It had been four days since Lupin, formerly known as Moony, once again rejected Sirius. This time he had made it perfectly clear he was not, and never would be, interested in having a relationship with him. While it was certainly better than being uncertain about where the two of them stood, it didn't make it any easier.

When he ran into Lupin at the bar on Saturday night, Sirius had foolishly thought that maybe this was fate giving him a second chance. That perhaps this time, Lupin would make an effort to get to know him. Or at the very least, give some sound explanation that would ease the ache in his soul that had been wearing at him over the last two weeks.

Frank nudged him as the two men made their way through the parking lot as they left the order meeting that night. "Hey cheer up, mate. You've been looking like a kicked dog all day."

Sirius snorted, kicking a loose rock across the asphalt. "Well forgive me for not being chipper about having my heart stomped on, Quickleg."

Frank scowled. "I thought I told you I don't like that codename."

"It's too late to change it now. I've already spread word that you are to go by Quickleg from now on."

He rolled his eyes but didn't bother arguing with Sirius. Everyone knew once the man made up his mind about something, there was no way to talk him down. "Fine, whatever you say Padfoot."

Sirius rose his eyebrow in a graceful arch. "You say that like I'm supposed to be offended. I have no qualms with the name Padfoot."

"It's just as dumb as Quickleg."

He gave a half smile as they slowed their walk, finally arriving at their separate vehicles. Sirius picked up his helmet, toying with the straps as Frank popped the trunk of his Civic, setting his briefcase and trench coat in the boot. The trunk closed with a heavy thunk and Frank made his way over to stand next to Sirius, leaning against his car in a relaxed manner.

"Listen Sirius," he said quietly, his tone resolved. "Things will turn around, alright?"

"Will they?" Sirius asked, his voice laced with skepticism. "The man rejected me. And not because of something I did, no. He rejected me because of who I am."

"He made a mistake," he reasoned, though he didn't sound very certain. "Maybe he'll come around."

"No, he won't." He hung his head, hiding his eyes behind dark tresses. "And even if he did, I don't know if I'd want to be with him anymore."

Frank took a deep breath before placing a firm hand on Sirius' shoulder. "You don't mean that."

"Don't I?" Sirius lifted his head to look at Frank, his gray eyes filled with swirling emotions, as though he was fighting himself. "He treated me just like everyone else. As soon as he found out who I am, he ran. I thought that maybe, just maybe, there had been a misunderstanding. That me being a Black wasn't the problem. But when I asked him for clarification, he told me exactly that."

"He might have just been scared," he suggested.

A barking laugh escaped his mouth, and he shook his head firmly. "No. There was no fear in his eyes. He knew what he was doing when he rejected me." Sirius laughed again, an eerie mirthless sound that reminded him disturbingly of his mother. "I suppose it makes sense."

Frank hesitated, unsure he liked the direction this conversation was headed. He had always known Sirius had a flair for dramatics, but ever since he lost his old partner, James, the man had been struggling even more with keeping his sanity. "What makes sense?"

"If my own family is unable to love me for who I am, how could I expect my soulmate to?"

"Padfoot-" Frank started, fixing Sirius with a firm expression.

He laughed again, affixing his helmet as he took a single step away from Frank. "No, it's fine. I'm fine." Sirius swung his leg over the bike, inserting the key into the ignition. "I just need to move on, is all. Let's not talk about him anymore, alright?"

Frank pursed his lips. He knew Sirius was doing that thing again where he pushes the issues to the back of his mind, ignoring the problem instead of confronting it. It wasn't healthy, but Frank wasn't close enough to him that Sirius would let him tear down his walls. If he did push, he was certain it would just make the problems bigger.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Quickleg."

The next evening found Sirius reclining on a rather stiff armchair in his living room, a manilla folder resting on his chest as he slowly began drifting off to sleep. It wasn't particularly late, but as Harry was already asleep and the new case file wasn't that important, he found no reason why he shouldn't allow himself a bit more sleep.

He had finally stopped crying about his soulmate, slowly adjusting to the numbness in his heart. However, almost three weeks of tears were especially draining, and he was in desperate need of rest. Sirius had already made up his mind to get over Lupin and to move on with his life. The first step would be getting an adequate amount of sleep. After all, if he felt like a dejected loser, he would certainly look like one, too.

Eyes firmly shut, he blindly reached over to turn off the floor lamp without moving from his chair, the folder slipping onto the floor in the process. Without bothering to pick it up, he nestled back into the cushion, reclining it as far as he could go.

RIIING! RIIING!

Gray eyes popped open, immediately locating the glowing screen of his cell phone. With a grumble, Sirius leaned forward, putting the footrest down as he grabbed at the phone, accepting the call without bothering to look at the number.

"This is Padfoot."

There was a moment of silence, though he could hear someone breathing on the other end. "Sirius?"

He eyed the phone warily. Everyone that had access to this number should know that Padfoot meant Sirius.

When the caller realized that Sirius had no intention of replying, they spoke again nervously. "This is Sirius, right? Frank gave me your number."

Frank? That couldn't be right. Frank knew better than to give his number out to people. Phones could be traced, and offering a way to track someone was completely foolish. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"Oh, um – it's me. Remus. Um – Remus Lupin. I was-"

Irritation flickered across Sirius' face as he dismissed the call without giving it a second thought. The man had some nerve contacting him after the way he treated him. Soulmate or no, he had no right to call him. If he wanted to hear from Lupin, he would have given him his number himself.

Less than forty seconds later, the phone rang again, and this time Sirius glanced at the number before answering. It was a number he didn't recognize, but he knew he should answer it nonetheless. After all, it could be important.

"This is Padfoot."

"Sirius – don't hang up," the voice that he had just hung up on said quickly, as if afraid he would do just that.

"What do you want, Lupin? I need to keep this line open."

"I really want to apologize." Lupin's tone sounded sincere, but Sirius refused to cave.

"I'm not interested," he lied.

"Regardless, I was a real prat. I shouldn't have said-"

"Let me guess," Sirius cut him off, glaring in the phone's direction as his voice threatened to break. He had finally been able to push down his emotions enough to stop crying and now Lupin was trying to resurface everything. The nerve! "Frank told you my sob story and now you feel bad? Well don't. I'm not interested, okay?"

"Sirius-"

"I'm a Black, remember?" he spat, choking on the words as his throat began to tighten.

"Please just-"

"Don't call me again," he said firmly before hitting the red icon on his phone. He slammed it down onto the cushion beside him, as those cursed tears once again welled up in his eyes.

Sirius knew he was being stupid. Lupin was reaching out to him, trying to fix what happened between them, and Sirius just pushed him away. His heart swirled with a cacophony of emotions. He was both elated and angry that he had called. He wanted to be with his soulmate more than anything, but at the same time, he wished that the man had never run into him. When he heard his voice again, he wanted to both embrace him, opening himself up to a relationship, as well as punch him in his stupidly handsome face.

As if the man could read his mind (which he probably could, being his soulmate and all), Sirius' phone rang for a third time. He checked the number before answering, noting it as the same one. Sirius sent the call straight to voicemail, not trusting himself to answer without giving in and sobbing openly in front of the other man. He then saved the contact information, so should his phone ring again, he wouldn't inadvertently answer Lupin's calls.

Perhaps one day they could get back in touch, but for now, Sirius needed to get over his emotional omnishambles.

The phone rang three more times that night, all of which were immediately sent to voicemail. On the final call, Sirius heard the notification sound informing him that Lupin had left a message.

Sirius let out a huff before picking up his phone and placing it on the charger. He collected the previously dislodged folder and the pages that had unwarrantably slipped out, setting them properly on the coffee table. After a quick clean up in the living room, he made his way to the bedroom, curling up beneath the sheets without bothering to undress.

With the phone finally silent and the freshly strewn tears causing his eyes to feel weary, Sirius easily fell into a deep sleep.

Remus let out a long sigh, hanging up the phone when Sirius' monotone "Leave a message." came through the speaker. He pocketed his cell as he made his way back to his mother, sitting beside her on the park bench.

"What's the matter?" Hope Lupin asked, concern shining in her caramel brown eyes.

He shook his head, allowing his tawny locks to shroud his face slightly. "I really messed up, mum."

"How so? You only stepped away for a moment to make that call, surely you couldn't make a mistake that quickly." She smiled warmly at her son. Hope had always been a confident woman, never one to shy away from a challenge. At this moment, Remus wished that he had gotten that trait from her, as he could have definitely used some of her confidence earlier.

"I was-" he hesitated, willing himself to tell her the truth. It wasn't that he didn't want to be honest with his mother, he simply didn't like the idea of her knowing just how much of a screw-up he was. "I was trying to get ahold of my soulmate."

"You found your soulmate?" Hope perked up, her eyes glittering with excitement. "Oh, that's great news!" She leaned in, hugging Remus tightly around his shoulders as she planted a kiss on his cheek.

"Not really, no," he mumbled as she pulled back. He scanned the park, watching Teddy as he clambered across a web climber. "I – I made a huge mistake." Remus chewed his lip as he replayed the second encounter with his soulmate in his head.

"How so?"

He looked back towards his mother, his expression the very definition of dejection. "I was stupid, and I pushed him away. I said some things – I mean, I didn't know any better at the time, but that doesn't matter, does it? I hurt him. I pushed him away, and now-" Remus shook his head, his earlier words echoing mockingly in his mind. "Now he doesn't want anything to do with me, and I can't really blame him. I wouldn't want anything to do with me either."

Hope narrowed her gaze as she analyzed her son, thinking for a long moment before speaking. "What makes you say he doesn't want anything to do with you?"

The question threw Remus off. He had expected her to want more details about what he did to make Sirius hate him or to offer him empty words of comfort. "Well, I – I've been trying to call him and he won't take any of my calls. I left him a voicemail a few times, but I don't know if he even ever listened to them. For all I know, he just deleted them without checking."

"So you've been calling him?"

"Yes, every day. It's been almost two weeks now, but he refuses to answer. I know he's declining my calls because it goes to voicemail after only one ring. He's intentionally ignoring me."

Remus scanned the park again, seeing Teddy had moved on to the monkey bars, swinging alongside a boy with unruly black hair. After a few swings, the other boy jumped off the bars before sprinting across the sandlot, kicking up dirt as he went. Remus shook his head, hoping that Teddy had enough sense to not follow after the other boy's example.

Aside from an elderly couple in the distance, two teenage girls, and a man with a barking laugh, the park was nearly empty, as it was still rather early in the day. Remus preferred coming in the early hours when it was this peaceful. He could enjoy the quiet atmosphere with his mother and son, taking in the greenery that made this place so beautiful.

"Remus," Hope said, bringing Remus out of his reverie.

He looked back at his mother, noticing the determined glint in her eyes.

"Perhaps you're going about this the wrong way."

He furrowed his brows. "How do you mean?"

"You're trying to call him. Why? To apologize? To beg for forgiveness?"

"Well, both. I don't know if he will forgive me, but I at least need to make amends for what I said."

"He will forgive you, Remus. He's your soulmate."

"Which makes what I said even worse!" His voice cracked as the emotions seeped to the surface. "You weren't there, mum. You didn't see his face. I – I was really mean to him."

Hope reached forward, setting a gentle hand on Remus' cheek, stroking his cheekbone lightly. "Remus, soulmates aren't like they are written about in fairytales. They fight, they argue, they don't always see eye-to-eye, but they are connected to one another through thick and thin. When you see him again, you will know what to say to make everything better. I believe that with all my heart, Remus. If you give up on him, you will regret it for the rest of your life."

"But I don't know what to do," he whispered, finally voicing his fears. "I'm at a loss. He won't even listen to me. How can I make amends?"

"Perhaps calling him isn't the best way to handle this?"

"I don't know how else to get ahold of him," he said, shaking his head.

"Are you a police detective or not?" Hope asked, a smile in her voice. "You can track him down, find where he works, and talk to him there. Invite him out for coffee or something."

"He has a false identity," Remus countered. He already knew there was nothing in the system on Sirius Black.

She hummed in thought. "Well, do you know his false identity name? Perhaps you can put out a BOLO for him? Do you have any connections? There's always a way to find your soulmate, Remus. You two are destined for each other, and you can't give up so easily."

"I-" Remus took a deep breath, realizing his mother was right. He did have a way to find him. A very easy way in fact. Alice was Frank's soulmate and Frank works with Sirius. Of course. Why hadn't he thought of that sooner.

"See," Hope cooed, noting the realization that lit up her son's face. "Now, no more talk about you having messed up your chances at a happily ever after, Remus."

He gave her a hesitant smile. "Thanks for the talk mum. It really helped."

"That's what I'm here for," she laughed.

Remus moved his gaze back to the playground, his eyes freezing on the unruly haired boy and the man that was crouched in front of him. While the man had apparently found it too early to apply any makeup, Remus would recognize that face anywhere. "That's-" Remus breathed, his eyes widening in disbelief.

"Hmm?" Hope followed Remus' line of sight, stopping on the father and son combo. "Who are they?"

"That's my soulmate," Remus whispered.

Sirius was nodding along to something the young boy was saying, a placating smile on his face. While he still wore a titanium lip ring and two dark red eyebrow studs, his appearance was definitely far more laid back. That well-worn leather jacket had made a reappearance, covering a color washed gray band shirt. He still wore those horribly gaudy boots and black jeans that were far too tight, and his wolf belt buckle peeked out from under his tee.

"Oh?" She didn't bother hiding the interest from her voice. "Well, perhaps this is fate giving you the perfect opportunity to make amends?"

Remus glanced at his mother nervously. "I don't know-"

"Remus," she scolded firmly, but quietly. "Don't you dare think about running. You march yourself over to him and you have a proper conversation."

He gulped.

She rose an eyebrow that was not to be questioned.

"Er- right," Remus said, tugging at his cranberry cardigan. The very same well-worn cardigan he was wearing when he first ran into Sirius. Quite literally.

As he walked over unsteadily, he shot a nervous glance back at Hope who offered him a reassuring smile. He tried to return the grin but was certain it came out far more awkward than he would like to admit. As he neared the duo, it was clear that neither of them paid any mind to his approach. The young boy was completely engrossed in his conversation, and the adult was doing an excellent job at playing the part of engaged.

"-and you should have seen me pops! I almost flew over the beam!"

"Yeah, I saw, Harry," Sirius nodded along.

"It was so cool! I stayed in the sky for five whole minutes."

"Five whole minutes? You were counting?"

"Yup! I can count really high. Wanna see?"

Sirius grinned widely. "I bet I can count higher," he said teasingly.

"Nuh-uh!" Harry said firmly, shaking his head. "Mrs. Pince says I am the best counter!"

"Oh, really? Wanna prove it?"

He stuck out his tongue as he nodded before taking a deep breath. Before Harry could even get one number out though, something behind Sirius caught his attention. "Who's that creepy guy, pops?"

Sirius looked over his shoulder to follow Harry's line of sight, visibly going rigid for a split second. Remus looked over, but from his angle, he could only see the top half of a rather haggard looking man behind one of the shrubs. He was fumbling with something and did admittedly look rather suspicious.

"Stay here, Harry," Sirius said firmly before taking off in the man's direction, passing by Remus without so much as a glance.

A bad premonition pressed into Remus' gut as he silently pursued Sirius, keeping to the boscage just in case stealth would be needed. If Sirius' job truly was bounty hunting, this man that peaked his interest was no doubt dangerous.

"What's the hurry?" Sirius' voice rang out through the cool morning air as he neared the man. Remus could just make out enough of Sirius' face to see a hard edge in his steely eyes.

The man turned to glower at Sirius, revealing an ugly expression and gnarled yellow teeth. "Not that it's any of your business, but my son isn't feeling well. I have to get him home," he grumbled while tugging at something – someone – that was still below Remus' line of sight.

"Your son?" Sirius repeated, voice laden with skepticism.

"Yes," the man spat. "Now if you'll excuse me," he made to turn around.

Sirius crouched down slightly to bring his attention on the child. "Is this man your father?"

"No, sir."

Remus' heart froze. Even without seeing the child in question, he would always recognize Teddy's voice. This man was abducting his son, and he hadn't even noticed. How could he have let himself get so distracted?

"Do you know this man?"

"Uh-uh."

Sirius stood up again with even more ice in his gaze than there had been before. "I would highly recommend handing the boy over." He pushed back his leather jacket just enough to reveal a gun holster, resting his hand on the butt of it in warning. "Now."

The man narrowed his blue eyes as he weighed his options, clearly hesitant to relinquish his prize, and not at all trusting that Sirius would let him go unscathed even if he cooperated.

Harry had apparently not followed Sirius' earlier instructions to stay where he was, and stepped beside his father, tugging at Sirius' pant legs. "What's going on, pops?"

Not removing his eyes from the man, Sirius gestured for Harry to move back. "It's nothing for you to worry about, Harry."

An evil grin broke across the shady man's face as he eyed the dark-haired boy.

Sirius unlatched the guard on his holster, finger toying with the safety button. "Listen, Fenrir Greyback."

Fenrir's eyes widened marginally, clearly thrown-off by Sirius recognizing him.

"Hand over the child now, and I will let you walk away unharmed."

He glared at Sirius a final time before nodding in recognition. "Very well."

Sirius removed his hand from the gun slightly, just as Fenrir practically threw Teddy towards Sirius. Sirius knelt to catch the young boy before he fell, distracting him just enough for Fenrir to grab Harry. He lifted the boy easily by his waist, pressing a switch blade against Harry's throat as he took several steps back.

When Sirius saw his son in Fenrir's grasp, all traces of color slipped from his face. "Harry!" He took an instinctive step forward before freezing when the man pressed the blade firmer against Harry's throat.

"Stay right where you are," Fenrir growled.

Remus looked over to see that Teddy had successfully scampered back towards Hope. He pulled out his cell phone, sending a quick message to dispatch to send a squad to the park. There was no way he could let this man abduct his soulmate's son, especially considering Harry got captured because Sirius had chosen to rescue Teddy.

"Please," Sirius said, all signs of the cool bravado he possessed earlier gone. "Let Harry go."

"If you don't want to see the boy's head roll, you will do as I say."

He took in a shaky breath, extending his arms out in a placating gesture. "Anything."

"Remove your gun, and toss it in the bushes. Slowly." Fenrir gestured towards where Remus was crouching, causing Remus to hold his breath as if that would help him blend in better. Once the man moved his eyes back onto Sirius, Remus carefully moved through the boscage until he was closer to Fenrir than Sirius.

Sirius did as instructed, sliding his weapon over with enough force to wedge it neatly below the branches. "What is your intention with him?"

He smiled wickedly. "That is none of your concern."

"Is it money?" His gray eyes took on an erratic appearance as his voice began to flirt with insanity. "I will buy him off you. I'll give you everything I have."

"Everything you have is hardly worth anything."

"But I-"

"You're not the only one that is good at facial recognition. I know who you are; the disgraced son of Orion Black, Sirius Black."

Sirius' bottom lip began to tremble. The pace of his breathing hinted at the beginning of a panic attack. "Disgraced or no, I have money. Please, just name your price."

"You can't afford my price, Sirius. Do you know just how much a male Black heir is worth?" Fenrir sneered as if speaking with someone stupid.

He shook his head. "But he's-"

"Turn around."

Sirius gulped, eyes still pleading. "Please."

"I said turn around."

A gasp sounded from Harry's mouth as a trickle of blood shone on his exposed throat.

He closed his eyes, biting his lip as he complied, turning his back on Fenrir and Harry.

"Now, down on your knees."

As Sirius did as instructed, Fenrir began taking several steps backwards, keeping his gaze firmly fixed on Sirius.

"Don't you dare try coming after us if you value your kid's life."

He was visibly shaking, clearly fighting against the urge to hyperventilate.

Once Fenrir felt satisfied with the distance between them, he turned around, quickly making his way through the still mostly deserted park. Remus pursued as quietly as possible, keeping a close eye on the man, ready to strike the moment Harry was no longer vulnerable.

They made it all the way to the car park before the opportunity finally presented itself. Fenrir headed towards an old automobile with peeling paint, unlocking the car and throwing Harry unceremoniously into the backseat.

As soon as the door slammed shut, Remus jumped out, slamming his elbow into the back of Fenrir's neck, sending the much larger man stumbling. Remus threw open the door, yelling at Harry to run who obeyed without needing to be told twice.

"You bastard," Fenrir snarled as he rose to his full height, rubbing at his neck. While Remus knew his blow struck true, he clearly didn't put enough force in it, though based on the size of the man, he doubted he would be strong enough to take on this brute alone.

"Abducting a child is against the law," Remus said firmly, trying to hide any trace of trepidation from his voice. "I'm afraid I will have to arrest you, Mr. Greyback," he stated, flashing his badge.

"Oh, really?" he drawled, amusement lighting his wicked eyes. "Well, by all means, officer. Try to arrest me."

Word Count 4501

Sorry this took so long to update! I admittedly started playing video games again. It was unintentional – I thought, "Eh, I updated three days ago, my readers will be fine with two more days so I'll just play a bit today and get back to editing tomorrow." Well, turns out one day of playing games just didn't do it and next thing I knew it was February. So! I intend to not let myself play again until this story is complete because I apparently can't trust myself.

That being said, only one more chapter left! (I believe, anyway. I guess I'll let you know for sure once I finish the next chapter, haha.) Thank you for being patient with me so far. The moment we've all been waiting for comes up next! Yay!

Please let me know what you think so far! I love reviews as much as Remus loves his chocolate. :)