Lockwood Part 6

Remus had been so kind and caring the following day, he’d made me breakfast, done the morning rounds with Ruben and Rilee, taking in the post and rewarding Rilee for her first postal flight, he then went on to water the garden that was growing nicely and even grabbed a couple of extra blankets for the sofa where we spent most of the day, reading and listening to music on the radio.

He opened up the back and front door to let the summer breeze drift through the entire house and every so often he would go into the kitchen and make some tea for the both of us. When he came back, I would let my head rest on his lap and listen to whatever book he was reading, letting his fingers drag through my hair.

In the evening, Remus made dinner, banishing me from the kitchen for the most part, before running a bath for me. I drew the line at bathing alone and sure enough Remus put some more music on and joined me. I loved feeling his heartbeat beneath his skin, the water was warm enough that I could feel the blood circulating in his body, it was rhythmic and comforting. Everything about him was comforting and I tried so hard to hold onto that feeling.

At one point, I felt his fingers tracing every scar on my body and I mentally thought about every time I’d been in real danger. Remus had always been the one I could rely on to get me out of those hard times, the oncoming war would be no different. It was only when he reached the scars on my shoulder, the one he’d made that I found myself thinking on a much harsher memory. How had I gone so long without him? I never wanted to be without him again, I never wanted feel such pain or loneliness ever again.

‘I love you, Angelina.’ Remus whispered into my hair, it was only then I realised my eyes were closed and I was simply feeling his long, slender fingers working their way over my body. ‘I’ll always love you.’ He softly traced kisses down my hair, my neck and let his lips drift over my shoulder for a while, but the water was growing cold and I was ready for bed.

Jocelyne had been so stressed with the planning of the wedding that Benji had given her strict orders to relax a week before Angie and Remus finally married.

Harry’s hearing had gone as well as could have been expected with Dumbledore coming in to make the save and he had been sent back to Hogwarts, Angie still arguing the entire time that he should be told something and Sirius not exactly disagreeing, everyone agreed that they would need to be watched a little more closely. The problem with that was they were talking about Sirius Black, the first inmate to ever escape Azkaban unnoticed and Angie Lockwood, the woman who defined stealth and secrecy.

Jocelyne tried to convince Angie that this was something that they needed to trust Dumbledore on, but it was Benji who put the argument to bed by saying that this wasn’t the war they needed to fight right now. It was cryptic and Benji refused to elaborate fully until after the wedding, but it shut Angie up in a way Jocelyne had never seen before. Her husband often kept secrets, it was his job to keep his family safe and after nearly seven years of being married to an Auror, fifteen being friends with Angie, she knew better than to push for answers just yet.

‘Jocelyne? I’m home.’ Benji called from the front door. Jocelyne had started putting up a silencing charm on Harper and Jackson’s room to stop them being woken up, he always forgot they went to bed before he got in. ‘Sorry!’ He whispered loudly as he entered the newly refurbished kitchen. It was now blue cupboards and cream surfaces and everything Jocelyne had been looking for in a kitchen.

Benji kissed her cheek while she was making him some tea, Jocelyne could feel how tired he was, he’d been pulled in every direction constantly for the last few weeks ever since Voldemort returned, it was a looming question whether he would even come home some nights. ‘Had a good day?’ She asked and listened to him sighing the way he usually did.

‘It was fine, Mad-Eye is still ranting and raving about Harry’s protection and Kingsley is still having no luck with the minister.’ He said, grabbing a biscuit from the jar on the windowsill and sitting down at the pinewood kitchen table, the one he liked and the one Jocelyne wanted to paint blue on the legs and cream on the surface. ‘Still having trouble locating these bloody packs though, they’ve started moving around at speed and we all know why. Dumbledore wants me to just track of them for now, monitor where they’re going and see if there’s any regular hideouts, but… I don’t know, they’re aren’t really moving like that and its… very peculiar.’

‘Maybe Angie can help once she’s back from the honeymoon?’ Jocelyne poured the boiling water into the biggest mug she could find.

‘Actually, I might ask her to stop by the office this week,’ Jocelyne could hear Benji frowning. ‘It’ll be a good excuse to get her into the ministry.’

‘Why do need an excuse? Just ask her to come and see you?’

Benji was silent for a moment and Jocelyne knew he was keeping something to himself, but if there was a reason that Angie couldn’t go to the ministry without there having to be an ulterior motive then she wanted to know.

‘Has Angie done something?’ Jocelyne sat the tea down in front of Benji who shifted uncomfortably.

‘I don’t like lying to you, but I need to be careful what I tell you.’ Benji said, quietly. He ran his hand through his thick red hair and sighed. ‘Angie thinks a war is about to start, not the one with Voldemort, but the Lockwood war… she wants to go back to the Alban Hills and there are other things she needs to do…’

‘Like what?’ Jocelyne leaned back against the counter and folded her arms. ‘Is there anything I can do to help?’

‘I don’t know just yet.’ Benji wasn’t lying, she could see that much, but he was very worried and that scared Jocelyne more than he could ever know. Benji seemed to hesitate for a moment before making the decision to admit to something. ‘She found Clara.’

‘She found her?!’

‘Jocelyne, you can’t tell Angie I told you, I only found out the truth from Sirius a few weeks ago and I’m pretty sure David knows more than he’s letting on.’ Benji sighed and ran his hand over his face. ‘Come and sit down.’ Jocelyne did as she was told, feeling her stomach start to knot. Benji held her hand and she knew it was serious. ‘This is going to be really hard, but I can’t wait until after the wedding to tell you, you just need to try and hold on until then to talk to Angie, alright?’

‘You’re starting to worry me now, love?’

Benji took a breath. ‘It was Darren… the brother inside him took control and he… he killed her while she slept… got rid of the body over the cliff near their house.’

Jocelyne took her hand away, the shock and horror began to hit, she suddenly realised that she hadn’t seen Clara for years now, why had she never asked about where she was?

‘Darren?’ Jocelyne barely made a sound.

‘It wasn’t really him, the way Sirius was saying it he didn’t even know what was happening, Darren just woke up one day and she was gone.’ Benji kept his voice low and it was just about the only thing stopping Jocelyne from panicking too much, but she still couldn’t understand what he was saying.

As far as she was concerned Darren Lockwood was a loving, caring and kind soul, incapable of violence and rarely ever quick to anger, unlike his sister who was renowned for it in their school days. It didn’t make any sense at all, how could someone so compassionate even be accused of such a thing? Benji gave her all the time in the world to come to any conclusion at all, but Jocelyne wasn’t reaching one any time soon.

‘Look love,’ Benji finally whispered. ‘Darren isn’t a bad person, only Angie knows the truth of what happened, but do you honestly think Darren was in any control at all? To do something like that?’ Jocelyne shook her head and felt a few tears shake loose from her eyes. ‘Come here.’ Benji knelt in front of his wife and brought her into his gentle embrace. ‘I wanted to wait until the wedding was over before telling you, but things are moving so quickly it’s been difficult for me to keep up. I need you to help me stay focussed, the same way you always have… you know how unbearable I can be at times.’ Even that couldn’t pull a small laugh from her. ‘Jocelyne… are you alright?’

‘No.’ Jocelyne breathed and began silently crying into her husband’s shoulder.

‘Come on now, love,’ Benji did his best to support her. ‘You need to stay strong now, Harper and Jackson need us to be strong… everything will be alright, you’ll see.’

Jocelyne cried as quietly as she could, trying not to disturb the kids who were now old enough to be more aware of what was going on around them.

It took a long time to really understand what had happened, but after a week of talking to Benji and trying to comprehend any details he had, Jocelyne was marginally more settled. She put the finishing touches on the wedding and travelled north to see her friend.

Remus was staying at Grimmauld Place the night before the wedding with Sirius and James and probably avoiding drinking anything Sirius put in front of him. Angie on the other hand was just the same old Angie, she was outside in her garden that was growing by the day, Ruben watching her from his perch near the owlery and a much smaller owl flying somewhat erratically around her head.

‘Angie!’ Jocelyne adjusted the carrier in her hands and waved to her friend. Angie waved back but it took her a while to actually wander over. She put the small owl back into the owlery and it was only then that Jocelyne saw how much she was shaking. ‘Are you okay?’

‘Yeah.’ Angie nodded, but it was the same nod she used to give in school before a big Quidditch game.

‘You’re nervous.’ Jocelyne smiled kindly and it only made Angie half laugh. ‘It’s okay, I was nervous as well, an absolute wreck the night before, but it was worth it.’

‘I’m just…’ Angie swallowed and leaned against the owlery door, Jocelyne noted she was wearing Remus’s cardigan over her tight, white vest. ‘What if I mess it up? What if I forget what I’m supposed to say? Or I don’t look right? I already told Remus I’m not really a dress person, I never have been, you were always the one that looked better in them than me and I’ve never known him not to be wearing a suit at least twice a week and I just feel like the whole thing isn’t really me… I mean the wedding, not the marriage bit... why are you smiling?’

‘Because you are the smartest woman I’ve ever known and you’re still thick as they come.’ Jocelyne laughed, but Angie just frowned. ‘Come on, your mum said she was going to come over and look at the dress with me, let’s get some tea on before she gets here.’

Jocelyne took Angie inside and realised it was the first time since the announcement that she had been inside her house, everything looked very well put together. The living room was cosy with a huge fireplace in front of a large brown sofa which had very clear indents where the two of them had sat night after night together, books were scattered all over the coffee table and some were piled up on the floor. The bannister on the stairs was finally painted white, something Remus had kept saying he wanted to finish at some point and Jocelyne felt a warmth in her heart as she looked over the spot he’d asked the question.

The kitchen was the complete opposite of Jocelyne’s, it was a little messy and the whole thing was brown and natural wood. It felt so Angie, nothing cosmetic or fake, it was simple, classic and homely. The kitchen table had been pushed to one side and was covered with a stack of Wolfsbane that Angie had been messing around with at some point. She quickly moved it and dumped it into the sink, getting a couple of black mugs down to start making them tea.

Jocelyne hung the carrier up on the door that led into their large dining room which again was covered with books and plants.

‘Remus really needs to get you some kind of store cupboard for all these plants, Angie.’ Jocelyne noted wandering back into the kitchen and leaning against the counter.

‘What?’ She frowned. ‘Oh right, yeah, it’s been a bit hectic the last few weeks with the shop and everything and… well, you know.’

‘Everything is going to be fine, you know that Angie,’ Jocelyne laughed. ‘All you’re doing tomorrow is putting on a fancy dress, getting a new ring and telling Remus that you love him. You’ve done all those things before, haven’t you?’ Angie shrugged. ‘Trust me, it’s going to be perfect.’

Angie’s shoulders deflated as she sighed and poured the water into the mugs. ‘Yeah, I suppose it is.’

‘Good… now will you please try this dress on so I can tell you how hot you look, yet again.’ Jocelyne managed to pull a half laugh from her friend and it was the best she could manage until Anna finally arrived.

They spent a long couple of hours staring at Angie in the dress and discussing any small changes that needed to be made and talking about how they wanted to do her hair, all of it making Angie roll her eyes, shake with nervousness and grow steadily more bored of the entire ordeal.

Jocelyne soon noted down everything she needed to do that night and Angie began making some dinner. She looked much more comfortable in Remus’s cardigan and her leggings than she did wearing anything else. It was sweet and so domestic, the complete opposite of what Jocelyne thought Angie’s life would be. Ever since she fought a dragon, Jocelyne had been coming to terms with the fact that Angie was not a woman who had the luxury of a quiet life, no matter how much she may have wanted one.

‘That smells good.’ Jocelyne wandered downstairs after finishing up the dress and saw that Angie had been in her own world, staring out of the window towards the darkened woods. ‘What are you making?’

‘Oh, it’s just some pizza, Remus usually does dinner, but sometimes I get to do it.’ Angie half smiled.

‘Well, it smells amazing and I am very much looking forward to eating at Chef du Lockwood.’ Jocelyne said, knowing that she was still nervous and worried, but nothing that a little wine couldn’t fix.

‘That doesn’t make sense.’ Finally a half laugh as Jocelyne began rummaging around in the cupboards.

‘No, but anything in French sounds classy.’ She argued and finally found Remus’s stash of good wine. ‘Ah hah!’

‘That’s the good stuff, he’ll not forgive you for drinking it.’ Angie warned, half meaning it.

‘Oh come on, Angie, live a little… I actually cannot believe I’m telling you to live a little.’ Jocelyne ignored the warning and grabbed two glasses, filling them half way up. ‘Can’t have too much before tomorrow, you need your beauty sleep.’

Angie just shook her head laughing to herself and took the pizza out of the oven, how had she suddenly become such a good cook?

‘My mum taught me this one,’ she said, slicing it up. ‘It was when she was fighting the first war, she took me and Darren into the kitchen one Saturday morning and taught us how to make pizza, cheesecake, chocolate muffins, all sorts of things. She said they’d come in useful one day, she called them ancient Wheeler secrets, only to be shared amongst family.’

‘Wheeler?’

‘My mum’s maiden name, she went from Wheeler to Lockwood.’ Angie stopped cutting and looked down at the pizza for a moment. ‘Do you feel like a Meyers? I mean, you went from being a McDermott to a Meyers, does it feel different?’

Jocelyne sighed and gently took the knife from Angie, finishing it off for her. ‘Honestly, I don’t feel like I’ve changed much since first year, ever since I stumbled upon the wrong carriage on the train and found a bloody Lockwood sitting in it.’ That pulled another small smile from Angie. ‘It was just a name, I didn’t stop being the person that I am, my parents are still my parents, Benji is still the man I love, you and David are still my best friends and I still can’t perfect the bloody shield charm as well as I’d like to.’ Jocelyne indicated to Angie to grabbed the wine and the glasses and followed Jocelyne into the living room. Angie looked towards the fireplace which was immediately set ablaze, Jocelyne was well used to her being able to do such extraordinary things. They settled on the sofa and Jocelyne put the pizza plate between them, taking her wine glass from Angie. ‘Thing is Angie, I’ve watched you change so much over the years and I never placed any value on your name, I was always in love with the person you were trying to be, we all are. A name is just a name, Lockwood or Lupin, they don’t mean anything unless you think they do, it’s all about who you are inside.’

Angie just watched Jocelyne for a moment, suddenly a thousand thoughts began darting around behind her big ocean eyes. ‘Thank you for being here.’ She whispered.

‘You think I’d leave you on your own the night before your wedding?’ Jocelyne smiled. ‘You might have gotten an idea and gone running off in the night.’

Angie suddenly broke out in the widest smile Jocelyne had seen all night. ‘So, you’re only here to keep me on house arrest?’

‘Exactly, that is, in fact, the only reason.’ Jocelyne laughed and sipped her wine. ‘I drew the short straw.’ Angie began laughing and it sounded like a laugh of relief more than anything, something Jocelyne found very curious.

‘It’s going to be okay, isn’t it?’ She asked, leaning back on the sofa and finally starting to relax.

‘Yes, it will. I promise, everything will be fine.’ Jocelyne assured her and eventually she was able to get Angie to relax enough to reminisce over memories, each one seemed so crystal clear to Angie, as if she could play out the whole thing exactly as it happened, no blurred edges or uncertain details.

‘Will you do something for me?’ Angie asked, she was getting tired after staring at the fire for too long.

‘Of course.’

‘Will you make sure I remember something? I have a feeling I’ll forget before this is all over.’ Jocelyne sat up, a little more than curious about what her best friend was about to ask her. ‘Will you remind me that this is his dream? The house was mine, but the wedding is his and it’s just about the only thing that’s keeping me from running away.’

Jocelyne watched her watery blue eyes almost pleading and promised that she would remind Angie if ever she forgot.

The way she spoke about Remus was always a sight to behold, he was the one thing in her life that she couldn’t exactly pinpoint in anyway, but she seemed so happy and almost excited over that, as if his existence alone was the most extraordinary thing.

Remus was nervous, so incredibly nervous. He stayed quiet while James and Sirius began talking about old school pranks they played on each other and others who they believed to have deserved it. Remus was glad he was amongst his closest friends, everything they’d been through with the war and Harry, Sirius in Azkaban and finally with Angelina, everything his life had been up to that point he felt was just the start of a wonderful beginning to something better.

‘Come on, Moony, get drinking.’ Sirius encouraged, to which Remus just sighed and finished the whiskey in front of him. James just laughed and did the same. Sirius refilled their glasses and the shadow of his laughter was still present on his face. He was looking much healthier than he had been previously, something he blamed entirely on Molly’s cooking, despite their differences.

‘So, nervous yet?’ James sat back in his chair and put his feet up on the kitchen table, making Sirius roll his eyes.

‘Very.’ Remus nodded. ‘Well… not so nervous yet.’

‘I remember you were a wreck,’ Sirius pointed to James. ‘Couldn’t sit still for five minutes to get his bloody tie on, nearly made us late for the whole thing! You remember how furious Lily was?’ Remus couldn’t help but laugh as he remembered that day as well.

‘I couldn’t help it! I was young.’ James defended.

‘That’s no excuse not to put your trousers on and start wandering around asking us all if we thought your shoes were shiny enough!’

The three of them began roaring with laughter and Remus soon felt tired enough to go to bed. In the morning he would be marrying Angelina Lockwood, in the morning he would be staring at his future, the rest of his life would slot into place and finally he could be happy with who he was as a person, he could ignore the temptation to call himself a monster, he could be a good husband and he could spend every day until the end of time proving that he was good enough for her.

Remus sat on the end of his bed, staring at his suit, his old brown shoes that Angelina liked and began crying. He was so happy and he wasn’t even there yet. This time tomorrow he would be her husband.