✧A BREWING FAVOR✧

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"What do you mean, Cara fancies Potter?"
"Er, exactly what I said?" Ronan said with sigh and Romulus fell further into his hands.

"Honestly, do you think if I walk out the front of the school straight into a storm of Dementors, it'll be better than—" Severus Snape had cleared his throat to interrupt the two students before him.

"I don't need to tell you that this is not a social environment, Lestrange."
"No sir, but we're in a crisis," Romulus said, not bothering to stop his sigh.

Ronan didn't understand how his brother was so relaxed in Snape's presence, he was a Slytherin—That was his head of house and he still hadn't managed that sort of relationship.

"Do tell me, have you decided to take up potions?... You excel just the same as your sister."
"No sir, though I do enjoy the healing side of it all. Mother said I should 'entertain the thought of working in the infirmary'," Ronan claimed, and Romulus translated.

"Meaning it's that or he's joining me this summer at mum's facility."
"Had you met your parents and I's professor, you'd take every opportunity other than what he offered." Snape relied and Ronan hadn't realized that just talking to his head of house offered a bit of normal conversation.

"Was that Professor Slughorn? Mum showed us pictures of Slugclub parties."
"Hmm, he hardly had his priorities but he did have his favorites." The two nodded along but Romulus had continued to aid his brother, but truthfully Ronan didn't need much aid.

He was well off by himself, it was just a blessing to have someone to check over.

"What is this crisis?... And will I be berated by your parents over this?"
"Oh it's been a lovely start to the semester, haven't you heard?" Romulus said with a laughable grin, and Severus chuckled rather darkly.

"I did receive a parcel or two, more so to see if you have any lasting effects."
"No sir, but I think I rather get my soul sucked by those Dementors than hear my sister fancies someone." The potions master had been grading at the head of the class and his eyes flickered up for a moment and smirked.

"Let me guess, one of the Weasley twins?"
"Not Imara, sir, Cara." The lad offered, and Ronan had uttered the last name and Severus had lost control of his quill. "Don't suppose that'll be father's reaction?"

"Oi I don't plan to tell father a bloody thing!" Snape pitch the brink of his long hooked nose and called a quick silence to settle the two.

"It is rather unfortunate to hear this bit of news, but I did have an assignment for your brother, Ronan. Unless you wanted to do a bit of experimenting."
"I'm good sir, I rather listen to Draco complain about his scratch. If mother hears one word of me experimenting I might as well commit." Ronan said, packing up his things and saluting his head of house.

All while Romulus turned up towards Severus, who waved his wand to close the door and silence it. "Please tell me mother isn't going to take me out of Hogwarts and send me to Ilvermorny."
"I'm afraid she's hinted that already and asked my opinion, and while you do share an uncanny resemblance to your mother's brother. I can assure you I told her I had a task for you this year." That peeked up Romulus interests outright, and without much of an effort Severus had offered up an old ingredients cargo container.

"Now tell me, what would all these ingredients make added together." He turned up to the Slytherin and smiled. "Mum's potion."
"Wolfsbane, Mr.Lestrange. Don't forget your formalities." Romulus had remained silent, however that didn't last long as Snape rather enjoyed the frown on the lad's face.

Uncanny resemblance indeed.

"You'll be making it each month until the end of the term. Do this and I think you might've earned yourself a position shadowing me for first and second years coming next year." His eyes had gone wide with excitement, until he held onto the bottle that was meant to contain it.

Of course his mother thought of every possibility, for a cheaper option those who were inflicted with Lycanthropy could make it themselves.

But it was a near-impossible challenge.

"I take it you know who this is for?"
"Yes sir."
"Then you realize that this is very sensitive information, one cannot just simply let out."
"Of course, Professor Lupin has been better than the last few Defense Against the Dark Arts professors since I came here." Snape hummed, though he hadn't been the one to fill said position just yet.

But in the coming days he knew he would.

"When did you come to recognize it?" Romulus bobbed his head as he organized his workstation, it'd take a good while before the potion itself would be finished. "His scars for one, and his mannerisms. But I've met a good handful or two—His eyes as well."
"And to a normal student, how difficult would it be for them to see the changes?" It earned him a shake of the head.

"I'm not sure how Professor Lupin acts during the moon's effects, it could be more than obvious and sometimes it's hardly an allergic reaction." Snape had nodded, and day one of the process had been managed. Allowing Romulus to get to the end of his brother's study hall and to enjoy it with a light snack.

In walking down the Ravenclaw's bench's side, he heard Cara's fancyment discussing Draco's injury. Any of his siblings had gotten a few nasty nips and scratches from that beast and worse, it's nothing that dramatic to overcome. Not to sack a professor or kill the beast himself.

"He's been sighted!" A Gryffindor had shouted, and Romulus' face had gone pale and cold. Yet it was Imara to pull her brother down to the bench. "You smell like a cauldron."
"...Work." Her eyes flickered off towards the discussing Gryffindor and instantly the location had been offered.

"Achintee? That's not far from here..." Hermione claimed, and Neville had been in a bit of panic about the serial killer coming closer to the school.

"With the Dementors at every entrance?" Lavender reminded, and the group had seemed a little uneasy to let out a full breath of relief.

"Dementors? He's already slipped by them once, hasn't he? Who's to say he can't do it again...?" Seamus claimed, however it had been the next Gryffindor that caused Romulus to shiver.

"That's right. Black could be anywhere. It's like trying to catch smoke. Like trying to catch smoke with your bare hands." Instinctually, he had looked to his hands. Only to see the family rings and frowned further, yet it was Cara had started to hold his hand. "It'll be alright." 

"You don't think he's here to finish what he started?" Cara shook her head and Imara took a peek at her own article. "It doesn't make sense his strategy, he's been all over the country. There's no leads, no trail, nothing. Just here to there. He must still be running trying to get here." Romulus felt his appetite diminish outright, but he didn't want to worry the rest of his siblings and began filling his plate with the bare minimum.

Causing Cara to poke him.

"I'll eat later, I was just brewing a potion with Snape." He claimed, however Cara had given him the side-eye, tapping her nose. It took her brother to realize it wasn't a joke on Snape himself, but that she knew what potion he was brewing.

"Your idea or his?"
"His, though I don't mind."
"I can help if you want. Mum will love hearing that you're doing this Rom." She smiled, though it didn't pass his attention to see that she was filling up his plate with more goods.

"What is Black going to do Rom? It's like the lions said. They're not—"
"He's mental, Cara. There's no telling what he's going to do, not to us necessarily. But that's a direct line to mum and father. Let alone the bloke I'm trying to shadow from a distance."
"Why don't you talk to him? Be his friend, besides being a knight and shining armor over here?" She questioned, and Imara peeked up from her book for a moment and shook her head.

"Romulus likes working in the shadows."
"Quit it Imara, aren't you suppose to meet Hagrid soon?" He reminded and she took a peek of her watch. "In a bit, but I can tell you that mum and father wouldn't send us without thinking Hogwarts was safe."
"Yet I was the one to get the invitation to Ilvermorny." Leaving his siblings to remain silent in the temptation of what their parents were thinking with that type of action.

"Probably to stop from the Auror's to do what they did, but they couldn't know it'll happen—Maybe if we all befriend Harry then uncle won't feel the need to do any injustice." Neither twin knew what Cara thought of their Uncle, she still didn't rightly say it outright. Leaving Romulus to remind her of the safety their parents placed on them.

"Hogsmead trip is coming, it's my first year in going!"
"And we'll all be going together, you can break off with you Ravenclaws after we arrive. I'm not getting my neck rung by mother or father because you wanted to go off by yourself, alright?" Cara pouted and crossed her arms over one another.

"Besides, your fanciment to Potter might revoke it outright."
"I do not fancy Harry!" She hissed, but the blush on her cheek says otherwise. And Imara laughed at that failed attempt in hiding the truth. "You're a shit liar carebear." Her elder sister teased, leaving her to drown further in agony.

"Jokes on you two that he can't go to Hogsmead anyhow...I don't think."
"And why not?" Romulus questioned, leading to the explanation of how his guardians didn't sign his slip to go. "Oh thank merlin, finally a blessing!" How was it only the first week? Surely more time had to have passed!

"Don't thank Merlin just yet Rom, when has that ever stopped Potter from going out of bounds?" Imara claimed, packing up her things and leaving the two Ravenclaws with their jaws dropped. "Is she alright?"

"Not sure, she seemed fine today. Sure it'll pass."
"And if it doesn't?"
"Then we worry then, right now I'd like to know when you started to fancy that bloke over there." Romulus said with narrowed eyes.

And Cara sighed.

"I don't fancy him, I just want more friends that don't think I'm odd or say my heads up in the clouds. I rarely see anyone in Slytherin, and you couldn't pay me enough to socialize with Pansey. Who else am I suppose to befriend?" Romulus knew that she wasn't lying now, but that didn't mean that feelings weren't starting to form early and are just unidentified as of now.

"Really? So if I happened to call him over right now?"
"Be my guest." Romulus was up for the challenge, though he didn't miss the glare his sister gave him when he called out Harry's name.

The Gryffindor excused himself and welcomed the distraction of the birds. "Hey Cara...Er—"
"Romulus, Romulus Lestrange. Heard you had a rough night on the train as well?" Harry had been carted for the Dementor's attacking him too much, and that caused a sour face to form.

Only until he recalled what Cara said.

"You alright?"
"Yeah, Lupin gave me a bit of extra chocolate. And I think it's proven to work Cara, but there's nothing to worry about with Black. Yeah?" The sour face returned.

"You heard about that?" He said, making the gesture off behind him as to where the rest of his mates were speaking.
"Think the whole room did, really. Much more likely to fall off a Hippogriff than a serial killer. Azkaban is a mind-wrenching place to stay all those years. Believe me." Cara narrowed her brows and altered her attention elsewhere, haven been given the talk, she had camped in her room for an entire week and didn't look at her father in the eyes when she emerged.

It was probably why Rabastan always treated her like a delicate snowflake, but when she had finally came to her senses and cried out her apology all night. Aurora had found the two sleeping in the den all curled up with tears staining their cheeks.

Neither had to tell Aurora Lestrange what had happened, it was more than obvious, but it was a blessing to have the house back in order after that.

"Y-you know what Sirius Black did...?" Romulus looked off towards Cara who was biting her lip, he wasn't out to—Well, out his own family and so the lad nodded.
"Yeah, father works in the ministry. He's a lawyer, real close with sending people to Azkaban, he's come back with a few crazy stories to tell." Harry was familiar with lawyers, but now it made sense as to why Malfoy was beyond afraid of Lestrange. And it was clear to either sibling that Harry didn't know the rightful charges placed on their Uncle from that faithful night.

And neither dared to keep the conversation on Black from then on.

Cara had asked Harry if he started his potion assignment and promised to help him later in the week, seeing as how Romulus reminded her that they had Quidditch practice coming up soon.

And like clockwork, Harry's eyes lingered on Cara a little longer than Romulus would've liked to admit.

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Date Posted: 02-20-2021

Time: 9:32

Words: 2312