A/N: I just want to thank everyone for their condolences, they mean a lot. I'm not sure when chapter eight will done. This chapter was the first to be written after…well, ya know…and I think it sort of reflects that in the fact that I was so tired when I started to write that there was a giddiness there. Also, my original work is a 3rd person POV like Hermione's are and switching back and forth is to 1st person…weird.

Also, sea shanties are freaking awesome. I'm not sure why I started listening to them on Youtube but they're fun.

As always…me no own Harry The Potter.

Chapter Seven: No Right Answers…

I'm not sure I've ever seen a man as mad as Lord Potter when Madame Maxime asked him to leave her school. He'd worked up quite the head of steam and as he'd say, 'was mad enough to eat horseshoes and spit nails' over the fact that I stepped into the fight with the bull-headed-men. Honestly, the man didn't seem to quite get the owl on exactly what'd happened over the summer other than him getting a new last name.

It was quite amusing, not that I'm supposed to admit this, to watch Maxime grab up Harry's uncle by his collar and the belt around his waist and chuck into through the green flames of her office fireplace. I'm pretty sure she sent him to the British Ministry, or maybe Dumbledore's office…or that school in Africa. She was quite mad in her own right and I couldn't understand what she'd shouted; I just hope the fireplace had.

Not sure I want to tell Harry we lost his uncle on a peaceful mission to France. Got a sister but lost an uncle. I'm not sure the boy would ever recover and then I'd have Luna after me. I was contemplating where on Earth I could hide from that girl when Aunt Andy nudged me.

"You sure you're alright, Athena?" she asked worriedly, this after I'd been seen to by the strange healer man Maxime kept in her infirmary.

I nodded. "Oh, I'm fantastic. Not every day you fight minotaurs and watch a man get through into a fireplace. Meh…" I shrugged and tried to repress a yawn. "So, now what? We came, we saw and told, and then broke half the town. Only thing that would have made this complete was the obscure happenings to a Hogwarts DADA professor that I may or may not have had a hand in…or not."

Madame Maxime made to respond but stopped when Aunt Andy slowly nodded. "Eet cannot be thaz bad," she asked sounding almost hopeful.

I shrugged. "It's on my list of things to fix. Any-who…" I looked to Lindsey, who looked lost in thought, "hey, sugar plum, you got any thoughts or questions before this bandwagon of fun merriment and scenic tours heads back, we were supposed to only have the S.S. Minnow out for three hours."

Lindsey and Aunt Andy smirked knowingly while the French witches looked confused. "Yeah," Lindsey nodded slowly, glancing at Fleur before continuing, "Do you think it'd be alright if I wrote to Sirius? Would he…she," she corrected herself, "Would she welcome a letter from me?"

Aunt Andy nodded quickly. "Yes, she would. You've no idea how weird that is to say but even weirder is that it's strangely fitting. Lindsey…" Aunt Andy paused and sighed heavily. She seemed to need a minute to sort out what she wanted to say. "Sirius has been many things over the course of her life but I've never seen her more serious, no pun there this time, than when it came to finding you. I think a letter from you would do the…woman a world of good. However, don't do it for Sirius, do it for yourself. If you're not ready, then don't."

I smirked, tired-me is a dork, "and if you do want to become a Black we've gift bags waiting. You get a decoder ring, the Black Mask of Dark Hues, and…not many get this," I whispered loudly, "but you also get a life time subscription to the family newsletter…I promise that the first several issues won't be varying prison records."

Aunt Andy clamped a hand over my mouth. "That's enough out of you, young lady!" she gave me a pointed looked as I frowned up at her. "Lick me and I will stick your tongue to the top of your mouth for a full month!"

My eyebrows shot up and…I stopped myself from what I was about to do. Apolline snickered from beside us. I grumbled and folded my arms across my chest. A nap sounded really good right about now, like really nice.

"I promise you, we're sane." Aunt Andy sounded almost convincing.

**A**

My nap came when we returned to Grimmauld Place, after I'd gotten Aunt Andy and Aunt Cissy to pry Sirius off me. I'd given her the letter that Lindsey had written quickly before we'd left. I didn't care that Sirius was now of the female persuasion, I'd been going to punch her in the face if she hadn't let go; only thing that saved her was that she was pregnant. There's something inherently wrong with punching a pregnant woman.

That nap had lasted all of two hours when Nym was shaking my shoulder. She needed me at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement. I couldn't quite catch why I was needed because I was too busy trying to pry my eyelids open; the open mechanize on them seemed to misfiring or whatever.

I was grumbling as I pulled my boots back on and stumbled after my cousin. Nym took pity on me and helped me put my vest back on; I couldn't quite figure out why I couldn't get my arm through the other side and had been chasing it the way a dog does with its tail. She then made sure that my wand was at my wrist and deemed me ready to go; it was a good then I'd fallen asleep in my clothes because I think pants would have been beyond my ken.

Nym apperated us to her apartment first; saying I needed a coffee run before dealing with what was waiting for me. I frowned at her but followed anyways to a quaint little shop just around the corner from her building. She even got me a pastry.

With that pastry happily in hand and an almost drinkable coffee in the other, I happily followed Nym towards a visitor's entrance to the ministry; they were scattered all over London to avoid overuse. I nearly panicked when the telephone box started lowering into the ground, there should have been instructions before moving parts started moving…just saying. Nym was way too amuse by my plight.

I was generally more awake when we arrived at the DMLE where Kingsley Shacklebolt was waiting near the lift. The overly tall man wore a deep frown and Nym looked apologetically at him. She quickly explained what had taken so long. His response was an eye roll and gruff command to follow him.

"Why exactly am I here?" I asked after we'd passed by the bull pen and Madam Bones's office. "I was having a very nice nap, you know, with dreams and everything."

Auror Shacklebolt smirked as he looked over at me. "Sorry, Lady Black, but this pertains, I should think, to Black house business."

I started counting on my fingers who could be in trouble and people weren't quite panicked enough for my mother to have escaped. They proved that by the storming of Gringotts. Thus I was left befuddled.

"Weren't me!" Nym cried when I looked to her, she grabbed onto my arm when she tripped herself. I held her up until she found her feet. "Thanks, little cousin, but this weren't me, swear to Merlin's short pants. This is more of a werewolf problem."

I frowned as the realization dawned on me. "Okay…so can we cut the cryptic shite and you lot can tell me exactly why Lupin's here?"

"Because," Madam Bones called standing just to the side of a large plate glass window. Her arms folded across her chest, "he got drunk and about tore up The Leaky Cauldron in human form trying to smash in Lucius Malfoy's face?"

"So, he was doing a public service but incurred property damage?" I asked and Madam Bones smacked me upside the head.

She pinched the end of my nose and glared at me. "He broke half a dozen laws and is looking at serious time in Azkaban without a proper barrister. He is a registered magical creature and the laws are harsher for him. Getting drunk and starting a fight that nearly kills a man is a capital offence given his enhanced abilities."

"Oh," my voice changed because of my pinched nose. "So I should send for Uncle Ted?" Madam Bones nodded and then nodded again when I asked, "Can I talk to Lupin?"

**A**

Lupin was disheveled. His normally neatly combed hair was sticking up in all directions worse than Harry's on a bad day, his mustache was even ruffled. I had to wonder if he'd gone nose blind to the stench coming off his own clothes because they were foul with body order and stout drink. The man-wolf didn't even look up when the door was open, he didn't even care about the tear that leaked down his cheek.

"Well," I said as I sat down across from him at the stainless steel table he was at, "I'm going to say that you've had better days, Professor."

Lupin chuckled sardonically. "I'm no longer a professor, Miss…sorry, Lady Black, isn't it?" he asked, staring down at the dried blood on his hands. "Haven't been a professor for a while. I'm sorry for the trouble I caused that night."

I shrugged. "What happened, happened. If different choices had been made then things would have turned out differently and I'm just as much to blame as you or Sirius." He looked up sharply at that. "I knew better than to run and make myself prey but I forgot everything that Fraser had taught me in that moment as I watched Pettigrew become a rat and run away. I could have escaped your wolf if I remembered how to use my wand or that I could transform into a frigging bird and fly away but I didn't. Sirius could have told us about the rat to being with, so see…not everything is on the wolf."

Lupin considered that a moment before nodding. Another tear leaked down the side of his face and I watched his Adam's Apple bob twice. I let him have a moment to compose himself.

"You are in some hefty trouble, Remus Lupin and I'm not talking about you knocking up my cousin," I stated bluntly. Lupin turned red and ducked his head, he was either shy or ashamed I couldn't tell. "So, I'm going to ask and if I hear any self-deprecation, you won't make it to Azkaban…do you understand?" he nodded meekly at the threat. "Good, now, do you love Sirius?"

"Yes." He confessed, still not looking at me.

That was irksome but I wasn't about to force the man to look up. "Do you want to be a father to her child?" he nodded and that made me livid. "Speak up, damn you! Have a goddamned backbone, you cowardly dog! Why should I put House Black out on a limb when you're too much of bleeding, simpering worm to man up and be with Sirius?"

"BECAUSE I'M NOT WORTHY!" he screamed at the top of his lungs. "I've no job, no prospects and will never gain any with the way that laws are! What've I to give Sirius and our offspring?"

That was more like it! "A father and a husband, ya numpty!" I hissed at him. "Sirius has not a care about money. She doesn't need you to be a provider. My cousin needs you to be her partner and help her through this. This pregnancy is dragging up so many memories from the last time she was pregnant!"

Lupin went ashen and he sat back in his chair. "Sirius…she told you about that?" he asked dumbly. "About her and James?"

I nodded. "Yea, and I've already found their daughter. I'm not going to tell you, Sirius can do that if she wants. So…what's it going to be? Should I thrash you for being self-deprecating like I promised or do I send for Uncle Ted to find you a way out of this mess that you've put yourself?"

Lupin gulped hard. "I-I…I want to be a father," he said, his tone so lowly that I nearly didn't hear him.

I rapped my knuckles on the table and nodded. "Good, because I really would have thrashed you to within an inch of your life. I'm not in that good of mood, haven't been for several days. You've chosen wisely, Remus Lupin."

I really wasn't kidding and Lupin seemed to shrink in on himself. Now I was going to find Uncle Ted, let this be his headache and I was going to finish my frigging nap. Let those be warned about interrupting it for anything less than Hermione or the end of world. Fighting minotaurs sucks.

**A**

I didn't get my nap when I returned to Grimmauld and I couldn't exactly enact my wrath upon the person responsible. All Kreacher had to do to make me follow him was look pleadingly at me, dinner was ready and the household present was just waiting on me to start. Cute little elf eyes totally sucked the heat out of my temper and made me feel guilty for even thinking about refusing.

"So, what did Nym want?" Sirius asked when I threw myself on to the bench across from her and next to Aunt Cissy.

I growled at her, not threateningly just in irritation at being talked to because I didn't feel being sociable. "Your stupid, hairy, stinky, and cowardly werewolf got himself arrested for being dumb, drunk, punchy and an all-around nuisance. On a happy note," I looked to Aunt Cissy, "seems that someone took offence to your ex-husband's face and tried to rearrange it for him. Free of charge too."

Both woman frowned at me. "Why do I get the feeling the two are related?" Aunt Cissy asked wearily.

I shrugged. "Because they were and I'm starting to think that being Head of House is similar to having a job herding cats. That or I'm missing Hermione. She'd tell me that I'm just sleep derived and that I'm being a ham. Also, obnoxious and that I should stop talking and worrying too much, breathe and then eat. Certainly she'd hug me and then demand to know if I'd finished my homework. Is it dumb to worry about homework and fear my girlfriend more than the teachers to whom I owe the homework?"

Again, both women frowned at me but there was a lot more blinking this time. I grumbled at their unhelpfulness. It was just best to go to the source of comfort and that source was at Hogwarts. Shaking my head, I stood from the bench and headed for the living room and the floo that was there.

In a flash of green flames I entered Gran's office and found it empty. I guess it was dinner time and everyone should be in the Great Hall. Well, that was just fantastic!

Not sure that anyone realized I'd arrived in the middle of dinner, not even when I sat down next to Hermione at the Gryffindor table. Everyone was too busy watching Icarus playing with a chicken leg. He was wrapped around it and rolling around on the table top whilst attacking the meaty part of the leg.

Hermione about reached the roof when I scowled and stated grumpily, "that's about the same table manners as St. Weasley, look," I pointed to Ron who's mouth was stuffed too full to close. "It's quite appalling really. Sort of like some kind of train wreak that you just can't quite look away from but the carnage turns your stomach. I think Mrs. Weasley sort of gave up by the time that Ron came along. Ginny, I'm sure, wishes most days that she was adopted rather than admit to any sane person that she's related to that monster of a mouth." I shook my head, everyone, including the grouping of Weasleys, were staring at me. "I'm starting to think that his mouth is either charmed with an expansion charm-thingy or should be a modern day marvel. Have you seen how much he can stuff in there? I'm afraid for any small and curious child that comes close to him when he gets to eating. Poor thing might vanish into that abyss and I'm not sure that he'd know the difference."

"HEY!" Ron cried in protest and Neville bore the brunt as Ron's food came flying out of his mouth.

"ATHENA!" Hermione cried happily as Neville swore, wiped his face off and leapt over the table and tackled Ronald to the ground. I'm sure he was going to throttle him if Harry and the Weasley twins hadn't gone to the rescue; Ginny was useless because she was laughing too hard.

I sighed happily and ignored the boys as Hermione threw her arms around my neck. Our magicks racing to each other and I felt like I'd come home. The tension in my shoulder eased considerably and though I was still tired, I wasn't quite as grumpy.

Hermione kissed my cheek as she leaned back away from me. Icarus took up the spot where she'd been, circling around my neck until he was wrapped around like living scarf. He looked back up at me with simmering bronze eyes.

"Momma, momma, momma," he chanted happily as he wiggled. The wyvern smelled like greasy chicken. "You're here, you're here! Me and Mommy have been having lots and lots of fun! We gots to go to class and learn lots of things like how to tell one funny plant from another! The dirty lady in the warm huts really liked me and I really likes-ed her too! She scratched my chin and I purred."

Hermione smirked as she scratched at Icarus's head. "Oh, yes, he's been quite the Belle of the Ball, so to speak," my girlfriend mused at she looked down at Icarus with an adoring look. If possible I would have melted into a pile of goo on the bench next to her; there were giddy butterflies in my chest and I think I just fell in love with my girlfriend all over again. I snapped out of my dopiness when Hermione patted my cheek and asked, "Are you alright?"

"I am now," I told her truthfully. "Hermione, you are like the best mood improver ever! You make me happy just by being you…unless you're angry and then not so much because then I've to find out why you're angry and then, possibly, hunt down what made you angry and as I can no longer punch people indiscriminately like I used to…well, I have to find new ways of making them apologize and," I looked over to a befuddled Harry, "I think that your uncle is in Africa. He really shouldn't have made the giant woman, who is normally really nice and understanding, upset. She threw him through the fire like he was…well, something really light and I think I've caught a case of the rambles. Is that possible?" I asked looking back to a bemused Hermione, "is it possible to catch a case of the rambles? I think I have, we should look in to that and while I'd rather not visit the Mistress of Agony, Anguish and Atrocious Afflictions, I think it might be in order…"

Hermione put her hand over my mouth to stop me talking. "Athena," she stated softly, big brown eyes so pretty, "have you taken any potions today?" she didn't remove her hand so I just nodded. "Why? And I want your answer in short form."

She removed her hand. "Ugh…" I blinked dumbly. I could do short answer form. "Went to France, found a lost child of Black, fought Uno and Dos and got sort of beaten up and ended up in the Beauxbatons's…" I frowned not sure how ownership worked in the case of Beauxbatons that already had the 's' at the end. It sounded funny, I really should finish my nap, "err…infirmary."

"I think we might need…the 'loooonnnnggg answer'," Fred and George said, they seemed the only ones capable of responding.

I frowned and looked to Harry. "But Sirius drew the short straw," I actually pouted at him as my shoulders shagged. This wasn't fair!

**H**

Hermione was grateful that she, Harry and Draco had listened to Athena's tale. It'd been awkward to everyone but the sleep deprived Athena; who'd told the tale as if she were listing off items on a shopping list. Hermione had made Athena eat dinner beforehand and then it seemed the whole council but Auror Danvers and Dimitri wound up in the Camelot dorm; Hermione wasn't comfortable calling the Knight dorms or whatever Athena had been calling them.

Everyone had remained quite during Athena's telling and stayed that away for a while after when she'd had Dimitri help her to bed with Icarus following. Ron had been the first to leave, a red tinge to his cheeks that Hermione was sure to mean that he was remembering his forced time as a girl. She wondered how he was handling that and if Su Li was to blame for any lasting effects.

It was Susan who broke the silence by smacking Harry's shoulder and announcing loudly, "Potter, your sister is a rotten tosser! If she writes me one more love letter, I'm sending one back that's cursed! See how she likes being bald!"

Su Li cackled happily at the proclamation, clapping her hands together and promising that she'd help. The laughing continued after Susan had pushed the former Ravenclaw off the footstool on which she'd been sitting. Hermione honestly thought that Susan was protesting too much because she'd seen Susan blushing happily when she'd received the first letter; she'd also seen Susan sneakily post one in return on her Hogwarts map.

Personally, Hermione wasn't sure what to think. Sirius becoming a girl and getting pregnant was not the weirdest thing to have happen since she'd entered the magical world. To her it was just strange biology; having unicorns, flying horses and a girlfriend who could shape-shift into a hawk and herself turn into a fox…now that was weird. It was, however, irksome that Lindsey Clarke happened to be Sirius's daughter but that annoyance she'd felt now made sense; it was apparently hereditary.

Hermione had snuck into Athena's room when Auror Danvers started shooing kids out of the dorms. Athena was laying facedown with Icarus between her shoulder blades. Unable to resist the urge, Hermione stole some too-big sleeping clothes and crawled into bed with her girlfriend after killing the lights. She was content to simply lay next to Athena and inhale the minty freshness of her girlfriend.

**H**

Professor McGonagall did not look amused nor charmed when she woke Hermione the next morning; Athena being all but dead to the world with a soft buzzing snore. With a huff, McGonagall summoned Jubilee in order to bring Hermione a set of clean clothes and then sent the girl off to the bathroom to change. Poor Icarus cowered down on Athena's back when he moved to follow Hermione to the bathroom but was stopped with a glare.

In the common room, sitting at the couch with a knowing smirk, was a fresh faced Draco. Hermione gave him a two-fingered salute when he started clapping. Once Hermione was dressed, she and Draco were ushered out of the dorms by McGonagall towards her office. Icarus sneaking through before the monks had closed themselves to try and haphazardly land on Hermione's shoulder.

"Sorry, Mommy," he said as Hermione turned at the last second and caught him. Since she'd woken up Sunday she'd been working with the wyvern to improve his speech. Flying as next on that list. "Momma was still sleeping and Icky was awake, so Icky decided to go with Mommy. Are we going to visit the classroom again today? Icy want to go flying!"

Hermione smirked. "Yes, we are going to class today," she told the little wyvern and he groaned loudly.

"Seems like someone doesn't like class," Draco smirked. "Guess he's more normal than you are, Girl Granger."

"Fink he'd look the same with pink hair?" Icarus asked before blowing Draco a raspberry and Hermione wondered for a second if Icarus was capable of that type of magic.

However, Hermione was capable of that type of magic. She waited until they were near McGonagall's office to slip her wand into her hand and mutter the spell to make Draco's hair pink under her breath. Icarus noticed first and the little wyvern started chuffing with laughter until his bronze eyes started to fill up with tears; it was only when McGonagall turned to look questioningly at Draco as he might have known what caused the wyvern's mirth.

It was only years of self-control that kept the woman from laughing but not from smiling. Draco was too focused on Icarus to notice the change in his transfiguration professor and so he walked into her office without knowing what was truly going on; his confusion was only compounded when Harry started laughing and spitting out bits of ginger newts as he did so.

"He not look the same with pink hair," Icarus told Hermione whilst shaking his head. "The fake dragon look better!"

"Umm…Draco, Icarus loves your hair, by the way." Hermione mentioned trying to keep a straight face.

That face was lost when Draco caught sight of himself in the mirror that McGonagall had transfigured from a cookie. Draco's eyes went wide and he screamed like a girl from a B-horror movie. He was running his fingers through it as if that'd make the color go away when his mother came through the floo.

"I approve the change, my son." Narcissa Black told Draco as she was biting her fist to keep from laughing.

"Mother, this isn't funny!" Draco whined. "Pink's not in my color wheel! Look at this!" he cried pulling at his hair. "Blue or green or Merlin's ball sack Gryffindor red! I'm not Nym, I can't pull this off."

"How do you know what color Merlin's ball sack was?" Harry asked cheekily.

Draco just crossed his arms over his chest and raised his chin. "A gentlemen doesn't kiss and tell, Potter."

"Boys!" McGonagall chided, scandalized. "Enough of that." With a flick of her wand Draco's hair returned to its normal color and Icarus pouted. "Now," McGonagall said tersely, "there is a reason that you three were called here. Miss Granger, you were asked for though this situation does not truly affect you as it does Mr. Potter and Mr. Black."

The three teens looked at each other before Harry asked, "Is this about Sirius? Athena sort of told us last night but she wasn't…feeling well."

"What was wrong with here?" McGonagall demanded, her voice laced with concern.

The boys looked to Hermione. "She was a bit sleep deprived or something along those lines, Professor and there was something about minotaurs in Champ Doré."

McGonagall's sharp gaze snapped to Aunt Cissy, who shrugged and said, "I wasn't there for that, you'd have better luck getting Andy to answer your questions. I'm strictly here to introduce the situation but it seems my lovely and very understanding niece has done that for me."

"Mum," Draco called softly, "what do you mean by introducing the situation, exactly? Because we already know that Sirius pulled a switcheroo and also had a dorm-baby."

McGonagall scowled at Draco. "Don't call them that!" she hissed angrily. Hermione got the feeling that was a touchy subject for the woman.

Aunt Cissy nodded slowly. "Well, that's not far off the mark. Sirius was supposed to be the one to explain everything but considering the reaction to most who've seen her so far, well…I-we…we thought it better to give you a warning. Sirius should be arriving in five minutes…so consider yourselves warned my little ducks."

With that Aunt Cissy wondered over to the couch that was now a permanent fixture of McGonagall's office and gracefully threw herself on to the soft leather. She smiled at Draco and patted the seat next to her and Draco groan before doing as silently commanded. Harry and Hermione seating themselves in the chairs that lived at the front of McGonagall's desk.

Hermione had seen pictures of Bellatrix McGonagall nee' Black and she almost thought she was looking at a double when Sirius came through the floo. There were differences but such a resemblance that Hermione didn't blame the DMLE for storming Gringotts. Sirius, Hermione decided, looked amazing as a woman; there was a naturalness to this Sirius that hadn't been there before.

A quick glance around showed that Hermione was not the only one who was awed by this version of Sirius. Even Sirius's constant smile and the glow about her was captivating. The only one who seemed not to be in awe was Aunt Cissy, who looked slightly bored with the whole thing.

"I think I broke them," Sirius teased and grinned at Aunt Cissy, getting an eye roll in return.

**H**

The first question that Harry asked was, "did you and my dad really, ya know…do that thing that adults do to have kids together? I know how it works," he glared at Draco, "but I'd rather not think certain things, alright flamingo head?!"

Draco put up his hands for peace as Sirius frowned. She'd taken a seat on the sofa next to Draco with almost the same amount of grace as her cousin had. Hermione wondered if that was natural or practiced or a bit of both.

"Harry, you have to understand that the situation between your father and I was, had always been complicated." Sirius stated. It was strange to hear the change in tone after having gotten use to Sirius's deeper voice. "He and I had always had a connection, we met on the train and became instant friends. Our families didn't associate and when James Potter told me that he was going to be a Gryffindor, well, I wanted to be one too. We loved each other as friends and then as more. I'm not saying that James didn't love your mother, Harry, because he really did. However, not all lovers will love the same." Sirius tried to explain but Hermione wasn't sure that Harry understood; she didn't even understand completely. "James and I did…shag, for lack of a better term, after I'd taken a human transfiguration pill and because the woman I was meant to be."

Harry nodded slowly, chewing at his lower lip. "Athena said that you got caught being a girl and that's part of why you ran away. I just…why did you change?" he asked looking confused. "Athena explained that it was like needing to change into your animagus form, your magic and body itching to change but you can't so you're restless, irritable and feeling like you're going to crawl out of your own skin."

"Wow," Sirius looked shocked at the description. "She's not wrong, that…that is a very good description of what it feels like but missing a few things. There's a sense of wrongness and wanting some of the same things as girls like make up and dresses or earrings. Pretty things that the other girls gushed about all the time." Sirius shrugged and leaned back into the couch. "Or agreeing with them, silently of course, about which boy was cuter or had the nicer bum or filled out Quidditch robes better. I hated myself for a long time for wanting to be included in those discussions and not knowing why until James turned me into a girl as a prank."

"Did my mum know about you and James and Lindsey?" Harry wanted to know, he blinked away tears.

Sirius shrugged. "I honestly don't know but I think so. After James and I were forced to give up Lindsey to keep her safe from my mother essentially, James and I grew apart." Sirius smiled then, a little smile that seemed sad to Hermione. "When he told me that Lilly was pregnant with you, Harry, he was so excited just like when he found out about Lindsey. However, Lilly became slightly cold and distant with me." Sirius shook her head and sighed. "James may have told her but swore her to secrecy because my relationship with her was never the same. I mean, nothing happened between James and me once he started dating Lilly. He was fully with her the whole way throughout their relationship."

Harry nodded again and Hermione couldn't help but hear Athena's voice in her head about Harry beginning to look like a bobble-head doll. Hermione wondered how much more Harry could take before he lost his self-control. There was so much about James that Harry didn't know and this, this was a shock to everyone and not just Harry.

"So, if Tom Riddle hadn't been a royal ass-hat with illusions of grandeur, would you've stayed like…would you have stayed as a woman?" Harry asked curiously as he wiped away a tear.

Sirius nodded. "Yes, I would have. My soul feels settled and less…turbulent now as it did the first time I got to experience being female. I feel at peace."

Harry shifted in his chair, Hermione could see that his next question was one that he was struggling with; he was trying to find the words to express what he wanted. Hermione shook her head when he copped out and chose a different question. She had to wonder what question burned in Harry's mind that made him change directions.

"Are you really pregnant?" Harry blurted and looked, for a brief second angry at himself but quickly schooled his features.

Sirius grinned, a hand going to her stomach. "Yes, I am."

**A**

I woke to Jubilee poking my cheek and calling my name, after batting her hand away I sat up and decided that I felt better. Much better and could think clearly. Jubilee was still standing beside the bed and looked a little worried. I felt dread in my bones because whenever Jubilee was worried it meant that something was seriously wrong.

"What's wrong, Jubilee?" I asked, slightly scared of what answer she was going to give. "Did Uncle Ted fail in taking care of Lupin? Is something wrong with Nym? Please tell me that Aunt Andy and Aunt Cissy hasn't done something to Sirius because I don't feel up to looking for corpses. Also, so not kosher to hurt pregnant people. Or is it Lindsey…would you even know something was wrong with her?"

Jubilee made to answer but stopped, folding her arms over her chest and glowered at me. "I would most certainly know if is Miss Lindsey was needing something. Do not doubt my awesomeness!"

I frowned at the elf. "You've been spending time with Su Li, haven't you?"

The little elf merely shrugged. "I may or may not have been. However, that is not the reason I am waking Miss Hammy. Miss Sirius and Miss Cissy have come to Hogwarts to talk to Mister Harry and Draco and Miss Myne. Err…I don't think it was going so well, Mister Harry got upset and stormed out of Gran's office and has missed his morning classes."

"Oh," I took a moment to process that and then frowned. "What time is it, anyways?"

"An hour before noon," Jubilee answered promptly. "Gran asked me to ask you to find Harry and make sure that he's alright. He's in Miss Myrtle's bathroom. He has not eaten the breakfast that I brought him, he is a naughty boy."

I wondered if I was going to catch hell from Hermione about missing even more class. With Jubilee's help, I was up and dressed in short order and off to find Harry. Who was, in fact, in Myrtle's bathroom and was listening to Myrtle sing out whatever new song she'd learned.

If the ghost could have blushed she would have when I started clapping for her. When I praised her growing abilities, Myrtle gave a cry and dove into her toilet with a splash. I hadn't meant to embarrass her because she'd gotten really good.

"I take it you heard about Sirius's visit." Harry asked, sitting on the desk purloined from Lockhart's classroom.

I shrugged blue and crème colored shoulders. "Just a little but as I know the story she was telling, well, that must have been…weird, confusing and slightly heartbreaking."

Harry nodded slowly before asking, "How do you do it? How do you visit your mum?"

"Usually with approval from Madam Bones," I smirked when Harry gave me a two fingered salute. "Harry, you really shouldn't compare situations between myself and you. There's a lot that I don't talk to her about, mainly my father. Everything I know about him I could count off on maybe both hands. I don't ask because he doesn't feel real to me; just a guy in a photo with my mum." I told him and he frowned. I wasn't sure the frown was because he understood or he didn't.

"Do…do you think…do you think," Harry growled as he stumbled over his question and I leaned against a divider between stalls. "Do you think Sirius would have been my mum if everything had worked out for them, for Sirius and my dad?"

I shrugged. "I hadn't given it any thought, to be honest but maybe. Things would have certainly been different, that's for sure." There was something about Harry's question that made me ask, "Harry…do you want to think of Sirius as a sort of, I don't know, mother figure because she did have a kid with your dad. Like, she and he were together first?"

Tears filled his eyes and he glared at his drawn up knees. "Does that make me a bad person?" he asked. "For wanting a connection to my father? For thinking that, in some way, Sirius as that mother figure makes me closer to my dad because they wanted to be a family once upon a time? Does that tarnish the memory of my mum?"

"No," I shook my head. "I think of Helena as a mother figure, in fact I should really get together with her later now that I mention that," I mused and shrugged. "Harry, I really do see Helena as a mother figure and Kaylee as well depending upon the situation. Mother, aunt, older sister, a female authority figure…Kaylee just sorts of fills that docket weirdly well. Gran is sometimes a mother figure when she isn't yelling my middle name and sometimes when she is. However, all of them do not replace how I see my mum. She has her own special spot apart from the others and I know that she's happy that there are those that can fill that role for me, sad that it's not her but I digress."

"What about your dad?" Harry frowned and looked up at me.

I sighed heavily. "Again, he doesn't feel real to me. I like hearing stories about him and I like looking through the things he left behind but honestly, I don't feel the need to actively search for him. I'm not sure if there's anything that can make me feel close to Robert. If you really want to me think on it," I paused and then willed myself to admit, "I think that Fraser totally ruined that father figure role for me. Uncle Ted is an amazing man and I really do look up to him but I don't think of him as a father. Rupert came the closest but I still thought of him as my uncle. I'm sure that Healer Ball, the mind healer lady, would be interested in that admission but it's the truth. Maybe, Harry, you should sit down with Neville or Susan. Neither of them knew their parents either, if I'm not mistaken."

Harry nodded and slipped down off his desk. He wiped at a stray tear before calling out a goodbye to Myrtle before he pulled me out of the bathroom by the hand. It was lunch time and I could hear his stomach rumbling.

"Do you think Lindsey would like a letter from me?" he asked suddenly, having let go my hand as we walked down the hall.

I smiled at him and nodded. "I think she would. I think that she's just as confused as you are in this whole shuffleboard of parental characters."

Harry nodded and stuffed his hands in his pockets. The wheels in his head were turning and he was chewing at his lip. I think Neville will be the first to be approached and then Susan if Harry didn't get the answers enough from Neville. Hopefully they would be of more help than myself.