Note: I really appreciate everyone that has been reading my story. We are nearing the close. However, I just wanted those of you who have expressed an interest in the companion piece for this story (the other portion of the challenge – S. Snape's marriage) to know that I'm not sure what is going to happen with that piece. I will have to sort out if the story can be salvaged or not, since my incorrect assumption regarding Snape's parentage affects a surprising amount of the storyline. Although I am not worrying about making the Lupin story fit HBP, since I began posting it before the book came out, I will not post an AU story for Snape. One more caveat, since Snape is a dark, angry, and bitter sort of man his story is, as well. There is quite a lot of violence and unpleasantness in his relationship with his wife and no apologies are made for either her silliness or his unkindness. In other words, there will be absolutely no fluff between Snape and his wife. The revelations in HBP won't be changing this for the better either, I'm afraid. It is frustrating, since I have already written the story and it is much longer than this one, but I may not post it after all. We shall see.

FairlightMuse, Emmy, and Julian: Thank you all for such wonderful reviews. You lot really made my day! Also, FairlightMuse, I agree that my summary is rubbish, but sadly I cannot seem to come up with anything better that is short enough to fit.

Chapter 26

Remus pressed the metal tip of his stick into the ground as he trudged forward and thought with irritation that the cane was doing him little good, since the turf was more like a sponge due to the rains. As he hobbled along after the giant mastiff, who despite the cold was greatly enjoying a rare walk with his master through the Cornish countryside, Remus allowed his mind to wander even further away to where he would be going in a few weeks' time. He had allowed himself to be talked over. He knew that there was no one who could search out the information they needed, except him. There weren't any other werewolves, tame or otherwise, in the Order and this was a condition that no disguise could provide for a spy. The others would know and would be only too happy to rectify the situation with a friendly bite.

As Remus stepped over a very dead rabbit that Blackie had unaccountably missed, he felt a wave of fierce anger that he had no options. His life had been filled with a succession of situations in which he had no choice, but he was used to it by now for himself. It was for Edwina that he cared and he was finding it increasingly distracting to be constantly pushing back his strong protective urges. The beast inside wanted to guard the prized possession: she was his alone and he had to keep her happy and safe at any cost. It even angered him that the wizard, who refused to allow his mind to class his wife as a mere possession, and the animal, which could not see her as anything else, were pitted in battle. He should be used to this sort of struggle after almost 30 years as a werewolf. But he was a wizard above all else, so the wolf would lose.

Remus wandered across the wide expanse of what would be the vegetable garden in spring. Without realising that he was speaking aloud, he muttered to himself in the language that his beast knew best as he looked up at the house. He should give Edwina at least another hour with her friends before he returned. Despite the fact that both girls were trying very hard to renew their friendship with Edwina and therefore had accepted Edwina's insistence that they must at least try to be civil to him, Remus didn't feel any desire to have to deal with either Sophie Westerhall or Elspeth MacDougall. The pain from the change this month had filled him with a streak of pure cussedness, which could easily lead to him say something he didn't really mean. Therefore he had told Edwina that it would be better if he let her have the house to herself.

The words of his thoughts switched into English as he remembered their disagreement that morning. They had argued briefly because he had refused to give her friends either the necessary apparation points or the floo directions to the house. Edwina had been unwilling to accept that her own friends could possibly be any security risk to either of them. Remus smiled to himself slightly, despite his irritation that she honestly didn't understand the danger of their situation, because it had done him good to see her so alive. She had stomped her foot and even waved her wand at him with a threat to serve him fully cooked meat for several days and eventually, when it had been clear that she had lost the battle, had told him that he was a paranoid madman before acquiescing. Her parting shot as she had walked out to the glasshouse had been a threat to serve a vegetarian soup for dinner, which had surprisingly had the effect of causing Remus to laugh. She seemed to find his disgust for more human food closer to the full moon somewhat amusing just like Sirius and James had done years before. Remus smiled as he remembered the bacon and ham breakfast that Sirius had made for him the first full moon they spent together after Sirius' return. It had touched him deeply that Sirius had actually remembered.

Remus could feel the weight of the small package in the right front pocket of his robes. Thinking of Sirius had brought his mind back to the little object that had so wounded his pride, which was not a good plan. He had already spent the first 4 miles of this walk working through his unreasonable feelings of betrayal over the stupid necklace. He shouldn't have been surprised. Where else would Edwina have turned for help in selling her jewellery? She would have thought it very likely that Sirius could tell her where to go. Sirius did not look precisely respectable and Edwina had been somewhat enamoured of him beforehand. Remus couldn't believe that it had never occurred to him that Sirius had the necklace. Of course Edwina would not have known that Sirius had simply tossed the pink dragon-skin case into a drawer and given her his own money. But how had she thought Sirius was going to manage the sale when he was restricted to his house?

The moment after Remus saw the slender necklace case in Sirius' hand was the first time that he had ever raised his hand against Sirius Black. Even stranger was that Sirius, who clearly had expected exactly that reaction, had allowed it. When he had left Grimmauld Place two hours ago, Remus had been lost in a swirl of anger, confusion, guilt, and even relief. He had detested that his wonderful girl had been forced to give up all of her beautiful things to live with him in his old, run down cottage. He would never have been able to buy her anything like the Hreidmarian-made necklace with the diamond encrusted larrow bird designed to lay across her delicate neck so perfectly. Now he would be able to give it back to her at the comparatively cheap price of his pride.

Remus saw the side door to the cottage open and Edwina walk outside and start down the pathway towards the glasshouse. Blackie stopped his impassioned sniffing of a dirt mount, which Remus suspected was a vormweazle burrow which meant he would have to come back later that week with some Wigby's Garden Spray for Earth-dwelling Pests, and ran with giant bounding steps towards his mistress. Remus followed the dog across the garden, keeping his eyes fixed purposefully on his wife. He ought to give the thing to her now, since the longer he ruminated about it the angrier he would get. Remus knew that he was being ridiculous and unfair towards both Sirius and Edwina about the necklace. No matter how much he hated that she had to make sacrifices for him, it had been her sacrifice to make.

As he grew close enough to speak, Remus could see that Edwina had been crying. He rushed forward, ignoring the shooting pains in his left leg, and put his arms around her gently. "What is wrong, my love? Didn't you have a good afternoon with your friends?"

"Yes and no. I think I'm just tired, really. I don't know why but when they were here I felt rather cross with Elspeth, who hasn't done anything wrong at all. Then I ticked Sophie off about the need for safety when she complained about the additional precautions and security wards they went through to get here, when you know that I had just argued with you about exactly what she said!"

Remus frowned and gestured that they should move inside the glasshouse where it was warmer. "I am sorry that I cannot make it easier for your friends to visit, Winnie, however we cannot risk anyone else knowing how to get here. That was why I asked you before and again recently not to even tell your family how to find the house. I have too many enemies." Remus looked intently down at his wife to gauge her reaction.

Edwina, whose facial expression demonstrated that she was still feeling very irritable, shrugged her shoulders and walked away from Remus to check on the roots of the large adelphernium trelixas plant that was still devouring a small mouse that Edwina had fed it earlier that morning. "I understand that, Remus. We've discussed this and I admit that you are right. Don't push me about it, please." Remus watched her stun the plant's pincer leaves and then turn the plant upside down and vigorously shake it loose from the pot. "I am glad they came, but it isn't the same anymore. I suppose school friendships never are after one leaves school." Edwina smacked the large green clay pot down on the stone table and pointed her wand at the now exposed roots of the plant that she was holding aloft. "Sophie is so excited about marrying that gormless muggle, with whom she's been in love since she was 5. I'm sure he is a very nice man, well I know he is since I've met him a dozen times, but he is dead dull, Remus. She's tried to explain to us what he does, something to do with cars, muggle stuff, I suppose."

Remus nodded and said carefully, "Sophie is muggle-born, Winnie, so it probably makes sense to her. It is uncommon for a witch to marry a muggle man, but it certainly has happened. There is no reason she couldn't be happy."

"Oh, I know that and I'm glad for her. Thom thinks that Sophie is the greatest thing since sugar quills or he would if he knew what they were. I just felt so distant from them both today and it hurt, so I felt rather grumpy, I suppose."

Remus thought that he knew what he meant, but didn't say anything in response. He was waiting to see if she wanted to discuss her friends more or if he could safely change the subject. When Edwina moved to repot the adelphernium trelixas in its green pot, Remus sat down on a chair in front of the potting table. "Winnie, I have something to give you."

Edwina looked up at him in surprise and said expectantly, "Yes?"

"I went to visit Sirius before I took Blackie out. He gave me this."

Remus pulled his hand out from his pocket and placed it on the table with his fingers still clutching the pale pink case. Edwina stared for a moment and then said slowly, "Did I give it to Sirius to sell?"

Remus nodded, but said nothing.

"So he only pretended to sell it, didn't he?" Edwina did not need to look at his face for confirmation. "You're furious with him, aren't you?"

Remus laughed shortly and said in a deep, gruff voice, "Quite, but I shouldn't be. It was your right to sell it."

Edwina sighed and walked over to the piscine-basin to wash her hands. "You might as well give it back to him, Remus."

Remus stared at her back and said, "He doesn't need a diamond necklace, Winnie. It is yours."

"If this necklace is going to cause trouble between you and me or between you and he then it really isn't worth it. We can't afford to give him back his money, so give him back the necklace."

Choking on frustration with her for making this even harder and disgust with himself because he knew she was right, Remus snapped, "Sirius and I have already sorted ourselves. If you don't want it then I will take it back, but I won't return it on my account. That is ridiculous."

Edwina was now facing him with her hands leaning against the edge of the potting table. She spoke very gently, but he could see that she was angry with him, "It is just a necklace, Remus. I did love it especially well, since my father bought it for me. However I want you far more, don't you know that?"

Remus knew how ludicrous his feelings were and made one last final push to convince both himself and her, "I want you to have it, Winnie. I don't want you to lose anything because of me. Don't indulge my foolishness, darling, please." Remus stood up from the chair and took two steps forward to where she was standing. He had left the necklace case on the table and was now holding her restless hands in his own. "Do you understand, Winnie?"

Edwina nodded, but she said very clearly, "You do not have to crush your pride to make me happy, Remus. That isn't good or right or fair to me because I would never want that."

Remus smiled stiffly and said in a shaken voice, "I know. You are right, but what would make me happy would be to see you wearing it. That is honestly what I want."

Remus released her hands and searched her face. He saw her hesitant smile and turned around to pick up the necklace case. Once he had opened it and pulled out the exquisite, thin platinum chain, he leaned forward and tried to hook the necklace behind her neck as she held her hair aside. It took him several tries to successfully manage the clasp by which time a lopsided, self-depreciating grin had begun to form across his face.

Edwina saw the genuine smile on his face that reached even to his eyes and dropped her hair down over the clasp as he pulled back his hands. She touched one hand to where the larrow bird was resting on her collarbone and then stood up on her toes to kiss his cheek. "Thank you."