Jade Eyes

Nearly tripping over his own feet as he ran down the stairs, Remus tried to keep an eye on the woman in pale blue robes, but lost her as she stepped outside into the crowd in Diagon Alley. He swore beneath his breath as he found himself caught in a throng of people all gathered around a display for Gilderoy Lockhart's latest book. Receiving many a hostile glare and indignant protest, he pushed, shoved, and side-stepped his way through, at last emerging out into the humid autumn air as he gaped frantically around.

The girl he'd thought a ghost for the last twenty years was nowhere to be seen.

And perhaps that was all she'd been anyway. A phantom, a specter, a figment of his vivid imagination, brought on by... what? By the dream, of course, compounded with the news of Sirius's release and the flood of old memories that had brought. He couldn't have actually seen Evie Rhodes. She was dead.

He'd almost convinced himself of this line of reasoning when a flash of pale blue from ahead caught his eye, a lithe figure weaving her way through the stream of browsing witches and wizards. Before he had time to think about it, he was off again, paying no mind to anyone else as he fought his way after her. If there was even a chance it was Evie... he couldn't risk losing her again.

The focus of his attentions continued to bob in and out of his line of sight, forcing him to continually pause and relocate her, until finally she seemed to disappear for good. Remus stood there for a long moment, craning his neck above the throngs of shoppers with growing desperation. At last he sunk back, defeated. A wave of bitter disappointment swept through him, taking the man by surprise; he hadn't realized just how caught up he'd gotten in the idea of seeing Evie again.

Feeling suddenly very old, he raked his fingers back through his hair, sighing. "Remus, you're a fool," he muttered aloud. He sent a disinterested glance at the shops around him, his desire for a day of perusing decidedly destroyed. Aimlessly he began to wander down the Alley, till at last he stood before the brick wall that would take him into the Leaky Cauldron, and the world of Muggle London beyond.

"A stiff shot of Firewhisky sounds about right," he announced to no one in particular, letting his wand graze through the familiar pattern to open the wall.

Inside the pub, the regular cast of characters was present and accounted for, despite it being still quite early on a Tuesday morning. He was acknowledged with polite nods--and one friendly albeit lopsided smile from Dedalus Diggle--as he made his way to the bar and slid his lithe frame up onto a stool. Tom the bartender, still as bald and toothless as he'd been when Remus was only a child, shuffled down to greet the newcomer.

"Haven't seen the likes of you round here lately, Mr. Lupin," the old man announced, resting his gnarled hands palms-down in front of Remus as he leaned in close to inspect him. "Looking a bit pale, you are. Got something that'll color you right up."

Two shot glasses were set before Remus, which Tom filled with a pale amber liquid before nudging one forward for the brown-haired young man, the other kept for himself. Remus raised his glass, gently clinking it against the bartender's.

"To life, luck and love," Tom toasted, then rapidly downed his beverage.

"Hopefully not in that order," Remus added before following suit, swallowing the shot glass's contents in one long gulp. The amber liquid had a sharp, bitter taste that burned his throat as it went down. He grimaced as he set his glass back on the counter; it wasn't Firewhisky, but he would bet it was just as potent.

Tom, who looked no worse the wear for his quick drink, placed his empty glass down alongside Remus's and had begun to refill them both when he queried, "Something on your mind today, Remus?"

What was your first clue? Remus wanted to ask, but refrained himself from this sarcastic response. The bartender, after all, was simply being polite. So he sighed, took a sip from his newly-refilled glass, and replied, "Nothing important. Just thought I saw someone. Someone I haven't seen in a very long time." The memory of the green-eyed woman as she'd stared up at him in Flourish and Blotts replayed in his head, prompting him to drain his beverage once more.

"Mmm," was Tom's thoughtful reply as he topped off Remus's drink yet again without being asked. "Old friend, was it?"

Remus surprised himself with a short laugh. "You could say that, yeah." He glanced up at the old bartender, who was nodding wisely, and suddenly he blurted out, "Have you ever been in love, Tom? I mean, really head-over-heels in love?"

"More times than I dare to count," Tom replied with a grin.

"No, like... once-in-a-lifetime love. Like that one girl who comes along, and you just know she's the one you want to spend the rest of your life with. The one you dream about at night, because you can't get over just how beautiful she is in real life. The one who gives you knots in your stomach every time you see her, even if it's only for five seconds. The one who drives you absolutely crazy because she has no idea just what she does to you. And the one you'll always love, no matter what happens..." Remus trailed off, lost in thought.

Giving the younger man a minute to contemplate, the bartender at last queried, "So what happened to her?"

"Hmm?" Remus stared blankly up at Tom.

"Your one. What happened to her?"

Remus sighed deeply. "She..." he paused, then shook his head, and began again. "Do you remember a girl named Evie Rhodes?"

Brow wrinkled in concentration, Tom pondered for a moment before a look of clarity swept over his features. "Ohh, I think I do remember a young woman by that particular name. Very pretty, that one; eyes greener than the finest emerald."

The younger man snapped his fingers. "Yep. That would be Evie."

A knowing smile found the bartender's lips. "Fancied her, huh? Can't say I blame you though, lad. She was a special one. Had that look about her--in those eyes, especially--like she knew the special secret to living, but she'd only tell you if you asked her nice. A real gem." Slowly Tom's smile faded as a thought struck him. "Wait. Wasn't she the one who--"

"Yeah," Remus interjected, before the other man could finish. "That was her."

Tom shook his head sadly. "Remember hearing some of the kids in here talking about it, after it happened. Don't think there was a single person had anything bad to say about her."

"I'd imagine not," said Remus softly. He stared down at the drink cradled between his palms, fighting against the lump that wanted to form in his throat. Hoping to change the subject, he queried in a tone that he hoped was nonchalant, "Hey Tom, you see everybody who comes through here, right?"

"Why yes, lad, I do," the older man answered proudly, holding his shoulders a bit higher. "I pride myself on noticing the details."

Remus smiled. "And you do a spectacular job, sir. Which is why I'd like to ask you if you happened to see a woman come in not long ago. She would've been on the slim side, wearing pale blue robes, possibly with her hood up," he described the woman he'd seen, though not really expecting any sort of positive response from the bartender.

Which was he was surprised when Tom replied brightly, "Matter of fact, I did see a woman of that description in here. Came in just a few moments before you did, though I can't for the life of me tell you where she went. I lost track of her when you sat down, somewhere over by the door." He nodded toward the shadowed exit of the establishment that led out into the streets of London.

For a second Remus sat, stunned, before suddenly toppling out of his seat, muttering a hasty "Thanks," to the bartender as he sprinted out the door. Bursting into the street, he gazed around hopefully for any sign of pale blue robes or raven black hair. But all he found were curious looks from Muggles passing by, and feeling like an utter fool for the second time that day, he shuffled glumly back into the Leaky Cauldron. No one seemed to take note of his entrance this time, as he slumped wearily against the wall and rubbed fiercely at his eyes. "Merlin, Remus, how big an idiot are you going to be today?" he hissed to himself.

"You, of all people, Remus Lupin, can hardly be considered an idiot," came an eerily familiar voice from the shadows of a nearby booth.

Remus startled, his heart in his throat as he turned to the hidden figure.

"Damnable in your persistence, perhaps, but certainly not an idiot," continued the woman--and indeed it was a woman; he would remember that particular feminine voice till the day he died. He watched with wide eyes as she emerged from the shadows, as beautiful and amazing and alive as she'd been the last night he'd seen her, twenty years ago. She smiled at him as she climbed shakily to her feet.

His voice barely above a whisper, he gasped, "Evie?"

"Hello, Remus," said Evie Rhodes. And then she passed out, the woman thought to be dead falling gently into the arms of the man who was still madly in love with her.