A/N: I'm updating on Monday as promised! I am going back to school tomorrow, though, so no promises about the next chapter. I do want to let you know that I'll be out of town for the weekend, so that will probably slow down the writing process. But I hope to have the next chapter up within two weeks.

Bobsterthelobster: That's coming up in future chapters – in fact, Remus's first encounter with his "past" is in the next chapter.

obsessedwithharrypotter: I saw the movie over the weekend! I loved it!

To All Readers: Thank you so much for the positive feedback on Remus's reaction to Umbridge teaching at Hogwarts! I was really writing more of myself there than ever – as a teacher, I took Umbridge as a personal insult, so I gave most of my emotions to Remus. I also think a lot of what she did in the book tends to happen in real life, with people who are not educators and/or have no educational background making decisions about what should and should not happen in schools. Again, Remus expressed my opinions perfectly. I didn't just hand my feelings to him – He's a teacher, so that's pretty much how he would feel. Okay, I'll step off my soapbox now . . .

Thanks for your patience, everyone! And thank you for reading and reviewing! Enjoy!

I don't own Harry Potter.

Cousins

Remus sat alone in the kitchen of Number 12 Grimmauld Place reading over the minutes from the last Order meeting, which his guard duty in the Ministry had prevented him from attending. He frowned as he looked at the last item on the agenda. It dealt with Snape's report from within the Death Eater circle. The topic did not surprise him; Snape gave reports at every meeting he could attend. What did was the vagueness of the report. Surely a Death Eater as well connected as Snape claimed to be would be privy to more information than "no attacks are currently planned." He shrugged, wondering if Hestia, who had been in charge of recording the minutes, had written it like that as a precaution against someone outside the Order reading the document. He would have to ask Sirius – assuming that Sirius was in a civil enough mood to talk.

The truth was that Sirius had been decidedly melancholy ever since his conversation with Harry via Floo Network. Remus had assumed at first that his own conversation with Sirius was what had set him off – that he was angry because Remus had accused him of using Harry to relive his childhood. But, as the days wore on, Remus had come to the conclusion that Sirius was merely bored – bored, and aggravated with the house arrest he had been placed under. Remus wanted to help his friend, but did not know what he could do. It simply was not within his power to give Sirius the freedom he craved, or to help him reclaim the life that had been taken from him so many years ago.

Remus sighed as he thought of it. In so many ways, Sirius had lost his life the same night that James and Lily had lost theirs. His home, his job, his friends and his freedom had all been stripped from him by the same man who had sent Voldemort to curse the breath from James and Lily's bodies. Now, Sirius was struggling to rebuild his life. Remus wanted desperately to help him, to make up for all the years that he had believed Sirius guilty of a heinous crime, but did not know how to go about being supportive.

As he was pondering ways that he might help his friend break free from his melancholy, the kitchen door opened. He looked up in time to see Tonks trip into the room. She quickly righted herself, and gave Remus a bright smile.

"Hi, Remus!" she said. "I was hoping to find you alone."

"Hi, Tonks," he smiled. "What can I do for you?"

She stopped herself just before making a rather suggestive comment in reply. I really need to stop thinking of him like that, she thought as she sat down across from him at the table. She looked into his soulful eyes and knew that it would be next to impossible for her to stop thinking of Remus "like that." She found him incredibly attractive, and knew that there was no way she could deny or change her feelings.

"Tonks?" Remus asked, breaking her from her thoughts. "You had a question?"

"Right," she said, shaking her head to clear it. "I wanted to talk to you about Sirius."

Remus raised his eyebrows. "What about him?"

"There's something I wanted to do to surprise him, but I need your help to organize it."

Remus grinned. "Well, doesn't this sound familiar? Are you planning to bring Olivia in for a visit?"

"No, not Olivia," Tonks replied with a grin of her own. "I'd like to bring my mother to visit him."

"Andromeda?" Remus asked. "That's a great idea! He'd love to see her! Tonks, this is perfect! I was just sitting here trying to think of a way to cheer him up. I think you've found a fantastic solution."

She beamed. "Stop with the praise, Professor, or you're going to embarrass me."

Remus grinned. "Never. You can't be embarrassed."

"It does take a bit, but I can be," she laughed. "You'll help me get my mum here, then?"

"Of course," Remus replied. "When do you want to bring her?"

"I don't know – whenever she's free, I suppose. It doesn't matter if the place is empty like last time. I don't think they need quite the 'quality time' that Sirius and Olivia needed."

"I certainly hope not," Remus laughed. "This shouldn't be too hard to arrange, then. The one you really need to talk to is Dumbledore. He has to tell Andromeda how to find us."

"Right. Is he coming to the next meeting?"

"I think so."

"Good. I'll make sure I'm there, too."

"Do you want to tell Sirius she's coming, or do you want it to be a surprise?"

She looked thoughtful for a moment. "Can we let it be a surprise? I think it will be more exciting that way, and goodness knows he needs some excitement in his life."

Remus laughed. "Fair point. All right, I won't tell him anything about it."

"Thanks," Tonks said happily.

"And I'll try to stay out of the way while she's here," he added.

"Oh, Remus, I'm sure Mum'll want to see you, too," she replied.

"I'll say hello to her," he said, "but I really think that she and Sirius will need all the time they can get to catch up." He smiled sadly. "I remember when we were all at Hogwarts together – they were really close. I think they really felt united against the rest of their family, you know? When Regulus started school with us, Sirius and Andromeda were always together, trying to find ways to keep him away from the Slytherins and the lifestyle they offered."

Tonks tried to hide her surprise as she causally asked, "You were at Hogwarts with my mother?"

"Only for a couple years," Remus clarified. He smiled. "She was Head Girl my second year."

"Ah, yes," Tonks said in an effort to not appear affected by the information she had uncovered. "It was a terrible disappointment when I didn't make Head Girl."

"Your mother adores you," Remus smiled.

"Sometimes," Tonks laughed. She rose from her seat. "I should get to work. I just wanted to stop in to see if you thought letting them meet up would be a good idea."

"I think it's a brilliant idea," Remus replied. "Do you want me to talk to Dumbledore for you?"

"No, I'll take care of it," she said. "Thanks again, Remus."

He smiled at her. "Anytime."

She returned the smile, then hurried out of the room. Once outside the kitchen, she paused to lean against the closed door.

Remus was at Hogwarts with my mother? How can that be? He's not that much older than me . . .

Even as the thought went through her head, she thought of Sirius. She knew that he had been a fourth year when she was born – he had told her about how he felt like a proud uncle showing off her picture to the other boys in his dormitory when he had received her birth announcement.

"Oh, God," she murmured, putting her hands over her face. "Sirius is fourteen years older than me. That means that Remus is fourteen years older than me, too!"

Well, this will probably make it easier to stop thinking of him in naughty ways.

"At least there's that," she muttered to herself. She pushed away from the wall and Disapparated.

Tonks had to admit that she was quite jumpy during the next Order meeting. She was a bit ashamed of her feelings; she was an Auror – an Auror surrounded by her colleagues. She had faced dark wizards more times than she could count. Now, she was terrified to face the one man, aside from her father, whom she had never feared: Albus Dumbledore.

The meeting seemed to drag on forever, yet to pass in mere seconds. Dumbledore finally declared the meeting adjourned, and the Order members rose to their feet. As had become their custom, the majority of the members stayed to chat. Predictably, Snape was the first to sweep out of the room. Arthur, too, left early; he was due to relieve Bill from guard duty.

Tonks swept her eyes around the room. Everyone, with the exception of Dumbledore, appeared to be deep in conversation. Summoning her Gryffindor courage, she crossed the room to join Dumbledore, who was collecting his notes.

"Professor?"

"Nymphadora," Dumbledore said, turning to her with a smile. "How are things in the Auror department? Has Rufus stopped suspecting you and Kingsley of working against him?"

She grinned. "I hope so. He hasn't asked anything odd recently, so that's a good thing. I think that Kingsley and I have become better at hiding our after-hours activities, as well."

"I'm glad to hear it." A shadow of concern passed over his eyes. "The last thing we need is the Ministry interfering in our work."

She nodded, knowing that Fudge would have them all thrown into Azkaban without a second thought if he discovered that they had brought the Order back into service.

"But there was something else you wanted to ask me, was there not?"

She smiled. "How did you know?"

"You look a bit nervous. I remember that look from your days at Hogwarts."

Her smile widened. Dumbledore's ability to remember his students never ceased to amaze her. "Yes, sir, I do have a question."

"Well, ask it, then, but all means."

She drew a deep breath. "I'd like to bring my mother to headquarters to visit Sirius."

"Your mother?"

"Yes, sir. She's Sirius's cousin, you know, and I think it would do both of them good to spend some time together. She's feeling quite guilty over believing that he had betrayed Lily and James for all those years, and he's . . . well . . ."

They both glanced over to where Sirius sat alone in a corner, his expression dark. Dumbledore nodded.

"Yes, Sirius is losing himself a bit," he said sadly. "He's been through a terrible ordeal, spending all those years in Azkaban for a crime he did not commit. But, I fear that he is facing a still more horrible trial now, as he attempts to reclaim a life that cannot, at least for now, be his again."

Tonks nodded silently, unsure of how to reply.

Dumbledore finally looked away from Sirius to face Tonks again. "I will need to meet with your mother before I can give her access to our headquarters. You understand that, don't you?"

"Yes, sir," Tonks said, wondering if the Black family name would dog her for the rest of her life the way it followed her mother and Sirius through theirs.

"I'll contact Andromeda as soon as I can," he promised. He smiled at her. "It's a lovely thing, what you're trying to do for her and Sirius."

She smiled, again at a loss for words.

Dumbledore smiled again, then stepped away from her. She was not alone for a minute before Remus was at her side.

"What did he say?"

"He's going to talk to Mum," she said. "I suppose I should tell her beforehand, shouldn't I?"

"You haven't mentioned it to her yet?"

"I didn't want to get her hopes up," Tonks replied. "I was a bit afraid that Dumbledore wouldn't allow it."

"Why wouldn't he?" Remus frowned.

Tonks shrugged. "Sometimes, the Black name can stand in the way of good things."

"Dumbledore knows your mum, Tonks," Remus replied. "He knows that she's not like the rest of your family."

She shook her head. "Mum doesn't really consider them family. She never has – well, never in my lifetime, at any rate."

"Does that bother you?" Remus asked, watching her closely.

"Not really," Tonks said with another shrug. "I've never really known them, so I suppose I haven't had the opportunity to know what I'm missing."

Remus smiled faintly. "Not much."

"You sound like Sirius," she said with a grin.

"He's never been much of a fan of the Blacks," Remus acknowledged. "I think he actually tried to convince himself that he was a long-lost member of the Potter family for awhile when we were at Hogwarts."

Tonks grinned. "I'll bet that went over well."

Remus laughed. "Well, he didn't get blasted off the family tree for nothing." He looked at her closely again. "What about you? Have you tried to deny the Black family?"

"I never really needed to – not the way Sirius and my mum did. I don't have the name. I've always been Nymphadora Tonks. Unless people have known who my mother is, and who her family is, they've never really associated me with the Blacks. And, those who do know my mother generally know that she wants no part of that family."

Remus nodded. "You're fortunate."

"I think so," she smiled. She touched his arm lightly. "And you're sweet to care."

He shivered slightly at her touch. He tried to smile, but found himself putting all his effort into fighting the urge to touch her face.

"Remus, can I speak with you for a moment?"

Remus turned to look at Bill, who had just returned from the Ministry. He cleared his throat. "Yes, of course." He looked back at Tonks. "Excuse me."

She nodded and smiled.

Remus stepped away. Once again, Tonks was barely alone for a moment before she was joined, this time by Kingsley.

"Hey, King," she smiled.

"Don't be so coy," he grinned. "We need to talk."

"What are you on about?" she asked.

"You and Remus."

Tonks rolled her eyes. "Are you kidding me?"

"Well, you two have been together a lot."

"So have you and I," she replied. "We work together."

"Tonks, come on. There's something between you and Remus. I can see the sparks."

"Yeah, well, I think you should have your vision tested. Talk to Harry. I'm sure he can recommend a good optometrist."

"A what?"

She rolled her eyes again. "You should have taken Muggle studies while you had the chance."

"Stop trying to distract me. You know I'm a gossipmonger. I want to know what's going on with you and Lupin."

"Kingsley. He is fourteen years older than me."

"So?"

"So!" she cried. "Do you know what that means? It means that when he graduated from Hogwarts, I was four years old!"

"My mother is fifteen years younger than my father," he shrugged. "I don't think it's that strange."

"Well, I do."

He looked at her for a moment, then smiled. "You might say that, but you don't really believe it."

"And just who are you to tell me what I believe?"

"I'm your partner. I'm the one who's worked with you every single day since you started in the Auror department. I'm the one who watched you during your training and was so impressed with you that I begged Moody to assign you as my partner when you were ready. I'm the one who knows you better than your own mother does. You may not like it, but I'm your best friend."

She smiled in acknowledgement of the sentiment. She and Kingsley had been incredibly close since she had become his partner.

He stepped closer and looked deeply into her eyes. "You think that he's too old for you. You might think that he's too nice for you, to reserved for you, too . . . I don't even know. But even though you think all those things, you feel something quite different." He stepped even closer, and dropped his voice to a whisper. "You feel that he might just be the perfect man for you."

She looked up at him with wide, startled eyes. Unable to speak, she just looked into the dark depths of his eyes.

A wide smile stretched across Kingsley's face and a sparkle jumped into his eyes. "I knew it."

Tonks finally found her voice. "I don't know what you're talking about," she said as she shoved past him. "I need to go talk to my mum."

She hurried from the kitchen without speaking to anyone else. She made her way into the hallway, where, once again, she fell against a wall. She shook her head to banish the conversation with Kingsley.

"I can't," she whispered. "I just can't."

Then, closing her eyes, she Disapparated.

"Nymphadora!" Andromeda exclaimed as her daughter appeared in her living room. "Hello, darling. What brings you over?"

"I need to talk to you," she said without preamble.

"All right," Andromeda said quickly. "What's wrong, sweetie?"

"Nothing," Tonks said, smiling as she sat down across from her mother. "I just have good news, that's all."

"Really?" Andromeda smiled, her eyes beginning to shine. "Should we wait until Dad comes home from work?"

"No, this is about you," Tonks replied.

"Oh," Andromeda said in confusion, the shine leaving her eyes somewhat.

Tonks smiled tolerantly, knowing that her mother had assumed that she was engaged – or, at the very least, seriously dating someone. "Mum, you're going to be excited, I promise."

"Well, let me be excited, then. Tell me what's going on."

"I've talked to Professor Dumbledore. He says you can go to visit Sirius."

Andromeda's eyes widened, and a smile lit up her face. "I can go see Sirius?"

"Yes."

"When?"

"Dumbledore wants to talk to you first, then he'll give you access to the Order's headquarters. He said he'll contact you as soon as possible."

"I can't believe it!" Andromeda exclaimed, jumping out of her seat. She threw her arms around her daughter. "Oh, Nymphadora, you were right! This is wonderful news!" She sat back down and wiped away a happy tear. "How am I going to wait until Dumbledore contacts me?"

Almost as if in answer to her question, an owl swooped through the open window across the room. It landed in front of Andromeda, who took the letter it carried. She read the message, then looked at her daughter with a beaming smile.

"He wants me to go to Hogwarts to meet with him tomorrow."

Remus walked into the library with a sheaf of parchment in his arms. His intention was to study his notes from his previous trip to the werewolf colony in preparation for his second mission, which he would leave for over the weekend.

"Hi."

Remus checked at the sound of his friend's voice. "Hi, Sirius," he replied. "I didn't know you were in here. Do you mind if I join you?"

"Be my guest," Sirius replied.

Stepping all the way into the room, Remus saw that Sirius was lying on the couch. Several books were scattered on the floor around him.

"Reading voluntarily?" Remus asked lightly.

"I needed a nap. Reading puts me to sleep," Sirius said with a lopsided grin. "What are you up to?"

"Getting ready for my next foray into the life of a true werewolf."

"They're making you go back there?" Sirius asked.

"I have a feeling this won't end until I'm a true spy within the werewolves like Snape is within the Death Eaters."

Sirius shook his head. "But, Moony, it's not the same thing! Snape enjoys what he does!"

"He's turned his back on that life, Padfoot."

Sirius shook his head. "I know how it works. Once you join the Death Eaters, death itself is the only way out."

"You just want to keep the old grudge alive."

"Maybe. But I still don't trust him. I never will."

"I don't doubt that for a minute."

A light knock sounded on the door. Remus and Sirius both looked up.

"Hello," Andromeda said softly.

Sirius sat up, then jumped off the couch. "Andromeda?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes, Sirius, it's me," she said, tears pooling in her eyes.

"I can't believe it!" he exclaimed.

They both started across the room, meeting in the middle in a warm embrace.

"What are you doing here?" Sirius laughed as he released her. "How did you get in?"

"Dumbledore gave me access," she said, laughing herself. She released Sirius and looked past him. "Hello, Remus."

"Hello," he grinned. "It's good to see you, Andromeda."

"You, too," she replied.

"I'll just leave you two alone," Remus said, recollecting his maps and notes.

"No, don't do that," Sirius said. "You wanted to actually work on things. We'll go somewhere else to talk."

"Are you sure?" Remus asked.

"Of course," Sirius insisted. "Come on, Andromeda. Let's go sit in the kitchen."

"All right," she agreed. She grinned as they left the room. "As I recall, that's where we usually hid out on holidays."

"It's the best place to nick food," Sirius grinned.

"Is Kreacher still here?" she asked.

"Of course," Sirius replied, rolling his eyes. "Unfortunately, he knows to much for me to free him. He'd probably just run to Narcissa with all the Order secrets."

"I don't even want to think about what she'd do with that information," Andromeda shuddered.

"She is still a Death Eater, then?" Sirius asked, holding the kitchen door open for his cousin.

Andromeda shrugged. "I haven't spoken to her in ages."

"Really?"

She sighed as she sat down at the table. "What can I say? All we did to distance ourselves from our family actually worked."

"You don't seem happy about that," Sirius said, waving his wand to make tea.

"Well, I'm not really sure how I feel about it," she admitted. "I know that I don't want to live the life that my sisters have chosen. I never wanted Nymphadora to be anywhere near that. So, I suppose that everything has worked out as I wanted."

"But?" Sirius prompted.

She shrugged. "I guess I'm like you. I wish I could have saved my siblings."

"Narcissa was lost before you even knew what was happening," Sirius said. "And Bellatrix . . . I don't think there was ever a point where she could have been stopped."

"Bella," Andromeda sighed. "It makes me ill to think of what she did to Frank and Alice Longbottom."

Pain crossed Sirius's face. "I saw her."

"What?" Andromeda asked, startled.

"In Azkaban," Sirius clarified. "I saw them bring her in."

"Oh, God," Andromeda exclaimed. "I don't know if I want to know . . ."

"I won't tell you, then."

She was silent for a moment, then leaned forward. "Tell me."

Sirius sighed. "She was flanked by dementors, like all the prisoners are when they're brought in. But it was different with Bella. She wasn't screaming like they usually are, or even attempting to escape. She just walked down the row to her cell with her head high, like she was royalty and they were her servants."

Andromeda shook her head. "How could they not affect her?"

"I don't have a clue," Sirius said. "But I remember thinking, that's my cousin over and over again. I barely knew who I was, but I remember knowing who she was. That jogged something in me. It was like I suddenly remembered that she really was a Death Eater, she really was the awful person everyone thought I was – but I hadn't done anything that made me deserve to be on the same level as her. That was the point when I remembered that I was innocent. That was when I started to be able to fight back."

"Oh, God, Sirius, I'm so sorry," Andromeda said. "I should never have believed that you had done what they said you did. After all those years, after all we had been through together – I should have known."

"It's not your fault, Andromeda," Sirius said softly. "I don't blame you, and I don't feel like you've wronged me."

She drew a shaky breath, and blinked back tears. "We're together again now," she said. "That's what matters, right?"

"Right," Sirius grinned. "Now, tell me all about you."

"What's to tell?" she laughed. "Ted is still a Healer, and I'm a stay at home mother whose child is grown. I have a daughter who will never marry and give me grandchildren."

Sirius laughed. "She's not an old maid, Andromeda. Tonks is still quite young."

"She's not getting any younger," Andromeda sighed. "But she hates is when I talk about things like that, so I'll stop."

Sirius laughed again. "What about the others in the family? Who's left?"

"You and I and my sisters. Narcissa's Draco is supposed to be the one who will carry on the noble work of the Black family."

Sirius grinned. "Ah, yes, Draco Malfoy. He and Harry are good friends."

Andromeda laughed. "I think that Lucius had rather hoped that they would become friends – you know, the family could gain greater prominence through Draco's friendship with Harry Potter. Apparently, that didn't happen."

"Quite the opposite, really," Sirius grinned. "Ah, well, at least the feeling is mutual."

"The last time I talked to Narcissa was during Draco's first year. All she talked about was how Harry was overshadowing her son, forcing Draco into the position of second-fiddle in Dumbledore's eyes."

Sirius looked at her for a moment without speaking.

"What?" she asked.

"I've missed you," he said simply.

She smiled, and reached across to take his hand in hers. "I've missed you, too."

It was late when Andromeda left. She promised to come again soon, now that she knew how to find Sirius. He was waving his wand to clean up the kitchen when the door opened again.

"Hi, Sirius."

Sirius turned around to see Tonks coming into the room. "You are my favorite cousin!" he exclaimed. He crossed the room in two strides to pull her into a bear hug.

She laughed. "I'm glad you liked my surprise."

"You're the best!" he said. "I had such a great time with your mother."

"I'm glad," she said again. "She was really excited to come over." She sat down at the table to watch him work. "So, what did you two talk about?"

"The great relationship that Harry and Draco share," Sirius began with a grin. "We also talked about the insane streak in our family – which, fortunately, you did not inherit."

She giggled. "Mum says stuff like that, too."

"Ah, yes, we also talked about the tragic truth of your marital state."

Tonks rolled her eyes. "She's never going to give up on that, is she?"

"Not until you're married, my dear," Sirius said. He put away the last of the dishes, and sat down across from her. "For the record, I told her that you're not all that old."

"Thanks," Tonks grinned.

"But," he said, looking at her closely, "I can't help but wonder if you would change your marital status if a certain former professor were to ask you to do so."

Tonks felt her face growing hot as the color rushed to her cheeks.

"So," Sirius grinned, "I've been right in telling Remus that you have a crush on him."

"You told him that?" she moaned. "Oh, Sirius, how could you?"

"Relax, Dora, he doesn't believe me," Sirius said soothingly. "And now that I know the truth, I won't say anything to him. I'll leave it up to you."

"Thanks," she said. She sighed. "Have I really been so obvious?"

Sirius grinned. "A bit."

She shook her head, and buried her face in her hands. "I really do fancy him," she said softly. She lifted her face from her hands to look at Sirius. "You're his best mate. What can you tell me about him?"

"Whoa," Sirius said, holding up his hands, "I am not the one you want to play Cupid."

"I don't want you to give him a love potion, I just want you to tell me about him."

Sirius sighed. "He's – Remus is one of the best friends I've ever had," he said slowly. "He's an incredibly good person, Tonks, but he's been incredibly scarred by tragedy. He's not had an easy life."

"He told me about being a werewolf," she offered.

"Right. He's been dealing with that ever since he was a little kid. But even more than that, he's seen firsthand how horrific war can be. We lost one of our friends to Death Eaters before we even graduated from Hogwarts. Then there was his wife . . . then Lily and James . . ."

"Was his wife killed by Death Eaters?" Tonks asked. She hated to admit it, but she wanted all the information she could get about this woman.

"No," Sirius said. He sighed. "Listen, Dora, I don't want to tell you too much about Laura. Remus is really private about that part of his life, and I don't want to invade that privacy by divulging too much. So let's just say that she made him incredibly happy – and that it nearly killed him when he lost her."

"So you're saying that he's still married to her memory, and that I don't have a chance?"

"No. I'm saying that he loved her very much. You have to tread carefully with him. Just – just go slow, Tonks, and be careful."

She nodded. "I can do that."

"Good. I think he can, too."