Chapter 24 – Shy no longer
Remus' rooms had never been as full as it was that morning. Not only were he, Sirius and Hermione present but Draco, Blaise, Severus, Bellatrix, Lucius and Narcissa were there. The only person missing was Harry and that was due to him having his morning visit with Salazar's 'pet' snake in the Chamber of Secrets.
Remus sighed and shook his head in amusement. He had found that he had been getting more introspective since he signed the contract between Harry and Draco. He wasn't regretting signing it but he was kind of regretting the change it had triggered in their kitten. It wasn't a big change, but it was enough of one that it made him feel as though the younger male no longer needed him like he used to.
He was once more pulled from his thoughts; this time by a hand on his shoulder.
"It feels like everything is going so fast," Sirius said softly as he watched the newly arrived Harry bounce over to where Lucius, Narcissa and Hermione were chatting. "He's no longer our shy little kitten."
Both men watched the two teens interact with the older Malfoys in silence.
"I don't know if I like it," Remus admitted softly. "I'm so happy he found his mate but …"
"But you don't want to let him go."
Both Remus and Sirius turned and saw Draco and Blaise watching them.
"It is understandable," Blaise continued softly as both men fidgeted under Draco's gaze. "You claimed – or tried to claim – him as your cub. Even though you didn't raise him, you still view him as a child and now that he is slowly losing that carefree innocence that made your own instincts urge you into protecting him, you are beginning to feel lost."
"You are torn between doing what you have always done," Draco continued with an odd gleam in his eye, "and what you are reading from Harry's behaviour. It will take you a while until you accept that he no longer needs you the way he used to. It is no longer your job to protect him," The blonde stressed, "That is my job now, but that doesn't mean that he no longer needs you."
"He's right Remi."
Both Remus and Sirius jumped into the air when the wide green eyes of the person they were talking about appeared right in front of their faces.
"I don't need you to protect me as much as I used to," Harry continued, eyes intensely earnest, "but I still need you just as much as I did when I was younger. I still need you to give me support during times when I doubt myself and I still need you to comfort me when I'm down and mostly … I need you to love me no matter what."
"Oh kitten," Remus sighed and pulled him into a hug, "We will always – ALWAYS – love and comfort and guide and support you, just as we will always protect you, even if you don't need us to. This old wolf is just being silly."
"It hurts a little," Sirius admitted joining in on the hug, "Knowing that this vibrant, charming creature you are becoming is due, not to us but Draco. That he is also the person who is now in charge of your happiness and protection makes us – well, me at least – feel inadequate. We didn't raise you like we should have and now both of us have lost our chance to do so."
For a moment, silence reigned in the room as everyone watched the almost complete family share a heart-warming moment until …
SLAP! SLAP!
Both men yelped and their hands flew to their heads in an effort to sooth the sharp sting that was left behind form their kitten's slap.
"Just because you didn't raise me doesn't mean you didn't contribute to who I am becoming," the angry teen said, slapping them once more. "You came to see me every day you could when I was younger and you told me why you couldn't take me with you but you were still there! You taught me to read and write and how important it was to protect the ones you love; even if it means that you have to deny yourself what you want the most."
"The main thing you did for me," Harry continued after stepping back and scowling at the two men with his arms crossed over his chest, "is telling me of my heritage. Even though I haven't seen them in many years, I can honestly say that I know mum and dad because of the stories you told – and still tell – me."
"Don't think of it as losing us," Hermione finally spoke up from her spot near Blaise. "Think of it as the family spreading out."
She smirked suddenly, making the two men pale. "And as for missing out on raising Harry," she paused, still smirking.
"If you wait a year," Blaise continued, copying his mate's smirk.
"Then you will have a litter to help raise," Draco finished with a heated gaze at his mate.
The two men paled further and fell on the ground as their innocent kitten purred happily at that announcement and glanced at the older blonde teen coyly over his shoulder.
The adults laughed at the men. Harry gulped and let out a soft moan as, without breaking eye contact, Draco bit into an apple and licked the juice from his lips.
Everyone watched as Harry made his way slowly towards his mate with a small smile on his face and a spark of mischief in his eye. When the young Demon got to his destination, he curled sensuously around his mate before stealing the apple that was still being held loosely in the blonde's hand. He took a bite from the flesh beside the mark left by the blonde and sucked gently to ensure none of the juice escaped. He then licked the mark he had made and gave the fruit back to his dominant. With a wink, the younger teen turned and gracefully made his way back to the two giggling women at the back of the room.
"Remus," Sirius said after watching their boy for a few moments in silence. "I'm almost afraid to say this but … Our boy is becoming more like his mother every day."
"Terrifying, isn't it?" Remus answered with a small smile on his lips as his inner beast growled approvingly as Draco reigned in his lust before moving to talk to his father and Severus who were – while not on the opposite side of the room as the teasing minx – far enough away from him that his mind and focus were on the men before him rather than his mate.
It was at that moment that the sandy-haired male accepted the change in his kitten and the person responsible for the change.
"He's no longer out kitten Sirius," he said with a peaceful smile that hadn't been seen since before Peter had died, "he's grown into our little Hellcat. I can't wait to see what he gets up to in this stage of his life."
Sirius stood beside his best friend and clapped a hand to the slightly younger man's shoulder. Allowing his calm acceptance sooth his own worries until it was like they were never there.
"Whatever it is," he added softly, "you better believe we will be there to witness the chaos."
"Or causing it, in your case," Remus teased without removing his eyes from their nephew who was happily chatting with Narcissa and Bellatrix. Hermione had obviously disappeared into the kitchen.
"I'm insulted," Sirius sniffed, "How could you say I cause it?"
"I agree with him," Hermione piped up as she walked into the room carrying a tray of fresh fruit, tea and hot buttered toast with an assortment of toppings. "He isn't talented enough to cause chaos. Trouble, definitely, but Chaos? Not even close."
Sirius smirked triumphantly at Remus.
"That talent is reserved for women and bearers," Harry said as he, Narcissa and Bellatrix came close to the tea service. "After all," he added with a smile, "what is logical about someone riddled with hormones?
It was now Remus' turn to smirk as Sirius pouted.
A yelp made the man's head fly up and look at Harry. It seemed that Draco had managed to sneak up on the young demon while he was deep in thought and startled him when he touched his shoulder. This caused the youngster to jump in shock. At the soft laughter that came from the younger blonde, Harry threw his elbow back into his ribs.
Hermione, Blaise, Bellatrix and Narcissa burst into laughter as another soft yelp sounded – this time from Draco.
Remus allowed the laughter to wash over him as Draco growled playfully and pounced, grabbing Harry off the ground and spinning him around.
'Yes,' Remus thought as he joined in with Harry's laughter. 'Our kitten may no longer be our kitten, but it doesn't mean he isn't still ours. It just means his family is extending. I can handle that."
~~~sleepylineneedssleep~~~
Remus whined softly when there was a knock on his door just as he sat to talk with Narcissa. As he tried to find the resolve to rise to his feet, a high-pitched squeal made him and Sirius wince, missing the sound of the door opening.
"Luna!" Harry squealed again, pulling the girl into a hug, making her laugh.
"I'm happy to see you too Harry," Luna said with a smile. "I'm not too early for our lesson am I?"
"No, not too early, the earlier the better for today. Is there anything you don't need to focus on?"
Luna smiled apologetically. "I'm afraid I need help with everything. I can't even seem to cut things coarsely properly."
Harry nuzzled the top of her head and cooed at her softly. "That's alright; we will take it one step at a time. What is the skill you are best at and what are you worst at?"
"I'm bad at everything, but I'm best at peeling and worst at dicing with powdering a close second."
Harry nodded and guided the girl into the kitchen, waving absentmindedly to the amused crowd that had gathered. "We will start off with what we are having for lunch and then we will make a gift for you to give if either you or your father comes across a fairy ring."
"Oh that would be wonderful," Luna said as the door shut behind her. "We have tried to leave gifts before but … well … they don't seem to like them very much."
"It doesn't surprise me," Harry said with a smile as he absent-mindedly put the kettle onto the stove top. "Fairies and elves have a different set of tastes than what you would be used to. They like predominantly sweet things and no meat. Most of them will accept small gifts of cream or milk straight from the cow, but fresh berries, honey, thimbles of dew, spools of spider silk and sweet-smelling petals are often favoured gifts. For you, I am willing to share one of my recipes I make with those aged six and under at Mama Figgs. It's a sweet spice mix that has always been welcomed."
Luna beamed at the raven-haired teen and hugged him, being careful to not knock the container he held out of his grasp.
"And for lunch?" she asked when she got herself under control once again.
"Lunch will be lots of peeling, chopping, mixing and tasting. Today we are making," he paused to pour hot water over the odd mix of items he had put into three separate teapots. "A lovely creamy chicken soup with pasta. It is simple, tasty, filling and very nutritious. Even better is that it can be made using ingredients that you and your kin find appealing to your tastebuds while still being palatable for the humans in your life."
"Yay!" Luna cheered. "When Daddy holds the monthly business dinner not many people are happy to be invited. If I can master this then maybe the next one I attend with him will be different."
"I'm sure it will be Miss Moon, I'm sure it will be," Harry stated. "Now, this is an onion …"
~~~isitoddthatIamnowcravingthissoup?~~~
"What do you think they are doing in there?" Sirius asked as he stared longingly at the door that had the most wonderful smells coming from behind it.
"Cooking," Hermione stated absent-mindedly as she took notes from the book she was holding in her hand. "Creamy chicken Pasta and vegetable soup if I'm not mistaken – with a twist added for Luna's palette."
"How did you guess that?" Bellatrix asked.
"It is always the first thing Harry teaches the older kids at Mama Figgs to cook without his help. There is a lot of peeling, chopping and slicing to be done. That isn't including the amount of stirring to be done nor the close watch on timing."
"So it is the perfect recipe for aiding someone in understanding some of the processes involved in potions making without endangering them or the people around them," Remus smiled. "He's got a good idea there."
Hermione nodded, looking up from her book for the first time in over an hour. "It's also an easy, forgiving recipe that, even if a mistake is made in its creation, tastes just as good as the original."
"It all depends on the tastes of the person who makes it, in other words."
Everyone jolted slightly at the unexpected voice of the Headmaster.
"Yes," Hermione replied "As a nymph, Luna's tastes lean more towards bitter, salty and sour tastes rather than sweet, creamy or spicy, so she might remove some of the root vegetables and add some bitter greens or add some form of pickled vegetable or even just added more salt and finished with a squeeze of lemon juice."
"Close," Harry stated from the doorway, "We used soy milk and added some blended tofu as well as the bitter greens and lemon juice."
"You are all welcome to taste it if you want," Luna said in her usual dreamy way. "I have enough for my dinner tonight and lunch tomorrow and I just sent some to Daddy. I have enough left for a spoonful for everyone to try, but I understand if you don't want to try it; my tastes are extremely different to that of a human."
"Then it is a good thing that most of us aren't human, isn't it?" Hermione giggled. "I'll give it a shot."
"We all will," Narcissa said smiling at the shy girl. "Even if we don't like it, we will still be able to give it a go."
"Even I will try it," the Headmaster said with a smile. "If you allow it my Dear. It has been many a year since I've had a meal prepared by one of the Nymphs."
Luna's eyes widened in delight, "You have eaten with my kin, Headmaster?"
"My mother was an Earth Nymph," he said with a twinkle in his eye. "Father was an ordinary wizard. My younger sister was a Nymph and my younger brother was like me – an ordinary wizard with the taste of a Nymph. Fortunately for all of us, I was the only one of the both of us who got the mind of one."
"Earth Nymphs favour sweet and sour tastes, don't they?" Harry asked, smiling at Severus, Draco, Blaise and Lucius as they entered the room.
Albus chuckled and turned, nodding at the new comers in greeting.
"That they do, my boy."
"Something smells wonderful," Draco greeted.
Harry nuzzled into him with a soft purr. "Luna and I have been cooking."
"He's a very good teacher," Luna smiled. "He cooked the normal one while coaching me through the making of mine."
"She's really good at it," Harry said with a beaming smile. "All she needs to do is focus completely on what she is doing."
"Either that or have someone who can stop my mind from wondering," Luna giggled.
"Ah yes," Albus said with an amused smile. "I had almost forgotten about that aspect of being a Nymph. I remember Mother and Arianna were very flighty with their attention. I don't know how often Father and Aberforth had to pull one of them or myself back to the real world."
Luna and Harry exchanged looks and giggled. As one, they moved towards the elderly man and herded him into the kitchen. Draco, Blaise and Hermione exchanged chuckles before following them, shaking their heads. They would never understand the minds of Submissives. As they listened to the joyful laughter that was coming from the kitchen, none of them believed it to be a bad thing.