A new chapter! Yay!

I know many want me to update 'Teasing, Teaching and Time Travel' but I have writer's block on it that you would not believe!

I know it's a lot shorter than the last chapter, but it needed to be. And I tried to end it on a happy note.

Anyway, hope you enjoy. It's not a fluffy chapter, sorry, but I'll guarantee you that the next one is.

Chapter 38: Conceptions

2nd October 1986, Voldemort's Headquarters:

"As you all know, I am intending to go through the Ritual of Imendum tomorrow in the darkness of the new moon. For it, I will require the blood of three magical virgins. Half their blood is given to me." Voldemort sneered. "You may then do with them what you will. The purity of their blood is unimportant, so long as they can perform magic. If you select Mudbloods, so be it, they will finally be useful."

"How shall we do so, my lord, the guards around Hogwarts…" One of the Death Eaters trailed off.

"Tomorrow is a Friday night. Lure them out if need be. I want those maidens!" Voldemort snapped. "By five o'clock tomorrow, they will be here, bound and gagged, or I will know why!"

And so the Death Eaters Apparated out, leaving the scheming to those who would most easily lure out the girls – certain young members.

And as they did, one Death Eater felt sickened by what Voldemort would do the next evening.

XXXXX

3rd October 1986, Auror Headquarters:

Kathryn sighed, filling in paperwork monotonously. Triplicate was not pleasant.

She and Sirius had been back for three weeks now – despite their torture at Voldemort's hands, the Aurors were too short-staffed to let them stay off too long.

Luckily, after the first attack on the Express, Voldemort had been very quiet. He was losing a lot of the support he had had from many of the more conscious pureblood families when they realised just how far he was willing to go to get his goals. However, he still had plenty of support with the dark pureblood families, those who still practised the Black Arts and Blood Magic involving that of the innocent. Blood Magic had two categories – acceptable and unacceptable. Acceptable meant that the blood used was willingly given, usually by the caster, and was usually used as a protective force. Unacceptable Blood Magic used that of others, forcibly taken, often from Muggles in the days before modern magic truly began. Many dark families wished to return to those ways.

Kathryn hated even the idea of it. But she knew Voldemort practised it. It was interesting. Blood Magic protected Harry from Voldemort. But it was also Blood Magic that brought Voldemort back.

It was then that an alarm sounded. Kathryn frowned. She didn't recognise the alarm…

"Meadowes, Prewett, Prewett, Laden! Get down to Hogwarts now!" Moody yelled. He looked around. "Black, if you can get a vision right about now, we'd be grateful!"

"What's happened?" Kathryn yelled.

"Three girls have been kidnapped from Hogwarts. Tonight's a new moon, and if I know my moon phases…"

"The new moon's the favoured night for practising Black Blood Magic." Kathryn gasped.

"Right. Get your team together, we're going on a Voldie hunt."

XXXXX

It was dark and the new moon lent them no aid. Kathryn swore as a branch slashed her face again.

"This is not pleasant." She murmured.

"No kidding." James responded sarcastically.

"I just… ugh, why did he kidnap three innocent girls!" Kathryn growled. "That bloody bastard…"

"Kathryn!" Lily snapped. "Swearing is not going to help anyone!"

"Makes me feel better." Kathryn muttered under her breath. In her gut she knew that they wouldn't find those girls alive.

She just hoped that they weren't in a worse state.

XXXXX

"So mote it be!" Voldemort sealed the spell, sneering at the three girls whimpering on the floor.

Each had been stripped, blood drained from their wrists, breasts, stomachs and ankles. Malfoy had healed each of them as the blood had been gained, and they now huddled together, crying.

A sickly light the colour of dried blood sank into Voldemort's skin and he cried triumphantly. "See now, the success of Imendum! That death shall now quake at the sight of me!" He pointed to the girls. "Take them out and do with them what you wish. Just make sure you dispose of them before dawn."

The girls screamed as a group of Death Eaters removed them to another chamber and proceeded to have their 'fun' with them.

Suffice to say by the time each girl was dead, she was no longer a virgin and welcomed death in the way only those who have been truly tormented can understand.

XXXXX

3rd October 1986:

It was the next morning when the Aurors stumbled upon the dead and brutalised bodies of Amanda Kerring, Ivana Swift and Jeroka Pasmal.

"Shit." Moody snarled, pulling out a magical camera and cordoning the area off as a crime scene.

Unable to stomach what had happened to three girls under sixteen, Kathryn ran off to throw up the meagre food she'd had since noon the previous day.

"Lily, go to her." Moody ordered, noticing that the woman was also looking somewhat green and pained.

Lily was only too eager to comply – the residual emotions in the area were grotesque. The Death Eaters' gloating pride and the residue of the girls' pain and horror… It was sickening.

"Kat?" Lily murmured. "Are you all right?"

Kathryn shook her head. "We've seen so much. Why was it that that made me sick?" She wondered.

"You wouldn't be human if you became immune to such things." Lily informed her. "Everyone was sickened, I could feel it. And the residue…"

"Are you all right?" Kathryn asked.

"I'm fine." Lily responded. "We're talking about you here. Flashback?"

Kathryn shook her head, then nodded. "I don't know. On some level, part of me probably is considering that if we hadn't been rescued when we were, that could have been me and Sirius. They tried, Lily. Oh, God, I know they were going to! Every time, though, Sirius would yell out, distract them, bring more pain on himself to protect me. What did I do to deserve him, Lily, when I know what's going to happen?"

Lily frowned. "Kat, what are you talking about?"

"I – I can't say. Why! Why did they have to let me know what was going to happen! WHY CAN'T I CHANGE IT!"

"Because what should be, shall be, Kat, remember that." Lily stated. "I know you hate what will happen in the future, whatever it is that breaks your heart so badly. But you were sent that vision to protect the future, not to change it."

"Why?" Kat asked. "If I'd not been sent the vision, I wouldn't have changed it."

"But you wouldn't necessarily have preserved it, either. It was your words to your dad that he repeated to Moody that stopped him retiring last month, Kat. You saved Arthur Weasley's life in our sixth-year. Remember that, no matter how much you hate your gift, it is of vital importance to everyone." Lily reminded her.

Kat nodded. "I know. But it's so hard."

"I know."

"And three innocent girls, not one of them over fifteen, half their blood drained, raped, beaten and murdered, left in a forest for someone to stumble over, probably hoping they'd be in a state of decay when they were found…"

"It's horrific. It's foul. It's evil." Lily finished. "And that's why we're fighting that bastard."

XXXXX

19th October 1986:

Remus entered the private room in St. Mungo's, thinking how ironic it was that this was the room Kathryn had inhabited maybe six years earlier. Did the Healers know that? Did they even care?

Jack was in the Janus Thickey Ward of St. Mungo's – the closed ward for those permanently or semi-permanently damaged, particularly brain-damaged. Radella, being a werewolf now, was, of course, 'too dangerous' to belong in that ward, despite the fact she spent most of her time asleep or staring off into space, occasionally giving a pained expression.

It was two days after the full moon and he had come to see her, see how she was after the full moon. He'd been in too much pain the last time.

There she was. In bed, in one of the unattractive mint-green hospital gowns. She looked so innocent with her fair looks, no one would ever suspect the monster that raged beneath her. Truth was, even with his greying hair, no one would suspect Remus of the same thing.

He approached the bed quietly, not wanting to disturb her. She no longer had violent outbreaks in his presence, but he didn't want to risk anything that could cause her more harm. Smoothing her bedraggled hair away from her face, he kissed her forehead softly, and sat down in the chair beside her, clasping her hand lightly in his.

"I miss you, sweetheart." He told her. "Nothing's the same without you. The flat's silent – I can barely afford the monthly payments towards it. You're gone. It's getting easier to remember that. But I swear, Radella, I'll do whatever it takes to restore you to the woman I still love. Any whisper, rumour, even speculation of a cure… I'll follow it up. Your sanity will be restored, even if it's the last thing I do."

Remus had no idea what that sentiment would cost him and those close to him in the next two years to come.

As he spoke, relating gossip and reporting on their friends, Remus detected a strange scent about Radella. He assumed it to be the sign of her lycanthropy – his sense of smell had been befuddled the month before her insanity by a spell. Maybe his confusion was a residual trace. He could still smell himself on her.

Sighing, he kissed her lips softly, wishing that they would respond, knowing they wouldn't.

"I don't know that I'll be able to come again. I don't think I can cope with seeing you like this, my love." Remus whispered. "I swear, if I find a cure, I'll be the first person you see."

XXXXX

23rd October 1986:

Kathryn walked through St. Mungo's, her hand clutching Sirius' tightly. She really didn't like hospitals. She had spent far too much time in them, during her coma, her visions and afterwards. Not to say she was scared, just… nervous about them.

They had decided to visit Jack first. As usual, he made no response, barely recognising them as being there. It was so unfair how such a promising Healer had become a patient in his own hospital.

Poppy was still distraught. She wore her betrothal ring and refused to even think that he might not return to her, sane as he once was. Kathryn knew that this was one of the things that turned her into something of a tyrant in her ward at Hogwarts – the thought of losing a patient was terrifying to her, just as Kathryn hated it when they lost the people they were supposed to protect.

She hoped that someday they would be able to find a cure. Sirius had mentioned shaking off the feeling that it was just staring them in the face. She only hoped they could find one soon.

"Let's visit Radella." Sirius suggested. "Remus saw her a few days ago. She isn't screaming in his presence any more. That's got to be a good thing, right?"

"Is it? At least it meant she was acknowledging him." Kathryn sighed. This took more out of her than she'd ever imagined.

Kathryn shuddered as they entered the room that had once been hers. Five years she'd spent in this room, though she felt like she had lived a completely different sixteen. She only hoped Radella would have more luck.

"Radella?" Sirius asked, walking over to her. "Nimuë, you there?"

There was no response.

Kathryn gave a slight laugh at Sirius. He could be so daft at times.

"Well, I tried." He sighed, and gave his friend a kiss on the forehead. "Pull through for us, okay, little healer?"

He moved away from the bed. Kathryn took his place, sitting in the chair.

"We all miss you, Radella. Never realised how much you meant to all of us, until suddenly you weren't there anymore. We come back from a raid, thinking that you'll be there to help us with our wounds or suggest a good spell and you're not. We love you, Radella, and we miss you. Come back to us soon. Please."

She knew it was futile. She knew she'd have seen Radella in the books somewhere if she'd been sane. Remus would have mentioned her. Sirius might even have joked about it in Harry's presence.

She took Radella's hand and hoped.

Only to be hit by a vision.

"Quickly! She's in labour! We can't get her to push properly!" A Healer cried frantically.

"Twins, we'll have to perform a Muggle Caesarean!"

"That could be fatal!"

"It won't. We'll need to sedate her. It's the only way it will work."

Kathryn saw them perform the operation and heal Radella, only for the woman to fall back completely into catatonia.

"Where's the father?"

"He doesn't know."

Kathryn was startled to see herself speaking.

"He can't know. As a werewolf, he'll be persecuted as it is. I know the future. His children are not with him."

"Then what do we do?" The Healer asked her.

"Keep them with her for a month. She needs to breast-feed them, her mind maybe far away, but her body is prepared. In a month's time, I'll return, and the children will go with their godparents to safety."

"They have godparents?" The Healer asked.

"Radella always promised that Alura and Damion would be her children's godparents if she ever had a child. Of course, at the time, she assumed she'd adopt. Since she wasn't a werewolf, she couldn't conceive with Remus at the time."

"Lupin's her mate?"

"Yes. Her children are Lupins. As for the names… I'll bring Alura, I think she might have an idea."

"Is it right to separate a father from his children?" The Healer asked, catching her arm.

"I'm an Auror, this is a matter of the children's best welfare. Remus is depressed as it is. As a werewolf he can barely hold down a steady job, and without Radella, he's fighting a constant battle with depression. He won't be able to cope as a single father, no matter how much his friends help. You know of my gift, I have seen this future. It is safest for the kids."

"What about…"

"Remus will know one day. When he is able. But until Voldemort is defeated, it's dangerous to have children in this country."

The Healer raised an eyebrow. Kathryn gasped in shock as she saw her protuberant stomach.

"I and my husband are trained Aurors. Besides, this is destiny."

"I accept your terms. The birth of these children shall only be known to a certain few."

"Agreed."

Kathryn gasped out of the vision, staring at Radella, and then at her own flat stomach. What had she seen?

"Kat?" Sirius ventured.

"Sirius, get Radella's Healer. Now. This vision was meant for select ears." She looked mournful. "I cannot tell you about the details."

Sirius looked surprised. "You can't?"

Kathryn shook her head. "Only one detail that I can, but I'll tell you later."

Sirius sighed, annoyed, but accepting, and ran to get Radella's Healer. Kathryn collapsed into her chair. Where had she found such a wonderful husband? Sometimes she really did wonder what she had done to deserve him. Other times she wondered how Azkaban, her disappearance and the death of Lily and James turned him into the man she had read about.

"Kathryn?" Healer Kendra Rafal asked from the door.

Kathryn looked up at the woman who had tended her brother and one of her best friends. "Sirius, lock and silence the door, please."

Sirius nodded, stepping out, and obeyed.

"Healer Rafal, I need you to perform a pregnancy test on Radella." Kathryn ordered.

"What?"

"You know of my clairvoyance." Kathryn told her. Indeed, this woman had also looked after her in hospital. "I need you to check Radella. She was turned into a werewolf. During that month, you can guarantee she and Remus slept together – he'd have been so relieved to get her back. I suspect that they mated, despite not knowing that she was a werewolf. Since she was only able to conceive with him if she was…"

"It's likely that she did so." Rafal finished. She nodded. Tracing a rune that symbolised fertility on Radella's stomach, she incanted, "Pregnatio manifestum."

A brilliant white light shot out from her wand, only to settle on Radella's stomach staining it a mingle of deep blue and baby pink.

"Twins. One of each." Rafal stated. She breathed heavily. "Born werewolves are so rare!"

"What's the difference?" Kathryn asked.

"For one, they can't pass on lycanthropy. See, it's a belief that when someone is bitten by a werewolf, the magic of the bite rewrites a certain part of human DNA. This DNA is then forcibly activated on the nights of the full moon. However, with born werewolves, they have this strand of DNA naturally, without the activator, but as an active set of genes connected to their magic. It effectively means that they can turn into a werewolf any time they want. However, the thirst for blood that was a part of the original curse is dimmed to the point where they're more likely to harm a rat than a human. They effectively keep their own minds in werewolf form. It's like having a natural animagus form. The other factor is something of a wolf mentality. While their parents will have something of one, theirs will be stronger. They will look for an alpha, have life partners and mate. They're also capable of conceiving with any other witch or wizard – magical blood is necessary." Rafal finished. "Some of this is theory, since so few werewolves are born. With both Muggle and magical advances in medicine recently, we have a lot more to go on."

Kathryn nodded. "Thank God."

"Should we inform Remus?" Rafal asked.

Kathryn shook her head. "No one that doesn't need to know of this knows. Remus won't be able to cope as a single father – his lycanthropy mean he's practically unemployable and he's struggling to pay for his flat as it is. I know what to do."

"Are you sure? You're asking us to break protocol."

"As an Auror, I can make this an official case and swear everyone to secrecy. I could even do it as an Unspeakable." Kathryn looked at her seriously. "I can tell Damion and Alura – from my vision, it seems like we planned for them to take the children in. Damion's an Unspeakable – I can get him to set it up as a protective custody case."

Kendra Rafal nodded. "Do it. It's the only way."

Kathryn nodded.

That night, she spoke to Damion and her superiors in the Department of Mysteries.

XXXXX

31st October 1986:

"I don't believe it." Sirius announced as they left Auror Headquarters for the night.

"What?" Kathryn asked wearily.

"That Voldemort hasn't decided to attack. I thought Hallowe'en was his favourite day to attack!"

Kathryn suppressed a shudder, knowing what was going to happen in exactly two years' time.

"It is strange." Lily mused.

"Welcome though." Frank grinned at his wife. "This is the first night off we've had in ages."

Kathryn had to agree. "No full moon, no kidnappings, no attacks… It's like Voldemort's waiting for something to happen."

"What could happen that would be important enough for Voldemort to pay attention to?" Kathryn pointed out.

James shrugged. "I don't know. What I do know is that I'm going to make the most of tonight." He held Lily close.

"Definitely." She kissed him gently and the couple Apparated out.

"That's nice, isn't it? Not so much as a goodbye, or by your leave!" Sirius cried in mock outrage.

Alice gave Frank a knowing grin. "I think they have the right idea." She murmured huskily.

"Bye." Frank shrugged and Apparated home as his wife did.

"Bunch of horny beggars, that's what they are!" Sirius threw up his hands.

"Sirius." Kathryn's low and enticing voice stopped his mock-rant.

He gulped, looking down into those darkening eyes.

"Yes?"

"They aren't the only 'horny beggars' around here." Kathryn informed him.

"Are they not?" Sirius asked. "Well then, my girl, we'll just have to make sure you de-horny yourself!"

"And how do you plan on doing that?" Kathryn asked.

"Like this." He scooped her up into her arms and kissed her, teleporting them both into their home as he did.

As he broke away, Kathryn grinned. "Well, what a nice way to come home."

Sirius smirked. "I thought you'd appreciate it."

"Now what?" Kathryn asked.

"Now I'm going to tire you out."

"Oh, and how do you plan to do that?" Kathryn raised a brow.

"By acting on my desire to make love to you in every room in the house."

XXXXX

Voldemort didn't know why he had not attacked that night.

Fate had intervened.

For three special children were to be conceived that night, just as the last of the six would be a year later.

Conceived when the barriers between the worlds wore thin, they were to have a connection to their magic few had ever known.

XXXXX

A/N:

Well, whaddya think? I thought I'd shroud the ending in a bit of mystery and leave it to your imaginations for how three kids are conceived.

Here's the new competition – which three kids are conceived at the end of this chapter? It really shouldn't be that hard to guess.

As for last chapter's competition – no one answered, so no one won!

The quote was:

'Well, they probably looked the same to you because your soul recognized their souls. I mean, we all tend to travel in the same circle of family, friends, even enemies throughout our various lives. And that's why our souls recognize each other. So we can keep finding each other. That's what soul mates mean.'

Leo Wyatt said this in the episode 'Pardon My Past' of Season 2 of Charmed.

So no cookies there!

Oh, and is anyone else really cross about the song restrictions? And do they mean song-fics or are they including ones where a character's singing?

Next update might not be for a while – I have AS-Levels at the end of May and beginning of June. I might attempt to finish this for the coming out of the next book, I'm not sure. I'd estimate a maximum of five chapters left. If anyone wants to see anything really big – tell me.

Lol, Tanydwr