A/N - Hello everyone! I'm glad you all seemed to like the last chapter! I haven't thanked my lovely Falcons, MaryRoyale and trollnexus, lately, for reading over my chapters and brainstorming with me, so thank you. And as always, thanks to all of you for reading!

Chapter 32

Birthdays

5 February 1999

Remus sat at the kitchen table as the sun rose, holding his cup of tea as it slowly grew cold. He had woken nearly an hour before and stared at the picture of Dora on his bedside table for quite some time before he rose from his bed. She would have been twenty-six today.

The pain of losing her, which had been slowly lessening, was back in full force today. Her birthday was simply a reminder of how little time she'd had, how little time they'd had. She had barely gotten to live.

Remus heard a noise on the stairs and knew Andromeda was up as well. She came into the kitchen, still in her dressing gown. Remus could count on one hand the number of times he'd seen his mother-in-law in her nightclothes and knew that she had likely been lying awake as he had.

"Your tea has gone cold," she said as she stood next to him. Remus glanced down at his cup and took his wand from his sleeve to rewarm it. Andromeda put a hand on his arm. "Rewarmed tea never tastes quite right. Let me make a fresh pot." Remus didn't argue with her, knowing she would want to keep herself as busy as possible today.

He should do the same, but the problem was there wasn't much for him to do. He'd only had one day of tutoring this past week, as most everyone he had been working with had seemed to finally be caught up. He had a small group of third years he was still working with on Defense and a few single students in various years he was helping, but he was only seeing them once a week at most. Remus had little to prepare in way of lessons.

Andromeda returned with the tea and vanished the contents of Remus' cup before pouring him another. Remus took a sip and smiled gratefully. Andromeda sat down across from him, sipping at her own tea and staring absently out the kitchen window. Remus knew they needed to make plans. Sitting around wallowing all day wouldn't do either of them any good.

"Perhaps we should take Teddy on an outing today," he said.

"What did you have in mind?" Andromeda asked. Remus' brow furrowed. What did he have in mind? He thought they might visit the cemetery, but he didn't think that should be their only destination. He wanted to do something to celebrate his wife's life.

"What was Dora's favorite thing to do as a child?" he asked.

"Play in the dirt," Andromeda said immediately and Remus couldn't help the laugh that escaped. Andromeda smiled as well.

"I was thinking more of somewhere she liked to visit."

"Well, Diagon Alley, of course," Andromeda said. "But I am not sure I am up for crowds today."

"No," Remus agreed. Given this was the weekend before Valentine's Day, Remus expected the Alley would be busy.

"She did love the zoo," Andromeda said, a smile crossing her face. "We went once when she was about seven. She had just started being able to morph her facial features and she stood in the aviary, watching the birds and suddenly it looked like she had a beak. I do not think she was even aware she was doing it." Andromeda chuckled.

"What happened?" Remus asked.

"Well, thankfully, the only person that noticed was another child and his mother seemed to think he was lying. She rolled her eyes and grabbed his arm and towed him out of there while I hid Dora behind me. We did not go back again for some time after that. Not until we could be sure she was in total control of it." Remus smiled.

"Shall we take Teddy to the zoo, then?" he asked. "I don't think we need to worry about him morphing his face just yet, but we can keep a cap on him to hide his hair."

"Remus, it's February." Remus shrugged.

"We can cast warming charms," Remus said. He looked outside at the sun that had now risen completely. "And it looks like it's going to be sunny today. It won't be crowded either." Andromeda glanced outside herself. She seemed lost in thought for a moment.

"I would like to go to the cemetery later," she said.

"As would I," Remus agreed. "And then perhaps we can get the photo albums out and show Teddy some pictures." Andromeda reached across the table and took his hand in hers. She squeezed his fingers.

"I would like that," she said, tears in her eyes. Remus held her hand and nodded, taking another sip of his tea to control his emotions. They sat that way until they could hear the insistent call of "Da!" from Teddy's room.

7 February 1999

"Hi, Hermione." Hermione looked up from the notes she was taking.

"Hey, Anthony."

"Mind if I sit?"

"Sure, go ahead," Hermione said, moving a few of her books to the side so Anthony could join her at her table in the library.

"Arithmancy assignment?" he asked.

"Yes," Hermione said with a sigh. "I thought I was finished, but then I found this book," she indicated a large tome next to her, "and I think I might have to recalculate."

"Really?" Anthony said, brow furrowing. "Which book?" Hermione stuck her finger in the book to mark her page and flipped the cover closed. The book was quite old and the method not one that was widely used, but something about it just made sense.

"Hmm," Anthony said thoughtfully, rummaging in his bag and pulling out his own Arithmancy assignment. Hermione opened the book again and pushed it across the table so Anthony could see what she had been talking about. His brow furrowed in concentration as he read, then looked back at his calculations. Hermione knew the exact moment he understood what she was talking about. His eyes widened slightly, his gaze skipping quickly between his assignment and the book.

"I think you're right," he said after a few minutes. "Do you mind if I use this as well?"

"Not at all," Hermione said with a smile. Anthony moved the book so they could both read it and they were silent for a time as they both reworked their assignment.

"So, going to Hogsmeade next weekend?" Anthony asked a bit later.

"I don't think so," Hermione said with a small laugh. "Harry and Neville both have the day off and they're coming to spend it with Ginny and Luna. Valentine's Day and all."

"Ron couldn't make it?" Anthony questioned.

"I have no idea," Hermione said. At Anthony's quizzical look, she sighed. "Ron and I aren't together anymore."

"Oh," Anthony said. "I'm sorry, I didn't know." Hermione waved off his apology.

"Don't worry about it, it happened quite some time ago." Anthony fell silent, looking down at his assignment. Hermione finished the last of the calculations on hers, then rolled it up and put it in her bag. She pulled out her Transfiguration text to begin working on the essay that was due on Wednesday.

"If you like, you can come with Justin, Lisa and me," Anthony said. "We're not doing anything even remotely Valentine's Day related." Hermione chuckled and Anthony smiled. She thought about it for a moment and decided that it might be fun. And she might get to see Harry after all then.

"All right, I think I will," Hermione said as she pulled out a piece of parchment. Anthony's grin widened.

"Great, we'll meet you in the Entrance Hall." Hermione nodded just as Madame Pince cleared her throat and glared in their direction. Hermione bit her lip to keep from laughing and dipped her quill into her ink pot. She glanced up at Anthony and noticed that the smile hadn't left his face. Figuring he was reacting to Madame Pince's warning, she went back to her essay and soon forgot the Ravenclaw was even there.

13 February 1999

"So how did it go?" Ginny demanded, plopping herself down on Hermione's bed. She unwrapped a sugar quill and stuck it in her mouth.

"How did what go?" Hermione asked in confusion.

"Your date with Anthony." Hermione rolled her eyes.

"I told you, it wasn't a date," she said in exasperation.

"He asked you to Hogsmeade on Valentine's Day weekend, Hermione," Ginny said, equally exasperated. "What else would it be?"

"Ginny, we were with two other people, who are also not dating, before you ask," Hermione said.

"So, you never went off by yourselves?" Ginny asked. "Got a bit of privacy?"

"You're ridiculous," Hermione said.

"And you didn't answer the question," Ginny pointed out.

"We were in Tomes and Scrolls for a bit," Hermione admitted.

"The bookstore, how romantic," Ginny said, eyelids fluttering. Hermione just rolled her eyes again, adding a shake of her head.

"Nothing happened, it wasn't a date, end of story."

"That's not what I heard," Ginny said in a singsong voice. Hermione's eyes narrowed. There truly was nothing to tell and the thought that it might be a date had never even crossed her mind.

"What are you talking about?"

"Luna says word around the Ravenclaw Common Room is that Anthony fancies you." Hermione's mouth dropped open in shock. Ginny smirked and took another lick of her sugar quill.

"He does not," Hermione said. "We're just friends."

"You say that a lot," Ginny replied. Hermione's brow furrowed in confusion. "Anthony is your friend. Remus is your friend." Hermione groaned. Not this again.

"Seriously, Gin, when are you going to drop that?"

"When you admit that you fancy Remus," Ginny said sweetly.

"I do not fancy Remus," Hermione nearly growled.

"You keep telling yourself that," Ginny said, popping the sugar quill back into her mouth and getting up from Hermione's bed.

"Do you annoy Harry this much?" Hermione groused.

"Believe me, the very last thing I do is annoy Harry," Ginny said with a wicked grin. Hermione groaned.

"Please don't say anything else," she said. "I do not need to know about your sex life with Harry." Ginny waggled her eyebrows, but thankfully kept quiet.

"Well, what about Anthony, then?" Ginny said. Hermione was confused at the abrupt change of topic. "I mean if you don't fancy Remus, then what about Anthony?"

"I've never even thought about Anthony like that," Hermione said.

"Maybe you should start."

"And maybe you should stop trying to force all the single people you know into a relationship," Hermione said.

"Come on, Hermione," Ginny said. "Pretty soon we'll be done with school and we'll have to get jobs and work and be all responsible and everything. Things are over with you and Ron, why not have a little fun these last few months?" Hermione stayed silent. Ginny sighed and sat down on her bed again.

"Look, none of us have had much chance to be kids or teenagers, you less than anyone except for Harry. Let go a little bit and just have some fun."

"Not that I think you're wrong," Hermione said. "But I don't see how dating Anthony is going to do that for me."

"Don't you know what a stress reliever a good snog is?" Ginny asked with a grin. "Not to mention a good sh-"

"Okay, I get it," Hermione said, interrupting before Ginny could give her more details about Harry that Hermione definitely did not want. "But like I said, I've never thought about Anthony like that."

"Well, like I said, maybe you should start," Ginny said with a wink. She rose from Hermione's bed again and crossed to her own, picking up her school bag and pulling out her Charms book.

Hermione leaned back against her headboard, mulling over what Ginny had said. Things were well over with Ron and she was not even going to acknowledge Ginny's suspicion that she had any kind of romantic feelings for Remus. The notion was, again, ridiculous. And even if she did, Remus would never feel that way for her, so it was pointless to even think about it.

Hermione had never thought of Anthony Goldstein in any romantic kind of way and she wasn't sure she could start. Still, Ginny did have a point. In just a little over four months school would be over, so maybe she should try and enjoy it a bit more. Maybe.

24 February 1999

Remus searched through the books in the Restricted Section trying to locate one that Minerva had recommended to him. He knew he could have asked Irma for help, but Remus enjoyed browsing. He had already found two other books that he wanted to read himself.

As he searched, his mind wandered back to their zoo adventure. Teddy, like his mother, had seemed particularly entranced with the aviary. In fact, he'd cried when they tried to leave and they ended up spending nearly an hour there.

After they had visited the cemetery, Andromeda had indeed gotten out the photo albums and they had spent quite a bit of time looking through them. In one photograph, taken just after Dora had finished her Auror training, she had smiled for the camera and then immediately changed her appearance to look like Mad-Eye, sans the magical eye. Teddy, sitting on Remus' lap, chortled in laughter every time the photograph changed. Remus had taken to turning the page and then flipping back to the picture just to get the same reaction from Teddy. Remus smiled at the memory. It had been a wonderful way to spend Dora's birthday.

Remus reached the end of the row of shelves and turned the corner to search the next one. Hermione was standing in the middle of the aisle, look of concentration on her face as she studied the book in her hands. He hadn't seen her since the morning after the full moon at Grimmauld Place.

"Good afternoon, Hermione," Remus said. Hermione jumped and looked up at him.

"Oh, Remus," she said. "You startled me."

"I apologize," he said, smiling at her. Hermione gave him a tentative smile back, even as her cheeks turned red. Remus didn't think it was because he had surprised her. He decided to act as normally as possible, in the hope that it would lessen her embarrassment.

"How are your classes going?" he asked even as he continued to search the shelves in front of him.

"Well, thank you," Hermione said.

"No more problems in Defense?"

No, thankfully. I think that Professor Higgins may have learned his lesson." She chuckled as she said this and Remus suspected she was aware that Minerva had read Higgins the riot act.

"That's good to hear," he said with a knowing smirk. Hermione smiled at him as she always had. Perhaps she had gotten over seeing him as she did and things wouldn't be awkward between them.

"Everything else going well, then?" he asked, finally spotting the book Minerva had mentioned. He pulled it from the shelf and flipped through it. Yes, this would do nicely. When Hermione didn't answer, he looked up at her and saw that her face was completely red and she was looking at the floor. Remus bit back a sigh.

"Hermione," he said.

"I'm sorry, I," Hermione began, setting her book back on the shelf and putting her hands to her cheeks. She shook her head.

"There's nothing to apologize for," he insisted. "I assure you I am not upset about it."

"Gods," Hermione said under her breath. Remus tucked his book under one arm and stepped closer to her. Hermione immediately took a step back. Remus stayed where he was. She finally glanced up at him, only to look away a second later. "I'm sorry, Remus." He suspected she wasn't apologizing for what had happened that morning, but for her current reaction.

"Hermione, it's all right. I know it was an uncomfortable situation for both of us, but we're both adults and truthfully, I am not angry." Hermione drew in a breath and then let it out. She looked up at Remus again and this time did not turn away.

"You're right," she said. "We are both adults."

"Let's just put it behind us, shall we?" he requested. Hermione blushed slightly, but it was nowhere near as bad as it had been moments ago.

"All right," she agreed. Remus reached out for the book she had been holding and gave it back to her. "Thank you."

"My pleasure," he said. Hermione smiled shyly at him and then looked back at the book in her head.

"I should get back to my essay," she said. Remus nodded.

"And I should have Irma check this out for me," he said indicating the book under his arm.

"I'll see you later, Remus."

"Good-bye, Hermione." Hermione gave him one last smile and then turned and walked down the aisle towards the main section of the library. Once she was gone, Remus sighed and closed his eyes for a moment. That had been much more awkward than he had thought it would be. He did hope that they could put it behind them now. He knew that Andromeda was planning a large gathering for Teddy's first birthday and he very much hoped Hermione would be there.

Hermione made her way back to her table, glad that she was by herself today. She could feel her cheeks burning again and it wasn't because of what had happened in January, but her reaction to seeing Remus today. She'd made a fool of herself, again.

She had thought she was over everything that happened after the full moon. She had overreacted that day, but given her emotional state at the time, as well as her lack of sleep, she couldn't completely blame herself. And knowing that Remus wasn't angry with her, had helped quite a bit. But seeing Remus today had brought it all back for her.

Hermione knew that it was her reaction to what had happened, instead of what she saw, that embarrassed her so much. She had acted like she'd never seen a half-naked man before. She had shared a tent with Harry and Ron for almost a year. It had been nearly impossible to get any kind of privacy and it wasn't like there was a door one could knock on before walking into the tent. They had worked out a bit of a schedule as time went on, but she'd still seen both of them in various stages of undress more times than she could count.

She wasn't sure why she had reacted the way she did. Not that she should have stood and ogled Remus either, but she could have been more matter-of-fact about it. She was aware he undressed before he transformed and so would be naked when the process reversed itself. Why then, had she been so upset? Because, while she could blame some of it on her emotional state, that wasn't the entire reason.

'You fancy him' that stupid voice inside her head said. Hermione was coming to hate that voice.

"Shut it," she muttered under her breath as she reached her table and set down the book she had gotten from the restricted section. It hit the table loudly and Hermione winced as all the heads in the library swiveled towards her at the sound. She smiled sheepishly and sat down at the table.

Hermione pulled in a breath and let it out. Remus was right, they were both adults and they just needed to put it behind them and move on. Remus wasn't upset about it, so she shouldn't be either. She pulled her parchment determinedly towards her. She wasn't going to let this bother her again.

10 March 1999

"Come on," Remus encouraged, holding out his arms to his son. Andromeda was standing a few feet away, holding onto Teddy's hands and keeping him steady. She walked him forward a few steps and let go of one of his hands as Teddy took another two steps, then she let go of the other. Teddy grinned at his father and took three wobbly steps before he fell forward and Remus caught him in his arms. Andromeda clapped her hands in delight.

"Well done!" Remus said, picking up his son and tickling his belly. Teddy giggled for a few moments before Remus set him on his feet and mimicked Andromeda's movements from before.

"Come, Teddy," Andromeda said, clapping her hands twice and holding her arms out to him. This time Teddy managed five steps before he lost his balance and Andromeda pulled him into her arms. "Oh, you are just brilliant, aren't you?" She kissed his cheeks and Teddy giggled again.

"I must say, this is quite the birthday present," Remus said as Andromeda set Teddy on the floor and he crawled quickly to the bin of toys in the room. Remus held out a hand to help Andromeda up from the floor.

"I do not think anything I have gotten could top that," she agreed as she stood.

"I told you that I didn't need gifts," Remus protested.

"And I told you that it is your birthday. Of course, there will be gifts." They looked at Teddy who had pulled himself to standing next to his box of toys. He held a block in his hands and showed it to Remus.

"Da!" Remus chuckled as Teddy let go of the box and wobbled a bit on his feet before regaining his balance. He looked determinedly at Remus, who immediately kneeled down and held out his arms again. Teddy clapped the block with his other hand, wobbled, and then took seven steps, reaching Remus on the last. Remus picked him up and tossed him lightly into the air. Teddy shrieked in delight, before Remus pulled him in close, nuzzling his neck and making him laugh again.

"Walking," Andromeda said with a shake of her head. "I cannot believe how quickly time is passing."

"Nor can I," Remus said, as Teddy offered the block to his father. "Less than a month until his birthday." Remus took the block and then handed it back to Teddy. He put Teddy down when he started to squirm, but instead of walking again, Teddy dropped down to his bum and crawled to his toys. Remus chuckled. Crawling was still much faster.

"I wanted to speak to you about Teddy's birthday, actually."

"I thought the planning was almost finished for his party," Remus questioned.

"It is," Andromeda assured him. "I was speaking of his actual birthday." Teddy's birthday was on the eighth, but they were having his party on Saturday, the tenth, when Hogwarts would be on Easter holidays so everyone they wanted to invite could attend.

"Oh, I thought we'd have a quiet day together, perhaps give Teddy his gifts from us. You know he's going to be inundated at his party."

"Yes, I thought that too, but I would like to ask if we might do something else as well." Remus looked at her quizzically. "Narcissa has expressed a desire to meet Teddy. I would never invite her to his party, there are too many people invited that would not welcome her presence, not yet. But I thought we might have her to lunch on his actual birthday."

"No," Remus immediately said. Andromeda looked taken aback.

"No?" she repeated. Remus realized how abrupt he had sounded and he took a breath and ran a hand through his hair.

"I don't think that's a good idea," he said.

"I do not understand," Andromeda said.

"I just," Remus sighed. "I don't want her around Teddy." Andromeda looked confused and more than a little hurt.

"I hope you know that I would never put Teddy in any kind of danger," Andromeda said quietly.

"Of course, I do," Remus said immediately.

"Then, I am still confused," Andromeda said. Remus sighed. He knew it would be difficult for Andromeda to understand his position without telling her about Hermione's torture.

"I would prefer if she wasn't around Teddy, that's all," Remus said. "I don't think she's a very good influence." Andromeda's eyes narrowed.

"Influence?" she said. "He is a baby. There is little to influence."

"She made her views clear on him during the war," Remus said lamely.

"And you were the one that convinced me to not take things at face value," Andromeda reminded him, her voice growing cold. "You encouraged me to give her a second chance."

"You, yes," Remus said. "I never said anything about Teddy."

"So, these past six months we have been meeting were how you imagined our relationship would continue?" Andromeda challenged. "That I would keep her separate from my life with you and Teddy?" Remus said nothing.

"I told you that Narcissa had changed," Andromeda continued. "She no longer harbors the same feelings she did during the war."

"Actions speak louder than words," Remus said, hating the disappointment he could see on Andromeda's face. She stared at him for a few minutes.

"I do not understand you, Remus," she finally said. "You, of all people, are aware of how hurtful prejudice can be. Yet, you are doing the same to my sister." She stared at him for a few moments. "I am very disappointed." With that, she turned and left the room. Remus could hear her steps on the stairs and then the quiet click of her bedroom door.

Remus sighed and scrubbed a hand down his face. He looked at Teddy who was happily taking every single toy out of his basket.

"I really cocked that one up, didn't I?" Remus grimaced at his language, but Teddy just grinned at him and held up one of his toys.

"Da!" Remus smiled and sat down next to his son, running a hand lightly over the boy's hair. It was blond today, very near to the white blond of the Malfoys. Teddy took a few steps and threw himself at his father. Remus picked him up and kissed the top of his head.

"Your grandmother isn't very happy with me," Remus said, laughing as Teddy tried to put his toy in Remus' mouth. "I can't say I really blame her. I didn't do a very good job of explaining."

"Da-da-da-da-da," Teddy said under his breath, examining his toy. Remus absently rubbed Teddy's back while he tried to find a way out of this situation. He didn't want to break Hermione's confidence, but he needed to come up with a better explanation for not wanting Narcissa around Teddy. He didn't think that the woman would harm Teddy, but Remus didn't know if he could forgive her for her inaction against Bellatrix.

Teddy dropped his toy with a yawn and snuggled closer to Remus' chest. Remus kissed the baby's forehead and rose to his feet. Remus began to sway from side to side as he hummed a lullaby under his breath. Teddy's eyelids began to droop, his mouth falling open when he dropped off to sleep. Remus smiled and carefully climbed the stairs to Teddy's room. Remus settled his son into his cot, covered him with a light blanket and set the monitoring charm on his room.

Remus stood in the corridor, staring at Andromeda's closed door. He should talk to her sooner rather than later, but he didn't know if his mother-in-law would be receptive to a conversation right now. Still, it would be better to do it while Teddy was napping. Sighing again, Remus knocked lightly on Andromeda's door.

"Andromeda?" he called softly when there was no answer. "I'd like to try to explain." Remus waited a few moments and had just turned to go back downstairs when the door clicked open. Remus put his hand back on the knob and opened the door a bit more. Andromeda was standing at the window, her back to him, arms crossed over her chest.

"May I come in?"

"Why else would I have opened the door?" She sounded quite irritated. Remus took a few steps into the room, closing the door behind him. He threw up a privacy charm so they wouldn't disturb Teddy. When Remus didn't immediately start talking, Andromeda turned towards him slightly.

"I thought you wanted to explain," she said, no warmth in her voice.

"I do," he replied. "I cannot tell you everything, but I have information about something that Narcissa was involved in during the war. When I found out, it…disturbed me."

"And just what was this information that disturbed you so much?" Andromeda asked.

"I told you, I cannot tell you," Remus said. "I'm asking you to trust me."

"I do trust you, Remus," Andromeda said. "But if you expect me to understand your position, you will have to give me a little more than that." Remus sighed.

"I can't break a confidence," he said. "It's not my story to tell."

"So, this thing, whatever it is, you did not witness it personally?"

"No," Remus said. "The story was told to me by someone else." He could see the gears turning in Andromeda's head. There were only a handful of people that would have come into contact with Narcissa in some capacity during the war. She had nearly been a recluse those last two years of the war.

"And was this something perpetrated by Narcissa herself or something that happened in her presence?"

"A bit of both," Remus said. Andromeda's brow furrowed.

"That does not make sense."

"It definitely happened in her presence, but she did nothing to intervene," Remus said. "I can't say anymore." Andromeda nodded. She looked out the window for a moment before she turned back to Remus.

"I assume that you are speaking of Bellatrix's torture of Hermione," Andromeda finally said. Remus stared at her in shock.

"You knew?"

"Narcissa told me about it the first time I met with her," Andromeda said.

"And you continued to meet with her?" Remus asked incredulously.

"Yes," she said simply. "It would not have been much of a second chance, had I not tried to understand why."

"Why?" Remus repeated in disbelief. "She allowed your sister to torture an innocent girl in her home!"

"Do you honestly think that Bellatrix would have allowed Narcissa to step in to try and stop her?" Andromeda asked, just as incredulous. "Bella would have killed Draco without a second thought, just to get Cissy to comply."

"So, it was all right for Hermione to suffer?" Remus asked.

"Of course not," Andromeda snapped. "But my sister's first priority has always been to her family, just as mine has been. Neither of us will apologize for that."

"Narcissa lived the last two years of the war in abject fear," Andromeda continued. "Lucius was in prison. If Voldemort was not in her home, Greyback was, or a myriad of Death Eaters, all more than willing to 'take care' of the wife of Lucius Malfoy at one word from their lord. You and I both know what Draco was tasked to do in his sixth year. Narcissa did everything she had to do in order to survive and protect her son. Even when Lucius came home, he was disgraced. They were terrified that Voldemort would one day decide they were not worth the trouble and go after Draco. After all, why just kill someone when it is so much more fun to break them and watch them suffer?" Remus said nothing. He knew all of this was true.

"Bellatrix was his right hand. Narcissa could not cross her as it would have been no different than crossing Voldemort. Bella knew how much Cissy loved her son." Andromeda paused to gather her thoughts.

"What happened to Hermione was horrific and I do not excuse it, not in any way. In a perfect world, Narcissa or Lucius would have stepped in and not allowed it to happen. But we do not live in a perfect world."

"I don't know if I can forgive her," Remus said honestly.

"I understand that and I am not asking you to," Andromeda said. "As I said, I would never invite her to Teddy's party knowing that Hermione is likely to be there, not to mention Harry and the Weasleys. But we are no longer at war and Cissy would never, ever do anything to hurt Teddy or you. She is aware I would kill her myself if she even tried." Remus looked at the very formidable woman that was his mother-in-law. He had no doubt that she would never let any harm come to Teddy if it were at all in her power to stop it. And Remus truthfully didn't think that Narcissa intended harm to either of them. But he didn't know if he could stand to be in the same room with the woman, knowing what he did.

"May I think about it?" he finally asked.

"Of course," Andromeda said. "Thank you, for listening." Remus nodded.

"I don't like being at odds with you," he said with a smile.

"Do not worry, I will still give you your birthday presents," Andromeda replied with a smirk. Remus chuckled. She sobered. "I do not like arguing with you either."

"Then perhaps we shouldn't do it again," Remus said. Andromeda laughed.

"Somehow, I do not imagine this will be the last time we disagree."

"No, you're likely right about that."

"Then I suppose we must agree to discuss it when we do," she said.

"Agreed," Remus replied. Andromeda reached for his hand, but Remus pulled her into a hug instead. After a few seconds, Andromeda returned it. They were not often demonstrative with each other, but Remus felt this situation warranted it.

"Thank you, Remus, for explaining," she said.

"You as well." He let go of her and then squeezed her arm lightly before turning and leaving the room. He heard the distinct sound of sniffling, but didn't turn around, knowing that Andromeda would likely be cross with him if he did. Smiling, he made his way back to the living room, where he cleaned up Teddy's toys with a wave of his wand and then pulled the novel he had been reading from the shelf, settling in to one of the armchairs to read until Teddy woke from his nap.

1 April 1999

"Are you sure you won't come?" Ginny asked again. Hermione smiled at her friend. Ginny had been given permission to leave the school to spend the day with her family. It was George and Fred's birthday.

"No," Hermione said. "Your family needs to be together today and I don't want Ron to be uncomfortable." Ginny nodded. "Please give George my love though."

"I will," Ginny said. She looked at Hermione, tears in her eyes. Hermione immediately wrapped her in a hug.

"It's going to be all right," Hermione said.

"I know," Ginny sniffled. "I just don't know how George is going to handle this. They loved their birthday."

"I'm sure that had nothing to do with the fact that they were born on April Fool's Day," Hermione said dryly. Ginny laughed and wiped at her tears. "Come on, I'll walk down with you."

"Thanks, Hermione." The two girls left the dorm and crossed through the Common Room. There were only a few students present, most everyone was in class, but Hermione had a free period. They climbed through the portrait hole and walked towards the staircases.

"You're really not going to come home for the Easter hols?" Ginny asked.

"No, too much studying to do," Hermione said. Hermione had elected to remain at Hogwarts during Easter break. She really had no desire to go home to her empty house and while Ginny had told her she was welcome at the Burrow, Hermione didn't feel right about it. Even through Ron was living at Grimmauld with Harry, she knew the boys still went to the Burrow a few times a week for dinner.

She and Ron hadn't spoken since their row in January. Hermione had sat down multiple times and began a letter to him, but she always ended up throwing it away in the end. Everything she would have said, she had already said and she knew from Harry that Ron was still coming to terms with their break-up. There was no need to throw salt in the wound.

"I know this is about Ron, Hermione," Ginny said as they made their way to the Entrance Hall. "You can't avoid him forever."

"I'm not, Gin," Hermione said. Ginny gave her a disbelieving look. "All right, maybe I am, a little. But it's mostly for Ron's benefit." Hermione sighed. "I just don't want to hurt him anymore."

"I understand. But this summer, if I have to drag you to the weekly family dinners, I will," Ginny threatened. Hermione laughed. She knew Ginny wasn't joking.

"I'll be there, I promise."

"Miss Weasley," Professor McGonagall greeted. "Miss Granger."

"Good morning, Professor," Hermione replied.

"I understand you have your Apparition license, Miss Weasley."

"Yes, ma'am," Ginny said.

"Then I will escort you to the gates and you may Apparate from there."

"All right," Ginny said. She turned to Hermione and hugged her again.

"Tell everyone I'm thinking of them," Hermione said.

"I will," Ginny said. She turned back to the professor and the two began to walk towards the front doors when a Patronus interrupted their progress.

"Minerva, your assistance is needed in the Potions lab," Professor Slughorn's Patronus said before it faded away. Professor McGonagall sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose.

"What has Cooper done now?" she muttered.

"I can walk with Ginny, Professor," Hermione volunteered. "I've got a free period now."

"Thank you, Miss Granger," Professor McGonagall said. "Miss Weasley, please give my best to your family."

"Thank you, Professor," Ginny said as the professor swept down the corridor towards the dungeons.

"Isn't Cooper that first year?" Ginny asked. "The one you had to help out of the trick step last week?"

"Yes," Hermione said. "Apparently, he's abysmal at Potions. Even worse than Neville." Ginny laughed.

The two women walked across the grounds, chatting amiably as they made their way towards the front gates. Just as they reached them, there was the crack of Apparition and Hermione jumped as Remus appeared.

"Hello, Remus," Ginny said, glancing meaningfully at Hermione. Hermione rolled her eyes.

"Good morning, Remus," she said.

"Good morning," Remus replied with a smile. "I wasn't expecting a welcoming committee."

"Hermione's the welcoming committee," Ginny said with a smirk. Hermione stifled the urge to stick her tongue out at her friend. "I'm on my way out."

"On a school day?" Remus questioned. Ginny nodded.

"It's George and Fred's birthday," Hermione explained.

"Ah," Remus said in understanding. He put a hand on Ginny's shoulder. "Please let your family know Andromeda and I are thinking of them."

"I will, thank you, Remus." Ginny stepped outside the gates and waved before she turned and Disapparated. Hermione and Remus turned back towards the castle.

"How's Teddy?" Hermione asked as they strolled past the Black Lake.

"He's doing very well, walking and into everything," Remus said fondly. Hermione smiled.

"I've missed him."

"You are coming to his party?" Remus questioned.

"Yes, I wouldn't miss it," Hermione replied.

"Are you staying at the Burrow over the Easter holiday then?"

"No," Hermione said. "I've decided to stay at the castle and do some studying. N.E.W.T.S. aren't too far off." Remus glanced at her from the corner of his eye. He remembered how upset she had been after his exam in her third year when her boggart had been Minerva, telling her she failed everything. He hoped that she wasn't getting too stressed about the upcoming exams. They were important, yes, but Remus had no doubt that Hermione would pass with no problems.

"Are you feeling comfortable with all your subjects?" he asked, hoping to get an indication of her stress level.

"Mostly, yes," she said. "Arithmancy has been challenging this year, but I'm still handling it."

"Do you know what you would like to do after graduation?" Remus asked.

"I'd like to work in the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures," Hermione said immediately. Remus bristled. The werewolf registry was part of that department, as was the werewolf capture unit. He wasn't sure why Hermione wanted to work there. Hermione didn't seem to notice his reaction as she continued talking.

"I really want to start with the House-elves. I know that most of them don't want to be freed, but there should be protections in place so they're not abused by their owners, as well as regulations as to pay and time off." Remus vaguely remembered hearing something about her House-elf campaign in her fourth year.

"But all creatures and beings have rights," she said. "The werewolf laws need to be completely changed as well, not to mention the ridiculous rules regarding goblins and centaurs." Remus found himself smiling. Of course, Hermione was out to change any law she felt wasn't just.

"If anyone can get those things accomplished, it would likely be you," Remus said. Hermione blushed slightly at the compliment. They had reached the steps to the castle and Hermione glanced at her watch as they walked through the front doors.

"I've got to get back to the dorm to pick up my bag before Transfiguration," she said. Remus nodded. "I'll see you at Teddy's party." She waved and hurried off towards the main staircase. Remus watched her go with a smile on his face. The Ministry was going to be lucky to have her.