A/N - Hi everyone! I know that some of you have been waiting for this chapter and Daniel's reaction. This is just the start. Hope you all enjoy and feel free to review and tell me how much you disklike Daniel! ;) Back on Tuesday!

Chapter 21

Magic Unmasked

29 July 1993

"Daniel was true to his word, he made sure to pay more attention to Ellie and after a few months, things settled down and Ellie actually seemed to begin to like her brother," Catherine said. The two had wandered back to the table and sat down again. "There weren't any other bouts of accidental magic from her and I managed to put it out of my mind for the most part. I knew we would have to deal with it eventually, when her letter came, but I pretended that was so far into the future that there was no need to worry about it right then."

"I found myself thinking about magic less and less. I was busy raising my children and taking care of the house and it just seemed like a part of my life that was so far away from where I currently was, it was almost like a dream," she continued, smiling sadly at Remus. "My mother had even given up pestering me to tell Daniel, although she had no idea about Ellie's little stunt with the blocks. If I'd told her, I'm sure she would have kept up the pressure."

"I don't know your mother all that well, but from what I've seen, I have no doubt that's true," Remus chuckled and Catherine joined in after a moment.

"Yes, well, one morning just before Rory turned two, I was walking down the hall to his room and he was giggling in his cot. As I reached the doorway, I looked up and saw that all the stuffed animals that we kept in his cot were currently floating in the air above his head." Remus looked at her, his mouth hanging open. "That was my reaction as well. Thank Merlin Daniel had gone into work early that morning." She shook her head. "I couldn't do anything for a moment, I was frozen in the doorway and then Rory looked at me and grinned and all the toys fell back into his cot. It was enough to bring me out of my stupor and I went and picked him up and held him close for a moment. Then I looked at him and told him that he mustn't float his toys ever again. He was very solemn when he looked back at me and nodded, but he wasn't even two, I had no idea if he really understood me or not."

"I immediately went into a panic," Catherine said, running her fingers lightly over the table top. "I now had not one, but two magical children that my husband knew nothing about and I had no idea what I was going to do about it. I was flabbergasted by Rory. He hadn't done that with his toys because he was scared or angry. That little boy was hardly ever scared or angry."

"Strong emotion," Remus said.

"What do you mean?" Catherine asked in confusion.

"Accidental magic is fueled by strong emotion," he replied. "That's why with children we usually see it if they are very angry or frightened. But happiness can be a strong emotion as well. You said that Rory was a very happy little boy. It could have been triggered by that happiness."

"Well, that makes perfect sense and I wish I would have known that back then," she admitted. "I thought he was some kind of prodigy or something, that he could do wandless magic at two years old." Remus chuckled. "Anyway, to top everything else off, I found out that I was pregnant again shortly after that."

"Both Daniel and I were shocked, we hadn't been planning on having a third child," she continued. "He recovered quickly and was excited, of course, but I had a harder time. I just kept thinking to myself that if this child was magical as well, how on earth was I going to hide it from him a third time?"

"Didn't you ever consider telling him?" Remus asked and she could hear the hint of exasperation in his voice.

"I did," she said. "But I always changed my mind in the end. I had lived this lie, this half-truth for such a long time that eventually I had no idea how to get out of it. I had convinced myself that Daniel would take it badly and that I would lose everything. I just kept thinking of how Daniel's mother would react and how disappointed his father and sister would be in me for keeping the secret for such a long time. His parents had a lot of money, something his mother liked to remind me of quite often, and I just had this vision that they would take the children away from me if they knew. She had always let me know that she didn't approve of the way I was raising them." Catherine rolled her eyes.

"All I had was my mum and while I know she would have fought tooth and nail to help me, we didn't have the resources Daniel's parents did. His father had gotten a large promotion right before Sarah graduated and they'd moved into a much more expensive neighborhood right after we had gotten back from Italy. His mother always hinted that if it weren't for me, Daniel would be right there with them, married to someone that was 'worthy' of him. She seemed to think I had trapped him somehow, she never believed that he was the one that talked me into marrying so young and when I got pregnant with Ellie," Catherine shook her head.

"So I was terrified," she admitted. "I knew she would find a way to twist everything and make it look as if I were mad. I had this dream every now and then of me being taken to some asylum and locked up while Nora walked off with my children." Catherine shuddered and Remus placed his hand over hers again.

"As I said, I was completely stressed at this point. I wasn't sleeping well, barely ate, I was a wreck most of the pregnancy, short with the children, short with Daniel. I alternated between crying and yelling at everyone. Daniel made me see my doctor more and more often, he was very worried about my state of mind. It wasn't until my doctor told me that if I didn't calm down this baby was going to come before she was ready that I stopped. I couldn't bear if anything had happened to her and so I forced myself to stop worrying and shoved all those concerns away, just as I had with everything else. I was getting rather good at it actually." Catherine shook her head ruefully.

"Miranda was born right on time, at the end of March, and was perfect of course. It didn't take long for her to wrap us all around her little fingers. She was the most spoiled little baby, her brother and sister doted on her and her father and I weren't any better. I don't think she was put down for more than a few minutes at a time besides to sleep the whole first year of her life. I think that's one of the reasons things happened the way they did. She was used to always getting what she wanted. So when she didn't," Catherine paused, shaking her head.

"What happened?" Remus asked.

17 April 1988

Ellie was sitting on the floor of the lounge playing happily with the new doll she had received from her parents for her sixth birthday as Catherine tidied the kitchen. Catherine's mother, who had been there for the birthday celebration, had already left to go home. Daniel's parents had claimed a prior engagement and had not attended, although Catherine was sure that it was just an excuse. She was positive some ridiculous, over-the-top and completely inappropriate present would arrive in a day or two.

Rory and Daniel were sitting at the table playing a game. Miranda was in her play cot, watching Ellie. As Catherine watched, Miranda pulled herself up to stand, her arms hanging over the side of the cot, and began reaching for the doll Ellie was playing with. Just over a year old, Miranda wasn't talking as of yet, but kept grunting and reaching, trying to get Ellie's attention. She finally let out a loud howl and Ellie turned around.

"No, Manda, you can't have my doll." Ellie got up and walked to the play cot. "Here, play with your blocks." She handed the blocks to Miranda. Miranda threw the blocks to the floor and reached for the doll again.

"No, Miranda," Ellie said forcefully and returned to her play. Catherine bit her cheek to avoid laughing and as she glanced at Daniel she saw that he was doing the same. The two parents' eyes met over the heads of their children and Catherine just shook hers in amusement. She looked back at her daughters in the lounge and saw that Miranda was trying unsuccessfully to climb up the side of the play cot. After a few minutes, she began to cry. Catherine abandoned the leftover cake that she was currently wrapping up.

"Oh sweetheart," Catherine said as she crossed the room from the kitchen. She picked up the crying baby and tried to soothe her. Miranda responded by reaching down toward the doll once again.

"Sorry, baby, that is your sister's. Not for little hands." Catherine kissed the little girl on the cheek and hugged her close. Miranda squirmed and whined. Daniel looked up with a laugh.

"I don't know, Caty-did," he said, smirking. "I think you may be making another trip to the toy shop for another doll, unless you want a mutiny on your hands." Catherine sighed and stuck her tongue out at him because of the nickname and then laughed and started walking from the room with the still squirming baby.

"Come with Mummy, Miranda, let's finish with Ellie's cake, all right?" Miranda put her tiny lips into a pout and shook her wispy curls forcefully. She looked over Catherine's shoulder at Ellie again. In the next instant, Catherine's life changed forever.

Miranda shrieked so loudly they all stopped what they were doing and stared at her. And then it happened. Miranda reached out her chubby little arm towards the doll once more and in the blink of an eye, it flew up in the air and into her arms. Miranda giggled and clutched the doll to her, showing it to her mother, who was staring at her, gobsmacked.

"What. Was. That?" her husband choked out. He didn't seem to be able to say anything else. He stared at Miranda. This was it, Catherine realized. The day she always knew would come, but one she hoped she would somehow be able to avoid. The very rare incidents of accidental magic that Daniel had witnessed from the other two children had been easily explained away. Not this time though, there was no way this could just be brushed aside. Catherine was going to have to tell Daniel the truth. She only hoped that he would be able to understand and forgive her.

"Ellie, take Rory into your room and play for a bit, won't you?" Catherine directed her daughter. To her credit, the girl didn't even question her mother's request, simply stood and came and took her brother's hand, leading him into her room. Both children seemed to sense that something very important had just happened. Catherine then turned to Daniel who was still sitting at the table in shock.

"Daniel, go into the study, I'll be there in a moment," she said. "I just need to call my mother." Daniel gave her a short nod and then rose, walking into the study in a daze. Catherine watched him go, then hugged her baby girl to her for a moment, before turning to the telephone in the kitchen. "Oh sweetheart, let's hope your Daddy can forgive me."

After phoning her mother, she went into the children's rooms and packed a small bag of overnight things for each of them. She saved Ellie's room for last and found her and Rory playing a game quietly on the floor.

"Hey you two, Grandma is going to be here in a few minutes. She's taking you to her house for the night," Catherine said brightly.

"How come Mummy?" Ellie asked.

"Well, Daddy and I need to have a talk and it will be easier for us if we can do that without having to stop and mind the three of you," Catherine replied.

"Is it 'cause Manda made the doll fwy?" Rory asked.

"Partly," Catherine admitted, ruffling her son's hair. "Now, if you want to bring any toys go gather them up and then go and give your Daddy a kiss good-night. He's in the study." The children rose and obeyed their mother, Ellie looking up longingly at the doll Miranda was still holding. Catherine gently extracted it from the baby's grasp and handed it to Ellie, who hugged it to her chest. Miranda immediately began to protest, but Catherine quickly grabbed the stuffed panda bear from the bag she had packed and Miranda grasped it in her chubby fist and kissed the panda's nose.

There was a knock at the door a few minutes later and Catherine called for Ellie and Rory while she answered it. Miranda was already wearing her jacket and Ellie and Rory obediently pulled theirs on. Jane took the baby and kissed her cheek, then exchanged the bag she was holding for the one in Catherine's hand.

"What's this?" Catherine asked.

"Just a couple of things I thought you might need," her mother replied, bending and kissing her other two grandchildren on the top of their heads. Catherine opened the bag and looked inside, then quickly back up at her mother.

"Where did you get this?" she asked incredulously. Her mother just shrugged.

"I found it a few years ago when I was going through some boxes of your father's things up in the attic," Jane replied. "I'm not sure why he kept it, but I thought it might help today." Catherine hugged her mother as tightly as she could without crushing Miranda. Her mother patted her cheek as she pulled away. "All right you three, let's go to Grandma's shall we?" Catherine knelt down in front of her two oldest children.

"You two behave for Grandma and help her with Miranda," she said as she straightened their coats. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye Mummy," Rory said, giving her a hug and a kiss.

"Love you Mummy," Ellie said, doling out her own hug and kiss.

"I love you both," Catherine said. She stood and kissed her baby girl on the cheek, then watched as her mother took them out to the car. Catherine stood in the doorway until they had driven down the street and around the corner and then she shut the door quietly. Looking quickly inside the bag again, she squared her shoulders and walked briskly into the study to join her husband.

Daniel was pacing when she walked into the room, a glass of scotch in his hand. He whirled around as she entered, a crazed look on his face. Catherine took a deep breath and set the bag her mother had brought on the end table.

"We need to call the doctor," Daniel said, as he once again began to pace back and forth across the small room. "Or a psychiatrist. Hell, maybe we need a priest." The last brought Catherine up short.

"A priest? Whatever for?" she asked him.

"I don't know," he said, waving the hand that was not holding the glass in the air. "Maybe she's possessed or something." Catherine couldn't help but snort at this. "I'm glad you find this so amusing," he said angrily. "I, however, am seriously worried about our child!"

"Daniel, please, sit down," Catherine said walking towards the couch.

"No, I will bloody well not sit down!" he exclaimed. "How can you be so calm about this?" He ran a hand through his hair and gulped down the rest of the scotch in his glass.

"Daniel, please," Catherine said, patting the spot next to her on the couch. He looked at her and sighed, then came and slumped down beside her. "Miranda is fine. There is absolutely nothing wrong with her."

"Were you in the same room as I was just then?" he asked, looking at her as if she were barmy. "She made that doll fly through the air, Catherine!"

"I realize that," Catherine said placatingly. "But that doesn't mean there is something wrong with her."

"Have you gone completely mental?" he barked and Catherine sighed.

"Daniel, there's a perfectly good explanation for what happened and there is nothing wrong with our baby. If you'll just listen to me, I'll explain everything."

"Fine," he said waving a hand as if telling her to begin.

"When I was 11 years old, a woman came to our house to invite me to attend the school she taught at," Catherine began, pulling her Hogwarts letter from the bag that her mother had brought.

"Yes, you told me, the boarding school in France," he said impatiently. "What does that have to do with this?"

"It was a boarding school, but it wasn't in France, it was in Scotland," Catherine continued. "And it wasn't an ordinary school, it was a school that taught magic." She handed the letter to Daniel. "You see, I'm a witch and so is Miranda." Daniel gaped at her, he hadn't yet looked at the letter in his hand. He stared at her for what felt like hours, but Catherine was sure was only a few minutes. And then he began to laugh. Catherine narrowed her eyes in confusion, she hadn't expected that reaction. When he had composed himself, he looked at her again.

"Well, now that you've lightened the mood, perhaps we can get serious and try and figure out what is wrong with our baby," he said, rising to refill his glass, leaving the letter lying on the couch. Catherine sighed. She had known that this wouldn't be easy.

"Daniel, I am being serious," she said. "You didn't even look at the letter." He came back to the couch, sipping at his glass and sat down, picking up the letter once more. He began to read aloud.

Dear Miss Powell,

We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.

Term begins on 1 September. We await your owl no later than 31 July.

Yours Sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall

Deputy Headmistress

"Oh and wait, let's not forget about this Albus Dumbledore person, let's see, Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand, Sorcerer, is it? Chief Warlock, Supreme Mugwump, whatever that is, International Confederation of Wizards," Daniel continued, then tossed the letter down on the table when he was finished. "Where on earth did you get this rubbish?"

"It's not rubbish," Catherine said calmly. "As I said, I received that letter when I was eleven years old. It was delivered personally to me by Minerva McGonagall herself. She explained to my parents and me that I was a witch and that they would like me to attend their school."

"Catherine, you went to school in France, you told me that yourself," David said. "There's no such thing as magic, we both know that. I don't know why you insist on telling me this ridiculous tale, but you are starting to worry me. We need to discuss Miranda."

"I am discussing Miranda, I'm trying to explain what happened," Catherine continued, her voice starting to rise.

"Catherine, I want you to stop this foolishness right now," Daniel demanded, rising to his feet once more. "I don't know why you've gone to these lengths to try and convince me of something so ridiculous, but I want it to stop, immediately. Unless you're just trying to make fun of me for some reason."

"Daniel, I'm not making fun of you," Catherine sighed. "Please come and sit back down and let me explain." She patted the sofa next to her again, but Daniel shook his head. "Please," Catherine asked quietly. He had never been able to resist her when she asked like that. He lowered himself down to the sofa, his head in his hands, still holding the Hogwarts letter.

"Daniel, that letter is real. Like Miranda, I could make things just happen when I was a child, when I was angry or scared. I never understood why and my parents didn't either. When the professor came to our house, it suddenly all made sense to me and I was so relieved. For such a long time, I had thought something was wrong with me. But, it's not. I'm a witch, Daniel. Magic is real. Hogwarts is real, I attended school there for almost five years," Catherine said. He looked up at her and shook his head.

"This is ridiculous Catherine, there's no such thing as magic or witches. And if what you say is true, why did you tell me you went to school in France," Daniel replied.

"I told you that because that's what my parents wanted everyone to think. Plus, we're not supposed to go around advertising the fact that we're witches or wizards to non-magical people. My parents needed a cover story, that's the one my dad came up with," Catherine explained. Daniel scrubbed his face with his hands.

"You really expect me to believe that you're a witch, you went to a magical school and our youngest daughter is also a witch? And your parents knew about all of this, but had to keep it a secret from everyone, so they invented a fictional boarding school? Do you see how completely mad this all sounds, Catherine?" Daniel got up and began to pace around the room again. "There is no such thing as magic, you know it, I know it. Why do you keep insisting that there is?" Catherine rose up from the sofa as well, her hands on her hips.

"And why do you keep insisting that there's not?" she yelled. "Obviously, I'm just going to have to prove it to you." She bent down and picked up the bag she had taken the letter from and took out her wand. She still couldn't believe that her father had kept it.

"A stick? You're going to show me a stick to convince me that magic exists?" Daniel snorted. "Did you pick it up out of the yard the last time there was a wind storm?"

"It's not a stick, Daniel, it's a wand. And yes, I think this will convince you. Lumos!" The end of Catherine's wand glowed with light. Catherine smiled, pleased that she could still do it. Daniel's jaw dropped, but he recovered quickly.

"So you have a stick that lights up," Daniel sneered. "I'm sure there are batteries somewhere. That's supposed to convince me?" Catherine sighed.

"Fine, go close and lock the door," she pointed to the door of the study.

"Why do you want me to do it?" he asked suspiciously.

"Because if I do it, you'll just accuse me of not actually locking it or something," Catherine said in exasperation. She motioned toward the door again. Daniel sighed and walked over to the door, closing and locking it. Saying a silent prayer that this would work, Catherine pointed her wand at the door.

"Alohomora," she said, giving her wand a flick. The door unlocked itself and opened slightly. Catherine couldn't help but grin. It felt so good to have her wand back in her hand again. Daniel once again stared, open-mouthed. He looked from the door to her and back again.

"Convinced yet, or do you need to see more?" Catherine asked. When he didn't reply, she made the scotch bottle he had opened soar through the air and top off the drink he had left sitting on the table. The bottle then returned to the liquor cabinet and capped itself. Catherine waited patiently for Daniel to say something.

"How did you do that?" he asked incredulous.

"I told you, I'm a witch," Catherine said. Daniel stood silent, clearly trying to figure out what to say.

"Why didn't you tell me before now? Why didn't you stay at that school, Hog-whatever?" he asked.

"Hogwarts. That's a long story," Catherine told Daniel the story of her start at Hogwarts and the reason her parents made her leave.

"Why didn't you go back?" he asked. "You could have, when you were an adult, but you didn't." Catherine sighed and swallowed. She really didn't want to get into her relationship with Sirius.

"Do you remember when I told you that I'd had a boyfriend at my other school and that it hadn't ended well?" she asked and he nodded. "Well, that was the main reason I didn't go back. I could have when I turned 17, witches and wizards come of age at 17. And then I met you and well, I decided to try and forget I was a witch so I could be with you."

"So you can just turn the magic on and off like that?" Daniel asked when she had finished. "Maybe you can teach Miranda how to turn it off then."

"It's not that simple Daniel. First of all, she's just a baby, she doesn't even understand what she's doing. I have no idea how I would teach her to just 'turn it off'. When my parents forced me to come home, I longed to go back to Hogwarts every single day. Even after," she paused, taking a breath. "Even after my relationship ended, I still missed my friends and the magical world desperately. It wasn't until I met you that I stopped thinking about it all the time. And once I fell in love with you, well, I decided to give it up. For you."

"Then you can give it up again. We can go back to how things were. When Miranda gets older, we can teach her not to do it and everything will be fine," Daniel said, sounding relieved that he had come up with a solution.

"Daniel, I don't think that will work," Catherine said quietly. "And it's not just Miranda."

"What do you mean, it's not just Miranda?" Daniel asked suspiciously.

"It's all the children Daniel," Catherine answered. "Rory and Ellie have done magic too."

"I've never seen them," he insisted.

"That's because most of the time, it's happened when you're at work. But it the first time Ellie did it, was in front of you. You just didn't notice," Catherine said.

"What are you talking about?" Daniel demanded.

"Remember the incident with the blocks when Rory was a baby?" Daniel nodded. "Ellie didn't pick those blocks up and throw them. She never touched them at all. She just made them move," Catherine answered.

"I don't understand," Daniel said, shaking his head.

"As I said, when witches and wizards are young, they sometimes make things happen when they're angry or scared. Ellie was angry you were ignoring her and Miranda was angry that Ellie wouldn't give her the doll," Catherine explained.

"Rory's never done anything," Daniel said, almost defiantly.

"Yes, Daniel, he has. He normally makes things happen when he's happy. I'm not sure if that means he's more powerful than the girls or not," Catherine told him.

"No, it's not true, I don't believe it," Daniel sounded as though he were trying to convince himself.

"I'm sorry, but it is true. I was surprised, I didn't know if the children would have any powers, given that I was a muggleborn and you're a muggle," Catherine said thoughtfully.

"Muggle? What in the world is a muggle?" Daniel asked.

"Someone non-magical," Catherine answered absently. "I'm a muggleborn because neither of my parents is magical. But Daniel, I fully expect to have one of these," she held up her Hogwarts letter, "with Ellie's name on it in five years."

"No, I won't allow it, you'll all just give it up. That's all there is to it," Daniel said. "You said that you gave it up and turned off your powers. You can teach the children to do the same thing." He smiled as if he had just solved all their problems.

"I didn't 'turn off my powers', as you put it," Catherine said. "I simply stopped using them. My father took away my wand when they brought me home from school and I had no idea he kept it until today. As to the children, why should they have to give it up? Why should I have to, for that matter?"

"But you told me you gave it up for me," Daniel said, clearly confused. "Why wouldn't you want to do that again?"

"Daniel," Catherine said gently. "I had everything I knew and loved ripped out from under me when I was 16 because there was a maniac running around who convinced the kids who attacked me that I was less than they were simply because of who my parents were. And then I lost someone who was everything to me a few months later. I was miserable. Then you came into my life and made me feel happy again. I was so scared of losing you and I didn't know how you would take this kind of news. We were so young, Daniel." Catherine shook her head.

"So what are you saying? You don't love me like that anymore?" Daniel asked quietly.

"No!" Catherine almost shouted. "I love you now as much as I did then. I love you, I love our children, I love our life. But we're older now, we're wiser. Back then I was afraid that you would think I was abnormal, some type of freak or something. But I wasn't and I'm not now and neither are our children. I won't have them feeling ashamed for something that is as much a part of them as the color of their hair."

"It is abnormal, Catherine," Daniel insisted. "If it wasn't, people like you would be walking around doing magic all the time. Why is it supposed to be such a big secret if there's nothing wrong with it?"

"Because there are way more people that feel like you do, than not. There are too many that would try to take advantage of us, too much fear about what magic really means. We don't advertise it in order to protect ourselves," Catherine replied. "There are too many people that wouldn't be able to handle it. But you don't have to be one of those people Daniel. You can embrace this, just like you've embraced everything else about the children and me. We're still the same people. We're just people with a little something extra." They stood in silence for a long time. Daniel ran a hand through his hair and sighed loudly.

"But you're not the same people. You're not the same woman that I fell in love with and they're not the children I thought I had. You lied to me. I'm sorry Catherine," he looked at her sadly and walked out of the room.

Catherine sat stock still on the couch, watching as her husband walked out of the room. She remained frozen as she listened to the front door open and then close again. She heard his car start and the sound of the motor slowly fade away. She looked down at the Hogwarts letter that was still in her hand and set it on the table, picking up her wand once more. She ran a hand over its surface, it fairly vibrated in her hand. She had read a bit about wand lore and had worried that perhaps the wand wouldn't work after so many years in idleness, that the core might need to be replaced, but she had been pleasantly surprised by the swiftness with which she was able to perform spells she hadn't thought about it such a long time. Shaking herself from her reverie, she stood and moved to the cupboard, pouring herself a glass of scotch which she gulped down in one go. He would be back, she thought. Once he'd calmed down and reconciled things in his mind, he would be back.

29 July 1993

"He didn't come back though," Catherine said, not looking at Remus now for fear of the pity she would see in his eyes. "Not that night anyway. I waited up until two in the morning, then fell asleep on the couch in the study. When I woke up, he still hadn't returned, but a check of our bedroom told me that he hadn't come and packed a bag or anything either, so I waited. By mid-morning he still wasn't there, so I called my mother and asked her to watch the children for a bit longer. By dinnertime though, Daniel still hadn't come back. I couldn't stand to be in the house anymore, so I left him a note and went to my mother's. After dinner we put the children to bed and then I told my mother the whole story. I was oddly calm, there were no tears, I just told her what had happened." She continued quietly.

"My mother asked me if I thought Daniel was gone for good. I told her absolutely not. I knew he would come back. He just needed time. This was a big secret, something I had kept from him for nine years, something that affected the children. He would come back when he'd had time to think it all through, I was sure of it." She shook her head ruefully and glanced at Remus. He smiled sadly at her and she took in a shaky breath, grasping the hand that he offered to her over the table.

"The next day I took the children home, but Daniel still wasn't there. Either he or someone else had been though, there were clothes missing from the closet and his briefcase was gone. Ellie and Rory kept asking me where he was, so I told them he had gone on a business trip, which he did occasionally. But days turned into a week and I couldn't lie to them anymore. I finally told them that Mummy and Daddy had a fight and Daddy was staying somewhere else for a while. Rory seemed to accept that, I don't think he really understood, he was only 3 1/2. But Ellie was full of questions. I mostly ignored them, tried to change the subject, but she was persistent. Finally I yelled at her to stop badgering me," Catherine shook her head, ashamed at her behavior. "She ran to her room and slammed the door, didn't talk to me the whole next day. But she didn't ask me any more questions."

"I'm sure you did the best you could in a horrible situation," Remus said. "It wasn't your fault." But Catherine shook her head.

"Yes, it was my fault," she said sadly, turning to look at him as a single tear slid down her cheek. "If I had been honest with Daniel from the start, none of this would have happened." Remus raised a hand and softly wiped the tear away with his thumb. Catherine gave him a watery smile and then looked away.

"If you had told him from the beginning you might not have your children now," Remus said quietly and Catherine nodded.

"That's true," she said. "But I still should have told him. I should have listened to my mother from the start."

"You told me that he saved you," Remus continued. "That he fixed that broken piece of you. What would have happened to you if you had lost him before he'd even started?"

"I don't know," Catherine admitted. "But that's not an excuse for what I did for so many years."

"But you didn't actually lie to him, you just didn't give him all the information," Remus said.

"A lie of omission is still a lie," Catherine replied quietly.

"Is it?" Remus asked. "Is it a lie because I do not tell everyone I meet about my true nature?"

"That's different," Catherine protested, shaking her head.

"How is it different?" Remus asked. "I've got a secret, the same as you did and yet you seem to have no problem with the fact that I don't inform everyone around me about it."

"He was my husband, Remus," Catherine objected. "Unless you are keeping your secret from someone you are in the same room with on the full moon, it's not the same thing."

"Perhaps not," Remus finally agreed. "But I do think you're too hard on yourself. It sounds to me as if Daniel was not the most supportive of people." Catherine laughed mirthlessly.

"That is an understatement to be sure," she said. She paused for a moment looking out into the night. "Are you sure you want to hear the rest of this. It doesn't get any prettier."

"Only if you want to tell me," he replied. "I'll understand if you don't." Catherine nodded and continued.

"A week became two and before I knew it a month had gone by with no word from Daniel. I wasn't even really sure where he was, I suspected he was at his parents'. I know he was going to work and he kept putting money into our account, so I could at least pay the bills. The children became more and more distant from me. I knew they needed answers, but I didn't know what to tell them. Rory cried for Daniel almost every night, he took to sleeping in my bed with me. Ellie rarely spoke, she had always been quiet, but this was something completely different. Even Miranda wasn't her usual bubbly self." Catherine hugged her arms around herself, remembering her children's retreat from the world. Another tear trickled down her cheek.

"It was my mother that finally knocked some sense into me. She came over one afternoon and we were all still in our pajamas. I hadn't even gotten Ellie off to school that day and the school had called my mother looking for her. There were dirty dishes piled in the sink, toys everywhere, piles of laundry on the bedroom floors. She took one look at everything and hustled the children off to the bath. When they were all clean and dressed she sent Ellie and Rory next door to play with the neighbors and put Miranda down for a nap. Then she came and stood in front of me and told me to snap out of it. She told me my children needed me and that if I didn't pull it together, I would lose them. I just stared at her and then I burst into tears. She sat on the couch and held me until I cried myself out and then she told me to go and take a shower. When I got out, the dishes were done, the toys cleaned up and the laundry started. I cried all over again. But she told me the time for crying was over. I needed to figure out what I was going to tell the children. I needed to be strong for them. I knew she was right."

"I went and got Ellie and Rory from the neighbor's and sat them down at the kitchen table. I told them again that their father and I had a fight and that he had decided he needed to live somewhere else. I told them they could ask me anything they wanted and I would try to answer as best I could. Ellie wanted to know what we had fought about and I told her that I had kept something from her father and that he had found out about it and he was angry with me. 'You mean a lie? You told Daddy a lie?' she asked. I told her not exactly, but I hadn't told him something that I should have. Rory asked me if Daniel was going to come back and I told him that I didn't know, but that I hoped he would. They asked me where he was and I said that I thought he was at their grandparent's house, but I wasn't sure." Catherine paused and took a deep breath.

"Then Rory asked me if his daddy loved him anymore." The tears were rolling down her cheeks in earnest now. "And I," she faltered, her breath hitching, "I," Catherine broke off, crying quietly. Remus got up and walked around the table. He knelt in front of her and gathered her into his arms. And she began sobbing, leaning into Remus, letting all of the hurt and sadness that she had been keeping hidden for the last five years flow out of her. As her sobs slowly subsided, Catherine's body relaxed. She did not move from Remus' arms, nor did he make any move to let her go. She felt peaceful, for the first time in a long time. When she finally pulled away, she gave Remus a sheepish smile and he just patted her shoulder, standing once again.

"Sorry about that," she said, wiping the tears from her face. "I've never told anyone about that day."

"Catherine if this is too difficult, you don't have to go on," Remus said. "I think I've got a pretty good idea of what happened from here."

"Then, I think you'll be surprised," she continued, smiling at the look of shock that crossed Remus' face. She shivered a bit in the cooling evening air.

"Should we go inside?" Remus asked and Catherine nodded. She stood and Remus opened the door into the house, ushering her in first. They went into the lounge and Catherine sat down on the couch, Remus in the chair across from her.

"Where was I? Oh, yes, as I said, Rory asked me if his daddy still loved him. It would not be the first time I lied to my son, although at the time, I didn't know it was a lie. I told him that of course his father still loved him and that Daniel's anger was all for me. The children had nothing to do with it. The children had a rough time, as expected. They were so used to Daniel's devotion to them. I called his office a few times, but his secretary always told me that he was busy or he wasn't there. He never called me back. I couldn't bring myself to call his parents. You know how his mother felt about me. And while his father had always seemed to like me, he was gone so often that he never had much to do with familial decisions." Catherine looked down at her hands.

"Time continued on and before I knew it two months had passed. I had given up on reconciliation with Daniel, but I couldn't understand how he could not at least call to check on the children. Plus, he was still paying all of the bills and I had even found envelopes full of money in the mailbox from time to time." Catherine shook her head. "Had I not been allowing Daniel to manipulate me for the last nine years, I would have seen it for what it really was." Remus looked at her quizzically. "Let's just say he would have made an excellent Slytherin."