Boy-Snape

"Come on, Madam Pomfrey," wheedled Sirius, "what's one more class in the grand scheme of things?"

The nurse, nonplussed, pushed his school-robe at him. "No, Mr. Black," she said. "You've been well for more than a day now and must return to your classes now."

Sirius pouted a bit, but took his robe in the end and pulled it on. "Sorry, Joan. It's just you and Severus meeting your brother and sister," he called over to the girl, who was pacing the infirmary's length.

The girl's head snapped toward him. "What?" she said.

"Actually, just Ms. Moon will be meeting her family. I and Severus will sit in my office and play a game or two of chess while they have their reunion," Madam Pomfrey corrected as she offered Sirius his satchel, which Remus had brought him the night before after dinner.

Joan stopped walking and gaped. "Oh no, Madam Pomfrey," she decried, "I'd really prefer to have Severus with me when my family comes if Sirius has to go."

Madam Pomfrey lifted an eyebrow. "Surely such an emotional reunion would be better without a little boy underfoot?" Her gaze then went to said little boy, who was glaring at the porridge the nurse had given him for breakfast this morning. He'd been instructed to eat at least half after he refused to eat more than a quarter of his plate of toad-in-the-hole at dinner last night. So far, Sirius had seen Severus eat maybe a bite or three. He was sure Madam Pomfrey was going to give up on him eating far sooner than the kid would manage to put away half of that bowl. Sirius was starting to see why the kid was so small. He was finicky and ate like an owl! It was all peck, peck, peck. Sirius reasoned it was a good thing Madam Pomfrey was going to have Severus the right age by lunchtime since at sixteen he didn't seem to have such a problem with eating what he was served.

His attention was drawn back to Joan by her uneasy murmuring, "Erh…" She bit her lip. When she let it go a minute later, she replied, "I guess I just want someone with me in case things turn awkward and I need help to find something new to carry on whatever conversation we're having."

"I don't like the idea of putting that on a little child," Madam Pomfrey replied, though it was not so much in a disapproving tone she said it as a worried one. "Not to mention they will remember Severus. He made a name for himself nearly from his first day here at Hogwarts. Not to mention Severus may end up being more of a distraction to you all than a helpful aid for you, Ms. Moon…"

Sirius felt compelled to wave his hands in the air. "I could be helpful," he told them.

Both looked over at him. Joan's gaze was assessing, but hopeful, while Madam Pomfrey rolled her eyes with exasperation. He knew she wanted him back in classes before he fell too far behind. Sirius understood that. He'd had a bit of a freakout as Remus was leaving yesterday morning. He realized then he'd be missing a fourth day of classes sticking around in the infirmary to babysit and recover. It'd led to some very uncharacteristic demands for notes from every class— Even for a history of magic. But, again, what was one more class in the scheme of things? Joan had done so much for him and Severus. The least he could do was help her have a nice reunion with her family.

To sweeten his deal, Sirius suggested, "I can be there with Joan and you and Severus can play that game of chess in your office."

Joan started to smile and Madam Pomfrey sighed, defeated. "Very well," she said. "But you will go to your classes as soon as Joan doesn't have need of you anymore."

He smirked at the nurse, feeling just a little bit victorious. "Of course, Madam Pomfrey."

-O-

Twenty minutes after conniving his way into Joan's meeting with her family, the two of them waited side by side on an infirmary bed with bated breath as the doors to the healing hall opened up. A moment later, the headmaster stepped in. He was quickly followed by two faces Sirius recognized with very little trouble— Even if one had decided to grow himself a beard since he graduated three years ago. However, there were no others that followed them. It was Jack and Janice Moon and no one else.

Sirius looked out of the corner of his eye at Joan. Her lip was wobbling and her eyes glassy. He wasn't sure if it was from joy she was about to cry or disappointment. Or, he wasn't until she bolted to her feet with a cry of, "Janice! Jack!" before running to embrace them.

Teary-eyed themselves, the older Moons wrapped their arms around their newly found sister and just clung to her. For a couple of minutes, Sirius averted his gaze from the three and shared a look with Professor Albus, who nodded in greeting and goodbye before gracefully stepping around the hugging siblings and out the still open infirmary doors. Realizing then he was on his own, he started to fiddle with his new wand, only glancing around the three now and again to see if they were done holding each other. After what felt like ages, they finally let go.

After a bit of wet laughter on Joan's part, she asked in a half-scared whisper, "Mummy and Daddy…?"

Jack Moon shook his head, jaw squared with quiet rage.

Janice, however, had no problem voicing her own fury. "After we got our letters from Madam Pomfrey, we went to go celebrate the good news with them only to find out the headmaster wrote them yesterday and they never planned to say anything to us about it! And all because—"

"—I'm a werewolf," Joan finished in a hoarse, shattered whisper. "I knew it would be a problem."

Janice reached out to tuck Joan's hair behind her ear – the mangled one – but the girl flinched away before she could. Her sister pulled her hand back and wrapped her other around it as if she'd been physically slapped away. All the same, she said, "It's not for us. We've missed you and wished you back for ages and ages and now… This is a miracle." She turned her head up to look at her brother. "Right, Jack?"

"Yes. The biggest damn miracle of the modern age," he agreed with all the intensity Sirius remembered the Ravenclaw having when he was a student and more.

Joan's hands went to her face as a sob broke loose from her. This time when her sister reached for her, she did not flinch away and instead buried her face in Janice's shoulder. Briefly, Janice and Jack shared a look. It was one of worry and fear, but love and joy too. Sirius knew then Joan was going to be in good hands. Her brother and sister would take excellent care of her. And if he and Joan were lucky and everything went accordingly, Sirius would see her again around Hogwarts's halls as a student this time next year. It was a pleasant thought and he was almost swept away in a daydream of the future when Jack Moon came to stand in front of him. Sirius offered a small smile to the other and his hand. "Hello there, Jack. Been some time, hasn't it?"

Jack didn't take his hand, just stared at him with Joan's blue eyes. "Madam Pomfrey said you found her in some forest out in Northern England," he said.

"More like she found us, er, Severus and I, but, yeah it was in a forest," replied Sirius.

"Was she… The person who took her…?"

Sirius paused, considering the older wizard's garbled, upset question. "Look," Sirius began in a low mutter, "Yeah, she was with her kidnapper, Fenrir Greyback, but we got away and I killed one, maybe two, of his asshat followers. Joan even got her small revenge in knocking Greyback out cold. She helped us and I helped her. We're all free now."

Jack nodded, but appeared a little shaken up by the information Sirius had shared. His eyes then started to dart around. "Where is Snape?" The other wizard's brows furrowed. "I guess he's still as inept with people as he was at thirteen and didn't see a reason to keep Joan company until we came?"

Sirius shook his head. "No, that's not it. If Madam Pomfrey had let him, I'm sure he'd be here right now. She just didn't think letting a—" He stopped. Sirius really didn't want to get into the whole story, so he rolled his wet palms over his trousers and smiled. "He's really not in a good state for being a part of a delicate situation like this."

A miffed expression overcame Jack's face. "Oh," he replied. Then after a beat of uncomfortable fidgeting, he asked, "Since you're defending him… Have you two buried the, ah, hatchet?"

It was Sirius's turn to squirm. He wanted to say they had, that everything was daisies and roses now, but knew he couldn't. Bumps were on the way, maybe even an entire blockade. He couldn't say until Severus was fully himself again. Finally, he told Jack, "Not quite yet, but I imagine it will be six feet under before the week's over." To himself, he added, "For me, anyway."

Sirius was suddenly made to jump when Jack placed a hand on his shoulder. Meeting the older's wizard gaze, he found it was kind. "Good for you," he said. "The less hate in the world, the better."

"Thanks," replied Sirius, feeling actually kind of relieved to have Jack's approval. Anyone's approval, really. His mates hadn't quite seemed to know what to make of Sirius's proclamations of his and Severus's feud being over and them mates. Nor had they appeared to entirely believe him, even if they did put on a good show of pretending to. Sirius planned to prove he meant it, of course. There was a reason he'd been called a stubborn bastard more than once over the years.

After a moment, he looked away from Jack to Joan and Janice. The witches were holding hands with their heads bent close as they whispered to one another. About what, Sirius couldn't begin to imagine, but Joan looked to be doing well with her sister and Sirius was confident she'd be fine if he left for his next class. He looked at Jack. "Hey," he called, drawing the other's gaze to him. "You think you three will be alright? Joan was a bit afraid at the start, but she looks like she's gotten over her nerves." Sirius reached for his satchel and stood up. "I said I'd stick around in case Joan needed me, but I also told Madam Pomfrey I'd only miss my first class today…" he trailed off, hoping the older wizard wouldn't realize he was fibbing.

Jack nodded his understanding. "Go," he told Sirius. "We'll be fine. What's your next class? I think we'll take Joan back to my flat soon. I'd hate for her to leave without being able to say goodbye to you if that's something she needs."

"Potions," Sirius answered. "And thanks," he said.

A frown of confusion started at the corners of Jack's lips and Sirius found himself grinning.

"Thanks for coming, I mean. Joan really missed you all and was so worried none of you would want her after… After everything. But you came. So, thanks."

Jack's eyes were firm and burning like a hot, blue flame as he told Sirius, "She's our sister and we love her. Of course we came! Her sickness means nothing to either of us."

Sirius clapped the older wizard's shoulder as he passed by him on his way toward the infirmary's door. "You're a bloody brilliant brother, you know that? I wish there were more people like you." He laughed, but knew it didn't sound quite right as he added, "Hell, I wish I was as good as a brother as you."

The other wizard didn't say anything, nor did his sisters, but as Sirius left, he felt Jack's eyes burning on the back of his head even long after he'd left the infirmary.

Joan's been reunited with her siblings! What did you think?

Thank you for reading :)