Author's Note: This is a little interlude from the Remus/Cassius/Sirius angst and drama. My muse spoke to me and said Owen wanted more screen time – so to speak. I wrote this in a few hours, then spent a few weeks polishing it. Just couldn't help myself – and I wanted to share. Hope you enjoy!

Chapter 35 Owen

Remus had been home from Hogwarts for a week when Cassius walked into the kitchen one Saturday morning where Remus was drinking a cup of tea and reading the Daily Prophet. They'd spent the week reaffirming their relationship, after the big argument about Sirius.

"Remus, what are you doing this afternoon?"

"The same thing I do every afternoon, Cass, try to take over the world."

"You watch too much muggle telly." Cassius smiled.

"You do too if you caught that reference." Remus smiled back.(1)

"All right, guilty." Cassius sat down next to Remus at the table.

"I'm not doing anything in particular. Why?"

"Would you want to…Could you…I don't know how to ask this."

"Is it kinky?" Remus asked with a smile.

"No! No…I…Owen left me his pensieve and…I've never wanted to look at it but…I think…now…I'd like to. But I don't want to use it alone. Stevens is coming over this afternoon and…I want you there too." Cassius' words had tumbled out in a rush and now he stood uncertainly looking at Remus.

"I would be honored." Remus said sincerely. "If you're sure."

"I want you there. Owen…I loved Owen, there will probably be some memories of us together…"

"I understand." Remus said quickly. "I know you loved Owen. I love you. If you want me there, I'll be there."

Cassius smiled and pulled Remus into his arms. "I love you. After Owen died," Cassius swallowed hard. "I didn't think I'd ever feel happy again…but I found you."

"Yes, you did. And I'm so glad. I am glad we're together." Remus said, hugging his mate tightly.

Owen's pensieve contained memories starting with the day that Owen and Cassius met when they were six. Remus felt like he was watching a muggle movie as the memories continued, showing Cassius and Owen growing up. Owen had been the extrovert, while Cassius was shy around people he didn't know. Cassius was very smart – and he had a very sharp memory, so different from the way his memory was now. There were a few memories of the 1st year at Hogwarts, getting sorted into Ravenclaw, and then...

"Can you believe it?" Owen said slowly, his voice had a Welsh lilt. Owen and Stevens were sitting on one of the beds in a dorm room. "I wondered why he was so different. He didn't recognize me and we've been best friends since we were little. And his father…he…he did it."

"Sirius Black – he's such an arrogant fuck – walking around like he hasn't got a care in the world." Stevens sneered.

"Well, he doesn't…didn't get punished, did he." Owen spat out with equal venom. "And they don't know that Cassie will ever get better."

"Are you my friend?" Cassius looked the same age as the memories Remus had seen in Dumbledore's pensieve.

"Course I am." Owen sat down next to him on the bed. "I'm Owen, we've been friends forever."

"I don't remember forever." Cassius said, sniffling.

"I remember it for you." Owen answered, smiling gently as he took Cassius's hand in his.

There were other short scenes, of Cassius not remembering his name. A couple scenes of Owen introducing himself again and again. A scene of Lucius visiting with Cassius, Owen and Stevens. Scenes of Owen being happy Cassius finally remembered him – that he remembered something they had done in grammar school. Then the adventures began – Quidditch games, pranks, and the fun the three of them had together.
Cassius was sitting on his bed, writing a letter. There were only two beds in the dorm room.

"You writing Lucius?" Owen asked as he walked into the room.

"Yeah." Cassius' brows were knit together in concentration.

"Telling him how we slaughtered Hufflepuff?"

"Yeah." Cassius snapped, eyes flashing black.

"What's wrong?"

"I can't remember how to spell Quidditch." Cassius muttered.

"Q-U-I-D-D-I-T-C-H." Owen said slowly.

"What does a Q look like?" Cassius finally looked up at Owen, rubbing his forehead with frustration.

"Give over." Owen sat down and held his hand out for the quill and scroll. He looked down at it. It looked like it had been written by an eight year old instead of a fourteen year old. "What have you already told him?" Owen moved back to lean against the pillows.

"I haven't written anything about the match yet." Cassius moved next to Owen and rested his chin on Owen's shoulder. He grown a lot since the last memory and was now quite a bit taller than Owen, probably close to his adult height.

"Right then." Owen poised the quill over the scroll. "What do you want to say about it?" Cassius' hand crept over to rest on Owen's chest, over his heart. "I'm waiting."

"You write it, I'm tired." Cassius mumbled.

"Didn't take your potion last night, serves you right." Owen said lightly.

"You don't have to take a potion to sleep." Cassius said sulkily.

"Would you take your potion if I had to take one?"

"I don't like being babied. I'm not weak. Malfoys are strong."

"That's right. And you are strong." Owen agreed soothingly as Cassius's eyes fluttered shut.

"He doesn't remember getting into bed with you?" Stevens asked, putting another spoonful of eggs on his plate.

"No – doesn't seem to." Owen said, looking roughly a year older than the last memory. "We woke up and he apologized, said he must have sleepwalked, like he's ever sleepwalked before in his life - but of course he doesn't remember that he doesn't sleepwalk."

"Huh."

"Stevens." Owen took a bite of pancakes and chewed it thoughtfully. Stevens watched him expectantly. Owen swallowed. "He kissed me."

"He kissed you?" Owen nodded, chewing another bite of pancakes. "But he doesn't remember it?"

"Doesn't seem to. I hinted around at it and he just looked at me like I was bonkers."

"Why didn't you just tell him?"

"It wouldn't make a difference. Even if you remind him of something that's happened – if he doesn't remember, it's not real to him."

"True." Stevens put some jam on a piece of toast. "Did he think it was you?"

"Judging by the way he was panting my name the whole time, I'd say so."

"He was – !" Stevens choked on his toast for a moment. "Just…how much did you do?" He asked reluctantly and watched as a flush crept over Owen's cheeks. "He didn't force you to do anything, did you?" Stevens suddenly looked angry.

"No! No." Owen answered quickly. "I…I liked it." His face got pinker.

"I thought…I didn't think…aren't you…" Stevens looked bewildered.

"Straight – I am – I think…I mean, I've always thought he was handsome…and…I've maybe thought about kissing him again since we kissed a couple years ago. Merlin, Stevens, you should kiss him now – it's…it's….something." Owen said, his eyes glazing over at the memory.

"So he…you and he…last night…and he doesn't remember."

"That's what I said." Owen took a drink of his pumpkin juice. "We didn't have sex…but we did more than just kiss. He did this thing…with his fingers and his tongue." Owen sighed. "I'm telling you I saw stars."

"You saw stars."

"I don't mean it metaphorically, I mean I actually saw stars."

"You actually saw stars…what'd he do?" Stevens was curious in spite of himself.

Owen lifted his hands to demonstrate. "He – Hey Cassie, where've you been?"

"Nowhere." Cassius sat down across from Stevens and Owen.

"Regulus." Stevens said flatly, noticing Cassius' cousin standing behind him.

"See you around, Cousin." Regulus said, looking pointedly at Owen and Stevens

"Sure." Cassius answered, pouring himself some juice.

"You went to visit Regulus?" Owen asked with astonishment.

"No, I ran into him on the way here." Cassius rubbed his forehead before reaching for the platter of eggs.

"You - " Owen was cut off as Stevens elbowed him hard. "Sure you did. That was nice." Owen said, rubbing his side.

"What are we doing for your birthday today?" Cassius asked.

"I don't know…it's not a big deal." Stevens shrugged.

"Not a big deal – you're 18 now!!" Owen said excitedly.

"Well…"

"I managed to get some fire whiskey." Owen said looking devious. "In fact, I better go check something." He stood up. "I'll see you both in the library later."

As soon as he was out of the great hall, he saw Regulus and hurried over to him.

"He was down by the Slytherin dorms. Lost." Regulus said curtly. "I thought you were supposed to watch out for him."

"I do. I just…he'd been doing really well lately, I thought I could let him find his way down by himself."

"Obviously not."

"Obviously."

"He seemed tired."

"He didn't sleep well last night." Owen's cheeks turned pink but Regulus didn't seem to notice.

"Cousin Lucius said at Christmas that most of his memory has been back for almost two years now." Regulus was now looking at Owen accusingly.

"It is!" Owen said. "Just, there are problems when he doesn't sleep well. I'll take care of it. Don't worry Lucius about it."

Owen and Cassius were sitting on one of the couches in the Ravenclaw Common Room. Cassius had the Head Boy badge on his robes. Cassius rubbed his forehead.

"I'm knackered. I'm going to take a nap." Owen said cheerily as he started up towards their dorm room.

"I thought we were going to play chess." Cassius said, following him.

"Play chess with Hill."

"I always beat Hill, it's no fun."

"Well, then do something else with Hill – he's your boyfriend, I'm sure you can think of something." There was a slight edge to Owen's voice.

"He's not my boyfriend anymore." By this time, they were in their dorm and Owen flopped on to his bed. Cassius seemed to deliberate a moment then he laid down next to Owen, facing away from him.

"When'd you break up with him?"

"He broke up with me, last night." Cassius started chewing on his fingers. "Because I'm a Malfoy, a dark wizard, a future Death Eater, not to mention a sexual deviant who fucked him and led him from the true path of straightness." Cassius's voice dripped with scorn. "Now's he's seen the light and doesn't want anything more to do with me."

"Stop that." Owen reached over and pulled on Cassius' arm. "He got a howler at breakfast yesterday, you missed it because you were in the Prefects meeting with Dumbledore. His parents were really mad to hear he was dating you. I couldn't tell if they were madder because it was you or because it was another bloke."

"It was both, from what he said. I thought they knew…we'd been together almost a year."

"I can't believe he stuck with you for that long." Owen said under his breath.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Cassius asked angrily.

"Well…just…I wouldn't want to be your boyfriend. I mean…you aren't friends with any of your boyfriends, are you?"

"I am too." Cassius protested, chewing his fingers again.

"Stop it!" Owen grabbed his hand. "You're making yourself bleed. Honestly, Cassie. You're not – you don't treat your boyfriends like friends, you just use them for sex."

The two young men were quiet for a moment. Cassius seemed to be debating about something.

"I'd be friends with you." He said softly.

"If I was your boyfriend?" Owen asked.

"Yeah."

Owen took a deep breath. "I don't want to be boyfriends or friends who have sex. All right?" Cassius nodded. "When you're ready to have it be about love…then we'll talk."

"What if I can't love anyone? Father – "

"Ugh, I don't want to hear another word about your rotten father. You shouldn't believe all that crap he told you when you were little. You are wonderful. You love people. You just need to love the person you have sex with. That's what's called a healthy relationship." Owen put the last two words in imaginary quotations.

"Well…I love you. And I want to have sex with you."

"Do you?" Owen's voice was strangely neutral.

"Yes…when…I used to imagine Hill was you sometimes."

"Did you?"

"Yes…he…he looks like you – except his eyes aren't as blue."

"And he's not as handsome as I am." Owen laughed.

"No – and he's bigger than you too."

"Excuse me?" Owen sat up and glared down at Cassius.

"I meant taller." Cassius flushed. Owen was short and slight, Remus was reminded again of a pixie. Owen looked mollified and lay back down. "So…"

"What?"

"Are we boyfriends now?"

"No. You have to woo me."

"What?"

"I don't just give out on the first date. You have to earn it." Owen laughed.

There was snow on the window of the dorm. Opened Christmas presents were strewn around the floor.

"Ow!" Owen cried out. Sweat was trickling down his face, as he lay under Cassius.

"Sorry." Cassius said, with effort. "It'll get better, I promise."

"No…no…just…You're too big!" Owen groaned. "I should have known…I've seen you in the showers often enough…ow!" His small hands pushed ineffectually at Cassius' muscular shoulders. "I thought this was supposed to feel good." He grumbled.

"It will, Owen." Cassius gritted his teeth, "Stop doing that."

"What am I doing?" Owen asked breathlessly.

"You're. Moving."

"Don't people move when they have sex?"

"Yes…just…Not…oh…You need to get used to this before we…"

"Well, I'm sorry I don't know what I'm doing, not like all the others!" Owen said angrily. Cassius murmured a few words and shifted. "OH!" Owen shouted. "What was that?"

"A lubricant spell, I thought I had enough before." Cassius leaned down and kissed Owen on the nose. "And I think I hit-" Cassius moved again.

"Cass!" Owen threw his head back on the pillow as he yelled. "You – you did put a silencing charm on our room, didn't you?"

"I did. Not that it matters, we're the only ones here." Cassius laughed as he moved again.

"Oh! Merlin!" Owen's fingers dug into Cassius's shoulders, trying to pull him closer. Encouraged, Cassius started to move in a smooth rhythm. "Oh…wow!…oh…." Owen cried out blissfully with every move Cassius made. "This…is…brilliant…oh!… again. Do that again! Mmm…OH! I…you…Oh! Yes! I…love….Cassie, I love you." Owen gasped. Cassius's body jerked and he collapsed. Owen grunted under the weight. "Is…is that it?" He asked, smoothing his hand down Cassius's scarred back. "I feel sticky…inside." Owen said quietly. "And…I'm still hard."

"Just give me a moment." Cassius said breathlessly, his head buried in Owen's neck.

"You didn't last very long, did you?" Owen said conversationally, "Swann said you had stamina – that you two had sex for hours."

"I do, we did." Cassius rolled off Owen.

"But it hasn't even been ten minutes!"

"Well, you said you loved me…how was I supposed to know what would happen." Cassius said crossly.

"You…you came because I said I love you?" Owen asked incredulously as he sat up, his hair sticking up all over.

"No." Cassius' face started to turn pink.

"You did! You did!" Owen straddled Cassius' waist. "You are so cute when you blush."

"I am not."

"Are too."

"Am not."

"Are too, infinity." Owen said, grinning down at Cassius.

"Did Swann happen to mention my recovery time?" Cassius asked, as his hands moved to Owen's hips.

"No, what about it?"

"It's short."

"What does that mean?" Owen tilted his head.

"It means…we can go again, now."

Owen lifted himself up from Cassius and looked down. "Oh…wow." Cassius moved Owen and thrust up into him. "Oh! Wow." Owen's eyes closed and he braced his hands on Cassius' chest. "Cassie – "

"Don't tell me you love me until we're done." Cassius said quickly.

There were a few more scenes of Owen and Cassius, at graduation, then living at Windy Corner. They'd obviously been deeply in love. It made Remus sad to think of the pain Cassius must have felt – and still felt – at losing Owen. He could understand why Cassius hadn't wanted to talk about it. Then the memories were over.

Remus felt like he had lost a friend in Owen now too. Remus noticed tears in both their eyes as Stevens and Cassius walked out slowly of the library down to the kitchen. Tabby had made Cassius' favorite cake for them when they were done.

Remus lingered in the library, thinking about Owen. He liked him. Knowing that Owen had been killed – and so young – Remus couldn't find it in his heart to be jealous of the love that Owen and Cassius had shared. He was very thankful that Owen had been in Cassius' life. Owen had helped him through school, had loved him, had taught him to make relationships meaningful. Cassius was the way he was in large part due to Owen and Stevens.

Remus thought about the twists of fate – if James and Lily had never died, he and Sirius would probably still be together – maybe even mated. And if Owen hadn't died…he and Cassius would be together. Remus walked over to the picture of Owen, Stevens and Cassius that sat on Cassius' desk. He picked it up and looked at Owen. His blue eyes were laughing.

"I love him. I'll love him for you, too." Remus promised.

Notes: The last line is a twist from a line from "Firelight" a great romantic movie! Hope you enjoyed getting to know Owen more! Sniffle. Now I wish that I hadn't killed him off. But…it was in a good cause…the cause of Remus and Cassius, who deserve to be together. :-) sniffle.

I will be posting the next chapter soon, which will include letters from Sirius. I will be doing some polishing to it and then the next chapter and then Sirius will be at Windy Corner. I'll be responding to Sirius related reviews in the next chapter. :-)

1) A reference to Pinky and The Brain – extra points for anyone who recognized it!