Claire stretched herself out, eyes still closed, listening to the sounds in her kitchen. It was almost musical, the laughter Remus was getting from their children. He was almost always up earlier than her, and was by far the better breakfast cook. She could hear Remus and Chantelle picking at the boys, who were laughing and uncontrollably. She smiled to herself.
'Jamie, bud. Go wake Mummy. Ellie, set some juice glasses down. Except Caleb- after the chocolate milk incident you're back on a sippy, son.' She heard him say. Glasses clinked together and then Jamie's little feet come scrambling up the steps. Mentally, she braced herself for impact. It was just a few more seconds before her bedroom door was burst open and the bed pounced on.
"Mummy!" The eight year old cheered as he landed on the bed. He jumped around on the foot of the bed and then belly flopped onto bed on his father's side.
"Good morning, Remus James. Hoe much sugar have you sneaked around and had?" She laughed, pulling the small boy over and tickling him.
"None!" He announced triumphantly.
"Oh, of course." She laughed, sitting up, pushing her long, dark hair from her face. She looked over her pink-cheeked, sandy-blond son. He was a near perfect copy of his father, with Claire's ears.
"Daddy says you need to come eat. He made strawberry creeps!" He said excitedly.
"Crepes, baby." She corrected. "Did you help?"
"Mhmm! Me and Caleb mashed berries!" He said.
"Oh!" She laughed. "I bet they will be the best." She kissed the top of the boy's head and swatted him off the bed. "Go tell everyone else I will be down in a few minutes. Yeah?"
She watched him bound from the room and found her dressing gown, shrugging it on over the thin nightgown she had on. Claire then padded barefoot down the stairs. She loved this- being the last one down stairs to find all four of them together. Remus was at their stove, and she came up behind him, arms wrapped her arms around his waist and stood to kiss the base of his neck.
"Good morning, beautiful." He said, laying a hand on hers. She gave him a squeeze and let go, moving over to the table.
"Caleb- What you got there, bud?" She ask the four year old, two crayons in his hand as he drew.
"Its a giraffe! Like from the book last night!" He explained. She kissed her youngest child on the top of the head. At the other end of the table sat her twelve year old, nose in a book, sipping her juice through a straw.
"You good, kiddo?" She said, stroking her daughter's hair.
"She's gone. Howl's Moving Castle, and it's just getting good. I said she could get back to it if she helped, and the table is all set. So we have to let her be." Remus chuckled, shaking his head. He moved over to the table, placing food on Caleb's plate first, instructing him to let it cool as he cut the crepes up. He moved over to Jamie's, then to Ellie's. Claire took her seat and he served her plate, then he filled her plate as well. After the rest of his family all had their food, he too, sat down and made a plate.
"These are awesome, daddy. Thank you!" Ellie called, her cheek full of the sweets, but she didn't look away from the novel in hand.
"They are some of your better work..." Claire agreed. "But I think it's because the berries are mashed better. Smoother. You do something different there?" She snorted as the two younger boys giggled.
"I may have enlisted some help. Maybe." He agreed. The continued to joke about this until a knock sounded on their door.
"Hmm." Claire said, quirking her lips to the side. Remus shrugged. "Ellie- Go get that?" She said. The pre-teen witch rolled her eyes but did as she was told.
"Who doesn't use the doorbell, anyway?" She said, heading out of the kitchen.
"Probably post?" Remus shrugged, taking a napkin from beside his plate and dabbing Caleb's face.
Chantelle made her way through the house, slightly huffed at whoever was on the other side of the door that disturbed her favorite pastime of reading her way through breakfast. She swung open the front door to find a tall, scarred wizard in Auror's robes standing on the other side. He had a perpetual looking scowl on his face, and a too-large magical eye which whirled around in place. Ellie took a small step back and swallowed.
"Hello, Lass." The man greeted, his voice gruff. "Is your Papa about?"
Ellie took another step back, and turned her head toward the kitchen. "Uh- Daddy?"
On his porch, Remus propped himself against the railing, listening. Not only had Alastor Moody come around, but Albus Dumbledore and his employer, Olympe Maxime were also waiting. Once his daughter had alerted him to their presence, he knew something of grave importance was happening. Alastor had spoken his piece first, about the break out, and what the Ministry knew. Then Dumbledore revealed that he and the Headmistress of Beauxbatons had already had a discussion involving his school year ahead.
"This 'es very simple, really." The tall, older witch said from her seat on one of their lounge chairs. "Schools 'ave shared staff in times of great need before, non? Et will be like that. Dumbledore borrows you from our school until he es sure et is safe. Your daughter es our concern as well, darling." She said gently. Remus furrowed his brow. It was honestly foreign to even speak to her in English, and it unnerved him even greater.
"Sounds like this is more about Harry than Chantelle. Sirius doesn't even know her name. He has no idea where we live. What are you and the Ministry lot going to do for him?" He growled, looking from the Auror to the old professor and back.
"We have people posted. Dementors will be at the grounds perimeter, Auror sweeps." Moody grumbled.
"How did those fucking-" Remus roughly rubbed his face, took a deep breath, and slowly blew it out of his nose. "How did this happen? Nobody has ever escaped Azkaban."
"You knew him. Anger should not make you deny his magical skill." Moody reminded him.
"It is a MAGICAL prison." Remus growled, his voice raising so much, he waved his hand out the house to silence them from hearing the conversation inside.
"And shit happens, boy!" Moody rumbled back.
"But the students need someone to teach them better. Just in case." Dumbledore said, calling the attention back to him, his voice so pleasant that it angered Remus, who scoffed.
"You don't even offer basic dueling at Hogwarts anymore." Remus said, arms crossing across his body.
"The Ministry was who felt the need to discontinue the courses after the fall, not I. However, Defense is very, very similar. And I think Madame will agree that you are the best I could have for my students. And it gives you a peace of mind that you'll be close to your daughter and nephew." Dumbledore reminded him.
"Es only temporary, Remus. De students will miss you, we all will. But es it not necessary to 'elp out your own alma mater?" She smiled sympathetically. "I will 'old your job for you as long as you will be needing me to, Oui? Es always yours." She added.
"So do you accept the transfer?" Dumbledore ask. Remus sighed.
"Claire is going to kill us all." He said under his breath. "And-" He looked over at Moody, "You will be lucky if she leaves the dirt the Ministry stood on undisturbed if she gets in her head to take this to court. Her winning record is unparalleled. And international." He clicked his tongue as he took the parchment Dumbledore held out, followed by a quill he produced from his robe sleeve and signed, then Maxime and Dumbledore signed beneath. The scroll then rolled itself up and poofed away in purple smoke.
"Well, you do your damned best to try and keep her from suing me out of a job, then. I'm so very close to retiring." He joked.
"And what are WE supposed to do?" Claire demanded. She was pacing the floor in Remus' study. He sat with his back against his leather couch, knees to his chest in the floor in front of the furniture.
"Come with me. Go stay at the apartment in Paris? Hell- We can rent you and the boys something somewhere else." He suggested. He felt nearly as helpless as he had the morning her father had ask him to breakfast. She was furious, hurt- and scared. Mostly scared.
"So, Harry is on his own, and not only are we on our own but they want to pretend to bandage it by moving you to Hogwarts?" She snorted.
"Temporarily." Remus corrected. "I'll be back at Beaxbatons in the dueling classroom just as soon as he's caught. Or- well, I'll finish out any school year I start. But Sirius is cocky. He'll make a show of himself before we knew it, and that'll be his end. Back on the rock." He said. Claire did not seem comforted.
Claire moved from the window to the couch and back a few times, biting at the skin on her lower lip. She looked deep in thought, but also on the edge of tears. "And Dumbledore would be okay with the boys and I coming and going the same way Olympe is?" She ask.
"He will be or he will have to sucker someone else into the cursed position, won't he?" Remus laughed in a sarcastic sort of way. "Look- Darling," He rose from the floor and guided her to the couch, where he sat down and pulled her into his lap, holding her close. She relaxed slightly and laid her head on his shoulder. "We do the best we can do. But I have got to protect Chantelle and Harry. And this is looking like our option." He stroked her hair.
"I'm sorry." She sighed.
"Moody said for me to ask you to not sue him out of a job." He joked, trying to cheer her up. She snorted.
"I'm not going to sue them. I mean- I could. And they hate when I step in there at all. I'd probably win. But I'm not going to. This is too personal. Conflict is too high."
"Says the woman who blocked the 'Restriction of Lycantropes' law." He kissed her head. "And is married to one."
"That is completely different." she huffed. "You have tenure at Beauxbatons, your employment is secure. I was worried about the other werewolves. It was an unjust law and that is what I'm in the business for."
"Claire-" Remus sighed, squeezing her tighter. "I'm not going to let you down anymore." He said quietly. She twisted slightly so she could look up at her husband.
"No, I know." She said gently. "I know you won't."
"Do- Do you think that we should tell her?" Remus ask after a while, breaking the silence.
"She knows enough. She did not want to know who her father was, remember? She said it was you now and she didn't care to know anything past that. She also said she didn't want her brothers to know. This doesn't change anything. A murderer is on the loose. Its dangerous. She will understand us being up in arms." Claire defended, drawing her knees closer.
"I love that child so much." His voice cracked.
"She loves you, too." Claire said, raising up and turning to face him. "You are her father. You could not hold a high place to that girl. She adores you. And you aren't going to let us down, Rem. We know that." She stroked his face.
"Yeah, yeah." He nodded, sniffing back as a tear broke free.
"However-" Claire said, a mischievous smile breaking through her somber expression.
"What?" Remus gulped.
"Who has to tell her that her dad will be teaching at her school this year?" She laughed, and Remus groaned.
"Shit. I forgot about that..."
Welp, Welcome to POA era story, folks.
Hope everyone enjoyed this transition. Thank you all for reading!
PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE review so I know how you all like how it is going.
Pretty please?
