14 years...

14 years had passed since that one Halloween night. That one night had managed to destroy so many lives. The morning after, the morning of the 1st November of 1981 Lyra had been greeted by a dreadful headline in the Daily Prophet. 'BREAKING NEWS: Sirius Black arrested for the gruesome murder of Peter Pettigrew and 12 muggles' There had been no trial, nothing. He had been sent to Azkaban, convicted for a crime he had not committed. And Peter Pettigrew, that pathetic little rat, had been awarded the bloody Order of Merlin, First Class.

Filled with rage and the burning desire to do something Lyra had even travelled to Hogwarts, demanding to speak with Dumbledore himself. "You know he's innocent! Why won't you help him?!" Her screaming had caused all the portraits to wake up and the phoenix sitting next to Dumbledore's desk had spread its wings, ready to protect the wizard. "I am truly sorry, Miss Avery. But I'm afraid there's nothing I can do. Not even I could convince the ministry to release Sirius Black from prison.", the old headmaster had explained and his ineffable ability to always remain calm had triggered a wave of uncontrolled magic to swoop through the office, nearly ripping the Sorting Head from his shelf.

"You don't care at all, do you? None of this really matters to you. We're all just pawns and if one of us dies...then that's just part of the plan, isn't it?" Lyra had shaken her head in disappointment, biting her lip to stop a literal growl from escaping her mouth. "I understand that you're angry, Miss Avery. But right now there are other things that need to be taken care of. The war might be over but that doesn't mean all is well.", Dumbledore had said before Lyra had stormed out of his office, afraid that she might do something she would have regretted later. Like cursing the greatest wizard of all time for example.

Driven by grief and desperation Lyra had tried to contact Bartemius Crouch Senior, head of the Department of Magical Law Enforcement, pleading to let her visit Sirius in Azkaban. But every attempt had been in vain and after hearing what had happened to Frank and his wife Alice Lyra had decided that it had been enough. She abandoned the cottage, only took a few things with her and left. Lyra didn't want more than just to leave everything behind and so she chose her personal exile.

It was the northernmost island Great Britain had to offer, only a few hundred inhabitants, mostly isolated from the rest of the world. Perfect if you wanted to hide from the aftereffects of war while also trying to escape your own trauma. Lyra bought a small house near the beach and hoped that no one would ever try to find her. Little did she know that in 1995 that would be the case. That out of all people Dumbledore had sent out two wizards to bring her back to England and that this would be the beginning and at the same time the end of everything.

***

"Stop fiddling with your hair, Padfoot.", Remus sighed, grabbing Sirius' hand. "It's been years, Moony. I'm just trying to make a good first impression.", the latter replied, trying to smooth out his silky black tresses. Remus rolled his eyes. "We both look absolutely haunting, I'm a freaking werewolf and you spent over a decade in prison. Besides, I don't think she will be happy to see us regardless of our...appearances." Sirius bit his lip. "I know, I just...Merlin, I don't know how to act. I basically left her at the doorstep, running away without looking back." He nervously squeezed Remus' hand. "I thought about her every single day since then."

"I also left her when she needed me most. We both hurt her and we shouldn't expect forgiveness. She deserved so much better and all that we gave her was pain and misery." Remus gently stroked Sirius' wrist with his thumb. "It's like in our sixth year when she caught us. Why do we always do that to her, Moony?", Sirius asked quietly. "I love her and I should've made her happy but instead..." His voice broke and Remus pulled him close. "I know but those things are in the past. We can't change what happened but we can try to make up for it." He placed a fleeting kiss on Sirius' lips and then looked ahead.

They were standing in front of a tiny house. Black heavy wood marked by the tides, deep red curtains that prevented curious glances from outsiders and smoke that rose from the chimney into the sky, mixing with the storm grey clouds. "I heard she became a painter of magical portraits. Dumbeldore mentioned it.", Remus said as they approached the door that was engraved with various dots and lines, constellations and star signs.

"I never knew she had a thing for creative stuff.", Sirius mumbled. Remus smiled. "Oh come on, we always knew she was capable of so many things, more than she would let shine through." "True.", Sirius agreed and Remus knocked. At first, there was not a single sound, then a muffled voice whispered something and the door swung open on its own. Inside they were greeted by the smell of a dying fire, dried paint, chocolate and old leather.

The shelves were loaded with books and tiny paint containers, pens and pieces of parchment scattered over the floor. Many of them were covered in half-finished sketches, some even torn apart. A vase with dried lilies stood on the windowsill, next to a framed magical photograph. It showed Lily, James, Remus and Sirius, laughing, huddled together under a tree, spots of sunlight dancing over their faces.

"If you're not interested in buying something, then please leave. I hate visitors." Sirius almost jumped at hearing that voice, hastily adjusting his robes. It was silly, he knew that. But for some reason her presence made him feel like a teenager all over again, who wanted to impress the girl of his dreams. Remus took a step forward. She was facing away from them, sitting on a wooden stool in front of a large canvas, her messy black curls partly held up by a paintbrush. Sirius recognized the shirt she was wearing, it was one of his.

"Oi, I said buy something or get lost." Lyra turned around, looking slightly annoyed but only for a moment. Then something else took over and she felt her limbs go numb. She might have actually fainted if it hadn't been for Sirius and his inability to contain himself. "You look pretty.", he blurted out and Remus wanted to smack him. So much for 'making a good first impression'. But at least it wasn't a lie. She looked pretty indeed.

Sure, there were a few wrinkles and maybe one or two grey strands of hair but she was still undeniably beautiful, even at 36 years old. Her black curls had gotten longer, almost reaching past her waist and the old shirt displaying the band logo of Led Zeppelin gently nestled around her upper body, outlining every curve perfectly. And Sirius felt like an idiot, his cheeks growing red. For Merlin's sake, he saw her again after 14 long years and the first thing he did was blush? How embarrassing.

Lyra, slowly regaining a bit of confidence, got up, her eyes kept darting between the two men. She didn't know how to feel, there was just too much going on. Confusion, relief, anger, pain, sadness. And a wave of love, threatening to bury all the other emotions beneath itself. And so, before the fondness she had harboured deep in her heart would take over, she took a deep breath and slapped Sirius across the face. Remus flinched and without realizing it, also earned a box on the ear.

A few moments passed before Remus and Sirius exchanged a quick glance. They knew they had deserved it so there was no point in whining now. Lyra put her hands on her hips, to stop them from shaking. "Explanation, now.", she demanded, feeling her throat tightening. She would definitely start to cry but she didn't care. They were worth her tears.

"First, let me...let us say one thing, okay?", Remus started. "We're sorry. I know that will never be enough but I regretted leaving you the second I disapparated. I was sad and angry and I felt betrayed but that doesn't justify my actions. I ran away when you needed me the most. You were there for me so many times before, always by my side and when the time came for me to do the same I behaved like a coward."

Remus reached out for her hands. "I know you might never forgive me and that's okay but from now on I will do everything to redeem myself. I promise." He looked up into her face, his heart pounding so fast it hurt his ribs. And then Lyra flung her arms around him, making Remus tumble backwards, barely supporting himself on a side table that was covered in paint. "Stupid wolf boy...", Lyra muttered and Remus buried his face in her black curls, breathing in the familiar scent as relief washed over him.

They parted after a good full minute had passed and Lyra quickly wiped the tears away that had escaped her eyes. Sirius felt uncomfortable, he wasn't good with words, he never had been. Remus always knew what to say or what to do but he was a hopeless idiot that didn't know how to act around the woman he loved and then had left when he should've stayed. Remus cleared his throat, staring at Sirius intensely and nodding towards Lyra.

But Sirius' mouth was dry and he was sure that all the words in the world couldn't make up for what he did. "How did you do it?", Lyra asked and Sirius blinked irritated. "W-What?" "How did you escape? From Azkaban?" Lyra looked at him, her face calm and Sirius couldn't tell what was going on inside of her. "I uh...I turned into my dog form and slipped through the bars of my cell. The dementors react differently towards animals and so they didn't notice it was actually me. Brilliant, eh?" He tried a crooked smile but it came out sad instead and Lyra's face twisted in pain.

"I'm sorry, Lyra. I am so so sorry. That night...when Lily and James died I was blind with rage. I wanted revenge, I wanted to kill Peter and that caused me to lose sight of the most important things. You and Moony. When...when they came to arrest me all I could think about was the fact that I didn't get to say goodbye. That I would never see you or Remus again. That I wouldn't be able to tell you that I love you." Sirius pressed his lips together and tried to calm himself.

"We lost so many years because of what I did. So much time, wasted because I was reckless. I know I don't deserve you or Remus. I never did. But I swear that I've never stopped loving you and I never will." He had closed his eyes, silently wishing and hoping that he didn't look too wretched. He didn't want to be pitied, he didn't deserve it. And if it was Lyra's wish to punch him he would gladly obey. But instead, he felt soft fingers caressing his face and a sigh escaped past his lips. Her touch still felt like heaven on earth, nothing would ever change that.

"As if I could stop loving you, you twit.", Lyra said, a smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. Sirius smiled. "Guess it's my lucky day then, eh?" Lyra grinned and shook her head, cupping his face and pulling him into a kiss. And Sirius made sure to remember every tiny little detail about it. The feel of her lips, the taste, the scent of her hair, the warmth of her body pressing against his own. He willingly let this kiss burn itself into his soul so that it would always remind him of the fact that Lyra's love would never leave him. No matter where he went.