Till the End of the Road.

Chapter Thirty-Three

Erin sat at the Weasley’s kitchen table, the war was over, it had been a few days, and those few days were the worst of Erin’s whole life. Losing Sirius was nothing compared to losing Remus, she hadn’t just realized how much she cared for him now that he was gone, she had always known, she would have always given her life for him. But she hadn’t, she was still living whilst he was gone. She sat at the table in silent sobs, she had no idea why Mr. Weasley had called her down from her room, as she once again was in the Weasley Twins room. Mrs. Weasley had just set a full teacup down in front of Erin when Harry, Ron and Hermione all walked into the kitchen. Mr. Weasley told them all to sit down and so they did, Erin didn’t bother to even look up, she was wondering if she could drowned in the tea, though she very much doubted Mrs. Weasley would allow her.

“I reckon you all are wondering why you are here” said Mr. Weasley.

“A bit” said Ron, looking at his father, worried.

“Well, it’s really Harry that we needed to speak with,” said Mrs. Weasley as she come stood next to where her husband was sitting.

“Me?” Harry asked, looking confused.

“Yes, see, dear…well, Arthur you tell him.”

“Tell me what?” Harry asked, looking worried now, much like Ron.

“Well, it was really Remus who was supposed to digress when you were to find out, Harry, but seeing as…well, you see, A few years ago Dumbledore had gotten word of two muggle deaths in America, this wasn’t anything out of the ordinary, but it was the way these two people had died, not a starch on them, just…gone” said Mr. Weasley, Erin was watching him now, she knew what they were about to tell Harry. “Well, anyway, it turns out these two people, a mother and her little girl, were not just any old muggles, there was a third person, quite alive, a person who had magical powers whilst her mother and sister did not, she, Harry could very well be related to you.”

“To me?” Harry asked, looking shocked. “But I thought I didn’t have any other living relatives other than the…”

“Yes...yes…but you very well could and so Dumbledore arranged for her to be taken to stay at the Order’s headquarters, Grimmauled Place; Remus was one of the few to take on this job, it took them a few days but they had managed to get her there, but she was ghastly untouched, for she didn’t know how to do the simplest of spells, and so Remus taught her whilst she stayed at Grimmauled Place, then once Sirius had died, Dumbledore made it so two Aurro’s would take her back to America, but not too long after they were killed much like this girl’s mother and sister. And so she came to stay with us, when Dumbledore was killed Remus; who had sworn to Dumbledore to protect her made her stay with one of my old co-workers…”

Erin listened to Mr. Weasley tell the story as she cried, she tried very hard not be heard, but it seemed Hermione still heard her and by the time Mr. Weasley had finished Hermione was patting Erin’s arm.

“But, Mr. Weasley…er…who is this girl?” Harry asked, still looking rather confused.

“Oh, don’t you see, Harry?” Hermione spat. “It’s Erin, just think about it… She was at Grimmauld Place for Christmas, remember Ron saying it was weird for her to be there?”

“I remember that,” said Harry, looking up at Erin with big eyes.

“And just think, it all fits, Ron, remember you saying how she was all broken up over Sirius?” Hermione went on. “It was because she lived with him.”

“Bloody hell and here I thought she fancied him…but wait…if she lived with him…”

“I didn’t fancy, Sirius…I….I was in….in love with Remus” said Erin, she didn’t care if they judged her or not, it was true and she would never hide it.

“Oh!” Hermione gushed and pulled Erin into a hug, Erin tried to mop away the tears that were still flowing as Hermione hugged her still.

“Wait, so, she could be related to me?” Harry then asked, a bit slow.

“Fred and George always hinted that they knew something we didn’t…” Ron trailed off, looking at Erin with much interest. “Bloody hell, Harry, look at her eyes…they look just like yours.”

Harry did just that and his own green eyes widen in shock. Suddenly Fred and George themselves walked into the kitchen and smiled right away looking at Harry’s face.

“Told him, have you?” Fred asked Erin with a smile, she nodded and he beamed at them all.

“How long have you known?” Hermione asked him, she had finally let go of Erin and was sitting up right again.

“For awhile now” George smirked and sat down in a kitchen chair.

“Yeah, for awhile….” Fred trailed off, with an even bigger smirk and he sat right next to Erin and sighed. “Well, Harry Potter, meet Erin Evans…. You’re going to need a lot of help dealing with this one.”

“Evans?” Harry’s eyes grew wide again. “Erin Evans?”

“Lily Evans…. Erin Evans… Merlin, your slow, Harry” Fred remarked, Harry shot him a look before looking back at Erin shocked again.

“Well, now that’s all out in the open, what do you say to a bit of dinner?” said Mrs. Weasley as she turned around and went over to the counters, busying herself with cooking.

“Is there anything else you need to know, Harry?” Mr. Weasley then asked. Harry shook his head no and Mr. Weasley stood. “I’ll leave you lot to talk then.”

“I can’t believe you never told us” spat Ron as he looked from Fred to George, as if he was annoyed.

“We wanted to, but we swore to dad and Lupin that we wouldn’t” said George.

“Wait, so if you fancied Lupin and he….”

“Ron!” Hermione shouted at him.

“What?”

“Be sensitive!”

“Ha, you’re talking to the wrong, bloke, Hermione,” said Fred, with a smirk.

“I know” Hermione remarked, darkly.

After dinner, and much talking, and explaining, Erin stood in the living room, looking out at the window, it was a worm, sunny May day, but she felt cold and gray inside. She heard a noise behind her and she turned around to see Harry walk in, along with Ron, it was as if they didn’t go anywhere without the other, this reminded her of Sirius and how he said himself and James were inseparable. And then it made her think of the time she spent at Grimmauld Place, and how Remus and Sirius were always found together…when Remus was there of course.

Ron took a seat in one of the chairs and Harry stared at Erin, he had been doing that quite a bit, not that she could blame him.

“So…er…” Harry trailed off, looking unsure of what to say. “We’re really related?”

“Look at her eyes, mate, her eyes” came Ron’s voice, for about the hundredth time.

“I’ve seen her eyes, thanks, Ron,” said Harry, a bit snippy.

“We’re really related….” Erin trailed off, not sure, if she should really say anything or not.

“Right” said Harry. “Well…er…you…were you really in love with Lupin?”

Erin nodded vaguely and looked down at the floor.

“Er, well….er…you can’t tell Hermione, or anyone else, but….”

“You really can’t tell Hermione,” said Ron, with wide eyes. “She’d kill him…”

“Yeah, she would, but, I have something that could help you…” Harry trailed off, staring at Erin once more. He pushed his hand into his pocket and pulled out a stone. “Since we’re related…”

Harry placed the rock into Erin’s hand and she looked at it then at him, then at it then at him again.

“What the hell is it?”

Ron laughed.

“Just…just go outside, after Mrs. Weasley is done in the kitchen, turn it three times” said Harry and that’s all he said. He and Ron then left the room, muttering about Hermione. Erin stood there confused, Harry had just saved them all, he wouldn’t steer her wrong, though she was very nervy about this rock in her hand, what the hell was it?

An hour later, when she walked outside she still was no closer to finding out what the stone was, she wished Remus was there to tell her what it was, he was smart….brilliant, he would know. After walking around a bit, she sat down one a log and sighed. Remus wouldn’t help her now, he was gone, gone and not coming back. Tears began to fall from her eyes again, this stone was stupid, just a stupid rock, she was sitting out in the dark for no damn good reason, Harry was just messing with her, how could a stone help her?

“Oy, more tears?” came a voice suddenly. Erin suddenly felt very cold, and very much like she was going insane. Her eyes shot up from looking at the stone, tears rolling in two tracks down her rosy cheeks. Then suddenly she saw it, saw them. Four people stood around her, almost forming a circle. Erin jumped up, fear rushing over her. There stood a woman; brown hair just like Erin’s, but with different facial features. There stood a little girl; she had blond hair and big blue eyes. And then there stood two men, the first, he had long dark hair and a bit of facial hair, though he did not look like a prisoner and looked much younger then Erin had ever seen him. The person closest to Erin had worn the clothes she last saw him in, but he no longer had scars on his face, he no longer had any gray hair, but he looked happy, he also looked younger.

“Erin…Erin…” sang the little girl. Erin didn’t know why but she backed up, she backed up with scared tears in her eyes, she wanted to run, but she also wanted to stay, how was this happening? She didn’t know.

“You’ve grown so much,” cooed her mother, Erin’s eyes landed on her, she gasped, her mother was so pale, much paler then Erin liked.

“A fine young women, brave and strong” said Remus, proudly.

“What…the….what the hell?” she muttered, backing up a bit more, breathing…there was no breathing to be had. Sirius laughed, he was dead and he was laughing at her, she wondered how many times he had done this before.

“Erin” he said with a smirk. “One; stop the crying, you know I hate that. Two, look in your hand.”

She looked down at her hands to see her right hand holding the stone Harry had given her, she looked up again and her mouth hung open a little.

“The Resurrection Stone” said Remus. “Brings back the ones you loved, but not fully, we can’t stay forever.”

“Who would want to? All she does is cry,” said Sirius, smirking more. “She makes it very hard to haunt her.”

“Haunt me?” she muttered again, looking at him with wide eyes.

“Oy, I’ll tell you the same thing I’ve told Harry” Sirius heaved a sigh. “The one’s that love you never really leave you.”

“I know that….” she trailed off, though it didn’t make her feel any better.

“We’ll always be there, you just won’t be able to see us” said Remus. Erin looked up at him and more tears fell.

“But I should have saved you, it should have been me” she cried, and then looked at Sirius. “And I should have been there; I should have stopped you from going.”

“You cannot blame yourself for our deaths, Erin,” said Remus.

“But I didn’t even try to save Tonks” Erin put her face in her hands, crying still. “Just stood there and watched…”

“There was nothing you could do” Remus told her. “Nothing.”

“But now Teddy…” she heaved a shaky breath.

“Teddy will be fine, and if you promise me something…” Remus trailed off, she looked up at him.

“Anything.”

“Promise me you will look after him.”

“He has Harry, why would he need me to…”

“Everyone needs someone to look after them,” said Sirius, now smiling.

“But Harry’s his godfather….”

“Sometimes people need more than one person to look after them, to make sure their alright” said Remus, smiling as well. “I looked after you; will you look after my son for me?”

She nodded looking down at the green grass, again.

“That’s a girl” smiled Sirius. Many minutes of silence filled the air, and then Remus spoke once more.

“You should go; Fred and George are looking for you.”

“I don’t want to go” Erin looked up quick at him again.

“You have to” he told her.

“It’ll be alright,” said Sirius. She looked up at them all and they all smiled at her.

“How do I….”

“Let go of the stone,” answered Remus, he always knew the answers. She looked from each face again, her mother and sister beamed at her, Sirius smirked and gave her one last wink, and Remus smiled nodding. And then she closed her eyes, letting the rock slip between her fingers and hit the grass. She opened her eyes again to see no one standing before her, she suddenly felt very cold. She bent down and picked up the stone again, she half hoped they would be back when she again. picked up the stone again, but when she looked up, she was still alone, but she wasn’t alone, they were always there, she just couldn’t see them. And so she whipped the tears away from her eyes and turned back to the strangely built house, once back inside the kitchen she saw Fred and George standing there, they both looked at her when she came into view.

“We’ve been looking for you,” said Fred.

“I know…”