Author's Note:

Reviews and Comments: To Pottermum: Harry and Ginny and the antidote does seem to be on most people's minds LOL. To AQuickRead91: Happy to help you celebrate with a new chapter! To SeriouslySam: Fred will definitely use "his room" more than he should be for someone who doesn't live there LOL. Remus and Tonks and baby making… soon! Yes, the cryptic Lily message, but what does it mean? Remus making the bed every day is so Remus. Ron is a wee bit jealous of Anthony and am I giving you more Mandy? Hmm… lol. Pansy is very bold and yes, Greg is just losing his mind over them hurting her. To briana_t: What is the task Goyle has agreed to? Him not knowing makes it so much worse, doesn't it? To LovelyLupine: It seems a lot of people have become rather invested in Pansy and Goyle and I'm quite happy about it! Thank you for saying I've changed the narrative on so-called "flat" characters for you. To marauders_mowopapr: Snape definitely had to be cautious about it and yes, I don't think he cared that Harry was suffering much (though I like to think that he felt a tad bad for Ginny). Thank you, I love the idea of Monty and Borage being frenemies because of their potion making rivalries lol. We will see more of the pregnant ones as you call them and more of what Snape is doing about them eventually. To kyciona: Haha, that is everything you need to know about Ginny! She's one tiny girl and yet you should be afraid haha. To JonathanRL: Thanks for catching up and only a sort of cliffhanger haha. To Steelcode: Ginny doesn't give up, that's true, but Ginny being timid isn't quite her either so it gives you something to think about. James and Lily never had a portrait done just because I think they were too young to consider it.

To notthatchhavi: LOVE the long review! Thank you! Am I purposely teasing you… no? Trust me, you'll know when Remus and Tonks realize they are pregnant. Bill is speaking rather slowly, but he will be okay. As to Bill talking about Ginny's soul, I wanted to show the severity of this potion so that we can understand it's more than just her hating Harry, it's changing her. And yes, her brothers know not to anger her indeed LOL! Thank you! I do think Fleur needed to tell Bill that and I like to think that she did off page in the books as well. Remus sometimes is still a little amazed that Dora loves him and he lets his anxiety and fears come to the surface. Um, changing poop filled nappies is a dangerous task. Once I ended up with poop smeared all over my arm — he's wise to ask for help LOL. Is Ginny going to die for Harry to defeat Voldemort or is there a loophole? Well, that all depends doesn't it, on whether or not Harry is still on the same path? As to Tonks, she definitely needs this break and what is the surprise for Remus… I hope something good ;) Hogwarts does have mandrakes, but so does a certain friend as you will see.

To ANewRanger: Thank you! Suspense the normal amount of time lol. To Speedyconzalis: Thank you, I try not to forget my little hints or things that need to be addressed. As to your question about Harry and Ginny losing all of their progress? Yes and no if that makes sense. To Tiyanie: Thank you! And yes, Harry is getting closer to finding a cure for Ginny. To shivani: Thank you! And yes, that Jily fic is amazing! The newest chapter has left me begging for more. To scrappy8: Thank you and I think Ginny knows something is wrong with her and doesn't at the same time. To elin2002: Thank you and I know, I miss Hinny, too. To dessalee: No, I haven't read anything like that and I don't think I would write something like that either, but I do love the Supernatural episode "The French Mistake" where Sam and Dean are sent to an alternate universe where they are actors Jensen Ackles and Jared Padalecki who play Sam and Dean in a tv show called Supernatural — so I guess maybe I'd do something like that?

To Mutt N Feathers: What did Snape leave for Hermione… wait and see. Death Eaters do suck lol. To Guest: Thank you. Ron is very much growing up and I love the Weasley brothers being protective not only over their sister but over each other as well. Angelina and George are definitely great together. Yes, I think it does show how in love Fleur is. Yes, Remus and Tonks will have Teddy soon. Harry does love his siblings and they are a comfort to him. Higgins definitely deserves this chance and I loved the idea of Tonks getting to tell him. Of course I had to add in some jealous Ron! Greg didn't get into trouble with the Dark Lord, but he may be in over his head now. To Chintan: Thank you! Yes, the antidote is being prepared. You're right, I am such a Hinny shipper haha, but I do love that you also consider me unpredictable! To Wolf's scream: Thank you. Ron is much smarter than he's given credit for and ha, Ron might regret that for sure. I agree, Fleur is a strong woman and people often forget that she was a Tri-Wizard Champion and the Goblet wouldn't have picked her if she wasn't capable. I believe good leaders make everything and Kane may be hot-headed, but he knows he needs a team he can count on and their rest is important to ensuring that. Dealing with the devil… well said.

To Ironhidensh: You think Corner will take advantage of the situation? Hmm… To alix33: Thank you! To Nightwing2013: Snape has to be careful with his choices and right now, Greg is now being tasked with something for Voldemort which would make it harder for him to be "rescued." I agree it is true love they share. The chapter was forty-two pages, which seemed quite long to me lol. To Arctoid32: Haha, knowing me and my sadistic tendencies LOL! To Nuno Neves: Thank you! Thanks for appreciating my Harry/Remus chat. To Dianne: Greg should definitely be nervous, I agree, but I was also glad to see him take out the men who hurt his wife. You think Lockhart is climbing up in creepy status? Haha. Yes, true love's kiss would have been too easy, but hey, we gotta give it a try, right? I'm Canadian and we have one year maternity leave for mum's (3 months for dad's) so I just made it one year for the magical world too. Thanks for the lovely review!

To mlhspets: Thank you! Greg was very brave in this chapter! And as to the antidote, wait and see… To ValGrey02: Yay for more Remadora indeed! And I'm happy you think I've made Snape likeable (I'm still on the fence about him myself) LOL. To WinkingSkeever: Harry is slowly moving into the centre of the fight, but there's still a lot to come. To ITHersey: Thank you! No, Harry has never had a passion for Potions, but right now, he is determined to do anything! Will he ask Malfoy for help? We shall see. To wanderinon: Two solid weeks of reading? Well, I think it was worth it! Thank you! To TheRealTonks: Ginny will struggle and we will see that soon.

To GodMisha: Thank you! I love how many people are really loving Greg! I'm honoured you read this story again and I'm glad during the re-read you made the connection to the bloodlust potion with Lily's message. To Sv83: Thank you! I'm honoured you found the story through a facebook page, that's really cool! Thanks for reading! To xXMizz Alec VolturiXx: Thank you and yes, Monty got a portrait to give to Borage solely to annoy him haha! To pix25: Thank you and yes, we do hope the antidote is fast. To tim2604: Thanks for calling the chapter a rollercoaster! Thank you, I'm glad you found the Bleur scene both hot and tender. Will I hold out on my Remadora smut? Well… no lol. Was the Hinny scene soul crushing? Sorry (not sorry) about that. Poor Harry. Haha, I love that you're so attached to Greg and Pansy — you're welcome!

To Cristina: Thank you! You're review was so beautiful and so thoughtful and so heartfelt and I appreciate it more than you know! I do try to not shy away from the dark stuff and I do like to write smut, what can I say? Thank you so much! To Lady Scribat: Thank you!

Thanks to Velvet for her help with my smut here.

I'm quite proud of this Remadora smut and how well it turned out :D

My posting schedule: Weekly.

Thanks to Dusk for her amazing editing skills.

As always, thank you very much for reading and please, please review!

Your reviews give me life! They give me inspiration! And they make me want to keep writing for more than just myself! Thank you for all of your continued support!

CHAPTER TWO-HUNDRED AND EIGHTY:

The One With Henery the Eighth I Am

By the time Theo had finished catching Blaise and Draco up on everything they had missed, the three of them had polished off two bottles of wine each. Blaise kept saying 'bloody hell' under his breath and Draco looked more confused than he had when Theo had shown up in the first place.

They'd spent the next week and a half discussing every aspect of what Theo knew and what the two of them had been up to since they'd up and left England to go on the run. Theo'd been there well over a week when he finally cornered Blaise out by the pool.

"You know, for someone who asks a lot of questions, you've still never confirmed the whole 'your aunt being undercover at Hogwarts for three years' thing?"

Blaise merely tilted his sunglasses down to look at his friend. "What do you want me to say? She was in disguise."

Theo snorted. "I call bullshit on that. You fucking knew that she was a spy!"

Blaise shrugged. "I knew that she was using a false name; other than that, I didn't know that she was a spy."

"Blaise, do you honestly expect me to believe that?"

Blaise stared at him. "Look, I stay out of my family's business as much as possible and they stay out of mine. Did I know that Auntie Donna was there and going by the name Delta Carthaginian? Of course I did, she's my bloody aunt! Did I know why she was using a false name? No. Did I suspect her to be a spy, well, yes, it crossed my mind. Mamma hinted at it a few times, but did I know for certain, no. She never told me. I was simply asked to treat her as any other professor, which I did."

Theo shook his head in disbelief. "I feel like I don't even know you."

"Oh, come off it, Theo!" Blaise exclaimed. "I'm the same bloke you've always known! You know what my family is like! I was practically raised by my grandparents while my mother went from marriage to marriage. Auntie Donna was around here and there, but she was married as well. By the time I started at Hogwarts, my grandparents had died, Auntie Donna was living in Rome with her new husband and Mamma was married to her fourth husband. They don't tell me what's going on! They just tell me what they need me to know. That's for my own safety as well as theirs."

Theo frowned. "But you still knew that she was using a false identity. You should have told Dumbledore at least."

"Theo, has it been that long that you don't remember how dangerous it is to go against your parents? At least parents like ours?"

Theo's brown eyes met his and he swallowed. "You're right, I'm sorry. If my father had ever… I wouldn't have told anyone either."

Blaise nodded. "When I started planning to leave, to get Draco out with me, I thought about it. I had planned to let Dumbledore know in some way or another, but then everything went to shit with Finn and… frankly, it was the last thing on my mind. I didn't know that she planned on kidnapping Dumbledore."

"But you did know something," Theo prompted.

Blaise sighed. "I suspected. Mamma hinted more than once that Auntie Donna was going to be part of something big before the end of the year. I didn't know what and I don't know if my mother truly knew what either, but there was something. I don't even think Snape knew her true identity."

"Why?"

"Auntie Donna has always been very… strange. She loves to be the centre of attention and she and my mother were always vying for the spotlight. They're half-sisters, you know. They share the same father, but have different mothers. My grandmother was raising my Auntie Donna when my grandfather apparently had an affair with an Arabian princess. She was said to be the most beautiful woman in the world. She died while giving birth to my mother and my grandmother raised both daughters as sisters, they were only two years apart, but everyone knew Bellarosa was so much more beautiful."

"Your aunt was jealous?"

Blaise nodded. "That's how the story goes. They were as thick as thieves, yet they were constantly fighting over men. When Antonio Zabini chose my mother over my aunt, there was apparently a big fight and my aunt ended up marrying an old widower named Porzio. He died six months later rather mysteriously and left her with a fortune."

Theo raised an eyebrow. "Sounds familiar."

Blaise shrugged. "I don't know, she could have killed him, but I don't know. Her second husband, Carthaginian, was much younger. She gave him a daughter, but something happened and they were both killed in the summer of 1981. Mamma claims that my aunt was never right after that."

"How did they die?"

"I don't know the details. All I know is that they were in England and there was a fight and they were killed. She's always blamed Dumbledore for it."

"That's a long time to plan revenge," Theo whispered.

Blaise shrugged. "Like I said, we're not close, Theo, and from what I do know about her, I know it's a lot better to stay as far away from her as possible. Look, I made my choice when I took the Dark Mark and I knew from that moment that I would either drag Draco running with me or I would die trying. I don't want that life. I wasn't born this good-looking and intelligent to fight for my life, Theo. I love you and that arsehole more than anything or anyone else in this world, but I want to live. I'm not bloody going back."

Theo watched his friend head out to lounge by the pool and sighed. He wanted to chase his friend down, to demand that he return with him, but he couldn't. Blaise was right. He had run away for a reason and it wasn't right for Theo to ask him to come back for any reason that wasn't his own.

He kept his eyes on Blaise as he dove into the pool to swim next to Draco before he closed his eyes. As much as he wanted to stay here safely with them, he knew that he had chosen his path as well.

And he needed to go home to finish it.

~ ASC ~

Crouch stood by the door of the dungeon cell as he watched the Dark Lord systematically torture Albus Dumbledore. It had been hours every day for two weeks now and yet the old man still hadn't caved. Crouch was almost jealous of the man's ability to withstand it.

The Dark Lord had most definitely not gone easy on him.

But today, today was extra special, for Snape had finally finished brewing the potion. The potion had been simmering for three days before Snape declared it was ready. The liquid shone in a beautiful coral blue and smelt of rotting flesh. The final ingredient, the horn of the ice dragon, had been added just the other day, giving the potion its lustrous colour and glow. Crouch inhaled the fumes of it with a big smile on his face.

"It looks magnificent, my Lord."

Voldemort inspected the potion. "You're sure it's ready, Severus."

"Yes, my Lord. I did everything that Dragomir said. It looks and smells as he proclaimed it would."

Voldemort nodded, his red eyes gleaming in excitement. "Bart, if this doesn't work the way Dragomir claims it would, you can kill him, any way that you'd like."

Crouch's smile widened as he giggled. "Thank you, my Lord!"

Snape carefully filled a glass with the potion and passed it to Voldemort. "You must make him drink it."

"That won't be a problem," Voldemort said, accepting the glass and heading downstairs to the dungeons.

Crouch followed in excitement, opening the door for his master as they stepped into the cell. Dumbledore was still chained to the wall and to the floor, looking dirtier and older than ever. Dried blood was in his beard and on his hands and feet, but his blue eyes met theirs the moment they entered.

Voldemort crouched down to meet his eyes. "I've brought you something."

Dumbledore's eyes flicked to the potion. "Come now, Tom, do you really think that I'm going to drink that?"

Voldemort's thin lips curved. "Willingly? No."

Crouch's wand flicked and Dumbledore flung up from the floor, slamming into the stone wall as the chains pulled and tugged to hold him spread-eagled against the stone. His wand moved again and Dumbledore's mouth slowly was forced open as he attempted to struggle.

Voldemort smiled. "See? Look how easily you submit to me."

The runes carved into the stone rattled Dumbledore's chains and for a moment, magic sparked at his fingertips. Voldemort's eyes widened as Crouch flew back into the wall in a shock of power that could only have come from the wandless wizard before them. Dumbledore fell from the wall, landing on his knees, the chains rattling around him before those piercing blue eyes met his through his crooked half-moon spectacles.

"You won't hold me here forever, Tom."

If Voldemort was surprised by the fact that Dumbledore had just performed an impressive feat of wandless magic, he didn't respond. Instead, he used the Cruciatus. It was enough to weaken the headmaster and enough for him to string him back up against the wall.

Dumbledore panted, a little vomit spilling into his beard, and Voldemort sneered. He snapped his fingers and Crouch hurried forward, prying open Dumbledore's mouth and Voldemort poured the entire contents of the potion down the old man's throat. He choked, but Crouch held his mouth closed, forcing him to swallow it. When the last of the potion disappeared, Dumbledore's blue eyes looked tired.

"Now, we wait," Voldemort said, stepping away from him. "Bart, make our guest more comfortable."

Crouch snickered as he tightened the chains, forcing Dumbledore's arms up over his head once more as his toes dangled off the stone floor. Crouch conjured a chair for Voldemort to sit in and he did, twirling his wand between his long fingers and stared at Dumbledore.

Crouch wasn't entirely sure what they were waiting for to happen. He knew the runes, the chains, the symbols that Belladonna had carved into his office floor had systematically weakened the old wizard. His magic had slowly been ebbing away, frozen and just out of his reach. But Dumbledore wasn't called the greatest wizard of his time for any old reason. He still had magic as they'd seen and sometimes, he was able to flare it. He was able to do things.

Twice he had caused two or more of the runes to crack and once he'd even managed to break the chains. Thankfully, the other warding had weakened him enough that they were able to easily put him back in place. He knew that this potion was going to take away the last of that power.

Crouch watched in amazement as the blue veins in Dumbledore's skin began to rise to the surface, pulsing and seemingly shocking him from the inside. His eyes rolled into the back of his head as his body convulsed. White bubbles emerged at his mouth as he shook and magic sparked from his fingertips, from his toes, and even from the tips of his hair.

When the veins started to turn red, Voldemort smiled and approached him. He placed his hands on either side of Dumbledore's face and his lips curved.

"Oh, yes," he whispered.

Then a blazing ball of red light swished around both of them, encasing them in a glowing ball of energy that had Crouch shouting in concern for Voldemort. The red light blazed brighter and brighter until it became so blinding that Crouch was forced to look away a moment before it vanished.

Voldemort was kneeling on the floor before Dumbledore, his hands glowing red and his eyes surging. Dumbledore was limp in the chains, his hair thinner and whiter than before, his skin wrinkled as if he'd aged another hundred years. His broken glasses were crooked on his nose as his fingers twitched in the chains.

"I feel it," Voldemort whispered. "I can feel the power growing within me."

"The power, my Lord?"

Voldemort's lips curved before he hurried from the dungeons, his cloak billowing out behind him.

Crouch's eyes were on Dumbledore, not entirely sure what had just happened.

Dumbledore's breath was ragged as he spoke. "It won't last."

"What? What are you whispering about over there, old man?"

Dumbledore's blue eyes locked on his. "He thinks that he took my power and… perhaps he did, but it won't last. The more… magic a wizard has… the faster he… burns through it."

"What does that mean?"

But Dumbledore slumped against the chains in exhaustion and Crouch was left staring out at where his master had disappeared, wondering what exactly had just happened.

~ ASC ~

Remus returned home that evening just after six. In between checking on Harry, Zee, and the twins, he was spending most of his time at Hogwarts. He and Flitwick had finished fixing the castle and assisted McGonagall in getting things in order. They checked on Fawkes, watching the phoenix grow a bit more day by day, still not sure what would happen when Fawkes was fully grown once more. With Dumbledore still missing, McGonagall had taken on the responsibilities of Headmistress; Flitwick and Remus were doing what they could to do her job as Deputy Heads in return. He hadn't realized how much work went into organizing the Hogwarts letters and making sure that all potential students had a valid address. The students who were Muggleborn were all assigned a caretaker to deliver the letter personally and talk to the parents.

It was a lot of work.

He saw his wife's holster and badge by the door and it made him smile. He couldn't remember the last time that Tonks had been home before the early morning. He started to call out to her before he saw the pink hair sitting in the chair by the front window. He kicked off his shoes just as she stood up and he swallowed.

She wore skimpy lingerie that showcased her long legs, made her breasts look fuller and enticing.

"Well, this is definitely what I want to come home to every night. Nymphadora, you're a vision."

She smiled, making her hair seem a more vibrant pink to match her outfit. "I have a surprise."

His eyebrow rose. "This isn't the surprise?"

She shook her head. "Nope."

Remus took a step towards her. "What do I owe this surprise?"

"Our team was sent home with orders not to return until Monday morning. Apparently we're overworked."

"I'll say," he muttered. "About damn time on King's part."

"It was actually Kane," Tonks told him. "He ordered us out. So, I came home and I slept all day and then I woke up about an hour ago, showered, and decided to wait for you dressed like this."

Remus let his eyes move down her body again. The bright pink outfit making his heart race. "I have no complaints about this."

She grinned and crooked her finger at him. He took a step towards her, his hands on her hips, and she linked her arms around his neck.

"Since I'm going to be home for the weekend, I thought that I would bring out the surprise. It's been ages since we've made love."

Remus' lips brushed her ear. "And what do you call our shower activities yesterday morning?"

Tonks' lips curved. "Foreplay. And I meant made love properly. Not just a quickie here and there."

He followed her into the bedroom, his eyes on the sway of her arse in the pink lace, the pink bow at the top making him lick his lips. He had never really considered himself much of a lingerie lover, but seeing his wife all trussed up for him did things to him that he couldn't describe. She knelt on their bed, her grey eyes twinkling.

"Take off your clothes. Slowly, Mr Lupin."

Remus' lips curved, but he did as she asked. When his last article of clothing hit the floor, her eyes travelled over him in lust before she crooked her finger at him. He knelt on the bed next to her and took her mouth. Tonks leaned into the kiss, her fingers in his hair as one hand slid around to cup his behind. Her palm slid over his cheek and down between his legs to squeeze lightly.

Remus nipped at her mouth. "Being a tease isn't nice, Nymphadora."

Her eyes twinkled and his lips moved down her throat. His warm hands gripped her breasts, massaging them as he kissed the swells over the bright pink lace; kissing and fondling until those sweet pink nipples rose over the lace. When his mouth wrapped around one of them, she whimpered, her fingers moving into his hair. He sucked each nipple, taking his time as he moved over each one tenderly. By the time her bra fell on the bed next to them, both were taut and swollen from his mouth.

His fingers danced down her stomach and when he touched the edge of the lace, she placed her hand over his and pushed him off.

Remus groaned as Tonks scrambled off the bed in nothing but the pink knickers. "You'll be the death of me."

She grinned, turning to show him the lovely pink bow on the top of her arse. "So you keep telling me. Every day, two hours a day for the last week, I've been wearing these. It's been a struggle to do so without you realizing."

His eyebrow rose. "Pink knickers?"

"Yes, with something else."

Remus let his eyes wander over her body. Other than the necklace, her belly button ring, and her wedding band, she wore nothing but the knickers. He watched as she turned around again and then slowly lowered her knickers to the ground. The sight of the toy in her arse almost made him come on the spot.

"Nymphadora!" he exclaimed in shock, his cock throbbing at the sight before him.

Tonks snuck a look over her shoulder before she smirked at him. "I want you to fill me, Remus. I want you to fill me until I scream; to shag me until I see stars. But I knew that I needed to be ready for that broadsword, so I've been practicing."

Remus' heart was beating so fast that he thought she might be able to see it coming out of his chest. "Practicing?"

"Preparing," she corrected, clutching the heartbeat necklace in her hand with a knowing smile.

Then she reached behind her and pulled it out. The sheer size of it made him jump off the bed. It hit the floor as he grabbed her, pulling her up against him. He gripped her arse in both of his hands and squeezed. His fingers continued to massage her behind as his mouth moulded to hers.

"Wait," she whispered against his lips. She passed him the bottle of lube that was on the bed and he almost whimpered when she uncorked it and began to rub the lubricant over him.

"Dora…"

Tonks' eyes only twinkled at him before she rubbed it on his fingers as well. "Touch me, Remus."

Remus practically threw her back onto the bed. His mouth met hers as his hands went everywhere and when she merely slipped from his arms and stretched out horizontal across the bed, lying on her stomach, he groaned.

Remus trailed a finger down her spine, letting his lips follow. He kissed the dimple at the top of her arse before he let his lips slip over her cheeks, nipping and kissing, softly biting her as she panted. His fingers brushed through her folds and the whimper she made at his touch made his cock throb painfully. The wet warmth of her was enough to almost do him in as he brushed his lips over her arse. Merlin, it had been ages since he'd had time to make love to her properly. To enjoy her the way he wanted. He kissed each dimple, letting his tongue tease her skin; soft kisses over each cheek as two fingers slid in and out of that wet warmth.

"You really want me to take you here?" he whispered, a finger slipping into her arse as his other hand continued to play between her legs. "Oh Godric, you're so ready..."

Tonks' eyes met his over her shoulder. "Fuck me, Remus."

One hand gripped her hip, the other a breast as he pinned her face down into the mattress. He positioned himself over her, his cock teasing along the edge of her arse and she moaned.

"Yes, I want you," she begged. "I want you, Rem. Please."

The 'please' did him in. He glided his tip along the edge of her and then he slowly slid into her. The sensation was new. She was tighter and it felt different, but it felt good. It felt so damn good. Tonks was clearly feeling the same thing because she whimpered beneath him.

"Is this okay?" he murmured, doing his best to keep himself steady.

"Mmm, feels good," she said. "Deeper! I want all of you."

He groaned, but did as she asked. He ignored his body's urging to push in quickly. Instead, he took his time, slowing pumping, each thrust moving himself a little more into her. He was almost three quarters of the way in when she stiffened and he stopped. He held himself in check, letting a hand slip around to stroke her nipple in his fingers, his other hand reaching down to stroke her clit and she gasped, shuddering beneath him.

"Want me to stop?"

Tonks shook her head, fingers clutching the pillow under her head. "No, don't stop. I want all of you." Her breath hitched when he pushed himself into her a little more.

"Dora… I don't want to hurt you," he whispered, his voice strained.

Tonks shook her head again. "You're not. Keep going."

When he was finally fully sheathed inside of her, he groaned. "Merlin, this is... you're so tight."

"Good tight?" she asked, her voice husky in pleasure.

All Remus could do was nod. And then she wiggled her butt and he swore.

"Are you going to fuck me or what?" she demanded.

He squeezed her nipple, his other hand rubbing her clit as he began to do just that. Slow, deep strokes that drove them both crazy. He rubbed her clit with his thumb, his fingers slipping into her in the same rhythm as his heavy balls smacked her behind with every thrust.

"Yes! Oh, Remus! Oh, Remus, I'm so full! I'm… more… more… more…" she breathed.

The orgasm built within her and within himself as he increased his speed. She was wantonly moaning, her hair changing colours in every blink and he lost it completely. He screamed her name as he came, riding that sweet arse into oblivion and took her with him.

When he finally opened his eyes in what could have been years later, it was dark in their room. A glance at the clock told him he'd slept at least two hours after their vigorous activity and that Tonks had taken the time to perform a quick cleansing charm on them both. He rubbed two fingers along her shoulder and down her arm and watched her beautiful grey eyes flutter up at him.

"Hey."

"Wotcher," she said back, a soft smile on her face.

"You okay?"

Tonks nodded, her cheeks flushed. "More than okay."

Remus kissed her forehead tenderly. "That was…"

"I liked it," she whispered.

His lips curved. "You did, huh?"

Tonks nodded, leaning in to nuzzle his neck. "I didn't know it would feel so good to have you there. But the feel of you coming apart with your fingers on my clit was just… I'm pretty sure I died and came back to life."

Remus chuckled. "I can assure you, you didn't die."

"I saw stars and bright lights," she told him.

He kissed her lips. "I'll take that as a compliment. I'd say it was a little more tiring than we're used to. We slept over two hours."

"And missed dinner," she said.

"Want me to make you some food?" he asked, his fingers still running up and down her arm in a steady comforting rhythm.

Tonks shook her head. "No, I can wait until the morning." She rolled on top of him, kissing his neck and his shoulders before her fingers began to tease his nipples. "I'm hungry for something else right now."

"You're sure that I didn't hurt you?" he asked, still feeling amazed that she had let him do that.

"Oh, I'm sore," she admitted. "I don't think I'm ready for round two on my backside any time soon, but it was totally worth it. It was… I liked it. No, I really liked it."

Remus' smile was slow. "You are a vixen."

Tonks reached under the pillow to pick up a red lace belt attached to red crotchless knickers. "You don't know the half of it."

Remus' eyes fell upon the belt and his eyes widened when he saw what was attached to it.

"Fucking hell!"

She licked her lips and bent to suck his nipple into her mouth. "You see, this place we went to, I could design it. And it's the exact shape and size…" Her tongue swept over his nipple as her hand slid down to grip him and he gasped.

"Nymphadora..."

Tonks' eyes met his as her hand slid over his balls and beneath him. "You like it when I put my finger there, don't you?"

The sound he made when her fingertip teased him was enough to make her smile in satisfaction.

Remus grabbed her by the back of her neck and dragged her up to kiss her. "And you?"

"It has this charm on it so that when I fuck you, it rubs my clit."

His eyes darkened and then he flipped her onto her back and used his mouth on her. Slow swipes designed to drive her mad as he savoured her. She dropped the belt, her hands fisting in his hair as his tongue ravaged her.

"Remus… oh, fuck… don't stop! Don't stop! Don't… yes! Yes! Yes!"

He twirled his tongue, flicking her clit and she cried out, hips arching as her head fell back against the pillows. When her clit was in his mouth, she moaned loudly and when he suckled, she exploded beneath him.

"Rem! Oh, gods, yes! Yes! Yes!"

Remus dragged his tongue up her stomach to circle a nipple before he kissed her throat. "Put it on."

Tonks was still trying to catch her breath from the mind blowing orgasm that he had just given her. He continued to plant soft kisses over her skin and she let him. When she finally sat up, his eyes were molten gold. She knelt on the bed before she carefully slipped the belt and knickers on, clipping it into place and his eyes were on the large dildo that hung from it. When his wife summoned the lube towards her, he kissed her again. Then he lay on his stomach and Tonks licked her lips.

She took her time, rubbing and kissing his fine arse, massaging him, dipping between his legs to fondle his sack as he made appreciative noises beneath her. By the time her finger found him, he was already almost ready for her. She took her time, spreading lube everywhere and then she covered it over the shaft, her eyes on her husband. She added a second finger and he stiffened before he relaxed and let her work him over.

Tonks let her nails tease his balls as her fingers moved in and out of him with increasing speed.

"Fuck," he murmured. "Fuck, that feels…"

"What?" she asked, pressing a kiss to the centre of his back. "How does it feel?"

Remus wasn't sure how to put it into words. It was like this pleasurable sensation spreading through his body and affecting his cock in a way that he didn't know was possible. Tonks was always teasing him with her fingers, with her tongue… Merlin, he rather loved it when she used her tongue on his arse, but it had never been like this, never quite like this…

"Good, it feels bloody good."

Tonks kissed his back again before she slid her fingers out of him. "Remus... I think I'm ready."

He snuck a look over his shoulder and smirked. "So am I."

Remus carefully maneuvered one of their pillows beneath his groin before he turned his head to the left, resting it on the bed. He kept his eyes on his wife, watching as best as he could from his position as she positioned herself over him. He watched those lovely hands take the large dildo between them and he swallowed.

He was nervous he realized, and a little worried. But he trusted her completely and he realized that he wanted this. He wanted it more than he had ever imagined. He watched her pull her bottom lip between her teeth as she straddled him and then she used her hands to slowly tease the tip along his arse.

"Okay?"

"Yes," he assured her, biting back a moan.

She teased him once more before she used her fingers to spread him a little and then she slowly pushed into him. She moved achingly slow, letting him adjust to it, and when he only urged her on, she did. She watched in amazement as he took it, inch by inch. He stiffened a few times and she would stop before he urged her forward. But stopping was harder than she anticipated. With every thrust forward, her clit was taken over by pleasure. She wondered if this was what it felt like for a man, to be so overcome by pleasure that stopping practically hurt.

"More, Dora," he moaned and she began to increase her movements.

It was unlike anything she had ever done before. It was a new sensation for her to be the one touching him this way. She looked down in amazement as she moved her hips and the toy moved in and out of her husband's arse. The sight turned her on more than she expected and she found herself moving faster. She slipped out a few times in excitement, but once she caught her rhythm, she was crying out and to her delight, so was Remus.

With every thrust forward, a delicious vibration would flutter across her clit and the faster her rhythm, the more constant the vibration until she could barely breathe. She slid her hands up her stomach to cup her breasts, teasing her nipples as she rode him harder and harder.

"Rem," she moaned. "Oh, Rem."

Remus grunted beneath her. "Keep going, love. Keep… fuck, Dora, fuck! Fuck! Fuucckkk!"

She looked down as his hands fisted into the bed sheets and she leaned forward, her taut nipples brushing his back as she rode him. The vibrations became more closely spaced and her breath quickened.

"I'm so close," she panted.

She rubbed her nipples against his back, her hand slipping behind her between their legs to rub his balls and the charm quickened, staying in one long never ending vibration that sent her over the edge. Her hips moved faster as she shagged him and when she came, she screamed in ecstasy.

Tonks was still coming down from her high, when Remus flipped her over and buried himself deep within her. The large belted dildo bounced between them as he sheathed himself inside of her over and over again. He pulled out, the tip of his large cock teasing her sensitive clit as she panted before he slid right back into her and it only took a few powerful thrusts before he was coming, crying her name as he did, and they collapsed on each other, panting.

It was almost ten full minutes before Tonks spoke.

"That was... wow."

Remus nodded, his heart still racing. He was still buried inside of her and positive that he was crushing her, but he couldn't move. "I'll say."

Tonks snuggled into his shoulder. "Has anyone ever...?"

He finally found the energy to lift his head as he looked down at her in amusement. Her cheeks were flushed and she was biting her bottom lip. "Has anyone ever fucked me up the bum before? No, Nymphadora, you were the first one to bugger me."

She grinned devilishly. "Good."

Remus kissed her deeply, rolling her with him until she was snuggled on top. He made no effort to extricate himself from her. "And I fucking liked it."

Tonks arched her head back as he feasted on her throat. "So did I."

"But," Remus began, his lips on her skin. "I want to be the one to make you come."

"You did. Three times," she said, cheekily.

His whiskey eyes twinkled. "Twice. The last one was that blasted toy and Nymphadora, as lovely as it was to watch the charms work on you, your orgasms are mine. I want them all. On my tongue, on my fingers, around my cock. Mine."

She gasped when his thumb slid down to stroke over her. "I... I... oh yes..."

Then he was sliding her up his body, spreading her thighs as he held her over his face and using his tongue. By the time she finished coming, she was exhausted. And she let her husband wrap her in his arms as she saw that it was already after midnight. She snuggled into his warm embrace and her last thought before sleep overcame her was that this weekend off was exactly what they both needed.

~ ASC ~

It was barely three in the morning when the mirror woke him, but Remus grabbed it off of his nightstand. With a smile, he snuck a look at his sleeping wife before he took the mirror into the living room to answer it.

"Harry? You all right?"

Harry's hair looked extra dishevelled in the mirror as he nodded. "Nan and Pop are back. I'm at Clevedon Court and Uncle Rem, I think we know how to brew the antidote. Can you come?"

Remus was surprised by the sudden turn of events but he nodded. "Yes, of course. Where's Zee?"

"I'm calling her next. I know that she'll want to be here."

Remus nodded. "I'll swing by and get her first. Monty knows how to brew it then?"

Harry shrugged. "With some help from an old friend and Hermione's on her way, Dobby's bringing her."

When the mirror went blank in his hand, Remus frowned. He had no idea what that meant, but the excitement in his son's eyes told him that they were clearly on the right track. He headed back into the bedroom to find some clothes, wincing slightly. Clearly the activities he and Tonks had gotten up to had made him a little tender. He kissed the back of her neck softly before he wrote her a quick note.

He knew that she would want to be updated, but it was late. She needed to sleep. This was supposed to be her days of rest and he hadn't exactly given her an evening of rest. He left the note on the nightstand and then he grabbed his wand and put on his shoes before he Disapparated to Black Cottage. He let himself in and sent his Patronus upstairs to wake Zee, not wanting to startle her.

She came down the stairs, closing her robe a moment later. Her hair was a curly mess around her head. "Remus?"

"Hey. Harry's at Clevedon Court and he thinks that he has a way to get the antidote started."

Zee's eyes widened in surprise. "That's great news!"

"I'm heading over there now and I thought that you'd like to join me. I left Dora in bed as she needs the sleep, but I expect she'll be joining us in the morning."

Zee nodded. "Yes, I want to be there. Let me just change. I'll get Kreacher to stay with Mina and Leo until they wake in the morning."

"Where's your mother?"

"I don't want to wake her at three in the morning," Zee told him. "I'll get her here first thing."

Remus nodded as he watched her hurry upstairs to dress. Her parents were supposed to have left weeks ago, but with the sudden turn of events, they had opted to stay in England a few weeks longer. Remus knew that Misha had to be back at work and had been taking an international portkey every other day so that he could be there for Harry and Zee, but he wasn't sure what Sorcha's plan was in the near future for them returning to Moscow.

Ten minutes later, Kreacher had arrived to keep an eye on the twins and Remus and Zee were running up the walk of Clevedon Court. They found Harry in the drawing room off the library with Hermione. A pewter cauldron sat on a small table and Fleamont was barking instructions at them.

"Monty," Remus said. "What's going on?"

"Remus, excellent!" Fleamont exclaimed. "You must go to the Ministry of Magic and get Borage. He should be arriving by portkey in the next thirty minutes. Bring him straight here."

Remus raised an eyebrow. "Borage, as in… the Brazilian Potioneer?"

Fleamont nodded. "Yes, the Brazilian Potioneer. Harry, I thought you said that he was a professor? Remus, listen."

Remus grinned. "It is half past three in the morning, Monty, I apologize if I'm not at the top of my game. Okay, I'm going to get Borage. Anything else?"

Harry shook his head. "No, we got this."

Remus exchanged a look with Zee before he turned to go and Harry turned to Hermione.

"Tell me again where you found this?"

"I told you, Harry, a silver doe Patronus led me to it. It was in a secret compartment of Snape's desk."

Harry frowned. "And we're going to trust it?"

Hermione rolled her eyes. "When will you realize that Snape has been trying to help us? He was working with Slughorn on this potion and this is what he considers to be the antidote!"

"The doe… it was his Patronus," Harry said as he realized what his friend was saying. "It's… my mum's Patronus was a doe so, it had to belong to Snape, right?"

Hermione nodded. "That's what I've been saying. He led me straight to it, Harry. Why would he lead me to the antidote if he didn't want us to use it?"

Harry looked down at the cramped writing of his Potions professor. "I won't use it unless this Mr Borage agrees that it's the right one. I won't risk doing anything that will hurt her more."

"On that we agree," Hermione told him. She turned to look at the portrait. "Mr Potter, do you have any Potions ingredients here that we can use?"

"A few," he told her. "But you'll need fresh ones. Darby will be able to get them for you, but first you're going to need stewed Mandrakes and those are not easy to come by this time of year."

Harry tapped his fingers on the table and he nodded. "I know how to get them."

~ ASC ~

Neville woke to the mirror vibrating on his wardrobe and he stubbed his toe, climbing out of bed with his eyes still half closed to grab it.

"'Lo?"

"Nev! Great! I need stewed Mandrakes like yesterday! Please tell me you still have the Mandrake plants in your greenhouse?"

Neville blinked at the sight of Harry in the mirror before he looked up at the clock. It read half past three and he yawned. "Harry, it's half past three in the bleeding morning."

"It's for the antidote, Neville," Hermione said, her face appearing in the mirror.

Neville blinked again, starting to slowly wake up as he realized what they were saying. "For the… Mandrakes, yes. I have eight different plants, each in various stages of puberty. Do you have a preference?"

An unfamiliar voice in the background mentioned that they needed to be fully grown.

"Fully grown," Harry said.

"How many?" Neville asked him.

Harry blinked. "At least four. Zee's coming to get them from you."

Neville nodded as the mirror went blank. He tossed it onto his bed and rubbed his tired eyes. Apparently he needed to find some mandrakes.

~ ASC ~

Remus covered his mouth with his hand to stifle his yawn as he waited in the Portkey Office of the Ministry of Magic. The wizard at the front desk had given him a strange look when he informed him that he was waiting on a portkey from Brazil.

"You know that it's just past midnight there, mate? Why would anyone want to arrive in England at four in the bleeding morning?"

"He's coming now for twenty after," Remus told him. "Regardless of the time."

The wizard looked skeptical just as a witch opened the door. "Portkey arriving from the Brazilian Ministry in ten minutes."

Remus nodded and the wizard swore under his breath.

"Bleeding insanity."

Remus chose not to comment. Exactly ten minutes later, a tall, thin wizard appeared in his late nineties. His hair was snow white, but he had thick bushy black eyebrows streaked in grey and a pointed snow white goatee making him look a little like a billy goat. His eyes fell on Remus and the deep brown of them narrowed.

"I'll kill him."

Remus raised an eyebrow. "Kill who?"

"Fleamont Potter of course!" The man exclaimed, extending his hand. "Libatius Borage, Potioneer."

"Remus Lupin. I'm afraid Monty died quite a while ago now."

"Doesn't mean I can't set his damn portrait on fire!" Borage replied, bitterly.

The wizard stamped his passport, giving him an odd look as Remus thanked him and led the man out towards the lifts.

"Look, I don't know what Monty did to get you here, but I can assure you, Mr Borage, we very much appreciate it. You're the best there is and we can really use your help on this."

Borage nodded. "I admit, I am intrigued. It's been a long time since I've seen the likes of a bloodlust potion come into play. But I am an old man and I was asleep next to my wife when that portrait started demanding my help! I could hear it yelling from my office so I ran in there so as not to disturb my wife, and listened to his reasoning. I told him that I would consider it in the morning and do you know what that mad man did?"

"No," Remus admitted, intrigued.

"His portrait sang 'Henery the Eighth, I Am' as loudly as possible for a goddamn hour! He wouldn't shut up! He woke my poor Lara, who has trouble falling asleep these days as it is!"

Remus bit back a chuckle. "Well, Monty wanted to make sure you came. You see, the bloodlust potion was administered to his grandson's girlfriend, and being a portrait, there's only so much that Monty can do himself."

"Humph!"

Remus took Borage's arm once they were out of the Ministry and Apparated them to Somerset. The old man bit back a yawn as they headed down the path and up to the Potter home. Darby let them in and Dobby greeted them with a wide smile promising to bring coffee and breakfast.

Borage followed Remus into the drawing room, his eyes on the portrait of Fleamont and Euphemia and he glowered.

"I'm here, Potter."

Fleamont grinned. "Excellent! I knew that you'd come around!"

"How did you convince him to come, dear?" Euphemia asked.

Fleamont shrugged. "Oh, we just came to an understanding is all."

Borage snorted. "And he sang like a goddamn lunatic for an hour!"

"You sang?" Harry asked in amazement.

"Just an old diddy I've always loved," Fleamont said, an amused expression on his face. "You know, 'I'm Henery The Eighth, I Am! Henery The Eighth, I am, I am! I got married to the widow next door, she's been married seven times before. And ev'ryone was a Henery, she wouldn't have Willie or a Sam. I'm her eighth old man named Henery,

Henery the Eighth, I am!'"

"Trust me," Borage exclaimed over the boisterous singing. "I've heard enough of that 'old diddy' to last me a lifetime. You always were a complete idiot."

"More brilliant than you, you crabby old wanker!"

"Excuse me, who called who in for help?"

"Who corrected all of your mistakes in that Draught of the Living Death fiasco of '47?"

"I didn't make any mistakes! Just because you thought I should stir one extra time doesn't mean that it was wrong!"

"Doesn't make it right, either," Fleamont exclaimed.

"And I saved your ass in '52 when that potion from your warehouse was turning everyone's hair blue!"

"That was a production error and you didn't save me, you merely assisted in finding the culprit!"

Borage looked outraged. "Are you going to tell me now that I didn't help you brew the best damn Dawdle Drought you've ever made in '56 to help one of your father's old friends in the Auror Department?"

"Well, that was… so, you helped once, big deal!"

"And here I am again, out of the goodness of my heart, here to help your grandson even though his grandfather is a pain in my ass!"

"You're a wanker! I could brew a better potion in my sleep than you could in your prime!"

A loud whistle made them both turn to look at Euphemia.

"Merlin help me! You two are worse than children! Now, Harry needs our help! Can you two please act like responsible adults for two bloody minutes?"

Borage shoved his hands into his pockets and turned to look at Harry. "I apologize. I was rather rudely awoken just before midnight due to that awful song and your grandfather's ugly face, forgive me."

"Ugly!" Fleamont exclaimed. "Have you looked in the mirror mmph —"

Remus bit his lip in amusement as Euphemia clamped her hand over her husband's mouth.

Harry smiled at Borage. "I really appreciate you coming, Sir. The potion was given to my girlfriend over two weeks ago now, on the thirtieth of June and I've come to understand that there's a time limit on these kinds of things."

"Yes," Borage said, sitting the chair Dobby offered him with a grateful nod towards the elf. "Usually we have three months, but depending on the witch or wizard, that could change. What do we know so far?"

Harry quickly explained how she'd first attacked him and how it had altered her memories of him. He told him how he'd gone over there yesterday afternoon and attempted to break it out of her only for her to bite him. Borage only nodded.

"Yes, that is a problem."

"I said it wasn't a real breakthrough," Hermione interrupted. "I know Harry wants to think that it worked, but the fact that she was timid… trust me, Mr Borage, Ginny Weasley is someone who is never timid. I think it was part of the manipulation to get to him."

"Sadly, I agree," Borage said. "The connection that you speak of between the two of you, you say that its broken strong magical barriers before?"

Harry nodded. "Well, not barriers exactly, but once I was under a love potion and when she was near me it was the only time that I was lucid enough to know something wasn't right. Then, the first time I ever saw Veela, she broke me from the trance."

Borage's bushy eyebrows came together. "Almas gêmeas perfeitas."

"What does that mean?" Harry asked.

Borage gave him a small smile as he stroked his goatee. "Just an old saying when two lovers have that kind of connection. Tell me, Harry, have you and she… consummated your relationship?"

Harry's cheeks flushed. "Excuse me?"

"I don't mean to embarrass you," he said quickly. "It's just that with a connection such as yours, it is often intensified when you become lovers. It would mean that the potion would be that much stronger against you if it were true."

Harry tried to pretend that Remus, Zee, Hermione, and his grandparents weren't all looking at him as he spoke, rubbing the back of his neck as it heated. "No. We're… um, we're both virgins."

Borage nodded. "All right. That's a good start. Now, what do we have so far?"

Fleamont spoke from behind him. "I have them boiling water with a chunk of ginseng root and Saint John's wort. They will create a nice base and help counter the rage that Ginny is feeling under the bloodlust."

"Good, good," Borage said, absently. "We're going to need stewed Mandrakes of course."

"Here," Harry said. "I've only just put them in the second cauldron to stew."

Borage looked pleased. "Excellent. Now, let's talk ingredients. What do we know about the potion itself?"

Hermione handed him the parchment. "This is what we gathered the ingredients to be. The ones with question marks are where we aren't sure. I also have this. It's a potential antidote to this particular bloodlust potion."

Borage squinted down at the small cramped writing before he looked over the potion ingredients again. He read them both over five times before he looked up at them with a smile.

"This will do nicely." He flicked his wand at the cauldron of stewing Mandrakes, making the flame hotter. "Now, I'd love a few egg tarts and a nice cup of hot coffee, black. This is going to take a while."

"An egg tart?" Harry asked.

"Rosa remembers how Mr Borage likes his breakfast, Master Harry," the elf said from behind him, curtsying before she disappeared.

Borage smiled. "Excellent! Once we get the Mandrakes stewed and into the pot we can discuss where we're going to find the venom of a Peruvian Vipertooth."

Zee cleared her throat. "I can help with that. We know a dragonologist."

Borage looked pleased with this. "Well, then things will be moving on nicely now, won't they?"

"How long will it take?" Harry asked, eagerly. "How long until she'll be… cured?"

Borage sniffed the steam coming out of the stewed Mandrakes, using his hand to push the steam towards his nose before he spoke. "Well, it takes a full day to stew the Mandrakes. Once we add them to the water, ginseng root, and Saint John's Wort over there, it will be a few hours to steep before we can put in any of the other ingredients. The last one here will need to be added seven days after the full moon which puts us at the twenty-seventh and then, yes, well, it will need to simmer on low for another seven days before we can add the blood. Her blood first will need to be added and then yours twenty-four hours later… I'd say about a month."

"A month!" Harry exclaimed, his eyes widening. "But that… that's so far away!"

Borage gave him a helpless look. "An antidote of this magnitude, to get it right, it must be brewed successfully. We've got it started and that's what matters. She'll have been under the influence a little over a month by then and it will be getting more dangerous for her, but it means that we have lots of time to prepare the potion just right."

Zee's arm linked through his and she kissed his cheek. "We've got this, sweetie."

Fleamont cleared his throat in the portrait. "And you'll be staying for the month to oversee it, right, Libatius?"

Borage turned to look back at the portrait. "As long as you supply me with a comfortable bed and let me bring my wife over, I'll see this through."

"We can provide anything you need," Harry assured him. "Thank you, Mr Borage."

Borage nodded as Rosa came in with his breakfast. "Excellent! I love a good egg tart!"

Remus watched as the man helped himself to the coffee and breakfast provided with a jolly smile and thought at least something good was happening out of this.

~ ASC ~

Hermione was tired when she returned home just after six that morning. Once Borage had the potion started, she'd been relieved to go home with the hope of getting some sleep. She Apparated into the back garden and snuck quietly into the house. She'd just closed the door behind her when she heard her father clear his throat.

"Er, hi, Dad."

"Jellybean," Greg said. "Where have you been?"

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to be out all night. I was at Hogwarts researching for Harry and we found something. We started the potion with some help from a Brazilian Potioneer his grandfather knew and we lost track of time. I should have let you know."

Greg stared at her. "Yes, you should have. I know you're seventeen now, almost eighteen, and that's an adult in the wizarding world, but in my world, you still live under my roof."

"Yes, Dad."

He tapped his fingers on the arms of the chair before he spoke. "There was someone loitering outside of our practice today. It wasn't someone whom I recognized, but he had strange clothes, like your lot sometimes wears. He never came within the warding zone Bill Weasley set up, but he was watching your mother and I."

Hermione's eyes widened. "Dad… I told you, things are getting dangerous."

"We've decided we'll go," he said, surprising Hermione.

"You will?"

Greg nodded. "Your mum and I have always wanted to go to Australia and I reckon that's far enough away for you?" At her nod, he continued, "We talked about it last night and we'll take a sabbatical. Dr Yîn is more than capable of running the office. She's been with us for ten years and Dr Hajjar is there to assist if needed."

"Dad, that's great news!" Hermione exclaimed. "Thank you!"

"Of course, it means that you won't be returning to Hogwarts in the fall."

"What?"

Her father's eyes bored into hers. "We're not going without you, Hermione. You are our daughter and we will not leave you here in these dangerous times. We'll go, if you come with us."

Hermione stared at him, her mouth opening and closing like a guppy. "Dad… we talked about this. I'm needed here. I can't just… I can't just take off."

"Well, then neither can we," he said simply. He stood up and kissed the top of her head. "Get some sleep, Jellybean. Mum and I will be working late tonight."

He left her standing in the middle of the living room, her eyes still wide in surprise.

~ ASC ~

Percy looked up from his desk when someone cleared their throat; he was surprised to his cousin standing there. Maximus Weasley was five years older than him and worked in the support staff of the Minister of Magic.

"Max, hi, this is a surprise," Percy said, putting his quill down. "Did you need to set a meeting with Jameson?"

Max shook his head, running his fingers through his unruly ginger hair. "No, I was looking for you."

Percy adjusted his glasses. "Oh?"

Max pulled one of the visitors' chairs over, tucking himself into the cubicle next to Percy. "I was talking to Gabe and… we think that you and Bill taking your seats in the Wizengamot was a hell of a move."

Percy raised an eyebrow. "Really?"

He nodded. "When you first joined last summer, we thought that you were mad. In fact, as I'm sure you remember, Gabe claimed that you were stupid for wanting to jump into the political side of the Ministry, but he's changed his tune."

"And you?" Percy asked.

Max shrugged. "I've always loved politics as you know. Lately, I've been assigned to assist the Deputy Minister with whatever he needs. I love the office work and reading bills and all that jazz, it thrills me. You get it. You get that same excitement working here, I imagine?"

Percy nodded. He did. He knew that his brothers made fun of him for liking the political side of things, enjoying the paperwork and the office politics, but working in the Department of International Magical Cooperation was exactly what he had always wanted.

"Yes, I do."

Max tapped his fingers on the desk. "Anyway, we were talking and we think that we might like to fill the two other Weasley seats."

"There's three," Percy said.

Max rolled his eyes. "Gabe and I are only two, you dolt. Look, the third might be filled by Gaius, we're working on him. Gabe thinks that we should ask Marcus because he's older, but you know how he is, the Quidditch crazed obsession he has, there's no way that he'd make it through one Wizengamot session. I think Gaius is the best choice."

Percy nodded, thinking of his cousins. Gabriel worked in the Department for the Reconstruction and Cooperation with Magical Creatures, specifically in the Being Department. His job was to deal with troublesome ghosts including hauntings and exorcisms. His wife Sandra worked alongside him as a ghost hunter. Gaius was an Arithmancer and loved nothing more than to work with numbers. He worked in Wizengamot Administration Services dealing with taxes and billing. Percy thought it was the most boring job that he could imagine. Marcus worked in the Department of Magical Games and Sports and Percy thought his cousin was right; he would go barmy in the Wizengamot.

"So, the three of you would take the seats?"

Max tapped his fingers on the desk again. "As I said, we're thinking about it. It would mean all five of the Weasley seats are being held by Weasleys, something that hasn't happened in almost two centuries. Plus, if Gaius says yes, it would mean you have at least one Weasley from each family."

He had a point. It would encompass each of his dad's brothers' families into the Wizengamot.

"Why now? Why not last summer?" Percy asked.

Max sighed. "Well, we talked about it then, as you know, but it wasn't something we were willing to do. Now, after the attack on the Causeway, knowing they got to Hogwarts, the rumours of no one having seen Dumbledore… shit is going down, Percy. The war is here and everyone has to step up. It might not be much, but if having us in the Wizengamot means that we can help in some way, we're ready do that. What do you think?"

Percy pushed his glasses up his nose. "I think the Sovereign Chalice will have to decide, but I say go for it. Bill and I would certainly love to have some more Weasleys on the council. Why did you come to me, though? And not Bill?"

"Gabe was going to talk to Bill, but I talked him out of it. I heard that he's doing better, but Uncle Arthur was telling Dad about his face and his throat… I didn't want to impose on his healing especially with his wedding coming up in a few weeks," Max admitted.

"He's doing well," Percy assured him. "I'm sure that he'd love to hear your thoughts on joining. Between wedding plans and Mum's coddling, he would find it a comforting change."

Max chuckled. "Good to know." He dropped his voice as he leaned in. "And Ginny? Uncle Arthur was saying something about a potion affecting her memory?"

Percy swallowed. The bloodlust potion. He knew that his father had told his grandparents about the potion, but no one else knew the exact details for everyone's safety. "We're working on it. She'll be fine. You'll see her at the wedding."

Max nodded and slapped his cousin on the back as he stood. "Good. Well, I'll see if Bill is free for a pint and we'll discuss politics. Otherwise, I'll see you at the Wizengamot session next Friday."

He watched his cousin make his way through the other cubicles with a smile. It was nice to see that some of his cousins were thinking of claiming the Weasley seats. There were three more open to their family, having once belonged to five brothers two hundred years ago, one for each of their children to fill. But now… it had been almost a century since they'd been filled and even longer since all five had been. It was about time they pulled together to claim them back.

Percy thought about Max's concern for Ginny and his hands fisted at his sides. He knew that it was wise not to let too many people know about what had befallen his sister, but he wanted to scream it from the rooftops, to tell the world what had been done. Maybe someone would be able to help her if they knew. Fred had stopped by his office early that morning to tell him that Harry had something in the works, an antidote, but that it was going to take a full month to brew it. Which meant that Ginny wouldn't be getting the antidote until just before or after her birthday.

That felt like an eternity.

It wasn't that she hated Harry that Percy found hard to deal with, it was the subtle memory changes that hurt him the most. Not only had she made Harry out to be some villain in her mind, which was bad enough considering Percy knew how much she loved him, but she'd also changed how she viewed her brothers. Ron, whom she had always been close to, was now held at a distance because of his friendship with Harry. Fred was the one who told her stories instead of Percy and George was the brother who she called her knight. It bothered him.

As annoyed as he had always pretended to be, he loved it when she called him Sir Percival, her Knight of the Stories. He had loved sharing stories with her. He couldn't count the number of times that she'd woken him in the middle of the night, crawled into his bed and begged for him to tell her a story. He read book after book to her, tales of adventure and romance, horror stories and mysteries… whatever she fancied. She'd come to him a few times at Hogwarts, too, making him think fondly of when she'd been a little girl. Now, she remembered him as the brother who ignored her cries for help when she was possessed by the diary. Nothing he said would change her mind about it.

And how she treated Arthur… she blamed their father for the diary and could barely even look at him. Percy knew it was killing his father every time Ginny looked at him with such contempt.

He and his brothers had been spending as much time with her as they could, but she was picky about who she wanted around her. Fred and George she clung to. She accepted Ron grudgingly, ignored Percy most of the time, and Bill was still her hero. Charlie would be coming back to England in four days and Percy wondered how she was going to react to him.

Jameson came out to tell him that he could leave for the day and he thanked her. He finished what he was doing before he grabbed his messenger bag and wand and made his way towards the lifts. A kiss to his cheek made him smile down at Audrey.

"Hi."

"Hi," she said, brightly. "How was your day?"

"All right," he admitted. "Yours?"

"Dead boring," Audrey said. "Any news on Ginny?"

Percy shook his head, giving her a grateful look when she linked her fingers through his. "Nothing new since this morning's news."

"No news is good news," she told him.

They walked hand in hand into the atrium of the Ministry before they Disapparated back to his flat. He unlocked the door and let her inside after him, kissing her.

Audrey linked her arms around his neck, her fingers running through the unruly curls on the top of his head. "Want to order takeaway?"

"That sounds brilliant. I can tell you about my cousins wanting to join the Wizengamot along with Bill and I."

"Oh? Sounds interesting."

"It could be," he said as he hung his robes on the hook by the door. "We've yet to see."

Audrey sat on the chesterfield, tapping the cushion. "Come sit with me."

Percy sat next to her, his arm moving around her shoulders, pleased when she snuggled in. "It was Max's idea."

"Who's Max again?"

"The one who works in the Minister of Magic's Support Staff. He's five years older than me and my Uncle Alphard's son. You'll meet him at the wedding."

"Is he as handsome as you and your brothers?"

"Of course not," Percy said, making her chuckle.

Audrey's fingers gently moved along his stomach through his shirt. "More handsome then?"

"Let me tell the story."

When she smiled at him, he couldn't help but smile back. And he thought that as long as he had her by his side, he could handle anything.

End Author's Notes:

(Portuguese) Almas gêmeas perfeitas = Perfect Soulmates

Helpful reminder of my Weasley clan:

Arthur's parents — Septimus and Cedrella nee Black Weasley

1. Bilius Weasley m. Lucretia

(a) Septimus Weasley (Herbologist) m. Bianca Sousa (Herbologist)

(i) Mason Weasley

(ii) Silas Weasley

(b) Gaius Weasley (Arithmancer for Ministry of Magic) m. Jillian Kinders (Accidental Magical Reversal Squad)

(i) Emmett Weasley

(c) Marcus Weasley (Department of Magical Games and Sports) eng. Theodora Francis (Healer)

(d) Tiberius Weasley (Healer)

2. Alphard Weasley m. Maureen

(a) Caradoc Weasley (International Ambassador to MACUSA) m. Holly Gibbons (Auror MACUSA)

(i) Jeffrey Weasley

(ii) Grayson Weasley

(b) Valerius Weasley (Healer with Healing Hands in Habitat) eng. Daphne Hillman

(c) Gabriel Weasley (DRCMC Agent) m. Sandra Appleby (DRCMC Agent)

(i) Thomas Weasley

(ii) Remington Weasley

(d) Maximus Weasley (Minister of Magic Support Staff) eng. Madelyn Frost

(e) Marius Weasley

3. Arthur Weasley (6th February 1950) m. Molly Prewett (30th October, 1950)

(a) William Arthur Weasley eng. Fleur Delacour

(b) Charles Septimus Weasley — Aydin Dora Weasley (b. December 1st, 1996)

(c) Percival Ignatius Weasley

(d) Frederick Fabian Weasley

(e) George Gideon Weasley

(f) Ronald Bilius Weasley

(g) Ginevra Molly Weasley

I adore the scene in Ghost when Swayze's character sings to Goldberg and I couldn't resist using a rendition of it. :D

Thank you for reading and please review!