow of his eyebrows disappeared as Kasi blurted out, "Remus? What're you doing here?" He opened the door wider for him to enter as he made his way to the kitchen to make them tea. "And when the hell did James come here to drop Tessa off? And why does she have a scar on her wrist?"
As Kasi made a kettle, he heard the front door shut close as footsteps shuffled inside the kitchen. "Kasi . . . ," Remus started in a quiet voice — the most broken Kasi's ever heard since the day Catherine died.
With his back still facing Remus as he watched a small steam puff out of the kettle, Kasi murmured, "What happened?"
For a long while — Remus didn't say anything. His sobs of anguish filled the kitchen, and Kasi allowed him the privacy to cry without him looking. He waited for the kettle to finish before he shut off the stove, and still kept his back facing Remus. And when his cries were too much for Kasi to bear, that's when he turned around to face his friend — the boy he's been in love with since their school days.
Remus stood with his hands bracing the dining table, shoulders hunched with his head bent. His face was covered by the shadows casted from his unkempt brown hair, but Kasi knew it was streaked with tears.
Quietly, Kasi strode towards him and without a word, gently took Remus into his arms. He hushed his sobs, stroking his hair soothingly as he murmured words of comfort. And when he felt Remus's sobs lessen, he sat him down on the chair as he claimed the one next to him.
"Start from the beginning," Kasi coaxed him slowly. "What happened?"
"James and Lily are dead," Remus whispered, his nose red with the color high on his cheeks. He was gazing at nothing in particular, his shoulders still shaking with the sobs that slipped out. His lashes were wet, clinging together in a starlike manner that brushed his cheekbones with every blink.
"Was it . . . You-Know-Who?"
Remus nodded, still staring off at the distance.
"How did he know?" Kasi asked in a hushed tone, keeping in mind that Tessa was still fast asleep in the other room. "I thought Sirius was their Secret Keeper?"
"I thought so too."
Kasi was shaking his head. "This doesn't make sense — Sirius would never betray them. That's impossible."
In a much quieter voice, Remus said again, "I thought so too."
"Where is he right now?" Kasi stood up to grab mugs from the cupboard now that Remus stopped crying.
"Azkaban — apparently, when they caught him, he'd murdered Peter and twelve Muggles." Remus would not look at Kasi, hurt and disbelief crossing his features as though he still couldn't fathom the fact that his best friend actually had the capability to do that.
Kasi brought the steaming mugs back to the table, sliding one over to Remus. "That's bullshit," he said at once. "I don't believe that for one second. And doesn't he get a trial first?"
"Because he'd been caught in the act, and Barty Crouch had already passed the statement that Sirius was to be sent to Azkaban without a proper trial." Remus laughed humorlessly, sniffing as he hastily wiped a stray tear. "The man is ruthless and will stop at nothing to add more cases to his hatred for the Dark Arts."
"And Harry?"
"Dumbledore has him," Remus said. "He insists on sending him to the Dursleys. I'd asked him to reconsider letting him live with you instead so he and Tessa could stay together, but Dumbledore says the Dursleys are his legitimate relatives. It's only right for him to stay there."
Kasi let loose a long exhale before nodding at the mug in Remus's hands. "Drink your tea before it gets cold."
Silence followed the next couple of minutes as Remus complied, the only sound being the clock's second hand moving.
When Remus finished, he asked quietly, "Where's Tessa? Can I see her?"
"Of course," Kasi said at once, waving his wand and sending the mugs to the sink. He rose to his feet and beckoned Remus to follow after him as they both made their way to the bedroom across Kasi's. "I was surprised when she'd appeared so suddenly a while ago," he explained, silently pushing the door open. "I'd thought James had left her there in a hurry and had forgotten to tell me."
Tessa was fast asleep on the bed with the covers on her waist. She looked like James when she slept, Remus couldn't help but to point out mentally. The slight open of her mouth, and the way she hugged a pillow greatly resembled her father's way of sleeping.
Kasi crossed the room, reaching over to draw the covers over her small body and tucked her in. "I'll have to keep her as a Valentine," he told Remus as he tapped the magical glass orb that once belonged to Catherine. The stars inside glowed to life and began to resemble the night sky. "I don't know why, but Catherine said it'd be safer that way — so You-Know-Who won't be able to find her."
Remus nodded. "She's right. He knows her as a Potter. That's probably the best decision for her right now, as much as I hate to admit it."
Kasi smiled faintly, walking back to the threshold of the door. "Sleep well, little troublemaker," he said as he shut the door quietly behind him. "You can sleep here for the night," he said, walking over to lead Remus into the guest bedroom. "Who knows how much Firewhisky you'd drink if I let you go out now?"
Remus nodded and entered the room, draping his coat over the hook by the door.
"The bathroom's down the hall," Kasi said. "Call me if you need anything. Goodnight."
"Wait, Kasi," Remus said, stopping the other man from leaving just yet. When Kasi faced him, Remus smiled weakly and said, "Thank you."
Feeling his heart clench in pain for Remus, Kasi smiled back and whispered, "Anything for you."