It was the middle of April, and I was seated in first class on Delta flight 59 bound for Atlanta, Georgia from London Gatwick Airport. My husband was lounging next to me, sipping what appeared to be a mimosa, but was actually polyjuice potion which I had nicked from Snape's stores at Hogwarts a few days earlier on a day he happened to be away from the castle. Instead of taking small sips, Sirius had downed the drink in one gulp, eliciting an impressed look from a businessman across the row. I couldn't help looking at him occasionally and snickering at how different he looked, as a middle-aged portly wizard with salt and pepper hair. He took it in good humor, though, grinning back at me.

The plan had gone off without a hitch. We had spent plenty of time in the cave meticulously plotting out the details. I had begun to notice that wherever I went in Hogsmeade, I was being followed, and not surreptitiously. Ministry grunts seemed to delight in trying to frighten me, and I was scared that the Ministry wasn't above sneaking around inside the house, either, though Sirius had shown me how to apply extra protection to it. He was forced to stay in the cave, as a result, only apparating inside our home to immediately take me back there with him. No words were exchanged until we were safely at our destination. Even then he would transform into the dog and patrol the area briefly, just in case.

So with all that in mind, I had gone into the Three Broomsticks on a particularly busy evening a few weeks back, scoping out the place for likely candidates while drinking a few butterbeers. I picked two men for the job. In the noisy crowd it wasn't too difficult to tweak out a strand of hair from each, though I was a nervous wreck. Our strategy was to go to America with Sirius as one wizard, and returning as a different one to another airport, for extra security, whenever we decided we were ready to come back. I had already bought a plane ticket from Glasgow to Shannon, Ireland at the last minute under my own name, hoping if the ministry was really watching me that closely, they would be looking in the wrong direction. I had no intention of going to Ireland, but once Sirius had taken the polyjuice, we would apparate to London and go on to America from there. I had charmed my passport to show a different name, but otherwise kept my looks. I was afraid the potion might hurt the baby, and I didn't want to take any chances.

oOoOoOoOoOoOo

Fortunately, I had seen James one last time during the Easter holiday. He had come home for a few days and we spent a wonderful time together, walking through Hogsmeade a few times to shop for some clothing and groceries. Even though he was living at the school, with everything going on with Sirius I had been feeling rather neglectful of him, and I was determined to make it up to him. The only problem was, I was just beginning to show the effects of pregnancy, and had to wear more oversized shirts to hide my slowly growing belly from him. I still couldn't bring myself to tell him, and I hoped to be able to wait until school was out before it was an issue. He, being an eleven year old boy, didn't seem to notice a thing, but talked excitedly about quidditch, his friends in Gryffindor, and all the things he had learned since Christmas. I could see differences in him even since then. He seemed more and more like his father in looks and temperament. Maybe I noticed it more since I was around Sirius frequently, but it made me proud, and I wished his father could spend some time with him. But we would worry about that later.

"How are things at school, hon?" I asked him one evening during dinner.

He shrugged. "A few kids won't leave me alone, but mostly it's great."

I was concerned. "What do you mean?"

"Oh, they give me a hard time every now and then about being a 'Black', but it's no big deal." He noticed my fearful expression, and said, "Really, Mum, don't worry about it. Doesn't bother me."

He chewed on his steak distractedly. Then he said, "Mum, did you know that Sirius Black won an award in school?"

I looked at him with surprise. "Can't you call him your father?" I felt a bit bad for Sirius.

"I don't know him at all, and he's a bleedin' criminal. So nope," he answered defiantly.

"He's still your father," I retorted with a steely edge to my voice. He looked at me and shrugged. "What kind of award was it?" I asked, more curious now.

"Some kind of academic excellence award. Can't remember the exact name. I had gotten a detention and had to clean out the trophy case outside the Great Hall. Regulus Black won a Quidditch award, too, one year. That was his brother, wasn't it?"

"Yes, it was." The mention of Regulus reminded me of meeting Sirius. It hadn't been long after his brother had been killed. By the time we were a couple, he had told me all about his bizarre family, Reg included. Sadly, his father had died the same year, though he always acted rather cavalier about both of them, as if he wasn't bothered by the losses. I could tell otherwise, though, detecting a tinge of regret in the way he referred to them. I never heard much about Reg, though, until Sirius and I were engaged and he confided in me about Voldemort and his brother's involvement. I gave an involuntary shudder, thinking about the one Black I had met, once upon a time. His mother, Walburga. The thought of her reminded me of Young Frankenstein and how horses whinnied in fear whenever Frau Blucher's name was mentioned. His mother was like that. I started to giggle.

James looked at me curiously. "What's funny?"

I suddenly couldn't stop laughing. "Sirius' mother. She was something else entirely. Don't know why I thought of her."

"I've never met her," he said thoughtfully.

"Thank your lucky stars, child," I replied, still giggling at the thought of the horses. "I can't begin to imagine how she would try to pollute your young mind. She was a die-hard Slytherin... all pure-blood royalty kind of crap. I think she died a while back."

"Sirius was a Gryffindor, though. How'd that happen?"

"He was different than all of them," I said. "And much nicer." I didn't care what James chose to believe about his father; I would defend him anyway.

"Hmmph." He grabbed another piece of bread. "Slytherins are the worst," he said after he chewed it. "Think they all own the place." Then he changed the subject. "I'm hoping to try out for Quidditch in the fall. I'm getting pretty good on the broom." He was silent while taking a few more bites.

"Mum, have you seen Black?" he suddenly asked.

"Uh, yes. Once, a long time ago." I stuttered, not expecting this question.

He stared. "You have? He didn't try to hurt you, did he?" He had a protective look on his face that touched me deeply, misguided though he was.

"No, James. He would never do that."

"So what happened?"

I thought about it, and decided on telling him mostly the same story I'd told Fudge.

When I finished, he had a strange expression on his face.

"I think I saw him once."

I looked sharply at him. "Where?"

"I'd been studying and had fallen asleep in the Gryffindor common room the night he slashed Weasley's bed curtains. God, what a nutter he must be. Sorry, Mum," he added as an aside. "Anyway, I heard a noise and woke up. When I turned around, I saw a manky looking long-haired man just for a second, bounding down the stairs that led to the dorm and out the door. Didn't realize what I was seeing, though, until later. It was freaky," he said, and paused.

"What?" I asked.

"I swear it was a man, then suddenly it was the shadow of a dog as he fled out the door. Looked like Snuffles' size," he said, looking uncertainly at me. "Thought I'd had too much to eat that night or something, or maybe was still dreaming."

I was alarmed by a sudden thought. "Did you tell anyone?" I was really thinking, about the dog?

He shook his head. "Figured they would tell me I'd drunk too much butterbeer if I told them he turned into a dog. And it happened so fast I was sure I imagined it."

"I'm sure you did," I said.

"Is Snuffles gone or something?" he asked. "Haven't seen him at all since I got here."

"He's around. He likes to get out of the house and roam through the countryside."

We ate silently for a few minutes, and I sipped some goats' milk.

"James ..." I began.

He looked over at me.

"I'm going to, um, Ireland for a few weeks in April. Just wanted to let you know."

He raised his eyebrows. "What are you going there for?"

"Just to get away from here. Too much cold and rain," I added jokingly. He snorted.

"You might have to go further to get away from that," he said. "Where are you going exactly?"

Damn. I hadn't really thought up fake places to go. "Well, I'm flying into Shannon, so I'll start maybe around ... Galway, head down to the Dingle Peninsula, maybe? Mostly west coast stuff."

"Wish I could go," he said wistfully.

"So do I, honey," I said, feeling bad for lying to him.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

Back in Atlanta, the last hit of polyjuice potion hadn't worn off yet when we had climbed into the car, so we sat in the darkened car rental garage until Sirius at last emerged. It was a very strange looking transformation, and I almost had to look away as his skin assumed some very weird shapes in the midst of reverting back to his own. When he was done, his clothes now hung off him even more than before, considering the size of the wizard whose shape he had borrowed. First stop was to go shopping for clothes that fit, I thought. And maternity things for me.

"So where to?" Sirius asked me, as I drove the rental car from the airport to downtown Atlanta. He was in a jubilant mood, at last free to be himself without worrying about the consequences. Though it was just April, the temperature was very warm, and I had the top down on the convertible I'd rented. Our hair whipped around wildly as I drove up the interstate at a fast rate of speed. I gunned it and he whooped with pleasure, shooting me an evil grin. It took some getting used to, driving on the right again, but it wasn't long before I got the hang of it. Sirius reclined his seat almost all the way back, so the afternoon sun hit his pale skin, warming it. He reached over, turning the radio on. Scanning the dial, he eventually found a classic rock station and turned it up so that it was blaring out Led Zeppelin.

"I thought we'd stay in Buckhead, at least at first," I yelled above the din. Buckhead was a tony area of town with lots of bars, nice restaurants and upscale shops. I'd made a reservation at the Marriott close to Lenox Square, and we were both looking forward to acting as muggles for a while. He nodded in time to the music, eyes closed. We managed to make it through downtown without getting caught up in any major traffic, which was an amazing feat in Atlanta. Soon I found the exit for Lenox Road, and the car veered off down the ramp.

Once we had settled into a hotel room, Sirius immediately walked over to the window and shoved the curtains aside. He couldn't seem to get enough sunshine. "What do you want to do first?" he asked. "I'm starving! What about going to eat?"

I thought about it. "Sounds good to me. You want to go kinda easy tonight, and maybe make a reservation for something really nice tomorrow?"

"That would be perfect," he said, coming up and putting his arms tightly around me. He gave me a lingering kiss, then looked down ruefully at his baggy clothing. We had only brought one change of clothes each, it being too difficult to apparate while holding several things. I would need to buy some cosmetics as well. We both took quick showers and changed our clothes, then headed over to Houston's for an early dinner. Then we would come back and call it a day, saving the shopping for the next one.

oOoOoOoOoOoOoOo

After a few weeks in Atlanta, Sirius looked considerably healthier, not to mention much happier. He began to speak in terms of living here, if not in this part of Georgia, then somewhere close, such as Florida. We had driven to Seaside, Florida on the Gulf of Mexico for a long weekend and had a wonderful time, eating seafood and walking along the beach holding hands.

"I could see us living here," he told me softly as we stood on a long pier looking out over the ocean watching the sun set. "This is wonderful." The weather was already fairly warm and a gentle breeze was blowing through his hair. He looked at me. "What are you thinking?"

"It's lovely, isn't it? I'd just have to see what James thinks, I guess. I'm a bit worried that he won't want to come here to live. England's all he's ever known, and now he's made several friends at school."

"I suppose he could still attend Hogwarts and be here during the summer with us," Sirius said. "As long as he can keep quiet about me, anyway."

I regarded him for a moment. "I think once he gets to know you, that will change things quite a bit." I put my arm around him and leaned my head on his shoulder. He kissed the top of my head gently.

"I guess we need to discuss the money issue," he said. "Exactly how much do we have?"

"Well, I don't know exactly. The few times I went to Diagon Alley, the vault had quite a bit. I had transferred over some of my money, though, too. And my grandma left me a fair amount, which I got the bulk of last year when I turned thirty-five. I don't think we'll have any trouble living off it if we don't go overboard."

He turned back to the ocean, breathing in the salty air. "It's nice to be looking at it and not swimming in it," he said euphorically.

"Oh yeah, I had all but forgotten that," I remarked, recalling his horrifying wet escape from Azkaban.

He turned to me. "Your accent's changed," he said with a smile.

"Really?"

"Oh yes. Soon as we arrived in Georgia and you heard the car rental lady speak, you started talking with this twang." He mimicked me. I stuck my tongue out at him. He put his arm around mine and we began to walk away from the edge of the pier. We were all alone out here, surprisingly, and as we walked back, he said, "This feels like a second honeymoon. Well, third, I suppose. The second was when I saw you after all those years."

"Good idea. We'll call this our third honeymoon." Just as the words left my mouth, I saw something very strange. A silvery-white creature had suddenly appeared in front of us, flashing for only a moment, then it was gone.

"Did you see that?" I asked. The hairs on the back of my neck were raised. He looked at me in alarm, suddenly on the alert for a ministry official who might appear and take him away.

"No, what was it?" he said, and his tone matched mine. He had been looking over at the ocean as the creature had glided in front of us, and missed it.

I described it. "Like a ghost animal. Maybe I imagined it. No, I'm sure I didn't. It was right in front of us, then it was gone."

He looked uneasy. "Could you tell what kind of animal?" He was taking me seriously, at least.

"Well, it was like a large dog, but didn't look like your type of dog. Shaggier, maybe? I guess more of a wolf."

He stopped. "A glowing white wolf?"

"Yeah, that's what it looked like." I shivered involuntarily.

"Laura, did Remus ever show you his patronus?" he asked.

"No. I was supposed to take lessons to learn how to do that but never got round to it," I admitted.

"Well, his patronus is a silvery-white wolf. I imagine you can guess why." We still stood on the pier, almost back on land. "I wonder if he'll do it again."

I was impressed. "You think it's Lupin? He can cast a patronus all the way over here?"

He nodded. "If you know who you're looking for, you can send one anywhere that person is." He looked around again, hoping to see it once more. Nothing showed up, though.

"Can you communicate with it?" Wizards and their inventiveness never ceased to amaze me.

"Not really. Just a one-sided communication. I'm surprised we didn't hear his voice, giving us a message or something. Merlin's beard, I hope nothing's gone wrong." He sounded apprehensive.

"Should we stay here, you think? Maybe he'll show up again."

Sirius shook his head. "No, it'd be better if we go back to the house. He'll come wherever we are. Better if nobody can see him."

We walked back in silence to the rental house. It was a lengthy walk, since I had gotten one of the cheaper places on the back end of Seaside. Finally we arrived at the front door. Sirius let me in and followed me. I looked around the house, wishing the patronus would show up again. I hoped nothing had happened to James. Surely Dumbledore wouldn't let the ministry use him as some kind of pawn to flesh me out.

We got ready for bed, and laid there, not speaking for a while. "What's your patronus?" I finally asked Sirius.

He sighed. "A dog," he said. "Once I learned how to do it, I rather hoped it would be something a bit different than my animagus form. But no luck there." He shrugged and grinned at me.

"What do you think mine would be?" I asked curiously.

"A furry little bunny rabbit," he answered seriously, though his eyes gleamed with humor in the soft light.

I snorted. "Yeah, right. You wish."

"Well, that way, my patronus could chase yours," he continued, not bothering to keep from laughing now.

"You," I said, "are extremely silly." I climbed on top of him. "We didn't have dessert tonight. Would you like some?" I asked, kissing him slowly.

He gave me a completely different smile. "Oh yes, please."

I leaned over him to kiss him again. At that moment, we heard the distinct voice of Remus Lupin. He was saying Sirius' name. I swiveled around to see the glow of a wolf patronus standing there in the near darkness. I moved so Sirius could see him as well. He spoke again.

"Sirius, this is Remus. I think you should know that I've just spotted Peter Pettigrew on the map. He's here, Sirius. If he left, he came back. I tried to follow him but he scurried out of reach. Don't think he saw me or anything. I'm watching the map closely from now on and will keep you posted. I knew you'd want to know. Hope you're doing alright."

Then, in a blink, the patronus had disappeared and there was silence once again.

We looked at each other. "What map?" I asked.

"The Marauder's Map," he said. "God, he's got the map! As long as Pettigrew is on Hogwarts grounds, we should be able to find him!" He was suddenly ecstatic.

I was more cautious. "Sirius, this wouldn't be a trap, would it? Do you trust Remus now?"

"Yes, I do. He'd never give me away, knowing I'm innocent. In any case, he can't tell where we are just from casting a patronus. Laura, now we have to go back and find him!"

I smiled at him. "Let's go then!"

Sirius quickly cast a patronus to return to Remus, though he used no voice. He merely wanted Lupin to know he had received the message. As it was still the middle of the night in Scotland, it was the safest time to do it. Remus was likely to be in his bedroom at that time. I immediately got on the phone with Air France to make reservations for us. We had long ago decided to fly back to Paris from Atlanta, apparating a few times from there back to Hogsmeade and the cave, insteading of flying back into Gatwick. All this to hopefully put the Ministry off our scents, so to speak.

"Got it taken care of!" I said after a long period of waiting on hold and finally talking to a representative. He sat beaming at me.

"Good, sweetheart. Now come back to bed." And he held his arms open wide.

A/N: I haven't done a shameless plug for reviews in a while, so here I am. If you've followed the story so far, thank you so much! I really appreciate any comments you have about the story and it helps me to improve my skills. So, if the spirit moves you, please leave a review. Thanks!