Hermione was sipping her teacup as the toddlers were playing and enjoying their late morning. James was building a castle out of muggle blocks while Albus was bouncing in his chair and clapping at the cartoon on the telly. Ginny had just completed doing some chores around the house and strolled into the sitting room with a smile.
"So, now that all that busy work is out of the way, let's talk about you shagging my husband's godfather," Ginny said as she collapsed in the armchair across from Hermione.
"We always talk about that," Hermione responded with a smile.
"Anything new? You both must be getting somewhat serious," she paused and winced at the pun. "It's been four months now."
Hermione sighed and rested against the back of the sofa. "Who would have thought a drunken shag would have led to such an interesting evolution."
"Are things different now that Remus is back?" Ginny fished before sipping her tea.
"Why do you always ask about him? Nothing ever happened between us, Gin," Hermione grumbled.
The redhead scrunched her nose and shook her head. "You're hopeless. May I remind you of the countless parties where my mother made it very clear she did not mind if you two ended up together. Saying how much he dotes and cares for you. It has to be difficult for him."
"For a different reason," Hermione said evasively. "Now, how about we talk about something else, please?"
"Sirius asked Harry where he should take you for your birthday," Ginny mused.
Hermione smiled and tilted her head. "What did Harry suggest?"
"Well, at first my husband suggested the Caribbean," Ginny responded with a grimace. "But then I told him to find a nice ancient library and factor that into the trip. He was receptive of it."
"He's a remarkably loyal and tender partner," Hermione said with a curvature to her mouth.
Ginny cleared her throat with a nod. "He mentioned the L-word, Hermione."
The curly-haired animagus knitted her brows together. "He said he loves me?"
"Well, he said, and I quote, 'Harry, I really do think I'm falling in love with that little witch,' so close enough."
Hermione's cheeks filled with blood as she bit her lip. "That is quite solid for Sirius actually. Oh, Merlin. I don't know what to think," she grumbled shaking her head. "I love him; I know that. Whether I'm in love with him or not is difficult."
"That's the easy part, Hermione. He is the first man in your life that has treated you and loved you with dignity," Ginny paused and hemmed. "That you were in a relationship with. Harry doesn't count in this, and well, you insist Remus doesn't either."
That caused the curly-haired witch to glower. "Why do you keep bringing him up?"
Ginny scrunched her nose up and exhaled. "It doesn't matter now."
"Wait, what's wrong?" Hermione asked with a firm tone.
"Well, it's just that Remus, Teddy and you were a family. I just hope he stays. Teddy is your son," Ginny sighed with a pout.
"He's not my son, Remus makes that clear," Hermione snapped with a huff.
"He's your son, and you both are stubborn!" Ginny hissed with a sway of her red hair.
Hermione sipped her cup with a nod. "Well, I won't argue with you on that."
"Question," Ginny murmured lifting her index finger. "What are you doing for the full moon?"
Hermione blew a breath toward her hair and thinned her lips. "Teddy and I are going to Drom's house."
"Good, you don't need them to squabble again. Last time Sirius was close to being severely injured."
Hermione pinched the bridge of her nose. "Well, I don't even know. It happened so oddly. We were having a good time, and Moony just snapped. He still doesn't know why his more lupine side grew so aggressive through the potion."
"Either way, neither of you needs to get hurt. You aren't some big dog or horse. You're a fluffy little yipper," Ginny said with a nod.
"I'm a fox, I can handle myself," Hermione retorted with a roll of her eyes.
"Either way, you need to be careful. What if Remus thought Sirius was going to hurt you? That would have spurred that behavior."
Hermione huffed and rocked her head back against the couch. "Well, they made it clear they don't need me there."
"I know it's hard, but it's a good thing, Hermione. They have their own routine," Ginny said.
"Yes, it's better this way," Hermione sighed.
Sirius was sitting at the dining room table, and a snapping sound filled the room. "Mr. Sirius, I have your flowers from the garden you requested," the small house elf declared while placing the basket on the table.
"Thank you Twinkly, here," he mumbled pulling a small blue flower out of the basket. "For your room, alright?"
The house elf grinned and hugged the flower to her form gingerly. "Thank you so very much, Mr. Sirius. Twinkly loves the color blue."
"You're most welcome, Twinkly. You're free to go do what you would like in the house."
She bowed deeply. "Thank you, Mr. Sirius," she responded and bounded off toward the kitchen stairs.
Remus entered the room and leaned against the door jam. "Pads, you want company today?"
Sirius rubbed his face and nodded. "I suppose. He probably would appreciate it," the dusky-haired man said with a nod. "Want to bring the kid along?"
The werewolf motioned agreement. "I know it's hard, Padfoot. I'm proud of you."
"He deserves it, Moony. If I would have known," Sirius sighed, shaking his head. "Despite everything, I did love my brother."
"I know, Sirius."
The animagus climbed from his chair and took the basket in hand. Remus patted his shoulder when Sirius closed the distance and pulled him close. Their foreheads touched intimately as Sirius shuddered a heavy breath. His coarse fingers touched Sirius's cheeks and glossed over his facial hair. "I love you, and I'm here for you," Remus whispered softly.
"I love you too, Moony. So much it just about killed me when you were gone," Sirius murmured.
Remus pulled away enough to kiss the animagus's forehead tenderly. "Now, let's go do this, so we can come home and have a better night. Hermione will be furious if I don't take care of you," he snickered with the hint of a smile.
Sirius choked on a laugh and bobbed his head. "She just might. That little witch would hate to see me out of sorts."
"Sirius," Remus paused, running his thumbs over Sirius's prominent cheekbones. "Why didn't you tell her it was his birthday?"
"Because she is my happy place, Moony. I get to be the suave and dashing wizard for her. I don't want her to see me cry," Sirius grumbled through pursed lips.
"Well, I will shoulder it for you, Pads. I know how hard this must be for you," Remus whispered.
"I know, you always do. I love you for it," Sirius murmured, pressing his hand to the werewolf's chest. "Just as I can help you with your load, my most loyal lupine friend."
Remus's hands traced the man's jaw toward his shoulders. "Let's go pay our respects."
The marauders wandered up the stairs, and Remus went to retrieve his son. They left and apparated to a small little cemetery not far from his parent's resting place. Harry made the decision after the war to set aside a plot overlooking the hill, outside of the sepulcher for the two Black brothers. Remus was quick to rid the plot of Sirius's in his return, but Regulus's sat, alone and overlooked the rolling green hills.
It was a lovely dedication. Sirius had not pressed to see the place until that day; Regulus's birthday. He was convinced his brother was a Death Eater through and through, but after Hermione told him the tale of the war, the bits Harry left out, he was changed. That was when regret set inside his heart. He mourned that he could not have saved his brother from the messy fate, regardless of how it changed the war.
They stood there in silence as the glanced at the beautiful headstone. Sirius knew his brother's body wasn't there, but at least he had a physical place to hold onto. Teddy stood with his dad a moment, at least until he saw Sirius's tortured expression. "Uncle Sirius, can we put the pretty flowers around it like we do for my mom?"
It shook the man from his state of inner turmoil, and he nodded. "Yes, I think Regulus would have liked that."
Teddy assisted Sirius in placing the prettiest of the flowers near the stone and the smaller ones around the grass near it. Once the basket was emptied, Remus pulled out his wand and motioned an elaborate wave, causing the flowers to meld and curl around the headstone. It was like vines provided life to the flowers that burst with color and created a lovely border for it.
"There, just like he deserved; a proper ode to life," Remus sighed with a nod.
Teddy mimicked his father and bobbed his head. "I didn't know you Uncle Reggie, but Hermione told me you turned out to be a good wizard," he said to the stone.
Sirius reached over and patted the cold marker. "Happy birthday, Reggie. I'm sorry I couldn't have been there for you."
Remus rubbed Sirius's shoulder. "You did what you could, Sirius. That's all family can ask for," he insisted, pulling the animagus under his arm.
Teddy bent down and took a hard look at one of the flowers. "Look, dad, it's a green butterfly," he murmured.
Sirius glanced over at the werewolf who smiled. "I thought that represented his transformation in the end as well," Remus breathed.
Sirius leaned into Remus and exhaled. "You're an outstanding werewolf, Moony."
Soon little green butterflies surrounded the stone and flew around it in a lazy fashion. The boy followed them as the men stood there a little longer. Life was hard, but grief was even more difficult; both of which they knew and understood well.
Hermione popped through the fireplace to find it eerily quiet. She had spent a bit more time than she intended at Ginny's but they had not spent that much time catching up since she and Sirius got together. It was refreshing in a way to have a feminine conversation, mainly when some of it was the topic of where life was going to go if she and Sirius remained as attached as they had been.
A hand went to her shoulder, and she jerked. "There you are," Remus's voice rolled over the silence.
She pivoted toward him and huffed. "Remus, you gave me a fright!" she exasperated.
His expression grew apologetic. "I'm sorry, that was not my intention. I was just cleaning up when you came in," he explained with a tilt of his head. "Did you have fun at Harry's?"
Hermione beamed with a nod. "Yes, actually. Ginny was just filling me in on the family."
Remus frowned as his nose wriggled. "What is that smell? Ginny had you try on perfume again?" he grumbled with a scrunched face.
"She wouldn't let me get out of it. I can go get cleaned up," she offered before thinning her lips.
"You smell far better than that alcohol-ridden musk at any rate," he teased with a humorous smile.
She chewed the inside of her cheek. "What have you been up to today?" Hermione questioned with a clear direction to change the subject.
"About the same as usual. I have to say; I appreciate the little stash you left for me in the library next to my favorite books. Thank you," Remus said, running his fingers over her shoulder.
It was a week to the full moon. Hermione knew these signs and had handled them reasonably well throughout the years together cohabitating. However, this was different. There was something oddly intimidating about the underlined feeling. It was gnawing at her like a rabid animal.
"You're most welcome; we can do your potion in a little while. I will be brewing it shortly," Hermione murmured as she attempted to place a slight amount of distance between them.
He arched an eyebrow and dropped his hand. "Something wrong?"
"No, of course not," Hermione sighed, tossing her curly mess of hair behind her. "Just a bit drained."
His eyebrows knitted roughly. "Hermione, you realize you can't lie to me. We've been through this before."
She perspired dramatically and dug her hands into her jean pockets. "Remus, we lived together for four years. Nothing ever happened, but did you want it to? Ginny had suggested that your discomfort wasn't because of your prior relationship."
He blinked in surprise and took a step back. "What made her suggest that? I never wanted to make you feel uncomfortable in your own home."
"Oh, no, nothing like that," Hermione huffed waving off his contrite expression. "I most certainly never wanted you to feel uncomfortable either."
"Why, did you want there to be something? Was there something I was missing?" He asked as color rose to his cheeks.
"I just, it was," she sputtered and groaned. "Ginny made it seem like I was quite oblivious. Grant it, sometimes I can be bloody thick about things, but I never thought, you know?" she asked in hopes that he desperately knew what she meant.
"I'm a werewolf, that is fact. I would never assume anyone, including yourself, would want to tackle such a task. Nymphadora did and," he stopped with pursed lips.
"She loved you. Regardless of your condition, Remus," Hermione growled with a glare.
"I know that, Hermione," he said flatly. "She was the exception to the rule. No one wants a man who turns into a monster once a month."
Hermione snarled as her face turned dangerously fierce. "Don't you dare say that, Remus! Sirius would hex you for ever doubting your worth. It isn't like you're that hard to love. He does and never once looks at you for your condition."
"Sirius doesn't even count in this," Remus retorted with a glinted glare; his eyes bordering a bright green.
"Well," she said rubbing her face. "I think we should shelf this. It's too close to the full moon to be talking about silly things."
"Silly indeed," Remus responded with a crisp tone.
"You know it wouldn't be a hard stretch if you weren't so bloody stubborn," Hermione hissed with a hint of defiance in her posture.
Remus closed the distance between them and bent closer to her face. "You shouldn't wish such horrid things onto yourself, Hermione," he growled, his eyes now glittering with hints of gold.
His energy level was potent and washed over her, causing her to take a step backward toward the wall instinctively. Her heart was thrumming away to an unusual rhythm as he pursued with a predatory frustration. "Remus," she murmured.
"Why, why ask something like that? What would be the purpose? Nosing about in an uncomplicated past when you're with someone far more up to a normal standard?" Remus spat with a sneer.
"I don't want to hurt you," she whispered before biting her bottom lip.
His hand touched her neck, and it felt nearly searing as her blood ran cold; it was the first time she felt like she provoked his lack of control. "Hurt me? You could never hurt me," he sighed, physically shaking from the forceful posture.
Hermione gulped and nodded. "Okay, then I promise I won't ask silly questions like that again."
"Moony, Teddy's looking for you," Sirius growled, causing both of them to jerk apart. Remus left the room swiftly, clearly rattled by the whole affair. Sirius, however, was standing near the entrance to the room with his arms crossed over his chest. "What happened? Was he aggressive?"
Hermione shook her head with a sigh. "No, I provoked him unintentionally. Sometimes I can be a bit brash," she mumbled, shifting on her feet.
"It sounded like you were asking him if he ever intended on shagging you," Sirius said with a frown. "Why?"
"Ginny suggested I might have been unintentionally causing him to be upset," Hermione confessed with a pout. "I should know better than to ask him such silly questions."
"Did you want him to?" Sirius asked, releasing his defensive pose.
Hermione tilted her head and shrugged her shoulders. "I honestly never thought about it. I just," she paused to inhale. "He's Remus, Sirius. I never thought it would be a topic of conversation."
"Understandable," Sirius mumbled with a nod. "I didn't know he fancied me until James dared us to kiss during one of our common room parties."
Hermione smiled and took a few steps toward him. "You forgive me for being too nosey for my own good?"
"Well, as long as you attempt to keep your curiosity at bay. I'm not a jealous man, Hermione, but I also don't want to have to compete with a werewolf. Remus can be a bloody possessive wizard," he teased with a smile.
"You honestly aren't upset?" she asked standing in front of him.
His fingers ran through her hair as he shook his head. "How could I be? You're only trying to be righteous and fair. If you were inadvertently hurting him, you would want to know, and I can understand that. I love him too. I know it takes tons of heart to care for someone for years and watch them pull away. I can promise you; it isn't your fault. You can release that now."
Hermione ran a hand around his shoulder and tugged him to her for a kiss. It was sweet and tender. "Thank you, Pads. You're probably my favorite dog," she snickered when they parted.
He chuckled shaking his head. "I am positively your favorite. Now, how's about we go get the chores done for our furry friend and take a nice long bath together."
"Okay," Hermione replied with a grin. "However, I have a secret I can let you in on now," she murmured.
"Oh, what's that?"
Hermione pressed her cheek to his and spoke with a breathy tone. "I absolutely adore you."
His laughter was a soft rumble. "I adore you as well, Hermione. Let's go enjoy our evening."