𝘈𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘭 𝘖𝘧 𝘚𝘮𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘩 𝄂︎ ☠︎︎ 𝄃︎ 𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘺 𝘗𝘰𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳

𝟷𝟷. 𝙱𝚒𝚝𝚎 𝙼𝚊𝚛𝚔𝚜

Their next move was to get somewhere safe, off the streets. Their first, and really only option, was Grimmauld Place.

The four teens stood in front of the townhouses as number 13 started to build itself out of the walls. "Yup... just how Reggie described it."

Once they'd entered the house and the door closed behind them, all the lights slowly turned on. One by one. Esme wrapped her arms around herself. "Feels like Malfoy Manor after You-Know-Who moved in." It honestly felt a bit weird calling Voldemort you-know-who. She'd grown up hearing him called the Dark Lord and Voldemort. The moniker you-know-who was usually used by people against him.

Hermione raised her wand. "Homenum Revelio." Nothing. "We're alone.."

"Good. Then I'm scouring." Esme quickly separated from the group, heading up the stairs.

The trio watched as Esme scampered off, all of them speechless.

"Do you think if we weren't there... she would have killed Dolohov?" Hermione whispered to them.

Ron scoffed, heading into the living room. "She's a deatheater. Of course she would."

"Loosen up, Ron." Harry said, looking around at the house that haunted him of his dead godfather.

"We're all sleeping in the living room. Better to stay together." Hermione told Harry, digging through her bag as she too went to the living room.

"Right... I'll go find Esme." They needed to talk. They almost bloody kissed before the damn patronus showed up.

~~

When Harry did find Esme she was in Regulus' bedroom, going through a cardboard box she'd found. He deliberately avoided looking at Sirius' bedroom just before he came upon Regulus'. "Esme?"

His voice caught her attention, her head snapping up. "Thought you were all sleeping downstairs?"

"How could you..?" He asked, curious how she could have heard them from three floors up.

She simply tapped her finger to her ear. "Full moon is soon. Hearing is amplified." She looked back down to the box, rifling through letters.

"Right.. and how are we going to do that, being on the run?" He walked up to the bed, sitting down on the opposite end.

She shrugged. "Sirius says I should lock myself in his parents' old bedroom. So when i rampage i can fuck up their stuff. I know enough protection charms so I won't get out of the room." She picked up a letter with a familiar family seal. The Nephus seal. "Guess she was penpals with Regulus too."

"Your Mum?" Harry asked, leaning over to look at the letter.

"Yup. Makes sense. She was raised around the Blacks. The old Nephus Manor is probably down the street. Cloaked, like this place." She put the letter back, closing up the box with the lid she'd set aside. "I'll have to wait to try and contact Regulus after the moon. If I do it now, I'd cause too much damage to myself."

"Yeah. Yeah, don't want that.." he watched as she moved the box away, setting it back onto the floor. "Are we going to.. talk about it?"

She tried to fain cluelessness. "About what..?"

"You know what. We almost.. kissed." Harry started to fidget with his thumbs, twiddling them back and forth.

A faint blush arose on her cheeks. "I had... a lot of champagne. If I blame it on that, can we avoid this conversation?"

"Nope. We need to talk about it."

She sighed, avoiding eye contact by looking up at the ceiling. "I don't do... feelings. Never have. Snape specialty, so to speak. We're in the middle of a war. On the run. Nothing," She finally looked him square in the eye. "And I mean nothing can come of this."