Hello, readers! Here we go, the sequel!
I don't own HP, blahblah
So, I have five years of ideas here. However, some months will be skipped lmao
March, 1999
In the ten months since the war ended, things hadn't changed much. Harry was still staying with them temporarily, as was Sirius, while they waited for the old owners of the house Sirius bought a few doors down to move out in June. Remus and Tonks were moving in a few weeks, into the house across the street, which went up for sale a few months before, shortly after Tonks sold her parents' house to a land developer.
Remus loved waking up first, because he could lay there and watch Tonks and Teddy sleep, enjoying the peaceful moments before everyone woke up. Most nights, Teddy would wind up sleeping between them, whether it was because he cried or because Tonks and Remus simply dozed off with him between them, and Remus didn't mind. Teddy was currently snuggled up against Tonks, the small grey wolf grasped in one of his hands. Tonks had her arms around his tiny body, and Remus found himself wondering if they'd ever have more children. Considering the traumatic events surrounding Teddy's birth, he had never brought it up to Tonks. They had time to decide, anyway. It wouldn't be happening anytime soon because while they lived in this house, Teddy slept in their room and sex was off the table while he was in their room. It wasn't that they weren't having sex at all- some days they'd shower together, some days Kingsley or Sirius or Alastor or Harry would want to take Teddy somewhere, and they'd enjoy their time alone. It was just most days where they abstained, which really didn't bother Remus. There was more to a relationship than just sex, and he liked that they were treating their second chance at a relationship like a proper one. It no longer felt rushed.
Sure, they had a baby together, but they still spent time truly getting to know each other and going on little dates. Remus was planning to propose properly soon. He wanted everything to be proper this time around.
Kingsley had been voted in as permanent Minister, while Alastor stayed in retirement. He had elected not to replace his magical eye, saying he was tired of the paranoia, and had simply gotten a glass one in its place which matched his natural dark colour, no longer giving him the appearance that earned him his nickname. Sirius was currently running a newly reformed Werewolf Support Services, working with a few Healers in the Creature-Induced Injuries Ward of St Mungo's to help werewolves get the help they needed. From jobs to Wolfsbane to absolutely anything werewolves might need, Sirius had single handedly managed to do it. Discrimination against werewolves and attacks by werewolves had dropped significantly.
Remus figured that was why he had been able to take a job at Hogwarts again, teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts. There had been a temporary professor until January, because Minerva(now Headmistress) had insisted Remus take paternity leave, even before he had even started his job. A fireplace connected their current home to the office beside his classroom, and once they moved, that house would be connected instead.
Remus watched as Teddy's hair shifted in his sleep, and couldn't help but smile. He hated to think about where Teddy might be had Bellatrix succeeded in taking him, or what would have happened had Tonks died that day. However, he noticed Tonks never mentioned the worst parts of the last year of the war. Her rape, Teddy's questioned paternity, the attack- it was all in the past, so he never mentioned it either.
He looked at the clock, noticing that it was nearly nine. It was amazing that just one year ago, they had been asleep together, his hand resting on her bump, unaware that Teddy would be born that day. Remus could still hear the sound of her scream and Bellatrix's harsh voice, he could still remember the sight of the blood covering the kitchen floor, and wondered if those memories would ever fade. He could tell Kingsley wondered the same, some days Kingsley seemed to focus more of his attention on Teddy and Tonks, avoiding the kitchen. Remus figured those were days that Kingsley had nightmares.
He knew everyone had nightmares. If they weren't nightmares about the war, they'd be about the battle. Perhaps the ones who witnessed Ron being killed brutally by Greyback, or the ones who saw Cho Chang thrown from the Astronomy Tower and dying only when she succumbed to the head injury sustained in the fall, or the ones who watched their siblings and friends die... perhaps they all had nightmares.
The school served as a war memorial on its own, the names of the fallen engraved into the stones surrounding the doors of the Great Hall, the date of the battle engraved in large letters above the door itself. A lot of students returned to do their year over, but a few took the offer of being pushed forward. Harry didn't return, but Hermione did. Ginny took the offer to be pushed forward, and was now a seventh year with Hermione.
Harry, on the other hand, was training to become an Auror. When he wasn't at the Ministry, he spent time with both Alastor and Tonks(and Teddy would usually be with them), ensuring he could pass easily.
The topic of Tonks' return to the department came up once, but was immediately struck down following her visit to Leo. The poison and subsequent weeks of antidotes and illness had taken their toll. Being an Auror was too high risk.
A few months following the war, Leo asked Tonks to go into St Mungo's, so his new mentor could examine her and make sure everything had healed. Leo had decided to change specialties and was now being mentored by the top Healer in the Maternity Ward(which covered everything from fertility to births to pediatrics), who had said she'd be delighted to take on the Lupin family until Leo was fully qualified. Apparently everything had healed perfectly, earning praise for Leo and good news for Tonks and Remus- if they ever decided, there should be no issue for them to conceive if they chose to. However, he said there'd likely be bed rest near the end of her pregnancy and possible complications, due to scarring along her uterine wall and because of her body not being as healthy as before. It could get stronger, he said, but not strong enough to return to being an Auror or having an unsupervised pregnancy.
Remus reached over slowly, brushing a stray curl from Tonks' face. A slow smile spread over her lips, and she opened her eyes slowly. "Good morning." She whispered.
"Good morning, love." Remus responded, a smile tugging at his lips. "Just making sure I'm not dreaming."
"Mm, what a fabulous dream it would be, though."
"I would much prefer it to be reality."
"Shouldn't you be at work?" Tonks asked. "After all, Professor, it is a week day, and the full moon was the other night, not last."
"Yes, but Minerva gave me an extra day off. It is an important day, you know. I simply, and conveniently, forgot to tell you." Remus said, gesturing to Teddy. "It's not every day your son turns a year old."
"Well, does it really count if he wasn't actually born until the evening?" Tonks asked.
"I believe it does, yes."
There was a loud bang from downstairs, causing both parents to jump slightly and causing Teddy to wake up and begin crying. Remus got out of bed as Tonks hugged Teddy, shushing him gently. Remus left the room, heading downstairs.
"Good, Nate, you woke the baby!" Remus heard Sirius hiss in the kitchen. "Now I'm going to have an angry mother coming after me."
"Or a confused father." Remus said as he entered the kitchen. The counters and part of the table were covered in parchment and Sirius and Nate, his partner at the Werewolf Support Services and the Head Healer in charge of the Werewolf Ward within Creature Induced Injuries at St Mungo's, were standing next to the table, where a steaming cauldron sat.
"Sorry, we've been working since two in the morning. That was the cauldron, I think we've messed this batch up." Sirius said, gesturing to the parchment. "Nate contacted me with some good news. So, it's good you're here, we want to talk to you."
"You want to talk to me?"
Sirius nodded. "For the last few months, we've been doing some tests. It started as a theory we had, but then we thought it may actually work." Sirius explained. "I got the idea from the fact Dora had to remain on the antidote for nearly two months. What if curing the poison in someone's body isn't always as easy as one simple antidote, a simple bezoar? What if it needs to be an ongoing treatment?"
Remus frowned slightly. "What?"
"I looked into the antidote Dora was on. It gave me an idea. The poison she had received, it was in her blood. Lycanthropy is in your blood." Sirius said. "Now, what if there was a way to treat Lycanthropy like Sanguis poison? To flush the blood, while simultaneously helping the body to create new blood that wasn't infected?"
"What are you saying?" Remus asked.
"When Sirius told me about the antidote, we both researched it extensively." Nate said. "It flushes the poison from the body, which is why some patients vomit excessively. As the antidote flushes the poison, it helps the body create new blood, blood that hasn't been tainted. Now, what if we could do the same for werewolves?"
"I think you're both mad." Remus said.
"You can think whatever you want, but we did it." Sirius said. "We've been testing this on two different werewolves since September. One who was infected in August of 1997, so just over a year before we began, and one who had been infected nearly twenty years."
"We treated it as if both had simply been poisoned. Obviously, the longer someone has been poisoned, the more complicated the treatment. The werewolf who has only been infected for almost two years now- well, Marla's no longer infected." Nate said, and Remus felt his eyes widen.
"What?" Remus asked. "How is it possible?"
"Before we started the testing, we tested their blood against a regular human's- mine." Nate said. "Werewolf blood has differences when compared to someone who isn't infected. It's hardly noticeable, but it's there. We noticed we could trigger changes in the blood using different things. On a full moon, the infected blood's cells resembled animal more than human. As treatment went on, the blood reacted less and less. Transformation still occurred, but the blood samples we kept obtaining became more and more human each month."
"And this last full moon, the other night, Marla's blood didn't react at all." Sirius said. "And she didn't transform."
"You're saying that after decades and decades of dozens of wizards trying... you've managed to cure a werewolf, after only a few months of research?" Remus asked.
"Yes." Nate said.
"What about the other one, the one who has been infected for twenty years?" Remus asked.
"We're still doing treatments, but his blood has been reacting less and less as well." Sirius said. "We need to take into account that his body's been infected for so long, that it's a little more difficult to separate man and wolf. He gets a little... testy after treatment. But not for long, just the day after."
"So, you're saying-" Remus began slowly.
"Remus, we may be able to cure your Lycanthropy." Sirius said. "If you'd be willing to be let us try."
"What would it include?" Remus asked.
"Once a week, you'd have to spend the day at St Mungo's, in Nate's ward." Sirius explained. "Usually, you'll spend about twenty four hours there. What we've been doing is using a Muggle technique. They call it a blood transfusion, there's a needle in one your veins, pumping blood into your body. However, we've reversed that. We're taking blood away. You'll take three doses of antidote while this happens, which is why you'll be there so long. With the antidote, we'll give you a blood replenishing potion, to help replenish the blood we take, and to encourage the creation of blood that isn't infected. We'll stop the process a couple of hours before you leave, to ensure you're feeling alright and can leave."
"Do you think it'll work? After all, I've been infected-"
"Thirty four years." Nate said. "We discussed that. It could take close to a year, or a little longer, but we think the chances are good."
"I think, if you were to come to St Mungo's on Friday evening after your classes finish, you'd be back home by Saturday evening. You'd still get Sunday to have with Dora and Teddy, and the day to let your mood even out again." Sirius said.
"How does it react with Wolfsbane?" Remus asked.
"It doesn't. You can still take Wolfsbane, still do treatments- if full moon happens on a day you're supposed to get the treatment, we simply make sure we're done before the moon rises, and you'll spend the night in a specially modified room in the ward. So, how about it, Moony?"