A/N: sorry it took so long to post…still kind of internet deprived L and also sorry if this chapter seems a bit…choppy…I wrote it over a course of several days b/c I was too busy to write it in one sitting. (which I prefer…I write much better that way!) but I hope u like it anyway; Ive got more interesting plans for ch. 24…(er, I think so anyway…) warning though-this one's a bit raunchy…then again, I've written worse… ;) (hehe wait till 24!)

Chapter 23: Meet the Parents

Remus eyed his mother nervously. Finally, unable to stand the intense silence any longer, Remus helped Kierra pull her trunk upright. "Well mum…this is Kierra…" he said, pushing Kierra slightly forward towards his mother. Kierra glanced back at Remus quickly, but then turned her attention to Mrs. Lupin.

"Pleasure to meet you dear." Mrs. Lupin said with a small smile, as she extended her hand to Kierra.

"Oh, pleasure's all mine"—Kierra had extended her hand out as well, but as she glanced down at it, she saw it was covered with soot. She quickly withdrew her hands and wiped them on her pants, as she smiled nervously at Mrs. Lupin, who in response, glanced questioningly at Remus.

"Well, I left the stove on, so I need to head back to the kitchen…lunch will be ready in a minute…" Mrs. Lupin said as she turned to leave, stopping in front of the broken vase. She sighed, but pulled out her wand and waved it. "Reparo…" and instantly the antique vase became whole again. Mrs. Lupin picked the vase up and replaced it on the side table before heading back to the kitchen.

"Well…that didn't go too bad…" Sirius said when Mrs. Lupin disappeared.

Kierra only looked at Remus nervously, who smiled warmly and put an arm around her.

"Don't worry about it," he replied, "come on, let me show you all to your rooms, then we'll have lunch." Remus said, helping Kierra with her trunk.

"Ah, Mrs. Lupin…you've outdone yourself, as always…" Sirius remarked as he and his friends helped themselves to lunch.

Mrs. Lupin smiled. "Oh, it was nothing, really…so, how did your Christmas go? Remus told me that you and Dominique stayed at Hogwarts…"

"Oh yea…it was great," Sirius replied.

"A bit quiet…I mean with hardly anyone there in the castle…but we had a good time." Dominique chimed in.

"And you, dear?" Mrs. Lupin asked, turning to Kierra, "Did you do anything special over the holidays?"

"Nothing in particular," Kierra replied, "just my brother and his wife came home from Scotland to be with us, so that was nice…oh and of course, coming here to see you all…" Kierra added with a grin towards Remus.

Mrs. Lupin nodded slightly, apparently not seeming too interested. After a few moment's silence she began again. "Kierra, I was wondering what your parents do…your surname is Nakofsky, isn't it? It sounds so familiar…"

"Oh…well…my mum is a healer at St. Mungo's…" Kierra replied, "and my dad…he's a reporter for the Daily Prophet"—

"Wait…Nakofsky…Jack Nakofsky?? He writes the Quidditch Column…"

"Er…yes"—

"Woah, you never told us your dad wrote for the Prophet!" Sirius exclaimed.

Kierra rolled her eyes. "You never asked…"

"He doesn't seem to think very highly of Puddlemere United…." Mrs. Lupin said.

Remus smiled at Kierra. "My parents are huge fans of Puddlemere…"

Kierra blushed slightly. "Oh…yea, sorry…my dad hates them…so he tends to write with that little bias…"

"And pray tell, what team does he go for?" asked Mrs. Lupin.

"Er…Chudley Cannons…"

Mrs. Lupin raised an eyebrow. "They haven't won in nearly a century…"

"76 years to be exact…" Sirius said.

"Well, my dad thinks that they're good…it's just that they've been underhanded too many times…and they have the worst luck…"

"76 times in a row?" Mrs. Lupin asked.

Kierra shrugged. "I'm probably the worst person to talk to…I don't care much for Quidditch…I just go for the Tornadoes,"

"Because Samuel Willoughby's chaser?" Sirius asked. Kierra nodded, exchanging smirks with Dominique. "You, and every other girl in Britain…" Sirius said with a sigh. "honestly, he's not that good looking…"

"Yes, he is!" Kierra replied, but stopped shortly when she saw Mrs. Lupin glancing at her wearily. "Well…I suppose it doesn't matter much…like I said before, I don't care much for Quidditch…"

It was nearly seven o'clock in the evening, when Mrs. Lupin came into the living room, adorned in dark blue dress robes.

"I don't understand why they don't let your father off…it's New Years Eve, after all!" She said as she examined herself in the mirror. "We're going to be late for the party at this rate…" she said as she glanced down at Kierra and Remus, who were sitting on the carpet, playing chess.

"Where does your dad work?" Kierra asked, wincing as one of Remus's knights smashed one of her pawns.

"He works for Obscurus Books," Remus explained to Kierra, "that one publishing company…"

"Oh, David! Good, you're finally home!! Hurry up and change"—came Mrs. Lupin's voice from the front door.

"Ah, checkmate!" Remus said, grinning at Kierra as he took her queen. "Come on," he said, pulling her up, "I'll introduce you to my dad"—

Just then Mr. and Mrs. Lupin entered the living room.

"Dad"—

"Ah, this must be Kierra?" Mr. Lupin interrupted, looking at his son amusedly as he extended his hand towards Kierra.

"Pleased to meet you…" Kierra said as she smiled nervously and shook his hand.

"Ah, pleasure's all mine, dear…Remus has told us all about you…he hasn't been able to stop talking about you since he got here"—

"dad!"

"and I must say," Mr. Lupin continued, "he was right in saying you were pleasing to the eye!"

"Oh…" Kierra could feel herself blushing.

"daaaaad…." Remus whined...

Mr. Lupin smiled at having embarrassed the two. "Well, I should go change," he said as he turned to go upstairs. As he marched up the steps, he ran right into Sirius and Dominique. "Dominique! Sirius!" he exclaimed happily, "good to see you two"—

"My dear, the time!" Mrs. Lupin called after her husband, "we're running late!"

"Not my fault!" he replied as he stepped past Dominique and Sirius. "Bloody publishers wouldn't let me leave until I finished editing. They're determined to get that book released tomorrow morning…"

"What book, dad?" Remus asked.

"Oh…'Quidditch Through the Ages'…you lot will love it…I've gone through it all, and it is by far the most concise book on Quidditch…it's by Kennilworthy Whisp"—

Sirius gasped. "Didn't he write 'Beating the Bludgers'??"

"Yes, it's the same guy…more reason why there's so much buzz about it coming out…"

"Wonder if my dad knows…perhaps I should owl him…" Kierra said.

"Oh, your father is Jack Nakofsky, isn't he?" Mr. Lupin said. "He's a good writer…can't say I agree with him all the time…but good writer all the same…" he said as he disappeared up the stairs.

"Well, that went a bit better…" Remus commented.

"Much better…" Kierra replied.

Fifteen minutes later, Mr. and Mrs. Lupin were hurrying down the stairs. "Well, we're off now…don't hesitate to apparate over if you need anything." Mr. Lupin said, as he adjusted his robes.

"Are you sure you kids will be ok?" Mrs. Lupin asked as she grabbed her purse and coat.

"Yes, mum we'll be fine," Remus replied, "don't worry about us!"

"I just thought you'd all be bored," Mrs. Lupin said as she went towards the door, "I can't imagine what you'd all do to keep busy until midnight…"

"Can you not?" Mr. Lupin asked, as Mrs. Lupin went outside, so she did not hear. "Alright, you kids have fun, be good…" he said, though sounding as if he didn't care what they did.

"Well…what do you all want to do?" Remus asked when his parents left. Sirius had just come downstairs, hauling a large black bag with him. "Er, what's that?"

"Dr. Filibuster's fireworks," Sirius replied with a sly grin, "I was thinking we could start the new year off with these…"

"excellent…" Kierra said excitedly, pulling out several fireworks from the bag.

"You've got a lot in there...well, if you guys really want to..." Remus said as he glanced over Kierra's shoulder.

"yea!!" Sirius and Kierra exclaimed together.

Remus grinned. "I think we've got ourselves a female James..."

"Château de Chenonceau...bien sûr..." Dominique murmured. The group turned around to see Dominique looking at photos that were displayed on the bookshelf. They all drew nearer to see a photo of Remus and Dominique in their five year old forms, standing in front of a large castle. They had their arms around each other, and Dominique was kissing Remus on the cheek, while the former had a look of revulsion on his face, as he tried pulling away from Dominique by tugging on one of her pigtails.

Remus grinned. "Remember that?" he asked, glancing at Dominique, "I came with your family to tour the châteaus..."

"…and I threw up when I saw the dungeon..." Dominique finished, with a look of reminiscence.

Remus laughed. "I love England and all...but I really miss France...we had so much fun living there..."

"So why did you guys move here?" Kierra asked, "not that I mind, of course...I'm glad you came here..." she added with a grin.

"Well, both my parents are originally from here...but then they moved to Paris because of my dad's work…we lived there for six years, but then moved back here because my dad got transferred back…conveniently soon after I was bitten..." Remus added as an afterthought. "The wizarding world is small in Paris…so when people talked, things spread around pretty fast…especially at school…"

"You went to muggle school?" Kierra asked.

"Yea…just for a year…I hated it…I wasn't liked very much, put it that way…"

Kierra frowned. "Aww…why?"

Remus shrugged. "Kids noticed that I'd disappear once a month…oh and also because I had such bad French…see, my parents always spoke English at home, so I never picked up much French…"

"Aw, your French isn't that bad!" Dominique said, turning to Kierra and Sirius. "He always wrote his letters in French and I wrote mine in English, so we could both practice…and I always understood his letters for the most part…" she said with a grin.

"Oooh…say something in French!" Kierra said excitedly, tugging on Remus's sleeve.

Remus looked at Kierra with both amusement and uncertainty. "er…"

"Come on Remy!" Sirius chimed in, "say something sexy!" causing Dominique to laugh.

"Etrange…" she muttered.

Sirius grinned and wrapped his arms around Dominique. "Now that sounded very sexy…what'd you say?"

Dominique grinned. "I called you a weirdo" she replied, as she turned to Remus and began to speak in rapid French, who in return, replied just as swiftly.

"Hey what are you guys saying??" Kierra demanded, looking from Dominique to Remus and back, "hellooooo…." And yet they ignored her, and continued to chat animatedly. Kierra sighed and turned to Sirius. "You following?"

Sirius shook his head. "Only French I know is 'bonjour' and 'ooh la la'…" he said with a grin as he turned to Dominique and Remus. "Oy Moony, I thought you said your French was bad!"

"He was just being modest!" Dominique said, finally going back to English.

Remus blushed slightly. "I didn't realize I could speak it fluently…"

"What were you guys saying??" Kierra asked.

"Were you making fun of us??" Sirius demanded, "I bet anything they were…"

Remus grinned as he headed towards the kitchen. "Of course we weren't…we were just talking about Kierra…"

"What about me??" Kierra asked, turning to Dominique, who giggled.

"Oh…it was nothing," she replied as she headed up the stairs, "Remus was just saying he thinks you're cute when you get all inquisitive…"

"Ohh…" Kierra said, blushing. "well then…I'm just gonna go help him with the dishes then…" she said as she followed Remus out to the kitcen.

"Do you make it a point to trash every place you stay in??" Dominique asked as she walked into Remus's room.

"Hey it's not all mine! Remus made the mess too…it's his room you know…" Sirius retorted as he plopped onto Remus's bed.

"Remus doesn't make messes…He's the tidiest person you'll ever meet! Well…with the exception of Lily Evans I suppose…" Dominique replied as she picked up a pair of Sirius's trousers from the floor and tossed it into the hamper. "You wanna help?" she asked curtly.

"Why should I, when I've got you to do all my work for me?" Sirius replied with a grin as he reclined against the pillows on the bed.

"I'm not your maid, you know!" Dominique said as she threw a dirty sock at Sirius's head.

"Hey!!!" Sirius exclaimed, as he peeled the sock off himself. He pulled out his wand and aimed it at Dominique, muttering a spell under his breath.

Sirius grinned at his handiwork. "Ah…now you are!"

Dominique was now clad in a small black maid's dress with a white apron tied around her waist.

"Sirius!!" Dominique exclaimed as she looked down at herself. "Ooh…I kind of like this…" she said as she looked at herself in the mirror.

"Me too!" Sirius chimed in. "Now…maid, pick up my clothes!" he ordered, pointing to a pile of clothing that lay on the floor.

Dominique raised an eyebrow at Sirius, but nonetheless, turned around and bent over to pick up his clothes. Just when she was about to stand up…

"Now, stay in that position!" he ordered, "…and back that arse up…that's it…right in my lap…"

Dominique giggled as Sirius pulled her into his lap and kissed her, but then gasped when he pushed her down onto the bed.

"Sirius! We can't!" she breathed.

"Because?" he asked, as he undid her apron.

"This is Remus's bed! That's just wrong!!"

"No it isn't"—

"Sirius! How would you feel if James did it on your bed"—

"ok, good point…er…" Sirius looked around the room desperately. "how about on the floor…"

Dominique hesitated for a moment. "Mmm…yea, ok…that'll work…"

Downstairs in the kitchen, Kierra wailed in pain as she accidentally dropped a knife on her foot.

"Kierra!! Oh gosh, are you ok??" Remus asked, quickly setting down a stack of clean plates on the table and rushing to Kierra's feet.

"yea…I'm fine…" she said, wincing as Remus poked at her foot.

"Did that hurt?" he asked.

"just a little…"

"It's not very deep…I can fix it for you…", Remus said, pulling out his wand, "derma reparo…" he said, instantly healing the cut. He pat Kierra's now flawless skin, glancing up at Kierra. "Better?" he asked.

"Yea…thanks…" she replied.

Remus pulled himself up from the ground, only a few inches stood between himself and Kierra.

"Is that all I get? A thanks?" Remus asked with a grin, as he pulled Kierra closer to him.

Kierra had her eyes locked in his. "What else do you want? Ohh…" she giggled as it hit her.

"You never cease to amuse me…" Remus said as he moved his hands from Kierra's waist to her face, cupping her cheeks gently as he pulled her in for a kiss.

"Ahem…"

Kierra and Remus wheeled around to see Dominique and Sirius standing at the kitchen entrance.

"Ohh…we didn't hear your guys come in!" Remus said as he pulled away from Kierra.

"Save your snogging for when it's midnight…" Sirius said as he set his bag of fireworks on the kitchen table. "You've only got few more minutes!"

Dominique rolled her eyes. "Oh you should talk, Black...."

Remus glanced at Sirius but then back to Dominique. "eww guys…were you snogging in my room?" he asked, looking slightly nauseated.

"Er…"

"Hey let's go set these fireworks off early!" Sirius said loudly, pulling Dominique by the arm towards the back door.
Kierra gasped. "They weren't just snogging.!!"

"What?!" Remus bellowed.

"You and your bloody sixth sense!!" Dominique scowled as she hurried outside with Sirius.

Kierra grinned inwardly, but turned her attention to Remus, who was bolting out the kitchen.

"Where are you going??" she called after him.

"Sterilizing my room!!" Remus shouted back.

Kierra smiled as she stepped outside and took a deep breath as she inhaled the cold night air.

"Where's Remus?" Dominique asked as she helped Sirius unpack his bag.

"Oh, he went upstairs to sterilize his room" Kierra replied with a grin.

Dominique in return only rolled her eyes. "I told you Sirius…"

"Hey you just said we couldn't do it in his bed"—

"AAH I DON'T WANT TO HEAR THIS!!" Kierra shouted, covering her ears.

Sirius grinned. "Why? You wanted to be the first person to get laid in Remus's bedroom?"

Kierra wondered if they could see her turn red in the darkness. "No"—she said at once. "I didn't say that…"

"Ah…30 seconds to go…let's get these babies going!" Sirius said as he began to set the fireworks off.

"Hey you guys started without me!" Remus said as he came outside, ducking quickly to miss a shot of red sparks Sirius had sent into the air.

"Oy, sorry mate!" Sirius said as he glanced down at his watch. "Oooh…3…2…1…" Sirius turned to Dominique and kissed her lightly. When he pulled away, Dominique grinned at him. "Let me show you how the French bring in the new year…" she said as she pulled Sirius against her.

"Ugh…" Kierra and Remus said together, turning away from the snogging couple, only to face each other.

"Happy new year" Kierra said.

"Happy"—

Kierra had cut Remus off with a kiss. When she pulled away from him, Kierra could see that he looked slightly dazed, even through the darkness.

"wow…" he murmured at last.

"I don't understand why I can't sleep in the guest room…" Sirius murmured as he sat up in Remus's bed the following morning, "I feel bad that you've got to sleep on the floor…"

Remus, who was rolling up his sleeping bag, did not look up from his work as he replied, "I honestly don't mind sleeping on the floor…and you can't sleep in the guest room because Dominique and Kierra sleep there…and don't even vocalize the suggestion you want to make…"

Sirius laughed. "Am I that predictable?"

"We've all known each other too long…"

"Well, I would have only meant it as a joke…" Sirius replied with a grin.

"I know…"

"Well…how about Kierra sleep in here instead? You guys could both have the bed…and then D and I"—

"no I don't think so…"

"Why not? I don't think Dominique will mind…"

"But Kiera might…"

"Why…ooh….you guys haven't"—

"No…" Remus said quickly, turning on his heel to leave the bedroom.

"Moony! It's no biggie…you guys haven't been going out that long…"

Remus glanced at Sirius as they walked down the hallway, stopping outside the guestroom. "I know!" he replied, "I never said it was a big deal…"

"Oh…then why did you blush? I'm just kidding!!" Sirius said quickly as Remus glared at him. "Er, what are we doing here?"

"I thought we should check on the girls…it's nearly lunch time…"

"Oh, right…" Sirius said, knocking on the guestroom door….no answer.

"Must still be asleep," Remus said, gently opening the door. He and Sirius quietly tiptoed in, but they both stopped shortly at the sight before them.

"Oh…wow…." Sirius murmured.

Kierra and Dominique, whom were sharing the queen sized bed, were tangled in each others' arms and legs—they were holding each other; Kierra had her head rested against Dominique's chest, who in turn rested her head against Kierra's.

"Must…take…picture…" Remus whispered as he backed out of the room and bolted down the hall. He returned seconds later with a camera in hand.

"Take one for me too…" Sirius said excitedly, his eyes still glued to the girls.

Remus had begun to snap away when suddenly Dominique stirred and opened her eyes. She closed them, but opened them again, and let out a small scream in seeing Remus and Sirius in their room.

"Whaaa…." Kierra murmured as she got up. "OH MY GOD!!!" she shouted as she too saw Sirius and Remus.

"Just what were you two doing in here…with that???" Dominique shouted, pointing to Remus's camera.

Before Remus could so much as open his mouth, Mr. and Mrs. Lupin came rushing into the room.

"What's going on?? What happened??" Mrs. Lupin asked urgently.

"What on earth are you doing with a camera??" Mr. Lupin snapped at his son, who in return, smiled meekly.

The only person who seemed to take in the situation lightly was Sirius, who let out a chuckle when Mr. Lupin scolded Remus. "We just came in here to wake them up," Sirius said, "and well…oh show them the pictures, Moony…"

"You took pictures of them while they were sleeping??" Mrs. Lupin asked, staring at Sirius and Remus wide-eyed.

"Mum…it's not"—

"it is TOO a big deal!! I don't care if these ladies are you girlfriends…you have to respect their privacy!! Taking pictures without them knowing"—

"Mum!!!" Remus shouted, opening his camera and pulling out the instantly developed photos and showing them to Mr. and Mrs. Lupin. "We just thought it was funny…"

Mrs. Lupin glanced at the photo. "Ohh…"

"What?? What's there??" Dominique demanded, pulling herself out of bed, followed by Kierra. She snatched the picture from Remus and looked at it with Kierra.

"Oh!!" Kierra and Dominique said together.

"Did you guys arrange us"—

Sirius laughed. "No! You guys were like that when we found you…now…if you'll excuse us," Sirius said, snatching the pictures from Dominique and Kierra, "Remus and I need to blow these up, and make a few hundred copies of these…you know, just in case he or I ever need the leverage…" he said with a wink as he and Remus bolted out the room.

"Don't you dare!!!" Kierra shouted, chasing after them, along with Dominique. "You guys!!!"

Mr. and Mrs. Lupin glanced after the four teenagers and then at each other. "Aren't you glad we only had one child?" Mr. Lupin said to his wife as they turned to head downstairs.