In each other's arms
Chapter 8 - In each other’s arms
After a while, they broke apart to marvel at the fireworks, but it was really because had they carried on, they might have ended up shagging right then and there on the roof. Granted, they both wanted to, but as usual, Remus’ furry little problem got the better of him. And Dora was afraid she would somehow end up making a fool of herself, she had never gotten this far with a guy before. Walburga and Orion would have been turning in their graves at the thought of a werewolf and blood-traitor getting it on on their roof of the most Ancient and Noble House of Black.
They were both completely flustered by the time Remus let Dora down, thank Merlin they were in the dark so the other wouldn’t notice. Dora’s head lay on Remus’ chest, and he rested his chin on her head. How she wished they could stay like this forever. Dora knew the new year meant she would be buried with work for the next few weeks, so she decided to savour every moment she spent with Remus.
‘Shall we go down now? You could spend the night in my room if you like. I could sleep in the library, if you’re too tired to disapparate back to your place,’ asked Remus after the fireworks died down slightly.
‘Don’t you wanna spend the night with me Professor Lupin? I promise to keep my hands to myself, and I don’t bite. But, I can’t promise not to cuddle you, you are very warm and fuzzy,’ said Dora in a tone of mock innocence, with her bottom lip sticking out.
‘Are you sure Dora? You don’t have to, you know, you are under no obligation to do anything you don’t want to me- uh with me.’ finished Remus.
‘I wantto, Remus, really. Besides, starting tomorrow I’m gonna be stuck at the office for God-knows how long with the new year. I might even need to help with the Accidental Magic Reversal Squad. Merlin knows they always work overtime after the holidays. And I don't know when I’ll be able to see you after this, Dumbledore wants me tailing a few ministry officials after this.' replied Dora.
Remus kissed her forehead, she closed her eyes at his touch.
‘Alright then, let’s go.’ said Remus, taking her hand in his.
They made their way to Remus’ bedroom. Thankfully, they didn’t bump into anyone else. Probably too busy partying or sleeping. Once they reached his room, Dora began to undress with her back towards him. She was only in her lace knickers when she asked if she could borrow a jumper. Suddenly embarrassed, Remus handed her his best jumper, without looking at her.
‘Oh grow up Remus,’ said Dora half laughing.
She made herself at home in his bed, and beckoned him to come over. Remus mumbled something about getting changed, before heading to the bathroom where he changed into a pair of old pyjamas. His forward demeanour from the roof seemed to have dissipated once they were back in his room. When he emerged, Dora was already snuggled under the duvet.
‘Took you long enough,’ spat Dora, although there was no trace of bitterness in her voice, as Remus sat down on the edge of the bed.
She grabbed his hand and pulled him down towards her with a force Remus wasn’t expecting. But then again, this witch over here was a badass auror.
Dora hugged him as she buried her face in his chest. Remus stroked her hair, as he took in her scent. He couldn’t believe his luck. They ended up talking late into the night, or early into the morning really. From childhood memories, to Hogwarts adventures. Remus felt like he could tell her anything. It broke Dora’s heart to hear of how Remus got turned into a werewolf when he was only four. And it broke her heart even more when he told her he used to feel sorry for the werewolf who bit him. Remus told her how he would bite and scratch himself during the full moon, which is why he had so many scars all over himself. Without missing a beat, Dora began to kiss all of Remus’ scars in sight, starting from his face all the way to his torso. There were more of course, but those could wait. This was the first time they would be spending the night together after all.
Her heart was so pure, and Remus knew he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. She was the first person who made him feel like he wasn’t a monster, and that no matter how many scars he had, he will always be beautiful, and worthy of love. Remus even told her his greatest regret of not stopping James and Sirius from bullying Severus. But when your three best friends not only stuck with you when they found out you were a monster, but also became illegal animagi just to keep you company, it was not easy. Dora said maybe he should have been in Hufflepuff, since his loyalty triumphed over his bravery, she did have a fair point, he thought to himself.
Dora told Remus how some people would tease her when she first started out at Hogwarts, but Dora got them back, she was quite the prankster. Dora was homeschooled by her mother because of her powers, and she wasn’t allowed to hang out with the muggle children near her childhood home before starting at Hogwarts. The only family from her dad’s side she saw often were her grandparents, they knew all about magic of course. But the rest of her dad’s family remained blissfully ignorant. Dora would have to wear a brunette wig on the rare occasion she saw them before she had full control of her powers. Even after gaining control over her powers her parents decided to keep them at arm’s length to minimise the risk of exposing the Wizarding World to them. Like Remus, Dora too had quite a lonely childhood.
Despite her seemingly playful attitude, Dora was almost always top in her year all throughout her time at Hogwarts, which is why becoming an auror was even an option for her. However, this didn’t mean Dora didn’t have time for jokes and pranks. She would have made a better Marauder than Remus, he thought to himself. This was probably why she was never made a prefect, not that she complained about it. But Dora never bullied anyone, which is what set her apart from James and Sirius. Dora was even a Hufflepuff chaser during her sixth year, but she resigned to focus on her N.E.W.T. during her seventh year. This would have made Hermione proud.
It must have been around three in the morning when they finally fell asleep in each other’s arms. Remus actually snored, but Dora found this endearing. She woke up in silence the next morning so as to not wake Remus up. Dora successfully showered and dressed without making a racket, and she almost made it out of his room in silence, but alas, she knocked over the chair next to his study table.
‘Oh damn, sorry about that Remus, I didn’t want to wake you,’ said Dora sheepishly, as she made her way towards him. She sat down at the edge of the bed next to him.
‘That’s alright love,’ said Remus, he sounded really sexy when he was half-asleep. He took both her hands in his before kissing them.
‘I’ve got to go in a bit, but I’ll send you a Patronus when I can. I don’t know when I’ll be seeing you again, but I’ve always got you close to my heart’, said Dora, pointing at the pendant around her neck.
‘Be careful, okay, I hear your deranged aunt broke out of prison, along with her lunatic husband,’ said Remus seriously.
‘I will, and you be careful too, and let me know how the Wolfbane worked, I want it to be perfect,’ answered Dora.
‘Of course it is Dora, don’t worry about me. You better get going now, don’t want to start the year by being late to work.’
‘Yeah, I’ll definitely see you when we drop off the kids at Hogwarts, but that’s still a while away,’ Dora trailed off.
‘We’ll figure it out,’ said Remus, placing another kiss on her hands. ‘Well, off you go then.’
‘Bye bye Remus,’ she ran her fingers through his hair before kissing the top of his head.
As expected, Dora was buried in a huge pile of work, so she didn’t have time to go to headquarters. She usually sent her reports through Arthur, or Kingsley. She missed Remus terribly, there were somethings Patronuses just simply couldn’t convey, although her heart leapt every time the wolf materialised in front of her.
Finally the day of sending the kids back to Hogwarts arrived, but although she was close to Remus, they were both busy with handling the kids. They only had a few moments together over breakfast, but they were certainly not alone. As there were six kids between them, they had their hands full. A small part of Remus wondered if someday they’d by chivying after kids of their own when sending them off to Hogwarts. They hardly spoke on the entire way to Hogwarts as they split the group in two. Thankfully on the way back they managed to sit next to each other. Dora took his hand in hers, as she told him all about her hectic week at work, and how she even spent a few nights sleeping at her office because she was just so tired.
Remus felt bad for her, and even worse because there was nothing he could do about it. Dora however, was ecstatic when Remus told her, her Wolfsbane potion worked. It warmed her heart to be able to do something meaningful for him. Soon the countryside outside their windows turned into the suburbs, and then finally townhouses, Remus disembarked alone as Dora had to return to the ministry for some last minute briefing on Sirius Black. She would have skipped it, but the fact that Lucius Malfoy recognised Sirius at platform nine and three quarters last September made her feel uneasy. Remus kissed her forehead before they bade each other goodbye.