Altercations

By Neurotica

Twenty-Five

Since Ron was still stuck in the hospital wing when his friends were in classes, they visited him as often as they could—during free periods, lunch, and breaks. Much to Ron's horror, Hermione brought all the homework he'd missed since the term started again, but to her credit, she promised to help him with it. The kiss she'd given him when he woke hadn't been mentioned, but Ron didn't think anything needed to be said. The night he'd been kidnapped, the two of them had had a long conversation in which they'd both finally admitted, very awkwardly, that they fancied each other, and that neither of them would be against becoming an "official couple." They hadn't had the chance to do anything about it yet, since Ron woke just a few days before, but he was very pleased that she still wanted to be around him.

Ron was still in shock about all that had happened to him. He'd lived through being held hostage by the most feared Dark Lord in a century, and it was all because of his best friend. Harry had told him every detail of the rescue, from the map made by Naomi and Emmeline, to the penknife from Sirius that opened the door to the room Ron was being held in. Harry had received Order of Merlin, First Class for it, but Ron thought he deserved much more—there weren't any words to express how thankful Ron was to Harry, and he'd told his best friend as much. But Harry waved him off, saying that he, Ron, would have done the same if it had been the other way around.

At first, Ron didn't agree with this completely—he'd never have the nerve to sneak into a castle full of Death Eaters and You-Know-Who, but the more he thought on it, he knew he'd do whatever it took to save Harry if he was in danger. Ron never thought he'd have a friend like Harry, a friend who would risk his life without thinking twice about it. He was glad he did, though, and he hoped one day he could do something for Harry to make it up.

Sirius Black considered himself to be a fairly rational man; there were many, however, including his best friend, who at times would highly disagree with that line of thinking. He knew there were times when he overreacted to certain things, but that was something that just couldn't be helped. Usually the things he "overreacted" to were things that would put anybody into a decidedly foul mood—like finding out your former girlfriend's murder was caused by your idiot younger brother's supreme lack of judgment. This news normally would have sent Sirius into a month-long drinking binge, but though he was loath to admit it to himself, he was an adult, and that just wasn't how adults were supposed to deal with bad news.

So Sirius did what he thought the "adult thing" would be and went into the Ministry of Magic very early the next morning to the DMLE training room. There he let out his frustrations and sadness and all the other feelings he'd bottled up for two decades on a dummy used for target practice for the new recruits. He charmed the dummy to send spells at him at a very rapid pace while he fought them off in defense. He was so caught up in imagining the dummy to be a mixture of Lord Voldemort, Lucius Malfoy, and Regulus that he didn't notice the training room door open or close, nor did he see the person sit on a bench somewhere behind him, watching his every move.

By the time he finished with his workout, some two hours later—he still had one more hour before his Aurors would start filing in for work—he was soaked from head to toe in sweat and he felt much better than he had in a good while. He conjured a towel to wipe his face and turned around to head to the shower. He stopped dead in his tracks upon finding Naomi sitting innocently on a bench. "What are you doing here?" he asked, apologizing immediately for sounding so rude.

But Naomi only smiled and stood to meet him. "I heard you leave this morning, and I decided to follow you. Don't worry," she added as he started to tell her off for leaving Headquarters unescorted. "Remus came with me. He was awake and he wanted to come in early, anyway."

"Oh," he said, the rage that had instantly risen beginning to ebb away. "So what was so important that you had to come here?"

"I wanted to tell you something this morning before you left, but you'd already gone before I got the chance."

Sirius raised an eyebrow. "Is it something bad? Because if it's bad, I'm not sure how I'll take it right now..."

She shook her head. "It's not bad... Well, I don't think so at any rate... Why don't you go take your shower and we can go to your office—I brought breakfast."

Slightly bemused, Sirius nodded and did as he was told. He showered quickly and dressed himself in his Ministry robes before meeting Naomi back outside the door. As they walked down the hall to Auror Headquarters, Sirius tried to figure out what it was Naomi felt she needed to tell him. What was so important that she had to leave the protection of Number Twelve?

Inside his office, Sirius found Naomi had conjured a small table in the middle of the room with two plates full of all his favorite breakfast foods; though they'd probably been sitting there for two hours, everything still looked hot and fresh. "You didn't have to do this," Sirius said, sitting across from her. "I would've just gotten something from the cafeteria."

She shrugged. "I wanted to. Like I said, I've got something to tell you, and you've always taken big news better on a full stomach."

He chuckled and began to eat. Halfway through his second helping of eggs, which, along with the other foods on his plate, continued to refill themselves automatically, he noticed Naomi had barely touched anything on her plate. "What's wrong?" he asked quietly.

She took a deep breath and reached across the table to take his hand into hers. He sat his fork on the plate and took her other one. "I should have told you this a long time ago, but everything has been so crazy since I came to Number Twelve, and I just haven't had the chance." Sirius looked at her with worried eyes. "Since Remus and I broke up, I've been careful not to let myself get close with anybody. For years I haven't had friends I could really count on, and it's been almost been that long since I've been with a man that I truly cared about.

"You and I have known each other since we were five years old, and I always thought you to be one of my best friends. Since September, though, you've become much, much more than that. And..." she trailed off, looking hesitant.

Sirius squeezed her hands gently. "What?" he prompted softly.

"I love you, Sirius," she said, looking deeply into his eyes.

Sirius felt his heart swell to the point of bursting, and he wasn't even positive he'd heard her correctly. "You... you love me?" he asked quietly, wanting to make sure.

She nodded slightly, smiling. "Yes," she said. "I've known for months, but I was afraid to tell you; I didn't know if you felt the same—" she broke off as he stood suddenly and came to her side of the table. He pulled her from her chair and began kissing her with more passion than he thought possible.

He pulled away slightly, just enough to look back into her eyes. "I love you too," he whispered with a quiet laugh. "I've been trying to tell you for a month, but every time I try, we get interrupted." And they kissed again. This time, Naomi felt her knees going weak—without breaking away, Sirius led her over to his office sofa and sat beside her. When they finally needed air, they broke apart, panting as they caught their breath.

"Is this what you wanted to tell me?" he whispered into her hair, her head buried in his neck.

She suddenly remembered the second reason, the most important reason, that she'd come to the Ministry. "No," she said quietly, leaning back in his arms to look at him. "No, there's... something else..."

"Well, it can't be any better than this, can it?" he asked, smiling.

"I hope it is," she muttered under her breath. He raised an eyebrow. "Well, I—" She quickly tried to think of the best way to tell him, but finally realized any way she said it, his reaction would be the same. "You see, I haven't been feeling well for around a week," she began, "and I thought maybe it was because of, you know, what happened before Christmas. So while we were at Hogwarts the other night, I asked Madam Pomfrey to look me over, and to make sure I was all right."

"And are you?" he asked, highly concerned.

She nodded. "It was something I wasn't really expecting, and I had the sudden urge to lie down before I fainted after she told me what it was, but after a bit, I was all right."

"What did she tell you?" he asked when she continued to look hesitant and nervous.

She sighed and took his left hand, placing it on her belly. "She told me that I'm pregnant."

Sirius blinked at her, the words not registering in his mind right away. He couldn't have heard what he thought he had, right? They'd been careful; they'd used contraceptive charms and all that. But then he remembered one night not too long ago when neither of them had been very mindful of anything but each other... "Pregnant...?" he said weakly. She nodded, biting her lip a little. "You're pregnant?" Again, she nodded. "Pregnant, as in, you're going to have a baby? My baby?"

She laughed. He couldn't understand why. "Sirius, it's not that difficult a concept. Yes, I'm pregnant; I'm going to have a baby in about nine months."

"And I'm... going to be a father?"

"Who else?" she asked softly. He looked as though he was searching a possible alternative answer. "Yes, Sirius, you're going to be a father," she added with a slight laugh at the look on his face.

Before she realized what was happening, he pulled her close to him, hugging her tightly, his face buried in her hair again. She thought she felt his shoulders shaking a little, and she knew she heard him sniff lightly. "Sirius?" she said tentatively.

He lifted his head, showing her the widest smile she'd ever seen on him and tears of what she hoped was happiness on the verge of falling from his eyes. "We're going to have a baby?" he whispered.

"Yes," she said, a smile of her own on her face as he lifted her shirt a little to feel her belly.

"How far along are you?"

"Four weeks."

He laughed slightly, tears now streaming down his face. "I can't believe this," he whispered. "This is really happening, right?"

She laughed with him. "Yeah, it's really happening. I had to convince myself a few times, but it's really happening."

"I... I'm speechless," he said. She reached up to wipe the tears from his cheeks and kissed him softly. "I love you, Naomi."

"I love you too," she whispered.

They sat together, holding one another, Sirius' hand not leaving its resting place on her belly, for an hour until the other Aurors started entering Headquarters. Though neither of them wanted to be separated yet, Naomi quietly announced that she should return to Number Twelve. Sirius reluctantly agreed, afraid that if she left, he'd find out that none of this had actually happened, and he'd be in the same state as he was upon his arrival to the Ministry that morning. After a long kiss that left them both red in the face and breathing quite heavily, Naomi made her way to the Auror Headquarters' fireplace. Sirius watched her leave, still smiling so widely he knew his face muscles would hurt later. That day, not even Rufus Scrimgeour's scowling face could break his spirits.

Remus was in the middle of reading a report given to him by Minister Bones about Fenrir Greyback's werewolf pack. The Ministry had received numerous threats concerning a mass werewolf attack on the next full moon, and Remus was going to do everything he could to prevent it. He'd probably have to enlist the help of the DMLE, particularly the Auror squads, to patrol the areas known to be targets. Sirius would have no problem agreeing to help, especially since Remus would promise not to go after Greyback alone—not that he'd be able to if the attacks were to take place on the full moon, but—

The door of his office slammed open, startling both Remus and his grindylow. The wizard looked up to find his best friend once again standing in his doorframe looking out of breath. But unlike the last time this had happened, when Sirius had come to tell Remus that Ron was missing, the Head Auror looked about to burst from happiness or the loss of his last thread of sanity—Remus wasn't quite sure which just yet.

"Hello, Sirius," he said cautiously as Sirius closed the office door and practically bounced over to sit in a chair in front of Remus. "Okay, who hit you with a cheering charm, and do I need to take you to St. Mungo's?"

Sirius rolled his eyes, still smiling. "I've got brilliant news, Moony," he said excitedly.

"You captured Lucius Malfoy?"

"Better!" the other wizard exclaimed. Now Remus was very confused. He didn't think anything would be better to Sirius than catching the Death Eater he'd been hunting for ten years. "You're going to be a godfather."

Remus could do nothing but stare blankly at his best friend's beaming face for several minutes. "Sorry?" he finally said.

"Naomi came to the Ministry today to tell me she's pregnant! Remus, I'm going to be a father."

"Oh," was the only thing that fell out of the stunned werewolf's mouth.

Sirius face fell. "Oh? That's all you can say?"

Remus shook himself. "I'm sorry, Sirius," he said sincerely. "I just... wasn't expecting that at all. Congratulations," he added, now smiling.

"So you're happy for me, right?" Sirius checked, watching his best friend closely.

Remus chuckled. "Of course I'm happy for you, you prat. Why wouldn't I be? Padfoot, this is great!"

Sirius looked very relieved. "It is, isn't it? I wasn't expecting it, either. I mean, we've barely discussed marriage, let alone having children... I thought you and Emmeline would be the first to have kids."

Remus stood and walked around his desk, pulling Sirius up for a hug. They released each other, and Remus leaned on his desk. "I'm ecstatic for you, Sirius, honestly, I am. When is she due?"

"Well, she's about four weeks along, so probably sometime in September," Sirius said, smiling widely again.

Remus nodded. "What are you going to do? Will you get married?"

"Naturally," Sirius said. "And don't think it's because of this baby that I want to marry her. I've been thinking about proposing for a while now..."

"Does Naomi know this?"

"Not yet," Sirius admitted. "With everything that's been happening, I haven't even had the chance to get her a ring, but I was thinking about doing it after work. I wanted to see if you'd come with me, help me pick out something nice for her."

"I'd love to." Remus smiled. "And of course, being your child's godfather and the best man for your wedding, it's my duty."

Sirius grinned. "Who says you're best man? I was going to ask Harry." Remus raised an eyebrow. "Only kidding, Moony, of course you're best man, who else? But we're getting ahead of ourselves—I haven't even asked her to marry me yet."

Remus smiled and shook his head. "You act like she's going to say no."

"There's always a chance," Sirius said, suddenly looking nervous. "Are you trying to tell me you weren't nervous when you proposed to Emmeline?"

"Maybe a little," Remus admitted. "But Naomi loves you, and she's having your child—I highly doubt she'll say no."

"But what if this isn't what she wants?" Sirius asked. "What if... what if she didn't want kids after everything she's gone through?"

"If she didn't want this, she never would have told you, and she definitely wouldn't have been as happy as I'm sure she is, if I know her at all."

"I guess," Sirius said doubtfully. "I really want this, Remus, more than I've wanted anything in my whole life. I've never felt this way... ever."

"Not even with Julia?" Remus said quietly.

Sirius shook his head. "Not even with Julia. It's weird. I can't explain it... and it sort of scares me."

"I'm the same way with Emmeline," Remus said with a smile. "It's the best feeling in the world, isn't it?" Sirius nodded. "It's a hundred times what I felt with Naomi... I never knew it was possible to love one person so much."

Sirius chuckled. "I know what you mean," he said. "And this baby hasn't even been born yet and I love it."

"So what do you want, a boy or a girl?"

"Either." Sirius smiled. "As long as it's healthy, I don't care."

"When are you going to tell Harry?"

Sirius' smile faltered. "I almost forgot about Harry," he whispered. "What's he going to say?"

Remus furrowed his brow. "I'm sure he'll be fine, Sirius, there's no reason to worry about him..."

Sirius stared at the floor for a few minutes, thinking. "Right," he muttered, getting to his feet. "Well, I should get back to work. I'll come back round six so we can go ring shopping."

Remus smiled. "I'll see you then, Sirius. Congratulations again. I mean that with everything I have."

"Thank you, Remus," Sirius said quietly with his own smile before leaving Remus' office.

The two wizards didn't return to Number Twelve that night until nearly half past nine. Remus had told Emmeline earlier that he and Sirius would be late because they had something to take care of. Sirius had asked him not to tell her what they were really doing; he wanted it to be a surprise. Only seconds after entering the house, Sirius led Naomi upstairs with a nervous smile Remus had never seen before. When Emmeline asked him what was going on, he smiled secretly and led her down to the kitchen to find some dinner.

"Have you heard the big news?" Emmeline asked, making Remus a bowl of chicken soup and sitting beside him.

"I have," Remus replied. "Sirius literally bounced into my office this morning to tell me."

"What do you think?"

Remus looked at her, thinking. "I'm happy for them," he said after a few moments.

"Really?"

"Yes. I've never seen either of them this happy before and they've been good for each other. Admittedly, it is a little odd to see them together and about to have a baby, but really, I'm thrilled for them."

"You don't seem so thrilled," Emmeline observed, watching him closely.

Remus sighed. "I am, I just... It's something Sirius said earlier." Emmeline watched him patiently. "He basically said he thought you and I would have been the first to make this announcement, and I suppose I was really hoping it would have been us, and not them. It seems selfish, I know..."

"Not at all," Emmeline said softly. "I was thinking along the same lines when I found out, actually." She took one of his hands into hers, softly rubbing his knuckles and leaning closer to whisper in his ear. "If you want, we can get started on that..."

Remus' eyes widened a little as she continued to tell him what they could do. But he didn't have a chance to reply; a squeal from two levels above them cut him off.

"What was that?" Emmeline asked, startled. She started to stand, taking out her wand, but Remus pulled her back into her chair, chuckling.

"That," he said, "was Naomi's response to Sirius' marriage proposal."

Emmeline's eyes widened and a smile started to grow on her face. "You're kidding?"

Remus shook his head. "Nope. Sirius and I went to a jeweler in London after work and he bought her a ring."

She laughed in amazement. "God, that man is going to have emotional overload soon. First a baby, now a wedding..."

"I have a feeling he'll handle it just fine," Remus said softly.