For the most part when she and Sirius went to visit people, Legacy would remain outside on watch. She didn't know these people, and Sirius did, so she pretended that she was being respectful of their privacy. The reality was that she felt like anyone who looked at her would know who her father was, like it was branded on her forehead. Legacy was very glad when they'd finished visiting the 'old crowd' that Dumbledore had mentioned, and could finally go visit Remus. It had only been a year since she'd seen him, but it felt like forever. Remus was just one of those people that a person felt they could entrust with any secret, and Legacy felt that he of all people would understand what she was going through, especially considering his condition. It was the first house that she'd actually shifted back into human form for, and she could tell that Sirius was pleased, even if he didn't say anything. Remus' parents were both dead, and so when he couldn't find any work, he returned to his family home. That was where they found him. Legacy raised a fist and knocked on the door. It was a few minutes before Remus answered, and he was wearing a broad grin.

"Legacy! Sirius! I must admit, you two are the last people I'd have expected to come knocking at the door." Legacy returned his smile.

"I wish I could say that this is just a social call, but I'm afraid it's not. Can we come in?" Remus backed towards the wall, opening the door further.

"I wish I could say this place was tidier. I do apologize for the mess." Remus said, showing them to the living room. They all sat down, and Remus spoke first. "You mentioned that this isn't a social call." Legacy nodded.

"Voldemort's back." She told him what had happened, and even told him what Voldemort had revealed about her parentage. If Sirius was surprised at this, he didn't show it. "Dumbledore told us to lie low here for a while, and he would contact us."

"You're welcome to stay, of course. I am sorry about the way this turned out, however." Remus said. "That's not a very nice thing to discover."

"Thank you, Remus." Legacy stood. "I don't know about either of you, but I'm hungry. Is there any food in here, Remus?"

"I don't think there's very much." Remus walked out towards the kitchen. "I was going to do some shopping soon."

"I can go do that." Legacy offered.

"Are you sure? I mean, I'm not trying to say you can't do it, it's just that we've both been on the move, and I thought you might want to sleep first." Sirius said.

"Thank you, but I can do this. You two get something to eat for yourselves, I'll eat in town. You deserve a chance to catch up. Is there a car?" She asked Remus, who handed her a set of keys and told her the car was in the garage.

Legacy walked through the door a few hours later, arms full of groceries. Remus heard the door and came to help.

"Where's Sirius?" Legacy asked, and Remus nodded upstairs.

"After we ate, he went right up and fell asleep. I'm surprised you aren't dead on your feet."

"Not with groceries piled up in the car." Legacy said, smiling. "And I wanted to talk to you, alone."

"I think I can manage that. Let's finish this first, though." After the groceries were brought inside, Remus put the car away and Legacy stocked the shelves before going to sit back in the living room, where Remus was waiting for her. "Are you planning on feeding the entire neighbourhood or something, Legacy?" Remus teased.

"Just a werewolf and a pair of Animagi, so nearly the same thing." She smiled at him, and he blanched slightly. "I'm sorry if I offended you, I was just trying to tease you."

"No, it's just that it's been a long time since it was referred to openly like that." Remus shook his head. "Anyway, there was something you wanted to ask me about."

"Yes, and I don't know if it's something I can talk to Sirius about, because I don't know if he'll understand the same way you might."

"Why me?"

"Because you're a werewolf." Legacy sighed. "I've known that Bellatrix Lestrange was my mother for a long time – since fourth year, actually. I've suspected that Rodolphus Lestrange was not my father, because they've never exactly had what could be called a loving relationship. But I never suspected the truth. Everywhere we went since leaving Hogwarts, I've let Sirius go in and talk, and I've sat up on the roof, 'keeping watch'." Legacy ran a hand through her hair. "I've felt as though anyone who looks at me will know, like it's written on my forehead – 'Spawn of Voldemort', or something. And I just don't know what to do about it. I'm engaged to marry a man who is, according to our government, a convicted felon, so I can't exactly hide from the world forever, and I'm scared that if I hide, it will only serve to make this fear worse. I've never been scared of anything like this before. I know it's stupid, and foolish, but I can't help it." She leaned back in the chair, looking up at the ceiling. "I thought you might be able to commiserate, if nothing else."

"Well, I can do better than that." Remus said. "I do know how you feel. I felt like that for a long time. I can understand if you want to hide it, but you need to accept this knowledge, and you can't let it hold you back. It obviously doesn't bother Sirius – what did he say when you told him?"

"He asked me why it should matter." Legacy's eyes filled with tears. "He said that it wouldn't make him love me any less. I told him that I'd been so scared that he wouldn't love me anymore, and he said that it would never happen. Remus, I had myself convinced that he wouldn't love me anymore. I was trying to provoke Voldemort, make him mad enough to kill me, just so that I wouldn't have to tell him." Legacy was crying openly now. "I called him a coward. I essentially told him that I wasn't scared of death. I did everything I could, because I'd rather die than live without Sirius, Remus."

"Does Sirius know that?"

"I've never spelled it all out like that, but I think he figured out what I'd been doing when we were all talking to Dumbledore."

"Why haven't you told him?"

"We've been on the move ever since that night. I haven't gotten a full night of sleep since."

"You have plenty of opportunities to sleep now." Remus said, and Legacy shook her head.

"It's not that I haven't had a chance, it's that I haven't been able to. Nightmares." Legacy shuddered.

"Well, there's not much I can do for that, so I'll do what I can." Remus leaned forward in his chair. "What worked for me was coming to terms with it and accepting it, realizing that being a werewolf didn't change who I really was inside. James and Sirius helped to convince me of that, so I think Sirius might be a better listener than you thought."

"I've never doubted his listening abilities. I just didn't know if he'd be able to help with this."

"He knows that there's something you're not telling him, and it's hurting him. He feels like you think you can't trust him."

"Sirius said that?" Legacy asked, and Remus chuckled.

"Well, not in so many words, but near enough." Legacy nodded, and Remus continued speaking. "You need to talk to him about it. He feels useless, like there's nothing he can do, and as long as you continue to shut him out like this, that won't change."

"How did you get so good at this?" Legacy asked, and Remus shrugged.

"Talent, I guess."

"There's a woman out there just waiting to meet you, Remus. And she's one hell of a lucky girl."

"There isn't a woman that I hate enough to marry her to a werewolf." Remus said darkly, and Legacy hugged him.

"When you meet the right girl, you'll change your mind. I'm going to go up to bed, now."

"Second door on the right is the bedroom you two are in, and the first on the left is the toilet." Remus called after her. Legacy walked to the bedroom door and walked in, closing the door behind her. Sirius was laying on the bed, taking up nearly all of it. Legacy laughed before undressing and slipping in beside him.

"Whozzat?" Sirius mumbled sleepily, and Legacy kissed him. "Legacy…"

"Yes?" Legacy murmured, curling beside him.

"Love you."

"I love you too."

When Legacy woke up, she was alone, but the bed beside her was still warm. She climbed out of bed and wrinkled her nose at the clothes she'd taken off before going to bed. They were very nearly the only ones that she had, and all of the clothes she did have were dirty. She stuck her head out of the bedroom door.

"Sirius!" Legacy shouted, and he appeared at the bottom of the stairs. "Are these really the only clothes that I have? They're filthy."

"She's said nearly the same thing every day." Sirius said, looking over his shoulder, and when he looked back, Legacy stuck her tongue out at him.

"That doesn't answer my question." Legacy could hear Remus' voice, but she couldn't hear what he was saying.

"Moony says to look in the room across the hall, second on the left." Legacy dashed across the hall, and Sirius wolf-whistled at her. Legacy, now a wonderful shade of scarlet, deigned to ignore him. She looked around the room she was now standing in. It had once been a dressing room. Opening a drawer, she realized whose dressing room it had been and stuck her head out the door.

"Sirius!" Legacy called. When she saw him, she continued. "I can't wear these, they were his mother's clothes!"

"Moony thought you would say that, and he says that they're just going to waste in there, so you may as well wear them."

"Only if he's sure…"

"Yes, he's sure. I'm going to get hoarse, yelling up the stairs at you."

"Then why don't you come closer?" Legacy teased.

"Don't tempt me." Sirius said, and Legacy flushed under his gaze. "Go get some clothes on, woman." Legacy went back into the room, and took a better look at the clothes. They were nearly all very close to her own size, and Legacy was surprised at how well they fit. She finally made her way down the stairs.

"Thank you, Remus. I didn't expect you to do this, you know. Sirius wasn't wrong, that is something I say nearly every day."

"It's perfectly all right, Legacy. Like I told Sirius, they're just sitting there. They may as well get used." Legacy smiled and walked into the kitchen.

"What are you up to?" Sirius asked, as Legacy rummaged through the cupboards.

"I know that neither of us have had any 'real' food in a while, and I suspect it's the same with Remus. I'm going to make something to eat."

"Don't blow up the kitchen." Sirius teased.

"Mum taught me quite a bit about cooking, thank you very much." Legacy retorted heatedly, her head in a cupboard. "Has there been any word from Dumbledore yet, or any of the others?"

"Nothing yet. Harry's back at the Dursleys, and he took your advice about the gold."

"Good, I'm sure we're all going to need something to laugh at over the next while."

"There was something I wanted to talk to you about." Sirius said, and he sounded a bit nervous. Legacy deposited her pots and pans on the counter and turned to him.

"Is something wrong?" Legacy asked, and Sirius shook his head.

"No, it's just something that I've been thinking about for a while." He ran a hand through his hair. "With Voldemort coming back, I don't want to put this off any longer than necessary."

"Put what off?"

"I want to marry you."

"I know that." Legacy laughed, raising her left hand.

"No, I mean soon. This summer, if we can; so that Harry can come too."

"Are you sure? You don't think it's too soon? You were all for putting it off at Christmas."

"That was before a lot of things happened. I love you, Legacy, and that's never going to change. I want to be your husband, and I want you to be my wife." Legacy smiled, then remembered her conversation with Remus the day before.

"I think there's something I need to talk to you about, first. Come take a walk with me?" Legacy gestured to the back door, and Sirius nodded. They stepped outside, and Legacy told him everything – her thoughts when she'd been at Voldemort's mercy, trying to antagonize him; and how she'd felt since. "That's why I didn't go into any of those houses. I was scared, and I know it's something silly, but I just can't help it." Legacy said, and looked at Sirius. "I just wanted you to know that, before we made any solid wedding plans." Sirius pulled her into a crushing embrace.

"I can't believe you ever thought that. I'm so sorry, I never realized it was that bad." Legacy breathed deeply, feeling as though a weight had been lifted off her chest.

"I think that some of it was the shock. I haven't felt like that since that night."

"I'm glad for that." Sirius pressed a kiss to her forehead. "So… you think Arthur and Molly would let us borrow the Burrow?" Legacy laughed.

"I don't see why not." She pulled back, so she could look up into his eyes. "I love you, Sirius."

"I love you too, Legacy."

Remus thoroughly enjoyed her cooking, but Sirius teased her to no end about it. She knew he liked it, and she was glad that he was teasing her. It felt right. It felt good. Remus and Sirius were calling each other 'Padfoot' and 'Moony', and Legacy teased them about it.

"If you call each other that in front of Fred and George, I think they might have a heart attack. I don't think they'd ever have suspected you two to be in on the Marauder's Map."

"It's good for young boys to have heart attacks. Puts hair on their chests." Sirius said, and Legacy laughed.

"Well then, you mustn't have had many heart attacks as a young boy." Legacy responded. Remus laughed, and Sirius joined in after a moment. They passed a week that way, until they finally heard from Dumbledore. He arrived one afternoon via Floo Powder, and Legacy was in the kitchen cleaning up from lunch. Remus and Sirius were both outside; Legacy had asked them to do some yard work, and after much grumbling, they had finally agreed. She'd not heard Dumbledore arrive, and she was elbow deep in water and suds, with her back turned to the living room entry way.

"I see you've settled in nicely." Legacy spun around, wand in hand, and blushed when she saw it was just Dumbledore.

"I'm sorry, sir." Legacy put her wand away and quickly dried her hands off. "You startled me, is all."

"No need to apologize, Legacy. And I'm no longer your teacher, so you needn't call me that." Dumbledore looked around the kitchen. "I didn't see Sirius and Remus."

"They're outside, just a moment." Legacy walked over to the door and opened it. "Boys, we've got company!" They weren't very long coming in. They were both covered in dirt. "What were you two doing out there, rolling around in it? Go wash up!" Legacy pointed towards the stairs.

"Moony started it…" Sirius grumbled, but Legacy didn't relent. The two of them marched up the stairs to clean up and change.

"I'm so sorry about that. Would you like a cup of tea?" Legacy asked Dumbledore, who was chuckling.

"You'll make quite the mother, of that I'm sure." Legacy blushed. "But yes, I would enjoy a cup of tea." Legacy ushered Dumbledore towards the table and started on the tea. There were three steaming cups of tea on the table by the time Sirius and Remus came back down the stairs, and Legacy was preparing her own coffee. "That's better." Legacy mumbled, glaring at them. "You're adults, not children." They pretended not to hear her, and Legacy shook her head. Dumbledore waited until she was sat down at the table before speaking.

"We have contacted a large number of people, mostly members of the original Order, who have decided to listen to the truth, and not to Fudge's lies."

"I'm sorry, sir, but what Order are you talking about?" Legacy asked.

"The Order of the Phoenix. We fought in the First Wizarding War, against Voldemort and his supporters. We had the support of the Ministry that time round, however. We will need to be very careful. But this time, we don't have a headquarters."

"Oh, I can help with that." Sirius said. "I've got a big house sitting in London, collecting dust. I'm not going to ever use it, so you may as well."

"I didn't know you had a house." Legacy said, and Sirius grimaced.

"More accurately, I'm the only Black left outside Azkaban. It's our ancestral family home, and I think it would make dear old Mum roll around in her grave if she knew you were all using it." Sirius said. Legacy had known about his dislike of his family, but she'd not known how great the dislike was. "Number twelve, Grimmauld Place."

"Let's go take a look, shall we? See if it's inhabitable."

"Probably a good idea… don't know the last time anyone was in there, actually." Sirius and Dumbledore went to look at it, and Legacy quickly finished the dishes.

"You've talked to him, I take it?" Remus said from the table.

"I didn't realize that it was bothering him so much, or that it was weighing on me so heavily. Thank you, Remus."

"I figured from his behavior that the two of you had spoken. It's good to see the old Sirius resurface once in a while." Legacy sat down at the table.

"Can you tell me more about him? Whenever he talks about school, it's always stories about… all of you, and he doesn't tell me much about himself." Remus leaned back in his chair, lacing his fingers behind his head.

"Let's see… he's always been a bit of a trouble maker. Any time we were ever in trouble, it was usually his fault, but he was always good about getting us out of trouble right quick. Smart as a whip. He was the one who figured out I was a werewolf first, but he let the others come to it on their own. He told me right away, but he didn't hold it against me. He's got a good heart, always trying to help. Cares more about others' safety than his own. Never a better person to have on your side in a fight. Extremely loyal. Once he's your friend, you can depend on him, unless…" Remus trailed off, but they both knew he didn't need to finish that sentence. They sat in silence until Dumbledore and Sirius returned.

"I have cast the Fidelius Charm over the house, and I am the Secret-Keeper." Dumbledore announced. "The headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix is located at number twelve, Grimmauld Place."

When Legacy first entered the building she was appalled at the state it was in. It had once been lovely, but had fallen into disrepair. The front door opened into a long hallway, lit by a large chandelier and gas lamps. The wallpaper was peeling and the carpet had worn thin. Legacy saw a portrait on the wall, and the woman in the portrait cried out when she saw her.

"Bellatrix! My Bellatrix, come to see your auntie? Such a good girl, you always were." The woman was old and haggard, and Legacy instantly took a dislike to her.

"I'm not Bellatrix, I'm sorry." Legacy said, and the woman continued to smile.

"Who else could it be, darling? My beautiful Bella, come chat with me a bit."

"I'm sorry, but I need to clean the house. I'll come by later." Legacy told her. Sirius walked up and reached for the canvas overhead. The woman's face distorted and she began to shriek but the canvas dulled the sound. Sirius took Legacy by the arm to show her the rest of the house. They met the oldest house elf that Legacy had ever seen.

"Mistress Bellatrix, how nice it is to see you." He nearly purred, bowing. "Perhaps you can help Master Sirius learn the errors of his ways?"

"I am not Bellatrix Lestrange. My name is Legacy." The elf looked up at her again.

"Perhaps you are not. Your eyes are different." The elf then looked to Sirius. "You break your mother's heart every time she sees the filth you bring in, Master." Sirius laughed bitterly.

"My mother didn't have a heart, Kreacher. She kept herself alive out of pure spite. And in case you didn't notice, that thing is just a portrait. Walburga Black died years ago." Sirius stepped around the house elf, fuming.

"That... woman... in the portrait... that was your mother?" Legacy asked gently.

"Yes. You know, you're the first person she hasn't started screaming at immediately." Sirius sighed. "I wish I could take the bloody thing down, but it's stuck with a Permanent Sticking Charm. Come with me, and I'll show you the rest of the house." On one side of the hallway was the dining room, which had a dresser with the Black family crest and assorted china. The kitchen was below ground and was accessed through a narrow staircase at the end of the entry hall. It was a cavernous room with a large fireplace at one end and a large wooden table in the centre. At the end of the hallway was a set of stairs that led one to the first upper floor. On the first landing there were three rooms: a drawing room, a bedroom, and a bathroom. The drawing room had long windows facing the street, a large fireplace, and the tapestry of the Black family tree. The second floor had several rooms, one of them being a bedroom. The third floor was filled with bedrooms, and the topmost landing had two bedrooms. One of them was Sirius', and Legacy pushed open the door. She smiled and looked around the room. It was decorated with Gryffindor colours and banners, with posters of bikini-clad Muggle women and Muggle motorbikes. Sirius followed her in and looked around.

"Now I'm beginning to wish these weren't stuck up here like this." Sirius said, gesturing towards the posters.

"I don't think that bed would hold the both of us, do you?" Legacy giggled, gesturing towards the single-size mattress.

"I guess we'll just have to appropriate one of the other bedrooms. Buckbeak's in the master, and I wouldn't stay in there if someone paid me to." Legacy laughed and took Sirius' hand, and they walked back down the stairs.

There were new members as well as returning ones. Dumbledore, of course; the real Alastor 'Mad-Eye' Moody, McGonagall, Remus Lupin, Hagrid, Snape and Sirius were among the surviving members of the original Order, and Kingsley Shacklebolt, Molly and Arthur Weasley, Nymphadora Tonks and Legacy herself were some of the new members. There were others she'd not met, but some of them were abroad at the moment. She was cleaning when most of them arrived, so Sirius got to play the host for once. At dinner that evening, she saw that Arthur and Molly were there with Fred, George, Ron and Ginny, and they even had Hermione in tow. She also met the new arrivals. Kingsley Shacklebolt and Nymphadora Tonks were both Aurors. Shacklebolt was misdirecting the Ministry's efforts to locate Sirius, and she thanked him profusely. Legacy then introduced herself to the other woman.

"Please, I beg of you, call me Tonks." She said, and Legacy smiled.

"Only if you call me Legacy." The two of them shook hands, and it wasn't long before she spotted Legacy's glittering hand.

"Oi! All of you! We've got ourselves a little lovebird!" Tonks waved everyone over. "Who's the lucky fellow?" Tonks demanded, a grin on her face. Sirius walked behind her chair and placed his hands on her shoulders. Fred and George started shouting, and Legacy and Sirius explained about the Glamour Charms. Molly then served supper, and Tonks sat with Legacy and was pumping her for information. Legacy laughed and answered questions as best she could. She and Tonks became fast friends.

On the second of August, Harry and his cousin were attacked by Dementors. The Ministry had immediately sent an owl calling for his expulsion, but Dumbledore was able to talk them into giving Harry a hearing instead. Arthur and Sirius both sent owls to Harry telling him to not leave the house, and to not surrender his wand. Harry's hearing was set for the twelfth, ten days hence. It was decided that they were going to mount a rescue for Harry, and numerous people volunteered. Legacy was allowed to go but Sirius wasn't, due to him still being a wanted criminal and all. The other members that went were Mad-Eye, Remus, Tonks, and four others she'd not gotten names from yet. On the fifth, the group left the headquarters. When they arrived at the Dursley's, Tonks kept on knocking things over and made a terrible amount of noise. Harry stuck his head out of his room and pointed his wand down the hall at them.

"Harry, it's me, Legacy."

"How do I know it's you?" Harry demanded.

"The boy's not stupid." Moody growled, and Legacy ignored him.

"I'm engaged to your godfather." Harry didn't move, so she tried again. "I'm a Parselmouth, and we saved Ginny Weasley from Tom Riddle's crazy diary." Harry decided it was safe now, and was introduced to everyone he didn't know.

"It's good to see a couple familiar faces. You have the wedding yet?" Legacy shook her head.

"No. Sirius was adamant about you being there, and I agreed."

"That's enough chatter. Tonks, you take the boy upstairs and make sure his things are packed. Jones, make sure Tonks didn't do any major damage." Mad-Eye barked, and Legacy rolled her eyes.

"How many times have I got to tell you that it's Legacy." She picked up the broken pieces of plates. "What are you going to do when there's two Blacks running around?" Mad-Eye didn't say anything, and Legacy laughed. Tonks and Harry came back down the stairs, and they all stepped outside. Legacy cast a spell on Harry's trunk to make it float and tied it to his broomstick. Harry let his owl out, and they all took off. Tonks was leading the way, and Harry was next. Remus was below, with Moody behind. Legacy was in the advance guard, and others were flying further behind them. Legacy could hear Tonks and Mad-Eye yell at each other occasionally, but she wasn't able to make out what they were saying. When they arrived, Mad-Eye handed Harry a piece of parchment that Dumbledore had written the Secret on. Legacy could see the house, but Harry couldn't until he read the Secret. After a moment, they all stepped inside. Moody turned the lights on, and Molly came out through a door at the end of the hall.

"Oh, Harry, it's lovely to see you! You're looking a bit peaky, but you'll have to wait a bit for dinner." Molly looked over Harry and spoke to the rest of them. "He's just arrived, the meeting's started." Legacy followed the others down towards the kitchen, where Molly had just come from.

"You're all back in one piece, I see." Sirius said, catching sight of her. Legacy smiled at him.

"No thanks to Mad-Eye here." Tonks muttered darkly. "He wanted us to fly through clouds and double back and everything." Legacy went and sat beside Sirius as the others settled themselves around the table.

"As I was saying," Snape said from across the table, "the Death Eaters are no closer to getting whatever it is they're looking for in the Department of Mysteries. It seems as though the Dark Lord is determined to get his hands on whatever this object may be, no matter what the cost."

"No one's telling you what it is yet?" Legacy asked.

"They don't seem to trust me enough yet." Snape said,

"I wonder why not…" Sirius murmured, and Legacy nudged him.

"Is there anything short of handing them the headquarters that will make them trust you more?" Legacy asked.

"Not much. Beyond handing over either one of two certain people, I doubt there is much at this point." Legacy shuddered. It had been decided that it was too much of a tactical advantage to keep secret, so she had reluctantly revealed her parentage to the Order, and they had been very kind about it, and barely mentioned it at all. When it was mentioned it was discretely, at least.

"Well, we'll just have to keep trying. Is it safe, do you think, to tell them that we have Harry?" Legacy asked the table. For some reason, Legacy was usually the one who did the most speaking at the meetings, save for whomever might be reporting, or if Dumbledore was there.

"I don't think so. Not for a while, maybe after the hearing." Mad-Eye growled.

"I hate to admit it, but for once I agree with the old man." Tonks said. "We can't risk that so soon after retrieval." There were nods around the table.

"All right, then we'll not share that piece of information yet. Is there anything else that anyone can think of?" No one said anything, and Legacy sighed.

"I'm sorry, Severus. It looks like we've got nothing for you tonight."

"There's not information on either end, to be honest, and if I show up with too much information they would likely get suspicious."

"But they might think that you've outlived your usefulness if you never have anything." Legacy said softly. They quickly wrapped up the meeting after that, and most everyone filed out the door back upstairs. Molly went to get her children, Harry and Hermione so that they could all have dinner. There was a loud crash as Tonks tripped over the troll's foot umbrella stand in the main hall again, causing the portraits to wake up. Legacy sighed and walked towards Walburga Black's portrait. Legacy was the only one in the entire house who could make her stop screeching, and the others took advantage of that.

"Filth! Scum! By-products of dirt and vileness! Half-breeds, mutants, freaks, begone from this place! How dare you befoul the house of my fathers –" The woman cut off when she caught sight of Legacy. "My dear Bella, how do you stand this?" Legacy painted a smile on her face as she reached up to close the canvas.

"Just like this, dear auntie." Legacy said, drawing the canvas over the portrait.

"That's my favourite part, though." Sirius mock-pouted behind her.

"Go greet your godson." Legacy said, laughing.

"Who was that?" Harry asked, standing beside her.

"Ah, I see you've met my mother." Sirius said, and he took Harry down to the kitchen. Legacy examined the canvas for a moment more before following them. Bill and Arthur were still at the table when she arrived, but Molly sent them packing. Legacy smiled, shaking her head, then went to help Molly with dinner. Mundungus was apologizing for bailing on Harry, then Molly started shrieking at Fred and George. They'd bewitched a large cauldron of stew, an iron flagon of Butterbeer and a heavy wooden breadboard, complete with knife, to hurtle through the air towards the table. Harry, Sirius and Dung dove under the table just in time to avoid injury. Legacy laughed along with Harry and Sirius; as long as no one had been hurt things were funny.

"FOR HEAVEN'S SAKE! THERE WAS NO NEED – I'VE HAD ENOUGH OF THIS – JUST BECAUSE YOU'RE ALLOWED TO USE MAGIC NOW, YOU DON'T HAVE TO WHIP YOUR WANDS OUT FOR EVERY LITTLE THING!" Molly shouted. "None of your brothers caused this sort of trouble! Bill didn't feel the need to Apparate every few feet! Charlie didn't charm everything he met! Percy –" she stopped dead, looking towards Arthur.

"Let's eat." Bill said quickly.

"It looks wonderful, Molly." Remus said, sitting down.

"I've been meaning to tell you, Sirius," Molly said at length, "there's something trapped in the desk in the drawing room…" conversations were springing up all over the table now, and it was dinner as usual. After dinner, and after an argument with Molly, it was decided that Harry be filled in somewhat about the Order and what they'd been up to. Voldemort, for the time being, was keeping his head down. They were trying to recruit new members for the Order, but with Fudge spreading lies about Harry, Dumbledore, and even Legacy through the Daily Prophet, it was proving difficult. Fudge found it easier to believe that Dumbledore was out to make trouble than to believe that Voldemort had returned. And Legacy couldn't even blame him, at this point. With Voldemort lying low, that was exactly what it looked like. Before they could say much more, Molly decided that the students should all be sent off to bed, and Remus agreed.

Over the next few days, they all worked hard to clean the house. Kreacher wasn't making it any easier; he kept coming in and trying to sneak stuff down to his hidey-hole. He barely listened to Sirius, and only listened slightly better to Legacy; and that was only after he'd heard who her parents were. It sickened her. The night before Harry's hearing, Dumbledore stopped in.

"How has Harry been doing?" Dumbledore asked.

"He's been worried, and I can't say as I blame him." Legacy said. "Just a moment, I'll go get him –"

"No, don't wake him. He needs his sleep." Dumbledore said, and Legacy sat back down.

"Dumbledore, I was hoping I could run an idea past you." Sirius said. "I want to go down with Harry and Arthur in the morning."

"Absolutely not. We can't risk it."

"What if I went in dog form?"

"How would that look, a dog running amok in the Ministry of Magic?"

"I take your point."

"And even if you went under the Glamour Charm, people would wonder what Legacy's fiancé was doing, wandering the Ministry with Harry Potter." Dumbledore turned to Legacy. "Speaking of which, have you decided on anything yet?" Legacy looked at Sirius before answering.

"We want to wait until after Harry's hearing. And we were hoping to have it at the Burrow." Legacy added hopefully, looking at Molly and Arthur.

"That's fine with us, dear." Molly said, and Arthur nodded.

"I was hoping to ask you for a favour about that, too." Sirius said, and Dumbledore turned to him. "I don't want to have to wear a disguise to my own wedding, so I was wondering if you'd be willing to officiate." Legacy could have kicked herself; she couldn't believe she'd not thought of that herself.

"I would be delighted to." Dumbledore said, smiling at the both of them. "It's been a long time since I've been asked, and longer still since I've performed one."

"Thank you, sir." Legacy said. The group chatted for a while longer before Dumbledore had to leave.

Harry's hearing had turned into a full trial by the Wizengamot, and they had been fully prepared to throw the book at Harry. Thanks to Dumbledore and his witness, that hadn't happened, and Harry would be returning to Hogwarts that year. They hurriedly made wedding preparations, so that everyone would be able to attend. On the twenty-fifth of August, the entire Order that could be spared was in attendance at the Burrow. It had dawned clear and warm, for which they were all very grateful. There was barely a cloud in the sky. Legacy had been offered Molly's wedding gown, but she declined, saying that she didn't want to take anything from Ginny. She had purchased a short-sleeved wedding gown in pure white with a short train and pearls sewn into the front. Legacy had been unable to choose a maid of honour, and had explained this to the three women, and they were all touched that she regarded them all so highly. Especially Tonks, who had wept when Legacy told them. Sirius apparently had the same issue with Harry and Remus. The men were all in black dress robes, and Legacy's three women were dressed in red and black and their dresses had small roses in the same colours dotting their dresses. Legacy had wanted them to reflect the arch that Sirius had proposed beneath, and she felt she'd succeeded. Ginny, being the youngest, served as both the flower girl and the ring bearer. She scattered red and black rose petals between the benches and moved to the side before Arthur lead Legacy down the aisle. Legacy had chosen to go barefoot beneath her dress, and the grass and petals tickled her feet. When Arthur handed her to Sirius, Legacy moved her veil aside to peck his cheeks. He sat down beside Molly, and Legacy thought she'd seen a hint of tears in his eyes. She turned to Sirius and smiled broadly. Dumbledore raised his hands before speaking.

"We have gathered here today to celebrate the union of two faithful souls. This man and this woman found each other at a time when neither was looking. They helped each other through dark times, and they stand here now, ready to promise their lives to each other." Dumbledore turned to Sirius, who began to speak.

"I'm horrible at making speeches, so I wrote this one down." Sirius said, causing their small audience to laugh. He reached into his pocket to retrieve a small parchment and began to speak, barely looking at it. "Legacy, you saved me from myself. You helped me to turn from a man desperate for vengeance to a man willing to live again. You've been by my side first as a friend, then as a partner, and now as the woman I am marrying. I vow that I will hold you up through life's worst storms, to be your protector and shelter. I believe that we were meant for each other, like the stars are made for the night sky, and that we will do great things together." Sirius put the parchment back into his pocket and cleared his throat. "I love you, Legacy. Forever and always." Legacy had tears running down her face and a bright smile graced her lips.

"Sirius, if someone had told me the day we met that I'd be standing here today, I would have laughed at them. We were at odds with each other at first, but we grew used to each other. You didn't shy away from me when you learned my darkest secrets. You've been there for me, supporting me. I'd never have gotten this far if it weren't for you. I vow to have your back when it matters most, to fight at your side when you need me, and to build a better future for our children with you. I love you, Sirius. Now and forever." Sirius' hands gripped hers tightly, and she squeezed back. Ginny handed Sirius her ring and he put the slim golden band on her finger. She'd removed her other rings that morning, and they were tucked away at Grimmauld Place. Legacy was handed the identical ring and she slid it onto his finger. Sirius lifted her veil and she could see the tears on his face.

"Then I declare you bonded for life." Sirius kissed her gently, and there were cheers and whistles and applause. They turned towards the audience and walked towards a tent that had been set up for the dance and the reception. Legacy couldn't stop smiling. She was married at long last to the man she loved. Sirius led her to the dance floor, and the strains of a tango began.

"Someone must have remembered our performance at the Yule Ball." Sirius murmured into her ear. Legacy laughed.

"Do be careful, husband; I didn't wear any shoes today." He smiled at her.

"Why would you do such a silly thing as that, Mrs Black?"

"I wanted to feel the grass beneath my feet. And I detest shoes." She said, making a disgusted face. Sirius laughed.

"Then I needn't worry about the Black fortune being squandered on silly things like shoes and purses." Sirius swept her around the floor, and Legacy felt as if it was all a dream.

"Pinch me." She whispered, and Sirius raised a brow. "I need to make sure this isn't a dream." He laughed, lowering his head to hers and kissed her, biting her lip.

"Was that better than a pinch?" He teased.

"Much better." Legacy assured him. The song ended, and Legacy pulled Arthur to the floor. "Come on, the father-daughter dance is always second." She teased him, and he relented. This song was slower and less intricate than the one she'd just finished. "Arthur, please watch your step." Legacy said after he's stepped on her twice. "I'm not wearing shoes." He frowned, concentrating, and watched their feet. After the dance, Remus called for attention.

"Harry and I have debated, and I am to speak first." He cleared his throat before beginning. "Sirius and I went to school together, and I must honestly admit that I never expected him to marry. I met Legacy during her sixth year at Hogwarts. I saw a brave, kind-hearted young woman who would go to the ends of the world for the people she cared about. She actually Stunned Snape in protection of Sirius." The audience laughed and Legacy blushed, relieved that the man wasn't in attendance. That was the one person that Sirius had outright refused to invite, and Legacy had accepted it. Remus held up his glass in their direction. "I am extremely happy for the both of you, and wish you happiness in the years to come." Everyone raised their glasses and toasted them. Harry stood next.

"When I met Legacy, I was in my first year at Hogwarts. She was always kind to us and even the younger students. She was always willing to help us out. My second year, she helped me save Ginny. My third year, she showed me how I was wrong when it came to Sirius. Just this last year, she helped me far more than was necessary. More than was actually allowed, I think. I've never doubted her courage. She's always been strong in the face of danger. I haven't known Sirius for as long, but I've already seen the level of dedication he has for her, and I congratulate you both. You're very lucky to have found each other." They were toasted again, and Tonks stood.

"I don't rightly know why Legacy made me one of her bridesmaids. I'm not saying I don't appreciate it, mind you, don't think that. I've known them both for a little over a month now, and all I have two things to say. I think it's wonderfully romantic how you met and fell in love, and get a room!" She smiled and raised her glass before sitting down.

"If we're being toasted by everyone, we're going to have to refill our glasses." Sirius whispered, and Legacy giggled. Hermione stood next.

"Ginny would like me to say a few words for her as well; she says she's never liked public speaking. I've known you both just as long as Harry has, and I'd like you to know, Legacy, that I consider you as a sister. The both of us do. You've always been there if we've had school problems, or boy problems, or if we just wanted to talk. And Sirius? You make sure you treat her right. She's got a big family, and we're just as protective of her as she is of us." Hermione sat down, and Dumbledore stood.

"I've known both Sirius and Legacy since they came to Hogwarts. Sirius was a bit of a rascal, always getting into trouble. Very smart, though. Legacy always had a thirst for knowledge. I don't know how many of you know this, but they are both unregistered Animagi. Legacy was the youngest ever, achieving her form in her fourth year at Hogwarts. She is also a talented Occlumens." Legacy saw heads turn towards them and she blushed. "During the second task of the Triwizard tournament, each of the Champions had someone taken from them. Sirius was taken from Legacy. When she returned with him, she was... less than pleased. She stormed towards me, demanding to know what I had been thinking, and Ludo Bagman told her it had been his idea to take him. Her exact words were, and I quote, ' If one of you Ministry people so much as looks at him funny ever again, I'll tear your throat out.' I've never seen a man get that pale before." Amidst the laughter, Dumbledore turned to face them. "Sirius, you have beside you a woman worthy of admiration and respect. Legacy, you have beside you a man that is completely and utterly devoted to you. I wish you both a happy and lengthy marriage together." He raised his glass to toast them, and the feast began. The dance floor was opened up to everyone, and some people were dancing. Fred and George had both come separately to ask Sirius if she could dance, and he laughed.

"You want to dance with her? She's right there! Ask her yourselves." Legacy had agreed to both of them, and that emboldened others to ask. Ron had asked her, and so had Remus. The one that had surprised her the most had been Dumbledore. He was a good dancer, she noticed.

"You have seen the news recently, I trust?" He asked, and Legacy nodded

"At least I will be out of the eyes of the public. You and Harry, on the other hand..." Legacy sighed. "How can they be so blind?"

"Fudge is scared, and grasping at straws. Unfortunately, until Voldemort makes a move, we haven't much say in the matter. Matters are only going to worsen as the year goes on. Fudge has appointed a woman from the Ministry to be the new Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher." Legacy started.

"I didn't know he could do that." She admitted.

"Things have changed, apparently." The song ended, and Dumbledore bowed slightly. "Cherish these moments. We cannot tell how often we may have them." Dumbledore walked away and Tonks came rushing over.

"I want a dance with the lady of the hour too." She said, and Legacy laughed. "Come on, I'll even play the man." Legacy agreed, and Tonks took the lead. "So, you two can tango across the dance floor, but can you do it horizontally?" Tonks teased, a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

"I know that I'm missing something, I just don't know what it is." Legacy admitted, and Tonks rolled her eyes.

"You know! Have you knocked boots?" Legacy raised a brow, still not catching on. "Has he dipped his wick? Sheathed his wand?" Tonks growled at Legacy's continued confusion. "I'll speak plainly. Have you two had sex yet?"

"Oh!" Legacy exclaimed, turning scarlet, and Tonks cackled.

"A virgin on the wedding night, not bad. But you two have been sharing a room, haven't you?"

"Yes, but we've usually been cleaning all day and go right to sleep because we're physically exhausted." Legacy explained, still blushing.

"I guess, it does require a bit of stamina." Tonks teased. The song ended, and Tonks stepped back. "I'll leave you to your husband, darlin'." Tonks winked and walked away. Legacy hurried over to Sirius, and he looked up at her.

"You don't usually turn that red. What did she have to say?" Sirius asked her.

"She... she asked if we had... you know..." Legacy stammered, at a loss for words. "She was teasing me about being a virgin." She finally whispered. Sirius looked over at Tonks. "It's all right, it just wasn't something I'd expected." Legacy said. Sirius reached for her hand.

"If you're sure..." Sirius said, and Legacy nodded.

"Yes, yes, I'm sure. No need to make a big deal out of it."

"I don't think I've ever seen you nervous before." Sirius laughed. Legacy stuck her tongue out at him, making him laugh more. The afternoon sped by, and it was soon time for Legacy and Sirius to leave.

"Don't worry, most of these guys are heading home and the rest of us will stay here." Tonks called out. "We'll be back in the morning. Plenty of time to get down and dirty." Legacy blushed again, and laughter accompanied it. Sirius smiled and took her hand, leading her out of the tent. Once outside, he scooped her into his arms and Apparated to Grimmauld Place. He opened the door and carried her over the threshold. Legacy smiled up at him.

"I didn't realize that you were such a romantic." She teased him.

"You haven't even seen the best part." Sirius carried her up to the third floor where their room was and bade her close her eyes. She did so, and she heard a door open. Sirius set her down and it was a moment before she could open her eyes. When she did, she gasped. A brand-new king-size bed had been purchased and put together, and there were rose petals scattered over the bed and around the room. The room was lit by candle light, the candles in holders along the wall. She turned to Sirius.

"We had to do most of this today while you were getting ready. We barely had it done before it was time to head out." He stepped towards her, closing and locking the door behind him. "Is it too much?"

"Oh, Sirius... this is perfect."

"I'm glad you like it." He smiled and embraced her.

"I can't believe you did all this just for me." Legacy said, and Sirius held her tighter.

"Well, I can. I love you, and I wanted this to be a wonderful day for you." He pressed his lips to hers, and Legacy surrendered to him.

The next morning, Legacy woke feeling happier than she had in a very long time. Sirius was still asleep beside her, and she giggled as she brushed petals out of his hair. He stirred and Legacy stopped, not wanting to wake him. She gently climbed out of the bed and made her way to the attached bathroom, pulling petals out of her own hair. She returned to the bedroom, and Sirius was just opening his eyes.

"Good morning, husband." Legacy purred, settling back onto the bed.

"You're in a good mood this morning, wife." He sat up and pressed a kiss to her shoulder.

"I'm just re-realizing that I'm married to the most thoughtful man in the world." Legacy smiled. "You know, you're rather beautiful when you sleep."

"No, I'm handsome. Only women are beautiful." Sirius corrected her.

"I'll call you beautiful if I want to." She teased him. She stood again, and Sirius wolf-whistled at her. Legacy blushed as she got dressed. Sirius eventually climbed out of the bed and got dressed as Legacy made up the bed. They walked down the stairs to the kitchen hand-in-hand.

"Oh, you are just too cute!" Tonks said as they entered the kitchen. "Look at her! She's positively glowing!" Legacy's blush returned as she sat at the table. "Should we be expecting any baby Blacks running around anytime soon?" Tonks asked, and Legacy choked on her drink.

"Leave them be, Tonks. They haven't even been married a day yet." Remus said, and Tonks waved a hand.

"Fine, be a spoilsport." Tonks returned to her breakfast, for which Legacy was extremely grateful.

"Where's Harry and all them?" Sirius asked Molly.

"They're up packing. Their Hogwarts letters came in this morning, and they're looking over those, too."

"What, mine didn't – whoops." Legacy blushed again. "I forgot I'm not going back."

"Nothing wrong with that, Legacy." Sirius said. "It happens to everyone." Ron and Hermione had made Prefect, and Molly was over the moon about it. She threw a party that evening for them, and most of the members showed up. Mad-Eye was showing Harry something over in the corner, and Legacy was curious, but she waited.

"Black!" Mad-Eye shouted, and Sirius and Legacy both looked. "Not you, the other one!" he growled at Legacy, and she laughed.

"I told you to use first names, didn't I?" Legacy teased, and he ignored her. Sirius walked over to take a look at what Mad-Eye was holding.

"I didn't know any of these were still running around." Sirius said, looking down at it.

"I found in by accident in my trunk the other day, looking for my spare Invisibility Cloak."

"Ok, I'll bite. What is this mysterious object?" Legacy asked, and Mad-Eye looked at her like she'd gone crazy.

"If you don't know what an Invisibility Cloak is –"

"No, that thing you've got there." Legacy gestured. "What's that?"

"This is a picture we took with all the original members of the Order." Sirius said quietly. "There's a lot of people in this picture who should be standing in this room with us." Legacy looked down at the picture and didn't recognize most of the people, but she recognized James and Lily Potter immediately.

"I'm sorry." She whispered, taking Sirius' hand.

"You've got nothing to apologize for."

"I know, but this can't be easy for you. Seeing this, and everything else that's been going on."

"There's been some good parts to everything." Mad-Eye took the picture to show everyone else, and Legacy looked around the room, taking in all the smiling faces.

"Maybe we should do another one… when everyone's here. We don't know if we're all going to come out of this, and it would be nice to have something to remind us." Legacy shrugged. "Something for another night." Arthur called for a toast then, and they all raised their glasses.

The next morning was chaotic, to say the least. The students were going back to school, and Mad-Eye was waiting on Sturgis Podmore.

"We need him, or we won't have enough for the guard." He growled.

"I'll come along, then." Legacy offered. Mad-Eye just nodded.

"Molly, get the boy and get moving. Tonks'll be waiting down the road for you." Sirius went with Harry and Molly in dog form, and Molly wasn't very impressed. When they were all at the station, Molly turned to Legacy.

"You've got to keep him in line. Dumbledore doesn't want him running about, and you know that."

"There's nothing wrong with getting out of the house for an hour, Mum. He's been cooped up in there for ages. Leave him alone." Molly opened her mouth, but Legacy cut her off. "That's enough. We've both said our piece, now let it be." Molly clamped her mouth shut and walked away. Sirius walked over to her, and she scratched the top of his head. "You're happy, aren't you?" She asked, and he barked. "Good. That's what's important." With the students gone, the house was much quieter. Sirius, Legacy and Molly were the only ones home during the day, and Arthur and Bill were there for dinner every night along with a few others. Cleaning had fallen to the Order members, and usually it was Legacy and Sirius doing most of it.

"I don't see why we're the only ones cleaning." Sirius grumbled.

"It's because there isn't much else for either of us to do." Legacy said.

"I can think of better ways to spend our time." Sirius murmured. Legacy had her back turned to him, so she couldn't see the look on his face.

"Oh? There isn't much else for us to do. What did you have in mind?" Sirius slid his arms around her waist and kissed the back of her neck. "This isn't going to help at all, you know." Legacy giggled.

"Bah. They want a clean house, they can do it themselves. I know this spell that will block any noise coming from the bedroom…"

"You're incorrigible." Legacy laughed, but she let Sirius lead her upstairs.

Legacy missed her period in September, but she thought nothing of it. She'd never had an extremely regular period before, so this was nothing to panic over. When she noticed that she was in the bathroom a lot more often, she shrugged it off. She must be drinking more, that was all. When she was nauseous in the mornings, she assumed that it was a reaction to all of the dust in the house. Sirius had noticed her queasiness in the mornings and was concerned. He went to Molly and told her about it, and she told him not to worry about it. Harry's letter, and the other news from and surrounding Hogwarts, pushed this to the back of everyone's minds. Harry had sent a good letter to them, one that wouldn't give away any information. This Umbridge woman was 'nearly as nice as your mum', Harry wrote to Sirius, and also that they were all 'missing our biggest friend'. This Dolores Umbridge was apparently not a nice woman, and Hagrid hadn't returned to the school yet.

"That Maxime woman told us he wasn't hurt, didn't she?" Sirius asked.

"Yes, and that they'd gotten separated in their travels. That's all we know about Hagrid." Legacy confirmed.

"What the hell is Fudge playing at with this thing, too? 'Hogwarts High Inquisitor'." Sirius scoffed. "This is just idiotic. He's letting his fear control him, is all he's doing." Legacy looked down at the Daily Prophet that Arthur had brought from work.

"I doubt Dumbledore's going to be impressed with this." Legacy sighed and leaned back in her chair. "I can't believe that idiot thinks Dumbledore's making an army at Hogwarts."

"Well, they all think that we're idiots." Sirius said.

"That doesn't make this right." Legacy shook her head. "There's nothing we can do about it, I guess." The next morning, Sirius told her what he'd done.

"I know it wasn't the best idea I've ever had, but it was better than a letter."

"I'm not arguing with you, Sirius. I was actually thinking of doing that myself." Legacy said, and Sirius looked surprised.

"Really?"

"Yes. If I'd been seen, it would have actually been safer. But I'm not mad at you." Legacy said, and Sirius relaxed.

"That's good to hear." She smiled at him before putting a hand on her stomach. "Are you all right?" Sirius asked.

"Yes, just not feeling very good." Legacy sighed. "I'll be fine." Sirius frowned.

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm very sure. Let's go see what's for breakfast, I'm hungry." Legacy headed down the stairs, leaving Sirius to follow.

One morning in mid-November, Sirius, along with Molly, made Legacy her favourite breakfast. Legacy didn't tell him that the smell was making her feel ill, and she ate it all.

"Thank you, both of you." Legacy leaned back in her chair. "That was very thoughtful of both of you." Molly studied Legacy from over by the sink.

"Legacy," she asked quietly, "when was your last period?"

"In August. I've never had regular periods."

"And you're ill in the morning?"

"Nauseous, but never physically ill."

"Are you sore anywhere?" Legacy looked over at Molly then gestured to her chest. Molly's face split into a large smile. "I think you're pregnant." Both women jumped as Sirius dropped the dishes into the sink with a loud crash. He ran over to Legacy and knelt beside her.

"Mum, are you sure?" Legacy asked, and the other woman laughed.

"I've been pregnant six times, dear. I know the signs. Sirius, move over a minute." She said, walking towards Legacy. Sirius grudgingly moved, but not very far.

"What are you doing?" Sirius asked.

"I'm seeing how far along she is." Molly said, and waved her wand over Legacy's stomach. "You certainly didn't wait very long, did you? By looking at this, it would appear that this one was conceived on the wedding night." Legacy blushed, and Sirius smiled.

"You know me, ever impatient." Sirius said, then he turned to Molly. "What else does that spell do?"

"It will tell you if the babe is healthy, and if you want, once you're further along, even the gender."

"Don't tell us that. I want it to be a surprise." Legacy said, and Sirius agreed.

"Where's all the fun otherwise?" Molly showed both Sirius and Legacy how to perform the spell before she left. Sirius knelt beside her and put his hand on her stomach. "We're going to be parents." He smiled at her.

"I must admit, I'm a little nervous." Legacy said. "This is way different that being Head Girl."

"That's ok, what d'you think we've got Molly here for? She won't let us hurt the kid."

"I am overwhelmed by your confidence in our abilities to raise a child." Legacy teased.

"No, I mean that if we need anything she'd be willing to help out."

"I know that, I just couldn't resist teasing you." Legacy smiled at him. Sirius suddenly leaped up and headed for the door. "Where are you going?" She asked him.

"I'm going to ask that everyone who can stop in tonight, so that we can tell them."

"Don't tell Harry and the others yet, I want to tell them when they come home for Christmas." Sirius smiled broadly before running up the stairs. Tonks, Remus, Mad-Eye, Shacklebolt, Arthur, Bill and some others were there for dinner that evening. Sirius was excited, he kept on leaping out of his chair to greet people at the door.

"Sirius, we all know where the kitchen is." Tonks said after the fourth time. "Just sit your ass down and wait a little while, geez." Legacy laughed as Sirius sat down, a small frown on his face. Molly served supper while they waited; Sirius wanted to make sure as many people were there as possible before making his announcement.

"Sirius, I don't think I've ever seen you this antsy." Remus said. "Is everything all right?"

"More than all right." Sirius checked the door one last time, making sure there were no late arrivals. He reentered the kitchen and stood behind Legacy. "Thank you all for coming to our little get-together. Legacy and I have an important announcement to make." He paused a moment, making sure there was complete silence. "We're having a baby." Tonks let out a squeal of joy.

"OHMYMERLIN!" Tonks ran over to Legacy. "Congratulations! How long have you known? Are you thinking of names yet?" Legacy laughed.

"Thank you. We only found out this morning, there's a long time to go yet before we start thinking of names."

"It's about time we had some good news coming from this place." Mad-Eye growled. "Good on you, Black."

"Mad-Eye is right. It is nice to have good news, with everything else going on." Shacklebolt said, shaking Sirius' hand.

"Congratulations, both of you." Arthur said, smiling. "If you need help, or advice, Molly and I would be more than happy to help."

"Good luck, Sirius." Bill said, laughing. "You're going to need it."

"Why am I going to need it?" Sirius asked him.

"Mum was different for each pregnancy, but she was… difficult at times." Arthur was nodding behind Molly's back.

"I'm sure it'll be fine." Sirius said.

"Don't you remember what Lily was like when she was pregnant?" Remus asked. "James was always hiding from her, it seemed."

"He was always hiding from her regardless… that woman had a helluva temper." Sirius said, laughing. "Remember how hard he had to work to even get her to date him? I couldn't see the attraction, myself. Never liked redheads."

"I'll give you that much." Remus said. "Lily was not a girl you wanted to catch on a bad day."

"I don't think there's any girl you want to catch on a bad day." Arthur said, laughing. There were some words of congratulations from the others as well before nearly all of them left. Legacy sat at the table; Sirius had forbade her to help with cleaning up. Tonks had woken up Walburga again, and Remus had gone to shut her up, and was now returning to the kitchen. Legacy smiled as he sat down at the table.

"Looks like you're going to be spoiled rotten." He teased, and Legacy laughed.

"I already am, I'm just not telling everyone."

"I'm very happy for you both. You're going to make wonderful parents." Sirius scoffed from over at the sink.

"Moony, didn't you tell me once that you hoped I'd never reproduce?"

"That was when I was angry, and before you had met Legacy. I'm quite sure that her sanity will compensate greatly for your lack of it."

"I'm glad you think so. Your opinion was really the only one that mattered here tonight." Sirius said. "It's good to know that you think that way of me now."

"Well, we've all done some growing up over the past decade." Remus smiled at Legacy. "Some more than others."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.

"Nothing derogatory, just something I thought of and found funny."

"Oh? And what might that be?" Legacy asked, crossing her arms.

"You weren't even alive yet when we all left Hogwarts. You were another year after that."

"What's so funny about that?" Legacy frowned. She hadn't thought about that, and it bothered her. Had Sirius thought about that? She looked over at her husband, and he'd stopped washing dishes to look at Remus.

"It just so happens that he never used to like younger women. They were all too naïve for him, he said. And you just happen to be quite a bit younger. I just thought it was funny, that's all." Legacy's brow rose.

"Too naïve." She looked at Sirius. "What, pray tell, makes younger women so 'naïve', dear husband?"

"For the most part, they expect everything to turn out just like it does in story books, they haven't had a chance to experience the real world. I just thought that they were kind of stupid, that's all."

"Stupid?" Legacy asked. "Naïve and stupid."

"Yeah, pretty much. They always complain about things, too. 'Why can't this be like this' kind of thing." Sirius' back was still turned, so he couldn't see that Remus was trying to get him to shut up. "Really annoying, actually."

"Thank you, Sirius. I didn't know you felt that way." Legacy stood. "Thank you, Remus, for stopping by. I think I'll go to bed now." As Legacy left the kitchen she pulled out one of the Extendable Ears she'd bought from Fred. She went to the landing and sent it towards the kitchen door, curious.

"You are in so much trouble, Sirius." Remus said.

"What are you talking about?"

"In front of your wife, who is pregnant with raging hormones, who also happens to be half your age, you just said that younger women are naïve, stupid, whiny and annoying."

"She knows I wasn't talking about her."

"You didn't see the look on her face. She's pissed, Sirius. Weren't you listening?"

"Yeah, she said that she didn't know I felt that… oh shit." Sirius groaned. "Now I think I see why James was always hiding."

"Apparently. Although James was less likely to accidentally insult her, he's been on the receiving end of her hexes too often for that."

"What the hell am I going to do?" Legacy wound up the Extendable Ear after that. She knew that Sirius realized that he'd done something wrong, and that was the important thing. Still, it wouldn't hurt to teach him a lesson. When she got to their room she locked the door before climbing into bed. She woke alone in the bed the next morning. She quickly dressed and opened the door only to find a black, bear-like dog curled up in front of the door. Sirius woke the moment she opened the door, and she stepped around him. He whined at her retreating form, but she ignored him. He must have shifted back, because Legacy heard steps behind her, and the dog's paws wouldn't have made that much noise on the wooden floor. She walked down the stairs and into the kitchen, then began making breakfast for two. Sirius sat at the table, watching her. Legacy knew he wanted to speak, to apologize, but she wanted to make sure that he learned a lesson, so she remained silent.

"Good morning." She turned and smiled at Remus, who'd just entered the kitchen. He glanced at Sirius, who shook his head.

"Good morning, Remus. Would you like some breakfast? I'm already starting on ours, so it wouldn't be any trouble."

"That would be appreciated, thank you." Remus joined Sirius at the table, and silence descended on the small room. Legacy quickly glanced at the calendar posted on the wall.

"Remus, it's nearly that time again. Did Severus leave anything for you?" Legacy noticed Sirius wince slightly at her use of the man's first name.

"Ingredients and instructions. The potion doesn't exactly keep well over time."

"If you'd like, I could give it a whirl. Potions was one of my best classes."

"Oh, that isn't necessary-"

"But it is necessary. I don't want to see you hurt yourself. I'll get on that today." She shot a bright smile at him before turning back to the eggs she was cooking. "How do you take your eggs?"

After a very quiet – and awkward on Sirius' behalf – breakfast, Legacy quickly cleaned up and Remus gave her the items for the Wolfsbane Potion.

"Thank you, Legacy. Potion-making has never quite been my cup of tea."

"It's not a problem." She looked at the instructions. "I'll need to be alone for most of this, so I don't get mixed up. This is a difficult potion. Please tell Sirius, won't you?"

"Legacy…"

"I'm not discussing this with you. Thank you, however, for pointing out how much of an idiot he sounded like."

"I'll pass along the message." Remus turned and walked back into the kitchen.

Once she'd made the potion and given it to Remus, Sirius tracked her down.

"You've been avoiding me." He accused.

"I haven't been avoiding anything but cleaning." Legacy said. "I should probably start getting into that again before I'm too big to move."

"Now you're changing the subject."

"No, Sirius, I haven't been avoiding you. If I had I wouldn't have eaten, and our friend wouldn't have his potion, now would he?"

"We haven't said two words to each other all day."

"I've been busy."

"Legacy…"

"If you have something to say, then say it instead of beating around the bush. You know how much that aggravates me." Legacy snapped.

"You have every right to be angry with me. I spoke without thinking about how that would make you feel."

"That doesn't mean you don't think those things, now does it?" Legacy glared up at him. "I sincerely hope that my naivety doesn't bother you, and that I don't annoy you too much." Legacy hadn't realized until that moment exactly how much his words had hurt her. "I'm certain that my stupidity won't upset you, considering that I just brewed a potion that most wizards your age can't, and I didn't think that I whined that much. Maybe I'll just keep my mouth shut from now on." She had tears forming in her eyes and let them spill over.

"I don't think that of you. I never have." Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "You've always been so mature. Sometimes I actually forget that you're so much younger than me. It's not a hard thing to do, I'm probably not the only one who thinks like that. You're always there, willing to lend a hand wherever it's needed, sometimes before it's even asked for. You put others ahead of yourself and do everything within your power to make things better for everyone. And I've actually never heard a word of complaint from you. I'm deeply sorry for what I said, and I want you to know that I've never thought any of those things about you." Sirius took a step towards her, and when she didn't move, he pulled her into his arms.

"I'm sorry. Stupid hormones." Legacy mumbled. Sirius shook his head.

"No, I'm sorry. I was the idiot who wasn't thinking. And besides, it's not just your fault about the hormones. It takes two to tango, right?" Sirius teased, and Legacy laughed.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

Mundungus had stopped by, telling them about the plans for Harry to teach the other students defensive magic.

"I think it's a very good idea." Legacy said. "With Voldemort running around, we can't have them sitting around with their thumbs up their asses, so to speak."

"It's not a good idea!" Molly argued. "What if they get expelled? What will this do to their futures?"

"If we don't stop Voldemort, there won't be much of a future to worry about, will there?" Sirius asked.

"No matter what we tell them, they'll do whatever they want, and damn the consequences." Legacy said. "You have to accept that they're not children anymore. They're young adults, and more than capable of making their own decisions." Molly grumbled a while longer, but didn't argue.

"She can't do this!" Sirius raged. "She just can't!"

"She can, and she will. I'm not impressed with it, either." Legacy said, trying to calm him. Harry, Fred and George had all received a life-long ban from Quidditch. "Once this all blows over, it'll be recalled. You'll see."

"That doesn't help in the meantime." Sirius groused.

"At least they've got their defense thing to distract them. Quidditch would definitely help, but that can't be helped at this point."

"You're right, I know you're right, but I hate this. Fudge is getting himself in way too deep. After this, he's not going to have a job anymore."

"I just hope that they put someone better in charge." Legacy sighed and shook her head. "But for now, there's not much we can do."

"I know, and that's the part that I hate the most." Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "There's nothing that we can do, and it's driving me crazy. I saw that blip in the Prophet, I know that I can't go out. But I wish that there was more that I could do, y'know?"

"I do know. There's not much that I can do, either." Legacy gestured towards her abdomen.

"But before that, and even now, you can still go out and about. I can't even do that much." Sirius flopped down onto the sofa. "I feel useless."

"It's only for a while longer." Legacy moved to sit beside him and put a hand on his knee. "After Voldemort shows his face, they'll have to clear your name."

"And how long until that happens?"

"I don't know, Sirius. I can't tell the future. All we can do is be patient." Sirius sighed and put his hand over hers.

"I don't know if I could do this without you, Legacy."

"Then I guess I'll just have to make sure that you never will."

Molly was at the Burrow, she was expecting her children and Harry for the Christmas holidays. Legacy was four months pregnant now and was having difficulty sleeping. She was in the drawing room when Phineas Nigellus appeared in one of the paintings.

"Where's the boy? And who the ruddy hell are you?"

"I'm Legacy, and 'the boy' is my husband. He's in bed at the moment, what can I do for you?"

"Arthur Weasley has been injured, and his wife, children, and Harry Potter will be along shortly." The man looked her over for a moment. "You remind me of Bellatrix." He slid out of the painting and was gone. Legacy rushed up the stairs to wake Sirius. The children arrived first. Harry explained the vision he'd had, and the Weasleys all wanted to rush off to the hospital.

"Your father knew what he was getting into and he won't thank you for messing things up for the Order! This is how it is – this is why you're not in the Order – you don't understand – there are things worth dying for!" Sirius shouted.

"Easy for you to say, stuck here!" bellowed Fred. "I don't see you risking your neck!" The little colour remaining in Sirius' face drained from it. He looked for a moment as though he would quite like to hit Fred.

"I know this is difficult, Fred. But we have to at least wait until we hear from Mum. And even if we did go over right away, they probably wouldn't let us in just yet, he's likely in some intensive care ward from the account Harry's given us." Legacy said gently. Fred turned his glare on her before he sat down. The others were not far behind him. Sirius brought up a Butterbeer for everyone, and they waited. Fawkes shortly delivered a note from Molly, and George read it aloud.

"Dad is still alive. I am setting out for St Mungo's now. Stay where you are. I will send news as soon as I can. Mum." George looked around the table. "Still alive… but that makes it sound…" he didn't need to finish the sentence; it was on everyone's minds already. They lapsed into an uneasy silence, speaking only to check the time, or to wonder aloud what was happening, and to reassure each other that if there was bad news, they would know straightaway, because Molly must have long since arrived at St Mungo's. At ten past five, the kitchen door swung open and Molly entered the kitchen. She was extremely pale, but she gave her children a wan smile.

"He's going to be all right. He's sleeping. We can all go and see him later. Bill's sitting with him now; he's going to take the morning off work." Everyone was relieved to hear this.

"So, how about breakfast?" Sirius said, looking around the room. "For… eight? Bacon and eggs, I think, and some tea, and toast." Harry and Legacy leaped up to help immediately. Molly was on no condition to help. Molly hugged Harry, thanking him profusely.

"I don't know what would have happened if it hadn't been for you, Harry. They might not have found Arthur for hours, and then it would have been too late, but thanks to you he's alive and Dumbledore's been able to think up a good cover story for Arthur being where he was, you've no idea what trouble he would have been in otherwise." Molly released him and turned to Sirius. "Thank you… both of you," She added, nodding towards Legacy, "for looking after the children tonight."

"I'm pleased to have been able to help. I hope that you might stay the entire time he's in the hospital; it would make it easier on the lot of you." Sirius said, smiling.

"Oh, Sirius, I'm so grateful… they think he'll be there a little while, and it would be wonderful to be nearer… of course, that might mean we're here for Christmas."

"The more the merrier!" Sirius spoke with such obvious sincerity that Molly beamed. Harry asked to borrow Sirius for a minute, and they stepped into the pantry. Legacy continued making breakfast. When everyone was fed and watered, she ushered them all upstairs and to their beds.

"Is Harry all right?" Legacy asked Sirius once they were alone.

"Yeah, he's just feeling guilty… he saw it through the eyes of the snake and the dream affected him afterwards, too. But he'll be fine. He's just in shock, he needs to sleep and it'll be better."

Legacy went with the others to visit Arthur, Sirius had insisted.

"He's like a father to you, I understand that you want to see him." Legacy was very grateful that he'd been so understanding of it all. The students had very quickly put nearly all of the pieces together – it had been Voldemort's snake, and Arthur had indeed been guarding whatever it was in the Department of Mysteries that Voldemort was after. Molly shooed them out, and Tonks and Mad-Eye came in.

"Any word?" Arthur asked once it was just them.

"They searched the whole area but couldn't find the snake anywhere. It seems to have vanished after attacking you… but You-Know-Who can't have expected a snake to get in, can he?" Tonks asked.

"I reckon he sent it as a lookout." Mad-Eye growled. "Cause he's not having any luck so far, is he? No, I reckon he's trying to get a clearer picture of what he's up against, and if Arthur hadn't been there the beast would have had a lot more time to look around. So, Potter says he saw it all happen?"

"Yes." Molly sounded rather uneasy. "You know, Dumbledore seems almost to have been waiting for Harry to see something like this."

"Yeah, well there's something funny about the Potter kid, we all know that."

"Dumbledore seemed worried about Harry when I spoke to him this morning." Molly whispered.

"Course he's worried. The boy's seeing things from inside You-Know-Who's snake. Obviously, Potter doesn't know what that means, but if You-Know-Who's possessing him, we need to be careful. The boy could give everything away without meaning to."

"I don't think he's being possessed." Legacy said, shaking her head. "When a person is possessed, the possessor wants them to see what's happening… and I don't think he meant for anyone to see what happened last night. I think it was an accident."

"You-Know-Who and accidents don't generally run in the same sentence." Mad-Eye said.

"Whenever Harry's involved they do. When they first met, when they met a few years ago, and just this last summer. There's been a few of them."

"I agree with Legacy." Arthur said. "I wasn't meant to be found. This was some kind of fluke."

"I still think we should be careful." Mad-Eye growled.

"If Dumbledore thinks that precautions should be taken, then there will be. Until then, I see no reason to limit the boy's freedom." Legacy said.

"On your head be it, then." Mad-Eye turned and limped from the room.

Sirius was ecstatic to have company for Christmas. Harry was still hiding out upstairs by the time Hermione came, but she went upstairs with Ron and Ginny and they were all soon back downstairs. With everyone's help, the house was barely recognizable come Christmas. The tarnished chandeliers were no longer hung with cobwebs but with garlands of holly and gold and silver streamers; magical snow glittered in heaps over the threadbare carpets; a great Christmas tree, obtained by Mundungus and decorated with live fairies, blocked Sirius' family tree from view. However, Molly's Christmas started rather poorly. Percy had sent back his jumper, without even bothering to send a note. Legacy went to comfort her, and it was quite successful. Once the students were all sitting down for breakfast, Legacy announced her pregnancy to the lot of them, and they were all very happy for her and Sirius.

"I thought you were just getting fat – I mean…" Ron turned red. "I'm sorry, I'm no good at this rubbish…" Legacy merely laughed and ruffled his hair. Fred and George teased her about her impatience, Ginny and Hermione both asked if they could touch her stomach, and Harry was all smiles. Legacy didn't come along to visit Arthur, her ankles were swelling as a part of her pregnancy, and it made standing and walking for long periods of time painful. When they returned, she saw that the younger four were rather quiet. She was finally able to corner them just before dinner.

"What's wrong? You're all awfully quiet."

"We met Mr and Mrs Longbottom at St Mungo's." Hermione said quietly, and Legacy flinched.

"Ah." Legacy lowered herself into a chair. "How are they?"

"Not very good… Neville and his grandmother were there to see them, too." Ginny shook her head. "I feel so badly for him."

"I understand. But obviously Neville has a reason he wants to hide this."

"I know. I've known for a while, I stuck my head in Dumbledore's Pensieve and saw the trial." Harry said, and Legacy flinched again. "I haven't mentioned it to anyone."

"Please continue to maintain your silence. I don't blame him for wanting to hide it… not from shame, of course, but he wouldn't want students like Malfoy to harass him about it."

"We will." Ron promised, and Legacy smiled.

"Thank you."

The day after the students all returned to school, there was a mass breakout from Azkaban. Most of the names meant nothing to her, but one stuck out from the others. Bellatrix Lestrange. She'd read the news, then promptly dropped the paper and ran to the nearest toilet, voiding the contents of her stomach.

"That idiot…." She mumbled, before retching again. "That fucking idiot let it get this far, and he still thinks that nothing's wrong." She leaned against the wall. "I cannot believe this. This is bullshit! Complete and total bullshit." She heard a knock on the door and flushed the toilet before answering it.

"I saw the paper." Sirius said. His mouth was pulled into a thin line, and his face was pale. "Are you all right?" Legacy laughed bitterly, then rinsed her mouth. "I guess not."

"They're blaming you." Legacy said. She looked at his reflection in the mirror. "That idiot is blaming you for this."

"I didn't look that far ahead. I'm surprised you did."

"Even if I hadn't, it wouldn't be hard to guess. You're the only person they're admitting escaped from Azkaban, so of course they'd pin it on you." Legacy shook her head. "This is bullshit. Fudge should have listened right from the beginning." Sirius reached out and rubbed her back.

"I know. But the world is full of people just like him."

"I hope I'm there." Sirius frowned, and Legacy explained. "I hope I'm there the day that bastard admits that he was wrong about all of us – you, me, Harry, and Dumbledore."

"You're not the only one." Sirius reached for her arm. "Come on, let's go back downstairs."

Towards the end of February, Arthur came home with a copy of the Quibbler magazine.

"You'll like this." Arthur said, and he tossed it onto the table. Harry's face was on the cover, and it promised details of the night of June twenty-fourth. Legacy flipped it open and scanned the pages quickly, and was relieved to see that he'd omitted the part where Voldemort claimed to be her father. She handed it to Sirius when she was done, and he skimmed it quickly.

"That woman won't be too impressed with this." Sirius said, tossing the magazine back on the table.

"The Ministry's explanation for the breakout wasn't very well covered, and people will be looking for another explanation. Harry's just given it to them, in great detail. Who cares if he's popular at school? This will help immensely."

"I just can't figure out how he got that Skeeter woman to write it." Arthur said. "After all, she was on the warpath a year ago." Legacy looked back down at the magazine, and saw that yes, Rita Skeeter had indeed been the author.

"Don't know, don't care. All that matters is that it's out there, and with her name behind it, people might actually be more willing to believe it." Legacy said. "It's about time we had some decent news for a change."

Legacy was nearing her due date. It was now May, and Legacy was looking forwards to the delivery. She felt large and awkward, and she couldn't see her toes anymore. She was quite ready to get this whole pregnancy over with. Molly had warned that she might go into what was called 'false labour', so when the first contractions came she wasn't worried. When they persisted, however, she grew concerned. She walked around the house, mostly because she didn't know what else to do. When her water broke, however, she knew that this was the real thing.

"Sirius!" She shouted, and her husband appeared at the bottom of the stairs. "Could you please send an owl to Molly? I think I might need her help."

"Is it the baby?" Sirius asked, looking nervous.

"I think so."

"We need to get you to a hospital –"

"I'm not risking you getting discovered just so I can have the baby in a hospital, Sirius!" Legacy shouted, interrupting Sirius. "Please, just send for Molly. I'll be upstairs." Legacy turned and walked back towards their bedroom. Molly wasn't long in coming, and Sirius was hot on her heels.

"How long have you been feeling contractions?" Molly asked, rolling up her sleeves.

"Since about noon." Legacy replied as another tore through her.

"When did your water break?"

"Just before Sirius sent the owl." Legacy replied, and Molly frowned. "You can do this here, right?"

"Of course I can, dear. Just doing mental math." She turned to Sirius. "I need hot water up here, as much as you can." Sirius rushed out of the room and Molly laughed. "I don't really need it, it's just so that the men feel useful." Sirius brought up hot water in every container that he could find lying around the house, and after that there wasn't much else for Molly to send him to do, so he paced the room, shooting worried glances at Legacy every time she had a contraction.

"Sirius, you're making me dizzy. Come sit down." Legacy said, stretching her hand towards him. He took her hand and knelt beside the bed.

"Now comes the messy part." Molly said, and Sirius' face paled.

At eleven pm on May 7, Legacy pushed their child into the world. From her first contraction to delivery, her labor had lasted eleven hours. Molly had cut the umbilical cord and washed the baby before coming back.

"It's a boy." Molly said, then left the room. Legacy smiled down at the baby in her arms. Sirius sat on the bed beside her, and kissed them both.

"We have a son." Sirius laughed.

"It's the father's right to name his son." Legacy teased.

"We never thought of any, did we? I know one thing; it won't be an inherited name." Sirius ran a hand through his hair. "What do you think of James?" He asked hesitantly.

"And a middle name?" Legacy asked.

"You can choose it." Sirius told her, and she laughed.

"What about Remus? Your son, named for your two best friends."

"What about your friends?" Sirius asked.

"I think that they can wait for more children." Legacy laughed, and Sirius' face fell.

"We should think of godparents. With this war, one or both of us could die, and neither of us have any blood relations alive." Legacy nodded.

"Do you think Remus would agree?" She asked.

"I don't think so, not with him being a werewolf. We can always ask, but we should consider others as well." Sirius replied, and Legacy nodded. James started to cry. She began to feed him, and Sirius wrapped his arms around them both. "My wife and son. Two things I never thought I'd have." After James was finished eating, they went downstairs.

"I would like to introduce you all to James Remus Black." Legacy announced to the kitchen. Legacy passed him to Molly first and she and Sirius walked over to Remus.

"Thank you, Sirius." Remus said. There were tears in his eyes.

"You actually have Legacy to thank for that. It was her idea."

"We have something we'd like to ask you." Legacy said, and Remus looked at her. "We would like you to be his godfather." Remus slumped into his chair, overwhelmed.

"I... I don't know what to say. I don't know... my condition, and all..."

"Don't worry, I'll help with the little tyke if it comes to that." Tonks said, looking around the room. "Everyone will." Legacy smiled at the woman, who was sitting and snuggling James.

"Well, then I agree." Remus said, smiling. Legacy embraced him.

"Thank you, Remus." James made a round with everyone before being returned to his mother. "I don't know about anyone else, but I'm going to bed."

"You spent all day in bed!" Sirius teased her.

"I sure as hell wasn't resting, that's for sure."

James' birth was the only good news over the next month. Harry's defense group had been discovered, and Dumbledore had taken all the blame so as to prevent any repercussions falling on the students. No one knew where he was, not even the Order. Umbridge had been made the new headmistress, completely going over Minerva's head.

"I bet she liked that." Legacy said, looking down at the paper. "She's always been one of Dumbledore's most loyal friends." James was sleeping in her arms, and she was sitting in the kitchen with the rest of the Order.

"Fudge has bitten off more than he can chew with this one, I think." Sirius said.

"It's lucky I was there. I was able to modify the girl's memory before she could give away too much information." Shacklebolt said in his slow, deep voice.

"'Absolute power corrupts absolutely.'" Legacy quoted. Some of the others gave her odd looks, and she waved a hand. "It's a Muggle saying, but I think it applies here."

"The students faced no consequences?" Molly asked.

"No, Dumbledore convinced Fudge that it was all his idea, and that evening was supposed to be the first meeting." Shacklebolt replied, and Molly heaved a sigh of relief.

"But nobody knows where he went? He hasn't been in contact with anyone?" Legacy asked, looking around the table. Her question was met with a chorus of 'no'. "Then what are we supposed to do in the meantime?"

"The same thing we've been doing all along. Keeping our heads down as best we can until we're needed. Our parameters haven't changed." Mad-Eye growled.

"What I meant," Legacy said slowly, "was whether or not we should go looking for him."

"I don't think that's necessary, Legacy." Arthur said. "Dumbledore's a brilliant wizard, I'm sure he can look after himself. And if he'd wanted us to know he would've told us, right?"

"And besides, how are we going to go looking for him?" Remus asked. "We can't exactly walk up and down the street asking people if they've seen him or not."

"I guess not." Legacy said reluctantly. They wrapped up the meeting shortly afterwards.

Towards the end of May, Fred and George showed up on the doorstep.

"Mum is going to be pissed at you two." Legacy said.

"Aw, she'll get over – is that a baby?" Fred asked, pointing at Legacy's arms.

"That's my son, James."

"I'd forgotten how tiny babies are." George said, peering down at the boy.

"You can hold him, if you'd like." At George's horrified look, Legacy laughed. "You're not going to drop him, even Tonks hasn't done that yet." George sat down before he would accept James. "So, not that I'm not glad to see you, but why are you two here?"

"We turned a hallway into a swamp, essentially." Fred said.

"And we figured we were probably going to get expelled for it in the end anyway, so we figured we'd beat her to the punch." George finished, smiling broadly. Legacy laughed, shaking her head.

"So where are you going to go?"

"We've got ourselves a premises in Diagon Alley now – Weasley's Wizard Wheezes." George replied proudly.

"And it's all thanks to you and Harry." Fred said, smiling. "Come on, George; lemme see him." George waited for Fred to sit down before handing James across the table. "You weren't kidding, he's tiny."

"He's only a few weeks old." Legacy said. "He'll get bigger." The kitchen door opened, and Legacy smiled as Sirius walked in.

"End-of-term early this year, boys?" Sirius asked, a broad grin on his face. Fred and George recounted everything that had happened since Dumbledore had left, thoroughly entertaining the both of them.

"I'm glad that someone decided to stand up to her, though." Legacy said. "From everything we've heard, she's a colossal bitch."

"That's an understatement." George muttered darkly. "You know what she makes kids do in detentions?" Legacy shook her head. "They write lines."

"That doesn't sound too bad." Sirius commented, and Fred laughed bitterly.

"You haven't heard the best part yet. She gives them a special quill, see, and no ink. It's bewitched. Instead of ink, it uses blood. Your blood. And it writes the message on the back of your hand."

"That's disgusting!" Legacy cried.

"WHAT ON EARTH ARE YOU TWO DOING HERE?"

Legacy and Sirius were in the drawing room one afternoon in mid-June when they heard the door to Grimmauld Place bang against the wall.

"I wonder who that could be?" Sirius asked. Legacy shrugged and stood, walking towards the door. She could hear footsteps on the stairs and the person who appeared was the last one she'd expected to see.

"Where is Black?" Snape demanded.

"He's upstairs in the drawing room, why?" Legacy asked.

"Potter was caught in Umbridge's office earlier this afternoon, ranting about how the Dark Lord had Black at the Department of Mysteries. Potter, Weasley, Granger and a few other students left the school to find him."

"Sirius, we have to go!" Legacy shouted. "Molly, where are you?" Sirius stepped into the hallway and scowled when he saw Snape. "There's no time for that, Harry thinks you're with Voldemort at the Ministry, and they've already left to find you there." Sirius' face paled.

"Why would he think that?" he asked.

"It doesn't matter, it's a trap, and we have to go. Severus, rally the Order. Anyone who can be spared needs to get their asses in gear." By this time, Molly had appeared, and Legacy pressed James into her arms. "We have to go, and I need you to take care of James for a while."

"You're not going, Legacy." Sirius growled.

"If I'm not going, then neither are you!" Legacy shouted. "This is just as important to me as it is to you. I'm going, and you can't stop me." She saw Snape still standing on the stairs. "Get moving!" She shouted at him.

Just under an hour later, Sirius, Legacy, Remus, Tonks, Mad-Eye and Shacklebolt were ready to head out. Snape had needed to return to the school. By the time they got into the Department of Mysteries, Legacy could hear screams. She pushed ahead of the others and threw open the door in front of her. Neville was lying on the floor, but he wasn't screaming any longer.

"That was just a taster!" A woman screamed below them. With a shudder, Legacy recognized Bellatrix. "Now, Potter, either give us the prophecy, or watch your friend die the hard way!" Legacy cast a Stunning Spell at Bellatrix, who noticed it just in time to step aside. Legacy ran down the stairs to her left towards where Harry and Neville lay amongst the Death Eaters.

"Are you two all right? Where are the others?" Legacy said, and Harry looked around.

"I don't know. They were just over there –" a spell cratered the ground beside them, and Legacy pushed the two of them in the direction Harry had been looking in. "Go get the others! Now!" Harry and Neville ran off, and Legacy turned her attention back to the battle surrounding her. Sirius was facing off with one of the masked Death Eaters, and Legacy looked for Bellatrix. She was standing behind Sirius with her wand raised. Legacy cast another Stunning Spell at her, and the woman turned to face her, a snarl on her lips. When their eyes met, Bellatrix's snarl slid off her face, replaced by a facsimile of a smile.

"Legacy?" She cast another spell at Bellatrix. "Why do you fight me?"

"Sectumsempra!" Legacy shouted, and Bellatrix fell to the ground, bleeding from the slashes Legacy had inflicted with her curse.

"You want to play, do you?" Bellatrix cackled, casting a spell at Legacy. "Let us play, then!" Legacy quickly cast a Shield Charm, then backed into something. She cast a quick glance over her shoulder and saw that she'd bumped into Sirius.

"Where's Harry?" Sirius asked.

"I sent him after the others, and they should be leaving soon." Legacy cast another spell at Bellatrix, who quickly blocked it. "Damn, she's not going to go down easily, is she?"

"So I take it the family reunion isn't going over very well?" Sirius said dryly.

"No, not at all. If it makes you feel any better, just remember that she's your cousin and your mother-in-law."

"I'd forgotten about that last bit." Sirius said, groaning. "Why'd you have to go and remind me of that?" Legacy was too busy blocking an attack to respond.

"DUMBLEDORE!" Neville shouted, and Legacy saw Bellatrix look upwards before a grimace of disgust twisted her features.

"Is he actually up there?" Legacy asked.

"Yes! He's here, Legacy, he's here!" Sirius whooped. Bellatrix turned and fled down a corridor, and Legacy turned to Sirius. "Are you hurt?"

"No, are you?"

"No, I'm fine. Let's go check on the others." Legacy looked around the room they were standing in. Most of the remaining Death Eaters were grouped in the middle of the room, seemingly bound by invisible ropes. Mad-Eye was crawling over towards where Tonks was lying on the ground and was trying to revive her. Legacy couldn't see Harry or Dumbledore anywhere, or any of the other students. She walked across to the other room where she found Ginny lying on the floor next to an unconscious Hermione.

"Legacy? When did you get here?" Ginny asked.

"Are either of you hurt?" Legacy asked.

"I think I've got a broken ankle, and Hermione got hit with a curse, and she hasn't woken up since." Legacy quickly healed Ginny's ankle and stepped towards Hermione.

"I haven't seen anything like this before. Do you know what curse it was?"

"No, but there was a purpley-blue flame on her chest before she fell over."

"There's nothing I can do for her." Legacy checked for a pulse and found it, much to her relief. "She's alive, at least. Where are the others?"

"I think Ron's in the next room with the brains, and Harry and Dumbledore bolted down the hall a minute ago."

"Here, let's get Hermione into the other room. Maybe someone else has seen this before." Legacy and Ginny carried Hermione back into the main room, and then Legacy went off in search of Ron. He had some odd-looking marks on his chest and arms, and had been hit with a Confundus Charm. Legacy healed his wounds, but the Confundus Charm needed to wear off on its own. Neville had a broken nose, but that was easy to patch up. She still hadn't found Harry and Dumbledore yet. More people burst into the room not long afterwards, and Legacy positioned herself between them and her husband. The new people seemed to hardly notice anyone but the Death Eaters standing in the middle of the room. Legacy took Sirius' hand, and they made their way out to the main part of the Ministry, where Dumbledore was talking to Fudge.

"That's Sirius Black! Get him!" Someone shouted.

"Over my dead body!" Legacy shouted, and raised her wand over her head.

"Please, Cornelius, call off your men." Dumbledore asked. "Sirius Black is innocent."

"And what makes you so sure of that?" Fudge snapped.

"Maybe if you had done a proper trial in the first place, you would have seen that he doesn't have a Dark Mark!" Legacy snapped. "But no, you were all too happy to place blame on the first scapegoat that appeared, weren't you?"

"You again." Fudge said irritably.

"Legacy, you should reconsider your stance." Percy said. "You're protecting a dangerous criminal –"

"He's not a criminal, Percy. If you hadn't let your pride and ambition blind you to the facts, you would have seen that by now." Percy flinched, and Legacy was glad to see it.

"Cornelius, I told you the story of Black two years ago. Surely you remember it." Dumbledore said. "Sirius has fought against the Death Eaters. In fact, if you asked them, they would likely tell you that he has never served Voldemort." Fudge winced when Dumbledore said the name, then eyed Sirius. "You disbelieved me once before, and it didn't help matters, did it?" Dumbledore added quietly.

"Fine, just… get him out of here." Fudge said, waving a hand. Legacy began to lead Sirius away, but she heard someone calling her name. She turned and saw that it was Percy.

"I'd like to talk for a moment." Percy glared at Sirius. "Privately, if I may."

"I'll be in the other room." Sirius murmured before walking away.

"What do you want?" Legacy asked brusquely.

"Even if his name is cleared –"

"You mean when."

"– he'll still have that reputation hanging over his head." Percy continued as though she'd not spoken. "I don't know if it's a good idea to throw your lot in with his type."

"I stopped caring about what you thought the day you turned your back on our family." Legacy said. "And I'm not leaving him."

"You wouldn't be leaving him, per say, just… distancing yourself."

"I'm not doing anything of the sort."

"Can't you see how damaging this could be to any career you take?"

"Can't you see that I don't care? I love him, Percy." He winced slightly. "And it would be leaving him. We were married last August, and our son is at home, waiting for us."

"You're married to Sirius Black." Percy said, and Legacy nodded. "And you have a son with him."

"Yes. If you weren't such an idiot, you would have known all this already."

"I don't see that calling names is necessary, Legacy."

"I don't see how making your mother cry her eyes out on Christmas was necessary. I don't see how putting your career ahead of your family was necessary. I'm going home. Goodbye, Mr Weasley."

Umbridge had been sacked, and the Educational Decrees that had been imposed throughout the year were rescinded, along with any and all decisions that she had put into place. Harry's broom was returned to him, and he was allowed to play Quidditch again, as were Fred and George. Hermione had been restored to health, thanks to Madam Pomfrey's expertise. Legacy had done what she'd been able to for Ron, but she hadn't been able to do much for the scarring, although the school nurse seemed to be taking care of that. Sirius' name had been cleared, and there was a piece in the Daily Prophet declaring his innocence.

"It's somewhat odd, knowing that I won't have to hide any longer." Sirius said. They had returned to Grimmauld Place, and were sitting in the drawing room.

"I like that fact." Legacy said, smiling at him.

"I'm not saying that I don't like it, I'm just saying that it's odd. Odd, but refreshing. No more disguises unless absolutely necessary." James was wriggling in his father's arms. "I think he might be hungry again."

"Again? Merlin's beard, this boy eats." Legacy took James from Sirius and began to nurse him.

"I had an idea that I wanted to run by you." Sirius said slowly.

"What's that?"

"Well, now that I don't have to hide anymore, I was thinking that we might go and purchase a house together. I don't think that this," he waved an arm around the room, "is an entirely appropriate place to raise a child."

"Are you sure? I mean, I know that you don't exactly have the best memories from this place, but this is one of the safest places to live beyond Hogwarts."

"I've been thinking about doing this for a while, actually, I was just waiting for a good time to bring up the idea."

"Then why did you wait for so long?"

"I didn't think that you would agree without my name being cleared."

"I would have agreed, I might have just cautioned you to wait a bit longer."

"So is that you agreeing?" Sirius asked hopefully.

"Yes, it is." Legacy said, and Sirius smiled broadly.

"Good! I've already been looking." Sirius reached into a drawer on the writing desk and pulled out a Muggle newspaper. "Here, look at this one…" They spent most of the afternoon looking at likely houses, and Legacy was content.