Hermione was in fits of annoyance and frustration when Ginny finally showed up with the children. The redhead wisely didn't speak about anything terribly concerning for a bit as her children settled in the flat. The curly-haired witch was tearing her bookshelves apart and organizing them.

"So, Harry told me the marauders were quite upset that you left," Ginny said.

Hermione just snorted.

"What happened?"

Hermione knew, no matter how upset she was. She couldn't speak about what happened. "Sirius, he said something ridiculous and I was overwhelmed as it was. It's silly," Hermione huffed.

"Well, maybe he can apologize and work it out to where you're not angry," Ginny grumbled.

Hermione could see that she didn't believe her. Ginny knew an excellent lie and smelt it before it was even spoken. However, both of them agreed quite a few years back, that if they lied to each other, it was only to keep someone else's business hidden. Each witch had an aptitude for keeping hidden truths from the world, and Hermione appreciated that beyond belief.

"Anything different about your body?" Ginny questioned.

Hermione held up the back of her hands and groaned. "They didn't go away. I'm going to have curly scars on my hands from now on."

Ginny sipped her teacup and exhaled. "Another story for another day when this is past us. It will be a funny story for the children. 'The day I was stuck as Uncle Sirius.' What a funny thing."

"Can I ask you a question?" Hermione said as she placed the last of her books on the shelf.

Ginny bobbed her head as she glanced at her children playing with their toys. "What's wrong?"

"Do you find them," Hermione paused and cleared her throat. "Different?"

"Yes, I do. They don't seem to feel fatherly any longer."

Hermione frowned and moved to her abandoned teacup. "No, they don't. It was odd having Remus in my body. It was like," she paused. "Like I was teaching him about me first hand."

"For the love of magic, please don't continue with you fancying him. Hermione, he's got more on his plate than ever before, including mourning a dead spouse. Don't," Ginny warned, waving a finger.

Hermione collapsed in her armchair and sighed. "You're right. I'm being barmy. It was only the situation of finding the familiar in the uncomfortable."

"You can always shag Sirius," Ginny offered with a grin.

Hermione's cheeks lit up as she cleared her throat. "No, I think not, Gin."

"Shag him and tell me about it."

"No, and no. Your little fancy won't drive my bedroom affairs," Hermione spat.

"Lack thereof," Ginny grumbled.

Hermione groaned and waved a hand. "Just because I'm your only single friend left, doesn't mean I'm going to have hot nights with single-use wands."

"I'm just saying if the cauldron is in need of stirring, get a bloody spoon," Ginny hissed.

"The cauldron is officially out of business. I couldn't be more interested in," Hermione paused to see James was still amused. "Potions class if I have to be the professor."

"What happened to that wizards' rights activist from France?" Ginny huffed.

"Up in smoke when I told him I didn't want children," Hermione said and glanced at the window. "I told you a year ago, and I'm going to tell you this again: Why would I try if it's never going to work out?"

"Okay, Hermione," Ginny pouted.

"Now, let's utilize this Sunday before going to mum's, please? I need to grab some more potions ingredients."

Ginny stood up and rubbed her face. "Alright, let's make it quick. I don't want to have her screaming at me for being late."


Harry was examining Sirius's face as they sat in the sitting room at 12 Grimmauld Place. The animagus was perched on the loveseat as they recapped the whole experience.

"Sirius, why would she leave over an argument? What were you arguing about?" Harry asked.

Sirius rolled his eyes and leaned against the arm. "Well, I told her she should go to the pub with me. I could help her find a decent wizard before finding a nice witch to bury myself into."

"You shouldn't have said that," Harry replied.

"I know that now. It was difficult to overcome my excitement over having my body back," Sirius sighed.

Harry bent forward and fixed his glasses. "Sirius, she's delicate. Probably more so than any witch I know. Things like that offend her if it's insincere or crossing a line."

"Moony could have said similar, and she would have just batted her pretty little eyelashes at him," Sirius groaned.

The Potter straightened his form. "Well, that's different. Remus wouldn't have suggested that."

"How is he different than me?"

"Are, wait, is this jealousy?" Harry asked.

Sirius sneered and waved his hand. "No, of course not. It's that she doesn't respect me."

"It was out of line what you said," Harry mumbled.

"I'm worried about our little witch, Harry. She expressed her indifference to relationships while we were out running. I don't want to see her end up alone. I told Moony that when he was younger and I should have just come out and said it instead of poking at her," Sirius growled as he scrubbed his face.

"So this is about her and Remus? How she's playing the same song he did before meeting Tonks?" Harry asked as his face skewed and his head slanted.

Sirius waved a finger in the air and exhaled. "Yes, exactly. She's a beautiful woman and one that deserves more than a small flat in a barren town above her ex-husband's shop."

"Then why didn't you tell her that? She's hardly judgmental if you have a good reason behind your concerns," Harry said.

This manufactured lie, though quite lengthy, was getting to the heart of his feelings. Sirius squirmed in the slightest of touching on them. "I don't know Hermione passed who she was as a teenage girl, Harry. It would come off sounding pompous and hypocritical."

"Sirius, you know her better than I do some days. I can't get her to talk to me about this. She won't even tell me why Ron broke it off- the real reason. Not that made up rubbish about them cutting ties because she didn't want to keep trying. She swore him into secrecy, so I never found out. As far as relationships, Ginny is the witch she whispers to about them. My worst fear is that she will turn to me when we're old and grey and ask me why I didn't help her."

Sirius groaned as he shook his head. "He left her because they couldn't have children and that disappointment was too much for her to bear, Harry. No amount of tests, potions, or offers will subside that. She forced him away so that she could prove herself right- she believes that makes her unlovable."

Harry nearly dropped his glass as he bristled. "What? What do you mean she can't? She's always telling Gin she doesn't want them. She flat out told Molly she didn't want to talk about having children in the future. It's too hard to juggle the ministry and a relationship."

"Well, she's lying. Lying to herself and lying to everyone else. It's a coping thing I know quite a bit about," Sirius grumbled.

"Do you think she sincerely was trying?" Harry asked as he scratched his chin.

"Yes, and I think it broke her heart. That witch is built off of reaching a passing grade. In her opinion, she's earned failed marks, and that's devastating to her whole being. I wouldn't be surprised if she doesn't ever try again," Sirius murmured as he glanced at his half-empty drink.

"You sound like you know why," Harry said.

Sirius grimaced as he met his godson's eyes. "Of course I do, Harry. I ruined the best thing in my life by not succeeding. It was doomed from the start because I couldn't do what was right. I was bred to be wrong and twisted, and it has taken my entire life to fight those feelings."

Harry moved to the loveseat and patted Sirius's shoulder. "You're a good wizard and a wonderful godfather, Sirius. Whatever you did, it can be forgiven."

"No, it couldn't Harry. I hurt the only soul alive who knew my truth. With that comes the devastating truth that I could never make it up to them."

"Do you believe she feels the same?"

Sirius shook his head. "No, she feels like Moony. Or at least before I died. He found his way with Nymphadora, and that clears him of his self-imposed inadequacy I'm sure."

Harry bobbed his head and smiled. "The wedding was beautiful. I'm glad they had that- you would have loved seeing it. Teddy is a stellar boy, and Hermione did a wonderful job raising him. Drom let her handle quite a bit of the hard bits so she could spoil him. It was a lovely time."

"She raised him? I know she was over there from what Moony said, but she raised him?"

"Oh, yes. Drom told me if she died before Teddy went to school that she wanted Hermione to stay at her house with him."

Sirius laughed and patted Harry's leg. "She's a good little witch. You have a brilliant friend."

"Now, why don't you pull Remus from his nap, get dressed and we'll go to the Burrow?

"Alright," Sirius grumbled and stood up. "I hope Molly doesn't mind."

"She won't. You're family."


Hermione had brought an enchanted muggle radio and had the young children out at the pond. It was far enough from the house where she wasn't going to be pestered with questions of the awkward experience. Ginny snorted as she turned the knob on the volume.

"What rubbish muggles listen to," she scoffed with a grin.

"Well, I like it," Hermione huffed and turned the sound on max.

The witch stood up and wandered down to the water. "Come here, loves, let's show your auntie how it's done," Hermione shouted.

Hermione started to dance in her shorts and tank top at the edge, splashing around with her feet. The teal haired child raced up and laughed. Without a word, a dance party commenced. Summer was closing. It was ending with a beautiful bright afternoon.

"Oh me too!" Victoire screamed as she raced out to the water.

Fred and Bill soon collapsed next to Ginny on the grass as they laughed. "Sister," Bill murmured with a nod.

Hermione was twirling the blond child as the poppy song rose over the area. Ginny shrugged at her brothers with a smile, and they laughed with a nod.

"Born what way?" Bill called out to Hermione.

"This way, da!" Victoire laughed.

Hermione lifted an arm and smirked at the oldest Weasley on the lawn. "Don't be jealous, Bill!"

The song changed, and Hermione stopped with a shake of her head. "Okay, beasts of the bog, go play," she shooed them off and strode over to the radio.

The children abided, but Ginny laughed and turned the knob on the volume to a lower notch. "Let's not teach the children about this, yeah?" she teased.

Hermione rolled her eyes but couldn't stifle the smile and tint of her cheeks. "Maybe we should turn it off?"

Bill looked at George with a scowl. "What does this mean?"

Hermione covered her face and shook her head. "I'm not going to explain it."

"Neither am I. I'm your sister."

"Oh, hey she's singing about me," Sirius's voice came over the area.

Hermione huffed and moved to walk away, but Ginny threatened the increase of volume by grinning at her and touching it. Sirius appeared and smirked as he sat down next to the Weasley men. "Do you know a thing or two about whips, boys?"

Hermione turned from him and sneered at Ginny. "I'm going to leave, scar the children if you must."

She marched to the pond, and Sirius arched an eyebrow. "She's in a mood."

"Well, she's going to be flinty. They're sending Teddy off tomorrow," Bill reminded him.

The wizards passed around common greeting, but he was watching the witch out in the water. She was talking to the children and dancing in the shallows as they hollered about their days over the adult song. Sirius crossed his legs as he hunched, and straightened his t-shirt. Another song rolled on the air soon after and Ginny turned up the radio. Hermione had busied herself with the teal-haired child and danced waisted deep in the water with him. It was darling and sweet as he tugged her hair and laughed. She made faces, and it only created more laughter and shouts from the children.

"Is she always like this?" Sirius asked over the song.

Ginny just nodded.

Bill leaned toward Sirius and spoke near his ear. "She's going to ask you both to come tomorrow. Try to act surprised."

"Drom?" Sirius inquired.

"Mhm, she told my mum today while they were cooking. Said it would be good for Teddy to see his dad send him off," Bill mumbled.

"Put me down you beastly Lupin!" Hermione laughed as the boy was attempting to carrying her in the water.

They toppled to the water and splashed. It was pandemonium and chaos, but the sopping wet witch was laughing with the small children around her when she surfaced. Sirius scowled and watched her with his chin resting on his hand. He hadn't seen her quite like this before- it was shocking.

Hermione recovered, and after a few words, she dismissed herself from them, climbing from the water. The water clung her shirt to the small bathing top underneath, and Sirius almost lost his elbow off his knee. She flung her wet hair behind her and walked toward the stack of towels.

"I'm going to go get something to drink," Hermione announced.

The teal-haired Lupin raced out of the water and tugged Hermione's hand with swift recourse. "Hermione, when do I get to meet my dad?" He asked with wide eyes.

Hermione laughed and took her dry towel to his cheeks. "Why don't you get dried off and I'll see if I can go find him, alright, my love?"

His hair turned bright pink, and he nodded. "Okay. I'm so delighted, Hermione!" He cried and hugged her.

Sirius could see the melting affection that appeared on the witch's face as she stroked his pink hair.

"Me too, darling. Now, listen to your Aunt Ginny and I'll see if I can find him."

Sirius turned his body as she paced back to the house and glowered. No witch should tug at his heartstrings as she just did.