chapter sixteen; the traitor's fiancée

"I THINK IT'S RATHER SWEET, ACTUALLY," TEMPEST THATCHER RESPONDED AS SHE LEANED BACK IN THE OVERSIZED CHAIR. Everything in Hagrid's hut was far too big for a human, but it was the cosiest home she had ever been welcomed into. Her hands were wrapped around a large mug of tea, and Fang was sleeping peacefully on top of her feet. "I remember when I had my first exams; I was just as stressed as them. It only gets worse, really."

"I jus' hope I do a good job fer them," Hagrid admitted, holding his hands out towards the fireplace so that he could warm up. It wasn't as cold outside as it had been previously, but there was still an evident chill in the air that urged everyone to bundle up. "It's my firs' exam too, an' I got to prove t' Dumbledore that I can teach another year."

"You'll be fine, Hagrid," Tempest assured the half-giant, smiling softly as he made an anxious hum in response. "Dumbledore trusts you more than anyone else in the world. And besides, you're a splendid teacher."

"You think so?" Hagrid asked, shuffling around a little to see Tempest nod enthusiastically. "Why, thank you, Tempest."

"It's quite alright," Tempest replied positively, before her mood dwindled a little. One of the only things that had been plaguing her mind was Sirius, and she felt the need to tell someone rather than keep it to herself. She hated keeping secrets, and this one in particular had been eating her alive. With the guilt that came alongside the pain of knowing he was innocent, she now tried to avoid every single conversation about him, which was hard to do when he was being hunted down and feared by every teacher and student. 

"Somethin' on yer mind?" Hagrid queried as he plopped down on his great armchair, heaving a little as he reached for his own cup of tea. "You don't seem all that bright this mornin'."

Tempest's index finger tapped against the porcelain of her cherry red mug and her lips moulded together as she nervously decided what to do. She hesitated, before opening her mouth. "Hagrid, may I ask you a question?"

"Course," there was no reluctance whatsoever in Hagrid's tone. 

"Do you..." she took a deep breath, "...do you think Sirius could be in-"

Before she could finish her sentence, there was a knock at the door that interrupted their conversation. Tempest's heart skipped a beat as Hagrid pushed himself up from his chair to answer, and she averted her eyes down to the ground, slightly defeated. The confidence she had been able to muster up was now dead and buried. 

"Remus, how nice to see you," Hagrid chimed, and Tempest felt her stomach churn. She'd been trying to subtly avoid speaking to her friend for the past few days, and when she saw him she'd faked a smile and made an excuse to go somewhere else. She knew it was only a matter of time before he'd realise there was something going on. "I was just having tea with Tempest 'ere."

"I can see that," Remus stepped inside, glancing between the two cottage occupants. "Tempest, we need to talk." 

Tempest nodded, trying to ignore the swirling anxiety in her stomach. 

Turning to Hagrid, Remus' lips pressed into a tight smile. "And Hagrid, I was hoping you'd be able to help me with the Dark Arts examination. I am in dire need of some Grindylows to help with the obstacle course I'm creating for the Third Years."

 "'Course, I'll have them to you later this afternoon," Hagrid dusted his hands off as he shut the door again. "Tea, Remus?"

"Yes, please," Remus replied, before his eyes returned to the jittery woman who was trying to blend into the wooden seat she resided in. "A word outside?"

Tempest swallowed, before putting her mug down and getting to her feet. Her stomach began to churn as she followed the rugged man outdoors, and she anxiously pulled her sleeves over her hands as the chill hit her. Shutting the door behind the pair, Remus marched a few metres away from the cottage, scratching the back of his head as his friend crept towards him. 

Tempest kept her distance, her eyes focused on the ground. "What did you want to talk about?"

"I want to talk about why you're lying to me," Remus responded without hesitation, and Tempest's mouth slacked a little in surprise. Her friend scoffed. "Don't act so shocked, Onyx, I've known you for twenty years. I can tell when you're being dishonest."

"What am I being dishonest about?" She asked, her eyes flickering up to meet his. 

"I know you have a lead," Remus retorted. "You haven't been at dinner for three days in the past week, and you bought ten galleons worth of tinned food. I'm not an idiot. You promised that you'd keep me up to date on everything, and instead you're doing the opposite. How am I supposed to trust you if you don't tell me anything?"

Tempest felt frustrated tears well up in her eyes as she realised that she had been caught in the exact place she feared. How was she supposed to explain herself to the one man who had stuck by her side all these years? She couldn't just come out and say all the details, she had no idea how he'd take it. He was usually harder to convince when it came to things such as this, and there was no denying that she'd be in trouble with the things she had buried deep. 

Did she give up the man concealed in the shrieking shack, or did she lie and hurt the man who had taken care of her in the years she had been left all alone? 

She even considered using the Confundus charm, but that was far too complicated and Remus was far too clever to let her get away with it. She was sickened with the things she was considering, as if she were just as bad as the idea of the being people thought Sirius Black was serving. 

Crouching down, Tempest buried her face in her hands and tried to settle the hammering of her heart. Her voice was so soft it could have been mistaken for a whisper, but Remus heard it. "You have to promise me that you won't say anything until I've figured this all out."

"Figured what out?" Remus pressed on, and Tempest wiped her eyes before she looked back up at him. The sandy-haired man was staring at her in a form of bewilderment. "Tempest, what have you done?"

"I haven't done anything," she pushed herself back up so that she was standing upright once more. "It's just..."

She hesitated, blinking back the water threatening to escape. 

"I know where Sirius is," she admitted quietly, and it took a moment for that to settle in. The atmosphere was silent, before Remus began to breathe heavily. His eyes were bulging out of their sockets and his mouth had contorted into a strange shape. Tempest had no idea what he must have been feeling. 

"What?" He snapped, and she dove forward, reaching to grab his hand, though he pulled it out of the way so that she held nothing but air. 

"Remus, please listen to me," Tempest's voice trembled as she tried to speak to him, but he was busy trying to contain his anger. "Remus, calm down."

"You know where he is and you haven't said anything?" He shot back harshly, and she resisted the urge to flinch at his rise in voice. He hardly ever did this so it came to a shock, but Tempest was unable to defuse it because he was refusing to listen to what she had to say. "You're just letting him run loose around the castle and haven't done anything to stop him? Who do you think you are?! I can't believe Dumbledore trusted you with something like this....I can't believe I trusted you with something like this?"

Tempest felt something click inside her. "Excuse me?"

"I knew you wouldn't be able to help the situation, Pest," he stated severely. "You probably fell at his feet and for his tricks again, just like you used to."

"Say one more word, Lupin," Tempest's tears had gone from guilty to angry. She couldn't believe the words he was saying now, she couldn't comprehend the fact that the man she had loved with all her heart was now abusing her with his own poisonous words. "I dare you."

 "I stood up for you all these years," Remus' calm demeanour had vanished completely now, and it reminded Tempest of the Wizarding War, when his temper was a short fuse and anything would set him off. She wasn't afraid of him, but she was definitely ready to teach him a lesson. "But it seems I was wrong. You're still the traitor's fiancée."

Remus yelped as Tempest's fist caught him square in the face. 

The professor staggered back as the enraged woman dropped her hand back to her side. Her eyes were venomous and hurt as she tried not to focus on the sickly things he had just thrown her way. "If that's how you really feel about me, Remus, that's fine. But yes, I do know where Sirius is and I've known for nearly two months now. I didn't tell you cause I knew you'd react like this, but you have to promise me you won't say anything."

"Why shouldn't I-" Remus began, though at the way Tempest was glaring at him he didn't finish the sentence. 

"Because I'm trying to get his side of the story," she hissed. "I'm finally hearing what he has to say, and I've been trying to connect the dots before he gets killed by the dementors. I've been meaning to tell you for a while, but it seems like there was no point. You're just like the rest."

"Tempest-" Remus tried to get a word in, but she had shrunk into her animagus form and had run off before he could catch her. 

Tempest ran into the forest and didn't look back despite the calls for her. She dodged rocks and critters until she found herself on the shore of the black lake. It was a different bay than she had been in before, but she didn't care. She slowed down her pace once she was far enough from Hagrid's cottage and transfigured into her human form once again. She collapsed onto her knees and immerse her hands in the shallow water beneath her, the pain of her skin slicing open from the rocks nothing compared to what was inside her. 

Her clothes were soaked and her head was thudding, and she realised that she was once again, all alone. 

Moments later she heard footsteps on the shore pebbles, before a soft splash of something entering the water. Tempest turned her head and felt her heart stop at the sight of a large black dog, eyes wide and concerned. The woman reached out and allowed her fingers to bury themselves in the midnight coloured fur, before she did something that felt almost foreign to her. 

As she sat in the cold water of the Black Lake with the animagus of the man she once loved, Tempest Thatcher began to cry. 

★☆

WOW SHORT AND SHITTY CHAPTER BUT I HOPE YOU ENJOYED SORRY FOR NOT UPDATING IN AGES LOLOLOLOLOL BYEE

ALSO BEFORE WE GET AHEAD OF OURSELVES ABOUT REMUS HIS REACTION WAS PERFECTLY VALID AND SUPER MEAN BUT LET'S NOT FORGET THAT REMUS CAN BE A HUGE DICK WHEN HE WANTS TO BE (e.g sassy marauder and how his insecurity got in the way of his relationship with tonks!!!!!!)