Don't own anything recognisable from JK Rowling's Harry Potter books

Chapter 14

Revealed

"Sirius?" Lunar perched a bowl of eggs on her waist and whisked, at the same time the telephone was in the crook of her neck. "Oh hi. Yeah it's only me."

Remus watched her unnoticed from the kitchen doorway. She had placed her freshly washed hair in a careless bun, and wisps were escaping and framing her face; she hadn't put on any make up and had hurriedly put on her casual jeans with frayed hems and the small rip at the knee with a faded once yellow now almost white, short sleeved tight t-shirt. He smiled, in just one day she seemed at peace, and acted as if his home belonged to her.

She swapped shoulders for the phone and stopped whisking for a moment to turn over the frying sausages and bacon. "Yeah…. The person I'm staying with?…. Ummm no you don't know… him…… Yes it's a him…… No…... No.….. This isn't like you Sirius. Why are you acting so suspiciously?…… You're not? Yeah right……"

She caught a glimpse of Remus leaning against the doorway a satisfied smirk on his face.

"I gotta go…… No! I've told you before. I don't know when I'll be back! Bye! Love you too!"

~ ~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~ ~

Sirius hung up the phone and looked at his wife, the Cheshire cat smile on his face making evident his self-satisfaction.

""Stay as long as you want?"" She enquired dryly. ""We will be expecting good news when you return?" "I trust your judgement?" Come off it Sirius, you couldn't have been more subtle if you tried!"

But her withering comments just bounced off Sirius' back, and he left the room, plotting more schemes and whistling "Here Comes The Bride."

Pat rolled her eyes and said to no one in particular. "And the common consensus is that women are terrible romantics. We should have a plaque put on the front of the house. "Sirius Black, Matchmaker extraordinaire." Or matchmaker unsubtleaire."

~ ~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~ ~

Lunar hung up the phone and turned to Remus. "You shouldn't be up!" She scolded. "What about your back?"

"It's getting better." Remus protested, and a huge grin spread over his face. "Nothing a few days of tender loving care won't fix."

Lunar smiled sweetly. "And I know just the person to do it." She said and put the whisked eggs in a microwave on a corner unit of the kitchen. When she turned around Remus was stood right behind her trapping her in the corner. His eyes were transfixed on her.

"Do you?" He breathed suggestively.

Lunar ran a finger down the side of his face evocatively. "Of course I do." She leaned into his body and waited until her lips were nearly touching his before whispering. "I'm sure Madam Pomfrey will come over and tend to your needs."

He growled. "My…." He quirked an eyebrow suggestively and looked down. "… needs require more specialised attention." He leaned his body in closer so that they touched each other. "And I've already got someone in mind for that job."

Lunar breathed deeply, her eyes dilated and she shivered.

"I see you have the idea." Remus breathed, and his head swooped down to capture her lips in a kiss.

Breathtaking was not the word for it. In fact at that moment in time there were no words, only actions as Remus' arms encircled her waist and lifted her so she sat on the counter. He ferociously kissed her neck, his not yet shaved face burning her, causing both pain and pleasure at the friction at the same time. Her hands explored the tightness of his body, the body she had been mesmerised and had memorized so much of when he had transformed.

"Remus!" She moaned slowly. "Remus."

He growled and his lips possessed her again.

"Oh god!" She managed to breathe when he left her lips again. "I smell burning." Realisation dawned in her befuddled eyes. "The food! Remus, the food is burning!"

"Huh?" He slurred, and turned towards the cooker.

She jumped down off of the side, put on the oven-gloves and grabbed the smoking pan, which she took outside the back door and left on a discarded pile of bricks. Turning off the oven she turned to him. "That was close!"

"Very close." He agreed ruefully.

She looked into his eyes and saw the desire still there, and backed off. "Ummm Remus…"

He drew her close to him and put a finger on her lips. "I'm not going to apologize for what we just did, and I won't let you either."

Lunar looked at Remus straight in the eye. "I want you, Remus. There's no denying that. It's just… You're still unwell." She finished painfully, looking towards the floor when the obvious lie came out.

Remus' eyes turned a darker colour, and he said in frustration. "You were going to say something else, but you changed your mind. You did this yesterday, when you were talking about your feelings for me. What's wrong?"

Lunar's shoulders slumped, and she said desperately. "Shouldn't you be in bed?"

Remus quirked an eyebrow. "In bed is exactly where I want to be right now, and I've never felt better – health wise. Just tell me what you were going to say."

Lunar gulped for breath. "I need to sit down."

She went into the living room, and Remus followed her every move, waiting until she had sat down before choosing the seat next to her. "Tell me."

She rolled her eyes to the heavens for support. "Remus, I have… had a crush on you since we were at Hogwarts, you should know that by now, considering my actions… And I feel like my feelings have changed, developed. I could quite happily stay with you forever." Remus' face brightened when she said this, but he reacted too soon and his feelings slumped again when she said the words. "But I don't intend on pursuing this relationship if you continue to keep secrets from me."

He coughed nervously. "Secrets?" He asked roughly.

Her face fell and her eyes filled with tears. "Yes Remus, Secrets. Things you don't trust me enough to know. Like, what exactly happened to you the night you came to Sirius' house? What harmed you?" She paused and stood up, brushing his shoulder lightly with her hand. "I should go."

He watched her with dead eyes, knowing that if he told her his secret she would no longer be his. "Don't go." He pleaded.

She turned to face him from the first step up to her room. "You told me you loved me, Remus. You told everyone that you loved me. But it seems as if you don't love me enough." She gave a faint smile, and continued to slowly, dejectedly walk up the stairs.

"Tonight." He called out to the retreating figure. "Give me until tonight. Then I will tell you… and the others."

But she didn't reply.

~ ~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~ ~

Sirius stood by the fireplace at his home making shocked faces to a mirror. Pat rolled her eyes at him. "What exactly are you doing?" She asked incredulously.

"Remus did say that what he had to say tonight was important." He said stopping momentarily to grin at his wife. "And I think it's to do with his relationship with Lunar. I'm practising shocked faces – remember, they don't realise that we know about them. Can you imagine it? Remus, my brother."

Pat smiled. "You really want to look shocked when you walk into the room?" She asked calculatingly.

She whispered into his ear and disappeared into the fireplace.

~ ~ ~ ~ * ~ ~ ~ ~

Sirius appeared as white as a sheet when he eventually arrived at the house, and didn't seem to notice that he was the last one there. His mouth was wide open and he stared at Pat in disbelief. "You're pregnant? How did that happen?" He asked in amazement.

Lunar laughed and hugged Pat ferociously. She then turned to Sirius, with a faux serious expression on her face. "I'm sure Pat will give you the "Birds and Bees" talk when you get home!"

Severus rolled his eyes in disgust and muttered. "That's all we need. The spawn of Sirius Black, and I suppose I'll have to teach them potions."

Remus stayed sitting in the armchair where he was when they arrived, and gave Sirius a small forced smile. "Congratulations." He said, and winced at the cracks in his voice.

Pat gave Remus a swift look of concern and immediately turned her attentions to him. "Why did you bring us all here, Remus?"

"I..." He coughed to disguise the fact that his voice broke and continued. "I suppose it's about time I told you all what I was doing… after Lunar left." He paused and took a sip of water, discomfited at the sudden amount of attention that was on him. "Lunar, you may want to sit down for this." He waited until she was comfortable, and continued slowly. "While you were all looking after Lunar, I was in the process of tracking down Avery."

Lunar stiffened in shock, and turned a pale white. "You did what?" She asked carefully.

"I eventually managed to track him down to a muggle bar, where I confronted him…" He was savagely interrupted by Lunar.

"You confronted him? What do you think you are? Superhuman? They aren't called the Death Eaters for nothing. You could have died! He could have used one of the unmentionables! What are you stupid?" She ranted, unaware of the speculation of the other guests, only thinking of the danger Remus had put himself in. "You may be a bloody werewo…" She stopped at the look of shock on Remus' face.

"What did you say?" He asked suspiciously, and looked at Sirius with hurt in his eyes. "You told her." He said accusingly.

Lunar gave a small mew of refusal. "Sirius didn't tell me. I didn't know until a few days ago.

Sirius frowned. "Then how…?" He trailed off in confusion.

"You really don't remember how you got to Sirius' house that night do you?" Lunar asked in concern.

The blank look on Remus' face was quickly followed by one of utmost agony. "You mean..."

"You changed in front of me." Lunar quietly confirmed Remus' worst fears, and he winced.

"I didn't harm you…" He strode across the room to her and pushed up her sleeves, searching them. "You've not got any scratches, or bites?" he asked hurriedly. At the shake of Lunar's head to motion no, Remus' troubled mind calmed, and he retreated back to the chair in the corner. "You must never come near me again." He said matter-of-factly.

Lunar became outraged. "You trail around after Avery, and then presume to have the authority over whom I see or do not see? I refuse. I intend to keep seeing you." She said stubbornly.

Sirius, who had been feeling ignored, and rather like a spectator at Wimbledon watching the ball flying back and forth between two people, turned to Pat and said. "I should remember that the next time I piss you off. Forbidding you from seeing me. Not the most used option in courting."

"Shut up." Pat said curtly, which took the smile off of Sirius' face, transferring it to Severus'. "We can leave the personal stuff out of this for a moment. What happened when you found Avery?"

"He won." Remus said bitingly. "But I know where he is."

Pat stepped towards the fireplace and threw Floo powder into it. "Good, then you can tell the experts. Auror Headquarters."

"Wait." Albus said in his most commanding tone. He had been silent up until this point, and the other people in the room turned to him in respect. "I have one more thing to talk to Remus about." He motioned to the study, Remus assented, and they walked into it, and shut the door.

A/N

Thanks to Ingenious for reviewing!!! (I'm also often exclamation mark happy, so don't worry about it!!!!)